ran into some readers recently at Banana Split Night at Bruster's

Ice Cream.

I'd say fans, but they didn't.

They were real nice, though, and since there was a long wait as the

ice cream technicians made their umpteenth banana splits of the evening,

we had some time to shoot the breeze.

One of the readers reminisced about some of my past columns and told

my wife, "I read all about your wedding. Next, I expect I'll

be reading about the pregnancy." I grinned and made a mental note

to thank her for adding some pressure.

Eventually, their banana split order was filled, though there was much

discussion about what ingredients were in a banana split, aside, of course,

from the banana. The readers said goodbye and went off to eat their treat

in the soupy, bug-filled evening. After ordering our ice cream cake for

our birthday party and a chocolate shake for the ride home, I got to

thinking about my columns and my readers.

I haven't written many columns since returning to the paper, but

I have been busy and I'm not always filled with inspiration for

a column.

It may be presumptuous that there is a clamor for any of my columns,

but it is summer and since I haven't received any marching orders

lately to attempt to promote the liberal agenda in column form, here

is my latest column.

My summer, so far

My summer, so far, has been a mixed bag. I got another lead in a play

at Southside Theatre Guild and turned 29, both good things. But I also

ended up in the hospital for several days, which was not part of the

summer plan. I'm fine now, but I was bedridden for about a week

and I lost about 12 pounds. I know, it sounds great - give up a week

and lose the gut - but trust me, you don't want to have to go through

what I went through.

It was the first time I had to stay overnight in a hospital and the

first time I had to have an IV. There's a first time for everything,

but I wouldn't have minded waiting another couple of decades. The

hospital wasn't so bad. The nurses were nice and my roommate was

quiet, but it is hard to sleep in those beds with all of those sick people

around. I guess people sometimes complain about the food at hospitals,

but I wouldn't really know. They can cook up some broth, though.

I can vouch for that.

I got out of the hospital after a few days and started becoming human

again. After a few more days of rest and relaxation at home, I was back

eating McDonald's, playing fetch with my cats and looking forward

to making the rest of the summer a fantastic, healthy and out-of-the-hospital

experience. I see lots of swimming, golf and play rehearsal in my future

with frequent trips to for ice cream and excursions to the drive-in theater

planned.

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