Existing In BFE

This is one of those priceless pictures that means a lot to me.  This is a football game that we played in Seaton one Fall weekend.  I have no idea what year this was, but he bike in front was either Mark's or mine, so it had to have been pre-16 years of age.  The lot is half ours and the other half is Arminta McKelvey's.  We used this area for baseball games, too and more than once we busted one of Arminta's windows. I'm not certain but I think I'm the one second from right in the red flannel shirt.  I'm not sure of anyone else in the picture but it looks like Dad on the other team just at the phone pole. Mark and Phil would have been here, too.  We had so many for the game that we even had a bench over to the far left.      This is brother Phil pulling Mark and I around the neighborhood.  Looks like we're over at Mabel and Roy's right next door.  My mom's parents, Dick and Mona Westlake.  They liv...

WARNING***WARNING***WARNING NEXT TUESDAYS  POST IS UNBELIEVABLE AND MAY CAUSE YOU DISTRESS.  PLEASE AVOID IT IF YOU ARE FAINT OF HEART, ON HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICINE, GIVEN TO DRINK OR OTHERWISE IGNORANT OF THE WAYS OF THE WORLD.  YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

One of the cooler things to do down here on a Saturday is to attend the Farmer's Market. Of course there's relatively few farmers around, all manner of vendors are present. I think there's only one produce vendor but there's virtually everything else to be had. Bring cash because not many of these guys take VISA, and be prepared to spend. There are lots of neat things you won't find anywhere else. Good strawberries here, and all kinds of veggies. If you can't find it at the Market, you've got your eyes closed.  Brendan and his mother checking out green stuff.             These guys from a local school came marching up the street.                                              Mama here just gotta ...

I don't like cats. Let me repeat. I don't like cats. I wonder why people like cats, and I wonder why guys like cats, too. It's not natural. Anyway, I happen to live with 2 cats. One is brownish with splots of other colors and the other one is orange. I don't like them. They don't bring much to the table. They don't like walks, they don't fetch, they don't love affection, nor do they give it. One of the cats I live with has a psychosis. Every night it goes to a waste basket and methodically hauls stuff out into the hallway. Sometimes its just a wadded up paper or two. You can hear it when it comes out, it makes a kind of wail. It deposits the paper and then heads back for more. This is a picture of the hallway when I woke up this morning. It was a very busy cat last night. I hate cats. This is the cat that likes to take the garbage out. And this is the other cat I live with. It doesn't take the trash out, or anything else for that matter.

Strawberry shortcake.  Strawberry shortcake.  Strawberry shortcake.   I'm a sucker for a lot of things.  Add strawberry shortcake to the list.  Like that beautiful bowl of berries above, Bisquick shortcake and a perfect balance of cold milk.  Other pleasures in no particular order: 1. morel mushrooms  2.  homemade Ice cream 3. chocolate 4. a weepy old movie 5. old cars 6. dogs 7. oysters 8. a day at the beach 9. rainy days 10.  A good ride with friends on the bike 11. catfish with lima beans 12. sleeping with a cool breeze blowing through the window 13. breakfast 14. anything on a grill 15.  rhubarb pie 16. riding to Florida with your wombie 17. a freshly mown lawn 18. a good book 19. anything at DQ 20. Jerry's Pizza, then any other kind 21. A good baseball game 22. a cold beer with a small group of friends 23. a well made Bloody Mary 24. the smell of a newborn 25. finding a $20 dollar bill you stuck in your bil...

                             We had a lot of fun in our back yard on Chambers Street.  We transformed a bland back yard into a garden.  We had at fish ponds, and patio and pergola, with annuals, biennials and a shrinking area to mow.  We also had great neighbors.  We had Tiki nights, street parades, and one time we even had an Hawaii-themed party. I've still got my Samoan skirt.  I should wear it once in a while down here, as it seems that I would fit in in some areas. Kenzie and Sharon. Tom, Andrew, me and Pat de-briefing after the bash. The usual participants to Tiki Nights were the Gerdes's, the Makeevers, and the Harrisons.  The Hawaiian Night was attended by Pat and Marty as well.   Our back yard was phenomenal and I miss the beauty of it, but not the work.     ...

My HTC Eris, which was still under warranty, developed dead areas on the touchpad.  We rebooted at Verizon but that proved fruitless so they offered me a replacement or an iPhone at a reduced price.  Because I am on Mackenzie's account because it reduces the cost for both of us, and since she gets further company discounts through New York Store, I took the plunge and went Apple. The thing is made of glass instead of plastic, and has a heft to it my Eris didn't.  Don't worry about breaking it, though, because it is the stuff they make helicopter windshields out of: 20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic.     The screen graphics, called Retina Display, is clear, crisp, easy to see and read and has more pixel density than any other cell phone, so they say.  The above graphic is from a blog I follow religiously, something called, "Existing In BFE". It has some pretty neat apps like the Garmin-like navigator mapping system....

Back in college I had just discovered Elton John from my older brother. This was early Elton, very early before he devolved into crappy music, cringe-worthy stage costuming, and flamboyant social jet-setter. If you listen to his early stuff it was pretty decent and I liked it a lot. One of his first albums was a little thing called Friends , and ended up being a soundtrack for a movie of the same name. The plot of the movie was typical for the time: anti-establishment, youth-as-saviors-to-corrupt-society, and free love. The plot from Wikipedia: "In this teen romance, a young neglected English boy (Sean Bury) runs away and becomes friends with a French girl (Anicée Alvina) in the same flight. Together, they go to an idyllic marsh location in France (the Camargue), become lovers, set up housekeeping, have a baby, and play at being responsible adults, discovering along the way many of the troubles involved, before ultimately becoming separated by police responding to a missing p...

We obtained 4 tickets to attend a Sunday (March 13) afternoon ballgame at Al Lang Field, aka, Progress Energy Park. This stadium used to be the Spring home of several major league clubs including the Mets. Today's game was between the minor league players of the Philadelphia Phillies and the national team of the Netherlands. We saw a couple of homers and the day was beautiful. Nice afternoon, sparse crowd, hot sun, and thanks to Drew and Brendan who accompanied us. Progress Energy Park, better known as Al Lang Field. Introductions and the national anthems of Netherlands and US.                                     Plenty of seats available at the ballpark.                         ...

So hard even a Cave Man can't do it. Nice hair buddy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Personal Information Last Name First Name Middle Name Suffix Booking No. STAFFORD ADRIAN 11012566 Eyes Hair Build Current Age Height Weight SOID SOID Name BRO BRO LAR 40 6'04 200 00523736 STAFFORD,ADRIAN Race Sex Ethn POB DOB Arrest Age SSN B M N FL 01/16/1971 40 ###-##-#### --------------------------------------------------------------------- Aliases Aliases Date OF Birth Social Security Number COBERT,JERRY 01/16/1971 ###-##-#### COLBERT,ADRIAN L 06/16/1972 ###-##-#### COLBERT,TERRIE 07/16/1971 ###-##-#### COLBERT,TERRY 06/16/1971 ###-##-#### COLEMAN,JERRY 09/15/1971 ###-##-#### JACKSON,ADRAN LAMER 08/16/1971 ###-##-#### JACKSON,ADRIAN L 08/16/1967 ###-##-#### JACKSON,GREGORY LAMAR 04/16/1967 ###-##-#### JACKSON,KENNETH LAMONT 07/16/1970 ###-##-#### JACKSON,TERRY 01/16/1971 ###-##-#### LIL JACKIE 01/16/1971 ###-##-#...

Seaton was a great place to grow up. Although it was a small place, as a kid you never know there is a big world out there. As a kid your world is only the home, the community and your friends. And there, in this sleepy town of 350, that was quite enough. This is an old post card of main street Seaton in the early part of the 20th century.  At one time the village had a lot of businesses and by the time were were growing up the place still had a grocery, newspaper, gas station, auto repair shop, grain elevator, restaurant, lumber yard, Masonic lodge, a couple trucking companies, veterinarian, church, and bank.  The only things left now is the cafe, church and bank.  This is how it looks now Looking north from the old depot. Not much left now, but the memories are still there.  We had on at least two occasions a "homecoming" when they brought in fair rides.  I can recall driving a go-cart.  The old school is gone, ...

1.  I thought China owned the US.  But everywhere I go on TV I hear Brits.  I hear a Brit in Larry King's old show, and a Brit is one of the CNN anchors at the 6:00 am and a different one at 6:00 pm slots.  I like to hear them talk but just because they lost their empire doesn't mean they have to take what is left of ours.  And now that there is a heavy news watching period, what with Japan and Libya,  Lord there are even more.  It doesn't make me racist or ethnist (I love the Brits, RB and Karen), but it makes me feel like I'm not in America.  It's like I'm in Manchester or Nottingham and watching the BBC.  By the way is there any way we can get Wolf Blitzer to work for BBC? 2.  And speaking of the Brits.  On the last Oscar show, the American grunge and slowing educational system was on full display.  Natalie Portman sloshed through a rambling incoherent speech for Best Actress, while Melissa Leo wowed us...

Spotted on 34th Street in St. Pete about two weeks ago. First, get a load of that car. It's a GEM which is an electric car. Here is what I found for these unique vehicles: "GEM battery-electric vehicles are classified as low-speed vehicles, or neighborhood electric vehicles, and are street legal in nearly all 50 states on public roads posted at 35 mph or less. With a top speed of 25 mph, GEM cars have a range of up to 30 miles on a charge and are great for traveling around city centers, gated communities, resorts, sports stadiums, job sites, or neighborhoods. GEM vehicles are battery-electric, operate on a 72-volt battery system and plug into a standard 110-volt outlet. What makes GEM vehicles so unique is that they can be recharged anytime, anywhere a 110-volt outlet is available and recharge in approximately six to eight hours." The above model, the GEM e4 starts at around $11,500 MRP which seems awful high for a glorified golf cart. Secondly, guess the fami...