T minus 5…

Star Date 02102016

Goooooooooooood morning, Vietnam. (reference to …Good Morning Vietnam…duh).

Today’s awakening song has passion with a plucky spirit. Avicii, featuring Aloe Blacc:

“Wake Me Up”

Feeling my way through the darkness Guided by a beating heart I can’t tell where the journey will end But I know where to startThey tell me I’m too young to understand They say I’m caught up in a dream Well life will pass me by if I don’t open up my eyes Well that’s fine by me

[2x] So wake me up when it’s all over When I’m wiser and I’m older All this time I was finding myself And I didn’t know I was lost

I tried carrying the weight of the world But I only have two hands Hope I get the chance to travel the world But I don’t have any plans

Wish that I could stay forever this young Not afraid to close my eyes Life’s a game made for everyone And love is the prize

[2x] So wake me up when it’s all over When I’m wiser and I’m older All this time I was finding myself And I didn’t know I was lost

Didn’t know I was lost I didn’t know I was lost I didn’t know I was lost I didn’t know (didn’t know, didn’t know)

Now that we have that part over with…Charlie is screaming this morning. I did not drink so much, nor did I really eat much. I laughed much. The party was awesome. Just my opinion. Karen and Red done good. Quite goodly. Thank you both for Charlie’s send off. Way to give maximum effort. It showed and shows. Poor Alex’s parents. Alex is beau to Kenzie. Last night was homecoming for Kenzie, thus Alex’s parents came over to snap some photos of the pretty kids. Caught completely off guard, were Alex’s parents. Pretty sure they could not get out of there fast enough. I do not know if there were many photos taken, but as the night wore on and folks came and went, the majority of us ended up in the dining room. New friends and old. The newer are featured because that’s who my wife was able to catch.

It dawned on me, last night, that everyone in attendance was there because of Firestone. Some there, were actually from Firestone, but everyone is connected to me, to Jess, because of my having been employed by Firestone. What an amazing gift. I am a truly blessed man to have the friends I have. Not a tear was shed…unless it was from laughing. Just great food, some boozes, and conversation. Thank you to all who came and made merry. Thank you to Karen and Red for hosting, cooking, cleaning, etc and so on. Wow. Thank you to Jess for putting up with my loud laughter. There was plenty of that.

Rob H and Dawn are here…staying until tomorrow morning. They made the trek in from Chicagoland…all 13 or so hours that it took to escape. Steve came down from CT. Jay, Paul, Courtney, and son Sam…not son of Sam, came in and are already back in Indy. It was a framily reunion. Reality is here, perhaps that is why Charlie is so unhappy. He is aware his time on Earth and in my head, is coming to a close. …rather an open…a large incision and cutting open of my skull. But first? A week of work. I am choosing to focus on the news from the doc, the other day. The good news. I am struggling to do so, even now…but I am trying. Focus on good. Choose happiness. It is not as easy as it likely should be…not for me.

Fast forward. A mostly relaxing day. A few errands with the Hawkseses, then family dinner with Karen, Red, Steve, and so on. Yes…and Kenz…and the boy. What a weekend. I am worn out but do not want it to end because ending means reality. Of people going back to their lives. Going away. Going home. Going wherever. Now sh** gets really real. Dinner was…as always, awesome. Conversation and laughter. Cigars for most of the boys. Sucks to leave, but need a few minutes at home…awake…quiet.

Final thought. I have spent a lot of time on the road, alone. Aside from a couple years with Jay, almost always alone. Long trips, short trips, in between trips. In all my years of road travel, I have kept to myself. I enjoy the peace and the reflection time. Wherever I lodge, I have my routine. I always do search for some sort of burger joint, BBQ joint, bourbon joint. I try and stay away from the mainstream places. I dine alone and listen to all the conversations going on around me. I love being a part of something in a place where I do not belong…nor was I invited. …alas, they do not know. I’m a caucapino ninja. It amazes me to look back at Saturday night, or reflect on years over years of my life and realize the friends I have had in my life and how fortunate I am. What a send off. Await a triumphant return. New and improvedish. Prior to this coming surgery, the monies spent on all prior surgeries put me in the two million dollar range. The two back surgeries alone got me in the one millions. Steve Austin got nothin on me.