Spring Time Lull

Well, we are back into the normal routine. No trips on the horizon in the foreseeable future. We are still trying to figure out our summer plans. One week left on the Sunday Night League. It looks like we will finish around at .500 and in the middle of the pack. The Youth league has 3 weeks and they are in 2nd place right now. I still have to decide about the Summer Youth league. Sometimes the free time sounds great. The new Radio Station build out is going ok with the usual response of "waiting on a vendor to send us the stuff." We have been waiting 2 weeks for Verizon to show up and finish the job. The more I deal with them the more arrogant they seem. Wild Mom is fine. She just returned from Camp and really enjoyed it. Probably her best time of all the times she has gone. She has almost finished her swing awning and now spends most of the day swinging. Must be nice. Squirrel Man helped her put it together but she won't let him swing on it ... he has to lay underneath it. :) Lady is busy but right now fighting off a bug. She did not feel well yesterday and spent most of it sleeping. #1 and #2 still do what they do best ... play games and sit up all night. AJ spent last Friday night and Saturday with us and kept us very busy. Lew and Lil Princess showed up Saturday afternoon and raised the activity level even higher. Sometimes Lil princess gets real mean then boom, she is as innocent as she can be. She is too young for PMS ... must be in her genes. Peanut is getting closer to graduating, not many weeks left now.

Way to Go Capitals ... Lot of hopes dashed by your less than championship play. Maybe instead of spending all the money on offense ... buy a good goalie! Montreal Did!

40 and Counting towards 50

The journey is over and we safely returned from Florida. The Reunion was fun except there were too many old people there. Would have been nice to find a few good looking young babes but then I would have been in trouble ... so I guess it works out. Heck, there were NO bikinis, hip huggers, thongs, speedos or skinny dipping. Though we did pass by the All-Natural club. Going down there we made it in two days. Breakfast the first day was in Oak Ridge TN where we met a friend and her son and had a great time. Great little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. Coming home we did it in one day. I am about finished with those types of runs. It takes too much out of me to do a 17 hour day. The Reunion was fun but most of the people I remember were not there. The standard line was "I remember you," to which I replied, "I don't remember you ... it has been 40 years." I did refrain from answering, "I don't remember you because I didn't like you then, so would it change after 40 years?" The beach was pretty and Lady had her shoes off pretty quickly. We skipped the second day and spent it with Wild Mom. Mexican Food was the lunch choice. It was good but not quite up to El Agave's standard. About all we did other than the reunion was sit on the swing and catnap. That seems to be the order of the day down there. Mom did most of the talking, a drawback to letting her stay home so long by herself. I guess I need to plan frequent activities for her. Travelling weather was great and I could have asked for better. Lady and Wild Mom spent a good part of Saturday playing with Wild Mom's cricket ... some crafting machine that sucks you into buying more and more accessories. The sonny-do's were relatively light but I suppose she is saving the back-breakers for another day. We did not see much family though in fairness we made no attempt to see them. Gung-Ho Jen was a no-show on Saturday ... work must have required her presence. What-a-burger and Sonic are the same ... good food and fun. Squirrel Man spent some time with us and managed to hit the restaurants with us. Not much else to say as we basically vegetated and swung our self to sleep.

No updates on anyone else (Starr, Peanut, Princess, or TLJ) as I did not receive any calls or texts. I guess after ignoring them for so long they gave up.

He Lives

Easter weekend was full and very active. We started Thursday with Maunday Thursday Service and Communion, then Friday we had a Pasta dinner served and prepared by the Young Adults and then watched the movie "The Passion." The movie made you think of how it might have been and it definitely touched you emotionally. Earlier, Friday, I had breakfast with a long time friend. It was great and I am happy to see they are succeeding in life. Saturday was spent regrouping and getting ready for Sunday. Since Lady was cooking so much for Sunday, we went to Red Robin for dinner. As usual, it was good. Lew and Lil Princess showed up Saturday Evening and raised the activity level some 100%. Seeing them each Saturday really emphasizes how much they grow in just one week. Before you know it, we will be celebrating High School Graduation. The weather for the Sunrise service was beautiful. After the last few services were so chilly to down right cold, this one was a treat. The sky was broken clouds so the Sun was definitely visible and added to the service. Afterwards, we had breakfast at the church, lots of casseroles, and then killed time waiting for the next event. During the 11:00 am Service, the Choir performed their annual Cantata, it was nice. Do to the many jobs needing to be filled, I ran the sound board during the songs. The afternoon was quiet as we all napped. Starting that early in the morning (6:00 am) wore us out especially Lil Princess. Of course, Bowling capped off our Sunday Night on the Adult League. The Youth league was postponed a week. We went 4-3, #1 did not have a good night as Lady managed to our score him. The way I bowled Saturday made me really wonder how I would do. Even Starr and her significant other managed to recover from the Bachelorette Party on Friday and visit us at the bowling alley. Sadly the fun came to an end and we prepared for work on Monday. When will it ever end?

##########

Redskins - Way to go ... increase the average age of the team even more with players nearing the end of their career. McNabb, Johnson, and Parker were added. Snyder loves to buy "Names" even though they are at the end of their career, doesn't it occur to him, if the player was still an impact player, the previous team wouldn't let him go! They let people go or trade them just before their obsolescence date for maximum trade value. Snyder definitely has more money than brains when it comes to Football.

The Zephyr - Day Ten

Well, my last day on the train started out with breakfast. They won't serve lunch as we arrive too soon in DC. I didn't sleep much last night, not because of me but because I talked or rather listened all night. I learned a lot about Mozambique. Maybe something will come of this but time will tell. Always remind me never to escort 15 high School girls and 10 boys on a one week trip to DC. It is only their first day and the leaders are burned out. I had dinner with the three leaders and they were already wishing they were on the train back home. I must also get my Cell phone serviced when I get home. None of the kids called or texted this week. The train arrived 15 minutes early ... something almost unheard of a couple of years ago. Well, time to return to reality again ...

The Zephyr - Day Nine

Well, most of the snow that was on the ground when we came out West a week ago is melted. How quickly the 12 inches disappeared. I have done the trip enough I am able to name the stops from their looks. The train stops about every 3 hours for a smoke break. The Conductor announces the stop as a chance to stretch and get some fresh air ... smoking is fresh air? The farmers are starting ti turn the soil for the new crops. I watch several tractors when we were stopped waiting on another train. Each row was maybe a mile in length. How do they keep the rows straight? I would doze off and so would my line. I guess that is why God never let me have a successful garden. One realization I have come too is that my yard isn't so bad compared to some of the trash dumps we passed. I just could not live like that. You can tell it is Spring Break, a million kids riding the train. On this train with limited electrical outlets, there must be 100 ipods waiting to be recharged. Forget about getting my cell phone done much less my computer. I think every one of them have a DS and is playing them as hard as they can. The noise is definitely noticeable when the train gets quiet ... even on head sets. Chicago looms ahead and the 4 hour wait for the train ride home ... the final leg. After a lunch at Pizza Hut and dessert at Cinnabon, I am ready for the 14 hour ride to DC. On one side of me is a man from Manchester England ... go United ... and on the other side is a man from Poland heading for South Africa. The conversations are definitely different. The Englishman was comparing what he saw and experienced to that of home and the Polish man spoke of the business opportunities in Mozambique. Mind you, they both were very interesting. Well, time to catnap again ...

The Zephyr - Day Eight

Well, I was able to see part a part of Nevada I couldn't see on the trip out because of darkness. I didn't miss anything. There is nothing out there but desert and nothingness. With no cell service for maybe 2 hours at one stretch ... what would a kid do? The bald Eagles are still in the same place roosting. I am amazed how many of them are there, almost a dozen. We went by so quickly it was tough to get an accurate count. Once again, conversation, puzzles and sleep were the staples of the day. I am amazed at how much we are on time. Compared to the last we made this trip, this is great. Apparently, AMTRAK won a lawsuit against the Freight Companies for more equitable track time. Before, when AMTRAK was delayed the penalty paid by the BNSF or Union Pacific wasn't a problem. The Judge changed that and now the penalty is such that it hurts them bad if the train is delayed because of freight. The Lady behind me just got out of the Hospital this morning. The baby is so tiny and when it cried it is more like a squeak. It seems like ancient history to think of #1 and #2 at that size. I think I had hair then and could run 3 miles with relative comfort. Today, I played a game of "What if" as the scenery passed by. I got off the train for a while in Denver. It was nice to walk without swaying or bouncing. Walking on the train is much harder than the Cruise ship. Well, time to catnap again ...

The Zephyr - Day Seven

Well, another tournament draws to a close. I did good and feel good about it. Doubles could have been better but I did not care for my partner. That is another story for another day. I slept in today knowing this would be the last sleep in a real bed for a few days. After packing and storing my stuff with the Bell Captain, I headed for the Sands to collect my winnings and to eat at "Mel's Diner." They had a great hamburger and the atmosphere was interesting. I walked about town some while waiting for the train. Needless to say the train arrived at 4:40 pm and the journey home started. Don't like this train as they do not have electric outlets at each seat and the food staff are not as much fun. The Lady sitting behind me let her grandson color all over his face and then praised him for his creativity. Later she had enough nerve to ask me not to eat my Dorito's in front of him. She does not allow him to eat any junk food and I was tempting him. Get real and I continued to eat them. I might have even managed to smack a bit as I licked the stuff off my fingers. They finally got off at Grand Junction but not after amazing me with her dumb ideas and stupid sayings. The scenery was beautiful but the trip is getting long. Well, time to catnap again ...