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"Family Stuff" archive

Sunday 13 December

    Firehouse Santa and Tomas (12:40) - Saturdays are when Tomas comes over to visit us and spend some time with his mother Linda. Tomas' dad, kennan brought him over early this afternoon so Cassie and I could spend time with him just the three of us,... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Saturday 5 December

    It's always Something! (17:05) - Last September I had carpel tunnel surgery on my right wrist. I had to call the surgery center the day before to confirm the time for the surgery which was to be in the early afternoon. The surgery center nurse... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Tuesday 27 October

    My Kitties (06:14) - Stuck in the house while recovering from man surgeries, pneumonia and stress I've been taking a bun h of photos of the cats. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy taking them. Space Dog Buddy! Munchkin looking... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Thursday 23 July

    What do you do when forced to wait? (17:37) - I had my rotator cuff repaired a few weeks ago by an excellent surgeon, Dr John Grey. The only problem I have had while recovering from the surgery is the wait times every time I go for a follow-up visit.... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Monday 20 July

    My Weight loss stats (04:27) -   I went to Walmart the other day to buy a new Bathing suit. Actually it is the first bathing suit I purchased that I don't feel embarrassed about wearing in about 25 years. Before my Bariactric surgery I was... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 28 June

    Little T's Big Adventure (17:55) - When my grandson Tomas comes over for a visit I always try to get him to go with me for a walk. I need to walk for my health and Cassie and I have been very worried about his weight.... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Thursday 25 June

Wednesday 24 June

    I had a successful surgery (19:03) - Yesterday morning I went the Vantage Surgery Center in Medford where my surgeon Dr. Grey (and a host of other's, 'not Losties!') performed a rotator cuff repair. Dr. Grey had to fix two tears, snip one of the two tendons on... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Saturday 13 June

    Today was The First Official Meeting of the DrG-DSers (08:33) - Today was the first Official get-together of the DrG-DS Group! We are patients of Dr. Greenbaum who have had the Duodenal Switch (Bariatric Surgery) What a great time we had! Our first meeting started with a cookout (we ate in... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Friday 5 June

Thursday 4 June

    Sears repair technicians (18:08) - Cassie and I have been having trouble with our Frigidaire refrigerator the last few weeks. The refrigerator side wasn't getting cold enough and we had food going bad a lot quicker than it should have. Because we are on a fixed... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Wednesday 20 May

    Me and Little T my camera and the great outdoors (04:08) - What a beautiful day it was. I picked up my grandson Tomas from school and when we got home he had some mac & Cheese (his favorite after-school snack) then I asked him if he would like to go for... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 10 May

    The pigsty upstairs UPDATED! (00:17) - Since I made this post Kristin has gotten help from her big sister Heidi to clean her room. Heidi really stepped up to the plate and became a wonderful big sister. Kristin was so overwhelmed at how big a mess... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Saturday 9 May

    Meals on Wheels! (07:30) - Tonight while Cassie and I were watching DR. Phil I happened to notice Moue acting very strange. His tail was twitching very excitedly and he was chirruping very loudly. Then I noticed the pigeons sitting on our van out the... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 8 May

    The Race is on... (09:59) - My Weight Ticker:   Cassie's Weight Ticker:   Cassie and I are running neck and neck in this losing race! Right now I'm down 5 pounds from her! I'm at 253 and she's now 258 and still losing! Yesterday evening... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Monday 4 May

    Kristin's Semi-Formal (21:17) - My youngest step-daughter Kristin, (I consider all three of my step children; Bill, Heidi & Kristin, as my own. Michele my oldest and Linda my youngest make a total of five kids!) tries on the dress for her semi formal dance at... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Sunday 26 April

    Mouse and Kozmo have their way with Cassie's Lion purse (17:01) - I don't know what they get out of it but Mouse and Kozmo like to get on Cassie's Lion Purse and knead the dickens out of it. It looks very obscene! Mouse has his way with it first. Kozmo checking... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments
    Another Kitty Essay (16:48) - Yesterday I discovered Cubby sleeping on my desk (He is always doing this because he has a better chance of getting a treat this way!) He sort of turned his head towards me as if to say; Cubby: Well! It's... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Thursday 9 April

    78 pounds to go (19:38) -   I got on the scale this morning and discovered to my delight that I'd lost another 4 lbs. Cassie said I had to let her take some pics of me. Here are the best 2: As I was looking... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments
    Spring Party 2009 (02:00) - Today was Tomas' Spring Party (Easter, but they can't say that because of stupid people, but that's a whole other post. Nuff said!) Cassie and I love going to Tomas' parties and concerts, it's one of our favorite perks as... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments
    Kozmo likes to play Peek-A-Boo! (01:38) - Monday on my way back to our bedroom, I passed through the door and stopped short!There was my kitty Kozmo sort of hiding behind the rumpled bed covers. As I watched he popped his head up to see what I... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Saturday 21 March

    Another Cubby encounter of the snackin kind ( A picture essay) (14:08) - Cubby comes in to my office every now and then to make sure I'm behaving myself and mostly cause I hold the key to his heart (Or is it just all the kitty treats!) Cubby: Hey dad! Me: Hi there little... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments
    Bill Bought his first car! (06:30) - Last week after looking through Craig's List My Step Son Bill found a couple of cars he'd thought were interesting enough to check out! So off we went to a place in New Egypt Annies Used cars on RT 537... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Friday 20 March

    To my daughter Linda (08:30) - A few weeks ago on a Sunday night, we got a call from my grandson's dad, Kennan, who by the way is a great dad to Tomas And a good friend to Cassie and Me. He is less like a... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Thursday 12 March

    Naughty Cat! (02:30) - I walked into the bedroom the other day and my cat Kozmo jumped up as if he was doing something he felt he would get yelled at. The conversation went like this: Dad: Kozmo what are you doing! Kozmo: Nuthin... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 5 January

    Our Photo Gallery is back up and running! (02:08) - I had installed the open source program Gallery 2 a few years ago and it was great! Cassie and I stored all our photos on it and my family and friends could view them. Something happened to it several months... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Wednesday 31 December

    Bariactric Surgeries Explained with links (21:11) - One of my friends who is overweight and fighting the battle for many years like me, asked me about my surgery and what I went through before and after my surgery (Gastroplastia Duodenal Switch Surgery ). Well here goes! After... | 0 Trackbacks | 4 Comments

Saturday 27 December

    Good bye to a wornderful sweet kittie Sox (06:53) - We had to have a very sweet and lovable cat put down today. Sox developed a cancerous growth in his mouth. Yesterday he could no longer eat even watered down baby food. This is the first time I had to... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Saturday 20 December

    Today is my sweetie's 54 Birthday (07:55) - Cassie turned 54 today and we celebrated it by my cooking her a wonderful dinner of prime rib steak potatoes and green beans. And for dessert we had a delicious Black forest cake. For Cassie birthday presents she got a... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 23 November

    Surgery minusTwelve days (05:31) - It's been twelve days since my Duodenal Switch Surgery. Yesterday after my first post op visit to Dr Greenbaum I tried some pureed chicken, sweet potato, and peas and decided; FOOD BAAAD! I ate slowly and the yam and peas... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Sunday 16 November

    We Shall Overcome!! (04:39) - I woke from my nap this afternoon. I have been having very strange lucid dreams this week. Not Disturbing just strange. I usually don't remember much of them immediately but every now and then a remnant stays with me. Such... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Saturday 15 November

    Learning Life lessons in an unusual Way (23:44) - When I was growing up my biological father never taught me the life lessons every boy should be taught if he is to be a successful man. Fortunately my mom remarried a man who showed me the love, discipline and... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Saturday 8 November

Tuesday 4 November

Thursday 30 October

    Finally (02:24) - I have finally got a date for my bariatric surgery; November 10th. I have been anxiously awaiting this surgery because of all the problems I have associated with the weight I'm carrying. Not least of which is my back injury.... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Friday 17 October

    Great article on "Grandparants!" and Single Father Parenting (20:27) - This article caught my eye as I was stumbling through the Internet this morning. My being a Pop-pop to 5 wonderful Grandkids and all. Some of the time my children actually listen to my or Cassie's advise, though rarely. But... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 10 October

    Kozmo and Cubby getting along (09:00) - This post is for Jean and Matt When Cassie and I adopted Sox and Cubby Cubby used to chase Kozmo all around the house. I don't think Cubby had any bad intentions towards Kozmo, I believe he just wanted to... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Wednesday 1 October

    Cubby with a big smile 8^) (01:58) - This picture of Cubby, one of our cats is for my "doubting Tomas" daughter who thinks "cats don't smile, only dogs maybe." That she posted in comments under Oooops! Check out that very happy kitty with the big smile Michele!... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Saturday 27 September

Friday 26 September

    Update To Sticker Shock (00:23) - The next day after we purchased our glasses, Cassie and decided to cancel our order. We felt we were taken advantage of, and misled by the advertising at America's Best Eyeglasses. So after discussing our options Cassie called them up... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Monday 22 September

    Sticker Shock! (15:36) - Heidi and I need new glasses. The place we used to go to when we had insurance was great. But now that the union insurance is gone and we now rely on Medicare Cassie and I pay out of pocket... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Saturday 13 September

    Ooops! (19:35) - So, tonight I made Flounder Mediterranean. (I posted the recipe on my Favorite Recipes Blog)Cassie made the white rice and fresh string beans. It was all delicious! I noticed though that the bottom of the oven was really dirty and greasy. I... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Monday 8 September

    First day of school (17:54) - Cassie and I had the privilege of picking Tomas up from school on his first day back from summer vacation. The teacher said he was wonderful and enjoyed his first day! We could tell by the big smile he... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 25 August

Saturday 23 August

    Angel Food Ministries (18:56) - When I became disabled way back in September of 2007 I applied for NJ State Disability. It took a while to get approved and in the meantime there was very little money coming in. When we were approved we were... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments
    Grandparents Day at Tuckerton Seaport and museum (01:00) - Thursday's are Grandparents day at the Tuckerton Seaport and museum. Cassie and I decided we would take our grandson Tomas there yesterday. The three of us went on Sunday, There we had a great time together even though we didn't... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Friday 4 July

Monday 30 June

    I am losing my mind! No one cares... (23:48) - Six years ago when Cassie and I met and decided to get married I went to my pastor friend, Paul and asked him to perform the ceremony. He agreed, but asked to have a talk with the two of us... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Thursday 26 June

    The Tennessee gang has arrived (19:43) - This morning the harsh side of reality hit me in the gut with the force of a shotgun blast of double aught buckshot!  Yesterday after a meeting with our lawyer, we had been discussing our possibility of declaring bankruptcy, we... | 0 Trackbacks | 3 Comments

Thursday 19 June

    My Children are PIGS! (18:48) - So Cassie and I are going through some extreme financial and health woes. I've been out of work since last September due to a severe and progressive back injury. I applied and received NJ State Disabilty which is only good for... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Sunday 27 April

Saturday 19 April

    The Orange Terrorist: A Photo Essay (14:19) - Cassie and I adopted Sox and Cubby a short while ago. Their owner passed away and the little guys had to be put up for adoption. Casie and I shop at Pet smart for our pet supplies, and every time... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 7 April

    F.L.O.W. For Love Of Water (17:01) - I'm not much of an advocate for anything, but after moving into our home in Browns Mills, NJ I realize the precious need for cheap clean water. When we moved here six years ago we had terrible well water. It... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 31 March

Monday 17 March

    Cat Collars (21:31) - Cassie and I don't believe in allowing our cats outdoors. But just in case they manage to get out we decided they should all have collars with tags on them. Just in case... The last kitty to receive his collar... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Wednesday 12 March

    I just wanna be sedated! (13:40) - My life goal right NOW! NUFF SAID! THE RAMONES "I Wanna Be Sedated" Twenty-twenty-twenty four hours to go I wanna be sedated Nothin' to do and no where to go-o-oh I wanna be sedated Just get me to the airport... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 7 March

    Much nicer pictures this time! (12:55) - Yesterday was a beautiful day and so when Cassie and returned from picking up our grandson Tomas from school, we decided it would be fun to play "Bubbles" Tomas' favorite game. Naturally I had to grab some pictures to record... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 22 February

    My Sweetie And Sox (10:16) - My darling Cassie and Sox, one of the newest kitty additions to the family. Sox is a cuddly cat. He loves to cuddle with Cassie when she takes a nap or turns in for the night. Sox is a... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Friday 15 February

    Oh What A Night! (The aftermath) (06:58) - Valentines Day is one of my favorite holidays. I like to be romantic every day with my darling bride Cassie but especially on Valentines Day.     The day started out normally enough. Pain from my back, Cassie was in pain, Tomas... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 4 February

    Bad Morning, Great Afternoon! (21:19) - This morning started out normal enough. I had a terrible night trying to sleep. When I finally woke up this morning Cassie told me Tomas had a half day of school and his mother didn't leave us a message to pick... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Sunday 27 January

    What's up with Amber? (17:04) - Before I met Cassie I was totally ambivalent towards cats. My mom had a cat that deliberately scratched my daughter from my first marriage, across the face when she was just an infant. I saw the incident and can say... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Thursday 24 January

    How To Communicate With Your Cat (21:37) - Today in my email I received a link from a friend; "How To Communicate With Your Cat" I enjoyed the article and had a lot of fun with it. My comments are in bold italics.  Scientists have discovered that cats... | 0 Trackbacks | 5 Comments

Saturday 19 January

    MY EYES! MY EYES! (07:15) - Yesterday I went to a retina specialist to have my eyes examined. (No not my head, though that may need to be done soon. As I have many children) My Opthamologist noticed some retinopathy at my last checkup. (Tiny blood... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Tuesday 15 January

    My Pain Dr. Visit! (17:38) - Today I went to see a pain specialist. Wait let me back up a bit as I haven't posted much about this situation before. I have been suffering from extreme back pain since September last year. I'm not exactly sure... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Tuesday 13 November

    What a week! (19:50) - I am feeling miserable! My shoulder is giving me more problems the last few days. In fact everything hurts. The arthritis in my hands and neck, my shoulder feels like it did when I tore the rotator cuff. My back,... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 5 November

    Physical Torture (I mean therapy) (17:35) - Today was my first day of physical therapy. About a month ago the doctor I had seen for the intense back and leg pain sent me to see a pain management center for an epidural steroid injection into the L-4... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 28 October

    Update on "KIDS!" (12:17) - In my last post I took away the kids video games, and the family access to the Internet telling them that if they didn't learn to pick up after themselves or do their chores that the cable DVR was going to... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Tuesday 16 October

    Kids! (13:59) - My wife and I are disabled. Cassie permanently and hopefully I'm just temporarily disabled. There are seven people in my house. My wife Cassie, myself, my twenty-six year old daughter and her three year old son. My twenty year old stepson, and... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 14 October

    Johnson's Farm (19:22) - What a fantastic day we had today! The weather was perfect! Cassie and I had wanted to take our grandson, little T (Tomas)  to Johnson's farm to get some pumpkins, look at the animals and maybe go for a... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 21 September

    What the hell is going on with me! (09:23) - It's Friday and I've been out of work all week. In fact this is the first time I've been sitting up for more than an hour at the computer at home. About two months ago, just before Cassie and I... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 5 August

    How to Get Your Adult Children to Move Out (07:25) - Cassie and I went on vacation a month ago we had a great stress free week away from work. home and especially the people who have caused the most stress in our lives lately; Our ADULT living at home children! There are... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Wednesday 11 July

    V.A.C.A.T.I.O.N. (18:47) - Monday Cassie and I returned for our vacation. We left the previous Sunday morning and drove up to Mystic Connecticut. Because we left early in the morning the traffic was good to us. We cruised along at about 65 or... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 7 January

    Happy New Year (16:24) - Happy New Year! To all my family, friends and anybody who still stops by to read my seldom posted entries. There never seems to be time to blog anymore. When I was injured and out of work I had all... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 25 December

    Merry Christmas (13:53) - Cassie and I (and the rest of the crew here at The Man's Side) wish all of our family and friends a very Merry Christmas! Walls for the wind, And a roof for the rain, And drinks beside the fire... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 10 December

    Our House! (21:28) - Like the song says: Our house is a very very very fine house. With 3 cats in the house a dog and 2 bunnys in the yard. A bunch of great folks living here and some new Christmas decorations! This... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 10 September

    My conversion is complete... (13:35) - Before I married Cassie four years ago I was a total dog person. I didn't care much for cats, in fact my whole family thought I was a cat hater. Well when I fell in love with Cassie I... | 1 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Tuesday 8 August

    Sunday was interesting... (08:41) - A friend once told me that there was an old Jewish curse that went something like: "May you be blessed with interesting times." I want to find the Ne'er-do'well (Never does well) that blessed me with that curse! Sunday morning... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Saturday 22 July

    Time... is not on my side... (10:45) - There never seems to be enough time to get things done anymore. Everyone tells me it's a downhill slide once you hit 40, It sure seems to be true in my case. Cassie and I had the pleasure of... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Thursday 6 July

    Gram's Party (10:55) - My Brother remarried last year to a wonderful gal. Problem was that he lives waaaay down in Florida and the rest of the family couldn't be there to meet Karen and her son Cody and celebrate with them. My mom... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 25 June

    Alberta's Birthday (09:45) - We celebrated Alberta's 70th Birthday yesterday. It was at Hazards Raintree Restaurant in PA. What a wonderful party it was. Alberta is Cassie's stepmother-in-law from her first husband Rich. I always feel so welcome when we visit them, like... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 19 June

    Robosapien V2 (13:41) - Guess what I got from Billy, Heidi and Kristin for Father's Day? Can't guess? A Robosapian! Wowwee Kazowie!  ... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Thursday 8 June

    Our new Photo Album (23:19) - I just finished installing Gallery 2, an online photo album. I will be posting all my photos here from now on. I still have some changes to make to my blog to make navigation better. and I will be... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Saturday 20 May

    Tomas' new haircut (11:04) - Tomas was looking a little scrufty lately so Linda asked if I could take them to the barber shop, but she wanted to show off her new Toyota Corolla so she drove. We went to Ernie's in town. I have... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 14 May

    Happy Mother's Day (09:45) - Happy Mother's Day! To my Mom, mother of 6 and grandmother of 17, great grandmother of 6. To my wife, mother of three, step-mother of 2, grandmother of 5. To my oldest daughter, mother of 4. To my next... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Friday 21 April

    Lebanon State Park (16:41) - Cassie and I took the girls out to lunch today and for a little drive to the State park near us. Originally we had planned to go to the aquarium or the shore but the girls overslept and Heidi had... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Monday 17 April

    Drive-In nostalgia (07:48) - I saw this post yesterday: Drive-Ins Make A Comeback and started to reminisce about growing up in NJ and visiting some of the many Drive-In theaters we had. Camden, NJ was the home of the first Drive-In theater, invented by... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 10 April

    That's all! (07:59) - Talking to teenagers always reminds me of the first verse of "That's all." by Genesis. It goes like this: Just as I thought it was going alright I find out I'm wrong, when I thought I was right s'always the... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Saturday 8 April

    Kid's are so much smarter these days! (19:12) - Did you ever notice how much smarter kids are nowadays? I remember how dumb my parents were. They used to give me advice on everything, based on their (Heh heh) life experiences. In our house things are no different. Our... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Sunday 12 March

    Our ADD Lab! (10:29) - Our yellow lab Buddy is ADD (A dumb dog). He is such a beautiful, friendly, and mostly lovable dog. He doesn't like to be alone, Yesterday was so beautiful and spring-like you would think he would enjoy being outside in... | 0 Trackbacks | 1 Comments

Saturday 4 March

    Training toilet paper (08:13) - Cottenelle for kids! At first I thought it was a gag, but then I remembered how hard it was for my first wife and me to potty train my younguns to clean up properly and not use too much TP... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 3 March

Wednesday 1 March

    Happy Birthday Michele (19:33) - We tried to call to wish you a Happy Birthday but there is a problem with your phone. Please call us to let us know you're alright. We hope you liked the pictue CD, and you will be getting... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 26 February

    Best Of Show! (17:54) - Heidi's art; "Artificial Respiration" Won Best of show at the Deborah Hospital Heart Challenge at her school Today! The picture just doesn't do justice to the color and the fine details on her art. The reflection from the overhead lights... | 1 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Monday 13 February

    ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! (16:57) - What is it with teenagers! Talking with my teens is like banging my head against the wall. It does no good and only causes excruciating pain. This morning Kristin is leaving to catch the bus, the last thing I said... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Friday 3 February

    FAT FRIDAY AT THE VINCENTOWN DINER (18:54) - Cassie and I decided that we felt well enough finally to leave the house and do some shopping. On the way to ShopRite we stopped at The Vincentown Diner. When we walked in, the very first thing we noticed was... | 0 Trackbacks | 2 Comments

Sunday 29 January

    Still battling this virus (09:32) - We are still battling this awful virus. It has taken residence in our chests, sinus' and throats. And is kicking our butts. Even though we feel a little better than yesterday it is still a battle to get well.... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Friday 27 January

    Everyone's sick (20:56) - Wow! When a virus hits someone in our house, it hits everyone. We all are coughing our lungs out. Kristin showed the symptoms first and I took her to the doc yesterday. Now Cassie and I have it real bad.... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Thursday 26 January

    No work for me at work! (18:41) - The shop where I work is going through a slow period. In my trade as a union sheet metal worker it's either feast or famine. I have gone through many years feasting on a plentiful supply of work. now the... | 0 Trackbacks | 0 Comments

Sunday 22 January

    Bible Quotes (19:25) - I saw this on Cao's blog and decided to repost it here. I've read that many so called historians have said that our forefathers were not Christians. Are not these qoutes the work of men and women devoted to God?... | 0 Trackbacks | 6 Comments

Saturday 31 December

    Happy New Year! (23:00) - To all my loved ones and friends, My prayer to you is for a wonderful and prosperous New Year! May you be blessed with everything you need and most of the things you want! The Man's Side [composed and posted...

Friday 30 December

    Tenneesee road trip (16:20) - Last Friday on the 23rd, at the very last minute, my boss tells me he is shutting the shop down for the Christmas week. The work load is slow and There had been rumors floating around in the shop but...

Saturday 3 December

    We got to spend some time with Tomas today (17:02) - Today is the first time I've seen my grandson Tomas since last April. It was a very nice time. We drove up to the East Brunswick Mall and met my daughter Linda at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore. After a...

Sunday 13 November

    Heidi's new job! (15:28) - Heidi started her new job today, working as a bagger at the local food mart. The poor kid came out of the store thirsty, tired and sore. This is her first real experience in the working world. Fortunately she has... | 1 Comments

Saturday 29 October

    Our tree is gone! (14:53) - The tree in our front yard has been causing us a lot of worry lately. Every time we have a storm or a windy day, we fear it will damage our house. We called Reynolds and Sons Tree service and...

Saturday 1 October

    WE HAVE A NEW DRIVEWAY (18:16) - Yesterday Cassie and I were sitting at our respective computers relaxing and checking our emails, when we heard a quiet knock on our front door. I got up and checked to see who it was. We don't usually get...

Sunday 18 September

    Ever have one of those days? (12:44) - Yesterday was a day of surprises. Kristin had asked if she could have some of her friends over so they could discuss how best to raise money for the victims of hurricane Katrina. The kids were supposed to arrive at... | 3 Comments

Tuesday 23 August

    We miss Tomas and there seems to be no end in sight! (10:23) - Today was the mediation hearing between my daughter and my grandson's father and Cassie and I. We arrived a few minutes early, (Our hearing was scheduled for 8:30 AM) and settled in to wait for the mediator to arrive. We... | 4 Comments

Sunday 21 August

    Road trip! (05:52) - Yesterday Cassie and I took Billy to RPI (Renselaer Polytechnical Institute in troy New York) where he'll be attending college. We left at 6:00 AM. Previously when Cassie took Billy up for orientation they went via the Mapquest directions which... | 3 Comments

Thursday 21 July

    Nana and Pop-pop's House (17:50) - Cassie and I started a new blog called Nana and Pop-pop's House. There you will find information and fun stories Grand-parenting advocacy and other things relating to the grand-parenting scene. Why don't you drop in and visit. Here's the LINK... | 1 Comments

Saturday 16 July

    Home Alone (almost) (12:56) - Cassie and Billy left Thursday afternoon for RPI (Renseler Polytech Institute) in New York for an orientation. Billy will be attending this college in August. This left me and the girls to fend for ourselves for a few days, and... | 1 Comments

Sunday 19 June

    Happy Father's Day! (23:07) - Happy Father's Day to all you dads and soon to be dads and wannabe dads! I've had a very nice day today. I woke up at 5:30 this morning, a lot earlier than I wanted to. Made some coffee and... | 3 Comments

Sunday 12 June

    I can do many things, but I can't do pools! (20:33) - I can do many things. I have a multitude of skills and talents. I can build stuff, fix stuff, you name it and I have probably done it. That kind of stuff comes naturally to me. Oh and I can't... | 6 Comments

Sunday 5 June

    STARWARS Episode III Revenge of the Sith (00:57) - I finally went to see the final move in the Starwars prequel trilogy. Episode III. I was very overwhelmed by it all. I wish I had checked my email before I took the grandkids today. a friend had sent me... | 4 Comments

Saturday 28 May

    Broken Hearts (17:17) - I haven't posted any updates on the situation with my daughter Linda because I didn't think it would do any good. I still don't. There is nothing I can do to change Linda or her mind, so I let go...

Monday 9 May

    To all Mothers everywhere (03:24) - To all Mothers everywhere, especially my own. A Mother's Love There is no love, like a mother's love, no stronger bond on earth... like the precious bond that comes from God, to a mother, when she gives birth. A mother's...

Sunday 24 April

    Dirty Kids Rejoice! (11:18) - Whilst surfing the web this beautiful morning, I came across this wonderful blog dedicated to soap making. It has some fun ideas for making all types of soap. I especially liked the soap bomb idea. Imagine the fun a child...
    Heidi won Best in show for this (02:20) - Heidi's school entered in an art contest for Deborah Heart and Lung and Heidi won best in show! This picture simply does not do the original justice. She is quite an artist! [composed and posted with ecto]... | 4 Comments

Saturday 16 April

    Who do we believe? (06:33) - The other day, after coming home from a stressful day at work, Cassie informed me that Billy was missing six dollars of candy (Billy is doing a fund raiser, to raise money for his robotics club at school). This isn't... | 1 Comments

Sunday 10 April

    Home Alone! (13:25) - Billy has been accepted to a few good colleges; RIT, Georgia Tech and RPI. Cassie left Friday night with the kids to go visit RPI in New York. I stayed home to keep an eye on the pets. Oh! and... | 2 Comments

Tuesday 5 April

    Followup to "What's she thinking?" (22:55) - Cassie and I had it out with Linda, and we asked her to leave our home. She was on the way out the door with her boyfriend, Tomas' father, to take Tomas to the doctor (finally) when I confronted her.... | 2 Comments

Sunday 3 April

    What is she thinking? (19:19) - I discovered while straightening up a mess that Linda left in our living room, that Linda signed papers terminating the child support she receives from Tomas' father Kennan. She told Cassie and I that she only had them reduced. (Yeah... | 3 Comments

Thursday 31 March

    Linda's moving! (02:15) - I was just informed that my daughter Linda has been invited to move to Tennessee to live with her older sister Michele and her husband David and her four kids. Wow! And I thought Michele was over being Linda's baby... | 2 Comments

Thursday 17 March

    Irish prayer and blessings (19:44) - I started a new Tradition today. After thanking God for our food, I read this little Irish prayer and these blessings to my family. Cassie and the kids are predominantly Irish, with a smattering of Norwegian and German thrown in....

Saturday 5 March

    The chronicles of my life (06:00) - It's been a while since I last posted. For those that follow the chronicles of my life, I apologize. I've been back at work for a month now and it's kept me very busy. I get up at ten to...

Tuesday 1 February

    The battle of the bulge! (08:09) - Our whole family is trying to get in shape, lose weight and stay healthy. This morning I was engaged in a different battle of sorts. Cassie was up late babysitting our grandson Tomas, so I agreed to get up at...

Monday 24 January

    The Blizzard of 2005! (07:54) - Schools closed today, (Go figure) and Cassie and I are going to have to entertain the troops. Today is Kristin's Birthday so whatever we do will have to involve getting a Birthday cake and other related stuff. Here's a few... | 1 Comments

Saturday 22 January

    Well the weather outside is frightful... (20:35) - What a day! This morning we got up a 5:45 AM to get Billy and Heidi to their SAT test by 7:45 am. The test is in a different location than where Billy took it last, so we had to...

Thursday 13 January

    Heidi Land (12:59) - In our house there are many different worlds. There is the Land of Ted and Cassie, adults, parents, husband and wife, where we put each other and the children before ourselves. We work hard to provide for our family and... | 2 Comments

Tuesday 11 January

    Old age and diapers (15:24) - You might think by reading the title that this is about older folks who have to wear Depends or some other incontinence undergarment, but it's not. Last night Linda had to work. The standing order, is that if her son...

Monday 3 January

    Dr. Phil's Ultimate Weight Loss Solution (21:27) - Cassie and I haven't really talked about this but we need to loose weight, a lot of weight. So does everyone else in the household, with the exception of Tomas, my grandchild. Cassie had picked up Dr Phil's "The Ultimate... | 2 Comments
    The Blues (00:41) - I've been feeling miserable all day today. I was irritable, achy and so I went to bed right after dinner. Big mistake! Now it's 12:30 am and I'm WIDE awake. I figured I'd surf BE awhile and try to write...

Tuesday 28 December

    Christmas Pics (21:14) - Here are some pictures from the Opening on Christmas day....
    The After Christmas Blues (Or how we survived the Ho Ho Ho's) (12:45) - The Thursday before Christmas I started to get a Sinus infection, Heidi also wasn't feeling very well so we went to see the doctor. We both were told that we had the same sinus infection. The doctor (Nurse Practitioner actually)...

Saturday 25 December

    Merry Christmas! (20:55) - Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! Hmmmm, where have I heard this before. Oh well, beats the Dickens out of me. Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for the New Year "Thank You for Being a Special...

Friday 24 December

    What a great solution to the naughty or nice dilema! (09:40) - Cassie and I have the same problem with our children at times. We have faced the same situations, with the same disciplines and the same results. Most of the time they are good, but every so often they can try...

Sunday 19 December

    Happy Birthday Cassie! (17:48) - Cassie turned fifty today! For her Birthday we went to the movies to see Lemony Snickets, "A series of Unfortunate Events." Then afterward we had her Birthday diner at TGI Fridays. It was a very nice day in spite of...

Sunday 12 December

    The Roofers! (19:17) - Several days ago I called a Roofer to estimate the cost of fixing a leak around the bathroom vent pipe and a possible leak in the family room roof. John gave me a good estimate and said they would be...

Thursday 9 December

    Adventures in Christmas Shopping! (15:23) - Cassie and I went Christmas shopping yesterday. We got a list of everyones wants and desires and off we went. Our first stop was Kohls, they were having a half price sale. Normally Cassie and I have no problem shopping... | 2 Comments

Monday 6 December

    I love my kids! (21:44) - I really do! Even when they do their best to make Cassie and I crazy. I understand that their job as teenagers is to disrupt the household, to make a mess as often as they can. To need us to... | 2 Comments

Thursday 2 December

    Scampered like a squirel! (09:57) - Yesterday morning I called a roofer to get an estimate on the cost to fix our roof. I had to leave a message on his machine. I gave my name, number and a brief description. Then I said that I...

Thursday 25 November

Wednesday 24 November

    Update to "What a relief!" (15:39) - The check we have been expecting from that rotten insurance company came in the mail today! It was for the full amount they owed us! The best part was, they acknowledged they were wrong! Nah, the best part was getting...

Monday 22 November

    What a relief! (19:40) - I've been out of work for two years due to a work place injury. I've had to have three surgerys to correct my shoulder(rotator cuff). I was receiving Workman's Comp up until May of this year. The insurance company (Selective)... | 3 Comments

Thursday 18 November

Tuesday 9 November

    Never make promises you may not be able to keep! (11:50) - I saw this post today on Tech Central. Schoolboy sues mom for not buying him a PC When I was growing up my parents never made promises to me. It was always, "If we can afford it we will..." or... | 1 Comments

Sunday 7 November

    Incredible! (19:26) - Cassie and I took the family to see the Incredibles this afternoon. In the beginning, the movie sounded just like it does here at home kids fighting and nasty towards each other and I wasn't very enthusiastic. But it... | 1 Comments

Friday 5 November

    A Picture Story of my grandson (21:42) - I made a picture story of my grandson Tomas with Microsoft Picture Story 3 from some Halloween pictures I took. Click the link to open in Media Player. (A pop up window will open the Media player) View Video...

Monday 1 November

    Vampires in our midst! (20:59) - Read Third party carriers suck our blood... | 1 Comments
    The Young Entrepreneurs! (20:46) - Every time Cassie and I ask the kids to do something that isn't one of their regular chores we get; how much are you gonna pay me or I'll do it for ten bucks. It's exasperating. When we were growing... | 1 Comments

Saturday 30 October

    Our shed has a new roof! (19:28) - My brother Tim came over today to help me put a new roof on our utility shed. Actually he did all the work and I just assisted him. The shed is attached to our house and our hot water heater...

Friday 29 October

    One more day! (12:26) - I have one more day of physical therapy! It has been a long battle getting my shoulder back into shape. last January, 2003, I tore my rotator cuff at work. It took two months for the third party insurance carrier...

Tuesday 26 October

    My Grandson isn't feeling well (22:19) - Linda took my grandson Tomas to the doctor today. He was haveing difficulty breathing, coughing and not feeling his usual cheerful self. He is one of the happiest babies I've ever seen, not the last couple of days though. The... | 2 Comments

Monday 25 October

    Can't sleep! (05:46) - What a drag it is getting old. It seems the older I get the harder it is to get a good nights sleep. After a potty trip at 2:30 AM I went back to bed and just lay there. I...

Tuesday 12 October

    On their way home! (21:51) - Linda and Tomas are leaving for home tomorrow. They went to visit my Daughter Michele in Tennessee. Cassie and I have missed them a bunch, so have the kids. Yaaaaaaa! The old homestead just hasn't been the same without them....

Wednesday 6 October

    Good News! (12:54) - Cassie and I are at the end of our savings, we started to burn them up when my company's insurance carrier flat out refused to continue my Workman's Comp benefits. This morning we started calling our creditors to see if...

Sunday 3 October

    Moving on (16:07) - three years ago on October 5th, Audrey my first wife passed away after a hard battle with PPH, Primary Pulmonary Hypertension. It was heartbreaking to see her suffering with this disease. I had read all the information I could find... | 3 Comments