We had no snow today. In fact the sun was shining most of the day. Last night Nancy and I discussed whether or not we should go to Jimmy Kirkwood's funeral. We had been to the funeral home and met all the Kirkwood.
As I was finishing running at the MAC, Nancy said she wanted to go to the funeral. She said that acquaintances go to visitation but friends go to the funeral. As always Nancy was right.
My Uncle Jim Hughes always said my Grandfather Hughes, a very devout Methodist, would go to funerals and comment after the service that it was a good funeral. As Uncle Jim explained Grandfather thought that if the service was well run and a lot of people were in attendance that the deceased was being sent off the way the Lord intended.
Jimmy's service was held at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew, a beautiful church. The service was splendid and the church was packed. A lunch was served after the service. Jack and Rita, Jimmy's parents, looked as if they had reached closure and that Jimmy was in God's hands. My Grandfather Hughes would say that this was a good funeral.
We had lunch with Ruth Molenaar. Heidi and Jennifer were at the funeral. We also talked with the Kirkwood children.
Nancy and I stopped at Blockbusters on our way home and picked up several movies for over the holiday. We intend to stay home New Year's Eve.
Around 3 PM JD and I had a beer and talked about some career choices for JD. It makes me feel good when ex-employees want my opinion.
It was a busy day. It started to snow about an hour ago. I had better get to bed so I will be ready for shovelling tomorrow. I got my 30 in.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday December 29, 2008
It froze last night. But no snow, so no shovelling. Judging from the crowd at the MAC a lot of people are taking the week off.
The Detroit Free Press today blasted the Detroit Lions. 0-16 is nothing to write home about. The dismal record is because of the Bobby Layne curse. The good news for Detroit is that SPS bought a Saturn.
This afternoon Nancy and I went to the funeral home to pay our condolences to the Kirkwood family. The funeral home was jammed. Nancy and I talked to all the family members. They are all still in shock. It is so sad.
I checked by facebook page and only my sister wants to be my friend. I am looking for a current picture to post on facebook. I got my 30 in today, did you?
The Detroit Free Press today blasted the Detroit Lions. 0-16 is nothing to write home about. The dismal record is because of the Bobby Layne curse. The good news for Detroit is that SPS bought a Saturn.
This afternoon Nancy and I went to the funeral home to pay our condolences to the Kirkwood family. The funeral home was jammed. Nancy and I talked to all the family members. They are all still in shock. It is so sad.
I checked by facebook page and only my sister wants to be my friend. I am looking for a current picture to post on facebook. I got my 30 in today, did you?
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Sunday December 28, 2008
I forgot to mentioned that Tasha set up a facebook account for me. I put in Alpena High School in my profile. None of my classmates have a facebook account.
This morning Nancy and I head for the MAC for our Sunday swim. I swam 30 laps using only the crawl. It took me 37 minutes to go 1500 yards. This is my best time for this distance. It is only the first time I used the crawl exclusively for this distance.
When we got home at 0930 Tasha was ready to head for Cleveland. She took some cookies, ham and other Christmas goodies. Petunia stuck with Tasha like glue. No way she was staying in GR.
Nancy fixed her world famous poached eggs for breakfast. I took my nap and then Nancy and I headed for Kohl's. We found nothing.
We got a piece of bad new today. Jimmy Kirkwood passed away. He was only 40 and played with both Tasha, Sasha and SPS when they lived across the street. It has to be a tragic blow to his parents.
I watched a portion of the Lions game today. They set a record of 16 losses in a season. I might have mentioned earlier that I like the new chemicals used by the MAC in their pool. Now it appears as if my nose has rebelled against the chemicals. I am plugged up and cannot breathe. The same happened after my Wednesday swim. I will have to start wearing my swim mask that covers my nose.
Tonight we will finish the Christmas ham and bean soup. It will be an early evening. Nancy and I have a busy week ahead. Remember busy is a relative term for retired folks.
This morning Nancy and I head for the MAC for our Sunday swim. I swam 30 laps using only the crawl. It took me 37 minutes to go 1500 yards. This is my best time for this distance. It is only the first time I used the crawl exclusively for this distance.
When we got home at 0930 Tasha was ready to head for Cleveland. She took some cookies, ham and other Christmas goodies. Petunia stuck with Tasha like glue. No way she was staying in GR.
Nancy fixed her world famous poached eggs for breakfast. I took my nap and then Nancy and I headed for Kohl's. We found nothing.
We got a piece of bad new today. Jimmy Kirkwood passed away. He was only 40 and played with both Tasha, Sasha and SPS when they lived across the street. It has to be a tragic blow to his parents.
I watched a portion of the Lions game today. They set a record of 16 losses in a season. I might have mentioned earlier that I like the new chemicals used by the MAC in their pool. Now it appears as if my nose has rebelled against the chemicals. I am plugged up and cannot breathe. The same happened after my Wednesday swim. I will have to start wearing my swim mask that covers my nose.
Tonight we will finish the Christmas ham and bean soup. It will be an early evening. Nancy and I have a busy week ahead. Remember busy is a relative term for retired folks.
Saturday December 27, 2008
I started the day with a 3 mile run at the MAC. It started to rain last night and the rain continued all day. The rain on the snow has created a very foggy condition.
Tasha and I head for cousin Peg's in Rosebush at 0930. Even though it is 20 miles further we are taking the freeway to Rosebush. The fog was bad from GR to Lansing and from Alma to Rosebush. The Lansing to Alma portion of the trip was ok. Tasha and I did not talk for the first 60 miles because we were concentrating on the road. After the fog lifted we relaxed and even talked. Our conversation centered on the stupidity of driver. Visibility was less than a 50 feet and yet cars passed us going 70 mph. Many cars did not have their lights on. Despite the bad conditions we did not see any accidents until we got off the freeway at Rosebush. There was a bad accident on the off ramp.
Cousin Peg was glad to see Tasha. Tasha and Peg got caught up and then we headed for lunch at the Diner. The Diner is located on Mission Road about 4 miles from Pegs. Peg and I had breakfast and Tasha had a burger.
The fog was bad from Rosebush to Alma but the rest of the trip home was clear. Almost all the snow is gone. We had ham sandwiches for dinner. The evening was spent reading and watching TV. I did get my 30 minutes with two 1 mile walks.
Tasha and I head for cousin Peg's in Rosebush at 0930. Even though it is 20 miles further we are taking the freeway to Rosebush. The fog was bad from GR to Lansing and from Alma to Rosebush. The Lansing to Alma portion of the trip was ok. Tasha and I did not talk for the first 60 miles because we were concentrating on the road. After the fog lifted we relaxed and even talked. Our conversation centered on the stupidity of driver. Visibility was less than a 50 feet and yet cars passed us going 70 mph. Many cars did not have their lights on. Despite the bad conditions we did not see any accidents until we got off the freeway at Rosebush. There was a bad accident on the off ramp.
Cousin Peg was glad to see Tasha. Tasha and Peg got caught up and then we headed for lunch at the Diner. The Diner is located on Mission Road about 4 miles from Pegs. Peg and I had breakfast and Tasha had a burger.
The fog was bad from Rosebush to Alma but the rest of the trip home was clear. Almost all the snow is gone. We had ham sandwiches for dinner. The evening was spent reading and watching TV. I did get my 30 minutes with two 1 mile walks.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Friday December 26, 2008
We had freezing rain last night. I had to salt the drive early this morning. After my morning routine, Tasha and I walked to the Kava House for coffee. We had a ham sandwich for lunch. The ham was left over from the Christmas meal.
This afternoon I had to put the back seat in the Aztek. We need the additional seats when we go out to lunch with cousin Peg on Saturday. I also got the car washed (inside and out).
This evening Nancy, Tasha and I had dinner at the Belt Line Bar. Tasha and I had the wet burrito. The place was jammed. What bad economy?
Tasha helped me set up a facebook page. We noted that no one from my high school class is on facebook. No computers up north?
It will not get below freezing this evening. Tomorrow is will get to 50. Most of the ice on the roads should be gone by tomorrow night. I got my 30 in did you?
This afternoon I had to put the back seat in the Aztek. We need the additional seats when we go out to lunch with cousin Peg on Saturday. I also got the car washed (inside and out).
This evening Nancy, Tasha and I had dinner at the Belt Line Bar. Tasha and I had the wet burrito. The place was jammed. What bad economy?
Tasha helped me set up a facebook page. We noted that no one from my high school class is on facebook. No computers up north?
It will not get below freezing this evening. Tomorrow is will get to 50. Most of the ice on the roads should be gone by tomorrow night. I got my 30 in did you?
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Thursday December 25, 2008
Merry Christmas everyone! We had a white Christmas. You know everyone in your home is above 30 when everyone sleeps in on Christmas morning. I slept in to 0800. Nancy, Tasha and I opened presents around 0900. It was a great Christmas. I got several gift cards, a cool vest, swimming caps, bedroom slippers and a book on construction of the Panama Canal. I also got a cool electronic gps/watch/heart rate monitor/etc from Sasha and the Scott Team. It is a great tool for biking, kayaking, and walking. Tasha printed out my blogs and put them in a really clever notebook. Thanks everyone.
Nancy made her world famous poached eggs. It was so good and filling I had to take a nap. After the nap I snacked, played with my GPS, snacked, read my blogs, snacked, and finally took a walk.
We had ham for dinner. The dinner also included gourmet potatoes and green beans. Christmas cookies were dessert.
Nancy and I have had 43 Christmas days together. Each one was special. We have never been separated. I have only spent 2 Christmas days away from my family. The first was 1961 on Midway Island and the second was 1963 in Vietnam.
I remember 1 Christmas my Dad spent hours making a scale model of a dragline crane. The crane was on wheels, the boom could be lowered and the bucket could be opened and closed. My Dad was crushed, I seldom played with the crane. The next year I got a small radio. I listened to that radio every night. On cold winter nights I looked forward to going bed and listening to my favorite radio show.
The weather man says that we have had less than 8 hours of sunshine this month. For comparison we had 8 hours of sunshine after 12 noon on the fourth of July. Just remember the days are getting longer and the sun is still in the sky.
Nancy and I want to wish every one a very Merry Christmas.
Nancy made her world famous poached eggs. It was so good and filling I had to take a nap. After the nap I snacked, played with my GPS, snacked, read my blogs, snacked, and finally took a walk.
We had ham for dinner. The dinner also included gourmet potatoes and green beans. Christmas cookies were dessert.
Nancy and I have had 43 Christmas days together. Each one was special. We have never been separated. I have only spent 2 Christmas days away from my family. The first was 1961 on Midway Island and the second was 1963 in Vietnam.
I remember 1 Christmas my Dad spent hours making a scale model of a dragline crane. The crane was on wheels, the boom could be lowered and the bucket could be opened and closed. My Dad was crushed, I seldom played with the crane. The next year I got a small radio. I listened to that radio every night. On cold winter nights I looked forward to going bed and listening to my favorite radio show.
The weather man says that we have had less than 8 hours of sunshine this month. For comparison we had 8 hours of sunshine after 12 noon on the fourth of July. Just remember the days are getting longer and the sun is still in the sky.
Nancy and I want to wish every one a very Merry Christmas.
Wednesday December 24, 2008
Christmas Eve 08. Our crack snow shovelling team starts at 0630. The temperature is at the freezing mark so the snow is heavy. We got about 3" over night. We finish a little after 7 and head to the MAC so I can get in the pool before the seniors' water aerobics class. I swam 1100 yards.
I forgot to put my eye in so I head home and pop in the contact. I hurry back to the MAC to pick up Nancy. We have breakfast at the Omelet Shop. Tasha call and tell us her sump pump is not working right. I recommend that she call a plumber. I also head to Home Depot to see what a sump pump costs and how to install one. They are inexpensive and quite simple in their operation. I call Tasha and she says the problem is solved and she is on her way to GR.
At home I dug out some old family material that HC had and was surprised to find a family tree for the Hughes. Did you know the Hughes were from Inch, Ireland? Grandfather Hughes was born in Treadwell, Ont. His father was married to a Darlington as was our great-great-great grandfather. Intermarriage?
I also found material on the Sanborns. My paternal grandmother was a Sanborn. I have some good news for Sasha, I have found a family member who was in the Continental Army.
Tasha got to GR about 6:30. She brought petunia. We had a great dinner of lasinga (sp?). We watched some TV and then headed for bed so we will be bright eyed for Christmas. We could not get the close-caption to work on our HD TV. Any ideas?
I forgot to put my eye in so I head home and pop in the contact. I hurry back to the MAC to pick up Nancy. We have breakfast at the Omelet Shop. Tasha call and tell us her sump pump is not working right. I recommend that she call a plumber. I also head to Home Depot to see what a sump pump costs and how to install one. They are inexpensive and quite simple in their operation. I call Tasha and she says the problem is solved and she is on her way to GR.
At home I dug out some old family material that HC had and was surprised to find a family tree for the Hughes. Did you know the Hughes were from Inch, Ireland? Grandfather Hughes was born in Treadwell, Ont. His father was married to a Darlington as was our great-great-great grandfather. Intermarriage?
I also found material on the Sanborns. My paternal grandmother was a Sanborn. I have some good news for Sasha, I have found a family member who was in the Continental Army.
Tasha got to GR about 6:30. She brought petunia. We had a great dinner of lasinga (sp?). We watched some TV and then headed for bed so we will be bright eyed for Christmas. We could not get the close-caption to work on our HD TV. Any ideas?
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