Long Time, No See …

By Rooney

When we gonna see you again?  Been long time, no see!!!

Now, don’t get me wrong --- used to be that dad would put us in the goat trap when there was a group of folks comin’ in … mostly for our safety, but probably a little bit for theirs!  That might be why my pups are not quite as “socialized” around some folks as other dogs are.  But really … we haven’t been locked up in the goat trap for well over a year!  What’s up with that?!

Dad made it a policy a long time ago not to make a big deal out of coming over for regular gatherings … no formal invites or stuff like that … folks just used to congregate.  We’re kinda thinking that that particular “policy” might be biting him in the butt now!  Guess folks are congregating elsewhere (cause we know that you people always congregate, and there ain’t many of us at church this often!).  Anyway, now, no one comes over … well, ok … our favoritest neighbor to the south visits (occasionally), and mom-D and dad visit him at GWOB’s … occasionally one of our other “old” buds drops by, but only for 30 minutes or so (better than nothing though, we reckon!)  Dad did have a real good visit with ol’ Ed Jones (I don’t really think that that is his name – dad usually just calls him Sal … but it’s a cool nickname anyway!) a while back on Thursday!  They didn’t even get started until after we went to bed, but I think that they made up for it and didn’t finish ‘til 1 or 2 the next morning (I think that they solved many of the world’s problems – I heard them talking about guns and gold, and we did avert that ol’ fiscal cliff deal)!!!

I remember dad talking about various different business opportunities with an old buddy – mainly they talked about restaurants and bars (and other things that they both really liked – not necessarily in that order though!) – I remember that they both discounted both of those ideas since they were perceived to be too “trendy” – either “in” or “out” – sometimes with little, if any, reason.  Both of these guys decided that they didn’t want to have a business like that … they both wanted to be “IN” – All The Time!  I thought that they (either individually or collaboratively) would have been excellent restaurateurs or bar owners – but, they still stayed away from those enterprises.  In hindsight, that was probably a good thing for dad – heck, he can’t even give it away anymore!  Guess there’s just not that big of a draw anymore … maybe if he got Buffet to play some Thursday evening??? …

I tell you what … friends … the real ones … are such a gift!  Family is usually there … it’s expected … it’s usually a given … it’s ALWAYS APPRECIATED! … friends ,,, they have a choice (kind of like a dog) and always have the option of quitting you![i]   A visit with an old bud (even a text discussing some of the finer points of Star Wars (thanks JC) or planning a trip to fix a toilet (thanks Philip)) can turn a so-so day into a Wondermous One!!  It’s unexpected (even when it’s expected) – it’s still a warm fuzzy!  Mom-D and dad are pretty dang lucky overall … the peeps that they get to associate with are all pretty cool and we value their friendships!

Did you ever listen to that country song “Old Friends” with Willie Nelson, Roger Miller, and Ray Price[ii]?  Even if you think that you remember it, find it and go ahead and give it another listen.  It is a good ‘un!  Now, mom-D and dad are still pretty young (dad says that he keeps adjusting his definition of “old age” anyway, especially compared to that “grandma” that has worked with him for over 15 years  ; )  !!) and he said that he reckons that is what today is for … to create those good friends and memories that you can share later with old friends!

I started writing this musing quite a while back – back last January, as a matter of fact – there was a wonderful group of folks that gathered around to help celebrate mom-D’s 43^rd birthday (she recently had her 44^th)!  It was a pretty cool gathering, I tell you what!  We had some fajitas, laughs, good times --- the whiskey drinkers had a few, the beer drinkers had their share – mom-D got some cool presents (unexpected, unnecessary, but appreciated) … good times … good friends … and making the memories of tomorrow!! Thanks!

There will be many other gatherings that occur, many more good times to create, but sometimes we have a tendency to get a little sentimental and think of some of those good ol’ days that we’ll never be able to get back again.  That’s ok too!  That’s part of the big ol’ picture we guess!  Just because we have wondermous memories of the past doesn’t mean we have to give up the memories that will be (and vice versa)!!

We hope that all is well with all of our buds (and budettes) … if there is anything that we can do … Guess that everyone is just busy with all of the happenings with their lives – and that is SO COOL!  Live it while it’s here!  Just remember – if it gets slow … check us out … we’re usually just hanging out in dad’s shop!

PEACE OUT!!