South Of Someplace: July 2015

Friday, July 31, 2015

Eleven

Eleven was a pivotal age in my childhood, not for any dramatic reason, but because that was the age where I began to have time to myself. When I was younger, Mom would chauffeur all four of us around as she ran her errands. When I turned eleven, she started leaving me at home (my three sisters still went everywhere with her).

With more time to myself, I had more time to read and to think about my own interests. I began to study music theory that year thanks to a book that my mother gave to me as a gift (thanks again, Mom!). My skills as a composer started with the hours that I spend sitting at the piano working through the chapters of that book.

Three other events occurred when I was eleven. I don't know whether these events had an impact on my personal development, but they definitely made an impression.

First, I developed an interest in the science fiction genre. I remember perusing my grandfathers' TV Guide and circling any science fiction programs or movies. I noted the times and took my handwritten schedule home for future reference.

I also attended my first wedding at age eleven (at least the first one that I can remember). I remember the beautiful music that they played during the ceremony. I also remember running out of gas and walking home that night. I haven't run out of gas since.

Finally, at age eleven I began to listen to a weekly radio broadcast featuring the top selling music recordings.

It's interesting how experiences from our childhood live on in our memories. Even if those experiences didn't seem all that shocking or important at the time, they can add dimension to our lives and shape who we are in subtle and not so subtle ways.

If You Don't Approve of Abortion

I you don't approve of abortion, don't have one.

If you don't want other people to have abortions, open your house and get ready to adopt a couple of hundred children.

In your spare time, if you have any, you can calculate how the planet is going to support 20, 30, 50, and then 100 billion concurrent inhabitants. I would love to see the proposal.

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Pull Yourself Up

At a difficult time in my life when I had no assets, dim prospects, and serious questions about my own potential, I heard someone say this:

"Sometimes you need to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps."

It wasn't the first time that I had heard this well-known idea, but it was the first time that it made me angry. I was angry because I understood what the message really meant and how it applied to my own life and my own failures.

As I regained my composure, I pictured how difficult it would be to do what was being suggested, to physically pull oneself up by the shoes. This image provided a sobering metaphor for the demands of real improvement.

Change Is Difficult

In order to climb to a higher level - or as in my case to pull myself out of a big hole - we must expect to work hard. And don't be surprised if we don't make much progress, especially in the beginning.

To move ahead, be prepared to struggle. But realize that struggle also has a bright side. As we toil and overcome challenge after challenge, we become stronger. We become smarter. We become more capable. As time passes, we'll be able to take on bigger and bigger challenges and accomplish impressive results. Keep struggling. Keep working, and progress will come in its own time.

Taking Responsibility

Change requires personal responsibility. It's not enough to have someone else elevate us to a new level. We might spend some time enjoying our new heights, but eventually, we'll slip back down to where we started.

But when we raise ourselves through our own efforts, the strength and skills and knowledge that we gain stay with us. When we build our own foundation of competence, we needn't to rely on other to elevate us articially. We make our own fortunes. We reap our own destiny.

The Effort

Yes, I was angry that day, but I didn't direct my anger at the speaker who mentioned the idea. I recognized that I was angry at myself for wasting opportunities and for putting myself in a position of weakness. I felt a sudden realization of desperation. But I also saw a path that could lead to bigger and better things. I chose to take that path. I chose to pull myself up even if it meant facing difficult challenges again and again.

From time to time, most of us need a wake-up call. How we respond to that call makes all the difference. We can curse our misfortunes or we can rise to the challenge and do something about them. Doing so won't be easy, but the effort will lead to a better place.

Friday, July 24, 2015

The American Firearm Crisis

In the United States, almost anyone can buy a gun. This includes some of the worst human scum imaginable - paranoids, xenophobes, abusers, racists, members of hate groups and criminal gangs. Provocative radio, television, and Internet commentary stirs up their fears and their hatred of humanity, and eventually they blow up and take their outrage out on innocent people in a hail of automatic gunfire. It's like a horror movie that never ends. And yet, no one does anything to fix it.

A Crisis of Rage

To the citizens of Lafayette, LA: Please accept my deepest sympathies and hopes for healing.

To the rest of America: When are we going to recognize untreated rage as a public health epidemic and do something about it?

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Binge Watching

Today's high-speed data networks coupled with on-demand multimedia content have inspired a new phenomenon called binge watching. Binge watching is when viewers watch several episodes of a television show in a short time frame.

Binge watchers have been known to watch an entire season of a television series (or even the complete series in some cases) over the course of a few days.

Binge watching is significant advancement in the realm of human entertainment because, when we endeavor to do something that's a complete waste of time, we can now do it as quickly as possible.

Sunday, July 19, 2015

New York Minute 13 - The Watermelon Run

It was still 88 degrees Fahrenheit at 9:30 pm when I had the idea to run out and buy a watermelon. My usual supermarket was out, but I found some at a second store. On the way back home, I pondered whether I should try to get in a run before I go to bed. The weather is supposed to be even hotter tomorrow.

All of a sudden, a bride and groom appeared before me and jumped into a cab. God bless you, kids! I hope that you'll enjoy your 'hot' night together!

Preoccupation

I feel most comfortable on days when I can devote time to important projects.

I enjoy very much interacting with family and friends. I appreciate all of the love and joy and humor and fulfillment that they bring into my life.

But when I spend too much time away from my work, I become deeply frustrated. Instead of enjoying the conversation or our pleasant moments together, I obsess over the status of things that need to be done.

I won't claim that I am happier when I'm working. Being with friends is a lot more fun. Work is hard, and though there are breakthrough moments when it can seem exciting, but most of the time it's tedious and demanding. Yet, I'm driven to do it.

If I decline an invitation to a dinner or another social event, it's not that I wouldn't like to go. I'm certain that I would enjoy it if I didn't have other demands weighing on my mind. Unfortunately, I find it difficult to relax unless that I'm on scheduled to meet my objectives. I apologize in advance if that sounds harsh or ungrateful. That's just the way that I'm wired.

Friday, July 17, 2015

The Problem With No Iron Shirts

When your "no iron" shirt comes out of the laundry wrinkled, what do you do with it? I tried not ironing it, but the wrinkles are still there.

Saturday, July 11, 2015

Saturday Is A Special Day

It's Saturday, time to work on the important things.

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

So Long, Un-American Ingrates!

To any state that no longer wants to be part of the USA: Go! Get the fuck out! The country will be better off without your stupid voters and your backward policies. Piss off! Feel free to return to the Dark Ages if that makes you feel better. Just don't come looking for a handout from your ex Uncle Sam when you run into a crisis. Because we officially no longer give a shit.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Born Losers

Let's all pay tribute to President George W. Bush on his birthday. Without Dubya's leadership in times of trouble, we wouldn't have ISIS today. Halliburton would be $35 billion poorer. And 4,491 American service people and a couple hundred thousand Iraqi citizens would still be alive.

Congratulations on a life well wasted, George! Let us always remember your example in a purely cautionary sense. Oh, and Cosby's an asshole, too.

Monday, July 6, 2015

New York Minute 12 - Genie on a Corner

I swear that this really happened today. I was standing at the corner, waiting for the light to change so I could go to the Starbucks across the street. The guy waiting to cross in the opposite direction looked like Wesley Snipes, and he was wearing white satin MC Hammer-style genie pants.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Current Events 4 July 2015

The following items have been in the news in the past few weeks.

- The US Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act and ruled to make gay marriage legal in all fifty states.

- Two prisoners who escaped from a prison in Upstate New York were apprehended (one was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents).

- The cold-blooded murder of nine people in a Black church in Columbia, South Carolina by a White Supremicist started a movement calling for the removal of the Confederate flag from state government buildings in some Southern states. Many retailers voluntarily stopped selling the flags.

- A series of deadly, ISIS-sponsored terror attacks has occurred in France, Kuwait, Tunisia, and Egypt.

- Financial markets tumbled after Greece defaulted on its loan from the International Monetary Fund.

Thoughts For The Day

Think back over all that you've accomplished.

Think ahead toward all that's left to do.

Think carefully and clearly about where you are and what has brought you here to this unique moment.

And then appreciate that moment. Experience it fully and enjoy it with all of your heart.

South Of Someplace