I haven’t been back to The Keg since August of 2013 but I have certainly thought about going more than once.
There may be better steak houses but that one means something to me, well, the one that used to be by my old apartment.
It has long since closed and while I expect the others will provide a superior meal I haven’t been and haven’t a clue if I ever will.
Can’t say that I think about it with any sort of regularity but sometimes when I drive by one of the other locations I am reminded about the value of a good meal followed by a quiet movie at home.
You never know when the ordinary will be impacted by an experience or a person elevating it into the extraordinary.
Smart people hold on those, not because they are stuck in the past but because it is signpost the can sometimes help remind you that there is a way to get more of those moments.
You just have to live with your eyes wide open.
Who Peppers Your Pike
The guys and I sat around talking about the importance of finding someone who peppers your pike.
You know that person who makes you remember that life isn’t about just surviving while remembering that sometimes things happen.
Sometimes they wake up and look like Michael as one of the monsters or sometimes they wake up and think you look like Michael and one of the monsters.
“You know, if you could dance like Mike you might not look like such a monster. Too bad you can’t dance.”
I laughed and told him it doesn’t matter how well you can dance if you can’t communicate and offered to edit his semi-literate ramblings.
That made both of us laugh and then we got lost in other things. That is what happens when you walk someone through a divorce and or serious health issue.
There Are Short & Long Goodbyes
A friend and I had a friendly debate about Johnny and June Carter Cash’s relationship. It followed the release of Walk The Line in 2005 so like so many things it is possible things didn’t go as I recall.
What I remember is talking about the scene near the end where he tells her he has asked her to marry him 40 different ways and he wants an answer.
I said something about it was about time he told her what he really thought and insisted she share her real feelings.
My friend laughed and said men just think we are the boss, “women run the show. She didn’t say yes because he pestered her into it, she said yes because she was ready.”
We laughed and bounced a bunch of different comments back and forth and set it aside.
Speaking of the movie, I feel a little bit like I suspect Johnny did when he was being weaned off of whatever junk he was on.
I sneezed so hard my teeth flew through the wall and landed in our neighbor’s mashed potatoes.
Given that I am a couple of days away from another plane ride I am shooting up with Zicam, lots of soup and a promise to reward any white cell that is willing to carry a gun and shoot the bad guys that have been assaulting me.
It should work out ok because this Wilner man doesn’t get colds often. I may be a little longer in the tooth but I still beat the hell out of those.
Guess we are going to find out soon if this is going to be a long or a short goodbye.
The only thing I know for certain is writing is hard right now because I feel like I am fighting through a fog.
But I have 10 minutes more before I am eligible to take some Nyquil and snore this sucker into submission.
Epilogue
My daughter wants to know if I am nervous about going back and I shrug my shoulders.
“Maybe a little bit. I can’t do a damn thing to help with most of this, but I can still do a lot by being a presence. I am there to help hold down the fort and maybe even help fight a little bit, can’t say and don’t know,
I was taught to do what is required and that is what I want of you. We do what we can and hope that it is enough to make a difference.
Be a presence in the lives of others and if you do it right you don’t have to ever say goodbye because they’ll notice you when you are no longer around.”
