Christmas in LA

Wednesday, December 31 - Fly into Ontario, stay with Ratna's cousins

Thursday, January 1 - Warner Brothers Studio Tour.  Highlight was the Gilmore Girls town.  Dinner at Wokcano with Nisha's friends family

Friday, January 2 - Universal Studios.  Pretty crowded, but we did go on some rides.  Dinner was at the Hungry Crowd and quite tasty.  We had some snacks on site that were overpriced and underdelivered (bistro sandwiches and macaroni and cheese roll up).

• Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge - 90 minute wait
• Jurassic World - The Ride - 70 minute wait
• Studio Tour - 60 minute wait - This was pretty cool with sets used for Jaws and an underground earthquake

Saturday, January 3 - I went to Yaamava Casino with Vilas.  It was meh, but still fun to see something new.  I did my free slot play, another $20 on slots, bought into roulette with $200 and cashed out $195.  Blackjack lowest table was $20.  Roulette lowest table was $25.

Sunday, January 4 - I popped into North County Monthly Coin Show (first Sunday, about 30 dealers with fair selection of us type coins, world coins and gold/silver bullion).  I did buy an 1891 Victoria Sovereign.  Panini dinner at Namisha's

Monday, January 5 - Walked around the City of Orange and snacks at Chaiwale & Co.  I had the saffron chai, Diya ordered Karak Chai ice cream, and we all shared a slice of Cardamom loaf.

The flights were uneventful and it was nice to do something together as a family.

Goodbye 2025!

This is my 13th year in review.  Since 2012 I have tried to look back on the year, but for some reason, I missed 2018.

2025 has been a difficult year with a lot of change for our family.  I finished my seventh year at CDOT.  My wife left Federal Service and is now an Administrative Judge for the State of Colorado.  She is still an Air Force Officer on reserve status with the US Air Force Academy.  My first born started her Freshman Year at Washington University in St. Louis.  My second born started 11th grade at D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School.  My first born had an uneventful summer with a track camp, travel and taking a much-needed break.  My second born did Med Academy program and traveled.  She continued to take advantage of drop in volleyball, continues to volunteer at Children’s Hospital and started an Emergency Responder program at St. Anthony’s.

My dental health has been stable.  My weight has been flat.  I started taking blood pressure medication in December.

Nisha had a birthday dinner at the house.  Diya had a combined party at the house along with her Graduation party.  Ratna had her birthday dinner at the Olde Spaghetti Factory.  I did Snarfs for my birthday.

We again traveled quite a bit this year.  Florida in January, Las Vegas (Hyrox) in February, Boston (College Trips) in March, Colorado Springs (Tennis Tournament) in May, Austin and Breckenridge in June, San Diego (Med Academy), Kansas City (Conference) and Memphis/Albany (USAWA) in July, Breckenridge and St. Louis (Wash U) in August, Dublin (IAWA) in October and also a handful of overnight work trips.

Professionally, I have stayed with Traffic Safety and Engineering Group.  After a poor review, I have stepped up my game somewhat with more training and conferences.  Outreach to Broomfield, Littleton, Arvada, Arapahoe County, Palisade, Alamosa, Minturn, Weld County, Mesa County and Jefferson County.  I also taught for Colorado LTAP.

My community involvement picked up a little bit.  I did volunteer at volleyball quite a bit.  I volunteered to spot/load at the 2025 USAPL State Championship.  I gave a coin talk at the Northside Coin Club.  Finally, I maintained a board position with United States All-Round Weightlifting.  I attended 43 AA meetings and still do not have a home group or a sponsor.

In terms of hobbies, I have stayed put and dialed back slightly.  The garage gym build has slowed down with more investment in grip sport.  I did not do any foot races or multi-sport races.  I did participate in bike-to-work day for the third year in a row.  I lifted in the Spring and Fall GGC and set a lifetime best of an 805-pound total.  I did not do any Highland Games and did only one grip contest, King Kong.  Only one archery session.  No shooting.  Three sessions of poker in Las Vegas, Austin and Blackhawk.  The highlight was Hyrox which I am still very proud of.

We went by the temple once in California.

No skiing in 2025.

Three dives in the Coral Sea.  No salt water again.

Similar golf with a couple of trips to the driving range and the ITS Golf Tournament.

Numismatics has stayed really busy.  I attended (7) meetings of the South Suburban Coin Club, (3) meetings of the Denver Coin Club (DCC), went to the Fall and Spring Denver Coin Expo and even sat with Dan at the Front Range Coin Show, purchased (14) dimes, (4) half dime, (2) Gupta Dynasty coins, (2) Admiral Gardner shipwreck coins, a buffalo nickel, and (2) Greg Lemond medals.  I also purchased (3) coin books on Gold Patterns, English Silver Coinage and Countermarked Coins.  The capstone was presenting on dimes at the Northside Coin Club meeting.  I also catalogued about 800 coins from my Dad’s collection.  I maintained memberships in ANA, JRCS, Chopmarked Coins, Denver Coin Club and South Suburban Coin Club.

I read Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow.  I re-read the Name of the Wind.  Overall not much reading.

Big purchases this year?  Dive Watch.  Heavy Lift Bar, Hand & Thigh Bar, Ironman Standard Barbell Set, Scale Weights and Anvil, lots of grip stuff including grippers and contest implements.  One particularly exciting item was a Purdue Football Helmet and Jersey.

Home improvement we had new cabinets installed and had trees removed from the property.

Vehicles are running well although I did have quite a bit of routine maintenance.  Spark plugs were an unusual item.

The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.  Toronto Blue Jays lost to the LA Dodgers in the World Series.  Jayson Hopper and Tia-Clair Toomey won the CrossFit Games.  

Donald Trump has enjoyed the white house dismantling the Federal Government.  Making US Foreign Policy the most unpredictable in the world.  His tariff policy has also done a number on the economy.  ICE deportations are up.  DEI programs have been halted.

Diya graduated salutatorian of her high school class after an amazing pole vault season, clearing 7’-3” and nearly 7’-6” which would have qualified her for the state championship.  Diya successfully completed her first semester of college at Wash U.  In addition to her engineering curriculum, she has joined Indian clubs and Women’s Ultimate Frisbee.  Nisha was on the Varsity Tennis Squad and JV Volleyball Squat at D’Evelyn High School.  Her doubles 2 pairing made it to the Colorado State Championship.  They both did Mock Trial at D’Evelyn.

Best wishes for 2026!

Blackhawk Poker

1. Feb 2019 - Golden Gates
2. April 2019 - Shadrach House
3. June 2019 - Balicki House
4. July 2019 - our House?
5. July 2019 - Blackhawk
6. August 2019 - Blackhawk
7. September 2019 - Shadrach
8. November 2019 - Blackhawk
9. December 2019 - Blackhawk
10. January 2020 - Las Vegas
11. March 2020 - Tunica
12. September 2021 - our House?
13. February 2022 - Balicki House
14. September 2022 - Tunica
15. March 2024 - Blackhawk, Bally's
16. April 2024 - Blackhawk, Bally's tournament
17. May 2024 - Scottsdale, Talking Stick, tournament
18. July 2024 - Dan's House
19. February 2025 - Las Vegas
20. June 2025 - Austin, Bullet's
21. December 2025 - Blackhawk

After taking a hiatus from casino gambling in 2012, I have been slowly reintroducing myself.  Typically when folks are in town or when we are traveling.  Over the past six years, this has amounted to (7) home games, (8) trips to Blackhawk and (6) sessions in Las Vegas, Tunica or Scottsdale.

The poker rooms have changed quite a bit.  Currently games are running in Ameristar, Bally's, Horseshoe and Monarch.  

This past weekend, I started off at Monarch and could not get a seat, they were full running $1-3NLHE, $2-5NLHE, $2-$5Omaha8 and one other game.  I put my name on the list and headed up the street to the Horseshoe.

The Horseshoe was offering $2-10 spread limit holdem.  Despite getting descent cards and only making one mistake, I lost $60 of my $100 buy-in when my seat came up at Monarch.

I did a minimum buy ($200) at Monarch and sat down for $2-5NLHE and was absolutely outmatched.  Most folks had at least $1000 in front of them.  After playing a few orbits, I got it in with QQ and was beat by 10-7 suited when he flopped two pair.  Not a tough beat by any means, but I promptly left.  The table games had limits at $15, $25 and $50.

Next, I was at Bally's and put my name on the list for $1-3NLHE.  While waiting, I played roulette and fortunately 21 hit before my seat came up.  I made $50 there.  The tables were all $10 which is reasonable stakes.  Sitting in the poker game, I was getting descent cards and picked up another $60.

Overall for the night, I was down $150 and was home before midnight.  Not a bad outing.  The lesson I learned was to stick to tournament poker or $1-3NLHE.  I enjoyed the spread limit game also.

Ultimate Frisbee at O'Kane Park

The universe conspired to have me try ultimate frisbee.  First, my daughter took up the sport in college.  Second, we ran Beth at a solstice party and she happens to have been playing with a group for six years.  Finally, they play every Saturday morning near our house rain or shine and we had nothing planned.

O'Kane park is about 10-15 minutes from the house.  We left around 8:45 for a 9ish start time.  We were expecting weather in the 30's, but it was really warm and I am so glad that I wore layers.  I started with sweatpants, long sleeve shirt and impact gloves, but stripped down to shorts and a t-shirt before long.

It is a really fun group.  We started out playing 5 on 5 and filled to 7 on 7 and eventually had subs on each side with 20 people total showing up.  The rules are pretty simple and despite the incredible disparity in athleticism, conditioning and experience, new players and established players could enjoy the game together.  It is a lot of running and having a few subs made it much better.  I could play 3-4 points and then sit for 3-4 points on a roughly 1:1 work to rest ratio.  We played until about 11 AM and then called it.  They were going to play another game and then socialize with beers and Kan Jam.

I would like to join them again.

 

FIRO

In FIRO Business, customers (or individuals in a business setting) want understanding and fulfillment of their core interpersonal needs: Involvement, Influence, and Connection, measured across how much they want these things and how much they express them to others, leading to better collaboration, conflict resolution, and leadership by aligning expressed needs with wanted needs to prevent miscommunication.

 

The Three Core Needs (FIRO Business)

1. Involvement (Inclusion): The desire to belong, be part of the group, and be recognized. IMPORTANT
• High Wanted Involvement: Wants to be in the know, participate in projects, and get information.
• High Expressed Involvement: Makes an effort to include others.
2. Influence (Control): The need for structure, authority, and to have a say in decisions.  COMPETENCE
• High Wanted Influence: Wants clear roles and decision-making processes.
• High Expressed Influence: Takes charge and tries to control situations.
3. Connection (Affection): The need for warmth, trust, and personal relationships. CARED FOR
• High Wanted Connection: Wants friendly, supportive interactions.
• High Expressed Connection: Makes efforts to be warm and friendly. 

What Customers Want (In Practice)

• Clarity & Communication: To know what's expected and how much interaction they'll have.
• Recognition: To feel they belong and their contributions matter.
• Fairness: To have influence on decisions that affect them.
• Trust & Warmth: To feel valued and have positive relationships with colleagues. 

How FIRO Business Helps

• Identifies Misunderstandings: A high expressed need (e.g., trying to include others) might clash with a low wanted need (e.g., wanting space), causing friction.
• Develops Leaders: Helps leaders understand their impact on teams and adjust behaviors for better performance.
• Boosts Teams: Creates awareness of different needs, improving collaboration and reducing conflict.
• Drives Change: Provides specific insights to help individuals modify behaviors for better workplace outcomes. 

When I meet with local agencies, I have had the most success by striving for a connection.  By focusing on a friendly supportive interactions, I have the future opportunity to connect local agencies with other CDOT Staff and consultants who can provide competence.  By focusing on being warm, I lay a foundation for collaboration with other local agencies and Colorado LTAP.  I do not have the skills or the credibility to provide Involvement or Influence.

2025 Volleyball Season

This is Nisha's third year playing volleyball.  She tried out for the team as a Freshman and joined the Level 3 (development squad) under Coach Powers.  She learned the game, enjoyed the season and made some great friends.  I remember her getting a spirit award at the annual banquet.

In 2024, she attended open gym, did some 1:1 lessons and even went to camp at CSU.  She made the JV squad, but had a less eventful season.  She got less playing time and had less skill development over the season with Coach Dom.  I do not even remember what award she got if any, but the Coach did try to make remarks about each player.

In 2025, she again attended open gym and CSU camp, but went into tryouts with more trepidation.  The volleyball is working hard to maintain team continuity.  To that end, the team is "limiting" the number of upperclassmen on the squads with hopes that Freshman and Sophomores on the development teams move up to JV or Varsity in the future.  Juniors should only make the JV team if they have a shot at Varsity next season.  Seniors on Varsity should be limited to starters.  She did end up making the JV squad and set to work under Coach Abygayle (current senior at volleyball player at Mines who was sidelined by injuries).  Nisha really flourished in this environment.  Practices were productive, she got a fair share of playing time and even her states improved, with better serve percentages, several kills over the season and a block.  She was given the spirit award and the team named her Miss Jag for the JV squad.  It came as quite a surprise to both of us.

"Miss Jag Award FEROCIOUS & FOCUSED This award is for the girl who most embodies the spirit of the D'Evelyn Jaguar.  They are full of energy, a servant leader, loving, hard working, believing in the team, and work to be a better teammate.  This is a player we want to represent our program to the school."

Purdue Memorabilia

I will be the first to admit that I am not a huge sports fan and it has been over 30 years since I graduated from Purdue, but the opportunity to own this helmet for my "man cave" was just too much to pass up.  I ended up reaching out to the seller (Kade Townsend on Facebook Marketplace) and securing purchase.  It was a 3 hour round trip to Windsor, but he was kind enough to make me a deal on the helmet and a jersey for $60.  

He graduated from Michigan, but his Dad collected a lot of sports memorabilia and he wanted to make sure these items found a good home.  He did not have any other purchase information or who number 55 (the jersey number) was.  It is a modern issue.