RIP, Dad

In late June, my father, Don Walker, passed away from a glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the same brain cancer that Sen. John McCain has been diagnosed with. It sounds as if they caught Sen. McCain's cancer earlier that Dad's. I hope so. It is an ugly illness with a life expectancy of around 14 months once diagnosed. When they ran an MRI in early April and found Dad's GBM, they said it was far along and gave him 3-6 months to live. Sadly, he only lived another 3 months, and for half of that, he could no longer communicate.

Once he was released from the hospital and moved into a senior living facility, the staff and hospice personnel were very supportive and responsive to his needs and to mine when I requested something for him, whether it was service or food or drink. I also want to thank my siblings and spouses for their support during the days leading up to and following Dad's home-going.

I think the above photo was taken in October of 2012. We were on a trail just outside of Ridgway, CO. He is wearing one of his many Ouray polo shirts.

Where's Your Chutzpah?

Chutzpah? No, I am not talking about some exotic vegetable, nor even those cute little dolls you win at carnival games. I am talking about guts, nerves, boldness. I am also including self-confidence. Earlier this week, I suddenly got an email that 2 of my 5 projects had been transferred to a different manager. I admit it made me concerned about my boss' boss' interpretation of my skills. Luckily, my boss said they he and his boss both need me to really focus right now on the 3 that are well along in their lifecycle, and the newest team member needed a couple of projects just starting so he can work them from the start.Whew!

People who live in a warm/hot climate can certainly relate to this photo:

On the cover of Apple laptops is an illuminated emblem of the apple. A market has grown around tickers for Apple laptops that showcase the apple in clever ways. You can see some here.

I throught this little poster was kind of funny.

I am watching the Super Bowl as I write this post. The Patriots have scored 25 unanswered point in the second half and the game is tied. I thought for sure that the Falcons were going to dethrone them. I am now much less confident. At least we get to see the first ever overtime in Super Bowl history. BTW, Lady Gaga's halftime show wasn't too bad.

This weekend, we had family come down from Seattle and we joined KLIK+JV and our visitors at the zoo on Saturday. We had a lot of fun. However, a nephew was NOT happy that there are no penguins at our zoo.

Salesman Son thinks I would enjoy Black Mirror on Netflix. Have you seen it? One site described the series as "a hybrid of The Twilight Zone and Tales of the Unexpected which taps into our contemporary unease about our modern world." So, I will be checking that out. And an ad for a new FX show, Legion, looks interesting, too. Well, as my family notes, it "sounds like something you would watch." Plus, The Walking Dead is back. Whoo hoo.

No, I have not found a tool yet for creating new comics. I just now checked and my former tool is still offline.

Otherwise, I am not finding much to share right now. So, I thought about not publishing until I get more, but who knows how long that could be. So, here's a little update.

Post-Inaugural Inanity

The inaugural comments were not mine, but the inanity you usually encounter here definitely is. Let's start first with a couple of things Trump said in his inaugural address...

"What truly matters is not which party controls our government, but whether our government is controlled by the people. January 20th, 2017 will be remembered as the day the people became the rulers of this nation again." I know we are all hopeful that we see a country we are all happy and thankful to be part of.

"Together, we will make America strong again. We will make America wealthy again. We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And yes, together we will make America great again." I am less confident what will change to make there statements true, but all I can do is lift up our country and leaders in prayer.

On CBS Sunday Morning, I was reminded of comments from a couple of other inaugural addresses.

Of course, one of the most famous sentences of an inaugural address comes from John F Kennedy. "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." You've got to admit that is an uplifting and stirring sentiment.

How about Abraham Lincoln? "On the occasion corresponding to this, four years ago, all thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war. All dreaded it, all sought to avert it. While the inaugural address was being delivered from this place, devoted altogether to saving the Union without war, insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war, seeking to dissolve the Union and divide effects by negotiation. Both parties deprecated war, but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive, and the other would accept war rather than let it perish, and the war came." Who knows? It could have been quite a while before his opponents realized he had just slammed them big-time.

In case you were wondering, no, I did not watch the speech live. I read his comments later. I didn't go to JFK's or Lincoln's either.

In a related vein, how would you like to see Obama's farewell address songified? You can stop halfway through if you want since you will have seen the repeated 'chorus' a couple of times.

I've got to agree with the creator of this next photo. Now, I cannot see anything else.

I would NOT like to come across this at my house, either.

As I type this, I have just finished watching the NFC and AFC Championship games. It seems Atlanta will take on New England. I will be pulling for the Falcons.

With the games over for today, CBS is airing a new program, Hunted, about a games in which people are trying to evade others hunting them. So, they have to stay off the grid for 28 days. If they can do so, they win $250,000. Could you do it? On the show, they are alerting us to how many cameras see us all day every day. I don't think I would make it. I cannot imagine any of them will.

Get A Head of Jimmy Carter?

Why didn't anyone tell me I could have purchased a wax figure of Abraham Lincoln for $9,000? I missed the auction, which was held last Saturday in Gettysburg, PA. He sold for $8,500. Obama sold for $2,000. Hillary Clinton went for $675. BTW, no, I wold not have placed him in my car for the purpose of using the HOV lane. I mean, come on, who's going to pull over Honest Abe? Before we leave this topic, let's take a look at Jimmy Carter's head.

Why didn't anyone tell me that I can buy some retired circus items such as juggling balls or branded tents? Actually, they are still available, and you can bid through February. Oh yeah, one other small item. They require a minimum $50,000 deposit if you will be bidding, so check your couch cushions. Speaking of circuses, I'm sure you heard the news that Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be closing forever this coming May. Even through we have not attended for many years, it still feels sad since they have been an American staple for for 146 years.

I found this interesting story on vox.com. There is a video of the process in the article, but here is the key info. "Shigeru Miyamoto is a big name in gaming. Since he first designed Donkey Kong in 1981, he’s been called “the father of modern video games” — and for good reason. Before Donkey Kong, most video game designers tackled game design by working on the programming first, not the plot. But Donkey Kong started out as a game adaptation of the 1980 Popeye movie with a hero, a bad guy, and a damsel in distress. After Nintendo was unable to secure the rights to use those characters, Miyamoto was inspired to invent a story that used the same themes. He wound up with the classic love triangle between a gorilla, a princess, and the character we now know as Mario. Three decades and 247 Mario titles later, Miyamoto faced a unique game design challenge this year: creating a game for a console that Nintendo didn’t design. Super Mario Run, released for iPhone in December 2016, is the first Mario game for a non-Nintendo platform. designing it meant using the touchscreen — quite possibly the simplest controller they’ve ever worked with — and creating a game users could play just by tapping one finger."

I like this next product. It is the Tapplock, the world's first fingerprint smart padlock. Worried because it requires a charge? Fear not (according to the website), the rechargeable lock works for 18 months on a single 2-hour charge.

How's the new year treating you? Well, I hope. I pray that you are using this new year as a new beginning to your lives. Spiritually, physically, financially, emotionally, mentally. Let's all be looking for ways to make this year better than last... better than any before. It's up to you.

Happy MLK Day!

One of the articles I just read is really interesting about the inspiration for his final speech on the night he was assassinated. In 1958, he was stabbed in Harlem while siging books. The surgeons worked many hours to save his life, and one was quoted as saying, "had Dr. King sneezed or coughed the weapon would have penetrated the aorta.” This quote formed the foundation of King’s “I have been to the mountaintop” speech. I will let him tell you about it.

"There was another letter that came from a little girl… I looked at that letter and I'll never forget it. It said simply, 'Dear Dr. King: I am a ninth-grade student at the White Plains High School.' She said, 'While it should not matter, I would like to mention that I'm a white girl. I read in the paper of your misfortune and of your suffering. And I read that if you had sneezed, you would have died. And I'm simply writing you to say that I'm so happy that you didn't sneeze.'

I want to say tonight that I… am happy that I didn't sneeze. Because if I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been around here in 1960, when students all over the South started sitting-in at lunch counters. And I knew that as they were sitting in, they were really standing up for the best in the American dream and taking the whole nation back to those great wells of democracy, which were dug deep by the founding fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been around here in 1961, when we decided to take a ride for freedom and ended segregation in interstate travel.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been around here in 1962, when Negroes in Albany, Georgia, decided to straighten their backs up. And whenever men and women straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere, because a man can't ride your back unless it is bent.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been here in 1963, when the black people of Birmingham, Alabama, aroused the conscience of this nation and brought into being the Civil Rights Bill.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have had a chance later that year, in August, to try to tell America about a dream that I had had.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been down in Selma, Alabama, to see the great movement there.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been in Memphis to see a community rally around those brothers and sisters who are suffering. I'm so happy that I didn't sneeze… I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land."

I am too young to remember many details about Dr. King, but I do see his legacy in society today.

On a federal holiday like today, but MBH and I are off work. Of course, that just means we are doing housework instead of paid work. She did some laundry last night after watching the Dallas Cowboys lose to the Packers. Today, it is house straightening time... after we go shopping.

End of the Week Comments

Do you like Cadbury Eggs? Those yummy eggs of goodness that come out around Easter every year? I do and have bought them during that season for years. Now, though, I like the ones filled with caramel more than the traditional ones. Anyway, this year, they've added a twist. Cadbury Oreo Eggs. I would certainly try one.

I wouldn't be happy if things were running up my backside, either.

You remember that we went to Universal Studios in mid-December. I really enjoyed both the Harry Potter ride and the world built around it. Apparently, it was patterned heavily after the Harry Potter movies of the 2000s. After feeling embarrassed by a granddaughter that I had never watched the movies, I had to do just that. MBH joined me and we watched some 20 hrs of HP and made it through the last one this past weekend. I actually enjoyed them more than I thought, and now, the land at Universal does make more sense.

I did not go with the group last year when they went to Universal, but the oldest granddaughter was chosen for a wand ceremony where a certain style of wand chose her. Amazingly, this year, the younger granddaughter was chosen and a wand chose her. Pretty cool, and I saw the inspiration acted out in the movie, making those ceremonies at the wand shop at Universal even more fun. You can read more about it, check out some pictures, and see places where your wand can do magic here.

Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by.

Some Stuff For You , And Some Stuff (Hopefully) For Me

Have you ever heard of the Andy Griffith Show? It ran through the 1960s and starred... Andy Griffith. I'm not going to really talk about it except to share the following. I just learned that they filmed at least 2 Star Trek episodes on the Mayberry sets. When Star Trek first debuted, the show was so underfunded that the set of Mayberry was used to film several different scenes. You can see Mayberry in the episodes “Miri” and “City on the Edge of Forever.” You can actually see Floyd’s Barber Shop in the background of scenes where Captain Kirk is walking with Edith Keeler. Also visible are the Mayberry Courthouse, Walkers Drugstore, and several other major landmarks.

Have you been wondering how the population of states has changed over the last year? Here you go.

From the "Well, he is a lord" file: A Brazilian grandmother has been praying to a figurine from Lord of the Rings for years without realizing. The woman thought she was praying to Saint Anthony but it turns out the figure was Elrond, Lord of Rivendell. On closer inspection, she said Saint Anthony wasn't what he seemed. The pointy ears may have given the game away. Now that this has been discovered (and gone viral), she's got a new figure and this time it's the real deal.

I need some help from those of you that frequent this blog. As you may remember from earlier this year, I have started a new blog to help us capture family memories. Not just those involving Dad and his progeny, but any from the O.F. Walker family. So, I need to know how to reach out to all of our cousins, aunts, uncles, kids, etc. You can email me, text me, call me, just let me know which contacts you have and I will  reach out. Thanks.

Is it true that we have been cutting cakes wrong forever? This video shares a method that will keep the exposed surfaces to a minimum to reduce drying. Watch it and see if you will try this way to cut your cake.

Hey, I know it is short and sweet, but at least I got around to posting something. Count your blessings (either because you haven't had to read many posts this year, or because I finally shared another one). Thanks for stopping by.

New Blog Created!

I've begun a new project that will require help from all of you to make it worthwhile. I have created a new blog for all of us to capture family memories. As I noted in the header of the new blog, "Share your memories of being part of the Walker family. Time with cousins, aunts, uncles, immediate family, vacations, reunions, whatever." So, travel over to http://thewalkerfamilymemories.blogspot.com/ and start adding in those great memories. Go back as far as you want. This will give us a shared place to gather them.

It's Next Year

Has anyone noticed that I haven't been posting new posts as frequently? My new job really limits access to the site during the day, so I have to write it the night before. The challenge there is that MBH and I share this one computer, and we are fitting in dinner and some TV, so I just don't have much time for it. Also, I haven't found a lot of new content in recent months. I just wanted you to know that I am still here.

Let's talk about 2016, OK? Daughter-in-love lost her maternal grandfather this past year, and he was a long-time family friend of ours since the 1980's. He was ready to go Home and be forever with his Savior and his wife. I know that he is (more than) happy and no longer in pain. We miss him, but PTL for our time with him.

MBH (My Better Half) is learning how to deal with diabetes. She had suspected her symptoms meant diabetes, and we are now learning how to better eat and exercise to manage her blood sugars.

I am in a new job and I know the Lord led me to it. I am only a contractor, but that's OK. Who knows where it could lead.

FAD (Future Accountant Daughter) is really enjoying her job in the payroll area of a nearby city. She finishes her degree next summer.

SS and family are all doing well. We just returned from a trip to Universal Studios with them and had a great time. It is totally different from my last visit long ago. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is amazing. Simpson's Land is very clever. The Backstage Tour has changed a lot.

Now, let's talk about the unbelievably sad passing of both Carrie Fisher and her mother, Debbie Reynolds, just one day apart. Can you imagine how sad the family is right now? I cannot.

From the 2016 Things That Look Like a Face file:

From the 2016 Animals But Mainly Cats Puns file:

From the Improbable Santa file, here is Liam Neeson trying out to be a mall Santa.

That is enough for today. Welcome to 2017, my friends.