Winding down 2013

I hope everyone is having a happy and safe holiday season.  

It's been a busy/different holiday season down here for us.  

I'd like to say it has been all fun & games, but at least it has been quiet.  I have all sorts of time off and I was hoping to get some chores done, but I don't seem to have accomplished half of what I had set out to do.  This year has been a bit off for us.  With SIL in the hospital, the Thanksgiving holiday was pretty low key.  We did not have the normal celebration at our house and spent some time at the hospital with SIL.  We did get to celebrate some of the week with Rebecca's folks and my brother, but it was different from what we have done for years.  With SIL getting out of hospital, we figured Christmas was going to be different as well.  Even though she is back home, she still needs some hands-on care and someone needs to stay with her during the day/night.  We have a caregiver staying for part of the day and my wife has taken the night shift.  I have even tried to take a shift or two to help out.  Momma was pretty overloaded so I attempted to pick up the slack for Xmas plans.  Organized/acquired most of the gifts, arranged for Christmas dinner, did the decorations/lights, even made an effort to clean the house (or at least stay two steps ahead of the dogs).  Managed to pull it off, but it is not to the same scale as we have had in the past.  We had a low-key celebration at our house with my parents and son (DIL was sick) and SIL (she is able to get out, but very tired).  No pictures this year, just a nice time with the family.  

I got the gift shopping done but it was almost up to the last minute.  As usual, I set out with one thing in mind and wind up with a totally different gift idea for people.  I envy people who are organized and disciplined enough to have their shopping done by Thanksgiving.  I keep telling myself I need to do better but somehow I repeat the same saga every year.   I also wind up getting too many gifts.  Think I find the perfect gift for nephew A or brother only to find something better three stores down.  I typically wind up with several ungifted gifts at the end that I wind up taking back or giving next year (still have three gifts left over from last year).  Anybody looking for a dancing Flamingo with a Santa hat?  

Maybe it is a factor of getting older or how the families are spreading out, but I am glad we had the time/opportunity to share the day, but it was definitely a bit more sedate that prior years.  At least the dogs have been getting plenty of attention.  All this time off has given me the opportunity to catch up on my reading and Netflix queue.  Going to be hard to go back to work after New Years.  

My Airstream group is having their annual New Years rally.  The difference is that there is a different team running the rally and they picked a new spot.  No longer the old RV ranch out west of here, but a new campground that is located about 3 miles away from where my trailer is currently parked.  Will probably take me longer to hook up the trailer that it will to drive over there.  I will be attending with just the dogs as momma will still be keeping an eye on her sister.  One good thing about this being close is that it is a short hop over to visit/sit with sister to give momma a much needed break.  I am looking forward to a fairly low key New Years celebration - the group is fairly sedate when it comes to partying.  Will be ringing in the new year with Champagne and black eyed peas. 

Happy New Year.

Good things come to those who wait

Sometimes patience and loyalty pays off. 

We had an interesting event today at work.  But before I regale you with the details, let me just give you a little background on my company to give you some perspective.   

Normally I don’t like to talk about my work a lot (except for all the road trips I take).  IMHO, most would find it boring and I definitely don’t feel that I should be venting my complaints about people on this meager blog (some people do).  Not my style and, besides, I believe, if you say things about people or the company, it usually comes back to bite you in the hindquarters.      

I work for a medical device company.  We manufacture an implantable device used for the treatment of epilepsy and depression.  Similar to a pacemaker except it delivers simulation to the brain.    It’s not for everyone, but it is an option for patients with refractory epilepsy who have already gone through several rounds of medication and surgery without much success.  It gives the patients and physicians an option in lieu of the standard drug therapy.  Founded in 1987 and we are currently celebrating our 25th year.  I’m going on my 12th year here so I guess that makes me one of the “seasoned old farts”.  Couple that experience with the 10 years I spent at a pacemaker company and that gives me some kind of street cred for medical manufacturers.  I've worked for a defense contractor and an oil company contractor and came to the conclusion:  I like working for a company where you see the direct benefit that your product provides to people.  We have many testimonials on how our devices have made a difference in people’s lives, gave them back their freedom.  Oh sure, the paycheck certainly helps, but, to me, there is some intrinsic reward in making something that improves quality of life.  My reasons for joining the company many years ago were even more personal – my son had a form of epilepsy when he was younger.  Suffered several gran mal seizures and had a multitude of tests/analysis performed.  Fortunately he grew out of it, but for several years it scared the living crap out of us.

But this is not a sales job about the company or our saga, it is how people are sometimes recognized for what contributions they make.  Over the past 5 years, we have seen a rebirth of the company.  Previous management was focused on different objectives and different visions for growth.  We has several tumultuous years where the market was not kind.  Several years back, the senior staff was outed and we brought in a whole new management team.  New guys from another medical firm.  As with any change, everyone was on pins & needles about how the new CEO and his team would run things.  Turns out the new CEO is way more down to earth than the previous guy.  Very amiable, self-effacing, wicked sense of humor.  He is not above making himself the butt of a joke if it improves the morale or helps support a cause.  At our tailgating party last fall, he was one of the participants in the hot dog eating contest.  He’s done a lot of good for the company and has really served to motivate others to greater heights.  The company is in a great position now – all our debt has been paid off, we bought our building, sales are up - totally different from 5 years ago.  They've invested money and resources into growing the brand and developing the corporate culture.  A lot more “fun” activities, contests, prizes.  I won airline tickets last year.  One of my buyers got 4 tickets at the Christmas party.  They are really big on giving out awards for recognition of service or contributions. 

That brings us to today.  Today we had our quarterly meeting.  Typical financial performance reports, service recognition, accolades.  For everyone who has reached the  5 year milestone, you get a gift certificate for a $5.00 foot long at Subway (running joke).  For the 10 year anniversary you get, can you guess?  - TWO $5.00 foot longs.  This year we had one employee (employee #2) who is the first person to celebrate her 25th anniversary.  Guess what she got?  Yep.  FIVE $5.00 foot longs.  But, that’s just part of the subtle joke.  They also gave her 25 $25 gift cards to various stores in the area (Kohl’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Cheesecake Factory, etc.).  But that was still not enough.  The CEO spent a lot of time hamming it up and building it up until they finally got around to giving her the “big” gift:  A freakin’ new car.  Wow.  Totally over the top.  It felt like an Oprah moment.  I know that we have been doing pretty darned well over the last few years, but that just blew all of us away.  I think it is great that they honor for someone who has committed a quarter century to this place but it had several of us pondering the same question:  Just how many more years do I have to go?  (13.6 for moi)  

Go stuff it

Happy Thanksgiving!

We're slowly getting back to some sense of normal.  Being away from home for a weekend usually puts me a week behind.  Out little vacation was over 10 days and our schedule is completely blown right now.  We have not prepped for any Thanksgiving feast as we normally do each year, but we are planning to break bread with the newlyweds and their parents.  It's the first year of marriage and the first round of "whose house to we spend the holidays at?".  Still, we are immensely thankful for all of the blessings we have.   

For those gorging themselves on turkey and dressing and gearing up for Black Friday, I hope everyone has a great AND safe holiday.  Remember to eat sensibly, exercise and shop wisely.  And if you cannot do any of that, at least have fun!  And take a moment to remember those who cannot be home with families to celebrate the season.  My prayers and thanks go out to all the men and women serving overseas.    

Will hopefully have pictures of the cars up by tomorrow.  

As for the vacation quiz, I think I am being too cryptic.  SR300 got close.  A few more things we did/buy/saw last week:

• Sampled more local brews (Balboa)
• Spent 10 days with my 89 year old parents and my two older brothers and their wives (no fisticuffs, we are still talking to each other)
• Got to tour an incredible engineering marvel
• Bought a new hat 
• Smoked a Cohiba 
• Played several rounds of Mexican Train

And FWIW, I have been participating in the Movember challenge.  Normally, when I go on vacation, I tend to "go scruffy" but usually shave it off when I go back to work.  Shadowrun300 and Abby and RC inspired me to keep the facial hair to see how it looks.  Although each time I let it go, a bit more grey tends to show up.  22 days and growing...

Day 17

Heeeeere's Johnny!

Ok, folks, I'm back on line.  Don't ask me how or why, but when I woke up this morning and found we have 4 lights on the router.  And the technician appointment is still for tomorrow afternoon.  I secretly feel that there is some sick, twisted, evil gremlin in the system that knows when the service technician is coming and then, MIRACULOUSLY, the system heals itself.  Kind of like when you take your car into the shop to fix that "noise" and the noise disappears (and the mechanic looks at you like you are all sorts of stupid).  This has done this to us before.  Had an outage before I was going to Manila and had booked an appointment but when the system cured itself I cancelled the appointment.  I did call Comcast again last night and really leaned into the CS guy (Shane) about the Sunday date and how I had been without a net since Monday and Is Sunday the Best you Guys Can Do?  He was, as with the rest, very apologetic and swore he would contact the local technician office and they would call me back in an hour to see if they could help.  Sat down to watch my latest NetFlix sucky choice:  Contraband (totally forgettable) and, after three hours, gave up on them (not that I had high expectations anyway).  So far, no call, but the net is working.  This time, I am going to keep the appointment tomorrow to see if the technician can figure out what the heck is the problem.        

Thanks for everyone's sympathy/well wishes.  We had been without the net I had almost reverted back to barbarism (reading the paper, watching the home shopping network, going to the library, etc.).  At least I don't have to resort to posting my blog via iPhone (for now).  It was a bit of a challenge, but in keeping with my mantra:  Improvise, Adapt & Overcome (ok, I stole that from the Marines) and I learned to work around the system.  Not to bore everyone with the details, but, basically, in order to post to my blog, I would write my blog notes in an e-mail to my yahoo account and then capture the note from my iPhone when I had a WiFi signal and post up on my blog.  And posting via that tiny screen is "interesting" to say the least.  That's why you see some repeated lines or mis-spellings.  Hard to correct some of my words after they have posted.  And forget about posting pictures (I ain't mastered that trick, yet).    

So, now I am playing catch up with everyone's blogs.  Been trying to read and comment via the iPhone, but it's been hard to keep up.  Especially with the frequent fliers (sorry Abby but your security password is hard to navigate from my phone).  

In the interim, getting back to something I started before I flew off to the Philippines last week - random pictures.  Anyone recognize this figurine?  I took this picture while on the phone with the Comcast service guy.   

Extra points if you can give me the actual name of this one  

Long weekend epilog

Whew!  Even though I had no real agenda, no real objective, I got a lot chores knocked out over the weekend.  


Bugs taken care of.  Shower fixed.  I got some quality time with junior Saturday.  Stephen was in town this weekend for various wedding tasks.  Needed to meet with the minister this weekend, working on invitations.  On Saturday, I offered up to take him to St Arnold's Brewery downtown.  Now, for those not familiar with St Arnolds, please allow me to elaborate.  St Arnolds is a local Houston brewery that has been around for about 18+ years.  Started by a Rice University graduate, it has grown from a local home brewer to a regular craft brewer.  I have been in love with St Arnolds ever since we went to visit Stephen in Seattle.


While enjoying the moment with my son, I was given a mission - I was supposed to work the target to explore on their wedding plans, discover where they were registered, and determine what they wanted for wedding gifts.  I was able to get more intel on their plans, where they were going, where they were registered (nowhere).  It was good to get a beer into him to open up for a few of the details.  This is new territory for us.  We have been to a few weddings, even had one of our own although it was a few years decades ago, so we are trying to figure out what is our role as parents of the groom.  We have offered up to help certain aspects of the wedding.  Tradition has it that the bride's parents cover the wedding costs and the groom’s parents cover the rehearsal dinner, but we don't feel right with that.  So we are offering up to help with the shindig.  Since the kids have decided to get married at our church, we are covering the chapel and minister.  I think the bar tab at the reception is going to be ours (St Arnolds beer will be available).  Rebecca’s dad and I offered that the beer hall at the St Arnold’s Brewery would make a great place for the rehearsal dinner, but I don’t think the moms are quite down with that plan.  My son has not asked for help, but I did offer up my assistance with a few of the wedding logistics.   I proposed to arrange a limo to take them from the chapel to the reception (don't worry about transportation).  After the reception, said limo would whisk them away from the reception to an undisclosed location.  Since they won't fly out on their honeymoon until Sunday evening, we were going to put them up in a local hotel for the night.  That way they could relax and unwind from the day’s excitement and they could make the rounds the following day before heading off to the airport.
  

On Sunday, I drove up north of town to Rummy’s Beach Club.  This is the place that I visited last fall where they specialize in water training/exercise for dogs.  Lisa runs the place and built a custom pool for dogs to learn how to swim and dock diving.  Despite being two full blooded Golden Retrievers, neither one of them seem to have the aptitude or inclination for swimming, so I elected to take them to Rummy’s to get in the water with them and work their skills.  They did it last time, but they were very nervous.  This time was much better.  Claire has taken to swimming pretty well, and will swim out to the deep end, but I still cannot coax her to jump in from the side of the pool.  Grayson is still uncertain about the whole deal.  He did do much better this time, but needs more time in the water for practice.  I am planning to take them back again this summer for a couple more lessons while the temps are warm.  A number of the Golden Beginnings people have pools at home, so a lot of fosters/adoptees get to spend time in the pool.  

Jump?  Are you crazy?

Yesterday we hit the dog park again, took the kids out for BBQ lunch, cleaned out the breezeway and mowed the yard.  I took some time to tour the Memorial Day service at the local park where they had a mock up display of the Vietnam Memorial Wall.  Sobering display with lots of details/information, but it doesn't compare to the real wall in DC (seen it).  Was a full throttle weekend.  I need to go to work to catch up on my rest.    

4 years later

Wow.  Who’d a thunk this would have lasted this long?  I guess if they keep putting up such stellar programming like Jersey Shore, Survivor, Big Brother, and DWTS year after year, this meager blog can share some of that longevity.  

Occasionally, I look back to see where I've been (or, if you're paranoid, to see if anyone is following you).  It is about this time of year that I mark a milestone of sorts.  Actually, it is two milestones.  The first being this meager excuse of a blog.  This is the place I go to ramble on about this and that, share stupid/funny stories, show endless pictures of my dogs, and complain about life in general.  I actually created this site back in spring of 2007 with a short coming outpost but I did not follow up with anything until almost a year later (found it hard to write something meaningful or intelligent).  I started posting in earnest in January after my surgery in 2008, so I tend to mark the beginnings of this site around that time.  4 years and thousands of words later, this thing has gotten legs, albeit wobbly ones.  I started out following dozens of other blog sites, each with a different theme/flavor.  Some have survived, some have closed up shop, some have disappeared into the winds.  I found a few favorites that I continue to follow religiously.  They serve as my muse/inspiration to continue to read and post new things.  I like to thank (or blame) Terri for starting this site.  I've followed her saga for years from kids to work to bowling to dogs, she's had an interesting journey that keeps drawing people back for more.  It was her stories and the way she spun them that inspired me to try my hand in this "blog stuff" although, I'll have to admit, I'm not as interesting or funny.  I have followed other sites (Abby, Meleah, RC) as well for their stories and insights and I thank each of you for your inspiration to keep this up.  Four years is not a long time, but I look back and find I have accomplished a lot. I’ve been on a cruise, I have been I've see my son graduate from college, start work and get engaged, I've traveled the world, got to meet one of my blog friends (thanks, RC), I have lost a dog but gained two more.  I've survived 4 half marathons, I’ve dislocated a shoulder, I’m still driving the same old truck, bought an iPod, bought a new computer.  I’ve done a lot in the last four turns around the sun.  Looking back, I consider myself one lucky SOB for the opportunities I’ve had and glad to have been able to share/bore them with everyone.   

My second milestone is actually the impetus for some of the stuff I accomplished above.  I have made it a point to mark down on my calendar the anniversary of my surgery.  For those new to this game or with short term memory, 4 years ago yesterday I purged my system, donned some fashionable hospital scrubs, and went under the knife for Prostate cancer.  Was still a bit of a shock to me to be diagnosed with PC at only 50 years old.  I chose the surgery path and came out the other side “prostate free”.  If you are interested in some of the story, you can look back at my earlier postings.  I thought, in all my postings, I had described the saga in vivid detail, but was disappointed that I hadn't shared that with the rest of the world.  I actually started posting seriously while recovering from surgery and that’s where this little blog started out.  Blogging was something I didn't think I had in me, but I've managed to keep at it for a good while.  After the surgery, I changed my outlook on a few things.  After getting diagnosed in 2007, I decided to knock off one of my bucket list items - to run a marathon.  I couldn’t get in in 2008 (did not realize how far in advance you had to sign up) so I did the corresponding 5k that year.  But afterwards I signed up for the ½ Marathon (because I am only ½ crazy).  Been doing that shtick for 4 years now.  As I mentioned earlier on my marathon posts, I run as a reminder that I am still alive.  I am still pondering a full marathon at some point, but, for now, will stick with the ½ until my legs tell me different.  I started traveling more for the company and it has taken me places I haven't been to before.  I love to travel and have taken advantage of the trips I am assigned.  Oh, sure, I may grumble and gripe about plane travel and the TSA and hotel living, but, truthfully, I love it.        

I usually mark this time here by getting on my soapbox and reminding everyone to get checked out.  Prostate cancer is one the leading causes of death for men just Breast cancer is with women.  Last time I ran the numbers, over 280,000 men are diagnosed with Prostate cancer each year.  A simple, precautionary PSA test can save you a world of grief.  As I have been told and told others, this stuff is preventable, if you catch it early enough.  The interesting fact I uncovered in all my research on pc was that, at some point in their lives, most men will either get prostate cancer or have it.  It strikes late in life (post 50) and is usually not detected until later when something else goes wrong.  Because it hits late in life and is not spotted through normal exams, men will typically die of other causes before prostate cancer will take its toll.  The takeaway here is to get checked out.  It is easy, relatively painless, and simple (blood test).  Some guys avoid it because of the stigma/embarrassment of getting a package check.  Embarrassing?  Perhaps, but I am too old to GAS and besides, the risk is too big to bet farm upon.  So, if you are a guy skirting 50, if you know of a guy over 50, if your brother/dad/son are getting on in years, please insist that they get checked out.  Life’s too short to spent it wondering “what if”.  I am a walking testament to the fact it does not have to be a fatal diagnosis.  I got checked out, dealt with it and I am still here after 4 years enjoying good beer and fine scotch and life in general and I am not making plans to go anywhere just yet.  End of my soapbox speech. 

And I never imagined that I would have enough interesting stuff to say to fill up 4 years. 

I'm alive (sort of)

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope everyone was able to user in the year safely and without any major incidents (that we won't read about on Smoking Gun). 


I was by my lonesome New Years' Eve.  The wife spent the night at her parents (taking care of them while her sister works) and my son ushered in the new year with his girlfriend/fiance.  Since I was still recovering from my flu, I wasn't in the mood to party so it was just me and the dogs watching several old movies (or a Walking Dead marathon).  The dogs were a wee bit skittish from all the fireworks last night, so I sat up with them to keep them from going berserk.  Actually, Claire was the calm one.  As usual, whenever there is a thunderstorm or heavy rain, she just hunkers down in the corner of the closet or under the bed until it passes.  I've even found her curled up in a laundry basket in the closet (interesting trick for a dog who is pushing 90+ lbs).  Grayson, on the other hand, is my pacer dog. He wanders back and forth, trying to curl up in your lap one minute and then pacing the floor the next.  He has even wound up curled up in the shower when things get loud.


We passed the New Year relatively quietly.  For a town with a ban on fireworks, there sure was a lot of fireworks going off in and around the neighborhood.  Just past midnight, somebody set off what sounded like an entire roll/string (1000) of Black Cats just down the block that made extra unhappy.  I kinda miss that action - past years we would go camping with my brother and parents out in the country where fireworks are legal, heck they encourage it.  We stay an RV park in the country where the ranch/park owner has a stock pond and lights off fireworks at midnight over the pond.  My brother and I have been the back up show since we go out and acquire some more stuff to add to the show.  We let the kids light off some of the smaller works and save the massive armaments for just us.  Of course, we take plenty of precautions, even though my brother still brings up the the time I shot him with a bottle rocket over Y2K.  Nothing celebrates the New Year better like blowing stuff up.     

Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful day - clear and in the high 60s.  I think I have finally turned the corner on my illness and took advantage of mild weather to pull down the Xmas decorations.  The lights come down a lot quicker than they go up, but most of my time was spent undoing the light strings and packing them away for next year.  Being an Engineer, I test each string and label what side of the house it was on so that I can put them up quickly next year.  I test the bulbs and toss the bad ones, check the light strings and toss the ones that are too far gone, pack up the wreaths, and fold up the soldiers and pack everything away in the attic.  After being sick for so long and wasting last week entirely , I tried to make up for it yesterday - was feeling too good to slow down.  Got the Xmas tree bundled up and in the attic for another year.  Today I hope to tackle the leaves in the yard, if I have the energy.  I've had off way too long.  I feel like a sloth from eating too much, sleeping late, and being sick most of the week.  I did not get anything accomplished I had intended to do and head back to work tomorrow.  It will certainly be hard to get up early and face the rat race again.   Maybe I can find a few left over Christmas cookies to tide me over.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A day, late, but I hope everyone takes time from the turkey & dressing induced hangovers and the Black Friday sales to celebrate with family and friends and give thanks for all of our blessings. I try to take time during these busy holidays to remember all of the blessings we have: life, family, friends, health, opportunity. I am especially thankful for the men & women serving abroad in the armed forces who could not be home with family during this time.

I intended to post a couple of additional updates from Belgium, but wound up working late each day and had to get up way early to catch a flight to Paris for the long trek back home. 12+ hours flying, 4 hours waiting in the airport, 4 different passport checks, 3 airport screenings, a gallon of coffee, and several rounds of airline meals, I finally made it home to Texas. Traveling on the 23rd wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated crowds had not yet started to stack up and there were no delays in my flight. I was up for 22 hours straight, tired and had hoped to come home, drop the bags, kiss the wife, hug/walk the dogs, and catch up on my sleep, but I walked right into a leaking water pipe in the attic. A small pinhole leak had sprung up over the last few days. It hadn’t been leaking long, but enough to stain the ceiling and drip through the sheetrock. Needless to say, I was not happy, to which my darling bride added (trying to lighten the mood) added: “Well, which dwarf are you?”.  Her funeral will be next week.  Given the holidays, I could not get a plumber out until the weekend, so, being an engineer, I ran out to the big box hardware chain and picked up a pipe clamp (no, the duct tape did not work).  I was able to clamp down on the pipe and stop the leak, for now.  We still need a plumber, but the crisis level has dropped to DEFCON 4 (for now).

I have started to pull together my notes/pictures from my week in Europe. I’ve got enough stuff left over from the weekend to fill up several blogs. Keep an eye on this place for some interesting tales and sites and more on my visit with RC. 

Tower Bridge

 

Brussels

Celebrations

Spent most of yesterday prepping and executing our little celebration for the kids.  Since a number of the family could not make the graduation ceremony in Austin two weekends ago and they got engaged last weekend, I invited everyone over to our casa for a small gathering.  Most of my family (sans the brother in Seattle and nephew in Jamaica) and Rebecca's parents for some steaks, snacks & beer.  

Was a great gig, but way hot.  We are still in a drought (no rain since January) and the yard is starting to look like an old sandlot baseball field.  Put up a couple of shelters and several fans to provide a breeze to help keep it cooler.  Everyone had a great time, way too much food, lots of conversation. 

One highlight was my nephew and his wife brought their 1.5 year old daughter (Julianna) over.  We don't get to see her that much.  I was worried on how she would take to the dogs.  Big dogs tend to scare little kids.  Like most Golden Retrievers, Claire and Grayson can be a bit overwhelming.  They are very loving & gentle dogs with a serious center-of-attention deficit problem (they crave attention).  Grayson in particular is the younger boy and tend to be a wee bit overly exuberant in his actions.  He is my "paws on" dog.  When he wants more attention (which is always), he will put one paw up on your leg.  He can be a bit overwhelming at times and I am working on that habit.  Claire is my "licker".  She has that sweet disposition and will park herself at your feet and lick your hand/elbow/knee/face or whatever is within reach.  Given those traits, I tend to watch over the two dogs to make sure they do not cause problems.  What amazed everyone was how Grayson acted around Julianna.  First, Julianna had never dealt with dogs up close before, so we were worried she might freak out or their excitement might scare her.  Au contraire.  She thought these dogs were big horses for her enjoyment.  She showed no fear of the dogs and they did not overwhelm her.  Grayson, for all his lanky exuberance, was incredibly gentle and patient around her.  She played with him and he was very calm and reserved around her.  Even when she bopped him in the nose, he was still licking her.  When she got up and explored the yard, Grayson laid there waiting for her to return.  Everyone told me they were amazed with Grayson's patience with Julianna, I just keep telling them that it was the Golden personality.  Regardless, the dogs were well behaved.  The steaks were good, the beer was consumed, a good time was had by all. 

I probably spent more money than I should have on the party, but it was an excellent time to congratulate the young couple upon their pending union (date TBD).  We were just  ecstatic to see them, if only for a short while.  


Happy couple



Pre New Years

Been a quite week down here.  Weather has turned wet and cooler, but not as bad as elsewhere.  No floods like in CA, no single digits temps like in CO or 2 feet of snow like NY.  Just lots of rain and wind. 

Had to go back to work for a part of the week.  Since my boss is out of town and the other manager took the reigns last week, was my turn to hold down the fort during the holidays.  It's not a big deal in my mind .  I've been doing it for years ever since I was in the Army.  I've been on duty for more than a few Thanksgivings and Christmases so you learn to celebrate when you can.  Actually, this week was kinda nice.  Basically there was only a handful of people on the property so I was able to knock out a lot of projects and chores that I never seem to have time for.  Nobody to darken my doorstep with their problems or questions.  Took a co-worker out for lunch (I owe her a big favor) who is going to retire next year.  Known her for 15+ years and she will be missed.  Did lunch with my nephew who got fired/canned back in September.  He got an offer for a job to start in January, so things are looking up for him.

People keep asking the normal courtesy questions:  How were your holidays? 
Hard to answer that this year.  It has been quiet.  My son came home for Christmas, albeit for a brief time.  He is back in Austin working on a project/potential start up deal with his housemate.  I understand his drive and motivation, but momma wishes he would be here longer.  Of course, my reminding her that he is the same age as when I got married, joined the Army and moved to Germany does not score me any brownie points.  The wife's mother has been in the hospital for tests/observation which as put a damper on our holidays.  She's been there for two weeks due to a spell and it looks like they will move her to a extended care facility for a while.  She's doing better now and getting back to her old form, but she wants to come home.  Needless to say it has been hard on my wife and her sister taking care of her parents as they get older.  I have tried to help out a bit by taking care of everything at home.  I even did the entire Christmas dinner this year to give her a break.  Life can be hard/cruel as we get older.  

Because of her mom's condition, we chose to forego our annual rally out in Bellville where we camp with my parents and brother and our trailer group to celebrate the New Year.  I could go, but it would be just me and the dogs and I just did not feel right.  So this year,  no big party, no massive celebrations, no overconsumption of cheap champagne, just a quiet evening with momma and the dogs as they hide under the sofa while the fireworks go off.  I'm glad for what we have and grateful for our blessings, but I am kinda glad to see 2010 go.  .  It's been a long, interesting year. 

Hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year! 

Here's to 2011!

Thankful

Was going to write something inspirational on Thursday, but Meleah pretty much covered most of me talking points. Good day. Ate too much. No turducken this year - just a smoked turkey and a really good sweet potato casarole made by our future nephew in law, Sherry. Cute girl. A real spitfire with a wicked sense of humor. She should fit right in with this family of nuts. Along with all of the standard thanksgiving fare, we had the typical assortment of pies (pumpkin, pecan, cobbler, and, of course, our family favorite/tradion, a butterscotch & chocolate merange pie. Both are old family recipies handed down for decades and kinda a running joke/thorn for most of the daughter-in-laws. My 87 year old mom still makes them from scratch and the recipie is mostly in her head. These kinds of merange pies are, not to be profane, a bitch to make. My wife has made several valiant attempts with good results (IMHO) but she thinks they are a pain in the ass and as refused to make them any more - even for special occasions (like her son's birthday or him coming home. I won't even tempt fate by asking for one. The fact that my mom still makes them amazes me - I won't ask for one but my brothers will. I will, however, enjoy a slice if offered. My mom, however, really doesn't eat much of them - after too many years of making them she has lost the taste for them.


Watched a great football game and team won, so life is good. Winter has finally showed up down here.  Temps dropped 40 degrees yesterday.  Was in the low 80s and we were seeing temps hovering around the mid 40s by 10 pm.  I am currently sitting on a ranch in west Texas about 30 miles from the Mexican border.  Hoping to have a go at some whitetail deer, but even if we don't see anything. It is good to get away from the office for a while.


Have a great Black Friday!

Shopping while impared

No, I am no drinking & shopping.  Although, in the past there may have been one or two on-line acquisitions that I could claim were due to that last glass of Scotch. 

I normally shy away from the malls, avoid the chain stores, drive past the shopping centers.  I do hit wally world about every week or two, but that is for dog food & treats and a few odds & ends.  And Home Depot doesn't count.  I will definitely try to avoid the stores if I am not in the right frame of mind (like never go grocery shopping when you are hungry).  I was out making a few runs Saturday & Sunday.  I decided to hit wally world, Target, Home Depot for some items and, while I was out, I was going to pick up a few items off of the list for our unit we are sponsoring in Afghanistan.  The list is nothing fancy, just some plain simple ordinary every day things that you would never think about until you were lacking.  I got this list from the mother of one of the soldiers who is currently stationed somewhere out in the hills of Afghanistan.  It is off of a running list sent back to the families from the unit. 

Below you will see a few things that was sent to me this morning.

• Other items that are always good to send:
• Beef jerky, slim jims, protein bars, sunflower seeds and small pkg of mixed nuts
• Gum and candy
• Q-tips, baby wipes, toothbrush/paste, deodorant, **I am looking for some waterless shampoo...but have not had luck....let me know if you find this!!
• Coffee
• Coffee filters
• campfire cooking utensils
• mouse traps
• pasta
• little toys
• beach balls
• spices
• sauces
• canned veggies/fruit
• Warm socks (its starting to get cold there)
• *Basically simple ingredients to make meals*
• Also, they killed a turkey..and they are so excited, because that's what they're going to have for Thanksgiving.

As I said, I should never go shopping if I am not sober or in a sane frame of mind.  I kinda went overboard.  I have a soft spot when it comes to the military.  To some extent, I've been there.  I've served in the field on holidays, had duty over Thanksgiving, missed Christmas while on maneuvers.  I sorta know how it sucks to be away from home & family and I am glad for the blessings we have.  That's one of the reasons I volunteered to help out this effort at the company.  It is not much, but I hope that what we send will give them some cheer.  I added a few things "off list" on the hopes it will make it there on time (small Xmas tree, Santa Hats, candy canes).  Mail service is slow, so we have to get everything out by tomorrow in order for it to be there by Christmas.   

Need more time

It seems like the weeks/months are just flying by.

Keep getting new projects/chores at the office, dogs need grooming, truck is due for service this morning, trailer registration due this month, gotta repair the light fixture in the kitchen (no, it is not a simple bulb replacement), carpets need cleaning, need to fix window in momma's car, unjam the shredder, fix a plumbing leak at FiLs house, clean the cat hair out of SiLs printer, blah, blah, blah.  I thought that, once the kid was off in college and we were by ourselves, things would slow down. HA!

I guess we should be grateful for the blessings we have (job, health, family, home), but sometimes, just sometimes, I miss being a kid.  The nice thing about having a dog (or two), is that their expectations are pretty low.  Walk me, feed me, pet me, repeat.  And Golden Retrievers are pretty needy on the attention part.  It was bad enough with one "attention hound" but adding a second to the mix has somehow turned into an exponetial deal.  I cannot show pet or show attention to one without the other one showing up (Me Too! Me Too!).  One major benefit about these two kooks is that, no matter how lousy the day, how much crap has been tossed your way, or how late you are, they are always estatic to see you....   

Ahhh....the weekend

Spendiferic weather.  Temps in the mid 60's to low 70's.  Not a cloud in the sky.  Humidity hovering around 40%.  Woke up this morning and almost thought I was back in SoCal.  We ain't used to this kind of weather.  It's been hot & humid down here since April and this weather is almost obscene.  Trying to spend as much time outdoors before it changes.  The old expression we have around here is:  "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute.  It will change." 

Work's been kicking my butt.  Projects, reports, deadlines and fire drills.  I am almost caught up from my road trip to California three weeks ago.  I would complain, but I really hate whiners and, besides, I'm grateful to have a job given today's economy.  My nephew has not landed a job yet, but he is looking hard and hopes to land something soon.  Our next door neighbors at work, NASA, is starting to shut down programs now since they are on the last of the shuttle flights.  One NASA contractor in the area has just laid off about 1/3 of its work force on Friday with more to come by the end of the year.  Time's are tough all over.       

Tried to get out side over the weekend.  Yard has stopped growing.  Not sure if it is cooler temps or the lack of rain, but it doesn't really need to be mowed this weekend.  Got to spend 1/2 day out in Katy yesterday participating in their annual Rice Harvest Festival.  Our dog group (GBGRR) participates in the parade every year as one of the volunteer entries and we walk the streets with a pack of wild goldens looking for someone to lick or pet.  The dogs are typically a hit with all of the spectators and this year was no exception.  Always thinking ahead, we hand out bags with our card/website information, plus a treat for humans & dogs.  I took both Chaos & Pandemonium (Claire & Grayson) and the dogs had a blast and were well behaved.  No gutter incidents this year.  They did so well that I even took them to the local dog park in Katy as a treat.  I've taken on a mission to hit all of the dog parks in the area just to see which one is better and the one in Katy top notch.  Lots of grass/trees/shade/benches.  One of the better ones we've been to. 

A pack of killers

Tag teaming the crowd

Long weekend

Hope everyone is having a great 4th of July weekend.  Extended weekend for a lot of folk.  The PTB (powers-that-be) gave us both Friday and Monday off so it's been a 4 day weekend.  Been goofing around the house mostly.  Friday was a washout with the rain, but Saturday was 50/50 for the weather.  Was going to mow the yard but it is still saturated with rain and it would be like mowing a swamp.  Today it has dried out a bit and I hope to be able to cut it back before grass overgrows the house.  Pretty laid back weekend.  My son came back home on Saturday late and will be here through today. 

I took him and his roommates to the range yesterday (their request) to blow off some steam and throw lead downrange.  One kid was from LA and had never shot a handgun before, so he wanted to try it out (while he was in Texas).  Everybody had a blast.  Wound up spending the rest of the afternoon cleaning up and helping the guys build a Beirut table.  Ah, to be young and in college.   

Was pretty laid back for fireworks.  In the past, we would head to the neighborhood park and set out lawn chairs and could watch 3 different fireworks displays.  Depending upon where you set up, you could see the local city fireworks and then turn west and watch the adjacent city's displays.  Occasionally, we could see the downtown display from afar.  And of course, we would watch the local neighborhood kids try to kill each others with bottle rockets and star clusters.  The old dog would have a conniption fit over any fireworks so we would leave him home.  The two new dogs seem to be a little less freaked but I was not going to test their resolve.  This year we did not venture out to brave the traffic.  My son went to watch fireworks with girlfriend and I walked the dogs and heard the commotion.   All in all, a pretty lazy weekend.  Now I am off to mow the yard and wait for the a/c guy to show up. 

Working for the weekend

Another week down.  I was going to start out griping about how busy things are and the typical chaos we have at the office.  Too many projects/crisises, not enough time.  Trying to keep several balls in the air.  My mom would say: "Busier than a one armed paper hanger with an itch". 

But as I was walking the dogs early in the morning and enjoying the "cooler" morning air when it hit me that, inspite of my grousing, life ain't too bad.  Still got a job.  Got a roof over my head.  The kid is doing well in school.  The family's doing well.  I've got two goofy dogs that worship me.  We have our health.  What more could I ask for?   

Sometimes you have to stop, center yourself, go back to the basics and count your blessings.  Time to put the big boy pants on and get on with life.     

From wilder times...

Welcome to Texas summer. Hot days, warm nights. A/C running nonstop.

This weekend started out in the low 80s and was pegging 98 each day.  Was out trying to run at noon yesterday when it was near 92.

I took both dogs to the dog part Sunday to let them cavort and swim in the pond and there wasn't anybody there. I don't think I have ever gone to the dog park where wasn't some hyperactive lab chasing balls in the pond or a horny German Shepard. Was kind of strange that the two had the entire park to themselves for a while. OF course, it was sweltering in the shade so I bet the smart people were staying home in the a/c. Claire finally got in the pond and started swimming, but Grayson still only goes in up to his chest. Wore out both dogs, but they had a blast. Claire's getting a bit shaggy and I am going to take her in this week for a trim. Mom & I are debating how much to cut off and she may wind up with a Chihuahua hairstyle. I may post before & after picts.

Father's Day was pretty low key. I talked with my dad out in Wyoming for a good long while. They are doing well and enjoying their rally. Temps are way better than down here. My son called me several times to wish me a happy Father's Day, but he was busy moving into his new temporary house. I would have been happy to lend a hand (or back), but glad I wasn't tied into that deal this time (Been there. Done that.).

I have always found Father's Day (from my perspective) to be out of sync with my plans. Over the past 12 years, we've never been home for Father's Day. Ever since we joined the scouts, we have been out on the trail or in camp during during Father's Day. Many times we are either on the way to or coming home from camp. Unlike Mother's Day, we never planned campouts or held activities on that weekend. A few years back, as the troop camping coordinator, I made the mistake of booking a campout over Mother's Day (no choice - all other weekends/camps were booked) and I'm still getting hate mail over that one. Father's Day doesn't quite seem to have the same limitations and I prefer it that way. Probably one of the most memorable ones was back in 2004 when we were on the trail at Philmont. We were 6 days into a 12 day expedition covering an 80 mile trek of the northern New Mexico mountains. Father's Day found us camped out on Mount Phillips at 11,900 feet eating freeze dried lasagna and pemmican bars. I was one of 4 dads on the crew of 12 boys and each one of the boys came up and wished us a happy Father's Day. One wanted to borrow my cell phone to call his dad back in Texas  (Sorry, Brad, but lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part).  Besides, I'm not carrying a phone all over the Sangre de Christo Mountains for 12 days just so someone can call home to momma.

Pater familias

It's all your fault.  You started this whole mess almost 65 year ago and look what it led to.  A whole family of crackpots and loony toons.   

I was once asked in a job interview to name one of my heroes.  It may have been a corny answer but without batting an eyelash, I named my father.  He has been a role model for three sons and an extended family of daughter-in-laws and associated grandsons.  He worked hard for many decades but always had time for the family.  In some circles, he could be considered a bit A/R.  He is up early (ala 0500) every morning, walks 2-3 miles before breakfast (even on the road), is a tinkerer (able to fix things), keeps his vehicles in pristine shape, is quick to step in and help anyone.  He retired from work during my last year of college (30 years ago) and he and mom have been out traveling in their trailer ever since (we've accused them of trying to run away).  I consider myself blessed that I can do a lot of things in life and have unlimited opportunities/potential and I owe it all to that guy (and a good portion to you too, mom).
 

Thanks, Dad.

Happy Father's Day!

Back from the dark ages

We're alive!  Was going to blog about last weekend's adventure but the cable router got fried early on Tuesday and we've been living sans Internet for several days.  Finally, Comcast (Bless Their Hearts) granted us an audience Friday afternoon and replaced the router and, Voila!  We have Internet!  It was not pretty.  Suffering under inhumane conditions.  We had to read a paper to get our news.  I could not read the shenanigans of my favorite bloggers.  The wife and I actually had to engage in conversation during dinner!  Turned out to be rather nice & quiet for a while.  Although we did kinda feel like we were living back in the 80's.   

Long week.  Spent my Memorial Day weekend in Austin helping my son move out of apartment.  Was able to get most of his junk transported into some remote storage unit somewhere north of town (1/2 way to Dallas, I believe).  Took a few trips and some heavy lifting and creative stacking, but everything he owns fits in a 5-10 storage room.  It's one of those skills I picked up way back in the stone age when I was a poor, innocent college student was how to pack a 1969 Plymouth Fury III with an entire dorm room/apartment and cram it in a tiny space.  

Short week at the office.  Monday was a holiday, and Friday was a our company picnic/Family Fun Day.  I said that I like the style of the new management.  They kicked in for a family style party with burgers and dogs and all sorts of games for kids to play at.  Big hoop-te-do that even included a dunking book for the big dogs.  Nice to see they are humble enough to allow people to make fun of them.  The CEO & CFO and many of our esteemed VPs spent a lot of time in the dunking tank (all for charity).  My contribution?  I offered up an idea that, in hindsight, might have been left on the table.  Way back in my Army days, we had limited ways to generate funds for the company (bake sale, raffles).  One idea that generated a serious amount of coin was a "pie in your face" auction.  You could bid on a pie to put it in the face of your favorite Company Commander, XO (me), Lieutenant, First Sargent, Platoon Sargent.  If you got the highest bid, you won the chance to put a pie in the face of your intended victim.  There were a few privates & PFCs who dropped a whole month's paycheck to pie the First Sargent.

Anyway, I made the suggestion thinking that it would not get any interest but the CEO thought it was a great idea and was willing to do it first hand.  Needless to say, since this was kinda my idea, I had to be willing to take one for the team.

     

Got a wee bit messy.  I can't complain since a number of people higher up on the food chain than I took a lot more abuse.  Besides, we garnered another $2,315 for the Epilepsy Foundation.