Ale for the Soul

Yesterday was my 47th birthday!  How did I get this old?  Honestly, I figured yours truly would have passed on by now, but maybe Abba Father has something in store for me.  The day came and went without incident; in fact, there were a couple of times I forgot it was my birthday.  Ha!  All of us siblings went out to lunch at The Oasis near the Austin/Del Valle area.  Afterward, my brother and I found a coffee shop and proceeded to order two mochas while the ladies shopped.  The rest of the afternoon was spent at our brother's house watching the first half of the Dallas Cowboy's football game.  Yuck!  I found a quiet corner of the house to watch TV on my phone.  To my relief, the 1968 World Series between the Cardinals and Tigers was on one of the channels.  The rest of the evening was spent smoking two cigars in order to celebrate another milestone.  Now I'm waiting at the hotel for my mother and step-father to pick me up. ...

As I stare down the end of another year, I am surprised at how much life can get crammed into such a short space.  Since Thanksgiving, I have been working with a friend who is employed by Cowtown Covers.  He hired me as his helper on a temporary basis.  It's general day labor type stuff, but I was glad he thought of me to ask.  Certainly I can use the money for living expenses till I can find something more permanent.  When he called me, the only two criteria for working these types of projects was an extra set of hands and the ability to follow instructions.  Knowing there's nothing in life that simple, I couldn't help but chuckle; however, I agreed to check it out nonetheless.  After assembling a few patio covers, I made the determination this type of work wasn't for me.  My friend was very gracious and wasn't offended.  What I really enjoyed about the time spent in this endeavor was getting to know my co-worker.  Now it's back to the ...

Many blessings on each of you who visit and read these posts.  I am honored!  As I grow older, the years seem to pass by ever faster.  The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are upon us once again.  This year was the first time since 2011 that I haven't spent the holiday with family, or at least the one related by blood.  Thankfully one of the A.A. groups I frequent was hosting a big shindig, and I joyfully attended with this other "family" of sorts.  There was more food than any of us knew what to do with, and, surprisingly, we had a fairly good turnout considering the Covid mess is still ongoing.  Of course there were a few faces I recognized, as well as quite a few whom I didn't.  Never one to pass on an opportunity to meet someone new, I quickly made the rounds introducing myself.  The fellowship was sweet as we caught up with what has been going on in each of our lives.  Not only on Thanksgiving but also throughout the year, I cons...

This is a crazy world we live in.  A lot has happened the previous few weeks, and I have a feeling this is only the beginning.  I was very pleased to see the high turnout for the Presidential Election.  Without suggesting which candidate would be best suited for office, I implore people to exercise their civic duty in determining who leads this nation.  Forgive the course phrase but "Don't bitch if you don't vote!"  That's all there is to it.  In order to exercise my personal autonomy in the public arena of life, I must first undertake the prerequisite actions: voting, staying informed by listening to the news, engaging in local government, and so much more.  We shall see what the eventual conclusion is to the mess of legal challenges and time-consuming recounts.  In the meantime, I must focus on yours truly and my overall health and well-being.  A paltry effort has been made in looking for employment.  A little over one week ago, I did ...

 Almost two weeks have passed since giving up employment with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.  Even with the incident involving the vehicle and the failed vacation plans, I have been very much enjoying the time of healing and restoration.  Last week Thursday, a friend graciously agreed to take me to Dublin in order to finalize the sale of the truck for scrap.  Of course I paid for gas and food as a way to say thank you for the accomodation.  In the time since losing vehicle independence, I have been utilizing public transportation once again.  (Bus use for days I have a lot of errands, and the bicycle when I only have one or two local places of questionable importance to go.)  Something I have lost sight of is how truly liberating it is to live simply.  Strip away all the material possessions, along with the initial wants and desires, that culture subtly tells us we must have, and the resulting peace and joy are overwhelming.  Keeping up with the Jone...

One week ago today, I found myself, once again, lying in bed wide awake well after midnight.  More frustrated and anxious than tired, the thought kept recurring that I can't keep doing this to myself.  Employment with Enterprise, while a blessing for this particular season of life, has turned extremely toxic and potentially causing irreperable harm to my mental and emotional health.  Bouts of insomnia and anxiety started out small but were ever-increasing, till finally I simply couldn't take it anymore.  Sometimes, I would physically get sick in the mornings knowing I had to report to work.  All this had to stop!  Cashing in on the last two "pesonal days", I submitted an immediate resignation via email to the team supervisor.  He and his superior called to cover the final details of separation with the company.  With the phone equipment subsequently boxed up and shipped back to the company, I can now breathe a huge sigh of relief.  Out of fai...

On Saturday the 10th, a sleepless night brought on a day off from work as I cashed in a personal day.  Not wanting to waste the day off, once I gained some much-needed sleep of course, I set my sights on Denton, Texas.  What exactly was in that cozy North Texas municipality that made me want to visit that day?  Who knows, but I figured the mystery of the unknown was worth the half-hour trek.  In the end, I only spent about two hours exploring the town, but it was a visit full of discovery and personal enrichment.  First on the list was a place to eat in order to level out my spiking blood-sugar.  Rounding the corner of the block after parking on a side street, I immediately spied J&J's Pizza.  Wanting more than the traditional pie, I ordered a pepperoni calzone.  The price was in line with what the dish should be, and the meal certainly didn't disappoint.  It was absolutely delicious!  (Memories of Nikki's Roma Pizza in Victoria, Tex...

 What will the future look like?  Unfortunately, I'm not a fortune-teller or mind-reader.  I'm also not one who will second-guess the here and now in order to try to manipulate the future of my choosing.  (At least not anymore.  Think about Jacob the "heel-grabber" who tried to bring about God's plan using human "wisdom".)  Almighty God is the Great "I AM", not the Great "I Was" or the Great "I Will Be".  In His Heavenly Kingdom, it is always the eternal present and my life is viewed on that scale.  Father God knows what will become of my life, hopefully seen obediently in the midst of His perfect and loving design.  To get there, I must live in relationship and fellowship with my Lord and in community with other believers.  I also believe this is born out of a place of health and well-being, which means I must deal with the issues that have been ignored for so long.  (Trying to perfom His Will out of my own strength.)  All ...

In addition to celebrating fourteen years of sobriety away from alcohol, I had another cause for joy in the expiration of the legal obligation at midnight on the 18th of August.  After four years of a forced vacation and the subsequent ten years of supervision, I am no longer bound by the dictates of the State of Texas.  This doesn't mean I no longer have a black mark on my record, but rather I am now able to nagivate life more freely without the involvement of the powers that be.  In the following week since having that burden lifted from my shoulders, I have been continuing to unencumber or divest myself of the pressure to maintain compliance with external forces.  Initially upon release from the puppetmaster, so to speak, I wanted to take a month vacation to celebrate such a joyous occasion.  In addition, I had absolutely determined and every intention to execute a move out of Fort Worth for a place of my choosing.  Neither of these have happened nor loo...

 August 18th is a special day as my brother and I share a birthday.  He turns the corner on 33 years of age while I am only now entering what I shall call the pre-teen years.  Of course I'm talking about two different types of birthdays.  For my brother, his birthday represents the chronological progression of time, while mine is still a measure of time but in regard to sobriety from alcohol.  When life changed for yours truly, I had no capacity to envision what may be in store for the future.  The first three and a half years were spent on a forced vacation, an environment that really didn't allow for seeking out an alcoholic beverage as I had greater concerns to contend with.  It wasn't until I moved to Fort Worth that I asked myself where I wanted to go with this sobriety stuff.  Figuring the sober life hadn't been too terribly bad, I figured it was worth taking and running with it.  Leaving the garbage heap of life behind me, I could now ...

About a month ago, my brother notified his wedding had been postponed once again due to the Corona Virus.  I'm sure this was a disappointment for him, his fiance, and everyone involved.  Yours truly could have been more sensitive and sympathetic about the issue.  Unfortunately, the only topic of concern on my mind was cancelling the tuxedo rental and gaining a refund.  I had roughly $270 invested in a wedding that may never happen.  Even though I'm now working full-time with great pay and benefits, I wasn't willing to throw away that much money.  Thankfully, I did receive a refund and have been using the money for basic necessities of life: gas for the truck, groceries, and various other expenditures.  If and when the wedding ever takes place, maybe I can get remeasured for the tuxedo and still participate in the festivities.  I was also able to cancel the vacation days previously scheduled for this event.  As soon as the Corona pandemic is o...

Typically hard times get worse before getting better, at least that is the case for me.  This could mean becoming more ill before fully recovering; time slowing down waiting for that first payday after experiencing prolonged unemployment; a project that never seems to go right until that breakthrough of success arrives.  Currently I have a bed bug infestation in the apartment.  Ugh!  They migrated from one apartment to another till they finally arrived at the last "house" on the block, so to speak.  The issue came to a head Sunday night/Monday morning when they were out in full force keeping me from a much-needed night's sleep.  As a result, I called in to work knowing I would be worthless to both myself and the company's customers if I tried to work productively.  I hated to burn a personal day, but I felt as if there wasn't much choice.  Later on that afternoon, the exterminator paid a visit to diagnose the situation.  Next Wednesday, he wi...

Throughout life, I have experienced various prolonged nuisances that have kept me slightly off kilter and agitated.  Whether these issues are designed to keep me both humble and grateful for God's many blessings, I still find the underlying culprit a pain in the backside.  Recently I have been dealing with bed bugs in the bedroom of the apartment.  My next-door neighbor and I believe they came from his neighbor in #4.  In the seeming migration from one residence to another, they have made their presence known and are beginning to make life rather unsettling.  As a kid, I would often hear, "Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite."  In my young mind, I simply believed this was a humorous phrase to say upon retiring for the evening as there were no such insects as a bed bug.  Now I have been enlightened, dispelling my once youthful ignorance.  Ridding myself of the mattress and boxspring, which were in need of replacement anyway, I began to stri...

Websites and blogs periodically undergo maintenance by the host company, as did mine, and I couldn't seem to find the correct tab to click in order to post a new journal.  This is largely due to my lack of computer knowledge in learning how to navigate unfamiliar territory.  Just when I seem to master an area, it changes.  Ha!  I was bummed out about not knowing how to add my thoughts and struggles to the forum.  As you can now see, I have finally discovered how to go about adding an entry to Ale For The Soul.  Quite a bit has occurred since we last fellowshipped.  First, I celebrated two three-month anniversaries: the first is the amount of time that has passed in working for Enterprise Rent-A-Car; the second is the swiftly dwindling amount of time remaining on the legal obligation with the State of Texas.  Of course, both events are great mile-markers, but I must admit the excitement is greater for the final release of the legal constraints on y...

The Corona Virus has everyone up in arms about getting too close to others, washing their hands as often as they think about it, and so much more.  Even though we should all implement good social skills and hygiene practices, I firmly believe this whole "pandemic" is overblown and causing a form of social neurosis that will scar the psychology of America and its populace for years to come.  Thankfully I have been shielded from a lot of this as I already work from home and have managed to dodge several company-wide furloughs.  Certainly this doesn't mean I am insensitive to the plight of my fellow-man; however, I did see proof of a long-standing belief I hold, and that is people are one paycheck away from seeing their house of cards collapse in on them.  This world and economic system is very fragile.  What we are currently experiencing is evident of that.  I often hear people say they are prepared for the future, but I don't see the proof in the pudding....

On Friday, March 20, 2020, I successfully graduated from the Enterprise training program.  Does this mean I know everything I need to in order to flourish with the company?  On a limited scale, the answer is "Yes!"  Albert Einstein once stated, "The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know."  Wow, what a jam-packed morsel of truth that statement is!  Even though I was given tools to use for a future with the company, I also recognize there is so much more that could have been taught in the five weeks I was in training.  I do feel adequately trained; however, the training material could have been greatly expanded to include basic information that would connect the dots in much of what we do as customer service representatives.  For my first week out of training, I felt the the phone calls were generally good overall.  There were a few potential difficult customers, but the safety net for such incidents is the Escalations Department....

On Monday, I will enter week number five of training with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.  Even though I'm still technically in training, I have been on the phones for the previous four-and-a-half days.  There is some sort of safety net in place during this time, but I am largely at the mercy of what I have been trained thus far.  For what remains to be learned, I must now do so on my own.  Thankfully, my new team supervisor has been helpful in reaching out to me a few times.  (Once out of training I will report to Team Sindwinder under the Superteam Dodge.  Very appropriate names considering who I work for.)  With each and every day that passes, I am becoming more confident with a good portion of what is required of me on a daily basis; however, I am also becoming increasingly aware of how much I don't know and have yet to learn.  Ugh!  Just when I think yours truly is getting a handle on the job, some aspect of navigating the software pops up that I...

After an almost three-month "vacation" from work, I am proud to announce yours truly is once again employed.  Getting fired from the last job was a blessing and had a great sense of timing about it.  Since it was the week before Thanksgiving, I simply decided to enjoy the holidays with family and friends.  Thankfully the savings account allowed me to do this.  Had I been barely scraping by, the outcome would have been much different.  By January 1st, I began to look for employment rather sporadically.  In not wanting another dead-end, low-paying job, I was dumbfounded as to where to look for work.  Other than my retail and shoe-selling experience, I wasn't really qualified to do anything else.  As ideas and opportunities presented themselves, I would place an application or submit a resume.  Finally, I stumbled across a work-from-home customer service position with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.  I don't have any call center experience, but I th...

Today was bittersweet: a somber, yet joyous occasion celebrating the life of John Baylor ("Bay") Haralson.  Sadness at the loss of a friend mixed with the sweet memories of fellowship.  At one o'clock this beautiful Saturday afternoon, I walked into the fellowship hall of Hope Works Church.  I knew the memorial service would be well-attended, and I was not disappointed.  There were many people whom I did not know, and quite a few I haven't seen in ages.  The common denominator was the personal connection we had with Bay.  With ample time to visit with familiar faces, as well as to introduce myself to those I was not yet acquainted, an open time of sharing stories began at 1:30 p.m.  I did not share my personal experience; however, my story was also everyone else's: the warm touch of a man who God used to minister in our lives.  The pastor eloquently spoke of death as merely a doorway in to eternity.  Our friend is no longer with us physically...

Four days in to the new year, and I can already tell 2020 will be better and different from the previous few years.  To start off the New Year, I participated in The First Day Hike at Cleburne State Park in Cleburne.  This activity is sponsored by The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and is well-worth taking part in.  In previous years, I would see this hike advertised in the TPWD magazine and usually tell myself I'll do this next year.  Well, the time to do it was now...no more procrastination.  Not knowing what to expect, I had no such expectations going in to the hike.  To my surprise, there was quite a turn-out of people.  The hike was short but sweet, and not very rigorous; however, I did slip and busted my "pride" due to wearing the wrong type of shoes.  Thank goodness I have a lot of additional padding on my backside.  Then, on Saturday, January 4th, I signed up for the Penintentiary Hollow Wild Walk at Lake Mineral State Par...

Happy New Year!  Last year was good to me in spite of a rocky journey in regard to employment.  As I grow older, which I did turning 46 years old on the 27th of December, I strive for stability and an even-tempered lifestyle.  Dramatic ups and downs no longer appeal to me anymore.  I am nearing a five-year anniversary living in the same apartment...the longest I've continuously lived in any one place.  Now, if only I can find that one job that will stick.  I had four jobs in 2019: I was fired from two of them, one I resigned, and who knows what happened with the other.  No need to reenact the cause behind why the jobs didn't work out; however, maybe I can find employment that will allow me to flourish as the person God created me to be.  2019 was a blessing for relationships.  One year ago, I met a new friend whom means the world to me.  As this friend as now moved away, I smile at the memory of her impact on my life.  People come a...