home.

Back home. Miranda had a lot of papers show up for the Redwood Church so I tried to stop by Kenneth and Shirley's house but they weren't home. So I dropped them off at my sister's house. It was nice to see all of them again.

Next Wednesday, Dad is having his heart "work" done. Not sure what all is going on but I think it's a splint. I will go down to Tulsa (as if I need an excuse to go to Tulsa!) and spend the day with Mom down there. Maybe we'll go eat at a nice restaurant to drive Dad crazy while he is busy being doctored.

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update.

@4:50PM. Half tide.

That is all.

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day.

What a long day. On the bright side, it wasn't as bad as tomorrow will be. Tomorrow I go to Monett. On the not-so-bright-side, it wasn't as bad as tomorrow will be.

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children

A few funny stories about the children. Yesterday after church, Patrick ran out to the car and Nellie was after him. She started running and hollering "Patrick! Get back here!". She didn't want him to run away. It was cute.

When Miranda takes her to school, every time she walks into the classroom she walks to the center of the room and does a twirl as if to say "I'm here. Look at me."

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Mom and Dad.

Mom and Dad came up to eat with John and Connie and they stopped by. It was fun visiting with them.

I got my watch today. It's huge and I look like a dork but it's currently high tide and falling. See isn't that helpful.

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very neat.

Picture of a F-22 breaking the sound barrier.

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school

This week Miranda has to work the phones at the school from 8-12. Feel free to call up and ask any question about education or the school.

The children will be going to school all 5 days this week since Miranda is "working" this week. It will just be me at home. Except for Tuesday as I have to go to Monett.

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good game.

unfortunately the USA lost 3-2. They were ahead 2-0 at halftime but it just wasn't to be.

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hmmm...

Following the soccer game between US and Brazil (not watching it) and one of the comments is: "The pitch is whack." They may be speaking English but I do not follow.

US just scored 1-0! Please note that I will not be providing a running commentary but just found that comment very odd.

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weekend so far.

Today was a quiet day.  Not much happening.  We ate out at Pizza Hut and then took Patrick and Nellie to the park.  They had fun and played for a couple of hours.  

Miranda is on facebook and I was looking at facebook so we chatted briefly over the internet while sitting across the room from each other.  

I did get to watch a soccer replay of USA beating Spain.  Spain is the #1 ranked team in the world.  USA is #14.  You could tell though that we weren't on the same level of talent.  Probably never will be either because soccer just isn't a major sport here.

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Dr.

So Dad went to the doctor about his heart. Apparently he has some blockage. As all doctors go, they are running tests to see if they need to run more tests. Anyway... long story short. Probably have stint surgery and if that doesn't go well then a defibrillator. Pretty standard stuff. Dad's doctor was from the New Orleans area so apparently that involved a big discussion about Cajun stuff. You will notice that Dad and I are a bit alike. Whatever is the big thing in our life's at the moment, we yammer on and on and on and on about it.

Mom and Dad came up to visit John and Connie and didn't stop by. Actually I'm not mad because we were at the park and even if we weren't, they are adults and have their own life. We do enjoy it when they drop by though. They were discussing their next trip to Alaska.

I didn't say much about the party last night because I was headed to bed. It was very fun though. Patrick and Nellie had a ball playing with Angie's children. It was nice to see everyone again. Paul came and was in quite a bit of pain but he refuses to be waited on. It's a pride thing. Jane has really lost a lot of weight and looks nice (I was giving her a hard time and am feeling bad about it). I shouldn't feel too bad because she was giving Paul a lot of grief last night (shame on you MIL). Angie was stressing out because nothing was working for her, but it turned out awesome.

My watch is on it's way to Kansas. I love toys. It was a good deal. I'm afraid it may be a bit big but knowing the movement of the tides is pretty important when you live in Kansas.

I've been in an absolute rotten mood lately (and you can probably tell by reading this blog over the last week or two). I've been very depressed and down. I feel like I'm coming out of it though.

I'm growing to like these Egg Cream's that I ordered over the Internet. I was going to take one to Paul but forgot. When Dad comes up, he'll have to try some. I'm the only one in the family that likes them.

Today is going to be a quiet day. Staying around the house trying to keep cool and trying to avoid all Michael Jackson news (that's the nice thing about being tv-less).

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funny.

We just got home from Derek's birthday party. It was a lot of fun and Paul showed up (shame on him!!!). Afterwards, we went to Sonic. The girl brought us our drinks and as soon as she started talking (or tawking in her case), I knew something was wrong. I asked her where she was from and it was Southern Mississippi. It sounded so funny.

When I worked at my last job, I was talking to a customer from Colorado and she told me, "I just love your southern accent". We had a guy that had just moved up from Mississippi and I told her, "Wait until you hear Daryl".

Anyway, I mentioned that we were going to the Cajun music festival and she was excited. Her husband was from Southern Louisiana apparently. Luckily I was wearing my Saints hat.

Pretty cool.

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another great idea.

Weigh every day and post your weight to a website and share with your friends. And pay $20 every 3 months for the privilege. Boy that's going to sell like hotcakes.

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friends.

A week from today we leave for Canton, TX. Our 2 trip to Texas this year. Assuming we go through Texas to Louisiana, we may go 3 times this year. Odd.

Saw Wayne Rogers last night. He has a huge garden next to our house. Too big for him and so there are 3-4 people growing stuff in it. He offered us some of the food and we will probably get a few tomatoes. Miranda loves tomatoes. I think she is the only one of the family that does.

Tonight is the birthday party. Miranda cajoled me into going. She let me buy a watch early (I still have to save up the money and pay her back). It's a good one! It has a compass, tells the tide, and the temperature. I have my sailing watch so now I just need a sail boat! I was telling her when I get my watch, I would be able to tell her when the tide is coming in on the local lakes (never)! So it will be handy.

The week is finally over. I've been sorta depressed and ready for it to be over. Getting grey hairs all over and thinking about this (from the TV show Corner Gas):

Oscar Leroy: One day it dawns on you that you're starting to get old. Then it dawns on you that you are old. Then it dawns on you that every second that ticks by is just another inch that you've dragged your carcass towards your own cold grave. Then one day stuff stops dawning on you... 'cause you died.
Davis Quinton: You ever done any motivational speaking? You should look into it.

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bad news.

So Miranda and I went out to Elk City Lake.  It's a great sailing lake.  It really put me in the mood for a sailboat.  We just went out there to see what kind of facilities that they have and they are really nice.  I guess I'll start saving up.  Of course, by the time I get it saved up, winter will be upon us.  But I'll have it for next year.

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Friday night.

Friday night is Derek's birthday party. Not sure if I will go or not. At things like this, the only people needed are Patrick and Nellie to play with Derek,Cameron, Garrett, and Miranda to talk to Jane and Angie. Paul won't be there. I'm thinking about skipping out too.

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yuck.

If we move to Lafayette, I would take a $11,000 pay cut. Housing would be 39% more.

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'Splain this to me.

Whisky smelling after shave? So the theory is that you want to smell like a homeless guy/alcoholic? Hmmm... Maybe "Dirty Diper" after shave is next?

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ho-hum.

The usual stuff today. Miranda finally opened her own facebook account last night. She was getting on mine and reading stuff. So look for her on there too. I don't update mine much.

Tried watching Waterloo last night but the DVD is apparently messed up. What can you expect from those crazy Russians (it is a Russian movie). They are particularly proud of besting Napoleon and even wrote a major classical piece about it thus the movie.

There aren't many movies about French military victories. They don't have many major ones and beating the Italians doesn't count as they are worse than the French.

Miranda is painting today while the children are at school. You will probably hear the screams of frustration from where you are sitting.

Last night Nellie and Patrick jumped on the trampoline but she didn't want him up there. She griped at him until he got down. It was hilarious to watch and he didn't mind. He went off to ride his bike. She was standing there, pointing to the ground and telling him to get off. She's going to be the boss.

nc

Whew!

Long day. But the week is 1/2 over! Maybe do my Cherokee class tonight? I think this is becoming quite the joke around here.

FYI... Most of you probably know Diane Baber (she comments fairly regularly) and she is off to the Ukraine for some church stuff (a VBS to be more specific). That must be quite a VBS (but I'm off track). Anyway... she has made it safely to the Ukraine. Good luck to her. She'll probably have some Russian caviar (that's the primo stuff). I'm sorta jealous (except I don't like the saltiness of caviar). I don't see her as a vodka person but you never know! Have a fun time Diane.

Tonight is going to be sitting around and taking it easy.

Miranda took Patrick and Nellie to the library as they were having some children's show or something. Patrick said he had a lot of fun. I'm not sure about Nellie as she didn't say.

We finally got the rooms switched and all the painting done. Miranda even painted the hall. I think she is going to paint in the living room a bit. I'll just keep out of the way.

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Watch

At San Antonio, I grew very tired of having to look at my cell phone. On our tour, everything was time based. You had to show up somewhere at a certain time. So I think I'm going to try a watch. I found a watch that will tell me the tides of the ocean. Which will come in handy... hmmm... not very often. Anyway, it would be neat. Plus it's digital. I have a terrible time trying to tell the time using an analog watch. Takes me forever to figure it out.

I will probably buy the cheapest thing I can find though since I probably end up throwing it away. I really dislike things "hanging" on me.

nc

Egg Creme's

I got my Egg Creme's last night. They aren't too bad but they taste a bit more like Chocolate Pop than the usual Chocolate+Milk+Seltzer water. I have 24 bottles to drink and Miranda refuses to drink it.

It's been pretty quiet on the home front the last couple of days and so there isn't much to report.

nc

Wrist watch.

Ever have a problem keeping your watch on the correct time? Get one of these babies. Yeah!

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Nellie.

Nellie isn't happy today. Today is the first day of no "sippy" cups. We are going to start using big girl cups from now on. The first attempt ended with the "big girl cup" sailing across the room. She's got a great arm. She'll probably be pretty athletic. She did not get that from her dad.

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present.

So for Father's Day, my absolute favorite MIL (Jane), bought me a bag of chocolates as a present. Perfect gift for me. Miranda didn't want it sitting around because she'd eat too much of it and made me put it by my computer. Last night, Patrick decided he wanted to play computer games and Nellie watched him. Needless to say, they found the chocolates.

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TomTom

On our way to Vinita, I turned on TomTom and put it on the French language.  "Tournez a gauche", etc...  Pretty neato.  Anyway, Miranda said tonight that she thought it would be neat to speak another language but didn't want to spend that kind of time.  I'm slowly converting her!  Before long, I'll have her convinced.

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fun times.

Patrick and Nellie decided to sing the songs they learned in VBS.  A few tickle-fights.  And some jumping on the trampoline.  I finally got them calmed down and got to watch a few episodes of Fawlty Towers.  Now it's bath time.  I'm ready for bed.  It was a long horrendous day at work and I'm tired.  I was going to try to get my last class of Cherokee over but I'm too tired.

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Patrick and Nellie.

I just heard Patrick say to Nellie... "Ok! See you at Angie's house."

Hope she doesn't mind them coming over!

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Congrats.

Congratulations to Paul Clifton who graduated from Police Academy or something like that. All I know is that he has joined the ranks of the police and I can now use the phrase "cool it! here comes the fuzz" every time I see him.

His wife Vicki and I sorta grew up together just in case you were wondering how I know him.

nc

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Today is Dad's Birthday, and of course, Father's Day He is 69 today!

He has been an awesome Dad!

Being a dad is a tough job. I know because I just heard Miranda tell Patrick, "You better do it or I'll send Dad in here!". She's the Good Cop and I'm the Bad Cop.

Anywho... Happy B-Day and Father's Day to my Dad. Love you guys a lot!

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Canton

We are off to First Monday Trade Days in Canton, TX on July the 3rd and 4th. Dad has made the reservations in Sulphur Springs, TX. Shopping and more shopping.

I forget how we originally got started going, but we started in 1980. It's been an (almost) annual thing for them. Miranda and I haven't been there too much but we have a lot of fun when we do get to go.

I was also wanting to go to Steal Your Dollar Silly with Paul and Jane but the doctor told him he can't do anything for 2 months! I want to go to that doctor!!! Maybe if I slip him $50, he'll prescribe me the same thing (without the actual surgery).

I have got to get Miranda into school again as we are traveling way too much. But not so much that we can't go to Lafayette!

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Home for a bit.

Back home at 9:00 PM from Tulsa. A fun time was had by all (excepting the funeral). We had the Foie Gras and Fried Oysters for appetizers. Mom had the steak, Miranda had the Chicken Dijon, Dad and I had the bouillabaisse. For dessert, Mom and Dad had Chocolate Cheesecake and Miranda and I had the Chocolate Creme Brulee (that was the best part of the meal).

It was a scary amount of money but worth every penny (the Foie Gras was $21 just by itself). It was my and Dad's Father's Day present.

We are back home for tonight and then off tomorrow for church and over to see the greatest in-laws in the world (we are going to their house! I've got to butter them up!).

I'm tired and going to relax now. Hope everyone has a happy Father's Day.

nc

Off we go.

A note for today. The French Hen is 7143 S. Yale Ave.

Last night was the last night of VBS. Had hot dogs afterwards. Today is jamb packed.

So I've been listening to some Cajun music. Pretty sad stuff. Here's the lyrics of a good example. I knew about 2/3s of the first verse without the lyrics but the second verse was way over my head. Basically country music with French lyrics. Looking forward to October 9th!

About time to go. Will keep you posted.

nc

R.I.P.

Duke Nukem Forever is dead. Long live the Duke. I played Duke Nukem 3D back in the early 90's. They started production on Duke Nukem Forever in 1997. So 12 years later and no completed project, they finally cancelled it. It really has been a joke for the last 7-8 years of when it was coming out.

Too bad cause the original was fun.

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transition period.

As you have read earlier, we are in the process of switching rooms with Patrick and Nellie. The room has been painted and most of their stuff has been moved out. The TV ended up in my office until the switch happens. This morning was spent listening to Barney sing songs. Ugh.

nc

random observation.

I wish I could find a file tagger that understood set theory. I created mine own awhile back but it had it own set of issues. Worked really well except for the database. The database didn't work too well because I have 64 bit Vista. That's a whole other tragic story. In short, no ODBC drivers for 64 bit Vista.

Why am I telling you this? Because I care about you.

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Restaurant

We have reservations for 6 (4 adults, 2 children) at the French Hen for 6:00PM on Saturday. That should get us home at a decent hour.

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oooohhhh!!!

I have got to have one of these!

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Recovery.

All the economic signs are point to recovery but my job isn't out of the woods yet. I felt sorry for the CEO of our company yesterday. In our meetings, basically people were asking him to predict the future in regards to jobs. He can't say "I won't lay anyone off" because who knows. He did say that layoffs would be the absolute last step. He said it's dumb to lay off employees at the first sign of trouble, like a lot of companies, do because that cuts down on employee loyalty, you lose a lot of good people, etc (that's a paraphrase but it's the essence of his speech). Plus we are positioned very well for the future. I'm not going to get into specifics (not sure where the line is drawn and don't want to even get close), but when we come out of the recession, we will be doing very well. He's a sharp cookie.

If I'm going to get laid off, I wish it could be now. No house payment, no major bills, etc... I could take the French class! I would probably switch careers and say goodbye to programming.

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odd.

So I've been thinking a bit lately about the act of "waving". I find it odd. Who decided that if you hold your arm out straight with all the fingers extended and rotate your hand, that is saying "goodbye". It also works to flap your fingers up and down. If you only extend your first finger, that is considered "no! no!". If you extend the first and second fingers, that is considered "victory". If you extend the second (middle) finger only, that is obscene. If you extend your pinkie and your first finger, that's "hook 'em horns" which is even more obscene for an OU football fan.

I've always been uncomfortable when waving and feel quite silly.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

nc

Made it back home.

Long day and I'm glad to be back home.

Called Dad and he said that Dale Haire's funeral was on Saturday at 10:00AM but I forgot to ask where. Doh! Will call again later (or he can call me). Afterwards, we are going to go out to eat in Tulsa. Hopefully the French Hen. I will have to make reservations tomorrow. Hopefully the children are good.

Missed my last Cherokee class last night but I'm too tired to take it tonight. Maybe this weekend.

Tomorrow is Friday though and I'm looking forward to the weekend. The plans this weekend are... Switch rooms with the children, funeral, Tulsa, Church (twice). Miranda finished painting the children's room. It was a neon green and she hated it. It's now a brown of some kind. We are going to move into that room as it's the smaller room. The toys are overflowing in there.

It's almost 4th of July too! Miranda has to be the "phone person" at school on the week of the 4th. It's from 8:00 - 12:00. So I'm not sure if we will get to go to Canton or not. Assuming we leave Friday after work, that doesn't leave much time to get there.

Miranda and the children are at VBS so I'm home alone. Poor me.

nc

Off for Monett.

No blogging today.

Last night I did go to VBS. It was nice. It's 4:00 in the morning. I can barely think to write that. No more expounding on the details. Now go back to bed.

nc

more sad news.

Dad called on their way home from Oliver Hamilton's funeral and told us that Dale Haire died. Dale was a regular at Vinita church. It was very unexpected. Dale and Jewel (died about 5 or so years ago) were good friends with Grandma. They carted her around to all the fellowship meetings and various church functions.

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Patrick and Nellie.

Nellie climbed up on the trampoline all by herself. They are now running through the house and Patrick is chasing her and yelling... "Seize them!"

Things are back to normal around here.

VBS tonight.

nc

humor.

Browing YouTube, I came across some Tom Lehrer songs. Bill Filsinger would listen to Dr. Demento and tape them off when we were young adults. I would listen to them afterwards. Tom Lehrer was on them and I found him really funny. Please note that I found them funny, so you probably will not. Feel free to skip.

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Of course.

Nellie has now moved into a Drama Queen status. It still may be giving her fits but it's fairly obvious that it is not as painful as it was. She is a silly girl.

I'm off to Monett tomorrow. We are having our Quarterly employee meetings.

Tonight is my last Cherokee class until fall. I may or may not go to class tonight. I'm tired of sitting here and need a break.

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Nellie.

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Nellie.

Nellie still can't move her arm or even really grip things. I guess there isn't anything else we can do for now but just let her try to recuperate.

Going to be one of those days.

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home again.

We just got back from the emergency room. Nellie fell off a toy at Day Care and hurt her arm. She was in obvious pain so the Doctor kept running tests. X-rays on upper and lower arm showed nothing. She still won't hardly move her left arm. They diagnosed it as a hard hit basically. Anywho... ice packs, ibuprofin, and hundreds of dollars poorer.

No VBS tonight.

nc

funny.

Maybe it's time for this guy to take an art class.

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web search.

A couple of new things to note:

Bing is Microsoft's new web search.

Another new web search is called Koogle (you can click it but you can't read it). It's a "kosher" web search. Going from such ideas as no nudity to not allowing you to purchase products on the Jewish Sabbath (I think that is Saturday but I'm not 100% sure). Read more about it here.

I was reading a forum about searching and they mentioned a funny search. All the major search engines allow you to restrict "adult" items. There is a new search engine (I won't link it) called "Unsafe Search". It only shows you "adult" items.

Have to cater to every taste I guess. I better get started on noogle.com (nuclearcowboy's web search). Will only allow you to search for Arabic, Cherokee, French, Pedal Steel Guitar, Porsche 911, and Sailboats. Nothing else. Might have limited usefulness though.

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my decorating.

When I was starting to date Miranda, a family decision was made that if she saw my house the way it was, that was pretty much it. So Mom, Dad, and Grandma all came up and we spent a few hours cleaning my house. My main problem was that I had my computer desk in my living room. I had 4 or 5 computers, a scanner and any number of plates on my desk at the same time. I lived in front off my computer. I mean this in the literal sense except for sleeping and bathroom breaks. I ate at McDonalds, Burger King, or Pizza Hut every meal so I never went to the refrigerator. Breakfast would be pop-tarts (thus the plates). When I would put something in the refrig, it would turn into other stuff before it was cleaned out. I'm honestly not sure how I made it as a single guy. It was a meager existence. The place still wasn't up to par but Miranda didn't get too grossed out.

In case you are wondering about all the computers... 1 laptop, 1 Mac, 1 PC Desktop, and 2 Alphas. Why 2 Alphas? My friend, Rocky (committed suicide), was telling me about the Alphas for sale on the internet (late 90's). They were way ahead of their time but just didn't make it. Anyway, he said they were for sale for $300 but he said "be careful because their website is messed up and I accidently ordered 2 of them." So I'm sitting at home and order one. The website was taking forever and I wasn't getting a response, so I pressed the Refresh button on the browser. I ended up with 2 Alphas. This was back in the day with 2400 baud modems. Those were not the "good ole days" (at least for internet usage).

After marriage, we sort of paired down on computers but it's going back up again. I have 2, Miranda has her pink laptop, and I have my work laptop.

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Painting.

Miranda is painting the children's bedroom. There must be a gene in all females that says "You have got to decorate!" This gene gets reset about once a year. When I was a college student, I decorated a little bit at a time. Dried up apple here, dirty plate there. After awhile it got that "layered look" that is so popular now days except it was disgusting. I didn't really notice that anything was wrong though.

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VBS.

Patrick and Nellie really enjoyed VBS at Independence Church. Nellie had a playmate with Lance Filsinger. Lance is Bill and Valerie Filsinger's son. I didn't get to go to VBS last night because of my class but I may go tonight.

After much thought, I have decided not to take the French class from the local community college. It's a tough decision for me but I just can't justify 1 hour in class every day for almost 6 months. Plus that wouldn't count the time it takes to do the homework. If it was a night class that would be different. I'm kinda sad that I had to make that decision but that's the way it goes.

I need a vacation from computers. I have been spending way too much time in front of them.

nc

Twitter.

I'm following the Iran Election protests (Revolution?) on twitter. Just amazing. Maybe twitter has finally found a use. Very interesting stuff and very scary stuff. Lots of people holler that we need a revolution (when GWB was in power and Obama now). Every one of those idiots have no clue how bad a revolution is.

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VBS.

Miranda took Patrick and Nellie to the Independence Church VBS. Actually Patrick is the only one that can technically go because it's only for a certain age range but Nellie tagged along. We went out to eat at Braum's tonight. That was yummy.

nc

printer.

As far as I can figure, my printer is dead. I've replaced all the printer cartridges but still no black. All the other colors work fine but black won't. I've replaced it twice.

Wednesday night is my last Cherokee class. I'm going through and saving all the word lists but can't print them off. I guess I'll have to buy a new printer. I don't really use a printer that much. Miranda would but it isn't setup on her computer because I need to buy a wireless USB hub. Money makes the world go round.

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whipping.

Italy 3-1. Yikes!

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USA vs Italy

USA is playing Italy in soccer. Italy is the defending champions of the World Cup. The World Cup is different than UEFA as the best players from each country play for their country. Sort of like the Olympics except for soccer only. So far the USA is ahead but they are way over matched. They don't look so good.

nc

no need for a poll.

The rest of my allowance went on Fawlty Towers. It's a funny British comedy. If you want a taste you can click here.

nc

Shipping is a real bugger.

I placed an order for a case of Chocolate Egg Cream. $30 for a case. Shipping was $25.60!!! As the Jews say, Ov vey!!! That smarts. A case should last me awhile as that is 24 bottles. I hope it's good. It better be.

nc

new news.

Found out at church yesterday that Oliver Hamilton passed away. Mom and Dad are driving up to go to the funeral. Dad and Oliver were very good friends back in the day.

Congrats to David Hunt on his marriage. His grandma, grandpa, mom, and dad went to church in Vinita when I was a kid. They are great people. I got to watch David and Belinda grow up into fine adults. Good luck David.

nc

Sims 3.

I haven't got my allowance yet to buy The Sims 3. Good thing too. Apparently it's pretty buggy and just not a very good game. Guess I'll save that $50.

Here's a bit of trivia for you:

Grace Hopper was working on the earliest type of computer at Harvard when something went wrong causing the computer to malfunction. There was a moth stuck in a relay causing the issue. She remarked that they were debugging the system. That nomenclature has stuck. Read more about her here.

Anywho.... It's time for my next allowance and I'm not sure what to buy next. This is quite a conundrum as it's burning a hole in my virtual pocket. I say virtual because it's still in the bank. Maybe time for another poll? I'll try to come up with suggestions today. If you have any feel free to leave them in the comments.

nc

I hate printers.

that is all.

nc

Sunday

Sunday was a nice day. Went to church and Albert preached about Jonah. I feel sorry for Jonah and so was slightly depressed. I'm odd. After that we went to the in-laws. Paul appears to be doing quite a bit better. He gets his staples out on Thursday. It looked to us that he is doing better now than before the surgery. Of course, he is on medication so that may be the medication talking. My MIL, Jane, finally showed up. She works all the time and wouldn't have it any other way. I think she does this to avoid me since I'm her least favorite SIL. I am, of course, terribly hurt by this but have accepted this as my lot in life.

Went back to church where Patrick and Nellie weren't so good. After church we stayed around a bit and Albert and Della invited us over for cookies and ice cream. I was supremely nervous and when I get nervous I chatter like a 14 year old girl. So sorry for that guys! I really enjoyed talking to Gene Turner (Della's dad). He is from Southwest Missouri (around Granby) and knew my family quite well. He is the only non-family member that I've met that knew both of my grandpa's. This is quite a trick as my Dad's father died in 1951 (I think. Dad was 11). Mom's father wasn't in the church. He was sorta opposite. I say sorta because he was more attached to the church than he let on. He talked a big game but didn't mean half of what he said. He passed this gene down to his grandson.

We found out this weekend that Stubby has a girlfriend. She is way out of his league though as she is a German Shepard while Stubby is a miniature rat terrier who is also about 10-11 years old. Apparently the dog is Steve and Lavonna Schaper's dog and their son (Joel? I'm not sure. The one who is still at home) was telling us about it. This explains his erratic behavior that is getting on my nerves.

The weekend was ruined however by Monday showing up. Back to the grind.

nc

nice day.

Today has been a great day. Miranda has been working with the children's room. We went and ate at McDonald's for lunch and then afterwards we went to the park. Just missed Connie Wade. She was climbing in their vehicle and didn't see us. We rode on the carousel and the train. After the park, it was Tropical Sno time. Now we are back home for the evening. Nellie missed her nap and it's too late now so tonight will be interesting.

nc

I agree with this.

This guy says that we should change our national anthem. The high notes are just impossible to reach for 90% of the people and I am one of those people. I think it should be "My Country, 'Tis of Thee". Because it's interchangeable with "God Save The Queen" that is the national anthem of the U.K.

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Weekend!

The weekend is here! Last night was a good night. We stayed around here. Blockbuster Video had a sale on pre-viewed DVD's. We went up there and bought the children some movies. I found History of The World Part I and The Great Gatsby (I love the book but movies typically don't do justice to the books). We rented The Producers as I was in the mood to watch it again and that's a movie that Miranda and I can both watch.

After Blockbuster, we went to Tropical Sno and then to Sonic. At Sonic, I think I saw an Alberta, Canada license tag. I was probably just seeing things though.

Today is going to be another quiet day. We are going to try to take Patrick and Nellie to the park. Maybe I'll get another Tropical Sno!

On Sunday, we are going over to see Paul again. He shot down the idea of the video camera. If Jane would ever post again on her blog, she could do the real updates. Her last post was September 28, 2008. Boo!!!

Miranda is ready for another date night. Wichita this time to see Aaron and Lindsay. She wants Italian food (more Boos!). She is going to pick out the restaurant this time since she wants Italian food. My only request was that it not be something that we had in Joplin. She threatened Olive Garden and Fazolis. I think we will probably do Old Chicago. They have around 110 beers and I'm sure I'll drink all of them while trying to kill the taste of the Italian food (more Booze! get it? boos - booze? Let's try to keep up here.). I looked at Google and while there are a lot of Italian restaurants, there doesn't seem to be any great ones. Maybe Aaron and Lindsay have the inside scoop.

Miranda has been depressed lately. Patrick would rather go to school and play with his friends than stay home. He is growing up so fast.

Oh dear! Miranda has just said to me, "I'm in the mood to go to Canton". Are we off to Canton on July 3rd and back home on the 5th or 6th? Long drive, hot, 4th of July weekend. I bet we do it anyway. Would be a lot of fun.

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fun.

I'm working on and off on a major project at work. We are working on purchased software and unfortunately it was developed in Spain and all the fields in the files are in Spanish. Numero (Number), Referencia (Reference), Cantidad (Cantina is bar, Cantidad must mean programmers bar or something). This ought to go well.

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Good idea.

I've got a great idea! I'm trying to keep everyone updated on Paul right? Here's what we need to do. He can't leave the house and barely leaves his chair. We hook up a video camera at his house pointed directly at the chair. Then we broadcast it live 24/7 over Justin.tv. Then when you want to check on him, just go watch him for awhile. Maybe we could incorporate some medical instruments too.

I'm sure he'd have no problems with that.

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Paul

Stopped by and saw Paul today.  He said he's feeling better but you can tell that he's still in a lot of pain.  Luckily I got there just after Jane and Terry had finished mowing!  Whew!  Close call.  Jane was giving me grief and asking if I was visiting out of respect.  

I didn't stay long as I was ready to get home.  It was nice to see them though and I'm sure we will see them sometime this weekend.

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Finally made it home.

Back home from Monett.  Since I was at work, my boss decided to go ahead and give me my semi-annual review.    Apparently I'm doing great or fine or something.  I was daydreaming about being a rock star so it pretty much passed me by.  Computer programming is like stepping in cow manure...  once it gets on you, you can't get it off.  Endless frustration.  I once saw an ex-Pentecostal preacher (who was a programmer), flip the bird to his computer.  Pretty silly though as it didn't help.  He should have tried my method.  3 chickens, a Tibetian monk, and a motorcycle named Hubert.  After 11 years of programming, I would say that I no longer have a job and it has moved into a career.  You know how it will end up though don't you...

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Off for Monett.

No blogging today as they have it blocked at work.

See you tonight.

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Paul update.

I called Miranda and Paul is at home.  It's boys night out (Patrick and I) around here since Miranda and Nellie are gone.  So it's wine, women, and song.  Also known as Mt Dew, Tom and Jerry movie, and sitting at home.  

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Paul update

Apparently Paul is going home today. Miranda called and she is taking him home later today.

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funny but depressing

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this would be fun.

A lot of ice cubes, a few "people" miniatures, and this. What I would have given for that when I was 10 years old! Although at 72" length, it would take quite a few ice cubes. I would have tried though!

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funny stuff.

Patrick decided last night to show us a magic trick. He would take a small blanket and put it over a cowboy hat. He'd pull up the blanket and say "TADA!". Of course, we were laughing at him so that means that Nellie has to join in. A brief scuffle over the hat means that we have to bring out another hat. So I get the blue sombrero. The blanket didn't even cover the cowboy hat and so it barely covered the "head part" of the sombrero and the brim was sticking out. This didn't bother Nellie in the least. She'd put the blanket over the sombrero, pull it off and say "TADA!" also. With children, once they find something good, they have to do it over and over. So I decided to add a variety to their show after 10 minutes of the "hat showing trick". I know 2 magic tricks. I'm awful at both of them. They didn't care in the least. After showing them the tricks, they tried them over and over. They are better at them than me.

Miranda is off today to go see Paul and spend the day over there with him. The Youngs and the McCormicks are big believers in visiting family in the hospital. The Allens... not so much. We just drop by for 15 minutes or so. We do this out of respect and a sense of obligation and want to leave the whole time we are there. Miranda is changing me on this though and I do enjoy the visiting. Now I know you are saying "Bill likes to talk?? No way!". Tis true. I have been known to spin a yarn or two. I'm getting more like my Dad every day. Anywho... Miranda is taking Nellie but not sure about Patrick and he might be going to VBS. Apparently last time at the hospital, he saw the nurse put a needle in Pauls I.V. bag and almost passed out. I think he was having "war flashbacks" of his trip to the emergency room. Miranda doesn't want to deal with that by herself.

I will be dropping by to see Paul on my way home from Monett tomorrow. He may be home tomorrow but I don't think they are discharging him until Friday.

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Tonight.

Tonight we are just sitting around here at home! I'd better enjoy it because we will be running more this week. I'm off to Monett on the 11th (this Thursday) for a meeting. Plus we will probably go see Paul sometime this week. So I'll be burning up the roads between here and Joplin this week.

Paul is still in quite a bit of pain but he just went through major surgery. So it's not unexpected. Will update as things happen.

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Children.

Today Patrick went up to Miranda and was going to tell her a story. He couldn't remember the girls name at school though so he asked her: "What's Ashley's name?". They both just started laughing.

Nellie is not a morning person which is odd in this household. She slept in late this morning and enjoyed every minute of it.

They were both very excited about going to school/daycare. Patrick's class is going to a VBS (vacation bible school) somewhere (I think they said Tyro but I really have no clue). Miranda said they couldn't get into class fast enough.

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Last evening.

Mom and Dad brought up Stubby last night. They were going to John and Connie Wade's house. I was home alone and they invited me to tag along. So we all went over there and ordered Big Cheese Pizza. It was a lot of fun.

They discussed their next adventure, another cruise to Alaska. I didn't figure a cruise to Alaska would be that fun but that's pretty much all they talked about. They had a great time on their last cruise.

Just a few more Cherokee lessons and I am finished with the first set. I am going to take it again though as I have missed so many classes. Maybe I'll remember more on the second go around.

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Paul update

Paul came through surgery all right. Now it's just to see if it helps him. Apparently this helps 2/3 people so the odds (66%) are pretty good.

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Paul update

So I called Miranda about 1:00 PM and Paul was just going in to surgery then. They are expecting him out at 6:00 PM.

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Routine.

Back to the same ole routine. I only had 34 emails at work! So that was nice.

Today Miranda is going to Joplin for Paul's back surgery and taking the chillren (I'm getting in practice for going to Lafayette). They will enjoy seeing Grandpa and Grandma again. We need to get with Mom and Dad to get Stubby back.

Independence Community College is having a French I class. I'm trying to decide if I actually want to go through with this. It should be a no-brainer but it's from 9:00AM - 9:50AM and it is every day (Monday - Friday). For almost 5 months (August - December)! That's a big time commitment for something with little or no return. I have until August to make my decision. I'm guessing I will wimp out.

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back home.

We made it back home from San Antonio.  Overall it was a lot of fun and the children did very well! 

The oddest thing about San Antonio was being a minority.  Since we are "lily white" it was odd seeing no one like you.  Joplin is 91.44% White according to wikipedia and San Antonio is 29.3% White.  They were all at Sea World.  

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Happy D-Day

June 6th 1944.

Many thanks to all Veterans.  I don't know many but I believe my Uncle Myron was in the Battle of the Bulge.    

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Hot!

At one point in San Antonio today, I looked at the temperature and it was 97.  I'm guessing it probably hit 3 digits at some point.  It's only June!  Really re-thinking my idea of moving to New Iberia, LA.  That's insane.

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Gainesville, TX

Spending our last night of vacation and have landed at Gainsville, Texas.  Finally a decent hotel with a nice WiFi!  Today was a blast.  We found the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch and went through it.  Patrick loved feeding the animals that would come up to the car.  On the down side, our car was scratched by the biggest, baddest cow with the biggest,baddest horns ever.  It was the size of a minivan (literally).

Here's a closer view:

Patrick did great with all the animals and  even saw a buffalo close up.  He freaked when the ostrich was going to put its head inside the car though.  And then the zebra attempted to put his head in.  That was pretty much all for Patrick but he fed probably 10-15 different "deer type" animals.

After that it was off to New Braunfels where we found to New Braunfels Smokehouse.

This is the home place of a catalog that dad gets.  So we had to stop by and pick him up some stuff.  After that it was off to Oma's Haus for German food.

Great food and great ambience.  I had the knockwurst with sauerkraut and German fried potatoes.  Miranda had a speciality called the Ultimate.  It was great food!  

Last night on the road.  Tomorrow we finish the trip to Independence.

I forgot to add last night that we did have Mexican food.  Actually I should say "Mexican" food as it was Tex-Mex.  To me all Tex-Mex tastes the same but it's good.  They had a mariachi band which was neat to see.  Nellie enjoyed that.

So this will be my last "vacation" post until October!  

For all interested people, my father-in-law Paul is having surgery on his back next week.  Be sure and remember him.

See you tomorrow night in Independence!

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Hot!

It's hot today down here!  We are back from our tour.  Overall it was a lot of fun.  The people were friendly and nice but it was a lot of walking.  First the Japanese tea garden which was pretty but a bit of walking.  Next the mall and the riverfront boat tour.  The mall was a typical mall but the riverfront boat tour was nice.  Watched an IMAX movie about the Alamo and then lunch.  Alamo (big thumbs down).  It was dull and basically nothing there.  A real tourist trap.  Next was 2 other missions.  The first one was Mission San Jose or something like that and was really neat.  It was 100% more enjoyable than the Alamo.  The next mission (Mission Conception) was nice but would only do it as part of a tour.  No point in driving all that way to see basically 4 rooms or so.  Last was the Market Square and a big tbbbbtttt (that's the equivalent of a big raspberry) to the Market Square.  It was a waste of time except for this:

You got it.  A new hat (sombrero) for Patrick and I.

Another funny thing.  You know how everything is bigger in Texas?  That works for everything except rivers.  Here's the river that goes through San Antonio (further upstream):

That is not a joke and is what the tour guide told us.  Not exactly the "Mighty Mississippi".

Tomorrow we are sorta headed home.  Going to New Braunfels for some German food.  Maybe have Mexican food tonight.

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Getting around in San Antonio.

Here's my suggestion for traveling.  Forget the TomTom and get a MirandaMiranda.  She has a sixth sense for getting to places.  I think she's using the "force" although if she turns green and 2 feet tall, we will have to reexamine our relationship.  TomTom has been marginally helpful.

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Wow!

The Jerusalem Grill was the best food that we've had down here.  It was pretty native and here's a shot of when we were walking in.

If you eat there, don't think that because its named Jerusalem Grill that its Jewish.  The writing on the window is Arabic.  I told our waiter that we had never had Middle Eastern food before.  He suggested the meal for 2.  5 appetizers with Pita bread and a kebab.  I had the green tea with mint and it was very good.

Here's a picture of the "appetizers".  Hommos, Baba Ghannoug, Tabouleh, Grape Leaves, and Jerusalem Salad.  All of them was used on Pita bread.

Here's the lamb and chicken kebab.

They were incredibly friendly (which I was very worried about) and helpful.  It was a lot of food and probably one of the healthier meals that I have had.  It was very good too.  Miranda even enjoyed it which was unexpected.  Patrick and Nellie wouldn't touch it.  Well Nellie accidently did and made Miranda wipe the rest of the of it off her finger.

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Sea World

So we went to Sea World today. Started out the day by eating breakfast at Denny's. We got off to a bad start at Sea World. Patrick had a minor freakout at the Clydesdale stable (I'm still not sure why they have Clydesdales at Sea World but they do). Next we went to see the dolphins and the shark tank with more crying. But after that he kinda decided that it was fun. We went to see the killer whales and ate lunch with Shamu. He was fine with standing 3 feet from the killer whale. Nellie and him had a ball climbing the rope bridges on the playground. We spent more time there than anywhere. There was also a neat acrobatic show with divers and dolphins and stuff. Overall it was a very fun day.

Tonight I'm not sure what is going on. Maybe Jerusalem Grill but we will see. After Bill Miller's BBQ we may be a little gun shy.

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WiFi

WiFi here at Red Roof Inn is a T-Mobile Hotspot and costs $8 for a one day pass. Yikes! But the blog has to be updated because I'm addicted! Sorta like cocaine without the constant nose scratching. However I like picking my nose anyway so its exactly like cocaine.

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Bill Miller's BBQ.

If you are in San Antonio and are wanting some good BBQ, I would suggest you turn around and drive to Pryor, Oklahoma and eat at JL's BBQ. That is all.

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San Antonio

Long drive but we are finally at Red Roof Inn at San Antonio. We saw a few sights but overall it was uneventful. We did see a restaurant advertising the El Farto Grande Burrito but I think we'll avoid that. Tonight is going to be Bill Miller B-B-Q. On the way down we did see a lot of Czech restaurants but I don't know if we'll make them. There is a Jerusalem Grill that I think we will eventually try but we haven't had much to eat today so we are hungry!

Tomorrow is Sea World and Patrick and Nellie bugged us all the way down about going to see the dolphins, sharks, and whales.

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Ardmore

It's 9:00 P.M. and we are sitting in La Quinta at Ardmore, OK. About 30 miles from the Texas border. Very nice hotel with real breakfasts! Eggs, Belgian Waffles, etc.

TomTom is pretty good but not quite there. It took us down the right road to get to the hotel but was going to take us over 5 miles away past the entrance.  Pretty frustrating and making me wonder how it will do in San Antonio.  It was great in Tulsa though.  Took me right through Tulsa through all the confusing twists and turns.

Patrick walked into our room and saw the bed and said "it's just the right size".  He is happy so we are happy.  Unfortunately it is two full size beds so Miranda and I will be crowded.

Tomorrow will be a long day but it will be fun.  Off to San Antonio.

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And we are off!

Be back on Monday!

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Hmmm...

Maybe moving to New Iberia, LA isn't the best idea. New Orleans and Baton Rouge are both on the list.

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funny

Feel free to skip these (obviously as I can't control your computer. well I could but you'd have to install the software first). I thought I'd give you something to do while I'm gone.

First some details. This show is called 'Allo 'Allo and is a series of comedy TV shows about the French Resistance in World War II. Rene Artois is a cafe owner and the French Resistance has setup shop in his cafe (much to his dismay because he is a coward).

In this next clip, the Germans are planning a party in the Chateau (a house they have occupied). The French Resistance are going to kill the General (yeah I know they weren't "Generals" but apparently the writers didn't want to bother) by planting a bomb in the Gateau (French for cake). The Germans are planning to kill him also (long and funny story but unnecessary to go into). But the General finds out that the Resistance are going to kill him and at the last moment he decides to move the party to Cafe Rene. Unfortunately (for Cafe Rene) the cake is brought with them.

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Back on track

Our financial planner called and our 401k is growing again! She calls about every 3-4 months to try to keep me from jumping! She is a really nice person and has been a great help. When I quit my previous job, I had to do something with my 401k and roll it into something. As with most things in life, I prefer to leave it to the professionals. Since I have 30+ years to work, I decided on aggression so there are more ups and downs for me. Miranda is playing it safer. You all probably figured that out by now.

Maybe someday I will get to retire! Or at least quit working for a company and start full time for Miranda.

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vacation.

Vacation time is almost here. We leave tonight. I'm guessing we make it a bit past McAlester, OK before stopping.

One place we are going that I haven't mentioned yet, is New Braunfels, TX. It's one of the larger German settlements in Texas and I'm hoping to get some German food there. I've had German food a few times but one of the better places was the Bavarian Inn in Eureka Springs.

We are taking no "casual dress" clothes and two children so we won't be eating at any interesting places in San Antonio. I did find a Persian restaurant and I've never had Persian food but we won't be trying it. I'm sure we will find something interesting. We made a pact that we won't eat places that we have around here. That pact will probably be broken for McDonalds or something but we are going to try.

Assuming the hotel has WiFi, I will try to keep my blog updated but it may be a few days. But much like General MacArthur, "I will return". Well that's not much like MacArthur, but that's all I got.

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Stubby.

Mom and Dad came up and picked up Stubby. It was nice seeing them again. Dad is "off the grid again". His Internet is some kind of satellite Internet and he has all kinds of issues with it. Hopefully they get it worked out soon.

Here is a picture of myself and Davetta a few years ago. Davetta is Grandma Jeanne's other grandchild. She is David Stailey's daughter (the one living in West Virginia).

We found these pictures in Grandma's house (this one and the earlier one). There were quite a few other pictures that I may or may not get around to posting. I'd like to scan them all in and if I get them scanned, I will post them.

Off to Cherokee class.

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Patrick.

So Patrick was refusing to walk. He said that his knee hurt too bad. He has a pretty big scrape but definitely nothing deserving that kind of reaction. He was scooting around on his behind. So Miranda told him that if he doesn't start walking then we're going to take him to the doctor. Now he's running through the house. He is a silly boy.

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Winnie the Pooh

Miranda took Patrick and Nellie to Walgreens. She was buying them some coloring books for the trip to San Antonio. She told Patrick, "Look! Here's Winnie the Pooh". Patrick said, "Mom! I'm a boy!". So apparently Winnie the Pooh is uncool for boys.

He also fell and skinned his knees. The end of the world is nigh! He is acting worse than with his accident that ended him up in the emergency room. He gets that from his dad.

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Twitter in Real Life.

http://techblips.dailyradar.com/video/real_life_twitter_collegehumor_video_1/

Also applicable to facebook.

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Crystal Ball.

My crystal ball is failing me. Here's the issue with our housing situation. We have two options.

1. Buy now
2. Buy later

Easy enough right? Buy later when the economy has rebounded?

Here's the problems. First if we look at option #2. Current interest rate on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage is 5.23%. Total interest paid on a $200,000 loan is $196,695.23. Depressing really. But what happens when it goes up to 7%? $279,017.80 (or a difference of over $80,000). In the 70's, interest rates were really high (prime rate got up to 21% or so). So let's assume it goes up to 12%. That's $540,601.07 paid in just interest (and doesn't even take into account the larger payment). So by the calculations, it would make more sense to buy now.

Unfortunately there are issues with option #1 also. Our house is still "ours" and we are still liable for the payment. If the new buyers can't get the loan after the year is up, then we still have a house in Diamond. Not a big problem at this point but if I would lose my job (since I'm in manufacturing it's a big possibility) then it's "Hi ho. Hi ho. Off to bankruptcy court we go". Actually it wouldn't be quite that bad. We'd have to move and then we'd have to sell 2 homes plus rent a home at the new town where we moved. Which is pretty bad by itself.

Anywho... My crystal ball is broke and I can't tell about the future. I'm not sure what to do but I think it would be wiser to put off the house until our house is completely off our hands. Just to play it safe. Unfortunately life doesn't come with an instruction booklet.

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funny.

We were a wild and unruly bunch during the 80's.

If you don't see any new blog posts in a few days, it's because one of them in the picture above has killed me.

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In for a couple of days.

We are in for a couple of days but then out for the rest of the week. Headed out tomorrow night for San Antonio. Mom and Dad are coming up today to pick up Stubby.

The weekend was nice. Saturday was spent hanging out at home. Sunday was church, home, and back to church. Jerry and Donna Frazier invited us over to their house for cake and ice cream. Very nice of them. We had a great time and stayed too long. The children had a ball playing together. They have got such a beautiful home (inside and outside).

I received my PC Gamer the other day and saw where The Sims 3 is coming out tomorrow. I may have to get that one. Those games are always fun. Another fun game is the Grand Theft Auto series. I like open ended games where they don't make you follow the story (unless you want to).

It sure is nice to have Miranda home! Breakfast every day. I'm talking about a real breakfast too. Not an English muffin! Or Swiss Cake Roll!

We are looking forward to going to San Antonio. Reminds me of the old days, driving to Canton. Mom would have tons of snacks and pop. I'd have books to read. We'd head out and have a blast. Unfortunately I'm the driver now. TomTom is the navigator. Miranda is the "play button" pusher on the DVD player.

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