November is a cold month. At least where I live. It’s snowy with freezing rain and lots of wind. It’s not the time of year I’d typically think of building anything outside. Usually. But this year has been different. We’ve had decent weather; no snow, no wind, and a generous amount of sunshine. And that got me to thinking.
 
I’ve been wanting to add on to my shed for quite a while now and since I had some free time, and the weather was cooperating, I finally decided to do. At first, I thought maybe I’d just get the foundation poured and wait until Spring to finish the project. But that’s just not me. Once I start something, I’m sort of obsessed with getting it done. Besides, the sun was still shining! So, I kept working. Figured I’d get as far as I could before the snow started flying. Built the walls, the rafters, put a roof on it, added the siding and trim, installed a door, and even painted the whole thing. Later today, I’ll be pouring the concrete step to finish it off.
 
I’m still sort of surprised I was able to get everything done; it’s now almost December. And still, no snow, no wind. But while the overall weather was great for this time of year, it is getting awfully close to winter. And that means shorter days, which translates to getting up earlier in order to have daylight. And even though temperatures have been in the fifties during the day, mornings are another story. For the first couple of hours each day, I thought I’d freeze. I had to work hard just to stay warm! But I guess I should have expected that. After all, it is late November, and November is a cold month. ~
 
 
Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. ​

So, I went to pick up my five-year-old grandson from Daycare last week. I’d like to say he was happy to see me but the truth is he’d rather Grandma pick him up. But she had the misfortune of having a dental visit. He did seem okay with me being there since Grandma was busy. As he put it, having me pick him up was better than just staying there all night. Nice to know I’m appreciated! But, I’ll take whatever I can get.
 
My diluted triumph was short lived, however. As soon as he got in, he started giving me the third degree. I probably should note that over the last few weeks I’ve been working, building things—fences, decks, pouring concrete, etc.—and my pickup was showing the signs. I’ve been carrying a lot of tools inside so there was a bit of sawdust, regular dust, and other clutter—in the seats and on the floor.
 
“Grandpa, you have no respect,” he began.
 
“Why?” (Never ask a five-year-old a question if you don’t want a long and extended answer).
 
“You have no respect for your truck,” he said. “You should respect your truck by keeping it clean. If you leave it dirty, it shows you have no respect at all.” He wasn’t done yet. “And if people see that you have no respect for your vehicle, they’ll have no respect for you. So, you really need to clean the inside, and probably wash it too.”
 
Okay then! I explained that I’d been busy working and hadn’t had a chance to clean the pickup. My excuses fell on deaf ears. When we arrived at the house, as he got out, he gave me quite a displeased look, pointing to the mess. “You know what you need to do,” was all he said.
 
As you can imagine, I did clean the truck—the next day. When he returned later in the week, I showed him my handiwork. I guess I thought he’d be excited or at least say good job or something. But no. What he did say was, “Now keep it that way!”
 
I can’t say he’s wrong or that I shouldn’t heed his advice. But I think in a few years, when the kid starts driving, I’m going to show him this blog post. ~
 
 
Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. ​

My wife and daughters have a yearly tradition—a day of baking for the upcoming holidays. They’ve been doing this for ten or twelve years, maybe longer. They call it Cookie Day but it’s not limited to just cookies. They make a lot of treats: chocolatey, caramely, gooey goodies.
 
At least this is what I’ve been told. I’m never home for Cookie Day so I’m not really sure what they do. For all I know they could go to the store and purchase the ready made delectable confections and then sit around and visit. All I know is when I get home there are platefuls of cookies, candy, and other sweets.
 
As you can imagine, I look forward to Cookie Day. (Not that I really need all the sweets but I’ve never let that stop me before). This year, Cookie Day is today. Yay!
 
But this year, there is an added bonus—I’ll be home! First time ever; home for Cookie Day. No waiting until they’re all done to get my sugar fix. And though I doubt they’ll want my help in the baking, I might be allowed to taste test a few things. That is, if they actually DO make this stuff themselves. Guess I’ll find out a little later! ~
 
 
Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. ​

For the last couple of months, I’ve been teaching my grandson to read. I’d promised him I’d teach him but was stalling until he was interested enough to pay attention. But when he grew tired of waiting and started trying to teach himself, I figured he was ready. So, we started the lessons.
 
It was a little slow going at first, introducing him to all the letters and sounds but he has a very good memory so things started falling into place. He was doing well and every few days I’d add another letter—or two.
 
After a month or so, we were progressing well. Or, so I thought. Then I overheard him tell his Grandma that “Grandpa is a good teacher; he’s just really slow.”
 
“What do you mean I’m slow?” I asked, pretending I was offended.
 
Unfazed, and with a roll of his eyes, he said, “We’ve had a LOT of lessons and I still can’t read.”
 
Somehow, he’d gotten the idea that I was supposed to just tell him all the rules and he’d instantly be able to read.
 
I tried explaining that it would take a while; that there were a lot of letters and a lot of rules.
 
“And it’s too hard for you to remember all of them at once?” he asked.
 
Sure, that’s it.
 
The child has since had a birthday and as he tells me at almost every lesson, he’s now five. The significance of that is, as he makes sure I know, I’ve been teaching him since he was four and in his mind, that’s a whole year. And still, he can’t read.
 
Except he can—a little. Of course, that’s not good enough. He wants to be able to read books and everything else. I’ve assured he’ll get there—eventually. Although, eventually would come much sooner if Grandpa wasn’t so slow! ~
 
 
Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. 
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