REACH OUT AND TOUCH SOMEONE.

L to R Larry Roussell, Edwin Lauricella, Edward Lauricella, me, Chuck Stringer, George Torlage

It should be apparent by now that I do not blog very often. I guess like so many others I only post when I have something to say. Today I want everyone to know just how great it feels to reconnect to old friends whom you haven't seen or heard from in forever. There are no valid excuses for not finding these old friends and catching up with them or finding out what they have been doing for all those years. My standard excuse was that my life was to busy and I had no time. I found out just recently how lame that excuse was. I recently reconnected with friends from my childhood. People I grew up with from childhood through adolescence, preteen years, teenagers and into adulthood. For some unknow reason these friends all thought that I had died. Our reunion was that much more poignant when they found out that I was alive. I was glad for this as well. We all have agreed to meet annually from now on.

In keeping with this theme of reconnecting to the past, I recently reconnected with someone, once very important to me, by way of e-mail. It was a heart warming connection to see how her life has in some way parralleled my own. The pictures I recieved showed a very happy parent/grandparent and a number of her beautiful children. She seems to have escaped the ravages of the ageing process as well for she looks so much younger than I, but I know she isn't. California's climate agrees with her very well.

If there is someone out there who you haven't seen in a very long time do all that you can to locate them and reconnect to the past we all wish for. Modern technology has made it easier than ever to reach out and touch someone. You will be amazed at how quickly the distance and the time melts away and all that remains are the memories.

Until nex t time.

What is normal? Does normal make you happy?

Most people who evacuated for the most recent hurricanes will tell you that things are finally getting back to normal. But what exactly is normal anyway. I guess they are referring to returning to the same routines they had before the storms hit us. If so, that is ashame. If these storms taught us anything it is that life can be disrupted at a moments notice and friends and family are the most precious gifts we all have. We shouldn't have to wait for a storm to reminds of this. We need to return to a time when families visited each other on Sundays instead of being self absorbed by things of much less importance. Turn off the TV or the video player and make someone happy by visiting for a few hours with kin folk you haven't seen in forever.

Joy and guilt

I know I should feel guilty about having so much fun during an evacuation, but it was hard not to have fun when surrounded by family and friends on a beautiful lake in Arkansas while living on a luxury houseboat with an onboard jacuzzi, ample supply of great food and a more than an adequate store of alcohol. This was not a spontaneous evac, but a well planned family reunion/vacation that just happened to coinside with a major hurricane. What perfect timing.
I do hope those less fortunate than I are safe and well and all will return to normal quickly.
By the way, we have already booked next years evacuation for the same time, Labor Day.