Memorial Day Weekend Days Three and Four

Memorial Day weekend days three and four were awesome!

I always try to get most projects done Friday night and Saturday. It’s nice to have something to do on Sunday, but nothing major. Maybe finish a project but not to start a new all-day project.

That leaves my Sundays for running and watching TV. I’m not doing much running now, so I’m watching more TV than I used to.

I’m not really good at relaxing and sitting on my butt watching TV. So I often do my PT routine and other strength training activities in front of the TV.

It’s amazing what you can do with a few weights and a yoga routine. I used to call it my “hotel room workout” but I haven’t travelled much in two years.

I did get out in the yard for a bit but Memorial Day weekend day three was pretty quiet.

Memorial Day Weekend Day Four

On Monday we went kayaking on The Charles River.

We started in Waltham at the Paddle Boston launch. For Christmas I bought my wife a season family pass. She’s a teacher and goes kayaking several times a week while on summer break.

We met our oldest daughter there. She has one of the folding kayaks. It folds up to the size of a mid-sized suit case.

People stopped to talk to her about it when she was setting it up and breaking it down. At least a dozen people commented on it while we were out.

It is pretty cool.

Paddle Boston uses the public boat launch area in Waltham so they didn’t have any problems with her using the dock. They even helped her get into her kayak.

Monday was probably the best day of the weekend. It was warm and sunny with barely a breeze.

We left the dock around 10:20 and spent around three hours and fifteen minutes on the river.

The girls took it easy and didn’t paddle very hard. They had a good time chatting along the way and enjoying the day. We did manage to paddle over 7 miles.

I was trying to get some exercise so I looped around a few times and went into several coves. I ended up paddling 7.36 miles and burning over 900 calories.

I also went on the kayaking version of plogging.

I find it really hard to paddle past a nip bottle bobbing in the waves. Or leaving a bag or piece of Styrofoam floating in the water.

So I had that to keep me entertained as well.

We saw several pairs of swans, blue herons and lots of Canadian Geese.

It was nice to see Canadian Geese where they belong, on a river doing their thing.

Brunch for Lunch

By the time we handed in our gear and my daughter had her kayak folded up and back into her car, it was time for lunch.

Many years ago we live in Waltham, but the place has changed a bit! And now they close down Moody Street for several blocks and the restaurants take over.

We ate at In A Pickle which is famous for their brunch. They have been on The Food Network with Guy Fieri and in Boston on Chronicle.

I don’t go out for breakfast and I’ve been to brunch probably twice in my life.

It was around 1PM when we got to our table so we immediately sucked down a glass of water and ordered cocktails.

I had the Raspberry Lime Ricky. I usually go with beer, but this cocktail was awesome. It had enough vodka to cut the sweetness. It had pieces of raspberry to add some tang and it was cold and fizzy.

What else could you ask for after three plus hours on the river?

How about Pumpkin Bread French Toast?

I saw the picture on the menu and had to have it. It was out of this world.

This is what the owner cooked for Guy Fieri on The Feed Network, and he was impressed.

All I can say is that it was delicious and way more food than I could eat, even after a three hour workout. I took the left overs to work and almost didn’t need lunch.

Check out Guy Fieri’s review from his show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. How can I give it a better description or review?

There must have been over 2,000 calories on that plate. I’m sure I ate way more than the 900+ calories Garmin said I burned. But it was worth if.

When we go back to Waltham for another paddling trip, I’m getting That French toast again!

On the way home we stopped by to look at the house that my daughter and her boyfriend are buying.

It’s a great house in a great location. And like all houses in this market, it is overpriced and needs more work than you should expect at that price point.

But that’s what kids have to do these days.