The 43

[Writer's note: I started this blog in August, saved the draft, and came back to it in December.] Inevitably as we grow older, the people outside of our lives we only know from TV and movies and music and politics pass on -- just as the people in our lives do. But losing the former is unique in that they are disconnected but, for some, connected in a different way. If the death is tragic and sudden, the pain is shocking (think, John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, Heath Ledger). However, some beloved celebrities simply grow old and die -- which often is still sad, but carries an air of inevitability. Consider the golden age of television -- almost all those performers are gone, a fact cemented in the last couple years or so with the passing of Carl Reiner, Betty White, Ed Asner, and Gavin McLeod (please hang on, Dick Van Dyke). Watch a movie from the 1940s, or '50s, or even creeping into the '60, and few of the cast members are still alive. Articles have been written about how we'

The summer of 2022 ended with scorching heat. Seriously, I can't pick out individual events during the incredible temperatures of the last 10 days. The high in Salt Lake City was 107 today, breaking the September SLC record of 105 ... yesterday, which broke the record of 104 on Thursday. I read a sobering article on how this will likely be one of the coolest summers of the rest of our lives. I never look forward to summer ending, but I'm ready for some relief. Temperatures are supposed to drop into the normal 80s over the weekend, with rain forecast. Although this was a brutal way to end the summer, I swam often this past week. I worked from the house of our friends with a pool two days, and I also spent all day Sunday at the JCC pool while I worked. But my big swimming moment, perhaps my final frontier, came yesterday at the season kickoff party of Ben's club swim team. We don't have a home pool, but one of the families belongs to a small swim club up in the Avenues ne

On schedule, my traditional summer blogging swoon! I knew it had been a few days since I had written anything, but when I logged in tonight, I was stunned to discover two weeks had passed. I've been back at work, which has been all right. I've been preparing for a big structural shift that's almost here, and the last two weeks have been all devoted to that. The transition back wasn't jarring -- although I would have loved another three months of leave, the return hasn't been stressful. Michael successfully moved into his dorm. He has been home off and on, so we're not feeling so abandoned. Having him close is nice. Ben is back in school and has been driving often -- hopefully he can get his license by November. I've been running in the morning, avoiding the still brutally hot temperatures that show no sign of abating -- September will start with 100 degree-plus temperatures in SLC. This last weekend, I house-sit for some friends with a pool, which was nice a

Tonight is Michael's last night at home before he moves into the dorm tomorrow. Thirty-four years ago, I  experienced my last night before going away to college. The summer of 1988, after graduating high school, was amazing. At the time, it was one of the hottest summers in Chicago's history, with highs in the 90s for a month straight and plenty of humidity. I worked at SportMart, trying to collect as much money as I could before heading to Marquette. I hung out with my friends, seemingly doing something every afternoon or evening. More than ever, I felt like I belonged, and the summer seemed as if it was there just for us. Then in August, we all departed for college. Of the seven friends in our group, two of us were going to colleges on our own, without another friend along for the ride. I was one of those two, walking away from that belonging I felt and the unforgettable summer. I've written about the run-up to leaving for college before -- spoiler alert, there was vomit

The rest of our short vacation turned out to be a whirlwind of activity, with little time to rest but much to enjoy. We left Steamboat on Thursday morning and made our way to Silverthorne, where we ate a unique lunch (Lori had a buffalo brat, and Ben and I ate a mac-and-cheese burger) at The Eclectic Cafe. Afterward, we looked for clothes for both boys at the nearby outlet mall. Lori drove down Interstate 70, through the Eisenhower Tunnel, to Denver in advance of my sister Megan's wedding. We found our Airbnb in the Country Club neighborhood of Denver. The basement apartment of a bungalow wasn't as nice as our Steamboat Airbnb, but it served its purpose well, considering we just needed a comfortable place to sleep and have a little bit of room. After seeing my dad and stepmom, Lori, Ben, and I found a Greek restaurant for dinner. On Friday, Ben and I met some of our extended family downtown for breakfast, then the two of us explored downtown, including the capitol. We visited o

The second day of vacation was busy. I had hoped to wake up early and go for a walk or run, but I slept to 8:30 and wasn't sad about it. I made a bagel for breakfast, took a shower, and ran to the store to get some provisions for the hike Ben, my sister Julie, and I were going to take. Before the hike even began, something noteworthy occurred. I had never been a passenger in a car my sister, who has not been the most confident driver over the decades, was driving. With every little bit of traffic, I could sense her trepidation, but she did great.  The hike at Mad Creek was wonderful. The whole trip was about four miles total, culminating in a restored barn. The grasshoppers were out in force around the born, and Ben captured a picture of marmot sunning itself on a rock. The hike was strenuous but not overly taxing, but I was nonetheless exhausted when we got back to the house. The pool at the condo complex is still closed, so I took a cooling shower and tried not to fall asleep aft

The day before vacation is always busy. Monday, I was busy with errands -- packing, getting a car wash, getting gas for the trip, stocking up on provisions for the drive, dropping off Popcorn, and so on. I went to bed early and slept mostly well for the first day of our trip. Today, we hit the road by 10 a.m., driving from Salt Lake City to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The trip took about seven hours, though we stopped in Heber City and Vernal. Most of the drive was on the two-lane U.S. 40, and it seemed I was stuck behind the same truck for 50 miles. (Admittedly, I hate driving and passing on two-lane highways.) The Airbnb we have is nice, though Ben and I were disappointed when the pool to the condo complex was closed and the hot tub wasn't so invigorating.  We met Julie for dinner at Taco Cabo, then got ice cream on Steamboat's downtown strip. The town reminds me of a cross between Park City and Moab. After stopping at Safeway for a few extra provisions (including a deliciou

The heat finally broke. Plus, we got some rain -- heavy rain. Today was sunny all day but with temperatures in the 80s, and tonight while I write outside, crickets are chirping, likely because they aren't overheated like everyone else was the past six weeks. Unfortunately, the last few days haven't been that exciting. I think I've hit the lull of Joe-batical. I've managed some good writing, but I'm at a point in which I don't want to be adventurous and I don't want to address organizational issues in the house, but I know that my leave in coming to its conclusion. I think that means I might be a little ready to return to work. Not that I'm excited about that prospect, but it won't be sneaking up on me, and it won't the end of the world. I think this acceptance of the end of Joe-batical was especially evident today, when, for a couple hours, I literally didn't know what to do. The day felt more like a lazy Sunday than a precious day of non-wor

Summer 1997 was dominated by wedding, wedding, and more wedding for Lori and me. The only travel we did was to Chicago and northern Wisconsin for wedding showers, or around the Midwest to other people's weddings (we easily attended double-digit weddings between 1996-2000). I don't remember much else that June and July other than planning for our own wedding, to be held on Aug. 2. Our wedding weekend was wonderful -- all the planning worked out, and all the things that didn't go right didn't make much of a difference in the grand scheme. We took the Monday afterward off, then worked the rest of the week and departed for our honeymoon on Friday.  Lori and I decided on Colorado for our trip because we knew it wouldn't be too expensive and would be more adventurous and, well, personal (for lack of a better word) than, say, an all-inclusive resort in a tropical locale -- not that we would have time to get passports that summer, anyway. Lori had never been to the mountain

Soon after Michael was born, nearly 19 years ago, I reflected on how this little human would grow up and leave some day, after all we were set to do for him in the subsequent years. But I knew that time was far off -- and to illustrate that for myself, I computed how many months we would have with him before he left for college. The number was gaudy, up above 220, and a nice reminder that I shouldn't fret the impending passage of time because this wide tableau of parenting this wondrous creation loomed ahead. Fast forward to August 2022, in which the number of months has dwindled to zero. Michael moves into his University of Utah dorm two weeks from today, with classes starting the week after. And even though he will be living not even three miles away from home, that day I kind of dreaded almost two decades ago is nearly upon us.  So much is running through my brain as the move-in date approaches. First, I can't begin to describe how impressed and proud I am of Michael. I'

The last month or so of summer has begun, and I'm of course wondering where July went. Although I feel like I've gotten much done the past month, and the break has been a bit rejuvenating, I also feel like I'm running out of time. The last couple days have been a bit lazier -- which is sort of the point of the Joe-batical -- but I'm looking to ramp things up this week. Lori is on Costa Rica on a Pilates retreat. An opportunity came up for her to go on this trip kind of last minute, and she so deserves the adventure. The boys and I are holding down the fort while she's gone. The heat finally broke today, and a thunderstorm rumbled through Salt Lake City tonight. I ran many errands over the weekend and am at a point I don't have to do much else this week. I was hoping to go to the pool last week, but it never worked out -- I did lounge in the sun in the backyard (and self-dunked with the hose to cool off) a few times instead. This is one of the things I enjoy ever

My Joe-batical goal of fervent decluttering and reorganization is biting me in the posterior. On the back half of the leave, I'm ready to say I'm Marie Kando-ed out ... I've actually achieved much over the past four days, and I'm in a place where I can wrap it up, get the storage in a decent place, make my office functional, and remove the spillover into other parts of the house that understandably occurred. But, I'm giving up on some of the stretch goals, and I'm content to tackle further organization later. For example, there are still a few crates of clothes deep in Michael's closet -- that he mostly ignores -- that can stay there until after he moves into the dorm (which is, yikes, only three weeks away). Reconsolidating the CD collections -- which I already did with the cassettes -- can wait as well, because the CDs aren't haphazardly stored and aren't creating clutter. I'm just ready to be done -- and be content that the things I wanted to

As Joe-batical continues, I'm finding something interesting: As I'm not working as a writer, I've had little desire to write outside of work. Usually, I'm so drained creatively that I'm not in the mood to write after work concludes or on the weekends. I thought that free from work, my creative juices would kick in again and I'd be productive. So far, that hasn't been the case -- I haven't even wanted to summer blog. Perhaps I needed this break to completely disconnect from the words, hopefully to feel refreshed enough to dive back in. Hopefully, that happens soon, because I'm nearly halfway through the leave. That said, the last several days have remained a mix of productive and relaxing. Ben is swimming in the state long-course meet this week, which is a little nuts, but otherwise, I'm enjoying the leave. I'm really looking forward to this weekend to get much done -- I feel like I'm on a cusp of getting my office, a big swath of storage

The first week of Joe-batical were an outstanding combination of productivity and relaxation. I started and finished a few projects, including streamlining and cataloging our DVDs, installing hooks on the garage to hang a sun shade over Michael's garden, sifting through books to donate, finally using Time Machine on my Mac, and other smaller initiatives. I also tested out the new lawn chair I got for Father's Day. And yesterday, the boys and I saw Styx, REO Speedwagon, and Loverboy at USANA Amphitheater.  What I haven't done much the last week is actually write, which I'm hoping to get going this week. Reviewing the past several days, the weather has been infernally hot (and getting worse this week as we head for consecutive days over 100), I've watched several movies (including "This Is Where I Leave You," "Tango and Cash" and "Rachel Getting Married"), and seemed to go to a store every day. Tomorrow, I may need to go again to buy a ne

The last 12 days have been a whirlwind of activity, travel, emotions, and transition. Do I go backward or forward as I recap? I'll start in the middle: I traveled to Scottsdale, Arizona, for my company's annual retreat. As a remote organization, we don't see each other much, so these 3-4 days are special. The weather was ungodly hot in Arizona, and the pools at the five-star resort felt like bathwater and weren't so refreshing. But everything indoor was heavily air-conditioned, and the outdoor activities had giant misters blasting. And the water slides were fun. Most importantly, I got to see coworkers and, especially, hang out with good friends that I only communicate with on Slack and Zoom. The event goes by too fast, but the next one is not even 11 months away.  I flew back Wednesday afternoon and got about 15 minutes in the house before Lori, Ben and I hit the road to drive to Grand Junction, Colorado, for a swim meet. We stayed in an Airbnb that worked out really w

The bugs are out tonight. We don't get many mosquitos here in Utah, but we do get what look like giant mosquitos but are some kind of green flying thing. They don't bite, but they are attracted to the light of my laptop and generally get in the way. This stretch of summer started with Father's Day. Ben and I picked up Breakfast Baconators and found a park to eat our breakfast at before he went to work (he's lifeguarding this summer). Michael and I golfed in the afternoon on the par-3 at Mick Riley. The wind was crazy, and Michael hadn't golfed in years. I finished with a 43 and he had a 54. Lori made fajitas for dinner. The last three days of work have been uneventful. I'm just about caught up on everything before the company retreat and my subsequent paid leave. I wrote my usual summer solstice post last night, and today I grilled ribs for dinner. The heat returns tomorrow, and I plan to work as much as I can by the pool the next two days.

My annual tradition that began 15 years ago continues today -- I'm writing from the hillside in Donner Park, waiting for the sunset, reflecting on the year. But about 30 yards in front of where I put my blanket down, the sprinklers turned on, and I'm wondering if a row of sprinklers exactly where I'm sitting is next. The sprinklers might be a good metaphor for 2022. There's a sense of uneasiness in front of what lies beyond. I pondered last year how the pandemic and political chaos had distorted time, and unfortunately, that didn't let up. I also thought about how Lori and I were in the homestretch of parenting kids. Well, in a blink of an eye, another year ticked off. So much excitement looms. Michael starts college in August, and Ben is evolving into maybe a Division I swimmer. My job turn a turn into everything I wanted from the position. As a family, we seem less stressed -- not that we were overwhelmed before, but at a nice, acceptable degree of peace.  But I

Oops! The past nine days have seen unusual heat interrupted by rain. I've worked, gone for runs and attended two swim meets for Ben. And just like that about 20 percent of summer is complete. But the best is yet to come. My six-week paid sabbatical is coming up, and my brain is swirling with what I want to do with the time. Airfare and gas is so expensive that a bunch of travel is probably out. We are taking Ben to a swim meet in Grand Junction, then going to Colorado for my sister's wedding. There's another meet in California that we're starting to conclude that we aren't traveling, too -- it will cost so much, and Ben isn't swimming that great this summer (he always struggles with long-course season). I would love to find another adventure, but both boys want to work, and even a trip to Chicago won't work. Maybe we'll do something small.  I mostly don't want to let the Joe-battical go to waste. Besides traveling, here's what I may do: Relive an

We have good friends who are in Korea until the end of the month, and we are house-sitting and taking care of their dogs while they're gone. They also have an in-ground pool, and today, for four hours, I worked from their shady patio, jumping in the pool and subsequently lounging on a giant frog float a in between longer spurts of work. This is one of the reasons I love working remotely during the summer. I'm not stuck inside an office as the season passes me by. I can get work done while still thoroughly enjoying summer. The last two days have been warm, and the weekend will be even hotter. I didn't run this morning -- my day was full of meetings and I couldn't quite fit it in beforehand. Only one meeting was at the pool, which I concluded by jumping into the slightly chilled water on Zoom. I hope they didn't think I was rubbing my cool work locale in too much ... Lori also worked by the pool for those four hours and I think was equally inspired. We picked up Cupbo

I generally face two obstacles to writing my summer posts on a daily basis: I either am too tired or work into the evening and am creatively spent. Tonight, I worked into the evening but have some energy to blog. Over the weekend, I really didn't have much of an excuse ... In my defense, I was spent on Saturday, then worked in the front yard all day Sunday. And a couple writing assignments for work fried my brain.  Otherwise, the past five days have been mostly uneventful. I ran a few days and tried doing a weight workout but twinged my hip. I'm convinced this workout, which I discovered about five years ago on Men's Health's Facebook feed, is meant for younger men. Maybe I'll find some other workout for the next few weeks before my work retreat. At least the running has felt good and has fit into the "I might be taking my shirt off in front of coworkers" wellness plan.  The heat is coming -- starting tomorrow, temperatures will climb into the 90s. I'm

This short week has felt so weird. Today didn't seem like Thursday or even my third day of the week. Tomorrow is Friday already and I don't feel like I've accomplished much at work. The production probably isn't as bleak as I'm making it out to be. And I'm happy the weekend is almost here after the last one just ended. I woke up early today and went for a long run that felt great. I made breakfast and took my computer outside, where I worked for the next six hours or so. Again, not the best-quality or most efficient work, but a long swath nonetheless on a pleasant June day. I took Ben to swim practice and went to Beans and Brews to sit outside and work while sipping on a large frozen lemonade. Unfortunately, Verizon's mobile hotspot totally stopped working and I couldn't get any internet (I stopped logging in to coffee shops' WiFi). Not sure if Verizon was glitchy or suddenly a throng of users nearby were overwhelming any nearby towers, but I suddenl

Most years when I blog every day for summer, I start sometime in May. This year, I don't even know what happened to May. The last four months have been a whirlwind, sort of culminating with Michael's graduation from high school (I'll blog about that another day). I was planning to start the summer blogging on Ben's birthday, then after Michael graduated, then on Memorial Day weekend ... but it didn't happen until today, June 1. That's OK. By my count, my late-starting summer has 99 days. And those 99 promise to be unique. I'm taking six weeks off from work -- I get a paid monthlong sabbatical and am tacking on two weeks of PTO after it. We don't have any major trips planned but enough smaller ones that summer won't lack for adventure. I can lament how I haven't been writing these past four months, but rather than be pissed, I'm looking forward to the next three to write, write, and write some more. Summer 2022 might be the summer I catch up -

The dog needs a longish walk every day, even with her within five months of turning 11. For more than a decade, a good percentage of those walks occurred at night. The mornings and afternoons were busy with work and kids, and finding an uninterrupted 30-60 minutes proved a challenge. So, after Lori mostly retired for the night and the boys were off doing their things (and, earlier in the 2010s, after they went to bed), or after we completed whatever evening activities the boys had, I would get Popcorn out for her walk. Of course, winter expands the night so that even an earlier walk is likely in the dark. That's why early-evening walks in April and May are so nice -- we can get out at 7 p.m. and still have sunlight.  For years, I guess I never really minded the night-time walks. But as I've grown older, the late excursions have felt more and more unappealing. Although some of this surely is a craving for sunlight during winter -- and the loneliness winter nights tend to evoke w

We've just passed about two weeks without snow in Salt Lake City. December was snowy after November was anything but wintry, but now, most of the snow has melted, an inversion has set in, and there's no precipitation forecast until Friday while highs hover in the low 40s. Not that I mind that much ... Yeah, I've come to despise winter, even the relatively mild Salt Lake City winters that don't quite compare to January in the Midwest. This is our 22nd winter here, and though we've dealt with inversions since we arrived, the winters seem tamer and tamer as the years have gone by. Winter storms are fewer, and the snow melts quicker when it does hit. That's not so bad for me, but not so good for reservoirs and ski resorts. That said, I think I strained my back after shoveling following the last winter storm, when we got about seven inches of snow. Earlier in December we got hit with about 14 inches. These are pretty significant snow events for here, given the droug