Moving Day

 It was a long day filled with excitement, sadness, happiness and a yearning for the future.

I was blessed to have breakfast with AT. Then we went to the house and loaded up the truck. We gave each other hugs, fought back tears and went on our separate ways. She’s a good kid with a good head on her shoulders and she’ll be fine.

I Drove out of TX and headed to OK to visit friends. We had a nice visit and it was on to see my family. Here’s me and my momma.

We went to our next task for the day. My little gir Beans got a new home in the country. I’m not sure how I feel about leaving her, but I’m sure she’ll be fine. Sometimes I wish I weren’t an animal person. Thank you to everyone who assisted me in trying to rehome Besns. 

Then I had a homemade dinner with my sister, brother and momma. Ended the day with birthday cake. Thank you momma! 

With that, I’m going to bed soon. Pardon the typos on the phone tonight.

DV,

JT

One

 24 hours, that’s what I’ve got left….better make the most of it.

Fold laundry, check.

Pack suitcase for OH, check.

Purchase a couple more boxes for….wait, is that the moving truck out there???? But, they never called to set up a time for Sunday!!!! Guess I better get some clothes on…

Yep, they just showed up this morning without calling yesterday. That’s okay, I was mostly ready for them. As it turns out, I severely underestimated the number of boxes I had. Price of moving cross country just went up. I’ll admit, I didn’t do my due diligence in measuring my garage full of stuff. I did after they left. I would have over estimated by just a bit had I done that. Lesson learned.

Free Qdoba, check. ( Thanks Megan , you have know idea how many free meals you’ve gotten me from Qdoba :)

Refrigerator sold, check.

Dogs bathed, check.

TX Cemetery Geocache Bronze (100) Challenge complete, check.

Fun Facts - TX Adventure Lab Completed, check.

Car washed and cleaned out,  check.

I think that’s about it. I may tidy up a bit before going to bed,  but overall it’s been a highly productive, stressful, expensive, and memorable day. Guess I’m good to officially start my vacation tomorrow.

I’ve got about 20 or so hours of driving to do this week. I’m going to need some suggestions for new music to listen to.

Let’s do this!

DV,

JT

Two

 With two days to go, I'm finishing up all of the last details. I didn't say "little" details, just details. I've found that even after packing for several weeks, there is still random stuff everywhere. For example, the laundry room. That's where you keep all the detergent, fabric softeners, stain removers, appolstry  cleaners for when the dog yaks something up on the carpet. You know, stuff like that. You can't pack all of that up until you've done your last load of laundry. Yep, that's what I did today. My last load. Then I sold the washer and dryer. 30 minutes, that's all it took. anybody want a fridge?

I had lunch with a nephew today. We enjoyed seeing each other and just talking about life in general. I'd recommend having lunch with the people you love more often. It's a good thing

Movers: They're somewhat ambiguous about when they're going to pick up my stuff. I didn't get a call from the dispatcher today, so I'm assuming that they'll be here on Monday (not tomorrow). However, as of about 11:00 today I was still on the schedule for tomorrow. Guess we'll see if it's going to be a big surprise. I'll be ready either way.

Tomorrow I'll prepare for the long drive. Get the cooler ready, clean the truck and load up whatever I can load before Monday. This'll be the last post composed on the desktop computer. It's getting packed. So here we are, coming up on 1 day before the big move. It's like a freight train headed my way. The light is shining at my front door and there's nothing I can do to stop it.

I have a feeling that the next 36 hours or so will be very bittersweet. I'm not looking forward to it, but I am.

DV,

JT

Three

 Three days to go.

Today I managed to complete the repairs needed on the house. I didn't necessarily do the repairs myself. I've got roofers and plumbers coming on Monday. Hopefully, I won't be there. I'll just pay the bill. I'm okay with that too.

The garage is packed up and all I have left to pack is my closet. Guess I should pack for OH 1st. I've also got computer stuff to do. Don't know if I'm going to get it done or not. Ultimately, all that matters is that I get my stuff loaded on the truck and drive to Cincy.

As they say, however, we're down to the wire. (I wonder where that phrase came from.) Utilities are scheduled to be turned off, the dogs have no idea what's going on, and the garage is almost full. The movers are supposed to call and confirm pickup the afternoon before they come. Nothing like just waiting around to see if someone is going to come get your stuff.

That's about it for now. Tomorrow I'll work on some computer projects and pack the closet. Oh... and sell the washer/dryer and fridge. Gotta do that too.

DV,

JT

Four

 It’s getting real now. Four days to go and I started making some minor repairs at the request of the buyer. AC is good and I’ve got roofers coming to do some very minor repairs.

The bulk of today was spent moving money from one bank to another. Making sure all of your financial affairs are in order is a bit of a hassle when moving. It’s done now.

Tomorrow, I should get confirmation from the movers about when they’ll haul all my stuff away. Guess I should start packing! ;)

I’ve started planning my travels, and I have to say, I’m getting excited about my adventures next week.

DV,

JT

Five

 Day five, I flew home after having lunch with my honeybunch. Sold an agility teeter in McKinney….far NE McKinney, found some geocaches, and came home.

It has been a whirlwind couple of days, but a couple of days that I’ll remember for a long time.

I’ve made a list for the next couple of days. We’ll see how that goes.

And with that, good night.

DV,

JT

Oh wait… I almost forgot. I open quite the can of worms by asking about a travel job in Ohio. I had no less than 42 recruiters contact me within a couple of hours!

Six

Today I woke up early and flew to Cincinnati, OH, and boy are my arms tired!

25 years ago today I married my best friend. There was no way in heck I was going to be separated for this one. I actually had this trip planned for a few weeks. I didn't tell BT I was coming, and it was going to be a big surprise. Yesterday I took the dogs to camp for a couple of days. It looks like they're having a good time.

This morning I got up early, headed to the airport and got on the plane to Cincy. I arrived at in Ohio just in time for lunch. I made my way to the passenger pick up area and  rented a Lyft to the stage door of music hall.

After going inside, I convinced security to let me in so I could surprise BT. I got her on the phone and realized  she was working from home this morning and hadn't gone into the office yet. (Okay, slight change of plans, but the surprise was still going to work.)

I headed through Washington Park to see if I could catch her. Unfortunately, I managed to get all the way to her apartment, and she still hadn't left yet. After a while, she left the apartment and I was able to keep her on the phone while I started walking to work with her. 

Eventually, I told her to look at the cute dog on her left, she got suspicious. :) That's when she finally turned around to the sound of my voice. BT was confused and happy all at the same time.

We ended up going to lunch and dinner tonight and were able to celebrate together, in the same state.

Tomorrow I'll head back to TX for a few more days then it’s moving day. This will be an anniversary to remember!

DV,

JT

Seven

 One more week and I'm out of here. 

7:00 pm

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Today was a most wonderful day, despite the heat. I was able to hang out with my little grown up daughter. She picked me up from the Toyota service department and we headed out for a tour of my old stomping grounds. I recounted all my stories of growing up. I took her by the trailer I grew up in (incidentally, our first married place to live). I had lots of stories about driving my friends around. We saw the elementary school where I got 3rd degree burns on the metal slide. We both recounted stories of Jr High PE class and everyone's awkwardness. In short, we bonded. That's what I wanted. Before leaving we stopped by the cemetery where Maw and Paw are buried. We cleaned up the place a bit, found a geocache (cemetery cache, BTW) and then headed home. 

I'm blessed that she took the time off work to come hang out with me today. It's a special day that I'll remember for a long time. We'll do it again in a week. 

Today I was able to meet the future owner of my home. He came out for the home inspection and we met him on the way out with the dogs. It's a young couple with 1 little boy and another one on the way. They'll love walking their kids to school just like we did. The home inspection is complete and hopefully everything will turn out okay.

Today happens to be BT and JT eve! I'm sure we'll share a meal together tomorrow. We do that on occasion. We've gotten quite good at the telephone hangouts. Tomorrow will be a special day. ;)

DV,

JT

Eight

 Eight days to go.

Today I woke up refreshed and ready to get stuff done. I suppose all the sleep I got yesterday was necessary and justified considering the last 13 months. This morning I made my way to get a couple of geocaches. One of which was in a very long tunnel.

Link would be proud that I attempted it, however I chickened out about a third of the way through. Link has the master sword, I do not. I'm gonna need a buddy for this one (it's almost half a mile underground). I really don't want to come up missing right before the big move. Found a couple cemetery caches and now I only need 28 more before next Monday.

I headed home to clean up and head out to lunch with a good friend. We had a great time talking about our future and how things seem to be working out well for the both of us. If I were a more social creature, I'd have a lunch like this with many more people. However, I don't do lots of people. I'm sure it's some kind of social anxiety thing, but it is what it is. I'm not too worried about changing. Just know that if you are reading this...I'd love to have lunch with you someday. Just you.

When I returned home I was able to tackle the kitchen. It's all packed. I'll be eating protein shakes, fruit and microwaved baked potatoes for the next week. Don't feel bad...I love potatoes!

After getting the kitchen finished up, it was time to mow the yard again. I'll probably have to mow a couple more times before next week. Everybody mows 2-3 times a week, right....no....just me?

Tomorrow is a day I've been looking forward to for at least a couple of months. It'll be fun! Stay tuned.

DV,

JT

Nine

 Okay, two days in a row. Not bad, JT, not bad.

I woke up this morning about 6am at the insistence of Zelda. She had to go potty. I let the dogs out and went back to bed. Let them back in and went back to bed.

Man, I really need to get up and get going....nah, back to sleep.

About 10:30 I finally made myself get up. That's pretty unusual for me. I'm naturally a morning person. Get up early, get things done for the day. After I got going, I managed to find a couple of geocaches in a some cemeteries not too far away. They aren't always at cemeteries, but I have been trying to get my Bronze award for TX Cemetery caches. I'm not sure that's going to happen. I still need 28 more before I leave. We'll see.

Made my way home, ate some lunch and took a nap. A long nap. All I know is that I've felt exhausted today. Maybe it's stress relief.

This afternoon I finally felt ready to do something productive. Realizing we had a cold front move through DFW, I decided to tackle the attic. It was only 92 degrees after all. I managed to get everything down including the file cabinet without injuring myself. That's a win!

I'll tidy up the garage a bit and we'll be ready for the home inspection on Monday. Tomorrow I'll start boxing up the remainder of the kitchen and my closet. We're getting close...

DV,

JT

Ten

I didn't chronicle the last year very well, did I? Let me catch you up to speed.

*BT moved to Cincy

*Got my momma moved to Oklahoma

*AT started her senior year of high school.

*Got BT's grandmother moved to OH

*Moved all of Granny's stuff into my house

*Had a very impressive garage/estate sale 

*AT graduated HS

*AT moved into her own apartment

*House painted and new carpet installed

*House on the market for 3 weeks

So here we are....10 days out.

Today was quite a busy day for me. I woke up and took the dogs on a walk. They each got to go on their own individual walks as I had a little extra time on my hands. I went and got a haircut and then went to  pick up some furniture blankets from a marketplace ad. That's when I got the text from our realtor. The buyers accepted our offer and our home is under contract (with contingencies of course). That was very exciting news (and quite the relief). After picking up the blankets I headed to work.

Today was my last day. What an impressive send off! For the last 3 1/2 years I've worked cath lab with a really good team of people. I cannot say enough good things about them. I can only hope to find another workplace with such good coworkers.

After making my way home, I realized that everything is done. I just have a few more things to box up, and the attic wares to move down into the garage. Sitting in front of my computer this evening, I'm at a loss for what to do. Guess I'll just play my video game...oo oo oo...I can update my blog!

I can't say that I'll keep the blog updated from here on out, but maybe I can chronicle the next few days. There are exciting things to come I'm sure. Until tomorrow.

DV,

JT

And so it begins…

We’re now 968 miles from home. We’ve traveled more than that, however. We made a pit stop in Oklahoma to visit my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew and their kids. I hadn’t seen their houses or community at all since they all moved “up north” at he beginning of the pandemic. (I obviously haven’t blogged about the pandemic, but that’s another story for another day.) (Trying to come up with topics here.) We had so much fun exploring the community and seeing all of the sites. I introduced my sister to Geocaching (Geocaching.com). I made it to my 300th find and Sister made it to 25 as a newb. Good job sister!

After that we left, drove past Some state lines and finally made it to our Airbnb in the Queen City last night. Today we’re looking at exploring the city and treating Oda Mae to some authentic Cincinnati Chili from Skyline. I’m hoping they don’t disappoint. I’ve been making my one for more than 20 years. Yes, for those of you who know I’m whole food, plant based (WFPB) now, I’m making an exception this week. (That’s another blog post right there!)

Time to get busy, more updates later.

The Beginning...

And so it begins. The end of the school year has come upon us. Alli is officially a senior in high school. Brenda will be moving to Cincinnati in less than a month and we begin our adventures.

Adventure #1: Finding a place to live. 

A few years ago, I moved to Cincinnati. Yep...lived in Cincinnati for about 6 months all by my lonesome. I actually started a masters degree in music at the University of Cincinnati: Collage-Conservatory of Music. I distinctly remember my first day, sitting in a lecture hall, listening to someone say that many of us would not graduate. I also remember thinking, "not me". Six months later I was back in Texas. Life has a way of messing with you. I wasn't happy in The Queen City for many reasons. Hind site being 20/20 and all, I was already burned out. I was done practicing and living for a career in music. That actually happened prior to moving to Ohio, but that's another story. What I did learn from moving temporarily up north was that I love Cincinnati Chili! I learned how to make it, and I've been making it for my family for 24 years.

Yes, it's mostly cheese and you can't really see the chili and it's on a pile of spaghetti, but don't knock it 'til you've tried it. I'm looking forward to sampling some of the real thing once again. So much so that our 1st Airbnb is just a few steps from Skyline.

We'll spend our first few days in Ohio staying in a small loft a few blocks away from Music Hall. It's a nice little place that has been decorated in a trendy fashion and is centrally located. 20-some-odd years ago the first place I stayed in Cincinnati was in a sketchy hotel right off the highway, but it was cheap. College students need cheap. I have to admit, it's nice not having to worry about paying for a place to stay this time around. Our first experience with the CSO/CPO will be the Red, White and Boom concert on July 4th. I can't think of a better way to start an adventure. After that, Brenda will move into a more permanent location just a short walk from Music Hall. Safety was one of our biggest concerns. You know what they say..."location, location, location". While of course I won't disclose her location online I'll say it exceeds our expectations for what we had hoped. We are all set up to rent for the next year and a bit longer if needed. Brenda will be moving out of our 1st Airbnb on her birthday. Technically, she'll be homeless for a couple of days then she'll move here...

It's a small price to pay.

Don't worry, she has a quilt to cover up with and it's still summer time. No worries...

On to adventure #2.

Attention!!!

Dear Friends and Family, Many of you have not noticed that just a couple of days ago, I started blogging again. My resurgence comes at a time of change for my family. I mentioned in my previous blog post that I had some big news. Here it is...

Brenda has accepted the position of Director of Orchestra Personnel for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Cincinnati Pops Orchestra! I cannot even begin to express how proud I am. Brenda has always been a very humble and content person in regards to her work position, but I'll say it how it is. Brenda is the most organized, hardworking, caring and detail oriented person in her field. She has been able to manage the day-to-day operations of orchestra musicians for 20 years with incredible grace, compassion and professionalism. I truly believe that the CSO/CPO is happy to have Brenda join their team as evidenced by their announcement to musicians and staff as well as conversations Brenda has had with them in recent days. However...they really have no idea what they have gotten. I believe that Brenda is at the top of her profession not only in the U.S., but in the world. Cincinnati, I have one request of you. Take care of her; you do not want to lose her! Brenda will be an employee that you will want to fight tooth and nail to keep should another orchestra ever try to snag her away.

With this announcement comes something very bittersweet for me and Oda Mae (Alli). We are so happy for Brenda's new position that will begin at the end of June, though very sad at the thought that we will be separated for the next year until Alli graduates from high school here in Texas. Alli is currently planning on attending college in Texas after graduation. At that point, if all goes as planned, I'll join Brenda in Ohio. Of course, we'll be visiting often, but it will be difficult at times. I have no doubt her choice to advance in her career is the best for our family so a temporary situation like this will be well worth it in the end.

Much more to come...

11 Years

So, here we are; eleven years later. What has become of Oda Daddy, Oda Momma and of course Oda Mae? I'm not sure why I stopped blogging 11 years ago. Things seemed to be going well. Oda Mae had a field day, last you all heard. I look at the pics I posted and I think how cute she was. Good lord...she was in kindergarten back then. Well, today, Oda Mae is about to finish her junior year of high school. Yep, she'll be a senior in just a few short days. A lot of things go through my mind when I think of that...but mostly, where did all the time go. I restart the blog today because it somehow seems appropriate. Oda Mae will be finishing her last year of high school. Our lives are different now and we have new stories to tell. I'm not sure if I'll continue to blog after this next year, but we'll see. It is a pretty cool hobby. In the meantime we have some catching up to do with a lot of excitement to come. In the next couple of days or so, I'll have a big announcement for my readers. ...Wait.....do I still have readers? Comment below if you are still following! I'd love to know. Either way, I'll chronicle Oda Mae's last year in high school and our upcoming big adventures. Until next time. -Oda Daddy

Field Day!

So I’ve just completed my fourth semester of nursing school. I’ve got the summer off and then I’ll finish up next fall. However, that’s not what this post is about. Today was Oda Mae’s first “Field Day” at school. Brenda and I had the privilege of going up there this morning and watching some of the goings on. After lunch I went back and stayed for the rest of the day. All I have to say is that I am pretty sure this day was set up to try and wear out every kindergartner at that school. I got tired just watching. Fortunately, I was able to take several pictures to post here on the blog. Oda Mae and her friends had a great time shooting hoops, playing tug-of-war, freeze tag, chicken run, and relay races. At the end of the day she said her favorite thing was playing on the "first grader's playground". I have to admit, it's way cooler than the kindergarten playground. Allison was a great sport in all of the activities and she had a really good time. Without hesitation, however, after watching her all day it is painfully obvious that she inherited her athletic ability from both of her parents who joined the band so we wouldn't have to go to PE. :)

-Oda Daddy

Tug-of-War

The girls win!
Having a good time!
There were many bunny ears today.
Looks like she's going to make it doesn't it? :)

Here's the first grader's playground.

Good friends.

Something fun must have just happened.

Starting to wear out a little.

They forgot to say the Pledge of Allegiance before school, so they said it at the end of the day.

Bah, humbug.

A few months ago I decided not to put up any Christmas lights this year. Not gonna do Thanksgiving at my house this year either. The holiday season is upon me now and I'm up to my gills in work. I knew then that things would be busy and sure enough, I've got a paper due on Tuesday, a cardiovascular exam in a couple of weeks followed by a comprehensive final that will cover all of the body systems, related health problems, medications, nursing processes, etc. I really need to do well on the next two exams. I'm not sure what happened to the 98's I was making in A&P and Chemistry, but no such luck on the nursing exams. On top all of that, my piano instructor asked me yesterday if I would be interested in performing on the student recital in two weeks (yes, the same week as my next exam.) I'm thinking probably not. I have far exceeded my performance requirements in the musical arts.

All that being said, Allison wrote a letter to Santa a few days ago...

"Dere Satua
I HOP ThAT
YOU GIV Me
LOTS UV PReSiSiS
I AM SARee
ThAT I WOT
HAV Mi KRiSMiS
LiTS UP

Love AlliSoN"

(sigh)

and this just in from our neighborhood association....

"Holiday Yard of the Month begins next Month!
The church was filled with residents and members expressing concerns and voting for change in the neighborhood. The submitted logo passed and will appear on all Riverbend publicity materials. After some discussion a vote to change the meeting time from 6:30pm to 7:00pm passed. A kind donation from James Toal will fund a
Holiday Yard of the Month program for two years. The holidays included in the program are Christmas, Easter, 4th of July, and Halloween. Beginning this month
and ending Dec. 13th judges will vote on homes decorated for Christmas. Prizes include: $25 cash, Holiday YOM sign, and a picture in the newsletter."


OKAY, FINE! I'll put up Christmas lights. I'm not promising 30,000+ but I better win that cash AND Father of the Year.

-JT

Gratitude

1. My sister walked her first "Race for the Cure" as a survivor. She is an inspiration!
2. I passed my Neuro/Musculoskeletal exam on Monday.
3. My wife loves me.
4. My daughter is going on a field trip tomorrow to the farm. (It'll be her first ride on a school bus.)
5. Met some great couples from our church for dinner last night. We had a good time.
6. God provided queso for my wife at previously mentioned dinner.
7. People still read my blog.
8. Music is not my life anymore, but a wonderful part of it.
9. Going to see old friends this weekend.
10. Pumpkin Pie & Pumpkin Cupcakes.

:)

1 school day down, 2,339 more to go.

Day one of kindergarten was a success. Oda Mae woke up this morning ready to hit the ground running. We had back-to-school kolaches for breakfast, yum! After breakfast, she got dressed in her purple outfit, packed her lunch, strapped on a backpack and went to school. She was pretty excited about the whole thing until she realized that mom and dad weren’t going to hang out with her all day at kindergarten. She gave us a tight hug and was able to find a place to sit with some other very frightened little 5-year-old girls.

After I got home I was able to get some housework done as well as start working on some reading fornext week. I was pretty busy for about 30 minutes when I had to call Oda Momma and tell her that I was wondering if Oda Mae was having a good time at school. All day those thoughts were going through my head….I wonder what she’s doing now. Did she make any friends? I hope those friends aren’t a bad influence. Does she know what to do if there is a fire alarm? She won’t get lost on the way to the restroom, will she? I have to admit I don’t understand why, with today’s technology, can’t there be an hourly update on what my child is doing in school? I’m going to have to set up a parent-teacher conference to discuss possibilities: IM, Blogging, Twitter….come on lady step into the 21st century. Oda Momma promptly reminded me that if the kindergarten teacher were blogging all day, she wouldn’t be teaching our daughter. Hmmmmmmmm isn’t that why they need teacher assistants or classroom dads or something?

However….I was able to get parts of the story after we picked up Oda Mae from school this afternoon. During recess she was building a castle out of rocks under the play ground when two girls came over to play with her. After a few minutes the other girls ran away because they had to go. Oda Mae told us that she realized a little later that they ran away because it was time to go inside. She said, “My class almost left me outside! I had to run to get in line.” This story was particularly funny when she told us about the next thing they did. Oda Mae really enjoyed the “Who’s Missing” game. They all got in a circle, closed their eyes and one of them would get up and hide. When the other students opened their eyes they had to guess who was missing. Sounds like a good learn your classmate’s name game. Oda Mae said that she was able to go first in this game. I’m just glad she wasn’t really missing and playing all by herself out on the playground. 

She met three friends today. “Two girl friends and one boy friend,” she said. Tonight she said that her “boyfriend” had the same drink bottle that she did. Apparently they met during lunch today when he sat down on the green tape next to the pink tape that she was sitting on. I’m not sure what that was all about. I’m going to have to have a talk with this “boyfriend” and make sure that if he knows what’s good for him, he’ll stay away from my daughter. It ought to be pretty easy to put the fear of a dad into a five-year-old, shouldn’t it?









All-in-all we had a good day. Hopefully, tomorrow will go smoothly as well.

DV,

Oda Daddy

Hello...hello....hello....echo...echo....echo.....

Good Lord, somebody blow the dust off of this blog. Let's see, four blog posts in seven months? I think that's a record for me. It seems that since I've started back to school, my blogging life has gone down hill a bit. I have finished my second semester of nursing and I've got seven weeks off. That will be the longest break I've had since A&P I. I am really enjoying nursing school, but I still find myself thinking, "What the hell have I done?" on occasion.

I have three more semesters left and I'll be all registered and stuff. For now however I'm on vacation! Tomorrow morning we leave for a few days to visit some family. Yesterday we went out to a place called "Splash Kingdom". We had a great day. Oda Mae was so tired, she actually slept an hour late this morning. Speaking of Oda Mae here's a recent photo...

Yep, she lost a tooth a while back. She's got another one loose now. BTW, she's headed to kindergarten in the fall. We are making the most of our dog day's of summer. We've taken her out of her parent's day out and we are spending time doing lots of cool stuff. We make it over to the library almost everyday. She's reading really well and will be ahead of most of her little pals come this fall. Today we went to see a movie: "Furry Vengeance". It was pretty silly. I can't wait for the rest of the summer. We are looking forward to some quality time before school starts.

I'll try to update on some other happenings later.

-Oda Daddy