Happy New Year

Obviously, I haven’t written in a while. Due to the holidays and my children visiting I wanted to devote my time there and not to my usual rituals. The kids are home now. Their trip was not uneventful, as they were delayed a few times and after getting through all that, because of the delays, their luggage was still in Chicago. The luggage that arrived was from a flight that had landed the night before. Whoops! Southwest proves why they are cheaper again. HA! However, they are home safe and are enjoying the last bit of time before they start working and schooling again. I look forward to seeing them again this summer when we can go do some stuff down town and not be afraid of freezing to death.


I won the Fantasy Football game in my $20.00 league this year. That was pretty cool since I felt I was way out of the running giving Peyton Manning’s performance this year wasn’t his usual. I may try the $100.00 league next year but not sure. I think $20.00 is about all I can muster up courage for when it comes to betting.

I have to feed the kitty on my online betting too if I want to get started on baseball when it begins in April. Between now and then I need to budget so I can fund it and start trying to build money for next football season if it is going to happen anyway. There may not be one the way they are talking lately.

The time with the kids was really nice. Thanks to my wonderful wife’s hard work to make it happen. We were able to pick them up and run to Gurnee for a trip to the mall. We had meals at home mostly, as my daughter wanted to learn a few of my recipes. I don’t feel my cooking has been so good as of late, but we didn’t have many left over’s so either they were hungry or it was edible.

Christmas was good. I won’t laundry list my presents and just say I have many things I wanted and some things I am blessed and glad to have.

I will say I have all the Black Keys albums now. Yes! In addition, I am starting on my NCIS collection. I am beginning to amass a nice DVD collection, which entertains me superbly.

Last weekend of the NFL regular season and I am more ready for baseball than the super bowl. As with fishing, I will have to wait for that as well.

I get yanked back to work occasionally with thoughts of what I have to do when I get back, what I forgot to do or didn’t do before I left but I have a good group of guys taking care of things while I am away.

One funny story as this cant all be reflective: During dinner tonight, Keira had finished hers and began to do her nightly loss of mind thing, and began climbing on the back of the couch. Her tray was on a box she used as a table in front of the couch. She had some tomatoes left on her plate and it sat precariously on the edge of the box that formed her table. She crawled up the back and then slipped backward right after I had told her “Keira, get down. You’re going to get hurt!” and mars is down….


She toppled backward and fell face first into her plate, right where the tomatoes were. Melina was watching and laughing because she could see her face wretched with fright and amazement as she teetered back and forth to edge further toward the floor and back onto the couch. She finally got her self righted and front end back to alee. Once on her balance she sat up and looked warily at me awaiting the tormenting cat call that she knew was coming and it came with a ringing of the bell, “I told you, you were going to fall on your butt and you did! I told you!”

She ran away and hid under the kitchen table with more embarrassment than fear and hid out until the smoke cleared. To help her avoid the chastising feeling she was building to, we began to chant, “Do it Agains!” which is the Keira label for America’s Funniest Home Videos. She said it a few times and finally came out smiling and feeling better about her fall. Pretty funny stuff.

It’s New Years Eve, Tennessee lost, my bowl picks aren’t going too well as my favorites keep losing by two points or less and I really wouldn’t go anywhere tonight even if I had the chance. I am a bit tired and really just want to relax a little, read a bit and maybe watch some stupid TV while my mind finally stops for a bit. I think I actually have a weekend to recuperate from my vacation this time.

So, this next year, most take time to reflect on the past and make resolutions for the future but they hardly ever follow through. They don’t set their goals effectively and don’t say or write them aloud for others to see or hear and thus they have no accountability. I don’t make resolutions. I do however, look for something in my life I should change and I try to do that. I fail some times but I learn from those mistakes and come away knowing more about myself. This year, I need to make sure I take time to do something clear my mind from work and stress. My focus if you have read anything I wrote at all, will be on fishing and outdoors. Things I can do with the family or alone and still get the same results. Disc Golf: It’s free and its exercise.

So o resolutions for me, just solutions.

Happy New Year, happy holidays and I’ll write to you next year.

XO ILY YM