Rant #3,687: I Call Your Name

I finally finished writing up that meeting report, so one is in the books, with several more to go.

The audio was excellent, and that certainly helped make matters a little bit easier for me.

I just hope that that continues.

Otherwise, I put a lot of hours into this story, and then I had a couple more stories to edit, so all told, I am pooped.

I must have put in about 10 or 11 hours on writing the main story and editing the other ones I had to do, so this supposedly retired guy is really tired.

At least I received my Social Security payment yesterday, but a good portion of that went to rent, which was also due yesterday, so I am awaiting my monthly paycheck from work which will give me money to live on for the rest of the month.

I see thst they finally decided to tear down Sunrise Mall in my old stomping grounds of Massapequa, but the tear-down will probably, according to reports, take several years to accomplish.

They plan to subdivide it into four sections--one, presumably for an Amazon warehouse--and the other three parts--

Who knows?

The owners insist that no housing will be included in this plan, but that proclamation isn't set into granite, so again--

Who knows?

By the time they demolish this ghost town, I will probably be in my 70s, and it really isn't going to impact me one way or the other, even though I actually live closer to the old mall now than I did when I lived in Massapequa--

When I went to Massapequa High School, graduated from the school, and was considered a "Chief."

But as I am sure you heard, New York State wants all New York school systems to change any team name related to Native Americans, and the state--primarily Governor Kathy "The Yokel" Hochul--will remove funding if a school district does not comply.

Several districts on Long Island bowed down to these demands, but Massapequa was not one of them.

They, and a couple of other Long island districts, have filed suit to stop the name change.

Massapequa's 'Chiefs" name honors Native Americans who lived on the land before the white man arrived, and honestly, I never found the logo insulting at all. 

The caricature of the Native American was very dignified, unlike, let's say the old Cleveland Indians' logo, which was clearly defamatory.

Well, President Trump has stepped into the fray, saying he doesn't agree that the name "Chiefs" is defamatory or derogatory at all.

I mean, he is the "Commander in CHIEF," isn't he now?

Rather than get rid of the name entirely, I think a good compromise would be to get rid of the logo and mascot, and just use the name "Chiefs."

The word is part of our language, so getting rid of the name entirely is a ridiculous waste of time.

Do we next get rid of the word "chief" entirely? 

I think not.

All so stupid, all so woke, all so much a waste of time and money.

I guess I am a "Chief" forever based on where I lived for more than 50 years and where I went to high school, but it could be worse--

I could be a "Chump."

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

Rant #3,686: With a Little Luck

Oy!

Today is the day that I begin my every-Wednesday-for-the-next-couple-of-weeks coverage of meetings for work.

I am hoping the sound quality is much better than it was for that conference I covered last week, which was nesrly impossible to cover--

But I did my best.

Where there's a will, there's a way.

And there is also something called luck, and something else called skill, and with that story, I had to use a bit of both.

I heard that Dick Barnett passed away, and thus, another part of my childhood is gone.

Barnett was one of the sparkplugs of the only two NBA championship teams that the New York Knicks ever had, and after his playing career, he went back to school, eventually earning a doctorate degree.

His flashiness had a great influence on the style of Walt Frazier, and his demeanor on the court also had a great influence on Clyde.

For the basketball Hall of Famer to pass during NBA playoff time makes his story even more poignant than it already is.

"Fall back baby" will live forever, and certainly will live on in my personal memories.

And through all the hubbub that my family and I have been going through lately, I haven't forgotten that the next big day on the calendar is Mother's Day, which comes a bit early this year, on May 11.

I even know exactly what I will be getting my wife during that day.

Usually, when it comes to celebrations where my wife is the center of attention, I never know what to get her, but this year, I know precisely what she is going to get--

And it is directly related to our new apartment.

I, obviously, won't be revealing what it is to you right now, but I think it is something she is going to enjoy.

Otherwise, I am still as busy as I can be, and I think that I am going to have to skip some time here, so I can get this conference story done and in the books.

I hope to be back on Friday, but let's see how things go this time around.

I sure hope that it goes better than the last time, because listening to this meeting, and writing it all up, should not be torture.

What I need is a little luck, and maybe a leprechaun to lead me to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Yes, St. Patrick's Day is in the rear view mirror, but I need as much luck as I can get NOW.

And did you know that the "Lucky Charms" leprechaun actually has gone under three different names since the character was created in 1963?

The names are "L.C. Leprechaun," "Sir Charms" and "Lucky."

Well, I will take any of those names as my own if I can get through today and the next couple of Wednesdays unscathed.

Wish me luck.

Rant #3,685: Good Day Sunshine

I had a very quiet birthday yesterday.

I did some work, I went to the bank, I purchased a new watch online--my watch totally gave out a day earlier after only about 18 months of use--and I bought a bottle of milk locally.

I also sold one of the air conditioners that we purchased last year when we were in the other apartment; we don't need it, or the other one we purchased anymore, because our new apartment has air conditioners in each room.

I put the money I was given for this unit right into the bank.

The teller in the bank knew it was my birthday; I guess it came on her screen when she went into my account.

She said to me, "Happy birthday ... and you are spending part of it in a bank? You have to have something better to do."

I told her that i didn't ... and I also told her that I would rather be in a bank than where I was 18 years ago on this day--

When I celebrated my birthday by having my gall bladder removed.

We both laughed, but I certainly meant what I said.

No one wants to be in the hospital any day, but in particular, on your birthday.

I did it when I turned 50 yet.

I guess it was an early precursor of what I would be going through less than two decades later.

I just remember that they were go8ng to send me home due to a bad stomach sche, but that was no stomach ache that I had that day.

Finally, after a lot if haggling, they found that my gall bladder needed to be removed, and thst ended up being the best birthday present I could ever receive--

My good health.

I wish I had that now, but I don't. 

I will find out more about that in June, and I hope that I can be in good health again.

Anyway, this time around I received plenty of well wishes on Facebook.

At home, I got some nice gifts and nice cupcakes to help my family and I celebrate 

My sister wished me well, as did my daughter.

I also received a couple of cards in the mail from friends.

So all told, the day went well, and other than the work I had, it was a pretty stress-free day.

I even digitized some records--

Not actual records, per se, but soundsheets--remember them?

I hadn't listened to these flexible records that you would often find in magazines in some 40 years or so, and yes, most of them played without skips, so they held up as well as some of my actual records have fared over the decades.

So really, yesterday was all it could be, as I prepare for my every-Wednesday-for-six-weeks mini-conferences that I have to cover for work.

Based on whst happened during the all-day conference I covered last week, I think I am looking forward to these conferences as much as--

Getting my gall bladder out on my birthday all over again.

Rant #3,684: When I'm 68

I am 68!

I made it!

There were points where I doubted whether I would reach the next year of my life, but I made it!

Like I told a friend of mine, I still feel that I am too young to be this age, but I am too old to fight it.

So, happy birthday to me!

As I reach this latest plateau in my life, I still have a lot of things to figure out in my life, i have a lot of things that I want to do and have to do,  and I still have many goals to reach and to exceed.

This might seem trite and inconsequential, but over the past week, I can finally maneuver my left leg to a point where I can put on my socks the "normal" way.

And my shoes too.

It is still a bit of a struggle, but this is something I couldn't even dream of doing for the past year and a half, since my injury.

That is a huge step for me, and it just demonstrates what a lot of hard work can do when you experience an injury like I had, and it's aftermath.

And then we have work, the type that you get paid to do, and I definitely have a love/hate relationship with my job.

I honestly wish that I was really retired, but that simply isn't the case ... and probably will never be.

I saw someone the other day who I hadn't seen in a few years, and she congratulated me on my retirement.

I had to slow her down with the kudos, and bring her up to speed on the nuts and bolts of my supposed retirement.

It isn't easy to do, and I wish I didn't have to do it.

So, as I hit this new high water mark in my life, I have to look at the good things.

I have a great wife and a great son, who have stood by me through everything.

I have a daughter who I love dearly but who I do not understand at all.

I have an extended family that have been through their own trials and tribulations, but almost always seem to pull through.

I have friends who have also stood by me, no matter what.

I could say I have my health, but I am continuing to deal with some hiccups, and until they are stifled, I am not satisfied.

And I have a nice, new, and more expensive apartment, a place where I don't really ever want to move from--the last two moves were my final ones, I hope.

I have memories that will last me a lifetime, and already have--

And there are more memories to be made.

That's a good thing, and I know and believe that I will have plenty more years to experience them.

So, to sum it all up ...

Happy Birthday To Me!

I'm 68, and I feel great (sort of).

And thanks for reading these Rants for the past 15 or 16 years or so ... I know this Blog's birthday is also coming up in a few days.

And happy birthday to everyone else celebrating a birthday today.

It's really a great day in the neighborhood!

And I am one day closer to 69.

Let's not put the cart before the horse ...

I have to get through 68 first!

Rant #3,683: All Ears

What an absolutely horrible three days I had related to that conference I covered for work.

Not only was it long, boring and tedious, but the audio was nearly impossible to deal with, certainly the worst ever since I have been working post-career for this association.

I have to give them credit; their technocians did all they could, but the audio was atrocious. I would say that 75 percent of the two eight-hour days was unlistenable, either sounding like the speakers were under water, or not there at all.

It is an impossible situation when you are covering a conference like this and much of it is completely inaudible.

How can I write this thing up if I can't understand a lot of what the speakers are saying?

What you have to do is take whatever you can get out of this and do the best you can with it.

Yes, much of it was like kfkfudkggkfkkbh, and other parts if it was like.          .................., but I have been in this situation before trying to do a transcription, and you really have to get at it and do the best that you can.        ....

I told the proper people about this as it was unfolding, and I did use a transcription for part of my coverage of the first day's events.

But transcriptions are quite a bit unreliable. They can also be gobbledegook, but at least you can try to de lcipher it and rewrite it with the little it gives you.

But alas, coverage of this event--8:30 a.m. to about 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday--was nearly impossible, and then I spent much of Thursday getting it ready--

So, essentially, three days were flushed down the drain.

It is very frustrating.

I take pride in my writing and editing, and my final product was not up to my usual standards.

And now, I face one mini-conference a week for the next six weeks or so--every Wednesday--and I shutter to think what coal I am given, tasked to make it into diamonds ...

God help me!

Have a good weekend, I will speak to you again on Monday, which is my birthday.

At points during the last three days, I wondered if I would make it that long, but I think that now, with this past horror show out of the way, I will be there with bells on.

And hopefully, the ring of thise bells will be loud--

And clear.

Rant #3,682: ABC

Today begins my back-to-back day of meetings horror, so I am going to sneak this Rant in before I have to join the meeting at 8:30 a.m.

These are my final days of being age 67, leading up to my 68th birthday next week.

I finally catch up to my wife, who turned 68 five months ago.

I don't mind being the young'un in our marriage.

My father was in a similar position with my mother, being eight months younger than her--and their union lasted nearly 65 years.

I hope my wife and I can duplicate that, or at least come close.

It should be a fun ride as we strive for 65 ... or something close to it.

In the meantime ...

I went from box to box today, trying to find the next section of my records as I try to get them in alphabetical order, box by box, as I prepare for my record rack to cone and be set up.

I have everything from Abbott and Costello  through the Boomtown Rats all ready to go. 

But I cannot yet find the next box, which would be the remainder of the Bs and the beginning of the Cs ... including my David Bowie collection.

It's here somewhere, packed in a box that is buried under another one, and probably another one.

I am trying to save myself some time when the record rack comes, because if I have to alphabetize this one by one, it is going to take forever.

I am hoping against hope that the records were put in some type of order when they were originally packed away during our first move--

When I was incapacitated and others packed the records away.

I just hope they did it in some type of order ... if not, I am sunk.

It is not just getting them in alphabetical order by artist; it is putting them in order by release date.

You can't have "Meet the Beatles" coming after "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," If you get my drift.

I will figure it all out.

I did it when i set up my albums in the racks I had in the old house, and I will do it now with the racks that are coming to the new house

But first things first--

I have a conference to cover, and I better get a move on.

Speak to you later this week.

Rant #3,681: I've Gotta Be Me

Well, Passover 2025 is over and done with.

With the move and all, my family and I had two short, impromptu seders, but we did what we could do under the circumstances.

And this year, I don't know if I had "matzoh stomach," or maybe it was "moving stomach," or most probably I had a combination of the two.

I went off my diet a bit, but I have hopped right back on it with the holiday in the rear view mirror.

If the last few weeks were busy due to our move, this week is completely impossible.

Today, I have to go to the dentist and get a temporary crown put into my mouth.

I don't know why they can't put the actual crown in my mouth, but I guess it ramps up the price if they do it this way.

Later in the day, I have to drive my son to his friend, who also recently moved, and i am not sure where he lives, although I know it is pretty far away from us, in northwestern Long Island.

And I also have work to fit into all of this.

Talking about work, Tuesday and Wednesday are going to be two tough days.

I have to cover meetings on those days for work, each being eight hours in length. 

It is going to be really tough to do and to write about each day, and it basically kills both days for me, as I am basically attached to my computer both days, between the meeting and the writing.

Thursday is catch-up day, where I can catch-up with leftover stuff from the previous two days, as well as do whatever work I missed during the previous two days in between what new stuff I get.

I also have to take my son back and forth to work, and I have an annual appointment with my allergy doctor.

I am looking ahead to Friday, because other than doing food shopping, I can relax a bit, and look forward to taking my son to basketball in the evening and then into the weekend, when I take him to bowling.

And on Monday, April 28, it is my birthday, which has almost become an afterthought with all the hubbub going on.

The problem, though, is that for the next month and a half or so, I have a conference to cover each and every Wednesday, so that day is shot into June.

As I have said many, many times, what I am going through cannot possibly be what retirement is all about.

I will be working until I drop, and yes, it bothers me that I have to do this, as the rewards really aren't there for working like this.

But at least I can do this in a nice, new apartment.

And did I mention that my wife went back to work after her accident--

And that our son still is looking for a new job?

And that I am still suffering from the after effects of the prostate procedure I had a few months ago--and have been told by my urologist that they might last for well into the fall?

I gotta be me, which means I gotta be honest, and right now, I am wondering if I will ever get on the other side of the rainbow.

Right now, it ain't happening.

No way, no how.

So I might be in and out of here this week ... and the next several weeks might be a bit sketchy.

Wish me luck.