It’s Not the End

I’ve noticed that everybody uses Labor Day as some sort of line of delineation. With the beginning of a new school year coinciding with the theoretical end of summer everybody has to lament and ponder about another season passing and what it means.

I really haven’t written anything all summer….in fact my last blog post was ironically back in June when I waxed poetically about long summer days and the possibilities that meant. I even looked into the future knowing that at then end of summer I would look back and wonder where the time went. But as I look out across the yard I see the field of corn still needing to be harvested. It’s not sweet corn to be eaten but field corn to be used as feed for cattle so I know the farmer down the road will harvest it in the next month or so.

I see the hummingbirds hovering around the feeder I have out front. The feeder was a gift from a friend. We were sitting on her porch on a lazy summer evening eating pizza and drinking cold beer. We used to work together so we do this a couple of times a summer to keep in touch and reminisce about the misery and joy of our work days. We talk about other co-workers we’ve seen or never see anymore. We laugh about the stressful days we experienced and the requests from management that seem so silly now that we’ve retired. As we ate pizza I noticed the hummingbird feeder in her yard and the birds hovering and flitting around it. I may have casually mentioned the wonder of the hummingbird probably to keep the conversation going and to avoid a lull that might lead to an early end of the evening. My friend being the generous and kind soul she is showed up at my door a few days later with a hummingbird feeder and now I watch these wondrous small birds hover around my feeder. I especially notice them in the morning or just at dusk the sound of their wings thumping and catching my attention before I even see them.

A slight fog hovered over the ground this morning, the nights have become quite cool and the mornings now require a light jacket. The fog disappears quickly as the sun rises but it’s a reminder of cooler weather to come. The deer have noticed the apple and pear trees are full of fruit. A small fawn still spotted has been wandering around the yard frequently during the day alternating between the fruit trees out front and the corn field in back. Although I haven’t seen his mother I like to think she’s nearby keeping an eye on her young hungry prodigy.

My bike hangs in the garage. I keep thinking I need to clean it after the miles ridden this summer. Living on a dirt road leads to a layer of dirt covering all of it, but instead of cleaning it I’d rather ride it and clean it another day. I wonder if the very act of cleaning it symbolizes an end to my summer rides and that may be the most powerful signal of the end of something.

It’s not a calendar that declares an end but the act of doing or not doing an activity, so no summer is not over, there’s still so much to do and enjoy. Although the mornings are cool and the fruit trees are drooping with fruit and the corn needs to be harvested and yes kids are back to school, it’s the small gentle hummingbird flitting about that remind me to get out and take advantage of these precious days and perhaps it’s time I call my friend and eat pizza on her porch again.

Peace and Love,

John

A New Favorite

I was out on my morning walk today and I glanced at the sky. Usually when I’m on my morning walk I see the sun rise if it’s not obscured by the gloom of a mid-west day or the haze of smoke….I’m looking at you Canada. I often catch the sun just peeking over the horizon and many times I stop and take a picture. It’s interesting to see the different sunrises throughout the year. I’ll look back on the pictures and notice that sometimes it rises over the road but a month later it’s in the field across the way and next month perhaps it’s over by the neighbors barn. What struck me today was that I totally missed sunrise, in fact I’ve missed it for the past couple of weeks.

Now before you accuse me of sleeping in and enjoying extra time under the covers, let me assure you that I’m up at literally the same time every day. A son that’s out the door before 6 and a wife getting ready for work doesn’t exactly create a environment conducive for sleeping in. Add in the fact that as the weather has gotten nicer and the windows are open and I can hear traffic on our road and let’s just say that I’m up before the sun.

But as I noticed the sun this morning, I realized I probably haven’t been up before the sun lately. The sun was already high in the sky, really high and it struck me that June just might be my new favorite month.

Ah June, you temptress, you beguile us with your long days, pleasant weather and mild humidity. The promise of summer stretches before us with endless possibilities. Picnics, days at the beach, romping barefoot thru the grass, cool drinks with ice melting and clinking to the bottom of the glass, bike rides and hikes in tree covered woods….these all seem possible in June with a endless summer before us. July and August quickly become oppressive with your heat and humidity, we close windows and click on air conditioners hiding in the cool comfort of a modern climate controlled environment.

But it is June that the longest days are to be enjoyed, the bugs haven’t yet figured out I’m a walking blood bank to be swarmed at first sight or smell. Yes I know, I’ll probably write a blog post at the end of summer lamenting that I didn’t do nearly all the activities that I planned for the summer and I’ll ponder where the time escaped to, but for now I’ll be up early, maybe not to see the sunrise, but still early and I’ll enjoy the long days, mild temperatures and enjoy the possibilities that June brings

Peace and Love,

John

Wait, I Do Have to be Worried About That ?

As a kid growing up in the 70’s there were certain things we were bombarded by. Alien abduction, BigFoot sightings, TV shows that had one or more car chase scenes ending in a fiery crash. These were all items I was certain I would have to deal with as an adult.

I soon realized as I grew into adulthood that I probably would never encounter any of these situations. Now that we all have cameras in our pockets the amount of BigFoot sightings and alien abductions seems to have decreased significantly. Perhaps BigFoot really is camera shy and aliens having studied humans for awhile have moved on determining there’s really not much intelligent life here on earth. And even though there are police chases everyday and some do end in crashes there are very few that end in explosions engulfing the vehicle in flames and I learned long ago not to be involved in that type of situation.

But there was one situation I was certain I would have to deal with as an adult but up to this point I had not encountered it myself or even heard about it happening to others and that my friends is ………quicksand.

TV shows in the 70’s used quicksand a surprisingly inordinate amount of times as a relatively harmless way to present a dangerous situation without all the blood and guts and gore of say an animal attack or gunshot injury. Quicksand was a sudden but painless way to endanger a TV or movie star. Thankfully in all the TV or movies that I saw that used this technique there was always a friend and absolutely always strong vines around to pull the entrapped person from the quicksand. After watching countless shows that used quicksand I became convinced that quicksand was a hazard to be aware of on any hike or adventure into the wild and that quicksand could be anywhere.

As I grew into adulthood and ventured out into the world I realized I probably would not actually encounter quicksand either because I wasn’t hiking in jungles or that quicksand really wasn’t a thing. So imagine my surprise at a headline I saw recently in my local paper that described a situation of a man entrapped up to his waist in quicksand having to be rescued by first responders. At first I thought that my paper in an attempt to boost readership was starting a type of section devoted to parody or humorous but not real news story’s. But thankfully there was a picture to provide visual proof that this wasn’t fake, yes a picture of a man at the beach on the shoreline sunk in sand up to his waist. Apparently the man and his girlfriend had been searching for unique rocks along the shoreline when he quickly sank to his waist. His panicked and horrified girlfriend was able to call first responders who were able to attach a life vest and rope but still had to dig around the man for about 20 minutes before they could extract him.

It was surmised that some recent dredging of that area had resulted in this dangerous situation of soft sand, but the man and his girlfriend enjoyed a hearty laugh after it was over.

Although I don’t think I’ll be losing any sleep over the fact that quicksand is real and evidently close by I am once again pondering those situations that first appeared to me as a kid. I’ve got my eyes out for BigFoot and aliens flying spaceships looking to abduct and study humans and beware I’ll have my camera at the ready to provide proof as I look into the night sky as long as I don’t stumble into quicksand.

Peace and Love,

John

How About a Walk

Daily writing prompt

What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like?

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Some days getting out of bed seems difficult. It’s too cold, too dark, too early and the demands of the day feel far too overwhelming. Who amongst us hasn’t contemplated burying themselves deeper under the blankets, pulling them over our head and wishing we could stay there forever or at least until the sun comes out. But we know the longer we stay hidden under the blankets the further we fall behind in our daily responsibilities…..ugh, responsibilities….those things that people count on you to do. If only there were less responsibilities and more time wrapped in blankets dozing in that early morning slumber.

One way to trick myself to get up and moving is to begin the day with a morning walk. I do this even though I realize that I’m getting up earlier than I need to and I’m robbing myself of extra sleep under a warm comforter, but I feel it’s worth it. Living in the mid-west can make these early morning walks difficult and far less appealing than in a warmer climate. Depending on the time of year it’s still dark and cold, and the moon still glows reminding me that perhaps I’m foolish to be out so early. But with my earbuds in my ears and a winter hat covering my head plus enough layers to stay warm I set out to begin my day.

I find it fascinating to see the my neighborhood at this unique time, night drifting away and morning slowly announcing her arrival. I’ve seen deer browsing through our apple trees eating the fallen apples off the ground and even standing on their hind legs plucking them off the trees. They graze uninterrupted until they sense my presence, they freeze and stare at me for a brief moment and then silently hurry away bounding at an astonishing speed. Other nocturnal creatures scurry away as morning approaches like vampires avoiding daylight.

The birds are the first thing I usually notice, especially in the warmer months chirping and singing a beautiful natural wake up to the world. The singing of the birds means that sunrise is not far behind. Frequently as night disappears into daylight the sky is streaked in a mosaic of colors so wonderful I usually stop and appreciate the beauty before me as if standing before a work of art hanging in a museum, but this is a work of art I’m part of as it surrounds me and with it a new day presenting opportunities and possibilities that are endless.

Could I have these same feelings while burrowed under my comforter dozing in a morning slumber….probably not, and I find that my morning walk gets me going and feeling a positive vibe. I’m more likely to accomplish more if I begin the day with a walk although I have discovered that the morning nap after the morning walk is quite a wonderful feeling too.

Peace and Love,

John

Gimme A Break

Daily writing prompt

Do you need a break? From what?

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If only it was so easy to just have a break. I think we could all use a break from something. Work would rank high on the list of what people would like a break from. Then there are other obligations and commitments that can be overwhelming at times. Taking care of a sick or elderly family member can be both physically and mentally draining. Other times it’s just the drudgery of everyday tasks that we long to escape from. As I sit here looking out my sunroom window I realize I just want a break from winter.

Most years I try to fully embrace winter. I always say there’s no such thing as bad weather just bad clothing choices. As someone who worked outside for most of my career I got used to all kinds of weather. The heat of summer, the damp rains of fall and yes even the snowy clutches of winter. I also enjoy winter activities like skiing or a winter hike on a crisp, raw day. But I’ve come to realize that I really only enjoy those activities if the the sun is shining. So perhaps it’s not winter I need a break from but the gray drabness of it that accompanies winter in the midwest.

I swear we can go a week without seeing the sun. We get up each day in darkness, soon the darkness fades to reveal an endless gray sky and a landscape covered in snow. Everything looks the same and only two colors dominate our vision, gray and the white of snow. I feel like I’m living in my own black and white film.

And because it’s only the beginning of February I know there are still weeks of this bleakness. On gray overcast days I just want to stay inside and hibernate with some soup simmering on the stove and a book that takes me away from my existence. I wouldn’t mind winter if only we had more sunshine.

So yes, I’ll gladly take a break from the depths of winters cold grip and gray drabness and as soon as a sunny day comes along I’ll be out there enjoying it no matter the temperature.

Peace and Love,

John

There’s a Smell….

As I logged on and quickly scanned the headline page I decided to veer off in another direction, like when your on a road trip and you take an unexpected side trip to some goofy attraction that you’ve seen billboards for.

My attention was piqued by a story about an rare plant that emits a foul odor. The plant known as the corpse flower or bunga bangkai is located in a greenhouse in Sydney Australia. The rare instances when it does bloom it emits a putrid smell described as either rotting flesh, garbage or smelly gym socks. Just typing those words causes me to conjure up those smells. If you’ve ever had a teenage boy then I’m sure you’ve experienced the awful smell of socks and shoes, and well who hasn’t gotten close to a dumpster in the middle of summer.

Despite the odor this plant has become a veritable rock star if you will. Thousands of people are lining up to witness or perhaps more likely to smell its presence. In anticipation of the crowds the greenhouse has rolled out the red carpet, no really there is a red carpet for visitors to walk on. The plant is now surrounded by a red velvet rope with a gentle mist and constant temperature enveloping it. Everyday is a spa day for this plant………we should all be so lucky to be occasionally surrounded by a velvet rope with a gentle mist cooling us. Fans visiting the greenhouse have affectionately named the plant Putricia and her followers call themselves Putricians.

Perhaps she deserves this fame as no corpse flower has bloomed at this greenhouse in 15 years. Fans are taking selfies (of course they are) and leaning in for a sniff, and if you can’t make it to Australia this weekend well don’t worry there’s a 24/7 live stream to witness the historic event. As one fan noted….. “I’m sickened and I’m awed”……kinda how I felt smelling my teenage sons gym shoes or when I scan the headlines.

Peace and Love

John

So Many to Read, So Little Time

Daily writing prompt

What books do you want to read?

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For the last few years I’ve been keeping track of the books I’ve read. Each year I try to read more than the previous year. This past year I read 17 books….. I believe that’s the most I’ve read in a year but I know it pales in comparison to some people, my wife is a voracious reader who can easily read 1 or even 2 books a week.

I like to to keep track of what I’ve read to see if I’m perhaps reading too much of a certain author or genre. I enjoy reading John Grisham books and each year I seem to read 1 or 2. Either he comes out with a new one or I find a title I haven’t read at my local library. I recently found one at the library that I hadn’t read. The story revolved around the theft of the F. Scott Fitzgerald manuscripts from the Princeton library. It got me thinking that I never read any other works by Fitzgerald except Gatsby. It took me multiple readings of Gatsby to truly appreciate it. I was always hung up on the idea that it was just a story of the rich and privileged doing awful things and not being held accountable. Even though Gatsby is hung up on his high school crush it’s still a story of love and loss. I read that Gatsby wasn’t even a big success when it was written and Fitzgerald was bankrupt and so desperate for money and recognition that he was writing screen plays in Hollywood when he died. I think I’ll read more Fitzgerald this year to see if his other story’s are as good as Gatsby.

I’ve always been fascinated with Hemingway. He himself cultivated an image of a man who could drink more, write better, out fight and out womanize anyone else. As with a lot of mythology some of this is true and some of it is pure fiction, but the man could write. Not everything he wrote stands the test of time and some of his subjects are just plain puzzling nowadays, his fascination with bullfighting and traveling around Europe as part of “the lost generation” seems odd. His personal life may have been as tragic as the characters in his books but some of those books are pure genius. The subjects of love, loss and death permeate his great works and I think I’ll continue to read as much of his work as I can.

Being a sports fan I could easily spend a whole year reading nothing but sports books especially baseball. I think of all the sports, baseball is the sport that has the most books about it, perhaps it’s the history and tradition of the game or maybe just the simple pace and day to day nature of it but I do enjoy a baseball book during the long, dark, cold winter months. Reading a baseball book in the winter gives me something to look forward to as the seasons eventually change.

I read somewhere that the best story’s are about baseball, running and horses. Maybe it’s the solitary nature of running, the lyrical day to day grind of baseball and the simple beauty of a horse but I have read great books about all 3 of those subjects. But there are great story’s everywhere…..go find a book and read it

Peace and Love,

John

Curled up in a Corner

Daily writing prompt

What is your favorite animal?

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I’ve always thought it was unfair to label someone a “dog person” or a “cat person.” If you love animals enough to provide a loving home to one, then you probably love all types of animals. Sometimes people have a preference, they grew up with a dog or a cat or perhaps a horse or goat and they have fond memories of that animal.

My wife and I have had a dog and a cat, and although they never did really get along we loved them both. They carved out a spot in our hearts much like they carved out an existence in our home while ignoring the other. We gave them love and they returned it. We played with them, took them on walks, the dog we took on walks, cuddled with them, shared the couch and bed with them and put up with their midnight ramblings and early morning wake-ups.

If I had to pick a favorite…. I would choose a cat. Growing up we had a cat in our family. She lived a long time and like any pet became part of the family. We lived out in the country and during warm summer nights she would stay out all night carousing around the neighborhood, at least that’s what I like to believe she was doing. Quite frequently she would be out hunting….usually at least once a week our lovable cat would leave the carcass of a small critter on the front porch in a proud display as if saying “look what I have brought you, now shower me with love and adulation.”

Mice, birds, rabbits all were left bloody and in some cases decapitated on the front porch. This required a thorough clean-up and scrubbing of the porch, usually by my irritated mother……how us kids got out of that I’ll never know. Mom would sometimes scold the cat as she was scrubbing the porch but the cat usually sat there with an imperious look on her face confused why the gift wasn’t lovingly received. Then she would disappear the rest of the day sleeping a restful slumber until the next night.

Cats have this amazing ability to show no remorse, guilt or even understand why you might be upset. They strut about ignoring everyone, demanding to be fed at odd hours and then curl up and sleep for most of the day indignant if awakened before they have achieved at least 20 consecutive hours of sleep.

I wish I had the confidence of a cat, but I’m frequently empathetic to others and often guilt stricken from doing or not doing something. I always say I have the personality of a cat…..I’ll probably ignore you most of the time, not because I don’t like you but I’d rather just be doing my own thing hidden away in a corner. If I need something I’ll let you know and if you need something from me I’ll always be there……now if only I could sleep as much as a cat, that would be glorious

Take care or your pets….

Peace

John

Play More

Daily writing prompt

Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?

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It’s not just me but I don’t think alot of people spend time “playing.”

I find it strange to drive around neighborhoods and see very few kids outside playing. I was fortunate that I grew up in a neighborhood where there was other kids my age to hang out with. We’d ride our bikes up and down the street seeing who else was outside and if there was enough of us we’d decide to do something. Sometimes there was enough of us to organize a game of some kind. We might play for hours or until one of us was called home, and when I mean called home it wasn’t our parents calling us on a cell phone it was usually Mom yelling down the street to get home or another Mom coming by and passing along a message from your Mom.

That’s how communication worked back then in neighborhoods, every Mom knew the other Mom’s and they all seemed to know each other’s phone number and even if my Mom didn’t know where I was it could be quickly determined where all the kids were hanging out by the Mom’s telephone network.

Sometimes the game we were playing devolved quickly due to arguing about the fairness of the teams or some rule interpretation but we’d do it all again the next day and the best thing was that it was all organized by us kids. There were no parents around to make every game an ultra-organized affair, in fact when a parent did get involved it was very awkward and I think most of us kids were thinking the same thing…..

“just leave us alone to figure it out”…….and usually we did

I’m not sure kids today have enough free time for play. Parents have over-scheduled organized activities for their kids that keep them busy all the time. We all know the parents who are constantly shuttling kids from soccer to dance to piano to karate to robotics to computer coding camp and on and on and on…….

As I grow older I find myself wanting to play more…..perhaps it’s just me trying to recall my youth or I realize that too much time is spent working or taking care of everyday life tasks like taking the car for an oil change or cleaning the leaves out of the gutters. Of course there are ways for adults to play……pickleball seems to be wildly popular and golf is always an activity that adults can enjoy as they age but I find myself wanting to walk more, ride my bike more, go on hikes.

A couple of years ago I bought a kite and on a perfectly windy spring day I flew my kite……I ran with it and launched it and watched as it caught the wind and climbed higher as I released more string. I watched the kite dance on the breeze dipping and swirling, often I had to pull quickly on the string to prevent a full nose dive….it was exhilarating in ways that are hard to describe……yes I felt like a kid again wanting the kite to stay aloft and hoping the string was strong enough and wouldn’t break in the spring breeze. Neighbors driving by were probably perplexed to see me standing there flying a kite but it was joyful and quite frankly I didn’t care what they thought….they might even have been jealous or not, it didn’t matter because as a kid it didn’t matter what other’s thought when you were playing, all that matter was that you were doing it and doing is much better than not doing and besides I’m not ready for pickleball

Peace and Love

John

Reflections

I woke up today to a new year, but as I look out my window it looks alot like the old one…..gray, cold and wet. The new year always causes me to reflect back on the previous 12 months and try to determine what the year meant.

There were alot of changes, big and small. Some good some bad. Thinking back to other years I could probably say the same at the conclusion of each year….changes……good….bad…..typically the good ones we think fondly of and the bad ones really weren’t as bad as we thought.

The year was highlighted, or perhaps low-lighted, by a job change. For some reason the universe decided to put a little bump in the road as my career winds down. Certainly new opportunities await me, but in what direction ? Is it now time to get off the corporate treadmill and chase a passion ?

There were other events happening in the past year, most of them enjoyable. Time spent with family and friends laughing and sharing experience’s, time spent traveling and exploring, new places visited and some old favorites gone back to.

I hope the new year brings new opportunities that are rewarding, more time spent with loved ones, more adventures to be found.

The universe works in mysterious ways….as I was completing my last workout of 2024 I was placing a pair of dumb-bells back on my basement floor when I felt a slight twinge in my back……yup one last reminder of the year that was, a pulled back muscle to end the year…..I hope 2025 is just a little bit better

Peace and Love,

John