South Of Someplace

Thursday, October 27, 2016

The Way You See Yourself

If the world doesn't see you the way that you see yourself, maybe the world isn't the one who needs to change.

The Best Way To Deal With A Negative World

The best way to deal with a negative world is to be a positive person. This is also the best way to help heal a negative world.

Monday, October 24, 2016

How To Get Things Done

1. Make time even when there isn't much time. If you have five minutes, use it.

2. Always start with something easy.

3. Never push yourself too hard.

4. When the results come in, don't get frustrated. Make adjustments.

5. When all else fails, go back to steps 1 and 2.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Life is going well. I'm doing many of the right things, making progress on rewarding projects, spending time with imspiring people. My career is going well at the moment. Things are great at home. Everyone in the family is healthy, and my own health got a nice boost courtesy of recent dietary changes.

Nevertheless, I am sensing some frustration that can't be explained away easily. I was ready to blame this on stress or the political climate, but I suspect that the cause goes deeper.

It's a good idea to recalibrate our lives and our objectives from time to time. No one is immune to inertia. When our lives and actions become routine, our direction follow a pre-programmed path. It's important to review that path in order to verify that they are still heading in the right direction. Our needs change over time; what was important years ago might need to be trimmed back to make time for new pursuits and objectives.

We feel tension when our actions don't match our desires. Our internal guidance system experiences confusion. It's as though we are driving down a busy avenue with traffic lights that show green and red at the same time. We hesitate. We don't know what to do. We fear the consequences of driving forward. Recalibration helps is get back on track. Not all of the lights will be green, but at least they'll all be giving the same indication at the same time.

Over the coming weeks, I'll be doing some reflecting in this area. I have come up with a series of questions to help guide that reflection, though I'll no doubt think of more along the way. Here are some of the key ideas.

- What things can I do in the coming year that will bring me the most satisfaction? I can focus this question on specific roles. What would be most satisfying to me as a photographer, for instance? As a composer? What would inspire the most satisfaction in my personal life? In my spiritual and intellectual development?

- What do I want to accomplish - as a composer, writer, photographer, dancer, etc?

- What would I most enjoy learning? What things would I enjoy being able to do in a year that I cannot do today?

- What are my health and exercise targets? How can I work consistently toward those goals while enjoying the process from week to week?

- Where would I like to spend my weekends and my vacation time? Which favorite places would I like to visit again? What would I like to see for the very first time?

- I have limited time to spend with my family. How can we spend our time together so it's most enjoyable for everyone? What types of things would we like to do together, and what plans should we be making now?

Questions like this can help guide our thoughts, but the process works best when we avoid the urge to rush to an answer. Think about the question. Ponder it for a few days. See what ideas come to mind when you're not really paying attention. After some time, you can do some brainstorming. But it's best to give your mind (and your heart) a chance to work out the responses.

Recalibration is critical. Socrates said that "the unexamined life is not worth living." Reflect a bit each day, but never push for an answer. The answers will arrive in their own time like vegetables from a garden. The peas are ready before the corn, and the corn before the squash.

If we gain insights within a few days, that's terrific. If it takes longer, a month or more, that's fine, too. Not every problem can be solved in a day. Ideas will mature in their own time. We simply have to ask and be patient.

Favorite Films: Easy Rider

By the mid 1960's, a powerful countercultural movement emerged in the post-war baby boomer generation. Inspired by the Civil Rights movement and restless 1950's iconoclasts like Lenny Bruce, Jack Kerouac, and J.D. Salinger, the counterculture challenged a wide array of societal norms and conventions such as the role of women and minorities in society and the use of the military draft for the prosecution of foreign wars.

The counterculture ambitiously championed a number of smaller movements including environmentalism, the Women's Movement, the sexual revolution, desegregation, a push to lower the voting age to 18 (formerly 21), and fierce opposition to military action in Southeast Asia.

These were radical changes, and change always meets opposition. Many people staunchly defended the traditional values of the Establishment. Clashes between the two camps were sometimes violent as was witnessed at 1968's Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

The counterculture rose to prominence in parallel with the popularity of rock music. The 1968 film Easy Rider broke new ground by portraying counterculture idealsm - and the opposition that it meets - against a soundtrack of driving rock music.

New York Minute 39 - Sukkos Holiday

Sukkos differs from other Jewish holidays in that it seems to include an active public outreach component. Young orthodox men stand on street corners holding the long, green leaf of some exotic plant in their hands. They approach people as they pass by (men only, I believe) and ask them if they're Jewish. I get asked every year, and I don't look Jewish at all.

I kindly decline, and before I finish my well-practiced reply of "No, I'm sorry!" they have already turned away in search of their next invitee.

The thing that strikes me is that the guys are always young, unmarried (no beard), and extremely awkward-looking. The kid who approached me this year (he was probably about eighteen) had glasses, braces, and a face full of pimples. I'm guessing that this greet-on-the-street custom must be a right of passage of some sort. If the kid makes enough connection, his position in their social hierarchy is elevate and, who knows, maybe he gets to hang out with the cool kids.

I do feel badly for these poor fellows. My heart has a tender spot for socially awkward people, for those unaccepted outsiders who experience volumes of pain and rejection during adolescence. But the fact is that I'm not Jewish, and quite frankly, that leaf thing seems just a little too weird for comfort.

Help me out here, guys. Meet me halfway. Next year, maybe bring along some Girl Scout cookies. I'll buy a box.

Someone You Used To Know

Have you ever done an Internet search on someone that you used to know just to see what they look like now? And then your mind thought: "Whoa! Dodged a bullet that time! Yow!"

Friday, October 21, 2016

New York Minute 38 - No Regrets

Walking into the office this morning, I passed a young woman wearing a gray T-shirt imprinted with the phrase: "Je ne regrette rien", French for "I regret nothing."

What an unexpected treasure! That one small thought lifted my spirits mightily after a tough week. Yes, everything really is going to be okay. :-)

Thursday, October 20, 2016

What Day Is This?

Oh, good grief, Charlie Brown! I just tried to schedule a meeting and wondered why the calendar was showing Thursday. I went through the entire day thinking that this was Wednesday!

I took Monday off, and now I'm all mixed up! TOO MUCH STRESS!! GOING NUTS! Aaaaaaaaaaah!

Women

Women are
So beautiful
So capable
So insightful
So wise
So passionate
So appreciative
So caring
So kind
So creative
So expressive
So supportive
So devoted
So courageous
So resilient
So alluring
So deliriously fun!
Women are
So special
So amazing in every way
Every single one of them!