What a great Christmas...

Every once in a while, there comes a time when you know something really great has happened.  You usually don't fully recognize it when it is taking place, although you have a pretty good idea.  Time has to settle the dust and you need to sit quietly back and take it all in, playing it all over again. And then you get it.  It's a little bit like the whole of life -- you remember and relish the good parts, but tend to dismiss the bad ones or the ones that were just ordinary.  So now I've had that time and here goes.

We had a wonderful visit from our son and daughter-in-law and our two grandsons over Christmas.  It was such a good thing to see them all again -- the boys are growing and taking on such interesting personalities.  Quinn talks about things of which I haven't a clue, and Heath talks about things of which no one has a clue (but then he's not a year old yet).

Quinn really wants to teach me about all the levels of "Angry Birds" and "Star Wars" characters and stories.  He is really into that stuff so he was absolutely amazed when we got out his dad's collection of Star Wars characters from the old days.  Kinda like when we "discover" some old movie or piece of music that we think some new artist did only to find out that whatever it is was originally around in our parents' days.  

Heath wanted (I think) to teach me of the subtleties of making music with two aluminum pie pans and a stick.

 Quinn, Danika and I made cookies for Santa.  Quinn wrote a note to Santa and we all went outside as he, Danika and Grandma put out the food for the reindeer.

In spite of all the running around, cooking, fixing and such, Grandma got in some good "hug time" with her grandsons which is what usually makes it a successful time for her.

We were also able to introduce the boys to the rest of the family, although some had already met Quinn.  We went to Chuck and Mary's where there were 11 kids all under the age of 8 (there were only 12 adults!!).  We also got to spend time at my brother and his wife's house and visit with my side of the family.

And so, the dust has settled, football games have retaken their place in prime time on the tube, and all the travelers have returned to their homes.  But we have the pictures in our minds (and on the hard drive) and the memories in our hearts, memories enough to last us for a few months anyhow.

Oh, one other thing.  We really wanted to have snow for Christmas.  For almost a week before Christmas, it had been snowing off and on and the ground was covered --- up until about three days before and then it rained like crazy.  There was flooding everywhere.  We were fortunate and had a whole new reason to be thankful (see article below on the rains).  We also wanted the pond to be frozen so Quinn could ice skate or at least ice slide.  That didn't happen either.  But as I said, we had a new perspective for which to be thankful and four excellent reasons, among others, to help us in our celebration.  They give us a little something to keep in our memories until the next time -- a little something to help color our outlook on the world and keep a smile in our hearts.

So as it is said many a time over the Christmas holidays, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won't make it 'white'. (Bing Crosby)

Hooah

I know I'm a prejudiced grandpa, but I really like this Christmas card from my grandsons.  This looks like an advertisement from some company like Gap Kids or L.L. Bean, Jr. (if there is such a thing) for winter hats.

Can't wait to see them in a few days.  This will be fun.  I'm sure the time will pass all too quickly.

"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly."  (Andy Rooney)

Hooah

So much for a white Christmas...

Well up until two days ago we were looking at the prospect of a white Christmas.  But then a warm front came barreling through and with it came quite a bit of rain.  In fact, it has been so much rain that this part of the state is under a flood warning until Tuesday of this coming week.  I told Pam yesterday that this is probably what the South looks and feels like throughout most of the winter.

The pictures shown above were taken from my second story window (not that the water was that high!!) and give you an idea of how the pond has expanded its boundaries out of the backside.  The bottom one is noteworthy because about 25 yards from the edge of the pond (the cattails) is the drain (the red dot by the fence).  The drain pipe is usually about two feet out of the ground and is almost covered now.

This shot of the firepit shows that the bottom layer of blocks is almost completely under water.  This is about 10 feet from the normal edge of the water.

And of course, if the water is out of bounds at the back end of the pond, it is also exploring new lands at the front too.  The split rail is about 30 feet from the pond normally.

And here is another shot from the window.  This is my neighbor's back yard.  When we get a bunch of rain, this area always ponds up and we call it "Lake James."  The road is just on the other side of it and the fields behind it are starting to cover over with water.  When it finally stops raining it will take it another couple of days to drain, but the creeks and rivers will be at flood stage for a few more days after that.

Oh well, at least as the old timers around here always say, we don't have to shovel rain.  But you do have to make sure the sump pumps are working!!

When the rains come around here, things really get messy for a lot of the neighbors.  The clay soil doesn't absorb the rain so much as it supports it; it holds it up near the surface so things flood, roads are covered, and nights bring on repeated encounters with such heavy fog and darkness that my little Christmas lights struggle to pierce thru.  There are times when it gets like this, especially in the winter, and farmers gaze over their fields, they say the heck with winter wheat, we've got a bumper crop of "standing water" and mud.

"Do not be angry with the rain; it simply does not know how to fall upwards.”  (Victor Nabokov)




Hooah

Setting the Christmas mood...

One day this week we decided to go shopping at the Easton Mall.  They really have it decorated nicely and, with the touch of snow and the chilly temps, it was easy to get into the spirit.  I think shopping in the afternoon is much less hectic and also helps to keep people somewhat calm.

One particular display that they dress up for the holidays is the train which pretty much runs year-round.  Here are some pictures of it during the day.  I think it would have been better if these were taken at night, but then again there would have been many, many more people around and I may not have been able to get these shots.

Like I said, these would have been better at night. But you know what, there is just something about a train -- a train set or the real thing.  And hearing the low, haunting wail of it's whistle at night, in the distance, when you are half awake and half asleep, stirs some long suppressed memories of old adventures -- some made and some abandoned.

“My heart is warm with the friends I make,
And better friends I'll not be knowing,
Yet there isn't a train I wouldn't take,
No matter where it's going.”


(Edna St. Vincent Millay, "The Selected Poetry")


Hooah

Tis the season...

When we got back home from Georgia a few weeks ago, we had a two-day warm stretch and since it was now December I decided that I might as well get some outside decorations put up.  Now if you have read this blog in the past, you know that this is way early for me.  Usually I am waiting until a week like this (off and on snow for the past three days, temps in the 20s and blowing winds) so I can put them up, freeze my fingers, and then hit them with a hammer and bit my tongue to keep from yelling. 

You know what ??  I kinda liked putting them up in the low 50s with no wind.  So I might make a note to remember to watch the calendar and weather next year and jump out there early.

This was Wednesday when I got it done.

This is today after a weekend of snow and blowing.  Thankfully I anchored the tree well enough.

Of course, since the Christmas season doesn't last until March, I don't know how the taking down part will go.   But we usually get a January-February warm spell and a couple of days with a "get out of jail free" card where I can usually get things taken care of.

Sorry about the reflection in the door.  Too cold to retake!

So now we're ready for the snow and Christmas festivities.  What a great time of year.

But I would be remiss if I didn't add this little part...
This time of year is special for a lot of reasons, not just the festivities.  We have lost parents and relatives at this time of year as well as our pet and friend, Bailey.  I have been gone for wars, and we have had the birth of our son at this time of year too. There have been illnesses and times when we and others in our extended family had problems to solve and unexpected challenges.  But we tried to keep our perspective and remember what the Christmas season was all about.  And having that in mind, things usually worked out, lessons were learned, and remembering that we were not in charge, we marched on to the new year.

So its for these reasons I put up decorations around the house...in spite of the cold and snow. Its not for the commercialism of the season, but more that I want to share my/our family's joy of the season.  I know it sounds goofy, but I think those little lights help spread that joy and hope to the world, at least our little part of it.  Each tiny light sends out a shot of hope and warmth. I'm not into the Clark Griswold thing. Small and simple is best. And I'm probably not expressing this very well, but you might know what I mean.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more! (Dr. Seuss)

Hooah

A very nice Air Force Museum...

While we were in Georgia I had the opportunity to visit the Warner Robins Air Force Museum located just of the edge of the base.  They have a substantial outdoors display of planes and helicopters, ranging from the B-1 bomber to the B-57 "Buff" to several big transport planes, and an A-10 (one of my heroes).

Since the weather is pretty nice most of the year down there, the planes didn't show much in the way of deterioration or decay.  Most of them have been there for a bunch of years.  They also have indoor displays of planes, and exhibits spread throughout four huge hangers.

I stopped in the Vietnam era hanger first.  I recognized all of the things in there, and used or rode in most of them at some point in my career.  They had several old 1/4-ton "Jeeps" there.  I sure wish I had a nickel for every time I was in one of them...I certainly would be very wealthy by now.

While I was in the main hanger area looking at the Korean War exhibit, I walked around the corner and got hit in the face with the smell of a canvas tent -- a GP-Medium, which was part of the display.  As I have said many, many times before, once you know the smell of canvas tents, you never forget it. It really shoots a whole raft of memories your way all at once.

There were two hangers pretty much devoted to the equipment, stories and displays of WWII.  I could have spent the whole day in there, but I ran out of time.  This is a lot like the Museum at Wright Patterson in that it takes more than a couple of days to see everything if you want to read things and really look at them.  So here are some of the items I picked out for this article.

I was also particularly impressed by their display of C-147s and C-17s and how they had them set up to depict the Airborne assault at Normandy on D-Day. There was a mock-up of one of the planes and they had paratroopers lined up ready to jump.  There were recordings of voices, engines, gunfire and flack guns playing as you stood there looking at them, all of which added a great deal to the display.  You then saw one paratrooper jumping out of a plane, and with a little help from your imagination, you saw him jumping over a town and a rural French chapel.

In the books and movies of that day you always see white stripes painted around the wings and body of the airplane.  These were called "Invasion Stripes."  Before the invasion, General Eisenhower said, "If you see planes overhead, they will be ours."  But just to make sure Allied aircraft were easy to identify, these "Invasion Stripes" were painted on each plane involved in the invasion.  Typically these planes were Martin B-26Gs and C-47 "Skytrains."  Over 800 C-47s were used in the invasion to carry over 13,000 American paratroopers into

combat.  One other thing about these invasion planes, like many of their fellow planes, they all bore some sort of "nose art."  The pilot of the airplane usually picked out the particular piece of art for his plane and it usually related to a wife or girlfriend.  Although it could just reflect a whimsical mood of the whole crew.

I also liked the different displays they had up to show various uniforms, what the different kinds of soldiers would wear on certain missions. I particularly liked that there was so much documentation.

 As you can tell, I really got into this place.  But aside from all of the artifacts, sights and smells, there were two things that stood out.  One -- as I was walking by a display of a B-29 bomber, two guys who had been working on it walked over by me.  I had my Ohio University coat on and one of the guys said he was from Ohio and asked me what part I lived in.  I told him it was a little town named Anna, out in the middle of a bunch of corn fields.  Strangely enough, he said he was from Troy (my old home town).  He said he retired from the Air Force and then worked at Friendly's driving truck.  I told him my son used to work there too in the summers.  Small world.

And secondly, I took particular notice of young children walking around the museum with their grandfathers who were telling them about the various planes, or how they were involved in some part of a war.  They would talk to them and point out places on a map, or show them a particular plane and tell how things were back then.  It was so cool watching the kids (most of them anyhow) soaking it up.  What a treat for the grandfathers to be able to pass on this valuable piece of their family history.  The kids don't know (and might not realize or appreciate) the importance of moments like these.  Not every child is so fortunate.

I'm not really sure why I like going to military museums so much.  Maybe the two items above have something to do with it.   But more than that, I think I understand what these brave warriors went through for me/us.  But I need reminders every once in a while, moments that recharge my desire to be a reflector of their stories...times that renew my sense of their history and my need to tell people about them, their sacrifices, and to honor their memories.

If you don't know history, it is as if you were born yesterday. And if you were born yesterday, any fool up there in a position of power can tell you anything. You have no way of checking up on it and no way of knowing if it is the truth.

  

 Hooah            

Just an observation...

While we were on our way down to Georgia a couple of weeks ago, we stopped at a Wendy's for lunch and I noticed there were two men in there who were carrying concealed weapons.  They were not together -- one was a construction worker with a 9mm Glock on his belt, and the other was a young man who was also carrying a 9mm Glock on his belt. 

Interestingly enough, no one in the restaurant raised a fuss or said anything about them, pointed them out to the management or anything else.  These two were not calling attention to themselves; they were just eating their lunches.  And I only noticed them because I notice things like that and they weren't that well concealed.

Georgia is an open carry/concealed carry state, so I guess that if I had stayed there for a while I would have seen others come and go who were also carrying a weapon.

My point is, this must be an accepted way of life in Georgia, everyone knows it, and they don't pay any attention to those who carry or raise a fuss because they are sitting next to them in a public fast-food establishment.

Nothing else.  Just an observation.

Benjamin Franklin once said of the right to bear arms by the citizenry of this country:
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."

Hooah
P.S.  Yes, I am.

A very nice visit, some new friends made, and some lessons learned...

Every once in a while I get into an article not knowing where it will take me or how it will end.  And then every once in a while I get into something in life, which in this case was a visit to my in-laws in Georgia, thinking I know exactly how it is going to play out only to be surprised and, in this case, very much the better for it.

I already mentioned that I was able to play a couple of rounds of golf at the Robins AFB golf course.  That proved extremely satisfying and quite a treat, given the fact that the weather leading up to the trip had been the pits coupled with the less than pleasant reports I was getting from our neighbors who were keeping an eye on the place while we were gone.  But --- since they were here and I was there, I shouldered my guilt and whacked away. I think I owed it to them to have a good time (is there any logic in that??).

But that wasn't the reason I was there.  My sister-in-law had some surgery so Pam and I spent the day at the hospital with her.  It was a very long day for us, just sitting there, but not nearly as long as it was for her.  She really got put thru the ringer just to get ready to have the surgery.  But the very skilled hands of the surgeon and his team (along with a watchful eye from her guardian angel) successfully maneuvered the 4 hour surgery.  She came out of it with a little deeper voice for a day and a neck brace, but still in one piece. 

She thanked us and said our just being there really helped her.  I didn't think any more of it, but later I did remembered how much more calm I was and so thankful when Pam was by my side when I had my heart surgeries. 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, there were two very professional, very friendly ladies who took care of my brother-in-law.  He had some surgery a while ago that didn't go so well and has been living with the consequences ever since.  He is a Vietnam vet and someone I look up to.  So while Pam stayed at the hospital all the next day and night, I helped out some at the house.  I also had the pleasure of being able to just sit and talk with him-- but listen more than anything.  Quite by accident I also noticed a whole bunch of little things the ladies did for him, none of which were very pleasant or expected.  I have a whole new respect for people who do home health care for the elderly and sick.  Kathy, Linda -- you are certainly deserving of a special place in heaven.

The neighbors on either side of them take turns cutting the grass, and taking out their garbage can for the pick-up.  They also help out with other little things.  One of the neighbor ladies even came over the night before Thanksgiving (and by the way, it's pronounced "THANKS-giving" in Georgia, as opposed to the Yankee way of "Thanks-GIVE-ing") to see if we would like to have dinner with their family.  After assuring her that we had already made arrangements, she had a cake sent over saying that was the least she could do for us. 

We spent 10 days there and got quite a lot done.  By the time we left, my sister-in-law was back on her feet and was able to move around some.  She's not dancing any jigs, but I suspect she never could do that anyway.

OK.  So what did I learn out of all of this? 

•  I learned that family is what family does; and family does what family has to do ... and sometimes help can come from the most unexpected places.
• I learned (or actually, relearned) that sometimes you don't have to say a word in order to carry on a conversation.  Just being there, looking someone in the eyes, and listening is enough.
• I learned that we really don't need a "fancy-10-course-all-day-followed-by-football" meal to have a good THANKSgiving.  It's a time to be with family and friends, to reflect on all the blessings and challenges we've been given throughout the year, throughout our lives. And that is all it was ever meant to be. But beyond that, it's a chance to realize that we didn't do "it" or anything else for that matter by ourselves and couldn't have done "it" without help from some of the people sitting around the kitchen table.
• And finally, I learned that an end of some kind is going to come to everyone and you'll never know when or what that end will look like. So I figured I'd better live my life as well as I can, as full as I can, and with a kind eye to as many people as I come in contact with. It really doesn't do any good to bull your way through life and relationships. 

I know this entry is a bit long, and maybe too personal for some of you and that's OK. But as I said, sometimes I just don't know what the end of something is supposed to look like. So I have to look around and see how others would have done it, how they would have ended something.  And in this case, I came up with this short note from Emerson that I think will work:

To laugh often and much;
to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of 
    children;
to earn the appreciation of honest folks and to endure the
   betrayal of false friends.

To appreciate beauty;
to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether
   by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social
   condition;
to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have
   lived...

This is to have succeeded.

And if you don't like that ending, then try this one:

You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth. (Wm. Purkey)

Hooah

An unexpected surprise...

Having resigned myself to cleaning the clubs and putting them up for the winter, I was pleasantly surprised to have been able to play a couple of rounds last week while visiting some of my relatives in Georgia.  

Warner Robins Air Force Base has a very nice facility.  The clubhouse looks relatively new and is quite well appointed.  The locker rooms and shower areas are like some of the ones I have played in the past which cost upwards of $100 per round (Longaberger, some of the courses in North Carolina, etc.).  The restaurant is upscale and the clubhouse, itself, is very nicely done.  Surprisingly enough, the round was under $20 (walking with a pull cart), but the price was not indicative of the quality of the course.  Even with the fairway grass being dormant, and the greens being a bit bumpy, one could see that the course has great character.  It is much nicer than the officers' club at Wright Patterson.

Of course, I will still play Wright Patterson any chance I get to go down there.  Old Dave and I have a grand time whackin' away, even with all it's distractions (gun fire at the ranges, planes flying overhead during crucial putting attempts...).

If you have ever seen the movie, "Bagger Vance" and remember the scenes, there is one particular one in which Bagger finds himself shooting a particularly difficult shot between some trees and brush out to the fairway.  Well, I had a shot that almost looked like it was 

taken from the movie.  On hole #9 (a very nice short par 4 shown above, right), you tee off on a hilltop and the fairway drops off very quickly.  It works its way through trees which tightly hug the sides, challenging, no -- daring you to take out your driver and try to fly the fairway and land on the far side of the upslope.  On my first round, that is exactly what I did.  Did I say I liked a challenge?  Anyway, I had a little "left to right" on the ball and missed the right edge of the fairway by about 15 feet.  When I got to the ball, it was lying on some pine straw, just to the right of a rather large tree, but with a perfect opening to the green.  After sizing up my chances, out came the trusty seven iron and I proceeded to have at it.  I took a nice smooth swing, kept it low, and the ball sailed out and through the opening just as if a fellow of greater skill than I have had hit it.  As soon as I hit it, however, I remembered my first rule of playing golf in the winter -- always use one more club.   So even though the shot was pretty darned good, it ended up in the sand trap just in front of the green.

No problem.  After all, a bunker shot from good sand is the easiest shot in golf, right!?  I hit the ball out of the trap and it landed on the green and came to rest about 18 inches from the cup.  One putt.  Routine par!
Having escaped with a "routine par" on that the first round, when I played the course again in a few days, I knew better than to tempt fate again and hit a 4-hybrid from the tee on the next round (right in the middle of the fairway).

Overall, this was a real treat.  First of all, the game is such a excuse for a walk in nature.  But more than that, it is a fair challenge to myself.  A challenge to have fun, enjoy the surroundings, play as well as I can, and never get angry or frustrated with a game I will never master.  After all, how can you get flustered with a place that looks like this...

Oh, and I almost forgot, I shot an 87 on the first round and an 89 on the second.   Those are actually pretty good scores for me any time, but "great" in the last week of November, a week with temps in the 20s back home.

One of the most fascinating things about golf is how it reflects the cycle of life.  No matter what you shoot - the next day you have to go back to the first tee and begin all over again and make yourself into something.  (Peter Jacobsen)

Hooah