Earlier this month we crossed a milestone of sorts. You’ve officially reached old when a defining (albeit possibly shallow) moment in history passes it 20th Anniversary. For those of a certain age, that moment was a Tuesday in an otherwise unremarkable spring that caused a cultural wave to come crashing down around a generation that was still struggling not just to define itself but determine if it even cared enough to try. Continue reading “The brain splatterings of a generation”
Children M.I.A.
It’s August. Summer has been in full swing for 2 months now. The school year is rapidly creeping up as the heat peaks and the days grow just slightly shorter with each sunset. So where are all the children? Continue reading “Children M.I.A.”
What’s with the birthday brouhaha?
I’ve never really understood the seemingly psychotic obsession with birthdays and aging. After all, it is something that will occur regardless of what you do. You will get older. A date on the calendar that marks your entrance into the world will pass every 365 days. So what’s the big deal? Continue reading “What’s with the birthday brouhaha?”
Look a squirrel!
About 5 years ago I was formally diagnosed with ADHD. I didn’t go in to the dr. complaining about an attention deficit or any obvious signs of hyperactivity. I had finally decided to do something about a sleep problem that had plagued me since childhood and came out an hour later with a shiny new disorder I could call my own. Yay me!
Continue reading “Look a squirrel!”
Visions of Kerouac
“The Road is Life” – Jack Kerouac
As a young man I became infatuated with Jack Kerouac. I know it is a hipster standard to claim that On the Road changed your life and that everyone dreams of backpacking across America. The book didn’t change my life because it was the life I had already lived for a very long time. My father joined the U.S. Army the year I was born. I never lived in one place for more than 3 years growing up. By the time I read On The Road I had already been to more states and countries than Kerouac. Yet, while I had traveled, I hadn’t traveled and experienced the world the way Kerouac had.
At the age of 14 my experience with “seeing the world” had been mostly dictated by my parents and the government. Living in Europe at an age I barely remember. My view of the United States obstructed by a backseat child-safety window on our trips to visit family for vacation (most folks in the military don’t go on vacation as much as they go home to visit their relatives). As far as I was concerned the United States was farm land dotted with the occasional oasis of gas stations and truck stops which were really just for relieving yourself and refilling petroleum or soda. So while the idea of traveling was nothing new to me this odd thing that Kerouac described seemed so exotic and alluring. At my naive age I was determined to get out of high school as quickly as possible and embark not to college but on my journey. An epic journey. A journey worthy of the great American novel I would write. Then I decided to join the Army.
Day Zero
The first post. So full of promise. So full of space. So full of the potential. Literally a blank slate.
Do I try to be profound? The internet is full of failed philosophers, poets, and pundits.
Do I introduce myself? Well, that’s what the About page is for, right?
Look, there are people out there that will tell you the personal blog is dead. That in the age of Social Media your blog should fill a need or a niche. My only problem is that I don’t live in a niche and I’m not really sure that there is a need to fill other than my own desire to write, record, document, and share. I don’t plan to monetize. I’m not trying to make a living by blogging. So in essence what you have here is quite simply an old fashioned 1995 style personal blog.
I’m an eclectic person with a variety of interest, ideas, thoughts, opinions, faults, failings, successes, experiences, goals, achievements, and desires. Chances are you’re likely the same. You can’t be pigeon holed and no one facet of your life defines you so totally that you can center an entire blog around it. If you are then I applaud your ability to be so singularly focused. The world is far too vast and complex for me.
What I offer here is nothing more than the random thoughts of a man in the world. While not profound, hopefully unique. A person living life on the planet earth with a couple billion others. Playing with my existence and inviting you to peer in from time to time.
This is the first post. Welcome to my world.
Undeservedly Lucky 