Mont wanted to update his resume, but his technologically savvy niece didn’t want to help him. He sought to convert a PDF into a Word document and save both versions on his device. Mont surprised me when said he didn’t know how to perform the procedure. I offered to help, thus, the blind lead the […]
Sunday Family Dinner
As I mentioned last week I have been reviewing estate documents. I’ve been thinking about what I want to do, and how to convey my testamentary wishes to my lawyer. I have some technical questions for him, too. *** Speaking of heirs, my nephew Kevin invited me to Sunday lunch at 3:30 p.m. His brother […]
Just Another Day
I sat on a stool at the kitchen counter, reviewing estate documents and setting up a Zoom meeting with my estate lawyer for early next week. The sliding door to the rear porch and backyard was still wide open. Weather permitting, opening this door is one of my first acts of the day. Then, if […]
Birthday Girl
Robyn was born in the 20th Century, the youngest of three children, and not too long before I arrived. She grew up in the big city, attended its public schools, and has a high school diploma to prove it. As I recall, her dad either owned or was employed in a neighborhood pharmacy, a place […]
Avoiding Solitude
I was in my front yard with Lola the pup when I noticed Allie, who lives in the blue house across the street, standing and looking out of her living room window. She is holding tiny Baby Etta, whom she and Drew recently welcomed back in late June, around the same time as my birthday. […]
Cat Ladies
A recent Pew poll of people of different ages who don’t have biological children (see https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2024/07/25/the-experiences-of-u-s-adults-who-dont-have-children/ 7/25/24) suggests this circumstance is more common nowadays than when I came up. I could go into detail trying to explain how my situation evolved, but why bother? Today I am seventy-three years old and don’t plan to become […]
Lola the Wonder Dog
My first contribution to this blog, entitled “Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself” (Feb. 4, 2021), concludes: “So I was left to ponder the BIG QUESTIONS: Am I destined to die alone? Why shouldn’t I get a dog?” *** The first question remains wide open. As for the second, well, I got the dog and […]
Revisiting My Past
The sun on the water is sparkling. The sky is pure blue, cloudless. It was in the mid-eighties when we departed shore. A light breeze is coming from the south. Robyn has wisely brought along a sweater today, ready for the changing weather conditions one encounters on the water. However, no sweater is needed for […]
The Getaway
I read in Forbes that 47% of working Americans won’t take a summer vacation this year “because it’s too stressful to plan a getaway.” “5 Productivity Hacks To Avoid The Summer Slump And Stay On Track,” by Bryan Robinson, Ph.D. (found at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryanrobinson/2024/07/02/5-productivity-hacks-to-avoid-thesummer-slump-and-stay-on-track/ ). While I no longer count myself among this group of Americans, […]
Goodbye, My Sweet
This past Tuesday marks four years to the day that Lee died. For years, Lee had successfully battled diverse types of cancer, and endured a host of other serious medical problems, with unusual grace and good humor. She was indefatigable and determined to beat pancreatic cancer nearly to the moment this terrible disease took her […]
On This Day…
Given that today marks my 73rd birthday, I thought it might be fun and interesting to examine a few “On this Day…” lists to take note of the significant historical events that I had assumed would coincide with it. Unfortunately, unless one has a special interest in the esoteric, say, for example, the numerous minor […]
Comfort in Numbers
I have written about the Frazier Thomas Band several times since I inherited this assignment at the beginning of 2021. Based on a local kids’ television show about a goose who thought he was the King of the United States, our band was purely a figment of our collective teenage imagination. Back then, life seems […]