Lifestyles & Trends, Then & Now

     Lifestyles change without effort.  I remember as a young child (late 50's) that dining out was reserved for special occasions.  It was a treat that I looked forward to with great anticipation.  In current times dining out has changed dramatically even for me. Today, it seems dining out is a weekly routine, a reward of sorts for surviving a challenging week.  That's not a bad thing just a change to our lifestyle and expectations.  We have become a nation of foodies, we use food to celebrate our life, even when cooking at home.  It's been that way for a long time but it's no longer reserved for certain holidays.  I like this new trend because it allows people to be more social, which is needed because the digital age has taken some of that away.

     Coffee has always been a part of our culture.  My parents always had a pot of coffee brewing in the house.  It was never the fancy coffee they drink today, but simply strong black coffee occasionally with a little cream and sugar.  Cappuccino, mocha latte or caramel macchiato were not in the vocabulary that I knew but again I see this as a tasty improvement.  Back in the day, coffee was mainly drunk at home, work or when you were lucky enough to go out for special meal.  I don't ever remember coffee shops like Starbucks.  We had donut shops that served coffee but the attraction there were the donuts not the coffee.  I have coffee every morning at home but I rarely buy coffee from a coffee shop however that might be an age thing. When I do go to a coffee shop I will get a fancy cup of coffee, my favorite is caramel macchiato.  It's apparent that coffee shops do well since they seem to be in abundance, which I expect is mainly supported by the younger generation.

     St. Louis, Missouri has always been a beer town with Anheuser Busch being the beer of choice.  There were many brand choices but not flavor choices when I was younger.  I was never a big fan of beer, I'm more of a wine guy which at the time was odd since wine was not popular when I was younger.  I have now graduated from Annie Green Springs to a nice Cabernet but I also discovered that I like the crafts beers that are being produced today.  Today there are as many flavors of beer as there is coffee, in fact some contain coffee.  These craft beers cater to the younger people who are looking for a more distinct taste.  I like these new craft beers unlike some of my old buddies that only drink the amber beers of the past.

     When I was young drive-in movie theaters were popular but I haven't seen one in a long time.  There may be a few that still exist but you will have to look long and hard to find one.  Movies are still popular but not drive-in movie theaters.  As with anything one forgotten trend is replaced by a new one.  Recently, I have noticed luxury theaters opening around the area.  These theaters have lounge chairs with tables to set your wine, craft beer and appetizer on while you recline in luxury watching the high definition movie. The ticket prices are more expensive as you might expect but it sounds like fun, at least for some special movie.  There are risks I see however one of which is falling asleep and missing the movie as well as spilling your craft beer or Cabernet, which would be embarrassing. 

     The invention of telephone has changed our lives but smart phones have amped up the change to a new level.  We had phones in the 50's but they were not only landlines but also 40 call lines or party lines.  A 40 call line, for the younger folks not familiar with the term, is a telephone package that allows you to make 40 calls in a month, yes that's not a typo, 40 calls a month.  If you made over 40 phone calls you would be charged an extra fee.  A party line was not a phone you used to setup a party (that would have been pretty cool) but a phone line you shared with other households (strangers).  If you picked up the phone on a party line you might find someone already on the line and you had to wait to make your call or ask him or her politely to hang up which never worked. 

     There was a # symbol on the phone but it wasn’t called a hashtag and didn’t allow you to send a message to the land of twitter, actually I’m not sure what it was for.  I have a smart phone now which I find very useful and would never want to go back to the old landlines but sometimes I become too dependent on it and I’m 67 not 16. 

     I guess my point is lifestyles and trends change, which are neither good nor bad, just what happens.  I try to stay current with times but sometimes I miss the past.  I dine out, drink fancy coffee, craft beer and use a smart phone but I still like to watch old movies at home.  So, I'd like to think of myself as an old soul that is young at heart.

Is it true that "All Men (Mankind) are Created Equal"

     As a young child I was taught in school, "All men are created equal".  It was understood that the term men referred to people (men and women), which when I grew up in statements like this, the word men included women, but in hindsight it would have been more appropriate to say people.   

     That’s an interesting statement but is it really true?  It doesn’t take a genius to notice that people are treated differently.  The social status, economic status or simply the opportunities they have in life depending on the country they reside in. 

     Some may argue that this statement just applies to the moment we are born but when considering birth defects the term created equal doesn't seem to apply.  Even if all people started out equal there are dramatic changes from that point on.  Money and power change the way people treat others and for that reason even though we maybe created equal we are not treated equal.

     As I think more about it, we all have different looks, talents and abilities plus our own unique challenges so maybe we are all equal but in different ways.  People are athletic, creative, empathetic, patient, sensitive, articulate, humorous, etc.  All these abilities are equally important and valuable.  If we were all equal in every way wouldn’t that be a boring life, I believe our differences make us equal and special.

     So maybe a better way of saying it is “All People are Created Equal by Their Differences”.  Celebrate your uniqueness and you might be surprised by your success.  “Just Saying….”

A Night on the Katy Trail

     I live a mile from the Katy trail, a hiking and cycling trail that spans 240 miles across the state of Missouri. Many days of my life have been spent riding my bike along this trail enjoying the outdoors. In most cases my rides are soothing, almost Zen like, expelling the daily worries that clutter my mind.

     One day a few summers ago, my buddy John and I decided it would be fun to ride the whole trail, camping along the way. We imagined it to be a great experience with some mild adventure. Our ride started off in familiar territory but quickly reached a part of the trail that was new to us. The trail runs along the bottomland near the river for many miles so there are many interesting sites to see because of the floods much of the landscape looks desolate and eerie.

     We had planned to camp so as night approached we started looking for a good campsite, when we noticed this rundown abandoned house. The windows were broken out, the stairs gone and the entrance door was leaning on a pile of wood at the back of the house. This is when our adventurous side kicked in and we decided to investigate. We cautiously approached the house and peered in the window, looking at each other to see which one of us would take the first precarious step. With a little shove I climbed in first, then John, both shining our flashlights around before proceeding forward. We walked carefully always keeping in mind our exit strategy. The creaking floorboards and whistling wind made howling sounds that seemed to call our names in a haunting way, which made our hair stand on end but still we continued exploring. As we surveyed the first floor, our nervousness dissipated enough that we decided to camp in this abandoned house for the night.

     Once settled, I decided it was time to investigate the second floor with John following a few minutes later.  Our anxiety heightened as we searched upstairs due not only to the eerie feeling of the house but the dangerous rotten floorboards. We were again on high alert as this was new uncharted territory in this adventure, rummaging through some old furniture and cautiously opening boxes. We discovered nothing but our rattled nerves when we heard unexpected noises. There seemed to no significant discoveries upstairs that enticed us to stay so we went back to the main floor to get ready for bed. It was then I discovered the note lying on my backpack. It read "You have a nicely shaped head, what size hat do you wear?"  Again the hair on my neck stood up like porcupine quills and a chill ran down my spine.  I said to John "I got a note, someone must be watching us." I ask, "Did you get a note?" John said, " No, what does it say? But as soon as he finished his sentence an uncontrollable smile appeared on his face, which turned into chuckle then a full on belly laugh.  I've been duped, the butt of a practical joke, a very successful one at that. "John you jerk; when did you do this?" With a big grin John said "Before I went upstairs."

     The nervous tension was gone, our laughter had lightened the mood. We still heard the howling wind whispering our names but this no longer bothered us. There were other odd little noises that we heard throughout the night but neither of us attempted to investigate them. With our minds and bodies exhausted we fell in to a deep sleep.

     We woke early the next day, grabbed our packs and headed out to where we left our bikes.  We were prepared for a long day, but discovered each of us had been left a gift, lying on our bikes, a skull cap, along with a personal note addressed to us.

     My note read, "Jim, We hope your cap fits nicely" John's note read "John, Wish you could have stayed longer, Come back soon”. John turned at me with a accusing look in his eyes, I immediately said "I didn't do this". We quickly left the abandoned house without another word spoken wondering what just happened but also taking with us interesting memories and an unbelievable story. What was in store for us on our second night?

Let Everyday be an Adventure

     Not everyday will be as successful as the previous day in fact some may be a disaster.  Not to worry, stay positive and treat everyday like a new adventure.  Reality is partially how you look at life, not everything will work out for the best but if you know that you can accept it.  Your reaction to life defines your personality.

    
     Living an adventurous life is about learning and expanding your enjoyment of life.  Don’t be fooled to think adventure is restricted to dangerous physical activities.  Adventure can be anything that you deeply desire but have avoided because of embarrassment, self-confidence, personal challenge or opportunity.  Overcoming an embarrassment or any personal challenge is adventurous and dangerous because it’s out of your comfort zone.

     We all have secret desires that will go unfulfilled if we don’t pursue them.  Living adventurously doesn’t mean you will always be successful, it means you are always seeking to expand your life.  Living an adventure may be taking a foreign language, learning to salsa dance, going back to school, writing a novel or starting a business.  It’s not for me to decide, it your personal dream. 

     Living adventurous fulfills your life with things that matter to you at any age.  Life is short so what are you waiting for, take small steps to satisfy your dreams.  Even if you fail you won’t regret the effort and you will be more confident to try again.  Don’t grow old feeling you missed out on your adventure.  “Just Saying….”

     

Food and Memories

     I can't explain it but for some reason certain foods bring back memories from the past.  Usually, at least for me, the memories are better than the taste of these forgotten foods.  Growing up I remember a morning breakfast of fried mush, sounds appetizing right.  Well, the truth is I have fond memories of sitting down to a plate of fried mush (cornmeal) and pouring syrup over the top.  I can't imagine that it was a healthy meal but when I grew up we were more concerned about filling our bellies with tasty food than eating healthy foods. I checked online with Professor Google and found the fried mush is still a popular food, which has made a comeback, so you still have a chance to try this memorable breakfast dish.  

    Another one of my favorites was fried puff wheat.  This delectable dish was pan-fried wheat puffs on the stove top in real butter.  If you ate the puff wheat out of the box it was the consistency of styrofoam and although I have never eaten styrofoam I imagine that it is equally healthy and tasty as uncooked puff wheat.   However, once the puff wheat was fried in an ample amount of butter and sprinkled with sugar or syrup the taste transformed in to a memorable taste explosion.  Let's call that the miracle of butter and sugar, which might actually transform styrofoam into a desirable dish.  

     Here's another food, which I have written about before and I'm sure many of you will remember with fondness.  Gravy bread, it was something I looked forward to more than the meat that sat next to it on my plate.  In our house it was beef gravy that was the prize delicacy, not chicken or pork gravy that just wasn't the same.  It was almost like a dessert when you dipped the soft doughy white wonder bread in the gravy.  Sorry to say wheat bread, whole grain or any other exotic healthy bread didn't exist as far as I knew plus they would have been a sad substitute for white bread.  The doughy white bread was a perfect match for the warm brown beef gravy with a slightly greasy texture; Wow makes my mouth water as I am writing these words.

     When visiting friends this weekend we discussed our old childhood food favorites and decided we would get together to share a meal of our favorites.  We will each prepare one of our favorite dishes to share.  I can only hope that these foods do our memories justice and we don't need to call an EMT. 

Traffic Signs.......Just a suggestion???

     You may have noticed as I have that traffic signs seem to be more of suggestions at least in the minds of many people.  Actually, it's more than signs it's traffic rules in general.  I'm not saying I'm a perfect driver, I make mistakes, speed sometimes but I try to follow safety rules and be courteous to other drivers.


     Speed limits appear to be only a recommendation and truthfully I don't see speeding as a terrible offense but it can be dangerous. It's the Nascar style of driving that that is a real hazard, which I see frequently.  Cars cutting in front of other cars with minimal clearance and crossing 3 lanes to get to the exit ramp or weaving back and forth in traffic to gain a few car lengths.  Here's an idea leave early or just resign yourself to being late rather than risking the lives of other motorists.  Lets not forget about the slow drivers that parks their-self in the fast lane driving 45 mph because they feel comfortable there, they are just as dangerous; move to the slow lane.


     Running stoplights seems to be a prevalent, so much in fact that you would be wise to count to 3 after the light turns green because you could be T-boned by the driver running the red light.  Just so you know, yellow means slow down and get ready to stop not speed up.  I know it can be a gray area (decision wise) depending on where you are when the light turns yellow but let common sense guide you not your urgency to reach the destination.

     Use of blinkers has declined and I am pretty sure all cars have them including the high priced luxury cars.  It might be we are so used to smart phones and smart cars we expect the car to know when we are going to turn and make the appropriate signal.  No! You need to activate the blinker by pushing the arm on the steering column.  It's really not that hard.  This is a minor issue I know but it lets the other drivers know your intentions because my brain and car are not smart enough to read your mind.  "Just Saying...."