Ode to a Friend

I lost my dad when I was 35, and my mom when I was 37. Now I've lost a friend at 44; and she was only 36. None of the above makes any sense to me. Your 30's should not involve death in any shape or manner. . .sing it, Don:

Time with Friends

We've been spending many weekends on the road, traveling to area attractions and family events. When we're not out on the road, one of our favorite things to do is spend time with our friends, the Matuskas - Stan Matuska is a near 30 year friend of mine who contributes here at Left in Aboite on occasion. His wife,Wanda, was a co-worker with my wife at a former employer. Due to our interactions, they met and eventually married some time ago now. Despite that, they still consider us good friends. . . ;)

It was pointed out to me that I've been remiss in reporting on our time spent in their company when we just wish to relax here close to home. Stan and Wanda moved out here to Aboite shortly after we did in 2005 - In fact, we shared a realtor for a short time, but that is a story for another day. While we were looking to upsize to meet our growing family, the Matuska's had raised their kids in their huge northside home and were looking for a smaller residence closer to their employers out southwest.

They found a beautiful smaller home minutes away from us and poured a lot of love and sweat equity into their new home. But something still seemed to be missing and, last summer, they moved a few blocks east into a wonderful new home with an inground pool - and their popularity exploded! ;)Seriously, pools are a natural draw for people, and we've enjoyed many a Saturday or Sunday afternoon with their family around their pool.

Stan and I are both in our mid forties, and never learned to swim earlier in life. We took some lessons together last summer at the Jorgensen YMCA, and the pool has been a boon to Stan's aquatic progress. My lazy ass commends him on his progress! I'm proud of his progress, and we've enjoyed many a good time with the whole clan. Here are some recent pictures:

Thank you, Stan and Wanda, for your companionship. We truly enjoy our time spent together with your family and look forward to our years together.

Pragmatist's Corner

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN ? ? ? Relax. . .he's not wanted for anything, just ask his wife! (ba-dump-bump) But, seriously folks, Vic DeMize is an old friend of mine who foolishly decided to start a blog of his own despite my dire warnings! He has a sharp wit and a downright insane knowledge of trivia and obscure information; test him at your own peril.

Politically, his choice of blog name tells you his position right up front. But allow me to quote from his profile:

Welcome to The Pragmatist's Corner

Your one-stop shopping experience for views, opinions and ideas that lean sometimes to the lest (correction: left) and sometimes to the right, but never quite seem to fit into the confines of Party Doctrine. Whether you're a Democrat or a Republican you're sure to find things that will amuse you as well as things that will annoy you - but then again, that's exactly why we're here so we can thrash things out.

Please try to keep things civil as much as possible - it's always more productive to attack ideas rather than individuals. And if you & I butt heads, don't get too discouraged - I've been known to see the other side occasionally and have even been convinced to change my mind if you present a really good case.

LET THE FREE THINKING BEGIN!

Please drop by and harass the shit out of him at your earliest convenience, and. . .tell him that Johnny sent ya! ;)

Well met, and well missed. . .

One of the sadder occurrences in our greater blogosphere is when a blogging friend goes missing. Sometimes you click a link in your blogroll and get the dreaded "blog not found" message. Other times, the site still exists but has flat-lined for some reason and we usually never find out why. I just found out that one of my compatriots right here in the midwest, who hadn't posted since March 19th of this year, DIED on March 20th.

While I seldom speak softly, I DO carry a big blogroll. That being said, I never even realized that his site had gone dormant for so long. Rest in peace, our friend Jerry, and take comfort in the knowledge that you touched many of our lives with your thoughts and insight. Your blog lives on, in your memory, exactly as you left it after your last post with the exception of the usual lively comments followed by the more somber ones as we learned of your demise.

I learned of Jerry's passing via the comments section on another blog who's author has gone missing since August 18th of this year, Lew Scannon (My all-time favorite blogger name) of Unbrainwashed. We hope that "Lew" hasn't suffered a similar misfortune and will return to his crusade against the radical right in the near future. I had always believed that Lew and Ron Nasty were one and the same person - American Insurgency went blank on August 18th as well.

One of the most impassioned and knowledgeable voices in the progressive blogosphere, Jeremy of Rage Against the Right, disappeared on September 26, 2006. His final post was titled "I'll be back". And then he wasn't. His site lives on as well, and is an EXCELLENT reference for information on the right-wing sector of America.

My "You have a Friend in Pennsylvania" buddy, Human, gave us a scare by vanishing for several months this year, but has returned to his rightful place as the pragmatist of our group of rebels. I was greatly relieved to see his keyboard return to action recently, and thankful that the Last Chance Cafe wasn't merely a Carbon Paper copy of itself.

Our good friend Mary Knock, and her blog address, vanished without a trace earlier this year. I had the foresight to claim the Knock Knock blog address and set it up as a tribute to Mary, or as a warm seat if she ever returns to us. Kvatch was kind enough to join in that endeavour and returned the site to a damned fine copy of it's former self.

Kvatch also called it quits, although his site remains, and he has been guest-blogging at several sites including this one. He's been very quiet since November 7th though. . .Froggy? Are you out there? ? ? You have a lily pad here anytime you need it, my friend.

One of my other blogger buddies from "the city by the bay" signed off this summer as well, PT Cruiser. Rory was kind enough to leave a final post and explain his reasons (family). It's always nice to have some closure on these things, and, being a class act, he provided it. Have fun with the bongos and the little ones!

Closer to home, we suffered the loss of Marked Hoosier who also signed off in August. WHAT the HELL is up with August? ? ? Mark, I truly miss your sense of humor and your knack for finding extremely weird videos!

I know I'm probably missing some others who are worthy of mention, but these were the lost pals that came to mind when I read about Jerry's unfortunate demise earlier this year. And, may I add, if you're going to walk away from the keyboard, please let your friends know so that we don't worry about you or find out that you've expired long after the fact. Unless I've already joined Jerry in the great BlogSpot in the Sky, I promise to do the same. . .

Weekend Fun

We just returned from an a labor day celebration at the lake, hosted by Andy and Jill Kaduk. As you can see, our daughters had an awesome time, and are pretty avid boaters! Not too surprisingly, they fell asleep on the ride home!

Jeff Pruitt was also in attendance, and I finally got to meet Nate Dinken as well as the guys from Downtown Fort Wayne Baseball.

I have a reputation for throwing out a great spread for our parties, but Andrew put me to shame - if anyone left hungry tonight it was their own damned fault! There was definitely something for everyone, and the dude cooks up a mean batch of barbecue ribs. Thanks for including us, guys. We'll look forward to seeing you at our next event.

Here's a view from the journey home. . .thanks to cousin Jonathon for serving as a big ol' pillow for Sam and Sabrina. =)

Today's Life Lesson

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting her things "in order," she contacted her Pastor and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes. She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried in. Everything was in order and the Pastor was preparing to leave when the young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her.

"There's one more thing," she said excitedly. "What's that?" came the Pastor's reply. "This is very important," the young woman continued. "I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand." The Pastor stood looking at the young woman, not knowing quite what to say. That surprises you, doesn't it?" the young woman asked. "Well, to be honest, I'm puzzled by the request," said the Pastor.

The young woman explained. "My grandmother once told me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to pass along its message to those I love and those who are in need of encouragement. In all my years of attending socials and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming...like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful, and with substance!' So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder "What's with the fork?" Then I want you to tell them: "Keep your fork ..the best is yet to come."

The Pastor's eyes welled up with tears of joy as he hugged the young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last times he would see her before her death. But he also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. She had a better grasp of what heaven would be like than many people twice her age, with twice as much experience and knowledge. She KNEW that something better was coming.

At the funeral people were walking by the young woman's casket and they saw the cloak she was wearing and the fork placed in her right hand. Over and over, the Pastor heard the question, "What's with the fork?" And over and over he smiled. During his message, the Pastor told the people of the conversation he had with the young woman shortly before she died. He also told them about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He told the people how he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they probably would not be able to stop thinking about it either. He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork let it remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to come.

Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us. Show your friends how much you care. Remember to always be there for them, even when you need them more. For you never know when it may be their time to "Keep your fork." Cherish the time you have, and the memories you share ... being friends with someone is not an opportunity but a sweet responsibility.

Happy Birthday, Hill!

This is Hill:


Today is her birthday:



Here's what Hill really wanted for her birthday this year:



Damn. . .well at least she got THIS:



And, now that his magic shield is gone, maybe she can have THIS for Christmas:



HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HILL!!!

PT Cruiser returns!

"I have an overhead projector...

and I'm not afraid to use it."






Ladies and gentlemen! Children of all ages! After a long and rather unpleasant encounter with Vonage, The PT Cruiser is back on the streets of San Francisco!

Do drop in and pay him a visit. . .he fears that we have forgotten him! As if!
Welcome back, amigo! You have been missed here in the left blogosphere. . .