It's been 16 years...

... since Wayno died.

The years have done their job. I no Longer burst into tears every time some random stimulus drags up an image of him, always with eyes wide with life and a wild grin.

I don't miss the tears, but I fear that as my memories wane, the rest of the world forgets!

A photo of Mac enjoying the first cocktail of his Hawaiian vacation!

To those of you not sharing a beverage with me in San Francisco, I'm sorry. Your life sucks and I'm on my way to Hawaii!!!

I know that sounded brutal, but the truth is often unkind!

Virgin territory!

My first attempt at blogging from my phone (it is smart, I'm not).

I'm at PDX... On my way to Hawaii!

Yeehaw!

Notes after a month hiatus:

First, win or lose, aren’t we all glad the elections are over? In Oregon, we were somewhat lucky. We’re not a swing state. Or at least that is what they say. There were very few contested contests in our state. But we were deluged by horrible negative ads for the governor of Washington. From what I can tell they are both total scumbags and their policies will destroy the state. Expect Washington to fall in the ocean sometime in mid January. (And it didn’t matter who won.)

A quick “Thank you” to the citizens of Maine, Maryland and Washington for approving same-sex marriage, and to Minnesotans for not codifying hatred of gays in their state constitution. It warmed my cockles.

I am 56 years old today. Ugly, I know. What happened to that young dude who had the world as his platter?

I read an article online the other day about how people who look old are more likely to have a heart attack. So I looked closely in the mirror. Damn near had a heart attack just from doing that. Of course people who look old are more likely to have a heart attack. Heart attacks are a function of old age. The stuff they pass as journalism these days!

And then there is the Ducks. OMG!

Thirteen wins in a row: a school record. Thirteen wins in a row: best in NCAA Division 1A football. Today they are ranked #1 in the AP poll. Talk about warm cockles!

And you are all prepared for the Fête du Bon Père (Grand- Père) aren’t you? Have you harvested the Candy Corn?

Ciao!

Cotton

2nd Anniversary. Cotton. I don't get it.

Should I send a bag of cotton balls or a bolt of cotton fabric.

So confused.

Happy Anniversary, Shannon & John!

A brief synopsis of my take on life!

Thank you, Bill Watterson!

Notes from the Sibling Call: September 30th, 2012

6:00PM PDT: the call started precisely on schedule. There were no unfortunate disconnects, no misdials and no tacky interruptions.

The general tone of the call was convivial. Other than that one expletive infested tirade, and everyone accepted the heartfelt apology afterwards, the conversation was one of sincere camaraderie. The normal nitpicking and sarcastic comments were oddly missing.

A number of critical issues were resolved with no objections.

The first proposition, entitled the “Right of Ascension Declaration Amendment”, stated that Mac, who was crowned ‘King of the Cornelison Nut House’ long ago, would accept the change in his designation to ‘Secretary-General, Chief Executive Officer, Grand Poobah, All Exulted Ruler and Tsar for Life of the Cornelison Nut House’. It was accepted without revision.

The second proposition, named the “Twelve-Twelve-Twelve Welcoming Committee” was also accepted without dissention. It stated, for obvious reasons, that Trudy and Jane would be the sole members of that committee. After the proposition itself passed, there was a lively debate about the appropriate greeting for the ‘Secretary-General, Chief Executive Officer, Grand Poobah, All Exulted Ruler and Tsar for Life of the Cornelison Nut House’. Some thought a limo at the airport would suffice. Others felt that a parade, led by nude male dancers with the ‘Secretary-General, Chief Executive Officer, Grand Poobah, All Exulted Ruler and Tsar for Life of the Cornelison Nut House’ in the Pope-mobile was perhaps more appropriate. This is the point where the somewhat spicy harangue ensued. Discussion on that detail was closed for this call, promised to be brought up in a future sibling call, when more reasonable voices could be heard.

The third proposition, the “Charitable Trust Initiative” passed after a passionately plea from one of the siblings. Apparently, somewhere in this world, there is a mobility challenged St. Bernard with desperate needs. It was agreed that we would all send 1% of our net worth to a charity that we would establish to help said Saint. I think it is safe to say that by the end of that portion of the conversation, all siblings were all in tears. It took a few moments for the sobbing to subside. I hope everyone wrote down the address of where to send the checks.

After those key issues, the conversation lowered to its normal base of criticizing the next generation, one sister’s fashion choices and the overall greatness of the clan as a whole. (Note: Two gross exceptions were noted to the overall greatness of the clan.)

At 7:00PM PDT precisely, the call ended.

Respectfully submitted.