EVERYTHING Else

One Thing -
On Fridays I can come to work later so around dinnertime I thought I'd try to squeeze in a walk with one of the dogs. (I find it easier to walk them separately.) As Milo and I set off I scanned the sky and although there were some tall, dark clouds sailing to the west I thought 'no probs'. Off we went around the block, through the greenspace behind the house, out and across the main drag and up the long face of a ridgeline. It's a headland that runs south toward Lake Ontario but it is truncated and ends before quite getting there. We had done most of the climb up through the neighbourhood when a few drops of rain started coming down. A quick look at the sky told me those clouds had covered the ground in one heck of a hurry. Uh, oh.......almost to the top, might as well keep going. There we were just cresting the hill when the skies opened up, flashes of lightning staccato brilliant and great long clashes of thunder. No easy way to go; same distance either way. A quick descent down a staircase cut into the hill so that we may not draw lightning and cozied up in the lee of some overhanging tree branches. It made no difference as we were already soaked so we walked the rest of the way home in driving rain. No sense standing there getting shivery cold. Milo didn't seem to be bothered by any of it except getting his ears wet. I towelled him off thoroughly, then stripped off and headed for my second shower of the day. (Third if you count the rain shower.

Thing Two -
I finished Volume One of Bob Dylan's 'Chronicles' and found that by the end I had enjoyed the read. At some points through the course of it I had been frustrated but hey! who am I to criticize?? I had written earlier that I had approached the book with no expectation - I realize now that statement was a lie. One thing I guess you can't expect from Bob is a direct, linear recounting of the times of his life. I suppose the most interesting thing is coming to have an appreciation of how his mind works in regard to some things. I'm glad I will never be in a position to interview him; it would be like trying to nail a raw egg to the wall. There is speculation Volume 2 will hit stores by years end.

Tres
I'm a hundred pages into Malachy McCourt's memoir 'A Monk Swimming' and thoroughly enjoying it. The Irish are renowned for their use of the English language and McCourt certainly qualifies as Irish by that count. There were times last night I found myself sitting alone in this office, reading and laughing aloud. Good entertainment.

Number Four -
Ever feel like you'd love to be able to reach out through the phone line, draw someone close and give them a big hug? Through last night I was talking to one of my kids, talking about an ongoing problem in their lives and hearing the pain and frustration they are feeling. A little reassurance here, some encouragement there, 'I know, yes, you're right...','I understand...'. There are times I wish, when I wish I could compress thousands of miles to mere inches in order to have someone within arms reach and just hold them awhile.