Winter Blahs

With winter right around the corner, I get a little depressed this time of year. I hate to see the summer fade and the temperature plummet. Its a good thing that this is the holiday season or I would be darn near suicidal (just kidding). Thanksgiving was a lot of fun at my parents, sorry I didnt take any pictures, forgot the camera. We ate lots of good food, turkey (smoked & oven roasted), stuffing (Terrys sage stuffing too), sweet potatoes (thanks GAC!), green beans & ham (from the garden- thanks mom!), pumpkin pie, lemon merange pie, carrot cake (Thanks Bec!) and much more which I'm forgetting. After dinner we played some friendly family poker which I ended up losing money...oh well. Just want to say thanks Mom & Dad for another wonderful meal!

Holly and I haven't been up to much lately. We finally got the garage torn down and hauled away from the storm that destroyed it (see other post). So we've been spending time at home as you see I had a wild hair one day, put on the cowboy hat and cracked a few beers. Dollar beer night (Tuesday) at the VFW has become popular. Too bad I have to work on that night, but Holly keeps me informed of whats going on up there. I'm still active at the VFW and still hold a position on the board as judge advocate. I used to be the youngest member at 36, but someone else joined who is five years younger, so I'm not the baby anymore! ha!

As most of you may know, Holly and I are now engaged. Yes, I asked her to marry me! We have not set a date for the wedding yet, but we have decided to wait until 2010. That way its easier for me to keep track of our 10, 20, 30 year anniversaries, lol. She was so excited and tears ran down her face when I asked her. We shopped for a ring together and picked out a lovely princess cut diamond in a cathedral setting, a lot to pay for a rock, but its the commitment behind it thats of true importance. So, we look forward to planning for the wedding and so do both of our mothers ;) Its funny how life works. One minute your single without a care in the world, the next your planning the rest of your life! Whew! No wonder I was drinking that beer! HA! Until next time, keep looking forward...

Halloween

Halloween isn't really considered an American holiday, but it sure is a favorite time for many of us. Holly and I had a Halloween costume party this weekend bringing over a hundred people to our house, half of which were dressed in costumes. We had lots of good food, which my cuzin Drew helped me to cook up on the grill, THANKS DREW!! At 11pm we had a costume contest finding four lucky people winners. Elvis won funniest, Tina Turner sexiest, A Mad Doctor scariest and the humble hunch back won best overall costume. Everyone had a great time, including my Mom and my Aunie Janny, who played cornhole, a bean bag tossing game. Thanks Mom and Janny for coming out, I'm really glad you did!! OK, see you all on Thanksgiving at Mom's house and don't forget your poker money! haha!

Toys for tots ride

Sunday was a beautiful day for a ride. We started off at the VFW that morning in support of the Toys for Tots program. We donated to the cause and decided to go on our own ride with our friends. It turns out that St. Andrews church of Milford was holding an Oktoberfest in Miamiville on the Little Miami River. We had a couple of Bratwurst and a pint of German Dunkel Beir. What a beautiful day it was and everyone had a good time.

As fall takes shape and summer fades, we scramble to find our leathers we packed away. Comfortable days and cold chilly nights, we'll need a windshield for the front of the bike. Oh what a summer this has been, no better way to wrap it up than a party on Halloween!! Our house, adults only, Halloween night, costume contest @ 11pm, BYOB, see ya there!!

PS. Oct. 12 is the AMA Professional Hill Climbs in Oregonia OH.

If a tree falls.....

If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a noise?? WHO CARES! A tree fell in our back yard and I heard it before it fell! I was in the back yard, securing some last minute things as a wind storm was winding up. This wind storm was from remnants of Hurricane Ike. As I was standing on the sidewalk in our backyard I heard a cracking sound behind me. I knew right away what it was and I didn't waste any time. I took two or three steps, twisting my ankle, and dove toward the corner of the house covering my head. As I landed I felt the tips of a four foot round tree fall on the backs of my legs. I managed to get out of the way just in time as the tree crashed to the ground just behind me from 20 feet in the air....whew!

As I realized what just happened, I saw my new grill, picnic table, even the garage, and sorrowfully, my motorcycle crushed under a tangled mess of branches. I heard Holly screaming for me in horror that I may be under the tree and I let her know I was fine. I thank God for allowing me to be aware enough to scramble without even seeing the danger, only sensing it from the sound of cracking timbers. The house was resilient. The brand new gutter on the back side of the house needs replaced and the shingles were gouged, but the roof or structure did not break!! Wow, a lot to say about the materials used to build houses in the 1940's huh!

I called the insurance company to make a claim on my bike and they will be out this week to look at it. Holly called her dad and he came by with a couple of friends and chainsaws! We got to work on her right away, Randy sawing away for 30 minutes before I could even get my bike out of the mess. My tank took a direct hit, denting it on both sides. My handle bars too took a hit, bending them crooked and breaking off the mirror as you see in my hand in the picture. There was so much weight from the tree that it bent the kick stand straight out!! This concerns me that my frame or forks may now be bent. As I stated before, I'm just glad to be ok. We'll be back on the bike before you know it and we'll keep on, keepin on.....

Oktoberfest, Main Strasse Covington KY

Covington Oktoberfest was this weekend and a pack of us rode down to join the festivities. I had a big ole bratwurst topped with saurkraut accompanied by a Hofbrau and a Dunkel Weisen (German Beer). Holly had some frozen lemonade and picked up some hematite jewelry. There were a few different musical acts going on, several vendors selling arts and crafts, and a few different food vendors as well. It was a beautiful day, a high of 77 degrees and sunny. We only spent about an hour or so there until we had to leave, besides if we had stayed, we would have been broke at ten bucks a beer!!! OUCH! The Bengals were playing the Ravens and we kept peeking in the bars to catch the score on TV. Every year we get our hopes up that our beloved Bengals will have a winning season only to have them dashed out a quarter of the way through the season. C'mon Bengals! Give us something to talk about besides players being arrested!! LOL They lost 17-10. Next week, the Titans come to the Jungle at Paul Brown Stadium, got my fingers crossed for a win! Keep hangin on to the handlebars until next time....

Reds win on my birthday!!

REDS beat the GIANTS 9-3 on my birthday, a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Great American Ballpark. It was a typical hot August day, perfect for baseball. Sisters, my Mother and Auntie Jan, smile together for a picture. Becky brought the twins and they had a blast, getting plenty of attention from everyone, Gretchen and Dan too! Holly and I brought her son, Guy along to enjoy the rare win by the Reds. Parking was also scarce as Riverfest was beginning to get started and Moeller was playing at Paul Brown Stadium. What a memorable day, I turned 37 and enjoyed it!! Thanks Mom for the tickets!

Veterans Bike Show

The Veterans Bike Show was this weekend and Hollys dad had Jims Custom Cycles booth at the show located at the Clermont County Fair Grounds. In the first pic is his trailer and booth where he was hanging with potential customers and the second pic is his shovelhead. Double Don is a legend in the local motorcycle short track, with Fink Racing behind the bars. From legend, that bike can flat out get it!! I just had to stick in this last picture of Holly in a dress, an extremely rare sight. Holly's grandfather passed away recently and she wore this dress to honor his burial. Finishing the paint on the outside of the house is the goal for the next couple of weeks. The house is going to look great when we're finished and it's already taken shape. Until the next time...

Dock Diving Dogs

Cleo went dock diving this week at East Fork Lake. Alex came along to watch Cleo while Holly held him. Mom was good at keeping Cleo back from jumping into the water too soon. Dad just had his birthday, happy birthday dad! We rode down on the bike, it was a beautiful day. Afterward we checked out the Matt Maupin Pavilion at the beach, then headed to the VFW and home. Keepin on keepin on...

Kid Rock 08

Kid Rock played at Riverbend last night. I guess we like going to these pre-concert parties and skip the concert. We met up with nine other bikes, then rode down together to the show. Holly and I then turned around and rode to the Lake for a beer before heading home, while all the others went to Lynard/Skynard and Kid Rock. Tickets were still available for $36 on the lawn, but we decided against it. Holly was a little upset we didn't go, but she and I were ok with it. Plus, it was HER idea not to go and save the money :)

Buffet 2008

Buffett 2008 Riverbend! We didn't go to the show, but I've been to over a dozen already so I knew exactly what I was missin'. Holly n I took the bike down for the tailgate party, Brett had his RV as he has for years past. We grilled, had a few drinks and chilled out listening to Buffett songs til dusk. It was a good time. I wanna see the Kid when he comes to town! Anyway, we've been working on the house, just got the first coat on the front,still need to do a second, we ran outta paint so Holly got creative with the side of the house. Our one year anniversary was this week, I got her some dog tags, she got me the American Flag and pole in the bottom picture! OK, til next time.....