Monday Musings...







So, the "Pre-Launch" list went something like this:
Soda - check.
Sandwich - check.
Apple sauce - check.
Napkin/utensils - check.
Slice of birthday cake - check.
Houston...we have ignition...we have LIFT-OFF!
Well, that got the missus all set as she headed off to her first day back to school to educate the next group of the future of America.
With less class time in this "new" scheduling (the system is constantly changing things to better the test scores...how's about you all go BACK to the way WE were taught, hmm?) her "address" to the kids will be a bit abbreviated.
If it were ME, I'd sum it up in one sentence:
"Pay attention and learn everything so you can pass...or die." ROFLMAO
...Nah, 'ya can't say THAT to kids...not when they've got cellphones melded to their ears, or they're glued to the xBox playing GRAND THEFT AUTO 4 for weeks on end.
(they might take you LITERALLY, and will open up a maelstrom of lawsuits)
Off they go now to the various bus stops, looking every bit the mini-thugs and prostitots they wish to be viewed as.
Dress codes?
Ain't gonna happen any time soon (unfortunately).
Skin-tight pants (read leggings), baggy shorts (that come down past the knees), over sized t-shirts and clinging camisole tops with the latest athletic shoes for the guys (fancy-ass sneakers) and heels for the (ahem) "ladies"...
THAT'S how kids dress when being educated.
THAT is what they'll STILL be wearing after leaving school and becoming "adults" (rolls eyes).
Sometimes, it's enough to make your head explode.
And the school systems (and some parents) wonder WHY the kids aren't learning as they should...amazing.
When school becomes more of an adjunct to "life outside of school" instead of the quasi-formal bastion of education it's INTENDED to be, what do you expect anyway?
Someday...they'll ALL figure it the hell out...but not today.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch...
I am now "officially" in my 58th year on this old rock. Seems just like my 57th year, come to think of it...LOL.
And Wifey and I enjoyed the cake (that she decorated), the Chinese food (since I can't get cheesesteaks or hoagies here), and I had my Guinness while she had her wine cooler...a nice time was had by both of us...the way it SHOULD be.
Actually, this is a special time in MY life.
I am now venturing into what many would call "unknown waters", (Here there be dragons, as the old-world explorers used to say) in that I am the first male of my part of the family tree in THREE generations to enter his FIFTY-EIGHTH YEAR of life! To some, that's not a big deal...for me, it is.
My grandfather passed at age 57, as did my father...weird, huh?
Ever since I hit 50, I had this Sword of Damocles hanging over my head...I still have it, but at least I know it's well-secured and won't fall...(for the time being, anyway). I always wondered if I would break this "curse"...
So far (crosses fingers, toes, AND eyes)...so good.
It's not an easy thing to live with, especially when you still smoke (yeah, nasty habit, but I have so few...I needed something).
I mean, passing from "natural causes" (or terminal disease) is one thing, trying to avoid the pitfalls caused by others in life is quite another.
Been one helluva "juggling act", I must say.
I do know that I could have been dead a few times in the past...placed a REAL strain on the old Guardian Angel, as well as tapping into the barrel of SAINTS available from the "talent-pool". I've kept THE "Boss" (points upwards) pretty busy, but I suppose He's not finished with me just yet.
That's good to know, because I don't believe I'm just meant to take that long dirt nap..
Now at this point, you tend to get really "deep" in thought...AND action.
Why, just this morning in the paper was a story about a Georgia Institute of Technology "study" that proves that as people get older...they develop WISDOM...
(gee, 'ya think?)
We also tend to value the time we have...and appreciate a lot more of those "little things" in life (like gardens along with those hummingbirds, bunnies and squirrels that stop by to snack on the patio).
We value the friendships we've made, and develop lower tolerances for those things we know to be WRONG in life.
We've been around the block a few times, learned by trial and error, and hopefully gleaned the good, cast off the bad, and pursued that which we know to be better than what we're often made to settle for in life.
And, in spite of the manner of "existence" I find myself in down here in the crotch of Fort Wayne (aka the ghettohood), I will continue to endeavor to LIVE my life instead of merely "going through the motions".
Now it may be limited in nature (as I do have to keep a watchful eye on the locals...as they obviously do with me), and a bit smaller in scope than I would like to have, but I will do what I need to do, in order to assure my peace of mind.
If that rubs some of the people down HERE the wrong way...I'll tell 'em ALL straight up: "Tough sh*t...it's gonna suck to be you from now on."
This is my life...and a damn fine gift it's been so far...and continues to be.
I will keep trying my best to do what is RIGHT...and not necessarily what is "popular".
I firmly believe that to do less...or worse, nothing...diminishes this gift we call life in ways I can't even imagine.
(and I can imagine quite a lot after all these years)
But to do SOMETHING...ANYTHING that allows one's life to be a testament, not in perfection, for we are all flawed, but rather in perseverance...in tenacity...and in fortitude, becomes a marvelous challenge.
"Something worth having is worth working for, and if it's worth having, it's worth keeping."
Dad used to tell me that over and over as I was growing up.
Seems he was onto something there
He knew that working toward something and then getting it didn't mean the END to that working...
You had to keep working to sustain it...to keep from losing it.
Life is like that...a work in progress.
And it IS something to hold fast to...as long as you're able to draw a breath, and are willing.
Therein lies the lesson for today.
Have yourselves a great week.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay safe out there, America.