Boo and Hoist the Sails

Happy Halloween. The little gremlins and goblins will be out in force tonight because a. beautiful weather, b. it's a Friday and c. this is a extremely young neighborhood. Colleen and Mark are coming by this afternoon to spend the night BECAUSE tomorrow we fly down to "God's Waiting Room"(Miami) to get ready to board the "Freedom of the Seas" for a cruise around the Caribbean. "The Madge" has been packing for two days and I think she is almost done. She filled up her two bags and asked me if I had room in my luggage for a few additional things. Of course I do, I mean how much space do two pairs of shorts, four shirts, some underwear and three pairs of socks take up? She threw twelve pairs of shoes and some "smart" outfits into my suitcase and I can still see a little space for a few other things. We are going to be gone for eight days, so I am guessing there will be numerous costume changes. SShhhhhhh, I am not going to say anything but I know she forgot to pack a bathing suit and nightgowns. Maybe I should tell her? That way she won't have to shop in Miami for all the forgotten things. Then there's the matter of books, "The Madge" loves to read, if a normal person plans of reading a book or two on vacation they would buy the soft covered book or buy a book at the bookstore in the airport. I counted six HARD COVERED books or about 8 pounds of paper that are ready to be packed. Now I am thinking that I should have hired the stretch Hummer or maybe a bus for the baggage.

Well, see you back on here Nov 10.

Today Is A Special Day

Besides being three days away from the family's Caribbean Cruise it's daughter number 2's birthday. "The Madge" has already made the birthday call where she cries into the phone like a baby and reminds the girls "When I was your age". Now here's Erin with a 5 1/2 month old and WE BOTH reminded her that "When we were her age her sister Colleen was in College". Well Happy Birthday Erin and I promised not to tell anyone your age.

Wow, Faster than a Speeding Bullet

Unreal, I posted a very clever movie about McCain and Obama competing in a break dance and within 6 hours is has been yanked off the internet. I do apologize and will continue to look for another one. Wonder who complained???? In the meantime, four more days until we head down to Florida. I am sure that there will be numerous stories and pictures that will be posted on this blog.
Yesterday our good friends the Stefans made the trip from Sugarland to share some vittles with us. However we received a call from the Huckins of San Antonio, saying that they were in the area and checking to see if was OK to stop over. Of Course you can, but unfortunately they couldn't stay. It's a three and one half drive back home and they are taking care of Richard's Mom who is recuperating from a automobile accident. It was great to see them.

myself and Richard

Debbie thinking about jumping in.

This little munchkin is Malachy Kelly, the son of our nephew Matt. I must compliment Matt on the excellent job of enhancing this photo. I hope he sends more of them.

OOOps found it again. Who needs Debates???

Fall Has Arrived

In this part of the country we can not tell that fall has arrived by the change in the color of the leaves, our trees turn brown and shed over 48 hours, nor do we have "frost on the pumpkin". What we do have is "The Madge opening a window". Yes, she opened a few windows today allowing fresh air to enter the house. The temperature is a chilling 59, no it isn't long sleeve rugby weather yet, but a warning that cooler weather isn't that far off. OK we will have 83 degrees on Saturday but it's a start.
Congratulations to two cousins of mine that are both nominated for teacher of the year in their respective school districts. Being the extremely close family that we are, I can honestly say that I have not met either one of them, but do plan of voting for them.
Moira McAllister is a Silver Spring finalist and Marycolleen McAllister-Fry in the Wheaton district.

Moira

Marycolleen

If you want to throw a vote in click on their name - -

Marycolleen

Moira

For My Friends In Trondheim

Én uke til å gå, og deretter er det ut på ferie, vent et øyeblikk jeg alltid på ferie.

What A Bunch Of Lizards

Well, the pool guys were here this morning to "complete" the job that was started in May. They installed the Spa remote, which was one of the items we were arguing about, and "fixed" the equipment gate. This jerk just put a wire along the fence, which connects the aerial with the main brain and then removed a board from the gate, which allows it to open and close easier. I asked whether the wire should be in PVC pipe and shouldn't the gates have a brace on each gate that prevents further warping. His answer was "I'm not a electrician or a fence guy so this is the best I can do". If you live in the Spring area DO NOT use Iguana pools, any questions call me. Now I will call in a PROFESSIONAL to right the wrongs.
One and half weeks until we cruise, we will all meet in Miami and grab a bite, let the kids hit South Beach, get a good nights rest and the next day take one of the numerous hired limos over to the ship. I hope I haven't forgotten any arrangements.

Wait Till Next Year

After allowing the unranked Aggies to lead at half time, the ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders decided it was time to play a little football by outscoring lowly Texas A&M 23 to 2 in the second half. As you can see the weather was outstanding and if you look closely you can see a few red shirts embedded in the sea of sorry maroon shirted fans. The game attendance was slightly more than 86,000 and needless to say after the game every bar in town was jammed solid with Aggies drowning their sorrows. When we arrived home our little Caden was finally in the proper attire and didn't rub the loss in Daddy Brad's face (unlike Erin). Again Brad, wait until next year.

Autumn or Fall? Take Your Pick

The little Texan took his mommy up to Conn to visit his Yankee cousin. They had a great time and really enjoyed the colors of Autumn, pumpkins, apple picking and bathing together. Caden and Erin fly back to Dallas this Wednesday, relax for a day then pack up the car and head down to Spring to visit Mimi and Pops. This Saturday we will be going up to College Station to watch the Red Raiders (Texas Tech) beat up the Aggies (Texas A&M). The forecast is sunny and in the mid 80's, so looks like I won't be wearing my black and red rugby but the red, white and black polo, darn. The rugby is sooooo obnoxious and would have been perfect to embarrass my aggie son in law.

It Ain't Over Until The Fat Lady Sings

Pool company strikes again, the pool is all done except for a remote spa control and fixing the gate on the equipment fence. At least that's what I thought. The doorbell rang today and I heard "The Madge" talking to a woman, then the two of them were in my room. She introduced herself as an inspector for Harris County Public Infrastructure Dept. and told me that our pool was built without a permit. Here we go! I told her the name of the pool company and I immediately called them while the woman was still here. The pool company said "of course we had a permit" and I asked for the permit number to give to the inspector. "Let me see, it should be in the folder. I tell you what let me call down there and straighten this out", I said the inspector is right here and just give me the number and all will be OK. "Oh these people are always screwing up, I'll call them and get back to you"
Well I was issued a "Notice of Violation" and have to follow it up with obtaining and paying for a permit if one was not issued. This will be interesting, as I asked the pool company to supply in writing the issue date and number of the permit and also advised them that Harris County is aware of their name and the possibility that they built a pool without the proper paperwork.
It isn't much, but I still owe them $3,000.00. Heh heh.

Super Duper Cooper

When we drove to and from Conn / Texas it required a night or two in a motel. When you are looking for a motel or hotel there are two distinct differences between "ez on off freeway" and the ones you have to travel about 15 minutes out of your way. I have also found the ones you have to travel to are a. better, b. have more of a choice and c. more expensive. Now travel with a dog, not a hide in your luggage type but a 120 pound Chocolate Lab. A Ritz Carlton type hotel will not accept pets, so who will???? There are motel eights and motel sixes, these are pretty cheap and look it, then there are the motel 1's that DO accept pets, we still had to sneak him in as they all have a weight limit (50 pounds). The Madge complained that the rooms weren't nice nor smelled fresh, how can they be fresh smelling when they accept pets. Well Cooper didn't mind the lack of freshness and I think he enjoyed being next to "The Madge" while she slept on top of the sheets.
"The Madge" had the task of finding a boarding facility for Cooper to use when we go on the family cruise. She did her homework and reserved a "Luxury Suite" for the ten days we will be gone. The reason I told the story about trying to find a motel room when we commuted back and forth is that the room that is reserved is nicer than any of the rooms we stayed in, as a matter of fact I bet the food is better.
His room is described as "Luxury suite (5' x 9') is for the discriminating pet who prefers a luxurious, at home environment. It's a private air conditioned suite complete with comfortable Kuranda bed, color TV (animal planet of course) and decorated with a special theme."
Not only did she get him a suite but two individual walks ($12) per day, and according to their brochure room service IS included but gratuities are not, so how does that work, if he's hungry does he call down to the front desk?
Coop is a great dog, even though he weighs 120 he doesn't look all that fat. He is very gentle, quiet and polite but craves a massive amount of affection. He, like "The Madge", deserves the best.

I Spoke Too Soon

Here we are nearly one month after Hurricane Ike hit Texas and "The Madge" just noticed that the roof had leaked and we have water damage to the ceilings and walls. I haven't ventured into the attic but can not help thinking that the insulation is shot but it has been very dry with low humidity so maybe it dried out without getting mold. The damage is not major and I hope that my home handyman can repair it. Here we go. Guess it's time to hit the piggy bank. Ooops.

I Should Have Been A P.I.

Man am I good, been surfing the net looking for another old friend, Neal "Mr. Notre Dame" Fagan and not only did I find him but managed to locate a picture on the web.Neal and I go back to the 70's when he was with Gulf Oil and I was with a company called LQM. We spend many many hours at Fat Ernies WITHOUT the luxury of cell phones. Those were the days.
Less then one month to go for the big cruise. I am now having fun with the Limo companies, I've got this guy in Florida that is probably Cuban and obviously does not have my sense of humor. "How many cars you need?" I responded with "All of them" not knowing how big this place is. "Whatcha mean?" After telling him that we have ten people and two babies plus all the luggage, strollers, car seats and God knows what else arriving in Miami on four different flights, all going to a hotel and all being picked up the following day, and most important "I LIKE PLENTY OF ROOM" we managed to get all the stretch cars he has, so see I wasn't cute with my answer "All of them". I hope he sends the pink car for me. This is going to be quite a site with all of us arriving at the pier in stretch limos, "Who's That?", maybe I can pass myself off as Newt or Kenny Rogers. Ha.

And then the fight started

I know it's old news but upon our return from Frisco Texas, where we visited Caden, Erin, Riley and Brad, I was downloading pictures to post when I noticed a video of "Ike" in our backyard. This was taken by Colleen early Saturday morning September 13th.

Here are some of the latest shots of Caden.

Here he is "shooting the bird" just like his father does.

My wife sat down on the couch next to me as I was flipping channels.
She asked, 'What's on TV?'
I said, 'Dust.'
And then the fight started.
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My wife was hinting about what she wanted for our upcoming anniversary. She said, 'I want something shiny that goes from 0 to 150 in about 3 seconds.'
I bought her a scale.
And then the fight started.
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When I got home last night, my wife demanded that I take her someplace expensive... so, I took her to a gas station...
And then the fight started....
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After retiring, I went to the Social Security office to apply for Social Security. The woman behind the counter asked me for my driver's license to verify my age. I looked in my pockets and realized I had left my wallet at home. I told the woman that I was very sorry, but I would have to go home and come back later.
The woman said, 'Unbutton your shirt'. So I opened my shirt revealing my curly silver hair.
She said, 'That silver hair on your chest is proof enough for me' and she processed my Social Security application.
When I got home, I excitedly told my wife about my experience at the Social Security office.
She said, 'you should have dropped your pants. You might have gotten disability, too.'
And then the fight started...
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My wife and I were sitting at a table at my high school reunion, and I kept staring at a drunken lady swigging her drink as she sat alone at a nearby table.
My wife asked, 'Do you know her?'
'Yes,' I sighed, 'She's my old girlfriend. I understand she took to drinking right after we split up those many years ago, and I hear she hasn't been sober since.'
'My God!' says my wife, 'who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?'
And then the fight started...
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I rear-ended a car this morning. So, there we were alongside the road and slowly the other driver got out of his car. You know how sometimes you just get soooo stressed and little things just seem funny?
Yeah, well I couldn't believe it... he was a DWARF!!!
He stormed over to my car, looked up at me, and shouted, 'I AM NOT HAPPY!'
So, I looked down at him and said, 'Well, then which one are you?'
And then the fight started...

Many thanks to Steve Pankey, a good friend of mine from Wichita, Kansas, for the "and then the fight started" stories.