Pushing pencils

I bought a pencil sharpener yesterday. To sharpen pencils.

You see, I brought some crossword puzzles to do while on whatever down time I might have in Indianapolis while I'm here for a trade show. And, you know, if I really get on a tear, I might wear down the nub on the lone pencil I brought. It's a cool pencil, one I used to keep score with at Detroit Tiger Stadium. It even says 'Detroit Tigers Tiger Stadium' on it. I might need to sharpen it if I really get on a roll.

So I bought a pencil sharpener. I understand that it really pushed the local economy over the top too.

Hey, I do my part.

I like Indy

Indianapolis. I really like it.

It has an active downtown with lots of restaurants and activities. From my hotel I overlook Victory Field, where the Indianapolis Indians play. They're Triple A baseball, in the same league as the Toledo Mud Hens if that helps you to know what I mean. I really gotta try to get down here in the summer and see the park from the inside.

I get to stay here twice this year. After this weekend's trade show I do another one the week after next. My current hotel is a block away from the Indiana Convention Center, where the show is being held, so it's an easy walk.  And it has an underground parking garage, so finding somewhere for my van to sit until Monday Noon was a breeze too.

Now if I can just sell a lot of Electric Eels in the next two and half days it will be a real smash. Wish me luck!

Pops at 81

Hey Pops, how are you doing today?

Well, they finally finished that 50 mile stretch of I-75 south of Toledo. That took them forever; better than three years I'm sure. But it's nice being able to tool along at 70 MPH there now. Okay, 75 with the cruise on. But now they've gone and closed the Rouge bridge in south Detroit for the next two years starting February 4. So we have to take 94 out to 275 or US 23 and down to Toledo going to the plant. If ain't one thing it's another, eh? Ah, we're on the road though. That's where we Cosgriffs belong.

Pitchers and catchers report to Lakeland in two weeks. Yep, we're coming up on baseball season. I wish I still had that little black and white transistor radio you had when I was a kid, the one I borrowed so often to listen to Ernie and Ray call Tigers games. Baseball on the radio. Sometimes I think it's better than actually being at the game. I've been listening a lot up North in Hessel, in the garage. It brings memories back for sure. Remember us listening in the Shop when Fister struck out nine in a row to set the AL record? On Charlie's old radio? We laughed at each strikeout after about the fifth one as the streak played on. That was a good day.

Mom's doing real good with that pacemaker. It's been over two years now, and she's fretting about everything like always. Did you hear what she told the doctor right after she got it? He told her it had a ten year battery; she said she needed twenty. That's so Mom, right?

The Pumper's show is coming up in a few weeks. We're going to take a lot of the equipment over and then work it. But it's not the Pumper Show anymore. It's the WWETT Show. Water and Wastewater Equipment, Treatment and Transport Show. I don't recall for sure whether they had changed it before your last show. People and their acronyms; I suppose they wanted something easily remembered, but I always remembered the Pumper show. That's what you always called it, so I imagine it stuck in your memory too. Ah well.

Okay, I gotta get up to the Shop. Gotta meet a couple guys and get a couple repairs done on a Saturday to get a head start on next week. That really is a great old barn. A lot of good memories there. The daily bread calls.

Happy Birthday Dad. Until Next Time,

Marty.