All posts by johncohn

Tuesday night – new specs

Man.. am I beat.. must be from thinking to hard…   I have a ton on my mind now.. turning 50 next week, my talk, work, my future… somehow it all feels like it will work out all right, though.

Lemme think.. outside of the stuff in my head.. what’s new around here. ? Ahh.. Bud and Martha’s house is going to start going up. They cleared the house that burned off the slab.. The components for the new house are in the field outside .. They’re actually goign to be able to get it set up and move in in just a few weeks. That’s amazing in winter !. I’m sure that they’ll be happy to get settled back in. This whole thing has gotta be tough for them.

We were thinking of some other neighbors yesterday.. so we decided to call them up. Our reinds Deb, Ian, Hannah, Matt and Britt are in Iquigue, Chile now. We video chatted with them for a long time last night. They say it’s hot and beutiful down there. They all looked great.. We really miss them all..   Conicidentally, I had lunch with my friend Anton from Chile today..  Quite a Chile day outside.. .. hahaha

I got such a nice suprise yesterday. My good buddy Vicki came up to my office to give me my first birthday present.. and it fits perfectly. She gave me this cup with a message that is just made for me right now…. he’s such a wonderful freind. She’s doign the annual penguin plunge next sat. in benmefit of Special Olympics. I’m gooign to miss the plunge this year because of travel.. but If you’d liek to sponsor Vicki you can go to this link !..

I really do love that message.. My teabag had this on it eyesterday, too “feel great, act great and approve of yourself”  I seem to be getting counsoulign from all sides..  Maybe this buper sticker is tellign me soemthign too

In the interest of gettign more clarity, I went today to pick up my first pir of real.. non-store baught glasses ever.. And guess what..
I can see !.. It’s so wierd.. I never thought I had a problem seeing stuff far away until I put these on.. It’s actually kinda wierd to be able to see this well.. The world is so…. I don’t know.. sharp  

I picked these because they made me look a bit deranged.. what do you think ?

Speaking of deranged… how’s this ?   Kristin’s artwork…

OK.. that’s it for tonight.. lots goign on tomorrow at work. gotta sleep. Night folks.. Nite Sam
-me

Monday night – twenty five things about me.

Friends.. The following was a chain mail thingy that I got on facebook.   I don’t normally do chail letters. .. but I’m enjoyign see what others put int. You’re supposed to write 25 things about yourself and sent it out to 25 friends.. which I did on facebook.. I guess I’ll also share it with  300 or so of you . Here goes.

Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1. i love my kids very much
2. I love my wife very much
3. I miss my son Sam so much
4. I love my folks
5. At age 48 I decided that I no longer liked mushrooms
6. My favorite thing to do is nothing.. I just don’t do it often
7. I would work for free
8. I love figuring out how things work
9. I love to travel.. and I really miss it now that I’m not traveling for work
10. My dogs make me happy
11. In some ways I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life,  But not in all ways
12. Sam’s passing has made me wiser and calmer
13. I love the smell of epoxy
14. I often dream of old rambling houses.. then I wake up in an old rambling house
15. I stopped reading books when Sam died.. I just started again
17. I still don’t feel like an adult
18. When I was a kid I had an uncontrollable need to eat sauerkraut
19. I feel blessed to live in the place where I do
20. I love blue lights
21. I like the feeling of getting electric shocks
22. I believe that I was a wizard in a past life…
23. I don’t watch TV
24. I’m happiest when I’m working with my hands
25. I am ready for an adventure

So there you are.. Nite all Nite Sam !
-me

Sunday night – leftovers

Nothing new today.. I spent the entire day working on one thing or another.. not unpleasant.. just not very exciting.  I do have some pictured left over from the last few days that I’ll take out an rewarm here..

One thing that is worth noticing is that there’s a beautiful conjunction of the crescent moon and Jupiter.. Those of you who’ve been reading this blog for a while may remember that the moon and Jupiter (or Venus) have a special significance for me (see here)

Yesterday was beautiful and sunny.. Diane and I took advantage the 18 inches of snow to take a high energy snowshoe up in the woods near Bolton..

Gabe was up at a Snowboard competition. Diane went up to watch him.. while I staytd at home  and worked. Diane took my camrea with her and caught a picture of the gang up there ..

as well as one of the jumps form the competition. Gabe said it was pretty fun.. just a bunch of standing around to compete.

Around 7 Diane called to say that Gabe still hadn’t had his run yet.. So decided to go to Talent   to be part of the Skate benefit for Sam L. The other Sam died last October in a car accident. It was strange walking into Talent for a memorial event for soemone other than our Sam.. I don’t know what I felt.. it was a mix..   I was glad I was there..

Our Sam is still so much a part of that place.

Here’s our lovely hostest.. I jsut love hannah and dave and family (And I’m not just saying that becuase you’re reading it you guys). They have such big hearts.

Phil showed up in his android suit.. I soon learned that he and Mrgan are getting married.. which is great.. She’s awesome.. She told me how she messed up her glasses in glass blowing.. how cool is that ?

Hannah instid that I take nibble down memory lane and try a pop tart.. first came the tough choice of choosing the flavor.. I settled on a conservative choclate fudge sundae..

Hmmmmm. tasts like… Sunday morning cartoons !.. or soemthing like that..

I spetnt a long while tlakign to Sam L’s dad, Phil. He’s a really nice guy.. It was kinda hard to start talking.  I didnt say much.. mostly listened.   I remmeber how hard it was for me that soon after our Sam’s passing. He seemed to be doing OK. We talked a while about his Sam.. I even got to see some vids of him skateboarding. He was a really good rider.   Phil showed me the memorial ink he’d just gotten done for Sam..

While we were at it, Phil showded us the picture of his dad he’d just gotten done on his side.. His dad died when Phil was a young kid..  He just got this piece finished a few weeks back .

Mike got in to the game and showed us his stick figure zomby guy..

Even tiny Adah wanted to show off…

I stuck aroufd about a hour after the party officially ended talkign to Pthe two phils.. it was nice.. Then I csadi good bye to Hannah and Dave.. and climbed inmmy icy car..    I found this wierdfrost alien staring back at me from the windshield

If that wern’t wierd enough , I woke up this mornign to find two mutan ritz crackers that Gabe had found in the box.. gabe kept them for me.. becaue he knows I like mutants.. Somehow I find it reassurign that in our shrinkwrapped,  automated world.. wierd stuff like this can sneak through. .. that’s what makes us all human !

OK.. I think that’s all I have for the day.. Should be an interesting and crazy week.. I’m going to go rest up. Happy Sunday folks

Nite Sam

-jc

ps. I’m probably the only male in the US not watching the superbowl.. I think I would if we had a TV hooked up .. but then again.. I’m glad we don’t

Saturday night – vexxed

Oy.. for some reason I can’t get any computer to read the pictures I took on gabes’ camera tonight. and Diane borrowed my camera for the afternoon to go watch Gabe at Bolton.. so I’m Picture-less… No real problem there.. My day can be described pretty simply:
– woke up
– worked on talk
– went snowshoing with diane and satori (chai is nursing a badly pulled foreleg)
– came back and continued workign on talk
– went to talent to the Jam for Sam Laframboise
– came back and worked more on my talk
– realized it was 2AM and found I couldn’t upload pictures
– began to blog and realized I was pictureless…  No real problem there.. My day can be described pretty simply:
              – woke up
              – worked on talk
            
– went snowshoing with diane and satori (chai is nursing a badly pulled    
                foreleg)
              – came back and continued workign on talk
              – went to talent to the Jam for Sam Laframboise
             
– came back and worked more on my talk
              – realized it was 2AM and found I couldn’t upload pictures
              – began to blog and realized I was pictureless…  No real problem there..
              My day can be described pretty simply:
                      – woke up

                      – worked on talk
                     eeeeeeeek I’m in a loop !

Well.. I’ll post the pictures tomorrow. It was very good goign to see the Jam at Talent for the other Sam. I didn’t know him or his family.. but the feelign was familiar when I walked in and saw a bunch of kids skating for a fallen friend. I spent most of the night talkign to Phil L, the other Sam’s dad. It was great gettign to know him.. at the same time it was hard for me. I remembered where I was in the process of dealing that soon after losing Sam. Phil was there with his othe rson TJ.. and I could see/hear/feel the pain he was going through.. and I could also see that he was doing OK.. and enjoyign the night. That combination of fun and sadness is somethign only someone who’s goine through it can understand. We had that connection for sure…

Anyway.. its late.. and I gotta sleep. I’ll post the pictures tomorrow as soon as I find my own camera

For now.. I hop everyone’s staying warm .. and is close to folks they love.. Nite everyone…
nite Sam
-me