I'm here.

Sent my friend Rick a message: I'm here. Not there. Here. Will try to be there (not here) by 10 am. (I'm setting him or you up for the perfect rejoinder).

Blooming roses

Mary and I went to dinner late, 10 pm, at Applebee's on Ireland in South Bend, Indiana. The rose bushes at the front entrance had just came into bloom.

The Slide

Yes, that's wax paper in my hand. Mathew thought the slide was awesome. It reminded me of the sledding scene with Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation.

The American Eagle

I did some more research on The American Eagle Roller Coaster in 6 Flags, Gurnee, Illinois, USA.

It was constructed in 1981, the same year that my mom, my daughter, and I rode it. At the time of it's construction, it was the highest coaster with the steepest drop and fastest speed in ALL classes, a record it held on to for 4 years, and held on to as a wooden coaster for 7 years.

Since it is a racing coaster, with two side by side tracks with cars that leave simultaneously, it's unique class has allowed it to hold on to the records in it's class to this day.

One other unique quality: one set of cars is faced backwards. 

DETERMINATION

DETERMINATION

Social Internet Guru

Being a social internet guru is EXHAUSTING!

LET'S DO LUNCH!

The voices in my head are telling the voices in your head: let's do lunch!

SING!

SING! like no one is listening..

Quick Q&A's about Facebook's IPO

Quick questions and answers about Facebook's Initial Public Offering.
Is Facebook a good investment? No. Projected earnings vs capitalization is 85 to one. Apple and Microsoft have much lower ratios. Google's is 13 to 1.
How much more earning can come from gaming and gambling on Facebook? Not much. Many Facebook subscribers are already complaining about too many automatic gaming notifications.
Will Google Plus overtake Facebook? Yes. Google Plus is already 1/8th the size of Facebook, 100 million vs 800 million. Google Plus monthly growth rate is 26% vs Facebook's 1%. Security is not an issue with Google Plus and is a big issue with Facebook. Google Plus is tightly integrated with it's email, news, Picasa, and it's powerful search. The rate of Google Plus innovations and improvements is fast paced, easy to learn, and just a walk in the park for Google.
Will Google Plus kill Facebook? No. It will definitely slow Facebook's growth, and perhaps has already affected Facebook's IPO, which appears to be falling short of the original $100 billion projection.
Will Facebook subscribers leave to go to Google Plus? No. There is no need. A Facebook account is not that difficult to maintain. The pace of the timeline is slow and limited.
Will curious, active, ambitious posters start posting on Google Plus? By the droves. None of the software hinders the ambitious poster. Instead, the software aids in many ways to connect the ambitious poster to a rewarding and exciting world.

Banana Split Cherries, Roller Coasters, and Mother's Day

The American Eagle at 6 Flags Gurnee IL

Banana split cherries make me think of roller coasters and Mother's Day.
My grand kids know that when they ask for the cherry on my banana split, I won't say no.
My older grand kids know that if they ask their grampy to ride with them on a roller coaster, he will always go. Even if the roller coaster is one invented out of an engineer's adrenaline induced nightmare.
I do that because that's what my mom did with me and my daughter.
I have a memory of my mother, my self, and my 6 year old daughter Rebecca on the newly constructed 6 Flags American Eagle, at that time the world's highest roller coaster. It also boasted the world's steepest and longest drop and fastest speed for any coaster, a record it held for 7 years. It is still the highest, steepest drop, and fastest wooden racing coaster.
I remember the grim look on my 60 year old mother's face. I thought she was terrified. I found out later that she was clamping her jaws shut to avoid losing her false teeth. She said she enjoyed the ride. If she ever had any fear, her British heritage never would allow her to admit it.
The next day I ended up in the emergency room, thinking I had a heart attack. Turns out that being thrown around in the coaster had bruised my chest.
A generation later, I'm in a coaster with my daughter and her daughter Allie for her first big girl coaster ride on the Demon. She was tall enough (barely) to pass the height requirement.
The worst part is always the first long, slow climb of regrets. Allie was crying her heart out, saying she wanted off. Down the first hill she was laughing while she was crying. At the end of the ride she was begging to do it again.
Some time in the future it will be Rebecca's turn to sit next to her daughter and grand daughter. My mother will look down from heaven.. and smile.

The Demon

Jim Besherse- Didn't Know It Poet

The odd snowflake.. drifting aimlessly.. from a clear sky ??? (my Facebook friend Jim Besherse made a poetic statement on his page. I added the dots to give it a Haiku feel.)

Keep a little

Never give anyone too much of your mind. Keep a little for yourself. from my brother  Tim Dittmer

Banana split cherries

I started a very bad habit of giving the cherry on my banana split to my late wife Lynne, then my daughters Rebecca and Wendelyn, then my grand daughters. Some day I'll learn to say no.