We enjoyed a much cooler week since we last touched base. We covered Ann’s mums a couple nights due to frost warnings. The farmers are out in their fields every day now, changing the landscape of our daily commute to and from work. The leaves from one of our maple trees in the front yard have already changed and fallen to the ground, filling our yard full of crunchy, brilliantly-hued orange, red & yellow foliage. We got the house and vehicles ready for the colder months, which is a yearly exercise that we always look forward to – a sure sign that our favorite time of the year is upon us again! I’m surprised Ann hasn’t asked me to get her fall / Halloween & Thanksgiving decorations out yet… Matt was quiet this week, focusing on work and had a little fun over the weekend with his buddies; otherwise, just living life with Ms. Taylor up in Carmel. Abby worked each day, feeling better than last week. We didn’t see her this week, though we were invited up for another tailgate but we had other plans already, unfortunately. She stayed up in Franklin all week with Mr. Will. We didn’t see much of Luke either this week. He was house-sitting all week, doing his odd jobs, attending his classes, working on his truck and spending time with Ms. Samantha. That left a lot of private time for Ann & I with the dogs. We enjoyed spending time with friends this week and doing stuff around the house. I got back on my diet and managed to lose about six pounds. So, as much as I hate it; it definitely works for me – so I can’t complain. I fell well short of my exercise goal, not even notching ten miles this week due to work, weather and life. I did manage to play nine rounds of disc golf, keeping my arm in shape while giving my ankle a little rest. The new brace I’ve begun wearing definitely helps – for sure. I did sign up for two disc golf tourneys on my birthday weekend. I’ll play in the morning of both days that weekend in Batesville and Columbus…I can’t wait! I haven’t actually ever played in a tourney. The first one I signed up for was on the same weekend as one of the kids’ graduations, so I’m really excited!! I’m hoping to play more golf this coming week before the weather really changes… Hello again and welcome to the latest edition of the Scheu Family Blog.
It was chilly again on Monday morning as I uncovered Ann’s flowers after another frost overnight. We were greeted with a spectacular view of the full moon out our front window during our commute back to Columbus that morning. I had a fast morning as I began my weekly 48-hour fast. It was Columbus Day, and although the government had the day off, Ann & I’s offices were both open and back at it. I had a fast morning as I put away stock for an hour then did payroll, caught up all the paperwork from the weekend and headed into a meeting with the management team. We are downsizing and capping the census due to our inability to properly staff the building without paying exorbitant amounts of overtime bonuses. It’s crazy to think that it’s actually better for business right now by having the house emptier. I really hate this post-Covid world right now. I wonder if things will ever go back to normal… I did some IT stuff in the afternoon as well as worked on a couple projects before calling it a day. I played 18 holes of disc golf at the AirPark on a lovely afternoon in the mid-seventies. I threw one of my new Katana discs for the first time on the fourth hole…and promptly hit a small brick wall around the beacon and took a huge chunk out of it. What is it with me and this specific type of disc?? I was pretty upset but was more determined than ever to push on. I only managed to throw a par on the 1st 9. The wind eventually died down and by the time I began the 2nd round, I was starting to throw much better. I wound up throwing 5 birdies – including 17 and 18 to end it with a new personal best of 22 and ended the day with a 49. After running errands, I dropped Ann off at home and went out to the park to play another 18 holes of golf. I continued throwing well on the front 9, ending with a 21 (1 off my PB for that course) but followed it up with a 24 after taking a penalty stroke on 11 when I had to fish my disc out of the pond. I was happy to end with a 45 and all my discs still in my bag. I came home a little sweaty as it was fairly humid that evening. Luke called me out back, where he was with Ann and Samantha…and a sweet little golden doodle called Joy. She and Delilah were loving every minute of each other’s company – running and playing until they passed out in the grass. Luke was house and dog-sitting for Oakley’s aunt that night and had the gig all week. He will be spending the night out there for the next few days. I culled pictures and videos for this week’s blog and did my weekly backups while watching football that evening. I was pretty hungry, but in lieu of eating I just went on to bed while Ann wound up staying up far too long and fell asleep in her chair. Here are pictures from Homecoming last weekend.
It was back to work on Tuesday morning, though we didn’t have to let the car warm up that morning (which was nice), it stunk awfully of Bausback’s. ? It should be illegal for the town to smell that badly. It was another busy day at work for me as I put away more stock that morning then worked on purchase orders and finished up our 911 project, called the Kari’s Law or 933. Upon completion, I had to test it by actually calling 911. It sounds stupid, but I was a little scared as I had never done it before. That afternoon, I did video surveillance rounds, met with my folks to discuss how the census cap impacts our budget and how we will need to run our departments and then finally began my monthly reports. After work, I again enjoyed a gorgeous afternoon in the mid-seventies. It was very breezy and played havoc with my throws on certain holes. I have a long way to go to break in my new Katana and may have to alter the big “bite??? that was taken out of it yesterday. I had some decent tee shots and several nice approach shots, but the putts were not pretty. I shot a 25 and 24 to end the day with another 49. We stopped to get gas on the way home. There was an unadvertised sale at the Sunoco that was about 50 cents cheaper than gas in-town so we filled up and then grabbed slushes and burritos at Sonic on our way home. Although I was hungry from time to time that day, I did really well with my 48-hour fast. I skipped playing at the park that night because I was ready to eat. Ann talked to her mom that evening and I texted with Will for a bit. His friends made it safely back to Norway but one of them took home a souvenir from the States – a big, fat case of Covid! ? Luke was already gone that evening, attending his Fire 1 class with Alex in New Pal by the time we got home. The dogs spent a couple hours outside and enjoyed barking at the lady next door that was walking around out back. I’m not sure if that’s one of the owners or a possible tenant. Either way, I hope they trim the damn grass along the fence line on their side. I told Annie that I’ll probably just spray it next year. I hate to do that, but I shouldn’t have to trim their side of the fence. It only got done one time this summer…the one time that I did it! I’m not sure if Luke did any mowing that day or not, but our yard didn’t look like it got done at least. I do know that he spent the night that evening out at Oak’s aunt’s house again, dog and house-sitting. Annie and I napped with the dogs while watching several DVR’d shows. I began editing pictures before making myself go to bed sometime after midnight.
We woke up to rain on Wednesday morning. It looked like we received a decent amount during the overnight hours – something we needed as they have started giving red flag warnings (burn bans) around the state due to the dry conditions and heavy winds. It was another fast day for Ann & I – especially the morning. I no sooner got caught up on things then it was time for lunch. As it was Jim’s one-year anniversary of being with us (man, what a year it’s been!), we took him out for lunch at Chicago’s Pizza – the first place we took him to during his first week of employment out there. I drove separately to pick up Annie and bring her with us and we got there a little after they had…and he had already paid for his own lunch – dammit. I was stuffed all afternoon and ready to go out and play some golf after work. I played 18 holes at the AirPark, there in Columbus on a very blustery day. The wind was swirling, starting in the west and moving around to the point where it was coming out of the south by the time I finished. I had to take a short break after the first round when it started raining. I wound up playing through the rain for the first couple holes in the 2nd round and then it finally stopped. It messed with me pretty good and in wound up throwing a 53. I dropped off Ann and went out to the park when we got back to the ‘Burg. I was hoping to play another 18 holes, but I stopped after 9 due to it beginning to rain again and it was getting dark as well. I started off on fire, throwing form the front tees. I headed to the island, four under par. I missed a couple long putts on 5 and 6 before nailing a great putt from about 40’ on 7 but then missed another easy putt on 9 to end with a 21 – one off my PB. I was so close to hitting it again! By the time I got home, Ann had dinner ready. The house looked great as Julie came over to clean the house that morning. We ended up eating in front of the TV while watching the weekly FBI trilogy. I didn’t see Luke all day as he stayed out at Oak’s aunt’s house again that evening. He told Ann that he really liked “living??? on his own. I told Ann that ya, he likes the freedom without the responsibilities – LOL. I would too!! ???? Here are random pictures from our recent adventures.
Ann enjoyed sleeping in on Thursday morning. I tried to be quiet but wound up knocking the gate over and it slammed to the floor…d’oh! Luke worked construction that day in Versailles. He & Alex drove up to Indy for their Fire 1 class for several hours and got back pretty late that night. He met up with Sam, who came by the house and spent time with Ann then they went out to Oak’s aunt’s house to house/dog sit one more night. She spent the day cleaning her dresser out…yes, you read that right – her dresser hasn’t looked that good since the day we moved in here! ???? Meanwhile I had a good day that went by really fast. We met with representatives for Representative Pence and a couple UHS folks. He is going to make an appearance at our facility for a meet & greet next week. We’ve had other local politicians out there before, but they’ve really gone overboard with this one. I got out of work a little late that afternoon and although I was hoping to go play at both Columbus courses, I instead went on back to Greensburg and went shopping at Needlers to get supplies for that night. Back at the house, Ann and I (well, Ann…) made “sammich??? sliders like she made for last weekend’s tailgate. I also took a container of peanuts & candy corn as well as a bag of Grippos. To drink, I brought diet Dr. Pepper and Cherry Ices. I stopped by the Beverage House on my way out to Scott’s house. I picked up a bottle of Yukon Jack Fire and found that they had also received a couple cases of Crown Royal Carmel! We’ve been looking for a bottle of that since we killed off the last one two years ago. It is Fall Break, and as such – people are very busy. We only had four guys that night, but Scott’s son joined us as well and we had a good time. The food was outstanding, the booze flowed freely and we still played a ton of cards. I wound up a dollar ahead, so I’ll take it! The football game had a lot of good defense (or was it just bad offense??). Either way, it was low scoring – the way I like it! We have lots of social media pictures to share this week.
Ann took the day off from work again on Friday. I pushed snooze for about 45 minutes before dragging my butt out of bed. I showered quickly then made my way out to the family room to work from my desk that day. It still surprises me how much I can accomplish, here at the house. I knocked out all but two reports (I’ve been trying to work on them for over a week now at the office!). I still did some IT stuff from here as well as some purchasing but really did well staying focused on reports. I agreed to pick up a shift on the floor tomorrow night. They must really be desperate to want an old, fat, hairy guy work with the kids! LOL! Luke did more construction work that day. When he finished that, he stopped by the house to load up his truck and go out and mow/trim his yards real quick for the first time in a couple weeks. He dropped me off at J&A Auto to pickup the Barneymobile after Jerry fixed the brakes and a window motor. It’ll be nice to drive it for the next few months and give Black Betty a well-needed rest for the winter. When Luke finished mowing, he came home to change and went out to the Y to lift weights. He said it was the fourth time this week. It’s good to hear he’s getting back into it. Later, Sam came over and they wound up hanging out Annie made tuna salad sandwiches for dinner that night – one of my faves! We watched several DVR’d shows that evening as I edited pictures and videos that evening until we fell asleep and went on to bed.
I was up early on Saturday morning. Ann wasn’t long after me. She got cleaned-up and went out with Amy all day. She wasn’t sure what all they were going to do, but they had several options ahead of them, including Madison, Louisville or even staying here in town. I got Luke up and we went over to help Mom & Sandy get all their Christmas stuff moved out of the garage & attic and into the house. Afterward, we picked up breakfast at Wendy’s and came home. Luke & Sam hung out for a while as I began writing out html code and watched all the new Rick & Morty episodes from this season. Afterward, Luke helped me get the air conditioners taken out as we prepped the house for winter. I then drained the water out of the truck and loaded it with antifreeze, prepping it for winter as well. I grabbed a little lunch, showered and headed back to Columbus to work 2nd shift on the unit that afternoon / evening. Meanwhile, Ann & Amy bebopped around the area in a little electric car called a Chevy Bolt. It was the first experience either of us had with that type of vehicle. They wound up in Louisville at Work the Metal then went to eat at South Seas, what they thought was a Mexican restaurant but turned out to be Hawaiian. Whatever it was, they loved it. ???? They met an interesting lady there that told them about another place to go but once they got there, they weren’t very impressed as they found more to laugh at the 70s-retro shop than anything chic that they would purchase. She said there was a bunch of stuff that their parents and grandparents had and that they’d never consider having in their own homes. Funny what goes in and out of fashion. They wound up leaving there and going on to Madison to visit a store that they knew they loved called the Olde Tyme Marketplace. From there, they found a great little place down off the beaten path, down an alley called Sally’s by the Shore that had homemade ice cream – yum! They weren’t sure how much charge the car would hold so they had a little anxiety, but it did great. They were going to play a prank on me if I wasn’t at work – LOL. As it turned out, I worked with a lady that is from Greensburg and has been with us for several years. I let her take charge of the unit and I just followed her lead. That plan worked out great for us. We had one of the more challenging units, which I was surprised they put me over there…but we wound up having a great evening. They asked if I wanted to stay after, but I was so tired that I was having a little trouble keeping my eyes open. In fact, I had a little scare driving as I was really tired. I was only about 20 seconds from the house, on Park Rd and I started to nod off but caught myself. ? After that, I was a little wound-up and decided to make some chips and cheese while watching a couple DVR’d shows. I didn’t make it past the second and the next thing I knew was Ann was waking me up (she was already in bed when I got home) saying I should come to bed (not sure if I woke her up snoring?), which I’m thankful since my neck was sore from the position I was in – LOL! Here are pictures of recent additions to my Hot Wheels collection.
We enjoyed sleeping in on Sunday morning. When I did finally get up, I quickly got dressed and went to Walmart to do the shopping I should’ve done yesterday when I wound up working. When I got home, Ann put stuff away while I started the truck (I had to charge it overnight) to go fill it up with gas and fill the rest of the radiator with coolant as I prepped it for a long winter’s nap. I folded the towels in the dryer, loaded the dishwasher, took out the trash and did a couple loads of laundry – our weekly household chores. Ann and Delilah had Sandy & Olive over for the morning. It was really nice out on the back porch, where the gals had coffee while the dogs ran their butts off. Afterward, we watched the Fantasy Football Now weekly show and set our lineups for the week before flipping on RedZone to watch some football. I eventually turned on the Colts game and flipped between the two channels during the early games while I finished up the blog – editing & uploading pix & vids, writing out the rest of the html code and finding an apt name for this week’s entry and adding in the videos. We both got in a nap before watching the end of the games. The Colts managed to pull one out late but my fantasy football team sucked again. I don’t know why but my bench continues to outscore my starters no matter how many times I mix them up. ? On a positive note, I did sign up for another disc golf tournament. This one is also on my birthday weekend but over in Batesville. Luke & Sam found it for me on Facebook (thanks guys!). It is an 18-hole tourney, using the 9 holes in Liberty Park as well as the 9 holes next door in Liberty Woods. So now I have one on Saturday morning and one on Sunday morning. Both are early tee times – 9 and 940, respectively. I hope its not too chilly because I don’t throw nearly as well with a sweatshirt on. I may have to take it off to throw and then put it back on to keep warm! Luke came home for about 10 seconds to pickup something for Sammi and then promptly left. I don’t think he even turned his truck off. Apparently, he was headed to Batesville to celebrate Samantha’s father’s birthday. We watched more football in the afternoon and took it easy. I added a few new titles to my music collection and Ann made us our traditional cheesy Fireworks popcorn for dinner. Afterward, we settled in and geared up to watch the Cowboys / Eagles game. At least I planned to watch the first quarter of the game. If the Cowboys are getting beaten too badly, I may turn it off and watch SEAL Team – a show we’d forgotten about because it’s now on Paramount + instead of being recorded on our DVR. It was a nice way to wind down a fast weekend and a relaxing way to wrap up another quick week before we turn around and do it all again in the morning…
Next up is our Waybac segment, which continues to feature pictures from Dee’s digital camera from 2007. We lead off at the end of 2006 with a picture of the Gig and the dogs on Main St before heading on to 2007: Luke at Ann’s birthday party in Jan; Sandy’s mayoral campaign in Mar; Matt & I at a Reds game in Apr; Memorial Day weekend in May; 4th of July weekend fun, Grace’s bday and Sandy’s birthday in Jul; Muffin’s new home in Aug; the Van Halen concert in Oct; and we end as we do every year with the annual Owens family Christmas Eve in Dec.
Next up is our video segment which includes one new home movie this week as well as several others from around the internet.
And that does it for this week’s entry 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