jimsjoint

Kelly --- The Great Communicator

Kelly has a couple of articles in this weeks edition of the Pioneer. The College newspaper that once featured her and her water polo team mates as they made their way towards the 2008 division III national championships, now has Kelly as a staff writer.

She co-wrote the lead story on the front page and wrote  a nice little  review of a local Caffe' shop near campus on page 4.   Check it out!

http://pioneer.csueastbay.edu/PioneerWeb/PioneerNews7-9-09/PioneerFrame7-9-09.html

Like'n Skype'n

We've been doing regular video calls with Kate lately. We even learned how to Take a snapshot from the video feed and save it to our pictures. Its so good to see that smiling face and beautiful blue eyes. She is about half way through "construction wire man" school out there at Sheppard AFB in Wichita Falls Texas. Looking good Flaherty!!

The Dream spot - and 4th of July fun

The plan - head to Carmel for some Independence Day beach time. The players - Flahertys and Downings. We set out at 9am under cloudy skies. Beach chairs, ice chests, blankets and money (remember, this is Carmel!!) Heading down 101 all was good. A little apprehension as we realized that it was race weekend at Laguna Seca. Turned out to be a non-issue as "race" traffic wasn't too bad. In less than 2 hours we were in Carmel, driving down Ocean Street to the beach.  Unfortunately so was everyone else! Traffic was thick and slow. We were still three blocks from the beach, stuck in traffic, and already trying to figure out  plan "B". We decided we would turn around at the bottom of the hill, get a side street heading south, and find a less crowded beach. Slowly we inched our way down to the turn-around at the beach. Right when we thought all hope was lost, WAIT!!! THAT GUY IS LEAVING!!!  Some guy right in front of us was pulling out. A DREAM SPOT!!  There were maybe 10 parking places that are right on the beach. All the rest were up the hill. We were golden!!

You could really tell it was a holiday. People were streaming onto the the beach. Most were walking down the hill because they couldn't get a great parking spot like us!  It was really busy there. Most people were taking the main entrance onto the beach. We chose to take the path to the left and head down where it wasn't so busy.  As we were walking we were trying to eye a good spot to spend the day.  We settled on a spot that had to be one of the best spots on the beach.  A DREAM SPOT!!   Up on a little bluff, overlooking the beach.  In the distance to our right,  we could see the 17th and 18th holes at Pebble Beach. It was almost like we had a corner booth on the beach. We had ice plant behind us and to the left, and being on a small bluff, nobody was setting up in front of us.  It was almost  in a sea of people. Really cool.

After a few hours of beach time, we walked up into town for lunch.  The eight block up hill walk felt good.  Checking out the cool, multi-million dollar houses, the shops, the people, the dogs (Carmel is "dog friendly").   We found the deli (Bruno's!) we were looking for.  We split a half bbq'd chicken, tri-tip sandwich, corn on the cob and a soda. YUM!  Only problem, where to eat this holiday feast?  Too far to walk back to the beach with all this food.  Everything was CROWDED. People everywhere!  We decided to head across the street to the park where the city was hosting its 4th of July festivities. A good, old-fashioned 4th of July picnic.  We'd find a place to sit and eat. The park was crowded with people. Some kid was just finishing singing songs from Oliver Twist.  The 6-8 year old sack race was just starting.  John took a quick right and headed to the back of the park, away from the crowd, and....DREAM SPOT!!!   An empty park bench!   ITS GREAT TO BE AN AMERICAN!!!  We settled in and ate our lunch.  We were tempted to take part in the adult pie eating contest but decided against it. We walked back down to the beach to chill. The sun was out and the beach was crowded, and life was good.  Sipped a cold beverage, soaked in the summer sun, talked, laughed and savored our freedom.

At some point, and regretfully, (hated to give up that parking spot! HA HA), we decided to head home.  John and Michelle had some Black Angus gift cards that were burning a hole in their pockets. I guess Black Angus's are closing down all over, so they wanted to spend them before they went out of  business altogether.  And who better to spend them with but us? :  )   A little back seat sluething ( I called directory assistance)  showed  a  Black Angus in San Jose!  We took a short detour to Blossom Hill Road and were there before we knew it. We  finished off our great day with a 4th of July feast!   Ribeye steak on 4th of July is about as American as you can get!   From appitizer (onion rings and grilled artichokes) to dessert (root beer floats and Choc fudge cake w/vanilla ice cream),  it was all good. We've found some good friends in Michelle and John,  and its great to spend some fun times with them. And I'm not just saying that because they  bought dinner! 

Dinner was over and we were back on the road and heading home right at  the time all the  fireworks  were starting.   Made for a nice conclusion to our 4th of July.  We could see rockets red glare and bombs bursting in air all the way home. 

God Bless America

Happy Birthday Barbie!!

For the first time in many years, we are NOT in Tahoe for Barb's birthday.  Most years we are up there for 4th of July festivities,  and also arrange things so we are there for Barb's birthday.  Always  good times (and many good memories)  up there. This year we chose to avoid the hustle bustle of south shore on a holiday weekend, and just kick it at home for a change.   Barb's folks are coming into town today. We'll have a nice dinner out tonight.  This time of year is also the dreaded anniversary of her 2007  breast cancer diagnosis. The further we get from that day the better!  Barb is really back on track towards a healthful life. Cancer free and getting stronger and better everyday.   Here is a great picture of the birthday girl. We took a ride last week to the end of the creek trail. What a beauty!  Happy Birthday baby.  Enjoy your day!

Cast your Worries

Sunday was a good day. The kind of day that I've  grown to enjoy. A do nothing day!  9:30 mass was good. The homily made my ears perk up.  It was about fear and worry.   When Father Mat said something about "cast your worries unto the Lord"  it really struck a cord with me.  I am a worrier at heart. It may be genetic. Maybe an Irish thing.  Either way, I have found myself worrying a lot lately. Mostly about things I have no REAL control over.  Of course, worry over things you have no control over is useless.  Even Father Aiden (an Irishman) adds "protect us from all anxiety and useless worry" during mass.  So that's what I decided to do.  I cast them unto the Lord. And I feel better already!

No plans for the rest of the day other than beating the heat.  We decided to stay home, crank up the AC, and watch some Generation Kill (MARINE CORP!) on DVD.  Made a quick trip to the store to pick up turkey burger  makings for dinner. I love Sundays afternoons and preparing dinner.  Chopping some peppers (both sweet and hot), sipping some Jack.  Chopping some garlic, sipping some Jack. A little sun dried tomatoes, all mixed into the burgers. On the grill with a little beef sausage and..sipping some Jack.   Slicing some tomato. Slicing some onion. Slicing some pickles. Little romain lettuce. soft whole grain roll.  Its good. Its very good.

Plus I have no worries!!

Bike Ride and Birthday Party

Saturday was a good day. Twenty four mile bike ride that beat the heat. 8am start with Vandenbusch and a Camello brother. Out the creek trail to the end of the bay.  Even shook things up a bit by taking the "closed" dirt path back to Coyote Hills from Mile marker 11. Now we know why its closed. There were a couple parts of the trail that were unridable. We had to get off and walk about 200 feet of "moonscape."  Even managed to haul our asses up heart attack hill. Only at the top of heart attack did we start to notice the heat. No worry!  We were heading back anyway. Right where the trail meets Decoto Road, Vandy says " hey, that girl just fell up there. Some girl on a bike up ahead had just went down in the gravel part of the trail that leads up to Decoto Road. Poor thing. From where we were we could just see that she was down in a cloud of dust. As we got closer it was apparent. "HEY!! THAT'S BARB!" Sure enough, Barb had gone out on her own ride, had seen us, and was turning around in the gravel ( a little to fast!) when she went down. She wasn't too worse for wear. A bit scraped on the elbow and leg. Steve pulled out his handy first aid kit and Barb was bandaged up in no time. We cruised back to Starbucks and had a coffee and scone.

That evening was Marie's birthday party. Held "exclusively" in the restaurant at the Sky West Golf course in Hayward. I didn't even know a place like this existed in Hayward!  New and nice, right on the 1st tee.  We arrived at 7pm. It was still warm but cooling down nicely. Golfers  finishing up late rounds. We had a great time at the party. 50-60 of Marie's friends and family. We knew most of them so it was nice for us.  Dinner was great, Dancing was fun, and just visiting with everyone was cool.  The birthday girl looked pretty that night. Whatever she is doing she should keep doing.

Let Summer Begin!!

We cruised up to Healdsburg yesterday for a summer solstice party.  Our friends Pat and Sue were hosting their 2nd annual solstice party.  We missed it last year but heard it was a blast.  Its not summer unless you can take some peyote,  get naked and welcome summer by dancing around a bonfire with all your friends.

Didn't turn out quite like that but we still had a great time.

We brought along our friends John and Michelle (thanks for driving John!).  It made for the long drive to Healdsburg go by fast. We pulled up the the house right as the party was starting.  Al and Debbie Shull  were already there, manning the bbq and tending bar.  We quickly got into party mode.  People were filtering in, all bringing food and drink.  Before long there was a good sized crowd.

The place was perfect for a summer party. 1930's era house on 1/4 acre lot.  Nice BIG backyard with tended lawn, 100 foot redwoods, fruit trees, flowers in bloom, veggie garden,  and nice covered patio area with a nice outdoor kitchen and bar.

Music filled the air.  Pat lined up a few of his buddy's to play.  Acoustic guitar, base guitar and trumpet,  had a jazz fusion thing going on.  These guys were professionals and sounded fantastic.

There was sooo much food!  And it was all great. Pat had roasted a pig. People had brought other edible delectable.    Tamales, tri-tip, sausages, salads, (we brought chips and salsa). Desserts too! cookies, brownies, cakes, pies............. ahhhhh.

We ate, we drank, played some bocce ball,  made new friends and grooved to the sounds of soothing summer jazz. All in all a great party! Thanks Pat and Sue!

FWD:breaktime

breaktime

The Cauliflower Caper

It was funny.  We had team Vandenbusch and Team Downing over for dinner saturday night. Served "mashed" cauliflower, along with tri-tip and kielbasa.  It was good.

 It may have been the whiskey talking,  but half way through dinner Vandenbusch commented that the garlic mashed potatoes were real garlicky.   HA HA!!!  Its cauliflower Steve!   Then Downing says something like  "Hey! I don't even LIKE cauliflower!"

Seems everyone thought it was mashed potatoes!  Thats how good a cook I am, or thats how much the whiskey was talking!

Either way,  we all had a good laugh over that one!

25 miler - Heart Attack Hill

The Skype-meister

The Flahertys moved up another rung on the technology ladder yesterday when we "skyped" with Kate.  Skype is an internet "phone" service.  If you have a web-cam, you can send and receive "video calls".  How cool is that?

We knew about Skype from Marie and Ron, who used it to video chat with their son while he was away at school. Kate had mentioned that we needed to get a web-cam because she has one with her new laptop. So, low and behold, Barb was playing around with her new mini laptop, and she discovered that we had a web-cam. "hey! I can see myself!".  So I signed up for a Skype account and away we went.

It was so easy and so cool. We found Kate's name in the Skype directory and "placed a call". All of a sudden, we see and hear  Kate! Sitting at the desk in her room in Texas! She can see and hear us sitting on our couch at home.  Way cool.  Anyway, we had a great visit.  Good to see her smile. Good to see those blue eyes.  Good to see she is keeping her room clean!  Ha Ha!  We even  gave Mali and Bruno some camera time.  Bruno was a bit confused when he first heard Kate calling his name.  He went to the front door and started barking. Goofus! Kate was happy to see her little pudgy baby.

Kelly came home in the middle of the call and was amazed that Kate was right there in our living room, and we in her room at Sheppard AFB. 

TECHNOLOGY BABY!

Good Vibes update - the long and winding road

Wanted to send out a (long over due)  good vibes  update. Its been almost two years since Barb got on the cancer roller coaster. For some reason I keep thinking that the ride would have been over by now, but its not.  At last posting (Sept '08), Barb had just finished up her last treatment of Herceptin, and we were pretty much thinking we were done. We celebrated by hiking Half Dome in Yosemite! It looked like most of the "bad" was behind us. Things were looking up.  The next step in treatment was for her to take estrogen inhibitors (for 5 years). Without going into the how and why, taking these meds will reduce Barb's risk of getting cancer again by 50%. Those are odds that you can't pass up. That's good!     But.....

Those darn estrogen inhibitors are bad. Very bad!  Barb's oncologist started her on one, and the side effects were so bad that it was almost unbearable for her. I felt so sorry for her. It was so bad that at one point I couldn't even give her a hug because it HURT to HUG!!   So Barb has spent the last months trying to find the right meds that work for her with minimal side effects.

NEWS FLASH!!! ( or should I say.. HOT FLASH!)   THERE ARE NONE!!! 

They all have side effects and they all take a toll. Suddenly, the girl who hiked Half Dome couldn't make it up Mission Peak.  For the first time in this two year journey she was showing signs of being beaten down, and almost ready to give up on taking meds all together. Losing her job could not have come at a worse time. Right in the middle of a major med change, the effects were horrible and she was feeling as low as ever.  Thats when the layoff came. It sure didn't help things.  Like Forrest Gump says; "thats all I have to say about that!"

But, dammit, no matter how far that girl is beaten down, she keeps getting back up! She is on the newest rounds of meds, and dealing with it. Good days and bad days. Bad days and good.  Headaches have been so bad that that her oncologist scheduled MRI and PET scans to make sure that the cancer had not metastasized to her brain!  See how it never ends!?!?!?  All those scary feelings and apprehensions come rushing back.  The MRI was at the place where they found the breast cancer two years ago.  The place where the doctor told Barb, " you have cancer". Just to be sitting in that office (waiting for Barb) was creepy. Crappy.  The good news is that the tests came back and Barb continues to be CANCER FREE!!   The bad news is that all the side effects remain.

Barb is also 99% complete with her breast reconstruction. What started with double mastectomy in July 07,  ends this month with "titty tats."  Between then and now she has had a couple of out patient procedures. First to get a "tune-up" where the doctor "evened things out" so to speak. Barb most recently went in for "nipple reconstruction" where they amazingly created nipples out of thin air.  Not really, but almost!  Either way, She now has nipples. The last step is this weekend, when the plastic surgeon accompanies Barb to a local tattoo artist where she will get "areolas" tattooed around her new nipples.  Hence, the titty tats!

Just wanted to put this posting up to let you know that we are still on the roller coaster.  Most of you know what has been going on and have helped us through. We are blessed to have such wonderful daughters, family and friends. You continue to provide support in ways that friends and family do.  You ride the coaster with us, and most times make us forget we are even on it! For that we are forever grateful.    GOOD VIBES!!!!

24 years ago today......

Happy Anniversary baby. I still only have eyes for you!

nice ride today.....even got a t-shirt!

Creek trail ride with my bride

Rest In Peace Mom

Luella Flaherty passed away peacefully on 5/13/09. mom was born March 30 1915 to James Hurley and Rose Ahstrom in San Francisco California. She was a life long resident of the Bay Area, living in San Francisco, Daly City, Santa Rosa, and most recently Sacramento. She was preceeded in death by all of her brothers and sisters, as well as her husband, John Francis Flaherty and her eldest son Michael Flaherty. She is survived by her loving daughter Anne Marie Flaherty and sons John Flaherty and James Flaherty. She has left behind a legacy of  children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren who were the joy of her life.

Lizard in my shoe

I have an old pair of shoes out on the front porch that I use when I mow the lawn and scoop poop. The other day I went out to scoop, put on my shoes and felt something in there. I figured it was a stick or something that Mali had hidden in there. I give the shoe a couple of shakes and out comes a big old lizard!  Bigger than most I have seen around here, and without a tail!   Gross!

lazy day.......kick'n back after Sunday brunch

ahhhhh........technology

Its so cool to be able to stay connected with the ones we love. We are able to talk, text or chat with Kate almost everyday when shes not in training. Its almost like shes still here! Most mornings I'm up early, and knowing that Kate is 3 hours ahead,  I can send her a text or IM telling her good morning.  I'm always taking phone cam pictures (mostly of the dogs) and sending them REAL-TIME to Kate (and Barb and Kelly). Its like we can bring Kate into the moment.  Or she can bring us into hers. While texing back and forth I asked "how about a picture?" a few seconds later it was like I was with her in the bathroom (head) of her squadbay : )  Back in my day it was a collect phone call or hand written letters. Now its email, Facebook, blogging and texting.  Next its Skype and Twitter.  Ahhhhh.......technology!

P S - I love that kid!