A Part II is a Reality

Glad to see that you came back for Part II (if this is your first time here please refer to the previous post to bring yourself up to speed). So where were we...oh yes..we covered the owl and my son's birthday, let us pick up from there.
Back to Work
As mentioned previously, I was given a good bit of time off work to recuperate from the surgery on my foot. To be totally honest I was getting a little stir crazy towards the end. Don't get me wrong, I love being home with the family whenever possible, but I believe men are to provide for their families and for some psychological reason I feel that if I am at home I am not doing that. I know it sounds weird, it was time I was given by the Marine Corps (via the doctor) to recover so I shouldn't feel bad about it, but on the other hand I feel like I am not doing what I am getting paid to do. So to continue, I went back to work about two weeks ago and it has been pretty busy. Not to mention I think a lot of it was compounded by my absence. Unfortunately summer seems to be when our class schedule is it's heaviest. As always there are a good portion of those students that have personal problems to be resolved, add that to planning next years classes convene/graduation dates, trying to replace instructors who have moved on or getting ready to, meetings, training requirements, and a plethora of other things it can be quite draining. So by the end of the day I am talking to myself and sometimes answering. Which is why I am always thankful for weekends especially when they bring special days like.....
Father's Day
I sincerely hope that all my fellow dad's out there had a awesome Father's Day. As for me, I couldn't have hoped for a better one...My eldest son (who was born on Father's Day in 1996) took his dear old dad out to breakfast. He even picked up the tab. I tell you it doesn't get much better than that. We were able to have a great conversation while enjoying a great breakfast. I shouldn't have to say it but I will...it's not the gifts or the special treatment that we as dad's sometimes get, no sir, it is the ability to spend time with those that are the reason there is a Father's Day ( or Mother's Day) in the first place. Which leads me to another topic that I will save for my next post...in essence I would like to review in detail the importance parents play in the life of their child. Maybe I am way off but it seems that many parents today don't always love their children for who they are. I am sickened by the number of cases that a baby is aborted because prenatal tests showed that the child may be disabled in some way. Like I said though, that is a post for another time since this one is pretty long already.
I will also just briefly mention summer...which here in the Carolinas is not too enjoyable. All week we have been having heat indexes of 105 -110 degrees. Regular temperature is about mid to high 90's. In a nutshell it is really hard to find anything to do when it is so unbearably hot. I am not complaining, Afghanistan was a lot hotter, but my family wasn't there with me and there wasn't a whole lot to do there either. Oh well until next time....before I go though I would like to share the reasons why I get the best title in the world.....DAD!

A Part II is Possible

You know, when life is busy and you do not post regularly, the danger of typing a post that is too long is a definite possibility. If it appears that I may do that, fear not, I will bring this post to a close and finish the rest in another post. I know, you are probably thinking, "Gee, what a nice guy", but really it is no trouble at all. Also so I do not get all mixed up ( really easy for me to do), I will break it down by topic. So if you are ready, let us continue....
Our Very Own Owl
Alright, we do not really have our own owl but he has been visiting our backyard every night for the last couple of weeks. My wife spotted him on our dog's fence about 10 feet behind our house. Since that night we watch for him and like clockwork he lands on the power lines that butt up against the woods behind our house (about 40-50 feet back). He is really an amazing creature and is rather regal in appearance. At first, I thought he was a Horned Owl, but after getting a really good look at him it appears he is a Barred Owl (boy was I off). After so many frequent visits we thought we should give him a name. I ( in all my originality) thought of Owliver but my son wanted to name him Shakespeare after a different type of Bard. He is really cool to watch, especially when he is on the hunt. Below is a picture of him.Now, let's move on to the next topic, shall we?

A Birthday Boy(correction young man)
My eldest son has recently turned 14 years of age and is becoming quite the fine young man. I do not want to sound like I am bragging but I am so proud of him. As I mentioned in an earlier post, he faced quite a few challenges just coming into the world. To see him today and all I can say is wow. Aside from all the physical challenges he over came, just to see the fine young Man of God he is becoming is just awesome. Even as bad I mess up in the whole dad department at times it is good to see it had no lasting affect. The only really hard thing is to see him (and his brother) grow up so fast. Just think, in a couple of years, he will be in that driving able age. I get gray hairs just thinking about it. I am proud to be his father yet humbled that God would trust me that much to bless me with him. In a nutshell it is just Awesome and boggles my mind! Well that is enough for this post. If you wish you may get caught up on all the rest in the next post. I hope to have you there. Before I go, I would like to share a couple of photos of my son. You know how bad proud parents can be...always whipping out those pictures! Well until next time.....