Coronavirus COVID-19

    Friday March 13 was a half day of school and the last day that I have worked due to social isolation. Saturday the 14th was the last time we were able to attend mass at St. Gerard as it is now online Sundays at 9:00. In February we heard about the virus causing China to shut down Wuhan but never thought a month later it would shut down most of our economy and cause our freedom to be limited to try to stop a pandemic from spreading. It was good I got the Equinox's oil changed and my haircut and new coat at Penney's before these things became part of the quarantine. Now only grocery stores are open with limited hours and with 6 foot restrictions and due to hoarding some items difficult to find or limited. Gas is cheap but nowhere to go even though there is an abundance time. Life is strange but we are surviving and healthy so far. The president has called this a war on an unseen enemy and there are very real parallels. Unfortunately trump has done a poor job of leading this war contradicting, misinforming, talking in circles, taking no responsibility while blaming others, giving uneven direction to a nation confused by this new way of living. He has been a babbling, bumbling, buffoon during daily briefings which really should be like Roosevelt's fireside chats during the Depression that reassured people. Thank God for Dr. Anthony Fauci of NIAID for being the source of truth during this trying time that would be a disaster if trump had his way which is concentrated on the health of the economy and his legacy. Globally there are 1,360,000 cases and 76,000 deaths; in the USA 368,500 cases and 10,000 deaths and in Michigan 17,221 cases and 727 deaths. I did celebrate my 69 years with carrot cake and chicken enchiladas made by my beautiful wife and we try to go for walks now that it is warming up. Sadly on March 9th Lukas crashed the front end of the Malibu on his way to work and it was his fault and that Friday turned out to be his last day of work at Delta Dental as they let go of all their temp employees as they could not work from home. He had to pay $125 for the ticket and $500 to the lady he ran into for her deductible. Jesus Christ is Lord and will see US through this!

Valpo Valentine

   This weekend we went to Valpo leaving Friday after work and getting there just after dark to spend St. Valentines with the grandchildren. The boys were happy to see us and they are growing and changing making for a great visit. Unfortunately on the ride home I felt a little queasy and when we passed Kalamazoo I threw up while driving and we pulled off I-94 and I had to change my pants and clean up at McDonalds. But as we approached Charlotte I felt it coming on again and Jane grabbed a bag and again left it on the exit ramp. I also had one more episode at home and liquid farts making the sickest I'd been in 25 years. Maybe just the 24 hour flu from school or Iowa or Indiana? Today I am better and did my taxes as there is no school for President's Day and I needed that extra rest. Aunt Peg broke her ankle and we have went to see her out at Dobie Rd. Rehab the prior 2 weekends.  It has been cold enough for snow cover but overall a mild winter a prelude to the storm that will be the rest of 2020.

2020 Vision

   We spent Christmas with Silas and Paul getting there at 11:00 on the 24th and leaving Jane there to come back by train and bus on Friday. We were able to go to the Y during my 2 weeks off and so far Jane says the class hasn't gotten too crowded with the state workers in January except for a couple of days. Jane got new glasses at Americas Best to improve her perception for the new decade. I only have to go to Colt and Winans for the IEP's now. For all of December we had 3.4" of snow and on the 18th of January we had 6.8" of snow and most other days have been near 30 degrees and cloudy with a 12" snow total for January. We did a mortgage reduction loan from LAFCU that ended the home equity loan from 5/3 Bank. Life just goes on like trump and his winning which is our losing. The House impeached him but the Senate conducted their predetermined conclusion hearing blindly saying he is guilty of an unimpeachable offense. Division, depression, deception, disgust and discrimination make a 5D 2020 vision.

Peach or Impeach Me

   It is now winter with the longest night and shortest day due to the tilt of the Earth putting the sun below the North Pole horizon.  I am on a 2 week break from school and will not have to go back the the Middle School next year after contacting HR about their IEP schedule that was not working well and the lack of a review after the 2 month pilot. Last week Jane and I went to Valpo to see Silas at his Hopewell Christmas show that had us go down Tuesday and come home Wednesday. We will all return this Tuesday for Christmas in Valpo. Phillip is with Stef in Ohio and will do his Christmas in Erie with her family. They have been living apart as Phil is in Louisiana and Stef just got a job that will start in February so she will put her house up for sale in Ohio as Phil just has in Texas and they will be reunited in their new home in Praireville LA.  We had Thanksgiving the Friday after in Valpo and had been there 2 weeks before also to visit. Lukas got a job at Delta Dental the first of December as an eligibility coordinator and has liked it so far. We have had 2 Arctic vortexes so far but the Great Lakes protected us from the extreme cold even though November has been colder than normal. In early November I broke my right front tooth and had Dr. Rashid fill it the next day and hopefully it will hold for a long time. On December 18th the House approved 2 articles of impeachment against trump for abusing his presidential power and obstructing  Congress which is a sad day for the USA.  Eat a Peach by the Allman Brothers would have been so much better for our country to hear but instead all of this is now heading for a Senate trial in January. All is not great in our republic and democracy is facing a serious challenge!

Phil & Stef's Wedding

    On Saturday October 5th in Erie PA at 2:00pm we gained another daughter-in-law. We traveled 6 hours to Erie on the 4th and checked into the Courtyard Marriot Bayfront. It was cold and cloudy and we headed to St. Jude's church for the rehearsal and then to the Erie Yacht Club for the dinner. Stef's dad was very friendly and welcoming and I paid for the evening meal. The next morning Jane got her hair done with the wedding party and we prepared for pictures outside the hotel and then off to the wedding. Silas was the ring bearer and the ceremony was  well done with bubbles greeting the couple after the church cleared out. The reception was in Riley NY about 30 miles away at Quincy Cellars Winery on a sunny warm day. We all had a great time and danced, enjoyed the cookie table and sparkler sendoff. The following morning we had a farewell send off breakfast at the Sheraton where we had to cross the sky walk to get there before we left for home at noon. Phil's job has now moved him to Louisiana and he and Stef are getting back from their over the weekend honeymoon in Cancun. Two weeks before the wedding I attended my 50 class reunion. On Friday night there was a get together at the Crown Plaza and then the Grand Ledge Country Club Saturday. I talked to people I really never knew in High School and reconnected with some good friends and had a good time reminiscing.  On the Thursday I met up with Gabor and we went out to Cheddars as he was staying at an Airbnb on Nugget  which was 3 houses from where our senior class float was built. The school year has been going on with the new required scheduled visits to Winans, Colt, and the Middle School for IEP's. I don't mind going over to Winans but am not in favor of this as it does not have a practical value for as many times as they want to do it and I hate going to the MS.  Heather Foster's husband Mark died the end of August and Jane and I went to his funeral at Riley Funeral Home and then Cadgewith Farms for a dinner afterward. Impeachment is in the air and seems more deserving each dumb thing the stable genius does and says!

Staying Busy

   Lukas turned 31 and had lunch at Sushi Moto and then dinner at DeLuca's. Starting the end of July we'll have Gramma stay with us Wednesday through Friday afternoon. It has worked well so far and Jane took her to visit her friend Eva today. Both cars had their oil changed this month and I had the serpentine belt and exhaust pipe from the engine replaced on the Malibu that now has 100,222 miles. Brandon and Taylor got married in Cedarville on August 3rd and we spent the night there and stopped in St. Ignace, Mackinaw City, Gaylord and Hartwick Pines on the way home. They had a nice wedding and reception despite Betty's rudeness and rewriting history about settling the estate and Frank's kids being excluded by them. The U P is truly God's creation and so peacefully different. I did my last week at the Y as we went to Grand Haven from the 10th until the 22nd for vacation. Phil and Steffi were there from the 11th to 18th and Jon Sharon and the grand kids the 16th and 17th. We had WIFI this year so I only went to the Library once but went swimming 5 times and Jane bought a suit and got in the water 3 times. A busy summer is over as school begins Monday after a record hottest July global temperature in the 140 years of being recorded. Wildfires rage in Alaska, the Amazon, the Canary Island and the Arctic all with some correlation to global warming. Smoky hazy sunsets may be pretty but are not good for our lungs or other living creatures on the Dirty Boulevard.

35th Alvarado Reunion

   July 13th was the 35th Alvarado reunion at Hawk Island Park on a warm breezy day. Gramma , Gloria, Petra, Mark and Andrew were there as well as Lukas and Simon. We were there from 12 to 4:30 and had a good time visiting with family. Jane has been having Gloria over or going to Petra's as she will be returning to Florida this Saturday. On Monday the 8th and the 9th we had the roof replaced by Streamline so we hope there will be no more leaking.  Clete's mother Martha died and we went to Charlotte for her funeral on the 2nd. We had 3 days of 90+  temperatures last weekend and it has thankfully cooled off now. Summer is half over and will get busier in August as trump battles The Squad and divides the country further in his greatness quest doomed to fail by his ego. This kind of blindness is sad and destructive.