It has been awhile since I stopped and wrote in the blog. I've been inordinately busy with the winding down of my job with RWIC, job hunting, interviewing and dealing with the car problems. I haven't had much chance to stop and write. I am in the final week of my current employment and trying hard to make a decision on my future. I have an excellent opportunity with a surplus lines broker called Richter Robb. There are several concerns for me with this job. The first is that I have to get licensed and that will take about six weeks. The second is that after a three month period I will go on 100% commission. The opportunity to make a really good income is there and I have the experience, the contacts and the wherewithall to excel at this position. The overiding concern is the marketplace. When the insurance market is tight, surplus lines companies make hay, but when the stock market is riding high and the insurance market softens, surplus lines companies tend to contract. The insurance market is HARD right now and surplus lines companies are blossoming. I have signed up for a precertification class beginning on June 12th that will run through June 20th and I will take the Property and Casualty license exam after that. I'll start my three months on a guaranteed income and begin to grow my business. I will concentrate on Apartment business and fill in with their other lines of business. I will meet with Nancy Dean, the owner of the agency later this week to finalize my employment. The good news is that Nancy will set me up with phones, computer, faxes, etc in my home and I will work as an outside producer with an assistant in the Manteca office assigned to me. Wish me luck.

The UCA position has been nothing short of a major disappointment with Lin canceling two meetings and putting me off until this week. It is Wednesday and I have yet to hear from her and I have had to move on. The job that she was dangling was perfect for me as I'd be on salary with a company car and work out of my home servicing the Sacramento agents and doing marketing for the Gilroy branch. The problem that I ran into is that Lin is in her sixties and looking to slow down to about thirty-hours a week and she is interviewing for administrative help in the La Mirada home office. My situation was relegated to the back burner as she worked on her agenda. This possibility could be rekindled, but the ball is in her court and grovelling is not in my makeup. I hope that something breaks here soon or I may always wonder, "What If?"

The Maxima was totalled by the insurance company and we were given $4,385 for the 1992 Maxima with 162,000 miles on it. Frankly, the settlement was generous and Darla and I were able to replace the Maxima with a newer car with less miles on it. We bought a 1994 Mustang with a 3.8 litre V6, power everything, new tires and 120,000 miles on the odometer. David is thrilled as it will be his car when he gets his license in September. I had new custom wheels installed on it yesterday for his 16th birthday present. He chose seven spoke American Racing alloy wheels and it looks sharp. I dropped the car off at the shop yesterday morning and walked the four miles home in the growing heat of a 95-degree day. It gave me time to examine my lot in life and think through some things. I had a nice lather worked up by the time I got home at eleven a.m. See, I do take after my Dad and do goofy things. Darla was willing to pick me up, but I wanted to make the hike. I also had them do a four wheel alignment and had the transmission fluid flushed, changed, a new filter added and a new gasket installed. I had them change the oil while they were at it and rotate the tires. The car has some body damage, a few dings and dents, but it is in wonderful mechanical shape and the paint is excellent. It is a teal green and David will have one of the nicer rides at his school next year. It is expected that he will be the starting quarterback on his varsity team this year and as the BMOC, he needs a good ride.

I talked to Jennifer over the weekend and thanked her for her service to this country as acknowledgement of Memorial Day. She and her roomate, Priscilla, went to the Six Flags over Georgia in Atlanta and had a great time. They were given a four-day weekend by the government and enjoyed it to the fullest. Jennifer continues to excel in the Army and is itchy to get on to an assignment overseas.

Dad and Shirley are packing up their home in Arizona as I write this. Darryl and Cheryl have joined them to help pack the U-Haul truck. Dad will be bringing his personal effects to Canada and waving a fond farewell to his life in the United States. I talked to Shirley and it is a bittersweet moment in their lives as they loved the tranquility and winter warmth of Phoenix, but having two homes also has its disadvantages and selling the Sun City home will free them up to do more travelling now and cut some unneeded expenses. They had a beautiful home in Sun City and they will miss it for sure. They sold much of their furniture with the house and are only bringing back some minor furniture, the 1939 Ford on a trailer behind the U-Haul and most of Dad's effects (pictures, garage items, books, odds and ends). The things collected in 66 years of a life well lived.

Those of you who know that Darla and I purchased a time share in Puerto Vallarta also know how incredibly unhappy we have been with RCI, the exchange service that we bought into with our purchase. They have been next to useless as we deposited our 2001 week over a year and a half ago and have been waiting for a suitable exchange. I finally got a call last week from RCI and they have a week for us in Lake Tahoe at the Seasons Resort near Heavenly Valley beginning June 8th. Hey, good timing, I get canned and suddenly they have vacation time for us. They also wanted me to deposit my 2004 week and renew my membership. I said No to both offers and we will take our vacations in Puerto Vallarta from now on. We will spend part of the June 8th week in Tahoe, but will have to return to Roseville as my insurance course begins on June 12th. We will go back up to Tahoe on Friday night the 13th and stay the weekend.

Darla and I are trying to decide what to do about our upcoming trip to Carmel for the two-day golf outing. I've already paid for the golf, but it seems foolish to add food and a hotel bill with me out of work. Right now, we will probably drop the Saturday golf and just drive in for the day on Sunday where I will play Poppy Hills and then drive from there up to Tahoe to check into the resort. Sounds like a busy time for an unemployed hack, eh?

Well, continue to pray for me as I sort out my future. I still feel that God has a plan for me in all of this and that I will end up standing when the dust settles and will feel the hand of God on me as I set a new course for my life and the future of my family. God bless.