A Little Rain, A Little Sun

Gee. It sounds like Spring in Northern California. We had quite a storm over Friday night with solid rain that was supposed to quit about three in the morning. I had a 9:08 AM tee time on Saturday and awoke to drizzle at 7:30 AM and the phone ringing. For some reason the master bedroom phone is never in the master bedroom and by the time I got up, tripped over my senile dog who is forever off of his rug and splayed out in the middle of the room, and reached a handset of the phone which never makes it back to the cradle unless the battery is low, the caller was gone. It turned out to be Darren who was wondering if we were a go for golf. Darren is new to the group and hasn't learned that we are always a go unless the course is closed. By the time I got up, showered, ate some Cheerios (my other cholesterol drug), read the paper and fiddled with the computer looking at weather forecasts, the rain had abated and it was simply cold and wet.

I made it over to the course at 8:45 AM and the gang was all there. Boyd was opting out of our regular Saturday foursome and hitching a ride over to the new Indian Casino course in Capay Valley, Yochedehe. He had invited me to join them, but for $90 to play and a 90 minute drive I decided I had enough to keep me occupied around home. I played with Darren, Mel and Bob on the newly punched greens at Woodcreek. The aeration was done with the smaller tines that are placed closer together and the greens had been sanded. The greens were surprisingly fast and true for all of the sand. Darren chipped in for birdie from off the green on the first hole and we played a team game where we switch partners every six holes and play for $5 a segment. I shot 37+40=77 to continue a hot streak of non-tournament golf. In fact, Bob said to me during the round that I was playing as if I had a tournament tomorrow. Hey, I'm supposed to be the wise guy in this group. I did manage to win $15 as the other three all won one match (with me) and lost the other two. My $15 in winnings were quickly spent in the bar on two beers and two sodas for $13 and a $2 tip, but I got the satisfaction of cleaning up. Darren was my partner on the last six holes and he hadn't won a match yet. I proceeded to go from even par after twelve holes to five over for the six holes we played. Somehow, we managed to win three of the six holes and pushed the last for a win. Darren would have lost $15 with each of us winning $5 if we'd lost. He was on me pretty good for playing great golf all day and tanking with him. I asked him what the common denominator was in his two previous losses. He looked at me funny (It was him!). Bob shot a stellar 38+34=72, Mel shot 84 and Darren shot 90. It was a fun day and the weather improved all day long to the point of sun and a light breeze by the time we finished.

It only warmed to 59 degrees and the average temperature this time of year is 69 degrees, so we have a 79 due us. perhaps next weekend would be appropriate. Yesterday was also cool and breezy with a high of 65 degrees. It was downright cold when we got to church at 8:45 AM and still cold and breezy when we left. I slept on the couch during the golf match and arose about 3:30 to do some errands. I've wanted to re wrap the grip on my golf cart and had trouble finding some grip tape. I bought a roll of dark blue Ace bandage that sticks to itself and wrapped the grip with that. I also bought a new hose for the back yard and some weed control. I have a few weeds popping up in the retaining wall behind the pool and wanted to spray those. I also decided to add another coat of wood preservative to the side gate by the jet ski on the side yard of the house. That gate takes spray from the lawn sprinklers full force and I'll need to re-apply the wood preservative every year. I finished that fence and gate and then re-applied the wood preservative to the trash enclosure at the front of the house as well. My next big project will be power washing the deck and stone on the pool and re-applying the water sealant to that. I will re stain the deck with the sandstone stain and use a water based sealant on that and use the acrylic based sealant on the stone.

I got kicked out of the house on Thursday night to a Cabi party thrown by Darla at our house. In the past, I would have snuck off to the Indian casino and played some nickel poker, but instead went over to the gym, rejoined on Darla and David's membership and had a workout. I've completely changed my diet and I'm off red meat almost entirely. I'm getting used to ground turkey in my spaghetti, tacos and even had ground turkey hamburgers last night for dinner that were surprisingly good. Darla doctored them up with spices and we had cheese and onion on them and other than being a bit dry, they were good. Next time, we'll put some barbecue sauce on the patties. The turkey patties cook completely differently as there is no grease that exudes from the meat so they tend to brown a little quicker so need to be cooked at a lower heat. I realize that my new diet is great, but in order to kick the high cholesterol I need drugs, a new diet AND exercise. I'll try to get over and hit the recumbent bike three times a week.

I talked to Jennifer this week and little Samantha is now yabbering alot, finding her voice and even rolled over from her stomach to her back. I mentioned in an earlier epistle that Samantha has a pretty strong constitution and she wants what she wants. She doesn't like being put on her stomach and at three months is already rolling over because she wants to be on her back.

Dad and Shirley will be on a plane back to Vancouver this week, tanned and happy. I'm sure Dad will have plenty to keep him busy at home with plants beginning the Spring thaw and needing to be trimmed. I know that they enjoyed their six weeks in Hawaii, but I'm sure will be happy to be home near family and their grand kids in Canada. We will plan to meet them in Las Vegas on their next trip to their home away from home.

Well, it is the last day of the month and I need to get at it and make sure the staff is focused and ready for a big push on the last day of the month. Tomorrow is April. Ciao.

He IS Risen! (Indeed)

Our celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, what people who are really uncomfortable discussing religion call Easter, was a fun Springlike day (76 degrees) full of family and friends. Darla fixed a big ham and everyone brought a little something to share from rolls and wine to salad and pies and asparagus. It was a fun day. Darla and I started with church of course. Our pastor, Rick, had an emergency appendectomy this week and was still to ill to preach on Sunday so Bryce Jessup, the dean of the local William Jessup University, a local Christian college pinch hit for Rick. The sermon was "Hope from the Grave" and it was a powerful declaration that Christ did rise from the dead and the proof of which is overwhelming. One of the strongest arguments is that 11 of the 12 disciples died a martyr's death because of their story of the resurrection. Would 11 men choose to die a horrible death to continue to tell a fabrication? I don't think so. It was great to see a man of God so prepared for a huge sermon on just a few hours notice. Amazing.

We had Darla's parents, her sister and her boyfriend, a friend of theirs, our friends (Darren and Marissa) as well as David and Daniel for a late Easter lunch. We played Wii in the afternoon bowling and playing the new Tiger Woods golf game and visited until everyone left about 4:30 PM. I laid down for a quick nap about 5 PM and awoke at 7:30 PM and realized that I had missed my opportunity to wash the Mustang. It is still probably the cleanest car in the parking lot, but that says more about the state of other people's vehicles than it does about mine. I was able to visit with both Jennifer and Dad. Jennifer and John had spent the day at John's Dad's house in Boulder City. Next year will be the start of some fun Easter's with Samantha as she'll be old enough to enjoy the sites and sounds of Easter. Dad and Shirley are still living the dream in Hawaii as they are winding down to their last week on the islands. They have had a great time, but are beginning to get ready for home. Six weeks away is a long time and Spring has broken while they were away. Dad contracted a cough last week from some Bozo at the golf course dining room. There was some guy hacking up a lung on the other side of the room and within three days that guy was Dad. He has since passed it on to Shirley. Dad said that he has worn blisters onto the bottoms of both feet from walking so much and broke a toe smacking it into the furniture in their condo. Looks like just another typical vacation for Dad and Shirley.

I did, of course, play golf this past weekend. In fact, we get very few holidays, but one we do get is a half day on Good Friday. Darla gets every holiday, but somehow passes on this one. I left work at noon and headed to Diamond Oaks. I had a Nike sponsored tournament on Saturday and wanted to get in a practice round. Naturally I shot lights out in the practice round in spite of wind gusts of 20-25 MPH. I used to really struggle with wind back in my "banana" days of an uncontrolled slice off the tee. I looked up alot because I had no idea where the ball was going to go. I have learned to hit a stinger into the wind with a low launch angle that bores through the wind. I shot 40+37=77 and even got on the green on both par fives in two on the backside. I missed both eagle putts, but made birdie on both holes on my way to 37. I was afraid that I'd blown my wad early and on Saturday I was a prognosticator of doom as I shot 42+41=83 for a net 72 to finish out of the money. IF I had shot the 77 in the tournament I would have taken first place and won $100. C'est La Vie.

I did get my shafts regripped at the grip event at the club. I bought new black and blue Winn Rave grips and outfitted my entire set for $70 after my pro shop discount. I also ordered a new navy and black Sun Mountain cart bag. I have the 3 wheeled Speed cart and wanted to get a bag to fit it. I have a Nike cart bag now, but half the pockets always end up inaccessible behind the cart. The Sun Mountain bag is designed for use with the cart and has all of the pockets accessible when the bag is attached to the cart. I also bought all new spikes for my Nike golf shoes and, even after all of the foregoing, I still have over $100 on the books at the club.

Darla joined me this week on a trip to Ukiah. I have one of my big agents in Ukiah and it is a three hour drive from Sacramento. I try to visit at least once a year and it had been over a year and they were starting to give me a hard time. Darla's two nieces, Shea and Taylor, live in the area, so Darla decided to join me. We stayed at a new hotel that has wireless internet and I left Darla at the hotel working on her laptop and went to see agents. We drove in on Wednesday night and hooked up with Taylor for dinner. That is a picture of Taylor and Darla at dinner above. Taylor is going in to the Navy and will be an MP with the Navy for two years and will then get out and join the CHP. Taylor met us at a Mexican food restaurant in Willits, but sat in a booth at the back of the restaurant with her back to us. We were there for fifteen minutes before we realized she was there as well waiting for us. Jeesh. We had a nice visit. Taylor is excited about the Navy and starting her work toward her career. She is 18 and wants to join the CHP, but their minimum age is 20.

Well, it is payroll today and I have to get at it. My assistant, Dinda, is off today so it will be that much busier for me. I'm taking my car in tomorrow to have it serviced. I think I have a vacuum leak because the idle is at 2000 RPM when I first start up the car. I have to let it settle down before I put it in gear so I don't ruin the transmission. I'm taking it to a mechanic versus Firestone or Midas as he comes highly recommended by one of my staff who drives a BMW. Ciao.

A Great Visit with Samantha and Jenn is in the Books

Well, that was a fun and invigorating visit. Jennifer is a great Mom, very patient and attentive to her daughter's needs. Samantha can be a little cranky and has a strong personality. She wants things a certain way and if she isn't held properly (facing out so she can see what is around her), she will let you know. Her personality is really beginning to assert itself. She smiles and is extremely curious about what is around her. She loves lights and bright colors. She has the most beautiful blue eyes and is definitely a Mommy's girl. When no one else can settle her down, Jennifer can relax her and she will stop crying. Samantha had more quiet, relaxed times this trip. She went out to dinner with us on my birthday to Benihana's and was really good until the waiters and staff showed up with drums and bells to sing Happy Birthday to me. She didn't like that at all.

Daniel even made it home as one of his friends from Sacramento drove home to see her younger brother baptized at church and Daniel hitched a ride. Daniel also brought his girlfriend home. She is a bright, intelligent young lady who scored higher than Daniel on the SATs. Daniel is somewhat competitve so they did on online IQ test and he scored just barely above his girlfriend. I can't remember her name right now so we'll go with girlfriend. I met her briefly on Sunday before they all drove back to Cal Poly, but had Samantha on my lap and the young lady didn't really venture far into the living room as we had Darla's sister and her folks over to spend time with Jennifer and Samantha. I love the picture of Samantha sitting with Frances and how Samantha is resting her elbow on Frances' arm. Very cute.

Spring will come in on Thursday, but the warm temperatures are already here. We had 74 degrees yesterday and I spent the afternoon out by the pool planting some ground cover. It was warm and the day was blue skies and no wind and I am ready for some lazy days on the pool soon. I took yesterday off to spend with Jennifer and Samantha. We got up at 7:30 and were off to a restaurtant in Old Town Roseville for breakfast by nine o'clock. Samantha slept through our breakfast and we had a nice visit with Jennifer. Darla joined us and it was nice and relaxing. We went home and took it easy at the house. Jennifer played my new Tiger Woods PGA Wii game (which she bought me for my birthday) and I fell asleep on the couch for about 45 minutes. Jennifer's friend Sara came over and we visited with her and her two kids for awhile and then packed up and took Jennifer and Samantha to the airport. It was a really nice visit and I got to spend some fun time with both Jennifer and Samantha. I need to practice up on the Tiger Woods game as both David and Jennifer are already better than I am at Wii golf.

Darla got up at 5:20 AM this morning to go to her spin class at the gym and Buddy had been sick last night several times. The room was a landmine and she decided to clean it up and skip the gym. Buddy is getting older. He is about 15 now which equates to ancient in people years. I'm sure she'll be working on those spots in the carpet for a few days.

I did finish my 54 hole tournament this weekend. Rick and I played really well on Saturday in the two man scramble portion of the tournament and shot a 74, which with our 14 strokes gave us a 62. Sunday however was our armegeddon as we woke up to 30 MPH winds and it was cold and nasty. We shot 43+43=86 in an alternate shot format that gave us a 72. The problem with wind is it increases my handicap from 10 to 14 and Rick from 18 to 25. He couldn't hit a shot to save his life and I was alll over the place. If I had a bad hole, we had a bad hole. Rick and I as a team played three rounds and never had a birdie. Hard to do. I could have shot better than 86 myself if I'd played my own ball. The problem with alternate shot is that you are only as good as the position that your partner puts you in.

As of this weekend, Darla has qualified for the January 2009 trip to Atlantis in the Bahamas with Sipada. Darla continues to excel at the Silpada jewelry business and I am just along for the ride. I've never been to the Bahamas, so it will be fun for me. I'm really proud of her. She works hard at the business and it is paying off in a big way.

Well, this is short and a day late. I need to get at my desk after being gone yesterday. I'll be in tomorrow, but I'm leaving for Ukiah after luch and will be there overnight tomorrow and be back on Thursday night. Darla is joining me on the trip. I hope you all are well. Happy Easter...He Is Risen!!

David is in Hog Heaven

David has been sitting by quietly watching his younger brother at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. David has worked for an engineering firm for three years, has designed countless projects, has had one of his designs grace the corporate brochure for the firm where he interns, yet his goal in life was to attend Cal Poly as an Architecture major. Unfortunately, the entrance process and requirements are based solely on grades and SAT scores and not on real experience. David has bided his time at Junior College in Sacramento and over the past year has reset his sites on going to other schools and was hoping to enter the University of Texas in Austin in the fall. He applied a final time at Cal Poly along with the other schools and and was accepted into the school of Architecture at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo as a Junior this Fall. Congratulations, Dave!! Persistence pays off. Hopefully I can use your Winter home in Lake Tahoe when you graduate and start making the real money.

Jennifer and Samantha Back in Town

A great weekend is in the books and another work week is upon us. It is just about dawn as I write this after the early time change this year. I drove in with my lights on, but look forward to the later light in the evenings as I can get home and putter a bit outside before the sun goes to bed. I love this time of year. In fact I shaved off my beard this morning as the 75 degree temperatures yesterday foretold the early Spring that has come to Northern California. I made the mistake of thinking because I had an early tee time yesterday at 9:09 AM that it would be too cold to wear shorts. As I sweltered through the day in my dark blue dockers, I realized the error of my ways. Many of the guys in the field were sporting their winter white legs and later sporting their early Spring pink flamingo legs because they were too dumb to slather on a bit of sunscreen.

Yesterday was the first day of our 54 hole team championship. I teamed up with my Vice President at the club, Rick, and we played a two man best ball. Neither of us managed a birdie during the day and in fact posted two net bogeys and finished 33+34=67 for the round. The team leading our flight had a 60, so we are 7 shots off the lead with two days to go. Saturday is a two man scramble and Sunday a two man Scotch. Sunday is the day that sees a big turnaround in scores as you can't take a hole off as each shot counts and it is an alternate shot format. I shot 43+42=84, but had two double bogeys and as I said, no birdies. It was not one of my stronger rounds. Rick is a 17 and shot 91. We can definitely get back into contention with a good scramble round on Saturday. Fun stuff.

As the title indicates, Jennifer and Samantha are back in town and will spend the week with her Mom, Diane, as she continues to convalesce from her recent surgery. Diane dropped the car seat off last week and I spent an inordinate amount of time Thursday night trying to figure out how to install it in the backseat of my Mustang. I finally got it figured out, but even then it seemed tight up next to the seat, but still a bit loose on the front end. Apparently it is, until the baby is put into the seat. I had to pull the passenger seat all the way forward in order to accomodate the baby carrier in the back seat. If Jennifer was a normal sized adult, it wouldn't have worked. Darla said now I have to get a Grandpa car. Yeah, right.

I picked Jennifer up from the airport on Saturday afternoon. Her flight was delayed an hour for some reason. The arriving flight in Vegas was delayed which delayed Jennifer. It is not fun, when you have a two month old and you have to sit and wait. According to Jennifer, the good news is that it was a light flight and she had a row to herself. Samantha was good on the flight, although she didn't sleep. I will be adding some pictures to the blog tonight. My company has recently increased security on our network and I can no longer upload pictures to the blog, so I'll do that tonight. I was running late after mowing the lawn and taking a peek at the golf tournament on TV at home and then dashing into the shower and making a run for the airport. Jennifer called when I was still ten minutes out and was just walking off the plane. I told her that I'd meet her outside baggage claim and collect Samantha and then she could go in and get her bag. Samantha and I drove the circle around and back to the terminal as Jennifer found her bag and we picked her up. Samantha had a cry for a minute as we drove thinking her Mom had abandoned her, but when she saw it was Papa she calmed down and figured that it wasn't so bad. Strangely, she began crying again when we looped around and picked up Jennifer and her bag.

We relaxed at the house, Jennifer had a tuna fish sandwich and we took it easy and watched a couple of movies. Darla had a Silpada party and got home about 4:30 and we just had a nice quiet evening. Samantha went to bed about 8:00 PM and Jennifer was in bed by 9:00 PM. She had been up late the night before talking to John and was tired.

Sunday I was up at 7:30 (6:30 before the time change that night) and off to the golf course by 8:20 AM. Darla was up by the time I left and getting ready for church. The plan was to have Jennifer and Samantha join her for church, but the time change did that in. I went in to wake Jennifer and she was still half asleep. I asked if she was going to get up and she asked me if Darla was getting ready for church or if she was getting ready to go to church? I didn't really see the subtle difference in the question and decided that she was still half asleep and needed to finish the process. I left her mumbling to herself and told Darla that she was still asleep and left for the course.

I also was able to talk to Dad last night in Hawaii. He had left us his itinerary and told us that the number was for the management office of the condo units. I called expecting to get the manager and lo and behold Dad answered. It threw me for second and I asked for Art Lyon. He said, "Hey, Ken." It was his birthday and I wanted to call and see how his day was. I asked him the time thinking it was six o'clock in Hawaii and 8:00 my time. He said, no it was five o'clock. I said, "Even after the time change?" He got a little concerned as they had seven o'clock dinner reservations with a view of the sunset overlooking the ocean and wasn't aware that Daylight savings time set in the night before. I forgot that Hawaii does not change time and is either two or three hours different from California depending on the time changes. They are having a great vacation and Dad said that the sun is doing wonders for his psyche. The long, cold Winter in Canada had left them yearning for sunshine. Their years in Arizona had spoiled them to cold weather and this Winter was particularly wet, snowy and cold in Canada. They have enjoyed their three weeks in Paradise, but felt bad that they had a two bedroom condo with one of the bedrooms going to waste with just the two of them there. They will move to a one bedroom on Thursday and spend the last three weeks there. The weather has been great with only a couple of rainstorms and both of them came overnight and were gone by the next day.

I also left a message for Darryl, letting him know that the number that Dad gave us was for his room and encouraging him to call them. I also talked to Randy. We traded text messages last week as he sat down in Coquitlam, British Columbia for a White Spot hamburger. I asked him what he was doing seven miles from Dad's house when Dad was 2500 miles away in Hawaii? He, of course, was on business and will travel back to Coquiltlam on Thursday and Friday of this week, but likely have his contract all sealed by the time Dad and Shirley get back home.

Well, work awaits. I have to get payroll in this morning. One of my underwriters had his mother-in-law pass away in his home this weekend and will miss three days this week as they prepare for the funeral. His wife is an only child and is pretty broken up over her passing. They had her in the hospital last week and then brought her home with hospice. He missed some days then too. Take care and have a good week. I'll get some Samantha pictures on here tonight and later in the week. Jennifer will be in town until next Monday. Ciao.

More Pebble Beach Pictures

My agent was much like me on my first trip to Pebble and took about 50 shots. Here are a few.

Update on Diane's Surgery

Praise God, the tumor was benign, so no worries about cancer. God is Good!

Ciao.

Pebble Beach Redux

Unbelievably beautiful weather greeted us in Pebble Beach for the two days and one night we spent on the coast. Anthony and I headed down early on Wednesday morning. We had a tee time at Pacific Grove Golf Course, the municipal course run by Pacific Grove. It is known as "The Poor Man's Pebble" and is a bargain at $40. The back nine runs along the ocean and is next to the 17 mile drive and bordered by the State run Asilomar resort. I was relaxed and played a pretty good game, shooting 41+43=84 and Anthony shot a 93. We saw deer along the course and they would come right up to you. We had lunch before we teed off and I only ate half of my tuna fish sandwich(still toeing the line with this cholesterol problem). I got a styrofoam container and figured I would eat the sandwich on the back nine. While we were on the putting green a huge seagull found his way into our cart and made off with the whole styrofoam container. He dropped it in the ice plant and one of the pro shop guys collected it for me and put it under the seat in the battery compartment. It was a little bit cooler on Wednesday with some low level fog that drifted in and out, but still mostly sunny and about 64 degrees.

Anthony and I met our agents back at the Howard Johnson's in Monterey. The rooms were clean and nothing fancy, but $59 a night. We headed in to the Cannery Row area where we had dinner at the Fish Hopper restaurant. The Fish Hopper was built out on the ocean with huge pillars supporting the building above the ocean waves. They have spotlights on the ocean and you can watch as the waves crash below you. Neat stuff. I did go off my diet and had the 10 oz prime rib and lobster tail for dinner. We called it an early night as our tee time at Pebble was 7:30 AM.

We awoke to a heavy fog shrouding the motel in Monterey and we dreaded a cold, wet start. As you can see by the picture on the first tee, the fog was not at Pebble and we teed off in incredible sunshine and the day topped out at about 68 degrees. I was able to concentrate on my golf more this trip and had less trouble with the tough course and undersized greens. We played from the gold tees , which is short of the tips, but a comfortable distance. I managed 43+45=88 on the course and felt that I could have played better. I parred the second and third holes and also parred the tough number 8 "cliff" hole. The back nine was a disaster waiting to happen as I went double-bogey, double bogey, double-bogey to start the back. I pulled it together by parring the number one handicap 569 yard par five 13th, as well as 15 and 17 for a 45 on the back. I think I somehow lost my concentration on the back, but I was able to rally and play good golf from then on out, going three over for the last six holes. I played with our number one agent, Rich from Cal Pro. Rich is a 5 handicap and also a member of RGC. He struggled a little on the course and shot an 89. Both Anthony and Rob shot over 100. It was a great time.

The NCGA is offering some deals on golf in Monterey in March and I plan a return trip at the end of the month to play Spyglass Hill. I've somehow managed to miss playing the second leg of the AT&T Pebble Beach classic. I've played both Poppy Hills and Pebble Beach, but never Spyglass. The deal is $175 with a cart for the month of March, so I will definitely plan on that.

I got a head start on the blog this weekend and started a draft of this epistle on Saturday morning. Darla had a team meeting of her Silpada reps at the house and I didn't golf until 1:00, so I worked in the office Saturday morning, working on some quotes and getting a start on the blog. It was an estrogen party with much laughter and good times with Darla leading the band. Darla, at one point, brought me in a hot plate of sausage and cheese quiche with fruit on the side, so it wasn't all bad.

I did play Woodcreek at 1:00 PM on Saturday. I have a friend who always wants to play golf with me. The problem is that he has young kids in sports and can never play in the morning. I hate playing in the afternoon on a weekend as the hacks are in full plumage and this weekend was no exception. We teed off right on time and had a wait on the second hole as the group in front of us was still on the tee. By the time we got to hole three, there were two groups on the tee and that was a theme for the day. I'm a rhythm golfer and like to stay active. One reason that I like to walk is that it keeps me active between shots and I can concentrate on my game. With Curly, Moe, Larry and their other brother, Darryl, in front of us, it was impossible to concentrate on anything except their gross ineptitude. I finally walked off the course after 16 holes and four hours and 50 minutes of inane golf. I shot an 86 when figuring in my handicap on the final two holes, so in spite of a strong wind and gusty conditions, I played okay, but my frustration level was boiling over. Boyd had quit after nine holes and 2 1/2 hours of golf. It was his wife's 16th birthday (she was born on February 29th) and the family was going to dinner at 6:00 PM. Bob and Mark soldiered on and I heard later that they finished in the dark and the group in front stood on the 18th green shaking hands and talking about their game before Bob finally drilled a seven iron shot into the green and they scattered. I'm glad I was gone already or I probably would have ended up in some trouble that night.

I got home and fired an e-mail off to Mark inviting him to come and play any morning he felt like joining us. I had told Boyd and Bob that I understood if they wanted to play in the morning, but like troopers, they came out and joined us on Saturday afternoon.

I'm wearing bandaids over the tips of my index and middle fingers of my left hand today. I googled "pool scale" and found out that I could chisel off the carbon and calcium buildup with a tile spatula. I had a large one that I use to spackle with and took it out yesterday and it worked wonders on the pool tile. The problem was that the blade is so sharp that I didn't realize that I was cutting into my hand as I used the corner to scrape the tile. I have painful "paper cut" like cuts on the pads of both fingers that were sore yesterday, but really painful today. The website suggested scraping the calcium off and then bathing the tile in an acid solution. Luckily, with the cuts on my hands, I didn't have any acid or my hands would really be sore today. I plan to stop and get some acid today at Lowes as well as some rubber gloves to use when I sponge off the tile.

Darla and I spent about a half-hour on the Skype last nigfht with Jennifer and Samantha. Something about the Skype experience makes Samantha need to go number 2 as for the second time she overfilled her diaper and left Jennifer with a mess on her shirt. Last time it was John. Jennifer's web cam has a blue light that comes on when it is in use and Samantha was staring at the light, which means she was looking right at Darla and I. It was great. Technology is a blessing.

Diane had her surgery last Wednesday and it was less invasive than they had thought. They were able to get into her thymus by going below her ribs rather than through her spine and she is already up and walking. The tumor was really large and they hope to have results on the biopsy this week. Jennifer and Samantha will be here on Saturday. I have to get the car seat from Diane and will pick them up at the airport and they will stay with us Saturday night. I have a 54 hole team championship that starts on Sunday, so Darla will take them to church Sunday morning and then to Diane's Sunday afternoon. I look forward to seeing Samantha. She is so much more active and is developing her personality now. It will be a blast.

Well, work awaits. I have a guy coming in to present information on our new 401k program. We have changed providers from ING to Mutual of Omaha and he will present on the new options. Then I have a guy coming in for lunch and will interview him for an underwriting position. He has experience in the E&S industry and I want to find out what makes him tick and what agencies he has relationships with. I hope you are all well. Ciao.