It has been brought to my attention that I bitch too much in my blogs. This is correct! I figured this would be my venting area since I could be fired for it at work and am liable to encounter apathy at home..LOL..So, I will talk of the good things in life.

My family is great! I have three daughters aged 23, 12 qnd 10 who light up my life. My oldest is pregnant with her first child and my first grandchild by blood. She lives in Las Vegas and it just kills me that I can't be there for her all through this, but she is excited , happy and healthy and has insurance! She says she will be coming back to Bakersfield  to stay as soon as things settle down after the birth. My two younger daughters live with us and I miss them even when they are just at their Moms for the weekend. There are never too many hugs or "I love yous"  from my kids. The oldest is motivated and likes to work and the younger ones do very well in school and give me very little grief.

I have a 35 yr old stepdaughter who I coudn't love any more if she were my flesh and blood. We have become very close over the last couple of years. It's amazing how adversity in  our lives can bring us together with those we care for and trust. She is also motivated, smart and a hard worker. She has also raised a son and an adopted son pretty much by herself, which brings me to my grandsons.

Ryan and Dante..Ryan is Tricia's son and Dante is her adopted son. Both are now 18. Dante just graduated and is headed to Jr. College this fall. He was pretty much left to fend for himself around the age of 12 or 13. He and Ryan were buddies and he just kind of joined the family. Trish was granted guardianship of him when he was 15. He is very smart and does well in school. He played Baseball throughout school and football in his senior year. He did well at both. He is very outspoken, but respectful all the while gaining maturity and realizing the need to look to the future. With all he has gone through it is a wonder he has turned out as balanced as he is, but he never lacked for love around here. We accepted and treated him as our own.  

Ryan  is a mutant. The kid makes the Statue of David look frumpy. He is at once shy and cocky, contemplative and boisterous, distant and loving.  His Dad has never been a part of his life. I came along when he was nine and I like to think I was a good male role model for him in what time I was able to spend around him. Once he got to know me(soon after I met him)he started calling me "Pa"(as do Dante, Trish, my nephew, Will and most of their friends)and I love it.  He is a stud. Started racing motocross just as I was winding up my years of racing, but football is his real forte. He has played  since he was old enough to do youth programs. Only a knee injury kept him from starting on Varsity as a sophomore. Last  year, as a junior, he was a starting linebacker and ended the season with 19 sacks, over 1,000 yards rushing. In the the Valley Championship game he ran for 246 yards and six TDs with one sack. He has more colleges kissing his butt than you can shake a stick at! All this and he is still considering a career in law enforcement!

My Wife. It's hard to know where to start or where to go in speaking of her. I had know her for many years before we started dating. I never imagined we'd be together.Well, I imagined it, but..ya know. She is smart, educated, motivated, self sufficient...I could run out of adjectives on her. She treats my kids as if they were her own and loves them as much as I love Trish and the boys. She is a huge part of their lives and they love and trust her. This makes that part of my life stress free. Many step parents never accept their spouses kids and it strains relationships. I have no such worries. We don't bird dog each other. I enjoy spending time with my friends playing cards and such. The occasional trip to Vegas with them and she has no problems with it. We have our lives together and we have our lives apart. We don't need to entertain each other or engage in small talk to make the other feel comfortable. We might go all day and not say two words to each other and that is OK too. Sometimes we just chill. When I was racing motocross she went to all the races and took care of all my needs. She had her own dirtbike and we rode together often. Now we both have Harleys and the first one was HER idea! We spend a great deal of time on the bikes and have a blast doing it. We have been together for nine years, married for seven. Yes, the constant passion of a new partner has worn off, but we are still very much in love, still enjoy each others company  and are looking forward to our golden years together. While my first two marriages didn't sour me on women in general, they nearly soured me on the institution of marriage or co-habitation. I am glad I didn't give up on it. My life is a more colorful, plentiful and happier place because of it.

So..There are just a few of the things I have to be grateful for. These are real, fulfilling things. Yeah, I have agood job and a decent house. A nice car and nice toys, but those are things I could have anyway. I am glad I have people to share them with. Life is good!