I am CuTRis

For the entire summer, my family has been dealing with my dad's age and Parkinson's related decline. After a fall in June he ended up in the hospital, and then in Transitional Care, before we then had to find a place for him to get the care he needed that was now too much for my elderly mother to provide. We did find a place that seemed good and they said they would only charge for what he needed. They had good reviews. This place was expensive and didn't provide all the services they charged for. Pricing was "a la carte" which really meant they charged for everything. There were many caring staff, but the Health and Wellness Director, Michelle Allen used bullying when we had concerns. She routinely threatened to raise the price when we had questions, and she blamed inappropriate treatment on dad's dementia. Perhaps she is on commission, but her focus was on extracting as much money from our family as possible. When I asked about hospice care, she insisted d...

After the bike ride, I opened a beer I made 12 years ago. It was very refreshing!

It is during those quiet moments of being alone, when I can think most clearly. I can analyze the world, the universe, my self. I can hear sounds inside of my body. It's when I reflect on how all things change or die. It's when I get my best ideas and when I replay my blunders and realize my success. Aging isn't fun, but experience brings understanding. The world is often too noisy for reflection. So I unplug and listen to my heartbeat. Knowing this too can't last forever. I think about how to make this day count. -KJC

It's pretty cool that my 10 year old son likes to watch the same cartoons that I did. But, there is a definite difference in the commercials. I seem to remember a lot of cereal commercials with prizes inside when I was growing up. Now, the commercials are about prescription drugs to prolong your life with less pain. Also popular are insurance commercials. I guess that probably means there are more people my age watching Looney Tunes these days, than there are my son's age...

This was a beer I made in December of 2004. I drank it tonight and it was excellent. But don't think a pasteurized beer will last over 15 years.

11/23/2002 12/08/2002

Oops! Ruined the label when rinsing the bottle! This beer, "Captain Picard's Lager" (made with Earl Grey Tea) was excellent after only 14 years in the bottle!

While finishing the recording of a song I wrote in 2014; called, "Away, Far Away," me and Dave enjoyed a beer we made in 2004. It was excellent and in no way worse for the 11+ years in the bottle. It was carbonated, had a head and tasted great. Of course, had it been pasteurized (which it wasn't), it probably would have spoiled.

Has anyone in the Twin Cities noticed that KSTP - Channel 5 in the Twin Cities has been effectively "ridding itself" of all of its news personalities who are growing older? As one of the people in the world who is growing older myself, I think I take offense to that.