Dick's Blog
“Lammie” and “Tiger” Will Have to Make Peace Again
For 5 years, “Lammie” and “Tiger” have been peacefully lying together atop my Bose Radio. My wife gave me “Lammie” for a laminectomy 7 years ago. “Lammie” is slang for this surgical procedure to alleviate spinal stenosis and sciatic leg pain, a real “tiger”. My second laminectomy was 5 years ago. Unfortunately, “Tiger” has re-awoken. Soon, “Lammie” will be coming to my rescue, also a fusion of two lumbar vertebrae. Hopefully, “Lammie” and “Tiger” will again be peacefully lying together atop my Bose Radio.
MY GUTTER HELMETS: No More Clogged Gutters
As a life-long hiker, I must confess that I am not crazy about heights, edges and steep exposed places. On ladders, I suffer vertigo. Although I continue to hike in spite of my fears, I am giving up the one bothersome task (or asking others for help) of cleaning my gutters. With the proximity of tall trees to my home and prevailing westerly winds, my gutters and downspouts fill at least four times a year with spring oak tassels, summer leaf cuttings from the gypsy moths, the fall leaf drop from maples and the continuous leaf drop from the oak trees which shed all fall and winter. This nuisance has all ended with the recent installation of high tech “Gutter Helmets” (see brochure picture). I’ll report back in a year to tell you how this has all worked out. Meanwhile, I will continue hiking even though I do occasionally encounter a steep slippery ladder on the trail.
Therapy
Hiking with my son is inexpensive therapy. I’m home after a two-day hiking trip with my son to the Adirondacks of New York State. On our first trip into a frozen pond, half into and half out of our snowshoes, my son found a child’s life preserver. Donning it, he posed for this picture. He is my therapist, lots of goofy stuff and laughs, and he doesn’t charge for his services.
CLOWNS
This is my second BLOG under my new Articles by Topic “Second Chances”. How many of you have been given second chances, opportunities and people making profound differences in our lives?
I belong to a group of hiking and snowshoeing enthusiasts called the “Clowns”. Our origin goes back many years, described in my story “Walking With Clowns” in my first memoir “Hiking Out”. This year we just celebrated our 45thannual winter “Clown” snowshoe trip. Our members have changed over the years, with the addition of sons, grandsons, son in laws, friends, the moving of members out of state, and the sad loss of two of our members to cancer and heart disease. At every meeting of “The Clowns” we pause to celebrate the lives of our departed friends. Some of us owe our ability to do these hikes, and even our lives, to the mobility and life saving advances of modern medicine. For me, as one of the founding members of the “Clowns”, I think of it as one of my “Second Chances” in life. Shortly after the group’s founding, I fell into a deep depression. Over the years, my membership in this group has been a source of strength and salvation. As I say often, “Hiking helped save my life!” The photograph is from this year’s Saturday snowshoe hike. I’m the one in front with the hunter orange cap and the red and gray parka, accompanied by my fellow “Clowns”.
REFLECTIONS AND STORIES ALONG THE WAY
I have been blogging for exactly 4 years since May 5, 2012. This is my 140th blog. I’m considering cutting back on my blogging and introducing a new feature on my web site, a serialization of my two memoirs, a way of introducing you to my writing. I’d publish a new chapter each week. You’d be able to download either each new chapter or all the chapters up to that point. If you are impatient or need a great gift for someone, you can purchase my memoirs at low cost as e-books or paperbacks from Amazon, etc. The chapters of my memoirs, “Hiking Out” and “Inside and Outside”, consist of easy to read inspirational, often humorous, nonfiction short stories and essays. Each serial chapter would include a new short introductory update. This will be similar to what Andy Weir did for free on the Internet for the “Martian”, except it will be one man’s life journey through the ups and downs of life here on earth. I’d appreciate any comments you may have on my creating this new feature.
Dick Sederquist
May 2016
dicksederquist.com