Three Fingers Back

  Diane usually writes our annual Christmas/New Year missive, but this year I asked to write it. The result was something a little different than usual. The following is an adaptation and expansion of a portion of it. Some things I learned in 2022: When all the kids in the family have turned 40, dad doesn’t have to be the adult anymore. That can take some getting used to, but is greatly liberating when I can relax in it. Becoming a Master Gardener is really, really hard! It even took two years instead of one thanks to the pandemic, but she did it! Astonishing to me how much knowledge and skill Diane has in all things botanical. When you’re 72, a gym workout is very different than it was at 50 And I have the detached tendons to prove it. It seems with age the tendons become the limiting factor rather than the muscle. Bonus mom not only sounds better than stepmom, but better describes the relationship. I still remember when the kids gave Diane a Mother’s Day card th...

  You went back and sang it after the “sweet blog”, didn’t you? Not sure it’s true, but here goes. With apologies to Seinfeld, it’s kind of a blog about nothing. Maybe stuff I’ve learned in 72 plus years. At the same time, at the request of my oldest daughter, some of this will be about things I’d like my grandchildren to know. Not sure I’m up to that kind of responsibility, but I’ll give it a shot. Oh, the name. Three Fingers Back comes from the old adage that when I point a finger at you, I'm pointing three back at myself. Another version of that might be that we are most critical of others for things we are most guilty of ourselves. Here’s a little about me: I grew up in rural Montana and spent 25 years in the San Francisco Bay Area. My wife and I retired to Nine Mile Falls, Washington (near Spokane) nine years ago. Most of my Montana and Spokane friends seem to consider me pretty liberal. Most of my SF Bay friends would tell you I’m pretty conservative. No, I don’t thin...