Friday, the 27th day of January, 2012

So, my cold threatened to get worse, as in having-to-go-the-hospital worse. Called the doctor and he said to get any over-the-counter cold medicine except those who contain/include Decongestants (they raise your blood pressure - not good for a boy already on medications for hypertension!). So I went to the pharmacy and the pharmacist gave me Coricidin and Mucinex... Should clear out pretty soon, right? Not so fast; read on...

At 11:30 CST on Saturday 1/21, the fog was very dense; visibility was 20 feet, at best! We spent this whole day in a cloud, literally! It was eerie...

Nights are tough... I guess what is called the PND (Post Nasal Drip) kicks in once one lays down and makes one cough; the only way to get some rest (although not fit full) is sleeping in a reclining chair...

And so it is that, after the stinkin' Patriots got real lucky with the Ravens, they get to deal - again - with Eli, the Dragon Slayer, or also known as Mr. 3rd-and-long!... It will be another one for the ages, like in 2008, when the underdogs Giants with little brother Eli at the helm dismantled the almighty, invincible, 18-0, Belichick/Brady bunch (no pun intended!).

It is Friday, a whole week after I went to the pharmacy, and I am still getting little sleep at night because of the cough from hell!

And so the Florida Republican primary is next Tuesday; last night was the latest one of the debates (I believe 17 so far!) and Romney performed well for the first time, in my opinion... He came out of from behind his robot costume and showed some passion... Good for him. My man Ran Paul showed well making the most common-sense points, as usual, and Rick Santorum stood out as the other grown up in the room... I have friends that seem to have already committed (lock, stock and barrel) to Romney. They have seen/heard/read what they needed to take that step. Some other folks say that, although he looks most electable and presidential, Romney will be easy pray for Obama. Yet, some other folks think that, although Newt may give Obama a good fight, his 'baggage' make him not-electable... I wonder who the Obama people would like to go against? They seem to be chomping at the bit to get Romney...

The rest of things 'round here are pretty good... Danny & Donna left for 'the Louisiana' where Danny is having an interview to work as an ROV operator for some oil-drilling outfits. Jan and I did our best to prep him up for the interview... Some stray dogs have come to visit out yard and, therefore, torture our dogs. I shoo'd them away (even had to fire a shot - not to them) and they left; but they have returned a couple of times, less often that before, but they are still around...

I think that's all for now...

Around 200+ some years ago, Benjamin Franklin said: "Being humble to superiors is Duty, to peers is Courtesy, and to subordinates is Nobleness"

So, stay humble, my friends...

Thursday, the 19th day of January, 2012

...and then there were four. Rick Perry is announcing, as I write this, he is dropping out of the GOP presidential race. Gingrich, Paul, Santorum & Romney still in; Perry will endorse Gingrich.

...and Florida is not alone anymore in election embarrassments: Iowa just came out saying that, after recounting, Santorum was the winner there a couple of weeks ago, although 8 precincts still could not be certified... If precincts could not be certified, how can you declare a winner, either earlier or now, without disenfranchising voters? Oh well, that's a problem for somebody else to find answers to...

The Tebow/Broncos dream died, as expected, at the hand of the stinkin' Patriots; no contest. The Saints and 49ers had one of the most intense 4 minutes in pro-football in a long time, with the 49ers scoring last and most. The Ravens and Texans (yawn!) played and I don't remember who won - makes no difference to me. And then there was Eli, the Dragon Slayer, who made the Packers look exactly what they are: a grossly overrated bunch!

Around here, there seems to be a nasty strain of Pneumonia-causing bacteria that has put already several people in the hospital... And, as a matter of facts, what started with me as little scratchy throat on Tuesday has now developed into a full fledged cold, to the point that I could not attend a meeting in Chattanooga or go a lunch at the Chamber of Commerce today... I'm hoping, and fighting so, it doesn't go beyond a cold...

Although right now is 37 and partially clouded, the weather continues to be exceptionally mild... It has rained several times, sometimes strong, but no snow...

Not feeling too hot... That's all for now...

Some time ago, Aristotle said: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit"

Stay practicing, my friends...

Friday, the 13th day of January, 2012

It wasn't until I was trying to solve a SUDOKU puzzle near noon time today when I realized it was Friday the 13th... Holly Smokes! For those of us who are superstitious, days like this one are extremely stressful; for those of us who are not, days like this are between 'blah' and 'so what?' But there is another point of interest: is superstition dependent on language/culture? You see, in most of the Hispanics sub-cultures (ones derived from Spain), it is not Friday the 13th but Tuesday the 13th the one you have to be careful with/afraid of... So, do bad things that happen on a Friday the 13th go unnoticed by people in Hispanic countries? And do bad things that happen on a Tuesday the 13th go unnoticed by people on countries of North Western European descent? I don't know the answer to those questions, but I am tempted to submit to you - though a little cautions, just in case - that superstition is only in the mind of the believer...

Oh well, on with life and here it is: my last daughter - Leah - was the last one to return to 'the real world' after the Christmas and New Year season... She left on Saturday, January 7th, and left behind a couple of grateful hearts for getting to enjoy her company until then, and also heavy for being left with a truly empty nest and only the memories of the good times we all had during the season... To make my heart even heavier, that same day would have been my father's 90th birthday... He's been gone for 1,188 days and I still miss his humor, his wisdom, his company...

The pro football season is over and playoffs are here, and neither one of my teams made it: Dolphins and Bucs were simply pitiful this past season; thankfully both their head coaches were fired! Talking playoffs, this past week-end I went two for four: won two (Giants and Broncos) and lost two (Lions and Bengals) - just realized we have no more felines on the playoffs... This week-end my favorites, albeit sentimental, are: Saints (vs 49ers), Broncos (vs. Patriots), Giants (vs. Packers) and could-not-care-less (Ravens vs. Texans)... On the college ranks I rooted hard for the LSU Tigers but they did not show up against the the Tide led by Nick SaTan... They looked inept and confused for 60 minutes...What a lousy show that game was... Les Miles should be fired and then flogged in the Tiger Stadium parking lot.

Romney seems to be the presumptive Republican nominee to challenge the President in the fall... Let's see how terminology such as "Vulture Capitalist" and his role as a wealth producer (others may call it corporate raider) are played by the Obama and the Democrats against him...

Temperatures dropped radically today (high of 23) and snowed about two inches... Local folks believe this winter will pack a nasty punch. I will make it a priority this week to fire up my generator, hook it up to the house, and test the connections made specifically for those type of contingencies...

Finally, a little anecdote: back in 1974 a reporter asked Arthur Ashe about how lucky he had been in a particular tennis match which he had won. Ashe, keeping his customary gentleman-like demeanor, responded: "The harder I work, the luckier I get"...

So, stay lucky my friends...

Happy New Year 2012!

And so it happened that, unceremoniously, one of the most difficult years of recent memory left us... Good riddance 2011 and welcome 2012!

In the past, and ever since we have been together, Jan and I decided that New Years' eves were some of the most dangerous times to be on the road. People, many of them amateurs (young people with little experience on how drinking impairs their senses) are on the road going from party to party, and rushing to get somewhere; too risky. So, we always stayed at home and, many times already in out pajamas, broke the seal of the ceremonial New Year champagne, and toasted each other and our families to a prosperous and healthy new year. This year we broke our mold by going to a New Years party outside our neighborhood... Bill and Ginny Loos, dear friends who now live in Sparta, TN and who were close neighbors whom we never met in Florida, had a party at their house and we decided to go. Alex, Leah, Jan, Pat Ross (a neighbor) and I got there at about 8:30 PM; mingled, drank a little, ate more than a little, and then at about 10:30 PM we decided to sound retreat and head back to the mountains... Got home, got into our pajamas and played a game of Mexican Train while waiting for the New Year, Central Time. Nashville had a snafu with their dropping icon, and CNN had another snafu with the connection and at 12:02 AM we realized we were already in another year. The four of us hugged each other, did not drink the bubbly, and went to bed.

On New Year's day, I spoke to Ligia, my sister, and all her clan is well. I also got a text from my oldest daughter, Clarissa, wishing me a Happy New year; returned the text with likewise wishes. Finally, I took some time to reflected a bit on the fact that my mother would have been 83 years old on New Year's day, had she still been around... She's been gone for 441 days and I still miss her...

Alex left for Gainesville on Monday the 2nd, and after reporting in from every previously established checkpoint, she made it home safely. That same day Tom and Char Merriman came to visit and to stay with us for a night. Played Mexican Train; ate, drank and had a great time with them. On the 3rd, we drove around the neighborhood, and saw that the Rocky River Vista beautiful log house had burned to the ground... What a waste!

The Merrimans left on Tuesday, at about noon time, and then yesterday we spent most of the day un-decorating the house, a somewhat unpleasant task when compared with the decorating part of it earlier in the season...

Leah is still with us until Saturday.

I hope you all had a wonderful year-end and an even better year-start... I also hope you made resolutions that are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound).

Miguel.