Sunday

Here I sit in a non-quiet household; it seems like we have a turncoat in our household. The Steelers and Ravens are playing this evening for the Division Championship and Peanut is a die-hard Steelers fan, Kiwi on the other hand, figured out that a Raven is a bird, and he's cheering for the team of his own species. He has broken my heart and I told him this is Steelers Country. Damned Peckerhead. 

Michelle did the shopping yesterday and also went to her Mom's 80th birthday celebration yesterday at the nursing home. Her Chris and Dani went up and had a little bit of a party for her and helped her celebrate the day. 

Today's agenda includes trying to explain to Kiwi that a Raven is a bad bird and he needs to switch his loyalty back to being a Steelers fan. I think Peanut shall teach him. 

I am happy to be going back to 8-hour shifts again starting tomorrow. 6 of last 8 weeks working 10's was starting to get a little bit old if you know what I mean, especially when I was generally the only one there. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit in a somewhat busy household, Kiwi and Peanut think they have this great idea of making seed and catnip cookies. They are up early and have the kitchen all messed up, trying to experiment and make some proprietary recipes that they feel that they can market to all birds and cats around the world. They have a target audience, now they have decided that they are going to create a product to market and get rich from it. Such innovative minds in this household, I got to tell you. 

I don't think Michelle and I have any plans as of yet that I know of. It is Michelle's Mom's 80th Birthday so Michelle and the sisters are all planning on going to the nursing home to have dinner with her. Because of the snow on New Years they didn't make it up that day, so this will be something special for her. 

I'm probably just going to relax and take it easy. I think I'll go out and measure the grass to see if it needs to be cut yet...lol Maybe put together a nice little gift basket for a couple of groundhogs so that they can do me a favor here in about a month. Other than that, days are short, it's cold out and it's my least favorite time of the year, it's just a matter of waiting until Spring for me. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Big Ole Hairy Friday

Yes, it is once again that time of the week that we all look forward to when we can take time to cease the labors for the week and take a little bit of needed time out to enjoy the fruits of those labors. It is again the dawn of another weekend and a Big Ole Hairy Friday!!!

As the rest of us, or should I say some of us go back to work after the New Years Holiday, Kiwi and Peanut are still celebrating. They keep throwing confetti everywhere and yelling Happy New Years and for us Humans to get to work while they party on. 

Well today does end my streak of  3 straight weeks of 10 hour shifts to make up for Holidays. I get to go back to doing normal 8 hour shifts for a couple of weeks before I go back to 10's for the Week of Martin Luther King Day to make up for that Holiday. This will be the end of 6 of 8 weeks that I have been making up hours to get past the Holiday season. 

I hope everyone had a great New Years, stayed safe and here's to a great 2026 for everyone. 

Hi ho hi ho

Happy New Years

Should old acquaintance be forgot,

and never brought to mind?

Should old acquaintance be forgot,

and old lang syne?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my dear,

for auld lang syne,

we'll take a cup of kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup!

and surely I’ll buy mine!

And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have run about the slopes,

and picked the daisies fine;

But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,

since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have paddled in the stream,

from morning sun till dine†;

But seas between us broad have roared

since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand my trusty friend!

And give me a hand o’ thine!

And we’ll take a right good-will draught,

for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

Goodbye 2025

 January

* Right after the New Years, Michelle changed our Christmas Tree to a Valentine's Day Tree. 

* There was a fear that the platform TicTok was going to be taken down and I went on a rant for people like my Brother in Law Nick who has built a business on that platform. It's still around. 

* There was talk about a family game night, but it never really came to fruition in 2025. I volunteered a magnetic chess game that I have. 

* I actually made a statement in January that I had a project that was ending that week (It ended in June) and Michelle was pretty secure in the company that she was working for (that basically went bankrupt a few moths later). 

February

* Punxatawney Phil ruined my first couple of days by seeing his shadow on Groundhogs Day, That damn rat. 

* French Creek Freddie on the other hand did not disappoint and delivered for me. 

* The Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles played in the Superbowl with the Eagles winning it all. 

* Robert Layton had passed away. I always enjoyed my talks at family gatherings with Robert. 

March

* Michelle was excited to have a new phone system installed at her place of employment, one that she would see end in 2025 but that will be another point and a happy ending later this year. 

* Michelle and I hosted Lucy and talked her into doing a Journal on my blog, as Mom was in the hospital for a few weeks. 

* Eugene Aitken joined his wife Joyce in the afterlife. 

* Personally I had my lowest A1C rating ever (or at least since I became a Diabetic) with a 5.5, which is quite amazing for me. 

* My funding was supposed to end with Parsons, but some came through. 

* WVU Named Ross Hodge as our new Men's Basketball Coach.

April

* My April Fools Day prank was on my Tuesday's Tidbits where I always do a numerical countdown or count up using arabic numerals, I switched to Roman Numerals just to screw with people. 

* Jon and Laura had a birthday party for their daughter Maddy at Keystone Safari and Michelle went back home to celebrate with her. 

* Michelle with a little bit of help from Kiwi and Peanut prepared our Easter Dinner right here at the house, I was happy for the deviled eggs. 

* I actually talked about an old business that Dad, Terri and myself started up called BST Hotline and even remember the phone number. 296-3030. 

May

* Kiwi, Peanut and myself were all happy to see that the WVU Students had completed the spring Semester and were leaving town for the summer!!!!!

* I managed to do my first grass cutting of the 2025 cutting season. It was a later start, but the grass really wasn't that bad yet. 

* I bought Michelle a remarkable that she had been wanting, something that she uses every day for personal or work related things. It doesn't play movies though. 

* I found out that my Great-Grandfather is burried in the same cemetary as my Grandparents, I have been unable to locate any headstone and even contacted the people who keep track of all of the records. 

June

* I submitted mine and Michelle's picture to be taken from Space on Crunchlabs, it may take a year or two but mine and Michelle's picture will be taken as a selfie from space. 

* My funding working for Parsons had ran out, I'm still employed by Parsons but until funding for a task that I work on comes through, I'm not doing any billable work for them. 

* Hayley, Tyler and Luke went to Florida, Mark and Alice were somewhere else adn they were house sitting for them. 

* I did an idiot move and accidently dropped a rubber band down into my oil reservoir. I towed it to Hartsells and Brian pulled it out for me. 

* I had to buy a new air conditioner, the one I left in the window all winter kind of went kaput. 

July

* In early July, we were introduced to a little doggie named Lucy who has written a number of blog posts this past half year. She is entertaining to say the least. 

* I found out my plates were expired on one car, it was an easy fix but the state had sent me an email a couple months ahead of time and no paperwork, so I forget that they needed renewed. No issues, got them taken care of. 

* I started working for Hope Gas when my Parsons work slowed down, still employed on both jobs. 

* Kynlea became a teenager, when did that happen. 

* There was a nice large gathering of people who went to Hovatters Zoo, mostly Michelle's family but Val and Arron also came with their crew. 

August

* At Hope I got moved upstairs near all the VP"s and the President in what is arguably the nicest cubicle I have ever occupied. 

* Michelle and I celebrated 14 years of Marriage on August 6th. 

* We had a big Baby shower for Erica up at the Community Center on Summers School Road. 

* Ellie May was welcomed to the world and to the family, she as an early riser at 5:17 AM. 

* We joined together for a big kickoff party to the start of the 2025 Mountaineer Football season. Ralph and Amy were our gracious hosts for the day and did a wonderful job, I tried to get a five-generation pic but Amy ended up getting it. 

September 

* Michelle went to Starbucks and locked her keys in the car, I had Kiwi fly the spare set of keys down to her and unlock it then fly back home. Such a good bird. 

* We almost had College Gameday here for the Pitt game, only problem was we went to Athens Ohio to play Ohio U and lost. 

* We did play Pitt in the Backyard Brawl, my old room mate Gregg came into town and actually proposed to his Girlfriend Lifang at Coopers Rock. 

* My nephew Moke wrote, perfomed and released his first album Crown of Scars. 

* Michelle interviewed for a new job at Swanson Industries. 

* My brother in law Roy came over and helped up cut up a big oak tree that had fallen in the back yard. He and Andy were absolute troopers as was Michelle. 

October

* Michelle finally started her new Job at Swanson Industries. She is very happy to be away from the instability that comes along with working in a retail environment and the additional security you get when you work in Manufacturing. 

* I started posting from Jose Monkey on Wednesdays. I usually like to do Mark Roper as his are the most educational and entertaining. I've done a few from the beard who does food challenges, and Jose Monkey now, who finds people based off a short video clip.

* Terri did the Cancer Survivor walk for the second year as a Cancer Survivor. I was going to go, but they got a large turnout and we showed up late and couldn't find a parking space. 

* Michelle made it four years free of alcohol. I bought her a nice celebratory coin to commencorate the occasion. 

* The MoHawk Bowl was played with the eventual State Champions coming out on top. Both teams made it to at least the Semi-Finals and Clay Battelle played for the Championship. 

November 

* November started out with both Michelle and I under the weather, we both had our flu shots this year as well. 

* I had accepted a job offer that I was supposed to start in November. Ran clear to Preston County for a drug screen, had the background search done and employment history,  got my new work computer delivered to me and the friday afternoon before I was scheduled to start (on a Monday) the entire task got cancelled. 

* Jim and Chris had their annual Christmas Auction. Michelle ended up volunteering and working it. 

* We had our annual Thanksgiving Dinner at the Firehall. It was a decent turnout this year, lots of good food and we had an auction afterwards to pay for space rental next year. 

* I actually started to format and write the blog post that you are reading. =)

December 

* Morgantown High won the 2025 AAAA State Football Championship against Martinsburg, a team that has dominated the state the last 20 years. 

* Hayley had to have a D&C procedure after losing her pregnancy where she was pregnant with twins. 

* We had a couple bad snowstorms here in Morgantown, I managed to get to work before it got too bad on one of them, the other happened on a weekend. Have I ever mentioned I hate snow? 

* I started to develop a new skillset in my professional career, working with developing Geospatial Dashboards has been a lot of fun. 

* I have written 411 Blog Posts this year, that is the most blog posts in one year since 2014.

* See You on the other side. 

Lucy's Journal

Lucy’s Journal – New Year’s Eve Plans (Operation: Midnight Mayhem)

Dear Journal,

It has come to my attention (because I overheard the humans talking and also because I am very observant and important) that New Year’s is happening. Naturally, this means the crew and I must celebrate in our own highly organized, mildly chaotic, and slightly sticky way.

First, there is me, Lucy — fearless leader, party planner, and official treat quality inspector. I have decided this New Year will be about fresh starts, big naps, and snacks that mysteriously appear when no one is looking.

Peanut immediately volunteered to “help” by knocking all the decorations off the table so we could “start over.” He claims this is symbolic. I think he just likes gravity. He has already tested the New Year’s hats by sitting on them, crushing them, and then acting offended when they no longer fit his head.

Kiwi, on the other paw/wing, is very excited about the countdown. She has been practicing yelling “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” at full volume every ten minutes since breakfast. Sometimes she says it backwards. Sometimes she says it while hanging upside down. Either way, everyone will definitely know when midnight happens… possibly several hours early.

The Quackers are in charge of refreshments, which worries me. Their idea of party food is anything that can float. They are planning a “sparkling water feature” in the dog bowl, which I suspect is just an excuse to splash everyone and then waddle away laughing. I have assigned them to outdoor supervision, mostly for everyone’s safety.

Our official New Year’s agenda includes:

• Wearing fancy hats for exactly 12 seconds

• Barking, meowing, quacking, and squawking at midnight (or whenever Kiwi decides it’s midnight)

• Making New Year’s resolutions we will absolutely not follow

• Falling asleep before the humans do

My resolution is to be braver, kinder, and possibly get away with stealing at least one extra treat per day. Peanut’s resolution is to knock things over more thoughtfully. Kiwi resolved to learn one new word, though she immediately forgot which one. The Quackers resolved nothing and are deeply proud of that.

As the clock gets closer to midnight, we’ll all gather together — feathers, fur, whiskers, and webbed feet — ready to welcome the New Year the only way we know how: together, slightly noisy, and completely convinced we’re in charge.

Happy New Year, Journal.
May the treats be plentiful, the naps be long, and may Peanut stop pushing things off shelves…
(He will not.)

Love,
Lucy 🐾

Tuesday's Tidbits

* The Christmas Holiday is now behind us and we are looking at New Years, good time to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 22,651 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new,  new, new, and improved 1,069-day Calendar. 

* It has been 7,903 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. I love what I do and am thankful to still be working in my field. 

* 6,497 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together. Life has been much better since then. 

* 5,701  days ago I proposed to Michelle in the backyard at 4:00 in the morning. I've been the luckiest guy since that fateful day. 

* It was 5,738 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, for the most part, Michelle and I became husband and wife at the Marilla Center, it was a great day with friends and family. 

* I have now lived 2,876 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong, slowing down but still going. 

* Michelle has been living a clean and productive life and beat that alcohol demon 1,530 days ago today. 

* My older Brother Jonathan lived 21,273 days, I've now outlived him by 1,393 days, making me Senior Supreme Sibling once again! 

* Old roommate Gregg proposed to his fiancée 108 days ago, I'm happy for those two. 

* I have 2,234 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there, but I love doing what I do. Who knows, though, doing what I do I may never retire.

* There are 359 more shopping days left until Christmas 2026. 

* There are 336 days until I hit the age of 63. Yeah I know, I'm really older than 21. 

* There are only 220 more days to go until Michelle and I will celebrate our 15th Wedding Anniversary......maybe

* There are 79 days until my favorite season begins, a lot of people love different seasons, I am a Spring person who loves the Springtime. 

* 34 more days until Phil steps to center stage once again for Groundhog Day.    

* 1 more days to go until my Goodbye 2025 Blog is posted. Hopefully, I can put some better content together this year.

* It has been ∞ (infinity symbol) days that I have hated both Pitt and Penn State.

* I have written 8,196 blogs in what is now 21 years of Blogging. 

* Older Drone still needs to be sent out for repairs, not a big priority at this time. My little drone is awesome and I really like it....when I take time out to fly it.  

* Are you looking to buy some Girl Scout Goodies? Well Releigh has started her campaign to sell chocolates, candles, stationary and other things. This is her store. 

* Are you looking to buy some Girl Scout Goodies? Well Bella has started her campaign to sell chocolates, candles, stationary and other things. This is her store. 

* They both have their own stores, their own campaigns and their own goals to meet. 

* Let's keep it in the same household, go give Crown of Scars a listen. It's my Nephew Moke and he tells his life story through song, so listen to the lyrics, it's pretty deep. 

* This is my favorite TikTok for this week, don't mess with Kiwi. 

* Progress on my Selfie in Space, right here. We are ready for liftoff and holding. 

* I think my AI skills are really expanding, I'm using a number of them doing all kinds of different tasks (other than drawing pictures). 

* Have yourselves a great day

* Hi ho hi ho

Monday

All good things must come to an end—but if you’ve got to wrap up the weekend, today’s a pretty exciting way to do it. Now it’s time to take our collective noses and press them firmly back onto the grindstone of life. Back to work, back to the hustle, back to doing our part to make this spinning rock a better place.

It's back to the office after having two weekends last week (with the Christmas Holiday), so now it is back to 10-hour shifts once again this week to make up for Thursday, so it's 3 on 1 off and 1 on before another fun-filled weekend for me. 

My personal license for ESRI reset over Christmas, so I had to call customer support to get that all straightened out so I could play with it and create some data to try to do a personal dashboard. I know I'm such a geek I even do this stuff at home from time to time believe it or not and do it for enjoyment. I feel you always have to be willing to learn something new and never get stale, and when you enjoy what you do that makes the learning something you'll enjoy rather than an undaunting task. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho