I'm recovering from a brief bout of under-the-weather. Actually, I'm pretty much recovered, but I have a lot of work that will require a period of catching-up with which I'm not quite ready to catch up. Almost there, though! Meanwhile, it puts me in mind of this piece I wrote in late July, which makes its public debut here:
At the retail job that actually helps to pay my bills (as opposed to the writing and radio gigs that do nothing of the sort), circumstances have prompted me to postpone a scheduled vacation. I wasn't planning to travel anywhere--no trains nor boats nor planes, nor even any out-of-local-area motorvatin' in my intrepid Ford Escape--but I wanted to have flexibility to see family members that are visiting this week. My sister and much of her family will be in town for about a week, my brother and much of his family will be here for the weekend, and a slew of cousins and kin will likewise be making their merry ways into this gathering. I don't often get to see my siblings or cousins, and I was looking forward to this opportunity.
I will see most of them, and I'll probably see almost all of them. But the "vacation" part of the plan is no longer a part of the plan. We're shorthanded at work, and a co-worker's legit need to take time off while recovering from surgery has to take precedence over what I'd had in mind. I am, in fact, working six days a week, a new schedule in place for me before, during, and after this week's...um, vacation.
It's important to note that I was not asked to do this; I volunteered, because it seemed necessary, and my co-workers would have done the same if the situation were reversed. And it's not even a hardship, considering the store closes at 5:00 during the week, is only open from 11 to 4 on Saturday, and is closed on Sunday. I'm only working a few hours on Wednesday (my regular day off), and I'm taking one actual day off because I have some other responsibilities to manage on that day. The co-worker will return to work later in August. The union will stand.
That said, my ability (or at least my willingness) to keep up with all of this is ebbing as I age. The ritual sapping of my energy is not why I so drastically reduced my blog's frequency, and it's actually just a coincidence that this week we're running an encore presentation of a previous episode of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio. But I'm nearing the end of my status as a full-time retail guy. I'll be going part-time in January, and I hope that will grant me a little more time and a little more energy, more opportunities to write, travel, and enjoy some of the good things one finds in between the grains of the hourglass's cascading sands.
For the moment: work. And play. And family. Hands held and spirits aiming high. That works for me.
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My new book of short stories Guitars Vs. Rayguns!! Short Stories And Other White Lies is out now, and you can get autographed copies of the new book, its six-chapter novelette digest A Band Called GUITARS VS. RAYGUNS!, and my previous book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) directly from me. You can still get my previous previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.
I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here.
This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. You can read about our history here
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