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1. <?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:blogger='http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173</id><updated>2024-03-21T17:18:56.276-08:00</updated><category term="Alaska"/><category term="Anchorage"/><category term="Observations"/><category term="Ramblings"/><category term="Reality"/><category term="Humor"/><category term="Attitude"/><category term="Funny"/><category term="America"/><category term="Life"/><category term="Beringer"/><category term="Communication"/><category term="Blog"/><category term="Character"/><category term="relationships"/><category term="Friendship"/><category term="Winter"/><category term="Family"/><category term="Hope"/><category term="snow"/><category term="Politics"/><category term="Travel"/><category term="Almost Famous"/><category term="Flying"/><category term="Clueless"/><category term="Bush Alaska"/><category term="Alaska Airlines"/><category term="Wellness"/><category term="Economics"/><category term="Food"/><category term="Blogging"/><category term="Writing"/><category term="Dogs"/><category term="Health"/><category term="Wind"/><category term="Crash"/><category term="Driving"/><category term="Honor"/><category term="Kodiak Island"/><category term="Recession"/><category term="Crap"/><category term="Iditarod"/><category term="Integrity"/><category term="Lower 48"/><category term="Amazing Race"/><category term="Beer"/><category term="Economy"/><category term="Ice"/><category term="Lost"/><category term="Music"/><category term="Arctic"/><category term="Facebook"/><category term="Fishin&#39;"/><category term="Winter driving"/><category term="Coffee"/><category term="Christmas"/><category term="Obama"/><category term="Barack Obama"/><category term="Comedy"/><category term="Gus"/><category term="Hospital"/><category term="Military"/><category term="Aurora Borealis"/><category term="Mushing"/><category term="Television. 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Donuts"/><category term="Earhart"/><category term="Elliot Spitzer"/><category term="Era Alaska"/><category term="GOP"/><category term="Gaza"/><category term="Gibb&#39;s Rules"/><category term="Greg Maddux"/><category term="Hamas"/><category term="Heaven"/><category term="Hot Tub"/><category term="Israel"/><category term="Jack Nicholson"/><category term="James Taylor"/><category term="James Whitmore"/><category term="Japan"/><category term="Jaws"/><category term="Jay Leno"/><category term="Jeff Dunham"/><category term="Jett"/><category term="Joe Hazelwood"/><category term="John Tralvolta"/><category term="Juneau"/><category term="KLM"/><category term="KTVA 11"/><category term="Kelly Preston"/><category term="Knik Arm"/><category term="Kodak"/><category term="Late Late Show"/><category term="Lewis Grizzard"/><category term="Logan&#39;s Run"/><category term="Mark Burnett"/><category term="Mayo"/><category term="Moyes"/><category term="Nat GEO TV"/><category term="Nitty Gritty Dirt Band"/><category term="North Korea"/><category term="Oprah"/><category term="Osama"/><category term="Paul McCartney"/><category term="Paul Newman"/><category term="Quiznos"/><category term="Remodling"/><category term="Richard Heene"/><category term="Richard Pryor"/><category term="Richie Valens"/><category term="Ricky Bobby"/><category term="Risky Business"/><category term="Ron Jeremy"/><category term="Rosie O&#39;Donnell"/><category term="Seattle"/><category term="Shawshank Redemption"/><category term="Shoes"/><category term="Sitka"/><category term="Subway"/><category term="Swine Flu"/><category term="T. Boone  Pickens"/><category term="Talladega"/><category term="Target"/><category term="Telemarketer"/><category term="The Bar"/><category term="Tom Glavine"/><category term="Tony Robbins"/><category term="Tow Kiting"/><category term="Travis"/><category term="UFO"/><category term="Walmart"/><category term="Whales"/><category term="Woodrow F. Call"/><category term="Woodstock"/><category term="Wordpress"/><category term="tooth paste"/><title type='text'>Icewind&#39;s Ramblings</title><subtitle type='html'>Icewind’s Ramblings takes a look at the oddities in life through humor, stories, and observations on the human condition.  It can cover almost anything and is seen through the eyes of a Southerner who lived in Alaska for twenty years experiencing life with a “Northern Exposure”.  Laughter and a smile is the best medicine for the long dark winter nights in this wonderful world.  &#xa;&#xa;Southern by Birth, Alaskan by the Grace of God.&#xa;&#xa;I enjoy flying, fishing, &amp;amp; camping.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default?redirect=false'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><link rel='next' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default?start-index=26&amp;max-results=25&amp;redirect=false'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>1257</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-6288458842290312762</id><published>2019-05-08T14:34:00.003-08:00</published><updated>2019-05-08T14:34:27.385-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Curves in Life can bring pause, numbness, and questions</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
2. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Curves in Life can bring pause, numbness,
3. and questions<o:p></o:p></span></div>
4. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
5. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
6. <div class="MsoNormal">
7. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Last week I
8. received a phone call from one of my close friends in Alaska telling me of the
9. death of another close friend, former co-worker, and camping/fishing
10. buddy.  His name, Stephen Tauriainen, was
11. 54 years young.  A former Marine, Semper
12. Fi, he loved going to the shooting range with friends and family.  There were many camping/fishing trips that
13. Steve, Scott Mesick and I enjoyed during the summer months along with movie
14. nights for the latest action movie. 
15. Steve will be missed by many.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
16. <div class="MsoNormal">
17. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
18. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
19. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW5e5GyZ9iR4P-WceOWzfiBAOMakSpFuhTNfUtm1G3e_Wlj0a-mxV4JHdfBeqGhmOWJTzzDgin1JKeLv6MmIi-KvbdmpvMQUdMC_62pPBweyQvEkXHrjjTMH7q4nqoSQIo5-HZ/s1600/Steve+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW5e5GyZ9iR4P-WceOWzfiBAOMakSpFuhTNfUtm1G3e_Wlj0a-mxV4JHdfBeqGhmOWJTzzDgin1JKeLv6MmIi-KvbdmpvMQUdMC_62pPBweyQvEkXHrjjTMH7q4nqoSQIo5-HZ/s320/Steve+photo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
20. <div class="MsoNormal">
21. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
22. <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
23. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Steve<o:p></o:p></span></div>
24. <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
25. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
26. <div class="MsoNormal">
27. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">This is another
28. sharp curve in life for so many of us who knew Steve.  Sadly, it was several days before anyone knew
29. about his death, as Steve lived alone.  Encountering
30. this curve, I found myself on my laptop trying to make sense of it all.  So far, nothing has really come to me other
31. than a good man is gone.  I have used a
32. saying for a long time now, when people die, they aren’t really dead; they have
33. “gone on ahead, scouting for the rest of us left behind.”  With Steve that probably is more right than
34. not as he loved to explore and do things.  </span></div>
35. <div class="MsoNormal">
36. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
37. <div class="MsoNormal">
38. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">The old adage if you get two people or more together and they start telling
39. stories there is no hope for the truth.  There
40. is probably only laughter, fellowship, and a warm feeling among everyone
41. listening to the good stories.  I find as
42. the memories come back I can almost smell the flowers or the sun warming up the
43. fir trees and I can hear the rushing of the water as it flows down the river or
44. stream we fished or floated.  I see the
45. hole where that elusive trout is hiding behind that rock in the stream and I
46. wonder if I could paint, should I paint him leaping after Steve’s mayfly or
47. hiding under the rock waiting for the next meal to float by.  Those were the camping/ fishing trips I will
48. cherish with Steve and Scott.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
49. <div class="MsoNormal">
50. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
51. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
52. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyFzi8mhD3x__N9cVzhgobMNX4oxbnjXeV_yAV3-CiyXN3-yqM9AxbZCd3NhgB-wLjtLAoi5kMbU6HC2OLy8MxUuu0dE9xl5cR7hxdkZ6y2YzpW0saLubKd8NC74zii3oS2wN9/s1600/Steve+camping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyFzi8mhD3x__N9cVzhgobMNX4oxbnjXeV_yAV3-CiyXN3-yqM9AxbZCd3NhgB-wLjtLAoi5kMbU6HC2OLy8MxUuu0dE9xl5cR7hxdkZ6y2YzpW0saLubKd8NC74zii3oS2wN9/s320/Steve+camping.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
53. <div class="MsoNormal">
54. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
55. <div class="MsoNormal">
56. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Camping - Steve, drink in hand around campfire telling stories<o:p></o:p></span></div>
57. <div class="MsoNormal">
58. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
59. <div class="MsoNormal">
60. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">There will be a Celebration
61. of Life for Steve on Friday, May 10, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. at Anchorage First
62. Assembly Church of God.  </span></div>
63. <div class="MsoNormal">
64. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">The address is: 1540
65. “C” Street in Anchorage, Alaska.  </span></div>
66. <div class="MsoNormal">
67. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
68. <div class="MsoNormal">
69. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">In lieu
70. of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project or any
71. Veterans Service Dogs charities in Stephen Taurianien’s name.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
72. <div class="MsoNormal">
73. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
74. <div class="MsoNormal">
75. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I wish I could be
76. there to send you off but I know in my heart that the rifle volley and the
77. playing of taps, will afford you the honor of a grateful nation, my
78. brother.  Rest well, we miss you buddy!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
79. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
80.  
81.  
82.  
83.  
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87.  
88.  
89.  
90.  
91.  
92.  
93.  
94. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;&quot;&gt;D. Whittington&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/6288458842290312762/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=6288458842290312762' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6288458842290312762'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6288458842290312762'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2019/05/curves-in-life-can-bring-pause-numbness.html' title='Curves in Life can bring pause, numbness, and questions'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW5e5GyZ9iR4P-WceOWzfiBAOMakSpFuhTNfUtm1G3e_Wlj0a-mxV4JHdfBeqGhmOWJTzzDgin1JKeLv6MmIi-KvbdmpvMQUdMC_62pPBweyQvEkXHrjjTMH7q4nqoSQIo5-HZ/s72-c/Steve+photo.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-8263454923032080133</id><published>2019-01-09T06:13:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2019-01-09T06:13:56.216-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 204  Frogs</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
95. Life Observation # 204       Frogs           <o:p></o:p></div>
96. <div class="MsoNormal">
97. <br /></div>
98. <div class="MsoNormal">
99. I haven’t posted any Life Observations in a long while,
100. almost a year since adding the new blog, Traveling Life’s Highways, posting on
101. that one while I was traveling last year. 
102. During that time on the road I have some new thoughts and observations
103. on life and the human condition so will try to start posting them again here
104. and the <a href="https://travelinglifeshighways.com/">https://travelinglifeshighways.com</a>
105. website.  I started posting these
106. observations in 2006 and need to continue.<o:p></o:p></div>
107. <div class="MsoNormal">
108. <br /></div>
109. <div class="MsoNormal">
110. One day two frogs were hopping in and out of a watering hole
111. and accidentally hopped in an extremely deep hole.  They tried to leap out, but to no avail, so
112. they began to yell and croak until other frogs heard them and came to help.  The other frogs looked over into the hole and
113. said the hole was too deep for them to help, but both frogs kept leaping up the
114. sides of the hole.  The other frogs,
115. leaning over the hole and waving their front legs, began to yell to the frogs
116. to just give up and die and that there was no hope of them getting out of the
117. hole, but both frogs kept leaping and trying to get out of the hole.  They leaped for hours and one of the frogs
118. just gave up, he was so exhausted and died. <o:p></o:p></div>
119. <div class="MsoNormal">
120. <br /></div>
121. <div class="MsoNormal">
122. The other frog in the hole kept leaping, but the other
123. frogs, leaning over the hole, kept yelling and waving their front legs for him
124. to stop and give up, but the frog kept leaping trying to get out of the hole.  Finally the frog leaped so high that he was
125. able to leap to the top of the hole and used his back legs to push himself up
126. out of the hole.  The other frogs said
127. even though we told you to give up, that there was no hope of you getting out
128. of the hole, you kept leaping.  The frog
129. that got out of the hole thanked the other frogs for egging him on - the other
130. frogs didn't know that this frog was deaf.<o:p></o:p></div>
131. <div class="MsoNormal">
132. <br /></div>
133. <div class="MsoNormal">
134. Lesson: Sometimes you have to turn a "deaf ear" to
135. what others tell you is impossible.<o:p></o:p></div>
136. <div class="MsoNormal">
137. <br /></div>
138. &lt;span style=&quot;background-color: white; font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 12pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/8263454923032080133/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=8263454923032080133' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8263454923032080133'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8263454923032080133'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2019/01/life-observation-204-frogs.html' title='Life Observation # 204  Frogs'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-5318885255680761716</id><published>2018-04-02T06:48:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2018-04-02T06:48:39.121-08:00</updated><title type='text'>It&#39;s almost here!</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;
139. <div align="center" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 24.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: center;">
140. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">It’s Almost Here!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
141. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
142. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Something great is about
143. to happen. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
144. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
145. <br /></div>
146. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
147. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Something wonderful
148. and powerful has been brewing and it is about to reveal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
149. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
150. <br /></div>
151. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
152. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">For the last several
153. months, I have been working on a new project . . . Traveling Life’s Highways, planning
154. and preparing to take to the highways to flood the Internet with good stories
155. about places and people, “Seeing America through the eyes of a veteran.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
156. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
157. <br /></div>
158. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
159. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI9C5mPflfeMNcjSIXCO2i1FFuIcF8qlzgG-o1MynyaElXFZpdl_uYF40UhOPW9CIEA2od7UDbC6mDie-O0aN7MWQ46rvpK55VQYqFMlUx4OZLb-IhLH82XyndSDioFcwbeYsE/s1600/Web+Blog+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="285" data-original-width="399" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI9C5mPflfeMNcjSIXCO2i1FFuIcF8qlzgG-o1MynyaElXFZpdl_uYF40UhOPW9CIEA2od7UDbC6mDie-O0aN7MWQ46rvpK55VQYqFMlUx4OZLb-IhLH82XyndSDioFcwbeYsE/s320/Web+Blog+photo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
160. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
161. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 8.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
162. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
163. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">I have been rebuilding a
164. Coachmen Class C motor home to travel the country and write about the good I
165. find in America!</span></div>
166. <br /><br />
167. &lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/5318885255680761716/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=5318885255680761716' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5318885255680761716'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5318885255680761716'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/04/its-almost-here.html' title='It&#39;s almost here!'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI9C5mPflfeMNcjSIXCO2i1FFuIcF8qlzgG-o1MynyaElXFZpdl_uYF40UhOPW9CIEA2od7UDbC6mDie-O0aN7MWQ46rvpK55VQYqFMlUx4OZLb-IhLH82XyndSDioFcwbeYsE/s72-c/Web+Blog+photo.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-1808336657306742885</id><published>2018-03-29T05:01:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2018-03-29T05:01:36.871-08:00</updated><title type='text'>It’s Coming!</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;
168. <div align="center" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 24.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: center;">
169. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">It’s Coming!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
170. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
171. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Something great is about
172. to happen. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
173. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
174. <br /></div>
175. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
176. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Something wonderful
177. and powerful has been brewing and it is about to reveal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
178. <div style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
179. <br /></div>
180. &lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/1808336657306742885/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=1808336657306742885' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1808336657306742885'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1808336657306742885'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/03/its-coming.html' title='It’s Coming!'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-3753147344099140706</id><published>2018-03-21T08:10:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2018-03-21T08:10:21.141-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Crepe Murder in your neighborhood?</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; style=&quot;background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: 21.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
181. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Crepe Murder in your neighborhood?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
182. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
183. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">It’s late March once again, the time when we look forward
184. to spring blooms, the return of songbirds, and a parade of maimed crepe myrtles
185. reduced to stumps by bored guys with saws.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
186. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
187. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiPp9YFocNpVGbvgjK0ZzWLgvu8zoednM9NsFG2r2K9xTYwrQpZv3LL1dq-fZX373D5PDzUPr1fEzpxRBIcH9Zc5eQQCjXBQKBaICXoMhUdP2mtO1fqeQ2inbr_xzJk1aWABpg/s1600/Crepe+myrtles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1077" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiPp9YFocNpVGbvgjK0ZzWLgvu8zoednM9NsFG2r2K9xTYwrQpZv3LL1dq-fZX373D5PDzUPr1fEzpxRBIcH9Zc5eQQCjXBQKBaICXoMhUdP2mtO1fqeQ2inbr_xzJk1aWABpg/s320/Crepe+myrtles.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
188. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
189. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Since I returned to the south from Alaska I am amazed how
190. every year the horrid practice of stupidly turning beautiful trees into stumps,
191. but people do it anyway.</span></div>
192. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
193. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Why? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
194. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: 21.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
195. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Because
196. they see work crews doing it to trees around parking lots at the mall.  (One can never go wrong taking gardening cues
197. from the landscape at a Galleria. <i style="box-sizing: border-box;">Eye
198. roll.</i>) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
199. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: 21.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
200. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Or
201. a truer reason is because they see all their neighbors sawing away their crepe
202. myrtles and don’t want to be labeled a “no-cut nut” on Facebook. (Social media
203. can be so cruel.) Those idiots who planted a crepe myrtle that grows 30
204. feet tall and wide six inches from the front door, shame on you!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
205. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: 21.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
206. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Crepe murder may
207. never end, but that doesn’t mean we have to accept it.  When you spot a crepe myrtle that has been
208. savagely chopped into a grotesque monster, surreptitiously take a photo of it
209. with your phone.  Post the photo on my
210. Where’s the Flamingo Facebook page, let everybody see.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
211. <div style="background: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 21pt; margin: 21pt 0in;">
212. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">You may think yours is a futile gesture, but I
213. assure you it is not. If nothing else, your participation will remind you of
214. how enlightened you are. Send me your photo and together we will exact revenge.
215. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
216. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
217. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFNSIMRdP0bkMgM9nIP7KVv0yHS0rdBqUZ5DHq2PShA2b_cU7SJd0CdvGP-T0Tu80XtyWfsGxNuTXyzq0aMDFFGYsXQRWJwr6Kpvxa-KEoOTH-p3iftK78-c74azOyVtlGCGc7/s1600/Crepe+murder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="236" data-original-width="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFNSIMRdP0bkMgM9nIP7KVv0yHS0rdBqUZ5DHq2PShA2b_cU7SJd0CdvGP-T0Tu80XtyWfsGxNuTXyzq0aMDFFGYsXQRWJwr6Kpvxa-KEoOTH-p3iftK78-c74azOyVtlGCGc7/s1600/Crepe+murder.jpg" /></a></div>
218. <div style="background: white; line-height: 21.0pt; margin-bottom: 21.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 21.0pt;">
219. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">In
220. the words of British statesman Edmund Burke, “The only thing necessary for the
221. triumph of evil is for good men [and women] to do nothing.”</span></div>
222. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: .25pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/3753147344099140706/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=3753147344099140706' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3753147344099140706'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3753147344099140706'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/03/crepe-murder-in-your-neighborhood.html' title='Crepe Murder in your neighborhood?'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiPp9YFocNpVGbvgjK0ZzWLgvu8zoednM9NsFG2r2K9xTYwrQpZv3LL1dq-fZX373D5PDzUPr1fEzpxRBIcH9Zc5eQQCjXBQKBaICXoMhUdP2mtO1fqeQ2inbr_xzJk1aWABpg/s72-c/Crepe+myrtles.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-7846799233539513399</id><published>2018-03-20T10:45:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2018-03-20T10:45:27.486-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Miss my friend Lewis Grizzard</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
223. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">It has been awhile
224. since my friend Lewis Grizzard passing, March 20, 1994, and it seems like a
225. lifetime ago that we used to sit at the bar in Harrison’s on Peachtree telling
226. funny stories and sharing our Southern heritage with anyone who would
227. listen.  We joked about our several
228. ex-wives and that became part of his stand-up comedy routine.  I miss my friend, his witty humor, his outlook
229. on Southern life, and I miss having those drinks together with his stepbrother
230. Ludlow Porch (Bobby Hanson) each night laughing the time away.  Much has changed since those times, his
231. passing, and my time in Alaska, but the stories still make me laugh.</span></div>
232. <div class="MsoNormal">
233. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
234. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
235. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh8ONcX70YxPm5riLqtCFQhyrv3NW-eQr7qZ-1sr03Ahb7BCprbd6g3dDkSBQQqJHcYPNruxbpnv8KAz9xKiz8s5GzJUVuduCE_e_gryNyPbSOZOYQunqQc9J4lxo81iBrrsx0/s1600/LewisGrizzard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh8ONcX70YxPm5riLqtCFQhyrv3NW-eQr7qZ-1sr03Ahb7BCprbd6g3dDkSBQQqJHcYPNruxbpnv8KAz9xKiz8s5GzJUVuduCE_e_gryNyPbSOZOYQunqQc9J4lxo81iBrrsx0/s320/LewisGrizzard.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
236. <div class="MsoNormal">
237. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><br /></span></div>
238. <div class="MsoNormal">
239. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I am reminded of a story
240. that Lewis used to tell in his concerts years ago, it is the story of an older
241. retired couple and the renewed spirit of youth getting ready for a cruise.</span></div>
242. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">
243. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">
244. <br />
245. I hope you will enjoy:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
246. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
247. <i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">“Mr. Wojciehowicz had been retired for a year when his wife of
248. fifty years suggested one day, "Why don't we take a cruise for a week and
249. make wild passionate love like we did when we were
250. young?" Stanley thought it over and agreed.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
251. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
252. <br /></div>
253. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
254. <i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">He put on his hat and coat and went down to the corner drug
255. store.  Stanley stepped up to the counter and asked for a bottle of
256. seasick pills and a box of condoms.  Upon
257. returning home his wife greeted him at the door saying, "You know dear,
258. I've been thinking it over and I see no reason why we couldn't manage a month
259. long cruise so we could relax and make wild passionate love like we did when we
260. were young."<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
261. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
262. <br /></div>
263. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
264. <i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">He smiled, turned around and went back to the pharmacy.  He stepped up and ordered 12 bottles of
265. seasick pills and a dozen boxes of condoms. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
266. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
267. <br /></div>
268. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
269. <i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Upon returning back home his wife met him on the porch with a big
270. smile on her face. "Stanley, I have a marvelous idea. You know, now that
271. our children are all on their own, there's nothing to stop us from cruising
272. around the world."<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
273. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
274. <br /></div>
275. <div class="MsoNormal">
276.  
277.  
278.  
279.  
280.  
281.  
282.  
283.  
284.  
285.  
286.  
287.  
288.  
289.  
290.  
291.  
292.  
293.  
294.  
295. <i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">"I'll
296. be right back," he said.  Back to
297. the drug store he went.  When he
298. approached the pharmacy counter the druggist looked up with a puzzled grin.  Mr. Wojciehowicz sheepishly ordered 297
299. bottles of seasick pills and the same number of boxes of condoms.<br />
300. <br />
301. The startled pharmacist busied himself filling the order then passed the
302. wrapped package across the counter saying, "You know Mr. Wojciehowicz,
303. you’ve been doing business with me for over thirty years.  I certainly don't mean to pry, but if it
304. makes you that sick, why do you keep doing it so much?"</span></i><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
305. <br />
306. We miss your stories Lewis but they still make us laugh and smile.  Gone on ahead, scouting for the rest of us!<br />
307. <br /><span style="color: cyan;">
308. Ice</span></span></div>
309. </content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/7846799233539513399/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=7846799233539513399' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/7846799233539513399'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/7846799233539513399'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/03/miss-my-friend-lewis-grizzard.html' title='Miss my friend Lewis Grizzard'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh8ONcX70YxPm5riLqtCFQhyrv3NW-eQr7qZ-1sr03Ahb7BCprbd6g3dDkSBQQqJHcYPNruxbpnv8KAz9xKiz8s5GzJUVuduCE_e_gryNyPbSOZOYQunqQc9J4lxo81iBrrsx0/s72-c/LewisGrizzard.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-6575418618887090996</id><published>2018-03-16T05:28:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2018-03-16T05:28:27.207-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 203 – Time</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;
310. <div class="MsoNormal">
311. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Life
312. Observation # 203 – Time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
313. <div class="MsoNormal">
314. <br /></div>
315. <div class="MsoNormal">
316. The only unit of time that matters is heartbeats. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if the world were totally silent, even in
317. a dark room covered in five layers of foam, you’d be able to count your own
318. heartbeats. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you get on a plane and
319. travel you go 15 heartbeats per mile. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
320. is, in the time it takes to travel a mile in flight your heart beats 15 times. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On a train your heart might beat 250 times per
321. mile. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we count this up and we make
322. sense of it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
323. <div class="MsoNormal">
324. <br /></div>
325. <div class="MsoNormal">
326. We’re constantly switching accelerations; we’re jumping
327. between time frames. That’s what they’re asking people to do every time someone
328. makes something new, some new tool or product. Technology has leapt forward so fast companies
329. are asking us to reset our understanding of time and how it affects things. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To accept that the sequence they are asking us
330. to follow is the right way to do a thing.<o:p></o:p></div>
331. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
332. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9lEI0GWmJcYt6dE8lB6rPW5QgkFNeRdlMXX52clh7TQ4bpiPmokKfLGT0tI6-7jw6TIQP1IiHcV4WkCEYTs49Gv7lWtNs4dIZIb4vuefC9uMfGUQ_Q2PKSUkI_43xmXNnwNT/s1600/Be-Happy-Now-Clock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9lEI0GWmJcYt6dE8lB6rPW5QgkFNeRdlMXX52clh7TQ4bpiPmokKfLGT0tI6-7jw6TIQP1IiHcV4WkCEYTs49Gv7lWtNs4dIZIb4vuefC9uMfGUQ_Q2PKSUkI_43xmXNnwNT/s320/Be-Happy-Now-Clock.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
333. <div class="MsoNormal">
334. <br /></div>
335. <div class="MsoNormal">
336. We are only given so many heartbeats; don’t waste any of
337. them on the trivial things that get you riled up or aggravated.</div>
338. <div class="MsoNormal">
339. <o:p></o:p></div>
340. <div class="MsoNormal">
341. <br /></div>
342. <div class="MsoNormal">
343. <span style="color: cyan;">Ice</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
344. &lt;br /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/6575418618887090996/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=6575418618887090996' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6575418618887090996'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6575418618887090996'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/03/life-observation-203-time.html' title='Life Observation # 203 – Time'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9lEI0GWmJcYt6dE8lB6rPW5QgkFNeRdlMXX52clh7TQ4bpiPmokKfLGT0tI6-7jw6TIQP1IiHcV4WkCEYTs49Gv7lWtNs4dIZIb4vuefC9uMfGUQ_Q2PKSUkI_43xmXNnwNT/s72-c/Be-Happy-Now-Clock.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-5681238564579697313</id><published>2018-03-10T04:32:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-03-10T04:32:41.189-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 202 – Background music</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;
345. <div class="MsoNormal">
346. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Life
347. Observation # 202 – Background music</span></div>
348. <div class="MsoNormal">
349. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
350. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
351. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwxtlyWjyDLF2Iktamm9mzol5RLikKtx0rhgn8_kZS4iuArAj9NDeaoX49TVz88vlrhGAaL5kg4nlUmDrBOEZzhP0PBEH8UQblGLKTE5dOV7WFcog9jsXUSHYKABYX14ZNVv1/s1600/Music1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="570" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwxtlyWjyDLF2Iktamm9mzol5RLikKtx0rhgn8_kZS4iuArAj9NDeaoX49TVz88vlrhGAaL5kg4nlUmDrBOEZzhP0PBEH8UQblGLKTE5dOV7WFcog9jsXUSHYKABYX14ZNVv1/s320/Music1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
352. <div class="MsoNormal">
353. <span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">The trouble with some people’s lives is they cannot hear the background music.</span></div>
354. <div class="MsoNormal">
355. <span style="font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span></div>
356. <div class="MsoNormal">
357. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: cyan;">Ice</span></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
358. &lt;br /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/5681238564579697313/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=5681238564579697313' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5681238564579697313'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5681238564579697313'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/03/life-observation-202-background-music.html' title='Life Observation # 202 – Background music'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwxtlyWjyDLF2Iktamm9mzol5RLikKtx0rhgn8_kZS4iuArAj9NDeaoX49TVz88vlrhGAaL5kg4nlUmDrBOEZzhP0PBEH8UQblGLKTE5dOV7WFcog9jsXUSHYKABYX14ZNVv1/s72-c/Music1.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-8204036046964902270</id><published>2018-02-28T13:48:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-28T13:48:08.027-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Woody Woodpecker leaving his message of love</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
359. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Woody Woodpecker leaving
360. his message of love<o:p></o:p></span></div>
361. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
362. <br /></div>
363. <div class="MsoNormal">
364. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">It's
365. that time of year in Georgia when the birds are out in force with many species
366. hitting the ten bird feeders and bath on the property.  The golden finches and cardinals are my
367. favorite.  Woodpeckers are out pecking on
368. the trees and telephone poles.  The red
369. headed ones look pretty and tend to show off their territorial skills by
370. sometimes forcing the gold finches and tufted titmouse away from the
371. feeders.  I always wondered why woodpeckers
372. peck on telephone poles since there can't be any bugs to dig out, certainly
373. none that don't taste foul from years of soaking in creosote.  Turns out the birds use the poles for the
374. same thing humans do — communication.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
375. <div class="MsoNormal">
376. <br /></div>
377. <div class="MsoNormal">
378. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Woodpeckers
379. don't use the wires, just the poles.  The
380. dried wood makes satisfying sounds that can be heard by other birds for blocks
381. around.  If the wind is right the sound
382. can carry half a mile as I can hear birds pecking away on my neighbor Jim’s
383. property about that far away through the woods and over the hill.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
384. <div class="MsoNormal">
385. <br /></div>
386. <div class="MsoNormal">
387. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">I
388. think most of the telephone-pole communicators are males advertising for mates.
389. In that regard they are remarkably like humans. 
390. I learned Morse code many years ago at the Army's Rotary Wing Flight
391. Training School in Alabama at Fort Rucker and realized recently that woodpecker
392. code is quite similar to the old Morse classic — and the birds use their own
393. version of text messaging.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
394. <div class="MsoNormal">
395. <br /></div>
396. <div class="MsoNormal">
397. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">The
398. other day, one on the property was sending out a signal saying, "Macho
399. male w/big bill and great plumage seeks female w/strong nesting instinct, for
400. serious mating.  Avail. immed."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
401. <div class="MsoNormal">
402. <br /></div>
403. <div class="MsoNormal">
404. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">I've
405. also learned that woodpeckers on the property send their signal several times
406. and sign off with a jaunty, "Shave & a haircut, two bits sound."  Most of you in the younger generation
407. probably won’t remember that one.  Those
408. bird brains near retail areas probably pick up the local jargon and substitute,
409. "Thank u have a nice day" as everyone in the south even the birds are
410. congenial.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
411. <div class="MsoNormal">
412. <br /></div>
413. <div class="MsoNormal">
414. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Banging
415. your head against solid wood to meet females reminds me of my younger days, but
416. that's another story.  I’ve got way too
417. many scars and a flat forehead from those times. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
418. <div class="MsoNormal">
419. <br /></div>
420. <div class="MsoNormal">
421. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Welcome
422. springtime, we welcome the warmth, the longer days, and the coming of summer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
423. <div class="MsoNormal">
424. <br /></div>
425. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/8204036046964902270/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=8204036046964902270' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8204036046964902270'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8204036046964902270'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/woody-woodpecker-leaving-his-message-of.html' title='Woody Woodpecker leaving his message of love'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-1347179271732724620</id><published>2018-02-27T03:43:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-27T03:43:09.438-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Wind Chimes</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
426. Wind Chimes<o:p></o:p></div>
427. <div class="MsoNormal">
428. <br /></div>
429. <div class="MsoNormal">
430. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Is there a sound that helps
431. you fall asleep?  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
432. <div class="MsoNormal">
433. <br /></div>
434. <div class="MsoNormal">
435. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I have friends who need sound
436. to fall asleep and use various things to give them that comfort to fall into a
437. nice sleep cycle.  One uses a hair dryer
438. (has had them catch fire a couple times over the years), another cannot sleep
439. without the television going softly in the back ground.  Still others have used “sound generators” to
440. give them different sounds such as waves crashing on the shore or a water fall
441. into a lake or stream.  I guess it is a
442. comfort thing for many people, myself included. 
443. What sounds do I like to hear? 
444. The ocean surf is probably my favorite but it is only a few times a year
445. that those natural sounds make its way into my ears.  The sound of a thunderstorm passing by is another
446. one that I missed while living in Alaska all those years as we had none
447. there.  The closest thing was
448. occasionally “thunder snow” would fall it there was the right combination of
449. static electricity, upslope air and humidity. 
450. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
451. <div class="MsoNormal">
452. <br /></div>
453. <div class="MsoNormal">
454. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Right now the sound I hear
455. almost every night is: Wind chimes.  The house
456. here is surrounded by them on the outside, so there is a nice gentle breeze most
457. nights that blows and I can hear them singing all around the house.  I
458. fall asleep to chimes and their rhythmic music especially with the windows or
459. door open.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
460. <div class="MsoNormal">
461. <br /></div>
462. <div class="MsoNormal">
463. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">This is the rainy season in
464. Georgia right now as late winter, early spring has arrived with temperatures
465. getting into the seventies during the day and sixties at night so with the
466. rain, wind, and chimes moving with the air flow or rainfall it makes for a very
467. relaxing music.  As it rained last night
468. the wind started to pick up, the chimes began their soothing sounds and as the
469. rainfall fell harder there was this patter, splattering on the metal roof
470. sounding like a drum with the wind chimes giving a harmony only nature could
471. provide.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
472. <div class="MsoNormal">
473. <br /></div>
474. <div class="MsoNormal">
475. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">It seems my whole family
476. loves wind chimes and we all have several of them around the outside of the
477. houses we live in and in the trees around the yard.  I was brought up to believe that chimes are
478. an indication that your angels, guides or loved ones are around you and are
479. simply making their presence known.  It
480. may be a Southern thing but we have always believed it was that way.  It should always be seen as a sign of
481. comfort, but it is not necessarily a sign of a specific message.  Think of “chimes” or even the sound of bells
482. as someone on the other side is announcing themselves at your “door.”  Though many times we don’t always answer the
483. door, you can always count on the sound being a welcomed visitor and not one to
484. fear.  Chimes never represent strangers;
485. they represent someone who is familiar to us in spirit.<br />
486. <br />
487. I have heard many stories over the years, and heard many experiences regarding
488. chimes and bells.  In fact, if you are
489. familiar with the Frank Capra movie, “It’s A Wonderful Life,” (my brother Ron
490. plays it every Christmas since he was a young boy) you will note the scene
491. where little Juju is in her father’s arms at the end of the movie.  Someone puts money in the cash register and
492. you hear the tinkling sound when the register drawer opens and closes.  Little Juju says, and I paraphrase: “Look,
493. Daddy, Teacher says whenever you hear a bell ring an angel gets its wings!”  I was brought up on those promises, and in my
494. family, when we hear chimes, we “know” that we are in the presence of divine
495. guidance and it is usually followed by a validation of some kind. </span></div>
496. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
497. <iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzKAXkKjlOS3FPHs2kvHMcIEf6QGfyx9S7e06RXr8D-jGRFJxxYCqY2SvCQ91Xejful7FUzWm49e_o' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
498. <div class="MsoNormal">
499. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
500. <div class="MsoNormal">
501. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Reverend Billy Graham just
502. passed away and my chimes have been going strong since just before I heard the
503. news of his passing.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">I can only imagine
504. what it was like at the big reunion in Heaven with his arrival.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
505. <div class="MsoNormal">
506. <br /></div>
507. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/1347179271732724620/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=1347179271732724620' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1347179271732724620'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1347179271732724620'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/wind-chimes.html' title='Wind Chimes'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-9042442245112594874</id><published>2018-02-22T05:46:00.003-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-22T05:46:49.513-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 201 Parents Laughter</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
508. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Life
509. Observation # 201<o:p></o:p></span></div>
510. <div class="MsoNormal">
511. <br /></div>
512. <div class="MsoNormal">
513. “Tape record your parents' laughter”<br />
514. <!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
515. <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></div>
516. <div class="MsoNormal">
517. ― H. Jackson Brown Jr., Life's Little Instruction
518. Book<o:p></o:p></div>
519. <div class="MsoNormal">
520. <br /></div>
521. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
522. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvf6ipHG16Etdm6M2s3DnNZ3NuLvsHkBBbyFVo23sQxY8YI9Unl7Miie24C5mHXaIJBH_EMqgzYxiKHp0WvI_WYUmxfHMklYLT5m1Cuc3imAUKGRGC_AqdsuZRaTE0XF4PN2s/s1600/mama+2017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvf6ipHG16Etdm6M2s3DnNZ3NuLvsHkBBbyFVo23sQxY8YI9Unl7Miie24C5mHXaIJBH_EMqgzYxiKHp0WvI_WYUmxfHMklYLT5m1Cuc3imAUKGRGC_AqdsuZRaTE0XF4PN2s/s320/mama+2017.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
523. <div class="MsoNormal">
524. <br /></div>
525. <div class="MsoNormal">
526. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 12pt;">Ice</span></div>
527. </content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/9042442245112594874/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=9042442245112594874' title='4 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/9042442245112594874'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/9042442245112594874'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/life-observation-201-parents-laughter.html' title='Life Observation # 201 Parents Laughter'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvf6ipHG16Etdm6M2s3DnNZ3NuLvsHkBBbyFVo23sQxY8YI9Unl7Miie24C5mHXaIJBH_EMqgzYxiKHp0WvI_WYUmxfHMklYLT5m1Cuc3imAUKGRGC_AqdsuZRaTE0XF4PN2s/s72-c/mama+2017.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>4</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-6215039763344877899</id><published>2018-02-16T09:21:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-16T09:21:35.184-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Thank God I’m a Country Boy</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
528. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Thank God I’m a Country Boy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
529. <div class="MsoNormal">
530. <br /></div>
531. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
532. <span style="color: #474747; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">“Well, life
533. on the farm is kinda laid back</span><br />
534. Ain't much an old
535. country boy like me can't hack<br />
536. It's early to rise,
537. early in the sack<br />
538. Thank God, I'm A
539. Country Boy”<o:p></o:p></div>
540. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
541. <span style="color: #474747; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">John Denver
542. 1974<o:p></o:p></span></div>
543. <div class="MsoNormal">
544. <br /></div>
545. <div class="MsoNormal">
546. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Since I returned to Georgia
547. from Alaska I have been living in the North Georgia Mountains close to Helen,
548. Georgia.  My neighbor Jim has a farm with
549. many “big boy toys” to use and work around the farm.  There is a bull dozer, backhoe, and several
550. tractors for doing things like taking hay bales to feed his cattle.  The bull dozer and back hoe for digging and
551. building water ponds for the cattle and an old army deuce and a half dump truck
552. for carrying and moving things on the property.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
553. <div class="MsoNormal">
554. <br /></div>
555. <div class="MsoNormal">
556. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I’ve written previously about
557. his chickens and several predators that were killing his chickens and the
558. couple of videos catching and releasing them in the mountains.  He did have to kill one coyote that kept
559. coming back and stealing/eating his chickens and rooster. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
560. <div class="MsoNormal">
561. <br /></div>
562. <div class="MsoNormal">
563. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I have not had a chance to
564. write this story until now as it happened last spring when his cows were having
565. their calves born all over his farmland. 
566. I had just gone to bed when I received a call from Jim that one of his
567. cows was having a tough time delivering her calf and would I come over to help
568. him.  This was around midnight and it was
569. storming outside with the springtime thunderstorms rolling through the
570. mountains of north Georgia.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
571. <div class="MsoNormal">
572. <br /></div>
573. <div class="MsoNormal">
574. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I told him ok and proceeded
575. to get dressed, found and put on some rain gear and headed over to help him
576. with his cow.  Jim has an old Jeep (no
577. doors) that he uses along with a four wheel ATV to check fences and haul gear
578. around the farm so we loaded up some of the items we would need, ropes, water, full
579. length arm gloves, and flashlights/lantern. 
580. We headed into one of his pastures and drove up the hill to where many
581. head of cattle were milling around agitated and mooing like crazy.  I think they could sense something was wrong
582. and were alerting Jim to the problem.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
583. <div class="MsoNormal">
584. <br /></div>
585. <div class="MsoNormal">
586. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">We find the distressed cow
587. away from the other ones about twenty yards almost on the crest of the
588. hill.  Jim approaches her and proceeds to
589. put a lasso around her neck and tied it to a tree to keep her in place while we
590. began to look at the problem.  We turn
591. the Jeep so the headlights are helping to light the area so we can see along
592. with a lantern but remember it is pouring rain, lightning going off about every
593. forty five seconds so it was not easy to see what was going on at the time.    <o:p></o:p></span></div>
594. <div class="MsoNormal">
595. <br /></div>
596. <div class="MsoNormal">
597. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">We get the cow situated with
598. her head tied close to the tree and as she moved around we wrapped the rope
599. around her back leg and cinched it close to the tree as well so she could not
600. move around as much.  Jim gets out his
601. long arm length glove and proceeds to put his arm up inside the cow finding the
602. calf was turned around which was having a breech birth.  The cow was not too happy with Jim’s arm up
603. inside her so she proceeded to lay down almost breaking Jim’s arm and
604. shoulder.  After a few tries to turn the
605. calf around to no success it was decided that we would wait until mornings
606. light and hopefully the storm passing to come back and try again.  Jim pulls off his long glove; we release the
607. cow and head off into the stormy night.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
608. <div class="MsoNormal">
609. <br /></div>
610. <div class="MsoNormal">
611. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">The next morning Jim calls
612. around seven and asks if I’m ready to help him once again and shouldn’t take
613. but an hour or so.  It is still lightly
614. drizzling rain so I gear up and head over the hill to his barn.  We grab an ATV and load the tools once again
615. along with a large bucket of water and make our way back into one of the back
616. pastures and up on the hill.  The other
617. cows are there across the fence still agitated and making a lot of noise.  We find a cow standing alone about where we left
618. her last night looking tired and exhausted, much like we were that morning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
619. <div class="MsoNormal">
620. <br /></div>
621. <div class="MsoNormal">
622. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Jim goes and again puts the
623. lasso around her neck and leg securing it to the tree while the cow is mooing,
624. moving around and does not seem to like what we were or about to do.  Jim once again gloves up and proceeds to try
625. to put his arm up inside her once again. 
626. The cow is not having any of this today looking at us, moving wildly
627. back and forth and just not wanting to have anything to do with us.  Jim makes several attempts and once again the
628. cow lies down next to the tree, seemingly too exhausted to move.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
629. <div class="MsoNormal">
630. <br /></div>
631. <div class="MsoNormal">
632. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Jim and I discuss the options
633. which were: 1. Get his trailer, take the cow to the slaughter house for
634. food.  (We had taken the wood boards out
635. of the trailer to put in new wood so that was not really an option but was
636. discussed) 2. Keep trying to turn the calf around so it could deliver. 3. Let Mother
637. Nature take its course as the cow was going to probably die anyway.  We decided on the third option but were going
638. to go back to the barn and get the cow some food and more water to make her
639. comfortable.  We headed down the hill
640. back to the barn to get the feed and water and after about ten minutes headed
641. back up the hill.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
642. <div class="MsoNormal">
643. <br /></div>
644. <div class="MsoNormal">
645. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">We go back to where we left
646. the cow lying on the ground.  The cow is
647. nowhere to be seen.  We start looking
648. down one side of the hill then another and another.  No cow. 
649. Jim flatly states, “It was dark and rainy last night was that the same
650. cow as last night?  The color this
651. morning did it seem different?”  We
652. continue our search for another ten minutes but no cow and come to the
653. conclusion that this morning’s cow was not the same one as the night before.  We both cracked up laughing about the reaction
654. this morning’s cow had to Jim trying to stick his arm up inside her and were
655. not having anything to do with either of us. 
656. They both were in the same area and we laughed that it was dark, rainy,
657. and in the light of the Jeep’s headlights that they appeared to be the same
658. cow.  It was not and the second cow had
659. beat feet and ran away from the two crazy men trying to assault her rear end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
660. <div class="MsoNormal">
661. <br /></div>
662. <div class="MsoNormal">
663. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">We continued our search for
664. either cow on the hillside and shortly found the distressed cow dead next to a
665. fallen log partway down the hill toward another pasture.  She was almost hidden until you were very
666. close to her.  We spent the better part
667. over four hours getting the backhoe and tractor from the barn to dig a large
668. hole in one of the fields to bury the cow. 
669. Jim started digging the hole while I took the tractor and rope to bring
670. her down the hill to be buried.  Once the
671. cow was properly taken care of we still had to take an animal that we had
672. caught overnight who had been eating the chickens up on a mountainside away
673. from town to let it loose back into the wild.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
674. <div class="MsoNormal">
675. <br /></div>
676. <div class="MsoNormal">
677. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">We realized we had not had
678. anything for breakfast or lunch and were both quite hungry and as Jim dropped
679. me back off laughed that his request for me to help him for a couple hours had
680. turned into an all-day affair but we got the job done.  And the second cow, it was two days before we
681. saw her again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
682. <div class="MsoNormal">
683. <br /></div>
684. <div class="MsoNormal">
685. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Thanks God I’m a Country Boy!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
686. <div class="MsoNormal">
687. <br /></div>
688. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/6215039763344877899/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=6215039763344877899' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6215039763344877899'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/6215039763344877899'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/thank-god-im-country-boy.html' title='Thank God I’m a Country Boy'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-3141903414536170842</id><published>2018-02-13T07:33:00.002-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-13T07:33:40.812-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Better Late than Never</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
689. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Where
690. I’m living right now I do not get “live” television stations but do get
691. streaming services like Netflix and Hulu among other “on demand” type
692. programming.  That is not all bad as I
693. did not miss seeing the Super bowl commercials and now the Olympics but can see
694. the highlights if I so choose.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
695. <div class="MsoNormal">
696. <br /></div>
697. <div class="MsoNormal">
698. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">I
699. did recently see a series that was really great called “Better Late than Never”
700. which originally aired on NBC.  It was
701. funny, often times hysterical, and a nice change from all the BS and misery in
702. the world today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
703. <div class="MsoNormal">
704. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
705. <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
706. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.nbc.com/better-late-than-never?nbc=1">Better Late than Never</a></span></div>
707. <div class="MsoNormal">
708. <br /></div>
709. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
710. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHFY67k8Vc3wZSqeozHjIvfSPTlIQHdSLcZDOf0l0WVAsEWac8or0XJWOYmtjmpUoVV4BfAuGCU8WcJ46wDhgLkCILByYoIvHu-daeLkzzmTR-r7Ql24ssrbfAZlvmJSz3XaEZ/s1600/NBC.com-BetterLateThanNever-AboutImage-1920x1080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHFY67k8Vc3wZSqeozHjIvfSPTlIQHdSLcZDOf0l0WVAsEWac8or0XJWOYmtjmpUoVV4BfAuGCU8WcJ46wDhgLkCILByYoIvHu-daeLkzzmTR-r7Ql24ssrbfAZlvmJSz3XaEZ/s320/NBC.com-BetterLateThanNever-AboutImage-1920x1080.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
711. <div class="MsoNormal">
712. <br /></div>
713. <div class="MsoNormal">
714. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">The
715. concept, four friends traveling the world on a bucket list type journey with a
716. younger sidekick who helps with the navigation and logistics of everything and
717. it shows a wonderful side of the characters.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;"> 
718. </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">Henry Winkler, William Shatner, Terry Bradshaw, and George Foreman are
719. the main cast along with comedian Jeff Dye as the sidekick.</span></div>
720. <div class="MsoNormal">
721. <br /></div>
722. <div class="MsoNormal">
723. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">There
724. have been two seasons thus far and all of the episodes are funny with poignant moments
725. dealing with their pasts, families, and crazy antics of being on the road
726. together.  It is worth a watch and will
727. give you several moments of being careful not to spit coffee out laughing so
728. hard.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
729. <div class="MsoNormal">
730. <br /></div>
731. <div class="MsoNormal">
732. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Terry
733. Bradshaw is a hoot and I remember meeting him in the eighties when I was a
734. corporate pilot in Atlanta when he was in town filming the movie Cannonball
735. Run.  I had just landed and taxied my
736. Citation into Epps Aviation to secure my plane when a King Air taxied in and
737. parked next to me.  The name on the side
738. of the plane said “Stutter One” and was owned by Mel Tillis.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
739. <div class="MsoNormal">
740. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">As
741. I finished my post flight walk around inspection the door to Stutter One opened
742. and down the stairs walked Mel Tillis, who immediately spat a big chew of
743. tobacco on the ground behind the airplane.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;"> 
744. </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">Next was Terry Bradshaw who ambles down the steps, takes a step toward
745. the rear of the plane and spits out another big wad of tobacco.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">Then Mel’s wife steps off the plane, and
746. again does the same thing as Mel and Terry.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;"> 
747. </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">Standing in the doorway of the plane next was my childhood crush, JoJo
748. Starbuck, and two time Olympian figure skater.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;"> 
749. </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">She steps down the stairs and as my heart sank she too, turns to the
750. back of the airplane and lets go another wad of tobacco.</span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11pt;">They walk into the terminal as I stood
751. looking at the four big wads of chew lying there in the sunlight.</span></div>
752. <div class="MsoNormal">
753. <br /></div>
754. <div class="MsoNormal">
755. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">I
756. go inside heading to my office when Terry starts a conversation about my
757. airplane and that he likes the color scheme of the paint job.  I stayed and talked with them for about
758. fifteen minutes while they waited for the limo to pick them up and take them to
759. the “race headquarters’ off I285.  I
760. found it interesting that during that time talking with them, Mel Tillis did
761. not stutter once.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
762. <div class="MsoNormal">
763. <br /></div>
764. <div class="MsoNormal">
765. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Back
766. to this story, during the two seasons I watched of Better Late than Never, it
767. was enjoyable, informative, and surprised me on the things seen and said during
768. the episodes, which went too fast. 
769. Hopefully there will be a season three in the future as it was a blast.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
770. <div class="MsoNormal">
771. <br /></div>
772. <div class="MsoNormal">
773. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt;">Enjoy
774. if you get the chance, it was worth the laugh and good felling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
775. <div class="MsoNormal">
776. <br /></div>
777. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/3141903414536170842/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=3141903414536170842' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3141903414536170842'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3141903414536170842'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/better-late-than-never.html' title='Better Late than Never'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHFY67k8Vc3wZSqeozHjIvfSPTlIQHdSLcZDOf0l0WVAsEWac8or0XJWOYmtjmpUoVV4BfAuGCU8WcJ46wDhgLkCILByYoIvHu-daeLkzzmTR-r7Ql24ssrbfAZlvmJSz3XaEZ/s72-c/NBC.com-BetterLateThanNever-AboutImage-1920x1080.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-3045208666254162036</id><published>2018-02-04T04:57:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-04T04:57:48.704-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Cadence of rain on a tin roof</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
778. Cadence of rain on a tin roof<o:p></o:p></div>
779. <div class="MsoNormal">
780. <br /></div>
781. <div class="MsoNormal">
782. Cadence of rain on a tin roof is always a mellowing
783. sound.  With thoughts of snow coming in
784. the morning when I went to sleep last night it was a pleasant surprise to hear
785. hard pounding rain on the roof.<o:p></o:p></div>
786. <div class="MsoNormal">
787. <br /></div>
788. <div class="MsoNormal">
789. It must not have gotten colder overnight as the rain and
790. wind both picked up and seemed to be working together with the ebb and flow
791. hitting the roof with timpani of sounds. 
792. For ten minutes it was a hard pounding rain then slightly letting up to
793. a more relaxed soothing sound for a few minutes then ramping up once again with
794. fury in its cadence.<o:p></o:p></div>
795. <div class="MsoNormal">
796. <br /></div>
797. <div class="MsoNormal">
798. The night slowly began to fade out as light ebbed its way on
799. to my world here in the mountains.  The
800. birds huddled within the trees and bushes taking shelter from the pouring
801. rain.  The squirrels took to the various
802. bird feeders looking for an easy meal without having to worry about the birds
803. attacking them as they try to steal food. 
804. Everyone seemed to have their moments, a few birds hunkering down on the
805. deck rails waiting for the rainfall to ease. 
806. <o:p></o:p></div>
807. <div class="MsoNormal">
808. <br /></div>
809. <div class="MsoNormal">
810. The lights in the yard quickly turn off as the cloudy mist
811. lingers in the trees on the hillside with no deer in sight this morning.  The Georgia red clay is oozing onto the upper
812. driveway making a long stain mark down the hill toward the road.  I forgot how the red dirt has been so much a
813. part of my life growing up in the south.<o:p></o:p></div>
814. <div class="MsoNormal">
815. <br /></div>
816. <div class="MsoNormal">
817. The weather radar shows snow on the way but for now this
818. morning it is a steady hard rain with its beautiful cadence slapping the roof
819. overhead.  With Bailey’s coffee in hand I
820. wish ya’ll a great Sunday!<o:p></o:p></div>
821. <div class="MsoNormal">
822. <br /></div>
823. <div class="MsoNormal">
824. I hear there is a football game on later today so good luck
825. for whomever you choose.  I do not have “live”
826. television here but it would not matter as I suffered many years of Falcons
827. losses to care anymore.<o:p></o:p></div>
828. <div class="MsoNormal">
829. <br /></div>
830. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/3045208666254162036/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=3045208666254162036' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3045208666254162036'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3045208666254162036'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/cadence-of-rain-on-tin-roof.html' title='Cadence of rain on a tin roof'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-2211108051217622856</id><published>2018-02-02T06:04:00.002-09:00</published><updated>2018-02-02T06:04:45.837-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 200 Who would have known?</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
831. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Life
832. Observation # 200      Who would have
833. known?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
834. <div class="MsoNormal">
835. <br /></div>
836. <div class="MsoNormal">
837. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">I
838. never thought I would get this far with my Observations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
839. <div class="MsoNormal">
840. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
841. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
842. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwX-6Ge0HBhLurWRnbEN01RNNdjM55vcI_nGf00th8FQKKiMWBYkDNFGdwq_Q-caYOHL-ZQA27qWYWnrCLrWydmiTzGFQ2gdPOvbKFQNr3uVB5B9MUb5zS6JsRmEeMVR2YT2CI/s1600/Duluth+Sculpture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwX-6Ge0HBhLurWRnbEN01RNNdjM55vcI_nGf00th8FQKKiMWBYkDNFGdwq_Q-caYOHL-ZQA27qWYWnrCLrWydmiTzGFQ2gdPOvbKFQNr3uVB5B9MUb5zS6JsRmEeMVR2YT2CI/s320/Duluth+Sculpture.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
843. <div class="MsoNormal">
844. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
845. <div class="MsoNormal">
846. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
847. <div class="MsoNormal">
848. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Have
849. a wonderful weekend everyone!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
850. <div class="MsoNormal">
851. <br /></div>
852. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/2211108051217622856/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=2211108051217622856' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2211108051217622856'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2211108051217622856'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/life-observation-200-who-would-have.html' title='Life Observation # 200 Who would have known?'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwX-6Ge0HBhLurWRnbEN01RNNdjM55vcI_nGf00th8FQKKiMWBYkDNFGdwq_Q-caYOHL-ZQA27qWYWnrCLrWydmiTzGFQ2gdPOvbKFQNr3uVB5B9MUb5zS6JsRmEeMVR2YT2CI/s72-c/Duluth+Sculpture.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-4526547938275263931</id><published>2018-01-28T07:21:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-28T07:21:15.450-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Drafting Men over 60</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;&quot;&gt;
853. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Drafting
854. Men over Sixty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
855. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
856. <br /></div>
857. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
858. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It
859. is raining here this morning so as usual my mind wanders a bit early in the
860. morning.  Luckily I do not get “live”
861. television here so I do not have to sit through all the bad news going on in
862. the world every day.  If I want news I
863. can get reruns “On Demand” which is another way of saying its old news by
864. now.  I have seen news that my old
865. stomping grounds in Kodiak, Alaska had another large earthquake around 8.0
866. which I’m sure shook things up.  I
867. remember the last big one I experienced there was about a 7.6 which was close
868. to Kenai which happened around one in the morning.  Had just gotten into bed and the shaking
869. started and continued for almost a minute letting you know it was a major one
870. close by and shallow too.  It was pretty
871. wild.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
872. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
873. <br /></div>
874. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
875. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11pt;">Anyway,
876. I have seen some of the new lately and the war on terrorism continues which got
877. my mind to thinking about this situation and I came up with this after a few
878. Bailey’s coffees this morning.</span></div>
879. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
880. <br /></div>
881. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
882. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxdoWsTbZR3FNA28HT28GSlrdS4jzqxHpKBABnQNHtccSMyrr26GIze9BH4oM4J3QqZhKVLbAThRJciil8I6oWkNZFzxsamqVgB2fiEEBTmPagUeK8WqZAqoUXpdo8spDU81r/s1600/IMG_7483.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxdoWsTbZR3FNA28HT28GSlrdS4jzqxHpKBABnQNHtccSMyrr26GIze9BH4oM4J3QqZhKVLbAThRJciil8I6oWkNZFzxsamqVgB2fiEEBTmPagUeK8WqZAqoUXpdo8spDU81r/s320/IMG_7483.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
883. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; text-align: center;">
884. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
885. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; mso-outline-level: 2;">
886. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11pt;">I am over 60
887. and the Armed Forces think I’m too old to track down terrorists.</span></div>
888. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
889. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">You can’t be
890. older than 42 to join the military, (who knew).  They’ve got the whole thing ass-backwards in
891. my opinion.  When I was in the service we
892. were all so young and really had no life experience at that point.  It was all guts and stupidity that we
893. survived things.  Instead of sending
894. 18-year olds off to fight, they ought to take us old guys.  You shouldn’t be able to join a military unit
895. until you’re at least 35.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
896. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
897. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">For starters:
898. Researchers say 18-year-olds think about sex every 10 seconds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
899. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
900. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Old guys only
901. think about sex a couple of times a day, leaving us more than 28,000 additional
902. seconds per day to concentrate on the enemy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
903. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
904. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Young guys
905. haven’t lived long enough to be cranky, and a cranky soldier is a dangerous
906. soldier.  “My back hurts!  I can’t sleep, I’m tired and hungry.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
907. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
908. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">We are
909. impatient and maybe letting us kill some asshole that desperately deserves it,
910. will make us feel better and shut us up for a while.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
911. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
912. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Most 18-year-olds
913. don’t even like to get up before 10 a.m.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
914. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
915. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Old guys
916. always get up early to pee so what the hell.  Besides, like I said, ‘I’m tired and can’t
917. sleep and since I’m already up, I may as well be up killing some fanatical
918. son-of-a-bitch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
919. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
920. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">If captured we
921. couldn’t spill the beans because we’d forget where we put them.  In fact, name, rank, and serial number would
922. be a real brainteaser for most of us old farts!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
923. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
924. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Boot camp
925. would be easier for old guys.  As most of us are or were married,
926. we’re used to getting screamed and yelled at, and we’re used to soft food.  We’ve also developed an appreciation for guns.
927.  We’ve been using them for years as an
928. excuse to get out of the house, away from the screaming and yelling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
929. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
930. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">They could
931. lighten up on the obstacle course however.  I’ve been in combat and didn’t
932. see a single 20-foot wall with rope hanging over the side, nor did I ever do
933. any pushups after completing basic training. 
934. Actually, the running part is kind of a waste of energy, too.  I’ve never seen anyone outrun a bullet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
935. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
936. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">An 18-year-old
937. has the whole world ahead of him.  He’s
938. still learning to shave, to start up a conversation with a pretty girl.  He still hasn’t figured out that a baseball
939. cap has a brim to shade his eyes, not the back of his head.  For those not in the military some have
940. problems putting on pants with their belt below their ass, what is that all
941. about?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
942. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
943. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">These are all
944. great reasons to keep our kids at home to learn a little more about life before
945. sending them off into harm’s way.  I know
946. at a young age all my thought processes and innocence changed, hopefully for
947. the better but it came with its own problems too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
948. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
949. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Let us old
950. guys track down those dirty rotten coward terrorists.  The last thing an enemy would want to see is a
951. couple of million pissed off old farts with attitudes and automatic weapons who
952. know that their best years are already behind them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
953. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 12.0pt;">
954. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">How about
955. recruiting women over 50 . . . in menopause!  You think men have attitudes
956. Ohhhhhh my goodness, you ain’t seen nothing yet!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
957. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
958. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7cuiJw7G_9PUmXtOR6JIKinZ7QEzqDumI_IMLqHL1-LKBeUogvkjEcbi_xIzlY8z12oY72DL45tC85OoKburMiG8m5TJ_tXr_CprYgCICVPL1AldAYSd2X_VR5yP8GAhBcfu/s1600/Alaska+Purple+Heart+Highway.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="840" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7cuiJw7G_9PUmXtOR6JIKinZ7QEzqDumI_IMLqHL1-LKBeUogvkjEcbi_xIzlY8z12oY72DL45tC85OoKburMiG8m5TJ_tXr_CprYgCICVPL1AldAYSd2X_VR5yP8GAhBcfu/s320/Alaska+Purple+Heart+Highway.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
959. <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 13.5pt; margin: 12pt 0in; text-align: left;">
960. <span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11pt;">I’m done.</span></div>
961. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/4526547938275263931/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=4526547938275263931' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/4526547938275263931'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/4526547938275263931'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/drafting-men-over-60.html' title='Drafting Men over 60'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxdoWsTbZR3FNA28HT28GSlrdS4jzqxHpKBABnQNHtccSMyrr26GIze9BH4oM4J3QqZhKVLbAThRJciil8I6oWkNZFzxsamqVgB2fiEEBTmPagUeK8WqZAqoUXpdo8spDU81r/s72-c/IMG_7483.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-2804834888027872423</id><published>2018-01-27T06:12:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-27T06:12:05.584-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 199 - Smiling</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
962. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Life
963. Observation # 199<o:p></o:p></span></div>
964. <div class="MsoNormal">
965. <br /></div>
966. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Sometimes I smile, because
967. I don’t know what the hell is going on!</span><br />
968. <span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span>
969. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
970. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvuorNK_JPFzZKkEgyNlDNJ0ez8SN-NdHHrbML2TwpQw_POXIQiqTcGXX0eFmIzLu6KEi-8AA-wpob3u_0Ri7iWHmPUEfwlx42zXIG3-B7tJhoLdfawvJn-hjnx2AXZ9s9MJY/s1600/D+Somewhere+on+A1A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvuorNK_JPFzZKkEgyNlDNJ0ez8SN-NdHHrbML2TwpQw_POXIQiqTcGXX0eFmIzLu6KEi-8AA-wpob3u_0Ri7iWHmPUEfwlx42zXIG3-B7tJhoLdfawvJn-hjnx2AXZ9s9MJY/s320/D+Somewhere+on+A1A.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
971. <br />
972. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/2804834888027872423/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=2804834888027872423' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2804834888027872423'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2804834888027872423'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/life-observation-199-smiling.html' title='Life Observation # 199 - Smiling'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvuorNK_JPFzZKkEgyNlDNJ0ez8SN-NdHHrbML2TwpQw_POXIQiqTcGXX0eFmIzLu6KEi-8AA-wpob3u_0Ri7iWHmPUEfwlx42zXIG3-B7tJhoLdfawvJn-hjnx2AXZ9s9MJY/s72-c/D+Somewhere+on+A1A.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-8900157903177549236</id><published>2018-01-22T12:03:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-22T12:03:53.516-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Listening to the Void space in our Lives</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
973. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">It’s raining today so I am
974. not getting too much done outside.  It
975. gives one a chance to sit inside, watching nature or sitting still and allowing
976. the “void” to come into focus. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
977. <div class="MsoNormal">
978. <br /></div>
979. <div class="MsoNormal">
980. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">There is a void that exists
981. in all of us, the void can be filled with many things:<br />
982. Facebook for some, text messaging, emails, scheduling things, gaming, doing paperwork;<br />
983. some like parties, television, shopping, and a drink now and then.<br />
984. <!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
985. <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div>
986. <div class="MsoNormal">
987. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Or you can make the conscious
988. decision not to fill the void at all<br />
989. and just let it be a void.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
990. <div class="MsoNormal">
991. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
992. This is by far the most difficult path to take.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
993. <div class="MsoNormal">
994. <br /></div>
995. <div class="MsoNormal">
996. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">But as creative people, this
997. is possibly the most important choice, this idle space allows our brain to do
998. its work, time spent idly walking through nature, sitting alone in a room, or
999. driving along lonely roads.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1000. <div class="MsoNormal">
1001. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
1002. Time left empty, like blank pages in a notebook does not remain empty, because
1003. our mind moves to fill these voids, to paint them, like virgin canvases, filling
1004. these moments with color, poetry, or music when we eliminate the white noise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1005. <div class="MsoNormal">
1006. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
1007. We instead hear our inner voice, it speaks only in a whisper<br />
1008. and it can only be heard in the silence of our isolation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1009. <div class="MsoNormal">
1010. <br /></div>
1011. <div class="MsoNormal">
1012. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">As artists this is precisely
1013. the voice we need to hear every day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1014. <div class="MsoNormal">
1015. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
1016. I am making space for this voice every day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1017. <div class="MsoNormal">
1018. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
1019. It speaks to me, a little louder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1020. <div class="MsoNormal">
1021. <br /></div>
1022. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/8900157903177549236/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=8900157903177549236' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8900157903177549236'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/8900157903177549236'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/listening-to-void-space-in-our-lives.html' title='Listening to the Void space in our Lives'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-5922160565561341889</id><published>2018-01-19T08:07:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-19T08:07:29.082-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Life Observation # 198 Airport Observation – Have you ever noticed?</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
1023. Observations sitting in Airports – Have you ever noticed?<o:p></o:p></div>
1024. <div class="MsoNormal">
1025. <br /></div>
1026. <div class="MsoNormal">
1027. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">This one has been sitting on
1028. the back burner for a while now so I thought I would post it now.  When I traveled extensively I noticed while
1029. sitting in airports for my next flight how people move about the airport.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1030. <div class="MsoNormal">
1031. <br /></div>
1032. <div class="MsoNormal">
1033. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Those people going to the
1034. gate for departure move fairly slowly unless they are late and are trying to
1035. run to the gate to make their flight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1036. <div class="MsoNormal">
1037. <br /></div>
1038. <div class="MsoNormal">
1039. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">If you sit and watch people
1040. arriving from a flight it appears no matter from which gate they arrive but every
1041. single person whose flights had just arrived I’m not sure if you’ve noticed
1042. this but those people walk super-fast when they get off an airplane.  It’s as if the momentum from flying through
1043. the air at 500 miles per hour continues once passengers are allowed out of
1044. their seats at the gate.  I’ve watched over
1045. and over again over the years as several airplanes pull up to their gates and
1046. every single time, a few minutes later, 200 passengers burst out of the jet way
1047. at hyper-speed blasting through the terminal building like blazing comets.  <o:p></o:p></span></div>
1048. <div class="MsoNormal">
1049. <br /></div>
1050. <div class="MsoNormal">
1051. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">My guess is that they
1052. maintain this daredevil pace until they reached the luggage carousel, where
1053. they then probably got upset at having to wait 15 minutes for their luggage.  Alaska Airlines was pretty good about getting
1054. your luggage and I always tried to just have carry-on backpacks to avoid the
1055. chaos at baggage claim.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1056. <div class="MsoNormal">
1057. <br /></div>
1058. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/5922160565561341889/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=5922160565561341889' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5922160565561341889'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/5922160565561341889'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/life-observation-198-airport.html' title='Life Observation # 198 Airport Observation – Have you ever noticed?'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-3332328227860710076</id><published>2018-01-18T07:48:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-18T07:48:44.850-09:00</updated><title type='text'>It snowed yesterday</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
1059. <b><span style="background: rgb(252, 252, 252); font-size: 11pt;">It
1060. snowed yesterday</span><o:p></o:p></b></div>
1061. <div class="MsoNormal">
1062. <br /></div>
1063. <div class="MsoNormal">
1064. <span style="background: rgb(252, 252, 252); font-size: 11pt;">It snowed yesterday, not like the Alaskan
1065. snowfalls I had become so used to living there for almost twenty years.  This was not the 8 to 12 inch snowfall that the
1066. local news media would call “flurries”. 
1067. Small amount by most Northern standards as it was little more than a
1068. light dusting.  One of the few measurable
1069. snowfalls found in the South.  There was
1070. about an inch on the ground, a little more on elevated surfaces but mainly it
1071. was white and pretty.  It covered the
1072. brown leaves all over the ground left from last fall’s blowing and falling
1073. cycles. </span></div>
1074. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1075. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDdL6xS3oirrPxMNSWbAz-yr4HnFiDch40Dw6dFpyTYJSmtbd6IBaRBrlcFAyF7AUkALcZySTo-m3XI3nB1uaG9a843UJKBc5Z0Eux_uFhOHURZEnW2itGBBz5SZ26RjeJ2ym/s1600/Snow+1-17-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDdL6xS3oirrPxMNSWbAz-yr4HnFiDch40Dw6dFpyTYJSmtbd6IBaRBrlcFAyF7AUkALcZySTo-m3XI3nB1uaG9a843UJKBc5Z0Eux_uFhOHURZEnW2itGBBz5SZ26RjeJ2ym/s320/Snow+1-17-18.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
1076. <div class="MsoNormal">
1077. <span style="background: rgb(252, 252, 252); font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
1078. <div class="MsoNormal">
1079. <span style="background: rgb(252, 252, 252); font-size: 11pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">It began during the night, coming softly with
1080. nary a whisper of wind blowing like the previous day.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">I woke up during the night, not from any
1081. noise, but because it was suddenly quiet and I sensed there was snow coming down.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">Lying there I knew it was snowing as I could
1082. see the deck starting to turn white from the small drifting flakes. </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">In the morning I saw the many birds hitting
1083. the five feeders hanging from the deck.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;"> 
1084. </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">The only disturbance in the fresh blanket of snow covering the deck was
1085. the tiny prints left by the birds and a squirrel trying to get food out one
1086. feeder.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">The ground outside was icy, a treacherous
1087. drive down the hill of the driveway but luckily I need not go anywhere this
1088. morning.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">  </span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;">It was crazy out there this
1089. morning as the deer that normally come around each evening just before dark to
1090. eat the corn I leave for them were back looking for tasty morsels left from the
1091. night before.</span><span style="background-color: #fcfcfc; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
1092. <div class="MsoNormal">
1093. <br /></div>
1094. <div class="MsoNormal">
1095. <span style="background: rgb(252, 252, 252); font-size: 11pt;">As is typical in the South, by afternoon, the
1096. snow was melted off the driveway and places getting full sunlight on the
1097. ground.  Outside it was too cold to work
1098. but I went out several times as the afternoon colors were vibrant as the skies
1099. cleared to a deep blue, some white still contrasting on the ground in
1100. places.  I enjoyed seeing my breath
1101. hanging in the air and the chill that made my nose tingle, not like the below
1102. zero temperatures found in Alaska where your nose hairs freeze.  The snow was cold this time and squeaked under
1103. my shoes as I walked about in the driveway . . .</span> watching the birds, squirrels,
1104. chipmunks, and deer up on the hillside going over to my neighbor’s property.<o:p></o:p></div>
1105. <div class="MsoNormal">
1106. <br /></div>
1107. <div class="MsoNormal">
1108. <span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">It felt good to have snow
1109. again and the quietness it brings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1110. <div class="MsoNormal">
1111. <br /></div>
1112. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/3332328227860710076/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=3332328227860710076' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3332328227860710076'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/3332328227860710076'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/it-snowed-yesterday.html' title='It snowed yesterday'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDdL6xS3oirrPxMNSWbAz-yr4HnFiDch40Dw6dFpyTYJSmtbd6IBaRBrlcFAyF7AUkALcZySTo-m3XI3nB1uaG9a843UJKBc5Z0Eux_uFhOHURZEnW2itGBBz5SZ26RjeJ2ym/s72-c/Snow+1-17-18.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-2279536756884922025</id><published>2018-01-12T12:19:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-12T12:19:12.560-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Rainy Day Musing</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1113. Rainy Day Musing<o:p></o:p></div>
1114. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
1115. <br /></div>
1116. <div class="MsoNormal">
1117. It started raining yesterday afternoon just before nightfall
1118. set in.  Soft drizzly rain began falling at
1119. first, as I was putting out the corn for the eight deer that arrive each day
1120. around sunset.  I finished putting the
1121. corn kernels out in the four or five spots where they gather to eat, play, and
1122. listen for anything that might harm them. 
1123. I go back into the house for birdseed for the four feeders scattered
1124. around the yard as the rain droplets fall in bigger size.  My hair is now wet and the sweatshirt is damp
1125. before I can finish my chores for the day.<o:p></o:p></div>
1126. <div class="MsoNormal">
1127. <br /></div>
1128. <div class="MsoNormal">
1129. The water droplets fall like they simply cannot think of
1130. anything better to do. There is a laziness about them, as if they can barely be
1131. bothered to conform to the will of gravity.  When I hold my bare arms out, the water droplets
1132. splatter on my outstretched arms and fingers, glistening them moist instead of being dry like while reading a book in front of the fireplace.  They grow larger but soft, not like the mean
1133. driving rain which came later in the night. 
1134. I tilt my fingers upwards and watch the remnants of the drops run
1135. downwards like tiny rivers.  If this is
1136. the way rainy days are back in Georgia I’m getting used to it again; even the
1137. sound on the metal roof is comforting.  With
1138. a half-smile I retreat into the house leaving a window open, this way I can
1139. hear the steady drumming all the louder while I go back to turn age worn pages
1140. of a long forgotten book.<o:p></o:p></div>
1141. <div class="MsoNormal">
1142. <br /></div>
1143. <div class="MsoNormal">
1144. This morning the rain fell harder reminding me I need to get
1145. on the roof to clear the leaves from the gutters, one of which has overflowed with
1146. the rain crashing down and filling up the gutters.  The wind spinners in the yard turn at
1147. different speeds as the breeze is not quite yet to be called wind.  The red color on one blade and the yellow
1148. color of the other mix in the light breeze before the “wind” picks up to meld
1149. the colors into an orange hue when the sun shines.  The many birds of several species have
1150. gathered under the deck railings quickly flying up to the bird feeders and suet
1151. feeders along the deck and back down to the shelter under the railings.  There must be fifty birds, some puffed up to
1152. stay warm in the cool rain this morning.<o:p></o:p></div>
1153. <div class="MsoNormal">
1154. <br /></div>
1155. <div class="MsoNormal">
1156. I can see several deer up on the hillside chasing each other
1157. as I think the bucks are looking for a mate. 
1158. They have been active these last few days moving about the property and
1159. down to the creek.<o:p></o:p></div>
1160. <div class="MsoNormal">
1161. <br /></div>
1162. <div class="MsoNormal">
1163. Rainy days are not always about feeling blue or working to
1164. accomplish something, sometimes it’s just nice to kick back, put your feet up
1165. and enjoy the liquid sunshine God has provided for us.  The mountains, the wildlife, the sounds of
1166. the wind and the rain are sort of therapy for me right now, much needed in this
1167. busy world we live in.  Enjoy the weekend
1168. everyone.  <o:p></o:p></div>
1169. <div class="MsoNormal">
1170. <br /></div>
1171. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: &amp;quot;Times New Roman&amp;quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/2279536756884922025/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=2279536756884922025' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2279536756884922025'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2279536756884922025'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/rainy-day-musing.html' title='Rainy Day Musing'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-682762132232980256</id><published>2018-01-10T18:56:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-10T18:56:37.722-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Sniffing, sneezing, coughing, aching, and overall yucky feeling</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1172. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Sniffing, sneezing, coughing, aching, and
1173. overall yucky feeling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1174. <div class="MsoNormal">
1175. <br /></div>
1176. <div class="MsoNormal">
1177. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Since Christmas I
1178. have been feeling under the weather so other than a few trips to the store and
1179. the RV show in Atlanta last weekend I have stayed around the house resting and
1180. trying to get rid of a nasty bout of sneezing, wheezing, and coughing. 
1181. They call it the nighttime sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head,
1182. fever, so you can rest medicine and oddly it’s true.  I’ve felt like crap,
1183. take some Nyquil and hopefully feel better.  It may have taken a few days
1184. but at least it seems to work.  This cold
1185. & flu has lasted over two weeks but finally I’m starting to feel better.  I also burnt my left hand pouring hot coffee
1186. but it has finally blistered and started healing so I’m ready to get back into
1187. the swing of things.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1188. <div class="MsoNormal">
1189. <br /></div>
1190. <div class="MsoNormal">
1191. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">During this down
1192. time I haven’t felt like working on a couple of projects I have going on right
1193. now but I did get in a few hours here and there.  I do feed the birds and
1194. deer every day (there need to eat too plus they are great to watch) and have hung
1195. out watching movies or tv shows on Roku.  Between my sneezing attacks
1196. making for some funny noises and the constant coughing it has been a mostly
1197. miserable couple weeks. Some of the shows watched were: Killing Fields, Gold
1198. Rush, and Night Shift. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
1199. <div class="MsoNormal">
1200. <br /></div>
1201. <div class="MsoNormal">
1202. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Over the time
1203. between Thanksgiving and Christmas I was able to write the stories of my
1204. Adventures with Johnny and it’s been nice having those ready to post during
1205. this time I haven’t felt great.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1206. <div class="MsoNormal">
1207. <br /></div>
1208. <div class="MsoNormal">
1209. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">One of the movies
1210. I searched for this weekend was Secondhand Lions, a movie I have seen over and
1211. over that is rich in storytelling and flair.  I could not find it “On
1212. Demand” and I do not know where my DVD copy of it is at the moment so I was
1213. disappointed I could not see it once again. 
1214. This movie is about a boy whose irresponsible mother drops him off at
1215. his uncle’s ranch in rural Texas where the boy learns about life and
1216. what it is like to be a man.  This movie inspires me, and the two
1217. characters Garth and Hub played by Michael Caine and Robert Duvall respectively
1218. give some of their best performances.  All three actors have won or been
1219. nominated for an Oscar.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1220. <div class="MsoNormal">
1221. <br /></div>
1222. <div class="MsoNormal">
1223. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Our lives are
1224. immeasurably enriched by larger-than-life eccentrics who seem to burn more
1225. brightly than the rest of us.  They stand before us with stories that take
1226. us in and spin us around.  They amaze us with antics that continually
1227. surprise us.  They engender within us a fresh appreciation for the deep
1228. mysteries of the human personality.  They stretch us with all the wild
1229. possibilities inherent in every situation, no matter how small or seemingly
1230. inconsequential.  When we are in their presence, we feel that anything is
1231. possible, & that life is an adventure that deserves our intense
1232. participation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1233. <div class="MsoNormal">
1234. <br /></div>
1235. <div class="MsoNormal">
1236. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Many of us know
1237. people like these two and hang onto their stories and presence.  It may be
1238. an uncle, grandfather or parent who has over the years provided us with a
1239. commonplace attitude that life is to be lived, experienced to the fullest
1240. possible extent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1241. <div class="MsoNormal">
1242. <br /></div>
1243. <div class="MsoNormal">
1244. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">One of my
1245. favorite scenes and speeches is given by Robert Duvall who is giving advice to
1246. Haley Joel Osment’s character Walter about life and people.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1247. <div class="MsoNormal">
1248. <br /></div>
1249. <div class="MsoNormal">
1250. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Duvall as Uncle
1251. Hub to Osment’s character Walter: “Sometimes the things that may or may not be
1252. true are the things a man needs to believe in the most.  That people are
1253. basically good; that honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; that power and
1254. money, money and power mean nothing; that good always triumphs over evil; and I
1255. want you to remember this . . . that love . . . true love never dies.  You
1256. remember that, boy.  You remember that.  Doesn't matter if it's true
1257. or not.  You see, a man should believe in those things, because those are
1258. the things worth believing in.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1259. <div class="MsoNormal">
1260. <br /></div>
1261. <div class="MsoNormal">
1262. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">There is power in
1263. that statement.  What a positive message to give our youth, things to
1264. believe in besides their video games, phones, and mechanical possibilities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1265. <div class="MsoNormal">
1266. <br /></div>
1267. <div class="MsoNormal">
1268. <span style="font-size: 11pt;">Hopefully I will
1269. feel better tomorrow but these last few days were relaxing just doing nothing
1270. planned at all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
1271. <div class="MsoNormal">
1272. <br /></div>
1273. &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Comic Sans MS&amp;quot;; font-size: 11pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: cyan;&quot;&gt;Ice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/682762132232980256/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=682762132232980256' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/682762132232980256'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/682762132232980256'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/sniffing-sneezing-coughing-aching-and.html' title='Sniffing, sneezing, coughing, aching, and overall yucky feeling'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-2060482000717767110</id><published>2018-01-09T14:48:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-09T14:48:05.360-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Adventures not realized . . . Life got in the Way</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1274. Adventures not realized
1275. . . . Life got in the Way<o:p></o:p></div>
1276. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
1277. <br /></div>
1278. <div class="MsoNormal">
1279. In high school and beyond there were many more adventures
1280. planned and others that I wanted to write about but did not have a chance to
1281. put them down.  One was motorcycles, as
1282. we both loved them in our youth and with another friend David rode them
1283. together many times over the several years before I left for the Army.  <o:p></o:p></div>
1284. <div class="MsoNormal">
1285. <br /></div>
1286. <div class="MsoNormal">
1287. There was the weekend getaway to Panama City Beach, Florida
1288. which turned into a several month odyssey trip all the way to the west coast.  Conversations went like this; “We have never
1289. been to Mobile and there is the USS Alabama battleship in port, let’s go see
1290. it.”  Then the next day it was . . .
1291. “Never been to New Orleans what do you think?” 
1292. It went on and on till that trip ended. 
1293. I remember getting to California that first time and seeing the sky turn
1294. brownish in color and looking like it was going to rain.  After a couple days and as we approached Los
1295. Angeles we stopped for gas and finally asked someone when it was going to
1296. rain?  They laughed and told us that it
1297. was smog.  “The sky is brownish all the
1298. time.”  It was the first time we had seen
1299. anything like it.  There were many
1300. mountains crossed, a couple of deserts, and rivers galore and we explored them
1301. all.  The majesty of the American
1302. landscape has remained with me to this day. <o:p></o:p></div>
1303. <div class="MsoNormal">
1304. <br /></div>
1305. <div class="MsoNormal">
1306. We both loved flying and when I was a corporate pilot,
1307. Johnny and I always talked of flying together.  His airplane was at Stone Mountain and mine
1308. were at DeKalb Peachtree airports but with work schedules and family life we
1309. never had the chance to fly in the same plane together or formation fly.  We talked about it at every family gathering over
1310. the years but it never materialized.  I then
1311. moved to Alaska for almost twenty years and it became a non-realized adventure.<o:p></o:p></div>
1312. <div class="MsoNormal">
1313. <br /></div>
1314. <div class="MsoNormal">
1315. Driving US 1 all the way from Key West Florida to the
1316. Canadian border was another unrealized adventure for us.<o:p></o:p></div>
1317. <div class="MsoNormal">
1318. <br /></div>
1319. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1320. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxi4rp1A87BmGrZymWVdWktP0dxXqPUCQ_MD2LYujtvzLzcDc0Afq9VU2zVpDpskVq3xDuBJF2WgdPKBYyLx6nwUINFjTn-prWWK5Uel2uUfO_l0msq3q9ar1LMScHHelP1tC/s1600/Johnny+%2526+D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxi4rp1A87BmGrZymWVdWktP0dxXqPUCQ_MD2LYujtvzLzcDc0Afq9VU2zVpDpskVq3xDuBJF2WgdPKBYyLx6nwUINFjTn-prWWK5Uel2uUfO_l0msq3q9ar1LMScHHelP1tC/s320/Johnny+%2526+D.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
1321. <div style="text-align: center;">
1322. <br /></div>
1323. <div class="MsoNormal">
1324. Johnny, I hope these recollections of our past will bring
1325. back memories of our youth and great times gone by. </div>
1326. <div class="MsoNormal">
1327. <o:p></o:p></div>
1328. <div class="MsoNormal">
1329. <br /></div>
1330. <div class="MsoNormal">
1331. For my blogger friends I hope you enjoyed these writings and
1332. were able to share in our travels, great friendship and wonderful times
1333. together.  As we’ve gotten older in our lives
1334. these are the important things, those moments of laughter, the boyish charm we
1335. had, the “we can do anything attitude” that is never lost and is buried deep
1336. inside our thoughts and being.  <o:p></o:p></div>
1337. <div class="MsoNormal">
1338. <br /></div>
1339. <br />
1340. <div class="MsoNormal">
1341. <span style="color: cyan;">Ice</span><o:p></o:p></div>
1342. </content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/2060482000717767110/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=2060482000717767110' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2060482000717767110'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2060482000717767110'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/adventures-not-realized-life-got-in-way.html' title='Adventures not realized . . . Life got in the Way'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxi4rp1A87BmGrZymWVdWktP0dxXqPUCQ_MD2LYujtvzLzcDc0Afq9VU2zVpDpskVq3xDuBJF2WgdPKBYyLx6nwUINFjTn-prWWK5Uel2uUfO_l0msq3q9ar1LMScHHelP1tC/s72-c/Johnny+%2526+D.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-1275777302722902419</id><published>2018-01-08T06:08:00.001-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-08T06:08:19.552-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Triple H Skydiving Club - Locust Grove, Georgia</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1343. Triple H Skydiving Club</div>
1344. <div style="text-align: center;">
1345. Locust Grove, Georgia</div>
1346. <div style="text-align: center;">
1347. Also Greene County Skydiving Club</div>
1348. <div style="text-align: center;">
1349. McDonough, Georgia – I-75</div>
1350. <br />
1351. After my discharge from the U.S. Army I returned home and Johnny and I resumed our adventures.  While I was in the service Johnny had married my first cousin Debbie after she graduated school and moved to Atlanta to work for GMAC.  They reconnected and as they say the “rest of the story” is their history together.<br />
1352. <br />
1353. Johnny was skydiving with Triple H skydiving club in Locust Grove, Georgia and invited me to go along.  I went through the ground school training that morning and made my first static line jump.  After all the static line jumps (5) were made Johnny, Debbie and I spent almost every weekend the weather was good at the drop zone.<br />
1354. <br />
1355. There was another drop zone close by just off Interstate 75 in McDonough called Greene County but that drop zone was within the Terminal Control Area (TCA) of Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport so many of the jumps there were limited to lower altitudes so not to violate the TCA airspace limits.  I think the maximum jump was from 7,500 feet above the ground.<br />
1356. <br />
1357. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1358. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBz2V8Fn1G18NrIH2vTHNFxG8SnWgAGFBeRtLSrtyRibu7nAN8szzSrYic6adKC_qTIsTJx1Br127dUUQCHbDM_IkyHYGp_ADhaIBy57wWAZIdh5NSjCAd2qoC1KWChZmwPlM/s1600/Sky+dive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="259" data-original-width="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBz2V8Fn1G18NrIH2vTHNFxG8SnWgAGFBeRtLSrtyRibu7nAN8szzSrYic6adKC_qTIsTJx1Br127dUUQCHbDM_IkyHYGp_ADhaIBy57wWAZIdh5NSjCAd2qoC1KWChZmwPlM/s1600/Sky+dive.jpg" /></a></div>
1359. <div style="text-align: center;">
1360. <br /></div>
1361. Triple H was just one exit farther down I-75 so that is where we did most of our jumps as it was outside the Atlanta TCA and jumps were up to 12,500 feet.  For months we spent many weekends arriving on Friday afternoon getting one or two jumps in and camping the two nights.  Saturday was spent all day jumping from different altitudes depending on the loads and people there.  Debbie would grill hot dogs or hamburgers and we would hang out with the other jumpers.  On Sunday, we would get one or two jumps in before heading back to the north side of Atlanta where we lived.<br />
1362. <br />
1363. One jump I remember most was my last static line jump.  It was from an altitude of 3,500 feet.  The reason I have such a good recollection after all these years is I had taken my brother Ron with me that weekend to hang out and see me jump.  I had arranged for his first airplane ride so he climbed aboard with the rest of the jumpers and watched as each person on the static line got into the doorway, got their last instructions from the jumpmaster and with a tap on the shoulder stepped into the nothingness of falling.<br />
1364. <br />
1365. I remember being the third one to jump and jokingly made my way closer to the door as each person before me left the aircraft.  I told Ron to enjoy the ride and I would see him on the ground in a few minutes.  The rush of air (wind) in your face as you stood at the door and the look down seeing the ground so far away was the first thing I noticed.  It was not a natural feeling at this point but there were no second thoughts of not jumping out of a perfectly good airplane.  I got into the doorway, signaled I was ready, was told the ground wind conditions by my jumpmaster and with a tap on my shoulder I leapt out of the plane. <br />
1366. <br />
1367. I arched my back (as instructed) and looked up at the airplane slowly banking left away from me going for another pass for the next jumper.  I could feel the free falling for several seconds till the static line started the tug on my parachute pulling it out of the pack on my back.  This all happened in the first five seconds from exiting the plane and I do what I’m supposed to do next and look up to inspect a good open canopy (parachute).  What I see is not a round colorful parachute above my head but a semicircle mess of tangled lines, some tight while others were limp and blowing in the wind.  The chute was curved and bent like a half folded cigarette spinning with me turning quickly with it.  I dropped pretty fast and quickly tried to clear the fouled chute. <br />
1368. <br />
1369. I had what was called a spinning Mae West (the parachute looked like a huge half bra cup hence the term Mae West) malfunction (now called a line-over).  So I cut away that garbage free falling for a few seconds pulling my reserve parachute.  It opened correctly and was then hanging under my un-steerable 24-foot rip-stop reserve chute at about 1,800 feet above the ground.<br />
1370. <br />
1371. The weather was hot and humid, it had to be in the mid-90s, without a cloud in the sky, thermals galore were popping off the open fields around the drop zone and there was a 10-mph wind.  I was hanging under my reserve chute when now what, really?  It began to oscillate, 20 to 25 degrees to each side; swinging back and forth which was not good.  I pulled down my right-side risers in an attempt to stop the oscillations and rotation.  No change.  I then pulled the front risers to no avail as the swing side to side reached about 50 degrees each side from vertical.<br />
1372. <br />
1373. Back in those days, we were very good at judging where we were going to land, because we jumped reserve parachutes that had a forward speed of just a few, if any, miles per hour.  Well, I knew exactly where I was going to land on the edge of a pasture just off the dirt runway!  With my reserve oscillating, the wind, my high descent rate and landing on the dirt or a barb wire fence I was heading for, I was experiencing the perfect storm of skydiving.  Now my thoughts were of my brother above in the plane looking down at my malfunctioned chute spinning wildly and then having to tell my mama I had been hurt or killed skydiving.<br />
1374. <br />
1375. No time to think those thoughts now as I was preparing myself for an extremely hard landing and was telling myself this was going to hurt bad . . . real bad.  I saw people running toward where I was going to land.  It was going to be very, very ugly.  Then, six inches above that Black Death; that pain, the end of my skydiving life . . . my canopy stopped!  It stopped!  Stopped oscillating, stopped its descent rate; it just stopped moving.  I reached for the ground with my left foot before the canopy changed its mind and slammed me into that unforgiving ground.<br />
1376. <br />
1377. Well my foot found the ground, the canopy collapsed; the wind picked up and threw me to the ground, knocking the breath out of me.  I lay there for about thirty seconds maybe a minute before trying to stand up!  The canopy was covering the barbed wire fence; I stood up shaken, looking around for the plane carrying my brother which was just landing.  The field I was landing in had a large thermal of hot air starting to rise from the ground as I was about to land and the upward air movement stopped my rapid decent making for safe landing.<br />
1378. <br />
1379. I heard noise, so I looked around and those jumpers who had been watching the drama unfold were standing up or running toward me and they were applauding.  All those skydivers and girlfriends had been holding their collective breath, understood my circumstances and knew how dire my situation was.  When I landed safely, they were as elated and thankful as I was.<br />
1380. <br />
1381. I gathered my gear, climbed over the barb wire fence and made my way across the field to the drop zone and the gathering of people where my brother Ron was waiting, also shaken, but glad to see me safe.  It was another day of adventure for Johnny and I along life’s winding road.<br />
1382. <br />
1383. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1384. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8qlRgRvUZcgQ44G1vVjL4F3q-WIRscd2z4nLtUjz6hMPkKDfe0fvDucTMGBEZ4slXpA5hjWSLFUYB5bQPe_7vplg1xWjiBPXr5WhgaY8CHlOEfipdXUe6D2sUT7Wcn5F041k/s1600/20+RT.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="360" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8qlRgRvUZcgQ44G1vVjL4F3q-WIRscd2z4nLtUjz6hMPkKDfe0fvDucTMGBEZ4slXpA5hjWSLFUYB5bQPe_7vplg1xWjiBPXr5WhgaY8CHlOEfipdXUe6D2sUT7Wcn5F041k/s320/20+RT.PNG" width="180" /></a></div>
1385. <div style="text-align: center;">
1386. <br /></div>
1387. I continued to jump for a while then turned my attention to getting my pilot licenses and became a commercial corporate pilot flying rather than jumping from perfectly good airplanes.<br />
1388. <br />
1389. <span style="color: cyan;">Ice</span><br />
1390. <div>
1391. <br /></div>
1392. </content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/1275777302722902419/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=1275777302722902419' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1275777302722902419'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/1275777302722902419'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/triple-h-skydiving-club-locust-grove.html' title='Triple H Skydiving Club - Locust Grove, Georgia'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBz2V8Fn1G18NrIH2vTHNFxG8SnWgAGFBeRtLSrtyRibu7nAN8szzSrYic6adKC_qTIsTJx1Br127dUUQCHbDM_IkyHYGp_ADhaIBy57wWAZIdh5NSjCAd2qoC1KWChZmwPlM/s72-c/Sky+dive.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18753173.post-2867508254319287356</id><published>2018-01-07T03:36:00.000-09:00</published><updated>2018-01-07T03:36:22.848-09:00</updated><title type='text'>Aunt Betty, Gone on Ahead</title><content type='html'>&lt;div align=&quot;center&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1393. Aunt Betty<o:p></o:p></div>
1394. <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
1395. Gone on Ahead<o:p></o:p></div>
1396. <div class="MsoNormal">
1397. <br /></div>
1398. <div class="MsoNormal">
1399. My Aunt Betty, who Johnny and I visited many times in our
1400. adventures passed away yesterday in north Florida.  It was a cold but beautiful morning that she
1401. never realized was happening around her. 
1402. For the last ten years Alzheimer’s had stolen the beautiful woman that I
1403. knew in my youth.  It took from her the
1404. spirit and funny person that our family knew. 
1405. It stripped her of her pride and I’m sure her vanity over these last
1406. years, AZ is such a terrible disease.<o:p></o:p></div>
1407. <div class="MsoNormal">
1408. <br /></div>
1409. <div class="MsoNormal">
1410. In passing she is survived by brothers and a sister (mama),
1411. sons and daughters, grandkids, nieces and nephews (me).  The shell she became is gone but I will
1412. remember Betty as the fun loving and funny aunt that I took the Southern
1413. Crescent train to Florida each summer to spend time camping on Pensacola Beach,
1414. exploring Perido Key and having fun with my cousins.<o:p></o:p></div>
1415. <div class="MsoNormal">
1416. <br /></div>
1417. <br />
1418. <div class="MsoNormal">
1419. <span style="color: cyan;">Ice</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
1420. </content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/feeds/2867508254319287356/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=18753173&amp;postID=2867508254319287356' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2867508254319287356'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/18753173/posts/default/2867508254319287356'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://icewindsramblings.blogspot.com/2018/01/aunt-betty-gone-on-ahead.html' title='Aunt Betty, Gone on Ahead'/><author><name>Icewind</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/13137983665713615913</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>

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