XPonNential!

Ahhh, some vacation time. Les and I ventured over to Crows Woods/Mountwell Park in Haddonfield today, on the hopes of finding some singletrack. What we found was a poorly designed and built trail that at times petered out into overgrowth. Still, it was good to get a few miles in, just get the legs spinning, especially after the drive in on Wednesday. Les and I had dropped Cathy and Lyndsay off in Haddonfield while we hit the trail. When we returned to pick them up, we were greeted by Haddonfield’s own dinosaur, aptly named Hadrosaurus foulkii. Les being the brave soul showed us there was no reason to fear the duck billed beast and they took a moment to pose for a photo.

It’s so good to hang around with a dog, I really miss having a pet. Max is a svelte 88 pound chocolate Labrador and he rules the roost at the Bowen abode. Just look at those eyes. “Yep, I’m a dog” …

I love to drift through the neighborhoods in the area around Barb and Les’ house. The architecture is incredible. In Charlotte, any building older than 50 years gets torn to the ground, making way for the next concrete structure to the gods of banking. Some of the homes have to date back into the 1800’s.

We dinned Thursday at the Tortilla Press where we enjoyed an eclectic “Mexican Influenced” meal. Despite spilling a glass of water while unloading our BYOBeer, we managed a delightful time. My nephews Matt and Dan are great young men and it’s fun to listen to their stories. Their futures are bright.

From dinner, Les took Cathy and I to the XPonNential Music Festival where we saw the Salvador Santana Band. Salvador is the son of music legend Carlos Santana. A mix of hip hop and rap with some of the soulful underpinnings of his father, it was a fun, albeit short show (we arrived a little late). The setting for the festival, Camden’s Wiggins Park overlooks downtown Philadelphia and is the same basic area where we enjoyed a Fourth of July fireworks display a few years back.

The headlining act for the first night of the festival were the Blind Boys of Alabama. Lead by the soulful Jimmy Lee Carter we were treated to a wonderful night of gospel music. Backed by a tremendous group of musicians, they sang all four of their Grammy winning songs. The highlights were “Spirit in the Sky” and “Amazing Grace” sung to the melody of “House of the Rising Sun”. If that didn’t send a chill through you, nothing will!