In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning

Megan and Will "loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly .. Hills, that is .. swimming pools .. movie stars" (actually, they loaded up the car and moved back to Wilmington .. swimming pools .. movie stars: 'One Tree Hill' is filmed there).

They left Humboldt at 1:00 PM (I know .. I can't believe it, either) and arrived at 3:00 (make that 3:03 .. that's when I got the text message) AM.

I had been praying for their safety and the Lord heard my cries (yes, I did some of that) and answered my prayers (He's so awesome .. there really needs to be a song about that .. never mind .. it appears, there is).

So, here we sit .. in a house with neither kid nor cat.

To help make the transition a little smoother for Cheryl (she loves those cats ALMOST as much as the children), I will be suddenly leaving one room and running to another, staring out the window at squirrels, and jumping up on the back of the couch .. from time to time.

I need to go. Cheryl has the flashlight and I have to do some "light beam chasing."

If I'm good, she might rub my belly.

Time to Say Goodbye .. Take 2

The "kids" got everything packed up and were ready for departure yesterday. However, there was just one (it ended up being three) minor problem. The "check engine" light had been on for a few days and, even though it was probably nothing, dad (that's me .. Jack & Dewey call me 'Top Cat' .. or, sometimes .. 'Mr. Killjoy') wanted to find out why the engine was suddenly vying for everyone's attention (hey, that's my job!).

A hose, battery, and four spark plugs later, we found out that "this little light of mine" (make that .. theirs) can pack a powerful punch. To add insult to injury, they needed two tires (I'll be at King Tire when they open at 8 o'clock), as well.

Evidently, the little car (2003 Ford Focus) that could .. couldn't.

If you see Will and Meg at FBC Humboldt tomorrow morning, don't ask .. don't even make eye contact.

This comedy of errors is beginning to be no laughing matter.

Time to Say Goodbye

Today is the day. Megan and Will (.. and their cool cats, Jack and Dewey) are heading back to North Carolina. They will be loading up Meg's little Ford Focus (we will need a shoehorn and some Vaseline® to get everything in there) in just a few hours and starting out on the first day of a two day trip.

It has been great having the "kids" (they are still kids to me) here throughout the holidays. A turkey and some mistletoe many help to make the season bright, but nothing compares to having everyone back home.

Now, however, it's time for them to get back to their place and for us to start sweeping up mass quantities of cat hair (btw, there's probably enough to stuff a pillow .. or two).

In their defense, the cats have been ideal (almost purrfect) house guests. They are very quiet and love to sleep a lot (characteristics they get from their 'grandmother,' Cheryl .. or MeowMeow, as they call her). I am just not used to having little furry creatures running freely throughout the house (except when we lived in Bartlett by that open field .. Jack and Dewey could have been useful back then), suddenly jumping on chairs, tables, beds, and .. me.

I'm sure I will miss all the excitement, when they're gone. It has been sort of nice having a couple of loving animals around here, again (Shadow, you are still missed).

Yes, things will start getting back to normal around here very soon.

I hate normal. It's so .. not me.

Happy New Year!

It Seems Like Only Yesterday It Was 2008!

Pass the Sparkling Grape Juice .. I'm Baptist

Today is New Year's Eve, a time when many will make complete fools of themselves (a little late for the party, aren't we? .. I do this on a regular basis) by drinking and dancing the night away.

I'm Baptist. We don't drink .. publicly (actually, I've never had a drop of alcohol in my entire life .. I'm enough of an idiot, sober). We don't dance (choreography is as close as we get). We don't overeat (okay, two out of three ain't bad). We .. "pray in" the new year.

I lived through 2008 and, believe me, praying for what's ahead in 2009, should be priority one.

Today is, also, my parent's anniversary. They've been married for something like ..112 or 113 years, I believe. I want to wish them a very Happy Anniversary (I hope they read this .. it's all they're getting from me).

You would think getting married on New Year's Eve would be exciting and memorable.

One year, my parents .. both of them .. forgot their anniversary and didn't think about it until a couple of days into January. How do you let a little thing like .. the anniversary of your wedding date, slip your mind? If balloons, party streamers, and fireworks aren't enough of a reminder .. perhaps, a very large wall calendar might be in order (I know what I'm getting them next Christmas).

I love you, mom and dad (so does Cheryl .. talking about you in today's post has taken the attention from her).

I have to get in the shower and finish getting ready. It's Wednesday .. the regular meeting day of my men's prayer group.

I've seen the numbers and 2009 is going to need all the prayers we can muster.

Amen?

The Twelve Daze of Christmas

"The Twelve Days of Christmas" seems, at first glance, to be a silly song about receiving gifts for a dozen consecutive days prior to December 25th. In actuality, it is religious in nature and speaks of the twelve days between Christmas and the beginning of Epiphany, which is January 6 (I see your point, Dinah .. just don't hold your breath .. no more carols).

The song lyrics say on the fifth day of Christmas the gifts were five golden rings, which represent the first five Books of the Old Testament .. the Torah or Pentateuch (today's 'The More You Know' moment has been brought to you by RKH).

I received a gift on the fifth day of Christmas: a book from my daughter entitled, "No One Cares What You Had for Breakfast: 100 Ideas for Your Blog," by Margaret Mason.

I'm not quite sure if this was supposed to be funny (a thought that passes through the minds of my readers each and every day) or if it was intended to be something like an .. intervention (you have an obvious problem .. we love you and want to lend our support).

As I read this "self help" guide, you may see some changes evolve in the style and/or subject matter of RKH's blogspot. Perhaps I have fallen into a "dear diary" rut by sharing about driving to Jackson, having headaches, experiencing sleepless nights, or being constipated (I believe fruitcake could be substituted for mortar, if necessary).

I tend to think I have been sharing slices of my life. You may wish for a smaller slice or, perhaps, you are stuffed and can't take another bite (enough, already!).

Over the next several days, I will be doing some "soul searching" and re-evaluating. Feel free to check back in and see what (if anything) I learned.

BTW, it was coffee, cream, two sugars .. I haven't read the book, yet.

Don't Spamalot

Even with high-tech computer filtering, I still get quite a bit of "spam" each and every day.

I won't explain the term "spam" .. if you are not familiar with this word, you would have no idea what a "blog" is .. hence, you would not be reading revkev's daily accounts of life, as seen through these eyes of .. cynicism. If you don't know what cynicism is .. (today's post has already taken a bad turn, it appears) .

If I were to believe every claim that comes through my "in box", I could buy prescription meds for pennies on the dollar; I would be able to reconnect with dozens of old classmates; I could retrieve hundreds of ecard that "someone" has sent me; and Cheryl could be totally satisfied .. yeah, right.

This morning, I checked my email to find the message, "Hey Baby, Wanna Party?" I have received this invite from many "hot babes with webcams" before. Today, however, the email was from (are you ready for this?) .. Bertha.

Bertha? Bertha? This disturbs me (so it must be bad).

I'm not "in" to the party scene, but if I were, someone named Bertha would probably not be the one to make all my wildest dreams come true (Vote for Pedro!).

Bertha is the name of someone's grandmother! Call me weird, but .. the thought of dentures and the smell of BENGAY® doesn't really "get my motor going."

BTW, I believe Baby Boomers will, one day, be held accountable for naming their children names like Megan (guilty as charged), Heather, and Tiffany. Those sound fine in the "early days." However, they are terrible grandmother names. Grandmothers go by Eunice, Clara and, yes .. Bertha!

One thing is for certain. I have no desire to be with anyone but my wife, so you "spammers" can quit wasting bandwidth on me. Even better, go find a job that doesn't bother people .. like telemarketing.

I've found the woman of my dreams. Kevin + Cheryl, 4 ever.

Frightening, isn't it, honey?