Getting psyched for the Savannah Marathon







I felt like the bodyguard to the Ellis bros on our trip to the Rock -n- Roll Savannah Marathon. They were mean, lean, running machines and psyched to run this 26.2 mile run through the beautiful, historical streets of Savannah with a live band at every mile marker.  

 

Live oak trees lined the streets and Jackson Square.

 

Friday's packet pick up at the Convention Center.

 

Cobblestones and Savannah River views.

 

Our place.

 

Toast to a good run and a good time.

 

The night before. The gear.

 

Saturday, November 3rd, 2012, 7:30 a.m.: Showtime

 

The bros and the "bag" lady.  Time to strip down to your running stuff.

 

Remembering New York - our thoughts and prayers are with you all. 

 

Star Spangled Banner

 

 

Last minute advice to the big bro from the younger bro.

 

#1 brothers in Savannah  

 

Good luck handshake!

 

 

 

 

They're off!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spooked after Sandy

 

It is finished.  Sandy has left the country.  A new dawn is here to get the east coast cleaned up to have normalcy again.  Mother Nature has flexed her muscles and the north took a beating:    

 

 

 

My family, from New York City down to South Carolina, was spared the wrath of the Super-storm.  My son and a crew with trucks left the south with generators to lend a hand in New York City.  He hopes to bunk with his sister in the Big Apple. 

 

In the meantime, life goes on.  It's Halloween. Pumpkins to carve, and munchkins to dress up for trick or treat.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who have suffered from the storm.           

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sandy loses control on the coast

My family dots the east coast from New York City to the Delaware Bay to Virginia Beach to South Carolina.  What a week -- already.  Thankfully, my family members are safe from the Sandy super-storm. 

Disasters are piling up.  Even Ronald McDonald had a rough night.  My thoughts are with you.

 

http://weather.aol.com/2012/10/29/east-coast-grinds-to-halt-as-superstorm-nears/weather.aol.com/2012/10/28/photos-superstorm-kicks-up-waves-threatens-coast/1

Swamp baby

He was destined to be -- a swamp baby. My oldest grandbaby is about 2 1/2 years old, can cast a line on his Playschool fishing pole and drive a boat. Oh excuse me, I mean, his boat.

 


His mini pontoon boat is perfect for navigating in the meandering waterways of Charleston, SC. On my recent visit, we spent a few hours hunting for gator. Thank goodness we didn't spot any!

 

Chug, chug, chugging along the coast

It was time. Time for my trip to see the grandbabies. Now ten hours away, it is heart breaking to see photos and an occasional video snippet of those two cherub faces in South Carolina.

The Virginia family was booked with work and school, so I was going solo.

I set out to see my son and his family in a new mode of transportation -- for me -- Amtrak.
Chugging for eight hours in business class for a price less than the cost of gas was a no brainer.

 

It was relaxing, clean, had snacks, and a view of the countryside. But the best part about the trip was the prize at the end -- smiling faces and a few days of loving and spoiling two munchkins.

 



Heritage: who looks like who?

Stumbled across the grandparents: My dad's family, the Schmalhofers, German, carpenters; and my mom's family, the Werners and  Rancks, military family. 

 

In my opinion:

 

My oldest son and middle daughter resemble Pop Schmalhofer. black and white).

 

My oldest daughter looks like Pop Pop Ranck, and the youngest looks like Gram Ranck and Mom Werner. 

 

Mom and Pop Schmalhofer

 

 

 



     

 My dad, middle daughter, and son resemble the Schmalhofer family.

 

 

Gram and Pop Pop Ranck                               Mom and Pop Pop Werner 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




My oldest and youngest daughter and my mom resemble the Ranck/Werner family.
I guess I am a combination of all of them.  My mission in the next year or so is to start a family tree to remember all the details and stories told through the years.

If you made a family tree, how did you find the information about your family? 

 

Urban wedding at a reinvented cork factory

It was certainly a surprise when I received an invitation to a family member's wedding at a Cork Factory in the urban area of Lancaster, Pa, my hometown. It had been years since I had seen that area of the city.  My recollection was of old dilapidated factories left abandoned from the manufacturing era.  What I found was The Cork Factory Hotel, a registered Historic Hotel of America. 

The old stable area from the factory days. 

 

The stable is now the Ballroom for weddings and events. 

 

The factory had been humming since 1865.  The site sat idle for years and was bought in 2004 to become Urban Place. It is a hot spot for weddings and events.  The environment is a cross between modern and rustic with an industrialized flair.  

 

A restaurant, bar, veranda, courtyard, and clean, simple, sun-filled room with high ceilings marked this hotel as a worthwhile visit.  And the wedding was a blast with perfect staff coordination of event planning.  The music was pulsating as tasty food and drinks were provided with great service.