Pressure Cooker Registration

I imagine that since pressure cookers were used as a deadly weapon (sadly) that before long we will see the creation of a new regulatory department - "The Department of Pressure Cooker Compliance" (PPCC).  The department will be tasked to register all current pressure cookers, establish regulations for the control, sale and registration of pressure cookers, and the department will participate in new designs of pressure cookers which would minimize the fatal nature of the cookers.

Train Travel

My spouse, her sister and their mother are taking a train to California.  I dropped them off earlier today at the terminal.

I just received a MMS Photo of a picture of their berth in the sleeping car.  A couple of minutes later I received another picture stating "this" is our room.

Curiosity got the better of me so I called...It seems that she was in someone else's room and after she took the picture she rang for the porter and asked about their luggage - like where was it?

Her luggage was in her berth - in the next car...

The Toilet

Old Throne

Last Sunday as I was leaving the church I needed to make a quick restroom stop.  I closed the door to discover that someone had put paper towel into the toilet (the church has a cistern system and we have paid thousands of dollars for one problem or the other this year alone.  Paper towel going down the system creates difficulties.)  At any rate - I fished it out and then went to flush the toilet to discover that it was busted.  They just don't make toilets like they used to...

I called the church to let the Church Secretary know about the issue and then later in the day sent an email to the priest to let him know as well.

It seems that he had 7 or 8 people tell him while he was still at the church, and received another 1/2 dozen or so emails later in the day.  When I spoke with him the next day he simply said, "I wish I could get that quick of response from a  stewardship letter."

Early Bird Gets The Worm

I heard an interesting quote today...  "The early bird may get the worm, but the 2nd mouse gets the cheese."  

Perhaps I need to get over my need to be first in line...

The Last Thing You Want...

I was making a trip from Waterloo, Iowa to Ankeny, Iowa and as is typical - I waited until the last moment to take a potty break. The LAST THING I needed to see was a bus, filled with football players pull in just ahead of me...  One of the few times I encountered a line into the men's room.  The line was sooooo long I was contemplating a tree...

Iowa Back Roads

A friend of mine turned me on to this site -CLICK Here for Iowa Backroads - a photo a day from Iowa's back roads or click on the orange title of this post.  Worth a visit (the site and Iowa)!!

Fountain Prank

Fountain in Cedar Rapids

A coincidence I SWEAR!!  Those who know me are aware that during my college days I placed a box of tide into a fountain.  The story can be found on this blog The Bubble Bath. As it turns out my wife and family were having lunch across the street from the soap filled fountain.  The owners of the fountain had a sense of humor about it - something I did not encounter in 1969.

Kids Say The Funniest Things

Looking for Lunch

Four of our seven grandkids visited for the weekend and to keep them entertained we took them to a couple of museums.  At one of the museums there was a snake exhibit.  Grandma has a great fear of snakes and the closest she would get to the snakes was the top floor (snake exhibit was in the basement) and if she could have had a choice - the building next door would have been too close.  Grandpa was elected to take whoever wanted to go see the snakes - (oh joy)....  One of the girls want to go see the snakes so off we went and we were ever so lucky (sarcasm) a demonstration was starting in 5 minutes where you could "pet" the snake if you wanted to...

The guy who was the snake handler came into the room with 2 pillow cases and one very large container.  There were probably about 15 kids and 5 adults in the room.  He proceeded to take the snakes out one at a time and explained about their origin, what they ate, etc.  It was interesting - even though I didn't particularly enjoy being in a room where I could "be" lunch.  He let the kids touch the snakes if they wanted to...

Right after he started the presentation a little girl, probably about 5 or 6 years old raised her hand and asked him, "Do you have a snake in your pants?"  You could tell from his reaction that this was the first time he had been asked this question during a demonstration and after an awkward moment he patted his pants pockets and said, "No, I don't think so."

The adults in the room were stifling giggles as the handler squirmed as the girl continued, "Then why is it wiggling?"

This nearly put the adults over the edge, and made the handler stutter as he tried to figure out what the little girl was talking about and then it dawned on him.  It was one of those "light bulb moments" where you could see the exact moment he figured it out, "Do you mean the pillow cases?"

"Yeah, over there they're moving!"

He was relieved that the moment was over and continued with the demonstration.  I enjoyed it, learned some things about snakes I didn't know and had a good giggle at the same time.

A Day In An ER

My spouse was having severe abdominal pains this morning so we rushed her to the ER. Starting at the end of the story - she has a severe abdominal infection and is receiving antibiotics via IV and will be in the hospital for about 5 days.

Now, back to the beginning. We arrived at 8:40 AM to a not very busy ER, but that quickly changed. We had been there a short while when we heard a woman wailing, "...That's my little girl...why won't he let me say goodbye?" She wailed and wailed. I cannot imagine the heartbreak she was feeling. Someone else was screaming in pain, and yet another went buy our room unconscious.

Then there was a guy who arrived in an ambulance with his finger arriving later in a separate vehicle; the county sheriffs were there for (Or were delivering) someone, and I believe one gentleman passed away from complications of a heart attack. Another lady was having chest pains and was prepped and taken for an angiogram. I watched one EMT take 2 hours of verbal abuse from an obvious drunken (or crazy) man. It was abuse, mean spirited, vile, nasty and on occasion physical. If had been the EMT I would have decked him or tied his ears to the table...I saw the EMT later in the day and told him, "Whatever they're paying you is not enough - thank you for what you do."

Ambulances came and went all day - broken this, broken that, fall here, fall there, fainted female, cut male - the tragedy went on and on and on...

My youngest daughter is an ER Nurse and during a break today I asked how she could stand all of the human tragedy? She simply told me the rewards far outnumber the bad moments and that I had just had a glimpse into her life.

Through the entire day the nurses and doctors, while not as attentive as I'd like them to have been (I understand others had more serious problems), they all had a smile, were caring and were genuinely concerned for our welfare.

We were there for a shift change and we saw a bunch of tired people leave - and a new energetic group arrive. I imagine their night shift will be as busy as the day shift, but with perhaps an added stabbing or gunshot wound.

Memorial Day 2010

I am always amazed at the twist and turns my life takes. Last fall I had visited a grade school classmate of mine and during our visit she told me about the town of Williams, Iowa (where I grew up until I was 10) and the Veteran's Monument the town had erected and celebrated on Memorial Day 2009. Several months after that conversation I had been visiting the farm where I grew up on (taking photos and remembering my jump off the windmill) and I decided to stop in Williams and visit the Monument. While I was sitting on the stone bench reading the names, and at the same time remembering those that I had served with, a gentleman came up to me and introduced himself. He was a WWII Veteran, member of the local American Legion and one of the "shakers and movers" who brought the Monument from idea to reality.

We exchanged stories and he knew my folks when they lived in Williams and after I told him I had served in the Navy for 30 years he said my name should also be on the wall. True to his word he added my name as you can see in the above photo. We attended this year's Memorial Day Services in Williams and then travelled around the area visiting the cemeteries where my grandparents, parents and aunts and uncles are buried.

We stopped by the Boondocks USA for brunch and sat next to a guy who everyone called "Bob". He struck up a conversation and we visited while we ate. It turns out that, "Bob" was the owner of the Boondocks and the hotel and has been since the early 1970s. When I told him my name he asked me who my Dad was and I said, "George Hill".

"Did he work as an accountant at Kramers Corner?" I said that he had indeed worked there for a while after he had sold his farm. Well... he then proceeded to tell me a story about my Dad.

I didn't start the day expecting to hear a story about my Dad from a complete stranger - literally in the Boondocks - but I did and it made for a great Memorial Day 2010.

Silly Sign

I like to pont out stuff that is, well, less than bright. This was a sign located in an exam room at my doctor's office. Now, it seems to me if I am reading this sign in the exam room, and I feel like I have H1N1 symptoms, than I am ALREADY in the building. A bit late don't you think? Perhaps I should have called the office and let them know that was in Exam Room 7?

Snake Vs Mouse

This story is to good not to repeat - my youngest daughter is visiting from Minnesota and told us about a friend of hers who has a pet snake. Her friend had been feeding the snake "freeze-dried" mice for it's meals, but suddenly one day the snake stopped eating them. After several days she took the snake to the vet and the vet told her she would have to switch to live mice.

Being a bit on the squeamish side she didn't want to witness the mouse's demise so she turned out all the lights and went to bed. In the middle of the night she heard a racket and banging in the living room. When she went to check out the noise she discovered it was her snake banging it's head against the cage frantically trying to get out of the cage...it seems that the mouse had a grip on the snakes tail and was eating it like corn on the cob. She said the mouse ate all the way to the spine. She quickly dispatched the mouse and took the snake to the vet the following morning. It seems that this not unique behavior on the part of the mouse or the snake. The vet told her she had to give the snake a benadine wash to keep the wound from becoming infected. So...she prepared the solution in a tub of water and dropped the snake in.... What she did not realize was that the variety of snake she owned did not know how to swim so the snake was thrashing around and drowning. By the time she got the snake out it was limp - not dead - but, exhausted from being nearly eaten to death and then drowned.

She ended up putting a compress on every day and the snake got over his refusal to eat "freeze dried" mice. He probably didn't want to face another snake eating mouse. To me...it ll seems fair that occasionally the mice get to eat the snake!!

Consolidating

I am currently experimenting with Wordpress as a publishing option and have “sucked in” two of my Blogs - “Windmills of my Minds” and My Daily Project 365. Take a look and sign in to keep updated... PHOTOSBYRALLENHILL. There is a META box on the bottom right hand side where the first option is Register. It allows you to comment, and I believe get email updates - more on that later...

Cast In His First Production

Daniel Mason, my newest grandson, has been cast in his 1st theatre production. He was born on the 7th of November and has been cast as the "baby Jesus" in a live Nativity in Corraville, Iowa. It will be fun to watch him grow and see what he becomes...the other 6 grandchildren provide as much entertainment and keep us guessing. We may have musicians, scientists, inventors, gymnists, artists - who knows? It's fun to watch...

Comments

I apologize for the new Comment Controls on this blog, but I have been getting spammed by a Japanese Porn Site. I removed the post it was consistently appearing on (in excess of 50 times) and have instituted a new comment process where after you use the "funky" word thing I will have to approve the comments before they appear. I will delete all Japanese Porn messages!!!

Virginia Harlan Myers Hill

July 13, 1915 to October 22, 2009
I had to attend a credit union meeting in Des Moines today and on the way home I felt an over-whelming urge to stop in Iowa Falls. We had put my mother in Hospice a couple of weeks ago, and as I was returning to Waterloo this afternoon I wasn’t going to stop in Iowa Falls because I had a board meeting to attend – but I felt compelled to stop.

When I arrived at the nursing home I could tell that my mother was in her final stages. I sat with her about 10 minutes and at the encouragement of my youngest daughter (via phone) I took her hand and told my mom it was ok to go. I told her to make sure to say hi to Uncle Oliver (he died 2 weeks ago), to Dad and to Jesus...she took one more breath and was gone.

I believe 4 things (1) there was Divine Intervention in my urge to visit Iowa Falls, (2) my Mother was waiting for me to tell her it was ok to go, (3) there was a flock of people waiting to meet her in heaven and (4) my last words to her were, “Say hi to Jesus.” And she promptly delivered the message.

It’s been a long week and a very long day. We will be having her services on October 31st – yes, Halloween. It’s All Saints Day plus my mother loved to dress up for Halloween – when I was younger I sometimes think she enjoyed Halloween more than the kids. So – next week remember Virginia when the Goblins come calln’ at your house...one of those ghosts - you never know...

Right Baby

My Uncle Oliver passed away a week ago. He was 89 years old. He had been doing some yard work and had bumped a wasp nest and they subsequently stung him over 40 times.

He went to the hospital and because of the stress caused by the wasps he had a heart attack and passed shortly thereafter. The funeral was held Saturday, October 10th, 2009. He was not the first Uncle or Aunt to pass, but it is the first time in quite some time that all of the 1st cousins have been together and it was great catching up on 40 some years. The picture is where we are waiting to have our picture taken.

So, what does that all that have to do with "Right Baby"? When I was young I had 2 dolls and I had called one "Right Baby" and the other one had come to be called "Wrong Baby". Ann, one of my cousins, remembered those dolls, as they had once been hers (something I just learned) and asked me, "Bobby, why did you called one of those dolls "Right Baby" and the other one "Wrong Baby"?

"Did you love one more than the other?"

It seems she had thought about this every once in awhile over the last 40 years. Ann and her sister Judy Lee frequently took care of me when I was little. Their Mother, Aunt Mildred, kept me supplied in comic books. I was a sickly kid and spent a good portion of the 4th grade in and out of the hospital. Aunt Mildred would visit me frequently, especially when my Mother couldn't get into town. And ever time she came she came loaded with comic books and I guess at some point in time the "Babies" came into my possession. Both babies did well and I loved them both the same.

"No, Ann, that wasn't it at all. I was sick one day and threw up on one of the dolls and she started to smell so I called her "Wrong Baby". It didn't matter how much my mother cleaned the doll she still carried that stigma [and smell] of puke with her. I ostrazied her and made her sleep at the foot of the bed and when all of the other dolls and stuffed animals were having a party she was never invited. She had to sleep at the foot of the bed."

"Oh..." Ann seemed a bit disappointed, but was glad the mystery had been solved for her.
I still have "Right Baby", "Wrong Baby" has long since passed.

"Right Baby" is the ugliest doll I have ever seen and she curretly resides in a box with her head wrapped in plastic (her head started to melt several years ago). I won't be taking her picture as I want to remember her as she was before her head started to melt.

Carded

I was speechless and flabbergasted last night. I was at Target and had to by some canned air to dust off my keyboards and screens. Upon check-out the girl asks, "May I see your ID Please?"

"My ID?," I ask, "For what?"
"The air, sir."
"The air. You're kidding right?"
"No, sir, I need to see your ID.

She then made me take my license out of my billfold, she looked at it and then scanned it into their system.

Still speechless (or at least nearly), I managed to ask her what this is all about. It seems that people buy air to get high and that the state law enforcement authorities track those who buy air to make sure they are not buying an exorbitant amount.

I have never heard of such a thing. I have for meth ingredients, but air? How do you get high on air? Can't you just take a deep breath and be high on life? I don't get it...

So, what about the air hose at the gas station? Do people addicted to air sneak into the station in the middle of the night and stuff the hose up their nose? I don't think I have ever read about anyone busted for possesson of air?

Solution to Health Care

Bicker...bicker...bicker...that's all I hear about health care reform. They said, he said, she said...bicker...bicker...bicker.

In his morning homily today our priest suggested that the health care debate could be settled by the teaching, "..the last shall be first and the first shall be last." I have thought about what he suggested all day and that is if the voters could (sadly we cannot), vote to suspend all of the Senators and Representatives Health Care Plans they could experience life without health insurance. It just might be an impetus for them to move faster. It seems alot of them are getting up there in years and are probably taking a ton of medication for a variety of ailments. If they had to worry about how to pay the bill, perhaps their sense of urgency would be faster.

The congress should listen to the adage, "...walk a mile in my mocassions...". They should visit a Walmart, or a Walgreens pharmacy and observe the people who have to make a choice - do I eat or do I buy medicine? I've witnessed an elderly man choose - eat, because he couldn't pay the cost of the prescription.

Perhaps the congress should also visit an emergency room and observe all of the people who use these facilities as their "primary" caregiver, because they do not have insurance. Stop the line of people who are testifying before comittee, after committee and go out and stand in line in an emergency room.

Both the Republicans and Democrats agree that something needs to be done. However, (isn't there always a however?) each party is so busy "defending" their point of view that they are not aware of the people who have very real medical insurance needs.

My message to the Congress - don't use your health care plan until you come up with a plan for everyone. Plus, each member of congress should go to an ER on a Friday night and sit and watch. Dress down so no one knows who you are and just watch.

As my grandmother used to say to me, "Come now, get busy!!"

Fame

I had dinner this evening in a Boston's Restaurant in Coralville, Iowa. While I was in the restroom (a nice remodeled restroom) I noticed that someone had scrated their initials into the top if the urinal. I guess I have a couple of questions: (1) Why? and, (2) What were they thinking - that they'd gain some sort of urinal fame? Well, Mr. SU and Mr. MR you have found fame on the internet...

Minnesota Rude

I've been attending the Minnesota State Fair for years and have always been impressed with "Minnesota Nice". This year, however, was "Minnesota Rude". I was pushed, pulled, bumped, prodded, and cursed at. Perhaps the economy and national health care debate has everyone on edge and grouchy - but, hey, no need to be rude. Being nice is easier

Plain Cheese Burger

Be careful when you order a plain cheesburger at Wendy's. My wife ordered a plain cheesburger, "Plain cheeseburger, just bread meat and cheese. And a diet coke please."

I sure don't know what the cook was thinking when he made a "plain" CHEESEburger without the cheese...? Am I wrong - doesn't that make it a plain hamburger?

Successful Class Reunion

We had a great 40th Reunion July 3-5 filled with a lot of activities. We started Friday with a sit down dinner, followed by a dance that broke up at 1:00 AM Saturday (it nearly killed me to stay up so late). There was a Silent Auction where posters and mementos from the the 60s were auctioned and we raised nearly $2,000 for our Memorial Arboretum Project.

On Saturday we had a memorial service in memory of our 14 fallen classmates which touched the hearts of everyone who attended. There was not a dry eye in the place. I heard the service described as the "heart and Soul" of our reunion.

We had lunch at the Princess Cafe in downtown Iowa Falls, took a walking tour from the Old High school to downtown, and toured the new museum housed in the old Carnegie library. We then had a wine and cheese tasting party follwed by viewing the Iowa Falls fireworks from the best place on the river.

Sunday morning we took a cruise on the Iowa River enjoying a great view with perfect weather. After the cruise we had a picnic in Foster Park where again we ate and had a chance to visit with our classmates.

Our next reunion is in 5 years and it will probably take me that long to recover...

40th Reunion

My 40th Class Reunion is coming up this weekend and somewhere between the 35th Reunion and now I managed to find myself on the defacto planning committee. It has been a great experience. The committee has grown close over the last 2 years and while we knew each other in high school, we were not close. We are now close.

During our planning stages what has surprised me the most are the grudges and hidden feelings some of our fellow classmates still carry after 40 years. I've got to say - we are not the same people we were 40 years ago, we have grown, and we have cool stories to tell.

During our planning an idea was floated that we should do something to remember our deceased classmates. The short version is that after discussing and cussing several ideas we ended up arranging a sponsorship of a walking Arboretum at the Calkins Nature Center in Iowa Falls. The Hardin County Conservation people picked out and planted and will care for our trees. It will be designed so that over time all of our 159 classmates will have a memorial tree - a living tribute to the memory of the Iowa Falls Class of 1969.The response from families has been nothing short of amazing and we expect a large attendance on Saturday morning as we remember our classmates. I'll probably be an emotional wreck.

One short story here - we have been soliciting donations from the class and have been successful in raising funds (need to raise more funds so that number 159 has a tree) but people are giving from their heart. One of our classmates who is down on their luck, has been saving money so that they could give. He who had little - gave much -

So, what does that have to do with the photograph? We are staying with one of the committee members in Clear Lake making our final battle plans - and this was the view last night. I'll have additional observations so stayed tuned...

Generations

We went to a picnic a couple of weeks ago and I caught this moment where a Grandpa is explaining the finer points of throwing a football to his Grandson. I'm envious of the moment (from the grandson point of view) because when I was growing up I did not have a Grandpa that was capable of passing along his "secrets". My Grandpa on my Father's side was long gone before I was born and my Mother's father was either unwilling or unable to relate to a child.

I have a few memories of my grandfather - the smell of tobacco from his pipe, the fact that he had lost 2 fingers on the farm - and that he didn't talk much.

Grandmothers on the other hand - taught me alot - not one of them showed me how to throw a football, but if I ever need to darn a sock - I'm there!!!

Ye Olde Drug Store

This building is in Williams, Iowa. Up the street from here is the Methodist church where I attended as a kid. The building is currently a small store, has a few groceries, has a few antiques, plus you can buy ice cream (that much hasn't changed in 40 years).

I have a vivid memory of getting in trouble here when I was 5 or 6. I had been fussy in church and my grandmother brought me here and bought me an ice cream cone. Now, the lesson she taught me was that if I don't want to sit in church, all I have to do is be fussy and I'll get to leave and get a treat. Lesson learned...

The following week I tried out what I had learned from my grandmother on my mother... well, the getting out of church part worked, but as soon as we hit the outdoors - SWAT on my behinder!!! New lesson learned - you can get away with more with grandmothers than mothers...

A Memorable Moment

A friend of mine sent me an email this evening regarding an old Brownie Camera. It seems that the camera was 68 years old and still had film in it which when developed revealed pictures of the attack on Pearl Harbor from 1941. I was interested in both aspects of her email - the Navy history and the fact a Kodak Brownie camera could survive 68 years and still yield photos.

Her email did spark a memory regarding Pearl Harbor. Most of the time I spent in the Navy was in the Continental United States and during the first part of my career on 3 cruises to the Mediterranean. It wasn’t until my last tour when I was serving as the Command Master Chief of a Recruiting Detachment in Alameda did I make a trip to Hawaii.

I was there visiting the recruiters and made it a point to visit the U.S.S. Arizona. A commander I once worked for had an uncle entombed in the Arizona and I promised him I would pay my respects. I went with the local supervisor, a Chief Petty Officer, and we were both in our summer whites (quite a spiffy uniform)... at any rate, as we were getting off the launch after having visited the memorial a young Japanese girl, probably 10 or 12, asked if she could have her picture taken with us. We agreed and she gave her camera to her mother and stood between us and smiled... when they were finished they thanked us by bowing and said something in Japanese that we couldn’t understand, but the smiles told us they were appreciative.

As we started to leave we discovered a line, a very long line, of Japanese tourists who wanted their picture taken with 2 U. S. Sailors. We couldn’t say no to any of them and we stood there for what felt like 2 hours having our picture taken. We didn't leave until the last picture was taken. It was a moving and memorable moment...

Not An Eagle

A hectic day, busy, busy, busy!!! When I got home I was moderatly grouchy, and moody. I could offer excuses, but I won't... I didn't want to sit in the house and re-live the day in my mind so I grabbed my camera and wife (m-m-m-m reverse the order - grabbed my wife and then the camera) and set out on my Eagle Hunt.

I have been obsessed the last several months with getting a picture of an eagle and I learned recently that there may be some eagles hanging out at the Cedar Falls power plant. So off we went - When we got to the power plant I was almost "giddy" because as I looked up I saw what I thought were eagles just hanging out, sitting on a rail and visiting..., but when I zoomed in I noticed red on their heads and kind of a crooked neck - they're not eagles. I believe they are a turkey vulture of some sort...

damn... the hunt continues... As I was recovering from the disappointment of not finding an eagle I noticed the sun was setting and decided to chase it (is that like chasing windmills?). I caught up to it at a bend in the Cedar River in Cedar Falls and as it was setting the colors were gorgeous. After shooting 82 pictures (I always take a lot) we just sat and watched as the sun went down. It was relaxing and the perfect end to a day. I'll look for the eagles tomorrow...

A beautiful sky...

Music Teacher

I often wonder if educators understand just how long of an effect they can have on a student?

Tonight I went to my grand daughter Ania's concert at her middle school. It was an excellent middle school concert. There was one young lady who had a solo and it was one of those moments that when she opened her mouth - it made you sit up, listen closer and ask yourself, "... did that come out of her?" An excellent voice - she will be a singer one day. I digress - educators.

I had a high school music teacher, Mr. Eugene Havercamp who not only taught music but gave private lessons as well. I was in both his choir and took voice lessons. As I was watching the young kids tonight I could hear his voice in my head, "You can't sing with your mouth closed. Open up!!"

I can hear his voice to this day and have thought of him frequently during the last 40 some years whenever I observed someone trying to sing with their mouth closed. When I was singing in church or in a choir I could hear him tell me, "...breath from your diaphram...let it out slow." 40 years and I still follow his directions

Mr Havercamp was killed in an auto accident several years ago and I regret not having had the opportunity to have told him he helped me to sing a good song (with my mouth open).

My 40th class reunion is coming up in July and I'm sorta on the committee. We have been inviting all of the teachers we can find to attend as our guest. Why? So we can share our successes and lessons learned and to say thanks... except for that one time...

This May Be Silly - But...

I want to be cremated when it is my time to pass from this earth. Now, I don't dwell on the subject, but on occasion the thought does cross my mind. The first time I remember thinking about cremation was from a Hill Street Blues Episode when a retired cop had died, was cremated and wanted to be part of "something". Andy, one of the lead characters, brought his ashes into the building one night as the locker room was being re-done and mixed him in with the cement. He was part of the building forever...

The next time I thought about being cremated was when I had heard a story about retired sailors having their ashes put into a keel of a ship as it was being built. So - the idea formed in my head... I want to be part of something. But, what?

For a while I thought I'd be a brick. Yes, a brick. There is a Veteran's Memorial in Waterloo where you can have your name and rank engraved on a brick and have the brick placed as part of the monument. Now I will admit there is no mention of actually becoming the brick - but I have often wondered was it possible....

Last week my brother-in-law passed and was cremated and his ashes placed in a gorgeous urn. It did get me thinking again about being cremated... So, I thought a frog... frogs are cute, and they do make frog urns (pictured above). And, no, I don't know why I thought of a frog...

I was thinking about that during the service for my brother-in-law and had to suppress a smile as I could envision at my memorial service a pair of frog's feet sticking out from the covered urn... This is a work in progress and I believe I will take many, many, many years to figure it out.

Bye Bob

My brother-in-law, Robert J. Houk, Jr. passed away last Saturday from complications of diabetes. Bob was born March 3, 1943 in Nashville, Tennessee, the son of Robert J and Christine Houk. During his life time he was involved with airplanes and boats and sold yachts in Florida.

Bob was married to my sister-in-law Carol - in what we all affectionally refer to as the "scrambled limb" of the family tree. My step-daughter Andrea married Robert's son, Robert and it was at that wedding that Carol met the older Robert. They hit it off, fell in love and were married on St. patrick's Day in 1992 in Miami, Flordia. At times it has been confusing.... Carol is not only Andrea's Aunt, but also her mother-in-law, and step-mother. Her husband Robert is also her step-brother and 1st cousin - my gawd it gets confusing... Adding to the confusion at family gathering is the fact that I am also Robert, and I have another son-in-law who is also Robert. We have all become known as, "Helen's Robert", "Andrea's Robert", "Carol's Robert", and "Jennifer's Robert."

We will miss "Carol's Robert."

Scared Straight

While I was in high school I lived a bit on the "wild side" - not scarey wild, like murder and mayhem, but more curious wild, like what would happen if I put a cherry bomb in a toilet. The rest of this story will be told as an observer...

There were 2 young men in high school. One of the young men (not me) had recently acquired something that resembled marijuana (again, not me, really!!). This young man invited his friend (possibly me) to partake in smoking this "stuff". So off they went with their product under the front seat of their vehicle in search of a place of solitude.

Then it happened... they were pulled over by a policeman. He was the local guy and was pulling them over just to "chat' - no violation, no speeding, no stop sign blown, no tale light out - just wanted to visit. He had no idea...

This story took place in the 1960s when the laws were severe. The two young men were scared to death... their lives flashed in front of their eyes and they had visions of being bent over a bunk in prision being violated...so scared they didn't even touch the stuff.

The next stop - one of the young men borrowed a tupperware bowl from his mother and they put their stash in it, went into the woods and buried it. End of story.

I ocassionly wonder if that had been me and I had taken a piece of my mother's tupperware she always put her name on the bottom of her containers in red (sometimes pink) nail polish. If that container ever got dug up - I wonder if my mother would have received a visit from the authorities? M-m-m-m- good thing it wasn't me.

Tupperware

While I was growing up my mother lost a lot of tupperware - not because of anything she did, but because she had a son - me.

My friends and I were deeply involved in playing "cowboys and indians" and while we were in the woods with our bows and arrows we stumbled across a beaver - a real beaver, flat tail and all. Before I continue I wish to apologize for what we did...

We knew that indians hunted with their bows and arrows, so we hunted the beaver. It must have taken us 4 hours to kill the beaver with our target bows and arrows but he did eventually succumb. We had it in our heads that indians used the entire animal, pelt, tail, etc. So,...(again I aplogize... ) we cut off the tail and feet. We had no idea about skinning and pelts, so we left the woods with only the tail and feet. Since we didn't know what we were going to do with with them we (I) borrowed one of my mother's tupperware bowls and stored our beaver on the back porch.

We then went on to playing "detective" and forgot about the beaver - until 6 months later when our beaver was discovered by my mother. My memory fades quickly after that... I do remember a few unpleasentries... however, if you ever want to store dead beaver parts, I highly recommend tupperware as the container of choice.

Life Altering Event

I have recently met and made a new friend and I have been sharing stories. I used to be a bit embarrassed by the story I am about to tell, but, hey it's part of who I am... I thought I had this story on this blog, but it's not here, but on another website, so here it is - for those who haven't heard it..

It’s been nearly 40 years since I graduated from High School and I suppose I’m like a lot of people who ponder the life I’ve lived, the choices I’ve made, and the lessons I’ve learned. Upon reflection – one of Life’s Lessons I learned is that we are never aware of the ramifications of the choices we make in life, because we simply cannot see into the future. To illustrate...

After graduation, I decided that I was going to attend a private school (name not released in case they’re still mad at me – as you will learn), one which was expensive, and perhaps out of my reach financially. I was going to be a theatre major, get a fine arts degree, go to New York and then on to Hollywood, fame and fortune. I ignored the advice of my parents, who suggested that a junior college closer to home, would be a better choice. To heck with parental advice, I was now an adult! I went to the private school, majored in theatre, and was prepared to make my mark on the world.

Trouble started almost immediately when I rebelled against taking a “regular” gym class. I thought I was done with that ... I ended up signing up for ballet – something recommended by my counselor. Ballet didn’t turn out too bad – it was a class filled with 10 women and 2 men. This fed right into my other majors in college, wine and women. I excelled...

One Friday evening, while I was studying the “wine” part of my education, I ended up consuming an excessive amount of vodka. This led to my acquiring a box of Tide; why, I have no idea, but I found myself standing in front of the college’s very colorful fountain. There were water sprays, and different colored lights – it was so inviting.

I discovered that an entire box of Tide makes a nifty bubble bath – it was a warm evening, the bubbles were inviting, so, I stripped down and jumped in ... most would think that this was my biggest mistake, but no! After my nice bubble bath, I walked around campus au naturel and introduced myself to the couples who were sitting on the benches. This was still not my biggest mistake!

The biggest mistake came when I introduced myself to the local campus security person. That was the mistake that changed my life.

He invited me, okay, took me, to his office and called the local police. To my good fortune, the policeman who showed up was the brother of a friend of mine, so he escorted me back to the dorms with the admonition about never, ever, doing something that stupid again.

Little did I know that my “bath” would affect the entire rest of my life. It was 1970, and the school authorities invited me to leave the school. As a result, I lost my student deferment from the draft. It wasn’t too long before I won the only lottery I ever won – the draft lottery! I was drafted, but I fooled them -- I joined the Navy.

That one bubble bath, that one moment, that one box of Tide, put me on a path which saw me completing 30 years in the Navy – who knew?!

Mini-Easel

As I was unpacking from our shopping trip to Hobby Lobby I asked my wife what she was going to use this cute little plate holder, easel for? She said, That's not mine. You got that."

"No I didn't.."

"Yes, you did 'cause I didn't."

"I didn't, and if you didn't who did?"

She thought a minute, "I bet it was that lady standing next to me and she put it in our basket."

Guess we now have a new "mini-easel".

At least there was NO ASSEMBLY required...

Hobby Lobby Easel With NO Instructions

Those who really know me are aware of my mechanical abilities (they suck). I feel comfortable inside your computer, but "some assembly required" scares the bejeebers out of me. At any rate, I've been looking for a simple easel and found one at Hobby Lobby. It also said, "assembly required", but really, how tough could an easel be?

We got the easel home, opened the package and looked for directions. Directions? Where are the directions? Perhaps they're printed on the back of the label? No - there are NO directions. So, if anybody else buys this product and discovers there are no directions, here are a few hints...

#1 - lay the legs on the floor. Each leg consists of 2 parts. The with the "cap" on it is the bottom. Place the parts so that the round part is facing toward you and and the "little shelf" it makes is also in front. Do this 3 times... (3 legs).



Assembly the legs and then using a longer screw hook them together as illustrated in the above photo.

What comes next took a while and I had to call upon an engineer's daughter (my wife) to assist in figuring this out. She also excels at putting together puzzels where puzzles give me a headache. At any rate, we had 2 pieces of wood left - each with a hole in the middle. We tried to line up those holes every which way with no success and then - we (she) discovered that the two pieces that form the shelf are placed on the outside of the legs and the other one behind the legs. Then you use the long bolt "thingy" (technical term) with the loop at the end to connect the two pieces together and you then clip the chain to the loop as seen in the next 2 illustrations.

And, now a finished easel. I almost want to go out and buy another one just so I can put it together with ease...

Alter or Altar?

Alter or Altar - why the world needs proofreaders...

The Curve

If you have been reading my posts you will remember that several weeks ago I was talking about the past, the present and "curves". I didn't say what the curve was - I was coy - but, here is the rest of the story...

In 2003 I was contacted by a high school classmate with whom I graduated from high school with in 1969. She was trying to get together a mailing list and database to facilitate re-connecting with our high school classmates. Our Class president was in the final stages of cancer and she wanted to let as many people know as she could. She envisioned a website where we could post information.

She was looking for somone to put together a website. Now, I had the ability, but did not volunteer that information real quick. After a couple of weeks I finally confessed - and in 2003 our Class Website was born - http://www.ifhs69.com/ It has been a labor of love. We have re-connected and made new friends.

I don't quite remember how it happened, but before too long there were 4 core members who helped feed information, run ads in the Iowa Falls paper to generate web traffic, and provide information for newsletters. Other classmates mailed in donations to help with the website, others sent in pictures and newspaper clipping from when we were in school. Mothers also called and let me know where their kids were because they heard we were looking for them. And, friends, and realtives of classmates also called. I have heard from, or received emails from, around the country. I have even received calls and letters from other classes around the country that wanted to know how to do what it is we do... One thing led to another and suddenly our little group "morphed" into the 40th Reunion Planning Committee. It has been fun, challenging at times, but fun. So, I hear you saying, "so what, what about it..?" Neat story - but, so?

Well - a couple of weeks ago I was contacted by the Des Moines Register in regards to our class reunion. The Register is interested in doing a multi-media project that focuses on an Iowa high school reunion. They like the idea of 1969 because it was an interesting, pivotal year. They like the idea of Iowa Falls because of its size, relatively close proximity to Des Moines, and they like our IFHS Class of 1969 because our class is on the ball in terms of planning. They see a lot of possibilities with multi-media storytelling and have assigned a reporter and photographer to meet with us and record our reunion. They recently did a “Buddy Holly Remembered project, http://data.desmoinesregister.com/holly/index.php and our high school reunion project would be similar.

They are planning to show how the class of 1969 dispersed across the nation and globe after graduation and they envision a rollover map that would bring up our yearbook and current photos with thumbnail bios. There would also be video interviews with members of the class. And, of course, they would showcase ’69 culture (TV, music, sports, news events, etc.) The project has been approved by the senior staff of the Register [it means they agreed to devote the time and resources] and they believe that it’s a cool project that would resonate with many Iowans.

A bit of history
One of the senior editors at the register wanted to do a story on a 1969 Iowa Class Reunion and went to the internet to do research – he landed on our website. He was intrigued by not only our website, but with our planning and the fact we are going to hold the reunion in the old high school. The editor assigned a reporter who contacted me about doing a feature story and I met with her for 3 hours yesterday.

There will be a feature story before the reunion and then another story after the reunion along with a newly designed interactive web site featuring our class and our reunion. It is my sincere hope that classmates who have not decided whether or not to attend, reconsider and join us for what promises to be a memorable reunion. We're in the process of sending out a newsletter to let everyone know what's happening.

Who would have thought that 6 years ago that by building a website and keeping it going would lead to the Des Moines Register doing a story about our town, our class and our reunion? Life is truly amazing - sometimes weird, but amazing notheless.

Let the little children come...do not hinder them

My wife and I go to an Episcopal Church and we have a young priest who is serving the parish. We really love his enthusiam and energy. He races in triathalons - something I can't even imagine. My triathalon would consist of trying to eat ice cream, chocolate brownies and a cheesburger at the same time...

At any rate the following conversation was heard in church a couple of weeks ago:

The priests wife was trying to reason with a rather talkative 3 year old, "Be quiet...stop talking we're in church."

"Daddy's talking..."

"Daddy's the priest..., now sh-h-h-"

A couple of minutes later the reasoning went out to the hallway where I assume reason prevailed. Some people seemed to be be bothered if kids make noises in church, but they are the life blood of any church or organization. They are curious, filled with love and enthusiam, and brighten most everybody's day. So, if the 3 year old wants to start preaching early, I say go for it!!

A Quick Post

I have a quick post which contains an important message - "...if you get up in the middle of the night to take a Zantac for your heartburn - turn the light on to make sure it is a Zantac and not a Dulcolax, and do not say to yourself, ' if 1 is good 2 is better...!!'"

Enough said...

New Math AGAIN

My wife and I had lunch at a Burger King yesterday and the new math has struck again. The young lady was having difficulties with her register, her manager, and a customer and along I come wanting to order lunch. My bill was $10.25 and I gave her a $20 bill. She took the change out of the drawer looked at it - made a feeble attempt to count it back - gave up and wadded up the cash and put it in my hand. I simply stuck it in my pocket. This morning I was sorting my pockets and counted out the money in my pocket and it was $14.75. Burger King was the only place I went and according to my math I should have had $9.75 in my pocket. I often wonder if they have any "change counting back" training any more. I can't tell you the last time someone actually counted change back, "25, 50, 75, makes eleven, twelve, thirteen fourteen, fifteen and five makes twenty."

I will put my $5.00 windfall in the collection plate this morning - thank you Burger King.

Frog

The year before my wife graduated from high school (don't even think I'm going to say the year)... she acquired a concrete frog. The frog stayed with her through the rest of high school, her trip off to college, the 17 years of her first marriage and 23 years of our marriage. This was an outdoor frog - he wasn't house broken.

The frog lived in Iowa, Florida, Rhode Island, Illinois, Louisiana, California and Minnesota. He weathered cold, ice, snow, 2 hurricanes, 1.5 earthquakes and the brutality of movers, but, our home was not home without the concrete frog sitting by the front door. Last year - the cold, snow and ice finally took their toll and when the snow cleared all that was left was a crumbled bit of concrete.

Two of our grandkids thought that the frog should have a burial, so they buried what was left of the frog in a flower bed and used a brick for a headstone (above photo). Katharine gave a beautiful eulogy for the frog which ended, "... I hope he goes to hell...".

"Katharine" her brother yelled, "Grandma she said a bad word." When Grandma inquired about why she would say such a thing, Katharine said, "I couldn't spell heaven...".

Yesterday while at Target we came upon a frog (unpainted) which looked exactly like the recently deceased and buried frog. The frog was purchased and we tromped off to Lowe's Hardware to buy frog paint. The guy at the paint counter got a chuckle over the story and said he had never been asked to pick out paint for a frog.

Here is our newest addition...

... maybe he'll last as long as the last frog.

One Bad Dude

Continuing my story from yesterday - My dad was not a racist, but was uneducated in relation to race. He carried images in his head that he obtained from living life in a white community in rural Iowa. He had not been exposed to people who were different from him. He also had the images that television and newspaper put in his head that white people should fear black people.

Jump into the future (from 1969) about 18 years. I was living in Minneapolis, MN and working for an urban ministry, Midwest Challenge, in the their book division and I had an assignment to interview Ted Jefferson. Ted had lived a life of crime culminating in a first degree murder conviction. He had recently written a book outlining his life story and how God had intervened in his life. He had been paroled (unheard of for a first degree murder conviction) and was running a half-way house in North Minneapolis.

On the weekend I had scheduled the interview my folks came to town to visit and I asked my dad if he'd like to come along. He agreed. As we were nearing our destination it was apparent to my dad that we were driving in an African-American part of town. As we entered the house where the interview was going to be, my dad became visibly nervous. We sat down at a kitchen table with several African American males who had all been convicted of some felony. By this time I imagine my dad was about to pee his pants. I imagine he thought that we were going to be beaten, robbed and killed at any moment. And, then... Ted walked in...

Ted was a compassionate Christian filled with love and concern for his fellow man and was dedicated to helping others. He quickly made my dad feel at ease as he shared his story and his vision. He gave my dad an autographed copy of his latest book and I know it had a lasting impression on him as he spoke of it often. I can see my dad back in Iowa Falls at the morning coffee club telling the others about how he met this "bad dude" in Minneapolis and lived to tell the story.

My dad has been gone nearly 11 years and I regret we did not visit more. Ted has since passed on and perhaps he, my dad and Bob Tate are all having a good time in heaven - singing and telling stories. It's a pleasant thought for me.

Bob Tate

Life is weird sometimes and every now and then throws a curve, provides a bit of information about the past and teases you with the future. This week has had all of those elements.

The Present: I took a photo Wednesday night http://rallenhillproject365.blogspot.com/2009/03/cross.html that shows the beauty of this planet on which we live.

The Past: During my senior year in high school in Iowa Falls, Iowa, the local Junior College, Ellsworth College put on a musical, the name escapes me at the moment, however one of the leads was a young black man, Bob Tate, who had a gorgeous tenor voice. Through the theatre program at the high school I had the opportunity to meet him, and we became friends of sort. One day, I called my Mom and asked if I could bring a friend home for supper. No problem. We walked in and I could see the shock in my folk’s face, or a least my Dad, who evidently had some pre-conceived racial ideas. It was tense all through supper. Bob then noticed the piano in the living room and asked if he could play. My Dad (reluctantly) agreed. You could see my Dad’s attitude and demeanor change as Bob played the piano. He made those keys sing... My Dad, also a tenor and a pianist, was put at ease and the rest of the night was spent singing around the piano.

Over the years I have often wondered what ever happened to Bob Tate after he left Iowa Falls. I knew he was from Waterloo, but never made a effort to find out. There was always next week.

This week I ran out of next weeks. His obituary was in the paper this week. He was 62 and had spent his life as a church musician. I regret not looking him up. He was instrumental in changing my Dad’s attitude about race (I have another story to tell about that – but that will have to be at a later time). He was also a friend to me.

What did I learn this week? - don't wait until next week to tell someone you appreciate what they do, who they are and that you care for them. There just may not be a next week...

The Curve and the Future: Let's just say, for the moment, "Life is interesting!"

Whacky World

It seems that every day you hear some new "bad"news about the economy, "... we're in a recession...", "... cost of goods are going up...", "... unemployment is rising..." and a lot of other gloomy predictions. I don't wish to downplay these concerns, but I do believe that fear begets fear. As the "gloomy" predictions continue people start thinking, "...m-m-m-m-m maybe they're right..." and they start to change their behavior.

Some behavior is good to change - save more, spend less on credit, and plan your financial future. I know first hand that people are changing their behavior. In my little (and it is little) corner of the world of finance, people are saving more (my deposits are up) and are spending less (loans down a bit). Economists will say that these are the signs of a recession - I say they're signs of people waking up and paying attention.

I grow tired of the gloom and doom. "6% unemployment..." Why can't they say, "94% of Americans are employed.". Perhaps good news is not news...

If you have good news- please, put it in a comment to this Post...

Have a great day!!!