TMI Tuesday: Leaving Something Behind

Random photo found online of the old school method.

This past weekend with all the stories that we were told about my wife’s family it made me appreciate a couple of things. The first is that my wife and I have done a lot of research about our families and now know more than we ever did growing up. In fact, it is safe to say, that we have more information, stories, and documents now than at any other point in recent generations. Second, I am so glad that I have so much that I have written down about the lives of my family and my own life as well. All of this will be passed down and, hopefully, our son will carry that knowledge with him and pass it down as well.

While there have been time when I have fallen behind on this blog (like now), today marks the 1200^th consecutive daily post that I have written and posted. This is by far my longest writing project and, honestly, there is no end in sight at this point. There are certain to be slow times again in the future and periods when it is difficult to record my thoughts but they will get out and they will be recorded in these posts.

Life has changed drastically since I made the decision to blog again and while there have certainly been challenges along the way, life keeps getting better (and busier) with each passing post. Looking back there are a lot of things that I would probably change but, at the same time, there are many stories, essays, and rants that I am glad that I took the time to record. After all, those are the posts and opinions, when taken together, that will reveal who I am to my son.

However, there are definitely some things that I still have to work on as many of the things written have been rather pointed, some are poorly written, and others just don’t make any darn sense in one way or another. Of course, this is in addition to the fact that there is a slight (and sometimes not so slight) egocentricity that can be found in a few pieces here and there. Hey, I never said I was perfect and, to a certain extent, I am glad that these flaws are present in my writing.

In the end, this is who I am, what I do, and what I leave behind. Like it or not, take it or leave it, clichéd and creative. If this is the only thing that I am able to leave behind I am okay with that. And, just think, this is only the beginning.  

3rd Blog Anniversary

It has been three years since I made the decision to start blogging again. At the time it was a means to keep my mind busy while working the night shift and, honestly, I didn’t expect it to last too long especially after I started working during the day again. Over the years there have been many moments when I have fallen behind, when I have questioned whether or not I wanted to keep posting, and if this was all worth the time and effort. Those doubts have surfaced more times than anyone realizes.

However, what was once a means to keep my mind active and prevent creative constipation is now much more than those basic founding reasons for keeping this blog going day after day. I have spoken on the importance of keeping a daily record of my life, no matter how mundane it may be, but there is also the simple fact that this has given me, for the most part, a routine amidst the sporadic chaos, a means to think through certain topics and situations, and, occasionally, a venue where I can vent both and share the good and the bad. While there have been moments that I have bit my tongue before writing (despite one of the main ‘rules’ that I set for myself in the beginning), this has been largely a free flow of topics and ideas.

Over the life of this blog, things have also evolved. What was once a free form venue with few rules, has morphed into a loose structure where there are certain topic for different days. This schedule has reinforced the original purpose of the blog in that not only am I forcing myself to write every day but I am pushing myself to consider specific topics every week. As has been evident, some weeks there is more fodder for a certain topic than others but, in general, it has pushed me to learn different things about topics which I am already interested in as well as give more thought to some of the routine events in my life. As a bonus, it has also given readers more guidance as there are some people who avoid certain days while other that only read about a topic or two that I cover.

At this point, I don’t see much changing in the coming year on this blog. While I am not in a position to guarantee anything, I plan on maintaining the daily pace, sticking to the 400 word minimum per post, and continuing to write about the weekly topics that many of you have come to expect. Beyond that everything is still up in the air. So, at this point I will finish this post with a simple thank you to all that have stopped by, those who read regularly, the people who leave comments (here, on social media, through email, and in person), and the people in my life who both inspire me to keep writing and tolerate the commitment that I continue to make to my writing.

Perspective From The Rightleft Side Of My Brain

I came to the realization tonight that I time has passed much too quickly for my liking. It used to be when I watched television shows that the characters were portraying the life that was ahead of me (in some parallel universe) but now I watch the same kinds of shows and they are my age. Or, more accurately, I am their age. Now it truly has become a means of looking into parallel lives.

However, unlike the past. I watch not in want of anything that they have but with an appreciation for the path I have taken and where I am now. There are certainly directions that could have proven more advantageous in various ways, particularly financially, not I don’t know if I would necessarily be better off. It is possible that could be the case but I am happy with where I am wand what I have right here, right now.

There are little things that I need to work on to improve myself but everyone has things that they either want to change or improve. There are times that I wish I had gotten more done or produced more work but I don’t know if that still would have led me to this moment, writing these words. There are a lot of moments where things could have been different but a lot of subsequent moments that could have been lost if things didn’t happen exactly as they have happened in my life.

And while I watch the television shows and the live depicted on the screen it is entertaining to see how my generation has developed and how much it has changed over the years. I think I may finally be comfortable with my generation. Well maybe not all of them but at least some of them. There is still a certain disconnection I feel with my peers but the chasm is not nearly as vast as it was five or ten years ago.

Of course, that may not really be a generational thing. Maybe it is just a matter of being different, about not fitting in with any particular group or population. While I have always been more of a critical, some would say mathematical, thinker I have always embraced the arts and thrived in a creative environment. I have always had the two sides of my brain functioning, and sometimes fighting, at the same time forcing me to embrace and reject certain generational characteristics.

The creative mind remains young while the critical mind has always been in a premature advanced age. Maybe that is why I have written things that are vibrant and optimistic at times while at other moments I have gone on long rants about various topics and opinions. But that is what you get with me. A struggle between the two sides of my mind and the views that they provide to form a perspective that is uniquely mine. Whether you like or not that is what you get.