The Great Smoky Mountains Adventure Day 6 - Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!

[Composed 7/14/2019]

Today was supposed to be a hiking day, but given the nearly 12 miles of hiking the kids have logged, we thought we'd pick another main activity. Shira had just the activity in mind: zip-lining. We both knew the kids would love it, but would my fear of heights get the best of me?

This prompted us to search for a zip lining experience with an unusual criteria: we wanted it to be super tame. We thought we found a winner in Zip Gatlinburg. Talking to the clerk encouraged me more: while there are 9 zip lines, every other one lands you on the ground. If you need to bail out, you can do so at this point. However, in all the years he's worked in the store, he's only heard of one person not completing the course, and even then it was due to heat stroke, not fear. I was sold.

They loaded us in our harnesses, and took extra care with D's insulin pump. We then took a 10 minute bus ride around the corner from main-street Gatlinburg up the side of a hill. They took some group photos, and before we knew it, it was time to zip. The first zip line was a short, maybe 10 foot, affair. I've had some zip lining experience before, so I hoped that what I'd learned then would help. I shifted my weight to the harness and then pushed off into the abyss. In just a couple of seconds, I found myself at the next tree. I did it. We all did it. We were zip lining!

We had two guides taking our group of 10 folks or so on the course. They couldn't have been more relaxed and low key. I asked if I could pop-out my cell phone to grab some pics. Sure, one of the guides responded, knock yourself out. Just put it away when you're zipping.

With our first short zip line out of way, things got way more real. The kids and Shira tackled the long one without issue, and before I knew it, it was my turn. Again, I cautiously shifted my weight to the harness and then launched myself into the great unknown! Thanks to the secure hug of the harness, I was never overtaken by panic. I dare say, I even enjoyed myself! Once we were on third platform, the second guide needed to come over and join us. He leapt from the platform and spun around so as to zip upside down in a Spiderman hanging position. Whoa.

As we progressed through the zip lines the kids became more and more relaxed. And before I knew it, we'd done all 9 zip lines. By the end, both D and J were doing tricks as they zipped by, not a care in the world. As I looked back at what we completed, it all seemed so small.

As adventure experiences go, this could not have been more perfect. It challenged all of our comfort zones, and yet, we were able to all rise above and enjoy it. I'm sure if you're a seasoned zipper this course would seem like a joke. But for newbies like us, it was ideal.

Once on solid ground, we made our way back to the Great Smokey Mountains for another drive-through adventure. This time we toured the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. This was a sort of Cades Cove lite. While we didn't see bears, we caught beautiful views, picture perfect streams and explored a number of historic buildings. It was also far less of a commitment in terms of driving, which I appreciated. Fortunately for all, the well known hike to a waterfall in the area was closed for maintenance.

By afternoon we were back at our Airbnb chilling out. Playing cards were busted out, and before she knew it, Shira was teaching D the finer points of Blackjack. We're talking the statistically optimal playing strategy and proper hand-gestures. She didn't cover card counting, I assume that's the next lesson. D was picking up the info as quickly as Shira was laying it down. Lord help us when he's old enough for Shira to take him to a casino.

Meanwhile, J and I were upstairs playing pool. The pool cues were too large for D and J, so we had dispensed with them and were hand rolling the balls. This prompted J to teach me a game he and his cousins had come up with: Spin. Here are the rules:

• Spin is a game played by at least two players, though conceivably, you could have two teams.
• Players stand at opposite ends of the table. The two corner pockets closest to the player are his to guard. Each player guards the corner pocket to his left.
• The object of the game is roll balls into your opponent's pockets, which of course, your opponent is guarding.
• The game is played asynchronously: all the balls are in play at the beginning, and each player is simultaneously defending his pockets and trying to score on his opponent.
• The 8 ball must be sunk last. Sinking the 8 ball while other balls are in play causes an automatic loss.
• Assuming the 8 ball was sunk last, the winner of the game is determined by points. Each ball a player sinks is worth 1 point. The 8 ball is worth 2 points.

The game is pure chaos, with balls flying in every direction at every moment. The adult in me was horrified by this: were we going to damage the pool balls or table?! The kid in me was elated. Given that pool balls are designed to strike each other and the table at high speeds, I figured our game was no different. I threw caution to the wind and savored the game play.

At some point Shira and D came up stairs. D quickly wanted in, and I had him join my team. Shira was mortified by what she saw: someone will get hurt! As I was telling her that she overreacting, D's finger got smashed between two balls. Ouch. He was fine, but Shira's point was made. We suspended our game of Spin. Man that was a fun time!

The Great Smoky Mountains Adventure Day 5 - Chilling Out and Saving the Galaxy

[Composed 7/13/2019]

Today we celebrated Shabbat by taking a much needed rest day. I planned ahead by bringing the 5 Minute Marvel card game with us to town, and busted it out this morning to play with.

We ran through the game a number of times and I'm still on the fence about it. On one hand, it's awesome: it's Shabbat friendly, filled with great characters that the kids loved playing with and it's cooperative so everyone plays on the same team. On the other hand, I found the game play to be a bit tedious after a while.

We played through the first time having each kid play as one character. This was fun, but they wanted to know why they couldn't play as more than one character? I didn't have a good answer. So for the rest of the games, Shira and I played a single character, and the kids split the remaining ones. Turns out, having more characters in the game makes it easier to play, which was a nice bonus.

This was my first foray into the world of cooperative card / board games and I'm going to call it a success. I'll almost certainly try new games for future trips, as it was an ideal Shabbat activity. If you have any games to recommend, do share!

Another activity we tackled today was finishing the mini-Lego model of Clingman's Dome Shira purchased while at Cable Mill. Because the kids are such Lego aficionados, this was a no-brainer purchase. Yet, be warned if you pick up this or other mini-block sets: the pieces are tiny, the instructions especially challenging to follow and the completed model is terrifically fragile. This may be the perfect set for an older teenager or adult who wants a building challenge and is interested in displaying the result on their desk. It's far less appropriate for a 10 year old who actually wants to play with the resulting creation.

The kids puttered around the rest of the day, learning to play pool, taking a walk through the neighborhood and having an intergalactic battle with their Legos. It was a low key and fun day.

Here's a story from earlier in the week in lieu of pictures from today:

On our first night, after an exhausting day of travel, I was in charge of putting the kids to bed and Shira was in charge of a shopping run at the local grocery. As I was putting D to bed, he informed me that he was hungry and wanted a snack. I texted Shira asking snack suggestions. Her response surprised me:

What's his BS?

I read this as:

Good lord, you've got to be kidding me. That boy needs to be in bed like now, not playing games. Seriously, what's up with his B*ll Sh*t?

I responded calmly that we were figuring out bedtime now and all would be good.

She responded: I meant blood sugar.

Oh. Apparently I was projecting. Shira, smartly, was trying to answer my question of what to feed the diabetic child by first figuring out his blood sugar. I guess it wasn't just the kids who were exhausted.

The Great Smoky Mountains Adventure Day 4 -- Bears and Butterflies

[Composed 7/12/2019]

Today's big adventure was exploring Cades Cove, a drivable loop in the Great Smokey Mountains. Considering the hours we'd be in the car to get to and tour the area, we considered bailing on this trip. J got car sick yesterday, and the thought of traversing more windy roads had me nervous. Besides, it was a drive through a valley, how worthwhile could it be?

In short: very. Within 10 minutes of starting the loop we hit a back-up of cars. Oooh, I exclaimed, this is good! This means people are stopping their cars to check something out. We hopped out and got our first glimpse of a bear. It was lazily walking along the road ahead. In a moment the trip became worth it.

Our first official stop was at Oliver Cabin where we got out and explored the small cabin. Kudos to J for busting out his flashlight and climbing into the dark and spooky loft. D was a little apprehensive, but soon found his courage. This was the first of a number of historic buildings we'd see that day. The cabins, barns and other curious structures were a nice addition to the natural beauty we encountered.

We continued around the loop until we hit another massive back-up of cars. We leapt out hoping we'd see more bears and were amply rewarded. There, 50+ yards away were a family of bears romping through a field. We could see little puffs of black fur as the cubs bobbed up and down in the long grass. One of the adults stood on its hind legs, no doubt confused as to what we were all looking at.

From this bear sighting we continued on our way to the Abrams Falls trail head. The kids knocked out the 2.5 mile hike to the falls with no difficulty even though it was more challenging than I expected. The falls were gorgeous, though sadly the area around it is off limits to swimming. After lunch we explored the falls and surrounding area. The kids found a collection of deeply pitted rocks that were filled with water. These formed something akin to tide pools. D noticed a swarm of tadpoles in the water and worked tirelessly to get pics. In the end, with a little help from my keychain flashlight, he managed to capture some impressive shots. Kudos to him for not giving up.

As we crossed back over the first bridge to head out of the area, a beautiful black and blue butterfly landed on J's foot. We marveled at the creature and I snapped copious number of photos. D explained that he wanted to get a butterfly to land on his finger. I gently explained to D that's not how nature worked. He was unimpressed with my explanation and remained insistent he could do this.

15 minutes later we crossed a bridge and Shira noticed a moth on the railing and told D about it. She had D extend his finger and ever so gently approach the creature. To my surprise, the moth climbed on to D's hand. Assuming this Kodak moment would be fleeting, I quickly grabbed a handful of pictures. Surprisingly, the moth didn't flee. We continued on our hike, and to my surprise the moth hung on.

We had time to brainstorm a name for our hitchhiker and arrived at Lucky. D asked if he could keep Lucky. I jokingly said that was up to Lucky. Though I quickly regretted this answer as Lucky seemed to have found a new BFF and D was making plans to have him as his new roommate. For a good 45 minutes D carefully walked with Lucky on his hand. D noticed that ever so slowly Lucky was walking up and down his hand, almost certainly slurping up the salt in his sweat. This is actually a thing and is named mud-puddling. I'm not sure if it was the fact that it started to rain or whether Lucky's tummy was full, but he did eventually part ways with us. We were all a little sad to see him go. For my part, I was reminded that nature doesn't always play by the rules I expect it to.

After our hike, we hit Cable Mill where we got to explore more historic buildings. The kids peppered one young living history guide with question after question. The guide answered all 1,000 or so questions patiently and with a smile on his face. I was delighted and impressed with how professional this young guide acted.

From there it was a short drive out of Cades Cove and then we made the long journey back to our Airbnb. Between the views, wildlife, hiking and historic buildings, Cades Cove was absolutely a winner. It's considered a Smokey Mountains gem, and it's absolutely worth the hype.

Review: Unbroken

If I was going to sum up Unbroken, the story of Louis Zamperini's life, in a single word I'd choose improbable. The story of his growing up, becoming a track star, fighting in Word War II, and enduring its aftermath is filled with tale after tale of the impossible becoming possible. It's a wild ride, covering the full range of human emotions. Even with a massive story arc, I found that once I started listing to the book I couldn't stop.

Besides being a riveting personal memoir, the book brings history to life. It's one thing to talk about the gruesome stats of World War II it's another to get a front row seat to the action. From the moment Zamperini's plane goes down in the Pacific he finds himself sinking deeper and deeper into the depths of hell. Shuffled to a number of prison camps within Japan, he and the reader assume that anything would be better than his current camp. And yet, each move brings him only more suffering and degradation.

One recurring theme in Zamperini's darkest moments is his ability to act even when his situation appears to have rendered him powerless. It's often those seemingly small actions that make the difference between life and death. Consider the 47 days he was adrift at sea.

At that point in the war, the Navy had equipped aircrew's life rafts with almost no long term survival gear. The 10 items Zamperini and his crew mates found in their rafts were woefully incomplete. They had no way to desalinate seawater, no way to catch rainwater, no lures to make the provided fishing hooks be of any use, no cutting tool, no canopy to provide shelter from the scorching sun, and no insulation to help brace them against cold nights. Later in the war, rafts would be far better equipped, including providing downed airmen with a hand cranked radio to signal for help. Yet, Zamperini and his fellow crew mates found themselves without any of these essentials.

And yet, they managed to improvise. They cut notches into the signal mirror turning into into a crude knife. They tore open the bags containing the air-pumps and used them as hats to provide some relief from the sun. They collected rain water in the bags, sucked it into their mouths and spat it back into the empty water tins for storage. They managed to harvest food and avoid the deadly sharks that circled them constantly. These hacks just barely worked. The operative word, of our course, being 'worked.' For years, Zamperini lived on a razor's edge, using every bit of his fortitude to survive.

I appreciate that Zamperini's ordeal doesn't end when the war does. PTSD, while more understood now, was no less prevalent in WWII. Zamperini had a textbook case of it. Like the rest of his adventures, he'd have to hang on and use every possible resource at his disposal to survive.

I first heard about Unbroken through a movie trailer. Even from the trailer I could see that the story was going to be epically exhausting and packed with difficult to digest content. And from listening to the book I can say that my hunch was correct and then some. And yet, this is absolutely required reading. My advice: buckle up and hold on, you're in for one hell of a ride!

The 1 oz(ish), Waterproof DIY Man Bag

When backpacking, I like to organize my essentials in a carry-friendly bag of their own. That way, when I wander away from my main gear I can easily bring them along. Previously I experimented with a DIY chestpack, which was functional but could be improved.

For our most recent backpacking trip I tried an alternative solution. As I surveyed my existing camping gear I noticed how ideal the 8L Sea to Summit ultra-sil dry bag was. It was sized right, super lightweight and even waterproof. Perhaps I could fashion it into a sort of satchel to use around camp?

I imagined all sorts of sophisticated solutions for turning the stuff sack into an easy to carry bag. Before I got ahead of myself though, I decided to build a prototype. I grabbed a trout float and placed it in bottom of the bag. I then grabbed some cordage, fashioned a lark's head and looped it around the fabric which held the float. I tied a figure 8 at the other end of the cordage and clipped a carabiner to it. I dropped my man-bag contents into the stuff sack, rolled down the top and secured it. Finally, I snapped the biner to the loop created by closing the dry bag. I had my prototype.

As I swung the bag into place I was surprised at how comfortable it was. I imagined the thin cord was going to cut into my shoulder, but because the bag contents were so light, this didn't happen.

I removed the bag and tried stuffing it into the front stretchy pocket of my backpack. It was a perfect fit.

I realized my prototype checked all the boxes, and then some: it was easy to store in main backpack, easy to carry on its own, waterproof and lightweight. I had my solution!

As for performance in the field, it worked great. The thin cordage never bothered me, and the larks-head solution performed well. Getting the shoulder bag in and out of my main backpack was easy enough. At one point, I found myself in need of a short length of rope and I loved that I could easily detach the 'shoulder strap' and use it in another context.

Next time I need a super-lightweight man bag, I'll almost certainly give this solution another go.

Cooking with Nick and Francis - Fun times at the Citi Open

Earlier this week, Shira and I took in an afternoon and evening of tennis at the Citi Open. Arriving at the grounds we found typical DC tennis weather: broiling hot, with a side order of massive humidity. Within a few minutes we were sitting just a few feet from Jack Sock as he took on Aussie Jordan Thompson. We were close enough to hear Sock mutter to himself when he missed points.

Things got even more surreal a few minutes into the match when Nick Kyrgios, one of the most well known players in the tournament, cozied up to the fence to watch his countryman take on Sock. As Kyrgios looked on, Frances Tiafoe joined him, and again I found myself just a few feet from another well known tennis player.

This experience captured the essence of the Citi Open: on one hand, it's a top notch tournament visited by world class tennis players. On the other, it's a local event where you get a level of access to players and the game that would normally be unheard of. In short, it's everything a tennis fan could ask for.

We left part-way through Sock / Thompson to catch Wimbledon darling Coco Gauff. Alas, it wasn't her night as she lost out to Zarina Diyas. Still, it was a treat to watch the 15 year old play; especially in front of such an encouraging crowd.

This year the tournament introduced a massive indoor space with eateries and more importantly, air conditioning. What's more, one of the restaurants represented was the all veggie Beefsteak. I had a Faux Joe, and it was surprisingly good. I give the tournament organizers quite a bit of credit for setting up the new space.

As the night wore on, we found ourselves on center court watching Jo-Wilfred Tsonga take on Karen Khachanov. With the sun nearly set, the heat and humidity behind us, it was about the most perfect tennis watching experience anyone could ask for. Good times!