Thoughts of a Common Man

I had a stop in the city on Elmwood Avenue, which is a busy stretch of road with a lot of traffic, plenty of pedestrians, and people riding bikes. I got out of my car, and went around it to feed the meter, and I spotted money on the ground. When finding money it’s usually a five-dollar bill or something less.  A couple of ones.  On a great day, a ten spot. I haven’t found money in a long time… …and this time, I kind of gasped because it was a hundy. And it wasn’t alone. There were two one-hundred-dollar bills and two twenties. $240 is a pretty great score. And a lot of money to the poor bastard who lost it. I looked around. There wasn’t anyone within shouting distance. I didn’t see anyone searching the street for their lost cash. I wasn’t going to go up to random people and ask them if they lost anything lately, and the law is pretty clear on this issue: Finders keepers  Losers weepers. Then I did something supremely stupid: I told Kathy. She won’t rest until she has ever...

It’s a great day today because it makes me think of Dad and Uncle Jim and my siblings. A day that Italian Americans have chosen to, uh, I don’t even know! Sort of the day when everything comes due. June the 2. It’s funny, but yesterday I was in the Dollar General getting dog bones because every day is an Ollie day, and a middle-aged black guy approached singing ‘Soul Man’. We turned that into a discussion about John Belushi and how great that song was on SNL. “Are you Italian heritage?” The man blurted out. I laughed because he caught me off-guard. “I can tell. It’s around your eyes, and the way you talk.” I laughed again. “I grew up around all the Italian families in Niagara Falls,” he said. He mentioned a few names. “You look Italian,” he added. We fist-bumped and I said, “Have a great day.” He responded with: “Happy June the 2”. Classic.

The weather was exactly perfect. 70 degrees and carts were allowed on the fairway. We had our usual 4-some together for the first time all year, and the driver troubles are all sorted out. (I don’t want to discuss the putter - it’s too soon). But I enjoyed every swing. Returned home and made a huge turkey with all the sides, and headed out to play ball with Ollie, and noticed that a fawn settled in behind the fence and watched. It was remarkable. The fawn was at full attention, as Ollie ran on by retrieving every toss. I walked closer, and the fawn just looked at me. I was less than 10’ away. Finally, the fawn stood up, and that’s when Ollie noticed him, and chased the fawn down rhe fence line. Very cool. By 6:00, I was worn out. Put some ice on my back and watched some mindless television. Brilliant sunshine. Good food. The boys were here to see the Yankees score 13 runs in one inning. And it dawned on me. That’s all Americans want. We don’t need a ballroom/bunker. Or fights on the Wh...

Twenty-nine years ago, we were married in left field at the town park in North Collins. I was just 32 years old. And of course: “No one knows which way loves wheel turns. Will we hit it rich, or crash and burn?” We’ve done all right, and today we celebrate. I’m making a turkey because I know it’s Kathy’s favorite meal. I’ll make the stuffing too, because that’s what I like. The wedding was a great time. Beer and music and pouring rain, with everyone I ever met showing up to wish us well, We talked a little bit about the wedding, but we also kicked around all the stuff we have had to battle through since. Being married for 29 years is no small feat. There are good days, great days and days where the best thing you can do is retreat to separate corners. I’d say we are pretty safe on making it out to the end, but I know a guy who divorced his wife after 52 years of marriage. Seriously. When I asked him about it he said: “I should’ve left her 40 years ago.” Then, five years after their div...

Kathy had to spend a few hours in the hospital for a medical procedure, and I spent a little while in the waiting area, scrolling through my phone. The waiting room was packed, and none of us were waiting to be seen. We were just waiting for an update. I looked around the room, and saw a bit of grey hair. I thought about how life goes from here on out. Hospital waiting areas aren’t anyone’s favorite place, and I tried to be patient.  I’m not a patient man. Thankfully I’ve been healthy because I have little interest in being in a bed. I passed a room and saw a man about my age laying there watching ‘The Price is Right’. He looked absolutely miserable. And our healthcare system is an abomination.  I thought about a well-known actor who recently passed away after an illness (I’m too lazy to look up his name), but I remember reading that his family needed a go-fund me to pay for his medical expenses. This is someone who likely made millions while on television and in the movies. D...

Springsteen and the E-Street Band played Washington D.C. on Wednesday night, and as he’s done in cities all across the nation, Bruce addressed what’s going on with a very thoughtful presentation of the facts of the matter. They’re receiving death threats. There are just a couple of times when Bruce stops playing music and breaks down the rights we’ve lost as the members of the current administration enrich themselves as the rest of us suffer. Now, I’ve been a Springsteen fan since 1975. I was 10. I was aware of Bruce’s political leanings by 1981 or so. He was vocal about how scared he was for the future of the country when Reagan was elected. Reagan later tried to poach ‘Born in the USA’ for his political campaign. Bruce stopped it. When he released the video for ‘Born to Run’ he ended it with the statement: “No one wins unless everyone wins.” And people have used his words to say he’s a communist who hates the country. Which is the exact opposite of the truth. Springsteen wrote a reco...