REST IN PEACE

JACK

Last evening, about 9:30 PM, we received a telephone call from a lady who identified herself as D. J. She told me that on the night of November 11 she and her husband found Jack in the middle of Greenwood having been hit by a car. They put him in their car and drove him the the pet emergency care facility near the Tri-Cities Airport. By the time they got there Jack had died. They left him there, as they should have.

While this is not the news we had been hoping for, it is good to have that closure and not continue to wait for him to come prancing down the street..... I think that if he were going to die, it is wonderful that he did not have to die alone by the side of the road. God bless those people for having the courage to pick up a stray dog in the middle of the night and try to rescue him. So to D.J. and her husband I say, thank you and God bless you.

While I do not know what happens to animals after they die, I do know that they are created by God and that God has a plan for all of his creatures. If there is a heaven for dogs, then Jack is there....my guess is, his spirit is roaming the universe right this very minute in search of the mystery on the other side of the next galaxy.

Yesterday and the day before as I pulled into the driveway in the late morning, there was a deer eating from our garden. The deer did not immediately run off but paused and looked at me on Saturday and us on Sunday. I said at the time that it was Jack stopping by to say "good bye." I suppose that is silly, but from a creator who made heaven and earth and the universe, who's to say?

I have spent today calling around to the people who have helped, or sending e-mails where I could, thanking them for there thoughts and prayers. Frankly, I cannot stop crying and Jill is sad too. I know that Sandy is sad too, but she is holding herself together better than I am. We, Jill and I, are pretty much hanging out together today.

Here are some pictures of Jack (and Jill too) in memory or our time together. Here is their first day here.The early days: Jack has the blue collar.

Eye Surgery:

Later:

Couch potatoes:

And finally, his last picture before the great escape:

Good bye my friend. Come visit me in my thoughts whenever you want. We will always have a favorite place in our memories for you. God Speed. With my love, john

I wanted to spend a few minutes talking about our outing with Dennis and Marie last Saturday. We went to dinner and a play....... Specifically, we went to dinner at the Bistro 105 in Jonesborough and to the Wyrd Sisters at the Jonesborough Repertory Theatre.

It was the day before Marie's birthday so we celebrated her day!! The food at the Bistro 105 was excellent and we saw Kim and Eric from church............ Here is the birthday girl!!!

Here is the birthday girl and Dennis her husband..........

They are happy.......

We had a great dinner........Marie had a dessert with lighted candle....no singing...... and then we were off to the theatre...

We wanted to go to this play, not because it was a blockbuster, but because five people from our church were in the play... Chalmer, Merideth, Gareth, Griffin, and Shelley....plus the director is Steve from Cokesbury...... The play was a lot of fun........... The evening was extraordinary...

Tomorrow we are going to Dennis and Marie's for a birthday dinner for Sandy....here birthday is soon........ I have one of the most exiting presents for her................. you will have to wait, she is.........

There have been no Jack sightings since last Saturday.... I thought is was Sunday, but I was wrong... It was last Saturday............... We found Jill on Sunday..........

Remember, take good care of yourself because there is someone needing your close attention... cheers, John

I am sorry to be one dimensional, but another day is done and no JACK........ I went to vets offices, left a flier at One Stop. Actually, One Stop acted more interested than my vets office... drove around, graded papers, drove around some more.............. needle/haystack......... Met some people who definitely saw them on Saturday. They(the dogs) were running up and down Greenwood about a mile and half west of here..........playing in the street, cars were having to stop......... I have to admit, I sunk deeper into depression upon hearing that news..... However, if I think I am depressed, you should see Jill.......... she just came in and ran to the gate where she and Jack would check for cats.....then she started whining..... Heartbreak Hotel....

Jill says Hi - and remember, take good care of yourself so you can take good care of me!!

PS: Saturday Dennis and Marie and Sandy and I went to dinner and a play... I will blog some pictures soon..................

Sunday past and we did not find Jack. Marie and Dennis helped looked in the morning. My neighbor called with a possible sighting and I drove around looking and looking for him to no avail. We live in the county and there are so many miles and places where he could be roaming it seems like I am looking for a needle in a haystack. I have already notified the animal shelter - they have a picture... today I will call vet offices.... and of course drive around some more. Thanks for all the prayers................ Jill slept all day yesterday and is still sleeping (of course she is, it is 4:50am..)... she seems to be okay, eating, etc. She is getting lots and lots of loving....

Ruth wanted to know what happened so here goes....... This was supposed to be a blog about burning leaves...that is what we can do in Washington County Tennessee.... In Johnson City and Jonesborough, where I have lived in the past, you can pile them up by the street and this humongus vacuum cleaner comes by and sucks up the leaves.... out here we can burn them... what fun burning leaves.... Now you have to get a permit and I did for Friday and Saturday. In fact I did burn some leaves on Friday without loosing any dogs in the process. On Saturday, it was a completely differenty story...

See that gate to the right of the burn piles? That is the gate from which Jack and Jill escaped. I was raking those leaves out of the gate and had been playing with the dogs while raking and turned my back for just a minute to rake some more and they apparently snuck off behind my back and were gone. By the time I realized they were gone it was way too late - for a while I thought Sandy had put them in the house.............. So then I had this dilemma, I am very cautious with fires during the fall. I did not want to leave the burning leaves for long to look for the dogs and so I made short trips up and down our road trying to find them.. but they apparently were having a great time playing in the woods.... at least that is where I found Jill the next morning............. I lost the dogs, it is 100% my fault, and I too pray for Jack's safety and return to home..........

Here he is right before he hit the road.............. is that not a roguish face?

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers......

And remember, take good care of yourself so you can take good care of someone else, God bless you, john

LOST

JACK (we found JILL )

Jill is on the left……………………………………………………….Jack is on the right.

LAB MIX

BLACK WITH WHITE ON CHEST AND PAWS
CURLLY TAIL

REWARD FOR RETURN
CALL 423-232-1223

PLEASE RETURN, WE MISS HIM!

FUTURES PAST

While in Dillsboro I did some shopping too.... the most precious of the things I purchased was from a pottery shop and it is a...........

Crooked Cross

It is hanging near my desk at home so that I can see it every day. According to the little attachment it is "Inspired by God. Handcrafted and signed by Bruce Carey of Ingram, TX. It is made of Texas Mesquite.

"The Crooked Cross is purposely imperfect; handcrafted without use of measures or patterns to remind us how unique, individual and beautiful we all are. As our creator, God in Heaven made each one of us in His image, we are His children and perfect in His eyes, as He does not make mistakes."

Remember, take good care of the precious person you are; made in God's image and likeness. And love your neighbor as you love yourself and as you love your God. Be thankful daily for being you and share yourself with others freely. God bless you, john

The Great Smokey Mountains Railway Dinner Mystery Theater Train Ride: Another Excellent Adventure by the Marie, Dennis, Sandy and John....

Last Friday, early in the morning, as you know by now, the four of us took of for Dillsboro, N.C. Actually we did not fly, so we did not take off....we drove...actually Sandy drove... We got to Dillsboro and I immediately had to mail something I sold on EBay to someone in London, England...so I went to the post office and the guys hung out...... here they are....We could not check into the room at the Jarrett House until between 2:30 PM and 3:00PM so we parked the car and started walking the town..... of course, shopping was included for the ladies and the gents hung out on the many conveniently located park benches....we parked ourselves.........while sitting on one, we could watch this fountain....

A couple of other sights as we sat and they shopped....













Then we saw a TRAIN......... and stood by it........... very touristy....
don't you think? Well we continued on our way, ate lunch, and shopped, sat, and it became time to check into the Jarrett House, so we did..... After a little while, we went out on the deck and Dennis and I had some beverages (adult type) and the ladies went to the Christmas store....




Here we all are on the deck before the final shopping spree..................After enjoying ourselves hugely on the deck.... we changed cloths and headed to the train station....

Where we sat and had complimentary cheese, crackers, and wine......
And boarded our dining car.............................the Silver Meteor........
Where me met our waiter..........Sean,
ordered our drinks and food and......













Had dinner and a play on the Great Smokey Mountain Railway......

So, remember, take good care of yourself so you can take good care of someone else.... it is great to have friends like Dennis and Marie.... cheers, john

Not all bell towers have to be tall.... you can still get bats in them!! I think??

While in Dillsboro this past Friday Marie, Dennis, Sandy and I happened to see this church bell.... It is from a Methodist Church but currently sits outside of a Baptist Church - truly an ecumenical bell..... Coincidentally we stayed in the Jarrett House overnight....

Here is what I think....we should build our bell a little structure that looks like our bell tower and place our bell in the little structure in front of the church....since the bell is probably got a name attached to it already (and I should probably know, but don't), maybe we could talk someone into wanting to put a name on the little tower....of course, they would have to pay for the tower and the bell installation. In other words, it would be a memorial to someone..... Ok, I could morph a couple of pictures and show you what it would look like, but I don't want to, so you will have to use your own imagination..... It would not look like this........

but then again, we do not live in Dillsboro......

For sure, remember to take good care of yourself so that you can take good care of someone else.......... ding-a-ling, john

Lucky I got this shot before last night's rain..... This is a tree that we are blessed to have in our yard. Every year when fall arrives, we anticipate its bright, vibrant colors. Usually, it is red, I mean bright red..........this year, it is not so bright and not so vibrant....... so it goes.... However, by comparison to some of its neighbors in the picture, it is doing pretty good. I have so much to blog about, I didn't know where to start.......... so I started here.

and then of course there are Jill and Jack..................................

They were enjoying the day yesterday................

Dennis, Marie, Sandy and I went on a train ride Friday night......... It was a dinner, theater, train ride......... That will be the subject of my next blog, which will be coming at you later....

Take good care of yourself, so you can take good care of another....... cheers, john

Hey Bloghalloweenies - We are closing in on spook day!! Remember, it is precedes All
Saints and All Souls Day..........

I haven't blogged or been a blogger lately because I have been busy with cooking and company and e-baying.....more on e-baying later...

For now, we had a great time the girls of the north country..............always fun to be with you guys..........I lost me shirt playing greedy - because I was............

In honor of the season, Sandy had me put up the scare crow:













Sandy and I made this together last year, it is so much fun doing stuff together.................

Ok, I need to remind you to keep looking at my listings on E-Bay.... here is the URL -
http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZjvq37659






there are some cool books, one by Max Lucado.... plus some actual art...........





Keep looking, it changes often...........








Today I installed a new router on our home network..........it is supposed to be more powerful, able to send radio signals through thick walls, (the king and I)

I was having so much fun, I forgot to eat lunch...........I never miss a meal unless I am having too much fun..........

But, I always have time for our doggers Jack and Jill:


Remember, take good care of yourself so you can take good care of someone else, love, john

Hi my happy blogging friends.......

I finally figured out why had this sudden urge to sell my stuff on E-Bay. It took Nettie's passing to make me realize that is is more than just the fun of the auction. I did not know Nettie, but I am connected to the Cody's and therefore connected to Nettie. I have begun to realize that two things are happening at this time of my life, I am reaching the end of my very rewarding career and I am closer than ever before to the end of life on this earth. Oh, don't worry, I may be here for another 30 years, but then again, I may not. I will be here as long as God grants me life on this earth, not one minute shorter, not one minute longer....

So, I have accumulated all this stuff, the stuff of life, not anything grand or wonderful, in reality it is just stuff. Some of it, the signs, for instance, have lived there entire life with me in my offices at ETSU.... I have other things that I will day-by-day bring home and sell. If the stuff doesn't sell, I will give it to the Shepherd's Storehouse of toss it in the trash. Another favorite trick of mine is to put stuff out by the road with a sign that says FREE. It always disappears... There is music stuff for sale, I have given my bass to the church, but the other music stuff I will sell. I was a late comer to music and it has always been more of a chore than a pleasure... To those who are musically talented, I admire you, but I cannot live up to your many talents and will no longer try.....

So, whether it is retirement or death, I want to rid myself of these things that I once thought were treasures, but in reality are just the stuff of life........

So, anyway, if you want some of my stuff, keep watching E-Bay http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZjvq37659 and get yourself some good deals........or not.

But for sure, remember, take good care of yourself, love, john

Auction Lovers -

Check out my items for auction at:

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZjvq37659

All the signs are up and ready for you....... Great opportunity to start your Christmas shopping...

Remember, take good care of your yourself,

Cheers, john

My newest heros!

Head's up everyone, it is almost DCs birthday............ and its a big one!!!

FAQs:
Q. Is it is first?
A. No

Q. Is it his 13th?
A. No, but my oldest grandson will be 13 tomorrow....

Q. Is it his 21st?
A. No

Q. Is it his 30th?
A. No

Q. Is it his 40th?
A. No

Q. Is it his 50th?
A. No

Q. Is it his 60th?
A. No

Q. Is it his 70th?
A. No

Q. Have we missed the milestone?
A. Yes

Q. Well which is it and when is it?
A. I know, but I am not telling. You will have to ask him yourself...... It is soon!!!!

Take good care of yourself, john

HIHO Bloggers....

Signs for sale on E-Bay - Shop till you drop!!!
Just click on the sign and place your bid.....easy-as-pie!!!!!!










































Remember, take good care of yourself..........cheers, john

YESTERDAY WAS HAPPY ANNIVERSARY DAY FOR

MARIE AND DENNIS

WAY TO GO GUYS!

Howdee Blogos and Blogettes....

I hope you are having a really nice Friday afternoon in October....The leaves are changing around our home as they are all over East Tennessee.....I am certainly thankful to have seen the beginning of autumn for another year.

As you can see, some of the trees are turning and some are not there yet - this is the view from our deck facing northwest.....the general direction Minnesota. Sadly, the tree in the center of the picture on the right is dead........ been dead all spring and summer and I guess it is just going to stay dead!!!

Well, I wanted to show you all of my Ande Rooney sign collection -

I will be selling them one-at-a-time on E-Bay soon....... stay tuned......

Today I had a meeting in the morning and a meeting in the afternoon... in between I went to Beasley's Home Cooking restaurants and ate a cajun chicken sandwich with fries and de-caf coffee.... it was yummy. I also bought a cocoanut cream pie and a peanut butter pie for us to eat this weekend......... Sandy's sister is here and her brother and family will be over for dinner tonight and tomorrow night.......... for them, it is a family reunion of sorts although Ann's family is not here.... no pig roast - we are having Gregg's pizza tonight and who knows what tomorrow night.......... pie for sure!!!!

Well, I guess I should sign off, and finish baking my bread and clean-up my area... company is coming....

Remember, take good care of yourself.......... cheers, john

Good morning Bloggers....

Just a quickie to show you my new E-Bay auction..........

ANDE ROONEY'S PORCELAIN ENAMELED
ADVERTISING SIGN

These signs bring to life images of America from the turn of the century onward. These made in the U. S. A. reproductions are crafted by layering liquefied enamels of ground glass crystals onto steel plates and kiln-firing at 1350°F. Durable and rust-resistant with a lustrous color and finish, the signs bring a touch of quality nostalgia to your home or places of work and play, evoking memories of old barns, country stores, gas stations, train stops and even the contents of grand's cupboard. From the label on the back of the sign.

The inscription at the bottom of the sign under the word GUITARS is Ande Rooney, Inc., Made in U.S.A., 1988 ©.

Just click on the sign to go to the auction!!!!!!!!!

Have a great day, and take good care of yourself, cheers, john

Hello BliggitieBloggers:

It is the season of:

and our home becomes suddenly transformed into a new and different atmosphere

There are many more images that I could share with you - and will as in due time.

So, I will wish you a happy Halloween season and remind you not to forget the pumpkin patch at Cherokee United Methodist Church, October 13 to Halloween.............

And to cap it off:

Remember - Take good care of yourself................................boooooooooooooooooo

Howdee Blogaroonies -

Yesterday while Sandy and Ann were shopping, I had my truck painted:

I now have a BARN....................................

That blue truck that was spotted a church yesterday while I was cutting the grass must have belonged to someone else! It has been said, "Don't believe everything you read in a blog on the Internet."

Oh, by the way, the auction ended, I sold my Kurt Vonnegut collection to a man in Ohio and will ship it to him this morning.......... More auctions to come..............

God bless you all. And remember, take good care of yourself, I need you, john

Hi Blogsters -

Good day to you!!! I have some funny things to share with you that a friend of my at work shared with me:

Once again, The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words. Some of the winning definitions are:

Coffee(n.), the person upon whom one coughs.

Flabbergasted(adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained

Abdicate(v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.

Negligent(adj.), describes a condition in which you absent-mindedly answer the door in your nightgown.

Flatulence(n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.

Balderdash(n.), a rapidly receding hairline.

Testicle(n.), a humorous question on an exam.

Rectitude(n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.

Frisbeetarianism*( n.), the belief that, when you die, your soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there. * Since I have been told I need religion, I have adopted this as my religious belief.

hee haw! hee haw!

Sandy's sister Ann came to town today - she lives in Florida and arrived just in time of a hail storm...............so, I am singing Hail to the Ann!!! to the tune of Hail to the Chief.....

If Dennis has a truck alternative named BART or BARF and I have a truck that is a Nissan, could I name it BARN......... No, first, it is not as big as BART or BARF and secondly, it is blue - so, I will think of an acronym for middle sized blue Nissan.........or not..........

I have a new cell phone with a company named Virgin Mobile........... that's why I got it, the name. No, actually I got it because I could pay as I go and pay by the minute....for me, that is great, I only use the cell phone 10 to 15 minutes a month....that means my monthly charge will be something less than $3.00 - currently, it is about $55.00............that is a nice savings, we might be able to afford one for Sandy too, she uses the cell phone less than I do..... imagine that!! That leaves me with about $50 of discretionary income - I used it today for some single malt..................

Well, I actually feel better today, that is two days of improvement in a row......... I am on the mend.......... thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

Hey, next week I am cooking for WNL at church......... We are having pot roast, potatoes, peas, salad, and desert..................... yummy, I love gravy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, gotta go, but remember, take good care of yourself and tell someone you love them, I love you all, john

Hello Blogareenies.....
I am back sortof.......

It has been a week since blogged because I have had an awful cold and have been able to do only what I have had to do and that did not include blogging.....

A week ago, I started an auction for my Kurt Vonnegut books and I thought I would report how things are progressing - I do not have anything else interesting going on right now....
I currently have no bids, with
Four people watching, and three questions....
First, someone wanted to know if a particular couple of books were first editions - answer no.
Second, a person from Buenos Aries, Argentina wanted to know how much shipping would be - answer - UPS - $550 hummmm, USPS - $55 or $60 taking 6 to 8 weeks.
Third questions, would I ship parcel post to Alaska and would I sell the books right now for $100 (starting bid $99) - answer yes parcel post cost plus $15 my packing and handling, and NO, the fun of it for me is the auction......so, I will wait.

Okay, our girl dog, Jill just demanded to be petted by walking up to me and continuing on up almost completely into my lap......... we have Starbucks dogs - they are half labs with a dash of white, high voices, and curly tails.....hold the sugar, they are sweet enough. I was putting something in the car for Sandy Sunday and invited the dogs out with me....as I opened the back lid door and put the stuff in the back of her pathfinder, the dogs took off heading toward the creek........I whistled and they came back - I was reminded that it is important to watch your children at all times...........

Today I had class. Yesterday I had to read 60 applications for a teaching position we have open, I am the chairman of the search committee.... at this stage, we have to evaluate the applications to determine if they are qualified or not. I started at 8:30 am and finished a little after 2:00 pm. I then took them back to work so that my team members would be able to do the same thing. Then I came home and sat in my chair.............at about 4:30 my boss called and asked if I was okay...I said yes and he said he was worried because I was not at our meeting with our Strategic Experience teams.......I had missed our 4pm class...sorta a class, it is a scheduled weekly meeting........... I felt terrible for missing that class - in fact, in the 28 years I have been teaching that is only the second class I forgot to go to - and I have only missed a few because of illness........... the last class I forgot to go to was in 1981 at the University of Louisville (they used to have really great basketball teams - national champs in 1980 and 86 and really crappy football teams - now they have a good football team - ETSU does not have football - Even Emery & Henry and Duke have football teams)...... I am very upset with myself for doing that..........for missing class...........

I just got 50 yellow and red long stem tulip bulbs for fall planting - that is very exciting for me.

That's it - and remember, and I mean it, Take good care of yourself - peace, john

PS: How's Hank - and why are they observing him???