Chistmas 2012....photos and memories past

Just a quickie on this Christmas Eve morning...

Merry Christmas to All.....except, nah, never mind....Merry Christmas to All...even those that would destroy the Republic, our Freedoms, and all references to God....

63 Christmas Days and and equal amount of Christmas Eves...I have seen come and go...and frankly only a handful I can remember, exactly where I was and what I received.  Various years bring various memories.

I guess 40 years ago tonight stands out most vividly...I was in upstate New York that evening when I received a phone call from brother Mike, informing me that dad had died of a heart attack that evening...I flew home from Syracuse the next morning, Christmas morning, we had the viewing on the 26th and the funeral and burial in the Scott, Ohio, Cemetery on the 27th....Stan Houseworth was just 55, and had celebrated his birthday just two weeks prior...I was 23, and I remember the next Christmas or two was hard, but eventually we got back to our family celebrations on Christmas Eve.  We will do that tonight, at least with part of the family...Hal, Lisa, Kasyn, Anissa, mom, Mike, and Marty and her family, minus the recently married Mikki, will all gather at her house...it is what we have done the past few years.  Sam is back in Chicago, back at work today, then off to Wisconsin tomorrow to spend part of Christmas with his other grandparents, and some of the family on the wife's side.

As stated, I don't remember all of the Christmas mornings, but some come to mind....

As a youngest in Venice, Florida, I remember most...from the early days at Alston's Cottages in the early and mid 1950s to the days at the "new" house on School Street.  Once we moved back to Ohio, the memories became less clear...let's face it, as a teenager, you have different views on Christmas and what you want....

The military days in the Air Force, I remember coming home from Dover that first year, and spending the 5 day break here....Vietnam?  I really don't remember that Christmas, I do remember I was in the process of transferring from Nha Trang a few hundred miles south to Saigon and Tan Son Nhut Air Base...I arrived there on December 27, 1969....

The later days, especially after the kids came along, I remember the Christmas Days on the old farm on Coldwater Creek best of all...when the kids were kids, and appreciated just about everything they received, and least until the wore those gifts out...

This Christmas Day it will be just Patricia, Anissa for a few hours, and me....that will be different...a quiet Christmas, I am kind of looking forward to that....but in the meantime, today will be busy, with plenty of visits, especially with the grandson here, Kasyn will be celebrating his second Christmas, but since he was just a month old last year....this year will be a bit more special for him...although, I am sure he won't remember it.  My first memory of Christmas is from 1954 in Florida...although I do have memories of my childhood back before then, just not of Christmas.

OK...off we go, once again, have a excellent Christmas.

back later>>>>Photos-From Christmas Days Past...Stan Houseworth passed away 40 years ago today, Christmas Eve 1972, Venice Florida, Me, Mike, Al Foust, and Marty our first year on School Street, South Venice Florida 1955, Me, Marty, Mike, Anissa{left} and Friends from Christmas Past, Sam Houseworth, Hal Houseworth, The 1955 Christmas Tree Setup in South Venice, and finally Patrica's new Hors d' oeuvre, The Penguins, made of cheese, cream cheese, black olives, and carrots

The First Day of Winter....

Winter has arrived, on both the calender and weather wise....as you can see from today's photo, the Nitro, sitting in the same location, at Windy Point on Grand Lake's south side, the conditions are a bit different that the photo from yesterday...the was from last Summer past, today 50 mph winds are blowing the snow, albeit only and inch or two, around big time.  Lucky we are for the small amount of white stuff...as we would be buried if the rain of yesterday had been snow instead.

Windy Point, living up to it's name on this
                                                                                     official day of Winter:

After clearing the snow off the sidewalks and Dodge Nitro, I headed out to the lake to see how the roads were, and what the windy and snow looked like...not enough snow to make it look winter-like or to assure us a White Christmas, but the outside air, at 30 degrees, with those winds, certainly felt like the middle of January, as opposed to the first full day of Winter.  US 127 was indeed slippery with icy and packed snow, where the open fields abutted the highway, the Nitro, while certainly not the Jeep Wrangler of my past{as I found out last January 2nd}, still held it's own on the US and state highway, as I made my way through Montezuma and parked in the Windy Point park...the strong northwest winds coming across the murky waters of the 13,000 acre lake, felt, well felt cold, damn cold!

I didn't stay long, and headed back north on 127 taking a right turn to West Bank Road, where the Park on that dead end, is much more protected from the wind, and the snow was much cleaner as it wasn't being blown by the winds...I got out of the SUV and snapped a few more photos...nothing special, but it did give me something to show I was out on the first day of winter 2012-13.

As far as I know the games at Spencerville still on, despite most of the area schools being closed, but the icy roads, and strong winds....I'll check again however before making the 20 mile drive.  Meanwhile Sam has delayed his drive back from Chicago until tomorrow morning, it will be a quick turn around to pick up some more of his stuff, and probably head to Columbus tomorrow afternoon for the OSU/Kansas Basketball game...he works Christmas Eve, and then plans on visiting his Grandparents in Wisconsin Christmas Day....if that state's blizzard has been cleared, the area where they live, Oconomowoc received a foot or more of snow in some places....they can have that, snow is not a thrill for me, and if I don't have to use the snow blowers any more that I did last season{one time}, that would be fine with me.

And I guess I would be remiss, if I didn't mention, here it is 12/21/12{and December 22nd in Asia} and the World Still Stands....Guess the Mayan's really were not predicting the end of mankind?

Enjoy the weekend....back later>>>>

Photos-The Nitro at Windy Point, Montezuma, Ohio...The wind whips the waves at the WP Beach, passing a Semi on 127 heading through the snow, wet roads, and wind back towards Celina...and bottom, The State Park at West Bank Road, was much more serene than at "Windy" Point, which is living up to it's name today.

4WD....Four Wheel Drives I have Known....

Tomorrow is the official first day of winter...but today, December 20th has began with strong winds and heavy rain...for now at least the snow is northwest of here, in Patricia's home area of southern Wisconsin, looks like Oconomowoc and that area will have Blizzard Conditions as the day makes progress towards sundown.  Sam in the western bergs of Chicago is on the border of rain and snow, and it appears his area will get a half foot or snow, his plans on coming home for the weekend may change by tomorrow, meanwhile we will get  rain for now, then the temperatures will drop tonight, and tomorrow, the official first day of Winter will indeed feel and probably look like it, with a couple to four inches of snow...but right now, thunder, with some lightning is pouring down with the rain...temps are in the lower 40s at the 9am hour.

4WDs.....

The start of the Winter Season has me thinking back to the Four Wheel Drive vehicles I have owned and driven.  The first had to be the Dodge Power Wagon police vehicles and the Jeep Willy's I drove in the Air Force....the Power Wagons during the winter years at Griffiss Air Force Base in upstate New York...we abused the Hell out of those things in the heavy snow fall at Rome, NY, especially the first year I was there during the 70-71 winter.  The Jeeps in Vietnam, we really didn't need the 4WD, because at Nha Trang I was usually driving on pavement...and at Tan Son Nhut it was only needed during the muddy mess of a season called "The Monsoons"....either way, we cops abused the Hell out of those as well, and a few of our numbers died while doing just that.

The first four wheel drive I owned was a brand new 1976 Jeep Cherokee....Patricia and I had it for about 5 years.  It was stock and not a "Chief" model...I picked it up for about $6,000 new...this was back when you, if you were young and dumb and could afford them, you picked up cars new....I gave up that habit years ago, much better to buy sometime fairly new, 30,000 or less miles on it, they are usually much more affordable.  The 2012 Nissan with a few thousand miles on it, that Patricia just purchased in early November, is about as new as we have had, since the 1999 Toyota Pick-Up I had during the final years of my Health Department days.

Anyway the Cherokee, although a four wheel drive,  built for the highways, was probably the best off road vehicle I have owned, with the possible exception of the 1998 Jeep Wrangler I used to pull behind the RVs on those trips across America in the early years of this new century.  I only got the Cherokee stuck once, that was during the Blizzard of 1978 in northern Wisconsin.  An idiot  from the School District was parked in the middle of the roadway, and I had to swerve it avoid him...hitting a snow drift me, the Jeep, along with the Airedales, Rag and Max, ended up on a pile of snow with all four wheels off the ground...a nearby Farmer pulled me out of that mess with his old tractor...and we were on our merry way into Wausau.

The Wrangler was proceeded by an AMC Eagle,  a 1984 I believe....I didn't own that long, although I liked the ride and it performed well in snow, the damn transmissions didn't work worth a damn!  Went through two of those, before I finally gave up that ghost....I went without a 4WD for the next decade and a half.  We had moved into town, and we were into "family' cars including a variety of Mini Vans, I hated those damn things...still do.  The various pick-ups I purchased, including two Toyota models, I liked, but they were not 4WD.

The Wrangler served me well for about a decade...mainly in the years of RV driving, after my retirement from the Van Wert County Health Department....I sold it to my young neighbor Derek, a teacher and coach as Celina High School....despite the abuse it took on those cross country returns, a blown engine{my fault}, and some electrical problems...it served me well, and last I looked, Derek was still driving it around Celina.

By the time I sold the Wrangler, a 1998 model, Patricia had purchased a 2008 low miles Dodge Nitro. SUV..it is a 4WD, but that is all....it certainly not designed to perform "off road"....and on one of the few occasions I drove it the first year we had it, I managed to slide through an intersection at Van Wert, and wreck it and another poor soul...icy roads were to blame...but the Wrangler would have not been in that situation in the first place.  I took over the Nitro when Patricia purchased the Nissan last month....I am getting used to it, and hopefully no snowy disasters will befall me, and it, this winter.

The one thing I can suggest to you if you plan on making a four wheel drive purchase...no matter why, consider a Manual Transmission.  The Cherokee and Wrangler were both equipped thus....the Eagle and Nitro were/are not, and it does make a difference.  Manual is the way to go with 4WD, if at all possible.

back later>>>>

Photos-Top Our Nitro a 2008 low mile model, not the best for off road use, but still 4 wheel drives, even the lesser of the breeds have advantages over the 2 wheel vehicles.  The Old Jeep Willy's I drove at Nha Trang were the first of the 4WD I drove....Patricia and I purchased the 1976 Jeep Cherokee new...costing about $6000 it was bare bones, but would drive through just about anything...it was a beast off road.  The AMC Eagle wasn't with us long...I liked the way it drove, but that model had transmission issues, and I traded it away.  The Wrangler was far and away my favorite....and it was either towed or driven through at least 40 States, as far away as Nevada, California, Idaho, to the West, New Hampshire and Maine to the East, and Florida, Texas, and Arizona, to the south and southwest.

Still Working out at 63...The Gun "Controversy" continues

First off, let me say "I'm not sure this post and it's layout makes any f&(_&**%$#)@ sense at all....Blogger or this computer at times is a piece of donkey dung, and today was one of those times...this is my fourth attempt to post, wife is probably mad at me as she went to the store when I wouldn't let her on to do something important...I just wanted to finish, and for some reason Blogger, or the Gawd Damn Computer kept screwing with me...it has happened before, and now the entire first few paragraphs are gone...so be it, I will not go back for a fifth try...unless I drink a "fifth" or at least 4/5th a bottle of Drambuie!  So here it is missing the first few lines

The family was into guns, back when they were used to hunt and for family protection...today the battle of guns means so much more.  Speaking of grandad Waldron, the family still has a top break, single shot .12 gauge that works and fires as good as the day it was manufactured...I remember the first time I fired that one...knocked the Hell our of me, and at 16 years old I had a bruise on my right shoulder for days after...those times of the right to bear arms, without conditions, is long gone...Liberal trash in America has seen to that...they want nothing more than to suppress and destroy our right to protect ourselves...from them!

Top Right...Marvin Kunhs 1898 Iver Johnson 5 shot "Top Break" .38 which was on him when he met his maker in June 1907....bottom Van Wert County Sheriff Fred Hott's .38 Smith and Wesson Police Special which was used to dispatch Marvin on that date, from his worldly problems.  The poster was e-mailed to me today by my 88 year old mother, and gave me time to reflect on our family gun history and some of the guns we have and still are in possession of.

Meanwhile our fool-in-chief, Muslim Terrorist supporter Barack Obama has placed his plagiarising Vice Prez, simpleton Joe Biden in charge of a committee to look into ways these Anti American criminals can deeper limit Americans power to purchase guns legally.....one step closer to the next Revolution or Civil War.  The power to destroy the Bill of Rights and our Constitution cannot be left in the hands of these tyrant wannabees.

In the meantime, like your valuables, you need to lock up your arms as best you can...because they will be coming after them...and YOU!

Still working out....at 63

I headed down to the dark reaches of my basement this morning to do my usual 3 or 4 time a week weight lifting regiment....the old unfinished basement still has old newspapers in the ancient windows, at least the wood borders of, that tell of the date they were placed their beneath the ground.  I cut pieces off one our a few years back...the date "November 20, 1923"...89 years ago, the former church parsonage was completed in early 1924, and was used by various Pastors from the First Church of God until the church moved to the north and farther west part of town, and they sold the house around 1990...we purchased it in 1995.  The basement hasn't change much in those nearly 90 years since it was poured.

Despite not being finished I still use the basement several times a day...taking a least two showers down there in my "temporary" shower stall(which Patricia had put in for me and the boys back in 1995), I can't remember the last time I took one upstairs in the main bath(and I don't want to)...many years for sure.  We have the laundry down there, the deep freezer and I keep my sports officiating equipment, my clothes, the old family collectibles, and my weight room, both of them, down below as well.   The Weider Machine is stuck on the southwest corner, with the emergency food supply, and old TVs, Christmas lights, bulbs, etc...the "Body by Jake" Weight Bench is in the northwest corner by the furnace. 

Still not giving up the ghost, I work out when I can...of course there have been lapses in my workout and weight lifting regiments...bad backs, carotid artery surgery, just plain laziness at times...but for the most part, I try to do what I have been doing for over 20 years, that is to keep in somewhat good shape.  Of course when you drink as much beer as I have over the years, and eat like I did in years past, it's not always easy...but I try.  

I was a skinny 5' 9' 135 pound runt when I joined the Air Force in 1968, when I returned from Vietnam in July of 1970 I had grown to 5' 11" and about 170, and by the time I was finished with my Military time, I was at around 185, on the same frame...these days, 40 plus years later I probably have shrunk to 5' 10" maybe less, and weight in at 190 or so, depending on the season.  I have weighed in as much as 225 and been down to 180 or so over the last 15 years.  Over that time I have attempted to say on the weight training with free weights as much as possible...and despite a time or 3 of lapsing off the regiment, I have done so...but these days, as I approach 64 in a couple of months, I certainly don't toss up the weight I used do.  These days, 3 or 4 times a week, I usually spend 30 minutes in the dungeon-like confines of my basement, working 4 different series of rotating weights, usually 15 or 20 reps.  I am happy these days to throwing up 125 pounds=3 sets, with 20 reps, the other exercises I do are somewhere in the same range, depending on the type and how much I feel comfortable lifting.

Why?  Hell, I guess ego, and the desire to at least stay somewhat in shape for my 150-200 officiating gigs per year, and enough to allow me to stay in shape to down a few beers when I want....it sure the Hell isn't because I want to kick somebodies ass whenever I want...see the first part of today's blog, If I feel threatened, I won't bother with "muscle power", I'll take the old fashion way....

I've been in a few fights in my life, let's face it, if you are a bartender long enough, especially at a pub or place that caters to young men, where young women also hang out, like the 1974 "Red Door", Celina, Ohio....you are going to get into scrapes, I've had my share in the past.  The Air Force and the few years following I had my share...never got whipped, not because I was the bad ass on the block, but because I was smart enough to know when to hold them and when to fold them...I was bullied way to much in junior high, and even into high school, by the time I had finished my Vietnam and Air Force tour, I had figured out how to win, or at least how to cover my ass...and I guess that's why I still try my best to stay in shape these days.  But as far as physical conflicts in my mid 60s...you gotta be kidding?   See the first half of today's post.

No basketball tonight, back at it tomorrow at LCC for a Freshman boys game, then Spencerville on Friday, before taking the next week off for the Christmas break.

back later>>>>

36 Years....

Yesterday oldest son Sam celebrated his 31st birthday by working from his new office outside Chicago in the Western Bergs....I remember the day he was born, as Patricia and I slid through the snow towards St. Marys, Ohio, he was born that morning...I headed off to the WCSM Radio Christmas Party that evening at Bumpkins Night Club{which had been previously The Red Door, which I managed from 1973-75), while Patricia and new son rested in the hospital.  The next day, hangover and all, was our 5th Anniversary, we spent that day in the maternity ward at Joint Township....

36 Years.....

So that makes today, December 18, 2012, our 36th year together....well actually a couple of years more than that, but this day in 1976 we, dragging along my best man Rick, were wed in her hometown of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.  Unlike the snowy and cold day of Sam's birth and the following day, our fifth wedding day, which was the same, that mid December in southeast Wisconsin was having a spate of warm weather....it was 60 something the day we were married, and when we spent our wedding night at the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee, I remember walking in with just a long sleeve shirt on, with jacket slung over my shoulder...a rare weekend in December for Wisconsin for sure.

So we have known each other for some 39 years....lived in Celina, Wausau, Wisconsin, Kokomo, Indiana, Dodge City, Kansas, and back to Celina over those years...I know it hasn't been easy, but we have three kids, and have survived it all....despite it all.  Patricia and the boys have managed to get multiple college degrees and are successful, daughter Anissa, the oldest, is handicapped(as you know if you are a regular reader), but living well and spending her time between her place and much of the weekends with us.  Youngest son Hal, with a Bachelor and Masters degrees in Education and his wife Lisa, with a Law Degree, are both successful, and of course presented us with our first and so far only grandchild, Kasyn, a year ago Thanksgiving.  Oldest son Sam, returning to school at 26 years old, finished up his BS in Actuarial Science last June at Ohio State, and has just began a new career, putting his major to use, at a large corporation outside Chicago.

What lies ahead, who really knows in this age of Obama?  I have been semi-retired from my Environmental Health job for over 10 years now, and don't regret the decision, despite the financial hit that it may have cost me...so what?  After five years of driving RVs around the country, I have finally settled into just officiating high school sports, collecting a SS check, and trying to figure out what to do next....nearing 64, doing anything physical is a pretty good thing.  As for Patricia?  Not sure how long she will continue to teach, but that is her decision to make....I just give opinions and advice.

In retrospect, I have done enough wrong headed things to make up an entire life....but that is just the way I am...it's in the blood, I could have done things to make life easier and more comfortable...but what the Hell?  Life is an adventure, and I'm sure she agrees, life with me has been over these long decades....again, what lies ahead?  Depends on health, finances, and what the idiots in charge of this once great Republic do to us....in the meantime I look back on the years and think to myself...."Yep, it's been one Hell of a Ride"...

Happy Anniversary Patricia!!!


back later>>>>

photos-Oconomowoc, Wisconsin 12/18/76 and Celina, Ohio this morning on Anniversary #36

School Shootings, Reactions to Same, and Falling Numbers...

The Holiday month of Christmas has always been a "slow" month on the blog scene and number of people that stop by....but the last month and the first half of this December has been the slowest time I can remember since I re-installed the counting system.  Holiday time is of course part of it...but I'm just as sure the utterly boring posts are the major reason.  Frankly however, it is what it is....and this month will likely see less than 3000 visitors, the lowest since the summer of 2009.  I really am not interested in grinding out political rants by the day, which is how my numbers rose to the 5000 or so month that I peaked at a year or more ago, in addition to the visitors, which ranged from those 4 to 5 thousand, the monthly pages viewed reached  the 6000 to 7000 mark....this year?  With Christmas and New Year's Eve still to go, I will struggle to reach 3000 visitors and less than 4000 pages viewed....so be it!

I made a conscious effort to cut back to 3 or 4 posts a week, I also made an effort to cut back on my political rants, saving those for Twitter and Facebook...today, at least for a day, I will break that mode.

The Connecticut School Shootings and the Aftermath....

Friday Morning all Hell broke loose in Newtown, Connecticut....the aftermath of that tragedy continues this morning, and the political fallout will be in the news for days, weeks, and months, beyond.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/12/17/president-obama-leads-interfaith-prayer-vigil-in-newtown-conn/

Make no mistake this is a tragedy of the likes which we haven't seen in many years in the country....also make no mistake, the current resident of the White House and his ghoulish supporters, in and out of Government, will make every effort to turn this into political capital.  Obama will use this opportunity to shore up his base, and grab power from his enemies...that would be you, me, and anybody that believes as we do.  Obama and his supporters despise the First and Second Amendments, and will do anything in their power to destroy both.

From the moment I saw the Kenyan wipe away his Crocodile Tears on Friday afternoon, until his speech last night....you knew he was thinking his Saul Alinsky best..."How can I turn this tragedy into political gain"?  And so it begins, from the loony left wing bloogers, to the political hacks in DC and the various liberal state houses..."How can we get guns out of the hands of Freedom Fighters and Real Americans"?

They will spare no effort or media outlet to "get our guns", all in the name of Gun Control, all the while feigning "shock and outrage"...I'm calling "Bullshit" on all of them....including some in my own Vietnam Group...weakling liberals they are.  Guys that were sent to war by a corrupt left wing President named Johnson, are now falling on their swords to protect and follow another left wing American/Freedom hating Son of a Bitch, who likely isn't even legally President....fools and followers to the bowels of Hell come in all shades, shapes, and backgrounds.

The outrage, mostly fake, by the left, will continue for awhile, and once they are defeated by the NRA and Conservatives in their efforts to "get their guns", they will roll back and use guerrilla tactics until the so called Conservatives or the John Roberts Court caves, and gives them what they demand.  Make no mistake, the GOP in DC will cave, and likely the Roberts{who has proved he is an Obama tool} Court will do likewise.

Meanwhile the sadness that saw some loser, who should have been in locked up in treatment, destroyed the lives of dozens of families will fade from the headlines....it will become all about gun control, and how Obama and his minions can gain political power from another American Tragedy. After all, a country as divided as the former United States of America, cannot last for long in it's current condition.

My advice?  I really don't have much..the anti gun loons will continue to blame guns and not the perps, so the best I can add is....get to your local and state Gun Show, and buy what you can as far as home protection and ammo, because as sure as the Left and Right will continue to divide this country, you are going to need protection for you, your family, and property....don't count on the Government in any form to do it for you.

God Bless the Lost Children of Sandy Hook, and we can only hope they are in a better place...because America as we know it is death, both in spirit and soul.

Happy Birthday Sam____

Second born Child and oldest son, Sam Houseworth turns 31 today....he is also in the Chicago area, starting his new job....he actually began last week, but after orientation, he was flown to Vegas as the company opened a new operation.  The company used that to show him the ropes, and now back in the Chitown area, he begins to find out exactly what lies ahead....let's hope it's not the Obama caused "Fiscal Cliff"....

Happy Birthday son, and good luck in your new life, back later>>>>

Photos-I have been around guns for all of my 63+ years....the 12 ga shotgun I am holding in the top photo is still in the family and has been for over 100 years, I don't recall anybody in the family using it in a reckless manner.  Make no mistake, an unarmed, defenseless citizenry is a nation of slaves and fools.....Gun Control works only for those in power, who aim to keep that power.....and finally Sam Houseworth, nearly 30 years ago, lots of memories have come since his birthday back in 1981...

The Best Laid Plans......

I'm the type that doesn't like surprises...most of the time anyhow.  For example, if I have my day, no matter how mundane, planned out, I don't want the wife, or one of my friends who might drop by unexpectedly, to want me, at the last minute to go somewhere or do something I had not planned on....just call me a creature of habit, in that regards.   On the other hand, once I decide to do something, I usually do it....the Hell with the consequences. 

Early in the week I had heard from my old friend Rick up near LaOtto, Indiana, a drive of some 75 miles or so....he had been going through some vertigo issues as well as other injuries from, frankly, just over doing it....so I decided that Wednesday{yesterday} I would go see how he was...and rather than tell him I was coming up, I just decided to jump in the Nitro, arm myself with a large coffee, and camera, and take off....the 70-75 mile trip would likely be over 100, as I planned on taking the back roads and defy the TomTom GPS lady...as "she" argued with me and the Nitro on just which way to turn and what roads to take...these GPS, while they are great, like to keep it simple, me on the other hand use the TomTom to keep me going towards my destination, while taking the back, seldom traveled roads.

So I plugged the TT in and headed west towards Indiana, missing all the state and federal roads I could until I got past Decatur, Indiana....then it was up I-469 to US 33, past Churubusco, then more back roads to LaOtto, then Old Rt 3 back south before finally ending up at Rick's place.  I arrived just after Noon, and Rick's truck was there, but nobody was home...what are the odds?  The guy has been staying pretty much at home with his injuries and vertigo, but the day I decide to travel to visit...he is gone.  I make a call to his cell phone, he answers, and turns out Rick and wife Toni are in Fort Wayne with her sister....O' Well, no problem, we talked for 10 minutes or so...and I headed back and alternate route.

After all I didn't call ahead, and really had no reason to expect Rick to be there, but I wanted to take the day off and travel anyway...sometimes I do that.  I had been thinking about making a trip down to Waldo, Ohio, grab a famous Baloney Sammy at G&R and maybe head to Millwood, the tiny berg my GGG-Grandfather Israel Houseworth had help found and settle back in the 1820s....it's been 3 or 4 years since I had been to Millwood, and at least a year since I had went to Waldo, where the Houseworth Family had moved in the middle 1800s, before my Great-Grandparents headed to the Black Swamp of Paulding Country after the Civil War.  So, that is my next "Road Trip", along with the one Nick and I will make to the Chicago area in January as we move Sam's stuff, when he finds an apartment that suits him.

Anyway, back to yesterday...I managed to find some roads I had never been on before, and snapped a few shots as I headed north and west, on the return trip, I pointed the TomTom GPS and Nitro back towards Celina, but used a north and east direction, which took me to I 69, when I got off of that, and onto US 30 I stopped by the newly opened Pilot/Flying J Truck Stop just outside New Haven, Indiana.  The Flying J's were like a second home during Sam and my RV days between 2002 and 2008.  Flying J had been planning on building a new stop at the I 69/30 interchange for years, but that permit process was stopped, when the gas/fuel increase costs of the recession caused FJ to file for bankruptcy....they merged with Pilot and began anew.

Flying J's were always tacky and even though fuel costs were low, the cost of the items and quality of food was "iffy", the food quality varied from location to location, but I liked the fact on my travels, they always had a hot shower for low cost, they usually had room for the RV drivers to park our rigs and spend the night, much nicer than roadside rest stops...so the Flying J's between the years of 2002 and 2008 became my home away from home, and basically yesterday I stopped at the new one in New Haven, just to get a nostalgic boost..while I was there I signed up for a Pilot/Flying J Rewards Card, to replace my old expired one of years gone by.  I probably will seldom use it, but it brought back some decent memories of that 5 years of traveling the roads of America with both small and large RVs and driving, more often than not, the Jeep home on the return trips.

Today it's up to Lima to the Nissan dealer up that way to get a "Key" programmed on Patricia's new Altima....the dealer in Celina gave her one key{the keyless key type, makes sense, doesn't it?}, that was programmed, but they had another that wasn't....so that needs to be taken to the regional dealer so they can program it...that happens early this afternoon, then it's back here, change, and get ready to head to Spencerville for a Girls JV game tonight...

No game tomorrow, but back to LCC on Saturday morning for a Junior High double header....next week is another full week of basketball with five games on the schedule.

back later>>>

Photos-Top...as I drove north on the Ohio/Indiana Line my TomTom GPS was telling me I need to head back east to the main road...I ignored "her" and headed straight north towards my destination using the back roadways.  Amish Country was pretty quiet on this cool but sunny December day, an old barn on what was once a farm house lot, sits empty in the morning sun, while 3 horses stare at this human as he shot them with camera out of my car window. Prices are down somewhat....and a few cents less than most places at the newly opened "Flying J" outside New Haven and Fort Wayne at the I-469/US 30 interchange...and nearly home in the mid afternoon sun I snapped this shot of the St Marys River near Rockford, Ohio, looking west from where I came.

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>>>>