Hopping out of my car to get gas, a little old man was at the pumps next to me. He struck up an inane conversation about how gas prices are so damn high. I just nodded, not wanting to take the bait and mention how much lower they had gotten recently. He then asked me…
November 26th: Battling viruses
Prednisone was my dear friend with Bell’s Palsy, but my immune system took a hit. Bouncing from one cold to another, and now maybe full-fledged flu. It has been a lost 6 weeks. I should be writing and enjoying the start of winter. Yes, I am a wimp. Sickness zaps my will. More so than…
Thanksgiving: Last night at the lake
After a beautiful afternoon at the beach, we returned to the lake with the hopes of an awesome sunset right behind the lighthouse. Clouds thwarted that plan, but even sunsets you can’t see are worth the trip. Left the lake and had another excellent meal at Old Boy’s Brewhouse. Tried to make my wife’s birthday…
November 21st: Today from the beach
Of course today included a visit to our lake. This was our view as we lounged on the beach. More accurately, reclined inside our black Toyota Avalon with the windows down. Sometimes owning a black car has its downsides, but today, with a temperature in the mid 30’s and very little wind, we stayed nice…
November 18th: Meandering from one sunset to another
The sunsets continue to move rapidly further and further south. In September, the sun would have been out of the picture above to the right. Now the sun is off far to the left. Tomorrow we will move north, across the Grand River to put the sunsets back in the light house snaps. Besides writing,…
November 15th: My first time
Do you remember your first time? No, not that first time. The first time you were truly and lastingly motivated by your coach or manager? My first time was when I was playing for my high school freshmen basketball team. Even on the freshmen team, it was about winning, not necessarily everyone getting to play….
November 12th: Ghostly touch
“Read, read, read. Read everything – trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. If it’s good, you’ll find out. If it’s not, throw it out of the window.” –William Faulkner I keep finding myself…
November 11th: The day the music died
The other evening I was at the brewhouse, reciting my three-minute life’s story to the inquisitive guy next to me. In my one minute life’s story, GE never comes up. But expanded to three minutes, it does. “Oh, did you like working at GE?” Yes, yes I did… until I didn’t. When did it all…
November 10th: A movie I need to experience
Going on seven full months of freedom, I had another friend tell me I need to watch The Shawshank Redemption. Another person telling me I inspired them, reminded them of the main character. I have never seen the movie… probably because there were no women in it. Prison movies just seemed so… one-dimensional. But, I hear…
November 9th: Sixteen foot waves coming
We are expecting 12 to 16 foot waves tonight… compared to these little 6 footers above. Unfortunately, they are expected to hit after midnight. We still haven’t witnessed the big ones… but storm season continues. Oh, and our first lake effect snow tonight… hopefully. So excited to live winter here on our terms. The storms,…