2021 books read

I diverted a lot of my reading time to writing in 2021, writing 3 50-word stories around a theme for every day of the year. Here are the 20 books I did manage to read in 2021: Ratings legend: ★★★★★ Completely enthralling, couldn’t put it down. and/or More than just entertaining (e.g., educational, enlightening). Would … Read more

FAQs about my exercise check-ins

I’ve had several questions over the years about the content of my Facebook exercise check-ins, which used to be mostly to Planet Fitness and sometimes to the Red Hat Fitness Center, but since we bought an elliptical machine during the COVID pandemic, I’m just “checking in” at home. How long have you been doing this? … Read more

2020 books read

I have a goal to increase the number of books I read each year. In 2019, I read 29 books. In 2020, I read 75: Ratings legend: ★★★★★ Completely enthralling, couldn’t put it down. and/or More than just entertaining (e.g., educational, enlightening). Would highly recommend. ★★★★☆ Really great book in all respects with perhaps some … Read more

Idyllic Gay Life book backstories

Cover Page Backstory It’s rare, but every once in a while, Bob and I end up in the kitchen side by side, usually when I’m contributing to cooking with some “sous chef” task—and Bob will start giggling. When I ask him what he’s laughing at, he’ll say something to the effect of, “Whenever this happens, … Read more

Our month on Cape Cod—day 30

~Sunday~ And our month-long Cape Cod adventure—working really remotely—comes to an end. It was a nice change of pace, with seeing friends and family the highlight, and we’re thrilled to be heading back to our home—with all of its creature comforts—that we love. We left Eastham, MA at 7 a.m. and pulled into our driveway … Read more

Our month on Cape Cod—day 29

~Saturday~ We said goodbye to Vivian and Jeff early this morning as they started the long (~13.5-hour) trek home to Greenville, NC. We decided that we’re going to head home tomorrow instead of waiting until Monday, and we spent part of the morning packing. We took a 2.5-mile walk before lunch, a part of which … Read more

Our month on Cape Cod—day 28

~Friday~ It was a post-celebration and drizzly day, and after a ride up to Provincetown, we mostly just chilled. In P-town, we stopped at the Pilgrims First Landing Spot, and then drove slowly down the narrow main street, which is called Commercial Street. [T]though many in this country know the story of the Mayflower, some … Read more

Our month on Cape Cod—day 27

~Thursday~ We started the day-long celebration of Vivian’s 60th birthday with a trip to the Chatham Pier Fish Market for a lobster roll. Our feeding frenzy included—Vivian and John enjoying the buttered lobster roll, Bob enjoying the grilled salmon burger, and Jeff enjoying the regular lobster roll: Buttered Lobster Roll: Fresh lobster meat tossed in … Read more