A Bit Autobiographical

I will admit that I was actually hearing Weird Al's version of this song when I wrote it, not MJ's. I think this is my last MJ comic strip. Someone at work asked me why the character had that banner across their chest. If you have to ask, you haven't seen photos of Michael Jackson over the last 20 years. You ask me once again, "Who'll chat."

Well, not much happened from yesterday's post till now. I played with no photos last night. I did not rip any LPs. I cancelled my newspaper, so no news stories caught my eye.

Wait. I did hear that Billy Mays dies from a heart problem and not from the bump on the plane. Whew! I think US Airways dodged a bullet there. I will admit that Kyle and I made some tasteless jokes about Billy at the Pearly Gates before church on Sunday. Kyle's was along the lines of him saying "If you die now...." instead of "If you buy now...." Mine was along the lines of him saying to St. Peter, "But wait! There's more...." and Peter saying "Only Heavenly operators are standing by now."

Did anyone hear the times for Justin and Lindsay in Seattle? Guys, when you get back, let us know.

Did y'all see that Dad posted? Yup. Check it out.

Brenda, what is going on with the scrapbooking store? It might close? Not all of us are on Facebook, so you need to occasionally throw the rest of us a bone.

Oh, I got the lens back from Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. And they paid the postage. Cool. And they included a note saying have a good rest of the summer and thanks for visiting. And the girl that wrote it said I was really hot and gave me her phone number. OK, maybe not the last part. She did not give me her number, but she did say I was hot. Fine, not that part, either. I did get my lens back, though.

Apologies to MJ For Butchering His Songs

OK, so I saw the grand-ones on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and only took about 5 pictures. Were we in the Twilight Zone or what? And we had chicken instead of pizza. Church was over by noon this week, instead of the usual 12:15-12:20. Next thing you know, cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria.

Dad is doing well this week after chemo on Wed, so praise the Lord for that.

We saw the new Transformers movie on Sat. It was good, but not great; a little long, for sure.

I put up some vacation photos over the weekend. Did you see them?

I saw this morning that the finger pointing has begun between Billy Mays' family and US Airways. Apparently, they had a problem upon landing and he bumped his head. Now, US Airways is saying that he did not have on his seat belt as instructed. This will certainly get uglier before it gets better.

Looking Forward to Seeing the Past?

I know that I am. Weirdly, when I started playing with photos, I found that Dad had recently scanned in a large number of similar scenes. So I decided to share them with you, my dedicated fans.
Here is a panorama of mountains taken by Dad just a few years ago.
And here is a panorama of the San Juans from our usual family photo spot between Telluride and Ouray.
As we arrive in Ouray, we always head over to Cascade Falls. Here it is 30 or so years ago. This is Rick and Denise, right?
Even this summer, when we got to Ouray, I had to catch a few shots of the falls, even though it almost always looks the same.
Between Ouray and Colorado Springs is Canon City and Royal Gorge. Here is a shot from sometime taken from the overlook now located at the end of the parking lot.
And here it is now, from the same location. Wow, the old shot has much more depth of color. Some of that may be because mine was taken in the morning and Dad's in the evening, but some must be the difference between film and digital. That is a bit surprising.
Here is Keith and Carey walking in Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, maybe in the late 70s.
And here is Mom, Dad and Kathie checking out climbers on the top of a rock in the park. I do know that it was overcast during the majority of our trip. It kept temperatures down, but it also meant many photos will not have the blue sky like Dad's did.
One of our last stops this year was Red River, NM. Here is a shot I almost did not share. Let me preface it by saying those scarves were popular back then. This looks like it was taken about 40 years ago.
And here Kathie and I are at the same cabin last week.
OK, this one did not exist when we were young. Apparently, their kids still own the cabin and have put up the memorial to their parents. Kinda sweet.

My Version of Goodbye

Michael Jackson dies yesterday at age 50. I wonder if his ex-wife will take the children? I wonder if he had a will? I really need to get one in place. Anyway, here is my version of a fond farewell to MJ.

Did you notice that I put up a vacation blog last night? So, there were two posts yesterday, so check below this one and see the final two days of vacay in NM. I will get to earlier days soon. BTW, I still have not received my zoom lens from Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

Well, I need to get hydrated so I can finish my work today, so I will let you go. If any of you have a race this weekend, good luck. If any of you are getting over a chemo treatment, good luck. If any of you are keeping someone else's child this weekend, good luck. If any of you have a new baby in the family, lots of good luck.

Vacation - Last Day Photos

After leaving Colorado, we headed down into northern New Mexico. In Santa Fe, we ate at the Railyard Restaurant the night before and came back to this park the following morning for some photos. Here is Kathie sitting in the center of the area where the original turnaround for locomotives was located.
And here are the folks sitting in swings placed around the outer edge of the turnaround.
After Santa Fe, we headed down to Albuquerque for the afternoon and evening. As you can tell, we visited the Catholic Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.
Here, I caught the sun shining through the entrance sign of a grassy cemetery area beside the Basilica.
Across the square from the Basilica is the church of San Felipe de Neri.

Somehow, I started my picture review on the last days of our vacation instead of the first. Be patient, audience. We will get there.

Maybe I Should Sue Myself?

I was thinking that if I sued myself, I would have to come up with some new CoV ideas. However, that did not work out so well when our Republican governor sued the Republican legislature to send her the budget so she could reject it. The AZ Supreme Court said they would not rule on it. Maybe I would get nothing for my troubles, too. Fine. I guess we will see what happens. For now, here is something from my dwindling cartoon coffers.

Dad's chemo went well yesterday, and today is the white blood cell injection, so we remain hopeful.

It has been well over a week without granddaughters. Couple that with my loss of creative ideas and you can see I am becoming a withered old dude. I did play a bit last night with some of the vacay photos in RAW, but did not get anything ready for blogging yet. I have some photos soon. Really.

Don't Panic

Another cartoon from my dwindling stockpile. Luckily, I did create a new one this morning, perhaps delaying the inevitable. Don't panic yet. I'm not.
We taped Merlin last Sunday and watched it last night. We enjoyed it, although it may never become a beloved classic. We still have a Wipeout to watch. Kyle doesn't like the announcers' quips, but we feel that is what makes the dumb show fun.

We have picked a new project tracking tool (ITG Mercury), so I am studying the manuals to be ready with procedures for project managers to configure and track correctly.

And Now, The End is Near, And Now I Face the Final Cartoon....

I only have 6 cartoons ready for publishing now. So, either I get a brainstorm or June is the end of my streak. I'll see what I can do. Wow! How do those multi-year people do it? Y'all send ideas.

No, I have not taken time to play with vacation photos yet. A few were posted on Facebook, but I have a bunch more. I did copy several into a folder for review and clean-up, but nothing is ready for prime time yet.

I see Audrey was coming home yesterday. I hope her sleeping schedule is not reversed like Alison's was when we brought her home. How was Ford? Did he sleep all night?

He's Baaaack!

Just when you thought it was safe to look at Blogs again, it's time for another Crazy Uncle post. As you can see, Clarity of Vision is still alive (I will forgo saying "and well" on this sentence).

We had a great time in CO and NM. I took a few pictures, although not as many as prior years. I have not gotten my lens back from the Park Service yet, but they did not leave me any messages saying there was a problem, so hopefully, it will arrive this week.

Mom and Dad kept up pretty well for a fast-paced week. We only spent two nights in Ouray, and then a new city every night after that. We only skipped one thing from my original itinerary (the tram to Sandia Peak in ABQ). Now, we have come back to a week of triple digit temps. Ouch.

I did not get the job for which I applied a couple of weeks ago. OK, that means God has a better direction for me, so I will trust His guidance. Of course, I am disappointed and will ask the interviewing manager how I can improve my chances going forward.

I did not copy you, but I had a teammate send out CoV strips last week (tweaked slightly and labeled as being from a Guest Cartoonist). I will get them published here soon.

Hey, enough chit-chat. I've got work to do. Don't you?

But That's Not All

I cannot believe that I haven't posted last weekend's pictures, and here it is, this weekend. We leave for Colorado at 7am tomorrow, and the grand-ones are coming over tonight to celebrate Kyle's birthday, so it probably will not happen until after vacation.

I feel that yesterday's interview went very well. If we can get the money issues worked out, I am certainly interested. If not, then I thank the Lord that I have a job that I already enjoy and I will wait for His guidance.

I heard that Gayle is not doing as well as hoped. I don't know the implications, but continue praying for him and his family and his caretakers.

Don't you hate the night before a trip. I am always afraid of what I will forget. One year, we went to Disneyland and I forgot shirts. How do you forget shirts? I found a way. I think I left them hanging on the bedroom doorknob.

So, probably no updates until June 22 or so. Sorry.

It is ON

Vacation is coming soon. Can't you feel it in the air? I have already asked for the time off, so luckily, I don't have to deal with the following scenario.
Yup. I talked to Dad last night. (Many of my readers call him Granddad. My sister calls him Old Grumblebottom. Well, maybe that wasn't her, but I sure thought I heard her say that one time. Or maybe not.) Anyway, he is feeling much better and has already begun gathering various vacation-related accouterments together in preparation. The only minor disappointment is that we will leave behind temperatures only in the upper-90s and not the triple digits. Still, the high today in Ouray is only 47F, so it will still be quite a transition.

I have an interview today at 1pm for a manager job in another part of the company. Pray that I will feel the Lord's presence, both during the interview and as I consider my own future.

Lyndsay's grandfather, Gayle, had his surgery yesterday. I think there will still a few complications last night, but continue to pray for healing and recovery.

And I still have not played in iPhoto from the weekend, but I did finish loading Jeremiah Johnson into iTunes. Check out yesterday's post for the link to the company that sold me this digital download.

No Need for a Lawsuit Here

Have you seen the Simpsons episode where they skewer The Shining? Well, at one point, someone says something about the shining, but Groundskeeper Willie corrects them, saying it is the shinin' to avoid a lawsuit. Yeah, that's what I decided I needed to do today. CoV is about Bookface, not Facebook.

Somehow, last night, I got busy with other things and still have not finished uploading the Jeremiah Johnson soundtrack. I also did not do anything with photos, so the posting about last weekend is still pending.

Prayer request: Lyndsay's grandfather is in the hospital with bleeding in his brain. I think they are going to operate today, so keep him in your prayers.

Getting Centered

Well, maybe Judge Judy does not do it for all of us. Just this morning, I was praying before I got out of bed and felt like I was not centered enough on God. And that was before I knew what today's CoV was. This past Sunday, the sermon was on 1 Peter 1:16 "for it is written, 'Be holy, because I am holy.'" I know I would be centered if I lived with that creed in my mind.

It is still looking like the vacation is going to happen. Although it has not been that hot here in recent days, heading up to Colorado will be even cooler. It is only going to be 51F in Ouray today, with a low of 34F. Do not let me forget my jacket.

To those that may have inquired about such things in the past, I now have the Jeremiah Johnson soundtrack in iTunes. And for only $5. Check out Harlan Wolfe's site and support him. He was very helpful as we worked through unpacking this to a Mac.

While I am not looking, I did hear of a job opportunity that sounds interesting over in the University of Phoenix side of the company. So, I have an interview Thursday afternoon at 1pm. Please pray that I will have a sense of God's leading on this.

Monday Before the Weekend?

OK, I have posted today's CoV, but I have not yet put up any pictures from the weekend. Kathie's birthday dinner and swimming. Heading up to Riverview Mall with the granddaughters. I have uploaded the photos to iPhoto, but I have not reviewed them nor chosen which ones will be presented here in the blog. I did upload most to them to Kathie's Facebook page.

Right now, it looks as if we will get to go on vacation next week with the folks. We'll spend some time in Colorado, including Ouray, Royal Gorge, and Garden of the Gods. Most higher elevation four-wheel trails will not be open this early in the season, so that is a bit of a bummer. On the way back, we are scheduled to swing past Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Almost anywhere works, as long as it is cooler than here.

I'm glad to see some activity in WEBNET over the last few weeks. Welcome back to all who are still providing updates and keeping the extended Walker-related clan a little closer.

Happy Birthday, Dear

Happy birthday, Kathie. Why no! Nothing like this would ever go through my mind.
We are heading over to the Liberty Market in Gilbert for dinner, and then (weather permitting) back to the house for swimming. Plus, per birthday girl request, chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. It should be a fun evening. I do have some recent photos, but since I post this each morning at the office, I cannot access any right now.

Some changes underway at the office now that we have a new PM. I am not worried for my job, but the org structure will certainly be different by the end of the summer. Being an education company, our fiscal year and quarters are based on a September start date. So, I think he will want to have our area with its new alignments in place by the end of August. There has been no official announcement, but it seems logical.

But Not Me

I am not sure what my inspiration was for this, but it did not happen to me.
Hey, good news on the Dad front. His chemo this week went very well. He is still going in this morning for the anti-nausea treatment, but he is encouraged. Thanks for the prayers.

Happy almost Birthday to my lovely and beloved wife. I am more than glad that she is the one I get to spend the rest of my life with. And it is only 10 days until Kyle's birthday. Happy soon Birthday to him.

I've only got 17 strips left in my CoV queue. Why isn't anything funny happening around me? Or maybe, why can't I see anything as funny fodder right now? Come on, brain, think. Well, at least I am not having to run several miles per day. I wonder if I should rename my strip Non-Running Oldie to keep up with Justin?

We're Not Getting Older, We're Getting Better

Whether you agree or not, today's CoV plays off of the ever-increasing gap between me and these young whipper-snappers. And what is a whipper-snapper, anyway?

I did not talk to the folks, so I don't know what time Dad's chemo session is. Well, whenever you think of him, or after you read this, lift up a prayer for continued healing.

Hey, I hear Kathie's birthday is coming up this Friday. Yes, she is getting closer to a senior discount every day. I think the grandgirls will be over for a swim party and Lyndsay's cooking some sweets. Sweet.

Sewer? I Hardly Knew Her.

Fine. Let's get the comic strip out of the way right now.
OK, so now you see where the title of this post came from. Please, remember that you chose to come here of your own volition. Luckily (or unluckily), after going to these depths, I did come in with a couple of ideas for new strips. I am down to only having 13 queued up right now.

Nothing much new in the last 24 hours. Dad is scheduled for chemo tomorrow, so there might be an update on that on Thursday. Alison works Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, so there could be periodic updates on that. Kathie is being a domestic goddess this summer, but I don't see anything blog-worthy coming from that. "Honey, you should have seen Dr.Phil today!" No, probably not.

Work? It's really busy while we manage projects without a comprehensive tool. I did write up some requirements, but I don't know if they will be used or not.

I did not run any miles yesterday. I have not yet uploaded the photos from the weekend. I did not go to Southern California recently. I am not getting chemo. I did not research GERD or Apple Cider Vinegar much, although I did find an interesting article about the Daniel Diet. However, I am still learning about what might help and what might not and whether or not I have the discipline to change my lifestyle that much.

Slowing Down?

I thought that, by this age, I would get to slow down, especially on the weekends. However, after a weekend of Disneyness and work, I came in to the office today just to rest. Saturday. we went with granddaughters and family up to Williams to see the Disney Train Tour as part of their national promotion of A Christmas Carol, a new 3D movie due out in November. Wow! The 3D technology has improved since days of yore. Yes, there are photos, but I have not uploaded them yet.

Sunday was church, then folk's house, then work. Yup. I had some documentation I had to work on during the weekend. We did catch up a bit on some TV, but I had my laptop open all afternoon and went back and forth.

Hey, it's time for today's CoV.

Helpful hints have been given by friends to help get me over this GERD stuff and back to health. Apple Cider Vinegar and correcting my body's pH balance. I looked up a bit, but will study each a bit more.