Deeding

It’s been a while since I last looked at the stats for Frail Deeds. I’ve never cared about them as I’m doing this because I enjoy it. I’ve never thought of monetizing it as I write it as a legacy to my granddaughters who will hopefully read these ramblings many years hence when they are fully grown and, in a best-case scenario, I’m a doddering old fool drooling in the corner. They’ll get to know me when I possessed at least some of my faculties although there are certain friends who will claim I never had them in the first place.

My not so sudden interest in Frail Deeds’ figures came from a random comment from the Pittsburgh College Roommate. The PCR noticed that back in 2013 I’d posted 366 times. I’ve since settled down into a more reasonable pace but I went into that year with a goal of posting once a day. I don’t know what to tell you, I was young and reckless. It piqued my interest in where the extra post came from. It settled into the back of my mind for most of the week until this morning I decided to scratch the itch and investigate. The extra post was in June of that year. There were two because one was devoted to the first meeting with the ABFA just after she was promoted to MEF from MEG, so a big deal. The same day was also Wingman’s birthday, so there you have it, 366. This will be the 3,201^st post on Frail Deeds and there have been nearly 250,000 views (mostly friends and family) since I started the blog.

Beach This Morning

My Favorite Panamanian has acquired a personal trainer over the past couple days. We pass by a sign for a gym which is also a youth hostel on our way out from Las Lajas to the InterAmerican Highway. She had me pull in a couple days ago so she could speak with the owner, a German. He was able to link her up with a trainer, a Panamanian/British guy. She attended her first session this morning and said most of the other participants were Australian. Panama is nothing if not international.

It's a Dance Party!!!
Love the Boots

The only other major development is that I finally caved to my Favorite Panamanian’s persistent pressure to get on WhatsApp. She’s been a devotee for many years and uses it regularly to talk with family and friends all over Panamá. The decisive strategy she used involved her new Panamanian cell phone. I’ll now be able to reach her using WhatsApp as long as I have a Wi-Fi signal, a significant improvement for the times she abandons me to return to David. I’ve included a couple pictures of the granddaughters. I had to complain to their parents earlier in the week that they had been slacking off when it came to posting photos of them and received this. The FBR reading and the BRS and BR3 engaged in a dance party. There were a couple accompanying videos of that dance party that made me miss them even more, and who thought was even possible.

Don't Bug Me - I'm Reading!!!

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                     

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; CRC - Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during him her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; PCR - Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; PCR+1 - Pittsburgh College Roommate’s wife; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Soxfather - my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course

M.E.G. Becomes M.E.F.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday was such a rainy, cold dreary day that I didn’t think anything could lift my spirits.  How wrong I was!  While we were eating dinner late last night my son called to reveal he was now an engaged man.  He popped the question to the Most Excellent Girlfriend during their romantic getaway into the White Mountains.  She will henceforth be known as he Most Excellent Fiancé (M.E.F.) until she reaches permanent status as Daughter in Law!!!

Two Very Happy People

My wife and I could not be any happier that our son met this remarkable young lady.  They been so obviously in love since they first met and we fell in love with her the moment we met her – she’s that kind of gal.  You worry that your children will meet their soul mates and then that they’ll be smart enough to marry them.  Well, the MEF means that my kids are two for two.

I was so happy for the two of them last night.  You could sense over the phone just how deliriously happy the two of them were also.  It’s rare that I’m at a loss for words but just thinking about this makes me so fundamentally content that is beyond words.

My son planned on proposing while climbing a mountain – something they both enjoy.  Unfortunately his plans were interrupted by the reappearance of winter in May but according to the MEF he found a way to ask the question in a vey romantic way at the Bed and Breakfast they were staying at.  Again, so, very, very, very, very happy.

Before this landmark news arrived we spent most of the day safely encased in the house watching Boston sports team excel.  The Red Sox came from behind late in the game to win over former boss Francona. 

In other news to beat back the rainy day doldrums my Keene Friend emerged from the mists to spend the rest of the weekend with us just in time to watch a stirring Bruins win to eliminate the Rangers.  His new job has consumed his weekends at a devastating pace so having him around will be a real treat – especially Buddy who quickly reestablished his bond with his long missing friend.  I’m guessing a walk is in line for tomorrow morning.

Buddy Attaching Himself to Long Lost Friend

The game went on until after 8pm so we got a very late start on dinner.  We went to Bob’s Steak House which I wrote about several months ago when my sister and bro in law took me there.  It was almost deserted but the food was uniformly great again and the company, well you know – even better.  It was here while we were ordering the food that we received the phone call from my son so this place will now have that extraordinary memory attached to it.

Dinner at Bob's

Earlier in the day I received a surprise package from my son in law.  He’s read the blog where I was bemoaning the lack of chocolate cake on the new diet.  Since he is my sensei on all things keto related he took matters into his own hand and sent me a keto-friendly box of chocolate brownie bars.  Like I said, my kids went two for two.

Manna!

Worcesterized Again

Well the rain held off yesterday during the afternoon hours I got to spend with the sterling people of Worcester.  Since the big change to the hub is coming in a week all of the company management and some of the union leadership spent the day down at City Hall Plaza handing out schedules and explaining the upcoming changes. 

Our Set up Yesterday at City Hall - Contending with Construction Also Going On

We do this whenever some big change is occurring and it gives us a chance to meet some of the more exotic fauna of the great city of Worcester.  I was explaining the changes to a lady who kept repeating that she lived in a homeless center.  Our HR director, who really doesn’t interact with our customers very often, piped in that the schedules are available on line.  The lady threw the schedules down and stormed off loudly proclaiming that some people couldn’t afford internet access.  The HR director was aghast as I laughed off the inappropriate response. The HR director’s adventures were not over yet as one of the intellectually challenged denizens of the area latched on to her and wouldn’t leave.  Finally a large co-worker stepped between them and asked he guy what he wanted.  This put him off his game long enough for the HR director to escape. 

Looking from the Other Side
The CAnopy Almost Blew Away Later and We Were Talking to People
While Hanging on the Rafters So It Wouldn't

95% of the people we met yesterday were awesome, just interested in the changes and very appreciative of our efforts.  The other 5%, well, they were another story.  We were invading their turf and made for stationary targets.  I met a well bearded older gentleman who claimed to have served 25 years in the air force until he was forced out in 1982.  He said he was a company commander when one of his troops “knocked up the general’s daughter”.  The general took it out on him and forced him out and blocked his retirement benefits.  I told him this sounded highly illegal and that he should get some assistance from a number of sources.  He said the general was still on active duty and blocking him.  I did some quick math and said a general in 1982 was probably retired.  He claimed the guy was 100 years old and still on active duty.  At that point I knew I was dealing with someone lost in his own fantasies.  I told him I was also a military retiree and I could see the light go out in his eyes when he realized he had been caught in his own web of lies.  Yes – these are our customers.

Back at the office, my wife’s attempt to feed me with the green bean dish of my youth was a disaster of biblical proportions.  I put the first spoonful in my mouth and immediately experienced the intense gagging reaction that I remembered when my mother forced me to eat them.  With my mother this usually led to a long night sitting at the kitchen table trying to convince the family dog to help me out.  There will be no more green beans on the menu for me.

No Mas!!!

The rains started up as soon as I headed home for our Zorbaless Friday night.  To compound the pain my wife couldn’t find the whey so there would be no pizza. She calmed my panic with a large steak – so not so bad.  I did miss the fabulous ladies of Zorba’s though.

I tried to repeat my dodging of rain showers to build the wall but came back with my latest load of stone to find a heavy rain falling.  I waited it out and finally put the last row of stone on as the sun was setting.  So the wall is finished, well except for the one stone I came up short but that is just placing it on top when I put the cap stones on.  Now all that remains is filling it in with dirt after I strip off the grass, if the rain would just stop, I could get going.

The Wall is Up!!

We’ve got a three day weekend ahead of us but half of it will be spent inside due to the weather.  There is even snow forecast for tonight – that’s right – SNOW!!!!!  But only in elevated areas of Worcester County – yep – that’s us.  I feel worse for my son who chose this weekend for a romantic getaway with the MEG – to the White Mountains of New Hampshire where they might even get some accumulation of snow. 

Unbroken Trek into Darkness

Yesterday was one of the most boring days at work since I’ve returned – just nothing exciting except air conditioning systems breaking down on buses. 

Over lunch I did finish reading the book loaned to me by the father of my son Most Excellent Girlfriend – Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand which more than made up for the lack of excitement.  I’m usually not a big fan of biographies but this book was riveting.  It tells the story of Louis Zamperini who has lead a remarkable life starting out as a delinquent and rising to become one of the best American track stars prior to World War 2.  He was an Olympian at the 1936 games, meeting Hitler, and then served in the Pacific during the War.  His plane crashed and he floated literally across the Pacific Ocean for 47 days.  His days spent surviving repeated shark attacks with no food or water is the stuff of legend.  He was captured by the Japanese and systemically tortured over the next two years while in the sadistic Japanese prisoner of war camp system.  He almost fell apart following the war but was saved by the love of a good woman and a young Billy Graham.  Zamperini went on to lead a life of unparalleled excellence. 

Read This Book - You Won't Be Disappointed

This is the first Hillenbrand book I’ve read and I now see what all the buzz is about.  She is a truly gifted writer and brings Zamperini’s incredible adventures to vivid life with heartbreaking detail.  I dashed through this book because it was so well written and the story so compelling.  If you have any doubts about the greatest generation – read this sterling example of what made them the greatest. I can see why the MEG’s father wanted me to read this – it’s the kind of book you want friends to experience. 

Looking Out Back During Height of Storm

My own plans for the next level on the garden wall were compromised by a truly hellacious series of thunderstorms the cruised through the area just as I got home.  We ended up getting over 5 inches of rain in a couple hours – Buddy was not pleased.  The downhill construction crew tried to continue through the storm as they had just raised a set of rafters but they eventually had the good sense to get under cover as they watched some of their new driveway wash away.

The Downhill Construction Site

Buddy regained his Pendejo status by totally freaking out.  A couple days ago my superb son in law, knowing of Buddy’s storm terrors, sent me an ad for something called a thunder vest, used to calm dogs down during thunder storms.  I was a little skeptical but I’m going to have to do something.  My wife is almost as terrified of thunder as Buddy which is where I think he gets it.  I was trying to calm both of them down yesterday and barely succeeding in either case.  I’m afraid Buddy will injure himself trying to escape from his cage during a storm; he’s already broken one of his teeth doing that.  I got both of my scaredy cats down in the basement and I tried simulating the vest thing by wrapping Buddy in a couple of towels and it actually seemed to help a little.  He still wanted to burrow underneath the refrigerator but I think a Thunder Vest is in his immediate future (just another thing to thank the son in law for).

Buddy Freaking Out in Cage

The Jury Rigged thunder Vest Held by the Other Scaredy Cat

The storms eventually passed and my wife and I headed out for date night which this week called for the movie – Star Trek into Darkness.  I absolutely loved the first JJ Abrams Star Trek movie so I was prepared to be underwhelmed.  Somehow he took it to another level because this was not just a better film than the first but significantly better.  The movie starts out with a bang and never lets up – it almost leaves you breathless.  I loved the odes to the original series – many small and a couple of huge ones.  I just finished re-watching the entire original series and it was so very cool to see all the subtle little connections that get thrown in.  This is such a good movie as the summer blockbuster momentum started by Ironman 3 just picked up some more incredible speed. I can’t see how Hollywood can keep this winning streak alive. 

Run - Do Not Walk - To See this Movie

 

Most Excellent Graduation

Late with the blog today because it is Mother’s Day and my time is appropriately not my own. 

A lot of fun yesterday as we journeyed up to the granite state to attend the graduation ceremony for my son’s Most Excellent Girlfriend.  She had earned her MBA in the midst of the ten thousand other things she somehow accomplishes on an almost daily basis.  My daughter and son in law accompanied us as far as the MEG’s hometown where we joined our son and the MEG, as well as the MEG’s parents. 

Son in Law, Daughter, Son, and Wife Linking Up at Meg's House

Since tickets to the graduation were limited my daughter and her significant other took in a movie while the rest of us journeyed up to Manchester for the graduation ceremony.  This turned out to be a real win for them as they found a movie theater with fully reclining seats and enjoyed some alone time with each other.

In Our Seats With MEG's Parents

The graduation ceremony promised to be a long affair when I saw the thousands of seats lying in wait for the graduates.  We obtained some seats in the upper level directly overlooking the stage but this was still pretty far up.  I was steeling myself for a long time when the ceremony started with of all things – A BAGPIPE BAND!!!!!  Anyone who’s read this blog knows that this was a very big thing and pleasant surprise for me.

The Band!!!!!

The keynote speaker was Bob Ryan, an accomplished Boston sportswriter, who gave a very entertaining and down to earth speech.  The reading of the graduates names took as long as expected but I took a lot of pleasure watching the different groups of family and friends react when their graduate’s name was read.  After the ceremony we linked up with the MEG for pictures outside the arena and dodged a huge group of Saudis dancing to celebrate the graduation of some of their sons and daughters.  It was interesting to see how nervous this made the people watching.

The Graduates - Every One of Their Names Was Called

The MEG Proudly Showing Off her Prize

The MEG’s parents had dropped her graduation card on the walk to the arena so we kept an eye out for it on our way back.  Just short of the car we found it lying on the street.  Obviously someone had found it and opened it and when there was no money included rapidly discarded it.  The card was reunited with its envelope and properly conveyed to the MEG.

Son and MEG After the Ceremony

MEG Cat Suffering From My Son's Attentions

A quick journey back to the MEG’s hometown saw us reunited with my daughter and we enjoyed a quick snack while being entertained by a pair of very large cats.  My son has appointed himself as chief torturer of said felines with a favorite weapon being a laser pointer.

The Stonehedge Inn - Great Place

The MEG’s parent’s treated us all to a celebration dinner at a very exclusive restaurant – The Stonehedge Inn in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts. The waiter was very entertaining if a bit condescending.  He did provide tremendous service and the food was fantastic.  Everything paled to the excellence of the company as we enjoyed a truly fabulous time celebrating the MEG’s accomplishment.  It’s so cool to find great friends so late in life – the MEG’s parents seem like lifelong friends although we’ve known them for only a year.

Seated in the Stonehedge

Myself, Daughter, and Son in Law

With our reluctant parting we now faced the task of returning home a few hours later than we planned.  There was a certain black lab whose planned seven hour stay in the cage had been extended to 13 hours.  We hurried inside prepared for a disaster but found him calmly stretching from a long nap, more importantly in a completely dry cage.  I let him out to relieve what must have been some pretty severe pressure but he immediately noted the presence of my son and decided greeting him was more important.  I eventually convinced him that he probably should take care of nature’s call (Buddy not my son).  Such a great day.

My Beautiful Date and I

Pettiness is Next to Imbecility

Yesterday saw another day decompressing from the epic weekend in New Orleans and I was aided significantly in this by lunch with my favorite son. We met at our normal place and he updated me on life with the Most Excellent Girlfriend and the upcoming summer.  It was so heartwarming to see him perk up when I explained the issues causing delays on the construction project here in Worcester.  He immediately explained and understood everything that was going on – an honest to God engineer, my kid!

Lunch with This Guy Yesterday - Awesome!

It’s interesting in that I think I’m finally catching up to him.  I’ve always said he is so far ahead of where I was at the same age. As he gets older he’s now getting into the years where I kind of figured things out and started excelling as an Army officer.  He’s still much better paid than I ever was at his age but he’s worked hard for it – I’m so proud of that young man.

I compare the good feeling I get hanging around with him, his sister, the Roothuggers, etc, etc with the almost daily pettiness that seems to permeate so many people’s existence.  One of the most glaring examples of this is the current American political process.     

I do not understand why some people need to make comments or commit acts that serve no other purpose other than to inflict some kind of emotional pain on another.  It’s certainly not rational but seems to happen all the time.  Pettiness leads to over sensitivity as people misinterpret innocent comments as attacks. 

 

I think one of the most important things I’ve learned in life is the idiocy of pettiness.  We’re all in this together and if we rob the petty people of their power by not reacting to their personal failings – we’ll all be happier.

Downhill Construction - Foundation has been Poured - Behind SUV

Risen Day

My Son Surrounded by the Pulchritude of the MEG and His Mother

Yesterday was a great day as we celebrated Easter first with my son/M.E.G. and then my sister and her famous in-laws.  I couldn’t shake a feeling of fatigue all day though.  I think my basement activities combined with cleanup efforts finally caught up with me as I couldn’t shake a general feeling of exhaustion all day. 

My Wife and I

We followed a truly spectacular breakfast by heading over to the church for Easter service.  We were early but not early enough as the holiday Christians were out in full force.  We journeyed throughout the building looking for seats until we resigned to standing in the back.  Three seats were located so that left me standing alone until my son reported we could get one more in.  My wife has an uncanny ability in this area.  We ended up in the front row which was good except for the young priest’s overdoing the incense a little bit and having to kneel on the floor.  That lasted about twenty seconds until my knees were barking too hard to continue. 

MEG and Son

I did enjoy being back in church, which kind of surprised me.  My church attendance took its annual nosedive in my wife’s absence, something she was sure to counsel me on and did.  There’s something immensely comforting about the rhythms of church.  It could be I’m getting closer each day to meeting my maker.

Easter Baskets Handed Out - Buddy Wondering Where His is at 

We returned home for a short spell and we gave the “kids” their Easter baskets.  Buddy looked on with a little jealousy wondering where his was.  He had to make do with a compressed hide bone.

My Wife and MEG

We then mounted the Highlander for the hour long trip to Rhode Island to share the holiday with my sister and her extraordinary in-laws.  Her mother in law holds a Western Hemisphere record for putting on the best Easter dinners and this year was no exception.  I warned the MEG that the food would just keep coming and it did (I had three different kinds of desserts much to my wife’s horror and comment).  Our hostess also made a point of making up an Easter basket for everybody attending.  She really is something special.

At The Rhode Island Party

It was so good sitting around the table catching up with everyone who made a point of welcoming my wife home from her travels.  The MEG, as she is wont to do, immediately fit in and was soon an integral part of the fast paced joking and story telling.

Poorly Lit but Funny Because My Sister Sitting Next to my Wife
Tried to Dive Out of Photo but Actually Dove Into It

We successfully prevented my sister’s sister in law from making any arcane predictions of Red Sox failures (see earlier blog).  She is currently on a crusade to curb the off key singing of some lady at her church.  She even went so far as to record the lady’s voice on her I-phone which led her college aged daughter to remark, “I’m the only adult in this family!”.  I, of course, thought the lady had the voice of an angel.

My Sister's In Laws - The Crusader on the Left

A long day, but well spent, when I considered the people I was blessed to spend it with. 

Construction Progress Down the Hill - Big Pile of Dirt

Saturday Sanitizing

Well, as I stated, earlier in the blog this week the house barely passed spousal inspection.  I think it was the roses that squeaked me over the top.  My wife decided Saturday would be spent raising the house to her standard of cleanliness, no mean task.  However, before she pulled me into this despicable task she bribed me with the mini-chocolate chip pancakes that became something of a Saturday breakfast tradition.  I had sorely missed these tasty treats and was putty in her hands for the rest of the day.

Yes - Food of the Gods!

Since my son and M.E.G. were coming in late in the day we had to take care of two bedrooms as well as a complete vacuuming and mopping of the floors.  I told her I couldn’t remember if the floor had been washed since left.  My convenient memory probably saved me from another stern lecture.  I think the neighbors knew my wife was back when they saw me vacuuming rugs out on the back deck (I didn’t ask why that was important).

They Had to Be Taken Outside for Cleaning?

While I was out on the deck I could see a massive landscaping effort going on down the street.  A house will be built in a vacant lot and with the warming weather there was a back hoe and bull dozer moving all kinds of earth around.  I guess it’s a real challenge building on the side of a hill.  I wish the builders of my house had spent as much time leveling the lot as these guys are doing.  By the end of the day a massive hill of dirt had built up.  It will be interesting to see this house go up.

The Bull Dozer At Work a Couple Lots Down

We finally did hear from our recently employed Keene Friend who reported the new job is going well although it does present challenges for staying connected to friends since he works 6 days out of 7 from 1 in the afternoon until 1 AM.  My wife was typically sympathetic as she lectured him on the impact his employment had on her ability to shop in the Keene TJ Maxx (priorities being what they are).  It was good to talk with him. 

Late in the day my son and his most excellent girlfriend showed up and were a little beat from an all-day Easter party at her folks’ place that included some very energetic toddlers.  It was so good seeing these two very special people.  Even though they were tired they pleasantly volunteered to appease to my desire to have a deck fire and cook smors.  I have a huge pile of furniture pieces in the garage to get rid of.

Some Really Special People Gathered Around the Fire

It was such a fun time sitting around the fire under the bright star lit night sky and talking with some of the best people in the world.  The ever dependable Buddy immediately took to his normal fire side activity of rescuing firewood from the wood pile whenever he wasn’t sneaking into the back yard to eat the bread we spread out of the arriving flocks of birds.  He gave that up late in the evening when he discovered that knocking over my beer led to a liquid treat for anyone willing to lick it off the deck.  Although tempted I didn’t provide him with any competition. He did this no less than five times.  I finally stopped standing it back up and he spent the rest of the time trying to figure out how to get his tongue down the stem of the bottle.

Buddy With Some of his Rescued Fire Wood

A busy, kind of tiring day but more than compensated for with that time out on the deck with those special people.