Billy had recently gotten some papers from his Human Resources office about life after 50.  One of the pages had a link that showed 11 ways for adults to make friends.  There was a second link to www.meetup.com, so Billy signed up for a pick up volley ball group in Brentwood. His first meeting was on January 2.  There was a total of four teams of seven players each.  Each team played the others twice, and as luck would have it, Billy's team lost all six games! Billy said that he knows that he stinks at volleyball, since the last time he played in a real volley ball game was in 1983.  He was a little bit sore after the games, but Ellen was pissed because he was gone for 2 hours.  She asked him not to go to any of these events until they sell his parents' apartment. 

 

And they are making progress on the apartment.  Billy was off on January 22 and on that day a company came to remove the furniture.  It will be donated to charities.  Then he and Ellen took turns vacuuming the carpets.  Hopefully the apartment will be sold in a couple of months.   Then in the evening Billy went to the Islip Fire Department main house to help run the first annual Breast Cancer Coalition fundraiser.  He helped on the serving line, and when it was over, helped with the cleaning up of the firehouse.  Billy said that since he lost two cousins to breast cancer, he felt that he had to help. 

 

As they have done almost every February since 2009, this year Billy and Ellen (with Eileen) went to the annual Blessing of the Couples held at St. John's University, held on February 6.  As noted in his biography, Billy met Ellen there back in 1976 and every year the University holds a ceremony to honor those couples that met at SJU.  After the Mass and reception, they headed back to Islip but this time they headed to the local Starbucks to meet with an old SJU friend that Billy lost contact with back in 1978.  

 

On February 19, Billy helped his fire company run its annual Wild Game Dinner.  Since there were almost 240 people, the Company decided to hold it at West Islip Fire Department, since their meeting room is a lot larger.  So Billy helped with setting up the room, serving the meals (venison, buffalo & bison chili, and wild boar), and cleaning up the hall.    

 

He was finally able to make it to a Bees' basketball game, on March 3rd, since it started early.  The Bees played the New York University Law School at the Dalton School, and won 89-77.  Unfortunately, Billy spent the whole time on the bench, but did get a chance before the game to practice foul shooting and lay ups, and enjoy some camaraderie.

 

For the past two months Billy has been a bit under the weather thanks to upper respiratory infections, coughing spasms, and sore throats.  Nobody covers their mouths anymore.  He had his fire department physical on March 23rd, and they ruled out pneumonia or congestion, since there was no wheezing when the medic examined his lungs, and was able to do well on the breathing test.  But by April he was feeling better.

 

He had received a jury duty summons, and reported to the Central Islip Courthouse on March 28, 2016.  Figuring that he would be selected for a case, he was surprised to learn that the case was settled by a plea bargain, in which the offender pleaded guilty to DUI and avoided a trial.

 

On May 20, Billy, Ellen, and Eileen went to the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy to attend the opening of the exhibit, How to Abandon Ship.  Ellen’s uncle co-authored a book with that name in the 1940’s after he and several other crew members of the SS Robin Moor survived almost 3 weeks in a lifeboat after the Robin Moor was torpedoed by a U-Boat on May 21, 1941, and the exhibit commemorated the 75^th anniversary of the sinking.  Billy, Ellen and Eileen each received a signed copy of Outrageous and Indefensible, by George Haber, which relates the sinking as well as the history of the ship. There were some speeches by the director of the Academy’s Museum, and also by the daughter of the Museum’s founder.  An actor portrayed Franklin Delano Roosevelt and read the speech that FDR made to Congress several days after the sinking.  A portrait of the founder of the Museum was later unveiled and was brought inside to the exhibit area.  Then the guests all went into the exhibition area to see photos and artifacts from the ship, including items that Ellen had donated.   Billy also created a web-site to commemorate the day, www.robin-moot-2016.webs.com. 

 

Billy and Ellen are jazz music fans and one of their favorite recording artists is Brazil's own star pianist, Eliane Elias.  On May 28 the 3 of them went to Birdland on West 44th Street to see Eliane perform live.  Their table was right next to the stage, and Billy was right next to her when she went to and from the stage.  They all had a great time, and perhaps will do it again.  

 

Since Billy cannot change the past, he will always be a St. John's University alumnus.  And there are many good things that happen to SJU alumni, and one of them is the annual Great Lawn (Quadrangle) Party held at the campus on June 4th.  This year his friend Jerry met him, Ellen and Eileen there and they hung around the Quadrangle enjoying some picnic grub.  Unfortunately, SJU scheduled the Quadrangle Party on the same say as an alumni dinner, so a lot of alumni and families could not come. Also, Billy had hoped to go to some discussions but it was hard to get away from the Quad.  Hopefully SJU will re-schedule it in 2017 and not hold the Quadrangle Party on the same day with other events.   

 

As they generally do each time around the second Sunday in June, on the 12th they all went to the Bronx Zoo with Ellen's New York University alumni group (NYU at the Zoo).  And this year they managed to take in the Butterfly House, the Mouse House, the Reptile House, the Children's Zoo, Madagascar, and the Tiger Mountain.  A good time was had by all.

 

Over the 4^th of July weekend Billy went to the Islip Library to take out a book he had reserved: Marc & Angel Chernoff’s 1,000+ Little Things Happy, Successful People Do Differently.  He started reading it and it lists things that he should be doing.  One of them is to set a goal.  But what?  He did have one in banking 35+ years ago and it did not pan out.  Learning to swim better?  Not likely.  Get qualified on a fire truck?  Too accident prone.  Some possibilities are losing 40 pounds – get down to 140, learning another language (French or Spanish?), shoot hoops a bit better?  Another point is not to blame others for failures.   On Saturday afternoon, July 2^nd they all headed to Northport Village to see Thoroughly Modern Millie at the Engeman Theater.  While they did see it on Broadway back in 2003, yesterday in a more intimate setting, in Row C, and in the summer, it seemed to be more enjoyable.  The 3 of them all loved the music and choreography, as well as the story line.  And Billy is convinced that 1920’s NYC was an interesting place to be. After the show, they had planned to eat at the Skipper at the beginning of Main Street but could not find a parking space, so they decided to eat at the German restaurant the other end of Main Street – Pumpernickel's, at #640.  Billy was there in 1982 for his brother in law’s bachelor party.  This time Billy had one huge glass of a German weissbier a wheat beer which he recommends.   Ellen and he enjoyed sauerbraten, while Eileen had a filet of sole.  When they got home he watched the Mets-Cubs game and the Mets won 4-3.

 

For the 4^th of July itself Billy went to Gold’s Gym in the northern part of Islip to start working on getting into better shape: lose weight, and have better running and lifting ability (fewer ground outs for the Bees).  For the first time he spent 20 minutes on the treadmill, and some time doing curls.  He plans to go back this coming Saturday afternoon or evening.  In the afternoon the 3 of them headed to Ellen’s brother’s house for a 4^th of July BBQ.  Billy was hoping to touch base with some of his nephews, but they were in Yellowstone National Park.  After the BBQ, Bill and his brother in law watched part of the Mets game, and the Mets ended up beating the Marlins 8-6.

 

On the 5^th of July Billy shut down Homestead Billy shut down Homestead since it would let him download site builder to Windows 10, and the Site Builder Lite was not very user friendly and Billy refuse to pay $100 a year when he cannot download the Site Builder programs.  So gone is www.minot43.homestead.com and all of the links to it.  He had to make changes to remove any links: Facebook, his biographies on www.webs.com and www.weebly.com, also his Fan Club site on www.webs.com.

 

On Saturday the 9^th Billy went into work to help in a project in the Records Department, feeling like shit: headache, burning stomach, and the runs.  Since the computers were down, he could not call in sick since voice mail and the phones were out.  So he took the 6:23 into Penn, getting him there at 7:39 and then walking to 230 Park Avenue (where the Firm’s records department is located), arriving at around 8:00.  Once he arrived, he could not clock in clock in or out since all electronic systems were down.  Yet he managed to help out with the record area in cleaning out their space.  Then the office manager told everyone there that they can stop working at 10:15 and would get credit for working until 12 noon.  So he left around 10:20 and walked back to Penn and got the 10:55 home. 

 

At the end of July he, Ellen and Eileen met up with an old St. John's friend of Billy's for dinner at a Japanese eatery in Smithtown Village called Aji53.  Billy and family arrived early, so he ordered a bottle of sake and stood by the bar to watch TV: the ceremonies at Citifield to retire Mike Piazza's #31 jersey.  The only downer was that the Mets lost to the Colorado Rockies in the game.  But as for dinner, he enjoyed seeing his friend Tom and his wife Eilish and everything went well.  Billy suggested that they all meet again in the near future (maybe a baseball game?).  

 

A couple of months ago Billy noticed rashes on his palms that seemed to come and go.  Then came cuts and itching.  When the dog days of August hit with the intense humidity, it really got bad: rashes, itching, cuts.  So he decided to call a dermatologist, and went to visit on August.  It turns out that he has psoriasis, and needs to put ointments on both palms. Hopefully the problems will go away in a couple of weeks.

 

During August 2016 the 3 of them went to the North Fork on two occasions.  On the 20th they wanted to visit a couple of wineries and then have dinner at a restaurant near Greenport that they planned to eat at in 2015 (but missed the turn off). On the afternoon of August 20th, they headed east on Sunrise Highway, and near Manorville noticed lost of gray rain clouds.  When they got to Riverhead the skies opened up but they made it through.  When they reached Main Road (NY25) the Riverhead Police had blocked off east bound traffic thanks to flooding.  That meant a detour - first to North Road, and then a back road to NY 25 and then go east.  But the Riverhead Fire Department blocked them off again, so it was through lots of back roads and finally back onto NY 25 in Jamesport.  The first winery was Jason's, but it was quite noisy and crowded with mostly 20 something's.  There was also a long wait to taste wines so Billy said "fuck it" and they headed east.  The next one they saw was Laurel Lake, and even if the ladies did not go inside, Billy got to taste a red wine and a rose wine and opted to buy the red one, which turned out to be a hit at home.  Then they headed to Greenport and to the restaurant - Porto Bello.  Billy enjoyed a great burger, while the ladies each had a lobster roll.  Billy also had a Martha Clara rose wine to wash it down.  Then they headed home to Islip under clear skies.  The second trip was on the 31st.  Billy had off after a night at the ballgame the previous evening (see the baseball page for details).  This time it was Tanger Outlet Mall and then perhaps a farm stand before dinner at Claudio's (in Greenport, of course).  No rain this time so it was smooth sailing to Riverhead and the mall.  They stopped in a few stores, purchasing undergarments, socks, and shoes.  They then went east on CR 58 to eventually get to the North Road (CR 48) to head east.  They decided to head straight out to Lavender by the Bay on North Road in East Marion.  After taking some pictures, they bought some lavender salt, lavender honey, and lotions.  Then it was a stop at a new winery just outside of Greenport - Kontokosta.  Billy went inside but saw that the least expensive wine was a rose at $22 a bottle.  Since they had just splurged at Tanger, and will have dinner in a little while, Billy passed up on buying.  So they headed into the village for dinner at Claudio's: seafood dishes and iced tea, and watching the people on the docks and the boats in the harbor. After dinner they walked a bit and took photos before heading home.        

 

On September 3^rd Billy, Ellen & Eileen drove into Flushing to check out his parents’ apartment, and to spiffy up a few rooms.  Now they are hoping that the prospective buyers get approval by the co-op board so the place can be sold.  On the way back to Islip they stopped at Mt. Saint Mary’s Cemetery and Billy visited his parents’ internment sites.

 

On September 4^th, they went to the movies in West Babylon to see Florence Foster Jenkins with Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant.  It turns out that Florence, Sinclair Bayfield and Cosme McMunn were real people.  The film takes place in 1944 and it was great to see the 1944 costumes, the old cars, and 1944 New York.  Billy went to the movies again, on the 18^th, but without Ellen this time.  He took Eileen to Sayville to see Bridget Jones’ Baby.  It’s actually part III of a trilogy, but neither he nor Eileen have not seen the first two parts yet.  This was definitely a chick flick since Billy was one of only a few men in the theater.  The story was interesting and he said that the London footage was special.  He and Eileen returned again on October 1st, to see Storks at the Islip Movie House.  They both liked it, even if it was geared to a younger crowd.

 

Four days later, on Wednesday October 5^th Billy left work at 1 PM and headed over to Penn Station to grab a train to Kew Gardens to attend the closing on his parents' apartment.  When he got off the train he had to walk to Queens Boulevard and Union Turnpike to an office building there.  The office where the closing would take place was on the 15^th floor.  As he was heading over to the conference room where the closing would take place, he got to look outside and saw a spectacular view of the southern half of Flushing Meadow Park – Meadow and Willow Lakes and the unspoiled wetlands, as well as the Flushing skyline and the subway yard for the Jamaica Line.  Inside the conference room his parents’ apartment was officially sold to another family, and it was the end of an era for him.  His mom & dad had lived there since 1978 and this was his last physical link to Flushing.  After the closing Billy decided to go back home with the ladies.  He wanted to watch the Mets-Giants Wild Card game.  Before the game, though, the 3 of them went out to dinner at Mango Tango, a new Asian Fusion eatery that recently in Islip.  Billy ordered crispy roast duck while the ladies ordered seafood dishes.  While there, the game started and they watched the first inning on the TV there.  When they were done eating they headed home to watch the game.  In the top of the 9th inning, the Giants went ahead 3-0 and that was the final score.  So it is "wait 'til next year" again for the Mets fans.

 

He was off on October 11^th.  Besides “use them or lose them”, the St. John’s University McCallen Society had its annual Member Appreciation Mass and Luncheon.  The McCallen Society is for alumni who include St. John’s in their wills or financial planning.  It is named for Father McCallen, a Vincentian priest who arranged for St. John's to purchase the former Hillcrest Country Club in Jamaica and turn the former golf course into the Queens Campus.  And quite a few alumni wish they would change it back to a golf course.  Since Billy & Ellen cannot afford to give the university while they are alive, Billy decided to donate 5% of his estate when he is gone.  Ellen, who is an alumna herself, opted for 10% of her estate.  She holds university education in higher regard than Billy  does.  As for the Mass and luncheon, Ellen (and Eileen) did not want to join Billy so he went alone.  He left Islip at around 10 AM and when he got to the L.I.E. and Utopia Parkway, he opted to first stop at Mount St. Mary’s Cemetery to visit his parents’ internment sites (one physical link to his growing up in Flushing).  Then he headed down the parkway to the campus and parked in the guests’ lot at the south end of the Quadrangle, and then over to the St. Thomas More Church to relax and wait for the Mass to begin (12:15 start time).  After the Mass everyone headed to the D’Angelo Center on the northern end of the campus.  The lunch was in the dining room on the Center’s 4^th floor.  Besides a very good lunch, everyone were addressed by the University’s President, and were entertained by a Class of 2017 member who starred on America’s Got Talent.  The senior sang several Frank Sinatra standards and Billy swore that he was hearing Old Blue Eyes himself.  As around 3:20 he headed back to the car and drove back to Islip.  Traffic was a bit slow on the Northern State Parkway. 

 

On October 15th, Billy, Ellen and Eileen did manage to get back to Birdland to see Eliane Elias again perform.  And like in May, getting cross town was hell.  But the show was worth it.  The 3 of them agree that Eliane is one of the best pianists alive today.  

 

The next day was the semi-annual Islip Street Fair, and the 3 of them went to check out the vendors and have a snack somewhere.  They went into the new candy shop, Sugared Up, to get a few pieces of candy.  Later they stopped at Coyle's Ice Cream Parlor for some treats.  Billy enjoyed Mississippi Mud.  While walking the street and visiting several stands, Billy stopped at the American Legion table and picked up an application to join the local American Legion post in Islip.   

 

On October 20th, Ellen went into Manhattan for a reunion with some of her former coworkers from the 1980's.  Since Eileen could not go with her, Billy stayed home from work to watch her.  During the day they went to the library, then to Sunken Meadow State Park for a walk on the Boardwalk before returning to Islip for lunch at McDonald's.  When Ellen returned from Manhattan, Billy headed over to the American Legion Post (Rusy-Bohm #411, named after two Islip residents killed in World War I) and was duly sworn in as a new member.  While he still is a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America, Billy felt that the American Legion Rusy Bohm post meets locally in Islip as opposed to Farmingville.   

 

Billy, Ellen and Eileen went to St. John's University on November 6th for the Mass of Remembrance (Billy's mom & dad were entered on the list of decedents to remember).  After the Mass there was a continental breakfast in one of the conference rooms, and then on the way home they stopped at Mount St. Mary's Cemetery to visit Billy's parents' resting places.  

 

After the disappointment of the Cleveland Indians losing the World Series in 7 games, on the morning of November 9, 2016 Billy heard on the radio that Donald Trump was elected the 45th President of the United States.  Both he and Ellen, as well as the train friends, are worried about the country's future.

 

The company's basketball team, the Bees, began its 2016-2017 season with a scrimmage/practice at the Trinity School on West 91st Street.  Billy managed to shoot and make several baskets, but his right shoulder is starting to hurt (age??).  Ans while he did make several shots, he also missed several and admitted that his aim has to improve.

 

After Billy finished a book about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Mid-November, he decided to start reading a book in his own library – Wresting with Moses by Anthony Flint.  He said that the book fascinated him.  The protagonist, Jane Jacobs, took on Robert Moses to kill his Lower Manhattan Expressway, as well as a continuation of 5^th Avenue through Washington Square Park.  Jane Jacobs wrote for magazines and wrote several books, too.  That made has made Billy want to start writing again, even if only for his blogs, journal, and now a new website: http://billys-writings2.webs.com/.  As of November 29, he wrote some essays for the website, one describing a training drill at the Suffolk County Fire Academy on the 20^th and another about Brooklyn - both the film of that name and his experiences working, visiting and being educated in the borough.  

 

The Thanksgiving holiday was a welcome 4 day respite from the rigors of the office.  The 3 of them celebrated the holiday alone, since with Bill's parents both deceased, and their family friend Bill having gone to California for the Holiday, it was just Billy, Ellen and Eileen.  They still enjoyed themselves with a good turkey dinner.  It was also their 37th wedding anniversary, but they would celebrate that on Sunday at Verace, a stylish Italian restaurant in town. 

 

For the past several months, Ellen, Eileen and Billy have been trying to get into shape and also lose weight.  On Friday the 25th they drove over to Jones Beach Field 6 and walked 0.2 miles to the East Bathhouse and back for a total of 0.4 miles and for a chance to take several photos.  0.4 miles may not seem like a lot, but Ellen often needs a cane to walk and for her that distance is no small feat. 

 

On November 29^th after work the Basketball Bees hopped the subway to 77^th Street to head over to the Lycee Français at 505 East 75^th Street for a scrimmage game.  The Bees got there early so they waited outside and talked about New York City and the subways.  Great conversations among the teammates.  The other team did not show up so in the beginning the Bees had a half court four-on-four game.  Billy scored his first basket ever in the 8 years with the Bees!  So we can say it’s a red-letter event.  Billy only stayed for about 30 minutes since he had to get to Penn and home, and it’s a long walk back to Lex & 77^th Street.  

 

Around December he often has to use up time off so on the 20^th he went in the afternoon to thew eye doctor’s office in Rockville Centre for an exam and it turns out that his eyes are still in pretty decent shape.  Then at 5 PM he went to his dentist’s office to see if he could re-install a crown that came out.  It turns out that he could not because there is nothing left from the tooth to hold it in.  Billy could have an implant, but it is expensive and may not be completely covered by insurance.  So, the dentist just plugged in the gap: not open, but no tooth there either.  Then the next morning, he went to his internist’s office on East 72^nd Street for his quarterly checkup, and they drew blood and did a few other tests.  Billy seems to be in good health for 67 years young, but they called into Islip pharmacy for an inhaler for him to use.