Sunday, January 25, 2026 – Day 530

Sunday, January 25, 2026

Good morning, everyone.

Whatever Happened to Phil? So I haven’t seen or spoken to Phil since I left Portland in 1980.

Ever since Facebook became a thing, I’ve tried off and on to track him down. I searched his name, poked around for siblings, and narrowed my focus to the Pacific Northwest. For a long time, nothing turned up. Then one day, in 2024 I stumbled across his mom’s obituary, and suddenly I had just enough information to start sleuthing with renewed enthusiasm.

That trail eventually led me somewhere unexpected: a school board website in Houghton, Michigan, up in the UP. There was Phil—his photo staring back at me. The likeness was unmistakable… except he looked like he was still in his early 30s. His bio said he was first elected to the board in 1996. So why change the photo after 30 years in office?

I grabbed his email from the district site and reached out, half-expecting an enthusiastic “Holy cow, where have you been?” reply. What I got instead was short and understated:
“You found him. Where are you these days?” That was it.

It felt a little flat, so I didn’t push it. Around that same time, ALS entered my life, and my energy—both physical and emotional—was suddenly spoken for. I tried again a couple of months ago and shared a bit more about where life has taken me, but I haven’t heard back. At this point, I’m not expecting much. And honestly, I don’t have the reserves to chase the past too hard. Some doors open easily. Others don’t. You learn to live with both.

January Birthday Bash 🎂 Yesterday was much more lively. We hosted our annual January birthday celebration—one of those gatherings that reminds you how lucky you are to have people willing to brave winter for cakes. We had three of them courtesy of Maria S.

We celebrated Cindy (13), her nephew Geoff (15), my sister Maria (11), and Nikki (28). Nikki was unfortunately snowed out—the forecast was calling for totals that were going to shut down the capital until midweek. We missed you, kiddo 😟.

Maria and her husband made the trek down from Minocqua, escaping temperatures that were sitting at minus 29°F as I type this. That alone earns them medals. Geoff and Kristen came in from Chicago, Alex and Nicole from Highwood, and Barb and Mark rounded out the group.

It was warm, loud, and full of laughter—the exact opposite of the weather outside. I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking.

Meanwhile, I just took a bathroom break and woke up the peaceful and slumbering household when I hit the floor with a loud thud in the downstairs bathroom. There I was with my underwear at my knees jammed in the powder room with very little wiggle room. It seems that pulling clothing up or down is my new challenge and I’m not performing it well. With Cindy’s help we got me on to my knees and worked my way into a standing position, underwear back up and then me into the wheelchair.

I’m okay, nothing sprained or broken. Whew! I keep escaping any trauma on these falls. I really don’t like this Russian roulette that I’ve been playing. More modifications needed.

Have a great Sunday wherever you are in this world.

Love you guys. ❤️