My inspiration for this was gained after going back to my early blogging days. I was https://thefidd.blogspot.com I can not believe I first started out in February 2008. On occasion I’ll copy and paste a blog from WordPress to that venue also. Should anyone be interested the old blogs are all still there. Two more upcoming blogs are on the front burner. After this will be, The return of our four greats to the Netherlands & G & Pappy’s European adventure. Following that will be, “A Wedding in our Living Room.” So, if at all interested, stay tuned.
My First Blog – 02/11/08 @ 1545 hrs.
Blog, kind of sounds like a cold, or a zit or some kind of an affliction. My first day with a blog, now what do I do with it? Well to start off I’ll let the world know how I start my day on the Internet. My start up page is http//refdesk.com Having spent twenty years in Connecticut I next go to http://www.courant.com/ to check on the local news and how the UCONN Huskies are doing in any given season. I’m a forty year Huskie fan. http://www.uconnhuskies.com/ Next up, but sometimes #1 is the weather. While in the Marine Corps, way back when, I was in Weather as an occupation with Rawinsonde as a sub specialty. http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/marineenjobs/bl68.htm I use a verity of weather related sites www.nws.noaa.gov/ #1, my other favorites are www.accuweather.com and www.weatherunderground.com During the Hurricane season I live by the National Hurricane Center. www.nhc.noaa.gov/ I have friends and family in CT, FL, CA, and affections to Key West, FL, Pagosa Springs, CO, Flagstaff, AZ and Ireland and Germany. So, I usually check on the weather in those places.Next it’s off to the Washington Post and Washington Times to get two diametric views on the news. www.washingtonpost.comwww.washingtontimes.com After the two DC papers I go to Google News, which I have preference settings in and glance over that. Next is onto my mail servers. From then on I usually have a Memo Pad with notes on things to look up and it’s off I go. This all starts shortly after I get up, usually around 0500. Once downstairs it’s a hot cup of tea to start the day. Here, I’ve given the world the start of my day for the start of a BLOG. I shall end this bantering with saying Cead Mile Failte – OMG
This weeks Blog
We recently had a visit from son Matthew & family who reside in Connecticut. Two of his and wife Beth’s four children made the trip with them. The boys, David in New York, Brooklyn to be exact and Kevin, deployed to Kosovo for a year with the CT National Guard, 1/169th Inf.. did not make the trip.
Matt & Beth, OC, MD August 2021
Jill, a soon to be Junior at Siena University and Rebecca a soon to be Junior in High School did make the trip. It was great getting to spend some time with them.
The crew of four spent three days with us, mostly in Kathy and Jeffs pool while they were returning greats to Europe. When they departed here they headed to Ocean City, MD for three days in a condo and beach time on the sand. We joined them on their last day for breakfast and to say good by. Prior to leaving OC we stopped at https://www.rosenfeldsjewishdeli.com and brought our next meal home with us.
There is no doubt the girls will make their mark in our society in years to come.
I could not help but reflect on days gone by and the many trips north to visit over the past thirty-three years. When we were there, and the children were young, I read one of the many children’s books in their libraries. I would like to think that in some small way I had a hand in their using their imaginations while growing up. I am proud of their parents and especially proud of the grandchildren.
Here’s some info about David from the Champlain College Alumni magazine.
What a great trip we had to Burlington, VT, several years ago for David’s graduation.
Hi, My name is David and I make noise and push pixles for fun! Professionally I am a Sound Designer/ Composer, and an Interaction Designer/ Art Director. My goal has always been to craft meaningful sonic and visual experiences. When you boil it all down I just want to create awesome stuff!
I am proficient in Adobe’s suite of tools including Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere, Audition, and After Effects. Along with that, I am also well versed in Cinema 4D, Processing, and have a background working in HTML 5, CSS and Javascript. I have professional experience with multiple DAWs including Apple Logic Pro, Pro Tools, and Ableton Live as a sound designer for Interactive media and film.
For fun I enjoy hacking stuff to do things it’s not supposed to do, writing music, reading and living an active lifestyle.
Check out my Vimeo Page for some of the cool stuff I’ve worked on! Lets create something awesome together!
EDUCATION
Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts
Champlain College
Some info on Kevin
Kevin graduated from the U of Connecticut in May of this year completing a major in Economics and a minor in Geographic Information Science in three years. He joined the CT National Guard after HS to help finance his college expenses. The wife and I made it to FT Sill, OK, for Kevin’s graduation from Army Boot Camp. Son Matthew and I made it to FT. Huachuca, AZ, for his graduation from Tech school there.
It’s important for people to tell you what side they are on and why, and whether they might be biased. A declaration of members’ interests, of a sort. So, I am going to be talking to you about reading. I’m going to tell you that libraries are important. I’m going to suggest that reading fiction, that reading for pleasure, is one of the most important things one can do. I’m going to make an impassioned plea for people to understand what libraries and librarians are and to preserve both of these things.
And I am biased, obviously and enormously: I’m an author, often an author of fiction. I write for children and for adults. For about 30 years I have been earning my living through my words, mostly by making things up and writing them down. It is obviously in my interest for people to read, for them to read fiction, for libraries and librarians to exist and help foster a love of reading and places in which reading can occur.
So I’m biased as a writer. But I am much, much more biased as a reader. And I am even more biased as a British citizen.
And I’m here giving this talk tonight, under the auspices of the Reading Agency: a charity whose mission is to give everyone an equal chance in life by helping people become confident and enthusiastic readers. Which supports literacy programs, and libraries and individuals and nakedly and wantonly encourages the act of reading. Because, they tell us, everything changes when we read.
And it’s that change, and that act of reading that I’m here to talk about tonight. I want to talk about what reading does. What it’s good for.
Once more i ask that you please check on the elderly. If you haven’t had your Covid shot, please think of getting one. Please don’t forget support for our first responders.
As many of you know Sam is one of nine grandchildren and has provided herself and the Rooster with four great-grandchildren. I find it much easier to cut and paste to keep those who wish to be up to date on their goings on. So if you’re at all interested in the Oklahoma Sextet read on.
Come next week we shall travel to Oklahoma for a CT grandson’s graduation from Army basic training at Ft. Sill (Congratulations Kevin) . We will also spend a few days in OKC and visit those Grands, and Greats.
To all who stop by on occasion, thanks for looking in on the Rooster’s chicken scratching. Thank you Samantha for making my blogging a bit easier. Oh, did I mention today is the 242’nd birthday of the United States Marine Corps?
This weekend brought another Davies vacation. This time we set out for Altamont, Utah. We left Thursday morning and set out, arriving in Vernal, Utah just before midnight. It wouldn’t be a Davies vacation if we didn’t stop at a Roadside America Stop. This trip it was Rock City. We stayed with Zed’s Aunt and Uncle who have housed us many times on our trips across the country.
Friday we worked on Zed’s masters program, the kids played with the farm animals (horses, dogs, and goats) and then they and Zed went to the Dinosaur museum. Ana is currently obsessed with dinosaurs, her favorite being long necks and triceratops. I stayed back with Zoe and spent some time with Zed’s aunt. We were then off to Hidden Springs Ranch in Altamont.
If you’re ever looking for a great place for a wedding or reunion location, it’s perfect. It sleeps 92 people, has trap shooting, a rock wall, acres to ride ATVs on, a pool, basketball/volleyball court, and good-sized game room. It was a gorgeous lodge with even better views.
Friday night was filled with catching up and great food. Brisket from Country Natural Beef, homemade scallop potatoes, green beans and rolls. The best part of the meal was Grandpa Davies’ Dutch oven poppy seed cake. Zed and I may have taken half of it with us for the road trip back. The kids went swimming in the hot tub and bedtime was close to midnight.
Birthday day! I started my day with a kiss from Zed then I headed out for a run, 2 miles. Ana was half way through a huge waffle when I got back and Zoe was enjoying the whipped cream on top of Zed’s. Dax had already finished bacon and eggs and Mia decided on a banana. After breakfast we got ready for our day of fun. People started sticking cloths pins to me every time I said someone’s name in my family. It took me a little bit to notice I was the only one collecting pins and realized it was a birthday thing. The boys set out to shoot skeet and Mia insisted on joining; she was the “puller”. Once I reached 27 pins I received my gift, a spa bundle complete with a massage. My sister-in-law is a massage therapist. When in Bend, OR look up sole foot bar and schedule a session. Zed’s aunt scheduled a photographer and the full picture had 48 people in it. We played some fun games and had some amazing steaks.
Sunday brought packing up and saying goodbye. Dax went with ‘ parents for a fun week at the ranch. We set out with the girls and spent the night in Colorado with Zed’s sponsor family from the Academy. We drove the rest of the way home on Monday, completing a successful family vacation. Part of the drive home was stopping at a “cano” in New Mexico. Capulin Volcano last erupted 60,000 years ago and the girls absolutely loved hiking it’s rim and bowl. Zed had a great time with his brothers and I had a great time with my sisters and getting to know, hopefully, sister #4.
It’s been a crappy past ten days, spotty internet reception is the reason why. This all began about a week ago. I’m thinking it was due to a pretty good summer thunder-storm with lots of lightning last week. Our IT comes off a tower 5-6 miles away in the town of Princess Anne. What will be this Saturday’s task will be to use my computer’s word processor to get the basics for a blog done and then head off to our eldest daughter’s house for dinner and use her real world internet to get this posted.
On Thursday of last week our grandson Kevin, a recent graduate from high school and two buddies, Rob and Justin came through from CT. They got to spend the night in the newly decorated Annex/Guest House. On their way the boys took a side trip into NYC and found themselves in China Town. Their arrival here was at 10:00 PM and Mother Hen/Granny quickly got them tucked away.
Kevin asked what time we arise in the AM. When I said around five – five thirty, he quickly said how about seven for breakfast, fine we said. Shortly after eight the next morning the boys emerged from their quarters, Granny was ready. A Frittata of major proportions accompanied by bowls of fresh fruit, Strawberries and Blue Berries and toast were awaiting them. This venture kind of took Granny back to our Bed & breakfast days feeding travelers as they came through Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The Frittata by the way consisted of eggs, potatoes, ham, cheese and tomatoes. I got to eat with the boys, a real treat since I’m not usually spoiled in this way.
We had some nice chit-chat time with the boys over breakfast, learning that Rob was heading to the University of Rhode Island and Justin the University of Connecticut. FYI, Kevin, has decided to put his acceptance to the University of Connecticut on hold for a year.
Not wanting to enter the rigors of life post college deep in debt, Kevin has enlisted in the CT National Guard. He will head off to Basic Training in Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, in September. After basic, Kevin will travel west to Arizona’s Ft. Huachuca for Intelligence School. There are some great monetary rewards for those who serve and Kevin has researched them all.
At approximately 9:30 AM the boys were off to Pickens, SC where they would visit Rob’s grandparents.
L to R – Rob, Kevin and Justin
So we’re moving up in time and it is now Monday, 7 August, 2017. Torrential rains are falling on the Eastern Shore of MD. This morning I took a trip to the offices of BlooSurf, my internet provider to check on the lack of viable service for the past ten days. I spoke with their operations guru and learned the problem had just been solved and service had been restored. His explanation, some rouge electrical interference. Must be the Russians I thought.
Tuesday, 8 August – Awoke, no internet. Has to be the Gremlins from the Kremlin.
Wiki photo
I was up @ 0400 with the mother hen as she was getting ready to go off to her 0530 gym class. God love the little women, such dedication. I do the gym also but do not leave the house until 0810.
I gave a call to my service provider and was told they were aware of the issue and were working on it. I’m guessing they had a long distance call into Moscow and the bare-chested guy. At approximately 1000 hrs a viable signal returned and I was able to get some banking done. Just as I was preparing to send out this blog, SNIP, the signal was gone again.
Just a fishing expedition, you’ll have your internet back in a few days.
So here I am at the eldest daughter’s home 3.5 miles away to attempt to once again finalize this blog.
Giphy
Just a picture or two to capture yesterdays weather is all I wanted to get out. We had 4.3 inches of rain and a Tornado just up the road in Salisbury. The excitement just never ends on the Eastern Shore. We even made the national news.
Publish it quick!
As The Rooster Crows 