The best gift. Me

I received my present from my Secret Santa (Tom Antonopoulos, aka brother in law), last night. I have to say it is one of the coolest presents I have ever gotten.
     I collect bobble heads. Mostly superheros, a few sportos, Wizard of OZ, etc. I now have the ultimate in bobble heads. I have a mini-me. It is so well done it is kind-of hard for me to look at. I may be a beautiful person, but it is very weird to see yourself as six inches tall. I look a lot like I would picture Charlie Brown if he would ever turn 40.

     My bobble head was created by my brother-in-law and a company called 1minime.com; http://www.1minime.com/. You send in pictures, and artists create one of a kind bobble heads for you. Very cool.
     About today's picture; I only took this picture, no additions. The background is actually a picture I took in Colorado a few years ago that I propped up behind my bobble. I did not photo shop the background in. That would be cheating. I did photo shop the base and the pillow out on the bottom. I think it is okay to take away from the photo, adding something would be against my rules.
     So thank you so much Tom. You made my day. I thought about writing my thought for the day about small gifts that can bring the most excitement and happiness, but this was no small gift. Aside from these being on the expensive side, this was way more than I could have ever imagined.

Thought for the day; "Tom, it will be difficult to almost impossible to top this gift, but feel free to try. Thanks buddy."

Day 8 Busy Busy Busy

What thoughts could I include with today's picture? I was running around like a crazy person all day. I had to fix dinner for my mother in law's birthday this evening. I had to go to the hardware store to get an item to fix my roof. I had to fix my roof. I, of course, had to visit the park with my dog. All of these this and many more items have left me without one single thought left in my brain. Not one idea or amusing anecdote. I took the picture. Not a bad one if you think about the idea that today's sky was grey. I mean totally grey. Every tried to take a nice picture in the winter with a grey sky. Impossible. I do think it turned out pretty well. I am going to start looking at these old barns as my stand by. If I need a pic, an old barn will do in a pinch. For those of you who don't know, I live in Kansas. Old barns are about as common here as bridges are in Madison County.

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Hope everyone has a great week. And remember to tune in every day. This is only going to get more interesting as it becomes more and more difficult. If I do the same thing everyday it is going to get very difficult to find new material for my pics.





Day 7; National Old Rock Day

Seriously, it is national old rock day. I decided this morning that I was going to take a picture of an old rock. My options were; Pet rocks, Gibralter, Plymouth, Alcatraz, Duane Johnson. I settled for limestone. Seriously, it is National Old Rock Day. How often does one get to celebrate such a day with a pictorial tribute. Okay, its just an old rock. You try taking a picture of a rock and get something worth hanging on the wall. Not too easy. Impossible I would say.

A sailor must have his eye trained to the rocks and sands as well as the north star.

Where never lark or even eagle flew

     Time for a little whimsy. No life lessons today except you shoud stop and do something fun once in a while. Today's picture I combine two things that encompass most of my life. Airplanes and Critters. You get to witness Gizmo's first airplane ride. And I have to tell you, he was thrilled. For those of you who don't know, this is kindof what I do for a living. I send animals, along with a lot of other things, on planes. Gizmo is a new addition to our family,(Christmas), so I thought he could use a little screen time.





Doogie Howser thought for the day......Go out and do something goofy this week. Something that will make your friends just shake their heads....Like putting a guinea pig in a toy plane and taking a picture of it. Why not.....

New beginnings? Hardly

     One look at today's picture should inspire me to write about new beginnings, new opportunities, a new day. It should scream for an article about how we all experience a new beginning like a new morning. Second chances that we are given and how we should seize on these opportunities to improve ourselves. No?
     How about this. We need to take time to stop and enjoy the beauty of the earth because it is fleeting much like sunrise. if you don't catch it at the right moment you may miss it. We need to slow down and smell the roses, admire nature and all the beauty that surrounds us. Okay, a little corny. So lets try this.

 I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
~Joyce Kilmer, "Trees," 1914

I do like this but it is not what I am looking for today, so lets try to go a little Doogie Howser today......

I set out this morning with nothing in mind. Saw the sunrise over the airport. (Notice the plane landing in the background.) Turned out to be a wonderful day. Warm winds to sail by. What could be better than that.....

Always on our minds

    January 4th brings us the fan blades of an MD-11. I work at the airport. I work for a company whose planes were used as weapons against the US on 9/11. People remember many things about that day. Where they were. What they were doing. The images that are burned into our memories.
     What you probably don't think about is those of us that work for these airlines that have think about that terrible event, every day. You see, everyone you come across at the airport, that works for an airline is there for one thing. No, it is not to irritate and stress you out. We are all there to make sure you are safe. I manage an air freight facility for United Airlines. Our number one goal is to make sure each and every piece of freight loaded on those airplanes, is safe. The crews at the terminal are there to make sure that no one gets on a plane with bad intentions. The baggage people are there to make sure no unsafe items get on that plane. The flight attendants are not there to serve drinks, they are there to keep you safe. Mechanics, pilots, gate agents, fuelers, ramp agents are all there to make sure you get where you are going safely.
     We have to keep 9/11 in our minds all the time. We are constantly tested and retested to make sure we are at the top of our game all the time. We can't afford to make mistakes. Not even one.
     If you feel like yelling at an agent at the airport, don't. We get it all the time. We understand that you are under a lot of stress when traveling, but remember why we are there. We are a very eclectic and diverse group here at Kansas City International. But don't be fooled. We are the most focused and safety minded people you will ever meet.
     Our colleagues and friends were killed that day, and we are left with the burden of never letting it happen again. It is a burden which each and every one of us accepts.

Enough of my ranting. If you don't like paying a little extra for fees you think are wrong, think about how scary it would be to fly on an airplane that has not had any of its passengers, bags or freight screened. A frightening thought. This is the day and age we live in. Safety comes first in my mind. Me and my team protect people from terrorists every day. We like what we do and we are good at it. Cut us a little slack if your inconvenienced in any way. And thanks for flying. Buh bye.............

For the love of a dog

     It happened just as I thought it would. Mistakes would be made. I packed my camera early this morning. I planned on getting to work early, take a pick of sunrise over the runway or something. But no. I forgot to put the card back in my camera the night before. Terrific....
     I then thought that I should just post a blank picture today like the one I had taken without a card in my camera. I could talk about blank slates, mistakes, and forming pictures in our heads. A bit sappy. Not what I was looking for as a Doogie Howser moment for the day. I had a pretty good day, so I thought the best way to end it was with a picture of one of my best friends, Truman.
     Dogs are a funny and special thing. If you let them into your heart and make them a complete part of your life, they can become the best companion you will ever find.

     He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion. He deserves to be featured as the third pic of my year because he will be with me for most of this adventure. He is definitely my partner in crime. Get used to seeing him here loyal reader.
     Until tomorrow, I now will put the card back in the camera. Hopefully........