Take me home, country road...

Home.  What better?

Home is where the heart is..

The English word “home” is from the Old English word hām (not the pig) which actually refers to a village or estate where many “souls” are gathered. It implies there’s a physical dwelling involved, but the main idea is that it’s a gathering of people. 

You can have ham at home, but a pigs home is a sty, not a ham. Ohm-hey is PigLatin for home.  Dig?

I love a parade, but I love home better. There are 125 words containing the word home, with the largest two containing 15 letters: psychometrician and homeopathically and neither one ain''t got nuttin' to do with home.

Home is where you cry (first).  Well, before that, it's where you're made (Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah and they ain't exactly strummin' on the ole banjo.)

Where's your home? Oh, it's 449 Miller.  No, no, no, I mean what town?

Home is where we stay mostly still for one-third of our life. Home is yummy, sleep on it.

It could be a bungalow, apartment, house, castle, cottage, villa, multi-family residential, mobile home, igloo, lean-to, yurt, tree house or townhouse, and I'm sure I've missed one or two. (I didn't know either, a yurt is a portable, round tent covered with skins or felt and used as a home.)

Country roads won't necessarily take one home.  Sweet home Alabama ain't for everyone. It ain't necessarily the green, green, grass of home, exceptin' for that one anal guy down the street - makes us all look bad.  The deer and the antelope may play, but not in Chicago cause the houses there are so close there ain't room for a fat man to walk 'tween 'em.

Home is where you can run around in your skivvies, wear a polka dot top with striped pants, wear socks that don't match, and of course you can take your bra off. In fact, I never wear one.

Some folks live for years, years and years in the same home. Some old farts even live in the home where they grew up. If you're in the military, home is kinda like a game of pong.. over here, over there, to there, and there -you get the drift, they ain't got no roots.

Home is a piece of us. We have an affinity for our home. Our hometown. Some, resemble a quilt in that they've lived in several homes in different places, and they too carry a piece of each home in their heart.

Homework is a pain in the butt when yer a kid - and as an adult it's a necessity. It's also a place of relaxation, reflection, rehabilitation, rest, and lotta other words that start with re.

We wear carpets out, make wood floors creaky, ugly up the painted walls over time - even haveta chop down trees that got too damn big occasionally. Still, a fondness.

Family.  One thinks of family when thinking of home.  We only grow up once in our lives...well, some of us ain't there yet, but that's ok... kid at heart works.

I like driving past previous homes.  Let's see, I lived with that girl there, this one with that one, over here with.. VICTOR!  Sorry, it's my life and I'll do what I want (at least until they boot me! Again, we are a piece of every place we've lived.)

We can be homesick.  We can be sick at home, or we can be sick of our home, all three can happen.

One of my favorite 'home' stories was from Bill Cosby (hey, I heard it before we knew his real make up - and back then he was funny.) He had the honor of speaking at his daughter's college graduation.  Speech, pictures, tears of happiness.  They get in their cars to leave. Bill turns right off of the Interstate.  Daughter turns right.  Bill turns left on Clancy Street.  Daughter turns left of Clancy Street.  He make a few more turns, notices daughter in the rear view mirror with each and every turn.  Finally he pulls over.  She pulls in behind him.  "Where are you going?" he asks.. "Well I'm going home.".. Bill asks "Is that somewhere near where we live?"  It is, can be the day and age of the 30-something sleeping until noon and playing video games until 4 in the morning in his parent's basement.

Flying the coup can be difficult, interesting, yummy, scary - all of the above, or all the words to the left.

We who have a home are blessed and I mean that.  I think we've all seen those who don't and it's a really, really sad thing.  I'll never forget taking my son to work a few years ago in downtown Kansas City.. it was 20-something degrees.. just before where I let him off there is a parking garage.. on the first level we could see a person asleep on the concrete.  One wonders, how, why, what happened, where's family, all.  Again, we are blessed.

Why don't you stay-ay-ay, just a little bit longer..

At the birth of the year 2020, the baby slapped the doctor. It's been a year.  We are told "STAY HOME."  Many react in different ways. I can understand feeling controlled, couped up, stir crazy.

Me? I like home.  Of course Barbara, I too would love to return to The Way We Were.- but it just ain't fauciable, er, feasible today.

"Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to."  Ain't sure who said it, but they're correct - at least for me.

In the midst of a pandemic, home ain't a bad place to be.

I hope where you hang your hat is happy,

Love,Victurd

Someone once said "Have a nice day".....................

 Their orate didn't come with no 'structions... so, rather than run to Library, Dewey Decimal System - I Googled,"How to have a nice day":

Apparently, 'make a list' is number one, cause I found lists containing 5, 7, 10, 13, 20, 50 & 100 suggestions/ideas on how to have a nice day.

This whole damn blog is stolen, that said, here are a few of my favorites I found.

Make your bed and pickup around you every morning.  OK, I lied, this is me talking, the idea stolen, but my input here.  I think this is HUGE.  I think we've all had a teenie tiny case of depression - and from what I've found, it includes NOT picking up, and worrying about it tenfold - so, me likes this idea.  Whether I can/will do it, another story.

Place something on your nightstand that makes you smile.

Watch a sunrise and or sunset.

Play music, including your favorite song.

Have good coffee and a delicious breakfast. (Not every 'rule' fits all, but me likes this one.  I LOVE coffee, breakfast.)

Start a blog, ha.

Let go of guilt.

Do something nice for someone else.

Wake up, think "I, not events, have the power to make me have a happy or unhappy day."

Smile to a stranger. Howinthehell will they know today?  I just ordered two smiley face masks.

Plan downtime.

Spend time with a love one.

Play wth your kids (grandkids.)

Close your eyes and breathe deeply.

Each list had exercise on it, so, reckon we should if we must.

Stretch.

Take breaks.

That's enough for now, but researching this has helped me, hope it helps you too..

Love, Victurd

Hide and seek (good)...

 A hospital in Barcelona has been taking recovering Covid-19 patients across the street to admire the views of the beach. Isidre Correa went into Intensive Care on April 14, came out today to begin his recovery, BUT FIRST, sand, sun and sea!

Paola Agnelli and Michele D'Alpaos live in Verona, Italy - the City of Romeo and Juliet and their love story, like Shakespeare's play, involves a balcony.  In February, the beginning of the lockdown in Italy, they noticed one another across the way... looked each other up on social media - messaged ever since and anxiously await their first real date in person!

B..I..N..G..O...  Residents of The Enclave at Round Rock Senior Living have frequent Bingo nights. Their goal was to have a celebrity host, thus, last September (2019) they sent a request to Matthew McConaughey for same.. During the pandemic, McConaughey had the time and ability to do so. With the assistance of Enclave team members, McConaughey, his mother and his wife virtually joined residents for several rounds of bingo with each of the family members calling out the draws.  Bingo winners then got to ask McConaughey a question for him to answer... 

With everyone wearing a mask, imagine the dismay to the deaf and hard of hearing who rely on lip reading for life in general, but more specifically when they go to visit their doctor. Eastern Kentucky college senior Ashley Lawrence - who majors in deaf education - went to Facebook posting two designs of masks, both with transparent screens around the mouth. Good news good news.  Many requested masks, many volunteered to make them!

Making lemonade from lemons - bassackwardly, the pandemic has helped the world's environment.  Scrapped flights, a surplus of crude oil- sitting idle in oil tank rail cars with nowhere to take them boosted a positive into the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. The waters of Venice are now clear, lions lounge on roads normally frequented by safari-goers in South Africa and bears and coyotes wander around in empty accomodation in Yosemite national park in California.

Commnunity spirit maybe never better.  Folks picking up prescriptions, groceries for elderly friends, loved ones. Concerts, singalongs from balconies.. essential workers finally gaining the recognition they've deserved.. Fitbit reports people are getting an average of 17 more minutes of sleep per night!..Many working from home - money saved, not to mention being able to lounge in PJ's all day!.. With the natural surge in internet usage, tech companies are making improvements, installing more servers, data caps are being cut, and mobil data packages have been made cheaper - or even free - providing easier entertainment than ever, despite being stuck at home.

 “I always like to look on the optimistic side of life, but I am realistic enough to know that life is a complex matter.”

— Walt Disney

Training wheels off, circa late 1950's, early to mid '60's...

(Tis a blog about the late 50's, early to mid 60's, life in Liberty, or wherever USA.. don't feel obligated.. follow SnagglePuss left if no interest, or, scroll thru Facebook and jump in some dandy Trump-Biden argument!)

Not too long after graduating from the Big Chief Tablet to lined notebook paper - the coming of age to take the training wheels off happened.  How?  When?

So, I Googled "At what age do kiddos normally take the training wheels off their bike?"..  The top answer was age 5, but of course, some before that, some after that. Regardless, our brains weren't ripe so most of this blog would be nonsensical to a 5-7 year old snotnose.

Gosh do you remember though?  An eerie feeling... I personally was not the Little Engine That Could (I think I can, I think I can)...  I was seven colors of red scared.  Matched my red bike and red hair.  About all I could remember thinking about was the night my folks let me stay up late enough to watch Johnny Carson, and he had footage of those birds that took off, but had no idea how to land.  That, was me. And, I think about anyone that first time. Taught muscles.. balance hiccupping from the right side to the left side.. a bit like a 707 that takes forever to get off the ground... 

And, if memory serves - that's kinda what it felt like - flying.  I remember being too scared to smile, very worried about eventually 'landing' on the sidewalk insteada the grass.. 

"That's one small pedal for (little) man, one giant roll for (little) mankind.  Or girlkind."  The freedom of being able to ultimately navigate a bike, ranks up there with crawling.. then walking.. then running.. then walking to school alone.. to.. "hand over the car keys, please"..  to love and marriage and a baby carriage - and the cycle repeats.

At that age, I was pretty much a simpleton.  No idea of the events occurring in our land in in our world (and atmosphere and beyond atmosphere)...  Seems though - there was a lot going on... 

Castro begins his long reign.. a 24 yr old Dalai Lama and tens of thousands of Tibetans fled no no Lhasa to the safe haven of India.

Danger danger warning warning Will Robinson (which, actualy hadn't happened yet.. that show premiered in 1965) - BUT..  THIS GOOFY BLOG AIN'T GONNA BE FUNNY - it's more about "back then."  Ahm, Victor, whomever, or is it whoever, said your blogs were funny?  Bite me Tom Terrific-breath.

Long about this era Khrushchev (Pat, I'd like to buy a vowel) replaced Stalin.  Maybe a tad better, but then again we practiced hiding under our desks with our hands over our heads at least once a week. Kinda sorta, I guess like "you should no likey Excelsior Springs because of our annual football game to see who wins the Dueling Pistols"..  it was ingrained to no likey the Ruskies.  They'd do evil things like beat us to the punch on the first man to leave the earth's atmosphere - and athletics back then were serious battles between our two countries.  In fact, I remember reading (much later, when I learned to read) once we beat Russia in some team event for the Gold in the Winter Olympics.. the Russian newspaper headline was "US finishes next to last, Russia Second Place!" Bad! Bad Boris and Natasha!

I remember HOW HUGE a thing Space was back then.  We'd draw spacecrafts/capsules with US flags on our notebooks: Pioneer... Gemini.. Mercury.. shortly after Russia's space success. we launched the Pioneer 4 Spacecraft - and it's claim to fame was closer to the moon (37,000 miles away) that any craft had ever been.  Here we are, 2020, that spacecraft is still in solar orbit!

We too put dudes on spacecrafts... our first astronauts, "The Mercury 7" included 3 Navy aviators, 3 from the Air Force and one from the Marines. Names like Alan Shephard (our first person in outer space) and John Glenn (the first to orbit the earth)... 

This is boring, spiff it up some Victor.  OK, since it's 2020, let's revisit a TV show from the day, The Twilight Zone.. Rod Serling led us on many a sci-fi, supernatural mystery, and how many fellow bike without training wheels friends remember any stars to come from this show?  Well, howabout Ron Howard, Dennis Hopper, Robert Redford and William Shatner!

Twas hard, initially, to bike and sing.. but meanwhile, The Grammys happened for the first time..  Rodgers and Hammerstein's last musical,  The Sound of Music opened on Broadway...   Did you have wanna those huge stereo consoles in your house?  The singer (he liked to think) in our household was dad.. many a night I remember him standing at the stove singing Mack the Knife.. Seems it was a happy era.. Kansas City (the song was huge) and who didn't like the beat of Ray's "What'd I Say?"

Whilst us boy youngsters toted Rin Tin Tin or Huckleberry Hound metal lunchboxes, girls Barbie or Candy Land boxes, and it was a thing for them (and women) to wear hats...

Our folks had been thru both the Depression and World War II.. I remember hearing "we were poor and didn't know it." Finally, economic times seemed very promising, hence adding to the happiness of the era..  Big ole companies like Western Electric, GE, RCA and Philco emerged..   73% of us went to church.. 

Perhaps an omen to our one day hippy/rebellious attitudes, Art Linkletter' "Kids Say The Darndest Things" book was a biggie..  Coffee shop folk music was the scene.. Bob Dylan.. Joan Baez.. ..Peter, Paul and Mary. .The Kingston Trio... Witness more future 'rebellion'!  Those of us that got around the dodge ball circle, danced and sang Chubby Checker's "The Twist"...I don't remember if we visited Mrs. Weakley (the principal) but I do remember us getting in trouble/shutdown the very first time it happened! Sadly, this era included "The day, the music died" in  the plane crash in Iowa that took the lives of Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper.

Since we couldn't do that (Do The Twist), some of us would go to the monkey bars, we'd climb a rope, hop on the merry-go-round, or.. chase girls.. we really didn't know why we chased girls, and we never knew what we'd do if we did catch ''em, but, twas a thing many a little boy did.

Once we got practiced (and maybe a tad bit older) mom would let us trek that bike across town (safely) and the folks didn't have to worry about us ending up on a milk carton. We could usually stay out until the street lights came on.. playing games like Hop Scotch,  Hill Dill, Red Light Green Light, Kick the Can, Hide and Go seek.... We'd catch (or try to catch) crawdads..  Dad might take us to a pond to fish..The bottoms of our feet pretty much stayed filthy all day. We'd play fetch with our hounds.. back then, just like us once we got our training wheels off, dogs were free to go anywhere/everywhere.  Occasionally that was a problem.. I valued my hiney, and I remember many times barely making it to our screened in porch before the meanest dog on the block took a chunk outtta my rear end.

Our games were simple, sometimes even homemade (two cans with a string, our 'walkie talkies'.. old roller skats screwed onto the bottom of a cutout piece of plywood, and off to skateboard we'd go)..   Play Doh.. Silly Putty.. Slinky.. Pogo Sticks, Hula Hoops.. we liked the smell of those rolled caps we stuck in our cap guns.. the girls would buy and 'wear' those big ole wax candy red lip thingys..  Inside, we had Lincoln Logs, Tinker Toys, our 'tablet-iPhone  of the day was the Etch-a-Scetch.  The girls had paper dolls.. and on a lucky day, mom would make ice cream using the old crank thingy to do so.

Again, once riding a bike was cinchy, the girls would get streamers that would stick out of the end of the handlebars.. we boys would use a clothespin and a baseball card affixed to our bike so we'd make a motor noise.. and the rich kid on the block even had a bell on his bike.  

We were too young to have jobs, so about the only way we could make money was to save up until we had 6 empty pop bottles, somehow strap 'em on the bike (Or put them in our wagon and walk), and off to Safeway we'd go for the 2 cents apiece we'd get for returning them.  Come to think of it, our very next chapter might be "coming of age to gain parental confidence we wouldn't cut off our toes if we mowed the yard."  9-ish? 10-ish? The sad, but fun at that time, beginning to a lifetime of manual labor, be it at work, or, in working on our homes once we're old enough to have a home.

During the week, mom and dad usually picked the shows - but quite frankly, we enjoyed watching them with them and our sibs.. We actually mostly got along!  Saturday mornings, however, WE KIDDOS controlled the TV's!  Lassie, Dennis the Menace, The Mickey Mouse Club, Huckleberry Hound, Tom and Jerry.. Bugs Bunny.. and Heh-Heh-Heh-HEHHH-Heh, The Woody Woodpecker. My own personal fav was Captain Kangaroo.. who could forget Mr. Green Jeans, Mr. Bunny Rabbit, Mr. Moose and the Dancing Bear!

Treats were trips to grannies.. maybe even occasionally spending the night in a motel WITH a pool!..(Thanks to an Atlas the size of Rhode Island to help us find our way.).. Travel got easier in this era as the Interstate came to fore.. As the crow flies versus over the river and thru the woods, up the hills, round the curbs, passing 'when ya can', whenya find a passing lane...  Drive Inn Movies were a treat.. ..  Long about this era was the dawning of fake Christmas trees.  Patooey.  Thankfully, grandpa always drove to the country to pick out a fine, fine cedar tree. We'd adorn it with stringed popcorn, some electric lights, and we even had somea those bubble light filled with liquid that would glow. There was a spirit about town at Christmas.  Our already in a good mood was even gooder.  Folks decorated outside, families did, together.  It was special to take a drive to the Big City to see the humongous Christmas decorations downtown.. 

Some homes could afford window unit AC's (AC for the entire house didn't happen until around 1970.. most of us had fans in the window.. we all had that one uncle that would stick his thumbnail on the metal fan to make a horrendous noise that caused rolled eyes by our mom and our aunts.. 

It was a wonderful age, era.  Wide eyed, in total awe of life, our folks and new things in our lives.  Good friends.  Loving relatives. No hustle bustle, hurry up.  We've been verbally communicating for a few years now.  We are starting to reason. Simple, but wonderful.

Love, Victurd

In the beginning...

 I like to write. Sorry, not sorry.  Turn left, you no likey to read.

The thought when I sat down was to write a book.  That's a joke son, as most of my writing junk is thanks to plagiarism, and the joke might be on you because sometimes (not often, but sometimes) you laugh.  Laughter is a goal.  Remember?  Today: Pandemic. Russia.  North Korea.  Those Middle East places of conflict. Fake News. Raging Facebook arguments. Mask, no mask, Fauci Rocks, Fauci Sucks, you get the idea. We're in Liberty, we needs levity.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, Chapter One, 1952 (or thereabouts 'back in the day' if you're close in age.)

I sat down, Googled a buncha stuff about back then. I have an entire 8 and 1/2 by 11 sheet of notebook paper with my horrible writing allover it.  I'll try to cipher best I can.

Birth.  There were many of us back then.  The War was over, the economic prospectus was good, folks doinked, kids were born. Baby Boomers they call us.

Most of us during that time suffered immensely from repeated but unintentional diaper pin sticks.  Cloth diapers, yuck.  If ya had a load (sorry) the diaper would sink to your ankles.  Worse, they were probably hand me downs from your brother, or yet even worse, your sister.  Not only did they pin prick us, they had the gall, once we were dressed and ready to go, to stick us on the bench seat of the station wagon sans seatbelt ('cause they weren't invented yet.)  I'm still here, you're still here, WHEW!

It didn't take long once all the maternity wards started filling up for folks to think "Holy crap, what was I thinking?" - Thus, this was the year "The Pill" was invented.

We were lucky. Two outta three of our moms stayed at home with us, and after peeking at the annual wages of men ($2,570) and women ($953) we can kinda see why.

There was no greener grass, ie, folks just didn't get divorced.  Social pressure, scorn. Ya marry, ya stay married. Not like today when a hangnail could cause it, or, "wow, he/she sure is attractive", or "I'll be damned if I'm driving a Chevy, I'm leaving you in my Ford, seeya."  Or something like that nowadays, many reasons. Back then, only 9.3% of the homes had a single parent.

We ate meals together, as in three of 'em a day. One had to put on a Halloween costume to rob the cookie jar before dinner because all we ever heard was "NO, you'll ruin your appetite!"

Today, many have a 55" TV in the den, bedrooms with 40"ers and I even have on buddy, in the john of his man cave, he has an actual urinal, WITH a TV just above it so you don't miss a down, inning, Super Bowl TV Commercial.

Nada, back then, one TV - and it was black and white.  We watched game shows as a family. Ed always had a really big show, and Dinah saw the USA. Can you imagine having six kids, one TV and usually it was mom or dad's choice? We'd never hear the end of it today. (Not to mention one phone in the house, and it was stationary.)

Our folks shook their heads at the gyrations of a 21 yr old Elvis, Chuck played Maybelline, and Johnny walked the line.

Once again, divorce simply didn't happen, but it was disconcerting when  we heard little Jimmy Boyd sing I Saw Momma Kissing Santa Claus and it was viral (3 million) before we heard of viral.

We didn't get color TV's until we were old enough to talk, ie, commercially released in 1954, but realistically not in our homes until the 60's.  I remember, pre-color TV, my paw bought a vinyl-plastic sheet thing that he placed over the TV to make it look like it was living color.  Wasn't.  Oh, back then, we too were the remote, as well as the mirror holder in fronta the TV when dad changed a tube.

Should we have awoken at 3am and snuck down to the living room, there was no Jerry Springer, Friends, The Good Feet Store, Dr. Phil, Larry King selling something, there was a TEST PATTERN.  ALL. NIGHT. LONG.

It was a time of many firsts. Holiday Inn.  The Today show. Passenger jets, Barbie, and we can never forget Mr. Potato head. Many screeches were heard from folks stepping on Mr. Potato head parts way the hell before Legos were envisioned. Every kid on earth had a bike and roller skates.

Diamonds were a girl's best friend..  moms wore dresses to town, the market, anywhere, and slacks at home.  Usually, jewelry stayed on the entire day. Girls wore saddle oxfords, HA HA!

We musta stunk because ban roll ons were invented (probably those droopy diapers again.) Mom would reheat leftovers in a microwave, that is, if she was rich because they cost $1200 back then.

Speaking of those droopy diapers, I can think of one reason why.  Only 63% of the homes had plumbing - and can you imagine the tykester, during a 12" snowstorm at 9pm spouting "mom, I gotta go poop." Scroll to ban roll on.

Ike won.  Russia scared us.  Next to the outhouses, many of us had bomb shelters in the backyard.

It was a Go West time,(no, not Horace Greeley) but a Go West, or East, or North, or South, to the suburbs were we can have more land. 

OK, I've run out of fun things to write about back then.  OK, I know, the above really wasn't funny, BUT.. I've got almost a quarter of a page of my notebook paper left and I haven't even begun to write about that stuff, and it WAS funny.  Or so I think.  I can't read my writing.

Be sure to tune in next time, same bat chann... no, that ain't it. Same I Love Lucy, Arthur Godfrey, $64,000 question, Gunsmoke channel... where Chapter 2 will be entitled:

Taking the training wheels off....

Love, Victurd

Oh happy (mostly) day.....

The sounds of silence...

Sitting beside a lake.  Watching a baby sleep.  Laying on one's back on the ground to ogle at the blue wonder above. Abed.  Hello darkness my old friend.

Eying.  Immersed with friends, lips sealed, eyes taking it all in.  Familiarity brings smile. Smile means thankful, lucky.

Watching people, what better.  Ya get old, time and again, you see yourself.  Damnit, I'm in a hurry, hit the gas or get over mister.  Will they not get another checker up here?  Damnit, it's Monday again. 

I'm not gona tell you again! But ya do, again and again. Pickup after yourself.  Wipe your feet.  Get your homework done.  Go to bed....now.

I am so very tired of the pressure my boss, the company, has placed on me. I can't be no doctor cause I ain't got the patience...  Geez, only 36 more years of working, then I'll coast.  Her, that one, she loafs.  We make the same, she loafs.  Tain't fair.  No, prolly ain't, but, you, the internal judge - grades character - your own.

Hurry up. Things to do, no time for doddlers, be it The Interstate, the 2 two-foot wide folks with carts stopped, yapping away in the 5' aisle of the Piggly Wiggly.  Quoting Gomer's boss, MOVE IT MOVE IT MOVE IT.

Relax, enjoy life.  Huh?  Have you seen my bills?  Johnny's report card?  The height of the grass - and the fact the puller starter string thingy broke off last Tuesday.  

HEY!  This turned South!  Uh huh, did.  Whar' ya goin' here?

Fact is, I ain't real sure.  Like getting your hand/or hair caught in onea those gluey fly trap things.. I ain't real sure what to do.

For example, examples.  Yesterday, on this wonder of social media, I'd asked "What are some of the most desirable traits one can have?"

The answers rocked. Empathy.  Kindness.  Honesty. Sense of humor.  Compassion. Integrity. Bringing out the best in others. The ability to deal with change. Trustworthy. Generous. Postive thinker. Dignified. Self control. Smile a lot. Respectful. Candor.  Courage. Clarity. Humility. Good moral compass.

When one sits at the computer, or, for you young folks that can still see the damn screen on your four inch phones -sure, it's easy (and wonderful) to describe the 'way to do it.'

When juggling (living life) it's a tad harder.  You wanna impress me?  Go to The Dollar Tree, hold the one dolla ballpoint pin you came to buy, stay calm and be the twelfth in line at the sole cash register that's open and the bank closes in ten minutes. (Be empathetic.  Have a sense of humor. Be positive.  Control one's self.  Smile a lot.) Damn hard.

Bumper to bumper, you're in the right lane on Interstate, 'creeping' along at 4 miles an hour over the speed limit. The friggin' SUV that's "objects in the rear view mirror could be closer than appear" looks like a Semi truck they are SO close to your bumper.. If only the windshield wipers could squirt out a doses of liquid Xanax in hopes they might get a whiff of it, back the hell off their gas pedal and travel one car length per 10 mph.  That's ancient.  It ain't like that any longer.

Murphy's law can and does happen. We have our choices.  Give me a break, give me a break, break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar..  no, that ain't it.  Gimme a beer.  A swig'a whiskey.  A shot of Fireball.  A Xanax. A triple cheeseburger. I can cuss.  Yell. Scream. (Hand signal and gestures no longer advised due to liberal concealed carry laws). Or, we learn to deal with it.

Deep breath.  Examples.

The lady with every hair perfectly in place ALWAYS.  How the hell?  The man who NEVER gets excited, bent outta shape, same, calm, assuring voice.  The kid who doesn't react crazily and behaves 15 years above his age.  Examples.

Life is, can be tough.

It's also very wonderful. Forgive ourselves.  Blurt happens.  So does not having a sense of humor (sometimes), not exhibiting kindness (sometimes), not smiling (all the time), being outta control.

God Bless the examples.  You know 'em, I know 'em.  But ya know what?  They too have those inner "howinthehell do I deal with this" demons living inside of them!

Human = imperfection.

We're hard on ourselves.  Mebbe our worst enemy.  We too can be our biggest ally.  There wouldn't be Gallant without Goofus.  Wally without Eddy.  Andy without Ernest T Bass..

Victurd, what on earth are you trying to say here?  Well, ain't sure.  When ciphering "What are some of the most desirable traits one can have?" - me thinks we can strive.  We'll never be perfect. We can judge ourselves on this, but not too harshly.

Open mouth, insert foot.  Again, blurt.  Fret for ten hours over a ten second oration you spit out.

We, all people, are basically good.  Never perfect, but basically good.  Sometimes we just have to remind ourselves of that.

So.......... when really yummy happens.. watching the baby sleep.  Seeing the water flow gently down the river.  Screened in back porch watching nature. Country road, no traffic, green all around.  Suck it up.  Life's perty damn good.  Never perfect, but pretty damn good.

When really good happens, suck it up, appreciate it, but don't break one's arm patting one;s self on the back.  Much the same as being on the golf course, buddy hits a wonderful shot, you counter with, "Nice Shot!  Don't let it go to your head."

Leaving now.  No, not on a jet plane (Covid).  Going to work.  Damnit I wish it was Friday.  Oops.

Love, Victurd