Halloween

Well that fun filled and relaxing thing called the weekend is now behind us, Oh how I needed one but now it's time to look ahead to another fun filled week of working.

Tonight is Halloween and there is Trick or Treating in many places, we were going to do what we did last year but with the strong possibility at Press time that the hose will have a chance to earn some money, we are not planning on going anywhere this year for Halloween. I'll stop and get a bag of candy this morning on my way to work for this evening just in case we have any Trick or Treaters, we don't want to be caught without any treats.

This weeks schedule should not be too hectic working for RTI, unless they switch my sections and then my workload will greatly increase. I' ready to get back at it and finalize this quarter. Hopefully today we will know about our travel plans to St. Louis so I can book Michelle's plane ticket.

Have yourselves a great day and don't get spooked by all the ghosts and goblins running around.

Hi ho hi ho

Relaxing Saturday done. Bring on Sunday

Well here I sit in the early AM, I am the first one to recover from that knockout blow from the dreaded Sandman last night, but then again I was the first one to get knocked out as well. I'm up watching the Martian on HBO and collecting my thoughts for the day.

I have to say that yesterday was my all time favorite trip that we have taken to Amish Country. I think we visited eleven stores, seven of which were places that we have never been to. Breitenbachs, the winery across the street, Tis the Season and the Flea Market were four that we always hit, but this trips objective was to find new places to build up our knowledge of the area.

I think I found a new favorite restaurant in the area, Guggisberg's Chalet in the Valley has to be one the the best restaurants I have ever eaten in. They are all part of the area and factory that invented my favorite cheese which is Baby Swiss, and they did  not disappoint, I had Pierogi Mit Knockwurst and Michelle has a Reuben with Italian Wedding Soup. If you are every in that area, I highly recommend trying this restaurant out, you will not regret it.

I think the place we visited that we enjoyed ourselves the most was a place we did not plan on going to but just happened to stop because there were so many people there. Hershbergers Farm and Bakery is where we stopped and fed my little friend here. They had goats on top of the barn that you fed them with a conveyor belt, they were making home made apple butter and home made kettle cooked potato chips. Michelle and I absolutely had a blast here. I want to go back and goat nap my new friend...lol

I have to say with working so many days in a row, Michelle and I needed some quality time together and this provided it. It was great to get out and have so much fun.

Today it is back to our normal routine, grocery shopping laundry and a trip to our favorite bakery. We do have an invitation to go for a free chicken dinner at Riverside Apostolic Church, Chad Rowan whom I have worked with and went to college with is an assistant pastors there and has invited us.

Have yourselves a great day.

Road Trip

Here I sit on a quiet Saturday Morning, I'm the first one to recover from the butt kicking I took from that dreaded Sandman last night and I'm up watching Sara Silverman on doing stand up on HBO and collecting my thoughts for the day.

It's going to be a road trip kind of day for us. We're going to leave early this morning and head out to Amish Country in Ohio, we would like to be at Breitenbachs by the time they open at 9:00 or just a little after. It's a little less than a three hour trip from here, so we'll be leaving here somewhere around 6:00. Michelle wants to hit Tis the Season and I want to hit a place we have never went to with Guggisberg where my favorite cheese (Baby Swiss) originates. Every time we head to the region we like to try at least one new place, that way the more we go there the better understanding we have of the area.

Update on Yesterday's MoHawk Bowl, The Mighty Mohigans spotted cross town rival University High a 21-7 Halftime lead before scoring the first 34 second half points to bring home a 41-28 MoHawk Bowl victory to claim the city's bragging rate for yet another year.

Looking for a little College Football, the 10th ranked WVU Mountaineers are in Stillwater Oklahoma this afternoon to take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys with a noon kickoff time. I'll get my updates from Ohio on my phone, this will not be the first time I have done this. As Michelle shops tis the season, I usually sit outside and get game updates.

Have yourselves a great day.

Big Ole Hairy Friday

Yes it is once again that time of the week that we all look foreword 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 once again the dawn of another weekend, and a Big Ole Hairy Friday.

Are you ready for a little bit of High School Football action tonight? Clay Battelle travels to Clarksburg to take on Notre Dame. Oh yeah, there is another game in town tonight. The evil University High Hawks travel across town to take on the Good Guys of Morgantown High tonight in the MoHawk Bowl. I route against University High School once a year and that is when they take on my Alma Mater like they are tonight. I fully expect the Mohigans (Morgantown High Annual) and yes that is spelled properly. I look for the mighty Mohigans to absolutely annihilate the crosstown rivals hopefully by a score of about 140-0. I would be happy with winning by 20 Touchdowns. =)

I'm taking a weekend off from my RTI job as I gear up to head to another section. My Boss said I have worked every weekend and she knows I have a full time job so she said she wanted me to take a weekend off for a mental break, plus I haven't been able to spend a lot of time with my wife this past month. So tomorrow morning we are taking a road trip out west to Amish Country for the day to spend a little bit of much needed quality time together before I start to tackle this new region.

Working for RTI I had 72 lines at the start of the quarter and have them mostly worked down, now I have an additional 25 to do clean up on. Hopefully I can finish everything up by Thanksgiving and can relax during the Holidays. I will have to fly to St Louis in January for a few days, I will be taking my lovely wife with me so she can see the arch while I sit in a classroom..lol

Have yourselves a Great Day today and know I will have a much needed weekend off.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look through my 30,000+ lost moments in time that I have either captured with a lens, scanned or just stolen from some place on the internet. I like to post up one picture and relive it briefly for everyone. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task like today's and sometimes it is a struggle to find that special picture, one this it always is is a whole lot of fun for this writer.

This weeks picture goes back a number of years, although it seems like only yesterday that Erica Jean Nicholson was a young baby enjoying herself at Amma's house. This picture is of my Great Niece Erica Jean taken years ago at Jeans House obviously. I was looking through my MyCloud Drive and just happen to come across this early in my search and thought to myself, this is it. This is the picture that I choose for this week and I'll be honest, this was the first picture that I saw.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Hump Day

Well we are at that point in the week when we go up and over this noon time hump and start working our way downhill towards another fun filled weekend.

Apple has came out with their newest IOS, it's IOS 10.1 which includes the new Portrait feature for the camera by addressing the cameras aperture digitally and giving you that nice effect where the objects are sharp in front and then fade out to blurry as you get away. Most people refer to it as the F-stop on your camera  lens.

Not to be outdone, WatchOS was also released WatchOS 3 which I don't notice too many changes, but Michelle and I have updated both devices and we are both current on both of them. So we are good for the time being.

Well it looks like my caseload for RTI is going to grow and it will be in another county. I think I have these two sections about worked down as far as I'm going so we are going to move me east and see how effective I can be there. I can't say that I haven't been busy this quarter with this job.

Have yourselves a great day today and make someone smile.

Hi ho hi ho

Tuesday's Tidbits

* This is where I would say we have that dreaded Monday past us, but my days just seem to be running together right now but I will acknowledge that it is Tuesday and I'm going to do another fact filled and educational tidbits.

* I know you guys have missed this count, it has been 19,322 wonderful days since my birth. Depending on if you use the traditional 365 day or the new and improved 905 day calendar to determine my age, let me just help everyone by stating that I am still 21.

* There have been 4,545 days that have gone by since I Graduated from WVU, that in itself seems like yesterday and it has been 12 years in itself. Best career decision that I ever made.

* It was 3,146 days ago that Michelle and I went out on our very first date together, both of our lives have changed significantly for the better since that fateful night despite the movie being really bad. I do not recommend 10,000 BC as a must see movie...lol

* It has been 2,370 days since I proposed marriage to my wonderful wife, I enjoy each and every day that I get to spend with her, even if it is for only a few minutes.

* We are in day 1,907 of Marital bliss and still going strong, other than the occasional beating she give me, but I probably deserved them.

* I have about 5,515 or so days to go until my retirement, give or take a few hundred here or there and depending on how I feel.

* There are only 2,1543 days to go until the Backyard Brawl in football takes the field once again. WVU and Pitt have a few Basketball games scheduled in the future, but it is Football where we want to kick their asses. =) Bring it on boys.

* There are 347 more days to go until we once again attend the Springs Festival.

* Our next cruise is 320 days away. We both really like the cruise we take and the ports of call that we visit, hence why we keep repeating this same cruise. When you find something you like, why change it.

* There are only 285 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Sixth Wedding Anniversary together. I am the luckiest man in the world.

* There are 242 more days to go until Calvin and Jeanetta's Wedding next June, she has put together this very informative website for everyone to use. I

* My favorite season of the year is a mere 146 days away when Spring 2017 finally arrives. I know a lot of people like watching the leaves change, I'm a rebirth of the foliage kind of guy.

* My buddy Phil the Groundhog takes center stage in 100 more days when he forecasts the weather on Ground Hogs Day.

* I have 67 more days to go until my Goodbye 2016 blog is written, where I relive the previous year based on what has been written right here. I have a few months more content to write, hopefully it will be an interesting read.

* If you are planning your shopping, you have 61 more days to go until Christmas, Walmart and other stores have their Christmas stuff out and have for a while, we actually walked out in the lawn and garden section Sunday and it was like Santa Claus threw up.

* There are but a mere 37 more days to go until I celebrate yet another anniversary of my 21st Birthday.

* This is my 4,640th blog that I have written for George's Journal in the now 12+ years that I have been writing it. That is a lot of thoughts as well as a lot of words that I have typed in for everyone to read.

* No work yest this fall on the Hall Family Tree, as soon as things slow down a little bit I'm going to start working on that again.

* Nothing new on the brother search, the DNA tests returned a few second cousins and beyond, but nothing close to a brother.....yet. I still have faith that something, sometime and someday will turn up.

* The WVU Women's Soccer Team is still ranked #1 in the country.

* The WVU Football team have entered the Top 10, coming in at #10 in the AP and #9 in the USAToday's Coaches Poll.

* I ask once again is anyone up for Bowling on Thanksgiving Eve if the Bowling Alley's are open? I know I asked this question last week, but I think this would be a great opportunity for everyone to get together for the evening.

* I will be so glad when this election is over with, I'm really starting to get tired of people littering my wall with inaccurate and un-researched Propaganda. Rather than telling me why you don't like one candidate, why don't you tell me what you like about who you're going to vote for, what detailed plans of actions have they laid out to address what they would call a specific problem and how will they work with Congress (can't forget about them) to address it.

* I have been listening to a lot of Justin Johnson music recently, I think he may be one of the most brilliant guitar players I have ever heard. I think my Dad would have loved this guy.

* My streak of consecutive days worked ended Sunday, I think I had a pretty good quarter.

* Have yourselves a great day and make the very most of it.

* Hi ho hi ho

Monday

Well my day off came and went pretty quick, now it's time for all of us to stick our collective noses back on the grindstone for another fun filled week of doing what we do for a living for another fun filled week of working.

For me this will not be another 27 day stretch, but I am scheduled to go out in the field next Saturday, so it's going to be at least a six day stretch. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I can get a Saturday off as Michelle and I have tentatively discussed traveling to Amish County in Ohio that weekend. It has been a while since we have been there and we are long overdue in returning.

The week ahead doesn't look too busy, or at least not as busy as it has in the past month for me, but not too much going on outside the ordinary.

Looking at the week ahead and looking back on the weekend, it has been a very wet one, I'm just glad the temperatures didn't drop like they have a few times here in the past few years completely blanketing the area with that ugly white stuff that falls from the sky and inhibits our travel. I'm n ot sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I kid of hate snow. Not a fan at all.

Have yourselves a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Day Off

Well after 27 consecutive days of either working my regular job with Sextant, or my part time field job with RTI or a combination of both of them, I have finally gotten to the point where I have a day off!!!!!

It was a nice long stretch and the streak is over with, but there is still some cleanup work to do for RTI and I'll be moving to another county here pretty soon to finish up what another Field Interviewer started and could not finish due to them just simply being in the area temporarily, I'll go in and finish it up for her.

Needless to say I think I've earned a day of rest and relaxation.

I did get my authorization for me to Travel to St Louis after the New Year for the re-certification that needs to be done every year. Michelle is planning on going with me on our dime (RTI pays all of my expenses and time). We'll be staying at the Marriott St. Louis Grand, which is just a few blocks away from the Gateway Arch. Michelle will have all the free time, I will be in a classroom my entire time there with the notable exception of the day we arrive.

Our plans or today are grocery shopping this morning and then visiting our favorite local bakery later this morning. We are on no time schedule today as I don't have to rush out this morning to do any field work. Woo Hoo

Have a great day today, I plan on relaxing!!!

Saturday Morning Rambling

Here I sit in the very early AM, Michelle is still up and I just woke up in the middle of the night and plan on taking my butt back to bed. The TV is on and I have no idea what is playing on it.

Are you ready for a little football today, well the West Virginia Mountaineers will play host to TCU this afternoon at 3:30 right here in Morgantown. TCU flat out embarrassed us last year 40-10 on their home turf, hopefully we can play better today that we did last year. Hopefully I will be home in time to watch it.

Today is day 26 in a row for me working one job or the other, hopefully and there is no promise based on what could happen today, I'll have my first day off tomorrow since September 25th. However that could change with just one respondent wanting to set up an interview for tomorrow. I have had a very large case load this quarter, much heavier than any previous and a heavy case load in general, but I've worked it down and almost eliminated it all. I'll have some paperwork arriving next week for a couple more sections in another county, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

I hope everyone has a great day today, hopefully I can manage to somehow stay dry today but I'm not real optimistic about that happening. LOL

Hi ho hi ho, it's back to bed I go.

Big Ole Hairy Friday

Yes it is once again that time of the week that we all look foreword 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 once again the dawn of another weekend, and a Big Ole Hairy Friday.

I would first like to be thankful that Eric and Kevin are back in the booth together doing Podcasts. it's nice to see them working together again in some capacity. They are actually the originators of my "Big Ole Hairy Friday" title that I have used for years, so I felt the least that I could do was give them a shameless plug. Morning Radio in Morgantown just has not been the same since these two left the air.

Looking for a little bit of High School Football action? Morgantown is at home to take on John Marshall, University High is at home to play Preston and Clay Battelle travels to Southern Oh. Next Friday is what I am anticipating as the 2016 edition of the MoHawk Bowl is played. I cheer for all of our local team to do well, except when my Mohigans do battle with cross town rival University High.

Today is day 26 in a row for me working one job or the other or both, I will be out in the field once again tomorrow morning but unless some unlikely circumstance happens and I line up an interview for Sunday, my streak will end at 27 consecutive days when I plan on taking Sunday off. I'm hoping nothing prevents that, but you just never know.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out and look through some of the pictures that I have either taken, scanned or stolen off of the internet through the years and find one special picture that stands out. Little lost moments in time from yesterday caught with a Cameras lens and relived right here in my blog. Sometimes it's pretty easy to find that one special picture and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it consistently is however is a whole lot of fun.

This weeks pic goes back about, 21 years. Back to the time when I was a wee little one, although my math may be a little fuzzy as this is probably about 1963-4. So 2016-1963 = 21 years in my book.

This is a picture of my cousins Sharon (Left) and Lynne (Right) having their picture taken with the greatest blogger the internet has ever known. I think I was preparing for a walk down the catwalk in Milan sporting my adorable sailor outfit.

I would imagine that this image was taken at my Grandparents home in Van Voorhis back about 21 years ago since I am 21.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Di tto Di tto (not a typo).

The Brain Fart Blog

Well here we are once again at Wednesday, the day of the week I have the most trouble coming up with any kind of content to write about.

As I have discussed before, this is the hardest day for me to come up with any content worth writing about. It's the middle of the work week and in between a tidbits and a Photo Flashback where my creative juices just seem to have escaped me for the day.

Well lets see the WVU Football Team is ranked 12th in the AP and 13th in the Coaches Poll. The WVU Women's Soccer team is still the #1 team in the Country, maybe they can bring that National Championship home this season. So you can say the WVU Fall Sports teams have had a pretty successful season thus far, but there is still long way to go and too much season still is yet to be played.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Tuesday's Tidbits

* This is where I would say we have that dreaded Monday past us, but my days just seem to be running together right now but I will acknowledge that it is Tuesday and I'm going to do another fact filled and educational tidbits.

*  I know you guys have missed this count, it has been 19,315 wonderful days since my birth. Depending on if you use the traditional 365 day or the new and improved 905 day calendar to determine my age, let me just help everyone by stating that I am still 21.

* There have been 4,538 days that have gone by since I Graduated from WVU, that in itself seems like yesterday and it has been 12 years in itself. Best career decision that I ever made.

* It was 3,139 days ago that Michelle and I went out on our very first date together, both of our lives have changed significantly for the better since that fateful night despite the movie being really bad. I do not recommend 10,000 BC as a must see movie...lol

* It has been 2,363 days since I proposed marriage to my wonderful wife, I enjoy each and every day that I get to spend with her, even if it is for only a few minutes.

* We are in day 1,900 of Marital bliss and still going strong, other than the occasional beating she give me, but I probably deserved them.

* I have about 5,522 or so days to go until my retirement, give or take a few hundred here or there and depending on how I feel.

* There are only 2,161 days to go until the Backyard Brawl in football takes the field once again. WVU and Pitt have a few Basketball games scheduled in the future, but it is Football where we want to kick their asses. =) Bring it on boys.

* There are 354 more days to go until we once again attend the Springs Festival.

* Our next cruise is 327 days away. We both really like the cruise we take and the ports of call that we visit, hence why we keep repeating this same cruise.

* There are only 292 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Sixth Wedding Anniversary together.

* There are 249 more days to go until Calvin and Jeanetta's Wedding next June, she has put together this very informative website for everyone to use. I did find out this past week that they are planning on living in Morgantown as she is applying to WVU for her Masters Degree.

* My favorite season of the year is a mere 153 days away when Spring 2017 finally arrives. I know a lot of people like watching the leaves change, I'm a rebirth of the foliage kind of guy.

* My buddy Phil the Groundhog takes center stage in 107 more days when he forecasts the weather on  Ground Hogs Day.

* I have 75 more days to go until my Goodbye 2016 blog is written, where I relive the previous year based on what has been written right here.

* If you are planning your shopping, you have 68 more days to go until Christmas, Walmart and other stores have their Christmas stuff out and have for a while.

* There are but a mere 44 more days to go until I celebrate yet another anniversary of my 21st Birthday.

* This is my 4,633rd blog that I have written for George's Journal in the now 12+ years that I have been writing it. That is a lot of thoughts as well as a lot of words that I have typed in for everyone to read.

* No work yest this fall on the Hall Family Tree, as soon as things slow down a little bit I'm going to start working on that again.

* Nothing new on the brother search, the DNA tests returned a few second cousins and beyond, but nothing close to a brother.....yet.

* We did not make it to the 50th Koon Family Sing, but my niece Amy took some great pics.

* I was talking with my sister Kim this past week about getting all my siblings together for a photo in some setting. We talked about doing each lineage in a different color and going with lighter colors as it goes down the generations. Using the basic colors for each sibling and lightening them up for each generation of their lineage. I think it would be a magical picture.

* Anyone up for Bowling on Thanksgiving Eve if the Bowling Alley's are open? I know I asked this question last week, but I think this would be a great opportunity for everyone to get together for the evening.

* Today is day 23 straight of working one job or the other or even both since this quarter started. I have worked my way through both rosters and unless something comes up, I am taking this coming Sunday off ending my streak at 27 Consecutive days worked.

* Have yourselves a great day and make the very most of it.

* Hi ho hi ho

Monday

Well all good things must come to and end and that includes those fun filled things we all refer to as weekends. Now it's time to stick our collective noses back on that grindstone that we know called life and return to another fun filled week of doing what it is we do for a living.

For me however, this is day 22 in a row for me for one job or the other if not both of them, hopefully by next Sunday I can manage to get a little break and finally have a day off from both jobs at the same time. The job with RTI had a very heavy case load this quarter and I just had to keep my head down and moving forward, there is now light at the end of the tunnel as I have now worked my way through my entire roster at least once and only have 30% of my assigned areas that have not been closed off. That's 70% of a caseload the equivalent to what I had seen in my last two quarters combined. Hopefully all of my efforts will help make a difference in our communities as this is more about the project to me, it's personal and I want to make a difference.

Other than that we all starting a new work week, I don't see anything really coming up this upcoming week, that's a good thing if you ask me.

We did trade in both of our iPhone's for the deal with AT&T, which means we get $54 a month off of our bill for the next 24 months which totals up to $1,300 over the next two years that they are giving me for the two iPhone 6's we traded in when we got our iPhone 7 Pluses.

Have yourselves a great day today and remember that this is the first day of the rest of your life, make the most of it.

Hi ho hi ho

Happy Gospel Singing Koon Family Day

By proclamation last night by the Governor in honor of 50 years of singing together, and by the City of Westover who celebrated them and the Morgantown Mayor who proclaimed that today is the Gospel Singing Koon Family Day in Morgantown, I want to wish everyone a Happy Gospel Singing Koon Family Day.

We did't make it to the sing last night, but fortunately it was streamed last night on UStream and Michelle and I were able to watch the 3 hour event as they had a very magical night. They were all perfect as if Lottie was there in the flesh inspiring them, it was something to see and Michelle and I laughed, cried and smiled with them yesterday evening as we enjoyed the entire show. They were all phenomenal and my immediate family were all front row center for the nights festivities.

I did manage to buy a vinyl copy of one of their albums last night on Amazon, but now they seem to be sold out of them. I would like to get a copy of their DVD's if they are out there, it would be nice to add to my music collection to my iPhone.

Have yourselves a great day today and Happy Gospel Singing Koon Family Day.

Happy Birthday Brittany Dae Cummings

I would love to take this time out to wish my beautiful niece Brittany a very Happy Birthday today.

It seems like it was only yesterday that I was in the hospital waiting room watching an afternoon running of the TV show Who's the Boss as my sister Kim was bringing this wonderful bundle of joy into the world.

I have had the pleasure of watching her grow up right before my eyes and even graduate from my Alma Mater WVU last year. I am so proud of her and she is one of the most loving and caring people you would ever want to meet.

If you get a chance to see or talk to Brittany today, make sure that you take a little bit of time out and wish her the Happiest of Birthdays today.

Happy Birthday Brittany.

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit in a quiet household, I'm the first one to recover from that knockout by the Sandman last night and I'l up watching some a comedy on HBO, not sure specifically what it is if that is any indication as to how closely I am paying attention.

The #1 Ranked WVU Women's Soccer team last night beat Texas Tech at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium 1-0. This is the second time this season the Woman have achieved the #1 ranking in the Country.

The #20 ranked WVU Men's Football team travels to Texas Tech today for a game against the Red Raiders at noon today. We are a 2 point favorite but don't count on that, Texas Tech has a very high powered offense and anything can happen. I don't think we can withstand a scoring shootout with them, defense would be our key today.

I'll be out in the field again today working for RTI. This is day 20 in a row that I have worked one job or the other, 20 days without a day off is a long stretch but I am starting to see a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe by next Sunday, but we'll have to wait and see how well this weekend goes first.

The Koon Family 50 year celebration sing is this evening, I'm planing on being there if I am back in town in time. It shouldn't be a problem.

Have yourselves a great day today and make it a special one, this is the only October 15, 2016 you will ever get.

Hi ho hi ho

Big Ole Hairy Friday

Yes it is once again that time of the week that we all look foreword 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 once again the dawn of another weekend, and a Big Ole Hairy Friday.

Looking for a little bit of High School Football action? Well University High is home this evening at taking on Buchannon-Upshire (The Buck Ups as we used to call them). Morgantown travels to play Riverside and Clay Battelle is home to host Cameron. Good luck to all the local teams this evening as they due battle on the Gridiron.

Tomorrow will the Koon Family's 50th Anniversary Sing at the Kingdom Evangelical Methodist Church in Westover. This will probably be one of the last performances from this group, so it will be a special night and I'm sure Lottie will be there with them.

I'll be out in the field once again tomorrow working for RTI, this will be day 20 in a row that I have worked one job or the other or both although I will be off this evening. Hopefully I can get more of the rosters worked down before Daylight Savings Time ends on November 6th, which shouldn't be much of a problem at the pace I am going.

Have yourselves a great day today and make the very most of it.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take some time out and look through all of the pictures that I have either taken, scanned or stolen off the internet. Little lost moments of time that I like to relive and share with everyone. Sometimes this is a pretty east task and sometimes it's not so easy. One thing that it always is however is a whole lot of fun.

This weeks pic goes back a few years to when Michelle and I traveled to Washington DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival. We used to take our traveling gnome with us and we would take pictures of him in some special places. This pic is Michelle holding our gnome in front of the White House, one of many sites that we visited that day. This was our first trip together to our nations capital, but it was not our last as we visited again the next year.

We took our gnome with us on our cruise this past year, the sad thing is we took a grand total of zero pictures of him in the Caribbean.

Have a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Hump Day

Well I would say we're about halfway there, but I'm on day 15 of working without a break from both jobs at the same time. Hopefully I should get a day off here in the very near future where I can relax.

I was going to work for RTI last night, but I have a couple of interviews scheduled for today so I switched my schedule around a little bit so that I could accommodate the respondents. It has been by far my most productive quarter so far as well as everyone else on the West Virginia Team. It's been a challenge, but like I said this is my most productive quarter to date and I think I can attribute it to getting away from the student population.

I do admit that the middle of the week blogs are by far the hardest ones for me to write. Every other day is pretty easy and it pretty much flows with no problem. Wednesdays on the other hand, unless something major is happening there is really nothing for me to talk about. I've tried doing Wisdom Wednesdays, but that kind have by the wayside as it was a good idea, but no inspiration for it. Obscure quotes are nice, but you start to repeat yourself on occasion.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

BTW, Eric and Kevin are going to start doing Podcasts.

Tuesday's Tidbits

* This is where I would say we have that dreaded Monday past us, but my days just seem to be running together right now but I will acknowledge that it is Tuesday and I'm going to do a tidbits.

*  I know you guys have missed this count, it has been 19,308 wonderful days since my birth. Depending on if you use the traditional 365 day or the new and improved 905 day calendar to determine my age, let me just help everyone by stating that I am still 21.

* There have been 4,532 days that have gone by since I Graduated from WVU, that in itself seems like yesterday and it has been 12 years in itself.

* It was 3,132 days ago that Michelle and I went out on our very first date together, both of our lives have changed significantly for the better since that fateful night despite the movie being really bad.

* It has been 2,356 days since I proposed marriage to my wonderful wife, how many people do you know who could tell you how many days it has been since they did that? This one can.

* We are in day 1,893 of Marital bliss and still going strong.

* I have about 5,529 or so days to go until my retirement, give or take a few hundred here or there.

* There are only 2,167 days to go until the Backyard Brawl in football takes the field once again. WVU and Pitt have a few Basketball games scheduled in the future, but it is Football where we want to kick their asses. =)

* There are 361 more days to go until we once again attend the Springs Festival.

* Our next cruise is 334 days away. We found a great deal this past week that included booking with a small deposit, so nice that it was too nice to pass up upon. This will be our sixth cruise and we are ready already.

* There are only 299 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Sixth Wedding Anniversary together.

* There are 256 more days to go until Calvin and Jeanetta's Wedding next June, she has put together this very informative website for everyone to use. I did find out this past week that they are planning on living in Morgantown as she is applying to WVU for her Masters Degree.

* My favorite season of the year is a mere 161 days away when Spring 2017 finally arrives. I know a lot of people like watching the leaves change, I'm a rebirth of the foliage kind of guy.

* My buddy Phil the Groundhog takes center stage in 114 more days when he forecasts the weather on  Ground Hogs Day.

* I have 81 more days to go until my Goodbye 2016 blog is written, where I relive the previous year based on what has been written right here.

* If you are planning your shopping, you have 75 more days to go until Christmas.

* This is my 4,625th blog that I have written for George's Journal in the now 12+ years that I have been writing it. That is a lot of thoughts as well as a lot of words that I have typed in for everyone to read.

* Congratulations to Moke and Ang, they celebrated their sixth Wedding Anniversary yesterday.

* Our Pumpkin carving went pretty well last week, now we are planning on decorating customized Christmas bulbs next for Mom's Christmas Tree next month.

* Anyone up for Bowling on Thanksgiving Eve if the Bowling Alley's are open?

* Even though yesterday was a Federal Holiday, I'm on day 16 of consecutive days worked at one job or the other or like today both.

* The Koon family 50th anniversary sing is this weekend, if you can make it come on out.

* In case anyone has not noticed, I have been shaving my head for the last month or so. It was a little weird putting shaving cream on top of my head for the first time, now I'm getting used to it.

* It's back to the office for me today.

* Have yourselves a great day and make the very most of it.

* Hi ho hi ho

Columbus Day

For some people today this is the day you stick your collective noses back on the grindstone for another week of working, however this is a Federal Holiday and that means that I get a day off from going into the office for my career job.

Looking at the week ahead I will be attending the Koon Family's 50th Anniversary Sing this coming Saturday. They will be celebrating 50 years of them singing together which is a pretty remarkable task. I'll take my camera and try to get a few pics.

Other than that not too much on the agenda for the week other than working one job or the other or even both of them the same day. Hurricane Matthew is now over with and even Nicole that was coming in behind it has been downgraded. I guess now everyone can go back to whining about one political candidate or the other and predicting our nations doom if their candidate isn't elected.

Have a great day today and make the very most of it.

Sunday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit yet once again on  a quiet Sunday Morning, I'm the first one to recover from the losing battle with the Sandman last night and I'm up collecting my thoughts once again for the day. Something is playing on the TV behind me but I have no idea what it is as I'm not paying attention.

We had a great time yesterday at my sister Kim's decorating our pumpkins for Halloween. It was actually a lot of fun and we all had a great time doing it. We're talking about doing something similar in the next month or so with Christmas ornaments. Since we started the tradition a few years ago for my Mom and a Christmas Tree, we add personalized ornaments every year and this would be a good way of creating our new ones for this years tree.

Well it is back out in the field for me this afternoon for RTI. I had a great week last week, arguably my most productive week since I started conducting interviews for them earlier this year. I have at least one interview scheduled this afternoon and may have as many as 3 so that would really make my day much easier and productive.

Have yourselves a great day.

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit on a quiet Saturday Morning, I'm up early watching a Fish Called Wanda and collecting my thoughts for the day while surfing the net.

Well since I am going out in the field working this morning, Michelle and I headed to Springs Pennsylvania yesterday afternoon for the Springs Festival. We weren't there that long, but we did manage to get some sauerkraut that we have frozen for New Years, some Apple Butter, Maple Sugar and some honey from the local vendors. We were only there for about an hour, but I did manage to get everything that we usually go for including some Amish Origins which we can only seem to find up in that area.

Today is going to be a wet one here, but it's also a day that I will be out in the field early conducting interviews for the NSDUH study for RTI. I've had a very productive start to the fourth quarter despite having a doubled case load this quarter. Everything seems to have just fallen into place and I'm finding people at home and being cooperative for the most part.

This evening we will be decorating/carving our Pumpkins for Halloween. We are going to meet at my sister Kim's to decorate ours as part of an October family get together. Should be a good day.

Have yourselves a superfantabulous day and make the very most of this wet Saturday.

Big Ole Hairy Friday

Yes it is once again that time of the week that we all look foreword 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 once again the dawn of another weekend, and a Big Ole Hairy Friday.

This weekend is also a three day weekend as Columbus Day is Monday, so won't be working at my career job until Tuesday after I get this one in but I'll be doing field work all weekend.

Looking for a little bit of High School Football action tonight? Well the Morgantown Mohigans try to end a two game losing streak tonight as they travel to Wheeling to take on the defending State Champions in Wheeling Park. University High travels to Hampshire to play and Clay Battelle will host Paden City in Blacksville tonight.

We will be doing a little pumpkin decorating/carving tomorrow afternoon/evening at my sister Kim's. We put it out there but there was little to no response from anyone but we are still going to go and carve and decorate ours.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look through my 30,000+ lost moments in time that I have either captured with a lens, scanned or just stolen from some place on the internet. I like to post up one picture and relive it briefly for everyone. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task like today's and sometimes it is a struggle to find that special picture, one this it always is is a whole lot of fun for this writer.

This weeks pic goes back about a year and a half, Michelle and I took a trip to Amish Country and we brought my Mom along for the day. It was just a one day trip where we went up and back the same day, so we had a nice early start on the day.

When we travel to Amish Country our first stop has always been to the Breitenbach Winery where we usually stock up on a nice assortment of wines. This weeks picture is of Michelle and my Mom after she did a little bit of shopping and bought a few bottles of the fermented and bottled treats. Judging by the picture, my guess is we bought a few bottles on that particular day.

Have yourselves a great day today

Hi ho hi ho

Wednesday

Well for the regular week workers it's the middle of the work week and you're on your way to another fun filled weekend. For me it's a break from one job for a day while I still work my full time job so I guess I can step back and take a breath now..lol

Michelle and I got our new iPhones on Monday, we both upgraded to the 7 Plus from the regular regular iPhone 6. I have to say I have mixed reviews so far about it, I'm used to having that "wow factor" from Apple but this time I just have a few grumblings rather than a bunch of excitement. We'll give it some time to see how it goes.

Other than that not really anything new going on. Long days for me still and the days seem to run together a little bit, but I'm prepared for it and taking it in stride. I do get to see Michelle for a couple seconds as she walks out the door to go to work every day, but other than that we're just chugging along.

It is getting to that time of the year when I start to spend a little bit of time on the Hall Family Tree, but I haven't done anything to it since I uploaded my DNA results to them and another site. I guess that I have hit a dead end with the brother search as my DNA does not match up to anyone in any databases for a sibling that close.

Have yourselves a great day, I get to relax for a little bit this evening.

Hi ho hi ho

Tuesday's Tidbits

* This is where I would say we have that dreaded Monday past us, but my days just seem to be running together right now but I will acknowledge that it is Tuesday and I'm going to do a tidbits.

*  I know you guys have missed this count, it has been 19,301 wonderful days since my birth. Depending on if you use the traditional 365 day or the new and improved 905 day calendar to determine my age, let me just help everyone by stating that I am still 21.

* There have been 4,524 days that have gone by since I Graduated from WVU, that in itself seems like yesterday and it has been 12 years in itself.

* It was 3,124 days ago that Michelle and I went out on our very first date together, both of our lives have changed significantly for the better since that fateful night.

* It has been 2,348 days since I proposed marriage to my wonderful wife, how many people do you know who could tell you how many days it has been since they did that?

* We are in day 1,886 of Marital bliss although it seems like this week due to my schedule we will get to say hello to each other in the morning as she leaves for work. There should be some relief tomorrow night as I'm taking the evening off from RTI.

* I have about 5,536 or so days to go until my retirement, give or take a few hundred here or there.

* There are only 2,175 days to go until the Backyard Brawl in football takes the field once again. WVU and Pitt have a few Basketball games scheduled in the future, but it is Football where we want to kick their asses. =)

* Our next cruise is 341 days away. We found a great deal this past week that included booking with a small deposit, so nice that it was too nice to pass up upon. This will be our sixth cruise.

* There are only 306 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Fifth Wedding Anniversary together.

* There are 263 more days to go until Calvin and Jeanetta's Wedding next June, she has put together this very informative website for everyone to use. I did find out this past week that they are planning on living in Morgantown as she is applying to WVU for her Masters Degree.

* My favorite season of the year is a mere 167 days away when Spring 2017 finally arrives.

* My buddy Phil the Groundhog takes center stage in 121 more days when he forecasts the weather on  Ground Hogs Day.

* I have 88 more days to go until my Goodbye 2016 blog is written, where I relive the previous year based on what has been written right here.

* If you are planning your shopping, you have 82 more days to go until Christmas.

* There are only 4 more days to the Springs Festival which it looks like I will miss for a second consecutive year. I'll be traveling and conducting interviews for my other job that morning. Lot's of sadness on my part as that is usually a lot of fun.

* This is my 4,618th blog that I have written for George's Journal in the now 12+ years that I have been writing it. That is a lot of thoughts as well as a lot of words that I have typed in for everyone to read.

* Calvin and Jeanetta's wedding is not the only one in the family that is being planned, Michelle's niece Amanda and her Fiance' Joey will be getting married this coming May. I can[t stand that cold powdery substance that pollutes the land.

* Terri is doing well at her new Job, training should be over with and she should be going live or have already went live. I hear that her schedule will be during the week and no weekends.

* Speaking of Weekends, we're decorating pumpkins this Saturday.

* I'm good for another year as I got my flu shot at work yesterday. I seem to do much better through the winter when I get them compared to when I don't.

* The Mountaineer Football team fresh off the Kansas State win and a 4-0 record are now ranked. We are 22nd in the AP Poll and 20th in the Coaches Poll.

* As the leaves are starting to change colors and the hills of West Virginia will be painted with beautiful colors as they leaves change, I would just like to take this opportunity to say I Hate Snow.

* I missed the Buckwheat Festival this past weekend, things just did not work out for us to be able to make the trip up there. I hope everyone who did go got their fill of Buckwheat Cakes and had a great time.

* Our new iPhone's arrived yesterday. We both got 256 GB iPhone 7 Pluses and they have been converted to our new phones and we're just getting ready to trade in the other ones to AT&T for thr $650 deal.

* Have yourselves a great day and make the very most of it.

* Hi ho hi ho

Monday

All good things must come to an end, and that includes those fun filled things everyone else calls the weekend. For me it is going from the field work job back to the office for another fun filled week of work.

I'll be putting in a full day in the office and then I will be heading out into the field this afternoon to make both today and tomorrow as I repeat the process a couple of pretty long days for me, but relief is in sight on Wednesday as I'll only be in the office and not out in the field, so that is something to look forward to.

Over this past weekend Chad managed to get moved into his new Apartment. He moved from over in Westover to his current apartment over by the stadium, where he is just a 5 minute walk into his place of work. Hayley and her friend Logan were a big help to Chad as he tried to make that move during homecoming weekend to where everyone was tailgating. They managed to get the vast majority of it all done on Friday evening avoiding trying to maneuver the u-haul back into where they had to put it.

Mine and Michelle's phones that we ordered should be here later this week, they have shipped and are in transit to here from Texas. I think we're both a little excited to get the new phones, I got a great deal from AT&T on the trade in of our old phones. $650 for the old ones I thought was well above what I was going to be able to get from the market by selling them, probably about half of that even though ours were in pristine condition from being in the otter boxes the last couple of years.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Sunday Morning Rambling

Here I sit in a quiet household, Josh is also up watching TV in the bedroom and I'm collecting my thoughts on the day and surfing the net.

I managed to get home yesterday afternoon in time to watch the second half of the WVU - Kansas State game, we were down 0-13 at halftime but managed to play a great second half and pull out a first win ever over Kansas State 17-16. The Mountaineers move to 4-0 on the year and are off next week in their final bye of the season.

I'm out in the field again this afternoon working for RTI, I had a pretty productive day yesterday if I do say so myself. It is a nice pleasant drive both two and from and the people have been much more receptive than I have found in my previous two quarters that I have worked, maybe it's because I have gotten away from the student housing in Morgantown and are getting more rural type of permanent residents who are not transients and have something invested in their communities.

My day will be a long one starting out with Michelle and I going out and doing our typical Sunday Grocery shopping followed by a trip to our favorite local bakery. Then it's back out into the field I go.

Hi ho hi ho

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Well here I sit in a quiet household, I'm the first to recover from a losing battle with that dreaded Sandman yesterday evening and I'm up collecting my thoughts for the day and surfing the net.

My day will be starting early this morning as I travel to start a new quarter on the NSDUH project, like I said previously my caseload is pretty heavy this quarter and I am going to be very busy working this job as well as my full time career. I do enjoy doing field work, it gets me out of the office and out and about, so it's a welcome part time opportunity.

This afternoon at 3:30 the WVU Mountaineers will host Kansas State here in Morgantown. The game is on ESPNU for those of you who will not be going. Hopefully I can get home and watch the end of it this afternoon. Kansas State is led by legendary coach Bill Snyder and we have never beaten the Wildcats.

Have yourselves a great day today, traffic is going to be horrific all day as this is Homecoming Weekend here in Morgantown and this game is sold out.

Hi ho hi ho