oh well

I went for a thirty mile ride today.  Ten minutes into the ride a bug flew in my mouth.  AACGHH!!!  .............  Nothing more to say.

Staff Sgt. Frankie Zoly Molnar

In my last post I linked to my latest books. One of those books was a story about men in the Korean War. This post, with Memorial Day weekend beginning tomorrow, is in a similar vein. In today's local paper, The News Tribune, there was a column by Rick Malwitz honoring Staff Sgt. Frankie Zoly Molnar. He was born in West Virginia but resided in New Brunswick when he enlisted in the Army. Thus he is listed on the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Wall. This entry is due to my never being able to understand how all the young men in the service, especially those that saw combat, in whatever war or conflict, did what they did. Selfless service. This posting honors all of them who served and are serving our country. While I was nestled safely in the hills of western Pennsylvania attending college, there were young men my age being put in harms way and doing the job they signed up for. This is not to question the reason we were in Vietnam. This is, as I said, to honor all those who served. Sgt. Molnar was one of those. He served and he gave his life.  He was given the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously.

Here is part of the article that appeared in the paper today. It is the citation that accompanied the Medal of Honor. The full article can be seen here.

"For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. SSGT Molnar distinguished himself while serving as a squad leader with Company B, 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry during combat operations. Shortly after the battalion's defensive perimeter was established, it was hit by intense mortar fire as the prelude to a massive enemy night attack. SSGT Molnar immediately left his sheltered location to insure the readiness of his squad to meet the attack.

"As he crawled through the position, he discovered a group of enemy soldiers closing in on his squad area. His accurate rifle fire killed five of the enemy and forced the remainder to flee. When the mortar fire stopped, the enemy attacked in a human wave supported by grenades, rockets, automatic weapons and small-arms fire. After assisting to repel the first enemy assault, SSGT Molnar found that his squad's ammunition and grenade supply was nearly expended. Again leaving the relative safety of his position, he crawled through intense enemy fire to secure additional ammunition and distribute it to his squad.

"He rejoined his men to beat back the renewed enemy onslaught, and he moved about his area providing medical aid and assisting in the evacuation of the wounded. With the help of several men, he was preparing to move a severely wounded soldier when an enemy hand grenade was thrown into the group. The first to see the grenade, SSGT Molnar threw himself on it and absorbed the deadly blast to save his comrades. His demonstrated selflessness and inspirational leadership on the battlefield were a major factor in the successful defense of the American position and are in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Army. SSGT Molnar's actions reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the U.S. Army."

Books

I just finished the second of two books which I thought worthy of mention.  You can see them by clicking on the link in the right column or here.  Now onto my next book.

Resistance is futile

No it isn't the Borg on Star Trek. But resistance still seems to be futile. What am I talking about? Facebook. The dreaded Facebook. It seems that Pat knows things going on in California with Kevin and family well before I have an inkling. And there are occasions where I don't find out until much later. Lately I have been viewing it through Pat's homepage on Facebook, but now wonder if it is inevitable that I too must join. For example, Kevin puts pictures up on Facebook that never seem to show up on Phanfare, where I look regularly. This also applies to Lauren's family too, but not to the same degree. So, what do I do? Do I keep hijacking Pat's site to see what is going on? Or do I break down and do what I said I would never do? Aghhhhh!! For now I will resist.

Dishwasher followup

I am sure everyone was waiting for the final chapter in the dishwasher saga. Since there has only been one other "chapter", I think this is doubtful. But, nevertheless, I will relate the ending of this story.

I had called "our" plumber after failing to get the small leak to stop dripping. He called me back that evening, Tuesday, and suggested putting some pipe dope on the threads of the compression fitting and some teflon tape on the ferrel itself. After I went to Home Depot to get the pipe dope I undid the fitting, put the dope on, but couldn't get the ferrel out of the nut. It was because I was working under the washer and couldn't get both hands onto the copper pipe. So, I just used the dope. Result? Still leaking, drip.............drip.............drip.

Next morning plumber calls me to ask how I did. I explain my futility and he said he will come over to fix it for me. But during the night I lay awake for more than a few hours worrying over my problem. This is standard procedure for me. In addition to the small leak I thought about the fact that I couldn't really get the unit to feel solid and set in the opening. I tended to move a bit when the door was open or closed. Not good. Also I wondered if I had tightened the clam enough on the drain hose. The instructions called for tightening to at least 16 pounds of torque. Who the hell has a torque wrench? So, with all these things in my mind I told George, the plumber, that I was going to call the store and see if they could send out an installer to reinstall the unit.

When I called the store that day they were surprised that when we were in the store buying the dishwasher that noone mentioned installation. They gave me the number of the installer and I called him but he was busy that day and the next. So, today, Thursday, he finally came to bail me out. I debated whether to admit that I was the boob who couldn't do the job or blame it on a ficticious friend. Because he was a nice guy who I got a good vibe off of right away I went with the honest approach.

His basic solution to the leaking compression fitting was to trash the copper tubing that was in place from the old unit and replace it with flexible tubing. If I had had that I might have been able to do the job. But I wouldn't have been able to make it feel solid and part of the cabinetry as he did.

When all was done I thanked him for bailing me out. He said it is all about working with the same thing over and over and getting comfortable with doing it to get the confidence. For me it is knowing my limitations. And going forward I will try to remember them.

Know your limitations

Being a homeowner there have been opportunities for me to do some plumbing work as part of routine maintenance as well as upgrading and improving the house. The first decade in the house I made futile attempts to do simple plumbing repairs with very poor results. Numerous trips to Channel or Rickel (years before Home Depot and Lowes) provided little help and there are many copper pipe connections in the house that are covered in epoxy to stop the one drop a minute leak that was the result of my work. In the years since then I have learned my limitations and have employed a plumber whenever there has been a need for plumbing work. There are exceptions to this however. Those occasions involved drain work and toilet repair, basically where there was no water pressure involved to produce a leak. But with the new compression fittings I even installed a faucet now and then. So, when our dishwasher died last week and we purchased a new one I removed the old one and saw that there would be one simple compression fitting in the installation of the new machine. That should be simple enough. No solder to sweat into joints. A simple compression fitting. Well it was delivered today at two o'clock, and after getting it all installed, leveled, wired up, and water supply connected, I turned on the water and ran a rinse cycle as directed by the instructions. And laying on the floor with a flashlight I saw it. The one drop a minute that has defined many of my plumbing jobs. I tightened the nut a bit more. Now the drip was maybe a minute and a half. Another quarter turn on the nut. Still a drip. So, what do I do now. Simple really. Turn off the water supply and call the plumber; which is exactly what I did. I left a message for him explaining my situation and now I wait for his return call. I became over confident and didn't listen to my own words....."Know your limitations."

Let's go to a game!

If you haven't heard the Yankees have lowered ticket prices to the "New" Yankee Stadium.  The first row Legend Suite seats which are on the outer half of the dugouts and photo cages have been reduced from $2500 to $1250.  Also, in seats in the first row down each foul line prices were lowered from $1000 to $650.  That affects 48 and 68 seats respectively.  Was this done because they felt sorry for the fans who weren't buying tickets because of the economic conditions?  I think not.  It was because there was no way they could televise a game and not show these seats, which were usually empty.  It only has to do with image; not the fans.  And this in no way will affect the average blue collar fan who can't afford a ticket in most areas of the stadium. 

Now if only the Mets would do the same, perhaps I could afford to go to a game.  

Poorly thought out

For those of you who read my last post let me follow that up by saying it is hot as heck today and I am in shorts with no foot apparel, sitting on the patio drinking some sangria. Sangria, I might add, is not the choice drink for getting a buzz, only having a 7% alcohol volume. Anyway, it is now 3:30 in the afternoon, Mets were on the radio, wine is in the glass and here I sit posting on my blog. I say Mets were on the radio because they are trailing big time and I turned them off in favor of some jazz. But none of that has anything to do with the title of this posting.

This morning after having coffee, bagel and paper out on the patio we decided to not waste a beautiful day just sitting at home. Why not take a ride down the shore and walk on the boardalk. It would be cooler, less people than during the summer because most things wouldn't be open in April. Ah, wishful thinking. We went to Point Pleasant and parking was as scarce as it is on a summer's evening in the middle of the summer. We drove around a bit and decided it wasn't worth it. And this after we got the bridge for about fifteen minutes, AND were stopped at a railroad crossing for another ten. So, we drove up along the shore to Asbury Park. Yes the same Asbury Park that has been so runned down in the past few decades. The revitalization is definitely visible and some stores on the new boardwalk were open. We walked the length of the boardwalk, i took some pictures, and we left, continuing up the shore on Rte 36, through Sea Bright and past Sandy Hook where traffic is all screwed up with the construction of the new bridge. As we drove west away from the Hook traffic going east was backed up for miles and miles. It seems that everyone seemed to have the same idea as we did, and probably thought that it was April, how many people would be at the beach. Oh well.

Summer came early

I am sitting on the patio at 3:30 in the afternoon.  The plastic was taken down this morning and the lawn was mowed.  It is warm enough to sit out here, but tomorrow it will be warm enough to wear shorts and sandals with a predicted temperature in the mid to high eighties.  Sunday is supposed to be the same.  I went for a bike ride this afternoon slathering my legs and face and neck with sunscreen.  Notice I didn't say my arms.  That is because I wore a long sleeved shirt.  When I went there was a breeze coming off the bay and it was a bit cool, but one I got inland it was warm.  I haven't been out on the bike much and am not in shape.  I went 23.3 miles today and am trying to work my way up to where a thirty mile ride will be anything but a trial.  If you check my miles on the link to the right you will see that I only rode 48.4 miles in February and 10.4 in March.  So much was going on in those months that riding took a back seat.  But now I am committed to getting back to riding three times a week.  

Also happening this past week were the following events.  I could have written about any one of them but will just give a brief summary.  

I spent three days removing wallpaper and painting a small bathroom at a friend's house.  Because of that, when I removed the plastic from the patio today I had to leave one small piece because I need the step ladder to get to it and that is at the "jobsite" because I have another room to do.

Wednesday I went out to dinner with three of the guys I worked with at Center Core.  Good beer, adequate food, and lots of laughts.  Always a good time.

Yesterday, Thursday, I went for my yearly skin inspection at the dermatologist.  He froze two warts located on my upper left side.  I have to remember to stay away from those damn frogs.  He also removed a spot for biopsy from just below my waist.  

So, that has been my week, basically.  Ending here because I have to go get my shorts and sandals ready for tomorrow. 

A Sad Year So Far

Maybe this isn't a topic for a blog entry but so far this has been a sad year. In January Pat's Mom passed away and then last week her Uncle Al also passed. Three times we have been to different funeral parlors when you also add in the neighbor who passed last month. Never in my life has this happened and it has shaken me in a cumulative way. When we were at the cemetery for Uncle Al's internment we walked over to Pat's Mom's gravesite and then I did something I haven't done in many years. I went to my father's. The day before Pat had said she wanted to visit her Mom's and asked if I wanted to see my father's but I gave her the response I always have. I always say that my father isn't there in that grave, so it doesn't serve any purpose to go there. But something moved me to go see it yesterday and I only assume it was because of how much I was moved by the military ceremony at Uncle Al's, and the cumulative effect of all this sadness this year.

I am not going to become introspective here or reveal my personal feelings except to say that I have done some serious reflection since yesterday.

And dear reader I apologize for the tone of this posting.

A couple things

It has been a while. I think I have said that before in a posting or two. Over the past week or two I have had things to write about but never sat down to put fingers to keyboard. Some of the topics I have considered are the following:

As the end of February approached the fact that there had been no major snowfall this winter gave me pause and I almost wrote an entry. Then two days later we got hit with a major snowfall. Cause and effect?

The snowfall brought up two more topics. First after I had finished clearing our driveway and sidewalk I moved on to the neighbor's driveway. It was then I began to hear an unsettling noise in the snowblower. I kept working but then noticed that the crank that turns to direct the chute had become disconnected somewhere inside the unit. So I had to stop. I came in took off my boots, gloves and coat and was looking forward to some soup that Pat was cooking. It was then I heard the plow. It came down the street and threw snow from the street covering the sidewalk and driveway apron. I cursed a bit. Well, maybe more than a bit and then went out with the shovel to reclear the snow.

There were other topics. On top of the cost I will have to pay when I pick up the snowblower at Sears this week I have to pay Toyota to install a new oxygen sensor. Yes, the day after it snowed the "check engine" light came on. One thing on top of another. Oh, and my bike is in the shop because there is something that is grinding in what I think is the rear hub. When it rains it pours.

Anything else? Of course. I could write about the work we are doing on Pat's Mom's house and preparing for an estate sale. I could write about my thoughts about Facebook and Twitter, but Kevin enlightened me concerning those topics so i am glad I didn't put it here before chatting with him.

So, I am posting this and more or less combining all the topics into one short posting. Maybe going forward I will simply sit and type in my thoughts as they come to me. Or maybe I will once again begin a posting with "It has been a while".

Section 5

Wednesday morning the last piece of Shea Stadium was knocked down. Forty four years of storied history in this less than perfect home of the Mets. The final standing portion was the section 5 ramp and it came down at 11:25 AM. Soon it will be a parking lot, hopefully with some markings in the pavement of where home plate was, as well as other highlight markers.

Not seeing the demolition, and not seeing the empty space now, the next time I see the area all that they will show on TV is the new park, promoting it as the best thing since sliced bread. But as lacking as Shea was it still was every Mets fan's home. It will be sorely missed.

Sunny California??

It has been nearly two weeks since my last entry so I thought it time to clutter the internet again.

On January 21st we lost a wonderful woman in Pat's mother and we thank everyone who offered their condolences through emails, card, or in person.

You probably wonder why the subject? Well, on February 2nd we flew out of cold New Jersey to land in sunny California and seventy plus degrees. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday the temps were nice and the skies were sunny. We would wake up to mid thirties and then by noon it would be in the mid to high seventies. BUT, Thursday it rained. Today it is raining. Tomorrow it is supposed to rain again. Since we began coming out here in 2003 this is the first time we have experienced rain and even cloudy skies. But this is the time of year when they do get rain out here. Luckily on Sunday, our last day here, it will again be sunny.

I have taken over one hundred and thirty pictures so far, with a birthday party yet to come. I don't know if I will be putting all of them on Phanfare, probably deciding to whittle down the number a bit. Stay tuned.

One more day

Sure I could say it is one more day until the end of the dreadful presidency of George W., but I prefer to look at it much more optimistically. It is one more day until the inauguration of Obama. Many won't believe it, but back in July of 2004 I became an Obama supporter when I saw him give the keynote speech at the Democratic convention. In listening to his speech and then during an interview afterward I felt this man understood what was needed in our country and a man who would make a great candidate, one that I could support. A candidate that could be good for this country. And now four and one half years later he will become the leader that will bring relief and change from the way thing have been. From the way we have looked at our leaders. It will be a magical day tomorrow, one that no doubt will bring tears to my eyes. Let us all hope that he can bring the needed changes and return us to a people and a country that is great.

Brrrrrr!

I know it is warm in comparison to what the midwest experienced lately, or what Bullwinkle and Rocky experienced every year in Frostbite Falls, but this morning while laying in bed I sat up, looked out the window at the thermometer andsaw that it was not below zero. However it was not above zero either. Zero degrees. Yikes! Needless to say I will not be riding outdoors today.

Remembering

Nearly a week since my last posting so I felt I should write something. I could begin with the frigid temperatures we are experiencing along with some snow which is now falling. But who cares what the weather is where someone else lives? So what else is there to write about today? I should have made an entry two days ago for the anniversary of the passing of my 1988 Toyota Tacoma. (See the link to the right "In Memoriam") But I forgot. However, today is the anniversary of the purchase of my new truck. Unless I have some body problems this truck should last a long time because the mileage is very low. Five years and just over 38000 miles. In the past month I have only put on 250 miles, so you can see how little I drive it. But the title of this post is not about the weather, nor is it about my regular cab, standard bed Tacomas. It is about remembering the passing of Mr. Roarke and The Prisoner. They both can be remembered for a multitude of parts, but for me these are the way they will always be remembered.

Happy Anniversary To Us

Yes. Happy Anniversary to us. Today Pat and I are celebrating our anniversary. Not our wedding anniversary, but rather the day we first started going out. I really don't remember how we decided this was the day but we have been celebrating it for many years, so it must be the right day. I can assume some of my readers are wondering how many wonderful years we have been together. Three quarters of my life would be the answer. And to do the math for you, I am sixty years old, so three quarters of that would be forty five. Yes, forty five wonderful years, thirty eight of which we have been married. And when I stop and think of it all I can say is "Holy S--t!!!

And it is gone

If you click on http://www.rayriepl.com you will see that my website is gone.  Oh well.

Understanding isn't accepting

"Potholes form with the expansion and contraction of water after it has entered into the subsurface of the pavement. When water freezes, it expands, taking up more space under the paving, which then causes cracking. As temperatures increase, the water then thaws, leaving gaps or voids in the subsurface of the pavement. The voids allow for more water to enter under the pavement, creating a vicious freeze/thaw effect, which eventually weakens the pavement. As the weight of cars and trucks pass over the weak spot in the road, pieces of the roadway material weakened by the freezing and thawing effect get displaced or broken down from the weight, creating the pothole."

All I can say is: FIX 'EM!! ( right Rick?)

In the meantime

In my last post I said I will let my website die at the end of the year but possibly move it to a new one on Apple's hosting site. But during my decision making period I have found a way to keep somethings available for those who are interested. If you look in the top of the right hand column you can see a few links to some of the content on my old web pages. Let me know what you think, and if there is anything else I should add, if I can.

The ever changing internet landscape

Around the time of Y2K I decided to put up a website on the world wide web. The internet was still something that a lot of people had not yet discovered or embraced, but always wanting to be on the cutting edge I didn't hesitate in obtaining my domain name and server to host my site. Over the years I have posted pics, movies, lists of books I have read, B&Bs at which we stayed, miles ridden on my bike and a memorial to my truck. How many people have visited my site over the years? My guess? Well, I would have to say it is a very small number, and as the years went by that small number shrank to what I would describe as zero. Phanfare has become the place where I now post pictures and I have this blog to share thoughts. I hope phanfare is getting more visits than this blog which I hope is getting more visits than my old site. So, things have changed over the years and I see no reason to keep my old site up and running. BUT, I may replace it with a new site hosted by Apple. I am in a trial period to see if it is to my liking and sometime in January I will make a decision. It will be a slimmed down version of my old site. Very bare bones. No one cares about B&Bs, but I will still keep my miles ridden and perhaps my books read. As I said it is just in the idea phase. But as of the end of this month my present site will cease to exist.

The ever changing Rte 35 landscape

For those of you unfamiliar with Rte 35 in central New Jersey you should probably stop reading now. For those of you who wish to continue reading, I will continue writing. Apparently it has been some time since I had driven down 35 as far as Sears, or it might be that when I drive I develop tunnel vision and just aren't an observant driver. Is your interest piqued? Things change so suddenly that if you aren't on the road every day it is hard to believe that they can. Some things, though, aren't so sudden, but have just changed. So, here are my observation over the past week or so. The Home Surplus store just north of Cliffwood Avenue is gone. At least the original building which was replaced by a new one built next to it. The thing I remember about that old building was the lot next to it that had hundreds of vanity tops and sinks. Moving down the highway we are now at the light by K-Mart. Sitting at the light the corner gas station that was on the north east corner is gone. I knew it was going because it was closed and there was a sign that a bank was going to be built in its place. Just what we need around here, another bank. But the last time I drove by it was still an abandoned station. This time the bank is complete. Again, I guess I am just not observant. Moving only a few feet further down the highway we come to the diner. Originally it was the Red Oak Diner, but opened under new ownership as the Adelphi Diner. On my last trip, when I noticed the bank, I also noticed that it was once again the Red Oak. Interesting. Finally, as we continue our drive south, we come to the two shopping centers opposite each other in Middletown. The one on the opposite side of the highway is where there is a Chili's and a Macaroni Grill. Not anymore. The Macaroni Grill is closed. That was a shock. I never thought they were lacking for business. It was the one chain restaurant that I enjoyed going to, especially for the wine and bread. So, there you have it. In a blink of an eye things change.

Traffic solutions

Isn't it frustrating when you are sitting at a traffic light with more than a few cars in front of you and when the light changes it takes half a minute until you can move? If the first car doesn't move immediately that of course takes some time so it would behoove the first person to be paying attention. The following cars must also pay attention and not leave to big a gap. But the ultimate solution is for everyone to pay attention and when the light changes, everyone, and I mean everyone, begins moving at once, leaving no gap, other than the one that is there while waiting for the light to change. After passing through the intersection each car could then return to a safe following distance. Such a simple solution; don't you think?

Tree lighting

Two years ago we bought a new Christmas tree for our den. The tree in the living room (yes, we have two trees) is decorated with small lights of green, white and yellow. In the den we were looking for something different and found a tree with the lights already attached, but the unique thing was that the lights were C7s. These are the regular bulbs, not the miniature lights. I thought, cool. I wouldn't have too string lights on at least one tree. First year was a breeze putting it up. Second year a few bulbs were out, which wasn't surprising. But this year I set up the bottom half and before adding the top half I checked to see how many lights were out. There were more than a few so I proceeded to see if tightening up the bulbs would get them to light. I did a few with good results, but in tightening one white one I heard a small pop seemingly on the opposite side of the tree and half the lights went out. After some investigation I saw that there were actually three strings on the bottom half of the tree and one whole string had gone out. I checked the fuse in the plug end of the string. It was okay. I went along and wiggled each and every light but the string stayed out. Then I plugged another string into the end of the faulty string and that one lit. Electricity was going through the dead string, but just not lighting up the bulbs. Totally frustrated I sat there and tried to think what I was missing. Then I took the time to undo all the twisted wires that were holding all the bulbs and wire to the branches. Not an easy task. Once I had the whole string off I examined each and every socket, twisted each bulb, checked the wire for cuts or fraying, and still no lights. At this point I gave up and went to the store and bought a string of C7 lights. We now have a tree that is prestrung with lights except for the bottom string. I fully expect that next year another string will be dead. At that time I just might take all the strings off and have it become a regular tree.

Aroma from the past

"Early childhood memories can be evoked by many triggers, of which one of the most powerful is a particular smell."

I found that quote on a psychological website but when I went back to locate it to give credit I can't find it, despite looking at my browser's history. In any case, this posting is about such olfactory memory, but in this case it is in reverse. It wasn't a particular smell that evoked a memory, but rather memories that caused me to remember the smell, and thus to reproduce it. Confused? Then, dear reader, read on.

I was raking leaves, or rather blowing them and then mulching them in my mulcher, which reduces them to small particles which I can then put in my compost or spread out under bushes. So, I was doing this and began thinking about raking leaves as a young boy in our back yard which had somewhere near an estimated thirty trees. Forty five years ago there was no need to bag leaves to put out for recycling. Instead everyone burned their leaves. A fifty five gallon drum, or a galvanized garbage can was the customary container, with holes punched in the sides to allow air flow. Once the leaves were ignited, you would just keep adding more leaves as the fire reduced them to ashes. When the leaves were damp you could create great billows of smoke as the wet leaves temporarlily smothered the fire. On brisk fall days or evenings there was always the wonderful smell of burning leaves in the air. Those were the memories that came back to me as I did my leaves, and I longed for that smell.

So, what did I do? I got a terra cotta flowerpot out of the shed, filled it with leaves, and lit it. A leaf caught and went out with glowing embers remaining. I tried again. Still no luck. I got a small piece of paper, shoved it down along the inside of the pot and lit that. That caught and then the leaves. And the smoke; the wonderful smoke, and then fire. I added more leaves. This was the smell I remembered. After two or three pots full of leaves I doused it with water, ending my foray into my past via the olfactory path.

I know I will do it again next year.