Windy Point, Grand Lake, Montezuma, Ohio

A rare Sunday post this day before Independence Day 2011.....

Crawling out of the sack at 5am this morning, it appeared the sky and conditions might be OK for another round of Sunrise Photos over Grand Lake.  So I brushed my teeth, put on t-shirt, jeans, and a ball cap, and drove out into the nearly dark and moonless morning, just as the sun was starting to brighten the northeast skyline.  This mornings destination was Windy Point State Park on the south side of the lake.  Just outside the Montezuma town limits, Windy Point is where, during my high school years, I spent hours either, swimming, fishing, and doing some illegal camping with the Jones boys....you were not allowed to camp overnight at this state park, but we did so on occasions anyway.  After my Air Force days, Windy Point is where I would bring the Airedales, Rag and Max, to swim in the channels that jetted off into the park grounds.

Windy Point itself is a rocky jetty that runs from the southeast side of Grand Lake some distance, perhaps a half mile, and reaches towards Safety Island...the largest of a dozen or so islands in the lake, mostly on the west side, that at one time were used as oil well platforms in the 13,000 acre reservoir.  These days Windy Point is no longer a fishing hot spot, the beaches are gone, except a small strip of sand near the "point" itself.  There are boat docks in the channels, but frankly Windy Point is seldom used by locals are the lake visitors these days...and with the Alga and other pollution problems, and  the lack of quality fishing, I don't expect to see Windy Point back where it used to be in my lifetime.

The Canada Geese and Great Herons were out this morning when I arrived about 5:45...I parked the van and got out a lawn chair.  Over the next hour, I would shoot about 60 photos, and set and or stand taking in the sights and sounds of the morning...except for one pick-up truck, and a solo fisherman, who arrived later, the morning was left for me and the birds...along with a few fish that would slash just off the long ago abandoned beach.  I managed to get some quality photos, but found myself regretting that I did not bring along a tripod....with no picnic tables in shooting range, I had to adjust and that doesn't always work out...I final took some shots while I rested the Nikon on the passenger door rolled down window ledge of the Montana.

The photos are a few that I worked with this morning...as the sun filtered through the partly cloudy skies toward the rising sun, which comes up over the northeast part of the lake this time of year.

Have a Happy 4th, back later>>>>

Photos-I am getting used to the point and shoot Nikon, but still am not steady enough at is as to realize when taking these type shots, I do need a tripod, especially when zooming in....the top photo is me, taken with camera resting on the tail of the Montana Van, after I was done shooting, and finishing up my large coffee.  The daylight photo is Windy Point from last summer during the August "Bar Stool Open"...and all the sunrise photos were taken this morning from varsious point near and on Windy Point, looking northeast towards the rising sun.

Meaning of the 4th of July, Umpire Tossings, and More Sun~risings...

Final post until after the 4th of July, unless something spectacular comes up...like Obammy resigning and admitting he is really a Kenyan after all...so seriously,  don't count on any new material until Tuesday July 5th. 

July 4th, What it Means to the far left:

I see where a new Harvard study says July 4th is for us Right Wingers only:
http://nation.foxnews.com/culture/2011/06/30/harvard-july-4th-parades-are-right-wing 

Well you know, the dump is probably right...after all, Democrats and Lefties, for the most part, hate America, hate God, and worship Stalin, Lenin, Mao, and Obammy the Wonder Boy....so you see, Liberals indeed don't like the 4th of July, because it stands for everything they hate and despise.

In a day, not far off, there will be another Civil War in America, not North vs South, Black vs White, or even Legal vs Illegal...it will be Left vs Right, Citizen vs overreaching Government Control.  Look for Obammy, if re-elected, to go for the Holy Grail, and with the help of the left wing press, try to become King of Amerika for life.   All Hell will break loose....and no I'm not joking.  This, or something like, this is bound to happen, and you better damn well be prepared, and hope enough of the military is on "our right" side.  The left controls the Government and Media, they will not give up control without a fight....and at this point I see no Republican(except Allen West who isn't running) that will side with us....the field is littered with the Politically Correct and Wall Street Bankers/Lawyers, who are too gutless to actually make a difference.


There are at least three undeniable truths:  (1) Global Warming is Fake Science...(2) Abortion is Murder...and (3) Liberals Hate America and Freedom. 
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Getting the "Heave-Ho"...

Last night my buddy Jim, another long time veteran state tested umpire, and I had the winners bracket final of the Crestview Junior ACME tournament at Convoy.  It was Jim's turn to do the plate, and we had a feeling the game might get ugly, because frankly, one team appeared far superior to the other.  {I will leave names of teams off here because the tournament is still going on and both teams are still in the hunt}

Ugly turns out to be a vast understatement....18-1 was the final, in a 4 1/2 inning "run rule" game.  Run Rule is when the trailing team gets 5 at bats and still trails by 10 or more runs, the game is called, and the leading team is declared the winner.

Errors, misplays, walks, etc, led to the downfall of the losing team....for some reason the coaches decided to knit pick calls they thought they didn't like.  Here is a little hint:  When you are down 12 or 15 runs, it's not the freaking umpires fault.  When your team is getting their asses handed to them, don't nitpick the umpires.  So after a few pissing sessions, the head coach comes out, lallygags around, and finally changes pitchers, with his team down 15-0, and we are only in the 3rd inning.  After several warm up pitches, Jim tells coach and pitcher, "Two more warm up tosses"...the coach fires back..."He only gets six?"  "No" says Jim, "While you were talking and messing around, he had the others"....A few more back and forth barbs and Jim tells him, "One more word and you are gone".  So the coach makes his exit from the mound towards the dugout...and makes the mistake of turning and saying something towards Jim....I'm not sure what it was, but, it didn't matter, I didn't wait for my partner to say a word, I just wound up and gave him the heave-ho..."Coach" I say, "You Are Outta Here"...

First Junior ACME or ACME head coach I have ever tossed....now American Legion?, a dime a dozen, tossed many.  High school?  Never, those guys are usually smart enough not to get tossed, it costs them time, games, and money, if they get the heave-ho...I usually just set them on the bench.  Why this guy choose to cross the line that had been drawn in a, at that time, a 15 run blow out is beyond me?   But now with his team playing in the losers bracket final tonight(with me behind the plate) with the winner of the game getting an automatic bid to the District, he will be sitting somewhere other than the bench or ballpark.  He is suspended for two games, and his team may get finished off tonight, and he won't be there to coach them, win or lose.  I didn't enjoy showing him the gate, but there are times you have to do things because you are boxed into a corner.  He was told not to continue to yap, and he pushed the envelope, and paid the postage due.  Sorry about his luck, next time maybe he'll know better.

More Sunrise Photos~

Here are a couple more from yesterday's morning shoot....

back later>>>> have a great 4th of July all you fellow Right Wingers...screw the limp wristed lefties and other American Democracy haters...you have forfeited any respect you think you deserve.


Photos-A cluster of flowers over the back fence...one plant, with the blooms looking much like a bouquet....The left hates America, and what the Flag stands for...Allen West maybe the GOP hope, if we can get him to run. Clint Hurdle of the Pirates getting the "Heave~Ho"...and a couple of shots from yesterday's sunrise shoot over Grand Lake.

30 June 1969...off to Vietnam, and Rising Early on a Summer Morning

Sometimes I would like to go to bed earlier than I do, and get up much earlier than the 7:30 or 8am I do most mornings....last night and this morning I finally got it done. You will find that the older you get, the less sleep you require or get, and with that the later you tend to hit the sack.  After my retirement at the age of 53 back in 2002, I immediately went into driving RVs for delivery around the country, so my sleep pattern went to Hell.  While on the road I would sometimes go to bed in the RVs at 9pm, but be up and on the road by 3 or 4am.  And of course traveling against the time zones on many of those western trips really screwed up my sleep cycle.  When I stopped driving those, back in 2008, I returned to a somewhat normal sleep pattern.  Go to bed at Midnight and getting up some 7 or 8 hours.  What I would like to do is go to bed at 10 and get up at 5 or 6...but that has not happened for the most part.

Last night, with no games, I had several beers, watched "Die Hard" and hit the hay at around 11....after getting up to let the old Airedale, Reagan, out at 4:30, I went back to bed for another hour or so....then at about 5:45 I awoke, and decided right then and there to get up and go take some photos of the sun rising across Grand Lake St Marys.  I didn't have much time to think about it...the sun would rise over Grand Lake about 6:10, and I had to get to the West Bank Road.  The sun this time of the year, rises in an almost North and East direction over the lake....so I knew I had to get down towards the park to get my shots.

I grabbed the keys to Patricia's Dodge Nitro, and headed out....as I approached the park in the quiet and gloam, a doe and her two fawns jogged across the roadway..."It sure is peaceful this morning" I thought to myself.  I parked the vehicle, and while the Canada Geese and their nearing adult young went on feeding, I began to take photos of the approaching sun coming up through the trees along the north side of the lake,  the trails left by passing jets, and a few skittering clouds.  Some of the results are posted here, and on my Western Ohio Weather Blog(link on the right side border of this post).

Yep, I really do need to get up early more often...my mind says I will do that, my body?  Well let's say, that part of me needs to be convinced....

June 30, 1969...off to Nha Trang, RVN

42 years ago this very morning, I awoke early, much like this morning.  But there would be no photo shoot of the sunrise over Grand Lake....this morning was to be my last spent stateside(except for 5 days in Hawaii the following April).  I would get up, mom, dad, and youngest sister Kelly and I would within the next few hours, head south to Vandalia, Ohio.  Vandalia is where then as today, the Dayton International Airport is located.  We arrived, a connecting flight to O' Hare Airport in Chicago was up next....I said my good-byes and climbed aboard.  The morning, like this one, was clear...and as the flight pattern played out, my American Airline 707 rumbled Montezuma on the shores of Grand Lake...from my window seat I actually saw the lake, the runway at our small airfield on could make out our house just off the grassy runway on the east end.  It would be another year before I would see home again.

Chicago was first, then onto San Francisco, where I boarded a bus for the trip to Travis AFB.  From there it was a whirlwind of paper work and processing, and finally I boarded a Braniff International 727 and was on my way.  After quick stops in Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines, our plane circled over the shoreline and heavy jungle of central South Vietnam....we would set down at Tan Son Nhut AB, or Saigon's Airport.  I really don't recall much of that first day, except I was housed in a transit barracks with maybe 40 other guys who would also be sent to their final in country destinations.  Mine would be Nha Trang, to the north of Saigon, where I would work out of the Law Enforcement division on day shift, or A Flight.  The next 6 months would be the only time I would work LE in my 4 years of Air Force duty...6 months later I would be back at Tan Son Nhut, but not as a "transit"...as a Buck Sergent for C Flight(overnight) Security...

So...it began, this day, 42 years ago...how time does fly by.

The tournament action begins for me tonight...as I have a Winner's Bracket final in the Jr ACME tournament in Convoy at Crestview...tomorrow I will be back there for the final elimination game in the double elimination tournament.  The action will pick up in the Varsity ACME Tournaments as the month of July begins...baseball will draw to a close for another season my next month's end.

back later>>>>

Photos-Three of the 40 some photos I took this morning looking out from the west side of Grand Lake St. Marys....still working on them, to see which are the best, my best guess is I have about a dozen "keepers"....also June 30, 1968 mom and me the morning of my departure for Vietnam....and TSgt Phil Lange my old NCOIC at the Law Enforcement desk at the Airport at Nha Trang....LE with the 14th SPS would be my home for the first 6 months in country, and my favorite duty station in my four Air Force years.

Horsing Around...

Monday afternoon I headed north to Leipsic, Ohio...some 65 miles through the heart of the Old Black Swamp from the early days of the settling of Northwest Ohio.   I usually take a few games, baseball in the Spring or Summer, and Basketball in the Winter, which gives me a chance to stop in and see my old friend Tom, the Horse Groomer/Trainer from Rockford.  Tom works for Suggs Stables in Deshler, Ohio, another 10 miles north of Leipsic, and located on the Wood/Henry County Line.  Deshler, home of Patrick Henry High School is nicknamed "Corn City"...and maybe it should be named "Train City"...at least 40 of those suckers go through at night, and if you are not used to it, makes it rough to sleep, especially in the cool of the Summer, with windows open.

I did the plate in a quick 1 hour 25 minute game, which saw the host Vikings defeat county rival Ottoville, 5-0...then it was off to Tom's place and the famous Corn City Bar.  A monster deep fried Tenderloin and a few draft beers later, I wasn't about to drive the 90 minutes back to Celina, so I crashed at Tom' place in town...where the Train Whistles kept me company, and awake through most of the night.

Tom is usually up and off to the horse barns by 5am...I managed to sleep in until maybe 6, although sleep was hardly what you can call it with the trains...I got up showered, grabbed a large coffee down at the Shell Station/Store, and headed the 3 miles across the county line into Wood County, taking Ohio 18 to the Sugg Stables.  This season they are housing about 8 ponies, down from previous years.  Working the trotters and pacers in the Ohio County Fair circuit, down at Delaware, in Indianapolis, and traveling into upstate New York and Canada.  I talked to the horses, led by "Manny Shuffle", who is having some problems this year as a 3 year old, compared to his excellent season last year...several fillies are in fold, and Tom gave a couple others a 4 mile run around the track as I took some photos, and finished off my coffee.

Heading home towards Celina at 8am, I stopped in the county seat, Ottawa for another coffee, and drove the back roads in the cool and morning sun home...arriving home just before 10.  The lack of sleep slowed me down, so I grabbed a nap upstaris at about 1pm, climbed out of bed at 3:15 and was on my way to Lima Central Catholic by 4:30 for my final regular season game of the year.  Tournaments began last night, my first of two at Crestview start tomorrow, and after that the as yet unfinished schedule will run through most of July, before my baseball season shuts down on July 28th at latest.  We will head for Wisconsin on July 29th for Patrica's nephew's wedding on July 30th.

A run filled last inning and a half, which saw 13 runners cross the plate(which I worked again), ended with LCC coming out on top of Allen East 12-8...tonight I am off, which will give me a chance to trim the bushes and shrubs around the house...with temperatures near 80 and low humidity, this may be the best opportunity to get that thankless job done.

The July 4th weekend is upon us and Patricia, Anissa, maybe mom, if she decides to go, and I will head down to Centerville to take in the July 4th festivities with Hal and Lisa....Sam will head back to Columbus to work a tournament down there...enough for now it's time to get out and get to those shrubs....

back later>>>>

Photos-"Manny Shuffle" is his stall...The Corn City Bar, Great Food!..Tom with one of the Fillies right before taking her out for the morning run around the 5/8 mile track at the ranch...and a look out east of the Sugg's Stables, when the weather is nice(like yesterday), you could sit in a lawn chair and catch the breeze, without a care in the world....Tom works the horses here in the Summer and Fall, then they head south to DeLand, Florida, for the Winter and early Spring months.

Another Blast from the Past....Venice Florida 1959-60

The Midwest, at least the farther west Midwest, think Iowa,  got clobbered last night with more strong storms...Jim Olson called from Minot, North Dakota, saying the flood waters there, were still on the rise, and would crest maybe by Wednesday...What a season!  Almost makes you wish for Winter, almost...but not quite. We are waiting on storms today, but for now they appear to be hitting Indiana, and wavering as they approach Western Ohio...so we will see how hard and with how much rain they strike us with.

Sam and I headed south to Sidney, some 50 miles south and east on Saturday morning, and worked a American Legion double header with Madison County.  The first game started at 11am, and we were finished by 3, even with a break for the teams to share in some Pizza between games.  I did the plate in the opener, Sam in the second game, and both lasted no more than an hour and a half.  Pitching ruled as Sidney swept both games, 5-1 and 2-0.  We were home by 4:30....tonight, weather permitting, and tomorrow, I finish up the regular ACME Season, and then the tournaments begin on Thursday....those will take me through most of July, along with our usual work helping out in a couple of Pony League Tournaments, the only time I work less that High School baseball, but a fun way to finish the season.  Seems like it just began.

The rest of the weekend was spent entertaining Hal's dogs, mowing lawns, and sitting on the back steps, cooking on the grill between beers and cigars.  I also watched my favorite western "Lonesome Dove" on AMC.  Funny, I have the entire mini series on DVD, but usually watch it when it comes on TV...go figure?  One thing I did notice, with the beers and sitting, I have gained about 7 pounds back this Sp[ring, and am approaching the 195 pound point on my 5' 11" frame.  Sure, that is down from the 220 during my weight lifting days, but still up from the 183 that I hit last summer, and the 187-188 point that I felt comfortable with over the winter.  Guess I better cut back on those grill delights and that stuff in the bottles.  Cut back mind you, not quit.  Hell that's what Summer is all about...

Venice(Florida) Elementary School 1959-60____

One thing about Facebook, despite all the BS and politics, it is a great way to find old faces and names from your past, or for them to find you.  It has worked for me, even without making a concentrated effort.  Type in a name on the FB search or a place, and with the explosion of that Social Network, someone from out of the past is sure to respond.   It has happened to me on several occasions, whether it be folks that I have known from my Air Force days, early Celina, or even back from 50 and more years ago,  finding people that I knew in Venice.  Several have contacted me, or I have found them, usually quite by accident.

One found happened Friday...I was messing around with naming Venice as my hometown.  I have often named that south Florida town, as well as tiny Scott, Ohio, and Celina as my primary hometowns...because I spent more time in those three during my life than anywhere else.  Anyway I came across several old names from the past...one being Ron Dinero.  Ronnie as he was called then, was in several of my classes, and I always considered him on of my friends, along with Mike Graff, Ted Blackburn, Barry Young, Jackie Dye, Mickey Lawrence, and a handful of others.  So this weekend, I not only found Ron, I also found Barry Young.  Ron has a photo posted on his FB homepage, that I had not seen in over 50 years....

The photo, on the top of todays\'s post, was from our 5th grade class, one of three classes in that future Class of 67 at Venice Elementary....Ron is in the second row on the close up cropped photos, he is on the bottom left), I am the last kid on the right, in the top row, with that smirk, goofy, assed "face" I was making.  I sure when our teacher, Mrs Holmes, just below me, saw that mug, she probably wasn't happy.  She had both my older brother Mike, some 3 years before, and me, in her class.  She told mom that she never knew what Mike was thinking, but you always knew what Pat was thinking...{think Big MO-uth I am sure).  I guess I was always the class smart ass in my days at VE(1955-1961).  This photo brought some of those days flooding back into my memory banks.

Funny thing is I can remember almost ever name of every kid in this photo...a couple slip my mind, but most I remember like it was yesterday, some have passed, like Mike Graff(top row, second from left), but most, like Barry Young(on Mike's left) are still alive and kicking.  Many still live in the Venice area, others have moved away, like me.  But I treasure those memories and people, and will until the day I pass from this world.
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Tonight I head north to Leipsic, if the game is played, and will probably have a few beers and dinner with my horse training buddy Tom, and crash at his place.  Home tomorrow for one more regular game at Lima Central Catholic....and then it is tournament time.

Back Later>>>>>

Photos-Top Left Venice Florida Elementary School Mrs Holmes 5th Grade Class 1959-60...Me and the Grill....I wasn't as unhappy as I looked in this photo from yesterday...the grill cooking was a success as usual, I was enjoying the cooking and my jungle backyard.  And the cropped portion of that class photo.  Ron Dinero is bottom left, I am top right, just above Mrs Holmes...Harvey Godwin is next to me on my left, and Dave Vandawalker is on Harvey's left.

My Favorite Van....

Cool weather is back....at least for a day or two.  While umpiring at Rockford last night, the wind picked up and on several occasions blew a straight line rain into our faces, at least at me, the catcher, and batter....I had to stop the game twice for 5 minutes, not so much because the amount of rain, but because what the accompanying wind was doing with it.  Still got the game in under 2 hours, as the hometown Parkway team defeated Celina 4-2 to get revenge for a 7-2 loss at Celina(which I had also) earlier in the month.  The season is winding down, at least the regular season.  Starting next week, the Junior ACME and ACME tournaments will begin, and I will be kept busy for the next month or so, working those.  Tonight I am scheduled at Spencerville for ACME, then tomorrow morning, Sam and I will head south 40 miles to Sidney to work a scheduled double header for the Sidney American Legion. 

A crowded house this weekend, with Hal home for a wedding and his two small dogs, coming with him....

My Favorite Van_____

I have written on several occasions about various "road trips" I have taken over the years...with an assortment of friends...Rick Pearson, Rick Tester, Nick, and others, including one back 1975, the summer of that year of "Jaws" the movie, with Jim Olson and Mike Schilling.  That story is posted elsewhere on this blog and can be found with some research if you want to read about those exploits.  Today I write about the vehicle we used on that trip....a 1961 Ford Econoline Van.

While living just a block away from where Patricia and I are located today, and while working as the manager, bartender, and occasional "bouncer" at The Red Door in downtown Celina, I always had a variety of transportation.  One being my Kawasaki Motor Cycle, usually a newer car...in this case a 1973 AMC Hornet with Levi Seats, and another "beater" vehicle...mostly a rusting pick-up truck of varying models and types.  In the winter of 1974-75 I went looking for something to haul the hunting hounds around in, as well as the hound dogs of the two leg variety that I ran around with.  I headed to Coldwater one day and happened to see this ugly assed panel van...ugly green in color, with a cut out window and the usual rust on the bottom sides, like any good 13 or 14 year old vehicle had back in those days....perfect I thought to myself.  I purchased it for the grand sum of $400.

The inside had just the two bucket seats, and a pull down bed, which was hanging from the driver's side wall. I guessed it was used for camping, or use your imagination?....for me, the inside was just right.  It had plenty of room for the Coon Hounds, and the Kawasaki Dirt Bikes.  And it could be used for sleeping, such as the Florida 75 trip, and carrying a large number of cases of beer..again, see Florida 1975.

I had and used that van for about 2 years, until I headed back to college at Nelsonville and Athens...frankly, I don't remember how I got rid of it, or why...but I remember it well, and some of the exploits were legendary in my circles of friends and outlaws that I hung around with.  It, despite it's penchant for dropping U Joints, It, especially for the low cost and grand memories, had to be one of my favorite vehicles that I have had the pleasure and pain to have owned.

Enjoy your weekend...

back later>>>>

Photos-The Van sitting on Fulton Street back in the winter of 74-75, at our place on the corner of North Brandon and Fulton, in Celina, just a block away from where we reside these days.  Then you have me, in the Summer of 75 at Daytona, compete with "Arrive Stoned" license plates in rear view window, a sure asking to get pulled over.  The back was, at this time, filled with camping gear, two Kawasaki Dirt Bikes(for riding on the Daytona Beach) and about 25 cases of beer...which we had no problem going through and more in our 10 day Florida Odyssey.  You really need to double click that second photo for a close up...that was a picture or microcosm of my life some 35 years ago, for better or worse.  And the last, the Van at the OS State Park, just north of my old hometown of Venice, Florida.  We camped here for a few days of fishing and beer drinking before heading north to Disney World(in it youth, like us), and then on to Daytona Beach and Myrtle Beach to round out the trip.

Not much going on...but cooler, fall like temperatures on the way

Got the game in at Coldwater last night, me and my partner from Minster Tim.  Tim worked the State High School Tournament last year, and we both worked the Summer ACME State Tournament last July...other than that I have not be paired up with him much over the past couple of seasons.  In addition to last night, where he did the plate, we will work the Lima Shawnee Sectional together on July 5th...where I will do the "dish". 

The game was a surprising "blow out" with Coldwater defeated rival in a run ruled 4 1/2 inning game, by a 17-5 score...tonight, if the showers hold off or go elsewhere, I will head to Rockford as Parkway hosts Celina..  I had the game between those two county rivals early in the summer season, the game I got hit twice in the same inning, as field umpire...will try to avoid that tonight....

Today has been slow, and I have to admit, I've been on my ass, sitting for much of it.  I did get to work with the new Nikon Camera, my knowledge is coming around, slowly, very slowly, but it is coming....I still miss the ease which the Fuji worked out of the Automatic Mode.  The Nikon seems not to work as well, and I am experimenting with the various Settings to get things right.  Today the subject was some of the backyard flowers, as shown.

Things will be busy this weekend around the house....First off Sam and I will be heading early Saturday morning to Sidney, where we will work a double header in my first American Legion ball of the year.  With taking last weekend off, I missed out for the first time in over 10 years doing the Tawa Run AL Tournament in Ottawa...so this will be the first of the season.

Hal will be home Saturday as well, without bride, as she heads out for the weekend, and Hal comes home to his classmate and our neighbors wedding...he will be bringing the dogs with him, which should keep things moving around here, since Anissa will be with us much of the weekend as well.   I'm just not used to that many bodies being around the house these days...but will survive it...Friday I am at Spencerville for a ACME Matchup, and then finally on Sunday, I plan on trimming the hedges/bushes around the house, they are in serious need.

So that's the plan, for the next few days...and the conditions should be good for just about all activity.  Once the showers move out and on east, cooler, fall like, temperatures will be with us into the weekend.  Only 65 with clouds for a high tomorrow, and sunshine and in the low to middle 70s for Saturday and Sunday.

back later>>>>

Photos-Two shots of backyard flowers with varying degrees of success...getting use to the various modes, will take awhile...but that's the great thing about Digital Photography...the mistakes don't cost you money.  Damn am I glad "film" is dead....because my mistakes are plenty....

Blogger Photo Blues/Luebke into Starting Rotation

WTF? Is about all I can say for Blogger these days....yes it is free, and yes it is easy, and yes, it is a pain in the ass on many occasions....

Doesn't matter if you use Firefox or Internet Explorer, there is almost always something to challenge your patience....today, it's the photo loader...doesn't matter if you have it on either one, the photos won't load, so with my "crutch" this one will be quick.

Problem Solved?  Seems over the years I had ran out of photo space....it was usually just for uploading the sidebar pictures, but now Blogger enforce all the photo uploading...my 1 GB was used up, so I had to purchase 20GB(which should solve any problems)sic, for $5 a year....sooooooooooo, maybe this issue is solved.

First Off...........................

Somehow the major rains and storms missed us last night.  The went south(Reds/Yankees rained out) they went north, they went west, and east...but somehow most of Mercer County was spared, and Sam's game in Celina, and mine in St. Henry were played....we didn't need the rain, and don't need what is predicted for the next couple of days, before things dry off over the weekend and early next week.  Tonight Sam stays in Celina, while I travel to Coldwater for a game with rival St. Henry...should be a good one, if we get it in.

Cory Luebke moves into Starting Role____

Marion Local product Cory Luebke, one of 4 pitchers in MLB, who I umpired behind the plate during their High School careers, has been moved from the Bullpen to the starting rotation.  Cory started nearly all of his High School, College at Ohio State, and Minor League career, before being moved to the bullpen this season with the San Diego Padres:

  http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110621&content_id=20807920&notebook_id=20818184&vkey=notebook_sd&c_id=sd

Cory, who youngest son Hal, coached during summer ACME baseball a few years ago, has had an excellent year out of the bullpen, except for one game against the Reds....I think he will succeed well now that he is back in the starting rotation.  Good Luck Cory!

Speaking of the Reds....for only the fifth time in Great American Ballpark history(opened in 2003) they were washed out...sad for the fans that had tickets, because the game was a sellout.  So today they will do a day/night double header.

The regular game begins at 12:10pm and the nightcap, rescheduled from last night, opens at 7:10pm....so, I'm out to mow the lawn so I can catch game #1...and fret about my "Blogger Blues">>>>

back later>>>>

photo-Cory moves into the rotation at San Diego...

My Favorite Places, The Final Chapter/Shelf Road

Strong Storms could rain out games for the second night in a row....after getting dumped on for several hours yesterday, the rains ended and the skies cleared long enough to get Mom's and Anissa's lawn mowed....however my game at Crestview and even Sam's on the artificial turf at Celina were canceled.  Tonight I am scheduled for St. Henry while Sam is once again in Celina...but those are "iffy" with some strong or sever storms moving in from the west this afternoon.

The Final Chapter(for now) of my favorite places____

I have told this story on this blog before, but cannot leave it off my list of Favorite Places...

Shelf Road, Colorado....

http://www.cooney71.com/ 

The above link is Shelf Road in Colorado...it runs from Canon City north to Cripple Creek.  The first time I laid eyes on it was in the summer of 1980, it hard seems 30+ years ago, but time flies as we all know when we reach middle age.

It all began when...

My buddy Rick Pearson, of our mushroom hunting fame, and we being best man in each others weddings, mine in 1976 and his in 1981...we were next door neighbors at Ohio University's College Inn for a while in Athens, Ohio.   We met while working together at Marsh Supermarket in Celina during my Senior, and his Junior year at Celina High School.  After our military years, where we were both Military Police, him a MP in the Army, and me as a SP in the Air Force, we both returned home to Celina...for awhile.

In the late Summer of 1980 I had decided to leave my job as radio news director at KGNO Radio in Dodge City, Kansas...Patricia and Anissa had flown to Wisconsin to stay with her parents for a few weeks, while I was in charge of getting the belongings and vehicles back to Ohio, where I would take over as Program Director at WCSM Radio in my home town.  I U-Hauled the household stuff back to Celina, towing the trailer behind our AMC Hornet vehicle...my Jeep Cherokee was in the garage, and was left back in Dodge until I could return to pick it up.  In late July,  I asked Rick if he wanted to make a road trip.  We would drive my brother Mike's pick up to Dodge, get the repaired Jeep and return.  We could also make a side "road trip" to Colorado, just for the fact we had the time....

We stocked our cooler, and headed west, arriving in Dodge City the next afternoon...the Jeep was a couple of days from being ready, so we headed west towards the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  We arrived in Canon City in late afternoon...talked to some locals about something a couple of 30 year old guys could do for adventure in the surrounding mountains.  One gas station attendant told us about a road they call "Red Horse" or Shelf Road.  Seems the road was a short cut to Cripple Creek, the old abandoned mining town of western lore(no longer abandon, it these days, is a yuppie/skiing area complete with million dollar condos)....so with the afternoon sun starting to set, off we went in the Ford 150 in search of adventure...what we found was "Shelf Road"....{if you have not watched the above video, do it now}...which was more adventure than we bargained for.

At times it seemed we were just inches from dropping off the side, and in truth we were, we met one other vehicle on the way, and we backed up, to let them pass, mainly because we were closer to the drive over/pull over spot.  Finally arriving in Cripple Creek, we stopped at a local watering hole and had a few beers, telling the local bartender about our "adventure".  He looked at us and says.."You guys were handed a line, few people, even locals drive that damn road without a four wheel drive"  Well we were glad we did...after having a couple more, we headed back part way up Shelf Road, and stayed the night, camping in the back of the truck on the banks of the famous Cripple Creek.

In the morning, we took a dip in the cold, cold, waters of Cripple Creek...just to say we did.  We also explored a mine shaft, and eventually panned for gold, Rick being the Geology Major at Ohio U, knows what it looks like, and we did find some dust...all-in-all, the Shelf Road Adventure was something that will stick in my mind, as long as I have one.  But it was a short visit, then it was back to Dodge City.  A day later, cooler's stocked with Coors, soda pop, and ice, we headed back east towards Celina, and the daily humdrum of our regular lives. 

The Reds lost the opener of their Inter-league match up with the Yankees last night, 5-3, and their home standing slump continues....lucky for Cincinnati, both Milwaukee and St. Louis aren't playing much better...game #2 of three tonight at GABP...

back later>>>>

Photos-A couple of looks at Shelf Road..., the map from Canon City to Cripple Creek, and don't forget to watch the youtube video...this and several others are available at that site.

It's a.......................!

More storms moving in from the west....as it's beginning to look like another wet period.  I know they are having a drought in the southern plains, and I sure wish this crap we have had for the past 4 months would head their way....so it's looking like storms through Wednesday at least, with heat and humidity to go with it.

Father's Day in Cincy____

Patricia and I headed south to Centerville at Noon Saturday to stay with youngest son Hal and wife Lisa.  The plans for the day included supper at the famous Montgomery Inn...there are now several, but we opted for the original location near Cincinnati on Montgomery Road:

 http://www.montgomeryinn.com/

The Ribs are melt in your mouth outstanding..... 

After dining we would head for the Great American Ballpark and take in the Interleague game between the Reds and Toronto Blue Jays...the dining was great, the game?  Not so much...we had seats in left field and high up, but they were cheap($10 each for six of us that went), and under the roof, which worked well, since there was a steady lite rain for much of the game, which ended in a 4-0 shutout by the team from Canada.  This was the second straight game I had seen the Reds shut out, for Hal it was three in a row.  Considering they are the top hitting team in the National League, that is disappointing and rare.

Before all of that however, we, the parents and grandparents to be, all headed for a private salon that specializes in mothers-to-be...our Father's Day weekend event was to join Lisa and Hal in finding out the sex of the grandkid to be.  They have resident Ultra Sound Technicians on site, and within literally a minute of being "hooked up" Lisa and Hal found out that the baby-to-be will be a boy.  So now Hal can begin, not only his new job, started last week, but the painting and the arrangement of the nursery....and hopefully all will go well, and then in about 5 months, the line of Houseworth will reach another generation.  A pretty exciting time for all, to say the least.

After the game, we headed back to Centerville, stayed the night at their parents-to-be's condo, then up early, we headed back to Celina. 

Sam spent the weekend in Columbus, working a 13/14 year old baseball tournament, which they got all the games in, even with the rain and delays....Anissa stayed at her place in Celina..  Tonight Sam is scheduled in Celina, and I am assigned to Convoy Crestview, but at this point, that is not likely to happen...I've also got a couple of yards to mow, Mom's and Anissa's but those may be pushed back as well...for now, it's shower time.

back later>>>>

Photos-A River Boat chugs along the Ohio River heading west past Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati....and the parents in waiting, Hal and Lisa in our catbird seats near the foul pole in left field.  B-T-W...I'll still getting used to the new Nikon, and some shots selections that come with it...I had some good shots, usually with the portrait mode locked in...the landscape and night modes, I'm a work in progress with those..but will get better, hopefully~

My Favorite Places, Part #4{Vegas and others}

Showers were around the area most of yesterday, and we got a few drops, but nothing serious that would rain our games out...Sam got his in up at Antwerp, however, when Pops Grey and I arrived at the Parkway Diamonds...nobody was there.  Seems the schedule got screwed up, and there were no games, no scheduled double header, not even a single game.  So that was a waste of my time....but only a 10 or 12 mile drive for me...unfortunalty for "Pops"...he drove 40 miles each way from near Fort Wayne...and with gas at $3.70 a gallon, it was a lost day and lost money for him...things happen, but in this case, it should not have.  Tonight, hopefully, I'm at Convoy....for a single game, before taking the weekend off to head for the Dayton area tomorrow, and the Reds game, with Patricia, Hal, and Lisa, tomorrow night.  Today's weather looks more summer like, with some humidity back in the area forecast, and then rain moving in for tonight and some over the Father's Day weekend.

More Favorite Places part #4


In my Air Force years, from 1968-72, then again after retiring from the Van Wert County Health Department, in 2002, when I drove RVs around the country and Canada for five years...I got the chance to see and visit many places...some, if only for a short while, others, for extended stays.  And in my full time radio career, which lasted from 1978 through the summer of 1983, I called a few places home.  So, I've been around, small towns, middle sized towns, and passed through the large cities of the country...although not in this lifetime would I ever want to live in one of those.  You see, that kind of diversity isn't my thing...Hell, living in Celina is challenge enough.

(1)  Las Vegas, Nevada.

In the 5 1/2 years of driving and delivering RVs for Hoosier Transit, out of Nappanee, Indiana, my favorite stop, or place to deliver, was without a doubt, Las Vegas.  More times than not, I would arrive, park the RV in the parking lot of the Gold Coast Casino, off the strip, and stay a day or two before I dropped off the vehicle.  Sometimes I would drop it off, and with reduced rate coupon in hand, I would just stay at the GC for a night or two.  Now I'm not a big gambler, but I would play the 3 deck Black Jack tables, drink their reduced or free drinks, and win a few buck on most occasions, lose a few on others.   As I said, I'm not a big gambler.  The most I ever won was about $900 on my first stay at the Gold Coast...the most I ever dropped was about $200.  After a night of drinking and playing cards, I would usually spend the next morning at the downstairs bars, reading the sports bet books, and playing video KENO....my second favorite game.  I probably visited Vegas 10 times in those 5+ years of driving...never had a bad time.  Although I never got into that "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" BS...and I sure the heck wouldn't want to live there...but it was a relaxing time and the flights out were always cheap.

(2) The Rockies

The trips through the mountains always provided an opportunity for some great scenery, and usually some challenges...weather it be driving in the snow, or trying to get a stubborn RV up a mountain pass on I-70 or I-80....I usually varied the trips, depending on location of drop off, and weather forecasts....sometimes I would elect to take the southern route, even 100 miles out of the way, by going down I-40 through Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle...then passing across New Mexico and through Arizona.  Some of my favorite stopping off points were the Route 66 Casino outside Albuquerque, New Mexico, and into the southern Rockies of Arizona, with stops like Show Low, Arizona, and others...I even stopped on the corner of Route 66 in Winslow, Arizona, famous for the Eagles song "Take it Easy" and took a photo of myself standing there....it's is hidden somewhere on one of the floppy disks from my old Sony Digital.  I was actually driving the Jeep back from Vegas on one of the rare occasions that I towed the Jeep Wrangler, when I stopped there.  I never remember a boring trip through the Rockies, whether it be the southern or northern route.

One night back in 2003...with the wind howling on a October evening, I decided to drive into Portland, Oregon, along the Columbia River, and the River Gorge....the trick was, I had never been to this area, or on I-84 along the river, and accompanying mountains.  And I decided to try this at night...wind, rain, and blind driving through this area, was not recommended...but I drove it anyway.  Call me crazy, and the guys at the RV dealership near Eugene, where I dropped off the next morning told me I was.  The next, and only other time, I drove this route, I took it in the daylight hours...taking in the full beauty of that area.

More later>>>>
 
That does it for the week...I'll dust some more off the memory banks, and come up with some other locations out of the past....enjoy the weekend, I plan on it.  Photos on that and more, come Monday.

back later>>>>

  Me in the Route 66 Casino in 2005 on the way to Califorina. and the Columbia River in Oregon, and "The Corner" in Winslow, Arizona....I've got some photos from my personal trips to go with these locations..."Somewhere"  ?