Monday July 30, 2012

Ms P and I slept in until 0600 this morning. I went back to bed and got up at 0710. After my calisthenics I got on the bike and pedaled to Ada. I covered 18 miles. When I got home I showered and then headed to the Kava House. Except for reporting on Romney's trip to Israel and the Olympics the WSJ was pretty bland. The DFP has been checking folk's handicap parking tags. They did a pretty exhaustive study and found a lot of folks abusing this privilege. I got home at 1300 and had a quick lunch. I did watch some Olympic action. The coverage was on 3 channels. I ran some errands. I mailed our Visa applications for Vietnam, did some banking and stopped at Meijer's to get some lotion and anti-acids. Tonight we will watch some Olympics. We were watching the 10M diving and I told Nancy that I had to jump off a 10M tower when in the Navy. It was part of a man-overboard drill. I was terrified. I was impressed with Missy Franklin's win in the 100M backstroke. It is 2200 and the temperature outside is 84. The heat continues

Sunday July 29, 2012

We slept with the windows open last night. I had to wake Ms P this morning at 0500 to go outside. (I had to do my bidness also) We got up at 0655 and got ready for the MAC. We both swam 1500 yards this morning. After the MAC we headed to Miejer's for our supplies. Gas was $3.51 per gallon. Nancy fixed her world famous poached eggs this morning. I had mine on waffles left over from AJ's visit. In fact Nancy said while we were shopping she misses shopping for AJ. No Goldfish or Graham Crackers. I did take my afternoon nap. After the nap I walked over to the Post Office to mail a letter. Nancy is grilling hamburgers for dinner tonight. We will watch some Olympic events. We watched the Olympics until 2200 and then we went to bed.

Saturday July 29, 2012

Nancy and I stayed up too late watching the Olympics because we both slept in until almost 0800 (I did take Ms P out at 0530). I rode the bike to Bill's for their pancake breakfast. When I got home Nancy was watching an Olympic bike race. We can get Olympic events on 5 channels. The bike race was won by a rider from Kazakhstan. I took a long bike ride this morning. I rode through Ada and Cascade logging 19 miles. After a quick lunch I watched some Olympic events. At 1600 Nancy and I attended an open house for Becky Verker and her new husband Ken. We met a lot of parents whose kids were classmates of our kids. It was a good time. It is now 1915 and I am heading downstairs to watch some more Olympics. While watching the Olympics on TV and waiting for the 400 IM with Mike Phelps I was scrolling through my itouch and saw that Mike Phelps had placed 4th. The TV showing of the race was anticlimactic. We watched until 2200 before heading upstairs. The weather has been great. We did not need the AC today.

Friday July 27, 2012

Friday and I am on my summer schedule. I do all the exercises but no rowing or running. Today I loaded the bike on the Cobalt and headed to Millennium Park. I rode 17 miles in 1h30'. It started to thunder at about mile 14 so I made record time getting to the car. I got rained on but not that much. I then headed to the Kava House to read the papers. I really don't know why the Brits got so mad at Romney. I thought what he said was what we all read in the papers. The Brits are always whining. The WSJ had all the articles on the trouble in Europe but the stock market went over 13,000. I can't figure this out. Today Kim was cleaning the house so I took my time getting home. I stopped at the Harmony Brewery to buy a growler (sp?) of their beer. I have 60 oz of their pale ale in the reefer. We had a heavy storm roll through about 1400. Ms P got a little hyper but I ignored her and we had no big problems. Nancy had to work at the Hospital this afternoon. When she got home we all got in the car and headed to Costco to get our Visa pictures taken. It took about 10 minutes. Nancy's satellite radio stopped working. I used the internet to get a fix from sirius. I will try it tomorrow. Tonight we are staying home so we can watch the Opening Ceremonies. Nancy fixed a crock pot chicken tacos for dinner. They were good. I tried the Harmony Pale Ale and it was not as good as I remembered. We watched the Olympics until almost midnight.

Thursday july 26, 2012

We had a nice thunderstorm roll through last night. We really needed the rain. Of course Ms P went bonkers. I got up at 0710. It had stopped raining by the time I was ready to pedal to the MAC. This summer has been unusual. Every day this summer I have been able to ride my bike. Usually I miss several days because of rain. The pool was empty this morning. I completed 1,000 yards in 31'. The Kava House just raised their prices. They are now the same as Starbucks. I did not find one article in the WSJ that I would like to comment on. I had a quick lunch and then walked Ms P around the block. Nancy had a dentist appointment this morning. I had planned on running several errands but I have spent about 45 minutes trying to get my Chase Visa card data. They have a new security procedure that I think is really stupid. We will have dinner at Great Lakes Shipping this evening. We need a Visa for our trip to Vietnam. It is really a very simple form. All they want is the $240 fee. We watched a little TV and at 2100 Nancy headed upstairs. I watched the Mexico/Korea soccer game. I think I am finally beginning to understand soccer. It is 2145 and the temperature is 78. The low expected tonight is 71. The hot days just keep coming.

Wednesday July 25, 2012

We turned the AC off yesterday. I had trouble sleeping because I don't like a fan blowing on me. Nancy likes a fan blowing full blast. I slept in the room without the fan and suffered. You would think I would learn. Ms P and I went out at 0500 and it was a very nice 70⁰. I finally got up at 0555 because this morning is Breakfast Club. We had a good turnout. The speaker talked about retrofitting homes for old folks. Did you know that the new health care law will pay some of the costs. Nothing is too good for us seniors. We are stealing the young folks blind. After BC I took the Cobalt to the Chevy garage to get an oil change. I no sooner got settled than they were done. I did not get a chance to read my papers. I headed home and got out the lawn mower. I wanted to get the lawn cut before the warm front moved through this afternoon. It was in the 70s when I started and when I finished at 1400 it was in the high 80s. It is now 1630 and the temperature has reached 90⁰. I showered and took a nap. This afternoon Nancy is working at the Gardens. We are having cereal tonight. This is the first time in a week that we are eating at home. Heavy thunderstorms are suppose to roll through this evening. We might have to give Ms P a pill.

Tuesday July 24, 2012

I am back to reporting on our normal routine. It is still hot and we had the AC on all night although Nancy turned it off at noon. Ms P and I got up at 0500, I went back to bed and then got up at 0700. Nancy had her normal Tuesday MAC schedule. I did the at home routine including trying to row 2k in under 9'. I was not successful, 9'10". I rode the bike to the MAC and I ran 1 mile and then swam 1050 yards. After the MAC I pedaled to the Kava House and read the WSJ and DFP. I still cannot figure out the Euro problems. After a quick lunch I took the Taurus and got it washed. I also bought some dog food for Ms P. Now that Ms P is Bob and Nancy's dog I got a license last week. I also did not mention in yesterdays blog that Steve had his 39th birthday on the 18th. Happy Birthday Steve. Tonight Nancy and I are working at a concert at the Gardens. After work we will have a picnic and listen to the music. Tonight they have local talent and the concert is free to Garden members. We started at 1645 and did not stop until nearly 2000. The facility was at capacity. It was a beautiful evening for a concert. We stayed until 2100. When we got home I finished the GRP and then headed to bed. It is 2200 and the temperature is 80⁰. Tomorrow I have breakfast club.

Monday July 23, 2012

Good grief!! Has it really been a month since my last blog. I have a lot of catching up to do. It has been a great 4 weeks. I have driven across the USA, spent time with Steve and his family in CA and helped Missy move into her condo in the Brentwood area of LA, CA. Since I have been home I have spent a lot of time biking and kayaking. Nancy and I have also spent some time trying out new restaurants. Last Friday we ate at a new eatery called "Trillium Haven". The restaurant is located in the old Zondervan building in Eastown. The place was jammed. Saturday night we ate at the Electric Cheeta on Wealthy St near Eastown. Tonight we are going to Houlihan's. It just opened in Breton Village. While I was driving Missy's car to CA, Nancy had an opportunity to spend some quality time with AJ. If you are confused her is how it worked. On Saturday June 22 I started driving to CA. I followed the route of old US 66. It took me 4 days. I spent the first night in St Robert, MO near Fort Leonard Woods. Ft Leonard Woods is where young men from MI drafted into the Army took their Basic Training. I spent the next night in Amarillo, TX and the following night in Williams, AZ. It was hot. I did not get cool until I got to LA. We live in a beautiful country and I recommend a drive across the country. I got into Long Beach on Tuesday. I stayed the night with Steve. The next morning I picked up Missy at LAX. I also rented a car, Ford Focus. We stopped at Missy's condo and found that her tenant had not moved out. I spent Wednesday night at Steve's and Missy stayed at a friend's. On Thursday I borrowed Steve's bike and took a long bike ride along the LA River trail and also along the beach in LB. I met Missy in the PM and we ran some errands. Missy had expected the movers to arrive on Saturday but she was told they would unload on Friday. On Friday the movers did not get to Missy's place until 1600. They finished about 0100 Saturday morning. I spent the night at Steve's. On Saturday Missy started unpacking. I helped as much as I could. I really like the area around Missy's condo. On night we ate at the Cheesecake Factory. CA requires that restaurants list the calories for each item on the menu. At the Cheesecake Factory it is hard to find an items less than 1,000 calories. By Sunday night the condo was ready for AJ and Nancy. On Monday we headed to LAX to pick up Nancy and AJ. It was good to see the girls. Nancy said that AJ slept from Chicago to LA. We spent Monday night a Missy's. While at Missy's we picked out a sofa and TV for her. We had some trouble getting the closed captions to work on Missy's TV. Charter came out and fixed it on Friday. Nancy and I spent Tuesday, Wed and Thursday nights at hotels near LAX. On Thursday night we attended an outdoor band concert at the harbor in Long Beach with Steve and family. It was cool and Nancy had to borrow a jacket from Veronica. It was a pleasant evening. On Friday we turned in the rental and headed home. It was very hot when we got to GR. In fact as of today we are experiencing the hottest July on record. Saturday I cut the lawn. The heat had retarded its growth. The next week we played catch up. We did work a concert at Meijer's Garden. The featured artist was Brandi Carlisle (sp?). The place was packed and even though I had never heard of Ms Carlisle I enjoyed the concert. Last week my sister, Helen, and Don stopped by. We also had Mary Ellen stay at our house. Mary Ellen was a classmate Helen and Nancy at Albion. We also called Karen Horlings another classmate at Albion. The Horlings live at Silver Lake. We all had dinner at the old Gibson's and after dinner returned to our house for dessert. A good time was had by all. Mary Ellen and Helen and Don left early Friday morning, July 13th. Last Thursday we attended a picnic for Meijer Garden volunteers. Friday and Saturday we tried the new restaurants. Sunday, July 22, we had dinner at the Namey's and tonight we are going to Houlihan's. We are taking Nancy's friend Kathi. Kathi was very kind to Nancy and AJ. On several hot days she invited them over to swim in her pool. Letters Home to Mother: June 27, 1960: The survey crew I was on was staying at the Lynn-Lee Motel in Manchester, VT. I told Mom we were just wrapping up our work in Manchester and would head to Ludlow, VT on Wednesday. Since I did not have a permanent address in VT I had my checks mailed to a coworkers VT address. I then mailed my checks to Alpena and Mother deposited them. I was making $2 per hour. Last weekend I made some extra money by being a caddy at a golf course. July 5, 1960: I wrote from Valente's Motel in Ludlow, VT. It would be my address for the next 3 weeks. I really liked my job and the weather in VT had been perfect. I commented on my good tan. July 15, 1961: I wrote Mom from OCS in Newport, RI. The good news I was half way through OCS. The bad news I had 35 demerits and when you got to 50 you were kicked out. My class work was going well. In a company of 75 I was 2nd in Navigation and 8th in Operations. The rest were above average. A lot of cadets were buying their uniforms. They cost about $400. I said I was going to wait several weeks to see my demerit status. Last weekend I spent in Newport. I enjoyed the freedom. We have lost about 7 men in our company (10%). I think the average flunk out rate is 25%. July 17, 1960: I wrote mother that last weekend I took a bus to Montreal. I really liked the city. I talked money with Mom. I expected to clear about $500 this summer. My sister, Helen, had a recent operation and I asked how serious was the operation. I also wanted an idea for a birthday present for Helen, August 8. I was writing from Burlington, VT. July 23, 1960, Westminster, VT. I wrote my sister, Helen and told her that I was now working on the Interstate, now I 91. Westminster is between Bellows Falls and Brattleboro. The days are hot but cool in the evenings. (no AC in 1960) I complained that the motels did not have any TV so I would miss the political conventions and the Olympics. We are working near the Connecticut River and I thought it quite scenic.