The Day (or Three) After

Saw my reflection while on the sidewalk in a downtown storefront window and thought: "That guy ain't no seventy years old."

Then a bit later, when asking to use my senior discount was told: "I'd have never guessed." Of course that person is being paid to be nice, so I had to take that into consideration.

Pleased to report that I'm still walking around just fine, without the need of a cane or a boy scout helping me to cross the street. I was led to believe by rumor and reputation that it would be otherwise. I have yet to attempt running.

The Day

So it only hurt a little.

I feared it would be much more traumatic. 

But it couldn't be stopped .... and I don't think they have to technology to go back.

And even if I could, I don't think I'd want to go much more than five years back.  

Though it would be nice if one could combine the best of their 30's, 40, 50's and 60's minus the worst of those years and carry that over into their 70's.

It seems like the last few years brought an acceptance of things I previously would occasionally be consumed with.

I credit that to this aging process.

There were a lot of birthday wishes ..... and even a few hugs.

I appreciated all.

Technically, as I edit this, according to legend passed down from my mom, I still have about 90 minutes before the actual moment.

The 7-Word

In my last few hours before turning 70.

Can I stop time?

This feels so surreal. 

The flashbacks are in rapid fire motion tonight. 

Someone who didn't know asked me this afternoon, when do I turn 70? ..... "Ummmm tomorrow."

Hopefully I can make peace and embrace it soon.

In the mail today, a cassette of 'American Primitive' acoustic guitar. 

(Yeah I've come to believe that cassettes are kinda cool too. Especially when it's the only recorded format.)

Just a short, 6-song, EP type of recording. 

It has a song titled: 'Old Timer.'

Feels appropriate for the final hours of this 69th year.

Used Bookstore Tales

In the bookstore, the young lady behind the counter asked the lady in front of me in a round-about way if she was a senior. So, I was standing there expecting the same question and readying a witty response but then she didn't inquire the same with me and I'm thinking that maybe I appear to be much younger, and that maybe I shouldn't mention and admit to the reality of the situation. But then I really wanted that discount.

I walked into a goldmine of used vinyl records at great prices in the used bookstore. Ten records over two days of visits. Five of them on the ECM label which usually translates into greater expense with new vinyl or compact discs. What really impressed me though was their condition .... all near mint or mint. Both the covers and the actual vinyl. That combined with the fact that I hadn't seen nine of the ten before in this store caused me to think they were sold to the store by the same customer purging his/her collection.

And I'm thinking that this person ought to be granted automatic and instant sainthood for keeping them so pristine. All the records from the 1970's and 80's. 

And I'm thinking that there must be additional records awaiting pricing and placement in the racks, because it's unlikely that someone in the height of their collecting days just bought a few great nonmainstream titles and stopped there. Nor is it likely that these records were the non-keepers from a great collection and this gem of a human held onto the rest. 

And also that there might be a few in the lower regions of the racks that I have yet to sort through because I refuse on most days to physically bend down that low.

Rental Games

For the past week, I've been driving around town in a rental car.

And exercising extreme caution and care. 

The guy at the rental company had offered five or six insurance packages covering various disastrous possibilities ..... $27.99 for this, $17.99 for that, $9.99, etc ...... all prices for "a day."

Declining each and knowing that I had an estimated two weeks ahead of rental need and on top of feeling a bit gun-shy towards driving after the event necessitating the need for the rental, I realized extreme care was going to be essential.

In the seven days to date of rental fear, I've given this car more TLC than I've ever exhibited towards another person or object.

In fact, to this point, I've even consciously resisted and held in all inner urges and temptations to fart while sitting in the car.

And I've never been more cautious with anything .... with the possible exception of the time in my youth when I purchased two brand new Wilson Jet leather basketballs, the top-of-the-line basketball in those days.

It was a year or two before they even saw the light of an indoor basketball court.

And once introduced to the hardwood, I obsessively watched every bounce and roll those balls made to the detriment of my in-game court vision and jump shot.

I've been less cautious with semi-obscure and rare, mint condition vinyl records.

Rainy Day Notes

Rainy day Sunday notes .....

• It's amazing how picking up one pair of dirty socks and transferring to the proper place in the laundry room can transform the look and vibes of the living room.

Additional Monday evening note ....

• Woke up after a three-hour evening nap on the couch and a bad dream, thinking it was Saturday and I could sleep in tomorrow morning. After ten blissful seconds, realized that something was wrong ..... "Oh it's Monday."
• And the bad dream mentioned? It was about a friend, who I have unspoken feelings for and who suddenly (in the dream) and without saying anything, upped and moved to California.
• Less than ten days now before I attempt to gracefully turn the age that probably 98% of the people who express opinions, consider to be 'old age.' ....... and on a related but unrelated note, the estimate for getting my car back from the body shop, is the day after. 
• Did the math again, just in case I've been under an erroneous assumption all these years. YEP,....2026 minus 1956 equals 70 years old. Maybe I ought to check my birth certificate to make sure the 1956 is correct.

Regarding the upcoming 70th birthday. I've spent the past year thinking, "Bring it on!! Let's get it over with!! I welcome 70!! I'm proud of it!" Now that it's almost here, I badly want to delay and postpone it. Or wake up from a dream and realize that I'm actually turning 30. And from what little I recall, 30 may have been more dreaded. But once it had passed, I felt like I had suddenly gained immense amounts of wisdom. So I'm hoping 70 holds some sort of side benefit like that.

Edit to add:

One week later, additional Monday (2/16) and raining again note .....

• Funny how a quick stop to have the air pressure professionally checked on tires can cause you to feel like you are driving a new car. (I may have mentioned that before.)

Hoops Peeves

This is what I think is wrong with basketball these days (among several things) ......

Ohio State vs Michigan hoops. A guy catches the ball in the middle of the key no more than three feet away from the basket with the defender two feet away from him .... and unless he's incredibly slow or the defender insanely quick and with verticality, where he, the guy with the ball in his hands and adequate space to make things simple and doable, can put up an easy little push shot or if he possesses any footwork skills and is actually concerned with getting his shot blacked, can fall back on a basic jump hook .....

..... And instead, he throws the ball back out to someone standing behind the three-point line!!

Which ended in three more passes around that arc that accomplished nothing except an eventual turnover along with me changing the channel on the television because I find a lot of these mid-2020's trends irritating and unwatchable.

And then there's all these facebook videos disguised as tutorials showing a guy with the basketball dribbling, stopping, pivoting, stepping, stopping, pivoting again and taking an additional step or two before shooting ..... and passing it all off as legal and well within the rules of basketball. Or the jump shot doctor tutorials that include missed shots and only the made shots after his advice and corrections to said jump shooter. Like everyone shoots 100% immediately after receiving his words of wisdom. 

Sad News

Saw today that this guy, who was well known around town as a musician and the owner of a guitar store .... and from what I've read today in comments from others, well known for his involvement in working with kids in art education ..... that he passed away early yesterday morning.

I never got to know him but knew of him and recognized his face and name from often seeing him around town over the years.

It's one of those little moments/memories that always stays with me and pops up in my thoughts from time-to-time ..... I recall an evening, probably 35-40 years ago, a pickup basketball game in an open grade school gym, and one of us threw an elbow at the other .... pretty sure (with a small amount of doubt) that I may have been the aggressor. We stood there frozen, looking at each other for a second or two, like neither knew what to do in a confrontation, and continued on with the game.

R.I.P. TK

I snapped this photo of him in 2020, sitting in front of his downtown guitar shop, playing his guitar.

The Rain's Return

And this evening the rain returned ....

It had been a while. 

We had enough rain in December for about three winters.

And then it suddenly stopped.

And didn't resume.

And I was beginning to wonder if it would ever rain again. 

And it felt great to feel it falling on my face tonight, even if it is 40 degrees outside.

Needed therapy and relief for icy windshields and stagnant air alerts. 

Driving Peeves

I feel like I'm a patient and mostly calm person but .....

Probably a good chunk (like an estimated 85%) of the things that piss me off these days occur after sunset while I'm driving my car .... like encountering the dickheads in black clothing, out and about, walking around at night and attempting to cross the street in random non-crosswalk places or standing on the edge of the curb/sidewalk appearing as if they are about to take a step into the lane that I happen to be driving in. 

Or the alternate dickheads who tailgate so closely, that you can't see their headlights in your rear-view mirror .... which generally results in me intentionally slowing down to piss off the tailgater.

.... and there seems to be more and more of these braindead freaks out there as I grow older.