Grandfather Clock Face Waters building EXPLORE 4-8-08 2828

I feel like I’m just right pretty much all the time. I have noticed that sometimes I forget things and I lament that fact regularly. The forgetfulness isn’t a sign of a problem, it’s just the normal absent-mindedness that comes at odd times during the day, such as walking into a room and forgetting why you did that.

While I don’t feel that there is any real differences in how I perceive myself I have to admit that as the years roll by I am getting more mature. It’s a progressive process, I felt I was mature when I was 21, then more when I was 25, and even more when I was 30. At each stage I could swear that I had maxed out on my development and then five years later I look back and marvel at how stupid I really was. This has happened a lot in my life so I just assume I’m perpetually stupid but I’m asymptotically getting better. Perhaps maturity has more to do with Zeno’s Paradox than any of us really know. 🙂

Sunset balloon flight

I feel like the answer really has more to do with which direction the largest body of water is oriented to my current position. In this case it would have to be sunset because Lake Michigan is to my west. Both are equally as important to witness so that you remain tethered to the real world and get to appreciate some of the inherent beauty in the world that is effortlessly free.

As for where to watch the sunset? I imagine if there was a lakeside gazebo or dining area that would be perfect. Sitting in a comfortable chair, eating delicious food and enjoying a great bottle of wine. Preferably there would be some perfectly placed clouds on the horizon so that the overwhelming brilliance of the sun won’t blind you. Then you can sit back and enjoy looking directly at it as it drops “into the water”.

Then after the sun is down, which is the first real treat, you really have to stay to watch the sky slip into gradual darkness. If you really wanted it utterly perfect there wouldn’t be any light pollution, the sky would be crisp and clear and the perfect capstone would be a meteor storm as well as a nice thick belt of Aurora Borealis. That would be breathtaking. The sunset, the meteors streaking through the sky, and the Aurora playing in the darkness.

Little Miss Chatterbox

I’d teach common sense. I’d teach practical knowledge and getting out of the classroom and into the real world is the most important thing anyone can do. I’d teach a lesson on “Fake It Until You Make It” and watch as people are thrown into the deep end and are forced to either sink or swim. I live with and work with people, in general, who *should* have a passion for learning and expanding themselves, bettering themselves. People who should welcome change with open arms and if something seems logical and right and worthwhile, to embrace it fully. I say *should* because for a great number of them, they are just like everyone else. They are change averse, they have worn a procedural rut into the ground and following it day in and day out is easy and simple and doesn’t require much energy beyond the basics.

I’ve found that time and time again I’m wishing that people would be open to classes like “Common Sense 101” and “Common Courtesy 101” especially in the workplace. There are certain things you do not do, certain behaviors you identify in yourself and then endeavor to change for the greater good. Sometimes it’s important to sacrifice a measure of pride, or a measure of willpower to make investments in other people so that you can come to depend on the relationship somewhere down the pike. It’s also vitally important to own when you’ve done something foolish, make amends and never do it again. In many regards a lot of this comes down to raw communication.

Perhaps the classes I should be teaching are “Communications for Information Technology Professionals 101”. 🙂

Valentine dance, school

I do enjoy dancing. I do it when I’m very intoxicated and almost always on my own. With other people I’m absolutely mortified and couldn’t / wouldn’t dance. I’ve been known to resist so much that I’ve dislocated the shoulders of people who thought all that was necessary for me to enjoy dancing was being pulled up onto a dance floor.

So yes, sometimes the music does move me, but it never moves me enough to be seen by other people. Remember that No means No, unless you have a fondness for dislocated shoulders.

Paris Exposition: Eiffel Tower and Celestial Globe, Paris, France, 1900

I can only truly speak English. I can muddle about with French and I can understand only a basic amount of German. I keep on having this fantasy that I’ll have enough money to plunk down on Rosetta and really learn French well, but then it struck me that even if I were to somehow acquire French as a true language, how would I use it? The nearest native French speakers are in Quebec or Montreal, cities very far away. I would love the idea that we could revisit Paris again and put my French to very good use, but I can’t justify a trip to Grand Rapids for fuel costs, how can I justify a trip to Paris?

If there was a language I would be proud to learn it would definitely be French. I feel very confident that my rudimentary French knowledge could serve me well, especially if I picked up something as supposedly advanced as a Rosetta training disc.

Instead of saying no, I’ll just state that it’s unlikely and leave it at that.

Looking into the past

I question the whole notion of a ‘broken relationship’. Some people are meant to be in your lives, some not. If a relationship has ‘broken’ I see it more that it has ‘expired’ and it’s best that everyone involved not try to muck about with things and try to force the world to their designs – it never goes well.

I think it’s much more apt to think on these broken relationships and ask why did they break? Was it because your interests have changed? Was it something in your stars? Whatever it is, accepting what happens is the first step in not being trapped in the past.

There is a part of me that considers the past to be dumb. Not in the “stupid” sense, but rather in the “dull” sense. There is nothing the past can do other than provide a lesson, once you’ve learned the lesson it’s good enough to simply let the past drop away. You can’t change any of it, you can’t go back and do it any differently so fretting over it is just an exercise in wasting time and energy.

So I say let sleeping dogs lie, let the broken relationships fade away. Learn your lessons, move on with your life. Don’t dwell, it’s not good for you.

Toronto Sunset

I love the road to Toronto, Ontario. It’s a long and grueling path, especially from Michigan but that feeling that I get when I can see the CN Tower on the horizon and pass into the environs of Toronto gives me goosebumps. My favorite city on Earth is actually a tie between Toronto and Paris. In this case we’ll just go with Toronto. There is something fundamentally awesome and undeniable about the place. I love the architecture, the people, and all of my memories of the city are the ones I treasure. If ever I were to leave the United States, I would leave it for Toronto. I find nearly everything about the road, and the time spent in the province of Ontario to be pleasant, even the Ontario Provincial Police are exempted from my overwhelming disgust of police in general and perhaps it’s based on my experiences, but I would trust an OPP police officer completely, while any other cop, especially the corrupt pig-monsters in the United States, not a jot.

In many ways this question is less about the actual drive than it is about the destinations. Hmmm…

Shiva in Santuary of Truth (Explore)

I absolutely would. It would be a wonderful insight into the unvarnished truth that is floating around in other people’s heads. I would have a laptop with me so I could write down all the things I heard as people went through their day. I’d spend special time savoring their lies and writing about the whos and the whys. It would make a wonderful read. I would absolutely love to dwell either in Lansing or Washington and expose those creatures to the light of truth and watch what unfolds. I would pay special attention to those politicians who are living in the closet and I would out them. Much like tearing off a bandage, if you do it aggressively and fast, it minimizes the pain and is better for everyone.