We're Grandparents Again

Our third grandchild, Nathan Cole Hastings, was born Friday, January 16th, 2009 at 12:07pm. Nathan arrived weighing 8 pounds, 12 ounces and measuring 19 and 3/4 inches.

We are so proud of Jim and Brandi, and we can't wait to see our new Grandson. For the latest updates, visit Jim & Brandi's blog: http://hastingsbunch.blogspot.com

What a great family !!!

Mega Tourist Day Video

On Monday, we did a power tourism day. It started off with a trip to the redwood forest (Muir Woods) with Jim, Brandi, Logan, Reece, Lisa, Tim, Katie and Me. We took the main trail out, but chose an alternate path back. It was a little steeper, but the kids kept up and we had a great time. We headed back to San Francisco over the Golden Gate Bridge, and got lunch at In and Out Burgers. Tim, Lisa, Katie and I got on a tour boat to Alcatraz, and Brandi, Jim and the kids stayed back at the Pier. By the time we got back from Alcatraz, the shore party was worn out, so they headed back to the hotel in Oakland. T,L,K and I took a break at the Hard Rock, San Francisco and our bartender Vek mixed us up a custom made shot with Cabo Wabo and X-Fusion Liqueur ....nice. Then we went to the Aquarium of the Bay at Pier 39 and had a lot of fun there. We finished up the day by going back across Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito for dinner. Woody recommended Ondine/Horizons and said he had hoped to have the rehearsal dinner here. Great recommendation Woody! The server told us the Beatles, the Stones, Janis Joplin and other famous celebs used to go there all the time.

Pier 39 Friday August 8th

Some pictures from San Francisco

San Francisco August 8th at Pier 39

Mema, Vaughan, Tom, Pam, Matt, Ben, Lisa, Tim, Liz, Steve, Brandi, Jim, Reece, Logan, Katie and Mark..... all down at Pier 39 on a chilly, windy Friday afternoon in San Francisco.

More to come...

50th Birthday Lake Cushman Video

Here's the video footage from our weekend camping trip in Lake Cushman, Washington.

50th Birthday Weekend in Lake Cushman, Washington

To celebrate our 50th birthdays, my high school buddies, Dave Garcia, Jerry Essenpreis and I planned a weekend camping trip to Lake Cushman, Washington. Dave has property near the lake with a full assortment of camping gear, including tents, floaty-toys, a campfire thingy, a boat, a tricked-out Winnebago, a camping stove, gas grill, running water, electricity and cell phone service. Thank you Dave, for inviting us to your beautiful spot in the woods.

The weekend started Thursday night with champagne at Dave & Liz’s house. The next morning, we were on our way to Lake Cushman. We stopped for provisions along the way and got to the site by mid-morning. After unloading our gear, we hooked up the boat and went in to Hoodsport to get our fishing licenses. We spent the afternoon cruising Lake Cushman and fishing (soaking bait). Later we went to Model T’s in Hoodsport for dinner. We played some pool, ate fried clams, had a shot of Patron, ate some pressure cooked broasted chicken, drank some ESP and then played a strange game of horseshoes. Since there were just three of us, Dave played “Floater.” Jerry scared some guests eating outside with his wild throws, but by the end of the evening, they were telling us jokes and laughing. We finished up around the campfire at around 1:00am.








Next morning Dave made us breakfast then we headed to the Hood Canal to drop in the crab pot. Unfortunately, the tide was too low and we couldn’t get the boat in, so we stopped off at Patti’s Seafood and bought two Dungeness crabs and a dozen large oysters. We threw that stuff in the frig back at camp, and reset to go fishing on Lake Cushman again. After a little hiccough with the battery, we were back on the lake. Still no fish biting, but it didn’t matter. Jerry and I took a swim and Dave played the watchful ship’s captain. After pulling the boat out, we stopped at the local market called the Lake Cushman Grocery. The array of video cameras in that store would impress the CIA but the most memorable part was the unpleasant disposition of the owners, so we began calling it the “Grouchery.” Later, back at camp the mega-feast started. First chips & salsa, then cheese and crackers, then oysters (raw and roasted) then grilled crab and finally enormous steaks and baked potato. We were all over-stuffed and didn’t last too long that evening.

On Sunday, we decided to go hiking in Staircase (part of the Olympic National Park). We hiked in a couple of miles to a place where Dave and Jerry said they usually crossed the river and headed down the other side, but the bridge was washed out. We walked a little further up the Skokomish River until we spotted a huge tree that had fallen across. We found our way down to it, and crossed the river. It took us a little while to find the trail on the other side, but we made it back without injury. This place was really beautiful. When we got back to camp, the wives had left messages that they wanted to have a barbeque when we got back to Poulsbo that evening. We decided to pack up the camp and head back so we could have a nice relaxing evening. Jerry’s wife Ruth put out a great spread and after dinner we played “Ring-toss” (washers).

I had a really great time and I want to thank Liz, Dave, Ruth, Jerry and especially my wife Katie for making this possible. You guys are very special people.

Weekend at Mom's

From Mark:

I had a business trip to Philadelphia for SCTE trade show (Cable Television Engineers). The show went well, and then I visited an old business friend at his house in Lumberton, New Jersey. He and his wife made steak and lobster on the grill (awesome). Later that evening I drove to Delaware to visit Mom. Got there at midnight, but we were up until 3:30 am talking. Saturday morning, made scrapple, bacon and fried eggs. Then I did a few projects, and we went to the beach. Before we left, brother Woody called to let me know cousin Mary was passing through Chicago and wanted to stop by(unfortunate timing) He also laid a little picture homework on us (results below). Mom did a great job walking out to the edge of the water where we camped out for a couple of hours. I caught a few good waves, and then we headed back for a rib roast dinner on the grill. After dinner, we pored through old photo albums, then took a carrot cake break, and now I'm finishing my homework.....