CoffeeSig

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Category: Family

A great (but hot) weekend

By

On August 30, 2026

In Family, GaugeCam, God

It was at or near 100° Fahrenheit all weekend long, but we had the best and most relaxing weekend in a long time. Saturday morning we ran down to Stephenville to see a little of the very beautiful Tarleton State University campus. Today, after our worship meeting, we ran down to the Kroger grocery store (founded in 1955, the year of my birth) and had a piece of fried chicken–the best in town and way cheaper than a restaurant. After lunch, I drank a couple glasses of Bread and Butter Pinot Noir and worked on the GRIME3 water level measurement software package that now has a couple of places waiting on it in both Nebraska and Idaho. Then I took a nap and now I am waiting for the steak Lorena is cooking for me. Life is good today.

Up and running in Texas

By

On July 30, 2026

In Family, Health, Texas house

Christian flew down to Virginia to help us drive to Texas and get into our apartment. It is a great little apartment with a view of the lake within walking distance of a ton of good restaurants. James, Jan and our builder and his family cooked hamburgers for us the night after we arrived and it just felt like home. We definitely made the right choice in coming here. Christian was really the champion of the whole affair. He drove Lorena and navigated a ton of minutiae. We ate way to much food and sat in the car with no way to get any exercise for way too long. Our health program took a hit, but now we are here.

Chapman siblings

By

On July 15, 2026

In Family

I so this picture of the kids on social media this morning and it gave me great joy. They were inseparable as kids. I am not sure where this was, but fine dining with friends is definitely one of their things. We are glad Christian has tickets to fly to Virginia in a week or so to help us drive to Texas. We plan to stop at the Trump Winery and a few other places along our leisurely way.

Moving artifacts

By

On July 9, 2026

In Family, Texas house

In the middle of our move while Lorena was sorting through stuff to throw away and stuff to pack, she found this old picture of my brother, Doug, and I. We really did have a wonderful childhood. It got a little rougher as we moved into Jr. High School and High School, but the older I get, the more I realize how important it was that we had parents who loved us and were trying in every way they knew to do well by us. There were some things that could have gone better, especially in terms of how much time they spent with us, but they were scrapping and working hard just to get by. I am truly astounded by how much better we had it than the majority that surrounded us–not talking in terms of money or creature comforts, but in parents that loved us and instilled values in us that still persist.

Would have been 73 years

By

On July 4, 2026

In Family

Dad and Mom (Grandpa Milo and Grandma Sarah) got married 73 years ago on the 4th of July. I think of July 4 as Independence Day in the USA, but first and foremost, I think of Dad and Mom. Now it is a time for reflection and gratitude. They were not perfect and suffered significant trauma in their lives, but none of us kids ever doubted that they loved God, they loved us, and they frequently made big sacrifices for each and every one of us. I miss them a lot. Here they are in front of Grandma Jenkins house. It could not have been too much after they got married.

Remembering my father

By

On June 21, 2026

In Family

It is Father’s Day today. Lorena and I were reminded, yesterday, that our Heavenly Father cares for us and sees us in our need. Julia sent us some great pictures taken by our Finnish Grandmother, Ida Jenkins. When I saw this with my sister, Julia, and my father (Milo), it reminded me of what a gift we had in a father who truly loved every one of us. He was unique, born in 1929, the year of the stock market crash that marked the beginning of the great depression in the USA. He never knew what it was like to do anything other than work very, very hard and he actually loved doing that until the very end. I hope to write more about him in other posts because he lived an absolutely exceptional life. He had lots of faults, but certainly not more than me. He made up for all of that because of his kindness and love, not only for us, but others.

Davy Crockett

By

On June 19, 2026

In Family

My brother Doug and I were huge fans of Davy Crockett when we were kids. It was because of the Disney TV program about him. I think it must have been at the time of the one of the rebroadcasts of the program because the short series was filmed in 1955, before I was born. This all got brought to my attention when my sister Julia sent us some pictures she had scanned in from our wonderful Finnish grandmother, Ida Jenkins. The picture is of the Davy Crockett outfits my mother bought for us one Christmas. We cherished those outfits and the toy rifles we got to go along with them.

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén