1. Things I get way too excited for at this time of year: Monster cereals(Count Chocula, etc.), Dannon’s new seasonal Greek yogurt(it’s toasted marshmallow), Polar Seltzer’s new seasonal flavors(blackberry snowflake is amazing), and yes pumpkin-flavored everything. You can bet that each time I go into a grocery store in October I will be leaving with one or more of those things. Seltzer and Greek yogurt is good, boxes of sugary cereal not so much.
2. One thing I have yet to buy is my annual small pumpkin. I get a pie sized pumpkin, roughly softball-sized, and give it some sort of face. Next up is weeks worth of social media posts featuring photos of said pumpkin in various Halloween-themed areas. But of course there is a shelf life for a Halloween pumpkin. The end comes for my little pumpkin is a horror movie way, typically getting smashed or run over. However don’t be said because this ending doesn’t come until the following June. Yes, the last 3 years I’ve had pumpkins they have lasted well into Spring before yes ultimately becoming smashing pumpkins(thank you).
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| Last year's pumpkin |
3. My birthday is in less than a month. I used to create big social media events where friends and family were invited to gather in celebration. Since I stopped drinking 5 years ago I haven’t done any such thing. The meetups used to be at bars. I don’t want to go hang out in a bar as a sober person but I miss those days of getting to see many people around my birthday. It’s like the older you get the fewer and further between such meetups become. I think that’s one of the biggest things I miss as I get older: the accessibility of loved ones. Social media allows you to be able to contact virtually anybody at anytime, but it’s not the same as in person hangouts. If my birthday was in the middle of summer maybe I’d try to set up a beach party. Sadly it’s in November when temperatures are usually in the 50s and the sun sets before 6. It’s hardly beach weather. So I’ll likely just lament not being able to meet up with people for my birthday but it’s kind of par for the course when you give up the waste of time and money that alcohol is.
4. This entry is a bit of a throwback to the original Initial Impressions. Back then in 2010-2013 I had a lot of posts where I spoke about girls I was interested in. They ranged from ones dating d-bag idiots, to ones that I chased for so long I needed to buy new shoes. It was a lot of cryptic posting, no naming names. This is similar in that there is a girl that is a customer at my work that I have always thought was really cute. After a few years of wondering I finally got the word that yes she is single. She stopped in unannounced one day this week and I made it a point to chat her up more than ever before. I felt great. She then came in again the next day. It was a slow day but of course the only time my boss needed me to do something was the time that she was there. So I missed out on the chance to gain some momentum. I was so disappointed. It was like someone had deflated me as I watched her leave without getting to say a single word. On one hand it was embarrassing that not getting to speak to someone I barely know affected me so much. On the other hand it actually felt good to feel deeply again. It has been years of being career-focused and not even thinking of dating. So we’re 1 and 1 since finding out she’s single. She is set to come in next week. That will be the decider. If we get to talk a lot again maybe I’ll pursue her more. If something comes up again and I don’t speak with her I’ll take it as a sign that it’s not meant to be. Stay tuned.
5. When training people at my day job I connect my phone to the speakers in the gym via Bluetooth. I can have my phone in the next room and still be connected. When I get finished training people I naturally disconnect from the Bluetooth. The funny thing is that those speakers can be temperamental. Several times a week the speakers won’t connect to the phone. It’s become a common thing. However I wasn’t ready for the speakers to refuse to disconnect. This week I got done with my training and disconnected the Bluetooth. I know it disconnected because I clearly heard the speakers make a loud beeping noise to signify it was. I got up to do something when I heard another beep. Out of curiosity I checked my phone and sure enough the speakers had reconnected themselves for some reason. I disconnected them a second time but stood around waiting for the speakers to reconnect again. It didn’t happen, which I was actually disappointed by. I kind of wanted that Three Stooges moment with me as Curly going into the gym and screaming at the speakers to stay disconnected.
6. I have said so many times that from Labor Day through the end of the year is my favorite time. There are so many holidays, birthdays, and such. That being said it is still a shock to the system when the first truly cold weather shows up. Waking up one morning this week with temperatures in the upper 30s was no fun. Mid-October is way too early to turn the heat on so you kind of just deal with it. As luck would have it the temperatures rebounded to be in the 60s with lows around 50. Of course it was accompanied by a major Nor’easter, but hey at least it wasn’t snow...yet.
7. There was nearly a cuteness overload during a walk on the bike path. A father was riding his bike with a baby riding in front of him. It wasn’t just on the handlebars or anything, it was safely harnessed in. This little one had to be no more than 18 months at most. They were screaming with laughter, chatting with people passing by, and waving. I know all of this because they passed me three times within a half hour. I was walking a section of trail that cuts through a golf course and I think the father had parked in the golf course lot and was riding just that length of trail. It was so cute and a perfect addition to what was a great early fall walk.
8. This week was the 24th birthday of my niece Emma. She is my middle of three nieces. I feel like I have different connections with each of my 6 nieces and nephews. With Emma my connections start with smarts and humor. She is super intelligent which I appreciate since when I was a kid I was seen as borderline genius level smart. That being said I didn’t go as all out when it came to college as Emma did. I only got a 2-year degree so I have so much respect for her finishing that chapter in the way I wish I had. Also I feel that our sense of humor are on the same wavelength. We are obviously generations apart but I feel she has the same dry, sarcastic wit that my father’s side of the family has. My Nana called it being ‘sharp.’ So if I make birthday cards for her I know I can make them pretty crazy and she’ll appreciate them. Or if I say buy a roll of toilet paper and sign it like a birthday card she will also appreciate that. I am very proud of who Emma is and all that she has done and will do. Of course I wouldn’t mention crazy birthday cards and not share one.
9. I am glad that I have a vivid and strong imagination. That means that I can see a situation clearly so I don’t need to act it out in reality. What am I talking about? While out for a walk I was going through one of my favorite neighborhoods. A few hundred feet ahead coming toward me was a single man walking four good sized dogs. I could see it was a battle for him to control them. All I could think of was what if something startled or excited the dogs? I could envision them dragging this poor guy all over the street, or tripping him as he goes flying into the air. It would have been a great comedy sketch. I was smiling widely as I passed without incident and waved. Lucky for him I have that imagination, and a little self-control.
10. Fun fact: Three people from my high school class are published authors. Yes, one of them is me. Patrick Hinds had a best-seller that told stories of his life called Failure is Not NOT An Option. He is a very well known podcast host of both True Crime Obsessed and The Golden Girls Deep Dive. Nicole Lesperance has had several successful young adult books published including her newest one A Spell To Wake the Dead. She has a series of book signings on Cape Cod in the fall and I was thrilled to go out to one at the Brewster Bookstore to show my support. It was fun to catch up as I haven’t seen her since we graduated. It was also fun being on the opposite side and just getting to relax while she had to chat and sign books for fans. Obviously I linked to those books so you can order copies. I know they’re not the only ones from my graduating class, but I will say that I am very proud to be in this little club of Class of ‘96 authors with a pair of genuine good and nice people like Patrick and Nicole.
11. A major Nor’easter came barreling through New England this weekend. It was set to bring heavy rain and winds gusting over 40mph. Of course I wanted to get in a little run before the bad weather came so that’s what I did. As is tradition I saw some oddities on my walk. Not sure if it was the weather but I came upon an intersection in a quiet neighborhood. There I saw an older man walking his golden retriever. By walking I mean going in a wide circle but never leaving the intersection. I personally saw him make three laps and he was still going as I got out of his sight. I don’t know if he was worried about going too far and getting caught in a sudden monsoon. The rain didn’t end up starting for another hour or so he would have been fine either way.
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