It is the year of the ox.

This post was from my cell phone as a test.--
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Thanks Buck For My Mucks!

I have received gift cards for Xmas for the past few years and have found out that I love them. At first I just look at the card and wonder about all the neat things I could buy with them. This year Cynical gave me a Gander Mountain gift card and I was thrill because I knew just what I was going to order. During last deer season my boots of only 3 years split and are no longer water proof so I ordered some Muck Boots for hunting with my gift card. Thanks Buck for the Mucks.

Merry Christmas Everybody!

Today I awoke at 6 am to the sound of a Christmas Miracle. It was the alarm the Needles had set to get up and put the Turducken into the oven. By a strange turn of events Needle's Mom thought she set her alarm only to sleep in until close to 7 am. When Needle's Mom "L" awoke with a start that it was to bright to be 6am, She rushed into the kitchen to find the Turducken already in the oven and cooking away nicely. I think I felt Needles crawl back into bed shortly before 7am and we snoozed away until close to 9am. We thought we would give Santa a little more time to deliver our gifts. In short we were tired and wanted to sleep in. When we got up officially we wandered into the kitchen from where the smells of goodness were emanating. In short order there was coffee brewing and baklava in hand for the morning snack. We decided to skip breakfast in order to prepare for the main feast. Before long there was mashed potatoes and green beans, homemade fudge, homemade rolls and squash pie. To drink we had Needles holiday shush drink which is prefect to go with turkey. When it was all said and done we were all bloated with food and drink and sat around the table discussing the important things in life. Also "L" got a nice Xmas surprise but I will let Needles elaborate. I hope everyone had a nice Christmas and that they got enough to eat, I know I did.

The top picture is of a fogged up window with kitty paw stretching prints I found. I thought I would write and Holiday message with them.

The second picture is the turducken fresh from the oven.

The third is of the triple bird sliced to reveal the layers. Little did we know the duck and sausage dressing was more to the posterior of the bird. I was very good and the flavor of the duck had a slight liverish almost bratwurst taste. Mmmmm.

Merry Xmas from the ghetto.

Pimpin ant Ezay!

Home Again...

Friday after work Needles and I again made the trip South. That's twice in a month to visit with my family and have our early Christmas. I got a couple of shirts, a pair of lounging pants, gift card. money and coffee. It was a fun time and any time we can spend time around Rudy, Brando and the funky bunch is a good time. Saturday we had our Christmas which entailed eating massive amounts of good food followed by massive amounts of dessert and then on to the opening of presents. After all the presents were opened and the wrapping paper was cleaned up, my mother wanted to know if we wanted to go to M'ville and see a Christmas display at a church. We were just setting around rubbing our engorged bellies so we thought we would go. Piling into two cars and off on the 30 minute drive to the display. When we arrived to the church to our surprise...there wasn't one car in the parking lot. The display was the two weekends before and now over. If you know my Mom at all this is not the first wild goose chase she has set us on and I am sure it won't be the last. We did get to stop off at Sonic and I had a Chilled Mocha Java with a Sonic Boom and Needles the Hot Latte with a Sonic Boom. They were very good and then we were on the road back to the house. This morning we awoke to breakfast and quick visit with the family and on the road back North we went. It as usual was an all too short weekend.

Panormous Shamormous.

I was just watching the Pizza Hut commercial featuring the new Panormous pizza. The commercial showed several people passing the box from person to person with each of them taking a slice a passing it on. I think the idea is to portray a endless supply of pizza coming from this box. Hmmf. I am not impressed. This commercial reminds me of a visit to the promise land where Ragged ordered a pizza for the 3 of us that literally had to be tipped on its side to fit through the door. I think there was a furniture dolly involved but I am not sure, my memory of the whole feast is sketchy. Anyway the pizza was so huge that I ate myself into a coma...... 3 times. You may not think this possible but I think I was suffering from tomato sauce overdose and the symptoms from the cheese is a TMI. The box was used as a fort by several kids down the street until a street gang kicked them out an used it for their crib. As I think back I wish I had another big pizza to overdose on. Ahhh the memories.

PS. The picture above is of a smaller pizza that I found on the interwebs.

PS. jk Ragged the pizza was excellent and we did finish it.....eventually.

Down goes Frazier!

Today after work I thought I would stop at Casey's a full up the gas tank. The weather was nasty and the spitting rain was freezing to my windshield as quick as it was hitting it. I thought with the overhang that by the gas pumps it wouldnt be too bad. Wrong! I stepped out of the Jeep and first my foot slide under the open door and as I tried to gather myself it went from bad to worst. As I grabbed the door handle I spun around and fell with my left foot under the Jeep, my right foot in the Jeep and my left hand on the door handle and my back flat on the ground. When I hit the ground I heard a voice from one of the other vehicles filling up. It was our local sheriff asking if I am alright. I answered "yeah" as I layed there flat on my back. I layed there for about 2 seconds before I decided I needed to get up. I made sure I had both feet on solid ground and finished pumping my gas. I don't know what it is about the people around here but they usually drive like idiots on a good day. You add a little freezing rain and it's like they come out of the wood work to drive on this mess. I had one person tailgating me on my way home while another person pulled right out in front of me and then proceeded to pass the car in front of them. All I can say is if I ever see these people in the ditch...I gonna roll on by.

I'm Famous!

A website has posted my deer hunting video that I placed on youtube about 2 weeks ago. The first week it hit the 400 mark and over the last few days the video has hit the 1400 viewers mark. I was wondering why it had so many hits all of a sudden. Tonight while surfin the interwebs I got my answer. They update the video every few days but I think it was neat for them to put it on their homepage even just for a day or two. If you want to goto the website the link is http://www.prairiestateoutdoors.com/index.php.

The picture above is a screen shot of the website. To see it enlarged click on the picture. My video is on the left side of the screen about halfway down the page titled Wayne County first season deer hunting.

Merry Xmas Y'all.

We're in heat!

Or we HAVE heat rather. My friendly neighborhood heating and air guy stopped by this morning and it was a faulty door safty switch. The switch cuts power to the heater when you take the door off the blower to prevent electrical shock. When the blower would kick on the shaking of the door or the air blowing through the area would move the door and trip the switch turning the system off. Just by pass the faulty switch and we are in heat.... Uhhh yeah. The house is a warm 72 degrees and it feels like a sauna a far cry from the 58 degrees of last night. Hope everyone has a warm weekend.

It arrived yesterday.

Yesterday when I arrived home, there was a large package on the front porch. I brought it in and pondered its opening, but first a few picks.

After removing the plastic wrap it found a large block of dry ice. Of course soon after I put a small chunk of the ice into some water in the bathroom sink and watched the fog roll. Back to the package. Inside the styro foam container was a box.

Once I removed the box the contents of the package was confirmed.

At last my 15 pounds of pig, chicken, duck and last but not least turkey goodness. I can't wait until Xmas to enjoy my Southern delicacy. I hope it is everything I have built it up to be in my mind. Float this puppy in some of Linda's dressing and I am sure it will be amazing. Mmmmmmmm.

On another note. This morning when I woke up I noticed it was unusually cold in the house. I didn't think too much of it until I looked at the thermostat. 63 degrees holy ice cycles its cold. I messed with the thermostat a bit but eventually had to go to work. When I got home this evening I noticed the temp was a balmy 58 degrees and I decided to keep my coat on. I again messed around and reset and checked to see if the pilot was still lite. Unfortunately it is more than I can figure out. I will need to call my friendly heater repairman. With electric heaters we are able to make it a little warmer but it is still a bit chilly up in her. Have a nice weekend everyone. Mine is starting out smashingly.

Pick up the Soap Rod.

Back Home

We arrived home around 3pm or so yesterday. We had a good time but even a 4 day weekend is too short. While we were in KY we did a little shopping and I ate like a pig. My mother thought we didn't have enough desserts so she made 3 while we were there. Chocolate no bake cookie, German Chocolate cake and scalloped pineapple. All were very good and I limited myself to only a dozen or so no bakes. It was hard but I do have a small amount of will power. We are now home and have all too easily slipped back into our usual mundane lives. Of the last several weekends we have been gone or busy for most of them. I think we have earned a bit of a rest.

This morning we awoke to a nice glazing of ice over everything. The morning started off with a friend calling and telling me that his car was off in the ditch. Also that his wife had slipped and fell in the driveway going out to her car. I told Needles to stay home a couple hours before heading to work to let the sun melt the ice. I unfortunately had to go into the mess. It was hard even walking out the garage and the roads were slick until I got about a mile from the house. Then it was 35mph all the way to work. When I arrived at work I pulled into the parking lot just in time to see a mini van bounce off another car in the parking lot. I slowly drove down the lot and thought I had better park away from the accident only to apply the brake and slide sideways down the parking lot in the direction of the van. I did come to a stop several feet from the van and I was lined up perfectly for the parking space in front of me so I put forward about 15 feet and say that was good enough. I had to walk in the grass up to my work because the blacktop was like an ice rink. By noon the temps had gotten above 40 so the ice was gone for the drive home. I hope we don't have any more of that. I can handle the snow but I hate the ice.

PS. On the way to work I saw an ambulance in the ditch. Also we had our fair share of injuries in the ER from the ice. Two fractured knees and a fractured hip on the day. I am sure we will have a few more trickle in over the next few days. Be careful out there boys and girls.

Gone for another weekend.

We are going South for the weekend. We will be leaving tomorrow after work and return Sunday. We are going down to see my parents but wouldn't mind a visit from some family in O'town if they can find the time. You know who you are. If you can't, I understand but it would be nice. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Relaxing weekend.

This weekend has been uneventful. We have been inside ever since Friday evening after work. I did do a little laundry this weekend but other than that all I have accomplished was setting on the couch and napping. Needles has been busy cooking most of the weekend. Saturday we had homemade Chinese for lunch and beef stew for supper. Today we had soup beans and fritter cornbread. Mmmmm. It has been a nice weekend other than it wasn't long enough. Wednesday after work Needles and I are heading South to my parents to visit the weekend. Since I killed out first season we will be spending the four days in Kentucky. The weather isn't looking that great but if we can just have cold without rain or snow. On the Xmas front we have maybe 40% of the shopping done. We are usually done by now with just a few odds and ends to finish up but this year has sneaked up on us. I think the consensus this year is to not put up a tree again this year. I am some what disappointed to not put up a tree but I am sure the day after Xmas I will be glad we didn't. Anyway that is what is going on in this neck of the woods.

Can't Wait.

Were havin it!

I have mulled around an idea for a couple of years now and this year I finally broke down and ordered it. Most holidays with Needles family consist of turkey or ham which is very good and I usually eat myself sick. This year for Xmas I thought I would change things up a bit. I heard about one of "these" a few years back and wondered how one would taste. We even saw a show talking about them and Mike Row did and Dirty Jobs that showed how they are done. Of course by now you know exactly what I am talking about. I am talking about a Turducken. For those of you who are saying WTF right about now it is a boneless chicken stuffed inside a boneless duck stuffed inside a boneless turkey. You can order several varieties of turducken but we decided to get the one stuffed with pork. So in actuality it is a boneless pig stuffed inside a boneless chicken stuffed inside a boneless duck stuffed inside and boneless turkey. I have to say that this food item is a bit expensive but I always wanted to try one and the upcoming holiday provided just the occasion to do so. I ordered it from Cajun Grocer based in Lafayette, Louisiana so I would think they know how to do turducken. You would think that food would be the last thing to think or post about with just recovering from Thanksgiving but you would be wrong. So for Xmas I will be sleeping with visions of turduckens dancing in my head.

Happy Turkey Day!

Just want to say happy turkey day to everyone. Hope everyone gets enough to eat. Zzzzzzzz

Deer Season 2008

I just want to warn anyone that doesn't want to see dead deer or blood stop now. All of these deer are processed and used for food so they do not go to waste.

This weekend started out on a bumpy note. Several of my co workers have been sick the week leading up to deer season so I predicted that I would be sick for the one thing that I have been looking forward to for almost a year. Yep I was right. Wednesday I had a bit of a dry scratchy throat. Thursday I had head congestion and headache. The night before deer season I didn't sleep a wink. I think it was a combination of the excitement, being in a strange bed and the feeling like my head was packed full of concrete. Lets just say the cold made this deer season less enjoyable than usual. Nothing like setting in the cold breathing through your mouth because your nose is so raw that breathing through it feels like breathing acid. Yeah, that's fun. Anyway since I was having so much fun I tried to end the season as quick as I could. The first day I only saw one deer. It was about 200 yards or better away. That evening while in the stand I noticed Needles Uncle "B" get out of his stand and head back to the house. After getting part way back I noticed him stop and wait. I didn't think too much of it but a few minutes later I heard the shot and saw a deer run into the field looking like it had been hit. I got out of my stand to see if "B" might need some help trailing the animal. By the time I got up to the area I heard the finishing shot and walked into the woods to see that "B" had killed a monster 8 point. Its chest measurement was 44" which suggests a live weight of up to 250lbs. This is the second year in a row that "B" has taken a huge buck.

Since "B" was done hunting for the season he offered that I could set in his stand since it is in a more optimal area. I took him up on his offer and the morning of the second day I was able to harvest a nice young doe. She slipped in from my left at about 30 yards and stopped. I hit her a little high so she went farther than I would have liked going about 50 to 60 yards before expiring. She will be nice for the freezer.

The second day was perfect weather for deer movement. After a successful morning hunt I finished breakfast and headed back down around 10am. Around noon I had a small buck wander in about 40 yards away and was smelling where I dragged the doe out of the woods from the morning hunt. I guest he smelled some of my sent because he wheeled around to run and stopped after about 5 yards. I was in the stand and feeling the burn of my sinuses so I thought I would end the season early and add him to the freezer as well. This broken up 3 point only went about 30 yards and was down for the count. He probably was a basket rack 4 or 6 point but you could tell he had been fighting a lot. Both antlers were broken off one just above the brow tine and the other just an inch out of his head. Anyway he will be good in the freezer.
This is the first time I have taken 2 deer in one day and I have to say that I am glad it is over with the way that I have been feeling. I think we are going to visit my parents for the second deer season since I have already taken those days off work. That is if I can get rid of this cold. Maybe next year will be my turn to get the big one. At least I filled Needles mom freezer and probably then some.

Video of my doe harvest.

Can't wait.

Tomorrow after work we are heading South to Needles Mom's and my happy hunting ground. Season starts friday and I am ready to go. I will update Sunday night unless I kill out early. I am going to try to be done the first season so that we can visit my parent the second season. Wish me luck.

Come here deer deer deer.

Weekend Getaway.

This weekend we journeyed South to Cynical and Ragged's place. We rolled in Friday evening around 5:30ish and when we arrived homemade soup was on the menu and for that cold rainy drive, it was just the thing to hit the spot. We were also able to visit with Cynical's sis and niece. It was nice to visit and catch up on life. That evening we turned in rather early at about 11pm. The next day we awoke to coffee, juice, bagels and fresh fruit. After chatting and enjoying each others company it was time to hit a new place in O town for lunch. Cheddars was neat and the food was amazing. You get a lot of food for your money and of course I was up to the task. After the stomach dilation it was time to do a little walking around to ease up the belt line. We ventured to a couple of stores and I was looking for deer slugs for next weekends deer season. I haven't been able to find to ones I used last year and I have checked several places and no luck. We then decided to go home and relax and I found a little nap time. After the nap we got a craving for The Dipper ice cream and then Trivial Pursuit. While Needles and I were victorious Ragged and Cynical were nipping at our heels. I have to give to the win to Needles as my brain had gone on lock down after the ice cream brain freeze. We stayed up late into the night and then gave up for bed. This morning I woke up at my usual time while Needles stayed in bed. After everyone was up and about it was time for b'fast. Turkey beacon, scrambled eggs, juice, coffee, bagels and fresh fruit made for a breakfast that was fit for a king. Needles and I had fuzzy people to attended to so it was time to head home. We loved spending time with Cynical and Ragged but the weekend was all too quick. Thanks again for the coffee and the relaxing weekend.

PS. I did learn this weekend that Howdy Doody came from Doodieville. That's not right.

Away for the weekend.

This weekend we are once again heading south to the promise land. We will be well feed, well converesed, well rested and drink lots of coffee to ward away the cold temps. Oh and we will have fuzzy people to lurve upon since we will not have ours to lurve. I have been looking forward to a weekend away for awhile and to get to spend the time with Cynical and Ragged will make it twice as fun. Cynical and Ragged quit cleaning and let it go. Its only us and we will see you soon.

To all our veterans.

Humerous.

I saw this on CNN ireports as a comment on ireports about Barack Obamas website. I found it humerous so I thought I would share it here.

The election is over, the results are now known.
The will of the people has clearly been shown.
We should show by our thoughts and our words and our deeds.
That unity is just what our country now needs.
Let's all get together... let the bitterness pass.
I'll hug your elephant...you kiss my ass!

No really folks, we need unity and to come together to get this country back on track....snicker.

Sighting In.

This is me sighting in my Mossberg 385 with slug barrel. Federal Vital Shock 3 inch 1 ounce load. The first shot is at 50 yards, the second is at 40 yards and the last is at 30 yards. I strapped the camera on a branch a few feet from the target. The first shot comes at 28 seconds into the video. These shots were taken in the standing position without a rest. I was standing out in the open. The last shot was rushed as it started to sleet and the wind picked up. I wasn't sure how well the camera would tolerate this so I hurried to get done. Also on the last shot you can see the wadding hit the box at the bottom left. The circle around the center dot is about the size of a saucer plate, roughly six inches.

Tis the Season.

Funny.

Feel good feeling.

Last night as I watch MSNBC and watched the polling result rolling in and when Obama slipped closer to 270 I got the feeling of a warm fuzzy blanket being wrapped around my shoulders. Then at just a minute or two before 10 o'clock they announced that Barack Obama would be our 44th president and I was thrilled. This feeling was finally trumped by Baracks speech he gave in Chicago in his opening statement.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different, that their voices could be that difference.
It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.

We are, and always will be, the United States of America.

Even if you are Republican, if you read the words and understand them you have to say that these words are inspirational in the hope that the United States of America as a whole can move forward to solve the problems that has gotten a grip on this country. If you heard these words regardless of who said them brings about a a feeling of pride in my country. A feeling I haven't felt for a long time.... I hope this feeling doesn't going away.

New website.

Today I voted and built a new website for Ravenwood Hollow which if you didn't already know is our yard haunt for Halloween. It is pretty basic but I hope to add to it some day. If you want to see it visit the link below.

LINK

Halloween Video

Here is a video of a sweep across my front yard during Halloween. The video is darker than what I had hoped but hopefully you can get the layout of the yard. Enjoy.

Today, Rudy, Brando, Needles and I went to see a play at Needles work. She had heard about the tickets on sale a few weeks ago and pounced on some primo sets. We were 5th row from the orchestra pit "DEAD" center. The play as you might be able to tell from the above picture was Clue. A play that has attendee participation. Three people from the audience choose the who, where and with what and then the play gives you clues to check your list for the suspect, room and murder weapon. It was very funny with various lines containing lude and somewhat sexual connotations. It was fun to hear the clues and check off some items and select others that were the suspected item. Let me just say a cross dressing Ms. White made the show and a twister game over a color coded map of the world between Col. Mustard and Mrs. Peacock showed us almost more than what we wanted to see of Mrs. Peacocks girls. In the end there were just a few people in the audience that got the correct answer. I had the murderer but not the weapon or the room. Needles had the weapon but not the murderer or the room. Rudy and Brando had a similar outcome but it was a lot of fun. Before we went to the play we stopped off at a new Mexican place called La Carreta. The food was very good and there was a lot of it. I rarely have to take home a doggie bag but this time I did. Maybe it was the salsa and chips that filled me up. After the play we stopped off at the L'ville Dairy Dee for dessert. By the time we got home around 3:30pm we were well feed and well entertained. It was a great afternoon.

It's all over but the cryin.

Well, another Halloween has come and gone. We had everything up yesterday and we have everything down and put away today. Its a bit of a challenge when you help in decorating 4 or 5 yards. I don't know anymore, I lost count. It think it's actually 6. I was just glad we were able to get it all in one truck load. I think if we had one more thing we wouldn't have been able to make that claim. The list of things that were put in other peoples yard was 33 blow mold items, 7 air blown items and a few odds and ends that was dragged out there during the month of October. This evening I will be parked on the couch, nursing my sore back. I hope everyone had an enjoyable Halloween. No wonder we skip putting up a Xmas tree after all this.

Good Evening.

The Count. Betty.

Flash.

These are a few pictures from our Halloween 2008 yard display. I think we got everything up and going in record time this year thanks to Rudy and his crew and The King of Halloween. We started a little after noon and was done by 3pm. Usually I am doing finishing touches around 5pm with early bird trick or treaters walking up around 5:30pm or so. This year I actually had some down time to think "Is there any more crap I could put out?" I am glad I stopped. This year trick or treaters were a little low in number compared to previous years. The neighboring towns are having theirs on the same night this year which cuts our numbers. I think our official number was 58, which is about average. The lowest in the 40's and the most in the 80's. If we counted everyone that was dressed up our number would probably be around 75 or 80. I was surprised by how many parents dressed up to take their kid or kids out trick or treating. After 8pm which was the official cut off of trick or treating we waited for Rudy and King to stop by for pictures. They then helped to tear down which isn't usually done until around midnight. Tonight we were done and in the house around 10:30pm. We still have a TON of candy. I think we handed out maybe half of what I bought. Tomorrow we will go out to Kings and pack up the blow molds and air blown items. I had a fun Halloween but now I am exhausted and glad it is over. Happy Halloween everyone.

IT'S ALIVE!!!!!

Yesterday I did some scouting in preparation for deer hunting. I walked down into the small woods and visited my 2 deer stands to see if they were in good shape and that the tree limbs surrounding them would be out of the way for good visibility. I did see some deer tracks but no rubs or scrapes that would suggest a nice buck working the area. While walking through the woods I noticed large areas of poison ivy that I had to wade through in my search. When I got home yesterday I quickly walked back to the laundry and removed my poison ivy clothing and started to load the washer. After I got it all loaded up I thought I would go into the bathroom and do a wash down just to make sure. It was then that it hit me. My new phone of only a couple of months was in my front pocket. I quickly went into the laundry and opened the lid to find the washer swishing away. The first pair of pants I found nothing but the second. There it was all soaked and water logged. Great..... I removed the back cover, battery and sim card and shook most of the water out of it. I thought once it dried out it might work. For the rest of the evening I layed it on the dryer thinking the warmth would help draw the residual water out of it. After several hours I thought I might try it and no dice. I went to work this morning thinking I would have to get another phone. I thought I would try once again as I had nothing to loose. I placed the battery back into the phone replaced the back cover and pressed the on button. I a few seconds the phone came to life and was ready to go. My eyes lit up and the first thing I did was scramble to text Needles about my friend that was back from the dead. It is my Zombie phone. The screen still has a bit of moisture which distorts it but I am glad it still works and I am sure that the screen will clear up eventually.

These last few weeks have been very busy. My parents have been up visiting and have been trying to spend time with them and not to mention the Cache Slash Fest. Yesterday we went to Oblong for a quilt show and then a tour to Rudy's work. We arrived home to relax awhile until it was time to go back to Oblong for the night parade. With Halloween just around the corner the work and fun hasn't ended. Have a Happy Halloween.

It's Done...

Cache Slash Fest 2008 is over and I am glad. It has been a very stressfull few weeks with planning and all the work that needed to be done. If I listed all the things that had to come together over the past months it would run off the page. Trying to coordinate activities with several other people and get this all to run smoothly is a challenge to say the least. I would like to thank our guests for the weekend for being there for the venting when stress seemed to get a bit high and also for the post event cool down vent. I would have to say that this event was the most enjoyable for me. Usually I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting things done but this year I actually had some down time to eat, visit and enjoy some of the fruits of my labor. I have to say that if there is a next year I am not doing as much so if it doesn't get done.....so be it. Today I felt like a rung out dishrag, I think that all the preparations finally caught up with me. Still tired after a busy day.

PS. Cynical and Ragged you are welcome back anytime.

Sockaholic

For the last three days I have come home to dirty socks from the floor in the laundry room being dragged into the middle room. They have the look of being rabbit kicked and "lerved" very intensely. I think it's Copper and he may have a problem. I think he is addicted to stinky socks. An intervention might be in order.

Cache Slash prep is still ongoing and things are about 90% done. Since we haven't gotten much response from sponsors we wonder if it might be the economic down turn. We still have some time but I am not holding my breath. Have a good day.

Fast Approaching.

The Cache Slash Fest will be here in a couple of weeks so preparations are in high gear. Can't post much but things are falling into place as usual.

Great Weekend.

Friday after work I got home and finished packing a few items for the weekend. When Needles and Jenny from the Blog arrived we all packed up and headed South to the promise land. We made good time and arrived around 6pm. When we got there we got to visit for a bit and then ordered Pizza by the Guy. The pizza was amazing and after our stomachs were full ,we sat in the screen porch and chatted with each other until it was time to go in. We were all tired and Cynical called it a night and we followed shortly after. The next morning we woke up to enjoy coffee, fresh fruit and begals. After that we went to the Halloween shops to see what they had new this year. I scored a Morbid Industries T-shirt at the first store and Grimrot latex prop at the second. After my Halloween shopping we went to a Japanese restaurant called the Tokyo and we all enjoyed the beef and the yum yum sauce. I have to say that the food was very good but I still think I prefer the Shoguns rice. After I cleaned everything off my plate it was time to return home and await the guests of Cynical and Raggeds house warming party. Around 4pm Rudy, Brando, Yin, Yuri, Mom and Dad arrived and got a brief tour of the place. Rudy, Brando, Yin, Mom, Needles and I made another run to the Halloween stores and Big Lots and then returned in time for the party. In the next few minutes several people arrived and brought all sorts of amazing foods for the party. After we all gathered outside where there was a quick announcement, prayer and then we all descended on the food like a bunch of wild dogs. Not really. I quickly yet orderly got into the food line and filled my plate to maximum capacity and then went to my lawn chair to devour my gatherings. In short order I was back for round 2 and then 3. Before long I lapsing in and out of a food coma and my higher brain functions were shutting down so that my stomach could digest the food in my belly. In a few hours the limited cognitive abilities I had seemed to return and I got to visit with several guests and my family. We sat in the lawn chairs and visited with Raggeds family until late into the night. I think we finally turned in around midnight. It wasn't long until I was ready for bed. Sunday we had party left overs for breakfast and don't think that the term leftovers is derogatory because it isn't in the least. I had BBQ and for dessert 3 kinds of cake. Leftovers ROCK! After we made a run to the mall for Needles to get her ring checked and cleaned we returned home for more leftovers and in no time at all it was time to go home. We left around 2:30pm and made our way back North, sent with a togo of more leftovers and drinks for the road from Ragged. Needles drove with Jenny riding shotgun, while I napped in the back seat. When we were North of Mt. C I thought I would text Rudy and Brando and see where they were. It was just a few minutes later that I heard Needles say "Is that Brando's minivan?" Then there was a white streak blowing around us with Brando waving like a mad person in the passenger side window. Before long we were pulling into the driveway of our home. Our fuzzy housemates were affectionate in our return and within minutes I was collapsed on the couch. It was a great weekend spent with great people and I ate some great food. What else could you ask for. :)

PS. Guess what we had for supper tonight...........party leftovers. Oh and Cynical the last piece of HOLY COW cake is still in the fridge.

One up, one down.

We took Copper to the vet Monday for a follow up visit. He came back fine other than his B12 level was alittle low in his blood. They gave me some $15 brown fluid that I get to squirt down his throat once a day for a few days. He loves that let me tell ya. I love it too since when I am done I am cleaning up brown drops off of him, me and the floor when finished. When Copper got home from the vet last Monday he was very sneezy. I think he picked up a cold while at the vet. A couple of days later we noticed Tugger being kinda erpy. He was straightening his head and licking his lips and mouth alot. He also had the occasional hack and sneeze. Yesterday Tugger wasn't interested in eatting at all. Today when I got home I found Tugger running from the back room licking his lips so I am guess he got his appetite back. Needles came home with some soft food and Tugger mowed through it in no time. I think both of our kitties are on the mend but it has been a house of sickly felines for the last few days. It was getting to the point that I was getting worried about our weekend plans but I think we are OK now.

Every afternoon this week has been helping with Halloween decorations. I think a lot of the heavy lifting is done but there is still lots to do.

Preparations

Today I spent about 8 hours at a friends house helping him get ready for the upcoming party and holiday. Today we put up a archway and set out all the cemetery fencing. We also got a couple of loads of Halloween items out of storage to be put up later. At the end of the day I was wiped out and heading home where Needles had made soup beans and sour kraut. Yum. After I got my belly full I had to lay down for a brief but refreshing nap. We got a lot done today but there is still lots to do. I would say we are about 20% done and with 24 day left I think if we can have a few more productive days we might just get it all done in time.

This is a scarecrow that I worked on for "G". He is a beach ball with chicken wire for shaping, several layers of paper machete and cotton balls to give it facial features and then several layers of latex then painted. His body (not pictured) is grapevines with some black material for clothing. He stands about 8 foot tall.

Fish Pond

Check out my new fish pond in my blog gutter. Just scroll down a little and it's on the right. Don't forget to feed them. Just click on the water and watch them go into a feeding frenzy. Click on the icon in the top left corner to get you own.

Funny

Home is where Copper is.

Today after work I stopped by the vet to pick up my little sickly one. I got there and stood waiting of the bill to be tallied. After about 5 minutes of them scratching their head I began to wonder and then the lady had to take the bill into the back office to look it over. This is when I began to worry. I was afraid I might have to take out a small loan to bring Copper home. They looked it over and did some adjusting as some of the charges had been added twice making the bill almost double what it was. I am glad they took the time to look it over and adjust it to something a little less jaw dropping. Copper is home on a special diet and has a follow up appointment on Monday. He seems to be doing well and walked into the house like he never was gone. Tugger however was a different story. Hissing and slinking away to his table was what he considered a welcome home. Today I have been a little sore. Yesterday after all the wind I thought I would go onto the roof and secure the antenna a little more since it seemed to be leaning just a little. I used my A frame ladder since the extension ladder was back at Mom and Dad's. I set the ladder and started up only to get on the 3rd or 4th rung and one of the legs sunk into the ground. This is when gravity kicked my arse to the ground. I got up with my ego bruised but non the worse for wear. Today I am a bit sore on the left side of my chest but I think I will live. Also yesterday we joined the ranks of the powerless. Our power blinked off and on a couple of times but at 12:30pm our power was gone and didn't come back for over 4 hours. If Ike was this windy here just imagine what it was like in Texas. Those poor people.

Copper Is Coming Home.

This morning I received a call from the vet. She said Copper was eatting and drinking and seemed to be doing much better today. He seems more interested in his surrounding and should be good to come home tomorrow. She said that he still hasn't had a bowel movement but she thinks this will come in time. With him in strange surroundings and cooped up in a small cage he might not "go" until he comes home. She said some cats are particular on where they go. I will be glad to get him home but not so glad to see the cost of his stay at Hotel Animal Hospital.

Copper update.

Thursday morning I took Copper to the Vet. While at work they called and said that his blood work and stool samples were normal and other than a little dehydrated from the vomiting and diarrhea this was fine. They wanted to do an Xray to make sure he didn't have a blockage but would need to sedate him due to some crankiness. His X-rays came back fine and they said they would want to keep him until he ate and had a bowel movement. Yesterday when I visited the vet's office after work they said that he didn't eat at all and was drinking water, but he hadn't vomited today. This was the first day he hadn't in 5 days he hadn't thrown up. This morning they were going to start him on gruel (soft watery food) and see how this went. About 10am I received a call and they said that he didn't have a fever and he was eating food but he hasn't had a bowel movement yet. They suggested keeping him until Monday and they felt like he would be ready to come home then. The vet said that when they opened the door to his cage this morning he shot out of it and down the hall. This is the most active he has been since this whole ordeal. I think we got some good news and that things are getting better so we will wait and see how things go. They said they would call me tomorrow on his progress and Monday we will hopefully get to bring him home.

Sickly Housemate.

This week (Monday) started with Copper getting sick alot and not eatting much. Tuesday was more of the same with Copper having diarrhea and green tinged vomit. Last night we came home to 3 puddles of green puke and Copper very lethargic and sickly. He was able to drink alittle and I did get him to drink some of the liquid out of a can of samon. This morning I had enough as I am sure he had also. I crated him up and off to the vet we went. I got a call around 1:30pm saying that his lab work showed him to be dehydrated and they were giving him fluids. They also wanted to do an X ray of his belly to check for obstruction. They asked if they could sedate him as he was "cranky". Does this sound familiar Ragged and Cynical? Anyway I haven't heard anything so he is staying the night at the vet. Tomorrow I hope to get an update. I hope to bring puky back home.

Productive day.

This morning I woke up a few hours before Needles. I started off with grinding and brewing a pot of 89er's blend coffee. After I started on my first cup I thought I would get breakfast ready even though sleepy head was still in bed. I started the beacon and sausage and after I got them going I went check on sleeping beauty. I had hopes that some of the smell of the coffee and food would make it into the bedroom and rouse Needles from her slumber. Before long, just as I was starting the eggs and the toast was a little over done, she strolled into the kitchen. A good morning sweety and in a few minutes we were at the kitchen table with breakfast in front of us with a cup of joe and apple-strawberry-banana juice. After breakfast we had a job to do. The shower was in need of a little repair so we jumped into the car and went to the big city. A quick stop at ACE hardware to get a part and we were on our way home. When I started working on the shower I got done in a flash and tested my work......No change and I found out why. Another fitting had broken and was spraying water in the closet. Soooooo another quick trip to the big city to get another part and soon after I arrived home the shower was working once again. After that I decided to go into the garage and clean out the car and put in the new floor mats. After that I thought I would wash and wax the Jeep and after that was accomplished I changed the oil in purple truck. This was something had been needing done for several weeks and while I was at it I lubed the front end. After that was all done my stomach was telling me to find a bite to eat and just my luck Needles was inside making a tater tot casserole. It was very good and my belly was satisfied. I am now setting on the couch contemplating a nap and I think that is what I am going to do. Good evening folks.

Able to lease more building than he can remember...

It's John S. (Superman) McCain.

Awww.

Would you like a world where these animals can share the planet with us and our children?

Sarah Palin voted against these animals going on the endangered species list so that it wouldn't impact oil production in Alaska, but voted for wolves to be slaughtered by helicopter in the interest of increasing moose population. I would like to think we can share the planet with all of it's animals. Something to think about.

For some truth on Palin just click HERE.

Last Day of the Diary Dee

Our local ice cream shop is shutting down for the season. We usually stop by there maybe once a month. Since this luxury is going away for awhile we have stopped by the last three days. Saturday while Cynical and Ragged were here I got a large vanilla shake. Yesterday just before our company left we stopped back by the Dee. I got a large hot fudge sundae. Tonight since it is the last hoorah of the Dee I got a JUMBO hot fudge sundae. Jenny from the blog was supposed to visit today and enjoy the Dee with us but she had homework and couldn't make it. The last 3 days have been very yummy ones.

Weekend

Friday after an interesting day at work, I came home to await the arrival of our weekend guests. Around 6:30 pm Cynical and Ragged rolled in. We visited and enjoyed each others company. Shortly after they arrived, Rudy, Brando and the family came in and we all sat in the living room and conversed into the evening. Saturday morning we awoke early because the ladies wanted to get a jump on their project. After a breakfast of HUGE cinnamon rolls they were going to dye yarn and fiber. After a few hours they had their items ready for stemming so after they had everything put away we grilled hamburgers and went to the Dairy Dee for dessert. After dessert we visited Rudy and Brando's farm. We Wiied for a couple of hours and Rudy ordered pizza for supper. After the pizza was devoured we watched National Treasure 2. We arrived home around 10pm and in no time it was time for bed. This morning after bagels and cream cheese the ladies rinsed out the yarn that set over night. They hung the yarn on the rack to dry as we had warmed over hamburgers for lunch followed by another Dairy Dee run. When the yarn dried our guests decided it was time to head home. We tried to get them to stay another night but they had some fuzzy house guests that they had to get back home to. We enjoyed our guests and in a few weeks we will be heading South to visit them.

I'm Back!

Two Days, roughly 800 miles and seeing a different part of the country. Yesterday I left work around 2pm. My boss and I loaded up and left on a trip to Columbia, Missouri. We arrived at St. Louis around 5pm and awaited our contact to arrive and take us on the rest of our journey. After a couple of missed turns we arrived around 7:30pm. We ate at the Flat Branch Pub and Brewery. I had the smothered Sirloin and my boss enjoyed a pasta salad. For dessert we split Tiger Stripe ice cream which is an original dessert of the pub. It was very good. After we finshed out late supper it was time head to the hotel. We stayed at The Stoney Creek Inn. It is a nice hotel mixed with Bass Pro. Very rustic but also modern. It was very neat and I would recommend staying there if you get a chance. I was kicking myself for not taking my camera. This morning a 7:30am we met in the lobby and went to the Galley for our continental breakfast, then it was on the road again to our final destination. We arrived at Brookfield, MO. around 10am and was given a tour of Pershing Memorial Hospital. It is a small hospital like ours but is undergoing a major renovation. I was neat to see and we learned alot about our upcoming project. Around noon it was time to grab a bite to eat and get back on the road for our trip home. We left around 1:15 pm and I arrived home at 7pm, tired and ready to get out of the vehicle. It was a neat trip but very whirlwind and not alot of time to sight see. I am home now and ready just to rest and do nothing. I wish I didn't have to go to work tomorrow. Have a good holiday weekend everyone.

PS. The picture above is the room I stayed in. I got it off the interwebs. When you walk into the rooms they each have a cute stuffed animal on the bed with a sign to purchase them and take them home. Mine was a raccoon with a bandana around his neck. Very cute.

Going out of town.

This morning just after I walked into work my boss asked me if I was up for a road trip. "Always" I said. Apparently we are going to Columbia, MO. for a PACS demonstration. We will be leaving around 2pm Wednesday and coming back Thursday afternoon. This is my first business trip with the hospital and I am not sure what to expect. I hope it will be very informal. I will get more details tomorrow. Hopefully we will get some good eats.

Fast Weekend.

After a very trying Friday, Needles and I headed South to the promise land. We arrived down there around 7:20pm and was greeted by my parents and a feast. We ate and then reclined to the living room to catch up on things. Before long it was late and time to go to bed. We woke the next day to breakfast and then into town for some yard sales. I had my eye on items for our Halloween projects but came up empty. After we got home we went to Grandma's house for homemade pizza by my Aunt R. It was soooo good and of course I made a pig of myself. After that we got to visit with my Aunt R and her new puppy Izzy. Izzy is a Chihuahua and is very loving and affectionate. When we went back to Mom and Dad's we went on a ride on the property across the road from my parents. My Mom and Dad rode their golf cart and my Aunt R and Uncle A rode their golf cart. Needles and I rode Dad's new 4 wheeler. While we were riding the electric ice cream maker was churning away in the sink. When we arrived home after about an hour of riding the ice cream was ready. I again made a pig of myself and had 3 helpings. I could not tell you when the last time I had homemade ice cream. I thinking 15 years or more. Last night we stayed up until our eyes grew heavy and called it a night. This morning we ate breakfast and while Mom and Dad went to church, Needles and I took and ride back in the country side on the golf cart. I am still amazed at how well that thing is able to go in the woods. Around 1:30pm we decided it was time to go and made our goodbyes and headed North. We arrived home a little after 4pm and while the kitties were still locked up, cleaned house. I was so very much needed as it seems we haven't cleaned in awhile. It is now time for laundry, showers and getting ready for work tomorrow. Bleah!

Silly Olympics

Thanks Media For Lying.

It seems that the Georgia and Russian conflict has a bit more complex than the media has lead us to believe and decided to omit and sweep a few small details under the carpet. Lets just say they have put a Western spin on the story. Apparently South Ossetia in Georgia had some people loyal to Russia and Georgia sent the military to crack down on these separatists. "They were killing their own people, burning and looting homes, towns and anything else in their way." Russia moved in to stop this action and was accused of invading a sovern free country. It doesn't sound free to me. It would be like Texas killing off the Democrats to make sure the state stays red in the next election. Hmmm. Matter of fact I would put it past these jokers in the White House. Another thing that wouldn't surprise me is that Bush and his buddy's would find some way to make a buck on the whole ordeal. This to me sounds a bit like Darfur in South Africa but that's another "little incident" we haven't heard much about because it doesn't sell papers, magazines and premotional spots in the TV. Isn't it interesting how our information is filtered, blended and strained for our consumption. You would almost think this is a free country. Thank You Patriot Act, but I am afraid this has been going on since the Vietnam "conflict".

Watching Antenna in HD.

Today after breakfast of bagels and 89er's blend coffee Needles and I went to the big city to do some shopping and some grocery getting. Little did she know that I had secretly planned to get an antenna for our local channels. After stopping by Needles work and visiting with her co worker, boss and bosses family we stopped in at the grocery store and then ran by JC Pennys which was fruitless. We walked down by Radio Shack and I asked if they had any TV antennas and about half way through my question I noticed the 10 ft antenna bolted to the ceiling in the shop so I stopped my question short. I said "I need one of those" and he said "that was the biggest one they have in stock". I said "I need one" and they started to bring the box from the back. I thought the box would be about 6ft long and easily fit in the car with the back seat down. NO. This thing was 8ft long and there was no way. I told them we had a little more shopping to do and I would be back withe the truck. We then stopped to eat at Wendy's and then dropped by Wally World on the way home. We then returned home and got the truck to return for our purchases. After home the work began. I was determined to get this thing up so that we can at least watch the last week of the Olympics. No thanks to DirecTV since they have no plans in ever getting local channels in our area. Our Olympic viewing consisted of 2 hours from 5 to 7pm in the evening and they were mostly the off games like marble shooting and who can make the largest belly button lint ball. By the way I would so rule in that competition. I would bring USA the gold with a little bit of white and gray mixed in. Anyway we started to work on the antenna about 4pm and had it up and running in about 3 hours. There were several tough issues with this little venture. Our old antenna had lost all of its aerials and didn't work at all. Also the bolts that attached the antenna to the pole was rusted so that I couldn't get it off. I took a pair of side cuts to cut the bolts but standing 20 ft in the air and cut bolts with one hand while trying not to fall and kill myself was tricky. After an attempt to cut the bolts failed I began to beat on the bracket with a hammer. The top bracket came off quickly but then the bottom bracket started to go and bend to my left, then snap and boom the thing was on the ground. I fell 3 inches from the neighbors wooden fence. If it would have went to my right it would have taken out the phone line and to the left would have been the power line. Both not good options so it fell exactly as it needed to and avoided any issue. I guess a little luck shines on you every once and a while. After that it was a challenge to hoist an fully expanded antenna attached to a ten foot mast to the roof. Last but probably the hardest part about the while ordeal was trying to fish the coaxe cable through the wall to took it up. We finally manage to get it all done and then came the moment of truth. To see how many channels we get. After pointing the antenna to Terre Haute our market area we did the scan and got 6 analog and 10 digital channels. I was thrilled and started to watch the Olympics but after about 45 minutes the channel started to fade and the digital channel broke up and was gone. I thought might as well try Evansville and pointed the antenna in that general direction. I went inside and did a channel scan and was amazed that we could pick up 9 analog and 15 digital channels. I pulled out my GPS to see which city was closest thinking Terre Haute was since we are considered in their market and not eligible for local channels and was surprised that Evansville is 53 miles as the crow flies. Terre Haute is 58 miles. Hmmm. Anyway we have all the channels from Eville and also can pick up a few Terre Haute channels too. I am pleased with the purchase and am thrilled to finally have our local channels. No more waiting for Heros to rerun on Scifi. Take that DirecTV!

I knew it!

CNN) -- A policeman and a former corrections officer say that on Friday they will unveil evidence of what they claim is their biggest find ever: the body of Bigfoot.
The thawed body of a creature reputed to be Bigfoot reportedly weighs more than 500 pounds.
Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer, a pair of Bigfoot-hunting hobbyists from north Georgia, say they found the creature's body in a wooded area and spotted several similar creatures that were still alive.
The carcass of the furry half-man, half-ape is 7 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs more than 500 pounds, they say. However, the two are not disclosing the exact location of their discovery to protect the remaining creatures.
Tom Nelson, chairman of the biology department at North Georgia College and State University in Dahlonega, said he's "pretty skeptical" the world will feast its eyes on a new species Friday.
"That would certainly rock mammalogy," joked Nelson, who specializes in the study of mammals. "I see a research grant in my future."
Whitton and Dyer plan to unveil what they say is DNA and photo evidence of the discovery in Palo Alto, California, in conjunction with a group called Searching for Bigfoot Inc.
A photograph on that group's Web site shows what appears to be the body of a large, hairy creature with an ape-like face, stuffed into a large freezer.
According to a written release, the two announced the discovery on an Internet radio show, "Squatch Detective," several weeks ago. iReport.com: Do you believe in Bigfoot?
"The only person we would allow to come down and verify the body was 'the Real Bigfoot Hunter,' Tom Biscardi," Dyer said, referring to Searching for Bigfoot's CEO, who has been looking for the elusive, legendary creature in the United States and Canada since 1971.
Whitton is a Georgia police officer who is on administrative leave after being shot in the wrist during a pursuit. Dyer is a former prison guard.
DNA tests on the body have begun, said the statement, and "extensive scientific studies" will be done on the body by scientists, including a molecular biologist, an anthropologist and a paleontologist.
Nelson, the university professor, acknowledged that new species of animals have been discovered in recent decades and that, in science, "we always acknowledge the possibility of something new."
But he said that even in north Georgia, home to the Blue Ridge Mountains and the foot of the Appalachian Trail, it stretches the imagination to think a family of 7-foot-tall creatures could have eluded hunters, hikers and creeping development until now.
"To the average person, these places just seem like extreme wilderness where you'll find lions and tigers and bears," he said. "The reality is that you're never more than a mile from a road."
The group says the animal is male, has reddish hair and "blackish-gray" eyes and human-like feet, hands.

PS. I have to go feed the Loch Ness Monster in the toilet.

Computer Ill

Yesterday I got home as usual and got on the interwebs. I set the computer aside and left it for awhile. When I came back to it, it was in screensaver mode. I moved the mouse to wake the sleeping puter and I got the blue screen of death folllowed by a quick shut down and reboot. When it rebooted it showed the windows XP screen for about 15 seconds and then shut down again. This is when I said "CRAP!" I knew it was serious. I rebooted in Safe Mode and it locked up and I had to do a hard shut down and reboot to find it wouldn't go into Safe Mode only to shut down and reboot again. I f8ed the reboot and tried every option and nothing worked. I was able to freeze the blue screen and list off the stop error and codes for Needles to look it up on the other computer. It seemed that I had a hardware issue. I did a hard drive scan in Bios for it to pass and no issues. I removed the RAM and reinstalled it and still nothing. I rebooted with the supplied boot CD and still nothing. I was starting to get worried. I remembered I had the old RAM in the drawer so I installed it and rebooted with the boot CD and I was able to make some progress. After getting into Safe Mode I was able to Scandisk SCNDSK and find an issue that wasn't found before. I ran recovery SCNDSK /R which took a little over an hours and then SCNDSK /P and everything seemed to come back. I lost a few things and the wireless assistant is down but for the most part I am back with half the RAM. It was touch and go for awhile but after 4 to 5 hours it seems to be OK. Cross your fingers. I am needing to back up all my pics.

Bad Day

Today was not a good day. As soon as I got to work at 7am my boss said that her dad that has been fighting the battle against cancer was in the final stages. She left to be with him in his final hours. At 8am we received a call saying that hospice was there and they were telling them he has hours. At 9:10am it was over and his suffering was over. Please keep them in your thoughts.

TAKE THAT FRENCHIE!

As you probably well know but if you are just coming out of a coma or something you might have heard about the come from behind win by the United States over the trash talking French in the 4X100M swimming relay. Take that! You know where you can stick your french bread. Hee Hee.

I'm too old for this stuff.

Last night I went over to my friends house and we had a cookout. I arrived around 5:00pm and started in on my beer. About 6 beers later I had Needles who was still at home come out and bring me more beer. After I finished that I drank some of my friends beer and by the end of the night I was drunker than Cooter Brown. The one thing I had forgot about drinking like that is the morning after. I felt very rough this morning and while Needles woke up a couple of hours after me I wasn't in the mood for B'fast. I just layed on the couch and tried to wish the jack hammer in my head would go away. Around noon I started to feel better and get an appetite. Needles made chicken and Yukon potato blend and it was very good. I guess I am back to normal now but I think it will be awhile before I get my drink on again. CHEERS!

PS. For those of you still wondering about the lyric line. The name of the song is Come Dancing by The Kinks.

Remember way back when.

Our local radio station has been playing some oldies but goodies lately. This is a lyric line that was brought out of my memory from the old days. So lets see who remembers this one. Here is the line.

Out of my window, I could see them in the moonlight,
Two sillohettes, saying goodnight by the garden gate.

Comment: Whats the name of the song and who played it?

Good luck.

Happy 8-8-08

Hello everyone. I hope you are having a great 8-8-08.

Travel Blog Pic

Unfortunate Product Image

Look at this image and comment what is wrong with it...

There just needs to be another punkin.

It's beginning to look alot like "TIKI" round here.

Last week I recieved my 2 tiki drink shaker containers. I am going to use them for the event and today I recieved four 6ft tall totem tikipoles. A hui hou kakou (Until we meet again.)

PS. Kitties don't like 6ft tikipoles.

Heroes Marathon

Today we have been watching Heroes season 2. We are about half way through the marathon. It has been pretty good so far but they have been showing commercials for season 3 during the marathon which tends to give away some items. This evening we are doing pork chops on the grill. It's gonna be good.

Hospital Picnic

Today was our hospital picnic. It was at Red Hills State Park on the north side. They had a bounce house, snow cones and other various games for the kids and food for the adults. It was fun and we had a good turn out. I think everyone that was able to show from my department made it. There was only 2 that didn't show but one was working and the other was out of town for a seminar. Brando, Yin and Yuri was able to be there and it seemed like they had a lot of fun. Yin didn't want the games to end and Yuri still wasn't topped off after 2 snow cones. They had a good day as the threatening rain on the forecast never appeared and the temps wasn't too bad. Tonight I think we are going over to The Kings house to work on some CSF08 projects. Have a good weekend everyone.

Yin enjoying herself pestering Yuri that is on his second snow cone.

Weekend Progress

This weekend has been one of relaxation with a bit of work thrown it. Yesterday Needles and I ventured to the big city for a few items and some grocery shopping. When we arrived home we found ourselves with the challenge of finding a place to fit it all. Both of us has wandered into the kitchen and opened up the fridge to shout, "We ain't got not food!" This is somewhat funny as the fridge is full to the point of not being able to fit anything else in there. Last night after we got home we went over to the King of Halloween's house to talk about the upcoming Cache Slash Fest 2008. We confirmed previous plans and also talked over activities for the event. I think we are going to have 4 or 5 activities and our usual 8 caches. We are also in the midst of devising a survivor grand challenge for our guests but we still haven't got that part ironed out just yet. For the most part we know what we are going to do, we posted it now comes the time to try to make it all happen. It can be somewhat of a challenge but we have accomplished our task the last 3 years and I am sure this one will be like the rest. It seems very erratic and hectic at the time but some how it always seems to fall into place. I guess that is what happens when you got good help. I think that last night we have decided that after next year (2009) we are going to call it quits for the event. At that time we will have had the event 5 years and we think that it will be a good end point. We can always bring it back if we want to but with gas prices and people don't have as much money to spend on activities like this so we think the number of people that will attend might go down. CSF08 will be the litmus test of our these predictions, so only time will tell. Also I think we have been so busy this time of year we have started to see Halloween as work and not able to enjoy it as much as we have in the past. We made good progress at this stage of the game with plannning and we have even had some ideas to work on for next year. We didn't get home last night until almost 1am. Today we went to Needle's Mom's house and had lunch with most of the uncle's. We are now home staying inside and out of the heat. I think I am going to go out later and try to put up some new lights on the garage, that is if it cools off a little.

Weekend Doins

Yesterday morning I received a phone call from a friend that I haven't seen for awhile. I went over to mostly visit but he was also residing his garage. When I arrived we started prepping the wall with a new door surround, starter strips and J channel. While standing there a gust of wind blew through the area and one side of the door surround not nailed up yet blew over a smacked me in the face. It hurt but I was able to laugh it off and then go on about my work. About 15 minutes later I was standing on the deck, minding my own business when a wasp landed on my left foot and stung me between my big toe and the second toe. Needless to say I hopped around for a bit and tried to walk it off as my foot first throbbed and then felt like it was on fire for about half an hour. The sensation finally left but for the rest of the evening when I sat still for several minutes and then got up to walk, I could tell my toes were stiff. When I returned home Needles had chili prepared so I had a late lunch. Later that evening we settled in for T.V. watching and interwebing. Today I got up a little before Needles so I folded a couple loads of clothes and then went to Rudys house. When I arrived King of Halloween was there so we discussed the upcoming Cache Slash Fest Event. After that we went inside to watch a little T.V. and visit. Around 2:30 pm I returned home and Needles and I grilled out hot dogs. This evening I hauled off a load of limbs that we pruned out of the tree and put up a piece of siding that blew down last week. I also plugged up a couple of areas in the garage that birds have been trying to nest and get into my garage. Now we have settled in for the rest of the night. We received Vantage Point form Netflicks so we might watch it after our showers. Hope everyone had a good weekend.

Moving, Grillin and Sleepin

Last Thursday we left to travel South to Cynical and Ragged's new house. We arrived at the new house around 6:30pm. Cynical and Ragged arrived shortly after we got there with their cars packed full of boxes. After helping them unpack we followed them back to the house to load up all three vehicles and then back to the new house. I am not sure how many trips we made but later in the evening we ordered pizzas and it was excellent. It was from a new place called Pizza by the Guy and it reminded me of pizza we used to order here locally from the Pizza House. That evening we returned back to the old house to relax and finally to retire for the night. Friday we awoke to a bit of soreness, Cynical and Ragged making a run to the new house for an early appliance delivery and breakfast prepared by our hosts. Scrambled eggs, turkey beacon and fresh fruit, yum. After that it was time to make the first of several runs for the day. Several runs later by various friends and family and we were starting to make a sizable dent in the move. For lunch, a stop off the Panera Bread and before long it was time to pick up the Uhaul 17 foot box truck. That is when we loaded up a lot of the big and heavy furniture. We made one run with the box truck and other support vehicles and it was time to rest for the evening. I think I measured our progress at around 70 to 75% and that time. By the end of the evening we had both beds assembled so that we could have a place to sleep for the night. The shower felt good on our sore and stiff bodies and The Shogun filled our bellies to cap off the evening. I was the one that had to set at the end of the table and get a hot shrimp tossed up to be caught in my mouth. I think my big mouth was a pretty easy target for the guy. Saturday morning after a few minutes to work out the kinks in my back, Cynical and I made a run to Kroger and picked up begals and fresh fruit for breakfast. Shortly after Needles and I had our coffee it was time to get back to it. For the most part we had another load with the box truck and other vehicles and we were pretty well finished. Later in the day after some debate we ordered Chinese take out and the food was wonderful. That night the house was falling into place and things were finding there place to be. It was neat to be able to be there to see an empty space become a loving home for a couple and kitties that definitely deserve it. Sunday morning we finished off the Chinese food we couldn't finish the night before and before long it was time to go. We decided to cut our visit short and go to my parents house to visit them and also see an Uncle that has been having some health issues that may make his presence somewhat questionable over the next months and years. We hated to leave our hosts and we hope to see them again very soon.

Today Needles and I grilled out on our new Weber grill. It is a B-day present from Needles and it worked great. Needles had a monster sirloin and I had my usual NY strip. Mmmmmmm.

Thank you Sweetheart.