FRIDAY THE 13TH & A FULL MOON

According to the San Francisco Giants announcer, Jon Miller, the combination of a full moon on Friday the 13th won’t happen again for 35 years!  That is just fine with me. I’m not particularly superstitious BUT I do know that people (drivers in particular) do a lot of weird stuff during a full moon. This double whammy last Friday had me going “Whoa!”, as Charley & I say when we lift up the ears on her stuffed Snoopy.

I awoke as any day on Friday, June 13^th. I called my father as usual but felt the urge to sneeze just as we were ending the call. I quickly said good-bye, turned slightly & let out a healthy sneeze. At that point my back almost exploded! I knew it was bad within seconds & uttered a few emphatic expletives which prompted Lou to come in saying what’s wrong. When you’ve lived 64 years with various back issues you know when it is NOT good.

It took me about a minute to get up off the chair. I literally could not move for a short while. As I slowly made my way to the freezer for the ice pack followed by the bathroom for several ibuprophen, I was royally pissed off! Those of you who have suffered with lower back problems understand the anger & frustration that immediately takes hold when you realize that you will be miserable for days. Not to mention that comfort, sleeping & your daily routine are shot to hell.

About that time, my sister, Karen, who is the expert on back problems (far worse than mine), called to say she was sitting beside the road with a truck that crapped out & wouldn’t move. Her husband had come over from work but couldn’t get it going. She was waiting for the tow truck. So far the Friday the 13th/full moon combination was two for two & it wasn’t even 9 AM.

Later that evening as I lay on the floor with ice on my back & Karen's conked out truck sat in the garage, we watched our Giants blow a lead in the 9th inning that could only be explained by the Friday the 13th/full moon combo. That’s where we heard Jon Miller as he looked up the next similar event – 35 years away. Thank goodness!

We had plans to meet for lunch on Sunday at the facility where our dad is currently rehabbing from a partial foot amputation. It was Father’s Day so his two daughters were going to bring him a Taco Bell lunch, visit & do our best to make it an okay Father’s Day given the circumstances.

BUT she had no wheels to make the 100 mile drive from her house to Danville. I had wheels but was nursing a back that was spasming like crazy as I decided whether to make the 100 mile drive from my house.

In the end I decided to suck it up & drive in. If this ended up being his last Father’s Day on this earth, I figured I couldn’t live with myself if I let him spend it alone in a rehab facility. Armed with my ice pack & a back brace off I went. My plan was to stop every half hour to walk around & stretch a bit. That last leg both ways was a bit tough but I survived.

I’m not really sure whether my dad cared that much that I was there. But he enjoyed his enchirito, taco & beans. And I know that whatever happens, I made the effort to spend Father’s Day with him leaving me with a clear conscious.

This is now Day Six of my latest back escapade & it is finally feeling well enough to sit at my computer for the time it takes to write this. Thank God it only seems to happen this bad every few years. And I’m sure it wasn’t helped by my visit with Charley yesterday – physically, that is – mentally it was the best medicine!

"THIS IS LOU, MY...????"

In this day & age many couples are sharing a life together without the benefit of matrimony. It brings up an interesting question which I've often pondered. What do you call the man (or woman) who lives with you?

Boyfriend – I am in my 60s & am in a long term, live in, committed relationship. Calling Lou my “boyfriend” just sounds like someone I started dating a few months ago.

Partner – I know that “partner” is the term of choice for many unwed couples but it sounds more like a business relationship to me. You could easily refer to someone you just opened a restaurant with & have no intention of sleeping with as a “partner”, too.

Life Partner – So, by adding the word “life” to “partner”, it is supposed to somehow negate the business end of it. But “life partner” sort of sounds a little like a new age, this is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, kind of thing.

Mate – Just sounds too much like an Australian buddy for my tastes.

Significant Other – The Urban Dictionary defines “significant other” as follows: “Your mate, spouse, husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, steady and/or lover. Used when you don't want to be too specific, or when the details are nobody's business.” That pretty much covers it!

POSSLQ – A term supposedly coined by the U.S. Census Bureau that just went a bit too far is “posslq” (pronounced “possil cue”) which stand for “Person of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters”. That is just plain silly. Come on, really?

Spousal Equivalent – I first heard this one mentioned by Joy Behar, formerly of The View. Apparently she lived with her “spousal equivalent” for 29 years before finally marrying him. I loved her quote when asked why, she replied, “After a honeymoon for 29 years, we decided to ruin it & get married.”

Lover – That might have been okay back when we were star-crossed “lovers” but after almost 13 years together, no one is really interested in our sex lives. I see no reason to broadcast that fact to everyone whom I introduce to Lou.

Other Half – I do tend to use this one once in awhile since it gives a somewhat endearing term without specifically stating whether marriage or co-habitating is involved.

Husband – We often call each other “husband” & “wife”. After all we are in this for life & we have made the same commitment to each other that every married couple does, just not in the eyes of the law. We wear rings on the third fingers of our left hands & I like to say that we are married in our hearts.

It's just that neither one of us wants to get married. We are together because we choose to be together each day, not because a piece of paper says we are legally bound to each other. Being a product of the 1960s I still have enough of that “rebel” mindset in me to defy the normal traditions. So far, we both continue to enjoy our unwedded bliss.

But this all puts me back to square one – what do I call Lou? More often than not, when I introduce him to someone, I simply say, “Lou, this is so & so. So & so, this is Lou.” Since we tend to hold hands a lot & it’s probably obvious that we are a couple, I’ll let them draw their own conclusions.

Anyone have any other suggestions?