Twick or Tweet

Our daughters are now well into their 20's and very pleasant and engaging young ladies. There are certain times of the year though when the OH and I really miss our "little girls". Halloween is near the top of the list.

Memories of Halloweens past *S*

Passing of a Legend?

I was reading in the paper this morning that Pink Lawn Flamingos are soon to be passing from this mortal plane forever. Union Products of Leominster Mass. made their last Flamingo in June.

It is sad to watch such an icon of American Kitsch melt down.

What is next? Fuzzy dice?

Remiss

I am trying to make it a regular habit to post every Monday and Thursday. This last week I have not been doing very well. In the last 10 days I have been in 4 states (one twice), driven 2000 miles and spent a total 3 nites in my own bed (with the OH of course!). It has not been all work of course. I had some evenings with friends and the opportunity to visit with our daughters. I do miss waking up snuggled up to a nice warm body (no Leesa, that is NOT an invitation!)

The last few years I have been spoiled by my relative lack of road time. For now at least it is back. It gets old quickly, but it pays the bills very nicely.

I will be home Saturday

"Don't Need No Stinkin' Ethics"

This mornings Star Tribune reported that United Health CEO William "Billy boy" McGuire has resigned amidst the options "back dating" scandals that are plaguing United Health and many large American corporations. It only reinforces my contention that despite public obeisance to the Stockholders, most American corporations are run by top management, for the benefit of top management.

What drives these men to collect bonuses far beyond what they could ever spend? I think it is ego. It is their way of keeping score. Of course they are all surprised when some one notices and questions it. Enron, Tycho, and now United Health. How do we solve the on going ethical problem in American business?

Vanity, Thy Name is.............

It seems of late I have noticed more and deeper wrinkles (OK, OK...for a couple of years !@#$ it!)

This week I have had occasion to wear more makeup, more often than is my normal wont. It really seems silly to slather on the make up just to end up with your wrinkles showing even more prominently. Why do we do it? Darned if I know. It sure seems a lot of effort and money for negative gain.

I have to give the cosmetics companies bonus points. They have had us doing this for over 100 years and we still haven't figured it out!

I have decided I am using this dog as my role model.

WRINKLES ROCK!

The Last Gasp

I always get a bit maudlin this time of year. You can feel the promise of winters chill in the morning air. With it though comes natures last gasp with a spectacular color show before the gray and white of winters blanket puts the land to sleep.

On the first, the OH and I went for a bike ride along the Cannon River and enjoyed the vibrant colors. Sadly they are gone now and snow is in the forecast for later this week. The memory though, lingers on.


*these pics are the Sugar Maples that border our back yard

Me and My BIG Mouth

I put my foot in it this weekend.

As you are aware, we have taken on physical fitness as an essential component to our lives. We have been encouraging our daughters along these lines and the youngest has responded. Until recently, the oldest just kept gaining weight.

She joined Weight Watchers and has some success but nowhere near what her needs are. She has taken her younger sisters example and has set a goal of running the Mad City Marathon next May. She asked me to join her.

Stupidly, I agreed........

I am 53 years old.....I am NUTS

The Idiot Cycle

The OH and I had a discouraging dinner conversation the other night with some individuals espousing the problems of Global Warming. I do not disagree with the position, but what was annoying was that these people were quoting "sound bites" as though they were a complete picture of the problem, its causes, possible solutions and ramifications. The OH typically has a lower tolerance for this crud than I do but managed to keep me from committing a social faux pas by calling these idiots, "ignorant sluts"*

Sadly, I think we see more of this than would be ideal for a healthy society. People who form rock hard opinions on topics based on inadequate data. It seems to be especially prevalent among Hollyweird types**

Is epistemology dead?



*Dan Ackroyd from SNL
** OK, you all knew I had to take a shot at Tom Cruise! *L*

Biker Chick

OK,,,confessions time here. In my misspent youth I had a passion for motorcycles. I bought my first used 80cc yamaha when I was 14 and proceeded from there. I rode Moto-X and "Hare and Hound". My social life ran around motorcycles which of course really helped my mainstreaming in High School (not!). By my senior year I realized I could not keep such an expensive hobby, work, eat and go to college. The choice was motorcycles or eating....eating edged them out. I sold my dirt bike (Maico 250) and bought a used Yamaha 350 that I used for transportation during my college years. (I loved 2 strokes!) The last motorcycle I owned was an 82 Suzuki 850 that I sold the day the rabbit died. I let my motorcycle license lapse and have not looked back on what I considered a closed part of my life.

In the interim, my older brothers have all hit their mid life crisises and bought motorcycles. Between the three of them, they own a Honda Valkyrie, HD Sporster, HD Superglide, HD Fatboy, BMW and a minibike. They seemed to feel something was missing in my life so on the 8th of this month when my sibs were coming in for "Da Kids" Ironman, one of them showed up riding thismy first response was "nice bike, but aren't your other bikes jealous?" the rejoinder? "Nope, its your birthday present from blank1, blank2 and me. We thought you needed a motorcycle again and this is a 'girly bike' after all". The OH was in on it and started laughing. I promptly ended that with a "shut up, or guess who will be riding bitch?"

At least now I understand why the OH was trying to get the excess junk out of the garage.

It is a nice bike. It is along the lines of what I would have bought for myself. It has 15K miles on it and needs some minor work. I hope I can get my required class and my license updated before the snow flies.

Everyone needs big brothers *S*

Bad News

Gas prices in my area have fallen over $.80 per gallon in the last 3 weeks. Good news, right? I don't think so....

As long as we are dependent on fossil fuels for our energy needs we will be riding the roller coaster of gasoline/diesel price swings. The price swings occur in both long and short term cycles and the result is we spend a lot of time dealing with the dislocations from swings BOTH ways.

What is most worrisome to me? With the easing of pump prices, our elected village idiots in Washington will not feel the urgency to create a coherent and forward looking National Energy Policy that could free us from dependence on fossil fuels.

So, a low pump price is bad news.

Frank

I will admit that I am a sucker for a good human interest story. I am especially vulnerable to those tales involving an indomitable will. Must be from watching "Mr Smith Goes to Washington" as a kid. *S*

The first year that I volunteered at the Cheesehead Ironman I learned the story of Frank Farrar. I was working one of the bike aid stations when I suddenly hear everyone cheering for one of the riders near the back of the pack. I asked one of my coworkers what all the racket was about and he told me "That was Frank". I obviously looked blank so he informed me that Frank was in his 70's and was by far the oldest Ironman participant. As always, there was a LOT more to the story.

At that time, 2004, Frank Farrar was 74. He is also the former Governor of South Dakota and a successful attorney. In 1992 he was informed he had terminal cancer and had maybe 6 months to live. His reaction? He started training even harder and now in 2006 he is still doing triathalons. Despite advancing age and bad knees he continues to participate. He has failed to complete the last 3 Ironmans in the alloted time of 17 hours but he never leaves the course until he is finished. I was there at 12:02 the other nite when the now 77 year old Frank once more failed to make the cut off. The cheering from a crowd of tired volunteers was INCREDIBLE. I hope I am half that tough.

Once more we see that the amazing thing is not how well the elephant flies, but that it flies at all.

13:59:07

Temperature....Hi 62 F, Low 55 F
Wind....East 10-20 MPH
Forecast....Showers

Despite tough weather, the time speaks for itself.

"Da Kid" Finished!!!!!!!!

I am humbled and awed





**this is not "Da Kids" picture, but it captures the flavour

"Da Kid" ....Final Countdown

Almost 3 years after first talking about it. Almost 1 year after signing up for it. "Da Kid" is on her final few days before taking on the "Ironman" challenge. On Sunday she will;

swim 2.4 miles,
cycle 112 miles and
run 26.2 miles.

Forecast is for cool with a 50% chance of showers. Is she ready for it? She does not think so, but I believe she is. She is tough and smart. Combine those with her training and she should do fine.

If you have not figured it out by now, we are incredibly proud of her for taking on this challenge.

The OH and I have volunteered to work several of the aid stations so she will have a cheering section as she goes. Additionally, a couple of her uncles are making a surprise visit from out of state to help cheer her on.

I expect her time to be somewhere between 12:20:00 and 14:00:00 with a median time of 13:00:00. It will be a long day for her. Her day will start at 5:00 AM with sign in and body numbers and end somewhere around 8:00 PM with her crossing the line.

She is a great person and worthy of your cheers. *S*

I will be back late Monday with the results.

Minnesota State Fair

The OH and I went to the State Fair last weekend to see the nephews last FFA competition. They did well overall with 2 seconds and a best in class. Like last year, it was entertaining to watch the OH relive the farm years with the in-laws. Although it is a amusing for a city kid like me, there is something sad about a "at heart" farmer kicking around the edges of it, knowing they will never plow a field, sweat a crop or tend a sick cow. Change is usually good, but something is always left behind.

The Minnesota State Fair has changed a great deal to match the times. Once the Fairs dominant theme, Agriculture is only a shadow of its former self in the Fairs doings. Gone is Machinery Hill. Modestly attended are the animal competitions. Hardly attended are the "odd" shows for commercial fowl, goats, sheep etc..

The state fairs core business seems to have become eating. I am dumbfounded at the number of severely obese people that seem to be eating their way from one end of the fair to the other. The aromas are sooooooo enticing with Pronto Pups, mini-donuts, Sweet Marthas Cookies, Batter Fried Potatoes, Onion Rings, Pork Chops on a stick, fried Snickers bars, and so many others I could not begin to list them. I am hoping that what we saw at the fair on Saturday is not reflective of our population in general. If it is, we are not heading for a health crisis, it has arrived.

Sailing to Summers End

I had a break today so I thought I would take the opportunity to catch up on some blogging.

The weather here has changed and you can begin to feel the season turning. The days are shorter, the nites just a bit cooler and if you look, tinges of red and scarlet are showing in the trees. We were having dinner at the home of friends in somewhat rural Wisconsin this week*. Despite the absolutely perfect day, I kept hearing Gordon Lightfoots "Christian Island" in my head all evening, a sure sign that we are looking for Fall soon.

Enjoy *S*


I'm sailin' down the summer wind,
I got whiskers on my chin,
and I like the mood I'm in,
as I while away the time of day,
in the lee of Christian Island.

Tall and strong, she dips and reels,
I call her Silver Heels,
and she tells me how she feels.
She's a good old boat and she'll stay afloat,
through the toughest gail and keep smilin',
but for one more day she would like to stay,
in the lee of Christian Island.

I'm sailin' down the summer day,
where fish and seagulls play,
I put my troubles all away.
And when the gail comes up I'll fill me cup,
with the whiskey of the highlands.
She's a good old ship and she'll make the trip,
from the lee of Christian Island.

Tall and strong she slips along,
I sing for her a song,
and she leans into the wind.
She's a good old boat and she'll stay afloat,
through the toughest gail and keep smilin',
and when the summer ends we will rest again,
In the lee of Christian Island.

*my new profile pic is from that dinner

On Da Road

My life just hit the crazy good level. I will be on the road for the next 2 weeks. I hope to be back on line after the 11th with a report on "Da Kids" results in the Cheesehead Ironman

Safe Travels!!

Steinbeck Country

I had occassion to read "Of Mice and Men" again over the weekend. The story of George and Lennie is truly gut wrenching and in my opinion, Steinbecks finest. Reading Steinbeck always puts me in mind of the dusty Salinas Valley town where I was born and spent my early years.

I remember the dry summer heat. I remember Dad carrying me thru the county fair. I remember the cool water, the smell of chlorine and the rubber swim caps all females were expected to wear at the plunge. I remember Dad taking us to the movie theater to see a 3 Stooges movie because the theater was "refrigerated". I remember falling out of the walnut tree in the back yard where we had a "fort". I remember Dad building a BBQ pit and the smell of the scrub oak he used to fire it. The house seemed huge, but after seeing it in later years, I know it was not more than 1200 sq ft. We left there on my 5th birthday and today as I turn 53, the fragments of memory from that time are still powerful.

I wonder what snippets of their childhood my daughters will remember when they are my age?

Riding the Root

As you may have picked up from my previous posts, Minnesota has a growing abundance of great "Rails to Trails" paths. All of these trails follow old Rail Road right of ways. One very scenic trail follows the Root River in southern Minnesota. It is a pretty ride and if one chooses, it can be a rather long one. The full trail length currently stretches from Houston to Harmony with the eventual goal of taking it all the way to La Crescent MN on the Mississippi across from La Crosse Wisconsin.

On Saturday, August 5, the OH and I rode from Houston to Lanesboro. We had a nice lunch in the very touristy and quaint Lanesboro down town. We then rode back to Houston. It was a round trip of 62 miles and including lunch we finished it in a leisurely 5.5 hours. The Root River Trail begs for a leisurely ride to enjoy the views. If you ever have the chance to ride it, do not be in a hurry, it is a ride to savor





There is one bit of humour we noted on several occasions we have ridden this trail. 80% of the riders we see on this trail start in Lanesboros, get as far as Whalan (4.6 miles) where there is a really GOOD pie shop *L* It seems the pie does them in

Crazy Busy

Seems this work runs its high and lows. Last week I hit an emotional work low. This week? A high. Work that was beginning to make me despair is suddenly bearing fruit.

Net result? I am behind on my blogging. I hope to be back at it this weekend. I still have to write about last weekend *S*

Separating Politics and Pulpits

Rev Greg Boyd of Woodland Hills Church in Maplewood Minnesota has been getting a lot of press this week. It seems he lost 20% of his membership when he took a stand against church involvement in Politics. The story can be found here. I find it interesting that a number of the members who did not leave, were relieved.

His points regarding church and state are enlightening and refreshing. I have been frustrated the last few elections with the Republican party which seems to have been hijacked by the Religious Right. Maybe there is hope for them.

Give this guy points for being intellectually honest and having the courage of his convictions.