Fred Myers

Fred Myers, born and raised in rural Indiana, lives in Alabama. Trained in agriculture at Purdue University, an inner voice caused him to spurn the usual employment track and become a writer and photographer. Despite the lack of formal training and experience in both disciplines, he spent the next thirty-one years in a myriad of mostly agriculturally related corporate and freelance experiences. He achieved a high level of success serving as writer, journalist, editor, and photographer. Next, he published a series of popular guides for cruising boaters to earn a national reputation in that recreational niche. Most recently, a brief incident while vacationing in Nova Scotia caused him to venture into the world of fiction. The result is his first novel, Goodbye Akron.

Life’s Three Big A’s

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The first one is anticipating, because you will never have what you don’t strive for. The second is applying because you will never know what you can do unless you do it.  And the third one is the afterglow of a good life you won’t have if you haven’t lived it.

Yes, you think that’s too much to wrap your arms around, is much too simple to be believed, comes too late to make a difference. Logic, however, has no boundaries, and is so flexible and adaptable it can be applied no matter who or where you are, or … Read the rest “Life’s Three Big A’s”

It’s Over Miami And Everywhere Else

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The world often demands far too much of us. We feel as if we are spread-eagled on the bottom of an overturned life raft, hanging on for dear life against howling winds and turbulent seas. We keep looking for anything to logically ease the threat or pave the way for rescue.

Well, one need not look any farther than skyward and toward the moon. When spiced with only a small bit of imagination, it’s ready to sooth the soul, help verify a decision or even help one forget they had one to make.

Among those who have already figured that … Read the rest “It’s Over Miami And Everywhere Else”

One Logical And Powerful Word

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Of all the wonders of life, few can top the stories every human being can tell about what has happened to them.

And so it was during a recent morning walk that I met a man who was putting the final touches on his new self-designed street-side mailbox. After I told him how good it looked, he introduced himself as John, and we drifted into the subject of our respective pasts that brought us both into the latter stages of a good life. That’s when he told me a story.

He was born, raised, and educated in Chicago. His first … Read the rest “One Logical And Powerful Word”

When More Of Everything Means Less Of Anything

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A sing-song play on words? No, it’s the more serious matter of us being close to having exhausted all the logical superlatives in describing an object, happening, or situation.

The trend never had an identifiable beginning. It just sort of happened. Still, you might remember when such words as “nice,” “wonderful,” and “terrific” did most of the heavy lifting.

Then along came “super” and “shocking” plus such compound descriptors as “jaw-dropping” that reference the human body, and “earth shaking” and “out of this world” that suggest far larger dimensions.

More recently, however, we began reaching even higher to include such … Read the rest “When More Of Everything Means Less Of Anything”

Searching For Perfect

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Having already brought the iced tea, she was now ready to take my order — the cheeseburger special with fries and slaw on the side. I said it right and she wrote it down right. “Perfect,” she said with a smile, then she was gone.

What went on between her and me was, indeed, perfect. Beyond that, however, was another story. The place was packed so we were lucky to get the high table with the potentially dangerous high stools. After all, an extra powerful sneeze, a reach too far for a lost napkin, or simply attempting to maintain balance … Read the rest “Searching For Perfect”

The Magic Of Winter Light

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There was no refusing my friend’s invitation. 

He and his wife were about to take their brand new to them 38-foot motor yacht from their home on the Tennessee River in northwest Alabama to a boat repair facility in St. Petersburg, Florida, a run of about seven hundred miles. 

The boat was in excellent condition, but because it had logged only a few miles during the previous two years, it would also be a shakedown cruise. That was part of the main reason he wanted me, an experienced boater, to come along as an extra hand. I had cruised that … Read the rest “The Magic Of Winter Light”

Be A Lover Of Life

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She was a follower on Twitter, but as so often happened, she was nobody I knew. So I did some checking and it revealed that her name was Andrea and that she was living on a farm in Alberta, Canada.

In a quick scan of her bio, my eyes locked on these words: “Making mediocrity fabulous one day at a time.” Those words weren’t the ordinary kind that merely talked. They yelled, almost screamed: “Look at us real close. We are expressing something profound, a great thought to live by, an even greater one to wake up to every morning.”… Read the rest “Be A Lover Of Life”

This Is About You And Me

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Now that I’m well into my fourth year of writing these columns, I should already have shared with you the information that appears here. So I’m doing it now as if you and I were visiting and I was answering your questions.

Why did you decide to write this column?

Most book authors have a website for promoting their books and some write a blog for that site. I wanted to do the same except instead of a blog which usually concerns recent personal happenings, I decided to write a column of possible help to readers.

How did you come … Read the rest “This Is About You And Me”

Then There Were Warren And Jimmy

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It wasn’t unexpected that in the recent passing of Jimmy Buffet, many would wonder if he and Warren Buffet were related. Well, to answer that question, they weren’t. They did, however, meet and become good friends.

I took that even farther by wondering what Warren, the quiet and highly disciplined investor, might have in common with Jimmy, the always buoyant and outgoing entertainer.

That led to me imagining what it might have been like for these two highly-successful men to get together in a quiet place, maybe sitting on the porch of a farmhouse atop a high hill from which … Read the rest “Then There Were Warren And Jimmy”

Sharing The Spirit With Strangers

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It was a usual humdrum coffee break in the company snack shop. The only bright spot in the plain and all too familiar surroundings was a small and scrawny but brightly lit Christmas tree. As intended, it reminded everybody it was time to get into the spirit.

As for me, I didn’t mind all the rushing around and wondering what presents to buy for whom, or even the challenge of finding the time to get everything done before Christmas Eve.

It was writing the Christmas cards that got to me. They were nice to receive, but a chore to get … Read the rest “Sharing The Spirit With Strangers”