Monday Morning February 29th(leap Year) 2016

Well If your born today you won't have another official birthdate until 2020, Yikes!!! Well Sunday was an awesome day of worship and renewing old friendships. The weather was splendid after a chilly start and temps reached the low 70's with NO humidity. These are the days we most love about Florida in the wintertime.

The day started with us actually hugging those flannel sheets until nearly 7 o'clock for a change. We had decided we were attending the evening service with our small group; but Nancy and I changed our minds and attended the last morning service as well. We just like church on Sunday morning and at one time we always attended evening church as well when the kids were small. Howard and Jo who are Patrick and Kathryn family had flown in for a few days and they all wanted to attend church service in the evening so they could rest after an all day flight from out west, so we decided to attend with them. We are even going back this evening as an Uganda group called SOZO are performing at 7 o'clock. We heard them in both services and they are a very talented. We also want to support their efforts as they bring the word of GOD to their area in Uganda, Africa.

Well the last morning service at Bridgepoint wasn't quite as packed as the 10 o'clock but the message was the same throughout the day as pastor Tim spoke on Proverbs and success. He is an amazing speaker and right to the point. We throughly love to hear his messages and the gathering is filled with all types of folks from the millennials to lots of "blue hairs" which I guess I fit in that last category. We are hoping to reach 7 thousand folks for this Easter service and are doing a unique way of inviting folks to the service. We are leaving plastic Easter eggs with service times about our church in various places we go to through out the work week. After the service last night we all stopped at the Village Inn for a evening meal or breakfast as we hadn't eaten since 1PM. We left an egg on the table for the waitress who was very sweet along with a good tip.

Well that was about it for the day as we have a busy week planned with the SOZO concert on Monday night and Nancy now is taking her mom, GG to a concert on Tuesday night since her sister backed out at the last minute. Wednesday night we are eating at the Tracy's with their out of town family from Tucson, Arizona and on Friday we are heading to the Tampa Bay Downs to watch the ponies run at the race track. We try to get in at least one visit during the year as the horses are awesome to watch and we donate a few bucks to their upkeep. We usually have such a good time yelling for the horses we choose on a whim.

The Lightning Hockey team has won 6 games in a row and are looking good to make the playoffs this year if they keep up this great play. We are excited for them as they are a young team. Baseball is also starting this month with spring training for many teams which are in Florida because of the weather. We are hopeful for our Rays. Well that was about it for the day, LATER Here are a couple of the newest pictures of Sam and Gabe on Saturday. I'm at a loss as to why only these pictures Nancy put in our file. Anyhow my two grandsons are pals with their attention clued to the Ipad. Sam turns 6 on the 3rd of March. He is on the right in the photo.

Sunday Morning--last Sunday in February

Well Saturday was such a busy day with lots of grand kiddo interaction, lots of fun and of course lots of eatin'. It was a chilly day to start with and even though the sunshine was bright the wind chill was evident through out the day. We actually stayed under the flannel sheets until nearly 7 as the house had chilled down to 68 over night. I fired up the heat and soon warmed the house up to a balmy 72 degrees.

After rolling out to start the day we did our morning cups of coffee for Nancy and hot green tea with a couple shakes of the spice turmeric in mine. I'm developing a taste for this spice and use it everyday in my morning cup of tea. I sure hope it does what everyone is proclaiming with easying the pain in your joints. After our morning routines with a few quiet moment to honor and humble myself before my Creator I prepared a couple soft boiled eggs for breakfast then headed out to hand water the gardens. The wind or breeze has been almost constant the past several days which really dries out this sandy soil causing me to at least hit the new seedlings a couple times a day with some well water. The cucumber seedlings are putting on new leaves despite the chilly days and the lettuces love this weather with cool nights and bright sunshine days as well as does the sugar peas.

Well we were originally scheduled to watch Eliza Faye while Sam's birthday party was going on at the Treasure Island Fun Center. Tyler decided after Eliza heard about the party from Ava and Sam that she wanted to go to the party as well; so we decided to join them and help Amy with watching her there. Well she had a blast and all of the other party kids were so sweet to her. One little girl had her by the hand several times dragging her along to various rides and games. We had a fun time as well as we raced each other in these cars with the video screens that make you feel as if your in a real Nascar vehicle. We started the party at 11 Am and it continued until 1 PM with lots of tokens, bracelets which allowed you to unlimited rides for the kiddos, pizza and of course Amy had made lots of cupcakes. The kiddos cashed in their tickets they had won while playing games for prizes and trinkets which you usually find at 5 and dime stores. They all had a great time and by 1PM I was ready for a nap.

Thankfully Amy and Tyler took Annsley and Gabe with them to their house to play for the next 3 hours where they had a great time playing outside with each other. We all had to be at the Botbyl's house at 4PM for a surprise 60th birthday party for Carol. There were lots of neighbors as well as their family and all of ours who really surprised her. Dan and his kids planned this and he had the food cantered from Sonny's barbecue which is always very good. She was surprised as Danielle had taken her shopping for most of the afternoon and folks all left their cars parked away from the house. The kiddos were very playful with each other as their grand kiddos were there.

Well we headed out some where close to 7'ish as it had been a full day and Bobby wanted his kiddos bathed in their sleeping clothes before the hour or so trip to Tampa. Amy and her gang left as well at the same time. It wasn't long after they all left that I too needed to hit the showers and snuggle in the warm flannel sheets. It was lights out for me close to 10'ish, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was a busy day that started with a before 6 ish  roll out for me and then my morning routines. I drove to the Rec. and did my hour and half workout on the pickle ball court and left with a wet shirt. I had to make a quick stop at the library before heading home to change clothes and get ready for my 10:30 eye appointment at the VA. After that I made a stop at Wal-mart as its located across from the Bay Pines VA hospital for a couple of goodies then came home for lunch with our usual lunch crowd.

The eye exam revealed I have the start of some macular degeneration as well as close to the marker for glaucoma. The doctor wants to keep a check on that pressure so I'm back in the month of May for another check. At this time neither are at the stage where any further medical procedures are necessary except for additional vitamins and supplements especially for the eyes. I'm a big kale eater and grow it all year round which has the highest concentration of lutein of any plant as well as carrots which has great influence on eye health as well. The doctor mentioned to keep eating my home grown leafy green veggies. He said my eye sight was very good despite the start of these two maladies associated with my eyes. He did order me a new set of reading glasses which I use only for close up work or reading. The store bought cheaters have been satisfactory up to this point and I will continue with them when doing closeup work. My distance vision is still good. He suggested I wear sun glasses when outside due to the ultra-violet rays which are harmful and which helps to progress the macular degeneration.

The doctor dilated my eyes which didn't seem to bother me at all. I think that was the first time I ever had that procedure. I did wear sun glasses as I left the hospital and made a shopping stop on the way home. I was a little distressed at the news of these two vision issues but learned these are occurrences with most folks my age. There was no issue of cataracts at this point so I feel blessed there. The VA will mail my new reading glasses as well as these supplements to my residence with in a couple weeks.

Well we had the usual lunch crowd of Amy, Eliza and GG. We dined on left over little dogs in a bun and salad. Eliza was so cute and full of it and she now loves to play Nancy's Ipad. She is two and already knows how to play that device. She is also a lover of music and likes to sing along with any song on the radio, tv or movie. She and Nancy sing together and she is just so cute and remembers the words as well. This is going to be one smart child as she doesn't forget anything. We will watch her today(Sat.) as Sam's birthday party is at the Treasure Island fun center which is for the bigger kids from 11 to 1.  Afterwards all of the kiddos, Bobby's kiddos as well, will come here and we will have a fun time until late in the evening.

We took GG's car home after I filled the gas tank and gave it a little activity as it's been sitting in the garage for a couple of weeks. It started right up and is a blessing from time to time when we have scheduling over laps. We came home and read, hand watered the gardens until it was time to meet up with Dan and Carol. We were meeting Patrick and Kathryn at the Bonefish Grille for supper. We had a delicious meal and even surprised Nancy and Carol with birthday desserts afterwards. They are a year an a day apart in age. Everyone thinks they are twins and they have fun with that everywhere we go. Even the party sitting next to us at the grill asked if they were twins. Well it had ready started to cool off so we decided to stop at the Tracy's gorgeous condo for hot drinks and then a game of "oh (h)ell". Its a card game where you try to meet your bid of how many tricks you can take with or without a trump card. It is a blast and very fast and the name is appropriate when you don't make your bid. We think we want to change the name to "oh croquet" which is another inside joke to an occurrence from last summer in the mountains. We were there until going on 11'ish which was way past my normal horizontal lab time.

Well it was a raucous evening when ever we get together and some fine dining as well and we have really bonded over these past couple of years. We have named our group the "cool peoples club" with Dan as the el presidente' and Kathryn was just voted in last evening as the secretary as she is always on her hand held mobile device with dates and schedules as well as her GPS. We are a GOD loving, fun loving and food loving small group, LATER

Friday Morning

Well It was a rather chilly morning compared to the last few days with temps into the low 50's; but the sunshine came through and by late afternoon we had the windows and doors open for the fresh cool breeze. We had our lunch crowd today and then our small group of 6 came at 6:30 for our weekly Focus on the Family video. This week it was about labor and all of the ramifications regarding how GOD introduced us to this integral phase of our lives. Delbert Tackett is an awesome teacher and we get to set in on classes as he teaches the tenets of the Bible.

Well the morning started with my usual before 6 roll out to kick the day off. After my quiet time to honor my Creator and lift several up in thought and prayer I got ready to ride out to the Rec. on my bike after posting this ramble. It was a chilly ride as the wind was strong out of the north. We had a huge turnout for pickle ball but a half dozen of us managed to keep one court for the more advanced players and I soon worked up a sweat. I called it a day after my hour and half of play then stopped off at the library on the way home.

The gardens needed some water so I hand watered for an hour or so then harvested four kinds of lettuces, kale, beet greens and picked some sugar peas. My new peas are starting to climb the side fence and the other mature peas are just loaded with their beautiful white blossoms. They make a pod in about 2-3 days and are ready to eat. The tomato's are starting to ripen but very slowly. I think I've harvested a a half dozen or so. I'm picking another mess of collards to give away this AM to one of my pickle ball buddies in exchange for the venison he gave me last month. I love that exchange. I cleaned and the made a huge salad for our lunch.

Amy, GG and Eliza came for lunch and she brought some left over black beans and rice and we all shared and enjoyed that along with salad and deli meat. I'm having a hard time reducing the spare tire but with the 5 days of pickle ball I'm not getting any bigger, thankfully. After they all left around 2:30 Nancy dropped me off to pick up GG's car as I need it for my VA appointment today(Fri.). I'm getting an eye exam of which I haven't had one in 20 years or more. Occasionally I see a circle of lights usually in the dark which is starting to become annoying and worrisome. I Googled this and it could be something serious with my retina plus I certainly don't want to avoid an issue that may having long lasting effects. So I will have the VA check it out as the exam is without cost to me for serving my country.

Well after our small group left sometime after 9'ish I headed for the shower and then tuned into the GOP debate and was astounded at the mud slinging among three of the candidates; Trump, Rubio and Cruz. Yikes, they were almost like juveniles in their discrediting of Trump. I really think he has all of the elite politicians worried he will get the nomination. I'm not sure he is the most competent but he has the biggest set of ideas for the country and we are tired of the ones that say they will do something with this present inept administration and then cowl down when they get elected and go to D.C. I must say Trump is beholding to no one and we the populace like that. This present potus is destroying our country and he knows exactly what he is doing and Clinton will continue with his corrupt policies as well. I think Trump will be sort of Reaganist when and if he is elected or at least the majority of Americans think so.

Well, that was about it for the day as it was going on 11 before I shut the TV off and snuggled in the flannel sheets, LATER    

Thursday Morning

Well that severe cold front moved through the area on Wednesday morning and brought with it some very heavy rain squalls and wind which lasted most of the day. The streets were flooded at times and a couple tornado's touched down east of us across the state, Yikes!! Nothing like what the deep south experienced with several deaths and destruction of homes and property . The next several days will see us with temps as low as the 30's at night. Well we went from a/c the past couple of days to the heat by tonight.

I started the day much the usual with a before 6 roll out. The rain was steady and quite heavy so I knew I would have to drive to the Rec. Luckily Nancy had no plans besides I had an 11 AM appointment with an Agent Orange registry doctor at the VA. After my quiet time and my morning routines I headed out to the Rec. for a good workout. Despite the inclement weather we still had a dozen or so players show up. I stopped off at the library on the way home. Thankfully the rain had nearly stopped by then after some really strong down pours.

I met with the VA doctor as he read my chest x-ray's from a couple weeks ago and my blood and urine tests and there were no obvious markers for the nasty health diseases caused by this horrible chemical which was used in Vietnam to defoliate the jungles. I actually carried this chemical on board my aircraft as cargo while flying during the war. Several of my loadmaster buddies have succumbed to the deathly effects of this chemical and still more are now experiencing devastating health issues as well. Luckily I have managed to show no ill effects as of yet and the doctor was quite pleased with my health with what he was working with. I think growing my own vegetables and staying active has helped with my body's ability to stay fit in my old age.

Well no one came for lunch today so we had a garden salad for lunch and then I settled in to some reading time until it was time to start the grill. I cut a nice head of cabbage and Nancy chopped about half of it and steamed it for our supper along with a couple grilled marinated chicken breast slathered with fresh rosemary from the garden. The cabbage was awesome and I added a couple sprinkles of crushed red pepper flakes to add some zing to mine. Delicious!!! After the cleanup we settled into the Fox News channel and now all of the pundits especially the GOP are running scared of Trump. I think its hilarious as the establishment politicians are in disarray. The folks within the country are fed up with the corrupt inept bunch in D.C. in both parties and while I'm not sure Trump is the best he is at least got that bunch worried he will get elected.

We tuned into the Idol Show after watching the talking points of O'Reilly. I headed for the showers and then to watch a little college basketball before lights out at 10'ish, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday was another warm day and we once again noticed the humidity was on the rise; so much so Nancy turned the a/c on. Yeow what a change in temps as a new front moves through in the next day or so and temps will drop once again down to the low 40's and even some 30's just to the north of us. It's no wonder I can't completely rid myself of this cold and congestion, One day its hot next day we have the heat on, oh well!

I started the day out much the usual with a before 6 roll out and I could hear rain dripping off the house. That was a nice sound as we needed the rain, but by the time I rode out to the Rec. on my bike around 7:30 the rain had stopped and the eastern sky showed signs of a clear morning. I did my usual morning routines of a few quiet moments to honor my Creator and then posted this ramble before having my apple for breakfast. I headed out for close to two hours of pickle ball play at the Rec. We had a huge turnout by the time I left just before 10. I made a stop at the library and ran into my old pickle ball partner Mitsuko who no longer plays. She and I won many mixed doubles tournaments together over the years but she developed a bad knee and gave up the sport. It was great to see her and we shared a few moments from the past. Her son finally graduated from college and is now living back at home where she tends to both her husband and his whims. Old school Japanese women are very subservient to their men and their needs and she is one of those despite being very athletic and not your typical short in stature physique.

Well I piddled around in the garden and didn't water again until late in the evening  as the overnight rain helped. I picked a nice mess of fresh lettuces for my neighbor and Nancy picked a nice mess of sugar peas for our supper which she sauteed' with fresh mushrooms and ginger. We put that over a bed of Jasmine rice and wow what a tasty dish that was accompanied my a grilled Salmon fillet. Amy, GG and Eliza Faye came for a lunch of deli meat and salad and afterwards they all took off to the mall for some shopping. Eliza and I watched Home, her favorite movie and I think its because she loves the music. She laid on the floor at times and I thought surely she would fall asleep but she didn't. She was a perfect little angel and while she watched the movie I got into another great read titled THE LIFE WE BURY by Allen Eskens. This is a real page turner with lots of personal interaction and could very well have been a true story. I highly recommend this read despite it being a novel. He will become a much read author in the future as I think this is his first book.

Well that was about it for the day except for the humidity becoming a big story as it once again invaded the area. It was so nice to have the fresh air circulating through the house with the windows and doors open. We watched the Fox News channel and then I headed into the bedroom to watch the Lightning Hockey team beat the Coyotes in a hard fought game. It was nearly 10 so it was lights out for me after a shower, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday started out with chilly temps and by the afternoon it was hot in the sun. The ride to the Rec. was rather nippy but it's amazing how quickly the outside air warms here in central Florida. There was plenty of blue skies with bright sunshine. We had our lunch gang minus GG who was out with some of her singing friends. Eliza Faye is starting that phase where everything you say to her is "NO" for the answer. Oh how we remember those days.

I started the day with my usual roll out of 6'ish and then my routines of a few quiet moments with my Creator and the posting of this ramble about yesterdays activities. I had my usual apple for breakfast then got ready to ride out on my bike for close to two hours of pickle ball at the Rec. We had some good rallies and managed to keep the challenge court among 6 players for most of our workout. There were at least 12-15 other players using the two other courts that had players with different levels of experience and expertise. I had a wet shirt by the time I left around 9:45.

I made a stop at the library to drop off a couple reads and then headed home to work in the gardens. It looks like most of the Bibb lettuce seedlings will survive at this point and there are a couple new cucumber seedlings popping through the ground. I picked another colander full of green beans and we had those for supper. Everything is loving these warm days and cool nights but we are dry. There is some rain in the forecast but for only a small amount. I'm back to watering twice a day by hand especially the lettuces and beans.

After Amy and Eliza left for the day I settled into finishing the book REVENANT by Michael Punke. It is an awesome read and the kind of story I could see myself surviving in the wilds as he did. I was just a little disappointed at the ending as it left me wanting more especially about the life of Jim Bridger who was a famous mountain man along with with Hugh Glass. Oh well maybe there will be a sequel to this story. Most of it is based on real facts but some was created to keep the story interesting especially the survival aspects.

Well we had a couple New York steaks in the freezer so Nancy pan fried them and I must say that maybe this is my new/old way of preparing red meat for the plate. They were so tasty and tender and I now ask myself is that not the way to prepare meat in such a short time. I love to grill but pan frying at high heat with just a touch of olive oil is so good and quick, Yeow. We had fresh green beans and salad both from the garden to accompany these steaks, oh well. After the clean up we settled in the Fox news channel and watched the O'Reilly Factor before I headed for the showers. Afterwards I watched a little college round ball until the sandman calleth before 10 ish, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday was another beautiful day here in central Florida with temps into the middle 70's by late afternoon and no humidity. There was a gentle breeze that kept it quite comfortable for being outside. We carpooled with our small group minus Carol who was suffering a cold to Bridgepoint Church where we will call home while in Florida. After the service we headed to Sonny's for a lunch of pork barbecue and all the fixin's before heading home. I tuned into the Daytona 500 and watched a great close finish for a change. I was a little disappointed the Toyotas captured most of the top 5 finishes but it seems their cars were in tune with the track. I can remember back when I use to work that race when it was all Fords and Chevy who were the top finishers, oh well.

I started the day much the usual with my 6'ish roll out and then a few quiet moments with my Creator before getting ready to head out to church. We were chatting on the way and all of us regularly attended church every Sunday morning as kids except for Nancy. It seems her folks never attended church except for her mom GG who sang in a choir because she liked to sing; but to this day she is not a true Believer. We are in tune with this new pastor and his style of preaching as this week he taught on Proverbs and the "work ethic". Pastor Tim Whipple is a communicator and his style is endearing and factual backed up by the Word. We need more men to stand up for the word of GOD and exemplify it in our daily life and work. Also I found another great preacher on the Internet at the website: Highways and Hedges Ministry.com. This preacher Andrew Green is a redneck and speaks also with truth and the need for men with backbone to stand up for what is right and for what our country was founded on and that was the Word of GOD. Check him out as he is another real deal communicator.

We had a delicious lunch after church which was our big meal of the day with sliced and pulled smoked pork. I had a baked sweet tater and baked beans with my meal and some Texas toast. Nancy had the cole slaw and fries with her meal. That held us except for a large bowl of homemade pop corn the old fashion way around 6'ish. We watched the Nascar race at its finish and it was a close one by just inches for the 11 car which seemed to be the most "dialed in" car during the whole race. There were some crashes and luckily no one was seriously hurt especially at close to 200 mph, Yikes I remember I travelled at a 100 mph plus almost daily for short distances and it did give you a thrill with the adrenalin flowing but at twice that speed and for hours at a time it must be draining to say the least.

Well after the race we watched a little of the game warden show in Maine which is very interesting called NorthWoods Law. I found the Lightning hochey team playing a good Carolina team in Raleigh and watched them come from behind for another 4-2 victory. They will be home on Tuesday and now there are only about 20 plus games left before the Stanley Cup playoff begins. That was about it for the day as it was 10 PM and the sandman calleth, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well it was a busy day starting with watching Eliza Faye for a couple hours then a little yard and garden work and then we took Nancy's mom, GG out to supper at Cracker Barrel. The weather was a typical Florida winter day with temps in the middle 70's, bright sunshine and NO humidity. Just absolutely a beautiful day.

Well the day started with my usual 6'ish roll out despite it being a Saturday. I did my usual morning routines with a few quiet moments to honor and humble myself before my Creator, lift up some folks I know who are in need of prayer and special consideration from our Creator then I had a couple of soft boiled cackle berries and a couple pieces of toast for breakfast. I skipped my usual apple to start the day off and the gastric juices flowing. I headed outside afterwards and piddled around in the garden. I noticed the recently transplanted Bibb lettuce seedlings are doing good as I harden them off for planting in a week or so.  I now have 2 more cucumber seedlings up from seeds sowed last week as well and new leaves on the old plants that survived those couple of cold nights.

I headed out to the front yard and drug the hose with me as the marigolds while looking great and full of blooms but needed some watering along with the grass in the front yard. It's bone dry but still alive to some extend. The dead oak leaves will need to be mulched up again shortly as they are still falling and collecting in the yard. I pulled lots of weeds that grow so well in the dry season with their seeds ready to once again spread. I pulled lots of weeds in the side garden and mulched them. My stomach was growling so I knew it must be lunch time so I headed in an ate some of Amy's leftover chili she brought me the other day; it's always better if it sets a couple days in the fridge. It was awesome in flavor with a little hot sauce to wake up the taste buds.

I sat and read for the next couple hours with a glimpse at the TV and some college basketball games and then watched the Lightning beat a good Pittsburg team in their home building 4-2. It was a hard fought game with a bunch of knocking each other around. We(Lightning) still have a chance for the playoffs. Well Nancy got back from taking her mom shopping and we decided to go out for supper. We always get a good home cooked meal with reasonable prices at 10 bucks a person at Cracker Barrel. I had their meat loaf which was very tasty with fried okra, pinto beans and raw onions and steak fries. Nancy had the grilled halibut and GG the chicken and rice special. There were corn bread and biscuits as well and we waddled out of the place after we cleaned our plates. The girls shopped in the front of the store and I walked around outside talking with folks who were sitting and digesting along with me. Where can you get waited on with three different delicious home cooked meals for that price.

We took GG home the scenic route through Pinellas Park and Kenneth City. It's been many years since I've driven that part of our country and I pointed out memorable crashed along that route I was involved in over the years. Memorable in the fact it usually involved the death of someone I was entrusted to investigate and bring arrest charges if warranted. I had a meaningful career that let me be the first person to handle tragedies in other folks lives and I always called on my Creator to give me the wherewithal to properly handle those situations as if it had happened to someone I knew and loved. That was a great responsibility and I loved that part of my job and only with the knowledge of having my Creator having my back did I successfully complete 30 years of service.

Well it seems I'm not the only person who thinks America needs an overhaul to the established politicians as the folks of S.C. overwhelmingly voted for Donald Trump. In reality its a shame it took a person of his caliber to shake the system and while he has his faults and at times a buffoon he is not one to be bought off by the lobbyist and special interests groups. If he does what he says he will do America will become even greater again than before. We are sick and tired of those who don't keep their promises when getting to D.C. and the establishment is hearing from the folks throughout the land. We want our country back economically, a strong military, care for those who served and are disabled as well as a secure border for those who love the country and are here to be an asset. We who love this land and the liberties afforded us and we had better take this chance given us this election.

If you want to see what needs to be preached in our churches watch the videos on a red neck preacher at Highways and Hedges Ministry. com. I love this guys message and his resolve on who he wants to offend. He is what America stood for many years ago before we let the political crowd influence the nation and our politicians. We have been a blessed nation and GOD has been great to and for us, but we have taken Him out of everything and the country is on a downward spiral for self destruction. We or some of you elected this community organizer which has quickly change the fate of this nations people who were unique in their love and service to each other. We have let this man divide us along racial lines, have disregard for the laws of the land and he has downright denigrated the believers of the Judeo-Christian faith with his sympathy for terrorist who only kill and maim those who disagree with their ideology. Wake up America and don't forget to honor our Creator today at your place of worship. Take the time to give thanks and pray for our nation and once again let us be a land where our Creator is honored, LATER    

Saturday morning

Well Friday was a fun day with it being grandparents day at Ava and Sam's school. I never made it to the Rec. as we had to be at the assembly at 8:30 so we were both up at 6. After our morning routines, quiet times and a lite breakfast we headed out in the cool brisk morning air. It eventually warmed up to the low 70's by late afternoon but was rather chilly to start the day with the stiff breeze coming out of the north.

We were honored to have been recognized by Keswick Christian School with this program as each elementary grade from 5th down to kindergarten did a special song for the assembly. We then headed back to each child's room to meet with their teachers and be entertained even further. Each grade did art work for us and then we signed them out for the day and took them with us. We could of had lunch at the school if you wanted but we decided as well as the kiddo to have lunch at our house. We made a veggie stand stop for green tomato's and egg plant of which we decided to have for lunch. Ava loves fried green tomato's and Sam loved the fried egg plant. Amy, GG and Eliza came as well and we even had a large cheese pizza in the oven loaded with fresh mushrooms on top. Well the fried foods were of course the best ever and we were thrilled everyone had their fill of each, so much so the pizza was leftover.

We just chilled after everyone left sometime in the early afternoon. I started a new read titled REVENANT by Michael Punke. I think I saw the movie trailers for this story which is based on a true story of the life of a frontiersman. It's a great read so far and a story I could put myself in with man vs man and nature. I pulled another mess of collards for some friends and then some lettuce for GG and then hand watered the gardens. I harvested another mess of greens for a huge garden salad which we will eat on for a couple of days and after all of the fried foods for lunch we decided a simple garden salad would suffice for our supper. Nancy made these decadent coconut, walnuts and chocolate chip with sweet condensed milk and graham crackers bars for the kiddos and of course it hard to eat just one. I did put them off until after supper and then had three, yikes they were so good and fattening. Ava, Eliza and I took over a plate to our widowed neighbor Carol and she was thrilled that we thought of her and of course she loves sweets. We forgot that on Thursday was our "mountain moms" 88th birthday and she too loves her sweets. Happy Big Day, Helen!!!

Well after supper and the cleanup we settled into the Fox news channel and watched the election jabber of which I'm quickly tiring of seeing Hillary ugly face and hearing her lying speeches. We have scraped the bottom of humanity when we see this criminal seeking the highest office in our land. Personally I think she should be adjudicated as a Benedict Arnold; a traitor who was dealt with during the Revolutionary War. We Americans or I am sick of the lying, corrupt people who care nothing for the country but their own pocketbooks and re-elections. That is why Trump is doing so well and I have to agree with many things he is saying without fear of retribution. He can not be bought and the establishment is running scared as well as is the main stream media. Finally someone is saying what needs to be said with regard to our land. I don't know his heart towards GOD but only hope he does pray as he says he does and doesn't use that as a prop to get elected as some are doing. Today is the big primary in S.C. and the pundits are going crazy with their predictions about who will beat Trump among the religious right, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday saw us once again with nice temps and plenty of sunshine. It reached the low 70's by late afternoon but the breeze kept it quite nice, yet in the shade it made for almost cool temps. I got in a work out early in the morning then we had lunch with our usual group. After they left around 2:30 Nancy took off to do some shopping for Sam's birthday which is in a couple weeks so I read the afternoon away. We were having our small group for our weekly video on Focus on the Family taught by Del Tackett who is an amazing teacher and while this was presented probably 10 years ago he or the Biblical projection is coming full circle on what is happening to our culture and nation now that we have diminished the influence of GOD in our way of life.

Well the morning started with my usual 6'ish roll out then a few quiet moments to honor my Creator and humble myself in thanksgiving and lift up those I know and love. Afterwards I ate my usual apple for breakfast before getting ready to ride out to the Rec. for my hour and half of pickle ball play. The wet shirts were evident and I was bushed from the great play and long rallies. Afterwards I stopped off at the library for a new read before pedaling home. Wow was it ever a beautiful Florida winter morning. The birds were singing and the breeze made for a spring like morning. I piddled around in the garden and did some hand watering as were are once again several days without any rain. The sandy soil is great for growing but quickly dries out with the heat and wind.

Nancy made a small pot of potato soup for our lunch which was delicious. I pulled a couple scallions from the garden to add to the garnish and of course added flavor to the soup along with crumbled fried bacon on top as well. It was awesome eating for lunch so we decide that would be our big meal of the day. I grilled a salmon fillets along with a garden salad for our supper. After the  lunch gang of Amy, GG and Eliza Faye left to pick up the other kiddos from school, Nancy took off shopping. I settled into a new read and even sat in the back yard under the oak tree for a couple hours. I set my recently transplanted Bibb lettuce seedlings in the sun for a couple hours to harden them off to the sunshine. I wanted to make sure they had plenty of moisture so I kept an eye on them as I read.

Well our group minus Carol who has a cold showed at 6:30 and we watched the video that showed our country was founded on honoring GOD and having the freedom to practice our religion. First it was the Pilgrims and Puritans and eventually most all of our founding fathers saw the need for religion for the morality that was needed to successfully built a government that was never before seen. All of our major institutions of higher learning had a faith based foundation when first started in America. Many of our major documents that guaranteed our liberty and freedoms were based on the Judeo- Christian principles but all of that began to change in 1859 when a man named Charles Darwin wrote the book about evolution. Thus we see where that has led down the road to the left leaning ideas which has become so ingrained in our culture that we are now seeing what is transforming our nation from the moral and just laws that GOD gave us in the BIBLE to a completely different culture.

We are no longer the light in the world where we were once the shining city on a hill for those people  seeking liberty and freedoms based on laws that were GOD'S laws. Religion has always been a major factor in our freedom but we have been led to believe that it must be separate from the state or government when in fact it was basis for our laws which make us free and gave us the rights we so desperately seek and honor for the morals of the nation. We have deserted those morals and we see the results in the social unrest and what was once deemed bad is now deemed good and what was deemed good and moral is now considered to be bad. Just look at the laws which are now legal despite being immoral with the killing of the unborn and that is thrust upon us who deem that to be bad and immoral with the killing of the helpless who cannot fend for themselves. The gay marriage laws which GOD plainly addressed in the destruction of the city of Gomorrah. We who believe the tenet that marriage is between a man and woman are now deemed wrong and non-inclusive thus amoral. It's such a sad state of affairs we have let the left or liberals change our culture and no longer let morality based on God's laws to be the foundation of this once great society that honored our Creator and the laws HE set forth which without a doubt has been overwhelming blessed. We are now seeing the disintegration of the very fabric of this society, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was a busy day that found us once again with perfect Florida weather. The temps stayed around the low 70's for a high and the high 40's for a low. I got in a nice workout at the Rec. on the pickle ball court and then some garden time and then we headed over to GG's to do some yard work for her after a Sam's Club run. We stayed and had supper with GG after the yard work.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to start the day. I did my morning routines of a few quiet moments before posting this ramble and checking on the mountains weather. Well it had snowed again last night and pictures showed the ground covered with the frozen white stuff. I believe the forecast is for above freezing temps the next couple of days so that should quickly go away. I got in a good hour and half of pickle ball play before heading home after a quick stop at the library. I managed to finish the book THE ICE MASTER which is one of the better reads ever on survival in the frozen north and the rescue of some of those who made it off of the sinking ship to this barren island near Russia. What a read that was and the obstacles they faced with starvation, frostbite limbs as well as mutiny among many on the crew. Great Read!!!

After getting home I moved a pot of Bibb lettuce seedlings into 9 packs of which I got 3 of those transplanted. That should if they all make give us plenty of Nancy's favorite lettuce for weeks to come at 27 heads. We are salad lovers and the black seeded Simpson is really looking good as well. I've been pulling some of the larger leafs the past couple days. I also got two more tomato's yesterday which were starting to turn. Hopefully they will start coming in as well. I blessed one of my neighbors with a nice mess of collard greens as well and picked another colander of green beans. The sugar peas are exploding with blooms and there must be 50 or more on just a half dozen plants that survived all of the wind damage which broke many from the chain link fence.

The jalapeno pepper has set new ones as well as the Bell pepper plants I brought back from the cabin in November. The epson salt bath I give them a couple times a week has sure made a difference in their setting fruit. The cucumber plants from seeds are still living despite those couple of cold mornings last week and have put on a new leaf the last couple of days with this warm weather. No one came for lunch today so we ate a leftover deer burger and some salad.

We headed out a little before 3'ish to stop for lawn mower gas at 1.59 at Sam's Club. That's the lowest in many moons. We stocked up on a couple items and then headed over to GG's where I sucked up all of her leaves in the front yard from her big oak tree. I then mulched them and bagged them for my garden. We then cleaned up a couple shrubs from the back yard and put them out for the garbage on Friday. GG had a zucchini pie baking in the oven and the smell was delicious. I had brought her some dill from my garden which is so good as a garnish for this dish and between the 3 of us we licked the platter clean along with a fresh salad. After the clean up we stayed until dark then headed out for home after a quick stop at Aldi's for a few items.

We got home in time to watch the Idol show and flipped between the new Survivor show during commercials. I hit the showers and was soon ready for some horizontal lab by 10, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday turned out to be a typical winter day in Florida with temps reaching the lower 70's, it was just beautiful with lots of sunshine and a gentle breeze. I piddled around the gardens after my daily trip to the Rec. for some pickle ball and then we entertained the usual lunch crowd. Nothing big happened today except our supper which I will expand on later in this ramble.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out and then my routines to honor my Creator with a few quiet moments. I've been doing my daily personal growth workbook later in the day as I now leave an half hour earlier for our pickle ball matches. We more experienced players want to get in some extra play before the masses arrive which usually causes us to mingle more than we want to. But by the time they arrive we are usually well on our way to being finished for the day by 9'ish. We have a half dozen or so who come early and we get in some great play with nice long points. I'm holding myself to just an hour and half of play. Afterwards I stopped off at the library for a new read titled THE ICE MASTER by Jennifer Niven. It's a true story set in the early 1900's about a failed mission in the ship Karluk to explore the land in the frozen north. There were several who survived but the story they have to tell is awesome with man versus the elements and at times versus each other. There are pictures as well of the failed voyage and the dangers of living on an ice floe after the ship broke apart in the ice field. It's a great read.

Amy, GG and Eliza Faye came for lunch. GG is much better and seemed to be glad to be a part of our lunch crowd once again. We dined on salad and deli meat while I finished the leftover venison burgers. After they all left to pick up Ava and Sam at school Nancy ran to the drug store for her scripts and I worked in the garden and then read until supper time. Nancy fried up the two green tomato's and a couple yellow squash and then sauteed sugar peas from the garden, yellow squash and green onions also from the garden together. Wow what a delicious meatless supper and fried green 'maters are now becoming one of my favorite veggies along of course with fried squash. Nancy has learned a new way to bread the vegetable which have added to their flavor. We want to try fried egg plant this new way as well. We sprinkle ground red pepper as well as lots of fresh garden herbs on the slices to add to the flavor.

After the clean up we settled into the Fox News and then I headed to the bedroom for some Lightning Hockey. They lost to a good team from California in a close game. The Bolts still have a chance to make the playoffs but need to not lose these close games. That was about it for the day but we are so thrilled to have warm weather back. It's really a tough winter in the mountains with very cold temps and snow once again, LATER

Tuesday morning

Well Monday was a mixed bag of weather. It was chilly to start with overcast skies and a breeze and then it warmed up and we saw the sun peaking at times but the wind never really ceased which had you feeling the chill at times. We finally opened the windows and doors to get the warm breeze and then we took off on a hike through the 'hood which really warmed us up.

The day started much the usual except I slept in until nearly 7 o'clock for a change. I'm not sure why after waking around 5 ish I decided to stay in the flannel sheets but it worked and I dozed back off. I finally got around to my quiet time and usual routines. Afterwards it looked like rain but I still headed out to hand water the newest seedlings, of course it never rained after all. We weren't doing anything except watching the Ross Kiddos while Amy grocery shopped after lunch. We finished up the deli meat and some leftovers for lunch then we watched such energy among the three of them. I was tired just watching them interact with each other. Eliza Faye was right in there with them as she now considers herself one of the gang. She is so funny.

After they took off for home we got in a nice hike as the Rec. was closed for this holiday. It had warmed up considerably but a long sleeve shirt or light jacket was needed against the wind. We walked a couple miles then headed back to piddle around outside in the garden. I watered a little more despite the fore cast of rain but we never received any until sometime in the wee morning hours of today. We had venison burgers for supper and wow were they ever so great. Instead of doing them on the grill we found that pan frying them in a little olive oil was the best ever. They were juicy and oh so delicious. We finished up some tater tots to accompany the burgers.

Well after the clean up we settled into the Fox News channel and now we are getting a little tired of all the personal attacks that Donald is being famous for. We like his message on the inept administration and the corrupt broken system with the established politicians but we are starting to get fed up with the personal attacks by all and especially by Donald. We need to fix the system with plans on how to do it and attack the message not the messenger, especially the ideology of socialism being touted with the democrat front runner, LATER

Monday Morning ...Half of February is gone!!

Well Sunday which was Valentine's Day was a busy day with lots of fellowship, doing a good deed and celebrating with our small group a magnificent supper and of course we started the day off with worship at Bridgepoint Church in St. Pete.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out for me and Nancy soon followed as we were meeting with our small group at our house to ride to church together. Seem I have the only vehicle big enough to carry us all together. This 15 minute trip sure beats the nearly hour trip to Tampa. We took a small tour of an area afterwards that we hadn't been to in years. The worship service was awesome and our new pastor Tim Whipple is a great speaker and on point. We met him and some of the staff afterwards and introduced ourselves and made it know we wanted to be in on the plans for a church plant in Seminole. They have started a plant in east St.Pete as well which starts the end of the month. We feel very good about our decision to make this our home church when in Florida as has the rest of our small group.

Dan was leading worship at the nursing home in Seminole at 2 o'clock so Patrick and I joined him in pushing wheelchairs to the 30 minute or so service. We have done that for years and its a humbling experience. Many of our old patients have gone on to meet the Lord and we hoped our small gesture of love and concern made a difference in their lives as we sang and heard a word with them during their infirmity. One of the first patients we saw was a neighbor Susan Stephenson who was our very first babysitter for Bobby and eventually Amy. Their whole family were close to us and now she and Wade have some severe health issues so much so he can't take care of her. She seemed happy to see us and of course we her.

We were meeting at 5 o'clock at Dan and Carol's house for supper so I harvested lots of fresh greens and made a fresh garden salad while Nancy visited her mom who was under the weather. She missed all of the supper on Saturday because of a cold. I thawed out some already cooked shrimp and made a cocktail sauce, Kathryn made a delicious dill and kale dip as well as brought a couple pounds of Alaskan King Crab already split, yikes its been years since we last tasted them and they were delicious as we dipped them in warm drawn butter and Carol had a skillet of fried rice which was very tasty as well. Needless to say we were too full to play any games so we took a long walk through the 'hood as the night was perfect for a hike. We decided to call it a night around 8'ish so we headed home with full bellies, LATER   Here is a full belly photo of our small group!!

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was a fun filled, busy grand kiddo day with some fine eatin'. The weather was filled with sunshine an a gentle cool breeze that made for long sleeves when outdoors. Bobby and his family came for lunch and left the kiddos to play with the Ross kiddos then headed out to a meeting. After a lunch the Ross's took all the kiddos to the park for a couple hours before coming back for supper.

The day started with a before 6'ish rollout for me which is usual. Nancy slept in until 7'ish then we got busy after our quiet times and a lite breakfast. It was 62 degrees outside and that was about as warm as it got for the day as a front moved through with cooler temps, no clouds or rain but a brisk constant northern breeze kept it sweater weather. I headed out to hand water the garden after my routines and an apple for breakfast. I got out the smoker and loaded it with apple and hickory wood. I wanted to have the 2 slabs of pork ribs on by 11'ish for my 3-2-1 recipe. 3 hours under smoke on the open faced racks, then 2 hours covered in a boat of foil with Dr.Pepper as the liquid then 1 hour again open faced on the racks with what ever sauce you wanted. I covered one rack with Sonny's sauce and left one rack just plain with the original seasonings.  They were awesome!!

Nancy had picked up deli meat and my favorite bread which is pumpernickel for our lunch sandwiches. I made a great guacamole as well which we licked the bowl clean(or I did). After this lunch with Bobby's gang they left for a meeting then Amy gang arrived for lunch and the kiddos were so glad to see each other. Around 2'ish Amy and Tyler took all the kiddos with them to their house to play and then to the park for an hour or so and they were all back here by 4:30. Nancy had a huge pot of fresh green beans cooking, along with oven taters slathered in fresh parsley, rosemary and olive oil and I cut a huge head of cabbage so Bobby could make his gourmet cole slaw without mayo as the base. Wow was that ever delicious and so lite and beautiful to look at. He used some apple cider vinegar with caramelized fresh scallions from the garden and sugar over the bed of chopped cabbage, red and yellow peppers and carrots. Well needless to say we nearly cleaned everything up except for a smidgen of slaw, beans and a couple ribs. The kiddos had worked up an appetite and even little Eliza cleaned her rib bone better than anyone except me. She loved the meat on the bone and even had a second one.

Well Nancy had thawed out one of the pastries from the school fund raising projects and baked it so that was cleaned up as well; of course that was chocolate and the kiddos liked that. It wasn't long until it was bath and shower time for the kiddos before heading home as they all would be asleep as soon as they got on the road. Bobby and his gang left around 7'ish as he had an early morning filling in for a worship pastor in north Tampa and Amy's gang left shortly thereafter as well. I waited until the water heater caught up with the use of hot water as I did the dishes and the long showers by the kiddos. By 10'ish  I was ready for some horizontal lab and the flannel sheets were so inviting on this cool evening. We had the windows open despite the chill in the air with all of the energy in the room. The kiddos were flying around the room playing and we knew once they settled down they would shortly be asleep, LATER

Don't forget to take this morning and worship with others and pray for our country as we lost a very dear conservative justice Antoni Scalia who sat on the supreme court.

 I almost forgot to mention that Nancy and the kiddos made Valentine cookies for a couple hours after lunch and I vacuumed decorations from the floor after they left for ever. Thankfully the park helped with diffusing most of this sugar high.

Saturday Morning

Well I must say its 15 degrees warmer this AM than yesterday and on its way to the 70's today. About time!! Friday started out nippy and my ride to the Rec at 7:30 on my bike was a cold one. I had a good workout on the pickle ball court them made a stop at the library for a couple new reads for the weekend as the library and the Rec. are both closed on Monday.

The day started much the usual with a before 6 roll out for me. I let Nancy sleep until nearly 7 when she wanted up. Today was her weekly 10 o'clock Bible study at SFBC. After my cup of hot tea with some turmeric and fresh ginger I did my quiet time to honor my Creator and pray for our nation for some real leadership and to ditch the established political parties. We need a big shake up as we now embolden our adversaries with the perception of weakness from our potus. After my prayer time I had an apple for breakfast before bundling up for the cold ride on my bike.

I had to set the sprinkler on the gardens as the hand watering wasn't getting enough moisture down to the roots. I led that run in several places for a couple hours. Luckily I have a nice shallow well that gives plenty of water. No one came for lunch today so after Nancy got home we finished up the fresh garden salad which was now a couple days old. I headed out to the bank and then the veggie stand for some ripe tomato's as well as a couple green ones for frying and for a few other veggies I'm not growing.

Nancy played around on the Internet an I read until it was time to fix a frozen pizza doctored up with fresh sliced mushrooms. Wow this brand of frozen pizzas have the best sauce ever and we like them better than store bought especially with extra added mozzarella cheese and the mushrooms and of course dried red pepper flakes. I love a cold beer with my pizza. We spoke with our mountain mom, Helen and they are in for the coldest weather so far this year and some more snow. Paw Paw called earlier in the day and he had a chest cold and also mentioned the cold weather for them as well. The forecast is for brutal cold temps coming down from Canada.

Well I had the door open for some fresh air and today Saturday we are looking at nice sunshine weather up into the 70's. It's 61 degrees this morning as I start the day. Bobby, Katie and the kiddos are coming this morning while he has an Amway meeting so Nancy and all the kiddos will make cut out cookies and then spent the day together. I'm smoking St. Louie ribs for supper along with fresh garden grown green beans and Bobby is making a cole slaw from one of my cabbages which are just gorgeous. Nothing like home grown veggies in February.

Oh I almost forgot to mention that Donald Trump was at the Sun Dome in Tampa last evening and one of the local channels covered his nearly hour ramble. This place holds 10-15 thousand folks and it was sold out and the folks were very enthusiastic for him. He rambles and is quite sure of what he can do to turn the economy around as well as make the country great again. His talk has the folks stirred up as we are sick and tired of the status quo with politicians and he says some things I agree with especially about when these elected people get to D.C. that they are only concerned about getting elected again and again and the country can suffer. He is brash when it comes to telling the folks about the lack of competent negotiators looking out for America and the deals they make for us pay. I love the fact he can't be bought by the lobbyist and special interest groups and he is down right correct on the main stream media supporting the leftist agenda. We will see what happens with his candidacy.

The Supreme Court finally made a ruling to stop this potus and his agenda to ruin the coal industry and bankrupt the country even more using the EPA on climate change. Hurray for them, LATER

Friday Morning

Well it was cold early Thursday morning by Florida standards with a brisk north wind moving the 42 degrees chill across my face as I rode out to the Rec. around 7:30, yikes I had tears streaming down my face but by 10 'ish the outside air had warmed again to the upper 50's with bright sunshine and by the late afternoon we had opened the windows and doors to air out the house with warm fresh air. It's no wonder this cold has been hanging on for both of us with head and chest congestion. One minute the heats on the next the a/c.

Well the morning started much the usual with a before 6 roll out and then my routines of a few quiet moments and then the posting of this ramble before eating and apple for breakfast then heading out for some hour and half of pickle ball. We had the challenge court today with great action and I was bushed by 9:30 ish. I made a stop at the library for a couple new reads before heading home to work outside in the garden. The air had warmed considerably so I shed my jacket which was needed a couple hours ago against the cold north breeze. Most of the plants looked great except for two of my recently transplanted cucumber seedlings. Something caused them to die almost overnight and I even had them covered against the cold. I know they don't like the cold but there was no frost and it was in the low 40's overnight, oh well I sowed a couple more seeds next to them just in case these last two don't make it.

The sugar peas are blooming and the peas are succulent in a salad and just off the vine. I harvested another mess of green beans as well as noticed the recently sowed Bibb lettuce seeds have sprouted in a pot. Hopefully they will be big enough to transplant in a week or so as I'm down to just 5 heads left for salad. This is one of Nancy's favorite lettuces as well. The tomato'a are sure taking their time to ripen despite an added coating of epson salt(magnesium) of which they and peppers like. The sweet onions are growing tall but have not started to bulb out at the bottom and the multipliers)(onions) are bunching as well. That will ensure we have a constant supply of green scallions.

Well Amy and Nancy took off to the mall and little Eliza Faye and I were buddies. She loves this one movie titled Home which is all she wants to watch. We did spent a little time in the back yard as it had really warmed up with the bright sunshine. After lunch I read until they left to pick up Ava and Sam at school then vacuumed the house for Nancy as we were having our small group at 6:30. Nancy was baking Moravian sugar cookies from a recipe from Winklers Bakery in Old Salem and they are delicious. I do break down and have a few of these despite the sugar content. We watched the session in the Truth Series from Focus on the Family about how the State has changed everything regarding the moral implications of the power given to them. It's uncanny to see the changes that have occurred in our culture when the Bible so correctly and precisely predicts what will happen when we take GOD out of the picture. All of that has come to full circle with what we are facing now as predicted in the book of Samuel. Yikes!! What was once right and moral is now wrong and immoral and it's justified by those who are in power in the government and not from the word of GOD.

Well after they left somewhere around 9'ish I hit the shower and watched a little of the Fox News only to learn even more of our national security was compromised with the Clinton private email server. Our adversaries must be delighted to think that she could possibly be our next potus with her ineptness. We as a nation are in a fix with this self indulgent person. There are those who are uninformed as to her corruptness and still consider her as a viable candidate, Wake Up America, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was cold and windy as I rode out to the Rec. on my bike causing my eyes to water, yikes, this doesn't feel like Florida with the overcast skies. But by late morning the skies cleared and the bright sunshine started to warm up to the 50's. The several mornings of this cold is the big news around here with nothing much else going on except for Nancy taking GG, her mom to the doctor as well for a cold and eye issues.

The day started with a before 6 roll out for me and then my usual morning routines of a few quiet moments to humble myself and pray for those who are in need of some extra consideration and then the posting of this ramble. I grabbed an apple and had that for breakfast before getting ready to ride out to the Rec. for my morning workout on the pickle ball court. We had a couple extra A players back and the action was fast and constant for the next hour and half. I had a good work out and the knees did fine.

I rode home in a stiff North breeze that still chilled you despite the sunshine and the wind was incessant all day long actually making it feel colder than the 50 degrees temperature. I managed to stand in the sunshine and hand water the gardens for an hour or so before Amy and Eliza came for lunch. Nancy was off to the mall looking for a wedding dress for Bobby and Katie's upcoming wedding in April. GG was under the weather so Nancy was taking her to the doctors office later in the afternoon. I heated up the leftover Zuppa soup for lunch and did it ever taste great on this cold windy day.

I stayed in and read the rest of the afternoon as Nancy ran the road with her mom and then to the grocery store for her as well. We decided to carve up the last of the smoked pot roast and stir fry it with fresh green peppers out of the garden with sweet onions for fajitas. Yeow, were they ever tasty with the flavor of hickory smoke. We added some salsas and sour cream to the flour tortilla along with some cilantro and thyme from the garden as well, needless to say wow, what a flavorful supper. I of course added some Crystal hot sauce to mine and we licked the skillet clean, it was that tasty. After the clean up we settled into the Fox News channel and then into the Idol show. Afterwards I hit the shower and by 10 PM I was ready for some horizontal lab snuggled in the flannel sheets, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday started out with a cold north wind that brought tears to my eyes as I pedaled out to the Rec around 7:30, yikes it was down right cold; but by 9:30 it had warmed up considerably. There wasn't much going on after pickle ball so I read for most of the afternoon.

The day started much the usual with a before 6 roll out. The heat had kicked on overnight several times and I could hear the wind howling outside but none of the rain from this front reached us. I did my morning routines of a few quiet moments to honor my Creator before posting this ramble I decided to hold off on my daily discipline until later in the day as it pushed me to much in the early morning before heading out to the Rec especially on Tues. and Thurs. mornings as we started play a half hour earlier than normal. We had two courts in action to start around 7:30 and I got in a good hour and half plus workout of pickle ball.

Afterwards I dropped off some books at the library and picked up a new read titled  ADA BLACKJACK, its a true story of survival in the arctic in the 1920's. This is my type of read with man versus the elements for survival in this case it's an eskimo or inuit young woman who accompanies 4 young men into the arctic. Looks like a real page turner for me.

Amy, GG and Eliza Faye came for lunch. I had harvested 3 kinds of lettuces, kale, beet greens, cabbage and sugar peas from the garden and made a huge fresh garden salad which should last a couple days. I also picked my second tomato which is pink but not quite ripe; so as to keep a critter from biting into it. I don't know if its a squirrel on a bird that pecks holes into the ripe ones but I've had to throw away several almost ripe ones. The recently transplanted lettuce yielded several leaves toward the salad as well and made for some great taste and color.

Well it's very cold in the mountains and they did have some new snows over the past couple of days along with lots of the old snow still piled around. The temps have been brutally cold. We spoke with our "mountain mom" Helen and about all they can do is stay warm and wait for spring. The almanac is predicting more cold weather despite what the "groundhog" is forecasting. Well that was about it for the day except Nancy made a huge pot of Zuppa Toscana soup for supper. This is one of our favorites loaded with fresh kale and was perfect on this chilly evening. After the clean up we settled into the FOX News channel and see where finally the folks in the democratic party gave a resounding defeat to the corrupt Clinton. The only other choice was an avowed socialist which is disturbing in an of itself and on the republican side Trump was the big winner which is a slap in the face to the established party. I can't say I blame the electorate as we are fed up with inept, corrupt leadership in D.C.  There definitely needs to be a change but not to the extreme of Sanders in the white house and or Trump. I'm on the fence with Trump but will support who ever get the nomination. At least he can't be bought which is a plus in my book.

Well I tuned into the hockey game and the Lightning were losing when I decided to call it a day, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday started out rather nippy as I rode my bike out to the Rec but by the time I left there around 9:30 the temps had risen considerably and by late afternoon I was working outside in short sleeves. Another front is roaring down from the North and bringing us once again below average temp's for the rest of the week, but at least it's supposed to be rather sunny.

I started the day much the usual with a before 6'ish roll out and then my few quiet moments to humble myself before my Creator and then the posting of this ramble from the day before occurrences. Today was boring when compared to Sunday. I did get in an hour and half of pickle ball and one of our A players came back to join us as he had been overseas visiting family for the last couple months. Pat is a Canadian and will leave again sometime in April for good. We had a good crowd with the challenge court open while I was there which does give some more play time for the better players. I'm sticking to my hour and half limit of play as I built back my stamina and rehab the knees which seem to be doing great and I just want to get over this cold as well.

Nancy finally went to the doctor as its been three days of no voice and I thought she felt rather warm with possibly a temperature. Well the doctor told her it was viral and there was nothing to do but let it run its course. I finally got her to take some Musinix cough syrup which seemed to help her immensely as well as some Nutrilite Clearguard supplement which is specifically for the symptoms of nasal and chest colds. I've been taking it a couple times a day and so far I'm finally conquering this condition.

I watched little Eliza Faye while Amy and GG shop on Monday's at Publix's and Nancy headed to the doctor's office. She loves this movie Home. She crawled up on my lap and then fell asleep and napped for over an hour which surprised Amy as she seldom naps. She is just so precious and so smart. We all had lunch together and then I cut a huge cabbage head for Amy as she was having us for a supper of stuffed cabbage leaves. Wow was that ever a delicious meal and one we rarely prepare for ourselves. Amy has become the great cook like Nancy. We picked up GG around 5:30 and headed over to the Ross's. The kiddos were entertaining us with their antics and the supper smelled yummy. We stayed until bath time for the kiddos then headed out for home.

Well we tuned in to the FOX News channel and see where the GOP is beating up on their candidates again. I changed channels and watched the Lightning getting beat up as well from a Canadian team so I read and then hit the showers and was soon out by 10'ish, LATER

Monday Morning

Well it was another chilly day or down right cold for us thin blooded folks in Florida. I don't think it got much out of the 50's after a chilly in the low 40's to start the day. It being Sunday, a day where we gathered with other Believers to honor and worship our Creator. I heard a great message from the book of Proverbs at Bridgepoint Church while Nancy stayed home and rested her vocal chords. She has a squeaky sound from the head cold and barely any voice so I'm relishing the quietness. Just kidding!!! It was also super bowl Sunday and it was one of the better games if you were rooting for Peyton and not such a great game if you were for Cam.

The day started with my usual 6'ish roll out and then routines of a few quiet moments to humble myself before my Creator and lift several up for some extra considerations in prayer. I also need a little prayer as this nagging cough is hanging on and its no wonder with a/c on one day and the heat on the next day. What extreme weather we have been having. I'm feeling good and strong except for this nagging cough and will head out his morning to the Rec for some exercise on the pickle ball court.

We are supposed to have more of this cold weather throughout the week and even the possibility of a freeze toward the middle of the week. The wind has been so strong and constant despite the sunshine which helps with an attitude in cold weather. We stayed indoors except for me hand watering the garden during the middle afternoon. I did have the smoker loaded up with hickory wood and 2 chuck roasts for about 4 hours which we were taking to a super bowl party just up the street at 5'ish.  We had the best tasting mac and cheese along with a fresh garden salad and this smoked chuck roast. They had great flavor but next time I will carve them like flank steak, across the grain and very thin as they were a little chewy but the flavor was awesome. We had a little vino to accompany this gourmet feast and then settled into the big game.

Well in my heart I was pulling for Peyton as he is not only a great player but a person and I was really convinced by all the hype and pundits that the Panthers were unbeatable with their young QB Cam and their defense; especially after their almost flawless record with just one loss. But it seems defense wins over offense almost like like good pitching overwhelms good hitting in baseball. The Broncos where there to win the game and not resting on their record which had four losses during the year. We all wrote down before the game who we thought would win and what the final score would be. Well I wrote the Panthers would win 31-20 over the Broncos because of their play in our division but in my heart I wanted Denver to win. I just didn't want a runaway game and as it turned out it was anything but that. I'm glad that Peyton can go out a winner as the oldest QB to ever win the big game. I'm sure we will see Cam and the Cats for years to come as he is in his middle 20's.  Maybe this loss will humble him just a bit as that was my one concern with his play. He is a great athlete but with this loss maybe it make him even a greater one in the future. I know lots of our mountain friends were disappointed with this lost but they can rest assured the Bucs will not be a challenge to them in our division for awhile; but beware with a new coach there is always some hope for the future. We had very mixed emotions about who we wanted to win among our group and of course with us having the cabin in the mountains of N.C. felt some allegiance to the Carolina Team but being a fan of Peyton I was thrilled at the outcome.

Well it wasn't long after the game it was some horizontal lab for me, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was chilly one to start with temps in the 40's and it may have reached the middle 50's by late afternoon but with the rain that started mid morning and lasted until nearly dark it wasn't our usual sunny warm day in Florida. Of course it was a lot warmer than the mountains and when I spoke with Paw Paw it was just above freezing in Winchester, Va., so really I shouldn't complain.

I was up at my usual 6 'ish to start the day and did my morning routines before heading out around 9'ish to climb up on the roof to blow leaves and sticks from the gutters and the roof as well as pull down some dead limbs hanging over the roof. I even took the long pole saw and sawed down a few branches that were starting to die. I worked up a sweat in no time despite the chill in the air. The skies were overcast and looked like rain but I went ahead and mowed or sucked up the leaves from the front and side yards and was about to mulch them when it began a light rain. So much for getting the back yard cleaned of leaves but the front yard looked great with the green grass showing through after being once covered with brown oak leaves.

Well it was inside for the rest of the day as I'm still having some nasal drip as well as an occasional cough. Nancy has lost her voice except for a high squeaky sound. She has a nasal drip as well and a lingering cough. Seems we have acquired our grand kiddos colds. Let's hope it doesn't develop into anything more serious. Nancy had a flu shot while I didn't and I think it's too late to get one. I spent the rest of the day reading while Nancy was on FaceBook. It was nasty outside with it being cold, wet and overcast. I went out to check the mail and my warm breath was visible.

Well the garden liked all of this soft constant rain especially the leafy green veggies. I'm not sure how the new cucumber seedlings are handling this cold as they do not like the cold and neither do the tomato's. It's supposed to go down into the low 40's here in our area and to the 30's inland. The Gulf and Bay waters keep us from freezes most of the time as we are surrounded by water on three sides. Well that was about it for the day as it was mostly staying inside to keep warm and rest these colds we have acquired.

Today is worship day so we will head out with our friends to Bridgepoint Church in St.Petersburg and then get together later in the evening for a super bowl party. I'm going smoke a couple beef chuck roasts for 5-6 hours. This will be a first for me as they mimic a brisket in flavor and not nearly as tough. These two have great marbling which should add flavor to the meat. We will meet at the Botbyl's house and then the Tracy will join us to eat, watch the game on their big screen TV and possibly play a hand or two of Euchre, LATER  

Saturday Morning

Well Friday started out cold and never really got any where near as warm as it was on Thursday. We had the heat on from time to time and it may have reached the 60's by late afternoon and then again the temps dropped after dark. We had the Ross kiddos from about 5 PM on as Amy and Tyler headed out for their anniversary dinner at the Salt Rock Grille.

The day started much the usual for me with a before 6 roll out and then I did my routines of a few quiet moments to honor my Creator and then posted this ramble before an apple for breakfast and then a chilly ride on my bike to the Rec. for some pickle ball. We had a good crowd of players and I got in a solid hour or more of play before calling it a day. The knees held up well this week and hopefully with this everyday play I will get them ready for the mountain hikes and the stairs at the cabin this summer. I stopped off at the library on the way home for a new read by author Dan Simmons. He is a very intriguing writer with such detail and some of his ideas based on historical fact leave you with wanting to read more, especially this new read titled FLASHBACK.

I piddled around in the garden then hung a load of laundry which was perfect day for hanging clothes with the cool temps and gentle breeze. The rain from the night before cleared out the air and the clothes had such a clean smell from being in the bright sunshine. I took a head of cabbage and a mess of green beans to a fellow pickle ball player who blessed me with some Ohio venison he killed a couple weeks ago. He vacuumed packs his meat and it was delicious. I'm going to look into purchasing one of those food saver machines for the future as the meat was perfect. He is quite the hunter and when I mentioned we loved venison he brought us enough for three meals and the ground meat was absolutely the freshest ever in the vacuum seal. He was thrilled with the fresh veggies as well and thought it was a great swap.

Well no one came for lunch to day as Nancy had her Friday morning Bible study at SFBC
so after hanging the clothes and hand watering the new seedlings I started this new read for the next couple of hours. I had a light lunch of leftover stuffed grape leaves that Amy brought over and a hard boiled egg. We were having the grand kiddos for a supper of pizza of which they all like, however I made the mistake of getting the deep dish for a change and they mentioned they liked the flat pizza better, oh well since I got two of them, so I will be eating deep dish for the next day or so at lunch. I popped them corn later after their baths and of course Nancy had brownies for them earlier.

We took the kiddos up to the Botbyl's as they were hosting one of their former college students for the night.  George and his wife and three kids are just back from 3 years on the mission field in India. There were a couple other couples there as well and the kiddos all played great together for an hour or so. Amy and Tyler are hosting them for lunch today at their house. They eventually will move to north Texas where he will be a youth pastor for a church near his wife's folks.

Well I managed to watch a little of the Lightning hockey game after the kids were bathed and plopped in front of a movie. They were winning big over the Penguins 6-3. Amy and Tyler came back after a good time and a great meat at the Grille for their date night. Where has these 11 years gone as it seems like just yesterday they were dating. Well after a hot shower and some cough syrup and now some ear plugs, I hit the sack for some horizontal lab, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday it was 72 degrees to start the day and now its 50 degrees and its been that way for the past several days. The heat one day and the a/c the next as well as all of the oak trees in the area are starting their new foliage with the old leaves falling like rain. I'm sure that's why I have this congestion in the head and chest which isn't bad, just annoying.

Thursday started out much the usual with a before 6 roll out. On Tues. and Thurs. I head out a half hour earlier to the Rec where several of us better players get in some time before we have to intermingle with the general players. I must say many of the B players are becoming much better except for a few who will never improve, but who still must be allowed to rotate into the mix. After my allotted time to myself of an hour and half I left with a wet shirt. We had so many players that another group went outside on the pickle ball court to play.

I piddled around in the garden and hand watered briefly as it looked like rain was heading our way with another front which did bring down the temps this morning. It seems it rains now on the past three Thursday evenings which kept me from grilling marinated chicken breast for supper. Nancy pan fried them along with fresh asparagus for supper. Amy, GG and Eliza Faye all came for lunch and while she is such a cutie she is starting to show some head strong independence. Amy is having to put her in a "time out" chair" and that really hurts her free spirit, She is just so sweet and smart at times but does push the limits.

I finished a great read of a Hudson Bay Company employee who spent several years in the Canadian arctic area with Inuits in the 30's. His story told of how a culture long gone except for the most remote places left in the world lived harmoniously and dealt with life and death situations almost daily. He just passed away a few years back at the age of 90, so a diet of mostly meat especially seal fat and blubber didn't seem to give him any disease of the circulatory system. Oh well!! I think being active and working to survive the elements played a major role in his longevity and those that he lived with in the frozen north.

Well I decided since I was some what under the weather to not go out in the pouring rain to our small group meeting a couple doors up. Nancy drove the truck 2 houses up as it was coming down pretty hard. I decided to stay warm and dry and not maybe share these symptoms with others which I'm sure they didn't object. Who wants anyone to have this not 100% feeling? Well I tuned into the Fox News channel and then watched the Idol show. It wasn't long after a hot shower that I headed for some horizontal lab, LATER

 

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was another almost summer like day with temps up into the middle 80's, yikes it was very hot and muggy especially in the direct sunshine. I did the Rec for an hour as I'm fighting a cold the grand kiddo's shared with me so I'm cutting my workout in half for right now. We picked up GG after lunch and headed to Sam's Club for some shopping.

The day started much the usual with a before 6 roll out and then to my morning routines of a few quiet moments and my daily discipline before having my apple for breakfast then pedaling out to the Rec for some pickle ball. I got in a an hour of play which was plenty considering this chest cold; plus I didn't want to wear my resistance down. So far it's just been an occasional cough with some phylum and some blockage in the sinuses but I haven't felt bad. I stopped off at the library on the way home and then worked in the garden for an hour or so.

The oak trees are really letting loose their leaves and the whole back yard is looking brown. I just last Saturday sucked up all of the leaves and mulched them so it looks as if that will happened this weekend as well. GG wants me to do the same with her yard as well as the leaves on her oak is just about all gone and new budding is starting. I'm beginning to think that maybe this congestion is from all of the oak pollen in the air along with the cold from the kiddo's.

We filled up at Sam's Club at $1.64 a gallon, wow it's been years since it's been that price. We loaded up with some goodies then stopped and worked in GG's yard for an hour or so before heading back to the house. The hot sun and wind had really dried out the gardens so I hand watered for an hour or more. We can tell the days are really starting to get longer and the sun as moved over to where the once shaded garden is now getting more sunshine. I will pick green beans again today as the two newest planted rows are producing as well as the two older rows that have given us plenty of harvest. I think I will be blessing the neighbors today with some beans. We finished up the beans and beef for supper along with a garden fresh salad.

While we were in Sam's Nancy ran into an old friend with who she paled around with as a young girl even up into her teen years. This girlfriend was a friend and coworker with one of our neighbors whom we hadn't seen since last May. Well she told us the husband had passed away very quickly and his wife moved to Tennessee shortly after selling the house. We had know this family ever since we had moved into the neighborhood but just in passing. His brother was also a fellow trooper with me for 30 years. We were shocked to hear this news as he was my age but he was a heavy smoker and looked much older. When ever we passed by their house which was not on our regular traffic way we noticed some changes had been made to the house and their motor home was gone.

Well after the supper of leftovers we settled into the FOX News channel and O'Reilly with flips over to the Idol show. This is the last year for this talent show as we really enjoy hearing all of the back ground stories of the contestants and of course JLO makes it interesting with her dress ensembles. It wasn't long after the show and a hot shower that I headed for some horizontal lab. I picked up a couple sets of ear plugs to help with cutting down on the noise from Nancy's snoring. It's taking some getting use to these in my ears over night but I do think I'm getting more sleep, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well there won't be any more winter here in Florida as we have gone back to the a/c once again. The temps were in the 80's with lots of humidity so it was time to close the windows for now. I see where most if not all of the snow is gone from the cabin area as we check each day on the webcam.

I started the day with my usual before 6'ish roll out and then to my morning routines of a few quiet moments, daily discipline and then the posting of this ramble before getting ready to ride my bike out to the Rec. On Tue. and Thurs. I leave out a half hour earlier, so some of us can get in some extra play before many of the B players inundate the courts. Today we never got the big influx but did have all three courts in action by 8. I was ready to call it a day by 9 along with a couple others as we had some great play with long rallies and wet shirts. I'm not wanting to overdo the knees with too long of a workout. I would rather play daily with shorter periods than a couple days with longer play.

I got back to the house a little after 9'ish and changed clothes then headed down to the VA to once again enroll in the Agent Orange program. Last May I did the enrollment but I was never told that a follow up visit by a doctor was necessary after reviewing the chest exam, blood and urine tests. So we headed for the cabin the day after I enrolled and learned at a later date I would have to do it all over again because I missed the doctor evaluation, oh well! Hopefully they will schedule me before we leave in May.  I also signed up for an eye exam which I found out the VA covered as well. It's been years since I last had one and I never could wear the progressive lens glasses I tried years ago. I use cheap Sam's glasses for reading and close up work; I see well other than that. However a few months ago I started seeing some spots of lights while driving home one night and Nancy thought I was losing it. I did investigate and learned seeing these spots were something to be concerned over but not an emergency.

After leaving the VA I made a haircut stop then a Walgreens stop for Nancy's scripts and then veggie stand for some 'maters. I saw some huge persimmons which looked interesting so I got a couple along with some green 'maters for frying at supper. Amy had never tried the green 'maters and even Ava liked them as well. They were delicious along with beef and green beans over Jasmine rice. What an tasty supper and I have enough leftovers for today at lunch. I started a new read titled THE YEAR-LONG DAY which is a non fiction read of a young man who spent a year 400 miles south of the North Pole alone. He is an adventurer from Norway and this is a story of survival which was self imposed. A good read and the photos tell of a barren, desolate, ice and snow filled land crawling with polar bears that want to eat you.

Well after the cleanup and Amy and the kiddos left for home we settled into the Fox News channel and to O'Reilly. The big news was that Cruz beat out Trump and Rubio in the Iowa Republican vote and Hillary barely won over Sanders, an avowed socialist. What has happened to the democratic party as they are in disarray. My whole family use to vote democratic and probably still do but that party is no longer the Roosevelt democrats of years past. They have become the liberal special interest party that subscribes to homosexuals, abortion, anti-gun laws, illegal immigration, taking GOD out of everything and being all inclusive with political correctness.

Basically they have supported this potus with his intent to fundamentally change the culture of our nation and leave the country divided with his executive orders and the failure to secure us from the radical Muslim terrorist who have invaded our country. This is the new Democrat Party that wants to govern after almost 8 years of this incompetent community organizer who I'm not sure where he came from but we do know his politics which is to make America a third world nation. He and his cabinet have given the terrorist nation Iran billions of dollars and made secret deals to allow them to develop a nuclear weapon to hit our nation and believe me they would like nothing better. History shows that only these folks know the results of force and power to keep them in check. Anyone who blows themselves up for a cause is not sane. We must defend our people from these who want to see America disintegrate from within so we will be easy defeated from the outside. This present administration and their party are responsible for allowing this to occur, LATER