It's All Rough Draft until you die

By David J. Mackey

This story is a collection of Earl's journal writings, short essays and poetry about this old man's experiences. Earl's journal entries are woven together with story narratives to share in his own words from his perspectives. These reflections are loosely based on the author's life experiences. This book is a sharing of candid thoughts about segments of his life and his aging that were often stirred while sorting out his study and workshop full of reminders. His flashbacks to his past, some dating back to youth, his poems and essays have been shared willingly. Earl's candid musings may stir your own thoughts and memories and inspire you the reader to begin your own journals for those who follow you as time slides past. Earl shares his thoughts sincerely and candidly. Earl is living with his wife in their home in a natural environment on the north end of an island community in Puget Sound in Washington.

They moved into and remodeled their house to suit their comfort expectations of living into their late senior years. For the first few years all seemed perfect. Earl frequently mused in his thinking that he wished to die there when the time came. However, as time passed, the realities of living distant from basics like groceries, medical services, and even entertainment and educational services became an inconvenience. Driving in the dark during the winter rains began to limit their location satisfactions. Earl and Susan struggled with their resistance to moving for several years until needed medical issues brought their thinking forward in time. With sadness they decided that since they were in their seventies it would be prudent to move into Olympia, Washington their city of choice, nearer resources and services that they might need in the years ahead. This is a tiny peek into a life story about our friend Earl which has been often shaped by innocence, tears, extreme joys, awe, growth, tutoring, awkward stumbles and often, compassion.

Come walk with him and share these tiny segments of his grand adventure with him. The words come from deep places within, often poorly remembered, perhaps even wishfully remembered, but no less genuine. His words and photographs sing the story-song of his life, a cacophony of whippoorwill and loon songs, of tears caused and shared, of breezes gentle and less so, of voices heard or imagined, dreams wished for and dreams dreamed, and of course laughter. The list is endless.

The words that follow are his sharing of his thoughts, his questions and experiences that have all merged into Earl's psyche today. He shares them with no pretense or promises of insight. No apologies are offered here. You can pick and choose as you wish. Some are silly or overly simplified. Others may seem crude or inappropriate. Some may touch a place within you that stirs inspiration, or memories, or even angers of yours. Be with it. Taste it. Feel it. Whatever thoughts they may stir within you, the reader, they are for you to evaluate for yourself. Earl shares these thoughts with you to perhaps inspire your own journals and writings, and also to word-paint his own song for anyone ready to hear and to venture within. Living is indeed metaphor.

• Language: English
• Publisher: David J. Mackey
• Release date: Jun 16, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370383979

David J. Mackey

David John Mackey was born in Potsdam, NY, in the early 1940's,and raised beside the Racquette River in Saint Lawrence County. Those early years instilled reverence for nature and art that continues to this day. Cameras and pencils became tools of choice for his photography, art, and writing. David lived in the Adirondack region for most of his first forty-five years. He later moved to New England and then to the San Francisco area where his writing, photography, and outdoor adventures broadened. He is now living with his wife on the southern end of Puget Sound in Washington State. He continues his photography and writing from this Olympia, Washington home. David spent the first fifty years of his life in the northeastern United States. Now, he and his wife of twenty years, have lived in western Washington since 2005. Both are now retired, in their early eighties, happy and contented in their home in Olympia. David's career included architectural design, property management, retail ownership and management, graphic design, and professional photography. Enjoying his retirement, he now pursues avocational passions of writing, photography, art, and nature study. David has self-published several eBooks of his poetry and experience essays. His current writings are focused on his self-diagnosed experiences on the autism/Asperger's spectrum, life, and as always – more poetry. "It's all Rough Draft until you die" is about Earl, the protagonist, and his experiences of aging. Journal writings and narrative tell the story of the various physical and mental health aspects combined with the challenges of selling their home and downsizing into a smaller apartment in Olympia, Washington. Perhaps you will find inspiration to do your own journal writing as your life continues. This writer has published his third eBook entitled "Reflections, Do you see what you think you see?" about reflected light giving us visual experiences and also about our reflecting emotionally from image experiences. Reflections offers a mix of the science of light demonstrated in photographs, often mixed with the psychologies of our reactions. Reflections published July 1, 2017. David published his second eBook entitled "The Sixth Vortex" on March 29, 2016. This fictional story is about discovering a new energy vortex near Sedona, AZ. (A quick and entertaining read at 10,840 words.) David's first eBook is entitled "Ponder This" which is an invitation to...

Book preview

Prologue:

An old man’s thoughts reflecting back and forth in time.

This story is a collection of Earl’s journal writings, short essays and poetry about this old man’s experiences. Earl’s journal entries are woven together with story narratives to share in his own words from his perspectives. These reflections are loosely based on the author’s life experiences.

All is a sharing of candid thoughts about segments of his life and his aging that were often stirred while sorting out his study and workshop full of reminders. His flashbacks to his past, some dating back to youth, his poems and essays have been shared willingly. Earl’s candid musings may stir your own thoughts and memories and inspire you the reader to begin your own journals for those who follow you as time slides past. Earl shares his thoughts sincerely and candidly.

Earl is living with his wife in their home in a natural environment on the north end of an island community in Puget Sound in Washington. They moved into and remodeled their house to suit their comfort expectations of living into their late senior years. For the first few years all seemed perfect. Earl frequently mused in his thinking that he wished to die there when the time came. They were active socially within the community and did their fair share of community management participation. A number of close friendships were developed with beach walks, wine and dinner parties, and sharing life experiences in general. However, as time passed, the realities of living distant from basics like groceries, medical services, and even entertainment and educational services became an inconvenience. Driving in the dark during the winter rains began to limit their location satisfactions. Earl and Susan struggled with their resistance to moving for several years until needed medical issues brought their thinking forward in time. With sadness they decided that since they were in their seventies it would be prudent to move into Olympia, Washington their city of choice, nearer resources and services that they might need in the years ahead.

As our story progresses, their home has been sold. Years of stuff – memories, family photos, his study and her study, and his workshop full of more stuff, all had to be left broom clean by a promised closing date in May, 2016, as the sales agreement required. This was no small task for a collector of books, music LPs, photography gear, keepsakes, fix-it parts and tools, hobby supplies and stuff for those future projects Earl was planning to work on.

This is a tiny peek into a life story about our friend Earl which has been often shaped by innocence, tears, extreme joys, awe, growth, tutoring, awkward stumbles and often, compassion. Come walk with him and share these tiny segments of his grand adventure with him. The words come from deep places within, often poorly remembered, perhaps even wishfully remembered, but no less genuine. His words and photographs sing the story-song of his life, a cacophony of whippoorwill and loon songs, of tears caused and shared, of breezes gentle and less so, of voices heard or imagined, dreams wished for and dreams dreamed, and of course laughter. The list is endless.

These words are Earl’s attempt to share thoughts and feelings beyond limiting words of descriptive narrative. Feel joy with him. Love with him. Cry with him. Indeed, journey with him through this collection of decades of his wondering about self and about his interactions in life, both real and imagined. Earl’s musings have been spawned by a restlessness to learn, to reach inward and outward, and to share thoughts and questions raised along the way. There are many more questions than answers herein.

The words that follow are his sharing of his thoughts, his questions and experiences that have all merged into Earl’s psyche today. He shares them with no pretense or promises of insight. No apologies are offered here. You can pick and choose as you wish. Some are silly or overly simplified. Others may seem crude or inappropriate. Some may touch a place within you that stirs inspiration, or memories, or even angers of yours. Be with it. Taste it. Feel it. Whatever thoughts they may stir within you, the reader, they are for you to evaluate for yourself. Earl shares these thoughts with you to perhaps inspire your own journals and writings, and also to word-paint his own song for anyone ready to hear and to venture within. Living is indeed metaphor.

The experience of gathering and sorting collected materials has been rich in itself for Earl. Imagine a constant stirring of memories from past decades of one’s life including journal entries both joyful and sad, letters, photographs of families, friends and adventures. All have been streaming through his mind during this exquisite writing-gathering process. Some memories have awakened in almost full bloom. Others are old dusty memories totally forgotten over the years until now.

The author has also taken license to include several pieces from previous books because you may not have read them and also because he considers them sufficiently insightful or heartfelt to be repeated.

Chapter 1 - Purging out the stuff

Doesn’t everyone need 3 cans of WD-40? How many lamp harps might he need in the future? A propane torch? Not likely in his apartment. Oil for noisy door hinges? Yes, of course. This story begins with a look behind the curtain into the mental and physical challenges faced by Earl with his task of clearing out his home and his workshop, and his anticipated changes in lifestyle as he and his wife Susan experience their aging and adjustment from their home on Harstine Island into their new smaller apartment-home in Olympia, WA. Spoiler alert – many of their friends will also be facing the same challenges as the clock of life ticks on.

String - too short to save (from Earl’s journal 2016)

It’s worse than I had imagined.

Boxes of shop jars full of spare parts, screws and nails.

Tiny jars with tiny tops full of tiny stuff.

Two jars full of bits of good string all too short to save.

String pieces from window blind pulls.

Used shoe laces.

Hemp cord scraps for future crafts.

Polish butchers twine for who knows what.

4" of nylon cord? WTF?

Much worse than he thought.

Really good peanut butter jars for long nails.

Yogurt containers for whatever.

Earl had long known that he had a container obsession.

As a child he remembered wanting those neat Band-aid boxes with hinged tops good for   keeping stuff.

Or the ultimate – a cigar box!

Or a glass jar with a screw top for bug collecting.

Or as a teen, 35mm film cans with screw tops.

Imagine having boxes of shop jars and little boxes?

Once, true bliss.

Now just baggage.

Now a burden.

*****

Clearing out the workshop

Earl, in his upper seventies, was clearing out his last workshop, or rather mostly. ‘Who knows what I will need on hand to fix something in