Photo Album v1

I've been cleaning and reorganizing the basement lately. I decided to go through some of the thousands of photos we have down there, and put a few of them on my blog for preservation. Enjoy.

I love this photo with all the personalities and Tilley's bare feet. I think this was in Alabama or Florida in 2002. Left to right, Sean, Tilley, Tucker, Asher and Riley.

When we go to the beach, Tucker totes around a bucket and fills it with critters. That's Tucker with the bucket and Tilley sitting nearby.

Aunt Debbie with Riley and Tilley, 1997.

Brittany and Riley at Johnny and Debbie's house. Tucker in the background.

Baby Tilley in a toy stroller. I think the stroller was for Brittany or Fallon's baby doll.

Sean, 1997 in front of our garage on Silo Dr.

Tilley, Laken and Asher, at Silo Drive. Notice the handle-less mug.

Tucker, 1997 I think.

Left to right, Tilley, Riley, Tucker, Sean, Daniel and Asher at Lenoir City Park.

Tilley, Sean, Riley, Asher, Daniel and Tucker at Lenoir City Park. I think this is one of the photos I used in Jilly's Mother's Day gift that year. I took a lot of photos that day and framed some of them as her gift.

My handsome brother Mark with Jack, Daniel, Mindy and Sean. Jack is son of my brother Scott. Mindy is Mark's daughter.

This is Sean at Mamaw Mason's, before we adopted him. Isn't he cute? I don't know who the little girl is.

Fallon and Tilley.

Miss Tilley has always had an attitude. I blame it on her mother. Riley in the background overlooking our pool on Silo Drive. I built the deck around that pool out of recycled lumber. It took about a year, but it was huge.

Asher helping on the piano on Silo Drive.

What a performance!

Riley, we used to call him Smiley Riley.

Tucker and Asher on the back porch at Silo Drive.

Tilley. I think this is Rock Springs Park in Lenoir City. Notice the dirty knees and feet.

Riley and Tilley. Again, I think this is at Rock Springs Park

Tucker and Riley. Same location.

Tucker, piloting the pontoon boat with me as the co-pilot. This is on Fort Loudon Lake near Lauderdale Cove.

Riley's turn. It sometimes took us forever to go through all the turns. Still does.

I would buy five boats for this beauty. It must have been early in the season with all the coats.

Tucker and Tilley, dyeing Easter eggs. This must be Tucker's Hulk impersonation.

Tilley at the NASA museum in Pensacola FL.

Tucker. Calm down.

Riley tries to comfort Tilley on her birthday. I don't remember why she was upset. 2001

Tilley doesn't seem too happy about this dress. It's a pretty dress.

But she is very happy about these pig tails. In our camper.

Riley and Tucker are still inseperable. They even work at the same place.

Tilley really likes the beach.

Tucker, clowning around in the camper tub. We used to camp on the weekends. Saturday nights, we bathed everybody in preparation for church on Sunday.

Mawmaw Hardy (my mom), me and Asher in our camper about 2002-2003. I think we were camping in Shelby Forest near Memphis. We dragged that camper all over the place, from Tennessee to Texas to Ohio to South Carolina.

Riley and Asher enjoy some popcorn on Silo Drive.

Papaw Tilley helps Asher with his Christmas present.

The Scott Brasfield Family, maybe around 2002. Sandra and Scott on the back row. Jason, Jack and Tiffany on front row.

Smiley Riley

Asher in The Chair.

I hope you enjoy these photos. Maybe I will post some more in time.

Go and Tell John

When I was in high school, I was a singer. I had the privilege of singing in the TN All-State Choir. I met a fellow student one year, in Nashville, at the All-State Choir event. He struck me as a little awkward - very awkward, indeed. I wondered how this odd fellow managed to qualify for such an elite group. Nonetheless, my group of friends and I treated him kindly.

On the first day of rehearsals, my awkward friend took his seat at the piano. He was our accompanist! And we soon learned, he was brilliant - maybe even genius! The director even noted publicly his added value to the choir.

The only song I truly remember performing was an acapella number called "Go and Tell John" by Larry L Fleming. I found this recording of the George Fox University Concert Choir on YouTube:

 

Luke 7:21-23

At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. And He answered and said to them, "Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have the Gospel preached to them. "Blessed is he who does not take offence at Me."

God Bless,
Dadofmykids

Bees need water, too.

I checked on the bees today. They're doing great. The honeycomb is getting heavier with nectar and honey, brood, too.

The entrance, just before inspection. Lots of bees, going and coming, heavy with pollen.

Looking down into the hive, you can see nectar glistening. A beekeeper at the fair told me the bees will let the nectar evaporate until it reaches 17% water content. Then they will cap it. That's when the nectar becomes honey.

This is the first time I have seen drone brood in my hive. It's kind of hard to see with bees everywhere and the camera focusing. The cells that are sticking out like tiny yellow hard-hats are drone cells. Drones are males. I think it is good that the bees are making drones, although I have seen people on YouTube killing drone cells to prevent swarming.

Here is the Queen. She is easy to spot with the white dot painted on her.

One of the frames was attached to the side of the hive. When I removed it, a tiny section of honeycomb broke off dripping honey. These two didn't waste any time cleaning up the mess.

You might notice the zip-lock bags in the bottom of the hive. They contain sugar water. I place them down there and then cut a small slit with my pocket knife. The sugar water comes out as the bees land on it. Eventually, they push out all of it. For me, it's like turning sugar into honey.

At this point, I wonder if it is really necessary to feed them. But, I do it anyway. Just a few weeks ago, the hive was light and dry where I hadn't been feeding them as often. Coincidentally, about that time, we sowed some grass seed back there and started watering every day. Ever since then, they have been putting on the weight. I think it has more to do with daily watering of the grass than it does the sugar water.

UPDATE:
The videos above aren't working, so I put them all together on YouTube.

Still, I wonder.

I wonder what my Dad would be like if he was still living. He died when I was just 5 years old. I have only a few memories of him, mostly happy times, like fishing or beating him in a foot race (I really did think I had beat him fair and square.) or driving the car while sitting in his lap.

My dad, James Kenneth Brasfield, USAF,
sometime before 1957.

My dad was only 35 years old when he died. He was a veteran of the Korean War (aka Korean Conflict) having served in the US Air Force with rank of Airman Second Class. I understand that is equal to E-3 rank, which is same as mine in the Army. (I was Private First Class). My aunts told me he was never the same after the war. I believe he may have suffered from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).

He attempted to take his life on multiple occasions before succeeding on November 5, 1973. My mother was pregnant at the time with my baby brother, Jeff. My dad had been hospitalized for treatment associated with his suicidal attempts, making some ceramic items that I recall in the attic of my childhood home.

He is buried in Little Rock National Cemetery, Section 16, Site 506, in Little Rock, Arkansas. I remember the funeral, and the twenty-one gun salute at the grave side service.

My mom remarried when I was thirteen years old, to O'Neal Hardy from Memphis. I was uncertain how my life would change as we moved from N Little Rock, Ar. to Memphis TN a week after they married. I couldn't bring myself to call him "Dad", so I called him "Pop". He's a good man and taught me many things. I am thankful for him.

That move to Memphis seriously rocked my world, set me on a path that lead to where I am today. From Memphis, I came to Knoxville where I met Jilly. I wouldn't change a thing.

Today, I called Pop on the phone to wish him a happy Father's Day.

Still, I wonder...

Happy Father's Day 2015,
Dadofmykids