Lord of the Castle

The Joys and Trials of Family Life

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Entries from May 2009

Today’s big surprise

May 31st, 2009 · 1 Comment

I wanted to stop so, so badly. After my 60th climb up the stairs, I was tired…pooped. Man, were the excuses flowing…”I worked so hard yesterday…I’m almost 50 years old…” But the work had to get done…today. What am I going to do, let my wife and kids do it??? So, I pressed on. My [...]

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Tags: Children · Real Estate

They want us to come over?

May 31st, 2009 · No Comments

I just woke up… I am unable to describe how tired I am. Words fail me. And I have another day full of stairs and boxes and furniture ahead of me! If you read my last post, you know how tired I was at 8:00 last night. I wrote that post after sending my youngest [...]

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Tags: Uncategorized

How many more boxes do we have?

May 30th, 2009 · No Comments

Several months ago, I decided to stop lifting weights. I was at a juncture where I had to commit to seriously training or to stop. The thought of being “muscular” doesn’t hold the appeal it once did when I was younger. I mean, really, who do I have to impress? But, I do want to be [...]

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Tags: Physical

That should help!!!

May 27th, 2009 · No Comments

There are times when you just need to keep trying… The letter of appeal is getting closer to being a finished product.  I still need to write the opening paragraph. I think that it has been good for my son to witness the process. The finished product might make it look like magic, or that [...]

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Tags: Children · Money · Providence · Work

Theys a who’ lot of growin’ up goin’ on ’round he-ah

May 26th, 2009 · No Comments

My youngest daughter started training for her new job… She will be a hostess at a very nice restaurant near our apartment, The Bonefish Grille. Inside the  restaurant, the lighting is subdued, the food is excellent and the prices aren’t cheap. What I am trying to say is that this is a place where adults [...]

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Tags: Parenting

Writer’s cramp

May 25th, 2009 · No Comments

How do you ask someone to give you money? That is what I have to do. Fortunately, I haven’t had much practice at it. I say fortunately because I have not needed to ask for money very often. Drexel is offering to give my son $23,900 in grants and scholarships. That is fantastic. No one [...]

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Tags: Money · Parenting

In praise of buying used

May 24th, 2009 · No Comments

Several weeks ago, I had to buy tires for Wild Bill, my old F150. As is the norm, things did not go as smoothly as I had hoped. I bought a set of tires and rims only to discover that they didn’t fit! So, I had to buy 3 more tires. I finally got around to [...]

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Tags: Cars · Money

Stopped at the gate by Barney Fife

May 23rd, 2009 · No Comments

It seems that every so often I just get the itch to drive to places that are far away! I usually have a pretty good reason… I drove to Texas to look at a car for my son… I drove to Agency, MO to buy tires for my old truck… Today, I drove three hours to look [...]

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Tags: Money

I want my money back

May 21st, 2009 · No Comments

We got my son’s SAT scores today… If you remember, we actually paid a tutor to help him. I think we paid for 4 lessons…$240! I want my money back! His scores only improved by twenty points! That was about 40 less than I was hoping for… I don’t know if he did well enough to [...]

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Tags: Money · Parenting

Say when!

May 20th, 2009 · No Comments

I finally got through to the Drexel coach today to talk about the campus visit… Big A is going to be attending classes with members of the wrestling team… He will meet with the admissions and financial departments. When I asked him if Big A should bring his wrestling gear, he responded instantly “Oh, absolutely!” [...]

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Tags: Money · Parenting