The first 8 items on my bucket list from 12/3/12 are still there. Untouched. Many not even thought about. Maybe I need to do something about that, at least for a few of them.
I also need to add one:
“Go up in a single engine plane with Dad and Wayne.” (Short version: I won a 2 hour flight at a silent auction fundraiser. That was back in late 2017. We haven’t been able to make Dad and Wayne’s schedules mesh.
I have never seen Wayne. We have exchanged several texts. We’ve chatted on the phone some. Wayne has offered to fly to Farmington where we’d pick up/drop off Tissell*. That would depend on whether Dad was coming over to stay with my sister, or if he was heading home to Doe Run. Dad would love flying across the state.
We’d take the longer, scenic, southern route with Dad in the plane. That trip would take a lot more than 2 hours. Wayne didn’t have to offer this.
I had heard that he was a fine guy the night that I stole the flight, valued at $800, for only $180 bucks. Without even laying eyes on Wayne I’m positive that he is a helluva guy. I expect Tissell* to feel the same way. Now I just need to get Wayne, me and the 92+ year old up in the air!!)

Back to my B.L.
I did get to the Rock-n-Roll HOF in 2013. But we were only there for a few hours. Not nearly long enough. I need to get back there. 2019 seems like it would be a good year to visit Cleveland….and Wooster.
This time I need to plan my trip so that I can knock off the next item on the list. And the one before too. I’m thinking I will be able to experience weightlessness on some of the 17 roller coasters at Cedar Point…tied for second most in the world.

The item “Take a road trip thru the lower 48” lacks precision. I think it would be very cool to take one roadtrip that did get you into all 48, but I’m not sure that is what I had in mind. I have taken a road trip or 3 since 12/3/12, and will be taking more. As for now, I’d like to cross off the remaining 18 that I haven’t been in since then. Visiting 30 so far is not all that shabby…

Of the last 12 B.L. items, I .can only cross off two of them, both music related: we’ve seen 3 shows at Red Rocks; and Jackson Browne 4 times.
-=-=-=
My 12/3/12 Bucket List has 24 items.
I have been able to cross off only 4. (and that includes a favorable interpretation of the roadtrip item…)
That is pretty pathetic.
And unless I win lotto, unexpectedly inherit a huge chunck of change or become friends with someone like Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson’s character in the movie) I most likely won’t cross off many of the other items on the list, although they aren’t really all that spendy.
That’s OK, because if I wrote the list today a bunch of earlier items wouldn’t make the list. They’d be replaced with things like this:
Take a road trip that includes: seeing old friends; visiting new venues; eating something delicious with old friends; making plans to see each other again.

Venues would have a separate list:
9:30 Club in D.C.
The Tower Theatre in Upper Darby
Stubbs in Austin
…just to name a few

So would artists:
Adele
War on Drugs
Don Henley
…and more. LOTS more.

Someday soon I need to finally take that spin thru the bargain bin b.l. book. I’ll leave it here beside my laptop for awhile and see what happens….

NOTE:
*Tissell is my dad’s abbreviated nickname.
Melvin’s full moniker: Melviney You-Tissell You-Bertel You-Tom-Tom Bud Fartner
There is story there.
That’s for another time.
Be.

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.)