Bud’s Bits and Bytes

I will celebrate 4th of July as the official opening of my new business. My Web Site is up and operational - www.generationsftv.com - , my business cards are here, my business is registered with the state of FLorida, I have created my demo DVD’s and my brochures look terrific. I have a few tweaks to do on my web site but they should be done in the next day or two. I made a presentation to the Pasco Camera Club today and will present to the Pasco Computer Users Group Next Thursday. Pasco is the County I live in. It helps to have a father who is well connected - and well respected. I am investigating various advertising venues. If all goes well, I will be running on all cylinders by September when everyone comes back from up north. In Florida, a large percentage of the population goes north for the summer and things slow down a lot here.

I still love it here. I love the weather - yes it is hot but we are so close to the gulf of Mexico that there is always a breeze. Last night I drove the Corvette (with the top down of course) to the beach to watch fireworks. It was so beautiful out and it is so nice not trying to get all my activity in before "winter" arrives - because it is wonderful here in the winter also.

The problem with Corvette putting out heat turned out to be a simple $1.25 fuse. Bought one at the auto parts store, put it in and everything is working like a champ. THis evening I will take it to the car wash (where you wash it yourself) and clean it up. Then I might cruise Hudson Beach and if Dad is up to it I want him to photograph me standing by the Vette as the sun sets over the gulf of Mexico. Stay tuned for pictures.

On Monday morning I flew back to Washigton DC to pick up my Corvette. I should have known it wasn’t going to go totally smooth. Mom and Dad drove me to the airport and just before I got out of their van I realized I did not have my cell phone with me. Dad gave me his to use in case I had an emergency. The flight was smooth, the Corvette started right up, I was able to say goodbye to Phil (the 100 year old man) and then hit the road towards florida. I got about 30 miles down the road when I noticed a car on the shoulder of the road with someone waving frantically out the window. As I passed I realized it was Tammy. I pulled over and she drove up behind me, ran up to the car and said she wanted to buy me dinner. We drove to the next exit and had a nice dinner together and left on very good terms. I continued my trip and drove until about midnight getting half way home. I got a motel for the night, got some sleep and hit the road again about 7:00 am. About 10:00 am the electronics on my vette started acting strange. First the air conditioning/heating controls went out and the car started putting out heat. Then the radio quit. I pulled off at the next exit, filled the car with gas, checked the fuses (didn’t find anything wrong) and decided to get going - wrong - the car wouldn’t start - not enough battery power to start it. I called triple AAA and they sent a flat bad truck who took me to a repair shop. My battery had a bad cell and after replacing the battery it was determined that the Alternator was shot. There was only one alternator in town and when they installed it it did not work. They couldn’t get another one until the next morning so they drove me to a motel about 3:00 pm and said the new alternater should be in about 7:30 am. so I spent the night in exciting Brunswick Georgia, about 30 miles from the Florida border. When I woke up I called and they said the truck bringing the alternater had broken down on the highway last night and it wouldn’t arrive until around 10:00 am. When the truck finally did arrive about 11:00 am the alternater was not on it - it has been sent on a different truck to a city almost 3 hours away. They got on the phone and located another one I Savanah Georgia. They had a driver there picking up tires and so he picked up the alternator. I had lunch. Finally at 3:00 pm - they installed it and I was on the road again. The car ran great but the air conditioning/heater controls still didn’t work and I drove the next 4 hours to mom and dads with the heater pumping out hot air in 90+ degree weather. I put the top down the last two hours - I didn’t put it down sooner for fear of getting sunburned. Well I finally got to mom and dads a little after 7:00 pm - I had stopped once to get some water to drink and another bottle to keep pouring on myself to avoid heat stroke. Needless to say, I took a cold shower at my place and went to bed after eating dinner. I am glad I made it, glad to have everything here, and in my spare time will work on the Vette to find out why the air conditioning doesn’t work. If I am lucky it is just a fuse.

Today I spent the day completely redoing my studio. I decided there just wasn’t enough room in the spare bedroom so I moved the studio into the master bedroom and I will sleep in the spare bedroom. Dad came over and helped some and lent me some moral support. It is now 8:00 pm and I am just about down. It will be a much better arrangement this way.

Well, to say I have been busy is an understatement. I got to Florida last Tuesday early evening, in time to watch American Idol finals. Of course I watched on Wednesday when my my Man Tayler Hicks won. Yeah!!!  I am still getting settled into my new home. It is a very nice two bedroom, two bath double wide mobile home. It came fully furnished and they weren’t kidding. Furniture everywhere. I have had to do some rearanging because I will be using the spare bedroom for my studio for my business. My equipment should begin arriving tomorrow (it was shipped on Friday). I am so anxious to get started it is driving me crazy. The trainer will be here on Monday June 12th. In the meantime I have gotten the studio set up and ready for the equipment, I am sorting all my old photo’s so I can do some test projects using my own materials. I finally have high speed internet and cable tv - just the limited basic for tv - I don’t plan on watching much television. On Monday June 5th I will fly back to Virginia to pick up the Corvette and drive it down. Oh yea, I got the dark tint applied to the windows on the Hyundai today - sure helps cut down on the hot sun heating up the car.

On Monday dad and I attended a Memorial Day Service at Grace Memorial Gardens Cemetery. To say it was very emotional for me is an understatement. It began to sink in how wonderful it is to be living close to my Mom and Dad again. Sitting next to my father, a World War II Veteran and me as a Vietnam War Veteran I realized we share a very special bond that not all fathers and sons have. There were many World War II Veterans in attendance – and I am sure a number of Vietnam Veterans also but we tend not to display our status openly. I think that is changing as more people recognize that it was not us as soldiers who lost in Vietnam, it was the politicians who would not allow us to fight a winning war. I watched many grown men cry as the ceremony progressed honoring all those who fought for our country and did not return. So many lives never lived - War is the most pathetic, stupid thing mankind can do - you would think we as a civilization could get past it and live in peace - will it ever be?

Oh yea, many thanks to Debbie who showed up on Wednesday and helped us unload the truck. She was a life saver and boy is she ever strong. She said the American Idol Tour will be in Tampa in August and she will get us tickets. I told her to buy me two tickets and hook me up with a hot date. Actually, I am enjoying taking a break from any relationships. I think some alone time is needed and feels very good. I also love not going to work. I wake up when I want, sleep when I want, read when I want, I can put things anywhere I want to and I can spend my money any way I want to without having to answer to anyone else. Wow, it feels really great.

Well, it is getting late, I started at 6:30 this morning with a nice breakfast in my screened-in big sunroom and it is now 11:30 at night. I had a bad cold the first week I was here but feel much better now. In case you don’t have it my new address is:

Well, I am all packed and ready to pick up the truck in the morning, have the 2 guys I hired help me load it and hit the road. I took the Vette out for a nice spin today to make sure the battery is charged so when I fly back I can jump in and head down 95 (again). Should be a nice ride in the Vette. Phil said it is no problem to leave it in his garage until I come back to get it. Saves a lot of hassle of moving it to storage. It was a beautiful day here today. I know the hot weather is coming - it is just as hot and humid here in the summer as it is in Florida. I am anxious to visit the big flea market on highway 19 this weekend. In a little while I will disconnect the computer. My next update should be from Florida.

It is Saturday morning and today, from noon until 10:00 pm will be my last day at Micro Center and if all goes well, my last day working for anyone else except for me. I have everything fairly well organized and ready for my move. I will pick up the 14′ U-Haul truck on Monday morning, I hired two guys to help me load it Monday afternoon. I will put the Corvette into short term storage, tow the Hyundai, and hit the road either Monday afternoon or early Tuesday morning. Due to heavy southbound traffic in the afternoons out of DC, it will probably be smart to wait until early Tuesday. I will make sure I stop for the night before American Idol starts so I watch my man Tayler Hicks win. I am the only one in the office pool that picked him to win. I will unload part of the truck at Mom & dad’s (they are getting my large home entertainment center and some bedroom furniture) and the rest at my new home.

Everyone at Micro Center has been so wonderfull. It is nice to be liked and respected by your co-workers. I will miss (most) of the people I work with and I will definitely miss the employee discounts. I guess the fact that my future purchases will be tax deductable because they will be for my business will help make up for it. The last couple of days I have made some last minute purchases so I will have everything I need to get my new business going. I am really excited about it (and a little scared). From now on - my success is up to me and only me. My rewards will come strictly as a result of my efforts and I find that exciting. I am so excited about getting my studio set up and getting trained. Having the time to perfect my new trade and the thrill of marketing my services/product is exhilerating.

Well, I will be glad when the move is complete and I have settled in. I plan to spend a lot of time in shorts and sandals driving the Corvette year around attending all the classic car gatherings (where I can also promote my business), and watching sunsets over Hudson beach as often as possible. I am honored to have the opportunity to give back to my parents some of the love and caring they have given me over the years. I truly believe I have the best parents in the world.

Have you seen the insurance commercial where all heck breaks loose and the announcer says "life comes at you fast"? Well, That’s how it is for me. Without going into all the behind the scenes detail I have decided to move to Florida. I have signed a lease on a double wide mobile home in the Ponderso Park where my parents lived for a number of years after they moved down. I am also starting my own business and will work from home in Florida. Wow, I thought the move to Virginia was a bold one but this tops it. My new home is only 3 Miles from Mom and Dad’s house. Four years at Micro Center has been interesting but is not where I want to be for the rest of my life. I will have my studio set up and be trained in operations of my new business the week of June 19th. If you want to take a peek you can link to FamilyTreeVideo.com from my links. I will be provided my own customized web site and let everyone know when it is operational.

Well, I know I promised more frequent updates but life gets in the way. Work is a real struggle lately. I do not enjoy what I do anymore - I feel that my ethics are being tested - way too much push on extended service plans which anyone who has done any research knows are a sucker bets. I don’t mind offering them to customers and letting the customer make the decision but I do not like the way some sales people misrepresent the benefits and then they are treated like hero’s and an honest salesperson is put down. I refuse to twist peoples arms. I cannot stay in this job much longer. Tammy and I will be traveling to Vietnam July 14th until 28th. We would like to spend longer but her duties at work don’t permit her to be away for longer. We will fly into Saigon and then journey north to Hanoi and a number of other cities. We also want to visit the prison on the island where Tammy was held for a year after her capture. I plan to take a lot of pictures and video. Her 2 bothers and will go also. We are going to celebrate her fathers 80th birthday. Her sister Minh will not go because Phil (100 years old) insists on going also if she goes and there is no way we are going to take him - he went with her several years ago and she said never again. I will get to meet her other sister who lives in Saigon. I have to get a number of shots before the trip and have been warned to stay away from poultry due to the bird flu. Well, For now I have to jump in the shower and get ready to leave for work. I work today from noon until 9:00pm and tomorrow from 8:00 until 5:00pm. I actually have Saturday and Sunday off - I am looking forward to a nice weekend with Tammy. We will take the Corvette out to the countryside to join some of our friends at Richard and Jackie’s house. It is really nice - they have their own lake. Let’s hope for good weather.

Well, this was an interesting Weekend. Tammy’s brother-in-law Phil Wheeler turned 100 yesterday. His birthday bash took place at the doubleTree hotel with 120 people in attendance. You make a lot of friends and have a lot of relatives when you live that long. Hearing the stories about Phil made me realize what a special person he is. The event looked more like a wedding than a birthday party with everything done first class. I am sure Phil is exhausted and resting up today because we also had a open house/dinner for him at his home Saturday evening with about 25 people. I did not take pictures but many pictures and video’s were shot and I will get copies of some of them and post them.

I had a very nice Easter yesterday. I do miss being with my kids on Easter but managed to survive. Tammy and Went to a friends home for Easter Brunch. I was the only "white" guy there. Met a vietnamese man who told the story about how when he was 8 years old his mother woke him up, handed him a bag with a few things in it and said "I want you to go with this woman and these other kids". The woman led the small group across Vietnam, walking only at night for a number of weeks (he estimates about 1 month) to the gulf of Thailand where they joined another group, boarded a small boat and set sail for Thailand. When the were close to Thailand they were confronted by Thai pirates who stole everything they had and violated all the women (he didn’t tell that part - Tammy told me about that later). They made it to shore and walked to a refugee camp. They were then sponsored to the USA. Can you imagine sending your child away with a stranger to escape Vietnam and communism? It makes you realize how truly lucky we are to live in a free country. He has traveled back to Vietnam several times, the last time being to bury his mother who never managed to escape and lived out her life in Vietnam.

On a positive note, it was a really nice day and Tammy enjoyed the day with the top down on the Corvette.