After looping around the Moon, the crew of Artemis II made their return the only way space allows, by turning into a brief, very expensive shooting star.Reentry hits at about 25,000 mph, wrapped in a fiery glow, and then comes the real challenge... gravity. After days of floating, walking suddenly feels like a bad idea. Legs forget their job. Balance disappears. It’s less “heroic return” and more “baby deer, but in a spacesuit.”

I have been regularly registering my Friday With Fred blog for over 20 years and, to be candid, it is part of the fabric of my life. One minute I'm thinking "What next?" and then, suddenly, a notion strikes me and I realize "That's a blog!" and I'm off and running. For the most part, my pieces are short and light. For sure, some are better than others, but I aim to please. They are a part of me and the fuel that powers them is feedback, your comments!

Thank you Dan for yesterday's blog but up here in the North, we're still waiting....Apologies to those who don’t live in the Northeast for whom this blog may be less relevant.It is becoming increasingly clear that we must dress for the weather and not be fooled by the season. The tease of Springtime temperatures followed by days of near-freezing cold is not, to my mind, the impetus to change the closets and put away winter clothes.I wonder whether, and, if so, when, “normal” weather will return. 

The weather has been beautiful down south with warm days and cooler nights. You can open the windows before going to bed, something that bothers my wife, but I still sneak open the bathroom window in our bedroom. In Florida, that usually only lasts a couple of months during the year. So it's a special time for me.

We used to tease my mom that she was the best infomercial shopper.  If she had trouble sleeping one night, my sister and I knew that unexpected, and often unusable, gifts were on the way.Well, fast forward.  My soft spot isn't necessarily an infomercial (although sometimes . . .) but instead those Facebook pop up ads.  I admit to having been drawn in once or twice, or more, with credit card in tow.

I recently sat for jury duty for two days. On the morning of the first day, approximately forty of us were called to a courtroom. Eight people were put into the jury box and the rest of us sat in the well of the courtroom. I sat in the well  for a day and a half waiting for my turn to be called into the jury box, be questioned  and ultimately dismissed. During those days I sat next to a group of four people. We shared a lot of information about ourselves with one another,  and, for that short time we felt almost close to one another. 

Many know of my affiliation as chair of the board of directors of Services Now for Adult Persons, Inc. ("SNAP”).  Others in Gotham also play key roles in support SNAP’s work including as board members (Elder Law Attorney Jeff Greenwood as Board Secretary and mortgage advisor Renee Richter as a fellow board member) or working as professionals to help the agency make a difference (including Joshua Zinder as the project architect for our new building, Steve Glassberg as our construction counsel, Scott Bloom as our real estate leasing advisor and Nancy

This is a story about two people who lived through the same kind of trauma. Same long nights, same weight in their chest, same question running through their minds: How did this fall apart so fast?