Blog “Fall” Catch Up

Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m so horrible at this Blog. Facebook takes up most of my free time; I’ve considered giving it up altogether. But I think it will be interesting to look back on sometime, so I will continue the best I can. In that somewhat indifferent spirit, here’s my fall catch-up entry. BTW, wasn’t fall just awesome? The weather was beautiful! And I seemed to have lots of stuff going on.

September

Mom’s Birthday

We celebrated mom’s birthday at Red Lobster in Shawnee. Grant, clearly not in a celebratory mood, slept through most of it.

Flickr Set>> (Not uploaded yet)

October

Texas

I had some stuff going on in October! Early in the month I went to Allen/Grapevine/Dallas in a combo shopping/work trip. I did some shopping for the New York trip at the outlet mall in Allen, stayed at Ted and Evelyn’s condo in Grapevine, then went to Dallas the next day. At Dallas, I went to the Dallas Zoo for the SmartStrand Zoo Challenge (I’m sure you don’t care, it’s a promotional tie-in thing Mohawk was doing with SmartStrand carpet and rhinos, elephants and camels). I also went to Dealey Plaza and Museum, which was the first time I had been there. It was very interesting, especially since nothing has changed much since that historic event happened.

Flickr Set>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157625136318100/

Earthquake!

Dude, I just felt my first earthquake. It was awesome.

New York City

The next weekend, I left for New York City! This is one of those trips I had wanted to do for a while. Somehow Nora, my friend who lives in Germany, and I were able to make this work and met there. I was so overwhelmed right at first. The amount of people, traffic and noise was astounding. I (mostly) adjusted though and ended up having a good time, although I think once will be enough. Some of my favorite things were Battery Park, which is near the World Trade Center site. It is right on the water. The views were amazing, the photo opportunities were endless and it was relatively uncrowded and quiet. I also loved the day we went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I enjoyed the two observatories we did, Top of the Rock (GE Building) at night and Empire State Building during the day. The night we went to watch a Broadway play was fun too. We didn’t get to see much of Central Park. I would have liked to have spent more time there, if only time would allow for everything. As we were exiting though, we joined an (apparently) impromptu sing-along of Beatles songs at Strawberry Fields, across the road from where John Lennon lived and was killed. It was a lovely way to end the evening. In addition, while we were there, we got to meet up with not one, but two, high school classmates and current area residents, which is nothing short of impressive considering our school size. Like I said, I’m not sure I will ever go back, but I’m glad I got to see it. How people live there is beyond me, but it seems that it’s quite popular. ;-)

Flickr Set>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157625095823865/

(Small) HS Reunion

After a stop in FL, Nora came to visit Oklahoma before returning to Germany and we got to get together with some other classmates over dinner at Polo’s in Ada. It was very nice to see everyone!

Flickr Set>> (Not uploaded yet)

Halloween

I went to Steve & Sally’s for Halloween. We had some good food and gave out lots of candy. Just how Halloween should be.

November

Thunder Game

I went to my first thunder game with Steve in early November. I actually enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would. I want to go back!

Thanksgiving

Mom hosted a great Thanksgiving meal. In attendance were Grandma and Bill, Papa Bruce, Steve, Sally, Grant, mom and myself.

Flickr Set>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157625468497092/

Christmas Lights

At the end of November, Christmas lights were glowing once again.

Pic>> http://www.facebook.com/bradaholt?ref=profile#!/photo.php?fbid=1580012672649&set=a.1538177386793.75023.1605636710

4th of July Patio Party (Observed)

(This is the last of my blog "catch-up" posts, so there are new posts all the way down to the one about Grant.")

JulyCookout_16July2010 012
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

I had planned my first official patio get-together for July 3rd. We were going to have a cookout and then watch the fireworks later that night. I worked so hard getting everything ready outside and getting my house clean inside. But then it rained it out. So, we tried again the next Friday. I worked so hard getting everything ready outside and getting my house clean inside. But then it rained it out. So, we tried again the next Friday. I had really lost all motivation to make sure everything was perfect, but still made a half-hearted attempt. We had the party a few hours after work, which I found to be a big mistake because there just wasn’t enough time But we pulled it off, more or less and celebrated the 4th a few weeks late.

There are photos, although they are arguably all pretty bad due to light conditions. If you want to look at them anyway… http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157624396727557/

July 4th Cookout

July4Cookout_04JUL2009_ 014
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

A little delayed blogging here, but I was waiting to get some photos from my aunt as I didn't take many. On July 4th, we had a fairly large gathering at mom’s house to celebrate Independence Day. My aunt Linda was down from New Jersey with her family, so mom wanted to do something for them while they were here. Also in attendance was my uncle Darren and his wife, Abigail as well as grandma Mary. Steve and Sally brought along friends Lynlie and Adam and Sally’s parents, David and Brenda. There were also 6,000 kids there. Okay… let’s see… alright, maybe it was just six. I stress out around kids. Big time. So, it doesn’t really matter if it was six or 6,000. Well, it might a little.
It had already rained twice earlier in the day and it was starting to rain again as people arrived. I’m not complaining though. Never gripe about rain in July in Oklahoma. Never. Shortly after the feast which included hot dogs, hamburgers, polish sausage, pulled pork, and many sides and deserts, Steve decided it was time to go shoot guns. It’s just what he does at family gatherings. It’s still raining, so I decide not to go. But then fireworks scare one of the children and there’s crying, so I’m like… “hey, Steve, wait up!” We get to our destination (AKA Pond #3) and start unloading the “targets,” which include several plastic containers, a chair and a microwave. I got to chunk the microwave off the pond dam to the ground below. It was quite satisfying. During an amazing display of fire power, the rain intensified. After we were thoroughly soaked, we returned to change clothes. Steve had to clean all the guns because of the rain. And, I, my camera.
When we returned we found out the fireworks had been canceled due to the rain (both Asher and Ada had them the next week, though). So, we just ate some more and watched some pretty funny videos Linda’s kids had made on Jib-Jab.

There are photos and video, and they're over at Flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157621430193613/

Christmas and a Movie

Yesterday, we all went up to Norman to have a good Christmas lunch with a few of the Pitts side of the family. This is the first time we have done this and will be my only Christmas dinner this year as we have canceled our big Holt Family gathering this year due to my grandma being in the hospital. For Christmas Eve though, the immediate family is going to have a brisket lunch and open presents-- nontraditional for us this year.

Yesterday, we also went to see "The Day the Earth Stood Still." We didn't listen to the reviews when we went to see "The Happening" and was punished for ignoring them. We were punished again. I did like the last line though... "It's leaving." "No, he's leaving." How sweet. I almost shed a tear as I was running for the theater doors.

Cattlemen's

Cattlemens_12Dec2008_ 002
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

On Friday night, Bradley and Mary invited us all up to Cattlemen's in Oklahoma City's historic stockyard city (just had to add that). I think this was the first time I had been there, although there's a chance I went on a FFA trip once. I told Steve the restaurant reminded me of JD's in Ada... "We haven't remodeled in 50 years and we're proud of it!" We had a nice meal (the steak was very good) and then went back to Norman to look at their new house, which was very nice.

There are pictures over at Flickr. Go and get 'em.
http://flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157611251636558/

Steve's 26th Birthday

904512-R1-03-20A
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

We celebrated Steve's 26th Birthday a little early, since it fell on a weekday. It started at his house, we came to check out his new TV Steve and Sally bought themselves for Christmas. Steve played a little XBox for us. We were going to watch the new Bond movie in Moore, but didn't quite make it, so we ate first at Red Lobster in Norman. Red Lobster, yeah I know. It was a total shocker for me as well. We went by Sam's to check out surround sound systems and then headed back to Asher where we had cake and ice-cream (good) and watched the OU-OSU game on TV. Attending were Steve and Sally, mom, Todd Hughes, Brenda and David (Sally's parents), Jennifer and Marty (Sally's cousin) and myself.

The pictures are on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157610530115844/

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving_27Nov2008_ 031
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

This year I had Thanksgiving at mom's house. We had almost 20 people there and had a good time. Lunch was at noon The weater was perfect. Some sat outside and enjoyed the day. Mamalee seemed to be enjoying herself and sat outside in the sun for a while talking, so that was nice. We had a great meal and several went down to the pond afterward and shot various guns at poor pumpkins and other food goods. The day ended with the last leaving around dark, so a pretty successful Thanksgiving it was.

See this pics on Flickr:
http://flickr.com/photos/brad_holt/sets/72157610255552459/

New Family Photos

HoltTracy_SpeersHoltLee_HoltEverettShelly_Sept69
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

I've posted about 50 "new-old" family pictures over at Flickr, including this one of Mama Lee with Tracy and Shelly in September of 1969. You'd think I'd be nearing the end of these, but no... that would be incorrect.

Photos that need your help!

SpeersJohnsonMaryKay_SpeersHalePat
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

I have created a special set of pictures that I don't know where they were taken. If you have a spare moment sometime, browse through them and, if you know something about one, leave me a comment. Please be as descriptive as you can. To get to this set, just click the example photo at right. Once there, you'll see "This photo belongs to: Where were these pictures taken? (Set)" Click that to view the whole set. You have to be signed in to leave a comment. Thanks for any help!

New Family Pictures

HoltHuntDixie_HoltTed_HoltBob_HoltBruceA_1960
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

I've uploaded over 30 new family pictures, mostly from the 1960s, including this one of Dixie, Ted, Bob and Bruce A.

If you recognize any pictures posted, please help me out by making a comment. Things that would be helpful are if the ID is incorrect, where and when the picture was taken and/or a short story of what you remember about the event in the picture. I'll use that information to better label the pictures and add any stories to my family tree!

You'll need to be a member of Flickr before you can post comments. To be a member, just accept the invitation I sent you. If I haven't sent you an invitation yet, just email me or you can join right from Flickr (click "sign up" or "sign in" if you already have a Yahoo! ID). Those links are right under the picture and space for leaving a comment.

Family History Book Preview

FamilyTreeBook_Page_02
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

Merry Christmas everyone! It's almost here. My "Christmas project" this year is a Family History book which I will be giving out printed copies and CDs of this year. If you're interested in previewing it, I have posted the pages on Flickr. I still have some time to correct errors, so if anyone sees something, let me know!

Since the book has some private data and such, I'm not making it available to the public, so you will need an invitation to view it. Just let me know and I'll send you one. Or click "sign up" on the Flickr page to get your account started. I'll move you over to "family" level as soon as I notice the new account and you'll be able to view the book and other photos marked private.

New Photos Over at Flickr

HoltBruceA_HoltTed_June1963
Originally uploaded by brad_holt

Hey... I've just added several new pics over at Flickr. Actually, I've reloaded everything, this time with TAGS. Which I'm learning is all the rage in the picture circles. It's actually pretty handy. Head over to Flickr Tags (click the link at right). This should give you a list of Photo Tags (you may have to click "Show all Tags"). Make one or more selections of who you want to see pictures off, choose you search selection, and click "Display Photos." This is still pretty new, so it may not be perfect... yet. If you have any problems, let me know.

Things to keep in mind...

• Tags are formatted LastnameFirstName
• Tags for women are MaidennameMarriednameFirstname
• You can also click event tags, like Christmas
• You can select more than one tag to see pictures of two or more persons together in the same photo. Just select the "Show photos with all of the selected tags" option.