Florida Trip 2010-Day 2

We are settled in at Van Hoy Family Campground in NC. We got here about 5:15 and did a self check-in. There were plenty of good sites available, but I think that they have more RVs here than when we stopped last year.

It was cold all day today, especially in the WV mountains. We are not doing either water or sewer hook-ups yet because of the low temps overnight. Maybe we can use full hook-ups in Georgia tomorrow night. The furnace and our ceramic heaters are keeping us warm in the motorhome. Our only snag today was a small one. When we were ready to leave the Marietta Super WalMart, I tried to lower the TV antenna. It wouldn't rotate so that I could crank it down into the traveling position. I guess the rain that we got last night froze in the base of the antenna. We tried to thaw it from the inside using Sue's hair dryer. No luck, so I got out the ladder and used the hair dryer on it from the outside. It only took about 30 seconds to free it up and we were on our way. It just proves that old traveler's proverb, "Never go camping without a hair dryer."

We had quesadillas for dinner tonight. It was the first time we used the quesadilla maker that we got at the charity auction earlier this month. They turned out very well, especially for our first attempt. We should have fun this winter experimenting with different ingredients.

On to Rincon, Georgia tomorrow.

Florida Trip 2010-Day 1

Well, it's only about 150 miles, but we are closer to Bonita Springs than we were this morning. We chose the same starting plan as last year. We had the car packed and all the main items in the motorhome by Saturday. Then today, we loaded the refrigerator items and the guitars with related cold sensitive stuff.

Next we attached the tow dolly and drove over to the old Gold Circle plaza to get the car on the dolly and strapped down. We then walked across the street to Burger King and had lunch. After that it was a pleasant trip to Marietta, listening to the Browns win another game.

We are spending the night in a Super WalMart parking lot, watching TV, reading, writing blogs, visiting FarmVille, etc.

Just recently we also watched a light rainfall turn into a heavier snowfall. There is a prediction of 1-3 inches by sometime tomorrow. We hope that we stay on the low side of that range.

The target location for tomorrow night is the Van Hoy Family Campground, near Harmony, NC.

KSU Time Capsule

I just read a story in today's paper that described plans to bury a time capsule on the KSU campus in 2010, the 100th anniversary of the college. There is some evidence, according to this same article, that a capsule was planned back in 1960 also, when the school was only 50 years old. But no one has found evidence of the actual burial. I wonder what may have happened? Hmmm..

(Sometime in 1969, the KSU time capsule committee (2 faculty members, 10 students) holds its annual meeting at The Loft)

"Dudes, what happenin'?" (Call meeting to order) "It's been a whole year, so has anyone remembered what we did with that backpack with all the historical s--t in it?"

"Man, how can we remember back to 1960." "That was 9 years ago." "We were only freshmen then."

"Wasn't that backpack ripped up by that drug-sniffing dog?"

"No, that was the fringe vest that the band from JB's left behind when they skipped town."

"I thought that we gave the thing to that girl, Moonflower, so she could embroider flowers on it." "Then she flunked out and joined the Peace Corps or something."

"Well, we don't seem to have made much progress in locating the capsule since last year's meeting." "Let's give it another year." "Nobody on campus really seems to care anyway." "How much difference can one year make?" "So we'll meet here again in 1970."

"Peace, dudes." (meeting adjourned) "Pass the Twinkies."

Santa found in Akron says NPR

I thought that I would share this Santa story with you. Everytime I listen to it, I see that SNL Christmas public radio sketch with Alec Baldwin.

Death By Chewing Gum

From the title of this post, you might think that choking was the explanation. Not so. According to Fox News, a chemistry student in the Ukraine died when the gum he was chewing exploded and blew off his jaw. Friends said that the young man often dipped his gum in citric acid to add flavor. This time he apparently mistook an explosive for his usual flavor enhancer.

The article did not identify the compound, but ,as a former chem teacher, my first guess would be picric acid. That stuff becomes very unstable when it has been on the shelf and dried out. I actually found a jar of it that had been around for who knows how long when we were moving our lab supplies into a new building. We had it removed and destroyed by the HAZMAT squad. As luck would have it, a Cleveland TV crew was there that day filming a story about our football team and their playoff run. They saw the HAZMAT truck and that story ended up on the evening news also. My claim to fame was being identified as "an alert science teacher".

If this student was studying chemistry, he should not have made such a deadly mistake.

The picture below shows the results of a picric acid explosion in England in 1887. This substance was used in the manufacture of dyes.


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Puppy Love

I don't know what kind of dog this is, but the pictures were so cute that I had to share them. Click on them to make them larger.

More Derbytown Chorus

Here is a video of the two songs that we performed in October for the District Contest in Lima, OH.

Derbytown Chorus on Fox 8

The Akron Derbytown Chorus appeared on the Morning Show on Fox 8 today and sang five songs during the 7:30-9:00 show. Here is one small clip that they have posted on their website. There may be more video of our performance later.

My "Rudolph" nose is actually blinking, but it's hard to see with all the studio lighting.

Charity Auction

Last night, Sue and I attended the annual Charity Auction and Dinner for Pregnancy Care of Summit County. This organization provides counseling and support for pregnant women and their families. Ray Stone, who sings lead in my barbershop quartet, has been on the Board of this group for several years. Most of the bidding is a "silent" auction but there were about a dozen live auction items also. One of those live auction items was for a performance by our quartet, sometime in the next year. As in the past, we also strolled and sang some Christmas songs while people were looking at the items for auction and placing their bids. Ah, Show Biz!!

Sue made some bids and got the two items shown below. A nice Christmas cactus that will make the trip to Florida with us and a quesadilla maker with recipe books, salsa, chips and accessories.

Pre-New Year's Resolution

Why wait until January 1? I have started a plan to simplify my life. This is what has been accomplished so far. Breathe-Right strips, which I have been wearing for years to prevent snoring, come in a box containing paper sheets that have two strips separated by a perforation. I have always taken out one at a time, leaving the odd one in the box. As of a few weeks ago, I have begun taking the whole two-strip sheet out and leaving the odd one on the shelf in the medicine cabinet. Now I only have to open the box every other day instead of daily. I can't believe how much more free time I have. I think I'll write a novel.

Thanksgiving Is A'Comin'

Sue and I are looking forward to having family members come to our house for Thanksgiving. Sue's dad, Howard, will be arriving on Wednesday afternoon and Kris and Mark will be driving up from Cincinnati later that evening.

On Thanksgiving Day, Mike and Kim will make the long drive from their house and with them will be Kim's parents Vern and Marian, who are coming up from Springfield.

That will make a total of nine people for dinner, which is a larger than usual number for us. It will be more like some of our Thanksgivings when the kids were young. Can't wait. Sammy and Zep are coming with Kris and Mark, so Wickett will have company too. We plan to have an adult table, a kid table and a dog table.

Kris and Mark are bringing a fresh, free-range turkey . I'm hoping that it doesn't walk in the front door with them. Although, many of the Thanksgiving turkeys that were featured for dinner on the farm were crossed off the list of living creatures by my Dad. I was around to watch, but I never was actually the perp. If a live turkey comes from Cincinnati, it will become free range again in the back yard and we will head for Cracker Barrel. That's the same backup plan that I have in case Zeppy eats the turkey.

Mike and Kim are bringing pies, which I can handle with no problem at all.

Here's a little Thanksgiving music to help get you in the proper frame of mind.

Battle of Insect Mascots

It would be interesting to see an inter-state high school football game between the Fighting Green Hornets of Malvern, OH and the Kimberly Papermakers of Kimberly, WI. The mascots are a green hornet and a papermaker wasp, respectively. It almost looks like they could be related. The hornet looks more ripped. And wasp, what's up with that hat?

Update: Malvern lost to Grove City Christian on 11/21, by a score of 20-8. The Hornets fumbled 4 times (lost 3) and had two interceptions. Grove City scored three touchdowns in the second period, all set up by Malvern turnovers. To give credit where it is due, Grove City caused those fumbles and interceptions and only allowed one touchdown.

You Have Not Chosen Wisely, Grasshopper

Today is the release day for Sarah Palin's book, "Going Rogue: An American Life". Before she picked that title, maybe she should have looked up the definition of the word "rogue". Here's what Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary says:

Main Entry: ¹rogue

Pronunciation: \ˈrōg\

Function: noun

Etymology: origin unknown

Date: 1561

1 : vagrant, tramp
2 : a dishonest or worthless person : scoundrel
3 : a mischievous person : scamp
4 : a horse inclined to shirk or misbehave
5 : an individual exhibiting a chance and usually inferior biological variation

As one WKYC reporter suggested, maybe she meant "Going Rouge".

Hornets Keep Rollin'

Last night, the Malvern Hornets football team earned the right to play in the Division VI regional final for the second year in a row by beating Bridgeport 31-9. In 2008, the Hornets won the regional and lost in the state semi-final. Maybe this year they will bring home a state title. The next game is in Zanesville against Grove City Christian. The Massey Ratings predict a Malvern victory, but they still have to play the game.

Sha Na Na and Sha Na NOT

I was/am a big fan of Sha Na Na. Their over-the-top doo wop act is still fun to watch. Here is, in my opinion, a great example of their talent followed by a serious error in judgment.

Clear Choice Sings To Help Animals

The Humane Society of Greater Akron (Summit County) held a telethon yesterday afternoon. It raised money to help them keep doing all the good work that they do for dogs and cats in this area.

Several weeks ago, they asked our quartet to go to a studio in Cuyahoga Falls and record three songs for use during the telethon. The telethon ran from 2-5 and our portion aired just before 3:00. Our lead, Ray, went over to Canal Park (that's where they were broadcasting from) and did a live 30 sec. interview/intro before they rolled the tape.

Sue and I haven't seen it yet. This was on the Northeast Ohio News channel (NEON). That is one of Time-Warner cable's own channels so it's not available on DirecTV. The recording studio is supplying us with five DVDs and I think that somebody may have recorded it.

Anyway, it was one of our charity activities and certainly a worthwhile cause. And as always, any TV exposure is a good thing for getting our name out there.

Cy Young, Sigh

The Sabathia and Lee trades?

Don't Get Me Started!

Song Of The Day

I'll bet that you'll be humming this for the rest of the week, at least.



P.S. Mike, we should do this at chorus practice sometime soon.

Tales From Nottingham Circle

Happy Halloween To All

Browns Win! Browns Win!

Green Bay Punting
	TOT	YDS	AVG	TB	-20	LG
J. Kapinos	2	87	43.5	1	0	45
Team	2	87	43.5	1	0	45

Cleveland Punting
	TOT	YDS	AVG	TB	-20	LG
D. Zastudil	4	185	46.3	0	4	56
Team	4	185	46.3	0	4	56

JAD Contest and Halter-Becknell Reunion

The District barbershop contest on Saturday, October 17, in Lima, OH also gave us an opportunity to visit with "the kids". Sue and I, as well as Kim and Mike stayed over Friday night at the Wyndam by Wingate Hotel. It was next door to the Convention Center where the contest was held.

On Saturday, Mike and I sang with the Akron Derbytown Chorus. We did two songs, California Here I Come and Kentucky Babe. With a proper bit of humility, I think that we did well. We finished 6th out of 9 choruses. We have sometimes scored in the "C" (70-79) range in recent years. This year, in some of the judging categories, we got "B" range scores. That's pretty good for a chorus that sings more for fun than for competition.



Kris and Mark drove to Lima from Cincinnati in the afternoon and so we had a great family day. Mark and Kris gave us more details about their trip to Greece as we reviewed their online pictures. We went to the Kewpee diner for lunch. This Lima landmark serves great burgers and it was a short walk from our hotel. As you can see, Bill is left out of the photograph again. Wait!! He's on the roof and we can't get him down. After a brief bit of chorus singing at The Lima Mall, we returned to Greece. The pictures and background information made us feel like we had been on the trip, sort of. Now that Sue and I have passports, maybe we can take a trip out of the country sometime soon.

For dinner, we visited another Lima attraction. The Old Barn Out Back restaurant. Saturday night features the 5-meat buffet and many, many other food items. Needless to say, we were not hungry when we left.

After dinner, the younger couples left for their homes. Sue and I stayed one more night in Lima, had a pleasant, sunny drive home on Sunday, and this morning went to Heavenly Hounds Hotel and Spa and picked up Wickett.

So after a wonderful weekend of family and song, all participants are safely home and ready for the new week.

Celebrating 100 years of KSU

Sue and I went to watch the Kent State Homecoming parade this morning. Mike and Kim and some of their KSU alumni friends were there also. It was a nice morning, weather wise. The parade was quite a bit larger than usual because this weekend was the kick-off for the KSU Centennial Celebration (1910-2010). There are a few pictures and videos below to give you a little taste of the parade.






First we have a plethora of firetrucks




The Kent Roosevelt Marching Band



The KSU Marching Golden Flashes

More murals

If you enjoyed the murals from Bucyrus in the last post, here is a slideshow of more works by the artist, Eric A. Grohe.




If you want to know more about the artist, the link to his website is shown below.

http://www.ericgrohemurals.com/

Cardinal Gulf Streamers Fall Rally 2009

Well, we arrived home today from the Fall Rally with our RV club. We met at the Shelby/ Mansfield KOA last Thursday and had a great weekend together. There were 15 RVs (30 club members). That included four couples who were camping with us for the first time. Everyone but us left the rally on Sunday morning after breakfast and goodbyes. Most were going home, but some were already headed for their winter residences in places that are warmer than Ohio. We stayed until this morning. I had a performance with the barbershop quartet that I sing with. It was in Wadsworth at 2:00pm and that was on the way back to Kent. We made all the connections and got home, had dinner and even got the motorhome unloaded. Not bad, but we need a litle rest now.

In addition to some great meals, four of the rally highlights were visits to the murals in downtown Bucyrus , the Carousel District in downtown Mansfield, the restored one-room Harvey School and to the D. Picking Company, also in Bucyrus.

D. Picking makes all sizes of hand-hammered copper pails, kettles, and such, as well as tympani drum bodies. The company has been in business since the 1870's and is still in the same small building. Most of the mechanical devices date from the early 1900's. There are four employees and the lady who owns the company (she's 95) comes to the factory every day.

The murals were spectacular in detail and perspective. Even though we were standing close to them, it was difficult to realize that they were painted on flat building walls.

The Carousel District is a tribute the that well-known amusement park attraction. All of the animals on the carousel were made at the small factory that is just down the street from the building that houses the carousel. You can buy a wooden horse of your own, but the ones in the window were over $5000 each. You can buy a kit and construct one yourself. We didn't investigate the price of those.

The Harvey School was a great experience. Our teacher, Miss Sand, instructed us for about an hour, much in the way that students were taught over 100 years ago. We sang and recited. We practiced our writing and learned to use Roman numerals. While doing our lessons, we passed a Mason jar of milk from one student to the next. Each person gave the jar 10 good shakes. After several circuits around the room, we had butter, which we spread on slices of bread and ate. Cool!!

Here are some pictures of our activities. These rallies are so great because they give us a chance to see the wonderful attractions that are right here in Ohio.

Walking At The Zoo

The quartet provided some musical encouragement to those participating in the Juvenile Diabetes Walk-a-Thon at the Clevelend Zoo on Sunday. It was the earliest performance that we have ever done. We had to be there by 7:30am, so my alarm was set for 5:30. That took me back to the days when I had a job.

It was very rainy during our drive to the zoo, but the weather improved and it turned out to be a nice day for the event. We sang a bit at the registration tent, then moved on to a good spot on the walking route. Everyone had to pass by us and we were at the top of a hill. Many people stopped to listen. Some just wanted to hear us and some used us as an excuse to catch their breaths after climbing the hill.

There were several thousand walkers, plus other entertainment groups. There were a couple small combo bands, a high school marching band, a strolling accordian player, jugglers and us. Our location kept us from having to compete with what the other entertainers were doing. That was good because if it's quartet vs marching band, then we lose.

Here are some pictures, where you will notice that we were not the only visitors from "out of town". Our tenor, Dan had gone on ahead when the 3-man quartet picture was taken. On the left is Gary Young who filled in for our regular bass, Jim. Jim was spending a couple of days in the hospital for observations and adjustments to his pacemaker. Gary is also now the bass in Mike's quartet The Summit Chordsmen.

(click on the collage to make it larger)

It was a great day and a very worthy cause. See, we don't always sing at casinos and racetracks.

It's Almost October

Next week, we go camping near Shelby/Mansfield. It's the last rally of 2009 with the Cardinal Gulfstreamers, our RV club. And that means it's time to winterize the bus and start thinking about the trip to Florida. Then we'll be seeing little guys like this one again.

Murder In Farmville!!

Farmville, VA that is. The town is the site of Longwood University. Police found four bodies at the home of an associate professor of sociology and criminal justice. They arrested a 20-year-old man as he tried to get on a plane back to his home state of California. His name is Richard Alden Samuel McCroskey III. Mike always comments about how people with three names seem more likely to commit murder or try to do so. A guy with four names and a Roman numeral should be kept under 24-hour surveillance. My FarmVille doesn't appear to have any criminal element, but one of the rabbits has kind of a shifty look.

Balloons in Ravenna

Every September, the town of Ravenna (next town to the east from Kent) holds their Balloon-A-Fair. It's a two-day festival with many activities, food concessions, etc. We usually go by to see the hot-air balloon launches. That's what we did this evening.

The traffic was really moving at a snail's pace as we got close to the location. We just found a place to park in time to see most of the balloons (about 20) inflate and launch. Then, since the wind was pretty much blowing to the west, we followed many of the balloons as we drove home. The last photo shows one that was visible from our driveway. (Click on the picture to see all five)

balloons

The Last Rose Of Summer?

I Hope Not.

Clear Choice On The Radio

Yesterday, 9/16, the quartet traveled to Beachwood for the "taping" of Marty Conn's radio show on WHK, 1420 AM. Marty is the entertainment booking agent that hired us for the weekend job at Presque Isle Downs and Casino.

His show is recorded in the same building where he has his Cleveland area office. The location is just off Richmond Road, not far from Tri-C East where Mike works. It was an interesting experience. They did two, one hour segments that will air at 9:00 pm this Sunday, 9/20. We sang three songs during the first hour and two more for the second hour. I don't know if all them will actually make it onto the finished show.

They have three pre-recorded interviews that are supposed to part of this show also. One is with Les Paul, the inventor of the electric guitar, among other things. Then there is a talk with Jay Leno, and another with someone from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. How we will fit into all of that remains to be seen (or heard).

In addition to the 1420 AM location, the show is also available online. The link to Marty's Webpage is shown below.

http://www.martyconn.com/banddetail.php?recordID=187

The specific link for the radio show online is:

http://www.martyconn.com/thisweek/currentweek.mp3

The Casino Circuit

As you read in the last post, we stopped for dinner last week at Mountaineer Resort and Casino. We were on our way to a gig. Well, this weekend, we will be singing our barbershop songs at Presque Isle Downs and Casino in beautiful Erie, PA.

We just got a call last Saturday from a booking agent who was looking for a quartet to sing between races on both Saturday and Sunday night this weekend. He wants the traditional look so we will be sporting the red vests and bow ties with garters on the sleeves and straw hats. Sweeeet Adeliiiiiiine.



We get four complimentary rooms at the nearby Days Inn (the wives are going), dinner at the buffet, and then, of course, we get paid. It should be fun and a little change of pace from our typical gigs.

If you want to check one of the many websites of the person who booked us, here is a link:

http://www.martyconn.com/

Ramblin', Gamblin' Quartet

Clear Choice did a one hour show for the Hickory High School Alumni Association last night, in Hickory, PA. The only downside was the 2 hr. drive each way. We broke up the drive to the gig by stopping at Mountaineer Resort and Casino in WV. That allowed us to eat at the casino buffet and play the slots for a little while before continuing our journey.

The location of the show was in the old Hickory High School building, which stopped being a high school more than 35 years ago. It is now owned by the local city government and has been transformed into a very nice theater. There is a two-level stage, comfortable seating and great sound and lighting systems.

We got to try the kind of wireless mics that are attached to your ear. They worked well and we even had a sound man who kept everything balanced during the show. The community theater (Oldschool Players) put on high quality shows (Man of LaManca, Bye, Bye, Birdie, Fiddler on the Roof, etc.) We were told that the mics we used cost about $900 each and the group has 14 of them, plus 6 more that attach to a lapel. Not bad for a town with a population of about 500.

All in all, it was a great trip. We had fun singing, the audience was very receptive and at the casino, one of the employees asked us to sing for some of the kitchen and waitress staff. We did a couple of songs. The lady took one of our business cards and said she would pass it on to the people that are in charge of booking entertainment for the casino. Maybe we will become a lounge act.

The Cheemer

If you're not really into cars, or your involved in doing something productive, you might not want to spend time viewing this video from "Jay Leno's Garage". If you are curious and have about 10 minutes to spare, this car is very cool. When our Mega Millions ticket is a big winner tonight, maybe I will make an offer for this baby.

We Got Wii

We have been talking about buying a Wii for some time. Well, yesterday was the day that we did it. We felt that there were signs that we were destined to have a Wii and that now was the time to buy.

Sign #1 -We got the rebate card from my Verizon phone update earlier this month, but we hadn't used any of it yet.

Sign #2 -Our annual check from Evergreen Energy Inc. came in the mail yesterday. This is a check that we get for allowing them to think about possibly mining coal on my grandpa's farm, sometime in the future. If they ever actually start taking out coal, the checks will get bigger.

Sign #3-The total of the two amounts above was almost a perfect match for the cost of a Wii plus an extra game disk and a second controller. So you see, fate was telling us, "buy, buy, buy".

We didn't make the purchase until about 9:00 last night, and didn't really start playing until after the 11:00 news. Sue cleaned my clock at bowling. I tried to be cool and hook the ball but I couldn't control it. I got my revenge in baseball. The game invoked the "Mercy Rule" after the score got to 5-0 in the second inning.

Just another avenue for "Time To Play".

MSG

Click on the collage to enlarge it

My Small Garden has finally produced some red tomatoes. So today, we had BLTs and some of last year's tomato soup for lunch. Now that the crop is coming in, we'll have to begin freezing the excess tomatoes so that we are ready to make the 2009 batch of soup.


Yesterday, my barbershop quartet had a gig in Sandusky. We went early enough that we could visit the Firelands Winery before we had to sing. They had an elevated walkway that allowed you to see the wine-making machinery. Unfortunately, there was not much Friday afternoon activity for us to see. We did buy a case of assorted wines to bring home (3 bottles per couple). And yes, we were more than sober enough to make it to our singing engagement. It was at the Providence Care Center Nursing Home. A big outdoor barbecue for residents and their families. We strolled from table to table and sang a variety of songs (no repeats) for about an hour. Then they treated us and the wives to BBQ chicken, corn on the cob and all the fixings.

Before we left Sandusky, we stopped at Toft's Dairy and Ice Cream Parlor. We had passed by Toft's on the way to the winery and made a note to stop later. I highly recommend Toft's to any ice cream lovers. It is similar to Graeter's and we know how good their ice cream is.

Back In The Old Routine

Well, now that the big party has come and gone, it's time to get back to the tasks at hand. Today, we finally get the motorhome back. It's been gone for over 5 weeks. I certainly hope that the five things that were in need of fixin' are now ok.

Last night, we went to the ballgame between the Indians and the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim". No team should have a name that is so long. The barbershop chorus got a block of 50 tickets for free, so it was a good chance to take in another game. It was a beautiful night and the Tribe gave it their all but lost 5-4.

We are in the early stages of remodeling the upstairs bathroom, so that work will now be continued. Ripping up carpet, prepping the walls and then painting them and re-doing the ceiling are the immediate jobs. Then we will have tile put on the floor.

Thursday night, the chorus is singing for an Italian-themed dinner in Medina. Then on Friday, the quartet and wives are going to Sandusky. We have a "stroll and sing" gig there that evening, and plan to spend the afternoon at The Firelands Winery. Moderation, moderation, moderation.

Financial note: Our lottery ticket for the $170 million prize did not come through last night. So everyone will need to pay their own mortgage at least until Friday. Then we try again for the prize, which is now $207 million.

Stretch It Out

Most of us have a favorite excercise video. Here is mine.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdX_OBUeHb4

All He Needs Is Motivation

For some time now, our 13 year old Shih-Tzu, Wickett, has preferred to be carried up the steps when we turn in for the night. He never has come down the steps by himself. That comes in handy when a repairperson comes or something else is going on downstairs that he should stay away from. He tries to get someone to carry him up the back steps onto the deck, but we haven't fallen for that trick yet.

Well, this afternoon, we had a series of nasty thunderstorms pass through with lots of lightning and wind. Usually Wickett finds a corner to hid in when such things happen. Or maybe he goes behind a couch.

Well today, when I went upstairs after the storms had passed, there was the Wickster, reclining in the upstairs hallway outside of Kris' old room. I wish I had his climb on video. Despite his age, he still is pretty nimble, so the non-stair climbing is more a case of "It's easier if you carry me", than "I can't really do this". Every once in a while, when we say "Let's go to bed", he'll fly to the foot of the stairs and go up one or two. Then he gets this look on his face like, "Oops, I'm not suppose to do this".

That's a slice of life with Wickett.

Not All Farming Is Virtual

(click on the collage to make it bigger)

Just so you don't think that all of my plants are in FarmVille on Facebook, here are some pictures of our flowers (shared credit to Sue) and my 'mater patch (all credit to me).

It's Little Billy

The new blog picture shows me on April 18, 1948. And you thought that the leisure suit was something from the 70's. I was obviously on the cutting edge of fashion, even at an early age. And how about that Run-DMC hat?

Hot Air Balloons

The big Pro Football HOF celebration has started in Canton. It lasts for more than a week and includes a rib burn-off, huge parade, the enshrinement ceremony for this year's class of inductees and of course, the football game( I believe that's a week from Monday).

One other big part of the festivities are hot air balloon launches and related activities. This year, there are over 70 balloons participating. They had two launches or arrivals both yesterday and today. One early in the morning and the other in late afternoon.

Another balloon event is the "night glow". They bring 15-20 balloons to the Stark County KSU campus, inflate them and then light them up in time to recorded music. We have been wanting to go to see this for years, and it never seemed to work out. Well, last night we went and it was great.

The theme this year was "The Wizard of Oz". Since the movie was released in 1939, this is the 70th anniversary. There was actually an Oz balloon with graphics to celebrate the anniversary. You will see it in the pictures and the video below.

(Click on the collage to enlarge it)

Another ad for Bud

I promise not to keep making posts about phone pictures and videos. I'm just testing the process. So here are some still pictures from the Clydesdale visit. I picked up the cute chick in red and blue sitting on the curb just like I did 43 years ago. As they say, Kent is where the action is.

(click on the picture to enlarge and the "back" browser arrow to return))

From Phone To Computer

Here is some of the Budweiser Clydesdales video that I shot with my phone. I am now going to see if I can remember the sequence of steps that got it transferred from the phone to the computer. Then I'll write them down in a safe place. Learning is sometimes a gradual process. Fortunately, I have lots of time.

I Was Not Alone

Sunday night, I made another attempt to see the Space Shuttle-Space Station as it passed by. They are still docked. No luck. I think that it was not quite dark enough here at the time. I thought for a moment that I was successful but it turned out to be two amorous fireflies.

The biggest surprise was when I looked over my shoulder and got the view shown below. It appears that someone else was looking too.

Black Dog

ZEP

This is just a test post to see if this animation actually works. If it doesn't, I'll be deleting the post. If it works, I'll leave it. And while you're here,

A guy hears his doorbell and goes to the front door. When he opens the door, he sees a slug on the front step. He picks up the slug, and throws it out of his yard into the street. Three months later, his door bell rings and he finds the slug on his step again. The slugs says, "What the hell was that all about?"

Sorry, Zeppy Tomato. I know that you don't have hell hound eyes, but that's the way this GIF was made.

Stan Hywet Goes To The Dogs

My barbershop friend Ray Stone recently visited Stan Hywet Hall in Akron to watch his son-in-law play"old-time rules" baseball. Stan Hywet is the home estate of the Seiberling family, who were prominent in the rubber industry and politics. They were having a display of fantasy dog houses on the grounds. He shared these two pictures. The first one was labeled Frank Lloyd Bite. The second one speaks for itself.

Smile!!

My college roomate, Jim Mitsuyasu, sent me this video. Jim lives in California now. Sue and I got to spend a few days with Jim and his wife, Kathy during the winter of 2007. We were staying in Apache Junction, AZ for the winter and they drove out to visit us.

That's Entertainment

I'm just in a Spike Jones kind of mood today. Some might say that would apply to every day. Anyhow, I am sharing this example of Spike and the band. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do. As a side note, notice a very young DeForest Kelley (future Dr. McCoy of Star Trek fame) making an appearance shortly after the young lady starts singing and again at the end of the scene.

Woodstock:Prologue

Next month will be the 40th anniversary of that music festival of peace and love known as Woodstock. I plan to dedicate several posts to Woodstock performances at that time, but I thought that a little tease might be in order.

Here is one of my favorite all-time bands in the "not as famous as they should be" category. That's the late, great "Bob the Bear" on vocals.

Canned Heat

Here are some pictures and videos of the Budweiser Clydesdales in Kent on Wednesday. I have some others that I took with my new phone. I may post them later after I figure out how to do that.

(If you click on the collage, it should enlarge)

The Silver Beats

Since I used their picture in the last post to help make the "Japanese beetle" joke, I felt obligated to give the band, The Silver Beats, from Tokyo, their due. Here is a clip of them doing a couple of songs in a radio studio in, of all places, Nashville, TN.

Ladies and Gentlemen

The Silver Beats

What A Difference An "A" Makes

We have been having some problems with bugs eating the leaves of our roses and other plants. Monday, I put two Japanese beetle traps out, one in the front yard and one in the back. I must have gotten the wrong kind of trap because this is what we found in the backyard this morning.

New Digs For Mike And Kim

Here are some pictures of moving day and some that were taken on May 15. Since then, there has been some painting. The dining room is now "Beeswax". The Master bedroom is "Puppy Paws" (I kid you not). The living room is now a sort of chocolate brown and the Master bath upstairs is a pale green. I can't remember the names for these colors. Maybe Kim and Mike can fill you in and we can have a quiz sometime in the future.

Softball, Anniversaries and Roses

How much more fun can it be to go to an Akron Racers game? Well, the fun is doubled when you can get your picture taken with one of the actual Chick-fil-A cows. See the joy on the faces of quartet wives Mary Stone (left) and my own Sue.

Now I can talk about the surprise party for my brother, Jim and his wife Cheryl. The party was to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary (June 30). Their kids, Alyssa and Trevor and friend, Flo Furey did a great job of planning the party, inviting people and most importantly, not letting Jim and Cheryl know that it was happening. We went to Malvern today, visited with my Mom for a while and then took her with us to the party at Lake Mohawk.

The party was great, the surprise was complete and a good time was had by all. Jim and Cheryl arrived on their pontoon boat and were greeted by a banner saying Happy 25th Anniversary and the strains of the theme from "Love Boat" playing in the background. Today was also the 39th wedding anniversary for Sue and I. I know that 25 years is the silver anniversary. What is it for 39? (Silly Putty??, Geritol??)





And finally, here are a couple of pictures of the rose bush that Mike and Kim sent to my Mom for her birthday in April. It has a special place in her flower garden and, as you can see, it is doing quite well. My Mom has told me that she uses tough love on her tomato plants, by threatening daily to chop them up if they don't produce. I don't know if she uses the same approach on roses.

(I also have to point out the excellent brick work done by my Dad. The man was a craftsman.)

Who Is That Dog?

Inspired by Kris' recent Facebook comment:

I'm Spartacus

I'm Spartacus
I'm Spartacus

Not Pure Barbershop, But........

I thought that I would share this clip with everyone. I can seriously see son Mike singing the tenor part in this arrangement. What do you think, Mike?

Holy Cow!!

I haven't had a blog post since May 31. I feel like such a slacker. But, in my defense, there have been many things going on in my life.

My daughter changed her last name and, in the process, added a son-in-law to my list of relatives. This is all good, but certainly alters the daily routine a bit

My son and his wife have become the Michelangelos of the interior painting world. This is all in preparation for the big move into their new house next weekend. I expect to see giant Purdue and Kent State logos on the ceilings and who knows what else.



We just came back from a four day camping rally with the Cardinal Gulf Streamers. This is the camping club that I have been the president of for the past four years. Sue and I hosted this rally with another couple, so we were very busy.

And as usual, there was the barbershop quartet and chorus singing.

I haven't had much time for stray thoughts let alone time to share them on the blog. I will try to get back in the routine now.