New Shoes in the Rain

Feeling rather somber this afternoon, with news from Minneapolis of a shooting during a Mass at a Catholic School in that area.  After Sandy Hook I had real hopes that something would happen in the area of gun control, but the gun lobby got to vulnerable members of Congress first and nothing happened.  Maybe it will be different this time. This conundrum has me wondering if the current administration has done anything in particular for the benefit of the American people, regardless of which candidate they voted for.  I'm old enough to have lived through numerous administrations, and I would be pretty surprised to learn that every one of them signed legislation into law or enacted (or removed) a regulation that made some difference in how we live our lives. With the current administration, I simply cannot.  Other than actions that had been taken and later overturned by legal rulings, there has been nothing done to help the average American citizen. Everything costs mo...

Happy Friday, everyone! No specific theme or subject for today's post.  Just a hodgepodge of stuff that's accumulated since my last, more introspective post. Over the last couple of days I had some lengthy day trips for work.  I have satellite radio, downloaded podcasts and an audiobook I haven't started, but sometimes I like to dip into my personal music library (which lives on my phone) to listen to some music that continues to make me happy.  Wednesday I was on my way home from Knoxville, Tennessee, in and out of rain, and decided to listen to an old album by the singer-songwriter J.D. Souther.  John David is probably best known for co-writing many of the Eagles' hit songs, including "New Kid in Town," "Best of My Love," "Heartache Tonight" and many others he wrote on his own that were recorded by singers such as Linda Ronstadt and on his own solo records. The album I decided to listen to is called "Natural History," and it...

Good morning, all.  Hope you're having a good weekend and that you're in the part of the country where the weather is more agreeable than the oppressive heat we've had in Kentucky, or the frequent deluges that have caused flooding and other problems. I enjoyed sharing some of the details of our recent trip to Chicago, and we're still talking about some of what we experienced while we were there.  But the last day before we all traveled back home was my birthday, number 65 to be exact, so I now have a good bit to think about. I can start taking my Social Security and apply for Medicare right now.  But I would be limited on how much other income I may have until I reach "full" retirement age, as I understand it.  So my plan, for the moment, anyway, is to stick with full-time work until I turn 67, when I will then be able to draw my full benefit AND have the opportunity to earn other income without interrupting or reducing my monthly SS benefit. Worth mentioning ...