A Special Day to Remember

Dad would have celebrated his 93rd birthday today.

Yeah, I miss the guy...lots sometimes. Of course, he could be a real sonamagun now and then; I always chalked that up to his tough father, a tough upbringing in those Kentucky hills, having fought in a very tough war and having to be tough in his position as a Plant Manager.

In his retirement years, though, he softened up quite a bit. Age can do that; there's nothing left to prove because "been there...did that" and still around to tell the story. Until his later years, I only saw tears in his eyes on two occasions:  his mother's funeral and my mother's funeral. Mom's do that to their boys.

I seldom indulge in a Boilermaker, but tonight is an exception. It'll be Happy Birthday Dad, a shot of Black Velvet whiskey and a gulp of beer to chase it down.

Rest in peace, Dad, and give my best to those two special ladies, please.

A Wonderful Holiday

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to spend Independence Day with two of my grandkids and their parents, of course. In keeping with the long-standing American tradition, we attended a minor league baseball game and stayed to watch the brilliant fireworks show afterwards. We even nailed three out of four items from the old commercial which sang of "baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet". The apple pie will have to wait for another day (I drive a Chevy).

Jingles aside, though, it was a terrific day spent with folks I love dearly. Thanks for arranging this you guys!

The Answer to Our Economic Woes

Warren Buffet didn't amass his personal fortune by being lucky. He's reputed to be one of the most intelligent money managers in the country and his success is amazing.

This quote, attributed to him, makes a believer out of me:

“I could end the deficit in 5 minutes. You just pass a law that says that anytime there is a deficit of more than 3% of GDP all sitting members of congress are ineligible for reelection.”

The only problem I see is who the heck can we get to pass such a law? 

Interesting Candidate

November 2012 is a long way off and I in no way have picked my favorite candidate, but I've gotta tell you...Herman Cain is sounding pretty interesting.

Check out this video; he nails the current resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue while speaking about what is very important as we make our next presidential choice.

Presidential Shame and Grandmotherly Terror

This morning I lowered the U.S. Flag at our office to half-staff for the day; the third such lowering in three weeks. The Governor of Michigan orders all flags within the state to be flown at half-staff to honor Michigan service people who are killed on active duty and/or while in a combat zone. Many of these deaths take place in Kandahar province, Afghanistan.

Last week, President Obama succumbed to public pressure and announced a speed-up of the plan to bring troops home from Afghanistan. Believe me, I very much want our troops home and out of harms way from what I believe to be an unattainable objective in Afghanistan. However, that withdrawal must be done with our military objective and the safety of our personnel at the forefront of planning. Mr Obama has chosen to ignore the advice of the military commanders right up to the Secretary of Defense, who say his plan is too much, too soon, and risks losing much of what has been accomplished so far.

As a Vietnam-era vet, I'm reminded of that war and how politics played a huge role in the actions that resulted in nearly 60,000 American deaths. Shame on you, Mr President, for using Afghanistan to garner public favor with your next election less than 18 months away. It stinks of political gain at the expense of American lives and mission failure.

Elsewhere in the War on Terror front, the TSA is now subjecting 95-year-old, leukemia-stricken, frail grandmothers to strip search. Have they lost their freaking minds? This is yet another outrage that should wake-up those responsible for TSA procedures that the agency is totally out of control. Were Mrs Weber my grandmother I imagine I'd be in jail this morning. This is utter nonsense and if allowed to continue we may as well admit it...the terrorists have won.

Give us back our freedom; I'll take my chances that a cancer-ridden 95-yr-old won't bomb or hijack the flight.

Fishing Results

This just in:  

      Photographic evidence has arrived from our planted "mole" in the northern reaches of Michigan's lower peninsula. I wondered about how successful the Father's Day fishing expedition had been; I now have proof of who knows their fishing skills.

First of all, these guys must have been telling each other jokes or something while the fish swam by...

On the other hand, this young fisherperson was hard at work going after the biggest specimen the lake had to offer, with excellent results!

Good job, Sweetheart! Nice catch!

Father's Day 2011

This past Sunday was Father's Day and it was a very good day for this dad. My youngest son—who lives about 120 miles north of me—had contacted me about meeting, so we arranged to meet for lunch halfway between his home and mine, in the town of Big Rapids, home of Ferris State University---where both of my sons attended and graduated years ago.

Sunday morning, on my drive north I was within 20 miles of Big Rapids when my cell phone rang. The call was from my oldest son who lives near Boston. I got to speak with him and my two far-away grandsons before arriving in Big Rapids. Amazing timing! Father's Day was shaping up to be a great day.

When I arrived in Big Rapids, we decided to have lunch at a local establishment where we could share a cold adult beverage or two while eating and having great conversation. We had lots to catch up on since we hadn't been together in months (shame on us!). One of our main topics was about his little ones and how they were doing. Among lots of other things, he mentioned that they had been asking to go fishing, something they all loved to do.

This morning, I found the following photo in my email Inbox. I'm still smiling since I now know they did make that little fishing trip later Sunday afternoon, and because this photo is the epitome of a Happy Father's Day.

Knowing this little guy as I do, I can tell there's
joy and anticipation written all over his face.
Perfect.