Day 56: 'Sunday night with Sunny'

Hey everyone,

I did some work outside today spreading peat moss, lime, and black kow in the garden. I also moved the paving stones to the backyard so parking would be increased for Dad's birthday in a couple of weeks. Of course like a fool I did not take the camera out for any of that so I do apologize for not documenting.

I did however capture some photos of Sunny laying on my chest while Barbara and I watched the move 'Wild Hogs' tonight. Here they are...


Yes that last one is me trying to get 'kisses' from Sunny. He had already done it earlier, but I was trying again to no avail. I know that makes me look funny in the picture, but hey, that's what I do whenever he sits in my lap so, what are you going to do?

Hope everyone has a good Monday (sigh, back to the grind), and we'll be seeing ya!

Day 55 'Matthew's day'

Hey everyone,

So, even though yesterday was his actual birthday, today we held my brother Matthew's celebratory luncheon. It was great fun and Matthew got a lot of great gifts.

Barbara made an amazing WWE Wrestling Ring cake for Matthew. He enjoyed it immensely and it tasted so good!

So without further ado I leave a collection of photos from today's festivities.





Great fun was had by all. I think Matthew has started his 25th year off quite well.

Matthew got some notepads, comic books, DVDs, t-shirts, and a collapsible WWE hamper. He was excited to get all of this of course. Barbara and I got him a Spider Man t-shirt, a Ghostbusters t-shirt, the hamper, and of course the cake which Matthew loved.

Hope everyone had a great Saturday and enjoys tomorrow. We'll see ya!

Day 54: 'What's in the box?'

Hey all,

Another lightning quick post, but hopefully something longer this weekend.

Matthew's birthday was today. I was able to talk to him briefly while I was at work and he told me he had a great day.

Barbara wrapped up his birthday gift for tomorrow and here it is:

I wonder what it could be? Guess you'll have to tune in tomorrow. ;-D

Day 53: 'Beginnings of a masterpiece'

So I forgot all about the blog today and at 11:30 I am going to bed.

However I dutifully submit a picture.

My brother Matthew is turning 25 tomorrow and I couldn't be more happy or excited for him. We will have a small family lunch celebration for him on Saturday. For this, Barbara is going to design what i think will be the most awesome cake ever.

Here is the beginning of that cake and I will provide a finished shot on Saturday.

Hmm... what could it be??? Haha.

Take care and lookout tomorrow!

Day 52: 'Work goodies and my relaxed ladies'

Ok so it's been a long day and I'm pretty tired. I have yet to sit down and relax so I am going to keep it brief.

After our office meeting yesterday, I returned to my desk to find a large box had arrived. I knew pretty quickly what it was and was I excited. Since I had become a full time employee in November, I knew at some point I would be receiving a sling bag and several books as a 'welcome to the company' gift. Now I know that isn't much but hot damn was I excited...



Then just a couple of minutes ago I was alerted to a great photo op with my two lovely ladies, Barbara and Smudge. Here they are laying on the couch head to head, a great picture indeed...
Great pictures today. Take care and have a great day tomorrow everybody.

Day 51: 'Good day at work'

Hey all,

Good day at work today. Finally, we weren't too busy and we shut down at 3:45 for an all department meeting until 5. During the meeting it was announced that I had won the Customer Service award for the month of February, I was surprised and pleased; very cool indeed. At 5 we went over to a great place called Woody's Bar and Grill in downtown and had some much needed relaxation and camaraderie.

So here is a picture of the award, a shot of one of my closest friends and coworker Mikey, and two shots of us hanging at Woody's.




Good times. Well, we'll see y'all 2 days after yesterday.

Day 50: 'I done good!'

Hey everyone,

It's Monday and well, yep it's Monday. Haha, that kinda sums it all up doesn't it?

I am feeling much, much better today, I would say operating at over 95%. This is good because we had quite a few people out at the office today and we were murderously busy.

I've got some stuff to do around here and then Barbara and I are going to sit down and watch 'Wag the Dog'. I have never seen it and Barbara thinks it's a movie I would enjoy so I am excited about it.

One of the things I got Barbara for Valentine's Day was a bouquet of flowers. I got her an amalgam of different flowers rather than the traditional roses because I thought they held more color and I had in the back of my mind that she preferred flowers over roses. Well I was spot on and all of the flowers are now fully in bloom and wow...

That is awesome right there. I think I did pretty good with these...;-). I also got them for a great, great price, but I'll keep that between me, myself, and I.

Y'all take care and we'll see you tomorrow.

Don't forget you can leave your comments at AYearofPictures@hotmail.com

Day 49: 'Wow, I'm back... barely'

Okay, so I have managed to crawl back to YOP after 4 days of, excuse my french, pure sickness hell.

First I want to thank my beautiful and amazing Barbara for not only taking care of me so well during my days in quarantine, but for also stepping in so ably here at YOP. I found her posts really great and I feel that the ol' blog here did not miss a beat.

Well, I have hopefully rebounded from one of the worst illnesses I can remember having at least since the great Norovirus week of 2006 which had me completely out for 5 days. I know everyone gets sick, and I also know that some have been much sicker than I was this week but, this was AWFUL in my humble opinion. Even though Barbara has covered this in previous posts, I had a fever that would just not go away, and a bad fever like that is just nasty. I could not get comfortable without the fever for 3 days. Also, I don't remember a cold\flu (because I am still not convinced which it was) leaving me so extremely exhausted. I could not walk any length without being completely taxed. The invasion raging in my sinus cavities and my nasal passages was horrendous. I would take medication to try and help that and no matter what I took the pain of the dried out sinus ignited a stupendously incredible migraine that basically stayed full fledged for 2 days. This was the most unbelievably bad stretch of 4 days that I have physically felt in a long time. I am grateful to being feeling much better today and I hope to not be this sick again for a long time. I did not leave the bedroom except for the 20 minute test ride on Friday for 4 days, hell I didn't leave the bed for 4 days. Wow, it was just bad, bad, BAD.

So today I was able to get up and moving and my voice has returned almost to normal. I am still dealing with some congestion issues and the remainder has settled into my chest, which is nice. I have developed a slight cough and when I breath it feels as though someone is pushing on my chest...good stuff.

I began the decontamination process in the bedroom today and so our picture comes from that. Actually almost the same picture from Day 45, except without me dying in the middle of it.


Ok so I am going to hit the hay since I will be going back to work tomorrow after being out for the last 3 days last week.

Take care

Day 48 "Are ya seeeepin'?"

Hello again everyone!

So here I am again, filling in for our Brad while he continues to recuperate. (I am hoping he will feel more like himself tomorrow so that he might reclaim his place here at YOP.) Brad has been a bit better today, managing to only go thru one roll of tissue instead of two a day; Small progressions. He has not had a fever today and things seem to be ‘breaking up’ a bit. Managing a chicken Swiss sandwich and fries from Wendy’s for dinner, did appear to not be the best idea he has had lately, but he ate well none the less.

He has agreed to strip down the entirety of the bedroom for which he has been confined, tomorrow and wash everything. It currently smells something like French fried death…. I’ll leave that envisionment to you.

While I was wondering the remainder of the house today, untouched by the ickies, I happened upon something that I know would make Brad smile. Smudgie was high on her new perch, curled into something that resembled a spotted angora pillow, sleeping. Since bringing her home, I have sought to reciprocate her antagonistic waking rituals at every opportunity. She doesn’t like for me to sleep beyond 6 AM, because everyone else, she must believe, would like to go out at that particular time. (I don’t know what to expect when we have the time change!) She never bothers to address this issue with Brad; how fortunate he is. Once I have let everyone out that wishes to go, I am available to go back to the soft, warm spot in bed to resume my slumber. She can be so good to me. *sigh* Now, at every opportunity, I walk to her current perched placed, and stroke her fur the wrong way saying “Are ya seepin’? Are ya seepin’? Wanna play?” Today was no exception. So without further a due, our Smudgie, pictured below, ‘seepin’.

As always, say a little prayer that Brad comes back soon, just ‘cause he’s so much better at this than I! Please leave your comments and well wishes either here or at AYearofPictures@hotmail.com he loves to hear from you!

Days 46 & 47 "Food for the Icky"

Hello Everyone!

First, let me apologize for dropping the ball yesterday! I was under the impression Brad would ask me to fill in if he wanted me too and he was under the impression I could read his fevered mind. So to say the least, our Bradie is still ‘icky’.

Secondly, his updated status: His fever has broken only to come back again and again. His pour nose looks more like Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer than his normally cute Womble nose we are so used to seeing. He did venture out to the bank with me today, about a 20 minute round trip, only to be exhausted by the whole ordeal of getting dressed and moving beyond the confines of bed and bath. A steady, near migraine, headache has plagued him almost continually, accompanied by the ever present nasal drip and congestion. He is starting to develop a small cough, but we believe that is due to his sinus medication drying out his throat.

I have kept him in homemade cherry slushies, chicken noodle soup and toast, and the occasional grilled cheese. Yes, he has progressed beyond ginger-ale and saltines. Thank goodness for small progressions.

Pooh Bear has been quite the vigilant watcher. He stays mostly at the side of the bed where Brad is, only occasionally moving himself to lie in front of the fan, bringing a baby or two to share, just in case and even allowed Smudge in during the night to sleep beside ‘dad’, but only as long as she stayed on the fuzzy blanket. If Brad gets up beyond the bathroom, Pooh lets me know that something is a foot, and requires my attention. He has been a most excellent ‘Brad sitter’.

I ventured out again, without Brad this time, to our favorite Chinese takeout, Handy Pantry off Latta Road, here in Durham. I introduced Brad to the wondrous healing affects of egg drop soup and crispy noodles several years ago. He has requested it today. Hopefully, it will work its usual magic for him so that he will be back with us again soon!

So here is the one I missed yesterday, chicken noodle and toast....

And the one from today. Egg drop and crispy noodles. Not as creative as Brad, but only Brad can be Brad.

Keep him in your prayers and thank you for stopping by.

Any comments and/or well wishers may leave a comment here or at AYearofPictures@hotmail.com

Day 45 "Ewwwwe"

Hello Everyone!

Your friendly 'sometimes editor' and girlfriend, Barbara here, taking the place of our beloved Brad while he nurses his bugs. He has unfortunately acquired what currently seems to be a nasty cold, but may well turn out to be the flu. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that!

So! While he sneezes and snots, coughs and barks, trying to NOT spread it to everyone, you are stuck with me. Hopefully, that will end tomorrow and he will be back bouncing around the ‘inter webs’ for his spot here at YOP. But until then, take pity on our Bradie; say a little prayer and bear with me. I usually do not have a lot to say….

So here is the sick baby; a glass of ginger ale, saltines, a trashcan close by, and a roll of tissue for all of the above for the 'just in case'.

Thanks for stopping by folks! We'll keep you updated on his progress.

Day 44: 'Ugh... and taxes"

Hello everybody,

Not much tonight. Have been feeling under the weather today so am not feeling up to typing much of anything.

I put my tax refund info in envelopes for a tomorrow mailing. Cleaned up the kitchen a bit. Now will take some medicine and eat a bit of orange sherbert...

See? Fun stuff tonight... not!

We'll see you tomorrow!

Day 43: 'Movin' on up....for Sunny and Smudge'

Hey everyone,

I just have to say what a great feeling it was to do yesterday's post. I didn't realize how much I wrote until I started adding my pictures, but it was nice to get a thorough and long post out there. Good stuff.

It was really nice today because I was off for President's Day. Barbara and I went out and gathered a few things for my brother Matthew's birthday cake (for his birthday on Feb. 26th) and for Dad's birthday party which we are hosting in March. We then went and caught the early matinee of 'The Wolfman, and let me tell you, a pretty freaky movie. I have never seen the 1941 original but I have seen what the wolfman looked like from that film and they did a great job of reproducing that look in this new film.

I have been thinking of getting a cat condo for Sunny and Smudge for a while now and, while at Brier Creek shopping center today, I did just that. Barbara and I stopped in at PetSmart and found a cat condo that was on sale for a reasonable price. I had fun getting it in the truck and then in the house but I succeeded and it is now set up...

If you will notice, Smudge is in her hammock-style perch to the right of the condo, so it appears she is not using it. What sucks about this picture is that right before it was taken, Smudge was having a blast climbing, scratching, and jumping all over it, so she is indeed enjoying it. Sunny on the other hand hasn't paid much attention to it so it remains to be seen whether or not he will take advantage.

That's all folks see ya tomorrow!

Day 42: 'Valentine's Day and Hoops 4 Hope'

Hey everyone,

I have more than one picture to share today and the last time I tried that here it didn't work so well. So, this time I will make my comments at the beginning and then paste the pictures together at the end of the post so you can see them all at one time and it won't mess up the text.

Today was a great day. It started off with Barbara and I sharing the rest of our Valentine's Day gifts with each other. I got Barbara a pair of White Topaz earrings, a set of kitchen towels that she has had her eye on for a while, and some bulbs for the Dahlia flower (they were also a Plant of Hope with proceeds benefiting Susan G. Komen). She got me a set of NC State plastic cups and something that I am very excited about, a Paula Deen Hot Chocolate maker.

We then had brunch at the Eno River Eatery and drove to Mom and Dad's house so Mom and I could go to the NC State women's basketball game for Hoops 4 Hope. Once there we gave the family their Valentine's Day cards. Matthew, my brother, got 3 cards so he was very excited about that. I partook in a giant heart shaped brownie Mom had made, and then she and I were off to Raleigh.

Hoops 4 Hope is a very special event to me. The first one I attended last year was with my Mom as well and we had a great time. It is especially significant for 2 main reasons:
1) I am a die hard NC State fan and was also a huge fan of former NC State women's basketball coach Kay Yow. Her success as a coach at NC State was obviously the first thing I like her for but then her unbelievably courageous battle with cancer inspired me and left me in awe. When she passed away early last year I took a half day off from work and attended her funeral. To honor her that day I wore a white button up, the NC State tie my father wore when he was a student there, and a red NC State sweater vest with a pink ribbon attached. Of course it was sad but it was also an amazing service. She meant so much to so many people, myself included. I know I was just a fan who had never met Kay Yow but her impact on me is something I will never forget and I really wanted to be there to let her know that. The funeral was standing room only and it was held in a building that doubled as a gymnasium, I believe. That goes to show what her legacy is and always will be. She was a hell of a fighter and a hell of a coach and being alive while she was at her best and while she epitomized courage is something I am so grateful for
2) My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago and she had to undergo surgery to rid her body of the disease. Luckily it was caught early and the surgery was a success and she has been given a clean bill of health. I am very close to both of my parents and it was scary to see Mom go through this and wonder if it would get better or worse. Thankfully, compared to the fights of others against this terrible disease, Mom was able to get better quickly and without a long drawn out treatment. However she had cancer and that has always resonated with me. During Mom's fight I looked up to Kay Yow even more and fed off of her strength and love in God to help convince me that my Mom would be fine. I love you Mom and I am so proud of how you handled yourself during that ordeal and I am so glad I still have you. God bless each and every survivor of breast cancer, I am in awe of you. For those who have lost loved ones, take solace in knowing they fought the good fight and they did not pass in vain, that one day we can look to them and say 'we found a cure and you helped'. I also want to say that we know where they are they are happy and there is no suffering ;-D.

As I write this I am tearing up as I teared up twice at the game tonight. Mom took the floor with survivors at halftime and NC State unveiled 3 new banners honoring Coach Yow and her accomplishments. When I saw Mom there and thought about Coach Yow, I teared up with sadness and joy. The game itself was so thrilling and the large crowd was very much into it. The Pack won 66-64 and the game was in doubt until the last seconds. I truly believe Coach Yow gave a little nudge to help us win tonight and that made me smile. NC State's new coach Kellie Harper spoke to the crowd minutes after the game and she had us give ourselves a round of applause because she said the team couldn't have won without us. The positive energy and power of many is awesome, as evidenced tonight. Mom also bought me a Kay Yow 'Leader of the Pack' pink t-shirt tonight which I wore throughout the game with pride.

Without further ado, here are some pictures from today. One of my new hot chocolate maker and some of the game today. In a couple of the shots of mom with the survivors, Mom is in the middle but I have put a red oval around her so you can identify her more easily. Unfortunately my little camera only zooms so much so these are the closest I could get: