Reality

Alrighty , some basic assumptions. One , that this blog is cathartic , thus good for me
Two , that although a daily entry is the norm , there are days that I've missed , thus 2 entries for a day is , well , OK

I mentioned the ' simple life ' quote from Bilbo Baggins
And further , that my life gets over poweringly not simple

BTW , I've felt this over powerlingly not simple my whole life.
In the past , I've resolved the problem by chucking out all the complicating factors which are normally people but could as well be financial.

And , my biggest fear seems to be that I will never get an opportunity like this ' whatever ' again.
To wit , when I was 16 yrs old , I decided that I needed a catamaran.
This vessel was styrofoam hulls and drop centre board w/ a sail.
Yepper , master mariner. dad helped finance my $400 adventure.
One , I wasn't a sailor and the catamaran ( just ) wasn't meant for the weedy channel and lake that we were cottaging on.
I tried many times to adapt the catamaran for different uses , sadly , no re - incarnation ever worked i.e. was practical.
Admittedly , wrong headed notions that I've had or acted on , never cost a lot and no one was hurt , physically or financially , except Daddy.
Betcha , my notions cost Pop close to $2 000 all in. However , spread over 35 yrs , not bad.
My one whim that was more costly , namely a cottage , came in at $35 000 in 1982. My father insisted on a joint ownership w/ my brother. Ken and I fished fall seasons and some summers for 12 years until his illness and death. 
I kept that cottage  , primarily at my father's insistence. On my father's passing , I sold the fishing cottage. The selling price was $168 000.
You can understand , not all of my whims are negative financial experiences.
As you can guess , I'm on the cusp of another , well , not whim but definitely a financial adventure. The down side is  , no daddy to cover my losses or appreciate the deal.
In the movie 'Roughriders ' , the story of Teddy Roosevelt and the AmericanVolunteer cavalry during the Cuban revolution , after the battle at San Juan and Kettle Hill , Tom Beringer as Teddy says ' we will long live its shadow ' , meaning the taking of San Juan Heights.
I still feel , as though, I'm living in the shadow of my father.
Silly , sure but the shadow is there.