I have a "list" of things that I want to get done. If something gets on my list, it gets my personal attention.
For several months I have had an entry on my list "get rid of old appliances". You can not throw electronic items such as computers, printers, stereo systems or major appliances in the regular garbage. I think there is actually a charge to dispose of certain items and in most cases they want you to drop the items off at a designated disposal site. This was one of those chores that wasn't high urgency but it was on my "list".
Over the weekend, my favorite son-in-law mentioned that Habitat for Humanity (for which he does voluntary work) was sponsoring an appliance pick-up program for several weeks. Habitat turns the electronic items over to a scrap dealer for cash. He didn't have to describe the program twice. Your Mom and I jumped out of our comfortable chairs (which is good for us) and proceded to load his truck with an old micro-wave and 10-12 other electronic items. There were items that we couldn't even remember what they did.
My list is shorter. Scratch "dispose electronic items".
Just one comment on my list. I decide what goes on my list. Your Mom has been trying for years to get things she wants done on my list. No, no, no! I decide.
Summer is close. I turned on my air conditioner for the first time this year. I also went to my morning exercise facility and didn't take a jacket. 72 degrees at 6:30 AM.
Enjoy the warm. Like it or not, we have so little of it!
Love,
Dad
Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial kick-off to summer. There is a smell in the air that takes me back to childhood days. Lilacs are in bloom. Grass is being constantly cut putting it's own smell in the air. Add in flowers, trees and bushes and you complete the picture. Plymouth always had a Memorial Day parade ending at the local cemetery. There were boring speeches completed with a 21 gun salute to all those who have given their lives for our country. As kids we would collect as many empty gun shell casings as possible and keep them for souvenirs.
This morning as I did my exercise program, the fragrance in the air was the same as years gone by. Too bad I can't capture the moment forever. Hey, maybe in my mind I did.
My Uncle Bob served in World War II.
My Dad served in World War II.
My Uncle Jerry (my Mother's brother) served and retired from the Navy Sea-Bees after 20 years. He had multiple tours of Vietnam. He was exposed to a spray that killed plants and trees called "agent orange". Ugly stuff.
My brother Jack served at the end of the Korean conflict in the Navy. A bone tumor ended his career with a permanent disability.
My brother Jerry was drafted during Vietnam era. He was fortunate to never leave the contiguous United States. A stint in Vietnam was always an order away.
Grandson Collin is one year into a five year enlistment in the Marines. He is trained in aircraft maintenance with an active tour beginning into the Pacific theater. May the good Lord look afer him.
My respect and Thank You goes out to all those who have served and risked their lives so we can be free. It seems in these days of greed and chaos we forget how fortunate we are.
Have a nice Memorial Day weekend.
Love,
Dad
In the early 1970's (40 years ago), the government announced that they were going to get rid of silver dimes and replace them with a multiple-ply alloy because silver was too expensive.
When the announcement was made, I started throwning my silver dimes into a glass jar and over time I had saved 300-400 dimes. Eventually the silver dimes were "off the market". The idea was that silver along with gold is a precious metal and over time it might appreciate in value. I put the dimes in our safe deposit box.
In the mid-1980's there was a rare event in the silver market. The Hunt brothers (billionaire oil tycoons) tried to corner the silver market by buying up all the silver they could get their hands on. As I recall, silver went from $5 per ounce to over $50 per ounce. A friend of mind sold his silver coins when prices were at their high. I told him silver would probably go higher. He said he wasn't a "speculator" and he had increased his investment by 10 times. I decided that my market skills were better so I held on to my dimes. In a matter of weeks, the Hunt brothers were indicted on fraud charges and silver was back to $5 per ounce. I never sold my dimes. I remember thinking, aww sh--!
Another 25 years have passed since the Hunt brothers attempted to hoard silver. The world is in economic crisis and there is a flight to precious metals again. Silver is presently quoted at $35 per ounce.
Several years ago, I had Grand-daughter Keely take a handfull of my silver dimes and search the internet for potential value. Of course she was looking at each and every dime trying to find a really old date or a dime that appeared totally different from the rest. There are rare old dimes (really rare) worth thousands of dollars. Keely found nothing rare and her conclusion was the dimes weren't worth much more than their face value.
Fast forward to this week. There is a company in town temporarily renting a suite at a local hotel advertising (3-page newspaper ads) to buy old coins, silver, gold, and jewelry. I am sure they are loving, fair merchants wanting to make sure I get full value for anything I have. Yeah, right! But, and that is a big but, I am going to take my jar full of silver dimes to the "fair merchants" to get a quote. Now I need to determine what a "fair" offer would be.
Stay tuned. I will battle the "fair merchants".
Love,
Dad
Grasshopper No.5 always liked the play "Annie" and would sing along with the song "Tomorrow". "Tomorrow, tomorrow, there is always tomorrow. It is only a day away". The song is intended to give people hope that the misery suffered during the Great Depression would eventually be over and we had to cling to the hope and promises of the future.
Okay, today we talk about the occult. The spiritual world. According to an 89 year old evangelist, the world ends tomorrow May 21. The good part to the event is that the 200 million true believers in God with be wisked off to Heaven and the rest will remain on the earth to endure the never ending earthquakes and devestation. Do I need to pack my bags to journey to Heaven? I can't believe that I will remain back here on earth with all the losers. Oh, this evangelist originally predicted the end of the world in1994. He claims to have mis-calculated. My advice is do everything today that you've always wanted to do because there might not be any "tomorrow". I guess if the world ends tomorrow, this is my last blog. Tune in next Tuesday. If you see a new blog entry, everything is okay.
Continuing on the spiritual theme, your Mom and I journeyed down to the Fireside yesterday to see Patsy Cline. It was excellent. In fact, the female singer imitating Patsy might have had a better voice. There was a moment during the performance that I thought I felt the prescence of my sister Addie. Of course, things like that don't happen. When I mentioned the sensation to your Mom, she looked at me kind of funny and said she felt it, too. Why would Addie join us in a performance of Patsy Cline? Maybe it was because the female actor looked a little like Addie. Or, maybe I felt Addie's energy because she was there! Hmmmm!
So my life is having to deal with all these abstract issues. What is the truth? I need to know. Until proven different, the world will not end tomorrow and Addie did join us yesterday at the Fireside.
Enjoy the warmer weather.
Love,
Dad
Yesterday I completed my morning exercise program. On the way home I decided to stop at the gas station/convenience store to pick up a copy of the Milwaukee Sentinel. The Sports section on Monday is usually very good.
As I pulled into the parking area of the convenience store, a "black and white" squad car was right behind me. Oh, oh. Maybe I did something wrong! I parked and the squad car continued around the side of the building. I got my newspaper in the store and it was kind of erie. I didn't notice anyone else in the store and the clerk was talking on the telephone as I made my transaction. As I paid her, another squad car passed behind my car and proceeded around the building. The clerk said "thank you" to me and continued to talk on the phone. I left the store. As I backed out of my parking space I noticed a "black and white" in back of the store on the left. There was another squad on the right and a third squad pulled into a parking space on the side of the building. As I was exiting the parking lot, a fourth squad was just entering the parking lot from the street.
Now I know I am not "the sharpest knife in the drawer" but something was going down in the convenience store. I think Grasshopper No.4 told me when he worked at a local gas station that he was trained to pretend he was on the phone if somebody looked suspicious. I have never encountered a clerk on the phone before but my guess is she was in contact with the police. Of course then there was the fact that four squad cars were strategically place around the station. A potentially dangerous situation was in process.
I guess I have watched too many movies over the years. There is a movie called "Regarding Henry" where a lawyer (Harrison Ford) goes out for cigarettes at night to a local news-stand and gets caught in the cross-fire of a gun fight. He gets shot in the head and spends the movie trying to recover.
I don't know how close I was to a really dangerous situation but the whole episode passed without incident (to me). The good Lord decided it wasn't my time "to go" yet. My resolution is to continue to be a warm, loving and caring human being (just the cuddly Teddy Bear that I've always been). So the world will have to put up with me for another day.
Love,
Dad
Today is Friday the 13th. If you are superstitious, don't attempt anything risky.
Your Mom and I have ordered our Season tickets for UW Badger football. The Badgers have been successful the past 5 years so they end up being scheduled in "prime time" by the major TV networks. Game number one against UNLV was scheduled for Saturday, Sept.3. The Badgers have agreed to move the game to Thursday night, Sept.1 and are featured in the Hall of Fame promotion. Then to showcase the "new" Big 10, the Badgers encounter with the "new" Nebraska team has been changed on Saturday, Oct.1 from afternoon to an evening "prime time" spot. Bottom line! Out of 7 home games for the Badgers, two are in the evening. Who knows, maybe more games will become evening events.
I am not a fan of evening Badger games. They usually start at 7:00PM and are over around 11:00PM. By the time you get out of the parking lots and headed home, it is 12:00 AM (midnight). It is a two drive for us "up state" people so we get home at 2:00 AM in the morning. The late night antics take some of the fun out of the big game. TV is going to continue to place more games in prime time so I guess I need to get used to it or drop the season tickets.
Tiger Woods entered a big golf tournament this weekend called "The Players Championship". For the second year in a row he withdrew because of an injured knee and achilles tendon. He is 35 years old and his finely chiseled body is showing signs of breaking down. Now my version of what happened at the "Players". Tiger teed off. He made a couple of bogeys including a triple bogey on one hole. He observed that his chances of winning were slipping away in the first nine holes he played. His knee was sore. His ankle was sore. The lousy golf was making his "ass sore". So he withdrew to fight another day. Of course that is just my view of the world.
My "beemer" is fixed. It was a faulty water pump. I like the car again.
My outdoor gas grill is fixed. I replaced rusted burners with cast iron units. I can return to grilling of brats, steaks and hamburgers. I'm not mad at my Sears (Char-Broil) grill design any more. I need to stock up on pickles and onions.
Love,
Dad
Sunday was Mother's Day. I did my morning exercise routine and was headed home when my trusty little BMW "puked". That is Grasshopper No.5's description when something breaks down. I got a warning light on the dash display and my car refused to go. Somehow, some way I got the car home. It was not driveable. Monday I called the dealer and we ended up putting the car on the back of a flatbed truck. It was transported to the dealership. I didn't mind the car being hauled away, but I had lost my freedom. I now had no wheels. I was a prisoner in my own home.
Now the good news. My car is still under a 4 year total coverage warranty, including roadside assistance. The warranty runs out at the end of May. Luckily, the car "puked" under warranty. Usually cars wait until one day after the warranty expires and then they fall apart. I don't know at this moment what the problem(s) are, but I don't care. It should be free.
Then more good news. Because I am without transportation (and I have a busy schedule), I got a new 2011 BMW X5 SUV loaner from the dealer until my car is fixed. It has all-wheel drive, full time GPS and smells new. Again, I don't care how long they take to fix my car. There is something about the smell of a new car. The loaner is free.
I talked to Grasshopper No.5 who had a Mini-Cooper (a subsidiary of BMW). She traded the car away because she had constant problems with the car's cooling system. I hope I don't incur the same problems she did. The dealer said this is the first cooling problem they can remember on any style of BMW. Yah, right!
Grandson Grant celebrated his 16th birthday Sunday. He got lots of gifts that had "16" as a theme. You know - 16 Reese's Pieces, 16 paper clips, 16 pennies - you get the idea. I think Grant got 16 brand new $100 bills (not really). His dream is a car? Even a clunker will do. Hey, I know where there is a clunker on the back of a flatbed truck.
Warmer weather ahead. Enjoy.
Love,
Dad
Grasshopper No.2 and her two growing boys ran the Crazyleg race at UW-Madison last Saturday. I haven't been able to see a total publication with all the results but by "clicking" around on several websites, I think I found the official accomplishments of the "No.2 clan". Grasshopper No.2 seems to have slipped to a time of over 51 minutes for the 8K (4.97 miles) from a year ago. Finishing is everything. Her time may have slipped but not her determination. Mitchell finished with a time slightly over 42 minutes. That is a really, really good time. And then if I read the results right, Grant broke the "40 minute barrier" with a time slightly over 39 minutes. That is under 8 minutes per mile. Incredible! it must be the long strides. I hope when I am reincarnated, I come back with long limbs. They all finished. They are champions in my own book.
My Char-Broil Sears gas grill "puked". My analysis is that the gas burners are rusted badly and need replacing. I wandered out to my Sears store figuring that I could buy replacement burners off a parts rack. Sears don't really have parts racks any more. As I was deciding what to do I checked out prices of new gas grills. For people that are cheap, there was one new unit on sale for $69. I decided to fix my old grill. Sears clerks sent me to the Service Department. I expected a nice lady to greet me with compassion. Yeah right! The Service Department is 3 computers on tables facing a wall. One computer is for alerting the Service personnel to bring out an order from the warehouse. The other two computers are for "trying to order" parts on line. The computers were not very user friendly and so logged off. A clerk walking past asked if he could help. After discussion, he gave me an 800 phone number to call rather than use the Sears computers. I got home and called. The two tiny burners and a feeder tube cost $62 and shipping added $12.95 totalling $74.95. I would have been better off buying the $69 new unit on the floor. I really not surprised that companies try to make big profits on the parts for a unit. They have a captive audience. Still I hate being ripped off.
I smelled a hint of flower blossoms in the air this morning. It was refreshing.
Have a great Mothers day weekend.
Love,
Dad
Your Mom and I made an infrequent trip to the "real tundra" last weekend to visit Grasshopper No.5. She was a gracious host as always. Grasshopper No.3 can now rest comfortably knowing that I gave his youngest sister a hug on his behalf. Her response was "awwwwww".
I always stop along Highway 29 to fill up with gas. Premium gas was $4.30 per gallon. Whoaa. What happened to gentle increases. It seems like the last $.25 per gallon increase came overnight. I guess that is called sticker shock. The good news is our motorcar (that is what Enterprise Motors calls our car) got better than 30 miles per gallon.
The second sticker shock was at a mall near downtown Minneapolis in the suburb of Uptown. We parked in a "ramp" next to the mall. Upon leaving the mall, I suggested to No.5 that I would pay the toll. We were there less than 2 hours. I pulled out $3 and had it ready for the attendant. No.5 said I needed more. I pulled out a total of $7. No.5 said I needed more. The attendant looked in the window and said $9. Jesus! I didn't want to "buy" the ramp. Another sticker shock.
Grasshopper No.5 was "stoked" because she completing the programming for her new shared photo website with 28 special photo experts. Hey, I didn't get an invite. I have a box camera that takes good black and white pictures. I checked her website today and I see she succeeded. Maybe the "28 elite" will become rich and famous.
Rumor has it that Grasshopper No.4 is beginning work on a Master degree at Lakeland. I did that after 15 years of marriage. I think it paid off. I remember thinking that "education was a personal thing that no one could ever take away from me". It lasts forever. I received lots of satisfaction from accomplishments at work but they never approached how good I felt as I completed each course. My original goal was not to necessarily finish the requirements for the degree. Constant learning made me feel good. Wait a minute! Isn't that the definition of happiness?
Mothers Day is Sunday. Give her a big hug. Mothers never stop nuturing. They can't help it. Think about it! You are what you are because of one very special Mom.
I hate saying this in early May: "stay warm".
Love,
Dad