I lied.......

 Was gonna take a day off from blogging (Victor, who cares?)  I know, I know..  So, I posted a 'rerun' of an old one.

Then, the song "Easy To Be Hard" kept running across my brain. Like, as in, life.

I recall a bit ago having to take a stress test on my heart.  CRAZY (but very good) nurses had me on a treadmill...  slow...  then a tad faster... then, a bit of incline (And another damn song crept in my head... "All we need is a drummer.. for people who only need a beat, yeah..  I'm gonna add a little guitar, and make it easy to move your feet."

Except... 'drummer', was my damn heart beating faster and faster... and 'guitar' (incline) made me huff, puff, and I wanted to blow the house (nurses) down.

Give it just a bit more (speed, incline) YOU CAN DO IT VICTOR!  It was as if I was back on the high school football field... had already run ten times up the infamous "hill".. and Coach was standing there a hollerin' "AGAIN..  BUT JUSTA BIT FASTER".... And, THAT, was decades ago... by now I've had children (OK, she did, but dadgummit I helped raise them).. STRESS (a couple three companies I worked for go bankrupt)...  and without saying "That don't matter to us Victor" FASTER, FASTER, FASTER...

They were doing EVERYTHING in their power (turn the dial s'more... faster...  press the button.. higher... higher..) to make my heart blow up just to see if it would one day blow up.  I know, what I thought too.  I was thinking, "I see dead people....  me."

To me, at times, THAT'S LIFE (right Frank?)

It's easy to be hard.  Pardon my 'impiete' (That's French for 'profanity') Life can be, is sometimes, shitty, crappy, yuck.. the KC parade... gas went up another dime... Social Security check ain't gettin' here until Tuesday at midnight, thus, of course, I'm about out of coffee (and filters).. I need a haircut... gas gauge is on E..  that's the last roll of TP.. ) STOP RIGHT THERE!

OK, maybe, probably dramatic.  Life can, does (occasionally) make one wanna hop in bed, pull the blanket over the head.. and say, think "please leave me the hell alone until... oh... 2026 or so."

Bottomline..  they, the nurses, the stress test, the treadmill, the incline, and all that crap in real life (outta coffee, needing haircut, SS Check not for awhile.. gas on E)... damnit, another song!  "There coming to take me away ha ha, they're coming to take me away ho ho, ha ha, hee hee, to the funny farm where life is beautiful all the time........."

And then................ PLEASE, not another song!

THIS MAGIC MOMENT.  (VICTOR?  A damn love song?  "While your lips are close to mine?")

Kinda, but,... not like that.

Smiles.  I saw (much needed) smiles.  You know 'em.. I know 'em.. We all (hopefully) have those in our lives who SURELY go thru the same damn things we go thru in life..  BUT.. they got that smile to give. 

Always.  An easy smile.  What better?

When life is A Ball Of Confusion (VICTOR, I give up).. those with that easy, ever-present smile, happen by our lives.

OK, time to run.  Ahm, well, I don't run any more.  So, time to go. (It's always time to 'go' when you are an old man.)  Lemme try again.......

I'm leaving (Not, not a jet plane).. I'm leaving for the gym.  (VICTOR? A little cardio, treadmill?)

Not no, HELL to the NO.  I'm gonna jump in the jacuzzi.  There, I will find similar plus size (eh, it is what it is) folks just exiting their water aerobic, arthritis class... 

I dunno how, why they do it.. but, they have THE BEST, easy smiles.  I'm hoping it rubs off.

(And no, I won't see an itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow polkadot bikini)......

Just, BIG, beautiful easy smiles.

Easy smiles are better'n mercurochrome, Wellbutrin, xanax, Miller Lite, no empty squares on the NY Times crossword puzzle, Wordle in 2, Ovaltine... much.

Take it easy..  and watch for them smiles.. I sure planta.  Feed me (smiles) Seymour.

Love, Victurd