25 or 6 - 209 (Twenty-six or Six Two Oh Nine) OR Christmas Eve at the LeBlancs

How it Got Started

On Christmas Eve back in 1984 I got up at 3am to install the stove top in the counter of the house in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana that we were building.  This would mark the very first Christmas Eve Open House we would hold.  It also was the first Christmas in a new house built by our own hands.

We begin using the new stove to cook a traditional Christmas Eve fare that my mother and step father made a tradition back home.   We cooked a pork roast and some deer that a friend had given us and of course a Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. 

Later that evening about 4pm I put the homemade eggnog on the stove.   This recipe was handed down from my mother.  I can remember as a young boy beating the egg whites with a manual crank style mixer.  This was a tradition as long as I can remember to have Mom’s Eggnog every Christmas Eve.

We invited several friends to come to the new LeBlanc edition of the Christmas Eve Party.   Our neighbors came over and our home teachers making a total of 6 people that year.  We had a good time.

As the years progressed in Breaux Bridge we became great friends with the Stanonis Family and they became part of the tradition.  We would alternate years at which house we would hold the gathering. Several years later at our son’s wedding reception Peggy Stanonis told us they still kept up the tradition as well.

In 1992 I was transferred to the Houston Area when my company closed down the Lafayette office.  That first year we were living in a small apartment so we did hold the traditional event.  We instead traveled back to my parent’s  house to get *remedial training* on the real Christmas Eve Party. 

The Humble Tradition Begins

1993 marked the first time we held the *Humble Version* of the Christmas Eve Party in our home in Atascocita.  We invited our new Ward family to the event.  I don’t think most of them knew what to expect.   I think we had about 40 people show up that year.  We were using a manual version of counting people.  One of the kids was assigned shifts for front door duty to count the people that came in.   In 1997 we started having people sign up on a signup sheet.  That year we had 68 people show up.

The Food

Over the years we began adding things to the menu.  The traditional pork roast and deer became an expensive option and deer was difficult to get because most of my acquaintances were not hunters.  Of course the Fried Turkey was the star attraction for a number of years, until.. we tried to become vegetarians for two years.  The Turkeys were out and the attendance numbers dwindled.   We soon came to our senses when it did not seem to make a difference to our cholesterol levels anyway.   So the Turkeys were back in full force.   We started with only cooking three and now we typically cook 8 turkeys. One is always given as a door prize and one to a needy family or someone that had blessed us in a special way during the year.   We have added Chicken Gizzard & Sausage Sauce Picante,  Red Beans & Sausage, Corn Macque Choux, Dirty Rice Dressing and many family favorites of cookies and fudge.  We even tried the Texas Tradition of Hot Tamales one year but it did not go over as well as we liked.    

We added fried foods for a number of years that consisted of my twice award winning Hush Puppies, Stuffed Jalapeños, Cajun Fried Potato Logs and Fried Mushrooms.  Due to having to fry these at the last minute and the cost associated with 5 more gallons of oil we eventually eliminated the fried foods.  People still look for those Stuff Jalapeños though.   We also replace the fruit punch with Zatarains Homemade Root Beer which goes over really well.   Christmas Eve would not be complete either without my stepfather’s traditional *Papa Dunk’s Fruit Salad* which I fix several days in advance to let it marinate really well.

The Logistics

Some may wonder how we ever manage to pull off such a feat.  The cost usually runs us about $600-$700 each year but we put some money aside each pay check so the money is there come November.  This is our Christmas gift back to the many wonderful friends we have the privilege of knowing over the years. Melinda begins looking for turkeys just before Thanksgiving when the prices are the best and buys other goods as needed to fill the *with purchase of $20 of other items* specials.

Each year after the party we do an after action report on what went well and what did not.  We have kept a notebook over the years with the adjustments to the menus and timing of preparing things.  My training in project management has helped in the scheduling.   

Melinda then takes the updated menu and creates a master food list to purchase.   We also have a schedule of when to cook certain foods and preparation events as a countdown calendar to D-Day.   Some foods are cooked after Thanksgiving and frozen until ready to be thawed for heating for D-Day. Other things like the turkeys are cooked the day of the party.  Because it is easier to eat gumbo with boneless meat rather than on the bone, like we do in Louisiana, I have developed a way of pre-cooking the chicken and deboning it and then boiling the flavor out of the bones to make the stock which helps to impart the traditional flavor that would otherwise be lost.  So we just *assemble* the gumbo on the day of the party.    

One of the things that has been really hectic over the years is trying to stay ahead of everything during the party.  Now that the kids are older they are really a help in us getting everything ready.  We keep improving on how best to do things and this year we carved the turkeys prior to the party and put them in aluminum half pans in a insulate chest to keep them hot.  That gave me the ability to mingle with the crowd for the first time, rather than carving turkeys.

Then there is the Turkey Chef in Training program that has been so helpful over the years.  This serves a two-fold purpose.  1) The person learning to fry turkeys get to learn the correct and safe way to prepare, inject and fry the turkeys and 2) it frees me up to do the other things that I need to do the day of the party.  We have had several people graduate from the 3 year course of study with their diploma’s.  Next year will be Ricky II’s third year so anyone wanting the experience is welcome to join us.

It is a lot of work and I must admit that we are plum wore out by the end of it all but it is such a wonderful feeling we get watching people enjoying themselves so much at the party it is worth every ounce of our energy.  The help from friends and family on the day of the party has made this year one of the easiest ever.   Many thanks to all that come each year and all that help out as well.

The Numbers

This year we had 199 people show up for the party.  It marked the 26^th year we have done it having only missed a few years due to being in an apartment or Christmas Eve falling on the Sabbath.  (we have repented of not having it that year due to chastisement so it is held on the 23^rd when the 24^th falls on Sunday)  So this little party that started with only 6 people went to 209 people in year 25 thus the title 25 or 6 – 209 (twenty-six or Six Two Oh Nine) (from Chicago’s song 25 or 6 to 4) 

1997-68

1998-120

1999-168

2000-162

2001-130
We moved to our house in downtown Humble

2002-94

2003-87

2004-180

2005-153

2006-137

2007-203

2008-139  Not sure what happened this year to the numbers..

2009-194

2010-209

2011-199

The Photos                                                                                                                   
Link to 2011 Party Photos on Facebook                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

From Sawdust to Microwaves OR You're in the Army Now!

So just how does someone go from majoring in Architecture for 3 years to being a microwave telecommunications technician?  As a lad if you asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up you would get an over whelming response of *a carpenter*.

I grew up in a small fishing community in Southeast Louisiana in St Charles Parish.  The town is Des Allemands,  which is French for *The Germans* it was settled by John's Law German Coast settlers in the early 1700's so there were a lot of German sounding names mixed with the Cajun names in the area.  My Great Grandfather *Charlie* SCHMILL emigrated  to Louisiana from Germany in the late 1800's, settling with his Brother Otto in Des Allemands...  but all that is a subject for another blog...

I can always remember that whenever there was something to be built, remodeled or fixed.  Our family always did it ourselves.  There was not the luxury of hiring someone to do it.  My grandfather Jens Schmill was always handy with carpenter skills and so was my Uncle Herman *Jap* Kelone. (My mother's sister's husband).  As a young boy I would always want to be around when things were being *built*  so they would give me a can of nails to straighten out, while they worked so I would not get in the way.  I felt like I was contributing to the cause because nails were expensive and we always reused them.

My Uncle Herman was a *Jack-of-all-trades* and a master of quite a few.  I always followed him around and he taught me much about carpentry,  plumbing and electrical work.  At the age of 11.  I recall wiring up my first light switch and he let me do it all by myself after telling me what I needed to do.  I found some old books that my Grandfather had about how to wire houses, using the old *knob and tube* method and I studied these.  I was always there to help when ever Uncle Herman remodeled his house and that happened several times.

I also really like to draw plans for kids *forts* and designed a boat that would only take one sheet of plywood..  They never got built but still the same I dreamed and planned.. Sometime about the time I was 12 my Uncle Billy (my mother's brother) was planning to build a house and asked if  i would help him draw up some plans.  I eagerly took on the task and I then helped him in the construction of that house.  It was a modest 2 bedroom house but I gained valuable knowledge during the process.

I found some books in the library at school that were on building tube type radios.  My best friend in elementary school Van Dee Allen and I had this dream of building a radio so we could communicate with each other beings we lived a couple of miles apart.   I always though that radios and electronics were fascinating but the theory was very complicated and I thought I would just settle on knowing about electricity instead.  Interestingly both Van and I have Amateur Radio (Ham) licenses today.

Something happened back when I was 12 that changed my whole outlook on my career as a carpenter.  I dislocated my left knee by simply tripping when I was running.  I would latter dislocate it another 2 times by the time I was in 9th grade, and have an operation to reattach my knee cap.

I took drafting as an elective in 9th grade and really loved it, but we move to Houma, LA and I could not finish out my course of work.  I would latter again take drafting in high school.   Due to my knee problems I began to consider a career as an Architect, and started to pursue that course of action in the courses I took in high school; however, my interest in things electronics, radios and telephone still were something I was keenly interested in.

Something else caught my interest while elementary school when I attend my very first live theater performance My Fair Lady at Hanhville High School.   I was hooked!   In High School, I had the lead part in Grandma's Best Years in my Junior year and a really fun role as Lou the class clown in Up the Down Staircase in my Senior year.

After taking one semester at Nichols State University I transferred to the University of Southwestern Louisiana (USL),  Now called the University of Louisiana at Lafayette,  I majored in Architecture.   I also took an elective in Technical Theater and enjoyed it tremendously.  I loved that I could put my talents in carpentry, electrical, and sound to good use.   I enjoyed it so much that I carefully compared the two curriculum closely and petitioned the University to allow me to persue a concurrent double major in Architecture and Theater.   My thoughts were that I could specialize in design of theaters and set design.

I really enjoyed both sets of classes.   I remember taking a Radio Production class and the instructor stating if we were able to pass the Third Class FCC license exam with the Broadcast Endorsement during a mid term field trip to Beaumont to take the exam that we would not have to take the rest of the term and we would get an grade of A for the class..   Fourteen of us went on that field trip, two of us passed the test.  I was one of the two, but I enjoyed the class so much I continued going anyway.

A semester or so later I had to take a Television Production course.  As fate would have it I had a free hour prior to my class and would show up early for class.  The chief engineer of the campus television station began to show me how he did troubleshooting on equipment that needed to be repaired.  I was fascinated!  I started rushing to the TV studio right after my previous class so Floyd could show me some new things and how to test transistors using an oscilloscope.

I signed up for a correspondence course from National Technical Schools  named Master Course in Communications with FCC.  I ate up the information and could not wait until the next lessons were mailed to me.

By this time I was married and we were really struggling to make ends meet as a college student and a working wife.   I met a guy at school that invited me to join him one weekend at his National Guard Drill.   Little did I realize that this would change my life forever.  I discovered that in Louisiana if you joined the National Guard they would pay your college tuition.  All for only one weekend a month and two weeks during the summer, which they paid your for as well.   I always felt a patriotic duty to my country so I decided to enlist.

Part of the enlistment process required that I take an aptitude exam to determine what MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) I would be best at.  I took the exam and the sergeant giving the exam explained that typically they look for someone to score about 90 points out 160 on the exam to determine what MOS to put you in.   He came back and said I scored 91 in clerical, but then the kicker was that was my LOW score.  He said I could pick any job I wanted including the General's.  Of course he was kidding about the General's job,  but I scored 158 out 160 in electronics.  There was a Signal Platoon unit in Lafayette so I was signed up to go to school as a 31L20 or Multi-channel Equipment Repair

So now I was In the Army Now.   I took Basic training at Fort Gordon GA.  My MOS training consisted of two schools.  The first was 31M20 which was the *Operator* course.  it was a 11 week *lock step* course meaning you had to take 11 weeks to complete it.   I caught on very quickly to the concepts that were being taught and usually after third day I was assisting the instructor with the other soldiers that had difficulty grasping the course content.   After 11 weeks I was at the top of my class and was promoted to PV2 (Private Second Class)   I had some *mosquito wings* now (my first stripe).   I then went on the the 31L20 course which was the *Repair* course.   This course was a 26 week self pace course in which you could move though as quickly as you could test out of the information for each module of instruction.   The first module was on basic electronics it was a 4 week module.  I finished the module in 2 weeks and 1 day and set a school record for the fastest person ever to go though that module.  I was promoted again to PFC (Private First Class) and got my first *rocker* under my stripe.

The school had a policy of giving a Post Pass (or day off) for finishing a module is less than the time allotted.  So I enjoyed my time off.   I then went on the complete all the remainder of the modules which were 1 to 2 weeks each in a total time of 13 weeks (half the allotted time).  In fact I finished two modules in one week and my Platoon Sargent would not let me take two days off.  So I got to go tour the Depot Repair facility on Post instead which was really nice.

During final testing I was tested again on every piece of equipment and repair of each.  Most of the problems were really easy for me to detect.  Until I got to one board that was not oscillating at the right frequency.  It really stumped me and I spent about two hours trying to diagnose the problem.  I knew that it had to be only on of three components that was faulty but I could not remove any of them from the circuit (un-solder).  So I finally though in the towel and explained my findings to the Testing Sergeant.  His answer was *We new you were a wiz kid and frankly we could not figure it out either so we hoped that you could.*   I PASSED!    I was also promoted again to SP4 (Specialist 4) as the Distinguished Honor Graduate of my class ( I finished the top of my class in fact I lapped some of the people in the previous class).  I had been in the Army less than a year and had been promoted 3 times..

I returned home with Melinda (she also had joined the National Guard but was up in Fort Lee VA and graduated the day before I did).  I took a few days off then went to look for a job until I could return to college.   I first when to a company called Data Comm and they were not hiring but sent me to Auto Comm and I was hired on the spot as a Microwave Telecommunication Technician, working predominately in the Gulf of Mexico,  and have been working in the field every since.

I eventually went back to college part-time but that took a total of 11 years and got a General Studies Degree... but that is another story...

So that is how I went from Sawdust to Microwaves...

Twas the Month Before Christmas

Twas the month before Christmas and all though the house,
Not a thing was in order exclaimed my lovely spouse.
The tools were strewn on the floor without a care,
And lumber and parts all over from here to there.

The walls were all the sanded leaving dust on the bed,
While paint stuck to our arms and sawdust in our head,
And mamma with her paint bush and and I with my hammer,
Had just settled in for a long work day lacking of glamor,

When out in the bathroom there rose such a clatter,
It sound like the nail gun had fallen off the ladder
Away to street I flew with my bucket of trash
While Melinda stood sanding the door molding and sash

I spoke not a word but went straight back to my work,
While she filled nail holes with putty in the old woodwork.
But each of was heard to exclaim with all of our might,
Why do we do this each year and get into this plight.

It seems like every year we make ourselves a promise that THIS YEAR we will not be working on the house after Thanksgiving so we can concentrate on getting ready for the Christmas Eve Party. Every year it seems that I break that promise and we have a torn up house from the remodeling and we both get stressed out to the max because we have so much to get done prior to the 24th.

This year was extremely difficult for the remodeling effort. We tore out the main bathroom in late January and a week latter we had freezing weather for 3 days which froze all the water lines because there was no way to drip the water in the old bathroom area.. I spent two days under the house in freezing weather to run some temporary water lines as I planned on removing all the old plumbing anyway.

Latter the gas lines needed to be replaced before I could continue plumbing the new bathrooms (we are making two out of one) This had to be done so I could run the new gas line up the wall where the old door way to the hall was located because we built a new set of stairs to what will be the second floor master suite later. So five Saturdays were spent under the house running all new gas pipe because the old one was installed in 1939 and we needed larger lines to accommodate a demand water heater and later a gas generator for the house.

Now it is June and the Texas drought and killer heat wave kicks in and even though I thought I would be able to work from the comfort of inside the house, I still needed to do the rough in plumbing. Of course we had to hire a plumber to *finish* my work because the city no longer allows homeowners to pull plumbing permits for gas lines. It took the plumber just 1/2 and $1,100 to do the easy part of the tie-ins. Well that took a budget hit of 2 bathtubs plus other parts needed to get the rough plumbing in. And as we are paying this as we go that delayed us two months to build funds up again. Thank you Dave Ramsey for getting us out of debt! We are aggressively paying down our mortgage with a target of being completely debt free by December 2013 so the budget for remodel is only $500 a month.

So now we are into September and we spend two glorious weeks in Idaho and Utah visiting my youngest and oldest sons and families. So nothing really gets done until late September, Then Stake Conference & General Conference weekends.

Now here is what happens each year. My favorite season of the year is Fall and I always get a burst of energy when the cool weather starts settling in. That is when I explode into full metal jacket renovation mode. Stand out of my way I am a Home Improvement maniac during the Fall. Typically this takes us though Thanksgiving week when I have to shut myself down to get the house in shape for the Party. This year I got a bout of sinus infection that stopped up my ears for over 5 weeks so I felt like crud. So once I was resurrected from the dregs of despair of ill health. I was ready to move forward. So I finally finished hanging the drywall where the old hall door was and under the stairs. Now Melinda kicks into full *mud dauber* mode to start slinging mud on the walls in preparation of painting the walls in the Dining Room because we need to move the Genealogy Tree bookcase on that wall to make room for the party.

So now here it is after Thanksgiving AGAIN and I have succeeded once again to have the house in an utter state of chaos and it looks like a war zone with all the sheet rock mud sanding all over the place. I always wind up putting Melinda in undue stress every year, but somehow we always seem to pull it off. One of these years, One of these years, she is going to send me to the Moon and I can visit Alice Kramden..

The Ole Geek takes the Bloggin Plunge

Well, I guess it is time for the Ole Geek to take the plunge into the world of blogging. My daughter has truly inspired me to take a stab at this. Hopefully this will last more than a passing fad.

This week was like one of those days when you really never get to repair the fence you set out to....

The Electrical Path of Least Resistance
I have been off all week and have not made much of any of the progress I had hoped for on the house remodel. My intent starting Saturday was to cut my losses for the year and at least try to get the electrical wiring done in the bathrooms I am remodeling. Well before I could get to wire the bathroom it required that I re-run some *temporary* electrical wires in the attic because I had to run new floor joists for the future Phase 3 expansion upstairs prior to being able to run the wires through the joists. I also need to split the circuits for the Living Room from the Front Bedroom because I want to added several *can* lights so the combined circuit would be undersized. BUT before I could re-run the circuits I needed to provide a new path though the new bathroom ceiling joist. BUT before I could do that I needed to build the last two steps that turn from the new stair landing over where the bathtub will be. Which also required me to relocate a junction box that was located where the floor for the new water heater would be located.... Long story short what I anticipated getting done on Saturday was not accomplished until late on Wednesday and still the new baths have not gotten wired because some of the boxes need to go on the center wall which can't happen until the new bathtubs are put in place so I can finish the middle wall studs...

Thanksgiving Break
Well Thanksgiving was a good day of rest and I slummed around the house on Friday because I was afraid if I started anything I would need to run to Home Depot and I was not about to subject myself to the chaos of Black Friday to get *parts*

So what did I need in the garage again?
So Today stared with the intent to put the finish on the spice shelf that Melinda asked me to build for her. Well where was that finishing oil that I needed. Oh it is in the little garage.. Where is the remote... Oh yes I found it.... It DOES NOT WORK!!!!... Light is not going on... Replace new battery still no worky worky..... Oh I remember I ran some cables to the little garage I bet I hooked up the garage door switch to a pair of those because I wanted to control it from the alarm system. I'll just look up the wiring diagrams that I made.... ..... ..... 1 hour later and looking the hundreds of potential files no luck on the wiring diagram... Well lets take the remote control apart... Well that is a pretty simple circuit board not much on it just one transistor and an integrated circuit. Press the push button.... again.....again.... again.. (what was the definition of insanity) again.. well that seems fruitless... Hum... I wonder if the switch could be bad.... find a wire jumper and bypass... Eureka... we have lift up.... Now what did I need in the garage again? Well this is a perfect opportunity to get the Alarm System to control the garage door.. Lets see .... there is the cable and I have a spare pair to the house... Bring out the old antique laptop because it is the only one with a RS232 port so I can program the Alarm System... 2 hours later and some fewer tresses of hair... I realize that the output from the Alarm System is not a dry set of contact but will only sink a max of 50 milliamps of current.... Over to trusty Radio Shack to find a relay.... Pull out the old soldering gun to hook up the terminals... Eureka!! we have lift up again the Alarm System is now controlling the garage door opener!!!
Now what was it again I was going into the little garage for... Oh yes finishing oil. But I have none there.. Off to Home Depot for finishing oil... Only got natural stain oil.. Well I finally got the Spice Shelf finished and lacquered. Only took all day..

Now that the day is shot what else can I do
I did manage to get some the wood and doors/frames moved from the front bedroom to the the bathrooms so they are out of the way for the Christmas Eve Party...

So there goes my week. I got about 2 days worth of work done in a week being off... Somehow this remodel will keep me busy into retirement...