Today’s post will feature a hodge-podge of topics. I just returned from a 97th Birthday celebration for Vince Pesky (See Post #592). I was unable to attend my own mother-in-law’s 97th a few weeks ago, but that was back in Indiana. It was all part of a August flurry of birthday celebrations that will include my own in less than a week. A good friend of mine turned 65 today, also back in Indiana, so the best I could do was a phone call and card. Another friend blew out candles a week ago, and a former co-worker, who is also part of this month’s “BD Club,” joined me for today’s party at the retirement home. It was the first pizza I’ve enjoyed since starting my “low-carb diet.” I felt justified and had a slice of cake (or two) to honor all of these special occasions.

Sixty-Seven pails in comparison to Ninety-Seven years, a level of life that I have no desire to reach…unless I’m healthy.  However, if I do make it to 97, I would certainly want to stick around for 100….depending. Vince is still in good shape, and did not seem out-of-breath after blowing out his candles. There was also no need to call the fire department. He would have been born in 1921, the same year as my parents, who both passed away a few years ago. Vince’s sister lived to be 103, so I suspect that we’ll be celebrating his 100th three years from now. When I put that in perspective, it means that my 70th birthday is just around the corner. Ouch!

I just spent some time with the water heater guy from George Morlan Plumbing. When I first moved to Portland four years ago, I was given the assignment to do a presentation about them as part of  a second job interview. It required doing some research on the company and putting together a Powerpoint. It was this exercise that made them top-of-mind in finding a repair service to call – they are know as “The Water Heater King,” founded in 1927. I will experiment with eliminating one of our two water heaters for a few days before making a decision on replacement versus repair. I want to make sure that my working wife starts her day off right with a hot bath. If it were up to me, I could live with cold showers for awhile.

It’s my night to cook again, hopefully making-up for last week’s Veal Parmigiana debacle. I’ll just do some burgers on the grill to help restore some self-confidence in the kitchen, and reduce the cost-per-use of our grill. (See Post #634). This morning I spent bottling wine at my friend’s house. We drained the fermentation tanks of the 2017 Pinot Noir vintage into 300 bottles with anticipation of picking the 2018 crop in a few weeks. This is the fourth year that I’ve been involved in the harvest of his grapes. I took a bottle of the 2016 to Vince as a “home-made” gift – what else do you get a guy who’s 97?

Ninety-Seven has always had significance for me since my employment with 97FM radio – WMEE in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. I recently wrote about a DJ from that station who recently passed away at the relatively young age of 61. (See Post #630). He never really got to experience the enjoyment of retirement, and his family is undoubtedly devastated. I’m thankful for my life, and look forward to the next 30 years – should I be so lucky like Vince.