Mom and Dad were married in ‘62, not ‘61.

I hope it brought something pleasant to mind.

I must confess however, that though I spent most of my adult life in the mountains of West Virginia and Kentucky, and my wife and kids were born and raised there, I was born and raised in and around Philly, in a mish-mash of urban, suburban, and rural settings. In retrospect, I think each of those things have influenced me and my writing profoundly and in different ways, and I find all of those sundry experiences invaluable.

I too am fascinated with the ways people see the world, and the ways their experiences color their perspectives.

I grew up at the top of one of the foothills in the North Cascades and my grandpa was an honest to god homesteader. Walked from Idaho to Seattle at 16 and started a fraternity at UW. Ended with an engineering degree and after losing his job during the depression, he started a cabinet shop Montana and did well. He was the only employee. I still have his 30’s vintage tablesaw. It’s the most amazing thing you’ve ever seen. He could hit a duck on the wing with a .22 and take down a squirrel with a rock at 50 feet. He eventually moved to Yakima, built a beautiful house out of scrap lumber, married a Literature and Drama Professor at Central Wa. University, took a job as high school shop teacher, coached his football team to 20 out of 23 state championships, showed me a wrestling move that won him the Idaho (territorial?) trophy when he was 86 and I was 16 and in great shape that left me wondering what happened, and finally died on his roof at 90 replacing some loose shingles. It was over 100′. Yakima is desert.

He explained women to me, was great friends with the Chief of the Yakima Indians, taught me how to tie flies and use them, let’s just say the list goes on.

And, after all that, my perspective on things is a bit skewed. I’m constantly amazed at what people think of the world. But that post, I understood it.

Thanks.

I’m just happy I could stir a fond memory or two, BWE.

Funnily enough, I had thought about reworking this post to make it flow better. I initially disliked the disjointedness of it. Upon further reflection, I decided to leave it alone and just publish it as is. I’m glad I did.

Thanks.

Life is funny that way. I hope you all do alright dealing with the loss.