Category: Profound Observations

  • Retirement Bliss

    The first four months of my retirement were crazy busy. Remodeling projects kicked off the first week of January and continued well into April. I’m happy with the results and thrilled to have the near-constant disruption behind me. Having to work would have complicated things. Telecommuting would have been a challenge with all the noise…

  • Weird Accumulations

    I am a selective hoarder. Throughout my house are boxes, drawers, and other containers chocked full of things I’ll never use but can’t bring myself to throw away. To find out if my odd collections are universal or unique, I’m sharing them here. Beverage Containers. No event is complete without keepsake plastic cups, water bottles,…

  • Surprising Results

    A paper-based system is my go-to method for record-keeping. The transition to digital files and folders has been slow. My system works. If it ain’t broke…. The complicated, time consuming, and essentially useless paper-based system I created for tracking royalties is broken. Excel would be better, but I’m spreadsheet challenged. Minions handle such things for me…

  • Predictions for 2017

    Happy New Year! Can you believe it’s 2017? The older I get, the faster January seems to come around. My resolutions (I prefer to think of them as priorities) haven’t changed much, so this year, I’ll take a stab at predicting what will happen in 2017. Despite Mom’s fervent prayers, Donald Trump will be President…

  • Swap Resolutions for Priorities

    For most of my career, instead of days off for “lesser” federal holidays, my employer has given us the week off between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Depending on when the holidays fall, I usually add days of vacation time to either end — both if possible. Most years, the holiday vacation is my longest break from the…

  • Real Time

    Time is my master. I’m a slave to the clock and my calendar. Whether I go to work or get the day off, my schedule is full from the time I get up until I go to bed. The time change twice a year totally rocks my world. Smartphones, computer displays, and cable boxes are arbiters…

  • The Nature of Change

    I’ve kept a personal journal since 1979. Writing in my journal is a hobby of sorts — a place to express myself without worrying my words will offend or hurt someone else. Believe it or not, the entries — while documenting my particular style of crazy — are repetitious, pedestrian, and boring. Writing stuff down helps me figure out what…

  • Ten Things I Never Do Anymore

    Change is a fact of life. No, I don’t mean nickels, dimes, and quarters. I’m talking about things being different than they were before, largely as a result of progress. Thinking about changes in my own life, I came up with ten things I don’t do anymore — some thanks to progress, others due to…

  • A Writer’s Temperament

    Anything I’ve done — whether writing a novel, losing fifty pounds, becoming a runner, or whatever — I tend to believe anyone can do. On the other hand, just about everyone I know does something I could never do.  I’m not smart enough, don’t think that way, or lack the talent. I’m an ordinary guy…

  • Over the Hill and Loving It

    Over the hill–a term we’ve all heard, and on some level, come to fear. A quick internet search turned up a number of definitions with the most common being: past the peak of one’s youthful freshness and vigor; far along in life; old. This definition begs the question–are you talking to me? I did more…