Gutters, Golf, and Quesadillas

UPDATE - August 19, to August 25, 2018

-- Let it Rain

Leak-Free Porch

We've been in Jefferson for 11 years and I can't imagine that any other home would suit us better than this one. Naturally, there are always maintenance issues such as cleaning dryer vents, filters for the furnace, etc. But, the only exterior issue has ever been cleaning the gutters.

The gutters work fine and for the most part, don't require a lot of attention, but the gutter off the side of the front porch was clogged and during a recent downpour, created a large pool of water against the foundation. I didn't like the look of that, so I put the ladder up and climbed up and cleaned out the debris I found. It rained again the next day and I can report that everything is flowing again.

-- Death of the "Playpen"

Not a Playpen

Patti said she wanted to install a Graco Pack n' Play, so that when baby Olive visited we would have a safe place to change her and for her to sleep. I agreed and we began to look around for a good deal. We found one and ordered it. But, during the process, I realized that the word "Playpen," which is what I've always called these things is dead. No one still calls it a playpen. Maybe they don't like the inference of the word, "pen?" Anyway, the units are called play yard, or play center, or playard, but not "playpen." Anyway, it arrived by Fedex delivery and I decided to assemble it in the garage. With the exception of installing one of the parts upside down at first, things went well. When it was completed I discovered it would not fit through the door that led to the kitchen. It also would not fit through the door that led to the hallway that opens to the living room. The "Play Yard," was 31 inches wide and the door was 30 inches wide. I managed to tip it on its side and wormed it around to get into the house and found that the doorway to the Master Bedroom was 32 inches and allowed easy entry.

-- Fun at Quail Hollow Golf and Country Club

Lush Quail Hollow

Monday was a perfect day for golf, so Patti and I played at Quail Hollow Golf and Country Club in Oakham. It's not an overly demanding course if you just look at its length, which is 5,809. But, don't let that fool you. It's laid out to challenge you on every hole. Patti got off to a great start with a par on three of the first four holes. I never caught up.

She went out the first 9 holes with a 42. I was a few shots behind. I could tell we both got tired as the morning went on, but it was a totally enjoyable day. The course was a bit boggy, which is what we have found everywhere for the past month or more, but we still had a great time.


-- Lunch at the Black & White Grille in Spencer

Here's to Johnnie.

Only 15 minutes from home is the Black & White Grille in Spencer. It's a minor detour upon returning from Quail Hollow Golf and Country Club and we often stop here for lunch. In our many visits, we have never been disappointed. Today, Patti had a wrap sandwich and I got the Chicken Quesadilla. It was great. As usual, Patti had to sample from my meal as well as her own. I'm sure she will get a Quesadilla the next time based on her reaction. Also, the bartender was our server and when Patti asked for a gin and tonic, he suggested we try his special cucumber-laced Hendriks drink. As Hendricks is Patti's favorite gin, he got a definite yes on his offer. I settled for my usual Johnnie Walker Red on the rocks.


-- Finding Film Footage is Failing

Finding Film Footage 

I have reels of old 8mm movie film, some of which my family shot when we were kids and some that I shot up through my hitch in the US Air Force. Tuesday was spent sorting the reels and mostly struggling with finding a projector that works properly. Our original projector is destroyed. The bulb overheated, melted and has made it unworkable. I bought a projector on eBay, which turned out not to work either. I bought a Bell and Howell machine that works, except that you have to manually push the take-up reel, as the wire-drive has failed. So, as the machine runs, I have to keep my hand on the take-up reel, coaxing it to wind up. It's tedious and not a good long-term solution.

I'm a bit on the spot as I mentioned to someone at the recent air show that I had footage of the original arrival of the C5A when it landed in 1970 at Kelly Field in San Antonio. So far, I have failed to actually find that few minutes of footage. I have lots of footage of the field, of my fellow airmen, and lots of other aircraft. But, not the footage I really need to find. I'm on the spot because it turned out that the person I mentioned it to is a retired Colonel and her husband is the current Colonel in charge of the C5A's at Westover. Oops! I better find that footage.

Some of the film footage I did find included our TDY team leaving our barracks at Kelly Field, hanging out on the tarmac, while our C-130 Hercules was being loaded. Later footage that I took has me in the jump seat in the cockpit taking pictures of the pilot and co-pilot and the landscape out of the window.

Lucy and Olive

-- Olive Continues to Gain Weight

Big Sister Lucy continues to be fascinated with new baby sister Olive. Lucy wants to help with all aspects of her care. She talks to her and asks her mother when Olive will crawl, or roll over, or be able to play. As expected, Olive lost weight for the first few days at home but reports are that she has gained much of it back and will reach her birth weight shortly. All signs are good that she is doing well. With Lucy on guard, we can be sure everything will be alright.




-- Busy Week reading Omarosa, Comey, and The Stowaway by Laurie Shapiro

I spent some time reading some interesting books, two of which were about current affairs. The third was a look back to the 1920's and the heroics of several stowaways on Admiral Byrd's adventure to the Antarctic.

Failed Loyalty

The first book was by Omarosa Manigault Newman, the woman who was unceremoniously fired by General Kelly on behalf of the President. This, after she spent 15 years being his cult-slave. She admits she was complicit in her denial of what she could see with her own eyes. But, as she was tossed out on the sidewalk, she began to realize what kind of unhinged President we have and felt obligated to share her story. I guarantee that whatever you think you know about her and how things are in the White House; you are wrong. You have to read it to believe it. If you need a copy I will loan it to you.

For me, I can't tell you which was more horrifying - the Omarosa story or the Comey story. They have nothing in common and yet both collided with the President, when in fact, there was no need for Comey or Omarosa to have that outcome. The only difference between Omarosa and Comey is that she moved forward with a career within the Trump influence and Comey made his career totally outside of Trump's influence. (They both learned about LOYALTY in a manner they had not anticipated.) However, both crash-landed at his feet basically for the same reason - his total unhinging over the past 15 years.

On a more cheerful note, the story about the young Stowaway that jumped onto Admiral Byrd's boat on its way to Antartica was very uplifting. Laurie Gwen Shapiro wrote the book about the true facts of his adventure (and Byrd's) and it reads as breathlessly as any fiction you have seen. But, it's all true and therefore all the more extraordinary. (By the way, any book I report on or recommend is in my library so if you want to read it, let me know.)

Honest Loyalty 

Reading Update: You can read about Omarosa's book in the above text. The other two books were A Higher Loyalty by James Comey and The Stowaway by Laurie Gwen Shapiro. Comey's book carefully and thoroughly puts the whole episode in the context that we have never gotten from the general media. That includes the media that is not supposed to take sides but offer detailed, accurate, unbiased presentation of facts. We simply have not been getting that. Comey shares his background so that you can understand his own failings and place them in context with events. Unless you read the whole book - you will continue to be lost on what really happened when Trump decided to fire him. 



For a change of pace, The Stowaway is a story that I think I should have known about. It

Seeking Adventure

seems so much to be the kind of story that would have grabbed interest, as it did to some degree, and maintained it over the decades. Instead, it faded out and was probably going to be lost except that Shapiro rescued it. Frequently, when we think of a stowaway, we think of someone running away. A few years ago, some individuals, mostly young, have sought to jump into the space of the landing gear on airlines as a way to "stowaway" in the modern age. Again, mostly they were running. In this case, young Billy Gawronski, of New York City, was running "toward," something. He wanted to be with Admiral Byrd and he wanted to get to Antarctica. Because he was seeking and not running, it made him a more sympathetic character and the Admiral, the sailors, and eventually, the world agreed that he should be allowed to make the trip. It's a great adventure - and all true.