Rant #3,872: It Hurts

Snow.

I hate it as much as I hate anything.

But we finally got hit over the weekend.

I could be sad or angry about it, but I am neither right now--

Because i am alive and healthy enough to experience it.

I had my cancer surgery on Thursday, and the doctor told me that they got it all out.

I have staples in my head, and they won't be coming out for around two weeks.

I am very sore on the left side of my body; it feels like there is a knife in my back.

I have soreness--or something red-- under my left eye-- 

I can see, but it is making me feel bad about myself--

What did I do to deserve all of this?

I hurt, and I am about 75 percent myself, pretty much tired all day with the medicine I have to take.

(Note: I was able to contact my doctor via text and he told me to stop using the medicine--

It is the first time in my life that I had a negative reaction to medicine.)

But it hasn't stopped me, at least not that much.

I helped my wife do food shopping, and I took my son to basketball and bowling.

And as promised, I am back here at the Blog.

Due to the weather, my retinologist appointment was postponed until March, so hopefully, my detached retina will continue to heal on its own--

And that soreness I am feeling under my left eye goes away as quick as it came.

Honestly, I don't think my body could have taken two surgeries, one after the other, so it is all for the best.

And then we have this lousy snow ...

Due to my present condition, I cannot exert myself too much--

No exercising, no lifting, no bending ... pretty much no nothing for several weeks.

So guess who is going to have to dig my car out from the snow?

My son is going to have to do it.

His workplace closed early on Sunday, so he did not have to go in, but he lost a day of pay when they closed at 1 p.m. and his shift began at 3 p.m., so he did not have to go to work.

But now he has another responsibility.

He knows his responsibility, and he is ready to go.

And with my wife and I getting a bit older, our son has some new responsibilities, too.

After my wife and I did our food shopping on Friday, he had to help us up with all the full-to-the-brim grocery bags, in addition to bringing up a carton of water, something that he normally does anyway.

We have stairs up to our apartment, and I simply have been prohibited from doing anything like this, at least for now, so he is going to have to do it.

So right now, I am down but not out, and I am really happy that I went to my son's basketball and bowling.

Being there took my mind off of things for a few hours, and my son did well in basketball and did even better in bowling, leading his team to victory against their opponent, where a situation occurred which I will talk about with you later this week.

But I am cancer free, which is a great feeling.

And yes, I know that I am a broken record about this subject, but if you see something on your body that doesn't look right, please, please, please see a doctor about it.

Ninety-nine times out of 100 it will be nothing--maybe a wart or a simple blemish--but that one time that it is something, getting it removed as quickly as possible can actually save your life.

I found this thing myself, went to the doctor, he removed it, but then, later, I was told that a more drastic measure was needed.

I am in pain now, but I would rather be in pain than to have cancer.

So get these things checked out--it doesn't matter about your ethnicity or anything else--but it is treatable the earlier it is taken care of.

Please get these things checked out.

Even though I am not 100 percent, I am 100 percent happy that what I had was removed, and removed in the nick of time.

Do it for yourself and your family.

And if anyone needs a good dermatologist, I have one and I can recommend them to you.

I might have staples in my head, my I don't have marbles or rocks in there too.

Get this done now!

Rant #3,871: Today's the Day

Today's the day I go under the knife and have that procedure done on my scalp.

I don't know why this procedure was put off for so long in the first place--I thought that any cancer should be gotten rid of immediately--but I have to put my faith in my doctor--

And lately, I have had mixed results doing that with other doctors, so I guess I have to take a wait and see attitude on this--

And simply assume that they know what they are doing.

I don't like to assume things--you know the saying, so I won't repeat it here--but I guess I don't have much of a choice.

Let's get this thing done and out of here, and then I have my detached retina to take care of, and I will be like new--

To a certain extent.

I have some other physical problems where I put my full, 1,000-percent trust in my doctor(s), and it simply did not work out, or at least hasn't worked out for nearly a year and a half at this juncture.

But this is a different doctor, treating a totally different malady, so maybe this one knows what they are doing and will rid me of this for good.

I hate to be so negative, but I have had an up-and-down relationship with my doctors over the years, and it culminated with my original urologist, has moved on to my current urologist--the latter of which I am most disappointed with, since he was highly recommended--and I guess it has made me paranoid with my doctors.

I do have a great GP, and I just got pretty much a clean bill of health from him earlier this week, as all the tests they did on me came out well.

And I did have a great surgeon, whose mastery of his craft allowed me to walk again after two major surgeries on my leg in the course of a month.

So as you can see, it has been very up and down with myself and my doctors, so I am hoping that today goes well, and I can add this doctor onto my list of those who did what they said they were going to do, and did it well.

My agita with doctors stretches back years.

You might remember that I was the patient of a doctor who was caught red-handed giving out drugs illegally to underage teens, and he was locked up for a while, never to be heard from again.

I was also the patient of another doctor who was jilted by his fellow doctor partner in their practice, where the partner evidently stole money from the practice, and this practice went out of business.

When I tried to get my medical records from each of these doctors that I was a patient of, I could not get these records for one reason or another, or could not get them without paying for it, which I refused to do.

The jailed doctor, I was told by the attorney general's office, was incarcerated, in jail, but still held his medical license in New York State, which makes absolutely no sense to me or to anyone--it should have been taken away while he was in jail.

Anyway, being that he still had his medical license, he still "owned" my records, and there was nothing I could do to get them--

And much later, I was told that they were thrown into a dumpster, and I could sift through the dumpster if I really wanted those records.

No way was I going to do that.

Then the other doctor, who lost his practice because of he evil deeds of his partner, would not give me my records, even though it was advertised that he would.

You had to go through his wife to get them. I contacted her three times via regular mail, as I was told to do, and I never received anything from her.

Nothing.

So you can see why my trust of doctors is at a very low level, and hasn't been lifted up an iota by recent actions of some of my doctors.

But today, I am praying to God that everything goes OK, that I can fully put my trust into a doctor that knows what they are doing.

I have other stories to tell about doctors and my family--one eye doctor could not get the cataracts fully out of my father's eyes and my father left the office with one literally hanging out of his eye until it could be fully removed by another doctor--and there have been some other instances where I have to wonder how these doctors got their licenses to practice--as when I was going through a root canal with a dentist, the power went out, and I was sitting there with all these appliances hanging out of my mouth and without a clue about what was happening since the dentist decided to coffee-klatch with other dentists while all of this was going on and until power was restored 45 minutes or so later--but I won't go into all of that right now with you.

Just let's say that I hope for the best, because I deserve nothing but the best--

I have been through too much to think any other way.

So the blog will be shut down for the next few days, as on Monday, I have that detached retina appointment ... if the weather holds up.

We are supposed to have a major snowstorm this coming Sunday into Monday, so the appointment might have to be postponed.

If everything goes well in both instances, I will be back in the saddle pretty quickly, and even if it all goes well, I might need a little time to recuperate and heal.

So have a great weekend, and I hopefully will speak to you again next week.

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers.

I think I am going to need it.

Rant #3,870: Family of Man

The next few days are going to be a bit dicey for me.

I had a work meeting yesterday, have work to do, and on Wednesday, it is just a usual day for me. 

But beginning on Thursday, I have a whirlwind of things to do, and things that need to get done.

The most important of those things to get done is to get myself fully healthy, and it begins on Thursday with the removal of that cancerous growth on my scalp.

I have already had something there removed, but evidently, it went further beneath the surface, necessitating a bit more work to be done to get it fully removed.

It is apparently an all-day affair, and I have to go from one doctor to another to fully get the thing removed and taken care of.

I have Friday to rest up a bit, and the weekend to really get back to speed--

But then on Monday morning, I have to go to my retinologist to see about the slightly detached retina in my right eye.

It actually improved the last time, improved to the point that I didn't need the procedure done to correct it, so it was put off by the doctor for a month.

Now, I have to get checked out again, and hopefully, it will still be improving, and I can hold off anything for at least another month--

But if not, I have to have a surgical procedure done to correct the detachment.

No, I am not looking forward to any of this, but if it has to be done, let's get it done so I can live my life at the best level that I can.

I have some other ailments that I guess I can live with, but these are maladies that need to be taken care of--

One immediately ...

The other one, we will see.

Literally.

2026 has not been the greatest year for myself or my family, and we aren't even out of January yet.

If it is not one thing, it is another.

But the year has 11 more months to go, and I believe that the year can redeem itself into a good one for myself and my family.

That being said, with all of this agita that I have had, I have found comfort from my family.

My family has supported me through thick and thin, and without them, I really believe that I would be in a far worse situation than I am in now.

But with them, I am like Superman.

I have my kryptonite, but my family represents my lead shield against it.

My wife and my son have made me bulletproof--

No matter what comes my way, I know that I can jump out from under it in leaps and bounds.

I might not be able to change the course of mighty rivers or bend steel in my bare hands, but I can do things that I thought I couldn't do, or would never be able to do again.

Doing these things alone would be nearly impossible; but with the strong backbone of family, I really feel that anything is possible.

So I feel that I am the luckiest guy on the face of the earth for having their support, and I am determined to not let them down in any way.

As for the blog, it also represents a lot of comfort to me, but I might have to take a little time off to get these things done and to mend.

I think that I might have to take off on Friday and Monday from the blog, but we will see how I feel.

I might put up some "reading" blogs, or not put up anything at all.

So please, stay with me and keep me in your thoughts for the next week to 10 days or so.

I will have a blog entry tomorrow on Thursday, but that might be that for a little while.

So I will speak to you tomorrow, and I hope that everything turns out OK.

I am sure that I will let you know one way or the other.

Rant #3,869: I Really Wanna Know

As most of you know, i am all over the Internet, in one form or another.

I am extremely prevalent in Facebook, where not only do I regularly post on a variety of subjects, but I also run a couple of groups abd I also put up the daily Rants each weekday.

So it really doesn't come as a surprise to me when someone disagrees with me.

As I have said over and over and over again, as long as the repartee is civil and doesn't go off on unnecessary and uncalled for tangents, I am OK with it.

But as you know, some people do manage to cross the line, and those people need to be dealt with, and dealt with quickly 

I have no patience with such people, who should really know better, but somehow, don't.

That is why something that festered this past weekend was so confounding to me. 

Again, I put up comments on Facebook on a variety of subjects, and you do not have to agree with me at all ... just keep it on an adult level.

Well, I must have posted something that completely threw off someone into a complete mental abyss, because someone, who I do not know nor who knows me, went off on a tirade on Facebook messenger, a tirade to a level that I have never experienced before--

And to a certainbmoment, I had absolutely no idea what this person was referring to, what post i made that threw him into such a tizzy.

Here is what transpired:

"Does it suck being so awful and hateful? I feel sorry fir you," was his initial message to me.

I replied, "How so? What did I do to throw you into such a tizzy? What post are you referring to?"

He responded: "You fat idiot."

I knew i was getting into some bizarro world with him after this reply, but I still had no idea what he was referring to.

I messaged him: "You haven't answered the question, and I am not fat, by the way. What did I say to offend you?"

When he didn't reply, I messaged him: "Cat caught you tongue? You sure you got the right guy?"

He later replied, "You stupid fat zio."

To that, I replied, "Again, I have no idea what your rant is about. You should see a doctor due to your anxiety against a person you don't even know. Let me know what you are so upset about. And what is a "fat zio?" Takes one to know one, I guess."

Yes, I shouldn't have pushed it this far, but my curiosity got the best of me.

To that moment, and I had absolutely no idea why this person got so irked at me, and I just wanted to know what I posted that made him get this crazy.

But let me tell you, I was really dying to know what a "fat zio" was.

I even went so far as to look up the term, and AI told me that it "likely refers to NBA player Zion Williamson, known for his powerful build and past struggles with weight, prompting nicknames and discussions about his fitness."

Nah, I don't think he called me that for that reason--

But anyone know what a "fat zio" is?

Please let me know ...

But I kind of found out what he meant later in the afternoon.

This simpleton finally replied to me, and quite frankly, he said all that he had to say:

"You idiot zio simp. You love killing babies."

Yup, I think you get it now as much as I did.

I replied to him the only way I could:

"Really. You are nothing but a Hamas groupie. Now I think I get you. A loser who has nothing better to do than go after me for absolutely no reason. You are a sick person, and really need some type of psychiatric help."

I mean, what more could I have said to him at this point?

Anti-Semitism runs rampant on Facebook, without check.

Beyond this fool, I received some other rather "nice" posts in reply to things I had to say, and I won't reprint them here, because they aren't worth it.

Yes, anything goes on social media, and I have been attacked left, right and center, and yes, I am fed up with it all, but since Facebook only kicks off people selectively--I know that because, you might remember, I was removed for a period of time after I announced my mother had passed away and put up the funeral information, and then removed me for several more weeks after I complained about it--there really isn't very much one can do.

But I really cannot just sit here and take it all in--the stuff that has been directed to me is absolutely vicious in nature, and the people directing these missives at me probably wouldn't do the same in person, so they use the digital shield to say whatever the heck they want.

These people are sick, but let's be honest about it, the world is sick--and I mean, very sick--right now.

Social media gives these psychos with pent up viciousness a platform to release whatever nonsense they have, and I won't take it lightly.

And yes, I blocked this imbecile. The end.

And now we find out that Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, a Jewish Democrat, was asked some pointed questions about his allegiance and loyalty to our country--and whether he was also working as an agent for Israel--when Kamala Harris' team interviewed him for the vice president position in the last presidential election.

I will bet Harris will end up denying this, end up saying that she didn't personally ask such a question, but it came from her camp, and  I do believe Shapiro.

Why would he say this if it was not true? What did he have to gain by putting this explosive tidbit into a book he has written?

And don't you think that Harris should've known better, since her husband, the former "First Gentleman," is--

JEWISH.

I will say one more thing about all of this.

'NEVER AGAIN ... and that means in 2026 too."

Rant #3,868: The Pledge of Allegiance

Happy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

I never had this day off when I was working full time, and I mean NEVER.

My "day of service" was working at my job, and even six years removed from that job, that is what I plan on doing today.

I will be sending in material to my workplace, and I will be writing/editing other stories too.

That is how I celebrate the day, and the man.

I work.

On Sunday, it snowed for a good part of the day here on Long Island, making me think of the warmer weather that is coming later this year.

We are still a ways away from July and August, but it keeps me warm thinking about it.

And this July will be a special one, as our country will be celebrating its 250th birthday on July 4.

Lots of events and other stuff is planned for this day--with an official name of "United States Semiquincentennial"--but I get the sense that this celebration is going to sabotaged with politics.

There was a big story in the local Newsday newspaper on Sunday about how Long Island will be celebrating the big anniversary, and honestly, I was a little dismayed at what I read.

It seems that various entities which have been created to promote our nation's birthday have a common goal: as described in the story, "to correct cherished but incorrect stories of the region's past that spread around the 200th anniversary in 1976, including some acts of patriotic heroism that were more legend than fact."

What I remember about the beauty of the Bicentennial celebration 50 years ago is that it was a real celebration, and it was as "un-political" as it could possibly be.

Now, we have these people saying that during the 250th celebration, they are going to "right wrongs," and you just know what that means--

Rather than present us with the "correct" history, that history will be twisted and turned into measures that are seen through 2026 eyes, not what really happened, even though the goal is to right those wrongs.

And with the Internet and social media, so much is twisted and turned anyway that even if this goal was a legitimate one, you just know that it will be obliterated by what imbeciles say on these social media networks.

I guess what I am trying to say is that the occasion of our nation's 250th birthday should not be used to further the gulf between us, but should be used as something of a rallying cry for all of us to get together, and get together as one--

One nation, one country, one day to celebrate our birthday.

Back in 1976, I was 19 years old, early in my college days, and working part time at a public relations company which promoted Long Island.

I don't remember July 4, 1976 being a day of politics.

I remember lots of promotions related to the day, lots of contests and great things to do.

I have to tell you, I honestly do not remember exactly what I did that day.

I might have gone to a ball game at either Shea Stadium or Yankee Stadium with friends--

My family and I could have had a simple barbecue--

But as I am thinking about it, I seem to remember seeing fireworks wherever I was, even though I am not a big fan of firecrackers and the like.

I just don't clearly remember, but what I do remember is that it was a day where politics were not that prevalent.

People weren't at each others throats as they are today about everything related to politics.

It was a very different time.

We, as a nation, seemed to be on the same page that day, even if it was just for the one day.

People handled politics differently back then, and I think they handled it the right way.

There is a time and a place for everything, and that includes the discussion of politics.

Today, anything and everything goes, and nothing is sacred anymore.

I just hope that the 250th birthday of the greatest country in the world is one that we, as a nation, can all rejoice in, at least for that one day.

However, that is a day that, unfortunately, our police forces and others are going to absolutely have to be on the highest alert, because you just know there are people and groups, from both without and within, whoch are planning to ruin such a day for everyone.

We cannot let that happen, and I am sure that measures are already--and have been--taking place to ensure that all Americans can celebrate the day and have fun doing it.

And let's keep politics out of it as much as possible.

Maybe this is one day we can put down the placards, curb our tongues, and just resonate together on this great occasion.

I certainly hope so.

Rant #3,867: Relax

Well, my Rants about my doctors are pretty much behind me, and I hope to have a "normal" time from now through the weekend.

Late next week, I have to have that cancer off my scalp removed, and then early the following week, I have to see if my detached retina continues to mend itself; if not, I have to have a procedure on that, too.

I hate it all, I am not looking forward to any of it, but if it has to be done, it has to be done.

From here on in, all I want to do is relax, and take it easy a bit, which in my life, is not an easy thing to do.

I have to work, which keeps me occupied, so that is a good thing.

I have my son's basketball and bowling all ready to go, and that is a lot of fun.

And I have my hobbies and other things I like to do, and I plan on doing them all in the coming days.

One thing I like to do is to go to my local record store, which among other things I had to do on Thursday, I managed to do.

This record store is more than a record store. 

It is a meeting place for like-minded people of all ages and persuasions, a place where we can browse the aisle for goodies while we talk with the owners and other customers about anything that comes to mind.

It is a very social atmosphere, and I can describe it a little better for you ... if you watched "The Andy Griffith Show" back in its black-and-white heyday, you have to remember Floyd's Barber Shop.

This place was more than a barber shop; it was a place where Andy, Barney, Gomer and the rest of the gang would gravitate to, not just for haircuts, but to fraternize, talk over their daily lives, and sort out a lot of things that were on their minds.

Well, this record store I frequent is the same way, and serves the same purpose for me.

Sometimes I talk a lot there while going through the offerings, sometimes not, but it is a place I feel comfortable in, a place where I can really relax in while shopping, something I ordinarily do not like to do, let's say, for food or clothing shopping.

But this place is different.

Yes, I shop there to supplement my hobby, but it is a bit more than that, at least to me.

I can talk about anything with anybody there, and believe me, I have done that on many occasions.

I have talked about work, my physical condition, my family and so much more there.

The owners are very nice, very knowledgable, and sometimes, they are the ones that start the conversations.

It is a nice place to spend some time, and yes, some money, but it is all worth it.

The whole is the sum of its parts, and this place fits that description.

Like Floyd's Barber Shop, it is one part retail establishment, another part gathering spot, another part social place, and another part, a vinyl watering hole ...

And I could go on and on.

I have been frequenting this place for years, and really missed going to it during the pandemic and when I had my leg problems.

When I was finally able, I even went there on crutches!

So it is part of my monthly relaxation ritual, allowing me to "get away" for a couple of minutes each month.

On Thursday morning, after I did things that I had to do--including picking up medicine for myself and my son--I ventured over to the record store, and spent a few minutes--and dollars--there.

With everything coming up in my life, I thought it was the perfect place to spend just a little time, and in addition to the conversation, I bought some nice things to add to my collection.

I hope that everyone has such a spot to relax in, and whether it is Floyd's Barber Shop, your local record store, or somewhere else, it really doesn't matter, as long as the place, and the people who are there, are enjoyable to you.

I have such a place, and I am very thankful that I do.

Have a great weekend, and I will speak to you again on Monday.

Rant #3,866: The Beat Goes On

I had another altercation with a doctor's office yesterday morning.

I contacted them the other day about medication I was taking, pills that I was having a negative reaction to after months of taking these pills daily.

I told the person who picked up the phone to speak to me that I had, on my own, stopped taking the medication, I told her the reasons I stopped taking the pill, and I wanted to speak to the doctor if that was the OK thing to do and if there was anything else I could do.

The woman took down all of my information, and said that someone would get back to me. 

Two days later, no one had.

Usually the doctor at this office doesn't get back to you directly, but he has an assistant who does, but I had not heard from them in any way in the two days since I placed the initial call.

So yesterday, I called them back.

I spoke to the same receptionist that I spoke to the other day.

I told her my problem again, and I asked her why no one had gotten back to me.

She said that she needed a moment to go through some things, and she did find a response to my initial question, that yes, I could stop the medication, and that I should make a followup appointment.

I thanked the woman, but then I said the obvious:

"Why didn't anyone call me up, text me, email me or contact me in any way with this information?"

"Stopping a medication can be a very major decision; it can affect other things. Why did I not get a call from someone in the office about this?"

And finally:

"Why did I have to call you back to find out this information? The office was supposed to call me back, and they didn't. If I didn't call you back, I would still be sitting here not knowing an answer to my question."

I told the receptionist that I was angry, but not with her ... with the office.

"This is why I left the previous doctor I had [who handled this malady] and went to the current doctor, because the other doctor was superfluous to whatever I asked him about my situation. The current doctor knew that, so I find it odd that no one called me back and that you had to provide me with an answer to my question."

I already have a followup appointment with this doctor scheduled for March, so the receptionist said I could keep that appointment, but then I said to her:

"This can never happen again. I don't know if you are the right person to do this with, but I want to register a formal complaint with the office, so that it never happens again. Someone needs to be accountable for this error, and I want them to know that I am not very happy about this."

The receptionist supposedly took all of this down and said she would let them know, but I severely doubt that anything will happen related to this complaint; this doctor has a very lucid practice, lots of patients, so if one patient is upset, why should they care?

Of course, they should, but I have found lately that incompetence is the way to go with just about everything.

I don't know what it is, but since COVID, customer service has fallen to absolutely new lows.

And related to a doctor's office, it doesn't give me any confidence in our medical providers if I ask a simple question and get nothing but double talk, as a described in my post to you about my doctor's visit on Monday and now, this repartee I had with another doctor's office that I use.

I won't tell you what doctor this was, or the malady I was experiencing from my medicine, but it has been ongoing for now more than a year, and I thought this doctor was better than the previous doctor I had.

Maybe not.

But the main crux of this blog post today is that incompetence is key, and it seems to be a disease or a malady worse than anything I have--

And remember, I supposedly have cancer on my scalp.

So yes, incompetency in the workplace is a cancer, one which is easily fixed with competent staff--

But I am sorry to say that since no one is doing anything about it, it is spreading throughout the workplace, just like untreated cancer can spread throughout your body.

I am sure I am not the only one who has experienced this--I mean, the incompetence in the workplace--and it really bothers me, not just because it puts me in a bad position, but because heck, when I lost my full-time job, I couldn't even get arrested, much less get a job--

And these imbeciles are very gainfully employed.

Maybe employees are looking for incompetency, maybe that's why I never got anything.

So be it, but I won't and can't sit still when their incompetency impacts myself and my life and my family and their well-being.

No way, no way at all.

Rant #3,865: Fun

Today is the 14th day of the new year, and I already can't wait for 2026 to end.

Too much going on, too much still to go on--treating that cancer on my head, my vision problems and some other health things--and I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel.

My wife went for a job interview the other day--it came totally out of the blue--and then they baited and switched her, with her going there for one job and them telling her it was for a totally different, unrelated position.

As you can imagine, that interview might have lasted five minutes, if not even less.

My son's job situation is still progressing, but I don't like the direction it is going in.

They promised him a certain amount of days and hours, they reneged on that even after I spoke with his employer about it, and go prove it, but I do believe he is being taken advantage of because he is a special needs person.

He also gave up a lot to take this job--including a 401k plan at his previous job--so I do believe that not only did they tell us tall tales about this job, but they kind of fibbed to him.

And he still awaits a job coach ...

Who knows when he will get one.

I have spoken to the supposedly appropriate parties about this, and they double talk beyond belief.

So who knows when he will get one--the job coach could help him in my son's current situation--

I have acted as his advocate, but he really needs someone to help him with a little more "thump" than I have.

Heck, I am only my son's father.

As for me, while I await my medical issues being taken care of, I actually feel fine, physically, mentally and emotionally, but I know that that is not the case, at least physically.

I would never know it if doctors didn't tell me that I have these things to take care of.

I had my yearly physical on Monday, so let's see what comes out of that.

Again, I feel fine, but I have learned over the years that one never knows what is percolating inside of them at any given moment.

Other than the things I have described to you the past few days, nothing much is really happening with myself or my family to talk about.

I re-reconnected with one of my old friends from Rochdale Village the other day.

We had previously reconnected a few years back, then somehow, I could not get in contact with him, but happily, he made himself known the other day to me, and we have re-reconnected with a couple of posts on Facebook.

He is a nice guy, a good person, and I do not think I will have the same problems with him as I had with that guy I knew in college.

Let's see what happens, but I am always open to reconnecting with anyone I knew from my childhood, or from any time in my life.

Not only do I still speak with people from my Rochdale Village years, but I do speak with one or two from other chapters in my life, too, so I am open to just about anyone reconnecting.

I think what happened the other day is an anomaly, and probably won't happen again.

It is just one of those things that you have to experience, and then take care of--

And I think I took care of it in the proper fashion.

Even in today's world, you have to be careful about such things, but I think that over the years, I have proven myself to be very loyal to people I was friendly with in the past.

And again, you can vehemently disagree with me on just about any topic--Mets or Yankees?--but as long as it is friendly and civil, it is OK.

When it crosses the line--as it did the other day--one has to do what one has to do--

And I did what had to be done.

Other than that, it is pretty much the status quo with me ... working, keeping up on things with my immediate family, and trying to stay busy.

Not the complete retired life, but as close to it as I can possibly come.

Fourteen days into the first month of the year, I am a bit dismayed about things, but we still have 351 days to go!

Maybe things will change, and change for the better.

Rant #3,864: Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday morning.

Here is what happened as I signed in at the front desk.

Me: I am signing in, but when your office called me the other day, they had the wrong time listed for my appointment. It was at 9:30 a.m, but the caller told me it was at 10 a.m. 

(I pulled out an appointment card from my wallet.)

Here, I have the card that was made out for the appointment, and it clearly says 9:30 a.m.

Receptionist: Well, it says here your appointment is at 10 a.m.

Me: But you can see that it actually was scheduled for 9:30 a.m., and that is why I am here now.

(At 9:15 a.m.)

Receptionist: Just sign in and we will get to you.

(I signed in, sat down in the waiting room, and it proceeded on to 10:15 a.m., and I got up to walk up to the desk again.)

Me: Look, my appointment was at 9:30 a.m., and I am still sitting here, What is going on?

Receptionist: Well, we have it at 10 a.m.

Me: Look at the card. It says 9:30, that is why I was here at 9:15, and it is 10:15 a.m., so I have been sitting here for an hour for a 9:30 appointment.

Receptionist: We will get you in now.

(I waited, and it was past 10:30 a.m. I walked up to the front desk again.)

Me: You made a mistake, so I have been sitting here for more than an hour.

Receptionist: We will get you in now.

Me: Thank you. Wonderful!

(A few minutes later, I finally was called in. It took the doctor about 10 minutes to get to me.)

Doctor: How is everything?

Me: Well, let me begin with a problem I am having with your staff.

(I proceeded to tell him about the mixup with the visit time.)

Doctor: (whispering) Let me tell you something ... my staff really is not that good. They are pretty inept.

(I had my exam, and then I had to make another appointment for six months. One woman makes the appointments at this doctor, so I told the story to her.)

Appointment Lady: Well, if that is the worst that can happen to you, you are pretty lucky.

Me: But now I fear that the appointment you make for me for six months will also have a mixup in the time. Please make sure that the time is correct.

Appointment Lady: Well, if that is the worst that can happen to you, you are pretty lucky.

(I walked out of the office.)

Funny, nobody knows how to say, "I am sorry" anymore, even when the evidence shows that they were clearly at fault.

Yes, the wrong time isn't the worst thing in the world ... I could have cancer.

(Oh, that's right ... I already have that.)

But the inability of people to use the word "sorry" is bewildering, perplexing--

And heck, I just simply do not understand it.

Do you?

Rant #3,863: I Walk the Line (And You Crossed It)

Well, boys and girls, no sooner did I put my post up on Friday about being civil on social media that someone crossed the line with me, and I had to dump him as a "friend."

I went to college with this guy all those years ago, he and I worked on the school newspaper together, and we have had some nice conversations when we reconnected on Facebook.

I saw a couple of his posts on Facebook, and while I didn't agree with him politically, it didn't really matter to me, because we reconnected not because of political stance, but because we did have a history together on the school newspaper for a short period in college, and I respected the guy for his work effort on that publication.

I put up a post on Facebook on Friday about the ICE incident in Minnesota--where a woman died in an altercation with an ICE official--which I stated was unfortunate, but I also put up my opinion on why it happened and the fact that I didn't think the woman was as innocent as the media made her out to be.

I stated that her partner was taking videos of her, that this situation was manufactured by the woman and her partner, and that neither of them should have been there.

OK, that is my opinion. You can agree or disagree with it, but if you take the other side, do it in a civil fashion.

What happened is that after several people agreed with me, this guy made his own post, which I could have just taken as an opposing view, if not for the final sentence he wrote:

"If she were protesting Jews [being deported, added by me for contextual explanation], you would have been right there with her."

This comment was so out of character for this guy--or at least I thought it was out of character--that I really had to look over it more than once to try to understand why he posted such a thing.

Yes, it was caustic and within the context of the subject, was kind of anti-Semitic.

I gave the guy several minutes to explain himself--not his beliefs, but exactly why he injected my religion into all of this--and he said that I "put words in his mouth" and thought that as a smart person and as a writer, he was surprised that I did not side with him.

Of course, he was the one who put his own words up, so I don't think I put any words in anyone's mouth.

Look, I am sure that not everyone agrees with my stance on this incident, and that is fine; as I have said, I take no offense at differing opinions--

AS LONG AS THEY ARE CIVIL.

I gave him some more time to respond, he didn't, so he is gone.

Sorry to do it, but I cannot be attacked for my religion by anyone: Jew, non-Jew, pro-Hamas, atheist ... I don't care who it is, I will not tolerate it, and what is worse is that it had absolutely nothing to do with the discussion--

Which makes me wonder about this guy, his beliefs, and his thoughts.

Is he another one of these closet anti-Semites who just let it slip all of a sudden because "WAH WAH!" I didn't agree with him?

How infantile, how childish, how insipid.

You disagree with me ... fine.

You disparage me because of my religion ... not fine at all.

And the amazing thing about this whole shebang was what this person did afterward.

After he saw that I "umfriended" him, I guess that somehow got to him because he sent friend requests to me--

Not once, but twice.

My reply was the following:

"You must be kidding."

And then, I fully blocked him.

I gave him every opportunity for an explanation, and he hung himself with his own rope by not responding.

So that is the end of that.

I am the lord of my own manor, and if you are not going to follow the rules--and you are going to unnecessarily inject religion into it--you are done.

The end.

Rant #3,862: Worryin' Kind

Thank God it's Friday!

Moving onto the end of another work week.

I had plenty to do work-wise this week, including a couple of meetings ...

Nothing crazy, but I kept busy.

Now, things really get back to normal for myself and my family, starting tonight.

My son's basketball get-together starts up again, and then on Saturday morning, he has his bowling season all revved up.

These things keep both him and me busy, and that is always a good thing.

I have one doctor's appointment next week, and then, the following week, starts my odyssey--

Does my right eye need surgery right now, and that cancer on my head is going to be removed.

Stuff to not look forward to, but at least I will get both of them out of the way--

Hopefully.

It has been a bit nerve-racking knowing that I have these medical things that need to be taken care of, but if I have to get these things done, I want to get them done and over with, not have them linger over me like a Sword of Damocles over my head.

I just want to be as well as I feel, and I do feel pretty good, even though these things, as long as I have them, really aren't making me a "well" person.

And all the negativity in the world is not just making me feel bad, but I think it reflects a very sick world that is getting more ill by the day.

I don't expect happy news all the time, but the stuff going on in the world, and in our own backyards, is really repulsive.

We all need to find some common ground, something we can all get on the same page with, but I don't see anything coming down the path right now, or in the near or even far future.

Social media, or course, fuels all this, on all sides of the particular equation, and again, social media and the Internet can be wonderful things if used properly--

But I don't think that most people use these things the right way.

We can all have our opinions, but when it gets to the point that we are being stupid about things--on all sides--it is time to take a step back and look at what we are posting and what we are saying.

When we are arguing this thing or that thing, I ultimately think to myself:

"Is this really that important to go on and on about? There are more important things in the world, aren't there?"

Look, I go off just like we all do on social media, and sometimes, I really have to temper myself and just hold my thoughts, which I often do but just as often, don't do.

Recently, I posted in a record collecting site on Facebook about re-listening to a certain extremely popular act's LPs after many, many years, and finding their albums disappointing, with each record having one or two good songs--generally, songs that were also released as singles--and the rest being dreck, in my opinion.

I got a really nice response backing me or going against what I said, and you know what?

It was refreshing.

The give and take was nice, nobody got crazy, and this civil discussion was really what Facebook and the other social media sites should all be about, but most often aren't.

Again, I am as guilty as we all are at going off on Facebook and even here at times, but the one thing in my favor, a capacity that evidently a lot of people do not have or want to have, is that I will listen to what the other side has to say, even if I firmly disagree with it.

I will continue to have opinions, and some of you won't like what I have to say, but I do read every post that comes my way, and in my own way, try to learn something from these posts.

I guess it is just me--

Or maybe that cancer thing on my head is getting to my brain.

And before I forget, the latest issue of the online publication that I write and edit for is available.

I think it is pretty good, something to be proud of, something that makes me happy.

You can access it at https://online.fliphtml5.com/bbzqm/ylgi/#p=1

Have a nice weekend, and I will speak to you again on Monday.

Rant #3,861: Allergies

It's Thursday!

And today, I have the pleasure of getting my allergy shots!

I have been getting them almost continually--with a brief lapse when I hurt my left leg--since I was 15 years of age, so we are talking about the past 53 years.

These shots have been good to me, as every season is "allergy season" for me.

I used to suffer greatly from my bad allergies.

I couldn't eat, it affected my entire body, and it made me miserable.

Way back in the 1970s, doctors didn't know that much about what came to be called "seasonal allergies," and I had to go through a rigorous "staple gun" test to find out exactly what I was allergic to, which made my left arm look like I was a heroin addict with all the indents that were made.

But I came through that--the test is now a simple blood test--and once doctors found out what was ailing me, I was on a regimen of shots each month--anywhere from one to four, now it is just one in each arm--and I was on my way to feeling much better--physically, mentally and emotionally.

The shots do not bother me at all.

Sometimes it hurts initially, depending where I get the shot in the arm, but it goes away, and I am fine.

I think that that is what prevented me from feeling any after-effects of the COVID shots I received.

I know a lot of people had adverse reactions to these shots--including a lot of pain in their arms--but I had nothing, felt fine afterward, and the three shots I received really didn't affect me in the least.

And I do think the allergy shots--which are steroids--probably protected me from getting a bad case of COVID. The COVID shots, coupled with the steroids in the allergy shots, kind of gave me double protection, and to this day, I think I was misdiagnosed with COVID ... my case lasted about 12 hours, I was diagnosed with the ailment when everybody was being diagnosed with it, and I was fit as a fiddle after a good night's sleep.

So the shots have been a godsend, to be honest with you. 

And the best thing is that at least into their 30s, neither of my kids inherited allergies from me.

Look, I still have good days and bad days with my allergies.

The shots do not take them away from me; they only mitigate, or lessen, the effects of the allergies on my personal well-being and health.

So I look at my allergies as "the curse that keeps on giving," and my mother often said that she thinks I literally had these allergies since the day I was born--based on my early sleeping patterns--and that they won't go away as, hopefully, I reach my 70s, 80s and beyond.

I have learned to live with them, and it often isn't nice or pleasant, but I can navigate around them even when they are at their most miserable.

So, getting the allergy shots have been part of my life for so long that yes, they are a nuisance, but a necessary one, so I manage to take it all in stride.

And as I said, I think they have had some side benefits, so it is not all that bad.

So today, I roll up my sleeves another time, get the shots, and get on with my life--

Until a month later, in February, when I, again, have to get the shots, and into perpetuity each and every month.

Believe me, I am not complaining.

Better to run after the shots than have a runny nose.

Rant #3,860: Framing Youth

In many ways, I absolutely hate being an adult.

Too much responsibility, too much work to be done, too much dealing with reality.

And funny, those are the exact reasons why I love being an adult, too.

But two recent occurrences have brought me back to those days of my youth ...

And my present adult status, too.

As I was putting this Rant together, I heard of the passing of someone whose loss signifies the end of an era.

Oh, he probably won't be eulogized in any major obituaries in the newspaper or online, but his passing kind of hit me where it hurts--

Right smack dab in my heart, mind and soul.

Sidney Kibrick died at age 97 late last week, and if you don't know who he was, you must not be a Baby Boomer like me.

Kibrick was the last surviving featured member of the cast of the classic "Our Gang" series of comedy shorts, and his passing closes the book on perhaps the best movie series ever created.

He played "The Woim," sidekick to Butch, the bully, in the series, and while none of the shorts centered on him directly, he was featured whenever Butch was there, terrorizing Spanky, Alfalfa, Buckwheat, Porky, Darla and the rest of the "Little Rascals" in stuff that was funny as could be.

While these shorts were created when my parents were kids, the Baby Boomers latched onto the films when they came to television in the early 1950s, and we watched them regularly through the early 1970s, when public taboos took over and these films left the airwaves.

That was the beginning of another chapter for these films, as they migrated to midnight movie showings, then to VHS tape, to DVDs, and finally, to streaming services for all to watch whenever they wanted to.

And I certainly went through all of those cycles with these films, which are still funny 100 years after some of them were made.

Kibrick--whose brother Leonard was also a member of the Gang--was omnipresent in these films during the middle to later era of their existence, and his character--a bully several steps below the often acerbic Butch--was simply part of the fun.

I found out only recently that Sidney and his brother Leonard were among the few Jewish actors in the cast, but even before I knew that, there was a place in my childhood memories of the two Kibrick boys as lovable bad guys in the series.

Woim, R.I.P., you done did good.

And another thing that brought me back to my youth happened on Monday evening, when my son and I attended a WWE pro wrestling event in Brooklyn's Barclay Center.

I was born in Brooklyn, and spent the first year or so of my life living on Avenue N in that borough, or not too far away from where the arena stands.

But what brought me back to my youth is simply attending such an event, and doing so with my son.

I have been a pro wrestling fan for over 60 years, when Bruno Sammartino ruled the sport, and even with it becoming a global phenomenon, it is basically the same sport that I remember--

1-2-3!

Yes, I am getting bit long in the tooth in attending these matches--in our area, I was probably at the very least 20 years older than anyone else I saw in our section, all the way at the top of the arena, the last seat in the last row--but I still could have fun, even with the hassles of getting there, getting in, getting T-shirts, getting food, etc.

(And it is all mighty pricey too.)

But when I ask my son, "Did you have a good time," and he tells me, "Yes," it literally wipes all of that away.

It brings me back to my youth, and also solidifies my presence as an adult and as a parent.

Who knew that "The Woim" and pro wrestling could weave itself into one, but it did.

I had a great childhood, my adulthood has had its ups and downs, but let me tell you--

I don't think I would trade either one for anything else.

Rant #3,859: STOP

I put up this message yesterday on Facebook, and I really, truly think it needs to be put up again right here at the Blog.

If you haven't yet seen it, read it. It is pretty short but says exactly what I want to say about this subject.

If you have already seen it, read it again, make others aware of it--

And especially for my Jewish brethren, I want you to read it, absorb it, and read it again if necessary.

It is pretty obvious why I say this, but I want my Jewish brothers and sisters to read this and to fully absorb this, because right now, we are constantly shooting ourselves in the foot with our divisiveness.

You can be as liberal, and as left, as you want, but common sense should prevail, and I don't think that it is right now, in particular with a lot of Jews both in New York City and New York State in general--

And throughout our country and worldwide.

Here is what I posted yesterday on Facebook, and I am going to leave it at that for today.

Maybe tomorrow will be a better day for us all, as Jews, as Americans, and as citizens of the world.

"I am personally sick to death at certain Americans and politicians trying to sell us the warped and delusional bill of goods that Muslims and the religion that they follow are peaceful.

And the liberals and the left continue to try to convince us that we can't blame an entire religion for the bizarre and destructive behavior of a "few" radicals.

Funny, all of these heinous incidents involving the "few" radicals are happening worldwide--from the U.S., to Europe, to Australia--so it has gotten to the point that if this religion is actually "peaceful," this is NOT the way to prove it.

I don't see followers of other religions, like Christians and Jews, shooting and attacking innocent people while crying out that they are doing it to support terrorists and their aims and goals.

Simple brown nosing for votes, that is what this is. And the young and the uneducated and the ignorant people of this country fall for this nonsense.

The evidence is that you have a Muslim mayor in New York City who is an avowed anti-Semite overseeing a state with the largest Jewish population outside of Israel, and you have a governor of New York State who proclaims that the exact site where Muslim radicals changed our lives forever must honor their existence by shining lights honoring "Muslim American Heritage Month."

It has to stop. And it has to stop now."

Rant #3,858: Good Thing

Funny, Venezuelans here in America are rejoicing about this situation — where we brought dictator Maduro to the United States to be prosecuted for narco-terrorism, among other crimes — while I see marchers protesting against it who are as Venezuelan as I am.

If the people most directly impacted by this move are happy about it, why are non-Venezuelans--liberals, anarchists, and the like, I assume--so dead set against it?

That is a rhetorical question, I already know the answer ... if President Trump does something that is actually good, no matter what it is, these lefties are blatantly against it.

And while I am not a Trump lover, it is so obvious what they are doing.

I even heard one anti-Trump imbecile state during a TV report on News 12 Long Island that since we put Venezuela's "president" in jail here, it is time for Venezuelans to come here and do the same thing to our president, throw him in jail in Venezuela.

They interviewed this idiot in Bethpage, which I will bet has a scant Venezuelan community, even if that.

Yes, this is the mindset of crazy people, but they have the nerve to say things like this in all seriousness and with a straight face.

Go figure.

Maybe I am stupid, or just plain ignorant, but I can't.

You do not have to love our President, but give him some kudos when he does something right.

I guess that is just so beyond some people.

Sure, he bypassed Congress--President Truman did not confer with Congress before dropping the atomic bomb on Japan, and President Obama did not get such approval to off Osama Bin Laden--and he did not follow the Monroe Doctrine to the letter--although it is my understanding that the Doctrine is directed more at Europe than anyplace else, and certainly not South America.

Sometimes, you have to do what you have to do at the right time and the right place, and this weekend was both the right time and the right place.

Truman did it, Obama did it, so why is Trump being raked over the coals by some fir what he did?

Honestly, whatever side you are on in this mess, you ultimately have to blame the people--the American people--for this mess to begin with.

If there was no market or need for cocaine and whatever else Venezuela was manufacturing and shipping here to poison Americans, then they wouldn't be shipping it here in the large droves that they are.

We live in a country where the scourge of drugs is downplayed, made into a political football, or totally made legal, such as the current state of marijuana in many states of this union.

People abuse illegal drugs just by them being illegal.

They are illegal for a reason.

Their use can be deadly--like fentanyl--or at the least very addicting, mind altering and sickening.

Some of our population do not care, and people use these drugs as sort of an antidote for what ails them.

This is a "hand to mouth" type of thing.

Don't compare it to cancer or any diseases that infect the body and the mind and the spirit.

The way you prevent drug abuse is simple: just don't use the drugs.

Funny, so many people that supposedly have no money wind up with these drugs, and so many people with money do too.

But you have to have common sense, no matter what financial strata you are in.

These are drugs meant to harm you, they are illegal, so why use them?

Yes, we as a society have been very lax on drug abuse, and we are currently using the legality of marijuana as a cash cow.

Studies show that marijuana can have lingering effects on the brain, so why use it?

Why use nicotine, for that matter.

But back to cocaine and whatever else Venezuela has been shipping over here ...

Don't use it, then there is no market for it.

Then the oil argument ...

Venezuela has oil. We all know that.

But getting rid of Maduro will make the country plentiful for everyone.

The oil leaders being brought into the country will make the country, and its citizens, prosperous--

Rather than have a select few have all the wealth there.

It is called capitalism, and since when is that bad?

So to all the imbeciles shouting against our President and what he did, I ask you this--

Do you support a dictator?

It comes down to that.

Do you support a dictator?

Answer the question.

Do you support a dictator?