My wife and I had a nice holiday season with my son visiting from Detroit. He had a laptop nearby 24/7 because of his job--monitoring computers elsewhere. No problems on his watch.
We had a good time and watched a bunch of movies. "The Blues Brothers." "Anvil"--he said I'd like it, and he was right. "Public Enemies" from 2009 and "Girl Shy" by Harold Lloyd from the 1920s.
When his younger brother came over, it became a Pinky and the Brain festival. The megalomaniacal mouse is unforgettable. As the snows fell and the winds blew it around, Brain keeps trying to take over the world. My older son said he'd have a lot better chance at success if his schemes weren't so grandiose. But that wouldn't be the Brain, would it?
I also passed a personal milestone. This one was marked with a two-digit number: 60. I drove past that little "60" sign a week ago. Not that the world is any different on the other side. It's almost identical. And I haven't changed, either. I'm trying to take care of myself. For the most part, I'm doing OK.
Starting Friday, I will also be entering my eighth different decade. True, I was only in the 1940s for eight days. But it counts.
Passing that "60" sign isn't an achievement. To me, 60 is 59+1, just as 61 will be 60+1. But I notice that I am (ahem, yes) more aware of the ages of people in the obituaries and of others who aren't feeling so well. I am. My back is in good shape, my legs are strong, I don't have problems with my heart or lungs or stomach, I usually sleep well, my mind is strong, and I still enjoy sex. I am taking meds for high blood pressure. I weigh a little more than I would like (about 220), but I'm eating better and healthier than in the past--1% milk, whole grain breads, not as much caffeine or sugar. Never had to worry about quitting smoking.
So I think I'll be around for a while yet. My hair is gray in only a few places, and I still have nearly all of it--and it still grows thickly. I also feel I have gotten wiser over time. Not as impatient as I used to be. Better able to accept things and people the way they are, not as I want them to be.
The key to that was learning to love myself the way I am, and then feeling free to love others they way they are. I grew in new ways--I learned about neopaganism and polyamory, met some wonderful new friends and new ways of living. I didn't do this to reject my past. It's adding to my life, not replacing other parts. I did it to discover new worlds and become a better, more happier human being. That's what it's all about, isn't it?
Really, these last few years have been wonderful for me. I don't get as much free time as I want, and that really bothers me at times. But I am growing and becoming a better person.
So when I drove past that "60" sign, it was a non-event. I am what I am. I enjoy life, and I am happy.
The event went virtually unnoticed at home. My wife made ravioli for supper that night, which my older son and I both enjoy. That was about it.
But I did get some gifts from B in that "treasure chest" she sent me. I finally opened it. What did I find inside?
I got a variety of Alaskan syrups, most of which I had never heard of before ("lingonberry"? "salmonberry"?). I got some Alaskan preserves, for sandwiches and such. She sent a few DVDs she had made herself from their recorder--a couple movies and documentaries. She sent me a Deepak Chopra book on CD ("Ageless Body, Timeless Mind") about growing older and presumably better.
She also sent me "Santa Claus Blues." This was a real surprise and the biggest treat.
"Santa Claus Blues" is a CD collection of Christmas-themed Big Band music put out by Canada's Jass Records in the late '80s or early '90s. Jass released a series of very interesting CDs before the company disappeared, and I had the foresight to grab many of them when I saw them. Many were sex-inspired, some were drug-themed, and some had to do with holidays. All feature music and musicians from the '20s, '30s and '40s.
Among their CDs was "Halloween Stomp," which I copied and sent to B this fall. Halloween-style music from the '30s and '40s, plus short clips from cartoons of the era. Great fun to listen to. I may have mentioned to her that Jass had released a Christmas CD also, and I think I saw it one time, but I opted for the Halloween CD ... and had been fruitlessly looking for it ever since.
She managed to find it. I'm impressed.
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The holidays are not quite over. For New Year's Eve, my wife and I will stay home and watch a couple movies and maybe enjoy a little wine. We'll stay up till just after 11 p.m. (Central Time), to watch the merriment on Times Square, and then it's off to bed for us. Yeah, we lead a wild life.
On Friday, my wife watches the Rose Parade, I watch a little of the the Holiday Classic hockey game from Boston, and then we get in the car and drive to visit her sisters and brothers for a couple days. We drive back Sunday. The weather is expected to be quite cold--subzero at night, not much above zero during the day.
Better make sure the Ipod is charged up.
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