A GREEN WAY

            I was going to write about the farmers market near where I work ,but on my way I noticed something on my way there . The buzz of activity on the green the runs in front of the hospital where I work . .
            There are the couples going for their mourning walk , the people walking their dogs , the joggers and power walkers . As I walked down down the green way that mourning I saw other things that make this such a busy place .It came to mind that I often in the mourning when I get of work I walk it to wind down from a nights work .
         ONE . This walk way runs along a busy road that runs into a residential area .
        TWO. It leads into a real nice park with baseball diamonds , a play ground for little ones , a nature museum with nature trails , a large pond , a band stand with seating and plenty of picnic tables around the park . Oh yes can't forget about the tennis courts .I use to bring my daughter there when she was little girl often . She loved to feed the ducks and the walk around the pond ,even playing around near the train .

        THREE . As I mentioned earlier there's the farmers market across the street , this place is abuzz with activity all day long and two blocks away there is the county market that is open most of the week and all year long . There's the vegetable's , fresh baked cakes and pies ,plants and hand made quilts .
In fact when it first opened I found some Rhubarb there ,which I had not had in a long time . Oh yes , can not leave out the the jams ,jelly's and the fresh apple cider in season .
       FOUR . It runs in front of the hospital where it can provide a place of some respite for the staff and family members of patients . I think it adds to the look of the hospital .
      FIVE . There are a few places that have a mix of shopping and restaurants along the way . My favorite is  the Baskin Robbins and Dunkin doughnuts a short walk down the walk way near the hospital . Every so often I would stop by and get some doughnuts and hang out ,sitting at one of the many benches .
       There is plenty of activity along this green way . They , during the spring also have a festival of art in the park .That runs all along this walk way right up into the park it leads to . Oh yea I have failed to mention this walkways name . Sugar Creek Green Way which runs for twenty miles through Charlotte NC . To me this is one of Charlotte's treasures . I enjoy it so much .

ONE MORE THING TO TAKE UP MY TIME

              I started a new hobby , Photography . I went bought me a relatively expensive camera to start with . I am still trying to learn about all the different settings on it . Though right now with the shots I have taken have been done with the auto setting . As you can see I have got to remember to make sure the date stamp is of . It kind of gets in the way of the good shots .
              I kind of on a whim decided to start this hobby . I know I should have done some research first , but I had it  in my mind , that need to find something to do to get me out of the house . Mainly it is get me out from in front of this laptop , TV and off my butt . Yes I am guilty of at times of having a lazy side at times . I just can get stubborn as a mule and want just want to at times just lay around the house . The thought here is if I have something to get me out and in the fresh air . Don't ask me now if it is working , maybe ask that question in about a year .
                I sat and read through all the manual on the camera that I have . I am finding that there is a lot to learn about the settings on it . I also noticed all the photography I see on G+ people kind of stick to one style or subject . When I went around the few times I went out I just snapped pics of what ever caught my eye at the time .When down loaded what I did I saw that on the details on each pic there was a spot for the name of author . I am now using it where I wasn't before . I joined a few of the communities for photography and looking for a chance to join up with a photo walk in the future .
              At this time its kind of hard to get around to some locations , for I use public transportation .Yes , there still is a lot of stuff that could still do with those limitations . For the last twenty years that still has not slowed me done . I still manage get around . I well have start to carry my camera with me more often , never know when something will come up that will want to snap a pic or wish I could .
              Why am I writing a blog about this , well maybe some one out there may read this and give some suggestions and encouragement . I may find some people that is going though the same thing or have gone through it already . I may even hear about a photo walk in my area that I may be able to participate in . Well , right now this all I can think of saying right now .

LOST CHANCES THAT NEVER COME BACK

W

        Well the reason I show this picture of this train , is twenty -two years ago I used to take my daughter and sister to play on this train and in the park it is located in quite often . This was at a time when my only function and aim was to be dad . I never thought I would ever play this role before her birth . I was like most of us living for the moment . I did not really have any plans or even thought of mapping out a future . Family man was far from my thoughts , but that all changed the day she came into this would . When finally held her for the first time , there was this little life in my hands . Suddenly at that instant had this responsibility thrust upon me . There were no classes , manual , test or license to get , there was live in my hands requiring me to nurture her , feed her , clothe her , diaper duty to pull . A multitude of tasks requiring my attention .
            During the first few years of her little life I joyfully did my daddy duty . My weekends were planed around her . Going to parks , the beach so she could explore an show me sea shells she would find , carnivals and the like . Oh yes don't forget the happy meals you had to get when you passed by that place . It was well let up so that every smart kid could see it and start their chant " Micky D's " .There were the times when I use to lift weights at home . My little girl would embarrass me into lifting on days I did not feel up to it . Even better yet I would be working on the the car she would have to help me . Hand me tools I did not need , you would hear her say I'm helping daddy . She was daddy's girl .

             Then one day all that experience and what could have followed was taken from not just once by her mother but three times . the reason are neither or there . I wish not open old wounds , mainly mine. I feel lost a lot of experience and growing up . I mean not just by her but the growing up you do as both your child  and you get older . You learn from each other . You gain some wisdom from the experiences you have from the things the child puts you through . You can see this wisdom that is gained in other parents by the way they carry themselves . Lord , the conversations that I could not participate in because my experiences were rather limited .
               The reasons I reflect on this another fathers day is about to pass me by , I will hear a lot of people tell me happy fathers day . In my mind my lost chance to feel all the emotions that a parent has as their child grows up . The first crush , learning to ride bike , first date , proms and all the things that come up through the coarse of life . Oh yes the biggie The father ,daughter talk .
               All this was stolen from me by her mother by many different tactics . It kills me when see a mother using child as way to hurt the father . Don't mothers realize that they are not just hurting the father ,but they also stealing the chance of their child getting to help their dad to grow up with them .
               I know as your reading this that your thinking you could have fought harder for your rights . I say at what cost . By the fight you could end up doing more damage to the father child relationship . What purpose would there be to make the mother look bad and ending up looking bad just by the act .
               All I know that as I get older I think about the life that could have been . That is my emotions to deal with as I see others having these experiences in their life .I just help but think how much our lives could be different if It was allowed for me to be a part of it . We would know each other better and might have a closer relationship .  Shoot maybe she would of helped in keeping me from making some poor choices that have made in the past . All I can do from here is be the best person I can be and try to build a better life . This blog maybe the wrong place to express these thoughts ,but if it can help some young man in keeping from making some bad choices . It may make this worth expressing . Thank you for listening .

MY LEARNING CURVE

                    As you can tell I admittedly have not been very diligent in keeping up with my blog . I am very new at this tech stuff . In my wanting to dive in and learn as much I could about using a computer .Lets just say I like a little boy with a new toy to play with the sand box . I would have to check every thing out that I would see . I would open everything in my email , which have since learned this a no no . I would explore the Internet and would see something interesting and say let me download this and see what this is about , Much to my surprise along with the program I was looking at couple more programs piggy back their way in . As many of you all have already learned this not good . I ended up with so much that it put such a drag on my equipment that I had come to the point that I hated to to use my laptop .much of the stuff I would soon see , I would not use much or not at all . It created such a drag on my system ,began to wonder why I had it . It was not doing what I needed to do very fast . I finally got smart and rest it to the factory settings . Now it is performing like the day first got it .
                  The lesson I learned is only have the programs that you absolutely need and can use daily . Stick with what I know and only what I know . I have my computer for its production value and some of it entertainment content . I now know I need not over load it all this stuff that looks good or makes itself sound like it is something you can not live without . Guess what a lot of this stuff you can do without ,I got along without it before I got this computer . A heck of a way to learn a lesson . I have always learned things the hard way . I am just that hard headed .
                 Being fifty-six , I thought I new how to manage my time . Then came this expensive laptop and all I knew of time management or rather thought I new about it went out the window . Many days and nights went by without sleep or rest of any kind . I even found I was neglecting some of the other important stuff in my life . I would begin projects or come up with ideas I would never start , but would talk about them like I was really going to do them . In all honesty , most of them I had no idea where to start .I would do searches and most of the time I would find out I did not know what I was looking for . I found that you would have to have some knowledge about the subject to really pin point what I was looking for . Or rather I was wanting so much information about to broad of area . Thus spending countless hours in front of my screen . Often times I would find I would run out of time and have to walk away to do my other obligations .Like this blog I have started I would rush through just to get something posted . Instead of spending some time to work on it , to get a post that would really worth the time to post and also worth some one to take the out there day to read it .
                  Like I said my learning curve took me through the coarse of a year and still find I have much to learn and master . Also have misinformation I would have to unlearn . So I hope to have another post soon with some good content that would bring people back to my blog again . I am just another person out here just trying to find my place in this new world that he finds himself in .