BuecheNet News

Running Report

2010-10-13T19:45:00.002-05:00

I missed a couple of runs while Travis and I were in Ohio, but got back on it once we got back. On Saturday I posted my personal best time in a 5k run - 24:50. I even came in at 9th place out of 65. I am not used to "placing" at all in these kinds of events. I am used to bragging about coming in with the first half of the field (when I actually do). I am sure that will continue to be normal for me since this crowd wasn't exactly hard core runners. But hey, it was a boost to the old ego on Saturday.

The House that Rock Built

2010-10-13T12:47:00.003-05:00

Travis and I celebrated his high school graduation during the first weekend in October. We spent two nights in a four star hotel in Cleveland, Ohio. It was good that we didn't go to spend the day swimming in Lake Erie or something like that. It rained the entire time. It rained the whole 400 mile drive out. It rained the entire stay there, and it rained the entire drive back.

All day Saturday we visited the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame. Bruce Springsteen was the featured exhibit, but there were four or five floors of memorabilia from before rock and roll was called rock and roll on up to present day artists. Throughout the day in the lobby there were bands warming up that were to be competing that evening in a battle of the bands. Most of them were pretty good. It was a lot of fun. We tried to find an "in" for the private party that night when they would be competing, but no go.

Saturday night we went to the Beachland Ballroom up the coast of Lake Erie from downtown Cleveland. We saw three bands that night; Arrogant Rex, Bazooka Jones and the 70's rock band Starz. The first and last bands were pretty good. The lead guitarist for Bazooka Jones was really pretty good, but we didn't care for the band as a whole. Travis got to meet most of the members of all the bands. They were all very nice to him and excited that he enjoyed the show so much...and he did.

After getting in late Saturday night/early Sunday morning, we got a little sleep and headed southwest of the city to attend our sister church in Cleveland, Soveriegn Grace Church. The folks there were very nice. We regretted that we had to leave so quickly after the meeting, but we did have 400 miles to cover to get home.

Running On

2010-09-12T20:00:00.002-05:00

I am almost half way through my training for my second half marathon. I have had a perfect six weeks of training so far; hitting all three runs each week for 6 weeks. Today was my second 6 mile run, and I averaged 9:12/mile. Hopefully by November I will be able to average 9:00/mile for 13.1 miles. That will get me across the finish line in under 2 hours. That's a pretty good time for a big guy like me.

Right now I have to be more selective about what runs I take Duke on. They are getting long enough that his paws bleed. He never complains, mind you. He only complains when I leave him at home. I plan on getting him some doggie sneakers, then we will be together again.

Back on the BLOG

2010-09-04T19:35:00.008-05:00

I rented a hoist this weekend to help me take down a big, dead tree in the woods in our back yard. This hoist goes very high, and it needed to. You probably know me enough to know that I don't like heights. I especially don't like heights in a basket at the top of a hoist extended 50 feet high, starting a chain saw and leaning out of said basket to take down tree limbs weighing several hundred pounds! That basket sways back and forth with every movement.

The good news is that I got the job done and kept my pants dry.

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2010-09-04T19:24:00.002-05:00

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A Merry Christmas

2009-12-26T09:25:00.002-05:00

We kept the White for Christmas! Looking out our window the day after, it looks like most of it is gone due to a warm rainy night.

In between installing batteries, loading software, trouble shooting peesky electronics and evacuating wads of wrapping paper, I made this video to savor the spirit of the day.

Ending the Start of Summer

2009-06-29T07:29:00.002-05:00

As a teacher, I mark the start of my summer when my school year ends. Working in Montgomery County while living in Lancaster County results in a staggered start of summer; when my children begin their summer break (typical in Lancaster is the very beginning of June), and when my summer break starts about two weeks later.

Having done several workshops last week, today is the first day of the first week when I am not required to report to work. In two days it will be July, which is staunchly mid-summer in nearly everyone's mind. So as infrequenlty as my blog entries have been, it is time for an update.

Travis began his job at Dutch Wonderland. He has started as a parking lot attendant and should be moving into the security department now that he is 18 years old. He has only been scheduled a few days a week. Outside of work he has been doing some chores and going to the movies fairly frequently.

Pamela started her second year at Dutch Wonderland. She works in the entertainment department. Sometimes she works as a guide for Duke the Dinosaur. It is hard to see in that suit, so he needs a guide to lead him around. He also needs someone to let him know when it is time to take a break since that suit gets very hot inside. Pamela, on occasion, has also been able to be Duke. They say she is a natural at it. She also serves as a host to the various shows that they have there. She works four to five days a week. While not working, she is an ultimate Frisbee fanatic.

Kimberly has a small job cleaning house for a woman in our church. When she is not working there, she has been spending time with friends, mowing her section of the lawn (and often Travis and Pamela's sections as well), riding her dirt bike and talking on the phone...endlessly. Kimberly will be playing goal keeper in a field hockey tournament in Mid-July.

Angela plays with a few friends in the neighborhood and watches TV. She and I went on the father/daughter camp out on our church's farm last weekend. The weather was very pleasant and much fun was had.

The Curse Is Lifted

2009-04-08T20:28:00.002-05:00

After so many years of doing the Shape & Race Derby with Travis as a little guy, and doing miserably, the curse has been lifted. Angela has been attending an Awana Club at Grace Baptist Church in Millersville. They just held their first Shape & Race Derby this evening. No, Angela didn't take first place, but she did win 3rd place for best design.

The evening started off as expected. In the first heat of 4 cars, Angela took a solid fourth place. I thought, "Oh no. Here we go again." But then, in her second heat, she took first place. And in the third heat; first again. Her last heat slumped a bit at third place.

So, we didn't stink and looked pretty good. That's a win in our book.

Letter To Arlen Spector

2009-02-21T11:37:00.002-05:00

This is a family blog, and primarily will continue to be one. The Recently passed stimulus package really has me bugged, though. The current state of the economy is a problem, and it has affected my family by slashing the value of our very small investment nest egg (for college and weddings, etc.) in about half.

Does government have to do something? Is President Obama correct when he says that only government can get us out of this fix? My answer to the first question is, "I'm not sure." My answer to the second question is, "Bull puckey!" Certainly justifying this stimulus package simply by saying that it is the "right size and scope" is like sending you daughter to a beauty contest in a clown suit and saying it is the right size and covers everything that needs to be covered (and so much more). This ignores that fact that it is ridiculous and will be mournfully ineffective.

This is already more than what I wanted to post, so let me say this. I was embarrassed by the three spineless republicans in the senate that voted for this package. Particularly embarrassing was the senator from Pennsylvania, Arlen Spector. His assertion was that we had to do something and this package was the only one that he had the opportunity to vote for, so he did.

That leads me to the letter I sent to him on Thursday. It reads as follows:

Dear Senator Spector,

I read the explanation of your vote for the stimulus package. I also heard your interview with Sean Hannity on the air shortly before your vote. I can't say that I was disappointed in your vote, because I have come not to expect any better from you. It is beyond my comprehension how you, or any other elected representative could vote for a package that you haven't even read and simply state that it is "the right size and the right scope."

Saying that we had to do something and that is why you voted to do this is like throwing a drowning man a rock and saying that you had to throw him something. Although you would have preferred to throw him something that floats, the rock was all that someone would hand to you.

Watch out for Pat Toomey or some such challenger in your next primary. He very nearly took your nomination away last time around. This decision of yours will likely tip the vote next time around. For principled conservatives in Pennsylvania, there will be much rejoicing.

Tom Bueche

We have an opportunity here to draw a stark contrast between conservativism and liberalism. For those that think republicans need to become more moderate to win more elections, think again. JOhn McCain put that notion to bed. Will the republican party resurface as the natural home for conservatives? Now is the time to answer the call. Will republicans pledge now to stop the remainder of the stimulous package in 2010 if they are re-given a majority in congress? Sixty percent of this package's immense spending will have yet been spent by then. Or will the money be allowed to be squandered just like the republicans squandered their majority power over the past 10 years or so?

November News

2009-01-04T15:24:00.003-05:00

My dear OLD dad turned 75 in November. Loretta and I threw him a surprise party, and surprised he was! We had a fairly large number of people there and they all took some time to say a few nice things (and other things) about him on video. I edited them together and posted the results below.

By the way, this video is not on YouTube but on MotionBox.com. I am testing it out. The quality of video seems appreciably higher, especially with the darker scenes.

If you have about 13 minutes, and you know my dad, give it a view.

Rough Start to the New Year

2009-01-01T19:19:00.003-05:00

Loretta took a fall outside while carrying a double armload of stuff. With her arms full, she was unable to break her fall. With the wind knocked out of her, she was in a lot of pain and needed help getting up. It didn't take long to decide to get her checked out at the ER.

You know how emergency rooms are. We got to spend a lot of quality time together waiting in all the different waiting places they had for us. A few times we took a break from waiting and got some x-rays taken and spoke to the doc. Her ribs are just bruised, but she did break a bone in her wrist - her navicular certain to be exact.

Loretta has a temporary splint and will get a cast soon; most likely tomorrow. She is on Vicatin and has already discovered the need to watch her food intake while on that drug.

Snow Birds Flew the Coop

2009-01-01T16:10:00.002-05:00

Mom and Dad started the new year off by leaving the Great White North. They left for Florida today and the weather helped them leave any regrets behind. The temperature was in the low twenties when they left...And they left in a hurry. So fast, in fact, That about four miles down the road they pulled over and called me.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Tom?"

"Yes. Calling back so soon?"

"We kind of forgot to bring Rambo with us. Could you bring him out to us?"

Anyway. We got to say good-bye one last time.

Merry Christmas From Tom, Loretta & Duke

2008-12-20T12:37:00.000-05:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Merry Christmas

2008-12-20T12:29:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas from the Bueche "kids"

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

A Blast from the Past

2008-10-16T20:44:00.002-05:00

My Dad got his first reel of home movies converted to DVD. On that reel was some classic shots of me on my first motorcycle; a 1973 Honda ST90. It was a 90 cc on/off road bike with three gears and a centrifugal clutch. This really brought back some terrific memories. I think I was between 8 and 10 years old. You can see at one point that I couldn't touch the ground on both sides, and then acting out my Evel Knievel fantasies.

DUKE!

2008-10-09T18:54:00.002-05:00

Duke had a doctor visit this week. I was anxious to have him weighed, and I wasn't disappointed.
At six and a half months old, Duke weighs 62 pounds. The vet says we need to feed him better; that he thought Duke felt a little skinny. No kidding. He really said that, and meant it too.

I had the day off today due to a Jewish holiday. I took Duke on one of my longer jogs because I felt sorry for him. Loretta and I had left him home alone a few times today amounting to several hours. Ususlly he is not good for jogs over about two and a half to three miles. So I took off with Duke after telling Loretta what my route was. She waited about 25 minutes, then drove to meet Duke and I, so she could take him home in the van. It's a good thing. He was really dragging by that point.

Ride 6 to Fight Dyslexia

2008-09-21T16:26:00.003-05:00

I am slowly getting caught up on some video editing. Life sure has been busy since the beginning of summer. I am still trying to get to making a video of our trip to Florida. That was back in March!

Anyway, here is the video I made of the motorcycle ride Kimberly and I went on to raise money for the Children's Learning Center for Dyslexia. It looks better on TV. Everything on YouTube comes out a bit dark. I don't understand why.

Waterfall Update

2008-09-11T20:44:00.002-05:00

Now that the water feature itself is done, we got some plants and ornamental rocks and stuff and finished the area off. My mother helped with a lot of the planting (along with Loretta), placed almost all of the stone edging and spread all of the mulch herself. I don't call her Gramzilla for nothing. She's awesome!

Waterfall

2008-08-31T16:38:00.002-05:00

This summer was not as productive as I had hoped, but I did get a new waterscape installed in our front yard. The landscaping around it is not done (or even begun), but I wanted to show everybody the process of making the pondless water feature.

Finally Jazzed

2008-08-31T16:08:00.002-05:00

It has been a tough year for me as far as politics go. Throughout the Republican primary I moved from my favorite to my next favorite, then my next favorite, then the next, then the next as one by one the horses I chose dropped out of the race.

Also during this year was the immigration issue where many Republican politicians that I had liked said some really nasty things about people like me who were vocal about enforcing the law. It went beyond disagreement and into name-calling and personal attacks. I was extremely disappointed with the party. One of the Republican politicians leading that disappointing and hurtful response to grassroots conservatives in favor of not rewarding non-citizens that break our laws (starting with immigration laws) was John McCain. So the end of the Republican primary election left me flat.

I am a conservative and a realist. Therefore, I would never vote for Barack Obama, as he is the most liberal member of the US Senate. I don't believe in big government, punishing achievement or legalized abortion-on-demand. Yes, I was prepared to vote for John McCain in the general election, but excitement has been hard to come by.

Friday morning when I was driving to work, I was listening to Laura Ingraham go on and on about Sara Palin. She sounded too good to be true, and certainly too good for John McCain to choose. When the announcement came and I listened to Governor Palin speak I was jazzed. The more I learn about her, the more excited I become. She is a true conservative and a true public servant.

The Democrats harp on her lack of experience. First of all, she has infinitely more executive experience than Barack Obama and Joe Biden put together. Second of all, although she is a "heartbeat away" from the oval office, John McCain is running for president, not Sarah Palin.

Tri-Training

2008-08-06T20:16:00.001-05:00

Here is a video of the kind of training that I have been doing in prepatation for the triathlon.

The Breakdown

2008-07-31T08:22:00.003-05:00

I got my split times for the triathlon today.

Swim - 7:34 That was a 300 meters. At the peak of my training I was getting times almost a minute faster. I'm not sure why that time fell off, but it is consistent with what I had been doing for the last month or so.

Swim-to-Bike transition - 2:24 This was a lot longer than almost everybody else in the race. I'll have to give this some thought for next time.

Bike - 37:12 I get conflicting information if the bike route was 11.1 miles or 11.5. I am told that my average speed was 17.8 mph. That is around 4 mph faster than what I rode during training here in hilly southern Lancaster County.

Bike-to-Run transition - 0:49 Not bad considering the way one's legs feel right after an aggressive bicycle ride.

Run - 26:31 That was a 5k (3.1 mile) run. That is an average of 8:33/mile, which is a good time for me without swimming and biking immediately beforehand.

Overall, I am very pleased with my first triathlon performance. I have some good areas to target to try to improve for next time.

Overall Time

2008-07-29T09:11:00.007-05:00

I just got my overall time for the Triathlon. Starting from the beginning of my swim to the end of my run, my time was one hour fourteen minutes 29.8 seconds. That includes the transistion time between swimming and biking and biking and running. Sometime soon I should get the breakdown for each event and transition. I placed 97th out of 258 competitors. I was only 12th out of 17 men in my age group, though. But I did it!

Contrast this with my write up of my experience in the CrossWay Mile in June of 2007. I have come a long way.

Almost Six Weeks Later

2008-07-28T21:10:00.002-05:00

It has been a while since I have written about Travis' injury. Travis is getting around well at this point. He definitely has a different gate. His stump does bother him if he walks on it for particularly long periods of time or when he does things like play ultimate frisbe. Ibuprofin and time off his feet seem to help.

Tomorrow Travis gets his insert for his shoe. The insert will have a toe shape to take up the space where his toe used to be. That will help his remaining toes to know where they are supposed to be.

Still looking for a job. Any takers?

I Actually Did It!

2008-07-28T20:56:00.002-05:00

The moment of truth has come and gone. Just about one year ago I decided to get serious about losing weight. I started by just adding jogging to my weightlifting routine. That didn't do much. Then I got serious about my diet. Then things started to happen. At 245 pounds, I got worried about all the impact on my knees and ankles, so I started to alternate riding bicycle and jogging. Before I knew it a few friends convinced me to add swimming to all that and train for a sprinter's triathlon. Yesterday was the big day! At 42 years old and 205 pounds, I competed in my first triathlon. I don't have my times yet. I can tell you that I was successful in not giving up. I swam the 300 yards without a rest, and ran right to the bicycle. Then I rode pretty darn hard for the entire 11.1 mile bike course. Finally I ran the entire 5k (3.1 mile) footrace without walking.

When I get my times, I will post them here.

DUKE!

2008-07-21T19:37:00.003-05:00

In the middle of May we finally got a new dog. In July of 2007, I decided to put Cary, our last dog, to sleep after years of medical problems .

Our new dog is Duke. He is half german sheppherd and half poodle. Duke has a wonderful disposition, and is all puppy. Even though he is only 17 weeks old, he weighs about 42 pounds. I don't think he is done growing yet.

I never have as much time as I would like to make my little videos. But as you know, this summer has been even harder than most. Everytime I try to put a video together of Duke, he had already grown rather noticably since the most recent footage. So I would put the project off. Well, posted below is a three minute video of our new little guy.

Father-Daughter Camp Out '08

2008-07-04T22:43:00.001-05:00

As you know from the past several blog entries, “busy-ness” has taken on new meaning at our house between injuries, surgeries, accidents, teen employment and social agendas. One fun thing that I did get to do was take Angela to our church’s father-daughter camp out. She is the only one of our three daughters that is still young enough to go.

Even though it rained several times, and was steamy when it wasn’t raining, we all had a great time. This video should give you a decent idea of what it was like. My favorite memory isn’t on the video, though. That was Angela waking me up several times that night to sling her arm over me in our tent and say, “Daddy, I love you so much.”

Two Weeks Later...

2008-07-03T09:29:00.002-05:00

Things continue to progress quickly for Travis. His stitches have been removed, and we are pursuing a few different orthodic apparati to help him. I am not sure what the difference is between the apparati, but I know it is too early for one of them. He went to get fitted for one yesterday. The technician told him that the fitting process would be too painful for him at this stage of recovery. The toe is still a bit swollen and quite tender.

Travis no longer wears the surgical boot. That means it is easier for him to sneak up on us now without the "Thump, pat, thump, pat" warning noise that he has been sending. He also does not wear any dressing on the toe, at least not the huge wrap that he had been using. He limps a bit, but has had no orthodic assistance or physical therapy yet. Maybe he will end up without any kind of limp at all. We will have to see.

If I made this video below, which I did not (hence the high quality) I would title it "Travis' Nightmare."

One Week Later

2008-06-26T10:22:00.002-05:00

Travis is getting around much better; one week after the accident. He is off of his prescription pain medication and no longer uses crutches to walk. He is not graceful, but he is mobile. The emerging problem - boredom. After all of the pusing and pushing and pushing for him to get a job, he took two calls while lying in the hospital from companies asking him for second interviews. He, of course, was not in a position to take advantage of those opportunities. Anybody want to pay Travis to stuff envelopes or something?

Stress management? I pray hard and lean on my church family. They have been wonderful. Between them and the kids' school (Lancaster Christian School), we have been getting streams of cards, calls and visits. I also pray that God will show Travis how Romans 8:28 is alive in his circumstances...

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Yesterday, Loretta had outpatient surgery. We thought about rescheduling, but the schedule doesn't get any easier for the rest of the summer. So yesterday was pretty stressful for Mr. Mom and Mr. Nurse. I didn't do much to manage the stress, just bit the bullet and felt sorry for myself. This morning, though, I rode 12.5 miles on the bicycle and got back before the rain started. That helps. One of the pastors called yesterday and wants to bring pizza for lunch today and visit with us. A few families from our church caregroup are providing dinners for the next couple of nights too.

For You Left-Brainers

2008-06-24T14:48:00.003-05:00

This is a product of a free program that Bill Haughery mentioned on our church blog today. It is all about Travis' accident.

Home At Last

2008-06-19T20:15:00.002-05:00

Hello again everybody. Travis just arrived home almost twelve hours later than what we were hoping for at this time yesterday. He is relying heavily on his pain medication. We have him set up on the couch for this evening and later will talk about where in the house he should be spending most of his time for the next several days.

Thank you all for the cards, calls and visits. It means a lot to Travis.

Changed In an Instant

2008-06-19T06:56:00.003-05:00

In an instant your whole day can change, even your whole life. Yesterday (June 18th), Travis found this out for himself. He was finishing up his mowing on our church’s farm. With just three passes left with the 6.5 horsepower push mower, Travis slipped on a bank.

I was in the barn helping to set up for Youth Camp ’08 when someone came in and told me that Travis had cut himself with the mower. It didn’t sound serious judging by the calm manner of whoever told me this. I don’t remember who it was, maybe one of the youth that were also there helping. I kind of jogged over to where he was until I saw a couple of people gathered around him lying on the ground. Then I moved a bit faster.

It was serious. I saw a lot of blood and an open-toed sneaker on his left foot. I gave him a hug, started applying pressure and prayed for him. We gently rolled him on his back and elevated the foot. He was in a whole lot of pain. Peter (our senior pastor) quickly arrived with a first aid kit, and handed me a roll of gauze. I put that between my hand and Travis’ wound and continued the pressure. Chris Strayer was there as he was delivering lights for youth camp. He is an EMT and helped monitor the situation until the ambulance came.

Unfortunately, Millersville’s ambulance crew was out on a call, so we had to wait for a crew from Lancaster city. It had already been lightly raining, but as we waited it started to rain more heavily. At this point there were many concerned church members (i.e. family) at the scene doing whatever could help. Peter and some others searched for parts of Travis’ toes. Someone went to get an umbrella and held it over Travis. Someone else brought water, and a blanket. Mike Minich stayed close to Travis and made small talk trying to keep him calm. I think everyone prayed.

The Lancaster Ambulance arrived as soon as they could and took over. They were a good crew. They took a close enough look at the wound to determine that half of Travis’ big toe on his left foot had been severed. Amazingly no other toes were lost (check the picture below to see just how amazing that is). Peter found the toe over forty feet from the site of the accident, and was able to send it to the hospital with us in the ambulance. When we arrived at the hospital, there was a lot of waiting for an orthopedic doctor to be called in. He examined Travis and gave his opinion. He seemed very confident in telling us that attempting to reattach the toe would not be a good option. We asked for a second opinion, so he consulted with specialists from Hershey Medical Center. They confirmed his opinion. So we consented to surgery to clean the wound, trim the bone and close it up. After surgery, the doctor was all the more certain that it would have been a mistake to try to reattach. He does have about half of the big toe left, and has always had very long toes; perhaps an evolutionary left-over (JUST kidding). His walking will be affected some. Only time will tell how much.

This is all still very new. I am typing this the morning after. Travis will be coming home later today. He will appreciate phone calls and visits from his friends. He will be fortunate to be able to catch one or two or the main meetings at Youth Camp ’08.

Below is a picture of Travis’ sneaker. He is very fortunate to have any toes at all, or even a foot.

Good-Bye Jessica Part 1

2008-06-17T08:32:00.003-05:00

At the end of May Pamela and her friend Lauren threw a surprize good-bye party for their friend and classmate, Jessica. Jessica was in their class for the 2007-08 school year after coming back to the United States from the mission field in Brazil. After making some close friends at our school, Jessica and her family have gone back to Brazil to serve the Lord.

It rained in Biblical proportions right up to the time of the party. We waited until close to the last minute, then decided to move the festivities indoors into the basement. Once we moved operations inside, the skies cleared. It was a bit too late to move everything back outside. I said all that to say all this. The lighting for the videos, particularly the first one immediately bleow, is very poor. Videos posted on the Internet also tend to be darker than on a television, so most of it is like a black screen with occasional ghostly images. If you are one of the girls that were there, especially Jessica, you might still want to watch as the audio is fine and you can hear the girls yell, "Surprize!" and their beautiful, heartfelt prayers. The second video is much more watchable. That is the one with each girl giving their own good-bye message.

Below is the first half of the video of their good-bye party. Below that is the second half. Altogether the video is about 12 minutes long. Since YouTube only allows videos of ten minutes or less, I had to split the video into two unequal halves. I hope all you girls enjoy it, especially Jessica.

Good-Bye Jessica Part 2

2008-06-17T08:30:00.001-05:00

Here is the second part of the video of Jessica's good-bye party with the personal good-bye messages.

Ice Cream Run

2008-06-08T17:55:00.001-05:00

It was a hot Sunday today. Kimberly went to the pool with a friend, but Angela and I went for ice cream. Here is a quick video of our afternoon.

1 John 2:15-17

2008-05-04T19:59:00.002-05:00

It's not like a lot hasn't been happening with the Bueches. There just has been little time to type it all out.

We had a vacation over Spring break, which I will tell you all about when the video is made.

Friday night (May 2nd) we had our last corporate meet of IO. IO stands for "Inside Out" and is the name of our church's parent/youth group.Once a month we meet in small groups divided up by geography, and once a month we meet as one big group. It is during those times that we have an ongoing scripture memory competition. It had gotten a bit out of hand; like last month with the full gospel choir complete with director and soloists. This month's meeting had some more creativity, varying degrees of excitement, and success.

Watch this video to get a taste.

Blowin' Sax

2008-01-15T18:44:00.000-05:00

One of the band teachers in my school, Al Homicz, is a real good guy and a terrific musician. The video below is one of him playing "Seasons of Love" on his saxophone at our faculty talent show in November.

The lyrics of the song are catchy but flawed. After you watch the video, please read the correction I have issued beneath it.

I always knew that math and music were closely knit as are music and science, particularly physics. But we have a glaring flaw in how “you measure a year.” As written, “Seasons of Love” should only be sung three out of every four years excluding leap year, as each year actually has 365.25 days. It is our limited Caesarian calendar that fibs to us each year in its assertion that one freakish year out of four is actually longer than the “normal” years of 365 days.

In order to be sung with mathematic and astronomic accuracy, we need to change the lyrics to 525,960 minutes. Then the apparent unit multiplier from minutes to moments is approximately .9989 moments/minute thereby requiring a second lyrical change from 525,000 moments to “approximately 526,539 moments” with an identical change to “journeys to plan.”

Obviously the lyric writer is a very busy person with both a moment and a journey planning session occurring simultaneously and in less than one minute! Perhaps if more time were taken it wouldn’t be necessary for people like me to follow behind and correct glaring mistakes. Haste makes waste, after all.

A Night to Remember

2007-12-16T19:15:00.000-05:00

I escorted a special gal to a formal affair last night. Pamela asked me to take her to Lancaster Christian School's High School Winter Formal. It was held in the Sky Box at the Clipper Stadium in Lancaster City. So, from our table we could look out over the baseball field. What is special about that is the outdoor ice skating rink that they set up in right field. So we watched the skaters skate in the icy drizzle while we ate in our formal attire.

Pamela looked beautiful in a long formal dress with her hair all whoop-de-dooed. I merely tried to minimize my own ugliness so as not to be distracting. We sat at a table with one other father/daughter couple and a few girls who were unescorted. Good company.

Travis also attended the affair. He looked quite dapper and even trendy in his black suit and shirt with a red tie. What a stud.

After dinner we were entertained by an illusionist. Then we went down to do some ice skating our selves. This was the first time that I had to rent skates in my life as my old hockey skates broke the last time I took the children a few years ago. The rental center for the skates was on a concrete patio. People would get their skates and immediately try them on while on the concrete. I was horrified! Sure enough the skates were duller than butter knives. The first pair I got were totally useless. The second pair I could make work, but my showing off was drastically limited. It lightly rained on us the whole time, but it was still fun. I didn't mind at all until I went to put my boots back on after the skating session. My Naconas had been out in the rain the entire time. Drat.

Keep an eye out for the next edition of BuecheNet. I will be sure to post a picture of us in all our glory.

Remember Summer Youth Camp!

2007-11-29T13:00:00.000-05:00

Right after my school let out for the summer, our church hosted a youth camp for our youth and for those in two of our sister churches from Reading and Hershey. The whole thing went down on our farm in Millersville. The teaching (by Ken Mellinger, Peter Privitera and C.B. Etter), worship, small group, games, meals, weather...everything was terrific.

I have finally thrown together some video footage from the event. Nothing too fancy, but some fun memories.

August Vacation

2007-11-18T19:21:00.000-05:00

I decided to post the video I made of our vacation in the Pocono Mountains in August. It includes music, photos, video and interviews. It is 10 minutes long, so don't click around unless you can stick around.

'Tis the Season

2007-11-18T19:15:00.000-05:00

I really like Mike Huckabee. It's not just because he is the Republican candidate that most matches my ideals and political philosophy, but also because he is this kind of guy. Watch...

#11

2007-11-18T17:12:00.000-05:00

Well, I just finished my first official footrace. I kept my number tag (#11, hence the title of this post) as a momento. It was the 5 kilometer "Turkey Trot" in Millersville. They are going to send my official finishing time to me via email hopefully this week. I know that my time was just over 26 minutes.

**I got my time emailed to me early this week. My time for the 5 kilometer (3.11 miles) was 26:14. That averages to 8:26 per mile, which is a new record for me. Not too many people there were impressed, though. I came in 51st out of 62 men; 67th out of 104 runners in all.**

I mentioned in this blog several months ago that I started jogging regularly. In the end of July I also began seriously watching my diet. Since then I have lost 38 pounds and improved in my running greatly. A year and a half ago, I ran the CrossWay Mile in 11:29 - and limped for a week and a half later. Last Sunday I ran my usual 3 miles at an average of 8:35. That is not a time for most runners to brag about, but it sure is a great improvement for me. I will give a brief update when I get my official time from today.

Dog Show Update

2007-10-03T21:05:00.000-05:00

This just in! We got a phone call from the staff of the Lampeter Fair. Kimberly and Rambo also won the Best-of-Show award. They got a super-duper blue ribbon and a check for eleven whole dollars. Here they are again dressed in all of Rambo's splender!

Dog Show

2007-10-01T20:32:00.001-05:00

Kimberly and my parents’ collie, Rambo, entered the dog show at the Lampeter Fair. Rambo dressed up for the occasion with a formal collar and tie. He looked very snazzy. They were entered in four separate competitions. They were obedience, tricks, grooming and biggest dog. Rambo and Kimberly took home two blue ribbons, a red and a yellow. I think Rambo winked at the judges a few times as they seemed quite smitten with him. Rambo knows; when you got it, work it! And he does.

The sad thing of the evening was the man that came in to the arena during the downpour of rain. He collapsed in the bleachers. It took a long time to get anyone to him that knew CPR and much longer to get an ambulance crew to him. Unfortunately we read in the paper on Saturday that the man died. He was a local farmer with a large family; a wife, children and grandchildren.

Pocono Vacation

2007-10-01T20:14:00.000-05:00

During our last week of the summer break, we made a break for it. We ran to the Pocono Mountains in a desperate attempt to get away before the new school year started. It just so happened that we chose the coldest, wettest week of the summer.

I found a house in a resort community called Masthope. You would pronounce that like two words; mast hope. I found it on the Internet. It felt like a gamble because we paid for it before we ever saw it in person. I tried that a few years ago for Loretta and my fifteenth anniversary. Many of you heard the story from that one. Long story short – I got my money back.

Fortunately, that was not necessary this time. The house was terrific. The community it was in was also great. It was heavily wooded and on the mountainside, with the community center at the top of the mountain. There was a ski lodge (though no skiing that time of year), a pool, outdoor activities and a quirky little general store that sold things like t-shirts, sandwiches and kitchen faucets.

Masthope is northeast of Milford, PA. It is on the Delaware River where the river divides Pennsylvania and New York. We went rafting, and some of us even enjoyed it. Others found it an exercise in frustration; great memory building – especially since I was one of the ones that enjoyed it! Travis and I went paintballing in the woods with about eight other people. The girls went horseback riding in an arena since it was raining too hard to take the horses out that day.
The family played cards at night and watched old Andy Griffith shows. We did really well in getting along and enjoying one another.

One early, rainy evening we went to a family recreation center. The funnest part then was the go-cart racing. We ran in the rain and got plenty wet. Even Angela got to drive her own go cart with one of the staffers hanging on the side to keep her out of trouble. She now thinks that she is the coolest seven-year-old girl in the world. So did the staff at the recreation center.

We went for a drive along Route 97 in New York. It parallels the Delaware, often from high above it. We drove through Hawk’s Nest where the road is very twisty and carved out on a cliff about a hundred feet about the river with a short stone wall to protect cars from going for a dive. Except for the fact that it was raining hard, I was missing my motorcycle on that drive. Route 97 led us through Port Jervis, NY. We promptly returned there and stayed a while as the van developed a critical brake problem. The Ford dealer there took good care of us at a cost!
Later after our drive we arrived at the house. Loretta needed to take our van with the new brakes to the nearest grocery store (10 miles away). When she barely made it back, she told me that the van was overheated and steaming. It wasn’t a hose. The thermostat housing had a hole in it. I made a last minute, frantic bicycle ride up the mountain to the quirky general store and bought some epoxy. After letting set overnight it held right up until last week when we sold that old piece of junk!

We left our vacation early so we could be on the road on a Friday; just in case the jalopy broke down on the road we would have a better chance of finding a shop open. The good news is, nobody was happy about the decision. Despite the weather and mishaps, we all still had a good time.

Alivia

2007-08-08T17:08:00.000-05:00

The main reason that I started this blog was because of a blog that I visited daily and frequently posted comments on. I didn’t like posting as “Anonymous,” so I created my blog and blogger identity.

The blog that got me started was the blog that Emily Haughery started initially because she was firmly convinced that her daughter was the cutest girl in the world. She started the blog to share her beautiful daughter. Emily’s daughter, Alivia Rachel Haughery (a.k.a. Lady Bug – her most common alias), developed a very rare form of leukemia; even more rare for her age of about a year and a half. The blog became an outpost of information for the hundreds of people that followed her story, prayed and offered practical help. The blog, as of today received over 169,000 hits.

Alivia had her spleen removed and received a bone marrow transplant. The complications during the recovery were intense and numerous. On July 6th Alivia went home to be with the Lord. At less than two and a half years-old, she had touched more hearts than many of us will ever have the privilege of touching.

I have known Alivia’s father, James, since he was a boy. Watching him care for his wife and daughter in the toughest of circumstances made it clear. James is a man’s man.

The slide show below is of pictures taken during Alivia’s fight. Her life consisted of much more than that, but unfortunately it is when I really tuned in.

Love to James and Emily.

Dog Gone

2007-08-08T16:53:00.000-05:00

Some of you know that our dog, Cary, has had problems with seizures for many years. On the evening of July 4th She had a doozy. As a matter of fact it was several doozies. She just rolled from one right into the next. It was the worst we had seen her, and it took a long time for her to recover. It has been getting more and more difficult (and expensive) to control the seizures with medication. I made the very difficult decision to have her put down. The next morning when I got back from my jog, I took Cary with me for another two mile jog. From there we went straight to the vet. It was a difficult thing to do. Aside from her liking to run away all the time, she was a terrific dog for us. We miss her a lot.

All Done

2007-07-09T13:00:00.000-05:00

The book is finally closed on my parents’ apartment. Everything is done and we have grass covering the ground that has already been mown twice. I sought counsel with someone whose integrity is top notch. He suggested that the difference between a kitchen sink and a utility sink is not insignificant (Check below for the story “That Sinking Feeling” posted on April 7th). Since the plans for the house were approved with a utility sink, and the occupancy permit prohibits a kitchen sink, I shouldn’t have any problem with installing a nice, in-counter, stainless steel utility sink. So I took the fixtures off of the kitchen sink and put them on a utility sink, along with some help from my friend Vince. To make things even sweeter, my mom likes the utility sink better with its deeper single bowl.

Here is a 4 minute slideshow of the whole process.

Bug Race 07

2007-06-17T12:27:00.000-05:00

The Friday and Saturday before Fathers’ Day we had our first father/daughter camp out. It was, of course, for fathers and daughters from ages 4 to 12. We drew from our bag of tricks from the long running father/son camp out. We used the old songs (Bill Grogan’s Goat, the Walrus Song and the Bear Song). I brought both Kimberly (12) and Angela (7). One of the “tricks” we used was the old bug race. Everyone is to go out and find the fastest bug. We put them in a big jar and lift it up. The first bug to cross the finish line is the winner. I was skeptical as to how this one would go over with the girls as opposed to the boys. We had several bug squeals in the tents prior to this event. Somehow we did manage to fill the race with competitors and had an exciting race. We didn’t hear the cheers that we used to hear with the boys, except from the dads (some of whom named the bugs like “Widowmaker”). But it wasn’t exactly quiet either. Check out the race in the video below.

Ready? NO. Set? NO! Go anyway!

2007-06-06T11:10:00.000-05:00

You may have visited my family web site within the past few months and discovered that I have been jogging. The biggest reason why I started that is because I need it. Weightlifting makes for a strong body, but alone it won’t do much to extend or enhance my quality of life. A close second in my reasons for jogging is to participate in the off-road mile run on my church’s property called the “CrossWay Mile.”

My training went well. There was a set back with an injury. If you have read this blog before you might remember reading about it in April. When June 3rd came, I definitely did not feel ready for the race, but it was still race day.

When I registered I intended to register as a non-competitive runner, because I would not describe my running ability as competitive. The non-competitive runners start a minute later than the competitors so as to stay out of their way. Somehow I got registered to start with the first group.

I tried to set a realistic pace. The competitors soon disappeared from my sight. After a minute, my lungs were pretty tight, and I was wondering if I shouldn’t just walk the rest of the way. It wouldn’t be too humiliating. After all, by the time I got to the finish line all of the spectators would have gone home anyway.

Last summer I was at a Clint Black concert in the baseball stadium in Lancaster. Throughout the concert a storm was brewing on the horizon. Finally the concert had to stop and was eventually called off. I remember running through the stadium with the storm behind me blowing a fierce wind. My hair was blowing forward and all sorts of debris and litter were passing me in the wind.

I was reminded of this memory when the “non-competitive” runners caught me and passed me; men, women and children of all ages. The thought of no one being around to collect my remains in the event of a collapse crossed my mind. I made it to the comfort station where they hand out drinks as you run by. This helped reassure me that I hadn’t run off course. There were trampled foam cups scattered all across the trail for a short distance. I took some comfort in noticing that some of them still appeared to be wet.

Amazingly, I did finish the race and lived to jog another day. We’ll see if that happens. More amazingly, there were some people who finished after me. Among them were women carrying children on their backs.

The best news was that despite my near death experience, I actually ran the course 42 seconds faster than the year previous. That is cause for celebration. Maybe I should sell my running shoes and buy a gift certificate for a month’s supply of peanut butter milkshakes at the House of Pizza.

Hung Up

2007-04-24T09:13:00.000-05:00

This is the video from the first ride Bron took on April 9th. I named this file "HungUp" because that what happened to him. I wasn't the only YouTuber that thought that. I have already seen another bull ride video on YouTube called HungUp.

Bron's Ride

2007-04-23T20:30:00.000-05:00

I am trying to post my virst YouTube videos. This is Bron's second ride from the night I went to see him ride the bulls.

Ride 2

A Peaceful Nor’easter

2007-04-16T09:08:00.000-05:00

We sure had a lot of rain and wind on Sunday and Monday morning. We had some water issues in the basement, but those should be easily corrected. Other than that, the “Historic Nor-easter” that the national news has been touting for a week, wasn’t that big of a deal for us in Lancaster.

On Monday morning I got myself together and headed off to work at 6:00 am as usual. At 6:30 (20 miles into my 58 mile commute) Loretta called me to let me know that my school had a two-hour delayed opening. That was about the same time that I saw snow as I drove. Sure enough, the easter I drove the more interesting the Nor’easter became. I actually got to work on time. Many people I passed along the side of the road did not, as there were many accidents. So here I am with two hours of solitude at work. It’s a good time to tell you a story or two.

One Step at a Time

2007-04-16T09:04:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday, I went to a work day at a friend’s house. Their precious little girl is going to come home from the hospital soon following a bone marrow transplant. Extensive remodeling of their house was necessary to make it a suitable environment for her during her long recovery. Time is getting short so a bunch of folks came out to speed things up.

I was in the upstairs with Keith, another 40-something guy, when a young guy, Duane, came up and said he had brought their child’s leftover Easter candy for everyone. I commented that it wasn’t worth the effort to go downstairs unless there were peanut butter cups. He said that he thought there was ONE down there. Instantly Keith and I broke into a run. Keith is in considerably better shape than me, so I was bringing up the rear. When we got half-way down the steps, I went from bringing up the rear, to bouncing on my rear with my left leg folded behind me. Ouch.

I was still able to put in a half day of work, which was my plan anyway. It is too bad that I couldn’t blame my lack of productivity on the injury. The truth of the matter is, when it comes to carpentry I am the classic Mr. Slowsky even when in peak condition.

Early Sunday morning I went to the emergency room at Lancaster General. Their ER services have drastically improved since when I took Travis there for a broken thumb five years ago. Anyway, it is either a sprain or some possible cartilage damage. They gave me some great drugs, some crutches and told me to follow up with my doctor later in the week. It doesn’t really hurt much, but it is very stiff. So much for my jogging routine.

Bull!

2007-04-16T09:03:00.000-05:00

On Monday April 9th, a bunch of us guys went up to Lebanon County near Anville, PA to watch a friend do some bull riding. Bron is a young single guy looking for a cool hobby. Bull riding is his choice.

Bron’s first ride was short but interesting. He dismounted (or should I say he was dismounted) on the wrong side of the bull which tends to cause a cowboy’s hand to get stuck in the rope. This is when bull riding becomes “cowboy flinging.” It was a pretty dangerous situation as Bron was at ground level, stuck to the side of this bull who was jumping, spinning, bucking and stomping. When he finally broke free he didn’t land very far from the bulls stomping ground. Fortunately, the clowns did their job and Bron quickly rolled away from the bull. No injuries. I took some video of this event, and it looks like he was awfully close to squish-ville.

The second ride was a bit longer, although still not eight seconds. Bron was dismounted off the back of the bull, taking a considerable amount of air with one leg extending high to one side. Nice form, Bron.

I respect Bron for his injury-free bull riding. I couldn't keep myself in one piece while going for a peanut butter cup.

I will post a video of Bron’s rides on YouTube when I get a chance.

That Sinking Feeling

2007-04-07T19:40:00.000-05:00

Moral Dilemma.

We bought this new house specifically for the purpose of becoming a three generation household. You can read about that in the “3 Generation Household” post way below.

As soon as we settled on this house we began plans to make an addition for my parents. We wanted to give them an apartment where they could live independently but be close so we can help them when they get old and need it.

Making a separate “single family dwelling” would require a variance with the township. This would entail several thousands of dollars in fees and studies and whatnot; not a single nail hammered. We decided to do as much as we could without requiring the variance. The area in question would be a food area. We don’t want to call it a kitchen or kitchenette. So we had that area designed with cabinets and a utility sink, and called it a laundry room. Mistake.

The cabinets installed were kitchen grade cabinets. The sink was upgraded to a kitchen sink. The plans were approved with cabinets and a sink, just not kitchen cabinets and a kitchen sink.

After tens of thousands of dollars and months of hard work and inconvenience, the time came for the zoning officer to do a walk-though and issue an occupancy permit. For those of you who don’t know, an occupancy permit is a slip of paper that says the government will let you live in your house, so long as you continue to pay your rent (I mean taxes).

The zoning officer was upset. Although the plans approved for the building permit showed cabinets and a sink, the cabinets weren’t supposed to be that nice! The sink wasn’t supposed to be a stainless steel, double bowl sink! And that looks like a place for a refrigerator! “No permit for you!”

The zoning officer went back to the township building and told the sewage management officer what she had seen. He said that he wouldn’t have approved those plans if he had seen them in the first place. “Too bad for you,” I say. But it doesn’t work that way. If you want authority over property, ownership is not the way to go. You need to become a government official. That’s where it’s at.

After appealing to the township, they were very nice and said, “Okay you can have a refrigerator.” I guess I should have asked them for permission before I put that refrigerator in my garage over the summer. Who knew? The township still maintained that the sink had to go, however. That made it okay.
Common sense time. I will try not to use the word “government” in this section so as not to confuse anyone.
· The previous owners of this house were a family of eight; just like we are with my folks living here. There were no sewage management issues when they lived here. That is without mentioning that we added a 1,000gallon septic tank to our system, as required by the township. Furthermore the previous owners were a family of eight all the time. We will only be a family of eight on the property when my folks are in town.
· The township is upset over having a separate single family dwelling on the property. They know that we built this for my parents. We really are one happy family.
· Is removing a sink from that counter going to make a difference in the amount of sewage we deal with on the property? Don’t they think that my dear old Dad and Mom will simply rinse their tea cups in one of the bathroom sinks?
· If the township approved a room with cabinets and a sink, should it make a difference if the cabinets are oak and the sink is stainless steel?

I guess this is a pretty lengthy post. Obviously I am still emotionally dealing with all of this. Here is how the issue stands at this point. I had the sink removed and put a cutting board in its place (see the pictures on the BuecheNet picture pages). We were given a permit and a stern talking-to. My intent was to wave bye-bye to the zoning officer and reinstall the sink. On the permit, however, is a paragraph that says something to the effect of, “Just because we gave you this permit now doesn’t mean we can’t come back and make you change things that don’t comply.” Underneath that the zoning officer specifically wrote in, “No kitchen sink.”

“Is Daddy going to put that sink back in even though they said we can’t? Aren’t we Christians?” Yes dear. We are Christians. No Daddy is not going to put the sink back in. I definitely feel that the township is wrong to place this restriction on what I do with my property. But we can’t just flagrantly disobey the law just because we don’t agree. Then we might as well have no laws at all. After a while, we will try to see what we need to do to legally install a sink (he types with gritted teeth).

Most people, including my contractor, have asked, “Well if it says ‘no kitchen sink’ can you put in a utility sink?” To that I reply, much of my stress through this ordeal came because I was playing fast and loose with the truth. No more semantics. No more wink-wink-nod-nod. No more looking over my shoulder. We will do it right. Could you imagine if I went through with reinstalling the sink after the permit came but before my parents came home? “Hi Dad and Mom! Here is your new home. Isn’t it beautiful? Just make sure you keep all of the shades drawn and always enter through the back door…What’s that? Oh no reason.”

They're Here

2007-04-07T17:29:00.000-05:00

On April 5th my parents returned from their winter in Florida. To get to the house, they had to drive through some serious snow squals to get here. I am sure they may have thought twice about their timing. It'll warm up someday.

Dad and Mom love their new apartment. There is a lot of work to be done outside yet. We have a nice patio and walkway that needs to be poured. Then there is the final grading. We can't wait until there are no longer any truck & Bobcat ruts in the yard and until we get rid of the mud and have grass instead.

Over the next several weeks Dad and Mom will be moving their stuff, bit by bit, into their new place. Just today they ordered new bedroom furniture. It will be three or four weeks until it arrives. In the mean time they will continue to slumber in their RV. Their other furnishings and sundries are in the barn and two storage units back in Montgomery County. Patience is a virtue. Eventually the moving will be all over. Then they will have forgotten what it is they do when they are in Pennsylvania and not moving.

3 Generation Household

2007-03-21T12:15:00.000-05:00

On Christmas of 2005 I mentioned to my father that Loretta and I would like to have Mom and him move in with us. They are still quite healthy and active, but they do like to travel for weeks and sometimes months at a time in their RV. It would be a great thing for them to be free from the worries of homeownership. It would be particularly good to be free from those worries while they are hundreds of miles away.

Six months later I had bought a new house on a large property. Four months after that we broke ground on an apartment to build onto the house for them. They left in early January to winter in Florida while the construction continued. On April 4th (that is two weeks from this writing) Dad and Mom will drive their rolling condominium into our driveway and be able to walk into their new home-not-on-wheels.

It is an intense time as not everything is ready. The Devil is in the details, as they say, and I am seeking deliverance! Two weeks is too long to hold my breath, so I will just have to cowboy up and get 'er done!

Keep an eye out on BuecheNet for updated pictures and bios. You can go there now and see the early stages of the addition. Between the addition, the children's school work, my work and the dreaded tax man coming soon, I hope to squeeze in a BuecheNet update soon.

Functional

2007-03-18T15:57:00.000-05:00

Okay, everything seems to function.

I am going to try to use this blog in place of Buechenet News again.

I found myself visiting a blog everyday. I never thought of myself as a blogger, but this blog was, and is, important. I have been keeping posted on Alivia Haughery's progress on the blog her mom, Emily, maintains. Alivia has had a bone marrow transplant to battle her leukemia. That blog is widely visited. There are hundreds of people praying for that sweet girl.

Alivia is the grand daughter of one of my pastors and dear friend, Bill. Alivia's dad is James, whom I have known since he was pretty little. He has grown into quite a man.

Anyway, Alivia is in the beginning of a long and difficult recovery period. Here is her blog address. Emily is faithful in keeping it up and posting pictures.

http://aliviarachelhaughery32005.blogspot.com/

BuecheNet Blog

2007-03-17T17:56:00.000-05:00

I tried this before, and it went over like a lead balloon. But I thought I would give it another try.