Last Wednesday evening I spoke with Elizabeth on the phone. She had lots to share. Sutton has a new album with a big rollout planned in September, they’re going to Greece and Italy for Sutton’s birthday next month, they have extensive plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but perhaps the most exciting news is her new …
Carpe Diem
I met Roger Dixon while teaching for the Plainwell Community Schools. I started in the fall of 1969. Roger taught in the high school, and I taught in the middle school. His wife, Carolyn, taught with Ruth and me. I don’t think we were together for more than a year, or two, when Roger took …
800
This is my eight-hundredth story. I knew I had a few dozen in me when I started but didn’t contemplate writing eight hundred. I’ve made some profound life statements as I celebrated each centennial. If you’ve been following me from the beginning, you’ve read them all. I included 500 Chunks in the book I published. …
One
I saw a video clip on Facebook the other day that compared one’s life to riding on a merry-go-round. You get one trip around. New people get on as riders depart. The departing part is dying. The comparison emphasizes the fact that life is short. We get a turn to live it but we’re …
Taking Turns
When I was a kid, I took a lot of turns. Some were fun but not all. Sometimes I got to choose, and others were cast upon me. I preferred those that involved a choice but that’s not always possible. My mom gave me my first instructions about taking turns. If we didn’t discuss it …
Oatmeal
The first time I recall having a thought about oatmeal was on one of the trips that our family took to visit Old Granny Barner in Bowling Green, Kentucky. We drove in my dad’s 1953 Ford about a year and a half after my sister, Jackie, was born. Dad packed the suitcases on the floor …
Doing Is
I published the following story on November 22, 2017. It’s the second story I posted. My first was about my friend, Ed. I tried to point out that the opportunities that come our way are numerous. It’s up to us to make the most of them. I was writing about economic opportunities I failed to …
Two by Two
A few years ago, Ruth and I stopped to see the Noah’s Ark exhibit in northern Kentucky. It was right off the highway on our way to The Villages. We often broke up our trips by stopping at local attractions when we traveled between Michigan and Florida. When the kids were young, we were in …
Face to Face
I’ve shared a lot of meals with a lot of people and through the process determined that I prefer eating at a round table vs a square or rectangular one. When our kids were growing up, we had an antique ash table that Ruth and I bought when we first got married. We bought it …
Rehabbing My Life
I started cardio rehab this week. I’ll be attending three times a week for the next twelve weeks. If I miss a session, they’ll add it to the end. There are two parts to each appointment. The first is instructional and the second is cardio exercise. We’ll be building on stamina and strength. And, hopefully, …