As you are all probably aware, things have been a bit crazy here in Baltimore. It seems that riots like to follow Tom and I around, including the LA riots as well as the Detroit riots(when I was little). We better stop moving!

Before the riots started last weekend, Tom, Scott and I were off on a Bike/Hike Boy Scout camping trip. We left last Friday after I spent most of the day out shopping for supplies and packing the van. Scott was nominated to cook for his patrol, so I had to get his supplies while he was in school. Tom was off work after having just returned from a business trip to San Francisco,  so he made sure all our bikes were in working order and loaded them onto our bike rack. After jump starting the van(looks like the external GPS sucked out the battery while the bikes were being loaded), we headed out to Lorton, VA. We stayed in a State campground-Pohick State Park near Mt Vernon(plantation home of George and Martha Washington) on the Potomac River. There is a very nice bike path that runs along the Potomac, from Mt Vernon to the Reagan airport. We stopped for dinner at a local Italian restaurant before reaching camp and setting up the tents.

It was a bit chilly last weekend. We got up early for breakfast and then headed out for the bike ride. Tom and I stopped half way along the trail, about 4 miles into the ride with our van in case any of the boys had trouble. Most of the troop completed the whole loop-16 miles. They ended at the Woodrow Wilson bridge for a lunch break. The bridge was recently remodeled and has a very nice(and huge) park underneath with lots of parking too. Tom and I took off on our bikes and rode up into the town of Alexandria. I had never been there before. It was a bit chilly, and early in the day, so we stopped into Starbucks to warm up before heading back to meet the boys.  The town reminds me of Williamsburg, Charlestown and Savannah all rolled into one. Lots of old, original buildings from the 1700s. I would enjoy going back to try out some of their restaurants and peek in at the stores.

A few boys followed their dad through Alexandria and up to Arlington, so they made a 28 mile ride. We really did not want to try to herd all the little scouts through downtown on a busy Saturday shopping morning. So we all headed back to camp. We tried to stop into Mt Vernon to hike the grounds, but they have changed the entrance by adding a visitor center. You can no longer just walk around the gardens or farmland, but have to pay to get into the whole complex. So we had to skip that and head back to camp.  It was early afternoon. The younger hiking scouts were still off finishing up rank requirements. I decided to take a few boys over to play Putt Putt golf  at the camp site. As soon as we finished, I recommended Scott start dinner since we were expecting rain. As soon as dinner was over, it started pouring and did not stop until early the next morning. So we spent most of our time in the tent(sadly, no campfires). At least we missed the small snowstorm they had back home! Crazy.

In the morning we packed up and headed home. It was a bit of a rough start as the new, younger boys are not as well trained in repacking tents or chuck boxes or backpacks. We set our older boys on them to help them get organized so we could leave! It is like herding chickens!(and of course a few of them got sick). All the more fun. Anyhow, we managed to get home early enough to unload and clean up the camping equipment. Then Scott got busy with his homework.

Allison also enjoyed a weekend of camping with her Frisbee team. The girls left this past Friday for a campground west of DC on the Shenandoah river. They had a lot of fun camping out with a bonfire and playing Ultimate Frisbee with teams from all over the DC area.

I had a few more errands to run last week-I had to take my mom to the dentist for a few fillings. Also, the Assisted Living facility decided to move my father onto the memory unit so they could provide him with more direct care. So this past Friday I was busy helping to move all his belongings into a new apartment, as well as trying to calm my mother down. She is not happy about being separated from my Dad. But Dad needed more attention than my mom could give him. It is going to be an adjustment for all of us.

Meanwhile, things seem to be calming down in our Charm City(not so charming right now). But what a different type of experience. People arrived to clean up the city after a night of fires and looting. Even a construction company outside the state volunteered to rebuild the burned Sr Center. We've actually had more media here in town than actual citizens it would appear. I have never seen so many CNN reporters in our city. Guess it was cheaper than traveling to Nepal to cover the quake. And our riots sparked many demonstrations in cities around the country including New York and DC. Sadly, the riots took their toll on our economy and tourism. Many events were cancelled downtown including high school proms, several events scheduled at our convention center, even a trip to our local mall by Dr Oz. He was scheduled to visit and conduct a live show but it was cancelled last week. And that was not even being held downtown! The most fascinating was when the Orioles played without any baseball fans in the stadium. A first in MLB. At least we have that!

So the city curfew has been lifted and we hope things will improve. Baltimore really is a unique city with lots of potential and lots of support and love from its residents. It has actually come a long way as a blue collar shipping town.

Boy Scout Bike Ride with Scott

 Tom under the Woodrow Wilson bridge

 Scott prepares Breakfast