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Some Music for My Birthday from Albert Collins

Ok so today is my birthday, the 64th that I’ve celebrated! It seems like only yesterday my mother was writing in my baby book….October 1, 1952, Eddie’s first birthday, October 1, 1953, Eddie’s second birthday…. such a great writer she was…left me with so many written memories!

Here’s a picture from my first birthday party – (from l to r adults Uncle Ott, Aunt Polly, Nana Karn, Aunt Jean?, my dad (great shirt!) Uncle Kenny and Grandpop Karn. l to r kids – me, cousins Jimmy and Marti) read more

So after Tuesday’s positive run, I was ready to go again today! I figured I would run my 4.2 mile run that has a couple of minor climbs. I took off and told myself that after pushing it a little more than usual on Tuesday, I should take it a little slower today, but then I made the first mile in 9:32 and that thought went out the window. I held that pace throughout the rest of the run, and ended with time of 40:24. The fastest time over that course since, well, maybe last year! The good thing is that my legs still feel good and I’m ready to go again! read more

Brother John,Mom, Grandmother Elva

Yesterday, we had the private funeral for my mother, and it was a beautiful day. I think that  the day went about as well as it could have. In the morning I called the funeral director to go over some last-minute arrangements, like would he have flowers, could I put something in the casket, etc. He said that he was going to call me in a few minutes to see if I wanted to come by and see my mom. Originally, I was not going to do that, but I decided that I would and maybe it would help later. So Kathy and I went over and it was the best move I could have made. He had done a wonderful job and she looked so much better than the last time I saw her. My cousin Donna also went to see her and I hope it helped her get through the day. The service was short and sweet, which is the way I think mom would have wanted it. The only people I invited outside of the family, were Bob Johnson and his wife Lynda. Bob and the Johnson family were about as close to me as family, two of his younger brothers Tom and Andy were like my big brothers. We were constantly either playing football, baseball or basketball together. His youngest brother Richard was like a younger brother, I remember my mom babysitting when he was an infant! After the service we went to Pat’s for lunch, my children, and Bob and Lynda and had a wonderful time reminiscing and while I had said to them how I felt about Bob’s family being an extension of mine, she said that Bob felt the same way about my parents. It was about as good a day as I could have hoped for, and of course I thank my rock, my wife, for making it that way!! I love you, Kathleen and all my children! read more

So last night my mother passed away, she was 84 years old. She was born June 12, 1928 to John and Elva Regars Ashton. She had two brothers, James “Jimmy” was killed in WWII at the age of 19, and the other, John passed away in 1990, that same year her nephew Jim, John’s son passed away. She married my father Edward Karn in 1947 and I came along in 1951. In 1956 her father died at the age of 58 and her mother passed in 1971. In 1984 my father had a heart attack and passed at the age of 60. Through the years, her devotion to the Beverly Presbyterian Church kept her going, she was a Sunday School teacher for many years and then superintendent of the Sunday School. She was also an Elder and a Deacon and just about anything else she could be. After my father died, she worked at the Joy’s Hallmark in the Burlington Center for several years and at Easy Pour Coffee service in Burlington. After my father passed, my Uncle Kenny and his wife Flo moved in with her and they were a trip, my Uncle passed in 2003 and then my Aunt died unexpetedly in 2006. At the time Flo was taking care of my mom, after she died, Mom went to live at Riverview Estates in Riverton, where she has spent the her last years. I can’t say enough good things about the home and what they did for her, they were terrific from the top down! read more

OK so, so far this week has sucked! First, my car was backed into in the parking lot of a 7-11, lucky the person, who did it freely admitted that it was his fault, and sent me to his repair shop to get it fixed. I did so on Tuesday, and was told by the shop owner that he would get back to the  person who hit me with a price and to big the car back on Wednesday to get repaired. On Wednesday morning, I took the car back only to find out that their had been a change in plans and they were now going through their insurance agent and that they would get back to me about bringing the car in to get repaired. Yesterday, I heard nothing , so this morning I called their had been a mix-up with my phone number and the insurance agency had been calling the wrong number yesterday! So I took the car in today and then went and picked up the rental car that they are supplying.  So it looks like everything is working out, but it is still aggravating! read more

So I was cleaning up some stuff tonight and Nick was here (he’s the one with the guitar on the banner with my kids pictures), I decided to show him how we played football before Madden, WAY before Madden, and actually he pointed out, before the Super Bowl, so out came the old Tudor electric football! Oh, what entertained us before the computer. You’d get out the men ,  line them up for the kick-off,

then turn on the board and sit there and watch the players just randomly move around, hoping that your player came somewhere near the end zone! Hey, we were twelve-year-old boys, at a time when we really were children!! read more

So about a week ago I finished reading Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project and I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I think that it would be a great idea, as she suggests, to start my own Happiness Project. Like Gretchen it’s not that I’m unhappy, it’s just that I know I could be happier!

So where do you start?  Gretchen started with the idea of tackling a topic of importance each month like: marriage, parenthood, friends, then making resolutions that revolve around that topic and keeping track of how she was doing keeping those resolutions using a daily chart. She marked the chart with a check for good and an X for bad! read more

Ok so sometimes as parents we live out lives vicariously through our children and this last weekend, my wife and I did that thanks to Elizabeth! As I wrote last week or so, Elizabeth is spending  four weeks studying in the homeland of her Browne, Laird and McCloskey ancestors! Well this past weekend was a free weekend and she discovered that it would only cost her 50 euros to go to London so along with a girlfriend she went to London. She spent two days sighting-seeing while staying in a hostel.  She sure looks homesick to me, eh? Here are some other shots of London. read more

So my daughter has worked hard in school to get were she is now. And where is she now? Standing on some rocks on the Irish coast, making her mother cry! Why is her mother crying because Mom wants to be there so badly! Anyway my daughter, Elizabeth will be entering her senior year at The College of William and Mary this fall, but for four weeks this summer she will be studying Irish film and literature in two classes in Ireland!

The main reason that my wife longs to go to Ireland so much is that her roots go deep in Ireland. Her great-grandfather James Corbett Browne was born in 1864 in county Down and she has traced the Browne line  back to Samuel born in 1787 in Hilltown in County Down! read more

So several years ago when we were cleaning out my old house we came across my old Buddy Lee doll. A few weeks ago I found it again and put him out over the TV. My wife says those eyes are creepy!! Here’s a link to an article about the doll and Lee jeans! I wonder if advertising last a long while because I always by Lee Jeans!! You can find your own Buddy Lee on eBay!