Just Write

For many of you long time readers of this blog, you may have been wondering why I haven't written here in nearly 5 months. I've stated in the past that I try to write at least once a month. Some years I have 2 month gaps and rarely 3. But here I am pushing five. It's not like I haven't tried to write a post...I have. I started writing the next entry to the Story of my life series (which I started before the Japan series), and no it's not dead. But every moment I took to try to write that entry. I would stop. I wanted to cover important details to tell the next part of the story, but it wasn't enticing enough to keep me going. So I decided to blog my travel to Japan. It was something I really wanted to do and also give me a break from the SOML series. So that's what I did.

It took me seven months to blog that story. Even though I had already released the photos and created a vlog for it, I still felt the desire to tell the story through words. Many people read my adventure in Sydney Australia when I blogged it and told me how wonderful it was. That was fuel I needed to blog Japan. It took me so long because each chapter was a story in itself. I wanted to capture every detail as it was an experience of a lifetime and I didn't want to lose the fun of doing so. I'm glad I did because according to the views counter, each post averaged 40, which is way more than most of my vlogs on youtube get. One entry had a whopping 114 views which is one of the highest counts my blog has ever seen. Those views don't tell me whether or not each one read to the end, but it's enough for me to know that folks are still interested. 

After the Japan storyline came to a close. I took what I was hoping was going to be a short break from the blog. After two months, I decided I was going to try and revive the SOML post I had started a year ago. Each time I picked it up, I couldn't finish it. I kept wanting to get to certain parts I'm dying to write about, but can't bring myself to skip what I consider important details. After picking it up and setting it down for another month, I decided that I need to give that series a break until 2027 (foreshadowing its return). I still wanted to write about something and after much internal deliberation, I landed on writing about my journey to Toronto. That was going to be a long, one post entry. I started writing it. But as I did, I found myself caught in two crossroads. I was once again writing a travel blog. I felt if I kept going as I was, that my writing would lose its allure and it would be a stale entry. The second thing is, that trip meant a lot for me personally as I got to reconnect with so many long lost friends, some planned and some unexpected, but in the end, that trip made my heart full. And some of that experience was personal memories I will cherish for a long time and that I feel don't need to be released into a blog. So I stopped writing that entry.

Now here we are in October. I thought about not writing another entry until my end of the year recap in December. But I couldn't do it. I couldn't let my blog drought reach 7 months. And I have an itch to write something. Bingo. Just write. Let whatever thoughts running through my head flow through my fingers and onto these black keys in front of me. 

Now that you've got the purpose of this entry, I still want to give you a glimpse into Toronto. It was my first time back there in 12 years after having visited nearly every year from 2006-2014. It was a trip to continue my MLB tour, to explore parts of the city I had not in the past, and to see people near and dear to me. I saw a game at Rogers Centre a.k.a. The Skydome and got my wish of seeing the Blue Jays hit a home run so I could hear the hockey horn go off like I'd seen on TV many times before. I went to the Top of the CN Tower on its 50th anniversary and saw Toronto like I'd never seen it before. I wandered Eaton Centre and the St. Lawrence Market, taking in the sights and smells. I explored the hockey hall of fame in all its grandeur, while also snagging a selfie with the Stanley Cup. I also entered an unexpected conversation outside with a drunk Polish man who was extremely friendly and had a lot of nice things to say about the US since they helped the Poles in WWII. I geocached, ate delicious food, explored the parts where they had set up for the World Cup, and really got a better feel for the city than I had before.

But what truly defined and made the trip was the people. To Del. Thank you so much for hosting me. Your hospitality was welcomed and appreciated more than you may know. Your care, our chats, and even the pancakes were all more than I could've asked for. To Silvia. Thank you for making time in your busy schedule for me. For showing me parts of your hometown I've never seen before, even though the smog was an annoyance, it was still a blast. For feeding me with many of Toronto's incredible food options I may not have discovered on my own. For catching up on lost years, chatting like it was yesterday, for all the effort you put in to make my return to Toronto a memorable one, and for your friendship. To Marty. Thank you for willing to join me on my baseball journey after not having seen you all these years. For getting the tickets and making that whole experience as smooth as it could be. For talking a lot of sports with me and not growing weary of it. And for still being the same fly dude I've known all this time. To Matthew. Thank you for also fitting me in to your busy life and coming to dinner. I'll never forget the days I stayed at your house for The Rock and how well you took care of me. I've missed our banter and was entertained that you were the one to ask me all the tough questions about the current state of the US. It was really good to see you again. To Ian. Man I've missed you and it was good to see you're doing well. I'm so glad I was able to talk to you Sunday morning as visiting Toronto would not have been the same without seeing you. To Peter. I was not expecting to see you, but when you walked in those doors and recognized me, you made my morning. Your personality is unforgettable and I've missed it and you. Thanks for taking time to talk with me before I left. To Michael. When you walked up and said "Hi Josh", my heart was overjoyed you recognized me after all this time. I was not expecting to see you either, but was so glad I did. It was so good to catch up and see you are doing well. Please let me know if you ever happen to come to my neck of the woods as it would be my pleasure to show you around. To Nathan and Laura. I was grateful to be able to hear Nathan speak Sunday morning, to catch up after, to hear the family is doing well, and to see you both. It warmed my heart. To Neil. I'm so glad you were around and we were able to reminisce on our adventures years ago. I'm happy to have met your wife and to see things are well with you. And finally, to Aimann. I was hoping to bump into you and you gave me a good laugh when you had a confused look on my face when I walked up and you couldn't recall who I was. But after the meeting, when I told you my name, your face lit up and all the memories came flooding back like a light bulb had been turned on. I am also grateful for you and your family's hospitality years back and hope you make a return to my neck of the woods someday. 

On that note, I think that's a good place to conclude this entry. I look forward to writing my recap of 2026 and will do my best to put more here in 2027. And if you're still reading this blog after all these years. Thank you. I appreciate it immensely. See you at year's end.