A little humor to start the day

Here's a little humor to get you started today (well, some of you may not find this so funny, but anyway....)

 Men Teaching Classes for Women at 
THE ADULT  LEARNING  CENTER 



REGISTRATION MUST BE COMPLETED
By February 15,  2013 



NOTE: DUE TO THE COMPLEXITY AND DIFFICULTY LEVEL
OF THEIR CONTENTS, CLASS SIZES WILL BE LIMITED TO 8 PARTICIPANTS MAXIMUM . 



Class 1 
Up in Winter, Down in Summer - How to Adjust a Thermostat
Step by Step, with Slide Presentation. 
Meets 4 weeks, Monday and Wednesday for 2 hrs beginning at 7:00 PM.. 



Class 2 
Which Takes More Energy - Putting the Toilet Seat Down, or Bitching About It for 3 Hours?
Round Table Discussion. 
Meets 2 weeks, Saturday 12:00 for 2 hours. 



Class 3 
Is It Possible To Drive Past a Wal-Mart Without Stopping?--Group Debate. 
Meets 4 weeks, Saturday 10:00 PM for 2 hours. 



Class 4 
Fundamental Differences Between a Purse and a Suitcase-- Pictures and Explanatory Graphics. 
Meets Saturdays at 2:00 PM for 3 weeks. 



Class 5 
Curling Irons--Can They Levitate and Fly Into The Bathroom Cabinet?
Examples on Video. 
Meets 4 weeks, Tuesday and Thursday for 2 hours beginning
At 7:00 PM 



Class 6 
    How to Ask Questions During Commercials and  Be Quiet During the Program
Help Line Support and Support Groups. 
Meets 4 Weeks, Friday and Sunday 7:00 PM 



Class 7 
  Can a  Bath Be Taken Without 14 Different Kinds of Soaps and Shampoos?
Open Forum..
Monday at 8:00 PM, 2 hours. 



Class 8 
Health Watch--They Make Medicine for PMS - USE IT! 
Three nights; Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 7:00 PM for 2 hours. 



Class 9 
I Was Wrong and He Was Right!--Real Life Testimonials. 
Tuesdays at 6:00 PM Location to be determined. 



Class 10 
How to  Parallel  Park In Less Than 20 Minutes Without an Insurance Claim.
Driving Simulations. 
4 weeks, Saturday's noon, 2 hours.

Class 11 Learning to Live--How to Apply Brakes Without Throwing Passengers Through the Windshield.
Tuesdays at 7:00 PM, location to be determined 

Class 12 
How to Shop by Yourself. 
Meets 4 weeks, Tuesday and Thursday for 2 hours beginning at 7:00 PM.

Transitions

I've been a grand father for nearly a decade.  Last night we celebrated Brooke's 9th birthday.  I have three other grand children, ages 6, 5 and 3.

Over the years it has been very interesting to observe the transitions in each of their houses.  It reminds me of when Pete & Becky were also growing up.

For example yesterday Brooke excitedly asked me to see her's and Courtney's new desks.  They had just gotten them.

It wasn't so long ago that they had other kinds of toys in there which had in turn replaced yet another set of toys all the way back to when there were dolls, carriages, blocks and other toddler toys.

The same is true of my grand sons who are ages 5 and 3.  When I go there to stay the day with Nicholas, I sometimes find myself cleaning up their play room.  That too has undergone many transitions even though Nicholas is only 3.  He's determined to play with the same things as his five-year-old brother.

We find ourselves doing the same thing at our house.  We started out with the usual collection of rattles, blocks and harmless manipulative baby toys.

Now we've moved to those things that appeal to their current ages.  I'm sure it won't be too long when we'll be hauling them out to be replaced by something else.

And so it goes, the march of time.  I'm lucky I've been around long enough to see it.

Why morning TV shows are stupid

Five stupid things morning TV shows spend a ridiculous amount of time discussing:

Manti Te'o and his fake girlfriend hoax
Beyonce's apparent lip synch of the National Anthem
Al Roker's efforts to speak to the president during the inaugural march
Anything having to do with Kim Kardashian
Lance Armstrong's tearful confession and apology

        

An open letter to the president

Dear Mr. President,
Congratulations on taking the Oath of Office for your second term as President of the United States.  Here are a few suggestions for goals you might set for your coming term.

1.  Work toward income tax reform.  If everyone paid their fair share in this country, there would be no debt crises.

2. Extend the Social Security contribution that everyone is required to make to those earning up to $1 million a year.  Capping contributions to income of $120,000 puts an unfair burden on lower income earners.  The cap as it stands now is absurd!

3. Consider an idea first put forth by George Bush (43)--the only good one he ever had.  Deal with the issue of illegal immigrants by establishing a Guest Worker program.  Give all illegals a grace period to sign up for it.  Require them to pay taxes toward education and health care.  If, after the grace period, a person is found to be without having signed up, deport him & his family (never split up a family) immediately.

4.  Continue to stand up to obstructionist republicans.  Their "just say no" approach to government is destroying the country.

5.  Continue to stand up to foreign terrorists--but not with troops.  Use our ample air power and drones.  With the exception of small groups of American personnel gathering intelligence, bring the troops home.

6. Finally, stand firm for your principles.  Ignore the nay-sayers who use so-called political commentary as a cover for bigotry and hatred.

Good luck.  You're going to need it.

Saturday with the boys

Had a great day yesterday with our two little pals.  First we played 'car catching' which is a game Cole made up.  Then we had a snack after which we went outside.  Below is the result of our efforts. 

Grandpa helped make the seriously challenged snowman and then the boys decided to add to the brush pile habitat we built in the fall.

Then it was hot dogs, ham burgers, dessert (of course) and a move. 

This morning we're getting up early and going to Aunt Becky's & Uncle Mike's so they can go somewhere while the boys are playing with Courtney & Brooke.

Another great day coming up!

Happy Birthday, Brooke

January 17, 2013 Happy 9th birthday to grand daughter Brooke.  How the time flies!

What a difference day makes.

Eighty degrees and sunshine one day.  Four inches of snow the next.  It just isn't right.

Life rolls along in Naples, FL

Sunshine, cool breezes, mid to upper 80s every day...life is tough here in Naples.  Playing golf this morning, friends coming over for dinner tonight, more golf tomorrow afternoon with the six of us.  Then Monday prepare the condo for renters in months of February and March.  Then we're back in May for another week or so.

The weather has been unusually warm so I imagine they're in for a very, very hot summer.  Of course we don't come down in the summers and eventually when Sandi retires, we'll spend more time here in February or March but I don't see us spending an entire winter here for quite a while. At least not with our family being up north.

Back home Tuesday.

In the mean time here's a Naples, FL sunset for you to view.

First full day

Day two in Florida but day one of first full day in Naples.  The weather is beautiful with sunshine and warm temperatures (about 82).  

Should be a relaxing, enjoyable week, so long as snow stays away from CT until at least after our return.

There's nothing worse  than returning from a trip to a driveway full of snow. 

More posts later.

Back to Florida

It's back to Florida tomorrow morning.  We're traveling with  another couple and a friend of ours whose wife is already there. 

The six of us will have some fun by going out to eat, playing golf (not much fun for me but the others like it) and generally enjoying the beautiful weather.

It will be a welcome break from the gloom that has settled over our community.  When we get back on the 15th, the gloom will not have gone away entirely but it will be better.  I just hope we don't return to a driveway full of snow as we once did (I believe two years ago).

Our next trip will be in May.  Our condo is being rented for the months of February and March.

My next post will be from there and I may include a picture or two.

Coldest day of the year

Thus far, today is the coldest day of the year: eight degrees at my house at 6:30 A.M.

However, between burning wood and an electric quartz heater that we now have in our living room, the house is comfortable without the furnace going on and off all day. 

But how much does it cost to run that electric heater you logically ask?  On full load (1500 watts) 15¢ an hour.  So obviously on half load 7.5¢ an hour.

I usually turn it on half load at about 7 A.M. in the morning to take the chill off.  The thermostat is in the living room and it's set at 62.  With the electric heater on half load I can keep the temperature in that room at around 64 until the sun comes in the front window at which time it gets warmer. 

If I leave the house, I turn it off.  By then the between the sun and the wood stove  the temp stays stable.  At night when we're watching TV, I keep it on full load until about an hour before bed time at which time I turn it off.  If it's really cold as it is now, I can keep that room at a comfortable 68. 

All together I'm guessing I spend about $1.00 to $1.25 a day which translates to an increase in my electric bill of about $30 to $40 a month.  It will actually be less than that because I don't actually use it as much as I've stated here.

My lock-in price for heating oil is $3.69 a gallon.  The choice would be to keep the heat up to around 65 or sit in a very chilly living room, bundled up because the wood stove actually heats the upstairs better than it does the living/dining room parts of the house. 

For the calendar year 2012 without the supplemental heater we used about 500 gallons of fuel.  We also use oil to heat domestic hot water.

I anticipate that for calendar year 2013 we'll use even less.  It will be interesting to see just how much less.  If it's as much as 100 gallons, I will have saved $369 dollars in oil but I will have spent about $325 more for electricity.  The difference though is bigger than that because the living room will be much more comfortable than it was before so that's an added benefit. 

The only other alternative is to move to our condo in Florida.  However, that's not going to happen for quite a while, if ever.  Have you ever been in Florida in July or August?  Not pleasant.