How Many Stories Have I Written For You?

Twenty years ago the Magic 8 Ball offered some candid advice that suggested the words of a wannabe prophet were accurate.

Taurus and Virgo were a magical pairing and likely to be able to go the distance provided the Virgo submitted and listened to the wise Taurus.

I didn’t know whether to take it seriously or not but figured anyone smart enough to suggest listening to the wise Taurus was probably onto something.

So when the crazy and the hard times came I offered advice and was even told that we were connected forever because we could get through anything.

Made sense even if the person who said it wasn’t as logical or rational in their approach to life as they claimed. But I didn’t argue because sometimes you have to let them think they are the boss.

When things got a little hairy again I reminded them they made me promise to keep coming even when I was told not to.

They said that things change and that I ought to recognize that. I said I recognized fear and guilt but didn’t buy the rest of what they were shoveling.

“You kissed me first but you always want me to kiss you last so that I wake you up from your slumber. We both know it and how many stories have I written for you. How many have you not gone to read so that reality doesn’t poke you in the eye.”

Call that chapter one of The Creamy Delight series which everyone knows is far better than chunky.

Ticket To Ride Me

There was a time when a supervisor laid into me because they thought I had made mistakes and committed misdeeds.

I asked them if they had purchased a ticket to ride me and watched the blank stare on their face.

“If you didn’t buy a ticket you ought to get off of my back and head back towards your desk because you don’t want to have this conversation. It is not based upon subordination but upon what you didn’t do and that is why we are in this position.”

Took a chance by being a tad aggressive but was tired of getting kicked for inexperience and lack of help in a particular area.

It paid off and the tone changed and became more pleasant.

Didn’t rid me of the overall problem but it made the situation semi-tolerable and sometimes that is the best you will get so you roll with it.

****

Took a few minutes to read the New York Times, Washington Post, Fox and a half dozen other publications just to see how they were covering the news.

Had to shake my head when I thought about current events and what I might be able to tell my grandchildren I lived through, should I have any that is. Would be nice, but not for a long while but I digress.

I used to think about how my grandparents had been around for both world wars, the Depression, Korea, Vietnam, the assassinations of two Kennedys and MLK.

That doesn’t include the last pandemic, Pearl Harbor, the Moon Landing, two lost space shuttles, 9/11, two Gulf wars, Afghanistan and a ton of other history.

The point is it always seemed like a crazy amount of stuff had happened during their lives, not to mention that my parents lived through a chunk of that.

And then I thought about how much I have seen and how the last chunk or so hasn’t been as an ordinary Joe with no responsibilities other than myself.

This last chunk has been as a father and I have had conversations I never imagined having with the kids.

Conversations where they have been old enough to know that I was winging some of it and that they were getting my best educated guess and that I couldn’t do better than that.

We’re all living our lives and doing the best we can and in many if not the most important ways thriving but damn if it hasn’t been crazy.

I am beginning to think some of the hard times we went through a decade ago paid off in the respect that everyone had to adapt, adjust, pivot and get tougher.

Hard lessons to learn, but valuable and now in the midst of crazy we are better prepared or so the hope goes.

What Comes Next?

I don’t think we have seen the full extent of the ugly that is coming with this war but I hope to be proven wrong.

Most nights I fall asleep without any issue or challenge but it didn’t happen Monday night. I wasn’t particularly worried or concerned about any one situation. Just couldn’t fall asleep.

So I let my mind wander wherever it wanted and at some point I fell asleep. Had a dream in which I met a guy named Silverman who loved physics and rocket engines.

Had a pretty interesting conversation about this and that.

Woke up well before my alarm was supposed to go off and wondered if my Uncle Mark had made an appearance too.

Hard to say but I did come across a piece in which he was briefly mentioned.

FILLMORE GUIDE 1 The_San_Francisco_Examiner_Sun__May_5__1985
“At Mark Wilner, at No. 2420, the artist crafts beautiful gold wedding rings and other jewelry starting at about $160 for a simple band. The shop also sells the work of other local jewelry designers.”

Found a picture too that I had never seen that probably won’t render well here, but I’ll post it nonetheless. It’s from 1988, I was 19 and he would have been 44.

I recognize that expression and see the family resemblance. I haven’t any sense of whether he was aware that his life would be cut short or if he was concerned about it.

He never gave me any indication of being particularly worried about it and we had the discussion more than once. Might have been or might not, both are possible.

The relevance here though is focused elsewhere. It is tied into how much life experience I have gained along the path and the multiple reasons I have learned to be cognizant of how fast things can turn.

It is a big part of why I am willing to do certain things and not wait. Doesn’t mean I don’t do my best to plan for the future but I can’t wait forever for some things because forever is unlikely and tomorrow isn’t promised.