Friends are the people you know you can count on to have your back when the cream cheese hits the mix -master. They are the people you want in the foxhole with you and the ones who pull you back when you get to the proverbial ledge. It occurred to me how difficult it can be sometimes to be that friend when someone you care about is doing something you don’t think is a good idea. Sharing an honest opinion can be risky.

Have you ever thought about what happens in silence? The conversation takes a pause (or a breath so to speak) and we scramble to fill it. Imagine you are alone in a room with no music, no phone to scroll, no television – you get the idea.Is silence a bad thing? I don’t think so. Silence isn’t the enemy. I would venture to say that if two good friends are together, a quiet moment actually speaks volumes.  And a quiet moment alone -- device free --  can turn into an important time of reflection.

I recently realized that, that the foods I eat on an almost daily basis,  are heavily influenced by foods of other cultures.   Open almost any kitchen cabinet or refrigerator in the U.S. and you’ll find ingredients that once felt “foreign” but are now everyday staples. Soy sauce, olive oil, tortillas, balsamic vinegar, and sriracha have crossed borders and become part of how many of us cook weekday meals. 

A week ago yesterday, the music blogger and podcaster, who Friday’s blogger calls his muse, wrote a piece about of one of my fave musicians and singer-songwriters; it inspired my most recent playlist.  

When my mother passed yesterday in the shared room at the assisted living center, the world did not stop. The hallway lights were still on, the aides still walked around helping people, and life moved on in its ordinary rhythm. Yet sitting beside her bed, holding a hand that had held mine through every season, I felt the weight of all the ordinary days I had taken for granted. The table by the window with ginger ale and toast when I was sick, her furrowed brow when I did something wrong (which was quite often), and the gentle sounds she made that had always meant she was still here.

As chronicled in last week's entry, "Claustrophobia" (https://www.gothamnetworking.com/node/15820), I recently bolted from a PETscan machine due to a fit of claustrophobia and, as consequence, I had to return and submit to the test.

I just finished a book. (It happened to be “The Einstein Conspiracy” by Steve Israel, the former Congressman from Long Island who opened a bookstore in Oyster Bay. It was a good read.)I always like to be in the middle of reading a book. When I finish a book, I get lonely and I quickly go to the pile of books on hand and find another to open and start.Just a page or two and the bookmark. The loneliness goes away and a new journey begins.

Last week I was on vacation in North Miami for Presidents week. These days the kids get the whole week off from school, not just Monday which is Presidents Day. I dont recall when I was in high school getting an entire week off in February. Are the teachers unions just that much better at negotiating or are the politicians that much worse and spend the tax dollar without any thought. While I was in Florida those kids had school Tuesday to Friday.