Goodbye 2020, and don't come back

 January

* January started off pretty well, right after New Years Michelle and I flew to St. Louis for any annual certification with RTI. 

* For the first time in many attempts, Michelle and actually went up to the top of the St. Louis arch. 

* Michelle learned that her company was going to shut down their Fairmont facility as they had purchased the Goff Building in Clarksburg. 

* January was my last day working for AECOM as we were breaking away from the parent company the next day. 

February

* I started working for Amentum, as I previously stated my division just broke away from AECOM and formed a new company. 

* Phil was very kind to us this year, by NOT seeing his shadow. 

* I traveled to Washington DC for the ESRI Federal Users Conference, this was the third time I had attended the event in Washington DC. 

* We actually booked and paid for our 2020 Cruise. 

* Michelle headed back home for her sister in law Tyra's Baby shower. 

* JT was Baptized. 

March

* March started with RTI pretty much pulling all of the fieldwork for the quarter early. Little did we know what that would eventually mean. 

* We learned that the Reba Concert that we had bought tickets for in December had been moved back a couple of months to August. 

* The Corona Virus really started to show its ugly head in the US. 

* Michelle packed up her Fairmont Office in a planned move to Clarksburg. 

* I ended up getting laid off from Amentum, ending my 12 year run at NETL. 

* We bought a lawn tractor. 

April

* What started out as an April Fools joke turned into a harsh reality for me. 

* Michelle started working from home as they were transitioning the move from their Fairmont Office to the new Clarksburg location. A lot of remodeling was required before it could be occupied. 

* With so much free time, I started binge-watching complete seasons of Survivor, a show I used to love but hand;t watched in years. 

* We put any plans to visit anyone on Easter on hold and had a small dinner here with Michelle and me. 

* I did lister certification for RTI, this way I could go and list a few segments that will be worked in future quarters. 

* I had an interview and a contingent offer from FEI Systems for a job working in Baltimore. I was scheduled to begin work on the first of July. They ended up not getting the contract so the contingent offer was then pulled based on that. 

May

* May started off with a Zoom call with my siblings and her kids, it was a way to say hello to everyone at the start of the COVID quarantine. 

*WVU Furloughed 800 people until the end of July due to COVID. 

* Memorial Day weekend was pretty much uneventful, switch so many sporting events and other things canceled, not too much happened that weekend, I did manage to make my yearly trips to the graveyards to place flags on some family members who were service members. 

* I started doing some listing work for RTI. That is when I go and set up segments that will be worked on sometime in the future. 

June

* We had some guests come to visit us, Ashley, Christopher, Lilly, and Rocky all stopped for a visit. Unfortunately, it was a short visit due to unforeseen circumstances with an untimely passing that I had missed them. I had run to KFC to pick up dinner and they came and left before I got back. 

* We got together and celebrated Erica and Josh's Birthday. Gary came in from Moundsville and we managed to get another 5 siblings photo that only seems to happen about once a decade. We have the 2020's covered now...lol

* I continued to travel and work doing a little bit of listing work for RTI. 

* Michelle and I made a stop at Almost Heaven Desserts in Clarksburg, a place I grew to love with their sweet treats. 

July

* Michelle started taking classes at iSolved University for her Job. It's very intense training on their accounting software that she is one of only two certified users of in the state. 

* Morgantown had some 4th of July events, neither Michelle nor I attended any of them. COVID really put a muzzle on everything in 2020. 

*    I started traveling and staying overnight to do RTI listing work. They were finally authorizing travel for the listers but the restrictions were pretty much I was not allowed to enter any buildings. 

* Our Air Conditioner quit working in the middle of summer, so I went out and bought a new one. We gave the other one to my Nephew Randy who changed the cord and got it working just fine. 

* A long time friend of mine that I had posted with for nearly 20 years on the Blue and Gold News Message boards had passed away. 

* Michelle broke her wrist, it was a pretty bad break that required surgery and having two pins placed in her wrist. 

August

* Michelle traveled back home for her great-nephews birthday party and to visit her Grandmother Gigi.

* After nearly 13 months after surgery on his knee which lead to complication after complication, Gerald made it home. Mom was glad to have him back home. 

* I was still sporadically listing for RTI and Michelle was starting the post-graduate advance classes in iSolved. 

* I was a finalist for a great job in Pittsburgh, had gone through multiple sets of interviews and was informed that I was not the candidate selected for the position. That kind of deflated me for a while because it was all back to square one, I really thought I had this job and wanted it. It would have been in Mechanicsburg PA. 

* Our beautiful flower girl from Michelle and my wedding, was named a Cheerleader at University Middle School. 

* I went to Helena's, Hayley's maid of honors Bethanie's daughter, first birthday party at of all places. Grandpa Newbraugh's old house in Westover. 

* We had to put Michelle's car (Ice) in the garage to have new brakes put on. It passed inspection, but they were getting down pretty low and we decided to be safe rather than sorry. 

September

* High School, College, and Pro Football all started their seasons in the COVID Pandemic. Stadiums were empty, but games were played. 

* Monongalia County officially entered the status of RED on the COVID map. 

* I think we smoked one time this entire year, and Labor Day weekend was when we actually went to Harry's and got some meat to smoke. 

* I celebrated 16 years of being a Blogger. 

* Michelle's iPhone finally crapped out and wouldn't hold a charge, so we had to buy her a new upgraded iPhone. 

October

* Michelle. Kim, Terri, Val, and Amy all took a girl's trip to Canaan. They had a nice long extended weekend together and all seemed to have a great time together. They have the same cabin booked for the same time next year to do it all again. 

* I did do my last listing of the year for RTI, I had done a number of segments throughout the year and the state. 

* I took this summer off from playing Softball, just wasn't in the mood to play this year. What did my team do, they won the Championship without me. 

* I had to put Pearl into the garage, she is a 5 speed and the clutch was needing to be replaced before it went out completely. It was starting to slip, so I just had it taken care of. 

* Michelle and I both voted early in the Presidential Election. I didn't want to wait until election day and have a large influx of voters at our polling place, so we played it safe. 

* Michelle went to her sister Chris's to pass out Halloween Candy. 

November

* November saw us wait nearly a week after the election so that all the votes could be properly counted to determine who was the winner of the 2020 Presidential Election. Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump. 

* Michelle got laid off from her job, they indicated they are shutting the company down at the end of the year. 

* Michelle was with her dad, Dave Carpenter when he left this life to play at the big golf course in the afterlife. He was 71 years old. 

* I spent a lot of my spare time upgrading the Find a Grave Website for a number of family members. 

* Hayley and Tyler stopped over and we had Thanksgiving Dinner here at our home this year. We met up with my side of the family later that evening to get together and all do our Thanksgiving Night Bowling tradition at Suburban Lanes. 

December

* December started out with me taking a redshirt, or a do-over on 2020 and not counting this year's birthday again. 

* The Mountaineers played Iowa State in Football and had our worst performance of the season. They accepted a bid to the Liberty Bowl against Tennessee who backed out and was replaced by Army. That game will be played after my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted. 

* We went to my sister Kim's for a little Gingerbread House building. The women built Gingerbread Houses and the guys realized how frustrating it could be and passed. I think everyone did a great job. 

* Michelle and I attended Bethanie and Josh's wedding. 

* I trained for and started doing Contact Tracing for RTI tracing COVID, we are subbed through PIH. 

* We attended Christmas Eve at my sister Terri's. 

* 928 days after my first contact with my Big Brother Jonathan, I had to learn what that sinking feeling is like to lose a sibling as he passed away December 26th. 

* I Have have written 386 Blogs in 2020

* See you in 2021, and remember officially at Midnight we can officially look in hindsight of the year that was 2020. 

Last Regular Post of 2020

In a couple of hours my Goodbye 2020 post will go live and that will be my last blog post of this year. It is my recollection of what has happened through this year. I would normally do a pre-written photo flashback in this spot, but I'll make it my last live blog of the year. 

I'm actually off both today and tomorrow (my weekend) from my job doing contact tracing through RTI. I get a chance to relax a little bit and not have to worry about working today.

The Mountaineer Football team takes on Army today at 4:00 in the Liberty Bowl. No prediction on the game as Army is a team that plays very well together and can give undisciplined teams headaches. The Mountaineers are an undisciplined team and despite being a 7 point favorite I can't say I'm not a little worried about today's games. 

Michelle and my plans for the day other than watching the game, we'll be celebrating the New Year at home, we're going to celebrate and order a pizza this afternoon and just stay home and stay safe. Arguably what everyone else should be doing. 

I'll see you on the other side and here's to a much better and prosperous 2021.

Wednesday

Well for most of you, today is hump day, meaning that your workweek is halfway through and you're working towards another fun-filled weekend. For me, however, today is my Friday and I'm off the next two days after today. Woo Hoo

Going to have a busy, day, I'm going to take Mom to the doctor this morning and then Michelle is going to step in and take over for me so I can get to work. Mom goes in about once a month to get some pain med shot and today is her day. 

What do you know, looking at the picture I posted I'm not the only bald-headed sibling that has been known to play a little bit of softball. My older brother Jonathan who passed earlier this week had this picture taken of him some time ago. I asked his daughter Sarah if there were any other pictures of him and this is a younger Jonathan. I wish I could have had the opportunity to either play with or against him once, my younger brother Gary played for one of my teams years ago briefly. 

I hope everyone has a great day and a very Happy New Years. My goodbye 2020 blog posts tomorrow morning, so this may be my last regular blog of 2020, but we'll have to wait and see. 

Hi ho hi ho

Tuesday's Tidbits

* This is going to be my last tidbits for 2020, so let's get on with it and get this CORONA year over with. 

* It has been 20,855 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new and improved 991 day Calender. It's new and improved and recommended for people over 20,000 days old. 

* It has been 6,071 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 

* 4,668 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, has it really been 12 years. 

* 3,895 days ago I proposed to Michelle, 4:00 in the morning in the back yard. Best decision I have ever made.

* It was 3,419 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, Michelle and I became husband and wife and then feasted with all of our guests. Just like Josh and Bethany did Sunday evening. 

* I have now lived 1,059 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* I have 4,047 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there.

* The next Backyard Brawl where we beat Pitt's ass in Football is only 613 days away. I think I started this countdown with about 2,500 days. 

* There are 361 more shopping days left until Christmas 2021. 

* The next Anniversary of my 21st Birthday will be in 337 more days. 

* There are 220 days until Michelle and I head to Pittsburgh to see Reba in concert. It was postponed this March to July and now they are pushing the tour until next year. It'll be my and Michelle's 10th wedding anniversary.

* There are 220 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Tenth  Wedding Anniversary together. =)

* There are only 84 days until the start Spring 2021!!!!! My favorite season of the year. 

* 42 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day. I haven't seen my friend for a couple of weeks, I wonder if he moved. 

* 2 more days to go until my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted, this should be an interesting one. I have most of it written already and the entire thing formatted. 

* I have written 6,261 blogs in the now 16+ years since I started blogging. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, but that has pretty much been my recurring theme this year with that. I have yet to fly this year. 

* Michelle's Grandma GiGi has contacted COVID, she is still doing good and improving.  

*  The Mountaineers will play Army in the Liberty Bowl on New Years Eve, nothing has changed from last week. 

* The Pittsburgh Steelers snapped a 3 game losing streak to win the division.

* Not sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I Hate Snow. Don't even like it a little bit.  

* Corona Virus, you can still track it as it is now starting to pick up steam and the numbers are increasing. 

* We're now Orange for COVID for Monongalia County, track the state stats HERE. 

* I'm STILL converting some old VHS tapes to Digital Format for Trish. I really need to get back on this as I am such a procrastinator.

* Have yourselves a great day.  

Monday

Back to the grind for everyone after the Holiday Weekend for me, however, it is the middle of my work week with two more days to go. So now it is time for everyone to take their collective noses and stick them back onto the grindstone for another week of doing what it is you do for a living. 

As anyone knows by now, my older brother Jonathan has passed on. He was battling a multitude of health-related issues, I didn't discuss it here but he had Leukemia as well as lung cancer. It was the lung cancer that finally gave him his key to the afterlife. I knew we were close and attempted to call him on Christmas and the day after, but both attempts were unsuccessful. 

I'm very thankful that we did find him and were able to answer the question that we had all wondered. I got to hear his voice and learn about him from him for a short 926 days. I'm glad I was able to answer some questions that he had about his past and was able to give him some insight as to where his origins were. He will be greatly missed.

I hope everyone had a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

928 Days was not enough.

Here I sit on a quiet Sunday morning, or should I say a very sad Sunday morning. I just woke up to use the restroom and saw a text message of some terrible news.

A couple of years ago I had found the answer to a search that we had conducted. A lifetime of searching to find out who my big brother was, and only a mere 928 Days to get to know him.

My older brother Jonathan had a series of health issues since I first discovered who he was. He had lung cancer and when I spoke with Barbara on Christmas Day, she had informed me he was in the hospital and he wasn't going to make it home. 

Yesterday afternoon Carol his Mother, called me and when I saw her name on my phone I knew this wasn't going to be good. She said that his time is short and if I wanted to reach out to him now would be the time. I called and was only able to leave a voice mail. I informed all my other siblings of the situation and left his number with them in case they wanted to call. I never got through and only got his voice mail.

A little while ago I woke up to a message from his daughter Sarah that Jonathan passed away peacefully. A mere 928 days after I first found out who he was, he has left us and moved on. 

I am very thankful that I did find him and have that 928 days, I got the chance to know a sibling that I had only knew about and not who he was. The bigger tragedy would have been to have not known him at all, now it is time to get to know my niece and her daughter. 

Big Brother you will be missed. 

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit on a quiet Saturday Morning, it's a day where my workweek now begins and most others enjoy time off. I'm out here collecting my thoughts for the day and watching the movie the Blind Side. My co-author is snuggled up next to Michelle and sleeping as I'm wiping the sleep from my eyes.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas Holiday, we went to my Sister Terri's on Christmas eve and had a pretty entertaining evening, we all kind of cut our night short as mother nature was making sure that we were going to have a white Christmas and she was doing so with a vengeance as we really have not had one in years. 

Yesterday was just a little miscommunication with Michelle's sister whose home we usually go to on Christmas. She was staggering out visitors throughout the day as to not have many people visit all at once and we ended up not making it over. I think Michelle is going to go for a visit either today or tomorrow since I am back to working for the week. 

I did manage to speak or attempt to speak to all of my siblings over the holiday. I spoke to Pam Christmas Eve and she was planning on working Christmas. Terri, Kim and I were all at Terri's. I talked to Gary for a while last night, he's doing well. I got a call from Barbara on Jonathan, he is in the hospital with lung cancer and has some machine hooked up to him to help him remove the Carbon Dioxide from his body and is not doing very well. 

My plan for the day is to do some contract tracing obviously for RTI, I think I'm finally getting a handle on this and have it under control. 

Have yourselves a great day and stay warm.

Hi ho hi ho

Merry Christmas

Christmas Eve Videos Flashback Thursday

Every year I try, or should I say I attempt to try to put together a Christmas Video from our Christmas Eve. I've done a number of these through the years, enjoy some of my past work and Merry Christmas Eve.

2019

 

2018




2016



2015




2014




2013

2012

2008




2007



It doesn't appear that I did one for 2006, but here is one of the first videos that I ever did to fill in a little.





2005 which is probably my all time favorite one that I have done.




2004



1999 Which was my Dad's last Christmas

Wednesday

Tuesday's Tidbits

* I've already got a couple of days of working in this week, can't think of a better reason to do a tidbits. 

* It has been 20,848 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new and improved 991 day Calender. It's new and improved and recommended for people over 20,000 days old. 

* It has been 6,064 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. 

* 4,661 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, has it really been 12 years. 

* 3,882 days ago I proposed to Michelle, 4:00 in the morning in the back yard. Best decision I have ever made.

* It was 3,412 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, Michelle and I became husband and wife and then feasted with all of our guests. Just like Josh and Bethany did Sunday evening. 

* I have now lived 1,052 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* I have 4,053 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there.

* The next Backyard Brawl where we beat Pitt's ass in Football is only 620 days away. I think I started this countdown with about 2,500 days. 

* The next Anniversary of my 21st Birthday will be in 344 more days. 

* There are 227 days until Michelle and I head to Pittsburgh to see Reba in concert. It was postponed this March to July and now they are pushing the tour until next year. It'll be mine and Michelle's 10th wedding anniversary.

* There are 227 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Tenth  Wedding Anniversary together. =)

* There are only 91 days until the start Spring 2021!!!!! My favorite season of the year. 

* 49 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day. I haven't seen my friend for a couple of weeks, I wonder if he moved. 

* 9 more days to go until my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted, this should be an interesting one. I have most of it written already and the entire thing formatted. 

* There are 2 more shopping days left until Christmas 2020. 

* I have written 6,254 blogs in the now 16+ years since I started blogging. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, but that has pretty much been my recurring theme this year with that. I have yet to fly this year. 

* Michelle's Grandma GiGi has contacted COVID, she is still doing good and improving.  

*  The Mountaineers will play Army in the Liberty Bowl on New Years Eve. 

* Are we really only a couple days away from Christmas Eve? Wow. 

* Not sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I Hate Snow. Don't even like it a little bit.  

* Corona Virus, you can still track it as it is now starting to pick up steam and the numbers are increasing. 

* We're now Yellow for COVID for Monongalia County, track the state stats HERE. 

* I'm STILL converting some old VHS tapes to Digital Format for Trish. I really need to get back on this as I am such a procrastinator.

* Have yourselves a great day.  

Monday

All good things must come to an end, and that includes those fun-filled things we refer to as weekends. Now it's time for everyone to take their collective noses and stick them back onto the grindstone for another fun-filled week of doing what we all do for a living and making a difference in this world. 

For me, it's actually day 2 of my work week as I worked my first day yesterday doing contact tracing. Can't really say much more than that other than it is through my employer RTI and is for Partners In Health. 

It is with much sadness I have to report that today is the beginning of the Winter Solstice or Winter as commonly known. It is also the shortest day of the year for sunlight, days have been getting shorter and shorter since the Summer Solstice and today is the shortest one of the year. After today days will start getting longer until the cycle changes again on June 20th of 2021. Winter is my least favorite season of the year. Give me warmer weather and longer days and I'm more than happy. It's hard to believe that Christmas is this week and next week is New Years'. 

I hope everyone has a great day, make the most of it, and make this a better world by doing what you do. 

Hi ho hi ho

Sunday

Here I sit once again on a quiet Sunday Morning, my co-author is once again nowhere to be found and I'm out here flying solo for the time being. I think American Reunion of playing on the boob tube behind me and I'm contemplating my day and what is going to happen. 

Today I do start actually working as a Contact tracer in a temporary assignment through RTI. Last week was a week of intense training, now we go live and I would assume actually start contacting people. With so many people going through training last week, I'm not real confident on how prepared we will be as a group to start this endeavor, but we shall see how it goes. Shift goes from 11:30 to 8:00 tonight and those are my normal hours every day that I do work. 

Other than that, it's going to be our typical Sunday with some shopping this morning and preparing the meals for the week. The Pittsburgh Steelers are off today and play on Monday Night Football, so I won't miss that game. 

I did get a large portion of my Goodbye 2020 blog written yesterday. That's when I reflect what has happened through the year as sit was reported on my blog. I go through month by month and recount the months posts. I've got it written all the way through November now and it's just a matter of finishing up this month and preparing it to post. 

Have a great day and wish me luck.

Hi ho hi ho

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit in a quiet household, my co-author is snuggled up in bed with Michelle and I'm out here flying solo once again trying to come up with content as I'm still 3/4 of the way in the world of slumber. The sandman keeps throwing his magical dust at me saying go back to sleep, but I'll fight through just to put my semi-conscious thoughts down for all to enjoy. Some Bridget Jones movie is playing in the background and I'm not paying attention. 

It is my day off, no work today and I start my regular schedule as a contact tracer tomorrow where I will be working full time for the next month or so if nothing changes. It's just a temporary assignment through RTI while we are in a Corona Virus Surge. There was a lot to take in this past week, but they are not as stringent as the studies that we work on where everything must be read verbatim and no deviating from how we introduce the study. Contact tracing there is a set of guidelines we go by, but nothing is set in stone as there would be no way to design an all-inclusive catch al script about someone contacting a potentially fatal virus. 

Did watch WVU play Iowa State last night, it was a cold night of shooting for the Mountaineers but they managed to pull off a hard-fought 70-65  win last night here in Morgantown in front of a crowd of cardboard cutouts and artificial crowd noise. 

May watch a football game or two today as there is nothing on our agenda until tomorrow. It could also be a day that includes a nap after I wake up from going back to sleep. 

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

I finish up my training today through PIH to start working as a contact tracer on Sunday. MY schedule will be from Saturday-Wednesday with Thursday's and Friday's off until the end of January. No complaints as those are the days that I chose to work of the three options. The other options were Tuesday - Saturday and the other was Sunday - Thursday. With Christmas, New Years and Michelle's Birthday all coming on a Friday, I thought it was a good option to take. I did my assessment yesterday and if I passed it (I should have) I start a new week on Sunday as I'll be off tomorrow. (Woo Hoo Weekend!!!). 

What are my plans for my one day weekend? Probably nothing. Maybe watch a football game or two and might even take myself a nice little nap to relax before I start doing this contact tracing. Something tells me that this can and probably will be an emotional roller coaster as I will be dealing with people with COVID and assisting if they have any needs due to having to quarantine such as food, medications, etc that they may not be able to get out and get. I may be dealing with people who are dying or have died due to this ugly pandemic. It's not going to be happy times for the most part. 

I hope everyone has a great day and the start of a great weekend. 

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+ images that I have either captured with a Camera, Scanned, or just simply stolen off the internet. Little lost moments in time that I post up and relive tight here for everyone while I try to recall the moments around that image. Sometimes it's pretty easy to find that image and sometimes it's a challenge, although one thing it always is is a whole lot of fun for me.

This week's pic serves as a kind of a multiple purpose one, one obvious, and one a possible subtle hint. The obvious one is this is from Michelle and my last cruise a couple of years ago. This was the day before we marked, we always went down a day early and spent a little bit of time at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, a place we love to go to and a great place to visit.

We have spent a good deal of time in Baltimore and have a few friends down that way that are pretty awesome. It's a great place to get fresh steamed Maryland Crabs too. You know last July I had a job offer from a Company there and had accepted. Only problem was they didn't win the contract, hence why we currently don't live in Baltimore. Nice place that Inner Harbor, we love it there. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Hi ho hi ho

Wednesday

Tuesday's Tidbits

* My first day of training is complete, now it's on to day two and that means it's time for a tidbits. 

* It has been 20,841 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new and improved 991 day Calender. It's new and improved and recommended for people over 20,000 days old. 

* It has been 6,057 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. I love my chosen profession and course of study. 

* 4,658 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, 10,000 BC and Pizza Hut. 

* 3,882 days ago I proposed to Michelle, 4:00 in the morning in the back yard. Best decision I have ever made.

* It was 3,405 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, Michelle and I became husband and wife and then feasted with all of our guests. Just like Josh and Bethany did Sunday evening. 

* I have now lived 1,045 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* I have 4,060 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there.

* The next Backyard Brawl where we beat Pitt's ass in Football is only 627 days away. I think I started this countdown with about 2,500 days. 

* The next Anniversary of my 21st Birthday will be in 351 more days. 

* There are 234 days until Michelle and I head to Pittsburgh to see Reba in concert. It was postponed this March to July and now they are pushing the tour until next year. It'll be mine and Michelle's 10th wedding anniversary.

* There are 234 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Tenth  Wedding Anniversary together. =)

* There are only 98 days until the start Spring 2021!!!!! My favorite season of the year. 

* 56 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day. I haven't seen my friend for a couple of weeks, I wonder if he moved. 

* 16 more days to go until my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted, this should be an interesting one. I have a few months written already and the entire thing formatted. 

* There are 10 more shopping days left until Christmas 2020. 

* I have written 6,247 blogs in the now 16+ years since I started blogging. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, but that has pretty much been my recurring theme this year with that. I have yet to fly this year. 

* Michelle's Grandma GiGi has contacted COVID. 

*  This contact tracing seems like it is going to be tough emotionally, they are already introducing wellness organizations to us to help us cope with the stress. Something tells me this is going to be challenging. 

* It's calling for a good amount of snowfall this week here in Morgantown. 

* Not sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I Hate Snow. Don't even like it a little bit.  

* Corona Virus, you can still track it as it is now starting to pick up steam and the numbers are increasing. 

* We're now Yellow for COVID for Monongalia County, track the state stats HERE. 

* I'm STILL converting some old VHS tapes to Digital Format for Trish. I really need to get back on this as I am such a procrastinator.

* Have yourselves a great day.  

Monday Morning

Here we go again, it is time to put those weekend memories in the storage bank and start concentrating on the next step to change the world. It's time to take the collective noses and stick them once again on the grindstone and get back to doing what it is that we do for a living. 

For me today starts what I am hoping is me returning to work full time. I start training with RTI today for contact tracing, I'll be in class all week and then will start working 40 hours a week doing some contact tracing. This should last about a month and a half if not more then there is a possibility that I can go back to doing field work for RTI if the Corona lets up a little. 

I have a couple other things going for after the first of the year, both would require me to leave the area, one to North Carolina and the other to Baltimore. I have to say I feel pretty confident about the one in Baltimore. They are looking for someone who has my specific work experience with converting planimetric data and doing QAQC work for the deliverable. I did this for three years out of college working for Vargis/Infotech when I was working in Frostburg. I think I really impressed the technical recruiter when I spoke to him to a point where he pretty much said it's mine if I want it. It's a very specialized skill set and it's one that I do in fact have and is my strength and I am pretty much a geospatial editor already. It appears to be for more money than I was going to move to Baltimore for last year, so we'll have to see after the first of the year. 

I hope everyone has a great day today, I'm pretty stoked at getting back to work, even though it will be here. 

HI HO HI HO 

Sunday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit on a quiet Sunday Morning, Peanut is nowhere to be found and I'm here collecting my thoughts and watching the end of Biloxi Blues. I'm still trying to wake up and plan out my days activities. 

Grocery shopping and a few chores are on the agenda for this morning before the rest of the day is started. 

Bethany, Hayley's Maid of Honor is getting married today, the wedding was supposed to be here but will be held in Cheat Lake at Joshua's Grandparents. Michelle and I will be part of the small group of people in attendance. 

I start training tomorrow morning to do Contact Tracing for RTI. The computer that I bought has not showed up yet. I have an alternative set up ready for training, but hopefully the new Computer will arrive before then. I guess shipping is very heavy right now and things are getting delayed on getting picked up. 

Both the Steelers and the WVU Men's Basketball teams play today. WVU Plays #19 Ranked Richmond this afternoon at 1:00 and the Steelers are at the Buffalo Bills this evening at 8:20. Bethany's wedding is at 4:00 so all should be good for this sports fan. 

I did start my Goodbye 2020 blog yesterday, did all the formatting and a couple of months' worth of posts. I've got till the end of the month to finish it. 

Have yourselves a great day. 

Saturday Morning Rambling

Here I sit, along with my semi-trustworthy coauthor Peanut in this somewhat quiet household. We're here discussing if there should be any bowl games this year in college football and have the TV playing in the background as we carry on this very in-depth conversation. 

Yesterday we went to my sister Kim's and had a gingerbread house-building event. Actually, all the girls got together and built their houses as the guys sat back and saved ourselves from the frustration of getting the houses to hold themselves together in the first place. We started with five builders but Terri was a little under the weather and headed home before she could finish her build. We did have a great evening and it was a lot of fun, hopefully we can all do something similar like this again someday. 

The laptop that I was supposed to receive yesterday got delayed from Best Buy. I bought a laptop for the contact tracing job that I start training for on Monday, but it was delayed in shipment somehow. It's a job that will run through the end of January and then I may start my certification for fieldwork for 2021. That's what I usually go to St Louis for every year, but RTI had determined that we will certify this year remotely due to COVID. 

Most college football games have been cancelled today, many schools have either had problems with COVID or are just not playing for one reason or the other. The one game of the year that I love to watch is Army-Navy and they are in fact playing this afternoon at 3:00, so I am looking forward to that. 

Some bad news that was released yesterday, Mylan Pharmaceuticals who employ 1,500 people here just in their manufacturing operations on Chestnut Ridge Road will be closing July 31st. They were sold last year and the parent company is shutting down the facility, but the production facility will remain open. Other sites in town like the accounting and network teams will find out their fate next week. 

Can I just say 2020 has not been the best of years for anyone? 

Have yourselves a great day today and make it memorable. 

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.

Well, many of the plans for this weekend have either been canceled, moved, or taking a break. WVU Football was supposed to host Oklahoma tomorrow afternoon for Senior Day, the last time the Seniors get to play a game at the stadium however due to COVID issues the game has been canceled. 

Michelle was going to get together with Chris and a few others and everyone bake Christmas cookies today and tomorrow however due to Ruby getting hammered with COVID cases, they thought that it would be best to pass on this activity this year. Don't want to create a super spreader event. 

We were supposed to host a wedding here on Sunday, but the location has been changed to the Groom's Grandfather's home and have it indoors as opposed to doing it outdoors which was the plan here. 

One thing that has not been canceled is an event that was planned for this evening building Gingerbread Houses and to see who has the best creativity. A small group of the family getting together and having some fun and laughs. 

I do start training on Monday to work as a Contract Tracer for a few weeks. With COVID running rampant RTI has entered into an agreement with a company for us to do their contact tracing for them. I'll work Tuesdays thru Wednesdays 11:30 AM to 8:00 PM every day once we get started. Next week however is going to be some intense training from 9:00 to 5:00 Monday through Friday to prepare us for this task. The good news is it can be done from home, so I'll be occupying the back bedroom to set up my office. I bought a new laptop that should be here today for this job. 

I hope everyone has a great day, stay safe. 

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+ images that I have either captured with a Camera, Scanned, or just simply stolen off the internet. Little lost moments in time that I post up and relive tight here for everyone while I try to recall the moments around that image. Sometimes it's pretty easy to find that image and sometimes it's a challenge, although one thing it always is is a whole lot of fun for me.

This week's pic goes back over a decade believe it or not, back to the year 2009 and before Michelle and I had even gotten married. I'm thinking it was somewhere close to the time of Easter that year. 

Trish and Layla had stopped over to visit, long before she was ever our flower girl for our wedding, and Layla picked a flower or two to share with Michelle. This is long before Layla ever dreamed of being a University Middle School Cheerleader.

Good and memorable times gone by.

Have yourselves a great day today. 

Wednesday

Tuesday's Tidbits

* Monday completed and in our rearview, that means that it is Tuesday and time for tidbits. I hope all hunters made it home safe and bagged their trophies. 

* It has been 20,834 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new and improved 991 day Calender. It's new and improved and recommended for people over 20,000 days old. 

* It has been 6,050 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. I love my chosen profession and course of study. 

* 4,651 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, 10,000 BC and Pizza Hut. 

* 3,875 days ago I proposed to Michelle, 4:00 in the morning in the back yard. Best decision I have ever made.

* It was 3,398 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, Michelle and I became husband and wife and then feasted with all of our guests. 

* I have now lived 1,038 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* I have 4,067 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there.

* The next Backyard Brawl where we beat Pitt's ass in Football is only 6381 days away. I think I started this countdown with about 2,500 days. 

* The next Anniversary of my 21st Birthday will be in 358 more days. 

* There are 241 days until Michelle and I head to Pittsburgh to see Reba in concert. It was postponed this March to July and now they are pushing the tour until next year. It'll be mine and Michelle's 10th wedding anniversary.

* There are 241 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Tenth  Wedding Anniversary together. =)

* There are only 102 days until the start Spring 2021!!!!! My favorite season of the year. 

* 56 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day. I haven't seen my friend for a couple of weeks, I wonder if he moved. 

* 23 more days to go until my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted, this should be an interesting one. I should start formatting that soon. With the new backend, it may take me a little longer than usual. 

* There are 17 more shopping days left until Christmas 2020. 

* I have written 6,240 blogs in the now 16+ years since I started blogging. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, but that has pretty much been my recurring theme this year with that. I have yet to fly this year. 

* Michelle is going to be baking Christmas Cookies this week, I know she will be baking with Chris on Saturday and possibly Friday too if she doesn't do some here before then. 

*   My personal favorite for Christmas cookies is her butterscotch cookies. It's a chocolate chip recipe and replaces the chocolate with butterscotch chips. 

* We'll be hosting a wedding his coming Sunday right here. Hayley will be officiating. Her maid of honor Bethany is getting married.  

* Not sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I Hate Snow. Don't even like it a little bit.  

* Corona Virus, you can still track it as it is now starting to pick up steam and the numbers are increasing. 

* We're now Yellow for COVID for Monongalia County, track the state stats HERE. 

* I'm STILL converting some old VHS tapes to Digital Format for Trish. I really need to get back on this as I am such a procrastinator.

* Have yourselves a great day.  

Monday

Well the fun-filled thing that we refer to as the weekend is now over with, so it's time for everyone to get back to doing what it is that we all do for a living. Noses back onto the grindstone so we can all change the world with our talents.

First and foremost, it was 79 years ago today that the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Take a few moments out and remember, the mast from the USS West Virginia is on WVU's downtown campus. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't play yesterday, but will instead take on Washington this afternoon at 5:00. That's one way to fill a boring Monday up with a little bit of fun. 

It looks like I will be starting to do some Contract Tracing next Monday for RTI. I bought a new (or should I say refurbished) laptop for this job. The computer has to have Windows 10 and my desktop still has Windows 7 installed on it. I have what I need to install Windows 10 as I purchased a copy last year, I just have not installed it as of yet. Once I get my new laptop, I'll install it on this (my pc) machine after I get the other one set up. That way I know I'm good to go in case something goes wrong. 

This should be a pretty eventful week and weekend coming up for Michelle and I. She's going to be doing some baking this week, Christmas Cookie time of year. We have some gingerbread houses to decorate, well let's say I'm going to watch as the girls decorate and Bethany, Hayley's Maid of Honor, is getting married her on Sunday. Hayley will be officiating the services now that she can legally marry people. Should be a good week. 

Have a great day, kick it in the butt and make it a great week. 

Sunday Morning

Here I sit yet once again on a quiet Sunday morning, my co-author is once again nowhere to be found and I'm here trying to collect my thoughts for the day and write this blog all solo. I've got some movie playing in the background, don't ask me what as I'm not paying attention to it at all.

Well yesterday was a pretty ugly day, arguably the worst game effort of the Neal Brown era since he has been at WVU. The Mountaineers lost 42-6 in an effort that was absolutely pathetic all the way around. Talk about a team that was not inspired or prepared to play and that was the Mountaineers. For a team who hasn't played in three weeks, I have to wonder what they were doing to prepare because it obviously wasn't practicing football. 

The Mountaineer Men's basketball team plays at Georgetown this afternoon at 3:30. It'll be a chance for the Mountaineers to get get to their winning ways after a defeat to #1 Gonzaga last week. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers are off until tomorrow afternoon because their game against Baltimore was played on Wednesday and it allowed the Steelers one more day on a very short week to prepare. The Washington football team (no team name after removing Redskins) will be the opponent tomorrow afternoon. 

I hope everyone has a great day today. 

Saturday Morning Ramblings

Here I sit yet once again on a quiet Saturday Morning, my co-author Peanut is still in bed with Michelle and I'm out here flying solo once again. I'm here watching Down and Out in Beverly Hills and collecting my thoughts for the day as I wipe the sleep from my eyes and contemplate laying back down for a few hours. 

The Mountaineer Football team is in action today at Iowa State, a top 10 team on the road. We've only beaten a top 10 team on the road twice in school history. 1954 we went to Happy Valley and beat Penn State and in 1982 we went to Norman Oklahoma and shocked Oklahoma, who we play next week. We have struggled with Iowa State the last couple of years and that trend could very well continue today. Iowa State's Scott Campbell is one heck of a coach and has built a pretty good program there. The game is at 3:30 this afternoon on ESPN. 

No plans for Michelle and I today. although that will change next weekend as it will be kind of busy both Friday evening and Saturday day. 

Michelle did hear a little disheartening news yesterday, her Grandma who we used to go to her home every year for Christmas, the infamous Gigi as been tested positive for COVID 19. She was moved into a nursing home a couple of years ago when she had trouble taking care of herself on a daily basis, she is an amazing woman who just turned the ripe young age of 99 this past August. Let's all hope she gets better and fully recovers from this ugly pandemic. 

Have yourselves a great day and just enjoy your 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 once again the dawn of another weekend and a Big Ole Hairy Friday. 

 No High School Football this weekend, this was supposed to be the weekend where the State Championship games were to have been played, but all three classes have had Champions named who were schools that were the last team standing after the semi-finals.

WVU is on the road tomorrow to take on #9 Iowa State at 3:30 tomorrow our time. The game is going to be on ESPN and was supposed to be our last game of the regular season, however we will return home next week to take on Oklahoma, a game that was pushed back a couple of weeks. 

It looks like I may be doing some Contact Tracing for a couple of months for RTI. It's a contract that they have and they are offering some temporary full time work to us field interviewers who have not worked since March for the project. It should run to the end of January at the least, and could be extended if COVID is not under control by then. 

I hope everyone has a great day and the start of a super-fantastic weekend. 

Happy Birthday Kim Sanjulian

I would like to take this opportunity to wish my Sister Kim SanJulian a very Happy Birthday today. We started out in life where I was one year older than her, but since I am only 21 years old, she has passed me up by a couple of years by now. 

 It was exactly 21+ the number of years she is older than me years ago at the very time that this blog is posting that Kimberly Joann braced up with her witty presence and Jib Jab Mastery. Hopefully, in the next year, we can find some time to go out and fly our drones together. 

Not sure what Kim and Robert have planned for the day, but I'm sure it will either be a nice dinner or something from Menards which is her favorite restaurant, or something along those lines. 

If you see Kim today, take a little bit of time out and wish her a very Happy Birthday today.

Happy Birthday Kim

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+ images that I have either captured with a Camera, Scanned or just simply stolen off the internet. Little lost moments in time that I post up and relive tight here for everyone while I try to recall the moments around that image. Sometimes it's pretty easy to find that image and sometimes it's a challenge, although one thing it always is is a whole lot of fun for me.

This weeks pic goes back to Christmas Eve a couple of years ago at my sister Terri's. Kim and Robert, Terri and Nick, and Michelle and I all posed for a few pictures together and this was one of those magical moments that we captured. 

I'm thinking, almost 100% sure, that we will once again be doing Christmas Eve at Terri and Nick's place again. I know last year Kim bought a number of biodegradable lanterns that we lit and let fly into the air later into the night. I think she has once again purchased them and we will once again be doing that on a repeat performance this year. 

Have a great day. 

Wednesday

Tuesday's Tidbits

* Monday completed and in our rearview, that means that it is Tuesday and time for tidbits. I hope all hunters made it home safe and bagged their trophies. 

* It has been 20,827 days since I was born, that is 21 years using my new and improved 991 day Calender. 

* It has been 6,043 days since I graduated from WVU with a Degree in Geography. I love my chosen profession and course of study. 

* 4,644 days ago Michelle and I had our first date together, 10,000 BC and Pizza Hut. 

* 3,868 days ago I proposed to Michelle, 4:00 in the morning in the back yard. Best decision I have ever made.

* It was 3,405 days ago in front of our closest friends and family, Michelle and I became husband and wife and then feasted with all of our guests. 

* I have now lived 1,031 days longer than my Dad did and I'm still going strong. 

* I have 4,074 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred days here or there.

* The next Backyard Brawl where we beat Pitt's ass in Football is only 638 days away. I think I started this countdown with about 2,500 days. 

* The next Anniversary of my 21st Birthday will be in 365 more days.No birthday this year due to COVID, so in college football terms I'm redshirting this year. 

* There are 248 days until Michelle and I head to Pittsburgh to see Reba in concert. It was postponed this March to July and now they are pushing the tour until next year. It'll be mine and Michelle's 10th wedding anniversary.

* There are 248 more days to go until Michelle and I celebrate our Tenth  Wedding Anniversary together. =)

* There are only 109 days until the start Spring 2021!!!!! My favorite season of the year. 

* 63 more days until Phil steps to center stage again for Groundhogs Day. I haven't seen my friend for a couple of weeks, I wonder if he moved. 

* 30 more days to go until my Goodbye 2020 Blog is posted, this should be an interesting one. I should start formatting that soon. With the new backend, it may take me a little longer than usual. 

* There are 24 more shopping days left until Christmas 2020. 

* I have written 6,232 blogs in the now 16+ years since I started blogging. 

* No Drone flights this weekend, but that has pretty much been my recurring theme this year with that. I have yet to fly this year. 

* I watched a really good movie yesterday, one of my all-time favorites in Something the Lord Made. Probably one reason I hold John's Hopkins University in such high regard. 

* I have been updating a number of family graves on Find A Grave in the past couple of weeks. I feel it is my contribution to the next generation to answer questions about people they didn't know.  

* They are actually calling for snow today, it has spit snow before but we haven't had any accumulation yet. Maybe today will be different. Heck, it might be snowing when this posts. 

* Not sure if I have ever mentioned it before on my blog, but I Hate Snow. Don't even like it a little bit. 

* The Pittsburgh Steelers at 10-0 are the only undefeated team left in the NFL. Hopefully we can play our scheduled game with the Ravens this evening that was supposed to have been played last Thursday. 

* Corona Virus, you can still track it as it is now starting to pick up steam and the numbers are increasing. 

* We're now Yellow for COVID for Monongalia County, track the state stats HERE. 

* I'm STILL converting some old VHS tapes to Digital Format for Trish. I really need to get back on this as I am such a procrastinator.

* Have yourselves a great day.