It’s November and time to put the boats back in drydock.

The sailing season in the northern latitudes is short, but ferocious!

When you’re hanging on the rail with whitecaps flying by, you’re in HEAVEN!

It’s just you and your two engines-WIND & WATER.

And the word camaraderie best describes racing sailors.

IE: Mutual trust and friendship among people who spend a lot of time together.

I sailed on Pied Piper which was a Santa Cruz 70 (70 ft. long.) on the Chicago to Mackinac Race.

The race began in the midst of a storm and we had all the wind we could handle.

Such Fun! Great memories that last a lifetime!

That boat is now racing from San Pedro, California to Diamond Head, Hawaii in the TRANSPAC RACE which takes about 5 days and nights in the Pacific Ocean.

If you’re looking for excitement, look to yacht racing!

We all have them.

But, I believe we are always thinking of our current problems.

If I was to ask you for a list of your blessings, how big of a list would you have?

You may struggle to identify your blessings like we all do.

Look at the world around you.

There is a multitude of suffering everywhere.

To identify your blessings, please answer these questions:

Do you have your health?

If not, do you have access to medical care?

Do you have someone who loves you?

Do you have a companion?

Do you have at least one friend?

Do you have some source of income?

Do you have a safe place to live?

Do you have the freedom to make your own decisions?

Through your struggles, always remember your blessings!

If not today, when?

As first lady, she worked tirelessly on behalf of mental health reform and professionalized the role of the president’s spouse.

She died Sunday at the age of 96, according to The Carter Center.

“Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished,” her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, said.

“She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it.

As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me.”

Although Jimmy Carter was a nuclear submarine commander and President of the United States, his marriage “was the pinnacle of his life.”

May it be so with your marriage!

Yes, almost 4.5 years waking up every morning hoping to be profound.

I do love writing these blogs.

I always hope that each morning’s blog might be helpful to even one person.

My blogs are in “The One Minute Read” category.

I have just decided to include my email address at the bottom of each blog.

Please send me an idea for a future blog or a comment on an existing one.

I know some of you have been a reader all these years.

Thank you! Tom

tomervin50@gmail.com

Yes, Diana Nyad swam 100 miles from Cuba to Florida.

She did this without the use of a shark cage.

She accomplished this at age 60.

She failed to do the same thing at age 28.

Of course, her friends told her, “If you couldn’t do it at age 28, you can’t at age 60.”

She replied, “I’ve made up my mind. I will do it this time.”

AND SHE DID!

Because she swam through shark-infested waters, she must have had some fear.

Because she had failed the same feat at age 28, she must have had some doubts.

But, willpower is a potent force.

You have it, use it to do what you’ve always wanted to do.

If not today, when?

tomervin50@gmail.com

This blog is an honest attempt to alert you to a reality you must face.

I’m 82 years old now and I truly can’t believe it.

Where did it go?

All the decisions I made?

All the decisions I didn’t make?

All the businesses I began.

All the risks I took, some worked out, some didn’t.

All the people I met along the way.

Many of them are deceased.

All the fun and excitement.

Living 59 years with the love of my life!

All the children and grandchildren.

MY ADVICE:

Go for it!

Live your life going flat out!

Do the things you dreamed of doing!

If or when you fail, have no regrets that you tried.

Lift up those less fortunate.

I can’t believe I’m 82.

SO FAST!

The decisions we make dictate the future of our lives.

Some people have well-developed instincts they can count on.

But, some don’t.

So, when making a particularly big decision, how should you proceed?

If the decision is an emotional one, it may be best to ask the opinion of people you trust and who know you well.

I say this because all of us are swayed by our emotions and advice from a friend may be valuable.

If the decision has little or no emotional content, you can use data or advice from a knowledgeable source.

But don’t take forever “pondering.”

Make a decision and go for it!

If not today, when?

tomervin50@gmail.com

A Boeing 747 en route from New York JFK to Liege, Belgium, was forced to turn around on November 9 after a horse got loose in the cargo hold.

The cargo flight operated by charter airline Air Atlanta Icelandic had climbed to around 31,000 feet when the crew contacted Air Traffic Control in Boston to report that the horse had escaped from its stall.

“We don’t have a problem (…) flying-wise,” one of the pilots says in a video reconstruction by YouTube channel “You Can See ATC,” but “we cannot get the horse back secured.” (CNN)

Wanna be an airline pilot?

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Just swapping 30 minutes of sitting for 30 minutes of sleeping each day lowered overall body mass by nearly 1 pound.

And sliced about two-thirds of an inch from waistlines.

“The question is, if you have a restorative or recharging sleep, is that better than sitting on the couch eating and watching TV?

And I suspect the answer is yes, because so many people are deficient in sleep,” said Dr. Andrew Freeman, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness.

Obviously, regular, strenuous exercise is best, but the comparison between sleeping & sitting may be helpful.

We really looked forward to visiting our son, his wife and our grandchildren in Washington D.C.

The flight would only take 90 minutes and we’d be there!

We’d have to take a connecting flight through Newark.

My wife embraced all the details needed to set it up.

It was the first time we travelled with our tickets on her cell phone.

She did a great job of learning all the new details.

When we landed in Newark, we were shocked to notice no one our age except those in wheelchairs! The same for our Detroit Airport and Ronald Reagan in Washington!

It was quite sobering.

Our son met us at our ultimate destination which made it so convenient.

We had a wonderfull time with them.

And the various challenges to modern air travel were “lept over!”

I don’t think, however, that air travel is for the faint of heart!