Category: Life

S*** happens

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The Cookie Jar

  We visited some friends this weekend in Chicago, well one of the northwest suburbs of Chicago.  Despite the frigid temperatures, we had a great time. In their dining room, on the sideboard, is this cookie jar, brazenly inscribed with the eighth commandment, “Thou shall not steal.”

I bring this up as it reminded me of a story I posted about ten years ago that I am going to recycle with some small revisions. Enjoy.

Once upon a time, back in the day, when my kidrens were still knee-high to the proverbial grasshopper, my arm could still be twisted to get me to attend Sunday church services. My son, David, must have been around 4 which would have put my daughter, Keely, at 8. We were living in Oklahoma City, attending  a Baptist church fairly regularly. Sporadically, before the main sermon, the preacher would have a children’s story. In the front of the church was a low stage with steps leading up to the pulpit. He would sit at the front of this stage and ask the children of the congregation to gather around him.

This particular Sunday he did that, made his invitation to the children, and off rushed our two kids. I do not remember exactly what the story was about, but it did involve a cookie jar and the partaking of the contents unauthorized.

The preacher looked at Keely and asked her, “Do y’all have a cookie jar at your house?”

To which she replied, “No.” Then she brightly added, “No, but we have a cookie bowl and Mommy hides it from Daddy as he gets into it all the time.”

The whole church burst out into laughter and turned to see me slinking down in my pew.

And so it went back in the “day”.

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Door Hangers

The last several times I have stayed at a hotel/motel for a duration of more than one day, housekeeping has not come into the room  to straighten it and make the bed.  It does not seem to matter what hotel chain or their level of service.  I attribute this to three causes.  First, during the pandemic these chains were super cautious and bragging about their amped up level of cleanliness. It was a way to keep staff safe.  Secondly, after the pandemic Continue reading “Door Hangers”

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An Old Man’s Tonterías

In Victorian times there was a very prescribed dress code, the window of acceptable clothing was fairly narrow.  At least this is the impression I have gathered from the many Victorian novels I have read.  I also received the impression that this applied less to the lower classes than those more socially advantaged.

Even in the first part of the 19th century, the acceptable styles were very much dictated by society.  There is hardly a man without a hat on in pictures from the 20s, 30s and 40s, if they were outside.  Men’s clothing was almost always some dull color.  Women had a little more latitude, but not much.  I was a teenager in the 60s before mother dared Continue reading “An Old Man’s Tonterías”

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A Common Attitude of Viejos???

As one of my brothers so delightfully pointed out to me, I have entered my 8th decade. For most of my adult life I have more or less tried to live a reasonably healthy life style.

I put down the cigarettes when I was 31. Drugs have never been my thing, and even if they had been, keeping a job in corporate America would have put them on a back burner.

I have and still do exercise regularly. Currently I do a combination of stretches, weights and aerobic exercises for an hour or more on an average of five times a week.  With Señora’s help Continue reading “A Common Attitude of Viejos???”

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #8,600

yeah I know you did not ask!

Divorce is never easy, sometimes very necessary, but never easy.  While going through mine during the last century I came across the following that accurately described how I felt at the time.

Divorce is like hacking off one of your limbs, yourself, using a rusty, very dull, undersized pocket knife.

Oucher for sure.

I was thinking about divorce for reasons I do not need to get into here, but when do you know it is time to get a divorce?  Obviously, it is a very complex situation with many factors, and it is different for every person/couple. Getting divorce can be expensive, time consuming, and emotionally devastating. Frequently it is not for the weak of heart.

However, I think the when can be summarized by saying it is when one or both persons in a marriage stop treating the other person with respect, especially if it is a long term pattern.  It is time to go.  It is time to split the blanket. Life is too damn short to live like that.

And so it goes… about 50% of the time in the United States of Acrimony.

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How Each Little Rascals Cast Member Died (Our Gang)

I subscribe to several YouTube channels and when I go there they usually have several “suggestions” directing you to the YouTube rabbit hole.  I fell into this one as I met a Little Rascal years ago.  Not one the original members recounted in this video, but a later replacement. But still a Little Rascal.  Follow this link to read about my encounter with this child actor: Dissed by a Little Rascal

It was a little traumatic at the time, but now I have a funny anecdote.

And so it goes.

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Veil Replacement

I had to run down to The Hill area close to downtown St. Louis this morning.  On the way back I passed a compact, maybe a subcompact vehicle. I did not notice what brand it was as I was focused on the vanity license plate which read MN’TALA. I was busy trying to decipher what that meant in license-platese. I finally decided it must be a name which piqued my curiosity.

As I passed the vehicle I peeked over from the high peak of my pickup truck to see who was driving the subcompact.  It was a smallish, Arabic looking women dressed Continue reading “Veil Replacement”

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Choice is Good

I have two frequent muses for my silly, little blog.  One is Señora. Most of the time she is okay with being my muse, sometimes she is tickled, and on occasion, she will arch one eyebrow and give me that look. After two bouts of the the brain fever known as matrimonitis I have gained enough “wisdom” to seek Señora‘s approval before releasing stories involving her into the wilds of cyberspace.

My other muse is The Wee Dog, aka Princess Lily, our 7 kilogram rescue dog. A year or so after we adopted her, on a whim – and on sale – we had her DNA tested.  She is 3/8 Bichon Frisé, 1/4 Dachshund, 1/8 Pomeranian, 1/8 Pekingese, 1/8 Shih Tzu and 100% adorable except to squirrels, rabbits, moles and especially chipmunks.

Señora and Princess Lily are essentially surgically/psychically/telepathically connected. Neither one of them can stand not knowing where the other is, generally they are in the same room together.  As revealed in True Confessions, I, by spells, have my roles to play in this ménage à chienne. For reasons known Continue reading “Choice is Good”

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Open or Closed?

Señora and I are having an ongoing “debate”.  After visiting the bathroom for a “meditation session”, do you leave the bathroom door shut or do you open it?  My opinion is that you leave it shut to trap the “aromas” therein, allowing them dissipated in due time.   Señora repeatedly opines that it is better to leave the door open to allow the “aromas” to dissipated quicker.

We keep a candle in there, but the problem with those is that I forget I have lit it.   I suppose that is a minor fire hazard, but mainly they are burning up very quickly.

On a semi-related note, did you know that there are soaps that are solely for decoration, that they are not there for the washing of your hands?

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Mounds, by gawd, Oklahoma

click to see larger

Recently Señora and I were in Oklahoma. First, we made a quick visit to my mother in her nursing home in Owasso. She has Alzheimer’s, so quick or long, the visit it is all the same. In fact given her level of engagement and attention span, a short visit might be better, even if St. Louis to Owasso is a long trip.

Afterwards we headed towards Okemah, OK to go to the Woody Guthrie musical festival.  On the way there I made the impromptu decision to visit Mounds, OK. “Mounds, Oklahoma,” you say, “I have never of it.”  Well do not feel alone in that, Continue reading “Mounds, by gawd, Oklahoma”