Jeff Rusinow

When there are clouds in the sky, it gets even better:

OK, it’s been close to two months since my last post. Was on hiatus to spend more time working on my book. I also like the idea of taking a break every now and then from all the social media stuff - to work so hard to get to a freedom in your life where you are truly unencumbered by many things, and then to feel the ‘pressure’ of staying current tweeting, on FB, a personal website, etc., seems a little off-strategy. Anyway, it’s that time of year, and here’s the pic of the day:

I saw this photo in a blog this morning and just wanted to post it. Yesterday a birder from Duluth, MN, Erik Bruhnke, was at a place called Hawk Ridge, where they catch and band migrating raptors. They caught and banded a Gyrfalcon, which is rarely seen in the Lower 48. Most of the time these birds stay in the Arctic tundra or similar habitat. I’ve never seen a Gyrfalcon - they are incredibly powerful, and weigh about double a Peregrine Falcon! This photo, taken by Aldo Raul Contreras Reyes, was taken at the perfect time during the release of the bird.

Over half of the people in this photo I hadn’t seen in over 35 years! Or even longer. Until about three weeks ago, in Georgetown. Talk about a blast from the past. This was the kind of crazy reunion which was terrific. Although, admittedly, there was a bit of ‘where did the time go’ playing in my head. Let’s do it again soon.

I write this during the third quarter of the Monday Night Football game against the Minnesota Vikings.

OK, Brett Favre is having an incredible night. Just amazing.

Doesn’t matter. THE PACKERS SUCK. Aaron Rodgers is a very capable and talented quarterback. BUT THE OFFENSIVE LINE & THE PASS RUSH OF THE PACKERS ARE TERRIBLE. How could management and coaches tolerate such incredibly poor performances?

And what about all the penalties.

This team is absolutely no fun to watch.

Today I saw over 20 Peregrine Falcons taking advantage of 30-40+ mph westerly winds migrating southward along the coast of Lake Michigan. A longtime hawk watcher at Concordia College summed it up perfectly: “Other than the female form, there’s nothing more incredible than a Peregrine, tilting into the wind, screaming right past you.” Looks a little like:

A week and a half ago we were the guests of Glen Ringwall and Mark Mannion and got a behind-the-scenes tour of the Harley Davidson Museum. First time visit for us, and it was terrific. They have in storage close to 300 bikes ‘representative’ of previous models, going back to when the company first began in 1903. The museum itself is great, and well worth visiting if you’re in Milwaukee. As an added bonus, Willie G. Davidson, who is the Chief Styling Officer of the company and designed the Super Glider and the Low Rider, was part of our group. Very fun.

Even though I grew up and went to college in Virginia and became quite familiar with the mid-Atlantic states, over the years I never made it to Asheville, North Carolina. Until last week.

For the past several years I’ve kept reading and hearing from friend about Asheville being a fun city to visit and a great place to live. So after Reunion Weekend in D.C., we headed down for a few days to check it out including having dinner with my cousin Ellen and her husband Keith. As is customary with my style of numbered takeaways of travel life experiences like this:

1. Asheville is well worth checking out; there’s good reason it keeps showing up in “Top 10 Best Places to Live” magazine articles. City has a terrific highway ‘beltway’ around the city for easy travel. Downtown has a ‘hip’ area with nice shops and some excellent restaurants. Almost like a Portland of the South. Asheville was a major reason Barack won North Carolina, so for me it felt very comfortable!
2. We stayed at both The Grove Park Inn (long known as the grandaddy resort spot on a hill overlooking the city), and the Inn at Biltmore Estates (a continuation of the fascinating business model of the descendants of George Vanderbilt). The Grove Park Inn has that aging feel of a Homestead or The Greenbrier before their renovations, but has a nice spa. The Inn at Biltmore Estates is smaller(opened around 2001), newer, with a Ritz Carlton/Southern decor vibe, with great fews of the countryside.
3. Two standout restaurants: It’s very interesting that there haven’t been enough individual member ratings yet of any restaurants in Asheville to get rated on Zagats, but the two restaurants we went to are winners, with food ratings of at least 25, and excellent service: Rezaz and Cuchina 24.
4. If you’re visiting Asheville for the first time, you have to check out the Biltmore Estates (picture above). I had known about the story for a long time, but driving through the estate and touring the house, it’s just sort of surreal. Really incredible. And if you’re like me and always evaluating stuff in terms of a business model, absolutely fascinating how the descendants created sort of an attraction empire: winery, hotel, retail stores abound selling the Biltmore ‘brand’.
5. Asheville is well known as a haven for artists, many who have set up studios in a very cool area called the River Arts District. Potters, painters, mixed media. Well worth checking out.

On Sunday, September 13th, Jen and I, along with my Uncle Al and Aunt Claire, had a private tour of the West Wing, to include walking on the Colonade and visiting The Rose Garden. An amazing experience. Standing at the entrance to the Oval Office, you could see the President’s family photos behind his desk, and through a window, the swing set right outside. Thanks so much to Michael O’Neill for taking us through the West Wing.