August Rider Stories

 THE DISNEY PRINCESS: There are some rides that I would pay for and it almost doesn't seem right for me to make money having so much fun. My female rider was in her mid 20's and she had worked at Disney World when she was in college.  She also got married in the wedding pavilion at Disney World at the beginning of March. She had 70 people who joined her there to celebrate.  We spent 30 minutes talking about all her experiences, traded Disney stories, did Disney trivia and could have spent a few hours talking "Disney."  She told me that her grandfather had always told her Mom and Aunt that he had brought them to Disney World and Disneyland many times, but when he went to her wedding in Disney World he said, "I've never been here."  She said that "if he's within a few years of remembering something we give him credit for it." She said her wedding was "magical" and she was up for 24 hours straight and she loved putting her grandfather on the Soarin' ride.

She worked in costume design at Disney and loved it. She told me a story I had never heard before. "The day before Disneyland opened, Governor Ronald Reagan brought his kids who wanted to go on the monorail and Walt Disney said yes.  The monorail hadn't been working and the driver did not know how to stop it. Somehow it worked and the driver was able to stop, but the secret service wanted to sue Disney for kidnapping when they found about the problems." When I dropped her off I saw her Disney suitcase and her Disney mask and a shirt that said, "Dreams Do Come True."  As I pulled away I was just thrilled with the ride and moments later I realized she had as much fun as I did because she gave me an $18 tip. I really should share the tip with Walt!

THE BAG: Frequently I tell riders that I deliver boxes during the week and people on the weekend and it's a lot more fun delivering people.  This ride was the first time I got to be a courier and an Uber driver at the same time. I went to pick up a woman at the Hilton and she leaned in the window and told me that she wasn't riding with me.  She had to get her phone back to her Dad and handed me a bag and said that he would be waiting for me in a golf cart. I drove 32 minutes with a bag.  Although passengers can't sit in the front due to the virus, I put the bag in the front seat and put a bag of masks on top of the bag to cover it safely. I couldn't make any suggestions to my rider and I got no laughs.  I arrived and saw the father sitting in the golf cart. I said to him, "what's your daughter's name and you better get this right?"  He did laugh and replied correctly.  Of all the Uber drivers she could have gotten to deliver a package she happened to get a courier, what are the odds of that happening?

TURNING 50: What are the odds that a woman 90 days from her 50th birthday, has a list of 90 things to do that she's never done before and she gets picked up by an Uber driver who has a list of 60 favorite foods he's working on eating before he turns 60? The odds are not high, but it did happen.  The woman was a social worker from PA who was here for a three day fishing trip with a male friend of hers. It was her friend's dream to take this trip and he wound up with an expensive, non-refundable ticket, so he invited her.  She got on the plane first, but he was not allowed on the plane because his driver's license expired 6 hours before he tried to board. She arrived in Myrtle Beach alone, with no fishing equipment since it was all his.  I picked her up at Wal-Mart and helped her unload all her stuff for her fishing trip which may have been with all men.  She was determined to enjoy the experience.  One of the things on her list of things to do is skydiving and the only problem is that she's afraid of heights.  She was delightful to talk to and we had a great time getting her mentally and physically ready for her experience.

DRIVING HERCULES: You really never know who is getting in your car and what they are going to say.  My rider was a 35 year old male who worked as a fabricator and installer the past 15 years.  Apparently, lifting granite and heavy things has given him almost superhero strength.  He thinks he can lift 400 pounds and his younger co-workers are amazed at how strong he is.  The guy is not tall and his arms are not big; where his strength comes from I have no idea.  He wasn't bragging, he was pretty humble, but he was also funny.  "Before my car accident I was ripped like Jesus."  He said, "Did you ever notice he always had a six pack-he even looked good on the cross."  "After my car accident the EMT told me to squeeze his hand while they gave me pain killers for my other hand that was broken.  Later at the hospital he told me that I squeezed his hand so hard he was getting X-rays, because he thought I broke his hand."  What really got me laughing was when he told me, ""I tell new workers that after six months of doing this heavy lifting, if you squeeze yourself hard, you'll turn purple."  Before he got out of the car he showed me his arms and they looked a lot like mine, yet he has the strength of Hercules, maybe I'll get super human strength too?

THE DISNEY COUPLE: Only two weeks after an incredible "Disney" ride, somehow I was fortunate enough to have another one.  A young couple in their early 20's were renting a car at the airport and they were driving to Disney World.  It did not take long for them to tell I was excited about their trip and I told them that my trip to Disney World was canceled last month.  They said, "why don't you come with us?" I would have loved to, but with my son visiting and work, it would have been difficult to do.  They met on a dating site five years ago and their first date was in Disneyland since they live in California. Since they didn't know each other they decided to talk on the phone the day before their first date, so they did for 12 hours!(really) The girl graduated from high school the day after their first date and I said, "that's one great week you had." One of their goals is to visit all the Disney parks in the world and they told me about their trip to Paris Disneyland where they ate all kinds of amazing French food throughout the park.  I gave them a number of suggestions about Disney World and I'm pretty sure when I dropped them off they wished they were already at Disney World.  I know they had as much fun as I did, because they gave me a very generous $20 tip.  Thanks again, Walt!

 

Eating Past 60-Part 4

 This was the next to last week and I had some big foods to eat-there was some good eatin' this week.  With these 8'm at 46 items with only a few more I'm going to be able to get to.

1. There are favorite foods and then there is Chicken Parmesan, my number one favorite chicken and it has no chocolate in it.  My wife's chicken parm is really great and Saturday night with our son visiting, the four of us feasted on it.  Below is a picture of my first plate before I devoured it.

2. Burger King's Chicken sandwich- one of the original specialty sandwiches that came out in the late 70's when I started working there and met my wife.  The other sandwiches were fish, ham&cheese and steak! Since I always loved chicken, this one was the one I ate a lot and it still tastes great.

3. Snapple: It's not a food, but I used to drink this a lot and haven't had it in years.  I would drink regular iced tea, but I couldn't find it here.  I hit the jackpot the other day and realized that I didn't have enough change that I carried into the store.(they need change so you can only pay with exact change or a credit card)  When I came back the woman behind me paid for my Snapple.  She said it was her good deed of the day.  I got Snapple for free!  It was goooood!

4. Corned Beef & Pastrami sandwich was fun to eat again.  My wife made the sandwich with cole slaw and Russian Dressing and I really miss eating this, it was that good.

5. Spare Ribs:  I went to a Chinese Buffet and enjoyed some boneless ribs which I figure are the same thing.  If corn and corn on the cob are the same, so are boneless ribs and spare ribs.  They are both terrific, but messy to eat.

6. Fried Chicken: At the buffet I had wings that are close to fried chicken so I'm counting it.  I did eat a bunch of them and I loved it.

7. Barbecue Chicken: My wife made it and I could have eaten five or six pieces.  We don't have it as often as we used to, but it was delicious.

 8. Steak: I know that prime rib and steak are similar, but if corn and corn on the cob are different, I'm enjoying steak as a favorite food and I ate it tonight.

This will be a challenging week just to get a few more on my list.  Maybe I'll go back and eat some on the list I've already had!

I Found The Girl

 When you're a child you have all kinds of questions that you ask other people such as: "are we there yet?" and "when are we eating?" and "why do we have to do that?" As we get older and we're in middle school and certainly high school we start asking more important questions to ourselves.  I remember asking myself, "what am I going to do after high school?" and "what am I going to study?" and, "what kind of work will I end of doing?" and "where will I live?"

However, probably the toughest question was, "is there someone out there who is perfect for me?" and "will I find her and where will she be?" I found the girl at Burger King of all places.  But how it happened really began in the spring of 1980 in my human sexuality class.  If I recall, I didn't do particularly well in that class, however, I do remember one assignment that we should write down some goals for the coming year.

Being relatively shy and quiet I decided that I was going to go home for the summer and date some girls. I had dated a couple previously, but I decided that this would be a good goal.  About the first week or so in May I sat down after working at Burger King with a few co-workers and met Monika, my future wife.  I knew I wanted to date her and we did start dating.

Just over three years later on August 28th, 1983, we said I do and it was the most important and best decision of my life. It's now 37 years later to the day and she has made every day a great day for me. She is the most talented person I've ever met and not a week goes by that she amazes me on what she can do and what she knows.  She has given me three terrific kids and there is no doubt she's been a great mom. And somehow, 37 years later, she really is more beautiful than she was when I married her.

There's nothing I enjoy more than coming home and seeing her smiling face. I love seeing her next to me when I say good night and I say, "I love you." Happy Anniversary, Princess, and thank you for all the sunshine these 37 years. Every day I am grateful that I found the girl.

Eating To 60 And Beyond (Part 3)

It finally happened.  I was eating at the age of 59 and just like that I was stuffing my face at 60 years old.  This week I crossed off another 15 items on my food list.  I should mention that as of a week ago I had not gained any weight the past few weeks and maybe had lost a few pounds that I had sweated off working.  However, after my magnificent meal for my birthday on Wednesday and eating the leftovers on Thursday and my special desserts on Friday, I probably did gain a few pounds this week. I've had several people say that I should have pictures on my blog, but I don't know how to do that.  However, I did get technical help from my youngest daughter and we should start with this picture. Here are the highlights from the week and the food that I ate from my list.

JIM DANDY AND STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: I decided to celebrate my birthday on Friday after a shorter day working and back to back incredible dinners, by visiting Friendly's.  The Jim Dandy is an ice cream sundae with whipped cream, strawberry syrup, coffee ice cream(of course) and bananas and no nuts.(I have to make sure they don't put them on) I've been eating this sundae for forty some years and have probably had more than a hundred of them. It looks a little different than it used to since they have changed the dish and the bananas don't stick way out of the bowl, but this is a fabulous tasting treat.

Strawberry shortcake is something I rarely have, but I've had it at Friendly's a couple times and a few other places. I decided to have both at the same time and had no problem eating them.  The strawberry shortcake sundae had two scoops of coffee ice cream on it, although I've had it with vanilla ice cream before.  A couple at a table nearby was excited to see me eat them and I told them it was for my birthday. This is the first time I've eaten a Jim Dandy with no one else at the table.  I did feel full when I finished and I won't tell you how many minutes they lasted on my plate.  I did eat some dinner four hours later and I did not have any dessert, although I did take two Tums before going to bed.  This was a lot of fun and they both tasted terrific.

RING DINGS/DING DONGS: My son-in-law taunted me by showing me a huge box of Ring Dings in New Jersey since I was having trouble finding them in South Carolina.  Fortunately, I found them at Wal-Mart with a slightly different name and I enjoyed them although they were much smaller than Ring Dings.(chocolate with white cream inside)

SUZY Q'S: I've blogged about them before since they stopped making them for a year or two.  I found them next to the Ding Dongs and they tasted better and they are cheaper at Wal-Mart! How about that?

TURKEY LEGS: Our trip to Disney was canceled in July and one of the things I was looking forward to was having a couple of big turkey legs, but fortunately my wife made them for me. I ate them, every single piece and I gnawed on the bones.  What a great meal!

CRANBERRY SAUCE:  With chicken or turkey it is a must and I ate most of the pieces.  It's not something I have very often and it was fun to eat it again.

MACARONI SALAD: Of the three salads, cole slaw, potato salad and macaroni salad, I've always enjoyed the macaroni salad more.  It's great with burgers, hot dogs, chicken, or most meals.

PRIME RIB: Steak/prime rib is without a doubt one of the best tasting foods.  The prime rib on my birthday was a little rare and I got a bone to gnaw on too.  It was fabulous!

CORN-NO COB: Using a fork and not my teeth on the cob, I ate this hot one night and cold the next night.

WATERMELON: A healthy dessert which is almost always refreshing.  It's very difficult to just eat a couple pieces, but it's a great summer food.

ICE CREAM CAKE: I like ice cream and I like cake, so this is one of those combos that I really like and it was our dessert for my birthday meal and it was perfect.

WHITE RICE: I've always loved hot, white rice.  When we got Chinese food when I was young I would always have some extra white rice with nothing else on it and I still love it.

SHELLS: Nothing special about shells, but in school as a kid I always had shells with meat sauce and this week I ate shells with sauce. The shells were small, the big ones are even better.

GREEN GRAPES: A common food that is healthy.  It's a great snack in the car and Wal-Mart always seems to have big grapes that taste great.  I could eat these every day and I usually have them three or four days in a row.

COCOA KRISPIES: Still my favorite cereal, with milk in it and not orange juice which I've blogged about doing accidentally a few times.  Sometimes when I'm really tired in the morning I go for the Cocoa Krispies and they wake me up.

For those of you keeping score at home, I've eaten 38 of the 60 on my list with two weeks to go.  There are at least a few of these foods I won't be able to eat, but I'm doing the best I can!

What I Learned When I Was 59 Years, 364 Days, and 19 Hours Old

My last day in the 50's was pretty routine.  I did get a happy birthday phone call from the salesman who just sold me a car, but nothing unusual happened until I was eating a late dinner.  Like most families, the conversation between my wife, my daughter, and myself, turned to a discussion about corn.  Yes, corn, one of those fascinating topics that most of us can't talk enough about.

It really started since on my list of 60 favorite foods I put corn on the cob and corn.  My wife and daughter said it was the same thing and could not understand why I put it down twice.  Corn on the cob is something that we rarely eat and it takes a lot of effort to eat it and it tastes great with steak or chicken.  Corn that is frozen or in a can is a much more common food that is easier to eat and I've always enjoyed eating it as a vegetable.(just kidding, I know it's a fruit)

That is when I learned the last thing in my fifties-the corn that I like from a can or frozen comes from corn on the cob-it's really the same! If I knew this, I don't remember I knew it.  My wife and daughter were amazed that I didn't know.  I never really thought about it and I don't recall my roommate in college teaching me that either.

Fortunately my wife went on her phone and I watched how corn comes off the cob-it was riveting.  My daughter had to text her brother and sister with the shocking news.  She then asked me if I knew what mayonaise was made out of.  I couldn't beleive that corn was in mayonaise! It wasn't, but I was a little concerned.  My wife suggested that maybe I should start learning about some of these things.  She said, "it's a good thing that I didn't know that about you when we started dating." Sometimes, your life can turn on something simple, like corn.

I am lucky that there are only two more hours left of me being picked on in my fifties.  I'll probably get a pass on that for tomorrow since it's my birthday, but it's something I can look forward to in my sixties.(I am looking forward to eating the corn tomorrow, no cob)

It just goes to show you whether you're 59 or 93, you can learn something new.

 

Eating to 60 (Part 2)

 It's only 72 hours away from the big 60 and I'm eating as much as I can.  This post is all about food, so if you're hungry, eat and then read unless you're over 90 and don't have much of an appetite.  Another 10 items are now off the list and these are the ones that bit the dust this week:

1. CHICKEN CUTLETS: There's a lot you can do with chicken cutlets.  We had chicken picada which was very good, but unfortunatley THERE WERE LEFTOVER PIECES!  For two straight days I put a thick piece in between bread and put some thousand island dressing on it and it was incredible.  If there's another piece leftover Monday night I will have another lunch that is terrific on Tuesday. And next week those chicken cutlets will turn into Chicken Parmesean and I cannot wait.

2. McDonald's French Fries: There's a lot you can do with potatoes, but if you're going to eat french fries, why not eat the best? I believe their recipe is a secret, however hot fries from "The Golden Arches" are worth it.  There's only been a couple times when they've had a special deal have I stopped on the road just for fries, but I did this week.  Should I get a small, large, or a basket of fries? When I think of a basket I'm thinking a picnic basket, but it wasn't that many.  The basket was in a regular bag and I did enjoy them.

3. Mashed Potatoes: There's nothing quite like a huge container of mashed potatoes along with a good meal.  They need to be too hot so you can burn your mouth just a little. They are fun to eat since they can get all over the place easily.

4. Chocolate Pudding: I had this for the first time in years last month and I forgot how good it is.  Fortunately, I just started the container and I will be eating more this week.  You can wear a chocolate mustache with this too.

5.TastyKake Jr.: I had to work for this one.  It's a square or maybe a rectangle of pound cake with chocolate icing on it.  I used to eat them regularly a long time ago, but they are not as popular down here in the south.  Wal-Mart had a display of TastyKake products, but not the one I was looking for.  I saw someone delivering them and found out that the supermarket Food Lion has what I need.  I found one quickly and loved it.  My only problem is now when I see a Food Lion store I only see a big TastyKake JR. in front of the store. How am I going to stay away from them?

6. English Muffin: A few years ago I stopped eating them to cut back on bread and I may have had  one or two over that time.  The Cinnamon Raisin ones are my favorite and I wolfed two down one morning this week with butter and left a mess on the counter-mmmmm.

7. Grapefruit: This is a healthy dessert and I just started eating these again recently.  You can make a mess with it, but it does taste  very good although it's not chocolate.

8. Frosted Flakes: It's not my favorite cereal, but every once in a while I do get it.  If you want to know what it taste like, picture a bag of sugar being poured into a cereal bowl and then throw some corn flakes in. I have no idea what it does to your teeth, but I think the bowl starts decaying when the sugar goes in.  Pour some milk on and it will wake you up like a pot of coffee!

9. Corn on the Cob: It's a summer food and it's not chocolate, but it's great with a lot of foods and it's filling.  Give me a couple of them a few nights a week and my teeth will look awful.

10. McDonald's Egg McMuffin: I used to love getting these on the road when they had two for $3.  Even the knock-offs at Quick Chek and other convenience stores were pretty good, but McDonald's still has the best.

Got to go-things to eat.

Something New and Something Gone

Over twenty years ago when I worked for THE USA TODAY, we had a contest in the office.  I teamed up with my friend KC and we had to pick a name for our team.  Someone in the office said we should be "KC and The Sunshine Man," a play on the band, "KC and The Sunshine Band."  I loved the name and I immediately thought if one day I had my own distribution business the name would be "The Sunshine Man," and I would get a white van and have a picture of my face inside of a sun on the side of the van.

In 2009, I did start my own distribution business and called it "Sunshine Man Distribution&Consulting." I never did get that white van, which is probably a good thing.  I do think it would have been funny having my picture on the side of the van, but it's also corny I guess.  Maybe I would be the only one laughing at it!

It is now 2020 and this week I purchased a 2011 white Transit Connect.  It's a cargo van with only a passenger seat. It's going to give me a little more room in delivering as a courier.  My other van, will now be my Uber van.  It will be turning three in Novemeber and it has taken a beating as a courier van and an Uber van.  The goal is to have the two vans last around the next two years, before making another purchase. I do not have any plans to put a picture of my face on the white van, unless y'all think it's a good idea!(ha ha)

At the same time, this weekend is officially the final week of operations for "Sunshine Man Distribution&Consulting in New Jersey after eleven years.  When I moved to South Carolina two and a half years ago, I kept the business going to have some steady income and also to help my three drivers and two publishers with the transition of me moving out of state.  

It's a good time to end things up since almost all of the money that is made in NJ goes to the drivers, who are doing the work.  I found out that in order to stop making money asa business in NJ, you have to pay the state some money. Maybe that's the case in other states too, but I'm not happy about it.

So, I have a new van and "Sunshine Man Distribution" will continue in South Carolina with my Ubering and driving as a courier.

It's Biden and Harris!

 It's time for me to brag and boast.  I picked Senator Harris two years ago to be Biden's pick for Vice-President. In September of 2018 we had a hurricaine here and we went south and visited some of our relatives.  I had a pretty lengthy and enjoyable discussion with my cousin Nan, an attorney.(and Democrat)  I told her about Senator Harris and that I was pretty impressed with some of the articles I read about her and also a few interviews I saw.

Senator Harris is smart and articluate and she definitely has an outgoing personaltiy and a good sense of humor.  She is a moderate like Joe Biden and the two of them have had a friendly relationship.  He made the right choice for what he needs, someone he knows, a woman, and an African-American.  She will not be scary to those midwesterners and PA. voters who voted for President Trump last time.

Just a few things to look for:

1. Senator Harris will be in the news a lot and will be spending more time "campaigning" than Joe Biden.  The campaign will keep Biden back some to avoid his mistakes and the questioning of his age and ability.  She is going to be carrying more of the load than a V.P. candidate would in the last 80 days.

2. How much fire will she take from the left in the Democratic Party? There will be some and I will enjoy seeing them go after an African American woman, especially these days.  If the attacks or criticism are minor that would be a good sign for the election for the Democrats.

3. Will Biden's campaign copy a "Donald Trump" 2016 campaign idea? The Trump campaign did a great job last time to show off that Trump was a conservative and listed potential conservative, Supreme Court Justices and they have followed through from that list.  Will Biden select a sitting senator for a cabinet postion like Warren or Sanders to appeal to the left? I think they will and If he can get Warren to agree to a cabinet position it would be ideal for him.  It would be impressive if he in some way would list some of his potential cabinet.  Susan Rice will probably be one of those picks.

4. Senator Harris will be a big favorite in the VP debate against VP Pence.  As a prosecutor she will have a big advantage and if she wins significantly it could take some of the focus away for the Biden-Trump debates if Joe Biden has some problems.

5. The Trump campaign will focus on Biden/Harris as liberals, although they are not. That is called- politics.

6. If Biden/Harris wins, I'm going to predict right now that the two presidential nominees in 2024 will be Senator Harris and former Governor Nikii Haley. Don't forget, you read it hear first. (no I'm not going to pick their running mates yet)

Eating My Way To 60

(Warning: if you are hungry, eat first and then read this) I'm only 10 days away from turning 60 and I have begun to eat around 60 of my favorite foods/drinks.  I'm going to do this over five weeks instead of one week since eating this much in seven days might prevent me from making 60.

These are the 13 I crossed off my list so far:

Haagen-Dazs Coffee Ice Cream: It is probably my second favorite food behind chicken and it is likely I will eat it one more time just for the fun of it.  If you like coffee and have never eaten coffee ice cream, you are missing out.  If you don't like coffee, try this anyway-it's the best.

Chocolate Milk-It is something I rarely have these days, but I am enjoying this as I did when I was a kid.  In school I always got chocolate milk.  A couple days this week after a hard day at work I had a stiff drink of chocolate milk and..... I loved it!

Bagel, Cream Cheese, and Lox: This is definitely in my top five foods of all time.  There's something about this combination that is incredible.  Years ago when we went on a cruise I had two bagels with cream cheese and lox nine out of ten mornings and I could barely get my shoes on from the salt, but it was worth it.

Double Stuff Oreos: One of my top 10 foods.  My daughter counted that I ate 10 the first night, but I thought it was only three.(ha ha) One more big night of eating this frozen treat with milk is fabulous.

Cut-Up Swiss Cheese- Nothing like a snack with cheese cut up.  I ate too much and I got blocked up in the bathroom from it, but I sure enjoyed eating it.

Liverwurst: It has to be one of the worst smelling foods with peanut butter an easy winner.  Liverwurst can come in a spread or in slices.  I had a liverwurst sandwich today for the first time in at least a couple years and I did enjoy it.

Shrimp: We had this with salmon and I loved it.  All-you-can-eat shrimp is still something I'd like to do in the next few weeks, we'll see.

Salmon: Just a great taste, my favorite fish food.  I still have the picture of our first dinner here when we visited The Claw House.  My salmon looked like a steak-I still think our realtor called them to serve me a big piece.  He suggested the restaurant and he was right.

Spaghetti and Meatballs: It's simple, but it is delicious to eat.  I ate a lot one night this week and I would have finished the leftovers, but my daughter beat me to it. Magnifique!!!

Pork Chops: I love eating around the bones and I could eat a half dozen pieces, it's a great meal.

Ice Cream sandwiches: Another healthy reward after eating dinner.  They are really cheap here and we did buy them a few weeks in a row at one point, but I've enjoyed eating them this week.

Mashed potatoes: Potatoes are good, a baked potatoe is very good, but mashed potatoes just add a lot of flavor to whatever else you're eating. Tonight it was-

A BIG CHICKEN: It's really called a roaster and it might be my favorite chicken food.  I love tearing it apart so I can eat the chicken off the bones.  The next day I'll throw some leftovers into a salad and enjoy the chicken again.  I ate it tonight and still have that taste in my mouth.  If I don't brush tonight I can taste it again tomorrow!

It's been a busy week and I had some good eatin'.

How Many Ways Can You Eat An Oreo?

I'm sitting here with a freshly bought and frozen bag of Double Stuff Oreos.  I've eaten a few and washed it down with milk and it is incredible.  Some people never know how good frozen oreos are.  If you've never tried it, you're got to try it.

Some people just buy a bag and put them on the counter and eat them "unfrozen."  They just don't know any better.  A very popular way of eating them is opening the two sides up and licking the icing off, which I've never done.  I don't know what you do with two "naked" cookies without icing though.  A lot of people will dip the cookie into their milk and I tried that tonight for the first time.  I may not have done it right, but it didn't taste as good as frozen oreos.

My daughter told me that her old roommate use to just eat the half with the icing and then would leave the half cookie in the container and then THROW THEM OUT! There should be a law against doing that, maybe there is?  However you eat Oreos there is one given-you can't eat just one.  I don't know how many I just ate, but each one was magnicent and I've got that wonderful taste in my mouth until I brush my teeth.

How many ways can you eat an Oreo? That is not the question-how is it they are so good?  The first Oreo was sold in 1912 in Hoboken, NJ.  That makes the Oreo 108 years old!  It was called an "Oreo Biscuit" and then changed to "Oreo Sandwich."  In 1974 the name was changed to "Oreo Creme Sandwich" and in 1974 it was changed to "Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookie."

Very simply, it is called an "Oreo," and it is really, really good.

The Ninja

The pace in the South is definitely slower as I've mentioned before.  The driving is slower, the walking is slower and the working is slower, for the most part.  Every once in a while you see someone hustling and they really stand out.

I was delivering to a busy clothing store today and the manager who was busy, told me to leave the boxes by the door to the backroom. Usually I bring them all the way in, but she was too busy to open the door for me.  I left the boxes and went out to my van to get six small cases of water.

When I got back in she told me to put them on the box that was there, but it wasn't the one I left. She had already moved the several boxes inside and was back doing what she was doing.  I said to her from a distance, "that was very quick of you."  Her reply was, "I was a ninja in my previous life."  It was a funny comment and I would have loved to follow-up with her on it, but, she was very busy.

As I left I said, "have a good day, Ms. Ninja," and she did laugh at that.  I know her employees watch how she works and I know as I'm walking quickly in a hospital or to my car, there are people watching me.  It is more relaxed here, but if you want to move quickly, you can.  However, you will be noticed, but usually I'm too busy to care who's watching me.  The manager probably felt the same way.

My 60th Birthday Celebration Has Begun

It's already a running joke in our house.  I've never cared much for my birthday, at least since I was a kid.  I can think of a couple birthdays that were definitely overshadowed by other events.  My 13th birthday was five weeks before my Bar-Mitzvah and the Bar-Mitzvah was a much bigger deal for sure.  My 23rd birthday was nine days before my wedding and of course the wedding was much, much more important.

However, my 60th birthday is August 19th and since I came up with the brilliant idea to have more fun this year(the virus is not helping), I am going to have a lot of fun with this.  My original plan was to go to a bunch of all-you-can eat places and stuff my face in one week.  The virus makes that a little difficult although they are open.

So, I have identified around sixty favorite foods that I like a lot now or have in the past.(I counted cholcolate milk and Snapple iced tea although they are drinks)  Beginning yesterday, I am starting to check off these foods and I'm hoping to "blow up" about twenty pounds with this list over the next five weeks ending up on Labor Day.

And lucky for you, after each week I'll give you a rundown of what I've checked off my list and some stories on why I like this particular food.  I'm even considering having my first "real" alcoholic drink other than beer during these five weeks! I have no idea what that will be, but I'll problaby hate it and never have it again.

One challenge will be finding a box of Thin Mints that the Girl Scouts sell each year.  I don't think anyone is selling them now, but I'll see what I can do for that. This will be fun-at least for me.