It is ours! I went yesterday with Dan and had the title switched into my name. We went to the courthouse in New Philly and were in and out in less than 15 minutes. I forgot about having to pay tax on the purchase, but I had the checkbook and it was not a problem. I am happy everything worked out. Now, I have boat payments for the next 5 years.

The end came for the bedroom TV this past weekend. We bought a 19" flat screen with a built in DVD player to replace it. We bought it at Best Buys with gift cards bought at Giant Eagle, so we also some free gas coming our way.

I went to the Sectional wrestling tournament on Friday and Saturday. Friday was super quick and I was able to get back to Mogadore in time to see the first of the East Canton-Mogadore boys basketball game. EC is coached by Chad Spurgeon. He graduated with my brother and I graduated and played baseball with his brother.

Saturday we met up with our friends from cruise. They were in N. Canton for a volleyball tournament. We visited awhile at our house and then went out to dinner at Rockne's. It was good to see them again. They are coming to N. Canton next month as well, but we will be at Castaway Bay with the Girl Scouts.

Tomorrow is the day we will get the title to the boat. I can't wait to get it in the water. I figure it will be about 4 to 6 weeks before we can us it. We may even launch it and put it back on the trailer, if we don't have a dock in the water for it. The boat comes with side enclosures to block out the rain and cold. So, we could use it before it warms up.

---Capt. Bayou

It is only a matter of time. It is sad to see an old friend during its last days. But, last night, T and I realized the time is now to purchase a new TV for our bedroom. The Emerson TV we have watched countless hours of TV is down to its last days. It has been acting strange since September, but now the picture is going. Last night the picture would turn into squiggly lines and become smaller.
I think I have had the TV since Christmas of 1990. I know I had the TV in my Holly Park apartment and I moved in there back in June of 1991. For Christmas, my parents did a great job of hiding the TVs (my brother and sister got one as well) from me and siblings. They left them out in the garage, in plain view of everyone, but they had the names of the neighbor girls on them. Then, Christmas morning, dad brought them in from the garage when we thought all the Christmas gifts had been opened. It was one of the greatest Christmas surprises of all time at our house.
But, it is time. The remote has no numbers on it. The TV doesn't turn on all the time when you hit the power button. Sometimes when you are flipping channels, the single digit channels are just snow. The alarm feature does not work. The TV used to wake me up for school everyday at 6am. It is time and by this weekend, there will be a new TV in our bedroom.
Thank you Emerson, your job is done. I hope the next TV we buy lasts 18 years!

I am back to school today. My little mini-vacation is over. I had a fun four day break.

Friday I went out to lunch with my mom. J did not go to school because he got sick the day before at school. So, we met mom at Steak and Shake for lunch. Then it was on to school for B and K's Valentine's Day party. The kids had a fun time.

Saturday, T had to work. So, I took the boys to the PTC wrestling tournament. (B was at a sleep over). J did not enjoy the tournament as much a K. The Cats placed 5, with 1 champion. This week is the sectional tournament. The top 4 from the sectional will move on to the district.

Sunday, we went to church then headed to Pennsylvania. We had a good visit with T's aunt. She loves visiting with the kids. As usual, we ate too much. We went to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner on Sunday and Applebee's for lunch on Monday. We were home by 9:40 last night, no thanks to a slow moving train on Faircrest. I have never been stopped there. We waited 15 minutes for the train to cross the street. It even stopped at one point. After 3 hour drive, we were ready to get home and go to bed.

Til next time,

Bayou

What a night. There were wind gusts over 60 mph! Our bedroom faces west and took the brunt of the force. I woke up every 10 minutes, well, it seemed like every 10 minutes. The temp dropped from 67 to 35 in just a few hours.
I found a bargain in the Walmart DVD discount bin. It is the complete collection of the HBO show "First and Ten". It was on in the early 80's. It shows old USFL game highlights and has some pretty funny story lines. I have watched 3 episodes so far here on parent-teacher conference night.
I was looking forward to a nice day off tomorrow. Well, J got sick at pre-school today. T had to pick him up and he has thrown up a couple of more times tonight. T will be subbing tomorrow, so I will to stay home with J. Hopefully, he will be feeling better soon.

Bayou

55 Degrees!!!!!!!! I am sure it will not last for long, but it is nice to see some green grass.

Yesterday, we had our taxes done. We will be getting money back from the IRS. It is "forced saving" account. We will use this money for our boat, camping fees, and other things around the house. We are still up in the air about a cruise next year. If we think we are going, then we need to set aside some $$$ this year.

Speaking of cruises, I have two friends cruising this week. A long time friend from the neighborhood is on Monarch OTS with his girlfriend and parents. Other friends leaves tomorrow for the Buckeye Cruise for Cancer aboard Grandeur OTS. The Buckeye cruise has about 20 former Buckeyes on the ship. It will be full of just Buckeye fans. The money raised on the cruise goes to the cancer research center at OSU. I would love to do something like that someday.

T is going to have a choice to make soon. She was called in to work at Edison today, but she was scheduled at Aultman. This is the third time in the last four days she has been called by Perry. She was already working at Reedurban and other schools called her. I would love for her to leave the hospital and work at the school. Hopefully, she will get hired by a school in the fall.

--Bayou

What a difference 48 hours makes. It was in the upper 40 yesterday and all the snow is melting away. It looks like the warming trend will continue today. I am sure we are not done with snow, but it is a nice break.
The Jr High wrestling team place 2 guys at the PTC Tournament yesterday. It was the end of a difficult season for the junior high team. They started out with 8 wrestlers. Early on 2 quit the team and one was injured. When the injured wrestler returned, we lost one to grades. Hopefully, they will stick with wrestling and join the high school team.
The high school team has the PTC Tournament this weekend. The seniors should do well. It is possible to have 2 PTC Champions and a few more place. Then, it is on to the sectional tournament the following week.

Quick post today. First, it was cold! The temp on my car read -9 on the way to school. All we needed was a 10 mph breeze and schools would have closed for the day. It was a beautiful clear blue day. The temp are going to hit the upper 40s by the weekend.

I will be at the Junior High PTC Wrestling Championship this weekend. We only have 5 guys on the team. I am not too sure how things will go. I hope we have a couple of guys place.

Tonight was scheduling day. It was quicker than most years. I will have a new schedule next year, but I like it. I will also have a new junior high class. I will need to get a book for the class. I do not use a book for any of my classes. I use one OLD textbook as a reference in Home Maint. class. I would love to get a new book for that class as well.

---Bayou

Sunday was a beautiful day. The sun was shinning and the temp topped 40 degrees. The kids went outside again and played in the afternoon. I will post a couple of pics from the last couple of days. While the kids played, I took down all the light along our fence in the backyard. I have not turned on the lights since the end of Christmas break, but I haven't had time or the weather was too bad to take them down.
We did not attend a Super Bowl party this year, so we had our own. I am glad for my brother that the Steelers won. I am more glad the game was close and entertaining. T said the commercials were not as good as years past. I liked the one second ad for Miller High Life. It was straight to the point. Now, it is college basketball time and pitchers and catchers report in ten days!

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Steelers from the Bayou Steelers.

Today is Saturday. I went to Aultman to have some blood work done. Don't think anything is wrong. I went to my new doctor at NCM. She just wants to run routine blood work. I ran into my mom and we ended up having breakfast at Aultman. It was nice to spend time with just her.
When I returned home, we went and signed K up for baseball. He will be in pitching machine this year. After lunch, the kids headed outside. They are sliding down our very small hill in the backyard. They are having a ball.
The Super Bowl is tomorrow. It is hard to believe is has been 15 years since I went to SB XXVIII. I went with my aunt, uncle and cousin from TX. The game was in ATL. The Cowboys won 30-13 over the Buffalo Bills. I would post some pictures from that trip, but they aren't digital pics.
I went to see my new doctor on Thursday. She is very nice and close to my age, so hopefully she will be my doctor for a long time. T, J and I went out to lunch. Sometimes I feel bad for J. He is the third child and very rarely get alone time with me and T. After lunch we went to Target. We found a couple of great things on sale. First, an easy up sunshade was regularly $79, but on sale for $25. Second, we found an air hockey table on sale for $18. It was regularly priced at $69.99! K wanted one for Christmas, but Santa was already bringing the Wii. We will give it to him for his birthday, but give it to him before May.
Today, I received my Varsity K membership card. They finally are allowing band members into the "club". Band members do earn letters, so we should be allowed in the "club". Of course, that just means, I will be receiving more requests for $$$.

See you Down by the Bayou.

SNOW DAY #2

The phone rang at 5:45am with the news I did not have school. I already knew it thanks to Fox 8. I turned off my alarm and went back to bed. I still was up around 8:30 and ate french toast T made for me. The kids did not want any, so I had my fare share.

We have a nice coating of 6 inches of snow on top of ice. There was freezing rain until 10:00 when it changed over to snow. We have enough snow on the ground to cover my fire ring in the back yard.

T got called into work today. It took here 30 minutes to get to the hospital. She called at dinner time and said she would be working a full shift. The roads should be cleared by the time she returns tonight.

Bye, Bye Bayou.

Here are the winner of K's den. He took second place. I am not like most fathers who do everything. I let K design, cut and sand his car. I added the weight and spray painted it. I really don't know what the house would look like if he painted it himself. Most fathers design it, cut it, paint it and add weights and the scout just watches.

After the Pinewood derby, we went to my sister's for my niece's first birthday. It was good to see my Aunt Jean. She is in her 90's and still gets out and about herself. She broker her leg last summer, but she can move around pretty good. She did leave before sundown, because she doesn't trust her driving at night.

Sunday, we went and picked up J. He spent the weekend at grandma and grandpa's. He had fun. Then we all went and saw Paul Blart, Mall Cop. It is a cute family friendly movie. It was #1 at the box office this week. I don't think it will win any Oscars, it was good for plenty of laughs.

Stay tune, I heard there is another snow storm heading this way. It is due to arrive tomorrow evening with 6-10 inches of snow. We might have some beignets for breakfast on Wednesday or monster pancakes.

With the weather cold outside, it is time to start talking baseball. It is less than 4 weeks til pitcher and catchers report.

I went to see the Indians play the SF Giants on my mom's birthday last year. I thought it was going to be my last time seeing Omar Vizquel play baseball. After all, there aren't many 40 year old shortstops in the MLB. However, according to mlb.com, Omar and the Texas Rangers have agreed to a 1 year minor league deal worth a million bucks. The Rangers want him to play SS in case there SS of the future doesn't work out. The Rangers come to Cleveland in August, so I might get a chance to see him play again.

My San Angelo Colts might not be playing baseball in 2009. There are many legal issues that must be taken care of before they can play ball. Luckily, the season doesn't start til the end of May. It looks like the ULB will be out of business, but the Continental Baseball League has invited all former ULB teams to join them this year. I hope something works out and the Colts can play in 2009.

It doesn't look like I will be a season ticket holder for the Indians this year. The team raised tickets prices. Last year, I bought 2 tickets to 20 games for $400. The same priced seats this year will be over $500. I will still go to a couple of games, but 20. I think I will enjoy listen to them play while sitting on our boat.

I am not happy with Aultman Hospital. They wanted T to work 10-2 ever Tuesday and Thursday. They have called her off both days this week. To make matters worse, she had to turn down a school job today, because she was suppose to work at Aultman. I think she should take all school jobs and call of the hospital if she is working at a school on a Tuesday or Thursday.

Til next time, Bayou.

What do the Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars and New Orleans Saints have in common? If you guessed, they are the only teams never to play in a Super Bowl, then you are correct. I can give a pass to the Jaguars (joined the NFL in 1995) and the Houston Texans (joined the NFL in 2002) for not making a Super Bowl. However, Jacksonville played in the AFC Championship game in 2000.

But, the Lions and Browns, have no excuse for not making 1 Super Bowl in 43 years. They went a combined 4-28 last season. So, I don't think I will be watching the Browns or the Lions in a Super Bowl anytime soon.

I am starting to watch Fox News's coverage of the Inauguration of President Obama. Although, I don't agree with the future (it is only 10:20am right now) President, I do wish him well in his new job. Because, if he does well, then the United States does well. However, I believe no matter what he does, the media will say he is the greatest President ever. I am sick of the media giving him a free pass on everything he does and will do.

Where is the liberal media criticizing the cost of the Inauguration. The estimated cost-$150 million. The cost of BOTH Inaugurations of President Bush was less than $100 million. I guess it just something else we, Joe Taxpayer, gets to pay.

Back to what is going on with the Bayou family. Sunday night, we went to our friends for an evening of football and Wii. We were having so much fun, we almost stayed the night.

Monday, I took K to the NW wrestling tournament. Mogadore did well. We had 2 Champions, 2 3rd place finishers and 1 4th place finisher. I missed going to the Dies Tournament. Most of the wrestlers were out early, but we did have 1 wrestler place 4th. If you do well in that tournament, you will do well in sectionals and districts.

Til next time, Bayou Out.

Recap from the last week: COLD.

Today, I went to Kent and played in the Flasher Brass Alumni Band. I enjoy the Flasher Brass game better than the marching band alumni game. With FB with just play. We don't have to worry about marching and playing at the same time.
I got to see some friends and fraternity brothers I had not seen since the last event I played in, two years ago. The alumni group is planing a camping trip in June. It sounds like there will be a good turn out for it.

The Kent men's team lost to Miami (OH), but the women defeat Ohio U in OT. After the game, we gathered at Ray's. The fraternity used to hold "unofficial" meeting at Ray's before the "real" meetings. I think more business got done at Ray's than at the other meeting.

It is official--the Bayou has frozen over. Speaking of freezing, T left a 12 pack of Sprite in the trunk of the car. Guess what happens to pop when you leave in outside with a temp of -10? Thankfully, clean up will be easy, since the pop is still frozen. I will just need to pick up the ice (pop) cubes.

Til next time, Bayou Out.

SNOW DAY TOMORROW!

Ok, it is really a cold day, but no school. We will have an extra long weekend.

You can see the pictures from our sledding yesterday in the other post. The snow left the area by mid-afternoon on Saturday. We figured we could go out on Sunday and play in the snow. My in-law's house sits up on a hill. So, we could either sled in their front yard or back yard. However, the snow was not "good" sledding snow. It was very light and not packable. We tried to carve out a path for the sled, but gave up. My father in law suggested we try the driveway. He had plowed it the night before and there was a layer of packed snow and ice. It provided the fun we needed for sledding. We stayed outside for about an hour or so. Then went inside to warm up with some hot chocolate.

My thoughts on the "final four" of the NFL. Go Arizona. I hate the Eagles, Steelers and Ravens. I am not sure who Browns fans will root for next Sunday. The hated Steelers or the city that stole our team. It is a tough call, so I am rooting for the Cardinals from Arizona. Which means the Eagles will win. My question is---When to pitchers and catchers report?

Pictures from sledding at the in-laws.

J was brave enough to go down the driveway by himself.
Mommy was the distance champion!

K was the winner of the "Most times down the driveway"

Let it snow. Let it snow. Let it snow. It looks like the first major snow storm of the year hit 24 hours too late for a snow day. The storm should blanket NE Ohio with up to 10 inches of snow or more by early Sunday morning.

We had to take K to doctors this afternoon. He come home from school with an ear ache. We figured he should be seen by a doctor today instead of waiting til Saturday, when the snow storm will be in full force. Then we went out to Quaker Steak and Lube for dinner. We figured we were out so lets get some dinner. We were seated without a wait, but no one told our waitress we were in her section. Finally, after 10 or so minutes, a waitress came over and asked if we had been waited on. We said no, and she said she would be right back. She left and returned about a minute later and gave us a free appetizer and 20% off our bill for our wait. It was a nice surprise. We ended up with this waitress and she was great. The manager even came over to see if everything was ok. It was a nice little bonus. The food was good. We will have wings for lunch tomorrow. Again, as we left the waitress apologized to us for making us wait so long. We tipped her well since she did take good care of us.

Tuesday the wrestling team lost to Coventry. It was senior night for 6 wrestlers. We had a nice dinner for them after the match along with a slide show.

Wednesday night my dad came over and guided me through the install of the dishwasher. There is a small leak (10 drops of water during a wash cycle). I need to purchase a special wrench to tighten the supply tube.

Check back for pictures of the kids playing in the snow later this weekend.

--Bayou

So close, yet so far away. The Buckeyes played 3 quarters of good, solid football. I am not sure what happened in the 3rd quarter. Texas came out of half-time and had 2 TD drives. The Buckeyes did not have an answer. But, they show heart in the fourth quarter. They were down 17-6, but did not quit. They went up 21-17 with 2 minutes left, but could not hold the lead. I stayed up until the end. The only good thing with a Longhorn victory, I am still alive in the bowl pool. So, if the Buckeyes had to lose, I at least want to win some cash.

Tonight, starts a tough 4 weeks for the wrestlers. The schedule is just loaded. We stepped up the schedule this season to help everyone get ready for the league tournament and sectional tournament. Tonight is Senior night for 6 wrestlers, 4 of them started as 7th graders when I first started coaching. We are going to have a dinner afterwards.

T bought her Christmas present yesterday. She found a dishwasher she likes. We have been without one since Thanksgiving. We will install it on Wednesday.

--Bayou