This weekend I went to the Dayton Hamvention in Dayton Ohio.  It's something I've done for the last 5 or 6 years, and it was fun as always.  It seemed like there were fewer people there this year than last year, but that didn't surprise me too much because lots of people drive and we all know that gas prices have gone up about $1.00 a gallon since this time last year.

Anyway, the plan was to leave at Noon on Wednesday and arrive at D's in-laws' house at about 4:30 in the afternoon.  We stay there every year because it's about a 12 hour drive if we drive it straight through and it means we can sleep and start out early Thursday morning and get to Dayton at around 4:00 PM or so.

D's in-laws gave us supper and we sat around talking and playing with their new digital television for a while before going to bed.  Supper was steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, rolls, and apple pie with cheese.

Apple pie with cheese is sort of a Wisconsin thing, but I sware it's really good.

Thursday morning, we got up and left at around 6:00 AM.  We made really good time and got into Dayton at around 4:00 PM or so.  It was a nice quick trip and we did a lot of listening to public radio on the way there.

When we got there, we met up with the group we usually meet up with each year and just hung out for a while.  Of course, everyone went to bed early so they could get up and go to the Hamvention on Friday.

That was exactly what we did on Friday morning.  We got to the Hamvention just before 8:00 AM and started getting our stuff set up at our booth.  We usually do a live broadcast from there, covering the goings-on from day to day.  This year was no exception.

There did end up being a little drama within the group, but you don't really care about that so I won't get into it.  It's all been resolved now anyway.

We came home on Sunday, driving the 13 hours straight through.  I did as much sleeping as I could in the car, but I still was very tired when I got home...

When I got home, I put together my new lawn mower, which had shown up on Wednesday before I left.  It was a good thing too, because my lawn had grown to about 6 inches and really needed to be cut.

I then went out and mowed the back yard, which took me around 2 and a half hours, and came in and went to bed.  I mowed the front yard last night, so now my lawn is nice and short.  I hope it looks okay, though, because I've never mowed a lawn before.

I did get down on my hands and knees and check my work in a few places, and it seemed to be fine so I think I did okay, but I'll probably go out and do it again in a few days.  I think if I do it often enough, it won't be too obvious when I miss a spot here and there.

My mom is really worried about this.  She thinks my yard is going to look like shit and that I should get a lawn service.  A lawn service costs about $40 a week, though, and I just think I'd rather have that extra $40 a week for myself.

My mom also thinks I should get a cleaning lady for similar reasons.  Again, though, it's about $30 a week and I don't want to spend that.

It's not that I couldn't afford it either, it's just that I don't think I want to spend $70 a month on that.  I think I'd have more fun spending it on something else.

Anyway, that's probably all you wanted to read about my cleaning and yard work and that's all I have time for right now.  I hope you all are well and I'll write again soon.