Mr. Boots Goes to Clunker Heaven

Fare thee well Mr. Boots. The Cash For Clunkers program is seemingly tailor made for my old truck. Mr, Boots was 'born' in 1986 and was one of the very first Dodge Dakotas to roll off the line...1987 was the first model year. Boots went through four owners and still only had 53,000 miles under his belts. The first owner was a guy up in Moberly - a retired farmer - who got him through the Orschlen dealer. Orschlen is a big name in farm supplies but I didn't know they sold cars or trucks but I guess they did in Moberly. I think that first owner barely drove the truck but he kept meticulous records of every oil change and each visit for service. The second owner lived in Columbia and Mr. Boots surely fit in well with the black and gold crowd. That owner also didn't drive the truck much and eventually the truck was traded in. The third owner was a guy here in Jefferson City that lived over on Moorland Drive so Boots probably had a pretty cushy existence for a while. The third owner must have only driven Bootsy around town or maybe to football games in Columbia but he traded the truck in at the Ford dealer out in California Missouri in 2003.

I was looking for a truck to haul Jill's stuff back and forth to the University and just happened to be in California about a day after the truck was traded in. The salesman said that the truck was a "Cream Puff" and he sure was -- a low mileage V-6 and he looked good, inside and out. He was a 'luxury' model with a bed liner and cassette player and AC and arm rests and cruise control and those little clear plastic rain awnings on the side windows. He still has his big shade visor over the windshield but I took off the plastic bug guard that was in front of the grill and hood. When I got him he had about 34,000 miles on the odometer so I put almost 20,000 miles on him - more than any of the other owners.

Boots was always pretty much of a fair-weather truck. He couldn't manage slick roads and would fish-tail on slightly damp pavement. Ice or snow was out of the question. I think the V-6 engine was a little over powered for his weight which might have been an issue.

In his old age he developed a fuel leak and I had him in to the shop twice but they couldn't find the leak. He also had a carburetor and most mechanics rarely see a carburetor any more. There was one old guy at the Dodge dealer that could work on him but he was ready to retire. His advice was don't put any more money in the truck but run the hell out of it because it needs to be driven. That is a little hard to do when it leaks gas and can't be trusted on wet pavement but we did our best and got close to 20,000 miles. The AC died and the mechanic said let it go because Boots used the old coolant and he couldn't be fixed.

The ice storm in 2007 took out most of the black paint...somehow the ice bonded with the black paint. When it melted or when I brushed it off the top layer of paint came off too. I took it to a paint shop but they wanted $2,800 just to redo the black.

Boots always passed inspection - even when I was sure he wouldn't. In March and April I had him in the shop and replaced his belts and water pump and he got new tires. We made a trip to St. Louis to pick up some stuff from Kelly's but that trip seemed to take a lot out of him. His preferred cruising speed had always been about 55 mph...any more than that and it caused some strain. On the way back from St. Louis he seemed to be laboring at 55 and favored a slower speed - around 45 mph. He was carrying furniture and the added weight might have been a factor but after that trip he seemed much more geriatric. The incontinence got worse and he started back-firing or coughing from deep inside his pipes. In June and July his preferred speed fell to about 35 or 40 and he seemed to be getting the DTs.

That's when the Cash for Clunkers program was starting up. I had a fantasy vision of getting enough money saved to get Mr. Boots fixed up so he could go to New Mexico and live where there was almost no rust. As I tallied up the various things that I would need to do - head gasket, hoses, maybe a new gas tank or gas line, fuel pump, paint job, battery cables and who knows what else...the cost of repair quickly added up to a hefty sum and when I was done I would still have an ancient truck that I couldn't sell for much and that I couldn't count on. When I bought Mr. Boots I think I paid $4,200 and the government was now willing to give me up to $4,500 if I would turn it in on a new truck. They estimated that the '87 Dakota truck got 17 mpg and maybe he did before he started leaking but now he gets about 7 or 8 or maybe 10 on a good day.

I ended up trading him in for a little Ford Ranger and they gave me $3,500 in clunker value and another $4,000 in rebates so that means the monthly payment on the new truck is less than I'd be spending on Mr. Boots just to keep him running. So essentially I guess I could say I've had pretty much free use of a truck since 2003 since I'm getting almost what I paid in the first place plus the rebate. Well, so long little buddy!!!

We went out for a drive tonight - cruising Missouri Blvd. Of course I had to put some gas in it because most of the gas had drained out. It was dark so I had the headlights on. One of the lights droops so bad that it shines a beam on the pavement about six feet in front of the truck. The other one is a little cross-eyed but does the job. We cruised through McDonalds and I got a small milk shake and then proceeded down Missouri Blvd. - of course hitting all of the stop lights...Mr. Boots doesn't do stoplights well. Some snot-nosed kid pulled up next to us in his daddy's pick-up and reved his engine --- yeah, right --- Boots is a lot older than the kid. He sped off when the light changed and we chugged a little but established forward motion and moved off down the street. We got on highway 50 and headed back home. Boots got up to about 53 mph but I was afraid he would have a stroke so we backed down to about 45 and he did OK. Tomorrow I turn him in and he goes to Clunker Heaven - he'll have a quick end and maybe donate a few parts along the way.

Last week of July

This is always going to be a tough week for me. Joanne died two years ago and the end of July brings back memories of the days and nights in intensive care and watching her fade away in spite of everything that the doctors could do. I have come through the difficult months and I've been doing really well although I still miss her terribly. The desolation and sadness have abated but still lie below the surface and come back occasionally - usually when I don't expect it.

This year I managed to cope pretty well. Jill went on a vacation trip to Chicago with her friend, Anna, so we didn't feed on each other's feelings. I'm glad she went because it kept her busy and she had a great time. We talked on the phone and talked a little about 'the day' but didn't dwell on it.

I decided to have painters come and repaint the downstairs and the stairwell and repair a drywall problem. Their schedule brought them to the house on July 30th so that meant that I was going to be busy with them and not left alone to feel bad.

As the week approached I also decided to look into the possibility of trading in Mr. Boots...my old truck...in the "Cash for Clunkers" program. That ended up taking much of my time during the week because there was a lot of documentation needed and I was shopping for a good deal. I found a truck and the trade-in is pending so that went well.

I spent some time looking at vacation videos and photo slide shows so I got a chance to reconnect with some of the good times we had. I went out and watched the stars in the early morning hours of July 30th and saw a bright yellow meteor cross the sky. That is special to me because my life is connected to meteor showers that accentuate major personal events. I was born during a meteor shower and always spend part of my birthday watching for meteors. Joanne died during a meteor shower and seeing that yellow one streak across the sky seemed to help with my feelings.

Jill's House Closing - July 2nd

Well, she is in but it wasn't pretty. Closings are always difficult or at least they seem that way to me. Jill's entire loan approval process seemed to start out fine but went downhill over the last couple weeks. This was due to some obvious incompetence by the loan writer in the UMB main bank in Kansas City. He seemed to get involved in things that were not part of the process and got confused with the various accounts. He wanted Jill to explain a deposit of $800 on April 28th and she didn't make a deposit that day or any day of $800. He was looking at my checking account records - I made a deposit on April 28th for $800 and it is none of his business where it came from or what it was used for.

Today the closing was set for 2 PM but the bank wasn't ready -- they apparently hadn't wired the money to the local branch for the payment to the sellers. Then there was a last minute discrepancy in the numbers that had to be cleared up. We finally got started around 4 PM but they hadn't properly shown the inspection fee as paid so they had to give Jill a $250 refund. This whole thing was insane...but the local people were all great -- the Kansas City office screwed everything up.

Chris and Tracey, the sellers, were great and gave Jill a card with $100 in it as a final gift. We got into the house around 5 PM and she was happy but exhausted.

It's Never Easy to Lose - Confederations Cup '09

USA's national soccer team finished in 2nd place after losing to Brazil in the final 3-2. This was a hard loss because USA was playing well and leading 2-0 at the half but then Brazil came back and pretty much controlled the 2nd half and pulled ahead as time ran out.


Tim Howard, our goalie won the 'golden glove' award for the tournament.

Winning the silver trophy is no mean feat for our team since we have never won anything in the Confed. Cup and we played miserably in the first few games. It was only because Italy lost and we beat Egypt and Spain that we were even in the final. We beat Spain -- their first loss since 2006. We have no reason to be downhearted of disappointed but it is hard to lose. To be inconsolable about coming in 2nd only diminishes what the team has accomplished.

We go back out next week in the Gold Cup tournament and then play Mexico in Mexico City on August 12th.....by birthday....so get it together, guys.

Michael Jackson

Gone but not forgotten....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehal1eUG1jk

Road Weary - Two More Die on Highway 54

Since I've been in Jefferson City these 30+ years I've seen a number of improvements to area highways. Highway 50 has just been improved to dual lane going west. Highway 63 is much improved going up to Columbia and Highway 54 is nearly at interstate quality going up to Fulton and Kingdom City. All of these improvements have resulted in increased speed limits on these roads. Even though they are not limited access highways, the speed limit is often 70 mph with drivers usually driving at 75 to 80 mph. Sight lines are sometimes limited and drivers who think they are on a high-speed, limited access road are surprised to see people pulling on the the highway from a stop sign. Speed limits are too high in places where there is frequent cross traffic.

I now know four people who have been killed on US highway 54 heading south out of Jefferson City toward Eldon and the lake. There are many more but I am only acquainted with four. The two most recent died on Sunday, a husband and wife -- coworkers with Jill and I knew one from my volunteer work at the Archives. Before that there was Dustin, our one-time neighbor boy from across the street who died a few years back and before him there was the county sheriff who also died in a car wreck on the same stretch of road. All of these were from drivers pulling out on to the highway after stopping at a stop sign intersection.

Speed limits need to be reduced along that stretch of road until proper overpasses and entrance ramps can be built. Traffic to and from the Lake of the Ozarks is often too congested for the capacity of the road at that speed, especially with people pulling boats or trailers.

MODOT installed special flashers at the airport road up near Columbia. These are activated whenever a car approaches the intersection from the side road. That would also be something that should be done at each cross road to alert high-speed drivers that someone may be trying to get on or across the highway.

I'm tired of going to funerals -- especially for deaths caused by something that borders on negligence by the highway officials.

House Hunt - Jill Buys a House

Jill has been wanting to buy a house and has been actively looking for about two months. She got an agent and really got started in April but most of what we saw was not good and was not what she wanted. She got pre-approved for a loan but kept shopping for better terms. She finally saw a little house way over on Riverside Drive that would work but was pretty small. She kept looking but was getting discouraged. One house that looked really good was sold before she could get in to see it. She was beginning to think she was just going to have to wait.....but the first time home buyer tax benefit was due to expire in December.

She had noticed that a small brick house on West Main was being renovated and when the FSBO sign went up she had the agent talk to the sellers and they were willing to work through the agent. We got in to see the house and she fell in love with it. I did too.

The house was built around 1905 and is owned by the family of the present county Assessor...it was his grandma's house. He did a really good job with the renovation and the house has been nominated for the Golden Hammer award. It has about 1,450 square feet. The basement is old looking with a stone foundation but it is pretty dry considering how old it is. They put all new electric, water and plumbing systems in....but the roof is about 15 years old.

The house has a small yard and a little free-standing garage off the back alley. The garage is cute but not very useful as a garage. It will need some work.

The inside rehab is well done...there isn't much that Jill will have to do once she moves in. All of the major systems have been replaced. It has a sun porch and a sunny rear sitting room/den with a 1/2 bath.

The kitchen is large and nice and all appliances are included. The counter top is granite tile. There is a front parlor with a pocket door and a living room.

Upstairs there are two large bedrooms and a huge bath with a claw foot tub and a walk-in shower. The choices they made in colors and light fixtures are perfect for her. She actually will have almost too much room and will have to grow into the house over time.

I think the house had Jill's name on it and I think the sellers were happy that she was interested in it because she has a good sense of history and appreciates the old house. The house is only about five blocks from the State Archives so she can walk to work in about ten minutes and come home for lunch.

We got in to see it twice and then Jill decided to make an offer. The sellers were asking for $95,000 but they lost 3% when they agreed to go through her agent. Jill had been pre-approved for about the mid $90 thousand but was still shopping for loans. She made an offer of $92,500 and we waited with our fingers crossed. It was Memorial Day weekend so it was a busy time but there were not many other people out looking for houses on the holiday.

We finally heard from the agent that the offer was accepted if she was willing to close earlier in July. She had originally wanted a late July closing but jumped at the chance to get the offer approved. Now we wait for the results of the inspection and if all goes well she will close on July 2nd. To say that she is excited is a gross understatement. I am also happy that she got this finished and seems to have a good house while I'm still in town. I'd hate to go through this if I was 1,000 miles away.

Remembering Kelly

Joanne's 1/2 sister, Kelly, died in her sleep last night (April 15) at St. Anthony's hospice in St. Louis. I think I met Kelly when she was about 10 years old when I was first dating Joanne in the early 1970s. Kelly was a much-loved, sweetheart of a person and we will miss her terribly. I think that I probably never saw her when she wasn't surrounded by loving people or her loving pets. That isn't to say that she was always sweetness and light...she was a Wolff, after all, and had the stubborn streak that is pretty easily identifiable.

She had a fractured relationship with her dad that went on much too long because they were both too stubborn to settle their differences. Milt was blustery and typically didn't give people much of a 2nd chance if he thought you screwed up. And Kelly was just as stubborn but took him at his word and and that pretty well ended their relationship. Neither one could bend enough to reestablish contact, although Kelly tried a few times and I know Milt still loved her underneath all of the bluster.

Kelly was married to John O'Leary for some time but he became sick and died leaving her a widow - but with a good pension. She met Ron at work and they lived as if they were married...she called him her fiance. The relationship was good for both of them and they had a number of happy years together...along with 3 dogs, 4 cats, 2 rabbits, a dozen fish and a half-dozen parakeets.

For someone as young as she was she had a lot of health problems. She had been fighting diabetes for some time and then in 2004 she had the first heart attack. She had other heart problems along the way but managed to stay upbeat and always went back to work. She truly enjoyed her job and the people she worked with. She became sick last fall with cervical cancer but because of her other health problems the doctors couldn't be as aggressive as they needed to be in treating it. The cancer spread uncharacteristically and by the time they had figured out what was happening it was too late.

Joie loved her dearly and they were also good friends. Jill says Kelly was her 'coolest' aunt. I didn't always understand her...the whole family is complicated...but she was a sweet and loving person to me from the very start. She was very encouraging to me after Joie died and seemed to lok up to me somewhat. She had been through her own time of grief and knew what I was going through. In the end, she was sort of an inspiration to me as she became sick and pretty well managed her going out the way she wanted to. I will miss her a great deal but she is now pain-free and where she needs to be.

God bless you sweetheart.

On the road with Wally & the Beav

I don't know why we never did this before. Paul and I spent about 10 days together on a road trip to New Mexico. I don't think we have travelled together in at least 40 years. Paul remembers a trip down to Silver Mines but I don't recall when we did that.




We drove down I-44 and stayed in Oklahoma City and then went west on I-40 to Albuquerque. No problems on the road going out except a little road construction.


We stopped just west of Amarillo and visited Cadillac Ranch. Paul seemed a little incredulous about the place and that we stopped. Actually there was a tour bus there and about 6 or 8 cars full of people besides us. There was at least 100 people strolling in and out of the place while we were there. Spray painting graffiti on the old cars is the major activity. We didn't paint anything but most of the other visitors were. They were even painting cow pies and writing notes on the packed dirt.

In Albuquerque we stayed in an extended stay motel and did sort of a combination tourist and house hunter thing. Our plan had been to use the kitchen and cook some meals at the motel. We did a few but usually ended up going out for supper. We ate at Rudy's BBQ which is sort of an odd place....you buy your BBQ by the pound and assemble your own sandwich. You have to buy a ticket if you want a beer and then take it to

the beer guy who will carry it to your table. The food was good and it was only a block away from the motel. We also ate at Two Fools Tavern on Central Avenue and at The Range up in Bernalillo. We had some good fish and chips at Two Fools Tavern. Made with Haddock, not Cod. The Range is a classic cafe in "downtown" Bernalillo and a good place to people-watch.

We found a nice Italian restaurant called Luigi's. Luigi came out of the kitchen and confessed that his momma made the gnocchi and the pesto sauce and the tomato sauce....she does good work. I'm going to try to remember Luigi's since Capo's closed down up near where I'll be living.


We did more than eat...we found wineries, too. First we went to Casa Rondena up near Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. Rondena is sort of a fancy pants place with large Tuscan-looking buildings but some very old and venerable vineyards and some pretty good wine. The wine is a little high priced and you have to pay $5.00 for a tasting session. We bought a bottle of wine and sat out in the garden area to drink it. There was a fair number of people there. The other winery was St. Clair Winery and it is actually located in Deming but they have a "bistro" in Albuquerque. They charge $6.00 but they have more varieties of wine to choose from. We liked their wines and bought a couple glasses of wine and had a light lunch. We ended up buying a few bottles to take with us. I'm looking forward to the New Mexico wine festival held at Bernalillo each year at Labor Day.

I was really glad to have Paul with me when we looked at display houses and worked through some house construction issues. I've been thinking that I needed a second opinion from someone on the lot and also on the builder and the house plan. First we went to see the lot. I'm not sure Paul could believe what he was seeing -- a vacant lot of desert with cactus and yucca and a dozen or so juniper trees on an unpaved road. We walked the lot trying to locate the corners and taking notice of all the little animal tracks. We found one burrow that was a pretty good size. As we walked and I pointed out the grade school and how close the neighboring developments were and that the lot had gas, electric, phone and cable TV already installed, Paul seemed to start seeing the potential. He thinks that it will just be a matter of a year or so and I'll have neighbors because the school is only 2 blocks away.

We looked at some display homes put up by Pulte and another by Stillbrooke. I wanted to see what a smaller house would look and feel like. We saw one that was about 1,500 sq. ft. and, while it was laid out pretty well, it was too small and claustrophobic. Some of the larger houses were better but they were trying to squeeze four bedrooms into the space which made them seem cramped.

We made contact with Betty, my builder, and also with the developer of the subdivision. We saw a couple of Betty's houses and the difference in quality between her homes and the tract homes was obvious. We also saw Donna at one of Betty's houses. We saw one of the developer's houses and it was pretty close to Betty's in quality and looked pretty good compared to the tract homes. Since nothing is selling I'm hoping that prices have come down a little. The developer's prices are pretty good and have come down about $30 per sq. ft. Berty says that she can come down a little in labor costs but material costs have not come down much.

We met with Betty and Max and went over the floor plans. We made some changes and actually ended up making the plan bigger by about 30 feet. Paul seemed impressed with Betty's houses and with Max's design so I think my plan passed the 2nd opinion test.


We visited the Al Unser Racing Museum...actually spent part of 2 days there. We got there late and they gave us a two-day ticket so we went back. They have a bunch of Unser family race cars on display. Paul knew a lot about most of them but it was mostly new to me. It was interesting. The Indy cars are smaller than I thought they would be. They had some interactive video displays and a couple simulators. We did a NASCAR simulation and then did an Indy simulation - five laps around the course. These were a lot of fun. The NASCAR simulator required you to use some special virtual reality goggles, which made it a little difficult. The Indy simulator was a race against 10 other drivers. You could pass them but they would try to run you off into the infield or against the wall. Paul somehow blew his engine and by the time he got the car back on the track the other cars were too far ahead. On my turn I started off OK and then ran into a car and ended up in the infield and couldn't get out. The kind lady got me started again and this time I was able to stay on the track and even passed several drivers but I couldn't get any better than 7th place because they were intent on running me off the track if I tried to pass. It was a lot of fun but they need to give you a therapy session to talk you down before you leave and go out into live traffic.






We made a trip up to Santa Fe for a few hours and then came down the back road (Hwy 14) to Albuquerque called the Turquoise Trail. The road is a two-lane highway that has lots of curves and hills. Paul seemed to enjoy driving on something that wasn't an interstate highway. We stopped in Madrid which is a former ghost town that now is inhabited by mostly Woodstock generation people selling crafts and art in a bunch of old and new stores. It was an interesting side trip. Santa Fe was OK but we really only ate lunch there.



Our trip back home was a little stressful because of the weather. We kept hearing about a possible blizzard. It was so nice in Albuquerque that it was hard to imagine the weather turning that bad. We left for home with the snow storm following close behind. When we got to Amarillo it was clear that the people there were tensed up and expecting the worst. In Oklahoma City the rain caught up with us and it turned colder. The next day we started off following thunder storms and we were driving on wet highways most of the way home.

Walking the Dogs

Jill got me started volunteering at the JC Animal Shelter as a dog walker. The facility is so small and outdated that they don't have dog runs or any enclosed outdoor space for the dogs so there are a number of volunteers who walk the dogs in the little park across the street. Since this is a city dog pound they will eventually put down animals that can't be adopted or that just repeatedly get passed over. This is a little difficult and a constant worry when there are dogs that just seem to sit week after week and not get adopted. We had a scare with a dog named Megan who was a good dog, sort of a black lab mix, but she became frightened one day when a wheel barrow fell off a passing dump truck on the highway. After that she became more frightened each time she would go outside and something unexpected would happen. She went down hill pretty fast and we figured she would never be adopted....but eventually she found a home.



ALBERT -- Some dogs have a rap sheet. Albert is in the shelter because he discovered that he likes to eat chicken. The chickens belonged to a neighbor and neither the chickens nor the neighbor were pleased. He has been there for a couple weeks.


ARIEL -- At about seven years of age, Ariel thinks she is sort of the dowager queen of the animal shelter. She has a weight problem and needs to walk but she is somewhat opinionated on the direction she wants to go. She is good at slipping out of her harness and has to be carried back to the shelter. She thinks that is great fun.



BRENNA -- Brenna was once a family dog but somehow got separated and was picked up as a stray out in the county. She is probably the best natured dog in the shelter and is great on a leash. She had good care when she lived with her family but no one has come to claim her.



BYRON -- Byron came to the animal shelter because his owner was shipped overseas with the military and there were no other options for him. He always looks for his person when we go for our walks but is getting accustomed to the shelter. He is a little rambunctious and hard to handle on his leash.


SAMMIE -- There are lots of puppies at the shelter. Sammie was adopted as a puppy but was returned soon afterward because the family couldn't keep him. He loves treats and is growing fast. He has to compete with other younger puppies when people come in to adopt a dog and so far hasn't been picked.


I'm supposed to be getting more exercise so walking the dogs a few times a week is helping. The shelter has a bunch of cats and kittens but no one has been able to get them to agree to walk on a leash.

Adventures in Dentistry

I am no fan of dentists. I have habitually avoided them for most of my life and, until now, I have never found one that I actually liked. I can tolerate them for a while but that is about it.

I doubt that anyone enjoys going to the dentist. That isn't what I'm talking about. I also don't have a fear of dentists like some people do. I just don't like them as a general rule.

In my case it goes back to my early formative years when I was sent to the St. Louis University Dental School clinic for my first actual dentist visits. This was a room about half the size of a football field filled with dentist chairs and dozens of pimple-faced dentist wannabes with outdated tools and no skills to speak of. It was the luck of the draw....you waited for your name to be called and then they turned you over to this kid with a drill. Of course you had to have x-rays first so that took a while as they stuffed 3-by-5 cards in your mouth, told you to bite down and then ran out of the room. When the kid started drilling and smoke was coming out of your mouth there would occasionally be a "real" dentist who would walk up and peer into your mouth, usually with his hands clasped behind his back. At the time I thought that this was the guy who was going to save me. I hopefully waited for him to take the drill away from the kid and do the job himself. Instead, he would grunt and walk away. Finally he would come back and shove a mirror in my mouth and look at the kid and say "OK, that's a 'C' ". My drill-jockey got a 'C' on my tooth. At lunch time they would all go to lunch and you were turned loose for an hour. You were supposed to drag your lip out to the waiting room or maybe go find something to eat. Paul ate part of his tongue when he actually did go find something to eat...you can't tell when you are chewing your tongue when it is numb. (The picture looks much better than it did in the 1950s but it still gives me the creeps.)

My other early experience had to do with orthodontists. The clinic had a back room where they kept the junior orthodontists. They seemed to be under some type of supervision because you didn't actually get to talk to them. The "real" orthodontist would look at your teeth and ponder what to do. You have probably seen the sculpture of the chimp pondering the human skull? That was the same expression. Then they would decide to take an impression of your teeth. This is really fun. They have these little iron horseshoe shaped troughs filled with some kind of latex-plaster goo and they shove your teeth into it and make you sit there until it hardens. Then they try to get it unstuck from your teeth and then pry out of your mouth. They do one for the top and one for the bottom so you are ready to confess to anything by the time they are done. Then they tell you to come back at a later date when they reveal the plaster model of your teeth. I was mostly interested in getting a look at that C-quality filling that the child-dentist did but that, apparwntly, wasn't the point. My teeth are crooked...big deal. I knew they were crooked because my mom used me as the crooked teeth poster child and made sure everyone in the neighborhood got to see how crooked they were. This was one of her favorite ice-breakers when she met strangers. She would trot me out to show off my crooked teeth. I told her and the clinic where they could stick their braces after that second visit. They had display cases chock full of plaster casts of peoples' teeth so I guess that is where mine are now. I have no interest in going to find out. Decades later I was sent by another dentist to have a consultation with an orthodontist. This guy was one of the best in the city and after making a new set of impressions he told me that my teeth were better off being crooked than having them realigned to the point that they didn't bite properly. That was what I wanted to hear.

I must have gotten the message across that I didn't want to go back to the SLU dental clinic because my mom took me to a dentist she heard about at her work. This guy was down in the black ghetto somewhere...an old Jewish dentist that had been at the same place since before Moses came down off the mountain. By that time I had broken of a corner of my front tooth. (That is a reoccurring theme in my encounters with dentists). This guy proceeded to fit me with a crown to patch up the broken tooth. Again, this took a couple visits and when I went to get the crown put on it was gold and about as big as your thumb. Once it was on my tooth I though it looked hideous -- maybe I could go be a pimp somewhere but I knew I could never go swimming again because the thing would drag my head under water. The crown finally fell off a few years later and I was thrilled to have it gone. I could open my mouth again without looking like an oncoming freight train.

Later on, I only found one dentist that I thought I was going to like but he left town in the middle of the night and disappeared. He didn't even tell his office staff that he was leaving.

I usually went to Joanne's dentist if I had to go. She had a knack for picking them. One guy broke a hand drill off in her tooth while doing a root canal and didn't tell her. He finally did tell her but he attached the crown to the stuck portion of the drill bit. This is the same guy who was late to one of her early morning appointments because he was up all night in his attic stomping raccoons to death. The raccoons had invaded his attic so he went up and stomped them to death. I don't think I would have allowed him to work on my teeth that day.

Her next dentist was better but even he had a screw loose. Every time you would go he would have some new outlandish story or conspiracy theory. Space aliens, Nessie, black helicopters, Vatican or masonic crypto-fraternities and wing-nut politics usually were the topics of discussion. He wasn't a bad dentist but you never knew what mood he was going to be in. Once his marriage broke up it got even worse. Sometimes he didn't talk at all. Sometimes didn't feel like working on your teeth so he would mess around in your mouth for a while and then have you make another appointment.

So now I have gotten to the point, at sixty years of age, that I need some serious dental attention. I have old fillings and a few broken teeth. I decided not to go back to either of these last two guys and started searching for a new dentist. I found one and he seems like he will be OK. Nothing unusual surfaced at the first appointment. The guy is experienced and has modern equipment. He actually reminds me of our vet in a way...which is a good thing. One other similarity with the vet is that this is going to cost an arm and a leg and who knows what else. He seems to think that I don't have a tremendous amount of dental problems but so far the anticipated bill is well into four figures.

I don't plan on re-visiting this topic unless things take a turn for the worse. So far -- so good.

Tai Chi

I'm a little caught up on a verb. I don't quite know what the correct verb is when someone 'does' Tai Chi. Does one 'perform' Tai Chi or 'practice' Tai Chi or maybe 'execute'? I think that I'm at the 'practice' stage since I've only been at it for a little over a month. On one level, Tai Chi is a martial art and is supposedly quite an effective and even deadly form of self defense. I'm not really interested in the martial arts aspect but I can see that the basic moves can be combative and defensive.


My interest is in the flexibility, exercise and health aspects. I have been practicing Tai Chi for several weeks and I can tell that I am a lot more flexible and I have better balance. I have a hour-long class each week and practice about a half hour each day at home. The half hour goes by very quickly and I have gone on longer at times.


I wasn't aware of the meditative aspect of Tai Chi until I started the class. It always looked like work and exercise to me but I was always interested in it. Once I got started the rhythmic breathing and repetitive movements at an almost slow-motion pace really lead you into a calm meditative state and reduces stress.


I also didn't know anything about the history of Tai Chi but there are a number of styles or Tai Chi families. Our class is in a Yang style but there are apparently even multiple styles within the Yang family. The class is offered through AARP so we are probably doing the AARP Yang style. I am one of the younger people in the class so that surely has an impact on what direction we take.



Joanne took a Tai Chi class at the YMCA at one time but was frustrated because the instructor tried to move the class too fast. From not knowing anything the first week to performing elaborate sequences of forms in a very short time frame. The class I'm taking is primarily focused on the basic forms and not so much of the sequential movements. That makes it more understandable than what her class was trying to do.

^~^~^~^

25 Random Things

OK -- there is a disease going around where someone is compelled or otherwise possessed to post twenty-five random things about themselves or about anything in general. We, the staff of Feral Chats, have composed such a list...

1. My blog partner and cat, Watson, watches TV and seems to really like the Charmin toilet paper bears.

2. Recessions suck. This one will really suck no matter what President Obama does. Both Bush presidents left office with the economy in a mess....but I digress.

3. I have lived about 5 'lives' in my lifetime, so far....Joie lived about 8 (at least). Don't be afraid to reinvent yourself from time to time.

4. Fly fishing is cool. So is Tai Chi. So is kite flying.

5. Bach, Beethoven, Verdi, Shakespeare, Jefferson, Joseph Conrad, Mandela, Cicero, Jesus, and a good dictionary will pretty much work for me if stranded on a desert island.

6. I like to cook and I'm good at it. I also make a really good home brew beer.

7. I decided years ago to retire early because life is short and we have no guarantee that we will be able to enjoy retirement if we wait until the 'usual' retirement age. I retired at 52 but worked part time for seven years in a job I really enjoyed. That was a nice time to spend with Joanne and we got to do a lot but I miss her a lot.

8. I really have gotten more conservative as I get older (no, really, I have)...but I was raised by a (small 's') socialist so I'm still pretty liberal.

9. I've rafted the Colorado and tubed the Chattahoochee. Scuba diving was cool but I've given it up. I think I'd like to go hang-gliding but not skydiving. I spent far too much time in caves when I was young and that was probably the riskiest sport I did.

10. I played soccer and was a right forward -- now they call them strikers. Our team was so bad we had four strikers and still couldn't win.

11. I wanted to get a PhD in history specializing in Latin American History and eventually teach in college. I didn't but that's OK too. I might go back to school sometime.

12. We built the Panama Canal, the transcontinental railroad, Hoover Dam and mastered heavier than air flight without the cell phone. We do our best work without being constantly tethered to somebody else. (so turn the damn thing off and drive!!!)

13. I had pet ducks when I was a kid.....they are filthy animals.

14. Getting old sucks but being young can suck too. Take care of your body and it will take care of you.

15. I like my old truck and will probably spend more money on it than it is worth.

16. I can hardly wait to move to New Mexico...but I might need to be better at Spanish than I am.

17. I want to visit Ireland, Italy (again), India, Peru, Belize, and Ethiopia.

18. I only need to lose about 25 pounds...I have big bones.

19. We in the US are totally out of touch with the what is happening in rest of the world...thanks to our incompetent or slanted news providers. Try to get your news from other sources if you can.

20. What idiot writes the music for slot machines? And does Billy Mays have an indoor voice?

21. I was born during a meteor shower and enjoy watching the meteors each year on my birthday on August 12 (for over 45 years by now.)

22. Some cool places to live would be any place in Umbria, San Francisco, Bernalillo NM, Swansboro NC, Vancouver, Sebastian FL, Mendocino, St. Louis and maybe even Jeff City. (But...There really isn't anything good to say about Missouri weather.)

23. Recent research shows that our skills in critical thinking and analysis have declined as our use of technology has increased. I think that is true. We can now make more mistakes in shorter time than ever before.

24. God exists and loves us but never promised that we would have a long, easy or pain-free life.

25. Take time to count your blessings. Learn to forgive. Take time to grieve. Wear clean underwear. Always carry a handkerchief.

Yeah, yeah, yeah...that's probably more than 25 but who cares...nobody is going to read this anyway.

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