Life, Lived Better – Outdoors
Happy New Year!
Where were you 25 years ago?
I often think of such things during major milestones – birthdays, anniversaries, Holidays, and the like. In short, 25 years ago I was just starting my Patio World journey, well, as a full-time career that is.
Yes, I have worked at our family business since my father, Brian, purchased Patio World in 1980-ish from the original owner who started decades before. My summers, weekends, and after school hours were often spent in the backroom, office, warehouse, or holding the vacuum on the showroom floor. It was my home away from home for over 20 years. Then in 1999, after graduating college with a business degree from UC Riverside, I joined the full-time rank and file to really dive deep into the realities of running your own business.
What an education it has been. I could delve into personal triumphs and failures, missed opportunities and fortunate blessings, and all the other crazy stories that just seem to happen not only in a small family business, but life in general. I could say I have learned a lot. I’m definitely not the 23-year-old (yes, I took the 5-year plan in college) bright eyed, naive kid, with the whole world in front of me. I’m also not the pessimistic, melancholy sourpuss that brought a dark cloud over my head for many a day. I am somewhere in between. Yet, on the more optimistic side of the spectrum.
Life takes you through many extremes. I prefer to gravitate toward the center. Not too much one way or the other. But definitely with a brighter perspective (most days).
Here is to 2025, new beginnings, new opportunities, and no matter what life throws at you, a sense that everything will work out the way it is supposed to.
Take care.
Wayne Romain
Patio World
Life, Lived Better – Outdoors
What’s New at PW:
As I mentioned in last month’s newsletter, a major makeover is on the way at Patio World, Riverside. We will be updating, painting, re-modeling, and re-designing the interior of our showroom this month. Our store hours will remain the same most days, but I recommend giving us a call or text just to make sure (My Cell 951-818-5470). Paint crews, carpet cleaners, and our team will be hard at work and may necessitate a closure here and there to get it done! You can also find updates on our Social Media pages. Thank you for your patience and we cannot wait to show you our fresh new look coming this Spring to our Riverside location.
Follow Us on Social Medial for latest happenings and arrivals:
A special “Thank You” to everyone who visited Christmas World this Holiday Season and who donated to our Toys For Tots campaign. Your generosity helped children in our local community who otherwise, would have no present at all.
Out & About
→Christmas May Be Over, But I’ve Never Rejected a Belated Present – Gift Ideas for Outdoor Lovers, Hikers, & Campers
→ What Happens When You Eat This Every Day – The Forbidden Fruit
→The World May End in 2029, but We Won’t Know Till 2027 – Killer Asteroid
→ As If One Was Not Enough – Your Going to Get Mooned
→I Found My Teeth – Getting Old Sucks
→ Get Movin’ – Beauty & The Hiker
→ Get Outta Here! – The Murder Hornet Saga
→We Have Lost Our Way- Ancient Techniques
→My Head Hurts – Infinity and Beyond
→One of Life’s Great Mysteries – Where In the Heck Is Eggnog From?
→Big Bird Is Going the Way of the Dodo Bird – Or At Least Might Be Homeless
→My Wife’s Family is From Costa Rica, We Are Very Familiar with This – Slow Living
→Another Chapter of – EZ Landscaping Ideas
→Rainbows Are Supposed to Be In the Sky – Not Your Ham
→And One Last Article About Christmas – It Was the Best in the 1980s
(WBR) Wayne’s Book Review
Aren’t you lucky? Yes, I think you are. Because I am continuing my quest to read a book every month (last year’s New Year’s Resolution), and you get a rare glimpse into the somewhat chaotic mind of Wayne Romain and his take on said book.
Just so you know, I’m not a reader. Other than last year, I have probably read six or seven books in the previous 10 years. No literary giant here, but like a lot of things in life, you get outside your element, do things you don’t normally do, and you might learn something.
What does this have to do with the outdoors? Maybe nothing. Maybe a lot. But it does represent another pastime that we can enjoy (or muddle through) in The Outdoors.
This month’s book:
by John Steinbeck
Book Overview
Tortilla Flats follows the lighthearted and humorous adventures of a loose group of “paisanos” after the end of World War 1. The group of friends are jobless loafers whose main objective in life is to procure wine and food with an occasional interlude of relations with the women of the neighborhood. The title of the novel is named after the small enclave situated above the coastal town of Monterey, California.
Most of the book’s chapters revolve around what I like to call the characters’ “drunk-a-log”. The situations of how this group of misfits obtain wine, the aftermath, and all the mishaps that take place in between. Jail, friendships, swindling, love, fires, injuries, mid-life crisis, and even death are covered in a carefree, funny, and whimsical fashion.
It is an entertaining read and lays a good foundation for the author’s future works and writing style. I actually found this book at a thrift store and paid a whole $0.50 for it. Definitely worth the investment LOL. No, but seriously, I am a fan of Steinbeck’s other books: Of Mice and Men and Grapes of Wrath. This novel does not match those great stories, but it does provide a fine and witty read.
On a scale of 1-10, I’d give it a 8.
Note: This is my unprofessional, biased, informal review. I make no claims and receive no money or support for my reviews. It’s just an extrapolation from the mind of WR.
La Última Palabra (The Last Word)
“There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.”
— C.S. Lewis
Have an idea for a future newsletter? Want to berate me for something I did or said? Go ahead! I want to hear from you: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly. You can leave a message here or email us at patioworld@patioworldonline.com
Whether at home or out in the wild, take it all in. Remember that life is truly lived better outdoors.
Take care,
WR
