Past, present & plans: 9-3-16

/ Jim McDonald / 3 Comments

Past, present & plans: 9-3-16

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Past

 

I have this memory of my sister tumbling down the basement stairs. I was standing at the top of the thirteen steps, watching Debbie fall and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I was supposed to be watching her, because she was only one. That made me the responsible one at seven years old. I wasn’t sure of the memory, so I asked Debbie her opinion. She told me, “Mom said Aunt Bernice caught me before I fell.” Watching her fall never actually happened, I guess a terrible vision got burned into mind of what could have happened, because of my irresponsibility. I guess some our strongest memories never happened. Our mind is a powerful vehicle.

 

Present

 

I wanted to try a new writing spot at the Marina and I’m at it now. Love the new spot, it’s under a tent right on the river with a great view. As a matter of fact I just watched a duck dive and come up with a small perch hanging out of its choppers. I have my phone tuned to a great Blues station to help me relax. Good music, good breeze and I hope good writing. I have several spots here at the Marina, other than this one.

 

My houseboat is the easiest and my favorite, because I can send everything through the window: computer, water and food. When I get up there, then I can set up shop by: opening the patio umbrella, pull out my convenient container full of all the stuff that I may or may not need. Plug in the radio and write.

 

Another is on the east side of the boatel at a picnic table, but that’s in the sun with no protection from the rays or glare.

 

Plans

 

My plans today are simple, a good friend of mine smokes the best ribs in La Plata, probably Charles County or the state. Earlier in the week he took some orders for the Labor Day weekend and I have a slab of his great ribs coming in few hours for twenty dollars. Guess what I’ll be doing when they get here. Oh and he is delivering them to my boat

 

Random thoughts: Depression (true story)

/ Jim McDonald / 9 Comments

Random thoughts: Depression (true story)

 

Four years ago I fell into a vast crevice of depression. The reasons why, are not important to this little story. Although they are important to me.

 

I always had these rainy day blues, but didn’t know it was depression, until a couple of years ago. There would be two or three days, where I would completely shut down and do nothing. Typically, only people who are depressed or have battled this affliction can understand with any degree of compassion how it feels.

 

I had a plan. I was going to the corner of the woods sit down and pull the trigger. I didn’t, because of my sons and my sister.

 

My brother committed suicide in 1985, so if I did the same, it would have devastated my sister. She saved my life and doesn’t even know it.

 

It’s not a physical pain. It’s not like a head ache or back ache. There was not one particular reason, I just didn’t want to BE anymore and I wanted the pain to stop.

 

I lived on a farm with no one around, but still peaked out the window. If someone knocked on the door it scared me to the point I would hide. I did not want to answer the phone, door or window.

 

It has taken a lot of work with one therapist and she has become very important to me.

 

Depression is not to be taken lightly.

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How ya like my hat? Stupid hat (true story)

/ Jim McDonald / 8 Comments

How ya like my hat? Stupid hat (true story)

 

I was in line at WAWA yesterday, when I noticed a very attractive lady in line a head of me. I studied her outfit for a second or two, which looked like an exercise outfit. I then told her, “I’ll let you pay for my gas, if you let me take a picture of you.”

 

She returned my comment with a hardy laugh and a resounding, “NO!” then laughed some more.

 

I am, so glad when people get my, sometimes stupid humor and it feels so good to hear them laugh. I replied, “Ok. I’ll pay for my gas and take a picture of you.”

 

“Ok, but you have to let me take a picture of you wearing this hat.”

 

Of course I said, “Deal!” thinking solely of my ‘How ya like my hat?’ gig.

 

Here is the picture she took.

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Just messin, bought it at a yard sale for a buck.

Random thoughts: Bandit (true story)

/ Jim McDonald / 10 Comments

Random thoughts: Bandit (true story)

 

When my last wife left me in ’95, I was frantically lost. I’m sure it was similar to the same feelings I felt, when the previous two wives left. The common denominator was me, so now I don’t look for another wife, I just look for friends.

 

A couple months after she left, my Pastor and some other friends told me to get another heart beat in the house. I know they meant rent out a room or something similar. However, I decided to get a puppy, so the search was on. After a week of searching for an exotic pup, I decided to pause the search, because of financial difficulties.

 

I prayed for guidance and the very next day God sent me Bandit. A neighbor girl came over and she showed me this seven week old Shepard mutt and she asked me if I wanted her. I took her, brought her in close and she licked my face. We were friends on the spot.

 

My neighbors didn’t know I was looking for a pup, but now there was a new heart beat in the house. She was so cute, so young and so messy, but she was my buddy.

 

It didn’t take long for her to become my best and closest friend. After twelve years of friendship the going joke was, Bandit was with me longer than all three of the ex wives put together.

 

Over the next eighteen years we lived in three different places, the townhouse, trailer and the farmhouse. She was fine with all of them, but we liked the farm house best of all.

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She was going blind, couldn’t hardly walk, had no appetite and in constant pain. I felt I should show her mercy and KILL my best friend. I couldn’t do that, but my neighbor would and all it would cost me was a 22 slug. I decided the next day, which was Christmas day her present would be relief. My best friend of eighteen years died that night.

 

 

Random Thoughts: the garbage man (true story)

/ Jim McDonald / 4 Comments

Random Thoughts: the garbage man (true story)

 

The other day I was pulling out of my development, when I saw a normal sight to most of us. Something that often goes undetected, it was the garbage man. He was on my side of the street getting ready to pull over to his side. He just picked up my neighbors trash and was heading to the next can. As we passed I threw up my hand and both the driver and the man hanging off of the back of the truck waved at me. They did not nod or give a little wave like motorcyclist do when they meet on the road. They both put up their hands and smiled, very vigorously I might add. They seemed to be so happy just to be noticed.

 

I’m a talkative friendly person and the older I get the more outgoing I become. I tip the mailman at Christmas and he seems to be very grateful for that, but when I wave at him I barely get a nod. I wave at my neighbors that are strangers and they either just barely put their hands up or don’t acknowledge me at all. I wave at my immediate neighbors and people that work at the marina and they barely do the same as my stranger neighbors. I admit sometimes people might not see me for whatever reason or their minds are on more pressing issues.

 

I have one friend that works at the marina and he goes out of his way to say hi to me, even yell it across the empty or busy compound. I’m sure he has no idea how grateful I am for that. To know people with a nice humble outgoing nature is one of the great pleasures in life. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that the more a person has the less sociable is the standard. Some people might think low of the garbage man, they work doing a job that most of us wouldn’t consider doing. They do it with a smile, while paying their bills.

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Some of my carpentry work in the kitchen of a log cabin. 2012