Category Archives: Life in the United States

Tempus Fugit: On the Occasion of My 60th Birthday


“It’s paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn’t appeal to anyone.” ― Andy Rooney So, today I turn 60 years old. On the day I was born: “I’m not ready to let the youthful part of myself go yet. If maturity means becomingContinue reading “Tempus Fugit: On the Occasion of My 60th Birthday”

On Movies & Movie Watching: ‘Devotion’ – If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again


Last night, I attempted to watch Devotion by playing the 4K UHD Blu-ray disc; I have the option of choosing either the physical disc or the digital copy I redeemed on Vudu on Wednesday, but I prefer the former playback method. Streaming is fine most times, but it does have limitations and is highly dependentContinue reading “On Movies & Movie Watching: ‘Devotion’ – If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again”

Tempus Fugit (Countdown to the Big Six-Oh Edition): Songs, Schedules, & Off-Campus Lunches…My High School Experience in February 1983


“I blinked my eyes and in an instant, decades had passed.” ― John Mark Green, Taste the Wild Wonder: Poems With less than 18 days before my 60th birthday – the first such recurrence of a “landmark” birthday since my mother’s death nearly eight years ago (and the ensuing physical as well as the emotionalContinue reading “Tempus Fugit (Countdown to the Big Six-Oh Edition): Songs, Schedules, & Off-Campus Lunches…My High School Experience in February 1983”

Musings & Thoughts for Sunday, February 12, 2023, or: Hey, Look! I Wrote a Regular Blog Post Today!


It’s midafternoon here in Lithia, Florida, on Sunday, February 12, 2022. It’s a cloudy, chilly day here in the Tampa Bay area (64°F/18°C), and unless I have to take some trash out to the garbage bin by the garage, I have zero intention of going outside. I should, but I don’t feel like doing whatContinue reading “Musings & Thoughts for Sunday, February 12, 2023, or: Hey, Look! I Wrote a Regular Blog Post Today!”

Counting Down to the ‘Big Six-Oh’ (With Some Ambivalence), or, The Year of Many Anniversaries


Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock: Countdown to the Big Six-Oh (And Other Anniversary Dates) Well, it’s late morning here in Lithia, Florida, on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, which means I only have slightly less than 26 days until I say goodbye to my 50s and say hello to being 60 on March 5. As I’ve said in previousContinue reading “Counting Down to the ‘Big Six-Oh’ (With Some Ambivalence), or, The Year of Many Anniversaries”

Musings & Thoughts for Monday, January 30, 2023, or: Insomnia Strikes Again, the Clock Ticks as My 60th Birthday Comes Nigh, and Other Concerns


Hi, there, Dear Reader.  It’s late morning here in Lithia on Monday, January 30, 2023, and as far as I can tell, it’s a nice – if a bit humid – Florida winter day. (Of course, by the time I publish this, it will be early afternoon; I’m a mostly accurate typist, but not aContinue reading “Musings & Thoughts for Monday, January 30, 2023, or: Insomnia Strikes Again, the Clock Ticks as My 60th Birthday Comes Nigh, and Other Concerns”

Musings & Thoughts for Friday, January 27, 2023, or: My Thursday Night at the Movies*


* At home, with movies in my Blu-ray collection, not at “the movies.” Hi, there, Dear Reader. Last night I watched Amazon Women on the Moon, which was co-directed by John Landis, Joe Dante, Peter Horton, Robert K. Weiss, and Carl Gottlieb, and stars, according to the main titles sequence, “Lots of Actors.“ If youContinue reading “Musings & Thoughts for Friday, January 27, 2023, or: My Thursday Night at the Movies*”