Another Year Shot!!

A sure sign of the season, sidewalks full of stuff that is hard to walk through, lots of cars being towed away because they are in the way of the big trucks trying to get close to the curbs.

This time of year and the high price of fuel just reinforces the decision to go carless this past year. It's a little tiring walking down the unshoveled sidewalks, but I guess I need to toughen up a bit. This past Saturday we got about 5 inches of new snow here in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, just a taste of what may come. I should be thankful, Grand Marais, on the north shore of Lake Superior, got 24 inches. Tomorrow, on Tuesday, the forecast calls for another storm to materialize around midday through the evening rush hour, should be interesting. I'm not too concerned, I have held a commercial drivers license for more than 30 years and have been driving since I was 16, I'm now 60, but it's the others out there that scare me. Most people still drive bumper to bumper and are either going too fast or too slow, both are a danger. Of course, the main problem is that most are in too much of a hurry to get where they may never get. After driving, for a living, for so many years, you learn that you just have to be patient if you are to get where you are going at all. There is something to be said for leaving early and not hurrying. Just accept the fact that we are not in control and we may be late! 

Now that I have that off my shoulders, I'm done.

The Continuing Saga

I had mentioned last time that I was doing some research on my family history. The contact that I had made in Sweden ended up being very fruitful. I was able to get information on both my Grandfather and Grandmother on my Father's side of the family. A distant relative sent me info dating back to the 1600's, it is quite interesting, we're still mostly a bunch of farmers, but it has been interesting to see what they had to go through to get to the US.
Last Sunday I took a little road trip to the northern part of the state to roam some cemeteries, searching for grave stones. Boy was I Unprepared for the time involved. Lots of walking up and down the rows. I had some information, but not enough. Next time a lot more research needs to be done. Perhaps I'll live long enough to see the task through, If not I'm hoping my daughter, Amy, will take up the banner. She, so far, has been the only one showing some interest in this task. I traced my wife's family back to England and the 1600's all she said was ok.
The reduction of work hours has, I guess, been a small blessing as I have been able to spend a little more time on the geneology search than I would have if I was working 40 hours. And just when I thought I had finished getting all of the family pictures into the computer, my sister, Marie, gave me three albums of old black and white pics that my Dad had taken.. I'm at it again!!!

Soon....

PAY ATTENTION!!

Didn't pay close enough attention to the schedule for today, got up early and went to work. What I thought was a 10:00 start was in reality a 2:15 start. Walked back home and got in the computer.
The last few months I have been researching the family tree. Being an old history buff it has been a great direction for that interest. A lot of the information that I have, was handed down to me from others, on my Mom's side of the family. It was a great start, but I found that information varies a great deal, depending on which side of the family it comes from. I discovered a great site, Ancestry.com, and in using this site I have run into family that I did not know exsisted. Most of the family still resides in MN but I also made contact in Oklahoma and New York. My Mom's side of the family was fairly easy to find info on, my Father's side has been another story all together. All of the previous generation has passed on so no first hand information is available. I did make a contact through Ancestry in Sweden that may prove to be informative, I can only wait and see.
I also have been scanning into the computer, all of the boxes of pictures I have accumulated over the years. If I had realized what a chore it was going to be I probably would have paid someone else to do it. It is not only time consuming but tedious. The only saving grace is that I have Photoshop Elements to ease the task. I think my daughter is about to end my life because of the amount of time I spend on the computer.
Enough chatter for now.
Later...



1966 GTO at Minnesota Dragways Coon Rapids, MN

New OLD Challenge

Didn't think that I would have to do this again (job search). At my age it's not the most desirable activity. Working for someone else you always run the risk of pissing someone off. The boss sets some perameters concerning the job and whenever he feels like, he changes them. Sometimes you can adapt, but it gets a little crazy when he doesn't tell you! So... Today I get to make some phone calls, it's not like I have a lot of choices on what to do, but you do the best you can. Guess that I should have made better choices years ago. Too late to cry over spilled beer! Anyone know of a decent paying driving job? Keep you all posted!

Later...

TimeFly

WOW! Labor Day weekend....
Notice how when you are young the time seems to crawl because you want to grow up and as you get older things seem to speed up? When you get to the other end of the rope (the frayed end!) it would be great if things would stay SLOW.
Oh well, the sand is running out of the glass so it really is 3/4 empty not 3/4 Full. That is a bummer, there is a lot more I'd like to screw up!!
Later...

getting started

This is something new for me. I'm used to an AGE of other forms of communication and also my keyboard skills are not the best. CREATURE'S skills are better. I thought I'd try my hand at this for a while.
It's raining here today, an unusual thing for this summer, it's been hot and very dry in the north for some time and the ground needs it. The plan was to go to the video store today but that may change, it just depends on how much wetness I can put up with. I guess I can look for the umbrella, but it is awkward on the bus... Is this boring or what?
Later.