April Fool's Day Eve.....

Well, I'm gearing myself up for the April Fool's Day jokes that will I'm sure be played on me.
It's just surprising how a person can get caught off guard even while being aware. So many times I've forgotten, or have been thinking about something else, well this year it'll be different.

I only wish I could think of a fun one this year to play on my kids. Damn it, they always see right through me.

Woman Visits Lion

This woman finds a lion. Yes, that’s right, a lion. The lion is sick and malnourished. She spends the next few years nursing it back to health. Once healthy, she calls the local zoo and says, “Hey, I have a lion here that I found sick and nursed back to health. Do you have space for it?” Sure enough the zoo shows up and gets the lion. They get it accustomed to his new home and when he is settled in, the lady comes for a visit. Check out this link;

link

The Elk Are Back!

The Elk are back! By the time I got my camera out they had gone down the hill more, but what beautiful animals they are.

Berzerkley

Nothing says "I support our troops" like burning the flag at a rally in front of a recruiting station.

link

This is an insult to all brave service men, women, their families and to those of us that have a brain.
The First Amendment gives the City of Berkeley the right to be idiotic, but from now on they should do it with their own money. I hope all federal funds are held, this display of unpatriotic BS is outrageous. To not want to allow the Marines in this city to have a recruitment center is so very wrong.
For the City Council to allow this Code Pink hate group to park on a city street unapposed in front of the Marine Recruitment Center showing their support for Code Pink's beliefs is Ridiculous. Plus the preferential treatment given to this group, others may want to have this parking space but are denied because of it being given freely to Code Pink.
I do believe in the freedom of speech, however this location blocks traffic as well, see photo below it's ridiculous. To also be allowed a foghorn is more than distracting I'm sure to traffic and other pedestrians wanting to pass by.
By protesting in this manner those that want to join in our military, are prevented/blocked by these protesters stomping all over their rights to enter. You can compare this type of protesting to the pro life supporters blocking those wanting to go into Planned Parenthood.
Different cause, same ideology, except here there are no limits to how close they can get......

Chief Petty Officers Nathan H. Hardy and Michael E. Koch

Navy SEAL's who died in Iraq .....

Honor the Fallen ............. February 4, 2008.

Navy SEAL's

Blackfive link

God bless Nate and Mike, and thank you for your service, in protecting me, my family and our country. My thoughts and prayers go out to your family and your teammates as well still out there fighting the fight. Warriors like you with your integrity and honor make me so proud to be an American. We need more of the likes of you representing our country to others throughout the world.Regarding the angry American (refer to Blackfive below); HOOYAH! Thanks for your service as well, it's warriors like you that make me proud. We need to keep up the good fight.

Thanks to Blackfive:
Last Sunday while most of America was enjoying the Superbowl several members of our Task Force were commencing an assault on a terrorist stronghold in Iraq. During the assault two of our brothers from the Navy were shot and killed while clearing a building that was occupied by terrorist insurgents. Ultimately, the building was reduced and all of the terrorists in it were destroyed by the assault force. Remember these names, Mike and Nate. They were good men doing honorable work in the name of freedom. The terrorists they sought to destroy were responsible for unspeakable acts of evil including the construction of improvised explosive devices and explosives to equip homicide bombers. For those of you who may not understand the enemy we face out here let me remind you that the previous week this group of terrorists took two innocent and unwitting women who had Downs Syndrome, rigged them with explosive vests and detonated them 20 minutes apart in a crowded market causing several deaths and hundreds of injuries. These terrorists used innocent people as unwitting vehicles to destroy more innocent lives. There is good and there is evil in this world. The enemy we face is evil. Mike and Nate were fighting on the side of good to prevent further acts of evil that would result in the loss of more innocent lives. The next time you pray I ask you to thank God for giving Mike and Nate the talent and skill that made them great warriors and thank God that he gave them the heart to apply those God given talents to destroy evil and further the cause of freedom in a land far from their home. Thank God for men like Mike and Nate. Their work is done here now, but there are many of us who will honor their sacrifice by continuing the fight against evil terrorists. They will be remembered through our actions.
For any of you out there who are doubting the validity of this war and the evil that resides in our enemy I ask you to study your history again. Over the last 20+ years dating back to the bombing of the Marine Corps Barracks in Lebanon, various factions of radical Islamic Terrorists have been committing heinous acts of terrorism against the free world. We are fighting the same enemy here. The brethren of an evil ideology that spawned the terrorists attacks of September 11, 2001 claiming almost 3,000 innocent lives. Take time to reflect on the type of evil that would put explosive vests on innocent women with Downs Syndrome and use them to kill and maim other innocent people. While the American media strives everyday to rewrite the history of the most generous nation in the free world and cast disparity over all that we do as a Nation men like Mike and Nate are giving their lives to make sure the real history doesn't repeat itself. While the American media strives daily to erase the memory of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and paint this war as an unjust occupation of a sovereign nation men like Mike and Nate are out here hunting down and destroying the enemies of the very freedom that allows our media to try and discredit us. Terrorism is real, evil is real, this war is real and real men and women are in this fight because righteousness and freedom are worth fighting for.
If you don't support this war I'm calling you out. I've had enough of people sitting in their living rooms watching the lying media and jumping on the bandwagon against this war. Don't ever say to me, "I support the troops, but not the war." You might as well be telling me that I'm committing a crime. You are in effect saying that my cause is unjust and everything I believe in is a lie. I have held my tongue in the past, but I will never allow you to have it both ways again. You cannot support me if you do not support this war. I am this war. It embodies everything that I believe in. If you believe that what we are doing here is wrong then you are in effect supporting the evil we seek destroy. If you believe I'm wrong for trying to stop evil people from taking more innocent lives then I fear there is no hope for you. If you choose to dishonor my service and the sacrifice of my fallen brothers by taking a position against this war you are free to make that choice thanks to guys like Mike and Nate, but don't expect me to sit idly by and bite my tongue while you do it. Do it in my presence and be prepared to try and support your feeble position while I enlighten everyone else on the reality of this war and the nature of the enemy we face. I will ensure that you look like the fool that you are.
The stuff I'm seeing out here you won't see on Oprah Winfrey. I'm seeing really evil people doing really evil things and I'm doing everything in my power to stop them. There's nothing wrong or unjust about that.
Sincerely,
_________ the Angry American

It Ain't A Rebate....

Politically Incorrect Sign

Calvin!

What a beautiful baby! Congrats to mom, dad, grandma and grandpa!
So glad that I could be a part of welcoming Calvin into this world of ours. ;)

Groundhog Day

6 more weeks of winter!



The shadow knows.....

American Gladiators

Today they had try outs to be a contestant on the show American Gladiators.

What a fun show that was in the 80's, it's great that they are bringing it back. The line for these tryouts was long and wide, wrapping around the building and down the hill.

Watching these potential contestants go through the motions of chin lifts, running, push ups and jumps was fun.

Some of these guys had so many muscles you'd think it would slow them down.

Greta Garbo

An unforgettable face... perfect bone structure...hypnotic eyes... an impenetrable gaze... husky voice...a face capable of registering everything and yet...
Greta Garbo was the ultimate Hollywood star, envied by millions of fans and co-workers. She was a woman who set her own standards and became a legend in her own time...

A friend compared me to Greta Garbo today......not for all of the above lol, but because I don't get out much ;) as Garbo didn't either I guess in her private life.

The Wedding Site

Wow, I was just asked to have my home used as a place to get married at this summer.
I am very honored that they want to use my house. Wow. How cool is that.
It'll be fun to see the house all gussied up with flowers and ribbons with good music and wonderful people all enjoying themselves. Yes I'm very up for it.

Imagine...my house the Love shack ;)

Peter Frampton take two

Peter Frampton performing on Fox news
Just when you don't think it could get any worse....
Peter Frampton doing a Geico commercial

Man does this make me feel old.

All Being Together

Having both my daughter and son home over the holidays was my best present ever. Sarah gave me the original of her design for my son's tattoo, which representing both of them is fabulous. I have it hanging in my livingroom and reminds me of them both.

We really made the most of it and had so much fun. We had a party here and invited everyone and just enjoyed to the max. It was freezing

outside, but had a roaring campfire that was so hot we had to stand at a distance, and the hot tub, people were jumping out making snow angels. Inside we devoured much liquor and food and had the best time. I wimped out and went to bed around 4 am, folks were still partying. It was fun seeing alot of guys that I hadn't seen in a long time.

Christmas Cookie Bake

The Cookie bake this year was very fun as anticipated. Sarah decorated cookies as below, and I made biscotti, that actually turned out pretty good.
What a very fun time, the holiday season, being with great friends and making cookies. Thanks Denise!

No December 2007 entry

I can't believe that I've allowed this much time to go by without talking about the holidays and my son being home!
This is the first time that I allowed a month to go by that I didn't have any entry at all. So there is no December 2007 on this blog.
It was just the best all being together.

I will post some pictures later. It's late and have been working alot so that's why I haven't done so.

Turkey Day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Classic just classic ;)

The World Clock

The World Clock and Life Expectancy Calculator

Lake Tahoe



Went on Vacation to Lake Tahoe a few weeks back and had the best time. Listened to the Lone Survivor a book on tape, just riveting. Enjoyed the family tremendously, got out on the Lake and I even won the Blackjack tournament, me! The one who doesn't like to gamble! While all the family was joining in, I thought it would be fun and just had the best luck. My brother helped me know how to split my last hand which ended up winning the tournament. While in the casino's, our whole family would be at the roulette table and I kept betting on the number 25, (that's when my divorce was final). It hit several times along with other dates or numbers. We all came away winners, but you have to respect the reality that one could lose everything.
We camped out in tents some in RV's all being together at the campground and it was just great. Pancakes always taste good in camp and the time just went by too quickly. We had a campfire, with marshmallows and of course s'mores, the ritual Miniature golf, although some also went to the real golf course and had a great time as well. Walked through the craft faire that they have there every year, tasted delicious fresh squeezed lemonade, and did the all you can eat buffet more than once being all together. Spent alot of time on the lake, and the swimming pool too.


Crater Lake

After Tahoe, we drove up to Oregon, and I was able to see many friends. It was a last minute decision going to Oregon, but everything worked out. Saw everyone pretty much just except for a few folks. On our way to Oregon we went via Crater Lake, what a beautiful place, it still had snow there.

We only had three days, the first day we walked around Eugene a bit, a really great place, had lunch with John, then out to see Archie and Lila for the best coffee, then later had pizza and beer with John and Kathy and their nephew Bobby Lynn, (Bob and Judy's son). Then went to some of my old haunts with Anne and Dave, Max's and Taylors to name a few. The next day we drove out to Dexter to see Sean and Patrick then had lunch back in Eugene with Marykate at the 5TH Street Market, then out to Veneta to an artsy carnival that Mike and Jenny were in charge of, lots of great live music then we drove back to North Eugene for dinner out with Skip. The next day we went out to the coast and spent alot of time playing on the beach at different places. Stopped at Yachats and had some great sea food there, then drove back to Eugene and spent the night at Barb's house. Leaving the next day we got a late start we stopped in Sisters to see Linda and then started the long haul back to Colorado. We did it in two days though this time. We knew we were getting closer to Denver when we started seeing mostly all Subaru's lol.

What a great trip it was, now back to work. I have to organize all of my photos and that will be alot of work but fun going through the pictures.

I attended the Danny Dietz Dedication on July 4TH. It was really meaningful and wonderful, and I'm glad that I was able to be there. Shook hands with the Secretary of the Navy, and Tom Tancredo, and I was in the presence of high ranking military types and hero's. Saw one of my son's "bosses", and he told me that he couldn't promise to keep him safe, that my son could end up like Danny, but he said he could guarantee that he had the best leadership. Very hard words to hear for me. He went on to say how my son was one of the best pilots. With all of this I told him how I was very proud of him, but how I also hoped that he wouldn't re-enlist again. With that he said, "and that's why it's good that 'mom's' aren't the ones making the decision". Also spoke with several mom's that lost their son's in Iraq, that was really hard. So yes, I'm very glad that I was able to be there. I should have taped the news, as I didn't see any of the coverage, but being there in person was very important for me, and really meant alot.

My family reunion in Ireland was just wonderful. Meeting many cousins for the very first time was awesome. We live so far apart being the reason for not getting together sooner. Some came from Australia, England and here from the United States, along with the ones that live in Ireland. I wish we didn't live so far apart, as my cousins are just terrific and I wish that I could spend more time with them. This is the group shot of most of us that made the trip over to Horse Island where my grandparents home was and still stands behind us.

Had the best time in Ireland, Scotland and England. This trip was the trip of a lifetime for me. I really am very happy that I was able to go. I was sad that my kids weren't able to be with me and meet our relatives, but it'll have to be another time. I don't think I'll ever go back with the high expense and all, but who knows, it would be nice to think I could go back again with my son and daughter.

For me flying into London, and spending 2 days there was fun. Saw Buckingham Palace, missed seeing the queen by 10 minutes and half a block I like to say. My girlfriend who traveled with me, and I were strolling along not far from Buckingham Palace, unaware of the queen honoring the Falkland Island soldiers, but saw the fly overs and all the soldiers decked out in their uniforms with all of the medals dangling from them along with all of the added security. A woman said, oh wasn't the queen just grand?! We could have had we known. Oh well. While in London, we did one of those hop on hop off bus tours that drop you off at all of the sites, so we saw everything there. Big Ben, St Paul's Cathedral, the Tower, Piccadilly, a ride on the Thames, just everything. We also went to a live theater performance of 'The Hounds Of Baskerville' which was a real hoot.

We then flew into Edinburgh Scotland, toured the Castle there, and the royal mile which is incredible as well. I'm still mad at myself for not buying a kilt there. Anyway, Scotland was fabulous. We also took a bus tour up to Loch Ness and it stopped at several castles and other tourist stops. Our tour guide Fiona, said how they don't like to refer to the Loch Ness monster as the monster, rather they refer to her as the Sea Creature. She added that while she's never seen her, her mom has. ;)

We then flew into Dublin. Saw the Dublin Castle and the Cathedral. Saw the Blarney castle kissing the Blarney stone, ran into my brother's family in the gift shoppe there, that was crazy, but with all of our families converging on our family reunion it was probably bound to happen. Seeing the family and the reunion was just fabulous. The family reunion, seeing Horse Island, going over to the Skelligs Island, all were just incredible. My grandparents house on Horse Island (picture above) was still standing, I was told that the structure was around 300 years old. The roof had caved in and no one was living in it obviously, the Island is inhabited with only sheep. The last cousin to leave the house was in 1959. After the reunion, we went up to Cahriciveen and met another cousin Mary at the gift shoppe and she showed us the cathedral where my grandmother, was baptized, confirmed and married there. We continued up towards Galway and saw the Cliffs of Moher, just beautiful, also saw the Burren area. This had 3000 BC stone structures that were just amazing to see. We took a tour and the tour guide was telling us about how the Irishmen were building stone walls and eating beef while the pyramids were being built. Quite the comparison, I didn't realize that folks even lived in Ireland, that part of the world back then.

All of the experiences of the narrow roads and driving on them, driving with the stick shift on the left, no sidewalks with everyone pushing strollers, riding bikes and electric wheelchairs on the twisty turny narrow roads was quite the experience that I will never forget. Especially with the speed limit being 100 KM's! The bed and breakfasts were charming, the breakfasts were great too. One thing that surprised me was that not many accepted VISA, making it necessary to carry alot of cash with you. It seems that Ireland is just now coming into it's own, that it has been pretty depressed economically up until now. I asked someone about if they ever planned on widening the roads, and they said no, that it would only encourage more folks to move there. It was great going to all of these countries and having everyone speaking English. Although the accents even of some of my relatives was hard to understand sometimes. I loved all of the Guinness, the fact that our reunion was held in a pub that obviously many were regulars there.