Dad 121: Sandy, the World Series, & Those Political Ads

(The day after "The Day After." Enjoy Dad's post! --Tracy)

Derf here! The sun shone brightly this morning but we have the threat of showers for the next few days. Halloween is here, but our local police have decided to tell the trick-or-treaters to stay home tonight and go out Saturday evening instead. The storm called "Sandy" wasn't as bad as expected in our coastal area. We had severe winds causing some trees and lines to be down, but our house had not a flicker of power loss. Fortunate indeed! We lucked out!

I must admit at times our house did seem to shake occasionally as the winds were blowing. Our thoughts and prayers go out for our neighbors to our south that lost everything in the storm. The devastation witnessed on the news seems unreal. Snow in West Virginia; New York City flooded; a whole town burned (80+ homes); New Jersey absolutely destroyed. The power of Mother Nature seemed to exceed anything witnessed to date! Will the destroyed areas be rebuilt? Only time will tell. I can't imagine how I would feel if in the same predicament as those who lost everything!

Well, now to the 2012 baseball season. It is over. Thank goodness! It wasn't the result I wanted, but the San Francisco Giants were the better of the two World Series teams. The Tigers were totally outplayed as Marco Scutaro drove in the winning run. Just think, a short while ago he was playing in Fenway Park for the home team. Wait till 2015!! We'll be back! Hopefully! Maybe! It is only a game!

Are you "sick and tired" of all the political advertisements on TV? I'm watching one as I write this. I am sure glad for the remote's MUTE button. By the time I write my next post, if all goes well and there is no extension of the voting day, I'll not have to watch any more of these promotional ads. Vote for me! I'll change Washington! Don't discriminate! Vote "yes on one" for same-sex marriage! (My "no" vote has been cast.)

It has been an exciting Fall. We've witnessed an earthquake, the storm of the ages, a bad Boston sports team, birthdays for Josh, Zack and Eli (Zack's will be this coming month), and a most important election within the next week.

One last comment. I like what Jay Leno said: "Don't ask, Don't tell" is back.... It's Obama's new policy for questions about Libya.

Enough for now! Soooo....

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

The Day After

Hurricane Sandy has come and gone.  We never lost power at our house, and to my knowledge our road never flooded over.

Lew got a phone call this morning from a work colleague.  No power at the office.  A day off for Lew -- the only abnormality that we really encountered.

We are thankful that we fared so well.  Our thoughts and prayers are with those in areas that experienced so much devastation.  May the Lord calm them and grant them peace within.  He is able....

Jesus Calms a Storm

23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

-- Matthew 8:23-27 (ESV)

Sandy

Hurricane Sandy has presented her calling card. It is raining and very windy here in Southern Maine.

Lew arrived home from work a few minutes ago. I was so glad to see his vehicle turn into our driveway.

We are not expected to get the worst of Sandy. However, we have been warned to expect power outages and possible flooding.

I am praying for all those that are in the path of this storm. Please be safe!

Photos From My Birthday... By Eli

I turned a year old yesterday.  That blue stuff on my face?  Cookie Monster frosting!

Yum!  You make good cake, Momma!

Happy Birthday to MEEEEEE!!!!!

There were lots of people at my party!  I had so much fun.
My cousin Josh was playing with my blanket, making me laugh!
My cousin Zack laughed, too!

Karma stayed in Momma and Daddy's room the WHOLE time.
I have only one thing to say to you, Karma:
"Every party needs a pooper, that's why we invited you.  Party Pooper!"

I got PRESENTS for my birthday!  Lots of clothes and toys.
Daddy and I were VERY busy playing in this picture.

Uncle Riean made this toy box for me.  WOW!!!!!

That was a great party.  But I'm ready for a nap now.
It's not EVERY day that you turn ONE!

Eli is the Birthday Boy!

We went to a big birthday bash at Eli's house today. It is hard to believe he is one year old.

Happy Birthday to you, Sweet Baby Boy!!!

(Postscript: Below is a party photo of Eli with cousin Zack, Uncle Glen, and cousin Josh. Check back tomorrow for more pics!)

I Write a Song

Jerry heard Lew and I when we got home from the grocery store tonight, so our little gray kitty came downstairs to hang out with us.  (Kurt opted to stay upstairs on our bed.)

When I saw Jerry, I started to sing to him.  I sang a song that I made up.  It goes like this:

Jerry Kitty!
He's my Jerry Kitty!
He's Jerry Kitty!
He's my Jerry Kitty!

The above is repeated as many times as one wishes to sing it.  And the various lines are interchangeable.  For instance, one could sing:

He's Jerry Kitty!
He's my Jerry Kitty!
He's my Jerry Kitty!
Jerry Kitty!

I asked Lew if he enjoyed my song, and he indicated that it might become tedious after a while.

Hmmm.... I wonder why he feels that way....

The Things You Learn When You Buy a New Hairbrush

I purchased a hairbrush at the grocery store yesterday. When I got home, I threw out my old brush and also my comb. I don't really need a comb for my short hair, so I figured, "Why not simplify?"

When Lew got home from work tonight, he asked, "What happened to the comb that you used to keep on the bathroom sink?" After I told him, he got a funny look on his face. He certainly doesn't need a comb, so I was confused by his reaction.

He explained, "It was a great backscratcher."

In response to my look of horror, he said, "I always rinsed it off. But I never told you about it, because I know how you feel about such things."

Uh, okay.

I eventually recovered from Lew's revelation that he used my comb to scratch his itchy, sweaty back.

And I even fished the comb out of the trash for him.

Scratch away, Sweetie!

Dad 120: These Aren't The Good Old Days

(I allowed Dad to comment on the forbidden subject.  I think it's time to lift the ban anyway.  And I usually don't mention politics very much in my own posts, but Dad makes up for that today.  Enjoy!  -- Tracy)

Derf Here!  Enjoying another great sunny day in the Northeast.  The weather experts have predicted the next few days will be similar.  I'll take it!  Because I know what's in the future.

Well, football season is over for Josh and Zack.  Josh's team finished the fall schedule with a win over Gorham.

Our local (Scarborough) high school varsity squads are all in the state playoffs.  Cross country, boys' and girls' soccer, football, and field hockey have a shot at winning some playoff games.  The field hockey team will be playing Saturday for the state championship.  They completed the Western Maine championships undefeated.  Not only undefeated, but the team has not allowed a goal throughout the fall season.  Quite remarkable!

All in the Northeast are quite happy about the new Red Sox manager.  The pitching coach from 2006-2010 returns as manager.  Welcome back, John Farrell.  (I hope Tracy allows this paragraph to be printed.  Please!)

I'm up to 38 minutes on the elliptical.  Hoping to get to 46 within the next couple of weeks.  I skipped today as I had my daily schedule changed due to a trip to Toys-R-Us.  I'll use any excuse I can to skip exercise.  It worked out well for me.  Back at it tomorrow, though.  No excuses!

Right now I'm anxiously awaiting to complete this election cycle.  Really fed up with local ads promoting same-sex marriage.  I use the remote frequently to change channels or mute the comments being made.  Some of them make no sense to me.  TALK IS CHEAP!  Those doing the talking should SHUT UP!  Two more weeks.  On my phone, out of 30 calls received, I answered only about five of the calls.  I love caller ID.  A real life saver this time of year.  Thanks for CALLER ID!!

I have already voted.  Voted against same-sex marriage.  I will be on the losing side of this.  Maine seems to be one of the most liberal states in the country.  It wasn't like this when I was growing up.  Oh, for the good old days.  If my parents were to return, I'm sure they would not recognize the new morality of my home state.  I can't believe we've lost our way, but we have.  Sad!  Sad!  Sad!  The whole country is on the decline.  I'm hoping for a reversal of this direction in two weeks.  Please pray for this change!!

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

Lots Going On

I've been staying up too late watching baseball.  There is no game tonight, so maybe I'll get to sleep at a decent hour.

The final presidential debate was on last night, but I opted to DVR it (as I did the first two debates and the V.P. debate).  I watched it this afternoon.

I do expect several late nights over the next couple weeks:

• The World Series
• Election Night Coverage

It will be nice when November 6th is over so that I can get some rest!

Cat Walk

Our newer kitty, Kurt, sometimes wakes me up close to 3:00 in the morning.  It doesn't happen all the time, but often enough.

I have learned how to deal with this interruption.

I usually have to visit "the facility" anyway about that time, so I get up and do so.  Kurt follows me.

Then I walk into our guest room -- which happens to be the room right next to our bedroom.  Kurt follows me.

I always have food and water available for the cats in the guest room.  After we walk into the room, Kurt goes immediately to the food dish and starts chomping away.

Then I go back to sleep.  Presumably, Kurt does, too.

Do you know anyone else who takes her cat for a walk at 3:00 in the morning?!

The Cardiac Kids

Why am I a sports fan?

The Patriots tried to lose their game today, but somehow they pulled out a win.

It was stressful.

At one point I said to Lew, "The decade of dominance is over."

Time will tell whether I am correct or not.

I hope "not."

Falling for You

We had a women's event at church tonight.  I went early to help set up for it.

At one point there were three of us up front working on the left-hand side of the platform.  I was being extra careful because of the different levels of the risers.

The extra care didn't help, I guess, because I soon found myself falling....

It was one of those moments that happens in slow motion.  You're aware that it's happening, but you can't do anything about it.

I knocked over a little speaker-type thing and almost knocked over a display that we had already prepared for the event.

Apparently there was a loud noise attached to all of this, because one of the gals thought I had banged my head.  Fortunately I hadn't.

Another gal was worried about my ankle.  It's a little stiff, but I don't think it's sprained.

So all in all, I made out okay.  But I won't be surprised if I'm a bit achy in the morning!

Nipping It In The Bud

I had a migraine coming on late this afternoon. So I curled up on the bed and listened to some soft, soothing classical music.

I was feeling a little better by the time Lew got home from work. He made me some soup for dinner, and that completed my recovery.

Migraine successfully averted! :)

They're GRRReat!

Yahoo!

I know that the major league baseball season isn't quite over -- the World Series hasn't even started yet -- but the high point of the season just occurred:

The Detroit Tigers swept the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series!!!

A great big huge "THANK YOU" to the Tigers for beating the Yankees.  This Maine girl is very happy.  :)

Best wishes to Detroit in the World Series!

Yahoo!

Dad 119: More on the Earthquake (and Sports)

(Dad mentioned the forbidden subject again, but I allowed it because of the nickname he coined for them.  And did you know my cats are interested in the baseball playoffs?  They are rooting for the Tigers, of course!  Enjoy Dad's post!  -- Tracy)

Derf Here!  From the Northeast on a beautiful fall day.  I don't know how, but a better day is forecast for tomorrow.  I plan on mowing the lawn for the last time this year.  It is growing no more as we had a deep frost a few days ago.  Must wait and mow in the afternoon tomorrow as it takes all morning to dry out with all the morning dew.  No elliptical tomorrow.  I'll get my exercises mowing the lower forty!  Can't wait!

Well, Zack's team lost (20-8) its last football game of the year.  But Zack was happy as he caused a fumble and his team recovered the ball.  Josh continues to stay on the sideline as his pulled muscle has not completely healed.  He continues to go to practice as a non-participant and travels to all games.  His season ends the week.

Yesterday was quite a day.  Around 7:15 P.M. our home shook rather violently.  I thought we were being invaded by foreign tanks.  It lasted a few seconds and my immediate assessment was an earthquake.  It was originally posted as a 4.6 but today it was said to be a 4.0.  It was interesting to see the event on a "crawl" while watching Fox News.  A few seconds later the anchors were reporting it.  It was felt as far as Hartford, Connecticut and Albany, New York. Games were held up as teams left the fields as the ground rumbled beneath them.  In a few minutes, the games resumed and no serious damages were reported as far as we know.  Kind of EXCITING!

The evening improved.  I watched the heavyweight debate and also watched the Yankees go down three games to none to the Detroit Tigers.  I actually root for Derek Jeter when he plays.  He is the only Yankee I root for.  Now that he is done for the year I have no one I like on the squad.  Even though I root for Jeter I want the Yankees to lose.  Go Tigers.  A former student at Cape Elizabeth High School is the head trainer for Detroit.  His dad taught in the room next to mine.  I officiated several basketball games with him.  So my allegiance is for the Tigers throughout the playoffs as my beloved "Red Flops" are home.  Maybe they should stay there.

The Patriots lost their third game.  They have lost three games by a total of four points.  Bad decisions -- can't close out games.  If they don't wake up they will miss the playoffs.  Might even get beat by the Jets this week.  GO PATS!! Really!

Put my plow on this morning.  More about getting ready for winter to follow.

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

EARTHQUAKE!

I can recall "feeling" only three earthquakes while living in Maine:

• One when I was in college.  Very, very small tremor.
• One when Lew and I lived in Portland.  Very, very small tremor.
• And one TODAY!  NOT SMALL!

Maybe in the whole scheme of earthquakes, today's wasn't so bad -- 4.6 magnitude -- but it certainly caused me some concern for the several seconds that it lasted.

At first I thought it was the furnace coming on.  But then the house started to shake and the rumble was WAY too loud to be the furnace.

Lew and I looked at each other (with alarm) and then got up quickly to check on my parents.  They were both standing up looking somewhat alarmed as well.  Dad said, "Earthquake."

Lew made phone calls to his mother and Matt and confirmed that they had felt it, too.  I went on Facebook, which was already buzzing with the news.  Apparently other people also had thought "furnace exploding."

Hopefully nobody was injured and that damage (if any) was minimal.

I'm glad that it's over.

The Final Fork

I've had a bit of a "sour stomach" the past couple days, so I've been lax in my household chores.  (More lax than usual, that is.)

Tonight Lew asked me if I was going to run the dishwasher.  It seems that he had just used the last clean fork.

Other than major events like Thanksgiving, I don't ever recall getting down to our last fork.  I said to Lew, "I know this happens to other people, so this makes me feel like a normal person."

And it felt kinda' good!

(But, yes, the dishwasher is now running....)

Mixed Sports Emotions

Today's "High": The Detroit Tigers beat the New York Yankees. Detroit leads the series, 2-0.

Today's "Low": The New England Patriots lost after they had led for most of the game.

The "High" was higher than the "Low" was low. I guess I hate the Yankees more than I love the Patriots. (Is that bad?)

GO, TIGERS!!!

Better Late Than Never...?

Last night I stayed up far too late and watched the St. Louis Cardinals come back from a two-run deficit in the 9th inning to beat the Washington Nationals.

As a result of my late-night escapade, I have felt slightly "off" for much of today.

For example, my eyes were slamming shut just now. So I turned off my light to let Mr. Sandman complete his work.

Then I remembered... I forgot to do my blog post!

So here it is, folks. And now, Mr. Sandman is calling....

Fast After Midnight

I went for some routine blood work this morning.

My appointment was at 8:00 a.m.

I wasn't supposed to eat for 10 to 12 hours before my appointment (although the card said midnight).

My eating schedule wasn't really disrupted too much.

So how come I felt hungrier this morning than I normally do?

It was probably psychological....  Tell the kid, "Don't do that," and what does she want to do?

I ate a banana right when I got home.  And boy, did it taste good!

Consecutive Day

One of my Facebook friends wrote the following in her status today:

Happy Consecutive Day! It can only happen 2 more times this century!

It took me a second, but then I realized what she meant.  Today is 10/11/12.

And the additional times that it can happen?  Not too hard to figure out:

• 11/12/13
• 12/13/14

So here's wishing you all a Happy Consecutive Day!

Postscript:  I love stuff like this.

Dad 118: No Monkeying Around

(I've heard the following tale several times. I always like hearing it! Enjoy Dad's post. -- Tracy)

Derf here! From the "cool" Northeast. Fall is definitely in the air. The whole state expects a frost in the next couple days. Most of the state has already experienced a frost, but along the coast we have not. It will be here shortly. One last mowing coming up.

Just a quick mention about Zack's football game Saturday. Perhaps a record was set. You see, Zack's team received the opening kickoff. However, 23 seconds later the opponent was ahead 8 - 0. The game continued and the final score was 20 - 8. The 23-second score was the only one the opponent accomplished. Another "W." Josh is still injured. Hopefully he'll play this week. Only two football weekends left.

I had my memory jogged recently as I was watching one of the court shows on TV. I think it was "Judge Judy." A person had left property with a friend but failed to retrieve it in an orderly fashion. It seems two years went by with no communication. Well you can guess the result. Upon returning for her property, it was unavailable. The person storing it had done away with it. A case of abandoning property. Tough luck!

A similar incident happened to my dad many years ago. Those of you that have read my blogs, you are aware that we had several monkeys (all named Chee Chee) while growing up. Here is a tale of one of them.

A traveling salesperson stopped by Dad's store one day. Dad was a yankee trader, and was always buying, selling or trading something. Well the salesman saw the monkey and for some reason Dad sold it to him. He was to return to pick up the beast shortly. Well, almost a year to the day, the salesman returned and wanted his monkey. In the meantime, Dad had sold Chee Chee.

Now the fun begins. The salesman was not pleased. Shortly after the confrontation, a call from a local lawyer was received by Dad. It seems the man thought he was going to win the case. Well, suffice it to say the case went no further. Dad called the local veterinarian, who boarded dogs, to see what room and board for a monkey would be. The cost would have been prohibitive, even for a dog. As soon as the call back to the lawyer was made, the case ended. It was an interesting day, however. Another tale!! Life, back in the day, was quite interesting. Kind of miss the old days!

More to come next week. About what, I don't know.

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

Two Cats Napping

Here is pictorial proof that our cats have bonded.  :)

Jerry and Kurt.
This is what they do most of the day!

1,052 Pickup

I am transitioning the cats' food. I had two smaller bags of their "old" food, so I mixed those together with the "new" food in a large container.

Last night the container was about a third full. I decided to top it off so that it would have a larger percentage of the "new" food.

As I was shaking the container to mix the additional "new" food with the previous mixture, I sauntered into the living room to chat with Lew.

Lew noticed what I was doing, and he suggested that I "tumble" instead of "shake."

"Fine!" I thought as I handed him the container.

He began tumbling.

I didn't think to tell him to hold the cover on. That should have been obvious, right?

RIGHT?

As the hundreds of pieces of cat food fell all over Lew, the couch, and the floor, I did the only thing that is appropriate in such situations: I laughed my head off.

And then I helped Lew pick up the food -- although I did consider letting him do that by himself!

The Cookie Monster

The kids at church had a bake sale today to raise money for some new chairs for their area.

Glen & Debbie bought some chocolate chip cookies.

Glen gave a cookie to Eli.

I think you can all guess the result....

But just in case you can't, here's a picture of Eli and Grampa!

 

More Time With Young Friends

I spent some time with my two young friends again.

The almost two-year-old boy is still almost two years old.

The almost twelve-year-old girl is no longer "almost," because she turned twelve today!

I just got home from her birthday party. I was also at her house for about three hours earlier today, hanging out with her and her brother.

Once again, I enjoyed our time together.

And once again, I am tuckered out! :)

We Eat Out

Lew and I went grocery shopping tonight.  A Friday night shopping trip means dinner out.

When we got to the restaurant, I saw two women from our church. They were both eating the Macaroni & Cheese special. It looked delicious, so that's what I ordered, too.

The ladies from church took home about half of their meals.

I ate everything on my plate.

And now I am very happy we have Tums in our medicine cabinet!

(Postscript:  But the Mac & Cheese was so worth it....)

Doc McStuffins

Right after lunch today I had a babysitting gig, during which I was introduced to a cartoon that I had never seen before:  Doc McStuffins (a Disney Junior show).

"Doc" is a young girl who "heals" stuffed animals and toys.  The animals and toys become animated in her care.

The show that I watched with my young charge today had two different stories.  The first one was about a stuffed cow that accidentally got left outside in the rain, and the cow was mad at her owner.  (Moral:  Everyone makes mistakes.)  The second was about a soccer ball that needed to be pumped up with air, but he was afraid of the needle.  So his stuffed friends surrounded him with encouragement.

It's a cute show.

And I feel much more culturally aware.

Dad 117: It's Debatable...?

(Dad wrote a paragraph about the forbidden subject.  So I refused to type it....  Tough love, Dad, tough love.... Enjoy my father's post!  -- Tracy)

Derf here! From the damp, soggy northeast corner of these United States. Fall is in the air. Get used to it. Snow will be flying around before you know it. Good Grief!! (Stolen from the Peanuts comic strip. Don't want to be called a plagiarizer!)

Well, I don't have any good news from Josh's and Zack's football games. We'll see what happens this week. Stay tuned. Josh is still injured and I just found out he will not play in this week's game. I will not attend.

Only five more weeks watching these wall-to-wall ads for the candidates hoping to be elected to represent us in the state and federal government. I'll probably watch the debate tonight. It will be of interest to me how participants are able to defend their positions. I'll just wait and see. Defending the indefensible seems to be getting more the norm than the exception. I have made my mind up. I base my vote on the record of the candidates. Which one has accomplished what they said they would do. I guess I fall into Clint Eastwood's camp. More later!

The Patriots finally woke up in the second half Sunday as they were down 21 - 7. Scoring 35 unanswered points can do a lot for one's confidence. Now they must keep it up.

I seem to be out of material. So....

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

(Postscript:  Tracy here.  For those of you that must know about the forbidden paragraph, you can see it below in it's raw form!)

Kitty Klaws

We are supposed to trim the cats' claws once a month.  The vet did Kurt's during his first visit, so he's all set for a bit.  We just did Jerry's tonight.

Lew is in charge of the actual trimming.  He holds on to Jerry as best he can while I stand to one side and "chain feed" goodies to Jerry.  He is still a little squirmy in spite of the distraction, but we manage.

We are not looking forward to trimming Kurt's claws.  He is a larger, stronger cat.  And he is not as "pliable" as Jerry.

I think that someone should invent a cat tranquilizer that lasts for five minutes.  Let me know if you come up with one!

Scripture Typer

I learned about a cool website today that will help me memorize the Sermon on the Mount.  It's called Scripture Typer and you can find it here:  Scripture Typer.

I signed up for a free account on the site.  I even paid $3.99 for the iPhone app.  :)

I have been putting off starting the memorization process, but now I have no excuse!