No Oil Spill Here!

I am definitely a mountain guy. I don't care much for the beach at all. I have a lot of friends this time of year who are leaving for vacations on the beach. In Louisiana, that typically means the gulf coast of Mississippi, Alabama or Florida. Sometimes it means Galveston or if you're looking for a much less expensive option - maybe Holly Beach. (LOL!)

This year my beach-loving friends are all meeting with some complications due to the BP Oil spill. To me, it's all the same. If you're going to lay there miserable in the sweltering heat and humidity of the gulf of Mexico with sand sticking to your sweaty, sunburned body while lots of fat people with way too much skin showing walk around you, what difference does a few tar balls make? Give me the Rocky Mountains any day of the week! Doesn't matter what time of the year - Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall - It's beautifully picturesque and there's plenty to do (without the afore mentioned sweat and sand and fat people hanging out of their swimsuits!)

Yesterday we learned some good friends have purchased us a week's accommodations in Steamboat Springs, CO this coming February for a nice skiing vacation. We are SO excited! Come February we'll enjoy the scenery and the snow, the friendship and the fun and guess what - No tar balls!

Robin's Last Day at Chick-fil-a and Some Thoughts From A Former Pea-picker

Today was Robin's last day as an employee of Chic-fil-a. It was her first job and a very good one. They are a great company with wonderful morals and require their employees to be courteous, to dress appropriately and to treat customers (and each other) with respect! I would recommend any family who has a son or daughter contemplating their first job to consider Chick-fil-a. Robin will be going through Master's Commission this fall and between now and then she will be working as a nanny for a family in our church. Nannying is a good fit for Robin. She loves kids and kids love her. It makes me believe I can look forward to a wonderful passel of grandkids one day. (One day a long, long time from now!)

I remember my first job: My first job the government knew about and I paid taxes on that is (there were many other after school watermelon hauling, hay hauling, and the hauling of other various things type jobs that were really the equivalent of slave labor that I did before this). My first job that required me to get a social security number (you didn't get those at birth in those days) was a job at the Louisiana Experimental Station in Calhoun, LA. I literally picked peas every day all day long for an entire summer. It was hot, hard, back-breaking work that I believe paid $2.15 an hour.

What is the moral of this story? I have none, but to say that Robin retiring from her first line of work put me in mind of my first job and made me thankful that I'm not still picking peas for a living! I wonder if some of you would like to share your first job experiences?

One Proud Papa (and mom)

Mr. Monk The Entertainer

I love movies, but I don't watch a lot of television. There just aren't many shows that are written well enough to keep my attention. Monk was the exception. Here's what happened.

Our family discovered Monk late (a year or so ago) and started watching it on DVD. This past season (the final season) we recorded on our DVR and just got to the finale tonight. It was very bittersweet. I loved this show!

What's not to love about an OCD, germaphobic detective? That thing he did with his hands, the wipes, his little sayings... It was a masterpiece!

We loved the characters: Randy Disher, Captain Stottlemyer, Harold the rival nutcase - There were some really great characters on the show. I have to say I liked Natalie more than Sharona (she dressed way too trampy!) but I preferred Dr. Kroger over Dr. Bell.

Monk's devotion to his wife's memory and the tenderness he felt for her was always moving. I wish more marriages were portrayed that way on T.V.

Now here's the thing: What I loved most about Monk was he provided Donna, Chase and I a lot of laughs (Robin wasn't a fan). We're definitely going to miss him! I guess you might say the show was a gift... and a curse.