My Recycled Christmas

With all the hype about recycling and seeing some of the really neat things made from recycled products, I was pleased to see Calallen High School's Earth Club come up with these two Christmas recycling projects.

Now, I do realize that these projects do not stand up to recycling disposable diapers to be used as roofing material (I am totally impressed with whoever thought that one up), but they really are crafty ideas!

Sometimes my aluminum cans get recycled, but unfortunately most of the time they end up mixed in with the other trash. Once, years and years ago, I crocheted cut-up Mountain Dew and Dr. Pepper cans into hats which we wore to the Indianapolis 500 race...that was fun :) Even my mother-in-law wore one!

I Give Up!

See that black bike on Jen's right side? The one she is resting her arm against? Well, just a week ago it was YELLOW. I don't know how things like that change so quickly...obviously while I have my back turned, or am blinking my eyes.

The other bike, on her left is the one that carried Jen and then her dad to over 200 mph at the Texas Mile just over 2 months ago (seems like yesterday, not over 2 months ago!)

I don't know how I am going to handle this when the grandboys get older and begin to do some of the things their dad, papa and Aunt Jen do. Surely they won't want to do those things...?

There must be some reprieve in there for Grammy's...right?

Should I just give up now? I've got it! I will just give up blinking - nothing can happen between blinks.

Last look at bright yellow GSXR-1000 before it became the black racing bike with pink decals.

"No, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night"

4:00 a.m.

What is that noise? I awoke wondering if I'd slept through my normal 5 a.m. alarm. Nope - it was 4 in the morning. I could hear trucks...big trucks...cement trucks... Ah come on! It's 4 a.m.!

6:00 a.m.

Since I had been rousted from my sleep so early I decided to go to the grocery store (WalMart) across the road. On the way I found the noisy trucks 1/2 block away at the new yet-to-be-opened Holiday Inn Express. They are putting in the parking lot... Isn't that nice a Holiday Inn Express 1/2 block from my house...right next to the sign that says they are putting a strip mall in on what is left of Brookhaven Drive. Sheesh!

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This is Texas for crying out loud - a State where the cattle outnumber the people...just not on Brookhaven Drive.

Funny Faces

Sometimes when we have pictures taken we want to hide them from the world. Recently I had my school ID photo made and YIKES! Fortunately the photo is quite small and I certainly don't have to look at it anyway. My friend/co-worker didn't particularly care for her picture either (they really weren't that bad!) so she immediately put her extra picture copies through the office shredder! Mine are not shredded, but I am not sharing them either!

I have a favorite 'face' picture of Grandboy AJ that was taken at summer camp this year...

Then there is the picture of this Grammy'face' that would scare any Grandboy thinking about causing trouble for his Grammy...

Of course this 'face' picture of Grandboy Caden is so adorable that no Grammy can resist :)

Oh, and then there is this great 'face' picture of husband Roger taken just a few days ago that I just adore :)

It is the Season!

No Black Friday for me - Christmas Shopping - Gifts to buy for Grandboys…Done! Jen and I went to the toy store - Toys R Us - the day before Thanksgiving and found great things for the grandboys! I am so happy to have that task behind me.

Now, for the Christmas tree - yikes! Ever since I can remember it has been my duty to decorate the Christmas tree in our home. Where did I go wrong? How is it that I hear these wonderful stories from friends and family about the decorating of the tree. And honestly, I do remember decking out the tree many years at Grandma Farnsley’s house. We traipsed out into the snow, cut down a ‘real’ Christmas tree made decorations from construction paper - beautiful paper chains, lovely ornaments, all from cheerfully colored paper held together with glue. What fun! (Note: yes, it is true...nearly every one of the gifts you see under that tree are for those two grandboys - but don't blame me for all of them...several are from their Aunt Jen!)

Christmas is a bit different with the air conditioner running - we did have snow on Christmas Eve 2004. It was beautiful! - a gift none of us will ever forget. Hmmm...Some gifts are worth repeating!

Random Stuff...

Oh, but it was so hard to go back to work after the Thanksgiving break. This is when I am quite certain that I will be ready for retirement before too much longer! I have no problem keeping busy outside of the office at all.
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It was great having the kiddos here for Thanksgiving...makes me look forward to future Thanksgivings :)
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Jen picked up a new sponsor this past weekend - Akuma Helmets. They have called her in to help them design a special helmet just for her. I am sure it will have butterflies on it. Wow...that's exciting! a signature helmet? We'll see - pictures coming soon, I hope!
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It has been cold here! COLD - I don't mind the cold so much as long as the sun shines. When it rains and is cold...Brrrrr! I'm a wimp...but, that's okay :)

NO DOGS ALLOWED!

NO MORE DOGS! NO MORE ANIMALS ALLOWED IN THIS HOUSE!!

Oh, but look at her - she is so cute :) When the boss got married he needed someone to watch his little lab mix named KT while he and his bride went on their honeymoon. KT was adorable, very friendly. She won me over the instant I went to pick her up. Erich opened the gate and out popped KT (bounce, bounce, bounce!) She bounced right past me and into the back seat, though the open car door.

"Let's Go!" she seemed to say.

Roger got home from work and after a few timid moments from KT, she was his best buddy. She soon learned that he was the bearer of treats and stuck close by his heals. I suppose the biggest disappointment for him was her slobbering - or lack of it! Grandpup Chance is a Champion Slobberer and blows wonderful drippy bubbles while waiting for his treats!

KT made herself completely at home on Roger's recliner!

In Celebration of Turkeys

Roger is always the designated turkey, stuffing and pie maker on Thanksgiving. This year I was mostly thankful that he did not have to leave the next day for a scheduled trip to California for work...Houston stepped up to save the day and the parts went there instead.

For the past couple of years at Thanksgiving, the Great Dane Grandpup Chance has assisted. He kept a watchful eye on his Papa during the turkey preparation. In our tiny little kitchen Chance and Roger are about all that will fit on any given day.

It never fails, no matter what the weather on Turkey Day, afterward we wander out into the front yard (why not the back yard? I don't know) and watch as the Grandboys pitch around some type of football, tackling each other furiously. They laugh, they cry, they compete - the competition if always fierce!




Although AJ is the big brother he is not always the winner...but usually! Later in the day AJ and Caden made movies with the video camera...oh my - what have I created???

~ Fall ~

I thought I saw it right after the power outage a couple of weeks ago; but it slipped away. I heard it was coming today...but it failed to arrive. Sure, it has been cooler. I don't believe it has been up to 90 degrees in awhile - hmmm...no, it was 93 the other day. It is November 6th and the furnace has not turned on yet. The air conditioner? You bet, every day and night.

What to do? How do we encourage the arrival of fall in South Texas?

Well, I suppose we will just continue to mow that yard! Grandboy Caden mows away with an 'old-timey' mower that his dad found at the hardware store.

Don't be fooled though...his big brother is using the self-propelled mower!

If I can just get those two grandboys to mow on a regular basis, I'll be pretty happy...even if fall never arrives :)

Ramdom Thoughts about Missing the Power

It was around 10:30 last night when I’d just finished reading my vampire book by a handcrank flashlight when I heard excited voices and other noises out in the back yard.

Then the lights flashed and I heard cheering outside. Our power had been off ALL day. The northern blew in at around 9 a.m. yesterday taking out a lot of power lines causing havoc in the schools and at homes all over Corpus Christi. At first it was kind of exciting – pulling out the candles before dark, making sure the flashlights were all loaded with fresh batteries, taking a bath by candlelight! (thanks to our gas water heater) But as time went on and I had to go to bed with wet hair which promised me an exciting hairdo this morning (and yes, it is as bad as I’d anticipated!) I no longer wanted to pretend to be camping!

It is only 46 degrees here this morning! The furnace is not on and do not expect it to come on. In fact the air conditioner will certainly be on later today. Perhaps I should try to do something with this hair before going to the office?

"Willie Nelson, Ladies and Gentlemen!"

I’d nearly forgotten that we had tickets to a Willie Nelson concert last night. Actually I did not forget, but had been dreading it for quite some time – not the listening to Willie, although at times it is nearly more than I can handle. It was the actual GOING to the concert, dealing with the crowd, and not knowing exactly where it was or what to expect when we arrived.

We survived the concert, but more importantly we survived 'Concrete Street', the outdoor venue where the concert was held. We didn’t get towed away, only had to walk a mile (on Roger’s bad knee, that was fun…both knees were hurting by the time we arrived at Concrete Street), and we only nearly got pitched in jail once…no, make that twice.

We had to stand in line to get frisked at the gate, stand in line to get a $3 bottle of water (they would not let me keep the bottle cap – I suppose it could be used as a weapon of sorts), stand in line to get to our seats only to be turned away because we’d not stood in line to get a wristband for our reserved seats (jail threat #1), stand in line to actually get our wristbands, stand in line again to get our seats, listen to 3 hours of very loud country rock and two other bands, sit behind a row of boisterous females, (the one in front of me with a large cowboy hat - thank goodness that group left after the first hour of Willie). Then on the way out they tried to take away what was left of our $3 bottle of water and Roger threw a fit (I thought we were going to the brink for certain when he grabbed the bottle back from the woman and said it was his, he’d paid for it and he was taking it with him!)

We made it the additional mile back to the car and found it still parked there – amazing since the tow trucks were cruising the area looking for suckers. Anyway, that is the last time we have to go to Concrete Street. There cannot be anything there again that will be important enough for us to see. It was like a big smelly, smoke-filled, drunken bar.

When Willie Nelson finally did arrive, the music calmed down to Willie style and my ears eventually stopped pulsating, however they are still ringing. The last hour of Willie was very good since many people had left and we could see well…not actually well, but nearly unobstructed. He closed out the show about 4 times before finally leaving, so Roger had a great time from 11:00 p.m. till midnight when the show finally really did end. I only slept through about an hour of the tortuous portions.

Willie Nelson…been there done that. Next time we will just buy the CD.

~ Glad That's Over ~

Hooray! Glad that's over!

Last weekend netted us some really great numbers at the Texas Mile in Goliad, Texas...we walked away from the mile intact (and believe me walking away is much better than riding out in an ambulance)...no broken bones ...motorcycle in one piece still covered in pink, white and silver flower decals, and turbo Hayabusa still running!

Remembering last March's Texas Mile event, a nervous Jen hopped onto the bike early Saturday morning. Conditions were ideal. An early run with low winds, warm temperatures (okay, it was hot, but it is South Texas, what do you expect?) gave us hopes for a good shakedown run on the turbo busa. The weekend's ultimate goal? To run over 200 mph!

I can't begin to tell you how nervous I was and all the preparation in the world would not change that. Jen got in line for her first run down the Mile. She was given the go ahead and off she went! I tried to video tape it - but honestly if her hands were shaking as much as mine, the bike would never have stayed on track. When she returned to our pit area we checked the bike over; the GPS said she had run 201 mph! but her time slip said she'd crossed the 1-mile marker traveling at a slow 118. She had let off at the 3/4 marker because she just did not feel 'comfortable.' Hey - if she is not comfortable, I'm not comfortable...my question - how do you feel 'comfortable' at 201 mph?

After a thorough going over of the bike - and of the rider - Jen once again headed for a very long line at the start of the Mile. Before we knew it she was off and down the Mile where about 30 seconds later she passed the 1-mile marker with a MPH of 203! We were estatic! Our original goal was met. An additional pass that day brought her to a whopping 211.6 MPH run :) And there was always tomorrow!

It was decided that Roger would try his hand at this 200 MPH stuff on Sunday. He made one run down the Mile - 211.3 mph! One run! He got off the bike and said, "she's all yours." He was finished and we were all quite pleased. Now - the question..."she's all yours???" No, he was not talking to me - there is NO way I am getting on that bike even to take it down the street - that bike is a MONSTER!

Jen took the Stage 1 Turbo Busa down the track 3 more times that day, beginning with 213 MPH and ending with a whopping 216.506 MPH run which gave her the offical Texas Mile record of 'Fastest Female Ever on the Texas Mile!' It also makes her the 2nd fastest female on two wheels in the nation...

You do realize what this means, don't you? It means we need to find just another few MPH in that bike to make her the nations fastest female on 2-wheels - so, I suppose this is..."to be continued..."

It's Official - she's the fastest female ever on the Texas Mile! To see the beginning of the 216.506 mph run on the Mile, watch the video!

Fall...Where are you?

It is September. Fact is, September will be only a fleeting memory on Monday morning. Where is our autumn? Does autumn ever make it this far south?

In October of 1981, we two adults (well, that was debatable) and two little children, packed ourselves into a rented U-Haul and drove the 1,126 miles from our Indiana home to this Sparkling City by the Sea. A brave move for any family. It took 3 days to make the trip and when we arrived it was warm outside - I thought that was great. The first thing I wanted to do was dig through our belongs and find bathing suits for myself and my toddler daughter (a.k.a. 9secondjen) and head for the beach!

Soon, I heard rumors of a possible 'Blue Northern.' What is a Blue Northern? What were they talking about? People were so excited - cold weather was on its way! I waited and waited - and waited. Then one day the sky turned ominous shades of 'blue.' Dark bluish-gray clouds hung low over the horizon. The air changed and within 10 minutes the temperature outside had changed from a steamy 85 degrees to the coldest 60 degrees I'd ever felt in my life! My very first Blue Northern had arrived! Brrrr! Wimp? you say...yep, pretty much!

Fall would have to be the season I miss most from my old Indiana home. I miss the contrast of the beautiful, brightly colored leaves against the green rolling hills of the Indiana landscape, and the cool crisp feel of the air when you step outside. There have been many Corpus Christi fall seasons without even one Blue Northern...no autumn - how sad is that? However...there was the one (one and only one) Christmas Eve when it snowed on Corpus Christi - a Christmas gift from above that we will never forget! - the one gift bestowed upon Corpus that made all the missing fall seasons forgivable.

You know the old saying, "you can never go back home?" It is so true. Now, home is right here with our Texas-Branded children and our Texas-Born grandchildren...and our Texas Friends...and it is good.

In Preparation...

I am having a difficult time wrapping myself around the reality that another Texas Mile is upon us. The last one, although we had high hopes of 200 mph runs down the track, did not turn out so well. There are two of them a year and March's Mile was a bit more than I could handle ( Turbo Busa Tumble - April 07). I will add October's upcoming Mile to the list of things currently keeping me awake at night!

This time 'we've' done things a bit different. I say 'we' like I actually have anything to do with it...I have NOTHING to do with it. I do nothing except fret!

We took the turbo Hayabusa to Johnny Cheese in Round Rock, Texas - yes, that really is his name - who worked for quite some time to tune the bike, producing a Texas Mile 'map' that he says will get us the mph we need for the Mile. Okay, I really don't know exactly what all this means, after all who needs a map to get down a straight one mile track anyway! I mean, there is already a GPS on that thing...we need a map too?! I can tell you one thing - turbo tuning is VERY loud.

Johnny Cheese tunes the Turbo Busa

We took the grandpup, Chance, along with us to Mr. Cheese's shop (he was a big hit, as always), and he knew exactly what to do - he put on ear protection!

Chance attends most all of our racing events - he is quite the traveler - and I often wonder what he thinks about his life. He makes friends wherever he goes and usually he just lays there and enjoys the attention.

Chance and his Papa take a nap at the track.

Chance cools off with some damp cloths at a hot race in Houston.

Jen and Chance inspect the damage on 'Rustman's' crashed bike at a Texas Mile. This bike went through the speed trap at 209 mph before taking it's tumble.

Grandboy AJ gets a seat in one of the 'fast' Texas Mile cars! I know it won't be long before AJ gets his turn at the mile - but I am pretty certain he will be on 4 wheels :)

Another landspeed racer ready for a run on the Texas Mile.

One of my very favorite pictures taken on the Mile. Jenn in the background and a man on his 'barstool' pit-cruiser.

Oh, I suppose I will survive once again - and when it is over, I am just certain I will have amazing pictures and wonderful memories as with all of our great adventures!

Happy Birthday Grandpup Chance!

September 14, 2007

Happy Birthday Chance! If you were a human instead of a dog, you would be 6 years old!

I remember a time when your mommy was still in high school and a friend needed a temporary care-giver for a baby Great Dane. Jen took that baby Dane, and for several weeks she mixed his formula, fed him with a little bottle...she bathed him, cuddled him and fell in love with that little pup. When the time came to give him back to his owner she simply did not want to do it. But a GREAT DANE...Danes are big, in fact they are huge! And we lived in a tiny house.

She vowed then and there that someday she would be a Great Dane owner. That time came late in 2001. Around the time you were born your mommy moved to the great State of Hawaii. She wasted no time in searching for you - you were adopted before you were even old enough to leave your ma and pa. Ever since then she has loved you completely in all your barking, your drooling and yes, even your farting!

Then when it came time for her to leave Hawaii, she just couldn't leave you behind. You got on a plane and flew the 3,600 miles from Honolulu, Hawaii to Houston, Texas! Your Papa greeted you at the airport in Houston. You were so happy to see him, and from then on you and your Papa became fast buddies. You were so ticked off at your mommy for putting you on that plane in a big box...all alone...you would not even look at her for days! Of course your Papa loved it and immediately began to spoil you. He tempted you with wonderful treats of Texas tacos, McDonald's cheeseburgers...if we ate steak, you ate steak. Oh my - what a spoiled Grandpup you had become.

We listened to the animal whisperer on television, trying to understand that you are a dog and we should not treat you like a human. We tried Chance...we tried and we failed; you have too many human qualities buddy roe!

Now you have moved away to take care of your mommy in her new city. When you last came for a visit, although you were happy to see your Grammy and Papa, you were thrilled to get in that car with your mommy and head back to the hills of Texas. And when we come to your house for a visit, we can see that you love your new home and your wonderful back yard...and the fact that it is never quite as hot in those Texas hills as it is in our City by the Sea!

So, your Grammy and Papa wish you the very happiest 6th birthday because to us, Chance, you are not just an animal...no matter what that 'animal whisperer' says!

~ The Secret ~

August 30, 2007 - I was on my way back to work from a meeting downtown. My cell phone rang (this is uncommon during the regular work day). I answered and someone told me a secret that I could not share with anyone but Roger.

I pressed the speed dial for Roger’s cell to tell him ‘the Secret’. I talked very fast, trying to get the details of ‘the Secret’ to him via cell phone…silence. Complete silence. I felt I was in one of those commercials - you know, the one where the wife calls the husband to share some very exciting baby news…then the phone goes dead and she thinks he is unhappy about the baby.

I said, “Hello? Are you still there? Are you speechless?” NOTHING.

I feared he had fainted, passed out in his office chair, fallen to the floor, broken his arm and wounded his head possibly needing 20 stitches on his brow. Quickly I redialed his number and found that my trusty Verizon “Can you hear me now?” phone had indeed disconnected mid-call.

September 1, 2007 - this is day 3. We are going to visit Jenn today and I must be very careful not to slip up and mention the Secret. I am not good at keeping secrets from my own daughter. She would be the first person I would share a secret with…however, this particular secret must remain just that – a secret – for awhile longer.

I must forget about the ‘Secret.’

September 6, 2007 – Wow, I am surprised at how easily it was to forget about the secret. Oh yes, it pops into my mind here and there…along with the agony that goes along with secret management and simply knowing how this particular secret is bound to change some lives. Two more days and ‘the Secret’ will be revealed.

Later…today I saw a picture of ‘the secret.’ It is quite large, bright yellow and black. NO – it’s not a big bumble bee!

September 8, 2007 – Soon, I will not have to keep this secret any longer!

Yesterday evening was racing in San Antonio. While there, Jenn gazed longingly at a bright yellow GSXR 1000 – it wasn’t a new bike, but it didn’t matter. She used to race one and loved it. She said, “I really liked that bike. I miss it.” Roger and I just looked at each other – we shared a secret. And we could not say a word.

Jenn views sunset at San Antonio Raceway Park while preparing for race

Jenn and her Dad prepare the Turbo Busa for the Dyno tuning

I don’t want to keep this secret any longer!

10:39 p.m. – The phone rang. I picked it up and Jenn declared, “You lied to me!”

“I know,” I said, and I laughed with her.

I could hear lots of ‘noise’ in the background, laughing, talking, eating, smiling (yes, sometimes smiles are noisy!)

So, here it is - the brand new, bright yellow ‘secret’ – a 2007 GSXR 1000, ready to set up for racing. Suzuki has generously donated this bike to Jenn. It is hers to - what else – RACE!

Newsflash! #1 Grandboy Turns 10!

10 years old - he is TEN YEARS OLD! When did this happen?!

What is a Grammy to do when her oldest Grandboy turns ten? I remember my own Grandmother Farnsley who I loved dearly. (She would have been 100 years old on AJ's 10th birthday!) She had a 'bazillion' grandchildren and even though I was only one of them, she always made me feel like I was the only one. I loved to watch her iron and cook; she whistled while she worked ~ this was great! She hung the wash out on the line and everything smelled so wonderful :) She played the old pump organ and sang; she worked in the garden, canned everything, skimmed the cream off the fresh cow's milk, used beautiful white lard and lots of fluffy white flour when she cooked. She made homemade kraut that was unbeatable straight from the jar...and she made the best mashed potatoes! But, the number one thing I remember about my Grandmother is her hair. She had beautiful long white hair...and I loved it :) So, what is this Grammy going to do now that her #1 Grandboy has turned 10? I have decided to stop coloring my hair.

So, even though I'll never cook like my Grandmother, or make homemade kraut, I can have gray hair...and well earned gray hair at that!

A Great Dane Sized Hole!

After living with his Grammy and Papa for more than a year and a half, Chance has officially 'left the building' ~ he has moved to Center Point to live with his mommy, Jenn.

I loaded up the little Mazda 3 with the final load of Jenn's 'stuff'...including her Dane, our Grandpup Chance. All morning he'd known something was up, and was excited and anxious. He'd seen the loads of familiar items go out the door for 2 weekends in a row. But this time was different and he knew it.

Papa had gone to Fermin's for tacos that morning and, as usual, returned with an extra for Chance. Chance knew the routine and obediently sat at his Papa's feet. Before we could locate his 'slobber rag,' drool began to stream from his huge jowls and land in noisy pools on the dining room floor. Papa looked at him sincerely, held the taco at the very tip of Chance's nose and explained how his life was about to change, and how this was probably his last breakfast taco for a very long time. In a swoop and a gulp the taco was gone - Chance looked around hungrily for more, but it was gone.

Several hours later we all arrived at Chance's new home. After a thorough inspection, a tour of each and every room in the house and of the backyard, Chance seemed to understand what had happened. Then we took a short ride to the river park where Chance made some new friends and played in the water. "Hey, this is great," he seemed to say.

We spent one night with Chance in his new home and left early this morning; he wined and cried a bit and wanted to go with us. His mommy had to hold him back at the gate. But as we drove away I could clearly see that he'd already found other things to occupy himself as he galloped down the long fence line in the opposite direction, barking at nothing in particular.

Several hours later we arrived back at our very quiet Corpus Christi house, unlocked the door and, even though we knew he was gone, half way expected the large Dane to greet us at the door.

Chance, you really know how to rip a 'Great Dane sized hole' in your Grammy's heart!

Deathly Hallows!

The big release day ~ Deathly Hallows had finally arrived! How on earth do two adults - and older adults at that - get so excited about the release of a 'children's' book?

Roger and I went to Wal-Mart first thing and picked up a copy (normally we purchase 2 copies so we don't 'argue' over who gets to read it first!) But this time we purchased only one because I had 'pre-ordered' special edition copies from Amazon.com to be delivered at my doorstep on July 21st! But would UPS really deliver my special copies on a Saturday?

It was really big of me to allow Roger to begin reading the 'Wal-Mart' copy of the book before I even had mine...in fact it was agonizing. I was trying to be adult about the entire situation as I quietly allowed him to sit in the den, alone, reading 'his' book.

Jenn arrived at out doorstep a short time later; if we didn't quickly get out of the house Roger's copy of the book was going to mysteriously disappear if he EVER took a reading break.

Upon our return from running errands, there they were perched upon the kitchen table...3 copies of the special edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows! - already opened, of course - he had to check them out. (Hummm...I suppose my faith in the UPS man has been restored, but that is still under debate.)

The outside of the box declared, "Muggles, do not deliver or open before July 21st." I had my book! I must say, it is a good thing all three copies arrived, because Jenn and Kathy swooped up their copies of the books without delay!

Now I could begin reading - I made it through a page and a half when the phone rang; another half page and someone at the door...8 hours later I was ready to settle down and begin reading again. All the while Roger had not budged from his comfy recliner, book in hand, eyes locked in place. Had he really not moved? Or was this my imagination? I could clearly see that he was at least half way through the book and I'd barely just begun. Could I catch up!? Not a chance and I knew it.

Being the gentleman that he is, Roger finished his book Sunday evening and did not breathe a word of any of it...this would have been grounds for divorce! Kathy soon finished hers - but she also maintained her silence. Jenn didn't get to start on her copy until Tuesday, so at least I was ahead of someone! Finally, three days later I came to the end of my book. It was over...I'd finished...and it was good :)

101 Days of Rain and counting??

Oh my...oh my goodness...oh my goodness gracious...oh my goodness gracious mercy sakes alive! That's how it goes nearly every day at work. Usually the boss starts it by exclaiming, "Oh my..." Then someone else in the office says, "Oh my goodness." Then, "Oh my goodness gracious..." Well, you get the point. We have a great time while we work :)

Oh yeah, back to the reason for the original "Oh my..." Yes, it rained again today. One hundred and one days out of 201. We are officially saturated. In spite of it, I heard lawn mowers choking on the grass late this afternoon, struggling to get through the tall, thick, wet, mosquito-filled masses of grasses.

Seems that about a year ago you may have heard me tell about how hot and dry it was (oh, don't get me wrong - it is still hot). I feared for the life of my cat, Adagio - no, not because it was hot and dry, but because of the huge cracks in the dry powdery earth. I was afraid he would fall into one of those cracks never to be seen again.

<--No, he's not dead; he is just asleep (upside down and twisted around) on the washer.

Adagio is pretty much famous for his laid back personality. He can rest, or sleep, just about anywhere!

~ Those Grandboys are Growing Up! ~

I realized my little grandboys were growing up, but that really hit home when they were old enough to go to camp.

AJ, Caden and their mother, Kathy, at camp ->

The oldest grandboy, AJ, will be 10 in just a few short days! They are calling him the "double-digit midget." He is not very big, but is growing like a weed during the rainy season! All their pants are high-waters, and there is no point in purchasing new ones before school begins next month because they would be too small before school even begins!

<-- AJ smiles for the camera and says he is now big enough to mow my front yard!

They are using big words that I don't understand. I can see their little brains working non-stop and the hard drive in those brains is about 80 million GB vs. mine, which is a 1 MB and has to frequently be reformatted!

Caden watches intently and learns as a camp counselor demonstrates the art of baiting a hook --> Looks to me as if he is pondering a better way to handle the worm/hook situation!

What is a Grammy to do? How do I manage to keep them 'little' boys? I suppose there are consolations to the boys growing so quickly; maybe I won't have to mow the yard as much...

100 Days of Rain (or It's a Jungle Out There!)

Today, July 19th, is the 200th day of the year. Officially we have had 100 days of rain so far! Hummm…I suppose that means we’ve had 100 days without rain. And I think I’ve had the mower out 100 times this year!

The Grass is Always Greener...

Oh my...we have grass - it is mid-July.... It is hot. It is steamy. And our South Texas grass continues to grow...and grow and grow. Normally during the months of July and August we mow the yard once every 2 or 3 weeks, and that is if we water the grass.

But this year we have had so much rain - Lake Mathis is overflowing, the Nueces River is overflowing , Labonte Park has become Labonte Park Lake, and houses near the river are flooded; people are out of their homes and in shelters. Thankfully we are on 'high' ground and our house is safe.

It seems that since the new year, rarely has a week passed that we don't spend two evenings a week (between rains) mowing the grass! And now that summer is here it is 98 degrees, 98 percent humidity and 98 mosquitoes per square inch of human being - mosquitoes the size of small birds!

You'd think that with an over abundance of mosquitoes, they would be smaller (the law of supply and demand - more mosquitoes, less food supply). Well apparently that does not apply to these particular mosquitoes; these creatures are huge...very plump...and quite juicy! Wonder if there is some type of delicacy that can be made from plump, juicy mosquitoes? (That's quite alright, I really don't want to know!)

Bottom line...I am feeling overwhelmed with the tall green stuff. Help! I need some lawn-mowing help!! Tell me again how old those Grandboys need to be to handle a lawn mower!?

Go figure. It is raining again.

Is the Maytag Repair Man trying to round up business?

First the television, and now the dishwasher! Ach!

I get a lot of junk mail and much of it gets thrown into the trash. Yesterday there was one from Maytag/Jenn-Air; the outside of the envelope said "IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTICE." Since I have a Maytag dishwasher I decided it might be prudent to just have a look inside this particular one.

As instructed in the letter I called the 800 # and after a considerable amount of time, one hang-up and a lot of talking to a computer, I was able to find that my Maytag model could catch fire and has done so in 135 reported cases. I was to unplug the thing and cease using it immediately!

My dishwasher is defective! I am devastated. Like the dilapidated X-television set, the dishwasher is quite old. It doesn't do as good a job as it used to do (better than I would do on my own however) and is beginning to look a bit worn...it may be 10 years old but I am not certain.

There are two things I do not like to do around the house...#1 is dust and #2 is wash dishes!

The offer: I was to choose between 2 options. I could either have a Maytag Repair Man come to my house and repair the defective unit, or I could get a $75 credit toward another Maytag/Jenn-Air dishwasher. Those are not very good choices! My dishwasher is OLD - it is on it's very last leg - and even though I know the Maytag Repair Man is desperately looking for work (I even saw him on a TV commercial repairing a copier), I hate having repair men come into my house.

And, I have used that dishwasher for years without burning the house down, so does it really need repaired? On the other hand, I don't want to spend $469 on a new one (even with the $75 credit they are offering, that is a LOT of money!) Wonder if I could handle not having a dishwasher?

There was a time when the kiddos were little that the dishwasher crashed - 'crash' is a word used a lot in our racing family; a simple fact of life, not pleasant, but still a fact. At the time Roger was racing and we had a separate 'racing account' at the bank. I replaced that dishwasher with racing funds! Back then not having a dishwasher was not on my list of options.

But, that was then...and this is now - the kids are gone, we occasionally use paper products, I rarely put any pots or pans in the dishwasher anyway. Do I really need that dishwasher? I suppose I will continue to use my old, dilapidated dishwasher until my Cascade runs out and then see how long it takes me to get tired of washing dishes by hand. Can I make it 2 weeks? 6 months...how about a year? Anyone care to place bets?

Afterthought: How many paper plates can I buy for $400 anyway?

Sheesh! What have I done?

Part 1: It was a Thursday afternoon. Our district accountant (Ramona) had been in the Director's (Erich's) office with the door closed. With the DOOR closed! This is an extremely rare event. Erich is an 'open door' man. He's a big guy; young, easy going, sings in his office with his feet on the desk, his gigantic cowboy boots taking up an entire corner of the already oversized desk.... (When Erich first arrived at the school, he had to put blocks of wood under the legs of his desk to raise it enough so his knees would go underneath...you get the picture!)

I could clearly see through the large glass window (he never closes the blinds) that his feet were not on the desk now, but I was so busy with year-end items - special programs, summer school issues, purchase orders, invoices - just normal stuff, and after the flitting thought of 'the door is closed, how weird is that' I blew it off.

The day went on, people came and went, issues were resolved.... Late in the afternoon Erich called a meeting. Erich doesn't call meetings...we do! What is going on? We all sat around the big table in the center of our office. Erich, slouched in his chair and with a strain in his very large but gentle voice, softly announced that our beloved accountant, Ramona, had resigned. She'd accepted a position with the City of Corpus Christi. I could see the fear in his face! Ramona was our backbone. Ramona knew everything. We all depended on her for our daily needs! Ask Ramona, she will know what to do!...and she always did.

A week has passed and we are all adjusting. The nausea caused by the reality of this untimely event has lessened. We will miss our Ramona terribly.

Part 2: Yikes! What have I done? How has this happened?! It wasn't long after Ramona announced her resignation that words began to drift in my direction. Would I be interested in Ramona's position? I have never been one to glide gently into anything...you know, slide easily feet first into a pool of soft blue water; rather, I tend to just jump into the frying pan head first!

I was planning an early retirement in a year and a half. Well, plans change and life goes on - thank goodness for the small things! I suppose I could work another 3 to 5 years with the proper incentive...good, cold hard cash goes a long way!

The nausea is back, my brain is nearly fried from overload, my replacement has been hired, and I am the new accountant. Sheesh...what have I done!

An Old TV

The problem:
When is the right time to replace an old television? Should I wait until it goes completely out? Or do I keep trying to watch it even though the picture scrunches all up and becomes blurry; sometimes it even snaps instantly to a very loud picture of snow. (Loud snow? Now that's a contradiction!)

This has been going on for several years now, and recently I noticed a variation in the sound quality. At first I thought it was just the commercial that was playing at the time; then I heard the sound waver again...the commercial was long gone.

How old is this television anyway? Where did we find it? I do remember it died once - it was nearly out from under a 5-year extended warranty. An EXTENDED WARRANTY!! We never purchase those things! Why did we even have an extended warranty anyway? Regardless, we had one. The repairman came to the house and fixed the 32" GE television - I think that was in 1990.

Solution!
When this one dies, we simply won't replace it! Just think of the money we will save!? We can cancel the Time Warner Cable subscription. I could do housework instead of watching episodes of 'Deal or No Deal' or reruns of 'Lost.' Hmmm...maybe not.

The Reality:
We are TV addicts - when we are not watching television the thing is on - so if it is a new television we need, it is a new television we will get. So off to the store we went; we looked at Target, Circuit City, several on-line stores and finally found just what we were looking for at Wal-Mart. It looks real nice sitting in the corner of our living room - all shining and sparkly with its slim clean lines and wide screen. Time Warner Cable offers us at least nine hundred and ninety nine channels to choose from...and not a decent thing to watch!

Think I'll just turn the thing off and read my book.

Grand Papa Goes Home

May 8, 2007 -

The alarm was set to wake us at 4 a.m. but we woke before that and began getting ready for our short journey to the airport – as difficult as it was, the time had come for Dad to go "Back Home Again in Indiana."

The Corpus Christi International Airport must have been quite a let down over the airport in Louisville. No alarms went off as he passed through security, so they did not have to pull him aside and use the magic wand on him as they did in Louisville! He breezed through with no problem and was wheeled to the waiting area where I watched through the glass partition as he immediately found friendly faces and conversation.

Later that morning: Chance lay at my feet with a rawhide on the floor next to him. Normally he would devour the rawhide immediately, but not today. It will probably take most of the week to get him back to normal, as he will likely spend his time pouting and sleeping! And awaiting the return of his Grand Papa!

I left his staff (the one we use when we go to Big Bend for mountain hikes) standing in the corner by the living room door and told Dad it would be there when he returns. However, I’d like to get him a nice one to keep here, somewhat like the one he has at home, and will immediately begin looking for one in anticipation of his next visit.

Turbo Busa Tumble!

Take a good look at Jenn on the turbo busa at the Texas Mile. This is the only picture of the busa in action before it crashed! Looks good, huh?!

We were excited and anxious - Roger had worked on that turbo busa for months - night after night out there in that shop, week after week. Well, sometimes things just don't quite go as planned.

We arrived at the Texas Mile in Goliad on a Friday afternoon. The place was packed with exotic cars, speed racers, motorcycles, landspeed bikes, Vettes, Mustangs...you name it, it was on the Texas Mile that day. Jenn and Roger were able to get the bike through tech and loaded back into the hauler. After a restless night at the hotel, we woke early and headed back to the Mile.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, Jenn was sitting in line to make her first pass on the Mile. Roger was at her side and I was at the 1/2 mile marker across from the truck and hauler. Grandpup Chance sat anxiously at the hauler on his tether. How is it that animals always feel our anxiety?

Waiting to run : I watched through the binoculars as they made their way through the line. Finally the time had arrived and she was at the starting line.

Watching the run: There is just no good way for a mom to watch her daughter on a turbo charged Suzuki Hayabusa 1300 trying to make the thing go down the 1 mile track at over 200 mph. But watch I did...breathe - nope, that was not going to happen. I listened to the sound of the engine and strained to see the tiny speck flying down the track. It looked good; it sounded good. I heard her shift into 6th gear and thought I heard a pop. But on she went.

Sky full of dust: I'll just tell you right now that a sky full of dust on the Texas Mile is not a good thing. It began as a touch of dust a little more than a mile away from where I stood. I did not move. The dust cloud thickened and grew monstrously ominous.

Waiting: Waiting on anything is difficult, and seconds can seem like minutes or even hours. I saw the emergency crew heading toward the end of the Mile and in my mind was wondering why. Jenn had finished with her run and even though I could not see her yet, she would be riding up that return road any second. But she didn't. This is where my mind did not accept what my heart already knew. The ambulance lights flashed. Had I breathed yet?

Soon - not soon enough - I heard someone say, "She's O.K." She is alright...what does that mean?! Is she talking? Is she moving? How many bones are broken? Eventually Roger and I were told to bring the truck and hauler to the end of the Mile to pick up the bike. The bike? What about the girl?!

The ambulance approached our Ford pickup and turned in front of us before coming to a stop. We were blocked. The back doors opened and an EMT hopped out, Jenn close behind. She was holding an icepack on her left arm. After looking her over from top to bottom (and getting a look at the tumbled motorcycle) I decided that we were extremely lucky...and grateful. A broken arm - what a huge blessing!

Jenn watches as her dad once again works on the busa...night after night...but not for months this time! We are so fortunate that the damage is fixable - broken arms heal! Bent busa's can be unbent! Broken parts replaced.

The next Texas Mile - October 2007 - she will be back!

Next drag race - San Antonio, Texas, May 2007 - coming soon to a drag strip near you, watch for her to be transformed from 9SecondJen into the new improved 8SecondJen. To be continued...

Now, just one more thing - just when is it that the mom gets to breathe again?