TejanoJuanSays

Build Me Up Buttercup I took our new puppy, Butter Cup, to the vet this morning. My wife found something crawling in her poop. Not good for the pup, we have only had her for a couple of weeks. A Christmas gift for my wife and our dog, Bentley. He now has a friend to play games like chase you over there, pull this toy, and let’s find paper to shred.  Buttercup and arrived a few minutes before the clinic opened, like a few others did. It was a cold morning so we waited in heated car. Buttercup did her usual thing, ok, one of her usual things, she cries when she is cold. I made sure to have my hand and arm for her to lean. After a couple of songs on the 80s station, she likes Men at Work, the clinic was not open. I made sure to wrap Buttercup in a warm blanket, like a football. We walked into the clinic and I signed in for us. Buttercup is new to the clinic so there was some other information to fill out. Buttercup helped me fill in all of the blanks on the paperwork, a...

We see funerals on the roads we drive on every so often. A funeral is the observances held for a dead person usually before burial or cremation. The procession, a long line of cars and truck, including the hears e and limousines, are part of the funeral.   I was taught to stop my vehicle and turn off the radio when a precession comes my way. Yesterday, I was part of a funeral, I was a pallbearer. I had not been a pallbearer for a while. This was different view of the funeral. I saw the friends pay their last respects. Then came the family, saying goodbye one last time before the casket was closed. The funeral director said. “take as much time as you need.” The family wept together and held each other as they exited the building to their vehicles. Then the directors took the drape off the casket and put it inside, they closed the casket and then tightened a bolt that sealed the casket. Under their direction, we lifted the casket, walked it to the hearse and slid it inside. ...

December 23 rd . Went to the mall for Christmas shopping today. It is two days to Christmas, so not last minute, I’d like to think. After spending 10 minutes on the expressway, the traffic slowed to a crawl nearing the cxit. This took about 15 minutes. Then to find parking another 15 minutes. Finally, an open space in all the traffic. Did not matter where I was parking, I knew I was going to walk around the mall store by store. Now to get to the stores. My phone counts steps. So far at 1500. Made a stop at Home Depot. Need to mow the lawn after shopping, depending on energy level. First stop Macy’s, first floor found perfume for wife. Nothing for daughter. Second floor nothing interesting. Third floor men’s shop. Cologne, wife will get that for me, hopefully the one that comes with the free watch. Leaving Macy’s at 2300 steps. Walking through the mall, people all over looking for gifts like I am. One lady was wearing an ugly Christmas sweater, did not know if I missed the cont...

I have given countless presentations and talks in my life. I have worked as a substance abuse counselor at methadone clinic and I also worked in a prison with substance abusing offenders. I also spent some time developing my routine as a stand-up comedian. In the last 5 years as a professor, I have prepared for class, local, state and national presentations. I still get nervous and I have learned to use that energy to my advantage. The most difficult presentation that I have done was a eulogy about six months ago. It was for my best friend, David. It was not a presentation that I had prepared for like all other presentations in my life. I remember the day that his brother Michael tried to find me. He called any and every number. He found my work number and I had just missed him. I sat at my home computer and decided to check Facebook. There was a direct message from Michael’s daughter, Angela. The message said to call her father Michael because David had died. At the time, Ange...