What exactly is a progressive dinner? LBC 02/23/2016

Lin is up to her tricks again with this weeks LBC topic.

It's election season here in the U.S.A. so a progressive dinner can be many things. It can be Hillary dining with Bernie - assuming there is sufficient room on the left side of the table for them to not bash each other while they fight for the peas. Or a progressive dinner  could be blocked by the right wing until the next president is elected as certainly the current president cannot be trusted to select a proper menu - I mean rumor has it he likes Brussel sprouts. Is there anything more unAmerican??

Then there is the more traditional progressive dinner - a social occasion where we eat each course of a meal at a different person's house. So it's drinks at Lin's place - after appropriate air transport is arranged (and I hope she remembers the Glenlivet).

Next we head off to Pune for appetizers at stately Rajgopaul manor. The mind boggles at the myriad possibilities for fine vegeytarian goodies. Of course substantial air transport is  required as well.

Back to the airport and now we're off to North Carolina for the main course - a Cajun/Creole feast including a nice vegetable gumbo for Ramana and a seafood feast for the rest of us. Of course it has been a long day with many miles traveled and many calories consumed. And that is without dessert yet.

For dessert we head to California and Hayward, California where we surprise our buddy The Old Fossil - one of the original LBC members - just to see the look on his face when we show up unannounced.

So we have booked upwards of 21,000 miles, consumed 3000+ calories, not counting the Tums and we need to head home. Truth be told, I lived in Hayward for over 30m years and if anyone is willing to take me in I just might stay - LOL. Wherever I end up one thing is certain - I'm taking a nap.

Then there's the musical progressive dinner...

It's 5;O'clock Somewhere
An ode to nachos by the Doobnie Brothers
Cheeseburger in Paradise
Popsicles and Icecicles

Pets LBC 02//12/16

I have been a pet owner all of my life. Shortly after my bhirth my grandparents bught a Cocker Spaniel and Pudgie became my first,  About the time i was 5 I also had a cat - a very large male Maine Coon that I promptly named Suzie. I have no idea why but he was big and tough. He looked just like this one.  We moved to California just before my 10th birthday.

Fast forward to today - my brood includes two tuxedo cats and a Basset hound - collie mix  - Stretch, Willie and Ginger. The cats are name  after my favorite baseball players Willie McCovey (Stretch) and Willie Mays. Lynn named Ginger literally the first time she saw her come out of the pet carrier.

Cats are interesting - they let us think we are in charge and do whatever they please. They can be very affectionate but only on their terms. Dogs, on the other hand, by nature are loyal, loving and very  much attuned to the mood of their masters.

The internet is flooded with videos of soldiers returning home after long periods away and their pets joy at their return is obvious.  Dogs grieve and mourn the loss of loved ones - animal and human. They are amazing companions and great sources of comfort. This I know from experience.Dogs can also prevent loneliness - this too I know from firsthand experience. I freely admit I will  always have a dog. Doing so insures I will always have a friend.

Now there are myriad other animals that serve as pets to folks. A friend of moine in North Dakota raises pidgeons. I have known bird lovers that keep Macaws,  Cockatiels, love birds and more. Snakes are also somewhat popular but frankly I cannot imagine snuggling up to one - ditto iguanas.

Pets are family members to their owners - and I concur.  Here are mine -

Ginger

Stretch

Willie

Into the Mystic

Two years ago today at about 1:00 PM my wife Lynn died from Huntington's Disease. 

Truth be told, as painful as her loss was, the last 5-6 years of her life were miserable for her and everyone who loved her and so there was a huge sense of relief as well. Her suffering finally ended. I miss her every day and at times I'll hear a noise, look over to the couch and I swear I see her sitting with Ginger.

Thanks to the support of friends and family the future is something I look forward too.

We were together from the night we met at a New Years Eve party at Anne Amundson's house until she drew her last breath, The last time I saw her she was being zipped into a bag and wheeled out to the hearse. 



My scufflin days - such as they were - ended when we met. 

There is always someone
For each of us, they say.
And you'll be my someone
Forever and a day.

Major Life Changes - LBC 02/05/16

This week's LBC topic comes from yours truly.  Major life changes. Births, deaths, moves, successes, failures - you know - the stuff of which a life is made and lived. Usually while you are busy making other plans.  Commonly known these days as your Timeline on Facebook.

1) Birth - 1949 in Pueblo, Colorado
2) Moved to California summer of 1959
3) Graduated from high school 1967
4) Married 1972

Stuff like that. Life.  The journey. Its all about the journey and how you handle the speed bumps long the way. My speed bumps include two cross-country moves. The birth of my two kids and the subsequent births of  my five grandchildren. A move to Texas, Lynn's HD diagnosis, subsequent death and lastly a move to North Carolina. Just like that there is the skeleton of a life.



Whether you believe life is a random set of happenings, fate or directed by God matters little. It unfolds - offers challenges and in the end when your time is up the sum of your experiences is your life, The faithful see the hand of God in everything. I don't, but I also do not belittle those that do.  I'll take responsibility for my actions - good, bad and indifferent.  Embrace change. Deal with it.