I missed the July Progress Editorial so let's just forget that July 2005 even happened. It was an awful month!

Let's see... we started the month out with tenants leaving a rental house we own in shambles so we spent every waking hour repairing it so we could hopefully re-rent it at the end of the month. Then we took a four-day vacation to Kansas City via Lincoln and Omaha, NE. when it was 110° in the shade.

Here's a picture of the highlight of that trip. As a Java programmer, I just had to stop and take a picture.

We arrived home to the news that my wife's brother was in the hospital. He never made it out and by the weekend we were attending his funeral.

I played "catch-up" at work the following week and we took another three-day break and went to Lewis & Clark Lake by Yankton, SD for a little R&R.


We ran into Kelvin while we were there (my friend who made the license plate unit) at "Hobie Beach" where after ten years of talking he finally convinced me to try sailing.

Why I didn't try it long ago, I don't know. Yup, that's me trapped out over the edge. My fear of water (I sink) was overweighed by the thrill of skimming along on one hull at 30mph. Kelvin was a great teacher. He's been sailing religiously and racing sailboats for many years. His disability prevents him from trapping out. The term disability and the name Kelvin used together form an oxymoron. Even though he's in a wheelchair, he's probably one of the least disabled people I know.

The next week our old house was moved from it's original location where it was built in 1940 to a place in the country many miles away. I followed the house out of town to give it one last farewell - kind of like how a police escort for a funeral procession salutes as you enter the cemetery. We lived in that house for 18 years and poured a lot of our heart and sole (and cash) into fixing it up.

It was strange to see it lifted from it's foundation awaiting the journey. The downspout that runs across a window to funnel water into a basement window-well was stupidly added by the party we sold it to. Relocating the downspouts along with them digging a huge hole beside the foundation during the rainy season became the premise of a

law suit for an astronomical amount, several times more than they paid for the property, alleging that we'd failed to disclose that the basement would fill with thousands of gallons of water every time it rained. Unbelievable! I never wrote about it but this went on for three years and cost us a small fortune in legal costs. It left me with a newfound knowledge of our skewed legal system and a strong - make that STRONG dislike for lawyers - the most disgraceful occupation on earth. How they can sleep at night never ceases to amaze me. They maintain a self perpetuating business that's fueled by greed and right and wrong mean nothing. It's legal extortion if you ask me - but don't get me started! If you're a lawyer and you're reading this - it's not too late to find a reputable vocation and may God have mercy on your soul.

This sweet little model A sedan drove by just as they were pulling away with the house. That's our old bike shop in the background. It's now a youth center for the Lutheran Church behind it. It's nice to see it and our old house experiencing new life.

I thought this was a comical picture. I can just picture people honking - "hey buddy, can't that house move any faster?".


"Get your motor running / Head out on the highway. Lookin' for adventure And whatever comes our way" ... (Steppenwolf - 1968)

As for the car project...
I did manage to squeeze in a little work on it last week by installing the new master cylinder and I'm now patently waiting for two able bodies to help me lift the transmission in place so I can get it buttoned back up and running before the season's over. Everyone is so busy these days and I only pay in pizza and beer :)

I moved our oldest daughter back from Lincoln, NE yesterday and will be moving our middle daughter to college this weekend. While I was in Lincoln, I hooked up with Spellchecker Bob and we toured Speedway's huge museum. It's free and I highly recommend it to anyone - it's absolutely incredible!

Old Indy cars make excellent grocery-getters if you only need a pack of chewing gum or a toothpick - however without a pit crew, it's a little difficult to see the nose when you're parking :)


I'll leave you with this classic 1929 garage shot - gotta love it!

Scooter

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