Simple America

I need a day off to recover from my three day weekend. Me is so tired. At least there were a lot of good times during this weekend.
It got off to a miserable start. My wife had the kids cleaning up there rooms in anticipation of garage sales and my son’s birthday party. He thought he was done, but my wife thought otherwise. I stayed out of it working on my application to the accounting board for my firm. Finally got it in the mail on Saturday.
Saturday my son’s friends arrived for the party. Seven boys attended. My niece came in from Austin, which pleased my daughter. Everyone stayed the night, except one boy who’s parents we did not know us that well. Don’t blame ‘em the way things are today. They had fun playing video games and we took ‘em to play lazer tag. As usual I had 3 or 4 kids following me the whole game. Shoot the whale I guess.
Then I introduced my son’s friends to roleplaying. I set up a Marvel superheroes scenario based on the Secret Wars for them to play. I used Savage Worlds rules and TSR’s Marvel RPG to develop characters. When each boy arrived I simply asked him who his favorite characters were and made them. We used Heroclix figs to show where everyone was located on the map. The superheroes represented were Colossus, Cyclops, Iron Man, Captain America, Spiderman, Wolverine, and Hawkeye. Their nemesis was Magneto, who with the help of the nine bennies I had knocked out Spiderman and Captain America before fleeing to pursue his devious plans against mankind. Think they liked.
The next day I contemplated why they call these things a “sleep over”? Nobody sleeps. Everyone left by early afternoon and I was ready to play some X-Box, but my wife talks me into going swimming. Fortunately no one had harpoons at the pool and I returned unscathed. We got home and my wife decided we should clean the place up before bathing. Sure be glad when the maid gets back from Mexico. Kids want her back too.
Finally we had our baths and my son passed out on the couch. He may have slept an hour. I had to carry his butt to bed. Boy’s getting heavy. About time, he’s 12 after all.
We decided to watch the film version of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Phantom of the Opera after supper. It was my gift to my wife on Mother’s Day. To enhance our first viewing God provided a bodacious thunderstorm. The lightning and wind buffeted our home as if part of the original score. And when the Phantom picked up the rose he gave to Christine after she drops it, lightning literally struck my house. You could see electricity charge though my speakers literally and the film paused for a split second and then it proceeded. Whoa! Great flick and beautiful music. You’ll have to arrange your own weather.
Monday we went to yam cha (Cantonese for drinking tea) with my wife’s siblings. Her brother and two sisters showed up. First time in many years for that to happen. Also had the Austin niece there and another niece who just returned from College for the summer. She’s real knock out and really smart. She went to the same middle school as my daughter. At the end of the 8th grade year they have a retreat. During this retreat each student is described with an adjective and no two students in the class share an adjective. My daughter was diligent and Monday I learned that my niece had been given the same adjective. Family values. J
I had a good time. We ate a lot of dim sum (Chinese appetizers) and talked a lot. My brother-in-law is a very successful businessman and I enjoy listening to him speak. He had some ideas on how to prepare and what to do before I go looking for clients. He emphasized that preparation before going into business is important, because once you start working you don’t have time prepare anymore. Preparation saves time down the road and organization makes you appear professional as much as good service. He also was cleaning out his office and he gave me a filing cabinet. Very good quality, saved me some bucks.
Oh well, I’m boring today. Oh I finally got to watch the last episodes of Lost. I hoped I taped them right. Feel like something is missing. Either that or I have to wait until next season. My opinion on Jack. Someone needs to slap the crap out of him. He’s the only doctor on the island. Why in the hell is he carrying dynamite? He should never leave camp, except to administer to the injured or sick.

Simple American
God’s Country, Texas, USA

When you work at a College you eat a lot. These folks like to celebrate birthdays. In the area that I work each person takes a turn organizing a birthday party. You celebrate your birthday and then when the next birthday comes you are in charge of the cake, cake, gifts etc…

Well today was this one lady’s birthday. The birthday cake looked awesome. The woman that made the cake brought a copy of the recipe and it is called a Ukrainian Festive Walnut Torte. Man this thing looked good. It had chocolate frosting and a ton of walnuts as you could probably guess. The sliced looked really good. It was like three layers and it was moist, creamy, yummy and fricking deadly.

Lady that made the cake brought the recipe. It included nutritional data. Here ya go:

• Calories:598
• Carbohydrates: 64.3
• Total Fat 36.7
• Fiber 2.8
• Cholesterol 197.3
• Protein 8.8
• Sodium: 120.6

Dang! Just take me to the hospital now and get this quadruple bypass over with. Whoa, but it taste good. If it kills me its not a bad way to go. Though I must admit I would rather die five seconds after making whoopee. That way my wife is not killed by my dead weight.

I am bored as I can be. It’s registration at the college and I have print out bills for students before they pay. Not a lot of business. I enjoy though. I get to see people when I am up here. Usually I am stuck back in the tight hallway in my little room without a window.

I don’t have access to my email here, but I can get to my blog. Muhaha. I am at a bit of break with 12 to Midnight, since all of my stuff is being edited and I think I have completed all I need to edit. Decided I would do a little work on some modern skirmish rules that I have been wanting to do for the longest time. Kind of interesting. Hope it turns out to be fun. Think I will playtest it with WWII figs, since me and Ed have some forces available for play. Want to use it with Fort Trepidation forces as well. Folks that played Weekend Warrior should have an idea of where I am going with this.

Simple American
God’s country, Texas, USA

The senate never filibustered a federal judge in the first 214 years of its existence. Then Bush becomes President and the Democrats decide that precedence and the Constitution means nothing. The Democrats decide to filibuster the appointment of federal judges. America get educated and get angry.

The media ([sarcasm alert] those impartial folks [end sarcasm alert]) supports the left wing agenda by making the Republicans look like evil power hungry demons. But what about what America wants? The majority elected Bush. The majority elected Republicans to Congress giving them control of both houses. The majority of state governors are Republicans. Back off liberal (poor losing scum) we want conservative judges.

And I am tired of John McCain. This is one of the reasons I cannot contribute to the Republican Party any longer. The thought he might receive a penny from me is upsetting. McCain represents himself and no one else. The press likes him because he is such burr in the Republican’s saddle. I say kick him out of the party. And take all of the gutless RINOs that want to compromise with Democrats along with him.

While I am standing on this soap box, politicians stop spending the taxpayer’s money on gratifying yourself. Federal tax money should be used for defending America’s borders, and federal highways. Get out of areas that government does not constitutionally belong. Education for example. America has diminished in this area ever since the Department of Education was established. Get rid of it.

Simple American
God’s Country, Texas, USA

Got a lot on my mind today.

Skinwalker is my next module and it is going through a round of edits right now. I am worried that the artist is too busy doing other projects. He’s a freelancer that we used on Blood Lines and I like his work. Maybe I am worrying over nothing, but he seemed quicker in the past. Also I am concerned about the Skinwalker maps. I do not know if our map guy has started working on them. Of course he is busy with real life and I respect that. It is projected that the book will go on sale in June, but something has to speed up somewhere.

Last night I went to a Boy Scout committee meeting. This was all adults and the primary goal was seeing what the adult leaders would do at camp next month. I am on the wire as to whether I will go or not. My son is new to the troop and I have not received any boy scout leader training yet. They offer a lot of this training at camp and they are pressing for me to go. They want me to work on my wood badge, which is also excellent training for life. I must be trained before I can attend Wood Badge. That occurs later in the fall.

Camp could not be at a worse time for me as it conflicts with 12 to Midnight. I need to be available to write revisions on a timely basis. I don’t think I have enough vacation to go to camp and go to Gencon in August. 12 to Midnight really needs a presence at the show if we are to become a force in the RPG industry. The important folks you need to know are all going to present. This includes publishers (that print our books on paper), writers, artists, designers, and customers. These people need to know that we are out there and that we are serious about what we do. They need to know we produce very fine horror modules. Basically, we need to spook people into liking us.

The hard part of this is I am the only person going to Gencon from our company. Yep, the CPA, the numbers guy, the fellow with the least personality. I am trying to prepare adequately for the show. I’m working on relaxing, trying to diet so I don’t appear to be a fat slob, just a little obese slob. Been reading a lot of sales and success books. Hopefully, I can control my mind farts. I stutter when I am excited. I have been told that my mouth cannot keep up with my brain. That’s why I like writing down my thoughts. My fingers have never stuttered once.

Starting my firm is not going to help things either. I don’t know what day I will go full time. Need clients and cash flow to leave my current position. If I could start next week, dream on, I would be able to go to all of these events. Of course, Skinwalker, could get delayed. Summer is the time of our best sales. I do not want anything to compromise our sales potential.

I could gamble and use my vacation for scout camp. I think it is realistic to believe that I would be able to go full time by August. Would have no problem making my trip to Gencon then. But if I do not gain clients I would be in a can worms. Everything for Gencon is already paid for and nonrefundable. The plane ticket, the hotel, the vendor pass. All taken care of, but the money have been spent and will not be refunded.

Just a lot on my mind today.

Simple American
God’s Country, Texas, USA
(Something nice about living here is that God is just a local call when you need his advice)

This blog has been ignored too long. Part of a lack of entry is due to operator ignorance. I had some really long posts prepared and lost them. From this day forward I choose to write in Word and then paste into the blog.

What I have been doing? Well I had a week of jury duty. We listened to two days of testimony. On the third day we received our instructions and heard closing arguments. After five hours of deliberation we all agreed that the defendant was guilty of aggravated assault. The defendant elected to have the judge handle his punishment, which has a range of 25 years to life. One of the toughest weeks of my life. But I am glad I sat the jury, because that is what a Simple American should do.

The next week found me in Dallas, TX for a conference. Some boring stuff, except for the class on fraud. Very interesting indeed. I am considering becoming a certified fraud examiner. Big need for that all over. Might help keep me employed when I go into business for myself. I also saw some gaming applications in this too. People at the conference are interesting as well, though I hope to never have to attend one of these again.

Got home on Thursday and picked up my kids. It was my daughter’s last day of school. Friday she graduated and goes on to High School. So I took my woman to see Revenge of the Sith. Great flick. I cried several times and could not stand when the credits rolled. It hit me. No more movies. Hopefully the two TV shows they have planned will be quality. There’s novels too, but they can be hit or miss. Story I would like to read (and maybe it has been done) is how Chewie and Hans Solo hook up. I took my son on Sunday, and my daughter was willing to pay to see it again with her own cash. Best Star Wars flick IMHO.

The graduation on Friday was very nice. My daughter was recognized for graduating in top 10% of her class. Took pictures like crazy of the entire event.

The next day she had her graduation dance. She had a blast. I arrived in time for the parent dance. It was our first and it was fun. We danced to the twist and then a slow dance. It was fun for a Simple American like me. The tradition then called for a late meal at IHOP. Felt sorry for the wait staff. There was over 50 kids plus quite a few parents. I’m surprised anyone got their food.

Back at work. I’m ready to open my business. Hate the bureaucracy government organizations have. I just need to complete a peer review and I can file with the board. Your caught up now. I will persevere to keep you informed.

Oh great my computer is going to restart in less than five minutes. New updates. No matter what I have to say or do. I love working for the state.

Simple American
God’s Country, Texas, USA

Things could seem so backward at my house. I got a bubble bath for Mother’s Day. Of course, I have earned the Mr. Mom tag as my wife is gone during the week. Lately her work takes her to Detroit for a GM project.

But we’re talking about my bath and not her work. You see I wanted to finish laying down mulch after pulling weeds out most of Saturday. Went and bought a dozen bags of pine mulch. The sky is dark and threatening. As I drive back home sprinkles hit the windshield of my Avalanche. I get home and toss the bags onto the front lawn and then park the truck in the garage. I kick off my sandals and stick my feet in my boots. I don’t bother with the shoestrings cause the rain will be here soon. I grab two rakes and the rain starts falling. Oh well I got to get to get this done. I reflected on the old line we said in the Army, “It doesn’t rain on the infantry, it rains around the infantry.”

Probably took me half an hour to break open the bags and smooth it out with a rake. I had exactly enough mulch to do the job thankfully. Noticed the neighbors gutter was not draining properly. The wife happened to leave at that time and I pointed out the deficiency to her. She commented, “You’re all wet.” Cute lady, just had her second child.

All I could respond with was the truth. “If I don’t do things when I can it doesn’t get done.” And with all the work my pending business promises, my writing, and my children’s activities, I may not get out in the yard again until September. Plus this is Texas and the cold rain actually made it comforting in a strange way. In a month it will become too hot to work out here unless I do it early in the morning or late in the evening. Of course, this fact probably does not keep my neighbors from thinking I’m peculiar. C’est la vie.

My wife came out and looked at my soggy self and drew me a wonderful bath. When I came in the house I had my son get me towel. Boy looks at me like I’m a space alien. He needs to get out more. I make it to my bedroom door, stopping and drying my feet every few steps, thank goodness I have tile floors. Not true for my bedroom, which is carpeted. My wife greets me there. The kids are playing Chinese Checkers so they’re occupied. I shed all my clothes (yeah it got ugly), dried my feet and made for the bathroom.

That’s when I saw the bubbles. But I still have the earth and mulch on me. I kind of Japanese in my thinking (really surprised I did not marry a Nipponese considering my mind set, particularly in the 80s) and I cannot take a bath without being clean. So I jumped in the shower and cleansed my self of the crud and the chill the rain brought.

Got ready to jump in the tub and realized I need a book. So I called my son, since all I had on was a towel. Told him to go grab a book out of my office. I wanted to read Selling for Dummies but of course he cannot find it. My daughter would but I’m just wearing a towel. So I tell him to look for another book that I know he cannot miss. He finds it and I’m in the tub and got the jacuzzi going.

Its so good. Lived in this house for over five years and this might be my fifth bath. I just don’t have the time to relax like this. I kick back and enjoy. The book is good too despite a poor editing job. I am reading Keith Baker’s Eberron novel City of Towers. Guy can write pretty good. I’ve been enjoying Eberron stuff, which is Dungeon and Dragon’s new campaign setting. Lot of neat ideas combined to create a wonderful world.

For Mother’s Day we go to eat at Ichiban. This restaurant was opened by the woman that baby sat my kids when they were babies until they started Montesori school. Nice lady, hope she does well. Two of my wives girl friends will join us with their kids to celebrate the day.

During the drive the weather is horrid and power is lost here and there with signal lights not functioning. I might have reached 35 MPH a couple of times on the freeway, but for the most part we have to go around 20 MPH. We get to to the restaurant first. My sister-in-law calls my wife and tells her the wind picked up the tree in her front yard and deposited it in the driveway. She was at the gym when this happened so she’s okay and nobody in the neighborhood is hurt. Her neighbor is able to help her with the tree.

The wind is loud where we are at and some of the kids look worried. I tell them a tornado sounds like a train. If they hear that sound just walk back to the bathroom and stay close to the door frame. Definitely stay away from the windows. Every now and then the lights flicker. Despite it all we had a great meal. We ate Tandoori and sushi. The ladies caught up on all the latest gossip from Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Of course I’m wondering where are their husbands. I have no manly conversation, beyond my son’s occasional question. Turns out both husbands are in Japan on business. Dang I want some of that action.

Rest of the night is uneventful. I woke up 30 minutes late this morning, because my wife did not reset the alarm clock. She gets up at 4:30 to make her drive to the airport. Thankfully, she remembered and called to wake me up.

Went to Starbucks to get a cup of coffee. My coffee maker is giving up the ghost. I walk inside and they are playing Frank Sinatra at 7:00 in the morning. Don’t they know its Monday. Sinatra is Friday going home for the weekend music. I’ll be in a fowl mood the rest of the day. I write better when I’m cranky.

Simple American
God’s country, Texas, USA

My kids are destroying the kitchen. Maybe its not that bad. I’m available for thier consultation, but I am staying out of there. I get worked up to easy. They’ll enjoy it more if I stay out of there way. So will I.

My son has boiled eggs and hes dying them just like Easter. Kids. My daughter is scaring me as she is making muffins. Why do you need a food processor for that? Oh well. I’m staying out of the way. As far as possible. That’s why I am upstairs working on the blog. I estimate breakfast will be served an hour after lunch.

I had thought about taking us out for lunch. We’d go eat Chinese Dim Sum at Viet Namese restaurant. Go figure. This is one of her favorite things to do (and mine). Wheeled tables ar epushed around the restaurant and you just point at the delicacies you want to eat. Yummy! Don’t think its gonna happen today. No way we can beat the church crowd. Once they show up on a day like today it will be crowded. Probably have 30 minute wait.

When I finish this post I need to write a letter to my daughter. They want folks to write letters (She just asked me for Vanilla Extract, it’s getting serious) to thier kids that are graduating. I don’t like being forced to write as this being used for a religious purpose. They have a retreat next Friday and they will be given letters then. I think I should write a letter because I am motivated to write, not because some pompous religious tradition for Church I do not attend tells me I need to write a letter. I’ll write just the same. She’s still young and her friends might hurt her if she did not get a letter from me. Kids are cruel on this kind of thing.

I guess I have cracked open the religious door a little bit. Religion is not my favorite thing. I’m a Christian, God set up Christianity. Then man thought he could do better and made religion. Religion makes you do things (the container got stuck on the food processor, Dad to the rescue. My son is looking for classical music for breakfast) like write letters. All this can do is provide a temporary emotional surge. How does it improve my spiritual life?

I’m going to stop. This will only get my blood boiling. It’s Mother’s Day and I have a letter to write.

Simple American
God’s country, Texas, USA

Its about time to go graduation. I’m tired. Been working in the yard. Neighbor’s lawn service was nice enough to come by at 7:30 this morning.

I hate the drive that’s coming. At least I don’t have to drop my kids off at school. So that means I only have to go 55 miles one way. Bad news for me is I get sleepy when I drive. It must sooth me somehow. Hope I don’t catch a tree.

Simple American
God’s country, Texas, USA

My daughter is graduating from 8th grade this month. She’s a smart cookie. Doesn’t waste her time like I did. We attended the Athletic Banquet tonight. She played basketball. She is upset with a bit because I did not let her join track this year. Last year was a waste as the coach for the discus never showed up. I did not want her to go because of the bad experience. Turns out she had a chance at being Athletic Scholar, but because she did not do two sports this year she was not elgible.

Dang!

Simple American
God’s country, Texas, USA