I call this picture "male chasing female until SHE catches him."

Lately I feel like the ugly step child to blogging. It is crazy how busy I have been for a part time job. This week is another one filled with long days and long runs. Wouldn't have it any other way.

Well, my sweety joins the ranks of the "old farts." She turns 60 this Thursday. I thought I would do something extra special for her birthday but the daughters beat me to it. They have a surprise trip planned where they take her to Las Vegas for fun, shopping, relaxation, shopping, casinos, and of course shopping. Is Dad invited? NOOOO!!! This is a girl's time out and something special for Mom. What am I doing? Taking kids all over southeastern Idaho for activities. Whew, I was worried about getting her a present and now I won't have to.:)

How about those gasoline prices. I just watched a CNN news spot about why gas was rising so much. The bottom line... NO ONE KNOWS. Our poor oil companies, who set a record earnings, is going broke I guess. This is so silly. We live in a crazy period of time. Now if I was rich and famous like so many of you are I would not worry about such things but... I am not rich and certainly not famous... just full of hot air.

In this area of the country we have a weekly newspaper that still prints about Aunt Tillie visiting Aunt Gertrude last week. John Harper went to the hog market to watch the sales. The local youth were spotted tipping over cows one night. I still don't know what that means. How do you tip over a cow? All the cows I was around were bigger than I was and stupider by a long shot.

I cannot believe how far removed from hunting I have become. I was watching the Outdoor channel on TV the other night and they were hunting mule deer. It made me sad to see those magnificent animals being killed yet I used to do the same thing when I was younger. Now I just enjoy looking at them in their natural habitat. Snakes, on the other hand, can be killed by the millions and I will cheer for each demise. I watched a pitbull tackle a water moccasin and it was fascinating. I am a firm believer of keeping a cat or pig around if I live in snake country. How did I get on this subject?

Have you done your taxes yet? I keep putting it off because I know I don't get anything back. On the plus side I also know I don't have to pay any extra monies either.

There sure seems to be a rash of bus accidents lately. The one in Georgia and other places. We had a bad one happen in the town of Rexburg, Idaho that was quite serious and could have been much more serious. Probably means more regulations coming when most of it could be attributed to other causes.

Guess I will close. I probably won't get to post again until next Monday. Each day this week I leave somewhere between 4:00am and 5:00am. When I get home I am tired and don't want to be on the computer. (THAT is a sure sign of tiredness with me.)

Here is something to enjoy.
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An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole, which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.

At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."

The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?"

"That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them."

"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.

You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

SO, to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!
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Now the way I interpret this story is that not all of you can be perfect, like the Irish, but you do make the world a beautiful place for a bunch of crackpots. Ha,ha,ha. I am so darned funny.

Have a nice day everyone especially if you go by the name of BUBBA.