Dad's birthday

Today would have been my dad's 77th birthday. I still miss his a lot. It wouldn't be honest to say I think about him every day, but I do think of him often. It's hard to believe he has been gone almost 30 years.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Unnecessary

Some advertising is just unnecessary...

What's next? 18 eggs! 6 more than a dozen! C'mon, Coca Cola! You're better than that!

Biden

Biden...

YMCA

Landscaping

The last two days were dedicated to carpentry on the deck. Today it was weeding, mulching, and sprucing up the landscaping. Check another task off the summer to-do list!

Hypocrisy

Remember when President Trump was excoriated by the liberal left wing for referring to the Corona Virus as the Chinese Virus? Remember when someone in Trump's administration was vilified for using the term "Kung Flu"? Well, have a look at what hypocrites the liberal left are. The following photos show two different instances of the same reference, but weren't called out under President Obama's administration. The first photo comes from a promotional video put out by the Atlanta Public School System in 2016. The second photo shows a government website encouraging veterans to get a flu shot in 2015. Notice anything? Both of these photos were taken BEFORE President Trump took office, yet there was not a whisper of outrage from anyone. Hypocrisy, plain and simple. What's good for the goose should be good for the gander.

And just to be clear, and so I am not accused of being hypocritical myself... I am NOT offended by any of these. Not the references made by President Trump and his administration. Not the references to the Kung Flu under the Obama administration.

More Deck Work

I added some steps from the new gate to the yard. It's not my best work, but the steps will serve our purposes. We needed a way to get from that particular end of the deck into the yard. These steps take care of that. Any self-respecting carpenter would laugh at my work. It's pretty shoddy. But at least they're solid and they'll do just fine.

Deck Work

I reported last week that our hot tub was up, running, and bubbling away. However, reports of my success were premature. The hot tub had a major leak and repairs were expensive and not worth it. Therefore we had the hot tub hauled away. Anyway, after removing the hot tub, there was a large section of our deck rail missing. Today I built some new rail and also installed a gate where solid rail used to be. It was a big project for me. What would have taken an experienced carpenter an hour or two, took me the WHOLE day. But it doesn't matter... the project is finished.

My Fathers Day

I will say that yesterday is just about the BEST Fathers Day I've ever had. What goes without saying is the only thing that would have made it better is having the Mortons and the grandchildren here in person.

My day started with a video message from Jessi and the grandkids. It was so wonderful to see and hear from them, but it also made my heart ache missing them so much! Then we finished our morning with our time at church. In the afternoon, Michael. Abby, and Thomas came over for grilled burgers and a swim.

I also received some very nice gifts. My beautiful wife got me the fishing tote as posted a few days ago. The Mortons sent a photo collage jigsaw puzzle. Michael, Abby and Thomas got me a Bass Pro Shops coffee mug, a new tackle box, and a fish scale (for weighing all those whoppers). If you know me at all, you know I am not about gifts. In fact, I prefer not to receive them. But this doesn't take away from the kindness and generosity of my 3 kids or how much I love the gifts. All the gifts are perfect and fit me to a "T".

After the kids went home, Tami and I worked on the jigsaw puzzle, and talked about our favorite subject... our kids and grandkids. It was just all around an amazing day. Thank you to my wife, kids, in-laws, and grandkids for making me feel so special!

Here's my coffee mug next to our progress on the puzzle.

Happy Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to all you dads out there. I am missing my dad today. It's hard to believe he has been gone almost 30 years. On Fathers Day I always wonder what he would have thought of his grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Actually I already know he would have loved them to pieces and would have spoiled them in a manner rivaling any grandma. Today I am also thankful for Cliff, my step dad. I am so thankful because he is SO GOOD to my mom, and that's all any son could ask for his mother.

This morning I received a Marco Polo video message from Jessi and the grandkids... what a great way to start the day :-) This afternoon Michael, Thomas, and Abby are coming over to swim, and I am going to grill some burgers just as any self-respecting father should. It's already been a great day, and I know it promises to only get better.

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!

Sunday Chuckle

Not the funniest thing, but enough to make me chuckle...

Think about it...

Something to think about...

My Father's Day Gift

Look at what my wonderful wife got me for Father's Day. This fishing tote holds 5 rods and all my equipment. Everything fits in one easy-to-carry canvas bag. I absolutely love it!

On Sunday, Michael, Thomas, and Abby are coming over to swim, and I am going to grill some burgers. Why would I work on Father's Day? I'm not going to... I don't consider grilling as work. I love to do it!

She's a bubblin'

Finally decided to put the hot tub back in service. Here she is a bubbling' away!

Getting Old

I know I'm getting older because...

The BEST puzzle ever!

Last week we received a personalized jigsaw puzzle in the mail. It's a photo collage of the Morton Family. We started it yesterday and we are having loads of fun doing it.

Don't cry...

You know how the old saying goes. Don't cry over...

I live here

We are so blessed to live in Hidden Valley Lake. The beauty never ceases to amaze me. The first photo is not mine. One of my neighbors took it. The other photos are mine.

And again...

Fished for about an hour this morning. Caught this nice fish within the first two minutes. Not as big as the one yesterday, but he weighed five pounds if he weighed an ounce. Short trip, but this guy made it worthwhile.

Fishing again

Went fishing again today and caught the biggest fish so far from that spot. This fish is approximately 25 inches long and looks to weigh about 7-8 pounds. I really need to buy a tape measure and scale. I'm tired of guesstimating my catches. Anyway, here's my whopper and a beautiful photo of where he came from.

Finished another!

We finished another jigsaw puzzle... This time a collage of North Carolina...

Gorgeous Day!

I enjoyed a day of fishing in God's beautiful creation. Just look at this gorgeous setting. I had it all to myself and it was so quiet and peaceful. Here's Crystal Lake, and one of the fish I caught. Sorry it's not a better fish photo. I had to drag him onto the shore and he is covered with mud.

Progress!

This is our progress after working on one of our new puzzles for one evening...

Two more!

Our two new puzzles arrived yesterday! The first one is already more than a third done. Having fun!

A good start!

First weekday of summer vacation, first day of fishing for summer vacation. Didn't do too bad. Michael and I even caught fish at the same time (a double!). Here he is holding both of them.