Category Archives: My Life

My Life

May 8th

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Well…wanted to get a post out before I dive into cleaning up this mess…have been working hard on slowing down and making my life a little more languid. Don’t know why I still feel the need to get all the tasks of life done as fast as possible; I guess it’s that I still am struggling with the fact that the journey is the thing, not the destination. So, I’m going to make the effort with today’s cleaning, cooking, and writing to enjoy the process and shift down a gear..after all, where do I have to be?

I do have my Red Wings gear on already and I am excited to see which team comes out at 10….my prediction of a 4-2 series win for us is out the window but as long as we’re are playing, I’ll still have hope….let’s stretch this out until at least Monday!!

Go Wings!!!

My Life

Music and Me….more onion skin…

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If there is anything that anyone knows about me is how important music has been to me all of my life and that fact makes it inevitable that I would want to share how that came to be…but the problem is that I really don’t know why intellectually; it’s like seeing a painting that immediately evokes a response but to try to explain it to anyone else then pollutes their reaction to it. Or, it invokes an argument on the meaning where there is no need for one since art can and should mean different things to different people. Does that make sense? I guess music has helped me to understand that we are not alone in the world for one thing; it is a shorthand that connects us to shared thoughts and feelings and even at times has helped me realize that there are emotions to be felt that had never been a part of me.

I’ll get specific in a later post….

My Life

Let’s clarify…

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I don’t want you to think that an earlier post was a screed against the wealthy since it wasn’t. But I also want to make clear that people that have a lot of money don’t impress me; it’s what they DO with the money that can impress me. People like Peter Cook, Bob Israels, and the DeVos’s and VanAndels who have used their wealth to make Grand Rapids and Michigan a better place to live.

Still don’t like the idea of having rich people’s names on everything around here, though.

My Life

May 7th

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I hope you remembered that when you see a date in the title, it’s going to be about my life and thoughts…just thought I’d remind you so you don’t get your expectations too high…or have any at all since this is just a guy talking.

That was a fun time last night out at LC with G but I don’t know how long we can sustain the bar tabs that are approaching a hundred bucks. Yep, and just for two people. But we did get a coupon for two free steak dinners for knowing the answer to the question: “What is the make and model of the car from the movie Christine?” I knew it was a Plymouth Fury and was the only one…gave the answer to the bartenders since G and I weren’t playing trivia but were watching the Wings game. Don’t know how good they will be but, in this part of Michigan, free is better than good for most people.

Taking the day off from riding since it’s raining like crazy and I think 22 days in a row is enough…the legs were starting to feel dead and it was making the rides not a lot of fun..

I’m starting to feel better since it’s close to noon and I’m going to watch the Wings game again since I couldn’t hear it last night and I want to hear Ken and Mickey. More later…

My Life

May 6th

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Well…that’s enough outrage for the day, huh? But I couldn’t help myself…the targets were just so easy that I had to take the shot. Started to get over the headaches from yesterday and the imminent depression seems to be lifting..I know partially due to lunch with T. yesterday; thanks again. One weird thing that happened yesterday was another attack by the geese that infest the trails that I ride every day. Have a big fricking bruise on my arm from it…I wonder how they taste?

Well… it is do or die tonight for the Wings and I am kind of apprehensive…will probably watch with G or a small group…think the festiveness has gone out of watching but I’m still rooting for them.

More onion skin for tomorrow…I promise.

My Life

Remembering Ernie Harwell…

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Well…as you probably heard, Ernie Harwell passed away a couple of days ago. If you grew up in Michigan and listened to the Tigers, you knew that wonderful voice as the voice of summer; of the warm, soft nights here that Ernie’s voice fit so well. One of my first memories of hearing Ernie was at my grandmother’s cottage, my father sitting in our red and white 55 Ford station wagon (not the blue one, that came later) with the door open, smoking a cigarette and staring off into space; I hope escaping the 9 of us kids that were kind of wild and could try his patience at times. Not much else to say..

Thanks Ernie….

My Life

May 4th

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Well…it’s been quite a busy day today, had a lot to do to finish up at g’s then on the bike for a good 15 miles. Looks like a pretty good turnout for the Wings game tonight at OT…I have to stop and pick up the traditional chips and dip…maybe that’s why we’re down 2-0, no chips or dip at the last two. I’m doubling up on the gear tonight, too…have my 2008 conference champions shirt under my Hank shirt…have to try something…we need to get going.

One thing that has happened the past few days that is raising some outrage….when did people stop understanding that a “walk” sign means that pedestrians have the right of way (bike riders, too)? Three times I have almost been run over by people that were either idiots or just not paying attention. Stood the bike on the front wheel to keep them from hitting me. geez….

More about Arizona and how thin skinned the righties are…but that’s for tomorrow…

No…need to deal with the righties now…I find it ironic that all of their politics is based on lies and attacking anyone who disagrees with them…then, when Richard Cohen of the Washington Post calls out Newt for his many failings, (not even a very good attack) they scream that it’s not fair to attack him and that’s all the “liberal, socialist, communists” do…talk about the pot calling the kettle black…I know, a too used metaphor but I think of it as an oldie but a goodie…geez.

My Life

May 3rd…not a lot to say today

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Well….still can’t get over how badly the Wings were screwed last night…but that’s over and done and I have to remind myself that it was still a great, fast game and I had a lot of fun out at Sazerac in the north end. Even had a youngster flirt with me for a while which I could say helped my ego but since I know it was just fooling around, there really is no effect there. Too bad.

I am a little irritated that Monday with G was canceled after taking care of a lot of stuff for her today. But she got to golf at one of the nice country clubs around here so how can you pass that up? And, I can use the night off from drinking since I know I’ll be out to see the Wings tomorrow…maybe she’s doing me a favor, huh? Kind of worn out so I’m going to end here for a while. Maybe more later but probably not until tomorrow…

My Life

May 2nd, part two…

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Okay…maybe having three cups of coffee on Sunday morning is not that good of an idea…kind of vibrating as I wait for the sun to come out so I can get out on the bike and burn off some of the caffeine. One of the things that has recently made a spot in my brain is the fact that I am now the age my father was when he died. Did he think about the same things that I do now? Never really knew who he was since I grew up in a time where there just was not a lot of depth to relationships in general; even familial ones.

I’ll talk more about that at some later date…hey, that’s a little onion peeling don’t you think? I’ll score that as some revelation….even though there’s not much there.

What’s the rest of day going to be like? Hmmmmm…of course, Pink Floyd for the ride then probably just try to clean this place up a bit, it’s a small place but haven’t had any motivation lately…then out for the game later; maybe sit in the sun for a while…I know, tough day…;-))

Oh, topic for later…I will probably get into how I feel about my age and health and what it means to be getting older…