"I Still Got It!!!"...by Jim Terry

As I sit here writing this blog for Christmas, it just amazes me that another holiday season is here and that another end to a year is once again upon us. I know I have asked this before, but “Where does the time go?” And, as you know, this year has also definitely been one to dismantle, sever and destroy. With the pandemic currently in full strength, mask-wearing, TP shortages, hand sanitizer use, opening and closing of businesses with job losses, this year, I would clearly say, has been placed in the category of “one to remember”…without a doubt! Most might also say that this has been, “A crappy year,” or might even say it’s, “One to forget.” However, in light of everything that has happened this year and claiming myself to be an “eternal optimist,” I have to admit that, “I still got it.”

I’m sure you all may be thinking right now, “Oh no! What glory day story are we about to hear?” But I will save you the agony and head in another direction.

We normally would put our Christmas tree up around Thanksgiving so we, as my Mom used to say, “Could enjoy the Christmas season.” I must say, it was definitely fun to enjoy the tree for a little over a month, but I totally understand now why we completed decorating the tree at that time. With eight kids and an unknown amount of work to still be completed within the next month and in time for the “big day,” I’m sure my Mom and Dad needed every bit of time they had in order to make the magic of Christmas happen without worrying about another thing to do. It was always so dreamlike and surreal how my parents made it happen so beautifully and perfectly each and every year.

To this day, not only do I still put my tree up around the Thanksgiving holiday, but I also like to carry on some of the other family traditions that we used to do that would make the season so picture-perfect…so magical.

The smell of apples and cinnamon was an ever-present aroma in our home during the Christmas season. As a young boy and with my Mom’s kettle on the stove, I always knew that the gentle jingling and jangling of the kettle’s lid created from the simmering of the potpourri contained with the container only meant that the Christmas season was near.

I also remember that there were times when the prominent smell of apples and cinnamon were superimposed with baked goods. Everything from cookies, homemade rolls, pumpkin pie, and turkey in the oven somehow enhanced the delight at that time of year.

Funny how other traditions, from a beautifully lit tree, to lights on the exterior of the home, snow quietly falling outside, snowmen in the front yard, “stockings hung by the chimney with care,” a crackling warm fire, Christmas tree festivals, a soothing and comforting cup of hot chocolate or warm cider, leaving a letter for Santa with cookies and milk on Christmas Eve, can all bring such feelings of longing and nostalgia.

Do you remember when you were young and how Christmas Eve and that night made you feel? It’s interesting to me how you’d think that as you age, where I am no longer the “tiny tot” I once was, that it would make it easier to sleep instead of finding it “harder to sleep” on Christmas Eve.

“Why is this?” I had to ask myself.

My role as a receiver and the excitement that was generated as a young boy has now turned into a giver. It’s a new type of enthusiasm and fervor that now keeps me up at night…the anticipation of a phone call from or to family and friends…the experience of watching children on Christmas morn finding out if they were “naughty or nice”...the happiness in simply seeing others receive the gifts you bestow or by simply being with family. Those are now the things that cause the restless night and have become my greatest gifts.

So what did I mean when I said, “I still got it?” you may ask?

It’s definitely not the baseball arm I used to have or the ability to run for miles and barely be winded, but that IT is the one same thing that makes the Christmas season so magical…so memorable…so fun. It’s the same thing that also made Scrooge realize what a miserable old miser he was and what made the Grinch’s heart grow ”three sizes that day”…so when I say, “I got it!” It’s the Christmas Spirit that I still got and will always have! Have you still got it?

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM OUR FAMILY TO YOURS!!!

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#Thankmyluckystars...by Jim Terry

Just the other day I was on one of my hikes after work at Coyote Point Recreation Area. It’s a great area to hike due to the scenery that one can experience whilst taking in nature.  The trail starts out flat but then goes up a bluff so you can get some elevation gain and have more of a bird’s eye view. At the top of the bluff, you can then take in the view. It encompasses the bay water, the city by the bay, the towering eucalyptus trees, and, if nightfall, you can even see some stars. The quiet stillness that is created from a gentle breeze that quietly rustles the leaves in the trees and the reflection of the lights from the city and the bay bridge which echo and flicker upon the water’s surface, brings a sense of peace and tranquility somehow.  It really is something to witness at least once in one’s lifetime.  

As you all know, we just had one of the most “attention-grabbing” presidential elections to date. So after work on November 3rd, not only was I hiking this amazing trail, but I was also trying to read and learn what the results of the election were. Now keep in mind, that it is now about 6 pm as I continued my journey that evening. This means it is totally dark outside and I have a bright screen on my phone. This situation is very similar to when you walk into a dark room and flip the light on. Initially, you are “blinded by the light” and may get vertigo or dizziness for a moment but then, after the fact, you “see stars.”

If I had a crystal ball and could have seen into the future, I would have put my reading about the election on hold that day. As you know and because of the pandemic we are in, we had delayed results anyhow because of all of the mail-in ballots. 

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Life can change in an instant?” If so, this is exactly what happened to me that night…As I continued to hike and towards the top of the bluff with daunting cliffs just below me, I continued to look down at my screen and then back up again at the blackness that surrounded me. I did this time and time again but on the last occurrence, it created the scenario I spoke of while entering that dark room and flipping the lights on.  Not only did I  “see stars” but it also generated a bit of disorientation for me. With my newfound awkwardness, I then took my next step.  Needless to say, that step was off of the path, which encompassed a very steep embankment where I then lost my footing.

Have you ever rolled a rock down a hill? At first, it starts out a bit slow and then continues to speed up as it continues down that given slope as long as nothing is in its way.  My body and I did not know a fifty-year-old man could recreate this scenario and do this so effortlessly.  After I catapulted myself from the path I was on, I literally sped up as I continued to roll down the hill.  During this incident, I first saw the dirt as I hit the ground…then the towering trees…then the stars in the sky…then the city landscape, and repeat again as I continued rolling down the steep ridge. This “amazing view” I spoke of happened not once, not twice, but five times as I plummeted down the hill.

During my fall, I also witnessed my lit-up phone and water bottle that I was carrying, just like a scene in a movie and what seemed like in slow motion, go flying through the air as they flew from my hand’s grasp. It wasn’t until I hit a big rock that I finally stopped my would be tumbling act, that, unbeknownst to me, I had NOT performed yet…at least proficiently. 

As I got my bearings and stood back up, I first felt some areas of pain. Again fifty-year-old people shouldn’t be rolling down a hill without at least utilizing some protective gear of some sort. I then walked back up to where I thought my phone landed, sat down, and turned on the light so I could observe the biggest source of pain, which was located in my right pinky finger and in my right ribs where the rock stopped my fall.  My ribs bruised a bit in the week to come, but if one was to witness my finger at that time, they would have seen a lot of blood dripping from my hand and noticed that most, if not all of the skin on the knuckle was removed from my most recent mishap. 

As I sat there to take a moment to catch my breath and contemplate what had just happened, a quote or two came to mind. The first one I thought of was, “Forgetting our intentions is the most frequent of all acts of stupidity.”  Did I forget I was there to HIKE and not read news? 

Secondly and probably the more appropriate quote, “sh** for brains,” seemed to more clearly define my performance that night. 😂

You will be happy to know that I completed my hike without further incident. Also if one would have witnessed the completion of that hike, they may have noticed a limp or two and the groans of a humbled old man realizing his stupid mistake. Since that time, my finger and body are doing well and on the mend. I have also purchased my protective gear so the next time I perform, which may be the new and upcoming act for Cirque du Soleil, I should be able to do so without the calamity that turns into a catastrophe.  

So since it is the month of “thanks,” I want to tell you how “thankful” I am for my life, my family, my friends, my health, my job, you (the readers), my everything that I tend to take for granted during my busy life.  So much to be grateful for.

Oh and one more honorable mention to THE ROCK that stopped my fall, I too want to say, “I thank my lucky stars” you were there that night. If one was to measure the position of the rock that stopped my fall, it is literally about twenty feet from the edge of the cliff. If I had continued down the steep grade, I may have fallen an additional fifty to sixty feet over the edge of the cliffs onto the rocky shoreline below. #thankmyluckystars #givethanks #HAPPYTHANKSGIVING

Be safe! Be well! 

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Life Is "A GAS!"...by Jim Terry

This year seems to have become an entire BUST hasn’t it? “Shelter at home orders,” opening and closing of businesses, job losses, mask wearing, social interaction that is much more difficult, and questions like, “Do we send our kids back to school?” Just yesterday, that day before Halloween, I found myself also in a dilemma…Do I dress up or don’t I for this day called Halloween?

For those of you who know me, I tend to be an eternal optimist. The glass is NEVER half empty but should be full and overflowing. So with my positive energy, I mustered up the nerve to get out the old wig, the funky glasses, the peace necklace, the bandana, the old t-shirt that states, “I smell hippies” on it and I was able to recreate what may have been a similar look to those who participated in or contributed to Woodstock years ago.

As I got to work, I decided not to enter the office as I normally do but to ring the doorbell just like all of our patients are doing right now to have their temperature taken prior to entering the office.

Now keep in mind I have on my “getup” on and also a medical mask as required to enter our facility. Our front office coordinator came to the front door and asked if I had an appointment. So with a much higher tone in my voice I said, “I have an appointment with Jim.” In thinking that my falsetto would have given me away, I was a bit surprised when she continued and then asked me my name. I said, “Harmony Johnson.”

She then closed the door and left to “go check the schedule” as she thought they “did not have an appointment for me today.” With a little bit of time passing and trying to stay in character, she came back to the door with the doctor the next time. She said, “I’m sorry we don’t have you on the schedule today or as a patient. Are you sure you

are in the right location?“

With this being said, I, unfortunately, was NOT able to stay in character any longer and started laughing which gave my disguise away. This truly was the moment in time and in this year of COVID that will be remembered, treasured and appreciated…by ALL parties involved. We laughed all day about it and when it was time to leave for the day the front office said, “goodbye Harmony.” ☺

So have fun and be safe on this holiday. It comes but once a year. And if by chance you see or “smell a hippie,” those tree-huggers, coming your way, instead of asking them their name or if they have an appointment, maybe just say something like “You’re groovy!” “Peace out” or “Man, that’s far-out and neato swag you’re wearing!” And always remember, even in times of turmoil like we have all experienced this year, that life is still “A GAS!”

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

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HAPPY LABOR DAY

 

Happy Labor Day everybody!!! It's the last holiday of the summer which will bring closure to a summer wrought with protests, COVID-19, joblessness, uncertainly, uncontrolled fires, and a lot of times, fear. But in light of all that has happened over this year and throughout the summer, it’s finally time to celebrate a “day off from work, in order to celebrate work itself.”

 

And speaking of protests, did you know that Labor Day started that way? It is a landmark holiday that started the transformation to end child labor, unhealthy and unsafe working conditions for all employees, demanding fair pay/benefits and finally allowed workers to form unions if necessary?   

 

Here is a link to a very informative, yet short video on what Labor Day is all about and how it was formed. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqmPE2HtkyU

As my mother wrote several years ago in her blog on Labor Day, “Many will take a breathe today, enjoying the outdoors and/or some extra time in their homes.  A chance to rest from their labors. Many others will continue performing duties, that although perceived as small and mundane at times will not only fill in the gap of a well deserved holiday for coworkers, but also keep irreplaceable programs going…and I join with others in celebrating the efforts of the working man/woman.”

 

I too, like my mother, celebrate all the hard working men and women out there. Thanks for all you do! 

Happy Labor Day! Be safe and be well!

 

Lastly, just a quick and special mention to my mother who started this blog. Today is her birthday and I just wanted to say,  “Happy Birthday in Heaven Mom. I love you!”

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The Power Of A Hug...by Jim Terry

During this time of quarantine, soft openings, stage 1, stage 2, stage 3, and shelter-in-place times created by COVID-19, I saw something that I wanted to share. 

I personally really miss the social interaction of what a simple smile from others can do for you or your day, which can no longer be seen because of having to wear a mask while in public spaces. I also miss a simple handshake while I meet or greet a friend or a patient in the dental office. However, the biggest thing I miss is just giving someone you care about, or love, a HUG. I will direct you to the linked video and just say, "The power of a hug" is underrated.

So make sure to hug those people you can hug that you have been sheltering with. It may just make your day and theirs.  Be safe, be happy and HAPPY 4th of July! 

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Happy Memorial Day

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY...and since today is a day about memories, admiration, and respect for our veterans and for all those that have made a difference in our lives, past or present, I wanted to reshare a post my mother wrote years ago which is fitting for this day.  It is entitled, "And Long May She Wave."  Be safe, be well, and remember to enjoy your day!

@Jim Terry, taken at San Francisco National Cemetery

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Remember When...by Jim Terry

Ok, so who is tired of staying at home due to this thing they call a shelter-in-place or quarantine?  And I’m definitely not trying to minimize the effect that COVID-19 has had on people’s lives and our economies worldwide, but I have to admit it’s beginning to wear on me a bit. I do feel very fortunate that I have, right across the street, a trail that leads up the mountain to get out and hike, “social distance “ and remain sane in the pandemic we are currently experiencing.  Exercise, fresh air, and sunlight do the body, and the mind, good.  And while I am on these hikes, it gives me a chance to catch up on my photography, refocus myself and to think of and ask myself questions like…”Remember when?” 

Remember when gasoline, and I hate to say it as it will date me, was $.89 a gallon?  I specifically remember this from my high school days because I was helping to pay for my own gas. 

My wage at the time being a “fry boy” at a local fast-food chain, Arctic Circle, was a whopping $4.25 an hour. So for one who is mathematically inclined and being a bit frugal with my money over the years, I then came to the conclusion that one gallon of gasoline equated to 25% of my income after taxes of course. And that didn’t include my “huge” car payment that was $125.15 or my insurance, which was a bit higher than that. 

Remember when music was downright good?  And when I say that you need to know that I am definitely an 80ties boy.  A time when auto-tune was not an option to make an artist sound better than what they are.  When what you heard is what you got…and, if I might add, it was GOOD! 

When big hair, bandanas, leg warmers, stretch pants, spandex, parachute pants, and shoulder pads ruled the fashion of the day…”Gnarly!”  When terms like Preppies, Break-dancers, Jocks, Valley Girls, Nerds, Skaters, Hoods, Losers, Wavers, and Goths controlled the “vocab” of those that might also say, “Totally tubular” or “Gag me with a spoon.”

Remember when you had your first crush and how that made you feel?  When that someone either glanced at you with a smile or said, “Hello,” for the first time?

Remember when you, with the help of a parent, sibling, or friend, were able to ride your first bike without training wheels? The elation and excitement I personally experienced that day is something I will always cherish and remember from my childhood memories.

Remember when you were able to walk across that stage and accept your first, second, or, with some of my acquaintances and friends, your third diploma? And remember how that made you feel accomplished, talented, and capable all at the same time?

And with all of these “remember when” memories, I want to ask you do you remember when your mother held your hand for the first time? Do you remember when your mother made all of those meals for you over the years without complaint, grievance, or grumble? Do you remember when your mother kissed your first “owie” better and how that made it so much better? Do you remember?

So on this day of memories or “remember when” I will advise you to “REMEMBER” your mother on Mother’s Day.  Remember her and honor her for all of the “remember whens” that I know she was a part of. Remember when she stayed up and the countless hours of worrying when we were out too late? Remember when she provided unconditional love in spite of our faults, blunders, and errors throughout our lifetime? Remember when she provided the taxi service to all of our dance, sport or music lessons? Remember when you found her that day, in her room crying because she felt like she might not be doing the best job she can as a mother? Remember when…  

My beautiful mother, Marlene.

And to honor my mother who started this blog and who is no longer here with us, I will remember when you helped me with my homework. I will remember when you made the “boogeyman” go away. I will remember when you comforted me in my sadness. I will remember when I realized how much of an influence you had been in my life and always will be. I will remember when you jokingly told me, several times in my life, to, “Live long and prosper.” And even though we all know of your love of Star Trek through your previous blogs and this phrase now being a bit of a cliché, I know now that it also was meant with real intent and love. Lastly, and this one is not a "remember when" but a simple, “I will always remember you!  “I love and miss you, Mom, with all of my heart!”  

And for all of those reading today, please contemplate and think about this last quote and statement. With all of the memories, the laughs, the tears, and the happiness that is created when you remember when, always realize that... "Behind all your stories is your mother's story, because hers is where yours begins." ~Mitch Albom.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY TO ALL THE MOTHERS OUT THERE!!!

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"LEARN"...by Jim Terry

And SO IT IS HAPPENING…the time in my life where the sad reality of life is starting to hit me smack dab in the middle of my face. Just the other day I received an interesting piece of mail in my mailbox.  It was something I had never EVER received before, or at least hoped it would NOT have happened so soon, but here it is.  It was a piece of mail addressed to “Mr. James Terry” and it was sent from an organization known as the “AARP.”  The “American Association of Retired Persons.”  All I remember or knew about this organization is that it was for "old" people. 

When I was younger, it was my mother’s response when she received the same piece of mail on the twilight of her 50^th birthday that associated and engrained the term "old" with AARP for me. It was a response that will go down in history as a true and comical response from a lady who rarely swore but who was, at that moment, unconstrained by how she truly felt. Her response...“Damn, I’m old!” In thinking about my mother’s response and receiving that thought-provoking piece of mail, I personally had to stop and evaluate more of what is going on in my life as I approach traveling around the sun for my 50^th time.   

What once was a full head of hair is slowly thinning and greying. In thinking ahead and trying to secure a good retirement income, I figured in another 10-15 years that I can at least make use of this area on my body if my hair continues to thin…I have already contacted NASA to see if they might be interested or in need of a reflective orb in order to communicate with the satellites or the astronauts in space.  Their response…" to be determined!”

The term crow’s feet are starting to become a reality at the corners of my eyes and if all that wasn’t bad enough, I also got my first pair of reading glasses within the last two years. (sigh)…I had to ask myself, ”So this is 50 huh?”

And other things are happening too. Have you ever heard of the term “Butter Fingers?”  Nearly everything I touch now seems to somehow magically slip from my finger’s grasp and, just like in the movies and in slow motion, fall to the floor. As I was cleaning up the kitchen about a week after receiving my welcome to AARP (retirement) notice, I dropped a mug I received for my 49^th birthday into the sink and broke the handle off. On the mug, it says, “ It’s a crime to look this good at 49!” 

“Is it really?” I said in my internal monologue with a quizzical look on my face.  “And what is to come with more years under my belt?”

And speaking of belts, who, that is in my same age range or older, has noticed that you don’t even have to eat anymore and can still gain weight? A simple glance of a piece of food, especially the sweet stuff, will add another inch or two to any given area on my body.  This then allows the eternal enemy, Gravity, to form “love handles,” “double chins” and anything that might resemble the Michelin or the Stay Puff Marshmallow man.

Whoever said, “These are your golden years,” must be a true optimist. Fifty, to me, feels more like a scene in the movie Dumb and Dumber.  The two main characters, played by Jim Carrey (Lloyd) and Jeff Daniels (Harry), are trying to drive to Aspen, Colorado.  They were doing this in order to return a briefcase to a lady that Lloyd has a crush on after she left it in the limo he was driving.  Thinking they are almost there and after a wrong turn by Lloyd who drove through the night, they find themselves not in Colorado but on a huge flat open plain in the middle of Nebraska.  

As the sun begins to come up and thinking they would be seeing mountains at this point Harry states, “Huh, I expected the rocky mountains to be a little rockier than this.”

Lloyd then replies, “I was thinking the same thing. That John Denver is full of sh**, man.”

As I enter the great plains of my 50ties I too want to ask, “Where are my mountains John Denver?"  Why is what I expected the golden years to be all the sudden appear to be not so golden?  And why in all of those commercials that show retirees with perfectly white, straight teeth like in AARP, Ensure nutritional shakes and Activia yogurt commercials not true to form?  

I want to see the lifts that get the "old people" off of the couch and out of their beds and onto the bikes they are riding on in that commercial. I also want to know which denture adhesive they are using to make their teeth not fall out as they hit that slight bump in the road while riding that bike. And what person, IN THEIR RIGHT MIND, is going to be smiling ear to ear while wearing a depend undergarment? 😂

So with Spring finally here and what will be deemed an "unforgettable" birthday tomorrow due to an unprecedented virus, COVID-19, that is affecting us all, I was also hoping to bring a bit of laughter, hope and wisdom with today’s blog. I hope I have done that and want to end with one more thought.

I always used to make fun of those “corny” signs in hobby shops and at craft fairs that would say, and in no particular order, “laugh, live and love.”  Isn’t it funny that at forty-nine and three hundred and sixty-four days old😏😁😉, I find that ALL of those words are applicable to me? I find that LAUGHTER brings me a better state of mind, which in turn brings more happiness and better health. Living my life in more happiness,  then allows me to LIVE my life more fully.  And if I am living my life more fully, I then can LOVE others and myself more completely.  It makes sense, doesn’t it? 

© background; Amazon.com

So next time you are at a craft fair, look for that lowly stand in the corner with a fifty-year-old man sitting there with new “corny” signs to sell.  Please come on by and say, “Hi.” Those “corny” signs I will be selling will definitely include “Laugh, Live, and Love” on them but may also include at least one other “L” word.  “Learn” to laugh. “Learn” to live. And “learn” to love.  "LEARN!!!" 

Oh and just so you know, I "LEARNED" how to throw a piece of mail, the aforementioned piece I spoke of, in the trash rather quickly. Hey, I still have nineteen hours left before I am officially...OLD! 😊

HAPPY SPRING!!!

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Well, it's official!!! Another year has come and gone in a flash. What a great time to start anew.  We hope the new year is full of success, happiness, being gratified, feeling loved and accomplishments. 

I would like to share a quick quote with you the really makes a lot of sense and just may help you reach all of your new year's resolutions.  The author is unknown but really should be recognized for what an impact this statement can make..."Be so busy loving your life that you have no time for hate, regret or fear." 

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2020!!!

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