My publishing website has had a revamp for both updating the content on the catalog and page layout.  My cover artist was kind enough to handle the visual aspects while my web developer friend and the young man interning under him for programming experience handled the behind the scenes coding stuff.  We've even got my niece's poetry book listed (and Liz made her own cover for her book, which fits so well with her poems).

www.thgstardragon.com

I still haven't gotten enough submissions to publish the children's dragon anthology I am compiling for, but have recently gotten a few more, so I am hoping that I will have enough content to release it soon.

set in stone.

Well all is set with Resprite care at Martenez.

Didnt get exactly the dates I wanted. But thats ok.

The dates are Sept 22 thru Oct 6. Now i have to figure out what im going to do with myself. I know what i will not be doing.

Dry Lake day

Actually I got there a few years early, but I think that in the not too distant future it will live up to its name. I've never seen so much growth on the surface of the lake even later in the fall.
It has been so foggy in CC I've only seen the sun about an hour in the last three days, so I decided to see if I could find some sun and a little wood.

birthdays

so if everyone gets to skip their birthday this year...

Glenda, Sandy, Jim,

does that mean that this past year has never happened. or are we just denying that we are getting more "mature"?

if thats what happened, why do i feel older.

sandi

HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We just took Calvin back today after having him since July 2. He's generally up here for two weeks during the summer and for a week during the winter. It's a good break for him to come to CC for a different change of pace as he lives in Santa Rosa, CA. It was good visit and it's good to see him grow up.

Grandkids

Here's a pastel I did of Alex at the Pastels in the Park over the 4th of July.

The gang was here for a short time.

Happy B-day Bonnie

Dog's Have Healing Saliva

and it was Very good

So its been almost 8 months since i had a break that i could relax and have fun.

Jim called and said he was coming down just after school was out.

He arrived on Wed night, a day before he said he would be here. To my delight and suprise he brought Oh-mah. Which made his arrival and vistit all that much more special.

We hung around here for a couple of days. Went to Folsom lake, paddeled around and had a bbq. made a whole day of it. Even got Chuck in the water and swim. (with assistance)

Friday night Janine came over and visited for a while and just had a good visit.

Sunday afternoon Glenda came over and stayed with Chuck, while Jim and i took a little over night camping trip to Loon Lake. It is in the High Sierras about 6400 feet. The roads just became accesable from the snow about a week prior. The water was very cold, maybe in the low 40s range. Of course, Jim had to take a dip. Im not allowed to post those pics. ;) Me, Im crazy, but not insane. (love ya bro).

After that we drove to the entrance of the Rubicon. It is a famous, or infamous trail, that is world know for the off road crowd for 4 wheeling. Alot of vehicles get broken back there.

It used to be a major stage-coach run to Reno and Carson City, via Lake Tahoe.

We walked about a mile to the north end of Loon lake where Jim had to of course had to take another dip. I got in as far as my waist and said "NOPE". This water was colder than the main body of the lake.

For those that remember the creek by the cabins at Spirit Lake. The temp was about the same.

We spent about a nour there, if not more, and headed back to the vehicle.

We were going to stay at another lake, but decided to stay there at Loon.

We built a fire, burnt some hamburger, had a couple of beers and just enjoyed our surrounds and visiting. The air was fresh and clean. The stars were INCREDABLE. Layer after layer of stars. You could spot the milkey way. We even saw a UFO. We couldnt identify it, so it was a UFO.

The next day we got up, after sleeping with Oh-mah in the tent and had breakfast and folded up camp and continued on with our journey.

I will go on with that day at another time. But it was mostly just driving and enjoying Gods great creation.

What a really beautiful are this is. And it was a real joy to share it with some one who would enjoy it as much as i do.

Happy Father's Day

DEAR, FAMILY....... PETER, JIM AND DICK, Happy fathers day, also all the family members, that are fathers, just wish to let you know, you all are loved. I hope that all the family members had a great day, remembering their fathers on this special day, and the memories of growing up, as children, with the love and sharing this special time of year..... HAPPY FATHERS DAY How I look to the day when we all meet the FATHERS IN OUR LIFE.Those that we can not spend time with at this special time of year. The Joy of seeing them in the Heavens, and the joyful reunion in our Heavenly Home.How I look to that day, when I see the joy return to those I love, as they look to their father's. What a joy, it will be to be reunited, with my Fathers, that have gone to their rest.The joy I will share, with my sisters and brothers, as I see my father, that was my earthly father. As we join in song, to sing praise, as one voice, to our Heavenly Father, that has given us the gift, of rejoining our families, that are at rest. Dad, I miss you, and look to the day, when I can walk and talk, and say thank you for being the father, and seeing the healing, of earthy hurts. The past pain, is gone, and we can be a family, that has been healed, and share the joy's of our Heavenly home. Happy Fathers Day, to all Lili

WE HAVE A NEW DAWG!!!!

Rather, a shelter dog. I think he's a Heinz 58 but mostly a Golden Retriever. There was a slight pecking order situation that had to be dealt with, but with Oh-Mah pecking and ordering the order has been defined. The shelter said he was 2 years but I think he's older than that. I think he's a good addition to my family.

Just in time

So for the last 2 days ive been busy replacing 2 rotten fence post with less rotten fence post. The fence was at about a 30 degree angle ready to fall onto the neighbors motorhome.

Now was a good time to do it since the neighbors are gone for a little bit.

Once i got the first one in the second one was easy. except dropping it down a 6 foot bank. Which another neighbor help me retrieve. Destroyed a couple of rose bushes, but i know the neighbor wont mind, they rent. And a couple of other little nusences that teach patience.

This has been on my to-do list for the last few months. And now its done. WOOHOO

So today it decided to rain.

Now its time to go back and wash walls. (or something)

Dick

The End of the World!

What follows is a simple letter to a questioning grandchild

Dear .....; After we visited today; I had time to ponder your question about the topic we were speaking of: "the end of the world". Because there are a lot of people in Christianity that think they are doing God a favor by predicting the date of the end of the world, and eventually these cause God's name to be reproached, I thought I'd explain some things to you:

At it's root, Christianity requires faith. In addition, the genuine Christian experience is spiritual and ultimately subjective. Since no man stands between God and man (like the Pope), there is a requirement that each individual come to terms with God on a simple one on one basis. Because all relationships with God are ultimately personal, and we all have differing gifts, some people feel they have special insights about different topics.

I should say here, God does speak to us through his word, and I believe he speaks to us in our heart. Like you may hear a very quiet voice that says, 'go put your arms around that little girl who's crying over there, and console her'.

However, sometimes people get very complicated and sophisticated about the Bible. Likewise, some people get very complicated about how God speaks to their heart. Actually, to the believer, living the Christian faith is as natural as laying in your father's lap, or telling your mom how much you appreciate her. Or doing our chores because it's our turn. There's nothing hard about living a life of faith.

There are a couple big words that Bible students like to use, exegesis and eisegesis. Let me explain this way: if I were to tell you, 'go to your library, and get the CS Lewis book, The Silver Chair; because you are used to your dad's scavenger hunts, and you enjoy Harry Potter, you may think, I was sending you a coded message, and you should really be looking for a silver chair! You would be 'reading into' (eisegesis) more than I was saying. But I just wanted you to read the book because it's a good one! Get it?

Exegesis, on the other hand, is reading the text of the Bible for exactly what it is meant to say; being careful not to 'read into' it more than was meant by God. This fellow Harold Camping, who's been predicting the end of the world for Saturday, finds all kinds of great Bible texts, and he is using waaaaay too much eisegesis!

Now don't get me wrong, eisegesis is not a bad thing; just a way of study that can lead to all kinds of misunderstandings. Basically, the books of Revelations, Daniel, Zechariah, and many more require a certain amount of eisegesis to make them have any sense at all........ But be very careful when you read such books, or hear any teaching on them, some of the best Bible teachers fail when they try to figure out some of God's clues.

Now here's a good rule: Rarely is prophesy used to create a 'prediction of coming events'. Instead, Bible prophecy is supposed to confirm what is happening in the present, so our hearts can rest, knowing that God is not taken by surprise- and neither are the saints that are led by his Holy Spirit. For instance, if a great earthquake hits our neighborhood (Matt.24.7), we know that we have been warned in advance, and like the Lord says, our hearts should" not be troubled". (Jn.14.27) The real test of a genuine child of God, is not that he or she is able to predict the future, or even escape it, rather, that this person trusts in God, no matter what comes their way!

Remember, Christianity is not as spooky as some make it out to be. It's many things: it's a way of life, a philosophy, a religion, etc. But at it's core, it's choosing to believe that God has provided a way for man to have peace with Him through his only son Jesus Christ. Everything that your Elders add to this central message, though sometimes important, pale in it's significance. So don't let any of this 'fringe' stuff bother you, when 'The End' starts to come close, I think we'll all know it. Grandpa

New experience

So the Dr. put Chuck on an Iron regiment for enemia (im to laxy to look up the proper spelling). Me, being the excellent reader and follower of directions that i am, screwed up.

not really, because there are two sets of directions on the package. so ill blame someone else. :)

It seems that your not suppose to use dairy products with iron. He had cod, mixed vegies and cottage cheese with a few peaches on it But before dinner i gave him his iron pills.

He ate dinner and about 2 hours later. Lets just say it didnt look the same.

I called the advice nurse after taking his vitals. which were all real good. So that led me to believe it was the iron. The advice nurse confirmed my suspision.

Well now we have his iron management is in control. I hope. He hasnt gotten sick again, yet.

ANYWAY....

I tried my hand at cooking beef liver for the first time. To tell you the truth, it smells pretty good. It may just be all the garlic i put on it.

according to him it was real good.

why...

do the tasks that seem the easiest to take on seem to turn out to be a pain?

So the occupational therapist called today and asked about Chucks fall.

We covered some bases on that topic.

Then she asked "do you have the grab bars that i ordered for him in yet?"

I replied very sheepishly,

"ahhh, no they are on my to do list."

Thank goodness that she has a sense of humor, and understands mine.

"so you dont have them in yet?"

"nope, they are sitting by the door. The same place thay have been

since they got delivered. Three weeks ago"

" so do i need to come over to give you some motivation to get them installed?"

"well, ahhh, lets see, ummm."

"ok, i will be over sometime in the next week or so."

"ok, so i guess that means i have to move that up on my to do list."

"yep."

anyway. back to my project.

i get the grab bars out and take them to the bathroom, to figure out where

they are going to go.

bad thing is that there are no studs in the wall to support the bars. I go to lowes

and get some anchor bolts that i think will work. I get home and start to install

them and break 2. so i figured out how they work and get the one bar infront of

the toilet.

NOW time for the ones on the wall next to the toilet. This wall has a pocket door in it.

OH GREAT!!

now i have to figure out what im going to do. Ah ha, take the door out.

Remove upper trim and take it out. easy, no problem.

Now i have another problem. The wall has no support if Chuck has to put any weight to it.

hmmmm.

So i make my 4th trip to lowes and get a 2x4 cut it to length. The space between the

pockets measures 1.75 inches and 2x4s are 1.5 wide. So i get a piece of lattice and

nail it to the side of the board in 4 inch sections so that They match the supports for

the pocket.

Problem is i nailed the lath below the mark that they were to go. instead of above the mark.

About this time i have way to much time on this project and im tired.

Tomorrow is a new day. I can finish this one and continue on with the previous.

Happy Mother's Day- Only God can create a mother.

Certainly, most women can bear a child. Most women can face the duties of every day life. But in my mind, a ‘mother’ is something far more than a baby making machine, or a dutiful caretaker.

There are far too many women in the media these days that represent the female in a very limited light; who portray their role in life as everything revolving around sex and attract-iveness. Consequently young ladies have a difficult time discerning their future roles and identity. But the adult, godly women I know represent a far better character than most seen on the tube.

As a typical male, from puberty, I naturally appreciated the physical side of women; it is the first thing a young man appreciates. But there comes a time when women become more complicated than simply what they look like. As CS Lewis said, “I thank God, he didn’t give me the women of my adolescent dreams”. Lewis first married in his fifties, how sad an example he would be, if his mind was stunted so much, as to only see the physical as the true value of a women.

Likewise, as I have grown, I’ve gained a better perspective of my wife and how God has blessed me. She shares, with the women I admire, (and many reading this blog) qualities that almost astound me:

1. She makes things beautiful; whether cleaning, painting the house, decorating, landscaping. When she dressed the kids (now me) everything tends to be more beautiful after she has touched it. Good women are like this.
2. She is selfless; She always looks to the needs of others before herself. From the time we first met, she was my willing servant. Now don’t get distracted thinking about men’s laziness. Fact is, a good women is so giving, it makes it hard on us guys to develop into better servants ourselves! I am doing better in this regard, but I know I’ll never be as good as ‘a simply loving and faithful mother. Selflessness is natural to a mother who has found her God given identity, even in a very unbalanced world.
3. She is a peacemaker; not only does she like the physical things around her to be beautiful, she is sensitive to the atmosphere, the dispositions, the attitudes of all around her. For her it doesn’t matter if every physical thing is in order, if relationships are out of order.
4. She is a worker. Though my wife has a chronic illness, yet if it were all tallied up, her productivity far excels my own. Men have bursts of strength, we can pull, lift, grunt anything for short periods of time. But a mother has a marathoners endurance to get her objectives done. She may set aside one for awhile- perhaps to rest that muscle group; but her projects are always in ‘actual’ progress. Mine are like the proverbial project car, waiting for more money!
5. Mothers care little for material things. Yes, they like their hair done, a new outfit now and then, but this is only because they want to look good for their men. It’s part of the process of keeping all things beautiful. While men work for toys, to make their own life easy, the good wives and mother I’ve known, work for other’s comforts.

Many of you know, there are no longer kids in our house- but there is still a mother in the house. Being the average guy, I figure I’ll always need a mother around. Thankfully, for my sake, good women never loose the God given virtues of motherhood.

good thing happend today

Chuck got his perscription glasses. He is actually only seeing single at a distance. Instead of looking off to the side to see straight ahead, He is actually walking where he is looking.

Its makes sense it youve had to deal with it for the last year and a half.

Its really a good feeling to get this taken care of for him.

lifes just ducky

so im working in the garage, sorting thru stuff for a g-sale.

I hear this very unfimiluar sound of little feet slapping against the floor. I turn around and there is a duck woundering around and just looking at me.

So i got Chuck off the couch and he got a slice of "double fiber" bread and fed it to the little guy.

The cat was really checking out this hugh tasty morsel. I think she was trying to figure out if she could take it on. But with all wisdom that a cat has, she gave up. That is one bird i dont want her to bring into my room in the middle of the night as a gift.

The duck hung around for a bit and decided to just lay in the grass for awhile. Now he just flew off and I hope decided to go poop some place else.

So much for the excitement for the week.

Long Lost Relatives!

I was able to make a stop in San Francisco and met up with Geri, her daughter Roberta, and her half-sister Maria (Maria and Geri have the same mother but different fathers). They are all very nice and seemed to enjoy the visit very much. I know I did. I also managed to get Geri to do a 23andMe test so her results should be coming in the next 5 or 6 weeks. Interestingly, the amount of genealogical research I have done on the Garcia side actually surpasses their knowledge of our family history so it was nice to be able to share that with them as they seemed very interested in learning more about where we come from.

Tipper

Just wished that all be aware, that we were called to come to the home of our Vet., as they took her to the clinic, and found her lungs, with cancer and water.

We were at her home at 7PM, and at 8:30PM, her spirit went to Heaven, she was happy and she went to sleep gently, so was in no pain. We were with the members of friends and those that cared for her, it was so gentle and special.

We are going to meet all, at the clinic so that we can share once we get her ashes.. she was much loved by all.

Sadie is doing great and loved seeing her mom and dad. She is still working and will work with the clinic and guard, at her foster home,....... I am without pain now, and Sadie, was with me, while we were with her, she wanted her mom, and dad.... She was so happy with Jess, be aware of this.

Lili and Jess

Vote for Crescent City!!!

With all the happy news of the expansion of the family there is some news that needs to get out again. Reader's Digest is having a contest, and Crescent City is still in the running. In fact, it's in 5th place. You can vote 10 times a day (at the same time). There is some type of monetary award at the end of the contest for the winners...whenever and whoever that is.
 I encourage you to vote if you've been to CC in the past, if you're here now, or if you ever plan to be within 300 miles of here. The zip code is:95531.

http://wehearyouamerica.readersdigest.com/

Jim

Your Family History

I just did a bunch of data entry for our family's genealogy on the Gringo side. Randy had provided me with some documents where the names, on mom's side, ended with mom's great grandfather. After some searching, I found a continuation of that family name of  "Brayton" on another site. As it turns out, the family continues (near as I can tell) , and obviously with many names changes, way back to 1475! Just click on the title above, it'll take you to our genealogy site. Type in my last name and it will provide access.

BTW, there are some conflicts of names dating way back there, I'm not sure if I messed up on the data entry, or my source had it mixed up.

I still have  a lot of entry to do, mainly on regarding specifics of branches still alive, our  kids etc. I thought it more interesting to get the ancient history done first. So check back from time to time. Peter

We Have Contact!

Just so everyone is in the loop: I have officially made contact with our biological family in San Francisco. Specifically, I was able to speak with the daughter of Ben Garcia Sr. and his first wife (Connie). She is a very nice woman by the name of Geri Garcia (no not that Jerry Garcia) and has two daughters that I also spoke with. They were VERY excited to hear from me and surprisingly Mrs. Garcia knew quite a bit about the adoption of the kids from our side. She is in her 70's and said she had been trying to find out what happened to our side but couldn't find any information on what happened to the kids after losing contact. She remembered Glenna as a "very sweet woman" and understood the medical problems she had, resulting in having to give the kids up. She even remembered that Ben and Glenna lived on Hayes Street in SF. I will continue to post updates as I learn more.

so that you dont think ive been sitting on my laurels, all the time

Click title.

sorry peter. for some reason, this went on your Picasa account.

Genealogy: Benjamin Garcia Sr.

As most of you know I have been working the last several years on collecting genealogical information on our biological family. I would like to thank all of you for the information you have provided to me in various ways. It has ALL been helpful in piecing together the story of our family's wonderfully mysterious history.

Please click on the slideshow (above) to a collection of genealogical records that I have obtained on Benjamin Garcia Sr.

Lisi, is that you ?

What a plesant surprise.

out of no where Lisi called me yesterday.

She sounded really good and seems to be doing well. Didnt get to talk to her much, but its nice to know she was thinking about me.

She is loving having her dog and Bonnie and Rick around to assist her. She is such a hoot.

A Bit Stormy

We spent some time with Nathan and family at the coast this last weekend; about 3 days total. It was somewhat "wet", but ya know, I kinda like it that way; activities sometimes rob groups of together time. We had a lot of time just being with each other. A special bonus was having my mother in law there. She's 88 and we we're seeing that these opportunities will some day have an end. 

Not a very good photo, but all the girls got into the sewing mode.