"My Crazy Kids"

Abigail and I were all smiles after the Panthers’ big win at Williams Arena on Thursday evening.  By Allan Olson Tired out – that’s how I would describe myself after three days of intense state tournament basketball action. We left for the Cities early on Thursday morning so I would have plenty of time to get myself to the game, and allowed plenty of time so we could check in to our hotel prior to that. Of course we arrived at the hotel a little too early for check-in, so we had to wait. Once we were unpacked and ready to head to the game, we discovered a flooding incident in the bathroom that required a last minute room change. In all the times we’ve stayed at this hotel, we’ve never had a problem, and that put me in a bit of panic. I wanted to make sure we were at the game in plenty of time, and with the big city traffic, you never know what might crop up. Thankfully, the hotel staff was quick to get us into another room, and we were on our way. We...

A 4WD, a side by side UTV, or a fancy boat – any of those by themselves would be fun – but this – all of them in one vehicle – would really be high on my wish list. It would be great for deer hunting on those wet years, or just for all around entertainment. I could even take the kids to school in it – via the ice and river roads. By Allan Olson I’m done with purchasing new things, for a little while at least, although if I could find funds for an upgraded camera that would be nice, as mine is starting to show its age. At least in comparison to what would be a fun wish list toy if I had the available funds. On Friday, my focus was all on the CL-B boys basketball team winning the section championship and going to the state tournament. So if we’re going to talk about a wish list, let’s put that at the top of the list. Let’s wish for a run all the way to #1 for the home team basketball players – that would be amazing, and is a much more realistic possibility than a...

There were several highlights of the week, and taking these goofy kids bowling Friday afternoon was definitely one of them. Some might think I’m crazy for taking that many kids by myself, but I wasn’t worried – much. By Allan Olson So it finally happened. After months of discussion and research, and a commitment was made, and this family has a new vehicle. It was not an easy decision – it means more payments – but the last one also had payments, and big repair bills, too. And it still needs more work. But the trade-in value for it was nil, so we kept it. With any luck, a deer will end its run and I can apply those funds to my current payments to get my wife a nice vehicle sooner. I’m pretty confident that this new vehicle won’t have repair bills, and if it does it’s covered (at least everything except what’s in the very fine print). I struggle with making purchases that impact my budget for the next several years. Sometimes I struggle with shorter-term purch...

Basketball and Robotics Alivia sporting some of the team pins she collected during the Robotics competition. By Allan Olson My first week back at work after vacation was very busy – by any standards. First I had to play catch-up, and then I had to work on current stuff. And while I think there are still a few lingering catch-up items, for the most part I was able to keep on top of things while on the road, or the main office was able to handle it while I was gone. The rest of the week flew by. Of course, it started out with a brake failure on one of our vehicles – that was fun! The busiest days were Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Thursday was the first, and I guess last, game of the CL-B girls basketball playoffs in Fosston. It was a hard decision for me to go to that game. Abigail was making homemade lasagna (with some assistance from her mom) and I knew that we would be hitting the road early the next morning for Robotics. Still, I would’ve felt bad if...