A friend called me on Thanksgiving. Like me, he is a single man who had nobody to spend time with for the holiday. He was lonely. Although we were both alone for Thanksgiving, how we got to this point was quite different. He’s been a bachelor his entire life. With the exception of a few…
Listening To The Leaves Fall
The other day, I was standing in my yard while catching my breath during my morning workout. It was about 40 degrees. The sun was beginning to rise and the sky was a deep cloudless blue. It was too early for the neighborhood leaf blowers and mowers. There were no diesel trucks, school buses or…
Ranting About Pandemic Fatigue
I am so done with the Covid pandemic. It’s been nearly two years that life, society, the world and humanity has been impacted by this. In my specific case, the pandemic arrived 1 year after my wife died and just 7 months after I had moved into my new home in Raleigh. I was still…
No Thanks
Tomorrow will be the 3rd Thanksgiving I’ve spent alone since my wife died. I wrote about Thanksgiving and the holidays before. Today, I’m OK with it. I roasted (and ate) a turkey a few weeks ago. Last night, I binged on two Lily’s chocolate bars and paid for it with a day of headaches, bloating…
It’s Not A Numbers Game
My friend, who’s my age and single, has been using online dating again. He has had what I consider a moderate level of success. Every week or so, he goes on a real-life, in-person date with a woman he finds attractive. In between these dates, he is usually in the midst of some kind of…
The Joy Of Using What You Have
Last week it got cold here in Raleigh, NC after a long, hot summer and a beautiful extended fall. The early morning temperatures are now dropping into the low 40s and even the upper 30s. For me, that is freezing! It’s almost winter so I knew this was coming. Before I broke out my winter…
I See Dumb People*
I am a genius. Literally. I have an IQ of 160. I got straight A’s in school (except for handwriting, gym and art). I am naturally gifted at reading, mathematics and problem solving. I started reading in preschool. I was the smartest kid in class for all of my grade school and high school years….
Not Everything Is Political
When I was in the 3rd grade, my stepfather told me to never talk about politics or religion with strangers and casual acquaintances. He also said, “Opinions are like a$$holes – everybody has one“. I loved talking to him back then. After dinner, I’d clear the table and dry the dishes my sister had washed…
It’s Not A Work Crises
I am currently reading Apollo’s Arrow:The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live, by Nicholas Christakis. In it he writes about the Covid pandemic and it’s impact on society. He includes many comparisons, contrasts and parallels to previous pandemics ranging from the earliest pandemics from recorded history to SARs-1, ebola and…
The Invisible Man
I learned how to become invisible in the 3rd grade. My parents had divorced each other for the 2nd time and my mother moved us from our small hometown to Pittsburgh just 3 days before the new school year school started. I went from being a happy, secure and settled member of a large family…