Random Thoughts- Do They Have Meaning?

The Week Is Over- Sort Of

Don't read this post unless you are prepared to embark on an experience like no other. It is not an exaggeration or hyperbole to say so, really it is not. Hell the damn Bloggess can write about a Bloody Horse so why can't I write the greatest post you have never read. So take a moment to listen to the words found below. I'll wait.

Are you done listening yet? It doesn't matter because time doesn't wait for anyone and Jack has to use the damn bathroom so he is typing furiously and talking about himself in the third person. Two days later and my mouth finally stopped aching from the visit to the dentist.

So happy to know that I get to go back next week to find out if I am going to have a root canal. Never had one of those and would prefer not to. It sounds about as enjoyable as allowing the doc to shove a camera up my butt so that he can confirm that the G.I. system is working properly.

Well, that damn G.I. system is not working the way that it should and it sucks. Unless of course you need a man who can be rented out a weapon of mass destruction. There, I just created a new position for myself. I am going to head over to Afghanistan with three quarts of chocolate milk and six pounds of Taco Bell. In less than an hour I'll have that Taliban running for the border or lying upon the ground incapacitated and begging for help.

Was that TMI? I sure hope not because I am just getting warmed up. Because the best part of engaging in that sort of horrific gastronomic experience is knowing that after it is all said and done I will be 27.8 pounds lighter. Damn, I ought to find out when my next high school reunion is and give myself the same treatment.

Of course it won't matter that my waist will suddenly allow me to fit into my 1985 pair of 501s because the damn hairline won't keep up. I have mixed emotions about that. I wore a flat top throughout the majority of high school. I loved my hair that way. I was a swimmer so I really didn't want much to begin with and even better was knowing that it was the perfect sleep and wear style.

I could roll out of my bed run two fingers through it and I was good to go for the rest of the day.

Tomorrow I get to play soccer coach again. Most of the time I really enjoy it. I like giving back and coaching is an easy way to do it. But some of these parents need a heavy dose of reality kicking them in the ass. They have this misconception that their little Johnny is going to be good enough to play pro ball. It would be great if their opinion was based upon a realistic appraisal of their child's skills but it doesn't look like it now.

I have a simple philosophy. Have fun and play hard. I want the kids to learn and improve but you don't bring them to AYSO to make them in to soccer stars. So grow up, get a life and stop making the kids miserable with unrealistic expectations. And remember I haven't any problem telling you stop acting like a douchebag so please don't.

Well my friends my kids are finally home so it is time for old Jack to sign off and go play with them. Be well, have fun and I'll check back in with you a bit later....maybe.

For Your Reading Pleasure

And your blast from the past:

Triage For a Goldfish- Resuscitating The Fish
Traveling Jack's Sideshow Extravaganza

Does size matter?

via youtube.com

Posted via email from thejackb's posterous

Friday Morning Music

Here is a partial list of what we are listening to this morning:

Helter Skelter- The Beatles
I Can't Stop Loving You- Ray Charles
And So It Goes- Billy Joel
Why Should I Care- Diana Krall
Somewhere Down The Road- Barry Manilow
Girls, Girls, Girls- Motley Crue
Your Time Is Gonna Come- Led Zeppelin
Bright Side of The Road- Van Morrison
I Drove All Night- Roy Orbison
Fanfare For The Common Man- Copland
Life Without You- Stevie Ray Vaughn
Nobody- The Doobie Brothers
Stuck In The Middle With You- The Jeff Healey Band
The Battle of Evermore- Led Zeppelin
Going To California- Led Zeppelin
Superman- R.E.M.
Isn't Life Strange- The Moody Blues
Don't Pass Me By- The Beatles
Training Montage- Vince Di Cola (Rocky IV)
It Was A Very Good Year- Ray Charles/Willie Nelson
Running Down A Dream- Tom Petty
Cuyahoga- R.E.M.

A Life Worth Living

Who Knew that Dad Bloggers were musicians.

"When I was young and moving fast
Nothing slowed me down, slowed me down
Now I let the others pass
I've come around, come around

Living just to keep going
Going just to stay sane
All the while never knowing
It's such a shame

I don't need to get steady
I know just how I feel
I'm telling you to get ready
My dear"
Tighten Up- The Black Keys

I love those lyrics, they speak to me,call out to me. I hear the bell ringing and am reminded of the quest that I set out upon all those years ago. I listen to the words and hear hints of the truth of the life that I wish to live. Life isn't meant to be accepted- it is meant to be lived and loved. I look at the words and I think of Thomas Edison's comment, "Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something."

That is how I want to live, how I need to live. To live, love and learn. Emerson was right when he said that "Most of the shadows of this life are caused by our standing in our own sunshine."I Am My Own Worst Enemy and my biggest critic.

It is funny to me to think about how much I have come to appreciate Emerson. The first time I read his essay on Self Reliance was in 9th grade and I disliked it, but now it calls to me in so many ways. I remember it because one line stuck with the rebellious teen that I once was "No law can be sacred to me but that of my nature."

I liked it because I was a kid trying to find myself and my place in the world. Now I am a man doing the same thing, but in a slightly different way. I understand things about myself in ways that I couldn't before. I kid around about being As Good As I Once Was. I complain about my body not responding at it used to, but at the same time I am well aware that in many ways I am better than I ever was.

At the gym I have these exceptional workouts- they aren't long but they are intense and I love the results. I see cuts and ripples that had disappeared. The physical changes help to promote and push the mental/emotional side. There are changes taking place here, big life altering moves that will change everything.

"He felt that his whole life was some kind of dream and he sometimes wondered whose it was and whether they were enjoying it."

Douglas Adams

I love that quote. There is so much truth to it. At times my life seems to be more than absurd. I look outside the window and wonder if the universe is trying to push me in certain directions and then I say screw it and go back to steering the ship- or trying to .

If you ask me to tell you what my life will look like in a year I'll tell you that I really don't know. I have my ideas but who knows what can happen. Within the last 18 months 5 contemporaries of mine have died. Four parents and one single man- all my age- all gone. Our grip on this world is tenuous and while I kid around about having hands like a gorilla I am aware of my mortality.

So I look back in the blog and see posts like Triage For a Goldfish- Resuscitating The Fish and smile. I smile because it is a great story and I remember the little boy from the story. I wander through the pages here and remember the tales of flying to Dallas and quotes that inspire me.

I look at this joint and it is all too apparent that I need to shake things up. Things have to change- I have to live a life that sucks the marrow out of the bone. I have to do more than I am doing and devote more energy to chasing my dreams.

When it is all said and done I want my kids to see that dad lived a life worth living. Somewhere I will find the balance between dreams, work and responsibility that I seek. This can't be all that there is. It is simply unacceptable.

I have a lot more to say about this, but sleep calls to me. See you in the a.m.

A Better Way To Commute- The Human Monorail

The Shweeb is one of the interesting and intriguing solutions to commuting that I have seen which probably explains why Google invested in it. I'll let you decide as to whether it is coincidental that the Zorb is in New Zealand too.

It is an interesting concept and something that I think is worth exploring. I can see health benefits tied into it.
And as always we try to include a list of past posts that contained useful information: