We Are Bonded Together

Some dare to walk upon the long and winding road because they know they are the kind of person who takes the long way home.

Those who dare to be more, to have more and to do more have to accept the burden of walking through the fallow fields as well as the green. The only way to get to the other side is to go through.

And once you accept that you survived the moments that you thought would stop you in your tracks and understand how to read the map upon the scars, well then you are on your way, aren’t you.

There is far more tied into that and for a moment I thought about taking it the rest of the way home to talk about how we are bonded together because we are.

But I choose to go a different direction for the moment and explore other bonds because the civil unrest and angst compels me to address it.

I Hear Things

The joy of 51 is being woken by ones bladder at a few ticks and tocks short of 8 AM after having gone to bed around 2 or so.

I don’t require a ton of sleep but since my children are old enough to be self sufficient I can sleep as late as I am able, except when nature calls.

It doesn’t happen as often to me as some of the other guys say so I am pleased. But dad says his urologist said he had an enormous prostate and told me my grandfather and great-grandfather were blessed too.

He also told me he was sure he started being woken in his late forties and though I know things are different that is not an issue.

So while I may not be able to drink 184 ounces and not worry about relief for 12 hours I am still pretty darn solid…Yipee.

I thought about this when I read a post about a man who was at a protest and in need of refuge. And then I shook my head as I read more than one horrid response to the protest after another.

So many said we ought to remember we are all Americans and act that way suggesting the protesters were overreacting.

I shook my head because I hear things.

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I hear things White people say when they think there is no color around. Not all are terrible things, some are calls for us to work together to help but others are racist calls.

The ones that concern me the most don’t come from those who use unambiguous racist terms because even though they may try and hide it from people who don’t look like them they know what they are.

It is others who speak in terms that make me wonder if they know how awful what they say is and how wrong.

Comments that I hear sometimes about Jews that make me certain they have no clue I am Jewish. Or alternatively comments that make me wonder if they have any idea how telling me we’re very cunning businessmen with a nose for money doesn’t come across as a compliment.

Add in the people who are offended that some ask for equality while saying they ought to be asking for all.

Makes no sense to me why they have to respond with a one size fits all remark when we know that it does not.

A rising tide lifts all ships and benefits all so why wouldn’t we work towards achieving that.

The Freight Train Is Coming

I tried to convince someone a while back to watch the Lord of The Rings movies with me and they said they weren’t interested in action.

“It is not action or fantasy thought that element is in it. It is a drama about friendship, dreams, love and life. It is a coming-of-age and overcoming challenges.

There are characters with depth that you can relate to.”

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Used some Amazon credit to purchase a simple OXO unit to make cold brew coffee. Thought it would be kind of fun to test it out and so I began brewing my first batch yesterday.

Drank some of it today and made it a bit stronger than I intended but more on that in a minute.

Went for my afternoon walk at a time when the thermostat says it was 97 but it was a wet one so it felt a little hotter.

Got two miles into it when I felt a familiar gurgle and turned around for home not knowing if the system was saying refuge required in a while or soon.

Three quarters of a mile from the house it became clear I needed to hustle so I began to run and I was reminded I need to buy running shoes.

Started moving and heard myself huffing and puffing and snorted in a laughter and disgust because I sounded so damn old.

But I also knew I was moving pretty good even if I might have looked like a tired freight train.

When I hit the quarter mile mark I knew I was in a race I didn’t want to lose and I knew the old pair of walking shoes I was wearing should have been replaced.

Even if I choose not to run they no longer offer the support I need.

Jumped over a kid’s bike as I got close and was disappointed by how little lift my legs gave because damn if it is not yesterday that I could put two hands on the backboard and scrape parts of the rim.

Not especially impressive to many, but solid for a guy in his forties who had a summer more than twenty years past in which he could grab the rim until he hurt his ankle.

Anyhoo, I made it to the house in time and then listened to myself huff and puff some more while spending what felt like an hour wiping sweat off of my face as I cooled down.

Got to make a point to keep pushing because I have to know if age has caught up or if this is just a temporary hurdle.

Time will tell.