Tag Archives: birthday greetings

The Hana Chronicles: Month 8, Day 22

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Entertainment, Family, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

September 12, 2026- Hana didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, being amuse dby my making funny faces, while feeling sad that she couldn’t enjoy the spicy food we were having for dinner. She had eaten a full meal, earlier, but still wants to be included in whatever we are eating in our grown-up meals. Yunhee usually will cut up small bits of fruit. Tonight, it was bits of strawberry, then there were bits of a spongy peach and yogurt bread that Yunhee had made, especially for her girl. Those hit the spot, and Hana was again all smiles.

She shows a lot of the same resolute behaviour that Aram showed as a toddler. Yet, Hana is just shy of nine months, so “toddlerhood” is a bit down the road-or so we think now. She is on a mission, though, and is going to be walking earlier than her father did (13 months). She is also a lot more vocal than he was as a baby. Still, when we called her grand-uncle, David, as today is his birthday, Hana had nothing to say. She just looked at me, and then her father, talking into the phone. So, we sent him a birthday message, with her smiling countenance.

HANA’S NOTE– I was looking for a piece of strawberry I had dropped. Daddy told me to check my bib, and so I did-and there was the missing fruit. I’m glad I know more words now.

I REMEMBER: “Pete and Gladys”;” Mighty Mouse”; Pinky Lee; Captain Bob and Herkimer the Kiwi; the first girl I liked, named Katie, who moved out of our neighbourhood, when I was six years old and she was five; Kickball; acorn fights; the old oil drums in the marsh, and how Eddie and I pretended they were our boats; Consumer Reports; my handwritten newsletter; Mom’s lessons in cursive writing; helping dad put a blanket over the car engine, on a bitter January day; “The Thing” and “The Tingler”, in movie theaters in downtown Lynn; “Perry Mason”; my Book of Nations; my friends Mario Mattei, Mike Putnam, Joe Discolo, Charlie Landrigan, Joan Madden and my conscience, Jim Blanchard; the Harrisons; the Murphys; “Feep”; Brigham’s Ice Cream Parlor;my Nana’s parlour; my Grama’s porch; Pal, her dog; Winky, the Dows’ dog; Smoky, the Blanchards’ dog;

I remember Patsio’s Snack and Soda; Katie Walsh, my first real love, after my mother;Harvard Square, in the Summer of Love; the rotometer shop at G.E.; National Geographic, before the cover had photographs; Mad Magazine; Basic Training; Dave L. Cummings; Mack Gray; Brad Watts; Rufus Roper; Lisa Kifer; New Times; the New University, in Georgetown of D.C,; Uncle George’s science projects; George Boyce; FDR Hurst; Bill Bullock; Don Moore; Gary Oakley; Arnie Price; Lenny Covarrubias; the Henderson girls, of Woolahra, AU; the Tours and Travel Committee at NSCC; Joe Latino; Cindy Jacques; Mickey Berry; the Library Tower at UMass-Amherst; Roz Williamson; Jim Crepeau; Quisisana; Sally and Bill; Kathy Hughes and Annette Kuderka; the moose at Lake Kezar; the Bizortinator; Sophie, who told me to not wallow in self-pity, after I was fired on my 25th birthday.

I think that was the day that I tarted to grow up, I didn’t finish the process, until about ten years ago. Then again, maybe I’m still growing.

EXPANDING CIRCLES– Starting tomorrow, I will be looking at places, especially where I’ve been, talking about my favourite aspects of each: Where I went ; who I encountered; what was most enjoyable; what was impactful; where I might visit in the years ahead. I will begin with Texas, then proceed gradually outward, as Hana might, when she comes of age.

Fulfillment

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal goals, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

November 29, 2023- I watched as a man and his little daughter ran, hand-in-hand, towards their car-no winner, no loser, only a team, only a connected pair. Just beforehand, I was greeted by warm smiles from virtually everyone at Planet Fitness. I felt aglow, so the ambiance was a mirror.

Today was a satisfying day-with two acts of service either completed, or finished to the extent that was doable. Over 100 people sent birthday greetings, from Monday night until today. Every one of them was affirming. One, from a new and treasured friend, was the most affirming of all. The royal treatment I enjoyed in Grapevine was the icing on a very rich cake.

I think of all who bemoan the lack of love in their lives. Quite often, it is intertwined with lust-which can negate love, if it takes precedence. It invariably is intertwined with self-centeredness, something with which each of us struggles, at least intermittently. I have yet to meet a happy person who views others as means to an end. That goes as much for a “high-powered” social misfit as it does for one who sees self as “involuntarily celibate”-and there are women, as well as men, who cast themselves in that gruesome bit of darkness.

There was a time when I was in that sad realm-in the late 1970s. Penny came along and dispelled that state of affairs. Even with her passing, my mien has been one of gratitude and deep love, at any of several levels, for so many people. I cannot view anyone as a stepping stone. I learned that saying I love a woman means seeing her as a complete human being, whose central mission is not satisfying my urges and meeting my needs. We met each other’s needs, together. That is the standard going forward, for any relationship that might develop.

So, as I sit here at Home Base, and give thanks for everyone of my family and friends, I also give thanks for the opportunities that come my way to help others uplift themselves.

Resuming Workouts, and A Spicy Brisket

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Posted by on in Community, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 13, 2022, Grapevine- The title refers to the highlights of this second day of hiatus from the road. This city has a large community services complex, with its impressive Public Library and Recreation Center next to one another. “The Rec” has a good-sized indoor swimming pool, an absolute must in an area that averages 102 degrees Fahrenheit, in daylight hours, during the summer months. All the key exercise machines are there as well, so I got in Abs and trunk twist workouts, as well as a half-hour on an Elliptical.

Spice was the order of the day, meal-wise, with chili from a friend in Tennessee and Y’s dry-rubbed brisket, for respective lunch and dinner. It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed anything quite as fiery, and I regard hot spices as a good source of Vitamin C, so today was a pleasant challenge.

Today was also the——- birthday of my twin sisters-in-law. Aram and I greeted each of them with individual messages. Every individual deserves to be honoured on their own special day, without regard for whether they have twin, triplet, quad, quint-or even octo, siblings-or were born on a holiday. for that matter.

There is a full moon tonight, so I am glad to be off the roads, for another day or so. I will go out on the balcony and try to catch a glimpse of the great orb, though.

July Road Notes, Day 3

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Family, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 7, 2021, Grapevine- There is no such thing as a 1/3 life crisis. That’s my assessment of the son whom Penny and I raised to deal with both the sweet and the sour of life. A topsy-turvy process, initiated by COVID restrictions and aggravated by bureaucracy, was pretty much resolved through his attention to detail and the energy of proactivity that attracted the cooperation of others.

So went the day, celebrating thirty-three years of life, of my sole offspring. There was brunch, a short hike around the perimeter of the apartment complex that Aram and Yunhee call home, a ninety-minute series of bowling rounds (my first such activity in over twenty-five years), a hamburger dinner at the local branch of a quality nationwide burger and shakes establishment and a walk around Grapevine Mills shopping mall.

The man has shown himself capable of handling even the nettlesome matters, about which he vents to me. He is a spouse dedicated to his wife’s career progress and happiness. He is about balance, between the people in his physical world and those with whom he communicates and interacts digitally. He appreciates the people he meets, on a daily basis and honours truth, from wherever it comes. He has a set career goal and entertains alternative game plans, in the event reality makes his Plan A unwieldy.

Aram Ferdinand Boivin will remain a force with whom to reckon, for a good many years. He will make a fine father someday, and a stellar worker for the public good, in whatever field he settles.

Happy Birthday, Son.

Piedras Pintadas and National City’s Fillippi’s

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Posted by on in Family, Hiking and Nature, Slow Food, Social

November 28, 2015, Chula Vista- My latest day in the sun featured over 125 birthday greetings, and muchas gracias to one and all, for remembering what was, for me, a most auspicious day.

There were no intervening, pre-planned events in the apartment, as it happened.  Holiday spirit, and fatigue, intervened to postpone those gatherings.  So, it was on with a visit to Piedras Pintadas, picked from the rich list of hiking opportunities in San Diego, owing to its relative brevity, it being 1:30 PM before we learned of the day’s cancellations.

The trail is part of the San Dieguito River Trail system, and revolves around the ubiquitous glacial boulders of southwest California, and Lake Hodges.  Here are some of the scenes we found.

The first two (clockwise, left to right) show the lake, with Bernardo Mountain looming in the background.  The third shows Piedras Pintadas themselves.  In times of precipitation, there is a small waterfall, up in the high rocks.  The lower left features SoCal’s signature boulders, and son rounds out the montage.

Lake Hodges, San Dieguito
Lake Hodges, San Dieguito
Piedras Pintadas, San Dieguito
Piedras Pintadas, San Dieguito
Aram, near Lake Hodges, San Dieguito

We finished the trail in about forty-five minutes, and with other items on the agenda, headed back to Chula.  Next up was dinner, at the National City branch of Fillippi’s, one of my two favourite Little Italy eateries.  Like its parent establishment, the NC Fillippi’s was jam-packed, on this lovely Saturday evening.  We were seated, and had soup, garlic bread and beverages in front of us, in less than thirty minutes, though.  A young boy who shares my birthday was getting his due, of song and a birthday treat.  I passed on even announcing my day.  There was enough hoopla, here online.  Had we been in a larger party, perhaps, but two men?- NAH.

The meal was excellent, and we headed out the door in time to catch the 7:05 showing of “Spectre”, Daniel Craig’s purported James Bond swansong.  It lived up to the basic Bond formula, though a bit long at 3 hours.

So six-five is now in full swing, and I will be back tomorrow, with a new framework, for the second half of my seventh decade.