I've been fooling around with pictures today and found what I want to post so all of you can know who you are dealing with. I am almost afraid to post these 'cause I will lose the friendships developed by blogging but here goes. This first one is Cheryl and I the first year we were married. (I think)

Now the next one will show you how the years can favor a woman and find fault with a man. The years have not been kind to me.

You guys asked for it now you got it.

I have a niece who lives in Ohio, although I try not to hold it against her since Cheryl is from Ohio also, but she sent the following and I found it too good to pass up. Hope you enjoy it too.

Children's advice on marriage

HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHO TO MARRY?

( 1 ) You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.-- Alan, age 10

( 2 ) No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with. -- Kirsten, age 10

WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?

( 1 ) Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then. -- Camille, age 10

( 2 ) No age is good to get married at. You got to be a fool to get ma rried.-- Freddie, age 6 (very wise for his age)

HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?

( 1 ) You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.-- Derrick, age 8

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?

( 1 ) Both don't want any more kids.-- Lori, age 8

WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE

( 1 ) Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.-- Lynnette, age 8 (isn't she a treasure)

( 2 ) On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.-- Martin, age 10 (wise beyond his years)

WHAT WOULD YOU DO ON A FIRST DATE THAT WAS TURNING SOUR?

( 1 ) I'd run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers and make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns.-- Craig, age 9

WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?

( 1 ) When they're rich.-- Pam, age 7

( 2 ) The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that.-- Curt, age 7

( 3 ) The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do.-- Howard, age 8 (this one has very good morals!)

IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?

( 1 ) I don't know which is better, but I'll tell you one thing. I'm never going to have sex with my wife. I don't want to be all grossed out.-- Theodore, age 8

( 2 ) It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.-- Anita, age 9 (bless you child)

HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T GET MARRIED?

( 1 ) There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?-- Kelvin, age 8

And the #1 Favorite is.......HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?

( 1 ) Tell your wife th at she looks pretty, even if she looks like a truck.-- Ricky, age 10

Have a nice day everyone.

Okay Luce, here is a picture of Cheryl and I out in the woods. Hee, hee. A good backscratch never hurt anyone.

Today is the holiday and I hope that everyone is being safe. When Cheryl came home last Friday the first comment she made was how many fruitcakes were on the highway and how crowded it was getting. Of course it is also the opening day of fishing season which makes it all that much worse.

Cheryl and I stayed home for the holiday. I have gotten to the point that I don't like to fight the crowded roads nor the crowded campsites. It has been cold and stormy for the last two days. In fact it put snow down on the benchs of the city on Saturday. We just built a fire in the fireplace and watched Mission Impossible I and II. Oh, that Tom Cruise is such a hero and ladies man. NOT!!!

I want to thank Mayden (I hope I spelled the name right) again for the Rick Monday story. It was great. For those of you who wish to know what I am talking about go to my previous post, look under comments, and hers is the last one. Go to her blog site and read some good material.

Does anyone know how the women drivers fared in the Indianapolis 500?

Just wanted to say hi and hope all is well. That is all for today.

Have a nice day everyone.

Luce, I promise I will post two pictures just for you. One is then and the other is now. Then you will see why I don't post personal pictures. VERY SCARY!! (Amber no one asked for your opinion)

I have this cousin who sends me the craziest stuff at times. I will post what she sent me today at the end of this blog.

Got my garden all finished yesterday and the old bod is paying for it today. I know, Waa, waa. Got it in just in time for our typical freeze for this time of year. Yep, supposed to get down to freezing tomorrow night just when I got my tomatoes, my pickles, my peppers and other delicate items all planted. I wish, oh how I wish, that the weathermen/women could get it right just once in their lives. (Probably the women)

Haven't heard from that Tiger Sue lady for a while, I hope she isn't sick. Depression can be a bugger at times. And then there is Schaumi, well what can I say about Schaumi? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!

The Cootie Bug finally contacted me and has been sick again. She has had Pneumonia since she visited a while back. Too much pure air compared to that smog Denver puts out. I remember flying once across Denver and one of the commercial pilots radioed the tower to find out if he should be flying by instruments since the air was so thick. People talk about LA and it's smog but other places have it just as bad if not worse. Anyway we hope the Cootie Bug gets to feeling better so I don't feel so bad when I pick on her.

Claire if you have any suggestions for me to save my tomatoes and etc. please let me know.

We have these friends in California that own a paper shredding business, you might say they are a couple of cutups. Ha, ha, ha. Well, "I" thought it was funny. Okay here is what my cousin sent me.

A successful Colorado rancher died and left everything to his devotedwife. She was a very good-looking woman, and determined to keep the ranch, but knew very little about ranching. So she decided to place an ad in the newspaper for a ranch hand. Two men applied for the job. One was homosexual and the other a drunk. She thought long and hard about it, and when no one else applied she decided to hire the homosexual man, figuring it would be safer to have him around the house than the drunk. He proved to be a hard worker who put in long hours everyday and knew a lot about ranching. For weeks, the two of them worked hard, and the ranch was doing very well.

Then one day, the rancher's widow said to the hired hand, "You have done a really good job, and the ranch looks great! You should go into town and kick up your heels. "The hired hand readily agreed and went into town the followingSaturday night. One o'clock came, and he didn't return. Two o'clock, and no hired hand. He returned around two-thirty, and upon entering the house, he found the rancher's widow sitting by the fireplace with a glass of wine, waiting for him.

She quietly called him over to her. "Unbutton my blouse and take it off," she said. Trembling, he did as she directed. "Now take off my boots." He did as she asked, ever so slowly. "Now take off my stockings." He removed each gently and placed them neatly by her boots. "Now take off my skirt." He slowly unbuttoned it, constantly watching her eyes in the fire light."Now take off my bra." Again, with trembling hands, he did as he was told and dropped it to the floor. "Now," she said, "take off my panties." By the light of the fire, he slowly pulled them down and off.

Then she looked at him and said, "If you ever wear my clothes into town again, you're fired".

Have a nice day everyone.

The other day a group of us were visiting and one of the gals had on a beautiful diamond ring that must have cost a fortune. Everyone was oohing and awwing over it and it reminded me of the first wedding ring I got Cheryl.

Cheryl and I eloped, for reasons that I don't care to discuss, let's just say her family was a little ornery. We were living in Ohio at the time and we headed for Idaho. We stopped at Joliet, Illinois to get something to eat and while there we spied a jewelry store. Being young and adventurous we went in to see how much a wedding ring would cost.

The lady proudly brought out her tray that had rings priced from $500 to over $1000. I must have about choked and passed out at the prices and sensing that something was wrong she said, "Well, I have some CHEAPER ones." She brought out a tray that held rings priced from $100 to just under $500. Again I must have had a look of pure horror 'cause she then said, "I DO have a bargain tray that is under $100. She brought that tray out and sure enough the prices were $50 to just under $100. Once again the look must have been there because she asked in a not so kind way, "Just HOW much were you planning on spending?" My reply, "$10.00" Now who had the look on her face? She finally gave us a $50.00 ring for $10.00 and that has meant more to my wife through all these years than any expensive ring I could have purchased.

I keep telling her I don't need a ring to know I am married and truth be known I have never worn a ring because of large hands and working in environments that prevented rings from being worn.

Finally passed all my written tests for my CDL now I have to take the skills tests at the tune of $50.00 each. Wonder if I can bargain with them?

Just finished watching the movie "Shane". Good movie starring Alan Ladd and his son. His son was dorky to say the least. The movie was filmed in my home area but on the Wyoming side of the mountain. So if anyone wants to see the country I grew up in then watch the movie "Shane". Of course if you have ever seen pictures of the Grand Teton Mountains in Wyoming that little speck way up there is me waving at the camera. (I wish)

I guess I believe in saving the worst for last some times. As I have mentioned before I have fixed seven of the eight sprinkler lines in our yard. The last one is a doozy. I fixed one portion that had a six foot broken pipe and just discovered another section that has a 16 foot broken piece. I am feeling like a mole and my yard looks like it too.

Gosh, I can't think of any thing to say about Texas or Canada so I guess I will close.

Have a nice day everyone.

Hello from Idaho. As the song goes, "And here you have Idaho. Winning her way to fame." Then it goes on but I won't do that now.

Good weekend for us. Saturday we went to a church party and had a blast. Some of those quiet, unassuming people in the church turned out to be quite the characters. It was one of the more enjoyable parties I have attended and I don't like parties of any kind. If it wasn't for Cheryl I probably would not attend any social activities. Yes, I am a big dud!

Sunday I upset the priesthood leadership. They all showed up for church for the first time since I have moved here, and I made the comment that something must be going down for all of them to be there at the same time. They didn't take that too well. Think I will keep my trap shut for a while and let the feathers smoothe.

I don't know how many of you like horse racing; I don't. It is about as exciting as car racing(LUCE) and paint drying BUT I did watch the race on Saturday and was truly saddened by what happened to Barbaro (I think that is how you spell his name) It was so obvious that the ankle and leg had brokend by the way it was flopping around. Lots of money lost that day and not just in gambling.

Did any of you watch the TV movie "Apacolypse 10.5"? Cheryl just had to watch that thing. No, Kim Delaney is not our daughter but if she wants to send us her pay check that will be okay. I found it interesting that Kings mountain in Utah was a major center for activity. I guess I had better say my prayers more sincerely if that is what is coming our way. Kings mountain is not too far from here. Ahhhh, tonight the mole is revealed on CSI-Miami. Poor Horatio he is not destined for happiness in this life.

Since I am doing these blogs for my kids, supposedly, I must remind them of the trip to Yellowstone Park a few years, well many years, ago. We went to Cody, Wyoming to go into the park that way. The road was quite narrow and quite steep and just enough room for two cars to pass comfortably. What does my jeep do? It quits in the middle of the climb. Ten thousand cars behind me that cannot get around me and I can't figure out what the problem is. Not one person came to see if I needed help or if they could help. Not one. They sure could honk those horns though. I think they were all from Texas. I got so frustrated that I took a very large wrench, smacked that car a dirty one, and said, "Run you SOB!!!" It started right up and never gave me any problem the rest of the trip. My oldest son made the comment that if a bear had of came over to see what was going on he would have run from Dad for fear he would get thumped. Darn rights he better run.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and is looking forward to this weekend of camping, fishing or just being lazy as well as paying respects to those who have passed on. Please fly your flags. Cheryl and I think we are going to go to Driggs, Idaho and put flowers on our son's grave. I truly want to say be careful. A lot of cars means a lot of accidents and we don't want that.

Have a nice day everyone.

This is about how I feel today. Lazy!!! It has been quite warm for this time of year and it drains my ambition immensely. Must be all those Texans sending hot air up this way.:)

Yesterday I went to the sheriff's office to take my driver license test. I want to get my CDL back, plus passenger endorsement, plus school bus endorsement. Mercy, the lady handed me about 17-18 pages of tests. All told there were 5 different tests I had to take and by the time I was done I was drained. I passed all but one and that was the passenger endorsement. The license manual and the test questions don't quite jive so if you get on a bus and I am driving maybe you should worry.

I used to drive a charter bus part time and met a lot of interesting people. The Japanese were the best of all of them. They treated me like I was royalty. I was driving down a road in Wyoming when I noticed all of them excitedly looking out the windows and pointing. For the life of me I couldn't see anything out there. The guide came and asked me to stop so they could go look at a particular plant that was growing since they had never seen one before. Guess what it was? Sagebrush! I mean they were excited like a bunch of little kids over sagebrush.

I asked Cheryl if there was anything special she wanted me to do today and she said no. I then asked if I could work on a puzzle and she said yes. As Red Foxx would say in his TV show, "It was the big one. I am coming home Mama." (For those of you too young to know what I am talking about, it was a heart attack).

I have 8 water lines in my lawn watering system and I now have 7 of them fixed. Talk about a mess. Broken lines, broken sprinklers, improperly installed sprinklers, sheesh. No wonder I am tired today. Waa, waa, waa. Guess I will close before those Texans and Canadians start picking on me. (I am a very delicate person)

Have a nice day everyone.

With the advent of Memorial Day coming soon I wish to let everyone know I am truly proud to be an American. I have not served in armed combat, I have not visited a foreign country other than Mexico and Canada, I have not really done much to visually compare the United States to other countries, but it is MY country and perfect or not I love it. My heart does skip a little beat when I see the stars and stripes being proudly displayed throughout the country. To me it is a beautiful flag and represents so many good things. I hope everyone will fly a flag this coming Memorial Day to let everyone know they are happy to be here and enjoying the freedoms we do.

As You Slide Down The Banister Of Life, Remember.........

1. Jim Baker and Jimmy Swaggert have written an impressive new book. It's called "Ministers Do More than Lay People."

2. Transvestite: A guy who likes to eat, drink and be Mary.

3. The difference between the Pope and your boss...the Pope only expects you to kiss his ring.

4. My mind works like lightning. One brilliant flash and it is gone.

5. The only time the world beats a path to your door is if you're in the bathroom.

6. I hate sex in the movies. Tried it once, the seat folded up, the drink spilled and that ice, well, it really chilled the mood.

7. It used to be only death and taxes were inevitable. Now, of course, there's shipping and handling, too.

8. A husband is someone who, after taking the trash out, gives the impression that he just cleaned the whole house.

9. My next house will have no kitchen - just vending machines and a large trash can.

10. A blonde said, "I was worried that my mechanic might try to rip me off. I was relieved when he told me all I needed was turn signal fluid."

11. I'm so depressed. My doctor refused to write me a prescription for Viagra. He said it would be like putting a new flagpole on a condemned building.

12. My neighbor was bit by a stray rabid dog. I went to see how he was and found him writing frantically on a piece of paper. I told him rabies could be treated, and he didn't have to worry about a will. He said, "Will? What will? I'm making a list of the people I want to bite."

13. Definition of a teenager? God's punishment for enjoying sex.

14. As we slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way.

Now remember! You don't stop laughing because you grow old--Yougrow old because you stop laughing!!

Have a nice day everyone.

How ice cream is really made!!

Have you noticed that with the advent of spring and the coming of summer, with all it's activities, that it is getting increasingly harder to blog? Maybe it is just me. I find myself not wanting to set down and make my brain think of what to write. Of course when I think of the work I need to do out in the yard I lay down and rest until all ambition has passed.

With Mother's Day just ending I was reminded of the time I used to bring my wife flowers everyday of the week. Yes, I am a true romantic. We had been married about 2 years so the puppy love thing was still in effect. Each day I would go to Cleveland, Ohio and meet up with her cousin, Bill, and we would set and watch all the secretaries go to lunch. Mercy, but there were a lot of good looking office workers. You know the song, "I'm A Girl Watcher"? That was Bill and me. Oops, got sidetracked thinking about that.

Bill worked for a funeral home so almost everyday there was a funeral. Naturally there were left over flowers so he would bring me a nice bouquet and I would take it home to Cheryl. It took her quite some time to figure out where I was getting all those nice flowers. She was happy up until the time she figured it out and then Bill and I got a tongue lashing. Ungrateful woman anyway.

Got to make this short. I am traveling with Cheryl to Logan, UT where she works for two more weeks. (Thank God) Got to spend some money while she is working.:)

Have a nice day everyone.

Don't ask me why I posted this picture 'cause I don't know. It is just my wierd sense of humor.

I hope all mothers had a very enjoyable mother's day. Cheryl said she enjoyed hers and I hope so. As I had mentioned she wanted a horseshoe set and got it. I was to cook her breakfast and dinner and I did. It was sooooooo good even if I do say so myself. Then we sat down and watched "Dante's Peak" in the evening.

Only attended one meeting at church yesterday. I must have overdone it during the week 'cause I sure was tired and sore over the weekend. Been fixing lawn sprinklers and now have only two more lines to go and they should all be working, I hope.

Thanks to those of you who responded to my question on your accomplishments. Have you noticed how much you can learn from others if you just listen to them? This was an exercise we would do when we taught Career Workshops. It is amazing what people have done that you would never suspect, like playing soccer on a men's team in school. Hmmmm. Got to watch those locker room antics though.:) When we taught our classes we would have several single women due to divorce, death or whatever and we heard many times over how hard it was and what an accomplishment it was to raise a family by yourself. I agree 110%.

Did I ever tell about the time Cheryl and I were setting at the dinner table with our kids and somehow the talk turned to what to do if one of us died. I asked if they felt I could re-marry and they all agreed that I could. The boys were describing the perfect woman and she would rival Miss Universe. We then asked if Mom could re-marry and they all answered as if they had been rehearsing for years... NO!!! Somewhat taken back I asked why not because it wasn't fair to Mom to live alone. My oldest son replied without blinking an eye, "Because you have been so damned hard to live with we don't want another guy to break in." Talk about take the wind out my sails. Here I thought I was the perfect father. Just because I would threaten to slap them into tomorrow to find out how the market was doing does that make me a bad father? (Don't answer that.)

Tiger Sue about Michael, my miracle child. Mike was and is a very good looking person. As a child he was cute to say the least, however with that cuteness came a great deal of mischieviouness. We took the kids to the SLC zoo one day and from all corners of the zoo we would hear mothers yelling, "Michael get out of that. Michael, get over here. Michael leave those animals alone. Michael, Michael, Michael." There has to be something in the name of Michael that causes mischief. How did Mike become my miracle child? I kept telling him if he did not stop doing what he was doing (on a daily basis) it would be a miracle if he lived to see tomorrow; Hence the miracle child.

Have a nice day everyone.

Horseshoes!! That is what she wants. Go figure. Cheryl called me today from our daughters and said she wanted a horseshoe set for mother's day. Not only does she want that but she went and got it herself to make sure she did get it. Now how many of you would ask for such a thing?

I know what will happen. She will challenge me to a game, then lose, then won't play again. To make her happy I will have to throw the game so she will feel she won. Sheesh, the things a man does to keep his woman happy.

The other night when we had a group over to our home and we were discussing past events in our lives, the question was posed; What things have you accomplished that you really wanted to that were not related to college or higher learning? For example I listed two things that I have accomplished without a higher education. 1. How to run a computer. I am self taught on these things. 2. I hold a private pilot license which I have not used since 1971 when our son died. I have always love airplanes but just don't have the money to fly one. Now there is a third one which has surprised everyone that I mention it to. 3. I taught myself to be friendly.

I can remember a time, not too long ago, when I would want nothing to do with anyone. If I could have lived the life of a hermit I would have been extremely happy. I did not like people, outside my wife and kids, at all. I literally had to teach myself to accept people and then the liking part sort of followed.

Cheryl had the hardest time getting me to go to a social function but we finally figured out why after many years. I have lost (according to a hearing doctor, quack, quack) 60% in one ear and (quack, quack) 70% in the other. When I am at a large gathering I am constantly asking Cheryl what is being said. That becomes embarrassing after a while and especially when you keep asking "what" to someone who is talking to you.

My family has all asked me to get a hearing aid but the doctor (quack, quack) said it wouldn't do any good. My hearing loss is due to nerve damage and hearing aids will not help. So if anyone writes something I don't like on my blog I just say I didn't hear that and I can get away with it.

I ask those of you who read this dribble; what have you accomplished in your life (non-educational) that you really wanted to? Seriously, I would like to know.

Oh, Schaumi I have agreed to cook the meals. Yes, I will clean up the dishes. Yes, I will spoil the woman rotten. Yes, I will pretend that I don't know what I am doing so she will help me. Oops didn't mean to let that out.

Have a nice day everyone.

P.S. Darla how old are you now? Mercy, the hills are not that old.:)

Perfume??? No, no, no. Scares the animals away. A day at a Spa? She would be so spoiled that it would take months for me to get her back to where she should be. After all it has taken me 40 years of hard training to get the woman to wait on me and treat me like the king I am.

I thought of a new fishing pole since the grandsons broke hers. That is still a possibility. (By the way Lowa it is good to hear from you again) Maybe some new fishing lures.

I did think about getting her a new garden shovel but I think she needs something she can use all year long. I was looking at the C-A-L Ranch advertisement yesterday and notice a grooming set but I am afraid the curry comb would be too harsh on her delicate skin. (It is metal after all)

Cheryl suggested that I make her breakfast and dinner on Sunday. Breakfast would be hash browns, sausage, eggs and toast. Dinner would be steak, baked potato, green beans (Yuck and double yuck), and a glass of Crystal Lite. I think cooking is a definite possibility. Yes, I am a fairly decent cook irregardless of what my old sheepherder used to say about me.

Actually I found the perfect present for her. She loves to work in the yard and so I bought her a riding lawn mower. I mean after all she is no spring chicken and her bod can't take too much abuse lately. Here is a picture of what I got her.

Pretty darned neat on my part, huh?

I think she will really like this and I will sharpen the blades for her; it's the least I can do.

Have a nice day everyone.

It's that time of year for all kinds of field trips your children might be taking with their school. DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU CHILDREN ARE GOING TODAY???

I see on the news that Texas has been hit by tornados. I hope that does not affect any of you that I have been priviliged to know through blogging.

Okay, the question for the day, and I hope you women will respond to this. What in the heck does one get his wife for Mother's Day? My wife has everything since she has me so I am at a loss. Very funny Schaumi, it would take more than $10 to take a break from me. Luce, you know who cleaned up the poop, it sure wasn't ME!!

I look at all these advertisements and some of them crack me up. Get your wife a new washer or dryer or vacuum. Why? So she can work harder that's why. Cheryl looked at me years ago when I asked about things like washers and etc and all she said was, "Don't even think about it buddy boy."

I could get her flowers but then she would think I am up to something. Candy she really does not care for since it seems to stick to the hips. Jewlery I refuse to get for her since she has enough jewelry that she could wear something different each day and never repeat in this life time. I could get her a puppy but then it grows old, messes up the carpets and you have to put it to sleep and that is too sad. How about a picture of ME?? How could a picture improve on the original, plus she gets to see me every day and it doesn't cost me a thing.

See my problem? How about a little help from you ladies. Books don't work cause I would have to read them to her and if it ain't Louis L'Amour just forget about it. A movie would be nice but she doesn't like violence or war or westerns and definitely nothing from Texas. I'm telling you I am in a pickle.

Have you ever heard the phrase, "A rolling stone gathers no moss"? That phrase is not true. Cheryl's maiden name was Moss and she grabbed ahold of me with both hands. Hee, hee. The other day a bunch of us were talking about our first kiss with our spouses. (This was a mixed group) All I can say is that the big city girl (Cheryl) turned this poor old country bumpkin into a stud machine. Hmmm, hmmm. Teach her to tell me to pull over so she can kiss me.

Have a nice day everyone.

This picture is for our friend, Darla, who lives in Bakersfield, CA. My wife worked for Darla a long, long time and they are very good friends. It was always a joke about how she would fix everything with duct tape. So Darla, here is another way to use that good old product.:)

Last night was an interesting one in our house. First we had a few people over for what we call a Family Home Evening. For those of us who no longer have children in our home I guess it should be called Old Folks Night Out. We had a good time learning about each other and how imperfect we really are.

About 1:00 am we awoke to the strangest noise. It sounded like a big rat was trying to get into something in our bathroom. At first we thought it was Gus, our cat, but he was next to Cheryl on the bed so I drug myself out of bed to see what the heck. Somehow a stray cat had gotten into our house and was really having a hey day. He had eaten all of our cat's food, tipped over the trash can and scattered everything and then to top the list he pooped on our couch. There is a death sentence hanging over his head as I write.

We chased him downstairs, we chased him upstairs, we chased him through the rooms shutting doors as we went so we could narrow down his escape area. Just when we thought he had gone outside through the open door I tipped up one of our chairs and he was under it and the chase began again. We finally managed to get him outside amidst some fine Irish language and went back to bed. That inconsiderate wife of mine didn't want to fool around. I was wide awake and needed to calm down but all she wanted to do was sleep. In our house we have a saying, "Here's a quarter, call me in the morning." She gave me a dollar. Hmmmm. (Just kidding about the whole thing really) She did snap at me for telling her in a loving way not to be throwing her blankets on me.

Looks like a beautiful day here. Been rainy and cold as of late. Guess I will have to mow the lawn now. Dang, and the fish are biting.

Have a nice day everyone.

Ahhhhh, this is the life. This was last year when Cheryl and I went to a spot called Tony's Grove. Nothing but fresh air, blue skies, great scenery and good food. We now have a somewhat larger camper and are looking forward to camping this summer. Right now the weather is cold and dreary but the spirit is still saying, "Get ready, young man, get ready."

Here is another picture of my granddaughter, Rylie Ann. Someone asked me what her middle name was and at the time I did not know but her Father enlightened me that it was definitely going to be Ann. The hat she is wearing is one that I made for her; isn't it adorable?

Schaumi tagged me and after explaining what that meant I guess I will try and make an attempt at doing my part.

1. I am myself and really don't care what others may think although I do try to be reasonable about things. If I don't like something I am not afraid to tell you so and hope that I didn't build up the resentment to the boiling point cause then it is not a pretty site.

2. I enjoy fishing, computers, puzzles (especially of trains), having my own home and sex. Of course Cheryl wonders about the last one. Okay enough said about that.

3. Unlike some people in Texas I DO suffer from depression. It is a horrible disease and I wish I didn't have it. It comes on like a rainstorm although many times there is no warning what so ever.

4. I enjoy doing things like blogging and meeting new people. I just wish more people would respond to my blogs but, oh well. I refuse to read blogs that have a lot of cursing in them. Anyone intelligent enough to write a blog is intelligent enough to not use that kind of language. I have seen some very pretty ladies who used the most foul language and that turns me cold.

5. I don't smoke or chew and don't go with girls who do. I haven't been curried below the knees so you know I must have fleas.

6. I truly do not like California and Utah. All my life I have said I would not live in either state and what do I have to show for it... 19 years in California and 2 in Utah. YEECHHHH.

7. As you can tell I am not good at this. I like to watch movies. I find them relaxing for some reason. I used to read a lot but my eyes get so tired that I stopped doing that as much. Movies I like: Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, The Searchers, Replacements, The Mask, Simon Birch, The 13th Warrior, to mention a few. I really like variety in my life.

8. I go to church. I do not like Sunday School although the teacher I have now is quite good. I don't like Home Teaching but I do like to just visit without being told to do so.

9. My descendancy is Scot-Irish and I am proud of it. We don't like authority, we like being loners, we like sex (oops maybe I should not put that in), we like to watch pretty women cause we find them a hoot, I hate snakes or reptiles of any sort.

10. I am true to my wife and will not entertain thoughts of being otherwise. What is the sense of getting married if that be the case. I stopped drinking when I got married because I wanted to raise a family and be a good father and husband and drinking had no part of that. (Hope I don't offend anyone) (See number 1)

11. This is the last one. I love to tease and it gets me in lots of trouble. I mean no harm with it and sometimes it just comes out without even thinking.

Okay, there you have it. Kate you are tagged now. Oh, 11a. I would like to see a picture of Schaumi so I know who does these things to me.

Have a nice day everyone.

Rylie Again:)

Hi! My name is Rylie Patching and I was born May 4, 2006 in Orem, UT









This is me with my very proud Mom and Dad














This is me with my beautiful Grandma, I think I will call her "Granny".





This man wandered in off the streets and wanted to hold me. He reminds me a lot of my Grandpa.






This is my Aunt Kimberly who is going to have my cousin, Nicole, in July.

My Grandpa make me feel so warm and comfy! He thinks I am cute and I agree.

Rylie Smylie

I guess this week is when I pick on Florida. I have been saving these pictures for over a year waiting for the right time to use them.

Well, guess what? Our little Rylie Smylie is here and she is cute as a bug's ear. Of course I don't go around looking into bug's ears so I really don't know how cute that could really be. All I do know is that she is one beautiful baby. My being a prejudiced Grandpa has absolutely nothing to do with my opinion. She is 18 inches ling and weighed 6lbs 6oz at birth. Typical woman, has a strong set of lungs and not afraid to use them. I will post some pictures later when I get them downloaded.

Have a nice day everyone.

Well as much as I hate to see it happen it is that time of year again for Florida. I don't think I could live in an area like that where I would have to worry about hurricanes and the like.

Just finished watching this weeks "Invasion" television show. I guess the hybrids are illegals as well. It must be a real challenge to keep a weekly show progressing without becoming too stupid for the viewers. There have been a few episodes that were a little on the slow side but overall it has been a good program.

Cheryl and I really enjoyed "Lost" the first season but this season has had it's ups and downs. Maybe we just got tired of watching TV no matter what was on.

Been reading the Old Testament lately and talk about interesting people. My goodness I thought the Scot Irish were risque but compared to the Irsraelites we are nothing. Whew, they were spicy at times.

Tomorrow is the big day for our youngest daughter. Baby number 1 comes into the world and we are excited to have her with us. I have been trying to convince them to name her Rylie Jane but so far no luck. Rylie is definite but the Jane part they are thinking about. They didn't realize that Jane Eyre was the queen of Ireland before it became known as Ireland. The island was actually named Ireland after her. Anyone going to visit the queen would refer to the visit as going to Eyre's land and after a while it became Eyreland and then Ireland. (At least that is how I understand the story to go.) So Jane would not be a bad middle name for an Irish family.

Cheryl says it is time for bed and to stop fooling around on the computer. Boy, I haven't heard from Schaumi too much. I hope she is just busy and not sick or something. Good to hear from Lowa and Tiger Sue. Haven't heard from Hope either. I told you guys I was boring but no one would believe me. Luce I promise I will post a picture soon, then you will have some nightmares.

Have a nice day everyone.

No, no, no, who would want to sing the national anthem in German? Irish is okay but anything else is just not good. (Just kidding of course)

I read in the paper where a study states most youth do not know where Louisiana or Iraq is. Why would anyone want to know where Louisiana is? I remember when a study was done about the capitols of the states. Idaho was missed a lot. However, everyone knew Dallas was the capitol of Texas.

Does Cananda have a capitol? Must be Quebec.

I don't know what gas prices are like in other parts of the country but here they are sky rocketing. A month ago they were at 2.30 a gallon and now pushing 3.00. The question is why? When I worked in the oil fields it was amazing how many wells were dug and then capped and never put into use.

Does anyone out there know of any "HONEST" jobs one can do at home if one is considered disabled? How I would like to be doing something without finding out it is a scam.

I received this next part from someone on the Internet and just had to share with everyone; it is priceless and oh so true.

Why the US is in trouble!!(THESE ARE ACTUAL HAPPENINGS..........)These are precious. And any of us who have the new Medicare prescription drug plan realize it took real geniuses to release a plan affecting so many with so little thought behind it.

Why the US is in trouble!!

A Washington, DC airport ticket agent offers some examples of why our country is in trouble!

1. I had a New York Senator ask for an aisle seat so that her hair wouldn't get messed up by being near the window.

2. I got a call from a candidate's staffer, who wanted to go to Capetown. I started to explain the length of the flight and the passport information, then she interrupted me with, "I'm not trying to make you look stupid, but Capetown is in Massachusetts," Without trying to make her look stupid, I calmly explained, "Cape Cod is in Massachusetts, Capetown is in Africa." Her response - click.

3. A senior Vermont Congressman called, furious about a Florida package we did. I asked what was wrong with the vacation in Orlando. He said he was expecting an ocean-view room. I tried to explain that's not possible, since Orlando is in the middle of the state. He replied, "Don't lie to me, I looked on the map and Florida is a very thin state!"

4. I got a call from a lawmaker's wife who asked, "Is it possible to see England from Canada?" I said, "No." She said, "But they look so close on the map."

5. An aide for a cabinet member once called and asked if he could rent a car in Dallas. When I pulled up the reservation, I noticed he had only a 1-hour layover in Dallas. When I asked him why he wanted to rent a car, he said, "I heard Dallas was a big airport, and we will need a car to drive between gates to save time."

6. An Illinois Congresswoman called last week. She needed to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:30 am and got to Chicago at 8:33 am. I explained that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois, but she couldn't understand the concept of time zones. Finally, I told her the plane went fast, and she bought that.

7. A New York lawmaker called and asked, "Do airlines put your physical description on your bag so they know whose luggage belongs to whom?" I said, "No, why do you ask?" She replied, "Well, when I checked in with the airline, they put a tag on my luggage that said (FAT), and I'm overweight. I think that's very rude!" After putting her on hold, for a minute, while I looked into it (I was laughing) I came back, and explained the city code for Fresno, CA is (FAT), and the airline was just putting a destination tag on her luggage.

8. A Senator's aide called to inquire about a trip package to Hawaii. After going over all the cost info, she asked, "Would it be cheaper to fly to California, and then take the train to Hawaii?"

9. I just got off the phone with a freshman Congressman who asked, "How do I know which plane to get on?" I asked him what exactly he meant, to which he replied, "I was told my flight number is 823, but none of these planes have numbers on them."

10. A lady Senator called and said, "I need to fly to Pepsi-Cola, Florida. Do I have to get on one of those little computer planes?" I asked if she meant fly to Pensacola, Fl. on a commuter plane. She said, "Yeah, whatever, Smarty!"

11. A senior Senator from Mass called and had a question about the documents he needed in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion about passports, I reminded him that he needed a visa. "Oh, no I don't. I've been to China many times and never had to have one of those." I double-checked and sure enough, his stay required a visa. When I told him this he said, "Look, I've been to China four times and every time they have accepted my American Express!"

12. A New Mexico Congresswoman called to make reservations, "I want to go from Chicago to Rhino, New York." I was at a loss for words. Finally, I said, "Are you sure that's the name of the town?" "Yes, what flights do you have?" replied the lady. After some searching, I came back with, "I'm sorry, ma'am, I've looked up every airport code in the country and can't find a Rhino anywhere." The lady retorted, "Oh, don't be silly! Everyone knows where it is. Check your map!" So I scoured a map of the state of New York and finally offered, "You don't mean Buffalo, do you?" The reply? "Whatever! I knew it was a big animal".

Now you know why Government is in the shape that it's in!

Have a nice day everyone.

I don't know how many of you have been interested in the past days events with the immigrants. I normally pay little or no attention to such things but lately they have been pushing some of my personal buttons. I asked myself why it bothered me so much and the best answer I can come up with is this... Someone comes into my home uninvited, makes themselves comfortable with all the amenities I have in my home, have to audacity to tell me I am a jerk and not taking good care of them, trash the place that I call my own, invite acquaintances over and plan all kinds of things to make my home look even worse, then I think I would be very excited about having them leave and not continue being around.

I guess the one thing that I saw yesterday that really upset me was the Hispanic people in California flying the U.S. flag upside down with the Mexican flag on top of it. How many countries would permit such a thing without repercussion? What is going to happen is bloodshed will start from these actions if they continue. I am not a person to grab a gun and start killing every hispanic I see but we all know there are extremists in this country who will do just that. So much for my soap box today.

I read where a 33 year old male married a 104 year old female. Now what kind of stupidity is that?

Have you ever had a situation in your life that you wished you could change? (Now this is a little stupid on my part so bear with me.) I wish that I was like Dr. Doolittle and could talk to the animals. Many times I wished I could walk up to a bear or a mountain lion, put my arm around their shoulders, and have a good friendly conversation. Wouldn't that be neat?

It is cold here today. The wind is coming from the north but no threat of inclement weather. Must be from the Edmonton Oilers celebrating their victory over the Detroit Red Wings. I actually watched Saturday's game for a while and was impressed with the sharp passing and skating that Edmonton was doing. Detroit gave them a rush for a while but to no avail.

Cheryl and I are slowly but surely getting the yard to looking better. We worked our south ends off Saturday. That wife of mine is such a good woman. Not only did she work hard but she fed me well also. We had homemade pizza made with french bread. Yum, yum, yum.

Well day after tomorrow my little granddaughter should be here. We are looking forward to it so much. We know her first name is Rylie but we don't know what her father is going to name her middle name. After Rylie is born then we look forward to Amber Nicole being born in July. What a great month to be born in, July. Why? Because that is when her grandfather, the one and only most glorious Tim Delaney was born. Who wouldn't be honored to have a birthday with that great man?

Have a nice day everyone.