Wish me luck

Today is my first day of substitute teaching....Tift County HS. Luckily, it's for the foreign language teacher that teaches German and Spanish....and I've been both places. Unfortunately, I didn't pick up much of either language.

Will the real Rich please stand up!

Vic told me that many of the clan are not as familiar with me as she would like, so I've been instructed to tell you 5 things about me that you might not know. Since I'm sure you know I'm a golf fanatic, I can't really use that one. Maybe you didn't know that I'm a feline fanatic too, but I'm sure that most of you do...but for those that aren't in the know, Tibbit, Patches, Punkin, Garfield, Snugglepuss, Toofi, and Hobo complete our feline pride. Most of them are in this picture. Any questions about the "Kathouse" title? Apologies for my digression....back to....me.

The first thing I can tell you about me is I define music by the 3 B's....Beatles, Bluegrass, and Barbershop! People often look at me like I've lost my mind when I say I'm a Barbershop Quartet fan, but that and Bluegrass combine such great harmony that I think a person would have to be crazy NOT to like them. And yes, I do great harmony....can't understand why Vic and the rest of the world disagree!

Next...many of you believe that my roots are in Texas. That isn't exactly true. I was born in Snyder, Texas, but grew up in Truckee, California...just 14 miles from beautiful Lake Tahoe. I spent my winters shovelling deep snow and my summers fishing in creeks and high lakes for rainbow and brown trout. What I am saying is, I grew up a Wolverine rather than a Bulldog.

Third on the Rich list; I never liked kids before becoming part of this family...I thought I'd always be a bachelor with absolutely no kinderlings. Initially, our Godson Riddick scared me....so tiny that he might break if I touched him, but gradually I found myself able to pick him up and even play with him. By the time Nathan started crawling all over me and Sam began to bat her eyes, I was hooked. What still bothers me about this is how grey I've become....is this caused by age....maybe married life....possibly children.....OR most likely, these wonderful GRANDKIDS are the culprits....turn it grey and pull it out....that's their job, right?

Number four on the list is my ancestor Jehu Cox took 2 Mormon travelers into their home, while living in Crawford County, Missouri, and were converted to Mormonism. They went west with Brigham Young and helped settle Utah. Their home is still standing and a museum, Old Fort Union was built around the house to protect it from Indians. Ok, this isn't about me personally, but at least now that I have been fully surrounded by the faith....I more fully understand the faith than when I first dug up this small bit of Cox family history.

Last, I guess I should mention that, though I waited a very long time to find love, I think I couldn't have found a more perfect person than my Vickie. We often finish each other's comments without even knowing we've done so. Few people in life find the companion that is perfect for them, but I know I have.