“…then softer than a piper man one day it called to you, I lost you, I lost you to the summer wind.”
Plenty to look back on in the summer of ’22…
As promised back in June, here is a rundown of my 6 ½ week summer break from teaching.
A FEW SMALL REPAIRS-
My handyman (Bill Kaliebe) put new window shades in my bedroom, fixed a kitchen light switch, secured a downspout by the back porch and re-set the power in my garage.
Had my friend Mark Peters install a new bathroom vanity. (Looks great!)
I water sealed my front and back porch steps.
The Helping Hands Maid Service did a fantastic job giving my house a major cleaning.
My landscaping service (Macias Bros.) kept up the yard nicely all summer and will continue into the fall. I’ll for sure book them for next year’s work.
Luis, my computer guy cleaned out and updated my home PC. Great job as always!
I got a couple of minor car fix-ups done by Jeff Durante and the great mechanics at JMS Auto.
Had to get 5 cavities filled in my pie hole. (This after not seeing a dentist for 11 years) Lesson learned: From now on, go for dental check-ups every 6 months!
My cell phone was stolen (don’t leave it unattended in an unlocked car, dummy) and got set up with a new phone, new number and new account.
Received 3 checks from the IRS that reimbursed me for past years of teacher supplies purchases.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
I saw and enjoyed these movies: “Elvis”, “Top Gun 2: Maverick” and “Where the Crawdads Sing.” Also realized the York Theatre popcorn is the best tasting of the suburban cinemas. It’s not even close.
Netflix had some great offerings- “Not Just a Girl”, the Shania Twain documentary was well done. Ditto for “It Ain’t for the Weak” which is a stand-up special by David A. Arnold, and the three-part documentary titled “The Most Hated Man on the Internet” was fascinating stuff.
I watched loads of White Sox and Cub games and kept scorecards at home for about 10 games.
Guested twice with Jim Turano when he filled in for Dean Richards’ Sunday show on WGN AM. We talked about a wide variety of pop culture happenings.
Al Flash and I had two of our music videos played on the WGN Morning News TV show. “Taste of Chicago” was a rerun and then we did “Beer Snake Boogie” which covered the drunkenness some Cub fans enjoy in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
With Morning News co-host Robin Baumgarten getting engaged, we’ve produced a fun music video for her. However, while me and Al know who Robin’s ’Mr. X’ is, most everyone else does not. This means we have to wait until Robin reveals the name of her fiancée before I can send in the tune. Robin knows what we’re up to and is thrilled that a special tune for her is ready to go.
THIS AND THAT
My cat Trouble celebrated his 17th birthday and got more Facebook greetings than I get for MY birthday! For his big day Trouble got a turkey burger for breakfast, chicken for lunch and cooked salmon for dinner. (I really got into eating salmon and tilapia at home this summer and now like it more than red meat)
Attended an Elmhurst Park District board meeting along with many fellow East End Pool regulars to voice our concerns in changes in adult swim policies at the pool. (Hopefully some adjustments will be made in the 2023 swim season)
Of course, I spent countless hours at East End with my ‘summer family.’ I swam miles of laps and loved every one of them. All that time at the pool got me my usual dark tan with no burning or peeled skin as I went through 2 tubes of Banana Boat SPF 30 Sunscreen. (I’m on my third tube as we wrap up the swim season on Labor Day)
One non-accomplishment- I failed to do the creative writing I planned and the final edit of my radio memoir continues to languish. This is one goal I expect to work on in the Fall and Winter.
So that pretty much covers my time off.
In the summer of 2021, I did much less and graded that time off as a ‘C-.’ This summer would be graded as a ‘B.’ We’ll aim for an ‘A’ next summer.
