Ultimate Bucket list…the book and the e-mails

March 13, 2017.
Weather sucks. In the mid-thirties for the high temp.. My “early garden” is probably toast. Fuck me.
But it will all be good. Nothing ventured…and all that. 5 bucks of seeds and i’m back in business.
I’m gonna go cover my garden as soon as I post this. I repeat: Fuck Me!

March 13, every-year.
My half birthday. One of my favorite holidays, even if it is a scam. At least Hallmark hasn’t made a card for it…but more than a few “half-birthday cards” have been sent and received.
Sometimes there are presents.
3/13/17 I got music and bubbly from my playmate. Perfect.
Thank you Shelly Drymon.
Thank you Paula Rudloff for the scam holiday.

The second Monday in March, every year.
NCAA brackets everywhere you look.
I get my annual copy of USA Today.
A tradition since my first march madness b-ball pool back in 1983. I was in my first year at Arthur Andersen. King Mitchell ran the pool that year. For the next 6 years I was the driving force. That first year, only about a dozen people played. My last year had just under a grand in prize money.
That year there was also the ten buck a head “bidding bracket”…my favorite march madness pool ever.
Those were the days.

March 13, 2017
There were newspaper racks back in the day. They’re basically extinct anymore, at least in Springfield, MO.
No racks holding a mac-paper theses days, so I took the 7 minute walk to Barnes&Noble . Called Dad as I walked and we chatted hoops for a little bit as I headed over to spend 2 bucks on a USA Today.

-=-=-=-=
December 3, 2012
Bucket list? I liked the movie LOTS more than the critics, if you believe Rotten Tomatoes.
Impulse purchases are a rarity for me. But today I picked up a copy of “My Ultimate Bucket List” from the bargain bid at 44% of suggested retail price.
No author. They include 300 activities. The user can have 100 of their own. I’ve never really been a “bucket list” person, but for some reason buying this book today felt right as a half-birthday present to myself.

Later I’ll spin through the book, but for now I’m gonna copy and paste a few e-mails from 1,561 days ago. I have excised a few lines. (Shelly and I had only known each other a little while at the time…there was tad bit of wishfulness in the last couple of items on my wish list, from a very personal perspective…if you get my drift. Those activities are not included in the copy and paste below.)

From: Shelly Drymon <>
To: “steve_weiss <>
Sent: Monday, December 3, 2012 1:06 PM
Subject: Bucket List

I ran two miles out and then did a two mile walk/run back. Its windy but nice.
When we were on the porch last night and you asked me about my bucket list, I don’t remember asking about yours. Do you have one?

From: Steve Weiss <>
To: Shelly Drymon <>
Sent: Monday, December 3, 2012 2:11 PM
Subject: Re: Bucket List

i don’t really have a bucket list….i can be happy doing pretty mundane, simple things….but here are a few things that i think would be fun:

See Saturday Night Live in person
See The Daily Show in person
Ride in a Hot air balloon
Ride in a helicopter
Ride in a bi-plane
Ride in a fighter jet
Zipline
Be weightless
Go to the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame
Ride the coasters at Cedar Point
Go Ice fishing
Take a road trip thru the lower 48
Attend the Rose Bowl when OSU plays
NYC at Christmas
Go to the top of the Empire State Bldg
Go to the top of the Statue of Liberty
See concerts at Red Rocks
Visit Cuba
Attend a UNC-Duke basketball game at Cameron
Attend a Louisville-UK basketball game in Lexington
Attend a Yankee-Red Sox game at Fenway
Attend a Cardinal-Cubs game at Wrigley
See the Rolling Stones at a small venue
See Jackson Browne anywhere

From: Shelly Drymon <>
To: Steve Weiss <>
Sent: Tuesday, December 4, 2012 6:55 AM
Subject: Re: Bucket List

Wow that’s quite a list!
I have checked the ones I would love to do as well! I am thinking we need to get busy! LOL

-=-==–=-=

Shelly checked 11 of my 24 items. We have done 3 of them, and will do a fourth on July 9th when we see The Avett Brothers at Red Rocks. That will be on another roadtrip. The 12th item on our list is happening a lot.

But she was right in her last comment: we need to get busy. (BTW, I have been able to successfully cross off the “excised items”…which causes me to smile and smile again.)