What, me worry:

          I was in the check out line at Wal-Mart the other day, when the old fella in front of me turned around and told me that it was his birthday, and that he was 92 years old. I wished him a happy birthday and told him that he didn’t look a day over 91. He insisted that he was definitely 92. When he had gone, the checker said that he came in every day for some little thing, and that he never seemed to let things bother him. He never seemed to worry about anything. I thought, “The man has lived through the depression and probably fought in WW-II. He’s watched the Korean, Viet Nam, Bosnian, Granada, Gulf-I and Gulf-II, Afghanistan, and the Cold War on his TV. He’s seen the stock market climb and plunge, banks collapse, and the Twin Towers come down. He had seen it all, so what was there left to worry him?”

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

Where was I?

          Somehow, I stumbled and fumbled through the 70s and 80s without really paying attention to trends and market shares. Oh, I knew the basics, like Wal-Mart was a good investment, and GM and Ford made good stuff. However, when a woman I knew started telling me about the new Toyota Camry she had just bought, as if it was something I was supposed to know about, I thought – Huh?

 I knew about Japanese cars. I knew that Datson had changed their name to Nissan and made a decent little truck and a hot little sports car. I also knew that Honda was well made and a gas miser. But Toyota? All I knew about them was they made a little windup toy they called a Crayola. Camry, what did that mean, and how good can it be? Now they tell me that the Koreans are making cars – maybe I needed to pay some attention to something… anything!

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

Losing things:

          It’s not unusual for folks of the senior persuasion to lose things. In fact, folks of almost every age lose things, but as we get older, it becomes almost funny…to the younger set. To be honest, losing things such as car keys and shoes really doesn’t bother me much, but losing words can be distressing. While I was still working, I noticed that I started losing nouns, specifically proper nouns. Names seemed to be the first to go. I’ve spent many an uncomfortable moment making small talk while trying to find someone’s name in my mental junk drawer. Of course, proper noun failure naturally progresses on to plain old nouns and even to improper nouns.

          I was talking to a fella last week and wanted to tell him about a shotgun I’d bought. All I could tell him was, “shoot.” That moron wasn’t much better off than I was because all he came up with was “arrow, dice, camera,” and “your mouth off.”  As much as I hate losing nouns, the thought of losing adjectives and pronouns bothers me more, and there are some verbs I’m really quite fond of.

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

Painting the house:

          A few years ago, we painted a couple of rooms, the foyer, and the hall. The rooms were fairly easy and straightforward, the foyer and stairs was exciting to say the least but the hall presented its own unique problems. Our hall must have hundreds of pictures on its walls. There are dozens of pictures of every kid we ever had, which is one. There are dozens of pictures of every grandkid we ever had, which are two. There are dozens of pictures of Avon and her family, and there are several pictures of me.

          It all makes a nice display, and I like them there. The problems came when I started to take them down to paint, I didn’t think I could ever get them all back up in their proper places. I was struck with the brilliant idea of taking pictures of the pictures. That way I’d have a positive record of their placement. The next problem arose when I started putting those pictures back up. I guess I should’ve used a digital camera instead of film, or at least marked that roll of film so I’d recognize it among those other rolls of undeveloped film in the drawer.

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

Terms that bewilder:

          One of the terms that has always confused and confounded me is “Cat Burglar”. Would that refer to a thief that steals cats or does refer to a cat that steals? Moreover, just what would a cat steal? They don’t need anything. There’s always someone willing to take care of them and pamper them whether they appreciate it or not. Could a cat steal enough of anything to make it worth the effort? An average sized cat isn’t big enough to carry even a small TV or a laptop.

Close to home:

          Yesterday, my grandson told me that he has always been able to talk himself out of trouble. I tried not to show approval of such talent, but I knew where that came from. Had I not been able to do the same thing, I might have been in Alcatraz by the fourth grade. I didn’t have great excuses or alibis, but I kept talking until I just plain wore them out and they gave up.

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

Why I Carry a Note Pad and a Pencil:

            I was sitting in the waiting room of the doctor’s office, hoping they’d have an emergency and change my appointment date, when a local character, Clyde Meadows came in. He hobbled over and sat down next to me. I remembered Clyde from years ago when he skinned me on a horse purchase. But I didn’t mind because he was a horse trading legend in these parts, and I figured that I’d been skinned by the best. Clyde had been a bronc rider and a bull rider in his day, and when he wasn’t riding bull he was spreading it. So he started talking.

            Like many of us, when we get older, Clyde had a hearing problem and compensated by speaking two disciples louder than a jet engine. He told me about all the bones he’d had broken over his life time. I asked how he came to have so many.

And he said, “Son, I’ve fallen off of or out of almost everything I’ve ever been on or in… I’ve fallen off broncs, bulls, motorcycles, bicycles, roofs, snowmobiles, and ostriches…” Clyde had the attention of everyone in the waiting room. “I’ve fallen out of cars, windows, pickups, jeeps, boats, hay wagons, box cars, beds, and trees.”

A young fella who had been whining about the sniffles before Clyde came in, decided to embarrass the old boy and get back into the limelight. “What about women?” he asked.

Clyde thought for a few seconds and said… “No, I don’t reckon I’ve fallen from one of those yet… but I’m only 86 years old… there’s still plenty of time.”

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw

So what’s changed?

          The other day, I was complaining about being too tiered too quickly. I told Avon that I’d be hard pressed to work a full 8-hour day anymore. Then it occurred to me, that my bosses were hard pressed to get a full 8-hours out of me in days gone by.

Things you can only learn through experience:

          Pipe tobacco does not taste near as good as it smells.

          Some cheeses taste much better than they smell.

          You can cook with olive oil spray, but you can’t season your food with pepper spray.

“Life is much too important to be taken seriously.”

 Books by Lou Bradshaw available on Amazon Kindle

 A Fine Kettle of Fish – Hickory Jack – Blue – Ace High – Blue Norther – Cain

–  One Man Standing – Rubio –  Cain…just Cain…. and now available…Spirit Valley

Visit me on Facebook Lou Bradshaw Artist – Author or www.facebook.com/loubradshawarts

Or you can contact me at loubradshaw7@gmail.com

Or at Amazon Author Central www.amazon.com/author/loubradshaw