Ace Wisdom

I recently visited a “new” doctor and I had to fill out a personal information card.  One question was “list your nearest friend to call in case of emergency”.  What?  I don’t have any friends!  I left the question “blank”.  Maybe in the New Year (2015), I should work on finding a friend.  At least then I could fill out the form.

Christmas for me has evolved.  Growing up (Period 1), Christmas Eve was divided into 2 parts.  Christmas started with Grandma who owned the City Club followed by our “family Christmas” in the same building but shifting to our upstairs apartment.  My Dad was always a little kid at heart so there were lots of toys capped with an erector set (I was never sure whether it was mine or his).

Period 2 was “our early marriage years”.  Your Mom and I tried to satisfy all family members on Christmas Eve.  We lived in Sheboygan.  I remember one Christmas Eve where we visited Nana and Grampa (Mom’s folks) followed by a visit to my Mother, Mom’s Aunt Francis and my Grandma Myrna.  It was insanity.  But hey, we were trying to make everybody happy.  Change can be difficult.

Period 3 was “our Christmas”.  The center of the Christmas was being home.  I recall bicycles, lots of toys, computers and a special trombone for Grasshopper No.2 (which I think she still has).

Period 4 evolved to you Grasshoppers having your own family Christmas.  Your Mom and I have experienced invites to share “your time” but it was your special event.  We still maintained our home Christmas but had a different feel.

Period 5 is our attempt to get our extended family together on one special day close to Christmas and provide the opportunity for you Grasshoppers, spouses, grandchildren (along with their spouses and friends), great grandchildren and extended family to share a special time.  Your Mom gets all the credit.  The lights, the flowers, the food, the smells and the anticipation are because of her effort to “create”.  That is why I married her!  There are gifts but make no mistake.  It is about sharing and hugs

I don’t know what the future Period 6 Christmas will look like.  Time will tell.  It will be festive.  There will always be fond Christmas memories.

Enjoy those close to you!

Love,

Dad

 

 

Sunday is the shortest day of the year!  Everything gets better after that.

Grasshopper No.4 was describing his holiday schedule to me.  It sounded vaguely familiar.  Most people working in a manufacturing environment (i.e. making cookies or in No.4’s case, pumps and compressors), have a large number of days off between Christmas and New Years Day.  Officially there is the day before Christmas, Christmas Day, the Day before New Years and New Years Day.  Mix in “floating holidays” and a little vacation and you end up with a lot of time off.  Truly Happy Holidays.

I see that the U.S. is re-establishing relations with Cuba, our communist neighbor 90 miles to the south.  I’m not sure what that means but I have been watching news broadcasts from “Cuber” recently.  Cubans have had to keep their American cars from the 1950’s because they were not allowed to trade or import new cars.  The streets are filled with old Chevy’s, Plymouths, Fords and a few Oldsmobiles.  It is like stepping out of a time capsule and going back to my high school years (1954-1958).  It is amazing how many times Cubans rebuilt an engine or replaced a rusting fender.

I did own a few “car projects” over the years.  My biggest effort was the 1960 used  Rambler (by Nash).  Your Mom and I were just married and broke.  We had the cost of finishing college, starting a job, and raising 3 young kids.  Buying new car was just behind baby food and feeding a family.  The Rambler engine would burn out the valves every 30,ooo miles requiring major engine overhaul.  Finally on a warm May morning in 1965 on the way to work in Milwaukee, the Rambler “puked” (to use Grasshopper No.5’s description).  I pulled up to an intersection, the car engine stopped and it was officially a pile of  junk.  I wonder what the Cubans would have done because they did not have the option of a new car.  The result of my “Rambler Puke” was my first financed car, a 1965 dark blue Chevrolet Bel-Air V-8 with a stick shift on the column.  It had an AM radio.  That’s it.  No Blue Tooth, FM, seat belts or air conditioner.  It was beautiful.  It was mine.

I see UW Badgers got past the “job posting” cherade.  Paul Chryst is now the official  coach of the UW football team.  It is a good fit.  He will start with a salary of $2.3 million per year with guaranteed annual increases.  How do I get a job like that?

Our family knows Santa!  In fact, Santa and I are having lunch today.

Love,

Dad

 

 

 

 

 

Admittedly I do use premium gas.  Today, it  was below the $3.00 price level. I feel guilty keeping the extra money in my pocket!

Usually I play music from my CD’s into a headset as I walk each day.  At the same time the Mall plays “elevator music”.  During the holidays, the music switches to Christmas themes and I dispense the headset.  It is always a nice change.

Barry Alverez is waiting until Wednesday to announce the new head coach.  Something about State Law insisting that there be a waiting period of 5 days so that all potential candidates have a chance to apply.  It is the Law!

The Packers let control of their destiny slip away by losing to Buffalo on Sunday.  In fact, they already have given Seattle the chance to have home field during the playoffs.  The Pack needs to step it up.

Enjoy the season!

Love,

Dad

 

 

 

It appears that the next coach for the UW Badger football team will be Paul Chryst.  He has a Wisconsin pedigree.  Let me see!  It took one day to find a replacement for Gary Anderson, the resigning coach.  So much for grieving.

The last time a coach left (Bret Bielema), Athletic Director Barry Alverez graciously agreed to be the “temporary coach” for the impending bowl game.  He coached the Rose Bowl team to a loss.  What a guy!  Oh yeah, he got a bonus of over $100,000 for his extra effort.  Again after losing it’s coach, Barry has graciously decided to coach the upcoming Outback Bowl against Auburn.  I’m sure this time it will be for free (and I believe in the Easter Bunny).

This year more of our Christmas shopping has been via Amazon.com and other online websites.  The result is the UPS truck, the Postal Service and Fed-X have been steady visitors to our house.  I think we save money with cyber purchases but who really knows.  Some deliveries come to the front door and are placed on the door step.  Some deliveries require a door bell.  Narrow packages are placed between the storm door and our front door.  Some packages are placed on a ledge between garage doors.  Small “stuff” gets jammed in the mailbox.  Common practice is to leave packages somewhere on the property hoping you will eventully find it.  Frankly, it becomes like an Easter Egg Hunt.  Years ago (?), a delivery would never be left on a door step because it might be stolen.  Apparently that delivery rule doesn’t apply any more.  Would you believe a rented “U-haul” truck made our last delivery.

I have to admit that ordering a gift with “the push of a button” is an easy way to spend money.  Sometimes too easy.

If we aren’t home when you have our Christmas gift delivered, just park it in the driveway and leave the keys under the floor mat.

Love,

Dad

 

 

 

 

I watched the Green Bay Packers pile up a 31-10 half time lead against Atlanta last night.  Game over!  Whoa.  Atlanta closed to within 6 points in the second half and had a chance to win the game.  It is a good thing Atlanta’s star receiver, Julio (pronounced Hulio) Jones ran out of gas in the last 3 minutes of the game.  Atlanta  just wore him out.  Green Bay has a week to figure out how to put a good pass defense on the field.

I admit that I am somewhat paranoid about “Big Daddy” watching me.  The information that goes into my medical record is immediately shared with half the world.  Financial information is either “hacked” or stolen all the time.  The latest statistic I heard was that there is a 98% chance your personal data is going to be illegally obtained by somebody.

Recently I plugged into Ancestry.com.  I ended up tracing our family name back to Plymouth Rock and before that England.  In order to be absolutely sure I got it right, I’d have to validate detailed information for each generational “step”.  Recently I’ve discovered you can send a DNA sample of yourself (i.e. a cotton swab from your mouth) to Ancestry.com and they can use it to compare to their data base.  It could help discover and validate a whole family history that was impossible before.

Let’s think about this.  Ancestry.com will have your DNA on record and lots of personal information.  If you get the new Apple iphone 6+, you can use your fingerprint to activate the phone (which means you print is on file).  Your cell phone has a chip that allows GPS tracking so that your whereabouts is always known. Your medical records are known to everyone.  Credit card security is a joke.  Let’s face it.  “Big Brother is here”.

Did you ever wonder if they know what color underwear you wear?  Of course they do!

Love,

Dad

Every little kid has a “favorite place”.  You know.  Some sort of security that is warm and comforting.  Great Grand daughter Myla (15 months old) likes the family dog house.  When her parents can’t find her, just check the dog house.  It is secretive and has a friend with a wagging tail.  I want Myla to know her place is not that unique.  Hell, I’ve been in the dog house for 54 years.

There is something about Dec.5 that I should remember?  I think St. Nick came on this date and it was like a mini-Christmas.

I remember.  Grandson Mitchell has a birthday today.  He turns 17.  Happy Birthday Mitchell.  As my Mother would say “these are best days of your life”.

There is this mythical time in life that is referred to as a “mid-life” crisis.  For guys it supposed to be a realization that life is flying by and they begin to risk doing stupid things before it is too late.  The clues are pants that are too tight or thinning hair.  It is a time for buying fast cars or chasing “fast” women.  It could be trying to start a business.

I never experience a “mid-life” crisis.  I was always waiting for the clues.  It has dawned on me that as I live my “senior years”, maybe now I am getting clues similar to a “mid-life” crisis.  Open heart surgery might be a clue.  Possibly shocking the heart because it was out of rhythm (that was just a residual procedure of heart surgery) was a clue.  How about losing a permanent tooth replacing it with an implant.  Does double cataract eye surgery count.  Maybe  all these issues are just clues that my life is changing.  Maybe I’m finally having a “mid-life” crisis.  That could mean I’m only mid-way through my life (only half-way) and I’ve got another 70 plus years to harrass the family.  Yeah, right.  I think I am experiencing mid-life crisis because I keep doing stupid things.

This morning I stopped at Festival Foods and was serenaded by carolers as I entered and left.  I found a store stuffed with candies, nuts and more candies.  I got home and your Mom has wreathes, lights, ribbons and bells everywhere.  There is definitely something going  on.

Enjoy the Season.

Dad

 

 

Your Mom must have been feeling sorry for me because she made me my own order of “old fashion” dressing.  It was missing from the “paleo” Thanksgiving dinner.  What a gal!  Awwwww.

Grandson Mitchell got our tickets for the final UW Badger home game on Saturday against rival Minnesota.  Melvin Gordon got the Big 10 rushing record and the Badgers qualified for the Big 10 Championship game next Saturday.  Does it get any better?

Aaron Rodgers out-dueled Tom Brady on Sunday afternoon at Lambeau.  Brady  will have to go home to his 22 million dollar “shack” in California and be comforted by model wife Gisele.  Losing sucks.

I understand a beer at Lambeau is $7.50.  Really?  My Grandparents ran a guesthouse in the 1920’s and there was a big sign on the side of the building featuring 10 cent “steins” of beer and a free buffet.  The buffet’s were usually raw ground steak, onions, cheese and some veggies.  At Lambeau, if you want something to go with your $7.50 beer, offerings start at $20.  Hey, I love it.  It is great to be an owner of the Green Bay Packers.

Mom and I got to hold an early Christmas with Grand-daughter Keely, husband Pedro and of course, Great Grand-daughter Myla.  Myla looks just like the pictures Grasshopper No.3 keeps showing me on his cell phone.  Keely and Pedro were headed to Lambeau on Sunday afternoon and then home to Cleveland.  Hey, how did they get tickets to Lambeau?

Last weekend was a Wisconsin blockbuster.  The Badger basketball team won the Bahama tournment,  the Badger football team moved on by qualifying for the Big 10 championship and the Packers played a flawless 60 minutes of football.  The teams are still “dancing”.  This week could be even better.

Stay warm

Love,

Dad