Happy Thanksgiving from Daveland!

Happy Thanksgiving, readers! I hope that today is not only a day of enjoying good food, but actually taking the time to enjoy the blessings of the year and giving thanks for them. Sitting around the dinner table with friends and family sharing a freshly prepared meal has been a monumental event for me every since I can remember...and even before that!



The meal never just popped out of the freezer; it was the result of days and days of preparation.



The table was always set perfectly, too, adding to the special nature of this event of sharing.



Although the people at the table have changed over the years, the meaning of Thanksgiving has remained constant for me, as traditions I have learned continue to be passed on to whoever is sitting around the turkey.



May you all have a wonderful day!

See more Daveland photos on my Photography web pages.

Rock 'n Savannah, Pt. 3

Getting up at the crack of dawn for the race, it was a dark and cold trek up to the starting line on Bay Street. My sleeveless running T didn't become a good clothing choice until just before the race started when the temperatures were closer to normal.



Running from Corral 2, I started 30 seconds after the first Corral was unleashed. The weather was perfect; bright and sunny but still crisp enough to keep me from getting overheated. I also love the course; fairly flat with plenty of cool architecture and enthusiastic Savannah-ians cheering along the way.



Although it wasn't a personal best, my time of 1:53.08 still shaved about 20 minutes off of my horrid race at Disneyland two months ago.



What made the difference? It certainly wasn't my training. The big 3 reasons for improvement included weight loss (less to carry!), temperatures (Disneyland's Half Marathon is typically a scorcher), and a fairly uncongested course. With the amount of participants allowed at Disney and the extremely narrow course for the first few miles, it's not a great way to start a race and typically adds a fair amount of time and energy.



Half Marathon and Full Marathon-ers continued to cross the finish line.



Some were in costume.



Kudos to the race organizers; plenty of great treats awaited runners at the finish line, including Borden Chocolate Milk! A tasty way to replenish after the race.



Over in Forsyth Park at the finish line, bands rocked away as they welcomed the runners who had crossed the finish line.





A panoramic view of the park:



No rest for the weary; after a quick shower, it was time to grab a good celebratory (but not necessarily healthy) meal. Along the way, there was a detour into the beautiful Noble Hardee mansion on Monterey Square.



This place has seen better days, but it's still pretty impressive. It now serves as an antique store run by Alex Raskin. I'd never been inside before (hard to believe), but it happened to be open on this particular occasion.



Every inch of this place was stacked with amazing antiques, including this light fixture.



If I weren't so hungry, I could have spent days here. I can only begin to imagine the inventory taxes.



The view from upstairs overlooks the former Armstrong Junior College, which is now the law firm of Bouhan, Williams, & Levy.



Also along the way to our lunch spot is the Hilton Savannah DeSoto, a somewhat impressive hotel...



as long as you aren't aware of what was torn down to make way for it. Who was the brain trust that issued the demolition permit?!?



Apparently, these expressive terra cotta wall sculptures are remnants from the original.



This one was my favorite; the expressive leer is so lifelike you almost expect to see him blink.





Finally, it was chow time. Clary's on Abercorn is a cute little diner that serves delicious comfort food.





My meal really hit the spot, and the service is always friendly here.





No celebratory meal would be complete in Savannah without dessert from Leopold's Ice Cream Parlour. I got a few (not going to say how many) scoops of my favorite ice cream...



as well as a cupcake. Oink oink is right.



In the "it ain't done til it's overdone" department, there were also cupcakes to be tried at Sweet Carolina Cupcakes.





The fresh apple cupcake was pretty good, but I still preferred Leopold's.



Loved this little sign, though.



Can I get an "amen"?

See more Daveland Savannah photos on my Savannah web pages.

Rock 'n Savannah, Pt. 2

The Expo for the Savannah Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon was fantastic. Extremely well organized, it didn't take long to pick up the bib, t-shirt, swag bag, and have a picture taken to capture my "I haven't been to bed in 48 hours" look, courtesy of my red-eye flight.



I had never heard of Newton running shoes before, but it was difficult to miss their bright colors! One of the guys at the booth told us about them; they attempt to mimic running barefoot as closely as possible. From their website:

Forget shoes for a moment. Shoes were not around when we ran for the first time. When you were a kid running on the beach or out in the streets, you didn’t need an instruction manual or a wedge of technology under your heel to help you run better. You just started running. It was instinct. It was joy. Enter Newton Running.

Unlike the funky glove-looking shoes I had seen, these looked normal. I tried them on and did a few laps while receiving some great running tips from the Newton team. I have to say these are the best running shoes I have ever owned (and I've owned a few pairs in my time).



The other product I tried was PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter. It may sound goofy, and most likely I would have passed by this booth, but the dietician at work told me about this stuff and surprise surprise...it actually tasted good. Compared to 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, you've got 190 vs. 45 calories (130 vs. 13 from fat), and 3 grams vs. 0 grams of saturated fat. I finally took the plunge and ordered two jars from when I got home. I could see this stuff being great in recipes, too. All you do is add water. Okay, enough of the product stuff.



Back outside again, I took some shots across the way to get a panoramic view of River Street. Be sure to click on this one; it's larger than normal so that you can see more detail.



After a short nap, it was time for an early dinner and carb-load at my favorite Italian restaurant in Savannah, Leoci's. The area it's in is not great, so my advice would be to get there quick and don't loiter outside for too long!



I started off with a delicious beet salad:



Dinner was tasty; for once I strayed from the gnocchi that I typically order here. The pasta, pancetta (fancy bacon!), and broccoli were delicious. They really hit the spot.



After that, it was a brisk walk (remember, no loitering!) back to the Mansion for some shut-eye before the big race.



As I rode the funeral-parlour-ish elevator up to the room, I was hoping that it wasn't an omen about how I would do in the race!



See more Daveland Savannah photos on my Savannah web pages.

Rock 'n Savannah, Pt. 1

After our family moved out east to Philly, a wave of nostalgia would overwhelm me every time we flew back to San Diego. Seeing the red tiled roofs overhead was a signal that I was home again. Now that I live out on the west coast again, I would have to say that my annual trips to Savannah have taken over in the department of nostalgia. I guess it's true what they say about the grass being greener. Regardless of trite sayings, Savannah is a beautiful yet quirky little gem of the South, kept fresh by the College of Art & Design, which brings an element of youthful culture to the city. I decided to do the Savannah Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon again this year; any excuse to travel to Savannah is a good one as far as I'm concerned.

I took the red eye out, arriving the morning before the race. I was actually able to sleep on the plane, so I felt pretty rested by the time we landed. The city was preparing for the race, as huge artistic guitars began to dot the historic downtown area. The first thing on the agenda was to get to the hotel to drop off the bags and freshen up a bit. Typically I stay at the Hamilton-Turner Inn, but this time, decided to spend the first few nights at The Mansion on Forsyth Park since the finish line for the race was a mere block away.



The cab driver had a difficult time getting to the hotel due to roadblocks that were put out to help facilitate the setup of the race. He got out of the car, moved one out of the way, and then went postal on the race employee who told him he couldn't do that. It was decided at that point that this was not the cab driver we'd use on the way back to the airport!



The hotel was built in 2005, adding on to an existing brick mansion from 1888, thus the name. Here is a tower that remains from the original structure:



The property is well maintained with a huge collection of modern art from hotel owner Richard Kessler.



We were told that none of the art was for sale, but that if you asked, Kessler would give you a price.

Huh?

This was one of the pieces I really loved, by artist Vasily Shulzhenko.



The rest of the art was a little funky for my taste.



A large copper wall hanging at the entrance with the hotel's emblem helped remind guests where they were staying:



The inside lobby was like an overdone Roman palace. I wouldn't say it was my taste, but you could definitely tell that some money had been dropped on designing it. More statuary...



luxuriously rich materials used for the registration desk:



lots of crystal and sparkles along with fresh flowers to help tone things down a bit...just a bit.



There was even a painting by the artist Arvid that depicted my very favorite winemaker, Silver Oak.



A pool outside the lobby was actually more of a place to stand around with a cocktail in your hand. I made an attempt to do some laps in it, but it was just too damn small for that. I would call this a poser pool.



The marble and flowers in the elevator seemed vaguely reminiscent of a mortuary.



The room was beautiful; large and well appointed, with a great view of the poser pool. The bed was VERY comfortable, too.



With the advent of mobile devices and laptops, do people actually use desks anymore? Inquiring minds want to know.



The tub came in handy after the race:



One thing I can definitely say about this hotel; the staff was VERY well trained and genuinely friendly. Every single person we dealt with was a pleasure. Huge kudos to Kessler on that one.

Once we were settled in, it was off to The Expo at the Convention Center. The line wasn't too bad for the ferry to cross the river:



A panorama shot across the river to the Convention Center:



Before we knew it, we were there, picking up our racing materials:



More to come...

See more Daveland Mansion on Forsyth Park in Savannah photos on my Mansion web page.