It's a Jungle Out There

Yesterday appeared to be the one 'dry' day of the week.....

After the Noon Hour Board Meeting at Mercer Residential, I headed over to Mom's to cut down a couple of small trees that were infesting one of the flower beds in her yard...then it was home to tackle the young Maple Trees that were growing tall among the bushes that guard the east side of our yard.

The bushes have become a catching ground for the "helicopters" that the Maple Trees produce every spring...thousands upon thousands of the seeds flying around the yard each year and deposit themselves wherever they wish...the problem being when they drop into the bushes that line the yard, they are impossible to detect until they start growing...and they need to be gotten rid of....I let only one grow in the 15 years we have lived here....and it rests near the raspberry bushes in the back yard...having grown some 15 or 20 feet high in those years....

The cutting down of the interlopers took an hour or so...and I deposited them curbside for the weekly brush pickup which occurs in Celina throughout the Summer....the yard, with the winds and rains of late, has indeed become a "Jungle".

--------------

Once that chore was completed, I showered and headed off to Spencerville to work with Chuck Etzler, as the Bearcats took on St. Henry....last year Sam and I did this late season match-up with the Visiting Redskins coming out on top by 20-1 or so...this year would be different.

Just a short 1o days ago, St Henry was sitting near the top of the Division 3 state baseball rankings, with a 16-2 record and undefeated in MAC play....they then proceeded to lose 4 games, including 2 in the league, and then were knocked out of the Sectional Tournament by Bluffton. Meanwhile underdog Spencerville, was staggering along with a handful of wins, when they drew Wayne Trace in the D4 Sectional at Crestview...they came away with a 1 run win, and are still very much alive and will face the host Knights in Convoy tomorrow(weather permitting)....

Down 4-0 Spencerville rallied back and pulled out a hard fought 6-4 win....2 teams fortunes moving in different directions to say the least....

Tonight I am scheduled to umpire at Delphos Jefferson as the regular season winds down, and the Tournament action heats up....that is not going to happen however, the rains, even though no confirmation yet, will likely wash that one out(Game has been Cancelled due to wet grounds)...Wednesday is an off/make up date, and Thursday I am scheduled to head to Crestview for a Sectional Final between Fort Jennings and Antwerp, with the winner moving on to District action....rain and results will decided when and where I work.

back later>>>>

Photos-The random wild Maples that I cleared out of the bushes set waiting for pickup along rain soaked Brandon Avenue...The lone Maple that I have let grow in the back yard, serving as a refuge and feeding station for the neighborhood Squirrels and birds...and finally a cluster of the "helicopters" that hang each May from the backyard Maple Tree.....

The Road to Bascom...Sectional Baseball

For the 3rd straight season, Sam and I have been asked to do the opening games at the Hopewell-Loudon High School Sectional...and for the 3rd straight year, the weather has been something to contend with.

Storms rolled through West Ohio Friday night, and those in the Northern part of the region were more sever than we had....add the 40 and 50 MPH winds, and the drop in temperature between Friday and Saturday, you knew the conditions were not be favorable to baseball playing.

I left Celina at 9am for the 95 mile or so trip north and east...Sam had a similar mile drive up Route 23 from Columbus. As usual I arrived early. For the 12 Noon start, I was at the High School at 10:45...Sam came chugging along about 11:30. The conditions were "raw" to say the least. The digital thermometer in the Intrepid read 47 degrees...the wind was blowing out of the west/northwest at about the same(47) in mph...a few sprinkles were being blown along on that strong breeze....these were going to be "interesting" playing conditions.

The games started at High Noon, and both were quick affairs...2 teams, Bettsville and Old Fort are both beginning their second year back in varsity baseball play...and for the second straight year they would play veteran clubs that had them outmatched. Both game were run rule affairs lasting 4 1/2 inning. In the first game Danbury moved on with a 10-0 win over Bettsville, a game that was competitive until the bottom of the 4th when the Lakers scored 2 unearned runs to put the game out of reach...I did the plate and the game lasted only 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Sam had the "dish" in game #2, and after a scoreless first inning, Tiffin Calvert had their way with Old Fort, and pulled away for a 23-0 whitewash....that game lasted a little over an hour and a half...we were done by 3:45pm and on our way to our respective destinations....home!

The interesting take on the second game...was the weather, it turned worse as the day progressed. The winds stayed strong, it rained a bit, it mixed with what can only be described as snow, a light, wet, snow....pretty miserable, but around the area, most Sectionals in Baseball and Softball were kicked off...to delay that start of the tournament season on this first weekend would be a minor disaster, pushing the regular season finishes and the tournament season back, making them even more at the mercy of the weather...which looks to be wet, real wet for the coming week.

-----------

There were some shockers in the area game wise, to open the Sectionals.... State Ranked #8 St. Henry was defeated by unranked Bluffton in D3, Ridgemont defeated Lima Central Catholic in the same Sectional, opening the way for Coldwater to ease it's way into the District and probably the Regional again this year....but you never know, strange things happen on the way to the State Tournaments.

------

Spencerville won yesterday while St Henry, as mentioned, lost....which makes my scheduled regular season game between those 2 teams at Spencerville tomorrow a contrast to past years...usually SH is still in the hunt, while in recent years the Bearcats have been ousted early....a flip flop this season. After tomorrow however, rain and storms are back in the picture...and could play havoc with the schedule. Time will tell.

back later

Photos-Arriving at Hopewell-Loudon High School under the clouds and winds...which was blowing out hard to left field at the diamond.

Working Fifth Third Field in Dayton

Big storms are forming and moving north...looks like Paulding, where I am scheduled to work tonight, had a few storms roll through...Bascom, Ohio, home of Hopewell-Loudon High School, where Sam and I are to hook up for a Sectional Double Header tomorrow, has had rain as well....if we get the games in, tomorrow looks like about 50 degrees with winds to match...rough baseball weather, just in time for the beginning tournament action. As Sam and I are heading north from Columbus(Sam) and Celina(Me)..Patricia will head south to the Dayton area...for Hal's girlfriend Lisa's College Law School graduation party....Sunday will be a day to relax, or if dry, maybe do some planting in the flower beds out back.


Speaking of Dayton____


I left Celina about 1:45 yesterday for Dayton's Fifth/Third Field...working my way around traffic, and getting directions from missed detours from my scheduled partner Jerry...I found my way to the Stadium Parking Lot about 3:15...Jerry and I took our time in the umpire dressing rooms before walking out into the bright sunshine.


A double header was scheduled, Jerry and I were working the first game, Graham and Bellefontaine....Urbana and Tipp City followed, and that game was worked by 2 West Central Association umps.


The game lasted 6 innings, with Bellefontaine coming back from a first inning deficit, to win in a run rule 14-4...working in a professional ballpark is different to say the least. Went through 18 new baseballs, and a couple of "field" balls, as foul balls were flying into the upper deck at an alarming rate...the game was interesting to work in a completely different setting...I worked up a sweat behind the plate, even though the temperatures were only in the Mid 70s, with low humidity...a well worked game that saw no problems or complaints(that we could hear anyway) from the coaches.


After the game, I made my way the 75 or 80 miles towards home using a combination of I-75, Ohio 29, and some back roads...pulling into the drive-way and opening up a couple of cold ones and taking a well needed shower.


I am not sure what the next few days, or next week will bring as far as baseball is concerned...the weather looks to have some rain in the forecast, for the last regular week of the High School Baseball season, and the completion of Sectional action.....then it's on to District, and Regional action for me...the State Tournament ends the High School season the first weekend of June...then it's time for Summer Baseball, in the form of ACME and American Legion games.


The Season goes by way too fast sometimes.....
------------

I talked with Rick yesterday, they have moved into the new house on the 17 acre spread...still waiting for the completion of the septic system...and are using the holding tanks until the ground dries out.


We also discussed the upcoming Mushroom Hunt in north lower Michigan....looks like Rick, Clint, and the boys were head up on Wednesday May 19th....if the hunting is good, I will leave after the May 22nd District final and join Rick...looks like the boys will be shifting back and forth...so the plans are not complete, but I hope to get a couple of days in, after missing out last year. We will see how that goes.


That does it for now.....back later>>>>


Photos-Top, the large colorful scoreboard at 5th/3rd Field in Dayton, and looking out at home plate where I would work for the next 2+ hours in the sunshine...as the outfield welcomes Graham and Bellefontaine to the Park. May 2008, at Mesick, Michigan, which was the last time I made the Spring Mushroom Hunt...Clint, Rick, and a 25 pounds heavier me...this year(like last) the hunt moves north some 90 miles to near the Boyne area....hopefully I can get in a day or 2 of hunting....

Off to Fifth 3rd Field in Dayton

Worked a 17-11 game at Wayne Trace last night, with visiting LCC coming up with a high scoring win, as showers and thunder storms skirted Blue Creek Township....today I'm off to work the long anticipated game between Bellfontaine and St. Paris Graham at the Dayton Dragon's(Reds Class A Farm Team) home field in downtown Dayton....

Will report back with details of how it went, tonight or(most likely) tomorrow...

back later>>>>

"Weighty" Milestones, 2nd place, and long drives...

After I posted yesterday, saying despite my game cancellation at Antwerp, I would head that way anyhow, and take Mom along with me...we would visit Uncle Jack, her younger brother, in the northwest Ohio town...go out for a bite. and talk with Jack and some of my cousins. Well not 15 minutes after that, I received a call from the Athletic Director at Edon High School...Edon is located up near the Ohio Turnpike, a couple of miles east of the Indiana State Line and not far from the Michigan Border...right in the middle of that Tri State Corner of Ohio. Seems Edon was rescheduling a game that had been hit by the previous nights storms, that game was a BBC League encounter with North Central out of Pioneer, Ohio...the team Antwerp had been scheduled to play yesterday. Edon is just about 84 miles from Celina...normally I might have stepped back from this game, but with me taking Mom north to Antwerp anyway, I said..."Why Not"?

Edon is about 25 miles north of Antwerp, right on Ohio 49...so I figured I would drop Mom off at her brother's place...they could talk, and if I got done at a reasonable time, I would join them and my cousin Linda and her husband Tom at the local Pub/Restaurant, The Oasis, in Antwerp, and grab a bite to eat and have a beer.

I met up with Jim Siler at Edon, Jim a 35+ year veteran umpire was scheduled to work with me at Antwerp...so it was an easy 15 mile drive from his home in Hicksville to Edon. Jim asked me to do the plate, since he has North Central in the opening round of the Sectional this weekend...I said "No Problem". The game began with underdog NC having 1 out and a runner on 2nd base....3 runs later they were out of their first inning up 3-0. After that both pitchers were on, and the team from Pioneer came out on top by a final of 4-2 over the hometown Bombers...only the 3rd loss for Edon, now standing at 16 wins 3 defeats on the winding down season.

The game was a pleasure to do...2 good teams, 2 coaches who didn't complain, despite a couple of calls that could have went either way....only an occasional muttering from some old geezers in the stands about my "low" strike zone(it's obvious they had never seen me work before), and we were out of there in less than an hour and a half. Talked post game with Jim, and headed south to Antwerp and the Oasis.

I met up with the family and had a couple of beers, and a good sandwich...we visited another 90 minutes or so, and Mom and I headed the 55 miles back to Celina...finally arriving at 9:30 last night...a long day indeed.

Tonight, if the storms don't arrive before hand, I head to the old family stomping grounds at Haviland and Blue Creek Township, where Wayne Trace will host Lima Central Catholic(the 5th time I have them this year, which may increase since I have the District and Regional they are assigned to if they get by Coldwater and other powerhouses)....Tomorrow it's off to Dayton's 5th/3rd Field for the Bellefontaine/Graham game at that Minor League Diamond.

-------------------

184 and counting____

This morning I climbed on the digital scale, it read "184.8" pounds....below 185 for the first time in at least 20 years....and less than a handful of pounds away from the goal I set for myself last Labor Day....25 pounds in 8 months, the slow and steady pace is working. The Blood Pressue remains good, and the sugar was better on the last check 2 months ago...I will drop a couple of more pounds, and then continue on the course I mapped out at the end of last summer....I cannot see me going back to the old self...this diet of sorts has been pretty easy to stick with, and I will not return to the old ways...I just don't see that happening.

Hal...2nd place, again!____

Sad to say youngest son Hal, still looking for a High School History/Social Studies job came in 2nd, for the 2nd time in recent interviews..."If we had 2 jobs you would get one", they told him...that of course in good to hear, but does not get you what you want. Making the final 4 and last week teaching a class, Hal once again waited for a call...yesterday it came, and he finished runner up.

The job at Wapak would have proven tough on his car, and he would have had to spend part of the week living with us, and the rest down in Beavercreek, where he would continue his work with Autistic kids...so although we are all disappointed he didn't get the position, because he really wants to teach in a classroom setting, this may work out in the long run. A job closer to Dayton and his girl Lisa, who has her graduation from Law School party this weekend, may be best...meanwhile he will continue to work his full time job with Autistic youth and be glad he has quality work in this Economy of the ObamaNation.

Enough yapping for now...time to go mow a yard ahead of the approaching storms....

back later>>>>

Photos-Me this morning at 184 and a decade ago in my weight training days some 30 pounds heavier....but 10 years younger.

Baseball and Wall Clouds....

Finished up the NWC Game at Lima Central Catholic about 7pm yesterday...a 3-1 win by the home team over visiting Columbus Grove. I had checked the weather radar about 3:30 before I left for LCC...and some storms were forming back in Illinois and northern Indiana. They appeared to be moving rather quickly, and I figured...they would hit between 7 and 8pm. That turned out to be a pretty good guess.

Dave West and I told both coaches to keep the game moving fast as they could, within reason. They did, and we were done in an hour and 45 minutes or so. As I headed south and west towards home driving the back roads, I noticed the sun was being replaced on the western horizon by a large single mass of black clouds. As I maneuvered the 35 miles or so towards Celina, the clouds appeared more menacing and dark...And I found myself wishing I had brought along the camera...Drat! I had left it at home, so was forced to drive into the approaching storm without benefit of a camera to prove the ominous Wall Clouds that I was approaching.

As I got to the halfway point, just outside of the small town of Neptune...Garry called, he was on his way from a game at Fort Loramie, and was approaching the same storm from the south....it broke loose a few minutes later, with plenty of wind, some small hail, but not a large amount of rain...enough, but nothing out of the ordinary. The above photo was hoisted from the National Weather Service....

The game tonight has been postponed, and I could opt to grab another opening, but will forgo that....I had planned on taking mom to Antwerp, so she could see her brother Jack...so I'll still do that, and go out and have a beer with Uncle Jack and his family, while him and mom visit....the rest of the week looks hit and miss with more rain showers and storms. Tomorrow, Friday, and Saturday, have the chances of rain, hopefully Saturday gets played, otherwise the Tournaments will be pushed back and thus causing havoc with those. Sam and I are supposed to be at Bascom Hopewell-Loudon, a long drive, and we certainly don't need the hassle of a rain out for that one, but Mother Nature will decide that, not much we can do about it.

For now Thursday looks rain free, and that is the day I travel to Fifth Third Field in Dayton(Home of the Cincinnati Red's Class A Farm Team, the Dayton Dragons)...to do the first of 2 games I have there this season...Bellefontaine against Graham....long drive, but I am looking forward to doing at least 1 game at the pro ballpark.

The first round of the baseball season moves on...I picked up another Sectional Tournament game, this one at Crestview, in Convoy, a Sectional Final in Division 4...will work this one with Chuck Etzler, another veteran umpire, who plans on calling it a career after this season...and he will go out with a State Tournament game...he has had several, and deserves them, he's a good umpire, who I am scheduled to work with next week in a regular season game as well, marking the 4th time we have teamed up this season.

That's about it for now....as you can tell from my last few posts...not a lot of going on out of the ordinary in this life....

back later>>>>

Rains, Oil Spills, and the world moves on...

Plenty of rain around againn over the weekend...enough to wash out my double headed for the second straight weekend, but nowhere near what the folks down in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky, had to deal with...add the "Obama's Katrina"..aka Gulf of Mexico oil spill to the mix, and it was pretty much a disaster news cycle. Then of course you have the failed attempt at blowing up a section of Times Square in NY...and you ask yourself..."How much better are we off, how much safer, under The ObamaNation than we were under Bush"? Not much, not much at all folks....Barry's On-The-Job Training isn't going well, despite the best efforts of the Lap Dog Main Stream Press, and so called counter culture speakers like Jon Stewart, and Nazi Bill Maher to keep him afloat....Obama is a failure, and no amount of BS by Left Wing talking heads is going to make it better.....

A busy week, depending on the rains, is ahead for me....Tonight at Lima Central Catholic, with my old Buddy Dave West, for a NWC game with Columbus Grove...tomorrow I am scheduled to umpire in Antwerp, which will give me a chance to take Mom with me, so she can visit with her youngest brother, Uncle Jack....Jack had a fall a couple of weeks ago, and I'm sure is antsy about getting back on the Golf Course....even at 80, he still plays often. I'll drop mom off at his place, then pick her up when the game is completed.

Wednesday it's LCC at Wayne Trace, and then Thursday, weather permitting, I will make the drive to Dayton and get an opportunity to work a game on the Dayton Dragons Diamond at 5th/3rd Field, between Bellfontaine and St. Paris Graham....Friday north to Paulding for a game, and then Saturday, Sam and I are scheduled to kick off the Spring Tournament Season with a Sectional opening day double header at Bascom, Ohio,(a 100 mile drive each way) to Hopewell-Loudon High School, where this will be our 3rd straight year working this Sectional together....As I said though, weather permitting....seems the rains are coming about every 3rd day and last for a day or 2.

Tomorrow my wife, a few years younger than me, marks her birthday...she was born in Watertown, Wisconsin, back sometime in the 1950s....

Lawn mowing is also on the agenda....such is the exciting life of the semi-retired...

back later>>>>>

Obama's Lap Dogs in the Media continue to roll over and play dead for their Master...and a shot of Fifth/Third Field in Dayton, where I am scheduled to work on Thursday.

"Wild Wings"

It appears we will have a windy warm one today, then another wet weekend ahead...storms for later tonight and through until Sunday...bummer! After 3 weekends, getting in 7 games, tomorrow appears headed for a possible wash out...but you never know.

Last night Veteran/Hall of Fame umpire/official Dave West and I had a NWC game at Ada, Ohio....Crestview won a 5 inning run ruled contest 12-2 with Dave behind the plate. We are scheduled to work Monday in a key NWC match up at Lima Central Catholic against Columbus Grove. I'll do the "dish" at that one, if the fields dry out from the weekend rains....

Dave at 62 is just a year older than me, but has a world of experience in the 3 sports we both do....while I started doing baseball again later in life and more recently picked up Football then Basketball, Dave had over 100 seasons worked in the 3 sports...37 years in Football, 35 in round ball and 33 in Baseball...looks like 105 seasons worked, makes my 20 some pale in comparison....and that's why he's getting inducted into the Ohio HS Athletic Association Hall of Fame for Officials.

After the game I headed a few miles south and west to Allen East, where Garry was finishing up his game between AE and Lincolnview....it ended as I got there, and we made our way towards Buffalo Wild Wings on the west side of Lima.....a couple of brews, and we downed some Wild Buffalo Wings...he ordered his with the "Wild Sauce", and without thinking, I said "That sounds good to me!"....turns out the sauce is the hottest of the varieties....tastes good, but I could only down 4 of the half dozen I ordered, gave Garry the rest. My tongue feels it this morning. Damn was that stuff hot...a couple of cold ones when I got home eased the pain, but I still feel the burn this morning, wish I had taken a couple of photos of the things.

Game between home team Ottoville and Spencerville tonight, then will wait to see what tomorrow brings weather wise.....more rain means more green in the yard, and more lawns to mow and more often....such is Spring in Ohio.

Back Later>>>>

Photos-A lone Cardinal gets his morning ration of feed, before the Squirrels and scavenger Sparrows run him off.....and the Buffalo Wild Wing location on Lima's west side...the scene of last night's "Wild Sauce"....Hot, Hot, stuff I tell you.

Tournament Assignments

BG and I headed to Van Wert last night for a non-league game between the home standing Cougars and Crestview...towns separated by about 5 miles and abutting school districts....gotta say it was one of the strangest games in recent memory. Close plays at first base, lost baseball in grass, BG getting hit 3 times behind the plate, balks, non balks....too many to go into detail, but we survived the 6-4 Van Wert win in less than 1 hour 45 minutes, and headed back to Celina in one piece.

Turns out BG(who like I used to, does play-by-play for basketball and football on a local Celina radio station, my old station to be exact) and I are working the Division 3 District games at Elida, and the Regional Final at the same spot....he has been umpire about twice as long as me in this stint...and in the Regional we also are working with Ron, my umpire association secretary...between us, we are 176 years old(me being the oldest at 61, Ron 60, and BG the youngest at 55)...probably one of the oldest trio groups to be working a Regional together....as far as experiece, we have about 56 years, with me being the "rookie" with 11 years in, BG and Ron with each over 20.

In the District BG and I will work with Mark W, a Defiance Cop, who I worked with in both the Elida District and Patrick Henry Regional last year....

The only fly in this ointment is that it pushes around my trip to Michigan with Rick and Sons, and Nick, for our annual Mushroom Hunt...last year it knocked me out completly...I won't let that happen this year....right after the District Final on May 22nd, I will head north towards Mesick and Boyne Falls. I think Rick plans on leaving Thursday...so that will get me out of setting things up.

Ok, that does it for now, I've got a game in Ada this afternoon, against Crestview(again), this time in a NWC League contest...a meeting this afternoon, and some quick banking and shopping to get donw before I leave....

I did get both yards mowed, ours Tuesday and Wednesday I finished off Mom's lawn...so that is taken care of for a few days...

Back Later>>>>

photos-my electronic contract for a Regional game/I cannot believe the regular season is almost done...the season, like time when you hit 60, flies....

Green, Green,

Awoke this morning to a strong northeast wind, a mix of clouds/sun, and cool temperatures...something you would expect for late April. The clouds that had brought the weekend rains, finally broke up in mid afternoon yesterday, but not before depositing a few more drops, and cancelling the scheduled baseball games in the area....mine at Fort Jennings was moved to May 14th. As luck of the schedule would have it, I have FJ at Spencerville on the schedule for tonight...will the wind and sun dry things off in time to play that NWC game? Maybe.

I had planned on mowing both our and Mom's yards today...but after a quick trip outside and to the bank....I may or may not get that done...the yards are drying, but I'm not a big fan of mowing in cold weather, and trust me, with the wind...it does feel a bit like March....I may wait for warmer temperatures tomorrow.


The rains, which we had been lacking for a couple of weeks, did do one thing...they greened up the grass big time....once the sun came out yesterday afternoon, The Airedale Reagan, and I headed out to the back yard....I poured a Guinness Extra Stout, and fired up a torpedo...and enjoyed those and the moderate temps. I snapped a couple of photos, of me, Reagan, and the bright green backyard...amazing how a month changes things in nature.
--------


While we await the outcome of youngest son Hal's interview at an area High School, confident that whether he gets this job or not, that he is indeed working in this Obama Depression(both the economy and state of mind)...and things are working out for him. Meanwhile, oldest son Sam, entering his Junior year at Ohio State at the ripe old age of 28, will be doing his own interview for a summer internship this afternoon at Springfield, Ohio. Sam, who headed back to school after the bottom dropped out of the economy and the Recreational Vehicle business, is majoring in Actuarial Science, and has been a regular on the Dean's List at OSU, with grades in the 3.7(out of 4.0) range. Actuarial Science is closely aligned with the Insurance business and the rates they use and charge...takes Math skills, which both sons were blessed with, unlike their old man....I may have majored in the Biological Sciences...but I never claimed to be an expert, not even close...even after 20 years working in the Environmental Health field. I was always more comfortable behind the radio microphone, home plate, or serving up drinks in the local pubs.


I can say that despite 20 years at the 2 Health Departments I have worked, or faked working at a variety of occupations....Even while in the Environmental Health Field, I was always working doing something else as well...whether it be radio, cable TV, or sports officiating. Since my retirement from EH, I have worked a variety of part time jobs, including the 5+ year stint driving RVs across the country....and with something else in the works, I may add another "occupation" to that list.


Time for a 3rd cup of coffee, and then decide if I will mow, 1, 2, or zero, yards today...before the game at 5pm.


back later>>>>>

Photos-Me, with a pint of Guinness Extra Stout in hand and Cigar, and Reagan were out in the greening back yard yesterday, after the clouds parted.

Wash Out!

After getting in 15 straight games, Saturday saw my double header at Convoy rained out...and probably about half the other scheduled games, depending on which side of the storms you were on. Yesterday around Noon, the rains began again, and we still have showers at this hour in the area. A pretty sure bet that my game at Fort Jennings is going to get cancelled....things may start to dry out before Tuesday, but those games are in danger of getting postponed as well....so far, unlike last season, most of the League games are getting played, and depending on the next couple of weeks, there may not be a large amount of make up games....regardless, my schedule if full, so no help from this side.

Mom and Mike made it back from Florida about 4pm yesterday....just in time for the warm and dry weather to make it's exit...and cooler and rain to return.

Patricia finished up her work at Bowling Green State University over the weekend...and became a Martha Jennings Scholar. Now, I have to admit that I have no clue as to what that is...but it is apparently a good thing, and she received a nice silver tray in addition to continuing education requirements completed...Congrats to my hard working wife...

Youngest son Hal is at an area High School at this hour, teaching a class on Social Studies...this is the final "interview" for the position that is open...Hal, once again, is in the final cut...and is one of 4 to be given a chance at the opening. Hopefully it all goes well, our prayers are with him....few regular teaching jobs out there at this point. The Ohio Economy, like the nation, is in the crapper, and despite what you read and hear from the main stream media....the economic times are not improving...Obama's Press is lying to protect his failed Presidency....things will get worse, before(or if) they improve.

Anyway, Hal is working with Autistic Kids and has a job...but his goal is to teach History in the Classroom, and work with the autistics on a part time(in the evening) basis....we will see how things work out.

Best of Luck Hal!

Not much else to type....but will be back when something jumps out....

later>>>>