Friends, Birds, & Running Shoes...

The Magnificent King Edgar the Bald

Edgar on the only shoes he will rest on.

I have many wonderful friends of which Edgar, of course, is one. Edgar loves to sleep on my shoes when my feet are up on the couch. The only shoes he will get on, however, are an old beat-up, grungy (dirty; in this case with dirt stains that won't come out), and ripped pair of running shoes. It's interesting that Edgar likes these because this pair of shoes was also Harry's favorite shoes. Harry was my last cockatiel (bird; a small parrot). Although Harry would get on almost any shoes to hang out, Edgar will only get on the ones in the picture. As long as he's happy, I also am usually happy.

It's been an interesting week. Many old friends as well as new friends came to the library. As always, I had a good time, but some people, I'm not mentioning names, made me think more than usual, and it gave me headache. I'm going to have to charge more money if this keeps up.

My Chinese teacher, Jing, gave us some difficult homework to do for the week, and this also gave me a headache. Unfortunately, I can't charge her any money. Saturday morning is the earliest I have to get up each week when I have Chinese class, particularly if I want to go jogging as well as do all the usual necessary morning things. Such as shower, eat, clean-up Edgar's cage, get his food and water ready for the day, and check my email . I am a bit slow in the morning, so even though I got up at 6:15, I was still a couple of minutes late for my Chinese class which started at 10:30. But, as most people know, I am almost always a couple of minutes late. It is not unusual. In fact I believe a lot of people expect it.

I got a call at 10:30 pm last night (Friday night) to go over some friends' house to eat lobster, which they had just cooked. It took me close to 10 minutes to convince my friend that I really could not come. Two minutes after I got off the phone her young daughter called to try to convince me to go, and I spent another few minutes telling her why I was not able to. I felt bad that I couldn't share their meal, but the fact that they thought of me and tried so hard to get me to come over to their house made feel really good. Good friends are not easy to find. So, I do appreciate all of you. Anyway, it's now Saturday afternoon, and it's time to relax, and do a few things around the house. So, I hope everyone enjoys the weekend, and may you all be well.

See you.

Happy Birthday, Bro...

I always think of my brother on May 13th. It's his birthday. Even though he died on January 16, 2005, I think of him every day. I miss him very much. He didn't merely live, he REALLY LIVED. The sight of him filled your eyes, and the sound of him filled your ears. He was not someone you could overlook or ignore. He was not a perfect person by any means. None of us are. But as far as I'm concerned, he was a perfect brother. Not that we didn't have arguments or fights, all brothers do, but I couldn't have asked more from him as a brother. He was a good companion, a fiercely loyal friend, and even though I was the older brother, I learned many things from him, some of which he didn't know he was teaching me.
I probably will not have a chance to visit his grave today, but I will be thinking of him, and missing him. I will see him again in awhile. But not yet, not yet. Happy Birthday, Jeff.

Mothers, Sisters, & Undeserving Sons & Brothers...

Mother's Day has come and gone, and yet there are Mothers all over the world doing their best to take care of, and raise their children. Being a mother is a full time job, and a tough and trying job in every sense. My Mother raised five kids basically by herself. Maybe we weren't the worst children to have to watch over, but I am sure we weren't the easiest either. And to this day, if one of us has a problem or someting is bothering us, guess who we call. Yup, being a mother is a tough job, and it never ends. None of us would be here at all if it wasn't for our mothers, and some of us would never have survived for this long without the loving help of our mother. And I am speaking for myself in this case. I cannot give, or even express to her, all the appreciation that she deserves. I can only hope she has an inkling (idea) of all the love her children have for her.
And into this concept of appreciation I would have to include my sister, who even with a full schedule, a husband she looks out for, as well as her in-laws she is always helping out, she still finds time to look out for me as well, even though I am the oldest. So, whether I deserve it or not, I am a pretty lucky guy, and very blessed.
(Except for sleep. We seem to have a sleep problem in the family. For me, it's feast or famine. Sometimes I go for days on 5 to 7 hours of sleep a night (famine). Then, like last night, I get 9 or 10 hours in one night(feast), and when I wake up I feel like an overcooked noodle. See, I managed to get in one complaint...I feel better now.)
So, Remember, show some real appreciation for what your Mothers have done, and do, for you. And for those of you who are mothers, you should remember, if it wasn't for you, none of us would be here.

Breaking Nails and Flat Tires..

I don't know about women from other countries, but American women , particularly those who favor looking highly fashionable, hate to break nails. In this case, usually finger nails. My own dread is of nails breaking other things, namely my tires. I was getting gas today and happened to notice my rear passenger tire (that would be my rear tire on the left side-oops! Imean the right side-of the car, or on the passenger side) was flat. While I was putting air in it I saw there was a nail sticking out of the tire, the metal kind. Thinking I could get it plugged (they can take a nail out and put in a plug so the tire is good as new) I took it to Town Fair Tire. When the tire technician took a look, he pointed out to me that it couldn't be fixed because the tire was bald (no tread). Not only was the tire bald, but the other rear tire was bald, also.
So, I spent an hour sitting on a bench outside the front doors of Town Fair Tire watching the sky while I waited for two new tires to be put on my car. It actually was a beautiful sky. One part of it was dark, and from it I could see heavy rain falling. Another part of it was lighter and had breaks in the clouds where rays of sun were shining through.
When I first found out I needed two new tires, I felt like a terrible and dark storm had descended on me. It seemed like a very unlucky thing to have happened both because I had other things I had wanted to get done, and because I was not planning on that particular expense, and let's face it, tires are not cheap. But as I watched the sun shining through the clouds, I realized that getting the nail in the tire was actually a very lucky event. If it hadn't happened, I wouldn't have realized (with help) that I had two bald tires, and a very bad accident could have happened. So, thanks to a nail, it seems I will be around to continue writing this blog for a while, yet. Which you might consider either very lucky for you, or very unlucky for you. Depending on your point of view. Goodnight, my friends! Hasta luego (until later)....

A Dark Monday

Monday is traditionally a day that must be suffered through, in American culture at least. Although we (americans) consider Sunday to be the first day of the week, Monday at one time was the first day of the work week for almost everyone. So after having the weekend off, nobody was very happy about going back to work. On top of that (means: in addition to that), people were very relaxed after two days off, in some cases way too relaxed, so it was easy to make mistakes and have accidents at work. That's how Monday became the day everyone would like to sleep right through.
Today is definitely a Monday for me. The rain made it very hard to get out of bed and also prevented me from going out jogging. Then I had to buy vitamins for myself , and get Edgar his special bird food and treats, all on the internet. After that I had to pay bills, and then go out to get a five pound jar of local honey, stop at the supermarket for groceries, and get my special multivitamins (yep, more vitamins) at GNC in the Norwichtown Mall.
It was good to get it all done, but paying bills is always a bit depressing for me. Seeing all that money leave my bank account to never return, well, it just doesn't seem right. I know I'm looking at it the wrong way. We have to pay for the things (food, rent or mortgage, & services like electricity, phone, internet, entertainment) we use and need. But wouldn't it be wonderful if they were all free. Ah, well...there's no free lunch. Unless, of course, you are a lucky bird named Edgar.
So anyway, I hope your Monday is brighter than mine, and despite my complaining, the worst is over for me. I can now move on to other far more enjoyable things to do. Like complaining in this blog...

A Day on the Farm

It was a sunny day out in the boondocks among the sheep, cows, horses, chickens, big dogs, and us humans. We didn't have to wait "'til the cows come home", because they were home. And they were special cows, with names like Penny, Rocky, and Mr. Sam. After some attempted conversation with a few of these cows, we proceeded to wander down the road and eventually came to our destination which was a sheep farm. There we saw sheep, baby lambs, chickens, and a very friendly big dog looking for some free ice cream, and although a very thoughtful person bought me some ice cream, the dog didn't get any. We did not see any "wolves in sheeps' clothing", although a couple of us seemed quite "chicken" around the animals. All in all it was a very nice day, and quite enjoyable.
Although I grew up in the country, relatively speaking, and spent time on more than one farm, it had been when I was a young boy, a few years ago. Not too many. After all, what are a few years. It is amazing to me that we can remember some things from childhood so clearly, while we can forget other things that happened much more recently. Or is that just me...
But childhood memories are very special. For me, because I remember friends and relatives I have not seen since I was young, and remember a time of life that was much more carefree. I think childhood was different for each of us. It was not a happy and joyous time for me, although it did have its' moments of joy, but rather it was a happy and sad time. And it was during some of those sad moments when I was able to grasp a bit of insight into life and the people around me. Those occasions made my childhood more than just memorable. I began to see and understand the world around me and my relationship to it. I would not change a single one of those experiences.
To those of you I was privileged to share today (Saturday May 1st) with on the adventure into the Connecticut countryside, it was a true pleasure. For those of you who weren't there, wherever you may be, take a day to go out and look around. As one of my favorite movie characters, Ferris Buehler, said, "I've said it before and I'll say it again. Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you just might miss it."

Fire!

I remember that my father was a volunteer fireman when I was very young. Firemen fight house fires, fires in all kinds of buildings, and sometimes wildfires. Wildfires are outside, either a grass fire or forest fire that's out of control. I have never seen a fire up close. I can't imagine having to go into a burning building to save someone. Many firemen have been injured or lost their lives doing just such a brave act.
An expression you might here is the saying someone is "all fired up" to do something. It means they have gotten themselves highly excited to do whatever it is.
If you have been sentenced to death for crimes you have committed, in some states you can choose to die by firing squad. A small group of people line up with rifles and then shoot you. The last thing you hear is "Fire!"
Then, of course, there is the dreaded getting fired. Generally, nobody likes getting fired. Through my high school and college years I worked 14 or 15 different jobs, but I was only fired from one. The manager that fired me hired me back a few days later.
Tomorrow in Connecticut there will be a Fire Warning in a large part of the state because it is very dry. A fire warning is issued to warn people to be careful with matches, cigarettes, or anything else that can start a fire.
And as a final word on fire, there is the well known (at least in American culture) childhood insult, "Liar, liar, pants on fire!" And on that note, Goodnight One and All...