Practice, Practice, Practice. 08/30/24

Sometimes one of us plucks an idea out of thin air. Sometimes it’s something somebody said. Or an expression we overhear. Or it’s something we take for granted but shouldn't. And sometimes it comes right from the mouth of a loved one. Word for word. We’re talking about ideas and where they come from. In this case, my wife and I were out to dinner. Afterwards she pointed out to me that I shouldn't have said something I said. What else is new? But in this case, I defended myself, saying, “I was just being myself,” to which she replied, “Why don’t you try being someone else?”

The good part about writing a comic is that even if someone criticizes you, even when they’re right, there’s still a good comic that can come out of it. In this case I texted John as soon as I got home that night. And when we met the next morning it became a comic. We just had to change whatever the insult was. In this case the comic was about insulting someone’s new hairstyle. I shudder to think what my actual insulting comment was, but I’m sure my wife remembers.

Our other comic comes from being retired. The thought process is, “Now that I’m retired, I’ve got time to learn to do something I’ve always wanted to do but haven’t had the time to do it.” Like taking a cooking class in Italy. Or learning to play a new instrument. Or relearning to play an instrument you once knew how to play. Another variation on that theme is, “If we don’t do it now, when are we ever going to do it.” This includes taking action/adventure trips like exploring Bhutan (I got out of that one thanks to Covid), rafting down the Colorado, or riding a mountain bike down a damn mountain. Ain’t happenin’. Then there’s “we’ve got to do it now, while we still can.” If this means going on a safari, taking up pickleball, or taking the grandkids to Disney, I’m all for it. Well, maybe not Disney. But if it means climbing Everest, my answer to “we’ve got to do it while we still can,” becomes, “I can’t, so let’s not.”

In this comic Joanne reminds Al of all the things he’s taken up and abandoned. In real life I was given a beautiful guitar from a cousin who could no longer play it. I last played for real in college and that was at least 10 years ago. Okay, maybe 20. Screw it, that was 49 years ago, okay? Don’t rub it in. But it turns out, I forgot a lot. Playing an a-minor chord, no problem. A b-minor chord, problem. After a few futile attempts, it lies in its case, taunting me. I will get back to you, guitar, I promise. I’m just a little intimidated by that b-minor, and you really can’t sing Puff the Magic Dragon to your three-year old granddaughter without the damn b-minor. Thankfully she’s still too young to realize I stop strumming every time I get to the b-minor and then resume strumming when I’m back to a chord I can play. Sigh.

Maybe this winter I’ll finally learn to ski.

Have a great last weekend of summer, a terrific Labor Day, but for now excuse us, our class in Acapulco Cliff Diving starts in 15 minutes,

Andy and John