A Honor Roll

Its time to celebrate-Joseph, (my nephew!) made the A Honor Roll! What a big deal-

His mom Vicky works with him every night and practices his spelling and math-What a great accomplishment! Way to go Joe...! I am very proud of you!

i3DVR

My first day is the 8th of December. I will be flying out to Toronto and spending a week or so in processing with I3DVR. Then off to Texas with the VP of Sales. Then home for the holidays. n January, I am back to Texas and Oklahoma for the first full week. Then back to Toronto. 
The adventure begins...

My New Job

This past Monday I traveled to Buffalo, NY to interview for a new sales position. And before I got back to Bemidji on Wednesday, I was offered and I  accepted the position.

I will be working from home, selling into Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Texas and others I can't remember. I will be working the phones to extablish a route then fly to meet these clients. 

Next week I will be traveling to Toronto for training-Then around the 15th, I will be going to Texas for one week to train with the VP of the company.

I will be selling I3DVR camera systems to integrators and dealers-a much different sell than what I do today. 

Its very exciting...

Holiday Brew

                                                                                                                  The Holiday brew is complete and now in the bottles-Just gotta wait about 10 days then the holidays can begin!

Too Cold, Too Soon

It looks and feels like January out today.

• I had to "warm" up my car for the first time today!
• I wore my Columbia (both jackets) for the first time today!
• I put my Sorels in the car for the first time today!
• I unpacked my cuddleduds for the first time today, too!

I knew it was coming...but...so soon? I just wasn't ready today.

Why Beer is Better than a Woman

Top 25 reasons way beer is better than a woman-                 (I didn't say they were good reasons)

1. You can enjoy a beer all month. 

2. Beer stains wash out. 

3. You don't have to wine and dine a beer.

 4. Your beer will always wait patiently for you in the car. 

5. When beer goes flat you toss it out. 

6. Beer is never late.

 7. HANGOVERS go away. 

8. A beer doesn't get jealous when you grab another beer. 

9. Beer labels come off without a fight.

 10. When you go to a bar, you know you can always pick up a beer. 

11. Beer never has a headache. 

12. After you have a beer, the bottle is still worth a dime.

 13. A beer won't get upset if you come home with beer on your breath.

 14. If you pour a beer right, you will always get good head. 

15. You can have more than one beer a night and not feel guilty.

 16. A beer ALWAYS goes down easy. 

17. You can share a beer with your friends. 

18. You always know that you are the first one to pop a beer. 

19. A beer is always wet. 

20. beer doesn't demand equality. 

21. A beer doesn't care when you come.

 22. You can have a beer in public. 

23. A frigid beer is a good beer.

 24. You don't have to wash a beer before it tastes good. 

25. Beer always comes in multiples of six.

Deer Hunting and Light Dusting

Minnesota Deer Hunting started today-And the hunters were blessed with a near perfect snowfall-In Turtle River we got about about one inch-Just enough to track the deer!

Big Time History

No matter what I or anyone else believes or  practice politically-America voted a black candidate as the president of the United States.

Truly historic and I wish him well!

Natural Resources and the Arts

Minnesota voters will be asked to vote on a constitutional amendment to establish a fund for 25 years to aid natural resources and the arts. We are being asked to raise our state's general sales tax from 6.5 to 6.87, a small priceto pay, to ensure our future family's health and well-being.

It covers our drinking water sources, wetlands and wildlife habitat, arts and cultural heritage, parks and trails, and our lakes, rivers and streams.

This is so important and I hope that each voter reads this question carefully and responds positively. What better gift could we leave as our legacy?

Vote Early, Vote Often

I agree with Alicia-there are lots of people who do not vote. And thats not all bad.

There is one person I know that most likely will not vote-and in my opinion, that is a good thing. They don't know nor do they care who or what is on the ballet.

I think people who do not know who the candidates are or what the issues are-should not vote. Unless, of course, I can show them MY sample ballet, (with my choices filled in) and show them who really matters (to me).

 I believe that neighbors helping neighbors and family helping family get to the polling places is a good thing but when buses of "helpers" show up in critical states to "help" all they are doing is helping their canidate (all sides are guilty)

Nancy and I (and the rest of Turlte River) have already voted-We vote by mail- and in my opinion every one should do it that way We have a have a two week window in which to vote.  No stress, no problem and most every one here votes.

Let the games begin.

Mulligan Encourages Everyone to Vote November 4

Mulligan is joining his mom working on non-partisan voter engagement efforts. He reminds everyone to vote November 4. I have had the great honor to focus my work the past 2 months on engaging disengaged citizens to venture out to the ballot box. You would be completely surprised on how many people do NOT vote. Offer help and encouragement to coworkers, neighbors, friends and family (even if they may be on the other side of the fence from you...no pun intended!). Join Mulligan in helping Minnesota retain the highest voter turnout State in the entire Country!!

Palin 2012?

There's lots of buzz in the media these days about a potential presidential run by Sarah Palin in 2012. They Mayan calendar also predicts a major cataclysm will occur in 2012. Coincidence??

SEATTLE MEMORIES

Bonnie, Mom and I at the beginning of our trek to Seattle, Oct. 17th.

Cousins: (L to R) Renee Cappetto, Laura Ptolemy, Carol Saunders, Bonnie Klasen, Donarae Gregerson, Bill Gregerson, Larry Brand.

Mom with Babe and Lorraine.

Babe and Louie.

And, the highlight of our trip. Mom and Babe were so glad to see each other! One of my most poignant memories was seeing her and Babe in their goodbye hug. Mom started to cry and looked up at Babe, saying, "I'll never see you again." I was crying right along with them. I'm so glad they could see each other one last time.

Friday, OCT 24, 2008 It's coming

ROSEAU... BAUDETTE... RED LAKE... BAGLEY...
BEMIDJI... LAKE ITASCA... PARK RAPIDS 332 PM CDT FRI OCT 24 2008 ... STRONG WIND AND SNOW SHOWERS POSSIBLE THIS WEEKEND...
A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA SATURDAY AFTERNOON... THEN PROGRESS QUICKLY THROUGH THE REST OF WESTERN MINNESOTA SATURDAY NIGHT. NORTHWEST WINDS NEAR 30 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS WILL OCCUR SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY ACROSS THE ROSEAU... BAUDETTE... BEMIDJI... AND PARK RAPIDS AREA. THERE IS ALSO A THREAT FOR SNOW SHOWERS ACROSS THIS AREA. THE STRONG WINDS COMBINED WITH SNOW SHOWERS COULD REDUCE VISIBILITIES AT TIMES.

STAY TUNED TO LATER STATEMENTS ON THIS SIGNIFICANT WEATHER EVENT.

A Good Fall Day

Steve and I went out and cut a load of wood yesterday-It took us old guys about 4 hours to cut and stack 1 1/4 cords. He can heat his house and shop for about three weeks on a cord of wood. 

We cut maple and it sure is heavy-We cut it into 20" logs and didn't split it. Some logs took both of us to get it into the truck. I was really tapped out after we got done. We started a little fire and roasted wieners and had a good little lunch-Food really tastes good cooked over an open fire in the woods! 

It was a great fall day!

Making beer for the United Way

We raised $200 for the United Way of Bemidji and had a blast! Nancy and I hosted the event and I taught the class-Everyone had a good time and we all agreed we need t do this again-!

36 Degrees

It's a cool night tonight! A great night for a dip in the hot tub-a waxing moon and clear dark sky makes this the near perfect hot tub night. You can see your breath and tons of steam roll out of the hot water...It's a good day in Minnesta.

Sound financial advice

TUCSON, AZ—After reviewing his client's income, assets, and personal budget Tuesday, Morgan Stanley financial adviser Henry Dalton determined that Jason Hutchinson, 43, could make the best use of his portfolio by dropping dead at the age of 62. "Taking account of inflation and the rising cost of living versus the projected direction of the economy in the coming decade, I told Mr. Hutchinson that he could significantly reduce his spending by simply living less," Dalton said. "After looking at his investments, I calculated that he really shouldn't live a day over 62—or 59 if he wants a funeral." In order to help his client plan for his financial future, Dalton presented Hutchinson with several of the company's comprehensive suicide packages.

 

The Onion

Fall fruit makes us all happy~

The very little fruit bearing items we have in our yard seem to keep us anticipating all summer. We seem to finally hit the jackpot beginning in October. Kaner loves grabbing his after school snack without passing by the kitchen. The raspberries are called "kiwi raspberries" they are ripe when light pink. They are FANTASTIC, better then red in our opinion. The only problem is Kane is quicker and lower to the ground, Ryan and I rarely get to sneak one in~

This vid was forwarded on to me via email and I think is quite a few years old. Apparantly, there was some kind of oil spill near Australia where the front fell off a ship. This is a hilarious (fake) interview of an Australian politician (again fake) about the incident. It made me laugh so I'm forwarding to on.

Twin Cities 10 Mile

If you'll look carefully, there's a familiar looking guy in a long sleeve shirt running like the wind. Yep, that's me. If it's a little fuzzy, that's because the camera had a little trouble focusing on something moving so fast!

This pic was taken during the final moments of the Twin Cities 10 Mile run this past Sunday. It was a great run.

Cooking with the Candidates

Man, this morning my mind is cooking...who won, who lost, who smiled, who frowned, who threw the best slam, who, who, who??? (Who cares?) I am confused about which one to vote for...am I alone? So, I asked the (easy out) question, "Is Ralph Running?"

(I posted this on my "cooking blog," but decided to re-post it here).

Fire Stick Dilema

 We visited Nick and Scott a couple of weeks ago and had a very nice fire in the new fire pit-But there was one thing missing-a fire poker-So Nancy and I have been searching for just the right kind of poker-

But I am not sure they are really up to or able to use such a cool poker as this one- Since Dale was original (father of the fire poker) I thought we should ask him for his insight.

Oh Great Father of the  Poker(Dale)-Hear our words...

Shall we allow them to

1) Use it untrained or unsupervised-no training needed?

2) Let them be trained during long bonfires (for a few summers) at family outings.

3) Not let them into the(Holder of the Poker) fold- ever-(after all-they live in a city)

Now you other fire guys (or gals), you can chime in as well-What should we do?

Lehman Brothers Boss Defends $484 Million in Salary, Bonus

Lamon-we spell our name wrong-

It should be Lehman-maybe we could get a piece of the $484 Million in Salary and Bonuses...Maybe we should be taking some of his money(houses and property) back-to help fund the crazy bailout!

The farmers market had lots of winter squash available today-We are cooking a bright orange variety-Looks wonderful-

On top of that-Dirty Wild Rice Bake Yum...

Fall Colors

Youtube link

Somebody in Ely has a great sense of humor!

Thanks Aaron

700+ billion

I guess the US Senaters (including Obama and McCain) thought that 700 billion dollars  was just not enough to get the bill through- so they beefed  it up-(or porked it up)

WHAT ARE THEY THINKING? 

And how much more will congress tack on today? Are we talking a trillion- ($1,000,000,000,000)  

Are we are being porked...

Fall Has Arrived-First Frost-First Fall Fire

I woke up to our  thermometer-saying that it had reached freezing- its 30 degrees. This year it has been a long late summer in Bemidji-Nancys flowers are doing well and there is still tomatoes in the garden-So after today-that all changes. When its gets colder some things get better-and one of the things I really like is a fall campfire-So this weekend will be our first "after the frost" fire. 

Frugality

Gary mentioned in his last post that it would be interesting to list some of our ways of saving money. Dale & I have three areas that we target: food; energy; entertainment.

Because I am not willing to sacrifice taste and good quality food, I choose to cook at home. I am convinced that restaurants don't have our best interests in mind when they throw entrees together. I think about fat content; shortcuts; bugs, etc...& I want to cook at home. Even though I work 36-40 hours per week, I consider myself a scratch cook and feel that we save money there. I do go to the farmer's market and a meat market and turn my head occasionally when prices are too high and justify it with, well, we aren't eating out much anymore!

Energy is another area that we are trying to cut back on using. Normally this time of the year we are using our (propane) gas which we filled in July ($1000), but we've decided to have a small wood fire instead & save our propane for the days when the temps are closer to zero. So far that is working.

Last winter the "aha" light came on in my head when I decided that I no longer needed to run my clothes dryer constantly. I dry clothes for about 15 minutes (to get the wrinkles out) and then hang them on hangers to dry. I checked our electric bill for two months in a row & the saving was approximately $30 a month! And, the clothes came out nicer! I do continue to dry towels, underwear and sheets, however.

Entertainment is another item we refuse to give up, so we have gotten smarter. Remember those days when we played games/cards/puzzles? That was really fun! We don't go to too many movies, but when the temps get colder, we rent or wait for them to come out on TV. We aren't willing to give up cable this time of the year because that is about $10 per week that comes out of our entertainment budget. We love baseball, hockey, outdoor, food channel, etc.

I guess it is all about choices and the quality of life we choose to live. As we approach retirement I realize that the financial choices that we have made as a couple have been pretty "sound" ones. For that, I am happy. We would be in a world of hurt otherwise.

The Market

Gary asked in a comment to an earlier post about any market insight I may have with what's going down on Wall Street today. Even though I work in the financial services industry, I don't have a lot of day to day dealings with the market and stock trading. But I am following the current crap that's rolling downhill right now with a lot of interest. One of the best summaries of what is happening that I have read actually comes from our company's CFO, Ted Truscott. I'm not enough of a corporate drone to have warm fuzzy feelings about all of our management and their actions, but Ted is one guy who usually can do no wrong in my eyes. I think he's a smart guy and knows the markets well. Here's a brief excerpt from his latest market update from September 23, prior to the $700b package failing to get through congress and the market going down nearly 800 points (highest single day point loss, but not even in the top 10 of highest percentage losses):

As young commercial bankers, we learned a lot of lessons about credit from demanding, and not particularly polite, bosses. It was boot camp, and I am afraid that a whole generation of today's bankers are about to go back to boot camp themselves. We learned that borrowing short and lending/investing long was an eventual recipe for disaster at any corporation, and particularly banks. We also learned the “C's” of credit, which included character, capacity and collateral.

A borrower had to be of sound character or perhaps a loan might not be repaid. The capacity to repay, including the ability of an individual to remain employed or a company to generate free cash had to be present; otherwise the loan was too risky. Finally, there was collateral. A home could secure a mortgage, a plant could secure a long-term loan and receivables could secure a short-term loan. The collateral had to be substantive because falling prices could render the collateral worth less than its stated value.

The last 25 years, particularly the last five, have seen all the rules of credit cast aside. Our nation has feasted on credit in order to live beyond our means and to create higher investment returns than could be sustained. Character has mattered all too little, capacity has been imagined rather than real, and collateral (particularly homes that secure mortgages) has fallen deeply in value.

How's that for calling a spade a spade? You can read the full market update here, or if you've got the time and find this stuff to be interesting you can read all four market updates Ted has issued since June. The links are below:
June 12
July 15
September 8
September 15
September 23

The closing line of the final article is better advice than I can give:
"At the end of the day, we continue to encourage investors to stay invested, be disciplined and resist the urge to let emotions drive their decisions — even during difficult times like these."

Is it time to tighten up?

Who really knows what is going to happen with the future-

As for me I hate paying for the high heat costs, high transportation costs, high grocery etc-
I am trying to figure out how  spend less certain things- or to be more "frugal". Dale and Lois saved about $50 by repairing and old wheelbarrow. 

 One thing we do is we have decided not to go into town on the weekends. We do our shopping after work and that saves us a few ways-we save the money on gas for the extra trip- and we tend not to buy as much unneeded stuff when we shop,-because we just want to get home. But the big bonus is that we gained some extra time on the weekend by not needing to go shopping.

Another way we are saving some-is by weather striping and filling in/repairing some of the holes around the house-I was surprised how many openings there were in the house.

I am trying to do more work from the office as opposed to driving all over the state-when gas was relatively cheap-its wasn't an issue-today-if I drive more than 100-150 miles in a day-that becomes an expensive day-

I am also trying to work from home at least once in a while-As a salesman I can do that from time to time...I'm not sure about how productive I am but I do know the house gets a bit cleaner and the pets are happier and I still take care of my customers.

Let us know some of the things you are doing to cut your expenses.

  

Happy Birthday to you...

Happy birthday Carol! Hope you have a great one!

End of Summer Activities

This was a very busy weekend for this Lamon family-We had our nephews Joe and Dylan over from Friday to Sunday afternoon-

We started out with a rainy Friday evening-so we just had supper and played some cards(Phase 10) and watched/snoozed through the debate and since we were all tired out we were done by 11.

Saturday started out by eating the cold leftover pizza for breakfast, mowing the grass (mulched the pine needles), introduced the boys to golf, tossed the football around, roasted hot dogs, had a campfire, watched a scary movie with popcorn-

Sunday, we made a big breakfast together, played a bunch of games of HORSE and PIG (Basketball), more golfing around the yard, ladder ball and of course we went into the hot tub three times over the weekend-

Luckily-its Monday morning and I get to rest by going back to work!

He saved $49.99

Fall Beauties

This is a rose plant that Dale bought for me V-day, 2006, & when Spring arrived, I stuck it outside because I didn't want it to die. Last summer not a blossom was to be found...but this summer it has been absolutely bountiful (25-30 continuous blooms) and beautiful.

We are completely enjoying the colors of autumn and it seems gradual because we haven't had a killing frost yet and that is good.

Happy fall.

What in the world?

OK I realize that the financial markets have been a little, how you say, wacky, for the last couple of weeks.  But the most surprising thing I've read came today:

 

UNITED NATIONS - Michael Douglas had to field questions Wednesday about the financial turmoil shaking world markets from reporters recalling his role in the 1987 film "Wall Street."

The actor sought to focus on the subject of Wednesday's news conference — urging the United States and eight other holdout nations to ratify a nuclear test ban treaty.

Douglas won an Academy Award for portraying the rapacious banker Gordon Gekko, who popularized the phrase "greed is good" in the movie.

After world leaders here condemned the "boundless greed" of world markets, Douglas was asked to compare nuclear Armageddon with the "financial Armageddon on Wall Street."

But the likening to Gekko did not end there, with a reporter asking: "Are you saying Gordon that greed is not good?"

"I'm not saying that," Douglas replied. "And my name is not Gordon. He's a character I played 20 years ago."

Douglas, who married actress Catherine Zeta-Jones in 2000, has won two Oscars — as a producer for 1975's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and as best actor for his role in "Wall Street."

Perhaps they should track down Charlie Sheen and get his opinion.  It's been a while since I've seen Wall Street, but his character seemed more level-headed than Michael Douglas'.  This is a sign that the American media has really jumped the shark. 

Bauman Family Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Every fall is marked by our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. Going early is the key to a great selection of pumpkins to choose from. We tried a new farm this year (just outside of Kimball). Fairhaven Farms, they feature a corn maze (with an Arthur scavenger hunt), you pick pumpkins, raspberries and apples and a beautiful flower garden. Enjoy some pics~

A bad day at fishing...

A bad day at fishing is better than a day a good day at work...(Its Friday)...My neighbor and I skipped work today to enjoy some of the lasts days of summer...All said-7 Walleye and 3 Northerns...

Eli Mattson From Duluth

Will he be the next winner? He is very good!

Obama Quote

"if you think those lobbyists are working day and night for John McCain just to put themselves out of business, well then I've got a bridge to sell you up in Alaska."

Smokin....

I have always wanted to have a smoker-So last weekend I went to Wally World and bought this little smoker ($28). It's a little charcoal and wood burning unit.-

So far we have tried a a rack of pork ribs (wonderful)-

Salmon-and a Pork Butt Roast for pulled pork sandwiches.

So last night we had a feast (no veggies)-Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Salmon and Hopesy...of course that makes a great day for enjoying a brew too.

Beet-leaf holopchi

Don't make this if you are thinking about calories...Mmmm....This should be on Lois Cooks its so good!

Apple Trees

We have been wanting to plant apple trees for some time-We would put them on the south side of our garden-So today I went and purchased two apple trees-

My neighbor, Hugh Krause, saw the trees and asked what kind of fruit trees they were...I answered "apple trees..." He responded "deer candy!"

So that go me thinking...so I went to the Internet and googled about protecting apple trees from deer-and found this story-it is a great idea (and story) and I will be trying the new method this fall...(Dale G-Did your fences work?)

Thanks to Joy Lamb for this story. Here is a link with more details... http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/lamb39.html

A huge brown beast stared at me as I drove through our apple orchard toward the house. I parked, walked quickly into the house, and said to my husband, "Tom's bull is munching on our apple trees."
He shot past me out the door, yelling, "Call Tom and tell him to get over here now!"
The next half hour was spent running this way and that. We chased south and withdrew to the north. We herded south and blocked on the east and west. Finally the bull, several cows, and one fat sheep were escorted out of our orchard and into their own pasture. During this process, the bull nonchalantly stepped over a three-foot fence and trampled my garden. Later, while discussing the event with Tom, we decided that we were glad that most of our vegetables, flowers, and shrubbery had been spared. The apple trees were left standing with only minor damage to the foliage and fruit.
This incident was only one of many animal-related problems we had faced since we had become backwoods homeowners. Deer stripped new growth off young fruit trees, cats used vegetable plots for litter boxes, and visiting dogs dashed through flower and vegetable gardens, trampling as they went. Even our own dog loved to dig in planted areas rather than the natural wooded areas. We were frustrated. My husband built fences higher and higher around the orchards. This was useless, as deer can jump amazingly high. I planted shrubs, flowers, and vegetables, only to have them torn up by dogs. The cats loved the freshly worked soil, and rabbits nibbled at what was left. And this was not the first time we had been invaded by bovine beasts. What were we to do?
At first we tried fences. We fenced groups of trees, we fenced islands of flower gardens around the house, and we fenced vegetable plots. We created a botanical zoo with plant cages all over our property. The fences kept the dogs out but did not faze the cats, cows, and rabbits that wandered through. The deer were not even slowed down by the fences, no matter how high we made them. The fences were unsightly and very inconvenient when we were caring for the plants and trees. We became vigilant plant guards, but decided we did not want to dedicate our lives to this pursuit, especially our lives between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Fencing is laid in two sections around a fruit tree. The tree can be watered, fertilized, sprayed and harvested with the wire in place.
We thought through the problem and came up with a solution. We immediately put into action our "Protect Trees and Plants from Four-Legs Plan," and very soon we knew we had a plan that worked.
We had used livestock fencing attached to wood and metal stakes for fences. We removed the stakes, cut the wire fencing into workable sizes, and just laid it on the ground in the areas we wanted to protect. Once an animal puts a foot on the wire, it backs up. We were and still are amazed at how well this works.
Our dog will not enter the areas covered with wire, so no more uprooted and trampled plants. No more holes dug under trees. The cats find better areas to scratch, and best of all, the deer keep away from our trees. It is so nice not to have all the new growth eaten off the trees. We have not had a visit from a bull, cow, or sheep since we laid the wire, but we think it will work for them, too. We have found bear spoor in the areas furthest from the house, but our trees and their fruit have remained undamaged. I still see rabbits in the clover surrounding the apple trees and in the native undergrowth, but there have been no holes dug around the wire-protected trees. We have not detected any damage to the fruit trees or the gardens caused by rabbits.

I will keep you updated on the apple trees...

That didn't take long...

It amazes me how some industries can turn on a dime and big business and government turns like a battleship!

Give a man a beer, waste an hour. Teach a man to brew, and waste a lifetime

North Country Business Products (where I work) is a major sponsor of the United Way. We have fund raisers from time to time. One of the recent fund raisers was an Auction. People would donate things or get stuff from other businesses and then we would auction the items off.
Each year I have donated a couple of 6 packs of homemade beer...the beer usually sold for around $20.00 a six pack.
We this year, both of my beer recipes we not very good. So I had nothing....
I decided to donate my time and knowledge of brewing-So I make up a flyer that said-"Learn How To Brew" -Minimum donation to the united way was $25.
We ended up selling eight of these lessons-for a total donation of $200.
So now I figure I need to makea couple of two batches-get some extra bottles and have a party! It should be fun!
Give a man a beer, waste an hour. Teach a man to brew, and waste a lifetime

Whoops

Congratulations Ms. Vice President!

She's ready!

 

She hunts...

and fishes...

and snowmobiles...

and she is tough...

and she is an independant thinker...

and she supports the unions...

(at least her union card touting husband)

What more could Minnesota want?

Political humor

I know I shouldn't be taking shots at a political figure's children. But I found this too funny to resist:


You can get your own here.