Happy Anniversary...

...and Happy Autumn...a two for one deal.

On the 21st we mourned the last day of summer; the next day we celebrated our wedding anniversary and welcomed Fall.

It definitely felt like fall when we returned to the scene of the crime...

...where we honeymooned lo, these many years ago.

Such an abundance of great memories!

wedding day, 2005

toasting our happiness at Fenn Valley

our backyard oasis in the early days

Pierre Jouet champagne and anniversary cake

Serenity Cove wine featuring Karen on the label

Here's to making many more wonderful memories together.

Did you know "Coyote Joe" Biden has welcomed over 4.9 million illegal aliens into this country since he began squatting in the White House in January of 2021?

In less than 2 years he's created an unprecedented invasion at our southern border.

In fact, if we gathered all of the people he's encouraged to cross our borders illegally into their own state, it would have the 25th largest population in our country.

They'd be right behind #24 Alabama that has 5 million people, and ahead of these 26 states (in order):

Louisiana, Kentucky, Oregon, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Utah, Iowa, Nevada, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kansas, New Mexico, Nebraska, West Virginia, Idaho, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine, Montana, Rhode Island, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Vermont and Wyoming.

Brazen, Lawless, Corrupt: Coyote Joe.

Had a bit of crisis on the hickory golf scene recently...

...and no, it wasn't related to argyle socks.

In fact, it's too boring to go into the details (yes, you should thank me), but while working through a problem with my swing I decided to give bowling a try again.

It's been several months since I last touched a bowling ball, and the 1st two games showed it.

However, I then took an unexpected detour into luck / competence for my 3rd game and rolled that 215 you see above.

And I say "luck" because at least 2 of those 6 strikes were Brooklyn, but hey, I'll take it.

Had a recent visit from a world famous cartoon character:

Introduced in 1945 by Looney Tunes...

...it's Pepe Lew Pew, who's always in search of true love...

...and Purina Seafood Sensations, evidently.

I wouldn't mind him hanging around, if he didn't tear up my lawn, but he does.

And oh yeah, he stinks.

As happens so many times in life, it appears we've crash landed...

Lost In Space, anyone?

...another excitin' edition of the AMC.

Assuming the atmosphere on this strange new planet is breathable - highly dependent on your proximity to any blue anon aliens - you are free to exit and get on with your life, such as it is.

One more thing as you flee the premises...

Today is the day we turn the corner on daylight / darkness...it's evenly split at 12 hours each...but starting tomorrow...

Read it and weep.

later, mcm fans...

It's Memorial Day Weekend...

...when we pause to remember...those who gave all in defense of our nation.

This holiday began as "Decoration Day" - when towns set aside a day to decorate the graves of Civil War soldiers and honor their sacrifice.

Because the losses from the bloodiest war in American history were so staggering - more than 620,000 dead - NOT pausing to remember and honor those who perished was unthinkable.

But for obvious historical reasons, the observance of Decoration Day took different forms in Southern states than those in the North.

Neither side wanted to be told by the other when or how they should remember their fallen heroes.

After WW1 it changed from honoring the Civil War dead to honoring any who died in our nation's wars.

Finally, in 1971, Memorial Day became an official federal holiday.

And while it's common to celebrate the day as the kickoff of summer with parades, ball games, camping and cookouts...

...all of us should stop and reflect on its somber and sacred essence.

Men and women - most in the bloom of youth - gave up their futures, their families, their hopes and dreams to lay down their lives in defense of our country.

Whatever freedoms we have were purchased in their blood; gratitude and reverence should be the prevailing sentiments on this day.

Canadian Lt-Colonel John McCrae captured the soul of their sacrifice in a poem he penned during WWI, after the second battle of Ypres in 1915:

Always Remember.

Turning now to domestic affairs...

After calm and reasoned negotiations...

 ...Karen and I have reached an equitable agreement:

There will be NO golf holes in the front yard.

I tried to be gracious in defeat, but it was tough when she started singing "I got my WAY-ay, nyah nyah nyah NYAH nyah..."

Have to admit, her point that the backyard is for fun while the front yard is for curb appeal was tough to argue.

“You don’t go skinny dipping in the FRONT yard do you?” she demanded.

“Of course not my Darling Kumquat,” replied I.  “After taking pictures, the neighbors would have me arrested since the pool is in the backyard.”

“Game, set, match!” she exclaimed with both clenched fists thrust skyward.

I was going to suggest my DIY putting greens equate to "curb appeal", but that’s when she started singing and doing the Chicken Dance and I surmised my cause was lost.

So...plan B is I'll have 5 putting greens and 9 tees, ALL in the back yard.

Basically I'll play 1 through 5, then "turn the corner" and go back through holes 4, 3, 2 and 1 (read: 6, 7, 8 and 9), using different tee placements to make each hole "unique".

End result will be a 9 hole, par 32 hickory wiffle golf course.

What’s the overarching lesson here?

Staying with the golf theme, almost done with this year's 1st putting green installation:

it's #1 when you tee off...

...and #9 on the way back

Just laid the rug on there for the pics...still have to put sand down, compact it, then swap the paint can placeholder for the actual cup you see there, and finally spike down the carpet and carefully cut out the hole.  A little mulch around the edges and voila, new putting green.

Hoping to get the final one (hole #5) - planned as a 9' diameter circle - in place by end of June.

In the "whooda thunk it" department...

got to the lanes with a "full" scoresheet so had to improvise

...I actually rolled two 200 games back to back this week.

And...if I hadn't chopped the 10 pin on an easy 6-10 spare in the 10th frame of my 1st game - or done THE EXACT SAME THING in the 7th frame of my last game - I would have had my 1st 600 series, instead of falling short by 5 lousy pins.

Been trying to learn something from every outing, to pick up a tip or pointer from that series that will help me improve.

Admit it; you're fascinated by this.

I know Karen is.

Whenever I start mansplaining stuff to her she practically tingles with excitement.

Oh well...as with all of life, bowling is a...

And now boys and girls, it's time for a leisurely stroll through the Parting Shots department and this week we’re trying something new.

Just send me your email address, a valid credit card number and your power of attorney and I’ll email you the hand curated pictures I’ve…

What?

Hold on a sec…

Ok, scratch that.

Karen says to avoid prison time I should just do it the usual way, so here goes…

morning fire on the lower patio.

our "snowball tree" (latin: aboretum snowballus) in bloom.

looks like hasenpfeffer and duck risotto for dinner.

buddy and mr. squirrel in a staredown at the bird feeder...

...and mr. squirrel staring down at buddy from the bat house a moment later.

mr. mouse taking a dip in the pool.  never fear, I flung him to the (relative) safety of dry land, so he lived to swim another day.

gotta love the pink bird.

some mcm styling for you.

they have to be else I can't golf here.

Enjoy your Memorial Day holiday and remember those who gave their all in service to our country.

later, mcm fans...

And Now, The Biggest...

 

...Of The Year Award goes to...

...the actor who flushed his career and legacy down the toi-toi with one monumentally stupid - not to mention criminal - slap, Will Smith.

How arrogant and out of touch with reality must you be to physically assault someone who's half your size - during a world wide broadcast, no less - for telling a lame joke at which you laughed?

Smith laughing at Rock's joke, just before Jada got his mind right

And that, boys and girls, is how you piss away 30 years of hard work with an idiotic display of faux chivalry.

How was he not handcuffed and perp walked out of the building?

Guaranteed you or I would have been, even before the echoes of The Slap finished reverberating through Dolby Theatre.

Ah, Celebrity!  Privilege be thy name.

That foul stench you smell is the smoldering remains of Will Smith's once shiny "good guy" image.

Chris Rock, on the other hand, proved himself to be a true professional with an iron jaw and nerves of steel.

If you're keeping score, that's...

This is NOT how I hoped to begin April...

...but it is after all, April Fool's Day.

As usual...

kinda looks like a frozen jabba the hutt

...Ol' Man Winter is overstaying his welcome.

Here's a website you should check out:

Retro Ghost Town

He's got some very cool mcm items and is building an ambitious - well, Retro Ghost Town.

You've got to see it to believe it.

Enjoy.

In this week's bowling update...

...I continued with my "1 out of 9" forays into near competence, with the rest being my usual.

Progress is slow, my form is awkward, timing is off and open frames are a problem.

As often as not I'm shaking my head wondering what the heck just happened.

In spite of all that, I'm learning a little bit, getting some exercise and having a good time in the process.

See you at the lanes...

Ok, I admit it...it's a slow news day, but we're almost done here.

Just shuffle on through the Parting Shots Department, keep your hands where we can see them, and then you're free to go...

believe it or not:  today, 12 hours later

cool mcm antique shop...they've even got some cherner chairs for sale...

...yeah, those.

turkey confab at the feeder

so take that

I want this...or at least I want to vacation there

Thus endeth the blog entry, fellow midcentury modernians.

On your way out the door, here's some food for thought....and since you made it to the bonus round, we'll throw in this added benefit:

If you can comprehend this in its proper context and truly grasp the import of The Preacher's words, you will fully understand Will Smith's problem...and mine...and yours:

"He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set eternity in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end."

    - Ecclesiastes 3:11

(hint: click and scroll down to verse 11)

later, mcm fans...