Today was an eventful day on the job front. I received a call from Jill, a fellow member at our church. Jill seems to have her finger on the pulse of everyone who's looking for a job, and her contacts make her a very valuable friend. I didn't know she even knew I was looking for a job. Somewhere in her travels she came across an HR Director opening and she's promised to provide me with an introduction to the head honchos at the company. I'm hoping to talk to them on the phone tomorrow. Thanks Jill!
I spent this morning at the church building working with Eric, one of our associate ministers installing two flat screen TV wall brackets in some of the classrooms. As we were getting started Eric comment "It's nice to be able to call on an out-of-work engineer when you have work like this to do." The look on his face was priceless - both funny and sad - when I informed him that I wasn't an engineer. For a second I thought he was going to come up with an excuse to send me home. But, he decided to take a chance and we got the brackets installed. When I left the TV's were both still on the wall.
Tomorrow is the big day for my television career - my audition for Who Wants to be a Millionaire. If I play my cards right I may never have to work again. I checked the website this afternoon and found that the hotel where the auditions are being held is not exactly in the greatest neighborhood in Houston. For those of you who know Houston it's out near Gallery Furniture ( . . . save you money!), a 32.5 mile drive according to Google. The doors open at 6:00 AM. My plan is to get up at 4:30 and be on the road to glory, fame and fortune by 4:45 at the latest. Last night Kayla drilled me for an hour or so with practice games from the Millionaire website. The best I could do was win $25,000. This was a little disappointing to Kayla, to whom I have promised 25% of my winnings. She was thinking $250,000 - which is slightly more than $6,250.
Finally, those of you who have been following the world news the last few days are aware that the Central American country of Honduras has been undergoing some wild and uncertain times during this past week. We are concerned for our friends at Mission Larazus, a Christian missionary organization that has been operating in southern Honduras for the last several years and has done tremendous work in not only spreading the Gospel but also making the lives of the Honduran people better. It's expected that the political events that will unfold over the next few days may produce a dangerous situation, so please keep all of the Mission Lazarus people in your prayers. I have added a link to Mission Lazarus under my list of family blogs.
Tomorrow: The BIG audition in the morning (I'm so excited) and Wednesday church in the evening. It should be a great day.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
I'm Not Expecting Much Today, But Later This Week . . .
I'm blogging a little earlier today than usual because I'm really kind of bored. This morning I sent a few employment-related emails to some long lost contacts and made a few phones calls to people - all of whom were not available. Maybe they'll call me back. I'm also waiting for the air-conditioning guys to show up for our spring A/C check-up. I'll bet they are loving going up into 500 degree attics every day.
As I write I'm looking out the window at what's left of the grass in my front yard. If we don't get some decent rain in the next week or so there may not be any green left on our entire block. I've increased the time that my lawn sprinklers run and moved the watering time to the middle of the night hoping that the water will have more time to sink to the roots before the daily blast furnace kicks in, but so far I haven't seen much improvement. I need to conduct a cost analysis of the cost of water vs. the cost of re-sodding the entire yard. It may be cheaper to just let the whole yard die and plant a new one next spring. Or better yet, we could go with the rock yard look. I'll bet the neighbors would really like that!
I put a link to my blog on my Facebook page this morning. I'm expecting that this will eventually increase my readership into double figures. I also noticed that I had a comment to a recent posting, which was very exciting. After about 30 posts this make three comments! I'm trying to keep up.
Last night I accompanied the fam to the new paleteria in Rosenberg. For those of you not well-verse in the Mexican language, a palateria is a Mexican ice cream parlor (sort of). When we arrived I experience a strong feeling of deja vu, which I eventually realized was due to the fact that we had once bought a car at this location, which in a past life had been a Buick dealership. If I recall correctly the automobile purchase was not a pleasant one, because the dealership ordered the wrong color. Maybe that's why they've been replaced by a Mexican ice cream parlor. I don't remember the name or the address of the pateteria, but it's across the street from the Fiesta in Rosenberg, if that helps.
We are now in full tenant mode. Both Lance and Kayla have now relocated to Greatwood for the summer. As previously blogged, Kayla is doing her speech pathology externship here this summer. Lance has found gainful employment, and started his summer job today. They'll both be here until mid-August, at which time they'll head back to Lubbock for their final year at Texas Tech, where they will emerge in the spring of 2010 as really educated people with masters degrees! After that it's hopeful that they will further emerge as really educated people with jobs.
Bethany rolled in last night for a short visit. I think she heard we were going to the paleteria. She and Vicki are spending the day at the wedding photographer's place doing the final selection of the pictures that will be included in the Bethany/Cody wedding album. Bethany is so excited to get this done and has obviously given the photo selection a tremendous amount of thought. The wedding was January 10th.
Oh, I almost forgot . . . I have an event of epic proportion coming up on Wednesday morning. At the urging of Kayla I'm going to try out to be on the show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. One of the perks of being unemployed is that when something really important like this comes along you can respond immediately, without having to rearrange your schedule, because you don't really have a schedule to rearrange. You don't have to drop everything, because there is nothing to drop. You don't have to . . . well, you get the picture. Anyway,trying out involves taking a written test in the morning and then coming back in the afternoon for a personal interview (if you passed the test in the morning). Kayla has complete faith that I will pass the test, wow them at the interview, and be selected as a participant. I love Kayla. Her expectations also include me actually winning the million dollars. As her finder's fee for setting this whole thing up I have promised to give her $250,000 (before taxes), which seems fair. Anyway, I plan to be at the designated hotel in the Hobby Airport area at 5:00 AM on Wednesday morning to get a good place in line. Please feel free to come down and meet up with me (bring donuts), but remember that nobody will be admitted to the hotel ballroom before 6:00 AM. You'll also have to look up the name of the hotel yourself because I don't really want to make it easy for any unnecessary competition from any people who may be smarter than me. Speaking of smarter than me, I'll need to start thinking about whom to pick for my "phone a friend" designee.
Tomorrow: I got roped into - I mean I enthusiastically volunteered - to help install some TV stands in the classrooms at the church building. These are those things that screw into the wall about seven feet above the floor so that everybody can see the TV. I've never done this before, but I'm guessing that you use some really big molly bolts to hold up a 500 pound TV. If you come to visit us sit at least three rows back to avoid any potential unpleasant consequences associated with falling TV sets.
As I write I'm looking out the window at what's left of the grass in my front yard. If we don't get some decent rain in the next week or so there may not be any green left on our entire block. I've increased the time that my lawn sprinklers run and moved the watering time to the middle of the night hoping that the water will have more time to sink to the roots before the daily blast furnace kicks in, but so far I haven't seen much improvement. I need to conduct a cost analysis of the cost of water vs. the cost of re-sodding the entire yard. It may be cheaper to just let the whole yard die and plant a new one next spring. Or better yet, we could go with the rock yard look. I'll bet the neighbors would really like that!
I put a link to my blog on my Facebook page this morning. I'm expecting that this will eventually increase my readership into double figures. I also noticed that I had a comment to a recent posting, which was very exciting. After about 30 posts this make three comments! I'm trying to keep up.
Last night I accompanied the fam to the new paleteria in Rosenberg. For those of you not well-verse in the Mexican language, a palateria is a Mexican ice cream parlor (sort of). When we arrived I experience a strong feeling of deja vu, which I eventually realized was due to the fact that we had once bought a car at this location, which in a past life had been a Buick dealership. If I recall correctly the automobile purchase was not a pleasant one, because the dealership ordered the wrong color. Maybe that's why they've been replaced by a Mexican ice cream parlor. I don't remember the name or the address of the pateteria, but it's across the street from the Fiesta in Rosenberg, if that helps.
We are now in full tenant mode. Both Lance and Kayla have now relocated to Greatwood for the summer. As previously blogged, Kayla is doing her speech pathology externship here this summer. Lance has found gainful employment, and started his summer job today. They'll both be here until mid-August, at which time they'll head back to Lubbock for their final year at Texas Tech, where they will emerge in the spring of 2010 as really educated people with masters degrees! After that it's hopeful that they will further emerge as really educated people with jobs.
Bethany rolled in last night for a short visit. I think she heard we were going to the paleteria. She and Vicki are spending the day at the wedding photographer's place doing the final selection of the pictures that will be included in the Bethany/Cody wedding album. Bethany is so excited to get this done and has obviously given the photo selection a tremendous amount of thought. The wedding was January 10th.
Oh, I almost forgot . . . I have an event of epic proportion coming up on Wednesday morning. At the urging of Kayla I'm going to try out to be on the show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. One of the perks of being unemployed is that when something really important like this comes along you can respond immediately, without having to rearrange your schedule, because you don't really have a schedule to rearrange. You don't have to drop everything, because there is nothing to drop. You don't have to . . . well, you get the picture. Anyway,trying out involves taking a written test in the morning and then coming back in the afternoon for a personal interview (if you passed the test in the morning). Kayla has complete faith that I will pass the test, wow them at the interview, and be selected as a participant. I love Kayla. Her expectations also include me actually winning the million dollars. As her finder's fee for setting this whole thing up I have promised to give her $250,000 (before taxes), which seems fair. Anyway, I plan to be at the designated hotel in the Hobby Airport area at 5:00 AM on Wednesday morning to get a good place in line. Please feel free to come down and meet up with me (bring donuts), but remember that nobody will be admitted to the hotel ballroom before 6:00 AM. You'll also have to look up the name of the hotel yourself because I don't really want to make it easy for any unnecessary competition from any people who may be smarter than me. Speaking of smarter than me, I'll need to start thinking about whom to pick for my "phone a friend" designee.
Tomorrow: I got roped into - I mean I enthusiastically volunteered - to help install some TV stands in the classrooms at the church building. These are those things that screw into the wall about seven feet above the floor so that everybody can see the TV. I've never done this before, but I'm guessing that you use some really big molly bolts to hold up a 500 pound TV. If you come to visit us sit at least three rows back to avoid any potential unpleasant consequences associated with falling TV sets.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
My Latest Comings and Goings
It's been a few days since I've blogged, basically because nothing much has been happening. But in the interest of avoiding the appearance of being a slacker who doesn't actually blog I do have a few items that may be mildly interesting to a limited number of people whose lives are as equally exciting as mine. Be forewarned - this blog is both longer and less fascinating than one of my average posts, so please read it when you have lots of time and when you are really bored. Be sure both conditions exist before beginning.
I put in another appearance at Second Mile Mission on Thursday. I think I'll make this a commitment to be there every Thursday. Once again, it was hot beyond belief in the warehouse but not too hot to accomplish my assigned task. Tom asked me to reorganize the section where the diapers (for both infants and adults), vacuum cleaners, cleaning supplies, Ramen noodles, and used computers are stored. I need to ask him sometime about who decides where everything goes, as this seems a somewhat curious combination of unrelated items. Instead of working with a gang of mini-thugs doing their community service, I spent the day this week working with Chad, a college guy who will be a junior at University of Houston this fall. Chad told me that because he can't find a summer job he thought he may as well put his spare time to good use. I showed him how to use a pallet jack, which I'm sure was the highlight of his day. My only problem with Chad was his cheap shot question "Would you like someone with a younger back to do that?" I'm sure he was only being polite. I'll get even with him next week.
Vicki's aunt Rosalee was in town for a visit on Thursday and Friday. For an old lady she's really pretty cool. During a very pleasant visit around sister Cheryl's pool on Thursday evening the conversation somehow came to focus on what medication everyone was taking, who couldn't hear anymore (huh?), how much weight everyone needs to lose, the history of surgery, and detailed descriptions of everyone's current physical illnesses, abnormalities and deformities. I tried to focus on the conversation in the "men's corner" but at times it too drifted into the realm of "we're old and we're falling apart." In spite of the near unanimous consent that we're all a bunch of fat, sick old people, the Blue Bell with chocolate sauce was quite good.
I spent yesterday working on finalizing the vacation arrangements for our big family vacation to Costa Rica the week after Christmas. I know what you're thinking, but I'm sure I'll have a job by then. We did an almost identical trip back in 2005 and the arrangements were a snap. This time around it seems like the cosmic powers of the universe know that I have all the time in the world to work on this and they've determined that that's exactly how long it will take to get it done. My final unfinished detail is the now arduous task of confirming a beach side hotel. So far it has gone something like this:
1. Find a decent looking hotel on the Internet and send an email asking about availability.
2. Receive a reply that reservations during Christmas week are for a three-night minimum. We only want two nights.
3. I call and ask if they'll consider an exception to the three-night rule. They ask if I'll call back in ten minutes. No problem, this is only an international call that is not a toll-free number. Call anytime!
4. Call back and have a pleasant conversation with Lila (pronounced "Lee-la" in espanol). However, I spend the last fifteen minutes of the call trying to get her to understand how to spell my last name. All those "E's" when mixed with that pesky "D" in the middle can be very confusing.
5. Receive an email that they'll take us for only two nights, but the rate that Lila quoted didn't include the $10/night Christmas week surcharge that should apply to the second night.
6. Send a reply that the surcharge is okay.
7. Receive an email in Spanish that I think I understood. However, the attachment was gibberish.
8. Receive another email, this one in English. Unfortunately, the attachment is in German. Being that I took one year of German when I was a freshman in high school - circa 1967 - I attempt to decipher the attachment. Surprisingly, I fail miserably.
9. I make an inadvertent keystroke on my keyboard that somehow resets the font size in Yahoo from 14 to a size where an entire sentence will fit on the head of a pin. Surprisingly, my attempts to correct this error only makes it worse.
10. I give up without achieving a confirmed beach side hotel. Maybe tomorrow when my strength returns I'll take another run at it.
As your reward for getting this far I have a bonus for you - one of my 100% on-target movie reviews! This afternoon's movie was The Proposal with Sandra (what has she done to her face) Bullock and a guy whom I recognized but have no idea what his name is. Oh yes, and Oscar from The Office had an extended cameo role as an exotic dancer, waiter, store clerk and preacher - sort of a Jack (or Jill?) or all trades. The first forty-five minutes or so were fairly amusing but then it was downhill - fast. The scene with grandma (Betty While) dancing in the woods with some kind of Eskimo robe on was probably the low point, but there were many other contenders for that distinction. The only real high point was the Alaskan scenery, but you can see that on the Alaska chamber of commerce website for free. I would say that you might consider renting this when you're in the mood for a throw-away chick flick, but definitely do not under any circumstances spend $9.50 to see this movie at a theater.
Tomorrow: We get to go to church to worship and praise God and to attend our Bible class, which I really like. I really look forward to Sunday mornings. Not sure if this is our week for first service or second service. I'm sure that Vicki knows.
I put in another appearance at Second Mile Mission on Thursday. I think I'll make this a commitment to be there every Thursday. Once again, it was hot beyond belief in the warehouse but not too hot to accomplish my assigned task. Tom asked me to reorganize the section where the diapers (for both infants and adults), vacuum cleaners, cleaning supplies, Ramen noodles, and used computers are stored. I need to ask him sometime about who decides where everything goes, as this seems a somewhat curious combination of unrelated items. Instead of working with a gang of mini-thugs doing their community service, I spent the day this week working with Chad, a college guy who will be a junior at University of Houston this fall. Chad told me that because he can't find a summer job he thought he may as well put his spare time to good use. I showed him how to use a pallet jack, which I'm sure was the highlight of his day. My only problem with Chad was his cheap shot question "Would you like someone with a younger back to do that?" I'm sure he was only being polite. I'll get even with him next week.
Vicki's aunt Rosalee was in town for a visit on Thursday and Friday. For an old lady she's really pretty cool. During a very pleasant visit around sister Cheryl's pool on Thursday evening the conversation somehow came to focus on what medication everyone was taking, who couldn't hear anymore (huh?), how much weight everyone needs to lose, the history of surgery, and detailed descriptions of everyone's current physical illnesses, abnormalities and deformities. I tried to focus on the conversation in the "men's corner" but at times it too drifted into the realm of "we're old and we're falling apart." In spite of the near unanimous consent that we're all a bunch of fat, sick old people, the Blue Bell with chocolate sauce was quite good.
I spent yesterday working on finalizing the vacation arrangements for our big family vacation to Costa Rica the week after Christmas. I know what you're thinking, but I'm sure I'll have a job by then. We did an almost identical trip back in 2005 and the arrangements were a snap. This time around it seems like the cosmic powers of the universe know that I have all the time in the world to work on this and they've determined that that's exactly how long it will take to get it done. My final unfinished detail is the now arduous task of confirming a beach side hotel. So far it has gone something like this:
1. Find a decent looking hotel on the Internet and send an email asking about availability.
2. Receive a reply that reservations during Christmas week are for a three-night minimum. We only want two nights.
3. I call and ask if they'll consider an exception to the three-night rule. They ask if I'll call back in ten minutes. No problem, this is only an international call that is not a toll-free number. Call anytime!
4. Call back and have a pleasant conversation with Lila (pronounced "Lee-la" in espanol). However, I spend the last fifteen minutes of the call trying to get her to understand how to spell my last name. All those "E's" when mixed with that pesky "D" in the middle can be very confusing.
5. Receive an email that they'll take us for only two nights, but the rate that Lila quoted didn't include the $10/night Christmas week surcharge that should apply to the second night.
6. Send a reply that the surcharge is okay.
7. Receive an email in Spanish that I think I understood. However, the attachment was gibberish.
8. Receive another email, this one in English. Unfortunately, the attachment is in German. Being that I took one year of German when I was a freshman in high school - circa 1967 - I attempt to decipher the attachment. Surprisingly, I fail miserably.
9. I make an inadvertent keystroke on my keyboard that somehow resets the font size in Yahoo from 14 to a size where an entire sentence will fit on the head of a pin. Surprisingly, my attempts to correct this error only makes it worse.
10. I give up without achieving a confirmed beach side hotel. Maybe tomorrow when my strength returns I'll take another run at it.
As your reward for getting this far I have a bonus for you - one of my 100% on-target movie reviews! This afternoon's movie was The Proposal with Sandra (what has she done to her face) Bullock and a guy whom I recognized but have no idea what his name is. Oh yes, and Oscar from The Office had an extended cameo role as an exotic dancer, waiter, store clerk and preacher - sort of a Jack (or Jill?) or all trades. The first forty-five minutes or so were fairly amusing but then it was downhill - fast. The scene with grandma (Betty While) dancing in the woods with some kind of Eskimo robe on was probably the low point, but there were many other contenders for that distinction. The only real high point was the Alaskan scenery, but you can see that on the Alaska chamber of commerce website for free. I would say that you might consider renting this when you're in the mood for a throw-away chick flick, but definitely do not under any circumstances spend $9.50 to see this movie at a theater.
Tomorrow: We get to go to church to worship and praise God and to attend our Bible class, which I really like. I really look forward to Sunday mornings. Not sure if this is our week for first service or second service. I'm sure that Vicki knows.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Job Search - Day One
Well, today was the day. I actually took my first action that was intended to secure new employment for myself. When I woke up this morning it occurred to me that even before I was liberated from Transocean I had decided that every day I would check the website for the Southwest Benefits Association, which has a section for benefits related job postings. Somehow the "every day" thing slipped my mind until this morning. This morning I checked the site and lo and behold there was a posting for a Benefits Manager. It was a six-month contract position, but it was still a possibility. I immediately emailed my resume to a lady with a really funny sounding last name. Within minutes I received a reply. The job had been filled, which wasn't too surprising given that the job was posted on April 13th. If I had only checked nine weeks ago! From now on I'll check the SWBA website every day. Well, maybe every other day.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Fathers Day Photos
Vicki and I spent most of today trying to make arrangements for our Costa Rica dream vacation that is theoretically coming up the week after Christmas. Words to the wise: If you want to take a trip to a hot vacation destination during Christmas week consider starting to make your reservations at least a year in advance. Six months might not cut it if you're hoping to get everything you want.
Yesterday I told you all about my great Fathers Day weekend. With Kayla home I now have someone to show me how to correctly post and tag pictures to my blog. How exciting this will be for all of my dedicated readers! Now you'll not only be able to hear me blather on every day about my mundane life, you'll also get to see pictures of that very same life! One word comes to mind - awesome!
Taking a break from Fathers Day dinner with Kayla and Bethany!
Vicki and I at the Salt Lick. Yum!
Yes, I know I look like a dork.
More fun at the Salt Lick
Vicki and I at the Salt Lick. Yum! Yes, I know I look like a dork.
More fun at the Salt Lick with my two wonderful daughters.
Fathers Day Special - Home Made Cherry Pie!
Fathers Day Special - Home Made Cherry Pie!
I? Apparently only one daugher loves me.
Me "facing my fears" at Betho and Cody's.
Me "facing my fears" at Betho and Cody's. A game of convincing yourself
to do something you don't really want to do.
Tomorrow: I actually have no plans whatsoever.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Round Rock - Life Without Air Conditioning
Greetings fellow blogites. We just returned from my big Fathers' Day trip to Round Rock, and we had a great time! I'll start at the almost beginning because I know you won't want to miss a single detial. But first, I'd like to make a comment about what my 25 Fathers' Days have meant to me. I have two of the most wonderful daughters any father could ever ask for. They have been my pride and joy since the day they were born. Over the years they have made a few mistakes and have demonstated a few minor imperfections, but for 99.9% of the time they have been just about perfect (in my eyes anyway). I am extremely proud to say that they can both best be described as beautiful (inside and out), compassionate, kind, funny and greatful for everthing Vicki and I have given them or done for them over the years. And, they are both committed to following Jesus Chist as their Lord and Saviour. I never imagined that as a father I (with the assistance of Vicki) would have turned out such a great product.
Back to the trip. We left Greatwood at 9:42 on Saturday morning and had a pleasant and uneventful drive up to Round Rock, which is a suburb of Austin for those not familiar with the geography of central Texas. After having lunch and chilling for a few hours at the casa of Bethany and Cody we loaded up the Toyota and headed for Dell Diamond stadium, home of the Round Rock Express for their big game with the New Orleans Zephyrs. Before the game we stopped for dinner at a place called the Salt Lick, which is coincidentally right next door to "the Dell". This place may be the greatest BBQ place in the galaxy. It's a little pricey - $8.50 for a sandwich - but for your money you get what amounts to a pound of meet stuck in the middle of a loaf of bread. We all gobbled down the meat and bread and then finished things off with some blueberry cobbler and ice cream. Before heading across the parking lot for the game we tarried a few minutes to listen to the band that was playing under a giant oak tree. Their lead singer was doing a great job of looking like Willie Nelson's brother, and they were pretty good. It was generally a carnival atmosphere.
A triple-A baseball game is much different than a major league game. It's more laid back and it seems like it's just more fun. Besides the game there is some type of diversion between almost every inning. There were the two little girls dressed in crab suits vying for a free dinner at Joe's Crab Shack, two guys who raced around the infield seeing who could roll their tire the fastest for a year's worth of free oil changes, a birthday jog around the outfield for all of the kids who were having a birthday, and so much more. In addition, because there were only 4,000 fans instead of 40,000 fans it was much easier to get the free stuff that was being tossed to the fans. Cody out-wrestled a middle-aged woman for an Express tee shirt (the paramedics assured us she'll recover), and Kayla caught one of the balls that the broadcasting crew through from the press box. In addition, it was Roy Owsalt bobble-head night, in honor of the year Roy spent at Round Rock on his way to the big show, and to where Roy is in danger of returning if he doesn't get things going his way soon for the Astros. Oh yeah, and then there was the game, which of course went into extra innings. If you've ever been to the Dell you know that it has all kinds of attractions in addition to the game. Beyond the right field fence it has a rock climbing wall, a bungee jumping thing, and even a swimming pool. But, what the Dell doesn't have is a roof and air conditioning, which caused a dilemma for us. You see, some of our number were a little less heat tolerant that others, and sitting in the stifling heat for three hours eventually became a humanitarian issue. So, we all agree that we would leave after the tenth inning, which we did, with the score tied at zero. Some people are thrilled to call this a pitchers' duel, others are as equally moved to call it boring. At any rate, our leaving after the tenth inning guaranteed that the eleventh inning would be exciting, which it was. Our Express boys won 5-4.
This morning we went to Cody and Bethany's church - the Austin Stone. Kind of a weird name, but a really great church! I of course was skeptical as is my wont over what I anticipated would be what I refer to as "concert church" with annoyingly loud music that was impossible to understand and even more impossible to sing with. Well, believe it or not - hold on to your hats - I was wrong. Sooooo wrong. The music was definitely loud, but the praise and worship at "the Stone" was fantastic. And, the message from 1 Corinthians 15 was in the top 1% of all of the sermons I've ever heard. The preacher, who was actually the number two guy and whose name I never did hear, spoke at length about the "24 words" in 15:3-4 that define the true essence of the Gospel
". . . that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day . . ."
If you're ever in Austin on a Sunday morning and you're up for some great loud music and a dose of God's truth, head for the Stone. They meet at Austin High School. If you're really worried about the volume they actually have a table on the way into the auditorium that has - this is not a joke - free ear plugs! If you go, my prayer for you is that the air conditioning has been by the time you get there.
Happy Fathers' Day!
Tomorrow: Kayla starts her externship assignment. I start planning our Costa Rica vacation, which subject to availability will happen the week after Christmas. I should probably really focus on finding a job from which to take a vacation.
Back to the trip. We left Greatwood at 9:42 on Saturday morning and had a pleasant and uneventful drive up to Round Rock, which is a suburb of Austin for those not familiar with the geography of central Texas. After having lunch and chilling for a few hours at the casa of Bethany and Cody we loaded up the Toyota and headed for Dell Diamond stadium, home of the Round Rock Express for their big game with the New Orleans Zephyrs. Before the game we stopped for dinner at a place called the Salt Lick, which is coincidentally right next door to "the Dell". This place may be the greatest BBQ place in the galaxy. It's a little pricey - $8.50 for a sandwich - but for your money you get what amounts to a pound of meet stuck in the middle of a loaf of bread. We all gobbled down the meat and bread and then finished things off with some blueberry cobbler and ice cream. Before heading across the parking lot for the game we tarried a few minutes to listen to the band that was playing under a giant oak tree. Their lead singer was doing a great job of looking like Willie Nelson's brother, and they were pretty good. It was generally a carnival atmosphere.
A triple-A baseball game is much different than a major league game. It's more laid back and it seems like it's just more fun. Besides the game there is some type of diversion between almost every inning. There were the two little girls dressed in crab suits vying for a free dinner at Joe's Crab Shack, two guys who raced around the infield seeing who could roll their tire the fastest for a year's worth of free oil changes, a birthday jog around the outfield for all of the kids who were having a birthday, and so much more. In addition, because there were only 4,000 fans instead of 40,000 fans it was much easier to get the free stuff that was being tossed to the fans. Cody out-wrestled a middle-aged woman for an Express tee shirt (the paramedics assured us she'll recover), and Kayla caught one of the balls that the broadcasting crew through from the press box. In addition, it was Roy Owsalt bobble-head night, in honor of the year Roy spent at Round Rock on his way to the big show, and to where Roy is in danger of returning if he doesn't get things going his way soon for the Astros. Oh yeah, and then there was the game, which of course went into extra innings. If you've ever been to the Dell you know that it has all kinds of attractions in addition to the game. Beyond the right field fence it has a rock climbing wall, a bungee jumping thing, and even a swimming pool. But, what the Dell doesn't have is a roof and air conditioning, which caused a dilemma for us. You see, some of our number were a little less heat tolerant that others, and sitting in the stifling heat for three hours eventually became a humanitarian issue. So, we all agree that we would leave after the tenth inning, which we did, with the score tied at zero. Some people are thrilled to call this a pitchers' duel, others are as equally moved to call it boring. At any rate, our leaving after the tenth inning guaranteed that the eleventh inning would be exciting, which it was. Our Express boys won 5-4.
This morning we went to Cody and Bethany's church - the Austin Stone. Kind of a weird name, but a really great church! I of course was skeptical as is my wont over what I anticipated would be what I refer to as "concert church" with annoyingly loud music that was impossible to understand and even more impossible to sing with. Well, believe it or not - hold on to your hats - I was wrong. Sooooo wrong. The music was definitely loud, but the praise and worship at "the Stone" was fantastic. And, the message from 1 Corinthians 15 was in the top 1% of all of the sermons I've ever heard. The preacher, who was actually the number two guy and whose name I never did hear, spoke at length about the "24 words" in 15:3-4 that define the true essence of the Gospel
". . . that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day . . ."
If you're ever in Austin on a Sunday morning and you're up for some great loud music and a dose of God's truth, head for the Stone. They meet at Austin High School. If you're really worried about the volume they actually have a table on the way into the auditorium that has - this is not a joke - free ear plugs! If you go, my prayer for you is that the air conditioning has been by the time you get there.
Happy Fathers' Day!
Tomorrow: Kayla starts her externship assignment. I start planning our Costa Rica vacation, which subject to availability will happen the week after Christmas. I should probably really focus on finding a job from which to take a vacation.
Friday, June 19, 2009
You Can Fool Some of the People Some of the Time . . .
Greetings blog readers. I'm blogging a little earlier than usual today because Kayla's coming home this evening and I'd rather spend time with her than write blog stuff.
I was out shopping today - more on that later - and I saw a great bumper sticker, which read: "You can fool some of the people some of the time, but apparently you can fool 52.6% of the people all of the time." This got me to thinking, which is usually not a good thing. If you put a random sample of 100 people in a room only about 53 of them would have voted for Mr. Obama and about 47 of them would not have voted for him. If you figure that even 10% of those who voted for him (a very conservative estimate) did so for no other reason than they were jumping on the press-induced band wagon and wanted to feel good about themselves for displaying an "open mind" then out of 53 Obama-ites about five of them voted for him even though they most likely had absolutely no idea what he stood for. Take these five away and the room is almost evenly divided between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. Of the 48 pro-Obama types who are left, a large number of them were swayed by one of Mr. Obama's 569 compaign promises (a real number - you can look it up), many of which will never be acted upon, unless of course you're gay or in favor of killing unborn babies. Hmmm . . . my very first political rant on the blog. I'll do my best to keep these to a minimum, but no promises.
Okay, now that that's out of the way I can get back to my shopping trip. I went to two places - Hobby Lobby for picture frames and to HEB for tonight's dinner groceries. My first observation for today is that if you want to meet girls (which of course I don't) go to Hobby Lobby in the middle of the afternoon on a week day. I was the male personage in the entire store. Before the multitude of single guys who read my blog get too excited, the approximate age demographic of these girls is between ages 50 and 83. I bought some frames and matting material for the Booth School pictures I took a few weeks ago. Please refer to a prior blog for more information.
Next I went to HEB to buy salad ingredients and steak for Kayla's homecoming dinner tonight. I did okay on the steak - I think - but I had to totally fake it on the tomatoes. I held them up and looked at them from several angles and then I pretended to squeeze them, because I think that's what you do when you buy tomatoes. Or maybe you thump 'em. Whatever . . . When I got home I called my brother-in-law Phil to get his secret steak marinating juice recipe, which he shared with me under penalty of death if I reveal it to anyone else. The steaks are soaking in the secret concoction right now. I'll be grilling later, which for most guys is some type of frequent and semi-religious experience, but for me it's more of a "what the heck am I doing cooking" thing. Where I come from women cook everything - even steak - and men just eat everything. At least by this evening it should cool off to 98 degrees so it will be pleasant standing over the grill.
Tomorrow: Vicki, Kayla and I will be heading out to Round Rock in the morning for my wild Father's Day weekend at Bethany and Cody's place. I'm looking forward to watching the Round Rock Express and chowing down on my traditional Father's Day meal of hot dogs, BBQ potato chips (fried not baked) and cherry pie with vanilla Blue Bell ice cream. It will be great to be me this weekend. Happy Father's Day to all you fatherly types.
I was out shopping today - more on that later - and I saw a great bumper sticker, which read: "You can fool some of the people some of the time, but apparently you can fool 52.6% of the people all of the time." This got me to thinking, which is usually not a good thing. If you put a random sample of 100 people in a room only about 53 of them would have voted for Mr. Obama and about 47 of them would not have voted for him. If you figure that even 10% of those who voted for him (a very conservative estimate) did so for no other reason than they were jumping on the press-induced band wagon and wanted to feel good about themselves for displaying an "open mind" then out of 53 Obama-ites about five of them voted for him even though they most likely had absolutely no idea what he stood for. Take these five away and the room is almost evenly divided between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. Of the 48 pro-Obama types who are left, a large number of them were swayed by one of Mr. Obama's 569 compaign promises (a real number - you can look it up), many of which will never be acted upon, unless of course you're gay or in favor of killing unborn babies. Hmmm . . . my very first political rant on the blog. I'll do my best to keep these to a minimum, but no promises.
Okay, now that that's out of the way I can get back to my shopping trip. I went to two places - Hobby Lobby for picture frames and to HEB for tonight's dinner groceries. My first observation for today is that if you want to meet girls (which of course I don't) go to Hobby Lobby in the middle of the afternoon on a week day. I was the male personage in the entire store. Before the multitude of single guys who read my blog get too excited, the approximate age demographic of these girls is between ages 50 and 83. I bought some frames and matting material for the Booth School pictures I took a few weeks ago. Please refer to a prior blog for more information.
Next I went to HEB to buy salad ingredients and steak for Kayla's homecoming dinner tonight. I did okay on the steak - I think - but I had to totally fake it on the tomatoes. I held them up and looked at them from several angles and then I pretended to squeeze them, because I think that's what you do when you buy tomatoes. Or maybe you thump 'em. Whatever . . . When I got home I called my brother-in-law Phil to get his secret steak marinating juice recipe, which he shared with me under penalty of death if I reveal it to anyone else. The steaks are soaking in the secret concoction right now. I'll be grilling later, which for most guys is some type of frequent and semi-religious experience, but for me it's more of a "what the heck am I doing cooking" thing. Where I come from women cook everything - even steak - and men just eat everything. At least by this evening it should cool off to 98 degrees so it will be pleasant standing over the grill.
Tomorrow: Vicki, Kayla and I will be heading out to Round Rock in the morning for my wild Father's Day weekend at Bethany and Cody's place. I'm looking forward to watching the Round Rock Express and chowing down on my traditional Father's Day meal of hot dogs, BBQ potato chips (fried not baked) and cherry pie with vanilla Blue Bell ice cream. It will be great to be me this weekend. Happy Father's Day to all you fatherly types.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Life in the Warehouse
Today was great day! I reported this morning to my first day working in the warehouse at the Second Mile Mission in Stafford, Texas. For those of you who haven't been following along too closely, this is a volunteer gig, which I plan to perform every Thursday.
My "boss" is a guy named Tom, who is a retired Army officer. He was a Lieutenant Colonel I believe. He's on staff, which means that this is his real job, although I'm sure he sees it more as a ministry than a profession. Tom is a really good guy, and he was happy that I actually showed up this week. I was supposed to be there last Thursday, but Kadesh got in the way. Anyway, Tom showed me around the warehouse and gave me my first assignment - supervising three juvenile offenders who were performing community service to work off their debts to society. There was Bob, Omar, and Xavier. Our task was to take the extremely large amount of groceries that had been donated by employees of the U.S. Postal Service and sort it into four categories - cans, glass, paper goods, and plastic. I'd never really spent any time hanging around juvenile offenders performing community service, so I thought I'd strike up a conversation with Omar, a Hispanic youth who is fifteen years old.
Me: So, Omar, how many hours do you have to work off?
Omar: Dude, I got to do 300 hours!
Me: 300? Wow! How many have you already finished?
Omar: Dude, 24.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Omar starts every sentence with the word "dude".
Me: So what did you do to warrant 300 hours of community service?
Omar: Dude, I stabbed a dude at school with a pencil.
Me: (trying to sound casual) Really! Where did you stab him?
Omar: Dude, in the chest. It went in pretty deep, too. And then I broke it off. He had to go to the emergency room.
Me: Hmmm, imagine that . . . Why did you stab the dude in the chest?
Omar: Dude, because he made me mad.
Me: Do you always stab people with something when they make you mad?
Omar: Dude, no, just when they make me really mad!
Me: So, Omar, is this your first bout of community service?
Omar: No dude, it's my third one.
Me: What were the others for?
Omar: Dude, my last one was for throwing a chair at a teacher.
Me: I guess she must have made you mad?
Omar: Yeah, dude . . . REALLY mad?
Me: Have you considered trying something a little less violent when you get really mad?
Omar: Dude, not really.
Me: So, I guess you like community service?
Omar: No, dude, but it's better than doing a year in juvie.
I didn't have this type of meaningful conversation with Bob or Xavier, although "X" and I did a fair amount of communicating. You see X was serving his final hour of service from 9:00 to 10:00 and he wasn't wearing a watch. So, during his final hour he asked me what time it was at least 30 times, including 10 times between 9:56 and 10:00. He also started every inquiry with the word "dude".
Between conversations with my under-age menaces to society I received some on the job training on how to drive a fork lift, which was actually pretty cool. I tried to draw on my prior fork lift experience, but since it occurred back in 1977 it wasn't really too fresh in my mind. Anyway, I practiced driving forward and backward, raising and lowering the forks, and I picked up a few things and moved them around a little. With this three minutes of training and experience I figure I'm good to go if a truck comes in next Thursday and there's nobody around but me to unload it.
The warehouse is not exactly a deluxe place to work. It's a little bit crowded, a little bit dirty, a little bit dark, and it's really, really hot. However, to cool things off there are three or four of the biggest fans you've ever seen. I think they probably use these size fans to generate the wind in the hurricane and tornado movies. With the wind chill the temperature was a very comfortable 102 degrees. Remember, it's not the heat, it's the humidity. I can't wait for next Thursday. I have some plans to reorganize the entire warehouse and automate the entire operation. I'm also thinking about putting some really cute curtains on the windows to brighten the place up a little. Tom will be so happy.
Tonight is Vicki's Bible study. I'll probably spend the evening watching the Astros and falling asleep on the couch. Life is good.
Tomorrow: Kayla arrives home for her summer externship. She'll be here for the summer, working at a speech clinic in Greatwood. Her commute will be about two minutes. By the way, does anyone know the difference between an externship and an internship? If so, please drop me a line.
My "boss" is a guy named Tom, who is a retired Army officer. He was a Lieutenant Colonel I believe. He's on staff, which means that this is his real job, although I'm sure he sees it more as a ministry than a profession. Tom is a really good guy, and he was happy that I actually showed up this week. I was supposed to be there last Thursday, but Kadesh got in the way. Anyway, Tom showed me around the warehouse and gave me my first assignment - supervising three juvenile offenders who were performing community service to work off their debts to society. There was Bob, Omar, and Xavier. Our task was to take the extremely large amount of groceries that had been donated by employees of the U.S. Postal Service and sort it into four categories - cans, glass, paper goods, and plastic. I'd never really spent any time hanging around juvenile offenders performing community service, so I thought I'd strike up a conversation with Omar, a Hispanic youth who is fifteen years old.
Me: So, Omar, how many hours do you have to work off?
Omar: Dude, I got to do 300 hours!
Me: 300? Wow! How many have you already finished?
Omar: Dude, 24.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Omar starts every sentence with the word "dude".
Me: So what did you do to warrant 300 hours of community service?
Omar: Dude, I stabbed a dude at school with a pencil.
Me: (trying to sound casual) Really! Where did you stab him?
Omar: Dude, in the chest. It went in pretty deep, too. And then I broke it off. He had to go to the emergency room.
Me: Hmmm, imagine that . . . Why did you stab the dude in the chest?
Omar: Dude, because he made me mad.
Me: Do you always stab people with something when they make you mad?
Omar: Dude, no, just when they make me really mad!
Me: So, Omar, is this your first bout of community service?
Omar: No dude, it's my third one.
Me: What were the others for?
Omar: Dude, my last one was for throwing a chair at a teacher.
Me: I guess she must have made you mad?
Omar: Yeah, dude . . . REALLY mad?
Me: Have you considered trying something a little less violent when you get really mad?
Omar: Dude, not really.
Me: So, I guess you like community service?
Omar: No, dude, but it's better than doing a year in juvie.
I didn't have this type of meaningful conversation with Bob or Xavier, although "X" and I did a fair amount of communicating. You see X was serving his final hour of service from 9:00 to 10:00 and he wasn't wearing a watch. So, during his final hour he asked me what time it was at least 30 times, including 10 times between 9:56 and 10:00. He also started every inquiry with the word "dude".
Between conversations with my under-age menaces to society I received some on the job training on how to drive a fork lift, which was actually pretty cool. I tried to draw on my prior fork lift experience, but since it occurred back in 1977 it wasn't really too fresh in my mind. Anyway, I practiced driving forward and backward, raising and lowering the forks, and I picked up a few things and moved them around a little. With this three minutes of training and experience I figure I'm good to go if a truck comes in next Thursday and there's nobody around but me to unload it.
The warehouse is not exactly a deluxe place to work. It's a little bit crowded, a little bit dirty, a little bit dark, and it's really, really hot. However, to cool things off there are three or four of the biggest fans you've ever seen. I think they probably use these size fans to generate the wind in the hurricane and tornado movies. With the wind chill the temperature was a very comfortable 102 degrees. Remember, it's not the heat, it's the humidity. I can't wait for next Thursday. I have some plans to reorganize the entire warehouse and automate the entire operation. I'm also thinking about putting some really cute curtains on the windows to brighten the place up a little. Tom will be so happy.
Tonight is Vicki's Bible study. I'll probably spend the evening watching the Astros and falling asleep on the couch. Life is good.
Tomorrow: Kayla arrives home for her summer externship. She'll be here for the summer, working at a speech clinic in Greatwood. Her commute will be about two minutes. By the way, does anyone know the difference between an externship and an internship? If so, please drop me a line.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Yes, I Am a Sexist Pig
This morning we went out to Richmond to visit the Goforth homestead and take a look at the massive renovations that are in progress on their 159 year old house. That's right, I said 159 years old! It's one of those old southern mansion looking places that was built before the Civil War. According to Donna, two of the house's former residents actually fought in the Civil War. It looks kind of like the house Forrest Gump grew up in. Donna was excited to show us around what's left of her former kitchen and the surrounding rooms, which have been totally demolished in anticipation of rising from their ashes to become a new enlarged kitchen. Also on tap are a new breakfast room and an expanded master bedroom/master bath/master closet. Donna is utilizing her vast construction experience to be the general contractor while Ed goofs off in Nigeria. She tells us the projected completion date is in August, which means that it might be ready by Thanksgiving . . . Christmas for sure . . . maybe. For sure by Super Bowl Sunday.
After the grand construction tour our agenda called for a deluxe breakfast at Bob's Taco Station, a semi-renovated former gas station in Rosenberg that has recently been named one of the best breakfast dives in America by the Food Channel. Oh, I neglected to mention that our friend Rachel also showed up for the tour, so it was Vicki, Rachel, Donna and me who all went to breakfast. Sort of a girls morning out. There was some very lively conversation at Bob's, but uncharacteristically for me I really didn't say much. For some reason the words "hen party" kept popping in to my head. "We" spoke of may things, none of which were of particular interest to me, expecially the brief - but not brief enough - discussion of saying what your really think when you have PMS. If I ever do this again I'll be sure to ask Bob or whoever is doing the seating that day to give me the seat directly over the trap door. On second thought, if I ever do this again please call in an air strike.
That's about all that happened today. I never did get around to making the lunch date with my broker friend. Maybe tomorrow. Oh yeah, we went to Sonic after church. It was delightful.
Tomorrow: My first day working in the warehouse at Second Mile Mission. Life without air conditioning. It should be epic.
After the grand construction tour our agenda called for a deluxe breakfast at Bob's Taco Station, a semi-renovated former gas station in Rosenberg that has recently been named one of the best breakfast dives in America by the Food Channel. Oh, I neglected to mention that our friend Rachel also showed up for the tour, so it was Vicki, Rachel, Donna and me who all went to breakfast. Sort of a girls morning out. There was some very lively conversation at Bob's, but uncharacteristically for me I really didn't say much. For some reason the words "hen party" kept popping in to my head. "We" spoke of may things, none of which were of particular interest to me, expecially the brief - but not brief enough - discussion of saying what your really think when you have PMS. If I ever do this again I'll be sure to ask Bob or whoever is doing the seating that day to give me the seat directly over the trap door. On second thought, if I ever do this again please call in an air strike.
That's about all that happened today. I never did get around to making the lunch date with my broker friend. Maybe tomorrow. Oh yeah, we went to Sonic after church. It was delightful.
Tomorrow: My first day working in the warehouse at Second Mile Mission. Life without air conditioning. It should be epic.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Movie Review and So Much More!
Greetings to everyone in the world of blogging. Before I get to the interesting details of our day I thought I'd give you my review of the movie Taking of Pelham 1-2-3. The movie stars Denzel Washington (my favorite actor) and John Travolta, and involves the hijacking of a New York City subway train. It's rated "R" for what the summary on the theater website calls "some strong language." Some strong language? It sounds like my drill instructor wrote the dialogue. From the open 30 seconds to the end of the movie it's like somebody called in an artillery barrage of F-bombs, which are creatively used as verbs, adverbs, adjectives and nouns. If you can get by the language this is actually a fairly engaging movie. On a scale of ten I give it a seven. Denzel is his usual good self.
Before we hit the movie I went to the dentist to have an old filling replaced. This will sound weird, but this was the most pleasant dental experience I have ever had. Doctor Douglas O. McClung - "Buddy" to his friends - so skillfully applied the novacaine (or whatever it is that they use to deaden your mouth) that I absolutely didn't feel a thing, other than the minor sting of the needle. The highlight of today's visit was the tech taking my blood pressure after Dr. Buddy stuck me with the novacaine needle. I suggested to her that a truer reading would probably be obtained if the BP was taken before a large-guage needle was inserted into my gum. She assured me that she'd take my suggestion to heart with her next patient.
Besides my stimulating dental visit, another high point was taking my daily 3.6 mile walk in my new running shoes! After having spent almost the last three years in the same pair, the switch to the new ones was fantastic. I felt like I was walking on high heels. The only problem was the incredible brightness of the new shoes. Several cars had to pull over when they passed me because they couldn't see. I'll rub some dirt on them before tomorrow's walk.
I also took my car in today for the fifth time trying to get the "check engine light" taken care of. Every time I take it back they find something different. Today's culprit was a non-Toyota gas cap which they replaced with an authentic Toyota gas cap. I can't wait to see it, but I'll have to wait until tomorrow because they closed while we were getting our language lesson at the movie. I'm now baffled how a non-Toyota gas cap got on my car. I don't recall ever replacing the one that came with the car. I smell a conspiracy.
My final revelation for today is that I started working on my outline for a five-week curriculum for our Sunday morning Bible class. The study will be on the life of Joseph and will start on September 13th. If you're in Houston on that Sunday or any of the following four Sundays feel free to drop by. I read through Genesis chapters 25 through 50 this morning, and there is a lot of material to fit into just five lessons. I'll do my best. Speaking of movies, this story would make a great one if people didn't know it was from the Old Testament. Deceit, illicit sex, lying, cheating, killing, back-stabbing - this story has it all! Oh yeah, there's also a little bit about forgiveness and love, but not until the very end.
I hate to say this, but I'm seriously considering making a business-related phone call tomorrow. I've traded emails with an insurance broker that I worked with for over ten years when I was with Global Marine/GlobalSantaFe. When we were devoured by Transocean we dropped him in favor of a big name consulting firm. He's a really great guy who has lots of contacts that could be - dare I contemplate this - helpful to me in finding another job. Plus, I love talking baseball with him. He's a former major league pitcher who actually started game one of the 1983 World Series (unfortunately, he took the loss). He's also a Christian whom I have a lot in common with. He wants to get together for lunch, which is probably a really good idea. I'll sleep on it. If I go I'll determine whose buying before I order dessert.
Oh, just in case you're wondering, we managed to get rid of the virus that was giving us fits yesterday. It was the "Malware" virus. It took over our PC with an unending stream of messages telling us we had been infected with a dangerous virus that could be banished by purchasing Malware Catcher 2009 for the bargain price of just $49. What a deal! We pay them $49 to run themselves off and leave us alone. The people behind this kind of stuff must be real slugs. Luckily, I found some free software of the web that deleted all of the Malware mischief from our computer. I hope the free "fix" doesn't come back to haunt us in some mysterious way. I also wonder if Malware will find it's way back. We got rid of it, but I doubt if we killed it.
Tomorrow: Breakfast at Bob's Taco Station and Wednesday night church!
Before we hit the movie I went to the dentist to have an old filling replaced. This will sound weird, but this was the most pleasant dental experience I have ever had. Doctor Douglas O. McClung - "Buddy" to his friends - so skillfully applied the novacaine (or whatever it is that they use to deaden your mouth) that I absolutely didn't feel a thing, other than the minor sting of the needle. The highlight of today's visit was the tech taking my blood pressure after Dr. Buddy stuck me with the novacaine needle. I suggested to her that a truer reading would probably be obtained if the BP was taken before a large-guage needle was inserted into my gum. She assured me that she'd take my suggestion to heart with her next patient.
Besides my stimulating dental visit, another high point was taking my daily 3.6 mile walk in my new running shoes! After having spent almost the last three years in the same pair, the switch to the new ones was fantastic. I felt like I was walking on high heels. The only problem was the incredible brightness of the new shoes. Several cars had to pull over when they passed me because they couldn't see. I'll rub some dirt on them before tomorrow's walk.
I also took my car in today for the fifth time trying to get the "check engine light" taken care of. Every time I take it back they find something different. Today's culprit was a non-Toyota gas cap which they replaced with an authentic Toyota gas cap. I can't wait to see it, but I'll have to wait until tomorrow because they closed while we were getting our language lesson at the movie. I'm now baffled how a non-Toyota gas cap got on my car. I don't recall ever replacing the one that came with the car. I smell a conspiracy.
My final revelation for today is that I started working on my outline for a five-week curriculum for our Sunday morning Bible class. The study will be on the life of Joseph and will start on September 13th. If you're in Houston on that Sunday or any of the following four Sundays feel free to drop by. I read through Genesis chapters 25 through 50 this morning, and there is a lot of material to fit into just five lessons. I'll do my best. Speaking of movies, this story would make a great one if people didn't know it was from the Old Testament. Deceit, illicit sex, lying, cheating, killing, back-stabbing - this story has it all! Oh yeah, there's also a little bit about forgiveness and love, but not until the very end.
I hate to say this, but I'm seriously considering making a business-related phone call tomorrow. I've traded emails with an insurance broker that I worked with for over ten years when I was with Global Marine/GlobalSantaFe. When we were devoured by Transocean we dropped him in favor of a big name consulting firm. He's a really great guy who has lots of contacts that could be - dare I contemplate this - helpful to me in finding another job. Plus, I love talking baseball with him. He's a former major league pitcher who actually started game one of the 1983 World Series (unfortunately, he took the loss). He's also a Christian whom I have a lot in common with. He wants to get together for lunch, which is probably a really good idea. I'll sleep on it. If I go I'll determine whose buying before I order dessert.
Oh, just in case you're wondering, we managed to get rid of the virus that was giving us fits yesterday. It was the "Malware" virus. It took over our PC with an unending stream of messages telling us we had been infected with a dangerous virus that could be banished by purchasing Malware Catcher 2009 for the bargain price of just $49. What a deal! We pay them $49 to run themselves off and leave us alone. The people behind this kind of stuff must be real slugs. Luckily, I found some free software of the web that deleted all of the Malware mischief from our computer. I hope the free "fix" doesn't come back to haunt us in some mysterious way. I also wonder if Malware will find it's way back. We got rid of it, but I doubt if we killed it.
Tomorrow: Breakfast at Bob's Taco Station and Wednesday night church!
Monday, June 15, 2009
On No - We Seem to Have Some Type of Virus!
I'm not sure if this post will make it to the Hood because we've been getting these wacky pop-ups all day about Trojan viruses and other weird stuff. Oh well, let's give it a try.
Today we bought new athletic shoes. Vicki got a pair just like the ones she has now, but in a different color (pink accents instead of blue). I changed completely and went with Nike Pegasus this time around. I agonized over the size. The size 10.5 seemed just a tad small, but the size 11 seemed too big. I went with the 10.5. I'm looking forward to trying them out during tomorrow morning's walk, which I'll need to get in early because as you know from reading yesterday's blog, I have a dentist appointment tomorrow morning.
I have a few shopping observations that relate to being unemployed. First observation is that even though I have no job it seems like we spend money every day. This is unusual for me because when I was working I would often go weeks without spending money on anything except gasoline. In the last two months we've been on a two-week vacation, bought two new white toilets to replace the black ones that we hated, actually paid for Astros tickets, bought accent lights for the outside of the house, bought patio furniture, and bought new living room furniture. Oh yes, and there was the $40 for the new personalized license plates yesterday. Observation number two is that when you go shopping during the day you can usually find some pretty good close-in parking places. I think that this could actually be a new economic indicator. Have one of Obama's economic advisors drive around to a random sampling of key strip centers and check for close-in parking places. The greater the number of good parking places available during the day the better the ecomomy. When the good spots start filling up you know you have more unemployed people out shopping when they should be at work. Based on this indicator, the Houston ecomomy has not yet been seriously affected by the Great Depression of 2009. I'll continue to conduct this significant research as we continue to spend money that we should probably be saving just in case I never find another job.
We finalized our plans for Father's Day. Kayla will be home for the summer from Texas Tech on Friday (Lance won't be done for one more week). Our plan is to go up to Round Rock for the weekend and take in an Express game on Saturday night. Cody can get half-price tickets for $3.00 and then the plan is to sneak down into the $12 seats when nobody's looking. Should be awesome. I'm also looking forward to my customary Father's Day meal of hot dogs, BBQ chips and cherry pie with vanilla ice cream. I love it when I get to call the shots.
The excitement of the day was when I noticed that there was a possum in one of our trash cans this morning. I'm not sure how he go in, but I know he couldn't get out. I tipped the can over and shooed him away with a broom. He went in the direction of the front door, but I'm not sure where he ended up. I'll check the trash can again tomorrow morning for a rematch.
Realizing that this blog has an international readership, our out of town friends may not be aware of the recent weather conditions in Houston, which have been unbelievably hot for the last week or so. We don't usually get above the 100 degree mark in June, but we have this week. It also hasn't rained for about six weeks. Not a good combination. I'm thinking about selling what's left of the grass in my front yard as stuffing for this year's Halloween scarecrows.
Wish me luck at the dentist!
Today we bought new athletic shoes. Vicki got a pair just like the ones she has now, but in a different color (pink accents instead of blue). I changed completely and went with Nike Pegasus this time around. I agonized over the size. The size 10.5 seemed just a tad small, but the size 11 seemed too big. I went with the 10.5. I'm looking forward to trying them out during tomorrow morning's walk, which I'll need to get in early because as you know from reading yesterday's blog, I have a dentist appointment tomorrow morning.
I have a few shopping observations that relate to being unemployed. First observation is that even though I have no job it seems like we spend money every day. This is unusual for me because when I was working I would often go weeks without spending money on anything except gasoline. In the last two months we've been on a two-week vacation, bought two new white toilets to replace the black ones that we hated, actually paid for Astros tickets, bought accent lights for the outside of the house, bought patio furniture, and bought new living room furniture. Oh yes, and there was the $40 for the new personalized license plates yesterday. Observation number two is that when you go shopping during the day you can usually find some pretty good close-in parking places. I think that this could actually be a new economic indicator. Have one of Obama's economic advisors drive around to a random sampling of key strip centers and check for close-in parking places. The greater the number of good parking places available during the day the better the ecomomy. When the good spots start filling up you know you have more unemployed people out shopping when they should be at work. Based on this indicator, the Houston ecomomy has not yet been seriously affected by the Great Depression of 2009. I'll continue to conduct this significant research as we continue to spend money that we should probably be saving just in case I never find another job.
We finalized our plans for Father's Day. Kayla will be home for the summer from Texas Tech on Friday (Lance won't be done for one more week). Our plan is to go up to Round Rock for the weekend and take in an Express game on Saturday night. Cody can get half-price tickets for $3.00 and then the plan is to sneak down into the $12 seats when nobody's looking. Should be awesome. I'm also looking forward to my customary Father's Day meal of hot dogs, BBQ chips and cherry pie with vanilla ice cream. I love it when I get to call the shots.
The excitement of the day was when I noticed that there was a possum in one of our trash cans this morning. I'm not sure how he go in, but I know he couldn't get out. I tipped the can over and shooed him away with a broom. He went in the direction of the front door, but I'm not sure where he ended up. I'll check the trash can again tomorrow morning for a rematch.
Realizing that this blog has an international readership, our out of town friends may not be aware of the recent weather conditions in Houston, which have been unbelievably hot for the last week or so. We don't usually get above the 100 degree mark in June, but we have this week. It also hasn't rained for about six weeks. Not a good combination. I'm thinking about selling what's left of the grass in my front yard as stuffing for this year's Halloween scarecrows.
Wish me luck at the dentist!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Sunday - The First Day of Another Week
Today is Sunday. Most people think of Sunday as the last day of the week, but it's actually the first day. So, another week is upon me, and another big decision. Do I start to look for a job this week. Hmmm? It's been almost two months since my release from captivity at Transocean. Two wonderful, glorious months! It's been great - road trip with Vicki, replacing two toilets (a definite highlight), new flower bed in the front yard, fixing stuff that's been broken for two years (I still need to get to the drain in the kitchen), Kadesh . . . If I get another job too quickly do I run the risk of not accomplishing things that I'm not even aware yet that I need to do? What will I miss out on? Does my true destiny await me here in the land of unemployment or back in the working world? Is tomorrow the day I kick things into gear and get started on my journey back into the rat race, or is it another day of just thinking about it? Hmmm. I'm afraid that if I get too used to this life of leisure that I'll never want to go back to work. But wait, I already know that I don't ever really want to go back to work. What to do, what to do? Who am I kidding? There's no way that I'm going to do anything job-related this week. It feels great to be honest with myself!
It's getting late and I am really beat. Last week was a great week, but a really long and tiring one. Kadesh was tough and the ten-hour trip home from Abilene yesterday just about finished me off. The only thing that kept me going was my desire to share every minute of the Kadesh experience with Vicki and the kids, who were lucky enough to all be in town for Kara's wedding. Imagine their delight when they returned home last night from the rehearsal dinner just in time to have me regale them with about four hours of the fascinating details of my entire six days in Abilene. They were so excited! Between them they've been to someting like sixteen Kadeshes over the years, but I'm sure they missed a lot, and I was happy to fill in the blanks in their memories. They've all headed back to Lubbock and Round Rock. I'm sure the thank you notes will be in the mail first thing in the morning.
I picked up a bunch of new Face Book friends while I was out of town. I think I'm up to seventeen. I was looking at my "wall" (I think) and I was thrilled to find out that I will not only be receiving information about people I haven't seen or spoken to for almost 40 years, but I also have some great wedding pictures of their friends who I've never even heard of. Some old guy named "Cappy" looked very happy to be married. Maybe he'll ask me to be his friend. If he does I think I'll suggest that he lose 50 pounds, get a real haircut, and consider cutting way back on his alcohol intake at weddings. I wonder what his wife looks like?
I ordered my latest version of personalized license plates online this afternoon. I'm getting rid of "10-Tech" and replacing it with "Less Me". 10-Tech was supposed to be a play on the fact that Bethany was moving to Tennessee (get it "10" for Tennessee) and Kayla would be at Texas Tech. The Tech happened but the Tennessee part never really materialized because Cody got transfered to Round Rock after I ordered the plates. The "Less Me" is my attempt to remind myself of a commitment I made to myself this past week regarding my commitment to Jesus Christ. If the license plates in Texas were a little bigger my plate would say "Less Me - More Him" but the maximum number of characters is only six, so I'll just have to remember the second part on my own. I'm sure you're wondering about my entire personal history of personalized plates. Well, since I've lived in Texas I've actually had a number of them. they are such a bargain. Where else can you get a whole year of fun for only $40?Plus, you can actually remember your license number when you fill out your registration at the state park when you go camping, or when you register your car for the parking garage at work. Work? Did I say "work"? Anyway, my personalized plates over the years have included:
FREEDE (obvious reference)
BURG OH (my home town is Leavittsburg, Ohio)
I B A DAD (my favorite)
TWO PETES (twins)
2 AT ACU (twins at ACU)
ACU OF H (when Bethany was at ACU working on her master's and Kayla was supposed to be at University of Houston working on hers, but the U of H part didn't last too long before she transferred and became the TECH in 10TECH)
10 TECH (see above explanation)
Besides going to the dentist on Tuesday to have a cracked filling replaced, I'm also going to give some serious consideration to fulfilling my long-held desire to get my Christian fish tatoo. I'm thinking about getting one about the size of a quarter on my right shoulder. How cool would that be! Butch Watterson has told me that he wants to drive me down to the tatoo parlor and witness this great event. I'll have him check his schedule to see if he's available this week. If the fish thing works out I may go for "I Love Vicki" on my left shoulder, some flames on my neck, and maybe "Marines - Death Before Dishonor!" on the back of my neck. I'll keep you posted.
Have a good week.
It's getting late and I am really beat. Last week was a great week, but a really long and tiring one. Kadesh was tough and the ten-hour trip home from Abilene yesterday just about finished me off. The only thing that kept me going was my desire to share every minute of the Kadesh experience with Vicki and the kids, who were lucky enough to all be in town for Kara's wedding. Imagine their delight when they returned home last night from the rehearsal dinner just in time to have me regale them with about four hours of the fascinating details of my entire six days in Abilene. They were so excited! Between them they've been to someting like sixteen Kadeshes over the years, but I'm sure they missed a lot, and I was happy to fill in the blanks in their memories. They've all headed back to Lubbock and Round Rock. I'm sure the thank you notes will be in the mail first thing in the morning.
I picked up a bunch of new Face Book friends while I was out of town. I think I'm up to seventeen. I was looking at my "wall" (I think) and I was thrilled to find out that I will not only be receiving information about people I haven't seen or spoken to for almost 40 years, but I also have some great wedding pictures of their friends who I've never even heard of. Some old guy named "Cappy" looked very happy to be married. Maybe he'll ask me to be his friend. If he does I think I'll suggest that he lose 50 pounds, get a real haircut, and consider cutting way back on his alcohol intake at weddings. I wonder what his wife looks like?
I ordered my latest version of personalized license plates online this afternoon. I'm getting rid of "10-Tech" and replacing it with "Less Me". 10-Tech was supposed to be a play on the fact that Bethany was moving to Tennessee (get it "10" for Tennessee) and Kayla would be at Texas Tech. The Tech happened but the Tennessee part never really materialized because Cody got transfered to Round Rock after I ordered the plates. The "Less Me" is my attempt to remind myself of a commitment I made to myself this past week regarding my commitment to Jesus Christ. If the license plates in Texas were a little bigger my plate would say "Less Me - More Him" but the maximum number of characters is only six, so I'll just have to remember the second part on my own. I'm sure you're wondering about my entire personal history of personalized plates. Well, since I've lived in Texas I've actually had a number of them. they are such a bargain. Where else can you get a whole year of fun for only $40?Plus, you can actually remember your license number when you fill out your registration at the state park when you go camping, or when you register your car for the parking garage at work. Work? Did I say "work"? Anyway, my personalized plates over the years have included:
FREEDE (obvious reference)
BURG OH (my home town is Leavittsburg, Ohio)
I B A DAD (my favorite)
TWO PETES (twins)
2 AT ACU (twins at ACU)
ACU OF H (when Bethany was at ACU working on her master's and Kayla was supposed to be at University of Houston working on hers, but the U of H part didn't last too long before she transferred and became the TECH in 10TECH)
10 TECH (see above explanation)
Besides going to the dentist on Tuesday to have a cracked filling replaced, I'm also going to give some serious consideration to fulfilling my long-held desire to get my Christian fish tatoo. I'm thinking about getting one about the size of a quarter on my right shoulder. How cool would that be! Butch Watterson has told me that he wants to drive me down to the tatoo parlor and witness this great event. I'll have him check his schedule to see if he's available this week. If the fish thing works out I may go for "I Love Vicki" on my left shoulder, some flames on my neck, and maybe "Marines - Death Before Dishonor!" on the back of my neck. I'll keep you posted.
Have a good week.
Friday, June 12, 2009
It's Over - It's Really Over
Well, the week that is Kadesh (actually Kadesh I) is over. Talk about mixed emotions! On one hand this was without a doubt one of the most important weeks of my life. On the other hand, it was one of the most intense experiences I've ever been involved with. On the other hand, I really enjoyed getting to know the ten kids in my group. On the other hand, sometimes their teen-age behavior got just a little irritating. On the other hand, I learned quite a bit from them. On the other hand, we had leaders meetings that last until at least mid-night every night.
Tonight we conducted a blessing ceremony for our group. I say ceremony because that's how we presented it. My co-leader, Meredith Platt, who is a summer intern at Grace Crossing, and I tried to go all out. Meredith came up with the idea of burning a CD of ten songs, with a song that related in some way with each of our "campers". I then located a scripture that matched each song. We played each camper's song, read his or her scripture, made some personal comments and words of encouragement, and then passed along our blessings. There were tears all around, although surprisingly, none from me. We closed out with a big song fest at the amphitheater, followed by a long round of sobbing good-byes, again, no tears from me (well, maybe a few little ones). I can't wait to add all my new kid friends to my Face Book account (or whatever you call the thing you have on Face Book).
To the delight of each and every counselor and group leader, we had our final leaders meeting, which started at 10:00 instead of 11:15 and which included only one short evaluation form and then pizza. My kind of meeting. It was fantastic to finally be finishing our day on the same day we got up. Especially today, when we were up at 5:30 working on the campers' blessings. I felt like I was an ACU student working on a project that I'd put off until the last minute. What a rush! I'll be in bed tonight before mid-night for the first time since I got here.
We're scheduled to leave tomorrow morning at 8:30, which of course will not happen. I'm betting on 9:15 at the earliest. I'm driving one of the vans back, and I'm hoping to have the girls as my passengers. This will provide fewer body generated noises and a more nose-friendly atmosphere. My fingers are crossed.
So, that's about it for Kadesh. Next week I'll be back writing about the many fascinating things that career homemakers and unemployed human resources professionals do. I have a dentist appointment on Tuesday to replace a cracked filling! You won't want to miss my thrilling account of that event. Who knows what else might happen. I'm also thinking (not yet confirmed) about fixing the leak under the kitchen sink. Stay tuned!
One final note, tomorrow Vicki is throwing a bridal luncheon for Kara Yeary, Kayla's room mate from ACU. Kara and Ben are getting married on Sunday.
Tonight we conducted a blessing ceremony for our group. I say ceremony because that's how we presented it. My co-leader, Meredith Platt, who is a summer intern at Grace Crossing, and I tried to go all out. Meredith came up with the idea of burning a CD of ten songs, with a song that related in some way with each of our "campers". I then located a scripture that matched each song. We played each camper's song, read his or her scripture, made some personal comments and words of encouragement, and then passed along our blessings. There were tears all around, although surprisingly, none from me. We closed out with a big song fest at the amphitheater, followed by a long round of sobbing good-byes, again, no tears from me (well, maybe a few little ones). I can't wait to add all my new kid friends to my Face Book account (or whatever you call the thing you have on Face Book).
To the delight of each and every counselor and group leader, we had our final leaders meeting, which started at 10:00 instead of 11:15 and which included only one short evaluation form and then pizza. My kind of meeting. It was fantastic to finally be finishing our day on the same day we got up. Especially today, when we were up at 5:30 working on the campers' blessings. I felt like I was an ACU student working on a project that I'd put off until the last minute. What a rush! I'll be in bed tonight before mid-night for the first time since I got here.
We're scheduled to leave tomorrow morning at 8:30, which of course will not happen. I'm betting on 9:15 at the earliest. I'm driving one of the vans back, and I'm hoping to have the girls as my passengers. This will provide fewer body generated noises and a more nose-friendly atmosphere. My fingers are crossed.
So, that's about it for Kadesh. Next week I'll be back writing about the many fascinating things that career homemakers and unemployed human resources professionals do. I have a dentist appointment on Tuesday to replace a cracked filling! You won't want to miss my thrilling account of that event. Who knows what else might happen. I'm also thinking (not yet confirmed) about fixing the leak under the kitchen sink. Stay tuned!
One final note, tomorrow Vicki is throwing a bridal luncheon for Kara Yeary, Kayla's room mate from ACU. Kara and Ben are getting married on Sunday.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Kadesh - Day Five
As we near the end of the Kadesh experience all I can say is "wow, this has been quite an experience." This is not a camp to come to if you are looking to have fun in the sense of "let's hang out and do stuff" type of fun. The program kicks off every day at 8:15 and goes non-stop until 11:00 that night. I have been very surprised and impressed at the ability of my "campers" to participate in and soak up what's been thrown at them in a very intense program. This stuff is in your face, what are you going to do about Jesus? stuff. We challenge them continually to consider their relationship with God and to consider making whatever changes need to be made to get as close to Him as possible. I've seen changes in all ten of my kids. Some have definitely altered their attitudes, others seem to have just awakened to the fact that they may be missing out of something by keeping Him at arms length.
Yesterday was focused on revolutionizing the Church to make it what it really needs to be - people focused and Christ-centered. Today we're concentrating on what keeps each of us from really turning over - really turning over - our lives to Christ. It's a little uncomforable at times realizing that it's not just teenagers who need to examine where they stand with Jesus.
Service project today was to go to a United Way daycare center and "interact with the kids and do some light cleaning." The light cleaning part was disinfecting the kids furniture, washing windows and cleaning up the playground, which was ravaged by the heavy duty storms of the last three days. I highly recommend spending 45 minutes on concrete when the temperature is 99 degrees. It does wonders for your sinuses and also provides some significant short-term weight loss. I did my first bad thing as a group leader. We quit fifteen minutes early and went to Sonic. Route 44 cherry limeade. Mmmm.
We're in the home stretch. Tonight and then tomorrow's final assault. Friday's schedule will be a little different than normal, so I suspect that our leaders' meeting may break a record tonight. I'm thinking the 1:00 am barrier is a definite possibility. I can always sleep while I'm driving the van home on Saturday morning.
Yesterday was focused on revolutionizing the Church to make it what it really needs to be - people focused and Christ-centered. Today we're concentrating on what keeps each of us from really turning over - really turning over - our lives to Christ. It's a little uncomforable at times realizing that it's not just teenagers who need to examine where they stand with Jesus.
Service project today was to go to a United Way daycare center and "interact with the kids and do some light cleaning." The light cleaning part was disinfecting the kids furniture, washing windows and cleaning up the playground, which was ravaged by the heavy duty storms of the last three days. I highly recommend spending 45 minutes on concrete when the temperature is 99 degrees. It does wonders for your sinuses and also provides some significant short-term weight loss. I did my first bad thing as a group leader. We quit fifteen minutes early and went to Sonic. Route 44 cherry limeade. Mmmm.
We're in the home stretch. Tonight and then tomorrow's final assault. Friday's schedule will be a little different than normal, so I suspect that our leaders' meeting may break a record tonight. I'm thinking the 1:00 am barrier is a definite possibility. I can always sleep while I'm driving the van home on Saturday morning.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Kadsesh - Part One of ??
Greetings from Abilene, Texas and Kadesh! We arrived yesterday afternoon, hit the ground running, and really haven't stopped yet. I can see that this will get pretty intense before it's over, and I looking forward to being part of this.
I'm rooming with Jay Blackburn, who is the youth minister at Grace Crossing. For those of you who don't know, Jay is my niece's husband, which technically makes him my nephew-in-law. We're staying in the new Barrett dorm, which is not a bad place. The rooms are bigger than any college dorm I've ever been in, each room has its own bathroom, and there is a common area for each cluster of four rooms. I'm having a great time imagining that I'm an ACU college student.
We watched the movied Amazing Grace last night as a primer for the theme of Kadesh 2009, which is REVOLUTION. Don't let the title fool you - this movie is the perfect example of a personal and public revolution. If you haven't seen it then go out and rent it tonight. This is a great movie.
I lead the class session this morning, and my co-leader Meredith will lead this evening's session. I've been very impressed with Meredith so far. She's a summer intern at Grace Crossing, a junior to be at ACU, and an ACU Presidential Scholarship person.
I'm a little short on time because I have to get over to dinner at the "World Famous Bean" so I need to sign off. I try to post a little more information tomorrow.
I'm rooming with Jay Blackburn, who is the youth minister at Grace Crossing. For those of you who don't know, Jay is my niece's husband, which technically makes him my nephew-in-law. We're staying in the new Barrett dorm, which is not a bad place. The rooms are bigger than any college dorm I've ever been in, each room has its own bathroom, and there is a common area for each cluster of four rooms. I'm having a great time imagining that I'm an ACU college student.
We watched the movied Amazing Grace last night as a primer for the theme of Kadesh 2009, which is REVOLUTION. Don't let the title fool you - this movie is the perfect example of a personal and public revolution. If you haven't seen it then go out and rent it tonight. This is a great movie.
I lead the class session this morning, and my co-leader Meredith will lead this evening's session. I've been very impressed with Meredith so far. She's a summer intern at Grace Crossing, a junior to be at ACU, and an ACU Presidential Scholarship person.
I'm a little short on time because I have to get over to dinner at the "World Famous Bean" so I need to sign off. I try to post a little more information tomorrow.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Today is Friday
Today was a great day, with lots of fun and excitement. I started my day by washing Vicki's car! Not only did I wash it, I also vacuumed the entire inside of the car. Pretty awesome, I know.
After the car washing, which I finished early to beat the heat, Vicki's decorator came over and we had a strategy session regarding our planned purchase of some new living room furniture. After much debate and soul searching we came to the shared conclusion that a couch and love seat would be more appropriate than two full size couches. My input was of course key to the final decision. Once the couch/love seat decision was finalized Vicki and the decorator were off to select fabric and order the funiture, which won't arrive by the way for 12 weeks! 12 weeks? Matress Mac would have a heart attack at this type of back-back-back order madness. During our wait-a-thon we'll make some decisions regarding the size and color of the ottoman. I'll keep everyone posted on our progress.
After the furniture session I headed for the yard to put down some grub killer. This is the time of the year in our neck of the woods when the grubs get busy on everyone's lawn, chewing on the roots of our St. Augustine grass and killing it from below. I really hate those grubs, which is why I'm doing my best to kill them. Nothing like large patches of dead brown grass in the middle of your lawn to ruin your day and make you want to kill some grubs.
When all the tasks of our heavy work day were finished we accepted an invitation to have dinner with our friends the Goforths (see yesterday's blog entry) and Randy and Rachel Curry. We all met up at Salt Grass for some fine grub (not to be confused with "grubs"). The best part about dinner was that Randy picked up the check. If I'd known that was going to happen I would have ordered my own dessert instead of sharing the one we ordered for the whole group. I'll be thinking ahead next time.
Tomorrow will be another big day for me. Vicki is hosting a bridal luncheon for Kayla's college roommate next Saturday. Given that I will not have returned from my Kedesh adventure in Abilene by that time, I will be doing all the stuff tomorrow that I would have been doing next week to get ready for the luncheon if I was here next week. Oh yes, I'll keep you posted next week regarding my total Kadesh experience. I'm a group leader, you know. I hope I get a cool group, otherwise it could be a long week. I need to figure out how to download pictures from my phone to my laptop so I can post the good ones. While I'm in Abilene I hope to get some time to drop by and see Jason and Lindsay. They're "expecting" you know.
After the car washing, which I finished early to beat the heat, Vicki's decorator came over and we had a strategy session regarding our planned purchase of some new living room furniture. After much debate and soul searching we came to the shared conclusion that a couch and love seat would be more appropriate than two full size couches. My input was of course key to the final decision. Once the couch/love seat decision was finalized Vicki and the decorator were off to select fabric and order the funiture, which won't arrive by the way for 12 weeks! 12 weeks? Matress Mac would have a heart attack at this type of back-back-back order madness. During our wait-a-thon we'll make some decisions regarding the size and color of the ottoman. I'll keep everyone posted on our progress.
After the furniture session I headed for the yard to put down some grub killer. This is the time of the year in our neck of the woods when the grubs get busy on everyone's lawn, chewing on the roots of our St. Augustine grass and killing it from below. I really hate those grubs, which is why I'm doing my best to kill them. Nothing like large patches of dead brown grass in the middle of your lawn to ruin your day and make you want to kill some grubs.
When all the tasks of our heavy work day were finished we accepted an invitation to have dinner with our friends the Goforths (see yesterday's blog entry) and Randy and Rachel Curry. We all met up at Salt Grass for some fine grub (not to be confused with "grubs"). The best part about dinner was that Randy picked up the check. If I'd known that was going to happen I would have ordered my own dessert instead of sharing the one we ordered for the whole group. I'll be thinking ahead next time.
Tomorrow will be another big day for me. Vicki is hosting a bridal luncheon for Kayla's college roommate next Saturday. Given that I will not have returned from my Kedesh adventure in Abilene by that time, I will be doing all the stuff tomorrow that I would have been doing next week to get ready for the luncheon if I was here next week. Oh yes, I'll keep you posted next week regarding my total Kadesh experience. I'm a group leader, you know. I hope I get a cool group, otherwise it could be a long week. I need to figure out how to download pictures from my phone to my laptop so I can post the good ones. While I'm in Abilene I hope to get some time to drop by and see Jason and Lindsay. They're "expecting" you know.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
We Have Fascinating Lives
Today is Thursday. I have to keep reminding myself because every day seems exactly the same to me. I have no Mondays or Fridays. Sunday is really the only day that has positional significance to me.
Vicki and I went down to the Second Mile Mission this morning. Thursday is the day that she volunteers to do whatever they need her to do. Today was her day to do data entry into an Excel spreadsheet. I sat and watched her work for awhile and then went off on my primary mission for being at the Mission - to see if I could work myself into the volunteer rotation. After discussing my impressive list of talents with Greg Stirman - the managing director of the place - it was agreed that I would best be suited to doing manual labor in the warehouse, and if I'm good driving one of the trucks that picks up donations. The warehouse is perfectly suited to me - it's hot and kind of dirty and not too well lit. I'm really looking forward to getting involved. I told them I could start next Thursday (which means that Thursdays will now hold positional significance in my week!). Unfortunately, I forgot that I will be in Abilene next week at Kadesh. I guess I'll have to call in sick on my first day.
I spend a good amount of time today approving people as my friends in Face Book. When Bethany was home last weekend she signed me up for a Face Book account. So far I've heard from three or four high school friends I haven't talked to for 38 years and a bunch of people from church. I can only imagine how disappointed the younger set is now that Face Book has been thrown open to the aging masses. It must have lost some of its allure for the kids when their parents became members. Which reminds me, I need to ask Bethany and Kayla if I can be their friend. I'll keep my fingers crossed without having any unreasonable expectations.
I got some exciting news last night. We had our first meeting for those of us who will be participating in the First Colony Church of Christ production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. We did this show ten years ago and I played the part of Asher, whom I believe is mentioned exactly one time in the entire Old Testament. My exciting news is that this time around I will have a bigger part. I will actually be the featured singer in one of the "brothers" numbers. I will start practicing my song immediately. Vicki will be thrilled. The shows will be the last weekend of September and the first weekend of October. Mark your calendars now. Good seats still available. Mention my name and you can get a $12 ticket for $14.
Vicki and I went down to the Second Mile Mission this morning. Thursday is the day that she volunteers to do whatever they need her to do. Today was her day to do data entry into an Excel spreadsheet. I sat and watched her work for awhile and then went off on my primary mission for being at the Mission - to see if I could work myself into the volunteer rotation. After discussing my impressive list of talents with Greg Stirman - the managing director of the place - it was agreed that I would best be suited to doing manual labor in the warehouse, and if I'm good driving one of the trucks that picks up donations. The warehouse is perfectly suited to me - it's hot and kind of dirty and not too well lit. I'm really looking forward to getting involved. I told them I could start next Thursday (which means that Thursdays will now hold positional significance in my week!). Unfortunately, I forgot that I will be in Abilene next week at Kadesh. I guess I'll have to call in sick on my first day.
I spend a good amount of time today approving people as my friends in Face Book. When Bethany was home last weekend she signed me up for a Face Book account. So far I've heard from three or four high school friends I haven't talked to for 38 years and a bunch of people from church. I can only imagine how disappointed the younger set is now that Face Book has been thrown open to the aging masses. It must have lost some of its allure for the kids when their parents became members. Which reminds me, I need to ask Bethany and Kayla if I can be their friend. I'll keep my fingers crossed without having any unreasonable expectations.
I got some exciting news last night. We had our first meeting for those of us who will be participating in the First Colony Church of Christ production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. We did this show ten years ago and I played the part of Asher, whom I believe is mentioned exactly one time in the entire Old Testament. My exciting news is that this time around I will have a bigger part. I will actually be the featured singer in one of the "brothers" numbers. I will start practicing my song immediately. Vicki will be thrilled. The shows will be the last weekend of September and the first weekend of October. Mark your calendars now. Good seats still available. Mention my name and you can get a $12 ticket for $14.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
I Have a New Shirt!
Yesterday my good friend Ed Goforth - yes, that's his real name - gave me a new shirt that I can use when I'm interviewing (see pictures below). The front of the shirt assures prospective employers that there is no need to be concerned about my qualifications, and the back shows that my salary demands can be minimal if necessary. I can't wait to try out the shirt! Look our world!
Besides getting the great new shirt, Vicki and I did some other fun stuff yesterday. For starters we both went to the dentist to have our teeth cleaned - at the same time! There is nothing more romantic than sitting in adjacent cubicles in the dentist's office having your teeth scraped, polished and flossed at exactly the same time as your spouse. Try it some time. It's awesome!
Last night we went to the Astros game with the above mentioned Ed and his lovely wife Donna. It was the first time in 25 years that I have actually paid to attend a professional sporting event. Back in the good old days when I was gainfully employed there were always plenty of vendors and consultants who were more than anxious to provide free tickets to the Astros, Rockets and Texans. We even went to the Final Four in 2003. Now, however . . . nothing. No freebies. Zip. By the way, the Astros won in eleven innings, but we weren't there for the thrilling conclusion. Ed and Donna are both lightweights who can't stay awake past about 9:00.
Final item of big news. This afternoon we picked up the umbrella for our outdoor patio furniture. The ensemble is now complete and ready for outdoor fun. Now we'll be able to sit on the back deck in the middle of any 95 degree afternoon and not get broiled by the sun.
Besides getting the great new shirt, Vicki and I did some other fun stuff yesterday. For starters we both went to the dentist to have our teeth cleaned - at the same time! There is nothing more romantic than sitting in adjacent cubicles in the dentist's office having your teeth scraped, polished and flossed at exactly the same time as your spouse. Try it some time. It's awesome!
Last night we went to the Astros game with the above mentioned Ed and his lovely wife Donna. It was the first time in 25 years that I have actually paid to attend a professional sporting event. Back in the good old days when I was gainfully employed there were always plenty of vendors and consultants who were more than anxious to provide free tickets to the Astros, Rockets and Texans. We even went to the Final Four in 2003. Now, however . . . nothing. No freebies. Zip. By the way, the Astros won in eleven innings, but we weren't there for the thrilling conclusion. Ed and Donna are both lightweights who can't stay awake past about 9:00.
Final item of big news. This afternoon we picked up the umbrella for our outdoor patio furniture. The ensemble is now complete and ready for outdoor fun. Now we'll be able to sit on the back deck in the middle of any 95 degree afternoon and not get broiled by the sun.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
I Started Looking for a Job Today . . . Sort Of
I sort of started looking for a job today. I made a list of people whom I intend to contact someday and I updated my resume with my new email and cell phone number. At some future date I'll email my revised resume to the people on my contact list. Then, when I get really motivated I'll make some appointments to do some actual face-to-face networking. I'm looking forward to getting started . . . someday.
I did a few other productive things today. I rented one of those wheel things that you use to measure distances and measured the routes that I walk around the neighborhood. I knew the approximately distances, but now I have the satisfaction and security of knowing exactly how far I walk.
I also went out this evening and took some sunset pictures of the old Booth School, which is a few miles down the road in the tiny town of Booth. The school was built back in 1912. It's been closed for a long time but it's still in pretty good shape. I've been meaning to do this ever since we moved to Greatwood three years ago. If any on the pictures look good I'll put one on a future edition of the blog.
Tomorrow Vicki and I have plans to get out teeth cleaned - together! If we're not too worn out from all that excitement we might go to the Astros game. We'll play it by ear.
Oh, one more thing. I bought some sheet music today. I plan to start playing the piano again a little in my spare time. I took lessons for five or six years when I was a kid, but except for a few Christmas caroles every year I haven't played much for the last forty years or so.
I did a few other productive things today. I rented one of those wheel things that you use to measure distances and measured the routes that I walk around the neighborhood. I knew the approximately distances, but now I have the satisfaction and security of knowing exactly how far I walk.
I also went out this evening and took some sunset pictures of the old Booth School, which is a few miles down the road in the tiny town of Booth. The school was built back in 1912. It's been closed for a long time but it's still in pretty good shape. I've been meaning to do this ever since we moved to Greatwood three years ago. If any on the pictures look good I'll put one on a future edition of the blog.
Tomorrow Vicki and I have plans to get out teeth cleaned - together! If we're not too worn out from all that excitement we might go to the Astros game. We'll play it by ear.
Oh, one more thing. I bought some sheet music today. I plan to start playing the piano again a little in my spare time. I took lessons for five or six years when I was a kid, but except for a few Christmas caroles every year I haven't played much for the last forty years or so.
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