PONDERING

I have spent the last couple of hours wondering what I ought to do. One of my best friends announced his retirement for Jan. 2, 2009 last Monday. That is only little over a month away. He is a year older than me but we have the same length of service. We have worked together for a lot of years (13 years--nearly 1/3 of our careers).

I guess through all of that I have determined that retirement would give me twice as much time to do the things I want to do and about half the money to do them with.

HMMMM-still pondering.

WHAT I LEARNED YESTERDAY

Yesterday Inklings had a migrane and was pretty damn sick all day. I got to do lunch for those that were still here---all 12 of us---

It was a shock---we don't have a pan big enough to cook enough packages of Top Ramen at one time to give everyone a bowl of soup. It took three separate times to cook enough soup so everyone got some. I learned that it takes a lot of food to feed this many folks.

I also learned that nobody complained about the food because Grandpa was cooking it. If there would have been complaints they wouldn't have had (got) to eat any of it. I would have seen to that.

SHE'S TUFF

We had Inklings mother and father here for Thanksgiving day. Her mother had a breast removed a couple of weeks ago because of cancer. Her dad can't drive long distances or at speeds above 40 so she drove over and back. It made me hurt for her just thinking about the drive but she never complained one bit.

I think she's a lot frailer than she wants anyone to know--BUT--She's Tuff Enuf.

GREAT QUOTE

One of my employees brought in the quote from Edna StVincent Millary that is now near the top of my blog. He said the quote reminded him of me and he couldn't wait to show it to me.

YUP---that is absolute fact.

ONE DOWN

TURKEY DAY IS HISTORY at our house and all that is left is to eat up the left-overs---yup---even though we had nearly a house full we still managed to have some of the good stuff carry over for dinner and for the day after meals. I really do like left over turkey, and turkey sandwiches on hard rolls, and stuffing with cold turkey.

Thanks for coming to all that did---and we missed you to all that didn't.

HAVE A NICE DAY!!!!!!

TWENTY THINGS

TWENTY THINGS I AM THANKFUL FOR TODAY:
1. That we live in a nice warm (or cool) house depending on the weather.
2. That we have electricity in the house that lets there be light in the dark.
3. That I don't have to work underground as a miner.
4. That there are those that work underground as miners so we can have the electricity I was thankful for above.
5. That I am pretty healthy for an old guy.
6. That we live in a free country.
7. That the people in the military are there to protect me and my way of life---even though they don't even know me.
8. That we can go through a change of power for our president without a military coup.
9. That the price of gas is dropping back to the figure that we have been living with for a long time.
10. That I have a job that I love.
11. Family
12. Friends old and new
13. Good roads
14. Good cars
15. Rain instead of snow
16. My education
17. Inklings
18. My life experiences - both good and bad
19. Good food
20. Being able to blog this
21. GOOGLE

TWO THINGS TO PONDER

How can 23 people in a house for Thanksgiving feel like the house is empty?

HERE IS HOW---we have seven kids (with four spouses) and 17 grandkids---four of the kids, one of the spouses, and fourteen of the grand kids will be here along with one set of their grand parents for dinner today. Along with me and Inklings that makes a total of 23---so why the empty feel?

We will have three kids, three of their spouses and three grandkids that won't be there. That makes a huge hole in the family and makes it feel like the house is empty even though it is overflowing.

Oh well we had them all last year for the first time in quite a while and even had Psychodoctor take an impromptu picture of our kids with Inklings and I. It turned out really good. After everyone left we thought we should have taken another one with all of our kids, their spouses and us.

Ain't it interesting how hind sight is allways 20/20 or better? Maybe we'll get to have all of us together again in the near future. In the meantime there is a huge hole in our house today.

TUFF ENUFF???

I made it out of the coal mine with no bumps, no bruises and no panic attacks so I'm tuff enuff---not tough enough to be an underground miner though. It was quite an experience and it made me very, very, very thankful that most every day I see the sun at least for a few minutes and that where I work is well lit and I don't have to have a headlamp except when on fires at night. Even then I can meander around and see where my feet are going and can see my hand in front of my face without the light.

I learned yesterday that 50% of the electricity in Utah is generated using coal from that mine. Pretty big number and makes you think how closely we are all tied to those TUFF miners that are extracting the coal. Give a little Thanks to them for your power this THANKSGIVING DAY. Have a good one.

NIGHT TERRORS

For the last three nights I have had night mares dealing with confined spaces---yeah ever since I got stuck under a shed trying to retrieve a cat when I was five or six I have had this terrible fear of tight spaces.

I have woke up in a sweat of terror several times each night due to dreams of being stuck in tight places. Today I am going underground into a mine on the District so I am hoping the night TERROR goes away after (if) I make it out.

VETERANS DAY

Tuesday was Veterans Day and a National holiday so I had the day off. I went down to check on the horses and one of my employees was feeding them. I stayed to visit and Inklings came home. When we were finished feeding the horses we went for a coke and a fairly long visit.

We talked a lot about what Veterans day was all about and how thankful we were that World War II was fought across the Ocean. We talked about all of the veterans of that war saw and sufferred. Where I grew up we had several WWII vets that drank themselves to death and never---no---not once talked about all of the horrible things they witnessed.

Today we have another war being fought across the ocean and we should be thankful for the service men and women that are protecting us again. Yes US--Not the Iraqi's.

I came home and put our flag out for the world to see that I do support our troops and am thankful for their protection.

VIET NAM MEMORIAL

I have been thinking about this blog since Veterans Day and decided I needed to share it with you.

I was in West Virginia on a wildland fire a few years ago. The close out for the fire was scheduled at a motel in Washington D.C. so we could finish up the close out and fly home easily. We generally have about a half day to see some things following a fire so we went to the Mall near the Capitol.

I loved the Lincoln Memorial and we took the team picture with all of us on the steps. Following the team picture we were given instructions that we had two hours to look around and then we were to be back at the Lincoln Memorial to catch the bus to the motel.

I had a very good high school friend who was killed in action in Viet Nam so I dedided I would go to the wall and find his name. Many people told me that visiting the wall was a religious experience for most people that went there. So here's the story:

I went to the wall and there are books of names giving the location of all who died by date and a location of their name on one of the blocks of granite by number and the row on which the name is carved into the coal black granite. When I started looking at the book there were just over 100 people at the wall and the entire next graduating class from Anapolis, who were there to see peoples reactions to the memorial.

As I left the book there were no people (zero) on the walkway to the wall and the entire graduating class from Anapolis was no longer there. I walked to the wall and found my friends name. I sat down at the wall and got a piece of paper out and a pencil and rubbed a copy of his name from the monument to take home with me. When I finished I looked up and the entire Anapolis class was on the overlook deck looking down at me. There were still no people on the sidewalks in the memorial.

I started to walk out and one of my friends met me. He asked me what I had done to run all of the people out of there. I told him I hadn't done anything---it just turned out that way---he laughed and said "I don't think so---you had to have done something. People don't just abandon the wall like that."

We walked perhaps 100 more feet and the memorial was full again. So I leave it with you with a question. What happened that day in the Viet Nam Memorial? I will tell you that I was reunited with my friend for about five minutes. It was more than a religious experience and this is the first I have shared it---if you are ever in D.C. stop in at this memorial. It is a sad remembrance of all that were lost but there is more to the granite wall than anyone knows. You see pictures of people touching the wall with a soldier inside the granite touching their hand. I assure you that it is that close.

Hope this leaves you thankful for all those that fought for our freedom and especially for those that died. Even those in the thankless Viet Nam War.

I wish I could go back and do it again but if I ever do I would much rather visit the World War II exhibit which was not there at the time and which recognizes a whole generation that gave everything to assure we remained free---and not only us but England, France and the rest of the free world---GOD BLESS YOU!!!!

AND THE LOSERS ARE

Here are photos of the winning band---not really---but at least we were good sports. The singer is my Forest Supervisor and he's also the left one on the apple bobbing in chocolate pudding---Native Minnow you'd love this one---I did it a couple of years ago and it ain't all bad.

I VOTED

Today is one of the most important days in American History---always---it is the day we get to vote for who will represent us in our government for the next 4 years for president and 2 years for house of representatives and 6 years for senate--if they are up for election this go round. If you voted you can bitch for the entire four years---if you didn't please keep your mouth shut.

No matter who gets elected or what happens the rest of today---this is the DAY that sets apart from the rest of the world---we are so lucky to live in this great country---we are so lucky for our military heroes and also for those that died to keep us free.

THANK GOD FOR THIS BLESSING.