Merry Christmas 2022

 

How do you know it is Christmas in Florida???

When the Temps fall to or below freezing...   Yes, while most people in the nation is facing sub-freezing temperatures...we are shivering at 32 degrees...31 when we woke up.  Today's high, perhaps 44 degrees.  By Thursday, perhaps Friday, we will be sweltering again at or around 80 degrees.  Gosh, it is so tough living in Central Florida.

 

Had a picture of Mom sent to me...I blew up the portion of her so that you can see the big smile on her face.  Now what do you suppose would bring on that smile????

A visit from my son Michael (not in picture since he was taking it), who brought my daughter Stephanie (left), grand-baby Adeline and daughter-in-law Anna (foreground), and the kids mother Shelley (see next picture).  [Notice I did not point out where the baby is, I know my faithful readers know a baby when they see one!]

Yes, actually got permission to put this picture on the blog, along with this next one.

Michael did not tell mom about Shelley and Stephanie coming along, so it sort of confused her at first.  "I knew Stephanie right away," she told me..."But they had to tell me who Shelley and Anna were...once they said their names, I knew right away who they were."   Life gets that way when you approaching 93 years old.

No, this is not Adeline, this cute little guy is Marcia's Great Grandson Blandon, who was born just a few weeks before Adeline was born.  Isn't that a cute picture?  He lives in North Carolina...perhaps one day we will make it up there.

It was three years ago today, Christmas Eve, that we lost my little Skruffy Girl.  This is one of my favorite pictures of her, sitting between Mom and Dad in our First Motorhome back in 2012.  Lost dad on Thanksgiving three years ago, and then Skruffy less than a month later...it was a hard year, and did not get any better with the onslaught on COVID just a few months later with its draconian rules and regulations that followed.  Some say those laws saved lives...some say it put us in the position we are in today...you decide, I just don't want to hear about it.  Enough is enough! 

Enjoy your Christmas...we will, but with that faint tear in our eyes.  "Indy, come here baby, I need a big hug and lick on the face!"

There Be A ‘Doctor’ in the Family

At Blue Springs Lake Campground, Lee’s Summit, MO

There he is, my youngest son Ryan flanked by his wife-to-be Kaelyn (left), his sister-in law Anna (right) his brother and my oldest child Michael (far right) and his older sister Stephanie (far left).  LOOK at that smile…after graduating from the University of Arkansas back in May 2013, he has now completed his Doctorate in Chiropractic Studies at Cleveland University-Kansas City, and is now officially Dr. Ryan Burdick.  LOOK at that smile!  (yes, I know I already said that…but it is a true, full smile of accomplishment and relief).

Click Here for a YouTube playlist of his graduation, starting with him entering, then getting his hood, then getting his diploma, then the class taking the Chiropractic Oath, and then him leaving.  It takes about 3 minutes, and once you click it should just play all five in the proper order.  As for the graduation, it was around 40 minutes long, started on time, and was perfect…no politics, no “on and on” feeling…everyone did a good job, short, sweet, simple and perfect!

Proud mother Shelley talking with future daughter-in-law Kaelyn, with Stephanie and Michael in the background, awaiting the start of the program.

After the ceremony, it was time for pictures.  Pictured above is proud mother, Shelley, with our three kids.  As a school teacher, I give her all the credit for the education of our children.  Yes, I was a Librarian, more specifically Library Director, but SHE was the one who got them to do their homework, and she attended the Teacher-Parent meetings (I think I went to one or two).  Ryan is the first of my parents and I think Shelley’s parents children or grandchildren to get a Doctorate Degree.

Ryan’s lovely wife to be (May 2020), Kaelyn, will graduate in August with her degree…she will also be a Chiropractor.  TWO doctors in the family!  Currently, she is doing an internship in Washington DC at Walter Reed Hospital.

There are my three kids…so proud of each of them.

This was certainly Ryan’s day…we all went to lunch together at Q39 BBQ Restaurant in Overland Park, enjoyed the graduation a few hours later, and then had dinner at an Italian Bistro in Kansas City.  This morning Michael and Anna flew on to New York City where she is in a wedding on Sunday in Central Park.  Stephanie and her mother fly their separate ways on Sunday, and on Monday Ryan heads out to move some of his stuff into storage at Kaelyn’s parents place, and then move on to the DC area until his Fellowship at Yale starts in August.  So Friday was the day for all of us to get together…and we ENJOYED it all.  On Thursday the President of the University has a dinner for the grads…Ryan, Kaelyn, Stephanie and Shelley attended (each grad can invite three people), and the President goes around telling the crowd something about each graduate.  At the end he came to Ryan, and said that this is the first Fellowship at Yale that any graduate from Cleveland University – Kansas City (formerly Cleveland Chiropractic College) has ever had.  It sure put a big smile on Ryan’s face as Kaelyn told the story to all the rest of us at our lunch before the graduation.  He put a smile on all of our faces as he has finally achieved his educational dream…Dr. Ryan Burdick, Chiropractor.  

Wedding Day – Michael and Anna

At Casini Ranch Family Campground, Duncans Mills, CA

Michael and Anna were married in a ceremony which was very much theirs, not a traditional ceremony which many have because that is the way it is suppose to be.  No, it wasn’t so nontraditional that it was from a distance…this picture above was taken by me as their photographer was taking wedding pictures before the ceremony…not after the ceremony like many do.

When Marcia and I arrived at 2:45 for the 3:30 ceremony…not knowing exactly how Marcia was going to be able to maneuver the facilities it was being held at (GoGo or walk type of issues—ended up being able to just walk, which was good), I was pleasantly surprised that Michael and Anna were down in the woods getting pictures taken…and I was able to get a few too from above without interfering with the two professional photographers they hired for their pictures.

The ceremony and reception was held at this community building which is part of Camp Meeker, which is an unincorporated community in Sonoma County located on the Bohemian Highway, population of 425 people.  Eighty chairs were set up, tables for food and beverages were set up, and everything was ready for the folks who were there to witness and celebrate this wonderful event.  With little parking, they had rented the services of a bus to bring folks to the wedding from the lodge where many were staying about 6 miles away. 

Inside the building tables were set up with no chairs…after the ceremony, people were asked to take a chair or two into the room, and it became a nice cozy area for folks to gather and eat.

Everything went off without a hitch…except for the bus being late.  Scheduled to arrive at 3:20, with a ceremony time of 3:30…the bus arrived around 3:50.  No problem, the setting and atmosphere made time pass as people visited, and the single acoustic guitar player gently strummed away adding to the atmosphere...and we took advantage of the time for some pictures.

    

 

Above pictures include brother, sister, aunts and uncles, and mother and step-father of the groom.

As we waited, why not get a few pictures of the groom, bride and the officiant.

What a lovely bouquet of that Anna held for the wedding ceremony…(the officiant held it for Marcia to get a nice picture.)

My three kids…blue seemed to be the color of the day.

Are they next???  Only time will tell…Kaelyn and Ryan make a wonderful couple…(hint hint) 

   

Finally the bus arrives, the seats will be full…the service, which lasted about 6 minutes took place.  Now I had a choice…take pictures of the ceremony, or take a video of the ceremony…I chose the latter, so that mom and dad, who just could not physically endure the trip to the wedding, could view it from the comfort of their reclining chairs. Not going to post the video, but we did get some pictures as the professionals were taking family group pictures.

 

Yes, that is about as “dressed up” as this old guy will get anymore, at least I guessed the color of the day!  Casual dress wedding means casual to me.  And I was not the only one dressed so casual…

And I love this picture because Anna shows that even casual weddings take a lot out of the bride…as she steps aside for a 5 second break so that they could get a picture of Michael and Stephanie and Ryan…

  

On the left, Michael’s mother’s side of the family…on the right, Anna’s mother’s side of the family.

Michael and Anna wrote their own vows, they were very heartfelt, humorous, and both included the following statement which is very thought provoking…

“ . . . it is a long, long time to be gone, a short time to be here, and I am so happy to be here with you . . . "

Heading Home, after Breakfast with my Children and Others

Near Harris Ranch, Coalinga, CA

Had breakfast at a Mimi’s Restaurant in Sacramento with my children (Michael, Stephanie and Ryan), and invited their mother Shelley who was also in town (she too has remarried but he stayed back in Arkansas to work and take care of their kids, at least the two or three still living at home), and my sister’s Patti and Sandy, and of course, Mom, Dad and Marcia.  They put us in a back area which is not used until they are busy, and it was quiet, and we all enjoyed talking and visiting and eating. 

ALWAYS good to see the kids, which we do each year…but rarely together.  With Michael (far left and the oldest) living in Sacramento now, the others came to town for Christmas.  Ryan (in the middle and the youngest) drove out from Kansas City, visiting a number of National and State Parks along the way, including the Grand Canyon, Zion and Yosemite, just to name a few.  Stephanie (my only girl and the middle child) flew in from Salt Lake City.  Shelley (their mother and my first wife), flew in from Little Rock on Christmas day.  So NICE to see them together again…it has been a long time…Ryan’s graduation from the University of Arkansas, since my kids and first wife and I had been together. 

After we ate, I got this group shot of the kids with their Grandma and Grandpa.  From left to right, Stephanie, Ryan, Michael, Dorothy and Al.  Dad turns 90 next year, and it's also their 70 wedding anniversary too! Don’t know if all the kids will make the birthday and/or the anniversary…just so happy we got together over the Christmas time this year, and wish Anna (Michael's Fiance) didn't have to work so that she could have joined us!

Around 1:00 pm we were headed out from Sandy and Arny’s house.  First stop, Lodi’s Flying J for gas and especially for propane.  Had some horrific traffic in various areas…looks like a bunch of folks are headed somewhere the day after Christmas.  As we got past Tracy, but before we got to Andersons Soup Restaurant (great Pea Soup at Andersons, although we did not stop this time), there is the California Aqueduct Vista Point that overlooks the San Joaquin Valley to the east, and the coastal range mountains to the west.  Nearing sunset, I just had to stop at this vista…mistake which ended up good.  The mistake, only way to turn around, due to two large semi’s in the circle, was to unhook the car.  The good…well, the view was awesome.  Above is a panoramic of the east, to south, to west.

To the east (above) you can see the inversion layer over the valley.  It looks like mountain in the horizon, under that layer of pink…but it was really smog mix with a small bit of fog. 

To the west was the last of the sun…what a wonderful sunset it was.

It had been a long time since we caught a sunset, and even the motorhome seemed to enjoy it. 

Should have taken a picture of Bubba as I entered the house to say goodbye to the folks, who came over to my sister’s after breakfast, and Arny’s mother Euleda, AFTER I had backed the motorhome out of the backyard, and hooked up the car.  Bubba was right there looking at the empty RV pad…he saw me, turned around and headed for his chair.  He is going to LOVE staying at Sandy and Arny’s, no doubt about it.

Tonight we are staying in a large dirt lot, partially filled with trucks and few RVs, near the Harris Ranch Inn & Restaurant near Coalinga, CA…200 miles down, 2,800 miles to go.  Tomorrow, perhaps we will make Kingman Arizona, 425 miles away.  

Daughter's Surfboard Injury Update

This is a picture I took off of my daughter Stephanie’s Facebook page of her and my son, her brother, Ryan the day of the accident.  This was the second time she had been on a surfboard I believe….and his first.  They were in Santa Cruz on Friday before Labor Day just to surfboard.  While doing a wave another person’s surfboard hit her in the head…I think she said twice, but once really hard.  It knocked her out, and Ryan got her back to shore.  This also gave her a black eye…which is still healing too.

The previous day Ryan, Stephanie and Jenny, Stephanie’s roommate and good loyal friend, spent the day in San Francisco.  Jenny has helped so much in watching over Stephanie during all of this.

Stephanie and her mother Shelley are very, very close.  Shelley is a school teacher in Arkansas, and also attends classes working on her Masters.  She was able to break away yesterday and is now out here too for a week…the best medicine Stephanie could have.

On Tuesday afternoon they moved Stephanie to the Rehab floor.  Yesterday was her first day of “retraining”…retraining her mind to make the connection which tells your limbs to move, restore coordination, restore speech, etc.  It is unknown how long she will be in this “retraining”…perhaps up to three weeks. 

Graduation ‘Time’

My oldest son Michael, 28 years young, graduated today with his Masters in Public Policy from the Richard & Rhoda Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley.

I told the story about this watch back in 2012 when we visited Ardenwood Historic Farm in Freemont California.  It is a railroad watch given to my Great Grandfather, Charles Huntington Burdick, when he retired from the Railroad, January 1924.  ‘Time’ was important to a Railroad Conductor back in that era…that is how they knew the tracks would be clear from other trains…they had to run on time or risk wrecking with another train.

When I received my graduate degree back in, well, some time ago, I was 35 years old, the first and only in my family to get a Masters degree…although my oldest brother worked on getting a Masters and decided that the degree was not needed to do the great things he has done in the computer security world.  When I graduated, mom and dad gave this pocket watch to me.  Today, I pass it on to my first child to earn their Masters...well, kind of…I actually forgot to get it out of the safe deposit box in Florida, so although the watch is his, I am just the temporary caretaker of it for awhile.

Another big thing happened today….I finally met Anna.  My only regret…we did not have enough time to really get to know her.  I will take what I can get…for now…I sure hope we have more time when we get back from Alaska.

The graduation was held at the International House for the nearly 80 students who made it through the two year program.

The hall was packed, standing room only, and we were at the very back.  There were aunts, uncles, cousins, mother, father, sister and Anna…eleven of us in all.  We were lucky to all sit together.  My parents and Marcia decided it would be a bit much with their special physical needs, and it was probably the right choice because it would have been very hard to deal with those needs in such tight quarters.  I am sorry they had to miss it…but these older colleges and their historic buildings are not real good about meeting these special needs.

The most famous ‘person on campus’, as it pertains to the Goldman School of Public Policy, is this man in the middle…Robert Reich, who served in the administrations of Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter and was Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton.  He did not give the commencement address, however, that was given by the gentleman to the right.  Fred Blackwell, Chief Executive Officer, The San Francisco Foundation is his name.  (I am not good with names, and it took some research to figure that one out since I left my copy of the graduation ceremony at mom and dad's house after I got home.)  As graduation ceremonies go, this was a two hour program which went well.

Shelley is one proud mother, that’s for sure!  She has been a first grade teacher back in Arkansas for 16 years or so.

This is just a small portion of her family who came to support Michael…had they all been there they would be standing four or five deep, that’s for sure.

And here’s Michael’s family, less his younger brother Ryan who is in college in the Kansas City area.

We are all proud of you son, don’t know who is more proud…your mother, your brother, myself, or your little sister…aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents…Anna...I think it is a tie, lots and lots of pride amongst us all.  And since you already have a job with the City of San Francisco, I don’t need to tell you ‘to go out and get a job!’