Little Buddy

This weekend I will be with my little buddy, my grandson. I will go to his kickball game and then take him home with me until tomorrow afternoon. We have the day planned. We will go to his favorite stores and buy him whatever he wants. We will go out to dinner, probably pizza. He will sleep in his father's old bedroom and in the morning have breakfast. Knowing him, he will chatter all day. He is a non stop conversationalist and everything he says is relevant. He is so easy to be with and it is a pleasure to pal around with him. The only thing that could possible be better, would be to have my granddaughters with us.

Brain Action

I just read an article on the web that says that after you die your brain is still working for a short time and can formulate thoughts. Really? Now I am upset. Who needs my brain to keep working? I have spent my entire life thinking and worrying 24/7. I was hoping that death meant an immediate brain tune out. At peace. At rest. Finito. Now I have to look forward to still thinking even after I die. Thanks a lot.

Senior Jeopardy

As we age, certain sensory functions change. We do not see as well, hear as well or walk as well. The seeing and walking affect the person who feels them. The hearing effects everyone else. It starts with the person telling everyone that they are mumbling. Then it turns into the "what" stage where every sentence that is spoken to them is answered with the word, "what?". When things get to a worse condition I call it Senior Jeopardy. In the game of Jeopardy, every answer has a question. In Senior Jeopardy, every question has a wrong answer. The question, "What do you want to eat" is answered with "My feet feel fine".

The Sandwich

My family dynamic has become a sandwich. I have a slice of bread on one side called parents. I have a slice of bread on the other side called children. I am the meat stuck in the middle being compressed and pulled apart. Macerated. The problem with the sandwich is that one slice of bread cannot see how the other side is doing because they are on opposite sides. The meat is in contact with both sides so it knows the situation. The meat sees what the bread cannot and it is hard to explain.

Off Duty

After many years of being a manager 24/7, I have decided to be the manager only during my working hours. Once I leave work, I am off duty. I have even gone as far as changing my ringtone to a specific one for my office and staff so that when they call me after hours, I will not even have to look at my phone. I will just ignore it. Lately I have been getting nonsense calls from my staff. If they don't find a box of paper clips, they call to ask where else they can look. If the heat is too high, they call to see if they can lower it. It is getting to the point where I want to hire a bunch of six year olds. A few weeks ago my boss called to say that she just got a speeding ticket and asked what she should do. I said, "Pay it". I am now separating work life from personal life and I will not turn back.

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday was our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. We go with my daughter in law's family and pick a new patch every year. This year we went to Brightwaters Farms. It offered many events. There were unlimited hayrides, face painting, magic shows, farm animals, pony rides and other small circus type games. There was a concession stand and a farm store with fresh baked goods. I would give it five stars except for one major problem. They served beer. We got there at 11:30am and for some reason, even with NY state alcohol laws, the beer was flowing. The majority of young mothers and fathers had a 16oz beer in their hand. It was disturbing to me on a few levels. First, who drinks beer at 11am? Next, if two parents are drinking a large glass of beer, who is the designated driver? Thirdly, no one was monitoring how many beers people drank, like a bartender does, so people could drink the entire time they were there. Why was it necessary to include alcohol in what is otherwise a family setting? Was it to make a larger profit? That is the only reason I could think of.

Enlightened

We have all had a defining moment in our lives when we have become enlightened. It is when the ability to understand has awakened our souls and we are open to change. It is the moment where what was, no longer is. It is a time when we can push old feelings aside and make room for new ones. It is freedom from ourselves. Sometimes it has been in the works for a long time and other times it just appears as if there was a divine intervention. It is a surprise to ourselves. That is the strongest enlightenment. Once we are enlightened we are at peace.