Tossing Salt Presents:
A Day of Dougie
Snail Mail, Adorable, and Lottery Tickets
DougMaynard.com
Doug Maynard

Good morning, and how the hell are you? Wednesday morning. It’s hump day. Damn, if only I could get so lucky. But I’m on good behavior and trying to be the better person, so no twins in my immediate future, damn it! It’s way too early to be up, but I have a doctor’s appointment at 8:00 and couldn’t sleep. Now, it’s 5:45 a.m. I’ve already showered, taken my medication, and gotten ready. I’ll feed the Straybies before I leave, and I probably should eat some breakfast. But I’m not hungry, and can’t think of anything I want. Hate it when that happens. So, I’ll write for a few minutes, go brush my teeth, and most likely grab a banana on the way out the door. That sounds like a plan.

As for now, it’s time for a Day of Dougie. This is Day 4, and I’m on a roll. I’d rather be in bed, cuddling up to a twin, but that would be wrong. I’d rather be with Eric anyway. I still miss him, but right now, it wouldn’t work. I’ll always love that guy. Now, what was I saying? A Day of Dougie, right? That means three topics from the infamous Magic Bag.

So, I’m reaching into the bag with my hand. And the topics for today are Snail Mail, Adorable, and Lottery Tickets. And now that we know the topics of discussion, let’s try talking about them. So, with no prior knowledge, warning, or preparation, away we go. Let’s do this.

Snail Mail

Or as we used to call them, letters. Long before e-mails and text messages, we used to write several pages of thoughts and conversations, stick the pages in an envelope, put a stamp on it, and stick it in the mailbox. And believe me, as many can affirm, I was one of the worst. I loved to write letters. To my friend, Theresa. To my sister, Lynn. To my Grandma until she passed at age 102. To my boy Chris.And to so many others. If I had a free moment, I would scribble out a letter to someone. And most of them would write back. During the ’80s and early ’90s, I kept our mail lady hopping. Then technology took over, and the trips to the mailbox became fewer and fewer. I still have most of those old letters. I threw away some because things with Chris went very badly, but I have most of the others. The joys of being a borderline hoarder/packrat. I can’t remember the last time I actually sat down and wrote a letter. It’s been a while. If I ever get a new printer, I may do it again. It’d make a nice distraction and hobby.

Adorable

When it goes beyond sexy or cute, and just hits that perfect middle ground, that makes you feel warm and fuzzy all over, that’s adorable. Seeing Brent or Kenneth with their daughters? That’s adorable. A tiny kitten trying to act tough? That’s adorable. If it’s just too sweet and precious for words, only one word will fit… and that’s adorable. ‘Nuff said!

Lottery Tickets

I hated those damn things back when I worked the C-stores. All those old men at Nic’s, sitting in the booths for hours, and waiting until the very last second before the deadline to come up and slap a huge stack of entry forms for the Pick-3, Pick-4, and Powerball to be entered into the machine, often still filling the forms out as they approached the register. And there were always some mistakes on the form, so the machine wouldn’t take it. Without fail, every damn time. It was time-consuming, annoying, and they never won anything. And customers, real ones, would be waiting and getting frustrated. I loved that job, mostly, but I hated those damn lottery tickets and scratch-offs. When I worked at the ABC store, there was often talk of the store starting to sell lottery tickets as well as liquor, but thankfully, NC is a controlled state and the government regulates what we could and couldn’t sell. But I threatened many times that if we started selling lottery tickets, I would have to quit. I did enough of that at the c-stores and had served my time. Luckily, it never happened. They’re a pain in the ass. I mean, I wouldn’t mind winning a billion dollars on the Power Ball, but regarding being on the sales side of that counter, hell to the no. Never again.

And there you go. That wasn’t too bad. And now, off to the doctor I go. I have a few errands to run afterward, but I’ll be back later today with the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A, and possibly even more stuff. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the continued support. Stay well, and keep passing those open windows. I’ll see you in a bit. Love ya – mean it.

Ubuntu!