Retired or not, I can’t imagine the hassles the people in the Houston area are experiencing right now.  I have several friends who live there that are in my thoughts as we make a donation to the American Red Cross.  I’ve been fortunate in life to avoid these types of natural disasters, but know the pain of water damage.  With fire, tornadoes, and earthquakes, personal possessions are entirely destroyed or blown away.  As with hurricanes and the associated flooding, they are still there for you to see, but permanently damaged.  It’s heartbreaking to see photos, certificates, awards, and other memories from your life under water.  You are helpless in trying to save them.

When you live near the water, you have to expect these types of set-backs.  We want a beautiful view of the ocean from our homes, but also put ourselves in danger.  It’s always a risk to live in the Gulf states of Texas, Florida, and Louisiana.  Anywhere you locate, there are potential threats to your safety.  I’ve now experienced tornadoes in Indiana, tropical storms in Florida, heat related fires in Texas, and excessive rainfall in Oregon. It’s impossible to find a place to live outside the grip of Mother Nature.  We all need to be prepared for the worst, as we enjoy the best.  For example, we bought an earthquake preparedness kit to face what seems to be the inevitable here in Portland.  Our beautiful mountains erupt, our beaches are exposed to tidal surges, and the majestic trees are threatened by fire.  Where is it safe to live?

On a lighter note, I had to laugh at a story that I heard on the radio this morning.  My wife is such a fan of Cracker Barrel Restaurants and is so excited that they are in the process of opening some nearby  locations.  I’ve always thought of them fondly as a vacation stop, dating back to long drives from Indiana to Florida.  A Cracker Barrel was like an oasis on the highway, a place to take a break from the many hours of being crammed in the family car.  The rewards of stopping included Country Fried Steak or the Old Timer’s Breakfast featuring their famous Hashbrown Casserole.  They’ve grown to 645 stores in 45 states, with headquarters in Lebanon, Tennessee.  There is a couple from Indiana that has apparently visited every location, having just recently come to the new Lake Oswego location here in Oregon to celebrate his 81st birthday.  They will return for the opening of the Beaverton store.

Many of us have a goal to visit every state.  I have friends who have visited every baseball park.  Each of us has a quest in life that we’ve added to our bucket list, but this Cracker Barrel story caught my attention.  I’ve achieved my goal of finishing the Hood to Coast relay and I continue with my challenge to run everyday.  It’s the little things in life that get us through the day-to-day hassles.  I would never think of visiting every Cracker Barrel restaurant.  They’re all exactly the same!  However, I think it’s really cool that this couple has achieved celebrity status with the Cracker Barrel family, and hope somebody bought his birthday dinner.

Cracker Barrel is also known for their charitable giving, including Hurricane Katrina and injured war veterans.  I know they will also come to the aid of the Harvey victims in Texas.  There are still five states that are missing out on this dining phenomenon.  By the way, they don’t offer any senior citizen discounts, but you can play checkers and sit in the comfortable rocking chairs on the front porch.