Well, it's been an interesting week or so since I last wrote. Excellent workouts, including a bench press high of 215 lbs. just this afternoon. Not bad for an old guy just getting back into it.

   I sold / installed a large window film job for the company - www.sunxus.com - just in case you're interested.  We installed 1,000 sq.ft. of security film with silicone attachment at a local school in the 5 weekdays between Christmas and New Years.  The guys I've been using for years (nearly 20 all told) didn't show up or call or text Monday morning and I ended up working all day by myself.
Boy was I ticked off !!!   But by the end of the day I had accomplished a lot and realized I was mostly back to feeling like my old self again.  Somewhere over the past few weeks I've slipped back into - Get it Freakin' Done Mode!   That was a good thing to see.  The guys showed up late on Tuesday and later still on Wednesday so I won't be using them again but, like I said before, I'm also in "Cutting Dead Weight Mode" too.  I was able to bring in a couple of solid friends last minute and get the job finished on time - with exactly 6 minutes to spare (there was a drop dead time of 5:38 PM on Friday afternoon - or finish by sundown)  (Odd I know but that was the rules.)
It's finished and the client was happy and paid in full.
Nice to have a bit more cash in the old bank account to start the new year!

I also heard from 2 cousins on my late father's side of the family Thursday morning.  Maria E. and Elissa are my uncle Danny's daughters.  It's been great to connect to them.  After dad died and my family moved back to Florida, our families lost touch outside of the occasional Christmas card or such.  Mom connected to Elissa a few years ago and I spoke with her and exchanged emails on my trip cross country back in 2012.  Getting in touch with Maria E. was a wonderful surprise (she's a sweetheart) and comes with an added bonus of lots of old family pictures I've never seen!
She's been going thru old boxes and photo albums and sending what she's found.
It's really cool to see the resemblances between my brothers and I, and dad and his father.
Here they are:

Dad as a teen looking a lot like my brother JM.

Dad as a little boy.

Uncle Danny and dad.

Grandfather Daniel Rodriguez Sr. and (uncle) Danny Jr.

Uncle Danny with Grandmother Mabel.

Grandmother Mabel (Rodriguez) as a young-ish woman.

Grandmother Mabel.

Mabel again.

I believe this is Grandfather Daniel Rodriguez, Sr.'s sister back in Salamanca, Spain - trying to verify.

This is an advert for dad's small business back in Philadelphia, PA.  He sold and serviced sewing machines until his death.

same

My brother Bob on the left and brother Steve on the right with Grandmother Mabel.  My mom still has that rocking chair in her home.

Mabel Rodriguez again.

My cousin Maria E. is on the left.  She was a Flamenco dancer back in the day.  

Maria E. on the left. 

Maria E. 

Dad / Bob Rodriguez on the left.  Looks just like my oldest brother Bob in this shot.  

Dad.  Probably about 18-ish in this one.

Dad as a boy.

Uncle Danny and dad. 

Grandfather Daniel Sr. with Uncle Danny, dad, and I'm not sure who the girl is. 

Dad outside a shop next door to his father's cigar shop.

Grandfather Daniel Rodriguez Sr.'s passport photo.

Daniel Sr. 

Daniel Sr. 

Daniel Sr. clowning around

Grandfather Daniel Sr. with a friend.

Grandfather Daniel Sr. traveling out west.

same

Daniel Sr. with a friend.

This looks like dad out front of grandfather Daniel's store.

Grandfather Daniel Sr. with Danny Jr. out front of the old coffee, cigar, and candy store.

Daniel Sr. and Mabel (?)

That's grandfather Daniel Sr. - not sure who everyone else is. 

Grandfather Daniel Sr. - and I think that might be a woman from Cuba named Carmen. 

Uncle Danny with Grandfather Daniel Sr. 

Uncle Danny and Grandfather Daniel Sr. out front of the old store in Philly.

Cousin Maria E. also found something that belonged to dad while searching thru her old boxes, albums, books, closets, etc.   It should be coming to Atlanta soon and I'll post a picture as soon as I have it.    I'm very excited about having it but don't want to spoil the surprise !

In addition to connecting with long, lost family, an old friend I hadn't spoken to in years called out of the blue a couple days ago and it was nice to patch up some differences, mend some fences, and just plain catch up.

Then just today some very good old family friends were in town to see a new family baby so "The Source of the Trouble" and I met them for a late breakfast over in Decatur at Pastries A Go Go.
Shan & Michelle put me up at their place when I rode the bike out west and let me stay for the better part of a week or so.  They were great hosts and it was wonderful to sit and chat for awhile.
http://www.pastriesagogo.com/    Get the French toast.  Delicious (and you can work it off later ).