12/21
Just a reminder to myself.
I wasn't going to say anything about Sept 11th. What hasn't already been said, really? I wasn't planning (and still am not) to watch the memorial services on television. I have nothing but respect for the dead and for the past, but I don't feel a pressing need to relive it year after year. However, I glanced at Twitter this morning and it was full of Sept 11th posts and it got me thinking.
It's a beautiful day today. Really like any other ... it's September so it's that strange time of year when the weather isn't quite sure if it should be a cool day or a warm day. Today happens to be warm ... maybe 70 or so ... no humidity ... no clouds ... just a peaceful, sunny day. It's a Sunday and it's 10 in the morning so it's quiet ... people are sleeping in or off at church and everything seems alright with the world.
And in many ways, having no personal connection to the tragedy that occurred in New York a decade before ... life isn't really that different. Oh, it's more inconvenient to go to the airport (and I will not be debating the effectivness of the TSA today, thank you) ... but in a real day to day sense things have carried on, at least for me.
I suppose that's my thought today ... how even though everything changed, everything is in many ways still the same. It's been a decade since that Tuesday morning. I was home sleeping and got up to check my email to find a note from my professor that class had been cancelled due to the tragedy in New York, and when I tried to go to MSNBC to see what was going on I couldn't reach the website. I couldn't reach CNN either so I turned on the television to watch as the South Tower collapsed. But here I sit, ten years later, and at this very moment I can hear a jet aircraft passing over my head and I take note of a peaceful Sunday morning without a sense of fear at the sound. There's a message there, I think. One that is no less important though it seems to be overlooked.
I've been to the World Trade Center when it was still a brimming workplace full of people. I intend to go to the memorial at some point and I'm sure I'll be full of reflective thoughts like everyone else, but today in this moment I just hope that for those who were affected much more directly than I was that they have managed to gain a measure of the peace that this morning holds for me.
I'm in a strangely good mood today.
Strange in that I can think of several reasons for it to be a normal day or, even a bit of a down day, but it's not, instead it's exactly the opposite. It's so good I keep thinking I wish I could bottle a good day like this and save it for future use.
The dog has developed an annoying habit, after spending a week with my mother, of waking me up at 6:30 ... so I was moving earlier than usual and had Slacker Radio playing while I was in the shower when the song "The Show Goes On" came on. For whatever reason the pop-ish chorus has become stuck in my head to the point that I'm satisfying my inner earworm by letting it play on repeat from YouTube on my iPhone. I've caught myself doing a little chair dance and grinning and I have no good reason why, but I'm just going to roll with it and enjoy it.
Perhaps it's the fact that when I drove to work this morning with the windows down I noticed Illinois had that saltwater smell I associate with Clearwater, FL.
Perhaps it's just a weird side effect of being up early, or maybe I've had too much coffee.
Maybe it's just the song running on repeat in the back of my mind ...
Alright, already the show goes on
Alright, till the morning we dream so long
Anybody ever wonder, when they would see the sun up
Just remember when you come up
The show goes on!
Alright, already the show goes on
Alright, till the morning we dream so long
Anybody ever wonder, when they would see the sun up
Just remember when you come up
The show goes on!
It's a good Post Secret week this week. Just liked a few of the cards and wanted to remember them.
I've stumbled upon a new blog called Ask The Pilot over on Salon.com that I've been enjoying lately. I find the fellow's writing style to be pretty amusing and I agree with many, though not all of his points. If you're interested, I'd recommend reading a few of the "classic columns" (there's a section on the right side of the page a bit down from the top that holds them) as a place to get started.
Anyway, today's post was a snippet post with several little bits to in as opposed to a longer article and I really was amused by this section:
Thespian Security Administration ...
In my opinion, the rudest and most confrontational TSA guards are those at New York's Kennedy International Airport. There is one guy at Kennedy, though, who seems to have a good sense of humor. He gets my coveted Transportation Security Officer of the Month award (my in box welcomes other nominees).
One day I was going through the checkpoint, and I saw that he had assembled a display -- a little altar of sorts -- of confiscated water bottles and soda cans on the floor next to the X-ray machine. When he saw me giving it a look, he smiled. "Well," he said, "if we're going to have security theater, we ought to have some props to go with it."
Several passengers broke out laughing.
They should hire more people like him.
Hmmm ... I liked this post ... and the idea of advice to yourself. So I'm thinking about it ... though it's mostly similar to what he said. Curse other people for getting to my ideas first, sorta! Snipped a bit, but go read the original too.
The important things.
Tell your parents you love them
Tell them as much as possible. Yes, your mum has that annoying habit of calling at the most inconvenient time she can find, and yes, your dad still looks a bit awkward when he gets a kiss from his gay son. Parents get on your nerves; it’s their job, but one day you’ll look at them and see two old people who may not be alive much longer — and it’s terrifying.
Find something you love doing and do it
There’s a saying: “money can’t buy you happiness.” It’s true, but lack of it can make you miserable as well. Well, here’s a newsflash: you can earn money doing what you love without subscribing to a life of poverty; you just have to be creative and work hard. After all, there’s a big difference between having a job you hate and having a career you love.
Enjoy silence
Life is loud. We live in the age of TVs, the internet, smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, iPods, rush hours and work. In a world filled with noise and commotion, learn to appreciate those moments when all is silent. Take ten minutes every day. Switch off your phone and tell the world to do one for a bit.
Learn the difference between strong and hard
Take it from someone who still falls back on the ‘I am an island’ mentality. Islands are lonely. Hard people are usually just very, very frightened, so they’ve made themselves impervious. You see, when something is impervious, it doesn’t need to be strong because it can’t be damaged. Accept your vulnerable side. You’re not weak, you’re just human. We all need a cuddle sometimes.
Fall in love
Love can’t be ‘created’ and it can’t be stopped. Love doesn’t adhere to a schedule or a timetable — it just happens. If you love someone and they feel the same, grab them, hold on to them and never let them go. It’s terrifying, wonderful, exhausting, painful, exhilarating and ridiculous — and it should be experienced whether it ends up hurting you or not.
So apparently tomorrow is the predicted day for the rapture. I wasn't aware until twitter and the Internet began to mock it with Facebook events for post-Rapture lootings. All in all, rather funny, however, there was a tweet about it today which cause my eye. I suppose this isn't exactly a new thought, or even rapture specific if you think about it very much, but the comment was "If this really WAS your last day on earth, what would you do with it?" (thanks to @lilysea for that one). I had an immediate thought as to what I'd want to do. Then a few others trickled in after that first one, but I was kind of surprised at myself at 1) the immediacy with which that first thought came to mind and 2) exactly what it was. I don't think I want to share it, but for anyone who wants a little thought experiment I think it makes a good one. Anything just immediately leap into your mind that if tomorrow really were the end of the world and you knew it was coming, what would you want to do today? Also, does whatever you thought of (assuming you do have an immediate thought) surprise you in any way? I'll give it this ... I thought it was interesting that it involved things that always seem to be put off in an every day sort of way. I suppose the things we'd try and savor one last time before we go are also the things which in some ways we take for granted because we can't imagine being without them, or perhaps they're things we don't do out of a fear of what would life be like if they were taken from us. Anyway, just a moment of reflection ... if something comes to mind and you don't mind sharing I'd love to hear about it, but then I don't really want to share mine with most people so I'd understand if you didn't want to share yours either.
