Random shots after 19 days of vacation in southern California.
The weather was sunny almost every day, with daytime temps in the 60’s and 70’s in Palm Desert and Del Mar. Yes, I sent sympathies to Minnesotans suffering through windchills of minus 20 and worse.
The devilish cold brought back memories of walking through howling winds on the U campus to attend Gopher basketball games. I never did so much backward walking before or since. Other strategies could have included a scary ski mask and finding a big lug to walk ahead of me and break the wind.
The show inside cozy Williams Arena was more than worth the trek, though. Last century Gopher basketball was often the best entertainment in town with nationally ranked teams, great players, colorful coaches and deafening crowd noise inside historic Williams Arena.
Alas, the show is no more.
The silver lining? Escaping for weeks in January from Minneapolis prompts no second guessing about missing swaths of the Gopher basketball schedule. Yes, I know the 2025 lads have awakened from the ashes (poor start to the season and last place Big Ten finishes two of the last three years) and won three consecutive games. Sorry, but a below .500 conference record and half empty arena won’t make up for lost ground or wake up the ghosts of Williams Arena.

Where have you gone, Kevin McHale and Bobby Jackson? The coaching trio of Bill Musselman, Jim Dutcher and Clem Haskins is no more.
But back to the trip: I’m appreciative of California adventures including safe travel on infamous state Highway 74 across the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa mountains. The two-lane road with hairpin turns rises from the Coachella valley to over 4,000 feet. In addition to gorgeous views, there are discarded car skeletons in plain sight—presumably vehicles whose drivers encountered disastrous outcomes.
Other than potholes, switchbacks and steep drop-offs driving was a breeze (ha!). BTW, I have a history with the highway including a drive coming down to the valley in deep fog!
My mental acuity on the trip was otherwise most challenged by golf. After years of pulling out my hair and restless nights, I’ve ditched the how-to videos on YouTube and in print. The new mantra is move the body back in the swing, keep the head down and follow through. And: compress your irons, sweep your woods.
Voila. Sign me up for the PGA Tour Champions.
Now if I can just get back on the tennis court. A friend from Edina, also visiting southern California, is of a similar age and is playing five times per week.
My hero!
From two time zones away, it doesn’t seem like a lot has changed on the Minnesota pro sports scene. The Wild still has a promising season and the Twins aren’t making headlines regarding personnel or the franchise sale.
The Timberwolves and Vikings are ongoing soap operas.
The Wolves miss their KAT. Their Ant seems as likely to be fined by the NBA as he is going off for 40.
The Vikings quarterback soap opera is part of the stuff that fuels fan interest and keeps Skol scorching even in the dead of winter.
Coach Kevin O’Connell received his no-brainer contract extension. The love affair between coach and the organization is real. I’ll bet my last bitcoin ownership never brought up during contract discussions that in three seasons KOC has lost the three biggest games he’s coached.
Harry Peter Grant lost four Super Bowls and we adored him.
Various media allowed me to track hometown teams but the most enjoyable reading on the trip came from the Wall Street Journal. WSJ offers the fairest and most accurate newspaper coverage that I know of. In an age of media bias that slips over from the opinion pages to the news columns, the WSJ is a model for professional journalism.
The publication is known for its political and business coverage. The newspaper also provides lifestyle, entertainment and sports reporting and opinion. And the WSJ comes up with stories and angles that both inform and entertain.
Did you know there is a black market for gallstones from cows? A front-page WSJ story last Wednesday was headlined:
“Cow Gallstones Drive A Smuggling Frenzy. Worth twice the price of gold, they are prized in Chinese traditional medicine.”
I’ll never look at cattle the same way again.
Interesting comment about WSJ.
Agree re: WSJ.