David is in Vegas

David leaves in less than two weeks for his semester abroad in Rome and Darla and I decided to send him to Las Vegas for four days with Jennifer, Mike and Samantha. He flew in yesterday and Jennifer, Mike and David hit the town. i don't have any details, but what happens in Vegas... We did talk to him briefly today and Sam was dropped off about ten and they had a big day planned with a swim, a trip to Fremont Street and then a big barbecue by Michael, who is a great cook. We told David to take scads of pictures and I'll add some to the blog next week.





Darla has been having problems with the Explorer's A/C for several weeks and we finally took it into Firestone today. The compressor has a leak in it and the replacement will be about $600. We also need new tires. When it rains, it pours. They kept the car overnight as the part won't come in until tomorrow. Luckily, Darla works from home and she has David's Tahoe to use in an emergency. The car is nine years old and we have had good luck with it up until now. The a/c on the drivers side has actually been blowing hot for the time in question. We've had a mild Summer, but 98 degrees is still hot when your car is sitting in a hot parking lot and you have no way to cool it off. I'll get he a/c fixed now and get new tires before the Fall.





Dad and Darryl both know Neil and Lilly, our friends from the golf club and Darryl and I refer to Neil as our brother from another Mother. They were in Mexico with us last year. Neil played golf on Friday as is his custom now that he's retired and shortly after he left the house, someone broke in their side garage door and entered the home, grabbing pillowcases off the bed and making off with jewelry, electronics, laptops, cameras and some old coins and cash. Neil was distressed that some of the jewelry and rings were family heirlooms dating back over many generations. He was upset, but also had a realistic attitude about things. He said, 'almost" everything can be replaced. They left behind camcorders, VCRs and, although they took the ZZ Top key ring with his keys to his mint 1964 1/2 Mustang. They didn't steal the car. He is having the ignition locks changed tomorrow.





We got together with them at the Pando's last night for dinner and a game night. We had a few laughs and they were able to talk it all out. he sent us a note today thanking us for our friendship and for letting them blow off some steam and have some laughs. It was a stressful weekend. Both Neil and Lilly are both quality people.



Darla and I made it to church today and the Sermon was on Procrastination. Pastor used an example called "Senior Personals" to illustrate his point. He had a variety of 'looking for love' examples, a couple of which tickled me. One had a recently widowed woman, who lost her third husband looking for a new man:



"Recently widowed (for the third time) woman seeks elderly gentleman to round out a four unit plot at the cemetery. Good health is not an issue. A cigarette smoker or someone with a chronic illness preferred."



Another was a man just looking for some peace and quiet:



"Serenity Now. Elderly gentleman who enjoys quiet walks, peaceful contemplation and afternoon naps seeks elderly woman who likes the same. Lets get together, turn off our hearing aids and enjoys some peace and quiet...together."



Another was a woman who won't let age slow her down:



"Sexy 80 year old woman, in good shape, well cared for and well maintained seeks elderly gentleman of same mindset and circumstances. Extra points if you have stylish white shoes with a matching belt."



I guess she was looking to wow the cruise set.



Work continues at a frenetic pace. We were down a bit in July, but our comparison last year was a record month for us. We still finished with numbers approximating our monthly average this year and made a nice profit for the company. Our SF broker who shared my office has left the company to open a new office for a competitor. It will free up her office for me to move one of my assistants into who is moving into underwriting. I now have two new employees in the office, the latest a 26 year old moving onto Anthony's team. She is a Dallas Cowboy fan and I have no feelings one way or the other about that, but I see a great future for her in my office.



Golf this week was on two very difficult courses, NorthRidge Country Club and Darkhorse Golf Club. I struggled on the Stimp 13 greens at both courses and shot 44=42=86 at Northridge and 46+44=90 at DarkHorse. I did birdie 18 at DarkHorse, so all was not lost. Next weekend we will head down to Fairfield and play Paradise Valley Golf Course. it will be a little bit of a roadie as it is about 50 minutes away. DarkHorse Saturday was in Auburn, but in the unincorporated area of Auburn about twenty minutes from town and about 40 minutes from Roseville.



We are off to Canada in two weeks and hope that Darryl and Cheryl can join Randy and Cake and Darla and I in Vancouver. I think Dad has plans to take the gang up to Grouse Mountain on Saturday and then golf on Sunday. I think I will bring my clubs as Southwest doesn't charge for bags.



We had an interesting conversation with Neil on Saturday night. Darla mentioned that Avon had bought Silpada and discussed the pros and cons of the merger. Neil dropped on us that when he was driving truck, he would use Avon's "Pretty Feet" moisturizer on his feet after a tough day on the job. It would clear up calluses and soften his feet. He will NOT live this one down with me.

That's it for this week, I hope you are all well and living a life your kids would be proud of. Ciao.