Not So Wild Hogs/Sunday Sunrise

Sunday, September 20, 2009 8AM

The rain is slated to end our sting of sunny early fall like days sometime today...hopefully after the double header that Sam{on his return from Ohio State for a day} and I have to officiate this afternoon. The grass is straw-like and I tore up the lawn mower knocking down weeds earlier this week, so hopefully I won't have to mow many more times, as I need to get the mower and snow blower into the shop for post season and pre -season repairs respectively.

It's been a busy week, over to Rick's Place on Wednesday, then a football double header at St. Henry for Junior High games Thursday....Friday night was my first shot at working as a Back Judge on a Varsity Crew. The lower level games from JV down through Jr High use only 3 or 4 officials, so the Back Judge, used for deep coverage is left out...at 60 years old and not a fast on foot as I once was, I figured doing this position with a crew I had not worked with before was going to be a challenge, especially with 1 team{Fort Recovery} using almost exclusively the spread offense with 4 and sometimes 5 receives going deep. In the 13-6 FR win over home standing Minster, we threw 16 penalty flags, I tossed only 1 and that was for delay of game....there were a couple of punts that I swallowed the whistle and held the flag I probably should have tossed, one bobbled ball that I called incomplete, after the receiver had ran 5 or 6 yards. I ruled he never had solid possession...it was close, before he fumbled out of bounds...all in all, I give myself a C+...should have been better, could have been worse. We met up with Garry's crew at the bowling alley in St Marys afterwards to discuss the 2 games{his crew being down at Riverside} After only a few hours sleep, I was back up and headed to Convoy to do a 3 man crew at the JV contest between Crestview and Bluffton. Today, down to the lowest of levels, the Rec League double header.

Another Get together___

After yesterday's game, I hooked up with 2 old friends at the local Bob Evans Restaurant. I have known Bob and Don since Junior High School when the family moved to Celina in late 1962...Don moved across the state line a few years later, and finished high school near Portland, Indiana...Bob and I were next door neighbors throughout high school, when we lived out by the Montezuma Airport. After high school and our military days, we hung around Celina, rode our Kawasaki Motor Cycles together for several years...I headed off to various parts of the country, Bob stayed around these parts, we see each other on occasion these days, and it's always good together, especially when a funeral is not involved. Don and Bob were close in those early high school years and beyond, I had not seen Don for over 40 years until he stopped by with his wife "Sam" on their Harley earlier this summer...seems they were looking for Bob, and his daughter found this blog, with a few photos of us...it all fell into place after that.

We had a good 2 hours get together yesterday and discussed what had been going on these past decades...time indeed does fly. We found out that while Don and wife continue to ride{just getting back from one trip, and getting ready to head out on another}, Bob and I had given our "biker" days up years ago...2 wrecks, at least 1 too many, was my excuse...Bob and I had some interesting times though...we all agreed, that alcohol and riding do not mix. Not sure if I always followed that 35 years ago. In addition to being older, Bob at 61, me at 60, and Don turning 60 next month, we seem to have become much wiser. Although the photo at the top appears to look right out of the 2007 movie "Wild Hogs" with Tim Allen and John Travolta(Minus the Cycles), not sure I could do 2000 miles on a Harley, those trips back from Vegas in the Jeep were hard enough over the past few years.

Will have more on our visit later this week....when I take a look at one of Don and Sam's road Harley trips to Brown County, Indiana. We parted with a decision to get together with the wives for dinner out down the road...at our ages we probably shouldn't wait another 40 years however. :)

Red Sky in Morning____

Up before sunrise, I checked out the radar and forecast...rain moving up from the south and a 60% chance for showers, and maybe a thunderstorm before night fall...by the looks of the radar screen, it will get here before then....I'm hopeful it will stay dry until about 5pm when our games will have ended. Then the rains can come, we, at least in Mercer County, need a bunch, if for nothing else, the lawns and rivers....

Photos-{double click for large up close view}Yesterday at Bob Evans...Me, Don, and Bob...older and perhaps wiser, but don't bet on that...it was a good visit. And looking east at the Immaculate Conception Church this morning...we will find out if the "Red Sky" predicted the rainy weather correctly by later this afternoon.