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August 2007
August 14 - Ben was right back into band rehearsals, as tonight was parent night. Here, he's hanging with Mom, after teaching her a few marching steps. The band sounds great, and we look forward to the LAST HHS band season (for us anyway).
July 2007
As for other news, the roof is complete. We paid off about half of it this morning. The only thing left to repair is C's car, which got a little more damage when she was rear-ended yesterday afternoon. The damage was not too bad, but we will probably have to replace the bumper at some point. Neither she, nor Gail, was hurt in the fender-bender.
July 8 - Well, we made it back. A couple of folks have already asked about photos. Yes, we took the cameras (of course), and snapped up lots of goodies. R has just begun culling the pile, so we'll see what's there. The reunion was fun, the trip was great, and we are both exhausted. We'll be keeping the reunion scrapbook, and R is working on a new website to keep the family informed as to what is going on. You can see it at www.RileyReunions.com. We hope to have all of the previous scrapbooks on-line in the coming months. Stay tuned for more information!
June 2007
June 30 - We'll be out of pocket a few days, so there will be no What's New or Scouts updates. You may keep an eye on the Scouts at www.DCI.org.
June 28 - As we wrap up June, R heard from two old friends, and learned that another had died. Fellow Haltom retiree, Harvey Hanson, stopped by the see the new building and visit for a while. As they were chatting in R's office, Bob McIntyre called Harvey to see where he was. Seems that Bob was babysitting Harvey's dog while Harv was visiting the Fort Worth and Denton area. Bob sounded good, but Harvey said he hasn't been getting around too well. The day before, R had learned that another HCPD alum, Kevin Bason, had died in Fort Worth. Kevin and Roger attended the police academy together way back in 1981. Kevin left the department, and police work, in 1983. No cause of death reported at this time.
June 25 - R & C got a new camera for their upcoming summer trips. It's a Nikon (duh) D40. Although it is described as an entry-level DSLR, it seems to have more features that the D100's we use so much. We will post some photos in a few days showing what this little gem can do.
June 20 - I know, the month is nearly over, and I've not posted anything to the blog. There's not been much to report. Ben is on the road with the Scouts, and we have literally been swamped with rain. Early Monday morning, our area was hit with several inches of rain, resulting in flooding all around us. The perennial problem at Skyline MHP reared its ugly head, and was worse than I've ever seen before. More than 100 of the trailers were moved or seriously damaged, and one 4 year-old girl was swept away and drowned.
We are still working on getting repairs completed from the April hail storms. Adjusters and roofers abound, but our roof should be replaced in July. Then there's still the matter of the cars.... Could have been worse.
May 2007
May 25 - Scouts off-season is over. Ben heads for Madison this afternoon. Be sure to check out the 2007 Madison Scouts page here. We had a small going away party for Ben last night. Gail, Nicole and Alan joined us for dinner and conversation. After dinner, Ben and Nicole headed out to the the new "Pirates" movie.
May 20 - With the trip to Madison just five days away, it's packing time for Ben. Things are marching from points all over the house to the front living room, where they will be safely ensconced in his oversized suitcase. Yesterday was the HHS march-a-thon, which is a primer for freshmen. I got this pic of Ben and Nicole there.
I also got a good shot of Koda earlier in the day.
May 12 - Tonight was the annual band banquet, and Nicole and Ben looked great. As has been the case for the last couple of years, the banquet was held at the Embassy Suites in Irving. Quite a drive for kids so R drove both ways. Each of the kids received two awards; Best Soloist from the BISD contest back on 4/28 and a plaque for making All-State. Here's a photo of the handsome couple!
May 11 - It's just two weeks until Ben leaves for Madison. This is the sad time, when all of the stuff he'll carry begins to pile up around the house. We'll miss him, I'm sure. There was more sad news today - Nicole's step-dad, Tony, died. He'd been suffering from cancer for some time, yet no one's really ready when the end comes. Ben's been at Nicole's house all afternoon. It's his first encounter with death since Aunt Nan died nearly two years ago. We'll see whether it affects the band banquet, which is tomorrow night.
April 2007
April 29 - Ben had a recital on Sunday, the first time we've really heard him play a long solo (about 5 1/2 minutes). It was billed as a showcase of "students of Jerry Hull and guests". Ben was one of the guests. He played very, very well!
April 28 - Saturday was a busy day for the Macons. R was up before dawn, and off to work for the dedication and open house of the new police facility. There was a great turn out, and the tours went off without a hitch. While he was there, B had another solo contest. Once again, he did very well, receiving a 1+++++++++ from the judge (who's not supposed to add plusses to the scores). Ben was pumped when the judge (a professor at TCU) suggested he audition there, and indicated they had scholarships available. Still, there's no Brian Bowman (euphonium god) at TCU. C showed her support by attending the open house with R, and serving as official photographer of the event.
We had storm damage updates this week, as an adjuster came to the house to look at the roof, and C took the cars to an adjuster a couple of miles from here. All together, we suffered between $9,000 and $10,000 in damages. It's good to have insurance when a storm rolls through!
April 21 - It's time for the annual HHS band trip to Corpus. Ben called last night from the resort and said he had, "the best suite in the place". Rank (or being a junior) has its privileges. Follow up to last week's storm is that we have about $1,500 damage to each car, and another $5,000 to $6,000 damage to the house. We'll be getting a new roof courtesy of Mother Nature. Hey, it's only money $$$.
April 13 (Friday, no less) - Storms blew through Haltom City just after 6:00 p.m., spawning at least one tornado, and dropping the largest hail stones we'd ever seen on the house and yard. The largest measured roughly 4" x 3". Both cars were damaged, and C's windshield was broken. The tornado passed about 5 miles south of us, hitting the area of Beach and Airport Freeway. An RV sales center at Haltom and Airport Freeway was devastated, with RV's tossed around like toys. One fatality has been reported, the result of lumber toppling over. We're okay, but were worried about the boys, who were away from home at the time of the storms. YIKES!!!
April 1 - R, C, B and Nicole (Ben's girlfriend) traveled to Dallas Fair Park to see Body Worlds. Photos of our trip to Dallas may be seen here, no fooling!
March 2007
February 2007
February 28 - Okay, here's the rest of the story. Ben's plane finally left Chicago after 8:15 p.m.. He landed at D/FW around 11:00. We were there waiting for him. Ben had checked just on bag - his Madison horn. We waited, and waited, and waited for baggage from his flight to be delivered. Once it started, we waited some more. No horn. Sensing that there would be no horn, C got in line for the lost baggage service. It was a LONG line. She waited, and waited, and waited. Finally, we reached the head of the line, and spoke to the agent. "Well, there's good news and bad news.", he said. The horn had come from Chicago on an earlier flight. That was the good news. The bad was that it was at Gate C12. We were at A17. We hopped in the car and changed terminals. There were literally hundreds of bags on the floor at the C terminal. Way in the back, behind all of the other bags, was the horn case. We claimed it and headed for home. We arrived back at the house around 1:00 a.m. Monday morning. Zzzzz. Ben was up and at them later Monday morning, making it to his first period class on time!
February 25 - The blizzards continue in the north, which isolates Ben from the rest of the country. Most flights in and out of Chicago and Madison are grounded, and we trust Ben is safe, and probably a little cold. An attempt to get through to American Airlines' customer service showed a three hour wait. Guess we'll continue to ride out the storm from here in Texas. UPDATE - Ben called at 1:30 and let us know he's on a flight from Madison to Chicago that leaves in less than 30 minutes. He should be home tonight! ANOTHER UPDATE - Ben made it Chicago, and is waiting on a flight to bring him home. It's presently in a holding pattern, but, with luck, should leave about 6:40 tonight. It will be a late night, though. His plane should not land until about 9:30.
February 25 - A few months ago, the owners of "Let's Go Country" asked me if they could use some of my photographs for their new website. Of course I said yes, so long as I received credit. The new website has hit the Internet, and the photo page is here. You may see larger versions of a couple of the photos on this page. The sunset over the tree tops on the LGC page was taken by C.
February 24 - This is a travel weekend for Ben, but I think he has gotten WAY more than he bargained for. His flight to Chicago was delayed for over four hours, leaving him stranded at D/FW Airport. He wound up leaving about the time he was originally supposed to be in Madison. But that's not all! Of course, once he got to Chicago, the last plane to Madison was long gone. There was nothing to do until morning. This would not be a problem for someone old enough to get a hotel room, which Ben is not. Ultimately, around midnight, Ben bedded down in a secured lounge, armed with a couple of food vouchers. Sadly, all the food services were closed for the night too. Not his day, huh? Today started a little better. He was able to catch a morning flight to Madison, and arrived a little after 9:00 a.m.. He even got his luggage. Then he learned that Madison was under a blizzard warning, and a rep from the Scouts had to uncover his car before he could get to the airport. As of this writing, it's noon, and Ben is still at the airport, waiting. The adventure continues....
February 19 - We made the trip to San Antonio last week for the TMEA convention, and Ben's performance as first chair euphonium in the 5A All-State Concert Band. The trip was fantastic, including both trips through Austin! All the kids from HHS represented their school admirably. R and C spent idle time touring many of the missions in the San Antonio area. Keep an eye out on our travel page for photos.
February 14 - Happy Valentine's Day! We're in San Antonio for TMEA, and enjoying some "us" time. C got a watch she'd had her eyes on (he went to Jared), but it was DOA! A call to Jared assured us a new one would be waiting when we get home. (UPDATE - it was ready, and replaced right away - gotta love Jared!). R also unveiled C's new website just before leaving town. Take a look at www.mizcindy.com. It's a work in progress, but has been fun to put together.
February 8 - Haircut was the Word of the Day, as C and A both lost some serious head cover. After detangling, A had about eight inches removed, and looks much better. It should be easier to keep in line as well. C, on the other hand (head?), took off enough (nearly 11 inches) to give to Locks of Love. This marks the second time in a year that one of the Macons donated hair to LOL. See Ben's story here. We also took delivery of that pool table we ordered a couple of weeks ago.
January 2007
January 26 - Ben's latest musical soiree is into musical theater. He's joined the "pit crew" in Haltom's production of Thoroughly Modern Millie, which plays through January 30th. He's had a great time performing, even if he doesn't get to see the play (the pit is under the stage!). We caught the Sunday matinee, and it was excellent!
January 18 - Happy Birthday, Alan! It's hard to believe he's 21 already. Time sure flies when you're having fun! Here are a few shots of Alan back in the day! Click on any photo for an expanded view.
January 13 - Ben's All-Region concert in Euless was canceled as the threat of major ice storms looms over the Metroplex. This is the first concert in our many years of band parenting to be postponed or canceled due to weather (or anything else, for that matter). The band did practice with their clinician Friday evening.
January 6 - After surviving All-Region competition in Arlington last month, Ben traveled to Odessa to participate in the All-Area solo competition. He was one of eight euphonium players vying for two spots headed to State in San Antonio next month. Months of rehearsals, private lessons and practice paid off when Ben earned first chair - best in the Area! He will be going to the TMEA convention February 14-17 to compete against the best euphonium players in the state. We'll keep you posted!
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Texas Music Educators Association 2007 Clinic/Convention February 14-17, 2007 Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center San Antonio, Texas |