Last day of 2019, last day of this decade!

December 31st, 1959

As I open the kitchen table to put the two extra leaves in I think back on the year.  I am in the 7th grade and it has been a year of change.  The Cayuga High School no longer exists.  The high school students are now staying on the bus and going to Forman.  All of a sudden we, 7th and 8th grade, are the oldest in school.  Dave and Joan now stay on the bus and go to Forman.  Joan was the first homecoming queen of Sargent Central and Mom was so proud.  Mrs. Odenbrit is our teacher and we are on the top floor of the school now.  Dave and I are going to play table tennis tonight.  We have been playing games all day and tonight Mom agreed to give up her kitchen so we could play.  I have already cut pototoes so we can fry them on the cook stove as we play.  This afternoon we had played the Touring Card game and then played with the empty shells and marbles.  Darn it, Dave beat me and I was not happy.  Dave is outside feeding the cows as it is his turn so I am setting up the table.  I think back on the year of 1959.  

• the average wage is $5,010
• Bread is 20 cents but of course Mom bakes all of our bread
• The paper said the average home costs $12,400.  I can not imagine how much money that is
• In social studies the big news is Hawaii is now our 50th state
• We do NOT have a TV but Halvors have one and I have seen "Rawhide", "Bonanza" and "The twilight Zone"
• We did go to Santa Claus Day in Lidgerwood and it was free but it did have a sign that movies cost $1.00
• Gas has gone up to $.25 a gallon

Dave comes in from the barn and with a smile on his face he tells me that we lucked out, the water tank did not overflow today!  As we get our table tennis paddles and the balls I notice that Mom and Dad are content in the living room.  Mom is making something with yarn and as usual Dad is reading about cameras and guns.  

Dave and I have the evening planned out.  We will play table tennis for a while and eat fried potatoes as we play.  Then about 8:00 we will empty out our new puzzle on the table and work on it until it is finished well into 1960.  We will have at least one piece of Mom's lefsa before we go to bed in that ice cold bedroom.  WHY IS DAD SO SO AGAINST CUTTING A HOLE IN THE CEILING SO WE CAN HAVE SOME HEAT UPSTAIRS???  Oh, it may be about $$s.

The evening is a FUN time.  Dave beats me in table tennis.  I think he does beat me maybe 60% of the time but then he is older, right?

As I fell asleep I had thoughts of "what will life be 10 years from now?"  I have seen Ronald, Janet and now Joan is almost out the door.  I know that 10 years from now life will be so different and I wonder what God has in his plans!  I think about those summer days when I have nothing to do so I shimmy up the pole to the barn roof and then lie on my back dreaming about "what next".  I say to myself, "I want to be someone and I want to go places Mom and Dad have not been."  WHY???  I am not sure but really I just want to see and do things that now are only in my imagination.  

As I write today I ask myself if I am ready for a new decade.  I think I am.  Lord, bring it on and give me the grace to know and do your will, PLEASE!!!

The count down is on towards a new year and a new decade!

Load we thank you for these gifts which we are about to enjoy!

Oh my those grilled ribs with cream potatoes and salad look delicious

Kids eat in the other room and have FUN

There is nothing as good as a cousin game while enjoying those delicious Regina hand made candy canes!

So a short but fun trip ended as I arrived home last night about 10:30.  My goodness a 41 hour trip that covered 2600 miles and 5 hours in the plane BUT it was worth it!  Grandpa got to enjoy and interact with 10 of his 14 grand kids.  There was catching up,  school updates, sports updates, jokes, kidding around, walks, delicious food, good drinks and much more.  All in a very short time.  I boarded the plane in FL about 6:00 AM Saturday and arrived in South Bend about 2 1/2 hours later.  Then on Sunday I boarded the plane about 6:30 PM and arrived in Fl shortly after 9:00 and then home by 10:30.  On the flight home I sat between two women as the plane was 100% full.  The gal by the window maybe said 10 words in the 2+ hour trip.  The gal on my right maybe talked ALL BUT 10 minutes of the flight.  Interesting, kind of and it did make the trip go a bit faster.  "For sure" it was fun spending time with the kids.  I now have TWO grandsons taller than I!  Henry and Liam kind of look a bit down on Grandpa!  There may be more in a few years.  ALL of the kids are getting so grown up.  It is fun to have conversations with them.  I would say that IF I were a 2, on a scale of 1-10, in a social scale at their age most of them are a 7+ or more.  Not sure I come across in a way that one knows what I am talking about BUT kids now days are just so so much more mature than I was at their age.  I should mention that it also was fun catching up with John, Mary, Travis, Amy and Aaron.  Cynthia and Mike stayed home with their 4 youngest and they sent their 4 oldest with Travis. I think Uncle Travis did a great job with his nieces and nephews.  

I have not played tennis for 3 days and my body says that is good.  I should be on the court tomorrow as I now start to look forward to the winter season which is about 2 weeks away.  Terry purchased a new racquet for me as I mentioned in the past so No excuse now for anything but a winning record!

I got an oil change on the Honda today as it was just a bit overdue.  They gave me a quote on 3 new tires.  I suggested to them that I may not get too far on 3 tires!  I mean what the heck.  I have about 35,000 miles on the tires.  WHY in the world would I buy 3 news ones?

Mary insisted she make half a batch of lefsa for me to take home and it was so so good.

Tomorrow is the very LAST day of this decade.  Maybe I will have to evaluate how I did in the last 10 years.  Not sure that is a good idea but maybe!

It is now late PM so of course the FP became history many hours ago.  Have to wait until tomorrow morning for more I guess.  Maybe a movie with Terry tonight and an early bedtime is in store.

I should mention

It was 66 years ago that cousin Robert was killed in a hunting accident.  Oh my even though I was only 6 I remember it well.  When Dad came home Mom had the ironing board set up in the living room.  Dad was distraught and almost had a difficult time telling what happened.  The next few days were oh so hard.  Robert's body was at the home of his parents for a couple of days.  People came over and brought food etc.  I am sure I was not there the entire time but I do remember being there for some of the time.  Later Dad had to go to court as he was the only adult there.  Of course it was an accident but there were legal things that had to be done.  I have mentioned this before but Dad had a new coat on and it had Roberts blood on it.  He never wore it again.  This was during a time when our family had little or not money!  It was one of those times that a person can never forget.

Enough for now.

On to South Bend

It is early in the morning and I am about ready to leave.  I need to drive 50 miles to the airport and then board the plane for a 7:15 take off.  My plane should land in South Bend at 9:50.  I only have a briefcase with very little in it so no luggage to store or check in.  Of course it will be a quick visit but I am excited for it.  I have the two batches of fudge in my briefcase and I am wondering if they will want to look at what I have!  I will land again tomorrow here in FL about 9:15 so I am thinking I may arrive home by 10:30 or so.  No tennis on Monday as I did not want to play with the 2.5 players two days in a row, Friday and Monday.  I did play with some of my winter team on Thursday.  One of the guys I played with impressed me with his play.  I would say he will be a very good court #3 or an OK court #2.  We will just have to see how things go.
I cut much of the roast off the bone yesterday and froze maybe 60% of it.  It was just so big.  I am hoping I am not disappointed in it when we eat it.
We are just 3 days away from 2020.  I can hardly wait to see what God has in mind.  I say that as if I am in HIS plan all the time.  I try but am afraid not always successful.
I need to wrap this up and then hit the road to the airport.  I hope everyone has a great last weekend of the decade and then allow that to propel you into the new decade on Tuesday with bells on your shoes so to speak.
I have a cup of FP to take so I am good to go.

December 27, the last Friday of the decade

Not much to say today.  I played tennis at 7:30 and then a guy asked if I could fill in for 45 minutes at 10:30 and I said yes.  I have not played twice in a day since we arrived in October but will give it a try today.
I printed my boarding pass for tomorrow.  Boarding starts at 6:25 and the airport is an  hour away.  With parking and then getting through TSA I am thinking I need to hit the road by 5:00 at the latest.  I will be taking almost nothing as a 36 hour visit is not all that long.  I have 2 batches of fudge and then sister Helen said to be sure and take deodorant so will not forget that!
I need to take Terry's tennis racquet in today to get it strung as she will start playing some after the first of the year and she has not really played for some time.  I got my new racquet strung yesterday as that was a present from Terry.  Our pros say that a good tennis player needs at least 2 racquet that are identical so does that now make me a good player?  Well I think I know the answer to that so one does not need to go there.
I put our old grill out on the driveway with a FREE sign on it.  It went this morning.  They left the propane tank.  I know the tank is so old it can not be refilled and whoever took it must have known that.  Anyway it is good to have it out of the garage "for sure".
I had my FP before tennis this morning so I am good to go.  I am guessing I will not be on the blog until Monday.

Really I am 100% Norwegian but I realize the food does not show that--I kind of tried!

Terry and I had prime standing rib roast yesterday for Christmas.  It was roasted on our pellet grill at 325 for about 3 hours until it registered 120 and then it rested for 20 minutes.  It was outstanding.  OK so I claim to be 100% Norwegian and I believe that is true.  AND I tried to buy lefsa with no luck.  I admit I did not try to find lutefisk and I am fine with that.   We enjoyed a meal of prime rib, baked sweet potato and brussel sprouts baked in the oven with bacon and onions.  Terry was a bit under the weather so that put a damper on the meal but still it was a meal worthy of Christmas Day.  I should add that I did start the day with a FP pot of 100% Kona coffee and that "for sure" started the day out on the right foot!  We ended the day watching a Christmas movie.  It was NOT a Hallmark movie but it had a Hallmark ending if you know what I mean.  I also could add one might think we had a boat load of company given the size of the roast but no.  Before I ventured to the store to buy it both of us agreed we should get a 5 bone roast.  When the butcher handed me the roast I was taken aback by the size and then even more so when I saw the price AND it was on sale at $6.99 a pound.  I had gone into the store a couple days earlier and asked to order one that I could just pick up.  The guy said "no need" as they had a lot of roasts.  I asked if they had a cow in the back and he said several!

Here we are back to the ending days of December.  A week from today we will be into the second day of a new year and a new decade, wow.  If I figure correctly on Wednesday I will start my 9th decade but make no mistake I am not 90 YET!  In 48 hours I will be in the air on my way to South Bend with no change of clothes, only a couple batches of homemade fudge and maybe some deodorant AND oh I should not forget those old people pills I try to remember to take each day.  THEN I will hit the airwaves again on Sunday evening coming back.  In the 36 or so hours I am there I will (I think) get my fill of lefsa and get to see many of those grand kids.  

I am off to tennis in a bit.  Today and tomorrow and then 3 days off the courts until Tuesday.  This body will welcome the rest.  I could play on Monday but one of the guys scheduled me in on Friday and Monday.  It is a foursome that I am happy to play with once every two weeks or so but not with only 2 days in-between.  I hope I am not sounding like a tennis scrooge but as we gear up for the winter season I want and need to play mostly with players who are as good or better than I.  AND it does not take a whole lot to find those players!!!

Enough for this morning.  I hope EVERYONE had a great Christmas.

Merry Christmas to ALL

Tree cutting in 2008

Here we are celebrating the last Christmas of this decade.  I can not remember details of celebrating the last Christmas of each decade of my life but I can try and what I don't know I can make up and it will (I think) be close to what happened!  So if anyone happens to read this today come along for the ride OR go back to enjoying the morning and the blessing of Christmas!

Friday, December 25, 1949

OK how can I remember anything at the age of 2!  Well the answer is "I can't' but some guesses.  Mom and Dad still have everyone home as Ronald, the oldest is 11.  For sure there is a girl's bedroom and a boy's bedroom with Helen yet to come and me perhaps still in a crib downstairs.  Out side of family things TV is becoming popular as 100,000 TV sets are being sold WEEKLY.  A TV comes to the farm more than a decade later!

Friday, December 25, 1959

Well my memory, maybe, kicks in a bit here.  I am now 12 and in 7th grade.  I am into reading books, playing sports and waiting for older siblings to come visit!  Mom and Dad are in the middle of some very lean years money wise.  I think our car is pretty old or so it seems to me.  Much of my world is about school and the time Dave and I spent together.  It seems that I am maturing faster than the average young boy.  I still have NO interest in girls yet take some delight in paging through the toilet paper catalogs in the out house as I shyly look at the pages with girls in lingerie!  Perhaps I should not admit that but then I think I am kind of normal.  In the world there is a big scandal with the TV show "64,000 dollar question" and in polities Nixon and Khrushchev engage in the "Kitchen Debate".  

Thursday, December 25, 1969

I am now a married man with a son, John.  Gail and I live in Old Main at the School for the Deaf and our dorm room (apartment) has 12 foot ceilings.  We purchase a tree at the last minute and get one that is perhaps 10 feet tall as it was the only one left.  Why?  well it would not fit in any houses!    It certainly is a HUGE change from our tree last year which was a tiny Charlie Brown one!  On the world front Nixon is president, Eisenhower dies and the last issue of The Saturday Evening Post is published. 

Tuesday, December 25, 1979

We have now relocated to St. Paul and have been here for two years.  We now have 3 sons and much to Gail's disappointment no daughters.  The boys are 10, 8 and 6.  They are into sports and are doing well in school.  I am busy teaching middle school deaf kids and coaching on the side.  With school tuition, living expenses etc. it seems that the purse strings are very tight.  Life is full, life is busy and it seems like the weeks go by so fast. The boys are into playing sports, especially soccer.  In the world Carter is president, ESPN is launched and the Sony Walkman is a new thing!

Monday, December 25, 1989

Here we are a family of 3 boys and Gail got her girl who is already 9 years old.  The boys are into soccer big time at their high school SPA and Aaron is the star on the Highland Catholic soccer team.  Cynthia has already become a soccer fan and a very good player.  Of course there is also basketball and John and Travis are into biking.  It seems that the world is going 100+ MPH and I almost get dizzy trying to keep up.  I am teaching, coaching and being a fan it seems almost daily.  We now have a conversion van which almost serves as a weekend hotel, almost!  H W Bush is now president and one of the big news of the year was the 3 Mile Island Nuclear accident.  

Saturday, December 25, 1999

Oh my goodness.  We are about to go into the next century and there are all kinds of thoughts and rumors that when the clock strikes midnight on the 31st many things will happen.  I know of more than one family that has gotten a generator in case the grid goes out!  It happens to be a none event.  We now have no kids but 4 adults.  All the boys are college graduates and Cynthia is a freshman.  Oh my but the time flies and I even look at myself and say "am I really 52?  Of course the answer is YES.  On the world scene we have seen the impeachment of Clinton, the Columbine event and the Yankee Dandy DiMaggio is no longer with us.

Friday, December 25, 2009

It is the first Christmas since Gail passed away.  As one can expect it is a very different Christmas from the last 40+ ones.  Cynthia, Mike and Travis come over for Christmas Eve dinner and we actually have lobster which I had never had in my life.  John and Mary with the boys come over on Christmas Day.  There are now 5 grandchildren much to my delight.  I am 2 years into retirement and it is good.  I have gotten more into woodworking and at this moment that is my "go to" thing.  In the world we now have Obama in as president and in Minnesota the big news was a LONG recount with Franken becoming a senator.  

Wednesday, December 25, 2019 TODAY!

Life has changed so much in the last decade.  Terry and I have now been married 8+ years.  We spend summers in St. Paul and winters in Naples.  Terry has adult grandchildren who are going places fast with advanced education etc.  I now have 14 grandchildren with the oldest being 16.  Our time in MN is spent on home and yard while in Naples it is spent on tennis, the shuttle out to the beach and some biking.  Oh both of us usually read 20-30 books each winter.  We are blessed to have adult children who are doing well.  On the political front the events are wild, crazy and more than a bit concerning.  It seems that the world is fast changing and one has to work hard to keep just a bit behind!  As for me.  I am feeling blessed.  Terry and I seem to both be in good health and life is a daily joy.  

SO I SAY LETS SPEND THE LAST FEW DAYS OF THIS DECADE ENJOYING AND RECALLING OUR MANY BLESSINGS.  THEN LETS GREET 2020, A NEW DECADE, WITH AN ANTICIPATION THAT LIFE WILL GO ON AND WE CAN BE PART OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS.  AS I CLOSE THIS MORNING I GIVE THANKS TO GOD WHO IS SO PRESENT.

Happy Birthday Bendict

Oh my goodness Bendict is 8 today.  If you were to ask him any time of the year when his birthday is he would say, "The same as Jesus!"  Ben is one great guy.  I do not know if I can think of the correct adjectives BUT he is smart, athletic, good looking and a young man on the go for sure.  Benedict may this coming year be one of many blessings and keep doing all the wonderful things you are doing now.

Oh my it is Christmas Eve Day 2019

DECEMBER 24, 1976--FRIDAY

I can't believe Christmas Eve is here.  It has been a VERY busy week.  Now that I am the Director of Education at the School for the Deaf I do not enjoy two weeks off at Christmas BUT I have not been on campus 24/7 (sometimes it seemed that way!).  In addition to making new schedules for the workers on campus I have spent much time in the school wood shop over the last month.  Even though all 125 students have to go home over the holidays the campus staff still have the right to work so the dorm parents, the nurseing staff and the night watch people ALL had to have work schedules for the two weeks.  In addition to making those out I had taken on the fun task of making night stands for the boys.  Willie, the woodworking instructor, had convinced me to make the stands out of oak.  He said they would last forever!  AND yes the boys still have them 43 years later.  So in early December I (Why start earlier??)  started the task of planing down rough lumber to 3/4" and then running each board through the jointer twice to give both edges a clean cut.  I then went about the task of gluing boards together for the sides and top.  A funny thing happened (well NOT funny but there were about 35 boards that I measured and jointed the ends and the very last board at around midnight I ran the last board through 3 times instead of two and therefore had to go through the whole process of making a new board.  So much for getting things done by working late!)  After ALL the boards were ready there was the gluing, putting sides and tops together and then making the drawers out of oak as well.  When all was done I then traced initials, cut them out and glued them on the front and then the finish was sprayed on twice.  I finished them on the 23rd (kind of my moo, go right down to the last possible second.  By the way in my world MOO means mode of operation.  Last night, the 23rd, I had driven to school and brought the night stands home in the car.  As I carried them in and out I had to ask myself WHY 3/4" oak as they were heavy to put it mildly.  Anyway here we were on the morning of the 24th with 3 huge wrapped packages under the tree.  Now in my old age, did I really think boys who were 7, 5 and 3 would be excited about a piece of furniture???  This I do not remember but I am pretty sure there were other presents under the tree as well.  

I will be a quick trip to the store this morning and then tennis at 9:00.  After that it will be a quiet afternoon and evening.  "For sure" Christmas today is so very different than 20, 30 or 40 years ago but then so is life so why would Christmas be any different.  

Enough for today as my FP is pretty much gone and I will be out the door in a short while.

Some where in my 100s of pictures I have some of the night stands but I could not fine them this morning.

Jesus' birthday is near

My birthday about a month later

It is 64 years ago, December 22, 1955.  We have been out of school for the entire week AND we have next week off as well.  School has been in turmoil lately.  There is talk that Wood Lake School will close at the end of this school year.  I am in third grade and really do not understand all that is going on but I asked Dad and he said it was pretty certain that I would be going to Cayuga School next year.  That makes me sad.  I have a classmate this year and we have 12 students in school.  I do not understand WHY they need to close it.  Dad says that the school is too small and it costs too much to keep it open.  Our neighbor, Olaf Olson, is on the school board and I knew him and like him even though I have never talked to him.  He is an adult and I am kind of afraid to talk to adults much.  Anyway it looks like this will be the last year of walking to school.  IF Wood Lake closes a big yellow bus will come next fall and take us to a BIG school.  (It really happened and when I walked into my new classroom in the basement there were 23 kids staring at me and that was only 3rd and 4th grade!) I woke up this morning at 7:30 and tried to stay in bed for a while as the frost on the ceiling nails told me it was cold in our bedroom.  The smell of venison and pancakes finally prompted me to jump out of bed, get dressed and down stairs in almost record time.  As usual Mom was in the kitchen with the cast-iron cook stove heating the room and  doing its job of frying breakfast.  I silently thank God that this summer was a bit better with the crops which meant we did not have to eat those awful wheat berries that Mom wold soak and then cook last year.  For me, pancakes with chokecherry syrup is better than anything.  It take me a minute to think about the day.  Yes, it is Thursday and NO school.  It has been a fun week.  Dave and I have played outside in the snow, we have kept the cows in the barn fed and the water tank has NOT run over, we have played marbles with old empty shells and of course the card game Touring often went from morning to night.  What to do today.  I look out towards the barn and our tracks from the night before are not to be seen.  New snow so that pretty much tells me what Dave and I need to do today.  Sledding on the slope north of the outhouse down to the frozen creek.  As an 8 year old it is kind of a river to me!  "For sure" after milking the cows, separating the milk and then eating breakfast the sled will come out.  We even have one of those new things, a round plastic disc which we can slide down the hill on.  It seems kind of goofy but one can go faster on that then the old sled with runners.  Still I like the sled.  After eating Dave and I are ready to play.  Mom reminds us that the pail in the toilet upstairs is due for a cleaning. Oh my I hate that job but of course it is smart to take it out before it gets so full that one has to be VERY careful not to spill as you take it down the stairs!  It is my turn so up I go and then out the pail goes to the slope north of the out house.  I take it about 50 feet over from the hill as there is NO way one wants to end up in that at the bottom of the hill when you are sledding!  Finally, around 10, milking is done, the cows are fed, breakfast is finished, the pail is back in it's place and we are ready to play.  As Dave pulls the sled and I carry the disc we discuss what we want to do after sledding.  After all this is Christmas vacation and it is PLAY time.  We are a bit concerned as we have not purchased any presents for anyone and Dad has not said anything about going to town.  BUT I am hopeful it may happen this afternoon or tomorrow.  I think, and hope, that Dad has a few $$ to give us for presents.  If it does not happen today we will just play games and maybe Mom will draw some pictures on the blackboard and we can cover them with kernels of corn.  That is always fun.  We wish we had a puzzle to do but we THINK we will get one for Christmas and then put it together on New Years Eve.  I was so proud last year as I was able to stay up past midnight as we worked on the puzzle.  That was the first time and it made me kind of feel older!  Of course, almost bigger than the presents, is the fact that Ronald and Janet will be home soon.  They are still in Ellendale as they both work and said they could not come home before the 24th.  They are both in college and very smart.  Ronald works at the Ford dealer part time and Janet works at a drug store.  I know I want to be just like them when I grow up.  I am concerned as I THINK they both have special friends.  If they were to get married I wonder if they would come home as much!  One of my friends in school said his brother married and now he does not see him much.  I really like it when Janet and Ronald come home.  Ronald even said I need a rifle and I THINK he may bring me one some time.  Dad has never said anything about that and when he goes hunting pheasants I kind of function as his bird dog.  "For sure" I do not want to be a bird dog when I grow up!!!  I know Dad does not have money to buy Dave or me a gun but it sure would be fun to have one.  

As I kiss Mom and Dad goodnight and head up the stairs to the cold cold bedroom I think I am one lucky boy.  Great siblings, a mom who always has good food, a dad who works so we can live in the country and a warm house but a very cold bedroom.  It was a good day.  No school, fun sledding, Touring card games and yes those homemade pancakes with chokecherry syrup.  If only Christmas vacation could last a life time!!!

Second to last Friday of 2019

It was November 1st, 1986.  The boys' school, SPA, had reached the championship game of Minnesota soccer.  John was the catalysis of the offense where from his center midfield position he did not score a lot but set up goal after goal after goal.  Travis was the center back on defense where he ruled the field.  Many parents could not believe his defensive skill as in the 20+ games in the fall there had been ZERO breakaways on goal as Travis ruled.  Grandpa Lee had come down to see the championship game which would be in the dome.  He felt it was "big time" and two of his grandsons were in the center.  The dome could seat what, 55,000 and this being the high school game the stadium looked nearly empty but for high school it was good.  Maybe 2000 people were there.  The opponent was Apple Vally which meant two of the three premier teams in the state would battle it out. Grandpa almost had the run of the stadium and as he walked from his seat to the PRESS BOX during the game he let people know that he too had a stake in the game.  I am positive this was the very first and the last soccer game Dad ever saw.  He did not know the rules or the set up of the game but he did know two boys who were playing.  It was NO surprise that the game came down to a shoot out.  A shoot out is each team picks 5 players to shot.  At the end of the round of 5 which ever team makes the most shots wins.  Coach Lagos had John shoot first.  He pretty much knew John would make it and that would put pressure on the other team as SPA shot first and it meant Apple Valley, with their first shooter, would be playing make up.  He was right.  John made his shot and the shoot out was on.  SPA came out on top and the soccer team became the very first SPA state champion team from the school. Here you see a proud Grandpa with his two boys after the game as there was a gathering at the school.  I do not need to add this but I will.  Dad had his favorites and my children were not in that category.  It was and will always be a mystery to me as to why that was.  I am not saying that there is any magic in a name BUT after me and my siblings the Lee name in our family is carried on only with John, Travis and Aaron.  Does it reflect on me, not sure.  I also have no idea as to why Dad came down for the game.  It was so out of character for him but it turned out to be a fun time for him and I am sure all his friends heard about it more than once!

I started this yesterday so will complete it now, Saturday.  It is going to be a quiet weekend as we prepare for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Terry and I did took care of a couple of things yesterday.  We stopped in at a new grocery store, Oaks-farm to table store.  It was a mad house to put it mildly.  It is a huge store and pretty much has what ever you would like.  You can stop and have lunch, you can have a drink--coffee or stronger- and then you can buy ANY food you may desire.  Now the prices were pretty high but it certainly is a "one stop and shop" place.  One could guess that parking spaces were few and far between so one drove around until you saw someone leaving and then you stopped, put your blinker on and waited.  We were lucky enough to find a spot quickly, well not sure I would say LUCKY!  We did find a small jar of English Mustard which we had been looking for in other stores with no success.

I have come to the conclusion that our mail is crazy.  Here we are a very few days before Christmas and the cards have been slow in coming.  Now one can think that we are "out of favor" with people but I am not sure about that.  Well up until Wednesday we had gotten maybe 3 or 4 cards and really up to then there was a day with NO mail.  Thursday came and again NO mail.  Yesterday we opened the mailbox and there is a stack of cards HIGH--ten in all.  Go figure but I think our short armed mail lady skips some days to get home early--maybe.  I say short armed because if we have a card to be mailed we put the flag up.  Most of the time, after the mail has come, the flag is at a 60 degree angle so I have come to believe she has s short arm and can only push the flag a tiny bit.  Sounds kind of reasonable, right?  Anyway the cards made me kind of feel loved again!

I think things are good for today.  There is Christmas music playing on the TV, the Christmas cards are on the dining room table, the FP was delicious this morning and time to get some things done in the house.

A cool start to a cool day

I am pretty sure the writing is 1956.  There were many family pictures but this is one of the best in terms of quality.  Let's see, 1956 meant that for the year Helen-6, Carmen-9, Dave-12, Joan-14, Janet-18 and Ronald-20.  Mom and Dad would be 47 that year.  It is one of the few pictures I have of Ronald without a short hair cut. It looks like white shirts were in with the guys.  How about those fancy pants that Dave and I have on.  It looks like the picture was taken east of the house as I think the trees in the background are the trees between the house and the road.

Kind of a cool day.  As I write it is 53 and it looks like it may not reach 70.  I have tennis in an hour and I am guessing it may take some time to feel warm on the court.

Terry and I had a meeting yesterday with a tax gal.  Terry needs to take care of things with the sale of her  home in September.  Well guess what, we were supposed to meet Stephanie and she was in Michigan yesterday!  The company had us meeting with another person for other reasons!  That may be the second or third time that has happened.   Regardless the outcome was GOOD.  The guy in the office got Stephanie on the phone and Terry spent about 15 minutes with her.  The news was GREAT news so that pretty much smoothed over the mix up with the meeting.  Those kind of situations are so frustrating but then when one looks at the BIG picture they are not so important.

I sometimes look at Minnesota news on my phone.  Yesterday I looked at the sports page of the Tribune and there was a story of Doug Woog.  He was a big time hockey coach for many years and he died a couple of days ago.  I was surprised to see that and then I thought maybe he was older than I had thought.  As I read on it stated that he had suffered for a few years and he died at the age of 75-YIKES.  I am almost 73 now so I need to forget that and look at guys like Jack Kegaly here in Naples who is still playing a good tennis game at the age of 85!

BACK TO MY TOOL BOXES

I spent several hours in the wood shop and finally turned the lights out and headed home well past midnight.  I cut new ends for the three boxes and then got out the wood burning tool.  I was able to finish putting names on the front boards and also the handles went on the tops.  I promised myself that I would return the next day, Saturday, to glue up the final box.  It would then be a matter of putting a finish on in the afternoon, one more coat of finish on Sunday afternoon and presto, the boys would have their Christmas presents on the 24th.  To this day I am not sure what I was thinking with the tool boxes.  Here I have boys who are 6, 4 and 2 and I think they will be thrilled with a wooden box to put tools in!  Well I could tell you a bit about HOW those boxes were used as they got older AND I promise they were not used much for tools.  BUT they were used and I think, to this day, they may still have them.  I think Aaron's may have gone lost when they moved but I am not sure about that.  Another story for another day is about the night stands that were built the next year.  That was a much bigger project but I do know that to this day they are used.  BUT if you have a night stand that is constructed out of 3/4" oak it should stand the test of time, right?

It is almost time to get ready for the court but I do not want to go too early as one does not want to sit out in 55 degree temps and watch others play.

Each morning now I spend some time reflecting on "Christmas's of the past".  I would like to put a splash of Irish Cream in the FP but with tennis each morning that is not a good idea.  It is fun to think back at what "was" and I am thankful for the great memories.  However I try to be careful to NOT take too much time doing it as I am not yet ready to "enjoy the past" rather than "enjoy the present"  So some is good but not too much.  One of the things that is interesting is how much Mom and Dad enjoyed giving gifts when they could afford it.

I went back to my breakfast kind of meal this morning.  I have been kind of lazy with those darn frozen things but this morning I cut pieces of ham, several olives and mixed them into two scrambled eggs.  It was topped off with salsa sauce and was thoroughly enjoyed as I scanned the WSJ.  The FP lasted through the paper and most of this blog.

One week from today is Christmas Day!!!

Wow, the weather turned a bit today.  As I played tennis at 9:00 today it was 69 and that is the high for the day.  I turned the pool heater off until Friday.  NO complaints, just a bit of adjustment as Naples is usually warmer.

We continue to see 2019 slip away so we had better be ready for 2020.  For some reason 2020 looks like it is so so much more advanced than 2019.  I may be telling my age but it does seem just a short time ago that many many of us were concerned that going from 1999 to 2000 would raise a host of problems with many things--it never came to pass.  BUT here we are twenty years later, perhaps some gray and thinning hair, maybe (just maybe) a few extra pounds around the middle and yes, "for sure" a few more aches and pains.  BUT hopefully more happy memories and more friends and family to share life with.  See, all is not lost!

I drove to the post office this morning which opens at 8:00.  I walked in at 8:03 and stepped right up to the counter.  As I left a few minutes later there were 5 people in line.  You have heard the saying, "The early bird gets the worm" well it played out today!

I played a bit of tennis strategy today.  There is one guy who tends to schedule me in weekly and the play is way below what I would like.  So last Monday I beat him to the punch and was up early to schedule matches with guys I can play with on a level playing field.  Well I was short a player today as someone had a Dr. appt so I asked this guy to play.  Three of us playing at least a 3.0 level and I asked him to fill in.  I was hoping he could see the writing on the wall and I think it was there.  I would say, he and I played as partners, he made 80+% of our errors.  Maybe he got the message.  MAYBE!!!

Terry and I have a 1:00 appt and then Terry needs to take care of a stop so we should be out and about for a couple of hours at least.

I only have one more Christmas present to get.  We currently have only Travis left to get for.  I actually was able to get a small present for Terry a few days ago.  I mean, at the age of 72 what does one NEED.  But a small token of my love for her will be fine.  I could write a LONG blog of Christmas in the past of presents and not so much in the line of presents.  Maybe an idea for sometime towards the end of the week!

Enough for today.  The FP was the Kona kind and GREAT!  WAIT

Friday, December 20, 1975

I left my classroom of 9 fifth graders and headed home from the School for the Deaf about 4:30.  I knew the boys, ages 6, 4 and 2 would be waiting at the door for Daddy.  I had not spent enough time with them as school had been busy busy and I had also been spending time making Christmas presents for the boys.  I had decided to make tool boxes for them and it had taken me longer than I had thought.  Nothing fancy, just a 3/4 pine box with a handle and a lock.  EVERY little boy and girl need a box with a lock, right?  I had my evening planned out.  I would get home, spend some time with the boys and help get them to bed.  Then I would drive back to the school where I had a key to the wood shop.  I had planed down all the pieces of wood to 3/4 on Thursday and I had the pieces ready to glue together.  If I could help get the boys down in a decent time I could get back to school and put the tool boxes together by 11:00 or so. Darn, those busy and active boys thought they were not tired.  About bed time they decided that it was a good idea to slide down the steps from their bedroom to the living room.  The steps were carpeted and it was a good slide.  As usual I did not have the heart to come down strong and say, "enough is enough"!  So after many laughs and several trips down the stairs they finally settled down and were in bed by 8:30---late!  Off to school I hurried at 8:45 with the idea that I could now get the tool boxes glued up by midnight.  In those days midnight was not a bad hour--today a different story!  I unlocked the front door to the industrial building and then the wood shop.  As I approached my pieces of wood my jaw dropped, almost to the floor.  All 6 pieces of 3/4 pine that were to be the ends of the toolboxes were cupped as if you could use them for a cereal bowl!  There was no way I could use those pieces of wood now.  It took me a bit to recalculate my schedule for the completion of the tool boxes.  After about 15 minutes I determined that I now needed to recut new boards and go forward in a speedy manner as Christmas Eve was not far off.  In another episode I will finish my story!

Back in Naples

Proud Grandma with her 4 Archbold grand children.  Sam, on the left, is a semester away from his masters degree.  Josh, second from the left is in the middle of his sophomore year in college.  Tori, middle, earned her degree Saturday and has plans to continue her education.  Zach, by Terry, starts his second advanced degree in January.  

We had a quick trip to take in Tori's graduation.  We drove 600 miles on Friday and arrived in Peachtree City GA at 4:15.  Traveled 100 miles north for the Saturday graduation and then returned to Peachtree City.  Got in the car at 7:48 yesterday and arrived home at 4:15 after 600 miles with ONE stop!  Travel conditions were better yesterday.  To compare Friday and Sunday travel.  On Sunday we started out 37 minutes later than Friday yet arrived, to the minute, the same time as we arrived Friday.  Enough driving for a while!

Hard to believe that we are now half through December.  Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are just around the corner.  

Terry and I did NOT enjoy the GA weather.  I know, we are spoiled with Naples winters but just the same it was COLD Saturday.  To start the day the temp was 38.  After the ceremony we were outside a bit and I think the temp was maybe 50 or so BUT the wind was biting and went right through a person.  As we drove home yesterday I would glance at the temp gauge in the car at times and we kind of counted up up as we went south.  I think it was around 80 or so by the time we arrived home.

To put families in perspective Terry's oldest grandchild is 25 with 2+ college degrees while my oldest is a sophomore in high school.  By the way Terry and I are the same age.  She wins the grandchild comparison in age but I take the medal with #s 14-6.  Terry also has a great grandchild and I am FAR from that!

Terry and I are winning the Christmas card competition.  We have sent out 37 and gotten 4.  Maybe it means we are losing, not sure!

I have tennis at 7:30 this morning.  I have not been on the court for 3 days so I will see how rusty I am.  Myself, two guys on my team and one guy who plays above us will battle.  Tom R, who is too good to be on my team, plays with us today and he is just a super guy.  It should be fun.

Enough, I had an English Muffin with egg, cheese and ham so with my FP almost gone I am ready to get dressed and hit the courts.

Amen

I do not like to use this picture of our barn.  Why?  Well it does NOT show how we used the barn when we were growing up.  Where the gas tank is, that is where we pulled the hay rack so that we could toss hay into the hay room.  The large hole that Dad cut.  What the heck.  I am sure he used it for his garage which we never had when we were home.  Regardless there is a reason I use this picture today.  It is not infrequently that people say something like this when they are talking about a tennis player. "He was a handball player and that is why he has great reflexes".  "He was a fireman in his professional life and they had a racquetball court in the station.  He played often and that is why he has great instincts in tennis"  Well I will have nobody talking about me like that but IF (I know it is a HUGE IF) anyone were to ask where Carmen got his playing instincts this might be the answer.  THE BARN!  I would spend many many hours in the summer throwing the rubber like baseball against the south side of the barn.  I know I have written about it in the past but..  I often would put the scraper/loader on the back of the Ford tractor and then drive back and forth in the barnyard on the south side of the barn.  When all was level with no cow pies I would put a piece of rotted plywood about 30 feet from the south wall and game was on.  As the ball bounced off of the barn wall I would jump, go to my right, go to my left and scoop up the ball as if I were a good player.  With that kind of great training I say that prepared me for attacking the tennis ball with gusto and it may have been every good as a racquetball court, right???

That takes me into what happened on the tennis court yesterday.  My team won 2 of 3 courts so we won the match BUT.  Maybe I should say one of the courts was won on forfeit.  Two of their guys showed up at 2:00 for a 1:30 match.  They ended up playing but it had to be a forfeit.  My court #2 won a fun match BUT Karl and I on court #1 came up short.  The difference in our match was when they had a "put away shot" they did a great job.  When we (mostly I) had a put away shot my return was timid and they hit it back.  I talked to our two pros after the match (they watched) and came away with two things that I need to change.  One is I need to have the mentality of putting it away and the other is I need better footwork in order to get my body in position for the put away shot.  I can add that our opponents were good but really I felt we could have won.  The score was 2-6 and      3-6.  In the second set we were tied at 3-3 and went to several deuces before they won the point.  That was the turning point.  I should say that they were a fun team to play.  The captain, who showed up late, is from Eagan Minnesota and his sons played tennis at St. Paul Academy where the boys went to school.  His oldest graduated a year ahead of John.  That figures as he is 80 and I might add a good tennis player.

Terry and I have some things to do today for our departure tomorrow.  Terry wants to bring some oranges from our orange tree so I will pick them today.  I would say we have about 50 or so great looking oranges on the tree.  Terry has some things she wants to bring to Kim and of course we have Tori's blanket that we can not forget.  We want to get out tomorrow no later than 8:00 but before that would be nice.  It is 600 miles so about an 8 1/2-9 hour trip.  

I titled my blog today amen.  Meaning yesterday was the end of the fall tennis league.  It will be nice to have a month break which gives me some time to get one or two more players for the team.  IF we can not add players it will be a long winter.

Everyone should know that Gerrit Cole signed his baseball contract with the Yankees yesterday.  IF he pitches in the same number of games next year and throws the same number of pitches as he did last summer he will get $10,700 for EACH pitch he throws!!!!!  If he goes to a full count on the first batter he will have earned more than the average teacher salary before the second batter comes to bat.  A far far cry from throwing the ball against the barn wall in 1959!  Keep in mind that a pitcher usually throws 80-95 pitches each game!

Enough for this morning.  I play tennis at 10:30 and am short one player.  I need to go to the courts early to see if I can get another player for my foursome.  FP is gone and it kind of helped me forget the loss on the court yesterday.

I discovered something!

This is an interesting picture for several reasons.  1956 was the last year of Wood Lake School.  I was just finishing 3rd grade, Dave 6th grade and Joan 8th grade.  It was taken on May 13.  Helen would not be going to country school as she was a first grader that fall in Cayuga.  Ronald was 19 and in school in Ellendale.  Janet was 17 so I am guessing she was a junior in Lidgerwood but I am not sure about that.  The REAL interesting thing in this picture is one can see the wind charger on the house in the background.  That was blown down while we were yet in school at Wood Lake which means that the storm came sometime between May 13th and May 25th of 1956.  That storm blew the garage down that stood northeast of the house.  Oh my poor Joan, is she going to choke!  I would guess we were dressed for church.  That darn little Helen, she sure is cute!  Not sure why everyone, except me, has on a coat and there I am in short sleeves.  Dave has his hair combed so nicely and my stiff bristle hair is just one mop.  A fun picture.  I am wondering how many of the articles of clothing we have on are compliments of Aunt Ragna who sent boxes of clothes from California!  I am thankful that I did not have to wear bib overalls still.  OH, I think we are on our way to church so no dice.

Last of the fall tennis matches at home today.  It has been fun but it will be nice to have a month break.  Sometimes I get a bit tired of scheduling the pairings, getting drivers for away matches, if we are at home making sure we have tennis balls (Tennis balls have the numbers 1,2,3,4 on and I make sure balls with #1 on are on #1 court etc.), have the drinks and the treats.  OK, not a lot of work but at times a person just would like to let it go!  Again I am short 2 good players so I will have players playing up perhaps on a court better than they should be on.  Karl and I will be on court #1.  Karl is more comfortable on court #2 but we will see how things play out.  

Not a lot more to say.  It will not take much time but Terry and I may gather things together today for our trip on Friday.  I think a change of clothes for the graduation is all I need.  I wonder if I can shave before we leave on Friday and then not shave Saturday AM?  I may consult Terry on that one.  Graduations, weddings, funerals etc have never been my cup of tea.  Even going through the high school and college graduations of my kids my enjoyment was difficult to see.  I actually got myself in some trouble at more than one wedding but that is long past.  I think I have changed and for the better too.  SO I will enjoy Saturday and take in the ceremony with a genuine smile.  For Terry this is the third grandchild to graduate from college and they all have done so with flying colors.  Her fourth grandchild in the Archbold family is finishing his second year in college.  By the time he finishes in 2021 there will be multiple advanced degrees in the family.  It is great to see so much intelligence and focus in our young generation.  Terry will also have a HS graduation next year in the Twin Cities as her youngest, Thomas, will graduate.  Does that mean we are getting to be the older generation?  Here I am with 14 grandchildren and the oldest is yet TWO years away from HS graduation.  The youngest, may graduate from HS when I am 90, yikes!!!

Enough as the FP is gone and I took the easy way out for breakfast so I may wander over to the courts for a short time to see who is playing.  

A perfect weather day

Not a whole lot to say today.  I will be playing tennis at 10:30, tomorrow at 7:30 and then Wednesday is our last league match of the fall.  It has been a fun fall season.  Not all that great in terms of wins but I do think it has been good for the team.

Terry and I will hit the road early Friday on our way to Peachtree City GA.  On Saturday we will drive north to Dahlonega where Tori will graduate with her 4 year degree.  We will travel back to Peachtree City on Saturday, stay over night and then hit the road for 600 miles back to Naples on Sunday.  A lot of driving for 3 days but it should be fun.

Terry and I finished our Christmas cards yesterday and they got dropped off in the mail at the post office.  The printing, folding, stamping and addressing did not take that long.  Our card, a make it yourself edition, is not fancy at all but does do what we want.  We want everyone to know that Jesus is the reason for the season AND catch up a tiny bit on our 2019.  Not sure what my next project will be.  With the sibling calendar finished, the weekly 2020 book for Terry and I completed and the cards in the mail I just may lie down for a long winter nap!

Oh I may have to stop at Costco for a bottle of Irish Cream that goes in the coffee!  December is a time for remembering, looking back, looking forward and giving thanks for all that God has given me.  Of course it is also a time to remember Ronald, Janet, Mom, Dad, Gail and others.  Whenever I do that I realize how blessed I am today.  A great family, a wonderful wife and nice places to rest my head.  However I do think, at times, would I be as thankful IF my life wasn't so good?  I think and hope that I would but really am not sure.

No picture today and I am about finished.  My FP is down to the last drop.  I poured it into my Yeti cup and it stayed hot for a long time.

Happy birthday John--you are making me feel old!

I remember my 50th birthday.  For some strange reason the boys wanted to take me bowling.  We did that and had fun.  When we were finished we went to a church hall instead of going home and there was a big surprise birthday party for me that Gail had set up.  NOW here we are 22 years later and I have a son who is 50.  Fifty years and 1 day ago I took Gail to the Devils Lake Hospital.  In those days the dad could not be in the delivery room but I spent many hours in the labor room.  Finally, after a LONG time, I was ushered out and some time later John arrived.  He delighted his mother with his red hair and his dad with his manly features (sorry I did not know how to say that).  He became the delight of the girls in my classroom at the school for the deaf that spring.  Gail could not take John out without Cheryl, Deanna and others wanting to pull him in the red wagon.  Today I sit here and am so thankful for a son who does so much.  With his physical being and his mental being he serves others so well and takes care of his family in a wonderful way.  Happy 50th John and may you continue to make the world a better place.  Love, Dad and Terry

We have many family pictures.  This is one of my favorites.  It looks like we are dressed up for some special event like Easter or Christmas.  I am guessing it was in 1955.  IF I am correct Helen would be 5, me 8, Dave 11, Joan 13, Janet 17 and Ronald 19.  Mom and Dad would be 44 and the beloved deer head would be maybe 5!!!

I had a fun day on the tennis courts yesterday.  I played with guys that are supposed to be a notch above me and I held my own.  My partner and I lost a set and won a set.  It is always fun to play UP.

Terry and I did a little shopping yesterday.  Went to Luckys market, Costco and the grocery store.  Then in mid to late afternoon we turned on the TV to a show we have been watching.  It is called "The Survivor".  It has been a fun show to watch BUT it is LONG and yesterday it went off track a bit.  Up to then it seemed that it could have been somewhat real but yesterday NO WAY.  Anyway I think we still have several episodes left.  

I intend to get Christmas envelopes addressed and stamped today.  Maybe get them in the mail by tomorrow.  

No tennis today and I think I need some time off.  My FP is finished and I am done.

A fun picture from way way back.  While still in Devils Lake the boys took in a sports day at the park.  Don't be too impressed with all the ribbons as I think they were handed out a LOT.  However the boys were so proud and had a lot of fun.  Of course in my mind they could have taken the Ramsey out of the shirt and just left the SUPER and of course that thought would be true of the 4 kids after Cynthia came along.

Tennis at 9 this morning with 3 guys who are very good players.  It is difficult to get into groups who play together and are at my level or higher.  

We went to the office for Terry's blood work yesterday for the second time at the noon hour.  There was ONE person there.  A guy came in, while Terry was back with the nurse, and looking around said what happened here.  He said he had never seen the place with nobody waiting.  He waved around the many chairs and said most of the time they are full.  We did get out in a short time.  I guess the nurse said IF we had stopped at 7 AM when there was a line of maybe 10 people we still would not have had to wait a long time as they have 5 nurses taking blood so things go fast.

I think Terry and I will go to Costco today.  I would like to take that propane tank back that was never used because we purchased our pellet burning grill this fall.

As I write this morning the temp is 48, a bit chilly for here.  I have NO complaints as the cool weather is fine with me.  For Terry, she will need the furnace on for a bit this morning.  If we are sitting watching TV and I am very comfortable her feet can be freezing.  

What the heck, I once again caved into the modern world and put a frozen breakfast sandwich in the microwave this morning.  It is fast, it is kind of good and there are no dishes but really one should not eat that kind of breakfast more than once in a blue moon.  Well at 7:00 AM I would guess there is no blue moon around but I think I get my opinion across.

We did receive our first christmas card yesterday.  It was from a high school friend and we called it as it is always the first card we get for Christmas.  I need to print out cards and we should get ours out in a day or two.  The card we got was a bit more professional than ours but.

I am almost finished with the FP so it is over and out for today. 

A disappointing tennis day but life goes on

Our match yesterday was a loss to the tune of 0-3.  Actually the scores were not all that bad but still a loss is a loss.  It was disappointing.  One of the reasons is I do need at least one more quality player.  Yesterday I was missing one of my better players and I had to bring up a 2.5 player for court 3.  That also means that often other players have to move up above where they should be playing or they have to play with a partner who is less skilled than them.  Anyway that is life.  I THINK it was our first fall match that got me down somewhat.  I know, it is only a game and in the long run of life it is but a tiny bump in the road that will soon (I hope) be forgotten.

Terry needs blood work so we arrived at the place at 6:55  this morning.  It  opens up at 7.  There was a line of about 10 people--we turned around and drove home.  We will probably go over later this morning as we THINK it will be less busy then.  Of course we will see.

Tennis at 9:00 this morning.  I think it may still be chilly at that time.  As we got in the car this morning at 6 :45 there was a chill in the air to the tune of 53 or so.  I know there may be people who read this and say they would PAY for temps like that today but.

Not much else to say today.  Yesterday I kind of expected our first Christmas card, my new drivers license and a replacement credit card--none showed up in the mailbox.  Instead there were three advertisements and a bill!  Guess my luck with the mail was about as good as on the tennis court!!!

We have our pool heater turned off for a while.  With temps this low it runs all day and maybe is kind of warm enough to use by mid afternoon.  I know, it should be fine to use without the heater but once a person gets spoiled you tend to remain that way.  I just filled my "End of the Alaska Highway" cup with FP so will sign off.

Our last away match of the fall

An interesting article in the WSJ.  Way way back in the fall of 1968 Gail and I were taking classes and doing work at the School for the Deaf in Devils Lake.  We had two classes each week and one was taught by the school superintendent Mr. Hayek.  At times he would get off subject and talk about the future he saw.  One of the things he talked about was in the future he said we would not see items in the supermarket marked with a price but rather the price would be scanned at checkout.  Has anyone seen that?  Another thing he said was at some time down the road we would not see cash.  Everything would be paid for by credit card or some other method.  At the time I did NOT have a credit card!  In this story it gives the example of a son working for his dad and getting $50 for the work.  When his dad offered the cash the son said he did not want it.  He wanted his dad to pay him with an ap on his phone!  Now Mr Hayek shared his idea some 51 years ago but it seems that he was not far off if at all.  I see many people paying at stores with their phone.  Not sure I want to do that but maybe it is the future NOW.

We have our last away match of the fall.  Next week is our final match and it is home.  Again I am short handed today.  I have two of my best players not here and a member of the 2.5 team playing on court 3.  We played Breckenridge once this fall and lost all 3 courts and I would not be surprised to see that again.  It would be nice if we could win 1 or 2 courts.  I do not know if other teams have the issue that I have which is people tending to leave for Thanksgiving and come back after Christmas.   Anyway, win or lose this fall has been an UP as far as team play.  I would say at least 3 of my players are playing at a level higher than last spring.  I took a half hour lesson this morning and I feel my level of skill is better than last year.  Not sure that will show up on the court today but we will see.  

Our weather is very nice for this time of the year.  I did not look at the temp this morning but I am guessing as I took my lesson at 8:30 it was upper 60s.  Kind of perfect for tennis.  

I think some of our oranges are almost ready for picking.  In the last years I have been here I have never seen so many oranges.  I am guessing there are 50+ on the tree.  

I was able to get off a few of our Christmas cards on Monday BUT it is interesting as we have not received one yet.  I am guessing one of two things.  Either the late Thanksgiving has affected getting out cards OR people just don't  like us any longer.  We will see what happens over the next few days! 

Here it is almost 10:00 AM and I have to decide what to do about eating.  With a 12:30 match it just is hard to know when or what to eat.  My FP is on its last sip so I am good there.  Maybe some protein about 11:00 is what I will do and then mix a powdered drink which will be drank about an hour before the match.  I am playing with a team mate who I played with last week and we did not play well so today will be interesting.

Enough for now.

Starting the first week of December 2019--2020 we are coming!

We are now ready.  The manger scene, the tiny tree, the Christmas cards, Advent wreath and more are ready for the occasion.  Each day draws us closer to His birthday.  As the next few weeks go by maybe we need to make some fudge, some cookies and lefsa(in my dreams only) and then Christmas will be a success in terms of social etc.  The most important part, JESUS, needs to be in our soul each day with a renewed vigor that will let friends and family know that Jesus is the reason for the season.

In my world of retirement our week looks kind of busy!  Twenty years ago if I had looked at a week like the one we start today I would say, "Wow, not much going on this week!"  In the FUN department I have tennis each day through Friday.  For the first time I am going to do boccie this afternoon.  I am subbing for someone.  I think it is with a bunch of old guys.  Not sure I will fit in but that may be only wishful thinking.  I will drive to the courts for my 9:00-10:30 morning match.  From there I will go to the post office to mail the 2020 calendars.  It will be nice to get them out of the house and to mark one thing off as finished.  I still could slap myself for having to make up for my lapse of memory in writing some of the notes but then it is what it is.

I need to start on a mini weight loss thing this week.  That darn turkey, dressing etc from last Thursday somehow found it's way on to this old body so start I did today.  Only one egg, only 1 1/2 pieces of bacon and then some ripe olives, a bit of cheddar cheese and a topping of salsa was on the breakfast table.  NO bread, only one egg and half the bacon should help a tiny bit.  If I can multiple that times 5 by the end of tennis on Friday I should be kind of back where I started last Wednesday.  Then it will be take it kind of slow but really there needs to be some more pounds taken off.  If I could just convince myself that you eat when you are hungry and not just because it tastes so good.  Actually when I look at pictures of myself when I was 1,2,3  and maybe up to first or second grade I say maybe God intended me to be a bit over weight!!!

FP is only half finished but it is now almost time to hit the courts so the remainder will be reheated about 10:15 or so.

December is here

Here we are Dave 14, Helen 8 and Carmen 11.  I have to say that Mom and Dad were good at making up signs and then setting the stage for holiday pictures.  I am sure Mom did the sign.  I have NO idea why we have two puppies and what we did with them.  I do not remember every having two dogs on the farm.  Those bowties--WOW.

Advent is here but I am not sure I am ready.  Terry and I did get the garage wreaths up and the Advent scene up.  We do not get a real tree but we do have a very small artificial one.  The Advent wreath is up as well.  Ready or not baby Jesus is on the way!

I think one reason it is hard to start the Christmas season at the right time is the darn stores start it in October.  

Terry and I took care of our Medicare for 2020.  We compared different plans and decided the advice we had heard was correct, Plan G needed to replace Plan F.  The coverage is about the same AND the premiums are going up a bit.  What is new, nothing I guess.  We also changed our drug plans but were on top of that a few weeks ago.  We do have very good health coverage and care so I guess I should not complain about the cost.  AND our health is good so that is a blessing.

It is evening and the FP was history about 9 hours ago.  Actually I experienced a miracle of sorts this morning.  I, as always, woke up a few times during the night BUT after looking at the time shortly after midnight the next time I woke it was 7:20.  The last time I got out of bed at 7:20, I can't remember.  Enough

Happy Birthday Leo

Happy birthday Leo.  You are a special guy.  We hope you have a great day!  Love, Grandpa Lee and Terry

A look back, decade by decade

Some of what I write today is "what could have been" but much is what happened!

Thanksgiving Day November 24, 1949

Of course I would not remember this as I was 2.  I am sure there were 5 kids home.  Dave was 5, Joan was 7, Janet had just turned 11 and Ronald was 13.  Helen was just a nice dress, a hair do that Bertie had done and oh a year away!

Thanksgiving Day November 26, 1959

I am now 11.  It is a festive day.  Everyone is home.  Ronald and Janet/John are home and there is a the first of many grandchildren, Esther.  Mom is so excited.  She made Ronald's favorite cookies, filled ones.  For me to have Ronald home is the best.  Mom made a double batch of lefsa and by the end of the day it is no more!

Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 1969

This is a split holiday.  We spend part of the day in Cayuga with Gail's parents and part with Mom and Dad on the farm.  The first LEE grandson is a little more than a week away but at the time we do not know if it will be a boy or girl.  Mom shed tears as we blessed the meal.  Of course she is thinking of Janet and Ronald.  NO filled cookies any more as Mom never made them after Ronald died.  The cookie part, I am not sad as I did not like them BUT on holidays there is always an empty feeling.

Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 1979

It is the third Thanksgiving we have spent in St. Paul.  It is just too hectic to drive up to North Dakota as the boys are now 10, 8 and 6.  Cynthia is yet to arrive next year and as of today we have NO idea that will happen.  We made lefsa in the morning to the delight of the kids.  The fire has been on since early morning but I need to split more wood for the evening.  We make calls to Mom and Dad and Chic and Marian.  They both say they wish we could be there.

Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 1989

It is the first Thanksgiving not all of us have been home as John is off to college in California.  I have this feeling in my spirit that this is kind of the beginning of changes in our family.  The kids are now getting into adulthood and I am not sure I have appreciated the togetherness in the past.  I vow to be better at living in the moment.

Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1999

Gail's dad and my parents are no longer with us.  Thanksgiving has changed a lot.  It seems like the kids are all grown but we are so happy to have all of them home.  I maybe should not say that as the lefsa goes way too fast!  We have some neighbors over for the afternoon and the house is busy with the fire place glowing, the card table has a puzzle half put together and the dining room table is covered with cards and games.  Gail and I are exhausted as the paper this morning was just so big and we have too many customers.  We have been up since 3:30 and bedtime comes way before the kids are tired.

Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving is a pretty solemn affair as Gail's death is fresh in every one's mind.  The kids are home and we do have the big meal but NO lefsa as the kids are not ready to take it on and I certainly can not do it.  The highlight of the day is the grandchildren.  Henry, Liam, Leo, Faustina, Audrey and Jude, 3 months old are now part of the clan.  The kids do not stay late and after kind of cleaning up the downstairs I go to bed early.

Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 2019

Terry and I spend a quiet day.  The turkey came out of the grill about 3:00 and we had a nice meal with a LOT of leftover turkey!  It was a peaceful day and we enjoyed each other's company.  In reflecting on it I see twilight!  Of course I am not saying I will not enjoy many more Thanksgiving Days but as I reflect back there is more to reflect on then to look forward to and I do not say that in any kind of sad way.  It just is what it is.  I have found that one of the most important things in life is to take today for what it is and make the most of it.  The past is past and who knows what will happen tomorrow so make the most of today.

It seems that each year there are people who do not return to Naples because of age and often people we know pass on.  When we arrived here I mentioned that a gal who played and was the captain of a team died this fall.  Today I asked if anyone knew if Michael Guglielmo was gong to be able to play tennis as I heard he was sick this summer.  I had him signed up for my team this winter.  One of the guys I was playing with said he died October 31.  I had played with him in May and he was playing well.  It certainly gets one to thinking.  

One could be sure there is NO FP now as it is after 10:00 PM.