While you wait......Remembering Big

With age you learn to be conservative with what time you have. Over the past few years we have learned to utilize time more wisely as we WAIT.  While waiting for our home to be returned to us we were fortunate to have books and friends.

We both finished and started books with two full days of waiting.  Friend Rick of Life 101,
 http://www.rickwatson-writer.com/  
sent us his book 'Remembering Big', a compilation of memories and Newspaper columns.  To be honest once I learned to read for enjoyment (in my late 50's, hooked by Tom Clancy's 'Executive Orders'), I am a fan of novels and have shied away from short stories. BUT......

This book arrived and I had a few more pages to finish a book by Patterson, Sherry latched onto the book first. My claim as 'Hey Rick is MY friend' had no weight whatsoever.

She made no secret of what she thought of the book. Laughing, smiling, and looking sad as something he wrote stirred a memory of her own. "What?" I asked several times, and received only a smile and 'You are going to like this.'

Well finally half way thru the first day of waiting for our home to be 'fixed', she finished. Handing it to me she smiled, 'you will like this one.' I dropped my novel and picked up 'Remembering Big'.   It is 60 more pages than a beautiful book of poems I received from Bonnie of http://organicdiscourse.blogspot.com/ 
(another friend). A sweet book of poems by her grandma Stella K. Poole. A book I am still enjoying of homespun poems entitled, 'Come Sing With Me'.  As I started the book I smiled at the same home spun flow. One author who was never afforded much formal education and another who was educated and an acclaimed writer.  There is something about writing from the heart.

So sitting in the driver's seat of the Fit, outside the huge truck repair shop I read most of the book the remainder of the first day.  I finished on the second day, mid day before our home was returned.

I thoroughly enjoyed the stories. I was pleasantly surprised that a lot of our lives paralleled. One thing in the beginning of he and Jilda's successful marriage (like ours) there was no big wedding. As I read I did wish several times I had desired and pursued a formal education.

Our first cars were Chevrolet's (Mine a maroon '48, his a RED '65).  I am a little more mature than Rick! ;-)  . Our wives were HS sweethearts.  Our entertainment was driving around since neither of our girlfriends attended dances or sports events. Of course he had an 'Eight track' we did have a Radio. LOL

I really did smile when he mentioned in the Army he went to Panama and there was no glass in the windows of the barracks, just screen wire.  The smile was because I had the same thoughts when I arrived in GITMO.  When you read Rick's writing you see his imagination:
 'Mosquitoes the size of humming birds'. 
 'Frost on the truck looked like it was draped in gauze,' etc.

One last comparison, he mentioned a mechanic, 'Mr. Kitchen'. After visiting 'reputable mechanics' he was told his auto engine was in terrible shape and needed major repairs. As a last resort he took it to a local mechanic who worked out of his own home and the problem was only an air leak. Replacing a small piece of rubber hose solved his problem for $3.  I had virtually the same thing happen, the local mechanic only tightened an intake manifold bolt and fixed my problem, after the dealership said I needed a new engine.

Anyway, if you enjoy good writing, that is up town but with down to earth homespun humor and true earth feelings, Rick's books are good and I never visit his blog without leaving better off in life.

There is one problem, I am afraid he is a democrat, he encounters mules in the back roads. But since I was once a Democrat and my best friend in the world was a democrat, I won't hold that against him,  he is a good guy with a beautiful wife who CAN keep him on the straight and narrow (most of the time).

Nite Shipslog

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I smile again, looking at the Fleetline Chevy. And I think of Uncle Pete's Truck, one of Rick's short stories.