8thouta10

Saw this and thought it would fit a few of my friends

2011-11-22T19:24:00.002-05:00

This guy is good

An entire Year since I last visited here

2011-11-16T11:05:00.004-05:00

WOW....it would appear that it has been over a year since I last visited here. It would be easy to say that not much has happended since then, but that would be way too much of a cop out....The kid graduated from high school, 9th out of 950 students, could have higher but he met a girl and it appears that he spent his time studying something other than the school books....apple didn't fall far from the tree as the longrooffan says...the kid's sister is stillstillstillstill playing softball....travel all over central FLA and we still aren't home yet....she finished middle school....second in her class....now she is a freshman in high school....like her brother she is becoming a very popular student based on the amount of time spent on the cell phone and facebook....she is now playing basketball for the school and that involves more traveling....the sungoddess keeps getting better looking every day....I sure am lucky....left my job of seven years....b.s. stress just wasn't worth it anymore....so I joined the likes of 20% of our country's population....that lasted about 3 days and I took a position with a small local company that is working out better than I could have imagined....good people that are truly customer focused....retired our old big white Ford truck just recently....that vehicle sure was good to us over the past 10 years....20 trips across the southeastern country...over hill and over dale...off to Grandma's house we went....the sungoddess came out to the garage a couple of weeks ago and stated she wanted to go look at new cars....we came home that night with a 'new to us' car that she had been looking at for quite a few weeks....she loves it and that is what is important....and it get's almost twice the fuel mileage of the old white truck....gotta love a V-6....the kid comes home from school this weekend....he said he would like to spend Friday evening hanging out with me....guess I better get a few more cold pops for the garage frig...
sure do miss him....the gentleman farmer and his bride recently moved to jsut up the road a piece from me....I commented to his bride how good she was looking, she had lost wait and had a suntan....she laughinly told me that while she did have a suntan, she had not lost any weight, I just had not seen her in over 10 years without 4 layers of clothing on....seems I only visited their farm during our annual winter visit to the show me state....12 degrees outside with a 30 knot wind makes you bundle up...it is nice having them close....even the bus visited for a while...took him for a beach cruise on the old yellow jeep...he seemed to enjy himself....I'm gonna go for now, it has been nice visiting here again and I'll try not to stay away as long.....remember to always CELEBRATE LIFE

Did You Vote.....

2010-11-01T21:41:00.002-04:00

Did YOU excercise your right to enjoy the Freedom to CELEBRATE LIFE.........

This is why we call our Country Home of the Free

2010-09-14T20:15:00.002-04:00

Jeep,
Unfortunately I disagree with you in context, but not in idealism.The jerk who wants to burn the Koran, is also one who would do everything in his power to stop me from burning the bible.In this world, we are dictating to the third world countries that they should be like us......The middle east has been a bomb shell since the days of yore, even before the "Christ" came to this world back in 0 AD.I don't want you telling me how to live my life, how do you feel that the Iraqis want us to tell them how to live?
I feel the President should call that dumb jerk and set him straight that burning the Koran would only make those fanatics carry on more suicides.
Remember, dying for the Mohamud is going straight to alla land and is an honor to these idiots ... same as kamakasi pilots during WWII.
I am your brother and respect your right to free speech, damn I served 21 years so you can have free speech, I just don't agree with your statement.And doing that allows us to be brothers and still be able to get along.Tom

The above was a comment left by one of my brothers.
Now I feel myself privileged to have him as a brother, and to consider him a friend. I respect, as I do all my siblings, his point of view and thought processes. He has expressed, perhaps better than I, why this country is so great.
We have differing points of view on a very touchy subject, yet we have enough respect for each other's rights that we acknowledge them and understand that we are allowed those different points of view.
The most frightening thought to me is the idea of somebody suppressing my ability to express my ideas and ideals, because they do not understand them.
I personally have an instant dislike to anyone that chooses to burn a book.
To me there is no greater sign of disrespect than to destroy something someone else created.
It goes against the principles that my parents instilled in me.
Yet as a citizen of this country I respect that right. And will, to my ability, defend that right. That is my obligation to my neighbors both close and far.
I would hope, and I guess the point I am trying to make is, that I would expect each citizen of this country to respect the rights of this clown if he chooses to express himself in this manner.
And MOST OF ALL, I would expect our leader to respect this knucklehead's right.
I would expect our leader to stand up and tell the world that as a citizen of this country, this bozo is enabled to this right.
It may not be right, but it is his right.

Allowing us all to have our own opinions and thoughts, and being able to freely express them is why this country is called America.

Enabling us to all to CELEBRATE LIFE as we wish.

Tom, thank you for allowing me to have my own thoughts, and thank you to Bob and Jim, and every other veteran for defending my right to express them without fear of retaliation and imprisonment.

These are reasons enough to CELEBRATE LIFE.

Book Burning and why we live in America

2010-09-10T21:18:00.004-04:00

It has been a month since I last visited these pages.
A long time in the life of every day, but a milli second in our life's journey.
Lot's of things have happened during these past thirty days.
The oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico was finally and securely sealed.
(Or so they tell us.)
Our Marine force stormed a pirated ship off the horn of Africa and captured the pirates without a single injury. (Job well done albeit a little late.)
A radical church pastor in Florida determined that he would hold a Quran burning ceremony to mark the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
Several of our political leaders attempted to talk him out of it by telling us that our Muslim friends would be angry at us as a nation and seek retaliation by acts of terror against our country and her citizens.
Hell, even the president of our country phoned this lunatic and told him how his act would jeopardize the safety of our troops and citizens around the world.
Now, I would never claim to be the most politically correct or socially responsible person, but the sole act of our leader calling this nutcase and asking him to not proceed with his event just pisses me off.
Who in the hell does our president represent?
It appears he is more concerned about how the Muslim nation perceives us, than he is in preserving the rights of the people he represents.
Why didn't he stand up and say that while he may not agree with the actions of this preacher,
HE MUST DEFEND THEM BECAUSE IT IS A RIGHT THAT IS GUARANTEED TO EACH AND EVERY CITIZEN OF THIS GREAT NATION.
And if the Muslim nation is offended, tough shit.
My Father, my Uncles, and three of my Brothers ALL defended the rights of each and every citizen of this country so that those citizens could enjoy the freedoms that are guaranteed to them.
Why is the leader of this country more worried about what our enemies think, than what our citizens think?
I just wish he would stop defending other countries and stand up and defend OUR country.
Personally I think if the Muslims have a problem with burning the Quran, then I have a problem with them crashing airplanes into buildings. Or mutilating young girls because they were raped by their father or brother. Or driving vehicles packed with explosives into crowded shopping malls and killing innocent people.
And if they threaten violence against this country because one of our citizens wishes to express their guaranteed rights, then tough shit.
God how I miss John Wayne.
Where did those Marines go?
I wish our president would stop acting like a bullied kid in school and step up and fight back.
Don't let that bully take our milk money anymore.

If somebody has a problem with us and he can't, or doesn't know how, to defend our country, then let him step aside and let somebody who will defend us take control.

Good Bye

2010-08-10T21:07:00.003-04:00

Grandpa George passed away recently...

heard about his passing and thought about how neat he was...
Grandpa George was the guy that the kid bought his first jeep from....
the memory of sitting in front of his shop and listening to him haggle with James about the cost of the Jeep is priceless....
knowing the whole time that the kid was going to come out a winner was fantastic....
a really good guy....
I truly believe that he received more enjoyment out of the time spent with the kid, than he ever let anyone know....
I spent quite a few hours later just sitting and listening to him talk.....

As a WWII veteran he surely enjoyed CELEBRATING LIFE.....
and I am fortunate to have CELEBRATED a bit of it with him......

And as he was known to say...
"what happens on this side of the road is my business,
you cross the road and it becomes Mama's business."

For what you did for my son and I,

Thank You Sir....

For what you sacrificed for our country,

Everyone Thanks You Sir.....

just something the kid and I like

2010-08-10T21:00:00.002-04:00

we heard this on a radio station late one night on a trip to visit the Ozarks somewhere in Arkansas or southern Missouri.....
an easy 2 1/2 minute song.....

The Kid went and did it AGAIN........

2010-07-19T20:25:00.003-04:00

seems that as we watch our children grow older we wonder if we have done all the right things....where did we go wrong....did we go wrong....what did I forget to teach them....did I give them enough freedom.....did I keep a strong enough watch over them....feeling rather reflective tonight as I sit here and wonder about my parenting skills....after all I had plenty of experience on the type of parent I wanted to be.....I was fortunate enough to have several older siblings, and was able to watch them raise their children....all and all I think I learned alot.....BUT then the kid went and did it AGAIN....and I am not talking about the rear end collision he had last month....paid a boat load of money to State Farm over the last couple of decades to cover that...what I am talking about is our long awaited bi-annual treck to the Ozark's to visit family....
seems that the kid decided this year that he wanted to play organized baseball...again....my first knowledge of his decision was when he walked into the garage and asked me for money to cover the legion fee....okay I am good with that, ask your Mother for the money, tell her I was okay with that.....then the following week he informes me that he bought a bat off ebay.....
"Dad, I got it REAL cheap"...being a cheap kind of guy, I was impressed until he informed me he needed $180 bucks to pay for the bat....
well, okay, this is something he must have wanted pretty badly to go on his own and try out for the team...lots of talent locally and he made the team....
now due to the scheduling of the games, I was unable to attend any of them during the spring season of American Legion Ball....the kid's mom and his sister were in attendance for a couple of local games and I was able to attend the last two of the season...unknown to me until then was that the two games I attended were the sectional qualifiers for the state finals to be held this weekend.....
and then the kid and his friends went and did it....
they won the sectional qualifiers....
now as we had planned on leaving this coming weekend for our trip to visit family in the Ozarks, instead we are traveling to Bradenton to attend the state finals of the American Legion baseball league....
games start on Friday and go until Monday....

gotta wish the kids luck and hope they do well.....
in the mean time for those in the Ozarks that we hope to spend some time with next week, please understand if we are a little short on the visits.....

but as the horesefarmer says......

this is why we are able to...................

CELEBRATE LIFE............

Happy Birthday TC

2010-06-06T19:45:00.003-04:00

I know that this is late, but the best thing about birthdays at our age is, no not extra sprinkles on our ice cream, no not an extra helping of cake either,...
the best thing about birthdays at our age is that we can Celebrate them for an entire month....that would be a month before, or two weeks before and two weeks after, or an entire month after....it doesn't matter....if you plan it right, you can celebrate it for the month prior and the month after.....it really doesn't matter because we are Celebrating our birth month...

Happy Birthday Tom.....

Happy Birthday and other important issues

2010-05-06T21:38:00.002-04:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the BUSPLUNGE author.......

if you don't count weekends and holidays it should be about his 12th birthday...

Happy Birthday Jim.....thanks for letting me be your friend.....it is a joy, a pleasure, to know that we are not only brothers, yet friends.....
I look forward to those 17 hour trips knowing that time can be spent with you...

Cornrobbers beware......the horsefarmer has unleashed the big guns....

or at least the littleprincesses...

I'm betting she had more scores than the horsefarmer....

Life Here on the World's most Famous Beach has been busy....

not much energy at the end of a long day to comment on it....but a good life it is......

CELEBRATE LIFE............

2010-04-29T20:10:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Mom............

Through her actions and beliefs,

She taught ME to CELEBRATE LIFE............

Man I did it wrong.......

2010-04-12T20:41:00.002-04:00

Choosing a wife
A man wanted to get married. He was having trouble choosing among three likely candidates. He gives each woman a present of $5,000 and watches to see what they do with the money.The first does a total makeover. She goes to a fancy beauty salon, gets her hair done, new makeup; buys several new outfits and dresses up very nicely for the man. She tells him that she has done this to be more attractive for him because she loves him so much.The man was impressed.The second goes shopping to buy the man gifts.... She gets him a new set of golf clubs, some new gizmos for his computer, and some expensive clothes. As she presents these gifts, she tells him that she has spent all the money on him because she loves him so much.Again, the man is impressed.The third invests the money in the stock market. She earns several times the $5,000. She gives him back his $5,000 and reinvests the remainder in a joint account. She tells him that she wants to save for their future because she loves him so much.Obviously, the man was impressed.The man thought for a long time about what each woman had done with the money he'd given her.
Then he married the one with the biggest tits.
Men are like that, you know.There is more money being spent on breast implants and Viagra today than on Alzheimer's research.
This means that by 2040, there should be a large elderly population with perky boobs and huge erections and absolutely no recollection of what to do with them.

the kid's new ride...in day light

2010-04-03T19:18:00.003-04:00

Have you gotten yours yet????

2010-03-20T21:04:00.004-04:00

Received in my mail this week, my
"OFFICIAL BUSINESS ONLY"
envelope.
'My Response is Required by Law'
states bold lettering on the front of the envelope.

After three days of laying on the bench in the garage, I decided that tonight would be the night I open the envelope and see what is so important to our government that my response is require by law.
Is there some great debate that cannot be finished without my input?
Is there some great crisis that cannot be solved without my input?
Is there some great decision that will have a lasting effect on future lives without my input?

It would appear that there is.....

Of course if I were so important to our government that my
"Response is Required by Law",
then I would think they would have addressed the envelope to me personally.
But NO, in typical government fashion the envelope came addressed
"To Resident At".....
Now I can overlook that considering how many people live in my house. All four of us. I guess it is a lot to ask of our government to know who I am and where I live. I've only been here 10 years, paid taxes on this property for those 10 years, and paid my annual tax from this residence for the past 10 years.
But they are busy, so I can forgive that oversight.
But then I opened the envelope to see what was so important to the sender that I am threatened by law to defile by failing to respond.
Page 1 sample question;
'Please provide information for each person living here.
Start with any adult livning here and this will be Person #1.'
Last Name?
First Name"
Sex?
Person 1's Date of Birth?
Is Person 1 of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin?
(of the five subquestions, not one asked me if I am an American)
What is Person 1's race?

Now I consider myself to be pretty open minded and willing to adapt to most situations. I understand that there are many complex aspets to our world that I could be better versed in. I know that there are many people that are required to make difficult, life affecting decisions every day. I know that there are reasons that our government needs to know how many people there are in our country.
BUT what I don't understand is why they require all this information about my sex, nationality, and origin.

I AM AN AMERICAN.
MY WIFE IS AN AMERICAN.
MY SON IS AN AMERICAN.
MY DAUGHTER IS AN AMERICAN.
Hell even the squirrels that dig in my yard are American.
THERE ARE FOUR AMERICANS THAT LIVE AT THIS ADDRESS.
WE ARE AMERICANS THAT WERE BORN IN THIS COUNTRY.
OUR PARENTS WERE BORN IN THIS COUNTRY.
THAT MAKES ALL FOUR OF US AMERICANS.

Since my maternal family is from Germany, should I state that I am German-American?
Not an option.
Since my faternal family is from England, should I state that I am English-American?
Not an option.
Why are these not an option on the questionaire?
All it seems the questionaire wants to know is if I am from
Spanish decent, or African decent.
I wonder why this is so?
Why is it so important to know this information?
What will happen to my response, that is required by law, if I answer with incorrect information?
Are the decisions that this questionaire request going to be used to benefit one member of society over another?
Seems to me they already know who I am, and what my nationality is.
Hell it states it on my driver's license.

Oh well, guess this is another example of our government at make work.
FDR would be proud.

'something wicked this way comes'

2010-03-12T19:24:00.004-05:00

not really sure why this scares the hell out of me....
but I have this feeling that I am being watched.....
and I am not sure what I can do about it.....
but I know I DO NOT LIKE IT......
and I truly believe that 'Capitalism' is better than 'Socialism'....
and the Country which I am PROUD to belong to is a DEMOCRATIC society.....
the people that craft these changes are unlike the forefathers of this nation....
these elected 'officials' are not concerned with the history of the country that allowed them to rise to the position they now hold.....our country's Fathers were willing to risk their own life and their family's life to better themselves and the society in which they lived.....the same ideals that forced our forefathers to abandon their homelands and risk creating a life in an unknown and wild country are now reduced to being 'politically correct'.....
Are we now too proud, or too embarrassed, to recognize our history..????
why are we now willing to change our history...????
are we to fault because our parents and grandparents and greatgrandparents were willing to sacrifice their freedom to allow others to enjoy the same..???
at what point to we say 'enough is enough'..?????
our country WAS founded on RELIGIOUS FREEDOM......
and we do enjoy the right to bare arms....whether you wear a shirt or not....
at what point do we say that something is wrong with our society....

and who says it.....

those responsible are the reason we are a FREE DEMOCRATIC COUNTRY
and why is the photo at the top of the article screaming at me...???

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35839979/ns/us_news-education/

2010-03-06T20:58:00.002-05:00

read the horsefarmers story today and it reminded me of a few things....
one of which is the wind off the Altantic Ocean as it streams down the street that my work fronts on.....damn cold wind with no breaks.....
reminds me of what TC felt this am when he ventured out to feed his stock....
as the mind works, my wonders from one idea to the next and in the flat lands of Oklahoma I recalled an ancient song the kid and I listened to on a long drive home one night from the Ozarks.....the lyrics follow:

Many a month has come and gone
Since I’ve wandered from my home
In those Oklahoma Hills
Where I was born
Many a page of my life has turned
Many lessons I have learned
And I feel like in those hills
Where I belong
Way down yonder in the Indian nation
Ridin’ my pony on the reservation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born
Way down yonder in the Indian nation
A cowboy’s life is my occupation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born

But as I sit here today
Many miles I am away
From the place I rode my pony
Through the draw
Where the oak and black-jack trees
Kiss the playful prairie breeze
And I feel back in those hills
Where I belong
Way down yonder in the Indian nation
Ridin’ my pony on the reservation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born
Way down yonder in the Indian nation
A cowboy’s life is my occupation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born

Now as I turn life a page
To the land of the great Osage
In those Oklahoma hills
Where I was born
Where the black oil rolls and flows
And the snow white cotton grows
And I feel like in those hills
Where I belong

Way down yonder in the Indian nation
Ridin’ my pony on the reservation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born
Way down yonder in the Indian nation
A cowboy’s life is my occupation
In the Oklahoma Hills where I was born

somehow this song always reminds me of the cold bitter wind that rolls over the Ozark Range during winter......thanks to Arlo and Woody Guthry for their skills

As promised....

2010-03-01T21:37:00.005-05:00

tires and wheels not factory......those were added after purchase without the kid's knowledge......glad he approved.....

photo credit to the kid..............

thaks to the longrooffan, the good attorney, Grandpa George, the M38A1, the Willies Car Company, the kid......and countless others that enable me and the kid to............

.......CELEBRATE LIFE...........

sometimes I wonder why and when people think of doing things

2010-02-28T21:21:00.003-05:00

this looks like something some people I know might try.....but who pulls him out if he fails......

What I did today...or the last three weeks...

2010-02-28T18:33:00.003-05:00

copying a tag line from the longrooffan.......

What I did today...or the last three weeks......
by now everyone that follows this page has learned of the exploits of the bondoguy.....Jimmy is a good friend, one that you want around when camping for damn sure....he is one hell of a good painter....and now has been recognized by NASCAR for his exceptional skill at asphalt repair.....hats off to the man in turn two......
a addition and a deletion to the list of vehicles that have been under my domain over the years.....
a little set up here is due.....when the weather went north around here back in early January and the temperature dropped into the mid 30's (an actual HEAT WAVE for some of my brothers and friends) and the kid was driving an open topped, doorless vehicle, my bride explained to me that I would be driving the kid's jeep and he would be driving my new (to me) truck since he picked up his sister every day from school......now being a good Father and a caring friend to those two kids, I had to agree to relinquish my truck for the health of the kids...
of course this came at a very high price.....one week later I contracted a chest cold that is still nagging at me....another by product of driving a topless-doorless vehicle in near freezing temperature is the necessity to stay warm....multiple layers of clothing, a scarf, hat, double socks, and stay all scrunched up to conserve energy....(we called this 'max heat)...was a sneezing spell I went into one Sunday night a couple of fortnights ago that resulted in a serious back injury from which I still haven't recoverd completely.....yea I know, getting old beats the alternative.....but damn this back is a real pain in the back.......
but back to the future......I had aquired through various means the title to a 1979 CJ-5 Jeep with a small lift kit and some serious mud tires.....do not inquire....just let that go.....I had consigned this vehicle after a few modifications (yes there is blogproof of this and it did get it's fifteen minutes of fame) to the longroof to post on craigslist for sale......of course the proceeds were to finance shop supplies and other items more commonly known as 'hurricane supplies'.....when this was turned into a UTV by means of a trade I was back at square one with an image of a very warm looking truck everytime I drove into my driveway.....but alas after the trade was made I was contacted by a guy from the western part of the state about my old "huntin jeep" .....when he asked about the jeep I had for sale, I had to think for a minute before I replied, "Which one?"....seems he was willing to look at a 1967 CJ-5 instead of a 1979....up shot was he and his 'that'll hunt' girl drove over one afternoon to look at the kid's jeep......he was impressed enough to anty up the money it would take to have the bondoguy fix the rust and repaint it Army Green.....of course the longrooffan and even the goodattorney advised me of all the wrong that could be happening for taking the cash up front to have the jeep fixed up before I took payment on the jeep itself.....but I had met the buyer and what I call "looked in his eye".....
the week after the 500 mile race here in Daytona, the jeep was ready and the buyer showed up with a friend and a trailer.....as the buyer and his friend looked for the head, I took a peek at his ride......when he returned and handed me a wad of cash, I didn't even count it.....the handy 8 pack of cold beverages provided by my favorite brewer was all it took to confirm the sale.....
but now what do I do....I'm a two car owner in a three car family.....looks like I am back to craigslist in search of a Toyota 4x4 for the kid...gotta have something that can handle the beach driving during the summer.....in the mean time Jim comes through by surrendering the keys to his 69 Bronco....so here I am, back to driving a specialty vehicle in the middle of the worst cold spell that can be remembered in these parts.....never could figure out how to turn the heater on in that beast....at least it is wind proof....but then a friend calls and tells me of Ford Ranger for sale by the tow company we use at work....a quick phone call to the tow company and happy hour is cut short for me.....a quick trip back over to the mainland and I am looking at my next vehicle....
now the kid was not too happy when I first informed him of his next ride, and my bride was not too happy that I made a commitment without her consent....
an extended conversation with BigJimDunn and she never said another word...
how I like that man....so now the kid is driving his new ride.....of course a couple of modifications were required....and most importantly I am back in my new truck.....
the longrooffan was commissioned to photograph the kid's new ride, however it hasn't been seen in daylight since I brought it home and his digital retainment equiptment is not real good in low light......I just plain forgot to take photos so expect photos by the end of the week........

these, and other reasons too many to list are why we......

CELERBATE LIFE............

And what I'd give for a good paving team

2010-02-14T17:57:00.002-05:00

sitting here watching the race on tv in the comfort of my garage it amazes me that it has taken this long for somebody to call 'P@S Paving' of Ormond Beach...
guess the track will be repaved within the coming weeks.....just a by product of too much rain with improper drainage......earlier today when the kid and I were out at the track looking for a parking spot, he commented that we should have drove the Jeep as we could then park anywhere.....lots of soft ground covered in water....even the infield was layered in water in spots....guess the operations department will now be hiring an asphalt team to be on standby for future races....rain delays without the rain are a bore.....but then I'm just hanging out enjoying a cold beverage so I can't complain.......

What a way to spend a day

2010-02-14T14:10:00.004-05:00

seems that the horsefarmer and family are curled up trying to stay warm....the bus is looking for a warm place to watch the race....the longrooffan is tied up with a close intimate friend....BBB is lounging poolside enjoying a beverage from the islands trying to keep his hands off his better half...
so while all of this is going on, the kid and I decide to venture out to the track to watch the race in person.....bundle up and head south....couple of stops along the way and we are soon in the infield looking for a parking spot.....waved to all of you, hope you were able to see me....I was the guy in blue standing on the track at the start/finish line.....look close when the cars go by and you can see where I signed my name on the wall at the line.....hooked up with a buddy and went walking to see the sites....heard/saw Tim McGraw.....missed his hot wife....
saw a whole lot of money tied up in race cars.....got Micheal Waltrip to sign a ball cap for me.....almost got run over by several pit carts.....the kid FINALLY asked if I had fulfilled my obligation to attend the race.....DAMN STRAIGHT... what tooK so long for him to ask I have yet to figure out....so we headed back to the short hairpin for the Rolex race where we had parked and proceeded to head home.....
read the horsefarmer's blog and saw photos he posted of his back yard...best part of those photos are they are his back yard, and not mine.....
the kid's sister and the sun goddess are out shopping and the kid and I are now in the comfort of our own home watching the "Great American Race".....
unlike the longrooffan I seldom carry a camera around for photos but today I did.....unfortunately it is the longroof's and photos will have to wait until he down loads them.....
but know that this morning, the kid and I, along with about 250000 other people.........

CELEBRATED LIFE........

Jet Ski Nationals on the beach this weekend

2010-01-17T18:11:00.002-05:00

paid the longrooffan a visit Saturday after work.....lots of noise coming thru the front door of the Taj Mahal as we sit and enjoy good company....race week is a short distance away and I ignore it as just part of the environment....the Rolex series as been practicing and I hear it from work everyday....so loud engine noises are drowned out in my daily life.....later I came to learn that the Jet Ski Nationals were taking place on our very own beach....after getting home I quickly fired up the old 2A and placed a call back to the longrooffan and inquired as to his availability to join me on a short drive down the beach.....picked him up and off we were.....once again he FAILED in the photo department....guess this will be a Memorex moment as we have it committed to memory.....couple of passes down the beach and a short viewing of the activities of the event and the decison was obvious....there were way too many skiers to concentrate on a conclusive winner......then the ever present Beach Patrol drove by and offered to trade vehicles....his brand new F-150 4x4 for my old trusty Jeep.....maybe last week....the heated seats in the 2A don't work so good....had to decline his offer as the longroooffan was in a hurry to get back to the Taj Mahal.
which leads me to today's adventure.....the kid's sister and I took off for the ocal recreational center to shoot some hoops before the daily football games began....
about an hour and a half into the forced exercise ( I watched as she played in a pickup game ) I was off to enjoy the first of two televised football games......
swung by the longroof's place first for a quick cold pop and walked into what could be called a 'federal disaster zone...seems the longrooffan decided it was time to 'shake things up abit' and clean house.....I am sure there is a blog in this for him and I won't go much further here.....other than to say that there wasn't much room in his place for one person....much less two.......made a quick exit....ok, maybe not so quick, two beers and a smoke....but man that place kept getting smaller and smaller as long as I stayed there.....exited via the 'World's Most Famous Beach' and saw some of the most extreme jet ski operators ever...
and the sungoddess thought I went to extremes......a couple of reverese flips.....several barrel rolls.....more ten to twenty foot launches off breakers.....
and the sounds could be associated more with the circle track 4 miles west than with the more common place watercraft normally navigating the waterways of the greater Halifax Basin....
all and all a great weekend Celebrating Life....

This just about sums it up......

2010-01-09T22:56:00.006-05:00

There are strange things done in the midnight sun

By the men who moil for gold;

The Arctic trails have their secret tales

That would make your blood run cold;

The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,

But the queerest they ever did see

Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge

I cremated Sam McGee.

Now Sam McGee was from Tennessee,

where the cotton blooms and blows.

Why he left his home in the South to roam 'round the Pole,

God only knows.

He was always cold,

but the land of gold seemed to hold him like a spell;

Though he'd often say in his homely way that "he'd sooner live in hell."
On a Christmas Day we were mushing our way over the Dawson trail.

Talk of your cold!

through the parka's fold it stabbed like a driven nail.

If our eyes we'd close, then the lashes froze till sometimes we couldn't see;

It wasn't much fun,

but the only one to whimper was Sam McGee.
And that very night, as we lay packed tight in our robes beneath the snow, And the dogs were fed,

and the stars o'erhead were dancing heel and toe,

He turned to me, and "Cap," says he, "I'll cash in this trip, I guess;

And if I do, I'm asking that you won't refuse my last request."
Well, he seemed so low that I couldn't say no;

then he says with a sort of moan:

"It's the cursèd cold, and it's got right hold,

till I'm chilled clean through to the bone.

Yet 'tain't being dead — it's my awful dread of the icy grave that pains;

So I want you to swear that, foul or fair, you'll cremate my last remains."
A pal's last need is a thing to heed, so I swore I would not fail;

And we started on at the streak of dawn;

but God! he looked ghastly pale.

He crouched on the sleigh, and he raved all day of his home in Tennessee; And before nightfall a corpse was all that was left of Sam McGee.
There wasn't a breath in that land of death,

and I hurried, horror-driven,

With a corpse half hid that I couldn't get rid,

because of a promise given;

It was lashed to the sleigh, and it seemed to say:

"You may tax your brawn and brains,

But you promised true, and it's up to you,

to cremate those last remains."
Now a promise made is a debt unpaid,

and the trail has its own stern code.

In the days to come, though my lips were dumb,

in my heart how I cursed that load.

In the long, long night, by the lone firelight,

while the huskies, round in a ring,

Howled out their woes to the homeless snows —

Oh God! how I loathed the thing.
And every day that quiet clay seemed to heavy and heavier grow;

And on I went, though the dogs were spent and the grub was getting low;

The trail was bad, and I felt half mad,

but I swore I would not give in;

And I'd often sing to the hateful thing, and it hearkened with a grin.
Till I came to the marge of Lake Lebarge,

and a derelict there lay;

It was jammed in the ice, but I saw in a trice it was called the "Alice May." And I looked at it, and I thought a bit, and I looked at my frozen chum;

Then "Here," said I, with a sudden cry, "is my cre-ma-tor-eum."
Some planks I tore from the cabin floor, and I lit the boiler fire;

Some coal I found that was lying around, and I heaped the fuel higher;

The flames just soared, and the furnace roared — such a blaze you seldom see; And I burrowed a hole in the glowing coal, and I stuffed in Sam McGee.
Then I made a hike, for I didn't like to hear him sizzle so;

And the heavens scowled, and the huskies howled,

and the wind began to blow.

It was icy cold, but the hot sweat rolled down my cheeks,

and I don't know why;

And the greasy smoke in an inky cloak went streaking down the sky.
I do not know how long in the snow I wrestled with grisly fear;

But the stars came out and they danced about ere again I ventured near;

I was sick with dread, but I bravely said: "I'll just take a peep inside.

I guess he's cooked, and it's time I looked"; ...

then the door I opened wide.
And there sat Sam, looking cool and calm,

in the heart of the furnace roar;

And he wore a smile you could see a mile, and said:

"Please close that door.

It's fine in here, but I greatly fear, you'll let in the cold and storm —

Since I left Plumtree, down in Tennessee, it's the first time I've been warm."

There are strange things done in the midnight sun

By the men who moil for gold;

The Arctic trails have their secret tales

That would make your blood run cold;

The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,

But the queerest they ever did see

Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge

I cremated Sam McGee.

thanks Bear for making us learn this as children......

It was 3 feet deep........

2010-01-09T22:08:00.004-05:00

While I am very much aware that the majority of the readers of this space are currently enjoying 'Global Warming' at it's extreme......we here in the Sunshine State are experiencing our own version......the top picture is taken in the wonderful state of Nebraska.......the second and third photos are taken in MY FRONT YARD.........GLOBAL WARMING, MY ASS......I'm waiting for Al Gore to show up and explain this to me as I compose these lines.....in the mean time, the sungoddess and the kid and the kid's sister are curled up in front of a roaring fire......25 tonight and as the longrooffan said, my thermometer is sick.....

Amen.....

2010-01-04T21:45:00.001-05:00

In conclusion....

Worth a Double Take

2009-12-29T21:16:00.004-05:00

Hope this shows up because it is worth the time spent enjoying it....
These boys ain't from Kansas.....or maybe they are....I'm just glad their descipline is on our side...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWGU3mpfRoM

these ain't girls with batons.......

TC...you can gloat now.....

The Captain

2009-12-27T19:04:00.003-05:00

Full ahead....
somebody get me a Master Brew...
Thanks Captain......

I think it's that guy's fault

2009-12-26T21:20:00.018-05:00

there are a couple missing here, but the longroof has photos....besides, I blaming the guy in the middle of the last photo for all of this mess...

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T21:21:00.000-05:00

Dear Editor—
I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.” Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?
Virginia O’Hanlon
Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.
You tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.
No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Twelve Days

2009-12-15T22:07:00.005-05:00

On the first day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

A partridge in a pear tree.

On the second day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the third day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fourth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fifth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the sixth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the seventh day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eighth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the ninth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Nine ladies dancing,

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the tenth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Ten lords a-leaping,

Nine ladies dancing,

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eleventh day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Eleven pipers piping,

Ten lords a-leaping,

Nine ladies dancing,

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the twelfth day of Christmas,

my true love sent to me

Twelve drummers drumming,

Eleven pipers piping,

Ten lords a-leaping,

Nine ladies dancing,

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a cartridge in a bare tree!

Another reason

during this season of our birth to............

CELEBRATE LIFE........

Merry Christmas Bear.....

Whom I saw Today.......

2009-12-15T21:13:00.005-05:00

preface this by a phone called received Sunday while at the ball field in lovely Winter Haven Florida.....came in on my cell phone and the area code was 850...
the panhandle......little sis Joan is calling......FAIL.....my sister Carol.....she wished to speak with my bride, not so much to me.....hand the phone off to my bride and ten minutes later she hands it back to me, with the message that my two older sisters had organized a couple of boxes of stuff shipped to them from Mother's estate and Carol was dropping them off at our home on her return trip north on Monday.....had a couple of commitments on Monday so I was home when Carol and George dropped by....I haven't seen Carol in about 7 or 8 years and was experiencing an awkward moment when she stepped out of her suv....ended up to be a nice visit...short, as I had an appointment 20 minutes away and they were on their way to visit their grandchildren in St Augustine....
never even occured to me that Carol might have grandchildren...never even thought of her as being old enough to have grandchildren.....turns out she has several kids.....when she spoke about them, her entire face beamed like a sunray was shining on her, and her alone....the joy I was able to feel looking at her as she talked about her kids was truly a blessing.....kind of like the bus when he talks about the boys.....or Ganey when she is looking out her kitchen window to see if the blinds are up on the house next door, and seeing that they are......
I hope that one day I am able to enjoy that too...I was glad to be exposed to that side of my sister....this is what enabled me to.....

CELEBRATE LIFE...................on Monday

What did you do this weekend....????

2009-12-13T20:48:00.003-05:00

The weekend started Saturday at 05:00......rise and shine....we got a 2 hour drive ahead of us.....gotta be at the fields by 08:00.....haven't been to these fields before...softball, not baseball......on the road, iced the cooler down at our local stop and rob and hit the Eisenhower Road at 05:45...(John is not sure what these are, Interstate 4 for him).....call the kid at 07:00, John is still not sure what time I am talking about, but he can figure that out on his own.....make sure the kid is awake...he has to be at the ballfield in South Daytona, baseball for him as he is the assistant coach on a traveling team heading to Cooperstown, by 08:00....07:30 the kid calls back checking directions to the ballfield......07:45, we arrive at the Diamond Plex in Polk County Florida....
Field 5 for our first game.....nice complex....i.e. clean bathrooms.....we are a 'B' team and faced 3 'A' teams on Saturday....lost the first 2 and tied the 3rd.....basically got our hats handed to us......first game at 09:00.....got blown out.....second game at 14:00......got blown out again......third game at 17:00..... tied that one.....all against 'A' teams......guess we aren't as good as we wished.....
the kid's sister got to catch a game and half....no plays at home and she did a good job...no errors and she got a couple of good sacrifice bunts down.....not bad for playing up two years....I keep telling myself that....so it's off to find the hotel and await notification of Sunday's game schedule.....quick dinner provided by the kid's little sister's Mother and we wait.....and wait...and the phone rings around 21:30.....08:00 game Sunday...same complex.....hey when you lose all three on Saturday, don't expect to sleep late on Sunday......got to the complex at 07:00 Sunday only to find out we are scheduled to play at another complex 20 minutes away.....follow the leader and we arrive at a softball complex to the sound of cows mooing, chickens crowing, dogs barking, and horses neighing.......
loser's brackets are NOT glorious.......
umpires give us 20 minutes.....our first game is against the spring league State Champions who threw their Saturday games in order drop down a bracket....not real sportsmanship....but some people take this stuff way to seriously.....guess they were looking for an easy way to the finals......(loser's bracket and all).....but the kid's team played like there was no tomorrow.....they held the Spring State Champions to a tie game though the time limit....on to the Texas tie breaker....
put a runner on second and you get three outs....the result is....a win.!!!!!!!!...took the former Champs two innings to lose.....talk about an emotional high.......get a 60 minute break and it's back to playing ball.....ranked 18 out of 20 teams so the confidence level is not real high despite the recent victory.....the second game starts and it is now win or go home......a tripleheader later we are heading home......what a day.....parental stress level was extremely high as the girls played their way up the loser's bracket.....lost our last game in a tie breaker againest a team coached by an abnoxious SOB.....kind of took the fun out of it....finished fifth so it was a fanatastic weekend by all standards......as usual the longrooffan was no where to be found to record the weekend on film, (I am throwing the blame on him because I forgot we own a camara on Sunday)....however, I was able to catch a couple of photos.....not surprising the most intesting to me was the osprey nest on the light pole....I was unable to record the transfer of a fish from one adult to the chicks...but at least I saw it....unlike the Bear, I often forget to get the camara ready for the next shot.....but got home and was able to download a couple of photos of the weekend's activities......hopefully next year I'll be a better photographer....but then spectating gets in the way.....

local birds of prey......

chilling out before the game...

ready......

set......

go...........

only action shots of the kid's sister we recorded.....

another reason to.........................

CELEBRATE LIFE......

At least she didn't cry about it..and other things to keep us busy

2009-12-06T19:38:00.005-05:00

hard to imagine this is the baby girl of the family.....caught an elbow playing b-ball and she couldn't understand why the coach wouldn't let her go right back into the game......hard to explain liability to a young kid wanting to play ball.......
started to turn yellow tonight.....she got a shiner for sure....
and boy is she proud of it.....at least the eye is clear....
so guess how my weekend was spent.....
No, not at the ER....
Saturday AM at the training center for olympic atheletes in Clarmont Fl.....very nice complex sitting atop a hill in central Florida......not a hill like in the mid-west....but anything over 200 feet high in Florida is considered a very large hill......and I think we were at the peek of the highest, non man-made hill in Florida......very cold winds in central Florida on a 40 degree morning with 20 knot winds....softball and cold weather do not go together.....good for hot dog and hot chocolate sales....bad for cold beer sales....good for cuddling in bed together.....bad for standing on top of a hill watching kids play softball......good for a nice fire in the fireplace....bad for a day of forgetting where you stored your cold weather clothing......good for maybe even a jeep ride through the woods......bad for softball weather.....especially if you are a spectator.....seems Florida and 40 degree weather are not designed to be experienced at the same time.....unless you are inside with a blazing fire and a warm friend close by......
Sunday was spent at another complex enduring the cold while the kid and her team played another two games......2 outa 3 on Saturday.....1 outa 2 on Sunday.....got to figure how to get past the second round on Sundays...........short day today....left the house at 6:30 and got home at 4:30......even had a chance to watch some afternoon football before dark.....enjoyed a fantastic dinner prepared by the sungoddess and am able to record it now....
the kid has gotten a job that now requires him to subsidize our goverment....a couple of side jobs coaching the kid's sister's basketball team and another coaching a AAU baseball team heading to Cooperstown this spring....keeps him busy borrowing my truck.....but these are the reasons we.........

CELEBRATE LIFE

A Day in the Country.....playing softball.....

2009-11-15T19:47:00.004-05:00

what a way to spend the day.....
this Sunday, my birthday plus one, yea I know, one more year closer to being an old man, was spent in beautiful Flagler County Florida at their county fairgrounds....nothing like getting up at the crack of dawn to drive 30 miles to a softball tournement....got to the field on time and the girls got warmed up and the games started on time....great start to the day.....the kid's sister started in right field and then was moved to catcher in the third inning.....she made no errors catching the second pitcher and even got a good hit on her third at bat.....along about 10:30 a sound starts to come from the stock arena located about 400 yards north of us.....a LOT of stock trailers and BIG Ford trucks encircle the arena.....the kid's sister's team won the game and during the 2 hour game break I take a stroll to see what is the reason for the woman's voice on the loud speaker.....I walk into the first honest, authentic, down to earth, say a prayer to our God before it starts rodeo.....
after the opening prayer and the playing of the National Anthem with the girl on a buckskin circling the arena carrying the American Flag...the festivities began.....the show opened with a Ford 39A tractor 'dragging' the area for no less than 20 minutes.....then 5 cowboys, based on choice of clothing they were Wranglers I guess, spent another 15 minutes setting up polls down the center line of the area.....as the big guy, maybe portly is a better word, at the entrance was directing the placement of these poles, all I could think of ......move this way, no now that way, adjust the top....was he looked like a scottish sheep herder directing his dogs.....then the loud speaker woman started calling out names like an auctioneer.....guess you better know who you are to get your turn.....after several attempts to set the timer the show began.....a whole lot of good looking horse flesh,and a couple of likewise riders, spent the next 40 minutes racing up and down the line of poles weaving in and out to see who could do it the fastest time without knocking down a pole....10 second penalty for a knock down......saw a lot of horses and the people that ride them for show.....a culture that is so far removed from my life that culture shock was a reality for me today.....when I found myself attempting to rationalize how I could enter this world I quickly retreated to the ball fields and the world from which I came.....too much temptation to buy a BIG truck and BIGGER trailer and spend a couple of year's wages on horseflesh and....like I said, back to the ballfields.....the second game of the day was againest a high school team from Jacksonville Fla...the kid's sister started at catcher and spent the entire game behind the plate....caught the starting pitcher and despite her Mother's concerns, performed errorless.....made good contact againest an 18 year old pitcher and the game ended in a 3-2 loss.....not bad for playing againest older kids......another hour game break and then "batter up" was called for the final game.....the kid's sister again started behind the plate....caught the starting pitcher again.....the kid's sister has game....a couple of stolen bases on passed balls during this game, but nobody scored on her.....she even scored from second after reaching first on a slap hit...(softball term for an intential mis-hit in baseball)...same game...but different....Yogie would love it......along about the beginning of the last inning I received a phone call from the kid.....seems the job interview he went to was a success....he is the newest employee of the Halifax Plantation Country Club.....guess they were looking for a dish washer in the restaurant at the club house when the kid walked in.....so he starts his financial contribution to our government this coming Friday.....couldn't force him to wash the dishes last Friday and he starts doing it professionally this Friday.....
go figure.....the kid's sister had a great day on the ballfield and the kid got a job........so I guess this is what enables me to ........

CELEBRATE LIFE.......................today

THANK YOU

2009-11-11T19:33:00.004-05:00

I wish there were more photos and space showing these veterans enjoying life as they have earned......and granted those of this Great Nation to enjoy....

Thank you Dad, Uncle Bill, Uncle Frank, Brother Bob, Brother Jim,

Brother Tom, and Sister Viola, for the freedom to enjoy the priviledge of your memories...

These Veterans and those unknown to us, enable us to........

CELEBRATE LIFE.......every day.....

THANK YOU

The root cause of most problems are set in Fun.....

2009-11-04T20:43:00.005-05:00

Seems Uncle Bob has been a larger influence than I ever realized.....

"Never go out with a chick that needs a boost into your Jeep."

Thanks Bob......

well, the cause of my overtime repairs to the kid's CJ are finally known to me...

hot damn.....................another reason to ..........

.........CELEBRATE LIFE......

Where are we now...???

2009-11-03T22:31:00.002-05:00

As I have spent the better part of the past week fixing a broken jeep.....cleaning mud and oil and grease off 46 year old parts...it dawned on me that I needed one of these....wonder if the longroofan has one of these stuffed in he closet.......

STRESS....two broke jeeps in the driveway....

2009-11-01T19:50:00.002-05:00

STRESS LEVEL....HIGH ALERT....

very high the past two weeks....

two broke jeeps in the driveway.......
one leaks oil like the Exxon Valdez....
the other doesn't have enough power to carry it's self across the street......
the blond I live with is going ballistic...
THE DRIVEWAY LOOKS LIKE CRAP.....
tore into the Valdez this AM...got into the left front as far as the spindle bearings....cross threaded spindle nut ruins a quick bearing repack and knuckle seal replacement in a heartbeat....
realizing that I am not going to get the kid's jeep on the road, I disassemble the right front as the kid removes the carb from the 46....
seems it doesn't want to run at anything over an idle since the weekend playing in the mud....

a quick cleaning does the 46 no good whatsoever....

off to the raceguy's house for help....

three beers....four take aparts and put together agains...one more beer and one more take apart and put together again.....thanks Vince for FINALLY showing up....
the 46 runs like a top....
seems the float was not set correctly....

I HATE IT WHEN THAT HAPPENS....

but at least the kid has a ride to school this week while I locate spindles.....

CELEBRATE LIFE..........

these are because I like them....

2009-10-16T21:46:00.005-04:00

and of course one for the longrooffan........

CELEBRATE LIFE....

2009-10-14T21:49:00.002-04:00

Not sure why I keep going back to these....but it is where we came from and truly tells us who we are.........

another reason we CELEBRATE LIFE

2009-10-14T21:40:00.003-04:00

http://volusia.org/beach/daytona.htm

just in case you need a moment of peace.....check the link....but wait until after dark EST...or not...just depends on where you want to be I guess....you'll have to copy and paste...you decide if it was worth the effort

Every 30 days.....or there abouts.....

2009-10-10T21:13:00.006-04:00

when you're 16, sometimes there just isn't anything good to eat in the frig...so what do you do.....as the longrooffan has commented several times, you just go out and get something to eat.....take out food FLA style.....another feast cuaght by the kid....prepared by the kid....and eaten by the kid....there never seems to be enough for everyone when the kid catches his own dinner......
another reason to enjoy being a kid when your dad has a connection....the kid got some new treads for his jeep today.....SuperSwampers.....32's which fit just right.....his Mother doesn't quite understand why.....but then she doesn't have to understand.....the kid's sister thinks it looks cool....not a wimpy jeep anymore...

the spare looks a little out of place...but the stock tires and wheels will be reinstalled later so no modifications can be made there...
damn good looking 2A in the driveway too.....
kind of looks like CJ-8...or 7....kind of lost count....
I'm sure the kid will let me know how it does in the mud sometime soon....just so long as it's cleaned before it's parked...
other than this....life is the same....work is work....never enough free time....grass keeps growing and that means it keeps getting mowed.....

but then....
the kid's sister is involved in another fast pitch softball season....this time with a team that is very competitive in it's league.....she jumped up two years and now is a little fish in a big pond....but she is holding her own....she has been playing positions that are new to her...outfield mainly....but she is a player.....batting 190 with a 360 on base percentage.....she has made a couple of game ending defensive plays that where a relief/pleasure to watch.....still adjusting to a 60 mph curve ball....but that will come with experience....
most important about this is that she is enjoying herself......

these are just a few of the reasons that we.......

CELEBRATE LIFE

Got a New (to me) truck today

2009-09-07T22:25:00.005-04:00

I really didn't mean to do it.....you see I was heading home after some changeorder work at the Bonnie View home....I was thinking that the kid and I would head over to the race dude's house and bolt the fenders on the new CJ-5.....maybe get the spare tire carrier off of it for the CJ-2A....and remove any other items that I wanted for my personal vehicles prior to selling it off....I think I remember the busplunge saying he needed tail gate chains, not sure and he must be at the lake because he hasn't answered his phone this weekend....so maybe we will wait for him to return to this world before we ship it off....but as with most things in life.....I got a little side tracked....driving home, I passed a used car lot and in the back it looked like a couple of guys were washing a Ford...YEP, NOT A JEEP, truck.....so in longrooffan style I whipped right into the place....got out of the trusty old Honda and walked back where these guys were washing a 2000 Ford Ranger.....struck up a conversation about I thought I was looking for a truck and while I was not sure, I was wondering what they had here....you know, the standard questions....is it for sale?....to which the salesman responsed comically, 'that's the business plan'....knew right away I was going to get along with these guys...spent about 20 minutes talking before the price was ever mentioned.....told them what I wanted to spend, they told me what they wanted for the truck....talked a little while longer and after a short drive in the old Honda, the deal was done....got the price I wanted and the vehicle I didn't go out to buy.....but most importantly, the blond I live with likes the truck and felt very comfortable dealing with the dealer....
quick, 2 hour buy, with no hassle or stress of car buying from a used car salesman..

photos will be posted later

CELEBRATE LIFE........

One the Bus forgot

2009-08-18T22:49:00.001-04:00

In Case You Get Confused

2009-08-17T21:20:00.006-04:00

Just in case you get a little confused.....

and for the record....these are the only two Jeeps in the barn tonight.....

Celebrate LIfe....tomorrow is another day.....another adventure......

Jim's been busy

2009-08-15T19:54:00.002-04:00

So busy.............

CJ-6

2009-08-07T21:14:00.002-04:00

As my close friends say. "Man, you need help."

What seems a LONG time ago,

I started looking for a vehicle for my 14 year old son to drive when hit the prime mobilization age of 16....after several surveying trips to the parking lot of his soon to be alma mater, I concluded that there was no way I could afford to compete with the other parents in the 'buy your child a car to drive to school' contest.....so I began to look for a modest, yet cool, method of transportation for my soon to be 16 year old son...... several 'trades' later a 1967 CJ-5 Kiaser-Willies Jeep was parked in the driveway....this was a direct result of what my good friend Jim calls 'the ability to trade two match sticks into a Cadillac'...well, it was not quite two match sticks, but the result was the same.....and the story behind that is a long one and will require several products from that Belgium owned company based out of St Louis....but I got the kid a good looking, practical method of transportation.....a great beach toy, that doesn't have to be cleaned EVERY day....
"but Dad, the sand and salt water will just rust it away anyhow."
so in my driveway there sit two Jeeps....one, a vintage 1946 Willies CJ-2A that required a totally different approach to what I seem to do best and is washed almost every weekend, and a 1967 Willies CJ-5 that has never been properly introduced to soap yet....it gets rinsed out every time it rains, but has never known what a garden hose is.....there is about an inch of sand in the floor boards and it is readily available to convey several surfboards to the beach at a moments notice....
beach chair storage is available, but not required.....
so as happens a simple little phone call today has turned into what I call CJ-6...
not a true CJ-6, but the 6th CJ in my immediate past.....close enough for now...
anybody got a CJ-8 they wanna get rid of?..........

this is and watching my children grow is what allows me to CELEBRATE LIFE....
every day...

Hello Again.....

2009-07-31T23:09:00.004-04:00

Damn the longroof is a slow worker..........
took three weeks to finish one small job.........
meanwhile I was able to find these classics......

and a parting shot

What a Way to Celebrate Life

2009-07-13T21:21:00.005-04:00

Captian Brett at the Helm.......and other ways that we Celebrate Life.........

the following are photos from our visit to Uncle Brett and Aunt Shirley's weekend get-a-way....

Great Time had by ALL participants.....

Look forward to the next visit...........

and this one for all our brides.....

2009-06-26T22:33:00.001-04:00

this should say enough......

just one more reason to.....

CELEBRATE LIFE.....

does this mean I win a prize...????

2009-06-26T22:12:00.002-04:00

let me guess, I win the fabulous, once in a lifetime, all beverages included, visit to the World Famous, Ozark Exclusive, Haven Lee Farms of the the Missouri....

another for the horsefarmer....or his better half

2009-06-26T22:09:00.003-04:00

.......

One for the horsefarmer

2009-06-26T21:59:00.002-04:00

I think if I did this correctly, the horsefarmer should enjoy the next four minutes....

Another old time Classic

2009-06-20T23:03:00.002-04:00

For some reason I can't seem to bring myself to write about what is happening in my life right now...the kids are doing great, and my bride is as bossy as ever....maybe it is just so.....but when it is late and I'm bored with what the cable company offers up for entertainment I do as most of the world does...I search the web....youtube and classic music seem to occupy most of my searches and I am amazed that some of these classics have survived....these are what allow us, each in our own way, to.............CELEBRATE LIFE......

Another moment to stop and pause

2009-06-15T21:56:00.001-04:00

can't help myself.....fantastic American Music that can't be forgotten.....

another reason to....

CELEBRATE LIFE....

Got Rhythm.....

2009-06-15T21:00:00.003-04:00

not sure about much, but man this song says a lot when you listen to the words....
Classic American Music.....2 minutes and 14 seconds that say a lot about what to do when you a lacking something........

this is why He was able to........

CELEBRATE LIFE......

when family visits we CELEBRATE LIFE....on the beach

2009-06-13T21:03:00.020-04:00

Not much to write about here......two of the sungoddesses' sisters visited us the past weekend and these are some photos of their visit.....
started with a typical afternoon rain shower and got better from there......
Marcia, the younger, was in a vacation mode, and we did what we could to make her visit a pleasant one.....Shirley, the older, was just in for a little R&R time....I think she was successful in her mission........
the party started in the driveway under a sun shade....or rain in this case....Marc was happy thanks to those wonderful people in St. Louis, Mo.... Shirley was just happy as always....

here the kid is trying to figure out how to get over the wash out.....not when Dad is here kid...go around.....fewer things break when you don't push the envelope....

on the way to the surf......this is about 8:30 am so the girls haven't got out of the room for more than photos yet.....

still waiting on the girls, as this photo is from the 6th floor balcony.....

WELL...look who decided to join us on the beach......

can't remember who is out in the surf....but it was fun....

HEY...where is the beer guy..??????

....lot's of fun by the looks on the face's of these two.......

FINALLY he arrived.....

..

as expected, the kid had to get some fishing time in......
from here they headed off to St. Augustine...couple of good shots of the kids and the girls....and one of the kid's sister ready to go home......good time had by all.......

of course these are the reasons we............

CELEBRATE LIFE........

Every Day......

thanks for the visit girls.....

wow.......

2009-06-09T14:42:00.002-04:00

you ever see something that just kind of amazes you and makes you wonder what the motivator was........that's how I feel about this video......guy's pretty good too.....that helps...

Having Problems????

2009-05-31T20:54:00.003-04:00

can't believe a week has past by since I last worked these keys with so much thought.....
a lot of time passes in a short week......
7 sunrises...7 sun sets.....
7 moon rises......7 moon sets
7 days.....
168 hours....
10,080 minutes....
6,048,000 seconds.....

WOW.........

seems that in good ole Spfld Mo, the mayor is taking advantage of his connections.....
as my friend Jim is known to have said....
it's NOT what you know....
BUT 'WHO' I know........

guess it is good to be the mayor in Spfld Mo......at least for now.....

the horsefarmer is off on another vehicular mission......
I'm thinking the next thing we know is that he will have a 1/4 scale trailer
to pull behind that 1/4 size car.........
just staying in theme here....
if he gets an excemption for the littleprincess to drive the 1/4 scale car to the shows....then I'm thinking the mayor may be calling him soon.....

the longroof is preparing for a journey.......well, to me it would be an afternoon's drive....but this is the longroof......recently he facilitated a training sesson down in Melbourne FLA for the goodattorney.....one day event.....I lost the bet with Jim as he got home the same day he left.....
I figured the trip would take him two days......it is almost a hundred miles away and as the longroof despises the Eisenhower highways, the only other way south from here is county roads.....sure didn't expect to see him until Monday at least....damned if he didn't get home the same day......sure surprised me....cost me a buck too.....so you owe me a dollar longroof....

the sungoddess's sisters are coming for a visit the end of this week.....
not sure I'll ever get to the bottom of her list....just when I think I'm there.....
the week of rain we had has resulted in an abundance of those pesky little
critters that suck the blood out of you....oh, they are bred extra large here in lovely FLA....
something for the tourist to remember on their holidays.....
these things have been known to carry off small children if left unattended.....
but the yard has been cleared of any water containing leaves.....
mowed twice and will be mowed again before their arrival......roof cleaned.......headge trimmed.....and the neighbor's side too.....wood pile cleaned and restacked.......house washed.....
yes we do that here in lovely FLA.....green stuff grows on the siding in the shade.......explains why everyone owns a pressure washer....or knows somebody that does....
driveway cleaned and recoated to cover the oil spots.....

that last sentence was a transition statement for those brother's of mine that are watching....

as the owner of two vehicles over 40 years of age...and one that is closer to twenty than I am....
oil spots on the driveway are going to be the death of me yet.....
the kid's jeep leaks oil from a 6 dollar part......
only have to pull the transmission to replace that little seal......
the new-old jeep leaks oil from the same place......
the honda just leaks from every seal on the engine......175k miles and 18 years...
guess it is going to be leaking for a while....
but this leading someplace....not sure where...and I think I've been there before....
the oil spots are easily covered, but continue to reveal themselves after repeated traffic.....
powdered concrete and stucco mix are great for the short term, but I've got to come up with a permanent solution to a permanent problem.......thinking about paint, but not sure what the end result will be.....might be too slippery......tell you later.....

spent the weekend at the ball field......the kid's sister played in a tournemant this weekend and thus did the sungoddesses and I.......6:30 am Saturday until 4:00 pm Sunday......
loooong time to spend in the sun.......they won one on Saturday and one on Sunday.....first time for the latter.....it was great watching the kids enjoy a Sunday victory.....

these are a few of the reasons why we.....

CELEBRATE LIFE.................

at least 6,048,000 seconds a week.....

Beach Sunday

2009-05-17T22:49:00.004-04:00

went to the beach today.......every day spent at the beach with my wife and kids is another day to CELEBRATE LIFE.......had a great time......lots of sun and surf.....the kid spent the better part of four hours catching waves......the kids sister fought her way out to the breakers and then nailed three good waves.....using one of her brother's boards.....the kid's second oldest aunt gave him a couple of surf boards that belonged to her late son.....after a little work on them we were able to make them sea worthy again......one of the boards was missing a couple of fins, and on the way to the longroof's yesterday I saw a broken board in a wastemanagement pile......had to double back because the fins looked familiar......brought the tail home and the fins were the same that the kid had been shopping on ebay at $20 each......three fins.....0 dollars....and they worked perfect.......gotta figure that was a trip that was meant to be.........back to today.....the kid commented no less than three times how sweet the new board was with three good fins......cuts like a sharp knive was his exact term........the kid's sister was using one of his other new boards and she grabbed the first wave and was gone like a flash.....the grin on her face was priceless.....
she couldn't get back out to the breakers fast enough......two more good waves and she was done for the afternoon.....there was a wicked current today and by the time the kid's sister called it quits, I was ready too......rather sit and watch than fight the surf sometimes.....
so thanks to my second sister and her gift to my son.......
it enables him.....and I.....to........

CELEBRATE LIFE..........

Thank you Carol

No, it's not done yet.....

2009-05-16T20:26:00.008-04:00

as the longrooffan is always asking me......is it done yet????.....well, not yet but it is getting close..
placed a call to the longroof today to see what he was doing......
as he was available for any adventure I headed over to show off the new old jeep.....
I really was looking for it's maiden voyage on the beach, and the company of my brother to share the experience with me.....
got the needed windshield sticker that allows unlimited access to the sandy shore thanks to some guy in Flagler that is having his kitchen remodeled, so thank you whoever you are.....
then we made a quick left hand turn into forbidden sand unless four-wheel drive equipped....
three miles later we made a quick u-turn and headed back towards our favorite beach access pass.......
about half way back the little mule overheated.......those ever present beach patrol officers came to the rescue with a water jug and after a quick stop at the closest external shower to refresh the little girl we were mobile once more......
dropped the longroof off at the Taj Mahal and bee-lined it home trying to stay ahead of the afternoon rain showers I could see forming......didn't need to hurry as the rain clouds passed without leaving us any happiness......
got home and decided to see if the top would fit on the old jeep.....as anyone who is familiar with the type of fabric used in the soft tops available, they know the tops are pretty much useless after sitting around for 10-15 years......as was the case here, so off came the side windows and the rear window......it helped that the windows were all cracked and broken......what I ended up with is a primative safari top.......seems to work pretty well too......well, you can be your own judge as for the effectiveness...

CELEBRATE LIFE.................

It's been THAT long?????

2009-05-16T20:24:00.003-04:00

twenty three years ago today I was lucky enough to marry the most beautiful woman in the world....today I am still married to her, and she is more beautiful today than all those years ago..

Thank you Babe.....

5 months, 22 days......

2009-05-11T20:31:00.002-04:00

Yep....that's how long it took.....
5 months and 22 days for the kid to get his first ticket while a licensed driver within the state of Florida......and those other lesser states that don't count hanging chads.....
seems that if you back out of a parking spot in a darke parking lot and hit the car parked across the lot from you is considered a driving offense if done on the beach in the state of Florida....
I suspect that he spent too much time in the sun surfing and was just anxious to get home....
of course to Officer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_7C0QGkiVo
this is a violation of state statue , whocaresaslongasbothpartiesareokwithit....
so he writes the kid a ticket for, and I'm not kidding here,....."improper backing".......
now what the heck is 'improper backing'..?????
seems this is what you write a kid a ticket for, when you want the kid to get off, but are required to write the kid a ticket for something......
well tonight the sungoddess was told about the incident.....she, while extremely upset, handled the situation quite to my surprise......
since I am still able to sit here and write should be an indication of how well she responded....
still got my fingers and voluntary use of my mind....
the kid is still breathing on his own, so things look good here......
seems kind of funny, here I sitting thinking that I am the first parent to go though this experience......
then I recall my parents and realize they are extracting their own personal revenge.....
and every parent, or grandparent, since motorized transportation began........
well, it was bound to happen sooner or later...........

CELEBRATE LIFE...........

CELEBRATE LIFE.........

2009-05-06T19:16:00.004-04:00

well, as I learned a long, long time ago......is it done yet..?????......well today it 'got done'....
phone call came in late Tuesday afternoon......it'll be done by 10 tomorrow......
phone call came from the longrooffan about 10:30-11:00 this am....
seems the rag top is making a noise when in reverse.....
didn't intend to brush by that statement, but damn I was busy and trying to get out by 11:00....
noon came and went and my partner at work had yet to return from some mission he was on....
12:30 he shows up and I hauled butt outa there.....called the longrooffan and informed him of my destination.....he said he'd meet me there.....my buddy Jim calls me 3 minutes later inquiring as to my where-abouts......"I'm across the street getting ready to make a left"......in a manner that takes some years to understand he says bye-I say bye- and we hang up.....10 seconds later the longrooffan shows up and this is what we saw....me for the first time....not for them......

now that is yellow......almost a carnary yellow...but a high gloss finish on a real close replica of Michigan Yellow.....I wish I had brought a pair of sun glasses yellow.......
a damn far cry from what I dropped off a week ago Monday.....
so the longrooffan and I are talking to the painter and he tells me that he tryed to start it but it would not fire.....oh man, another failure.....but no, I pop up the hood, and as John says, "He's gotta check the fuel gauge."....the painter states that he did and the gauge didn't work......John points out to him that the working fuel gauge is the fuel filter.....if it is full of gas, then you got gas....if the filter is dry, then put gas in it......1 gallon of fuel later the little baby fired up and I drove it out of the shop......John and I then proceeded to head to my homestead to retreive the tow vehicle.....we doubled back, hooked up the towbar and went our seperate ways......got home tonight and installed the new water pump.....man it is amazing how much noise the old water pump was making.....can't even hardly hear the little girl run now......bad bearings make lots of noise...lots of noise.....seems that my bride, who didn't want anything to do with this little project two weeks ago is now full of advice......guess it will be beach running sooner that I thought......
anyway it has officially been on it's last run through the woods on my watch......next step is to have the wheels sent out and powder coated white......that should just about top it off to my satisfaction.....a couple of small touch up spots on the black and that should just about top it off....
I'll be saying those last six words for a while I think.....but this will just about top it off for tonight..

now there are a few more small projects left on the little girl, but for all practical purposes it is finished.....
and believe me, this will allow us to, in grand fashion.......

CELEBRATE LIFE..........

Safari style to the beach

2009-05-03T20:47:00.004-04:00

didn't get the old jeep this weekend....painter doesn't work on Friday or Saturday.....he fishes those days....anyway, so with the weekend plans thrown asunder, I looked for other projects early Saturday morning.....amazing how quiet and peaceful it is at 7:30 am on a Saturday.....but as usual I found a few things to keep me busy until noon, then it was off to help a neighbor repair his 72 MGB.... what is it with us and old cars and trucks....two hours later the old British oil rig was running and stopping fine....spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out waiting on church....got home and then off to the fishing hole....stopped at the longrooffan's on the way home and you know the story by now.....got up this am and loaded up the CJ-5 for a day at the
beach.... we call this safari style on the beach.....good time had by all......best looking jeep on the beach belonged to the kid as usual.....but that's only because the new-old one isn't home yet. hopefully the little girl will be in the driveway tomorrow evening.....

CELEBRATE LIFE..........

CELEBRATE LIFE.........

2009-04-28T20:52:00.003-04:00

stopped by the paint shop today to check the water pump style on the ole 2A..seems they came with a couple of different styles.....2 plug or 1....anyway the new water pump is sitting in the garage awaiting installation...radiator to come later.....as I was leaving, the painter came out and he informed me that he would be done with it by Friday this week......

another reason to.....

CELEBRATE LIFE.....

and as we CELEBRATE LIFE...........

2009-04-27T21:11:00.002-04:00

sorry about the delay since my last visit here.....life seems to keep me busy, and when I do have down time, I find myself enjoying other's life adventures, rather than recording my own....well, at least recording them here, for all to view....I have recorded them all in my mind's Memorex for my own enjoyment....the last couple of weeks have been very busy in my world....what with chasing the kid's sister all over the center of the state on weekends so she can play softball....then rushing home so she can play basketball that night in the PAL league...trying to keep up with the kid while he continues to grow into himself....a lot of the time I sit and look at him and wish I was his age again....he is a lot of fun to hang out with....
keeping two old jeeps running and road worthy.....cleaning up the driveway after the two old jeeps deposit their deposits on the driveway.....getting one ready for the paint shop....delivered it today...next time I see the new old jeep it should be a Michigan Yellow variation.....this past weekend was a typical recap....spent Saturday morning working and the afternoon laying some tile for the olelongroof on a job he got....the sungoddess, the kid, and the kid's sister were on their way home from Gainesville so I devoted a little time on the new old jeep before sending it to the paint shop....as I was painting the radiator, I noticed that there were quite a few fins that needed straightening out....of course this lead to a radiator leak...so off to the local parts store for radiator stop leak....following the directions on the stop leak bottle, the water pump started leaking....guess the warm up period was too long....or else the water pump was going anyway and I just chose to ignore it.....but then this leads us down a road best visited after the repairs have been made....
oh, another reason we CELEBRATE LIFE...sometimes way too seldom....
Saturday the kid ask me where we stored his baseball gear....a rather odd question since he hasn't picked up a baseball in over three years...but it seems he was invited to play in a baseball tournement on Sunday and accepted....not wanting to intrude, especially since he stated that he didn't want spectators....the longrooffan and I snuck over to see the game.....check his blog for details... but man was it fun....a scene from "Sand Lot' for sure....a bunch of 15 and 16 year olds playing a game the way it was designed....just for fun...no 'adult' supervision, no parental controls....they called their own plays and didn't argue too long on the call...a perfect way to spend a couple of hours on a beautiful Sunday afternoon....
thanks kid....
found out today that their are five teams in this league and the teams are founded, funded, and governed by the kids....what a concept.....it was a blast hanging out and enjoying a couple of cold pops with a friend while watching a good old ball game.

thanks again kid.....

thanks for an allowing your old man to CELEBRATE LIFE.... your way........

another reason to CELEBRATE LIFE....and boy does she

2009-04-15T21:30:00.003-04:00

not being a fan of the television industry's desire to coerce me into purchasing their sponsor's product, or be entertained by their sense of what I should currently enjoy....the valuable time that I spend in front of the television is usually spent watching something mindless that allows me to finish what-ever project I am currently working on....or a Discovery channel or History channel program.....something that will educated me on a new subject.....now this is not to say that I don't enjoy a couple of television shows....."Three and a Half Men" and "Denny Crane" make me laugh.....but I have never been entertained by the current fad of 'reality shows'.....
"American Idol" to me has always seemed like a waste of time......

However, I ventured into an online article published on msn.com that really caught my attention.....I actually watched the video several times and if you take the 7 minutes to watch it, I believe you will truly understand a meaning of CELEBRATE LIFE.....I hope you enjoy it as much as I did......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-KiGva9dV4

sorry about making you work to watch the video but embedding has been disabled

CELEBRATE LIFE..........Susan Boyle is...........

another reason for the horsefarmer to CELEBRATE LIFE...

2009-04-14T20:30:00.003-04:00

"This is like deja vu all over again."

"You can observe a lot just by watching."

"Think! How the hell are you gonna think and hit at the same time?"

"You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you're going,
because you might not get there."

"I knew I was going to take the wrong train, so I left early."

"If you don't know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else."

"You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I'm not hungry enough to eat six."

"Baseball is 90% mental -- the other half is physical."

"A nickel isn't worth a dime today."

"It gets late early out there."

"I take a two hour nap, from one o'clock to four."

"If you come to a fork in the road, take it."

"90% of the putts that are short don't go in."

"I always thought that record would stand until it was broken."

"Why buy good luggage? You only use it when you travel."

"The other teams could make trouble for us if they win."

"The towels were so thick there I could hardly close my suitcase."

"I didn't really say everything I said."

and thanks to Yogi Berra for more reasons to..........

CELEBRATE LIFE.....

one for the horsefarmer

2009-04-12T17:06:00.003-04:00

The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day;

The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play,

And then when Cooney died at first,

and Barrows did the same,

A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go in deep despair.

The restClung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;

They thought, "If only Casey could but get a whack at that

—We'd put up even money now, with Casey at the bat."

But Flynn preceded Casey,

as did also Jimmy Blake,

And the former was a hoodoo, while the latter was a cake;

So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat;

For there seemed but little chance of Casey getting to the bat.

But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all,

And Blake, the much despised, tore the cover off the ball;

And when the dust had lifted, and men saw what had occurred,

There was Jimmy safe at second

and Flynn a-hugging third.

Then from five thousand throats and more there rose a lusty yell;

It rumbled through the valley,

it rattled in the dell;

It pounded on the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,

For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.

There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place;

There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile lit Casey's face.

And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,

No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat.

Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt.

Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.

Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,

Defiance flashed in Casey's eye,

a sneer curled Casey's lip.

And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,

And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.

Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped —

"That ain't my style," said Casey.

"Strike one!" the umpire said.

From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,

Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore;

"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted some one on the stand;

And it's likely they'd have killed him had not Casey raised his hand.

With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone;

He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;

He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the dun sphere flew;

But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said "Strike two!"

"Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and echo answered "Fraud!"

But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed.

They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,

And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again.

The sneer has fled from Casey's lip, the teeth are clenched in hate;

He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate.

And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,

And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright,

The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,

And somewhere men are laughing, and little children shout;

But there is no joy in Mudville

— mighty Casey has struck out.

CELEBRATE LIFE...........

for the little princess

2009-04-12T16:43:00.002-04:00

Nelly Kelly loved baseball games,
Knew the players, knew all their names,
You could see her there ev'ry day,
Shout "Hurray" when they'd play.
Her boy friend by the name of JoeSaid,
"To Coney Isle, dear, let's go,"
Then Nelly started to fret and pout,
And to him I heard her shout.

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

Nelly Kelly was sure some fan,
She would root just like any man,
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along, good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Nelly Kelly knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She made the game sing this song.

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

CELEBRATE LIFE........

lazy days in the garage

2009-04-12T16:15:00.009-04:00

guess the title tells a little about my day today.....up early and off to Mass....then waiting for
John to show up to eat our Easter Lunch.....kids and the sungoddess off to the beach.....
of course my bride made me promise to NOT start working on any of the Jeeps today...she pointed out that it was a holiday and all the neighbors had family visiting and she didn't want her house looking like hillbillies.....well, since the longroof didn't have any brake lights, and technically it is NOT a jeep, then I figured it would be alright to work on it....besides, she had just left for the beach and they will be there for several hours....plenty of time to diagnos and repair a faulty brake light....a simple matter of disassembling the skid plate from the old baby and there the switch sat....real simple and an hour later those all important brake lights were working again.....following couple of photos don't have anything to do with the longroof....got the new old jeep back after a couple of weeks of body work.....re-fabricate the tool box and repair a couple of floors spots and a complete sanding and primer and it is now ready for final paint, put the correct seats in and she looks much better......yellow with yellow wheels by next week I hope.....oh, spent an hour trying to figure out why she wouldn't start.....I had just filled the tank before I took it for body work and she ran great then......should have thought to check the fuel tank.....got no idea where those 10 gallons of gas went while the kid had it.....just glad he didn't wreck it.....

days like this allow us to.........

CELEBRATE LIFE...........

what do we do now..!??????!..

2009-04-04T17:30:00.002-04:00

random thoughts that will keep me awake long into the night.....

Michelle Obama gave the queen a hug.....O MY GOD...WHAT IS THE WORLD COMNING TO..
imagine that, showing affection for someone in a public manner.....I can see the way in which my Father would have greeted the Queen had he been presented the honor....and there is a problem with this.???

Missouri Legislators are debating whether to allow the defense of property the same rights as the defense of life while in a home or car......guess if enough cattle are stolen because we can't shoot back, then it's time to change the law to allow defensive actions be taken.....I say let a couple of cattle rustlers get caught and then hang to the closest Oak tree....leave them there for a while too.....let them know that here is what happens to cattle rustlers......

hate to run so fast with lots of other weird stuff stil to come but the dinner bell is ringing so.....

visit here http://www.weirduniverse.net/

and then............

CELEBRATE LIFE.........

whats going on up there......

2009-04-04T17:04:00.006-04:00

so I spent the day doing 'honey-dos' while the kids are off on missions of their own doing....
the kid's sister is out riding four-wheelers with friends and the kid is surfing at the beach....
or at least that is his story......got a call from one of my many friends that drive black and tan cars, the ones with the lights and sirens, and he called to let me know that the kid was 'cruising chicks' on the beach.....
truly his Father's son.....makes my eyes water and my heart beat a little faster.....
when questioned, the kid's response was, "the water was flat but the babes weren't"........
gotta love the kid......would make Uncle Bob proud.....
but as I am viewing the world from my lap, I notice this headline and the thoughts began....
does this explain the freezer full of beef.....or lack of leadership by the bus.......
where is the Lone Ranger when you need him.....
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29979871/...

doesn't really matter much to me because the kid and I are off to fish the big bridge....
if we are lucky the longroof will join us.....but none the less....we will...

CELEBRATE LIFE...!!!!!!!!!!

random thoughts and gatherings from days gone by

2009-04-01T20:54:00.006-04:00

been gone again and it's time to record a few thoughts and experiences.....
random thoughts from days gone by.....a lot of things got fixed in the last week or so.....
it is amazing what those little things they sell at auto parts stores called gaskets will do....spent a day last week home alone....everyone was gone....my beautiful bride and lovely daughter were off on a shopping mission to stores I have never heard of, and thankfully never visited......my son was off on a fishing adventure to the big bridge....as I sat in my "man cave", I saw something that I have walked over daily and yet had never seen....it seems that my driveway has aquired, or earned, several dark black spots over the past several months.....remember those little things called gaskets they sell at autoparts stores..??..seems when they fail they cause things to leak....
now since I own a couple of old vehicles, a Honda almost as old as my marriage, a Jeep older than my oldest brother,

another Jeep almost older than our newly elected President,

those things called gaskets on these vehicles that hold oil within the engine seemed to have failed....and how...
well, that oil that those gaskets contained seemed to find it's way onto my driveway.....leaving their tell-tale sign for all to see....so it was a call to my favorite group of guys at Beachside Auto, and several dollars later I was the owner of new gaskets that are designed to stop oil leaks.....a couple of hours spent with the kid working on his Jeep stopped the contribution to the driveway's current condition.....another hour or so stopped the old Honda's contribution, and another hour or so stopped the 47's efforts.....now all I need is another couple of hours to clean the driveway.....a good pressure washing and then a covering with white concrete mix should have it looking new again.....just the powder mix spread out thinly with a broom and walla...!!!!!..
the driveway will look as good as new.....or at least I hope.....

during all this repair and replacement I have gotten a friend to do some work on the new-old Jeep....Chris, one of the "rednecks" that we have gone four wheeling with in the past, and came to my rescue when "I stuck one and broke another"

http://http://oleragtop.blogspot.com/2009/01/stuck-one-broke-other.html with the kid and the oldlongroof, is a pretty good welder.....well the tool box is now in place as designed and the body is completely sanded and primed....the seats are ready for installation and the small amount of floor rust has been removed and new panels of steel have been welded in place....gotta love those guys that can weld....and weld good.....God bless the 'redneck' population.....but then that's what they do and we love them for it.........

.http://http://oleragtop.blogspot.com/2009/03/its-deja-vu-all-over-again.html

in a different direction.....remember the title of this entry.....one of my bigger brothers, the bus, went in on a parts jeep a little while back.....he was in need of a couple of parts and we were able to secure them at a discount.....but this leads me to my friends Red and Monna and how getting jeep parts half way across the USA is a simple matter......just load them on a truck and ship them.....of course it helps if you know someone going to St. Louis....and you have a brother that has the time to drive to St. Louis with three days notice......of course this brother has a small memory problem and noted here......

http://http://bus-plunge.blogspot.com/2009/03/forgot-camerai-hate-it-when-that.html......

but then he became a grandfather just recently so it is acceptable.....

even when we are not here, these are the types of things that enable us to......

CELEBRATE LIFE......

thank you

2009-03-27T21:56:00.003-04:00

a while back my Mother passed from this world...she was preceeded by my Father, a man I truly loved and respected.....earlier this week it was noted that Mother had been gone from this world for a year as we count it....somehow it seems to me that she has never been gone.......while my Father and Mother were removed from me by over a 1000 miles, I lived with them every day.....still do for that matter....what I miss the most is the sound of their voices....the reassuring words of their experiences....I still remember my Father's words when I asked how to deal with a period my then 2 year old son was going through....
"Son, they haven't written that book yet." while it didn't help me worth a damn at that time, it made more sense as time passed....today I understand what he meant..
one of my brothers made a comment about placing flowers on the spot where their earthly remains have been placed....my Mother always encouraged me to send her a plant rather than flowers....seemed she preferred a plant over flowers as the plant would always resurrect itself every spring rather die every winter....
so in my Mother's honor I encourage every one of us put a plant into the ground...something that we can nurture, feed, and enjoy as it grows to help support our life....it was a little thing that she did every day to help us remember to....

CELEBRATE LIFE........

and what to do with this...

2009-03-23T20:52:00.008-04:00

you know how it is....sometimes you see something and you just know there is something there....you know it's there....you know what it is....but you are just not sure what to do with it.....or how to do it....so you sit and you think....and you sit and you think....and you sit and fall asleep.....then it comes to you ....I've got it!!!!!!!!....then the alarm goes off and you wake up and can't remember what it was you were going to do with it....or as my Father was known to do, you see something and you know that there is a need for this item, so you bring it home and put in on a shelf.....later, sometimes weeks, sometimes years, you come across a need for this item and you know you have it, you remember bringing it home, you remember seeing it in a store last week and thinking you might one day need something like this, but you didn't buy it because you knew you had one at home....you even remembered bringing it home and where you put it....you even remember seeing it a while back and moving to a new location because you knew that you would need this item and didn't want to forget where you put it....but now that you need it you can't find it....it's not where you think you put it....then you remember that you moved it to a spot that would be better so it wouldn't be lost when you needed it.....but it is not there.....I ran across the following a while back, and like my Father, knew there was something here....not sure where it was going or when it was getting there...then thought of the bus and the horesefarmer and the longroof....I still think they got it.....so it's your's for the taking...have fun and enjoy the time spent with it.....

newspaper headlines like these remind us to .......

Celebrate Life......

studless owners and studs

2009-03-20T22:21:00.002-04:00

back sooner than I thought I would be.....
just finished reading Sara's blog about her mare and unwanted attention....
brought back memories from Haven Lee Farms... Sara's problem is one that every animal owner has faced for generations....and every owner has handled for the same time....while I am not (thankfully) faced with the same issues as Sara, the manner in which she resolves them will speak volumes about her stewardship of her charges....good luck there kid....
back in the early 1970's Bob Lee was in a similiar quandry....he came into possession of a registered Missouri Foxtrotter mare....this mare had been sent to a stud farm with high hopes for an ideal drop....as expected, this mare was got to by an unregistered stallion from unclear lines....the mare came to us pregnant so the colt could be delivered with no records kept....June 1, 1970 the mared dropped a blazing white colt....it stormed so bad that night that everyone stayed inside and just waited until daylight to venture out to survey the damage....that colt became one of the best pets you could wish for....his dam was a beautiful buckskin and his sire was pitch black....but he had the most spectacular palamino color imagineable....he turned snow white in the cold months and then back to a suntanned palamino in the warm months....I grew up with that animal and knew him better than most of the people in my life then....he got into a lot of trouble as a young stallion.....jumped fences to fight the stallion from the next hill west of us.....really BAD injury from a wire fence that wouldn't keep him contained....the beautiful fillys and colts he sired.....the comfort and pleasure of a long ride on a gaited horse.....like riding in a rocking chair was the best description of a Foxtrotter's gait.....sorry about that...got lost in a memory....but what ever Sara does I hope it works out for her.....see, I hope to visit her ranchette this summer and see her stock.....just another reason to ......

CELEBRATE LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Glad to be back

2009-03-20T21:36:00.003-04:00

after what seems to be an eternity, I have finally returned to these pages....seems the 67% of the time I spend on the web finally caught up with my laptop and it crashed.....and it crashed hard....no amount of spyware, anti-virus, spamware, or any of the other stuff I don't understand could fix it.....so thankfully, DELL sells for less if you look hard enough and, I'm back.......still got some time ahead of me figuring out what program does what and how to get there, but so far I have spent the better part of my free time trying to catch up, damn we are busy people...lot's of happenings since I last visited.....the bus and I went partners on a parts vehicle, then didn't....that works out best I think....he got a couple of parts for less than face value, I got a couple of parts the same, the longroof made a couple of bucks, and I didn't loose too much in the process....gotta a couple more items to sell that I hope will break even....but another chapter....
went with the kid last weekend to a WWII battle re-enactment that his history professor participates in.....every aspect of the event is authentic to the era and it was pretty neat....vehicles included...these guys do everything period correct, even down to no showers for three days prior for the visual physical effect of the soldiers.....they camped out in authentic tents and even cooked over a fire and ate k-rations.....not so sure I'd be that far into it, but they do a wonderful job of explaining everything to the couple of hundred people gathered around.....saw a fully restored 1942 MB.. the owner and restorer was a retired Navy guy.....submariner who wanted to stay 'high and dry' from now on.....the MB was very well done, but as the kid said as he missed a couple of shifts, "Dad, this guy can't drive worth a damn." I guessed it was the foot traffic that caused the mis cues, but the kid was right.....should have stuck with automatics.....made me feel sorry for the gears.....made me realize that my new old jeep needs attention....gotta a guy lined up this weekend to repair the tool box and weld it into place.....then the correct seat frames...then off to the paint booth.....oh wait..gotta replace the brake lines to the front cylinders first.....got replacements, just not the time......gotta find that now that the time last longer.....along with fishing, softball, yard care, pt, wt, damn, it's dark again.....pretty much the same as all....
so many things that warrant sharing have happened since last visit that I can't remember them all.....funniest (or best) was cruising the beach last weekend with the kid.....not only did I forget about spring break....I forgot the kid is sixteen and a half.....loong sloow safari drive down and back up the beach.....felt like the longroof....6 miles in an hour and a half....of course it is hard to tell him that his mother came to these very beaches in her youth for the same reason these kids were here now.....but damn he has good eye sight.....I think maybe that explains why my neck hurts so bad.....another reason to .............

CELEBRATE LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Sign Life is Too Busy

2009-02-18T21:31:00.002-05:00

wow...here I am again after a long absence...spent a lot of the last couple of weeks making sure that everyone else was takin care of and forgot to make sure I was....if you understand that last sentence then you know what I mean....checked on the longrooffan when he was under the weather and contracted a smaller version of what what was ailing him....gotta love pharmacuticals to kick that bug in the butt....three days of modern legal drugs and poof....of course about 40 hours of sleep in those three days helped a little....got the kid's jeep back in fine working order and topless or not it sure is an attention getter.....attended a couple of races at the track with the longrooffan.....he damn near wore that pass out....sure was happy to be able to secure the ticket for him.....I would almost venture to say that he was about raced out....but then he goes and post another blog.....like the horsefarmer, I spent race day around the homestead....
slept in late...ate a big breakfast with the kids and yea, I raked leaves and mowed the lawn.....worked up a sweat doing it too and I worked on the kid's jeep..... fixed the speakers and hooked up a horn.....watched the race on the television and watched the rain on the radar....amazingly I stayed dry the whole day.....fiddled around with the old Willys and then took both for a short drive.....thought about heading out to the track to watch the circle race....but then popped a cold one and asked myself why?....by then the longrooffan was ready to head to the house and I was already home.....and dry....besides I saw the jets fly over and could hear the cars everytime they went through turns three and four...heard the firework celebration as they announced the end of the race....forgot about the 5 second tv delay as the fireworks went off....
anyway it has been a busy fortnight and life returns to our semblance of normal now.....
heard a line in a show today that stuck with me.....
"I don't live for tomorrow...takes up to much time today"....
remember this as we....

CELEBRATE LIFE.......

Gone Fishin (Or been away for a while)

2009-01-31T22:00:00.004-05:00

it has been a while since I stopped and recorded at this place....
I feel as if I should apologize to someone for my deliquency....most likely myself....
since my last visit here I have had the oppportunity to stick one and break another.....
(see the oleragtop's blog for pix and video).....
take a walk with a friend through our country's automotive past....
visit with brothers......both healthy and sick....
spend time with the the longroof fixing the broke one.....
spend more time with the kid re-fixing the broke one.....
what was that you ask??...
well it all started with an innocent trek to the woods just west of us.....
the Ocala National Forest and it's open trails..as reported by the longroof, we had an adventurous day......
which became two weeks....see stuck one and broke another.....
after securing the parts needed to repair the kid's jeep, the longrooffan and I spent an afternoon installing the NOS parts.....
only to find out that I incorrectly installed a MAJOR component.....yep that's right, I made a mistake......not the first by my count and not the first by my bride's either.....
but this is what lead to the kid and I re-fixing the kid's jeep.......
it amazing how little time it takes to fix one's error.......
they should stamp those clutch disc in bigger letters.....'flywheel side' is in awfully small letters....
but it is fixed now and the kid is looking for places to go.......
got some tips on why the 46 Willies doesn't run when desending sharply .....
gotta check the float level to see if it shuts off the fuel supply.......
but that will have to wait for warmer weather....
put smaller tires on the kid's jeep this week.....
looks a lot better as we get closer to the original size tire.....
and it is amazing how much tighter and easier it turns now......
tomorrow brings another adventure and the kid is ready to trek back into the forest.....
I would say it is about time for us to again.....

CELEBRATE LIFE...

John's test results

2009-01-15T20:46:00.001-05:00

guess i might start looking for a life...

thankfully there were no questions about Jeeps..

remember to..........

CELEBRATE LIFE....

Something for Jim to Enjoy on a Cold Day

2009-01-12T22:01:00.003-05:00

and one of my all time favorites..........

Why We Walk with Friends When We Walk

2009-01-10T20:54:00.006-05:00

Had another fantastic walk this Saturday.....great time had with a good friend.....pleasant drive through the country side...a slight diversion to reach our destination, but well worth the extra time spent....after finishing a couple of honey-do's this am, I sent a phone call to the ole longrooffan to see if he remembered me telling him to get up early this am to go junkyarding..... seems he remembered and even gave me some grief for not contacting him before my 10:00 am call.....he had been up since 7:00 waiting on me to call.....he finally showed up and we headed west in the old station bus to adventures unknown......let me tell you that there are all kinds of things to be seen when traveling the American highway system at 50 mph.....it is amazing how much better the countryside looks at 50 vs 80 mph....about 40 minutes after leaving we headed north on a side road in search of an old cj I had heard of......."about 4 miles north off 92 sitting in the woods"......turns out to be a 3B that was of no use to me or those I know so we resumed our trip to the auto treasure chest I visited last weekend........couple of stops on the way to secure saw blades for the sawsall and liquid refresments and we arrived 10 minutes later......paid our entry fee....well JD did, I just bumrushed the gate....and we were off....
the first thing I did was look for the yardmonkey that was so helpful last trip, this guy works for a small wage and tips and last weekend he moved two cars with his big frontend loader and carried the old Willys wagon up to his shop and turned on his compressor so I could use his air tools to get the wheels, etc....but this man got a tip today before he did anything....remember to tip the help.....amazing how they respond.....anyway, after tipping this guy he disappeared....just what I was hoping he would do as I was on a mission to scrap a couple of vehicles....didn't want him around to stop me.....so then I beelined it to that old flat fender with the palm tree growing under it.....broke out the sawsall and proceeded to cut the steering wheel right off.....sharp blades and strong batteries are a wonderful thing when you are out in the field....starting looking for other things to cut up.....after securing the steering wheel I look around for the longrooffan.......
can't find him anywhere...where in the hell did he go..??....thought about it for a second and then just looked in the oldoldold car section....sure enough, there I could see his head bobbing around the hood lines of those old Buicks, Fords, Chevrolets, and Oldsmobiles....seems he was busy getting a blog and a couple of new wall arts......so I headed south to cut him off at the pass so to say and along the way I snatched an old Mercedes Benz hub cap......it seemed to fit him...
I met him at the old Willys wagon where he had established his base camp....by looking at his cache he had started collecting items from his list before his trip down memory lane.....as he is working away at his list I ask how I can help and he tells me to grab the speedometer out of the old Willys......I should have known better and told him to get it himself.....but no, I spend a good 20 minutes attempting to remove all the animal nests and small nuts holding the dash in before he looks over my shoulder and says..."dude, all I want is the speedo head, not the whole freakin dash"......at this I just reached up and pulled it right away from the dash......20 minutes, a bloody forearm and all he wanted was the speedo head......three seconds to remove it.....but I then spent the time to reinstall all the nuts I removed.....gotta leave it clean for the next guy.....a coke and a smoke and we were off again.....this time in search of an early 60's era F-1.....walked a good mile around the yard before realizing that it was no longer available....missed an old memory there for sure.....got a new one to replace it......headed back to base and got the spare wheel from the Willys and headed up to the shop... got the counterman's permission to use his machine and removed the old tire from the rim.....found Jon-Jon again and proceeded to check out.....now check out is on the honor system where you tell them what you got and they figure you took about twice as much and so they charge you according to what they figure you stole.....glad I forgot about the speedo head and the dash lights otherwise I would have needed a loan to get away.....stopped on the way back to the house for a Diet Coke and a powerball ticket, so JD, if you win I'm in for half....use Lee logic to understand why......had a wonderful slow relaxing ride home until we hit the shortcut cutoff.....as we passed it by I asked why we didn't take it and the oleragtop answers, "dude, that's the way we came.".....took a deep breath and understood his logic......different conversation material the rest of the way home......got to spend a couple of hours today with a good friend doing something that we enjoy......took another walk through automobile memory lane.... and enjoyed the drive there and back.....thanks longrooffan......

and this is why we......

CELEBRATE LIFE................

Why we love Saturay afternoon walks...

2009-01-06T19:40:00.004-05:00

spent this past saturday afternoon on a very pleasant walk....as reported by the oleragtop....this afternoon walk was very pleasing in so much as I took a walk thru a salvage yard located about 20 miles west of here....saw a lot of cool stuff...stuff that made me think about what and where these old cars had been......what adventures had the 48 buick been on when it was new.....the mid-sixties oldsmobiles that were lined up side by side in a photo finish....where had the miles taken these bastions of American Automotive might.....the old pickups, Ford by manufacture from the 50's and 60's.....what loads had these carried.....how many times were these beds left unmade......the late 50's T-Bird ragtop...how many kisses had been stolen in it's rotted interior....the old flat fender that drew me on this afternoon walk....the trails that GPW Ford had covered...wonderment at why someone would weld flairs onto the windshield frame...was this to help keep cold air out..????...it's in a Florida salvage yard... why the top..???...what could be done to improve the original design....the cool old boat that was so out of place that a detour to view it's remains were necessary... the 50's Willys Wagon seen on the walk out....wait...a 50 Willy's wagon...???... unmolested till my visit....why do we always look in the trunk..??..what are we looking for...why are these automotive grave yards so appealling...??...are we looking for something from our past..???...a prelude to our future perhaps....why did I look in every open truck I passed...this one keeps coming back to me....did I expect to see something that was missed during it's reception....well, I attacked that Willys like a kid attacks an ice cream cone on a mid-summer's day...
.....came home from that walk with more that I went for and less than I wanted....
but that's how most afternoon walks end.....

CELEBRATE LIFE......

it's the only one we get....

Redneck games

2009-01-02T21:13:00.004-05:00

well if you are a visiter of bythenumbers then you know how the kid and I spent New Year's Day......called Jon-Jon and woke him up...told him to meet us at Scott's house as we had planned a day spent jeeping with a couple of other 4-wheelers.....as seen on the bythenumbers blog, a great time was had by all participants....even the longrooffan got into the trail riding, or making in his case, spirit.......even got him into Scouting around for a longroof trade.....not so much in my opinion.....spent about three hours driving down trails and thru a couple of mud holes....even climbed a creek side in a the 2A and had a blast......the little girl out performed the big dog high stepping 4x4s of the boys......impressed them all without a doubt....the creek climb would have impressed the bus as he could have followed along......the beauty of the old jeep is that totally stock she lead the way for the boys with the 44 lockers and flex suspensions......you know those vehicles that the axles flex 44 inches up and down.....the old 2A solid as a rock just took a tire off the ground and used the other wheels for traction......sure was fun and future plans are in place for other dates with the boys fourwheeling......the kid was impressive as he didn't get stuck once....now granted he refrained from entering some of the really bad spots....but he drove right through the deepest holes following the trail.....check the photo of the passenger side mud line on his cj.....the one off side to all the fun we had is the maintanence that now has to be done.....pull apart and repack the wheel bearings is of the highest priority......looks like my Sunday is booked.
Saturday the longrooffan and the kid are heading out to the racetrack to take in the Rolex practice session.....guess it is that time of year again.....I got word of an old jeep sitting in a field out west of town about 20 miles or so, so hopefully I will get a chance to check it out.......let you know later......

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

CELEBRATE LIFE...........

finally figured out what windchill is

2008-12-28T20:58:00.002-05:00

6 degrees.....wind chill of -16 degrees.....
when I grow up I'm moving to Florida...I don't care what my wife says......
had forgotten that thermometers only have one digit......
got to thinking they didn't go below 60......
it's been a cold busy week.....
if you follow the bus's, and the horsefarmer's, and the bythenumbers blogs, then you know what I have been up to........
except for one thing......
DAMN IT IS COLD IN THE OZARKS THIS TIME OF YEAR..!!!!!!!!!
arrived in Spfld on Saturday night after piloting the big white truck for 17 hours through night fog, daylight rain, urban traffic, suburban traffic, delta farm land, and mountains in the dark......
shut the garage door early Saturday am to 70 degree weather with a promise of a beautiful beach day.....got out of the big white truck to 43 degree weather with a promise of a cold day just 8 short hours away......and let me tell you right now, that weatherman earned his pay....for the first time in recent memory the weatherman was correct in his prediction....he called for cold dry weather and boy was it.....after a short breakfast I headed west to Haven Lee Farm in beautiful southwestern Missouri, looking forward to spending the day with my sister in law and brother playing with their new toy......for the first time in a long time I was thankful that I possess a cellular telephone.....after calling them when I left the Bus's house to let them know I was heading their way, they informed me that they were taking a short drive east of Spfld to look at a parts vehicle for the new toy......rather than driving all the way out to their place I hooked up with them at the local Wally World....the fifteen feet from my truck to theirs was bitterly cold.... thank goodness for Henry Ford's heater system.....saw a really beat up bronco and discovered where the oleragtop came from.....then headed back west to Haven Lee Farm.....the horsefarmer and I stopped off at wally world to get my truck and his bride continued on about her day while we drove to his local auto parts store to try to determine what was wrong with the big white truck.....it didn't like the cold weather and in typical FoMoCo fashion we wasted a lot of time before I just wacked the air cleaner real hard with a flashlight.....that seemed to straighten up the white truck but not until we wasted a half a day trying to determine the electronic failure....
as TC and I are finally enroute to the Farm his bride calls and says the big mule died on the highway.....beautiful thing about us is that we are able to change plans on the fly......Bob would have been right in his element....plans change and you adjust...of course all I could think of was hitting the closet purveyer of my favorite beverage, but the horsefarmer assured me he had taken in a supply so I was content.....remember I'm on vacation....but back to the
Found On Road Dead .....I can say that because I own one too....and mine was almost....but if you check out the horsefarmers blog you can see a photo of me standing on his truck's bumper checking under the hood of this little beast....DAMN IT WAS COLD.....nothing like sticking your ass out in the cold wind.....literally.....but as has been told....the vehicle suffered a major mechanical failure.
of course of all the options available to us, since it was the coldest day I personally have experienced in over a decade, we chose to tow the mule to the big barn......got a phone call from TC on the drive telling me to get off the damn highway shoulder....I guess I was throwing gravel all over the front of his truck....sorry about that TC.....but in a fashion that the oleragtop would appreciate, we towed that beast with a chain down the highway about 8 miles, going no faster than 30 mph......oh and yes we did have a bit of a following.....thought of Jon-Jon a lot as we held up traffic for over 5 miles.......but I finally got to see the little mule.....sweet little ride that needs a little TLC to make it a daily driver......never really got to spend any time playing with it as the big mule needed immediate attention....the Bus came out after a short trip to Sam's to secure a couple of heaters to supplement the kerosene heater in the barn.....they worked out sweet as we spent the remaining daylight hours repairing the big mule....and contrary to the horsefarmers statement....his local dealer did not repair any of my repairs....finally sampled a few of those fantasticly cold beverages that are contained in 12 ounce cans....gotta love Auggie Busch for that invention....spent the following day trying to determine the failure of my white truck but gave up after beating on the air cleaner seemed to straighten it out.....did spend a couple of hours at the Farm playing with the little mule....but damn it was cold....did take the kid and his cousin out in the field to do some tarket practice but finally gave that up too....funny but the last thing the barngoddess said as we were heading out to the field was, and I quote, "There are 19 cows in that field now, there better be 19 when you get back." Of course the damn cows follow you around the field like lost puppy dogs....no wonder they don't name them....just give them numbers....except for t-bone and hamburger.....but the damn cows almost licked me to death before we got out of the barn yard....laughed so hard the entire time because all I could think of was counting to 19 after each shot....of course one white cow looks like another to me but I knew better....and then the farmkid kept telling me not worry as she pushed another cow away....reminded me so much of Joan and I when we were that age with our visiting cousins.....damn pest...."don't worry Uncle Ed, I got them.".....she is a doll and a true pleasure to hang out with.....good job there guys....
got back to the bride's parents in the late afternoon and after eating dinner the kid and I decided we would head over to visit with the bus....got to the bus's house and his bride was hanging out with the grandaughter and told us he was next door at Pettijohns's house....the kid and I headed on over as that is the custom in the compound....I call it the compound because between the three houses on the end of the block that is what it is....I'm not sure that they even lock the doors, but I do know the code to visit...if the bedroom window curtains are open then it is okay to come and visit....if not....well you understand....but back to Monday pm....Jack and his family live in a really cool old house and as we walked up to the back door the kid was amazed that I didn't even knock...just walked right in and joined the party..
the kid was surprised to say the least, and totally at ease with the different personalities in attendance....later he told me that he had a blast as he and the bus got to talk about alot of stuff without me around....like the old jeep I owned years ago and a lightpost that didn't get out of my way....another thing that amazed the kid was the fact that you had to put a coat on to go get a beer....he was the runner since his legs were the youngest ones there....and at winter parties in the Ozarks you store your beer outside...why not, it's a whopping 18 degrees outside...of course as you walk up to the back door the first thing you see sitting outside are about 10 different 12 packs of your favorite beverage....or in my case, a handy 11 pack....
spent the next day's afternoon with the bus....the intent to work on his old jeep, but reality had different plans....at one point when we were on errands and it began to sleet I wanted to come home...unfortunately Dorothy was not to be found so we hung it out and finally got back to the bus's house safe and sound....got his old bus running and moved it off the main street....seemed that during the week, street traffic was stopping behind and in front of his bus waiting for kids to get on or off...ole Jack got a hell of a laugh out of watching the traffic jam around the bus....but after getting the bus moved we spent the afternoon piddlying around his house garage cleaning up....made a comment to Jim about a book in a box that I would like to have and in typical fashion he said I could have it....of course if I took one I had to take them all....still laughing about that as I try to figure out where I am going to put those other books.....
rest of the week spent with the bride's family....mostly inside as it was COLDCOLDCOLDCOLD outside.....keep thinking of the line from Sam McGee....'please close that door, for you see, since I left Plumtree down in Tennessee, this is the first time I've been warm'....headed home out of SpfldMo on Sat am heading east into a rainy morning....got home Sat pm to 67 degree weather....spent today washing cars and mowing the yard....
I know I missed a lot but the beauty of this form of communication is that it can be edited at will.....

CELEBRATE LIFE.............

What I saw Today

2008-12-16T21:53:00.003-05:00

typical day today in beautiful, sunny, and warm downtown Daytona Beach FLorida.....
off to work at 6:30 to a busy day ahead of me.....got about 60K worth of tires sitting on the floor of the shop waiting for the wave of the magic wand to put them away.....two cars that are getting new motors waiting on that same magic wand to finish them.....couple of other various projects that require immediate attention just like everybody else in the service industry.....but then the phone rings about midafternoon and it's the olelongroof......seems he stopped the old falcon way up on the beach when the tide was in.....of course this is okay as long as you move it when the tide goes out...but if you wait too long the sand dries out and it becomes soft and as we all know...heavy things sink in soft sand....but back to the call...he's stuck and the kid is getting ready for a b-ball game and can't offer any assist....as I have nothing to do and it cost $100 bucks for a tow truck to come to the rescue, I'm heading north east to assist.....now when I am driving north on the beach looking for the old bus I see this character sitting in a beach chair facing the western sky absorbing the last of the sun's ray before it drops behind the local highrises that line our shore....in the shade sits the longroof.....
so this is what I see.....

gotta a much needed laugh as I drove up and saw Jon-Jon sitting there in his beach chair......

didn't even need the fourwheel drive of the truck I borrowed.....just a little push would have done it......thanks for not burying it....I'm sure we will bury a couple this Sunday at Sara's place......

that's what I saw today.......

CELEBRATE LIFE.....

It's John's Fault

2008-12-14T18:08:00.002-05:00

it all started about 20 years ago.....being a large family spread out over half the world, there comes a time when somebody has to be blamed for something......back in the seventy's whenever my father couldn't find something, a tool, a book, a pencil, what ever, it didn't matter what he couldn't find, he would always blame brother Tom......something along the line of, "Damn it Tommy, where in the hell did you put my _________." ......fill in the blank as you see fit......you see Tom and his bride lived half way across the world in someplace like Guam or Hawaii during that period......there was no way possible for Tom to have misplaced Dad's whatever, however Dad blamed Tom every time....it became a standing joke whenever something could not be found......'it's Tommy's fault'.....when Tom finally retired and he and his family relocated to the Ozarks, Dad had to change his tune......mainly because it finally became true......Tom usually had whatever Dad was looking for.......so Dad began to blame however lived farthest from home......at the time it was John, so he got blamed......then I relocated so South Florida and I would get these phone calls from Dad wanting to know what I did with his (whatever he was looking for)......we got a lot of laughs out of that cheap gag and it continued until he finally found what he was looking for......so this brings us to why it is John's fault......we tried to blame Bob, but he actually lives closer to the Ozarks than John......we measure in direct line of travel and since Bob lives on the west coast of Florida and John lives almost as far east as you can without getting wet, then it becomes John's fault.....not to mention that John aquired that old longroof and started this new craze of old cars.......Jim's toys don't count as he has been into old cars for years.......but this new aquistion of toys can easily be blamed on John......what's he going to do.....try to defend himself
so now there is a new addition to the horsefarmer and the barngoddess's fleet.......good find and at a good price.......just remember.....it's all John's fault.........

CELEBRATE LIFE

This one is for Jon-Jon

2008-12-12T21:18:00.003-05:00

the kid is off on a school trip to play basketball in some tournement west of us and east of the gulf.....he and his team are visiting the UF campus on Saturday to take a tour and then off to watch his high school football team compete in the state finals.......since Jon-Jon is (not) SUCH a football fan, I thought the following would help explain the game...... to him....

and if that is not enough...then pay attention...this is classic.......

It's ALIVE.....again....for now......

2008-12-07T19:22:00.003-05:00

enjoyed a great day in sunny florida today.......cold though.....okay so maybe not as cold as where you are right now....but cold enough for me.....didn't get much above 60 in the shade and with the wind off the ocean it was cold.....cold enough for long sleeved pants and long sleeved shirts....
these are clothing items that are buried way in the back of the bottom drawer of your chest of drawers.....they don't see daylight very often.....sorry horsefarmer, but today I did sleep in late... didn't get out of bed until 9:00 am.....great feeling as I think I needed it.....but the kids slept until at least 10...11 for the kid, so I figure he stayed up late watching old movies.....but the sungoddess got up early and was out riding her bike so the kid's sister and I started on a school project after breakfast.....3-D map of the Nez Perce Indian displacement of the late 1880's..... spent a couple of enjoyable hours supporting her on that project..... as the sun was now letting her presence be felt, we loaded up to go to the ball field for a little pitching practice.....the longroof called before we left and he joined up at the field.....he makes a pretty good umpire and we had a short talk about the geographics of the old ballfields......seems a large box store wants the acreage the ball fields are on and wants the ball fields moved to a former landfill area.....
this kind of got his ire up and with a little luck he can spend some time at the council meetings....
returned back to my garage after practice and proceeded to spend an enjoyable afternoon with my big brother......of course the first thing I did was turn on a football game and pull a jeep into the garage....sometimes I think the longroof gets tired of this, but he just turned the tv channel to a car race and hung out.....got the old Cj2A running on the first crank and Jon took it for a spin around the neighborhood.....feels really good to have that running on the first crank as it wouldn't start last weekend......just like an old vehicle....it ran but wouldn't stop......got the brakes fixed by rebuilding the wheel cylinders...... actually the longroof and I just disassembled the cylinders and cleaned them up, honed out the cylinders and reassembled them......but they work and the little mule stops.......but then it wouldn't start......no spark, but plenty of crank......the balast resistor failed.....went to my local parts store and when the kid at the counter asked if he could help me, I told him I needed to talk to the oldest guy behind the counter......I think he was a little upset, so I asked him for a two pole resistor......he wanted to know what year, make, and model of vehicle and what area I was working on......a moments pause from me and then good old Phil walked up from the back room carrying a 2 pole balast resistor.....seems he overheard my request and just went in the back room and grabbed one off the shelf......sometimes old guys rule.......got home and after calling 'uncle Tom' to confirm my diagnosis, I installed the new resistor and the little mule fired right up.....so now it runs and stops.......It's alive.........but then I have two jeeps in the driveway and there is always something to be done to them....finally got around to installing the heater in the kid's jeep......once again the longroof was helpful for something other than 'can you grab me a beer please'.......got the heater box installed with minimal cutting and only had to take it out three times to find out why the fan wouldn't turn.... but we finally got it installed and then wired up to an underdash switch......plan on hooking up the hoses tomorrow night just in time for the 80 degree weather on Wednesday.......but it's alive.....again.....for now.....hey, they're old....

CELEBRATE LIFE.......

Fourth from the Fourth

2008-12-07T18:48:00.004-05:00

pretty novel post here.....the fourth photo from

the fourth file.....
gonna go look and see what we got.....

gee we found a jeep related photo.......

no glamour shot.....just a fuel tank for a CJ2A......

bought this off ebay, that lovely store in space.... another example of why you should always ask more questions when buying off the web..... was looking for a fuel tank for a M38A1......under seat, side fill tank with a three inch cap.....exactly what I asked for......except for the angle of the neck off the tank.....on the M38A1 the tank neck is at about a 40 degree angle...the CJ2A neck has no angle of approach.....so I thought I had just wasted another $80.00 on ebay......filed this tank away for future use.......you never really know what a fuel tank can be traded for when somebody else is in need......when the bus got his jeep, I thought hot dog, I got a tank so he won't need to buy one......his jeep was stored in a barn with a top on the jeep.....his tank was in good shape......back into the barn this tank went awaiting a future need.....low and behold, it was drug back out when a 2A showed up in my driveway......and it needed a fuel tank.....jee, I know somebody who has one sitting around gathering cobwebs and dust.....out of the box it came, cleaned, primed, and painted, and then into the jeep it went......so that's my fourth photo from my fourth file......

piano class is now in session

2008-12-03T22:20:00.003-05:00

here's another one for you Jim....

2008-12-01T21:50:00.004-05:00

not sure what the title to this entry into my life's reflection should be, so it is blank for now...... sometimes we have entries like this.....just not sure what to call them......spent a long holiday weekend/week hanging out with the kid and uncle Jon-Jon.....saw some really nice restored automobiles and one really sweet 46 CJ2A that will never see a dirt road, or a sandy beach...... seemed like a waste of time , energy, and money on the jeep...the cars are all the same..... I call them Vanna Whites.....man they look great from 60 feet away....but when you get up close you realize they are really not worth the money it takes to keep them looking as they do..... somewhere, somebody, is tired of their crap and that is why they are for sale to the highest bidder....but then I enoyed the time spent with my son and his uncle Jon......didn't get to spend any time working on the new-old jeep.....instead spent that energy getting the Christmas lights up and finishing the honey-do list that had materialized......got those knocked out and found a lot of free time to just sit and relax in my garage....enjoyed watching the kid and the kid's sister playing with the neighborhood kids.....the kid got his driver's license on Monday and like all of us, found every excuse in the world to go someplace.....?what, you wanted three items from the store?.....I must have forgot one of them....gotta go back....same thing we all did.....and every new driver since then.....tonite he had b-ball practice.....he came home from school on the bus and then drove to practice himself....drove himself home too....no problems despite his Mother's worries.....the most excelerating -frightening time of my life......all for knot it appears....

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2008-11-27T21:14:00.007-05:00

This one is for you Jim....

Part Du

CELEBRATE LIFE.........

weekends at work

2008-11-24T21:25:00.004-05:00

sometimes I wonder where the time goes...seems we work all week long from sun-up to sun-down...then go get one or the other of the children from whatever activity that keeps them away from home after school....then we run home to get ready to start all over again....in between we try to find time for ourselves....the last couple of weekends, that savored time that one can spend doing what we work all week to do, have gone by at the speed of light....seems just about the time I have begun to relax, it's time to wind up for the week again....never seem to have enough time to truly enjoy those things that bring me joy....I have been fortunate enough to spend some fantastic time working on the oleragtop's recent number...and he spent some time helping me on my new-old jeep....but just about the time the fun begins...the weekend is over...the kid's little sister spent her weekend reading and playing with her neighborhood girlfriends....the kid spent his weekend....not sure what he did this weekend other than prepare for taking his driver's exam.....sure was funny watching him and his Mother trying to parallel park....tried to tell them it is not required anymore....but it was funny watching them anyway....the kid and I got all the Christmas decorations down from the attic in anticipation of Thursday afternoon's installation....I'll be asking myself where that day went on Friday....but then this weekend is the annual Turkey Rod Run here in Daytona Beach...
I'm sure this is not the first time you have heard of this event...check bythenumbers for more info and photos....so I know the time will fly by this weekend also...gonna take the kid's jeep and the new old jeep out and see if somebody wants them more than we do....but first the exhaust manifold needs repairing on the kid's jeep, and the brakes still need attention on the new-old jeep....damn what I'd give for another two hours of daylight.....or a barn like the horsefarmer has....but alas it would be hard to fit that barn into my neighborhood....I sit in my garage watching MNF getting ready for another day in the mine....well here's to the guy that invented those 12 ounce metal cans....he deserves a medal.....

CELEBRATE LIFE....

never to old to learn a new trick....

2008-11-17T21:16:00.003-05:00

as evidenced by the new additions to this rambling....the jeepjunkie learned something new this weekend.....the longrooffan has donated a lot of time in helping me learn this new function.....for now I have learned how to post videos on this accounting of my life.....thanks Jon-Jon.....the first was for me, but posted by you.
the second I learned how to on my own.....the third was when I called you.....thanks John

CELEBRATE LIFE..........

don't know if this is Heaven....but it ain't Iowa

2008-11-17T21:11:00.000-05:00

this one is for the oleragtop...hope you enjoy

2008-11-17T20:49:00.004-05:00

after a great weekend with the longrooffan...aka the oleragtop....this seems appropiate......
remember to always keep a warm blanket in the trunk....

Wonderful Days......

2008-11-16T20:56:00.006-05:00

as another weekend comes to a close I, as usual, can be found in my garage watching Sunday Night Football enjoying a cold beverage recounting the weekend's adventures...
spent Saturday am working while my wife took the kid's little sister and the kid to a softball tournement in Ocala Fla.....as Ocala is a short drive thru the woods to our west, my intent was to drive over to catch the afternoon games.....but the thought of fueling up two vehicles twice shut that idea down quickly......besides, I knew something would come up to occupy my time Saturday afternoon......a quick call to the longrooffan lined out the day......as you recall, the ragtop that he aquired needed a little work.....he got a great deal on this car and he did the really hard work himself....he switched the complete interior and the convertible top and did a fantastic job......but all that work was done a couple of weeks ago.....all that was left was repairing a faulty gasket on the intake manifold that had failed causing the vehicle to die at idle.....last week we spoke about completing the repair and looked up the labor time to see what we were getting into.....called for about three hours by factory authorized technicians......this kind of scared me because when you open the hood of this little rag top, there are vacuum hoses and sensor wires running everywhere......but then again, I think what the hell, we got a parts car and digital tecnology that enables us to photogragh an actual example......back to a Saturday in my garage....the longrooffan pulls his ragtop into the garage and opens the hood......five cigarettes, three diet cokes, one Bud Light, and two and a half hours later the car starts right up on the first crank......it idles a little rough as I can't remember where the last vacuum hose belonged.....know what's great about a complete, unmolested parts car.......ran across the bridge to get a molded hose off the parts car and while there found out where the loose vacuum hose belonged.....back in my garage the errant hose was installed and the little ragtop fired right up and ran great.......the horsefarmer would have been surprised......ole JD actually helped on this project......no sitting in his beach chair and watching......actually got his hands dirty....it helped that all of my chairs were in Ocala watching softball and his chair was in the Falcon Van at his place....no where for him to sit.....beat the time too.....of course it was nothing like the radiator change on the old Volvo.....I think that one took about 40 minutes.......of course that was right after the 24 Hours of Daytona so we were still operating on 24 hour race time......
okay so now it's early afternoon and one project is scratched off the list........
line two....I finally got the longrooffan to do some work......when we (me, unless you ask my wife) installed hardwood flooring in our house a couple of years ago there was no compensation made for the dryer vent......so after replacing the heater element twice in the past two years I finally sat down and thought about why...well the vent size was reduced by half because the dryer was farther off the ground......due to clearance issues the dryer fits almost flush againest the wall so repair options without cutting the exterior of the house were limited......it's good to have an oleconstruction worker around every so often......ideas were exchanged, a trip to our local harware store was made, and repairs were initiated......twenty minutes later the damn thing works like a champ.....and best of all.....no painting needed......can't see the repairs because the dryer hides it.......thanks JD.......
okay, scratch another line off the list........
back to the fun stuff.......the 'new, old' jeep needs some brake work......I had previously installed the new master cylinder and gravity bled the brakes......now I needed a warm body to help pump the brake pedal so I could bleed the brakes manually to get a brake pedal.....got the old jeep moved and the new jeep fired up and backed into the garage.....all the tools are laid out so no fumbling around a box looking for a the correct wrench.....and the bleeding commensed.......twenty minutes later we are cleaned up and ready for a test drive.....asked the loogrooffan if he was up for a run around the block......only question he had was "is this it's virgin run"......YEP.....this is it for the new old jeep......three trips around the block was what it took......wanted to hook it up behind the old jeep and take it for a test trail run but we'll save that one for when the kid is with us.......got back and put everything away........
so far so good.....great day doing fun stuff......and everything works.......
okay, scratch another line off the list......
pulled the old jeep into the garage next and tried to hook up the speaker lights......too hard, too late in the day to be bending over and under a non moveable interior so we will leave that job for the kid......spent several minutes going thru numerous storage containers looking for the right stuff to modify a light bulb to fit into the speedometer......gotta have at least one so you can see how fast you are going at night.....once again the longrooffan comes thru......seems electrical wire loom fits perfectly......then pulled the exhaust system off, just two bolts and a strap.......fixed the exhaust leak.....you know one of the wonderful things about a garage full of stuff, you can find all kinds of problem solvers......a small self tapping screw fixed that pin hole in the exhaust system......
so far so good.....the list is finished......everything works and a great time spent with good company........now it's time to sit back and watch some racing and pay tribute to the guy that invented 12 ounce aluminuim cans so we could enjoy a few cold adult beverages.....
somebody needs to give that guy a medal........
thanks John for helping me enjoy a great day........

and that was my Saturday......

woke up this Sunday am for a run thru the woods back to Ocala....seems the kid's sister's team had one more game to play this weekend....if the win on Saturday, they play again on Sunday in these games.....on Sunday it is one and done so it looked like it might be a short day at the ballfield....arrive at the ballfields in Ocala and at a glance can tell we are in 'God's Country'.....the horsefarmer would have felt better at home here than I.....the other side of the center field fence is a cattle pasture complete with grazing cattle.....woods outside the left field fence and the parking lot was cut from a pine forest....well the kid's sister's team won their first game on a home run hit by the kid's sister in the top of the last inning....tie game and she starts off the inning with an inside the park homerun...
her hit woke up some bats and by the time the inning was over 6 more batters crossed homeplate.....when she came up again in the inning I think she was tired and just wanted the game over because she hit a blooper to first to end the inning...she started it so I guess she could end it....well one win on Sunday and you have a double header to play......didn't fair real well in the second game....played againest a team from Jacksonville that was very well coached and had a fantastic pitcher....this kid had a changeup that some of our players are still trying to hit as I am writing this....so we finished third.....at least a podium finish.....got back to the house late this afternoon.....cleaned the big white truck and the kid and I took another spin around the neighborhood in the new jeep.....gotta do some more work on the brakes as the pedal fell off completely....oh well, that's why we buy old cars.....gives us something to do on weekends......

CELEBRATE LIFE.........