Thanksgiving is the true holiday; Family

Thanksgiving is the only holiday that isn't marketing spoiled by the candy companies and or the gift guilt paradigm.
That is what makes it special.
Just hanging out with the family ,relaxing , watching football and or playing football or sleeping on the coach in a turkey coma. There is no pressure to find the right gift, and no anxiety about "did I get the right thing or do I need to go get something else ,because it's not enough."
It is a time to thank everyone and everything for the bounty we have accumulated, and to spend time with the people who we love, and who love us.
It's that simple.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Putting our dog down today.

Oh boy its not an easy thing to do, but our beloved lab Sweetie will go to her master today.
She has been sick all summer ,and the deterioration is enough to know she is ready.
We wish sometimes that we could do for our loved ones on the human side what we are able to do for our animals.
Allow them to die with dignity and grace before things get so bad we are keeping them around for us not them.
It makes perfect sense, even though it does not make the process any easier.
The animal that gives us unconditional love ,and is so loyal they will never complain or act hurt even though they are suffering .

They will do what they must to serve the ones they love.
There is never a concern for self .
Only that their job is to be here for you, and they will do it until their very last breath.
How do you reward such undying love and devotion ?
By allowing them to leave this earth ,and do it in a graceful loving way.
I guess that is all there is.
Like humans who leave us they really never do ,they become part of our experience and our journey.
Rest well my girl and love ,and be with all those we miss and love.
May your journey be calm and smooth .
May all the steak bones have nice large chunks of meat on them ,and may all who love you be there to comfort you.

All of our love goes with you.

Leon Russell.

Leon Russell!!!!!!
Leon is truly a living Legend,
Leon is a Physical mess.
Leon Russell has been around since the 50's I think.
He has written some great songs ,and has played and written with some of the great song writers and performers of our time. Some you might remember are , "Delta Lady" , "Tight wire",
"A song for you", and Many others.
Anyway he had a great band with him and his voice was still 85% .
He played most of the songs you wanted to hear except some were done in medly form and too fast.
Either way I had not seen him perform since 1971 in Asbury Park with the Shelter people.
He is still hanging and music was fine.
Great to see Leon still plugging .
Phyically he looks puffy and has trouble walking.
I hope he stays healthy to keep performing and living well.
Anyway It was worth seeing him and he performed well.
BTC

Time to up date houses status.

Well the houses are moving along, and I haven't written about them in a long time.
We are moving inside to do tile,trim kitchens and other work.
We are also building decks and patios and landscaping trying to get done before it gets too cold.
This is all good and we are looking forward to getting the projects done.
Here are some pictures.

Daddy drank too much and you can smoke the pork!

Sitting at the dinner for breakfast ,as I often do reading the opinion columns .
I happen to notice the conversations around me more for some reason ,on this particular morning.
I had been up for a surf, so I was all pumped up and feeling great that morning.
The lady next to me proceeded to explain to her 3 or 4 year old daughter that "Daddy couldn't come to breakfast, as he was drinking the night before, and was too hung over and tired to have breakfast with his daughter."
Even if this was the case, I would guess that it might be too much information for the 3 year old.
Perhaps in the modern era for personal responsibility it is good for the little girl to know daddy has a problem and therefore she is better informed about the situation.
Either way it was quite a morning. The next fellow was in line behind me as I sat at the counter and had my breakfast with his 6 or 7 year old daughter.
He proceeded to explain that he knew how much she wanted to smoke the pork he had bought,
Once they got home he was going to fire up the smoker, and they would smoke the pork.
She was 7 at the most!
It was a very strange morning, and as surreal as it gets.
BTC

BTC

The Planet of Kohl!

SHIARA


The Planet Kohl is a planet entirely made of Maltese dogs where the leader and founder of the planet is Kohl.
He is the dictator and ruler and supreme authority of the planet Kohl.
He knows all ,Rules all and controls all on the planet.
The planet is located just outside of our solar system, and is known to only a very select group of people.,
Kohl was on a space ship a number of years ago, and hit an asteroid field catapulting his ship out of his solar system ,and in to Earths atmosphere.
He was found in Central Park by a pet store owner, and put up for sale.
A young professional named Kate bought and raised Kohl, and lives in the city with him,
Unbekownst to her he is the leader of a planet, and has been trying to find his way home ever since. Kohl's two brothers Mohl and Rohl , have been working hard against each other to gain control of the planet since Kohl's disappearance.

The two brothers who are at opposite ends of the political spectrum, and are forming armies that have already had skirmishes in the fields surrounding Tynaria the main castle of Kohl.
The two political parties are of opposite positions the first being the "personal responsibility party" allowing the people to govern themselves and decide their own destiny versus the "stupid party" which believes they should run everything and determine all the fates of the dogs of Kohl.

Tynaria is 800,000 square feet ,and has walls of gold and hardware of ruby and emerald.
Kohl is a very wealthy kingdom .
Shiara Kohl's long time lover and confidant, has the key and only key to the vault ,which is in the basement of Tynaria ,and is guarded by two very large screamdroolers.
Screamdroolers are a cross between a hyena and a sloth.
Three toed of coarse.
They move slowly but are ravenous and deadly.
I should also mention they are 38 feet tall weighing over 5 tons a piece.
not an animal to be trifled with. The eat only dog and particularly fond of Maltese.
The only reason that the brothers of Kohl have been unsuccessful in the power grab has been because the wonderful and loyal Shiara. She is so beautiful that all the male dogs of Kohl desire her.


Anyway Kohl is planning an escape from Earth soon and those around him have no Idea.
He is very clever and has a huge network of allies from his solar system that are helping set up his return to the planet Kohl.
Kohl will try to get home, but there are strange forces trying very hard to stop his return.Dog of mystery!
Stay tuned for the continuing saga of "The Amazing Kohl."

The Ocean and Surfing is a huge part of my life!

Since I was 13 the ocean and the sport of surfing has been a tremendous part of our families lives.
We are not alone in this feeling ,but it is so strong sometimes that it feels like we are.
When in or near the ocean I feel whole and complete .
I would say ,and people look at me funny when I say this ,that the ocean is my church or my religion.
I truly believe that God is nature ,and so when we are in nature or being part of it we are as close to him or his presence as we can be.
Just as the hiker and or mountain climber or river rafter feels as he communes with nature, so I feel when I am in the ocean.
It heals the body and the mind.
Mental clarity seems to come each and every time I am in the water ,and problems that seemed so large seem to be solved, or at least not as insurmountable.
It probably sounds trite or corney ,but it is true for me.
We come from the ocean it feeds us ,and we can return to it and feel comfortable.
Oh well enough of the heavy stuff.
Time to go check the surf.

I didn't write about my son getting engaged!

My son got engaged to be married a little while ago.
We are having the wedding st the shore.
It is an exciting time.
I have already learned to stay out of the conversation for each time I do I am overruled
and have not prevailed even once and don't expect too.
One decision has been made.
The rehearsal dinner will be at the Surf City Yacht Club. A great view and pretty little club right on the Barnegat Bay.

The wedding will be at our shore house in Love Ladies New Jersey.
The kids seem very happy about it and bride and (groomzilla) have not arrived yet.
I am the father of the groom and that is all.
I will do as told when told !

I am staying out of the plans on purpose.
Smart Eh?

One down and two to go !

The house up north is really not done ,but it is close enough there is a tiny spot of light at the end of the tunnel.
I can see it ,and the breeze is blowing right at us.
The two at the beach are actually progressing well ,and we have had a few small problems ,but nothing to worry about. The roof is on the bay house and the siding is done.
The rough plumbing and electric are in process ,and it s really taking shape.
The other house is coming along well ,but roof lines and a few changes have slowed the process.
24 days of rain out of the last 30 have slowed each house up a little ,but the guys building both homes are progressing fine.
Here are some recent pics.

The house up north is almost complete after some serious pain.

We moved in to the house up north and it was a fiasco, as the electrical work was done very poorly.They had to come in and completely re-do the electrical and it is not complete still.
Long story but we are getting there.
The house is beautiful and decorated by Carol St John the best decorator in the world.I am enclosing some pictures and we are almost through the pain.
The builder stepped up big and got almost everything done that was not complete and or wrong.
It is all getting done and we are almost completely comfortable in the house.
It is beautiful and the end result is a beautiful house done the way we like it.

Dickey Betts

Last week I went to see Dickey Betts and Great Southern for the zillionth time.
I don't know I just get so excited by his music, and always have. To me Richard Betts is the Allman's .
I first saw the Allman's in Orlando in 1970 opening for Johnny Winter in Winter Park at a festival .
They were amazing, and played for 4 hours.

I know Greg is tremendously talented ,and has a great blues voice, but the songs that I identify with are the ones written and sung by Mr.Betts.
Blue Sky, Elisabeth Reid , Jessica ,
Nobody Left to Run with Anymore,and so many others like Seven Turns.

This particular show was so good .
Dickey is 65 years young ,and has traveled some uncharted seas.
He can still play and sing, and the band he has assembled is amazing.
I take my kids and some selected friends every year ,and it is always a thrill.
I seem to enjoy his music more than any I have ever listened to.
I think he is one of the all time classic guitar players, and will always be one of my favorite composers and writers.
It is hard to explain ,he just does it for me.
Anyway the pleasure I get from listening to him is special.
Keep playing Dickey, forever will be just fine.

Loss of a Good friend.

I am not sure what we do about losing people we love .
Especially when they are young, and so full of love,giving,and genuine concern for others.
I have always said there are two types of people in the world.
There are givers, and takers.This lady was a giver.She was intelligent , always volunteering for committees, and any needs a organization would have.
We have a foundation which she has been very involved with since the beginning. She headed up our most critical grant program, and was a natural at it.
She will leave a huge void.

We miss her terribly .
"Only the good die young" sounds so simple, but also seems true at times like these.
God Speed Brenda.

Maureen Dowd never has an answer!

Political columnist are supposed to criticize the politicians. I know that is their job,but the vitriol and negativity exhibited by some is just plain unintelligent.
I am an optimist always have been.
Don't believe in going backwards, as it has no purpose.
I am not talking about studying history. That is important, so we don't make mistakes others have.
That I understand .
Being negative for negatives sake, I don't understand.
Maureen Dowd is one writer I have to say gets under my skin.
I am sure that is part of the fascination.
She is intelligent, yet she never has an answer or idea of what the solution to an issue is.
She is quick to criticize,yet never offers the correct alternative ,or at least her opinion of what it might be.
Any opinion is just that. How boring if we all complained all day, and no one ever took a chance on implementing their beliefs.
Great ideas come from need and desire.
I am sure Maureen's desire is to be part of the problem, not the solution.
This of course is just my opinion.

I have no problem with people having political opinions, but give me a solution.
BTC

We are moving in May 8th like it or not.

We are moving in to the house up north very soon.
We are painting the inside,final coating the floors,custom coating the walls with murals,
putting all electric and plumbing in and finalizing the designs all at the same time.
We have to put the carpets in but will probably do that once we are in.
The good news is we have thrown or given away all our furniture so there is not alot to move around.
If we can get the plumbing done, and the electric hooked up, and the painting done.
We are good.
It is mad rush time, as of course were having a function at the house in one month.
It would never get done if we weren't.
I forgot to mention we are completely re landscaping the entire property also.
New patio,new grill new bushes and lawn and sprinkling system.
Other than that we are done .
Ha

The Devil is in the details!!!!!

When redoing a house or building one the true pain in the butt is the final details ,trim,tile ,lighting ,paint ,paper things like that. The framing ,roofing ,siding are the easy part.
The house begins to look good ,and then you have to finish it.UGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
All the little details can become overwhelming . The way around this is to have a designer and meet well in advance, and make the decisions about how the house will be done then don't change your mind.
Build it the way you decided, and then live in it a while to decide if you want to change anything.
You can always do something down the road.
The trick is to have experienced people around you, listen to their advise, and then do it. This is not easy as if you are not a decisive person you will second guess yourself again and again.
I am lucky my wife does the research and makes the decision.
She is very good at it.
Very few fights about the houses have taken place . we have done remarkably well considering.
BTC

Jeff Beck and Tal Wilkenfeld

I headed in to the Irving Plaza, recently named the Filmore Irving Plaza to capitalize on the name of the Filmore East.
Not sure why they did that, maybe it brings more old rockers out to try to recapture their youth.
Anyway headed in with a few of my old buddy's and saw the show.
Jeff Beck is as fine a guitar player, as the world has ever seen.
He doesn't sing so it's all instrumental.
He was amazing.
The playing was perfect and quite beautiful.
He has been reborn lately, after his recent induction into the Rock and Roll Hall\ of Fame.
He has introduced a young girl to the rock world named Tal Wilkenfeld and she as a bass guitar player she is reinventing the bass as a premier instrument.
I am sure there are players, as talented as she is ,such as Pedro Arevalo who plays with Dickey Betts and Great Southern.
He has his own Album out and he is very talented .
This girl Tal though brings an excitement and passion to the instrument rarely seen.
She has a smile when she plays that is infectious.
You find yourself smiling along with her.
As talented and good as Jeff Beck is, she has helped revitalize his career, and adds a true breath of fresh air to the rock world.
I am sure she will have a very long and illustrious career in the music world where ever it takes her.
It was great to see Mr. Beck play again, and he is one of the all time greats who will define our era.
I remember listening to Jeff Beck Truth while a Junior in High School with Rod Stewart
as the origional lead singer.
Rod Stewart never sounded better than on that album.

BTC

Dogs are funny and the projects are not as interesting as we get further.

My dogs are very funny and unique to my experience. I suppose that's why people love their dogs so much.
They are so innocent and they are so particular.
This morning my older Lab Sweetie of the famous "Sweetie Tea" fame,decided she would take her sweet time going to the bathroom.
I take her to the same vacant lot every day to go, and she usually takes a few minutes and circles and does her business .
This morning she circled and stopped ,and walked around, and circled again and stopped, and walked around and circled again, and repeated this maybe 6 or 7 times before finding the comfort zone .
Very funny ,and particular about the spot, and the feeling to be comfortable. The older she becomes the more particular she is about things. I think we are all that way and she has earned it. The pleasure she has delivered to the family is immeasurable.
Food, Exercise , sleep and comfort.
She will now sleep at my feet with one of her paws actually on top of my foot or shoe so if I move she knows it.
I now call her Needy Sweetie!
The framing part of the houses is some what interesting, as the shape of the house takes place ,yet at some point there are a tremendous amount of things you don't think of that really don't make the house look different, but are mandatory to building the house.
During the time when they put those on, the house looks very similar.
The truth is it is different every day, but the subtleties are just that.
I am going to see Rock and Roll hall of fame inductee Jeff Beck at Irving Plaza one of my favorite venues tomorrow night.
I will write a review this weekend her on my blog.
BTC

Said good bye to my hero and the houses move along.

A few weeks ago I said good bye to my dad after a long illness. He handled the end with all the kindness and grace he did all things with.
He went quite gently and is whole again.
He lived a long and full life and got to see his kids grow up and raise their own families.
He fought in the Big War where he was was a B17 pilot. He dedicated his life to his community and his family.
You can't ask for more than that.The house projects don't seem to be important at this time, but we are moving along.
I am posting current pictures of all three houses.
We are very close to finishing the house up north and are looking forward to being back in the house .
BTC

Spring and a little warm weather changes the world here!

It is funny how the moment the weather breaks even the slightest bit the island begins to come alive.l
It is very welcome mind you. The pace actually picks up but at the same time seems to slow down. People work at a faster pace yet there seems to be so much less a sense of urgency than in the winter when there is nothing else to focus on or keep interest.
Boats ,fixing up houses , and just plain getting ready for the summer.
It is a magic time at the shore where the flowers start to pop and the spirits generally cheer.
The houses are moving along and they will move faster now as the weather is permitting.
Here are the latest !!!!!!!!!!

Candle fire and clogging the drain of the disposal.

When you leave a real large candle burning in your house in a large glass container it has a tendency to melt all the wax, and fill the house with smoke.
The good thing is when you come home early enough, and your house hasn't burnt down.
Then when your drain doesn't work the next day, and you pour Draino down it to unclog it, and use a plunger multiple times, to no avail.
You think, "well it was melted wax and not that much of it that we dumped down the drain."
Finally you decide to take the trap out under the garbage disposal, and as you do you find this in the trap and the adjoining pipes.
Oh boy we live and learn.

Van Morrison 'Astral Weeks" Alright

Took the family to see Van Morrisons special concert performing "Astral Weeks". It is not my favorite album of his yet the quality of the performance was wonderful.

His genius is still evident, and the band he assembled is tremendous .
"Veedon Fleece" and many others are my preferred albums, but the public blessed this album and made it gold.
Either way it was great to see the man play and sing .
He still has an amazing voice.

The greats of the 60's and 70's are on the last mile, and need to be appreciated.
BTC

Actual build up of the foundation Harvey Cedars!

These are the pictures of the cement block foundation going in today .

The Bob Shea Winds of LBI!!!!!

This is the time of year when the wind blows so hard you can't take it.
It goes right through any clothing you bundle into and regardless of the style of the clothing it gets the best of you.
I just tried to take the dogs for a walk, and got into the street, and turned around and brought them in letting them out the back door to do their business in the yard.
It is just to cold for a quality walk.
They do so love the walks, but there are days when I just can't do it.
This is the time I call Jack Nicholson time at the shore ,when the wind and cold can drive a man to say "Here's Johnnie"

Foundation poured and second floor framed.

Heh the house in Harvey Cedars poured the footing for the foundation today.
It was a tremendous amount of work to prep the site, for this pour.
Digging ,re bar, and lots of work just to get ready to pour .
Anyway it looks great and shows the basic shape of the house.
They will start block on Monday and then build from there.
The house on the bay finished framing the second floor this week, and they will begin the roof framing and building up the decking and porch posts also so they can support the roof.
Anyway interesting and learning a lot.

The Band Carlon!!!!!

My son is in a band .
They have been playing, writing, recording and struggling for 3 years now.
It is a tough profession .
But you know he is completely passionate about it, and they have been blessed with a manager who works extremely hard, believes in them, and has held their hand all the way.
They are a four member band, three guitars and one drummer.
They also play organ, lap slide , and other instruments for some songs.
They have released a E.P, and now a full length LP Johari Window.
The actual release date for the Album is in March to coincide with "South By South West."
They will be playing a few gigs during that week in Austin.
It's a roller coaster ride being in a band, and takes a tremendous amount of discipline to make it happen.
All four boy are dedicated and hard working.
The band is named Carlon and their web site is www.carlonmusic.com
Check out their music and down load it .
As my friend Jude says; "It is all about the journey."

Gwyneth Paltro and Madona ,you wouldn't believe.

Today Gwyneth Paltro said one of the stupidest things I have ever heard,
of course she was on Oprah when she said it.
She evidently is good friends with Madonna and when she was going through post par tum depression Madonna spoke to her and basically ,and I quote,"Madonna rearranged my molecules."
Ok this means that every woman who has post par tum depression just needs their molecules rearranged.
It is not a chemical imbalance that needs professional help , it can be cured by a good talking too, by a friend like Madonna, about how wonderful your life is, and how you should feel good about your options. She is such an amazing friend and truly can perform miracles.
I am so relieved to know it.
Woman no longer have to worry about after they have children as the molecule rearrangement is here.
Madonna is going to be very busy.
Whewwwww!!!!

Up North getting there!

We are finally getting close up north at the house .
The trim and cabinets and such are all being worked on now.
I am enclosing pictures which kind of explain themselves.
It will be nice to have one done.
BTC