Tennis, Now That's funny!

Tennis is a physically demanding, strategic and skillful sport. Running back and forth, swatting a ball, aiming correctly and putting the shot where the other player isn't and avoiding the embarrassing love thing. The sport where an athlete making love is not the desired outcome. I never could figure that thing out. What's the reasoning behind calling it love in the first place? Is tennis a French game maybe? Anyway, I am finding tennis a very humorous game of late. In the past I watched tennis matches because of the skills involved and the intensity with which it was played. It's not football or baseball or college basketball but excellent on the field of competitiveness. Clothing was always on the edge of modesty for the ladies but acceptable. The modesty thing went out the window a few years back. Being a guy I guess I can put up with it for the sake of the sport. Kind of like ice skating. Now, in recent times the players, almost collectively have decide to grunt the most annoying sounds as they whack that poor tennis ball across the net. The story goes that their trainers say that the grunting noise gives them more power.....................but some winning players don't grunt. Either way I have now come to the conclusion that if I haven't found any reason to smile on a given day, and a tennis match is being televised, That's where I turn the channel. Grunt: Whoo! Grunt: Whee! Grunt: EEEooo! Grunt: OOOeeow! Grunt UUUUhhh! You simply can't listen to that for a match without splitting a gut laughing.  That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it. Have a wonderful day and if you need a laugh you need look no further than the tennis court...

Keep on Bicycling

The trip around Lake Michigan continues, albeit very much slower than I had planned. Being flexible and altering expectations is key to ward off disappointment. On my fourth leg I rode into a steady headwind of 20mph, gusting up to 35mph. It seems that when I have time to ride the wind remains a constant. When I walked around the lake almost 50 years ago the wind was not much of a factor. As time goes on it is almost a certainty that the wind will either be coming from the side or my back. That will be a welcome relief. My lower legs and ankles are another issue. I can ride for 10 miles, even into the wind but when I stop standing without wobbling or falling down is a battle of will. I have to admit, if I was watching me walk I'd probably think I had been partaking a bit too much of the demon rum. I am determined though that whatever distance I can go on any given day, be it 2 miles or 100 miles, I will accept what it is. When I first decided to make this trip I planned to do it all at once. That is definitely not even a remote possibility due to time and other restraints. I was inspired by a lady that wrote a book about walking around the lake in short segments as her time allowed. If she could, so could I. I realized that it is either short segment trips or no trip at all. I'm good with that.

Met another cyclist named Gary. Originally from Indiana he fell in love with Michigan, it's cycling trails and just about everything else you can imagine. Interesting guy, works in food quality and testing. He was very encouraging regarding my rubbery legs even though he may have had a bit of a chuckle as I wobbled around in the parking lot at the end of my trip. One thing that got straightened out is the mileage. I've not gone quite as far as I had thought. The odometer I was using on the bike was set for another tire size and we got that adjusted so now it is very accurate. I believed I had gone 34 miles but in actuality it is 29. A little frustrating but then again something to be pleased with at the same time. My stamina and strength are improving with each mile. The next leg should bring me to the lake shore and then it's north to Grand Haven. I hope to do a little book promotion in each town if there is time. Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime is a good, fun, interesting and sometimes life changing book in the opinion of every review I've received.

That's it for right now. Today is decision day for several issues, should be enlightening to say the least.

A.L.S. Lou Gehrig's Disease

One of the most important parts of my life concerns my friendships. Not acquaintances, but the close, lasting, unconditional friendships that are a real gift. I am blessed to have several of these close friendships. Through our best and worst times my friends have stuck with me and I with them. One of those close friends will be taken off life support tomorrow, June 1st 2012. He was stricken with A.L.S. a couple years ago and has been limited to a bed for most of the time since. He has remained a friend throughout his ordeal. He has maintained a sense of humor despite the constraints of this disease. We have said our good-byes and I will not see him again in this world. That is his request.

For decades we talked about going fishing together but because of work, family and some health issues we just weren't able to get together until about 7 years ago. We finally met one early morning at a boat ramp and in his fishing boat off we went. We fished all day long! He caught his limit and most of mine. That guy was both skilled and lucky when it came to catching fish that day. I believe I caught, maybe 5 fish all day while he caught upwards of 80. Same equipment, same bait, same spot: He caught the fish I caught nothing. There was no end to my embarrassment. As far as his part, he didn't razz me or even good hearted ribbing. We simply talked about our families, work, life and those elusive fish. It was a great day and the last and only opportunity we had to fish together. But that's the way it is with friends isn't it? You share what you can and savor it for a lifetime.

This is not a eulogy or a good bye. I believe life never ends for us, it merely changes. I believe he is ready for the change and I am comforted by that. As far as my friend Don, if there are fishing holes where he is going he'll make full use of them. His wife already has the picnic lunch packed I am sure.

I hope you enjoy, savor and appreciate your friends as I have learned to do mine.

Memories

About a year or two ago a singing group called Bon Jovie introduced a song something like, "Do You want to make a memory?" I really liked that song. My head is chock full of memories from my past. Some nice, some not so nice. The song reminded me that the making of memories is a continuous process. I have friends, family and acquaintances that are stuck in the memories of the past and have kind of given up on developing new ones. Admittedly we all run it to that train of thought from time to time but the problem occurs when we languish in the past isn't it? What's that phrase about "it's a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there." I enjoy a visit into the past, I learn from it and, at least in my case my past and the mistakes I made can bring me to my knees either in laughter or in prayer for gratitude I'm still alive.

As some of you already know I spend time visiting or talking to old guys who are alone as they go through the short time they have left here on earth. Most, if not all of them are alone because of their actions in the past and they burned a lot of bridges. In my opinion, That was then and this is now so we do our best to make the lost of the time we spend together. We do that by creating new memories. Playing cards, board games, writing stories, telling a few jokes and in some cases, perhaps fabricating and reconstructing the painful memories they can't stand to bear anymore. I've found that I really don't have to say or do a whole lot other than ask a question or two and they take it from there. I have learned a few lessons regarding some rules while visiting these guys.

Rule number 1: Never bring them Raspberry Flavored Brandy for a sore throat. They just may decide to share it with their buddies and raise Cain in the old age housing project.

Rule number 2: Never turn your back on an old guy when he just lost a game of cribbage to you, he is a sore loser, and he has a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows in his hands.

Rule number 3: If a guy asks for an over the counter sleeping pill, don't bring him any. If they sleep all night they just might pee the bed.

Now those rules may seem obvious to you but I have to admit that I learned them first hand by actual experience. Memories are a continuous journey through life. The best ones are filled with laughter. I've found that when it comes to old guys the process is best dealt with when it is accompanied by huge amounts of tolerance, acceptance and forgiveness. Yeah, with old guys those things are critical.

Trivial, nonsensical pondering

I wonder about, "not so important" stuff sometimes. Not quite sure why I do it. After all, life is complicated enough without wondering about trivial details. I continue to wonder though. Back when I was a kid, Catholic nuns wore habits. A sort of uniform that covered everything except their hands and face. It must have required a great deal of discipline to wear those habits in hot weather. I wondered though in the first few weeks of Catholic school, in first grade whether the nuns had real ears like you and me. I was fortunate enough to have a much older brother who was in second grade and had attended Catholic school for two whole grades already. He straightened me out so I didn't wonder any more. Nuns did indeed have ears, but those ears were huge, strange looking and turned on swivels or something. They got those ears when they turned into a nun. I mean no disrespect to those devoted nuns, it's just the type of rumor that went around in the little kid environment of parochial school halls.

As time goes on I still wonder about things that need not concern me but the subject matter changes. For instance, when an ant eater eats ants with it's long tongue, how does it get rid of the sand in his mouth? I mean like, ants live in sand and dirt don't they? That ant eater sticks it's tongue down into the ant hole and licks out the ants. It's just got to get a rash of sand and dirt along with the ants right? If I was an ant eater I think eating sand would be a major issue wouldn't it? And another thing: When lions and tigers and wolves and bears catch and eat other animals, do they discard certain parts of the victim or do they simply indiscriminately eat the entire carcass? What determines when the carcass becomes too "spoiled" to eat? Are there any "desert" parts? Does an ant eater prefer certain ant species over others? And then there are the moles that run amok in our lawns and flower beds. Have you ever considered what they are looking for exactly besides grubs? Not necessarily something to eat mind you but whatever they find so interesting to keep them rummaging through the ground. Or, is it possible that they may find the world up top rather disgusting and repulsive? Now there is a thought that at times I may agree with what with the words displayed on t-shirts on airplanes these days. But perhaps that's something I shouldn't wonder about. It would be better to spend my time pondering just who designed the stripes on a Zebra. Yeah, there ya go...........Have a great holiday weekend.

Sleep, bad news, caffiene

That's it! I've had enough for now! Way more unnecessary news than I need to know is smeared across the media right now. From some woman breast feeding her kid standing on a stool to the dangers of eating broccolli. I need a break! There were some real advantages to the lack of world news coverage "back in the day". To make my point psychiatrists all over the world advise people not to watch, read or listen to the news at least 2 hours before retiring if they desire a good nights sleep because it can cause restlessness and nightmares. I personally believe that, at least in this case those psychiatrists know what they are talking about. Just before going to bed last night I saw a short news story and for whatever reason I drempt about related stuff all night long. Tossing and turning all throughn the night. That stupid clock at the head of the bed moved so slowly I picked it up and shook it just to make sure it wasn't broke. The dreaming, in part involved me driving my truck across someone's lawn, too close to their fence, uprooting the posts, bumping into a tree, somehow getting their utility trailer stuck to my back bumper and my spinning tires churning up their driveway and leaving a huge jagged hole as I left. Whew! What a nightmare.

My only explanation is that somehow I held that late news story in my sleep driven mind, mixed it with other junk left in there from times and experiences past and came up with a conglomeration of otherwise impossible nonsense. From what I've heard stuff like that is what stories of mind altering drugs and alcohol abuse are made of. I didn't like it one bit. I may not sleep much but I do most often enjoy a deep, restful, invigorating sleep that most people only dream about. (nice little play on words don't you think) Not ever having partaken of any of those strong, mind altering things other than too  much homemade wine once, I wondered in my groggy awakening if that was some sought by taking LSd, certain mushrooms or the infamous Pyote buttons. No thanks. I'll stick with staying away from late night news and getting my usual night of deep sleep. Now, if I can only get this pesky blog site to accept and publish this posting. Am I doing this in my sleep? Is this just another nightmare? Now that I think about it, could all of this have been caused by my three glasses of caffinated tea? Nah! It was surely the news. Right?

Gardening and life are personal

Leave my garden alone!! I don't want anyone messing with my garden, period! Stay out!

I've been gardening since I was a kid. My first ever produce, grown all by myself was a pumpkin. From then on I was hooked. Not having to rely on gardening to feed me allowed plenty of room for experimentation. My gardens have experienced varying degrees of success and failure. My worst failures have mostly resulted from crowding plants together during the planting stage. I have difficulty imagining the expansion of a plant as the growing season moves along. But, I always have hope that I did it right when each year begins. Gardening is a wonderful thing and my table has been blessed with mounds of vegetables and fruits fresh from those gardens. As a matter of fact, family, friends and neighbors have also enjoyed much of the healthy and flavorful benefits of my faithful gardening. Everyone benefits. But I want everyone to stay away from my garden.

The past couple of years some very well intended people have been offering advice and assistance to me in getting my garden in order. "Put this plant here, put that seed there, measure, fertilize, stake, weed and thin. Let me help you harvest it.You'll have a beautiful garden for once and we can all have better vegetables too." Jeez, Louise! Leave me alone, will ya? Truthfully, if I wanted a perfect garden I am totally capable of creating it. I really am! I totally appreciate the helpful folks that want to solve what they see as my problem. It's great to have people around that care about me and what I do. Wonderful as it is, I don't want their help. Let me alone when I'm in my garden. In my garden, I rule! I also accept all the consequences of my actions and decisions. My garden is my little slice of sanity in an otherwise confusing world. The government, as yet has not drawn up enough laws to mess up my gardening. I am still free to succeed or fail on my own. That's why I don't want anyone telling me what to do. It makes me feel too much like control. I don't want to be controlled or taken care of.

I enjoy the food from my garden. I grew it, for better or worse. When I have surplus, which is most of the time, I share it with everyone in sight. Many times, placing a bag of fresh goodies on someones porch anonymously so when they come home or wake up they have a tasty surprise. I like doing that. Sure, most of them know right away who put it there but usually they honor my desire to be an unknown benefactor. It's more fun that way. The people that wanted to help me out also expressed how they would help me distribute the harvest. I didn't like that either. When you give someone something from your surplus it's fun. When you are "told" to divide up the entire harvest the fun fades really fast.

That's my take on the gardening thing for today. I passed on the helpful hands offered me by caring and considerate people. I am in the midst of putting my garden together and planting shoots and seeds and fertilizing and all sorts of weeding and tilling and staking and stuffing seeds, plants and bulbs way too close together. I don't know what the harvest will be this year but I know it will be mine to do with what I want. There is a lot to be said for that feeling. As I said: "I love ya dearly but stay the heck out of my garden."