Last Week in a Glance

Monday woke up to icy roads and snow. Flew to LA to ARTBA Western Regional Meetings. Dined with the stars at Crafts Restaurant. Of course us contractors didn't realize that to the side of us was Andie Mac Dowell and behind us was Jeff Bridges. Thanks to our supportive ARTBA staff we realized the facts after our stars had vacated. Oh well our dinner conversation was much more interesting.

Tuesday, awoke to a phone call from our department of transportation official who was schedule to present to the ARTBA on the state of affairs in our state. What's that you missed your flight. Oh and you want me to do what? Yup, I ended up presenting the state of affairs to 50-60 individuals for the state. Even had the Texas Transportation Director ask me to give his presentation. Flew home to snow and cold.

Wednesday received official notice that we were not successful bidders on the $1.1 billion dollar project that we were all counting on. Thursday, met with the University's CM Chair and reviewed Advisory Board Agenda. Presented to a construction management class on upper managements perspective of safety. Attended a dinner to express appreciation to our team who pursued the work. Friday focused in on reorganization and pursuing work and completed the day by conducting the Advisory Board for our University's Construction Management Program.

Saturday was the day to Christmas shop. Bought a large expensive gift for my wife and then had buyer remorse and returned the gift. Hm, ... hopefully, she will forgive me. Sunday more slushy snow. Family get together and a bit of accordion playing to top the evening off.

The start of another week has begun.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Due to technical difficulties, I'm a day late in getting this posted. You know how it is there is always something not updated, something trouble shooting, or just doesn't work when you need it to on the good old computer. Okay, so I was trying to post a video of our Thanksgiving Weekend; however, due to operator error...no I mean technical difficulties I'm still working on the video. So you'll just have to do with the good old photo and dialogue.

Our Thanksgiving weekend started out with a party, that is a party for my Grandmother who celebrated her 95th birthday. At least we believe it is her 95th, she won't confess to it.


The whole family clan gathered and begin our Thankgiving Holiday by wishing her a Happy Birthday. Now this is one classy lady, and she has touched many of our lives and we just love our Grandma Pinkie.

Wednesday evening after the party it was time to create a salt brine for the Turkey to soak in over night. Thursday morning bright and early we rinsed the bird off, stuffed some herbs and basted the bird with butter. Then into the oven for family and me.



Meanwhile, tables were set and decorations arranged to create the perfect setting for a Thankgiving Dinner. Oh, did I fail to point out that this was the first time that Cheryl and I have hosted let alone cook a Thanksgiving Turkey. Hm, I wonder who really is the turkey.


About this time, the first annual Turkey Bowl in the park near our home was begining to unfold. A number of brother-in-laws, nephews, sons, and friends gathered to brave the perfect Turkey Day weather and play a game of pigskin. I believe there is a few Heismen Trohpey winners in this group as you can see.




It was now time for the feast. Thirty-five brave adults, okay, thirty three brave adults not counting Cheryl and I sat down and bowed our heads for grace. I believe there may have been a special blessing on the food. The meal turned out to be grrrrreat. The turkey was moist and tasty. There was plenty of food for all. Here are some of those times well wasted.










































Afterwards, a quick clean up of paper plates allowed the family to visit and play games. Even had a match of Mario Kart going on at one point. I think that we all enjoyed the day.




Best of all was the time spent with family. We missed my younger brother and his family; but otherwise, all of my sisters and their families were there with my parents. I even better was the time that my children and grandchildren took to spend Thanksgiving Day with Cheryl and I. That was indeed the best part of the day. Thanks everyone for making this Thanksgiving Day the Best!

Ramblings & Family

Well you all know that I'm concerned about the reorganization of our company and how I will structure my area of responsibilities. Decided two weeks ago that I would wait and see what will happen. Hm.., no changes or indication of movement. Well I take that back our support group is moving forward and HR and Safety have begun to move out of our office and consolidate into a central location.

Last week, attended another SLT and found out that not everyone is on the same page as evidenced in the meeting. Opinions were expressed from top management to senior management have how the meeting should be conducted and what should be covered. Makes it a bit difficult if everyone is not on the same page. I'm sure sooner or later we will get there.

Attended sister company strategic planning so as to demonstrate a unified effort and become more acquainted to how they conduct business and the challenges they faced. Came away frustrated and discourage. Truthfully, do not see a united front and concerned with no action. Determined that the only way that I'm going to obtain answers is to move forward until someone says no.

Put up Christmas Lights yesterday before the cold winter weather strikes. Beautiful day to be out and about. Started new exercise program with our new WII Fit program. Makes working out fun. Maybe I will lose that 25 plus pounds.

Missing my family this week. Thought a lot about Rachel and her family in Ohio. Thank goodness for blogs. She does a great job of keeping us updated on the family and the fun events in their life. Blessed to spend a few hours with Jenny today. Wished we could have seen the kids but it's that time of year when sickness abounds. Always makes me proud and happy to see my grandchildren.

Thankful to find my son with a gleam in his eye as he has found someone that appears to be special to him to date. He hasn't stopped talking about her for two days now. Time will only tell.

Thank goodness that through all of this journey called life, I have my best friend and wife to support me and my children and grandchildren to bring me joy. Life might be tough but the family makes it all worthwhile.

Time of Change

Life comes at us in a blink of the eye. If we are not paying attention we missed the train. This has been a roller coaster ride for me over the last month. I thought that I should start recording some of the my thoughts before I have forgotten all.

Hm, in the past week...

Drove to Twin Falls to attend an Initial DRB Meeting and to see progress on project. The drive gave me good time to reflect on the reorganization changes in the company and how they will affect me and others. How should I organize my division? Who should I choose as my second in command? Who should I seek out for advice?

Drove home same night and wonder if I should attend the Rapid Bridge Replacement on Pioneer Crossing at midnight. Decided to not attend and laid awake all night thinking about it. Spent weekend creating a movie to show neighbors of our adventure to Greece last May. Sunday, rested all day and wonder if I should go down at midnight and watch the second bridge replacement. Too tired went to bed and laid awake all night wondering about the how I should organize my division.

New week and a new day. Rearranged schedule to accommodate meetings of my staff to begin transition into new organization. Would be nice to know that my staff has been called to such a meeting. Conducted performance review of Executive Assistant, met with Communications Director and discussed a number of items including reorganization, and tried to discuss more in detail reorganization with my supervisor.

Newly formed SLT Group met and discussed how to begin transitions to new organization. Hm, when are we going to educate all of our employees on changes. I'm handling numerous questions from employees now. Stressed the need to announce to employees ASAP. Met as a individual company and discussed reorganization, came out of meeting totally confused and frustrated. Hm, this doesn't seem to be what I envisioned. Laid awake all night considering organization of division. Tried to visit aging grandmother unable to due to flu. Wife concerned that I will contract flu bug.


Received advise on divisional organization and fielded more questions concerning the reorganization. Met with project teams and discussed project progress and scheduling concerns. Reviewed financials -worried about how to obtain more profitable work. Concerned with charitable donations committed by senior staff members and the cost. Who approved? Considered more reorganization structure. Suggested potential organization structure to supervisor.

Discussed organization changes with my wife. Been discussing with her for months. Wife is probably tired of discussion. Thankful for a supportive wife.

Drove to Duschene and met with project team and Owner reps. How can we work together better? Concerned with project team's frustrations. Concerned with Owner's perception. Thought more about division organization solidifying my organization. Received a phone call from a disgruntled, frustrated, and disappointed employee concerning his new role in organization. Concerned that we might lose this employee now.

Met with Carpenter Union and listened to a new proposal to settle our Agreement. Consider proposal. Received phone call from son asking if I could make a presentation to college in 40 minutes. Hm, sure why not. Reviewed backlog report and variance reports, discussed further reorganization structuring with supervisor still no clear direction, wondered if we would see an announcement today to employees.

Drove to university, presented to construction students why I love heavy highway work...hm look at the impact I have on every one's life. Also discussed with them the importance of gaining experience in the field and what we as employer look for in potential employees.

Back to office, thought more of how to organize division, reviewed estimate for mine project in Wyoming, reviewed several contract agreements and noted concerns.

Breathed a sign of relief to see a communicatoin to all employees concerning reorganization. Read communicaton. Concerned about communication and how employee will understand. Not well done! Recieved second communication just from a different person. Same communication.

Discussed project pursuits and divisional organization with VIP. Wonder more what should I do. Concerned about outfall of overall organization.

Okay, did I cover everything now. Hm...I wonder what will happen this next week?

Weekend Sight Seeing Adventure

Okay all you history buffs, what famous Military Fort is in the picture and what battle made the fort famous?

A few hints? Hm..well the original fort was a government project that took nearly fifty years to complete. The original height of the fort was approximately the same elevation as a little more than half the height of the flag poles in the picture. The fort was just recently completed when the battle occurred that made the fort famous. Can you name the fort?

Well maybe our video of our weekend adventure will give you some insight as to the location of the fort and possibly the name. Good luck and enjoy the video.



Yup, we had a lot of fun. Oh, the fort? Nope, not Fort Sullivan. Fort Sullivan is on Sullivan Island across the bay from Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is where the first battle of the Civil War was fought. South Carolina was the first state to secede from the United States at the time. The videos also shows Morris Island which is highlighted in the movie "Glory" and battle to take over Fort Sumter during the Civil War.

Brad Paisley Concert

Well I need to let everyone know how much I enjoyed my birthday gift last night. Not much really to say than it was WONDERFUL!!

Thanks to my awesome family I was able to enjoy a great concert with one of my favorite entertainers.

I almost missed the concert because I failed to check where the location was and when I arrived at the small city amphitheater I got this sick feel'n that I was in trouble. A mad dash across to the west side of the valley and over 45 minutes waiting in traffic lines to get to the parking area... well yea, my emotions were running at full steam.

Luckily, we missed only a few songs of the opening act with Jimmy Wayne,but "Do You Beleive Me Now" was a great way to start the concert and then Dierks Bentley got us all going "Sideways" and I couldn't believe "What was I thinking".

I was well ready to "Get a little mud on the tires" when Brad began to entertain us. Songs about celebrities,alcohol, mud, women, and fish'n; well I appreciate Brad's insight into life. I have been a fan of Brad Paisley for a long time now and he didn't let us down last night. This guy is one high class act and the real thing.

Nothing better than sitting with my better half and listening to some great music for the evening.

Sheep Dogs and Splash Dogs

Jenny called this morning and said the she and the kids were on there way to Soldier Hollow Border Collie Competition. Cheryl and I said, "Why not" and hurried and packed our belongings and headed up to meet them.



Now I nor Cheryl have ever been to a Border Collie Sheep Herding competition and had no idea what to expect. I had imagine a collie chasing a few sheep around, yelping at their heels and driving them into a pen. Hm, well I was somewhat close but it was much more complicated than my simple mind could imagine.

The collie would have to search and find the sheep on the hillside and then drive them through a gate, drive them to the sheep herder, turn them and drive them back up the hill through another gate, across the hillside through the last gate and then back to the pen. Once at the pen, the collie would spilt the herd for a brief moment and then drive them into a fenced pen. The owner and their dog would receive points for each task and it all had to be accomplished within 15 minutes. No small feat when you consider that the owner would give directions to the dog by way of whistles. Nothing but amazing.


Included in the competition were the Splash Dogs. This was a lot of fun to watch as the dog owner would hold a retrievable toy (rules would not allow anything that was alive or could be eaten) and throw it into the pool and the dogs would run and jump into the pool and retrieve the toy. Just look at these dogs fly!

Well as you can see by the pictures, we had a lot of fun watching these skilled dogs compete in an amazing way. We'll definitely keep this as a fun activity for future years to come.

Master of the Helm and Fishing

Woke up yesterday morning with the urge to go fishing, fly fishing that is. However, we first had to try our hand at mastering the premium water skiing boat. Taylor has been dying to have us join him on his new boat and show us his new toy and his hot dogging skills.

After a few loops about the lake and becoming comfortable operating the boat, we began to see if I had indeed master the skills to operate the craft. Taylor, first with his solo ski on instructed me to hit the throttle and at 30 mph back off and settle in at a cruising speed of 33 mph. Hey, right! Off we went. Oh, now you tell me about the perfect pass setting. Okay this isn't so difficult.



Taylor was able to enjoy the early morning slightly calm lake has he moved from his ski, to wake board and finishing up on the surf board. Hey wait a minute where's the photo of Captain Jeff, Master of the Helm? Hm, my photography crew may be heading for a brusin.








This evening, I venture out onto the river to enjoy some fly fishing. This evening's fishing demostrates my abilities as a fisherman. I hooked one pig of a trout and landed another pig. Hm, the pig I landed has two hooks... hey that is my fly that the first pig took when he snapped my tippet. Yup, that's right, I hooked a fish that snapped my line and so I grabbed another fly and "Fish On!" was the cry.
Best of all I got my first fly back and my pig was let go for another day of fishing.



Hey, it would have been nice to have a photo of my pig. I tried reaching my photo crew by radio but some lame excuse that the battery had died was all I got.

So you'll just have to enjoy photos of my son surfing here and yes, I'm the captain creating the perfect wake for him to surf. I'm sorry, everyone will just have to believe that I am the Master of the Helm and a grand fisherman.

2009 HIGHLAND FLING

Our traditional family get together for Highland Fling days happened this weekend. Started our celebration and get together with Pizza on Friday night, and a trip to the splash pad at the city center and then the grand kids sleepover. Saturday Morning, we had a great Grammy breakfast with eggs, bacon, and cinnamon rolls. Found a good spot for the parade and came home with a loot of candy. Toured around the park and visited a number of different events including the Scottish Games and Face Painting. After lunch it was time for cotton candy and a nap. Finished our get together with glow sticks, sparklers and fireworks. Here are some of the great pics from the weekend.

On our way to splash park.

One, two, three... jump!










Jump like this Lexi...



















Hm..cheerleaders uh.













Lexi scores.



Boston is wondering what this whole rucus is about.







The Scottish Games.





Hey, wait a minute that long thrower has a pony tail. You mean they let girls do this too.




Mmm, cotton candy.

Glow stick fun.

We missed Taylor and his family..hm, that's right we have to get Taylor married first. We still missed him.

John and Rachel we all missed having you there this year. 1200 plus miles is a long way to come for the Highland Fling; but we all wanted you to know that we were thinking about you. Maybe next year.

That's All Folks.