Contemplating and already missing our winter beach days

| March 10, 2024

I wish I could say that our winter Florida vacation was long enough, but to be honest, it flew by way too fast. Nevertheless, being “snowbirds” … as our son Taylor called us … suited us just fine. We thought our daily walks on the beach (10,000+ steps each day) and eating less were surely […]

Archive: KDAE February 2024 vacation to Florida Wrap-Up Part 2

| March 6, 2024

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Archive: KDAE February 2024 vacation to Florida Wrap-Up Part 1

| March 3, 2024

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We have an extra day this Leap Year … Let’s not waste it!

| February 29, 2024

If you are a regular reader, then the answer is “yes” … I’ve been a bit distracted from posting regularly on MDB for the past couple of weeks. I promise to get better in March.  Part of my distraction has been enjoying down time with Brenda in Florida and with my daughter and her family […]

And then there were 4: The NFL Playoffs continue this weekend

| January 27, 2024

Brenda and I have been enjoying the NFL playoffs in late January from Florida this year and are looking forward to watching the final two games before Super Bowl LVIII on February 11, 2024. This weekend America will be watching the Detriot Lions vs the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC and the Kansas City […]

The US financial markets finally take (start?) their October slide

| October 19, 2023

Those who are elected (or strong-armed their way to power) are failing miserably at keeping peace in our world as we teeter on the edge of yet another war. No matter how advance we think we are, human beings are unable to get along with each other.  Stock Market Indices market close 10/18/2023 Stock market […]

Beach vacations are restful and a necessary recharge for me

| October 18, 2023

Although a new iPhone14 or 15 would make the quality of photos a little better, my old iPhone7plus is still chugging along. I haven’t taken a panoramic for a while, so rather than go the selfie route (Brenda veto-ed the photo we took) for today’s vacation blog post. So I’ll post a Delray Beach pano […]

Archive: Summer vacation and hiking in Zion National Park

| August 8, 2023

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Music Monday: Never knew I enjoyed Taylor Swift music

| April 17, 2023

Who knew that I was becoming a Taylor Swift music fan (I may have to listen a little more)? Well at least after hearing a couple of her songs played on “KC‘s No Shoes” SiriusXM channel, I’m starting to enjoy and perhaps now know what I’ve been missing. So for today’s Music Monday, here’s “Breathe“ […]

Archive: A few Easter weekend family photos and video

| April 11, 2023

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A bit more on the Portuguese Man O’ Wars this past week

| February 18, 2023

Brenda commented that I didn’t link any information on the the large numbers of Portuguese Man O’ Wars earlier this week, so figured I would share a beach photo of a bourgeoning Portuguese Man O’ War spawn that were washing up all over the beach this past week (click above). The interesting colored spot on […]

Archive: Some family time with our granddaughters

| November 30, 2022

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With the first freeze in SW Ohio … I’d rather be on the beach

| October 19, 2022

There was a leftover beach flyover video on my phone from our late September – early October Florida vacation so with a private family post creating registered only viewing and the first real cold weather of the season, this makes for an envious filler. I’m looking forward to warm weather and the beach again. Why […]

Red Baron Brick Oven Pizza and beach pigeons …

| October 11, 2022

With a lot of football watching in the evening last week while on vacation in Delray Beach, our appetite was for pizza. Normally we might have ordered it from a pizza shop, but since Target had Red Baron pizzas on sale for $3.99, we opted for their Brick Oven medium pizza. Shockingly, neither Brenda or […]

What would October be without our fall trip to Florida?

| October 9, 2022

Brenda and I have been fortunate to almost always taken an autumn trip to Florida. Years ago it was often to visit my parents who would go to Panama City Beach or take a trip with the kids. After Katelyn and Taylor were in college, it was often to visit Brenda’s parents and then to […]

Summer 2022 at home with our granddaughters wrap-up

| August 14, 2022

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A Happy Birthday for Brenda … with her granddaughters

| August 12, 2022

It has been a perfect summer week with Ellerie and Annalyn and all topped off with our family together to celebrate Brenda’s birthday. Katelyn and Drew are taking the girls to Kings Island today while we recuperate and I try to get a few things done that have piled up from phone calls, emails and […]

Our 40th Anniversary trip to the Canadian Rockies (part 2)

| July 21, 2022

This is part 2 (see pre-wrap-up and part 1) of our Canadian Rockies 40th Anniversary trip, but I can tell from the start that I’m not going to get very far (late and tired … and just WAY too many photos). Still, it is enjoyable to think about and remember the great time we had […]

Oostra lot clearing has begun, a KETO diet and Fitbit update

| July 13, 2022

Instead of starting a rant on our nightmare return trip from the Canadian Rockies flying Air Canada … I’m going to let the stress dissipate for a while. It was painful travel. So instead I’ll archive a couple exciting photos from Katelyn and Drew as their builder has started clearing the trees from their lot […]

Books: “The Dying Citizen” by Victor Davis Hanson

| July 3, 2022

With a little travel and vacation time coming up, I went into my “want to read” list and downloaded “The Dying Citizen” from the local library to my Kindle. The 2021 book is a longer read (433 pages) from Victor Davis Hanson, a professor and military historian seen regularly on Fox News and Fox Business. […]

Enjoyed a Mother’s Day beach week of R & R in Florida

| May 10, 2022

Depressing as it may be, our vacation in Delray Beach is over, but it was a perfect and needed rest and relaxation trip. Our old 2002 Honda Odyssey is still surviving … although I did pondering a new Florida vehicle after having to jumpstart and fidget with the flakey AC. Yet it still didn’t convince […]

Happy Mother’s Day to a couple of wonderful moms

| May 8, 2022

It is difficult not to recognize what great moms both MomC and MomH were to me … but since they are no longer here, I want to wish a Happy Mother’s Day to a couple of great moms — my wife Brenda and daughter Katelyn. They both have risen to the most important role of […]

Our October 2021 vacation with KDAE to Delray Beach, Florida

| October 30, 2021

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Halloween gremlins creep in to finish off our Florida vacation

| October 26, 2021

Let’s start with "we had a great time in Florida" this past week" (more to come) … but the cleanup weekend ended with a couple gremlins. I blame it on the "uncarved" pumpkins left by the granddaughters. HA! Actually there were no unexpected problem while they were in Delray Beach with us, but after they […]

A birthday celebration and fun family weekend in Cincinnati

| August 17, 2021

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A week of summer with Annalyn and Ellerie at our house

| July 11, 2021

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Music Monday: The Beach Boys, “Fun, Fun, Fun” and some R & R

| May 3, 2021

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It was good to get away to sunny Florida for a restful beach week

| May 2, 2021

Although I know much of the country has lived locked down for much of the year, Brenda and I have probably done a little more than most. She has worked in the pharmacy without much of a break and since the COVID19 vaccinations have started, has been very busy. We had planned a trip to […]

Canary cam selfies, Taylor and his fraternity friends in the Bahamas and the passing of the UK’s Prince Phillip

| April 10, 2021

It is that time of year again … spring, when the camera loving birds (1, 2, 3) sit and look at the Pool Garage camera. The downside is that every time they sit and look at the Canary cam, it triggers a motion alert to my phone. Taylor and Megan are on their way back […]

Archive: Granddaughter catch-up photos from this past week

| April 3, 2021

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A memory from 2010! What happened to my children? #TBT

| August 27, 2020

Love this photo, although Katelyn and Taylor do look the same to me … well, add 10 years. I saw this photo from our Bermuda cruise in 2010 and thought, “I’m so glad we took as many trips as we did each year as a family!” The early years of traveling may have been on […]

Archive: Stay around home 2020 mini-vacation family photos

| August 11, 2020

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Someone’s Tesla is plugged into my 220VAC welding circuit?

| August 9, 2020

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Wouldn’t it be nice to cool off in the pool on hot summer days?

| July 10, 2020

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Annalyn and Ellerie photos are keeping a smile on my face

| April 8, 2020

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The “Stay-at-Home” plan for COVID19 will continue for a while

| March 22, 2020

We are definitely not the only ones praying a little bit more that usual nowadays while listening to those who are trying to help the country and world manage and get through the Coronavirus threat. I reluctantly worry about the elderly and less capable of fending for themselves especially if they have underlying health issue […]

We need to get back to doing our sailing thing #TBT

| November 7, 2019

Although we have recently returned from a nice two week vacation (Part One, Two and Three) and finishing up projects at the condo, I was reminded when looking at a post from 5 years ago for Throwback Thursday #TBT, just how relaxed we were and how much we enjoyed our time together sailing Encore (it […]

Music Monday: “Where We Belong” by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes and the movie An Officer and a Gentleman

| October 28, 2019

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Vacation Part 3: A few left over photos and video from the beach

| October 27, 2019

There were a few extra photos and some video of Brenda swimming on my iPhone from our Delray Beach, Florida vacation last week, so I’ll archive them and make a Vacation Part 3 post (Part 1 and Part 2). Nothing spectacular … but viewing the video and listening to the water and wave below is […]

Vacation Part 2: Beach time with family after Legoland

| October 26, 2019

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Vacation Part 1: Finished upholstery, master bath and cleaning

| October 23, 2019

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

| June 29, 2019

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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. […]

Remembering Easter break with a couple #TBT photos from 1997

| 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 […]

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

| April 3, 2019

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Enjoyed a great week in Florida with Katelyn, Drew and Annalyn

| October 27, 2018

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Family weekend, a new Volkswagen and the prodigal son returns

| August 29, 2017

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Shortened work week … or none at all for Taylor in Hawaii

| November 22, 2016

I couldn’t resist sharing one of my son’s photos from his Thanksgiving trip to Hawaii. The first few days have been spent at a friends house on Oahu not to far from Marine Corps Base Hawaii on Kaneohe Bay, but they are not sitting still. Each day after the morning rain, at least the two […]

A beautiful quadrotor aerial video from Lake Michigan

| September 1, 2016

My son-in-law Drew shared a really impressive Phatom3 movie clip on YouTube after his July 2016 vacation in Michigan. There were some incredibly beautiful views, sunsets and shoreline video … of course it didn’t hurt that the weather was perfect for Katelyn and Drew’s vacation at his parent’s “cabin” (as they call it). Although I’ve […]

Beautiful filler photo for quadrotor enthusiasts

| July 31, 2016

While Katelyn and Drew were vacationing in Michigan, they included this very cool photo! It is a perfect filler for a missing Sunday afternoon blog post.

Enjoying time aboard Encore with Katelyn and Drew

| March 28, 2016

A bit delayed in posting to the blog, but we’ve been a bit distracted. Brenda and I met my daughter Katelyn and her husband Drew for a few days on the boat to enjoy some time together. Way too much time goes by between visits for my taste. The weather was nice with a few […]

Sailing Encore with the one I love doesn’t get any better

| October 27, 2014

What a wonderful life. I’ll let our video speak for itself. "God is good, God is good all the time. All the time God is good."  from the movie God is NOT Dead. But it applies …

Busy, busy, busy … with Taylor up in Williston, ND

| July 20, 2014

After our visit with Katelyn and Drew in Minneapolis ( 7/18 & 7/19), we flew up to Williston, North Dakota to see Taylor. Flight and weather were great and after dinner our first night we stopped at Taylor’s Williams County Zoning and Planning office (below) and took an evening hike along the levy east of […]

A great time sailing was had by all

| April 1, 2014

We had almost perfect weather to enjoy a mini-vacation on Encore these past few days, unfortunately all good things come to an end. Beside doing to much needed cleaning (Brenda does a better job than me), we took our niece Sarah and her friends out for a day of sailing. Our goal was to head […]

Brenda and I are enjoying time on Encore for some R & R

| March 31, 2014

Just a quick filler post after watching the sunset at the marina in Florida after a cold front passed and left a slim sunset photo opportunity looking over the boom. The cool air felt good and will make for great sleeping tonight … and was also an excellent opportunity for chili … which is always […]

Gas prices and an additional Encore motor mount issue

| February 5, 2013

In the last few weeks gasoline prices have risen 20 – 30 cents per gallon and the extra few dollars were felt when we were in Florida this past week. The small, and cheap feeling, Nissan Versa rental car was at least a little thrifty at the pump – 32 mpg, but it should have […]

Having a last minute Magical moment before heading home

| February 12, 2012

Although we had a relaxing week “on the boat” … we opted to spend our last day in Orlando and visiting the Epcot center and dinner at the California Grill atop Walt Disney World’s Contemporary Hotel (thanks Gary!)      

Ever been to Traverse City Michigan? This might inspire you.

| July 31, 2011

If you’ve ever enjoyed a summer (or fall, spring or winter) trip to Traverse City Michigan, you then know that it is a great All American town. I’ll bet you’ll love this  Traverse City LibDub 2011 video, at least I know Michigander Steve will, although some Buckeyes are pretty set in their ways?

Archiving: Vacation artwork finally arrived

| November 15, 2010

The 2004 Jean-Claude Picot seriolithograph from our trip to Bermuda this past summer finally arrived (Trip archive: Post 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ). I’m saving an image of the painting so that at least I’ll have a record somewhere.   Our Saturday afternoon unboxing Since 1956, Jean Claude Picot has been working exclusively as […]

Another sunny day on the beach with B-17 Liberty Belle fly over

| October 31, 2010

The final day of our mini-vacation was spent in the sun and ocean. We relaxed on the beach and enjoyed the sunshine and warm wind. The waves were large enough to make the body surfing fun as Brenda and I soaked up the last few hours before getting ready to head for home. While I […]

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