Back to running

 It took me awhile to get back to regular running. What I thought was just muscular pain turned out to be an arthritic hip. (The ravages of old age!) The main issue now is running for the entire duration of the route. I will run for a few minutes then walk for 20-30 seconds. I end up doing miles between 10 and 11 minutes which is about 2 minutes slower than 3 years ago when I was training for races. I actually think that I could do a half marathon as a run-walk though I don't know how satisfying it would be to finish in the bottom half of my age group. I did a 5K turkey trot this past Thanksgiving. My first mile was 8:57 but then I slowed down for the remainder of the race. I was in the top half which I guess wasn't too terrible.

Off ramp

which sounds ominous but it isn't. I would write "end of the road" if it was that. It's kind of slow at work so I am using the time to sort through and trash old stuff I don't need anymore. Thirty eight years is a long time as is eighteen years. Add that to my present age and I am getting up there. I am also planning to use up all of my vacation before I go.

I am finally going to play with a band. This one is British Invasion but the members seem to be at least twenty years younger than me so weren't alive when the actual invasion happened. I hope it is better than the Beatles tribute band from October which included an anti-vaxxer. My enthusiasm dropped immediately when he said he had natural antibodies. I resisted leaving but immediately put on my mask which made singing a little difficult. If it doesn't work out I will keep looking. 

Curb

I am really glad that Curb Your Enthusiasm is back for another season. I have to say that I wasn't familiar with it back when it started. I had a few co-workers who really liked it and would laugh together about the various episodes they had seen. I never subscribed to HBO back then so, in addition to missing CYE, I never saw The Sopranos and The Wire when they were first shown. I caught up with both of them eventually. But I didn't really watch all of CYE until I was unemployed for a year in 2013. It was instead of sending out resumes and polishing my LinkedIn account. It was a nice distraction and better than the profoundly depressing In the Air, which I also watched during my year long sabbatical. That was also recommended by a colleague. 

(Previewed this post and really need to update my profile.)

Spirit of '67 by Paul Revere and the Raiders

This band actually had a lot of good songs, especially on this album. I really like Louise and would enjoy doing it in a band if I ever had the opportunity. Unfortunately, my band prospects have dissipated. I passed on one band because one of the players was unvaccinated and was dismissive when he was asked his status. The other one looks to be defunct as another one of the band members has retired and is moving south.

Guitar Tabbing site

Something for me to do when I retire soon: upload guitar tabs to tabbing. Most songs are already done but I did find a few that were not available or incomplete including this cool one by the Pretty Things Walking Through My Dreams from their great album S.F. Sorrow. 

I added the chords for the instrumental break in the middle. Of course, there are like 5 people in the world who have any interest in this song but it is still a good one.

 

Maybe a Band (or three)

 I am still desperate to play music again. I actually have a couple of prospects. One is in a cover band local to my town. They have been together for probably 20 years and are all my age or older. Their guitarist retired and moved away so they need a replacement. It might not come through as they are auditioning other players before me. When I have auditioned players for other bands, if we found someone we liked we usually just admitted him on the spot and dispensed with the other candidates. I am at least #2 in line so it may not happen.

The other is a Beatles tribute band that is forming. That is probably a little more sure as the guy forming it has been very encouraging. Who knows if we will play anywhere if we do form? I asked whether he'd want to do other stuff from the era but he was adamant that it was only Beatles. It's not "boots and suits" which is good because old guys in Beatle boots and wigs is kind of ridiculous.

Finally there is my Buzzcocks tribute band. I placed an ad on Craig's List for musicians who'd like to play their album Singles Going Steady. It's been about a month and I have had 4 responses. I may email the responders to see if they are still interested. I have no illusions that this band would actually play more than once or twice a year at some 70's/80's punk or new wave event. 

Here's a song about dreams by them.

Clearing out stuff

I have come to the realization that I need to start clearing out all of the stuff from my work history that I have been accumulating. What is the point of saving plaques or awards honoring me for my sales performances from thirty years ago and later? Right now they are just sitting on the top of my bookshelf gathering dust. I don't plan to create a wall of fame to hang them on. I was mildly displeased when I received another one in the mail for last year. They could have saved the money. I remember interviewing someone for a sales position who brought along a "brag bag" stuffed with his awards to show me. He wasn't hired. I suppose I should just dump them in the trash now in advance of moving or to save my heirs the chore of disposing them.  

Sir Alex Ferguson Documentary

 As a devoted Manchester United fan, I needed to watch the documentary. The narrative is centered around the need to preserve his memory after suffering a brain aneurysm in 2018. His fear  was that he would lose all of his recollections of the past. What especially resonated with me was his experience at the point that the aneurysm occurred. His perception of the world simply stopped with no awareness of anything until he regained consciousness a few days later: no dreaming, no semi-awake state, no nothing. So had he died, it would have all just ended then. For me it sounded like a feeling similar to being under general anesthesia when I had a colonoscopy recently. I just dropped off the side of a cliff and then woke up in recovery. There was nothing in between. I guess it is a peaceful way to go when it happens. The filmmakers did an amazing job of digging up archival footage for the documentary, even finding footage of young Alex marching during the Glasgow apprentice strike in 1960.   

Pleated Pants

 are not in style anymore, I just realized. So all of my suits from the early '00s are now destined for either the Goodwill bag or the far end of the closet so that I am not tempted to wear them anymore. But since my new position is essentially always working at home, I will never need to get  dressed up for work again. Then my time working is coming to an end soon. I discovered that I miscalculated my full retirement age by two months so I could go sooner than I expected. So no more accumulating frequent flyer miles or eating nice meals on the company's dime, which I expect I will miss. 

On the Downside of 65

Paraphrasing Steve Martin, the good news is that I am fully vaccinated. The bad news is that I had to be over 65 to be eligible. But it also meant I could get a haircut again. Even though I was a long-hair in high school and college, being without a haircut for 5 months was a real bother. It felt like I was walking through cobwebs when the wisps of hair would fall around my face. I suppose that if the hair was shoulder-length and could be tied back, it would be tolerable. But then all of the grey would be more noticeable. 🙁 So short hair wins. 👱

Post-vaccination it will be nice to get back playing music again. I just need to find a band. My late 70's new wave project has fallen to the wayside. It was difficult finding guitarist/ keyboards to stay more than a few practices. Actually, the music we played was really not that popular in the US so even if it did come together, the prospect of finding gigs would be minimal. Music of the 60s is an easier sell but the audience of baby boomers is dying off. Maybe by the next time I write, I will have something to report.

Back to where I was after election day

 but just glad I live in a state and an area where people are rational. When I think of relocating after retirement next year, it's not to any place where I'd be represented by a Republican. I'm still interested in finding a place in Spain or Portugal for January through March so that I can avoid the worst of winter weather. The pandemic  has probably deferred plans to do that for a year or two but maybe this time next year. things will have improved.

So now for my final sprint (or is it jog?) to the finish line, this song is appropriate. Moved out to pasture for awhile.