TeamReedBlog.2020

Jeff and I grew up so differently it's a wonder we ever found our way to each other.  For example, music has been a constant in his life. His dad, who was in a professional jazz band in his youth, introduced Jeff, Jen and James to folk/rock bands like the Kingston Trio , The Ventures , The Limeliters and Duane Eddy . But then, cousin, Stephen, introduced Jeff to FM radio. He heard Ram Jam's "Black Betty" and was transfixed.  I think he found New Wave music on his own, and then a whole cornucopia of other genres came via his days as a radio DJ in college. Rap, apparently came during his Army days. Absent from the above? Country music and church music, except for Johnny Cash .  Because, well. Johnny Cash. Oh, sure, he knew some Baptist hymns from his Sunday School days where his parents luxuriated in some alone time by spending their three little ones to a local church. But he didn't get indoctrinated like I did with Pentecostal church three times a week and ever...

There was a moment when I glanced into my basement and wondered when I became a hoarder. Getting to the far end of the unfinished side - storage and laundry - was downright dangerous. It's better now, but the aftermath of our later-than-normal return from Maine and our annual New Year's Eve party was ugly. Not so our last couple of weeks. Maine was gorgeous after a big snowstorm on Christmas Eve eve. For Team Tryzbiak, in town from Orlando, the snow was magical. For Mainers, it wasn't quite enough to make for good sliding. But if you've never experienced real snow, it was more than enough to make for an honest-to-goodness white Christmas. Ali, Beau and Gavin made the most of it, as well as the mostly frozen lake. Uncle Peter, who years ago routinely used frozen China Lake to shorten his work commute, had been inspecting the ice and declared parts of it were safe for exploration. Ali and Beau checked it out before Gavin and his parents, Deb and Tim, arrived.  Beau and Al...