National Pecan Day

April 14, 2023

I once enjoyed a piece of pecan pie topped with chocolate ganache. It was absolutely delicious.

Breathing Better

April 13, 2023

PHOTO: my vibrating PEP device (left) and my favorite incentive spirometer

I am happy to announce that today, I have begun to finally feel physically normalized. I have been struggling in recent weeks with severe breathing issues and infections in both of my feet due to diabetic ulcers. I was hospitalized for both from March 25 to 28, 2023. I started to go downhill hard on April 9, 2023, when I fell at my mother's home. I fell again two days later at home, spraining my right ankle. I was superficially scraped from my falls.

Over the past several days, I have been able to do little more than sleep: most of the days and most of the nights. I have been barely eating. I was taking aspirin, asthma pills, and antibiotic capsules, plus I have been constantly inhaling an asthma medication (medicated mist) through a nebulizer, plus using an emergency asthma inhaler. I also have been constantly sniffing on supplemental oxygen, using an electric oxygen concentrator.

My breathing was so bad that I was unable to speak. Constant coughing made me dizzy.

Well, this morning, I happily awoke with a returned appetite and breathing that was noticeably better. I will continue this part of my extensive medical regimen, plus I can now restart my breathing exercises, using my favorite incentive spirometer and my vibrating PEP (positive expiratory pressure) device.

What's Doin' Today?

April 13, 2023

I do like peach cobbler, but I prefer it with chocolate ice cream, as I do with apple pie.

April 13, 2023

I play many games of Words With Friends on my phone. If you want to play, my user name is Wsantos3434.

What's Going On Today?

April 12, 2023

I am not a fan of American cheese, so I prefer my grilled cheese sandwiches made with brie, cheddar, provolone or Swiss.

April 12, 2023

While I don't really like the taste of licorice, I do like the tastes of Anisette and Sambuca.

April 12, 2023

I grew up as an only child. I was blessed with a stepsister in my early 20s.

Today Is ...

April 11, 2023

I still have my father's small case of eight-track tapes from the 1970s. I also have his tape player, but I don't think it works anymore. I will have to try it.

Mystery: My dad passed away in 1997, so I will never know exactly why he had a tape by Big Brother and the Holding Company (Janis Joplin). That seems so out of character for him, considering he liked to listen to James Last, Joni James, and Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass.

April 11, 2023

I definitely like cheese fondue. I haven't had it in many years.

April 11, 2023

My dad spent a short time aboard a U.S. Navy submarine in the late 1950s. He served 22 years in the Navy, retiring at the rank of Commander.

April 11, 2023

I had pet dogs when I was a kid in the 1960s and 1970s. I also had pet chameleons in the 1970s. I even had pet mice in the 1980s, when I was in my 20s. I don't have any pets now. Do you have a pet?

Marriage Proposal: 18 years

April 10, 2023

Today is the 18th anniversary of the day I proposed marriage to my wonderful wife Debbie in Austria at 11 a.m. Eastern European Time on April 10, 2005. I love her with all of my heart and always will.

A few minutes after I proposed, I took this photo of the exact spot where I popped the question.

On the last of my seven visits to Austria since the early 1980s, all of which I visited with my many Austrian cousins across Austria and many times skied in the snowy Austrian Alps, Debbie and I, with two of my Austrian cousins, Hans (R.I.P.) and his wife Rita, took a cable car to the top of Pfänder Mountain (altitude 1,064 meters/3,490 feet), overlooking the city of Bregenz in western Austria. Four countries can be seen from this location: Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and Liechtenstein, as well as Bodensee (Lake Constance) which can be seen in the distance in this photo. I had picked this spot to propose marriage years prior, just in case I ever had the courage to ask Debbie to marry me.

While on top of the mountain, my cousins walked away to look at the snowy scenery, and I found myself alone with Debbie. I pulled out a diamond ring that I had hidden in a small, empty cardboard box that once contained my asthma medication that was in a pocket of my blue ski jacket that I was wearing. Debbie's jacket was red. I then asked her to marry me. (Obviously) she said yes, but only after a seemingly endless moment of silence.

To celebrate, my cousins Hans and Rita took us to lunch at a restaurant in nearby Schwarzenberg, Austria. We then went back to their house on the side of a mountain in nearby Dornbirn, Austria, where the four of us drank champagne along with my cousin Markus and his mother Blanka, Hans' sister (R.I.P.).

That evening around midnight (6 p.m. Eastern Time in the United States), my new fiancée and I called our respective families in southeastern Florida to tell them the good news. Debbie and I spent the next two weeks celebrating across Austria, visiting with many of my Austrian cousins in Dornbirn, Lustenau, Salzburg, and in Grinzing, a winery village near Vienna. Ludwig Van Beethoven lived in many apartments in Grinzing. He was constantly evicted for non-payment of rent.

Debbie and I wed on February 4, 2006, and continue to live happily ever after.

By the way, the day before I proposed, Debbie and I, with two more of my Austrian cousins, Guntram and his wife Lisa, visited a church in a small village in western Austria. Outside of a church there was a small, but legendary stone monument. As per tradition, if a woman bends down and puts her knee within the stones, she will be blessed with a good husband. So, of course, I basically pleaded with Debbie to put her knee in the monument. At first, she didn't want to because it was raining. She ultimately did it. I wanted her to do it to give her a hint as to my imminent marriage proposal, but the next day atop snowy Pfänder Mountain, she was still surprised.

What's Going On Today?

April 10, 2023

I am an old writer who used to be a young writer. I have been encouraged by older writers and have encouraged younger writers. In fact, one newspaper reporter once told me that as her editor, I was also her mentor. I didn't realize it at the time, but it certainly made me feel good. I was just trying to help her to get better as a writer.

April 10, 2023

Unfortunately, I have lost touch with my stepsister.

April 10, 2023

I would like that.

April 10, 2023

At one time, I wanted to be a dairy farmer/cheesemaker in the mountains of western Austria.

Me As The Easter Bunny

April 9, 2023

In 1991, when I was between journalism jobs, I was working as an architectural assistant in Lindenhurst, Long Island, New York, thanks to my dear friend Mark. I also had another job at the same time: Easter Bunny at the Walt Whitman shopping mall in Huntington Station, Long Island, New York. Here, for your enjoyment, is the classic photo of myself dressed in that furry costume, scaring a child and making another one smile, albeit uncomfortably. If you look closely at the bunny's mouth, you can see part of my face.

What's Doin' Today?

April 9, 2023

I would like to take this opportunity to honor my great-uncles Rocky and Phil, both of which were prisoners of war in World War II. They both were captured by the Nazis TWICE.

April 9, 2023

When I was a reporter, editor, photographer, and page designer for the Newburgh Evening News in Newburgh, New York, in 1989 into 1990, I would sometimes play chess with this eccentric, gray-haired gentleman in his antique store in Washingtonville, New York, when I should have been scouting for stories and photos for the newspaper.

April 9, 2023

I thought about changing my name to:

1. Guntram Hans Mathies: first names of two of my favorite Austrian cousins, plus the maiden name of my paternal grandmother

2. Dhanteras Dasa: the name of the third day of the Hindu holiday Diwali (five-day-long "Festival of Lights"), plus "Dasa," which means "servant of God"

I have used the name Bhakta Bill Dasa, which is my representative name to show that I have a strong interest in my religion (Gaudiya Vaishnavism/Hare Krishna/Sanatana Dharma/Hindu) without actually becoming a monk, which would require myself to legally change my name, which I don't want to do.

April 9, 2023

I don't think that I have ever eaten Chinese almond cookies.

Meatloaf For Dinner

April 8, 2023

My wonderful wife made meatloaf, carrots, and baked potatoes for dinner today.

Today Is ...

April 8, 2023

Happy Birthday, Bob !!!

April 8, 2023 - Happy Birthday to my father-in-law Bob (R.I.P.). We miss you more with each passing day. Here I am with Bob and my mother-in-law Lorna (R.I.P.), whom we also miss immensely, at the wedding reception for my wife and me on February 4, 2006.

What's Going On Today?

April 7, 2023

My favorite beer is Mohrenbräu, yes, Mohrenbräu, brewed in Dornbirn, Austria, in the westernmost province of Vorarlberg, where many of my Austrian cousins live and are from. I first enjoyed this beer in the early 1980s on one of my seven trips to Austria to visit my many Austrian cousins and to go skiing in the Austrian Alps. I haven't tasted it in many years. The logo is in the comment section below.

April 7, 2023

I do like coffee cake, especially Entenmann’s, which I have eaten for decades, but haven't eaten in a while.

What's Doin' Today?

Today (April 6, 2023) is National Sorry Charlie Day. It is a day to think about the times we have been rejected. The day also gives us an opportunity to reflect on how we survived those rejections and to think about what we have learned from them. I think about my rejections every single day.

For decades, rejection and I have been in an intimate, tumultuous relationship. 

Personally, I have been rejected more than one thousand (1,000) times throughout my slightly more than sixty-two (62) years on Earth. When you put yourself out there to be considered for anything, rejections should definitely be expected. Actually, I proudly wear all of my rejections (from women and from potential employers) as shiny badges of honor.

Romance: I have been rejected by hundreds and hundreds of women, including four hundred fourteen (414) rejections by women in eighteen (18) months, yes months, with a video dating service in the mid-1990s, when I was in my mid-30s. While I have been able to go on several dates during almost all of my unmarried decades, I was truly without female companionship between age twenty (20) and age forty (40), and not by choice. I am proud to say that I was able to survive during those two long, lonely decades. It was one heck of an incredibly long "dry spell." 

I have experienced success romantically only once: with my wife. I was finally able to get married for the first and only time on February 4, 2006, which was twenty-two (22) days before my forty-fifth (45th) birthday. I dated my wife for five (5) years. Why so long? I was awaiting a rejection from her that never arrived. We recently celebrated our sixteenth (17th) wedding anniversary. November 10, 2023, is the twenty-third (23rd) anniversary of our first date.

Employment: I have been rejected hundreds of times by hundreds of potential employers. In fact, I used to save all of my rejection letters. I had stacks and stacks of them. I would often read them for inspiration during my many job searches. 

Throughout the years, I have mailed/emailed my résumé/CV hundreds of times to many companies all over the United States in search of jobs in my profession (journalism), even to companies where I knew I would never, ever have a chance of being hired. My dad had told me to always aim high. He told me to apply for jobs anywhere and everywhere because somebody somewhere may see some small, specific aspect in my résumé/CV that could possibly generate a job offer. 

While I have been on many job interviews at many amazing and diverse companies with almost all of them culminating in rejections, I have had a fair amount of professional success. I have had many interesting jobs at a diverse variety of companies. 

Conclusion: My point is that you can ultimately experience success beyond all of your rejections. Achieving success just takes longer for some of us. Continue your quest for success. 

If you have already achieved success, be diligent. Enjoy it while you got it because it could all be gone in the blink of an eye.

April 6, 2023

I love Carbonara. Warning: If it contains heavy cream, it is NOT authentically Italian. Again, real Italian Carbonara does NOT include heavy cream as an ingredient.

April 6, 2023

I somewhat like to eat caramel popcorn.

April 6, 2023

I prefer chimichangas and enchiladas.

Where's Our Pizza?

April 5, 2023

Nino's Restaurant in Delray Beach, Florida, surely has an odd way of delivering pizza to my wife and myself. I would rather not go on a scavenger hunt just get a little sustenance. At least they found the correct parking lot this time. I'm not sure why we still order from this restaurant. (By the way, this was the photo sent to me via text message by the delivery driver. It wasn't really much of a hint as to where our pizza was, but my wife eventually found it. The restaurant is only a few miles from our home.) NOTE: The food is good here, but the restaurant's delivery service (DoorDash) is not, at least with us.

Pizza, Caramel & Maps

April 5, 2023

I prefer New York-style and St. Louis-style pizzas.

April 5, 2023

I really don't like caramel.

April 5, 2023

I considered being a cartographer as a profession when I was fairly young.

April 5, 2023

It's the story of my life as a lifelong underdog: personal and professional.

Today Is ...

April 4, 2023

I was a "newshound" from 1982 to 2017. Do I still get a hug?

April 4, 2023

I particularly like Chicken Cordon Bleu.

What's Going On Today?

April 3, 2023

What time is it? It's time to ...

March 3, 2023

I do like chocolate mousse.

April 3, 2023

I had a couple of tweed jackets in the 1980s. I was just starting out as a journalist, so I thought that I needed to look like one.