New Shoes in the Rain

Good post-Christmas Monday to all.  Hope you had a great holiday, and that, like me, the giving was more enjoyable than ever! I titled today's epic diatribe thusly because I decided to take a well-deserved break from my current job that began at 2:00 PM local time on Christmas Eve and will have me returning to work, eventually, a week from today.  So I am free for the week! So far the thing I've noticed is that I am sleeping better and longer.  I cannot recall if I've mentioned it in this space previously, but for about a year and a half I've had difficulties getting back to sleep during the night, on those nights when I wake for a trip to the bathroom.  And unlike my mindset in my former job, I am not lying awake agitated by the job or my responsibilities.  So this is likely some physical change that I have not yet fully identified.  Therefore, I keep my iPad close by and read a few articles until I feel a little drowsy.  Far better than staring a...

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat.....and so on! Hope you're ready for Christmas, because it will be here on Thursday, whether we're ready, or not!  I think we're ready, but I've experienced a couple of instances this holiday season when I thought my wife and I had completed our shopping and preparation, only to find that we have more to finish! Have you noticed some of this year's holiday advertising varies greatly from charming and fun to downright puzzling?  For instance, the Lexus commercials, showing their various models wrapped in a large bow have been around for a while, as have the Mercedes spots with Santa driving a team of red cars in lieu of reindeer.  I particularly like the Apple commercial that's running right now, showing an older woman enjoying and becoming emotional over a long-forgotten piece of music.  There was also a TV ad for a regional healthcare provider in my area that conveys a simple message of peace for the season.  Ba...

Friends, we are FAST approaching Christmas and that means that everyone is really rushing around, getting things done, crossing items off their Christmas shopping lists, going to parties, and so on.  Let's all make a pact that we'll be patient and tolerant of others.  Makes things so much nicer, don't you think? My wife and I visited a handful of retail establishments over the weekend, and while many were crowded, the patrons were still well-behaved, and there was no apparently fighting over limited quantity items or close parking spaces.  Yet. I want to pause for a moment and thank those who contacted me with such positive comments about my most recent post.  Always nice to hear from those who read and enjoy this blog!  If you have comments, whether positive or negative, don't be bashful about sharing! I made it through a particularly trying week last week.  Lots of travel and a lot of events scheduled, but here I am, safe and sound.  This week ...

Good Tuesday morning, one and all.  I come to you today suffering from a cold or something, so bear with me! Today's title was a kind of nod to what our parents used to tell us when we would be sent to our rooms (before "time out" was a thing, of course).  "Go in there and think about what you've done!"  Whatever that was.  I have two brothers and growing up, we brawled constantly, so what I had "done" was often what I was involved in, along with one or both of them. But I've been traveling a lot by car lately, so when you're on the endless road, the mind wanders far and wide, and that phrase came back to me for some reason. I was talking with my wife the other night about something and said that I should document all of the silly things I did when our kids were growing up that we all found so funny.  But since they both visit this space sometimes, I won't torture them further than I already have! But invariably, we DO start thi...

Good Monday afternoon to one and all.  As good as a Monday can be, anyway! I hope that you had the chance to spend Thanksgiving and the day or two afterward with people you care about, as I did.  Managed not to do much shopping but did pick up something on Saturday morning that I had "pre-purchased at Black Friday prices," whatever the heck that meant.  All I know is that I saved some money on it, and went in to pick it up before the crowds descended on this poor defenseless retailer. Did you know that last Saturday was designated as "Small Business Saturday?"  On that day small businesses ask that you not forget to patronize them.  We did, and normally do.  I like dealing with locally owned operations, as you pretty much know the money you spend will largely stay in your home community.  One of my primary outfitters these days is Colonel Littleton, Ltd., in the small town of Lynnville, Tennessee.  I don't live there, but buying from the Colon...