It is indeed Sunday night. After a Friday off and the fact that tomorrow is close for the month, I can imagine the level of stress and just plain business that will surround my desk and my being tomorrow. Throw in the added dimension of a potluck and Halloween and the blog would have fallen victim to over activity. I know my limitations and Darla just left to work out at the gym and I have some downtime, so it all adds up to a blog entry.
Darla and I did sneak out of town on Thursday afternoon. The Atlantis casino in Reno had a cheap room rate of $29 for a luxury tower room and they comped us $50 for dinner, so it was a no brainer to pack up and head to the "Biggest Little City in the World". We got up to Reno about seven o'clock and got checked in before heading down to dinner. The question was where we would eat as the Atlantis has seven restaurants. We both brought just jeans so the Seafood and Steakhouse was out as it has waiters in tuxes and they serve the salad tableside out of a crystal bowl. We opted for the Prime Rib dinner at the Purple Parrot, the casino's coffee shop and dinner house. We actually had a chicken appetizer and shared a Prime Rib, with both of us eating salad and bread. We left stuffed and spent the balance of the night playing nickle slots. We were down quite a bit early on, but I got hot and started hitting four-of-a-kinds and then we stopped about midnight to get some dessert in the coffee shop. We shared a brownie decadence, some carmel and ice cream with chocolate sauce over the thinnest brownie you'll ever see. In fact, it looked like the brownie didn't rise when they baked it. We left to play a bit more (about another hour) and Darla finally warmed up and brought us back to almost even with several four-of-a-kinds.
The next morning we both slept in until nine a.m., which in some ways was more decadent than the brownie the night before. We packed up and headed out of town by ten-thirty. We stopped off at a diner on Virginia Street called Joes that is every bit as nice as the 5 and Diner in Phoenix. Darla had a mushroom burger and I opted for a tuna fish sandwich that was made with pickles and eggs and was as good as I've had in years. The diner had pictures of all of the cars fdrom the Hot August Nights car show and none of them were as nice as Dad's '46. It was a fun getaway and we were home in time for Daniel's football game.
Daniel's team played themselves out of the playoffs with a shoddy 33-22 loss to Woodland. Woodland is now 6-2 overall and 3-1 in league. We are 4-4 and 2-2 in league, about where we stood last year at this time. Woodcreek (our team) has never finished better than 5-5 which David's team managed last year. The coach wants the players to stay focused and concentrate on winning their last two games to finish 6-4 and 4-2 in league.
Darla and I bought some stain for the kitchen cabinets. I will sand them and touch them up and we will live with them for now. Our plan will be to completely refinish them within the next year or so. Darla wants to have them stripped and redone in a winter white look with hardware on the doors and interior hinges. I can live with them as they are for now. We also bought a new light fixture for the kitchen ceiling that I will have the boys help me install next weekend. We will move the kitchen fixture into the laundry room and replace the three foot neon fixture in there. It has a bad ballast and turns comletely on only when it really wants to. Otherwise it simply buzzes and leaves you in a gloom of light.
I spent yesterday doing the baseboards under the cabinets in the kitchen. My next chore will be the baseboards in the bedrooms and the living and family room once the carpet is in. The carpet is on order and we are waiting to hear when they will come out to install. We are having them do the study and the living and family room one day and then the other three bedrooms on the next day. The boys and I will tear out the basebords before they install the carpet and then install the new baseboards once the new carpet is in. The old baseboards are dark brown and the one inch variety. The new baseboards are 3 1/2 inches by 5/8 inch white with a molding on the top edge. I borrowed a mitre saw from our tile man to do the job and it has been a breeze.
Darla and I got the jet ski moved over to Alicia's house today. We have kept the ski here and Darla has parked the Explorer outside all Summer. The plan has always been that Alicia will store it for us in her garage as she has a two car garage and only one car. Now, Darla can park her car in the garage and it won't get so dirty so fast. The Mustang has stayed in the garage during the entire Summer because I'm a bit of a fanatic about my car. We will leave the ski there during the Winter and bring it back to our house late in the Spring. I still have five gallons of gas that I siphoned out of the tank that I've told David to use for his car. The tank that we have it in is used to refill the jet ski, so has a flexible hose and ballcock to make it easy to load. For David, that's about $15 worth of gas. It would only cost about $13.25 to replace it, but I paid $2.99 a gallon at the lake in Summer for that gas.
I talked to Jennifer on Monday when she was running between planes. She had arrived in Atlanta from Paris and was leaving the Customs area and running to catch her plane to Augusta. She will be in Augusta until about mid-week and then will be home in Sacramento. She will start job hunting and following up on some job offers that she has had right away.
For anyone who didn't get the e-mail from Dad, his 46 Mercury has been featured on a hot rod website. The article is in depth and I probably learned more about his car from this article than I had from Dad. The website is:www.hotrodsandclassics.net
You'll find Dad's car as the Featured Ride. Check it out, it's a decent read.
Darla is home and fixing some chicken soup for dinner. It is homemade and I look forward to that and some fresh french bread that she picked up at the bakery this afternoon.
Darla and Alicia had a garage sale on Saturday and I asked Darla if we made any money. She said that it was really Alicia's sale so that she could clear out the garage and make room for our ski. She sold some rugs for $1 and bought a leather recliner for $150. So, how much money did I make on the sale (-149.00)? Oy vey.
Well, I'd best get on to our evening. I'll fill you in on Jennifer's triumphant return next week. Stay well. Ciao. Ken-bediah.
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Specialist Lyon is US bound
Jennifer is in the air somewhere as I write this. She is on her way back to US soil after turning in her gear and bidding a final farewell to Kuwait City. She will spend about a week to ten days in Georgia processing out of the military and will return to Sacramento as an Army veteran. I know that she is excited and Dad is proud and happy to see her return. Give her a call to welcome her home after Wednesday on her cell phone (916) 475-8148.
I forgot to mention yesterday Darla's experience last week on her early morning walk. She and Missy were on their regular walk when Missy grabbed Darla and said, "Look across the street!" There was a man (about 5'1" 200 pounds) naked as a jay and standing in his driveway. They hurried away without giving him any attention. Both Darla and Missy called the police and reported the incident to find out that the guy is not only mentally disabled, but a client of Darla's firm. Now that is the naked truth.
Welcome home, Jennifer!!!
I forgot to mention yesterday Darla's experience last week on her early morning walk. She and Missy were on their regular walk when Missy grabbed Darla and said, "Look across the street!" There was a man (about 5'1" 200 pounds) naked as a jay and standing in his driveway. They hurried away without giving him any attention. Both Darla and Missy called the police and reported the incident to find out that the guy is not only mentally disabled, but a client of Darla's firm. Now that is the naked truth.
Welcome home, Jennifer!!!
Monday, October 24, 2005
Settling In for a long Winter
It is another nice Autumn morning. The sun is just beginning to brighten the sky to the Eastern horizon and the office is quiet as it is just myself and my Accounting person, who sits in the far end of the office. I can hear her poking around at the copy machine and she dropped off some papers for me to sign, but other than that it is a peaceful morning at shortly after 7 AM in the West.
It was a nice weekend, although the Friday night football game was in the boonies of South Sacramento. We won the game 51-36, but it was a bigger blowout than that as we had a 51-16 lead and lost focus in the fourth quarter with our backups in the game. It has been a difficult year with Daniel playing just on the special teams and in a mop up role in blowouts. The team has a chance to make the playoffs, but they really aren't good enough to make any noise in the playoffs as the number one team in their division is also number 5 in the state. After last year with David at qb and starting free safety and Daniel starting on the offensive line and defensive line, it has taken a lot of adjustment. I've deduced that high school football is entertaining, but overall is a poor substitute for real football. Daniel has handled himself well this year and is a 6'3" 235 lb cheerleader for the senior players.
Our remodel is all but finished. We got the quote for the carpet and Darla will set up installation of that today and we'll know when we have to uproot our lives and move furniture. One of the big challenges is the pool table in the living room. Darla will arrange to have a company take down the table and then reinstall it after the carpet is installed. I am finished with the baseboards in the part of the house that has had new flooring installed and will tear out the old baseboards in the bedrooms, living room and family room prior to the new carpet going in. I will then install the new baseboards after the carpet is in. We've also decided to hold off on any work on the kitchen cabinets. I will sand and touch up the existing cabinets and we will live with them for now. I also want to install a new light fixture in the kitchen and one in the laundry room where the fixture has a bad socket.
I went to an insurance seminar last Wednesday. Our office hosted a booth and all of the underwriters attended the seminar. Our luncheon speaker was Ed Hochuli, who is a defense attorney, but is likely more famous as an NFL referee. Ed told some great stories. One of them involved YA Tittle, who was asked to be the honorary captain of the Super Bowl a few years back. Ed was handling the coin toss and the NFL uses special commemorative coins that all wind up in the Hall of Fame. While they were practicing the coin flip, YA told Ed that he had promised his grandson the coin from the coin toss. Ed explained that that was impossible, that the NFL had an official who would collect the coin right after the toss and take it to Canton, Ohio. YA insisted that he HAD to give the coin to his grandson. Ed showed the special coin to the television camera and then pocketed it and pulled out a half dollar that he keeps for most of the coin tosses during the year. He tossed the 50 cent piece, gave that coin to YA Tittle, and returned the commemorative coin to the NFL official.
Ed also told a story about perception and reality. There was a blind man who always walked New York city with his guide dog. One morning as he was walking, his dog took him across the street against the light. Cars were swerving amd honking and the blind man came close to being hit several times. Finally, the dog got him across the street and safely back onto the sidewalk. The blind man reached into his pocket to get a dog treat and as he was handing it to the dog, a passerby stopped him. "Your dog crossed against the light and almost got you killed. I hardly think you should reward him for that behavior." The blind man said, "You don't understand, I'm giving him the treat so I can determine exactly where his mouth is, so I can turn around and kick him in the ass!"
We had a little excitement at our office while we were gone to convention. I called in to talk to my assistant, Connie, and she told me that I'd missed all of the excitement. The fire department and two paramedics had been called to our office. Our receptionist, Renee, who is losing weight, was in the break room talking to Natasha, Pete's assistant. Renee talks with her hands, gesturing and emphasizing her points. Natasha opened her mouth to say something just as Renee was gesturing. Renee's ring flew off her hand and flew right into Natasha's mouth and lodged in her windpipe. She was gagging and couldn't catch her breath. Finally, she swallowed the ring and the crisis was over. It was a bizarre set of circumstances and we have yet to see the ring reappear, though the re-emergence is imminent.
I did play golf this weekend. I got to the course early and warmed up. I hit the ball well on the driving range and then started play. I was nothing short of pathetic on the front nine, losing my ball out of bounds on consecutive holes on my way to a 47 front side. I pulled my head together and improved my game on the back nine to record a one over 37 for an 84, net 72. I won two skins and had the closest to the pin at 3'9" on the back nine. I'm just glad that it wasn't a 37 on the front and 47 on the back. I also won the 50-50 drawing that we do at each tournament to help fund the Christmas party and took home $55 for a $5 ticket. Not bad.
Jennifer flies home this week and should touch down on American soil by Friday. She called and talked to Darla last week and is excited to get home. Her friend Jason has lymphoma and is beginning treatment with radiation this week. They did a biopsy and it could have been much worse. The prognosis is good, but the lump had grown so large that it attached to some of his other organs, so it is still too early to call it a victory, but so far so good. Please keep Jason and his family in your prayers.
David continues to do well at school and with his job. They recently gave him a 25% raise and continue to ask him to do more complex assignments. He loves it. His car was hit the other night as some moron sideswiped him. I noticed that his side mirror was lying on the road next to his car when I was leaving for church. Darla and I drive separately as she helps at the high school. The only thing I noticed was the mirror had come loose from the mirror housing and I thought it happened when he shut his door. Darla came out and found a Ford emblem laying near the car. On closer examination, someone had brushed the car and scratched the paint, tearing off the Ford logo on the front right side of the car. There is very little body damage. David thinks it might have been the paper carrier as we didn't get a Sunday paper that morning. It is irritating that someone didn't leave a name and number. The loss is less than our deductible and with what I already pay to insure David, I'm not sure I'd let him turn in the loss. His insurance is for his liability in the event of an accident.
Well, I need to get at it. I'm having a great month at work, which is good timing coming off the bizarre meeting in Detroit. I should personally write close to a 1/4 million this month with income to the branch of over $40,000. The office as a whole should have a record month and I can only keep working hard and hope to open some eyes (well one pair in particular) at home office. Be an Obediah for those around you this week. Obediah comes from the two words "Obed" and "Ya", which means servant of God. Ciao.
It was a nice weekend, although the Friday night football game was in the boonies of South Sacramento. We won the game 51-36, but it was a bigger blowout than that as we had a 51-16 lead and lost focus in the fourth quarter with our backups in the game. It has been a difficult year with Daniel playing just on the special teams and in a mop up role in blowouts. The team has a chance to make the playoffs, but they really aren't good enough to make any noise in the playoffs as the number one team in their division is also number 5 in the state. After last year with David at qb and starting free safety and Daniel starting on the offensive line and defensive line, it has taken a lot of adjustment. I've deduced that high school football is entertaining, but overall is a poor substitute for real football. Daniel has handled himself well this year and is a 6'3" 235 lb cheerleader for the senior players.
Our remodel is all but finished. We got the quote for the carpet and Darla will set up installation of that today and we'll know when we have to uproot our lives and move furniture. One of the big challenges is the pool table in the living room. Darla will arrange to have a company take down the table and then reinstall it after the carpet is installed. I am finished with the baseboards in the part of the house that has had new flooring installed and will tear out the old baseboards in the bedrooms, living room and family room prior to the new carpet going in. I will then install the new baseboards after the carpet is in. We've also decided to hold off on any work on the kitchen cabinets. I will sand and touch up the existing cabinets and we will live with them for now. I also want to install a new light fixture in the kitchen and one in the laundry room where the fixture has a bad socket.
I went to an insurance seminar last Wednesday. Our office hosted a booth and all of the underwriters attended the seminar. Our luncheon speaker was Ed Hochuli, who is a defense attorney, but is likely more famous as an NFL referee. Ed told some great stories. One of them involved YA Tittle, who was asked to be the honorary captain of the Super Bowl a few years back. Ed was handling the coin toss and the NFL uses special commemorative coins that all wind up in the Hall of Fame. While they were practicing the coin flip, YA told Ed that he had promised his grandson the coin from the coin toss. Ed explained that that was impossible, that the NFL had an official who would collect the coin right after the toss and take it to Canton, Ohio. YA insisted that he HAD to give the coin to his grandson. Ed showed the special coin to the television camera and then pocketed it and pulled out a half dollar that he keeps for most of the coin tosses during the year. He tossed the 50 cent piece, gave that coin to YA Tittle, and returned the commemorative coin to the NFL official.
Ed also told a story about perception and reality. There was a blind man who always walked New York city with his guide dog. One morning as he was walking, his dog took him across the street against the light. Cars were swerving amd honking and the blind man came close to being hit several times. Finally, the dog got him across the street and safely back onto the sidewalk. The blind man reached into his pocket to get a dog treat and as he was handing it to the dog, a passerby stopped him. "Your dog crossed against the light and almost got you killed. I hardly think you should reward him for that behavior." The blind man said, "You don't understand, I'm giving him the treat so I can determine exactly where his mouth is, so I can turn around and kick him in the ass!"
We had a little excitement at our office while we were gone to convention. I called in to talk to my assistant, Connie, and she told me that I'd missed all of the excitement. The fire department and two paramedics had been called to our office. Our receptionist, Renee, who is losing weight, was in the break room talking to Natasha, Pete's assistant. Renee talks with her hands, gesturing and emphasizing her points. Natasha opened her mouth to say something just as Renee was gesturing. Renee's ring flew off her hand and flew right into Natasha's mouth and lodged in her windpipe. She was gagging and couldn't catch her breath. Finally, she swallowed the ring and the crisis was over. It was a bizarre set of circumstances and we have yet to see the ring reappear, though the re-emergence is imminent.
I did play golf this weekend. I got to the course early and warmed up. I hit the ball well on the driving range and then started play. I was nothing short of pathetic on the front nine, losing my ball out of bounds on consecutive holes on my way to a 47 front side. I pulled my head together and improved my game on the back nine to record a one over 37 for an 84, net 72. I won two skins and had the closest to the pin at 3'9" on the back nine. I'm just glad that it wasn't a 37 on the front and 47 on the back. I also won the 50-50 drawing that we do at each tournament to help fund the Christmas party and took home $55 for a $5 ticket. Not bad.
Jennifer flies home this week and should touch down on American soil by Friday. She called and talked to Darla last week and is excited to get home. Her friend Jason has lymphoma and is beginning treatment with radiation this week. They did a biopsy and it could have been much worse. The prognosis is good, but the lump had grown so large that it attached to some of his other organs, so it is still too early to call it a victory, but so far so good. Please keep Jason and his family in your prayers.
David continues to do well at school and with his job. They recently gave him a 25% raise and continue to ask him to do more complex assignments. He loves it. His car was hit the other night as some moron sideswiped him. I noticed that his side mirror was lying on the road next to his car when I was leaving for church. Darla and I drive separately as she helps at the high school. The only thing I noticed was the mirror had come loose from the mirror housing and I thought it happened when he shut his door. Darla came out and found a Ford emblem laying near the car. On closer examination, someone had brushed the car and scratched the paint, tearing off the Ford logo on the front right side of the car. There is very little body damage. David thinks it might have been the paper carrier as we didn't get a Sunday paper that morning. It is irritating that someone didn't leave a name and number. The loss is less than our deductible and with what I already pay to insure David, I'm not sure I'd let him turn in the loss. His insurance is for his liability in the event of an accident.
Well, I need to get at it. I'm having a great month at work, which is good timing coming off the bizarre meeting in Detroit. I should personally write close to a 1/4 million this month with income to the branch of over $40,000. The office as a whole should have a record month and I can only keep working hard and hope to open some eyes (well one pair in particular) at home office. Be an Obediah for those around you this week. Obediah comes from the two words "Obed" and "Ya", which means servant of God. Ciao.
Monday, October 17, 2005
Home Renovation Pictures
Here are the pictures. They mysteriously appeared on my computer at 10:30 this morning. Who knew?
It's Monday and the living isn't easy
I had taken some digital photos of the kitchen remodel and the tile floors to add to the blog today, but for some reason, there was no mail with Pictures attached in my in box this morning. I wonder who I sent them to last night? Very interesting. I'll look into the situation and see if I can rectify it by tomorrow. If I have to, I'll burn a disc and bring that in tomorrow.
I spent the weekend doing baseboards and finishing up the kitchen. Brian, my actual tile guy (not like the fool that called himself your tile man who wasn't licensed and never called us back), lent me a Porter Cable mitre saw and I was able to get all of the baseboards in where we had tile installed. I am waiting on the bedrooms, living room and family room until we have new carpet installed. Once that is in, I'll do the baseboards in those rooms. I had to install a new hood and fan in the kitchen above the cooktop. Brian had tiled up to the old one and we had bought a new black hood to match the new gas cooktop. That job was a minor hurdle in my life as the space was so small and the duct work so tight and hard to work with. I lost some spiritual growth as we attempted to lift the hood into place, wire the electrical and bolt it into place. I was dripping with sweat by the time we finally got the unit into place. Darla was a doll putting up with a sputtering husband who more than once blurted out that I'm not a blue collar guy and I didn't go to college to end up installing appliances! She encouraged me and batted me in the rear and we got the job done. There is a reason that I don't do my own repairs in the house and on the cars. I'd rather pay someone to do the job right than cause myself a ton of grief to end up with a half assed attempt at finishing the job. The hood, fan and light work great.
Brian, our tile guy, did not finish off the carpeting and said that he doesn't do that. I have several rooms where the carpet is jagged cut and needs to be stretched and tacked down. Rather than pay someone to come out and pull our old worn careting into place, we have decided to have new carpeting installed. It is a big job as we have a pool table, family room furniture and four bedrooms of furniture and whatnot to move. I think we will have the living toom and family room done and then have them come back to do the bedrooms. Either that or I'll pay them extra to move the furniture.
Brian broke the toilet in the bathroom off of the remote bedroom and had to replace the unit. He got it installed and was finishing the backsplash when Darla came out yelling that there was a leak. He had installed the toilet using the old gasket and water was pouring out of the unit. I thought I was the only one that made those kinds of mistakes. Brian said that he had to do both plumbing and tile work in his business. I told him to stick with his day job. He said that was why he didn't take on the carpet stretching as well.
The house is beginning to take on a finished look and once the capreting is in, we will have a completed project. Darla has picked up the piles that had gathered during the process and we used the time to cull some of the unnecessary clutter from our lives. I have a large pile of clothes and clutter on the side of the house that will be taken to the dump this weekend. We thought we had rid ourselves of all of the junk when we filled a trailer that Brian hauled away, but there is more with old throw rugs, the toilet, some clutter from several of the rooms that had piled up. I'm going to have the boys go through their rooms and add to the pile before we take the dump run this coming weekend.
Daniel turned 16 last week and is about four months from getting his license. I got mine on my 16th birthday, but kids today seem so casual about the whole process. David got his license when he turned 16 1/2 and Daniel will just beat that. Jennifer was almost seventeen before she got her license. The costs are enormous to the parents as our car insurance bill has gone from $100 a month for Darla and I with two cars to $375 a month for adding David and his car to the policy. Luckily, Daniel will be covered under his father's policy as a principal driver. We will add him to our policy for liability, but exclude him as a driver on both Mustangs. I'm still not looking forward to seeing that bill. We are buying Daniel a new laptop computer for his birthday.
Jennifer continues to count down her days in the military and will clear out of Kuwait on October 28th and fly to Fort Gordon in Augusta Georgia for her debriefing and final clearing. She hopes to be home around November 10th. Check out her blog at the bottom of this page. She has had several job offers, but most involve overseas travel and she has been there, done that. She is looking for something at home where she can work and go to school.
I said about enough on work in my last epistle. I am keeping my head up and my feet on the ground. There are other possibilities for me that I may pursue. I know that this office will be a huge success and it would be hard to leave with the potential for a huge income here, but I have to feel appreciated at the same time. I'm in a bit of a bind, but meanwhile the bills are getting paid and my staff is great to work with.
Dad and Shirley won another "best of the best" in a car show in Abbottsford this weekend. Their '46 is a show stopper and they have entered 7 car shows and won 5 times. I know that Dad will not do the car shows much beyond the next couple of years and his two cars could fetch a nice return for them if they keep winning prizes. Dad had the fun of transforming the cars into what they are now, but there is always someone with money willing to buy a prize magnet. They said that they will travel to a few car shows next year and one of them is in Pleasanton in the Bay Area. We look forward to that. I'm trying to talk Dad into entering his car in the Hot August Nights show in Reno next year as well.
Well, that is enough for now. I will get those pictures added to the blog as soon as I can. Take care and keep your mind and your thoughts on Jesus and he will lead your path to glory. Ciao.
I spent the weekend doing baseboards and finishing up the kitchen. Brian, my actual tile guy (not like the fool that called himself your tile man who wasn't licensed and never called us back), lent me a Porter Cable mitre saw and I was able to get all of the baseboards in where we had tile installed. I am waiting on the bedrooms, living room and family room until we have new carpet installed. Once that is in, I'll do the baseboards in those rooms. I had to install a new hood and fan in the kitchen above the cooktop. Brian had tiled up to the old one and we had bought a new black hood to match the new gas cooktop. That job was a minor hurdle in my life as the space was so small and the duct work so tight and hard to work with. I lost some spiritual growth as we attempted to lift the hood into place, wire the electrical and bolt it into place. I was dripping with sweat by the time we finally got the unit into place. Darla was a doll putting up with a sputtering husband who more than once blurted out that I'm not a blue collar guy and I didn't go to college to end up installing appliances! She encouraged me and batted me in the rear and we got the job done. There is a reason that I don't do my own repairs in the house and on the cars. I'd rather pay someone to do the job right than cause myself a ton of grief to end up with a half assed attempt at finishing the job. The hood, fan and light work great.
Brian, our tile guy, did not finish off the carpeting and said that he doesn't do that. I have several rooms where the carpet is jagged cut and needs to be stretched and tacked down. Rather than pay someone to come out and pull our old worn careting into place, we have decided to have new carpeting installed. It is a big job as we have a pool table, family room furniture and four bedrooms of furniture and whatnot to move. I think we will have the living toom and family room done and then have them come back to do the bedrooms. Either that or I'll pay them extra to move the furniture.
Brian broke the toilet in the bathroom off of the remote bedroom and had to replace the unit. He got it installed and was finishing the backsplash when Darla came out yelling that there was a leak. He had installed the toilet using the old gasket and water was pouring out of the unit. I thought I was the only one that made those kinds of mistakes. Brian said that he had to do both plumbing and tile work in his business. I told him to stick with his day job. He said that was why he didn't take on the carpet stretching as well.
The house is beginning to take on a finished look and once the capreting is in, we will have a completed project. Darla has picked up the piles that had gathered during the process and we used the time to cull some of the unnecessary clutter from our lives. I have a large pile of clothes and clutter on the side of the house that will be taken to the dump this weekend. We thought we had rid ourselves of all of the junk when we filled a trailer that Brian hauled away, but there is more with old throw rugs, the toilet, some clutter from several of the rooms that had piled up. I'm going to have the boys go through their rooms and add to the pile before we take the dump run this coming weekend.
Daniel turned 16 last week and is about four months from getting his license. I got mine on my 16th birthday, but kids today seem so casual about the whole process. David got his license when he turned 16 1/2 and Daniel will just beat that. Jennifer was almost seventeen before she got her license. The costs are enormous to the parents as our car insurance bill has gone from $100 a month for Darla and I with two cars to $375 a month for adding David and his car to the policy. Luckily, Daniel will be covered under his father's policy as a principal driver. We will add him to our policy for liability, but exclude him as a driver on both Mustangs. I'm still not looking forward to seeing that bill. We are buying Daniel a new laptop computer for his birthday.
Jennifer continues to count down her days in the military and will clear out of Kuwait on October 28th and fly to Fort Gordon in Augusta Georgia for her debriefing and final clearing. She hopes to be home around November 10th. Check out her blog at the bottom of this page. She has had several job offers, but most involve overseas travel and she has been there, done that. She is looking for something at home where she can work and go to school.
I said about enough on work in my last epistle. I am keeping my head up and my feet on the ground. There are other possibilities for me that I may pursue. I know that this office will be a huge success and it would be hard to leave with the potential for a huge income here, but I have to feel appreciated at the same time. I'm in a bit of a bind, but meanwhile the bills are getting paid and my staff is great to work with.
Dad and Shirley won another "best of the best" in a car show in Abbottsford this weekend. Their '46 is a show stopper and they have entered 7 car shows and won 5 times. I know that Dad will not do the car shows much beyond the next couple of years and his two cars could fetch a nice return for them if they keep winning prizes. Dad had the fun of transforming the cars into what they are now, but there is always someone with money willing to buy a prize magnet. They said that they will travel to a few car shows next year and one of them is in Pleasanton in the Bay Area. We look forward to that. I'm trying to talk Dad into entering his car in the Hot August Nights show in Reno next year as well.
Well, that is enough for now. I will get those pictures added to the blog as soon as I can. Take care and keep your mind and your thoughts on Jesus and he will lead your path to glory. Ciao.
Friday, October 14, 2005
Back from the Motor City
This will be short and sweet as the work on my desk is unbelievable. I flew into Detroit on Saturday morning, getting up at 4:15 AM to catch a 6:00 AM flight to Phoenix. This is the same scheduled flight that I was on way back on September 11, 2001 when the terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in New York. I've taken that flight four or five times since the event and it always brings it back for me, the feeling of helplessness and disbelief that a small insignificant nation would attack the great United States of America. I stopped for an hour and a half in Phoenix and was able to eat some breakfast and begin to wake up after sleeping on the plane from Sac to Phoenix. I feel sorry for my seatmates as I always get an aisle seat for more legroom and then fall fast asleep effectively imprisoning the middle and window seat passengers.
The flight from Phoenix to Detroit was three and a half hours of sheer boredom and I arrived to find the limo driver holding a handmade piece of cardboard with "Burns and Wilcox" written on it at the baggage claim area. We met up with the Fresno Branch Manager and made the half hour drive out to Farmington Hills. We meet and stay at the Westin Hotel and it is a nice facility. That said, I arrived at five-thirty tired and ready for a shower and the hotel did NOT have my room clean. They told me that they'd call housekeeping and they'd have the room ready in five minutes. I told them to "take ten, I want clean linens".
I met one on one with Alan Kauffman, the CEO and owner of our subchapter "S" corporation on Sunday afternoon. Burns and Wilcox is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Kauffman Group, so this was the big cheese. He asked me how I thought we were doing in Sacramento. I told him that we were finally in the black and would make a small profit in 2005 of $100,000 after losing money the previous 5 years and losing $200,000 in 2004. I thought that the right people were in place going forward and that Sacramento was on the verge of breaking out as a branch. Alan proceeded to tell me that our branch was the worst performing branch in the company and that our ROI of .88% was so bad that if we were a grocery store, he'd close us down. He was unhappy with my personal production and wanted me to take a more active role in production and let the office "run itself". I was floored and saw the turnaround of the branch as a huge success and a personal accomplishment. I left the meeting deflated and discouraged. That was Sunday afternoon.
Monday night at the awards banquet, Alan was giving out awards and said that, "there is a big success story within the company and that this young man has a great future with our organization and that he has turned a losing branch into a branch on the verge of a breakout....The Gold Branch of the Year for Division III goes to Ken Lyon and Sacramento!" I sat stunned at my table and walked up with some seriously conflicted emotions. To say that I'm enormously confused is an understatement. I left the meeting Sunday figuring that it was time to find another job and spent Monday night fielding congratulations from my colleagues.
I've asked Harvey, the regional VP to come out to Sacramento next week and address the staff. I don't know how to address the conflicting images given to me at the meeting. Are we doing well and on the verge of something big or are we the "worst performing office in the company?" Are they happy with the success of the office, but unhappy with my performance? Did I fall asleep and wake up in the Bizarro world? Clarity would be a welcome respite for my troubled mind right now.
On a brighter note, the remodel of our house (Phase I) is finished. The tile is in and looks great. The backsplash is particularly nice, where Brian and Darla designed a nice effect above the cooktop with tumbled marble. The countertop is in and looks excellent. I will get pictures put on the site on Monday. I got home Wednesday about 1:00 PM after getting up at 5:00AM that morning for a 6:00 AM pickup at the hotel. That was 2:00 AM California time for anyone paying attention. I got home and Brian was working on the backsplash. Darla took off to have lunch with Daniel on his birthday and I took a long shower and a short nap after. I awoke and went with Darla to Home Depot to pick out some new baseboards for the house and to also look at carpeting. We decided after the new tile floors, to replace the existing carpet in the house. We have carpet in the living room, family room and all four bedrooms. I got home about 4:00 PM and started working on the baseboards. I wanted to do the laundry room so we could put the washer and dryer back in there and I could park the Mustang in the garage. I also did the front entry so we could put the armoire back up and get the coats and clothes out of the master bath tub. Finally, I did the kitchen and inside the refrigerator nook so that we could get the refrigerator out of the family room and back into the kitchen. I honestly don't do well with clutter. Brian was amazed that I could fly home from the east coast and get right into work. Well, it needed to be done.
The results of the remodel are amazing and I look forward to the new carpeting later this month that will finish the project. Now, we'll just have the master bathroom, the roof and the windows on the back side of the house, including two sliders to replace. Darla also wants a new refrigerator, dishwasher and eventually a new oven and microwave. Aside from those minor items, we are good to go here at the Lyon homestead.
Well, as mentioned, my work awaits and apparently I am being solely measured on my own production. My production naturally has taken a toll to running this branch and getting our Modesto Service office up to speed. I have my marching orders, the problem is it's hard to lead a team through dense fog. I'll manage...or maybe that was a poor choice of words. God Bless and I'll update this after the weekend. Ciao.
The flight from Phoenix to Detroit was three and a half hours of sheer boredom and I arrived to find the limo driver holding a handmade piece of cardboard with "Burns and Wilcox" written on it at the baggage claim area. We met up with the Fresno Branch Manager and made the half hour drive out to Farmington Hills. We meet and stay at the Westin Hotel and it is a nice facility. That said, I arrived at five-thirty tired and ready for a shower and the hotel did NOT have my room clean. They told me that they'd call housekeeping and they'd have the room ready in five minutes. I told them to "take ten, I want clean linens".
I met one on one with Alan Kauffman, the CEO and owner of our subchapter "S" corporation on Sunday afternoon. Burns and Wilcox is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Kauffman Group, so this was the big cheese. He asked me how I thought we were doing in Sacramento. I told him that we were finally in the black and would make a small profit in 2005 of $100,000 after losing money the previous 5 years and losing $200,000 in 2004. I thought that the right people were in place going forward and that Sacramento was on the verge of breaking out as a branch. Alan proceeded to tell me that our branch was the worst performing branch in the company and that our ROI of .88% was so bad that if we were a grocery store, he'd close us down. He was unhappy with my personal production and wanted me to take a more active role in production and let the office "run itself". I was floored and saw the turnaround of the branch as a huge success and a personal accomplishment. I left the meeting deflated and discouraged. That was Sunday afternoon.
Monday night at the awards banquet, Alan was giving out awards and said that, "there is a big success story within the company and that this young man has a great future with our organization and that he has turned a losing branch into a branch on the verge of a breakout....The Gold Branch of the Year for Division III goes to Ken Lyon and Sacramento!" I sat stunned at my table and walked up with some seriously conflicted emotions. To say that I'm enormously confused is an understatement. I left the meeting Sunday figuring that it was time to find another job and spent Monday night fielding congratulations from my colleagues.
I've asked Harvey, the regional VP to come out to Sacramento next week and address the staff. I don't know how to address the conflicting images given to me at the meeting. Are we doing well and on the verge of something big or are we the "worst performing office in the company?" Are they happy with the success of the office, but unhappy with my performance? Did I fall asleep and wake up in the Bizarro world? Clarity would be a welcome respite for my troubled mind right now.
On a brighter note, the remodel of our house (Phase I) is finished. The tile is in and looks great. The backsplash is particularly nice, where Brian and Darla designed a nice effect above the cooktop with tumbled marble. The countertop is in and looks excellent. I will get pictures put on the site on Monday. I got home Wednesday about 1:00 PM after getting up at 5:00AM that morning for a 6:00 AM pickup at the hotel. That was 2:00 AM California time for anyone paying attention. I got home and Brian was working on the backsplash. Darla took off to have lunch with Daniel on his birthday and I took a long shower and a short nap after. I awoke and went with Darla to Home Depot to pick out some new baseboards for the house and to also look at carpeting. We decided after the new tile floors, to replace the existing carpet in the house. We have carpet in the living room, family room and all four bedrooms. I got home about 4:00 PM and started working on the baseboards. I wanted to do the laundry room so we could put the washer and dryer back in there and I could park the Mustang in the garage. I also did the front entry so we could put the armoire back up and get the coats and clothes out of the master bath tub. Finally, I did the kitchen and inside the refrigerator nook so that we could get the refrigerator out of the family room and back into the kitchen. I honestly don't do well with clutter. Brian was amazed that I could fly home from the east coast and get right into work. Well, it needed to be done.
The results of the remodel are amazing and I look forward to the new carpeting later this month that will finish the project. Now, we'll just have the master bathroom, the roof and the windows on the back side of the house, including two sliders to replace. Darla also wants a new refrigerator, dishwasher and eventually a new oven and microwave. Aside from those minor items, we are good to go here at the Lyon homestead.
Well, as mentioned, my work awaits and apparently I am being solely measured on my own production. My production naturally has taken a toll to running this branch and getting our Modesto Service office up to speed. I have my marching orders, the problem is it's hard to lead a team through dense fog. I'll manage...or maybe that was a poor choice of words. God Bless and I'll update this after the weekend. Ciao.
Monday, October 03, 2005
Back from Carmel..What a weekend!
Darla and I snuck out of work early on Thursday afternoon and made the three hour drive to Carmel. The weather was absolutely perfect, with highs in the low seventies and great sleeping weather at night. We got into Carmel about 6:15 PM and got checked into our hotel. We unpacked and ventured out about 7:00 PM for some dinner. We walked down to the Wells Fargo ATM in the middle of town and got some funds for the weekend and did a bit of window shopping in the warm night air as the sun slowly set over the ocean. We walked over to one of our favorite restaurants, The Forge in the Forest on fifth street. It was packed and there was a wait for outside tables. They did however have a table in their "dog friendly" patio and there was a nice German Sheppard and a Collie in residence. We chose to eat sans canines and opted for a table next to the fire inside near the bar. Our waiter was one of those fussy looking quasi-gay fellows with a bright pinkish orange shirt (NOT that there's anything wrong with that). He seemed somewhat harried as he rushed about, but seemed genuinely unhappy that Darla and I chose to split a steak sandwich and I ordered a salad and Darla a crock of French onion soup. Darla's soup arrived and we shared that, although Darla was not thrilled with my technique of folding back the cheese to get at the soup. We waited an interminable amount of time for dinner and my salad never did show up. Finally, Mr Finicky (our waiter) arrived with a plate of steak tacos. I balked as he was setting them down and told him that we had ordered a steak sandwich. "No." he said. I insisted and he left to check his tag and came back to the table with the plate. "Uh, you were right, I ordered the wrong entree." (No shit, Sherlock). We accepted the steak tacos and shared that dinner. Darla mentioned that as Christians we needed to set an example of understanding and grace. When it took the waiter another twenty minutes to bring us the bill when we finished eating she was ready to "dine and dash" which seemed to me counter to the Christian grace posture she had avowed earlier. I left a ten percent tip as the waiter didn't even offer to discount the meal for his mistake. Whatever.
Our friends arrived later in the evening both couples taking wrong turns and getting lost en route to the hotel. One couple missed the 156 turnoff at Hollister and went in to Gilroy and the other drove through Pleasanton and San Jose to get to Carmel. I never drive to Carmel via the Bay Area. I always take I-5 to Santa Nella and cut through Hollister and San Juan Batista. The traffic is lighter and it is a nicer drive throught the San Juan reservoir. They finally made it and we made plans to have breakfast together the next morning.
We played Poppy Hills on Friday, teeing off at 12:20PM. We ate breakfast at our favorite breakfast restaurant. The Swiss Cafe on seventh street. We decided to have dinner at the Pasta House in Carmel that night and made reservations for twelve. Golf was tough, but I shot 93 on Friday and 91 on Saturday. I took second low net on Saturday with a net of 78 and won $29. Boyd had to leave early and gave me his winnings, which turned out to be $54, as he took low gross with a 79 and closest to the pin on number two. I had the shortest drive of my golfing life on number 18 Saturday as I hit a 235 yard drive that pushed left under some trees and came to rest (I thought) on the cart path. The hole is a 410 yard uphill par four. As Boyd got up to hit, I said, "I think my ball is moving." Indeed it began to roll back down the cart path and by the time the 4th player hit, the ball was rolling down the cart path past the tee box. It rolled another 100 yards off of the course. So I hit a 235 yard drive that rolled back 335 yards and I took a 6 on the hole, instead of a par. C'est la Vie. I have shot 80 before and won nothing, so second place for a 91 was not so bad. I bought a sleeve of balls, a golf vest, hat, glove and a towel for my $81. Thanks, Boyd.
We did head home Saturday night after golf, caravaning with our friends and having dinner at the Cedar House near the Casa De Fruta. We had a lot of laughs and truly enjoyed some good conversation and some quality time with our friends. The weather was ideal and although the golf could have been better, they were tough championship courses and I actually shot a 41+50 on Saturday, so I at least had one good nine hole stretch of golf.
Finally, we will get started on our kitchen this week. The tile guy will be in on Wednesday and will start the floor project and the granite installer is supposed to start this week. We have yet to hear from him, but the contract says that he will have it installed by 10/7/05, which is Friday. I will talk to him today. We are ready to have the work done as half of the kitchen is sitting in the living room. We have to take down the armoire this week and tear out the tile in the entry for that installation next week.
I leave for the Manager's meeting this weekend in Detroit and will be gone until the following Wednesday. I hope and plan to talk to the powers that be about promoting me and hiring another underwriter. The Sacramento office is beginning to take off and we need to stop being treated like a red headed stepchild. I will let you know how that goes. The blog will be late next week as I will be in Detroit. I have been asked to present my sales meeting profile in a best practices session on Sunday. Management likes the interactive tone of my meetings which are short and deal with where we are at that moment with regard to renewals, new business, quotes, etc. versus our budget. We have our meetings once a week and everyone in the office knows where we sit versus our budgeted numbers at any given time.
Jennifer called last week. She is still in countdown mode and will leave Kuwait sometime near October 28th. She will be in Georgia processing out of the Army until about November 10th, but will be home for the holidays. One of her best friends, Jason, who was a boyfriend has contracted lymphoid cancer and is being treated for it. Jason is only 25 and it is a call to prayer. Please pray that Jason receive the best medical care available and that the Lord will heal him. His parents lost his brother to a suicide last year and they need Jason to survive. Please PRAY hard.
Our pastor, Rick, will be taking a three month sabbatical beginning in late December. He has spent eleven years building a church family in Roseville/Rocklin and he needs to get away and recharge his batteries. We give thanks to God for his leadership of our church body and wish him well on his break and look forward to him coming back to the lectern in April.
Well that's it for this week. Be well and focused in your walk with the Lord. Ciao.
Our friends arrived later in the evening both couples taking wrong turns and getting lost en route to the hotel. One couple missed the 156 turnoff at Hollister and went in to Gilroy and the other drove through Pleasanton and San Jose to get to Carmel. I never drive to Carmel via the Bay Area. I always take I-5 to Santa Nella and cut through Hollister and San Juan Batista. The traffic is lighter and it is a nicer drive throught the San Juan reservoir. They finally made it and we made plans to have breakfast together the next morning.
We played Poppy Hills on Friday, teeing off at 12:20PM. We ate breakfast at our favorite breakfast restaurant. The Swiss Cafe on seventh street. We decided to have dinner at the Pasta House in Carmel that night and made reservations for twelve. Golf was tough, but I shot 93 on Friday and 91 on Saturday. I took second low net on Saturday with a net of 78 and won $29. Boyd had to leave early and gave me his winnings, which turned out to be $54, as he took low gross with a 79 and closest to the pin on number two. I had the shortest drive of my golfing life on number 18 Saturday as I hit a 235 yard drive that pushed left under some trees and came to rest (I thought) on the cart path. The hole is a 410 yard uphill par four. As Boyd got up to hit, I said, "I think my ball is moving." Indeed it began to roll back down the cart path and by the time the 4th player hit, the ball was rolling down the cart path past the tee box. It rolled another 100 yards off of the course. So I hit a 235 yard drive that rolled back 335 yards and I took a 6 on the hole, instead of a par. C'est la Vie. I have shot 80 before and won nothing, so second place for a 91 was not so bad. I bought a sleeve of balls, a golf vest, hat, glove and a towel for my $81. Thanks, Boyd.
We did head home Saturday night after golf, caravaning with our friends and having dinner at the Cedar House near the Casa De Fruta. We had a lot of laughs and truly enjoyed some good conversation and some quality time with our friends. The weather was ideal and although the golf could have been better, they were tough championship courses and I actually shot a 41+50 on Saturday, so I at least had one good nine hole stretch of golf.
Finally, we will get started on our kitchen this week. The tile guy will be in on Wednesday and will start the floor project and the granite installer is supposed to start this week. We have yet to hear from him, but the contract says that he will have it installed by 10/7/05, which is Friday. I will talk to him today. We are ready to have the work done as half of the kitchen is sitting in the living room. We have to take down the armoire this week and tear out the tile in the entry for that installation next week.
I leave for the Manager's meeting this weekend in Detroit and will be gone until the following Wednesday. I hope and plan to talk to the powers that be about promoting me and hiring another underwriter. The Sacramento office is beginning to take off and we need to stop being treated like a red headed stepchild. I will let you know how that goes. The blog will be late next week as I will be in Detroit. I have been asked to present my sales meeting profile in a best practices session on Sunday. Management likes the interactive tone of my meetings which are short and deal with where we are at that moment with regard to renewals, new business, quotes, etc. versus our budget. We have our meetings once a week and everyone in the office knows where we sit versus our budgeted numbers at any given time.
Jennifer called last week. She is still in countdown mode and will leave Kuwait sometime near October 28th. She will be in Georgia processing out of the Army until about November 10th, but will be home for the holidays. One of her best friends, Jason, who was a boyfriend has contracted lymphoid cancer and is being treated for it. Jason is only 25 and it is a call to prayer. Please pray that Jason receive the best medical care available and that the Lord will heal him. His parents lost his brother to a suicide last year and they need Jason to survive. Please PRAY hard.
Our pastor, Rick, will be taking a three month sabbatical beginning in late December. He has spent eleven years building a church family in Roseville/Rocklin and he needs to get away and recharge his batteries. We give thanks to God for his leadership of our church body and wish him well on his break and look forward to him coming back to the lectern in April.
Well that's it for this week. Be well and focused in your walk with the Lord. Ciao.
