Several years ago I decided to celebrate my retirement with a new car. My wife and I had been sharing one, and I’d hesitated to purchase another for my exclusive use because we lived downtown and parking was difficult. Our house was nearly a hundred years old with a narrow garage carved out of the …more

We’re here! The bags have been unpacked, the clothes put away and the neighbors sufficiently greeted and acknowledged. The coverings have been taken off the furniture and the cable TV service has been restored. All is ready for another six months. We are back in Arizona for the winter. This will be our thirteenth winter …more

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Vicki would like to disrupt our placid retirement with another cat. I ask you, is that fair? Because I have always been the early riser and the one who handles cleaning duties, I have been the cat keeper…in sickness and in health, until death do they part. I fed, watered, changed litter, cleaned up after …more

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Years ago, (and I’m really dating myself here, but I bet some of you remember), there was a TV show in the middle of the day called Art Linkletter’s House Party. The show ran the gamut from household hints, informal celebrity interviews and musical groups. But the highlight of the show was at the end …more

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I noticed I’ve been thinking a lot about death lately. I guess because I’m getting older and the future isn’t as wide open and expansive as it used to be. It’s like I’m reaching the crest of the hill of life, whereupon it’s all downhill from here on out. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not …more

Although we enjoyed watching reruns of Upstairs, Downstairs on public television, my wife and I had never thought of ourselves as people who needed staff to get along. Living in the unpretentious Midwest, having domestic help was regarded as uppity, and unbecoming to good Methodists and Lutherans whose lot in life was to maintain their …more

It was just a normal day, like any other day. I was off running some errands on a busy summer afternoon. Nothing special. I had just parked my car in the parking lot of a strip mall and was walking down the sidewalk to a Walgreen’s to pick some prescriptions. That’s when I saw him. …more

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“Advice is what we ask for when we already know the answer, but wish we didn’t.” – Erica Jong I received a call from a fellow retired golfing buddy last Sunday evening, one who I had not seen for several weeks, this communicative/physical void was realised for primarily two specific reasons, one being a family …more