Buck's Babble

My Georgia Revolutionary soldier/farmer outfit.  

Picture below is of Ang at training in Yreka with her crew. I got to spend some time with her and got some great pictures. She came home that night an dwe had a big blowup with Steph. Of course, always happens. With 8-9 people staying under one roof it was bound to happen. Things are cool now. Tonight I have a Revolutionary War simulation in our history class. We are split into two groups, the British and the Americans, and the teacher asks us questions about our specialty. I am a farmer in Georgia and producer of wine and other fine goods. I am on the American advisor team and tried to get together a close period looking outfit because its extra credit. I'll try and get a picture and post it here. Worked hard today on my 3.5 hour property in south Yreka. It is a huge property and they have a lot of grass which they water and keep very nice.

Ang is at the nozzle attacking the vehicle fire in the blue mask. 

I found out our checking was in the negative over the weekend so I got up early and hit some big 'property weed whipping' jobs I've been waiting on. Worked a good 6 hours in the hot sun moving that weed whacker around a couple of properties. I'm still alive after a few days but could use something to take me away. Got a gun? Its great to see the kids and all but just so hectic and chaotic all the time. The house can be cleaned and then dirty 1/2 hour later. Steph took all the kids to the city pool and they had fun. Papa Murphy's pizza for dinner tonight, thanks to Steph treating. Last night I made pigs-in-a-blanket, tater tots, and a veggie. 2 people didn't eat and weren't here but most enjoyed it. Not sure how we're going to feed everyone while they're here. Probably be broke and the frig empty by the time everyone leaves. Ang gets home tonight but only for a night. Her family and she only gets to spend one day with them. Mom gets in t...

So Steph and her kids showed up tonight and will be staying for a while. Its great to see the crew again and I've missed them all. Mariah is especially cuddly, Desiree is beautiful, and Eliana is a doll. Zach is a bean sprout with size 12 shoes. Mom arrives on Tuesday and Sarah will be getting here on the 1st. I'm sure the family is more excited than anything to get everyone together for the 1st time in years. Its chaotic around here and will probably only get worse but that's alright. Craziness wakes you up sometimes and makes you realize how nice it is to have family around you once in a wile. It can't be often since I am a terrible hermit and Ang is too. I think Uncle John is going to take the kids and Steph to a lake tomorrow and go out on his new boat. It only seats a few but they'll rotate and have a blast. Just what the kids need. I'm not going because that's just what I need. Some peace and quiet. Ang has been chasing lightning strikes ...

Haven't posted in a little so thought I would send a quick note. Ang's days off so we've been busy doing odds and ends. Working in the garden. We had strawberry milkshakes last night with berries from the garden. It was awesome. I made Taco Salad (3 different beans, cheese, onions, taco meat, olives, dressing, and some more) and it lasted Wed and Thurs. Had class last night: what a bore!! Boring. The teacher tries to make it fun but the way he babbles endlessly about nothing......very hard to concentrate and stay with the class. I drift off to dream land frequently in this class. Ang has been doing her day-off thing: laundry, food shopping, visiting around, and of course working at the South Yreka Volunteer Fire Dept, as usual. I think next week her days off change to Tues/Wed so that will be a switch. This next weekend (4th weekend) is the big weekend. ang will probably be working but I have everyone coming to visit. Cathey and her new husband will be coming ...

Not much of a Father's Day for me; didn't want or expect anything big. Kids and Ang got me a few things which I received on Friday because Ang had to return to work. We had fish sticks, pasta salad, and veggies for dinner. About 1100 pm I left to hit one of my commercial accounts, USA Gas. They are always so busy during the day that I like to go late at night so I worked the place for 2 1/2 hours. Kids were asleep or at least in bed. I don't sleep much usually 5 hours or so max. I hate mornings and love nights. I usually don't get to sleep until about 2 in the morning. Its been that way ever since the military. Californias been shaking pretty good lately. We'll see if its any sign of a big one. Personally I think California needs a big one to rattle things up. Not sure what I'm going to do on Monday. Gonna try and hit one of my long mows that I missed last week cus of the rain. Swimming pool opens tomorrow so the kids will be there most of the rest...

To my Dad, who I failed to send a card, Happy Father's Day! I hope you have the greatest of days and enjoy every bit of it. I love you, Dad! Even though distance keeps us apart, you are always close to my heart. I think about you constantly and am always wondering what you're doing. As I get older more and more of the ideals you taught me as a child have emerged and become major elements of my life. They are the backbone of my ideology. You gave me the greatest childhood a boy could ask for. I never remember hard times. I only remember my childhood being happy and full of fun activities. You were my role model growing up and are still at the top of my pedestal. You taught me how to fire my first gun and were there with my first animal kills. We always were camping and outdoors and really had fun with life. Life may have separated us physically but you are still the one I look toward when times are rough. I may not call you or contact you but I always remember some...

Ang is back to work; I dropped her off this morning. Thursday night we had Carl's Jr and Friday night we had McDonalds. Tonight is tri-tip on the BBQ. Nothing real exciting going on. Emily spent the night last night at a friends up the street. Been playing Forza Motorsports on the XBox. Incredible game. Over 230 different licensed cars that you can paint any color, customize with graphics, and then race online with people from all over the world. Pretty cool experience. Sam and I watched Alone in the Dark last night. Pretty scary movie. Been real cloudy with scattered showers for the last couple of days. Takin it easy today.

Attack from Mars 

Pinball Renaissance By Tom Buckner English 1C Spring 2004 Special Project Reynolds Close your eyes for a moment and let your imagination take over. You are standing upright, slightly bent over the immense machine which looms before you. Your palms are on each side of the machine, fingers over the edge and touching a button on each side. The machine talks in lights and colors, stimulating the already building excitement inside of you to even greater heights. The field below you shines with energy, beckoning to be experienced. Various routes, choices, pathways, and journeys wait for you to travel them. Immersing you in another world is this machine’s goal. Pouring adrenaline through your veins is the key for this machine. The time arrives for your journey to begin. The start button brings this machine to life. Lights and sounds erupt from everywhere at once. A bright and shiny metal ball emerges from someplace and sits at the starting gate, so shiny that your reflection is t...

Ang got home and I made marinated chicken BBQ'd, veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), stuffing, and another fruit salad made by Emily (apples, banana, strawberries, peach). Yum. Yum! Just finished dishes and a shower while ang took the kids to Uncle John and Jenny's for dessert. I wanted a little time w/ no kids so its nice. TV shows I regularly watch Mon-Hell's Kitchen Tues- Tuesday night fights Wed- 70's show, stacked, and whatever Fri-- Friday night fights National Geographic Channel, History International channel, Military channel, Six Feet Under, Deadwood, Sopranos, more HBO, lots of movies late at night, I love my entertainment and with the 57" screen we got last year, every show, movie, game, or sports event is like filling your entire room. Its an entirely new experience.

The fisher kids. 

Baitin up. 

Mt Shasta in the clouds! 

Pigs in a blanket (buttermilk rolls w/ cheese and hot dog, baked), tater tots, and a fruit salad made from scratch by Emily on her own (bananas, apples, and strawberries from the garden). We're getting bushels of strawberries every other day now. Worked some jobs today and had my first summer class tonight. Boring but should be an interesting class. US History -1877 the first landings, British rule, civil war, all those good things in our history. Cleaning tomorrow in prep for Ang coming home tomorrow night. Free time--Xbox, TV, and kids. My life in a nutshell. What to get my father for father's day? Think I'll give him my heart this year. Be prepared!

So as you can see, I've figured out the picture part of blogging with the help of Hello. Enjoy whatever I put here, most will go still to Yahoo for print ordering, etc. Has anyone ordered a print or two? The pictures look better than camera photos and are cheap! Need some fresh ones of the Buckners around the house?

Testing the camera timer 

Bring it on! 

Look at that beauty! 

This is reprinted from an original post I did in my Women in Cross Cultural Perspective class. One big question has always been stuck in the back of my head and this week brought it forward. How does human menstruation differ from other mammals or even primates? From what I know, with most animals the onslaught of menstruation is an olfactory (smell) action to get a mate. It is a biological thing which occurs when the female is ready to reproduce. The male smells this, is attracted, and the act commences. Humans are quite the opposite, especially recent history. Females try and cover up this smell and prevent it from getting out. Why are we so different and is this difference interrupting our biological factor somehow? First, I tried to find information on odors and menstruation since this seems to be the biological factor among animals. Research showed that close to ovulation, and thus menstruation, odors (possibly the mysterious pheromones) emanating from the female become d...

Just got the latest report on Siskiyou County so thought I would share it with anyone who gives a damn. Total county population: 44,850 Biggest town, Yreka: 7,325 Most northern county in California. %th largest in geographical size, 47th in population. Population density of 7 persons per square mile and this makes it considered frontier. Total population increase of 2.6%, under 19 yrs: 19% decrease, and over 50 yrs, 30% increase. Great place to retire but not to find a job out of school. Unemployment in Siskiyou County is 9.6% (00-02), while the State's was 5.7%. Our median income in Siskiyou County is $29,281 compared to the State's $43,924 average. 53.9% of Siskiyou County children live in Low Income Households. There was a ton of other stats but this is the meat of our county. Ang was in Yreka today so I picked her up for lunch and visited for awhile. Worked a new job, Yreka Outlands, a major business along I-5 and I will be improving their landscaping. They sell traile...

Well, summer is officially here for the kids and for me. Got up early Saturday and went to our yearly fishing derby at Greenhorn Lake here in Yreka. Kids didn't catch anything but we had fun sitting around the lake for a few hours, getting a lunch, and visiting friends. Then that night we went to our local races at the fairgrounds. We have a great racing circuit, 1/4 mile circle dirt track, and people come from Oregon for our races. It goes from 600 pm until about 1100-midnight. We always have a blast there. Today was vegetable day where everyone just lounges around and takes it easy. Kids slept in, did their chores, and have been relaxing. I did my chores early with a dump run and some laundry and have been vegging on the tube all day. Will be getting the kids a summer pass at our city pool and dropping the kids off there while I do a job or two. They love the pool and spend a lot of time there. Ang has been having easier days this weekend. She mowed lawns around the ...

Tonight we are having BBQ hamburgers, tater tots, and artichokes from the garden. Ang gets home tonight and we are all happy. Sam went to the Shasta Caverns yesterday and had a blast! They take a spectator boat out into Lake Shasta, drive around the dam, and then visit the large natural caverns that are out in the lake somewhere. He was gone all day and sounded like he really enjoyed the trip. Ang has been doing a lot of running which she is not used to and her skeleton body is having a hard time handling the stress. She gets chin-splints often and so we are looking into getting some nice 'springy' shoes, with the shocks on the back. Nike makes some Nike Shox which are really nice so I want to try and get her into a pair before the months out.

Hard to keep track of the days. I had to go pick up Ang on Sunday. I had been working all day Sunday with my buddy as a favor and was looking forward to being rewarded with a BBQ at his house when Ang called and needed to come home right away! I was all worried but it was only a tooth problem. I got her and the next day she went to the dentist and had one of her teeth pulled; and then back to work today!! What an animal! It was one of her messed up teeth that had been capped and a crown recommended. Couldn't afford it at the time and went the cheaper route again this time. The tooth was wasted and extraction was imminent according to the dentist. She was hurtin pretty good all day yesterday but felt great in the morning. She had light duty so that helped today also. We had toquitos and pasta salad and fruit. Filling! Ang gets off tomorrow night for her days off so that's great. School starts back up for the summer for me next week. Of course schools out for the kids....

Well, I got picked up by my best friend at 0800 and we attacked a huge lawn, 1-2 acres, tandem and then went to his house and mowed and weed-whacked the rest of the day. He was going to BBQ for the kids and I as a thank you. Then my cell rang and it was Ang and she needed to get picked up. One of her caps on her teeth cracked and the pain is killing her. So she needs to get emergency work done in the morning. So I'm off to go pick her up since she gets off at 600. 2 hours of driving and then I'll head back for my BBQ. So ang will be here tonight and some of tomorrow. Emily is playing with my friends daughter. They love to jump on their trampoline forever. Last week of school for the kids this week. Then summer. OH NO!! It'll be fun and I have a lot planned for us and the kids. Love.

Well, Ang goes back tonight. I'll take her this week because I need the car for grocery shopping this weekend in Medford. Stories, stories, and more stories. Ang is getting her load of experiences. She's been catching up with friends and visiting with people. She helped her station cover another station for a couple of hours today. I've been working in the garden, cleaning house, and working on the computer. I've got most of the major fire sites bookmarked for the season. These provide real-time maps and information on every current fire in the country. Was supposed to do a couple of lawns but I decided to put them off until next week. Ang will be working and the kids will be in school (last week) so I'll play catch-up next week. Garden-- well, its taking off this year because of all the rain we got. Our 2 artichoke plants are about 5 feet tall and have about 20 artichokes on EACH one. Some will be ready next week to pick. Strawberries are in the hundr...

Ang made it back tonight. I had tri-tip, baked beans, and tater tots ready with a cinnamon swirl cake for desert. I spent the day doing on of my contracts and the rest cleaning for Ang. Bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, laundry, dishes, shampooed sage, I was busy. Ang is tired and even has to attend a class on her day off tomorrow here in Yreka. Oh well, she gets overtime for it and its just 4 hours from 8-12 so I'm gonna do the rest of my yards for the week in the morning. So nice to have Ang home. Can tell she really misses her house and her kids. They are real excited and glad to have her home also. Love everyone.