Tag: random

The Sixteenth of October

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

When I was a child the big thing was a party at McDonalds. They had the playground area, and tables with benches that looked like their mascot characters, or so from what I recall. When I was turning 7 I think, I wanted to have friends over for a party and have my mom record it on the old 8mm video camera so I could see what it looked like from outside of my own perspective. No audio – home technology for the lacking of financial resources wasn’t that good back then. I got to watch that silent, monochrome reel once. I’m sure that reel still exists somewhere although I doubt I have the means to view it again today. Who knows? For me, like so many others of my generation, memories are mostly stored in our brains, and very little physical, or digital memories exist to remind us of how it truly was.

But three years ago my partner blindfolded me, put me in the car, led me into a bowling alley where friends and family awaited. I was surprised. I was a bit overwhelmed. No, I was very overwhelmed, by a lot of it. Mostly because my partner did this for me out of love, and joy. Yes, it was 50. That’s a big milestone. I never truly expect anyone to make a big deal about my birthday, and it’s ok that they don’t. But she did, and that means a lot to me.

In Conclusion

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Individually you only matter to a couple of generations before and after your life. Your grandparents might love and adore you. Your parents might love and care for you. Your peers might love and respect you. You might give rise to children whom you will love and guide to maturity. They might have children, and if you’re lucky enough, you might be around long enough to see them grow and be a meaningful part of their lives. And that’s about it. Rarely do we know or have significant relations with our great grandparents, and likewise, our great grandchildren. There’s an outside chance those generations might know you as a person. Outside of that, you’re a name. Maybe. You’re someone else’s memories to be relayed, maybe. You’re a grave marker.

Maybe.

Maybe you’re fortunate enough to be a grave marker people visit on purpose. But that too is rare.

A New Social Restriction

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

If you’re getting on a flight, and you don’t understand that basic fact – YOU ARE SUBJECT TO FAA REGULATIONS THE MINUTE YOU WALK INTO AN AIRPORT AND/OR BOARD A FLIGHT – you absolutely should not be traveling by air. The second you start acting like you are above those regulations or your personal views should be held above FAA regulations, you’re not only being as asshole, but you’re most likely breaking laws, and in the larger picture making it more difficult, and more restrictive for people to fly in the future.

You asshole.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 7

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

I know a lot of you are feeling high levels of anxiety, and stress right now. Perhaps you’ve lost your stream of income. Perhaps you had project that are put on hold. Perhaps you have been or people in your family have been directly impacted by COVID-19.

That’s understandable. Often, when things we can’t control begin to dominate the landscapes of our lives, we feel anxious about it. Being pushed to change our routines, the way we relate to people, the way we even relate to ourselves; it can be a difficult, stress-inducing adjustment. My suggestion is to find things that you can do, and can control while still observing the shutdown protocol. You don’t have to write that 1,000 page novel, but writing something you enjoy would help. You don’t have to become Rembrandt, but you can pick up some painting supplies to play with, and get creative with. Start learning a musical instrument. Start learning a new language. Keep your brain busy, and your body, and psyche will follow.

Yesterday I pulled together all of the window trim for a decorative window we had to dissemble in order to repair a wall in our living room. We’re going to paint it white to match the window, and other elements we’re building into the room. I sanded it all down, and prepped it for painting. That occupied my mind for a couple of hours. I might start into writing a feature length movie script shortly, I don’t know yet.

My point is, this situation doesn’t have to be an awful thing. It gives us the time, and excuse we need to take on things we always complained we don’t have time for.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 6

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Yesterday was fun. Since everything is cancelled we continued our home improvement projects, obviously, but on Saturday mornings I have my kids with me, so we took a jaunt to Tifft Farms Nature Preserve for a little social distancing hike around, and to have a little self-initiated cleanup of nature. It was quiet, and peaceful. There were others out there, but sparse enough of visitors that distancing wasn’t an issue. We started in the open fields, picking up wind blown plastic bags, wrappers, and packaging materials, but as we hiked further into the park, we reached an area that was obviously build up on land fill. The trash became a whole lot of broken bottles, antiques often. We found many shoe soles, a stack of marketing signs on thin aluminum, apparently for a product called Car Stairs. Industrial waste, construction waste, even huge chunks of old industrial slag. We threw out what we figured was appropriate, and filled a bag with about 15 pounds of waste.

Next week, we’ll choose a different park. Hopefully it will also be devoid of people. Honestly, I usually hope for that every time I go hiking; having a shutdown is never needed for me to want to distance myself from others in nature.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Days 4 & 5

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Our trip through Home Depot was challenging. People literally huddled in masses, hoovering at the paint counter waiting for their orders.  We stood as far away as we could, subconsciously barely breathing. We both realized we simply weren’t breathing normally, almost as if we were trying to not breathe at all. Meanwhile, people packed together, almost more afraid of missing the clerk calling out their order rather than the looming threat of a potentially fatal airborne virus. With sanitizing wipes in our pockets, we frequently wiped our hands discretely, and did our best to maintain social distance. It seemed like all of our fellow shoppers couldn’t have cared less.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 3

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

But, hey, it’s just a hoax, right? According to the conservatives in my social media, it still is. Or, it’s just a ruse, to cover-up the horrors of 5G deployment, without of course noting that 5G has been in test deployment around the world (in more advanced countries than the United States) since 2017.  Telecoms haven’t needed a fake pandemic to test these services – tests that have seen the building, and deployment of thousands of distribution points across China, South Korea, Germany, and other nations.  But apparently this is such a horrible technology, we require killing thousands of humans just to put in the technology that will apparently kill thousands of humans.

Oh, but read some section of the Bible because apparently praying to some imaginary being will protect you from the evil plan, just like praying is protecting you from COVID-19!  LOL! 

Naked Truths – A Follow-up

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

This is what women demonstrate that they want. This doesn’t scream “the media creates He-Man images because that’s what men relate to.” No, this would give the impression that the very opposite is true. Men relate to the He-Man image because that is what women constantly show that they hold as their ideal. It varies, of course. Maybe women are more attracted to the Hugh Jackman type, but I would wager if truth serum is applied, the majority would admit that they fantasize about the wolverine under the sweater, as much as they would fantasize about him baking a quiche for their garden party.

Weigh-In Wednesday – Back On My Soapbox

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Sure, more people do die from other sources than have died from Corona virus thus far. But the Corona virus is deadly, and stopping it from spreading will SAVE LIVES. As noted in this handy “I’m Conservative So I Think The Media Is Evil and I Only Listen To InfoWars and Rush Limbaugh” chart that proves nothing other than people die from many sources, people still die from other things. Duh.

The difference is, these other things aren’t contagious. You’re not going to contract Heart Disease by shaking the hand of someone with Heart Disease. If a diabetic sneezes on you, it’s gross, and rude, but you’re not going to become diabetic from the exposure. See the difference?  No? I have no hope for you then.