I knew it was a bad idea. I placed the order based on my strong recall of freezing on several overnight missions to the camp in the woods. Typically, that happens when I get lazy and let the fire go out before midnight. Oh, and the fact that the Browning Mummy-style sleeping bag was marked…
Category: Blog Posts
Spring Chores
From Friday, April 24th, 2026— In a culmination of the long winter’s wait, I’m getting back at it today. The camp in the woods awaits an influx of crusty humans, none under sixty, some over seventy. Most of the participants are sage members of the Breakfast for Schmucks crowd. The outlier is the boy, probably…
SOAP
Epiphanies are few for me, now. The people I hang out with are just about my age. Many of them have let their ability to be surprised slip away over time. It’s easy to be fooled into believing you’ve seen it all. Because none of us have. As a practicing outlier, I’ve honed my senses…
Commonalities in Loss
Never one to embrace statistics, trends, and themes, I’ve noted one; it weaves its way through the comments on my page. That is, mentions of a loved one’s death. No human can avoid death, whether ours or someone we love. And I don’t mind it being mentioned, especially if it helps you cope. Sometimes I…
My Spot
There’s a place that I sit. A place I feel most comfortable. My belief is that we all have “that” space, but maybe I’m crazy. Situated near the back sliding door, with enough glass forward and to the left of me so that I can glance outside without any effort, I find there to be…
Nope
I don’t know what it is. There’s a contingent of humans who believe that if they ask me to speak or write about specifics on the political spectrum, I’ll acquiesce and change my paradigm. To that, I say two things. No. Oh, and isn’t there enough of that available to us? Two emails this week,…
Reading Well
There is a soulful elation that bubbles in their grandfather when I watch these two rascals read together. With the eldest, a fine young lady, there was a time when screen time would be allowed to take precedence. Some minor steering input from her parents immediately changed her favorite pastime to something more fruitful—seen here…
Gas Grill ‘Elliegy’
Sometimes I’m grateful that Ellie is terrified of bad weather—thunder, sure, and wind, definitely. She paces, going from one room to another, most likely trying to find peace. I like to be notified, and she seems attuned to changes in the weather long before they manifest outside my windows and doors. The problem, as you…
New Glasses
There are mornings when I begin to write the daily missive that I am lost for words. Not really; I always have words. And it’s probably been one of my countless downfalls. I cannot remember a report card that didn’t mention that I tend to be disruptive, socializing too much during the learning hours. I…
Northbound in the Hoopty
While my ‘Hoopty’ is a Honda, it’s got some idiosyncrasies. Now and then, it jolts you to reality with a horrific hitch in its giddyup; I think that’s the technical term. I still drive it distances, but only because I know a guy with a tow truck, and another guy who works on Hondas. Truth…