We had a fun-filled weekend, but I don’t think it would be fair to say we were busy.

While Donna finished up an article Friday morning, I ran a few errands. Then we headed out to Pacific Beach for a walk on the boardwalk and lunch. We dined alfresco at Tacos El Gordo, then took a walk out to the end of Crystal Pier and back to Reed Street where we parked the Spyder. The weather was pleasant – it was about 80 degrees with clear skies. A weekday at the beach at this time of year isn’t too crowded.

Donna at the boardwalk – Crystal Pier in the background

On Saturday morning, Donna went to her bootcamp workout. After lunch we rode the Spyder over to the Normal Heights district and found Ould Sod – it’s an Irish pub. Finding an open parking space around there can be problematic, but we eventually found a space about a block away.

We were there for a going away party for a friend from my high school days. Kevin Barry is retiring in a few days and he and his wife Monica are moving to Hilo, Hawaii. We had a table on the open air patio in back of the pub – it was shaded and comfortable there. Carole Bringas organized the party and it was fun to visit with some old friends.

We left around 4:30pm and came back to Mission Bay RV Resort. It was Halloween night at the RV park. When I was a kid, Halloween was always observed on Halloween – the last day of October. Nowadays I guess everyone goes out on the last Saturday of October. Kids in the RV park went from site to site. People put an orange card in their front window if they had treats for the kids – rigs without a card were to be skipped.

Donna’s altering her diet while she’s on her two-month workout schedule – which means I’m pretty much eating an altered diet of high protein and low carbohydrates. Donna has become proficient with the Weber Q grill and has taken over some of my grilling duties. On Saturday night, she grilled wild Alaskan salmon along with a baby squash medley with garlic and herbs, topped with a mixture of feta, sundried tomatoes, and pesto. It was a delicious dinner, but I think I might lose a few pounds while we’re in San Diego. After the excesses of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta and two weeks of eating out while we were hotel bound, this is a good thing.

Grilled salmon and assorted squash

We had more fun in store for Sunday. I watched TV in the morning and caught the Moto GP race from Sepang, Malaysia, the Formula One race from Mexico City and the early NFL game. Then Carole Bringas picked us up at 2:30pm and drove us to Dana Landing where we met up with Gary Stemple and Howard Brutschy. Carole, Gary, Howard and I are charter members of the Cadman bunch. When we were in high school, we all hung out at Cadman Park.

Gary has a membership in the Freedom Boat Club – I wrote about that here last year. Gary took us on a boat ride around Mission Bay, then we beached the boat at the bay side near San Gabriel Place in Mission Beach. Our destination was the Beachcomber where the Siers Brothers band was setting up.

Boat ride on the bay – Gary, Carole , Howard and Donna

The Barefoot Bar at Paradise Point

We claimed a table at the Beachcomber and the Siers Brothers put on a great show playing classic rock tunes.

Siers Brothers Band

I checked the tide tables earlier and knew we were safe beaching the boat. The tide was near high and would be slack when we left. Gary had to return the boat before dark, so we left the Beachcomber around 6pm. I think I’d had enough adult beverages by then.

Back to the boat

This morning we have overcast skies. The forecast calls for clouds and a high of only 68 degrees. I need to do some maintenance service on the Spyder. Today seems like a good day for it since we don’t have pickleball at the Ocean Beach Recreation Center.