Buckeye Mike

As I sat down to ink a fitting good bye to the year 2010, I planned to write about the years experiences and new adventures. It has been quite a year, from South America to playing in the sewer, I traveled more than ever and saw things I never thought I would see. But I had a change of heart as I typed the words. You can see where I have been and what I have experienced on the pages of this blog. 99 of them before tonight, covering 10 months. And January and February, which came before blog entry one, had their own set of new adventures and experiences. While that was a very good part of my life, it is best to leave it unpublished. Instead, I am going to use this one hundredth published blog to talk about what I have learned in the past year. October 5, 2010 my divorce became final. After 18 months of separation, and many years of drifting apart, Angel became my ex wife. It was an often bitter and difficult journey, and I had imagined a party like no other that night. Instead, a little...

I like to have fun. No matter what I do, laughing and having a blast is always better than the alternative every day of the week. Don't get me wrong, I know when to be serious. At work, I am focused and driven. When things go south, I know how to take the train and set it back on the track. But most of the time, I like to keep things loose and fun, as it seems to keep the team moving in the right direction. And when not at work, I enjoy keeping the people around me smiling. So when you take me out somewhere, be advised it's not just dinner, it will be an adventure. As far back as high school, I have been at the center of what I am sure are stories of restaurant lore. On senior year prom night, my date was so embarrassed when I put the straws together and drank the water from the fountain at The Olive Garden. Probably not the best idea, especially when you consider the upset stomach that followed the next day. Another time I managed to accidentally find my way into the ladies ro...

Its cold outside in Columbus, Ohio. It has been for weeks, with the local weather man informing us that it has been more than 2 weeks since we last were above freezing. Now, I love a White Christmas as much as anyone, but with then that white fluffy powder that we ooh and ahh over on the 25 th becomes a matted, ice covered slip and fall on your backside hazard by the 28 th , it makes me long for spring. And it may come sooner than we think, with the weekend warmup that they say is on our way. It would be a nice way to cap off 2010. Of course, this week has been very different for me the last two years. And from 08 to 09, the difference was night and day. It was during this month 2 years ago that Mom went back into the hospital, never to return home. Within a day or two she had been put into a medically induced coma to see if she would regain any strength and to make her more comfortable. I never heard her voice again. I had made ten or so trips back and forth, including Christmas. T...

Tonight marked another first for me. My Dad is in town, here to see my brother, sister in law and their kids, as well as Angel, the boys, and me. Jewish by birth, he has always celebrated Christmas with us. At first it was in very small ways, as he would tell us that Hannukah Harry came rather than Santa. Over the years his dedication to my mom led to a Christmas wonderland in her house, with the villages and carousels and decorations everywhere. Even putting lights on the house the last few years, something he said would never happen, then surprising her one year with the house fully decorated when they returned from their annual Cape Cod Thankgiving trip. She was so surprised and happy. Last year, as you can imagine, Christmas was very subdued. I didn't even make it all the way there, as the boys and I got iced in somewhere in the middle of nowhere Indiana on Christmas night. The next morning, Dad got in his car and drove to us, where we had Christmas in the Fairfield Inn and Sui...

Every night, before I go to sleep, I say my prayers. No, I am not a go to church every Sunday, preach at you, if you are not like me you are going to hell kind of guy. But I have my faith, and I believe in prayer. In tonights blog, there will be no story about mom, or travel, or todays activities. Tonight's day after Christmas blog is asking you, whoever may read this, to do something for me. Whether its before bed, or when you get up in the morning, or on your way to work, or whenever you take time to talk to God, please pray that everything turns out well tomorrow. No this isn't about me, so please don't be concerned about that. I do not want to go into any further detail, only to say that he knows the need. A couple of small changes to the blog as you may have noticed. Please note it is now available in a mobile edition for those who can access the blog via cell phone or mobile device. Good Night All.............

I have spoken quite often of my friend Bethany. She has been such a great source of support and encouragement for me since the day I asked Angel for the divorce. Watching me make mistake after mistake, she carefully nudged me in the right direction until I got my feet off of shakey ground. That was not small feat, but she was beside me the whole way. As noted in previous blogs, Bethany shared a storybook romance for four years with the man she believed she was going to marry. It is difficult to describe how they were as a couple and how the little things that I preach about meant so much to them. All of those solitary moments that will live on forever came crashing down on September 4th of this year. Since then I have spent hours on end trying to find the right words to say, only to come up empty. I advised her she should start blogging, as this has been such an outlet for me and I thought it could be very therapeutic for her. She took my advice, and her words fill the pages beautifull...

As a kid growing up, Christmas Eve was always the most special day of the year. Aside from the Santa visit, the day was filled with so much tradition and family that is was more like an event than a holiday. Everyone would gather at my grandparents house for Christmas dinner. Cars would fill the drive way, be parked on the hill, and even in the front yard. It was always a feast, with us kids pushing everyone to finish their plates so we could get to the presents. And there were a lot of presents. Whatever car mom was driving, from the Pacer to the Nova, would always be packed full by the end of the evening, and many years required a second trip just to make sure we had it all. After we opened gifts, many of us would pile into cars and go caroling at Mrs Soth's , The Smiths, and several other homes. I still remember some of the gifts I got on those days. There was my 10 speed bike the first year mom was married to Mike. There was the race car track when I was eight, and my first tr...