John and Doddridge at the Daytona 300

My son John called tonight when he got back to Mayport Naval Base. He spent the weekend in Daytona Beach with his barracks-mate Doddridge and his family. They went and saw the Daytona 300 ( Camping World 300 ) Saturday and John sent us some pictures. Hopefully John will give someone else the camera next time so we get some pictures of him. John is on duty tomorrow.

Click on Images For Full Size

Number 88 NAVY Car
Driver Brad Keselowski was at the wheel of the Dale Earnhardt Jr.owned JR Motorsports, No. 88 Navy "Accelerate Your Life" Monte Carlo sporting a new "Dress White" paint scheme for the 2008 season.

Doddridge looking tired at the race

Daytona Speedway

Doddridge on the way to the race

You can see the Camping World 300 Race Results here.

CNP Announces New NASCAR Fleet Honoree Program

A Nice Birthday Surprise from Cindy

Our Daughter Cindy called our local Pizza Hut from San Diego Naval Base where she is stationed and ordered Vicki a Pizza for dinner tonight for Vicki's Birthday. Vicki was pleasantly surprised. Cindy got Vicki her favorite, a large thin and crispy with green olives and a Pepsi. That was so nice and thoughtful of her. Thank you Cindy

Happy Birthday Vicki

Happy Birthday to my Wonderful Wife Vicki

Montgomery Gentry in Concert in Daytona Beach Florida

Good morning. We are just waiting for the rain/ice to start coming down. My son John called late last night. John had just seen Montgomery Gentry in Concert in Daytona Beach Florida with his roommate "Doddridge" from Naval Station Mayport Florida. Doddridge is on a different ship than John but they are in the same barracks on base. They also know each other from Navy Boot Camp having graduated together.

This is from the Montgomery Gentry official website. "A total of 8,500 general admission tickets will be available. All proceeds from tickets sales will benefit Jim Beam's designated charity, Operation Homefront. Operation Homefront provides support and morale to U.S. troops, to the families they leave behind while they serve and to wounded warriors when they return home."

"Unfortunately, we often overlook the sacrifices made by courageous men and women in uniform who are responsible for defending the very freedom that enables us to enjoy our favorite pastimes, such as racing," said Gallagher. "We have designed this event not only as an opportunity for racing and country music fans to be entertained, but also to give these fans a chance to display the deep sense of patriotism for which they are well known."

John said that after the concert he and his Doddridge tried to see if they could go back stage and that "one of the security guards was being a real asshole". Of course they let girls go back stage but when two people serving in the Navy want to say thank you they are refused entry. They even showed their Military IDs but were rebuffed by security and the owner of the Concert Hall. John said that he could have understood this but when he saw them allowing any good looking girl to go see the Star and refuse the troops he just thought that was wrong.

Today John is going to see the Daytona 300 with Doddridge and his family. John promised me some pictures from this weekend so hopefully I will have some to post in the next few days.

The Kids called and an e-mail from my parents

Good morning everyone. It's been a quiet week here in South East Kansas. Nothing is really going on. Yesterday we had a warm up in the weather with temps in the 60s but that is gone now. When I woke up this morning it was 19 degrees outside and they are predicting highs in the 30s today. My wife Vicki has a birthday Sunday and it looks like she is going to get Snow. We are really anxious for Spring...

My daughter Cindy called yesterday from her CIWS C-School at San Diego Naval Base and told me that in class yesterday the instructor told them to go to www.google.com and type in "French Military Victories" and then click the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button. The results are hilarious. Give it a try and have some fun. Cindy just told me "Today I have duty. Tomorrow I am going to the rec center until my buddy Zac gets off. He is going to take me out to his sail boat and teach me how to sail and kayak. Its going to be fun. I have a 3 day weekend. I don't go back to class until Tuesday after I get off today. I don't have watch so I am going to pretty much play games online."

My son John called from Naval Station Mayport Florida. John was doing well. He had a good week so far. They celebrated Black History Month with films and food on his Ship. John said that the speeches were interesting and the food was great. This weekend he is going to Daytona with one of his friends to see the Daytona 300 on Saturday and tonight he is going to see a concert. My parents live a few miles from the Daytona Speedway so John just might be able to see them when he is in town.

My Mom sent me an e-mail with some pictures yesterday. The e-mail says "We had the WGA Cupid Scramble today and it was in the thirties when we started out. I froze. I could not swing with my jacket on and it was so cold with it off. We did not win but Kathleen and Alden did. We were three under and they were five under. We needed one and a half more points to be in the money. We had 100 people playing and had lunch afterwards. My feet are still cold."

Kathleen and Alden are my Aunt and Uncle that also live in the same neighborhood as my parents along with my Aunt Jane and Uncle John.

Mom on the right

Mom & Dad

Mom & Dad

Dad on the Left

Aunt Kathleen Left and my Uncle John on the Right

Tornado Sirens

In our small town in South East Kansas they test the Tornado Sirens every Wednesday morning at 10am. The test usually last for a minute or two at most. Today the sirens went off at 10am as scheduled and stayed on. It's been 20 minutes so far and it is about ready to drive us nuts. My neighbor just called me when I was typing this and said "what is the matter with that thing?" I sure hope they stop it soon. LOL

Update: My son John called from his Ship in Mayport Florida and asked if we were having a Tornado. He could hear the sirens going off through the phone. The sirens finally turned off after about 25 minutes.

Good morning.

It's 8:30am and I just finished my first pot of coffee for the day. Yesterday was a slow day with icey streets so we didn't get out at all. My wife was supposed to have a Dr appt today in town but the Dr's office called at 7:45am to cancel the appointment. The receptionist said that the streets were just horrible and that she almost wrecked getting in today and that they were canceling all appointments. That's fine with us.

My daughter Cindy called yesterday to tell me that her boyfriend Doug is re-enlisting in the Navy and that he will get a $71,000 bonus and be promoted to an E-5 as part of the re-enlistment deal. Cindy said that Doug plans to buy some land with the money. Cindy was doing well in her CIWS C-School with a GPA of 96% in her class and that the class average GPA is 93%. I am proud of you Cindy. Cindy is in San Diego.

Cindy, when do I get to see some pictures from that new digital camera you got? :)

My son John called yesterday also. He had a good day on the Ship and is going to be on Duty today. That means that he went on the Ship at 6am and will get off sometime tomorrow afternoon. He has a Duty day every 6 days. The other days are basically 7-4pm or so with weekends off while they are in port. He said that they are protecting the country by cleaning one sink or hallway at a time. LOL There is not much else that they can do while in port on the Ship. I said that with cleaning the same things every day all day they should have the cleanest Ship in the Navy. John is in Mayport Florida.

Crappy Weather... ICE

It looks like it is going to be a messy day. I woke up this morning to Thunderstorms and it is only 19 degrees outside. The ground appears to be covered with Ice. Most, if not all of the schools in our area are closed today. I am sure the kids will be happy about that. You can see our weather forecast below.

In other news, I talked to my daughter Cindy on MSN Messenger over the weekend. She had a test in her CIWS C-School Friday and got 100%. I wonder when she is going to send me some pictures now that she has a digital camera and a laptop computer? Cindy is at Naval Base San Diego. I also talked to my son John at Naval Station Mayport Florida. He was cooking eggs in his barracks and was doing well.

WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 4 AM TO 3 PM CST MONDAY.

THE NATL WEATHER SVC IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WARNING.WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 4 AM TO 3 PM CST MONDAY. THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.

LIGHT FREEZING RAIN WILL DEVELOP EARLY MON MORNING & BECOME WIDESPREAD INTO EARLY MON AFTERNOON. EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE WHICH COULD CAUSE HEAVIER PERIODS OF FREEZING RAIN AND ICE ACCUMULATIONS. SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS OF ICE.BETWEEN ONE-QUARTER & ONE-HALF INCH ARE EXPECTED. THIS WILL RESULT IN TREACHEROUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS.& THE POSSIBILITY FOR DOWNED POWER LINES & TREE LIMBS.

A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT WINTER WEATHER IS EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. THIS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS OR IMPOSSIBLE.

Vickis Birthday

My wifes birthday is coming up next week. It's the 17th to be exact. My wife Vicki bought this little table at a neighbors auction several months ago for a dollar and we have had it in the garage even since. When she bought it it was white and had paper stuck to the top of it. Yesterday I got it out of the garage and got some paint that we had on hand and decided that I would fix it up for her. After allot of scraping and some sanding I was able to paint it and then give it to her yesterday afternoon as an early birthday present. Vicki put it in her computer room next to her reading chair.

Last day at Great Lakes

Pictures from my son John's last day at Great Lakes OS-A School

John in the NAVY jacket

John on the left

John on the left

John on the left

John on the left

Jessica on the left, she is an OS on the USS Enterprise now

My son John sent me some pictures a few weeks ago that he took on his last day of OS-A School at Naval Station Great Lakes. He has been in Florida on his ship the USS Doyle a few months now but I thought I would post these anyway.

This will give you nightmares

I had to put this picture up for my buddy Cookie. :)

Talked to Cindy today

USS Boxer

My daughter Cindy called today during her lunch break at C-School in San Diego. Cindy said that one of her friends "Rob" took her on a tour of his ship The USS Boxer yesterday evening. Cindy said that she got to go on the flight deck and several other places on the ship. Cindy has been in the Navy for a year now and this was the first time she was on a ship. Rob is going to show her more of the ship sometime this evening. Cindy said that last night she went out to dinner at Jack in the Box and that she is going to eat out again tonight.

USS Doyle

My son John called while I was typing this post. John was changing his clothes and getting ready to do Colors ( lowering the flag for the night ). After that he has more training to do this evening. If you didn't know yet, John is an OS ( Operation Specialist ) on the USS Doyle in Mayport FL. John is on Duty today which means he is on the ship for at least 24hrs straight.

Cell Phone Plans

Click on images for full size

I just saw this and thought it looked like a great deal. Helio has a great deal on their Unlimited Plan, right now you can get it for $99.00 a month. If a cell phone is going to be your only phone you might want to take a look at this.

Helio Website Link

Quiet day and we heard from the kids

We had a nice quiet day again yesterday. My daughter Cindy called during her lunch break from Naval Base San Diego where she is attending her C-School in the Navy.

Cindy was doing well and was glad she had her laptop up and running and on the Net. She bought the Belkin F5D7050 Wireless-G 54Mbps USB Network Adapter that I recommended and said that she is able to go online now. Cindy said that from what she has seen about 95% of the sailors on her base have a cell phone and a laptop. I bugged Cindy about sending me some pictures and she said that she would do that soon.

My son John called from Mayport Naval Base and was also doing well. He said that he had a great weekend and went to a Super Bowl Party at one of the guys houses from his ship. John said that the guy made the best Rubin sandwiches that he had ever had. John told me that he ate 6 of them so they must have been good. John is in class this week with his shipmates and said that it is interesting.

It's always good to hear from the kids and know that they are doing well. I made an apple pie yesterday for us and it turned out great. My neighbor Doris gave me an easy recipe for the crust. Doris said that all you have to do is remember to half the ingredients all the way down. I used 2 cups flour, 1 cup shortening, and 1/2 cup water. You can easily adjust the recipe for the amount of crust that you want as long as you half the ingredients starting with the flour it will turn out ok every time. Thanks Doris.

We had a quiet weekend

We had a quiet weekend and really didn't do anything. Today the weather outside is great with a current temp of 69 degrees. It won't be here long but we take what we can get. It's is supposed to get down to 17 degrees tomorrow night.

My daughter Cindy attending her C-School at Naval Base San Diego got her wireless card for her Laptop and is able to get on the internet now. Cindy, you know that we are expecting pictures from you now, don't you? :)

Today we are just enjoying the nice weather and listening to music. Hope everyone has a nice day.

Got a Nice Surprise tonight

Our Dog Tanner thinks the Pizza is for him.

My son John in the Navy with the USS Doyle and stationed at Mayport Naval Base in Florida called Pizza Hut and ordered me a Pizza and Pepsi and had it delivered to my house here in Kansas.

John called me and said that dinner was on the way, at first I thought he was talking about himself and he said " Dad your dinner is on the way". I couldn't believe it, but he told me that it would be here any minute and it was. John got me a large pepperoni pizza and a 2 liter bottle of Pepsi from Pizza Hut. That was so nice and thoughtful of him that I had to share what he did here. It taste great, I have not had pizza in months. Thank you so much John. That really was a nice surprise.

Cindy, this is what you should get

This is for my daughter Cindy. Cindy, I talked to John yesterday afternoon and he agrees with me that should would work for your Laptop. It's only $29.00. Dad

Item Description and Product Link Below.

The Wireless G USB Network Adapter easily connects your USB-equipped desktop or notebook computer to your wireless network for Internet and file sharing. Desktop users can now join the network with the ease of a USB plug-in. And laptop users can enjoy the benefits of staying mobile while connected to the Internet.

* Adds 802.11g wireless capabilities to desktop and laptop computers

* Allows faster wireless networking for home or office

* Offers backward-compatibility with all 802.11b network devices

* Works with Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000 and XP

Belkin F5D7050 Wireless-G 54Mbps USB Network Adapter

How to Keep From Being Stinky

As the father of former teenagers I have had my share of having to deal with Stinky kids and their friends. The advice in this video from chris.pirillo.com goes for you girls out there too. My wife and I are both in our 40s and when we were young and still in school we would never think of going out to school or anywhere else for that matter without being clean and in fresh clothes. That is not the case for most of the kids that we have seen with this current generation. Take some good advice and take a shower every day ( You won't melt ), use deodorant, and please don't sleep in your clothes.

Watch the video below and learn more.




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