On the Tuesday of spring break, we hosted WP and oMike for a day/night of fun at Nini's house. I had to work most of the day and night, so I missed out on most of the exhausting activities.
The boys arrived, and Nini had prepared 2 or 3 dozen Easter eggs for the boys to dye and decorate. She had thought this activity would take 2 or 3 hours; instead, they blazed through it in 15 minutes. Happened so fast we weren't able to even get a picture. Plus, just as soon as the eggs were dry, the boys, (especially WP) were cracking them to eat, and he put away at least a dozen just by himself.
What they really wanted to do was play outside in the dirt pile, and play they did! Despite the cooler temps, and the incessant 30-50 mph winds, they had a great time in the dirt, and had one of the neighbor boys over to help them dig to China.
Snack time was all day. Nini had prepared a 2 'x 3' sheet of Rice Crispy treats, plus 4 family size bags of chips, plus 5 of the 12 packs of canned full sugar pop, plus a basket of candy bars, plus 8 bags of muffins, cookies, and cake mixes to cook, plus a box of candy canes, plus a few other things that I lost track of. She and I don't eat that stuff, so I asked her what it was for, and she said "For the boys to snack on." And I said, well, are they bringing the 245th army brigade with them too? Wow, that was a lot of sugar.
And guess what, oMike did not eat a bite of dinner, and WP barely did. I wonder why?
After dinner, the highlight of the day was "Frozen", which they'd already seen several times. I've already blogged about my disdain for this movie; hoping it was going to be Shrek friendly. Not so, but the boys loved it, and that is all that matters.
Bedtime came late, and I was already long gone to sleepy land, but Nini ended up sharing a bed with oMike (BIG mistake), and WP slept perfectly on the blow up. WP and Nini could share 12" of bed space, and still have leftover room. Once they fall asleep, they do not move. But oMike sleeps like me, and that means that if he is in a King size bed, he will touch every corner of it before morning. Plus, throw in the slinging arms, the leg kicks, the snorts, the snores, the yelling, and the thrashing, and I've had a perfectly good night of sleep; as has oMike. But not so for anyone else that decides to share the bed with him, or myself.
The highlight of my time with them was snuggling WP for 32 minutes early that morning as he was waking up on his air bed. I did not move, nor did he; but he sure got lots of kisses from Paps to rouse him from his slumber. :-)
More about our day with the girls later on . . .
Monday, March 24, 2014
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Hockey Game: Inspired by Doug Heinzer
Friday night we went to a Tulsa Oilers hockey game at the BOK. Prior to the game, we stopped off at one of those new downtown eateries. This one was Tex-Mex, catering to the age 21 to 35 hipster yuppie crowd that doesn't mind spending $78 on a round of drinks, because after a few rounds it won't matter what the food tastes like. Anyway, this place had many great reviews, had just been named #5 for the best patio dining in Tulsa, and it seemed like a good choice.
I should have clued in though when I saw the chicken taco was made with free range chicken, and free of caged torture (as if the chicken knows, let alone makes them taste better). Oh my bleeding heart liberal friends; please stay away from my chickens. Let them be raised and killed like the good old days.
Besides, when I got the $14 chicken taco, with one strip of chicken, I realized it would not be enough food to feed my 5 year old granddaughter; let alone myself. So I filled up on chips and salsa.
Overall, the atmosphere was cool, and the rating was deserved. The food however, (which is why I go out to eat), was at most 'fair'. Certainly no more than 2.5 out of 5 stars. I won't mention the name, as I wouldn't even rate the value one star.
~
From there, we went to the BOK. Pam had never been inside the BOK, but I've been several times, and knew it to be a really great venue.
Our good friends had received free tickets for the game that night, and invited us to go with them. We ended up on the 'blue line', 3rd row back from the glass. My only previous hockey games had been with the OKC Blazers (having gone twice in the 90's), both games with packed crowds and no open seats, loads of cursing, beer flying, and completely surrounded by animals recently let out of their cages. It was not an enjoyable atmosphere.
I kind of expected the same type of surrounding tonight. Not so; it was quite contained, though there were a few monkeys banging on the glass with grunts if they thought a fight was about to happen.
Tulsa lost 3-2, to a next to the last place team in a minor-minor league division of hockey players making $15,000 per year. Where they good? They were to me. They were flying by on skates at a high rate of speed, and slinging their weapons with great aplomb and tremendous accuracy. Our 2 goals came from shots at the blue line, so that was pretty cool to see, and I thought at the time 'how did he do that?'
I can only imagine how much better the real pros are. The ones that play for the Stanley cup; the ones that Doug Heinzer has on speed dial. Doug was a friend of mine from high school, and is currently the President of Phillips 66 in Canada. I caught a photo once of Doug at a professional game, and he was right next to the glass. Ever since that photo, I have wanted to see what it was like.
It felt cool to only be 3 rows back. I loved the action, and the speed. I look forward to the next game.
There weren't very many people in the stands as this photo attests. My guess would be 2,000 were there for the game. Until the 3rd period, I'm not sure if the ladies even saw any of the action, as they had quite the gab-fest going on.
The highlight for Pam this night was watching me (not helping me) try to extricate myself for several minutes as my cowboy boot had become caught in between the chair back in front of me as I tried to step over. Pam did what she does best, she laughs at my misery and discomfort, whether it be me rolling into the street in Italy after tripping, or having my foot inextricably caught in between a cowboy boot and the folding clamp of a chair. I'm glad she got a kick out of it. But I did not. Kelly finally came to my rescue, and with his assistance; I avoided amputation.
I should have clued in though when I saw the chicken taco was made with free range chicken, and free of caged torture (as if the chicken knows, let alone makes them taste better). Oh my bleeding heart liberal friends; please stay away from my chickens. Let them be raised and killed like the good old days.
Besides, when I got the $14 chicken taco, with one strip of chicken, I realized it would not be enough food to feed my 5 year old granddaughter; let alone myself. So I filled up on chips and salsa.
Overall, the atmosphere was cool, and the rating was deserved. The food however, (which is why I go out to eat), was at most 'fair'. Certainly no more than 2.5 out of 5 stars. I won't mention the name, as I wouldn't even rate the value one star.
~
From there, we went to the BOK. Pam had never been inside the BOK, but I've been several times, and knew it to be a really great venue.
Our good friends had received free tickets for the game that night, and invited us to go with them. We ended up on the 'blue line', 3rd row back from the glass. My only previous hockey games had been with the OKC Blazers (having gone twice in the 90's), both games with packed crowds and no open seats, loads of cursing, beer flying, and completely surrounded by animals recently let out of their cages. It was not an enjoyable atmosphere.
I kind of expected the same type of surrounding tonight. Not so; it was quite contained, though there were a few monkeys banging on the glass with grunts if they thought a fight was about to happen.
Tulsa lost 3-2, to a next to the last place team in a minor-minor league division of hockey players making $15,000 per year. Where they good? They were to me. They were flying by on skates at a high rate of speed, and slinging their weapons with great aplomb and tremendous accuracy. Our 2 goals came from shots at the blue line, so that was pretty cool to see, and I thought at the time 'how did he do that?'
I can only imagine how much better the real pros are. The ones that play for the Stanley cup; the ones that Doug Heinzer has on speed dial. Doug was a friend of mine from high school, and is currently the President of Phillips 66 in Canada. I caught a photo once of Doug at a professional game, and he was right next to the glass. Ever since that photo, I have wanted to see what it was like.
It felt cool to only be 3 rows back. I loved the action, and the speed. I look forward to the next game.
There weren't very many people in the stands as this photo attests. My guess would be 2,000 were there for the game. Until the 3rd period, I'm not sure if the ladies even saw any of the action, as they had quite the gab-fest going on.
The highlight for Pam this night was watching me (not helping me) try to extricate myself for several minutes as my cowboy boot had become caught in between the chair back in front of me as I tried to step over. Pam did what she does best, she laughs at my misery and discomfort, whether it be me rolling into the street in Italy after tripping, or having my foot inextricably caught in between a cowboy boot and the folding clamp of a chair. I'm glad she got a kick out of it. But I did not. Kelly finally came to my rescue, and with his assistance; I avoided amputation.
The action was 'fast and furious'. For those of you in Tulsa that have not been to a game; I would encourage you to go. The season ends March 30th. If you Groupon does not have tickets, they range from $32 to $57 a piece at the stadium. Yes, that is expensive for minor-minor league hockey, but it sure made for a fun night.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Car vs. Garage
I have lived in an apartment for 2 years, I have lived in a mobile home for 4 years, and I have lived in hotels for many months at a time totaling approximately 2 years. Other than those 8 years without a garage, I have always enjoyed having a garage. A garage to keep my car(s) parked in.
I have never kept cars parked on driveways in any homes that we have owned. We even had a 2 car garage once that was so small that I literally had to turn sideways to walk between the cars. It would have been easy to park my car on the driveway; but I like to keep a clean car, a warm car; and that is not able to be accomplished by not using a garage.
I like to detail my cars in the spring and summer, and then detail the garage, mop the floors, and make sure everything is in its place on the storage shelves. That is the anal-retentive OCD organized side of me; a trait that I proudly inherited from my Mom. I can't stand clutter, un-organization, and things out of place. I relax my garage standards considerably in the winter; and even though our garage is heated, I do not enjoy working in my garage during the cold winter months.
And finally, after months of waiting; my garage is clean again! Thanks to Stephan, whom did an awesome job of organization, cleaning, and mopping it today. Thanks ~ it looks and smells great!
What I fail to understand though, is how some people treat their garages. This first picture is of a house that I have seen many times over the years. Nice home, nice 3 car garage, and always has 5-8 vehicles parked in the driveway. This particular early morning, there are 5. Does that mean they actually have 8 vehicles, or is it more likely that their 3 car garage is so full of crap and clutter that there is not room for even 1 of their 5 vehicles?
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This picture is a house in the country that I pass 1-2x a day in my travels, and I watched the garage being built this fall. The garage dwarfs the size of the home, as the home is about 800 s.f. in size, yet the garage is 1,200 s.f., and was built with a great slab, and steel girders. He probably spent more on his garage than his home is worth. And, his garage always has doors down, with his truck and tractor parked inside, not on the driveway.
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This picture is out of focus, but you will see 4 vehicles on the driveway. This home too is a nice home, with a 3 car garage. Last year the owner completed the extra garage in the back, which was built with an upper bedroom or man-cave area, plus, the total new garage space s.f. exceeds that of his existing garage because it is so deep.
What has always amazed me is why would you spend $100k on another garage and still keep your vehicles parked outside? I see this house 2-4x a day, every day, and the driveway is never empty; it too, always has multiple vehicles parked in the driveway. I know how much separate garages cost, as we just won a bid to build a 2 car garage in Owasso, with an upper 2nd floor man-cave. Wow, spending $100k for another garage, and still not able to keep vehicles parked inside of it. That is pretty astounding. Build a garage to store more crap, but not store any of your vehicles inside. That just doesn't make sense to me.
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Some of it might be a pride thing. You have to have pride in what you own and drive. I've never seen a $40k Harley parked outside. I've never seen a mint condition Vette parked outside either.
And even when I have owned a ghetto car; it was still parked in the garage where it belongs!
Oh well. Such is life. And if you read my "Why?" blogs, I have to ask "Why do I care?"
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Wounded Warriors: Please Share
Personal note to my readers: I know from the 100's and sometimes 1000's of page reads that my blogs receive that there are a lot of people out there that can share my blogs. I've only asked a few times before; but please, please share this blog.
Someone else needs to read it.
~
For the sacrifices they make, for the thankless jobs they have, for the difficulties that their position demands, and for their willingness to do what most of us aren't willing to do; I have always thought the following occupations were/are woefully underpaid:
Policemen.
Highway Patrol Troopers.
Firemen.
Nurses.
Teachers.
Military Soldiers.
My circle of influence touches every one of these occupations, meaning I have friends, family, close acquaintances, and many customers from each of these 'walks of life". I don't pray for them enough, but I am committing to do more. I don't encourage them enough, but I am committing to do more.
Of all these occupations, my greatest respect has been for our military soldiers. What they do for me as a citizen of the USA; even if they disagree with the mission, they do it with: Honor. Code. Sacrifice.
It gives me tremendous pride to see one of our military soldiers in uniform.
Last weekend, I went to see the movie "Lone Survivor".
It was a great movie, a profoundly sad movie, and to be able to set through the end of the movie credits where they show the actual pictures of the 19 dead hero's, along with the wives, children, and new born babies that they left behind. Well; it ripped my heart out.
And that very moment, I committed to do more. Today, I joined The Wounded Warrior Project as a monthly supporter. What a great cause, a great program, and 100% legitimate. I encourage you to check out the link. And if you haven't seen the movie; wow, be prepared. It might change your life too like it did mine.
Here is the link:
http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/
I've always said that I am a blessed man. I believe it now more than ever.
- Pappy
Someone else needs to read it.
~
For the sacrifices they make, for the thankless jobs they have, for the difficulties that their position demands, and for their willingness to do what most of us aren't willing to do; I have always thought the following occupations were/are woefully underpaid:
Policemen.
Highway Patrol Troopers.
Firemen.
Nurses.
Teachers.
Military Soldiers.
My circle of influence touches every one of these occupations, meaning I have friends, family, close acquaintances, and many customers from each of these 'walks of life". I don't pray for them enough, but I am committing to do more. I don't encourage them enough, but I am committing to do more.
Of all these occupations, my greatest respect has been for our military soldiers. What they do for me as a citizen of the USA; even if they disagree with the mission, they do it with: Honor. Code. Sacrifice.
It gives me tremendous pride to see one of our military soldiers in uniform.
Last weekend, I went to see the movie "Lone Survivor".
It was a great movie, a profoundly sad movie, and to be able to set through the end of the movie credits where they show the actual pictures of the 19 dead hero's, along with the wives, children, and new born babies that they left behind. Well; it ripped my heart out.
And that very moment, I committed to do more. Today, I joined The Wounded Warrior Project as a monthly supporter. What a great cause, a great program, and 100% legitimate. I encourage you to check out the link. And if you haven't seen the movie; wow, be prepared. It might change your life too like it did mine.
Here is the link:
http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/
I've always said that I am a blessed man. I believe it now more than ever.
- Pappy
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