Ace Wisdom

I finally had the 14 stitches removed from my last skin cancer procedure on my shoulder. Now we get back to “normal”. The previous facial surgery left me with a black eye. The black eye still hasn’t totally disappeared. It might just be my imagination, but the incidence of skins surgeries seems to be on the increase. The clinic I first visited around 1990, now has over 20 locations in the “valley”.
I finished my turbo-tax exercise over the weekend and should be ready to file my federal and state taxes. I still mail the forms versus e-mailing. Call it old fashion. I am looking for a loan because I need to pay into the federal coffers. Has anybody body got any extra money laying around?
Grandson Mitchell is playing a basketball tournament in Kaukauna in March. It is amazing the distances that the basketball teams travel for a tournament. I think the dates are March 10-11.
Great-grandson number 1 has reached birthday number 1. Happy Birthday Aayon (? I hope I got the spelling right).
There is hope. The days are getting longer. We’ve had more than our fair share of 40 degree days. Next week March begins. Can Spring be far behind?
Love,
Dad

The ritual of preparing tax returns is here again.
I purchased my Turbo-Tax software and loaded it onto my computer.
“Turbo” immediately checked for updates and downloaded those onto my computer.
I got to download my one free State tax software program.
I gathered my receipts into a box.
For “backup” and detailed explanations, I picked up a free copy of Federal Tax Publication 17 from the local IRS office. It is a good reference book.
Finally, yes finally, I could start to enter my information onto the Turbo-Tax program. It seems to get more complicated each year.
I have a few thoughts to share about taxes (hey, it is my blog)!
First, old retired people should not have to fill out tax forms.
We should not have to pay Federal or State taxes.
The government should have to support me in the style to which I have become accustomed.
All medical programs should be “free”.
Long term care should be mandatory unless one of my kids would like to take in a cranky old man (the choice should be mine). There have been cases of abuse.
Oh yeah. I think all Senators and House Representatives in Washington should have to live by the same rules that I do. Hmmm! Maybe that is what would change the complicated tax/medical system around. Don’t hold your breath for that to happen.
Enough bitching. I need to fill out my Turbo-Tax to see if I get a refund.
Love,
Dad

It is Valentine’s Day. There must be someone in your life that makes everything worth while. Give that someone a big kiss, a warm hug and say the words “I love you”.
To save my precious time I say sincerely, I love you all!
When I was growing up, I played basketball on Saturday mornings at the High School Gym. We just showed up on Saturday (no practice) and 8th graders played each other. Seventh graders did the same. I think teams went down to 5th grade. We all played one game.
My Mother and Dad argued about Saturday morning basketball. When I was in seventh and eighth grade, our church (Reformed Evangelical Church) had catechism lessons. The study classes also met on Saturday morning. There you have it. A choice had to be made between basketball or eventual Confirmation. I remember my Mom pleading that “for once, let the studies at church take precedence”. Of course my Dad won, again!
Saturday was a return to “yester-year”. Grandson Mitchell plays basketball every Saturday but it is very organized. It is always a double elimination tournament which means even if you lose, you keep playing. That means 3 games every Saturday (remember I played one). So I got to watch the Middleton 8th Graders A team play at 8:00AM, 10:00AM, and Noon. They are 40 minute ball games and the clock contines to run most of the time.
Mitchell plays first string on the A team. That means he is in the top 5 out of 60 candidates for the team. I remember playing first string was a big deal because it meant you weren’t getting slivers in your ass sitting on the bench.
Believe it or not Mitchell is not the tallest on the team but it is close. He is the most physical. He is the teams best rebounder and may be the best “team” player. So he was fun to watch.
Middleton lost game one (by about 4-5 points).
Middleton won game two “big time”. In this second game, Mitchell played the center position for a lot of the game. I know he scored 11 points in the second half alone. No dunks yet! Hey that’s my Grandson outthere.
Middleton lost game three (again by 4-5 points).
So I got to reminisce about Saturday basketball. It was enjoyable. It was exhausting.
Mitchell goes into high school in the fall. This is the last of his Saturday morning games. He will have good memories.
Stay warm.
Love,
Dad

The snow is falling. The wind is blowing up to 35 mph. There is a weather advisory in our area until noon today. “You’ve got to be kidding”. This was supposed to be a minor dusting. My driveway has 2-3 inches of snow.
We had travel plans for the day.
Then as I sat down to write this blog, I felt a foreign object in my mouth. To my chagrin it turned out to be the top of one of my teeth. Apparently a crown “popped” off a back tooth. I guess the good news is that the tooth has had a root canal and there is no feeling. Better news is I didn’t swallow the damn crown.
What do I hear? It is a plow coming up the street. Whoa! There is big pile of snow laying in my driveway. Sure, pile it on!
It is only 10:00 AM in the morning. What other surprises could come my way?
It has been easy to forget that it is winter. We’ve been spoiled by all the warm weather and lack of snow. I guess I shouldn’t complain.
Stay warm.
Love,
Dad

Grasshopper No.3 has a birthday today. If he lives to be as old as Nana, he hasn’t lived half his life yet. Happy Birthday No.3.
Last Thursday I got the stitches removed from the facial basal cell procedure (14 stitches I counted as the nurse cut them out). Yesterday, I had a second procedure on my shoulder and I’m sure there are at least 14 more stitches. So now I have to be on good behavior for two weeks until the new stitches are taken out. The bottom line is I can’t sleep on my right side because of my face, I can’t sleep on my left side because of my shoulder and I can’t sleep on my back because the shoulder hurts. All that is left is sleeping on my head or on my ass.
I try not to be superstitious but my mother conditioned me with enough voodoo to scar me for life. Things like “if a bird flies into your window at home, someone in the family is going to die”. If that is true, all my relatives would be dead. Or “everything happens in threes”. Or if you find a penny and it is “face-up”, someone from “beyond” is watching you. Of course, some things are just plain luck.
I figured I was on a roll last Thursday. I found a nickel on the sidewalk and the coin was face up. That is five times better than a penny. Surely it was devine guidance from above. The exhuberance of finding the coin encouraged me to make a bet with Grasshopper No.3 and Grasshopper No.4 on the Super Bowl. Not big money but I was sure I would win a couple of bucks. With the winnings from the Super Bowl, I planned to buy a $2 ticket on a PowerBall. After winning PowerBall, I would be on easy street and give most of the money to my kids. Can the story get any better?
Somehow my luck changed. I lost the nickel! Maybe that was an omen. I lost the SuperBowl bets so not only couldn’t I buy a PowerBall ticket, I had to dig deep to pay off my bets. Sh–!
The nickel was supposed to be the start of something great. Both my Dad and Mom would be capable of joking with me from “afar”. You know, give him a nickel and watch how it plays out. But I am not superstitious so none of this stuff could have happened anyway.
But you never know. Maybe the next nickel will launch me into something great.
Love,
Dad

I have never possessed a debit card. I have never used an ATM machine. Never. Ever! Somehow the prospect of using a debit card for a McDonald’s senior coffee seems absurd.
The alternate choice is cash. Yes cash. Carry enough cash to handle the daily type of expenditures. I carry cash in my pocket. It gets replenished each week. When it is gone, it is gone.
Lately I’ve had extra cash in my pocket, appearing almost like magic. What the hell?
For Christmas we got gift cards from several sources (Grasshopper No.3 and Tony) for the Hu-Hot restaurant. It costs $25 everytime we go out to eat. Using the gift card means that I didn’t have to use cash from my “magic pocket”. It adds up. For sure, we eat out once a week and sometimes more. January was a very good month. My pocket swelled.
A gift card for the local movie theater meant free blockbuster film releases with popcorn and beverages. January included “the Girl with the Dragon Tatoo”, “Mission Impossible” and “War Horse”. Do you have any idea what popcorn costs at the theater? My “cash pocket” grew again.
This morning I decided to change the color of my car from “salty white” to silver. The car wash is usually $12-$15. Grasshopper No.3 gave us enough free car wash certificates to last a year. I just whip out a certificate and $15 stays in my pocket.
So after the month of January, I’ve got extra cash in my pocket. What do I do with the cash? Wait, I’m just opening a letter from my health insurance company. Oh no! They are raising my rates and it is going to cost me another $400 per year. There goes my cash. Isn’t that just like life. My surplus cash from my pocket goes to cover a different expense. Will I ever get ahead?
The problem now is that the “honeymoon” of using gift cards is over. Well, back to the magic pocket.
Love,
Dad

A belated birthday wish to first grandchild Dano. How could we miss Jan.27?
Speaking of birthdays, Feb.1 marks what would have my brother Jack’s 69th birthday. He always got a $10 bill from his Godparent, Roy Cable, a bartender at the City Club. My Godparents never sent me anything (they were farmers). Who said life was fair?
Feb.2 (Ground Hog Day) marks the date that Grandma Myrna’s Dad was born. How special was that? He lived 95 years.
Feb.7 marks 48 “big ones” for Grasshopper No.3. Unbelieveable! He still doesn’t need glasses and I haven’t notice gray hair.
Feb.11 marks Nana’s date of birth. She almost made 99 years.
February marks many important birthdates. Hmmmm! I’m sure I’m missing someone.
They say a rising tide lifts all boats. The inference is that as the economy gets better, it has a positive effect on all people and job creation. The economy is still struggling but it seems to have stabilized and there are signs that things are improving.
When people feel comfortable with the economy improving, they buy new cars. My dream has always been to own a Chevrolet Suburban. It one of the largest SUV’s made. Grasshopper No.3 calls it “the biggest piece of iron on the road.” I’ve always been deterred by the sticker shock of a new Suburban. Fully loaded, a Suburban can run almost $60,000. Whoaaa! So a Suburban remains a dream.
Forget my dream! The improving economy has encouraged some other family members in Sheboygan on Saemann Ave. to “take the plunge” and buy a Chevy Suburban. It must be nice! They will sit a little higher than everyone else when they drive down the road and they can haul lots of “stuff”. Because the Suburban’s pedigree eminates from the truck platform, the engines are designed for several hundred thousand of trouble free miles. I noticed that right after their Suburban purchase, our national economic numbers (GDP) jumped up again.
This morning I stopped to put gas in the “Beemer”. I needed 9 gallons and spent around $30. Next to me was a new Suburban. He was pumping gas when I drove up and was still pumping gas when I left. I think the SUV holds 30 gallons of gas which means it can hold in excess of $100 worth of petrol. Holy Sh–!
Actually the Suburban will used in lots of work situations and is very practical for the application. It might be a little pricey but owning the dream is priceless.
Keep that economy going!
Love,
Dad