OT- My ramblings-This wont enlighten anyone whatsoever.

You know whats annoying? In my church, me and my friends are the 'sound guys'. We sit in the sound booth in the very back center of the auditorium. All the little Junior High kids sit in the very back pugh...pue...puwe....bench right in front of the booth, because they think it's cool not to sit with their parents. No big deal, right? Usually, no. But for some reason, lately, they find it 'cool' to clear their throats every five seconds. I dont mean the 'hmm hmmm' thing, I mean the 'hhhhhrrrrraaaaacccckkkkk', like people who chew tobacco do when they spit. And they cant do it quietly, either. They have to be loud enough the get everyone withing 3 rows to turn and look, and then they laugh like it's the funniest thing ever.

'Course, what's really nice is the paper wads. The front of the sound booth has a wall about 3 feet high, just high enough to keep the mixer and equipment out of sight. Well, recently, our church put small pencils and visitors cards in the pughs...pews...that's it, pews...anyways- The kids find it hillarious to take the pencils, scribble all over the cards, then wad the cards up and toss them backwards over the sound booth wall.

I know what you're thinkin- "Them kids need their parents to ake 'em out behind the shed and remove their sitting priveleges". Darn right they do. But the parents, they all have the same story- "It's not my kids" or "Kids will be kids". Then the parents have the gall to get up and make announcements about how parents need to watch their children and how they're costing the church money by wasting cards.

But then, as you're talking to your dad about your Grandfather, it hits you. And you just start to laugh, uncontrollably. Dont those kids realize how stupid they are? Life is short. Spend time with your parents and grandparents, they wont be here forever. No one cares what Susie or Janice said on the phone, and if they do, I'm sure it can wait an hour until after the worship service.

Then my Grandfathers words make sense- He never had a lot. Now, he just lives a simple life, working in his shop and going to the Flea Market every Wednesday to talk to his friends. One time I asked him "Papa, why dont you try to make some money? You know, have some stuff?" He looked at me and said "Why? What's the point? I'm happy. I'll be gone soon enough, and I wont be able to take anything with me. So, why should I bust my rump in my last years to buy things that I'll never be able to enjoy? Why? I'm happy."

Money, fame, friends, or fortune wont help you when you've 'passed on'. The only things that will will be your Salvation and Works for the Lord. Help somebody. Be happy.

As a man once said "If you can look back on your day, and find somewhere where you might have helped someone, and you helped them, even if it costs you everything you had, your day was well worth it."

I'm amazed. I talk to a couple of the Junior High kids sometimes, and I honestly dont believe what they say. The biggest issue of their lives is who's wearing what, or who's dating whom, or who isnt their friend anymore because they called them a name. It is just so incredibly stupid. You get knocked down in life. It's gonna happen. Somebody runs into you on the walking track of life and knocks you to the ground. What good's it gonna do you to sit there and cry about it? I'll tell ya what it'll do. All the other people on that walking track is gonna walk right over you and mash you into the dust. You get knocked down- Pick up your stuff, stand up, and go on. Sitting and crying is only gonna make it worse.

There was an old 80's rock song by...I believe it was John Cougar, it was called Jack and Diane, or something like that. But the line that stuck in my head was '...life goes on, long after the thrill...of living is gone...'.

guess what I have a 9n too its is painted

RED AND GREY

it was like that when I bought it it runs pretty well works all the time,, and it will probably stay that way,,,, well actually that needs to be changed a lil , I am color blind and saw a lite blue thought it looked close to gray,, so guess what.. the hood and most of the fenders are lite blue,,, oop[s sorry couldnt resist... I also remember seeing on this site I think a 9n with john deere colors if ya really want something to get angry at .... have a great day

guess what I have a 9n too its is painted

RED AND GREY

it was like that when I bought it it runs pretty well works all the time,, and it will probably stay that way,,,, well actually that needs to be changed a lil , I am color blind and saw a lite blue thought it looked close to gray,, so guess what.. the hood and most of the fenders are lite blue,,, oop[s sorry couldnt resist... I also remember seeing on this site I think a 9n with john deere colors if ya really want something to get angry at .... have a great day

People in the country waive not only because it is the neighborly thing to do, it is also a security measure. To somebody they know, it says "Hi there friend, good to see you are ok. Since I hadn't seen you in a while, I was thinking of pulling into your place to make sure everythings alright." To a stranger it says, "Hey there friend, I see you. I don't recognize you but I see you are parked on the side of a rural road on the backside of Farmer Smith's place. Just letting you know I will mention to him the big news of somebody I don't know milling around his property. Oh yea, that is a real nice 1985 blue Chevy P/U, with pinstripes, a black bumber, and a NRA sticker on the bottom left of the rear window. And you are a strapping 6' 2" approx 250 lbs white fellow with red hair and a black goatee/mustache."

As to the kids you mentioned. Yes, you are right, if what they are doing is that disrespectful to the church &/or community, wood shed is a good answer. Otherwise, hey lighten up. In the long run, you are not that much older than they are. Joke around with them and let them think you are the cool one, not just a old person in a young persons skin. This will be to your benefit in a few years. One of those 12 yr old girls might look pretty darn good when you are say 28 and they are 22. Heck, by the time you get married and raise a family, and are old hanging out at the feed store on Saturday mornings drinking coffe and swapping lies, one of the junior high kids may make a good friend. As to the gossip. It is normal, and healthy. I must say, one of the primary draw backs to home schooling is this lack of social interaction in an age appropriate manner. Life is full of wrangling and "politicing", even if you don't know you are doing it. Gossiping in school and forming petty alliances is practice for life. Like lion cubs play fighting. There is a useful purpose in the long run.

As to the post commenting on tractor colors. I can't tell if you are halfway joking. My 2N is red/gray, & I plan to leave it that way. I did not paint it that way so it could look like it was ONLY 50 years old instead of 55. I did it because somebody else had before and I LIKED IT. Also, I don't plan to replace the 8N front wheels, undo the 12V modification, take off the fenders that have the Ford script, or any unneeded maintenance just because that was not the way it came off the assembly line. It runs very well and looks cool like it is. Not only that, but over the years it has evolved from one of thousands all alike to a machine with a character all to its own. Personally, I relish looking at the ingenuity built in to old tractors from owners needing to make a fix and not necessarily having all the right factory parts on hand.

Hey 68 Mag.. I cut& pasted this off your paintball forum. Sounds like you are serious about your N GOOD LUCK!!! "Well, the time has come. I am in need of 400 bucks to purchase an engine rebuild kit for my tractor, and my Christmas present was the tractor itself. That means that a lot of my paintball equipment must go. Not all of it, mind you, just some that I dont need anymore. The prices at the end of each item is NOT what I expect you to pay, this is what I paid when I purchased the equipment. Since I have no real idea what this stuff is worth now, I figured I'd tell y'all what I paid new and you could make me offers. I may and may not sell it, because my mother is paranoid about giving out our address on the internet. But, I will probably be selling this stuff, so let me know.

Now, on to the list.

A Spyder Classic, with a 12 inch Smart Parts All American barrel. The barrel has purple splash annodizing on it. This also includes a Indian Creek camoflauge 4+1 pack. When I purchased this equpiment used 2 years ago, I paid 200 bucks, American.-200

A new, never used Extreme Rage 3+2 Paq. This pack has three velcro loops to hold 3 pods against your back, and elastic loops to hold 2 more on the outside of the 3 on your back. I purchased this NEW in 2001, and it has NEVER BEEN USED IN A GAME. I paid 64 bucks, American.-60

6 Blue 140 round pods. I purchased these to go with the above Paq. Me, being the headstrong moron that I am, I paid 21 dollars for these on E-Bay. If you want to pay that much, I'm certainly not going to stop you, however I dont see getting near that much out of them. Like the Paq, they have never been used in a game.-21

The Brass Eagle Z-Leader Mask, the one that used to come in the Stingray kits. I have no clue on it's price, cuz I got it in a kit.

A Glacier Blue JT Flex-7 IZE mask. It has the goggle bag, a clear thermal lense (installed), and a blue-ish Prism thermal lense. I bought these NEW a year ago for 60 bucks. I hear that now they can be found for 30, so...-60

A blue JT Pro- Series Jersey. This is the '2000 model'. I believe it is a 2X, however the tag in the collar doesnt say. It seems to be the same size as a 2X T-shirt. I bought it new a year ago, sort of. I&I Sports had 'seconds' jerseys on sale for 30 bucks, and that's what I bought. It was missing 4 stitches near the collar, but my mother fixed that. So, I gave 30 for it.-30

Battle Swab. New, never even opened the package. I paid 8 bucks.-8

Warrior Sports Barrel Condom. It's yellow- green. It's never been used, ever. I paid 8.-8

A 68 ci, 3000 psi Airgun Designs Flatline tank. I bought it new a year ago, and still have the original box. It has never been used in a game, however I have had it filled about 8 or 9 times. It has a blue fill nipple cover on it. I paid 275.-275

Now, these are the items that I may not be able to sell for emotional reasons. (I can get pretty attached to some stuff lol).

A 14 inch long Smart Parts All American barrel for an Automag. It's black. It came with my Automag when I bought it, so I'm not sure what it's worth.

A 68 Automag Classic, with a Hopper left powerfeed, black Benchmark 2 finger trigger and frame, blue Dye stickies, and an 8 inch long 'no-name' brand barrel. I paid 4oo for this marker, stock, with this barrel and the one listed above. I purchased the Benchmark grip and Stickies later, new. I'm going to assume this is 450 or so new, because I'm selling the black AA seperate and the Benchy I added later.The Stickies wrap totally around the frame, except for the back. The were made for a single trigger fram, so I had to cut them to fit. The cuts were done with a serrated steak knife, and they arent pretty.-400 for Mag and barrel, 60 for grip frame, and 25 for grips.

I also have 10 or so black, 100 round flip- top tubes, 5 or so stick squegees (Most are missing the neoprene cloth. I took it out to put a string through that slot so I could carry it around my neck in a game.).

I also have a 9 Vlot Revolution hopper that I traded a pair of Vents goggles for, so I'd say 30 new for it.-30

Well, that's it. REMEMBER- THE PRICES ARE WHAT I PAID WHEN I BOUGHT IT, NOT WHAT I EXPECT YOU TO PAY. Make offers on the stuff. the prices are just a reference point.

Thanks,

68 Mag

*EDIT* Note- the buyer will pay shipping on the larger items, however on the small stuff I dont know. I will accept personal checks or money orders, and will ship the stuff AFTER the check clears the bank. Or, if you prefer, I can ship COD. All items will be shipped via the United States Postal Service, because my mother works for the Post Office and it would be very convinient for me to have her just take it to work and mail it, instead of having to drive 30 miles to a UPS or Fed- Ex place.

*EDIT #2* I've decided to do this 'auction style'. You make an offer, I post it here, and in one week, if no one else offers anything, it's yours. Or, if you want to pay close enough to what I paid, you could have it as soon as your check clears, and ignore this edit."

My Forums, please visit.

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BTW , I was in high school when that "old 80's" song came out !

Ford Man

later,dave