I have to write a piece on …

Listening to a Tricky album I have not heard before. This is really good. It’s like the old Tricky, moody, dark, but somehow less angry.

OK, I want to write a piece on procrastination.

The green cursor taunts me. Green block just blinking. Each time it appears and disappears it is asking, “and then?”

So what is procrastination? Can I get a definition? Oxford, where are you? I will reach out… call out…

The net is slow. Oxford, why won’t you answer? It’s English, you can’t possibly be THAT busy….

Looking at Paddy’s pictures from England. Pictures of an Abby reveal an almost fractal look to its edges when looked at upwards from the street. This Abby designed by the firm of Mandelbrot-Julia and Associates.

Procrastination. Right. Where’s that definition?

Pictures inside the Abby reveal chairs with large red leather cushions hanging on the back of the chair in front of you. The cushions are large and plump… like punching bags. Is this how we wrestle with our demons here? Or do we just train to do so? A kind of Faith-Jit-Su that will help us fight the good fight.

The definition.

Should I be doing this right now? I feel like I’m a pachenko ball being pulled towards my goal by gravity, yet impeded by tangential thoughts, interrupting my journey. Does distraction play into procrastination? Is it a cause or just an accomplice? Am I just too distracted?

The definition. Right. The definition.

If I can ALT TAB past the photos to the browser I should be OK. And if not…

People in holiday pictures look either really happy or really stern. Why is that? Is that the difference between being connected and disconnected from your life back home? The line between simply being and being reflexive?

In contrast, pictures of sheep in the English country side are intriguing. The sheep either look at the camera as if to pose, or ignore the photographer altogether. Is that their happy versus stern? Then again, they are not holiday, so maybe it’s different.

The definition. Right. The Definition.

When did my browser close? Did it sense I was not coming back for the definition? Is it part of this nefarious plan to prevent from the definition? I’ll have to launch it again, and wait…

… launching…

… no harm in looking at more pictures then.

Do we standardize our looks for pictures? Why can’t our expressions be as diverse in pictures as they are in real life? Would home movies be different? We all don a mask of sorts for pictures. The context of the snapshot determines the mask we choose from the picture mask cupboard. Hmmm…. holiday… Stern or happy? Back at home, party… extreme smile with lots of teeth and gums, gregarious laughter, or intense ambivalent engagement?

The browser should have launched by now. I have a lot of RAM in this thing. Of course it has launched. I could have printed Romeo and Juliet by now.

The definition. Right. The definition.

OK. Finally. Procrastination. ORIGIN Latin procrastinare ‘defer till the morning’.

But wait. It IS morning. So maybe that’s it. Maybe I’m doing this one morning too early. But then I’d never get it done. Like those bar signs that say “Free beer tomorrow”. Tomorrow is always a day away from today. I wonder what Webster has to say about this.

Will I be able to ALT TAB past the pictures? I feel like I’m twelve, trying to sneak past my parent’s room late at night on my way to the basement, hoping to watch some really late night television.

Maybe the photo program won’t notice. Maybe it will be too caught up in its own magnificence. Yes, that’s it. “Look at me. Red eye? No problem. I’ll fix that focus and exposure for you. Crooked picture? Don’t worry about it. I am the director of the snapshots of your life. Just go out and capture what you want and we’ll fix it in post. I can do that. I am magnificent.”

It’s distracted. Yes, I think I can sneak past.

Another photo of an Abby. It has a television antenna centered within the square walls of its spire tower. What do they watch in there? Has Coronation Street influenced the …

Phone is ringing. It’s my mother. Do I answer it? No. I can’t talk now. I’m very busy writing this piece. Though I do wonder what she wanted.

Maybe I should call.

She left a message. Very clever, she just says that she has something to ask me about. A mystery box left on the table, enticing me to explore the mysteries within. Will I open it?

Calling….

It was just some gossip. Fooled!

We chat for a bit. Catch up on current events. Then her clients show up to see a house. Aha! You had some time to kill. Now I know your ruse. But I fell for it.

Crafty Mother. Very crafty.

Eggs! Paddy has made me eggs. The universe conspires against me to get this definition. What is that about? Is there something I am not supposed to know about? Will I uncover some unknowable secret if I get to this definition? Will I pull back the curtain only to realize that the great and powerful OZ is just a little man on a step stool pushing buttons and fervently turning wheels and pushing levers?

Maybe I need to ALT TAB more quietly past my photographic gatekeeper. Webster, will you help? I must have that definition! Here I go… alt… tab..

Oh look, a cobblestone street. Potholes on cobblestone streets MUST be simpler to fix. All you need is a few bricks, and some stone dust and dirt or sand. What would a whole cobblestone city look like or feel like? No skateboarding I bet. Unless it became the impetus for monster tires on planks of wood. Kids moving about as if they were strange action statues being paraded about on wooden trays. The art comes to YOU in this scene, offering up a temporary repose from your busy day. No need to procrastinate the experiencing of art anymore. It will come to you in quick manageable doses.

Aha! Webster is on my side. My linguistic Ally in my definitive quest. A good squire, providing me with exactly what I need as I embark on my journey. A definition worthy of reflexive contemplation.

Procrastination. Etymology: Latin procrastinatus, past participle of procrastinare, from pro- forward + crastinus of tomorrow, from cras tomorrow. Date: 1588.

So did people not procrastinate before that? Or did they not yet have a name for that condition? Like A.D.D. in the 50’s. Surely people were wilfully distracted then, they just didn’t know what to call it yet. At least now we can externalize the condition. “Don’t blame me. There’s a name for this now. So it’s no longer my fault.”

Does a dog have a name before we give it one such as “killer” or “peaches” or just plain “Bob”? What would chickens call themselves? Is simply “being” a condition? Distraction seemingly is.

Oh look, procrastinate can be a transitive or intransitive verb. Is that why your are so good at what you do, you wily word of the English language?

Transitive verb: to put off intentionally and habitually. So you are not just a state, but also a way of life? Dodgy. Very dodgy indeed.

Intransitive verb: to put off intentionally the doing of something that should be done.

This is more like it. When you are intransitive I can take you or leave you any time I want.

When you are intransitive you are benign.

When you are transitive you are determined to subscribe me to a way of life in which tomorrow never comes for the things I must do today.

Intransitive procrastination, I choose you. I chose you without knowing, and lapped at the transitive shores of your existence. But now I turn back. I turn back to the rest of my day, for there are other things to be done.

But despair not. You are now part of my arsenal, and I know I can call upon you at will.

You. My intransitive instrument of postponement.

—– Originally Posted in 2009 —–

My take on the adverts form this year’s Superbowl. You can watch them at: http://superbowlads.fanhouse.com/

1st Quarter

Bud Light – Office Meeting
Good concept, well executed, and great ending!

Audi – Transporter
Gratuitous use of Jason Statham that frankly did not really translate very well in terms of really presenting the brand of Audi rather than the brand of The Transporter. It made want to watch the movies again, but not necessarily want to look into an Audi.

Pepsi – Forever Young
Brilliant spot and juxtaposition of the icons from older generations and how we continue the themes with the present ones. The song is catchy as well. It’s the type of advertising that can really unite a wide target audience.

Doritos – Snow Globe
Good fun, and presents a certain irreverence that the brand wants to align itself with. The hit in the groin gag, although often used, is still funny. The secret to the gag weighs heavily in the quality of the sound effect at the point of impact.

Bud Light – Conan
Great comedic short, and perfect for our present YouTube environment in which we can all have our 15 minutes of fame for the most inane things. The fact that the product shot’ headline is in Swedish is indicative of the strength of the spot, and the brand.

Toyota – Venza
A good advert, aimed at the late 20’s, early 30’s crowd, with some interesting insights into the likely genesis of design elements. A good piece in terms of taking the viewer on a journey of reflection about what it is that influences us in the design of our own personalities.

Bridgestone – Potato Head
Good ad, although I wish they would have used the voice of Estelle Harris (Mrs. Potato Head in Toy Story 2). For some reason, I associate the character with the voice, and to hear it as someone else just bothered me to the point of distraction.

Castrol – Grease Monkeys
What would SuperBowl adverts be without at least one spot with chimps. I like the conceptual alliteration with the “grease monkeys” — even if chimps are actually apes. They also manage to get enough technical jargon in there for you to be impressed and make the association with Castrol. The use of the the line “liquid engineering” also wins big points because of the fact that it gives the sense of a higher quality product, even if all oil is likely just as engineered. It’s one thing to be something, and another to tell everyone about it!

Doritos – Bus
Fun concept, but not entirely memorable, even with the brief use of a monkey.

GoDaddy.com – Shower
It was a fun ad, in the tradition of American Pie. Great job in getting you to go to the website to see the ending. The only problem is that once you get there, the whole things into a really amateur snorefest, and essentially undoes whatever good marketing you may have creating in the TV advert. This is not to say that I expected some soft-porn scenario in the online version, I just wish it had continued to be entertaining.

Budweiser – Fetch
Great advert that plays on the idea of the Clydesdale as being the true mascot for Budweiser. Great job at maintaining the brand recognition with hairy hooves!

2nd Quarter

Budweiser – Horse Love
Although an interesting story-line, it wasn’t as good as the fetch spot. What was interesting though, was that I immediate thought of Budweiser as soon as I saw the hairy hooves on the horse within the first 20 seconds. Definitely a good follow-up to the fetch spot, but likely not as strong on its own.

Gatorade – Mission G
Ok, the use of Jason McEllwain in the spot is absolutely a brilliant move, especially since he has been one of the better feel-good stories in the past while. ( see http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ngzyhnkT_jY ). It relates the brand to the warrior spirit in all of us in the way that Nike has done in the past. The shift from Gatorade to G is also a timely refresher to a brand that was in need of a good boost. It’s also a memorable spot.

Cars.com – Doctor
A very cute story that generates a narrative that highlights the pain point that a lot of us likely share… lacking confidence when buying a car. I would have brought the logo screen a little earlier though, to let it sink in a bit more before moving on.

Hyundai – Genesis
Great spot! Way to play on an existing pain-point (the mispronunciation of the name) and use it to your advantage. I love the alliteration to “Sunday” especially since it played on one of the most notorious Sundays of the year! It also manages to mention the name 11 times in the advert, with most of it not in English. Well done!

eTrade – Babies
No chimps? What’s interesting about this is that it likely echoes the way a lot of us feel right now in terms of the stock market – like babies, at the mercy of financial parents. However, although clever, it is not entirely memorable.

Bud Light – Skier
Great way to introduce a new verb that will likely be the new buzz word in bars amongst the target audience. Product placement was good throughout the ad. The blue bottle was nicely contrasted throughout.

H&R Block – Grim Reaper
Awful sound quality, made death’s dialogue too muddy. It was one of those ads that shows a lot of promise but ends up being not too memorable.

Teleflora – Rude Flowers
This advert is great at presenting the value of personal service over generalized service. Great visual contrast between the dismal blue-grays of the office, and the super-warm, almost saturated colours of the flowers being delivered. Funny follow-up at the end.

Cheetos – Gossip Girl
Fun advert that manages to unite the audience against the plastic gossip girl. In a strange way, it associates the brand with the empowerment of sincerity in living.

Nextel – Roadies
I had already seen this, but it was good nonetheless. Nextel has done a great job of owning the electronic trill that the phones make as they communicate, and the use of the Blackberry at the end certainly updates their image to make it more current with existing technology.

I remember sitting in a first-year sociology class, being told that in the future a large majority of us would be working in service industries; a pretty depressing outlook. But as I consider what is currently going on in our global crisis — or what I like to call the great re-alignment of perceived to actual value of things — I also consider the paradigm shift that is making rumblings in the digestive tract of the consciousness of society. This paradigm shift is quietly making more and more people re-consider purchases, primarily out of financial necessity, but also out of personal reflection on how much it is that we really need. In other words, moving from the “quantity of life” concept into the “quality of life” concept. While I realize that the quality of life concept is not new, I believe that the re-interpretation of it is mover novel in the sense that the quality of our lives is increasingly being thought about in terms of how we empower tat from within.

It is the old adage of “garbage in, garbage out” in the sense that you will only really get out of life what you put into it.

So, if this is true, and we are moving towards a social paradigm of not just consuming resources in terms of goods that we purchase, but one in which we choose to not fill our lives with stuff, then this begs the question of what will make the economies of the world rebound and function. After all, we all have to work to make money for the most basic of needs, and most of us work for organizations that produce things for other people to buy, use and consume. So, where is the future? It is still in services, but in terms of services that will either generate experiences for us, or allow us to generate them ourselves.

In a TED talk I recently watched, Joseph Pine points out the evolution of markets from commodities, to goods, to services, and finally to experiences. The funny thing is that at each stage of the evolution, each step eventually becomes commoditized — in the sense that the category becomes the raw materials with which to create the outputs of the categories following it.

Given this concept then, if we have commoditized services — in the sense of customizing goods for consumption — then the future lies in the creating of services that will take all the elements preceding it (goods and actual commodities) and creating a mix of services that will enable the creation of pre-packaged experiences, or individual experiences.

We have already seen this in the rise of personal coaching as an industry, enabling individuals to reflect upon what gives meaning to their lives, and setting plans in motion to allow them to attain goals that are authentic to them as true individuals rather than individuals that fit into a certain category or sub-category. Think of it as having a pair of pants tailored to your exact dimensions, rather than a size 36 (or 12 depending on gender) that fits into a given range of measurements for that sub-category.

The future then is this. Services that allow us to find our true selves as individuals, and then allow us to experience our world in an individual manner. We are continually seeing this in our attachments to technology and addictions to the ever growing list of hand-held devices that allow us to capture our experiences through lives. What is problematic in this execution, however, is that at the end of the day we still feel alone, because we are connecting, not through people, but through the traces that people leave behind.

When you receive an e-mail or a text message form someone, it is a snapshot of a thought or experience.It is already in the past. But as we move towards this new experiential economy, I believe that what will make it ultimately different is the fact that we will find ways of connecting with people and make those memories in the now, rather than in the past. Even instant messaging is already in the past by the time you have received it. The difference with being in person is that you experience the passing of time together, rather than apart. It is this shared experience that makes for a more meaningful and authentic experience.

As I sit in bed, enjoying my Sunday morning cup of coffee I begin to think about the whole coffee experience. As I reflect on what makes a coffee experience different, my thoughts shift to the Europeans. As I reflect further, I think that the answer may actually lie in the cup itself.

In North America we are big fans of the coffee mug. The coffee mug is essentially a cylinder with a handle that allows for stable container that will hold a greater amount of liquid. The fact that it also provides a consistently large area in which to put some kind of messaging is best left for another discussion on the marketing benefits for the mug. But the main thing is that the mug hold quite a bit of coffee. When I compare this to the European tasse, it dawns on me that perhaps the difference in the experience is about the temperature.

It is a known fact that great coffee taste has a half-life of about 30 minutes. So, essentially, as soon as the cup is poured, the first sip will always be better than the last. The difference in the coffee experience then, comes down to the use of a mug versus a tasse. A tasse will hold less coffee than a mug, and therefore you will consume all of your coffee in a shorter window of time, thus maintaining a more consistent flavor throughout the experience than a mug.

I have been struggling with this for a while now, the reason or reasons why I feel that there is something amiss every time I take out a digital camera to capture a moment. Now, just to clear the air, I have never thought of myself as a professional photographer, but rather someone who enjoys taking pictures. I like the feel of seeing the world through a lens. What I like most is that once I see the picture, I remember what lay beyond the frame, and so the image becomes a visual milestone of sorts, from which I can recall the rest of the moment. I believe that part of the reason for this is because with film I used to take my time in composing the shot because I knew that film and processing was not cheap, and therefore each frame had a tangible value.

With the advent of digital cameras, the amount of frames you took was at first only limited by the size of the media that you could afford to put in your camera. But soon enough, portable media in seemingly gargantuan sizes became ubiquitous and the cameras themselves became smaller and cheaper, thus not only making the photos themselves disposable, but the hardware as well. Now, when I take a digital photograph, I spend less time on the composition, and as a result I spend less time pairing the context of the image with its content into my own visual memory. This is problematic because now when I look at the large volume of digital photographs, it’s almost as if I need more of them form the same moment to recall the full memory.

As I watched Douglas Coupland’s “Souvenirs of Canada” I felt a great sense of connectedness with Canadian icons like the stubby beer bottle, hockey, and the word “chimo”. As I watched, my mind also went back to experiences in middle school and high school, sitting through biology films like “I am Joe’s stomach”. But as the film ended, and Doug recounts a story of his father in the Canadian wilderness, I am suddenly at a loss. What are my stories? What are my parent’s stories?

Having been the product of a multiple divorced upbringing – I like to think of myself as more statistical than most in that particular category – the stories of my parents are fragmented and foreign. To compound these feelings of misplacement, I am a first generation immigrant to Canada from the bustling metropolis of Santiago Chile. So even the stories that I do have are geographically removed to a place that I vaguely remember. The last time I visited Chile was in 1987, and being 17, I must admit that my focus was narrowed to music, food, girls and drink… not necessarily in that order.

So, where did I come from? I don’t think I mean that in a geographical sense. While certain geographies do likely provide us with a certain genetic mix that is likely adapted to a certain locale, I think that our psychological abilities to adapt are more relevant than our genetic ones. Especially if one is living in a society that shares most of the modern amenities such as housing, running tap water, cable television, and a furnace. Maybe the better question to ask is “how did I get to be where I am today?” or better yet, “What are the experiences that have brought me to be who I am today?”

If it is our experiences that shape us, then our adaptations are likely greatly influenced by those experiences. We adapt to not touching steaming things on a stove because we likely experienced the pain of touching something on a hot stove at some point. We all learn from getting burned, or from watching others get burned. But not every lesson is a negative one. Sometimes we also bask in the afterglow of enlightenment as well.

I am as Canadian as hockey, cougar balloon boots, and Lawrence Gowan. But I’m also as Chilean as empanadas, plastic soccer balls, and Colo-Colo. So, where did I come from? I wonder if these are the feelings that other first generation immigrants experience when they reach a certain age, an age in which one starts to look for their roots in order to be a better anchor for the next generation.

I’m sure that the rooting stories are there, and I am quite confident that with a little coaxing I can convince my memory and my relatives to allow me access to tales long since concealed by time.

So I think I’ll start a recalling of my life thus far, perhaps in attempt to answer the question “Where did I come from?” – that seems like the better question after all. I’ll start with my own recollections first, then fill in the gaps from my family.

Next time… Me in the early 70’s.

—– Originally Posted in 2004 —–

In recent years we have all come to know the cliché “right-sizing”. Sometimes we feel its sting through the loss of employment, and other times we may use it in jest to refer to wardrobes and such. So, how do you “right-size” an education?

After 10 years as a graphic designer and management consultant specializing in web-based training (the former with my own company and the latter with PricewaterhouseCoopers) I decided to leave it all and go back to school for a degree in Architecture. My biggest challenge (aside from the opportunity cost of my income) was to get my mind wrapped around the school mindset once again.

I had attended college before, but at the time I was much more interested in the experience of being at school as opposed to the learning itself. This time it was different. I would be transforming myself from that 90-pound academic weakling to the likes of a Charles Atlas academic Adonis in a scant 5 years. The question was, what would be the most effective way of doing it?

While looking at my options I instinctively went to the University of Arizona. After all, if you want a higher education, you should go to a higher education facility right? Well, not so much. One is quick to ignore the university’s seemingly lesser little brother, the community college.

Since I had been out of the academic education loop for almost 11 years I began to think about how to best manage this change in my lifestyle. University classes are notorious for being large and impersonal. In addition, University is more expensive than community college. Given the fact that I had just “right-sized” my income, cost was definitely an issue. The transition from the workforce to academia was also something I would have to deal with. Suddenly community college did not look so bad.

Once I did more research, I realized that not only was community college cheaper, but classes were also smaller and they had a transfer program to the university into the Architecture program. Suddenly college seemed like the more obvious choice. Since I was in a transfer program, all the classes I would be taking at Pima Community College would transfer directly into my university degree at the university of Arizona. I was sold.

Pima Community College has allowed me to get a good quality education while allowing me to transition from a work mindset to a study one. Not only that, but it has allowed me to do that at approximately half the price for credits that I now don’t have to pay for at the university. I highly recommend community college as a transitioning step from workforce to a new career path. The smaller classes are more hands-on, which allows me to get more of the attention I need as I become a student.

In short, I have a newfound respect for community colleges. What I once thought of as high school with ATMs and a bigger parking lot, has now become an extremely viable way to re-enter a frame of mind that most of us may have had a tendency to enter only once in our lives.

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DISCLAIMER: This blog is intended to house my opinions and observations on the world as I see it. Although my arguments may sometimes come from the more emotional realm I do try to apply as much fact as I have available to me at the time of writing. I am not writing an encyclopedia here, I am writing opinions. Av
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—– Originally Posted in 2009 —–

So, after much anticipation, Apple finally unveiled the latest offering from the Wonka factory of technology. Apple’s own Willy Wonka, surrounded by khaki and mock-neck laden IT oompa-loompas unveiled the latest flavour with all the flare, and exultation that we have become accustomed to at least once a year from Apple.

The website touts that Apple has reinvented the phone. I must say that I agree. The only thing is that the phone does not live in a vacuum. It still needs connectivity. So, really, they have not added a phone, so much as crammed a PSP into the form factor of an iPod (more or less) and added a phone with touch screen capabilities. What Apple should have also done is to reinvent the cell phone business model.

In discussion, a friend brought up a good point… when in wi-fi areas, why not use VoIP? That would be a coup for sure. But then Cingular would get its knickers in a twist because they would not be making money. So, again, good job Apple on reinventing the phone, but why not commit to the whole thing and reinvent the industry as well. Apple has no qualms in saying that it did that with iTunes and the music industry. Alas, maybe time will tell.

In the meantime, I see things getting bigger before they get smaller. Surely everyone will now be coming in droves with their latest incarnation of  a newly fully integrated personal media center. But, as technology becomes smaller once again, it will not be too long before we find ourselves shouting, “Honey, have you seen my phone!”

This revolution will take place in the palm of my hand… eventually.

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DISCLAIMER: This blog is intended to house my opinions and observations on the world as I see it. Although my arguments may sometimes come from the more emotional realm I do try to apply as much fact as I have available to me at the time of writing. I am not writing an encyclopedia here, I am writing opinions. Av
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As I finished watching the movie Kingdom of Heaven, in the last title cards of the movie, it was said that approximately 1000 years ago an uneasy truth was struck between Richard the Lionheart and Saladin… and that today, a certain peace still eludes Jerusalem. So, it has been in all this time that we have waged war against each other for the right to place our claim on not only Jerusalem, but other lands, cities, and property around the world. Yet, we come and go, we live, we die, and the land that exists still remains.

So, I pose this question: If none of us is ever around long enough to remain “King” of that which we fight to possess, then when will we realize that on earth we will, none of us, ever be the kings of anything but ourselves as individuals? When we will we realize that as the kings of ourselves, we must go about our affairs in such a way so as to respect the other kings amongst us? When will we realize that the battles we wage for ownership are only won temporarily, and that in the end, the state of that which we claim to own is eroded by our treatment and appreciation of it, not as a thing that will outlive all of us, but as a thing that should die when we do?

We may have the power to be kings (some of ourselves, and some over others), but I believe that we often lack the wisdom to rule in such a way so as to respect that which allows us to live. Going forward, we are all kings – men and women alike – and we should all treat each other with the respect that is deserving, from one King, to another.

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DISCLAIMER: This blog is intended to house my opinions and observations on the world as I see it. Although my arguments may somtimes come from the more emotional realm I do try to apply as much fact as I have available to me at the time of writing. I am not writing an encyclopedia here, I am writing opinions. Av
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As I watched the ending credits of the movie Pump Up The Volume (with Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis) I began to ponder as to what exactly happened to the X generation and the subsequent “Y” generation, or as the movie refers to it – whether intentionally or not – as the “”Why bother generation”.

Was it just me that grew up so disillusioned with the whole system, and the inequalities that it was wrought with? Weren’t we all going to grow up and change all that for the better so that our kids wouldn’t have to put up with all the crap? And  yet, here we sit, with mortgages, low monthly payments, our morning $3.25 coffee fix, and gas at the same price.

Oh don’t get me wrong, I’m also paying my three bucks for coffee (though not every morning), but as I look around me I see a lot of the same disillusionment that we had growing up. In so many ways so much had already been done by the time we came around. So what’s next?

Well… What if…

What if we actually drank tea one morning instead of coffee, and too the time to go to a park somewhere to just sit and ponder our lives for just 30 minutes as a starter. What if we looked at all the things that comprise our lives, and began to actually pay attention to what was just noise, and what was actual tangible stuff? The irony there is that the truly tangible stuff in life is not tangible at all. Love, friendships, that feeling that on a Sunday afternoon you have someone to call up and just to talk to. That’s the stuff that matters, and yet, all the truly  intangible stuff that matters in life is what we become obsessed with.

What if we decided to realize the fact that you can be a realist and a true pragmatist about life and living in its true sense? Do you really need to check e-mail between 7 and 9 when your kids are awake and wanting to engage? I can vividly remember my son’s first word – it was “help” but that’s another story – I can remember the smell of his hair, and his laugh, and yet, I cannot for the life of me remember how many e-mails I sent out last week or exactly what was said in them. So, what if truly tangible?

What if we remembered all the things that we swore we would do when we were in our teens and still pissed off enough at the world to want to get involved?

What if we realized that we are beyond the “too young to take over, but too old to ignore” years, and are now in a position to actually get some things done?

What if we re-framed our notion of what is truly tangible and what is not?

What if we started doing those things right now?

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DISCLAIMER: This blog is intended to house my opinions and observations on the world as I see it. Although my arguments may sometimes come from the more emotional realm I do try to apply as much fact as I have available to me at the time of writing. I am not writing an encyclopedia here, I am writing opinions. Av
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