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MAY 1986, THE LAST WEDDING

It was a cloudy, wet, day, in May 1986 for the last wedding.
Like so many raised on the Oregon coast, a cloudy, wet, day, is good luck no matter where you are.
Everything was done, everything set in Sandy, from rented morning coats to a rented preacher.
The preacher was a second choice.
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SHARING SPECIAL DAYS, EVERY LAST ONE

Special days have special meaning which don’t hit the same for everyone.
For some it’s repeating, “Why bother,” for the fortieth time.
Others like to say, “I thought we’ve moved past all that.”
But you still find those looking for something special in every day, and keep looking until they find it. Hell or high water.
The last line is the bell ringer.
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OLD PORTLAND, YOUNG PARENTS

Make that old Portland, youngish parents.
Or not so old Portland, and not so young parents.
We weren’t teenagers, but if you ever want to feel like one push a stroller around downtown.
With two kids it’s like a double punishment, like sent to your room AND missing dinner.
What else?
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LET THEM, LET YOU, OR LET ME?

The Let Them Theory book has a lot of lets in the letters.
My favorites are the parts that address my problems, which come with a writing habit from what I can tell.
Will I discover why I’m not a better writer?
Learn what I should have done by now, or find a lingering message to get over myself already?
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NORTH BEND HEROES START HERE

 Calling North Bend a small town is a disservice to real small towns everywhere.
Driving south on 101 and crossing the North Bend Bridge takes you under this sign.
If you’re not paying close attention and keep going the same direction, the entire area of the largest metro complex on the Oregon coast feels like it’s all North Bend, especially if you miss the little coos bay sign.
How can the biggest city on the coast be a small town?
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toughen up

Health Writing? Start With Cancer And Drill Down

  Health writing is about bringing hope to the afflicted. Cancer writing, not so much. One is about the future and the steps to make it better. The other is layered with dread.   One is about improving conditions, about personal bests, about gains; the other is layered with dread.   Health writing brings nutrition, […]

Boomer Gym: 1-1-1

Baby boomer numbers scare non-boomers. Most of the numbers you hear sound like this: 79 Million Baby Boomers in America. 10,000 Baby Boomers retire every day. Those are the frightening numbers. Number matter, but one of the most important is one hundred eleven, the old 111. But what does it mean? It’s a natural number. A […]

BOOMERITIS, OR WHY DOES IT HURT WHEN I DO THIS?

The Longer You Let Yourself Go, The Longer The Trail Back. One doctor joke goes like this: “It hurts when I raise my arm.” Doc says, “Don’t raise your arm.” It’s as funny the first time as it is the last, if you don’t have arm pain. Most of us have pain from one thing […]

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boomer years

GOOD ENOUGH YET?

When ‘getting over it’ isn’t good enough. It all sounds the same. Get over it. Move on. Turn the page. Maybe you say it to yourself, maybe you hear it from others. If it’s others giving the push, you know what they’re really saying? You’re a whiner. In blogger land it’s whining about SEO, traffic, […]

BABY BOOMER RESENTMENT, Con’t

The Beatles. For all the bands that go on forever, The Who, The Stones, Bob Dylan, why did we lose The Beatles so early? Baby boomer abandoned? Could be they burned so bright they went blind to our needs? Five years of top albums in the decade might do it. The Beatles had their five. […]

BOOMER SON OF ENGLAND DIES 13 YEARS AFTER STABBING

Boomer son Alexander Lloyd, dead at age 36, thirteen years after a stabbing left him in the sort of condition that calls for medical miracles. Family care helped him for from age twenty three, then an infection set in that couldn’t be stopped. Alex is the son of my wife’s cousin. My boys met their […]

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buckle up

HOW TO INTERACT WITH RAJNEESH CULT MEMBERS ON PORTLAND STREETS

    Most days after work in the 80’s I walked the same way to my NW Portland apartment. The path took me past a place called the Martha Washington on SW 11th. I walked the same way so I could talk to an interesting woman from the museum.   Note to remember: All museum […]

PUBLIC BEACHES FOR OREGON MARINE GARDEN, MARINE RESERVE, MARINE OIL SPILL

    Public beaches usually mean one thing, like the one thing private beaches convey. Public beaches, like Oregon beaches, are available to everyone, anyone.   Private beaches? Not so much. More like a backyard pool.   But what happens when public beaches in Oregon come with obstacles?   What are we supposed to do […]

Lighten Up While You Still Can

    When The Eagles sing Take It Easy, the line that stands out for me is, ‘Lighten up while you still can.’ It’s the same when Jackson Browne and James Taylor sing it.   Baby boomers know how hard it is to lighten up better than anyone. Lighting up too, but that’s another post. […]

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