I was filling out a form online today that required the input of my birthday. Instead of allowing me to type it in, the site was forcing me through a series of drop down boxes. I scrolled until I found April, actually Apr, and selected it. I then scrolled down a series of numbers until I found the unlucky number that corresponds with the correct day of April. Finally I needed to scroll down to find my birth year. For some reason it started with 2022 – as if they pop out of the womb knowing how to interact with a computers. Anyway, I scrolled and scrolled and scrolled, and before I came to the correct year I had to jump up and take bathroom break… that is when you KNOW you are old.
I went hiking this past weekend with my brother, Mike, aka Dictionary Dude, a semi-retired CPA. We hiked the Ozark Highlands Trail, OHT, starting at the trailhead close to Ozone Campground on Arkansas Highway 21, ending up at the Fort Douglas Trailhead, 1.5 miles east of the Haw Creek Falls Recreation Area on Arkansas Highway 123. Total distance covered was 20 miles. We took it easy and did the distance in two and one half days. Last hike we did was 30 miles in 3 days which does not sound like a lot, but remember we are carrying packs that weigh around 35 pounds loaded. Plus these hikes are in Arkansas, you are either going uphill or downhill, if you find yourself walking on the flat for any extended period of time, Continue reading “Duck Dynasty Backpacking Trip”
My due diligence: I don’t believe this post to be x-rated, I would not even call it r-rated. However, it has a vaguely graphic sexual theme. Also I know that listening to someone else’s dream is often a politeness. So now, dear reader, the choice is yours.
One of the things about backpacking this time of year is the amount of time you spend in your tent in a sleeping bag. It gets dark early and morning arrives late. It also tends to be cold, Continue reading “Perhaps My Most Sensuous Dream”
This “random thought” may be somewhat obscure to many readers, but to those of us who know JMR, it will relate immediately.
JMR takes walks regularly and drives quite a bit for various reasons. All of us in his circle are use to frequently getting calls from him at these times as he has had a thought he needs to share.
Reflecting on this, it is obvious to me that this is his method of sharing in the same vein as Rev. Joe’s Random Thoughts. The acorns do not fall too far from the oak tree. Of course his method has the advantage of not floating around the Internet to come back and bite him.
I go to the doctor every 6 months to get blood work, mainly because one of the drugs I take (blood pressure med???) can affect the liver. They generally want to check my cholesterol while they are at it, so I go in fasting. A bad habit that I started years ago is getting a Mickey Dee’s breakfast afterwards. Outside of when we travel, it is the only time I eat at this iconic American restaurant.
It was about lunch time when I got out of the doctor’s office. The line at McDonald’s drive-thru was fairly long so I went inside. There was only one man inside eating at a table, and I walked right up to the counter and ordered. When I left the line for the drive-thru had backed up all the way on to Olive Boulevard, which is very a busy street with 4 lanes and a middle turn lane. Admittedly the weather is bad here in St. Louis today, a slushy mess freezing on the road, so that probably affected peoples’ actions. However, I have seen the same behavior on beautiful spring days. It makes me wonder how much gasoline is wasted by folks idling in drive-thrus.
I spent part of yesterday afternoon giving all three bathrooms a very thorough cleaning. Now I do not want to utilize any of them as I do not want to encroach on their perfection. I am afraid, however, if I sidle up to a tree in the backyard one of the neighbors will place a call to Chesterfield’s finest. Well, there is always the BP on the corner of Olive and Chesterfield Parkway. Their bathrooms are generally clean, but not perfect. I wonder if I could sneak into the YMCA down by the St. Louis County Library and get a quick shower…
I was returning home from a Wally World run when I ended up behind a pickup at a long traffic light. Well pickup is not quite the right description. It was a reasonably new 4×4 pickup jacked up to stratospheric levels, sporting 4 massive tires that extended at least a zip code from the side of the vehicle, and so pimped out I did not know where to focus my gaze.
I was feeling a bit snobbish, well actually more than a little judgmental about such a ride, when I noticed that my dream car, a Porsche 911 Carrera, was in the next lane beside the tricked out 4×4.
It dawned on me that both were forms of conspicuous consumption expressed in different fashions.
I sometimes wonder where the control is for whatever mental function it is that causes me to be so judgmental. Of course at this point in my life it is so rusted from lack of use as to be inoperative.
Years ago it was very common for houses to have big front porches, and people used them. Probably at least in part due to the lack of air conditioning, and it was also a a way of staying connected to your neighbors.
Now days we have decks and patios and they are at the back of the houses, frequently behind fences. Many of us of little or no connection with our neighbors, seldom even talking to them.
There is a statement, message, lesson in there somewhere.
What started me down this random thought path was that for some reason I was thinking about my grandmother’s house. The house she lived in longest during my childhood was an old three story house that had a huge porch, wrapping around three sides, sitting just on the edge of the small farming town of Checotah, OK, birthplace of this curmudgeon. And that porch was used extensively. I slept out there multiple times when her house was full of visiting aunts, uncles, cousins and other assorted folks.
I have seen this other places, but when I lived in Memphis it was exceedingly common. One could drive around neighborhoods on a nice evening and there would be a multitude of folks sitting around in lawn chairs in their driveways. Most of the houses did not have front porches, but the driveway must have been a good substitute.
Every look at a baby picture, a childhood picture of some adult you know? The pictures, frequently, reveal a cute, engaging person with bright, shiny eyes full of hope.
Then you think of these folks as adults and their lives as adults, and think what the hell happened.
Danger Will Robinson Danger… I fell down the YouTube rabbit hole on this one. Just a word to the wise.
Okay, I am a Johnny-come-lately to this global phenomena, but here I am. This really put a smile on my face, and a gladness in my heart. It became meditative after a while. For me it was a reminder that we are all just one people… perhaps it is time we started acting that way.
If you have some time, put “jerusalema dance challenge” into your YouTube search box. While I didn’t understand the language they were singing, the music is beautiful. The original language is isiZulu, a language out of South Africa. As my dive into the rabbit hole deepened, I found versions in a couple of other languages.
What really interested me was the dance challenges from around the world. I am including a video that compiled many of these dances. However, if you do the YouTube search, the results will have you scrolling for pages… which I did.
Before you watch the mix of dance challenges from around the world here is a link to the official music video of the song: Master KG – Jerusalema [Feat. Nomcebo] (Official Music Video) As I re-watched this video it strikes me it has a subtle anti-drug message.
