New Years Celebration

Move over Times Square. We here in North Carolina have our New Years celebration and it just may empty your streets as they rush to Mt. Olive. It is the Mt. Olive Pickle Drop! For the eighth time, The Mt. Olive Pickle Company will drop a pickle into a redwood tank. The tank is located at the corner of Cucumber and Vine in Mt. Olive.

And, being more rational then New Yorkers, the drop will occur at 7 p.m. North Carolina time, December 31st. That happens to be midnight Greenwich Mean Time (also known as Universal Time Coordinated or Zulu Time). After all, isn’t that the official start of the New Year – New York is NOT the center of the Earth despite what they think. sniff

Workbenches

This past year has been largely devoted to working on the boat and other necessary tasks or trips. When we moved into our house in 2005 I had developed an immediate list to to-dos. A few were completed such as new shower doors in the master bath, but most are in a holding pattern.

Completing the varnish work on the boat finished most of the major time consuming tasks so now to the house. Last week I finished one of the priorities, workbenches for Hazel and I. I get to use my workbench to do other home projects; Hazel uses her for stained glass. She has been making stained glass lamps, windows, and etc. for years and looks forward to more.

There are two problems. One of the projects she worked on were stained glass windows for an upstairs bedroom in our California room. Modeled after Tiffany’s “View of Oyster Bay” panel.

Hazel was constructing two panels, each about 33”x 44”. Having completed one and cut all the glass for the second, she decided to bring the panels to North Carolina in the hope we could use them. So far, no luck.

The other problem is that she liked the finish on the worktable so much she doesn’t want to mar it by working on it. That I can fix as soon as I find my hammer.

Christmas 2006

On Christmas we drove to Penick Village in Southern Pines to spend the day with Lil. I think we all had a good time (despite what one of the pictures suggest :-). The dinner menu included roast duck and prime rib - in very generous proportions and very well prepared.

Hazel had had surgery on the 14th of December. It was related to our three sons using her womb as a trampoline, practice soccer field, etc. As you can see, her recuperation has gone well.

Although many residents had probably gone home, the dining room was quite full and it struck me that we seemed to be the only family that had shown in large numbers. Penick Village permitted us to use a meeting room so we could have our private gathering.

Hazel and I were there with Jason who was spending Christmas with us. Kay and Meta, Hazel's sisters and their families were also there. The only people unable to attend were our other two sons, Travis and Josh and their families. They are living in California so that makes for a rather long drive.
















Jason, while visiting us made a drastic mistake. He agreed to let us give him a haircut. I've got Hazel trimming my hair so it seemed like an easy proposition to cut Jason's hair. He told us the setting he used for the trimmer and we dived in. Unfortunately, the setting seemed to be different on our trimmer. Since we started on the back he couldn't see what was happening until it was too late. Actually the battery ran low on the trimmer after the first few swipes so he had to walk around for a couple hours with a peculiar cut - long in front and very short in back - until the trimmer recharged. Anyway, the end result was a haricut that should last him a long time...maybe six months even. I wonder if that is why he isn't smiling in his pictures.














Please forgive the mix of font captions, I am experimenting with Blogger and Photoshop to obtain more freedom in my posts.













Meta, Bill, and Margaret




Will and Taylor




Jason and Chris can barely contain their excitement.













Bill, Will, Chris, and Taylor
















Ferdinand

Dangerous Hospital ER

The local radio stations are not wealthy and are prone to technical glitches and sometimes less then professional programing. Thus, while listening to the local traffic report this morning I was not alarmed. The commentator told of an accident earlier today which was not immediately reported to the police because "his injuries were not significant until he got to the hospital ER."

That's a proactive ER!

Person of the Year

Since I've been named person of the year, do I get a small memento? For example, a million dollars or at least a small plaque? Do I have to buy the magazine first?

No! No Vietnam

I have always felt ashamed by the way our country (and myself) treated our soldiers during Vietnam. The ugly protests, desecration, and disrespect for those in uniform. I opposed the war, I also opposed the shabby treatment - but I was silent, for that I am ashamed.

I will not be silent again and as opportunity presents will strongly oppose a return to that type of behavior. I would encourage a very large, peaceful, orderly turnout of the many Americans that respect and support our troops. Who understand their sacrifice, the need for a military, and are proud of its high professionalism. Through our presence let others know that many have "backbone."

I respect others opposition to the war and feel torn about it myself, but I WILL NOT TOLERATE a return to Vietnam era protests when service people were ill-treated. I am also disappointed with the Chapel Hill-Carboro Chamber of Commerce . I have emailed them about my disappointment and encourage you to do the same. The business community must step forward too.

Kids Going Shopping Too?

Suggestion for parents. If you have a camera phone or a small digital camera, take a picture of your child before you take them to the mall. Should you become separated, you will have a visual record of what they are wearing and can show it to store employees and security.

Surprise Movie

Hazel and I watched the "Worlds Fastest Indian" last night. Had it sitting around for awhile as I was feeling dubious about watching it. Finally relented and was pleasantly surprised that we enjoyed it. It stars Anthony Quinn and is about a New Zealander that set world records on his modified Indian motorcycle. As it dealt with someone our age, it is nice to see that we may yet set some world records.

San Francisco Painting

We own a painting by Anthony
Holdsworth which depicts a
downtown San Francisco view
of Market Street. On our trip
there in September I thought it
would be neat to make a photo
of the same scene and match
it as closely as I could to the painting.












The problem is that I had forgotten to bring a snapshot of the painting so had to work from memory as to camera position and, of course, the time of day and lighting would be different. Luckily, the fog broke a little so I was able to get some blue sky. Never the less the closest photo (I shot several) came out substantially different in color balance, has a light post and crane not present in the painting, and varies in perspective. Okay, time for Photoshop to come to the rescue. I thought this would be a great chance to see what I could accomplish through photo manipulation.


I altered the tint, lightened the shadows, shifted the perspective, and removed the lamp posts and the crane. I had to add a building toward the end of the street angling off to the right (not very visible on this blog). That was rather hard since I didn't really know what to use but it came out okay and I developed more skill with Photoshop. Overall, I think it would be easier to simply return to the city and take another photograph, this time with a snapshot of the painting for reference.

Mayfaire Cinema

Wilmington has a new movie theater complex, Mayfaire Cinema. Today I decided to see whats playing so went to Movietickets. com. Even though I thought I knew where the complex was located, I clicked on the map button. Now I have to say this must the first complex totally oriented to the boating public.

I wonder how the employees get to work?

Helsinki Complaints Choir

I'd send this to my email addressees if I did that sort of thing. And, while I was at it, Manchester bollards too.

Blogger Trouble

Was trying to post a new blog with some images and repeatedly get "We're sorry, but we were unable to complete your request." Upon researching the problem I suspect it was a spammer attack on Blogger. Noted on the Blogger Forum that many others are having a similar or identical problem. Also possible that it is a software bug in Blogger Beta. Anyway, this may slow my posts.

Surely nothing I'm doing, I never make mistakes.

Parental Advice - Chapter 123

I strongly recommend that you have a sit down dinner at least once a week (daily is better) at the dinner table - not in front of the TV, with your children. Travis and Aki, this means you need to have a sit-down dinner with Jax.

MPAA Home Theaters

The MPAA also seems to be a nice target for satire.
MPAA Home Theaters

Drambuie Update - Again Again

Drambuie has finally got a new Honey Teak coat. It is done! A major job that took more then two months but it turned out pretty good. Now reassembling all the hardware. Spent today working on the winch - actually two winches; removing the old grease, regreasing and reassembly. Messy job. All that remains is replacing the ground tackle system - bow rollers, anchors, etc.

Next we will take her to Wilmington to be hauled and her bottom repainted. Wilmington is about 25 miles and a fairly easy trip except for docking at the boatyard. If the current is running that may a little dicey so will try to time it for slack tide.

Walter Leon Hester

1947-2006

The Final Flight

Don’t grieve for me, for now I’m free,
I’m following the path God laid for me.
I took His hand when I heard His call,
I turned my back and left it all.

I could not stay another day,
To laugh, to love, to work, to play.
Tasks left undone must stay that way,
I’ve found that peace at the end of the day.

If my parting has left a void,
Then fill it with remembered joy.
A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss,
Ah yes, these things I too will miss

Be not burdened with times of sorrow,
I wish you the sunshine of tomorrow,
My life’s been full, I savored much,
Good friends, good times, a loved one’s touch.

Perhaps my time seemed all too brief,
Don’t lengthen it now with undue grief.
Lift up your heart and share with me,
God wanted me now, He set me free.


May God's arms hold you Walter, our good friend and our neighbor.
We miss you.

Human Traits

Today I heard NPR interview author Chip Walter as he discussed his new book "Thumbs, Toes and Tears." As NPR says; "author Chip Walter explores the physical and behavioral traits that are unique to humans."

I heard a portion of the interview and learned a couple of interesting facts. First, I have opposing thumbs. This surprised me because I always thought they got along.

The other thing I learned is that we have a 100 muscles in our neck which enable us to vocally communicate in a unique way. I don't doubt this but upon reflection conclude that I have met some people that must have more neck muscle then that. Maybe 200 or even 300.

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Even NASA gets a little misdirected at times. Even so they have some cool pictures on their Astronomy Picture of the Day .

Alien Lawsuit

Bless the Internet. You can get the truth there even when the TV media fails to provide it on the evening news. For example, I learned that Judge Judy may soon be hearing a golf related lawsuit. An alien claims he/she/it was hit by a golf ball. The ball is stamped "Element 21" and was presumably hit by a Russian Cosmonaut. Already there is debate whether it is within Judge Judy's venue since a Russian hit a Canadian golf ball from an International Space Station which hit a visitor from the cosmos. Stay tuned, this sounds like a big one.

Doggy Tales

Every pet lover has to regale (bore) others with stories about their unique and precious animals. It’s my turn to tell you about our dogs, Koko and Brue.

This morning, as I was taking a shower, Koko came into the bathroom as she usually does and lay on the bath mat with her back toward the shower. After I finished she quietly got up and left the room. She is an equal opportunity dog and does the same for Hazel. We are mystified why she does this and has done it for several years; perhaps she is guarding us from some fanciful rapist (you know, I was naked and…).

Those who know Koko from her salad days will remember that at the slightest opportunity for escape she would race out the door with us in pursuit. Age has mellowed her. Today, when we returned from the grocery with a loaded car trunk, we propped the storm and entry doors open to facilitate unloading the car. Koko politely remained in the house and even gave us room to tramp back and forth from car to kitchen. My how age changes us.

Now, whereas Koko likes to make frequent forays into the backyard (always on a tether) to reconnoiter for cats, our other dog, Brue, prefers a more somnolent lifestyle. Her idea of a cat hunt is to sit inside the house looking out for stray cats.
She will also whimper at the door when Koko wants back into the house.

Brue is intensely loyal (maybe protective too but I can’t attest to that). Brue was given to us because she needed more companionship then was available from her owner. The owner was working and away for many hours. We soon learned that Brue had the same problem with us; she was lonely and showed it by eating our wastebaskets.

Fearing we would have nothing to put our trash in we correctly concluded that Brue needed a full-time companion. A search of the dog pounds resulted in Koko joining the family. Brue craves attention, companionship, and food from us. Koko is more independent and in the evening will often go into my office to sleep alone. She tells us she hates our TV choices.

Are you bored yet?

Anniversary Advice

Advice to our married children. On each and every anniversary take a picture of yourselves. It would be interesting indeed to look at your photos after 30 or 40 years of marriage. Hazel and I regretted not doing that but decided to start this year. This is our 39th wedding anniversary picture.

Grandchildren Part 2

Maya and Tyler

OJ Simpson TV Special?

It sucks!

Drambuie Update - Again

Fall is without question the best weather of the year regardless of where I've lived. Today was glorious, as was yesterday, with temperatures in the mid-70's and a light breeze. Which has been a good thing because Hazel and I are still laboring on Drambuie trying to complete the revarnish before the weather gets colder.

We are getting to the final stages and hope to finish within the next week or so. I figure we have put in over 160 hours thus far and another 10-15 hours to finish. People that do this for a living charge around $5000 to $6000 (I had originally figured $8000 but other IP owners have given me better rate info) and it is nearly all labor. Considered doing it for others. Nawwwwwww!

Once finished with the varnish I can resume more pedestrian type work on the boat such as climbing the mast. The views are good. These shots were taken about a year ago. A lot of open slips in the photo but the marina has filled considerably. More snowbirds are also stopping here, most are on their way to the Bahamas, Virgin Islands, or the Florida Keys. Be nice to join them.

Sportscasters

What is this world coming to? Heard a football sportscaster comment on a players run, saying he ran up the field with alacrity. Whoa, is this some secret plan to dumb up America?

Tears

Its election day. Its raining. I wonder if the Lord is crying for joy or sadness.

Nicholas Sparks

I had to go to Sam's Club Saturday and found the parking lot crowded and people flowing into the store. The reason? Nicholas Sparks was signing copies of his new book Dear John. There was a long line waiting for him to autograph their copies, many had arm fulls. If there hadn't been a line I might have been tempted to get an autographed copy since I like his writing (and he is a neighbor North Carolinian).

I spoke with a woman standing in the check out line. She was holding one of his books and I learned she had waited for an hour for his autograph (sorry Nick, too long for me, maybe I'll drop by your house). Another customer asked her the name of the book and the woman told her "Dear John by Nicholas Sparks, but I hear it isn't one of his best". I don't think the customer had ever heard of Nicholas Sparks. And gosh, an hour for less then best.

I was curious about what he looked like and followed the line around where I could view him getting writers cramp. He is a nice looking fellow, perhaps in mid-late thirties (he is actually 41). I felt a twinge of envy. Always thought being an famous author was a nice career. Good money, celebrity, and people buy you dinner. Maybe I can still write....

"It was a dank and stumpy night..."

Weather Report

It has turned colder, we've had a few evenings when the temp was in the mid-low 30's. Yesterday was a beautiful sunny crisp fall day. I was wearing a tee shirt while working in the yard but when not working a long-sleeve tee on top was more comfortable. Due to the many hot and humid days here this weather is great.

I actually look forward to "some" winter when working conditions are cool. When I was young, though, I was always depressed by fall. Fall was the precursor of long cold northeast winters that seemed endless. Having written this, I now hope this winter won't last too long.

No Problem

I've got a pet peeve. What ever happened to "you're welcome" when responding to a thank you. "You're welcome" came about around 1900 and is tried and true with no confusion to our illegal aliens regarding meaning.

Oh no, now its "no problem" which surprises me because I didn't realize I was a problem. I then feel very sorry that I might have been a problem. Perhaps I should stop saying "thank you" so I won't be a problem to be dismissed as "no problem."

Drambuie Update

After 6 weeks work the varnish is finally stripped, teak sanded and its ready to coat. Hazel and I applied the first coat yesterday but felt it was a little too warm and caused slight bubbling. Planned to start early today but the sun beat us to it so further work has been postponed for a few days. Earlier indications are that it will turn out good. I look forward to posting a picture of Drambuie with her new coat. And, Hazel and I plan to go out to dinner to celebrate.

Exxon Money

Talking about BP reminded me of the ABC newscast last week. I was very irritated by the newscast, not at Exxon (although they may deserve some of my irritant) but at ABC. The show trumpeted the huge profit Exxon had made and played with the numbers such as "this is $$$$ per second...," "more in 30 seconds than many families earn in a year" and "you paid for...at the pump,". In my mind this was flagrant yellow journalism. Designed to incite (entertain?) it was strongly biased reporting. Nowhere in the newscast was the net profit percentage given, or for that matter any other data which would enable analytic evaluation of the report. Its all relative and for me to get excited I need to know what the norms are.

Does this mean I endorse the high profits earned? Not necessarily but it does appear that Exxon does a good job managing their business and I always thought that was desireable.

Slug Update

Haven't seen slug for 4 or 5 days. Don't really miss him, in fact, glad he seems to be gone. His personality matched his name and as for his looks...ugh. But then, maybe I misjudge the poor thing. I don't think he has a cell phone so maybe he has gone to use someones phone to call his mommy and daddy like a good son.

Slumload BP

In 2005 sixteen people lost their lives in an explosion at a BP refinery. In a 60 Minutes interview, Carolyn Merritt, appointed by President Bush to be chairman of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, said BP management knew enough about the problems to have prevented the disaster.

"Absolutely," Merritt says when asked whether the blast was preventable. "The problems that existed at BP Texas City were neither momentary nor superficial. They ran deep through that operation of a risk denial and a risk blindness that was not being addressed anywhere in the organization."

BP is the 3rd largest petroleum producer and got that way by acquiring old companies and then cost cutting. Seems like a pattern here. BP is the owner of the Alaskan pipeline that started gushing into the Arctic Ocean. There were charges (from employees) that they stopped using a chemical preventative that slowed or stopped corrosion of the pipe.

Seems to me that BP is the slumload of the petroleum industry. Better not trust the quality of their fuel if that is the case, think I'll shop elsewhere.

Retirment Note

Retirement is tough! I've discovered that since I'm not working I no longer really have weekends or, put another way, everyday is a weekend. That being the case, and being a type A list maker, everyday is a workday to work on that damn list. No time off! Retirement is tough! I know many will feel sad for me.

Slug to the Rescue?

Worked on the boat again today. I was standing in the dinghy along side the boat while stripping varnish. Our friendly alligator (I've named him Slug) patiently floated nearby keeping an eye on me. What a sweetheart. Slug stood by in case I fell overboard and he could rush to my rescue.

Alligator Thoughts

Shortly after we moved to St. James we met our next door neighbor. She told us that the week before they (Fish and Wildlife) had removed a 6-1/2 ft alligator from the pond behind our house. Then, this year while in California, we were told they removed a 9 ft. alligator from the pond behind our other the neighbor's pond. Hmmm, are these alligators real? Yeah, I've seen small ones at nearby Orton Plantation but none here. Why only when we are gone?

Well that has changed. Our marina now has a resident gator and I've seen him/her. Only 4-1/2 ft it still qualifies. Not only have I seen it but it likes to watch me when sanding the teak on our boat. It lurks in the waterway and watches and I wonder; do I look like a tasty dinner? Not likely, too old and stringy. No, maybe it is in awe of my skilled work and wants to learn from me. I may be its mentor.

Today I was told that fishermen had seen 5 alligators in the channel entrance to the marina. Maybe my gator has told others about me and they are coming to see. Maybe I can sell tickets.

How Many are Me?

Thanks to SiliconValley.com I found this web site that tells how many people are in the US with the same name as I have.

HowManyOfMe.com

There is: 1 person with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Hate to burst their bubble but I know of another site that shows me that there are three or four of us running around in our skivies.

The Olde Days

I joined a camera club that meets in Wilmington. That requires a 50 minute drive to the meeting so not very convenient (yeah, I know in the California Bay Area I would do it without a second thought).

It was the nearest club I could locate on the internet. At the meeting I found out a club has recently been started near me. Wow! I'm interested so came home and checked the internet again - still no hits. How did we learn about these things in the Olde days?

Sometimes the internet takes away old skills such as how to start a fire by rubbing two sticks together - anyone ever succeed that way? They sure don't on Survivor.

I'm not a Purist

I enjoy working with Photoshop and have no compunctions about using it on my photos. Of course, I attempt to obtain my best shots in the camera but do not always succeed. While traveling I took a picture of a building across the street from where I stood. It was a narrow street and my perspective forced lens distortion. Not sure why I shot the building in the first place but it offered me an excellent chance to learn more about photoshop.

I love that program, its designers constantly improve its capabilities and not simply bloat the program to sell more software. The image on the left is before and the right image is after "adjustment" (sounds like a chiropractor).

Active Retirement

Retired

The definition for retired is "no longer active in your work or profession" but in reality it has a much greater connotation. I'm retired. And I dislike the term. Retirement infers someone that becomes inactive in life, not just work.

It brings to mind old men hanging out at the barbershop, or country store, or local pub. They are on the sidelines watching others and sometimes making comments to their companions about life observed.

That is not my retirement. I swim laps, work out with weights, sail, drum, bowl, bike (occassionally), enjoy photography and photoshop, read, etc, etc,...and blog. I wish there was a better term to describe this stage of my life. I'm not retired!

Drambuie's New Coat

Drambuie is getting a new coat. Over the past two years, every time I got on her, she would nag me.

She'd say "Just look at me! I know you couldn'’t strip me when we first met but good grief, we'’ve been together for two years. I don't think you are committed to our relationship."

I'd say, "Dram, you know I'm committed, think about all the time I'’ve spent playing with your engine. But yes, you are right, I promise to do something about your appearance as soon as..." She'’d interrupt me with "“there you go, 'as soon as" -– it'’s always one thing or another. It'’s too wet, or too hot, or you have something else to do that's MORE important than me!"

She won; I'm now giving her serious attention. I have her half stripped and struggle to get her totally naked. Even though she wants a new coat she seems to have tight hold of the old. She is probably just shy. However, once in a new coat (actually there will be five) I am sure we will both be happy and ready for more intimate times.

Thus far I've spent three weeks (or more) working on her and expect at least three more. I devote the morning and into the lunch hour each day (when not raining).

The process is tedious and time consuming. Typically the way it works is (1) strip the old varnish with a heat gun, (2) use two applications of chemical stripper to get residual varnish out of the grain, (3) sand with coarse sandpaper,
(4) sand again with a finer grit, (5) wet sand with a very fine grit - some do not go to this trouble but I like the high smooth gloss achieved, (6) apply three coats of base coat and (7) apply two or three coats of gloss urethane, (8) buff and admire. Then start remounting all the hardware that was removed. Hopefully by putting a coat or two on each year IÂ’ll never have to strip her again.

Learning about Blogger

I started a post back in September and just finished it. Blogger insists on placing it at the date when I first started my draft. So, look further down for September 28th.

Mt. Tam Hike

I like to work with Photoshop and this post includes a technique I learned in Photoshop magazine.

Cow Abductions

Busy as I am I simply had to take time to alert my faithful (and otherwise) readers to a new terrorism that is quietly striking fear in the cattle industry. PLease check out: Cow Abductions

Golden Gate Wedding, September 3, 2006

I guess if you blog you are expected to keep events somewhat chronological. Where there are more photos involved it takes longer to select photos, crop/prepare them, and then organize the blog. Since I'm retired and on a tight shcedule this didn't get done as quickly as planned. Oh well.

Yep, Travis was married, again. Not sure why it took two tries but can speculate. Perhaps Travis didn’t get “it” the first time. Or, maybe Aki wanted to be sure the marriage stuck (poor thing). Or maybe Aki wanted a formal ceremony since the first time satisfied the IRS and immigration, now this was for God and Family. Perhaps you have other ideas. Sure wasn't because Travis wanted to do the honorable thing - no grandchild in view.

The ceremony was held in the Shakespeare Garden in Golden Gate Park. Aki planned the wedding and reception, drawing on her past experience as a wedding planner. She did a magnificent job.

Hazel and I were excited and thoroughly enjoyed the rehersal dinner, wedding and reception. It was the first opportunity we had to meet Aki's family and, although we had a little trouble communicating, found them to be very warm and friendly. Aki's folks live in Japan and their command of English, although much better then our Japanese, was limited.



The rehersal dinner was at Travis and Aki's new home in San Francisco. Even though work was being done on part of the house which limited space (not part of the original program) the relaxed and close atmosphere did much to remove our unease at meeting new family and the difficulties of communicating.

Mr. and Mrs. Hara, Aki's parents, brought some delicious saki. I'll admit that I was reluctant to try it at first having experienced some saki that was not impressive. Theirs was great, arigato gozaimasu.

I hadn't realized that saki, like wine can have such a wide variety of flavors and quality.















There were a few tears but many more smiles and laughter.

...and more.

Doctrine of Inclusion

I never expected to admire an evangelical Pentecostal priest. Their views generally diverge widely from my own and also their method of delivery. I do, however respect and admire Bishop Carlton Pearson. Bishop Pearson had a very successful career going, his church members numbered thousands and the Sunday offerings averaged $60,000.

However, he had an epiphany while looking at the suffering shown on TV, for example, the starving and cruelly treated millions in Africa. He concluded that hell was here on earth – what we do to one another. Further, he concluded that all people are already “saved.” They do not have to accept Jesus as their savior to go to heaven. His “Doctrine of Inclusion.”

For as long as I can remember I have never been able to accept that the vast majority of humankind was doomed because they had not been “saved.” That does not jibe with the compassionate, forgiving God I have been taught about. In fact, I think this philosophy smacks of the type of fundamentalism that spawns Islamic extremists. No, it does not advocate active violence against others. But it does condemn through exclusion. If you do not accept our beliefs then to Hell with you! See the blog by the Velveteen Rabbi for his comments. He tells it better than me.

Bishop Pearson did not realize how his new doctrine would splinter his church and bring vehement rejection. He lost his flock; he lost his church (which was eventually foreclosed by the bank). He could have recanted and said he had “lost his way.” He did not and has not.

This was a man that was on the fast track. Oral Roberts, his mentor, had come to his church and publicly announced that Bishop Pearson was destined to be one of their greatest leaders. No more, Oral Roberts has disowned his disciple.

I admire the fortitude and integrity displayed by this man. I admire his compassion. I accept his doctrine.

Grandchildren Pictures

No self-respecting grandparent would only take on picture of their new grandchildren. So here are a few more.

This is mother Pam with Tyler.








And, Tyler's dad, Josh












Grandmother (Oma) Hazel with Tyler

Grumpy Old Men

Walter Mathau set the standard for me. I always enjoyed him in the movie “Grumpy Old Men." Maybe it provides a blueprint for my behavior when I am old. Grumpy appeals to me because it is honest. Not the stultifying glad handing politician that rarely lets you know what they are really thinking and. By extension, like. Grumpy old men just lay it out and, if you can understand that it isn’t really personal – they are naturally cranky - then maybe you can forgive them (me?).

For awhile I was thinking about calling this blog grumps pad.

Sailing Adventure

When it comes to sailing, men suffer a chronic inability to distinguish adventure from discomfort.

World War III

Heard on the radio regarding the latest mid-east unrest..."as to the question whether this is the begining of world war III, the answer is no. France hasn't surrendered yet."

Maya

Maya Pearl, born July 19, 2006. Maya is our adopted grand-daughter. 7 lbs 6 ozs. She is beautiful, intelligent and has a marvelous personality.

It was so nice of both families; Josh-Pam and Chris-Laura, to arrange for these births to coincide with our visit to California. I wonder about the discussions between them as they worked out the schedule. Thank you all for being so thoughtful.

Tyler

June 29, 2006. Our first grandson, Tyler, was born. As grandparents we get to enjoy without having to deal with that messy stuff.

Handsome isn't he? And smart too! Oh, and he is strong, already lifting his head and attempting to turn over. Wonder if Harvard has heard yet?

Its Hot!

Traveled to the bay area to see our new grandson Tyler and, of course, will write more about him. After packing clothing for cold San Francisco and hot Pleasanton we find that hot is the norm everywhere. Temperatures reachec 113 dgrees in Pleasanton.

San Francisco has temps of 69 (Daly City) to 95 (Potrero Hill) and it is after 5 pm! Incredible. Not the temperature range, the high temps. Oh well, could be worse, Death Valley was forecast to reach 125.

Why start?

I debated starting a blog for a long time. I wondered if I'd keep it up or soon lose interest. My conclusion was and still is that I will lose interest. But what the heck. So here it is.