Opening
February is Black History Month in the United States. But it’s a month of even greater importance to me. And with this being a leap year, I wonder how much the extra day will impact the divine master plan for my life for 2024. Introduction I'm Ken Boone and this is my Podcast, “MUCH MORE TO SAY”. This show is a production of the Descant MMG Podcast Network. Episodes are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Show Notes can be found on our website, MUCHMORE2SAY.WEEBLY.COM. That’s MUCH MORE (the number 2) SAY.WEEBLY.COM. And now, on with the show: A Block I started this podcast during a Leap Year. 2020 to be exact. The three trailers as well as the first five episodes were published in 2020. The goal was to get us to the next Inauguration Day January 20, 2021, with our sanity somewhat intact. It was in Leap Year 2020 that COVID-19 began running rampant throughout this country and throughout the world. Most of us were terrified yet hopeful that Inauguration Day 2021 would bring us leadership that can perform well in a crisis. Fortunately, the work we put in during Leap Year 2020 was just enough to get to the new year without everything going to hell. And I have a silly question for you, how much of a factor did the extra day play in things working out for us? I need the extra day since February has been one of my busiest months for as long as I can remember. Where I grew up, it has always been the coldest month as well as being the shortest month everywhere that recognizes our calendar. But as I’ve mentioned earlier, we did get an extra day this month. I’d like to look back to see if I used it wisely on this podcast. This retrospective doesn’t replace my monthly News, Notes & More blog post I’ll publish this Friday. But it doesn’t stop me from rehashing what I talked about this month. In my first episode of the month, I warned you about getting distracted by chasing that next big thing, better known as the shiny penny. That means, don’t focus undue attention on that new and trendy idea, only to drop it when something newer and trendier comes along. That’s been one of my character flaws. While I remind myself to stay focused and on task, I also remind myself not to ignore a good thing when you see it, even if it may take to off course. In the words of American author, Charles Marshburn, “so don’t pass by that penny when you’re feeling blue. It may be a penny from heaven, that an Angel has passed to you.” In my second episode of the month, I decided to revive the theme of my very first hosted podcast, “From Grievance to Gratitude”. But instead of airing grievances about perceived slights in my past, I applied a humorist touch to my grumblings. Using the book “Gettin’ Old Ain’t for Wimps” by Karen O’Connor as the basis of my resentments, I decided to take on the role of the Grumpy Old Man. I spoke about check-up season with all my various health care providers. And since most of the news I received was good, I had nothing to complain about. However, I did find one thing to complain about. To my horror, I discovered that I’m starting to go bald. So, it was only fitting that I ended the episode with a quote from another bald man, Larry David, who said, “anyone can be confident with a full head of hair. But a confident bald man – there’s your diamond in the rough.” In my third episode of the month had an anniversary theme. Beginning with the date Celia and I first met (02/19/2010), to our first date (02/21/2010), and topping off with the day we got married (02/19/2011). We make it a point to celebrate all those dates, since they represent the start of the best years of our lives! That was also the time that I got reacquainted with music. As you know, it was Celia who gave me permission and encouraged me to approach music as a long-lost friend, and not the bitter adversary of my youth. And as a birthday resolution, I’ve decided to make music again, serving as Celia’s on-stage sidekick, of course. Keeping things in a musical context, I ended the episode with a quote from Music Superstar, Garth Brooks. who said that “music keeps you eternally young. It just does. What I love about it now is touring without the guilt. Now it’s like nothing is being held back. You get to eat mashed potatoes with both hands instead of one. It’s fantastic.” Parting Shots There were other things that happened in February 2024. In order of occurrence, on February 11th, we celebrated the 34th birthday of my son, Kenny. On that same day, we saw one of the greatest Super Bowls of recent memory. We also saw the justice system work, by way of a large civil judgment rendered against a very famous, very bombastic individual who thought that he would never be held accountable for any wrongdoing. Time will tell if he can even come up with the money, or if the judgment will be overturned on appeal. As a native New Yorker, I hope that he files for bankruptcy protection, and must admit publicly that he’s broke, or at least not nearly as wealthy as he claims to be. But worrying about things I can’t control wouldn’t be using this year’s extra day wisely. We still have a lot of work to do to make my next birthday, January 20, 2025, a special day. And that would be to witness my guy take the Oath of Office for a second term! Today's Quote “Today only comes once in four years. So, make this extra day, extra special. Take that extra LEAP. Happy Leap Year, everybody!” Anonymous
To check out other episodes of "Much More to Say", please visit our HOME PAGE
0 Comments
This week, I’ll celebrate my 13th wedding anniversary. I will also be celebrating the reconnecting with the music scene. Are these a coincidence? No way. They’re part of a divine master plan that will come to pass if I can just get out of the way.
I'm Ken Boone and this is my podcast, “MUCH MORE TO SAY”. This show is a production of the Descant MMG Podcast Network. Episodes are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Show Notes for this episode can be found on our website, muchmore2say.weebly.com. That’s MUCH MORE (the number 2) SAY.WEEBLY.COM. And now, on with the show: In my intro, I forgot to mention that this Wednesday also marks 14 years to the day that I first made contact Celia, the woman I was lucky enough to marry. In fact, we got married exactly one year after the day we first made contact. We jokingly tell people that we met at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC. That’s just a harmless little fib. The truth is that our first contact was made online, on Friday February 19, 2010. At the time, admitting to online dating was not as popular as it is today. It's now the most popular way to meet your potential soulmate. In fact, in 2023, nearly 400 million people are using online dating sites to meet people. Roughly 21%, or 84 million users are from the United States. We met for coffee two days after our initial contact, on Sunday, February 21, 2010, at the Starbucks on Gilead Road in Huntersville, NC. I was so nervous that it took me nearly one hour to get there from my home. Normally, that trip takes ten minutes to make. The staff patiently waited as we talked for almost three hours. I could have shown my appreciation by at least helping them close the place. I would have gladly mopped the floor or taken out the trash. But they just smiled and wished us a good night. That week, Celia invited me to accompany her to the church where she served as Music Director. I accepted and was blown away by how well she sang and played the piano. I wanted to join her on stage, something I have not wanted to do in over twenty years. I knew most of the hymns that were sung that day, so I was able to add a bass voice to the congregation. Unfortunately, my range has shrunk so much that singing tenor is permanently out of the question. As we moved along through the years, Celia and I began making music together. She didn’t just give me permission to do more than just listen to her sing and play, she encouraged me to join in on the fun. So, at first, I would fat-finger my way through the songs, somehow convincing the audience that I was serviceable. Early on in my rediscovery stage, I wanted to put together a band consisting of singers as well as instrumentalists. Along with Celia and me on keys, I wanted a bassist, guitarist, percussionist, and some vocalists. That’s the lineup I used in my prior life, so it was familiar. Celia had an even better idea. She suggested that we make it a duo consisting of just the two of us. It took me getting turned down by several musicians to agree to try it her way. And, as is mostly the case, she was correct. It was during this period that I swapped playing piano for the electric bass. That proved to be a good move that was long overdue. With the help of some YouTube videos, I was able to go from zero to playing publicly in only eight weeks. On occasion, we were joined by other musicians, but I admit that I preferred it to be just Celia and me on stage. And that seemed to be the preference of everyone else since we kept getting calls to play across the Carolinas. While it was a lot of fun getting paid to play, I enjoyed that each gig was followed by date night. Sometimes we would eat out at a restaurant while other times we would visit a grocery store and raid their bakery section. But either way, we would be hanging out together. Life soon got in the way of our music. As many of you already know, Celia had to undergo two hip replacement surgeries. The second came with complications that forced her to be hospitalized more than she would have liked. And as you may also recall, I was recently hospitalized twice in the past four years. The first time was for Congestive Heart Failure, while the second time was for a gastrointestinal bleed. Both situations were scary and set me back both physically and emotionally but are now under control. And through it all, we have continued with our dating rituals. Parting Shots Although we haven’t been inside of that Starbucks shop since our first date, we still drive past it several times a week. That’s because it’s directly across the street from my cardiologist, my nephrologist, Celia’s pharmacy, and three of our favorite grocery stores, as well as a short walk from one of our banks. In other words, it sits in the center of our quaint and quiet little life in the middle of suburbia, USA. Because we still do frugal quite well, Celia and I will probably just exchange cards and have lunch at our new favorite diner in town. Of course, we will hit the closest grocery store to raid both the bakery and the candy aisle. And that’s okay since we have gym memberships. While Celia loves flowers, there are some that she’s allergic to. All I need is to get her the wrong kind, or the right kind sprayed with the wrong preservatives, and have her sneezing for hours on end. That would make me feel horrible. On our first date, I told Celia that we would be together for at least fifty years. Starting from when we first met, we’ve been together for fourteen years. So that means that I must live to be 102 years old to make my prediction come true. So, how do I get to be a centenarian? I must eat healthy, exercise, and continue to take my medications as prescribed. Doing those things will help to physically keep me going. But what about my emotion and spiritual needs? The two things that come to mind to keep me holistically healthy both involve my wife, Celia. And they are to keep dating as well as to keep making music together. We’ve got the dating part down under control. Now all we need to do is to go into the front room of the house, shake off the rust, and start playing. Taking a couple of paying gigs wouldn’t hurt either. Today's Quote “Music keeps you eternally young. It just does. What I love about it now is touring without the guilt. Now it’s like nothing is being held back. You get to eat mashed potatoes with both hands instead of one. It’s fantastic.” Garth Brooks – American Country Music Superstar
To check out other episodes of "Much More to Say", please visit our HOME PAGE
By: Kenneth E. Boone, Sr.
Checkup season for 2024 is in the books. My latest echocardiogram showed good heart function, except for a couple of leaky valves that don’t require action at this time. However, I just discovered that I’m going bald. Getting old isn’t for wimps! I'm Ken Boone and this is my Podcast, “MUCH MORE TO SAY” By the time I publish this episode, I will have had my six-month checkup with my cardiologist. Based on his interpretation of my recent echocardiogram, my heart function is still normal. That’s great because it could have been a lot worse. I feel particularly blessed considering some news I recently received. Celia told me that a dear friend of ours was recently diagnosed with congestive heart failure, the same diagnosis I got back in 2019. I thought that my case was as bad as it gets, but I was wrong. The underlying contributor to my heart failure was untreated high blood pressure. My friend is dealing with diabetes, in addition to high blood pressure. The good news is that they are getting his condition under control, but only after a couple of surgical procedures. And he’s only a couple of years older than I am. He’s not only the guy I know who has dealt with serious heart issues in the past few months. The husband of Celia’s dear friend recently underwent successful open-heart surgery to clear a severe blockage in his arteries. This guy happens to be close to 20 years younger than me. This episode is scheduled to be published on the second Wednesday of February, which is designated as “Grievance Wednesday”. This is when I revisit my very first solo podcast, “From Grievance to Gratitude”, and see if I’ve made any progress from the guy who kept rehashing up old resentments. I think I’ll change course in 2024. Instead of complaining about the past, I’ll moan and groan about the future. So, I’ll be airing my grievances about growing old. And every day this aging dude wakes up gives me something to be grateful for. And if I wake up free of aches and pains, that’s a bonus! Another thing about growing old is you can often make light of all the senior moments you have. There are also many books and blogs out there that reassure you that you are not alone. In her 85 years on this earth, author Karen O’Connor has written dozens of successful books. Most of her recent ones deal with the joys of aging. The one that I’ll use as my touchstone is titled “Getting’ Old Ain’t for Wimps”. I’ve mentioned this book several times in both of my podcasts, as well as giving a shout out to Angel for buying me this book as a birthday gift. It’s something I read every time I need a good laugh. And it’s something I’d love to share with you. Since I’m talking about health issues in this episode, I think I’ll share with you an essay from Ms. O’Connor titled “Prescription: Laughter” in the “Aches and Pains” section of her book, “Getting’ Old Ain’t for Wimps”. Here goes it: “There’s something about a first appointment with a new doctor that’s just a bit unnerving,” admits Nancy. “My long-time internist had announced his retirement, so I decided to take a chance on the new one. I scheduled a regular checkup.” As Nancy merged onto the interstate on her way to the medical suite, a cup of ice water in the cup holder of her car tipped over and splashed her. “I attempted to soak up the water with a few tissues and drive at the same time. Not a good idea! The result was two wet seats – the car’s and mine! I didn’t want to be late so I drove on, praying that somehow my denim jumpsuit would dry out in the next few minutes.” Nancy signed in at the desk in the waiting room, holding her purse behind her so the other patients wouldn’t notice her damp derriere. By the time the nurse called her into the examination room, Nancy couldn’t keep quiet another moment. She confessed the episode, and the two had a good laugh. The nurse tried to convince Nancy her wet pants were not that obvious, especially since denim is dark blue, but Nancy knew better the moment she stood up from the paper-covered examination table, which was now as wet as she was. Nancy began imagining what would occur next. The new, younger doctor would come in, shake her hand, take one look, and say, “Well, Mrs. Brummett, other than the incontinence, how are you handling growing older?” The doctor, however, held his tongue. By the end of their initial visit, Nancy said she felt comfortable enough with him to confess her problem. She was encouraged to see that he could laugh about it too! Parting Shots News Flash! I had my six-month follow-up appointment with my cardiologist yesterday. He suggested that I schedule a stress test, to which I gently, but firmly pushed back. With that off the table, he made slight adjustments to my medications. The visit ended with him telling me that my next appointment will be one year from now! I’ve graduated from cardiac care to maintenance. My friend who is dealing with congestive heart failure and diabetes diagnoses got good news at his last cardiologist appointment. However, his wife asked Celia for the name of my heart doctor. We didn’t hesitate to recommend Dr. V. Although I no longer see him, I still think he’s the best. While I am truly blessed, there is one thing that I’m adding to my grievance list that I thought would be a non-issue for me. While handling my morning grooming in the bathroom, I looked in the mirror and noticed that I had a bald spot on the top of my head! Now that really sucks! You see, every male on my father’s side has a full head of hair. And some of them never turn gray. But then I remembered that baldness usually comes the mother’s side. Thank goodness that, in addition to the book, Angel bought me a set of hair clippers! She always thinks of everything! Today's Quote “Anyone can be confident with a full head of hair. But a confident bald man – there’s your diamond in the rough.” Larry David – American Comedian and Writer
To check out other episodes of "Much More to Say", please visit our HOME PAGE
SHOW NOTES - Episode 116
|
To check out other episodes of "Much More to Say", please visit our HOME PAGE
About the Host
Kenneth E. Boone, Sr. is a writer, podcaster, music lover, sports enthusiast, and retired accountant.
Since 2018, he has produced several podcasts for the Descant MMG Podcast Network.
This podcast is available on Apple Podcast and Spotify.
Archives
May 2024
April 2024
March 2024
February 2024
January 2024
December 2023
November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023
December 2022
November 2022
October 2022
September 2022
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
January 2022
December 2021
November 2021
October 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
April 2021
March 2021
February 2021
January 2021
December 2020
November 2020
October 2020
September 2020
August 2020
July 2020