Quiet no more – Katelyn and Drew are having a second baby

| September 24, 2019

This content is restricted.

Finally … a first baby shower for Lauren and Aaron Howard

| September 23, 2019

  Carolyn (Aaron’s forever babysitter and family friend), Brenda, Delores (DadH‘s office manager) and my sister-in-law Chris. Hm … the word "finally" is a sensitive one for those wanting a baby verses those delaying having a family? Thankfully for my nephew Aaron (loyal Music Monday blog commenter) and his wife Lauren, the wait is over, […]

A 1974 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia: The 2nd car I ever drove.

| September 17, 2019

After receiving for my learner’s permit (at age 16 in Ohio the 1970s), my family took a long summer vacation out west. One of the stops was to visit a long-time work friend of my dad’s who lived just outside of San Francisco in Los Altos. One of the cars he had was a bright […]

Archive: Thankful to have my family within driving distance

| September 16, 2019

This content is restricted.

Archive: Creative Wind Scoop idea for #sailing #sailboat

| September 5, 2019

Saw this on a sailing forum and thought it would be a great sewing tidbit to add to an Encore project list. Looks simple and compact enough.

A final 3-day Labor Day 2019 weekend photos update

| September 4, 2019

This content is restricted.

Working on the mirror bases for the condo master bathroom

| September 1, 2019

Well they don’t look like much yet, but I’ve been working on the corner mirrors for the Condo1718 master bathroom update. The mirror will be 15” by 38” and will have a 1/2” beveled edge – Brenda’s request ($$). The planned framing will be 3/4” Mosaic tiles that my wife will be trying for the […]

The 2006 Honda Pilot served us well for 14 years #TBT

| August 22, 2019

This is not the Throwback Thursday #TBT photo I would recommend using when listing a car for sale, but the 2006 Honda Pilot we said goodbye to this week did have a few minor battle scars (1, 2, 3) and occasionally a little something that needed to be cleaned off (salt above and sometimes LoveBugs). […]

Archive: Photo wrap-up of our 2019 summer week with Annalyn

| August 20, 2019

This content is restricted.

Another Volkswagen in the family – Taylor’s 2019 VW Alltrack

| August 18, 2019

Taylor’s new 2019 Volkswagen Alltrack – 8/15/2019 After a fantastic week with Annalyn here in Cincinnati, Brenda and I are in recovery mode.  I’ll need to spend a little time getting back to my emails and piled up work but I plan on archiving a few photos from the week (in a day or so). […]

Was it that long ago? My BIODZL Volkswagen Jetta TDI #TBT

| August 15, 2019

Has it really been over 15 years since I was commuting back and forth from NE Ohio in my 2003 Volkswagen TDI (and filling up with biodiesel or seeing my car image on other peoples’ blogs?) Yes it has been awhile. After posting about a friend’s new Volkswagen Atlas (Tim Hunter sent me a new […]

Happy Birthday Brenda, with a couple photos from the archives

| August 12, 2019

As hinted at last week, today is the day I want to wish my wonderful wife Brenda a Happy Birthday. We are looking forward to our slowly closing the chapter of “career” (no hurry yet) … and are starting to plan the new chapter called “retirement. Anxious? Who me? Although we may have changed a […]

Where have the years gone? 11 years ago and now in 2019. #TBT

| August 8, 2019

This content is restricted.

Falling back on fiberglass and autobody skills for house repairs

| July 30, 2019

The summer of 2019 around our house has meant more repairs and maintenance updates than usual. This means weekends have been busy with house projects and in also finding and hiring help to complete the updates that are too overwhelming for this one “aging” guy to handle on his own (although my 60th birthday celebrations […]

An old newspaper clipping and a great summer job #TBT

| July 25, 2019

When talking about the wide spread damage in the Dayton area by a tornado earlier this year with the guys putting on our new gutters (Raspberry Pi cam picked up one of the guys’ legs and tweeted it to me) …  I mentioned that I once did some tornado repairs in my hometown. I couldn’t […]

It has been HOT and an update on the New Gutters for the house

| July 23, 2019

The weather has been super hot and humid so far this July over most of the eastern half of the country. It is pool and grilling weather to be sure … although when the pool water temperature is 90 degrees, it really doesn’t feel all that refreshing anymore. Since I was clearing off the porches […]

Anniversary: 50 years ago we landed on the moon – July 20, 1969

| July 20, 2019

As has been highly celebrated and reported in every form of media this week (and mention in not just one, but two earlier blog posts), today is the 50th anniversary of the landing a man on the moon. It was the historic Apollo 11 eight-day mission to the moon and back with the goal of […]

Archive: Condo1718 electrical updates and mirror thoughts

| July 18, 2019

I’m archiving the last few photos from my iPhone from this past weekend updates to Condo master bathroom. I finished what I was able to do without an extra set of hands and will do the rest the next time Brenda is in Florida with me (it is hard to set a toilet with a […]

The condo master bathroom is slowly coming together

| July 17, 2019

Finished up the vanities in the master bathroom at the condo this past weekend and all went well in putting in 5 new valves and 2 drains. I shocked even myself in that all “went as planned.” Unfortunately the struggle began when mounting the polymer rather than wood molding across the back to top off […]

Why not just stick with American Standard, Delta or Moen?

| July 15, 2019

My wife does not appreciate the common everyday American branded sinks, vanities or faucets … and wanted something a little more unique for the Condo master bathroom (sort of like the other bathroom update last year – see photo at bottom of post). I really didn’t think that much about it until realizing that not […]

Catch up post after our 2019 Fourth of July Family weekend

| July 9, 2019

This content is restricted.

One week late, but finally archiving our Put In Bay family weekend

| June 29, 2019

This content is restricted.

Archive: Found a couple CPP photos when cleaning my desk #TBT

| June 27, 2019

While cleaning out a few old files folders, I came across a couple Consolidated Printing and Publishing Co. building photos in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio that my insurance agent took and included glued onto a policy folder. They are likely from the late 1980s and are worth archiving and using for a Throwback Thursday #TBT post. […]

Finally joining the smartwatch and Fitbit wearer club

| June 26, 2019

This content is restricted.

A different kind of Tech Friday: A homebrew Vegetation Killer

| June 21, 2019

These homemade “salt based” recipe for Roundup vegetation control substitutes appears ever spring and summer on social networks, emails and blogs on the Internet. This year I figured I would archive this vinegar, Epsom salt (Magnesium sulfate) and our favorite degreaser and soap, Dawn dishwashing soap on MyDesultoryBlog as a helpful tidbit.

The yardwork theme continues with a sump pump to pool bypass

| June 18, 2019

With steady rains (and downpour storms) over the past week, the ground was soft enough for even this 60 year old guy to trench. I’ve been wanting to work on the “sump pump to pool” bypass ever since testing it with a temporary pipe to 2” roll up hose a few years ago. The water […]

Lost track of the weekend – Happy Father’s Day

| June 16, 2019

This content is restricted.

This is why we own shares of Pepsi $PEP and Coke $KO #TBT

| June 13, 2019

We have so many cans (mostly Brenda’s Diet Pepsi, but plenty of my Diet Mountain Dew as well) is almost embarrassing how I take aluminum cans to a local recycling center. It is even more eye-opening to “see” just how much pop (soda) we buy and consume! How is it possible to drink this many […]

Archiving Taylor’s 30th birthday party with photos and video

| June 11, 2019

We had a great 30th birthday party for Taylor and his friends on Saturday in the backyard … just as we have many times before. As a parent it is nice to know he has always enjoyed bringing friends to our house rather than going someplace else … and seemingly his friends are okay with […]

Happy Birthday to our son Taylor. He is 30th this year.

| June 10, 2019

From 3 years old (photo) to 30 years old this year in 2019 … the years of watching Taylor grow up have zipped way too fast. I suspect every parent and grandparent has said that at one time or another? Birthday “year” celebrations, become “decade” celebrations, and we no long even contemplate the candles on […]

The Spot, a Sidney Ohio landmark & Rob Lowe memories #TBT

| June 6, 2019

Who doesn’t enjoyed reminiscing and remembering fond memories from the past?  I know I do … and it is obvious the actor Rob Lowe does as well. Last week the actor was in Sidney, Ohio before his one-man show at the Schuster Center in Dayton. His fondest for the Dayton area is fairly well know, […]

Ticks, screwy metal things and working on mulch landscaping

| June 5, 2019

Nasty bugger … thankfully I think I caught this guy (or any of his buddies) before sucking my blood. Nowadays with Lyme Disease you can’t be to careful with letting ticks bite or burrow. I’m not sure our area is considered risky, but I don’t want to chance getting infected either (I thnk this guy […]

Our favorite Spinning Fork restaurant is now re-opening as The Spinning Forchetta Italian Eatery, now closer to home

| June 5, 2019

We were obviously not alone in sheading tears over the lost of our favorite local restaurant Spinning Fork in Fairfiled, Ohio(we’ve eaten there since 1995)… but thankfully the family, recipes and history looks like it will be around a while longer, just not at the same location. They have moved to a Hamilton Elks Golf […]

Archive: Remodeling of the condo master bathroom continues

| May 19, 2019

Working on remodeling projects away from home a few days at a time really seems to stretch a project out (photo – flying home from Fort Lauderdale FLL last night – I was checking out the FULL anchorage at Lake Sylvia from the plane). Thankfully both Brenda and I have always enjoyed the hands-on projects. […]

Catch up photos from Mother’s Day with the kids

| May 18, 2019

This content is restricted.

Archiving a list to have some fun with our Amazon Echo

| May 4, 2019

We added yet another Echo Dot and so it only makes sense to ask Alexa a few more questions. Here’s list that has been floating around the Internet and so just wanted to archive it on My Desultory Blog.   100 Funny Alexa Tricks for the Entire Family For music lovers: “Rap for me!” “Sing […]

Archiving a YouTube grilling recipe for summer

| April 29, 2019

Look who has been visiting our house for a few days

| April 27, 2019

This content is restricted.

Spring had definitely sprung for Easter Sunday in 2019

| April 23, 2019

Although Brenda worked Easter Sunday this year, the weather could not have been more beautiful in Cincinnati for a few chores. I buffed out the oxidation on our 2002 Honda Odyssey, as the Florida sun is hard on paint. After buffing, I wax and buffed again in order to add a layer of protection … […]

Shuttle launch observed from the International Space Station

| April 21, 2019

Happy Easter … He Is Risen. He Is Risen Indeed! The resurrection of Jesus and His “ascension” to heaven is a vision we can only imagine. When I’m too busy to blog, a beautiful photo from space works well as an Easter post. Here’s a photo from the International Space Station (#ISS) just after a […]

Archive: Photos from Katelyn, Drew & Annalyn’s trip to Yosemite

| April 20, 2019

This content is restricted.

Archiving a house for sale and testing OneDrive photo embed

| April 11, 2019

If you are looking for a grand home with too many features to mention and a lot of room both inside and out, look no further; 8000 Green Lake Drive in Liberty Township, Ohio is featured in the Pulse Journal this week and listed by Keller Williams Advisor’s Realty. (archiving photos in OneDrive – see […]

Archive: Taylor Corbett – Meeting Clermont County’s Planner

| April 9, 2019

There aren’t many things that makes a mom and dad prouder than realizing their parenting efforts have paid off. We are now regularly seeing our children as productive professional adults and realizing that our being positive examples, and prioritizing school and providing a college education, has paid off. Besides Katelyn and husband Drew being accomplished […]

Keeping up with Taylor, Megan, Annalyn, Katelyn and Drew

| April 3, 2019

This content is restricted.

Music Monday: Just a guy playing the piano in a hardware store

| April 1, 2019

This is a repost from Facebook and a blog post from 5 years ago … but after someone sent me a message last week about not being able to view the embedded FB video, I decided to repost and archive the impressive piano playing of Jacob Tolliver on an “unfinished piano in a Portsmouth Ohio […]

Why is the yield curve inversion so important?

| March 31, 2019

Great "Quicktake" explaination on Bloomberg. The Yield Curve Is Inverted! Remind Me Why I Care If you’re wondering what a yield curve is and why there’s so much fretting in the U.S. over it flattening — and parts of it even inverting — you’re not alone. Late last year, Google searches for “yield curve inversion” […]

My small town, old friends and Springsteen’s “Glory Days” #TBT

| March 28, 2019

This content is restricted.

Medscape article on the treatment of Meniere disease #archive

| March 27, 2019

A couple of decades ago I suffered from Ménière disease (Ménière’s disease) and struggled to find treatment and relief from the miserably vertigo episodes. One does not understand how debilitating and miserable that this be, so much so that any potential treatment, regardless of the risk, seemed worth it at the time. In my case, […]

Making boxes instead of my plastic coffee cans to keep bird away

| March 26, 2019

After mentioning a distraction in working on my weekend projects last week, here was the project that was first on the list  … something to deter the robins. My “keep the birds away” boxes to replace my yearly plastic coffee cans … and two of them with funky wires (photo left – I’ll have to […]

Ancestry: Allen George Howard’s horse was named Gus #TBT

| March 14, 2019

Throwback Thursday posts can be interesting, especially when archiving a couple of my old photos from the early 1990s and tidbit of information that is likely not saved any place else (the horse was named Gus). Here’s a little Howard family history (my wife’s side of the family): Brenda’s grandfather, Allen George Howard died young; […]

A little leftover Annalyn “dance party” video to archive

| March 13, 2019

This content is restricted.

Archive: A family birthday party for Annalyn. She is 2 years old.

| March 12, 2019

This content is restricted.

Happy Birthday to our 2-year old Annalyn, the “Apple of MY eye”

| March 5, 2019

This content is restricted.

When all is well, life is good, even if it is not always as planned

| March 2, 2019

This content is restricted.

Tech Friday: The Wayback Machine and Cincinnati Style Chili

| March 1, 2019

This is an unusual Tech Friday post, but after being frustrated this week in clicking a dead link to an article that disappeared after a website was updated, I decided there must be a better way to ensure information, links and websites remained useful … WITHOUT having to archive them entirely on my computers, servers […]

Spinning Fork, our favorite local Italian restaurant has closed

| February 24, 2019

Brenda and I have been eating at The Spinning Fork Restaurant in Fairfield, Ohio since even before we moved to the Cincinnati area – was our favorite restaurant. Our family grew up enjoying their delicious food and personal warmth, something that I think only exists at locally owned establishments. We are hoping new owners will […]

Condo1718 Master Bathroom update project for 2019

| February 19, 2019

After working on both the condo guest bathroom and kitchen last year in Delray Beach, Florida, I’m hoping to work on the master bathroom when we vacation this year. Our renters have emailed just how pleased they are with the new updates and suspect they will rent again in 2020? At one time I planned […]

We had a great time babysitting Annalyn on Valentine’s Day

| February 16, 2019

This content is restricted.

It has been interesting reviewing my Ancestry.com DNA results

| February 12, 2019

Having worked on my family tree with Ancestry.com back in 2010 and then ignored returning 9 years later, it has been interesting to look into it again now that DNA testing has grown in popularity. My results came back a few days ago and they were “as expected” (although the map a bit deceiving). From […]

Enjoyed a few days of Florida sunshine aboard Encore last week

| February 10, 2019

I enjoyed the warm sunshine and working on a few project on Encore this past week. It was a delayed trip due to a flight cancelation, but thankful my schedule is pretty flexible. It would have been nice to stay longer and to have had Brenda with me, but "ya got to do what you […]

Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee

  1. lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
  2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
My Desultory Blog