John Hoyle - Web Design and Consulting

Well we’ve reached mid-February and everything is just rosy - except for the roses, of course.  Life is good, the weather here in Salem is just beautiful, and I’ve lost almost 17 pounds over the past 6 weeks.

I forgot to mention the last time around that I updated the Lonnie Harvey memorial page and added another story.  I’ve got a couple more to share, but I will write them later this Spring.  The latest one tells about Lonnie and I going to the old Swing Auditorium in San Bernardino and attending an unforgettable concert.

I don’t usually publish my political opinions on this site, but I will bend the rules a bit and share a few thoughts about the current political primaries and the politicians who are involved.

If you are like me, you’re pretty much fed up with Bush and his gang.  They’ve managed to destroy the housing market, stop meaningful stem cell research, and have wrapped us into a war that few of us really want.  We watch as our bridges collapse, health care becomes unmanageable, the Mexican border remains unprotected, and Bush political scandals grow exponentially each week.

You might also be frustrated with the Democrats.  They won the last Congressional elections by a pretty good margin and clearly had voter support to institute change and stand up to Bush.  But they’ve just rolled over and played like Bush’s lap dogs.

Although I admire McCain and his proven patriotism, he clearly is espousing another four years of Bushism.  Another two years of war in Iraq would be unacceptable, but McCain tells us right up front that we might be in there for another 100 years. 

McCain refers to our presence in Germany, Japan, and Korea as examples of our forces remaining in place 50 years after the wars were over.  But he misses the primary differences between the situations:  Germany and Korea both want us there and being there provides us with critical bases on both sides of the old Soviet Union. 

Iraqis, on the other hand, do not want us there and our being there does not offer us any strategic advantage that we do not already have.  We have bases in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and a naval fleet in the Persian Gulf.  Anyone attacking us from that part of the world would be toast in a matter of hours as things exist now.

So my vote will likely go Democratic this year.  Hillary has her charm and is very smart, and like Margaret Thatcher, the British Prime Minister of the 1980s and 90s, I think she would be a tough and effective leader.  But even discounting ex-Prez Bill Clinton, Hillary carries a lot of baggage of her own.  People who have worked for her don’t seem to like her and her public face is often the exact opposite of her private personality.  She’d get my vote if it is between her and McCain, but I am hoping I have another choice in November.

Barak Obama clearly would bring a new vision and new blood to the White House.  What he might lack in experience he clearly makes up for in charisma.  In fact, he has charisma with a capital “C.”  He does not have the baggage Hillary has, and is clearly building support from all segments of the population.

It is clear that the Southern white evangelicals will likely vote against Obama simply because they still believe in the old Biblical myth of the “curse of Ham.”  That still limits the modern credibility of the Mormons. Even though a high percentage of African-Americans are members of the Baptist Church, the fact is that the Southern Baptist Church was formed by supporters of slavery around the time of the Civil War, breaking away from the Methodists and “northern” Baptists because of their growing opposition to slavery.  Unfortunately, the  attitudes that created that old denominational split that fed the Klu Klux Klan and segregation for over a century, still exist to some degree in this country, especially the South.  Nothing Obama could do or say will ever change the minds of that category of voters.  They will likely support Huckabee or McCain or simply sit out the election.

The rest of the voting population, however, is clearly beginning to accept Obama as a viable candidate and a popular choice for real change.

In spite of the usual campaign rhetoric, Obama is clearly a breath of fresh air in the political arena.  I say give the kid a chance.  If he screws up, then toss his ass out in four years like we did Jimmy Carter. 

I personally am hoping that Obama gets his chance to show us his stuff.  I’m not sure why anyone would want to be President considering the workload and personal danger, but if Obama wants the opportunity, I say let him have a go.  I’m sure Hillary will still be waiting in the wings for her next chance, so maybe she would be a decent replacement if Obama fails to live up to the hype.

Can you believe that we are already a full month into 2008?  We’re getting deep into the political primaries and Spring will be here in just seven weeks.  It seemed like only yesterday that we were feverishly ordering Xmas gifts and writing checks.  Hopefully everyone enjoyed our overwhelming generosity - or at least won’t hold our gift choices against us for too long.

Almost a  month has passed since I began my diet.  I have been faithfully sticking to it and it is working.  I’m using a modified Zone/Atkins type diet, cutting back on the carbs and eating mostly lean meats, fish, and green vegetables.  I’ve not touched a drop of booze, beer or wine.  I’ve been so good that I just might make it into Heaven for no other reason than my diet - although I’m sure that St. Pete would have to give me a few waivers for some other mischief I’ve done in the past.

The bottom line is that I’ve lost 13 1/2 pounds in 30 days and it really has made a difference in how my clothes are hanging.  I’ve got more energy and my feet don’t get so tired when I walk around Costco for hours and hours.  My goal is to lose an equal amount over the next six weeks and get down under my best weight of 180.

The SuperBowl is due on Sunday.  Either way it goes, I will be happy and satisfied as long as it is a good game.  I love the Manning brothers, Payton and Eli, and to have them both win a SuperBowl within months of each other would be a fantastic achievement.  On the other hand, to be able to see New England’s Patriots win the SuperBowl and have a perfect 19-game season would rank up there with seeing Nolan Ryan’s 7th “no-hitter” in person. 

Wait a minute! I DID see Nolan Ryan pitch his last no-hitter in person!  Well, anyway, it will be a great SuperBowl game, no matter who ends up winning.

Speaking of sports, which I so infrequently do, I want to send out a special congratulations to my granddaughter, Monika, for her team efforts and success in soccer.  Monika is a tough little cookie and with her determination and athletic skill, I bet she could seriously intimidate some of the kids on the opposing team.
Her team,  the Santa Monica American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) Girls Under 12 Bruisers ran their winning streak to 15 games by taking their area championship in Culver City earlier this month.  Her team will advance as the top seed at the Championships scheduled to be played in Riverside, CA March 1-2, 2008.

Needless to say, Grandpa John and the rest of the family are thrilled with Monika’s  success. This gives her younger cousin, Kendall, a goal to shoot for, as she is also involved with soccer up in the Bay Area.

We’ve had a good year sportswise in this family.  Monika’s brother Robby played with some distinction in organized tournament baseball and high school football last year.  Cousin Kyle’s high school freshman football team had great success and he was able to play at his peak in both directions.  Younger cousin Shane continued to do well in organized baseball and football.  Cousin Mia danced to perfection in a demanding part in the ballet “The Nutcracker” and received good reviews for her singing at a recent recital.  And cousin Kendall, I’m told, besides her growing athletic skills in soccer, has decided to set out on a career path as an actress and singer.

Excuse me while I replace all the buttons on my shirt.  But I have to be one of the luckiest grandfathers in history and I simply can’t help but be proud of every one of them.  I keep wondering where these kids came up with all their athleticism and talent.  One thing is for sure - they all are cheered on and fully supported by their parents.  They are very lucky young people to have such supportive families behind them.

A high-five to “supportive families!”

Here are pictures of Monika and her championship teammates and coaches.  Good work, Bruisers!  Click on the thumbnails to see the full-sized photos.

Another year has passed and I’ve finally figured out that I’m not getting any younger.  I know it’s hard to believe - but it’s true - I’ve finally passed into middle age.  But that’s OK, it happens to the best of us.

2007 was, overall, a good year.  There was some sadness, of course, with the unexpected passings of my mother-in-law, Mrs. Pheobe Boivin (Santa Rosa, CA) and my childhood best friend, Lonnie Harvey (Riverside, CA. [Read "Lonnie and Me"]

But there was also much to be joyful over.  I reconnected with another childhood friend, Dick Kelly, in August.  Our friendship continues to grow and revitalize my life in so many ways.  He and his wife, Helen, were so gracious during our brief visit in November.  I was also able to visit with some nephews and nieces that I had not seen for many years during a family reunion in Oregon.

Living in Oregon has been a very good thing for me. I recommend it to everyone. I love being here and find little to complain about. It’s too bad that I had to be away from home so much of the year due to travel and family commitments. I am especially blessed with a beautiful home and a great view. The frequent rain does not bother me at all and mowing lawns again has given me some exercise.

I want to look back for a moment and send out special congratulations to all of my grandkids for their most excellent success on the playing field this past year. I also want to express my extreme pleasure with all of them for continuing to do so well in their school studies and extra-curricular activities.

One special mention for my oldest granddaughter. I was privileged to watch on DVD her performance during the “Nutcracker” ballet during December. The level of her efforts and quality of her dancing were most excellent. To say I was proud would be an understatement. One can easily forget how athletic and demanding dance can be, and ballet is one of the more difficult of all the arts to perform well. All I can say is that I have seen many performances of the “Nutcracker,” but none finer than the one put on by my granddaughter and the rest of the ballet company on that wonderful DVD.

I’ve decided to really work at losing some weight.  When I was a kid I weighed well under 120 and as a young adult rarely got over 135.  I really felt heavy in my thirties when I topped out just under 180.  Now I am over 200.  I simply have to deal with the problem.

At one point in my late twenties I decided that I’d like to be a police officer (”Adam-12″ was popular at the time) and actually went down and got an application.  In order to qualify, however, my minimum weight would have to be 155 lbs., well over the 140 that I averaged at the time.  So I gave up that dream (thank goodness!) Now, of course, with women, Asian and Hispanic officers, that type of discriminatory weight limitation has long passed into history.  I guess I was just born 15 years too soon.

Now that the holidays are behind us, I can concentrate on drinking more water, walking at least a mile a day (to start) and cutting way back on the carbs.  I’ve decided to create another blog (only my closest friends will know the domain name) that will track my progress and make recommendations on how others can either lose weight by following what works for me - or by avoiding my mistakes.  Should be very interesting.

Above all the most important resolution is to love my friends and family even more than in the past.  I am probably the luckiest guy in the world thanks to my family and some very close friends.  I probably do not show it as much as I should, but I think about them all constantly and am so proud of their accomplishments and success.  Mostly I am most proud of the way they all love one another and provide support and encouragement to their kids and elders.  I hope that they all had a great holiday season.

Happy New Year to you all and with it may you find love and great success!

One of my closest childhood friends passed away on September 1, 2007.  I found out about the passing of Lonnie Harvey, age 63, of Riverside, CA on the day of his funeral.

I’ve written not a biography, but a few stories about my life growing up with Lonnie.  These are all true stories about things we experienced together.  There were so many more tales to tell, but I simply ran out of time before I had to leave for an extended trip.

The bio is long and the format is a little messed up.  I’ll fix it up and add more photos and a brief video clip when I get back to my office in November.

In the meantime, read what is essentially a draft and feel free to comment on it.  If anyone has photos of Lonnie that they can scan and send to me, I would be eternally grateful.

Go to the page link entitled “Lonnie and Me” to read the story.