Morning Minute with the BROfessor

  I was playing on the playground at Greenbrier Elementary School with my friends.   They year was 1981.   I was 10 years old and in the 5th grade.    I had never gotten into any trouble at school for I knew the second I got in trouble at school; it would be double when I arrived at home.   We were playing around the basketball court just having a good time when a ball bounced just past me.   I reached down to pick it up, and turned around to give it back to whomever was playing with it.   I did not even get turned around good when my face was met with a flying fist of fury.   Apparently, this kid thought I was about to steal his ball instead of give it back.   My nose exploded, blood gushing everywhere.   The teacher rushed me in to see the nurse and another rushed the other MMA wanna-be into the principal's office.   It was not long sitting there; trying to hold my nose closed and stop the bleeding, that I heard several paddle licks and screaming coming from inside the principal&

  There is an old adage that states, "buy once, cry once." It is a term to describe the purchasing of an expensive item, of excellent quality. Implies that the owner will initially, have reservations or guilt for  buying  ... Yes expensive, but of great quality.   That is the concentration.   I have struggled for years, as most do, with discovering there is a huge difference between what I want and what I can afford.   What I want is the best.   I know I will never be satisfied with anything less.   I do buy the less expensive and sometimes it works out.   Most of the time I am swimming in a sea of regret, realizing patience and doing without, saving up for the best would be so worth it.   Yet, here I am again, on the edge of the cliff, wondering if I should jump or not.   Not really, but that is how it feels when you are faced with a decision.   Many items of purchased gear are end up posted by joyful owners throughout the course of each week flooding Social Media.  

  Mine!  Mine!  I guess the apple does not fall far from the tree.  My daughter grabbed at her doll and held onto it like it was the last one in the world, just like I used to hoard my Matchbox Cars when my little buddies would come over.  There is a time in our lives when all we are concerned with us me, my and mine.   Whatever affects me is all that matters.  When I am hungry, I want to be fed.  I could care less if you are hungry or not and what trouble you have to go through to get me my food.  All I know is I want food and I want it now.  My toys are my toys and you better keep your grubby hands off them.  There is no "you break it, you buy it" slogan around me.  You don't break it because you keep away from it and do not touch it.  It is mine and when I go over to your house you can be the same way with me. I do no care.  All I am concerned with is right now and my stuff. I am not sure at what age I started to realize how much my parents did for me each day.  The tr

  This past weekend at the Rendezvous in the Ozarks, we experienced all kinds of weather.   I arrived on Wednesday morning with just a little mist on me at times, but for the most part, it was perfect and I had the windows down the whole way.   That afternoon when Artemis arrived to begin setting up, the rain began.   It was a light rain that turned into Thunderstorms that evening.   It was not that bad and we weathered the storm like champs.                 In talking with Rick and Brad of Natural State Overland at the vendor check-in area, I asked them what the projected attendance was to be this year.   They stated with the registrations and all they looked to set a new record despite the rumors of cancelling the event due to rain.   "Why would we cancel the event due to weather?" I asked.   This is what we do.   This is our lifestyle.   We live outside where every single day there is weather.   They began to tell me that someone had called in the last few days wanting t

  I don't know about where you live and what you do, but this year for me it has been one heck of a busy year so far.  With COVID restrictions and all that comes with that, being a couple workers down from injuries, five guys doing the work of seven has made it where we are working our tails off every single day. But today is the day I have been waiting for.  Today is Tuesday and it is the last day of the work week for me.  I have taken off the rest of the week for a much needed getaway.  Rendezvous in the Ozarks starts on Thursday and I am heading to Byrds Adventure Center in Oark, AR in the morning.  I will be working at, and camped in, the Artemis Booth all week and weekend.  I will be meeting up with old friends that I don't get to see much of during the year, and hopefully meeting new ones that will come around to visit.  It'll be a great time that I have been looking forward to all year.  The weather is supposed to be a wash out with rains coming Wednesday but ending

  Some things are just not our thing.  I have a list of things that are not "my thing."  Whether it is music that does not fit my style or food that does not satisfy my taste buds or things that are a little off or set off my OCD for some reason, I add different things to last non-written list for this reason or that.  We spout off the common adage, "nothing against you..." before we give others our reasons for not liking this or that, and that makes it ok to give our opinions, but sometimes those opinions are skewed and have no merit.  On Social Media, the giant Facebook has sad, angry and laughing face emoji's you can torture posters and let them think about what you are thinking about their post.  Even the Worldwide Video goliath YouTube has included in their "reactions" a Thumbs Down emoji that makes it easy to show your disapproval without anyone knowing your identity. This world is so full of negativity.  It almost seems at times that people are

  Some days are harder than others.  Some days life comes at you like a freight train that cannot stop no matter what you pull out of your bag of tricks.  Other days are good, but they seem few and far between.  How I act or react to what is thrown my way will determine my attitude, it will make others develop an opinion about me whether good or bad, and it will affect my quality of life possibly for a long time. Up until the end of last school year my nine to five work place was amazing.  I really enjoyed coming to work.  It was time that I enjoyed and truly felt my calling.  It is also a place where I have developed lifetime friendships and really found more of a home than a workplace.  It is not stressful and comes with a lot of time off.  It is a division, where, when people get into it, they never leave. Fast forward to the end of last year.  We have become expendable.  When there is a shortage elsewhere, we are pulled from our assignment and forced to fill in spots in other place

  I am sitting out under the pavilion.  It is hot as the noon sun bears down upon everything in its path.  I have searched and found my spot that contains large amounts of shade.  I do not want to be in the path of the sun. It is definitely much cooler here.  My co-worker sits down next to me on the picnic table and pulls out his phone.  He sorts through a few apps and then starts a song, laying down his phone to solely concentrate on the surroundings.  Words and melody come forth from the Little River Band (and oldie but a goodie) that ring true with what we are feeling right here at this very moment. Well I've never been romantic And sometimes I don't care I know it may sound selfish But let me breathe the air Yeah, yeah If there's one thing in my life that's missing It's the time that I spend alone Sailing on the cool and bright clear water It's kind of a special feeling When out on the sea alone Staring at the full moon like a lover Time for a cool change Ti

       Start Me Up In my younger years, we moved around a lot.   My father was a Baptist preacher, and I am sure that we moved about every year or two throughout my elementary and secondary education.   One time I added up all the houses that I had lived in and I stopped at 27 before the age of High School where we finally settled down.   It seems I was constantly starting over.   Making new friends was not easy for me.   I was not an extrovert and really did not enjoy trying to fit in with different groups or cliques.   As soon as I befriended a group and became friends with several students, it was time to move again.   It was hard starting over for me.   Now that I am older, I realize it must have been hard for my parents as well.   Moving is a huge undertaking, then coming into a new church and worrying about your children must have been hard on them.   I know it was.   Last night was the first night of a talk show for one of my friends.   I had mentioned to her several m

  Kind of a Big Deal… I remember the first time I met a celebrity.  Bob Feller, a long time Major League Baseball Pitcher, showed up to an Arkansas Travelers Baseball game.  I stood in line to get a photo and his autograph.  I thought it was ok, but I was 10 and really had no idea who this old guy was.  I remember my dad saying, "Son, he's kind of a big deal."  Still, I had no idea what my dad meant by saying that.  Again, I was ten. Fast forward a few years and really do not have many "brushes with fame."  In small town Arkansas, we really do not get that many famous actors or television personalities coming through to stop and visit.  I mean, we have the local celebrities that do the news and local radio stations that you can call and talk to, or run into when they are doing a remote, but you just will not find Jennifer Anniston, Tom Sellek or Antonio Banderas running around the streets of small-town USA. Last year, COVID-19 hit and we did not get out mu

  It is funny when you assume something and it just does not quite turn out to be what you expected.   Then, I listen to my boss who says, "You know what happens when you assume?"   Yes sir, I know exactly what happens.   It is almost like being a weatherman.   We take an educated guess (depending upon how educated we are), and then we are welcomed to reality.   Sometimes it is an "I told you so moment" or it is one of those that leaves our mouths wide open wondering where our thought process went awry. Life throws us a curve sometimes.   Health wise we face issues that come up all of a sudden that we must deal with.   Each day, Emergency Rooms all across the world fill with unexpected illnesses and curveballs that take us by surprise.   How do we prepare for these issues?   What can we do to obtain some kind of sense that we will be ok with whatever comes our way.   Yes, we can blow it off with the abhorred "It is what it is" statement, acting as if i

  If everything is the same, there is no diversity, no excitement.   Our interest is short-lived.   Our minds move on to something else.   Children want the big box of colors.   In school, you were somebody, the most popular, if you brought out the box of 120.   That was amazing, very special.   Children with 12, 28 and 64 color boxes had never seen the likes of Pink Sherbet, Sunglow and Mango Tango.   Hands rushed forth begging to "borrow" the cool colors that they did not have to make their art projects that much more special and "cool."   In middle school we signed up for band.   Nobody wanted to play the same instrument.   We were all bound by likes, loves and parental guidance and affordability.   But that was good, for if everyone played the same instrument, the tones would be bland; the listener would not be wowed.   Monotone melodies would seldom be sought after.   Listeners would search elsewhere for entertainment. Yes, a solo is welcome every now and then