When It's Time To Go.....

It Was Most Definatly One Of Those You Had To Be Here Kind Of Story's.
It Was About 5:00am And My Grandson Was Sleeping Overnight This Past Christmas Vacation From School. It Was One Of My Usual Wake Up Nature Calls, And Before I Reached The Bathroom I Could Hear The Grandson Using It. I Backed Up A Few Feet Giving Him His Privacy So He Could Finish Up And Go Back To Bed. As I Stood There For About A Minute Listening To This Little 6 Year Old Boy Urinate, Crossing My Legs And Pacing The Floor Was Just Not Enough!
Either He Was Going To Share The Space Or Pappy Was In Trouble. No Way Could A Little Boy Go On For That Long! I Walked Into The Bathroom Only To Find Out The Water Faucet In The Sink Was Left On.
I'll Make Sure The Next Time Beano Sleeps Over At Pappy And Nanny's House He Is Told Not To Turn On The Water!

My Friendly Furry Friends.......

I Have Not Advanced Any Further In My Search For A Furry Companion. There Will Be A Time When I Will Someday Find The Right Pet. In The Meantime I Have Decided To Befriend A Squirrel. I Guess Maybe I Should Say Squirrel(s).
I'm Not Certain As To Why I Have So Many Squirrels In My Neighborhood Unless It's Because They Stay Away From The Main Road And Don't Become Road Kill.
Never The Less I Have An Abundance Of The Little Furry Things!
I Received Something For Christmas That Came With A Stipulation. It Was A Squirrel Feeder. A Friend Of Ours Has One But Her Yard Is Full Of Corn Stalks. The Little Boogers Like To Bury The Corn. Sooo The Stipulation Is I Only Feed Them In The Winter Months. I Agreed And Now Everybody Will Be Happy. I Purchased A New 4x4 Post To Mount The Corn Feeder Onto. I Took Advantage Of An Unusual Warm December Day To Dig The Hole So I Could Bury The Post. It's A Rather Small Feeder. It Has A Small Perch For The Furry Critter To Sit On While He Or She Is Gnawing Away At The Corn On The Cob.
It has Been Sitting There For A Few Days Now And No Squirrel. I Placed It Directly In Front Of My Bedroom Window So I Can Watch It While I Am At The Computer. Unfortunately It's Located On The Side Of My Home Where There Are No Tree's.
It Is In My Back Yard Where The Critters Tease Our Little Dog. We Have A Yorkshire Terrier Who Enjoys Chasing Them In The Back Yard. The Squirrels However Enjoy The Teasing Of Our Beloved Dog. Instead Of Running Up The Tree To Sit On A Limb The Squirrel Runs Around The Trunk Of The Tree. So Our Dog(Alaya) Continues To Run Around And Around This Tree.
So How Do I Let The Squirrels Know I Have This New Feeder For Them? Today I Decided To Bait Them. I Placed A Small Pile Of Corn Near The Tree. I Then Started Dropping A Kernel Here And There Which Leads To The New Feeder. I Hope They Will Catch On Because I Have About 50 Pounds Of Kernel Corn Ready To Go.
COME AND GET IT!

Twas The Night Before Christmas.....

And All Through The House....Nah That's A Different Story.
How About Your Christmas Past? Is There A Memorable One? Is There One That Stands Out More Than Another?
There Were Plenty Of Memories Of Christmas Past While Growing Up. I Grew Up In A Large Family Where There Were Plenty Of Activities Every Christmas Morning.
I Would Have To Say That The Christmas That Stands Out The Most For Me Is The Christmas of 1969.
I Was Only 14 Years Old At The Time. I Was At The Age Where Hanging With My Friends, Playing Sports And Ofcourse Girls Were The Norm.
I Have No Idea Of The Gift I Received That Year From My Parents. No Matter What The Gift Was Or Even The Value Of The Gift, It Would Never Come Close To The Gift I Received That Year From An "Old" Friend.
Her Name Was Emma Clifton, But I Always Called Her Grandma Clifton. She Lived Alone In A Dilapidated House That Looked Deserted And Abandoned. Even Though She Had Family, They Were Either Too Busy Or Never Cared Enough To Visit Her On A Regular Basis. I Befriended This Lady By Helping Her As Much As I Could. She Was 83 Years Old And Was Too Weak To Go Into The Basement To Put Coal In Her Furnace.
I Found Myself Getting Up At 5:30 Every Morning In The Winter Months To Fire Up Her Furnace Before I Got Myself Ready For School.
Christmas Of 1969 Will Always Have A Special Memory For Me Because Of Grandma Clifton. On Christmas Eve We Decorated A Small Tree And Sang A Couple Well Known Carols That You Never Seem To Forget.
On Christmas Day I Proudly Carried My Gift To Grandma's House, Along With A Plate Full Of Christmas Dinner Prepared By My Mother.
The Moon Landing Was A Big Deal That Year And It Seemed That Was What Everybody Was Talking About. Grandma Clifton Didn't Own A Television Set So She Never Had The Opportunity To Watch The Landing Like Alot Of Us Did. That Year I Gave Her A Model Of Apollo 11 And Neil Armstrong With The American Flag.
With Her Toothless Smile As She Thanked Me, It Melted My Heart. A Tear Rolled Down Her Cheek That Day And It Disturbed Me Deeply. She Told Me She Didn't Have Anything To Give Me. I Took her Frail Hands And Told Her I Never Expected A Gift From Her. So Why The Tears I Asked? She Told Me How Lucky She Was To Have A Person Who Really Cared To Spend Christmas Day With A Lonely Old Lady.
I Will Never Forget The Joy She Had On Her Face That Day. I Knew It Would Last A Lifetime For Me. It's As Vivid To Me As If It Happened Just Yesterday.
Even Though It Has Been Memories Ago, The Feeling It Brings To Me Today Is That Of Gratitude And Thankfulness And Sharing.
The Lessons That Life Brings To Us Can Never Be Found In A Text Book.
Each Year On Christmas Eve I Always Remember That Special Day In 1969. There Are Other Grandma Clifton's Out There Someplace And It's Our Duty To Spread The Love, The Joy, And The Giving Of Ourselves.
Happy Birthday Jesus!

A Christmas Miracle?

I Rarely Speak Of My Passions In Life Primarily Because I Have Traditionally Kept Alot Of My Private Life In A Low Key. I Despise The Spot Light Because There Are So Many People In This World Who Deserve Recognition For So Many Different Achievements.
By Admission, Poverty Stricken People Are My Weakness In Life.
Those Who Live In Poverty Are No Different Than Anyone Else. Let's Face It, There Has Always Been Poverty Since The Beginning Of Time And There Always Will Be.
We Can Choose To Ignore Them And Look The Other Way Or We Can Do Our Annual Obligation By Dropping A Few Coins In The Red Bucket At Christmas Time.
Personally I Don't Need The Calendar To Dictate To Me When I Should Spread Goodwill Toward Mankind.
For The Past Several Year I Have Been Acquainted With A Family Who Have Been Living In Poverty. However For The Past Year This Family Has Been Without Running Water. This All Came To Be After The City Of Danville "Traded" Homes With This Family. Without Going Into A Bunch Of Details The Long Story Short Is Briefly After The City Gave The Home To This Family The Water Bills Began Arriving. First It Was More Than A 100.00 After A Week In Their New Home. The Next Month It Was Over 400.00. Ofcourse This Bill Was An Outrage And They Went Directly To The Water Company. Water Officials Informed Them They Must Have A Leak Someplace. Well, DUH!
This Family Lived In A Flood Plain And The House They Moved Into Was Going To Be Demolished Unless It Was Brought Back Up To Code. Ofcourse This Family Appreciates What The City Of Danville Had Done For Them But This Issue With The Water Bills Were Becoming Unbearable. These Bills Continued To Rise Which Resulted To The Water Company Shutting The Service Off. With No Visible Signs Of A Leak In Either Inside The residence Or Out This Family Was Totally Dumbfounded.
This Family Has Relatives Who Live In One Of The Southern States So They Decided To Live With Them Through The Winter Months. After Returning Back To Danville They Were Aware Living Without Running Water Would Be A Challenge. One Of The First Things To Greet This Family Home Was Another Bill From The Water Company Yet For An Even Higher Amount Owed. This Amount Accumulated While Their Service Was Disconnected.
As An Advocate For Poverty Stricken Families I Advised This Family To Approach The Water Company To See If Their Was An Agreement That Could Be Worked Out. Unfortunately All They Are Interested In Is Payment In Full. They Pleaded To The Mayor Of Danville Who Felt The City Had Done All They Could For This Family.
The Conversations I Have Had With The Mayor Was Fruitless. He Told Me It Was His Opinion This Family Wanted Someone To Pay Their Bills! This Could Not Be Further From The Truth! I Became Outraged After That Remark And This Made Me Determined To Do Whatever I Could To Resolve This Matter. Shortly Before This Past Election In Early November I Thought Maybe By Making It A Political Issue I May Get Better Results. A Popular Representative From The Danville Area Was Seeking Re-Election And I Felt Maybe A Feather In His Cap Could Help His Campaign. He Took Offense To My Maneuvers And Considered It An Insult By The Suggestion. So Much For Politics!
Since The Election This Family Still Remains Without Water. I'm Sorry Folks But I Just Cannot Help But Think Of This Family Everytime I turn On My Water. Everytime I Wash My Clothes And Everytime I Bathe. I Cannot Get This Out Of My Mind.
I Have Only One Hope Left And That Is A Christmas Angel. I Have Been In Contact With One Of The Local Television Station Who Had Done A Story About Our Organization Months Earlier When We Were Trying To Purchase A Building For Our Organization From The City.
My Last Conversation I Had With The Mayor Of Danville I Was Told He Thought It Was Unfair To This Family By Having A News Story Of Their Personal Life Broadcasted For All To Know. HUH? What Do They Have To Lose? I Have Not Done Anything To Embarrass This Family. I Have Been In Constant Contact With Them And They Have Been Aware Of Every Step I Had Taken With This Matter.
My Last Hope Is A Christmas Angel. An Angel Who Will Be Touched By This Wonderful Family. This Family Is Unable To Help Themselves Out Of This Situation. Hopefully After A Plea To The Community About This Family A Christmas Miracle Will Happen. Just In Time For Christmas, With The Media's Help, Maybe This Family's Nightmare Will Soon Be Over.
I Will Keep You All Informed If Anything Happens.
If Nothing Else Happens, Let It Be A Reminder That Poverty Is Not A Dirty Word. It's A Reality Of Life And Unless We Decide To Make A Difference In Someone's Life Then You Are The One Who Is Missing Out On The Gratification You Receive From It.

Happy Birthday To Danville Natives Son.

Happy Birthday Dick! 12-13-25=83

When A Door Closes......

I'm Sure Many Of You Have Heard The Old Expression When A Door Closes Another One Opens. Have You Experienced This Before In Your Life?
Recently I Have And I Want To Talk About It Briefly In My Blog. We Tend To Treat Each Day As If It Is Any Ordinary Day. At Times We Take For Granted Of The Things We Have In Our Lives. Some Think Things Will Never Change And Stay As It Has Always Been. I Have Found That My Life Here On Earth Is Always Changing Whether I Want It To Or Not. Not Everyday Is The Same.
Nearly 20 Years Ago I Had People Tell Me I Should Do It This Way Or That Way But I Was Pretty Much Set In My Ways And Wanted To Do It My Way. The Only Way I Knew At That Time. It Took A Mans Death For Me To See Things In A Different Perspective. I Guess Maybe When Somebody Says There Is A Reason For Everything But Yet We Don't Know What That May Be Until Sometime Later.
Fast Forward 20 Years And I Am Faced With A Different Challenge. It's A Challenge I Have Little Doubt That I Will Overcome. Yet I Want To Be Sure It's Done In The Correct Manner, Where It Will Have A Lasting Effect On The Lives Of Many.
I May From Time To Time Ask Opinions From Just The Ordinary Joe, So I Can Get A General Idea How The Average Person Feels About Ordinary Everyday Issues We Face As Human Beings.
I Say Human Beings Because I Mean Just That. We Have Rich People And We Have Poor. We Have Older People And We Have Younger. We Have A Variety Of Races As Well As A Variety Of Religions. The Decisions I Make Some Day May Have An Effect On Someones Life Which I May Or May Not Even Be Aware Of.
That's Why The Decisions I Make Here In The Next Few Months Will Have An Everlasting Impact On Lives Years From Now.
Life Is Somewhat Like A Book. As You Turn The Page It Allows You To Feel Anticipation For Things To Come. As You Enter A New Chapter It Gives You New Prospectives And Fresh Idea's.
Ofcourse There Will Be Times When I Will Say I Should Have Done It This Way Or I Should Have Said It That Way. This Is Why It's Important To Surround Yourself With Wise People In All Walks Of Life. To Give You Input In Areas Where You Are Not That Knowledgeable. You Can Never Have Too Many Good Brains.
So, For Those Who Have Not Yet Figured It Out I recently Had A Door Close. What I Choose To Do About It May Have A Lasting Effect On So Many People. This I Believe Is Opportunity Knocking. I Feel It's My Duty To Open A New Door. Those Who Follow Me Through That Door Will Be Embraced By Love, Kindness And Generosity. I Am A Firm Believer That If You Are Unable To Give These Things You Are Not Worthy Enough To Receive It.
I Have Been Fortunate To Be On Both Sides Of The Fence. I Have Given To Others Freely And I Have Also Been Given To. As I Sit Here In Remembrance Of Those Two Sides I find It Difficult To Describe Which Meant The Most Or Had The Biggest Impact On My Life.
Even Though I Have Been Giving For So Many Years And Seen All The Good That Has Come From It I Also Get The Satisfaction With The Humbling Experience When I Know The World Is Still So Giving. Giving. Everybody Has Something To Give. You Don't Have To Be A Rich Person To Give To Another. If You Can't Give A Material Item Then Give Of Yourself. Share One Of Life's Experiences To A Young Person. Go Out And Take A Photograph Of Something Beautiful And Share What It Means To Someone Who Is Blind.
Read To A Child. Hold The Hand Of Someone Who Has Nobody Still Living In Their Family. Assure Them They Are Not Alone.
Experience Every Season God Has Given The Earth.
When All Else Fails Tell All Your Problems To A Dog. I Have Found That To Be Both Therapeutic As Well As Confidential.
I Want To Wish All My Friends And Family A Wonderful Thanksgiving Even Though It Should Be Celebrated All 12 Months Of The Year.
I Am Most Thankful For.....

Faceoff At The Pharmacy

Today's Encounter At The Pharmacy Was Just A Speckle In Time When It Comes To My Many Opinions Of The Pharmacutical Empires. Today Is Not The Day For Me To Shout Out To The World My Feelings Of Unjust cost To The Consumers. Big Business And Pharmacutical Company's Report Record Profits! I Will Save It For A Different Day.
Today I Went To Pick Up Billie's Prescription At Walmart. Her Medicines Usually Cost About 4.00. After Telling The Clerk The Name She Went To Retrieve The Meds. When She Returned She Informed Me I Had To Sign The Little Box Then Hit Enter So It Will Show I Payed The Co-Payment. I Told Her I Didn't Have Insurance. She Looked At Me In Disgust As If It Was My Fault I Didn't Tell Her This First! Hmm, Well Anyway After This Remark It Became Apparent To Me Why She Thought This Would Be Charged On Insurance.
The Clerk Looked At Me And Told Me It Would Be 4$?.00. I Looked At Her And Said, WHAT? She Then Leaned Forward And Said In A Much Louder Tone, The Amount is 4$?.00.
I Said, Yea, Yea, I Can Hear Just Fine Mam, I Was Just Startled At The Amount You Had Just Given Me. I Told Her I'm Not Going To Pay That Rediculous Price!
I Did Pay For My Crackers At The Pharmacy.
It's Funny How We Etch Certain Things In Our Minds Of Importance. I Will Always Remember The Clerks Words Coming From Her Mouth In Slow Motion...4$?.00. That Clerk Won't Even Remember Me Tomorrow...Go Figure.

Yep, It's Bowling Season Once Again!

I Have Found That By Getting Older, My Ability To Participate In Sports Continue To Decline. Bowling Had Always Been My Favorite Sport To Participate In. I Wish I Had Started Practicing At An Earlier Age. The Sport Of Bowling Is Not A Physically Challenging Endurance For Me. I Find Myself Getting Frustrated Because I Usually Excel At Most Of The Things I Face. The Sport Of Bowling In My Opinion Is A Mind Over Matter Type Of Finesse.
This Season Started Off Differently For Me Because Of An Abrupt Change In Equipment.
I Had Been Bowling With A Conventional Ball And Decided To Switch To Fingertip. Had I Made This Change In Mid Summer It Would Not Have Effected My League Average. It Took Me A Good Three Weeks To Just Get The Hang Of This All New To Me Kind Of Release. If Given The Opportunity To Do It Over Again I Would Have Got Acquainted With It Long Before The Winter League Started. I Believe My League Average Would Be Much Higher Than It Is, Because Of Those Weeks I Did Poorly Due To Me Not Having A Clue To Where My Ball Would Be Traveling.
With All That Behind Me Now All I Can Do Is Focus On Helping My Team Create Wins. The Team I Bowl On Have all The Ingredients Of Becoming A Very Talented Team. With The Season Still Young, Anything Can Happen. Presently Our Team Is 10 Games Out Of First Place. League play Is 35 Weeks Long. We Just Bowled Our 12th Week.
I Take My Game Seriously And I Play To Win. I Try To Practice As Much As I Can So I Can Become A Better Bowler.
I Think This New Ball Of Mine Gives Me Hope For Better Games In The Future. I Set A Goal For Me To End The Season With A Minimum Of A 170 Average. Next Season My Goal Would Be Much Higher.
My Father Continues To Bowl And I Am Honored To Be On His Team. My Mother Saw Her Season Cut Short For Health Reasons.
I Serve As President Of The Bowling League. I Am One Of The Youngest Members Who Bowl On The Senior League.
I Have Met Some Wonderful People On This League. It Has Also Led Me To Reinstate Old Friendships With People From My Past.
I Love The Game And Hope I Can Bowl For As Long As My Health Allows It.
Oh Yea, My Bowling Idol Is None Other Than Walter Ray Williams Jr. He Will Go Down In History As The Best Bowler Ever In The Sport Of Bowling.
I Have Watched Walter Ray Compete In Tournament Play In Indianapolis Every Year. I Also Watched Him Pitch Horseshoes. He Has Won Several Events In That Sport As Well.
What Makes Him Stand Out More Than Any Other? He Is A Hall Of Fame Bowler With His Right Hand And A Champion Horseshoe Pitcher With The Left Hand. How Can You Not Respect The Ability To Achieve Greatness In Two Different Sports Using Opposite Hands?
As For Me, I Will Continue To Bowl My Best Game. I Will Continue To Stockpile The Memories Of My Father And I Bowling Together. Not Very Many People Have That Opportunity. My Brother Tuck Began Bowling Again Last Season Where He Lives In San Diego. He Will Be Joining Our League Once He Retires And Relocates In Danville. Of course He And I Have A Friendly Wager On Who Ends The Season With The Highest Average. There Is No Doubt In My Mind Who Will Be In The Victory Circle In The Springtime. I Wish You Good Luck Bro!

What Makes You Blog?

Really, What Makes You Blog? I Enjoy Reading Other People's Blogs And Believe Me You I Have Read Some Doozies!
I Promised Myself When I Started Blogging I Would Always Try To Maintain A Positive Attitude While Blogging. As A Matter Of Fact I No Longer Enjoy Reading Blogs That Are Not Positive.
The World Is Depressing Enough Without Adding More Drama From Someone Else's Life. I Could Care Less If Johnny Cannot Get Along With Sally, Or Jimmy Called Billy A Dirty Name. Let Me Spell It Out For You. IF YOU WRITE NEGATIVE BLOGS, DON'T EXPECT ME TO CONTINUE READING THEM! Now Was That Spelled Out Well Enough For You To Understand?
I Think Most Of Us Have Things Going On In Our Lives That Feel Disturbing. Maybe It Is Therapeutic For You To Write It Down And Get It Out Of Your System. I Have Always Tried To Exclude Myself From Any Type Of Behavior Nonsense. Distancing Myself From The Drama Allows Me Inner Peace Which Is What I Desire From Life.
Do I Care If You Like Me? Well Certainly I Do. However I Don't Evolve Myself To Making That The Most Important Goal For My Day. If You Choose Not To Like Me Then So Be It. Will You Find Me Trying To Convince That Person How Good Of A Person That I Really Am? No.
Take Me For Who I Am Today. If You Don't Like What You See Then Life Goes On. I Will Assure You I Will Lose Very Little Sleep Wondering Why You Don't Care For Me. Either You Do Or Don't.
When I Blog, Hopefully You Will Read An Inspiring Happening In My Journey Of Life. If I Feel The Need To Write My Most Inner Thoughts I Will Go Buy Me A Diary And Jot Them Down And Keep It Under My Pillow At Night.
My Point To All Of This Is To Tell You That By Reading Negative Blogs, One After Another Leaves Most To Wonder What Kind Of A Person You Really Are. To Be Quite Honest About It I Find It Rather Pathetic And Childish.
Why Not Try To Be Creative And Be Joyful In The Things You Write?
Please Don't Bring Your Negative Attitude Into My Space. I Try To Live In Tranquility. Please Have Respect For That.
So Am I Talking About You? Does The Shoe Fit?

April-October/ Nothing Else Matters

I Call It My Last Chapter Of The Season. It's Late October And The Weather Is Changing. The Fall Leaves Have Turned Color And Have Been Falling To The Ground.
All Of My "Top Secret" Ice Cream Stops Have Closed For The Season. Mikes Chill, The Custard Cup, And Hillary's Famous Dairy Barn Are Gone For The Winter. Dairy Queen Bob Is Calling It A Wrap For The Season Tomorrow. I Haven't Seen A Robin In A Couple Of Weeks. The First Of Next Week Danville Will Get It's First Frost Of The Season.
My Favorite Season Is Anytime Between April Through October. The Rest Of The Months Are Considered My Hibernation. This Stage Of My Life Is When I Start Putting On All The Pounds That Took The Entire Summer To Lose.
I Have Pretty Much Counted Out My Favorite Fridays Down At The Old Square For This Year. I Assumed Since The First Of The Weeks Lows Were Below Freezing Putting Frost On The Pumpkin, Old Man Winter Is Just Around The Corner.
I Guess That's What I Get For Assuming, Eh?
I Have Two Days I Look Forward To In The Winter Months. Sundays Are The Day Shorty And I Get Our Euchre Lessons. You Would Think We Would Get It All Figured Out By Now.
Thursday Is The Day I Enjoy The Most! It's Bowling Day! I Bowl With Alot Of Old Folks Including My Father Who Is My Teams Captain. I Think They All Decided To Elect Young When The Voted For President At Last Years Bowling Banquet When They Decided To Let Me Play President For A Year. On The Senior League Anything Can Change In The Blink Of An Eye. Always Expect The Unexpected.
This Will Be Our First Winter In Our New Home. We Fired Up The Furnace Just Last Week. It Appears I Have More Area To Shovel Snow. Oh Wow, I'm Thrilled.
Please Tell Me April Follows December And It Will Make My Day.

It's Been So Long....

I Make No Apolagies For The Absense Of My Blogs. Yes I Know It's Been Awhile Since I Last Posted A Blog. I Have My Reasons And They Happen To Be Personal.
As Most Of My Blog Readers Are Aware I Try To Always Be Positive In All My Writings.
I Haven't As Yet Shared Too Much Of My Personal Life But Maybe Someday That Is Forthcoming. In The Meantime My Intentions Are To Once Again Continue My Blogs In A More Timely Fashion.
I Have Much To Share Since My Last Writings. Stay Tuned.....

Searching For A Loving Companion

It Has Been Awhile Since I Shared The Passing Of Mr Bear. I'm Sure Those Who Read My Words Felt My Pain. I Had My Moment Of Grief And Now I Must Move On.
Recently I Have Been Watching The Greatest American Dog Contest Every Wednesday Night On CBS. It's Basically On The Same Format As Big Brother But You Compete As Couples. A Couple Is Evicted At The Conclusion OF Each Show. Those Who Had The Weakest Performance In Competition Are Subject To Be Eliminated. The English Bulldog Whose Name Was Tillman Brought Back Alot Of Memories When I Once Shared My Life With An English Bulldog Named Ugly. Watching Tillman Ride On A Skateboard Was Amusing In Every Sense Of The Word.
I Am Ready To Commit Myself To A Four Legged Companion. I Would Enjoy Having Another English Bulldog. HOWEVER, All My Internet Searches Have Landed Me In The Minimum Price Rage Of 1,400.00. Maybe Rich Folks Don't Bat An Eye When It Comes To Price. This May Be True But It's Really Too Rich For My Blood. In My Opinion If The Common Folks Were To Agree On A Dog's Worth The Starting Prices Will Lower. In The Meantime I Will Continue My Search For A Four Legged Buddy.
I Try To Be A Patient Person With This Being No Exception.

Bird Man From Danville?

I Have Always Had The Desire To Be A Bird For The Day. Err I Mean Shortly After Breakfast, If You Know What I Mean. I Know The Early Bird Get's The Worm And That's Why I'd As Soon Skip The Worm Thing.
No ,For Real! On Many Occasions I Would Watch Birds Fly Around The Skies With All Their Manuevering Around Obstacles Never Missing A Beat. The Flight Of A Bird Is So Free-Like, Giving Me A Peaceful Feeling Of Freedom. Not A Care In The World As A Bird Darts In And Out Of Natural Or Otherwise Maze Or Near-Like Illusions.
Yes If I Could Be A Bird For The Day I Would Choose To Be A Robin. I Would Enjoy Migrating Into A Tropical Region Annually. I Would Be The Last One To Arrive And The First One To Leave. I Don't Like Snow So That Would Mean I Would Come Home To Illinois About Mid April. Just About Time For Mushroom Season. Mushroom Season You Ask? Yes I Believe All Things Are Possible. Do You Think For A Moment That Only Humans Hunt Mushrooms In The Woods? I'm Not Saying Birds Eat Them But It Could Be Possible. I Do Honestly Believe That Deer Eat Mushrooms. What Bothers Me Most About That Is The Deer Will Remember How Good That Mushroom Tasted. Before You Know It All The Deer Will Be Eating The Mushrooms Leaving None For Us Humans. Ok I will Hold Off On That Discussion For Another Time.
Back On The Topic At Hand. Yes I Would Enjoy Being A Bird For The Day. If You Haven't Before I Hope You Do Someday Take Out A Moment Of Your Day And Watch The Birds. What A Peaceful Feeling It Is..........

I Wear Clothes Because I Have To....???...

Am I For Real?
Well, Yea, Sort Of. I Guess This Is The Time I Tell On Myself. I'm Not Sure Whether I Have Fully Disclosed My True Character Or Just Maybe Some Of It.
Anyway, This Blog Is About Fashion. Maybe I Will Give You A Different Prospective On The "Dress Code".
The Dress Code I Am Referring To Is My Own. I Have None!
I Judge A Person For How They Present Themselves To Me And NOT How they Are Dressed. I Was Once Told That You Can Tell Alot About A Person By Looking At Their Shoes. Their Shoes? You Would Have To Look Down! I Don't Or Shall I Say Refuse To Believe Such Nonsense.
I Look Into A Person Heart As They Talk. I Listen To Their Concerns. I Feel Their Desire To Make A Difference.
How A Person Is Dressed Bares No Reflection On The Character Of Their Soul.
Most Of The Ones Who Know Me Best Know I Should Be The Best Dressed Man In Danville.
If I Chose To I Could Wear Brand Named Clothing Sporting Shoes That Would Turn The Heads Of Many.
My Appearance Is The Least Of My Concerns. I May Look At Myself Once In The Morning To Make Sure I Have No Popcorn Kernels Wedged In My Teeth From The Night Before. Other Than My Daily Routine Of Grooming, That Would Probably Be My Only Self Sighting I Would Encounter In A 24 Hour Time Period.
Ever Hear The Saying Never To Judge A Book By It's Cover? I Would Have To Say They Had Me In Mind When They Said That!
I Am At My Best In Blue Jeans And A Pullover. I'm Out To Impress No One.
The Kicked Back Feeling Pleases Me Best.

Before?

Not Quite, But I Sure Felt Like It!
It Must Be A Tradition With Me Year In And Year Out. I Put It On Then Take It Off. It's My Weight I Am Referring To.
I Weighed Myself In April And It Was An Easy Number To Remember. On 4-21 I Weighed 214. Ofcourse My Summer Gig Had Just Got Started. I Found Another Notch On My Belt That I Never Dreamed I Would Be Using. Am I Happy? Yea I'm Glad I Lost 20 Pounds Because I Can Move About Alot Easier Now That I Am Not Carrying An Additional Amount Of Weight. I Think What Bothers Me Most Is I Really Can't See On My Body Where I Have Lost The Weight.
For Those Who Knows Me The Best Are Aware Of My Buldging Belly. I Was Kind Of Hoping To Lose Some Of That! No Such Luck!
Life At 194 Is Much Better Than 214. According To My Heighth Chart I Should Weigh About 170 Pounds. If That Is Correct Then I Have Another 24 Pounds To Lose.
To Be Honest About It Quitting Smoking Led To My Weight Gain. Those Who Know Me Best Can Vouch For That. I Had Been Skinny Most Of My Life. I Weighed Between 130-135 Pounds Since I Was In High School. I Entered The Navy Weighing 132 Pounds.
I'm Not Into These Weight Loss Programs. I Think It's A Good Thing For Those Who Seek A Social Gathering Looking To Reach The Same Goal.
I Will Continue Doing What I Have Been Doing And Hopefully I Will Lose Some More Weight. I Think However The First 20 Was The Easiest. It's Quite Obvious The 20 Pounds I Need To Lose Is In My Midsection.
Maybe I Can Lose A Little There If I Do A Few AB Excersizes. I Just Hope I Don't Put All That Weight Back On This Coming Winter. It's So Hard On Me In The Month Of April When My Season Starts And Mushrooms Begin To Pop Up. I Try Walking Throughout The Winter Months To Help Keep The Weight Off. Even If I Don't Achieve My Goal, Atleast I Am Consious Of It. If I Didn't Care, My Weight Would Increase Which Would Make It More Difficult To Take Off. My Biggest Reason Why I Need To Keep Fit Is Because Of What I Do In The Warmer Months. This Is My Livihood And This Is Where I Get My Inner Peace. It's Important To Me To Continue What I Have Been Doing The Past 22 Years.
So This Is My Personal Challenge That Nobody Can Do But Me. From Here On Out It Will Be More Difficult To Lose The Weight Where I Need To Lose It The Most.
It Would Please Me If I Was Able To Be The Weight I Am Suppose To Be. However I Won't Allow It To Become An Obbsession Where I Don't Enjoy All The Good Things In Life.
I Guess Art Linkletter Said It Best. You Can Eat All The Foods You Want But In Smaller Portions. Now Don't Quote Me To Be Exact Yet The Meaning Is The Same. So If It's Ice Cream You Like? Instead Of That Medium Size, Ask For The Small. You Can Have Your Cake And Eat It Too!

Not An Average Day At Madison Square

This Friday Morning Didn't Start Off Like I Had Planned. First Off There Was No Rain In The Forcast Until Late Friday Night Or Possibly Saturday Morning. No Mention Of Any Rain In The Area On Thursday Night Nor Anytime During The Day On Friday.
There Had Been Days In The Past When It Has Rained On Me At Madison Square When It Was Not In The Forcast. A Very Good Piece Of Advice From Billie Was When She Asked Me How Much Room That Barrel Of Plastic Tarps Would Take In That Big Ol Truck Of Mine. From That Moment On I Had Always Included It With All The Other "Stuff" I Carted Down To The Square On Friday Mornings.
On My Way Out The Door Just Before 4:00 Am It Was Sprinkling Ever So Softly. Puddles Up And Down My Roadway. I Knew What Was Waiting For Me Down At The Church Parking Lot. It Took Me Close To 30 Minutes To Sweep Out The Puddles So I Could Set Up The Tables. It Was No Longer Raining And The Sky Appeared Clear Even Though It Was Difficult To Tell For Sure Since It Was Still Dark.
After Customers Began Pouring In I Began Talking To My Regulars About This And That Or Whatever Came To Mind. I Began Noticing Change On The Ground Throughout The Parking Lot. A Quarter Here, A Dime There and So Forth. I Began A Small Collection Of Coins. I Then Thought To Myself Some Dumbass Must Have A Hole In His Pocket As I Continue Picking Up Change Here And There.
It Didn't Take Me Long Before I Realized That Dumbass Was ME! I Have Always Carried My Change In One Pocket With The Bills In The Other. Change Of Routine Has Always Been So Difficult For Me With Today Being No Exception.
I Reached The Point Where I Was Accustomed To Having A Big Breakfast Catered To Me Each Friday Morning By My Dear Ol Dad. However This Particular Friday He Left For A Extra Long Weekend Getaway. I Knew This So I Stopped At County Market Before I Went To The Square. I Got A Couple Snack Cakes And Hoped That Would Tide Me Over Until I Got Home In The Evening.
As I Mentioned This To A Friend Of Mine He Returned With A Breakfast From McDonalds.
It Seemed My Day Wouldn't Be So Bad Afterall. It Must Pay To Have Good Friends Afterall. Speaking Of Friends, I Was Surprised By A Forum Friend I Had Never Met Before. Granny 7 Introduced Herself With Her Husband Grampy At Her Side. It Was My Pleasure In Finally Meeting Them Because We Have Been Participating In Various Forums The Past Few Years. Shortly After They Left They Returned With Store Bought Snickerdoodles. He Handed Them To Me And Assured Me The Real Thing Would Come My Way Next Time She Was In The Baking Mood. What A Wonderful Person Or Shall I Say People!
It Just Warmed My Heart!
As The Day Progressed Into The Afternoon The Pastor Of The Church Came To Visit Me To Be Sure I Was Aware That It Had Been Raining In Champaign And It Was Heading In Our Direction. I Immediately Called Billie To Have Her Watch The Radar. She Confirmed What The Pastor Told Me. I Began Packing Things Away So I Could Get Out Of There. On A Normal Day It Takes Me 2 1/2 Hours To Get Out Of There. Put Rain Into The Picture And Ofcourse It Delays It Considerably.
All In All It Never Did Rain Before The Normal Time For Me To Call It Quits. Ofcourse It Could Have And That's Why I Have Good Friends That Look After Me. The Minister Drove All The Way From The Hegeler Area Just To Warn Me. He Went That Extra Mile Because He Cares. With The High Price Of Gasoline That It Is, It Takes An Extra Special Person To Go Out Of Their Way For A Friend.
So I Guess Friday(7-11) Was A Rather Lucky Day For Me. Not Only Was It My Grandson's Birthday But My Brother As Well.
So Today In Reflection Of Yesterday I Count My Blessing For The Friends That I Have And Those Special People Who Go Out Of Their Way Just Because They Care.
The Day Was Priceless!

A Tribute To My Brother Tuck

Today Is My Brother's 55th Birthday. Right Here In Danville Illinois A Son Was Born To Harvey And Shirley Miller. This Historic Event Came On July 5th In The Year Of 1953. Their First Child Was Born The Day After The Fourth Of July.
The United States Celebrates Tuck's Birthday The Day Before So We All Remember Why We Celebrate The 5th Of July.
Tuck And I Growing Up At 713 Had Some Memorable Happenings. I Could Never Compete With Tuck Academically So I Chose Physical Challenges. Footraces From The House To The Corner Which Calculated To Be One Half Block.
Baseball Was The Sport I Excelled In And Tuck Was No Match. However I Always Looked Up To Tuck In Every Way. I Looked At Tuck As Paving The Way For Me And Being There Before I Came Along. Since He Expierenced It Before I Did, He Could Always Give Me A Firsthand Opinion Before It Came To Me.
When Tuck Graduated High School He Left Home And Joined The Navy. I Would Say At That Moment In Time I Had The Most Admiration For Him.
I Did Not Apply Myself In School So When The Time Arrived For Me To Join The Navy, I Did.
Tuck Showed Me The Way As Well As My Brother Mark.
Throughout The Years, My Observations Of Tuck Has Been An Honest, Down To Earth, Friend To Many, God Fearing Man. His Love For His Hometown Of Danville Is An Understatment.
We Are Thankful For Having Tuck In Our Lives. We Could Have Easily Lost Him On 6-6-06. I Feel God Spared Him So He Can Complete His Mission Here On Earth.
I Am Proud To Call Him My Brother, But He Is Also My Friend.
Happy Birthday Tuck!

We Are Lucky To Be Alive........

I'm Curious Of The Depth Others View The Human Body. In Actuality The Formation Of Our Bodies In My Opinion Is The Creation Of God.
I Sure Do Alot Of Thinking While I Mow Grass. I Can't Begin To Tell You How Many Times I Have Had Mowers Repaired. Most Of The Times It Is A Problem With The Carburetor. I Call It The Heart Of The Mower. The Mower, The Automobile Or Whatever You Want To Name That Is Man Made May Be Complexed, But Can Be Replaced Or Duplicated.
The Human Body Can Break Down Just Like The Mower Or Automobile Yet The Longevity Of Either Are Limited. Today, Providing You Take Care Of Your Body Can Live To Be 100 Years Old. Have You Heard Anybody Brag About Mowing Their Grass With A 100 Year Old Lawnmower? How About Driving An 1908 Automobile?
My Point Is We All Need To Take Care Of Our Bodies. We Have The Only Body God Has Created For Us.
God's Creation Was Not For Us To Live Forever However He Did Create Us To Forever Live! Take Care Of Your Body My Friend.

Take Care Of Those Shoes Son....

As I Was Loading My Truck The Man Who Was Assisting Me Remarked How Handy It Was To Have Cell Phones. I Told Him I Only Use Mine On The Weekends When The Minutes Were Free.. He Then Told Me How His Friends 13 Year Old Daughter Racked Up a 350.00 Bill For One Months Service.
I Told Him That Reminded Me Of A 45 Year Passing Remark My Father Made To Me. Little Did He Know That Comment Remained In My Memory Ever Since.
He Told Me If I Had To Buy My Own Shoes They Would Last Longer. He Was Right!
My Shoes Do Last Longer And As Long As Those Parents Continue To Pay Those Ridiculous Monthly Bill Amounts Their Daughter Runs Up, She Will Not Learn How To Conserve. First Off, She Should Be More Responsible. She Can Babysit Or Find Some Responsible Positive And Constructed Project That Can Help Pay For The Phone Bill.
Once She Pays The Entire Phone Bill Her Monthly Bill Will Drop Tremendously.
$350.00! You Have Any Idea How Many Shoes You Can Buy With That?

Mirror Minded

As I Sit Here Watching The Cub Game I Am Flooded With Childhood Memories Of Learning. Growing Up With Dyslexia Was Difficult Because Back Then They Didn't Have A Name For It. Experts Knew It Existed But Was Not Sure How To Treat It. For Those Who Know Of It Can Relate. Others Can Easily Google It To Educate Themselves Of A Very Common Affliction Of The Learning Process.
It Wasn't Until The Second Grade I Found Out I Was Not Stupid Afterall. An Alert Teacher Of Mine Was Grading Papers At Home Only To Discover That All My Arithmetic Answers Were Indeed Correct But Only Written Backwards. As She Held My Paper In Front Of The Mirror She Seen Firsthand All The Numbers Were Written Backwards.
Once My Teacher Became Aware Of This Disability She Mothered Me With All Her Mightiness. Yes I Called It A Disability Because That's Exactly What It Is. It Was The Fifth Grade When I Grasped The Concept Of Telling Time. A Simple Learning Process For Most Of Us Yet I Just Could Not Grasp Onto It.
Writing Backwards As Well As Reading Backwards Was Very Common For Me.
Today I Continue To Read The Newspaper From The Back To The Front. However Of Course I Ignore The Conclusion Of Articles That State Continued From Page One. When I Get To Page 1 I Will Read It Then Continue To The Conclusion.
Just This Week I Picked Up A Series Of Books That Were Written In English Yet Published In Japan. Most Are Aware That In Japan They Read From Right To Left.
This Was My First In Seeing This Book Series.
Ok Back To The Cub Game. After Arranging My Desk, Television And other Furniture Pieces, I Found It Difficult Watching TV At The Same Time I Am Most Active On The Computer. Since The Television Is Behind Me I Decided To Place A Mirror In Front Of My Desk And I Won't Have To Turn Around. However Viewing The Game Through The Mirror Makes Everything Backwards. When The Batter Hits The Ball He Runs To Third Instead Of First. All The Right Handed Batters Are Now Lefthanded And They Also Throw Left Handed.
I Have Learned By Being Left Handed I Must Deal With What Is Served Me. By Far, Many Humans Across The World Must Learn To Survive As A Being. Just As The Man I Knew Earlier In My Life. He Was Born With No Legs. He Learned From Birth How To Maneuvere And To Achieve The Most Simplest Goals. He Did Things That I Have Never Achieved. I Was Told He Replaced A Motor Of A Car. He Also Painted His House. I Am Scared Of Heights! I Pushed A Button Or Two And His Story Came To Surface In An Exclusive Interview With The Local Newspaper. The Community Rallied Together And Purchased Brand New Legs. I Can Remember Seeing Him Shortly After He Received Them. He Considered Me His Friend And Confided In Me That Day. He Told Me He Felt Like A Fish Out Of Water. I Kindly Reminded Him He Is Living His Life On Earth And Nobody Can Live It For Him. Besides, Alot Of People Get Satisfaction Through Their Giving. It Pleases Them When They Know They Are Doing Good. I Saw That Man Again A Few Weeks Later. There He Was, Crossing Main Street Without His Legs. I Scolded Him For Doing So. His Reply To Me Was You Of All People Know I'm Just As Capable As You Are In Crossing The Street. While This Being True It Was Not About Him Crossing The Street Afterall, It Was Him Crossing Against The Light.
That Day I Saw Beyond His Disability And The Feeling Was Priceless!
Being Mirror Minded Ain't So Bad Afterall.....Just Call Me Mac

Yes I Am Here....

Well The Big Move Has Come And Gone. Lots Of "First" Which Is A Welcome Change From All The "Last".
I Know I May Have Whined A Bit Over The Move Of A Lifetime. I Hope I Didn't Come Across As Boring. I Think In Actuality I Was Reaching Out. Why? I Have No Idea. I Left Home When I Was Seventeen To Join Uncle Sam's Canoe Club, Even Though I Had Never Seen A Canoe. That's An All Together Different Story For A Different Day.
My Reason For Mentioning This Is I Have Learned To Adjust To Different Homes Over The Years. However As The Old Saying Goes, There's No Place Like Home.
It Wasn't Until Today That I Explored A Part Of Our New Home. I Knew This House Had An Attic. Billie Had Made Herself Clear She Was Not Interested In What Was "Up There". She Left The House Earlier In The Day And I Was Just Finishing Up Watching The Noon News. I Pulled On The Chain That Allows Steps To Come Down. I Ventured With An Open Mind. I Was Amazed To See One Large Size Room The Length Of The House As With The Width With Slanted Walls. Plenty Of Storage Space She Lost With The Extra Spare Room At 713. Will We Use It? I Have No Idea. Time Will Tell.
Our Grandfather Clock Has Not Been The Same Since The Move. I Hope To Find Someone Who Makes House Calls.
This House Has Less Electrical Plug Ins. I Am Slowly Trying To Make This Home.
Our Neighbors To The South Enjoy Their Music As Well As Sharing It Too.
We Had Our Closest Neighbor Welcome Us To The Neighborhood. No She Brought No Pie.
She Did However Welcome Both Billie And I And Gave Us A Brief BIO Of Their Lives. We Likewise And Before You Know It You Mention The Right Name And The World Just Got Smaller. I Wish She Had Brought Me A Pie Though. She Assured Me The Neighborhood Is Good With The Exception Of The Music Players. I Was Told By A Friend That Knows Them Well That They Normally Don't Stay Long Wherever They Live. I Hope They Carry On Their Tradition.
Did I Mention I Mowed The Grass For The First Time? I Did That Yesterday Afternoon. After It Was All Finished Billie Scolded Me About Abusing The Fence With The Lawnmower. I Found My Self "Nudging" The Fence Instead Of Mowing Beside It. That's The Only Thing I Dislike About A Chainlink Fence. The Grass Is Time Consuming That Grows Beneath It. You Have To Mow On Both Sides And I Find Myself Going Through More Than The Usual Amount Of Weed Eater String.
Even Though This Past Week Has Been A Different One I Can Say I Certainly Feel Blessed To Have A Home. Tonight As I Write This I Am On My Home Computer Enjoying What I Like Most. Playing Euchre, Reading Forums, Exchanging EMails With Friends And Relatives, While Some Have No Homes At All. A Friend Of Mine Is Presently Without Power And Water. What We Take For Granted, Some Must Take One Day At A Time. My Heart Goes Out To This Family. I Have Been Trying To Keep Them In Candles And Lamp Oil. There Is Hope For Them Down The Road.
A Wise Man Once Told Me That No Matter How Bad Today Is For You, One Day You Will Be Looking Back At It. We All Somehow Manage To Cope With Our Tribulations.
I May Look At Things Differently Than Others. There Must Be A Reason Why I Am Witnessing The Poverty Of Others. I Cannot Pretend They Are Not There.
I Feel It's My Mission To Help Others. Why Else Would God Bring My Attention To This Affliction? Next Time You See Me Hand Me A Candle Or Lamp Oil. You Know Where It Will Go.
Back To The House. We Have Been Here For One Week Now. Each Day Is Getting Better.
Oh I Also Found That It Also Rains On Friday On The East Side Of Danville. Ok, That's Another Story Also. I Will Tell It In Time.
In The Meantime, I May Not Have Gotten That Pie I Had Wished For But Friendship Last Much Longer Than What A Pie Would Anyday.
Let It Be Known I Would Never Turn Down A Pie...Just Call Me Mac

Good Bye Doorknob....

After I Got Out Of The Shower Tonight I Realized This Would Be My Last Shower At 713.
The Very Same Bathtub I Grew Up With. Boy If Bathtubs Could Talk....
This Led Me To Realize Other Things At 713 That Are Originally From While I Was Growing Up.
We Often Talked About Putting On A New Porch. I Have Always Beleived A Porch Is What Gave The House It's Beauty. We Shopped Around For Porches For A Couple Different Years. We Never Got Around To It. Our New Place Has A Porch As Wide As The House. You Can Do So Much To A House With A Full Porch. I Also Beleive Lanscaping Is Another Added Inner Beauty Of A House. It Will Be Fun Creating Our Own Design Throughout The Property. Even Though The Previous Owners Did A Real Nice Job With The Shrubery. With A Little Bit Of Modification It Will Become What We Choose It To Be.
The Basement At 713 Hosted The Laundry For The Millers As Well As All The Foster Children Who Came And Went. I Really Don't Know How My Mother Was Able To Do It All Those Years. Billie Done The Basement Thing For A Few Years Too Until She Spoke Up And Said The Washer And Dryer Are Coming Upstairs. Up They Come And Laundry Day Became Much Easier From Then On.
Upstairs At 713 Is Totally Empty. Alot Of Growing Pains Were Realized In Those Two Rooms. I Can Remember One Christmas Eve Night I Was Watching Out The Window Hoping To Get A Glimse Of Santa. I Was Suppose To Be In Bed But It Was Christmas Eve! What Little Boy Could Sleep With All That Anticipation? Next Thing I Remember Was Tuck Announcing To Me There Is No Such Thing As Santa Clause. Even Though I Was Disappointed In This Tragic News I Felt A Releif That My Mother Was Actually Kissing My Father Instead Of Santa Clause. It Was Important Your Mother Was True.
Tonight I Will Lay My Head On The Pillow Once More But For The Last Time At 713. A Lifetime Of Memories Will Pass Through My Mind As I Recall Memorable Events Throughout My Time Spent Here.
So The Next Chapter Is About To Take Place. The Next Blog Will Be Written From The New Homestead. So Technically This Blog Will Be My Last Until Then.
As I Visit Each Room Tomorrow I Will Be Thankful God Has Granted Me The Gift Of Remembering.
I Hope To Be At Peace Throughout This Move. It Will Take Atleast Two Days Of Moving All Our Worldly Posession.
If There Is A Lesson Learned Here I Would Pass On To My Grandchildren That Things Don't Stay The Same Forever. Everything Is Subject To Change. All The Grandkids Came Over Today To Visit 713 For The Last Time. They Also Wished Me A Happy Pappy's Day.
Blakeman Our Oldest Has The Crimson King Maple Tree Planted In The Back Yard On The Day Of His Birth. That's A Lifetime Memory For Him. My Two Youngest Will Continue To Visit 713 Because Their Other Grandma Is The One Who Purchased Our Home.
Goodbye 713......

New Residence

I Still Haven't Packed My Things For The Big Move. Billie Asked Me Why I Haven't Packed. I Have No Idea. I Asked Her If She Thought I Wasn't Moving With Her?
I Will Most Likely Pack Tomorrow Night Since We Are Moving On Monday.
Downsizing Is What She Wanted And Now She Must Decide On What She Has Room For And What Must Go. Keep In Mind This Lady I Am Married To Had A Full Size Room Just For Storage. She Also Had A Walk In Closet. Get The Picture?
Me? I Can Survive On The Most Simplest Worldly Possessions.
What Will My New Neighbors Be Like. Will They Be As Friendly As The Baumgarts, Dills And Clapps? Will They Bring Us A Pie?
I Will Be Taking Two Days Off Just For The Move. Unfortunately We Chose To Move At The Most Demanding Period Of Time For My Summer Gig. Oh Well, I'm Sure It Will All Work Out And Life Is Grand...
How Long Will It Be before We Feel Like It's Home? How Can I Get Past The Idea Of Strangers Living In My Home?
Never Mind The Fact That This House Will Feel More Like A Short Vacation Away From Home. After The Vacation Is Over I Pray I Will Be Home. They Say Home Is Where The Heart Is. I Hope The Heart Will Be There By Then....

The Finality Of It All....

A Sold Sign Was Placed In The Yard This Afternoon. I Imagine The Neighbors Are More Shocked Than What We Are. It Has Been Quite A Few Years Since Anyone Has Moved Off The Block. Change Is In The Making For Not Just Us But The Neighborhood As Well.
I Can Say Our Neighbors Here At 713 Have Been Good. We All Pretty Much Stay In Our Own Space But Are Just A Stone Throw Away From Getting Help If Needed. A Friendly Wave To One Another Is Enough Security When We Leave Our Homes For The Evening Or For A Few Days Getaway.
Living Next Door To A Plumber Is Security As Well. I Can Say I Am Proud Of This Neighborhood. Our Concern For Flossie When The Church She Attended Was Bombed One Sunday Morning Sending Shock Waves Throughout The Community. We Were There And She Knew It.
Most Recently When I Befriended Terry From Across The Street. It All Started On A Forum On The Internet. I Believe It Was The Old Commercial News Forum. I Tried To Keep A Low Profile When It Came To The Internet. Terry Had mentioned He Knew Where I Lived. I Considered My Territory Sacred When It Came To Privacy Of The Homestead.
I Asked The Most Obvious Question On How He Could Know My Location. It's Kind Of Hard Not To Figure It Out When Your Name Is Spelled Out On The Big Horse Drawn Buggy In The Front Yard. For Those Who Choose To Be More Formal, A 'Buckboard'.
Terry And I Have Been Friends Ever Since. We Bowl Together And Enjoy One Another. Terry Expressed To Me From His Heart When He Called Me One Night And Confessed He Was Having A Difficult Time Dealing With Me Moving Away. From That Moment On I Knew I Had A Friend For Life.
After I Got Home Last Night From The Sale I Confessed To Billie What I Miss Most Upon My Arrival Every Sale Night. My Old Faithful Friend Mr Bear Could Hear The Squeaking Of My Trailer I Pulled Behind Me. It Has A Distinct Sound That Mr Bear Would Hear Once A Week. On A Hot Summer Night Mr Bear Would Greet Me With His All Familiar Bark Telling Everyone At The Miller Household I Had Returned After A Very Long Day On Logan. I Won't Be Bringing The Trailer Here At 713 Anymore But I Will Always Remember The Greeting I Received From My Loving Canine Friend.
I Have Been So Overwhelmed With Memories Of The Past 50 Years. Nearly Every Thought I Have Can Be Tied To 713. My Upbringing, My Brothers And My Sisters. Mom's Green Volkswagen Beetle And Our Beloved Pet Romeo.
Franklin School, The Baumgarts, Mr Roth And Mrs Jacobs. Mrs Towell, The Ruggles, And Sally/ Bill Mosier. Trust 348 And Where They REALLY Wanted To Build The Village Mall.
I Would Have To Say That The Mid 60's Was Farmost The Most Memorable, And Each Memory Is Almost Always Linked To 713.
Yes, A Grown Man Will Probably Cry A Thousand Tears This Coming Week. Let Each Tear Represent A Memory That Will Last A Lifetime.
God Bless 713.........

While I Was Mowing Grass........

Most Of Us In The Midwest Have Been Mowing Grass On A Weekly Basis. As A Matter Of Fact I Always Mow Weekly. I Mow At Three Different Locations Here In Danville. I Could Have Made Mowing Easier By Getting A Riding Mower. I Decided Against It Because I need The Exercise. I Have Lost 14 Pounds Since April 1st And I Hope To Lose Another 30.
As I Mowed The Back Yard This Afternoon I Thought Of The Many Times I Have Mowed This Yard Over The Years. I Mowed This Grass Since I Was A Teenager Living At Home With My Parents. Soon The Grass At 713 Will Be Mowed By Someone Other Than A Miller Family Member.
Of course I Done Alot Of Reminiscing As I Mowed Today For The Very Last Time. As I Mowed The Small Mound Of Earth That Covered Mr Bear I Remembered Fondly Of The Tomato Snatching Caper He Partook During The Summer Months. After Watching Billie Pick The Biggest And Juiciest Tomato His Time Came After Billie Would Return To The House. I Cannot Remember How Many Times I Have Drove Up As Mr Bear Would Be Carrying A Ripe Tomato To His Favorite Shady Spot Under The Elm Tree. I Would Sort Of Scold Him For Doing It But Half Laugh About It Because I Had Never Seen A Dog Eat Tomatoes. Mr Bear Was One Of Those Kind Of Dogs You Never Forget. He Is Buried Under That Shady Elm Tree.
Brandy Came To Me In A Dream Last Night. I Have No Idea As To Why. I Shared This Brief Dream With Billie This Afternoon. Nothing Special About The Dream Other Than What I Remembered About Her While We Shared Our Lives Together. Maybe Those Memories Are Flooding My Mind As The Days Grow Closer To Leaving 713.
After Brandy Died Billie Purchased A Beautiful Little Outfit To Be Buried In. It Was A Tearful Goodbye That Day.
Buffy Was A Pekingese That Belonged To Billie. Billie And Buffy Had A Special Relationship. Buffy Had Broken Her Neck Jumping Out Of Bed.
I Became Flooded By Emotions As I Recalled All The Loving Pets That Shared Their Lives With Us While We Lived Here At 713.
When I Shut The Mower Down I Looked Around The Yard And Said "Thank You". Thank You For All The Great Memories That Will Last My Lifetime. They Are My Memories And Mine Alone. Some Day Those Memories Will Be A Part Of One Of My Stories To A Friend Or Grandchild Or Anybody Who Cares To Listen To An Old Man Talk About The Bygone Days At 713.

Truth Or..........Not

Tonight I Introduce To You A Brainstorm Idea That May....Or May Not Increase My Interest In Blogging. As Most Of You Are Aware I Don't Blog As Often As Some Do. Why? I Have No Idea Why. Yes I Am A Busy Person In The Summer Months. However I Find Time To Play Euchre Or Surf The Net. Ok, I Will Try To Discipline Myself Into Blogging More But I Will Need Your Cooperation. Here's My Idea....
I Will Tell A Story. Now My Story Could Be True Or It Could Be A Bunch Of Baloney. I Welcome You Write In The Comment Area Whether You Believe My Story Is TRUE Or NOT.
I Will Reveal The Correct Answer One Week From The Day The Story Was Created.
My Reason For Doing This Is Because I Enjoy Telling Stories. I Also Need A Reason To Participate More Often In Blogging. I Have Had People Ask Me When I'm Going To Create Another Blog? I Say....I Don't know.
I Have A Feeling This May Go Over Real Well But The Other Times I Had A Feeling...It Was Just Gas:)
Ok, First Story Begins Tonight. You Can Read My Story Then Reply With Your Answer Right Then Or Decide To Read It A Hundred Times And Give Me Your Answer The Day The Answer Will Be Revealed. Today's Story Answer Will Be Revealed 1 Week From Today.
Then Again I May Decide To Write Another Story This Coming Wednesday. The Answer For That Story Will Be Revealed One Week From Wednesday.


Clowns
I Am Terrified Of Clowns. My Fear Of Clowns Is Called Coulrophobia. Go Ahead And Do A Google Search For Verification If You Like. I Have Hesitated In Telling Others Because I Always Thought It To Be Silly. I Shared This Fear Of Mine Recently To A Friend And Was Informed He Too Has Coulrophobia.
Have Any Of You See Me At A Circus? The Paint Or Makeup Can Disfigure Your Human Features And Confuse You With The True Identity Of That Person. As A Child I Can Remember Trembling In Fear If I Was Near A Clown. Today As An Adult I Have Been Known To Sweat Profusably If A Clown Gets Anywhere Close To Me.
There Are So Many Different Types Of Phobia's And I Happen To Have More Than One Phobia. I'll Be More Than Happy To Share Them With You In One Of My Future Story's.
A Clown Can Easily Take Advantage Of His Image. I Have Known Them To Rob Banks Then Remove The Clown Makeup And Suit And It Would Be Very Difficult To Apprehend Him Due To His Quick Changing Ability. Don't Forget About John Wayne Gacy Being A Clown Too.
Do I Or Do I Not Have Coulrophobia?

One Week And Your Answer Will Be Due.
What Will My Next Story Be?

Saying Farewell To An Old Friend

It May Seem Strange To Some But To Others They Can Understand The Anguish I Have Been Facing And The Finality Of Saying Goodbye.
It Has Hosted A Birth, Weddings, A Fire, The First Day Of School As Well As The Last. Family Reunions And Neighborhood Basketball Games.
The Year Was 1956. Harvey And Shirley Miller Purchased Their First Home Across The Street From Franklin School. Little Did They Know That More Than 50 Years Later It Would Continue To Be The Miller Household Commonly Known As 713 Franklin Street.
Three Young Boys Would Share What Seemed Like A Lifetime Of Memories While One Little Girl This Was Really A Home She Had Always Known.
If The Walls Could Talk They Would Tell Of The Tears Of Joy And The Tears Of Sadness.
The Size Of The Family Would Soon Grow And The Need For Additional Space Would Be Obvious. Living In A Home Full Of Foster Children Soon Became The Norm. Some Foster Children Would Come And Go But Three Of Them Would Also Call This Home.
The Year Was 1967 And It Would Become One Of The Most Memorable Years Of My Life.
The Family Room Addition Was Being Built On The Back Of The House And This Year In Baseball Starring Your Truly When I Became Homerun Champ In Danville For Little League A. It Was Also When I Met My Lifetime Companion Billie Jo. Yes For Those Who Can Do The Math It Puts Me At The Ripe Old Age Of 12. It Wasn't Until Ten Years Later We Discovered One Another And Made Our Lifetime Commitment.
In 1971 My Brother Tuck Enlisted In The Navy And Hung In The Front Window Was A Lone Blue Star Fixed On A Banner Representing The Home Of A Soldier. Two Years Later Another Star Was Added When I Joined The Navy.
Franklin Grade School Was Torn Down And Replaced By A Seven Story, 100 Unit Senior Citizen Complex. Slowly The Neighborhood Began To Change.
Pappy's Gas Station And Mel's IGA Closed Down. Burger Chef Is Now Shroeders And Weiner King Is Now Weiner Works. Ice Cream You Scream, We All Scream For Ice Cream. The Canopy Ice Cream Transpired Into The Dairy Queen But Now Is A Car Wash. I Guess Maybe Saying Goodbye To Arnholt Bakery For The Last Times Was The Hardest.
Yet at 5:00 In The Evening You Can Still Enjoy The Musical Bells Coming From St James Church.
Gone Are All The Neighborhood Kids Who Use To Play Baseball, Football And Ditch On Our Bicycles. The Rodriguez's And Baumgart's Moved Away Taking Poochy Along With Them. Too Many Changes To The Neighborhood To Mention Them All.
Ofcourse 713 Is Not What It Looked Like When I grew Up In The 60's and 70's. We Modified It To Our Liking And Made Changes That Met Our Lifestyle In The New Millennium. If I Close My Eyes I Can Remember Things As They Once Were.
I'm Having A Difficult Time Dealing With Selling 713 And Moving On. The House Is Just Too Big For Just The Two Of Us. We Raised Our Family And It's That Time In Our Lives We Need To Downsize. The Heat Bill Should Be Less Because We Are Moving Into A Smaller House. Did You Notice I Didn't Say Home? 713 Will Always Be Considered Home In My Heart For Evermore.
Moving Day Is Fast Approaching. After We Are All Moved Out I Will Visit Each Room And Close My Eyes And Allow My Memory To Recall All The Happy Moments I Had And Shared In The 39 Years I Had The Pleasure In Living Here. I Will Walk Out The Door And Take Those Memories With Me And Hold Them Dear To My Heart.
The Best Years Of My Life Somehow Always Came Back To My Roots at 713.
We Leave Behind Our Beloved Pets That Are Buried In Various Locations. A Crimson King Maple Tree Which Just Recently Turned Nine Years Old And Was Planted On The Birth Of Our First Grandchild.
So In The Final Chapter All I Can Say Is, 713...Thanks For The Memories, I Will Miss You Dearly. I Will Be The Last One To Turn The Light Off On My Way To The Next Chapter In Life. No Looking Back.......Just Call Me Mac..........

For Today I Am Constipated So We Shall Celebrate!

Remember The Old Saying, I Love It But It Hates Me! That's The Way It Is With Me And Cashews. I Just Love Them But I Sure Do Pay The Price When I Eat Them! Knock On Wood That There Are Not Too Many Food That Have An Adverse Effect On Me. At First I Thought It Was Because I Was Buying A Generic Brand Of Cashews. No Such Luck. There's No Better Nut Than Planters And They Too Gave Me "Fits".
Last Weekend I developed A Sore Throat. With The Grandkids Running Around With Runny Noses From Time To Time I Figured They Passed Something On To Their Pappy. I Tried To Ignore It But It Got To The Point Where I Couldn't Any Longer. I Finally Decided To Go To The VA Hospital So They Could Fix Whatever It Was That Ailed Me. They Gave Me Some Medicine And Told Me This Should Take Care Of It.
My Sore Throat Went Away In A Couple Of Days. However I Am Constipated For The First Time In My Life. Horay And Hot Digity Dog! I Told Billie I Am Going To Walgreens And Buy Me Some Cashews. She Hollered At Me As I Was Walking Out The Door. You Will Be Sorry! I Told Her, I HOPE SO!!

Wanna See My Butt?

I Considered It An Honor To Show Anyone And Everyone My Butt. I Was So Proud Of It I Even Asked My Mother Once If She Wanted To See It. It's Not Like She Hasn't Seen It Before But It's Been Awhile. Hahaha!!
Ok, I Led You All Along For Awhile And It's Been Fun "But" The Butt I Have Been Referring To Is My Last Cigarette Butt.
Ten Years Ago Next Month(April) I Smoked My Last Cigarette. I Had Saved My Last Cigarette Butt And Taped It To The Bathroom Mirror To Remind Me Of The Dirty, Filthy, Nasty Habit I Once Engaged In. It Really Doesn't Seem Like It's Been Ten Years But It Has.
Since That Day Of Quitting There Are Times I Would Enjoy Smoking A Cigarette Again. Firstly, Let Me Tell You I Quit Smoking For Financial Reasons. Secondly, If I Never Had To Worry About Paying The High Cost For Cigarettes I Would Most Likely Smoke Again. I Really Did Enjoy The Feeling That Nicotine Gave Me When I Smoked. It Had It's Calming Effect Which Relieved All The Stress Life Had To Offer.
Today I Can't Stand The Smell Of Smoke. There Are Days It Makes Me Want To Vomit.
Bille Jo Continue's Her Battle To Quit But She Has Not Won The War Just Yet.
I Have Friends And Relatives Who Smoke. I Had Promised Myself When I Quit Smoking I Would Not Become The Great Crusader And Proclaim The Rest Of The World Should Quit As Well.
There Was A Point In Time When I Boycotted A Donut Shop Because They Didn't Allow Smoking. I Looked At It As Descrimination Against Me. It Made Me Feel My Money Wasn't Of The Same Value As That Of A Non Smoker.
Today As A Non Smoker I Do Understand Why That Man Banished Smoking In His Business.
I Hated Then What It Was Doing To My Wallet. I Cannot Imagine Today With Cigarettes Costing More Than 4.00 A Pack The Impact It Would Have On Me Financially.
Looking Back I Consider Myself Lucky That I Was Able To Quit. I Don't Think I Could Quit Again. It Was One Of The Hardest Things I Have Ever Had To Do.
I Still Have Alot Of People I Am Associated With That Do Smoke. I Don't Really Care To Be Around It Anymore. I Was Happy When The State No Longer Allowed Smoking In Public Buildings Anymore. Now If I Was Still A Smoker I Most Likely Would Not Like This New Law At All.
I Gained Atleast 50 Pounds That I Can't Seem To Shed Away. I Took Up Sucking On Peppermint Candy Which Was Fat Free So I Figured It Was Ideal For Me. Wrong!
Each Mint Was 50 Calories And I Was Addicted To Them For Atleast Two Years Or More Until I Was Able To Finally Get Away From Them.
So There You Have It Folks. I Just Wanted To Share This Upcoming Milestone With Those Who Care. If You Are Wanting To Quit Smoking I Recommend The Nicotine Patch. That's What Worked For Me But To Each His Own.
Have A Wonderful Easter!

Why Don't I Blog More?

So Why Don't I Blog More Often? I Really Don't Have A Real Good Reason. As Most Of You Know I Hate The Winter Months And This Winter Has Been A Real Cuel Winter.
The Calender Says March But Where I Live It Still Feels Like February. The Extended Forcast For The Danville Area Shows A 60 Degree Day And Some Others With 50 Degree's.
I Have Spotted A Few Robins Already. Our Dairy Queen Just Recently Opened. We Have A Couple Other Seasonal Ice Cream Parlor's That Should Be Opening Soon.
In The Meantime Here I Sit Waiting For The Departure Of Old Man Winter.
I Will Begin My Outside Daily Walks When The Weather Finally Changes. I Have Been Walking 2 Miles At The Village Mall 2-3 Times A Week.
The First Week Of April I Begin My Summer Gig And That's My True Test. I'm Out In The Woods Searching For Mushrooms. I Get In And Out Of My Truck And Feel Every Pound I Have Gained Over The Winter Months.
So To Answer My Question Of Why I Don't Blog More Often. I'm In A Rut. I'm In A Horrible Rut. My Primary Focus Has Been The Start Of Warmer Temps. I Can't Seem To Think Of Anything Other Than SPRING!
Ok Let Me Say This. I Will Try Harder To Find A Topic For Discussion. I Can Be A Creative Person When I Wanna Be.
Maybe My Walk This Week Or The Spring Training Game I Watch Will Put Me Just A Little Closer The SPRING!
I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This! I Will Eventually Snap Out Of This!
Get Out The Straightjacket!

I Cast My Vote On A Democratic Ballot

It Wasn't My First Time I Voted Democratic But It Was The First Time I Voted On A Democratic Ballot In A Primary.
It Was About A Year Ago When I Was Fed Up With How Our Country Was Being Led. I Decided To Change My Party Affiliation. To My Surprise The State Of Illinois No Longer Requires It's Voters To Declare Party Affiliation. This Was A Relief To Me Because I No Longer Wanted To Be A Part Of This Horrible War In Iraq.
I Always Try To Keep My Blogs Upbeat And Positive As Much As Possible. This Blog Will Not Be Any Different.
To Simplify Things I Have Watched As Many Debates That I Could And Have Come To The Conclusion That All The Republican Candidates Support The Troop Presence And Will Continue If Elected.
I Know Candidates Like To Say What The Voter Wants To Hear. I Am Very Much Against This War And I Want Our Boys To Come Home.
So Did I Vote For The First Woman Candidate Or Did I Vote For The First African American Candidate?
When It Come To The War Both Candidates Want Our Troops To Come Home And Promised Set Time Tables For That To Take Place.


No Matter Who Gets The Nod At The Democratic Convention I Will Support That Candidate As Long As They Agree To Leave Iraq.
Yes There Are Other Things We Need To Be Concerned About. The Slumping Economy As Well As Our Dependence On Foreign Oil Is At The Top Of The List For So Many. The Environment And What We Plan To Do To Protect The Earth For Our Children And Grandchildren.
All Of These Topics Are And Should Be Addressed And Dealt With. There Is Plenty Of Time To Do This, But For The Moment I Say "Bring Our Soldiers Home"!
My Vote Goes To;.........

Capture That Moment

I'm Sure There Are Some Who Have Had Moments In Their Lives When They Stop And Realize That Moments Like This Won't Be Around Much Longer.
You Think It Could Be A Getting Older Kind Of Thing? That Very Well May Be, But There Is Alot Of Truth In It Whether It Happens To You Or Not.
Not Everything Will Be The Same Tomorrow, A Year From Tomorrow And Especially 10 Years From Tomorrow.
As You Live A Moment You Realize There Won't Be Too Many More Like It Again.
For Example, I Am Fortunate To Have Both My Parents Alive. It Gives Me Great Pleasure In Being Able To Interact With Them In Settings We All Receive Pleasure In.
Presently I Bowl On The Senior Citizen Bowling League. I Am One Of The Youngest Bowlers There And Thats Fine Because I Intend On Bowling On That League For As Long As My Health Allows It. Anyway It's Great To Have Both My Parents Bowl On The Same League. We All Share Our Love For Bowling And Have For Several Years Now. As A Matter Of Fact The Three Of Us Will Be Heading To Indianapolis To Watch The Pro Bowlers Qualify For That Weeks Title Match. We Always Look Forward To This Special Outing Each Year.
We Meet Once A Week To Play The Game Of Euchre. My Friend Of Many Years "Chris" And I Travel To Westville Where My Parents Live To Play Three Hours Of The Best Card Game In The Midwest.
Yet Then Again There Are Moments In Time That I Would Be Serving The Memories Of Those Younger Than Myself. My Grandchildren For Example.
As An Adult I Can Remember Times When I Was A Child And The Times I Shares With My Grandfather. He Was The First One To Take Me Fishing You Know.
I Know That Someday My Children And My Grandchildren Will Someday Look Back At The Special Moments In Time They Had With Their Pappy.
I Would Have To Say One Of The Cruelest Thing About Life Is Death. There Are Times I Wish Things Would Always Stay The Same.
I Have Found Myself Get Teary Eyed After Watching A Tearjerker Movie Because It May Trigger A Memory In A Place In My Own Life That Was Also Touching.
So Whether I Am The One Who Is Clinging On To The Memory, Or Creating The News Ones For Those That Come After Me, I Know How Special They Are.
So As We All Live Our Everyday Life, We Are Making Memories Not Just For Ourselves, But For Others As Well.
So I Have Made A Promise To Myself. Each Night I Will Thank God For Giving Me That Day. I Will Also Thank Him For The Memories Of That Day, Be It For Me Or A Special Memory For Someone Else. Knowing That 50 Years From Now My Child Or Grandchild Will Be Cherishing The Memories Of Years Gone By. Some Of Us Know It As The "Kodak Moment" Because Kodak Wants Us To. Hahaha!!
I Hope I Live Up To That Memory And Let It Be A Fond One At That!

Just Call Me Mac....