It’s been a minute since we last touched base, so let’s get right to it. Welcome to the latest installment of the Scheu Family Blog. A few things have happened since our last entry… Luke has begun working at WTRE. He has always been a great salesman, so he is a natural for this position – and he is! He loves doing it and the fact that it helps out Gigi is just icing o the cake! Abby and I have been having Daddy/Daughter Nights on Wednesdays, playing Phase 10, Rummy and Crazy 8s. It has been great spending time with her! Just before Ann’s birthday, they were talking about “SnowPocalypse’ where they forecasted us to get 3 to 4 feet…but, like usual, we only got two to three inches. In fact, it all melted away by the time we got back home that evening from work. Ann took her birthday off due to having a nasty, persistent cough. Still, she toughed it out and we enjoyed a party at Mom & Sandy’s house with our family with pizzas for dinner. We have enjoyed watching Matt and the young Zionsville West Eagles wrestle on TV. In January, the team really got on a roll, beating Carmel 84-24 and Northview 93-24 to end the month at 12-4. When we finally got the dogs groomed with Macy, Ann, Luke & I enjoyed lunch at Pizzalicious. The Purdue basketball team was ranked #1 in the nation with their 21-1 record. Abby & I played disc golf over in Batesville then went to our favorite liquor store and ate lunch at Lil’ Charlies. Ann went scrapping in Shelbyville with Shawna & friends but had Luke get her early due to feeling ill. Ann & I coughed and hacked the rest of that weekend. I went through a couple boxes of Kleenex and pulled a muscle in my abdomen by coughing so damn hard. We went into work on that ensuing Monday when I got a call from Ann that morning. They were having her mom rushed to the hospital with a suspected stroke. We left work to come home right away, where we met up with Sandy, Dee & Luke. They had all helped get Gma to the ER. Turns out her symptoms were from a high fever that was caused by her being + for Covid! They gave her a heavy dose of meds and she was fine. They released her just a couple hours later, after running a battery of tests. Sandy also tested +, as did Dee…and Ann…and me again (joy)! Luke & Abby were negative, but they’re the ones who started this whole mess a week or so ago but the birthday party was likely where they exposed everyone to this damn virus again…
Abs & I got some great deals on booze, thanks to a heads up from Bryan. Walgreens was going out of business and had their liquor marked down 50% off! I also stopped into the Columbus Walmart and bought up all their Carmel Crown stock, since it was on clearance for $13!! Now, we just need to host a party to work down all the stock in the liquor cabinet…we even have an overstock cabinet now! 😊 Ann took the rest of the week off while I worked from home. Luke also worked from home just to be safe. Abs toughed it out and went to work. On that “Wet Wednesday,” Bu made dinner for us – grilled chicken, baked potatoes & cheesy broccoli – nice! Bu & I enjoyed cocktails and cards in the kitchen afterward while Ann continued to cough and hack. Matt was undefeated in two weeks’ worth of action, running their record up to 14-4 and defeating most opponents handily. I made dinner on Thursday – a double batch of Dirty Rice with a pound each of burger & sausage – yum! On Friday, Ann went to the doctor and found out that her Covid had turned into bronchitis. We enjoyed a Family Night that evening like we used to when the kids were little: we had dinner at BWR, skipped the movie and went straight to games. Seth joined us for games & drinks, where we played euchre & Phase 1 then later played a couple games of Sorry and Crazy 8s. I had to go to bed at 4 am, but kids were still going strong at 5. We obviously slept in Saturday and were pretty useless the rest of weekend. I finally got back out and played golf after work on Monday and did fairly well…but sure was sore that night. I did a 42-hour fast (didn’t quite make it to 48 that week), got Luke’s taxes done and started Abby’s but ran into a weird snag. She had to call school and they claimed innocence but I think they screwed something up. So now I’m in a holding pattern until I can figure out what to do next. We drove up to see Matt in action at Z-West after work on Tuesday for his annual Battle for the Nest. We sat with Taylor and Katie & Jake. The matchup was really close. Although they looked like he would win the 4th straight year, he wound up losing 54-56 with Zionsville Middle coach cheating. At the last minute, he bumped their 245 to 285 just before the 245 match was to begin. I mean, I guess it’s technically legal…but it’s a loophole designed for injury or other situations – not to win the meet by avoiding competition. It was a bullshit move, but Matt had good sportsmanship and showed a lot more class than I would’ve… We went to eat afterwards, trying to go to Blue Taco but they were closed due to replacing a kitchen floor. We walked down the street to Cobblestones but they didn’t give us the time of day so we walked out and went down to the Friendly Tavern for a wonderful meal. Meanwhile, Luke took the next step in his GFD process by attending his interview at the courthouse. It went very well but said struggled with the term “compassionate” which made the panel crackup and put everyone at ease. He said he felt really good about it afterwards and said the half hour flew by! 😊 The next night, I got to play golf again after work before it started raining. When we got home, we heard a snake outside the van…turns out a rear tire was going flat. Luke came out in the rain and tried to help me. We got four lug nuts off (they were very rusty) but last one I accidentally stripped. So, we put it on the street and started charging the Pacifica to take to work in the morning. I moved all our stuff over and called Jerry to see when he can get it in and then call St. Farm to have it towed there. I finished our taxes and e-filed them. Abs was going to go see Joey but decided to stay so we could have our Wacky/Wet Wednesday and enjoyed a couple drinks and an epic game of Crazy 8s for a couple hours (I lost 500 to 484) then watched a new episode of Rick & Morty before calling it a night. On Friday, Abs went out with Seth for dinner and drinks then came home to play cards and enjoy a few cocktails. I played disc golf at Greensburg for the first time since November that weekend. It was the first time with my Squatch bag and Zuma cart and loved every minute of it. I was able to get out there on both Saturday and Sunday and can’t wait until the weather breaks and I can stop wearing my sweatshirt out on the golf course.
During February, Purdue got mauled at Northwestern and the referees stole a victory from them – just horrible… So, after losing on the road and having the floor stormed in 3 of 4 games at IU, NW and Maryland, the Boilers dropped from #1 to #3. This is not the time of the season for a losing streak ☹ We enjoyed a cool Super Bowl Sunday party at Sunken Boat Bar. Most of our friends joined us and we enjoyed lots of fun, food, football and spirits and I got exactly what I asked for – a good, close game with the Chiefs beating the Eagles in the end. Jerry got two tires fixed and Abs took me to pick it up. I got it home and took it right back as I had no brakes! So, Bu took me back and I dropped it back off. Turns out the brake lines had busted and were badly rusted, needing replaced. Another tire was bad and was replaced as well. By weeks’ end, we finally got the Barneymobile back home and swapped all our stuff back into it. I did a 43 hour fast that next week – 1 hour longer than last week, right?! To celebrate, Ann made a delicious batch of chicken tortilla soup for us – yum! Lowe’s FINALLY installed our dishwasher…with a twist…get this: Turns out, the original one they installed and has been sitting here for 3 months…ya that one…turns out it works just fine – always has, in fact! The original installer just didn’t know what the hell he was doing. So not only did he tear up our countertop but also forced us to unnecessarily wash all our dishes by hand for a quarter of a year! Finally, though, Pedro (my dish-doing alter ego) is out of a job now… Abby & I enjoyed a Wet & Wacky evening with a couple cocktails and a couple games of Phase 10 and Crazy 8 that week. The guys and I went to the Savory Swine – a cross between a deli and a butcher shop – for lunch. I loved it! I had the best pastrami – made from brisket – that I’d ever had! Unfortunately, they are closing in the just a few weeks ☹ Ann & I met up with Luke after work at Lowe’s. We picked up a new rug for the back porch (since we melted the old one last year!) and Luke bought a bunch of supplies for him to re-do our bathroom in the coming weeks. After enjoying a couple days in the 50s and 60s, strong winds blew in a cold front and after raining for a solid day, the temps took a nosedive down into the low 20s ☹ We worked from home on Friday, visited Mom & Sandy and had a long talk with Maryann about knee replacement surgery. When we returned home, Ann made filet mignon, taters and cheesy broccoli for dinner – wow! Luke helped me get Barney from Jerry then dog-sat for the Gma & Gigi. Later, he began re-doing the bathroom. He worked out at the Y with Sam and then went to Columbus for dinner. Those kids love that damn Panda Express… On Saturday morning, I cleared the snow and warmed up the car so Ann, Delilah & I could go to St. Paul to get goodies from Wildflour Bakery on a bright, sunny morning. Ann & I spent the day watching shows and napping. I did get out to play 18 holes of golf later, but it was not pretty. The wind was really strong and my putting was crap. Ann and I got takeout from the Chinese restaurant that night and took it easy. Abs spent the weekend up in Franklin with Sarah then went on a date Sunday evening in Bloomington. Luke went shopping in Ohio then went to Sam’s house for dinner where her dad smoked a big batch of ribs for them – one of his favorite meals. Ann made Philly cheesesteaks for lunch then went out with Amy for dinner and a movie (Magic Mike 3). That left me alone with the dogs to watch the Boilers play (they finally got off the snide and destroyed OSU) and the Daytona 500. I decided to go play 18 rounds of disc golf again at the park. The very first throw went smack into the damn pond! I hadn’t done that in several months. I followed that blunder up with another disc in the drink on hole 15, which goes out over the pond. I had a chance to rescue it but my disc grabber is not really that good for retrieving discs underwater and I only pushed it down further and further each time I tried to hook it. I need to look into getting a different retriever for water. I got home and watched the race, checked in my latest batch of Hot Wheels and ordered replacement discs…plus a couple extras – just in case! I got on a streak of playing disc golf nine days in a row, including travelling to Rushville, North Vernon & Batesville as well as Columbus & Greensburg. After a fast week, Luke went to West Lafayette with Sammy & his buddies for a party at Oakley’s apartment. Abs went to Bloomington again for a date with Bakr and then stayed with Hailey and friends in Franklin. Matt had his final week of wrestling during his regular season already. Ann & I looked forward to seeing him again for the season-ending tourney that we’ve done the previous couple years. Annie went to Burney to scrapbook for the weekend. That left me to enjoy playing golf on a lovely weekend. Paul & I played Batesville then went back to his place for a couple Bloody Marys and to catch up. I picked up pizza at the movie theater on the way home for Ann & I. Then on Sunday morning, we went to Shelbyville for breakfast at Grandma’s Pancake House. What a treasure that place is!! We had a long, windy Monday with severe weather all around us. Luke continued renovating the bathroom. I toured the new out-patient building that Jim finally landed and got all the utilities moved over into our name. Later, Brent & I went for a beer and some pulled pork nachos at Ziggy’s to have a long talk…
After missing golf for the first time in a week and a half due to the 50 mph winds on Monday, I did my monthly EOC rounds and then hit the links on Tuesday afternoon. I was late getting done, but it was cool because Abby picked up Ann after work and they went shopping for new stuff for the bathroom. I was really sore when I got home that evening. I decided to finally edit pictures from the past month and work on this first post since retiring from the weekly schedule a little over a month ago. The website is a little messed up right now. Not sure what’s going on but my webhost was unwilling to help me, so I’m not sure WTH I’m gonna do. I might just leave it that way and move on. I watched Matt’s final home meet of the season on TV (which he won and finished the season at 18-6). Purdue (now #5 in the nation) won the Big Ten conference title with a couple wins to end the regular season and now have their sights set on the conference tourney title, entering as the #1 seed. Abs and I enjoyed a Daddy / Daughter night with cards, cocktails and snacks. The next evening, I met up with Bryan and we went to Batesville Liquors to a bourbon event. The makers of Horse Soldier are a group of retired Green Berets – the same veterans from the movie 12 Strong, who were the first boots on the ground in Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks. Captain Mark Nutsch told his story, talked about his line of bourbons and then did a meet & greet. He signed the bottles that Bryan & I purchased, dedicating mine to Ann & I! 😊 I can’t wait to break it open soon! February ended with a big splash of sunshine but with it came a ton of wind. March came in like a lamb with temps in the 70s before a monsoon landed and dumped 2-3” on us a couple days later. Ann & I worked from home on Friday and it was rocking the whole day. The wind and rain hit the front door and made it sound like the door was giving us a “raspberry!” 😊 Ann & I went to Mom & Sandy’s house to play euchre that evening to get Gigi ready for a euchre tourney the next day. She wound up doing really well but came up just a couple points short of winning it all. Glad we could do our part for ya, Gigi! Ann & I went to Zionsville to see Matt coach in his final wrestling event of the year – the year-end conference tourney. His boys did very, very well. It was very exciting…and in end, the young Eagles won the conference title for the first time in school / program history! Way to go, Coach Scheu!! Afterward, we took him out for a big dinner at one of our favorites – Moon Town Brewery in Whitestown, just 10 minutes from the school. We enjoyed a couple cocktails, good food and really enjoyed catching up with Matthew. We ended buying another bottle of their Old 55 bourbon for me to take to the next card night. On our way home, we were nearly run off the road when a stretch Lincoln SUV limo tried to crunch us into a concrete barrier. We had just merged onto 465 (which I hate anyhow) and had actually passed the limo. For whatever reason, the driver sped up and came right into our lane. We were side by side with the driver, so I have no idea how he didn’t see us…but somehow, I was able to bounce back and forth in the limited space I had and the brakes were good enough to get us stopped as we went from about 60/65 mph down to 30 in just a second and a half and watched him come completely into our lane and went on like nothing happened. I have no idea how he didn’t hit us or I didn’t hit the barrier, as there was no shoulder to get over on. Thankfully, there was no one behind us, because as fast as we stopped, there’s no way we wouldn’t have been rear-ended. Greensburg won boys basketball Sectional, defeating Batesville and the Drake boys. Honestly, I had forgotten about it until after the game was over and missed seeing Paul again. Sadly, Gary Rossington (founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd – and the last one still alive) died this past week, likely related to his heart as he’d had a few issues in the past. Closer to home, I also lost a work friend this past week as well. Danny Adriano was a great guy and a gentle giant. He was funny and great to talk with. He was a gym rat that I once saw rip a big Indianapolis phone book in half! I also saw him fold and tear a quarter in half one time as well. We worked very closely and trained our staff together for many years. ☹ I was shocked to hear of his passing, as we had kept in touch in recent years, after he switched careers. This week, I the temps dipped down again but I still managed to get out and play each day. Bu and I had a long Wet Wednesday that made our Thursday nearly unbearable. It was salvaged when Justin came to town to do lunch with Vic, Brent, Jim & Justin C. Ann joined us as well and we enjoyed a good talk at Five Guys. Ann had a girls’ night out at BWR with her scrapping friends then went out with Kristie on Friday night. I finally got Abby’s taxes done and then she had Seth over to play cards and have a couple cocktails, later that night. We had a good time – telling stories, listening to music, laughing…and even went on a midnight walk, out in the cold. We put Abby to bed around 3 and Seth & I had a long talk… Luke spent the night out at Oakley’s house then came home early the next morning to sleep. Abby went out with Daisy to do bridesmaid stuff then went up to Franklin to see her buddy Sarah and go clubbing in Indy. Ann & I took it easy that day. It was a lovely, sunny day but still really cold. Delilah loved going out back and running. Earlier in the week, Luke texted us about not being able to find DJ. Turns out, she had dug a small hole and managed to shimmy under the back fence to get into the neighbor’s yard. She eventually came back on her own and Luke sealed it back up. I thought we were done with that digging stuff. She was so muddy – and pitiful. We watched PUrdue & IU play in the Big Ten tournament that day, played 18 holes of disc golf out at the park and later met up with our friends out at the Lowe’s to celebrate Kristy’s 50th birthday!
Next up is our Waybac segment which continues to feature a great batch of family photos from Deanna in 2008. In January, there are pictures from the girls at the Children’s Museum in Indy as well as a few pix of NYC from the air. There are a few pictures of Chad’s visit to Texas Stadium in March. We have a bunch of pictures from the 4th of July weekend that I really like. Looks like Ann experienced some tornadic activity out there! 😊 Also in July, we see Grace’s birthday party. In August, the girls went to King’s Island for the day. A random picture of Dick taking a nap during Abby’s birthday party at our house. And then we wrap up with a nice batch of pix from the annual Christmas Eve party at Gma & Gigi’s house.
We have one new home movie to share this week as well as a few from around the internet.
And that does it for this special edition of the Scheu Family Blog. Thanks for keeping up with us this time out and we’ll catch up with you again next time. Until then, have a good one and stay safe out there. We miss ya, Mom.
Later, Scheu