Easing into Weekend

Easing was definitely needed yesterday and not just because we were celebrating the First Friday of the Week. I spent all of Thursday afternoon digging in the neighbor’s yard. He had four cubic yards of dirt delivered for the new garden I created for him with the construction of last week’s wall. This favor I’m doing is a gift that keeps on giving. Once the garden wall was up they needed to fill in behind it to create the garden, hence the delivery. Since he still has a heart condition it fell to me to load up my wheelbarrow a couple hundred times and transfer the dirt to behind the wall. That took some gyrations such as wheeling underneath his grape arbors once I had climbed the hill. I eventually figured out a system where I used the packing skid the stones came on as a ramp so I could get the dirt behind the wall without having to climb the hill.

The Moved Dirt

I Beg to Differ

Guilty

I knew the dirt had been delivered because the heat finally broke on Thursday and we had the windows open. He ordered a very pungent variety of garden soil. As soon as I walked into our kitchen, I could smell the overpowered odor that made me think I was in the middle of a farmer’s field. This only added to my resolve to get the stuff moved as quickly as possible. It is true that prolonged exposure to strong odors eventually deadens the sense of smell, thank God. After four hours with the stuff, I hardly noticed it. Although my Favorite Panamanian ordered me directly to the showers when I came in from my labors. Both she and my neighbor looked appropriately apologetic throughout the day as they watched the long afternoon unwind for me. At any rate, it’s done and I feel good for having done this favor for him. Doing nice things for good people is rewarding in itself.

The Re-Painted Virgin

Spousal Inspection

Final Site

My 65-year-old body reminded me that these type exercises should be approached with a little more finesse. I ached in just about every pore of the aforementioned body through much of Friday. My Friday morning swim was an interesting torture session until the muscles finally loosened up. I should mention that while I was shuttling the odiferous dirt on Thursday my wife created two gardens, complete with a single layer of bricks as a border in the same neighbor’s front yard. I’m just glad I won’t have to stock those gardens. Friday also saw the final touches on the resurrected Virgin Mary statue with a coat of white paint. It is now back on its garden pedestal.

BRS Back in the Pool

The FBR was noticeably absent from FaceTime over the last couple days. I inquired with my daughter if the FBR was in Facetime jail for some indiscretion but she reported that she had only been grumpy. Wen I asked the FBR about this yesterday during the First Friday Family Facetime call, she roundly denied she was grumpy in any fashion and simply didn’t want to call us during the previous two days. Don’t you hate it when kids start actually growing up? There was a very touching moment late in the call involving my Favorite Son and the BRS. We first thought he might be engineer bound as a young child when he showed an almost preternatural ability with Legos. I know that sounds farfetched but it turned out to be true.

BR3 Playing Peek-a-Boo Behind Curtains

The BRS has now exerted eminent domain on my son’s huge collection of Legos from his childhood. During the call yesterday they were playing with that set. My son was getting frustrated when the BRS kept taking pieces he needed to build her a castle. She didn’t seem to recognize his suzerainty as either the owner or paternal authority figure when it came to Legos. The BRS continued her own aquatic career this morning with another swimming session. We are rewarding ourselves for our neighborly favors with a little escape this weekend. Soxfather’s incomparable family is holding what we call a “McShawn’s Night” at one of their houses. It’s named after the favorite Irish bar where we used to gather in pre-pandemic days. We’ll travel down to Jamestown, RI for the gathering and I booked a hotel to stay over Saturday night. This was due in most part to my Favorite Panamanian’s complaint about the two hour drive home from this more distant destination, but it will be fun to escape for a bit.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                            

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Statutory Resurrection

During the week leading up to Christmas the FBR while sliding down the back hill inadvertently beheaded my Favorite Panamanian’s Virgin Mary garden statue. This was grounds for extreme consternation from my very catholic wife but I took solace in the fact that I hadn’t been the perpetrator this time out. I, along with my dogs throughout the years, have a somewhat spotty history when it comes to breaking some of my wife’s prized possessions. We caused numerous accidents that, sometimes, even my well developed/practiced ability with super glue have been unable to save. Since this was the second time Mary had lost her head (I was guilty the first time), my wife decreed we needed to replace her. I was ordered to bury the statue in the woods. This spring we launched an ultimately unsuccessful search to find a replacement which met my wife’s exacting standards.

The Repaired Mary

I had been telling her all along I could fix it and she finally took me up on the offer. I disinterred the two pieces and over the past couple days have glued and then cemented the head back in place. I have to admit this was one of my better efforts. Testament to that fact is that my wife only grumbled a little bit. I built a new pedestal for the statue in the garden and now all I have to left to do is power wash and then paint it. The home’s Catholicism will be rendered safe again. We’ll have to institute some new sliding rules on the back hill though. It’s less than 200 days until Christmas!! (198 to be exact).

I received some welcome news the other day from the dermatologist. The results on her latest excavations into my skin for a biopsy were all benign. That’s two exams in a row without Mohs surgery rearing its ugly head – win! Unfortunately that word wasn’t in the Bruin’s lexicon last night as their season ended with a playoff loss to the Islanders. They were an entertaining team this year but were ultimately let down by a soft goalie and a team that had better depth. The future, however, looks bright, as long as they can find a couple more durable defenseman and jettison Rask.

We were back in the cinema on Tuesday to see a Quiet Place Part 2. I was a little concerned that John Krasinski wouldn’t be able to follow up the success of the first film. Those concerns were unwarranted. This sequel involves an evolution as the family leaves the devastated farm with the secret to defeating the sound sensing monsters. The quietness, almost another character in the first film, isn’t as prevalent this time but it’s supplanted by a film-long tension. The deaf daughter, toweringly portrayed by Millicent Simmonds, steals the movie from her more accomplished co-stars. She’s on a quest to get the disabling signal she discovered to a radio station still in operation. Meanwhile mom is left to defend her other two children, including an infant, from the swarming creatures. Trying to keep a new born baby quiet is a horror movie in and of itself. We see a lot more of the monsters this time out which means the success of the first film generated a bigger budget. It was well spent, great movie.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Blooming

My Favorite Panamanian is just about finished (I fervently hope) with her annual rite of spring. This involves transforming her vast garden complex from the barren wasteland of winter into something straight out of Good Housekeeping (for those of you who remember what magazines used to be). She’s blessed with the proverbial green thumb and despite my grumbling about the serial shopping trips to acquire annuals, the results speak for themselves. I’m even more amazed because I know if I had attempted something similar I would fail spectacularly. Therefore, based on my many years of witnessing this, I simply follow orders and provide the brute force and ignorance that is sometimes required. I also chase off the rabbits, who admire, for much different reasons, my wife’s gardens almost as much as me.

ABFA, BR3 and the BRS at the Beach This past Weekend

This year has been a weather challenge. I don’t remember a time when I had to turn on the heat this late in the year followed less than a week later by the requirement to turn on the air conditioning. New England showing its vicissitudes again. (my high school English teacher would be so proud of me for using that word correctly and I can’t believe I spelled it correctly the first time out, now if I can only learn to spell “the” without typos). My Favorite Panamanian, in addition to her gardening acumen has turned out to be a bit bloodthirsty. She was fascinated with my new BB pistol which shoots plastic BBs to scare off the squirrels. I gave her one lesson and she’s turned into a fanatic. She’s also a very good shot which gives me pause about ever truly messing with her.

In truly tragic news I’ve learned today that the Worcester North movie theaters, three minutes from my front door, are closing for good. This was one of the key selling points for my love of this neighborhood and I’ll now have to travel as much as fifteen minutes to reach a first run movie theater. Life can be so tough at times. 😊 I may have to put the house on the market. At least the vast garden complex will be a selling point.

We watched Land, last night which is a very good movie. Robin Wright plays a seriously depressed women who decides to live a solitary life in the Wyoming mountains despite having no experience or talent for the rough life. She is assisted in surviving her first winter by another damaged soul and gradually finds redemption. This movie would have been unbearable with a less talented actress. She also directs the movie with some stunningly beautiful shots of the wilderness. There is a definite arc for her character to follow and she doesn’t make it easy on herself. You don’t learn the basis of her personal tragedy until the end and there is a very poignant moment with her benefactor that is worth staying with her through this journey. A very good film.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                            

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Wall Complete and Throwing Shade

This past weekend saw temps soaring into the nineties along with a less than healthy dose of humidity for the first time this year. This signaled that I had a bunch of outdoor chores to do. One always seems to go with the other. I finished off the neighbor’s wall on both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday to what he wanted and then Sunday with the additions requested by his wife. I also rescued the decapitated Virgin Mary statue from the back woods and re-attached the head. My Favorite Panamanian couldn’t find one she liked so I was permitted to begin restoration work. I withheld comments about having the lug the broken statue up the hill in the first place only to lug is back down again. I may be learning.

Finishing It

I also installed a shade screen on top of Deckzilla which permit its use during the morning hours when the sun is usually beating down on that side of the house. This is something my wife has been calling for and I recently acquiesced to. Again, the learning continues. Saturday night the next-door neighbors treated us to a dinner on their back deck to thank me for the wall. This is where the Sunday additions were decided. Sunday evening ended even better when we were summoned to the Neighborhood Mafioso’s house for an impromptu gathering with them and another couple. It felt almost like pre-pandemic days. I may have sent a few beers to an early grave as we enjoyed the warm summerlike evening. There was some target practice with a bb gun on an intruding rabbit but the best part was hanging with old friends again. While I was tired after my physical exertions over the weekend the Red Sox lightened the load significantly by completing a three game sweep over the hated Yankees. Sweet.

The New Sun Screen

It was a busy weekend on the granddaughter front as well, both aquatically inclined. Both the BRS and BR3 took their first swim lessons on Saturday and the BRS was still gushing about it a day later. She seems relatively fearless about the whole endeavor. BR3 now plays peek a boo at the start of every Facetime call with us. Beyond cute. Meanwhile the FBR was a moving target down in New Jersey. Her parents were able to pry her out of the pool long enough to travel to a friend’s lakeside house about an hour away. The most memorable event was seeing a dead fish that still had its eyes open. Along the way she became acquainted with a chicken, slid down a zip line, and spent almost all of Sunday frolicking in the water.

BRS at Swim Lessons

FBR Thwoing a Chicken into the Air

Then Zip Lining

And Hitting the Pool

I ventured back into horror movies this weekend, watching The Conjuring, The Devil Made Me Do It. I started out on Friday night but then decided watching it in the dark by myself was not the type experience I was looking for, it scared the hell out of me. I safely watched it completely on Saturday afternoon with light streaming in from the window. The Warrens return for more occult hijinks as they try to help a local possessed boy with his murder charges. The boy made the rookie mistake of volunteering to take on a demon during an exorcism. Hasn’t anybody seen the Exorcist?, but I digress. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return as the Warrens and remain the bedrock of this series. They “blessed” Wilson with a heart condition this time out which was distracting at times and definitely not what you want to deal with when battling demons. It turned out the first fifteen minutes were the scariest of the entire movie but there was well layered tension and jump scares throughout. It, again, scared the hell out of me.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Escalation and Tree Dominoes

It’s the First Friday of the Week so forgive me if I am short today (you are most welcome). As we all know there is an intrinsic requirement to celebrate this most sacred of all non-holiday weekdays. There has been a major escalation in my ongoing backyard war with the squirrels and rabbits. Since I lost my air force when the nesting robins departed, the squirrels have had the upper hand and established supremacy over the bird feeders. They figured out how to open the door to one which resulted on all the seeds falling out for their leisurely consumption. I wired that door shut but they are relentless. I’ve got a sore arm from all the rocks I’ve thrown at them. I needed to up my game. I have been weaponless since the whole, unfortunate, paralyzed baby bunny situation due to my wife’s reaction to her contracting that event. She relented and I bought a fairly mellow Walther air gun that shoots plastic BBs. This could be fun and my Favorite Panamanian already asked for shooting instructions.

Squirrel Reaction to my Escalation

The New Weapon

That’s not the only thing going on today in the back yard. We lucked out a couple years ago when a huge pine tree was struck by lightning and then blew down away from the house (the lucky part) a couple months later. In falling it mortally damaged two other large pine trees that could also have reached the house if they fell after succumbing to their injuries. The next door neighbor, whom I ‘m building the wall for, contracted to have some of the trees behind his house taken down. When I got back from my swim workout this morning he asked if I wanted to talk with them. The tree guy was really cool and he pointed out there were four trees as well as a very dead one that should come down.

Old Skyline

New Skyline

We reached financial terms, very cheap, and I said not to worry about the dead one because even if it fell towards the house it wouldn’t reach it. Fifteen minutes later all four trees were down and a potential future catastrophe avoided. In a bit of good luck, the second tree that fell took down the dead one as it fell so I got that one for free. We have a whole new skyline behind the house and the squirrels have less habitat. When you go to war you have to consider all your enemies’ vulnerabilities. I hope a few of them were in that dead tree when it came down. War is war.

Debris Field

Wall Progress

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Picky Wall Payments

Yesterday was as crazy a day as my semi-retirement affords me. I had two doctor appointments, two zoom meetings, and my continuing wall project for the next door neighbor. When you throw in an unwisely scheduled hour-long swim workout into the mix it becomes a fairly full day. In my lifelong effort (that might be an exaggeration) to stay on Great Aunt’s good side I’ll keep her informed on the medical stuff first. The first appointment was with my prostate surgeon. I’m now eight months after surgery and the latest tests showed me to be completely cancer free! Instead of every two months I don’t have to see him again until December, so win, win.

I'll Have to Get One of These T-Shirts

I also had a late afternoon appointment with the dermatologist. If you’ve read Frail Deeds, you’ll know about my years long relationship with the dermatology department where I have strange women running their hands all over my body every six months. I guess that could be classified as an upside but the results of their ministrations have, too many times, resulted in Mohs surgery with the attendant significant excavations into my skin. I was sent there ahead of schedule because during my recent annual physical the doc saw some suspicious markings on one of my ears. I didn’t have my usual strange woman because she’s out on maternity leave but her replacement was up to the task. The marking on my ear turned out to be nothing but since this is me and the dermatologist, I wouldn’t be leaving without some cutting. She saw a strange blemish on my shoulder and extracted a tissue biopsy which I’ll hear about in the coming days. I sometimes think they get paid by the number of biopsies they execute. If I could go back to my younger self, before the Army sent me to all those very sunny places, one of the first things I would say is, “SUNSCREEN, YOU IDIOT!” Thinking about it, I would also offer some advice on certain female interactions as well, but I digress.

The swim workout followed by an afternoon of digging and wall building was not what my 65-year-old body had in mind. As usual my mind overruled the concerns and we made good progress on it. I did run into a social situation that had my Favorite Panamanian laughing at me. The neighbor is a great cook. I’m guessing here because I’m such a picky eater I’ve never sampled the food she periodically sends over. My wife loves it and assures the neighbor that I’m just an incredible picky eater. This whole situation has reached a head during this construction as she wants to make dinner for me in gratitude for the work I’m doing. This had my wife laughing because she gently tried to tell her it wasn’t necessary and then threw the whole thing into my lap where I told her my wife, if anything, was underselling how picky I am. The neighbor eventually relented and then showed up with a cold beer for me. I don’t know where she got the idea I like beer, but I’m guessing there’s some evidence floating around.

Wall Progress

The only problem was this was just before I was scheduled to leave for the dermatologist’s office so I had to decline. Since there is a bit of a language barrier I’m sure she thought I just didn’t want to take anything from her. I assured her that the beer looked awesome and I promised to partake when I returned from the doctor’s office. When I started up on the wall again, she rushed out with a beer and then stood by to insure I accepted and imbibed it. I had no problem in that arena but told her additional beers would have to wait if she wanted a straight wall. Thus emboldened, she emerged later, when my Favorite Panamanian was on site offering her wall building expertise and advice, and told me that I just had to try an exotic confectionary she had created just for me. I had to beg off due to Keto restrictions but assured her I would try on my Friday cheat day. She then went on to extol the virtues of the cookie, stating it was full of nuts and pistachios. I can’t stomach either of those in a cookie so my wife was almost doubled over in laughter imagining the faces I’ll be forced to make on Friday. Some good deeds just keep on giving.

Birthday Boy and I

Finally, today is an auspicious day because it marks the birthday of none other than Wingman. The FBR assured me she would behave extra special today in recognition of his special day. She created a handmade card that is superior than any store made variety. The pandemic has been especially hard on Wingman because he is such a social being that the forced isolation was more than burdensome. He has spent the past year as a full time teacher and companion for the FBR as well as becoming a back yard cinema impresario. I know he welcomes the re-opening we are all finally experiencing and hope he enjoys his special day as the two ladies around him will insure. Happy Birthday Wingman!

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn

Neighborly Wall

Harkening back to my brief exposure to poetry at a young age, my favorite poet was/is, like most New Englanders, Robert Frost. Whether it’s a road not taken or stopping by woods on a snowy eve, he was able to capture some quintessential New England traditions and perspectives. I don’t want you to worry that I’m going all literary on you. Other than some fairly ribald ditties and the origin poem for the title of this blog, poetry doesn’t constitute a preeminent position in my life. So why go to all this effort, bringing up the childhood memories? It’s simple, I was trying to latch on to the subject I am writing about today which involved walls and neighbors and for some reason ole Roberto the Frost leaped to the mind with Mending Walls. He sated good fences made good neighbors, which of course can be taken several ways.

Yesterday's Progress

In this case, it deals with volunteering to build a garden retaining wall for our next-door neighbor. I say “volunteer” but one of the first things I learned in the Army was, never volunteer. That was after the whole volunteering to join the Army in the first place, but I digress. I was in fact volunteered for this project by my Favorite Panamanian. The neighbor had always told her how much she admired the garden terraces I built in our back yard to house (partially) my wife’s vast garden complex. My neighbor is older and her husband cannot physically do the work himself so she asked my wife if I would do one for them.

Anyone who knows my Favorite Panamanian knows what her answer to that query was. When I was first advised of this project I was a little miffed because the promise was made without consultation and I’m not exactly the proverbial spring chicken anymore either. I grudgingly agreed to it and yesterday was the first day. It turns out my wife is really on to something with all this doing good deeds behavior. I enjoyed doing the physical work and my neighbor stayed with me the whole time and I got to know him a lot better. I actually felt better for having done it. You see, there the spouse goes again, trying to make me a better person. Frost knew what he was talking about in Mending Walls.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; 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; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn