My Christmas story for 2019

A very old and dear friend of mine, has been in contact with me a lot. His dad is getting sick, and my friend is slowly preparing for the inevitable.
We go way back , hard to believe how long it's been. One of the very original Chales, a subversive group of ner do well kids, whose crimes and misdemeanors are plainly silly in retrospect.
My friend has been hungry and homeless before HS, and being hungry at an early age drove him to make as much money as he could, and he saved much of it. He was always fearful he would lose everything.
This drive ruined his health. We had many discussions over the years, and he always was overly impressed I got a degree and later retired from a job I didn't particularly like.
As you know I made a life decision regarding Gail, and for the most part, I've been slowly staying true to my plan. Gail is the one who moved on. A homeless addict, is much like a deer in the woods. Survival is a daily struggle. No time to say " I love you for sentimental reasons " it's hard to say goodbye.
As he talked me off the wall metaphorically, and I did the same for him. He always says he was " lucky " to be in financial stability, and I reminded him he worked very hard and the physical and mental told it took out on him. He always thanked me and told me how important our friendship is.

I've always sent him cards with the theme, I'm his uncle Danny and the cards were definitely not meant to be seen, and I'd add a dollar or two dollar bill, and I'd write horrible things and alter the picture in a very juvenile manner. He said he has every one

The last week he asked for my address m, even though he knows it and said he put an important note on the card, he kept calling to see if I got it.
I got it and it had a "C-NOTE", a hundred dollars.

He was very emotional and didn't want me to think he was looking down on me, he just wanted for me to have some fun money and he now thinks he'll be ok, he finally got married and feels safe for probably the 1st time ever.

We have some insane plans after we turn 62.

This CHRISTMAS, I wish all of you the Love you seek, the family binds that may frustrate, but keep you sane. I pray you find the peace if mind I am seeking, and the friends i am fortunate to have.
We live in troubled times, and I hope it will not define our reason to hope. No matter which side of the aisle we sit, and I realize my opinion is eating at my soul.
As I get older, I see my only opponent is Time.
I am grateful to you who spend your time with me and are part of what I call
"The Danny V experience:
Peace and Love to you all

Danny V.

The Pledge

I have been blessed with having many friends who knew me 30 plus years ago, and whether God suffers fools, I’ve been very lucky, or my bill is coming due soon, for some reason recent events placed me in a position where faces from the past have come to roost, and a delayed dinner invitation came back to haunt me as a lovely woman and wife of a very close friend dies suddenly. The very next day I meet an old coworker (although I’m the old one as she would likely point out) and her daughter as she runs 10 kilometers for the fun of it and is joined by about 100 others, I meet her darling daughter who is very much like her mom and Grandma is along and it is strange to see three generations out for a stroll and shared time. My family is pretty tight but not three generations, but it is more a function of age as there was a time when I was a child that the closeness was there before was convinced that my ancestors did not descend from Spain, but from somewhere beyond the andromeda galaxy.. I say that not in a derogatory manner because all families are convinced they are the strangest, and many have their tales to tell. My family runs strangeness par excellence and I only know 15% of the stories and the real stories will never be told due to death. I have this bizarre fantasy that once the main actors have passed a sacred document with the chronology of the family secrets, with space for my generation to add on to it.

Alas it ain’t gonna happen! This week I was reminded at a mini 30th reunion of how people I barely knew 30 years ago meant to me and of the opportunity I missed by not so much toeing the line but by not appreciation the opportunities that were presented to me, and my antiestablishment behavior was wasted on adults who only (for the most part) wanted the best for me both spiritually and emotionally. My behavior was a necessary step, for had I not taken the leap to boarding school, I might have followed a path of total self annihilation. My two years there are the fondest memories I have, an encapsulation of insanity, fears, tears, laughter, and a gift of Love for life and shared experiences that are priceless.

I write this while admitting I have always been “hefty”, as a kid I was “husky” “Husky plus”, in HS I was elegantly plump. Now I am a load but I have yo-yo’s about 25 lbs the last 10 years. While looking at fotos from the 20th I discovered that I still have some of the same shirts and they were loose there now they are a little tighter and while there must be some shrinkage, there is expansion taking place. It is only noteworthy because I have joined the diabetes club recently and the doctor and dentist told me it is time for change, before the damage is irreversible. It is strange when someone dies within 6 degrees of separation I get the “You really need to take care of yourself”

So for the 38th consecutive year I will take the pledge
This Year I have a Kitty at my side