Work

To say that I have missed going to work on a weekly basis is an understatement. I was given this work ethic at a very young age from my Mother's Father. Howard D. Seiple worked hard every day of his life. By the time I came around, Grandpa was working for Minnegasco (now Xcel Energy) as an installer of gas meters. He drove a company truck that smelled like oil and metal. I miss that smell. Not because he has passed; but, because he is retired and lives North of the cities. My grandpa is the reason I only listen to WCCO in my car...always annoying my kids and wife to no end. My Grandpa took me to the bulk of my youth Minnesota Twins games. He would leave me in my seat for long periods of time while he went upstairs to the concourse to smoke his Vantage Lights. I most likely smoked for 20 years because of him. I still love the smell of the first drag of a cigarette being lit by a car lighter. That sweet odor takes me back to the back seat of his 1966 Chrysler New Yorker (eventually would be my first car). My Grandpa Seiple always said the measure of a man can be seen in his wallet and the sweat of his brow from a hard days work.

I think that will always be with me. It's that ideal that I am trying to instill in my Son, Zane. If I look closely at the picture I posted here, I can see his greying pattern on my head, which he might comment on was a bit shaggy. In my sunglasses, you can see that I am checking my iPhone for what was going on at work. That's his nose on my face, that's the "A" typical Seiple nose. I'm very proud of it.

In recent years, we have grown apart. This is typical of Seiple's. You move away or lose contact for whatever reason. Time goes by and as the chasm of time gets wider, the sense to reconnect grows thin. We never talked much when I was growing up in his home or when he let me move into his basement when I came back from College. I always knew, though, that he cared. I also had to accept the fact that was how we communicated. My hope is that when I reach out to my kid, he won't drift away as much as I did. I hope Zane will appreciate, not necessarily me; but, will appreciate what I'm trying to teach him before his Mother and I send him out into the world next year.

My status on my surgery is as such: Since stopping the Atenolol pills, my strength has been coming back in bunches. I'm up earlier than before and ready for a productive day. Yesterday, Lisa and I had to bring Erica to Urgent Care because of a bad cough. The sad part of the day is that I got a chance to weigh myself for the first time since July 13th. If my calculations are correct, based on what I weighed before I started my liquid diet on June 26th, I've lost a total of 65lbs. I now have 110lbs to get to my goal weight. That is just with doing what I'm supposed to be doing without working out. I can't wait to go back to the gym. My next appointments are August 6th. I am hoping to get cleared to start working out. I want to get my workout ethic on!

Thanks Grandpa.