Mother's Day 2012

It is always with profound joy that I take time on Mother's Day to remember my Mom, a lady that we lost way too soon. I always laugh when I think of her. Gail in my office just lost her Mom and she is in great pain and grieving the loss of her Mom who was 89. I felt that way right after she passed and it was hard to think about her without breaking into tears or feeling an overwhelming loss and sadness. Well, the loss is still fresh, but the memories are pure joy. Mom lived for her kids and family and much of my self esteem comes from the unconditional love that was heaped onto me as a youngster. Mom was fun and joyful and made those around her happier for having known her. On this Mother's Day and always I tip my cap to my mom, a special lady who left me wanting so much more when she left us. I know that she is in heaven and if you want to find her up there, just follow the laughter. She will be in the middle of it all.

Darla and I just relaxed at home today and went out to breakfast for me (lunch for Darla) at Denny's. We wanted to go to one of our favorite local breakfast cafes, but they were all packed with Moms and their kids who were not on their best behavior and the dad's sitting looking sullen with the Sunday paper open in front of them. Denny's was also crowded, but has the largest restaurant in the area and we got in withing ten minutes. Darla has been complaining about her i-phone lately because she cannot take pictures. She has exceeded the storage on the phone. We went out to the AT&T store to see if they could make some room on the phone for her and ended up upgrading to the i-phone 4S. She uses her phone so much for her three jobs and needs the photo feature to send pictures of her jewelry to her customers that call to ask about a certain piece. She is happy and I am the husband of the year. I once made the mistake of telling her that I didn't get her a Mother's Day card, because she wasn't my mother. That didn't go over too well. I think I made up for that gaffe this year.

Darla and Davids' birthdays are Wednesday and Thursday of this week. We won't see David until June at his graduation, but will be thinking about him.

We did talk to Jennifer today and she had plans with Samantha tonight for Mother's Day. Jennifer told me that she played in her first golf game yesterday, a scramble tournament for a bar where she knows alot of the workers. They played 12 holes (?) and finished with a 2 over score. She had a great time, but said that her ball was slicing because she didn't have the right clubs. Jen, it is the Indian, not the arrow that is the problem.

Darla and I went to a surprise 50th birthday party for one of my insurance agents, and friends, Linda. Her husband, Jeff, pulled off the surprise in spite of working with her every day and living with her 24/7. He pulled it off partially because her birthday was in March and the event held on May 12th. It was held at an upscale Folsom Restaurant, Sienna, and Jeff put on quite a spread with wine and appetizers, a wonderful dinner with soup and entree, and a cake made in the style of the Scottish flag. Linda is a Scot, born in Scotland and she emigrated to the US as an adult. She thought she was going to dinner with good friends and for some reason didn't put on makeup and was horrified at the surprise. I've included a picture of Jeff and Linda taken with my cell phone. In the future, we will use Darla's new i-phone which has a built in flash.

I did get the stone backsplash for the pool resealed today with a wet look sealant. The stone tends to gray out over time and the sealant brings back the browns and oranges in the rock and it always looks so much better. I will have a day off from golf next Saturday and will also wash down the stamped concrete and add a coat of the sealant to that. I may also pick up another bottle of the bark brown stain and touch up a few spots where the stain is wearing off.

I finished up the three day golf tournament this week and finished fourth out of 23 golfers in my flight. I was on my way to a second place finish, having shot a 42 on the front and then putting up two birdies on the back nine to be at 1 over par for the back nine with only the 18th to play. As Yogi says, "It isn't over until it's over". I put my second shot in the bunker and it buried against the outer lip with a carry of about 40 feet over the length of the bunker to the green. I hit an explosion shot that launched the ball about 50 yards over the green and into the heavy rough of the perimeter of a hazard. Five more shots later I had an 8 for a 42+41=83. Even a bogey would have given me an 80 and a three day total of 5 under par. The golf wizards can play mean tricks on you. I was happy to be under par for the tournament and in the money, but that 8 will stay with me for awhile. I think it left a mark.

I went out on Wednesday and took a lesson with one of our teaching professionals at the club. I had him look at my stance and setup and he suggested two fixes that had me back hitting the driver down the middle. It's funny how fast you can lose your swing and just how easy the fix usually is. I wasn't perfect with my drives, but I hit a few bombs that had me way past my playing partners. Dale, the pro, wants to get together with me this week, because he saw something in my launch angle that can help me get more yards off the tee. He didn't want to mess with it last week because I was in the middle of an event, but would like to work with me to get the most out of my drives. I have over $500 on the books at Diamond Oaks and I have no needs for clubs or bags right now, so can spend it on a few lessons and see if that gets me to drop a few strokes. I liked his style and how he was able to pick up on the nuances of my game so quickly. He didn't charge me for the lesson last week, which also makes me realize how serious he is.

I took the staff out to lunch this week to celebrate our great April. We went to the Old Spaghetti Factory in Roseville and all of the new employees were there. My new assistant, Shawna, doesn't start for another week, but came out and joined us anyhow and enjoyed the group and the office dynamic. She is a friend of Darla's and texted Darla afterward to tell her that she may never be able to repay her for suggesting that she apply for the job. Shawna is the manager of the Brighton Collectibles store in the Roseville Galleria and works about 60 hours a week and weekends. She misses her family and is looking forward to the Monday to Friday schedule. She will work part time on my book and eventually take on a role as a marketing specialist for the office. My guys are getting so busy that they can't get out on marketing calls. Shawna will eventually be able to go on calls for them and talk about the new products and markets at Burns and Wilcox.

Well, that is it for this week and this chapter of the blog. All is well with the Northern California clan of the Lyon family. Happy Mother's Day to all of the Moms out there and may God continue to bless each of you in His special way. Ciao.