Why Not Me?

Day 1

The journey I'm on now started with a visit to our family doctor April 23rd. A routine followup for recent blood work. Our doctor is retiring at the end of July and we have been seeing him regularly since the news landed. The only significant element of this visit was a new medication for cholesterol. Who knew a simple little pill could have such an impact.

Within a few days of taking the new medication I started feeling off. Not sick, just not 100%. Then I woke up in the middle of the night itchy in several spots and my urine seemed darker than normal. The itchiness was gone the next morning. I started thinking it must be an adjustment to the medication. I reread the paperwork and saw no mention of allergic reactions. A few days later I felt better but the itchiness was back and dark urine was still a concern. I stopped at the pharmacy May 3rd and talked with the pharmacist who suggested I stop taking the medication, call my doctor and have my liver checked.

May 5th I was at my desk at work, a good friend and co-worker told me I looked jaundiced. That sent a chill through me that has not been matched by any of the news I was to get in the next few days. 

I went home, tried talking to the family doctor but was told to go to the emergency room.  I reluctantly drove to the hospital where I could not find a parking spot anywhere. I called Sally who was adamant that I get checked out and said I'll come back in the morning.

She dropped me off at emergency at 7 am on May 6th. I wouldn't see home for 12 days. Numerous blood tests, an ultra-sound and a cat scan over about 5 hours. I was sitting in the hallway expecting to be home by 3 pm. The doctor that was running my tests came and asked me to follow him to a room where he and an intern had me sit down and then closed the door. He told me they had found a mass on my liver that was causing a blockage. I would be going to Sudbury for surgery and a biopsy within the next 24 hours. Sudbury? 

He didn't outright say what the mass was expected to be but I have watched every season of Grey's Anatomy, I knew this wasn't an allergic reaction to a new medication. Why was I not floored by the very high possibility that I had cancer in a major organ? I can't say but as so many others around me have dealt with cancer I have always questioned my luck. Why has this not happened to me? It's not like I'm taking great care of myself. I'm not on my knees at bed time thanking God for keeping us healthy. 

The doctor asked if I needed a minute alone in the room. No, I'm good. I thanked him and went back to the hallway. I called my sister-in-law and asked her to go to our house so Sally would not be alone when I shared the news. I went outside and made the call. I asked her not to come to the hospital until I got into a room. Our emergency ward is full of the sick and dying, distraught families, police and drug patients, kids throwing tantrums, prisoners in orange jump suits and handcuffs with their guards. It's not a place I could ever work. I really don't know how the doctors, nurses and support staff can go back there every day. 

Just in time for my first hospital meal (that's a story on it's own), I got a bed in the emergency bull pen. About 12 occupied beds where patients wait for a room in the regular wards. Separated by nothing but paper thin curtains I quickly became aware of every ailment in the 6 closest beds. Sally brought me something to eat, some clothes and my cpap machine. After she left I put my cheapest headphones in and tried to drown out the noise. Lights on, lights off, never ending PA announcements, moaning neighbours and the constant coming and going of nurses. Not a great place to take a nap. I slept with music playing and avoided letting my imagination get carried away with the situation.

Sudbury?

New Ways to Pursue an Old Love

I have always loved music. As a teen I would never have dreamed of what is available now. Used to be a visit to a record store meant 'maybe' the purchase of one album. Today I can add as many albums to my streaming account as I want and listen to them as much as I want for about the price of one album per month. And I can carry around that ever growing collection in my pocket.

It seemed so simple. Streaming from YouTube music sounded ok but I kept reading about hi-res streaming and the many advantages. 

I researched a better set of headphones. I wanted the sound that I remember from a set of Toshiba, a very wide sound stage where different instruments can be heard in the various parts of your head. Drums bass and vocals down the middle with guitar mostly on one side and keyboards on the other. Listen to Hotel California on the Eagles Hell Freezes Over album as a great example.

My research brought me to the Philips Fidelio X2HR. Very comfortable and with a very wide sound stage. I found them on Ebay and paid half of the current Amazon price.

I tried a ddHifi DAC (digital audio converter) that plugged into the usb-c port on my phone. A big sarcastic thank you to Apple for starting the trend of dropping headphone jacks. 

I thought I could hear a difference but wasn't sure. I returned the small piece of hardware. I tried another with bluetooth and it failed to provide an uninterrupted stream of music. Returned. I tried another DAC and eventually sold it. DACs serve as both the device that converts the digital signal from the music stream to an analog signal that headphones can turn into music. They can also serve as a headphone amplifier because the phone does not have enough power to provide enough volume on many headphones.

I had given up but after another month and more research I found the answer. It was not the equipment but the source. An Android phone plays everything at the same bitrate, regardless of the external dac.

I purchased a Hidizs DH80s dac/amp with its own battery during a spring sale. I tried a hi-res Qobuz account which requires another app. It worked, I could finally hear the difference but the app was not great. I tried Tidal which recently underwent a price reduction! The app is terrific. It includes artist bios and track credits listing the musicians, engineers and producers. Lyrics, daily suggestions and very up to date. You can have Spotify, it has promised hi-res but not delivered.

Next a set of Hidizs MS3 iems and I was all set for every kind of listening. I'm spending lots of time just listening to music new and old, no distractions, eyes often closed, just listening. I'm trying artists I never would have considered and enjoying more and more of them. If I find a recommendation for an album that is well recorded, I'll give it a spin stream. 

 

Flats Blow

I decided it was warm enough not to have to layer up for a longish ride this afternoon. I was wrong about that and apparently the Miyata decided it was time to go home 6.5km away from home. 

I felt the unmistakable feeling of a rim touching the road, stopped and pumped the rear pack to a rideable pressure. Turned around and headed back the way I came, for about 30 seconds. Once again felt the same bad feeling and stopped. Resigned to calling for help, I texted Sal.

The 90's Miyata Triple Cross is supposed to be heading for Calgary where she came from later this summer. She underwent a major overhaul, the most ambitious project I've ever completed. After upgrading my All-City Pony Express to a wider range Microshift drivetrain I decided to replace the 7 speed drivetrain on the Miyata with the original Sram 10 speed of the All-City. Sounds straight forward doesn't it?

Not so much. It required cold setting the steel frame, widening the space between the chain stays to allow a longer axle and wider cassette. I watched a few Youtube videos, gathered the components to make some crude home-made tools and went to work. It took some head scratching and testing to get it right. After lining up the derailleur hanger by eye she shifts very nicely. 

As for the flat, better here and now than someplace miles from rescue in Calgary.

One More Major Change

 As of April 2023 I am no longer the president of the Northwood Hockey League!

While I mostly loved what I was doing during my tenure, the hassles of trying to provide a program during Covid were the proverbial straw. Going to the Gardens or another arena most weekends from September to March was just not something my heart was into any longer. A perfect replacement was convinced and he's done a tremendous job. I have remained as the registrar and past president. My time at the arena has been greatly reduced.

I remain as the scheduler and 'computer guy' for Lakehead Minor Hockey. I even got back to some timekeeping for both leagues this past season.

A Lot Can Happen in 3.5 Years

'Time flies'. No truer words have ever been written. Unless you add 'after 65' to that often used phrase. My last post in September 2020 was all about a new bike project to stave off covid isolation and boredom. The project was completed in July of 2022 and I've taken maybe 5 rides on that bike. It's been revamped with flat bars. My days with drop bars appear to be over. Looking cool is secondary to being comfortable now.

Eyowen II

The good news. Our 5th grandchild was born since my last post, Everly Marie. We were in Calgary when she was born and got to hold her the day she arrived, something we have not been able to do since Brandyn was born in 2001.

The bad news. Dad passed in January of 2023. He fought leukaemia for months, back and forth to the hospital for treatments 4 times per week. It was a shock. It never occurred to me that he wouldn't get better and be there for us as he always had been. 

I've semi-retired from Fat Guys, putting in 15 hours a week. That was never in the plans until Dad passed. I was never replaced and only now some 11 months later my long list of tasks is almost completely passed on to other staff members. I'm slowly moving on to new special projects and am excited for the future. 15 hours a week doesn't even feel like I'm working.

Bike Project 1020(Eyowen2).1

I watched Kijiji for about a month before seeing much that was interesting and not too expensive. I just wanted something in decent condition that I could work on over the winter.

Some were too big or too small or just too much money to even go look at. Then a GT Tequesta from the '90s showed up, in Nipigon of all places. Always loved the distinct GT frames. So the last Friday of my vacation we set off for a nice drive on a beautiful sunny day. I sure wish that you could see Lake Superior more on that drive. You know it's right there but you only get brief glimpses of the water and shoreline. 

The bike was in average condition and maybe I paid a bit much but not full asking as I normally do. I did a quick once over and changed the tires. A couple quick trips around the block and she was ready to ride. I rode back and forth to work a couple times with no issues. 

I have some parts ordered to turn her from an old mountain bike into a single speed drop bar monster cross. It's a very light chromoly frame and with the gears and shifters removed it will be very light with huge tires. I've named her Eyowen II, after the first bike I rebuilt years ago. Stay tuned as parts arrive. 

 Eyowen II

Eyowen

 

Bike Project 920 (Lael 1x10).2

 Well that project ended with a disappointing finish. Removing the cassette revealed a freehub that was about 5mm too narrow for a 10 speed cassette. :(

Next.... 

Bike Project 920 (Lael 1x10).1

First step was some research on the Microshift Advent system, a very affordable drivetrain option. That done and the decision to run 1x10 Advent X made, I stopped in the basement while doing laundry to check out the crankset on a parts bike sitting in a corner to see if it could be disassembled and reconfigured into a single ring crank for the project. 

Next job was to remove the square taper crank from the frame which requires a crank puller and some muscle. I have a puller but haven't used it in 5 years. All the lessons Farzam taught me continue to come into play when I work on old bikes. The crank came off with little trouble. I removed the pedals and the big chain ring and then tested the 39 tooth small ring in the outside position. It's not new or shiny (yet) but it should do the job.   

Yeah I know...

it's been more than a year since I've entered anything on this blog, closer to two years in fact. Lots has changed. Much remains the same. I'm not going to spend any time making excuses for not putting any words here, just pick it up and move on.

I guess the biggest news has been the arrival of AJ and Jess' first child, Blakely May. She arrived last October and after a very rough 6 weeks and a month in hospital she is a very healthy 11 months old. She's been walking for over two months and is very entertaining. We got to spend some time with her when they visited in July. She even slept over which was a thrill. The grandsons are all good but missing their friends and sports. 

 

Since the long weekend in July when we spent three nights at Mink Mountain we've both been dieting. Not the soul crushing kind of diet where you starve yourself and try to pretend you don't miss certain meals. Simply cutting down portions and getting back on a bike has done wonders. I made every excuse in the book for not riding to work, but finally with this new effort just decided to do it. The first few days were tough. It meant wearing bike shorts into an environment where ridicule was very likely. My butt was just not ready for riding in jeans or shorts. It means leaving about 15 minutes earlier than by car. It also means I still have a full tank of gas purchased in late June. 

I found a new way to get there with minimal time on the busy streets. Now on the way home if the sun is out I'm going home the long way. Riding has always been a way to think things through and destress after a work day. I've definitely missed pedalling.

My basement bike parking/shop had been left in a state of disarray. When I stopped riding I also stopped working on the bikes. When I cleaned up and tuned the bikes I would commute on I found that I also missed time spent with tools in my hands and grease on them. I'm aching for a bike project. As of this moment my plan is to convert Lael (an already heavily modified Trek Multitrack) from a 3x7 drivetrain to a 1x10.  

Work has me busy all day ordering, returning and dealing with issues in the warehouse that now has 11 people running around. There are definite challenges and frustrations but I can't wait to get there and get started every morning.

Hockey is another post all on it's own. With the Covid situation and the restrictions the city has placed on activity in the arenas, I'm aiming at taking a season off until this all hopefully goes away.

Mike's Minions

Saturday was much more relaxed. We saw two hockey games, one with a hat trick from Cullen. We took it easy between games with reading and naps. For supper we went to downtown Canmore to Graze Restaurant, a tiny place on the main street.

We had reservations but arrived early. The owner was apologetic that we had to wait a few minutes. We got our table and ordered drinks. When it came to ordering food our selection was fine but the owner told AJ, "no you don't want that." We thought he was joking but he said "it's too sweet." He suggested another dish. When the food came he apologized for the wait again. We had not even noticed, it was out quickly in our minds. Once we were done it did take a bit before AJ went up to ask for the bill. Another apology and he took the drinks off the bill. When we got outside and added things up he had removed one of the meals as well. The food was great and the service was as well. We all felt bad for the guy, stressing so much over something that only he could see.

Sunday was another relaxing day, Cullen's last game of the season and the drive back to foggy Calgary. Somewhere in there was our 4oth anniversary. Sal decided to make everyone supper and cheesecake. I know, I know. In the kitchen on our anniversary. But cooking for her family makes her happy. I know better than to go there.

Cullen kicked Mike and AJ's butts on the Nintendo Switch and Campbell entertained. The plan for Monday is to take the boys shopping for their birthday presents. Campbell decided he was sleeping over, "you can text them to pick us up, I'll tell you when, after we get the toys."  

We got settled into AJ and Jess' new home. It's a true reflection of them. Lot of personal little touches that turn a new house into a home. 

Blackfoot BOMBERS

Post game talk

Cullen in his 'office'

Eyes on the biscuit

Someone is happy it's the last game

Head up

Head up, this one finds the back of the net

What A Day

We were up at 3:45 and in the air by 5:30. To say that the Bombardier DH3 was noisy is a major understatement. I can't imagine the level of noise and vibration of a military plane where the comfort of the passengers is not a priority. My head is still buzzing from resting it on the cabin wall. But the flight under a full moon was very smooth, no bouncing around at all. We arrived in Winnipeg right on time, sat for 30 minutes and then boarded another Bombardier aircraft, the CRJ900. Very thankful for jet engines at this point.

I left the entertainment system on the map that showed our progress and it was comical to see all the small western towns I have driven through for the past 7 years go zooming by as we flew over them at 500 mph. As the sun started to appear I could make out the vast partially snow covered prairie below.  Some of the colours and patterns in the earth as we approached Calgary were beautiful. And from about 100 km out I could see the Rockies, still sitting right there where we left them.

We arrived in Calgary just before 8:30. AJ and Jess were waiting, our bag showed up in minutes and we were off to Banff. We hadn't eaten anything so a stop at our favourite breakfast spot, Melissa's Misteak solved our hunger issues. The Huevos Rancheros was better than I remember it. On to Lake Louise for a walk on the still frozen lake. Unfortunately I only brought my long zoom lens for hockey games so my pictures were limited. We wandered around the Fairmont hotel then drove back to the town of Banff then Canmore for some browsing in the shops. I found it hard to believe the number of tourists at this time of year.

We made contact with Mike and Mel and hatched a plan to surprise the boys. We picked up a pizza for them and then went to their room to deliver it. Cullen opened the door and waved. I don't think I would describe his reaction as surprised.

Off to the arena for game 1. The rink was divided in two by a set of portable boards and the game was 5 on 5, a little crowded but the kids were doing what they should be at that age, just having fun. It was so great to watch Cullen zip around live. I asked him before we left if his stick had any goals left and he assured me it did. I caught his goal and celebration in a video.

We went back to the hotel after picking up some refreshments and ordered pizza and wings. The rooms we have are awesome, more like small apartments with a full kitchen, living room, dining room, small deck and underground parking. Plus the mountains look like they are in the backyard.

We finally went to bed at about 1:00 am Thunder Bay time. A long but very satisfying first day.

Rockies on the horizon

Prairie landscape

Campbell and his desert hat

Cullen 66

Frozen Lake Louise and glacier

Same Destination, Different Season

Early Friday morning, we head to the airport for a flight west. I'm not a fan of flying when I could be driving but with less time to work with I'll get on board. Our return flight has already been changed by the good folks at Air Canada but so far the important one has stayed as booked. We'll arrive at 8:30am Calgary time, tired but with an entire day to get the vacation started, he said with his fingers crossed.

Wedding Weekend

After two long years of anticipation, AJ and Jess' big day seems to have come out of nowhere and landed on the calendar.

Thursday was the rehearsal and everything went well. Cullen and Campbell behaved unbelievably throughout the time at the church. They will definitely steal the show, at least until Jess makes her entrance. The party at Chanterelle was excellent, the food and lounge were perfect. A very classy place for smaller group events.

This is the first time in several years that all three kids have been in town at the same time. We had Cullen sleep over Tuesday. Sal was getting her nails done so I had some time with him and then she spent her time the following morning. He never fails to put a smile on my face. We watched some video of him playing baseball and we were both laughing. 

Saturday was a perfect day weather wise and in pretty much every other way. Cullen and Campbell came over early in the morning and then we all went to the church together. We helped them get dressed for the ceremony and then waited for things to get started. They remained very will behaved and when I saw them heading down the aisle something got in my eyes. There were a few times my eyes gave my feelings away during the day. It was great to see Sal's mom at the ceremony, I know that made her very happy.

The ceremony was surprisingly quick, smooth and beautiful. Off to Vickers Park for family pictures and then to the hotel for a short rest. The dinner, speeches and party after were all excellent. The wedding party had a ton of fun all day. I'm fairly sure that the day Jess and AJ envisioned was the day we all got to experience.

Some of the fantastic pictures in Maria Maria Photo's sneak peek.....

Canada Day Ride

Well it wasn't in Banff or even particularly long, heck it wasn't even on Canada Day but it was an eye opener.

I haven't done anything longer than 20km all year. The long layoff has admittedly taken away some of the motivation to go for a ride. I planned to at least take a longish ride on Cananda Day but the weather was less than ideal. When today started off sunny my mind was made up. With my normal long distance ride (Sophia) up for sale, I decided on Lisbeth. Initially I thought an hour and 20km would be more than enough and have me back home before the day heated up.

Big tires make things more comfy for all of your contact points. Feet, hands and especially butt enjoy the time on the road a whole lot more. I got up through the college and university campuses and then deviated from the plan and headed west on Oliver Road. Things got a little tough as my calves started threatening to cramp and my hands were tingling. Uphill and into the wind on a 30+ pound bike didn't help. 

I turned off on Mapleward and after climbing a small hill enjoyed a couple of kms of gliding downhill. That seemed to rejuvenate me. When I got to Arthur St., Lisbeth made another right turn and then kept going on 20th Side Road. I came back on Rosslyn Road with a beautiful tailwind. It's not often I can get Lisbeth into top gear but she flew in with only a few cars to deal with. All told 40km under the tires.

I've been tired on a bike. Exhausted, winded, sore and even bleeding. Hot, sweaty, cold and shivering. But I don't feel fat and I don't feel old on a bike. That's worth suffering through all the rest. 

Missing

I miss the long drive across the heart of Canada, getting up in the middle of the night in search of an 18 wheeler to lead me through the darkness.
I miss sunrise on the prairie, the way you can see 20 miles in any direction from bright yellow fields to the bruised sky of an approaching storm.
I miss holding hands and talking for hours as much as the gentle quiet hours shared.
I miss looking out the rear mirror and seeing a bike I know I will get to explore with.
I miss stopping at Timmy's for a cup in Regina or Medicine Hat or Winnipeg or Dryden. All honestly, those 'ors' should all be 'ands'.
I miss Calgary. It's big city feel and the old west all wrapped in one.
I miss knowing the Rockies are right there waiting on the horizon.
I miss the drive through the foothills, watching the mountains steadily grow in the windshield.
I miss Moraine Lake and the Valley of Ten Peaks where I could just sit and watch years pass by.

I miss the shrieks of 'papa!' from two little boys that make every mile of the long drive worthwhile.

I miss walks and bike rides to the park, red, green or purple. I miss pushing two giggling boys on the swings and listening to their laughter.
I miss the pitter patter of the giants who live in the house above us.
I miss nights around the fire with family close by.

First Time at the Plate

He stood at the plate for the first time that mattered, the first time it wasn’t just him and dad in the backyard where failure was a secret between them. His little fingers squeezed the bat with the strength of his nervous energy. All around him was a fuzzy haze filled with players of the opposing team, coaches and parents. All just a blur. His focus was narrow and aimed at the hand that held the ball he wanted desperately to hit.

The first pitch dropped out of the sky and landed on the plate, unhittable. But he swung anyway. His eyes had closed as the ball got close.

He checked his feet and got set again. Another lobbed pitch. He lunged forward to try and reach as he took another big swing, missing by a foot. He just wanted to see one like dad threw, over the plate not on it. But he didn’t have the experience to know he didn’t have to swing every time. 

“Watch the ball all the way, wait for one you like” he heard his dad say over the din of the crowded diamond. He fought off the urge to swing at the next one as it bounced at his feet again. Adults met on the mound and talked a bit, then laughed. He was sure they were talking about him and his fingers gripped the bat just a little tighter. He was fighting back tears now.

And then he saw what he wanted, a ball that flew flatter than the others. He pulled his hands back and swung the bat hard. As the ball met aluminum he felt and heard the ‘plink’ as the ball flew back the way it had come.

“Run, run, run,” the crowd started yelling. He froze for a second not remembering what came after hitting the ball, he never ran in the backyard, just hit ball after ball. Then it came to him in a flash as everyone around him got louder. He bent over and gently placed the bat on the ground and started running to the base as fast as his six year old legs would carry him. His tiny strides carried him safely to the bag for the first time. He stopped on the base and looked for dad with a big smile. The tears had lost this time. 

video inspiration

Wish I could be there to cheer you on Cullen.

Note: I've been waiting for some big mythical inspiration to hit me and launch into a major writing project for far too long. A good friend told me just to write so when I taste even the smallest morsel of inspiration I'm going to put down some words. And here it begins.

Changes

Changes, there have been a few since I last dropped any words into this blog. In truth a lot of them. There was no time to wait for a dream job to come along. I was lucky to get on board with the biggest and most aggressive parts store when they weren't hiring. A complete dizzying 180 spin from what I experienced for 38 years but after 7 months I'm starting to get comfortable. More customers, more product lines, more co-workers, more of everything. Some days it was all too much but things are getting better.

Sleep has been a precious commodity for those 7 months. I still wake up very early and start thinking and worrying about a variety of things. Some of that is work related, more of it is worrying about the future. Retirement would be great in another 5 years but I just don't think it will be possible. Time will tell I guess.

An old friend told me working with a young crew would make me feel younger and I do...until I get home and start napping at 7pm. Getting back on a bike after 5 plus months with maybe two rides has been a joy. I was sure it would hurt a lot more and that maybe I had lost the drive to get up at 6 and then ride to work but once I got started it was all good. I feel more normal now, the long cool ride in is a pleasure and the ride home is a good time to unwind.

After resigning from scheduling for Lakehead Minor at the end of the season I decided to finish my term, one more year. I was unsharing spreadsheets, started tinkering with them and realized I had created some fairly sophisticated scheduling schemes and didn't want to stop learning and applying. I haven't totally given up trying to find more work with the expanding knowledge.

Parents are already starting to call for registration into Northwood. I'm trying to lay low and hold off until the already announced opening of another season in mid July. We have one more season with our current format and then the new half ice policy will be adopted or we will have to leave the Hockey Canada umbrella.

Not travelling to Calgary has been hard. Good old facebook sends those near daily reminders of pictures posted from the trips of the last 6 years and they are nice to see, but I don't need the constant reminder. Videos of Cullen playing baseball have been fun but we would be there if not for all the changes. Man can he smack that ball around.

click for a hit

Thunder Bay probably did the right thing by not voting PC. Right as long as they didn't win that is. Why does it feel like we are infected by the Trump virus.

RIP Anthony Bourdain, will miss his shows a great deal.

New music this week, Dave Matthews Band - Come Tomorrow. First listen as I write this and I'm really liking what I hear so far.

That's it for now. No promises but I hope to be adding more words soon.

Dodger Cullen Kresack

 

Reluctant Dodger fan Campbell 

Pushing the Plan Forward

I took on an a rather intense project with nothing but negatives if I failed. The AA draft database and manual for Lakehead Minor.

Gathering registration info for 2 divisions from 6 organizations and then assembling them into books with sorted lists and groups was relativley easy. Creating emails to advise parents of their two tryout times and confirm jersey numbers was more complex, mostly because many emails included transposed letters.

The night of the draft was where the nerves got a good testing. One spreadsheet was used to display the picks. 180 players in each division. Tracking all of the chips and goalies and warning of duplicates picked. Another spreadsheet contained all the contact info for the players and as the draft ended it needed to print out a list for each team and then another for each association to let them know who was going where. I struggled to keep up in the first one as it started before I had entered the coaches kids and I played catchup throughout. The second went smoother.

2 entire drafts were completed in less than 2 hours. My work helped but coaches were basically well behaved which made all the difference. Handshakes came from many coaches who endured a long wait for lists after the draft last year. Any email exchanges today came with thanks for all the work.

Best of all I was asked to help run another large draft and get paid to do so. Maybe Kresack Consulting won't be a full time thing but this is a start.

Another Birthday

Turning 60 seemed a bigger deal to everyone around me. I was given a day off work and gift certificate for supper at El Tres from FCD. The kids got together and bought me a bottle of 12 year old single malt scotch, but not just any bottle.

Balvenie 12 year old single barrel comes in a numbered bottle, one of 300 from the single barrel. I've only tasted about 1/2 an ounce but it is so different from the others I've tried. Smoother with a hint of vanilla and spice. Having seen a short video on the traditional process almost, and I say almost, makes me want to save it and not enjoy it.

On top of that Sal got tickets to see Joe Bonamassa later this month. I've been listening to him for just over a year but his music dominates my choices.

Thanks one and all. I almost can't wait to get to 70. Again I must emphasize, almost.

Call 911...They're Lighting the Candles

60, It's just another number, or that's what I keep saying when asked. But it's a number that says another decade has passed. Approaching 50 had me looking back with regret over things undone, or done with less than a 100% effort.

I'm sure most people would admit that there are things left on their bucket list. I still want to write a book. I'd love to start camping. If I have to work, I want to work for myself. I want a comfortable retirement for Sal and myself. And I have no idea how any of these things will come to fruition. But now's the time to start figuring it out, looking ahead instead of back.