12/1/11

TJ Hopkins is 29 today. The days go slow, but the years fly by so fast. I could not be more proud. Thank you for your service son.
The Grateful Dead – Bertha 
The Grateful Dead – Terrapin Station 
Dropkick Murphys – The Warrior's Code
Billy Bragg and Wilco – California Stars
Billy Bragg & Wilco – Way Over Yonder In The Minor Key
Dave Matthews Band – All Along The Watchtower
Gothenburg Symphony Brass Band, Ouverture Solennelle "1812," 

   Wow, what a difference a day makes. I find myself crying with complete strangers. They must have extracted my testosterone during the treatments. I don't leave the house without 2 clean hankies, and a small purell.

   My father, George Robert "Skip" Hopkins died on this day in 1999, at the age of 66. I know that he is pretty happy with the way things are working out. He left a wonderful legacy that is manifest in the lives of his family, and the people he touched. When I was a little kid I knocked his front teeth out when he threw me a pitch from just a few feet. I had a red Bam Bam bat, and he threw a whiffle ball without holes. I ripped into the pitch like Joe Charboneau, and caught him square in the grill. He didn't even get mad. He just shook it off, and moved back a couple of steps. I thought he was really impervious to pain and indestructible. I became aware much later that his teeth were dentures, and that it didn't really hurt. In my head I knew that he was as tough as anyone I would ever meet(until TJ). Dad was a pretty decent Irish Tenor. Al Jolson – When The Red Red Robin Comes Bob Bob Bobin' Along He loved to sing and had good pitch, and range. He combined songs that had nothing to do with one another. I remember him combining Loudon Wainwright III – Dead Skunk, and Lou Reed – Walk On The Wild Side, go figure. There's a dead skunk in the middle of the road doo da doo da doo da do do do.

Beth and I had our first date at The Recovery Room, in Morristown NJ on this day in 1989, and my life has improved exponentially.

Our lives are unfolding into goodness.
TJH