31 October 2010

Long Key Vacation

Highlights from this weekend

Silas at our camp site

Echo and Captain Doug showing off Echo's catch

Echo, Emerson and Judith enjoying the day

The boys on the beach

Jessica and Elise having fun

Judith, my wife.

Captain Doug cuts up the catch of the day

Kathy and Judith

Jessica and Elise on the beach

Hank and Silas crabbing it up

The boys sticking it out to the end

Collins preaching the Word

This morning's sun rise

The Road Ranger helping us with a flat tire on the Turn Pike on the way home.
Tip of the day: When buying a new car, always check to see if it comes
with a jack and a lug wrench

Halloween at our house for the last several years

A little jumpy, are you?

Circle K in Key Largo, Fl. Halloween 2010

Halloween 2010

28 October 2010

Gone Fishing with the Family

Be back on Monday.

Enjoy your weekend.

Silas turns five

We had a little party for Silas last night to help him celebrate another year of kid life.

More Legos

Fishing poles for both Josiah and Silas from grandpa and grandma

Group photo before cake

Help blowing out the candles

Another group photo with grandpa and grandma

In addition, I went to the doctor and was given a Z-pack and boy do I feel better!

26 October 2010

Social Butterfly?

I started with hanging out with people, then I switched to calling them, then I got into email, then came social networking which progressed into texting, now I just ignore everyone and post daily on my blog.

The Blogger is the new “Social Butterfly”


Interacting without actually interacting with other humans.

I think it’s time I go see a doctor

I have been laid up with a sinus thing for the last two days, basically it started with a twinge in my throat on Sunday night and by Monday morning it progressed from there into a bad sore throat and then I had the feeling my sinuses were filled with steel wool.

My congestion is somewhat debilitating, I lose my balance easy, my skin is clammy and I just feel terrible.  I am debating on whether I should go see a doctor.  My main fear is it will manifest into something worse like meshugenahitis or skipping pneumonia, I’m much too happy to walk.

In all seriousness, at my age little things can become big things without warning.  Last night’s sleep was very uncomfortable; between the chills and constant jumping up because my throat kept closing up, it was not restful at all.  My chest cavity is at the end of its rope from all the coughing. Lots of soreness.

I think it’s time I go see a doctor.

25 October 2010

Let them eat cake!

I really don’t want to use this forum as a political one, the purpose of this blog is so our family and friends can keep track of our life and also give me an avenue to do some light writing, but!

Artwork by Jeremy Biggers

I saw this picture and all I could think was … “Let them eat cake!” or “Off with their heads!”

I guess it could have been anyone of the previous presidents and their wives, it just the way Barrie and Michelle are dressed, it’s so apropos.

I really would like to say that I am looking forward to the changeover but I am not because as long as I have been able to understand how the system works it’s always “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss …”


Reality Figures

There’s a company called That’s My Face, http://www.thatsmyface.com/ that will take photos that you supply to them and create custom actions figures based on your life description.  Seems like a cool idea.

Judith’s action figure would come with multiply arms, multiply children and multiply slings along with a stove. I guess mine would also come with multiply arms and thinking about it, it would also come with a hammer, screw gun, a computer and a couch.  So much for being an action figure, oh wait, what I just described is a Reality Figure.

At this point and time we take comfort in knowing that our younger children still think we are more than action figures, they think we are super heroes.

Cool idea though.

24 October 2010

Fire Wick Fire Starters

In the Nov/Dec 2008 issue of Backwoods Home magazine http://www.backwoodshome.com/ there was an article on Fire Wick Fire Starters.  They are little pieces of wick coated in wax and are used as an aid for starting camp fires, fires in wood burning stoves, or basically anywhere that you may need to start a legal fire and not have the hassle that comes along with getting a fire going.

I was intrigued but skeptical; I keep thinking of the guy in the mall with the Styrofoam plane, once you bought into his demonstration and brought the plane home … bang it hits the floor on the first try and it breaks.  Money and time wasted, hopes shattered.

But I figured this is a good magazine with information about practical ideas for self-reliant living; why not give it a shot. So I ordered some #840 - 5/16” wick from www.wickstore.com and picked up some Gulf Wax brand paraffin wax at the local supermarket and collected all the necessary tools to begin.


Following the directions in the article, we first heated up the paraffin wax in a double boiler pot, then we cut the wick into two foot lengths, ran the wick through the heated paraffin wax, lay the lengths out to dry, then we cut them into 2 ½“ lengths. 





After all was said and done, I placed a fire wick fire starter on some ice cubes so I could replicate what was shown in the article and you know? It really did work, it burned for 8 ½ minutes.



It was a fun little project for me and the boys to do and the fact that it did really work was a plus.  At a cost of about 8 dollars for 200 – 2 ½” long fire wick fire starters we ended up with about 28 ½ hours of fire power.


Not a bad deal and definitely not a waste of time. 

23 October 2010

Josiah looses another tooth

Josiah lost one of his bottom teeth this evening right before dinner.  Judith tied some dental floss around it and then tied the other end to the back of the suburban.  Took three tries before that little bugger came loose.


Only kidding, but she did tie some dental floss around it and he pulled it out on his own.  He gave one quick tug and it fell out on to Judith’s foot.  Which she exclaimed, “You bit me foot.”


Pretty scary looking kid, huh?

Sorry about the food, I didn’t realize he was eating carrots when I took the photos.

Sheriff Tom Dart for Cook County, Illinois



Imagine that: A lawman who understands that The Bill of Rights actually applies to the people!

The 5th Amendment, specifically: You may not be deprived of liberty or property without due process of law.

The sheriff for Cook County, Illinois, which includes the city of Chicago, said on Tuesday he will not enforce foreclosure evictions for Bank of America Corp, JPMorgan Chase and Co. and GMAC Mortgage/Ally Financial until they prove those foreclosures were handled “properly and legally.”

Bank of America, the largest U.S. mortgage servicer, and GMAC, on Monday both announced rollbacks from their foreclosure moratoriums.

The announcement by Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart comes after weeks of damaging accusations of shoddy paperwork that may have caused some people to be illegally evicted from their homes.

“I can’t possibly be expected to evict people from their homes when the banks themselves can’t say for sure everything was done properly,” Dart said in the statement.

“I need some kind of assurance that we aren’t evicting families based on fraudulent behavior by the banks. Until that happens, I can’t in good conscience keep carrying out evictions involving these banks,” he added.

Take Note!
Sheriffs are elected officials.

The elections are coming.

We the people must demand that each and every Sheriff standing for election take a position on this – will you stop enforcing foreclosures NOW and continue to do so until the banks prove that each and every one is 100% legal, including all required transfers and endorsements, from origination to eviction?

22 October 2010

Look Back Friday - My wife, Judith

I meet my wife Judith while shopping at Publix, our local supermarket.  She was working her way through college as a cashier.  She stood out not only due to her unusual beauty but also because she had a shaven head.  Rumor has it that her hair was as long as it is today before she decided to shave it off.


Our meeting was the beginning of me shopping more frequently in hopes that she would be working.  I remember being intrigued by her look along with the small birth mark in her left ear and her dainty little fish earrings she wore.

I guess my persistence paid off because she finally gave in and took my telephone and as they say, the rest is history.

Gettin' out of that burlap bag was a trick ...



The Moron Brothers, living the simple life. Free and easy, literally.

Hot cup of Joe

Like most I was introduced to coffee at a young age.  My parents allowed me to have a sip at holiday gatherings and parties.  It had an enjoyable favor but like cigarettes it never lived up to its smell.  Growing up my mom had a cup of coffee two or three times a day and I can still remember waking up to that strong inviting aroma of coffee brewing in my mom’s 4 cup percolator pot on the stove.

I have fond memories of my mom being always ready with a pot of coffee and Entenmanns’s cake for visiting family and friends.  Coffee and cake was a major part of most adult diets back then.  As I grew up I shied away from coffee for many years, like my childhood I only partook at holidays and parties.


Lately, Judith and I have been having a cup of coffee in the afternoons.  If there is no work or I am home doing paperwork it’s a great opportunity to enjoy a hot cup of Joe with the wife.  But as I stated before the taste never truly lives up to its aroma, which is something I learned to accept. 

Another favorite of mine is the StarBucks Coffee drinks they sell at convenience stores.  It’s sweet, it’s tasty and aside from having to see a loan officer to purchase one, it satisfies that urge in the middle of the afternoon when you are far from a percolator pot.  But even that’s not quite right.  Coffee deficiencies, what’s a man to do?

On a side note, we usually do not consume dairy milk; we are partial to rice milk.  Oh wait, don’t want to be sued by the diary industry, we drink “Rice beverage.”  Well, Whole Foods changed their grocery manager and our standing order of 2 cases of “Rice beverage,” wink, wink, per month got lost in the shuffle and one day we found ourselves without anything to put in our coffee.  Oh, the horror of it all!

So we are both looking at each other and thinking now what, the coffees already made and no milk, err … no white beverage.  Then Judith comes up with a brilliant idea; how about if we use evaporated milk; it’s always on hand for making pies.

So at this point I’ll try anything so I pour the coffee in my favorite cup, the one with the farm and the cow scene, add my 2 ½ spoon full of sugar and add the evaporated milk and Shazam! 


It was the best tasting cup of coffee I have ever had.  It beat the old standard and even tasted better then the StarBucks Coffee drink.  Heck, we’ve even used Byers coffee ice cream in a pinch but nothing beats evaporated milk.

I guess it’s our turn to create coffee memories for our children.  By the way, if you’re in the neighborhood, stop on by.

21 October 2010

That seems about right

Much to our chagrin

"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away."
Philip K. Dick

Two days of door installs

It’s really hard work that seems to strip me of all my energy. It’s honest work and it pays the bills but it really takes a toll on my body and mind. I leave early, come home late, have dinner with the family and then I fall asleep on the couch. I wake up in time to kiss the children good night and then it’s time to watch the news or do an hour or so of paperwork in a zombie like state.

At the moment I’m blessed with work but lately I feel it could end at any time. My hope is to get a job that will bring me through the Christmas Holidays otherwise it’s going to be a very dry month or two.

Although the jobs seem to be further and further apart I’ll have to take a wait and see attitude, even with the economy the way it is something always comes up.

Well I have to get back to the grind, have a hectic day.

19 October 2010

Christmas comes early in South Florida


As usual, Christmas comes early in South Florida as I am sure it came just as early for you in your neck of the woods. Home Depot and Lowes started selling Christmas trees and decorations in late August. They pushed out all the garden things to make room for artificial trees and plastic decorations depicting the season to be all about pine trees and a fat guy in a red suit.

Putting the birth of Christ aside, which for some that may not being easy, as Charles Dickens would note in A Christmas Carol, Christmas is about the spirit of giving not buying. Some would think you have to buy in order to give but at least not in the over indulgent way the corporations push on us. It seems the whole foundation of our country has become based on stuff and not what’s really important.

What’s really important is not the same for everyone, for some it may be love of family, for ours it may be helping others, the list can be a long one but is what’s really important acquiring stuff or buying stuff to give away just to feel good about one’s self?

On a lighter note, last September I went to Home Depot to buy some seeds for our garden and when I got there the display was gone. As I stood in a sea of Christmas stuff I asked one of the associates, what happened to the seed display that was here a week before and he told me, with a straight face I might add, "Oh, those items are seasonal."

As long as we are pushing holidays, Happy Valentine’s Day to all and a good night.