Road Trip...Laotto, Indiana

A day off, this Wednesday 12/12/12, won't be another of these in my lifetime, actually there won't be another day, year, and month combo until 10/10/10 in the next century, unless you want to count 01/01/01 of 3001...but what the Hell do I know?  Anyway, mindless thoughts and rambling for the mindless....but much better than thinking about politics, Obama, and the Mayan Calendar.  Speaking of our Dictator Wannabee, one Barack Insane Obama, does anybody really believe that America and this corrupt administration is worried about that Square Pants  Bob looking little clown in North Korea and his countries "testing" of Nukes?  Hell no they aren't...it's a shell game designed to divert his freeloading numbskulled supporters thoughts from the failing economy and his Administration's efforts, which appear successful, to move this Republic towards economic Armageddon and collapse....it will happen, while 51% of the country is clueless or actually support this Kenyan Bastard's every move.

Road Trip_____

I had not heard from my old buddy Rick for a month or so.....Rick and I have been best friends since our high school days in Celina.  We don't see each other but a couple of times per year, usually on New Years Day, and the annual May Mushroom Hunt in Michigan, and maybe a time or two other than those....this past year, I wrecked on the way to the New Year get together, and missed that, and the Mushroom Hunt occurred on one of my District Tournament weekends, and missed that as well....Rick did stop by Lima, and along with Patricia, saw me through my Carotid Surgery.  He stopped by the house this past summer, but then he began to have his own health issues.

Back in September he had a spell that almost caused him to drop to the floor....Vertigo, it appeared, much like the spell Sam had around the same time...since that time he has had other issues which the doctors cannot pin point, as well as issues with his rotator cuff being torn....so Rick is entering the "Golden Years"....which I have found out, are not really so "Golden" at times.

Rick and I have known each other since my Junior year at Celina High, he was a Sophomore, we both worked at Marsh Super Markets back then....we both ended up at Military Cops, Rick in the Army, me with the Air Force.  After our Military years, we both ended up at Athens, Ohio, Rick and I lived in side by side rooms at the College Inn at Ohio University...after returning to Celina, Rick went with Patricia and I to Wisconsin at served as my best man, that was 12/18/1976, 36 years next week....I returnee the favor a handful of years later, when Rick and his wife Toni were married in northern Indiana.  We helped each other move...he helped me move back from Dodge City in 1980, with a side road trip we took along the Shelf Road between Canon City and Cripple Creek, Colorado...and I helped move them out of Fort Wayne, to the country back in the early part of that decade a few years later....

So today I figured....Rick has been there for me for many years, I best drive the 75 miles or so to Laotto, and see how he is doing....probably taking the back roads, since the sun is shining, and make a day of it....

back later>>>>

Photos-December 1976...Rick(right) and me on the day of Patricia and my wedding in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin,....Prom Night in 1966 bottom Rick and the late Wade Miesse, top Me and Paul Andrews, and finally 2008 Mushroom Hunt in Messick, Michigan, Rick, Clint Thompson, and me...finally, 3 of the "old" guys  from our days at the College Inn at Ohio University.

Wet Weekend, December Milestones...

It's still cloudy, damp, and cool, this Monday morning....much like the past few day in total...nary a peek of sun since last Thursday past.  About 8:30 last evening, one loud bolt of lighting, accompanied by a loud short blast of thunder, knocked out power for just a second or two...then more rain, washed the fog away....leave us with this morning and the damp and rather cold conditions.  Tomorrow looks to be the coldest day of the week, mid 30s, followed by a low in the 20s, but some sun and middle 40s are on tap for the rest of the week, hardly unpleasant weather for early to mid December.

December, "The Month" in Our Family.....

Oldest son Sam headed for the Chicago western bergs Saturday morning, while I was officiating at Crestview...beginning his new job/career this morning, he is staying with a fellow employee, whom he has known for a number of years...until he can grab an apartment that suits his needs.  That will probably happen about the first of January, and if that comes about, Nick and I will pack his stuff up and head that way the first weekend in January.

Meanwhile Sam's first week of work, as Operations Inventory Specialist, begins simply enough....after orientation this morning, he flies out to Vegas this afternoon, to hook up with his supervisor, as the company opens a new operation in Nevada.  Las Vegas is a town Sam and I both visited more than a few times during out years of delivering RVs around the country....but this time, it will be strictly for business, and not likely much time for casino fun....still not a bad way to begin what we all hope will put his years of study in the Actuarial Science field at Ohio State University to good use...because he will begin paying off those Student Loans in short order.  Lucky for Sam over half of his college expenses were taken care of via Grants, which he earned for his mathematical skills....but he still has "bills to pay" and hopefully this is the beginning of that process.

Sam's new job/career is just another in a long line of December milestones in our family.....

Those include, Patricia and I met in December 1973, were married in December, on the 18th of 1976, Sam being born on 12/17/84, also dad, Stan Houseworth born 95 years ago today on December 10, 1917, passing away on Christmas Eve of 1972, just a couple of weeks past his 55th birthday.  Grandma Houseworth born in December, her daughter Aunt Cecil, my first cousins Linda and Gary both born in December, Gary also passed away in December just 3 years ago, my Uncle Bill DeVore born in December of 1925, cousin Paul Pratt....and a boat load of others birthdays, deaths, and other "milestones" to numerous to remember or list....yes, December is a month to remember, including last December when my niece Molly and husband Aaron had their first son, Luke, born just a couple weeks after our first Grandchild Kasyn.

This week will be busy and another test on my foot, which survived pretty well last week's on court activities in basketball....tonight at Paulding for a girls junior high double header, tomorrow the same Paulding teams visit Spencerville, and I'll be there for those games...back to Spencerville on Thursday for a JV Girls contest, and Saturday more female hoops at Lima Central Catholic, that one a JH double header in the morning.....next week it a mix of boy Boys and Girls games, before cutting back for the week of Christmas, with just one game that week.

The posting has been "spotty and erratic" to say the least, and will likely remain so for the remainder of December....a busy month not only because of the Christmas/Holiday Season, but the afore mentioned "Milestones" in the family.

back later>>>>

Photos-A large bolt of December Lightning knocked out the lights for a few seconds last night...Dad, Stan Houseworth would have turned 95 today....here he is on leave at Scott, Ohio, back in 1942...Grandson Kasyn {left} and his cousin Luke will be a bit more active this their second Christmas...last year the K-Man was just a month old, and Luke just a couple of weeks....both boys are growing fast, and doubtless, like their dads, will be in the larger 1 year old group this Christmas...plenty of basketball to test my sore feet and ankles this week.

Grandson Kasyn, Sore Ankle, too much Traveling...

This week has the potential to fly by at warp speed....as I wake up this AM and tell myself  "I'm glad I seldom work basketball on more than two consecutive nights"...as my left foot and ankle are feeling the effects of 2 straight nights of Junior High Boys double headers, running up and down the hardwood floors at both Celina and Lima Central Catholic....tonight, the only basketball I will be doing is attending my final rules meeting in Van Wert.  Then tomorrow it's back down to Centerville, which promises to be a long day....first a few hours watching the grandson, that is a 93 mile drive, I will leave there and drive 130 miles north to Paulding for another boys JH double, then home the 40 miles or so back home to Celina.  265 or 270 miles on the Nitro tomorrow, a half day of watching the "K-Man", basketball, then back home...lucky I have another day of rest on Friday...then another boys JH double Saturday morning to finish off the week....and I will be glad to have it completed.

Yesterday I arrived at Hal and Lisa's condo at 9:15 and stayed until 2:45...Kasyan and I took a walk, in-between his two naps and feeding him a few times....having turned a year old just two weeks ago, the boy is walking on his own in fine fashion, and when awake he doesn't crawl or sit still for any period of time, except to eat, something else he is doing in fine fashion.  Tomorrow he has a doctor's appointment, and this will allow me to arrive a bit later, probably about 9:30-10 or so...I will head out to Paulding about 2pm for the long drive to work the basketball for the day.

Today I really don't have a damn thing to do before heading to Van Wert about 6:15.....except I will call George here in a few minutes and set up time for a haircut...other than that, rest my feet and back, with maybe a trip to Wally World to pick up some items and fill up the Nitro....

Sam, off to Chi-Town

Sam is getting his stuff around and will make one final trip to Columbus to pick up his final items...then over the weekend he will head for his new job and life in the bergs of Chicago....he begins Monday, then Tuesday he flies out to meet his Supervisor in Las Vegas, where he will spend week #1 learning his new position as the company opens a new shop in Sin City.....can't think of a better place to start a new job....the next week, his 31st birthday is the 17th, he will settle in at the headquarters at Northlake, Illinois....he will stay with a co-worker, who he knows from years back for a few weeks, then secure an apartment the first of the year....Nick and I will head out with his stuff soon after that, to deliever to his new living quarters.

OK....time for some pain tablets and a call to George, back later>>>>

Photos-Kasyn playing "Hide and Seek" with me yesterday at meal time....and having a good time on the Polar Express train ride on Saturday at Lebanon, Ohio.....and another in my long list of Sunrise over Grand Lake Photos...this one at Windy Point, my old High School stomping grounds...

Spring Like Weekend, Officiating Egos...

The predicted Spring Like weather did indeed arrive as predicted, however, what was supposed to be mostly to partly sunny and warm, turned into a mixed bag....Saturday as we headed south to Centerville then Lebanon for that cities Holiday Festival and a ride on the Polar Express with Hal, Lisa, and Kasyn the sun was in and out, but the day turned into a rather pleasant trip...the rain stayed away and we spent 4 hours or so walking the street festival then on to the train for the Christmas themed "Polar Express" ride and visit with Santa.

Grandson Kasyn, just turned one last week, was decked out in the Santa Suit that Lisa had purchased for him....walking the streets of Lebanon, he was the hit of the day....We departed before the parade started and got out of the crowded town...Highway 48 was jammed packed heading south in Lebanon, the trip north to Centerville however was less traveled, and we were back at the Condo in short order.  Lisa and Hal ordered some Pizza, and I helped them take care of that before Patricia and I headed home, The K-Man was sound asleep by that time.

Yesterday it poured down rain in the early part of the day as Nick and I headed to Columbus in Nick's new Ford Pick Up to collect Sam's stuff for his pending move to the Chicago Bergs....by the time we reached the Capital City, the rain had turned to drizzle, we made quick work of that, and headed home.  We, at Nick's behest, decided to stop at the Beer Barrel in St. Marys, 3 hours later we were calling Sam and Patricia to pick us up, in no condition to drive....sampling a variety of Christmas Ale on draft and other brews, we both were pretty well 'shitzfaced".  I feel fine this morning, but have no desire to repeat that scenario again, anytime soon, but at least we got Sam's stuff here, and then will move it again out of the garage, once he finds a place in the Northlake Region of Illinois.

Today Patricia and Sam headed back to Centerville, her with taking a personal day to sit with Kasyn, and Sam dropping her off then heading to Cincinnati....I will watch the grandson on Tuesday and Thursday of this week, with their baby sitter off on vacation.  As the morning dawned, it was still a foggy, drizzling mess out of doors.  Frankly, it's December, I'd rather have 30 degrees and clear skies than this....and it appears that is coming later this week...more December like weather.

Officiating Egos____

This week marks the first full week of Basketball officiating on my 2012-13 schedule...tonight, tomorrow, Thursday, and Saturday morning double headers are on the agenda.  For the two weeks that follow, the schedule load is likewise, before a less busy final week of the year, then January is my busiest week of the Basketball Season.

I have been a Baseball umpire for many years, been named State Tournament eligible, worked 4 Regionals, as well as dozens of Sectional and District games...despite the fact that I believe that I am better than most,  I have kept my ego in check...after all, it is high school baseball for Gawd's Sake....yes, Ive also done American Legion District Tournament finals, and Summer ACME{High School} State Games in Varsity and Junior ACME, but like anybody else, I don't get it right 100% of the time, and I for sure don't look down on younger, and less experienced umpires.  For some reason many basketball,and to a lesser extent,football officials
don't seen to "get it".

High School Varsity officials, at least some, seem to think they are something special...even to the extent of talking down or ignoring younger, less experienced officials.  Now admittedly I work very few Varsity games....a few years ago I decided to get into varsity games, and after a few of those I found out I really didn't like it.  The fans, the egos of coaches and fellow officials, just were not what it is with football and baseball, so I backed down and decided to finish out my basketball officiating days doing mostly Junior High, with a few Freshman and JV games tossed in....I still work girls varsity on occasion, if an AD needs a hand, but for the most part it's not my thing...I enjoy the workout that basketball gives me in the winter, but little else about it appeals to me.  Baseball is, and always has been,  my favorite, after all I've been around the game, playing, coaching, or umpiring, for most of my 63+ years.  Football at all levels is OK, although there are coaches I can truly say I can't stand, but it's still more enjoyable at all levels than roundball.

So a message to those hot shots doing varsity high school roundball...."Check your ego at the door, and give the younger guys some respect and help, as for older guys like me, I don't need your respect or help, especially if you are a major league asshole, and a minor league official".   As I said, not all, are this way, but a good percentage are, and some of them I work baseball with....and I, despite their shortcomings, would never treat them the way they do the younger basketball guys, working JV games.

Also, speaking of High School Sports, Congrats to Marion Local and Coldwater, both out of the MAC won their respective Divisions in Football, The Flyers winning D6 and Coldwater D5, it was Marion Local's 6th title and second in a row, the Cavs 3rd and first since 2007, after finishing runners up the past 2 years.  Two Titles for our small Mercer County, giving us a full 1/3 of the 6 state titles up for grabs.

That's my rant for the day....back later>>>>

More Changes...Sam off to Chicagoland?

After working a Junior High double header at Paulding last night I have finally come to terms with the fact that I will have to deal with the pain, if I am to continue working basketball, over the next few months.  After a JV Boys game at Spencerville tonight, I take a couple of days off, then the "real" action begins.  With the exception of the Christmas week, beginning Monday, and lasting through the middle of February, I am scheduled to do anywhere from 8 to 10 games per week, with many of those being packed into Junior High double headers...it will be a test on my feet, heels, legs, and back....not to mention the rest of my aging body.

Before we started last night my partner Larry and I introduced ourselves to the coaches, when the young man coaching the 7th grade Paulding team introduced himself, the name immediately rang a bell, and after some conversation, he pointed out his dad, Bob, in the stands with his mother...Small World!  His dad Bob and his Uncle Bill are cousins, whom I had not talked with in probably 14 or more years...since the demise of the "Waldron" Family Reunions, when Aunt Eva, and Marty Poling died, the family reunions on that side, faded away as well.  I talked with Bob and wife between games, both which were won by arch rival Wayne Trace by close margins.....I headed home, and was in the drive-way by 8:30.

Sam, off to Chi-town!

After six months of searching for a major job, after graduation, it appears that oldest son Sam has finally landed a job related to his field....sure he had just gotten started with an underpaid underwriting position in Columbus, but he was still looking for an Actuarial job...he had been interviewing hard, and traveled as far as Houston, Texas, when a college friend recommended him to a large corporation just on the outskirts of Chicago.  The job is not in insurance and not exactly Actuarial related, but the pay and benefits are good, and he will be working with math, spreadsheets, and more....as a Inventory Operational Specialist...once he passes the background check and drug screening, he will begin on December 10th, and it looks like he will immediately join his supervisor in Las Vegas at the opening of a new location.

Hopefully this will be his ticket, to getting out of his element, paying off the student loans, paying back his mom some of the bucks he borrowed from her...but at least, even in an expensive area like Chicago, the money he will be making, if all goes well, will get him out of the expenses he had incurred as a "older' college graduate...he turns 31 the week after beginning his new job.  Good Luck Sam!

In the meantime, Nick and I will take Nick's new 4x4 Ford Pick-Up and head to Columbus to drag some of  Sam's stuff home for garage storage, until he can find an apartment near his job in the western Chicago bergs....then Nick and I will take a road trip to the "second city" with Sam's gear.

Tomorrow Patricia and I will join Hal, Lisa, and Kasyn, on a train ride and the Lebanon, Ohio, Christmas Festival....Sunday Nick and I head to C~Bus, and then next week, Basketball full force begins....wish me luck!

back later>>>>

First Snow!

As I walked out of St. John Lutheran Church last night from another sorry performance at Dartball, John and I noticed the first snow of any actual amount of the 2012-13 winter...it ended up, kind of like my Dartball last evening, not to be much, just a small dusting was on the ground and roof this morning when I crawled out of bed...late for me to be sure, it was 8:45 a full two hours later than when I arose yesterday morning.  I walked out to give the birds and Squirrels their morning ration of feed and seed, then made the coffee, a full pot in the HB Brew Station, and headed for the shower.  That has been my morning thus far, and here I am almost two hours into my day.

Perhaps the main reason for my late rise this AM was the fact that when I got home from Dartball, I embarked on "testing" a couple of brews I had not tried in the past....the First was Merry Monks out of the Weyerbacher a ass kicking 9.3% alcohol triple ale...that was enough to make me slide back in my leather recliner and flip the remote between a miserable Monday Night match-up between two teams heading south in the standings, Carolina and Philly and Fox News as the miserable son of a bitch called Barack Obama{i.e. The Kenyan} continues to drag the Republic down to Islamic/3rd World levels...with those choices in front of me, I uncapped a Christmas Ale, this one from a Louzeeanna Brewery called Abetia...I think it was pretty solid, but after the Merry Monks I really can't remember....by the time I finished that, I was ready for the sack, and somehow I had lost a couple of hours....it was past Midnight, well past!

Back to Dartball, we lost 2 of 3 to fall to 6 wins 9 loses on the year....as for me?  Well my average dropped to .305 while my RBI total reached 9, the first one good for second on the team and the second in a three way tie for first....for only the second time in the last 15 years or so, I really don't have my eyes focused on the board...305?  My Dart ego is taking a beating...I've only finished below .400  three times in the past, and one of those was with a bad back in 2007-08, another was last year when I finished just below .400, this year looks like I am going to be well below that this season.  One of the young guys (19) Tyler has taken over my spot however, and his hitting .361 in the lead off spot....our team, with the exception of me, is a very young team....but the kids are improving, while the rest of us middle and older gents are either holding our own, or in my case, falling slowly back in the pack.

Tonight it's back to Basketball Officiating...I'm off to Spencerville for a Girls JH double header, that will be followed Thursday the same at Paulding, then Friday the first real test on my foot and heel, a Boys JV game back at Spencerville, as they take on the wife's school St. Henry, two man JV games, especially at the boys level are about to become a thing of the past.  I have a handful or more this season, and a few for next year, but, a big but, if I survive those I will end that portion of my basketball officiating, let the younger guys do those.

That is the week ahead, as Basketball comes calling in the few weeks before Christmas...where the Hell has 2012 went?  Time is rushing by.....in the blink of an eye.

back later>>>>

Photos-The First Snow fall has come, and is slowly melting...already this morning.  Dartball, my days as a top tier player seem to be coming to an end...old age or lack of concentration?  A bit of both?  And Abita was one of the two new Ales I tried last night....both this and Merry Monks had a "Kick"!

Post Thanksgiving Notes and Thoughts

Unable to get back to sleep after Patricia woke up for work, I crawled out of the sack at 6:45 or so this morning....showered, put some coffee in a Styrofoam cup, and headed towards the lake....I was running late and arrived just as the sun was peaking up over the tree lined southeast side of the haze covered water...it was actually a pretty nice site.  The waterfowl were flying in great numbers, and you could hear the shotgun blasts of the duck and geese hunters in the distance.  I grabbed the Nikon, left the Nitro running and walked towards the shoreline, with just enough time to snap maybe a dozen and a half photos...most came out pretty well, I guess because I didn't have time to think about it.  I used a small variety of settings, from Automatic, to Dusk/Dawn to Sunset/Sunrise...I was on my way back towards home within 20 minutes.

Post Thanksgiving_____

The Thanksgiving weekend, in a nutshell, was a good one, that moved by in a quick fashion. 

On Turkey Day, we went to sister Marty and her husband Pat's{yes, like Mike, Pat is the other most common of names in the family and extended family} place....we had a good three hour get together with Mom and other family members...we will do the same come Christmas Eve.  We were home by night fall and football and basketball viewing were on the agenda.  Friday went by, and frankly, other than watching some football on the tube, I can't remember much about it.....Saturday would be more clear in my mind.

Saturday was the big game....like always, the Ohio State/Michigan Football Game is the big happening around these parts in late November.  Ohio State on probation, won 26-21 after trailing by 21-20 at the half.  OSU has now won 9 of 11 and Urban Meyer's team went 12-0...sure they can't go to a bowl game thanks to former coach Jim Tressel and his merry band of cheaters, lead by super thug, Terrelle Pryor, but undefeated, beating Michigan and the Big Ten pretenders is still a pretty good season.

Youngest son Hal, his wife Lisa, and Grandson Kasyn were at the house to watch OSU and to celebrate the "K-Man's" first birthday...sure we had the big party in Centerville last Saturday, but this Saturday was his actual birthday and we had a big gift for him...amazing kid, and not just because he's my Grandson.  He had the playhouse figured out with little help within 30 minutes, and was on it like a pro.  Now longer satisfied to crawl, he was everywhere and anywhere he could get to....a great afternoon.

Once the game was over, that part of the family went over to see Great-Grandma who had a present for Kasyn....meanwhile I changed and headed north to Ottawa for my first regular season game of the year.  A JV Girls contest between O-G and Miller City...that went smoothly, as my sore foot and ankle, still not near 100% held up.  I headed the 55 miles south to home, and once I had showered, I grabbed a couple of beers and watched my favorite basketball team, The Duke Blue Devils, remain undefeated by winning the tournament in the Bahamas by defeating #2 ranked Louisville....it got better, sports wise on Sunday as the Bengals stayed in the NFL playoff hunt by whipping former Bengal QB Carson Palmer and the Oakland Raiders 34-10...that topped with a upset win by the Browns over Pittsburgh, keeps Cincinnati firmly in the Wild Care picture.

So, all-in-all the weekend turned out pretty good...real good in fact and I begin a new week.  Dartball tonight, and then basketball officiating tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday, after this the weeks, except for a few days off over Christmas week, will be filled with roundball until February starts to close out.  My plans are to eat healthy, stay fit, and keep my feet as protected as possible....

back later>>>>


Photos-Grand Lake this morning didn't look much different that it does on a calm day in July...but 40 or 50 degrees colder makes you appreciate the hot coffee more....and Kasyn on his first birthday figured out the play "house" pretty quickly, and celebrated a Buckeye over Michigan win with his Dad and Grandpa....

Changes.....

With the election over, but not the bitching from both sides continuing, I figure it's time to discuss politics less and enjoy life more.....sure on Twitter and facebook, I will continue to slam the Kenyan Bastard Child in the White House at every opportunity, but really it's time to move on....nearing 64 who knows how many, if any Presidential Campaigns I have left to concern myself over?  Time for more photography, more sports and officiating, and more enjoying things other than politics and/or wasting time on the Internet.  Other changes include cutting back on "craft" beer consumption and other things that I use my limited "fun money" resources on...there are different things I would like to do before I take up the sedentary life full time.

So that is the plan...we will see how my plans work out.....

Basketball, final scrimmage.....

Last night I worked my final scrimmage of the pre-season.  I was at New Bremen where the host Junior High team took on Waynesfield-Goshen for about 2 hours....this morning my foot is a bit sore, but not unbearable.  I have come to the conclusion that I will have to live with some foot pain, and probably not work as many back to back nights in the future, especially during basketball season.  Baseball?  Not so much.....Football? When that is probably more like Basketball, and I will likely have to back off some.  Age brings with it various aches and pains, and I've been pretty lucky over the years.  No major broken bones, no blown out knees, and the only major surgeries, a ruptured appendix and the Carotid Artery surgery this past March, had little or nothing to do with my officiating or other physical activity.  Of course the foot and heel issues are connected to officiating, while a torn tendon in my left bicep a decade or so ago, were related to my weight lifting, back when I was doing some heavy lifting in the old Racquet Club days.

Anyway, changes are needed both to my daily routine, and to my work out and officiating schedule.  No, I'm not giving up anything in total, but I do plan on "cutting back" on several things in my daily life schedule.

Speaking of Changes.....

The Holiday season kicks off tomorrow....well actually tonight.  In the old days we always had our pre-Thanksgiving Day party at the Lake Front Racquet....and that was the unofficial start of the Holiday/Winter Season.

Speaking of 'Holiday"....I never could figure out why people on the right and Christians{which I am a proud member of both} get upset with somebody saying "Happy Holiday", rather than "Merry Christmas"....sure I celebrate Christmas as the birth of Christ and I say "Merry Christmas" when it's Christmas....but tonight and tomorrow begin the actual "Holiday" Season, and it will last until January 2, 2013....so let me be the first to say a "Happy Holiday" and Merry Christmas to all.

back later>>>>

Photos-Very little sun yesterday and no sunrise when I took my before dawn tour around Grand Lake, but I did snap a few interesting photos.

Is America, as we knew it, Finished?

 Quick moving weekend to say the least, and this week will likely move by just as quickly.  Saturday we drove to Centerville, and along with 30 family members and friends of both Hal and Lisa, we celebrated grandson Kasyn's first birthday.  He was born last November 24th which was Thanksgiving evening, but with his actual birthday falling on the day of Ohio State/Michigan Football, the parents thought it best do it a week early.  They rented out the club house at the Centerville swim club they belong to, and we celebrated for a few hours.....Patricia, Anissa, and I, returned home about 6pm, making the 95 mile drive in less than 2 hours, in time for me to catch the final half plus overtime of the Buckeye win at Wisconsin.  OSU goes into the final game against Michigan with an 11-0 record, but ineligible to participate in the Big Ten Championship or Bowl Games...but a win over the hated rivals would top off the season, none-the-less.

Thanksgiving is Thursday, we will celebrate at sister Marty's place and then Saturday, Hal, Lisa, and Kasyn will be here as we watch OSU and celebrate his actual first birthday.....all that before I head to Ottawa-Glandorf before my first regular season game of the season, Saturday Night....a girls game between O-G and Miller City.  A busy week ahead, to say the least.

Is America Finished?

A simple question, with no simple answer....but by the looks of it, I would answer "Yes"....at least the America I grew up in.

We are faced with a divided Republic, one where an illegal Kenyan born Marxist can lie, cheat,  and steal his way into the nation's highest office, all while the so-called "fifth estate" stands by and cheers him on.  His 50% give or take a percentage point are stacked into one of two groups.  "Losers" or "Power hunger Elites".  The first group being the rag tag band of illegals, the  uneducated, bastard children by the dozen producing non productive leaches on society and the American Taxpayer.  The second group are the university hacks, union thug leaders, and American hating, Islamic terrorist loving, fools.  Tossed in are those ignorant to really know what is going on....they call themselves "Moderates".

The Democrat Party is now what Joe McCarthy, D-Wisconsin, told us what they were back in the late 1940s and early to mid 50s...."Reds", Communists, Stalinists....call them what you will.  Tail Gunner Joe was right, and they are now in charge.  From the public schools, at all levels, to the universities, the courts, and the halls of Congress in Washington DC.  The GOP?  Well the Grand Ol' Party is not much better, look at the sad sack of national Candidates they put out....people the press and left call "Far Right Extremists"...really?, Really?  Mitt Romney, John McCain, the Bush Gang, Bob Dole????  Far Right?  Give me a freaking break....moderates at best, liberals closer to it.....yes indeed, our founding fathers, if watching from where, if anyplace, they can view the good ol' USA,  have to be shaking their heads in anger and disbelief, to see what the country they gave their blood, sweat, and lives for has become.   It's not coming back folks, at least without Revolution.....

I'm to old to worry much about it....Hell, the Obama Care Death Panels will take care of me before things change for the better...if they ever do.

How can the Republic be saved you might ask, short of bloodshed?  I don't have the answer, although a peaceful succession might be called for....let the Left have New England, the Rust Belt of Michigan, Ohio, Illinois,Minnesota, ect....and the Left Coast of California, Oregon, and Washington State....real Ameicans keep the rest.  Let's see how the elites and the lazy survive without the rest of us.....move the Capital of the New United States to Texas, split the Military, and tell the Liberal States of Amerika to pound sand.  Do I think that will happen?  Probably not anytime soon, but eventually we will split.  Even if "Real Amerians", those being Conservative, Christian, right leaning Jews, Libertarians, and Atheists, where abortion and perversion are frowned on still make up a large percentage of the population...sure we are out numbered by the numbskulls, and those that worship Obama and American Idols, but we are in the multi-million and still are the working class that actually don't covet "Free Stuff" and the Nanny State.

But the question I asked was "Is America, as we knew it{and the Founding Fathers planned} Finished"?   Without Question that answer is YES.....we have been taken over from within.....let the Revolution begin.

back later>>>>

Back to Basketball....Agenda 21 is Evil!

Trying to get my physical health back to normal, whatever the Hell that might be, and Tuesday night I donned the black basketball sneakers and walked on the floor at Delphos St. Johns for a girls Junior High Scrimmage...two hours and some change later, I walked off the ancient floor at the "Vatican" feeling pretty good, sure my left foot was sore, but it and I survved.  I have come to the conclusion that almost any physical activity that requires me to use my legs and feet is going to have an adverse effect  on my left foot, heel, and ankle....it's something I will have to learn to live with, sitting on my ass for the remainder of my days is not an option...I get enough of that, sitting at this computer for a couple of hours each morning, something else than needs to be curtailed.

I am back at DSJ tonight for another scrimmage, a Boys JH get together...meanwhile their Boys Varsity squad is in waiting, as like it is almost every post season, the Football team is still involved in the State Playoffs, now in week #3.  Other MAC schools still alive are St. Henry and Marion Local, who play tomorrow night, one will be gone, the other will move on, probably with a date with DSJ in D6 .  Also Coldwater, in D5 they will likely make another State Title game.  From the WBL, Ottawa-Glandorf, still unbeaten, moves on in D4.  Basketball and Football clashing for the high school sports pages.


Politics and "Agenda 21"......?

With the elections over, for the most part, there are still some undecided races which the left is bound and determined to steal for themselves, such as the Allen West seat in Florida...the nation could move on and we could get along....sure, but not a fu**ing chance!  I for one, have no intention of "getting along" with a collection of hard left asshats, that want to destroy our very way of life, by letting Government control our every move and our every dime.   Barack Obama and his toadies can go straight to Hell, a place most are likely headed for anyway, and if I end up joining them, I can deal with it....

Politics be dammed, the world is a much more sinister and diabolicial place these days...a particularlly nasty item is on the horizon...the UN Agenda 21 and no it is not a Conspiracy Plot.

http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/agenda21/res_agenda21_00.shtml

A nasty agenda by the totally corrupt United Nations....if this doens't bring Jesus back, I'm not sure anything will.  Glenn Beck is on the frontline to put out the word on this planned Nazi like program, which is designed to destroy all those who will nor comply or those unable to fend for themselves...even many Liberals, as lame minded as they are, are not on board for this.  The United Nations must go....back to Hell from where it came.

And so, the madness continues.....and Ohio is on the watch list:

http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/agenda21/res_agenda21_00.shtml

Well that appears to be enough happy talk and fun for now...

back later>>>>

Back from Wisconsin/Beer from Same

 

The hard thing to control when I head off to the wife's hometown of Oconomowoc in southeast Wisconsin, is the intake of food and the sampling of new beers...this weekend past was no exception to that old rule.  After dropping 12 pounds of the 20 I had gained back from th 35 pound loss when it was discovered I had the beginnings of Diabetes 2 back in September of 2009, I looked squarely in the face of a Wisconsin weekend. 

Those weekends usually bring about a weight gain, and this would be no exception.  That started out a couple hours after arriving, with the Fish Fry Friday at the Golden Mast....

http://www.weissgerbers.com/goldenmast/html/moreinfo.html

....a restaurant where Patricia had been a waitress during her high school days, and where we had our pre-wedding dinner back in mid-December of 1976....we have dined there on a dozen or more occasions since that day nearly 36 years ago, and for the past few years during our annual before Thanksgiving mini vacations, it has been our first activity.  The setting and the fish fry Friday meals have always been outstanding, and in no way lead themselves to losing any weight, or even in the hope of keeping off what you lost in the recent past.

There you are, Friday Night Fish Fry, then sitting around, watching football, drinking beer and some Winter Ale, snacking, sitting, and sleeping in....and bang!  4 pounds gained since Friday....lol!  So here I am back and back on track to lose the additional 20 pounds...my goal is 175, which would mark the same weight as I was when I returned from Vietnam as a 21 year old Air Force Sky Cop in 1970....I made it down to 183 at one point in 2010, right now I stand at 195...thus the 20 pounds.

Sure it's much harder to lose at 63 years....but what the Hell?  I plan on doing just that.  I had a nasty case of "Walking Pnemonia" back in 1973/74 and dropped down into the 150-155 pound range, but that was not planned...and certainly not welcome.  This time it is for health reasons, and the stubborn urge to prove I can do it, while still downing a few beers, and eating three meals a day.....time will tell.

The four days, despite the weight gain, got me away from the stupidity of politics and comments on same, so it was well worth it...Patricia, Anissa, and I got back to Celina yesterday afternoon, just in time for me to head off to Dartball, where, after being stomped at Mendon 13-0 in the first game, we won the last 2 by close scores of 4-3 in 12 innings, and 5-2...I ended up going 6 for 15 with a RBI to hold down the team leadership or share in both, despite not having a great early season...batting just .349 and tied in team leadership with 5 RBIs.  As a team, we stand at 4 wins and 5 loses....frankly, that is better than we should be.

Basketball Begins_____

Here it goes.....my first scrimmage of the season is set for tonight.  Less than 6 weeks out from my foot injury, sure I was supposed to take 6 to 8 weeks off, but I realized that I could not wait until my first regular season game on November 24th to see how the healing has went.  There still are some issues, but with Junior High scrimmages, four in number, over the next week or so, it will give me a chance to "test the waters" so to speak.  Tonight a girls JH scrimmage at Delphos St. John will be the first of those tests.  I am ready, I think!

Winter/Holiday Ales_____

In addition to my favorite brews, the dark stouts, I have become, over the past few cold weather  months and years, a big fan of Harvest Ale and especially Winter Ales, and have been on a constant search for new brews...Wisconsin offers a large selection of both, and despite being a high tax state to the Nth degree, the beer prices are among the lowest anywhere I have found in my travels.

On Saturday morning, I headed out to the local liquor establishment in one of the Oconomowoc mini malls...a place I had had stopped many times over the years, a place with a good supply and collection of various brews, cigars, and hard liquor.  When I stopped in this year, I came across a brew that I had serched for in Indiana last year, but came up empty....Snow Day from New Belgium, out of Fort Collins, Colorado.  A brew not yet available in Ohio...at least to my knowledge.  The price was right, just over $8 a six pack, a full 2 dollars less than it would have been across the state line in Indiana, if I could find it!

I grabbed a couple of six packs, and also a single six pack of Sierra Nevada "Celebration" Winter Ale....the later brew, was a bit bitter, and frankly not something I will buy again.  I like some of their brews, but this one, at least compared to "Snow Day" or my personal favorite,  "12 Dogs of Christmas Ale"  out of Thirsty Dog Brewing Company from Akron, Ohio.  So despite the cold weather to come, I can say beer/ale wise, this is my favorite time of year.  And it's always good to find a new adventure when it comes to that....

back later>>>>>

Photos-The "House" Winter Ale at the Golden Mast.....The View from our table on Friday Night last....Basketball begins tonight, at least on the scrimmage level....Snow Day is a good quality Winter Ale, but not quite as good, or does it pack as much "punch" at 12 Dogs of Christmas....but both are drinkable Winter Ale fare...