Rambling Along...

New Era (part three)

2009-01-30T16:10:00.002-05:00

It's hard to describe a "new era" in one simple post, so this is part three of my story. Please bear with me, if you are so inclined and hear more about the changes in my life. Let start by saying that while change is tough, especially changes that are not wanted, or expected, they have all created a better situation for me. Of course the change in our country's leadership is still up for debate as to whether it is good or not... but that's a topic for another time!

If you didn't read the last few posts, let me do a quick review:

I have become single again, and started dating again.
I got fired from my job of 15+ years, but I got a new job working at a company that I enjoy.
We have a new president of our country

A few things haven't changed, but are significant to the rest of the story:

I still have my wonderful car, a red 2006 Chevy HHR.
I still have the duplex that I bought in May of 2007.
I still have the marital home that my ex-wife returned to me.
I still have my health.
I still have four wonderful kids, and
a semi-decent outlook on life.

This past September I moved into the marital home. The place isn't the best place in the world, and feel free to read any of the stream about the marital home if you want to catch up. The place is still in serious need of repairs, especially on the inside, from all of the water damage from when the roof was leaking, and from the lack of maintenance on the place in the last 10+ years. The good news is that because of this move, that the other half of the duplex became available for rent, and I was able to find a tennet.

My oldest daughter, "One", was having a rough time keeping up with her bills, and needed a cheaper place for her and her boyfriend, "PlusOne," to live. She asked if I would "cut her a deal", because she couldn't afford the full rent I was asking for. I agreed because, well, she's my baby, and I couldn't say no. She moved in around Thanksgiving, and during the move the strain of the money and the move soured her relationship with "PlusOne" and they seperated. They have since recovered, and I believe they are still planning a wedding sometime this year. My daughter has me wrapped around her little finger, and since she was struggling (worse than me) with money and her relationship with "PlusOne" at the time, I let her slide on her first month's rent (December). In January she also slide a little bit on the rent by giving me an xBox 360, that was worth less than the month's rent. The xBox is wonderful, and I love it, but it didn't help to pay the mortgages or the utilities, so my money has been tight this month. This month, February, I should have my first month of full rent from both sides of the duplex, which should give me just enough money to pay all of the mortgages and utilities for the place! - Yeah, no profit, just break even.

The hope was that I would have enough money from the rental and my job to pay all of my monthly expenses, but no matter what I do, I am just not able to do it. My expenses are over $1,000 more than I make a month, and to make matters worse, this has been going on for so long that my savings is drained, I have used up all my credit, and during my change of jobs, I emptied my 401k retirement plan and use it to pay bills. I am now actually worse of financially than I have been in many, many years.

I spent the last 6 months of last year trying to figure a way out of the financial crisis I am having. I went to credit counsolers, attorneys, friends, family, random people on the street, basically anyone that I thought I could get advice from. There was no real good answers, only one answer seemed to provide any shred hope. So, this past month I have did the one thing I never, ever wanted to do ever, and is probably the biggest change in my life (outside of divorce). I filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy!

In the bankruptcy claim, I am trying to keep the marital home so I can have a place to live, and the duplex so I can keep a source of income, and my car so I can to and from work. Even though I am trying to keep all of those assets, it will still be tough, and I may not be able to keep them all. As a matter of fact, one of the mortgage companies on the marital home is now trying to foreclose on the house, in spite of my attempts to get all of the past payments caught up, and reaffirm the mortgages in the bankruptcy. (BTW: There are two mortgages on the marital home, together both total only around $22,000, so we aren't talking a fortune here.)

This last and biggest change is still "in progress", and I am not sure of the final outcome, but I only hope that like the other big and unwanted changes in my life, it too will end up being for the better.

Maybe now that we have a new president, I could petition the government for a bailout, like the banks, and the auto industry have done. I mean, I am very similar to them, in that I made poor choices and have been a victim of circumstances beyond my control. Unlike them though, I wouldn't need the billions, just about 50 grand would do. What do you think? Should I apply?

The new era has other smaller changes, but I have spent enough time and words on this topic. I will end with a joke: If want to donate to the "Lou Laughlin New Era Foundation", contact me for the details. The foundation accepts PayPal, personal checks, cashiers checks, money orders and of course cash! :-)

Later Lou

A new era (continued...)

2009-01-29T09:50:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I mentioned that 2009 is a new era. I talked about the new leadership we have in the government, and to be honest, what I heard on the news this morning makes me want to write about it, but I will refrain - for now.

I thought today I would share a little bit of the new era in my life personally. The last post I made about my life was on September 10th, of last year. Interestingly on "Sweetie's" last birthday. Just a reminder, Sweetie, isn't my sweetie any longer... but I will admit my heart still yearns for her.

Sweetie decided last May that she didn't want to be a couple with me any longer. I moped around a little, and then tried to convince her to come back. Needless to say, I wasn't successful. Being a middle aged (when did that happen?) man, and being, as my kids say, "a geek", I don't really hang out in places where I am likely to meet someone new. So, I have signed up to places like Match.com and eHarmony.com.

I met some very wonderful women, and had some dates, many only first dates. Maybe my standards were too high, but I had hoped that I would find someone that would get me so excited about her that I would forget about Sweetie. Here it is the end of January, 8 months later, and I am still thinking about her every day. That part of me hasn't let go yet.

I have digressed completely from my topic... I want to talk about the NEW things, not dwell on the past, but I guess you have to talk a little about the past to understand the future right?

In my last post in September, I mentioned I didn't want to talk about work because I was afraid I would get fired. Those words must have been prophetic, because 8 days after I posted it, I got fired. Yeah, fired... not laid off, not downsized, not cutback... outright FIRED! Why? Well, as with all stories there are two sides. But i will only regale you with my side.

The morning of the 18th of September, I got called into my boss's office and asked to shut the door. When I sat down in the chair opposite his desk, his first words were: "What's your problem?" Not being prompted ahead of time, nor with more information than that, I had no idea what he was talking about, and stated that a few times. After he realized that I truly didn't know what he was talking about he, told me what HIS PROBLEM was. He wanted to know why I hadn't turned in my time sheet for over 4 weeks.

The truth was that I didn't think the time sheets were really important. He didn't make them important either, because he didn't say anything to me for over four weeks. I guess, I thought if he truly needed them, he would have asked for them, or at least sent out a reminder.

Anyways, I didn't think I should say that, so instead I said, "I don't have a good reason, I just didn't do them, I am sorry, I will do them now." That answer was apparently not good enough, he said he needed a reason. I explained that I didn't have any really good excuse other than I made a mistake and I will correct it. He got red faced, and started yelling at me about what a terrible employee I was and how that I must be intentionally not doing these important time sheets, and since I was doing it intentionally, that I am being disrespectful and insubordinate, etc...

I reminded him that I was all current on all my projects and he knew that without the time sheets, and that there were other employees who are turning in their time sheets but were behind on their work. I tried to return the focus to what should have been most important: the project. I was wrong, apparently the time sheets were what was the most important.

The scene got worse with him yelling at me, and putting me down, and I wanted to leave the room, but he wouldn't let me. He continued to yell, and I tried to defend myself, but to be honest, I didn't have a good defense, since I was wrong and I should have done the time sheets. Even though my work was still being done, was all current, the quality of my work was still high, and my last review in February was a 4.5 out of 5, were all irrelevant facts. I finally couldn't take the yelling any more, so I left the room, and he chased me down the hall into the main lobby and continued yelling. Told me if I didn't stop he would fire me right then and there.

I stopped, and I let loose. I started yelling back. I told him that I thought he was a terrible boss, and was out of touch of his employees. I told him that he spends too much time worrying about the small unimportant paperwork and red tape and not enough about the people working for him. (I even used the movie reference of the "TPR reports" from "Office Space", which I knew he liked.) I told him that he has held our product back and was personally responsible for the downward trend of sales because he failed to allow the product to be improved because he felt it was "too risky". All of that went in one ear and out the other. The point that finally got and got a reaction was the line when I told him that he spent too much time with one particular girl in the testing department, and that because he was too focused on her "butt" that he was out of touch with the product and his employees. BTW: Everyone in the office knows he's having an affair with her, but no one will speak about it. At that point, he pointed to the door, and told me to "Get out."

Well I was upset, so I did "get out", and I went to my cube, grabbed my jacket and I left. As I drove home, and cooling off, I started to think that I didn't really know what "Get out" meant. Was it a get out now because we are both too angry to talk, or was it get out and don't come back. So, when I got home, I called the HR department and asked them to tell me what I should do. They didn't call me back until the next day, and they proceeded to tell me that "your employment with the company has been severed." I was absolutely flabbergasted. I couldn't believe that my boss could pick a fight with me over these stupid time sheets, and I could be fired, when he's the one having a office relationship with an subordinate. When I asked why, I was told because I yelled and cursed at my boss, which is unacceptable behavior. Of course, the boss can yell and curse at me, but I can't do it back.

All of my friends in the company that heard the yelling match between us told me that I was right in everything I said, and that I didn't deserve to be fired. But, that doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

They told me that I couldn't go back to the same office, and there were no openings for me in other offices, so they were dismissing me. To their credit, they paid me me for my unused vacation time, and the last bonus check they had apparently been holding on to. That gave me a month's worth of income to tide me over until I found a new job.

I am now working as a software contractor (temp job) for a different company in the same area where I was working for before. I have been doing everything I can to get hired on as a permanent employee here. My manager has told me a few times he likes me, and the work I do, and he is doing everything he can to keep me.

I really like the company I am working for now. The environment is positive, the people seem to like their job, and the manager is great. Looking back, I am glad I am no longer working at the old company, and I am much happier now, even though I am making less money. Hopefully the less money thing is a temporary thing!

I described this as a new era, and the new job, and the loss of my sweetie isn't the only significant parts of the change. There is more, but that's for another time, so stay tuned!

Later Lou

2009 - A New Era

2009-01-28T13:37:00.003-05:00

First off let me say to those who are reading... "Happy New Year - 2009!!!" I know, I am a little late at saying that, since the first month of the year is practically over, but as they say "better late, than never!"

For me, 2009 is more than a new year, it's a new era.

The country has a new president. He is the first person elected to that office with a skin color darker than all of those before him; not that his skin color has any impact on his qualifications for the job, or whether or not he is a good man. I hope that he is qualified, and a good man, but I even after the longest campaign in history, I am not sure I can claim to know his qualifications or character. I am, however, delighted that the country is able to elect a person based on their words, ideas, and character instead of looking solely at the exterior (age, gender, and skin color).

My hope is that our new President does in fact improve our country and create an atmosphere of togetherness without creating any more of a burden on the population such as new taxes, regulations, or more government. My hope is that he reduces the government involvement in our lives, which will in turn allow the individuals in our population to rise to the challenges our country faces without hindrances, and foster an culture where anyone can and will achieve greatness. Great people are found in more places than just our government!

My concern is that we may have in fact elected our new president based on his exterior or an "image", or the exterior of the man running against him (age). Our new president's first week in office have been filled with executive orders (rules and regulations), proposals and promises of more government spending/involvement. His speeches are grand and wonderful, but do not seem to coincide with his actions. He speaks of all the things I hope for, but he implements all of the things I am concerned about.

Barack Obama is my President, and like all citizens of this country, I have the right to voice my opinion and even disagree with the direction and plans our president is implementing. I haven't used that right to speak about our president that frequently. I also will admit that I agreed more often with our previous president, although I didn't always, especially in the last two years. I am hopeful that ideas and situations will arise in the future that I will agree with our new president, but unfortunately those times are not now.

Before I do express my opinions I want to say I will not use "name calling," or "put downs" to express my disagreement. I feel that any person that works towards and succeeds to the office of President of the United States of America, deserves the highest respect, unlike the untold number of people who did not respect our previous president. I am ashamed of those people, and ashamed that friends, family and fellow countrymen could be that petty. I think that anyone that "name calls" a person, especially one who achieved the presidency of our country, just illustrates their own shortcomings. My initial concern on election night was that this same "pettiness" may have tainted the objectiveness of the voters. I truly hope that concern is unwarranted.

I call this a new "era" because for me "change" is also personal to me, but not because of the new president. This new era starts with lots of changes in my life: a new job, a new home, and practically a whole new life. My concern is whether or not this life is better than the one in the previous year (or era), but my hope is as with the new president, that the troubling signs at the start of this new era will only be for the short term, and not of the long term future.

Interesting Quizes...

2008-09-10T19:55:00.004-04:00

I was visiting another blog (Jessica's Journal), and I saw these quizzes... so I took them. Here's my results:

The Democratic Loyalty Quiz 10 Questions to Test Your Allegiance to the Democrats

Your score is 2 on a scale of 1 to 10. You are a devoted Republican. You tend to walk in lockstep with the party, even if you have not agreed with every decision Republican leaders have made. The few differences you have are nothing compared to your complete and utter disdain for the Democratic Party and the elitism, cowardice, and godlessness for which it stands.

Take the quiz

The Barack Obama Loyalty Quiz 10 Questions to Test Your Allegiance to Barack Obama

Your score is 0 on a scale of 1 to 10. You are a fierce opponent of Barack Obama. He is the embodiment of everything you despise in a politician: an elitist, morally superior, gun-grabbing, religion-bashing, terrorist-coddling appeaser who threatens all that is good and decent in America. Plus, he bowls like a girl.

Take the quiz

The John McCain Loyalty Quiz 10 Questions to Test Your Allegiance to John McCain

Your score is 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. You are conflicted about John McCain. On the one hand you like the fact that he's more moderate than most Republicans on certain issues, but you're concerned that he's too willing to shamelessly pander to right-wing extremists in order to get elected. Still, compared to the competition, you think he looks better and better every day.

Take the quiz

I sorta liked the responses on the first two quizzes. The responses are not exactly accurate of my point of view. I am not "lock step" with the Republicans, since I don't vote only for Republicans. Nor do I "despise" Obama, however I will not vote for him, based on what he has said and promises to do. The last quiz I really don't like the summary. I think it was slanted the wrong way. I think I would have worded it a slightly different way:

"You are conflicted about John McCain. On the one hand you like the fact that he's more conservative than most Democrats on certain issues, but you're concerned that he's too willing to shamelessly pander to the left-wing extremists in order to get elected. Still, compared to the competition, you think he looks better and better every day."

What to write about?

2008-09-10T17:17:00.004-04:00

Well, as you know, it's been awhile since I was blogging regularly. In 2007, I blogged almost daily and read many other blogs ever day as well. Well here it is near the end of 2008, and I have returned to blogging.

I stopped because it bugged my girlfriend (at the time) that I was talking about my life and people were reading it, and I was reading about other people's lives. She was almost jealous of it, but I think it was more of a slight disgust than jealously.

I am no longer dating her, and it took me awhile to get over her. I really loved, and in part still do love her. She's in the past, and I am trying to move forward. I am trying to reclaim some of the things in my life that I truly enjoyed to do for me, and blogging was one of them.

Now of course I can't blog about work, because I would probably be fired. I can't blog too much about my recent forays into the dating world, as I don't want to scare off any potential future "sweeties"... Or have them think I am a weirdo (at least not until they get to know me!)

I could write about current events or politics, and I do have passionate opinions about those topics. I could do movie or book reviews, or comment on the latest episodes of some TV show I just watched, but to what end? Everyone and their neighbor are writing about those things, and while I might have a bigger audience with those subjects, that's not the reason I write.

I write because I enjoy writing, and I write about the subject I know the best: My Life. So I ramble on and on about my life, and some people will find that boring... I live it, so I know that's true. Some people might laugh at some of the stupid things I do, because I laugh at myself often enough... or maybe it's just my wacked out sense of humor.

So I am going to continue writing about nothing, or something, or whatever comes to my mind, and hopefully someone somewhere will read it and comment on it. Maybe my future "Sweetie" will read it and say - "There's the soul mate I have been looking for!"... Ok, yeah, I was reaching!

Later Lou

Moving

2008-09-08T11:26:00.002-04:00

Well I am living out of boxes. Last weekend my brother, his wife and kids, and my sisters all came to my apartment and boxed it all up.

I had planned that during this past week, I would move all the boxes, and this past weekend, I would move all the furniture. So this week, I would be completely moved into the old martial home.

Well, I am not yet moved. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on your point of view. I mean the old marital home needs a lot of work, and cleaning before it can be truly "livable", but I have to do this move for financial reasons. The marital home is still for sale, so if you are looking for a good deal, check out the listing on Howard Hanna. It's a "fixer upper", but I am selling it for a really good price, and when it's fixed up it would be a great rental for the nearby (2 blocks) Geneva college. Ok enough of me trying to once again sell this property...

This was my weekend with the kids, so my youngest two stayed with me, and living out of boxes made it a little complicated. Three got a job at Wendy's, so this was her first weekend working there, and I had to get up early on Saturday to get her to work.

My son, Two, got a puppy a few weeks before he left for college. He can't take the puppy to college with him, so he is now my 5th child and goes back and forth between the two homes like the girls. He also spent the weekend with me, and we had a great time. He loves to chase my cats, that are more than twice his size. By the end of the weekend though, the cats got a little more bold, and are starting to stand their ground. The puppy is a little Jack Russell Terrier, and his name is "Ollie", which is short for "Oliver". Here's a picture of him playing in the laundry basket.

I have gotten attached to Ollie and I am hoping that "Two" will let him stay with me full time instead of moving back and forth. But I need to settle on a house first.

Later Lou

Mansfield University

2008-09-04T15:27:00.003-04:00

Well a couple weeks ago my son, Two, moved away to college. He is a freshman at Mansfield University, which is located in the north central part of Pennsylvania, in where else but, Mansfield!

It's a four and a half hour drive if there wasn't any construction, over five and half with construction. That is an important fact we did not know when we had to be there by a specific time for "move in day".

He is going to major in Education and Mathematics so he can be a math teacher, at least those are his plans now. Things could change between now and the four years to graduation.

As a freshmen at Mansfield University, you are required to live on campus. When we visited the campus before he started, he had decided he wanted to stay in the dorm that was the furthest from the class rooms, and the one required an uphill walk to get to class. He felt that it would help to wake him up in the morning on the way to class. So on the 21st of August, we had two car loads of stuff to haul to his dorm room in the Cedarcrest Manor.

Before he left he told me he didn't plan to come back home until the holiday break. When he moved in he said he would be back in the mid-semester break at the beginning of October. After his first week, he showed up unexpectedly at my front door early Saturday morning for the Labor day weekend.

Mansfield is a state college, but a small campus, with under 4,000 students total, which means that it's more personal. The professors and staff get to know the students as people instead of numbers. The area the college in is beautiful and remote and if it wasn't for the length of the drive, I would visit more often.

Here' a welcome message from the college president to perspective students:

Please join me in wishing him good luck, good grades, and that he doesn't forget to have a little fun too!

Thank you... customer service?

2008-09-03T16:55:00.007-04:00

Wow... I didn't expect people to be back so soon, or that they would forgive me so easily. Thanks! You guys are awesome!

(The puppy dog picture worked so well yesterday, I thought I would try another one today!)

The weather outside is good, I feel good, now I need to turn this positive energy into positive results. I wasn't as productive at work as I wanted to be today, but I am planning to move a couple loads of boxes from the duplex to the marital home. If I get really ambitious (although I doubt it), I will mow the lawn at the marital home.

How many people have Comcast as their TV/Phone/Internet provider? Well I have been using Comcast for many, many years. Not because they are the best, but because for the longest time they were really the only option in my area, unless I wanted to switch to satellite. Recently Verizon has opened up their phone service to include TV and Internet connection. I haven't looked into them, but I am seriously considering it.

I was reviewing my bills today and I see that Comcast has started to charge me for HBO and Starz which I have had for well over a year now for free as part of some "bundled package". Well apparently the package expired and no one told me, so they just started charging me for the extra channels. I called them today and asked them to remove the channels, and asked what else they could do to make my monthly bill a little more affordable. Angie, who was a nice representative, told me that they had a bundle that would last a year, and would give me three additional premium channels, along with HBO and Starz that I am getting now, and PAY LESS than I am now. Of course, I have to remember that next September I will need to call back in again to see what new bundles they have then, if not I will get a heck of a jump in the bill with 5 premium channels!

I asked why didn't I get automatically switched to this bundle so I would be a happy customer when I got the new channels with only a very modest increase in my bill, instead of a huge increase in my bill with no additional services. She said, that they can't add channels without the customer calling and requesting it. Apparently, it's not against their policies to increase my bill, but it is against their policy to increase my services...

I really hate the lack of customer services some of these companies offer... I have complained about this company before (Comcast 9/2007), but I think it bears repeating... What can we do to go back to a society where customer service is important?

Later Lou

Been awhile...

2008-09-02T15:22:00.007-04:00

Well, it's been a long while since I have "rambled" here.

I have to start by apologizing to the readers and friends I had before I abruptly stopped writing. I am really sorry for just stopping cold turkey and not saying good-bye, or telling anyone that I was going to take a break or anything... I kinda just "fell" off the edge of the world.

I didn't plan on stopping, it just sorta happened. The holidays have always been a rough time for me, and this year it hit me rather hard, with all of the things that were going on in my life. I ended up in a serious depression that lasted for quite a few months.

Since I wrote last my financial situation has become pretty serious. "Sweetie" has decided to move on without me. My son, Two, has moved away to college, and my two youngest daughters have stopped coming over as frequently. So I have been dealing with money issues, loss of the love of my life, and an empty nest.

I have started to recover emotionally through a little medication, therapy, support of my friends and family, and sheer of will to finally get myself moving again.

"Sweetie" said she needed "time" last spring, and I spent most of the spring and summer hoping that after awhile she might come back. I signed up to match.com and eharmony.com and met some new people, and had a few dates. Through those sites I have made some new friends, some of which have become really good friends.

I am still looking though for someone that might be interested in being more than a friend, but then again, I am not in a real hurry. Although I will admit I prefer to not be alone. I thought I was over "Sweetie" because of the length of time it's been, but recently I saw her car at a local restaurant. I hung around a few minutes to see who she was with, and when I did, I realized I still wasn't completely over her. She wasn't with anyone I knew, but I saw she was happy and having a good time, and it filled me with mixed feelings. I was happy that she was smiling and having a good time, but at the same time sad that it wasn't with me.

We have talked since then and she has told me that she has moved beyond needing time to finally saying that she doesn't want to be with me any longer. At first, it hurt pretty bad, but very quickly that feeling was replaced with a feeling of closure, or weight being lifted off my heart. I was holding out hope that she would come back and it was weighing me down, and my heart was growing heavier day by day, without me realizing it. When she finally said to me that we weren't going to get back together, the weight lifted and I realized how much weight I had been carrying.

I still care for her, but now I feel able to really move on. One of the hard parts, besides saying good bye to her, was ending the relationship with her son. I have been a part of her family for almost 6 years, and I love him like he is one of my own kids. I wanted to continue the relationship with him, but I can't because she doesn't want to be a part of my life, and if her son is still in my life, then she has to be. I know I hurt him by telling him I couldn't hang or talk with him any longer, but I also know it's for the best. I wish him the best, and I hope and pray he becomes a great guy and someone that I can be proud of.

I am now in the process of moving my duplex to the marital home. It needs a lot of work, and because of that I can't rent it out. I can however, rent out the duplex I am living in. So I am going to move out of the duplex and rent it, so I can hopefully relieve some of the financial stress.

Thanks for taking the time to read, and I will try to write more frequently, and if I decide to stop again, I promise I will not do it as abruptly. I also want to once again apologize for anyone that used to read, comment and talk with me for my bad blogging behavior. I hope you forgive me.

Later Lou

Family Christmas...

2007-12-14T15:10:00.000-05:00

This Saturday is my family's (by family I mean my brother and sisters) Christmas gathering which we fondly call "The Laughlin Family Christmas".

We have been doing this for quite a few years now. Each year we gather up all the kids from the four of us (there are currently 11 kids), our significant other's and any pets or friends and go to one of the family residences and eat, exchange gifts, visit and play games. Last year we had the gathering at my oldest daughter's, "One," new home. This year the holiday festivities are being held at my brother's house. My youngest sister rents the basement of my brother's place, so it technically could be her house too, but she doesn't really own it and since she is the youngest sibling, we usually don't count her anyway. (Kidding "Bugga"!)

We have a "Secret Santa" gift exchange for the old people (16 and over). The names are picked sometime around Memorial day or shortly there after. Since it is a biological trait of our family to have no short term memory, by December no one recalls who they are supposed to get a gift for, which makes one think that the secret part wouldn't work very well. However it works fine because the same lack of memory cells also means no one retains any recollection of an overheard secret name! We did finally learn to assign one person the task of keeping the official list, otherwise we would be completely lost. Anyway, we are all on a tight budget (seemingly every year), so we try to keep the cost of the gifts reasonable, at the $25 range.

The kids (those under 16) however, make out really good. They each get multiple gifts. They get a gift from each of their Aunt and Uncle pairs, except that my youngest sister currently doesn't have a guy yet so there are only three uncles... and Sweetie isn't officially an Aunt yet, but she's pretty close, so there are only three aunts. Sometimes there are a few extra gifts given out if a friend or other family member decides to be generous.

The last couple of years, we started a second "gag gift" exchange for the "old folks" called a "White Elephant"... I don't know where the name came from, but we usually have a fun time with that, probably more fun with that than the regular gift exchange.

The group shares the cooking or at least the food purchases. This year, as with most years since my ham incident (oh yeah, I haven't written about that yet), I don't cook. I am pretty good at getting snack type items like pop (soda for those in the rest of the country), chips, pretzels, etc. There is usually always plenty of food, and tons of people to eat it, and not too much goes to waste.

This year is the first Christmas without our Mom. She passed away earlier this year (no I didn't write about it). I never had a close relationship with my mom, because I was raised by my grandmother, but she was a good person, with a good heart, and I will miss her unique personality this year. I will also miss the noodles, and deviled eggs she made each year... My Dad passed away many years ago, my grandparents who raised me have also passed, so I am officially an orphan. That is if you can consider a man in his 4Th decade with 4 kids a orphan.

After the food and gift exchange, and when most people are still blind from the repeated flashes from the cameras, we decide to relax and visit or play games. Almost every year someone gets a game as a gift, so we usually hang out until late in the evening gaming, and picking on our youngest sister.

Anyone have any unique holiday traditions they care to share?

Later Lou

Last night... and this morning

2007-12-13T09:49:00.000-05:00

Last night my youngest, "Four" had her Christmas Choral Concert. She wasn't on stage very much this year, because her grade has a very small group, but she got to be in the spotlight a few moments during a short solo! Yah! She was worried she would mess up, but she did good!

I got a few snapshots of her face with a microphone covering most of it! :-) I should have taken the photo from the side instead of straight on. Oh well, I am not the photographer that some of my readers are.

It's raining, very hard this morning. When I awoke this morning, and turned on the TV the talking head said there was a lot of freezing rain and that the roads could be icy. I immediately turned it off, and went back to sleep (for another 30 minutes) - no need to rush this morning.

(NOTE: The Red Arrow is where I am, just southwest of the ice/snow)

After I got my shower I went into the bedroom to get my clothes and noticed the shower was on in my bedroom. There were three wet spots on the ceiling, and water dripping down from all three. I just had this roof repaired over the summer, and here it is the first big rain since then and the roof is leaking... arg!

I called the roofer, but I only got his voice mail. I left my normal rambling type of message saying something about the fact that the roof was leaking and he just did the roof, and could he come look at it. I asked him to call me back, and here it is almost 2 hours later and I haven't gotten a return call yet... I know he could be busy, but I would think a roofer wouldn't be out roofing on a day like today... So what's he doing? Sleeping in too?

Well I am at work now, so I better get back to doing what I get paid for. And don't tell anyone that I was posting an entry on my blog while I was on company time... I don't think they would approve.

Later Lou

December Updates

2007-12-12T12:11:00.001-05:00

A lot of stuff has been happening, as it usually does as the year is preparing to close. Here's a brief rundown:

Saturday we cleaned out the Ex's old house, what I call the Marital Home. The same house I am trying to sell because she abandoned it, and it fell on my shoulders. It seems I am perpetually cleaning up after her.
The 13 yard dumpster was filled to the top with stuff that she left in the place.
The dumpster cost me $230.
My realtor called last week and said that she wanted to take inside pictures of the place so they publish a "virtual tour" online. This phone call prompted the cleaning up.
My realtor called again this past weekend and said the people that showed interest in buying and "gutting" the place, are no longer interested, and that no one else has showed interest yet. HOWEVER, the interest rates are down in the 5% range, so she is confident this will help boost sales...
My brother and Sweetie helped me to clean up the mess in the martial home, and I bought them lunch (actually Sweetie paid, but I paid her back).
The virtual tour isn't online yet.
I had a big fight, actually I lost my temper, with my middle daughter, "Three", Monday night.
She only visits me when she needs something and then leaves when she has gotten what she needs, without spending any time with me. I told her that I was tired of being used and that my "stuff" was no longer open for use, but she was welcome to come visit.
Three left a voice mail on my phone last night cursing (using multiple swear words - all of the good ones) at me about fixing a computer for her boyfriend.
Three is only 16.
Went Christmas gift shopping last night with Sweetie to prepare for our annual family get together scheduled this Saturday.
I spent money I don't have.
I don't have money, because my tenant still hasn't paid December's rent (which isn't surprising given her past performance the last few months).
I over-drafted my bank account by $21 dollars and had to borrow money from my 17 year old son, "Two" to cover me until this Friday when I get paid (sigh).
One of my projects at work is causing major problems at some customer's stores, and I have to rework the project in an emergency attempt to fix the problem. Only no one, including me, knows if my "reworked" design will fix the problem.
I just got disposable contact lenses that can be worn for up to a month. I am wearing a "test" pair this week and if the work out I can get some more for next year. Bye bye eyeglasses!
Sweetie bought me a new watch for Christmas. She told me to wear it to work today, so I am. It's a gold and silver Fossil watch with four diamonds in the gold face, at the 12, 3, 6, and 9 positions. It's really nice...
The watch band needs adjusted slightly as it is a little loose on the wrist. Either that or she needs to keep feeding me so I can grow into it.

OK that's all I can think of at the moment...

Later Lou

Two is moving on...

2007-12-06T12:53:00.000-05:00

Two passed his driver's test, and is now a licensed driver... Those in Western Pennsylvania - Look out!!!

I am overwhelmed with a wide a range of emotions from excitement and pride, to feelings of loss. I am excited that he succeeded. The look on his face when he walked in the testing facility with the instructor after his test spoke volumes! I was so excited that I completely forgot my PSP sitting on the bench where I was waiting, and left without it (more on that later... since that's another story). I am proud that he overcame his battle of 'nerves' and succeeded. He is not what you would call a "natural born driver", and learning to drive has been a struggle for him.

I think most parents would be proud and excited when their kids succeed at something that means a lot to them, so that's not unusual... What's unusual is my sudden feeling of loss. All of a sudden I realized yesterday that Two really won't need me as much any longer. Now that he has his own transportation, and his own source of income, I won't be asked to take him places, loan him money, or hang with him as often. I will be just a guy that he will "see occasionally" as he stops into the house to get a change of clothes or a bite to eat.

The sense of loss is bigger than I expected, I think, because my girls don't hang with me much, they tend to stay mostly at their mother's place. So I think I am beginning to experience a slight taste of the "empty nest" syndrome.

Of course, now that I have said all of this, I will of course told the world (well a small part of it anyway) that I actually do have feelings, and I do more than grunt, laugh, yell and fart. So how much of my masculinity have I undermined today?

Congrats Two! I am proud of you! I hope you continue down the road and become a better man than me! P.S... Don't forget when the car breaks down, or if you need a few bucks, or some good wise old advice... call your mom, I am going to be out having a good time! (smirk!)

Later Lou

December...

2007-12-05T11:52:00.001-05:00

Well December has arrived... and here in Western Pennsylvania it's arrived with White Christmas weather. As I may have mentioned in the past, I am not overly fond of snow. It does, however, make the bleak, post autumn landscape look wonderful, but snow almost always accompanied by outside temperatures below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. I tend to prefer temperatures above 60, actually 70 and above, but I am willing to be a little flexible.

There are other negative aspects of snow as well. Snow creates a walking and driving hazard, which isn't much of a problem for me, but since there are a lot of people that don't know how to walk and drive in the snow, I have to go around them, or go much slower than necessary. Snow means I have to spend more time preparing to go some where than just getting in the car and going. I have to add a few layers of clothing, shovel the walk, scrape the car, and wait for the car to warm up. As bad as snow is, don't get me started on ice!

Anyway, today we have plenty of snow and a little ice, and it made the drive to work less than pleasant. It was exciting a few times, when the car slid unexpectedly, but in the morning before my brain has kicked in, I could do without that type of excitement. Today is also the day that Two has scheduled to take his driver's test to get his license. This is his second attempt, and he is extremely opposed to rescheduling.

His school's annual semi-formal dance is this Saturday, and he would like to have his license so he can drive to and from and pick up his date without needing another "licensed driver" to ride shotgun. I don't blame him for his desires, because I had a similar desire when I was his age. I remember it well... (add chimes and a fade out as we go back in time....)

I went to the driver testing station my grandfather full of confidence just a scant few days before the a big dance, and a big first date. We waited in a long line, and after about an hour, my number was called, and away I went. A few minutes later, my confidence was deflated, and I was feeling like a loser... because I had failed my driver's test. I was told I couldn't take the test again until the next day, which was only 1 day before the dance. The good news is that after a second day, and an even longer line I passed the test, got the license and drove to the dance.

So here back in present day, I am hoping history will repeat itself, and Two will succeed today. If not, he won't be able to take the test tomorrow, as there is now a longer waiting period between tests (I believe it's a week), and you have to schedule your testing time, instead of just waiting in line.

Please think good thoughts, say a quick little prayer, and cross your fingers with me and hope that all goes well this afternoon at 3PM, in the snow, in December, a few scant days before the big dance.

Later Lou

The Faces of Lou

2007-11-30T11:22:00.001-05:00

Car trouble...

2007-11-28T10:19:00.000-05:00

My son, "Two", saved up his money and purchased a car back in October. It was a pretty good looking car, but shortly after he got it, we had to replace the transmission. After it was repaired, he paid for insurance, inspection, and PA registration. He spent hours with his mother, myself, and other family members practicing his driving. All of his hopes, money, practice and repair work went towards passing the driving test to get his license, which was scheduled yesterday. It was scheduled at 1:30PM, and I figured around 2:00PM, I would get a text message, a phone call, or I would otherwise hear the Earth move from his jubilation. When 4:30 came and went, I realized I hadn't heard anything, and I was surprised. I got out my cell phone and started typing out a message to him, and we had the following text message conversation:

Me: Where are you? Two: Here Me: Gee thanks. Where is 'here'? Two: Right where i'm sitting Me: Are you at my place or your mom's or some other location. Two: The second Me: How did the big test go? Two: She said I did great, except that I hit a cone while trying to parallel park Me: So is that a pass or not? Two: Not Me: Did you resched? Two: Yes Me: When is it scheduled? Two: Next Wednesday at three

He decided to skip his weekly scout meeting last night, and instead he went out driving with his aunt to practice parallel parking. When he was at the testing facility they told him he could practice on their course after hours. On his way back from his successful practice his car "died", and he couldn't get it started back up. By the time I got there the "Ex's" husband had arrived on the scene and had jumper cables hooked up to recharge his battery. We had a little gathering of people looking at his car: Two, his aunt, the Ex's husband, myself, the owner of the property were Two's car broke down, and the owner's 4 year old daughter. We decided that the problem seemed to be the alternator, and that when we got Two's battery charged up he would be able to drive it home. After a few minutes of battery charging, he turned the key and the engine started right up. A few minutes later, we are closing the hood of his Cavalier, and he leaves trying to get the car home before the battery dies again.

After he gets the car to his mother's house, he packs up his stuff, and slumps himself into my car, despondently. I tell him to not worry, and that replacing the alternator is a pretty easy task and we can do it ourselves without needing to take it to a mechanic. His spirits lift only slightly, and he tells me the day was one of his worst, but it wasn't all bad... He got a girl's phone number today.

My first thought was that he was kinda "pulling my leg" a little. I figured he must have gotten the number of the driving instructor on some result paper from his test... and he was just trying to lighten the mood with a joke. So I kinda dismissed him, and didn't really give him a chance to explain...

After a few minutes later, he then asked if I wanted to hear about this phone number he got. So I decided he needed to get the joke out, so I said to give me the story. To my surprise he wasn't joking, and to my relief it wasn't the driving test instructor. He had met a nice young lady from another school earlier in the day at a meeting.

Two is the "Rotary Club Student of the Month" for November at his high school, and he attends the weekly Rotary club meetings on Tuesdays during the day. This is where he met the "Student of the Month" at another local school, and they shared a "moment" making fun of the "old guys" at the Rotary club.

Two is growing up... He's almost driving on his own, and has enough courage to ask for a girl's number... I didn't learn how to do either until last week! (OK, Ok, I stretched the truth a little... I learned to drive much younger.)

Later Lou

100% Pittsburgh

2007-11-27T14:17:00.000-05:00

A coworker of mine sent me a quiz to see how "Pittsburgh" I am. I have spent most of my life in the area (north west of da 'Burgh), so I am not surprised I got:

You are 100% Pittsburgh.

Great job! There's nooooo doubt about it. You're from Da Burgh. You deserve a reward, so go have an Ahrn City or two. And GO STILLERS! How Pittsburgh Are You See All Our Quizzes

Later Lou

Vacation is over...

2007-11-26T14:11:00.001-05:00

My unplanned vacation is over, and I am back to work.

When the "bad check" crisis hit last Monday, I took an unplanned vacation for the three days before Thanksgiving to resolve the issue. Well, it took practically the entire time to get it resolved. If you want to read a lengthy post about the details click HERE.

My tenant's son said he was going to pay December's rent in advance so I "wouldn't have anything to worry about." He also said he would pay it this past Friday (11/23), but as you probably already guessed, I haven't seen the money yet. I am sure next month will be another battle.

My tenant is now telling me she is going to move out after the "Holidays," which I took to mean in January. I don't know if it will happen or not, but at least I am getting a possible heads up. I received an unsolicited call this past weekend asking if the apartment was available for rent. When I mentioned it might be in January they said that was perfect... So if they do move out, I may have someone ready to move in right away.

I got the marital home listed for sale. If you are interested in seeing the property, or are just curious you can click HERE. My realtor said she may have an interested party already, so I am hoping to hear some good news from her soon.

Regrettably, I am back to work. My boss isn't here today, so it seems pretty quiet in the office. Even though my vacation was unplanned, and except for the money crisis, it was for the most part, very enjoyable. Now that I am back, I wish my vacation was longer!

It snowed again here Thursday evening, and neighbor kids were making a snowman in the shared yard in front of Sweetie's place, but they didn't get to finish it... So there were a couple of large "snow balls" in the yard for the weekend.

My family is planning a Holiday gathering and gift exchange, so I have to create a wish list. I am having a tough time coming up with a list of things I would like to have. Actually my real "wish list" is quite lengthy, but most of the items don't fit within the monetary limit set for the gift exchange! If you had to create a list of things you wanted under $50... What would you ask for?

Later Lou

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T00:06:00.000-05:00

Give thanks for all things, and all times (good and bad), because they give us reasons to rely on each other and our Creator, and God gives us the strength to accept the help and in turn help those we love. I am thankful to have a wonderful family, a Sweetie and a God that love me and help me make it through each and every day. I am also thankful for my readers and the blogging buddies that I have just started to get to know. When you drop by, drop a line and say hi. I hope everyone has a great and memorable holiday. Later Lou P.S. I hope you have lots of turkey, before they get us!

Interesting day... or two.

2007-11-21T23:00:00.000-05:00

When I went to bed Sunday night, I was expecting Monday to be a great day. I am not one of those people that wake up every day jump out of bed, excited to be awake... I have to pry my butt out of bed in the morning after hitting the snooze bar about a zillion times... But Monday, I got out of bed happy... I finally had something to be excited about: The son of my tenant had given me a check on Sunday to pay for his mother's back rent ($1,200). I couldn't wait to deposit it in my bank account and finally have enough money to pay some of my slightly overdue bills, and still have a few bucks to spend... So I didn't waste any time, I logged online and scheduled my bills to be paid. Unfortunately, the day didn't turn out to be a great day, as a matter of fact, it turned out to be be one of my bad days... Which recently has all I have been having. Enough of my whining... on to the story. I skipped out of work for a few minutes so I could deposit the check early. At the bank while I was waiting in line to deposit the check, I looked over and read the little sign explaining when deposited funds will be available, and my mood and smile broadened when I read that checks drawn this bank are available the same day. Woo Hoo, no fees because the check didn't clear fast enough!!! I walked up to the teller with the check, deposit slip and my toothy smile on my face. The smile faded within seconds as the teller returns the check to me and flatly says "We can't take this check." "WHAT?!!?" My jaw dropped, and I couldn't help but keep the attitude out of my voice. I thought they were pulling a joke on me at first, since all of the tellers know me well. She wasn't smiling and she explained that she wasn't "pulling my leg". There were no funds in the son's account and the check would "bounce" and cost me money if I were to deposit it. My good mood went from extreme glee to extreme gloom. I yanked out my cell phone and immediately dialed the tenant's son, and was rewarded with a message from Verizon saying the person I was attempting to call was unavailable... All I could think was "that jerk had given me a bad check and skipped town!!!" The mood shifted from gloom to doom! I wanted to strangle him right then and there! All I could think of was all of the scheduled electronic payments I had setup based on this check being deposited today, and all of the bank fees I was going to be charged without the funds in the account. It was going to cost me a small fortune! The tellers were felling bad, and the branch manager did a little research and without giving out too much private information said that I would "be trying to be get water from a stone," based on what she was seeing in his account history. I stormed out of the bank and immediately started calling everyone I could think of. I called his mother (my tenant), his sister, his employer, and his previous employer. Everyone I could think to call. Of the few people I was able to talk with told me that he has a history of being a little less than trustworthy. The mother only knew "he said he would take care of everything". His sister never called me back. His employer said he hadn't seen him in a month and a half, and that he had been "fired from his previous job too". His previous employer said he was trying to contact him also, because he had some equipment from the company that was never returned. The worst part was that no one seemed to know how to get a hold of him. I left work, and drove around my home town looking for him. I drove past his house, knocked on his door. I knocked on his mother's door. No one was home. I gave up driving around after an hour and went back to the phones. "Sweetie" recommended I call his mother (my tenant) at her work, and that idea worked (Thanks Sweetie!). She said she had heard my message I left on her voice mail, and that his cell phone's prepaid minutes had run out, and she had no way to get a hold of him. She said he would probably be around after she got home from work at 3:30 and would talk to him then. Some how word must of have finally reached him, and he called shortly after I talked with his mother. He apologized profusely (too much actually), saying he had mistakenly used the wrong checking account. He promised to be at my place within the hour to make it all better. After all of the things I had heard from his previous employers I didn't really hold my breath. After waiting about 5 hours, about 4:30 in the afternoon and multiple calls from him postponing and postponing, I had pretty much given up. At about 6PM he called to tell me his girlfriend was just in a car accident, and that he has to go to the hospital to be with her. He told me that she wasn't really hurt, but just getting checked out to be sure. He "promised" would be stopping at my house after she was released. He knocked on my door at midnight. Yeah you read that correctly 12:00AM. As soon as his foot crossed the threshold he once again started with the excessive apologies and a half hearted explanation. He handed me $800 in cash, $400 less than he owes me and made some meaningless promise about how by 10:30 the next day he would give me the remaining $400, plus an additional $600 for the rent due in December. If you are a betting person, you probably bet that 10:30 the next morning came and went without a phone call or a knock, and you would be right. However, his mother did stop over around 11:00 with $200 in cash, still $200 short. She said he would be over later in the afternoon with the rest. I did not get the remaining money until today (Wednesday) at 11AM. He gave me an extra $50 towards next month's rent, and of course made another promise about how he would have the rest of December's rent by Friday. I believe I will be lucky to see that amount before December's rent is due on the 3rd. Tuesday morning I made an appointment with my attorney and got the scoop on what I could do to evict my tenant and what my legal options were to press charges for the bad check. None of the options were a quick solution to my problem, but I am armed with a good deal of information to help minimize this from happening again in the future. After it was all said and done, the tenant is now current, they are planning to stay through December, but said the plan to move out at the first of the year. Personally I was happy with them moving out this month, but with the signed lease I am pretty much obligated to let them stay there as long as they pay the rent. I was really, really hoping I could put the eviction notice on the door, but now I get to save that privilege for Christmas eve! :-) Yeah, that's how nasty I feel right now! Later Lou

It's snowing!!!

2007-11-16T10:01:00.001-05:00

Ok, that "!!!" in the title isn't a exhaltation, it's a exclaimation!

This is what I saw when I went outside this morning:

BTW: When I was snapping this picture, Scrappers, my second cat, decided to investigate the going's on outside, and was fascinated with the falling white flakes.

I mean, I thought we were experiencing global warming, and the ice caps were melting... why in heck is it snowing in Western PA in mid November!?! Ok enough of my complaining, for now. Later Lou

Vacation Day...

2007-11-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

Another Scout leader training session was completed on Sunday, and we trained 8 more people. This brings the total to 26 newly trained cub scout leaders. The final two sessions are planned this week on Tuesday and Wednesday evening.

Sweetie and I took a "vacation" day on Friday. Actually I took a vacation day, and she called off. The fact that I wasn't at work probably explains why I didn't create a new 'rambling along' post. It seems as if the only times I can find an opportunity to create a post is when I am at work. I wonder if that means; I am not doing enough work? or I don't care as much about work to actually do it? or If there just isn't any work to do? Hmmmm... that's a good set of questions.

We took the day off with a plan in mind: To clean the second apartment in my duplex. It was expected that the tenant was going to be moved out on Thursday. I say "was expected" because Thursday night they had not yet moved out. I came home Thursday night after our team got creamed in bowling, to find a note on my door that said:

Lou, I won't be out till next wend. "My son" gets a big check from work next week you'll get a lot of it. "Your Tenant" The names were changed to protect the innocent. (me)

The note means I have to wait another week to get into the apartment and clean it, and get it listed to re-rent. Hopefully, it also means that I could see some money this week, and that would be a nice change of pace.

You know I just realized that my tenant could be reading this blog... It's not like I am hiding myself very well. I mean, my profile does list my real name and the real town I live in (or at least it appears that way right?)... Oh well...

Anyway, Sweetie and I ended up cleaning MY apartment instead, and after two hours she stated we "still weren't done..." (sigh)... Apparently I am not a very clean bachelor. I guess I could use a good life partner, a good child or two, or a good maid to help me keep it clean.

This past Saturday afternoon, we also went and visited the old marital home, and checked on the roof construction happening there. I don't recall if I mentioned it or not, but I did manage to scrounge up enough ~~money~~ credit to replace leaky roof, and I hired a Realtor recommended contractor to do the work. The contractor told me the work would be done in one week, and that he would start on Saturday (11/3/2007). When we stopped in this Saturday exactly one week after construction was started, it didn't appear like the job was done. As a matter of fact it didn't look like it would be done by Sunday. True to our expectations, when we drove by late last night (Sunday) and it still appeared as if there was work to do, and there was a lot of clean up yet to do. So it's taken so far, 1 week and 2 days. I wonder if I will get a credit since the job wasn't completed within the contracted time? Or do you think I will get charged more because the job took longer than expected? In either case, I am sure the project time will be blamed on the weather - It did rain, and there were a few snow flakes this past week.

The weekend was otherwise a great one, because I got to spend it with Sweetie, even though we ended up doing a lot of chores together all weekend.

Later Lou

Training

2007-11-08T00:36:00.000-05:00

Our first two training sessions are done. We have trained 18 new leaders so far, and still have 3 more training sessions to go.

The first night was a little rough, and I was pretty nervious since I hadn't done training for awhile, and I kept thinking I would mess up... Guess what I didn't do? If you think I didn't make a mistake, you would be mistaken... What I actually didn't do was... Yep, you guessed it... I didn't do it perfectly... Surprise! no actually not really... But I did re-learn that you don't have to be perfect to teach, but you do have to recognize your mistakes and correct them.

Tonight was much better. I was much more comfortable, and not nervious at all. And guess what? I made more mistakes than last night, but I had more fun, and corrected them better.

Yesterday most of my mistakes were not so much informational mistakes, but a lack of cofidence, stuttering, and not following my notes. Today my notes were used, my confidence was stronger, no stuttering, but my information needed a little tweeking... Fortunately, I had my mentor there to keep me in line! ;-) Maybe this Sunday's session will be somewhere in between!

The next training sessions are on this Sunday, Tuesday, and the last one a week from today. Then I go back to Scouting retirement, and back to the non-uniformed civilian.

Later Lou

P.S... I saw snow flakes yesterday!!!

Back to Scouts...

2007-11-06T11:30:00.000-05:00

For many years I was a major Cub Scout Leader for our local Cub Scout Pack 481 in my home town. I started as a leader for the oldest boys, 4th and 5th graders, called the Webelos (WE'll BE LOyal Scouts). Shortly after I took that position the CubMaster and Committee Chairperson moved into Boy Scouts, and that left a few openings.

I was the enthusiastic new leader, and I was excited to be involved. So I moved into the CubMaster role, I helped to find a Committee Chairperson and helped with the planning and organization of the pack. The other parents weren't as enthusiastic as I was, and since I wanted to help the Pack grow bigger and more fun than it was, I started doing more and more. Eventually I was doing practically everything; planning our pack's functions, running the functions, attending training, attending district meetings, taking the boys on outings, and etc. I even got myself involved with running the district's summer day camp.

Well, as you can imagine, my enthusiasm waned, because I didn't get the help I needed. No one else wanted to help, probably because they thought I could do it all. I struggled for the last couple of years trying to keep things going, but I could see that it was falling apart. The parents seemed to only want a place where they could drop of their kids for an hour or two each week, and leave and do their own chores or go home and watch TV uninterrupted. I think they thought B.S.A. stood for Baby Sitters of America istead of Boy Scouts of America.

So couple of years ago my Cub Scout pack shut down. The Boy Scout troop continued for boys from 11 through 18, and so I became "just" a parent of a boy scout and attended the occassional Parent's (Committee) meeting. I stopped doing all of the training, the district events, the day camps, and everything else. Even though I gotten myself too involved, and I burnt out quickly, I find myself, even today, missing it. It was very rewarding teaching and working with the kids.

Recently a good friend of mine in Scouting asked me if I would help give some training sessions to new Cub Scout leaders. Training other leaders was something that I truly enjoyed doing when I was involved in Scouting in the past. I really do enjoy teaching, and I sometimes think I took a wrong turn on the career path... I would have also liked to be a writer, journalist, or even a photographer as well... but I digress...

Tonight is the first of 5 training classes we are offering over the next 2 weeks. We are teaching Tiger Cub Den Leaders tonight, which are volunteers (parents) who will work with the youngest kids in the pack, the 1st graders. Tomorrow night we teach the Wolf and Bear Den Leaders, which are the volunteers who work with the 2nd and 3rd graders.

I am looking foward to getting slightly involved in Scouting again, and hopefully the distraction will not only keep my mind off of my current financial situation, but to give me some sense of positive action in my life, since everthing else seems to be going negatively.

Later Lou

Back to work...

2007-11-05T11:27:00.000-05:00

The weekend is over. My nephew came over Friday night, and stayed until late Saturday night. I took him to his Flag Football game, and his Indoor Soccer game. He had a great time at both, but unfortunately neither of his teams got a win. He had the most fun with his new PlayStation 2 game: "LEGO: Star Wars" that his Dad picked up for him earlier in the day before he came to my place. It is a two player game, and he convinced me, and "Two" to play the game with him most of weekend, that is when he wasn't doing Football or Soccer.

Saturday was full of driving. I got up early to take "Two" to work, then took my nephew to his games, with a stop back at home in between to change, and then picked up "Two" from work late afternoon. After "Two" got home, we had decided to go to see the 'Bee Movie'. After about two minutes of the movie, I wanted to put in ear plugs. Jerry Seinfield's whiny voice was in every scene. I liked the TV show "Seinfeld", but this movie wasn't "Seinfeld." To be honest, the movie is very cute, but it's very, very, very much designed to appeal to a very, very young audience. I had a hard time tolerating the movie. The youngest two of the group, "Four" and my nephew loved it. Everyone else thought it was lame, and stupid. This was definitely not a movie I will be adding to the DVD library. Sunday was not as full, it was kind of a "lazy day". I did have to get up and take "Two" to work early, and pick him up late afternoon, but other than that, the day was pretty quiet. "Three" and "Four" went back to "Ex's" place when I picked up "Two" from work. So most of the evening was just him and I. As I left to go pickup "Two" from work, and I was going to the car, my tennant was going into her apartment. I stopped her and said "Hi", and asked how she was doing. She said she was ok, but that she needed to talk with me. I hoped it was in regards to her paying her rent from October, and now November. I was right, but not in the way I had hoped. She told me that they were moving out, and they would be out by this Thursday. As a matter of fact, her daughter had already found another apartment and had left, and she would be gone already if she could be. She felt unsafe in the apartment because apparently someone left her door unlocked and someonelse came into the house and took some pills and some money, and they did it all within 5 minutes. Now, I have lived in my duplex for over 3½ years now, and I have never had a single problem. I am not dismissing her, or suggesting that she didn't lose the money and pills... I am only wondering two things: 1) How did they know they could get into the house and out within 5 minutes, that there was money and pills, and exactly where they were (house wasn't trashed) 2) Why didn't the thief take anything else worth more money? I told her that I was sorry to hear about her problems, and I expressed my displeasure at not being informed, as I could have done something to help her be more secure by installing a security system or something. The real kicker to the whole conversation wasn't that she was moving out, as that will probably be a good thing... The kicker was that she said she will have to pay her back rent in "payments". My mortgages and utilities don't accept payments... oh wait... they already ARE payments! :-) I am betting that since she plans on being out by this Thursday, Nov 8th, that she will feel she doesn't owe November's rent... (sigh) I am really beginning to not like being a landlord. So to solve the immediate needs I have to advertise the apartment again, and as soon as she moves out completly, I need to clean it and get it rented out again! Hopefully it doesn't need any major repairs, because I haven't the foggiest idea where I would get the cash for that! Tonight I am going over to "Sweetie's" for dinner, and we are going to discuss a "plan of attack" for the duplex. She is already talking about skipping work on Friday and going to clean out the apartment. Got to love the practical side in her, but if I am skipping work with her, I would rather not be "working". Later Lou