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The plan was to spend a long weekend in San Diego, CA so that Libby and my sister, Kristin, could run the Suzuki Rock and Roll Marathon. It began with about eight hours of travel from Boston to Newark to San Diego. Needless to say, the ever-mobile Luke was not at his happiest during the five-hour leg of the flight. Fortunately, nearby passengers acted like they enjoyed him, but the parents were very stressed by a new and powerful feeling of helplessness.

My sister and her husband, Garret, arrived shortly after us. Given the time change and the emotional day of travel it was a short night for us. We got up the next morning and went to the beach to surf. My former Trouble-Kleff Recording partner, Craig Kleffman, recently moved to San Diego. He joined the surfing party and loaned me his 10-footer. That board made my day! What a great day of surfing. Perfect conditions. Luke learned about sand in every crevice and crashing, but sneaky, waves.

Later that afternoon, Air Force friends from LA--Rick Bolander, Noel Kelly and Todd & Mally Kusserow--made the drive south to join us for dinner. Always great to see old friends who live as far away as the continental US will allow.

The marathon itself was pretty amazing. There were bands every mile or so along the route--which went through Balboa Park, near Sea World and the San Diego Zoo--followed by a post-race concert with Sugar Ray headlining.

I'm very proud of both Libby and my sister. It's a decent distance on a bike and quite an accomplishment to complete on foot. I think they were both surprised by how hilly the course was given that the course map showed only 200 feet of elevation change at its steepest. Apparently, the lesser changes were constant. Libby was hoping to officially qualify for the Boston marathon by running 3:40 or less. She ran about 3:48, which I think is amazing, but it has inspired her to seek another opportunity this year.

Last weekend we also attended the wedding reception of Kevin & Kristin Loucks at the beautiful Braeburn Country Club just down the road from us in Newton. I didn't even know it was there. They were married in Ireland with a small family affair and had the larger friends-and-family celebration here. Again, we got to see some old Air Force friends.