Our 30th Anniversary

On the night before we left on vacation, Junie created some wonderful full sheet magnets to grace our cabin door. [She had a month to do so and waited until 12 hours before departure, but I won't mention that].

You'll see the whole view eventually, but the one pictured below detailed our upcoming 30th anniversary - which just happens to be today.  :)

The magnets were a big hit and we often got a "Congratulations!," "Happy Anniversary," "Happy Birthday!" from people seeing us enter our leave the cabin.  We had people stop and read them as they walked by, and at least once a passenger we were talking to in another part of the ship said "I know you! I've read your door!"

One question we were asked a few times was "What's your secret [to lasting 30 years]?." Now there are some couples I know that will get to the 30 year mark out of sheer inertia and complacency.  That isn't us.  Keep in mind we married young and I'm certain most people bet against us  - perhaps best exemplified by the fact that inexpensive Bibles seemed to make up the majority of our wedding gifts, nevermind the cost of the reception meal lol

But if I'm going to answer that question, the honest answer is there isn't a secret. There are prerequisites of course: fall in love with someone decent, and by that I mean someone with a good heart; make sure it's someone who will be a great parent to your kids; make sure the two of you are best friends who have each other's back even when it isn't deserved, and then . . well, ride the waves.  Not every day will be good.  But so long as the good days outnumber the bad - and they always have, and by a wide margin - then it isn't very hard at all.

Lisa, thank you for 30 years. Here's hoping we double that xo

The Brewers Take Game Two

Game two of the World Series and the Brewers were down 4-0 at the midpoint of the first inning.  And was I worried?

No.  I had confidence they'd scratch their way back to even, even if I wouldn't guarantee a victory. This year's team runs on grit and persistence, and boy did they exhibit it tonight. 

A 5-4 final, and up 2 games to none in the best of seven Series.  With caution and a knock on wood: 

Hot dog!!

I did not watch the game, but I followed it closely on the web as I went about my business.  After watching 52 seasons of disappointment, failure, and what- could- have -beens, I find superstition dominating my baseball choices this October. The less I'm involved in every pitch, the fewer chances I'll ruin it all. 

Or so I hope. 

But it was hard to avoid.  When I took Sawyer for a walk with Junie, the broadcast (and cheers) could be heard from several houses on the route.  And AJ's Halloween house was actually projecting the game onto the side of a house so visitors could watch. 

I finally gave up the fight and tuned into the radio broadcast in the 8th. 

Now it's on to Tampa on Monday (actually St. Petersburg) for game three.

2 more wins guys.  Just two more wins in five games. 

Fingers crossed. 

Who was it?

When I was driving Junie to work at about quarter to five, I had to pull over on 794 for three coach busses, escorted by a bunch of deputies on motorcycles and followed by a sheriff's SUV.

Obviously it has something to do with the World Series, but to my knowledge visiting teams stay downtown at the Pfister, so it couldn't be the Rays. The television broadcast team? A wild amount of overkill if that was the case. 

Then just as we were almost to her workplace we saw this. Not sure if it's one of the same busses, but if it was, maybe they were empty and heading to pick up the Ray's?

Still, two hours before the game? You'd think the team would be there already. 

I'll likely never know.

YaYa Reaches the Quarter Century Mark!

 This little baby is now a 25 year old woman who is studying for the LSAT exam. It is crazy how quickly life happens. It's been a blink of an eye, just a blink of an eye. 

We love you YaYa, then, now, and always. 

Sto lot. 

And thank you for making me a Daddy 25 years ago. It's been an honor. 

The Brewers Take Game One

I listened to the game and I'm happy we won.  But I remember winning game 1 in '82 too, and that one was doubly impressive for being on the road.  So my nerves?  Still at 150%

A Spooktacular Walk with Sawyer

All in all I think my doggo was the happiest resident of our house to see us return tonight. 

(Although Plagg, his indifference to a camera aside, was quick to approach for pets)

 I am now rather used to having to walk to and fro because of the ship, so when I noticed we were out of dry cat food I thought I'd reward Sawyer with a walk to the gas station, and Junie came along. 

"It was a dark and foggy night."  Wet too, and all the spookier for all the Halloween decorations along the way. 

We took the long way 'round, covering about 5 blocks round trip, and Sawyer loved it.  It was good to catch up a little with Junie's life too.

On the way back Junie pointed out a camera atop a building housing what's currently a CBD dispensary. She told me that back when they'd walk to and from elementary school, years ago, each time they'd pass that camera Smiley would have them "dab" to it. 

I'd still rather be on vacation, but it's good to be home 

Tom Skerritt

Tom Skerritt, the mustachioed actor I liked a lot and remember best from Alien and Top Gun, has passed at age 93. 

Actually, what I probably remember most about him is the fact that my Mom thought he was very attractive. 

RIP

Happy 50th Birthday Lisa!!!!

So this girl I met when she was only four months past her 18th birthday 

has somehow managed to squeeze in another thirty-two birthdays over the years and turns FIFTY today. 

That, of course, is ridiculous.  There's no way, my mind says, that Lisa has reached the half-century mark. 

It's all been the blink of an eye, and I wish we could do it all over again. 

She's been the best mother I could have hoped for for my children; a tireless advocate for me even on days she couldn't stand me; and my best friend for four decades. 

I love you very much and I hope you have the best birthday imaginable,  and fifty more to follow. 

Sto Lot Sinatra.

Our Afternoon in Cabo San Lucas

Cabo San Lucas has no berth for a cruise ship, so you board a tender (a smaller ship) to the city. Once you're there you negotiate with a local to take a water taxi to Medano Beach. $20 round trip for both of us. 

 

What everyone fails to mention is that the water taxis have no dock at the beach - they make you climb down a ladder and wade to shore, like a peacetime recreation of D-Day. Because of where I was in the taxi, I not only had to lower the ladder into the water, but I was first off. 

The sand beneath the water at Medano isn't compacted; you sink into immediately, as if you're walking on deep snow. Our taxi stopped about ten feet from shore, in knee deep water. That sucked. 

But apparently my disembarkation was impressive,  as the other two guys in the boat commented on it and felt the need to do the same without complaint. 

At Medano we purchased a large beach blanket and rented an umbrella.  Once set up, Lisa went out to swim.  As I'm supposed to stay out of the water with my surgical wound still healing, my time in the Pacific was relegated to the walk to the beach. 

The beach is public and some locals were using it, but with a ship in the harbor the beach was overrun with vendors who came up to just about every single minute of our time there - hawking food, jewelry, massages, cigars, you name it. After awhile it's very annoying. 

Lisa only spent a half hour in the water. Not only were the waves a little rough where she was swimming, the sand made it difficult to return to the beach. She spent the rest of the time hanging out with me  Thankfully our taxi driver gave us a pick up time only two hours after drop off (as it would be his last run for the day) so we were back aboard the cruise ship in time to shower and dress for dinner. 

That was about 3 or 4 hours less than we planned on the beach, but it was just the right amount once we were there.

A very nice day in the sun in Mexico!

Ps. We also saw a lot of birds, including a ton of pelicans. Oh, and a sea lion in the water!

This is Tony of the Jasmine

Thank Goodness it's Environmentally Friendly

For years we've subscribed to Grove for environmentally friendly home products. Each month we stock up on bamboo toilet paper, dish and hand soap in aluminum not plastic containers, garbage bags made from post consumer recycled plastic, Yada Yada.  Today they premiered a product that was a little..... unexpected

Why?

I guess instead of HOMES school kids can memorize the Great Lakes as SHAME now

My Evening

This . .   .clerk at Walmart asked me to spell my full name for a pickup.  They don't usually req more than "slap" to pull it up in the computer,  but nope, she "needed" all 11 letters.  Then she said, and I f'ing quote "And what's your last name?" Surely I heard wrong, but no - when I said Slapczynski again she demanded my LAST name. 

"Do you... do you honestly think Slapczynski is my first name? Are u shitting me?"

And now, bc I insulted the intelligence of an idiot, I've been made to sit and wait for the last 28 minutes. 

Update: 

57 minutes after my arrival I went in to customer service and got a manager.  He walked with me to the pickup dept where they now claimed they'd never seen the item.  

Manager walked me to shoes where he asked employees who had "picked" the item - it was allegedly taken off the shelf around 3pm for me. 

One employee denied knowing anything and seemed to talk about me in Spanish.  Another went in back with the manager.

They came out and said they can't find it and it was the last pair but they have one left in tan. Ok. 

But the manager wants to cxl my order, refund the money onto the card, and have me buy the tan pair outright.  I said that won't work it's bought on a GC that my wife has with her at work. 

So he said go wait on the bench by the restrooms.  If I can't find your order in ten minutes I'll  back and just hand you the tan pair and I'll figure it out later. 

Ten minutes later he walks up with the 2nd shoe dept employee. She had found the original order - which I still feel The idiot employee had hidden as payback for me being insulting. 

So one hour and 28 minutes later I will now be leaving walmart

Also, back on Dec 23rd the dermatologist removed some moles and sent them for testing. "I'll only contact you if they come back pre-cancerous. No news is good news. Enjoy the holidays!"

While I'm at Walmart I get a message from him on the live well app with the subject line "test results."

Ah F I think. Melanoma runs in my family. Dang it.

I open the message. "All tested material came back benign. Hope you had a great holiday!"

@$$%÷# ahole

Rob Reiner

Shocking news out of California tonight, as director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead of knife wounds in their Brentwood home. Reiner was 78.

Reiner first found fame on All in the Family, playing Archie Bunker's son in law,  a role that earned him two Emmy's. Afterwards he became one of Hollywood's most successful directors. Among his films:  Stand by Me,  This is Spinal Tap, When Harry Met Sally, Misery, The Princess Bride, A Few Good Men, and When Harry Met Sally.

I grew up watching Reiner, and then his films.  I'm genuinely appalled at this apparent double murder. 

RIP

Seneca Crane

Smiley tonight as Seneca Crane from The Hunger Games movies.  He was on his way to a Halloween party with Yaya, who was costumed as fake heiress Anna Sorokin. To be honest, aside from an ingenious homemade ankle monitor, she just looked like a normal woman on her way to a party.  Which, I'm told, was the point?

Happy Halloween from Plagg!

Jerry Taff

Jerry Taff, the main anchor for Channel 12 WISN from 1979 through 2005, died last night at his home in Texas.  He was 85.

Taff was a ubiquitous face in my first three decades on this planet.  My family most often tuned in to watch the news on Channel 12, which famously had its real life newsroom running in the background of the newscast. (We watched Channel 6 less frequently, bougie Channel 4 rarely if at all).

Taff, a Texas native who mentored documentarian Michael Moore while working in Detroit, was the face of WISN, and a trusted one - the Cronkite of Milwaukee in that regard. 

 

He had his faults: he was fired for two years in the mid-80's, for reasons I know longer recall, causing him to miss reporting on a passenger jet crash here in '85. He also had an alleged feud with longtime co-anchor Marty Burns Wolfe that wasn't a very well kept secret.

When he signed off his newscasts, he did so with a signature phrase that still sounds like the best wish possible to me:  Good Night, and Better Tomorrows. 

Good night Jerry.  Rest in Peace.

Love and Diet Pepsi