Joe and I saw Delbert McClinton Friday night. The show was just great! Delbert's voice is more gravelly (gravel-ier?) and his range is not what it used to be - he's almost 79, after all - but he can still sing some blues. The band was tight and terrific, especially the horn players. No, strike that - all the musicians were amazing. But this post is not about the concert. It's about something that happened... Read more →
Happy Labor Day! Here's a sampling of this week Sunday Stealing questions - I liked the idea of "firsts," so here you go! Who was your FIRST date? My first official date was Charlie, who went to the all-boys Catholic high school, as opposed to my all-girls Catholic high school. I was a sophomore and he was a senior. We met on a parish Teen Club trip to Hershey Park, where I hung out with... Read more →
The snow started before dawn and lasted until almost noon; my best guess is that we got about three inches of the white stuff. At one point during the storm, we looked out on the balcony and saw this lonely mourning dove. At least the wee bird was out of the snow. However, the cold was biting and bitter, so the dove took shelter under the chair on the porch and hunkered down. Seeing the... Read more →
Today the lovely and immensely talented Wendy asked one of her #bixquestions on Facebook: Who is a person who opened doors for you in your passion or your career when they didn't have to? What did they do and what impact did it have on your life? I answered on Facebook, but I'd like to expand on my answer here. Aren't you lucky! First off is my Pop. The night before I was to leave... Read more →
Today's random Holidailies prompt is: If you could change, undo, or modify one decision in your past, which would it be and why? This is an interesting question. On December 21, 1972, I decided to put off writing a four-page term paper to go to the movies with a young friend who didn't have his driver's license. We went to see Camille, starring Greta Garbo, at a theater in Georgetown, DC. I dropped him off... Read more →
Joe and I celebrate our 37th wedding anniversary today! Every year since I started writing this journal/online diary/blog, I've written about our wedding in one way or another. This year, I'm going to put down the choruses to two songs that pretty much sum the past 37 years. Happy anniversary Joe! In spite of ourselves We'll end up a'sittin' on a rainbow Against all odds Honey, we're the big door prize We're gonna spite our... Read more →
I was idly googling around a few days ago, procrastinating on Camp NaNoWriMo, when I thought I might see what would pop up for "George Matthews Great London Circus." And what to my wondering eyes should appear but a link to Ivan Henry's circus blog. I clicked and there it was -- the route card for 1976, my First of May year in the circus biz. Just looking at it brought a flood of memories...... Read more →
When I was 10 or so, Pop took my sister and me to a baseball game. Somewhere in the middle of the game, I had to go to the bathroom. When I came back out or the ladies room, I got turned around and went the wrong way, so instead of heading back to my seat, I found myself walking in a deserted part of the stadium. Out of nowhere, a gang of four or... Read more →
Hangin' Out on the River So it's August. We're on the downslope of summer; the dog days. Back to school commericials abound.The cicadas are singing the blues, looking for love (or at least sex) and trying to avoid the cicada killer wasps. The weather is changeable. Heat waves and thunderstorms are followed by more reasonable warm and dry days with cool nights. The most doggish of the dog days drives me back into the gym... Read more →
If you've seen a couple of my recent Facebook posts, you know that I went on a quest for a compass -- not the "where's north" type of compass, but the "draw a circle" type of compass. The reason I wanted one is to make drawing concentric circles easier. Compasses are very good for that. You could even say that circle drawing the raison d'etre of the compass. Concentric circles make a very nice framework... Read more →