My Morning Reflections/The Big Red(Cincinnati Red) Surge and Making the Big League

It was a little less humid this morning when I began my morning walk around 7:45....the City of Celina remains virtually dead and void of traffic and business, at least in the Downtown.  I wonder how many of the small shops and businesses will survive this ill planned fiasco of making wider the Main Street?  All that supported it should be fired and/or denied re-election at their next turn...it is a minor disaster and yet, like Obama and Company in DC, our local elected officials and their hired guns, continue to spend like drunken sailors, and ignore the will of the majority of Celina residents...while businesses will fail and residents pay through their wallets for the mistakes of the current city administration.

Meanwhile on my hour walk through to and down by Grand Lake, I snapped a photo of a train slowly moving through town.  Celina is void, for the most part, of train traffic these days....maybe the Gorman goes through locally 4 or 5 times per week...other towns to the north especially, still see dozens of trains run through and by their bergs on a daily basis.  Hicksville and Deshler come to mind....Celina?  Not so much, and things are much quieter because of the lack of rail traffic.

As I hit Lake Shore Drive, I heard a horn honk and a hand wave out of a old Ford Pick-Up Truck...I looked and noticed it was my old friend "Whitey Klosterman"...Whitey the man with the classic Buick's from the late 40s and early 50s.   I had not seen him since the spring high school baseball season, when I would talk with him at the Fort Jennings games I umpired....his grandson was a star on that team and the Muskie basketball team as well, and is heading to Ohio Northern University to play round ball this winter.  I have known Whitey for over 35 years, and coached his son Jeff in Little League when I first got out of the Air Force.  Whitey, his wife, and I talked for about 15 minutes, before I resumed my walk...our conversation of course was about sports, and the deep seeded problems of the City of Celina and it's Administration...seems I'm not alone in my disgust.  Regardless it was a good walk and a good chance to talk with him.

The Reds take command of the NL Central_____

Despite playing, or at least running the bases poorly, last night, the Cincinnati Reds pulled out a 5-4 10 innings victory over visiting Milwaukee to move 6 games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals in the Central Division....as Reds fans,  this is the latest in the season we can actually say we are paying attention to what the guys are doing.  Dusty Baker(and I've never been a big fan of his) has this young squad(with veterans in the right spots) playing as well as anybody in baseball these days, and if they can keep or even increase the lead over the next 5 games with the Brewers then on the road at St. Louis, it appears the Cincinnati Boys will find themselves in the playoffs for the first time since 1995.  The Reds have not had a winning season since 1999, and this year has been a treat.

Cincinnati is bringing up a Cuban refugee named Chapman tonight to put in the Bullpen....the kid has been clocked at 105 MPH with his fastball, and is something to see...just his being in the dugout, should bring out the fans hopeful of getting to see his heat at work.

Local Kids in the "Bigs"____

While Chapman is the talk of Reds baseball, a local kid it appears, will be called up to the San Diego Padres.  Cory Luebke toiled at Ohio State for 3 years before being drafted in the first supplemental round by San Diego a few years ago.  He has found his groove in the minors, and the Marion Local product from nearby Maria Stein is on the verge of getting the call.  Cory will mark the 3rd MLB pitcher that I have had the opportunity to work behind the plate when they were pitching in their high school, ACME, or American Legion days, before the made it to the big show.  My youngest son Hal, also had a chance to coach Luebke back in his summer ACME days a few years back.

The other 2 hurlers, Chad Billingley(LA Dodgers) and Jonathon Niece(NY Mets) graduated from Defiance High School, and I worked a few of their games back in the early and mid parts of this decade.  Another area product, Craig Stammen, from Versailles, is with the Washington Nats...I didn't get the chance to work any of his games in high school, but he makes 4 that I am familiar with from the area.  On a side note, Stammen has joined The MacOnline, and will soon be writing a blog about his experiences, "View from the Dugout"....you can find a link on my "Riff Reff" The Official View blog, which you can click on the right side of this site. 

Quite a lot of local flavor to watch in the National League for the remainder of this baseball season....

Meanwhile the heat and humidity will continue for a few days at least....I need to get off my duff and take a trophy from last season's Dartball Campaign to Wren and get it engraved...that should have been weeks ago, guess I'll find time today...

back later>>>>>

Photos-A rare site in Celina these days, a train slowly rolls through the city as I approach the Buckeye Street crossing about 8 this morning.   The Reds try to take a strangle-hold on the NL Central, and local product Cory Luebke, it appears, will be joining fellow Western Ohio hurlers, Chad Billingsley, Jonathon Niese(both from Defiance), and Craig Stammen(Versailles) in hurling in the National League this final month of the regular season.

Reviewing the Weekend and the Glenn Beck Rally coverage

Taking my 3 mile walk around Celina and Lake Shore Drive this morning, one major thing had happened since my walk on Friday...the humidity had returned, in force...of course I knew that from yesterday's recreational football league double header...after 3 low humidity type days, the heat and humid conditions came back with a vengeance.  The games lasted 4 1/2 hours total, and the Celina White team split the games with Union City...losing the JV contest 34-13 before coming out on top in the varsity game 28-0....needless to say the beer went down good when I reached the confines of my own back yard...I was bushed!

On Saturday I was supposed to officiate a JV high school game at Waynesfiled-Goshen High School...however at Midnight on Friday night, the AD called, saying that there were so many injuries in that nights game, they had to cancel, ouch!  First game of the season and the injuries are that numerous...not a good start.

On Friday night Celina lost as I predicted, 35-14 to Versailles...but they did play much better than expected, leading 7-0 and 14-7 before the Tigers wore down the young Bulldogs...other winners included Marion Local, Kenton over Coldwater, and St. Henry and Delphos St Johns on Saturday night.  I'm off until Thursday when I head to St. Henry for a Junior High double header.

Glenn Beck's Restoring Honor Rally_____

I almost laughed this morning when I saw the CBS News estimate of the crowd in DC for the Glenn Beck rally...87,000???  What the Hell rally were they viewing?  Even far left NBC projected the crowd at at least 300,000...my guess is that it is close, if not over a half million.  But you'll never convince the far left and atheist loons that the peaceful rally was non-political.  If anybody watched(and I did on the Internet, which had about 175,000 views and it was also live on C-Span), they could tell it was much larger than anything the left could ever muster...and the Tea Party and Conservative Christians in attendance left the place spotless, unlike the far left "Progressive" crowd that trashed the place after the Obummer Inauguration .   Yep a pretty clean and calm group of a half million or so patriotic  folks.  No signs, no riots, no rants, just a good group of folks, at least it seemed so from afar.


There were many views on the crowd size and opinions of why an who they were....but nobody could doubt that they were well behaved...something the loons on the left and far left could never hope to be.

Here are links to stories about the rally:

From "The American Thinker':
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/08/was_the_restoring_honor_rally.html
And the left is really gnashing their teeth about Tony LaRusso and Albert Pujols taking part:
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/08/ballplayer_albert_pujols_a_rea.html

The Beck Website:
http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/44980/

And Fox Nation:
http://www.thefoxnation.com/glenn-beck/2010/08/30/ap-beck-rally-signals-election-trouble-dems

Even the far left AP knows their buddies in the DNC are in trouble come November:
http://www.thefoxnation.com/glenn-beck/2010/08/30/ap-beck-rally-signals-election-trouble-dems

Read em' and weap lefties....


The week ahead looms hot and humid...and if I've said it once, I've said it a few dozen times...I'm sick of this summer and ready for the cooler, less humid days of fall.

back later

Photos-The Restoring Honor Rally by all counts was a massive success...Part of the Crowd from Saturday...Glenn Beck were 2 of the speakers, but there was much more....so much more.

West Central Ohio Perfect Weather/and a near perfect football game

You can probably count the number of "perfect days", weather-wise, in this part of the country on both hands...there just are not that many.  Yesterday, and it appears today, will be a couple of those 'hand full" of days.

I shut down the A/C when I got home on Wednesday from officiating football in Delphos, yesterday was near 80, with low humidity, and when I woke up today to begin my walk, the thermometer read 52 degrees..  No fog, no dew, just dry and sunny conditions as I left the house at 7:30.  Despite the trashed streets in Celina, from the construction, the walk was a pleasant hour trek through Celina and along Lake Shore Drive.  Yes indeed, these days are rare, and you have to get outside to enjoy the few we have.  I'll be outside most of the day, if to do nothing else by drive the open Jeep Wrangler around the area, or set on the back steps and watch the Sunflowers fade from their peak, and the bees get the last of the pollen from them.

An excellent Football Game_____

A good football game on Wednesday was followed by an excellent one last night...both opening season games at the Junior High level...that is a rarity in itself.

Traveling the 30 miles north and west to Crestview High School at Convoy, I was slated to work a 3 man crew with one of my association members, Terry, and a 2nd year official from Lima, Mike.  Three man is always a challenge...even at the Junior High level.  Some schools use four for JH and JV football, other choose to use just three.  I took the middle, meaning I would do the work as the head referee and umpire, while Terry and Mike would take the "wings"(the side line officials).

Lima Central Catholic jumped out early to a 6-0 lead...and it stayed that way until midway through the final quarter.  The home standing Knights from Crestview drove the ball deep into LCC territory, where the drive stalled to a 4th and Goal at the T-Birds 3 yard line.  Crestview's big running back, a black kid that is a man among boys at this level(usually the kids that are this far ahead of the others come back to the pack by High School, but some remain ahead of the curve...and those are the guys you see playing on Saturday afternoons at the next level, this kid has that chance).  Big #35 drove the ball towards the goal as a gang of 5 or 6 LCC players tried to wrestle him to the ground.  As he hit the one yard line, he reached out and tried to get the pigskin to cross the plane of the goal line...a small LCC  player punched the football out before he could break that line, and the ball bounded into the end zone...the LCC players surround it, and came away with the ball, thus stopping the drive.

Lima Central drove the ball back to their 35, until a fumble set up Crestview with the ball, with about 4 minutes left in the game....a couple of plays later, the Knights punched the ball in, and there we were, tied...the conversion failed and the game remained deadlocked at 6.

To the T-Birds credit, they did not try to stall the game out...but it almost cost them the game.  A couple of incomplete passes and a punt put the ball on the Crestview 35 yard line with 27 seconds to go...a long bruising run by #35 put the ball at the LCC 30...and a time out and short play later, we were down to 3.4 seconds and Crestview was 30 or so yards away...it appeared we were heading for Overtime.

Crestview, with one more shot ran a play to the right side...as the original ball carrier was hit, he tossed the ball on a lateral to another running back, who scampered down to the 5 yard line, then as he was being dragged down, he tossed the ball to big lineman, who carried the ball to paydirt.  I had a pretty good angle and dropped the yellow flag....looking at my partners, who were signaling "Touchdown" , I blew my whistle and waved them both over...."Did you see anything I didn't"? I asked...Both admitted that they had no good angle on the "lateral"..."Well" I told them, "I did and it was forward by a yard or more, so I' m killing the TD".

Some protests followed the call, but I believe the Crestview coaches knew that the pass was forward and therefore illegal....we went to OT.  Crestview got the ball first at the 20 yard line, drove to the 3 where big #35 was stuffed at the 1 on 4th down....LCC then took over, and scored in just 3 plays to end the contest with a 12-6, hard fought victory.

I felt bad about making the call that moved the game into overtime...but in my heart and mind, I knew it was the right call...the game, especially for this early in the season, was outstanding.  No varsity work tonight, so I may walk to Celina Stadium to watch the hometown Bulldogs take on the storied Versailles Tiger program in the season opener for the varsity kids...the local team appears to be facing another long season, the wins will be hard to come by.  It's been 10 seasons since they had a winning record, and considering just how powerful this team was in the early 80s, then again throughout the 90s...it is indeed sad to see how far the program has dropped.  I wish the young coaching staff all the luck they can muster...they are going to need it.

Tomorrow morning I head for Waynesfield for a JV contest against Triad...

back later >>>>

Photos-The Sun shines bright over Grand Lake this morning...hiding the pollution from the Blue Green Algae...Celina's Bulldogs and other High School varsity teams kick off the season tonight, and the bees doing their best to take and spread the pollen off the back yard Sunflowers.

A Quickie....and Glenn Beck's DC Bash

A Quickie?  Well a short post anyway....

Sam and I headed to Delphos  for the first game of the season...a Junior High(Middle School) contest between Delphos Jefferson and league rival Columbus Grove...the visiting Bulldogs topped the Jeff Cats 22-14 in a well played game...considering the fact that the Junior High kids started practice later than the Varsity, and started the season a couple of days earlier(first time I can ever remember that happening) , the game went well.  Very few penalties, and both teams seemed in mid season form.  Tonight Sam has a JH game at Parkway, while I travel to Convoy for a Crestview-LCC 8th grade game.

After the game we drove to Van Wert for a local rules meeting, then this being our 4th meeting of the year, we headed to Pizza Hut to view some football video, eat the pizza buffet, and down some brew.  Sadly the only beer on tap last night was Killean's Red...nasty stuff, but the price was right(free), so I down 3 or 4 glasses or so...and I feel it this morning.


Ended up I slept in until about 8:30, got my walk in, albeit a shortened one, and grabbed a muffin and coffee.  Yesterday, with a 3 mile walk, mowing mom's lawn, and the football last night...my aging body is more than a little sore...damn, I hate getting old!

So that's about it...more football tonight and Saturday morning, our yard to mow sometime, probably tomorrow or Saturday afternoon...that is at least the plan, football is here for the next couple of months, and I've got some 40 games to work, at all levels.
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I do have one political thing to mention...Glenn Beck is having his big bash in Washington DC on Saturday, I should have taken the time off to head that way....because the media, at least the radical left wing media(which most all are, except Fox), will either bash it or ignore it.  The racists in the so called "Black Community and their lily white media cohorts already are:

http://www.rr.com/news/topic/article/rr/9009/19670977/Beck_rally_on_anniversary_of_Kings_Dream_speech

Not to biased a story is it?    The Hell it isn't!!!
Here is the real purpose of Beck's call to action:

http://www.glennbeck.com/828/

The left wing media and hard core black racists like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackass, and Barry Obama Soetoro....will turn any event in by Beck or his ilk into some sort of race baiting story....screw them.  Glenn Beck actually honors Martin Luther King, which is more than I would do...King was a Marxist and a freaking womanizer who used his power for many less than heroic pursuits....there I've said it, don't like it?  Tough Shit!  He was all of that and worse, and sure the Hell shouldn't have day honoring him. There are many good African Americans, Walter Williams, Allan Keyes, Thomas Sowell, and many more....Jackson, Sharpton, and Obama are not among them.  While King did many good things, he was by no stretch an honest man, or one worthy of putting on a pedestal.

Thousands will show up, probably hundreds of thousands, but the "lame stream media" will focus on a few hundred counter protesters...no doubt bussed in by ACORN, union trash, and the DNC.....screw the race baiters, because we know who the real racists are, and it's not Beck and Company.

Beck's event already has 110,000 friends on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/restoringhonor?v=info

back later>>>>>>

Walking in a Fog....along Grand Lake St. Marys

Yesterday when I resumed my hour long morning walks through the under construction streets of Celina, and around Lake Shore Drive on the north shore of Grand Lake...the day had dawned sunny with a nice breeze.  Last night as I sat out on the back step downing a Guinness Extra Stout and finishing off a cigar that I had started on Sunday evening...that cool breeze gave me the idea to shut down the A/C and open up the windows in the house.  By the time Patricia woke me up at 7 this morning, the breeze was gone, and the fog had rolled in.  The first day back to school for her students and some others in the area(Celina students head back tomorrow).  Fog and the start of school just seem to go hand-in-hand.   Only one delay, that a 2 hour affair at Coldwater, St. Henry, and the rest that are opening, started on schedule.

The fog was just starting to lift a bit when I headed out on the morning constitutional....my hour long excursion took me through the all-but-deserted streets of downtown Celina, and then around the lake drive where a the usual half dozen large Herons, waiting to grab a fish, and the female Mallards swimming along the blue algae crusted shore line....


I will make it a habit to take the Fuji Digital along on the walks that I plan on 5 or 6 days a week....the Herons didn't stick around long as I approached them, but I did get the blurry image of the one at the top as he grabbed a Crappie from along the shore line...guess the birds don't read the signs that blare "Don't Touch the Lake Water, or You'll Die a Horrible Death"?  Nope guess those guys can't read.  For some reason I don't see a lot of dead birds along the shoreline...wonder why?{insert sarcastic face here}

There was a film of algae in the old "Hot Water Hole"...named that for the unfrozen state that this small portion of the lake remained in throughout the winter months in year's past.  The bay, named the hot water hole, remained warm because of the discharge of heated water that was pumped there from the old City of Celina Power Plant...thousands of Shad also pooled there, and fisherman would snag them for entertainment...it had to be entertainment, because the smelly, bone ridden fish were not worth eating, even when Grand Lake was a somewhat clean body of water back in the 1960s.  I loved to fish as a kid, but could never figure out the enjoyment of snagging the Shad and then tossing their bodies to rot and stink up the coming spring.

By the time I reached home, the sun had tried to burn off the fog, and some blue sky appeared to the west...as I type, we are getting a mix of clouds and hazy sunshine.  

Today will be the last day before my football schedule begins in earnest.  Tomorrow a Junior High game at Delphos, then another at Crestview Thursday...those are followed by a JV game Saturday morning at Waynesfield and a Rec League Double Header to kick off that season on Sunday here in Celina.  That should give me an idea of how my legs and back will hold out....meanwhile, I'm off to get a haircut...

back later>>>>

Photos-A Blue Heron takes flight this morning with a hapless Crappie as breakfast...The "Hot Water Hole" and the accompanying "Warning Death Awaits You" sign from the State of Ohio BureauRats at ODNR....which I guess the above mentioned Heron, and the dozen plus female Mallard Ducks failed to heed, as I walked along Lake Shore Drive this morning.

Rethinking the Workout Routine, Plus-Celina and Grand Lake, still on the skids!

It was 50 weeks ago today that I started on the "Diabetes II" Diet plan from the dietitian at the Hospital at St. Marys.  That means in 2 weeks a full year will have passed, since it began.  Like all diets, mine has had it's ups and downs...lucky for me, most of those have been "Down".  As in weight, blood pressure, and blood sugar numbers going down.  I have, however, noticed the past 3 weeks since baseball ended, that my weight has inched up a handful of pounds.  Starting out in the 210 pound range, I was bound and determined to drop 25 or 30 pounds by the first year's end....I had dropped 27 by early May and was as low as 183, the bp had dropped from an average of 155/85 to a reasonable 120/68 or so.  The blood sugar had also dropped.  However, since my last baseball umpiring gig the first weekend of August, I noticed that I had crept back up to the 188 mark.  

With Patricia heading back to school today, I told her to start waking me up at 7am.  I had been crawling out of the sack between 7:30 and 8:30 most mornings..."no more" I told her, get me up, and I need to get back on the walking kick I had given up during the hot weather...so this morning I headed out towards the torn up streets and financial mess that is called "Downtown Celina, Ohio"...I would also walk along the north shore of our Grand Lake, that now has become a 13,000 acre abused cesspool of Blue/Green Algae Bloom.   Those two items right there are enough to raise the lowest of blood pressure.

Anyhow, off I went with camera in hand to record the first day back on the walk...more walking, less beer, fewer hand rolled cigars, are in the future as football officiating begins in full this Wednesday with a game at Delphos.  I need to drink less, if for no other reason than to save money for my annual trip to the Au Sable in Michigan in late October...but the real reason is, I've just been downing too damn many beers....and I do love my brews.  I won't be quitting, nothing that rash, but will cut back, especially on the weekends and non game days.  When it's hot, you can bet I will still be downing a few after the games....that won't change.  But less red meat, and a few more green veggies will put me back on the diet plan that the dietitian laid out for me 50 weeks ago....I still want to drop those last 8 pounds, so I can say I dropped the full 30 pounds.

When I was lifting weight 4 or 5 times a week, back in a 15 year period from 1987-2002, I had balooned up to 225 or so pounds...once I gave up the muscle head stuff, I dropped a few pounds, but could never keep off what I wanted or needed to....the past year has proven I can do it...but sometimes I need to kick myself in the ass, to make sure I don't forget what got me to lose the weight in the first place.  These next few weeks should bring that back to practice. I also thought about getting back into some weight training...but at 61 1/2 years...I'm still up in the air on that one.  The last few times I've tried, I have overdone the weights and pulled something, somewhere.  So I will sleep on that a few more days...but the 1 hour walk in the morning is definitely back on the agenda.



Celina and Grand Lake____

As for the other subjects, Celina, and Grand Lake St. Marys...things don't seem to be getting much better.

The street projects in downtown Celina and on Buckeye Street continue to make the city a mess...why bother washing your ride?  Buckeye Street is nowhere near completion, except a small portion of the north end.  Meanwhile Main Street is just getting started.  They say the project, that has closed down 3 blocks of US 127(Main Street), will have one portion completed by November and the last project completed by Memorial Day 2011...Wanna Bet?

I'd bet any takers, a case of Drambuie(that's about $450), that this lame ass, ill advised plan, isn't done anywhere near that target date, and Buckeye Street may take even longer.

Of course they say,  this is all for the improvement of the business climate and traffic in the downtown...Hell the business climate is dead as a Arctic winter, and our fearless leaders want to tear down more buildings to put in more freaking parking lots that nobody uses now.   Is it any wonder Wal-Mart is building along highways and byways and destroying the downtown's?  It's not Wally World's fault, it's incompetent "leaders" of the various villages and towns.  Celina is a prime example of how not to run a city of 11,000 folks.

Then there is Grand Lake....hand dug in the 1830 and 1840s as a feeder for the Miami-Erie Canal....over the years it was a shallow(usually 6 to 8 feet deep in most locations), that was a great boating, bathing, and fishing "reservoir".  Sure, it had problems, the surrounding dwellings were not central sewered and many of the large farms used the place as a private dumping ground for chemicals and manure...you know, hog, cow, and other livestock toilets?  After all, don't talk bad about the farmers in Mercer or Auglaize Counties....because that is the major industry here.

 So the boating, swimming and even the fishing is off limits, and if you fish, for gawd'sshitter....

By this time next year, I can't comprehend how many businesses on and around Grand Lake will be no more....and the number in downtown Celina to fall to the whims of an out of control local government, may equal those gone on the lake.

It's going to be one long winter in and around Grand Lake...and if my guess is correct, it will take many years for the lake and Celina to recover from the incompetence of government and the pure criminal activity of those that turn a blind eye to the pollution of Grand Lake.  Jail time and sever fines are needed for the polluters. Those responsible for the mess in downtown Celina need to be voted out and their hand picked mishandlers of the tax payers money need to be fired!

As far as me....I plan on dropping a few more pounds, and watch the world go bye...Obama destroying the Republic, and local and state political hacks lending a hand in destroying Celina and Grand Lake.  They get you coming or going....bend over America, in Mercer County and elsewhere, this is gonna hurt, big time!

back later>>>>

Photos(double click for larger views)-As you can see, Grand Lake really doesn't look bad, and I believe the pollution has been overstated by the State DNR and EPA...but the damage from them and the pollution from the mega dairy and hog farms and other smaller farms, by people without a conscience has been done.  Meanwhile in Celina Main Street at 8:30 on a Monday Morning looks like a ghost town, and Buckeye Street, now in disrepair for many months, is nowhere near being completed.  But hey, I can at least enjoy my little jungle of a back yard, and watch the 100 or so Sunflowers of different shades and colors out their last days before fall takes hold of the heartland.

Rio Bravo Great American entertainment, The Obummer and Michelle Obama Great American Morons...

I sat back and enjoyed one of my favorite western movies, in fact one of my favorite movies period last night...Rio Bravo from 1959 was on AMC.  John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Walter Brennen, and Angie Dickinson starred in the action/western from over 50 years ago.  One of Wayne's best movies, even though at times Angie and Ricky seemed to be sleep walking through their lines....the performances by Big John, Dean Martin, and classic character actor Brennen were outstanding.

If you look at my right side bar and check out my music selection, you will find several songs by Nelson and a couple more by Dean Martin...both men are among my favorite musical artists from yesteryear.


The two combined on a couple of excellent western songs for this project....and they can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IpEnsdXwFM&feature=search

The second song Cindy Cindy is sung mostly by Nelson:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPYCJlFfhW8&feature=related

This is pure American Movie entertainment...then I look on Road Runner this afternoon and read about a pure American(or is he Kenyan?) Moron:

While many Americans are out of work, this sorry son of a Kansas whore, and his Michelle Antoinette of a wife continue to piss away tax payers money, all for the glory of their own massive egos: http://www.rr.com/news/topic/article/rr/9008/19325153/Obama_doesnt_travel_light___even_on_vacation

Make no mistake, I despised Jimmy Carter as President...can't stand Bill Clinton or his wife...but these two assholes are pure freaking evil.....what a way to ruin a good Sunday, I knew I should have never turned on the Internet News today....but what the Hell?  One enjoyable movie and one major league asshole named The Obummer, are it for today.

back later>>>>

Poster-Rio Bravo from 1959, and Obama the Asshole Kenyan from 2010







 

The Little Green Van....circa 1975

Hot, but not so humid today....and it appears that some rain will roll through tomorrow, then a cool down to the lower and middle 80s is predicted, with dry conditions for the next week or so.....

On occasions on this blog I have written about my adventures back in the "Wild Days" following my stint in the Air Force....those days, beginning in late 1973 ran for about a 4 year period...when Patricia got married in December 1976 and moved to outside Wausau, Wisconsin, in 1977, put those behind me.  Now mind you, I never have grown up, and never really settled down....but from that time I returned to Celina from Upstate New York, until we left for the frozen north....I was, even in my own estimate, pretty much out of control at times.

In late 1974 while managing The Red Door, an infamous "watering hole" in downtown Celina, still being single, I purchased my first house, thanks to the GI Bill...that house is located just one block north and across Brandon Avenue from where I live today...but many towns, miles, and adventures took place in the 20 years between that first house, and the one we purchased in 1995, where we live today.

Patricia and I lived in that house, for 3 years...she stayed there, working at Celina Insurance Group,when I headed off to college in Athens, Ohio. 

Early in 1975, I had a AMC Hornet and a Kawasaki Motorcycle as transportation...but I felt I needed something to bum around in...take the Coon Hounds hunting in and making some of the gangs famous road trips with.   Looking around I picked out a 1960 Ford Panel Van that had a folding bed installed...a little rust, a few too many miles, but hey!  It Ran!  For the next 18 months that van became a second home.  I let Patricia use the Hornet, while I alternated, depending on the weather, driving the van or riding the Kaw.

Friends and hanger-ons used that van in various moves, I hauled the dogs in it to our night hunts, and drove it around the area....in the Summer of 1975, Mike Schilling, Jim Olson, and I decided to head to Florida...we would head to my old home town, Venice, fish and camp for a couple of days, then work our way back north.  Stops would include Busch Garden in Tampa, Disney World, and few days at Daytona Beach.  We then would head up I-95 and Myrtle Beach...before heading home to Ohio.

Flat tires, unfinished Interstate 75, summer rains, sunburns, and 25 cases of beer, were part of the memories of that 10 day excursion to Florida and back...it was amazing that we survived.  We put Mike's CB Radio in it and worked our way down and back...the Ford had no shocks to speak of, bald tires, and 3 guys, 25 cases of canned beer, 2 Kawasaki Dirt Bikes, and fishing gear...I've written about the trip before on this blog, and you can find those stories by following the labels listed at the bottom....

The main theme today however are my memories of that crazy van....I paid $400 for it, don't remember what I did with it...did I sell it outright, trade it, junk it?  To tell the truth, I cannot remember.  I do know it was gone by the time I returned from Athens and Nelsonville...gone, but never forgotten.

That the short of it for today...enjoy the rest of the weekend.

back later>>>

photos-The year was 1975...I seemed old, but Hell I was just 26, Patrica 22, and the guys I hung out with were younger than me....#1 Me and the Van at Daytona Beach, with Schilling's and my Kawasaki Dirt Bikes tucked inside....mine was legal on the Beach, his wasn't, then as Oscar Sheer State Park in my old home town of Venice, Florida.  Finally the glorious Ford Van parked on the street next to the house on Fulton and Brandon in Celina...The other ride, my 1974 AMC Hornet in front on Brandon Street...and me(left) and Jim Olson at Disney World in June 1975, the van, unsafe at any speed, got us there and back...somehow!

Rambling Thoughts for a Late Summer's Day

Here we go....

Summer enters it's final month, and I would usually say that this makes me sad...however, with the heat returning after 3 nice and less humid days, I cannot say with any honesty that I will miss the passing of this summer and it's weather...way too humid to really enjoy most of the activity out-of-doors.

As far as the state of the world and the former Republic called the United States...I could fire up my rants about the Kenyan-and-Thief, Barry Soetoro Obama, and his continued quest to destroy the country and turn it into a Islamic Bowing, Socialist Shithole, like our Euro "Allies" have done to most of their continent.  But then why bother?  The 40% who either agree with him, or are to stupid to understand what is happening, are not worth the effort...screw em', those fools will find out soon enough, they would be the first ones executed under Sharia Law, gays, Marxists, women, and liberals, have to realize that the radical Islamics hate them more than, they hate Jews and Christians...and that is a pretty solid hate.  Lock and Load....

Of course there is sports, especially the Cincinnati Reds and the run they are on....another come-from-behind win in Arizona last night has pushed my favorite team 3 games ahead of the perennial division champions, The St. Louis Cardinals.  Still a long way to go, but the upstart Redlegs have at least kept their fans interested in the games...usually by this time of the year, we have completely tuned them out, and are waiting for the NFL and NCAA Football seasons to start....not this year though, the Reds are keeping us entertained.

So politics, sports, and hot weather, are in the forecast for the foreseeable future....along with a good colletion of decent hand rolled cigars, and looking forward to the fall beer collection, as they roll out in a month or so....I am ready for Fall!

But tonight I head for St. Henry,  and work a scrimmage to begin my football season, just in time for the hot weather's return...tomorrow back at it here in Celina, for a Freshman Scrimmage....then next week it begins in full, including High School, Junior High, and Recreational League games.

Patricia begins her school year on Monday,  and Anissa returns to her fall schedule at the MRDD Workshops...Classes for Sam are about a month away at Ohio State, but he will be working for the athletic department and the Big Ten Network, off and on for the next few weeks, along with his football officiating.   Hal, still without a full time teaching job, will sub in the Dayton area schools, and continue his full time job with Autistic youth in that area.  And if I forgot to mention, he and his girl friend Lisa have began to look for places to hold their planned February 2011 Wedding.  Lisa, a recent graduate of the University of Dayton Law School, has secured a new job recently, working as an advocate for the Autistic as well...to be honest I am not sure exactly what the titles are, but am glad that both her and Hal are at least working in this age of Obama, many are not.

I went out and checked the Sunflowers earlier, and the bees are doing their thing on them....I will grow more next year, unless the entire economy tanks(which it has a pretty good chance of doing), and I have to plant all food to keep on the table.

Enough Rambling for today...

back later>>>

Photos-The Bees and Sunflowers make a great mix as Summer winds down....and Go Reds!

Switching Seasons....and Scott, Ohio, out of the past!

Unlike the Major League Baseball season, which is in full "race to the wire" mode...college, high school, youth, and minor league baseball has or is coming to an end in the next few days.  The Little League World Series will take place in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, starting next week, and the professional Minor Leagues will end their seasons early next month with the respective playoffs.  I stayed up last night as the Cincinnati Reds began the most important road trip of the season in Arizona.  The Reds came from behind to defeated the D-Backs 6-2, to move 2 full games ahead of St. Louis in the National League Central.  As a Reds fan, it's nice actually having an interest in how the games are going this late in the season.  It's been awhile.

My baseball season as an umpire ended a couple of weekends ago....and I have enjoyed the respite.  Tomorrow I work my first football scrimmage of the season.  I'll head to the wife's school and work a 6 man Junior High Scrimmage at St. Henry.  They will run the 7th grade and 8th grade on opposite ends of the field, and 3 of us will each work one side.  I have to admit I have not worked out much since baseball ended...we will see how this old body stretches out in the 93 degree predicted heat.

Tonight, I will head to Van Wert to take in another Rules Meeting with our Mid West Buckeye Football Association.  This will give me 4 local meetings to go with my State Meeting, which will complete my requirements for keeping my license current and legal.   I will however take in the rest as I have time...the more I can learn, the better off me and the games I officiate are.

Things are admittedly slow...Patricia heads back to school for the year on Monday, Anissa will begin her full sessions at MRS and Cheryl Ann starting Friday, and Sam will be back and forth between here and Columbus.  Working down there at OSU for the Big Ten Network and OSU.com, and up this way doing Junior High and JV Football, and Rec League on Sundays.

Slow or not, with baseball races in full race to the finish, and college and NFL Football around the corner, I have some diversions to keep me interested.

Scott, Ohio, USA____

I was born in Van Wert, Ohio, back in 1949...but the family resided in the small village of Scott, which was located on the Van Wert and Paulding County Line Road.  The town of 300 or so was my home for the first 5 years of my life, until dad picked up stakes and moved south to Venice, Florida, located on the Gulf of Mexico in Sarasota County...there we remained for the next decade, until once again we moved, this time back to Ohio, and settled in the Celina and Mercer County area, that I reside in today.

Scott, Venice, and Celina, I consider my "hometowns", having lived in those 3 places for about 55 of my 61 years...thrown in were also my Air Force days, and a brief time in Wisconsin, upstate New York, Indiana, Kansas, after my Air Force days.

I pulled out some old photographs the other day.  Those from my Grandma Houseworth's collection range from before the 20th century through the 1960s.  Many, if not most, are from Scott, Ohio, in the days before I was born in 1949.  Scott today has less than 250 folks, and there are few businesses...one thing that remains is the Scott Elevator, although the original burnt down long ago, as did the replacement...I believe this is the 3rd building on the site.....anyway Scott now has a Facebook Page that is taken care of by a friend of mine, and "Scott, Ohio, Fans" .  I have posted some old photos there, and am in the process of scanning others that I plan on posting in the next few days and weeks....gives me some work in my extra spare time.  Isn't retirement great?

I guess I could spend my time bitching about Obama or watching the excuse makers for Islamic Terrorism support the building of a Muslim Terrorist Outhouse near ground zero....but why waste the energy?  I long ago gave up trying to change the minds of those cowards and fools that are blind and cannot see the evil at their doorstep.

back later>>>>

Photos-Home in Scott, Ohio,  on Leave 1943, left to right, Marlo Beech, his younger brother Harold, Stan Houseworth(1917-1972) , and my Aunt Eva's dog "Tiny".  Wilda Waldron Houseworth(1883-1975) standing, with co-worker at the Scott Phone Company around 1920.  And the original Scott Elevator and Exchange around 1915.  More photos can be found at "Scott Ohio Fans" on Facebook.

One Fine(Cooler, Less Humid) Day!

Finally, after another week or more of hot(mid 90s) humid(way up) days, yesterday we could shut down the A/C and open the windows...of course with the city shutting down Main Street, the truckers and others have found Livingston and Brandon Streets as alternative routes, making the street noise at night pretty loud.  Oh' Well, can't have it all our way....

The Mammoth and Moonwalking Sunflowers have almost all bloomed, and are now heading towards becoming a seed festival for the Squirrels....meanwhile the "Mexicans", and Evening Shade variety continue to pop out...and finally a couple of "Teddy Bear" Sunflowers made their appearance, completing the circle of all types I planted back in May.  As I have mentioned I am pretty educated in Biology and Environmental Health, but hardly a Horticulturist...I do however enjoy growing the various Sunflower varieties, and plan on increasing the types and numbers next Spring.  Sunflowers, for the most part, are useful...you can cure and eat the big seeds, use them for stock, or feed them to the critters throughout the winter months.

Patricia is enjoying her last week before schools starts...one more year towards her retirement, if there will be any retirement by the time Obama the Asshole gets done screwing the economy and Republic over.   I think she has 8 or 9 years to go...by the time, I'll be 70 or pushing up another flower, the Daisy.

My Summer Break is also about finished...Thursday I head over to where Patricia teaches, St. Henry, and do my first football scrimmage of the season, a Junior/Middle School contest.   I follow that up here in Celina Friday for a Freshman scrimmage...then next week the real season begins with games at Delphos, Crestview, and Waynesfield-Goshen.  September and October will be busy with games scheduled sometimes 6 days a week, with meetings on the 7th(Wednesday).  I will finish up October heading with Nick to northern lower Michigan for our annual Salmon Run, complete with Beer, Drambuie, and plenty of good cigars on the agenda...and yes, we hope to catch some fish, but if not, we plan on enjoying the trip anyway.

Time for a little lawn mowing before the good weather ends.  It is supposed to be hot and humid by Thursday and Friday...so out I go to fire up the Toro.

back later>>>>

Photos-top/left A yellow Evening Shade about to bloom in full, took this photo in the gloom of last evening.  One of a couple of "Teddy Bear" Sunflowers that finally came out...and a full Red Evening Shade, I really enjoy this color....

Check out Riff Reff's opinions on the botched PGA Championship in Kohler, Wisconsin...click the Blind Ref on the right border and enjoy>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>or disagree if you choose.

Report on the 10th Annual Bar Stool Open~Grand Lake Ohio

The heat continues, and the humidity too.....

{double click photos to enlarge and double click again to enlarge even more...scary thought, I know}

Bill Clem arrived from Marion, Ohio, just after 8 yesterday morning, and we put the coolers and an extra case of Yuengling Lager in the trunk...Bill's daughter lives in upstate NY, and he had picked up a case of that beer and brought it along for yesterday's Bar Stool Open, I had packed my cooler with water, diet coke, and a half dozen Miller Lites, we were set to go...Sam, Bill and I, would hook up with Nick, and the other team, Tim, Carl, Robin, and April, and load up the pontoon and head out on Grand Lake St. Marys, despite the OEPA and ODNR and the "Dire Warnings" not to come in contact with the lake or the blue-green Algae Bloom.

We arrived at the dock at Bayview Bar and Grill(which would be our finishing hole), 7 of us, Tim's wife April would pass on the fun, seems she had a late night and wasn't quite ready for the 9am kick off....so we headed the pontoon for our first hole at Duck Foot's landing.  It was already hot and humid, with a few storms on the way across the Indiana line, heading for Celina and Grand Lake.

Sam, despite being a CDL Certified truck and RV driver, had never piloted a boat...be he would be our DBD(Designated Boat Driver) for the long day ahead.  We started off well at Duckfoot's...as a team our 4 members shot a 9(4 shots max for each golfer, each hole), that was followed by a 10 at Behm's Landing...Bill managed a hole-in-one on each hole, to bad only one was for our team, the other was playing as "April" for the Duck Hazmat team, our team as usual over the years was Duckguana, whatever the Hell and why Nick named it that is still a mystery.

As we arrived across the lake on the north side, at our 4th hole at The Wooden Eagle, the sky opened up and we were treated to a half hour downpour....then as quickly as it came, the rain ended and we headed towards Celina.  The rest of the day would continue, sunny, hot, and humid, with the only relief being when the boat was moving at a moderate pace across the lake.

We finished up around 6....not sure where we finished in the 98 team field, but we did cart a 133, while the other Duck team came up with a 129, and the only female, Robin finishing with the best score...I carted a 33 for the 13 holes, with no holes-in-one and zero max 4s as well...all twos and threes.

So how did this years event stack up to the past years?  

Well, needless to say, there were less boats, because of the warnings....maybe 20 in total, as compared to the usual 100-125.  With cancellations, there were 98 teams, as the past few years had approached the 175-185 mark.  Most of the 400 some participants had used buses provided and used them, or used a DD, and motored around the course on their own....we, being the fools we were, stuck with the boat, and all had a great time...at least that's the report.

So the revenues for the Lake Improvement Association's largest fundraiser were indeed down....all because of the criminal activities of some local farmers, and the inaction by the State of Ohio, it's politicians and bureaucrats, who for way too long have stuck their heads in the sand.

We were home by 8pm...and Bill, having stayed away from the beer for the last half of the day, headed back to Marion....I got home, watch the Reds hold off the Florida Marlins, to reclaim a share of first place in the NL Central, and hit the sack about 11.

No hangover, and feeling pretty good this morning, despite the sun, humidity, beer, and the rest of the 10th Annual Bar Stool Open activities....hopefully things return to normal for # 11 next August.

Enjoy the remainder of the weekend...back later>>>>

Photos- Top-The 7 that survived.  Standing( L to R), Bill, Carl, Tim, Sam, Robin, front, Me and Nick.   Oldest son Sam, taking his shot a working the bays and channels of Grand Lak on Nick's Pontoon.  Nick and Bill kicking back as we cross the lake.  Our drink of choice and a good cigar.   And on the final hole, Bill, Robin, and Carl, all dropped in hole-in-ones.

Algae Bloom on Grand Lake and the 10th Annual Bar Stool Open

The heat and humidity continue and so does the increased Algae pollution on Grand Lake...and it has began in other more "pristine" lakes such as Indian Lake and Lake Loramie.  Our 13,000 acre cesspool still is the major focus locally however, as the 10th annual "Bar Stool Open" kicks off tomorrow morning at 9am.  Despite the dire warnings and claims from folks trying to make a back from sickness claims, we will go by boat rather than take the car trip around the lake and the 13 participating bars, clubs, and other watering holes.

An old friend, Bill Clem, who has lived in Marion, Ohio, for the past 13 or 14 years, since leaving Celina, will join our 4 man team, along with Nick, Sam, and me....our boat will have 2 full teams, as we kick things off from Duckfoot's Bar.  The event is a shotgun start and Duckfoot's works for us, because Nick's pontoon is docked at Bayview Lodge, which will be the 13th and last hole on our scorecards.  The weather is slated to be hot and humid(what else is new this summer?), with a 40% chance of strong thunderstorms in the late afternoon.

This will be the 5th time in the past 6 years I have participated...and depending on Patricia and my schedule for our proposed "road trip" out west next year, with the southern and eastern trip scheduled in 2012, this may be the last one for a couple of years.  Of course with the condition of Grand Lake, and the area and national economy about to go in  the crapper...who really knows what the future holds?
Hal and his fiancee, Lisa, finish up their Ormond/Daytona Beach time share vacation tomorrow, and will begin the drive back to Ohio...Lisa out caught Hal 4 fish to 1 on their Deep Sea adventure...and I'm sure the youngest son is eating some crow over that....

I pulled the Jeep out this morning, and with top down, drove from Celina towards Van Wert County where I began a series of taking some photos of old bridges, churches, and abandon old school houses...I will post those as I go over the next weeks.  Mercer Counties vintage bridges are being torn down and replaced...but some classic ones remain the the Mercer, Van Wert, and Paulding County area...and the same can be said for old school houses, churches, and cemeteries....always good for some photography opportunities.

I'll post photos and commentary from the "Bar Stool Open" Sunday or Monday.....otherwise,

I'll be back later>>>>

Photos-Bar Stool Open #10 tomorrow rain or shine....A long ago abandoned church on Tomlinson Road, on the Van Wert-Mercer County Line, and just across the state line in Indiana, sets one of the last covered bridges in the area...The Ceylon Bridge is located outside the village of Geneva it sets in the Limberlost Park.  Built for the Amish buggy riding folks in 1860, it is closed to traffic these days.

Color Photos of The Great Depression 1939-1944/The Heat Lingers On...

I heard the other day that this Summer is on course to be the hottest in the heartland of the USA since the Great Depression beginnings of 1932.  I have little doubt that it may indeed be.  Of course the so called "Global Warming" crowd is using the prediction as "proof" of Climate Change...I say "Bullshit"!

If the current hot spell is "proof" of Global Warming or man-made Climate Change...what the Hell was last year's record cool Summer proof of?  What is the record cold winter of the southern hemisphere this year proof of?  My advice to these so-called experts and Al Gore is..."Shut the F__K up"!!  We aren't buying your leftist, Chicken Little tactics, so stuff em'

It is indeed hot and humid, just like the summer's of my youth, growing up on the Gulf Coast of Venice, Florida...and the extended forecast does not provide much relief.  A couple of days next week and predicted to be less humid, but for most of the next 2 weeks, there is not much relief in sight.  I'm just hopeful that when the high school football season kicks off in full(August 20th) that things change for the better.

The Great Depression and WW2____

As a student of American History, I have always found the period from 1930 through the end of the 1940s of most interest to me.  I guess maybe that since it was before I was born(March 1949), that I can look at it with such interest...I was not born until the end of those 2 fascinating decades, but the photos, stories, and history of both are foremost in my mind when I think of true American History...that history not corrupted by left wing revisionists and historians. 

Yesterday my Vietnam buddy, like me a former Air Force Sky Cop, and unlike me, a retired State Trooper(Kentucky) sent me a link to some rare color photos taken by historic photographers.  The photographs are in vivid color and can be found here: (may take a few seconds to load)

http://extras.denverpost.com/archive/captured.asp

I've gotta say, despite the starkness of the times, depression, war, polio, poverty, etc...I find the photographs of the era, and the history themselves, to be among my favorites.  Men were men, women were housewives, providers, and took over the factory jobs while the men were at war.  I love that America, and it's people,  from the stories that were passed on from my parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles.  Sadly today we have become a nation of whiners and wimps, led by a sorry son of a bitch, so far radical left, that he puts even FDR to shame.  And make no mistake, FDR was an evil, piss poor Prez who, if not for the Second World War would have done to this country, what Obama is trying to do now.

By I digress, despite my dislike for the policies that Franklin Roosevelt wanted to force down the countries throat, I love reading about, and viewing the history of that 20 year period, when true Americans were at their finest, and America was at it's best.

I will try to figure out how to stay out of the heat for the rest of the day....

back later>>>>

Photos-Top, the first photo in the collection, I'm sure Faro Caudill and his wife Denise of Pie Town, New Mexico, never dreamed that they would live on in history, given their humble lives...but photos of the couple, dwelling, and family are all over the Internet, when you "google" Depression Photos.   The Caudill photo gives a unique color perspective when compared to the classic black and white photo on the right side of the post.