Tuesday's Tidbits

* Monday is completed, no other reason that makes it a great reason to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 21,586 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new,  new, and improved 1,000-day Calender. I do have to say I start to feel my age or older than 21.  

* It has been 6,846 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 18+ years ago and still doing GIS and enjoying every minute of it. 

* 5,434 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, the pizza hut is gone, the movie was 10,000 BC and it sucked to high heaven. Heck, even our Pizza Hut is gone. 

* 4,653 days ago I proposed to Michelle in the backyard at 4:00 in the morning. 

* It was 4,196 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, we poured sand into a vase and said our I do's and we were hitched. How many people keep track of hoa many days they have been married 11+ years later? 

* I have now lived 1,818 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* My older Brother Jonathan lived 21,266 days, I've now outlived him by 341 days making me Senior Supreme Sibling once again! To my younger siblings, bow down to my age seniority. =)

* I have 3,341 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. 

* 361 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day, hopefully Phil does me a solid next year.

* 327 more days to go until my Goodbye 2023 Blog is posted, I'm just now getting started on content for that one. 

* There are 321 more shopping days left until Christmas 2023. You still have plenty of time to prepare and get ready. =)

* There are 297 days until I hit the age of 60. Yeah I know, I'm really older than 21. 

* There are 220 more days until the Pitt Panthers bring their butts to Morgantown so we can extract some revenge on our game this year. Payback Kitties. I think we are ready to roll now. 

* There are 210 more days to go until the Mountaineers travel to Happy Valley and get another shot at an old time Rival, Penn State

* There are 178 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Twelfth Wedding Anniversary together. Moke and Ang celebrated theirs yesterday. 

* There are 48 days until my favorite season, Spring of 2023. Have I ever mentioned that I hate snow? 

* I have written 7,076 blogs in the now 18 1/4 years plus a couple of days of being a blogger. 

* 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. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, I'm seriously a slacker. 

* Would you believe this coming weekend is Super Bowl Sunday? I got Philadelphia to win it this year. 

* Still working 12-hour shifts for Duquense Light this week. 

* How about I start doing my favorite Tic Tok of the week? This is  The best video of the Russian Spy Baloon being taken out on Saturday. 

* Have yourselves a great day.  

* Hi ho hi ho 

Monday

All good things must come to an end, that does in fact include those fun-filled things we refer to as weekends. Now it is time to take our collective noses and stick them back onto the grindstone for another fun-filled week of doing what we do for a living to make this a better rock to live on. 

Nothing big on my Calender this week, just working 12 hours a day from home doing what I do. I don't see anything out of the ordinary scheduled for me this week, so I'll just keep grinding. 

Michelle is feeling a little bit better between Pedialyte and Immodium we have pumped into her over the last four days I think she may be getting over this bug. I'm just wondering if it was a bug that she caught or what, I know she came home last Thursday and basically slept 24 hours straight for some reason.  

I'm rested and ready to go, let's get this week started. 

Hi ho hi ho

Sunday

Here we are once again, Peanut, Kiwi and I are up talking about the stock market arguing with both of them that Groundhogs have a day but they don't. Peanut is sad, but OK with that where Kiwi wants to move on towards his Trillion Twitter followers and change that. he wants a Green Cheek Conure Day or his Birthday to be a Federal Holiday. I told him we would work on that. 

Michelle has been sick, so we didn't get into too much yesterday. although we did do our Friday evening shopping yesterday morning. Michelle was sick Friday so I ran to do all the shopping and pulled into Walmart and realized, my wallet was at home. All my cash, debit cards, and credit cards were back on the other side of all that rush hour traffic so we did our shopping yesterday. It's less crowded on Saturday mornings than it is on Friday Nights which was nice, I hate crowds. 

Today we're going to go and do our weekly shopping, we have our menu for the week and we're going to go and fill in what we need from Krogers. Other than that it's going to be a relaxing day, of course, but that can always change at a moment's notice. I would like it as a recharge day before we start another work week. I did find a bread that I want to try making this week, bread making skills are something I would like to learn. Everyone loves a fresh loaf of warm bread. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Saturday

Here I sit in a quiet household, Kiwi and I are up speaking back in forth in Mandarin Chinese about how lucky we are that cows can't fly. Can you imagine the attack of cow chips from above, it could get messy. It's one thing to have a bird poop on your windshield, but a cow? 

Michelle has been home sick the last couple of days, lingering effects from a migraine plus diarrhea has not made the last couple of days pleasant for her. 

My agenda for the day is to run and dry laundry at the laundromat. I usually wash it all on Fridays then go early Saturday morning to dry everything. I'm an early riser plus Kiwi never lets me sleep in, so I don't mind. Now if I can just teach him how to dry and fold it I would be sitting pretty. 

Cold weather means no plans for us today. This could be a day when I come home and take a nice nap, or spend the day playing on the XBOX. 

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.

I was 1 for 2 yesterday. Phil started my day by seeing his damned shadow, but French Creek Freddy says screw you Phil, spring is right around the corner. 

It is Friday and it's my shortest day or longest day depending on how you want to look at it. I work today then meet up with Michelle to do our Sam's shopping for the week before going out to dinner. This week Michelle says she wants El Pollen for dinner, so that is what she will get this evening. 

It is the start of the weekend, so have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

Phil for Dinner AI

Once upon a time in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, there was a famous groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil. Every year on February 2nd, thousands of people gathered to watch him emerge from his burrow and predict the weather.

One year, when Phil emerged from his burrow, he saw his shadow. This meant that winter would last for six more weeks. The people cheered and celebrated, but little did they know that this was the last time they would ever see Phil.

That evening, as Phil was relaxing in his burrow, he heard a knock on the door. When he opened it, he was greeted by a group of hunters who were searching for their next meal. The hunters saw Phil and thought he would make a great addition to their dinner table.

Phil tried to run away, but he was too slow and was caught by the hunters. They took him back to their cabin and cooked him for dinner. The hunters enjoyed their delicious meal and talked about how much better it was than any other game they had hunted before.

The next day, when the people of Punxsutawney gathered for their annual Groundhog Day celebration, they were shocked to find out that Phil was missing. They searched for him everywhere, but he was nowhere to be found.

Years went by, and the legend of Punxsutawney Phil and his annual weather prediction continued. But, the people of Punxsutawney never forgot about the groundhog who had once been a part of their community and the delicious meal he had become.

And so, the story of Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog who saw his shadow and ended up being dinner, became a cautionary tale for all animals to be careful and always be on the lookout for danger.

Phil, the great Groundhog from Punxutawney who is the seer of seers, the prognosticators of prognosticators has spoken to his handler. The language is known as Grounhogeze, a language only a few of us speak has informed his master handler of his prediction for 2022.

The little SOB saw his shadow. 

Groundhog Stew, with Bacon and Natural Wild Rice

Marinate the woodchuck, brown it, braise in stock, remove meat from the bones, then sweat some diced vegetables, add back the meat and cooking liquid, along with some rice, season it up, and voila. Have some good bread around, you're going to want to wipe the bowl clean.

Prep Time12 hrs

Cook Time30 mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Groundhog, Small game, Stew, Woodchuck

 

Servings: 2

Ingredients

• One roughly 2-3 lb groundhog skinned, gutted, rinsed and quartered (see photo above)

Marinade

• 3 cups dry white wine
• 1 bulb of garlic cloves lightly crushed with the back of a knife
• 1 large sprig rosemary leaves torn off the branch
• a small handful of fresh thyme sprigs roughly 6-7
• 2 fresh bay leaves optional
• Kosher salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup blended olive oil or neutral vegetable oil

For the Groundhog Stew

• 3 cups mixed vegetables diced 1/4 inch (I used a mix of carrots, potatoes, onion, celery and fennel)
• 1 large tomato
• 3 qts chicken stock preferably homemade
• 4 ounces smoked pork belly or slab bacon diced 1/4 inch
• 1/4 cup wild rice flour for dredging the woodchuck, optional
• 1/2 tablespoon garlic minced
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1/2 cup wood parched / natural wild rice or 1 cup cooked wild rice
• 1 ear of sweet corn
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Tobasco to taste, optional
• Sliced scallions 1/4 inch, tender white and green parts only, optional

Instructions

Marinating

• The night before hand, trim the groundhog pieces of as much visible fat as possible, then season liberally with salt and pepper, toss with the garlic cl0ves, oil, thyme, bay leaves, and rosemary. Put the seasoned groundhog pieces in a wide dish or casserole and pour over the wine. Allow the woodchuck to sit overnight or at least for 4-5 hours, turn it around in the juices now and then if you have time.
• Cut the corn from the cob, then cut the cobb into 2 inch slices and reserve both separately.
• To prepare the stew, render out the fat from the bacon in a wide 10 inch braising pan, remove the bacon and reserve, leave the fat in the pan.

Browning and Building the Stew

• Remove the groundhog pieces from their marinade, pat dry and remove any rogue herbs or pieces of garlic. Toss with the wild rice flour, then brown on medium high heat in the bacon fat. Pour off the spent fat from the pan, deglaze the pan with the sherry, reduce by half, then add the stock, corn cob, cover the pan and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. If you have time, skim the albumen and fat that rise to the surface of the pan occasionally as it makes a cleaner tasting stew. Simmer the groundhog gently for 1.5 hours, or until the meat can be picked from the bones.
• Meanwhile, cook the wild rice in the chicken stock until just done, then strain out the rice and lay out on a plate or cookie sheet to cool. Reserve the wild rice liquid to add to the stew. It adds really good flavor, and that's why you're cooking the rice in chicken stock in the first place.
• Remove the woodchuck pieces and cool, then pick the meat from the bones, give it a rough chop, and reserve. You should have about 2.5 cups of meat.
• Remove the stock from the pan and reserve then strain it. You should have about 1 qts of liquid.
• Wipe the pan, then melt the butter and add the diced vegetables and the garlic. Sweat the mixture until it's well cooked, and the vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes, then add the reserved woodchuck liquid, wild rice liquid and simmer for 15 minutes more.
• Finally, add the woodchuck meat, corn kernels, and wild rice. Season the stew with salt to taste, then serve immediately with some Tobasco on the side. If not serving, chill immediately, transfer to a labeled, dated container and reserve until needed.

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look at some of the 30,000+ photos that I have stored on my computer. Little lost moments in time that I either captured with a lens, scanned, or just stole from someplace on the internet. I like to find just one and post it up and recall or relive the picture to the best of my ability. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it has always been a whole lot of fun.

On this day, my old friend Phil (as seen above) will determine if we are going to have six more weeks of winter or if we can expect an early Spring as the prognosticator of prognosticators make his appearance this fine morning to let us know what to expect. 

There have been very few bribes for Phil this last year, the little rat saw his shadow last year and the year before that even. So I'm hoping he doesn't see it this year. 

AI Three Sisters

Once upon a time, there were three sisters named Kim, Terri, and Pam. They lived together in a small cottage in a quaint village surrounded by a lush forest. Kim was the eldest sister, Terri was in the middle, and Pam was the youngest. Despite their differences in age, the three sisters were the closest of friends and did everything together.

One day, while on a walk in the forest, the sisters stumbled upon a mysterious cave. They were curious and decided to explore it. Inside, they found a magical crystal that granted wishes. The sisters were overjoyed and decided to make their first wish.

Kim wished for a beautiful garden filled with flowers and fruits. Her wish was granted, and a stunning garden appeared right in front of them. Terri wished for a library filled with books, and her wish was granted too. Pam, who was the youngest and most adventurous, wished for an enchanted forest filled with wonders and mysteries. Her wish was granted, and they all marveled at the wonders they saw.

The sisters spent their days exploring their magical wishes and enjoying each other's company. However, they soon realized that with great power comes great responsibility. They decided to use their wishes wisely and help those in need in their village.

With their kind hearts and their magical wishes, the three sisters brought happiness and hope to the people of their village. They became known as the sisters with the kind hearts and the magical crystal, and their story was told for generations to come.

AI Kiwi and Peanut Story

Once upon a time, there lived a bird named Kiwi and a cat named Peanut in the same small village. Kiwi was always busy flying from tree to tree and singing sweet songs, while Peanut spent most of her days lounging in the sun and playing with string. Although they lived in the same village, they had never met.

One day, while Kiwi was out exploring, he came across Peanut who was in trouble. She was stuck in a bush and couldn't get out. Kiwi, being the brave bird he was, flew down to help Peanut. After freeing her, they struck up a conversation and became fast friends.

From then on, Kiwi and Peanut could be seen together all the time. They explored the village, played games, and even sang songs together. The other animals in the village were amazed at their friendship, as birds and cats were not known to be friends.

One day, a terrible storm hit the village, and all the animals were scared. Kiwi and Peanut, not wanting their friends to be afraid, decided to put on a show. They flew and danced through the storm, singing songs and bringing joy to all the animals. When the storm passed, the village was filled with laughter and happiness, thanks to the bravery and kindness of Kiwi and Peanut.

From that day on, Kiwi and Peanut were known as the best of friends, and their friendship continued to bring joy and laughter to the village for many years to come.

AI Kiwi Story

Once upon a time, there was a bird named Kiwi who lived in a beautiful forest. Kiwi was known to be the bravest and most curious bird in the forest. One day, while exploring the forest, Kiwi came across a shiny object. It was a key! Kiwi couldn't resist its gleam and decided to find out what it unlocked.

After searching for hours, Kiwi finally discovered a locked chest that the key fit perfectly into. Excitedly, Kiwi opened the chest to reveal a map inside. The map showed the location of a secret treasure hidden deep in the forest. Kiwi knew that he had to find the treasure.

With determination, Kiwi set off on an adventure to find the treasure. He encountered many obstacles along the way, but he didn't give up. He used his intelligence and bravery to overcome them all. Finally, after days of searching, Kiwi found the treasure! It was a glittering pile of gems and gold.

Kiwi realized that the treasure was not just for him, but for all the animals in the forest. So, he gathered all his friends and together, they enjoyed the treasure and lived happily ever after. From that day on, Kiwi was not just known as the bravest bird in the forest, but also as the kindest.

Wednesday

Tuesday's Tidbits

* Monday is completed, no other reason that makes it a great reason to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 21,579 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new,  new, and improved 1,000-day Calender. I do have to say I start to feel my age or older than 21.  

* It has been 6,839 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 18+ years ago and still doing GIS and enjoying every minute of it. 

* 5,427 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, the pizza hut is gone, the movie was 10,000 BC and it sucked to high heaven. Heck, even our Pizza Hut is gone. 

* 4,646 days ago I proposed to Michelle in the backyard at 4:00 in the morning. 

* It was 4,189 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, we poured sand into a vase and said our I do's and we were hitched. How many people keep track of hoa many days they have been married 11+ years later? 

* I have now lived 1,811 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* My older Brother Jonathan lived 21,266 days, I've now outlived him by 334 days making me Senior Supreme Sibling once again! To my younger siblings, bow down to my age seniority. =)

* I have 3,348 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. 

* 334 more days to go until my Goodbye 2023 Blog is posted, I'm just now getting started on content for that one. 

* There are 328 more shopping days left until Christmas 2023. You still have plenty of time to prepare and get ready. =)

* There are 304 days until I hit the age of 60. Yeah I know, I'm really older than 21. 

* There are 227 more days until the Pitt Panthers bring their butts to Morgantown so we can extract some revenge on our game this year. Payback Kitties. I think we are ready to roll now. 

* There are 217 more days to go until the Mountaineers travel to Happy Valley and get another shot at an old time Rival, Penn State

* There are 185 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Twelfth Wedding Anniversary together. Moke and Ang celebrated theirs yesterday. 

* There are 55 days until my favorite season, Spring of 2023. Have I ever mentioned that I hate snow? 

* 2 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day, hopefully Phil does me a solid this year.

* I have written 7,063 blogs in the now 18 1/4 years plus a couple of days of being a blogger. 

* 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. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, I'm seriously a slacker. 

* It's back to work after a nice weekend, I will once again be working this Saturday. 

* Still working 12-hour shifts for Duquense Light this week. 

* How about I start doing my favorite Tic Tok of the week? This is  This is how I first remember Morgan Freeman. 

* Have yourselves a great day.  

* Hi ho hi ho 

Monday

All good things must come to an end, and that includes those fun-filled things that we refer to as weekends. Now it is time to take our collective noses and stick them back onto that grindstone for another fun-filled week of doing what we do for a living to make this a better world. 

Looking at the week ahead, nothing really exciting coming up this week, other than Phil taking center stage later this week to determine if we are going to have six more weeks of winter or whether spring is right around the corner. 

Other than that, just a continuation of last week, 12-hour days still going on for this week and beyond as we are trying to get through this project completed. 

Have yourselves a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Sunday

Here I once again sit with Kiwi in the early morning hours, he's trying to convince me that the Philadelphia Eagles are not only going to win today, but that they will also win the Super Bow. His logic is simple, they are the only team left that has a bird as a mascot. Got to love his logic. 

Yesterday was pretty busy, we went to Harry's and Val and Aaron were already there buying some meat to throw in their freezer. I had seen her the night before at Sam's and Aaron wanted to go to Harry's as well. 

Made a trip to Lowes to buy Michelle a new fan, her big metal one is starting to make funny noises, so we bought a new one before it went out. 

After that we went to the new Pet Smart and saw Pam, George and Bella. Pam was picking up one of her dogs as she had just had him groomed. After that we ventured next door to the new Shoe Carnival, we got a few pairs of shoes, Michelle got another pair of Hey Dudes and I picked on up as well. 

It was a pretty busy day and we were both ready for nap by 1:00. Today grocery shopping and our weekend chores and maybe even watch a little bit of football. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Saturday

Here I sit once again in a quiet household, Kiwi and I are up having one of our deep discussions as to why giving someone the finger is referred to in a derogatory manner as giving them the bird. He takes offense to it and I just flipped him off and told him to quiet his beak this morning. 

Big plans today, Michelle and I are both planning on going and drying laundry, me from the home and she brought some stuff home from work that she's going to dry. We'll be at Millers as soon as she wakes up. 

Heading to Harry's Custom Meats this morning, going to refill up on some meats we regularly buy such as raw hamburger. He has the best prices, the freshest product, and the best-tasting meats in the area. Michelle and I started looking for a local butcher about 6 or 7 years ago and have never really returned to buying it from the grocery store. We do on occasion in a pinch when we need something specific, like regular ground pork for meatloaf, but we like the product we get from Harry's. 

There is no NFL Football being played today, with both Confernece's Championship games being played tomorrow, that may actually allow me some time top take a nap. 

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.

Would you believe that I will get a normal two-day weekend this weekend? All of the Holidays are behind us so no working Saturdays or Sundays for a while, it'll be nice to get back to the traditional Monday-Friday workweek. It was nice with the three-day weekends, but I usually followed them up by working longer days and weekends to make up for the missed time. 

So what are our plans this weekend? I would like to take a trip to Harry's tomorrow to get some meat to throw in the freezer, not low on anything, I just like to be stocked up on things like Hamburger and loose sausage since we use them so often for meal preparation. 

No Birthdays, no parties, or planned events this weekend, just a chance to take some time and wind down. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look at some of the 30,000+ photos that I have stored on my computer. Little lost moments in time that I either captured with a lens, scanned, or just stole from someplace on the internet. I like to find just one and post it up and recall or relive the picture to the best of my ability. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it has always been a whole lot of fun. 

Today I will steal a picture from this past weekend, today is Ralphies 40th Birthday and we celebrated it will him this past Saturday. 

Amy grabbed this picture in front of his banner that they had made plus they did the big rainbow for him as well. 

If you see Ralph today, make sure that you wish him a very happy Birthday. he is a good man who takes care of his family and he deserves well wishes. 

Wednesday

\

Tuesday's Tidbits

* Monday is completed, no other reason that makes it a great reason to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 21,572 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new,  new, and improved 1,000-day Calender. I do have to say I start to feel my age of older than 21.  

* It has been 6,832 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 18+ years ago and still doing GIS and enjoying every minute of it. 

* 5,420 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, the pizza hut is gone, the movie was 10,000 BC and it sucked to high heaven. Heck, even our Pizza Hut is gone. 

* 4,639 days ago I proposed to Michelle in the backyard at 4:00 in the morning. 

* It was 4,182 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, we poured sand into a vase and said our I do's and we were hitched. How many people keep track of hoa many days they have been married 11+ years later? 

* I have now lived 1,804 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* My older Brother Jonathan lived 21,266 days, I've now outlived him by 327 days making me Senior Supreme Sibling once again! To my younger siblings, bow down to my age seniority. =)

* I have 3,355 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. 

* 341 more days to go until my Goodbye 2023 Blog is posted, I'm just now getting started on content for that one. 

* There are 335 more shopping days left until Christmas 2023. You still have plenty of time to prepare and get ready. =)

* There are 311 days until I hit the age of 60. Yeah I know, I'm really older than 21. 

* There are 234 more days until the Pitt Panthers bring their butts to Morgantown so we can extract some revenge on our game this year. Payback Kitties. I think we are ready to roll now. 

* There are 224 more days to go until the Mountaineers travel to Happy Valley and get another shot at an old time Rival, Penn State

* There are 192 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Twelfth Wedding Anniversary together. Moke and Ang celebrated theirs yesterday. 

* There are 62 days until my favorite season, Spring of 2023. Have I ever mentioned that I hate snow? 

* 15 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day, hopefully Phil does me a solid this year.

* I have written 7,056 blogs in the now 18 1/4 years plus a couple of days of being a blogger. 

* 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. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, I'm seriously a slacker. 

* It's back to work after a nice weekend, I will once again be working this Saturday. 

* Still working 12-hour shifts for Duquense Light this week. 

* How about I start doing my favorite Tic Tok of the week? This is  I saw this old clip of an interview with the Little Rascals years after it completed. 

* Have yourselves a great day.  

* Hi ho hi ho 

Monday

All good things must come to an and, yep even those short weekends of only one day. Now it is time for us to take our collective noses and stick them back onto the grindstone and let's make this a better rock to live on. 

I'm excited as it will be a Monday-Friday Week for me this week. I actually get a normal weekend this weekend and I'm happy about that, tickled pink you could say. 

This should be an uneventful week, Ralph's Birthday is Thursday but we all celebrated it on Saturday with a big surprise party for him. It was a nice turn out and a pleasant evening. Ralph's Mom and Amy went all out to pull this thing off and they did a great job, Ralph is a pretty lucky guy. 

I did finally get to meet Brittany's Boyfriend Matt Saturday evening, very pleasant young man and she looks very happy, which is all that really matters. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

Sunday

Here I sit on a quiet Sunday Morning, I actually get to enjoy a day off after working yesterday. Kiwi and I are up discussing our favorite card games. Mine happens to be Texas Hold Em and Kiwi likes to play Go Fish. 

We surprised Ralphie yesterday, Amy has had a surprise birthday party set up for some time and she kind of surprised him yesterday. She told him that they were going to the Mountain Jamboree to play Rook, but we were all there for a surprise Birthday Party to surprise him. She sent him off to pick up some Pizzas and he really had no clue. 

Shopping this morning and then relaxing after our chores. I would imagine that there is a nap that will be taken today, and possibly a little watching of some NFL Playoffs. The Steelers aren't in it so I won't be paying to close of attention, but I'll be paying attention. 

Have yourselves a great day, make it special. 

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit once again in a semi-0quiet household, Kiwi and I are up discussing everything under the Sun. I asked him about his quest on Twitter is going for him getting his Trillion Followers. He said he is slowly progressing in followers, he's up to 4 now and half of them live in this household. He's still optimistic though. 

I am working today because Monday was a Duquense Light Holiday and I was not permitted to work and the fact that I am just a contractor if I want to be paid for that day that involves me working today. It should be typical work weeks from here on out for me with this project, so I can go back to having my weekends off. I don;t mind the long weekends or holidays, but I end up paying for it down the stretch and this is the stretch. I don't mind too much, just means Michelle will be the one running to Millers to dry clothes. 

No other plans so far today. Oh, if you want to order some Girl Scout Cookies, Ryleigh is selling them and setting a goal of 200 boxes to sell. So if you want to order some, help out a little girl and enjoy some good cookies. They will be donating to WVU Medicine Children's Hospital so it is going to be a very good cause.

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

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.

That is good news for everyone, except I am working tomorrow to make up for the Holiday on Monday or at least make up some of the hours that were missed. I don't mind, and I'm sure Kiwi doesn't either as he will have me up and at em anyways. Michelle will once again help me out by going to the Laundromat and drying the clothes. She got a break last weekend as I was off and did it, but roads were treacherous and there were cars in the ditch on both sides of my driveway, so I couldn't;t get out at the normal time I go. 

I would like to take this time also to wish my Sister In Law Danni a very Happy Birthday. I'm not sure if Roy has anything planned for her, I wouldn't be surprised if he treated her to something nice. I'm happy that her and Roy have moved to Morgantown. 

No other plans this evening however other than our typical shopping and out to dinner. I did see that Kome had their official opening yesterday, so that may just be our attempted dinner destination this evening. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday/Happy Birthday Nick Rehmani

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look at some of the 30,000+ photos that I have stored on my computer. Little lost moments in time that I either captured with a lens, scanned, or just stole from someplace on the internet. I like to find just one and post it up and recall or relive the picture to the best of my ability. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it has always been a whole lot of fun.

This weeks pic and blog will serve two-fold for me, one it is a photo flashback and two it is me saying Happy Birthday to my Brother In Law Nick. Nick has been doing a lot of content creation that is actually pretty impressive over the past few months. His TicToc  site is very informative as well as his Youtube Channel. I have to say I am a little jealous of his photo editing skills, they far surpass anything I can do. Go check out and subscribe to his channels. 

Anyways I grabbed this picture of the Birthday Boy this past Christmas Eve at his home. He's never camera-shy and always has a smile on his face. Happy Birthday Nick. 

Have yourselves a great day

Hi ho hi ho

Wednesday Part II

Wednesday

I saw this past weekend week and was totally amazed, I used to play a lot of chess when I was a kid and have started playing again for the past year or so on Chess.com. It's a game I used to love to play as a kid, but as fewer and fewer people played it became harder and harder to play.

This is totally amazing, it is giving your opponent an unspeakable advantage and then beating them. 

Enjoy. Oh, a little Chess Trivia. What is the fewest number of moves you can make to put your opponent in Checkmate?  

Tuesday's Tidbits

* My three day weekend has went bye bye, now it is back to work and on to a busy week. Can't think of a better reason to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 21,565 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new,  new, and improved 1,000-day Calender. I do have to say I start to feel my age of older than 21.  

* It has been 6,825 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 18+ years ago and still doing GIS and enjoying every minute of it. 

* 5,413 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, the pizza hut is gone, the movie was 10,000 BC and it sucked to high heaven. Heck, even our Pizza Hut is gone. 

* 4,632 days ago I proposed to Michelle in the backyard at 4:00 in the morning. 

* It was 4,175 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, we poured sand into a vase and said our I do's and we were hitched. How many people keep track of hoa many days they have been married 11+ years later? 

* I have now lived 1,797 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* My older Brother Jonathan lived 21,266 days, I've now outlived him by 320 days making me Senior Supreme Sibling once again! To my younger siblings, bow down to my age seniority. =)

* I have 3,362 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. 

* 348 more days to go until my Goodbye 2023 Blog is posted, I'm just now getting started on content for that one. 

* There are 342 more shopping days left until Christmas 2023. You still have plenty of time to prepare and get ready. =)

* There are 318 days until I hit the age of 60. Yeah I know, I'm really older than 21. 

* There are 241 more days until the Pitt Panthers bring their butts to Morgantown so we can extract some revenge on our game this year. Payback Kitties. I think we are ready to roll now. 

* There are 229 more days to go until the Mountaineers travel to Happy Valley and get another shot at an old time Rival, Penn State

* There are 199 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Twelfth Wedding Anniversary together. Moke and Ang celebrated theirs yesterday. 

* There are 69 days until my favorite season, Spring of 2023. Have I ever mentioned that I hate snow? 

* 22 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day, hopefully Phil does me a solid this year.

* I have written 7,048 blogs in the now 18 1/4 years plus a couple of days of being a blogger. 

* 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. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, I'm seriously a slacker. 

* It's back to work after a nice weekend, I will once again be working this Saturday. 

* Still working 12-hour shifts for Duquense Light this week. 

* How about I start doing my favorite Tic Tok of the week? This is this weeks tic tok, I though it was a pretty funny one.

* Have yourselves a great day.  

* Hi ho hi ho 

One More Day

All good things must come to an end, for Michelle that is her weekend for me I get to extend mine one more day as today is Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday. It's a Federal Holiday meaning no mail and the banks will be closed as will state offices.

So a three-day weekend for me, what could that mean? It means I'm taking both cars today to the Ranch Quick Lube to get the oil changed on both cars. They are both at the point milage-wise where they need to be changed, and I am off today, so I guess I get the pleasure of going and getting the oil changed on both of them. If you never used this place, I highly recommend them, all their profits go to Chestnut Mountain Ranch which is a very good local cause. 

Not sure of anything beyond that, I'll be working 12's all week to make up for not being able to work today, but at least it will be a productive day. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Happy Birthday Michelle Dawn Hall

I would like to take this opportunity to wish my beautiful wife a very Happy Birthday today. She is the love of my life and Mommy to two cats and one ornery bird. She is the glue that holds us all together. 

We're planning on going out to dinner this evening to celebrate her Birthday, her Sister Chris who shares the same birthday, is out of town or we would all be doing something together.  Danni suggested a get together but I'm not sure how that is being planned, we might just go out to dinner on our own. 

Michelle is an amazing woman and a very caring woman, I am fortunate that she came into my life and completed my empty world. I don't know what I would do without her, she has been my rock and my inspiration in taking her to a few places that neither one of us have ever been to. 

If you see Michelle today, make sure that you wish her a very Happy Birthday. 

Michelle I love you with all my heart, I hope you have the happiest of birthdays. 

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here Kiwi and I sit once again, he's in his hut with his headphones on jamming out to some Rockin Robin on his bird-sized iPhone, his head is just a boppin back and forth and he's getting his tweeting in. Not a care in the world and he has no plans today. 

As of press time, I'm not sure what my status is going to be today either. I can work up to 60 hours in a week and I have 58 recorded so far. The question is do I work 2 hours today, did I sign on last night and work a couple more hours after we got done shopping or am I stopping at 58 hours this week. There is one thing I do know regardless of what I do after Press Time, I'm off Sunday (Michelle's Birthday) and Monday, so there is that. 

My plans for the rest of the day are up in the air as well, I don't have anything planned out and I don't think Michelle does either. I would like to get out of the house a little bit, being couped up every day before the sun rises to the sun sets can cause that. It would be nice to get out of the house for a few hours and do something. 

Have yourselves a great day and make it a special one. 

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 once again the dawn of another weekend and a Big Ole Hairy Friday.

It is actually a holiday weekend for me, Monday is Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday and a Holiday for Duquense Light, which means I will not be working and will be off then. I may work a couple of hours tomorrow but that will pretty much be minimal if at all. I'll definitely be working next Saturday to make up for Monday. 

Michelle is back in the office today, she has spent the last couple of days at a job location assisting with the installation of a new kitchen. It's a chance for her to break the norms and do something a little different. I taught her the Pythagorean theorem and told her to go impress the installers with her ability to find a right angle with just a tape measure. 

Going to be a day of working and shopping for us this evening. 

Have yourselves a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out, time to look at some of the 30,000+ photos that I have stored on my computer. Little lost moments in time that I either captured with a lens, scanned, or just stole from someplace on the internet. I like to find just one and post it up and recall or relive the picture to the best of my ability. Sometimes this is a pretty easy task and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it has always been a whole lot of fun.

Trying something a little different this week, taking one that I saw from Facebook (Thanks Mark Devault) and using that. 

First of all this picture was taken in Morgantown, West Virginia. The city I have grown up in and live in. It was taken in what I would guess to be the late 1960's, do you see any Morgantown Area landmarks that you identify and do you see any missing? 

No WVU Coliseum, no Create Arts Center, baseball field has moved a couple of times since this picture was taken. 

Have yourselves a great day

Hi ho hi ho

Happy Birthday Mom

I would like to take this opportunity to wish my Mother Sandra Irene Bell a very Happy Birthday today.Today she celebrates her 19th anniversary of her 40th anniversary of her 21st Birthday, yeah that's 80 in other words. 

We all took her out for dinner on Saturday afternoon to Texas Roadhouse for her special day. It was a crowded event where there were a lot of people there, not sure where all of those people came from that we didn't know, it's almost like they went out to eat on their own...lol

 Not sure what her and Gerald's plans are for today, I'm hearing they are planning on writing an award winning no novel on the ins and outs of her being able to hear and not hear.

If you happen to see Sandra Irene today, take a little time out to wish her the happiest of birthdays. Happy Birthday Mom