It's a slow day with not much going on. I haven't gone out, and usually try to stay home as much as possible as the end of the month gets close. I still have money in my account and I could think of 50 ways to spend it right off the bat, but of course it wouldn't fund my 50 most pressing needs!
I ate something I shouldn't have and I'm paying the price, although it isn't as bad as it used to be. I have done so much better being gluten free, but today I spread some imported french brie cheese on ritz-type crackers. Bad move. They tasted so good I ate way more than I should have. (It was the crackers - the brie is healthy and additive free).
I was so full of plans for today - things to do around the house. I did a small job or two but nothing came up that I could discard as a result. I want to clear out all the excess junk I have, including several kitchen chairs. I just don't need all the chairs I have and with such a small table they don't fit very well. They are so comfortable though, which is why I've hung on to them. I need to replace most of the furniture I have with fewer and smaller items so it looks like I have more room.
I debated going to the gym today but decided one day off every week is probably good for me. I really don't want to be out on the roads as I've noticed the deterioration in driving etiquette the past time or two I've driven. And outright driving straight through stop signs, unsafe lane changes, etc. I drive the speed limit but usually not over it, and I piss off everyone else on the road.
This time of the year is the only time I think about being in Washington, DC, and that is to watch the thousands of vets on motorcycles riding along Constitution avenue to pay their respects at the various war memorials. It is known as "Rolling Thunder" and really a sight to see. It makes you proud of those vets, especially the old guys! They have various staging areas, including the Pentagon parking lots (at least in the "old days" they did), and I think you can get a better idea of their sheer numbers when you see them getting ready to ride into the District. With hundreds of thousands of motorcycles participating, you can understand why they call them Rolling Thunder. Things may have changed, but when I was going to watch the Memorial Day rides in the 1990's, I had never seen a more polite group. The groups had large numbers of Vietnam vets back then but I'm sure their numbers are dwindling.
Blessings to all vets!
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Once in a while you could catch the parade of bikes on TV but I just don't follow TV much anymore so I don't know if they even show it.
ReplyDeleteStaying off the roads around these drinking holidays is best. I may run to the Safeway early in the morning to pick up a couple things and that is it.
It is the most awesome sight in person that you can imagine. Just the roar of the engines - the bikers are totally quiet and look straight ahead going down Constitution Ave. When I've been there, the onlookers were quiet as well out of respect for the vets.
DeleteI agree it's best to stay off the roads if you can. Drivers can be so impatient - so what if the light turns red and you have to sit for a couple of minutes. I guess that's the attitude of someone getting old!
Yes, I agree, blessings on all veterans and their families !
ReplyDeleteThe Vietnam vets will always hold a special place in my heart, but all vets have given so much so that we don't have to. And yes, their families as well.
DeleteI forgot Saturday that it was the first day of Memorial Day weekend. I drove the 20+ miles to our small grocery to get an ice cream bar. The traffic was unbelievable and driving the speed limit I was an impediment to traffic. Cars cutting in and out on a two lane road..Arrrggg... You are absolutely right - sometimes it is better to just stay home. I recall the Viet Nam era. We were told not to wear our uniforms off base as we would be ridiculed and spit upon. It was true and once done it is hard to undo even with the tributes given today. That was a bad time to be a military member.
ReplyDeleteThe absolute outrage of it all was that there was still a draft system, so most young men of modest means whose families couldn't afford college to avoid the draft, were inevitably sent to Vietnam. And I don't think it matters how or why a person goes into military service, they deserve respect which they didn't get much of when they came back from Vietnam. I hated that whole era and what it did to a generation of young people. (I was just a bit older, having been born in 1940; my brother who was born in 1945 served at Bien Hoa, which suffered a terrible loss of life shortly after he left to come back to the States. He never got over the fact that he came home and all his buddies died.) I'm glad you survived it, Bruce.
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