The Dash Between The Dates

Grave side services were over now.
Everyone had left and I was alone.
I began to read the names and dates
Chiseled here and there on every stone.

The name showed whether it was Mom or Dad,
Or daughter or baby son.

The dates were different, the amount the same,
There were two dates on every one.

It was then that I noticed something
Just a simple line.
It was the dash between the dates,
And placed there, it stood for time.

All at once it dawned on me,
How important that little line!
The dates placed there belong to God,
But the line is yours and mine.

It's God who gives this precious life,
And it's He who takes away;
But the line between He gives to us
To do with what we may.

We know He's written the first date down
Of each and every one;
And we're sure the hands will write again,
For the last date has to come.

The hands will write the last date down
Quite soon, perhaps, for some;
But upon the line between my dates and yours,
I trust He'd write, "Well done, well done!"

–Anonymous~
(A web search is underway for the true author of this piece. If anyone knows the author please advise the webmaster.)

This Weight Problem

In the midst of everything else going on in my life right now, I have this weight gain problem. I am currently up to 280 pounds. That would not be so bad, but I thought I was overweight at 235!

I went to the doctor a few years ago and he said it was thyroid. Since then, I have heard nothing but thyroid for many, many problems. I don't know if I believe it or not.

I do know one thing, I have tried faithfully to take my pill each day with not improvement. I know my diet is bad, but not that bad. I do not exercise like I used to, but I do not just sit around all the time (well, I do have a desk job and a two to four hour commute each day).

I am going to start watching what I eat and try to get a little more exercise. After I broke my heel a couple of years ago, I got down to about 220. I want to be there again and I want to stay there.

I think in addition to the diet program and exercise program, I need a stress reduction program. Everytime I get stressed or pissed at home I head for the refrigerator. Instead, I should head for the gym downstairs!

280 today.....let's see where I am in a week, and in a month, two months.......

Blackberry

This is my first entry via my blackberry. It is really cool.

Book Ideas

o Timeline of 1998 through present 2003
o First communicated with Kathleen via email
o First communicated with Kathleen via phone
o Getting picture of her with KM and Julie on tire swing (love at first sight)
• First Experience with KM on phone
• Meeting Kathleen 1st time
o Arrangements to visit Kathleen in Enumclaw
 Where to stay
• Apartment versus Motel
o Flying into Seattle
 Drinking V-8
 Pilot Announcing over Enumclaw
 Wondering how I would recognize her
o Seeing her
o Stopping on Bridge
o Drive through Seattle
 Holding hands
 Touching
 Stroking/Petting
o Lockes
 First Kiss
 Calling Kris
o Coming to her home in Enumclaw
 Meeting Kris
o Talking at Motel
• Another visit to Enumclaw
o Necking in Goodwill parking lot
 Cop pulling in while we were there
o Condom in Kathleen’s back pocket
• IM’s and Emails with Kathleen
• Phone calls with Kathleen
o First frustrations
• 1st Weekend visit to Enumclaw
• Kris’ first apartment
• KM’s First Apartment
o Working with KM on application
o Talking to Chuck to help get things done
• KM moves
o Meeting Clell (sp??)
• Meeting Julie 1st time
o Trailer in Puyallup??
o Resteraunt she worked at
o Moving her from next place along I-5 near Tacoma
• Meeting Michelle 1st time
• Meeting Karin 1st time
o Questions just like Kathleen warned
o Wanting me to go to dance with her
• Tim
o Tim finding me the first time
o Chat with Tim and Kathleen together in private room
o Emails and phone calls with Tim
o All night phone call
o All night emails
• Robin
o Robin's trip to Las Vegas
o Robin's summer in CA at condominium
o Robin's bug breaking down and me going back to get it
 Karen Pridham’s husband and Glenn rescueing me
o The end with Robin
o Moving out
• John Z.
o My room
o John’s house
o Roommate – cook
o Roommate – favorite movie Seven Deadly Sins - sicko movie
• Kris
o 1st meeting of Kris (home on couch)
o 1st Dinner (a bit strained)
• Bill
o Hearing what he did to Kathleen when Kathleen and I were at motel my first visit to Enumclaw
o Calling house 1st time and I not acknowledging a Kathie lived there (oops – honestly it did not register with me – no one probably believes this, but it was the honest to God truth). How to win friends and influence people – not to mention tick off ex’s!
o Bill calling while Kathleen and I drive to Portland
o Bill calling while we are at restaurant (what was the name of this one??) in San Francisco on trip to pickup his black Chevrolet Lumina
• 1st meeting of Bill (SEATAC airport)
• Chuck
• 1st meeting with Chuck in AZ
• Chuck’s visit to Renton
• 1st phone conversations with Dawn in Las Vegas (Chuck’s wife)
• Emails with Bill
• 1st meeting of Julie
• Trip to Oregon to meet Bud
• 1st call from Bill
• 1st meeting of Jeremy (San Jose Airport)
• 1st meeting of Todd (wedding)
• Honeymoon in San Juan
• Week of Stomach Flu
• Aaron
• David
• Mary
• Daniel
• Naomi
• House in Enumclaw
• Move to Renton
• Temporary Work
• Voicestream
• T-Mobile USA, Inc.
• Vans
• Bill’s Car
• RX7
• Michael Kaden
• Kathleen’s ankle
• Kathleen’s shoulder surgery
• Dennis Broken Heel
• Move back to Enumclaw
• Child Support Hearing 1
• Child Support Hearing 2
• Trip to Jeremy’s with Kid’s
• Trip to Florida with Todd and Jeromy
• Trip to Dad’s for bed
• Trip to Mom’s with Kids
• Trip to Move KM to Sacramento, including visit to Ruthie’s
• KM to jail to visit ??
• Birth of Micahel Kaden
• Kaden’s dad – David, in prison for bomb threats
• The step-grandfather of Kaden killed
• The uncle of Kaden (boyfriend to KM while David in Prison) killed
• Jennifer’s dad – Greg, professional car thief, in and out of jail
• William’s dad – Jeromy, brain fried on drugs
• Cora’s dad – Dave, petty criminal, in and out of jail
• KM’s Indian friend and dad of unborn child
• William’s birthday party 2003
• Greg and the missing car August 27, 2003
• Kaden back with us August 21, 2003
• KM in hospital night Kathleen and I are to leave for somewhere??
• KM in hospital (drug exposure??)
• KM in hospital (stomach pains??)
• Julie in hospital – I go to hold her hand while she gets IV
• David’s appendectomy
• Kris’ unemployment 1st
• Kris’ unemployment 2nd with Kids at his house
• Kids and T-Mobile USA party summer of 2003
• Camping Summer 2003
• Summer of my kids visit when Kathleen sprained her ankle
• Summer my kids spend 2 months in Enumclaw
o Airfare cheaper to buy two round trip so kids fly back to Phoenix with me while I go to UOP graduation
o Robin physically takes the kids for night
• DS quitting UOP
o Layer advise
o Calling UOP
o Talking to Brian??
o Correspondence??
• Kathleen’s mother’s house
o Cooking there
o Fixing yard
o Getting DSL for house
o Fixing computer install heard drive
o Fixing Wireless network with Kathleen in San Francisco (or not fixing)
o Wiring network for DSL
o What to do with yard waste
• Kathleen/Dennis problems
o I want everyday/she doesn’t
o I scold kids/she makes excuses for them
• Expedited Child Support hearing on January 9, 2003
o Joke
o Count both my incomes
o Reduction very, very minimal
o I get two tax exemptions for two kids
• Child support hearing July 2003 while Kathleen and I are in San Francisco and Jeremy and Ty are in Hawaii.
• Ryan’s visit to Renton house
o New year’s eve – Ryan and KM
• 1st Fourth of July in Enumclaw
• 1st Fourth of July in Renton
• Camping with too many mosquitos
• Daniel’s bike getting stolen
• RX7 overheating in Fresno, etc. - July 2003
• RX7 brake problems in Gilroy -uly 2003
• KM little vacation for week where where she gets pregnant with Kaden
o Needed a week to try it with this guy
• KM goes to Sacramento, CA
o Kathleen and I meet Jeremy there to move her in
 Jeremy funding this move
 Jeremy paying her rent
o KM has abortion in CA??
o KM gets jaw broken by black guy in Sacramento
o Kathleen and I move KM stuff from storage in Sacramento
• Birth of Kaden
• First 6 months (how long did we have Kaden??) with Kaden
• Julie moves to Florida
o We store her stuff in Renton garage
o Send computer to her in Florida
o Trip to Florida with Todd and Jeremy to resuce Julie
 Walking the apartment complex looking for William and Jennifer
 Man at door where William was
• Hold on a minute, then comes to door in just underware (bottoms only)
 Nice lady Jennifer was with
 Lady with Julies stuff (a little weird)
 Todd and I track Julie down at psychiatric place(s)
 I leave town with William and Jennifer and fly back through Chicago to Seattle
 William and Jennifer stay at our house a month while Julie recooperates at Jeremy’s in San Francisco
 Julie lives at our house with William, Jennifer, at same time we have Kaden
 Tent in backyard for Daniel then Julie and her kids
o Julie moves out to apartment in Renton with??
 He moves out 2 days later??
• Bill and the shoes for ?? from Eluxury and Louis Vitton
o Shipping
o Export
o Cost
• Bill visit with ??
o Shopping sprees
o Leaving stuff for boys to ship
• Julie and Romanian friend
o Kathleen said watch out, but Jeremy said the Romanians are ok
o Freaking weird dude
o He keeps coming back
o He is admitted??
• Julie and Cal (July/August 2003)
o Cal’s car disappears with Greg one night August 27, 2003
• KM calls me to ask how to wire TV through stereo 11:30pm August 26, 2003
• My problems
• Kathleen’s problems
• Aaron’s problems
• David’s pro blems
• Mary’s problems
• Daniel’s problems
• Kris’ problems
• Naomi’s problems
• Karin Moses’s problems (Kathleen’s sister married Mark Moses)
• Mark Moses’ problems
• Mary Reidell’s problems
o Mary’s cell phone dials home without her knowing it
o Mary moves to Mexico
o Mary comes back from Mexico
o Mary moves to Carson City, NV
• Ncik Reidell’s problems
o Job with aquarium cleaning
 Not getting paid
• My calling Oregon Attorney General for details
o Job with carpet cleaning company
 Fired because broke something
• George Reidell’s problems
• Cameron Reidell’s problems
• Church help from Bishop Dane Bean
• Church welfare storehouse
o Making order
o Picking up order
o Good/Bad of food/supplies
• Tithing
• Teaching Sunday School to 13 year olds in Renton
o Daniel in class
• Income Taxes
o My exemptions for grandkids Cora, Kaden, Jennifer, William
o Fight with Robin for 2002 exemption for Alexis
o Fight with Taryn for exemption in ??
o Fight with Ryan for exemption for tax year 2001??
• Finances
o Loan with Dad
o Loan with Mom
o Balance transferring funds
o Stock in Drugstore.com
• Teaching at UOP
• Mysteries - some unanswered family mysteries
o Uncle Walter Spence
o Ron Spence
o My Dad – Harold Spence
 Real relationship with Ron
 Previous wives
 Life in his home
• Dark Deep Past – better forgotten but mentioned here for posterity
• Kathleen’s genealogy work
o Grandmother’s paperwork
o Working each line of her ex’s for the kids
o Findings
o How she uses the computer
• Genealogy trip to Freson July 2003 to Aunt ??
• Visit to Cemetery in Portland
• Visit to Bud’s outside of Portland
o Spending the night in the hotel together in Portland
o Kathleen’s naiveness of Bud’s intentions
o Buying bud the computer and all
o Kathleen seeing me undress that night
o Kathleen downstairs while I was on Balcony looking out
o Bud driving us around
o Dinner (yuck) at Appleby’s with Kathleen only (never go there again)
• Good-bye’s at the airports
• Christmas
• Thanksgiving
• Kathleen comes to AZ to drive with me to our wedding and to WA
o Her night at my final math class
o Driving wildly on LA freeway was make-out??
o Getting marriage license with no home for me
o Stopping in San Juan the day before the wedding
o The wedding
 Dad kinda late
 The judge
 The weather
 Mom and Aunt Angie
 Dinner at the Chinese restarant – Dad paid!
 Going for Orange Juice as Kathleen showered
 Disappointment the first night
 The drive home and Kathleen almost upset with failure of 1st night
• The first days together in Enumclaw
o The house
o The kids
o Meals
o Looking for work – after taking a week off
o The commute
o Temporary Work in Bellevue
o Everyone gets the flu but me….until after everyone gets over then I get it good
• Life gets better in bed for Kathleen and me
o Learn how to do it together
o Frequency
o Desire
o While sick with flu a new way
o Never see her
• Kids to Kris’s apartment every other weekend
• The first time Kathleen said she wanted to go with Kris to do something with kids
• The birthday party at Kris’ apartment I dropped Kathleen off and cruised around waiting for them to get done.
• The continuous fights we have because she wants to do stuff with Kris and the kdis
• Kris at house while Kathleen there in 2003 when he is supposed to be at work
• Kris’ bishop
o Meeting with him
o Talking to him on phone
o Asking for him to help Kris
o The butt does little or nothing
• The story of Ryan’s Piano
• The Dryer from Costco
• Kaden’s Birth
• Kris brake light problem on the Suburban
• Rubbing Kathleen’s feet and legs with her pantyhose on
• Trying the Astro Glide bottle in Kathleen
• Working with Keith Olsen and Leak Detectives all night long
• Program Manager Certification
• Plan of escape
• Disappearing act