Thanks

Once upon a time, a long time ago in a place far away, I learned that traveling by myself wasn't bad at all. If I were in the mood to wander and, perhaps, get lost in a strange place, I had no one to account to but myself. Should I wish to stop in an eating place that appealed to me, have a beer or a cocktail in the middle of the day, and/or splurge on the whole endeavor, I needn't worry that someone with me might not enjoy it as much as I, or, more pertinent, might believe that since we couldn't afford it, we shouldn't do it. On occasions when I felt a particular event or activity or place to visit would be interesting, I never worried that no one else would want to share it with me. I just went ahead and did it. Sometimes, even often sometimes, I would meet interesting people in these endeavors and have quite interesting experiences, some of which I have shared and some I haven't.

Early this summer when I decided that it would be good for me to start doing things I've always meant to do, I told some of my now many and interesting friends of my plan. Considering my home is actually a senior citizen's home, I defined my plans as outings, and set about to schedule a number of them. To my great delight I have been accompanied on these outings by one or more of my many and interesting friends all summer. Tomorrow there will be two or three of us going to the Minnesota Zoo. A couple more outings and we're into September.

This week I have begun to realize how very much these outings and socializings (no, it's not a legitimate word, but . . .) have meant to me. I awaken each day with something to look forward to, either on that day or within the next few days. This happy time has spurred me into activity to tackle a number of mundane tasks that I heretofore (once a lawyer, always a person who falls back on archaic language from time to time) - I heretofore frequently chose to ignore. With many tasks still awaiting my attention, I am hoping this period of good behavior will continue. If not, I am still pleased to have accomplished a lot this summer.

Best of all, I have been blessed in more ways than I can count with the company of good people and really, really good friends. My thanks to you all.