Random Happenings / Serendipitous Encounters

I am a firm believer that things happen in our lives for a reason. We may not see that reason at the time or even for a long time after but looking back and connecting the dots that led you to where you are will often shine a light on a seemingly random event from the past that guided your way. Your perspective about that event may also change over time. Something that was viewed as negative may now be viewed as positive over the long term, or vice versa. Nothing is positive or negative on its own, we assign meaning.

       There have been a lot of such encounters in my life. I’ll start with how I got into playing ice hockey. Right after graduating from college, I was at Rangers game at MSG and ran into a guy from my dorm. He mentioned that his men’s hockey team was looking for players and asked if I wanted to practice with the team over the summer and tryout for the team. This was triply random as I didn’t know he played hockey, going to the game was a last-minute thing, and running into him in MSG was a longshot at best. The short version of the rest of the story is that I learned to skate that summer and I made the team. Another twist in this one is that 3 guys I went to high school with and hadn’t seen since graduation, were also on the team.  

       This Blog would not exist if not for Covid and the shutdown. I had kept a journal for years and enjoyed writing in it but never thought about doing any serious writing – yes, I called a blog serious writing, go ahead and snicker if you want. Anyway, with many options off the table, I decided to give writing a try. For me it’s a creative outlet and I started – and continue – with that in mind. Yes, it’s satisfying to see a high number of readers for a particular post, and even more so to get more readers than Solomon the dog in my former town, but after over 6 years, it’s still just about the fun of writing and the freedom to write what I want.

       As Covid waned, I was looking for ways to give back to my community. A chance meeting at a CPR class at the local library led me to join the town’s Office of Emergency Management. It’s been about 4 years now and I am proud to say that I was promoted to Corporal along with 2 other members last year. We’ve had a few relatively minor disaster assistance operations since I joined, and I hope it stays that way. I’ve learned a lot from the senior officers, other members, and from state and county classes that help me to better serve the community when we are needed, and it feels good knowing our team is ready and capable of answering the call.

       Yet another serendipitous encounter led me to be part of the production team for “Bridging the Gap”, a new show on Piscataway Community TV (PCTV). I’ve been watching “Not Just Rock N Roll” on that station for several years and one night while checking to see if it was on (I can never remember the schedule) I stumbled onto the Volunteer Awards Show for the station. Intrigued, I contacted the station manager and was invited to join a 6-week class to learn the behind-the-scenes jobs at the station. There are only 3 employees at the station and volunteers make up the crews for the various shows and field broadcasts. When that class ended, a second level class was offered in which participants would create and produce a show. “Bridging the Gap” was born. Our fourth episode just hit the airwaves and we have several more ideas ready to record. I’ve also been a camera operator, worked the sound board and teleprompter, taken the technical director role for several shows and even directed part of the last episode (thanks Doug for the “trial by fire”). It’s been a phenomenal experience, and it is all due to me not remembering when “Not Just Rock N Roll” is on.

       Volunteering at PCTV led to the creation of the YouTube Channel “Steve’s Garage Bar” with my friend Steve. Since he retired, we’ve been hanging out in his garage a couple of days a week enjoying a few pints and busting on each other. After kicking around ideas for a potential beer show on PCTV we decided to start small with short YouTube videos in which we try a new beer, discuss it, and bust on each other. We were doing that anyway, so recording was just the natural progression, We’ve now got 7 episodes up. If beer is your thing, or you just want to chuckle at 2 old guys in a garage, please check it out.

       One final quick one is disc golf. I had never heard of the sport until I attended a picnic about a year after graduating from college. While tossing a Frisbee, one of the guys mentioned that there was a disc golf course on Rutgers Cook campus and it had been there for years. I was immediately intrigued by the concept but also a bit bummed that I had wasted my 4 ½ years at Rutgers without knowing the course existed! Suffice it to say that I have more than made up for lost time and have played courses in over a dozen states.  Now, whenever traveling I look for disc golf courses - and breweries - along the route or near the destination.

       The above are only a few of the many seemingly random encounters that have led me on this long and sometimes crazy ride. Things are presented to us in life when we are ready for them. It’s up to us to choose how we react when they happen, and that reaction will shape our lives going forward.

I’ll be taking off for the upcoming Labor Day holiday so next post will be 9/14.

Enjoy the long holiday weekend!

www.RetiredandInspiredat55.com  08-24-2026