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This is one of my favorite pictures of my late grandfather. Click on the picture to see the rest of the images I used in the slideshow during the wake.

James H. Oldham, age 90, of Newark died August 6, 2010 at JSB Retirement Villa in Ottawa, IL surrounded by friends and loved ones.

Services will be held at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at the Nelson Funeral Home & Crematory, 1275 Countyline Road, Sandwich, IL.  Interment will be in the Millington-Newark Cemetery in Millington, IL.

Friends may visit from 4:00 until 7:00 PM on Monday, August 9, 2010 at the Nelson Funeral Home & Crematory in Sandwich, IL.

James was born in Crocker, Missouri on January 25, 1920 and moved to Illinois about 1935.  He married Dorothy Denny on October 4, 1942 and enjoyed 62 years of married life.  He served during WWII in the Philippines as an Army medic.  James moved his family from Alton, IL area to the Chicagoland area in 1955.  He lived in Downers Grove from 1955 to 1983, when he relocated to the Seneca area.  After 28 years as a Union Carpenter, he resumed farming, raising pigs and chickens during retirement.

He was active with the congregation of Jehovah's witnesses in Ottawa, IL.  He traveled extensively as a volunteer, using his building skills to construct Kingdom Halls and Assembly Halls used by Jehovah's witnesses.  He was frequently the oldest volunteer on location, and was accompanied by his faithful border collie, Sadie.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife of 62 years, Dorothy, his two brothers (Wilmer and Alva), and his two sisters (Mary and Ina).  Survivors include four children, Elaine Owens of Newark, IL, Shereen (Peter) Venning of Elgin, IL, Kim Oldham of Brighton, CO, and Rick (Beverly) Oldham of Winfield, IL.  Other survivors include 12 grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great grandchildren.

Memorials may be directed to Habitat for Humanity, PO Box 1167, Americus, GA 31709-9951.

Time for some more upgrades, Hope to be back soon!

11/1/09 3:11pm – Upgrades complete.

Here are the pictures from our pumpkin carving. This year I managed to carve my pumpkin in four hours. Pumpkins in the previous years have taken two days. To see the rest of the photos click on the picture below.

Earlier this year I was laid off from my previous job of ten years. After that happened I wrote about becoming a statistic.  During the past five months I repeatedly checked my emails and responded to job postings every day. Usually I would get one good lead per month. Sometimes the recruiter would call me, but many times I would have to call them over and over and over again. I worked very hard to pursue some of these leads because my full time job, was to find a full time job. I even applied to do a sales job and work on commission. When the recruiters would ask about travel I would say no problem, even though I was secretly hoping that my new job would not involve travel.

Fast forward to Friday last week. I had applied for a Lab Technician position. I also called and left the recruiter a message since she had included her contact information in the posting. When I talked with the recruiter she was telling me the this company wants to move fast. In my head I was thinking "I’ve heard that one before!"

As I was running errands on Monday my phone rang. I needed to come into the office for a background check and a drug screening…I got the job. So I turned right back around and headed home. I patiently crossed my legs doing the pee dance while I waited for my turn in the bathroom. I signed the paperwork back at the recruiters office and I said "Yes!"

I have been working full time for a week and loving every minute of it. It is great to be back in an electronics research and development lab. The smell of solder in the morning is fantastic. I am happy!

Here are just a few pictures of the wildlife in the neighborhood. rabbits, racoons, and sunflowers OH MY! To see the rest of the photos click on the picture below.

It is time for another WordPress upgrade. Should be back in a few minutes.

EDIT: 2:32 PM Back up and running

I went to Brookfield Zoo with my cousin Amanda. To see the pictures I took at the zoo click on the photo below.

This year I took two tours during Great Chicago Places and Spaces. My first tour was of the auditorium theatre and the second tour was of the new Trump Tower. To see my photos from the tours click on the picture below.

I decided to check out the early spring flowers at Cantigny. Their tulip garden was amazing. To see the photos from my visit to Cantigny click on the photo below.

My uncle and I went to Starved Rock to take some pictures of the waterfalls. I got a chance to use my new camera and play with the white balance setting. I tweeked the pictures slightly to warm up the color temperatures. To see the photos click on the picture below.