Reality Me

Author: Doug McCaughan

  • Tears of a Parent aka Oh How I Cry

    My children may never know
    How many tears I shed for them
    Tears of joy for their successes
    Tears of sadness when they are down
    Tears of regret for my mistakes
    Tears of anguish at my shortcomings
    Tears of frustration for lack of time
    Tears of angst for their future
    Tears of confusion when they do not listen
    Tears of acknowledgment that they walk their own path
    Tears of befuddlement for making the simple hard
    Tears of acceptance for innocence lost
    Tears of pride for the compliments they receive
    Tears of satisfaction when they smile at their achievements
    Tears of ecstasy seeing them grow into independent adults

  • Weekend update

    A productive weekend was had. I slipped in some home improvement. The weather was beautiful. I really wanted to clean out the garage and repair the garage door but that wasn’t in the picture. Too much client work to be had. And I did get a lot of client work done but so much more remains. I wish I could have a few more days in this weekend. I am tired but need to go at it for a few more hours.

  • There’s a Doug none of you know.

    I think I miss being angry.

  • Is the fight right

    Time is fleeting
    In the metaphoric stream of life
    Do we fight the current
    Or go with the flow
    You can push upstream
    Or float down
    Which way do you go
    Depends upon your life goal
    Is it the source
    Which forces fight to deny You
    Or is it the delta
    You struggle to steer
    So focused on the destination
    We fail to see others in the stream
    Sharing the same dream
    Or are we all lemmings
    Walking a path because we are told
    At the beginning or perhaps end
    Of life’s stream is the goal
    The wise will take pause
    And stand immobile
    To be in the current
    Current in the moment
    And observe
    The shores
    The rocks
    The fish
    The trees
    The others
    Before we are too old.

  • Deep thoughts

    I could do with more life in my time.

  • Hot Yoga

    And then when you finally gain the courage to wear appropriate spandex attire for your yoga class, a co-worker shows up.

  • Why do we not see species other than humans drinking milk as adults?

  • Random questions that pop into my head

    Why don’t I own a ukelele?!

  • Adult children, multigenerational homes, and boundaries

    Adult son takes over garage…I can cope.

    Adult son takes over driveway…I can cope.

    Adult son takes over lower lot of yard and landscaping…I’m a little twerked but I can cope.

    Adult son takes over refrigerator and kitchen…we may have just crossed a line.

  • I’ve reached that point in my life…

    I’ve reached that point in my life when I have decided I want a 2.5 or 3 car garage…so that my adult child can live in an efficiency over said garage.

  • What do you want to be when you grow up?

    At no point in my childhood did I ever answer the question, "What do you want to do when you grow up?" with "Work three jobs to barely make ends meet." I also did not answer, “When I am 49-years old, I hope to be still trying to answer that question."

  • Found a way to fix all my problems

    Step 1: Locate a time machine
    Step 2: …

  • He rides again! sort of

    Went mountain biking yesterday at Baker Creek. Messing around on the pump track (you are supposed to be able to go around it completely without pedaling) and pushed too close to the edge going over into the brush. The bike decided this was a bad idea and it didn’t want to go into the brush so it stopped cold and flung me over the handlebars where I tried to stop the ground with my forehead (mostly helmet). As I lay on the slope on my back with my head down and feet elevated skyward, my first thoughts were, “Is the neck broken?” Twenty years ago, I would have sprung back onto the track with a prideful, “Meant to that!” This time I couldn’t help but feel the kudzu, poison ivy, and brambles enveloping me compassionately as if they were going to support me as they dragged me into the underworld. After answering the adults that I was okay, my son rode over and offered his assistance to me. I really have to teach that boy to say, “Sanka, are ya dead mon?” So that I can reply, “Ya mon, I’m dead.”

    Now, my son gets home and tells the story. “Dad was going around the track then all of a sudden he just disappeared. Everyone was laughing and finally asked, ‘Are you okay?’ and we barely hear Dad reply, ‘I’m good.’ So I ride over to him and he’s just laying there like a dead body.”

    This morning, Cathy and Evan are talking about how his scratches have improved and she says, “Dad somehow looks worse.” To which Evan replies, “Well, that’s what happens when you die.”

    Today, I am a little tender particularly in my shoulders. Perhaps half an inch shorter. And range of motion in my neck is reduced. To look 90 degrees to my left or right results in protest from my body.

    I am ready to ride again!

  • From the mouths of babes

    Me: "Happy birthday! What do you want to do on your special day?"
    Evan, 13 today: "I’m going to spend the day at the pool with two girls from West High School."
    Me: *Well, that escalated quickly.*

  • Ring ring

    Hello, this is a courtesy call to let you know that your new minimum monthly payment will be holy f*&king shit.