Stumpus the 3 legged dog

I'm thankful for how happy Stumpus makes me, and how happy he is to see me. He's getting old, and I dread the day when he won't come hobbling over to see me.

Meeting Molly

Molly is 2 months old. I'm 43. She's around 10 lbs. I'm 20 times that weight. I'm used to moving heavy electrical switch-gear. My hands are strong from bending copper cables one and a half inches thick into tight places, just making them fit. Today I moved energized 15,000 volt cables out of my way so I could route new cables for tomorrow's job. I feel I could accomplish any task I put my mind to. I'm a big, construction worker, dammit! How come Molly scares the hell out of me?

I thought I had her beat. We had dinner Thursday night, but while we were eating, so was she. I sat next to her waitress (my sister), while she was fed the most nourishing meal for a newborn, while in the privacy of her own tent. I heard her. I saw her. I waved at her. I said hi. Then I left.

Yesterday she was inducted into her parent's church in a ceremony that I missed. In her honor, we had a cook-out and volleyball. It was really a meet-and-greet though. We all had fun, enjoyed the food, played ball, laughed at each other (I took pictures!) then settled in the living room to watch the two teenage boys control their pixels to slash pixel swords at other pixels, while listening to the teenage girls laugh at the pictures, and the boys. Once the kitten pooped on me, I figured it was time to go.

I had almost made it! I had my coat on, and my sunglasses. Keys in hand, I was in the kitchen, headed for the door, when I heard the spine-chilling words: "Shawn, I don't have a picture of you holding Molly." I froze. I was caught. She had bested me. The only thing to do was to make the best of it. I did what I do best in high-pressure, nerve-wracking situations...I winged it. I took hold of her like a football, cradled like Walter Peyton, and gingerly stepped over the mass of legs on the floor (again, like Walter Peyton) to the couch, where I was able to sit down with a sigh, knowing that even if I did fumble the Molly, she wouldn't fall far.

I even warmed up a bit. We played Supergirl! She loves to "fly" on her stomach. I pretened to let loose Supergirl's most heinous weapons, projectile vomiting, on the 3 teenage girls, the 2 teenage boys, Molly's mother, my cousin, and anyone else in the room. Then we settled down for some pictures. I know Molly looked good. I hope I did too.

Counting Blessings

I read an article in the recent issue of Money Magazine regarding money and happiness. While having more money does bring more happiness, it's only up to a point, right around $50,000 annually. The article also explains how buying things, such as a new car, only provides happiness for a short time. Then it offers some suggestions on how to increase your happiness without increasing your paycheck.

One of their suggestions is to count your blessings once a week, so I'd like to take some time each Sunday morning, before I get started on whatever I've planned for the day, and count my blessings for the week.

First, and foremost, I'm thankful that my sister and her husband, both doing second tours in Iraq, are safe and sound.

I'm thankful for having good friends to talk about frustrations (like last week's speeding ticket), which diminishes my anger. I also enjoy hearing of the success my friends are enjoying in their home, or work lives, and I listen to their frustrations.

I really enjoy my job. I feel that I've got one of the best jobs, and I work for the best electrical contractor in Cleveland. As a union electrician, I make a fair wage, so my basic needs are met, and I have some money left over for a few beers with the boys after work, or to buy a couple of DVD's once in awhile. As a craftsman, I take great pride in my work, and every day I drive to work, I see buildings that I helped to build.

I've got really good neighbors. They are kind, and generous people.

My foreman let's me do my job the best I can, and he listens to my ideas, choosing the good ones, and explaining why the bad ones won't work, but not in a degrading manner.

There's more that I'm thankful for, but this is the first Sunday of doing this, so I could be here all day typing.

The pick-up artist...not

The other day, I was walking around the hospital with my work partner and our foreman. We were going from building to building, taking our locks off switchgear, so that it could be energized again. As we walked down the street, I caught sight of an attractive young woman across the road. She was walking at a brisk pace, and with a gait that made her breasts bounce under her white blouse. She was quite alluring. I elbowed my partner to share the sight, and he said "I'm way ahead of you, Carter". She quickly passed out of view as we continued to the next building.

Ten minutes, and three locks later, we were returning to the main hospital building, and I saw the same woman approaching us. As she drew closer, I could see that she was very attractive, and I thought I'd say something witty. "You must have walked around the block, because we saw you on the other street earlier." was rewared with a dismissive snort as she passed me.

The three of us walked about 10 paces, when my partner dropped the hammer, "Damn, Carter, no wonder you can't get a woman, if that's your idea of a pick-up line".

After work beer

I stopped off at my favorite watering hole after work tonight. I was (am) in a pretty good mood. Well there was a fella playing some electronic gambling game, that was for real money. He had put in a ten dollar bill, and had worked it up to over 300 bucks. He was very excited, bragging, etc. Over the course of evening, while I sipped my Bud Lights (plural), I saw him go up and down, dropping as low as 200, then back up to 300 again. Finally, I ordered some food, and I checked up on him again, and he was at 100. I suggested that he set a lower limit, and he said that it was set at 50, that he'd quit if he got there. Next time I looked, he was at 23 cents. He went to the ATM to get some more money. I saw him put in at least 40 dollars, and again, I saw he was up to $50, but did he quit and take the money? Nope. He ended up finishing with 43 cents, angry, and quiet.

So they say slot machines won't have a negative impact in Ohio....

How many times do we need to vote this down?