Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog: The Best of 2025

Welcome in to the 2025 year in review for the Initial Impressions 2.0 blog. For this post I went through all of the blogs written in 2025 and whittled down hundreds of entries into the Top 20 funniest or most foolish things I saw or did over the preceding 12 months. I hope you enjoy this look back at the year that was. A video version of this post is available for members over on Patreon!

1. One trip, 3 foolish encounters. First, on my way to the gym, I got a white bucket stuck under my car. I thought it wasn’t large enough so I could easily pass over it. Nope. I could hear it scraping the road, so I found myself intentionally driving into potholes to try to dislodge it. Eventually, this worked. After the gym, I walked to the supermarket at the other end of the parking lot. Inside I saw the funniest fake eyebrows ever. I gasped in shock and had to run away to laugh. It was as if this woman had taken a Sharpie and drawn two straight lines in the middle of her forehead. Was there nobody around to help her? Or stop her? Finally, on the way back to my car, a man who looked like he was hiding a keg under his shirt remarked about my wearing shorts. I didn’t care enough, and he didn’t look smart enough, to explain how I was at the gym a few doors down. I just smiled and kept walking thinking about how that guy probably looks in the mirror and thinks he has a 6-pack instead of the keg. (#51)

2. At my work, we have something called compression therapy. You get wrapped up in these pads that squeeze your body, stimulating the lymphatic system to get moving. It is great for your overall health. When you do this therapy, it is 30 minutes, you relax, and then when the session is done, someone comes in and unwraps you. If somebody has done the compression therapy enough, they might feel comfortable enough to start unwrapping themselves to help. A person was doing that before I got in the room to assist them. It all seemed fine until I went back in to clean off the pads. It was then that I noticed the splatters of blood on different parts of the various pads. It looked like a crime scene. The worst part was that there was another person set to use the compression therapy, and as I wrapped them in the pads, I kept noticing other drops of blood I had missed. I had no poker face and was horrified.(#57)

3. I have a skill, I guess, for being able to have and remember vivid dreams. I’ve written several short stories based on dreams I’ve had. This week was not a story-type dream, but it was memorable. I dreamed I was walking around a mall in California. I was fascinated by the food court, more specifically, a Cape Cod themed burger place. While I stood outside of this restaurant, I heard a voice say my name. It was famed comedian Norm MacDonald, one of my favorites, who sadly passed in 2021. He said, ‘Hey I like that restaurant too.’ Then he gave me a classic Norm one-liner. He said ‘you know what the best part about it is? You can actually go inside.’ Meaning that he was making fun of me, standing and staring longingly at this restaurant from the outside when I could actually go in and eat. It was pretty funny.(#59)

4. Nobody could have told me that one day I’d be driving down Commercial Street in Provincetown in the backseat while in the passenger’s seat, Frankenstein’s monster growled and yelled at people on the sidewalk. The uncle of one of the crew in the film dressed as the famed monster for a scene. We had to drive him to the location, though. As soon as the first woman spotted him and mouthed ‘Oh my God’ it was over. Frankenstein spent the entire drive shouting and growling at people much to my amusement. Too bad it was a short drive, although the wackiness continued on location. I’m sure all of the people driving by were wondering why Frankenstein was attacking people. Or maybe not, it could have been just another day in Provincetown.(#61)

5. Shenanigans seem to follow me wherever I go. I went out for an afternoon adventure after it had rained. After a lot of driving, I made my way to a place in Sandwich called Scorton Creek. It’s loaded with trails, marshes, a few abandoned shacks, and it crosses the railroad tracks. I couldn’t find the old abandoned shack I had found years ago. I made my way to the tracks to make better time back into the woods. I filmed a quick video joking that I was living the movie Stand By Me as I walked the tracks. I said if I saw a train, I’d have to dive off the tracks. 30 seconds later, the dinner train comes rolling down the tracks. I was in no man’s land. I didn’t know how fast the train was going, and I was at the creek so I was stuck. I had to scale down the embankment and watch as the train passed by, basically right overhead. I don’t think any of the people on the train saw the crazy guy at the bottom of the embankment, but you can be the judge, as I made a video about me jinxing myself.(#73)



6. Speaking of phony outrage. While in the deli section of a grocery store, an old man with a big white beard and a straw hat on was asking about getting some bologna sliced. The employee was explaining the differences between types of bologna, and for some reason, this triggered this old man. He started yelling about how not all bologna is the same. To his credit, the employee stayed calm. When the old man said he didn’t know anything, the employee calmly shot back and said he must know something since he’d been working at the same place for 19 years. The angry old man walked away. Another customer made it a point to sympathize with the deli employee and said some things loud enough that the angry old man could hear. I stayed nearby for a few moments just in case there was a second act to the bologna drama.(#74)

7. My sprained ankle happened 3 weeks ago and is getting closer to being healed. Of course, that meant it was time for me to inflict another injury on myself. This time I decided to create a hand sandwich and use the steel of the reverse hyper machine at work as the bread. In trying to adjust the flat pad for a future client, I mistook where my hand was. Instead of having it braced with my left hand, I had nothing. When the arm let go it pancaked my right hand between two steel bars. I had a client on the treadmill and was doing this while she walked to save time. I gasped but didn’t scream. My boss walked in a minute later, and I was basically hyperventilating. I was sure my hand was broken. Luckily, there was a less than one-inch gap between the steel bars so my hand wasn’t completely crushed, just mostly. There was lots of ice, lots of ibuprofen, and lots of bruising and swelling. Oh, and also it was a Monday, and I had a super busy day training clients, so it was a bundle of laughs.(#75)

8. One of the funniest and most random events occurred at my day job. A new patient came in for their appointment. In their hands, they were carrying something odd. It turned out to be a dirty pair of white boxer shorts. They said that they found them outside and that even though they weren’t any of ours, they figured we didn’t want them to be seen by other patients. So this person picked up someone else’s dirty underwear with their bare hands and brought them into our office. To top it off, they then calmly placed them on the front desk next to our office manager. They didn’t even throw them away. They basically presented dirty underwear as a gift to signal their arrival in our office. Our office manager later said that she had to use another piece of trash from the can to sweep the underwear into the can. She then thoroughly sanitized the desk. The wild thing is that the new patient was really nice, and I truly think they believed they were doing something nice.(#78)

9. My car is over 150K miles, so keeping up on the basic maintenance is very important. My goal is for it to get to at least 250K. This week, it was time for an oil change. I usually go to Jiffy Lube since it’s quick and convenient. I mean, they do try to upsell you on a lot of stuff, but that’s kind of par for the course. This time was interesting. Everything seemed to be going well until one of the crew told me they couldn’t get my oil filter off. They said they tried a few ways, but it was rounded, and nothing could get it off. What? Is that a thing? They told me I’d need to go to the dealership, and they could change it. The irony is that the last few times I’ve gotten my oil changed, it’s been at the same Jiffy Lube. Getting the oil filter off has never been a problem. So what changed this time? I have no idea, but they ended up changing the oil and doing a few other things and not charging me. That was nice. Unfortunately, this means I have to do another trip for routine maintenance, and a dealership at that. You can smell the attempted upselling from a mile away.(#80)

10. On Sundays, I like to go out, if the weather is good, and listen to a favorite podcast. I have a few spots I tend to visit that are quieter, shady, and relaxing. The podcast I listen to is usually about 2 hours. Keep that in mind. I went to a recreation area and parked in a nice shady spot, and had my windows down. It was perfect weather. The local bike trail goes through this recreation area, so there was a string of riders and runners going by. Also, there was this one guy. When I first got there, he was standing by the bathrooms. He had a backpack and a sweatshirt on and looked a bit scrubby. Within minutes of my parking, he walked over and sat at a picnic table right in my line of sight. He was eating chips and just staring mostly at people going by, but also down at the ground. I’d say within an hour of my sitting there, he had put his head down on the table and seemed to have fallen asleep. How do I know he was asleep? Well, because he left his bag of chips on the ground, and a hungry squirrel was able to come right up to him and start ransacking the bag. Sure, if the guy moved, the squirrel would scamper off, but it would inevitably come back and go for the chips. I honestly thought it was going to try to get into the guy’s backpack, or bite his ankle, which would have been even funnier. In all, I stayed in that parking lot for over an hour and a half, and when I left, that guy was still face down on the picnic table. Even starting my car didn’t wake him.(#81)

11. I might have witnessed the beginning of the next big rock band. I was in a grocery store where there is a guy who works nights. He’s got to be around 20, but he stocks shelves and tends to scream/sing songs as he does it. This is complete with a denim jacket with various metal band logos stitched into it, and copious B.O. that seeps through said jacket. On this visit, I saw him meet another man, probably early 30s, in the soda aisle. They began discussing the instruments they played and planned to chat later. The employee was so excited by the prospect of starting a band that when he didn’t have a pen and paper to give his number (he did so because the other guy said his phone was in his car), he basically ran to the service desk to get one. So if these two form a band that becomes the next Iron Maiden, I’ll know I was there to see the beginning of their journey. Maybe I’ll be in the biopic!(#82)

12. It had been a while since I had walked the expansive tidal flats at low tide on Cape Cod. It had been even longer since I did it at sunset. Luckily, a pair of friends were down on the Cape and wanted to walk the beach before heading home. The tide was low enough, but there were still some treacherous spots. This came into play as I foolishly decided to keep my shoes on rather than leave them in the car. I did a good job for a little while keeping them dry. That all changed when I decided to perform a long jump to cross a small river where the tide was still going out. I managed to clear the river, which was a win, but a few minutes later, I felt my lower back locking up, so I knew I didn’t escape unscathed. After that, it was inevitable that my shoes would get soaked since I was having trouble with my back. So yeah, injured back, soaked shoes, getting older sucks, but hey, the sunset was worth it.(#84)


13. There are some things you can’t unsee. When stopping at the grocery store, I was ‘lucky’ enough to get to see a man who was a good 150 pounds overweight sitting at an outdoor picnic table. You know the ones that are supposed to be for sale, not for hanging out at? Anyway, the reason this was so disturbing was the fact that he had no shirt on. Yup, sitting outside of a busy supermarket with families going inside just showing off his pasty white fat body. He looked like a snowman covered in dollar-store tattoos. I think the grossed-out looks got to him, as within a minute, he was putting his shirt back on. Too late, Frosty, like I said, there are some things you can’t unsee.(#84)

14. On a curvy road not far from me, there is a speed detector. You know, one of those contraptions that shows the speed limit on that road and then your speed, typically in a large digital font. Usually, these detectors flash your speed, and then if you go over the limit, your speed either flashes or changes color, or something like that. This particular detector does neither. Once you go above the speed limit, your speed disappears and is replaced with a ‘slow down.’ If you keep going, it is then replaced by a pair of eyes with angry eyebrows. Seriously? If you got caught speeding on this road, what are they going to tell you as far as how fast you were going? ‘Sorry sir you were going ‘angry eyebrows’ in a 25 zone.’ So stupid.(#85)

15. Squirrels are definitely one of the most annoying animals there are. Not just with how they run into the road with no regard for the vehicles barreling down on them. It’s also how they are nonstop eating machines who don’t care how they get what they want. Don’t get me wrong, it can make for some funny scenes, which is what happened this week. My sister Ashley has spent years trying to grow sunflowers, which are her favorite. This year, she has finally had a few make it. This includes one flower that is nearly 8 feet tall. Apparently, this was too enticing for a squirrel that climbed up to the top and was sitting on the flower, tearing the seeds out and dropping the petals to the ground. Eventually, we were able to scare it off, but it was too late. It’s still standing, and the bees still like it, but the giant sunflower has seen better days.(#86)



16. 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.(#90)

17. This is a bit of the weird and random stuff that I caused myself. In New England, we got a massive Nor’easter for a good 3 days. In all, we ended up with something like 4 inches of rain in total. I was out for a drive surveying the damage when I got an idea. My car is white; therefore, it is almost always dirty. With the rain still falling at a good clip, I got an idea. I decided to stop at the store and buy some cleaning wipes and paper towels. You see where this is going. Since there was nobody else on the roads, I stopped at a park. I then proceeded to ‘wash’ my car using the cleaning wipes, rain, and paper towels. I ended up with a pile of wet garbage that I had to throw away. It wasn’t as sparkly clean, like a proper car wash would have given, but all in all, my car looked much better after that. Laugh if you want, I know I did as I realized how crazy I looked. I would have died if someone pulled up and saw this idiot using a roll of paper towels to ‘clean’ his car.(#91)

18. On a break from working, I grabbed my phone, selfie stick, and my yearly mini-pumpkin and headed to get some photos. I ended up at the Cape Cod Canal and started wandering around the grounds snapping photos. Everything was normal until I started walking along the water, headed for a marina. I saw a guy fishing, and he gave me the side-eye. At first, he joked to me that my photo would be better if his ‘fat old ass’ wasn’t in the way. I smiled, and he said ‘Hey it’s good to see you again.’ Now I was confused and asked, ‘really?’ The guy said, ‘Yeah it’s me Shawn. I saw you here before not that long ago.’ I told him it definitely wasn’t me, but I was polite and wished him a good evening before going for more photos. No idea who that guy was, or more importantly, the guy who looks like me who is creeping around the canal. Maybe it’s old me from the future coming back to take photos at the canal.(#92)

One of the photos I took along the canal that day.

19. Sometimes I go seeking an adventure, other times the adventure finds me. I was out with my pumpkin, grabbing some Halloween-themed photos at an old mansion. It’s on a quiet road near the beach, but is almost always deserted, which allows me to take my time setting up shots. I parked in a lot that is fairly hidden. I thought there might be a path so I could walk to the beach without having to get on the actual road. There wasn’t one, but there was a smaller overgrown parking lot, which I took a photo of so that I might be able to find out what it was used for. On the way back to my car, I spotted what looked like a decaying house about 50 or so feet back in the woods. Obviously, I needed to go check it out. Unfortunately, there was no path to it. This meant that I needed to bushwhack my way through the trees and brush to get there. It was a mess inside. There was a lot of graffiti, as would be expected. There were also holes in the floor exposing water underneath. Luckily, I caught myself before falling through the floor, but it was close. It’s pretty rundown and a little dangerous, so I don’t recommend going inside. I got a lot of photos and videos, which I put together into a little Halloween adventure film so that you can see what it’s like.(#92)



20. I had two choices. I could do some content work in the morning and go for a walk in the afternoon, or vice versa. I chose the latter. I figured if I didn’t get up and out in the morning, I might not go at all. Well, I chose wrong. At first, my walk was fine. It was cloudy but mild. Great. So I decided to do a little longer loop around a new extension of the bike trail near where I live. As I went down that way, it began to drizzle. Still, no big deal. Then, there I was, nearly 3 miles from my car when the skies opened up. It started pouring rain. I had to take my headphones and shove them in my shirt so they wouldn’t get ruined. I was walking the bike trail in the rain for over 45 minutes, totally soaked. It ended up becoming a fun adventure, mostly because I had no other choice. By the time I got back to where I parked, it was like I had gone swimming in my clothes. Oh, and of course, when I got back to my car, the rain stopped. The afternoon was sunny and 60 degrees, by the way. Wicked boo.(#94)

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #95: Two Idiots, Northern Lights Part Deux, More Back Woes, etc.

1. How many Amazon drivers does it take to deliver a 3-ounce package? Apparently, two of them. They both walked up to the front door at my work, in the rain, left a padded envelope on the ground, and walked away. They were the first delivery guys I’ve seen in my time there that didn’t just open the door and walk in to leave a package, especially since we were open. Oh, and it ended up being for the business next door. Oh, and they didn’t pull into the parking lot; rather, they chose to block the road. Several people were beeping their horns. Not a pair of Einsteins there.


2. I was at the supermarket and watched while some old lady was scooping chicken nuggets from the hot bar into a container. She decided to just grab another nugget and eat it in full view of me and anyone else. You know, I get it, you’re old and you want to do what you want since you’re at the 1-yard line of life, but I’m also tired of people doing whatever the hell they want while I do my best to actually follow rules. I gave her a dirty stare, but of course, the old bag didn’t care. I guess the ‘no sampling’ sign doesn’t matter to Gummy McGee, or she’s too blind to be able to read it. In that case, she should just have someone else do her shopping for her.


3. I have been grinding heavy with my content work for the past 5 years. It was once I began my podcast that I truly took a turn into being a creator. Before then, I had 5 books published and stuck to that lane as far as chasing a dream of being self-employed. After the podcast, though, I went hard at that, crafting YouTube videos, writing more in this blog, having 5 more books published, and any other form of creativity I could find. It can get tough as all of the work takes time and effort, and the rewards can be slow to come, or not at all. I look for inspiration to keep going sometimes. One person I look to is the host of my favorite podcast, Solomonster Sounds-Off. I’ve been listening to this pro wrestling show since 2012. He just celebrated his 18th year doing his show. The reason he inspires me is that he busted his ass for years, much like I am doing. He worked full-time and spent all of his other free time creating content. Then, a few years ago, he was finally able to quit his day job and become fully self-employed. I’ve reached out to him several times, asking for advice, and he always says it’s about putting in the work and being consistent until you build your audience. This week, I sent him a long email about how he inspires me to keep going. His response was so appreciated. He told me that the fact that I was still going after 5 years told him I had the drive that most others don’t. He told me to keep going, thanked me for my support, and that I had a fan in him. Even if he was just being nice, it means so much when someone who inspires you gives you positive affirmation. I might not be self-employed yet, but I feel like someday I will if I just keep putting in the work.


4. We’ve gotten to the time of year where the weather has flipped from unseasonably warm to unseasonably cold. It went from near 60 with rain one day to 35 with wind chills of 25 the next. Cue the ‘well, it is November’ crowd. Yes, I am nearing a half-century old I have been through the seasons a few times. That doesn’t mean the first cold and windy day doesn’t take some getting used to. I had debated going out to shoot the sunset. Luckily, the clouds rolled in enough to make staying inside easier. That being said, the same exact type of weather day, say in February, will feel much warmer than it did this week. Oh, and the sunset was at 4:25, sweet.


5. So I got this different, stronger melatonin mix with chamomile and lavender and other things. I have been using it to make sure I get to sleep on time. Believe me, this stuff works. 2 gummies and within 30 minutes, I am swan diving into bed. How well do they work? This week, we had a rare and spectacular Aurora Borealis show on Cape Cod. I had popped the gummies before I knew it was going on. Once I saw the first amazing photos come across my social media, it was already too late. I tried to get up to get dressed and maybe go out to try my luck. Nope, my body was like nah, Northern Lights are no big deal, get to bed. I missed the Northern Lights because my new melatonin is so strong.

6. Why is it that anytime I wreck my back, I never have a good story? It’s never ‘I saved someone from drowning,’ or ‘I was hit by a car pushing a baby carriage out of the way.’ Nope, it’s something dumb like ‘oh I turned and bent the wrong way pressing a button and my lower back exploded. That was this week. One of the worst pains. Basically, I didn’t brace properly, and my QL muscle (look it up) seized up trying to stabilize me. This seizure caused my pelvis to be thrust out of alignment. Thankfully, my boss is a chiropractic wizard, among other things, and he realigned my hip, but the pain was still excruciating. I couldn’t bend, which didn’t help since I had a client to train right after being adjusted. Nothing better for a sore back than lifting weights and moving equipment around. I would have gone home early or called out the next day, but the Aurora Borealis were possibly back that night, and I needed to try to make good for missing them the previous night.


7. As far as the actual Aurora Borealis, it was a waiting game that ultimately paid off. With my ruined back, I wasn’t sure how I’d manage to go and look for them. Lucky for me, my buddy Steve’s wife, Amanda, was kind enough to let him borrow her car, which has heated seats. They weren’t a magic cure or anything, but they definitely helped. Our first stop at Bass Hole in Yarmouth Port was a bit of a bust as the clouds dominated. There were probably 20 or so people there, a far cry from the 200+ there last year when I went to watch the Northern Lights. The next stop was just down the road on Wharf Lane. It faces Sandy Neck Beach. Here, Steve and I waited for 45 minutes, not seeing much of anything. It seemed like it was going to be a disappointment. I decided to go and grab a few long exposure shots of this abandoned piece of wharf. I mean, I had dragged my injured self out, so I needed some sort of memento, right? Steve took a photo and was the one to notice the pinks and greens in the sky. Remember, you typically can’t see the Aurora Borealis with the naked eye, but your camera or phone can. Once I saw those colors, it was off to the races. We spent the next 20 or so minutes getting as many photos as we could. It ended up being 2 ½ hours chasing the lights for 20 minutes of action, but the photos and adventure were definitely worth it.

One of several good photos of the Northern Lights.

8. There are very few things in my life that make me as happy as spending a few minutes with my little niece Sylvie before she gets on the school bus. I can only do it on Fridays since I work from home that day, but she always remembers and looks forward to it. This week, I was a little late as I had to hobble myself over there with my ruined back. We took a selfie to send to my mom for her birthday. Then it got better as I was invited to take a drive to Sylvie’s school to drop her off. We had a lot of laughs as we usually do, mostly about how old I am. She gave me a little Wendy’s Frosty toy. I had to remember to take it when I got back since she’d notice I left it and be upset. I cherish these times as I did with my other 5 nieces and nephews, because at some point, she will get to the age that her crazy uncle isn’t fun anymore, and she’ll want to go spend time with her own friends. Luckily, I think I have several more years until that happens, and I will always make sure I have time for her, no matter what is going on in my life.


9. It’s amazing as I sit here to see that the New England Patriots are back. They currently are 9-2, leading the AFC East, headed for the playoffs, and it’s only just beginning. Now I know their schedule is very easy due to only winning 4 games each of the last 2 seasons, but you can only play who is on the opposite sideline. The hype train is crazy. I do get flashbacks to 2001 when Tom Brady was a nobody ‘managing’ the game. Drake Maye is 23, Mike Vrabel is a great coach, they are one of the best teams in the NFL currently, and the crazy part is they have tons of salary cap room. This means as good as they are now, they technically could be only getting better in the next few years. I have to stay cautiously optimistic but it’s hard not to get excited about the team for the first time since Brady left. Oh, wait, I mean, since Brady was pushed out, back in 2019.


10. Dedication to the craft means that, despite having a back injury that had me lying with a heating pad on for days, I still felt the need to scale a 6-foot kayak rack to get a better vantage point for a sunset photo. My back hurt before and after, but in those few moments, it was like my common sense brain shut off, and I climbed up the rack and then used my trusty selfie stick to get a pretty nice photo. Luckily, I didn’t make anything worse, but it is still pretty funny how the part of my brain that senses danger checks out when I am faced with a potentially amazing photograph. Oh, and here it is.



11. I like some good loud music as much as anyone. Maybe I am becoming the old man, but if it’s close to 10pm and I can hear the bass of your music in your car over my TV, then it’s too loud. People are trying to sleep, and these scumbags drive by slowly blasting their music. It’s not a one-time thing either; it’s nearly every night. Maybe it’s not the same people, but it sure feels like it is. They are so much like clockwork that sometimes I feel like hiding in the bushes outside and whipping a rock through their window as they drive by. Oh well, I can at least daydream about doing it, that comes with 100% jail time.


12. On a totally unrelated note, I was surfing around YouTube and I found this insanely funny video. Jurassic Park, but with Pee-Wee Herman as the dinosaurs. Trust me, you’ll laugh.




13. I like dogs, but I love cats. When I am out for a walk, if you are with your giant dog who is aggressively jumping toward me, don’t get offended if I look at you and shake my head in anger. The only thing that stopped that dog from trying to mount me was a car that passed. It sure wasn’t going to be the scuzzy-looking stick figure guy walking it. It’s only on rare occasions that I see these types of people. In fact, on the same walk, I saw several super cute dogs that I wanted to pet, but you know my back is still held together with tape and zip ties.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #90: Fall Flavors, So Close But So Far, Birthdays and Books, etc.

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).

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.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #73: Closure, Train Dodging, Vanity Plates, etc.

1. Closure is a funny thing. You can be searching for it for almost 20 years and still not be prepared when you finally get it. I was going through a journal I had written when I was in the most important relationship of my life 20 years ago. For so long after it ended, I had been unable to find her and never was able to get closure. It was a constant loose end that needed tying up. Amazingly, I got that closure this past weekend. After years of searching, I eventually found her through a simple Google search. Not sure what changed but earlier in the same day I had put it out into the universe that I wanted to find her. Sure, that hadn’t worked before but I always try. I’ll just say that she is happy in the life she has, and that makes me happy. If you want to know the full story, I wrote about it. Here is the link: https://christophersetterlund.blogspot.com/2025/06/peaceful-emptiness-finding-closure.html


2. Any time I visit the local college library it’s like my brain goes into serious mode. I feel like I write better when I am there. I wish it were closer. Granted it’s a 15-20 minute drive, but I’d go write there more often if it were closer. It’s like I sit at a desk on one of the quiet studying floors, and my brain tries to fit in with all of the people continuing their education. I can write well at home, but I tend to get distracted by surfing the web way more. It’s like I don’t want to be seen doing that at the college.


3. There was a hilarious interaction with a chipmunk this week. I was heading out the front door and spooked a little chipmunk. Rather than running around the side of the house instead it dove into the gutter spout. I could hear it trying to climb up in the gutter but eventually slipping down. Next, I spotted its little face sticking out of the drain, hoping I would leave. I took a step toward the gutter and the chipmunk squeaked and again tried to climb up the inside of the gutter. This time I could hear it squeaking inside like it was cursing me out. Again, it poked its head out but I had my fun and left it alone.


4. I am super excited for the return of King of the Hill. I was a big fan of the show during its initial run from 1997-2009. A revival in the form of a 14th season is set to drop in the first week of August on Hulu. I have been waiting for a reason to do a free trial of Hulu, and oh boy, this will be it. If you’ve never seen King of the Hill it was created by Mike Judge who did Beavis & Butthead, and Greg Daniels who helped create the American version of The Office. It’s got bits of both shows, but a lot that is different. My hope is that the new episodes will live up to the hype, but I’ll be happy just to see everyone back and aged somewhat.

5. While out for a walk, I was in a beautiful, quiet neighborhood not far from me. I had a podcast on, so I could also hear the sounds of nature. I thought I heard muffled dog barks, so I stopped. I have had instances where a dog has suddenly shown up next to me while I’m walking. The last thing I want is to be attacked by a dog, or to step on one that I don’t see. I saw that two dogs were barking at the bay window of a house. I thought it was funny but the lady in the house didn’t. I could see her yelling at the dogs and then she even pulled the shades down. Sorry dogs.


6. One good dog story deserves another. I was at the beach walking pretty far out on the flats to get away from the crowds. It was so peaceful and nice. I soaked in the atmosphere before returning to the parking lot. As soon as I got close I heard an old man in a pickup truck telling these 2 women that dogs aren’t allowed on the beach in the summer. This is true but many dog owners are selfish and entitled so they don’t care about laws. Anyway, these 2 classy ladies with their disgusting cigarettes and the weathered faces to prove it, started yelling and swearing at the old man. He swore back and gave them the finger while driving away. Me? I just wanted to get to my car without making eye contact with those trash bags.

Not seen, the trashy 'ladies' with their dogs on the beach.

7. In most weeks, the return of King of the Hill would have been the biggest news for me. Then, a few days later, it is matched by the return of Spaceballs in 2027 for the 40th anniversary. As a child of the 80s, this is like a Schwartz ray right to my nuts, in a good way, if there is one. The trailer is basic so I can’t wait to see an actual preview with as many of the actors returning. Sadly, there won’t be John Candy or Joan Rivers but there will be Rick Moranis, Bill Pullman, and hopefully Mel Brooks, who is 99 years young now. May the Schwartz be with us all!


8. When I was younger, I had aspirations of getting some sort of vanity license plate. I figured something like my initials, ‘CJS.’ It never happened. That being said I do enjoy seeing what people choose to put on their vanity plates. Many are initials but then every now and then I see one that makes me audibly laugh. I saw a plate that read ‘EIEIOH.’ If you know, you know. But still, Old MacDonald? That’s what you chose for your license plate? Maybe if you were a farmer? This was just some run-of-the-mill pickup truck. Very creative and funny regardless.


9. Shenanigans seem to follow me wherever I go. I went out for an afternoon adventure after it had rained. After a lot of driving, I made my way to a place in Sandwich called Scorton Creek. It’s loaded with trails, marshes, a few abandoned shacks, and it crosses the railroad tracks. I couldn’t find an old abandoned shack I had found years ago. I made my way to the tracks to make better time back into the woods. I filmed a quick video joking that I was living the movie Stand By Me as I walked the tracks. I said if I saw a train, I’d have to dive off the tracks. 30 seconds later, the dinner train comes rolling down the tracks. I was in no man’s land. I didn’t know how fast the train was going, and I was at the creek so I was stuck. I had to scale down the embankment and watch as the train passed by, basically right overhead. I don’t think any of the people on the train saw the crazy guy at the bottom of the embankment, but you can be the judge, as I made a video about me jinxing myself. Enjoy.
https://youtube.com/shorts/yVuXXWwtlhg?si=FB2PViWGD_T8Dw20



10. Also during my visit to Scorton Creek. The ground was wet from the day of rain so my shoes quickly got soaked. While on the lookout for the abandoned building, I kept hearing a voice over a loudspeaker coming from somewhere in the distance. At first, it sounded like a graduation where the voice was announcing names alphabetically. Then I started thinking it might have been a graduation party or even a wedding as music was getting played as well. This included The Beatles ‘In My Life’ which made the walk through the woods magical. While walking back to my car, I came across a man walking with his two dogs. I asked him about the voice, and he had no clue. I mentioned my interaction with the train, and he just laughed. Only when he walked past me did it make sense. I could smell the weed he was smoking. He will likely think I was just a dream.


11. Happy Father’s Day to all of the good dads out there. Despite not having a good dad myself, I was blessed to have many great men who I consider second fathers in my life. Granted, it would have been better if the man who helped bring me into this world had given even a D- grade worth of effort to raising me. His karma is living his life now knowing that his actions led to his kids and grandkids wanting nothing to do with him. I cannot change the past but I can look back and look at present-day and feel grateful that I learned how to be a man from some truly good men throughout my life.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #71: Ultra-Stupid, Exploding Food, Old Man Woes, etc.

 

1. I guess I’ve crossed over officially into being old. While enjoying a perfect afternoon at the beach, I couldn’t help but be annoyed at these 4 high school kids. Maybe it was how loud and obnoxious they were. Maybe it was the fact that they referred to the geese and seagulls as the N-word repeatedly. Or it could be that these idiots are so dumb they thought penguins were at the beach, on Cape Cod. Wow, I’m sure their parents are so proud of them. I wonder what amazing contributions to the world these 4 foul-mouthed geniuses will make.

2. Something that likely only interests me. I love the Friday the 13^th franchise. It’s probably my favorite horror series. The random thing that popped into my head recently has to do with the timeline of the first 4 films. So the original happens, and Part 2 takes place 5 years later. Simple enough. The weird thing is that parts 2, 3, and 4, all take place within the same week. No big deal. That is until you see Jason Voorhees unmasked in each one. In Part 2 he’s a mountain man with long hair and a beard. The next day in Part 3, he’s bald and clean-shaven with a different freaky face. Then in Part 4, which happens right after Part 3 Jason looks like a wrinkly alien. So what did he shave and then take a super long bath to get wrinkly? Of course, I have visual aids.

3. I was playing basketball at a local park this week. A few hundred feet away a family of probably 6-8 people was having a cookout at one of the grills. All of a sudden the youngest son, who was probably 2 came wandering over to the court. His 2 brothers, who looked to be maybe 7 and 9, followed. The littlest one, I think his name was Nico, wanted to shoot hoops with me. None of the boys spoke English but it was so cute. Nico only had a diaper on and he was bouncing the ball and trying to shoot. It was a lot of fun. It only got funnier when the older boys tried getting Nico back to eat with the family. He came back twice, waddling the way toddlers do. Luckily, his sister who was probably 13 came and got him, and she spoke English. I told her he was no bother. Eventually, I took my ball and left, knowing that he’d keep running back over if I stayed.

4. Something that is not so fun is exploding food in the microwave. That’s an obvious statement. I was heating up a bowl of clam chowder covered in plastic wrap. With about 30 seconds left in its cooking time, there was a bang. I could see by the light inside that the bowl was tipped on its side. This was not good. When I opened the microwave, it looked like I had taken a can of soup and just heaved it all over. I was able to save about half of it. The next few minutes consisted of me yelling and swearing while scooping some chowder up with a paper plate and pouring it back into the bowl. The rest was soaked up with paper towels and thrown out. At least the microwave is clean inside, stupid exploding chowder.

5. I always wear my Fitbit, except when going to bed. That being said, sometimes I forget I’m wearing it. This all came to a head after a workout. I put on a long-sleeved windbreaker and headed off to the store. I was still a bit sweaty after the workout, not to pat myself on the back. Anyway, instead of wiping my eyes with my right arm I used my left. The long sleeves made my Fitbit almost invisible. So the end result was me basically punching myself in the left eye with my Fitbit as I walked into the store. That’s a good way to make an entrance. Everything was alright, though I did debate starting to wear eye black under that eye like Left Eye used to in TLC.

6. Going back to my basketball escapades. Both of my hips were tight and sore after playing, as they tend to be. Hey, I’m not 16 and on the school team anymore. Luckily, my boss is a chiropractor, among other skills. I needed an adjustment badly, even before my work day started. Then I had to demonstrate a hex bar/trap bar deadlift for a client. For those who don’t know, a hex bar is a piece of equipment with 6 sides and it allows you to stand inside of it to make a deadlift easier and safer for your back and shoulders. It was meant to be a bodyweight lift; the client was 180 lbs, so I loaded the bar. Not wanting him to feel awkward, I demonstrated the lift first. As soon as I straightened up both hips and my low back locked. I couldn’t sell pain because the client would never attempt the lift. I had to wait until the end of the day with my body trashed for my boss to adjust both of hips. They felt better almost instantly but I have a few muscles I need to strengthen if I want to keep playing basketball.

7. On the lighter side of my basketball shenanigans. To me now in my late 40s, playing basketball reminds me of when I used to frequent Taco Bell in my early 20s. I should just leave it at that random comparison, but I’ll explain. I know when I play basketball now that I am going to have some degree of soreness and/or pain for the next day or so, but it won’t stop me from playing again. When I used to go to Taco Bell, I’d eat a lot, and love it, but let’s just say my stomach was very angry for the next few days. As soon as it felt better, though, I’d go back to Taco Bell like I thought maybe this time would be different. So yeah, basketball is like Taco Bell, fits perfectly for my random life.

Yeah, same thing...

8. I mentioned that I needed to strengthen a few muscles to help me in running and basketball. One is the adductor(groin) muscle. There is a machine at the gym where you have pads against your inner thighs, and you then bring them together using whatever resistance you want to develop the adductors. I was told that since you don’t run, or play basketball seated with your knees bent, why would you train the adductors that way? My bright idea at home was to take a thicker loop band, tie it off, and wrap it around my leg up closer to my hip. Then I would step wide and bring my feet together, thereby strengthening the adductor muscle. Well, I got way too into it and began stepping wide, coming together, and taking another step out. I must have forgotten that a band can only stretch so far because after a few rounds of this movement, the band gave way. It snapped and gave me a good slap across the thigh. Luckily, it was not a little further up because I don’t want to know how a thick rubber band slapping me in the nuts feels.

9. It’s amazing to look back almost 5 years when I had a kernel of an idea about creating a podcast. It honestly began as a way to keep my mind occupied while I adapted to a new life alcohol-free. All of the research, recording, and marketing helped to keep my mind of drinking, which had been a major issue in my life for the preceding few years. Now here I am about to record my 200^th episode, and I also just passed 25,000 downloads. It’s amazing, and I am so grateful to everyone who chooses to listen to my Gen-X nostalgia show. There’s so much still to come but I am very grateful for all of the support.

10. This always seems to be the case but there are certain days if I’m out for a walk that I don’t want to be bothered. I’m not rude, I’ll smile and nod, but no stopping to chat. These are typically the days that every person under the sun with a dog is near me. The dogs always look at me like they’re shocked I don’t want to pet them. Then there is the opposite. These are the days when I’m all in my feels and want to pet every dog within a mile radius. Of course, these days are when any dog I see reacts to me like I'm the dog catcher. Do they still have dog catchers? I had one such day of each this week.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #67: Monday Runday, Social Media Stalkers, 5K Fun, etc.

1. It was the return of Monday Runday this week. That is where I get out of work, meet my friend Mike at a local school track, and run or walk. It is so much fun, especially when the weather is good. The return of this fun event was not without its challenges. Mainly, it was do I beat the hell out of a selfish, entitled dog owner. I took a detour off of the track to find a porta-potty. Once done there I took a long lap around the school. It was here that I was met with a dog running free while its idiot owners just watched. I yelled repeatedly to get their dog while it ran around me. I kept running but made sure to toss several F words at the moron dude who stood there leaking brain cells on the ground. It did get my adrenaline pumping but man, stupid people.

2. A new piece of training equipment I got to try this week is resistance training for your lungs. It is a mouth guard with a valve attached to it. You can adjust the valve to restrict your oxygen intake. The gist of it is that if you have to breathe twice(or more) as hard as normal to get a full breath then when you’re exercising in reality, you’ll have far more stamina. I suppose you could use it to strengthen your lungs just for daily life as well. My hope is that using it will leads to more stamina running while my calf wedge will allow me to run longer due to increased ankle and calf mobility. We shall see.

3. I don’t know if it is an example of the Mandela effect or if it’s just me, but how did it take me to my late 40s to realize that Tom the Cat from Tom & Jerry was gray during the first years of the cartoons? I thought he was always blue, but it turns out he was gray for a lot of the time. Maybe my sense of color was different when watching the cartoons as a kid? Maybe I am putting way too much thought into 80-year-old cartoons? But also what else from my childhood am I ‘misremembering’ as Roger Clemens once said?

How did I not notice Tom was gray?

4. There are plenty of times over the last few years when I feel like I am working on so many different projects and making minimal progress on each. Typically, my content itinerary consists of podcasts, videos, blogs, and various social media posts to promote all of those. I have also been working for months on a website for my podcast. This is the project that feels like I am making little progress on. Usually it’s because the rest of the content takes precedence. As we speak, I am working on loading in all of the links I’ve shared in 194(and counting) episodes, along with all of the old shows and artwork. You can see that it’s slow going based on the fact that I chose to stop that work to continue this blog. I’m sure the site will be up before my podcast ends, pretty sure.

5. I always find it weird and a bit off-putting when a random stranger likes a photo or post of mine on social media that dates back several years. Like how much are you stalking my pages to find something that far back when I have hundreds, if not thousands of posts? It’s especially creepy on Instagram, where I have nearly 6,000 posts. If you’re that big of a fan to go years back in my archives, then go support me on Patreon, if you’re just a weirdo stalker, then please make yourself known so I can block you.

6. My 5K race this weekend left me shocked and speechless in the best possible way. I had only semi-trained. I looked at this race as a kind of barometer of where I went with running afterward. My goals were twofold. Don’t get hurt, and finish the 5K(3.1 miles) in less than 35 minutes. I ended up beating my goal by more than 6 minutes, and actually beating my last 5K time by a good 45 seconds. To say I am shocked is an understatement. I was tired for sure but I set a pace from the start and barely wavered. As a runner, sometimes the hardest thing to do is run your race and not change your plan based on others around you. I fell victim to that more times than I can count. For some reason in this race, I felt like it was just me against myself, and it turned out better than I could have imagined.

7. The race was the Dennis Chamber 5K. It started and ended at the beautiful Mayflower Beach, which is on the bay side. This marked the 4^th time I ran a race on this course. It’s relatively easy, there are a couple of hills but nothing that any average runner hasn’t seen before. This year’s race had about 250 people, so we were packed like sardines at the beginning. At my peak I used to line up right on the starting line and would take off in a flash. Now I tend to be in the middle of the pack. The faster people take off out of sight, while I still can pass my fair share of slower people who don’t understand that they need to be in the back of the group. There was music, free food, water, a potential free lunch afterward. It was a fun and festive time made all the better by my surpassing my own expectations.

8. I took pride in my outfit for the race. I had an idea for it in my head and had to hope for the weather to cooperate because a rainy day would put the kibosh on my setup. Luckily, it ended up being sunny and around 60 for the race. This meant that I was able to go all out. I had some styling powder from a company named Level 3. It’s great stuff, you can use it on your dry hair. So I spiked up my hair I’ve been growing for the last few months. This didn’t go off without a hitch, as when I opened the container of the powder, I did manage to spill some on my black shirt and shorts. Smooth. Then I had a killer headband from the Junk company. It was blue and black Hippie skulls. Combined with sunglasses, it was a great look. Things went off without a hitch until a few hours after the race. This is when I looked at myself in the mirror and saw that, thanks to the headband, I had a very specific red area on my face. The headband and sunglasses covered my forehead and eyes, so I ended up with what boiled down to a red line about ¼” wide going across my forehead right above my eyebrows. Nice. It was still a good look though.

You can see where I might have gotten red...

9. The weather has been perfect especially over the weekend. It was time to throw open all of the windows and get that spring air flowing through my space. Of course this is the time then that the next door neighbor has a thorough cleanup done on their yard. This was complete with a backpack blower going nearly nonstop for close to 2 hours. It was the ultimate background music for me trying to edit my podcast. I ended up having to close my windows just like it was January again. Booo.

10. In this day and age I rarely have cash on me. I rely on my debit card for all purchases. Only when an issue arises do I wish we were still in the cash days. I was in a supermarket and only when I was at the self-checkout did I realize that the card reader was having issues. I had cash on me but only $5. I wasn’t going to leave my stuff, go run to an ATM, and then come back to pay the rest. After close to 10 minutes of trying and failing a different employee came over and suggested I try the ‘tap’ option. I had done it several times with no luck but to humor her I did one last time. Lo and behold it worked. I was so relieved and said she was a good luck charm. I then bumped into a few people I knew. I felt so good when leaving that I took that $5 and gave it to a group of little girls collecting money for their dance academy. Good karma for me.

Just a little spring photo to end the blog.