RichC | December 2, 2019
Thanksgiving dinner with the Corbett, Oostra and Ankrom familes (click for high res) It is nice to have a few holiday rituals and for us, it is a Thanksgiving family feast with my brother and his family. Brenda, in particular, has now fully taken over the setting of a nice decorative table with all the […]
RichC | November 28, 2019
If African American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar in the late 1800’s could express his “thankfulness” so eloquently on Thanksgiving, those of us living in the United States today should have little problem appreciating the freedom and abundance that we all too often take for granted. It is great to have our family coming to our […]
RichC | November 11, 2019
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RichC | November 3, 2019
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RichC | September 11, 2019
Remember to pause for a moment of silence at 8:46AM this morning … and if you fly a flag, lower it to half-staff as a mark of respect for those who died on on 9/11. Patriot Day :– A day to remember. A day to never forget. On September 11, 2001, four commercial planes were […]
RichC | September 3, 2019
The approaching hurricane kept my attention this Labor Day weekend (writing this for Tuesday on Sunday) as there was really nothing I could do to prepare the condo in Delray Beach or our boat Encore (in the water) in preparation for the approaching storm. Likely when this posts, we will either have dodged a bullet […]
RichC | July 4, 2019
Most Americans love their country and enjoy celebrating our country’s “amazing” 243 year history and success. We are thankful for the rag-tag group of patriots from the 13 original colonies who boldly fought for their independence from Great Britain. In school, my generation (and previous) learned about our forefather’s near impossible struggle for freedom and […]
RichC | June 16, 2019
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RichC | May 26, 2019
Earlier this week I posted something frivolous for a Music Monday, which happens to be Memorial Day, so I’m going to include is post a day early on Sunday thinking others might read it as a way to learn a little more about those who make the ultimate sacrifice in service of our country. If […]
RichC | May 12, 2019
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RichC | 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 … […]
RichC | 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 […]
RichC | April 18, 2019
It is Thursday before Easter and besides thinking about a Throwback Thursday post, it is also Maundy Thursday – the day in which Christian’s commemorate the Last Supper. It also reminds me of the times we would get together with our families on or around Easter. Sometimes it was with my parents and other times […]
RichC | February 14, 2019
It may be a quirky Valentine’s Day gift, but Brenda tossed our alarm clock of 36+ years into the trash a couple months ago saying, “I don’t trust it anymore.” I was relatively happy to see it go since the “honk, honk, honk” of the alarm was the most annoying alarm ever. Besides, I’ve been […]
RichC | January 30, 2019
In an old spinnaker (sail) from our Thistle, I finally hauled out our larger than usual Christmas tree this past week. It was then that I realized I had neglected to archive the “Great Christmas Tree Disaster of 2018” story from December. Hm, how could I have forgotten … likely for the same embarrassing reason […]
RichC | January 21, 2019
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RichC | January 3, 2019
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RichC | January 1, 2019
This year our our 2018 Christmas letter included a quote by the Dalai Lama and it reminds me that our time on earth is finite. Once a grain of sand has passed through the hour glass, it is gone … so make each day count this 2019. There are only two days in the year […]
RichC | December 26, 2018
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RichC | December 25, 2018
Every tech-loving guy needs a subject for a new gizmo … my son-in-law Drew is no exception. He set up his new GoPro-like camera (gift from Katelyn) to time-lapse our Christmas morning. His effort was a little bit too fast for me to watch … so I stretched out the MP4 clip to last almost […]
RichC | December 21, 2018
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RichC | December 17, 2018
How about a classic … Merry Christmas from the Family … first recorded by the “alternative country music” artist Robert Earl Keene in 1994 (below is a live version from 2006 still on YouTube). It still makes me smile even if in today’s world it is probably not PC … nor was it appropriate to […]
RichC | December 15, 2018
Although Brenda and I are making steady progress in getting things ready for Christmas, the iMac surgery mentioned yesterday did not go as smoothly as planned, but at least I do have backups to rebuild things from. Currently the “way too many” cloud services that I’m using are working overtime as my Time Machine archive […]
RichC | November 22, 2018
This was probably not a Thanksgiving meal with my late mom and dad, but it was in the fall of 1987 and is a perfect #TBT memory. My daughter Katelyn was pretty close to her daughter Annalyn’s age and my brother Ron and Claire just engaged to be married. It seems like yesterday, but was […]
RichC | November 11, 2018
The "Bells of Peace" will ring out nationwide from smartphones on the "11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month" to mark the centennial of the end of World War I in November 1918 – click for app On the 11th hour of the 11th day in the 11th month … one hundred […]
RichC | November 3, 2018
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RichC | September 11, 2018
“We’re Going to Do Something …” After a week of total disgust over Nike selecting Colin Kaepernick as their new spokesperson suggesting he "sacrificed everything" when he knelt during the National Anthem and wore socks portraying "police as pigs" … I saw Mike Rowe’s Facebook post and thought his way too polite comment sum things […]
RichC | September 3, 2018
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RichC | July 4, 2018
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RichC | June 17, 2018
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RichC | May 29, 2018
Spent a little more time working on the condo kitchen over a stretched Memorial Day weekend since a replacement range needed to be received (gas version was shipped by mistake on first order). Thankfully was also able to get the templates made for the countertops after adding the stub wall support and some final cabinet […]
RichC | April 1, 2018
Happy Easter brothers and sisters in Christ! He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed. This past week I’ve been listening to Alistair Begg speak on Life After Death recorded from Parkside Church and shared on the Truth For Life podcast. Ever since Katelyn and Drew gave me the Amazon Echo Dot for Christmas I […]
RichC | February 14, 2018
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RichC | January 15, 2018
Today, January 15, 2018, our nation celebrates the life and accomplishments of one of our greatest Americans on his national holiday, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This past Friday, President Trump signed a proclamation that honors Dr. King by designating his birthplace, church and tomb as a National Historic Park. Along with the president’s respectful […]
RichC | January 1, 2018
Happy New Year 2018 to all those following or reading MyDesultoryBlog … thank you. A regular inclusion each year has been the Lake Superior State University Annual List of Banished Words. This is their 43rd year of doing it and there are some welcomed ones in this year’s list — highlighting the ones that bug […]
RichC | December 27, 2017
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RichC | December 25, 2017
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RichC | December 24, 2017
My wife Brenda shows a lot of attention to decorating with memories and detail to our house each December (and my mother did too). I wish I would be more thankful, but am usually a bit Grinchy when ask to do just a few things that seem to much such a waste of time … […]
RichC | December 21, 2017
Although my memory is a little bit foggy, Brenda and I probably saw each other a couple of Christmas’s prior our first Christmas? We were dating in 1980 and engaged in 1981 and likely celebrated with each other close to the day, but were home with our families for Christmas Day. Anyway, when scanning the […]
RichC | December 20, 2017
Just in case there are a few men looking for last minute jewelry gifts to give to their sweetheart for Christmas, here’s a ring idea that will pretty much guarantee that you’ll never need to worry again – you’ll either be alone … or dead! And since I know there is sure to be a […]
RichC | December 14, 2017
Wow … is this really the 35th Christmas? With boxes all over the basement in search for Brenda’s "special ornaments," I ran across the old photo albums of our first year of marriage and our first Christmas. We both remember it fondly since it was a relatively minimalist Christmas. The tree came from Brenda’s dad’s […]
RichC | December 12, 2017
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RichC | December 11, 2017
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RichC | November 28, 2017
As someone who is relatively comfortable with ecommerce and shopping for the best deals online, I don’t think I’ve ever been as frustrated as I was on Monday. Brenda and I had semi-planned to do a little more shopping "online" this year and since Cyber Monday is generally a "good deal" day to shop for […]
RichC | November 26, 2017
Better late than never in posting a few photos from our Thanksgiving day dinner and family time over this extended weekend. My brother Ron and his family were all able to get together at our house this year with our two new additions: Annalyn (Katelyn and Drew) and Teagan (Keira and Ben). Thankfully all of […]
RichC | November 23, 2017
If God created turkeys this ugly as protection from predators … it didn’t work … because 46 MILLION TURKEYS still ended up on some “thankful” American’s plate. Happy Thanksgiving. With all the “food fixing” going on, how about a little humor …
RichC | July 4, 2017
If you listen and make it to the end of this 10 minute July 4, 2017 Independence Day podcast by Mike Rowe, you’ll get the point of this interesting story. Well worth the Blue Apron advertisement and introduction (definitely a worthwhile podcast to subscribe to or follow on Facebook). Render Unto Caesar (mp3) | Mike […]
RichC | June 18, 2017
It is good day when projects get accomplished. Saturday was a sunny and dry for the painting of my GREAT grandparents’ two wicker chairs (unsure, but think they were from my Grandmother Ruth “Walker” Bluhm side). My Grandmother and Grandfather Bluhm used them for years on their Wright Avenue front porch in Toledo Ohio, then […]
RichC | May 31, 2017
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RichC | May 29, 2017
While looking back at previous year blog posts Memorial Day prior to making a 2017 update in order to see how I may or may not have recognized this sacred day, I realized just how many there were and it made me think about just “how many” have paid that ultimate price. Be sure to try and set […]
RichC | May 17, 2017
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RichC | May 14, 2017
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RichC | April 16, 2017
With the buds and flowers popping this Easter weekend around Cincinnati, a sunny morning was a great opportunity to put the lesser used prime lens on my new Four Thirds Lumix GX8 camera. The 14-140 stabilized zoom is usually on my camera for convenience, but today I suspect the slightly faster f1.7 prime lens might be sharper […]
RichC | April 15, 2017
Standing up for your own views is a good thing. Recognizing the views and values of others is a great thing. Coming together in respect for others is much too rare a thing … but it is likely the only way we’ll find peace while living here on this earth. Whether or not you accepted […]
RichC | March 19, 2017
My son Taylor is geography and map kind of guy so I gave him a mag-lift spinning globe for his desk for Christmas 2016. His interests and innate sense of direction is probably why he pursued “Urban Planning and now coordinates development for Clermont County Ohio as a county planner. Anyway, I had forgotten that […]
RichC | February 20, 2017
Happy Presidents Day … if you can still smile after the lack of discipline and leadership.
RichC | January 3, 2017
I’m feeling guilty about receive a Christmas present from my daughter and son-in-law after realizing the price ($$$). I mistakenly admired a bag Drew’s brother demonstrated to me when they had the baby reveal … and although I knew is was above average in price, I never took the time to do the research as […]
RichC | January 1, 2017
RichC | December 27, 2016
After a bit of a delay in maintaining daily blog posts, Brenda, Taylor and I returned from our family Christmas with Katelyn and Drew in Wayzata, MN on Monday night. It was a whirlwind trip and thankfully without incident. First thing first … our growing granddaughter is definitely noticeable as a “babybump” (an overused word). […]
RichC | December 25, 2016
Christmas morning is almost here so I need to get this out of my system before getting together with Drew and my “soon to be a mom” daughter Katelyn. For the record, this is not an example of good parenting! Who doesn’t remember Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer?