That "One Day" In Your Life.

That was the day I knew it wasn't going to good. The rest of my life is was forever changed in an instant.

Do you remember that day? Good? Bad? One day you may have woke up and realized today was the day your life was going to change. Or maybe an event that day decided it for you? Maybe someone did or said something to you that forever decided your direction? We all have that day/event/encounter. When that day came, what happened? A loss of a family member or friend. Meeting someone you would fall in love with, or maybe as simple as getting that job you had always dreamed of. Destiny is a strange bedfellow. Something great can change your life for the better, only to have it kill you later on in life. My Brother Craig is a perfect example. In 1977 we moved to Hudsonville. The neighbors, who's kids became our friends, had snowmobiles and motorcycles. Craig loved his life, because on that day, he became happy. He loved riding dirt bikes, snowmobiles and cars. We moved again two years later, and Craig would have so much ripped away from him. He still has his love for all of those things, but once again, we had them taken away from us.

We would move again in 1980, again losing the friends we had made, because, well.....we had no choice. My Father only cared about moving up the ladder with Meijer, so when an opportunity came up, he would take it. My brother made new friends who were into muscle cars, and he thrived. But the seed of what would eventually kill him, was sitting dormant. Later in life he would talk about how he got into motorsports while living in Hudsonville to people he would see at my parents grocery store, that my Father bought after he retired in 1987, and he worked at. As he got older, he drank. More and more. To keep this story from getting any longer, I'll cut to the chase. He missed Hudsonville. And everything he did in his life was always hindered by the fact that he would never get 1978 back. It was his demon. He would tell me on many occasions that he resented my parents for making us move away. 

The day I took him to the hospital, he knew he was never coming home. He was so sick. He told me he was scared. I was scared too. But I was sad, and I was pissed off. I didn't know how sick he was from alcoholism. I had only moved back to the area after being gone for nearly six years. My sister knew he was sick. My parents knew he was sick. His friends knew he was sick. They did NOTHING! 

He was dead not even a week later. Alone in an ICU bed. Craig never got back to that day that he loved, or the town that made it possible. He drank himself to death, trying to get back to 1978.

This was the day I knew, things were never going to be ok. That day, my life changed. It took a couple of more years, but it all came out. The hatred and pain I felt that day? I still carry it with me. The anger and betrayal from my parents, my sister and her kids, will always be a scar on my soul. I'd like to think that Karma has a way of getting it's way in the end, but I'll never know. 

I wonder when they had that "One Day" that made them who they are?

Observations from the front.

Watching the rain and wind at my happy place, reading about the horrors taking place around the world, on my phone. Kind of self defeating, I know. It's depressing that in a world that has come so far, we can still act like animals. I started to cry. There is nothing one person can do, I thought. And there isn't. I can only hope that I could be a better person in my little world, and bring a smile to someone's face. As the tears rolled down my face, my local Yacht Rock station (Yeah, my guilty pleasure. You're just as guilty.) played something I literally had not heard in 40 years. You know what Yacht Rock is. Lots of Steely Dan, pina coladas, and assorted others from the 70's and 80's. Well, a little gem came on, and I stopped crying.

Now, followers of mine know I worked in radio for about ten years. Lots of formats and variety of good and bad music. But in all that time, I've never played this song. As a matter of fact, I forget this beautiful thing existed until today.

https://youtu.be/SGKrgJZhpzk?si=8UcIuleY5YkchOl_

I hope the link works. If not, the song is Pilot Of The Airwaves by Charlie Dore. Released in 1979, I remember hearing it on the radio when I lived in Marcellus. The effect of having that come on in the middle of a depression induced cryfest, was like screeching to a halt right before you drive off that cliff.

I'm not saying it's a cure all for what ails the world, but never EVER underestimate the power of a simple song. So when life is kicking you in the head, and it gets to heavy to carry, take the time to turn on whatever device you use, and just listen to some music. Go look for something you haven't heard in a long time. There is so much out there that we have forgotten about. Go listen to Andrew Gold, Al Stewart, even some Bertie Higgins. 

Everyone needs a little "Key Largo". 😁

Look What Came Out Of A Hole!

 A local guy was excavating an old outhouse, and found something unexpected. My old blog! Don't worry, the remnants are no longer smelly, but are actually still here. Well, they may have a little stench left, but nothing I can't handle.

8 years since my last post. So much has changed since then. I don't think I need to tell you, but hopefully you survived. 

I'm going to revive this crappy little word dump over the next few days. Not only has the world changed, but so has the way The Daily Skid Mark is laid out. Fonts? Who needs them! If you have anything you want me to write about, or just have something to say, just comment. As usual, no story or idea is off limits. I mean, my dog just farted, so we can talk about that. Or how about that weird lump on my right butt cheek? Maybe you have an interesting butt cheek you want to discuss? Doesn't have to be yours. Let me know!

In the meantime, here's a short encounter I had last week. In the grocery store, there were two kids messing around in the frozen aisle. I look over to see a pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream sitting on a display shelf behind them, outside of the freezer. Now, I've always had a fantasy of catching someone leaving refrigerated or frozen food out in an aisle so I can snack them upside the noggin for being a dick and wasting food, not to mention costing the business money. The closest I got was watching a guy stick a pair of shoes, still in the box, into a display freezer. I actually just laughed because it made no sense.

I walked up to the container, and asked the kid if this was his ice cream. After stumbling over his garbled "words" he proclaimed that, yes, and he sat it down just to look at other ice cream. I smiled and said, "Ok. But if I come back down this aisle in two minutes, and it's still there and you're gone, I'm gonna find you before you make it to the parking lot."

It was gone when I came back. Thinking about it later, I may have actually threatened him with my comment.

Good.