Wednesday

Well, I plead guilty to blog neglect.

Had a great visit with Uncle Phil. He spent most of the weekend in Ottumwa for his high school reunion, then back here for a little gig with our cousins at my place on Sunday night.

The males in the pic are the first-cousins: Phil in white, Don in red, Fran in green, and LtPC in blue. The girl in all white is Don's daughter Linda, and she is resting her hands on the shoulders of her daughter Keeley (sp?). The beauty on the far right is our very own 2!

Linda is the barista at SB's whom I met long before I knew of our blood relationship. She is my first cousin once removed, and Keeley is my first cousin twice removed. The tree line makes Linda and Susan second cousins to one another. (That pretty well exhausts my knowledge, and interest at this point, of genealogy. We'll have to rely on Uncle Phil to make the call on Susan and Keeley.)

The John Deere Golf Classic concluded on schedule Sunday night with Steve Stricker taking home the trophy and the big check. The Friday round was fully washed out by rain, just like my Pro-Am event last Wednesday. So they played 18 on Saturday to finalize the cut for the final two rounds, which were both played on Sunday. Lots of golf, but there are benefits.

John Deere has done a deal each of the last couple of years to accommodate the higher-ranked players interests in participating in the British Open which is held the following week. A charter leaves Moline for London on Sunday night. The players pay $1,000 per seat, and Deere turns around and donates that fare to charity. Somebody said the plane was actually Mark Cuban's Boeing 767 that's used by the NBA's Dallas Mavericks. There were around 20 players with caddies, families and friends on the flight this year. It really helps attract a better field for the tournament.

I am advised that 2 and 4 are back on the air with their cell phones. Any bets on the next family member to lose their's? (I know that I will be the next to lose my glasses.)

I boycotted the All Star game last night. I had no interest in the endless tease about who was going to throw out the first pitch, the analysis and replay of the first pitch, and the guest appearance in the booth. (I may be relegated to watching old reruns on the Food Network to avoid the constant reminders of who is in the White House.) Shocked to see that the AL had won.

So I vow to get back to normal with almost daily entries in this space. Starting tomorrow.

BCOT