A Day In The Life - 9/11: Spiders and Bugs

I love busy days - days spent in the yard, at the shows and involved in life up to my neck. That was what this Saturday was. It began with two lawns to mow - mine and Mom's (or is it Dad's?) The dog, known as Mutton-head, loves the out of doors in her own way. She races around the yard as fast as she can go. Then she takes a dive into the lawn with a twist so that she slides on her back for her own kind of back scratching Olympic event. Then it is off to her own corner of the yard to do her business before sticking her nose into the air and then all around the yard sucking up dust and anything else that smells. Then it is back to the lawn for more racing and scratching.
About 10 o'clock we were off to the Home and Building show at the Phoenix Convention Center. Rosie on the House was broadcasting from the show as well as working with Sanderson Ford to give away a new Ford truck and a rafting trip down the Colorado in the Grand Canyon.
Gaye and I wandered around the show for awhile, getting ideas and talking to a few tradesmen about their products. I am looking for three trees for the back yard. We talked with the guys at Moon Valley and they had some of what we wanted - Chilean Mesquites but the guys at another place, located over on Guadalupe and Stapley/Cooper have a new variety of Mesquite that is much like the Chilean but without dropping all of the foliage and it has a tap root that goes deep down to provide more stability during our blustery storms. I will need to get over there soon to check them out since they did not have any on display at the show.
Then there was this exterminator who had a couple of really cool displays - one that had a tarantula climbing the walls . . .









... and the other had a bunch of scorpions. But not just scorpions. You see that one that looks like it has a yellow spot on it's back? That is a baby scorpion riding on mama. Scary little critters. They were kind enough to open both of the cages so that I could get some pictures. (They must have been really bored.)




Finally, in the afternoon, there was an open house at the church building. It was built twenty years ago and so they were having an open house to let the neighbors come by and check things out - kind of see what we do and how we are involved in the community. The Mayor of Chandler came with several other political people. We also had lots of neighbors come by to visit. There were a lot of people helping to staff the event. And then they fed us.
I was sitting upstairs reading by the window when I saw this wonderful sunset taking place. I just had to run down stairs and snag a couple of pictures. It was very delightful.

A Day In The Life - 9/10: Where To Go

Where to go on a date. We ask ourselves that nearly every week. Where haven't we been in a while? Who have we not been out with for a while? And there is hardly ever a good answer. But to night Chine Bandito bites us both and we are off to another food adventure. This is the place on the southeast corner of Chandler Boulevard and Dobson, so far back away from the street that you can't even see it. But those who know of it's existence come for great food prepared in an unusual way.
I am not certain how I was able to catch my lovely assistant in a pose before sprinting madly for the door, but here she is.



The trick to the Chino is a variety of Chinese food - Pork Fried Rice (my favorite), Sweet and Sour stuff, Flash-Fried stuff, Jade Green stuff. And of course, rice and beans is the Bandito secret . . . along with the preparation. And chicken stuff, too. You choose two entree's and two sides and a drink. You tell them if you want the entree's done in a quesidia or in a burrito or just left naked. Then you go sit at one of the many picnic tables and wait for the food to be brought to you. and when it comes it is delicious. Such a mix of flavors all in one tin dish. (I am making myself hungry just describing all of this.)

A Day In The Life - 9/7: Free Treats

There is nothing like free. A free day is wonderful. A free day that no one else has is even a bit better. A free day that no one else has off with a free treat is nearly unimaginable. But there it was, the Labor Day weekend come to an end. Everyone gone back to their jobs. Everyone, that is, except me. And I wasn't even unemployed! No - I was on VACATION! PTO! Holiday! It was simple mental bliss. I worked (the "W" word!) in the yard. I read books and ate ice cream. I watched some TV.I was free! When Gaye finally got off work we went to our Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class and then went for a free treat at Culiver's near Baseline and Country Club Road in Mesa. And, you know - food just tastes better when it is free. Even if it is quite horrid, since it was free you have lost nothing at all, so even poorly made, poor tasting food is OK when it is free. But this food (the Cement Mixer) was fabulous. Another marvelous day in paradise.

A Day In The Life - 9/6: Oh, So Much Holiday

Today's project was to re-build my garden watering system and move it from a perimeter system spraying in towards the center to a single line down the center spraying out. I had almost all of the materials already (except some soaker hose) so it was pretty cheap to do. I was also able to salvage most of the old fittings, which is what I am doing in the picture to the left.
After that was all done I needed to spread the compost and then plant my seeds - spinach, lettuce, carrots, onions and three varieties of peas. I love peas and so do the kids and grand kids.




Whenever we take the dog out she has to race around the yard like her tail is on fire and then take a dive into the lawn with a few rolls to get all the itches out. Then it is off to chase her chew toy, She is just a little bit crazy. I need to figure a way to hook her up to a generator and harness some of that youthful energy.



Then we are off to Fat Burgers. It is by the AMC Grand theaters. We have a coupon and so two nice burgers, fries/onion rings and a couple of shakes runs us $10. And they were excellent burgers. We will have to try them out again.

A Day In The Life - 9/5: Break The Fast

On the first Sunday of each month we fast from two meals for 24 hours in order to better appreciate what we have, to grow closer to God and to share the cost of those meals with those who are in need. Gaye and I now work in a young single adult ward and they have a tradition of meeting together after our church meetings and having a meal together. We call it "Break The Fast". It is a very fun time to sit together and talk, get to know new people and get to spend time with those who you just don't get to spend time with as often as you would like. This is usually a fairly simple meal but it is a time that we all look forward to. And here they come . . . .

A Day In The Life - 9/4: Too Much Holiday?

I am only into the second day of my holiday weekend and I am already wearing blisters into my thumbs. It has been my habit on more than one holiday to damage myself severely. I enjoy the time out doing things that I sun burn myself, get blisters, make myself sore from doing things I don't do all that often or simply sprain or twist something. (I save breakage for non-holiday time.)
Today was no different. I just love working in the yard and around the garden or in the shop. Today it was roto-tilling, spraying weeds, roto-tilling, hauling in bags of compost, more roto-tilling, mixing in fertilizer and then . . . more roto-tilling - until after 7 pm. I love holidays.
Jenn and the kids came up from Tucson but I never saw them. I was recuperating from my vigorous morning when they came. I missed seeing those kids. :(
But, all was not lost. The Great Gannon Get Away arrived and took us off to a very fun restaurant over on Val Vista and Baseline and then, to top it all off, they took us to another place near by called Ocean Blue where we got frozen yogurt or sherbet and then stuff to mix in and then toppings - any combination that you might be interested in. And it was the perfect end to a great meal. We sat outside on the benches nearby and talked and just enjoyed being together with great friends. How lucky are we?!

9/3: The Holiday Continues

It is 4:45 am on a holiday weekend. My eyes pop open. I am wide awake yet it is still dark outside. It is too early to do anything in the yard but there is no going back to sleep. So I get up and work on the computer fro an hour. At 6:00 am I get dressed and go out and spray the weeds which are still proliferating from the recent rains. At 7:00 am I am the first person at the nursery nearby. I wander through the plant displays dreaming of the day when I can scrape together enough money to finish up our yard so that we could actually invite people over to eat and enjoy the great spring and fall weather that we have here in Arizona. Did you know that there are at least seven different varieties of Hybuscus . . . I think it is Hybiscus. You know, those yellow-flowered plants that you see all over? They also so come in white, blue, lavender, red, pink and a purple or pink with a white center. But today I am there to get mulch and lawn fertilizer. $67 worth of mulch and lawn fertilizer. Ouch! Gardening in Arizona has got to produce some of the most expensive vegetable known to man. But I digress.
By 8:00 am I am home and hauling stuff around to the back. But not before I discover that the wheel barrow not only has a flat tire but also that most of the bolts are loose. I hook up the right end to the compressor and get out the wrench and soon the beast is moving bags of stuff to the back yard smooth and easy. Then it is time to get ready to clean the church building. We could not attend the Hartford Ward trip to Snow Flake, Arizona to go to the temple so we are part of the cleaning crew for the church building. Then it is back home to work some more in the yard and then out to dinner with the Gannons. They took us to their favorite restaurant and then to a really cool frozen yogurt place called Ocean Blue (I think). It was so much fun to pick your favorite combination of yogurt and then add toppings and mixers to the concoction. It was a total blast.

A Day In The Life - 9/3: My Holiday Begins

It is the beginning of the Labor Day weekend. I know that it is only Friday. But I was bold enough to take Friday and Tuesday in addition to the weekend and the Monday holiday to make this a nice long "restful" time. But it is not really working that way - as usual.
It is again something over 110 degrees during mid-day but I am up early. I have breakfast and drive Gaye to work (she does not get the day off from her class of third-graders). So it is no longer "cooler" by the time I get started.
First there is all of the summer garden plants to clear. The tomatoes have over-run the place. The weeds have under-run the place, meaning that under every tomato plant that I take out there are weeds being way too prolific. So, step one on my list is to clear the landscape. As you can see from the photo, I got a barrel full. I added a few branches from the trees that were hanging low.
The next job was to clear the watering lines and shade out of the way.
Now comes that hard part - Roto-Tilling. The great thing is that, in years past, I did all of this with a pick and shovel. But, to do it right still takes a fair amount of time and lots of muscling the machine along the course that you want it to take. Otherwise it wanders and you get rows that are much less that arrow straight. It is so hot that I do a couple of passes and go in to cool off and then a couple more passes and go in to cool off. So I am just finishing up the first run of the entire garden just before dark around 7:00 pm. It has been a long day, interspersed with a couple of TV shows, some reading of a Nevada Barr book and a movie or two. It is a good day to be off from work.

A Day In The Life - 9/2: A Bull And A Buff

It is Thursday - the second day of September and hotter than blazes again. Something over 110 in the shade. I have have donned my chauffeur's hat and collected Miss Vaterlaus from her activities at Roosevelt Elementary School. Our abode is secured and the viscous guard dog, Delta, has been fed, run and set on her watch. We are now on our way to a rendezvous with the great financial wizard, Dave Ramsey.
We are on route to our destination with only one thing on our minds - food. We are starving! But, suddenly Miss Vaterlaus is directing my attention to a small corral near the canal, a wild area through the heart of Gilbert in that cowboy state of Arizona (they should have left it as part of the New Mexico territory, if you ask me.) I am directed to take our limousine on a retour of the area to view one more glimpse of the run down corral. And, what a marvelous sight awaits our tired eyes. Here in the midst of traffic and urban living, a corral with a milk cow, a Texas long horn steer and a buffalo. And that is not all, although the tin type above does not capture it, there are also two calves - one a buffalo and the other a Long Horn. What an endearing sight. So off we drove to have Waldo's BBQ before our class, because "beefalo" just would not have been appropriate after such a sighting. And, as on Tuesday, the class was simply magnificent. I can't wait for next week to do this again.

A Day In The Life - 8/31: Dave Ramsey Week Two

This week I had to go to class by myself. Gaye had open house (or something like that) after school and then book group. They talked about the two kinds of people that are dealing with money and budgets. There is the Nerd (me) who loves to do budgets and has everything just in order to excess. They want to mange every penny of their finances so they can afford to do somethings. Then there is the Free Spirit kind of person. They are not interested in budgets, cant get to tab three on the spreadsheet, and want to have a life. Gaye is sort of in this category. At least, she hates doing budgets and being "forced" into managing money. He pegged us so perfectly it made me laugh for the entire hour. He also talked about teaching kids about money management. He talked about giving commission rather than allowance. He doesn't make allowance for his kids, he pays them commission - if you work you get paid and if you don't work, you don't get paid. You also do some jobs just because you are part of the family. And one of his daughters bounced a check. Can you imagine being Dave Ramsey's child and bouncing a check? He made her go down to the bank and and apologize to the bank manager for lying to them. She told them that she had money in her account when that was not true. How would that have changed my perspective on finance if I had a similar experience when I was younger. But this class was so good that I convinced Gaye to go with me to the other class on Thursday so that she wouldn't miss not only the lesson but the fun, fun, fun presentation.

A Day In The Life - 8/30: Dinner with Megan

Today we got to spend the evening with Megan Mansfeld. She is the neatest lady from our ward and so much fun. She came for dinner and game night this week - and beat us all. Who says there is no such thing as beginner's luck! We ate and played and talked and just enjoyed ourselves immensely. We played Quiddler so I guess we will have to see how she does on another game next time.

A Day In The Life - 8/28: A Sad Reunion

These are the program photos from the funeral of Vivian Meese. Her husband, Bob, was one of my Scouting leaders and later, my bishop. I grew up with Curtis, Eric and Kim. Allan was a fair amount older.
Vivian was always our model for how a lady should dress and act, a beautiful lady in every way.
You begin to realize, when you attend a funeral, that you are connected to many people in your life in ways that perhaps had not been evident before. Sometimes you find that the person who has passed through the veil to eternal life has touched not only you but all who are in attendance. Sometimes the family has also made a difference in your life. The great thing, in spite of the sadness of the occasion, is that this important even draws us together again. It reminds us of happier times. It reminds me of lofty aspirations we once had that reality has quashed a little. It puts me in a situation where I can rejoice in other people's successes in life and enjoy the activities that they are involved in and who they have become. And I have been blessed to have know many people who have become great adults.
Today was one of those days. As we celebrated the life of Vivian Meese and the wonderful person that she has become, her family expressed their wonderful memories of her and her family. I was gathered with so many of the people that I knew as a youngster - some who were my companions in crime and others who were my Scout leaders, my church leaders and my examples.
I discovered that many of my former compadres have become camera-shy. Others have become super-heroes and rush around at blinding speed so that a camera lens is is hardly fast enough to catch their blinding speed. But I did manage to capture some of the group who are beginning to slow down to more manageable speeds.
These three speedsters managed to allow themselves to be caught as they zoomed through the parking lot. From left to right: Anthony Goodman, Curtis Meese and Kenny Slade.






These three lovely ladies were part of the clan that we just enough younger in age as we were growing up to be the targets for teasing by the wild boys that I hung out with. And the ladies are:
Shirley (Slade) Brown
Debbie (Davis) Hurst
Allyson (Echols) Morris




Randy McIff has been tied to us for many years both through the church as well as through Scouting. We both seem to bump into each other at many Scouting events or multi-stake events in the Mesa area.












Lillian (Goldstein) White, standing next to Shirley Brown, was so much fun when we were growing up. I do remember snagging the keys to her car on Sunday when we were bored during church and going for a joy ride in her car. We were in hot water with her for a while after that prank.











John Dorman and his wonderful wife, Eloise. I just can't express all the neat memories I have of those two wonderful people. Sister Dorman was Family History personified as I was growing up. If there was anything to be known about how to do Family History, she was the person to go to.
John seemed to be involved in Scouting at all of the right times. I got to have him as a leader when I was an Explorer scout. Those were some great times.
Later, John came to our rescue when we discovered that the house we had been living in was completely eaten up by termites. I guess you could say, in the vernacular of the day, "our house was lunch." Although we had pest coverage and probably could have gotten a settlement through the courts, which would probably have taken years and years to resolve, John provided another option. He worked for a man who bought properties and fixed them up and resold them for a profit. Hopefully for a profit. John worked it out so that his employer would buy our house from us for what we owed on it. We lost some equity but we lost neither time nor additional monies on a house that we could not live in or sell. Gaye and I still talk about what a blessing John was in our lives at that time.

A Day In The Life - 8/28: Birthday Dinner With The Reeds

Gaye and I are so lucky. Doug and Daryn Reed are some of our favorite friends. They are such neat people. We just love them and their four daughters - Taryn, Brandy, Whitney and Haley.
Doug and Daryn took us to dinner for Daryn's birthday. Somburros is one of their favorite spots and we love it, too. What a nice way to spend some time together since Gaye and I are serving in a different ward.

A Day In The Life - 8/24: The First Dave Class

Today was the first of 13 classes in the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University. David Briggs was hosting it. We met together as a large group, watched the instruction video and then split into smaller groups of about a dozen people to discuss the things that were presented in the lecture. There is a facilitator who guides the discussion but it was fun getting to know the others in the group. There is one guy who is starting a new business and wants to do it with a good financial foundation. Another guy just got wiped out in a divorce and wants to start again with a better financial foundation. There is a couple who are engaged and a gal with large medical bills because she ends up in the hospital 3 or 4 times a year. We got our homework assignments and so we are on our way. It is looking like it will be a great class.

A Day In The Life - 8/23: Hero's Birthday

Happy Birthday to ME!
Happy Birthday to ME!
Happy Birthday, dear Hero,
Happy Birthday to ME!

Hero brought her family over to the house for dinner and to celebrate her birthday. She was so excited to finally be having a birthday. It had been a whole year! I know that is not news to most of us but when you are turning two, that is like, half of your life. When her dad asked her what she wanted for her birthday, her answer was, "Presents!" "What kind of presents?" "Cake!"
So we had presents and cake.



First came playing in the backyard. Not on the lawn or on the porch but in the dirt making "food". Then came dinner with spaghetti - her favorite. And then dessert, which is her mother's favorite (and one of my top choices), the Tres Leches cake. Yum!






Finally it was time for PRESENTS! I have been waiting all day for this part! So she and Ariel sat together in the leather chair so that Ariel could help her as required (which is a lot when it is not your birthday.)












She got tons of stuff and loved everything she opened and had to touch it and check it out. And the best part was that it was all clothes and books. You have to do it before they learn that there are supposed to be toys in there somewhere.






One of her favorite presents was a pair of new shoes. She is definitely all girl, this one is. Even a pair of tennis shoes gets her excited. So excited, in fact, that she had to put them on right now. So we got to all see her model the new shoes and then go around and check out everybody's shoes. She may have even gotten them on the right feet.
Finally it was time for them to say good night and head home. What a fun day.

A Day In The Life - 8/22: Putting on the Armor

It is SO much fun to be a boy. Girls seldom do crazy stuff.
So, here we are at church having a lesson on putting on the whole armor of God, and the instructor hands out bags of straws. And eggs. And everyone is supposed to make a package that the egg can fit into and be dropped without breaking. You remember - 4th grade science class. We're still there.
So here are all these guys, most between 20 and 30, outside in 110-degree heat, wearing dress shirts, ties and suits, testing out their "armor". Some cracked up right away and every time one went south the instructor would say something like, "You haven't been saying your prayers" or "You need to read your scriptures more." It was really funny. (Guess you had to be there . . . )

It was actually quite surprising how well some of these creations made from soda straws did. One took a tumble right at the beginning and then sat out in the parking lot looking like a big yellow eye. But we also did the Myth Buster thing and determined that the pavement does NOT get hot enough to cook an egg, even in August in Phoenix.

A Day In The Life - 8/21: Dave Ramsey

For those of you who don't know who Dave Ramsey is, he is an author who is well known for his financial counsel regarding getting out of debt and building wealth. He has written several books, does his own radio shows and has been a guest on a myriad of television and radio shows. He is also a devout christian and ties his advice back to the scriptures.
So, we heard that Dave was coming to Phoenix. But that was going to be quite pricey to go to the event to hear him speak. As Gaye, my wife, was telling this to a co-worker, she told us that he was speaking at a local church for free. Free is good. We are always looking for a good free date so this hit the top of our list.

The event was held at the Central Christian Church in Mesa. There were about three thousand people there for the session and it was a wonderful opportunity for this church to share Dave's philosophy with their own members as well as the surrounding community. Afterward they handed out free (good again) ice cream sandwiches. It was a great experience.
Here are a few of the items he touched on during his 45 minute presentation:

• The scriptures affirm that people make mistakes and God still forgives them and uses them to do his work. The people in the bible who were perfect only get a line or two. The great stories are about people who really screwed up and then God used them to do a great work.
• You can't skimp on doing the right things. Sooner or later the truth will come out, the consequences will happen and, as he so eloquently put it, "you can tell who was skinny-dippin' when the tide goes out."
• Dave made a lot of money and then lost everything. He said that he found God on his way up but he got to know God when he hit bottom. And he learned a few things then. He said, "I whined a lot. It's a little known form of prayer." The bible is full of financial advice and counsel. If you really studied Proverbs you would have a masters in finance.
• The scriptures are the winning playbook from the Lord on how to not screw up your life. When you play this way you win. When you deviate, you don't do so well.
• Real stewardship is Lordship. If you are a good steward of the things that the Lord gives you then you manage your money (and other possessions) rather than have them manage you. You don't give in to your appetites but exercise self control. It takes discipline and pain to change how you do things and to become a good steward.
  
• The bible tells us that a wise man counts the cost before he begins to build lest he run out of funds before he is finished. (Luke 14:28)
  
• Provers 17:18 tells us that he who co-signs for a loan is stupid.
• Psalms 24:1 tells us that "The earth is the Lords and the fullness thereof." Everything is his to begin with. When we think we are giving something to god we are just kidding ourselves. He already owns it all and he is just lending it to us. We had better do something great with it.
• Proverbs 22:7 tells us that, "The rich ruleth over the poor and the borrower is servant to the lender." Don't borrow from others - it puts you in bondage. It restricts your freedom. It stops you from doing what you want to because someone else controls your life.
• MYTH 1 - Money is evil and so are people who have money. Money is NOT the root of all evil but it is the LOVE of money that is the root of all evil (I Tim 6:10). Money enables us to go more good. The Good Samaritan would have been forgotten had he not had some coin. He owned a fast, convertible mule which he place the man on to get him help. He paid for the help and lodging given to the wounded man. He had supplies to bind up the wounds. The poor Samaritan could have done nothing to help the man in need.
• Myth 2 - I can't become rich. Becoming rich is just like playing the piano or playing football. There are those who do it poorly and there are those who have figured out the rules and do them well. You can learn how to do it, too, just as you learn any other skill.
• Becoming rich, like learning to barefoot-ski, takes practice and pain because you are going to fall down a lot. But the Lord will help you if you seek him. (Hebrews 12:11) It will be painful at times. Keep at it until the light goes on and you get it.
  
• Get your act together first and then you will have opportunity to help others. David could not build the temple because of UFOs [Unclad Female Objects] even though he had the funds. So he passed the funds to his son, Solomon, so that he could build the temple. After we learn how to gather wealth, we need to take care of our family before we move on to helping others.
  

Live now like no one else so that you can live later like no one else.

Gaye got us signed up for the classes. Although we are doing relatively well, we want to learn how to be extraordinary with out money. Dave told us of a family that made an investment that ended up paying them about $450 a month. What did they do with it? Each month they pray to find someone who they can help. Last month they went to a restaurant to eat. They had prayed for the Lord to show them someone who they could help while there were there. Then here comes their waitress. She is about 10 months pregnant and still working. Things are not going her way and she has all of these problems. This family is just smiling. When they left the restaurant, they left her a $600 tip. Can you imagine her day? And can you imagine how that family felt being able to help her? Isn't that a great story? You can't do that if you're poor, if you're barely making ends meet, if you're in debt up to your eyeballs. You are slave to the lender.
That is where we plan to go. Thirteen weeks of training on how to make money work for us better, smarter, faster.

A Day In The Life - 8/20: The Desert In Bloom

As I take walks at work I pay particular attention to the plants that adorn the various complexes in the area. I am wanting to do my own flower garden with plants that are hardy in the blazing desert sun but still are colorful.
This view was quite lovely and thought I would record it with the trusty camera for reference when I get to the point of choosing flora and fauna (I think they were twins) to brighten my yard. Take a closer look by double-clicking on the picture.

A Day In The Life - 8/19: A Mystery Solved

As mentioned earlier, I take walks at work to break up my day. Sometimes I walk the neighborhood but often I just do a lap around the complex where I work.
Back on the far side of my work complex I would see this truck parked behind the offices. At first I paid little attention. The sign on the door of the truck read, "Research Recovery Institute". Sounded quite boring, actually. Probably recovered crashed hard drives or something like that. Then I began to notice that there was a subscript below the main title - "Memorializing Your Loved Ones."
What? How does "Research Recovery" and "Memorialize Your Loved Ones" go together? I chewed on how those go together for days like a dog with a bone but could come to no satisfactory conclusion to the matter. I puzzled and puzzled until my puzzler was sore. I thought that, perhaps, it was genealogical / family tree research for deceased family members, perhaps. But things still did not quite add up for me.
When I could stand it no longer, I put the puzzle to some of my co-workers. They suggested that such a non-descriptive name just had to be one of those places where CIA or Mafia people use as job fronts and below this one-story building was a thirteen story basement with massive computers and research labs for new exotic equipment. We had some good laughs but still no good answers to the puzzle.
Finally, today as I was taking a stroll down at that end of the complex I just walked into the front door of the office and asked the receptionist what their company did. I was really concerned, though. The layout could have come right out of James Bond. The reception area was paneled in wood with a single receptionist desk and no way to see beyond to gather a clue as to what sort of business was being done, nor were there any plaques or pictures on the walls. It could be a CIA dummy office.
The fun thing was that the answer was just as intriguing as if it had been a spy front. She said that she wondered how long it would be before someone asked what her company did. She told me that the company provided cadavers to medical and research schools and facilities. Now THAT answer would have been scraping the bottom of my guess list. Well I wasn't hanging around there just in case they were short a body that day!

A Day In The Life - 8/18: Work

Yes, I do still work. In spite of my name (with out the "King" part) I am rich but not wealthy. So I still work. Some days it is at home. Some days it is from far, far away. But mostly it is from this building right here . . . on the left. Right here on the left. And, since I sit in a chair in front of a computer most of my 8+ hours, I usually take a mid-day break to go walking. Yes, even when it is over 110 degrees in the shade I still go for a walk. I will admit that it is a much shorter walk when it is scorching weather out side. Twenty minutes is about all my body can stand before it begins spraying juice all over from top to bottom. So, if I wish to be less obvious than a skunk in heat, I usually trim these walks to a dryer time-frame. And, on one of these short walks I just had to take out my trusty camera and take a shot of my home-away-from-home, my snow bird home, the place I share residence with. And a lovely site it is, too. And they don't even charge me rent ... yet.

Cats Like Cubbys

We have two cats, both male and brothers. We acquired them from the Shoemakers, who kept the other two siblings. And they act like brothers - always tumbling, chasing each other and sometimes fighting or one picking on the other. One is white. I have renamed him Great White Brother. Jennie had named him something else and since I can never remember it, he got a second name when she left home, abandoning her kittens, who lost their mittens.

The other cat is black and used to be named Sanka, like the guy from the movie Cool Running. He has been re-dubbed as Itchy Brother from a cartoon from my childhood. I think it was one of the side shows to Rocky and Bullwinkle. Leonardo and Itchy Brother, as I recall. He always wants to be scratched and is your best friend until you stop. Then he is off in search of the next set of wiggly fingers.
So, the question about the cubbys - is it because they are cats or because they are boys. I know that I like to cave - go out to my "cave" and work or off to my "cave" to read or watch a video - especially when there are lots of people around. So, maybe I'm part cat. It would explain the whiskers.

A Day In The Life - 8/11: Beginning of School Tradition

Hurray! Her first day of school went perfectly. She has some of her previous first graders in her class. Sara, one of the other teachers, is helping her to get oriented to how third grade works. All went well. And when I came to pick her up from school, we have a great and long-standing tradition that must be strictly adhered to on the first school day of each year - going out to a nice dinner so that she doesn't have to cook. So we went to the Landmark. It is a wonderful old restaurant which has recently been updated with new wall paper and decor. The food is still spectacular, as you can see. The salad room is a myriad of tastes and colors so I simply had to try a little bit of everything. And I did. Including the quail eggs. And that was before the 14 oz steak with the mashed sweet potato and onion rings, etc. Yum! Oh, just roll me out and juice me!

A Day In The Life - 8/10: More School Prep

Tuesday Gaye continued to work hard on her new classroom. I did have to go back to work today so I was involved in few of the final events except for hauling in loads of books and some more computer setup. But Gaye did a marvelous job, as can be seen i the following photos.

















We were supposed to have Jennie and Kyle over for dinner tonight but Gaye had more to do. So we took the obvious option - go to Ted's for the best hot dogs this side of the Mississippi river. Of course, Jennie was in no mood to co-operate and insisted on sticking out her tongue and hiding behind her sunglasses. Some people's kids!


And after all of my hard work, how does she treat me? She drops me off at the church for my meeting with my bicycle so i can get myself home. Well what do you think of that?! More exercise time. I guess she really wants me to lose some more weight.

A Day In The Life - 8/9: Setting up the Classroom

Ah, the joys of setting up the classroom at the beginning of the school year. You would think that since most teachers return the next year and will setup their classroom pretty close to the same as the previous year that it would be a slam-dunk. But contraire my fair-weather friend. Over the summer the classroom fairy cleaners come. They clean the carpets. They paint the walls. They sometimes clean computers and scatter the dust in other, less conspicuous locations. So one must take down boards and pack up stuff and stack the desks. All in the name of cleanliness.
And it is much worse if you are moving to a new classroom as Gaye did this year. Last year she was a First Grade teacher. That sounds really awesome - "First Grade". But now she is a Third Grade teacher. With that in mind, add to the list above, "move all of your stuff across the school to a new room, unload all of the stuff left behind by the previous teacher." So the task was huge. And, of course, Gaye's solution is, "Bring my husband down to help me out." It didn't help that I had taken the day off of work. I couldn't say, "Honey, I would really love to come and help you but I have to go to work." Ooooo, bad planning on my part. But after a few hours of everything from sorting and organizing to putting together computer stuff, she had pitty upon my poor, aching back and turned me loose to enjoy the remainder of my day. Whew! I did get my exercise time for the day in spades, though!