A big black bird strutted through our back yard. It was a stupid bird. His tail feathers fanned out like the NBC peacock. Alas, a stray turkey. He isn't a stray anymore. He was the main course yesterday.
Black Friday is at work. Every dedicated shopper looking for a bargain is at Shopko, Target, Macy's and Best Buy. If you ask the retailers, the crowds were bigger this year. In truth, they don't really know. They want to create a positive mood. As I drove past a few parking lots, they were busy but not "traffic cloggging" as advertised.
As this day begins, financial news says that the Arabs in Dubai can not pay all their debt on building developments. Suddenly US stocks are down 200 points on the Dow. Imagine that. Arabs sneeze and we get a cold. What is amazing is that Arabs are sitting on the biggest oil reserves in the world and they can't pay their debt? They've got nothing on us!
Thanksgiving for the our family is changing. That is as it should be. You get to develop your own traditions. Grasshopper No.2 made the trek yesterday from far away Madison to join us (with tall offspring). Grant gets all the height comparisons to his Dad John but Mitchell is approximately the same height as Grant was at the same age. In my next life, I want to come back tall, dark and of course handsome. Tall guys seem to have all the fun!
Here we go. The Christmas music kicks in full bore and we get our fill of "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer".
Enjoy the season. Somebody loves you!
Love,
Dad
I am a victim of a "heat seeking missle". When I show up at my local health club to walk, a new acquaintance seeks me out immediately (like a missle). If I am in the building, Arlo will find me and begin immediate conversation. He talks and I listen. And he talks. I listen.
I have been trying to avoid Arlo.
It started with a conversation about retirement which included investment clubs. Turns out Arlo was president of several national clubs and he suggested I join an organization. I politely refused but soon I was being given stacks of old magazines that come with membership. Some magazines were 6 years old. I think he was cleaning his house.
Another conversation was about tracing "family trees". Arlo has 14.000 relevant names that he has researched. He gave me feedback on my son-in-laws relatives in Wausau and important people from Plymouth that are related to him. He has offered to help me with my research.
Yesterday I indicated that Mom and I were debating about sending Christmas cards. He has an automated "address labeling machine" and he would be happy to print labels for me to make my job easier.
He has given me pears from his orchard.
He has provided me with addresses where I can contact him at all hours (all on personal cards).
You get the idea. He ingratiates himself to you by doing you favors. Being the social butterfly that I am, this is all very flattering. Fatal attraction at the health club..
Arlo goes south to Texas at the end of this week. He is gone for 3-4 months. I get my "space" back. But, he will be return.
I know I'm not generating a lot of sympathy with my "adventures with Arlo". You should have my problems.
Have a nice Thanksgiving!
Gobble, gobble, gobble.
Dad
This November marks significant anniversary dates for me.
10 years ago I was getting ready to exit my "work for money" job in Ripon. I can't believe 10 years has passed.
7 years ago we moved to our current address. I remember Grasshopper No.3 helping us move things like mirrors, lamps and pictures. He sat in the basement before any furniture had arrived and asked me "if I knew what the hell I was doing"? The answer of course was "nope".
24 years ago your Mom and I moved from Sheboygan to Appleton. Moving day was one of the worst ice storms we had had in years and by the time your Mom and Grasshoppers No.4 and No.5 got to Appleton, nerves were very frayed.
24 years marks the longest your Mom and I have lived in one place. Having been born and raised in Plymouth, we moved to Milwaukee at age 23 to start my first real job. So the Plymouth years culminated in a grand total of 23 years including my going off to school. Here we are. Appleton. 24 years. The record.
Just for comparison sake, 18 years marks the amount of time we lived in Sheboygan raising our first family (Grasshoppers No.1, No.2 and No.3).
12,000 miles (approximate) is the distance I've covered with my morning walks. I figure I do between 3.5 miles and 4 miles per day and I've maintained that routine for 10 years. By my calculations, I've walked one-half the way around the world.
Our future holds being married 50 years and birthdays marking 70 years.
The lesson Grasshoppers is that life happens. Everyone establishes their own benchmarks. You've probably got a few that are significant to you.
Love,
Dad
Saturday was glorious. Camp Randall. 57 degrees. No wind. Michigan. Badgers win big! Joining us was Phil. I was talking to a friend and mentioned that Grasshopper No.3 joined us. The friend joked that we "filled" in with No.3. Hence his new his new name is "Phil". Dominating Michigan is symbolic of a "new world". For a change, Grasshopper No.4 wasn't at the best game of the year.
Tiger Woods played in the Australian Masters Golf tournament and won $270,000 for finishing first. That is not a lot of money compared to U.S. tournaments where $1 million purses is common. Why you ask would Tiger be playing all the way in Australia for "chicken feed" prize money? Did I fail to mention that having Tiger in a tournament adds so much prestige to the tournament (and draws fans) that he was paid $3 million in "appearance money". That is the job I want. $3 million for just showing up. It is a new world.
I see that our government has charged a panel of academicians from Harvard and other east coast universities to make recommendations regarding breast cancer treatment. The govern-ment panel through statistic analysis determined that mamograms are not needed until age 50 and that self testing for lumps is a wasted exercise until age 50. My cynical nature takes over here because the next step is for health insurance companies to deny medical payments for any breast cancer prevention procedure for anyone under 50 because the government has "said so". Here we go! Mandated government insurance coverage. Aren't we "throwing Mom or Grandma under the bus", if we won't pay for anything that relates to breast cancer pre-vention. Bring on healthcare reform. It will be a new world.
I am determined to persevere in the "new world". At my age, long term commitments are rare. This morning I bought 200 new BUNN coffee filters so my intent is to be around for another 200 days. How is that for confidence to surviving in the new world.
My advice Grasshoppers is to always think for yourself. If it doesn't seem right, it probably isn't. Trust your instincts.
Love,
Dad
I was listening to Grasshopper No.2 tell childhood stories. She was around 12-13 years old and following her sister up the stairs to bed (at the time we lived in Sheboygan on 6th Steet). Grasshopper No.2 was becoming annoyed with how slow No.1 was going and started pushing and ordering "hurry up". No.1 turned to her sister and said "ssssh! Quiet! Wabbit Twacks". They both broke out with laughter. Reflecting back, I think they watched way too many cartoons.
Today is Friday the 13th. It is significant because predictions are that bad things happen on the 13th. My first boss in Sheboygan was Curly. He had a fear of the number 13 which is called "trisadectaphobia". Curly wouldn't fly on the 13th. He would schedule a different day. He was wary of any bad thing that happened on the 13th.
Now I don't want to say I am superstitious. Just because my Dad was buried on the 13th and one year later my Grandmother Helen died on the 13th. No sir, that does not affect my judgement at all. This morning a gravel truck sent stones my way and chipped my windshield. Does that bother me? No sir. My coffee pot overflowed because I forgot to empty the old coffee out before brewing a fresh pot. Does that bother me? No sir! I picked up a garbage bag to put in the City Canister and the bottom fell out. I thought nothing of it. These things happen to everyone.
So I've got a choice. I could crawl back into bed and hang on to the sides and wait until the 13th turns to the 14th. Or, I could live life with zest and ignore all the bulls---.
The lesson Grasshoppers is that superstition of the number 13 makes the imagination come alive. The fear of the 13th is only a problem if you let it. Live your life with zest.
Love,
Dad
My understanding is that the "FreeCreditReport.com" advertising you see on TV is not a free service at all. If you tap into the website, you will get the free credit report you request but one of your credit cards will suddenly show an ongoing monthly charge of $14.95. You are agreeing to let them monitor your credit for the next year. Yep, you authorized a contract. Imagine! It is a deceptive financial practice (something about reading the fine print). It can't be.
Now to my point. The government is supposed to work for you. You are the boss. In the early days of this country as settlers arrived, rules and jobs were created that served the newcomers. The structure of "servers to the people" known as "government" is supposed to serve the majority of people. Government is supposed to do what you want. Because you are the boss, you can fire the representatives that work for you. Yep, you can "can" their asses. Vote for someone new.
We have reached a stage in our country's growth where the government has decided it does not need to take orders from us. It thinks it is the boss. We look for the government to solve our financial problems. We look to the government to decide who gets welfare. It legislates religious issues. We have a government that just gets bigger and more demanding. It is almost like creating a Frankenstein.
This message is pretty simple. How long are you going to get pushed around? Who is the f------ boss?
You are the boss! You have the power. Make your public officials do what you want. If they don't do as you wish put them on unemployment (that would be a change). Damn!
Love,
Dad
I have noticed that there is a position in the medical field called "Grief Counselor". The job deals with people who are trying to erase demons from the past or handle personal tragedies. The shootings at Fort Hood, Texas defy explanation and there are a lot of familes that have been dealt terrible consequences. Grief counselors were called in to help. I can't begin to imagine the personal issues involved for everyone. My sympathies to all!
That is not the job I want. I want "Grief Counselor - Light Variety". I want to be called in to help people with issues that don't have dire situations. I didn't watch a few Dr. Phil TV shows for nothing. The key phrase to be an expert counselor is to ask "how do you feel about that"?
For example, all those Packer fans that are having trouble dealing with the fact that Brett Favre has stuck it to the the Green and Gold twice twice this year, my inclination is to say "suck it up". Instead with my grief counselor training, I'd have to say "I feel your pain" or "you poor thing". Then I'd ask about feelings and try to steer towards a rehab program. See, I can be Mr. Sensitivity.
For Philadelphia Phillies fans whose team lost to the "Darth Vader Yankees", I'd like to say "get over it". My new role won't let me do that. I'd have to remind them that the Phillies were World Champs last year and that it is very difficult to repeat. They should realize that Yankee fans need to experience the joy of winning also. We would hinge our rehab program on "there is always next year".
To those that pay extortion fees to your friendly banks, remember they are screwing eveyone.
To those that just had their credit card rates soar to over 30% annual rates, you might feel better if you knew banks are just trying to make a fair profit. Banks have to survive too.
To those that have noticed your property tax rates are going up 10%. Remember that teachers will be assured to get their annual raises and contributions to pension plans. Put yourself in the teachers place. Imagine how good they feel. Feel good for them.
To those that see outrageous increases in their health insurance costs, being incensed is okay. You can take solace in the fact that higher insurance costs are coming and you ain't seen nothing yet. So enjoy the moment. Things will only get worse. Don't you feel better?
Grasshopper No.3 is a grief counselor of sorts. Anytime something goes wrong, he'll say "rub some dirt on it". He doesn't exhibit as much sympathy as I do, so don't go to him to light duty grief counseling.
I am available for light duty stuff at a beckon call. E-mails will work. My fee is $200 per hour. Hey, I've got to live too. It has taken me 69 years to develop my qualifications.
Today I will go forth and help as many grief stricken people as I can.
Love,
Dad
By now everybody is sick of the former Green Bay Packers Brett Favre "circus". Favre got what he wanted. He "stuck it to" his former team.
My version of this epic drama is that Favre wanted to have more input on how the Packers were run back in 2007. The Packers told him to shut up and play quarterback. Suddenly Favre wasn't sure he wanted to play and forced the Packers to trade him. He didn't anticipate being traded to the New York Jets. He endured Hell for a year. After a year with the Jets, he again feigned indecision about playing. Coupled with a torn shoulder muscle and indecision, the Jets released him.
Finally Favre got what he wanted. He wanted to play for "Packers North" (Vikings) all along. He wanted to prove that the Packers made a mistake in 2007 by not listening to his input.
There they were Sunday afternoon. Favre, Longwell (the castoff of kicker) and other Packer alumni playing in all their glory for Minnesota. Favre took center stage and put on a masterful performance.
So who wins this battle of "wills". The Packers will be here long after Favre stops playing. In the overall scheme of things, Favre can't win. On the other hand, for one glorious moment (actually 2 games), Favre got to stick it to the Packers. My guess is Favre feels very good about extracting his revenge. Maybe even euphoric.
Shakespeare couldn't have written a better script.
And Favre gets to go home with another $12 million of our money. Hmmmm! Maybe Favre was the big winner afterall.
Love,
Dad