...Each one is a setting sun.

I am back and doing better. At least for now... I made it through the madness and the funeral. Sheila and Adam drove up from Connecticut and took care of me and I do not know how I can ever express how thankful I am for that...

Several things happened over the past few days and I would sometimes think, "I should blog about that." Weird thought, I know and I probably will at a later point for some of them, but right now I'm just not ready for that.

Instead I'm just going to leave the link to my dad's guestbook online because it made me happy to see that other people knew my dad (as best as he would allow them to) and appreciated him. I had no idea how many people he touched. It makes me happy.

http://www.legacy.com/Star-Gazette/GB/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonId=117969811

You were right about the stars...

My dad died today. I am still feeling strange. I feel strange posting this, like I'm putting my life on view. I don't know. I hurt. I miss my dad.

(Insert pithy comment here. I'm not up to the task right now...)

Things are looking bad right now for my father. Really bad. I took this morning off from work and watched Walker Texas Ranger with him today. Let me tell you, that is love. Not only is Walker Texas Ranger one of the worst shows on the planet, but I also hate Chuck Norris. I don't care if he's an internet sensation; the man is an utter tool. He also doesn't believe in evolution. I think I'm going to turn my hatred of Chuck Norris into one of the 9,999 Things to Be Pissed About. That should give me an outlet for my anger...

But I digress, I may hate Chuck Norris, but I do love my dad and it's one of his favorite shows. Of course, he does have terrible taste in TV shows. I suppose we can't all be perfect...

He was pretty coherent at first, but then things went downhill. He's definitely getting more confused. He seems to have forgotten how to use a cell phone. He started smoking a cigarette that didn't exist, then looked puzzledly at his hand trying to figure out where it went. This stuff would be funny if it wasn't so heartbreaking... I'm just watching him slip away.

It got to the point where I was just watching him to make sure he took another breath. He's practically gasping at times. And he's so tiny... I truly don't understand how he's still alive. There is absolutely nothing left on his bones...

I don't know if he'll make it to the end of the week at this point. I feel very confused right now. Just very confused and foggy... I don't know a better way to describe it.

Weekend update

Things have been a bit crazed between dealing with the myriad of cancer difficulties, plus Jimmy getting ready to leave for Minneapolis (TOMORROW! ARGH, too much stress!) for engineer class, so I haven't done too much more than post entertaining P&C photos. I apologize, so here's the update...

Jimmy is going away for the next three weeks for engineer school, which has made him somewhat crazed, but that's ok. He's getting himself psyched by watching YouTube videos of trains. Seriously. You have no idea how many of these videos there are out there. Sadly, I do know now... That said, it is pretty neat and I can completely understand the excitement for him moving up from conductor to engineer... He already said that he won't wear the striped cap, however. So that means no entertaining photos of the dog in an engineer cap. Dammit.

The only downside is my fear that my dad will most likely pass away while Jimmy's gone. I honestly don't know how he's held on as long as he has. Every time I think he can't get worse... he does. He's a stubborn old curmudgeon and still says that he's not going to die, but I think that's he's starting to come to terms with the fact that he can't hold out much longer. I'm nervous about that because I want him to accept what's going on, but I'm also nervous that once he does accept it, then he'll be gone. It's very confusing.

My Uncle David and Aunt Linda are coming from England next week and my brother is coming back again the first of the month. I think my dad is just hanging on so he can see them all one more time. I hope he makes it.

That said, after all this death talk I really need to switch gears so I don't depress everyone so much. Then I'm gonna curl up in my sock drawer and sleep for days.... (name that quote!)

Anyways, this is one of my new favorite P&C signs ever. It's almost as good as "Body Bored".

Don't water the plants, they're plastic!

They're not even trying anymore, are they...

Ok, so the P&C is really trying to tell me that this... this?!? is Aquafina? They must know what's going on. I can't imagine how this one could ever just slip by someone's notice.

You know, the more I look at this one, the more this looks like some sort of swear word...

Jimmy on politics...

"You know, some people are saying Obama is the anti-christ. And I'm ok with that. Especially if he's going to cut taxes."

I've got to admit, he may have a point... The anti-christ is still a more attractive option than McCain/Palin.

There and back again

So, I do a lot of driving for work. It's helped me learn the backroads of Western New York much better than I ever expected to need to know. I try to make my routes interesting whenever possible. During my travels, I've been watching the slow progress of the windfarm that's being built in the hills of Cohocton off of Interstate 390 and my curiosity finally got the better of me.

I was already on my way home and decided to take a detour to get a closer look at these windmills that have been causing so much controversy. A lot of people are up in arms against them. I'm really not sure why, as I don't see a downside to them.

Anyway, my internal radar was in top form and I quickly found myself amidst the windfarm. Part of me thought twice about whether I was supposed to be there, but I didn't see any no trespassing signs, so that was enough for me to continue on...

All I can say is wow... It was well worth the detour to check out. I counted at least 50 that were in the process of being built, with what to looks to be many more on the horizon.

I actually took these on my blackberry, since this expedition was more of a whim, so I'm looking forward to coming back again with a decent camera.