"That's Good, That's Bad"

Welcome everyone back to Friday Fragments where we once again share those bits and pieces  that don’t rate a post all to themselves.  

The last few days have reminded me of Archie Campbell's legendary "That's Good, That's Bad" routine from the old Hee Haw shows.  A couple of nights ago twenty-three of my family members gathered at a new restaurant in town, where my nephew is the chef, to celebrate the fiftieth birthday of one of my  brothers.  That’s Good.  But, this was the tenth of my twelve siblings to reach the big "five zero."  That’s Bad, because being the oldest child it really highlights  just how ancient I am. 

   

The Old Salt and me at the new "Old Dutch Restaurant"
Does this look like a guy that needs a haircut? 

Last night we went to dinner with our adopted daughter and her family for an early celebration of the Old Salt’s birthday .  Again that’s good.  But, because the fair is in town the restaurant was short staffed.  And, a new menu had just gone into effect causing chaos in the kitchen.  That’s bad, because our food was slow and mostly cold, service was terrible and the higher prices on the new menu had us paying more for our mediocre meal.  

I realized this week that while you can take the Old Salt out of the military (that's good, because I would not have met him otherwise) I will never get the military out of my dear husband.  That’s bad, because we have a party to attend this weekend.  This same party is exactly why he has been trying to get to the barber shop everyday this week.  Since I like his hair a bit longer I have been doing everything in my power to delay the haircut.  I just know he is going to manage to find some way to get around me before noon tomorrow.  

To revisit a post I did three years ago on the
Old Salt and hair cuts read

  "High and Tight" by click here. 

Beth, who hosts one of the blogs I follow wrote a post recently reviewing  a book she was reading.  I realized that I have barely touched a book since the Old Salt and I got married five years ago.   Until then, it was rare for me to ever be without one.  I had my nose in a book every spare minute I could find.   The Old Salt was the same way.  He was reading several books a month when we first got together and now I rarely see him reading anything besides his two must have magazines  (Time and Consumer Reports) and the newspaper.          

Just one of my bookcases

These days my computer gives me more reading than I have time to complete.  I have also found that what is published on some of the blogs I lurk on about the real lives of the writers is more interesting then most of the fiction I have read.  I do not find I miss my books like I would have a few years ago.  There is no shortage of books in our house, we have several overloaded bookcases and a stack on almost ever nightstand and table.   We continue to pick up books at thrift stores and yard sales with the best intentions of reading them. 

 I am starting to understand that books were escapism for me.  A way to hide from the world, the people and the stress in my life and possibly avoid the pain they were inflicting.  I no longer have that need to hide and the books sit in unread stacks all around my house.    A friend once told me that my husband must be good medicine for me because they felt that since meeting him I found a real life to live and I seem to enjoy the world instead of just reading about it.   I now see that they were right.  

I hope you will all join me this weekend in getting out of the house and enjoying all that this big world has to offer.  

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