A weekend with Frank

 

Just finished a weekend with Frank.  Katey was up north with a few friends enjoying the water with little kids.  I stayed with Frank. He was my sleeping partner and my couch collaborator..  Frank is a 60 lb muscular dog with a sweet personality that is at times over exuberant.  I have learned that one has to be calm but correct him in sharp, one syllable commands.  We watched TV together many times with his huge head on my lap.  Apollo is gone. I've had to get used to that;  It was hard to do.  He was my original dog buddy.  But this guy looks at you with such longing and loving eyes, that it is easy to become smitten.  During the sunny days, we sat out in the backyard, me scrolling on my phone and him by my side with intermittent barking sessions with passersby.. In her back yard is an old bird house that is perched on a long pole about the wires.  It is a constant hotbed of activity and sweet birdy sounds.  Quite and entertaining background for the setting. 

During my outside time, I had occasion to talk to my old friend John Anderson in Durango CO.  He and I lived together in our youth both working for Mattie Moroun at Central Transport in the 70's.  He and his lovely with Theresa are doing pretty will. Kids and grandkids are prospering.  He contracted walking pneumonia and is working on getting better.  Kind of called him out of the blue.  It's good to reach out to folks when you have the Tims.  Human connection is key at this point.  

It was good to sleep in my own bed.  With this big creature snuggling next to me for the past two nights, I did not have very much real estate to occupy. 

Jon had his comedy set tast night at an entertainment venue in Wyoming Mi, near Grand Rapids.  Judy found in on her phone.  He was pretty funny with observations about life and seemed relaxed in front of a crowd consuming mass quantities.  It was about a 5 minute set.  Very proud of him and still amazed that he has moved in this direction.  Hopefully, will be able to send a link so others can see it.  The comics are all young or youngish.  The language is coarse, but that is typical for today's world.  But thats OK.  I can get used to it.

It's 752 and all is still quiet here.  

thats it

The Presidents women and men

Why is it that all these so called national leaders are so despised by the general population and yet continue to lead?  All of the presidents men and women do not seem to have the good of the American people in mind, only his single. minded agenda.  They curry his favor without any mind to their purpose to represent the country.  Every time one of them is questioned or speaks from a podium,  the vast majority of us regular folks profoundly disagree with them. They scorn the media routinely.  For me, it's like the lunatics are running the asylum.  I am pissed 100 percent of the time and it is exhausting.  

(Tiger Lillies from the backyard)

Another thought crossed my mind thinking of my grandchildren, mainly the teenage ones.  Do they like this president?  Or better yet, admire him?  Their minds are forming and are not stupid.  We had Kennedy and much later, Obama. We are dumping this legacy on them.  Think about it. 

Kate Winslet is one of the most talented actors of our time.  She of course was in Titanic at 20 and Iris a touching tale of descent into dementia.  A particularly lovely woman of humble beginnings,  she envelopes her characters with no care of appearances.  We watched her latest film, Lee, about a WWII war photographer set in Europe,  yesterday.  A true story about brilliant, brave person that was damaged.  It was well done but the subject matter was disquieting.  The actor was as always magnificent.  Available on Hulu.

It's hot as hell these days.  The dogs need walking but it's too hot for their paws. Harry is sitting on the couch looking completely bored.  Friend Janine is coming over tor an eggplant/salad dinner this afternoon.  I am sitting here thinking about starting my preparations eating my softened granola with cold coffee.

Stay cool today.

thats it

 . 

Do I feel healthier?

so I was filling the pot with oatmeal preparing to cook it this morning.  I have been eating the same rolled oats from Trader Joes for years.  The packaging has changed which always leaves me in dismay.  Also as a healthy addition, they have added various seeds and stuff to the bag, "ancient grains, amaranth, quinoa, chia seeds and ground flax seeds". further proclaiming a good source of fiber.  My question is, does it make be feel better?  The answer is no.  Am I a healthier person? I have my doubts.  These additions stick to the bottom of the pot and have to be scrubbed out. Maybe all that vigorous arm motion burns a few more calories. When this bag is empty, I will make another breakfast choice.

Took this on my walk.  Moving into the summer season, plants are coming up and showing their colors. 

Son Jonathan is embarking on a surprising hobby, standup comedy.  Of all my offspring, he would appear to be the least likely to move in this direction.  Always the quiet one and most introspective, he really surprised me.  Jon has done a number of appearances in small club shows in the Grand Rapids area.  He launched a Facebook page, Jon Kocsis Comedian.  You can see his updates there.

We have plumbing and wash machine issues that are being dealt with.  Welcome to home ownership.  Its always something..

thats it.

Springtime flowers

 

Not all serious thoughts today.  We are getting started with the growing season with a few plants in the front.  Nearly everything came back, from last year.  The deer are back to munch on the pastas (we found that ground cinnamon is an adequate deterrent).  Roses good and seem to be happy in their location.  Trying to grow tomatoes for the 4th time. Seems to be a sunny spot and so far so good.  With the fence, the deer will not be be

able to get to them.  All looks good so far.

The school year is ending and Marie is finishing up the 8th grade ready to head off to high school in the fall.  Eli will be a sophomore.  So glad the warmer temps have arrived.  I wear morning long pants and afternoon shorts.  It's kind of that tradition period. 

Don't these lamium look great?  it has grown from a little plant to this in just a year.  This is a great ground cover.  

Look at me, I sound like a gardener (but a fake).

the tomato plants seem happy all standing up so pretty and proud.  Now if I can actually get some tomatoes for my salad.  That would put a smile on my face.

thats it

 

I was 20

On May 4, 1970 when I was 20 years old the country was. in turmoil over the Viet Nam war.  College campuses were a hotbed of protest against this conflict.  The news media covered most of the protests.  Most of them were peaceful.  Acts of defiance like burning flags and burning draft cards were common.  Kent State University in Kent Ohio had such a protest.  The National Guard was called up to quell the disruption to normal campus life.  Four students were shot and killed.  Neil Young wrote a song about it.  I remember vividly the aftermath and how it led to the end of the conflict.

Yesterday 2000 National Guard troops were sent to Los Angeles to stem the tide of protest over the rounding up of immigrants suspected of entering the country without proper documentation.  Humans were scooped up by ICE agents for processing.  Trump is threatening to bring up US Marines from Camp Pendleton to breakup the protests.  

There were a lot of voices raised about the Viet Nam conflict.  Mine was a very small one.  I did not denigrate any soldier, nor would i.  This recent action taken by the administration is moving us one step closer to martial law where free speech will been silenced unless following the edicts put forth.  What I fear most is that we are just beginning with this guy, not even six months into his term,. I also fear that he will usurp his constitutional mandate to step down in 2028.

Maybe if people of conscience get up off their asses and vote in the midterm elections, at least one of the congressional bodies will not be run by the Republicans and some action can be taken to slow his regime down.  

Raising voices in opposition has always been a part of our democracy and republic. Don't give it up.

thats it

Yesterday

 

So many activities yesterday that I do not know where to begin. Had a wonderful coffee meeting with friend Janine in the morning. She had a chronic foot problem that entailed the use of an enormous boot.  Now she is boot free. Bravo!  Most of the conversations were between Judy and her discussing the health concerns of families and friends. I had a few interjections and a lot of nodding.  I love this little place we went do in Oak Park called Mother Handsome that has great coffee and most comfortable seating on couches and chairs like you were in a friend's living room.  

Later in the day went to the Yard House in Troy with my cronies from Oxford Towers.  These guys love to get out for a new experience.  This place has a large list of appetizers that are all half off in the afternoon.  Each of the apps suffices as a meal and at half off you can't go wrong.  I got a pizza and lemon water and the bill was about 8 bucks.  They  had an ample selection of vegan options for Mike all presented in an orderly fashion on a tablet.  Our waitress was a pleasant and charming young woman named Allie.  She was sweet helping Dick with his order.  Anyway the food was good and ample.  This place moves up to our rotation of eating spots.

Took a chance and called son Jon who is in Florida with his family.  It was one of the best conversations I had in a long time.  We discussed a variety of topics, including visits to the VA hospital with Judy and all I had seen there.  He shared that he bore me no malice for not going to war during the Viet Nam era.  He also shared that his is continuing on his journey thru stand up comedy,  with a better sense of confidence and level of comfort with the audience.  Jon is going to participate in a live performance broadcast on Facebook soon would we will be able to see his set.  We are most excited.  Mentioned before that his is the most unlikely of our kids to pursue this avenue and I am still surprised.  

After my luncheon, saw Joyce and others in the chat room at the Towers.  For 93, she looks pretty damn good as sharp tongued as ever.

always good to see Harry lounging in the sun.

that it

Introspection

Whenever I visit the VA Hospital in Detroit with my wife or daughter, both Navy veterans,  I walk away with feelings of admiration and profound guilt.  You see, I went to college instead of Viet Nam.  That was the war of my era.  I didn't agree with it, but thats not the point.  This place of healing is one that attempts to fix the physical and mental scars of conflict.  Most of the service members there are old and bent over with walkers, oxygen devices and prosthetic limbs.  I was walking behind a young man with a prosthetic leg and a support dog.  He was a big guy with handsome facial features.  This was a guy that volunteered to put himself in harms way.  He was not drafted.  It takes real bravery to put your life on the line for your country.  

Judy often talks about the life in the military and how your service mates become your family.  You can't call mom or dad to complain.  When mistakes are made, there are consequences.  There is no backup plan.  Son Jon and daughter Katey were off on ships for long durations floating in some ocean, doing the jobs they were assigned.  I have to believe it was at times hard and lonely.  People in this life make new and maybe better friendships that last far past their time in the military.  I am on the outside of this.  Aside from the death of a small sister, I really endured no hardships, carrying on with life.  I had a loving family and a few good friends, some of which I still retain.  

thats it

 

Away for awhile

 Went to visit my wife's family in Toms River last week.  It was quite pleasant and I ate way too much, gaining 2 pounds as a consequence.  We did not do much besides visiting due to Laura's back injury and her in the recovery mode.  She is still hurting and hoping for some relief on June 9th with a procedure on one of her discs.  We had a visit from her cousins that were part of the Cape May travel group all meeting annually at Peter Shields Inn. a lovely bed and breakfast in this town.  Sadly, both of them are doing poorly do to various medical issues,  to me, kind of bearly getting by.  Brother Brian's wife Debbie is amidst issues as well and in a recovery mode.  Saw my old buddy Carmine and we talked music which we had not done before.  It turns out that he and I have similar tastes and had seen the same groups perform.  Sent him a message with new things I have discovered on YouTube with some of my musical heroes. 

This is a photo of oak leaves I took closeup on one of my walks in the neighborhood.  In Ocean county the city of Lakewood has a large Orthodox Jewish community.  They have outgrown this environment and are now settling in Pine Lake Park buying up many properties.  Their garb is different and the folks keep to themselves but are polite and somewhat friendly to outsiders.  Some of the old time residents are not happy with their arrival.  We will see how this shakes out.  In fact there is now a Yeshiva school around the block from the house of Mike and Laura.  Lots of cars are parked near.

Once and awhile you have an interesting seat mate on the plane.  Mr. Michael Fineman was next to me. A big guy with stubbily beard and ball cap who, without much prompting, was quite engaging.  We had the usual "what do you do?" openers.  I told him about my career and retirement.  Michael said he was a motivational speaker and marketed some health supplements.  It seems that his subject of motivation is fatherhood.  He started something called "The Fatherhood Code".  As we all. know, there is no manual for teaching fatherhood.  We learn from the examples of our. father's actions and advice.  Without going further into the story,  suffice to say this was an interesting guy with an interesting perspective.  This guy was raised Jewish and converted to Christianity which is really a big deal with potentially big consequences in that faith.  His parents accepted his choice and he moved ahead.  I could have spoke to him at even greater length if there were more time available.

I really don't travel great distances by plane any more.  It was amazing to me that most of the travelers spoke languages I did not understand.  Whether it be Spanish or Arabic, I felt like I was in the middle of something I did not comprehend. I guess thats okay.  America is transforming into something different than I remember.  Parts of me want to cling to the past, comfortably living life in the rear view mirror.  

thats it