Christmas Letters, General observations

Christmas Letter 2015

It’s been a long year; so you might want to grab a favorite beverage and pull a comfortable chair up to the computer before getting started on this chronological dissertation. Any time you see text in green, it indicates an active link. Click on it for additional information or pictures.

If life is a roller coaster, I am feeling like the track; simply watching life’s events whiz by. Sometimes, I try to grab hold of the car so I too can enjoy the ride; but this year, it seems that every time I reached up, the car ran over my hand. Fortunately, I have a high pain tolerance. As I look at Pat’s notes for the year, they read like a script for a hospital real life drama, and Pat and I had the starring roles. Mom would be proud. At last, we made it into the theater.

Every year, I name this narrative “Christmas Letter (insert year) “ when in reality it is just yearly chapters of the chronicles of life. This year’s starting point was January 1st. I know that is where I started last year, but some ruts are just too deep to dig yourself out of. I know, that dang dangling preposition is just hanging out. Oops; the more I dig, the deeper I get. Note to self: When you find yourself in a hole, quit digging!

IMAG0433January started with an old Saladino family tradition of making homemade cheese filled ravioli. This time it was a Sriner family event. We rolled out the egg noodle dough and cut it into coffee-can-sized circles and filled them with the cheese filling. I make the sauce following Pete’s recipe only I add some flavoring. I like a meaty sauce. This was a great start for the year. Pat was recovering from her femur (thigh bone) surgery and the cancer seemed to be stabilized. The key word here is “seemed”. Surely, 2015 would be better than the health disaster we had in 2014. I was to get my knee repaired and then Pat and I could ride off into the sunset together headed for new adventures!

CUT!

Roll the credits.

It’s a wrap.

NOT SO FAST! While my torn meniscus repair went perfectly, Pat’s leg was not healing properly and she had another surgery scheduled for the end of the month. It was only January and we were already making new friends at Memorial Medical Center. The new doctor removed the nail, pin and screws from the first surgery and redid the work. This time, the nail that extended down the femur was shortened so as not to interfere with her previous knee replacement. The pin into the ball of the femur head was inserted at a different angle and location; and again Pat was to go through the long painful healing process. This time it was made worse by the invasion of the same location and the new incisions over old minimally healed scars. The 6 week preliminary healing check-up in mid-March showed healing and Pat was beginning to feel better. 4 days later, she was greeted by more hip pain. X-rays showed that the hip repair had failed! Doctor G wanted to do the surgery again using a different procedure to try to mend the cancerous hip. We asked again about a complete hip replacement and were set to have a second opinion from a hip specialist. At the last minute, he was not available. Dr. G asked him if it made any difference that the bone was cancerous. The reply from the hip specialist was, “ If it is cancerous, she has to go to a specialist either in Bloomington or St. Louis.” As Dr G recounted this conversation to us, I almost fell out of the chair. In the several discussions with the hip specialist, cancer was never mentioned? How could this be?

While all this was happening, I had my own sub-plot going with another surgeon. Tests indicated that I had an enlarged para-thyroid that was overactive causing a number of problems. Not the least of which was memory loss. . . . Hmmm, where was I going with this? Oh, neck surgery was scheduled for the middle of April because that is where the para-thyroid is located. No, the para-thyroid isn’t located in April; it is in the neck. April isn’t in the neck; the para-thyroid is. Sure glad that brain damage wasn’t permanent!

Pat had her consult with Doctor McDonald in St. Louis and surgery was scheduled for early April. This time the entire hip ball and socket would be removed and a new hip joint and upper section of the femur were to be replaced. Her surgery was on the 7th of April and mine was a week later. We were again on the mend together. Like the knee surgery before, my recovery was very short. I was out digging in the garden the next day. We had now made it through 1/3 of the year. We had spent most of our time in health facilities or recuperating at home.

As we flipped the calendar over to May, I felt like I could leave Pat for the day while I photographed the Abe Lincoln Funeral reenactment. Using my bicycle as my mode of transportation, I zipped from event to event around town. It was good to get out and the weather cooperated with a beautiful spring day. Here is a link to my pictures. http://www.dsdigitals.com/Events/Abe-Lincoln-funeral-reenactmen/ The last page contains some video clips of the procession into the cemetery. I was beginning to feel like my old self again. Note the inflection on “old”.

May, might be called the road to recovery month. Pat was healing as well as can be expected after such a major surgery. She had an incision from her hip almost to the knee. It was obvious from the first few days that this surgeon knew what he was doing. The bruising and swelling that were a big part of the previous surgeries were almost nonexistent. Pat was determined to be well enough to go to Disney World by the end of the month. May 18th, it had been six weeks post-surgery. Pat had been wearing a hip abduction brace 24-7 the entire time which restricted her hip movement. She could neither bend over nor spread her legs. I know some of you are waiting for some comic relief here and the previous sentence was just the place to insert it; however, considering the severity of the surgery and the subsequent pain, I will not discuss such an insertion here. I will pause while you make your own comments to yourself. . . . . .  With the end of the six weeks, came the six week check-up. Imagine that! At last the chastity belt was removed and Pat was now free to say, . . . .   “Disney, here we come!”

After an overnight with friends, the Dershimers in Orlando, we pointed Big Red and his pull-behind house for the Wonderful World of Disney. For the first time in over a year, we stuffed the thoughts of cancer and surgeries in a faraway cubby hole and embraced the Disney experience.

2015_florida_disney-5223-1Everyone knows it is best to see Disney World through the eyes of a child and we had that covered. You see, this trip was planned clear back at Christmas of last year; and the reason it was so special was that we would be joined by the grandkids Joshua and Emily. They brought their parents with them. What a delight it was to have them all there. With the new Star Wars movie just over the horizon, the week we were there was made even more special by the two Star Wars weekends that book ended our week there. Here is a link to our FaceBook album Star Wars Breakfast

The best way to experience Disney is through the interaction with the characters; and interaction we had! We joined the kids for 5 different character meals. While the cost was hard to swallow, it was still the most memorable part of the experience. We had breakfast at an indoor drive-in with Star Wars characters roaming through the restaurant. 2015_florida_disney-5720-Edit-2We had dinner with Disney princesses and experienced Cinderella’s step sisters up close and personal. The shrill voiced step sister grabbed Joshua out of his chair to dance.2015_florida_disney-5428-1 He just turned three shades of red and wrestled himself free only to be laid on and “Boobie whipped” from behind. 2015_florida_disney-5434-1I can still laugh just remembering it all. Watching the kids and capturing the moments digitally was the highlight of the vacation. When we were not trying to keep up with the family, Pat and I were off on our own adventures on our twin scooters. We knew Pat would be unable to walk around the grounds so soon after surgery; so, I planned on a wheel chair that I would push around. That thought didn’t rattle around my empty brain long before I thought a scooter would be easier. In the end, twin scooters were the solution. For those of us reaching the age of limited ambulation, scooters are the bomb! We had a blast zipping around. Pat would lead the way busting the crowds for me. She has practice from bumping old ladies out of the way at the grocery store with her cart. She was the queen of the scooter once on board. Needless to say, this week will go down in our book as one of the most enjoyable times ever. Our aging brain cells often have difficulty putting memories in the proper time line. Let’s see, was that when Krystal was young or was it when Kim was first experiencing Disney? Now, we can add Emily and Joshua to the mix or should I say mix-up! In any case they will be great memories.

If you follow us on FaceBook, you can see the Disney albums there. Here is a link to one album Disney Princesses .

2015_florida_disney-5385-1Additional Disney pictures can be found here.

After another night at the Dershimer family campdrive, we headed across the state; OK we were already half way across. The state of Florida is only about 20 miles across, I think. It seems unfair that one state should have two bordering water bodies. Anyway, next stop was Anastasia SP just at the edge of St Augustine, FL. It had a lovely beach where we tried several times to watch the sunset over the water. Never did get any pictures of that. Now that I think of it, St. Augustine is on the East coast of Florida. Perhaps that was the problem.

2015_Florida_trip-2252-1While in St. Augustine, we met up several times with classmate Karen Waters from Jacksonville. She was to be our tour guide. The first outing was just across the street from the campground entrance. It was the Alligator Farm which was filled with feather covered photo ops. If you have never been there, you can’t imagine how many nesting birds are squeezed into this small area. It is open for fly-ins and fly-outs so they must like it there, as they keep coming back and so will we now that we know. I thought it was all about alligators. Not so! I still have pictures I have not yet edited. Our next outing was not as successful. I think Karen was keeping the good places to herself or she just wanted to discourage our future visits; because after what seemed like an all-day drive, we turned into a wildlife refuge and saw an innumerable number of water fowl. No, it wasn’t that there were too many to count. Zero is also innumerable. I take that back, we did see some roadkill. Then to make up for the poor showing we went to another closed location and parked nearby. It was equally productive.2015_Florida_trip-2768-1 I did get a photograph of Karen photographing a big blue Heron. Talk about anti-climax after the numerous birds the day before. To make up for the lack of excitement, she took us to an amusement park called, “the Florida highway system”. The first ride was called “change the cell phone battery in your phone in the rain while driving 65” this maneuvering was necessary because she had to get directions on how to get us home. I won’t try to compare it to Mary’s driving in Texas but I will apologize for saying Mary was the worst driver I knew. Mary, I take that back! My brake foot leg is just now starting to uncramp. Nothing personal; but next time I will drive. I will say it was memorable; and I don’t remember much now days. It is just that some things like oncoming traffic on our right side leaves a lasting impression.

It was the middle of June before we got back home. It felt really good to be home; however, we didn’t have much time to enjoy it, because as soon as we could get in a hundred or more doctors’ appointments for the both of us, we were off again. This time we were headed to one of our favorite places in the country; Rocky Mountain National Park. After a couple nights on the road, we arrived at20150625_141838 Cheyenne Mountain SP in Colorado Springs. We were only there for one night; but we will certainly return. It was a Great camping spot. We were able to make it to the top of Pikes Peak the afternoon of our arrival. We could have made it to Garden of the Gods, too; but the ranger at the state park gave us bad directions to the road up to the peak. I should have listened to the GPS on this one. It was a rainy assent and there was talk of closing the road off; but we got past the gate in time and headed up. I remember the old gravel road from our first time there nearly 50 years ago; but now it was all paved. RMNP_2015_trip-6253-1YEA! On the top, the rain let up long enough for us to get out and discover we could not breathe due to the altitude. We walked 100 miles across the parking lot and went into the gift shop where Pat found the nearest bench. I went outside determined to get a few pictures. I chipped the ice off my fingers long enough to press the shutter button. It was cold and wet but beautiful and invigorating at the same time. This is one of those places you never forget. After a few shots of us in front of the Pikes Peak sign, we headed back down the mountain. By this time the weather had deteriorated even further and Nature was offering electrical fireworks in the distance. Pat was torn between taking some pictures with my camera of the storm on the way down and covering her eyes and holding on for dear life. Miraculously, she did get some good pictures of storm fronts over the mountains.

RMNP_2015_trip-6477-1After a night at the Estes Park KOA, we headed into RMNP in the morning. We had one night on our own before Kim and her friend Eric pulled in after their all-night drive.RMNP_2015_trip-6799-1 We were also joined by several school classmates. RMNP_2015_trip-6649-13After a nice afternoon visiting, we were ready for some quality rest. We had to leave the park on July 4th ; but we made the most of it and spent 2 more nights in Estes Park KOA before reentering the park for another week. Kim and friend had returned home and now it was just the 3 of us, Pat, the dog and I.

20150708_090315We had a lot of rain but we did hike some trails, saw a lot of wildlife and were able to relax for a change.

Jay and Joyce Kesinger came back up for a day and we went back up Old Fall River Road. RMNP_2015_trip-3556-1Here is Jay photographing a  beautiful Elk. He also saw his first moose up close and personal. This is what the elk thought of us!

RMNP_2015_trip-3547-1

The next leg of our journey took us to Custer SP near Mt Rushmore. 20150712_191554The park and wildlife encounters were great; but Mt Rushmore with all the new multilevel parking garages, hall of flags and mini mall extravaganza turned us both off.RMNP_2015_trip-7620-1 It was too far for Pat to walk back to the overlook; so I walked back, took a few pictures, and headed to the truck where Kira was waiting in the hot sun with the truck running and A/C going.   That was a wasted afternoon but the ride to and from was enjoyable. We spent several days camped just outside the park and enjoyed the park animals more than anything.RMNP_2015_trip-7723-1 There is something about being in the truck with hundreds of large buffalo skirting around us to put things in proper perspective.RMNP_2015_trip-3639-Edit-1 We had a great time; however, after a month on the road, we were hearing the call of our own home. The camper is nice but home is better.

We couldn’t link up with friends and relatives in Minnesota; but we did get one last short visit with Nancy and Hans Feld in Sturgeon Bay before heading to the cheese factory and home.

August was rather non-descript but it was a chance to get back into a normal groove. It was a time of regrouping before I went into work mode for the rest of the year. It was time for a project. I was trying to recuperate from some shoulder soreness after the month on the road; so, I decided I needed a project. That makes perfect sense. Some good manual labor should be good for shoulder pain. Right? My project started with some major landscaping in Kim’s back yard. Kim's_back_yard-7799-Edit-1Once that looked good, I decided it was time to replace her garage door and as projects go, one thing led to another and by the end I had replaced the big garage door, the service door, and siding on the front of the garage. A coat of paint on the trim finished up that project. Time to relax.20151015_153001 NOT SO FAST, her furnace started acting up. After many attempts to discover the problem, I decided that it would be simpler to just replace it! Did I really think that one through? Had I forgotten how much fun sheet metal work was and also how painful? I call it my hand shredder. Death by 1000 cuts was one of my descriptive posts. This was all above the head work. Remember that shoulder pain. It didn’t go away. Between that, the sliced up hands, and the numerous times I cracked my head on the low ductwork, my body looks like a war zone. It is now starting the second week of December and I am just finishing up that project. In the midst of the work cycle this year, we discovered that the supposed inactivity was not really inactive. There was evidence of further cancer activity. This necessitated a change of attack. Pat is now on a new cancer treatment which requires two additional shots along with the one she already was taking. We have them planned the end of each month so we can plan on month-long vacations during the rest of the month. We are confident she will beat this thing. We will get more results the end of this month.

I would have concluded my yearly description of events with a trip to Florida but the furnace fiasco and late delivery forced us to cancel that. Now it is time to make plans for next year.

In the past, I have concluded my narrative with some type of social observation. I have discussed everything from boiling lobsters to shrinking toilet paper. I even touched on the political climate when Governor Rod wanted to move Lincoln’s Tomb to Chicago. Recent current events sometimes make it hard to find the humor as I see a divisiveness in our country not seen since the Civil War. What ever happened to “One nation, under God, indivisible . . . . “ If we are to survive as a nation, we need to find our common ground not our differences. We were the melting pot where people from all backgrounds came together; they let their differences commingle, melting together, to where the sum was better than the individual parts. Now, nobody wants to get in the pot and give up some of their own flavor to the benefit of the stew. We are in  the selfie generation. Our phones have special selfie cameras. We have selfie sticks and selfie stickers.  Everyone wants the world centered around themselves.

In the words of Lincoln: “At what point, then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, If it ever reach us it must spring up amongst us; it cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time, or die by suicide.”

Like a cancer, this fighting among ourselves serves only to weaken our resolve and in the end could easily destroy us as we lose our values and freedom in the name of a false security. “I have seen the enemy and it is us.”

May the joys of this Christmas season bring peace to the world. May the light of infinite wisdom burn brightly from within to allow us clear vision and understanding and unwavering resolve.

Love and Light,
Pat and Dulany

pat@sriner.com
dulany@sriner.com

As you can see, we are quite active on FaceBook. “Friend” us to see more pictures. You can also find picture albums on my website for DSDigitals

General observations

All Life matters to God!

All Life Matters to God
All Life Matters to God

All over facebook, you will see posts and posters; Black lives matter, Police lives matter and even Native American lives matter. Is this to imply that others don’t matter? Where does the list end; or does it?  Just what determines  the value of life?  In some  populations, only the male life really matters.  Women are possessions to be used like slaves.  To the civilized world, this is repugnant.  Some religions only give value to those professing to their faith while non-believers   are simply vermin to be eradicated.  Black, White, Yellow, and Red alike, often find other races inferior to their own selective race and therefor the value of these others’  lives are less.  Basically, we find anything different than us, less worthy and  often expendable.

All the “Black Lives Matter” posters really go against my grain; not because I feel they don’t matter but because singling them out is to imply that other lives matter less. Yes, black lives matter just as much as any other lives but singling them all out is divisive.  If you ask a behavioral scientist, you might find that one way to control a large population is to get them fighting amongst themselves and then you can gently guide them like cattle to slaughter.  They are much less likely to see and resist those in control (the government of the rich)  if they are too busy fighting with the “others” be they black, white, yellow or red.

It has been a long time since we had slavery in this country. Or has it? Think about it. The lower and middle class are mere pawns on the chessboard of life being manipulated by those holding the purse strings.  We are mere chattel to be used by the rich.  Not only do we have to do their work for them, making them rich but by our taxes and their tax breaks, we are paying them to work us.  Slavery is not gone in this country, it is alive and well. We are all slaves to the rich; only we are slaves with benefits.  Move over black folks, we are all in this together. All our lives matter.  Think of the power we could have if we would stop fighting with each other and worked together to defeat the truly oppressive.

If you follow my posts  here and on FaceBook, you know that I believe in reincarnation.  I bring this up because many of us who are white now were non-white in another incarnation.  Inside, we are the same,  the soul has no race or religion. We are all spiritual beings acting out a specific life here on Earth to grow.  I can remember being a black slave in the South. I can remember being an American Native  in several incarnations.  Most of you reading this  have been.  Perhaps this is why I find racism so divergent from my beliefs.  All races have their own set of qualities and lessons.  We must learn to embrace our differences, learn from them and grow to fill our perfect God given mold.  Our color, our status in life and our religion do not determine our true spiritual stature. It is determined by what we have learned along the paths we have followed.  We all matter, we are all connected. Failure to realize this will sentence you to yet  another life of lessons.  Look around, the lessons are getting harder.  I for one would like to graduate some time soon. How about you?

New Age Thought

Reincarnation II

If you are new to this blog, you might want to go to the right column (Recent Posts) to read  the previous Reincarnation post first before going on to this one.

At our first look at reincarnation, I talked about the trinity of man; the body, soul and spirit.  Sometimes we talk about the body, mind and spirit.  Others will talk about the conscious mind, subconscious mind and the super conscious mind. Although it is difficult to understand these differences, I see it a bit as a matter of definition. Just like we all have differing ideas of God, so do we have differing ideas of the mind.  I will share my idea of the trinity.

On the low end, we have the body. It is a reflection of what the mind thinks. We can easily understand the body because it is something physical; we can see it and study it.

Spirit is the opposite end of the “energy spectrum”  It is the God within, the little voice within, the God sense.  I see it as an energy of love.  I see this as the same as the energy of life.  Because we can’t see or measure it, a description is difficult but most people have their own idea of what it is so as long as we understand we are all describing the same thing according to our own understanding, there should be little misunderstanding.  It needs to be noted here that God has no specific religion; just like it has no gender.  You might dress this spirit, I am calling God, in many different religions (garments)  but God was before there were religions. There was always God and we all contain that energy whether we are Christian or Jewish, or Hindu,Buddhist, Muslim or even Atheist.

I think the confusion is the mind. To me, it seems to be the crossroads between spirit and body.  And I like to think of the body mind and spirit.  There is a physical mind that we use to think and which controls all our body functions.  You might think of it as the third dimension as it has measurable mass and physical qualities.  Then there is the subconscious. It also has some physical qualities but I think it is more. It’s storehouse of energy contains the soul memory.  Then there is the super conscious mind where we connect with the spirit.

Going back to the look at dimensions, we might say that God/spirit is one dimension.  In mathematics, the point is limited to one dimension.  But here that dimension is infinity.  That is difficult to understand and even harder to explain.  Perhaps some time, I will attempt to put that explanation together but for now , let’s just leave it as something to ponder.  I will describe the mind as having two dimensions. It has the energy of spirit taken over time which could be described at the soul or soul memory.  Then the obvious, the body having three dimensions with a physical presence.

I’m worn out trying to put those thoughts into words; so, I suspect some of you need a chance to give that all some thought.  So, I will stop for now but future posts will look at levels of existence and communication,  Karma, past lives and the evolution of souls and this accelerated time we live in.

New Age Thought

Reincarnation:

I can’t tell you how many times I have started this post/article/book.  Each time, it just didn’t seem to go right. For me this type of serious writing requires a special inspiration like may others who write about the spiritual side of life.  All too often the  first writing is inspired and well received and then the author wants to continue the money flow and pushes out one or more uninspired books.  I refuse to do that. If I don’t feel the inspiration, I won’t waste my time and I certainly won’t waste yours. I close it down and it sits with those other unpublished works on my computer.  So, here we go again; let’s see if this is the right time for me to share my feelings and knowledge on the subject.

I think I have always understood reincarnation and in my early years, I just assumed everyone else did too.  As I grew and began to share my thoughts, I found that I was in the minority at least in this country.  I found some that considered it blasphemy and I learned to keep my mouth shut. When you are insecure like I was, scooting out on that proverbial limb was not in my best interest.  As I grew up. I was forced to deal with death and found my understanding made coping so much easier.  There are some of you reading this who will say, “See, it is just a coping mechanism, like religion in general, a crutch!”  If this is your learning level, I am not here to open your eyes. ” When the student is ready, the teacher will be there.”  is an ancient quote. Jesus said, “For those who have eyes to see, let them see, and for those who have ears to hear, let them hear.”

To understand reincarnation, you have to understand the concept of self.  The human entity is made up of a trilogy.  We are a spirit who has experienced life. The spirit experience is saved in the soul and the soul is housed in a physical body.  Let me use another analogy.  In the beginning there was God. God is the name I will use for some energy form.  Some might call it a supreme being or the all knowing, Great Spirit or Heavenly Father.  It is everything; it is nothing, the alpha and omega. This essence of  God separates off pieces of itself, which  could be called the God seed.  This spark of God manifests a soul to house all experience. It is like an energy repository that takes on a vibration or frequency. This soul manifests a physical body by  joining with an embryo before birth.  The soul picks a body/family that will provide the lessons it needs to grow.  All the experiences of life are saved in the soul and at the point of death of the body, the spirit and soul go back as an energy form. This form will spend some time in a “place” we understand as heaven.  After some time, This spirit/soul will reincarnate into another living body.  This process continues and the vibration/frequency of this soul increases each life depending on the lessons learned. Eventually, the soul resonance will match the spirit energy and will be reabsorbed in the God head. This re-absorption   makes God bigger than it was and hence, this is how God grows. You might say this is the evolution of God. All living things are either growing or dying.  We were created in God’s image so as we grow, so does the Creator.
In the beginning there was God. Sparks of God each formed a soul to act as the intermediary between the spirit or God sparks, and the physical body.  Our purpose  is to raise the vibration of the soul to the level of the spirit through experiences of the body at which point the soul can become one with the creator and give growth to God. It is the cycle of life.

As I said above, this is my understanding.  It is difficult to wrap your mind around it because it is beyond what you can see and hear through the physical senses.  Take it into the silence and see if it resonates with you.  If it does not, just pass it off as the ramblings of an old man. If it does, come back and see what else I have shared on my site.

New Age Thought

It’s a new year!

When I first starteDSDigitals_4FB-78d setting up this blog, my intention was to share my thoughts; hence the title, “I was just thinking” . Unfortunately, I spent too much time on FaceBook carefully walking the tightrope of political correctness. I was talking to friends and didn’t want to hurt feelings or step too far out on a limb.  I have so much to share but often feared the repercussions of delving into the nature of life and the ancient mystical sciences. I have felt like a kid riding in my parents car mile after mile, year after year asking, “Are we there yet?”  Is it time?   I have come to the conclusion, “ready or not, here I come.”

DSDigitals_4FB-20I was ahead of my time back in the late 70’s when I opened a metaphysical book store. It was called The Book Shelf. I sold new age books that were really OLD AGE. I offered classes on meditation, numerology and Astrology.  I also published a monthly newsletter with articles on similar subjects along with my thoughts and the thoughts of Bee Lief, a new age child.  I have offered some of this work on various websites in the past but now it is time to re-release  this work along with new work.  It will all be found here.

I don’t expect you to believe everything I say but read it with an open mind. If it resonates with you, take it in and grow from it. If it does not seem right for you now, then it isn’t.  When the student is ready, the teacher will be there.  My calling has always been as a teacher. I think now there are students ready to hear what I have to say.

This is just the introduction. I have lots more to share in the future.

Click here to check out the old Seventh Sense website

The House Doctor

Sea Worthy

Summer has turned into winter and now that the boat is finally sea worthy, it is too cold to go out.  In all honesty, sea worthy just means it would float.  The transom has been completely replaced along with all the flooring for the back 1/3 of the boat.

In my last post, I talked about the deteriorated transom. For those not brought up on the water, the transom is the back of the boat where the outboard motor mounts. After realizing it was cracked, I finally decided to look further at the damage and decide on a repair.20140728_155444

I cut the fiberglass along the top edge of the transom so I could lift off the top and see down into the inside.20140728_155811 20140728_155836

With the cap removed, it was obvious the wood was rotted and had to be removed. The plan was to dig out the old wood with long tools and fill the cavity with a pour-in  polyester slow setting material.20140728_171203
Using a chain saw, it became evident that the damage was too extensive for this process. The original option required the inside and outside fiberglass skin had to be in tact. The inside layer of fiberglass was damaged and could not be easily rebuilt from the inside so I had to resort to plan “B”  which required completely removing the outside skin and rebuild the wall with fiberglass and plywood in layers. 20140801_122429 20140801_122306 20140801_122652 20140801_122701

The removal shown above showed how extensive the damage was.  There was wood rot over the entire transom and also previous repairs I had made were completely ineffective.  I knew I had to completely remove both inside and outside fiberglass layers and rebuild them.20140803_121757

With it open, I saw even more damage. The flooring where the battery and gas tank sit was also deteriorated. The top of the floor was covered with fiberglass but the plywood support was not protected from the bottom. Moisture that had leaked into the lower section apparently condensed on the underside of the floor and it looked like charred wood and crumbled when probed. 20140805_140216

The photo above shows the top layer of fiberglass  removed and some debris still remaining. That charcoal looking material was the old wood flooring. 20140805_140228 20140805_142835

The stringers that support the floor above the hull (bottom of the boat) were not wood wrapped in fiberglass but rather just fiberglass. This made replacement of the stringers both unnecessary and impossible even if I wanted to do it without completely disassembling the boat which I would not do.  You can also see the old foam that partially filled the space between the stringers. I had expected the foam to be saturated but it was not so I did not try to remove and replace it.  After removing the fiberglass layer and cleaning out the space. I replaced the old plywood with treated plywood.  It was wedged between the existing fiberglass stringers and the fiberglass lip I had left when cutting out the fiberglass top. A marine quality adhesive was used to secure the wood to the fiberglass stringers. 20140913_133614

Once the wood was secured and securely anchored, I added multiple layers of epoxy over fiberglass cloth.  With this new solid floor, the transom would have substantial support  for the forward thrust of the motor.  Now that the floor was replaced, it was time to go back to the transom and rebuild it. 20140815_120511 20140822_115025

I started at the base to both support the back of the flooring and to fill the lower section of the transom.  Because of the configuration I could not just add a built up transom because it had to be slid into place behind the smaller opening. I wanted to leave the original edges for the support so I built the transom wall in pieces with staggered seams. 20140822_211820 20140827_173635

I laid out the wood on the table and fiber-glassed the back side. It was in two pieces. Once in place, I used an epoxy filler made from cut fiberglass strands and epoxy resin to fill and level the lower section with the newly installed upper sections. Once set the filler was sanded smooth with the upper section. The seam on the back was covered with fiberglass cloth and epoxy and then a full sized layer of bi-axial cloth and epoxy covered the entire width.   I also put a layer of fiberglass cloth and epoxy on the backside of  the second layer of wood. 20140830_141709

It was seamed on the left side where the first layer was seamed on the right. It was held together by epoxy glue covering previously applied layer. 20140901_095409

The final single piece covered the last seam and filled the space before the final skin was replaced into the indentation. Above you can see the second layer along with the final layer on the floor before installation. 20140901_162737

The original fiberglass layer was then reapplied.  At this point, the boat was water safe.  The top cap was replaced and filler was added as needed. Keep in mind that at no time was any filler like “Bondo” used all fillers were made form the two-part epoxy with a filler.  I still need to add another couple coats of epoxy on the back to level it out and then put on a finish coat.  Drain holes need to be re-drilled for the bilge and the well in front of the motor.  20140916_124849

The inside of the rear section was painted with a special marine paint to protect the new fiberglass and give a more finished look.  20140916_124815

In the spring, I will finish the back end and mount the motor and connect everything back up. After a spring tune up on the motor, I will be ready for the water. For now, she sits out under a cover because i had to give her garage space back to Pat.

General observations

Life on the high seas

No, I have never been on the high seas during this lifetime but that does not lessen my yearning for it and my rightful place at the wheel.  I have always loved the water and boats. As a child, I would float them down the street gutters during a rainstorm.  I fitted them with tall masts and pieces of paper for sails.  I remember  a common theme in many of my kindergarten drawings was a wooden ship with three tall masts.  I loved these ships and how they made me feel. I was at home with the waves lapping at the side of the ship.

In high school, the only thing I wanted nearly as much as  my car and girls was a boat.  I finally was able to get an old broken down fiberglass runabout.  I remember that it had a Scott motor.  I learned quickly that this was a poor excuse for a motor. I was always having to fix it.  I remember it had fins similar to the late 1950’s cars. DSDgtls_4FB--13

We spent a lot of time out on that boat at Lake Springfield. Sometimes it even worked!

I don’t even know what happened to that boat except that it seemed to disappear when I went to college in Chicago.

After getting married, it wasn’t long before that inner yearning began to resurface and I bought my first and only new boat from Sears Roebuck.  It was a fiberglass tri-hull  with the most basic design but along with the 10 HP Mercury engine, Pat and I skimmed the tops of many fishing lakes around the area.  Those early years were lean and at a particular low point, I had to sell my treasure.  There is a saying about boat ownership; There are two days you love your boat; the day you buy it and the day you sell it. For me, that was not the case. I didn’t want to sell it.

My next boat was another fix-me-up. I saw it chained to a tree down the street with a $600 price tag.  I brought it home on it’s rusty old trailer which had to be replaced shortly thereafter.  I can’t remember what kind of motor it had but I remember that was not one of the good points. As I look at the picture, I see it was an Evenrude, a very old Evenrude!  I replaced all the upholstery and put down new carpet.  Krystal learned to sky behind that boat.  But it was not very reliable and would leave me and often the “girls” , Krystal and her friends, stranded on the lake some place.DSDgtls_4FB--12

One time, the engine died and I could not get it started so I started paddling back to the dock. This was long before the day of cell phones. It was slow going with the boat filled with a couple kids and myself. After getting across the lake, I paddled along the shoreline toward the awaiting car and trailer. I decided it would be faster if I got out and walked along the shore and pulled the boat behind me.  I could not go too close to the shore or I would pull the boat into the rocks along the shoreline. As I tugged it along, another boater pulled up within shouting distance. This was the first boat we had seen all afternoon. “you need some help?” they yelled. What a stupid question, I thought. Wasn’t that a bit of the obvious.  I sarcastically yelled back, “No, I am just taking my boat for a walk.”  Then before I could ask them to throw me a line and get back in the boat, they said, “OK, and sped away. Sometimes my sarcasm got me into trouble and it certainly never got me out of trouble.

Another trip out on the lake took Krystal, Kim and one of Krystal’s friends back up Sugar creek. We were way back up the river when the motor again gave that last sigh and sputtered and stopped. A piece of the linkage had fallen off. Now, you would think that by this time, I would have carried more tools and supplies but I didn’t. So, there I was stuck out on the lake again.  I got in the back and started unraveling some wire from the steering cable.  Then I bent it back and forth to get it to get hot enough to break. It seemed to take forever before I had the piece I needed. I set it on the side of the boat and repositioned myself back beside the motor and started to make the repair. I reached for the makeshift linkage where I had left it and it was gone! “Where is the wire I put here?”  Kim looked up in her sweet way and said, “I threw it in the lake” She was probably about 4 or 5. What could I say. I just wanted to cry.

After all the trouble we had, every time we took the boat out, Krystal’s friends didn’t want to go out with us. I wonder why.  The truth was, I was about fed up with the whole thing too. I went on a quest to find a new outboard motor.  I happened upon a great deal. It was a nearly unused 25 HP Yamaha motor.  An old guy bought it and died after only one time taking it out. It sat on the boat for a couple years until she sold it with the boat. I bought it for $1806. That was a good deal for an almost new motor.

By this time, I was yearning for another fishing boat. I cut the front end out of the deck and turned this old runabout into a bass boat.  I can’t say I was too happy with this new  design but we did take it out a couple times. The motor was sensational. It was not even broken in.  But each time out it seemed to go slower and slower. It turned out that the boat was now rotten and taking on water between the floor and hull.  When I took a good look at it, I found that the trailer was about rusted through and the rotted decking was full of carpenter ants.  The boat went to the dump but I kept the motor.

For nearly 20 years, that motor was stored in my garage until one day I saw the neighbor was selling his dad’s old bass boat. I always envied the neighbor for having such a great boat.  I asked the price and it was only $1000.  I was told that the transom had some soft wood and he was actually selling the trailer and trolling motor for the $1000. The boat was free. And worth every penny of it, I might say.  That was over 5 years ago.  I brought it home and put in new carpet, patched the floor with some new wood and fiberglass.  I did some reinforcing of the transom and hung that 25 HP Yahama on the back. I hooked it up and turned the key. Sputter sputter stop. I tried again and this time it started right up perfectly.  I decided to replace the water pump impeller simply because of age and non-use and out we went. DSDgtls_4FB-0132I should say, “Out I went” after all the previous boat trouble,  nobody wanted to go with me.DSDgtls_4FB-0130 The kids were grown and Pat really doesn’t like the water and was afraid what might happen.  So, alone , I cruised the water at Lake Springfield. It was great but a bit lonely.  I brought  the boat home and there it sat for a couple years.

Then one day, I decided to clean it up and take it out again but that is when I discovered a crack in the transom.  Obviously, it had gotten worse!  That brings up the present.  Again, I have a boat that can’t go on the water. I am looking at a major repair because as I tore off the transom, I found even more damage to the floor in the rear compartment.  I can’t afford a new boat and I don’t know if it is worth completely repairing this one.

I feel a bit like the old man and the sea but my battle has been with the boats and motors not a giant Marlin.  I too will sleep and dream  of times past as I steered my ship across oceans outracing pirates.  Tomorrow, I will think more about my boat and my yearning for the sea.

New Age Thought

Life is a circle

Life is a circle
It isn’t a straight line or even a combination of disjointed sections.
It has no start or finish. It simply is.
It was not formed in the beginning and will not end.
It always was and always will be.
Because it was, there was a beginning
Because it  is, there will be no end.

If there were a beginning and an end,
they would be at the same point.
They differ only in perspective.
Birth is only a beginning when referenced from the future
and death is only the end when referenced from the past.
Because life is a circle, we are destined to repeat.

But don’t think of life as being static
because it also is constantly spinning ever faster
as we progress from one frequency to another.
Life moves ever faster as we approach the source.
Take joy in the journey not in the perceived destination.
The choices you make in one life will dictate the lessons you receive in another.

Life is the Alpha and Omega.
Life is the spirit in  Amen
With Love and Light, I AM
The Light within

Lightroom, Photography

Lightroom Basics #1

In this series of Lightroom articles, I will be looking at the “Why” more than the “How”. So many tutorials show you how to work with Lightroom but they leave off the reasoning behind the actions. I have always been one of those who wanted to know the “Why” things work the way they do.  This dissertation is not a  “how to” manual. You will probably need a book or tutorial to actually follow along and do the action. The purpose of this series is to give you the background information so you can make intelligent decisions when you use Lightroom.

Lightroom #5  is divided into 7 Modules. Each Module or section allows you to work on your picture files for different purposes.  If you ask yourself, “What do I want to do in Lightroom?”, the answer will be one of the modules.  Today, I will talk about the Library Module.

Let me start out by saying, “Lightroom does NOT have a folder for storing your picture files!” It has a CATALOG file for keeping track of your picture files. STOP. Think about that a minute.  Lightroom DOES NOT make a second copy of your pictures when you add pictures to the Lightroom Catalog.  If you have a folder for pictures on your Hard Drive in your computer, perhaps called “My Pictures”, you can tell Lightroom to catalog those pictures. Lightroom, called LR from now on, does not move those pictures into a special LR picture folder; nor does it make a new copy of those pictures; rather, it just makes a notation where the picture is and stores information about that picture file in the LR catalog.  That was a long sentence, you might want to read it again and think about it. It is very much like an old card catalog in the Library; where each book has a card that tells where the book is on the shelf.  This analogy is so close that I will use it may times during this explanation of LR.

When you first start up LR, you will be telling it to look for picture files in a folder on your computer or on an external hard drive. Then, you tell it that you want it to add information about those pictures into its catalog.

You will use the IMPORT button, while in the Library mode, to bring up the import screen.  First, You will tell LR where the files are stored. You do this by pointing out the location in the left column where drive folders are listed. By going to the location of your picture files you want to add to the catalog you are telling LR the current location of the pictures.  Then you will choose the ADD button at the top to to perform this action.  At that point, LR will go through all the picture files you have stored at the given location and create cards for the LR card catalog for each picture (file).  The file will not contain the actual picture file but it will save a small preview picture and meta data (date of picture, camera settings and other information added later) but most importantly, it will store the location of the picture file.

Let’s go back to the library analogy. When the books are stored on the shelf in the library, they are stored by subjects.  If you know your way around the library, you can skip the card catalog (now on computers) and go directly to the stacks because you know that the photography books are  all together in a specific place in the library. You can go there and look through all the books on the shelf and find a title you want to read.  Imagine now, what it would be like if the books were just stacked randomly without any groupings. What if the books were just added to the shelves in order of when they were purchased.  At this point, you would HAVE TO go to the catalog first to see where your book might be.  When you went to the shelves to find the book you looked up, you would not find any other books similar in nature close by for comparison. This process would be very unproductive.  What if you went in and the computers were down? The library, full of information would be worthless! The more books the library had the more worthless they would be without proper organization and a card catalog.

Lightroom is the same way. To make LR as useful as possible, your pictures should be stored in an organized way.  My pictures are stored by subject matter.  The first thing to do is have one folder with  ALL other picture folders in it. If you are on a Windows PC, the “MY PICTURES” folder is an example. That works just fine. Inside that folder, you don’t want to just  dump the pictures randomly. That would be like storing snapshots in a garbage bag. Sure, they are all there together but how can you find Uncle Bill’s wedding picture?

I have my pictures divided into  19 sub folders inside “my Pictures”. Mine start with “FAMILY” then “FRIENDS” followed by “TRAVEL” and 16 other folders.  The “FAMILY” folder contains more folders; like a folder for my wife and I along with our kids (“Our Family”). Then there is a folder for my wife’s family. In the “OUR FAMILY”, you will find folders for each of us and each of our kids.  While LR makes it easy to find pictures with the various search methods, I can find pictures even without LR.  This means, if I lost the LR catalog and just had my original picture files, I would still have the access of all my pictures.

If you are just planning to install LR, I recommend organizing your pictures first in groupings of folders nested inside larger folders. I know some people who sort their pictures by date.  With a small quantity of pictures, this might be workable but as you collect more and more pictures, dates are hard to remember. Remember Uncle Jim’s wedding picture? When was that?  Sure, you can call someone or look in your date book to determine the date but for me it is easier to go to: Family > Pat’s family> Bill> Bill’s wedding> wife #4.

Once you install LR and have the catalog set up, it is VERY important to make all future changes to the organization from within LR. As long as you do this, LR will keep track of the new locations. If you just go to “MY PICTURES” and move files around, LR will not know where they have gone.

Most of the Hype about LR revolves around the Develop Module because that is the part that makes pictures look good but the real value of LR is the cataloging.  When you have tens of thousands of pictures, being able to locate them is of primary importance.  LR makes it easy to organize them.

Next Lightroom post will talk about keywords and other importing options.

General observations

Moonlight Marathon Registration is OPEN

 Moonlight Marathon at Oak Ridge Cemetery

 Looking for something different?

How about running through an historic, century old cemetery at night on a fully supported, closed road course that you can run solo or with your friends and family and with the goal of finishing your adventure closest to midnight.

The evening of May 3rd 2014 will be the inaugural running of the Moonlight Marathon at Oak Ridge Cemetery.  On that night, you will have the option to run a full marathon, marathon relay, 6.55 mile or 5k courses under a crescent moon and in the shadow of Lincoln’s Tomb.

While final details are being worked out, organizers want to let the public know about this exciting, first ever event occurring in 2014, 2015 and beyond.

Runners embark on their adventure from the lagoon bridge near the Lincoln Park Pavilion after 5:45 p.m. and enter the cemetery through the currently closed Original Entrance on 3rd Street where almost 150 years ago President Lincoln’s body passed en route to his final resting place in Oak Ridge Cemetery.

Participants will then navigate the course while passing through the beautiful yet haunting statuary and among the astounding history of the nation’s second most visited cemetery.  Racers must wind their way back to the finish/exchange area using the moon, a headlamp, a flashlight, route reflectors and course volunteers.

While the 5k and 6.55-mile racers start at 5:45pm and run the courses for the fastest time, the full marathon and marathon relay runners can choose to begin any time after 6pm with the goal of finishing closest to midnight but without the use of any GPS, phone or timing device.

These unique night time road runs are being hosted as a fundraiser for the Oak Ridge Cemetery Foundation to renovate the “Original Entrance and Gates “ on 3rd Street and to provide a never before chance to run at night in the cemetery in a controlled, safe environment with safety and race personnel on site.

On-line registration is open at the website www.triharderpromotions.com. 

Stuff We All Get (SWAG)

So Far……

Each participant in the 5k fun/run receives on-course support, a gender specific race shirt and food and drink in the Lincoln Park Pavilion after the race with live music.

All 6.55 mile, Marathon Relay (up to 4 runners) and Marathon participants will each receive on-course support, a gender specific race shirt and food and drink in the Lincoln Park Pavilion after the race with live music and a Finisher Medal.

The Moonlight Marathon Course is a chip timed 6.55 mile loop (4 loops) lined with reflectors and cones to guide you along the roads of Oak Ridge Cemetery.   The course will open at 6pm for individuals and relay teams with a finish goal of 12 midnight.  The latest time a runner can begin the marathon is 9pm.  PLEASE NOTE: As this is a loop course, no participant will be allowed to start a new loop after 11:20pm.

Beware: this may be the most challenging marathon course in the nation!  But, take whatever time you need to cover the distance because your time on this race does not matter!  Slower runners and even walkers have a chance of winning this event because all that matters is finishing closest to midnight without going over.  The majority of the race is on paved roads that wind, meander, climb and descend in one of the most beautiful venues you can imagine. However, please keep in mind that runners will be immersed in total darkness with only their headlamp, course reflectors, cones and volunteers to guide them through the cemetery.  The only traffic on the course will be course monitors and bike safety patrol.

Prediction Marathon/Relay

Marathon participants choose their own starting time based on the predicted pace with a finish time goal of midnight on May 3rd.  Teams of 2,3 or 4 people choose their own starting time based on the predicted pace with a finish of midnight.  The course will be open at 6pm for individuals and relay teams but the latest time a relay or marathoner can begin is 9:30pm.  Relay participants will run with a baton containing the timing chip, which will be handed to the next runner at the lagoon bridge exchange area.  The loss of the baton means no time is recorded.

The course closes at 1:00am and anyone still on the course at that time will be escorted back to the finish area.  If a marathoner or relay member has not started their last loop by 11:20pm, they will be stopped from starting it.

6.55 mile and 5k Fun/Run Walkers and Runners

The 6.55 mile race is one loop of the marathon course and is chip timed. The 5k course consists of a flat route that is beginner friendly; it is not chip timed.  For safety reasons, any walkers are asked to line up behind the runners.

PLEASE NOTE: All kids under the age of 12 are free to participate in the 5k but if they do not pay they will not receive a bib, shirt or post race meal.  However, food and drink can be purchased at the park pavilion.

The Course

“On May 14, 1856, an ordinance was passed forbidding the further establishment of burying grounds within the city of Springfield. A tract of land containing twenty-eight and one half acres, lying two miles north of the Capitol, was purchased by the City, for the establishment of a Cemetery, adequate to the necessities of the growing city, and sufficiently remote from the business center and every – day life to render a fitting abode to the dead.”  (Oak Ridge Cemetery Records)
Since 1865, the cemetery has grown to be the largest Municipal cemetery in the state of Illinois, encompassing 365 acres of beautiful rolling prairie land, thousands of hardwoods and conifers, and over 75,000 interments. Oak Ridge Cemetery has the distinction of being the second most visited cemetery in the nation, second only to Arlington National Cemetery.  Almost one million visitors enter these gates annually not only to pay respects to their deceased families and ancestors, but to also visit the final resting place and pay homage to our distinguished sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln.  However, none of them have the opportunity to visit the cemetery at night…

Awards:

Overall Awards will be given to the top 3 male and female individuals and teams in the marathon and relay to those finishing closest to – but not after – midnight.  A finishers medal will be provided to all those in the Marathon, Marathon Relay and 6.55 mile run.  The top 3 male and female finishers in the 6.55 mile run will receive Overall Awards. No medals will be provided for the 5k participants.

Contact:

Email triharderpromotions@gmail.com with any additional questions.  Bring chairs, pop up tents and games to set up near the lagoon to pass the time and serve as your headquarters and cheering station during the race.

On line registration is now open for the May 3rd Moonlight Marathon at Oak Ridge Cemetery at http://www.active.com/springfield-il/running/distance-running-races/moonlight-marathon-at-oak-ridge-cemetery-2014Or visit the triharderpromotions.com website for the link and latest news. After spreading the word about these events in St. Louis, Chicago and all over central Illinois, I would not delay in registering. The response has been over whelming and interest very high. Don’t delay, sign up today for the most unique runs in the most unique venue in central Illinois at night.

This site is about the ramblings of an aging Mystic.