Secret Saturdays
This week, since my friend Michelle and I will be enjoying a local high school play tonight, this week we have Secrets And Theater!
POLT
Showing posts with label Michelle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michelle. Show all posts
Saturday, April 11, 2026
Thursday, December 31, 2020
Like a top ten song, I had it all....
As we know, today is the last day of December AND the last day of 2020 (thank GOD!), so it's time to go over my....
TOP TEN LIST OF 2020
(not necessarily the best things to happen this year, just the biggest things)
10. Paid Off Credit Card
I got my first credit card somewhere around 33 years ago. I currently have a Discover card that I used most of the time, and a VISA card that I only use for my med purchases and nothing else.
On the Discover, I have had up to as much as $3000 on it. I usually use it starting in September when I begin buying gifts for Christmas, run it up over the fall, and then after the New Year, start paying it down. I have used it for other emergency purchases (like the air conditioners last year). Well this year, one month, I paid off the Discover card and I pay off the VISA each month, so at one point this year, I had zero credit card debt! Of course, the next month, I put something on the Discover card, and I am currently carrying a balance. But that's fine. I'm just happy to have paid it off once...once in the last 33 years.
9. Uncle Randy
In March, my mother's youngest sibling, Randy, died. He was diagnosed with cancer last summer, and it had already spread by then. And it just took him in about 9 months. I wasn't terribly close to him recently, but 40 years ago, he had an above ground pool at this house and I spent nearly every summer day over there, at the pool, hanging out with the neighbor kids and my cousins (his kids). He was only 15 years older than me. His second wife (my favorite of his three wives) was only 10 years older than me. They were a lot of fun back then....but Randy had a rough life. Mainly his of his own doing, and there's no point in going into here. But he also got me a silly birthday card and laughed with me as I opened it every year. And he was fun. And he'll be missed.
8. Seeing Hamilton
Not on the stage, unfortunately, but on Disney+. On Independence Day, my theater buddy Michelle and I went to mom's for a socially distanced, masked cookout. And then, afterwards, we returned to my house and watched it on Disney+. She had seen it on stage at least twice (lucky bitch), and she told me how I'd love it. We didn't get to see any theater this year, but she knows what I like, and she was right: I loved it! Especially Jonathan Groff as King George. I know he's not in it very much, but he steals the show. But anyway, it was a great performance, and I enjoyed watching it with her...the last time we got to see theater...and the last time I've seen her in person. We've talked on the phone several times, but not hung out due to pandemic restrictions. But hopefully next year, that will change!
7. No Sex April
Okay, so no, I didn't really become chaste, but due to the pandemic, but due to self isolation/social distancing, I had not sexual contact (other than with myself) from St. Patrick's Day until Mother's Day....nearly two entire months! And no contacts at all during the calendar month of April! When was the last time I went that long without a gentleman caller? Who knows? I don't. I'm certain I forgot all about it...or tried to repress that previous time!
6. Meeting Turner
I've been friends with Turner online since something around Christmas 2018. I'm not at all sure how we met online, but we've been following each other and having short conversations since then. He lives in Alabama, so I though there's no way we'd ever meet, and that was fine, I have plenty of online only friends.
Then in July, I saw he was traveling. On his own and alone, he booked a week's vacation at a seaside hotel in Maine. And he was driving up himself. We figured out he's going on an interstate just 8 miles form my home. And I was roughly halfway between the two (about 9 or 10 hours each way from my house to Alabama and Maine). He was driving up without stopping other than to catch short naps in rest stops. But we decided he'd stop here on his way back and spend the night. And then head home to next morning. He got here late, we did his laundry at 1AM, he bedded down on the sofa and slept a good 6 or 7 hours. Then showered, packed his stuff up and left. But we did, while doing laundry, have time to sit and chat. He's got such an adorable lil Southern accent. And he's much smaller than I thought he would be. But it was fun meeting him and hanging out for a bit. I doubt we'll ever meet again in person, but we still communicate online.
5. Dental Bridge
Of course, I had tooth problems, when don't I? The back bottom molar cracked in July. I went to the dentist, hoping he could something easy, but he said since I had the space next to it open, but not just do a bridge. After discussing it I agreed, and he prepared the two teeth. We didn't have enough time to get the bridge and installed that day, but I could come back the next day and they'd do it. I was already off cause it just so happens, this was the day Turner arrived. So I had a temp on that night, Turner left the next day, and then at lunchtime I went over and he put the bridge on. And it's worked quite well since then....thankfully, it continues that way.
4. Binging shows
So yeah, even before the pandemic, but especially during it, I binged a lot of shows.
All 15 seasons of ER, 6 of the Practice, 2 of Discovery, 7 of The West Wing and 7 of I Love Lucy. I watched a bunch of other stuff as well, more than usual, but these were the series I binged.
3. Health Issues
yeah, I'm old. Middle aged. And like an old, out of shape, middle aged man, I been falling apart. My sinuses have bothered me all year, with tooth pain, sore throats headaches, etc. I went to an ENT in July, we did an CAP scan, didn't find anything usual, she told me to use the Nedi-Wash thing. And I have been, and it's been helping. Still bothers me sometimes, but that usually helps. My back has bothered me occasionally since I fell last July. My feet have been tingly and at one point the right one even went numb for a few days....that's obviously the diabetes. I have been eating better, my daily blood sugars are lower, and I took a lot more walks, so I hope everything's improving on that front. But yeah....getting old and falling apart.
2. 2020 Election
Free at last, free at last, thank GOD almighty, we're free at last!
In 20 short, but agonizingly long, days, he will be gone. And the American Government can back to being run by experienced, capabable adults, and not....well not whatever they hell they've been the last four years.
Joe Biden was not who I wanted to be in the White House, but I'm not upset that he's going to be there. He's a steady experienced hand. He'll get us out of the ditch we've been in. I don't believe he's forward thinking enough to get us where we need to be, but he'll at least get us back to a functioning government...something we've been sorely lacking.
And all I have to say about the orange shitgibbon is....
1. COVID-19
What else could it be? This thing has affected every aspect of life, of practically everyone around the world. But since this list is about my personal top ten, with all due respect to the 19 million American affected and 330000 Americans dead (as of right now), I'm just going to cover it's affect on me.
I wear a mask now everywhere I got. I use a card to pay for everything, I hate touching coins. I wash my hands much more frequently and use sanitizer. I go to the grocery store maybe twice a week, instead of almost every other day. And I pick up a bunch of things at once, not just one or two items. I'm staying a LOT. I can't recall the last time I was inside someone else's house (maybe mom's on Labor Day?).I've had a few people here, but not many at all. And visitors are generally masked up and kept at opposite ends of the room we're in....gentlemen callers and I are masked up as much as we can be (don't ask). The number of gentleman callers has plummeted. The number of books I've bought and the money I've spent on them has plummeted. I only get gas about once every 10 days now in stead of once every 6 days. I don't have any idea when I was last inside a movie theater, or sat in a restaurant to eat. And I can count on one hand the number of times I've been in a Mall this year, and on two hands the number of times I've been in Wal-Mart. I prepare a lot of my food at home, so I'm running the dishwasher twice a week, sometimes three times, instead of once a week like it was before all this. I did not spend Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas dinner with mom (although I did get to eat some of the food she prepared) for the first time in my 53 years and tonight, I will spend New Years not at the ParisPeking house, which I think will be the first time in 16 years. And I'm certain in February, I will not be watching the Super Bowl at my buddy Duff's house, which will be only the second time in 24 years that I won't be doing that. Days that I don't work, instead of walking to Rutters for coffee and something to eat, I have instant coffee here at home and have discovered the wonders of Vanilla Chex with 2% milk. I'm actually saving money because, obviously, I'm not spending it like I was before, and that's good. I've worked all the way through this (essential job, dontcha know) and they put a large amount of precautions' in place, and we have been SO lucky to not have an outbreak over there. I know several people who have had it: a 98 year old friend of my mom who had no symptoms at all. My boss at work, who only lost his taste and smell and was back to work in 14 days. A co-workers wife who I know who got it and was "the sickest I've EVER been" according to her, but she recovered fully. A lady I used to work with who's been over it for several months...but still hasn't gotten her smell or taste back. Another co-worker's wife, she I didn't know, who died from it. A guy who I used to work the election polls with who died from it. And those are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head. So, yeah, I'VE been incredibly lucky so far too. I'm supposed to get vaccinated in early January, second shot a month later. So hopefully by the end of February I wont have to worry about catching it (although I don't know if I could still pass it on...gotta check into that), so if I can hold out that long from getting it, hopefully, I'll be okay.
But still....all the changes, not only in my life but in everyone's, it's crazy how everything can change so quickly. And hopefully, next year, COVID won't even make my list or need mentioning at all (fingers crossed).
POLT
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Like a top ten song, I head it all......
So, since it's December 31, 2019, it's time for My Top Ten Things Of 2019!
Firstly, there were a lot of things that happened that didn't make the list, so let's give an honorable mention to computer issues; car issues (battery died) and resolutions (new set of tires); walking 17 out of 30 days in June; dropping my A1C from 8.7 to 7.5; discovering how well Aleve works on muscle pain; getting another crown on a tooth; and meeting a few new hot guys as well as hooking up with a few I haven't seen in a few years. And now, onto the list.
10. Hagerstown Museum of Fine Arts and The Cultural Trail
Nearby Hagerstown MD has in it's lovely City Park a Museum of Fine Arts. I went there with my class when I was in school back over 35 years ago, but never since. And in the last few years, the town opened up a cultural trail, starting downtown and winding through the town to City Park. So back in June, my buddy Michelle and I walked the Trail to City Park, and went into the Museum. Considering it's just in the town of Hagerstown, in the middle of nowhere, it was pretty nice. Both the Museum and the Trail. We plan on doing it again sometime this year.
9. Theater
My bubby Michelle and I have, for a few years, tried to see on average, one play a month each year. Last year, we accomplished it. This year, we did not. She and I only saw 11 shows together. But I did manage to see 12, the 12th one I saw with other friends, and Michelle was supposed to go with us, but she was sick. This year, Michelle and I saw plays in Waynesboro PA, Hagerstown MD, Chambersburg PA, Frederick MD, Charles Town WV, Shippensburg PA, Gettysburg PA and in the Summer Stock theater The Totem Pole. We even saw some Shakespeare In The Park here in town at Renfrew. It was a a wide variety of shows and theaters, and an enjoyable time by all.
8. New Plumbing
This year, my toilet stopped working properly. So I decided to just get a new one. And while I was gonna have the plumber in the house, I'd just let have him replace the faucets in my kitchen and bathroom sink. I had always wanted ones that curved upwards, so I went and got some. And they, along with the new toilet, are now in place and working great.
7. Amazing television on ROKU
There was SO MUCH amazing goodness on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBOGo and other channels on my ROKU. I was quite surprised at all that was available and all I enjoyed. Things like Russian Doll, Game Of Thrones, Umbrella Academy, The Watchmen, and the Mandalorian. So much great programming.
6. Avengers Engame
The. Best. Comic. Book. Movie. EVAH!
When I watch the clips online of Cap catching Mjolnir and later when Cap says "Avengers......ASSEMBLE!" I STILL get chills. It's gonna be tough to top this one.
5. Baking Cookies With Mom
For the last 15 years or so, Mom and I have taken her homemade cookies, fudge and peanut brittle to my work for my co-workers. We take quite a few packages. This year, I went out the Sunday before Christmas to get the packages together, and we discovered we didn't have enough chocolate chip cookies or snickerdoodles. SO she set out to make more batches right there. And I she had me help her with some. At the time, I was grumbling in my head thinking, "eh, I don't need to do this, she knows what she's doing." But after it was all over and we were sitting waiting for the last batch to come out of the over, I thought back over the time we had spent doing it: the laughs, the converstaion, the, honestly, fun. And I thought to myself, "Ya know, at some point in the future, when she's gone, I'm going to look back on this day, and remember it and smile." It really WAS one of those memorable moments.
4. Illnesses
Those are anti-biotices I had to take when I had strep throat this year. But that wasn't all that I had. In mid-March I had a pretty nasty stomach bug which resulted in multiple projectile vomiting bouts. In late March I had an upper respiratory infection which consisted of constant coughing and issues gettting my breath. In April I had a sinus infection, which resulted in some real bad tooth pain. Anti-biotics from the dentist ended the sinus infection and with that gone, so did the pressure on my tooth and the pain. In May I had another sinus infection, that wasn't as bad as the one in April and was resolved without anti-biotics. In October, I had the strep throat...LOTS of fun that was. In November, right before Thanksgiving, I had ANOTHER sinus infection, this one being as bad as the one in April, cause it resulted in another toothache. And again, anti-biotics from the dentist cleared both out. And now, since right before Christmas I've had some kinda cold: head stuffy and nose fulla snot, mild cough, and this past weekend, my throat has been on FIRE! Thankfully, yesterday, the pain subsided, so I think I'm getting over it. But DAMN, that's been a LOT of illness!
3. New Air Conditioners
When I bought the house 10 years ago, there were three air conditioners the previous people left here. I've been using them since, a small one in my bedroom, a large one in the dining room for downstairs. In June, I noticed the one in the bedroom didn't seem to be doing much cooling, so since it was at least 10 years old, I bought a new one. And then in early-July, the one downstairs didn't seem to be cooling much either, so I went and bought a large one for down there. And both of them worked GLORIOUSLY throughout the hot summer. I replaced them just in time.
2. Changes at work
When I started at my current job, there were two other people in my department: Bossy Know-It-All Coworker (who thankfully retired in 2010) and Janis. She retired the end of June this year. And to replace her, they hired Todd. Todd and I are never gonna be best friends, as we have next to nothing in common (he's a Republican, he loves to hunt, he likes camping, he does a lot mechanical work with his own hands, etc). BUT, as coworkers we, and the guy who replaced BKIAC 10 years ago, all work together like a finely tuned machine. Todd knows his stuff, and is always ready and eager to help or learn something new. And that's such a change from Janis (who was a very nice person, but she was incapable of change or thinking outside the box). FINALLY, after working in this job for 23 years, my department is working well together as a team and not at loggerheads with each other.
1. Falling on the stairs.
See those, last two steps there? In July, for whatever reason, as I was coming down the stairs in my socks, my feet went out from under me and I landed on the edges of those steps with all my weight. I landed on my upper right back. I thought I might have cracked a rib or two. Went to Urgent Care and I didn't, but I did have a serious muscle strain.
The blue and yellow area on the right? That's the part that I strained. And oh GOD, the pain was horrible. Worst I think I have ever felt in my life. I couldn't go to work for a week. I could lay down for a week, I had to sleep in a recliner. When I could finally lat down, I still couldn't lay in my bed (it was too firm) for two week after that. I had to sleep on the sofa. Getting up and sitting down felt like someone was stabbing me in my back. Once I was sitting, I was fine. Standing was fine...but as I walked sometimes, I just turn slightly and feel the stabbing pains. Coughing and sneezing were right out of the picture. And I never know how many of your back muscles are involved in taking a dump! Pooping was painful too. It was truly one of the most painfully episodes I have experience in my life. And it took me over a month until I could get everything back to normal. So now I'm very careful going down the stairs, and I plan on putting some carpeting or something on them to prevent it from happening again.
POLT
Firstly, there were a lot of things that happened that didn't make the list, so let's give an honorable mention to computer issues; car issues (battery died) and resolutions (new set of tires); walking 17 out of 30 days in June; dropping my A1C from 8.7 to 7.5; discovering how well Aleve works on muscle pain; getting another crown on a tooth; and meeting a few new hot guys as well as hooking up with a few I haven't seen in a few years. And now, onto the list.
10. Hagerstown Museum of Fine Arts and The Cultural Trail
Nearby Hagerstown MD has in it's lovely City Park a Museum of Fine Arts. I went there with my class when I was in school back over 35 years ago, but never since. And in the last few years, the town opened up a cultural trail, starting downtown and winding through the town to City Park. So back in June, my buddy Michelle and I walked the Trail to City Park, and went into the Museum. Considering it's just in the town of Hagerstown, in the middle of nowhere, it was pretty nice. Both the Museum and the Trail. We plan on doing it again sometime this year.
9. Theater
My bubby Michelle and I have, for a few years, tried to see on average, one play a month each year. Last year, we accomplished it. This year, we did not. She and I only saw 11 shows together. But I did manage to see 12, the 12th one I saw with other friends, and Michelle was supposed to go with us, but she was sick. This year, Michelle and I saw plays in Waynesboro PA, Hagerstown MD, Chambersburg PA, Frederick MD, Charles Town WV, Shippensburg PA, Gettysburg PA and in the Summer Stock theater The Totem Pole. We even saw some Shakespeare In The Park here in town at Renfrew. It was a a wide variety of shows and theaters, and an enjoyable time by all.
8. New Plumbing
This year, my toilet stopped working properly. So I decided to just get a new one. And while I was gonna have the plumber in the house, I'd just let have him replace the faucets in my kitchen and bathroom sink. I had always wanted ones that curved upwards, so I went and got some. And they, along with the new toilet, are now in place and working great.
7. Amazing television on ROKU
There was SO MUCH amazing goodness on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBOGo and other channels on my ROKU. I was quite surprised at all that was available and all I enjoyed. Things like Russian Doll, Game Of Thrones, Umbrella Academy, The Watchmen, and the Mandalorian. So much great programming.
6. Avengers Engame
The. Best. Comic. Book. Movie. EVAH!
When I watch the clips online of Cap catching Mjolnir and later when Cap says "Avengers......ASSEMBLE!" I STILL get chills. It's gonna be tough to top this one.
5. Baking Cookies With Mom
For the last 15 years or so, Mom and I have taken her homemade cookies, fudge and peanut brittle to my work for my co-workers. We take quite a few packages. This year, I went out the Sunday before Christmas to get the packages together, and we discovered we didn't have enough chocolate chip cookies or snickerdoodles. SO she set out to make more batches right there. And I she had me help her with some. At the time, I was grumbling in my head thinking, "eh, I don't need to do this, she knows what she's doing." But after it was all over and we were sitting waiting for the last batch to come out of the over, I thought back over the time we had spent doing it: the laughs, the converstaion, the, honestly, fun. And I thought to myself, "Ya know, at some point in the future, when she's gone, I'm going to look back on this day, and remember it and smile." It really WAS one of those memorable moments.
4. Illnesses
Those are anti-biotices I had to take when I had strep throat this year. But that wasn't all that I had. In mid-March I had a pretty nasty stomach bug which resulted in multiple projectile vomiting bouts. In late March I had an upper respiratory infection which consisted of constant coughing and issues gettting my breath. In April I had a sinus infection, which resulted in some real bad tooth pain. Anti-biotics from the dentist ended the sinus infection and with that gone, so did the pressure on my tooth and the pain. In May I had another sinus infection, that wasn't as bad as the one in April and was resolved without anti-biotics. In October, I had the strep throat...LOTS of fun that was. In November, right before Thanksgiving, I had ANOTHER sinus infection, this one being as bad as the one in April, cause it resulted in another toothache. And again, anti-biotics from the dentist cleared both out. And now, since right before Christmas I've had some kinda cold: head stuffy and nose fulla snot, mild cough, and this past weekend, my throat has been on FIRE! Thankfully, yesterday, the pain subsided, so I think I'm getting over it. But DAMN, that's been a LOT of illness!
3. New Air Conditioners
When I bought the house 10 years ago, there were three air conditioners the previous people left here. I've been using them since, a small one in my bedroom, a large one in the dining room for downstairs. In June, I noticed the one in the bedroom didn't seem to be doing much cooling, so since it was at least 10 years old, I bought a new one. And then in early-July, the one downstairs didn't seem to be cooling much either, so I went and bought a large one for down there. And both of them worked GLORIOUSLY throughout the hot summer. I replaced them just in time.
2. Changes at work
When I started at my current job, there were two other people in my department: Bossy Know-It-All Coworker (who thankfully retired in 2010) and Janis. She retired the end of June this year. And to replace her, they hired Todd. Todd and I are never gonna be best friends, as we have next to nothing in common (he's a Republican, he loves to hunt, he likes camping, he does a lot mechanical work with his own hands, etc). BUT, as coworkers we, and the guy who replaced BKIAC 10 years ago, all work together like a finely tuned machine. Todd knows his stuff, and is always ready and eager to help or learn something new. And that's such a change from Janis (who was a very nice person, but she was incapable of change or thinking outside the box). FINALLY, after working in this job for 23 years, my department is working well together as a team and not at loggerheads with each other.
1. Falling on the stairs.
See those, last two steps there? In July, for whatever reason, as I was coming down the stairs in my socks, my feet went out from under me and I landed on the edges of those steps with all my weight. I landed on my upper right back. I thought I might have cracked a rib or two. Went to Urgent Care and I didn't, but I did have a serious muscle strain.
The blue and yellow area on the right? That's the part that I strained. And oh GOD, the pain was horrible. Worst I think I have ever felt in my life. I couldn't go to work for a week. I could lay down for a week, I had to sleep in a recliner. When I could finally lat down, I still couldn't lay in my bed (it was too firm) for two week after that. I had to sleep on the sofa. Getting up and sitting down felt like someone was stabbing me in my back. Once I was sitting, I was fine. Standing was fine...but as I walked sometimes, I just turn slightly and feel the stabbing pains. Coughing and sneezing were right out of the picture. And I never know how many of your back muscles are involved in taking a dump! Pooping was painful too. It was truly one of the most painfully episodes I have experience in my life. And it took me over a month until I could get everything back to normal. So now I'm very careful going down the stairs, and I plan on putting some carpeting or something on them to prevent it from happening again.
POLT
Sunday, August 11, 2019
Sad goodbye, all the world's a stage.....
Theater 2019
Last night, Michelle and I, our friend Lynn and their coworker Stacy, all went to the Totem Pole to see The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas.
Despite having eight, hot, college aged young men in it, at one point all of them dancing shirtless and later a few in just undies, I was underimpressed with the play.
But Stacy is a great new friend. And the four of us had a lot of fun eating Mexican food first and then driving to and from the play. A good time was had by all.
POLT
Sunday, August 04, 2019
Sad goodbye, all the world's a stage....
Theater 2019
I think I forgot to post, but on June 15th, Michelle and I went to see a Shakespeare In The Park production of a Comedy Of Errors.
And then last night, Michelle and I went to the Other Voices Production, in Frederick, of Young Frankenstein!
POLT
Sunday, July 21, 2019
The object of my desire, I'm walking on a wire (Part 186)...
Walks 2019
We walked .54 miles in 16 minutes.
Seen on today's walk: The Sheperdstown Opera House.
It's an independent movie theater now, but I love this building. It's narrow, it's taller than surrounding buildings, the arches, the seemingly out of place little part that juts out on the second floor....very unique and distinctive design!
POLT
Friday, April 19, 2019
Sad goodbye, all the world's a stage....
Theater 2019
Last night, Michelle and I traveled to Shippensburg University to see Rock Of Ages, for the first time for both of us.
It's all based around mid-80s heavy metal music. Not my type of music, and at first, I couldn't believe was there watching it. But about halfway through the first half, I warmed up to it. The humor wasn't as corny as I thought, the plot was barely there, but eh, I just went with it, and enjoyed myself. Plenty of eye candy, with the one guy's ass in tight pants, the biceps of the other guy who always wore a sleeveless vest, the gymast like body and provocative clothing of a twink character, and...well, just the fall-down, all over, fucking SEX GOD that was the one character: Stacee Jaxx.
Not the best picture of him, you can barely see his torso looking like that of a Michelangelo statue, or his thick biceps, but eh, there he is. Mmmmmm....
So anyway, this is our third play in less than two weeks! And we've now seen 5 plays this year and are ahead of goal of an average of one play a month! Yay us.
POLT
Saturday, April 13, 2019
Say goodbye, all the world's a stage....
Theater 2019
Tonight, Michelle and I took our mother's out to dinner and then to see MAMMA MIA! by the Barbara Ingram School For The Arts at the Maryland Theater!
POLT
My baby's got a secret (Part 615)...
Secret Saturdays
Tonight, I'll doing something with Michelle and both our mothers, so this week, we have Secrets And Mothers!
POLT
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Last night, Michelle and I went to our first play of 2019: Avenue Q at the Gettysburg Community Theater.
Last year, our goal was to see, on average, one play a month...thus 12 plays. And we did, although we had to cram three in in December alone. We've decided we're gonna try to do more this year, and we're not waiting around to do it.
Our first was supposed to be last Saturday, seeing Oklahoma at the Maryland Theater in Hagerstown. But we were getting a storm and they were calling for ice, so we didn't go.
We've already got tickets to two other plays, one in March, one in April, and w're planning on getting some for a play in February. So we're rolling!
POLT
Last year, our goal was to see, on average, one play a month...thus 12 plays. And we did, although we had to cram three in in December alone. We've decided we're gonna try to do more this year, and we're not waiting around to do it.
Our first was supposed to be last Saturday, seeing Oklahoma at the Maryland Theater in Hagerstown. But we were getting a storm and they were calling for ice, so we didn't go.
We've already got tickets to two other plays, one in March, one in April, and w're planning on getting some for a play in February. So we're rolling!
POLT
Monday, December 31, 2018
Like a top ten song, I hear it all.....
SO...
As it's now December 31st, last day of 2018, and I have here my Top Ten Things Of 2018!
There were a lot of important (and not so important) things that happened this year that didn't make the list: TUMBLR slitting its own throat by banning adult content; a new pair of glasses; snowstorm, aka blizzard, Toby; Johnnie returning to Philadelphia (with his wife) from Shanghai; Ollie's batch of DC Comics graphic novels at insanely low prices; having a date (and some bedtimesexxyfun) with one of my ex's Tim; scorching heat in July, freezing cold in January, record temps both; Mom starting the year in early January with a visit to the emergency room with the flu, and ending is just yesterday at the same place with the same thing; one entire week of no 'decongesting'; tooth issues, like cracking a tooth and losing half of it in Sept, and then deciding on getting some bridges at the end of the year; hanging out and getting to know mom's 'friend' Howard (he's a nice guy), etc. But with all that, THESE below are the top ten!
10. Avengers Infinity War
Marvel continues to hit it out of the park! This movie was damn near flawless. A perfect culmination of ten years worth of previous movies! It's worth every single penny of the billions in profits it's made. Marvel knows their shit.....unlike DC movies, which continue to be just...shit.
9. New Mattress
(old mattress on top, new mattress on bottom)
Back in September a local furniture was selling their mattresses at half off. My old mattress I had had for 15 years or so. And I figured with the discounts, I'd get a new one.
Big. Fucking. Mistake.
See, my old mattress had a mattress pad on both side. That made it fluffy and comfy. I didn't think about that when I bought the new one...that does NOT have a mattress pad. Oh. My. GOD! It was so hard. So rigid. So uncomfortable. I had to go buy a sheet that had extra padding attached and put that on it, just to make it so I can lay on it. But its still, even now, not really comfortable. Oh, I'm used to it and can sleep on it, but it's not at ALL like my old mattress...even though that one was 15 years old.
I've learned my lesson. If I ever again in my life buy a new mattress (which probably, realistically, wont happen) I'm getting it with a mattress pad already attached!
8. Rye Bread
I've always eaten white bread, but it's not that good for me. I don't really like wheat bread at all. This year, back in February, I was ordering a sandwich from Rutters, and I saw the option for rye bread. I've never had rye bread before so I ordered it. And I LOVED it! Now, that's all I get. Both at Rutters and it's what I buy for here at home. It's much better for me than white and tastes a LOT better than wheat! So it's a win/win! And it's a change to my diet that I have no problem making or keeping!
7. Plays
Last December, my theater buddy, Michelle, and I decided this year, we wanted to see an average of one play a month. So our goal was to get to 12. We did good at first. By May (the fifth month) we had seen 7 plays! And then.....we kinda slacked off. Right around Thanksgiving, we were chatting and she said we were only at 9, we needed three more plays! So we crammed three of them in in ten days in December. For 2019, we've sworn to not ignore the summer months.
In the pic abover, left to right, front row to back:
It's A Wonderful Life; The Barbara Ingram School Winter Extravaganza
Chicago; The Addams Family; Death By Design; Harvey; The Fantastiks
Hairspray; Shrek; Cabaret; Deadly Murder; The Queen Of Bingo
In the top row are two plays I saw without Michelle: The Play That Goes Wrong and Deceiving Granny.
And all the ones we saw together were local productions and all but one (The Queen Of Bingo at The Totem Pole) were amateur. We've already talked about some plays this year upcoming. Hopefully we won't be cramming them all in right before Christmas again.
6. Belle Broke
Lovely way to start off the year. New Year's Day, not 12 hours into the new year, I drive to Rutters to get my morning coffee before heading out to mom's for lunch, and I can't get the key out of the ignition. Won't budge at all. So then that involved the AAA, towing her twice, my local mechanic, the Volkswagen dealership, parts needed to be ordered, several unplanned days off work, and some unforseen expenses. ultimately, though, Belle get repaired and is running fine. And I found out I had some pretty darn good friends who unexpectedly offered me the use of one of their cars, which I was prepared to take them up on. But then the part arrived at the dealership earlier than expected, so I didn't need to. Hopefully, this New Year's Day is a little more....unexciting? Conventional?
5. VUBOQosity!
This year, I've hung out with VUBOQ quite a bit more than before. He's invited me several Saturdays up to The Cabin Of Ill Repute in West Virginia. He came to my house once because he was running a 10K in my little town. We had planned on hanging out for the day, but it was cold, damp, rainy, and I was sick with some stomach bug. So he just ran the race, came back to my place, cleaned up, we ate at the Waynesburger, and then we back to the cabin. But this year, we've played my favorite board game The Road To The White House a few times, and I even got him his own copy of th game for the cabin itself. We shared many vegetarian meals up there, food that I never would have eaten, as well as some alcohol I wouldn't have tried either. And lots of fun conversation as well. And none of this includes the time we spent together, with all the other Puntabupeeps, in NYC in August. And after all this VUBOQness this year, I'm looking to a whole lot more in the new year.
4. Old Man Issues
In February, my lower right back started hurting. I feared it might be my kidney (since I'm diabetic, I don't wanna fool around with that). Went to the doctor. After tests, he says, it's just skeletal/muscular issues. Still hurts periodically (although not as bad) throughout the year.
Last year I had physical therapy for the strain in the bicep of my left arm. This year, while that still hurts, my right arm started hurting the same way. Both shoulders hurt when I wake up in the morning, but it gets better quickly and doesn't bother me too much.
I cracked a tooth in September and ended up losing half of it. And now, the dentist and I decided I needed to get some dental bridges, so that'll be fun and costly (although those are necessary).
I got new glasses, but I still have problems reading small print and without enough light.
In addition to being sick with the stomach bug in May when VUBOQ was here, in January, I was knocked on my ass by some of the worst flu I've ever had. Had me down for most of the week. It was only the second time in the 22 years I've been at my job were I was off sick more than two days and needed a doctor's excuse to come back. I missed the entire week as a matter of fact.
My knees crack a lot and hurt sometimes when I take stairs or get up off of chairs.
And it's only gonna get worse. Yeah, getting old sucks.....but as they say, it beats the alternative.
3. New York City
This year, Tam left the Middle East and returned to Canada. And before leaving North America again for Central America this time, she (and Kristen The Kid) came to NYC and got an apartment for a week. For a weekend, I, john eliot, and Michelle M. stayed there as well. VUBOQ came up for an overnight. And we had a few hours long party attended by Craiggers (we got to meet his man Steve), Adam and Drazen (we got to meet baby Jack and his hair), Mikey and Ty (we got to meet Annabelle), and FDot!
A group of us also went to the Metropolitan Museum Of Art and then later to THE funniest thing I have ever seen on stage: The Play That Goes Wrong. And we ate at many varied, but always awesome, restaurants.
But the best part of the trip was just hanging out at the apartment with old friends who I haven't seen in many years!
2. Democrats Take The House
This one should be on EVERYONE'S yearly list, but I know it's not. Now, FINALLY, we'll have a governmental check on the obscene, chaotic, insanity of the tRump administration. If tRump and his supporters have not liked the Mueller investigation....well they aint seen nothing yet.
We're gonna get a HURRICANE of subpoenas from the House. Into his Administration, his campaign, his finances, his tax returns, his university, his children, and all the corrupt practices that his corrupt Cabinet members have been perpetrating on the USA. Yes I'm going to LOVE watching it all crumble, but much more importantly, no more of the destructive bills of the last two years will see the light of day again.
Thank God.
Oh it'll be ugly. And messy. And nasty. But it's the ugly, messy, nasty first step to saving this country from the pox in the White House that has befallen it.
1. Diabetes
My diabetes has basically been uncontrolled since I've been diagnosed. A bright spot this year is that, in the 6 years I've been tracking it, this is the first year in which my A1C level never tested above 8.0. But that's not much to brag about really (it SHOULD be under 7.0 all the time, or under 6.0 if you're not a diabetic).
Then, in July, the outside of my right big toe started getting sharp pains. Never having had one before, I thought it might be an ingrown toenail. Ended up going to a podiatrist (for the first time) and finding out it's not. Its some calcium growth at the base of my big toe. Made it much better with new shoes and specific insoles.
But after this, I finally decided it was time to see an endocrinologist (a diabetes doctor). I finally got to her ten days ago. After a two hour meeting, I had some of my meds changed. And after having taken them for that ten days period, the results have been simply phenomenal! In that time, I have not had a blood sugar level over 180. And I have only it over 160 four times (out of 20 times checked). It's crazy how swiftly and totally that has worked.
So I can only hope the progress continues in the new year. And I've got home this cuts down on the sometimes pins and needles in my foot. And the foot aches. And the eye issues. And maybe even lose some weight as well.
I just want to hopefully make my uncontrolled diabetes, more controlled. Because this will continue to have very detrimental effects on my health otherwise.
So that's this year's Top Ten! Some good, some bad. Hope you're year was more good than bad.
POLT
As it's now December 31st, last day of 2018, and I have here my Top Ten Things Of 2018!
There were a lot of important (and not so important) things that happened this year that didn't make the list: TUMBLR slitting its own throat by banning adult content; a new pair of glasses; snowstorm, aka blizzard, Toby; Johnnie returning to Philadelphia (with his wife) from Shanghai; Ollie's batch of DC Comics graphic novels at insanely low prices; having a date (and some bedtimesexxyfun) with one of my ex's Tim; scorching heat in July, freezing cold in January, record temps both; Mom starting the year in early January with a visit to the emergency room with the flu, and ending is just yesterday at the same place with the same thing; one entire week of no 'decongesting'; tooth issues, like cracking a tooth and losing half of it in Sept, and then deciding on getting some bridges at the end of the year; hanging out and getting to know mom's 'friend' Howard (he's a nice guy), etc. But with all that, THESE below are the top ten!
10. Avengers Infinity War
Marvel continues to hit it out of the park! This movie was damn near flawless. A perfect culmination of ten years worth of previous movies! It's worth every single penny of the billions in profits it's made. Marvel knows their shit.....unlike DC movies, which continue to be just...shit.
9. New Mattress
(old mattress on top, new mattress on bottom)
Back in September a local furniture was selling their mattresses at half off. My old mattress I had had for 15 years or so. And I figured with the discounts, I'd get a new one.
Big. Fucking. Mistake.
See, my old mattress had a mattress pad on both side. That made it fluffy and comfy. I didn't think about that when I bought the new one...that does NOT have a mattress pad. Oh. My. GOD! It was so hard. So rigid. So uncomfortable. I had to go buy a sheet that had extra padding attached and put that on it, just to make it so I can lay on it. But its still, even now, not really comfortable. Oh, I'm used to it and can sleep on it, but it's not at ALL like my old mattress...even though that one was 15 years old.
I've learned my lesson. If I ever again in my life buy a new mattress (which probably, realistically, wont happen) I'm getting it with a mattress pad already attached!
8. Rye Bread
I've always eaten white bread, but it's not that good for me. I don't really like wheat bread at all. This year, back in February, I was ordering a sandwich from Rutters, and I saw the option for rye bread. I've never had rye bread before so I ordered it. And I LOVED it! Now, that's all I get. Both at Rutters and it's what I buy for here at home. It's much better for me than white and tastes a LOT better than wheat! So it's a win/win! And it's a change to my diet that I have no problem making or keeping!
7. Plays
Last December, my theater buddy, Michelle, and I decided this year, we wanted to see an average of one play a month. So our goal was to get to 12. We did good at first. By May (the fifth month) we had seen 7 plays! And then.....we kinda slacked off. Right around Thanksgiving, we were chatting and she said we were only at 9, we needed three more plays! So we crammed three of them in in ten days in December. For 2019, we've sworn to not ignore the summer months.
In the pic abover, left to right, front row to back:
It's A Wonderful Life; The Barbara Ingram School Winter Extravaganza
Chicago; The Addams Family; Death By Design; Harvey; The Fantastiks
Hairspray; Shrek; Cabaret; Deadly Murder; The Queen Of Bingo
In the top row are two plays I saw without Michelle: The Play That Goes Wrong and Deceiving Granny.
And all the ones we saw together were local productions and all but one (The Queen Of Bingo at The Totem Pole) were amateur. We've already talked about some plays this year upcoming. Hopefully we won't be cramming them all in right before Christmas again.
6. Belle Broke
Lovely way to start off the year. New Year's Day, not 12 hours into the new year, I drive to Rutters to get my morning coffee before heading out to mom's for lunch, and I can't get the key out of the ignition. Won't budge at all. So then that involved the AAA, towing her twice, my local mechanic, the Volkswagen dealership, parts needed to be ordered, several unplanned days off work, and some unforseen expenses. ultimately, though, Belle get repaired and is running fine. And I found out I had some pretty darn good friends who unexpectedly offered me the use of one of their cars, which I was prepared to take them up on. But then the part arrived at the dealership earlier than expected, so I didn't need to. Hopefully, this New Year's Day is a little more....unexciting? Conventional?
5. VUBOQosity!
This year, I've hung out with VUBOQ quite a bit more than before. He's invited me several Saturdays up to The Cabin Of Ill Repute in West Virginia. He came to my house once because he was running a 10K in my little town. We had planned on hanging out for the day, but it was cold, damp, rainy, and I was sick with some stomach bug. So he just ran the race, came back to my place, cleaned up, we ate at the Waynesburger, and then we back to the cabin. But this year, we've played my favorite board game The Road To The White House a few times, and I even got him his own copy of th game for the cabin itself. We shared many vegetarian meals up there, food that I never would have eaten, as well as some alcohol I wouldn't have tried either. And lots of fun conversation as well. And none of this includes the time we spent together, with all the other Puntabupeeps, in NYC in August. And after all this VUBOQness this year, I'm looking to a whole lot more in the new year.
4. Old Man Issues
In February, my lower right back started hurting. I feared it might be my kidney (since I'm diabetic, I don't wanna fool around with that). Went to the doctor. After tests, he says, it's just skeletal/muscular issues. Still hurts periodically (although not as bad) throughout the year.
Last year I had physical therapy for the strain in the bicep of my left arm. This year, while that still hurts, my right arm started hurting the same way. Both shoulders hurt when I wake up in the morning, but it gets better quickly and doesn't bother me too much.
I cracked a tooth in September and ended up losing half of it. And now, the dentist and I decided I needed to get some dental bridges, so that'll be fun and costly (although those are necessary).
I got new glasses, but I still have problems reading small print and without enough light.
In addition to being sick with the stomach bug in May when VUBOQ was here, in January, I was knocked on my ass by some of the worst flu I've ever had. Had me down for most of the week. It was only the second time in the 22 years I've been at my job were I was off sick more than two days and needed a doctor's excuse to come back. I missed the entire week as a matter of fact.
My knees crack a lot and hurt sometimes when I take stairs or get up off of chairs.
And it's only gonna get worse. Yeah, getting old sucks.....but as they say, it beats the alternative.
3. New York City
This year, Tam left the Middle East and returned to Canada. And before leaving North America again for Central America this time, she (and Kristen The Kid) came to NYC and got an apartment for a week. For a weekend, I, john eliot, and Michelle M. stayed there as well. VUBOQ came up for an overnight. And we had a few hours long party attended by Craiggers (we got to meet his man Steve), Adam and Drazen (we got to meet baby Jack and his hair), Mikey and Ty (we got to meet Annabelle), and FDot!
A group of us also went to the Metropolitan Museum Of Art and then later to THE funniest thing I have ever seen on stage: The Play That Goes Wrong. And we ate at many varied, but always awesome, restaurants.
But the best part of the trip was just hanging out at the apartment with old friends who I haven't seen in many years!
2. Democrats Take The House
This one should be on EVERYONE'S yearly list, but I know it's not. Now, FINALLY, we'll have a governmental check on the obscene, chaotic, insanity of the tRump administration. If tRump and his supporters have not liked the Mueller investigation....well they aint seen nothing yet.
We're gonna get a HURRICANE of subpoenas from the House. Into his Administration, his campaign, his finances, his tax returns, his university, his children, and all the corrupt practices that his corrupt Cabinet members have been perpetrating on the USA. Yes I'm going to LOVE watching it all crumble, but much more importantly, no more of the destructive bills of the last two years will see the light of day again.
Thank God.
Oh it'll be ugly. And messy. And nasty. But it's the ugly, messy, nasty first step to saving this country from the pox in the White House that has befallen it.
1. Diabetes
My diabetes has basically been uncontrolled since I've been diagnosed. A bright spot this year is that, in the 6 years I've been tracking it, this is the first year in which my A1C level never tested above 8.0. But that's not much to brag about really (it SHOULD be under 7.0 all the time, or under 6.0 if you're not a diabetic).
Then, in July, the outside of my right big toe started getting sharp pains. Never having had one before, I thought it might be an ingrown toenail. Ended up going to a podiatrist (for the first time) and finding out it's not. Its some calcium growth at the base of my big toe. Made it much better with new shoes and specific insoles.
But after this, I finally decided it was time to see an endocrinologist (a diabetes doctor). I finally got to her ten days ago. After a two hour meeting, I had some of my meds changed. And after having taken them for that ten days period, the results have been simply phenomenal! In that time, I have not had a blood sugar level over 180. And I have only it over 160 four times (out of 20 times checked). It's crazy how swiftly and totally that has worked.
So I can only hope the progress continues in the new year. And I've got home this cuts down on the sometimes pins and needles in my foot. And the foot aches. And the eye issues. And maybe even lose some weight as well.
I just want to hopefully make my uncontrolled diabetes, more controlled. Because this will continue to have very detrimental effects on my health otherwise.
So that's this year's Top Ten! Some good, some bad. Hope you're year was more good than bad.
POLT
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