Boo

Sugar Britches concurs. If I had it to do over again, I never would have mentioned the fact that I was the biggest baby born in Bradley County, Tennessee in 1974 to the future mother of my children. The better-half said: "I just hope he's not a big-headed sumo baby like his daddy was." Good thing I'm not easily offended.

Top-shelf quit BAT. Good job.

Round about late May or early June...it's time for peaches. I'm sure some of the peaches at the grocery store are fine. However, peach perfection is usually purchased direct from the farmer off the back of a flatbed truck. If you don't have peach juice running down your chin and aren't making m'mmm type noises...you're not doing it right.

We are officially in the third trimester now. Jackson's due date has been narrowed down to April 16. Right around the corner. Had a visit with the good doctor yesterday. Jackson and Sugar Britches are both in great shape. The better-half is dealing with some swelling issues and her energy levels are less than optimal. However, following a battery of tests she passed them with flying colors. Mister Jackson weighs in at 2.2 pounds and measures 15 inches long. He's a little bitty fella but compared to other babies at the same stage, he is slightly bigger than average. We've reached the countdown period now and the anticipation is growing.

Maddie can waddle like a penguin. And she does a side-shuffle. She also walks with her knees high up like she's marching. She is working on a walk where she kicks one leg out in front of her and catches up with it; she tends to get a little off balance when she does that one. She's been rolling out new walks for a couple of weeks now for laughs. Could be this is her way of paying tribute to Monty Python's "Ministry of Silly Walks" sketch.

Nicotine also quickly depletes vitamin C from the body. We were all in varying states of vitamin deficiency when we were smoking. Good riddance to cigarettes.

A fine cover of a Merle Haggard standard...

Yep.

Quitting smoking dramatically changes the absorption of caffeine. Nicotine doubles the rate at which the body depletes caffeine. Smoking has such a dramatic impact on the body that quitting did throw most of us into a state of flux in the early days. This should not be viewed as a deterrent. Rather it is an opportunity to improvise, adapt, and overcome...you'll be glad you did.

Miss Maddie is back up to full speed now. She really didn't feel well on Sunday and was still a bit out of form on Monday. Yesterday and today she has been good to go. I bought her a get well soon gift Monday. A Play-Doh kitchen creations playset. Maddie loves to help in the kitchen, so she's enjoying her new toy. And with Maddie doing her "cooking" in Play-Doh form now, Sugar Britches is left with fewer messes to clean up in the kitchen. Brought a bit of joy to the wife and daughter with one gift...I'm getting pretty good at this.

Good job Kenzie. Congratulations.

I only just recently found out about T-Model Ford. He was a blues artist from Mississippi, who played a lot of juke joints and went out on the road with a few bigger named artists. He didn't record his first album until he was in his seventies, his exact birthdate is not known. Been listening to the album "Pee-Wee Get My Gun" a lot...Damn good driving music.

Maddie was a little under the weather yesterday. Nothing serious, a bit congested and just not feeling like her normal self. She got a lot of pampering. Cuddled and hugged on all day. And we watched March of the Penguins...again. She didn't enjoy being sick, but I don't think she minded all the attention.

Far too often, the movie adaptation of a book is ruined by terrible casting. Lonesome Dove nailed it. Robert Duvall as Gus and Tommy Lee Jones as Woodrow was perfect casting. In fact, most everything about that series was perfect. Finished Dead Man's Walk and Comanche Moon. Just started reading Lonesome Dove again...Feels a bit like talking to an old friend.

Way to go Katgirl. Good job.

Congratulations Linda. You fought the good fight. Now it's time to celebrate.

Good job Tony. Enjoy the new fishing rod.

Good job Steven. Keep it up.

Good job Ace. Congratulations. Prepare the lido deck, we've got one coming in hot.

Wise words Doreen. Regrets are best dealt with temporarily. Take what lessons you can from the things you regret. Then discard those regrets. Hanging on to regret is self-made trap. Making wise decisions today will go a long way in preventing future regrets.

A friend of mine, he's an idiot but a good guy, sent me a link to this video for New Years. This morning I couldn't get that chorus out of my head. Novi, Novi, Novi, Novi Go-od...

Actual headline from the New York Post: "90 Day Fiance Star Retires From Selling Farts After Heart Attack Scare." Stephanie Matto, 31, enterprising "fartepreneur" (there's a reason I always go with the New York Post on stories like this) was eating a steady diet of hardboiled eggs, beans, and protein shakes to stay in a constant state of gassiness. Say what you will, but she really committed to the bit. Long story short, her gas pains became so intense she thought she was having a heart attack and went to the hospital. Miss Matto's fart-for-pay days came to an abrupt halt following the health scare. She still makes a good dime with some online subscription service she has doing unspeakable things for thirsty boys on the internet. She was selling her farts in a jar for $1,000 a poot. Now I can't focus on anything else. So many dad jokes bouncing around in my head... These gas prices are out of control! Inflation....Am I right? Back in my day you could buy a jug of farts for ten-bucks.

Fishing without cigarettes is much better than fishing with them. For one thing, I no longer waste half the day worrying about my smokes getting wet. I had a special container for my cigarettes. I would put that container inside a Ziploc bag. Then that bag went inside my dry bag. Far too much attention on cigarettes when the goal of the day was to catch fish. Smoking demands that it be front-and-center regardless of what you're doing. Take away smoking and you can really focus on the things that matter.