My Week that Was - September 27

My glass of Spotted Cow. 9/20/25 dwm

 Saturday was my birthday. I am 62 years old. When I started this blog, I was nearing my 50th birthday. That was daunting enough. Now I look back and wonder how much different things were at 50 versus 62.

 I've lost weight over the years. The move to Wisconsin resulted in spending more time on my bike and in the gym.

 My job is fun, challenging, and something I hope to be doing for many years. I'm blessed with a loving family and good health. I've had a couple health setbacks but fully recovered.

 Judging the span of 12-years is difficult. I didn't know then what I know now, so we did the best we could with the information we had at the time.

 I'm actually eligible for early retirement but can't picture that. If I left my job the first thing I'd do would be look for something to do. I expect to be an active volunteer when and if I retire full-time. 

 Life is good. I'm concerned about our country in ways I never expected to be concerned. One of the ways I've coped is by digesting the daily news in small doses.

You accumulate perspective along the years. I'm not claiming to have things figured out. I believe in Jesus as my Savior and that my life and future are in the hands of God. When times seem to have my axis wobbling, I rest on Him.

Saturday night we went out with our youngest son and his wife to Madison's Birthday Place, the Nitty Gritty. If it's your birthday, you get a drink, an entree, a dessert, and commemorative glass. It was a nice way to cap off a relaxing day. 

There was a three-hour stretch Saturday that wasn't comforting and that was watching the Wisconsin Badgers football team. It was hard to watch because it reminded me of the team before Athletic Director Pat Richter hired Barry Alvarez and resurrected Wisconsin football. Since the early 1990s, the Badgers have won a lot more than they've lost. In losing to Maryland, it's feels like Wisconsin will once again be on the outside looking in at the teams selected to play during Bowl season.

In the blog where I picked Green Bay's games, I wrote, "I expect the Packers and Browns to play a tight game with Green Bay winning in the fourth quarter." However, the Browns blocked the potential winning kick and made one of their own as time ran out on the Packers. It was a sloppy game by both teams. I hope Green Bay got it out of their system; they are on the road Sunday night with an opportunity to demonstrate this was just one bad game.

I've seen a lot of turkeys this week. There is one group of 3 to 7 birds walking around Oakwood's campus on Mineral Point every day. They have a different presence than sandhill cranes which are graceful and regal as they walk in parks, on lawns, and next to streets in many areas of Madison.  

About a month ago, I told you about the bouncing object on the interstate that collided with my car driving north on I-39/90. Thursday I was driving south along the same stretch of road; I wasn't hit and nothing hit me, but a bouncing and rolling hub cap zipped across my lane at better than 65 miles an hour. 

It made me think of another episode that happened during the first couple of years after we moved back to Wisconsin. I was a few car lengths behind a commercial truck with a pick-up style bed where he had a couple of large Rubbermaid-style garbage cans. The cans were bouncing around the truck bed until one can toppled over the back of the truck and bounced a couple times before landing in the ditch. 

Thankfully, only one of those wayward projectiles hit my car and it was damage I'm choosing to live with, given the age of the Prius.

Friday was another day off and I used it for a ride west on the Military Ridge State Trail, more about it on Tuesday. Later Friday, my youngest son and I went to Milwaukee for one more Brewer's game before they open the National League post-season October 4. I can't go to a game without a blog, so look for that tomorrow.

As always, thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings, I appreciate you. Vaya con Dios.