Focused at Fifty

"Enjoying a beer flying the friendly skies!"  Airlines promote separation of the classes! When I fly, I know that the one thing I insist upon is an aisle seat. I used to want the window seat. No longer. You can have it. The pics you will take will come out crummy anyway. TRUST ME. I like the option of getting up for the bathroom without having to climb over people. And as I get older, my poo cycles are VERY important to this 48 year old man. I don't mind any seat really. Emergency seat, over the wing, front, back, its all good. Well may there is one exception I am experiencing right now. I am in the last row of the plane, with the bathrooms right behind me! i am hearing every high powered vacuumed swoosh of the toilet flushing. Luckily no smells yet 3 hrs into this 6 hour flight. I am also hearing the gossiping and chatter of the flight attendants. I love it. Nothing really that bad. The one gal says to the male flight attendant, can you please go to 15E, I ...

Don't aspire to be published, aspire to be read. Bob Hostetler, author  http://www.bobhostetler.com/

(Photo by Anata  Nsg from Pexels.com) I was going through mounds of paperwork several weeks ago and happened upon a folded-up copy of an article from years ago which had been given to me by a close family friend, Marianna. I have wrote about her before, she was one of my Dad's closest friends and went by the nickname Tia. Tia was in the education field, a writer, artist and truly a romantic at heart. She was constantly spouting off euphemisms about living life to the fullest or how love trumps all. She was wonderful to have around and she remained close to my family until her passing.  The article (with no byline) originally came from a Cosmo magazine from 1993 but I modified some of it so that it's pretty fun for anyone. Don't worry dudes, you won't melt just by reading an old Cosmo list! LOL. I do not claim the list as my own and as I stated prior, have only modified it so it may appeal to both sexes or is more in tune with present times. However, a cou...

"Adam, Sheryl and I around the dinner table." This is one of my favorite videos off of Youtube.com. It's been reposted many times and is originally a commercial from the large food company Masterfoods Australia. It is featured with the company slogan and title, "Make Dinnertime Matter." An interviewer asks parents who they would like to have dinner with. The parents rattle off hilarious answers such as Justine Beiber, Kim Kardashian and some specific Australian celebrities like Kylie Minogue. One woman thoughtfully states Nelson Mandela. The interview then turns the table on the parents and asks their kids the same question. OMG, this gets my heart strings every time I watch it. I won't say anymore until you watch it via the Youtube link. This is a brilliant commercial and marketing at its best. Who knows how much was staged but for purposes of pure emotion, let's suspend our skepticism. The message is crystal clear . "Who would you most ...

"Image from  Magplanet.com " Nothing holds you back more than you're own insecurities. I wish I could claim that quote but I cannot. I tried to research it online but it seems like everyone has said it. It has been claimed by several famous and not so famous people. I will be happy though to pass it along... I am usually tough as nails. I can have the confidence of a lion king. But I have my insecurities too. It hits you at the most inopportune times. I am fine speaking in a public setting and conquer those butterflies with ease. I get none when striding into a crowded bar or party. I am usually the first in my group if they need me to be. I ask questions with no fear. But sometimes, when you least expect it, that monster of insecurity rises up and takes over. Two times in recent memory come to mind in which it has happened occurred ironically at the same place, the gym. Let me recount them to you in hopes of you realizing that you are not alone. T...



NOPE.  Back in the 70s, I remember my Mom "hard-boiling" eggs on the stove top. I have flashes of memory where she scolding me from getting near the stove. "Now don't touch the stove Marc!" Being the plucky child that I was, of course I touched the stove. It only took one time for me to touch that burner and I never did again. I had burn marks on my palm in a circular pattern from the top burner coil. Mom would place eggs in the saucepan, bring the water to a rolling boil, turn it off and let it sit for 12-15 minutes depending on the size of the egg. Simple as that. She'd then make her famous egg salad and we'd eventually have toasted egg salad sandwiches for lunch. YUM! Very good memories. Hard boiling eggs, along with scrambling them and frying them were probably the first things I learned to cook from my folks. That and heating up soup or cooking pasta! I wasn't the most adventurous cook in my youth. The pain in the butt part about m...