Author Archives: mathdreads
F.I.R.E.
I’d never heard of the acronym F.I.R.E. (Financially Independent, Retire Early) before, but I’d embraced the concept years ago. Perhaps “embraced” isn’t accurate. After all, I’ve not achieved financial independence yet. As far as “early” is concerned, that’s a relative term. The current retirement age is 65 (or is it 67?). My mother could have … Continue reading
Sister Act: A Mother’s Day Gift
Continuing my materialess gifting for special occasions, I convinced one of my sisters to go in with me to celebrate Mother’s Day with Mom on a Saturday. We sprang for tickets at our local regional theatre to see a live performance of “Sister Act.” My sister took the celebration to the next level: she bought … Continue reading
Celebrations Big & Small
I get a monthly mani-pedi, usually on a Sunday. Not merely for aesthetics, but also for some pampering, which is never a waste of time nor money. For the first time, at least at this salon, I asked for a glass of red wine. I saw the chill on the wine before she handed the … Continue reading
The Joys of Minor Miracles
One of the joys of my weekends is working on all my creative projects. Being mostly unscheduled is absolutely delicious, especially when time passes without me realizing it. Before I hopped onto the creativity carousel on Saturday, I completed my morning chores, including going to CVS to pick up an OTC medication for Mom. This … Continue reading
Stretch n Sip
Normally, I don’t drink before a workout, but the whole point of this Friday stretch class was to combine happy hour with fitness. I’d had a “detox/retox” experience before, but never simultaneously! As what often happens in this town, either nothing special is going on, or EVERYTHING happens during the same weekend. So, I took … Continue reading
Karl Wayne’s 86th Birthday
For decades, Dad has celebrated his birthday for the ENTIRE month of April; so, of course he was onboard to have a big party this year. One of my older sisters took care of all the planning for the Saturday early afternoon party and “voluntold” the rest of us what she expected us to do. … Continue reading
Easter Observances 2024
I cannot remember what I did last Easter. Probably attended church, followed by dinner somewhere, but this Easter will be the memorable one. While I attended my Sunday morning hot yoga class, the rest of the family went to church services, including Dad. Nearly a year ago, Dad had fallen, breaking his left hip. In … Continue reading
Magical Negro Moment
In less than 24 hours after watching the movie, “The Secret Society of Magical Negroes,” I experienced my very own magical negro moment. The premise of the movie is that the most dangerous animal on the planet (at least for Black people) is a white person who is made uncomfortable/fearful by the mere presence a … Continue reading
Problem with Old White Men as POTUS?
As usual, I get exhausted by all the political back and forth months prior to an actual presidential election. Not enough to skip voting, mind you. But one political argument this Leap Year election cycle motivated me to take a deep dive. Namely, is Biden too old to be president? My gut instinct told me … Continue reading
From Jugs to Lugs
Admittedly, I had low expectations when my sister and I planned to take an overnight trip to visit the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, NC. The biggest attraction for me was to simply get out of town for a spell. Although I’d made hotel reservations, I had no idea how well I’d done until … Continue reading