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Category: Personal

The Fastidious Fortitude to Forego Fast Food

The Fastidious Fortitude to Forego Fast Food

Can you think of anything you haven’t done for 21 years? For me, it has been THAT LONG since I’ve consumed any menu items at The Arches, The Whopper, The Colonel, The Bell, The Hoagie, The Wendy, The Carl, and The Meats. The Chick – never been inside one of your establishments. Based on marketing expenditures and deliciousness, these are The Big Kahunas (TBK) of fast food. They are powerful. They are prevalent. They are dominators in an on-demand, have-it-your-way…

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The Protectors Gather for Super Bowl 70

The Protectors Gather for Super Bowl 70

On Super Bowl LI Sunday, February 5, 2017, there was an annual gathering of an ancient and athletic species known as Softballus Protectorus. Translation – the boys of many California softball summers, The Protectors, stepped into the batter’s box at the palatial Woodland Hills home of Jim and Mary Dearing. Nobody whiffed. It was an afternoon of hugs, how ya beens, and dammit, who has the best numbers and squares. Truthfully, it was more of a gut check…..as in who…

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An American in Kelowna – ABBA-lutely, it was a Sweet Caroline and Crocodile Rock Kind of Night

An American in Kelowna – ABBA-lutely, it was a Sweet Caroline and Crocodile Rock Kind of Night

“There was Something in the Air that Night…..Fernando” On the second Friday of September, “A Hot Vegas Night” shuffled into Kelowna for a one-night stand at the Kelowna Community Theatre. Billed as THREE Shows in ONE Night, this rock-and-roll triple-header for all ages featured The Piano Man (an unforgettable tribute to Billy Joel and Elton John), Nearly Neil (a world-class tribute to Neil Diamond), and ABRA Cadabra (a tribute to the music and magic of ABBA).        …

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An American in Kelowna – 61 Years of “Mom”-rabilia

An American in Kelowna – 61 Years of “Mom”-rabilia

Can you imagine living in the same house for 61 years? My Mom, Julia, can. That’s more than six decades of sleeping in the same master bedroom over the one-car garage. That’s 22,265 days of rinsing dishes in the same kitchen sink and flushing the same commode. That’s going back to the 1950’s when living in the Pittsburgh suburbs meant not all the roads were paved and the milk man delivered his homogenized goodness to the back door. For goodness…

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An American in Kelowna – Carded with Permanent Resident Status

An American in Kelowna – Carded with Permanent Resident Status

Friday, July 15, 2016. 9:30 AM. Elaine and I went to our cluster mailbox. Did we get it? The anticipation was dripping like August humidity in Pittsburgh. Key in. Slot opened. THERE IT WAS! A nondescript white envelope from Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Mailed from Sydney, Nova Scotia via Canada Post. Two years in the making. Bingo. Joy. Relief. Happiness. We got it. Thanks to Elaine’s organizational skills and a boatload of patience, we finally got my PERMANENT RESIDENT CARD….

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An American in Kelowna – Defeating Dupuytren’s

An American in Kelowna – Defeating Dupuytren’s

It’s Day 13 of Dealing with Dupuytren’s. I feel lucky.   The Penguins won the Stanley Cup. The Steel City rejoiced. My cup runneth over with physical therapy – most of which I can do alongside Elaine in the comfort our lakeside home. Last Thursday I met with Dr. Williamson in his swanky office. Off came the bandages after nine days of two-finger imprisonment. There was dried blood and zigzag stitches. I loved it. The sight of my pinkie darn…

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An American in Kelowna – Giving my Plastic Surgeon the Finger

An American in Kelowna – Giving my Plastic Surgeon the Finger

On the last day of May 2016, I’ll be going under the knife for my first-ever surgical procedure (on a body part below the neck). In the past, I’ve had oral surgery – wisdom teeth removed and root canal drilling – but never any scalpel incisions on my torso or extremities. I credit darn good genes and God-given guidance based on all the sports and activities I’ve participated in as a youth through AARP adulthood. Now comes reality. Over the…

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An American in Kelowna – Owl Be Back

An American in Kelowna – Owl Be Back

On the eve of Super Bowl 50, I took lovely wife Elaine out for a romantic evening that was filled with energy, passion, and a lot of heavy sweating. Did we go dancing – no?! Did we go ice skating at Stuart Park – no?! Did we go to the Kelowna Community Theatre for a Vegas-style live show – no?!           Mr. Romance took his bride to a secondary school basketball game. Whoa – slow down,…

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