Highlights from my 53rd Year

As of the writing of this Blog entry, I’m officially 53-Years and 1-Day old. Yesterday was my birthday. A favorite “thing” I do with my family is “Best and Worst”. We did it for years at dinner. I’d ask everyone … best part of your day? Worst part of your day?

My kids know, now, they better not let a conversation slow down because I’m gonna bust our “Best and Worst”. When they were little, it was the “day”. And my wife and I participated, too, lest you think I only tormented my kids. I liked it as a chance to reflect and think. Show a little gratitude for little things. Look for ways to improve or realize that the “worst part” is often fleeting. Good things and bad things happen in a moment, and we often miss them or dwell on them, respectively.

It backfires sometimes because last night, sitting having dinner with my family, my daughter said, “OK, le’ts do Best Part and Worst Part of Dad.” It spiraled into a celebrity roast, of sorts … not the feel-good moment I was looking for.

I got it under control (actually I love when my kids laugh at me and tease me) and then someone asked, more seriously, “what’s your Best and Worst of your 53rd year?” I liked the idea. And I think I’ll do this every year. My 53rd Year had a whole list of amazing things.

ALABAMA (state of, and University of): My older two kids went to Michigan State. I successfully brainwashed them but totally forgot to brainwash my third child, so she chose University of Alabama and she had a great Freshman year. Until early 2025, I’d never been to Tuscaloosa. Now? I’ve been there 6 times and I’m excited about the next three years. Among the Tuscaloosa highlights are…

• 5 Road Trips + 1 Flyaway:
  • Move-In Weekend
  • Move-Out Weekend
  • Fall-Break Road Trip there and back with my 81-year-old Dad,
  • Spring Break Road Trip with my wife and my 86-year-old Father-in-Law
  • Iron Bowl Road Trip (to Auburn):
  • Tri-Delt Parents Weekend
• A Night in Nashville with my wife: Following Move-In Weekend, my wife and I made the halfway point of the trip home a stop in Nashville. We’d never been there, but heard the hype, and when we turned the corner onto Broadway and saw the sea of people and a hundred open-air bars all with bands playing great music …unforgettable.
• Discovered Pee Wee Valley on one of the trips
• Discovered Twin Peaks on one of the trips and LOVED their food and sub-zero beers (even my wife opted for beer when they’re that cold)
• Saw my Best-Friend Chad and his wife TWICE … he lives far away so I don’t see him nearly as often as I would like, and now his daughter’s going to ‘Bama, so I might get to see him even more often.

Bought a Honda Lawnmower and Embraced Battery-Powered Trimmer, Leaf Blower, and Hedge Trimmer: I know I should be embarrassed, but tending to my lawn is something I love doing. I had a nice Honda Lawnmower and then, years ago, ran over a lacrosse ball and destroyed it. So I replaced it with a used Toro (I never buy new mowers). The Toro was good enough, but didn’t mulch great. The deck had a split. It stalled every now and then and I suspect the carborator was bad. So I kept looking on CraigsList for another Honda and had a price-point in my head and …bam. Finally snared one and for a lawn guy like myself, it’s such a superior machine and the dual blades make every cut look like I did it by hand with scissors. And then, was watching and found a super deal on a Greenworks combo leaf blower and weed trimmer … with battery … to go with the battery I already have for my Greenworks hedgetrimmer. Let’s just say, the battery powered leaf blower was worth the entire purchase because I’ve been using a leaf blower with a cord for years and it’s a “process” to uncoil the cord and use the blower and recoil the cord. With this thing … slap on the battery and go! Outdoor furuniture. Gutters. Spider webs. Grass clippings. I’m efficient, baby!

My Daughter Passed Her Certification Exam Got a Full Time Job (and started a career) She Loves: When my kids set their minds on something and have goals, those goals become my goals. If my kids want something – then I want it for them. My daughter is a Child Life Specialist. She wanted to be a Child Life Specialist before she went to Michigan State, the entire time she was there, and after. Worked her butt off. Took extra classes. Built her resume. Agonized over Practicums and Internships and for her line of work … she needed to pass the Childlife Certification Exam. She didn’t pass the first time. More stress on me. She started dating (seriously) a great guy, pursuing a medical degree, so he’s all about studying and he was in her corner and making sure she studied. And …drum roll … she passed. She cried. My wife cried. I cried. Tears of happiness. I’m so happy and proud of her.

Just for the record … these aren’t in any particular order of importance, lest you think my lawnmower is a bigger highlight than my daughter starting a career.

Another Year at Torch Lake and a NEW Place to Stay: I’ve been vacationing at just about the same longitudinal and latitunal spot on Torch Lake (just north of Alden) since I was 5 or 6 years old. My kids have vacationed at Torch Lake their entire lives (and not because I force them). We go with my brother and his family. A couple years ago, our year-in-year-out renter sold his place and we had to scramble to find some places to rent. Then, on a whim, an old friend owned a place right next door to where we’d been renting for about 20 years and I asked her, “would you rent to us?” Because it’s us (me) … she said yes and …wow … talk about an upgrade!!! Plus, the tradition continues and I feel amazing about that. For years, every time we would pull away from our cottage on the last day I would say, “well, if this was our last year in this spot, it’s been a great _____ years.” And now? I’ve got a few more years until I have to find a new latitude and longitude.

Got Health and Shed the Right Number of Pounds: My 53rd year was a year of learning that weight ain’t nothing but a number. But … there comes a point where enough is enough and I’d like to live until at least 90 and I’d like to be upright, active, and healthy. So let’s say, I got healthy and really focused on that and a side result was losing 12 pounds.

Became a Pencil Guy: I try to recycle and save the Earth at least a little bit so when I can eliminate plastic and waste … I do. A pencil feels “green” to me. And I like how it feels to write with a pencil. To sharpen it. I try different styles of wooden pencils. There’s a real pencil cult full of pencil enthusiasts and I’ve saving landfills one wood pencil at a time.

The Moth: Performed 3 times and REALLY liked 2 of my stories (finished 2nd Place one time). This is my creative outlet. I don’t tell stories just to tell stories. I tell them and then as The Moth for the recordings because my stories are important memories I never want to forget and I want to pass down to my kids and to their kids. Telling stories at The Moth forces me to write some stuff down, organize the story in my head, and tell it so it makes sense and can live forever. My cousin, Jim, joins me at The Moth.

Read 24 Books: Hit my goal of 2-books-per-month … 1 fiction, 1 self-improvement or educational. Might sound crazy, but adding reading (always paper books, too … and so much for “being green” … I check them out from the library, if that helps my carbon footprint and guilt) … what was I saying? Oh. Yes. Adding a minimum of 10 pages in the morning and 10 pages at night has helped my brain and I’m sleeping better than ever.

Breathing (through my nose and for therapy): Two of the 24 books were Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art and Just Breathe, and I made a major effort to make sure I’m breathing through my nose, especially when I sleep (or at least as I’m falling asleep … I can’t control what happens when I’m sound asleep). I learned other breathing techniques and facts and I do all sorts of odd things (like hold my breath in the shower, breathe with 4-7-8 technique, and other silly things like slowly inhale while slowly accelerating away from red lights and slow, low breathing while doing stretching routines a couple days a week. Plus, as a guy who suffered for a long time with a lung disorder, this will help ensure I don’t backslide or relapse.

MSU Tailgates: 7 home games and we made it to them all, which meant I saw my son up at campus each of those 7 weeks. Plus friends, old college buddies, and I am happy every time I’m up at MSU because some of the best years of my life happened there, formed friendships I have to this day, and it’s where I fell in love with my wife.

Plus a dozen other things . . . hosted Thanksgiving again and the turkeys were PERFECT. Had another lovely Christmas Eve at my sister’s, and Christmas Day at my cousins’, hosted another New Year’s Eve Rockin’ Even at our house (went to 3am), and a few weeks before Christmas, celebrated Christmas with my wife’s family. Saw my cousin and his wife at Christmas time when they were in Michgan, home from Napa Valley. I spent Memorial Day, July 4th, and Labor Day where we typically do … over the river and through the woods at Grandfather’s house (we gooooo). At work I landed 4 really cool pieces of business.

What’s the point of all of this? Is it bragging? Oh, hell no. I sure hope it doesn’t sound like I’m bragging. It’s me taking a moment to be grateful and count my blessings and remember how lucky I am. I don’t mind sharing the “Best-of My 53rd Year” and I’ll spare you the “Worst-of” because that would definitely sound like I’m complaining.

I try to fill my brain space with uplifting books, Podcasts, and articles and everytime someone’s handing out advice they say, “be grateful” or “keep a gratitude journal” and I’m guilty as anyone when I have a bad moment, bad day, bad week, or hit a slump and it’s easy to think, “why me,” and, “I could really use some good luck.”

These highlights remind me … I have alot to be grateful for and had a pretty good 53rd year.