The Ups and Downs of Sport

Way to go, USC Trojans. They beat San Jose State 56-3. A blow out was expected and the Trojans delivered. Matt Barkley, a true Freshman, lead the team in his first college game as QB.

Huge upset. BYU outlasts the #3 Oklahoma Sooners and wins 14-13. Rise and Shout, Cougars!!! I was so excited to tell Sean, that I zipped off a quick email to him in Argentina.

And the heartbreak of the day. Andy Roddick lost to John Isner in a 5 set marathon at the US Open, 3rd round. After the way he played at Wimbledon, I was really hoping he could pull out a win here. I am really bummed about this one, but the other two big wins of the day (USC and BYU) helps a lot.

Seal Beach

Vacation is almost over so had to make one last trip to the beach

Lacey arrived today to spend a week with her Grandmothers, so she came along on my last trip to see the Pacific Ocean. We went to Seal Beach Pier and got a picture with the bronze seal.

California Natives

See the smoke behind me up in the mountains? We were here during the California fires and it made the air pretty smokey. But it is great to be on the beach.

Blue Whales

Page and I went Whale Watching off of Long Beach on Tuesday. First time we ever did something like this and we had a great time. We saw a few blue whales, including a Mom and her calf. I tried to take pictures, but couldn't see through the lens, so I just aimed and clicked.

Blue Whales are the larges animal on earth and largest ever in history, including bigger than any of the dinosaurs that roamed the earth.

It was wonderful watching these creatures dive and come back up

We ran into a school of dolphin too but none of the pictures turned out. Here you can see shadows of them under the water. It was a nursery pod and there were hundreds of babies. The adults were teaching them how to jump. It was another treat to see.

And of course we saw som Harbor Seals. The guide said seals are more like cats- loners and quiet. Sea Lions, which we saw later, are more like dogs. They make lots of noise are very social

A Day at Sea

Lighthouse on the Los Angeles Harbor breakwall

Palos Verdes Pennisula- covered by smoke from all the fires burning

Sea Lions basking in the sun

Heading back into Long Beach after a 3 hours tour

Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach- city of our birth