Happiness, Early in the Morning.

It has been a little over a week since I started my search for happiness. I have made some progress, and ran into some obstacles, but things seem to be improving, I think. One thing is certain. It is possible to be happier just by trying to be happy. A rule that seems so ridiculously easy it can’t be true. But, I think it is.

Conversely, it seems if you think things are going to go poorly they probably will. Which spells trouble for me, I’ve always assumed things were going to fall completely to pieces, “Every new message brings an evil report of armies on the march and time running short,”¹ which always provided a certain amount of relief when things only went poorly, and if things went well it was almost ecstasy. So, I still wrestle with the inevitability of assuming a day, say Monday for example, is going to be a good day, and then having it blow up in my face. What are the odds of that, though?

My life is routine, my job is uneventful, most days my job wouldn’t even notice if I weren’t there, I have trained my job to do itself, I am in fairly good health, there is not much that can go wrong. My life isn’t foolproof, but it is almost on autopilot. My wife takes care of all the finances and most of the decision making. When things go wrong she fixes them, I am just along for the ride. I am the boy in the bubble, or the old man in the full life body cast, you choose.

So, happiness should easy for me. And really it is. I am pretty happy, I am just happy in my own way. There is no need to make a big, flashy display of happiness, flaunting it in the face of all the miserable people who haven’t figured out how to escape without leaving. Poor souls stuck in the present, mired in the day to day struggles of making ends meet, lost in the salt mines of living day to day. People whose lives are bogged down in balancing check books, planning meals, making payments, all the detritus of living in the 21st century.

Maybe I should start giving lessons.

Welcome to the New Life Explained School of Happiness. Tuition is voluntary. We have a lot to cover, so hold on tight. First I am going to get some coffee.

Today’s song of happiness is from an unusual source, Dr. John. Don’t forget to vote in the upcoming poll on Life Explained, the Facebook Page.

1. Caribbean Wind, by Bob Dylan

A Look At Happiness

It has been several days since I have started on my quest for happiness. I’m not really sure how well it is working. I think part of it is perceptional, if you see everything as an affront you will be spend a lot of time being defensive. And nobody likes to play the injured party more than me. A rebel without a reason, I guess. 

In a lot of ways, I suppose it might be my desire to take a stand for something, a Quixotic desire to be something I am probably never going to be. What better way than to see a multi pronged assault at every turn. It is a great way to be a hero without any real danger. Sure, everybody might think you’re a jerk, but who cares, you stood tall in the face of withering adversity. So, I have to put that behind me, and face the fact that I am just another cog in a gear running the machine producing misery or happiness as an incidental by-product.

Albert Schweitzer said “happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory.”  Which makes as much sense as anything. Fortunately my memory is terrible, or wonderful, depending on how you look at it. I remember things that never even happened. So much of my past has been spent running from reality that I’m never really sure what actually happened. Further, I have a very nasty habit of borrowing affectations and mannerisms from people that I’m not always sure who I am. It will probably be a pretty simple switch to start seeing my past as something much rosier, and who knows, maybe it was. And I will start looking for cheerful bits of people I can assimilate, the good bits, the happy, smiling, warm, wonderful parts that have been so annoying and elusive.

Good health is a little more difficult, but I have started going to the gym again. Everyday at work I walk past the elevator and take the stairs, pushing myself a little harder than I used to, my breathing ragged, sweating, heart rate climbing, I race to the next floor. People look at me as if they had never seen a graying, overweight man with a noticeable limp, glasses fogging up, sweat dripping from his chin, making a sound of inhuman sorrow and suffering racing up the stairs like an idiot. Maybe they hadn’t. But, I am willing to set a good example.

I am getting closer, everyday, and I am almost certain it will be worth the effort. Then I will write a book, "How to be Happy, for Dummies." And I am just enough of a dummy to write that book.

Today's Happiness Theme Song is a little different, from a woman whose life ended too soon, and whose voice is as strong as it is beautiful. It may not be all that happy, but it always makes me smile. Don't forget the coming poll on Life Explained Facebook Page

Happiness, Friday and Free Will.

Yesterday we talked about my wife wanting me to try to be happier. It is a noble struggle, an endless chore. It requires a constant state of vigilance. But. I am trying.

This morning when I left for work she said, "it will be a good day." And, I agreed, it's Friday, after all, one of my co-workers is taking the day off, one less person to email, call and hound me all day. The forecast was for happiness, with intermittent slides toward disgust and misery.

As soon as my tires hit the streets the world started screaming at me.

"Stop!"

"No Left Turn!"

"Watch Out For Motorcycles!"

"Vote For Balderson!"

"Vote For O'Conner!"

Yield, speed limit strictly enforced, no parking, no stopping, no loitering, don't even think about it. This was all before I hit the freeway.

Maybe I'm not really even a human, maybe I am a robot, an automaton following lines of code, forced to loop through cycles of repetitive instructions. Until my central processor is so outdated it can no longer function and I am tossed on the trash pile for all of eternity or cast in concrete and recycled as yard art. Sort of a throwback, a little nostalgia for the next generation of mindless drones.

Maybe, I reasoned, or was programmed to think, it might be advantageous. If I had no freewill could I be held responsible for my action? But, when I called the ask an attorney hotline they told me that defense would never hold up in a court of law and told me I should put my other coworkers lunch back in the refrigerator. Too bad, too, it was a delicious looking sandwich with pepperoni and some sort of white cheese with peppers. It would have really made me happy.

I'll find something else. It is Friday, the sun is shining and the coffee is fantastic, and emails are few and far between.

For Today's entry in the Song That Makes me Happy contest is a rock and roll classic from one of coolest bands I have ever listened to; The Del Lords, singing No Waitress No More.

I realize there is a lot of potential for problems when two people meet in such a random, spur of the moment way, and decide to cast their lot together without spending requisite time learning about each other. Still, I love that song, it makes me happy, and it rocks and rolls. Don't forget to vote at Life Explained, Music Poll. It will be live next week sometime as soon as I get tired of writing about things that make me happy.

Happiness, and Hanging On.

My wife wants me to try to be happier. She wants me to see things through a different lens, something a little clearer, not so cloudy. Every morning, when I leave for work she says "today is going to be a good day."

"It will." I reply, hope springs eternal.

If it were anybody except my wife I would be convinced that they were only trying to make me
happier because they know it makes me miserable. Every night my wife would hear about the mean spirited, spiteful, small people who were trying to make me feel better just to hurt me. She would smile and tell me I should try to be happier just to show them they couldn't make suffer by wishing happiness on me, explaining how they would learn better than to wish cheerfulness on me.

My wife and I have a complicated relationship. Despite all of our years together, all of the trials, and difficulties, all of the tears and laughter I really believe she wants me to be happy, just because she loves me and wants me to be happy.

I am trying, too, with mixed success. Emails and phone calls still send shivers down my spine. I try not read between the lines, ignoring the fertile patch of menace growing around the carefully crafted sentences. Thinly veiled threats of violence and anger seething just below the surface. I still know it's there, I just don't look at it. I have become an ostrich, sticking my head in the sand and hoping that everything turns out ok. I ignore the derision and scorn, the mocking, smug superior attitude in every voice mail. The contempt and pettiness are nothing, less than nothing. Ignoring the pompous, elitist, reactionary, fools that make the rules for...

I might need to work a little more on this. It slides in and out of focus, I sometimes lose my grip on a good-natured disposition. But, I am trying.

My wife thinks a theme song might help. I am going to try out several, over the next few days. You will be able to vote on them here;  Life Explained,

Here is the first entry, from one of my favorite frantic, frightening musician turned Member of Parliament, Peter Garrett, and Midnight Oil.

While I realize this is not about being happy it is about never giving up, no matter how difficult things become. And happiness, I am learning is a cruel mistress, kind of like my wife, I guess, but I haven't given up on her, either, and we are pretty happy together.

Smile, You Will be Happy You Did.

Last night a mixed martial artist fought a boxer, in a boxing match. It was wildly anticipated, hyped beyond reason, advertised, talked about, waves of unrelenting publicity crashing across the nation, probably the world. According to reports it was a good fight. I didn't really pay much attention, before or after. It was an interesting mixture, though. Two angry, outsized personalities glaring for weeks. Face to face. Would it kill them to smile? Is that a sign of weakness? 

Musicians are the same, if you look at publicity photos of bands they seem sullen, angry. "I hate being popular and getting my picture taken." Smile, people like your music enough to want to see your picture in an advertisement. Why is smiling so shameful?

When our children were younger we used to go to the local water park or the zoo. It always amazed how angry people looked storming toward their cars. Did they have such a terrible time? I was almost afraid to go in, what horror had visited these poor people? Why were they so mad, stomping across the miles of burning asphalt, dodging the cars driven by angry patrons who had left in the moments prior? My wife said they weren't mad. They were just tired. But, they looked mad. Not talking to each other, not even looking at each other, they could have been strangers, enemies.

I made my family smile as we walked away, sometimes promising the dinner of their choice for a happy demeanor. We were freaks, outcasts, it never caught on.

I do the same with my wife. We go kayaking and we joke and laugh as we tie the boats to the top of the car. I hold her hand to prove despite time preparing to go, the hours of paddling around together, the carrying of boats back to the car we still like each other. It hasn't caught on either. In the words of the Grateful Dead, "nothin' left to do but smile, smile, smile."

"You're not doing that right." Echoes across the parking lot, husband, wives, girl friends, boyfriends, it is like the call of angry, dissolutioned birds. "The strap goes through the slot and over the boat. Don't you ever pay attention?" 

I ask my wife to check if I have the straps straight. "Do they look right?" It may never catch on, but our drive home is pleasant, our time together relaxing, our affection nurtured. And you know what, it makes me happy to make her happy.

Dang, I might be a genius.

Gardening, growing a lawn, and enjoying life

Yesterday I planted grass, kind of. It was a bag of patch that my wife bought. But, it had grass seed mixed in with small bits of recycled pulp of some unknown waste product. So, there is a big, kraft paper colored spot on my lawn where there used to be a brown dirt patch with sparse grasssy outposts. Of course, the tufts of grass are still there. Sticking bravely through could be a chewed up wet box. But, soon, with luck, water and unrelenting hope there will be lush grass. Today I am breaking out another bag, my wife goes a little crazy and working on different parts.

Further, I picked the first cucumbers off the vine. A momentous occasion, normally anything I plant ends up dead. Sometimes it dies as I am putting it in the ground. A screaming, piercing death, a noise unlike any I have ever heard, until I deciced to garden. Once, I went out to found one of our tomato plants had uprooted itself, braided bark into a crude rope, fashioned a noose and hanged itself from the tree. It left a note and said, "sorry, Tim, I know you had hopes this year but sooner or later the axe would fall and the anticipation was killing me."

This year, though, things are different, our tomato plants have reached glorious heights and have produced actual tomatoes. Just small, green balls the size of marbles, or golf balls, all clumped together for safety. Predators are everywhere. It brings me a great deal of pride to know that somehow I haven't managed to kill these wonderful, hearty plants. There is still time, but, I think we are going to get along pretty well.

I've started talking to them, nothing too elaborate. Just pleasantries, mostly. "Hey, how are you guys?" 

"We're good." They will say. "Did you see the weather?" Weather is a big topic among plants. It can get a little irritating, but you have to be gentle, they are more tempermental than the president.

"Cool, dry, comfortable. Can I get you guys a drink?" 

"Please, that would be so nice."  

We talk about the various issues facing the world. They think we need to cut back on green house gasses, and try to stop climate change, most plants feel that way. But, they don't get too pushy, they are pretty happy with some water, a little sunlight, and sometimes they enjoy a little music. They really like the Zombies, "She's not there," really gets their leaves moving.

So, the lawn is getting better, and the garden, such as it is, is growing right along. This summer has been kind, and I am content. Please take a look at my latest column on the Wild Word. My life as an insider, kind of. Tell me that ain't a happy guy.

How to Live Happily, by Life Explained.

Since today is Saint Valentine's Day it seems appropriate to talk a little about how to have a successful marriage. Keep in mind that success is a somewhat user definable word, some consider the lack of failure to be success. Moreover marriage, for the sake of this lesson can include a wide variety of lengthy relationships, including having a job, owning a pet, or watching a television series.

Essentially, this post is going to teach you how to successfully not fail at almost everything that could possibly happen.

1. Lower your expectations. The less you expect the more likely you are to be happy. Generally speaking, there are billions of people in the world, and only so much of the good stuff that makes life great. If you have enough to be slightly above miserable, you are successful. Good Job, sport, pat yourself on the back.

2. Learn to cook. Basically, the world is divided into two types of people, those who can cook and those who will clean the kitchen if somebody else cooks. In the grand scheme of things cooking is much less distasteful than doing dishes, so make sure you get to be the one to make the mess. This also makes it much easier to ignore the disaster that strikes every time you try to bread chicken, "my God, how did you get flour on the ceiling?"  "Cooking is an act of passion, and must be entered into with abandon, now mop the ceiling." Score one for the chef!

Order your "I'm with Me" shirt today.

3. As a side note to rule 2, make sure you have enough cash, or credit, that when it comes time to order takeout you fall firmly in the "I'll buy, you fly," category. There are few things that are more miserable than coming home on Friday, after a week that lasted almost a month, popping open a beer, sitting around in your best sweats, the greasy, paint splattered ones that say, "I'm with stupid" and have an arrow pointing at your head, and having to drive over to Geppetto's to pick up a couple of pies. Way to game the system, you are a winner.

4. Don't be a jerk. If someone offends you ignore them. There are better ways to waste your time than letting the world step all over what could probably be a mediocre day, with very few real problems. Let's hear if for you, you are the man.

5. When you get an email, always take at least ten minutes before pressing delete without reading it. If you delete it right away people will think you don't have anything to do, and might have the time to do something. Doing things can provide so many opportunities for failure. Failure is not going to make you happy. Sprinkles for everyone, sprinkles are for winners.

6. Count to ten, I don't know why, but that is advice on a lot of lists about living a healthy life. Better yet, count to fifteen, is ten is good fifteen must be great. And we think you are great.

Follow these simple rules and you will have a happy marriage, job, and life, your pets will be happy, and television will be so much better. We know you can do it. For those who don't like to read, here it is in video format.

Life Explained, under construction

"Everything passes,

Everything changes,

Just do what you think you should do,

And someday, maybe

Who know's baby

I'll come and be cryin' to you."

Bob Dylan (from to Ramona)

"I have noticed that even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road."

Stephen Hawking.

Change is part of life, and trying to understand life, which is the whole reason I started this blog, (though, I occasionally lose my way) has taught me that you have to accept the flow of life, and adjust your sails to account for the constantly changing winds.

But, the lack of success made me complacent. If few people are looking at your posts it is easy to put your feet up, grab the coffee, or water, or a cold beer, or the Merlot, and just type away, just trying to come up with enough words to appease your inner demons, and hit publish.

Recently Jeremy Crow of the the Whacko Series of blogs mentioned my blog in one of his posts. This has provided what has to be considered the Whacko Bump.  Page-views, and comments, and all of those things bloggers long for.  And it is great.

Not only that, but he is an exercise guy so his Health Whacko tips have started to kick my workouts into warp drive (pardon me, but my geekiness needs fed occasionally). I am really starting to see the difference.

So, when Mr. Crow speaks I listen. Recently he pointed out that the visual appeal of a blog can have a direct relationship with popularity I decided to change my logo, and my background picture, and probably the layout.  

I am going to start the design process, but I am also looking to you, the fabulously creative bloggers out there with who might have some free time on your hands.  Please, if you are so inclined, send me your sketches, or creations, and if I can figure out how create a poll, it seems terribly difficult (I am still trying to figure out how to add an award image, stupid HTML anyway) we can all vote on the best one.

Also, I do intend to get back to the basics a little, and try to explain why life seems so complicated, and everything always seems so difficult, in my own way, of course.

So, thank you, blogosphere, thank you +Jeremy Crow, and thank you Dr. Dawg, you are always there for me.

Here is a song that from the irrepressible Dr. Hook, that has always been one of my favorites, but has a little more meaning for me these days.

Better living through technology, if you don't look too closely

People will tell you that I have a love/hate relationship with technology.  My loathing turned into adoration.  There are just too many advantages to ignore, and everyday new, useful, time saving uses leap on stage, screaming, "hey, check me out."

This story started simply enough, the youngest son got an iPod, and introduced the family to the wonderful app store. A magical place filled with conveniences once unimaginable. Time saving, life altering, reality expanding little computer programs that are certain to make your life better. There are hundreds of ways to improve life.  

Today we will start by "reviewing" Stickers.  An app that lets you take a picture, and cut out parts, and pieces and bits, and save the remaining as a "sticker." A piece of the original picture that is left after digital, graphic surgery.  

"How can that improve my life?" You might ask. It can't, if measured in absolute, numeric values.  But, a little creative thinking, and a few swipes on an iPhone screen and all of your Facebook friends think you are sitting on an exclusive beach in the France. Their envy will be compounded when they notice you are sipping expensive champagne, and the jealousy will become uncontrollable as they take note of the A List celebrities surrounding you. Life, and happiness, are illusions, yours might as well be wonderful, and the stuff of dreams.  

Dr. Dawg, for example, has been "working" on some new ideas recently. Here he is in charge of several trucks filled with linemen from the local utility. At a boy, Dr. Dawg, keep them focused and on task.  We will have power to the coffee maker in no time. You are a true son of the proletariat.

Wait, Dr. Dawg, there are aliens attacking the crew.  Who said civil service was easy?  Aliens are courtesy of UFO Photo FX.  A wonderful app, sort of difficult to use.  But, if you want aliens in the picture you have to be willing to endure some hardships for your art.

As you can see, Dr. Dawg has taken on a new profession, and risked his life facing ravenous, savage aliens returning the wonders of refrigeration to our old, top secret, secluded headquarters all while sleeping quietly on his bed.

Imagine the wonders your friends will see you living.  And you don't even have to change out of your pajamas.  The world is your oyster, the possibilities are endless, and almost free, depending on the app you choose.  For a nominal fee we will doctor your life up a bit, just send us your best selfie, and a brief description of the action filled life of your dreams, and we will rush you the results.  Make your friends hate you, your enemies envy you, and your family wonder how you finally got out of the basement.

A big day, a new phone, and a happy doctor.

Yesterday was a big day.  A really big day.  First, there was an appointment with the GP. He was so impressed by three trips a week to the gym, and a diet heavy on fruit and vegetables, there was no chance to explain the recent, healthy habit of passing the elevator and taking the stairs.

Thinking back, it was just a year ago he said I was being a fool for not taking my medicine, eating better, exercising, and losing weight.  He was not happy, in fact he was angry. It was disconcerting, he is normally so nice that to have him openly critical really took me by surprise.

Age has made me a little wiser, not wise, really, but able to process information, and, occasionally, follow simple instructions. When my internal threat sensor detects disaster approaching we respond with haste, sometimes, sometimes we have trouble getting out of our own way, but every once in a while we act accordingly. This was one of those times.

After a year of taking my medicine, eating healthy, and exercise he was thrilled. We were both pretty happy. In many ways that appointment last year steered me toward a more healthy life.

If anybody from OSU Family Medicine reads this email me, (tweettweetjohn@yahoo.com) and let me know how I can say wonderful things about my doctor. He is fantastic!

Then, after work we went over to Best Buy and got new phones (new iPhone 6s) that is always a good day.  For one thing it has double the storage of the old phone, so I can go a little crazy with photo's videos, apps, and music. Plus, it is just a bit bigger, which is going to make animations, and movie creation much easier. So, you all have something to joyfully anticipate, the Life Explained Movie Marathon, one sprint at a time.

Speaking of Best Buy, this is the second time we have purchased phones there, they make it easy, and the protection plan is wonderful.  This time was much easier, though. Our first trip was good, but got off to a rough start, when we said "we want to buy iPhones." They were insistent that we buy another phone. I think it was a Samsung, I don't really remember.

"Why would you pay more for a smaller phone?" He was indignant, almost offended. I tried explaining that we had been using iPods and all of our apps and knowledge were iOS centric. He was shocked that my son and I would want an iPhone when he was willing to sell us something else.

In fact he was so adamant he brought in back up. Then, there were two of them, and they were both talking, fast, about the benefits of the phone in question.  Which is a great phone, I am sure, and would have been put to very good use, but it was not what we wanted. Finally, just as we were approaching the "hey, let's go to the Verizon Store, and see if we can pick a couple of iPhones, they relented, and agreed to sell us what we wanted, and were actually quite pleasant.

This time our sales person, who happened to be the cell phone department manager, was more than willing to sell us any phone we chose, and some new cases too, and the protection plan, and we were all happy. Even my wife who bought her first smart phone.

Best Buy has really become our favorite electronic store, they are so polite and helpful, if anybody from Best Buy would like to hear more about our experiences email me  (tweettweetjohn@yahoo.com).

So, healthy, happy, and ready to start the Life Explained Studio Experience we move on to Wednesday, a new day, a new phone, and dreams of creativity, and the thrill of experimentation.

Finally, a Solution to the worlds problems,

Looking around the world today there is a lot of sadness, a lot of misery, and a lot of loneliness.  People are looking for a friendly voice, a soft shoulder, a warm embrace, something to make them happy, anything.  It is truly one of the tragedies of our time, we have become so enamored of technology, gadgetry, electronics that we have lost our sense of empathy, we are lost souls drifting in an ocean of communication, without no hope of communing.

Ray Davies sang of the 20th century being a mechanical nightmare, and he had a valid complaint, but this is worse, insidious and omnipresent, we can not escape the grasp of our devices, and find our friends.  We can not look past the touch screen to touch the lives of others, unless we can do it online.

What can we do about it?  How can we find even a moments respite, a small, warm touching moment of intimacy, a little warmth, the healthy, caring glow of companionship in a world gone mad with the lunacy of electronics?  You ask.

We, here at Life Explained (#lifeexplained) are glad you asked.  We think having a pet is a wonderful solution.  "But," you might protest, "pets can be so time consuming, demand so much attention, are such a huge commitment,in time and money, how can we justify such an investment?"

We, here at Life Explained (#lifeexplained) are glad you brought that up.  We have instituted the Rent A Pet Program* (RAPP, for short), a unique, inexpensive, commitment free way to have the loving, comforting presence of a pet, without the long term demands of ownership.

You simply email us tweetTweetJohn@yahoo.com with the dates you would like to have a pet, and we will send Dr. Dawg* over to cover the requested days, offering companionship, sympathy and caring, loving friendship, all for one low price.

Imagine coming home to this loving face after a hard thankless day at work.  Picture the joy you would feel having a companion waiting at the door, an understanding, caring pet, that offers nothing but compassion, and love.  No judgement, no demands, just love.  And, if he could make a pan of killer lasagna wouldn't that be even better?

Doesn't that sound joyous?  Wouldn't you like that?  Of course you would.  Act now, while there are still openings in the schedule, the holidays are a very stressful time and we expect a lot of demand, so reserve your Dr. Dawg visit now.

*Dr. Dawg and Rent A Pet are exclusive Life Explained properties, except no substitutes.  Life Explained (#lifeexplained) is not responsible for unfulfilled expectations, or any cardiovascular conditions resulting from consuming the comfort food that Dr. Dawg specializes in making.  Tell your doctor about any heart conditions, hypertension, or lactose intolerance, but, we, here at Life Explained think your doctor probably already knows.

Act now, or live in misery.

There are a number of things that successful, organized people have in common. Traits, and characteristics, and quirky little behaviors that make them unique and extraordinary.

 For one thing they like to use a lot of conjunctions, but they aren't crazy about using periods, because once the brilliance starts flowing they are reluctant to shut it off, and would prefer to let it flow to the masses, unhindered, and unencumbered,  and in all of the raw power and beauty they feel as they put fingers to keyboard.

They drink a lot of coffee, excuse me while I fill my mug, would anybody like a cup of coffee.  No, hmm, I see, not a coffee drinker.

One thing they like to do early on is get a sidekick.  Somebody smart, maybe a PhD, who doesn't mind taking a few risks, doing something a little dangerous, exposing themselves to danger, and difficulties, and adverse conditions with nothing more than a good idea and a comfortable pillow.

In short, if you want to be wildly successful, fantastically wealthy, and happy beyond your wildest dreams don't waste your time working hard, getting an education, and clawing your way to the top, that is for saps, and people who don't read blogs.

Just buy the "The Life Explained Keys to Fabulous Success for Dummies, or Idiots, it Doesn't Matter to Us."  For only $19.95 (20 degrees Celsius) you can be happy, healthy and rich beyond your wildest dreams.  Act now and we will throw in "The Guide To Gourmet Microwaving With Chef Bob, the Accountant."  Hurry, we only have a couple left.

I don't know technology, but I know what I like

Apple has released the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus (iPhone 6 +?, I'm not sure), to the joy of adoring fans, and enthusiasts everywhere.  It has been widely reported that sales have topped 10 million.  With a price tag of $649.99 that makes, let me think about this... (six times 1, move the decimal, carry the...) a lot of money, by any calculation.

Any significant release by Apple invokes Newton's Third Law, "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."  Apple releases a new product, people line up to buy one.  Ah the joys of a peaceful prerelease camping trip in front of the store with a few hundred close friends.  

Which leads to another reaction, all of this new product inspired love, and a lack of sleep, fueled by several cups of very dark, rich, caffeinated coffee, and soon it goes from the "summer of love" to "the winter of our discontent, made glorious by the" products of Apple, Inc© and the new iPhone 6Ô and the iPhone 6 plusÔ (maybe it is the iPhone 6 +© I’m not sure).  In this chaotic scene crazed fans will run right over the top of their Grandmother to be one of the first to have one.  Of course, it is entirely possible that their Grandmother will “shank” them to get her new iPhone© first.

This leads to another reaction, the jubilant announcement of the rapidly approaching death of AppleÔ, caused by the folly of the newest release.  Everywhere you look there will be posts, and articles, and videos showing the flaws and failures of the newest iPhone©.  Comparisons will flow, criticisms will grow into a volcanic explosion of hatred, and contempt. 

And in a couple of months, when my contract expires I will get a new iPhone, probably not the Plus (+?) (they seem monstrously large), because I like the one I have now.  It is not perfect, and neither is the next one I will own, but it does everything I want easily and quickly.  And that is what I want from my stuff.

Friday, at Long Last

There is no math advanced enough, no savant keen enough, no super computer super enough to calculate the amount of time it takes to shut off the alarm clock, crawl out of bed, stagger down the hall, answer nature's call, splash some water on your weary, still sleeping face, stumble into the kitchen, pour a cup of coffee, slump into a chair and sit, lifeless, in the netherworld between life and death sipping the dark elixir hoping you can survive the day, somehow.

An odd transmogrification happens somewhere between half and three quarters of a cup.  Blood starts flowing to the heart, and the brain.  Cognitive reception begins to return, and the darkness that was creeping towards the chair, predator like, wanes, slinking back to the tomb from which it sprang.

Soon, you notice the television is on, there are people talking, it is Mike Davis, the 10TV meteorologist, talking about the impending flow of cool, dry air just in time for the weekend, Hey, it's Friday, that is great news.

Wait, what is that noise, it is whistling, or humming, or maybe an off key rendition of "Beauty in the River," by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils,

"We must all stand in the water,
We must find it when we roam
It don't matter what is said
We can wake up from the dead
And roll away the stone"

And it is coming from inside the house, in fact it is coming from you, and you are tapping your foot, and drumming the butter knife on the counter as you are fixing lunch, and you are even adding the "hallelujah" and the "Lord, Lord," at the end of the final chorus.

Dancing out the door, a thought pops into your head, there is a meeting at work, and they are bringing pastries, and sweets, and the sun smiles down, and you know it is thinking, "have a nice day."  Hey, you should stop and buy a lottery ticket on the way home.

One Small Step For Mankind.

Humanity is a remarkable organism, we have the frightening ability to ignore reality and convince ourselves that somehow what we are doing is important.  Even though a glance in the newspaper, (if you can find one) or the evening news will offer ample proof that the world is on the brink of self immolation, and everyday we don't try to apply some resistance, and slow the process, it gains momentum.

Americans are more divided than at any time I can remember, and I grew up during the Vietnam war, and the Watergate scandal.  We are mired in the mud, and sinking lower by the day.  All while the world is spinning toward inferno and nobody seems to notice.

Everyday we slide closer and closer to the end, and we blithely, joyfully ignore the impending doom.  Somehow we have convinced ourselves that we are just carrying on in the tradition of our ancestors, and maybe we are.  But, we are not our ancestors, we are well adapted citizens of the 21st century with technology that would mystify previous generations.

This technology is here to stay, we can not put that genie back in the bottle (and nobody wants to), but we could use it to slow our descent, to reverse the prejudices and hate, to call attention to our similarities and our shared traits.  No matter what you believe, no matter your theological bent, no matter your views on evolution, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, we all seem to accept that the event, or being that gave us life, did the same for everybody, and we all share common origins.  Since the beginning we have been drifting apart.

As we celebrate our anger over our distance, and dissimilarities, there is one man, a blogger, video maker, father, family man, who has an idea, a first step in bringing the Earth's inhabitants a little closer.  +Mike Raven , architect of The Traveling Book Project has decided, almost by himself, to start people travelling the road to understanding.

He is going to assemble a number of notebooks, and write something personal, about himself and his life, in each, including a few photos, and send them on a mission of healing and understanding.  He hopes that people will fill in a few pages about themselves and their lives, and forward them to others.  Until they find their way back to him.  He will scan them and make all of the information available online.

Is this going to solve all of the problems we have managed to create, or end bigotry and hatred?  Probably not.  But, imagine, for a minute, if the "leaders" of the world, and the governments that inform and influence their countries would take a step like this, make a small effort to understand, and appreciate each other, imagine what could happen.  Imagine if we could step back from the stereotypes, and appreciate the beauty that surrounds us, all of us.  It is almost frightening, isn't it?

Can we change the inevitable?  Can we be the generation that begins the healing?  I hope so, I have kids, and want to leave them something.  One thing is almost certain, we can not leave it to the people in charge, we need to rely on individuals who are willing, and able to try something different.  People like Mike Raven.

Thank you, Mike, it is a wonderful thing you are doing.