Sam loves sticks

When he finds something valuable, he will carry it around the yard, chew on it, and eventually put someplace safe, like the family room near the TV or his pillow.

Memorial Day Breakfast in the Garden

A couple of weeks ago, when Dave was here, we had breakfast outdoors. In fact, I took the skillet out there and made the pancakes out there too. Then, I captured this image.

Televised Start time

If I recall correctly, and if it will be the same as last year, I think that the local Pacific Daylight Time start of the coverage will be at 6:30 AM with the Pre-Race Show and then actual race coverage starting at 6:30 AM--that's 9:30 AM Eastern US time. Then they repeat stuff during the morning, afternoon and evening. Thats got to be better than most professional sports! I will be up at the earliest show time. (At least on Saturday, we'll see how it goes for the rest of the race.)



Be sure to notice the time zone listed.

Weather for the Tour

I am sure you are wondering what the weather will be like at the start of the race. I was looking for weather for Liege, Belgium. Weather Underground returned Bierset. I don't know how close that is to Liege.





I haven't given up yet. But, I did find the weather station for the city of Charleroi, Belgium. That is the ending point of the July 4 day of racing.

Lance's Bike

Helpers Need Help, Too

My work was mentioned in a MEDA Publication called The Marketplace, a glossy magazine that goes to MEDA's membership. You can read the article by cliking on the links above.

Lance's Favorite Coffee

Peets can be found at www.peets.com

Tour de France News

Who's next?
Lance Armstrong's rivals are decreasing all the time. First Beloki, and now Vinokourov. T-Mobile anounced who will be in the Tour de France on their team, and Alexandre Vinokourov isn't on the list. He crashed on a traffic island in a race and suffered a concussion, facial scrapes, and ligament damage to his shoulder. The shoulder injury required surgery, which will keep him off the bike for 3 weeks — the 3 weeks leading up to the Tour (unless he's like Lance and doesn't do anything his doctors tell him to). He would have been helping Jan Ullrich in the battle to win his second Tour de France, so Ullrich wouldn't be called the 'Eternal Second'. I haven't heard about the wonderclimber Roberto Heras in a while. Maybe he wants to just train instead of race so this won't happen. See y'all next Saturday!


(Vinokourov)

Doris' Request

Beth and Steve

Enjoyed the unexpected visit from Beth and Steve this last weekend and enjoyed meeting Brianna. What a sweetheart. Doesn't really know a stranger. Also thanks to Glen, Cindi and Rob for the impromptu event at their home on Saturday eve.
Hope Sam 2 has recovered from the invasion of his kennel. Steve, I thought we would see a picture of Brianna in the kennel. Our lips are sealed as far as the child protective agency.

Doris

Beach

It was nice to see everyone. Here is a picture of Beth and Brianna at the beach. Brianna arrived safely and Jonah is out of the hospital. Thanks for the warm welcomes.

Tour de France 2004

In case you don't think you will get enough of the Tour with OLN and a possibility of another book from Lance, you can pre-order a book that will tell all about what will happen at velogear.com.

This might be what it will look like, because the riders on the cover are favorites--the German Jan Ullrich, winner in '97, and 5-time runner-up to the Tour, who won the Tour de Suisse (a one-week long race) by one second recently; the Texan Lance Armstrong, 5-time winner and 3-time beater of Ullrich; and the "Man From Marblehead, Massachussets" Tyler Hamilton, the one who got fouth place last year despite having a broken collerbone to deal with for almost the whole race, and who won the Tour de Romandie (in Switzerland) in May. Perhaps this is what the podium will look like in Paris.

Tour de France News

There are only 16 days left until the Tour de France, and the Spanish rider Joseba Beloki, Lance's main rival in 2002, and crashed out last year, announced he will not be racing in this year's Tour de France due to lack of fitness. At the end of 2003, he signed to Brioches La Boulangere (a French team) for until the end of 2005, but then he decided to cut it short and end at the end of this year, then he decided to quit in June. He is now training for the Vuelta a Espana (a major stage race in September).

Here is a picture of the coffee table book about Lance Armstrong's carreer that I mentioned in a previous post.

I never like to look at Lance struggling in a time trial like that and don't like to see him in that jersey design because I always think about that. I hope you don't have that problem.
Lance's team (United States Postal Service Presented by Berry Floor) will quit for 2005, but it will be replaced by the Discovery Chanel Team until the end of 2007 I guess. At the end of this year, the team will have the Discovery Chanel logo on it prominately. Read more at Lance's web site. Maybe this means we will have to watch lance and bike races on the Discovery Chanel instead of the current OLN. Lance announced he will ride the 2005 Tour de France, but just to make the change go more smoothly.
You can also read the entire first chapter of Lance's new book, "Every Second Counts", here.

There is a book called the Tour de France Centennial Book and is a coffee table book about the Tour de France with 360 pages of images and stories about the race in both black and white and color. It only costs $24. A limited edition.

Glen asked

Kyle's Birthday

Here is a picture of Brianna eating a piece of Kyle's birthday cake. Don't tell me there isn't entertainment at our house.

Back from Chicago

We are back. Fell into bed last night around midnight. Flight went well, though a bit choppy at times. Weird thing...no window in our row. I was bummed. When I flew to Chi-town, as we Chicago residents say (pronounced shy-town), everyone pulled down the window shades so the movie screen could be better viewed in a darker plane. What is the point in flying when you can't see the view and the weather and the sky? Ugh. The movie eastbound was Starsky & Hutch. I opted to read and nap.

I'm still doing piles of final reports. I check out of my day job tomorrow, and officially begin summer vacation. Audrey, Doris, and I will go to lunch at this cute spot in Los Alamitos called Shenandoah. Wish Beth and Mom-Jane could join us. I can't wait to be done with the school year, even though I do like my job. Next year will be year three!

Poor Lakers. But do I really care? I'm planning the French toast family breakfast for the start of the Tour de France! Moving on to sporting events that really have some excitement for me.

FYI - the Remington computer is in the repair bay for a week. If you need to share news with the Ohio folks, do it the old fashioned way...by phone.

We had a nice time in Chicago. Hotel 71 is a contempo place --- kinda weird, but nice room and cool view. Maybe Glen will blog a picture. I got to meet with 10 good friends from the old days when I lived in Wheaton. So great to catch up. Sam looked HUGE to us upon our return. Wow! It's so nice to leave him in good hands with Rob when we travel.

Still so concerned for Jonah. Hope each day is a better one. And happy birthday to Kyle! How old now?

Jonah 5

Jonah is surgery went well. No leaks into his abdomen. They resectioned his colon where it was ruptured. Beth, Brianna and I are off to see him now that he is off the ventilator. Beth is bringing Shawntea home while I stay with Jonah. That will give her a chance to spend time with Brianna and get a shower etc.
Thanks for your prayers and thoughts.

Jonah recovers part 4

Jonah is off to surgery. The did a CT scan and he has a ruptured bowel. I will be off in a couple of minutes after singing happy birthday to Kyle.

Jonah recovers part 3

Just a quick note. Jonah is having some problems with his abdomen. The medication he is on now requires that he is back in Intensive Care. I saw him late last night. Today he is hoping to go back to a regular room. Several of the firefighters are there to visit him when I called. The nurses are very good at letting people visit one at a time. Shawntea is going home for a while today and spend some time with Brianna. We will have again overnight. Here is a picture of the difficult life she leads at our house.

Jonah recovers

Beth, Kyle and I saw Jonah this afternoon. He is struggling with concentration and memory. Looking at the truck this am it is amazing to me that he survived. There is still part of the tree he hit embedded in the engine block. The tree is about three feet into the engine compartment. Quess where the engine is? No wonder his leg was shattered. He now has a metal rod from his knee to his ankle. The bone is strapped and screwed to together.
His head trainer arrived as did the chief of the largest fire department in the area. They were both supportive and made the point that firefighters stick help each other out. The chief of his department will be by tonight to talk to him as well. We will see him tomorrow. Shawntea stays at the hospital with him and we have Brianna again.
thanks for your prayers.

update on Jonah and Beth

Jonah is in Sutter Roseville Hospital. He had surgery on his leg and will be in the hospital until atleast Sunday. Kyle and I will visit him this afternoon after getting his glasses from his truck. Not looking forward to seeing his truck, heard it is in much worse shape than he is. Thanks for air bags and seatbelts.
Beth returned to work this am. She had Brianna overnight. We got to wake up to a little girl calling out for her grandma. Not like a puppy sniffing your nose, but nice.

Jonah's Accident

Jonah was in an auto accident today. He was life-flighted to Sutter Hospital in Roseville. Kyle and I visited him tonight. He has a concussion and both bones in his right leg were fractured. He is supposed to have surgery to repair his leg sometime during the night. His girlfriend Shawntea is spending the night at the hospital. Kyle and I will try and find what is left of Jonah's truck tomorrow and also contact the fire academy. He will be in the hospital for about four days. Will post more as we know more.

Tornado Watch and email restrictions

Tonight in Chicagoland the lead news story is a tornado watch and flood warnings. One tornado has been sighted south of here. I am in the town of Boomingdale, Illinois. Just gentle rain out my window.

Regarding email. I have set up a new service on my email. In order to reduce the number of unsolicited emails (SPAM) that I receive, I am trying out a system that onlyl allows those who I proactively allow to send. I think I have allowed everyone who regularly read this blog. Thanks Steve for your patience, you are now allowed to send to my account. It is not uncommon that I have to hit the delete button 50 or more times in a day for emails that I do not want. Please let me know if I have inadvertantly not allowed your eagerly anticipated and appreciated emails.

Rare Event

Beth was to ill to go to work today. Sore throat, fever, and aches. Slept most of the day with Kyle keeping watch. Well when not focusing on his video game he did listen to guess whether she was asleep or not. She is hoping that she will feel better and be at work tomorrow.

Wednesday to Chicago

I will be in Chicago through next Tuesday.




The weather looks warm and humid tonight.

I will be at the IPGA conference and visiting my CCF clients.

Basketball Fan

Ask to see Beth's DFish tattoo next time you see her. I thought I got carried away by basketball. I am just glad the Lakers won tonight.

Hello to visitors from Urban Onramps

Today I visited Rudy Carrasco of the Harambee Christian Family Center. The first time I heard of a blog was from Rudy and I have been reading his blog with some regularity ever since. Today, in his office, he captured an image of the two of us and posted it on his blog. He included a link to us, so If you are visiting from Rudy's blog, say hello with the comment feature here.

i'll challenge lance

i too, have had to drop out of a lot of races this year due to lack of fitness. this year also holds a pretty important political race, one that ted kennedy has called the "most important" election of his lifetime. hopefully both candidates will get in better shape for that race. sad to hear about president reagan. jon stewart on "the daily show" wondered out loud if reagan's death was a conspiracy started by jennifer lopez to take focus off of her third (who cares?) marriage. peace to everyone.

Tour de France News

Will Joseba Beloki, Lance's greatest rival in last year's Tour until he crashed out, not even start this year's Tour? He has had problems of not being able to have as much fitness as he should for having the Tour start in just four weeks. He has had to drop out of a lot of races this year because of his lack of fitness.
Perhaps it will be Tyler Hamilton that will challenge Lance the most in this year's Tour. He won the Tour de Romandie and is showing a lot of fitness.

You can get the Official 2004 Tour de France Poster by clicking this line. It's only 10 dollars.

Another Book About Bicycles

In my last post I mentioned two books, but I forgot about another one that looks interesting. It's called The Noblest Invention, and has a forward by Lance Armstrong. It's about how the bicycle chaned from its weird beginnings to what it is now. There are over 250 pictures and essays about it. Read more by clicking on the link above.

New Book on Lance

There is a new book out called
Lance Armstrong--Images of a Champion .
It's about Lance's life and has 239 photos of him by Graham Watson and was started several years ago. It will probably be outdated by Christmas because I think you can get it now, so this year's Tour de France won't be in it, but it looks like something I'd put on my Christmas list.

There is also a new book out on the Tour de France by Bob Roll [You know, in the Tour de France days you a greeted by the commentators PhilLigget, the guy with one name and that TourDay France guy, Bob Roll (and Paul Sherwan)].
It's 192 pages at $11.

Here's what Bobchi's book looks like:


Happy shopping!

autochthonous

The word that a kid spelled to win the national spelling bee.

au·toch·tho·nous adj
1. used to describe a rock, mineral deposit, or geologic feature that was formed in the area where it is found
2. descended from the original flora, fauna, or inhabitants of the region in which it is found
3. produced or originating as a physical function or disorder in the place where it is found

Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

Click here for more news in the online edition of an Indianapolis news paper.

Awards

Any suggestions for the awards for the caption contest. I was more interested in the dinner that accompanies the presentations. Beth and I have stuff for a garage sale that might work. Easier to give away then sell. Still looking for more entries.

captions

I am having fun with the captions. Liked the others as well.

School Ending for Cindi...and Beth Back in Summer School

I'm wrapping up hours and hours of paper work for the next week or so. Students end their homeschool year tomorrow. I am swamped with work. Rumor has it Beth is back at it with summer school administration. I'm looking forward to things winding down and reading a good book for fun again. Samson II went to the vet today for his next shot in the puppy shot series. He weighed in at 24.5 American pounds and was found to have dirty ears. I lost the lottery and so I will be putting drops in while he bites me for ten days...wrestle mania with a wagging tail.

Caption contest

I think this could be fun. Use the comment function to submit a caption for this photo.

glenmeril lagasse, celebrity cook

Caption Contest 4

Caption contest 3

Caption contest 2

Valueable prizes and lavish praise to the winners.

Steve's Birthday

Beth and I had a nice dinner out. New Italian place in El Dorado Hills. Great food and lovely setting. Thanks for the pictures Rob. Wished we could have been there to enjoy the day with all of you. We are working on a schedule for this summer with Kyle. I am trying to set up a trip that includes college visits, a dodgers game and time with family. After looking at what already is scheduled, not sure when that can be.... Again thanks to Rob for the photos. I just picked a few, but let me know if you want others, I have saved them all to my website. Take care to all of you.

can't buy a car with cookies

i started summer school today. for six weeks, i will take four hours of math a day monday-thursday. it's going to be a challenging course. i feel kind of guilty that today i witnessed sam and ashley's gleeful play session in their new (and already punctured) kiddie pool, while glen and cindi were away, missing the priceless laugh riot. sadly, no photos were taken of the event, but i was able to capture several candid shots from the combined birthday celebration that took place on sunday. it should be viewable here . *note to blog administrator: i give permission for you to post any or all of these pictures on the actual blog site if desired. it may make for easier access.* the celebration was a lot of fun, although i had to cut out a bit early to go to work on time. sorry not all the birthday boys and (or) girls were not all able to attend, although they were acknowledged by their names on the cake.