Although it seems that way sometimes.

I saw a post on Fark today from pet owners lamenting the spike in Christmas gift returns – to animal shelters. This guy posted a picture of his dog with the caption, “Every day he acts like he won the lottery.” I wish to be like that dog.

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Headline: “Homeless man hit by car”

Except that he isn’t just some homeless guy; he is my friend. Also, he isn’t homeless anymore. He had just gotten sober after years of insobriety. He had just secured an apartment and was moving in last weekend. He was working 2 carpentry jobs to pay his way. The sort of fellow that shows up and grabs a reflective vest and says, “Let me help direct traffic” for church downtown. He’s seriously farked up. Hip, femur, arm, various other bones broken. Countless contusions. Another friend said, “I’m praying hard for that guy.” He needs it, so if you’re the praying type, pray for Ron.

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It turns out I don’t like being home alone all that much. In my former life, a night alone would be like vacation. Free rein, sky’s the limit, let’s do stuff we can’t normally do! Except that now with Life 2.0, I find that time alone is rather boring. I enjoy the company of Wife 2.0. and when she’s not around I tend to think of my Dad’s later years, home alone without a companion. Mom was in a nursing home, and Dad found things to occupy some of his time – but there was a lot of leftover time. Oh, the things I could do if I only had time… Turns out I can chew through a buttload of time without much to show for it.

*****

I do not like stripping the paint off 110 year old doors. Not one bit. It’s a chore from the desk of Hell Middle School’s history teacher. But as I’ve been reminded (repeatedly), I volunteered for that chore.

It still sucks.

Hopefully the weather warms up enough so I can get fresh paint on these doors tomorrow, for they are the devices that keep cats off my head overnight. I’ve missed them being in their places, these sentries against feline invasion.

*****

Tomorrow we’re getting a new driveway. Yay! No more squelching of thick, sticky mud every time Iwant to get in the car. Fresh gravel for all – and maybe a year without having to mow the driveway! It’s entirely likely that I’ll get to drive a Bobcat too. If you haven’t operated a Bobcat, go rent one. They’re hella fun!

There, now I’m only 2 posts overdue.

I got my blog stats for last year from WordPress. Really neat report they provide, with all kinds of stats and graphics. Great big banner across the top with fireworks for each post in the year.

I had one firework. (pip)

Hmm, seems the ol’ blog has been somewhat neglected. It falls in the same category with everything else I intend to do but don’t because I sit down with a cocktail after work and stay pretty much sat for the night. It’s a wonder I manage to eat dinner and wind up in bed with my teeth brushed.

Maple and brown sugar Malt-O-Meal is the breakfast of kings. I can’t find it around here or in Michigan, but did manage to smuggle 4 boxes from California in the luggage.

There was an airplane I was gonna buy, but it got sold to another person who didn’t bother with pesky things like a pre-buy inspection. It’s for the best, I’m sure – I really have no business owning an airplane today. Someday I fully intend to have one, but there are a few things that should take precedence. I guess. These are the things I tell myself.

Happy 2012, I’m off to finish a job that should have been done by Thanksgiving!

One of the Christmas prezniks requested from my LOML was a post every week. This is the first installment on that request. She’s out picking up the Things so we can celebrate a little Tiny House Christmas together, so this’ll be brief & sneaky.

Much has happened this year, much indeed. So many stories, so I shouldn’t have trouble filling space with just the last few calendar pages even if nothing else occurs this year.

Last week we traveled to one of my favorite places on the planet, Clarksburg CA. My aunt, uncle, and many cousins are there. It’s a very small town, and they’re not even in it. Rural cubed, I’d say. Lots of farmland which is quickly becoming vineyards. My cousin Jeff gave me a couple local vintages as a gift, if you ever have a chance to snag some Bogle (very easy) or Elevation 10 (less easy) wine, do so – it’s fantastic!

Peace and chicken grease to y’all, and to y’all a good night!

Freakin’ Facebook. I’ve become accustomed to checking in on friends in 90 seconds, then maybe a cuppa times a week writing a status update that takes all of 10 seconds. It’s made it so easy connect that I almost never do, truly.

On the upside, I did meet a high school friend in Richmond last week thanks to Facebook. I hadn’t seen him in 23 years, so there was plenty to talk about over lunch at Sticky Rice. It was amazing to count the similar yet wildly divergent paths we took since growing up in a very conservative town.

My flight lessons are progressing (too slowly for my preference, I’ve had more cancelled flights than realized ones because of weather), and each is probably worthy of a story. That’s what I’ll do then.

But for now, I must finish the kitchen (finally) for the Mother of Tiff is arriving tonight for the Easter weekend, and it must be ship-shape. I leave you with a picture of Shortcake (my daughter’s gnome). He’s going on adventures before going to be with her, any suggestions?

I’ve been known to say that on many an occasion. About lots of things. I am sooooo skilled at procrastination, I’ve convinced some folks that I’m getting right on their issue while totes giving them the blow-off.

Don’t worry, I do it to myself too. Frequently.

Things like going jogging, balancing the checkbook, writing letters, doing paperwork, computing estimates… All things that would benefit mankind in general and me specifically, I can put off with a deft hand and ease of well-excused conscience.

I suspect I’m not alone in procrastinating, but that only aids and abets my lazy-ass ‘manana’ attitude. I wonder, are some people born go-getters and others born come-what-mays? Can it be overcome, like homosexuality?

Mark Twain’s autobiography was published today, 100 years after his death – as prescribed by the author. He sure knew how to sell a book. I might buy it.

I’mma go eat some pizza and swim in the hotel pool. Please comment so I know whether to keep this blog.

Speaking of which, got to visit my kinfolk in California not once but twice this year (most of ‘em anyway). This is special because the normal schedule averages out to once every 8 years. Took lots of pictures and did lots of stuff.

But first, here’s what they do for fun in New Zeeland:

**********UPDATE

This post has been interrupted by a tiny little spark, one that caused my old laptop to go dark forevah.

Gone are all the photos I didn’t back up, all the music I’ve collected one or two discs (or songs) at a time, and many other keepsake-type things.

Off to make new memories and back them up religiously. Since today’s the day I get over it, I’ll just hit ‘post’ and make the next post a good one.

It’s been a heckuva couple months. I’ve been out of sorts and completely out of what I’d like to be ‘normal’ routine since Dad’s funeral. Haven’t felt much like doing a great many things; sometimes I do them anyway, and sometimes I just play 30 games of Freecell in a row. I’ve won 2141 out of 2545 games since the last resetting of scores. Work is picking up a bit, which is nice – just need to get more consistent. That’s always been my complaint though, ever since grade school – maybe consistency is only for the undead. And good cake batter.

At any rate, my disjointed thoughts strongly mirror my very life lately. Intentions that go unrealized and spur-of-the-moment bursts of activity that come without forethought are par for the course.

*****

The Guatemala trip was very worthwhile, both less and more exhausting than I thought it would be. It affected me much more than I expected or wanted it to. The people operating in the place impressed me as the most genuine, giving, and world-changing folks I’ve ever met. The place impressed me as a place I would pay any price to leave, and I would not want to spend a night there without the assurance that it was for some good – and for a limited time only. It’s been a solid month since departing, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to articulate all that I experienced (including the post-trip processing).

I will definitely go back.

*****

After Guatemala, I spent almost a week doing ‘normal’ life stuff like work and coming home every night for dinner, then cleaned Lurch of all but the necessary tools and headed for Michigan. My Dad’s house needs a lot of work, so it’s up to me and my sisters to do it. They’re well suited for sorting documents and making phone calls and doing many of the newly minted necessary tasks, but not so much for remodeling a bathroom or moving furniture.

I headed out Friday morning, drove 13 hours, and arrived just before the grocery store in town closed. I had time to grab a box of cereal, some milk, tortilla chips, and a bag of oranges. Forgot the coffee, which was dreadful but understandable since the manager was practically following me around to make sure I left quickly. It was strange walking into Dad’s house alone; that had never happened before. Much went on that week that was blog-worthy, but the DSL was disconnected until Tuesday. By then, the work and moving were in full swing, and by the end of the day I was literally passed out in the La Z Boy in front of Robot Chicken and had no gumption to write.

A week went by, tile was installed, much furniture moved, a tractor extracted from the garage, and a trailer-load of property was hauled back to the Tiny House. I brought home  a couple of the smaller model airplanes (55″ wingspan), the La Z Boy, a bookcase, and Dad’s motorcycle. It’s a small machine, and not very comfortable for cruising – but he loved it. It’s low to the ground (for easy step-over), has a windshield & saddle bags, and can make a respectable roar. I ride it whenever I have a few minutes and a short trip to make.

On the way home, which was supposed to be Thursday but turned into Friday because the work wasn’t done enough, it started snowing like mad. By the time I reached Cleveland I could barely see, and the turnpike was becoming slushy. Wound up at a Holiday Inn Express (I love those places, mostly for the cinnamon rolls) while the snow raged on. By morning it was better, because in the North they have lots of trucks to deal with the white shiat. Finally got home Saturday night, sore from the drive and with the trailer’s contents heavily soiled by slush. By the time I reached the VA-NC border, all snow was gone and the skies were blue. I love the south (but brought home a snow shovel just in case).

*****

Lately I’ve been involved with a project at an enormous power plant. It’s great to have a big juicy job to work on, building countertops for the control rooms. We went out there Friday to install the first of four phases, and it’s the kind of place I could spend a day just looking around at things. There are dozens of gigantic cranes, semi-loads full of a single pipe (there are pipes that you could fit 4 city buses into with room for a dozen Camrys); it’s like a space port from the movies. Over 2000 construction workers are on site every day, and the safety requirements are the most rigorous I’ve encountered. The site is about 4 hours from home and one hour from a proper commerce center – there’s no Home Depot just around the corner if we forget something. Today I drove to Richmond to pick up material for the next phase, which will occupy me until the end of Monday. Hope to come back with pictures, if perhaps I can find a not-dead camera.

*****

The band played this past weekend, and while it was good fun, the crowd was not as lively as usual. It’s much more fun to have a floor full of dancing partiers than a bar full of scattered mildly disinterested patrons nursing drinks and shooting pool. The next gig promises to be closer to the dance hall variety – you should be there, we’re even shooting a video.

*****

I thought of a post to post about bad kissing, but it’ll have to wait ’till next time because I have a raging case of PAS and am going to bed.

Adios y’all!

*****

Thanks for you kind words & prayers. It means a lot to me. I’ve been well-supported by friends, and I am thankful.

*****

We traveled to Michigan, made funeral arrangements, began sorting through the mountain of Dad’s stuff and papers, had visitation and a funeral, cried a bit, saw lots of family and old faces, racked up significant dollars on the credit card, divvied up inheritance items, and returned home. There’s so much that happened in that week, it’s hard to believe it all.

What pissed me off the most was the crass salesmanship of funeral homes and cemeteries. They seem to expect that folks will do whatever it takes in a time of grief, and never miss an opportunity to upsell. While having lunch directly after the funeral service, a lady walked up and showed me this lovely memorial plaque they had made, with a picture and little engraved nameplate. I munched on my ham sammich while she explained that ‘this one is for you, and you can order more, but they cost $40 each.’ I managed to remain polite, but it took strong filtering.

Dad had purchased a 2-place crypt 20+ years ago, but that didn’t include opening and closing. You know what it costs to remove 4 screws, slide a casket in, and put the granite cover back in place? $1652. And, they’ll charge that much again when it’s Mom’s time to go. They suggested we could pre-pay for her services, to ensure we wouldn’t have to pay more later. My sister, the vet tech, said they treat people with more dignity when dealing with the loss of a pet.

We found the most recent will was drawn up in 1984. Mom’s MS was not dominating her life, we kids were still living at home, there were no grandkids, and the estate was in a very different state. It would have been good to have a more recent set of instructions.

*****

On tap this month: Meet with a lawyer and write up our estate plans, play a couple back-to-back gigs with the band, immediately after the 2nd gig hop on a plane to Guatemala for a week-long visit with these folks, come back to Raleigh, and drive up to Michigan to help my sisters with the estate. Trips to Goodwill, storage, and various houses with furniture and stuff and more stuff. Need to fix up the house a bit, perhaps have an estate sale, and rent out the house. It’s daunting, but doable.

*****

Woke up at 4 this morning to rescue my shelter tent from the snow. We’ve got one of these that I put up on the back deck for parties and to keep my tools out of the rain during projects (we have a shower replacement underway), but they don’t tolerate nasty weather that well. This is my 3rd one, the first blowing over in a bad windstorm, the second collapsing under a freak rain event, and this one was starting to give out from a pile of icy, slushy snow. After knocking the snow off and bending a few struts back into place, I think it’s saved from this storm.

I got sleds, I got boots, but a snow shovel I don’t got. Time to see if there are any for sale.

He had gone into the hospital a couple weeks ago for a UTI and some issues with his diabetes. Last night he had a little trouble breathing, and after about an hour died of respiratory failure.

Dad was a faithful Christian, husband, father of three, grandfather of five, chaplain to prisoners, and genuine good man.

I miss him already.