Pleep Rules On Party Attire - Clothing Mandatory

Pleep has been reviewing all the email traffic in the run up to the big party on Saturday. He thinks it reflects the differences between the two coasts and the midwest. The coastal crowd has a lot of questions about clothing requirements, lodging, etc. Not a peep from the midwest crowd.

Pleep's response to everyone is: HUMANS - CLOTHING MANDATORY! His personal preference for these type of events is his monkey suit because he has more freedom of movement. He did toy around with wearing his favorite shirt from Marks & Spencer because he thought it might impress the high maintenance guests. However, he had recently returned the shirt to its real owner, Mel Carvill so that option is out.

Pleep and Delete have started a house pool on who will wear what attire. The sure bet is George - neutral Levi straight legged cords, ND logo wear and worn out top siders (no socks). There was a debate over whether George would actually have a shirt on. Pleep pointed out the party is at night & the weather will be cool so that put things to rest there. The side betting is all on how many people brother Moon pants & of those how many are going commando. So far every time Moon picks a target they have been commando. Delete thinks a couple of them may have learned their lesson and will be wearing several layers.

Pleep Prepares For Major Family Event

THEN - How sweet and innocent these two look!

Months in the planning the George & Ida Heidkamp Joint Birthday Bash is nearly here. It all started innocently enough. Ida turns 50 on 15 September. George turns 80 on 13 December. Brother Moon suggested we combine the event and have it Chicago. September is better weather, especially for all the travelers.

Then, as with most things involving the Heidkamp family, it started to get complicated. Venue changes, date changes (to accommodate the ND home schedule), and most importantly the guest list. With a large immediate family, it is easy to hit 50 without inviting any friends. Soon, to quote Perry, everyone who ever had a beer with George or Ida is on the list. Then people who didn't even know George or Ida asked if they could come. We had to draw the line somewhere so no strangers was it.

In search of a party space, Alex Collins, family friend for now, offered the use of the party space at her brand new condo overlooking Lake Michigan and Grant Park. "Don't worry Alex, we swear we've never formally been evicted."

Now - Watch out Chicago. We will be over the limit on the number of Heidkamps allowed in one building in Chicago at one time.
Reluctant to leave the capturing photos and video to anyone in the family, Pleep has assigned the task to David Gates. Of course, David is also an attorney which could come in very handy on Saturday night.

9/11 Nine Years Later

It's hard to imagine nine years have passed since the events of 9/11. We were in NYC in July 2001, just months before the terrorists attacked, to celebrate Ed's parent's 50th wedding anniversary. As you can see from our picture of the skyline during the river tour, the Towers dominated lower Manahattan.

The morning of 9/11 found Ed and several of our friends in NYC for business. They were in the lobby of the Millenium Hotel (directly across from the Twin Towers and across from the Generali offices) as the first plane went in.

The picture is very different today. (Thanks to our friend, Dan Carvill.) The rebuilding at the site is moving ahead full steam. Generali's old offices were at 1 Liberty, overlooking what is known as Ground Zero. The new offices are in the brand new building 7 World Trade also overlooking the area. There are over 2,000 construction workers working on the site. You can see the memorial pools marking the site of the WTC towers.

We have been back to NYC many times since then, most recently in late August. On this visit we stayed in the new hotel overlooking the construction site and walked all through the area. There is a memorial right outside the Generali offices detailing the timeline and displaying many photos from 9/11 and the days immediately after. It is important to take a minute today, honor those who died then and those brave men & women in the military who sacrificed their lives in the fight since. Remember we must continue our vigilance and thank those who remain on the front lines. Semper Fi. Ductus Exemplo.

Pleep Wonders - Are You Ready For Some Football?

Pleep has a very busy day today. First he has to deal with the rash of injuries and issues plaguing the Monkeybutters just prior to their big week against Parker's Angels. Next week is the last week in the regular season and Pleep would at least like to go into the playoffs leading the entire league.

Next, the Pleepleus Gorillabutters take the field starting tonight with the kick-off NFL game - Saints vs. Vikings. Pleep is hosting a kick-off party with Red Chile Posole and plenty of adult beverages. He's been practicing his favorite Cajun cheer - Hot boudin and cold couscous. Come on Saints let's push push push.

Then, he is faced with a serious dilemma in the College Pick'em Leatherhelmets league. The Monkeybutters are in the middle of the pack after last week and he'd like to see improvement. The problem is Peggy is lobbying to pick the Irish to beat Michigan and wants to rank it top in the confidence scale. Pleep thinks this is a homer attitude and likely a large error.

Finally, in a desperate move to find a lucky charm, Pleep talked to Carnicelli. Carnicelli told Pleep he always performs the Rerun Dance before a big game or decision. Rerun is his favorite character of all time and it has always worked for him.

So, Pleep will be learning this dance from the youtube clip and invites everyone to picture Carnicelli doing it with him.

Pleep Plans To Dominate Fantasy Sports

This is a big weekend for Pleep and this sports management team. The Monkeybutters have locked up their division in the California Baseball Nuts League and are in a tight race for home field advantage in the playoffs. Commenting on his tough management style, Pleep said, "For all those doubters who mocked me at the beginning of the season for trading Lincecum for Sabathia and who scoffed at my trading, pickups and drops, one big monkeybutt to you all."

Even as the baseball playoffs loom, Pleep has managed to turn his attention to his favorite fall activity, college football. The Pleepleus Monkeybutters are planning a repeat performance in the Leatherhelmets College Pick'em League. The league is dominated by Gator fans and Pleep thinks he may be able to take advantage of them. Last year several owners missed making their picks because they weren't paying attention to the game start times. Delete is very excited about the "Era Of Kelly" commencing in South Bend today at 3:41 est. He has been teaching Pleep II the Notre Dame Fight song. Ed is a bit tired of hearing it and is just glad Pleep didn't steal George's bottle opener that plays the fight song with every use. Pleep was a bit bummed about that because he has loaded up on Guiness, put his lucky Irish beads on and started Grandma Al's flying novena.

Finally, Pleep and crew are studying up on the NFL as prep for the Generali USB Fantasy Football draft on Tuesday. The Pleepleus Gorillabutters are in their rookie year but Pleep thinks his management style from the Monkeybutters will serve him well with the Gorillabutters. When asked about the name change, Pleep commented, "The size requirements in the NFL meant we needed to field a larger, more aggressive player than the typical Monkeybutter. I took my cue from the Chicago Cubs vs. Chicago Bears, even though we hate the Bears." Pleep issued the one and only Generali jersey to Leoni, explaining, "Leoni is Generali's mascot so it is only right he should get to wear the team jersey." Pleep has his whistle ready because based on what he has heard the Generali US Branch office is notorious for cheating, lying, and other nefarious behaviors.

Pleep Says There's No Place Like Home

Pleep had a lot of time in the car to check out weird stories on the internet. Plus he was still upset after losing a close match to the 805 Doyers and dropping back to third place. Peggy & Ed nearly left Pleep in the hotel because he was ranting about the Cubs vs. Cardinals game. Between the rain delay at the Yankees game and the screw-up by the Cardinals, the Monkeybutters lost their comeback chances. Delete told him to get over it and get in the car.

The story that caught his attention was about the giant paper mache shark that ate the bronze surfer sculpture near San Diego. Evidently the sculpture is not very good and no one in the area likes it. The local surfers keep doing things to it and the most recent event was the construction of a 16 foot great white shark eating the surfer. Pleep was in total agreement with the shark and thinks the statue is not very good.

We hit home on schedule at 2:45 central time. After unloading the car, Peggy & Ed headed to the car wash and grocery store. Pleep and Delete did miss the beach but were happy to be back in Kansas. They were surprised to see a new relative, Leoni Generali, who was on hand to welcome them back home. Pleep was impressed with Leoni's logo wear and is trying to convince Leoni to let him try the shirt on. Delete wants to convene a meeting to discuss the house rankings in Kansas and Florida. With Carnicelli due back in town next week, Delete feels it is important to make certain everyone knows where they stand.

Pleep Wants To Go Wild At Wild WIngs

After 3 weeks on the beach, Pleep & Delete have declared themselves to be official Beach Bums. They were very pleased to see the beer of the month at the Deck Down Under was Beach Bum Blonde Ale. Departure this morning was promptly on schedule at 6:58 am EDT. We hit the Georgia border at 10:00 and Pleep assumed his monkeybutt position. Georgia is a high alert area due to the large percentage of bad drivers. Delete thinks Georgia may have the worst drivers in North America.

After the 360 miles of bad driving in Georgia, we hit the TN border right on schedule at 3:30 EDT. Entering Tennessee, Pleep started lobbying Ed again for a detour to either Jack Daniels or George Dickle Distillery. No luck on either count. Then Pleep started making a list of all the places in Tennessee he would like to visit: Grand Ol Opry, Dollywood, Country Music Hall of Fame, Alvin York's birthplace, etc. Delete spent time trying to download one of his favorite Gary Cooper movies, Sargent York, but didn't have any luck. Arrival in Paducah is on time for 6:45 pm CDT. Pleep spent his time googling restaurants and found a Buffalo Wild Wings. He likes their commercials and told Ed they have a good drinks listing. Ed told Pleep if he shut up about the distilleries there was a good chance he would at least get to eat something besides peanut butter wraps.