Sorry about missing two nights in a row. I don't think I've ever been that delinquent. But with my folks here we've been out at restaurants and then up late visiting and by the time we've wound down for the day I've got no energy left for blogging. That is especially true on a Sunday night.
I learned driving into town for church yesterday morning that Matt wouldn't be there, so I had to do the music and the preaching. That spreads my limited mental resources too thin, and by the time I'm done for the morning I'm done for the day. We all went out for lunch which proved to be a challenge on Valentine's Day. Seems everyone in the metro Phoenix area had the same idea.
Haven't seen much of the Olympics. And tonight the Westminster Dog Show is on USA Network. Decisions, decisions.
I think I mentioned that Gerta's brake lights weren't working. After lots and lots of testing and head scratching the problem was narrowed down to the two switches on the master cylinder. They're wired in parallel to provide redundancy (safety) and both have failed. Probably not simultaneously. Who knows how long ago the first one failed. I ordered replacements Saturday night, but with the holiday today they probably won't ship until tomorrow and arrive Thursday. They won't take long to swap out, but because they mount into the master cylinder I'll probably have to do a brake bleed afterward. Bummer.
As long as the meter and jump wires were out I set to work figuring out why the horn doesn't work. Again, lots of checking connections, circuit legs, meter readings. The problem turned out to be a worn contact on the back of the horn ring. When the ring was depressed the contact on the back didn't touch the base like it was supposed to. So I put a drop of solder on the contact to build up the surface, sanded it smooth, and HONK!! There's nothing quite as delightful as the sound of a VW horn. Very distinctive.
Because of the blown calf muscle I gave up on the March 6 half marathon. Steve & Michelle told me about a half on May 1 in Prescott. The full marathon course is rated as one of the five hardest in the country because you start at 5,000' feet elevation and go up steeply from there, hitting 7,000' at the highest point. It's an out-and-back and the first half of the course isn't quite as aggressive as the second, but I think it still rates as a fairly difficult course, with the turn-around point at 6,300'. That's 1,300 feet of climb in a little over six miles. Hmmm.
I know I've written about it before, but having my folks here has brought it to my mind again, and with particular power. My kids, all four of them, are not just the greatest joy in my life, they are my GREAT joy. I think I feel it so much now because being together, with my folks present, somehow makes the family dynamic more evident.
You obviously can't see it, but I've written and "erased" six or eight sentences here trying to describe what's in my stomach, and I've decided it can't be done. All I know to write is that I love my kids more than I can tell them or show. I am thankful to God for their presence in my life. Take any "thing" in my life away and I'll do just fine so long as I have my family.
I almost feel guilty about it. By God's grace our sons grew up to be our best friends, and their wives are more than I could have dreamed about in daughters. Pity the fool who ever messes with my kids.
Pam and I have been married for 38+ years. We've been together so long that we know what the other is thinking without exchanging words. A look suffices. We're at complete ease with each other. What an incredible blessing that the same ease extends to the relationship with our kids.
OK, ice dancing just came on and I am ALL over that!
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