My Life As A Hobby

It’s just a small place on a big lake.   Only about 1,000 square feet - I guess you can call it a house, just  barely.   As a point of reference, the deck we added is a almost bigger than the home. The running joke is that people will come boating by and say, “Wow, look at the house on that deck.”  But it’s ours. For thirteen years we have built, rebuilt, and spent money on it. It’s been a labor of love.   We especially enjoy sharing it with friends and family like Skip and Tammy. They are two close friends who visit regularly.  Tammy actually grew up on this lake and has a great love for It.  So when she unexpectedly lost her Mom last week, I hugged her at the funeral home and whispered, “You know anytime you and Skip want the lake house to get away,  it's yours.” For those who don’t know, every recreational lake is really two lakes: the weekend lake and the weekday lake. The weekend lake  is loud, crowded, and boisterous. ...

Last week, I blogged about how my dog Reese pulled my pants, mooning my 8 year old granddaughter, Rilynne.  This weekend, I asked her to pen her account of the story, promising to post it if she did.  She kept her end of the deal,  and now I’m keeping mine. Here it is, unedited.  Let me know what you think.  And for goodness sakes, please like it - she’s sure to ask me that number!     The Funny Story It was a nice day.   And we were getting ready to go on a walk. .And if we said the word walk our dogs would go crazy.  And my granddaddy was getting the leashes ready and when he was on his way out of the bedroom and said the word and the dogs went crazy.  And a little bit too crazy.  So crazy that when my grandaddy got to the living room our dog Reese jumped on his back and pulled his pants and underwear down and it was really funny. And after she did that he said it is not the first time.  Oh my gosh he said it’...

At my age, I will freely admit that I’m not as hip as I once was. Nowadays if anyone refers to me and hip in the same the sentence,  it’s my chiropractor.  Especially when it comes to technology. That’s because I’m a Granddaddy, and that’s the law. So when my 8 year old granddaughter, Rilynne, started asking about making a TikTok video,  it could be a Timex commercial for all I knew.  But I do know that when she stays with us, I give her a few chores. More like tasks, really. And today it involved helping me walk the dogs.  She’s a big help, because we have three pups: a Yorkie, and my two rescued strays, Reese and Roscoe. Walking these three canines with leashes makes me feel like I’m a puppeteer working a marionette.  Furthermore, when just I say the word “walk”, they explode in a series of excited yips, barks, spins, and jumps.  They get so out of control I can hardly hook them up.  And unfortunately for me, today Rilynne invoke...

I  saw   To Kill a Mockingbird  on television recently - again. It never fails to remind me how magnificent Harper Lee’s book is.  I think it stands up to anything Twain, Steinbeck, or Hemingway ever wrote. She gave us a gift that will give to generations beyond us.  Amazingly, I didn’t read Mockingbird in high school, which doesn’t speak well of my teachers in the English Department.  Instead,  I was in my mid-thirties when I met Atticus Finch. I was mesmerized. I was moved.  It instantly became my favorite book.  And to think it was written by a fellow Alabamian and graduate of the University of Alabama!  Smitten as I was, I began to search for anything I could find about Harper Lee and her book.  To my delight, I learned of an “open secret” -  that autographed copies of the book were generally available at a couple of stores in her hometown. It goes without saying that this immediately went on my bucket list. ...

With the world in such a mess, I just wish we could get someone to report the news objectively.    In the words of an old TV police show, “Just the facts, ma’am”.     Sadly, I don’t think it’s going to happen.    Bias in news stories exists. And before you get all smug and self righteous, let me remind you that it happens on both sides of the political fence. From Fox to MSNBC,    it’s there.    The networks slant the news    to help it fit their perspective on world events. Here’s a personal example that I believe proves my point.  On September 12, 2016 I watched, along with the rest of the country, as San Francisco 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick knelt alongside teammate Eric Reid during the Star Spangled Banner.    This was Kaepernick’s way to protest    police brutality towards blacks.    It had become a big national news story.   This event had more than ...

“Shoot the son of a bitch!,” my father yelled at the screen. It was embarrassingly clear to everyone in the theatre that Dad was caught up in the movie. But why did he have to scream that out?   I guess most of the people there cut him some slack. Because of his age and the wheelchair, I’m sure many of them figured he was a vet.    They were right.    Nevertheless my wife, my Mom, and myself were ashamed by the outburst.    But I should’ve known something like this might happen when I talked Dad into going to see Saving Private Ryan.   The scene that had such an effect on him was a particularly intense one.    Many of you will recall it -    during a skirmish with the enemy, a GI medic was shot and killed. The victorious Americans took the lone German survivor, and gave him a knife to dig a grave.    Then they planned to exact revenge by shooting him. But Tom Hanks showed mercy and spared his lif...

Forty years is a hec kuva long wait for a tee time. But that’s how much time has elapsed since I played golf with one of my college fraternity brothers, Mike.  When I was  fresh out of college part of my sales territory included Huntsville, Alabama.  So, when I was in town I would  always make it a point to visit Mike and his wife who were working there.   We would try to play golf in the afternoon then drink a couple of beers at his house.    Just two guys in their early twenties beginning families and transitioning from college to the adult world.    Then Mike got transferred. My territory changed. And what’s worse, life began to get in our way. Mortgages, car payments, children, and work became the center of our existence.   Newfound, nearby friends began to push the old, far-away friends to the background. It wasn’t malicious or conscious, but it happened anyway. And so the days melted into weeks, then months, then year...