On a Rainy Saturday Afternoon.

Cloudy with a chance of golf balls, well at least that's what the huge raindrops looked this past Saturday.

Saturday was such a beautiful day, after waking up I had a wonderful breakfast with my sister-in-law to catch up on current events and then I went home and debated whether to clean the cars and the bike or to take a nap. I don't think I need to tell you which of the two options won cause anybody that know me will know that I opted for the nap.

My grandson Juanito turned 3-years old and so I woke up thinking it's time to go to the party. I looked outside and the weather looked beautiful it was about 5:00 p.m. and I actually felt like riding the bike, then I went outside and felt the heat so I changed my mind and decided to drive.

I left Avondale on a sunny Saturday afternoon and didn't drive more than four miles when out of nowhere these huge golf ball size raindrops started to crash with the car making a really loud noise then as if by magic I was in one of the worst downpours I had seen in my life. It was raining so hard you couldn't see more than 12 feet ahead of me and yet looking in the rear view mirror I could see how sunny it was towards my house. A motorcyclist that didn't chicken out to ride in the heat was behind me and drove in the rain for about a mile until he stopped under a bridge. Poor guy must have been soaked from heat to toe. The rain normally feels like needles hitting you while you ride. these time it must have felt more like nails.

This image shows how dark it was towards the east, however if you looked back you could see a hot sunny Saturday afternoon. Monsoons are cool that way. This image is actually deceiving as the lense captured more than our naked eyes were. You really couldn't see more than two cars ahead of you.

Image borrowed from my daughter Nikki.

Thank God, I got to my son's OK, as my family started coming in they all had the same "Oh my God, did you guys drive through that rain?" comment. Some people were not so lucky as at some point during this rain there was a 69 car pile up on I-10 due to the poor visibility created by the rain.

Well, the party went on as planned, the kids had to wait approximately 45minutes until the rain passed and then they all hit the swimming pool and had so much fun as if no rain had ever come.

Monsoons are awesome to look at but dangerous to be caught in one of them, specially if your are driving. I am glad we all made it OK.

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California Bound for Labor Day Weekend

So here we are just a few more days and then long weekend. Oh yes I am really looking forward to it. As it stands right now it looks like I'll spend it in California visiting my sister and in-laws there. I'll be leaving Thursday afternoon right after work so that I can have all Friday, Saturday, and Sunday there and will head back to Phoenix on Monday. The idea is to make it a vacation and to really go places and probably take lots of pictures.

Now I have been without a working camera for a month now as my trusty Panasonic camera finally gave up after almost four years of going everywhere with me and capturing like a zillion images. So I will have to figure something. I do have my new digital camcorder but it does not compete with a regular camera. To me taking pictures is a big part of my going out anywhere so we'll see.

So, the car has a six CD changer and the i-pod shuffle has been refreshed by my daughter Nikki, so with over 300 songs I think the music department is covered, even though I am going solo it should not be a boring drive. What? Plenty of music and a trip in the new Mustang is a recipe for excitement.

Pomona's Antique Row.
As the itinerary builds we are planning on visiting The Buddhist Temple in Hacienda Heights, and Pomona's Antique Row, as well as karaoke on Friday night at Casa Cabral and maybe some sightseeing downtown L.A. The possibilities are many the time is short so we will have to squeeze as many outings and activities as we can.

My sister has been wanting to take me here so we may just go this time.
For sure lots of eating will be involved, as my sister puts it, "zincronisadas" and "bionicos" will probably find their way into our tummies. But to me going to L.A. and not eating tacos would be a travesty. lol So yes, please add tacos to the menu please.

So don't be afraid to throw me some ideas, three full days in L.A. what can I do? Where else can I go? What to eat? Who to see? As I said before so much to do so little time, I will have to use it wisely.

Going to L.A. and not eating some of these would be uncivilized.
This "sincronisadas" were pretty synchronized with the tomato and guacamole.
And for desert, the "bionicos" are the way to go. Ummm que rico!"

Oh man, I don't believe me. Posting all these foods made me hungry, way to torture myself. As you can see, no shortage of planning here, I am leaving it to my sister and nieces to come up with a well rounded itinerary with plenty of things to do and food to eat.

I am sooooooo looking forward to it.

All images in this post borrowed from the Internet.

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Letter F (La F de Feo)

ABC Wednesday

This week is for letter "F".

Here a some F's that I like and love.

Friendship!
Family.
Fun Fords Forever.
Fun Fast & Furious Ford.

"F" is also for the FIVE hottest cities in the country according to Forbes.

1. Louisville, KY
2. Memphis, TN
3. Atlanta, GA
4. Raleigh, NC
5. New Orleans, LA

I for sure though I would see Phoenix here but I guess our desert is not the in the hottest spots. It could have fooled me.

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The Young Ones

Laila and Ramon Jose.
Laila.
Atali.

How fast they change, how soon they grow, how often the cry, how much they eat, how much love can be inspired from such tiny little persons. These are my three youngest grand babies and I have fun just looking at the tons of pictures posted by my daughters. I am seeing them change in front of my very own eyes.

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I Just Realized

So, the other day I was surfing the Internet and I came across a post from Mustang site I'm a fan of on Facebook. In it they were letting us know that a Mustang GTR prototype had just been sold and that it fetched a cool $110,000.00 in the process. Upon really looking at the image on the page I noticed I recognized that Mustang from somewhere, and then all of a sudden it just hit me, and all I had to do was scroll my blog up, up, up, all the way up to where my banner is.

Nikki picked this image which has been gracing my blog for a little over two years now and I am still very happy with it although I am thinking I am ready to have my page redone already. In any case, back to the Mustang take a look at the following image and let me know if you recognize it.

Mustang GTR - Prototype.

Then last night as I embarked in a long project I was searching for certain images I needed so I started going through all my old blog posts, and all of a sudden what popped right in front of me? Well, here it is, again just take a look at it and let me know if you even remember this post from three years ago.

Click Here for my story on this back on April 1st of 2007

Yep, not once I realized that the car on my banner has been with me for a while.

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"E" Is For...

ABC Wednesday -- Letter "E"

Wow, so I seat here going through my photo files and I can't find anything for ABC Wednesday. It's like today "E" is for EMPTY. But I am not giving up yet. I will continue to search my files until I find something, even it only one image. So... bare with me, I'll be right back.

OK, I'm back. I found one, "E" is for:

Entertained while watching my friend play Wii.
Elefant.
Event.
Love Ride
Glendale, California
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Happy Birthday Mom!

Just a quick not to wish my mom a Happy Birthday today. This is her, mother of five, grandma of many, and great grandma of a few more. My mom is a fighter, an economist, an entrepreneur, a cook, a gardener, a counselor, a friend, and many other wonderful things. Keeps us on edge, and still kicks our butts when needed. Me, I try to walk the right path before doing something I know she won't like, although I have done a few of those too.

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A Quick Reflection

Life throws you curves and gives you lemons, you just have to be a good driver and know how to make some nice cold lemonade and you'll be fine. Our choir director put an inspirational CD out and in it a priest talks about different topics. One of them touches on how God doesn't want us to be perfect but to just be the very best that we can be. I took that to heart and I try to apply it to my daily life, no I don't want to be the best, but I do want to be the best that I can be. I like thanking God for the new day and tackle it with as much love and enthusiasm as I can. I really don't want to waste my time not being happy or not doing things I love so it is in my power to put the effort towards that goal, then at night when I go to bed I can honestly say I tried and hopefully have no regrets.

To say my life has changed since last December is an understatement. It's been a challenge to deal and cope with these changes but as you all know the support group behind me is too huge and too great and I have taken advantage of it a hundred percent. It is a fact that losing "mi chica" suddenly showed me the fragility of life. The term "We live on borrowed time" makes total sense and I now perceive it with a whole new outlook. Every wasted day will never come back, so I say "Live Every Day As If It's Your Last".

DO NOT waste opportunities as they present themselves to you and learn to rely on that support group because like everything else in life, if wasted it will disappear and you'll regret it later.

It is better to set goals and fail at them than to not have anything to strive for. So... Why am I writing all this? Simply it was triggered while I visited another blog. I am happy within my sadness and happily invite my past to show me the way towards my future. My past I can't change not that I would want to but I still hope and strive for a full and happy future.


















Image captured by: Chely

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D's

ABC Wednesday.

OK I am still not playing but just for the heck of it here are some awesome "D's".

"Ducky"
Monday was Ducky's first day of school and he was ready for it. Doesn't he look handsome in his school uniform. Growing in Mexico we always wore uniforms and I loved it, I am glad they have to wear them here too.

Damage.
How can I forget this, I still remember the day "mi chica" called me crying and said she had been hit by a bit semi-truck. In the end, damaged as the van was we drove it home with the officer's blessing.

Drawing.
My dear friend ChrisJ of Flamblogger did this drawing for me about a year ago. Not only did she drawing thinking I would like the Mustang, which I did, but she also send me the original drawing along with three other miniature drawings she had done based on pictures I took during my Mexican vacation.


Dad.
Here's a painting of my dad done by my dear friend Tara of Soul Blessings. One day I said I wanted a painting done by her, I did not tell her what to paint. The very next day she posted this on FaceBook and tagged me with it. Needless to say I was beyond words when I saw it. I am still thanking her for it and I am not done yet.

Oh yes, the canvas made it's way to my house. I had it framed and now proudly hangs on my wall.

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Random Posts

Yes, it's that time of the year when one moment the sun is out and shinning in all it's glory and in a matter of minutes this happens:

This is how the sky looked before the monsoon hit.
And this is how it looked afterwards, rainbow and all.

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Celibacy can be a choice in life, or a condition imposed by unforeseen circumstances. While attending a Marriage Weekend, my wife and I listened to the instructor declare. "It is essential that husbands and wives know the things that are important to each other..." He then address the men. "Can you name and describe your wife's favorite flower? I leaned over, touch my wife gently, and whispered. "Gold Medal-All Purpose, isn't it? And thus began my life of celebacy.

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I was watching the movie Kick-Ass being totally entertained by the unexpected action and violence in it (Ithought this was a kids movie) when all of a sudden the character Red Mist brought out his awesome ride. Ja, ja, of course I had to highlight it here in my blog because Red Mist's car was BAD ASS.




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Crap

Even though I am not playing I'd say that "C" is for crap. LOL

CRAP
or

Camel

or camel's crap. lol

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Perspective

Image borrowed from: The Internet.
I can see clearly now... right?

Perspective is all about how we see things. What I see is not necessarily what you see even though we are both staring at the same thing. I believe that people perceive things differently based on the inner feelings as an individual.

I don't like pets so to me they are an inconvenience. To other's they are a part of their family, a companion, man's best friends if they are a dog. So, my feelings towards animals will not let me see what others see but that in no way shape or form means that pets are bad or ugly or despicable or a nuisance.

Some Americans don't like illegal aliens, we are an inconvenience at least to some, yet to others, we are an important part of their world, of their daily lives, we are companions, friends, workers, and most important of all... human! Yet, some of the feelings portrait on TV towards us show hate, discontent, distrust, and even jealousy. Hummm I can't help but wonder where this attitude we all have on both sides of the equation will take us. It is definitely interesting to say the least.

Democrats and Republicans may be staring at the same thing and yet they see it so differently. Americans and Mexicans, yep differently, males and females, Bingo! we all see things differently. Boys and girls, yepper differently.

So, I will just concentrate on one perspective, and that is the one of survival for me and for my family, I will continue to do whatever it takes to make sure my family is provided for, that my kids continue to have a happy life in this their country even if for me at one time was foreign. I will make sure my grand kids are always surrounded by love and will hope and pray they will see things my way so that they will not grow up thinking we are all different people. In Gods eyes we are all the same, so we'll just follow that great example.

"What part of "Illegal" you don't understand?" Oh I understand it very well, but sometimes in life there comes a time when you must decide to break a rule or even a law if the outcome will benefit your life and the life of your family. How can I ever not thank my father for breaking that one law, that one rule that allowed us to have a better life. If judgment has been passed on him now that he is in heaven I am sure that he has been forgiven.

So hate all you want, or accept us with love. Become our friend and discover that we are not at all that bad, or wish for our deportation. While we know we are survivors, you can keep thinking we are law breakers. It's your choice, your prerogative, your right.

In the end we are all individuals with different feelings so I understand that my perception of things will differ from yours but life goes on and we must do with what we have and continue to play the cards we have been dealt.

In the end it's all a part of His master plan for all of us.

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