NCSU and Tennessee Football in 2012

Being an NC State grad and Wolfpack fan, I watched the second half of the Music City bowl last night. You may ask why or you may think because Carolina is a rival and they were playing. I watched Tennessee!

We are scheduled to play them on September 1, 2012 in the Chic-fil-A kickoff game. I watched this freshman quarterback and 3 freshmen on the front line gain tons of experience in minutes. I also watched veterans that have been through coaching changes in their years at that school. With those veterans helping the incoming students, Tennessee is going to be a TOUGH opponent that night.

I am going to have to ask some UNC people where the fans were. That stadium was full of Volunteer fans. Having driven Interstate 40 from Knoxville to Nashville in April, I know that Interstate 75 goes through Knoxville and straight to Atlanta. I presume they will be there to watch what will be a great team by that time.

There was another reason that I watched that game. Remember I mentioned that I was in Nashville in April. Just 2 weeks later it flooded. My meeting was downtown. I know where that stadium is. I walked along that riverbank. I saw the pictures of that now peaceful river last night. They must still be recovering from the flood but Nashville appears to be resilient and making great progress. That same resilience shows in the Tennessee team and fans.

The Wolfpack is going to have a tough opening game in 2012. I have the date circled on the 2012 calendar. I could not make it to Orlando but Atlanta is a lot close and easier to schedule time to go. You might realize that I love to watch the playing strategy. I am looking forward to this game.

Changing Christmas Day Plans

I have been changing plans for Christmas Day due to the weather forecast. I have had my sister over to my place on Christmas since my mother died in 1999. However, the weather forecast is for snow flurries and cold. It may not be ideal driving conditions. We are able to switch plans. We are changing to celebrate on Christmas Eve instead. I am heading over there for a few hours.

This weather is making me a believer of the “Law of Attraction”. I think it is Mother Nature’s way of accommodating all of the holiday talk for over a month. Holiday songs were playing on the radio before Thanksgiving. Holiday movies have been playing a lot also. When one fills the air with “Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow”, “White Christmas”, “It is Cold Outside” (or whatever that song is called) I guess one should expect the weather systems to fill the expectations. Consequently, the South is below normal in temperatures and snow is being forecast.

I went to the grocery store this morning ahead of the Christmas rush tomorrow. I also filled up the gas tank and bought a car wash to use next week to wash the car after the snow/ice melt. The plans are adjusted. I am ready.

Leaves in Huntersville North Carolina

I just spent another 2 hours in the yard raking and bagging the excess leaves. Yes, I mulch when I can but a storm is coming, the ground is hard and I did not want to mash the new grass any more than necessary. I also wanted the excess leaves off of the yard. One thing I learned growing up in this area was not to keep these big oak leaves around. Either mulch them up or get rid of them. The big leaves can kill the grass if left on too long. They may also provide a nice place for animals that you do not want in your yard when left piled too high.

The leaves began falling in mid-November this year. So far I have mulched the whole yard 2 times, filled the yard waste container every week, and bagged 51 bags of leaves. I had 2 big oaks cut in June and the final one cut down the first of October. I only have 2 dogwoods left.

I put the down payment on the 7th lot in Shepherds Vineyard in April 1987. I closed on the house in November of 1987. At that time the town sent a vacuum truck through to collect the leaves left at the curb. A few years later they changed garbage service and the bagging started. A few years later, they limited the pickup to 20 bags per week. Now it is 5 bags per week except for pickups between November 1 and January 15. They will take 10 bags on those weeks.

I have missed holiday events to clean the yard. I have raked and mulched when it was cold and raining. I have also worked to the street light in the front and the security light in my backyard.

It is time for my neighbors to quit letting the big oak leaves pile up in the yards and curbs and then blow into my yard when the weather changes. If they do not know how to mulch them, they can learn. I just searched “mulching oak leaves” online. There are a number of valid sites to read.

I have bit my tongue over the years because small children were around a couple of these homes. However, the time for being polite and nice is over. I called the town last week and again this week. I have not seen any sign of help. I have decided to post this blog. I have also decided to write this blog entry as a letter to the editor and mail to both of the local papers. I am also going to research signs because I have an idea for holiday signage that may get the message across. However, the signage may be illegal and I do not want the town hollering about that.

I try to be considerate of my neighbors. I wish I could say the same for a couple of my neighbors.

Seminars and Meetings Galore!

In the past two weeks I have attended more seminars and meetings than I normally do in 3 weeks. It seems that every business/organization has scheduled the events in these 3 weeks between the Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks. These do not count the holiday parties and the normal monthly meetings.

Just this week I have attended one breakfast meeting on regional issues, one all-day workshop on business needs, one computing class, one meeting on how an organization works that I just joined, and one marketing class.

I have 3 stacks of documents on my desk and one more week to go. I even have one pile that has different items stacked in different directions. This does not count the mail that has come in and is stacked in one corning. It also does not count the marketing info that I am working on in another corner.

I am tackling one item at a time. Hopefully I can at least get it organized today and worked on next week.