Portrait Time

Our church is making a new directory, so they got all the families to come in for a picture with the promise of a free 8x10. Of course this came along with the hard sell from a very rude photographer with exorbitant prices. I tried to politely refuse, yet he kept pushing, so I told him that I am a fireman trying to support a family of 5. He came back that he is a photographer trying to support his kids, so I told him that if he gets people to actually pay his prices he should have no trouble. I'm amazed that our free picture did not have us in half smiles with eyes closed, and a healthy bit of photo shopping. Oh well, he should have been a fireman because I still get paid even when I am a jackass.

Where was Boss Tweed when I needed him?

The election results are in, the people have spoken, and I will not be serving my union as a top officer. I, and many others, had been expecting a close race, but rather than a Kennedy/Nixon squeaker I was on the wrong end of a Reagan/Mondale beat down. With just under 8 years on the job, the old guard is still keeping the status quo so perhaps my time is yet to come. That, and the fact that a full half of the department didn't even vote. A friend consoled me with the fact that my candidate got into the White House, so at least I won the big election of this past week (I was a lonely Obama supporter at work). I prefer to be consoled with the words of Winston Churchill posted on the wall of my office, "Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm."

Autumn beauty

My brother and his wife were able to stop by and see us this past weekend. A great visit, and nice just to spend some time together and catch up a bit. Of particular fun was our trip to a haunted corn maze. The kids were insistent on going, and although they held up well they did not exit with the same enthusiasm that they had going in. The highlight of the night was as we were leaving. A group of giggling teenage girls were waiting to go in, and one stops to tell her friends as we go past, "Hey, it's Finn!" Only 5 and already popular with the ladies. The picture is the view from our dining room. Although I sometimes miss the excitement and variety that a big city offers, there is little that can match the beauty and serenity here.

A New Hope

And so I enter into the world of blogging. Primarily this is a vehicle to better stay in touch with friends and family with less effort on my part (not that I have been putting forth sufficient effort in the past). So I'll post updates about what is going on in our lives, some pictures, the occasional rant, etc. I hope that the people over at brendonesq do not decide to sue me for any type of infringement (I hear they know some good attorneys), but seeing as that is the extent of the blogs I have read this one is likely to resemble that far superior product until I get a feel for what I'm doing. All our best to all of you.
Brian