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My Friend Reggie

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My friend Reggie always had a huge smile on his face. He had 5 kids at home. He was born with lungs that didn’t quite work right, and he had to be careful about where he worked, and was often simply hurt by breathing air. Yet, our conversations were always so upbeat. When I asked him about his health he would often say: “It’s all right. I just have to deal with it.” Outwardly, he always looked healthy and strong and he hated to miss a day of work. “I have five kids, man!” Reggie was so happy to be a Dad. He had a photo on his phone that he would show everyone. “World’s Best Dad!” was written on the mug. We became friends as Reggie ran some jobs and he’d ask me for help in setting up the safety. I would greet him with the old Bronx chant: “Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!” And he’d flash that huge smile. We spoke about the race riots years ago. A black man working in an industry where ignorance can run rampant some days. “Some people just ain’t right,” he said. A coworker of Reggie’s texted me: ...
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Bouncing Down The Fairway

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I was confident with every club in my hand on Sunday. And it was so much fun. The ball was bouncing well. First off, the weather was great, and Pops was pushing me with 40-foot putts and long drives. I knew I needed to keep the ball in the short grass, and stay consistent. And it’s never about winning or losing - we all cheer one another’s good shots. It’s such an unforgiving game. You can hit a shot exactly where you want to and it can just bounce the wrong way. I had a long putt for an eagle…it hit the flag stick. Ended up 8’ away. Missed that too. A tap in par. Pissed about it. Watched Pops on very next hole from 235 yards out…hit a ball that rolled all the way around the cup and was spit out. Would’ve been an eagle. He made the birdie putt. When we pulled up on 16, my heart sunk a little. Only 3 holes left. Thought about the busy week ahead. A lot of hours between swings. Deep breath on 18. Finish it with a par. Great drive. Hit the green with the 2nd shot, ended up in the fringe. ...
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STOP!

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I’ve had enough of the fireworks every freaking night. My dog is an absolute mess and on Friday night the m-80’s started going off at 12:30. It’s Saturday night now and we have them blasting off at 11:00. The poor animals, all over the neighborhood are shaking. I can’t imagine what vets are thinking. STOP it. I don’t understand it at all. That’s fun? Get pissed up and blow shit up? Ah man. Pissing in the wind. Police won’t stop it. People don’t give a shit. You voice a concern about the public good and you’re a ‘woke libtard’. I don’t get it, but someone needs to make it stop.
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Philly Floppy

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LeBron James is taking his talents to Philadelphia. He’s been a Cavalier (twice), went to Miami, to the Lakers and now he will be a 76er. He’s now 41 years old, and while he is no longer a top ten player in the league, he can still play the game. I have a buddy who lives close to Philly, just over the Jersey state line. “We got Floppy,” he texted. James has won a championship in each place that he has played. If he wins one in Philadelphia the legend will grow. Hell, even Pedo Pig checked in by calling LeBron ‘a racist’ which is absolutely ridiculous, but so is the rest of the river of shit that comes out of his mouth. LeBron James is a fascinating athlete and he will be remembered forever as one of the all-time greats. He’s also lived and thrived while being a famous man. There haven’t been any scandals, by all accounts he’s a great dad. He speaks up on key issues, and I can’t do anything but marvel at his conditioning to get up and down the court. James has spoken up when his voice h...
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Violated!!!

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I was scrolling around on Wednesday night, and did my website check ins. My bank account can be checked, and for some reason, I clicked on it. The balance was a bit low, and when I looked at the recent transactions I knew something was amiss. “Did you order something?” I asked Kathy, sending her the two odd transactions. “You better call the bank,” she said. Now this was ten o’clock at night and I’m usually going to sleep around then, but I didn’t wait. Quickly, the card was locked and then deactivated, and I noticed that there were three more fraudulent transactions. I heard from the bank in the morning, which seemed odd to me, but the guy on the phone asked me about the bad charges. And then he began asking me more personal questions, and I hung up. He called back, and I went off on him, hung up and called the bank on the true number. “That’s a scam that they’re running,” the woman said. She checked in on my now-defunct card. “We’ve been denying charges all morning,” she said. “Out o...
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“We Had to Stop Them”

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Ran into a MAGA guy I know, and I tried my level best to not get into anything political, but he was quick to bring it around, one way or another. He wanted to discuss AI. “I don’t get it,” I said. “The data center they’re building in Barker is simply massive. I don’t understand what they put in all that space.” “Oh, I understand ALL of it,” he said. (He’s a brick mason). “We better get control of it before China or we’re done.” (A straight up MAGA talking point). “We’ll be gone when the whole new world kicks in,” I said. “Are you ready to retire?” He asked. “Who knows?” I said. “My electric bill was $491 this month, groceries are through the roof, and gas ain’t coming down.” (Okay - perhaps I was attempting to get under his skin by pointing out that this is a mess). “We had to stop Iran,” he said. “Even if it costs us double to live this year it’ll be worth it because they were a couple of weeks away from dropping a nuke on our heads.” That one almost made me laugh out loud. I tried t...
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August 12, 1989

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I was working in New Haven, Connecticut in 1989. In fact, I was working at the single best job I ever had. You see, back then I was trying to find a career. I had graduated college, and bounced around a few jobs. I had a book out, was teaching creative writing and writing copy for a magazine. The teaching was fun, but I hated the office job. My Dad was on the site in New Haven and he called me. “I need someone to work in the office here. The mayor wants a daily report of progress on the job.” He didn’t ask twice, but just a few months into it, things went sour for Dad and the mayor, and Dad left. The company kept me. A month after Dad left, I was offered a different position with the company that Dad up and left. They wanted me to be a fire watch on the second shift. I didn’t accept the demotion. I walked down the hall and got a job with the concrete company. Same job. Just changed hardhats and I stayed through the end of the job. Had a lot of fun as a 24-year old kid. Lived on my own....
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