Thoughts of a Common Man

One of my old college buddies, Tony, put up a photo of himself ‘intently studying’ engineering. I knew Tony all 4 years. My memories of him consist of his laugh, a few drinks and rec league basketball. Tony could handle the rock. I couldn’t guard him. Way too fast. Yet, my trip down memory lane didn’t stop there. I thought about Tony’s roommates - particularly Brian who I once tried to guard in a rec league game. My chest still hurts in cold weather because he demolished me on a drive to the hoop. (They called the foul on me - was a blocking foul they said). One afternoon ten of us went to Mercyhurst - a college not far from Gannon - we just wanted to check out their campus. We had beer. There were ten of us in a car that seated six. “Wow! This is a nice campus,” Brian said. He was sitting on my lap. “Let’s piss.” Just a simple throw away moment in a life that is approaching 58 years… …but I can still see the expression on Brian’s face as we busted out laughing. And then I thought abou...

Isn’t this like our 20th once in a century storm in the last couple of decades? I can’t imagine having a home in the path of such a blast. Saw photos of Fort Meyers - a shark in the streets. A home filling with water. Morons swimming. Cars moving through the streets without any drivers behind the wheels. Then in Naples. The main drag was a freaking river. And of course, we all know people who live down there or have homes they run to, ironically enough, when the weather gets too crazy up here. Hoping everyone is safe. Homes and cars can be replaced. “Damn, I hate water rushing in,” I said. “Not sure anyone truly enjoys it,” Kathy mentioned. And I certainly complain about the cold and the snow, but trying to bail water out my second story windows would probably sour me on weather that is mostly sunny but then drenched me beyond imagination. “Why would anyone stay through an evacuation warning?” Kathy asked. “Try and save their home, I imagine,” I said. “That’s dopey.” I know that I woul...

Now I feel old. Bono’s daughter is a star in the new show, ‘Bad Sisters’. It’s a good show, and I can’t help but see the singer of U2 every time the girl is in the show. There was a great line in the show too when one of the characters said: “Those who know the least talk the most.” Great line! So true. But back to the show… …or shows in general. People seem to pine for the old shows and I do it too… …I’ll never pass a rerun of ‘Rockford’, ‘Columbo’ or ‘Sanford & Son’ but this is certainly the golden age of television. The shows all drop at once and you can watch 8 in a row if you feel like it. Often times you find yourself rooting for the bad guys… …like in ‘The Sopranos’ or ‘Breaking Bad.’ ‘Bad Sisters’ is a lot like that… …drama, a little comedy and Bono’s daughter. I’m old! What’s better than that?

“Sometimes life is just too ridiculous to live.” - John Mellencamp - ‘Between a laugh & a tear.’ The rain was pounding the side of the house, and suddenly I was wide-awake. I tried to guess the time before looking at my phone. It felt like it was about 5 in the morning.  I looked: 03:22. Bah! I stayed awake until about 4:15 but then went back to sleep until 6:30. On a Monday. Rain was just relentless. “Ah well,” I told Miller. “Time to make the doughnuts.” A half-hour later I was in the car. Turned the key and saw the low tire pressure light. “Bah!” When I began adding pressure to all the tires because none of them looked light, the skies opened up. I was absolutely soaked by the time I got in the car. After visiting the first job, I headed back to the car and used the keyless entry. It didn’t work because it was wet. I punched in the number a half dozen times and then the numbers locked for a minute. Started pouring. Soaked again! Before visiting the second job I made sure to ...

 That’s where Ollie likes to sit. On my lap. He’s not light! And you can also see that he’s ready for the Bills game as he was wearing a handkerchief. The problem I have with this wonderful dog? He thinks he’s part of me. He spends the entire day within 3’ of me. I get up, he gets up. I scratch my head and he goes and gets a ball. And of course, we play ball outside every single day. I’m amazed with his ability to find the right spot to catch the angle of the ball coming off the garage, but Diggs has nothing on Ollie Berry. I’m surprised when the dog misses one. Still. The lack of space between me and the dog is tiresome at times. It pisses off Miller too… …but Millsie is much better at napping. I’d love to know what they’re thinking too… …I say there are moments when Miller looks at Oliver and thinks: “What an asshole.”

I visited job sites wearing a hoodie yesterday. I will probably be wearing the same hoodie from now through early May. For four or five months I will wear it under a huge, warm coat that won’t be warm enough. Yesterday was also Bruce’s birthday - his 73rd!  I remember his 30th!! Man, time flies in by. And the Yankees clinched a playoff spot again. I’ll be able to rest for a couple of weeks - after Judge breaks the record - and then it’s stress for a few weeks as they chase #28. They’re capable. Getting out to golf is now a problem as the weather hasn’t cooperated. There’s rain in the forecast for tomorrow. Makes me want to cry. I’m thinking of all the weekend days spent inside the house with Ollie trying to bring me a ball for me to throw… …over and over and over again. Then I heard someone say: “I love Fall!” No!! “I love the sun.” I don’t ever want to wear a hoodie again… …but I chose to live here, right?

I haven’t said much about Aaron Judge’s season here, but man, I’ve been enjoying it. What an amazing season. The thing that’s easy to notice if you watch every game is that he never gives an at-bat away. He’s also learned his job really well. When he was young he would chase breaking balls that were out of the strike zone. Now he spits on them. And when a pitcher makes a mistake, he’s been on it. What is amazing is that he’s doing it in a contract year after he turned down a truly generous Yankee offer. That’s the business side of it. He gambled on himself and the season he’s having will earn him a whole lot of zeros. And of course, we don’t KNOW any sports star, but he always does the right thing. Know what my favorite moment of Judge’s season was? The Yankees brought up a young pitcher who was making his major league debut. The kid got absolutely lit up! 3 or 4 walks, 2 or 3 hits… …4 runs. The poor kid only got one out! Of course, he was yanked from the game, and the camera stayed on...