Life and Times of being...me.

  I don’t normally use this platform to post personal events.   However, yesterday was a proud dad moment that I would like to share. My son, Giovanni, soccer team banquet was last night, and he received this character award from his coaches.   Why am I posting about this?   At 2 years old, Giovanni was diagnosed with PDD or Pervasive Developmental Disorder. This disorder falls under the autism umbrella. His mother and I were devastated to receive this news.   It was a blessing in disguise.   Anyone who knows about this disorder, has learned the art of redirection. To refocus the child when they are distracted, or laser focused on repeating things / habits.   We were very fortunate to get him into an early prevention program at the school district. Giovanni has been main streamed in his classes since kindergarten. To our amazement, in the 6 th grade his neural developmental specialist told us that she didn’t see the need to classify him any further… to quote her “he is as normal

 Fran Libonati - 75th  Surprise Birthday  Party  You are invited to attend Fran's 75th Birthday Party on  December 28th 2021.  Below are the details.  Please reply via email to Dan.Libonati@gmail.com if you are attending. Please include your mailing address when you reply!   I am also going to celebrate Giovanni's birthday (his is the 29th). He is going to be 17!! - Where did that time go? I need a final count by Dec 4th 2021.  Location:    Yesterday's Restaurant  3153 Hwy 35 North, Hazlet, NJ 07730 https://www.yesterdayshazlet.com/index.htm  Date:                Dec 28th 2021 (Tuesday)   Time:             6pm - 10pm I need to have everyone there by 6pm as I am going to have her there by 6:30pm sharp.   Food:   For those who are coming from out of town or that don't want to drive after having a few drinks there are two newly renovated hotels within 1/2 mile of the restaurant.   Best Western - walking distance from the restaurant.  Link :  https://www.bestwestern.com/e

In less than 70 days, I will be 55 years old.   How did I get this old so fast? Where did that time go? What have I done in those 55 years, that got me to this point in life?   Who am I? Am I the same person that I was in this photo?   What about this photo… who is that guy? A close friend, told me that it was 75 days till his 50 th birthday.   Which got me to think about how many days it was till my own birthday.   I have posted about my birthday’s before… my mid 40’s and my 50 th . But this one is different.   It has been weighing on me for a while. Actually since, Thanksgiving I have been thinking about my age and turning 55. Lately I have borne my thought by writing and never really knew I had so much to say till now. People say… oh you’re hitting double nickels, you are now as old as the highway speed limit or when I was 55, we didn’t have a two-dollar bill (that one threw me off for a second, as the $2 bill was introduced in 1862).    But the number itself has meaning.   I a

I haven't posted in a while, but the last few days had me thinking about the republic and voting.  So, you are now uttering the words to yourself... "NOT another political post…please".  No this isn't about the President or who is running for the Presidency.  It's about a problem. A very simple problem.  The problem is; how we vote in America.   When I went to work for IBM, I learned the history about the company.  If you have never seen this video, I encourage you to watch IBM Centennial 100x100  Video Here  . The video is about 13 minutes long an worth every minute. Now if you don't know any of the company’s history, about three minutes into the video you will learn that IBM in 1936 started the Social Security project, deem the largest accounting project ever.    O K, Dan...what does this have to do with what you wrote above.   Well....in a word... PLENTY .  You see, Mr. Watson had a simple moto to get problems solved and it was above the door of every IBM o

As a kid growing up, I was a dreamer.  I would have these dreams of running the auto parts store that my grandparents built and become a member of the Chamber of Commerce. Or getting in to local politics.  Howell Twp. back then was a small town (even though its the largest town in Monmouth County, NJ).  I never dreamed that I would leave Howell.  Sure, I had been to other places, Florida for spring break, NYC and I still remember driving to Florida in my parents van to the Florida Keys with my cousins following us.  Why did I need to leave Howell?  My dreams were not that big.  I just wanted to be married and have a kid or two. I don't remember the exact moment, but there was definitely an epiphany that came to me.  It might have been when I was working at Pep Boys in the mid 80's or when I was working at the Headliner or Stony Pony as a bouncer.  The thought of "is this it?  Is this all that life has in store for me?"   Things were not going so well for m