Happy Birthday, John

It’s nearly impossible to believe John Lennon would have turned sixty-five today. His influence on my life has been astounding, not for having been a Beatle, but for who he was as a human being. When I first put it together that he was a Libra and I was a Libra, I made the decision that if I was going to be a Libra, I was going to be a Libra like John Lennon. Having him as a role model throughout the years, I’ve seen how that decision has only helped me to be a better person. Not without his human foibles — and not ashamed to reveal those in ways that were sometimes painful to watch — John taught me to own my humanity, faults and all, and to look life squarely in the face with an attitude of, this is who I am. Sorry if you don’t like it. It has never let me down...

I Suck

At poker, that is. Ville and Beau invited us over to play Texas Hold ‘em last night. Beau just got some new professional grade chips and they’ve been trying to get “Poker Night” established for a while. After the day we had, it seemed only natural to carry on with the absurdity, so we accepted. On our way to their house we stopped by the Stillwater Airport to watch the away team leave in their Frontier A319 Airbus. That’s such a great jet. Our trip from the States to Amsterdam was in an A330 and we loved it. We got to the airport just as the jet was making its taxi out to take-off position. Perfect timing. And when it left the ground it was right in front of us. We then headed on over to Ville and Beau’s house. (Side note: The Buffs wiped the floor with our Cowboys. What a miserable loss.)

The hilarity began the minute we walked in the door. We pour drinks, then tucked into a great dinner of bratwurst, sauerkraut and baked beans (yeah, I know…). Nettl had never played before, so she sat out and observed a while. When she finally felt brave enough to be dealt in, she (pretend) pouted for a while, saying things like, “I’m going to lose. I don’t understand” and so forth. On her first hand she cleaned house with a straight flush. We weren’t buying that anymore and showed no mercy. She finally just wiped us out and we had to reclaim everyone’s chips and start over. As usual, I lost. I did score a straight, but mostly I sucked.

I Got Up Early For This?

It’s 8:00 on Saturday morning. A morning breaking too soon after a night of playing online poker with Ville, drinking too much boxed wine and eating too many Flaming Hot Cheetos.

Lynette is gently waking me, telling me my coffee is already made. She then gives me the bad news: “Don’t forget we’re going to the Plasma Center today with Ville, Liebchen.”

We’ve never donated plasma before, but with two short paychecks we need money if our family of six wants to eat this weekend. Plus, rent is due. My stomach aching, I stumble out of bed and take a shower. Then the Cheetos hit me.

Note to Self: Never, ever, under any circumstance, eat those again. Especially with boxed wine...