A Halloween Post (11 of 33)

Our neighbour two doors down has a little park bench on their grass near the end of the driveway. This year for Halloween he stuffed a bunch of old clothes, made a rag doll sort of thing, put a "Grim Reaper" face on it, put a big sickle in its hands and stuck it out on the bench. It was sort of funny to watch the kids coming down the block in the dark, looking up and seeing this thing sitting there.

It was even more funny when the kids moved in for a closer look and the "fake doll" jumped and yelled, "Happy Halloween"!!!! :)

You could hear screams from down the street all night long! I bet that there are few kids who will not be able to sleep or will end up in their parents beds tonight! Good times!!!! :)

Here are a picture of our two - each of them dressed up in combination with one of their friends...... two twin hula girls and and old, odd couple.

PS. We had 94 kids come by (before we went out for the rest of the night) - How many did you have???? ($1 000 000 fake dollars to the one that had the most!) :)

Just for a laugh (10 of 33)

While looking up something else entirely - I came across this. If you grew up in Canada, this will make sense. Have a look - it is worth a laugh. :)

PS. The answer to who I like on "Dancing with the Stars"........ the winner of a million fake dollars is....... Crystal Quilliams!!!!! I am cheering for Warren Sapp because I think that he is funny and that he moves exceptionally well for a big dude. Add in the fact that he was a football player (not an actor who may have taken dance when they were young) and you have to cheer for him. As for cheering for Brooke Burke....... well..... come on...... have you seen the show???? :)

So there you have it. More exciting contests to come. Thanks for playing!

All I want for Christmas..... (9 of 33)

I am by no means a Dodge fan..... but if someone wanted to wrap up a 2009 Challenger for me, I would take it. My dad had an early 70's Challenger that had this body style. I have seen a couple of these things rolling around the streets of Estevan and they are nice!

Come on - if everyone who reads this blog were to kick in..... how much could it actually cost each of you??? A cheap, "plain Jane" one is only $24,995... but if you really wanted to spoil me the upscale version is $50,270 (The good news - that is Canadian dollars folks! No exchange for you - see you saving money on this gift already!!!)

Think how fast I could get to Ministerial meetings and back! I would be saving time all over the place. Red. Blue. Orange would be nice! I will take just about anything - surprise me! :)

Let it Snow!!!! (8 of 33)

So I am in Regina on Thanksgiving weekend and I tell my buddy Justin that I am going to buy a snow blower b/c if I don't I will never get into my garage this year (by the way, garage update coming soon for all you "Garage fans").

Justin says, "I saved one for you!" He went on to explain that Sara's cousin (Dwight) had an old snow blower that he wanted to get rid of - so Justin told him to keep it for me. Justin did not know that I wanted one, just that I liked goofing around with small engines and stuff.

So I picked up this snow blower this past weekend and it is great! Best free snow blower I have ever been given! It is about 20 years old, but Dwight said that it worked well and he was not kidding. I poured about 2 cups of gas in the tank tonight, turned on the gas, set it to run, set the choke, pulled the cord about 1/4 of the way out - and it started - first pull!!!!!

So of course I had to put it in gear, drive it out the garage door and try it out - so here I am going up and down the back alley shifting gears - putting in the clutch on each side and doing power turns - trying out the auger to see it if works (if it throws snow like it threw the few rocks I picked up - it will be super good). I am not sure what the neighbours thought about me snow blowing the back alley when it was +14 today - but they will be happy come first snow fall and I am out there cleaning out the entire neighbourhood! :)

The only problem: the electric starter is stuck - so I need to fix that - or not. If it keeps starting on 1/4 pull who cares about electric start? And it is a Toro so it just may keep going and going and going.

So now I am praying for snow - or I may just go buy several bags of marshmallows - spread them out in the alley and blow them around - gotta get some practice before the real thing right? :)

PS. Not too many guesses for my "Dancing with the Stars" favorite yet (See post below). Tracy did cash in (very quickly I might add - as if she has been wanting to tell me to get a life for a long time) on the one fake one million dollar prize - so that is nice. Your fake cheque is in the fake mail! :) All will be revealed tomorrow - so guess now and tune in then.

PPS. Pictures of the garage, snow blower, garage wiring, new gas line all coming too (I know - it is really exciting but try to get some sleep anyway!)

Confession is good for the Soul (7 of 33)

I do not watch many TV shows. I watch lots of hours of TV... football, hockey, racing, news - SpongeBob SquarePants (Seriously, I love SB - he is fffunnnnnyyy!!!! Check him out sometime).... but I never, ever watch just plain old TV shows. No sitcoms (other than Seinfeld re-runs) - no reality shows - certainly no bonehead talk shows...... nothing! Until three weeks ago.

I am hooked on................. can I say it......... "Dancing with the Stars" (there I said it - are you happy now?????)

I have no rhythm - anyone who has seen me at a wedding dance would know that (it doesn't stop me - but it should) so I am just really impressed with people who can dance. I think it is interesting too to watch people who have been successful in other aspects of life trying to figure out how to dance well. I mean, it is one thing not to trip and kill yourself and (apparently) it is another thing to do the dance properly. I admire people who can put themselves in strange and uncomfortable situations - things that they are not used to - and do it anyway.

I really liked last week when two couples did the "Jitterbug" - If I had three wishes......... well being able to do the Jitterbug would not be one of them... but it might make the top 433. I am impressed with people who can do a fast dance like that and make it look graceful. That is cool!

So (if you are still reading) - the reader poll of the night...... for $10 in fake money (come to think of it, since it is fake money - make it a million dollars)....... which "Star" do I like the most? You can only guess once - winner to be revealed later when I have nothing else to write about! :)

PS. A bonus million to the first person to tell me that I need to get a life! Are you ready??? GO!

Look around (6 of 33)

So I preached today from a passage that basically said, "Jesus went to his hometown and no one listened to him b/c they were too familiar with him" (that is my paraphrase of Luke 4). When things are always there, it is easy to overlook them or take them for granted.

One of the biggest challenges in life (I find anyway) is to keep looking at what you have and not what you do not have - to look at your blessings instead of your problems.

In church today, I asked people if they could see the blessing of their friendships and their families - and then I gave them 30 seconds to get up and say something to someone they appreciated. When I said "Go" everyone jumped up and it was really cool! People laughing - talking - hugging - smiling - it was unplanned but it was cool! For a moment at least, we remembered how much we really like one another - and that was cool.

As this new week starts and I go back to my routine and my "familiar" stuff - I am going to try to see the good and not the bad.

How about you? :)

Boys road trip (5 of 33)

So I thought we were going to freeze to death (and we almost did), but it was worth it...... Shady Shane, Lenny, Knucky (Justin needed a nickname and this is it for tonight.... ask him if he remembers why) and I went to the Rider game tonight.

It was 10 Celsius at kickoff and near zero at the end of the game. The wind was blowing at 60 - 90 kph, but it was a good day. The Riders beat the Eskimos (55-9), we ate enough pizza and nachos after the game to choke a horse and we just generally had a great time. Thanks for the fun guys and thanks for the tickets Paul! :)

Day 4 of 33

When was the last time that you thought a small job would take a very little time - only to find out that it actually takes 93589034589485904 times longer than you thought it would? For me - that was today!

I went to our Bible camp to do the "Winter Shutdown" thinking that it may take me 2 hours at the most...... it actually took 10 hours (from the time I left the house till I returned). Drain the water system..... put anti-freeze in the sinks, etc..... fix door handles..... haul the canoes up the hill..... put away life jackets...... find all the basketballs that were lost in the trees.... round up the dehumidifiers to take home..... put the riding mower away...... on and on it went. Everywhere I looked, I saw another thing that had to be done.

Now I am not bragging or complaining (it was actually sort of fun to be out there alone - normally there are 09435093486908469 people out there - it is a very different place when you are there alone) - I am just saying that the next time you think sometime is just going to take a few hours - maybe triple it - just in case! :)

Roll this around in your mellon for a while (3 of 33)

A buddy sent this link to me - if you have 5 minutes it is worth a look. I am not sure how accurate it is, but - come on - it is on the internet so it has to be true, right? :) Click here!

The world at our door (2 of 33)

On Wednesday nights, our church building has two separate groups (no there has not been a nasty split - this is actually a good thing). One group holds a Bible study as we have done for years and the other group is learning English.

The city of Estevan has been blessed with many new workers - mostly coming from the Ukraine and Germany - and we have been blessed with an opportunity to get to know some of them and become their friends.

These people amaze me! They have left everything that made their lives secure and easy and they have moved to Canada in search of a better life.

The crazy thing is that in spite of the challenges they face every day (Imagine yourself moving to a place where you do not know anyone, do not really speak the language, do not know the customs, etc) they are happy!!!! I am sure that they have their moments, but they rarely complain. They do not to worry about little things. They are not too proud to ask for help (in fact, they like it when you correct their English - that does not offend them b/c learning is more important than their pride). They are just fun to be around.

The funny thing is that they have come to us because they think that we have something to teach them. However, the more time that I spend with them, the more I realize that I have lots to learn from them too.

If you are gonna go..... go big! (1 of 33)

So for many years I have been a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. I had shirts, hats, banners.... I have still have 21 Borja Salming Hockey cards (all the exact same) from 1979. I went and saw them play in Winnipeg back in 1991 (and they got kicked). Then they signed a whole bunch of players that I could not stand and I had to quit (at some point you have to take a stand or you are just cheering for jerseys and not the players themselves right?)

So I have declared myself a Chicago Blackhawks fan!

Why? Well - good young team - fun to watch - I have had Blackhawk uniforms since I was little (first b/c the Moose Jaw Canucks wore them and then b/c the rec hockey team I played for wore them). I even got my 4th or 5th grade school picture taken while wearing a "Hawks" jersey (I missed the real picture day and I forgot when retake day was - I thought it was cool - it looked like a hockey card! I was even missing some teeth at the time I think) :)

Anyway - Sun 102.3 (our local Fm station) has a new morning DJ and yesterday he declared - on air - that he was a Chicago BlackHawks fan..... and did he get made fun of!!! People kept calling in and asking him what he was thinking, why he was so stupid, etc (oddly enough - he kept playing these calls on the air).

So today he said, "If there is even one Hawks fan in town - please call me!" So that was my chance!!!! A clean break with me Maple leaf loving past!!!! So I called in.......

"Hi this is Sun 102.3"

"Hey, Matt" I said, "I am here to save you"

"What??? Are you a Hawks fan?????"

"Yep! I have two jerseys in the closet - a white one and a red one"

He then accused me of lying - so I had to convince him that I actually knew the players, who was good, what was going on - etc. He was so happy at the end - I think I have a new best friend! :) Sari played it all over the school - people asked if that was me on the radio today.

So the next time I go to the radio station to record "Ministerial Moment" I am going to introduce myself to Matt as "The only other Hawks fan in Southeast Sask". I am sure he will be happy to meet me - either that or he will worry that I am stalking him - one or the other!

So how many people get to declare their changing of hockey allegiance on the air????? It must have been meant to be! :)

PS. I told you that I would post something for 33 straight days - I did not say that they would all be life changing or even interesting. If you are unhappy with this post, I cannot offer you your money back (partially b/c you did not pay for it) but I would be glad to replace this post with a new one tomorrow. Please come back then! :)

33 posts in 33 days

Ok - so here is the deal..... we stink at the blog thing (at least lately anyway). We have done nothing!

I have a friend who about a year ago promised to post 30 things in 30 days on his blog. He did not promise that they would be inspiring or interesting or even good in any way - just that there would be 30 different posts in 30 consecutive days. Well - that inspired me and since we need something to push us to do this...... we are doing 33 in 33 days (just because I am competitive and think that id he can do 30..........) :)

So - it may be me or it may be Sari. The posts may be long or short. They may be funny or serious. Interesting or uninteresting. Original or stolen..... who knows? The point is - keep coming back here b/c every day will have a new post (unless we are out of town and then - come on - as if I am going to waste my time doing this - am I a dork?)

Ps. If you ever do wander by here - please leave a comment. Even just sign your name so that I know that someone still looks at this thing. Tell your friends/neighbours to drop by (the $100/month charge will seem like nothing after you see the stuff I have for you - I promise!!!) :)


33 posts in 33 days!!!!! Guaranteed or ....... well...... or nothing. What are you going to do about it?????? Huh, punk???? :)

Quick update

Hey all

I am sorry for not updating this thing more regularly.... stupid Facebook - taking everyone away from blogs...... well I refuse to let it die! REFUSE!!!!!!! (Whew - that feels better!) :)

Things are busy around home these days. Kids are busy at school with cross country, volleyball and helping mom out. Speaking of "helping mom", Sari is really enjoying her job and the feeling that she is not just doing a good job (which she is) but also that she is helping the kids. She loves the staff at the school too and has met some really interesting people - so that is good. We are still adjusting to life without her at home full time - but it has not been that bad.

As for other things, we have been working like dogs in the yard and on the garage. I will post some pictures soon - but since the last time I updated things, we have built an all new back fence, worked on the patio (we currently have 50 patio blocks stacked in the back parking space just waiting for someone - you - to come help place them) and have wired the garage. Yes it is true! I have power and lights out there now. On to insulation and sheeting - soon hopefully. I am very happy about that.

I am going to play hockey tomorrow - first time this year - wish me luck! :)

So we are healthy, happy and good. As I said, I will update this more regularly and I will post pictures. Thanks for coming around to check on our space on the net - I will not let it die.... Facebook or no Facebook! :)

Faster Pastor 2008

Estevan Motor Speedway held its 2008 version of "Faster Pastor" (This is the race when ministers from around town get to jump into cars and race one another) on Sept 20. Due to the fact that they only had a few cars available, we ran 2 heats of races (4 cars in the first heat and 3 in the second).

I decided after last year (when I raced very carefully and "nicely"), that this year I was going to go hard ("Checkers or wreckers" as they say). I was in first heat in car 21 - have a look! :)



With 2 of the three trophy girls after the race (the other one was taking the picture) :)

Back To School!!!!

So Back to School has a new meaning around these parts. I recently, like a few days ago started a job at the girls school. I am the admin assistant and have more stuff to do than I know what to do with. I love the people there and so that is a great part. I am on the same holidays as the girls and I am of just after them and Tim can be home with them when I can't be. It worked out very well so far. Tim thought I should update the blog with more than just the boy stuff. So that is my new news for a bit and i need to head to bed soon because I may fall over. Well I am excited and look forward to a lot of fun with some really great people who are busy educating and loving our kids.

All Dressed Up

So the shop is sided. Thanks to Sara, Shane, Corey and Sara's Dad Dave, we got soffits, fascia and all the siding done. Now all we have to do is..... build a fence, dig trenches for power and gas, level the parking spot, make the patio larger, landscape around the shop, put on evestroughs, wire the thing, put up door openers and finish the inside...... so I am thinking that it will be done sometime before 2023. :)

I am glad to have it finished on the outside - I think it looks good. Huge - but good! :)

PS. I am racing in the "Faster Pastor" stock car race at our local track this week (on Friday). Since I love racing so much, this is one of the highlights of my year. Pictures to follow. For now, here is the shop........

My Shop may be Blue, but I am going to Grin and Fascia it!

Have a look at the pictures below and you will understand the title........ Get it? "Blue" as in sad - but I am going to "Grin and Fascia" it (Like "face it".... but the twist is that the Fascia - the part that goes on the front edge or the "face" of the eve - is the next part to go on)....... oh never mind! :)

Anyway - as you saw, I now have windows, a door, the weather wrap is done and the soffit up. This may not seem like much - but it is a lot of piddly work that just takes longer than it would seem to. Thanks to Sara's Dad (David), Bob and Tom Goud, Skip Hill and Corey Olver and his boys for helping out over the past few days.

The really exciting thing........ YOU can have YOUR name added to that illustrious bunch of workers noted above!!!!! Siding starts this week!!! Any takers????? :)

PS. I changed oil on both of my vehicles in my new shop for the first time this week! I almost cried!!! :) It was a beautiful thing to see them inside - to work inside - to not have leaves fall off the tree and into my engine.... it was great! Thanks too to Calvin Elford for coming over and wrestling with a stuck oil filter. I really appreciated that!

Things are changing

Now that we are home from holidays, things are changing and progressing here.

First of all, my garage now has overhead doors. Skip and Bob helped me put the first one in and I did the second one by myself. Here is the result.....


Secondly, we bought one of those steel garden sheds and put it together on Saturday. We needed to sell our other shed to make more room in the backyard since some idiot went and put a huge garage back there. :) It will hold all of Sari's stuff (gardening tools, etc). We put it over in the side yard that was just wasted space anyway - so that is good. We know that these are not the best buildings in the world, but it will do the job for now.
And lastly....... after 7 years of faithful service (seriously - one of the best vehicles I have ever owned in terms of "no cost driving") the time has come to say goodbye to my old 1990 GMC pickup - otherwise known as "Becky" - and it is time to say a big HELLO to "Becky II" (or "Bella" or "Samantha" - I have not decided yet) :)

Becky II is a 1997 GMC pickup - not really my dream truck (if it were my dream truck it would not be red like "Becky I"- I have had one of those and would have gone for something else) but it was a smart buy I think.

I bought it off of a friend of mine (Greg Temple for those who know him). It was the truck that he used for his painting company - which means two things.......

1. Greg was very particular about this truck just because that is the way he his in general, but also because it represented his company. "A nice clean truck tells people how you work" (He did not actually say that - but I can hear him saying it) :)

2. Because the company paid for everything, he fixed everything. Intake gaskets, brakes, u-joints, tires, idler arm, pitman arm, steady bearing, water pump, fuel pump, ignition switch, signal light control thinger and wiring harness in the steering wheel...... and too many other things to mention have been replaced on this truck in the past two years.

So that means either it is in tip top condition ..... or it is a total lemon that will be in the garage every other day! :)

Greg showed me all the bills and they totaled almost as much as I paid for the entire truck! As well, it was $3000 cheaper than any other 1997 in the "Auto Trader" - so I figured that I had to buy it. I could have waited and bought something else, but then I would have likely paid more and still had to fix the water pump, the fuel pump, the idler arm, the pitman arm, etc, etc on top of that. Hopefully, that is all taken care of with this one.


Becky II is also a "means to an end" as this allows us to buy some sort of camper in the future if we want. She has a hidden hitch and is wired for a trailer. It also has working A/C and it rides really nicely - so we would not be worried about taking it on holidays and pulling a camper with it. "Becky I" went to the lake a lot (3 times this spring alone) but she was not what you would call a "long hauler". :)

I do not like some of the pin striping (especially the wheat on the back) so that will have to go. I thought that I was going to throw the "topper" off right away as he also gave me some box rails that were on the truck when he bought it (I think that the rails would make it look less like an "old man" truck), but the topper has been useful so far. And since I have no place to store it in the mess that is our backyard at the moment, I think it will stay on there for now.

So, here are a couple of pictures of "Becky II"..... Anyone want to give "Becky I" a good home? She could be the girl of your dreams! :)

The Home Stretch

We have created a tradition with the Mooneys of stopping in on some leg of our holidays and this time was no exception. We had a great day at the beach and getting caught up and anticipating the future of taking 3 more to the beach :). It was a nice way to truly relax before heading home.

3rd Leg of the journey

We headed on to the Lewis and Clark Caverns which are really something to see. Then on to Calgary to be with the Watts family and the Davis family. We spent an afternoon at the zoo and really enjoyed watching the kids be together. After our visit we headed to Drumheller and saw lots of dinos. The girls went for their very first flight with their dad and had a blast. A lot of full days of fun. moving on......