Category: Life Lessons

I knew I had the right to an attorney but opted to present my own case in court.  I thought if I stuck to the facts, which were determined by highly extenuating circumstances, the judge would see things my way and wave the ticket and the fine.  What I didn’t bargain for was the city …

I had a date after work with a Birmingham girl. I got off work at 7:00 and was scheduled to pick her up at 7:30. Normally, I would have taken Crooks Road through Royal Oak and on to Birmingham, but this wasn’t a normal day.  I was about to get beat up by a man …

I was speaking with Brady during his recent Florida visit, and he told me he received his first speeding ticket.  He’s been driving on his own since June and has his own “ride”.  After driving with him when he was still “learning” I’m not surprised.  He had a lead foot back then. He has to …

The first time I heard of Uber I called it Hoover. Like the vacuum sweeper.  I knew nothing of the company let alone the concept.  My kids and their spouses taught me about it.  Ruth and I were taking Brady to Chicago via the train to watch the Chicago Cubs play baseball.  It was the …

When I started writing this blog in the fall of 2017, I didn’t know how many stories I’d recall. I had a few I wanted to tell right away because they were important to me, while others were simply crumbs rolling around in my brain. I’ve learned some come in great floods, like poured cereal …

The first phone my family had growing up was a party line.  We shared the number LIncoln – 32062 with another family I never met but briefly spoke to from time to time.  I didn’t answer the telephone very often, but when I did, it was sometimes for the “other party”.  I might hear them …

The five-second rule is a food hygiene myth that states a defined time window where it is safe to pick up food after it has been dropped and thus exposed to contamination.  There appears to be no scientific consensus on the general applicability of the rule. I’ve been a proponent of the five second rule …

Fifty-eight years have passed since John F. Kennedy was assassinated.  I was just a teen during his time as President but the things I remember most about him are: He was the first Catholic elected as President.  It was thought by many that Pope John XXXIII would have a say in American politics and policies.  …

I was sixteen, and a junior in high school, the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated.  Mr. Hirsh was delivering his chemistry lecture when my former biology teacher, Mr. P,  came in and whispered in his ear.  Mr. Hirsh looked at us and said, “President Kennedy has been shot.”   We didn’t speak.  We just looked …

My friend, Ed, turns 104 on Friday. He was the subject of my first blog when he turned 100. Since then, I’ve posted 417 stories and he’s aged four years. At 104 his gait is a bit slower, and he can’t hit the golf ball as far as he once did, but his poker game …