January 27, 2012
Easy Post

Yes this is easy, no laptop to show you some pictures, it will be back in the house early next week. And yes, I have some good pictures from Chicago to show you, sorry, had some issues which required more IT help than I could offer. You'll see them later.

The Chicago show was good and bad, hot and cold, hopeful and discouraging. We skipped the past few years but thought we had a pretty good booth location, 20 feet, corner, across from Modine..................just in the wrong hall. Monday was busy until about 3 or 4; Tuesday seemed good through about 2, Wednesday was pretty slow. Logistics went well, we were in the truck rolling at 4 Wednesday afternooon.

Chicago is a great city with a lot to offer, went to Lawry's Monday night, McCormick and Schmick's Tuesday night. Good times with our engineer Jeff Fogle.

Got the big boat back today, going to get the motorcycle this afternoon. They did quite a bit of work on the boat and trailer assembly; the bike was a pinched wire and a short. Might ride some in the morning while SWMBO sleeps in................

Office next week, dancing lessons on Wednesday night, yes, I wrote that

January 20, 2012
What The Heck Is That?

Wednesday night I worked on the old yellow boat cleaning out the grout and assorted what-not around the drain plug. As you no doubt recall this area has a tendency to leak, not a problem when using it as a swim platform in the good old summertime; however a sticky wicket when fishing in winter. I have tried several solutions to this problem, yes I have duct tape already installed, but figured I would start from square one and re-think the whole thing. First off, clean out what is already there. I found this lodged into the floor between the plug, the deck, and the transom. After trying unsuccessfully to remove it, and scraping it with my trusty rusty needle nose pliers, I deciphered that
1) I think it is a penny
2) Maybe I shouldn't dislodge the damn thing, it might be holding the entire boat together. I love that old yellow boat, I just can't seem to think of a good name for her; you know.....that old yellow boat....................

I've always considered a found penny as good luck, so in it stays; I'll work around it with some rubberized paint when it gets a little warmer and more conducive to this installation. A question for any experienced or budding metal-smiths: is there a metal material reason for this penny being installed here?

I wasted about two hours yesterday trying to re-subscribe to the Kaspersky antivirus program on TAR's computer. Anyone else have problems with this company? I couldn't believe that:
1) There was no customer service available by telephone
2) Some of their FAQ listings lead to websites which could not be identified.
So what's up with that? For the last couple of years Boris and Natasha came through for us; what happened? Oh well, uninstalled, refund requested, another service used; all for the lack of quality customer service. "We" are indeed always right to companies who stay in business.
Bitsy Howard died this week, she was a fixture at our church, second row right side. One of my favorite Christmas Eve memories was from a couple of years ago when a soloist sang my favorite Christmas song "O Holy Night" and I looked over and Bitsy was singing with her. Great lady, we'll miss her. We sang "He Lives" during her funeral, haven't heard that one in a while, Pastor Tim commented that it sounded like we knew it. It's odd that at funerals I hear songs from my childhood that I don't seem to hear very much anymore, and I know the words! Not the tune, can't carry a tune in a bucket but I do know the songs. Heard a bunch of them at Casey Wagner's mother's funeral, maybe that is one of the reasons I go to funerals...............Two songs I've requested for my own funeral were done yesterday, who remembers any of those? Come on, this is important, do you know my requests? Oh well...................
This from a tar baby road trip to Florida, why? Because:
1) I find it funny
2) I obviously like making lists this week.

And so you ask, who watched Then Came Bronson, who remembers it, and for that matter who cares?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnPIOH8bCfk
Traveling on a bike is something that I always wanted to do, and hopefully will one day. Not sure if TAR will be on the back, she doesn't travel lightly and I love her too much, but we'll see. In the mean time I'm off this morning for New Bern, Grifton and Ayden in search of new NCWRC landings and good BBQ. Bum's or Skylight? What is your favorite and why?
1) Taste
2) Texture
OK I'll stop now. Flying to Chicago tomorrow, catch Skuttle at booth number 1624 at the AHR Expo (http://www.ahrexpo.com/)
See you there? How good was this blog? Send it to 100 of your friends? 10? 1? I need more views

January 14, 2012
Halfway Through January? Are You Kidding?

Man does time travel like an arrow, fruit flies like a rotten banana (sorry, I love that joke). Last weekend Jackson and I drove to Rocky Mount and caught the train to DC. Had a great hotel with an upgrade to a suite. Thursday evening was simple, Five Guys. Hard to beat although the Occupy DC encampment did obscure the view from our luxury hotel (joke made by Jackson)
Got up Friday and found our way on the Metro to Arlington for a couple of meetings with some industry guys. Jackson is thinking of a DC internship some time in his college career. Afterwards we went to the George Washington Masonic Memorial (http://gwmemorial.org/) which obviously has some new meanings to young Jackson. That night we went to the Bullets, uh excuse me, Wizards NBA game.
Early on it looked like we were the only ones there but by halftime the arena was pretty much filled

I could care less about basketball these days, especially the NBA; however I was very much entertained by the Knicks and John Wall of the Wizards. Great game, but my oh my, the halftime............................the Red Panda! Watch if you dare, really you must watch this video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSB4O_p6pxw
Keep in mind that before this video she already flipped one, then two, then three and then four big old Jethro Bodine cereal bowls onto that little saucer on the top of her head. I got the idea she'd done it before..................
Another picture of Jackson at a presidential assassination site, I'm starting to see a pattern

Saturday we spent most of the day on our first trip to the Holocaust Museum. I am a history geek, or maybe just a geek............. and learned much about this period of German history.
This in front of the National Archives

Later we went to our mandatory Air and Space Museum visit (the planetarium what the kids call sucks) and then to the Natural History Museum for the i-Max Mission Impossible movie. I don't spend very much time in movie theaters but after they showed a ten minute preview to the Batman movie I wanted to just stay and wait for it. Still pissed off that I didn't get to see Senna, especially in an I-Max. If anyone knows where I can see it at an I-Max I'll send you a silver dollar, but as usual I digress...............Oh well, great movie followed by a good dinner at the Old Ebbitt Grill. I've eaten there a few times and it is always a true DC experience. One of these days I'm going to try to eat in the dining room...............
And of course on our walk home, and no, Barry couldn't see us. Still a beautiful home at night, so much history within the lens of the camera

Home Sunday afternoon, quick pickup at Bill's BBQ and back to Morehead by dark-thirty. Jackson enjoyed his first train ride; great little getaway weekend. Trying to come up with a musical score for this film shown below but it keeps going back to That Lonesome Highway from Then Came Bronson, but that involves another transportation mode of which I have grown to become very fond..................OK, who remembers Then Came Bronson? Seriously, anybody? Maybe you can see an underlying theme here, if not then Google it

And this my friends is in here because I like this picture; did I mention a third is on the way?

Anonymous reader question: the fishing trip was on Hancock Creek off the Neuse near MCAS Cherry Point
In the office all week; clean up, fix up, start up week. What adventures lurk on the horizon?

January 6, 2012
2B1ASK1

Busy weekend with the High family in Morehead; once again we used a seafood theme to welcome the new year. We did so in good fashion, played Let's Make a Deal with a somewhat reluctant guest, everyone stayed awake until midnight, we went to bed, and then awoke to find that "someone" broke into our house and slayed several empty wine bottles during our slumber. In the paraphrased words of OJ "I will not rest until I find the real killer.................."
Let's see, tomorrow is Daddy's 90th birthday, still hard to get my thoughts together on that idea.
Holly and Jay are expecting, maybe on the third try we'll get that Duke name in there somewhere. Dinky Duke has a nice ring to it. I saw where someone named their newborn Y'all-Jealous Jones, so they can't use that one............wonder if Y'all-Jealous is a boy or girl name? Kind of like Frank Zappa's kids Moon Unit and Dweezel.................
You can now ask Jackson because oh yes, he was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason this week. Our secretary commented at the end of the meeting that tonight we watched a father raise his son, an uncle raise his nephew, and a grandfather raise his grandson. Pretty long night, but a good time for all.
I know you want pictures and videos, so from Hancock Creek last week:

This video is for the FO; fish here and get an air show free! Who knows if this will work or not, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. If not please try again

Off on some personal business for a couple of days and the in the office next week

December 30, 2011
Master Dong?

A new neighbor to Morehead City, please welcome Master Dong, or is it Grandmaster Dong? Either way he's a hell of a Dong.

.....................always said, you can't write stuff as funny as what you see around you if you just take time to look.
And speaking of funny looking things, we all had a good time at Christmas. In-laws and out-laws gathered here and there to swap presents, insults, and just blatant lies. I of course led the pack. We all got through it without too many fights, shootings and muggings, although there was one cousin who was packing a boxcutter just in case. Luckily there was no case, although an obviously inebriated Uncle Darth Vadar kept telling everyone that "he felt their presents." We had a good time even though we are all dealing with a few empty seats. We go on.

TAR must have been a really good girl, or is that a really bad girl I forget..........because she got an I-pad. She has really enjoyed playing with it, much to the delight of our children we've taken Face Time to a new level.

Skuttle was closed this week and here it is Friday morning and I haven't gotten 1/10th of my catchup work done. Hell's bells, but it has been a restful week anyway. Jackson returned his second degree of Masonry Tuesday night and is now ready to be raised to Master Mason next Tuesday night. We went to a high school basketball game/fight, played some golf,and plan to fish today.
A High old time is planned for Saturday night as the one and only Fishin Optishin and wife invade Morehead City for an evening of fun and debauchery. Once again for the (insert unknown year amount here, want to take a guess?) consecutive time we will hopefully stay awake long enough to welcome in 2012. At some point we need to actually figure out how long we've been doing this; I date it to 1985 or 1986. Gets harder and harder to stay awake each year......... Watch the news to see how good a time we have.
And in honor or Bart Rittner's passing; "walk good everybody"
Happy new year and best wishes for a prosperous and healthy 2012.

December 23, 2011
Zip Ah Dee Doo Dahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I know you're busy with last minute Christmas stuff so I'll be brief:
Great week on the cold eastern shore; had to go to New Bern for some banking business for Dink and was able to ride the old motorcycle. Got rid of a lot of paper on my desk. I'm not a tree-hugger but have really started tuning in to how much paper we use spreading information. I could save Wells Fargo a couple of million easily..............
Happy Festivus for the rest of us. Grab your stainless pole and let the Airing of the Grievances begin, and I have a lot of problems with you people!
Now, on to the Zip Mart to buy TAR's present.
Oh and the procedure: clean as a whistle so that's very good news. want to look at a picture from my colonoscopy?
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You really did scroll down didn't you? Sorry to disappoint you but there is no picture. I find it interesting you looked though..................
They put Daddy's marker up this week so we'll run Dink by there Saturday morning, then to Durham and Clayton and back home. Christmas is here Sunday morning, the Sanford crew will be here for a couple of days and then a week away from the office, well sort of; still have plenty of catching up to do before the new year.
Merry Christmas to all

December 16, 2011
Christmas Is Coming!

Ready or not, Christmas is right around the corner. Another week of travel hustling Skuttle products to anyone who will listen; left Monday, spent quality time with Jackson at a truck stop outside Emporia, VA, then worked in MD, PA, NJ, back to MD and VA and home late last night. Not a bad week, now ready for the holidays.
Took Dink to the Christmas parade last Saturday. We set up on the railroad tracks across from the church, the parade lasted nearly an hour. It's fun to be near the beginning, the USMC band always starts by playing the Marine Hymn. I can't help but remember Gomer singing that with a bucket on his head..............this here's my favorite part. Anyway, I haven't had the opportunity to take either or my grandchildren to a parade yet, but I got a good idea of what that will be like last week. It was fun watching Dink point out things to everyone around, you know like "here comes a float" and "wonder who that is? Oh he's the mayor" "where is that band from? Oh there it says it on the banner"..........yeah, things like that. And fun for the nearby seven year old girl turned grandma-sitter as Dink begged for candy being thrown from the floats. Yep, good times; actually it was, wore her out for the day
At every parade I can't help but think about the Booker T. Washington band from years gone by. Might not be PC but it was a lot of fun watching that band. Seems like Rod Hoell got in a little trouble for imitating them when we were in junior high..................

After the parade I worked in the office most of Saturday, but had the television on and caught some of the Army-Navy game. As usual I couldn't tell you the score or much about the game but I always try to catch that. Not too interested in sports these days, I'm in jazz and felt berets...........sorry, lost my train of thought there...........great to see those young people on the field and in the stands. Great game
Saw this in MD, all for you Jackson. Great motto for a bar

And this from outside Portsmouth OH, but then again much of the world is thankfully outside Portsmouth OH. Nothing makes me want to eat OH BBQ (if there is such a thing) like looking at a pig's ass crack hanging out of a pair of blue jeans. Yes, the name is Southern Moon

Ever been fishing here? Ever been fishing with me? Then you probably have fished here, enjoy those speckled trout. And this is an actual photograph. If you know me you know I'm not smart enough to PhotoShop this. It's between Columbus and Portsmouth

Did you know that that NASA's Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 and is now leaving the solar system and entering the Milky Way? It is traveling at 11 miles per second and is nearly 12 BILLION miles from the sun. Among other things inside of Voyager is a gold plated copper phonograph record with greetings from Earth and photographs. Wonder if other living beings will be able to find an old stereo to play it? Blows my mind, but so do a lot of things lately. Such as Durham author Michael Peterson getting a new trial.............wonder if that murderous owl is still alive and can tell us whoooooooooooo really did it? Sorry, couldn't resist that, too easy.
And while I'm pondering deep thoughts does anyone know why New Jersey always smells like Right Guard deodorant? Guess that is funny, and I guess I meant for it to be, but seriously, why?
Home for a couple of weeks, should be a fun time with family. Who knows what other trouble we can get into? Next week I'll tell you about my pre-Christmas "procedure" but I promise without pictures. Stay tuned.............................