That IS so touching. What a classy bunch. I kind of envy the Brits having telly specials on Christmas Day. So glad to know about the return of this gem.
Well, there's a reason a certain long-dead-but-his-work-will-live-on-forever writer started his Big Book with "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Seems to me that holds true for every year, with some being better or worse depending on the vagaries of fate and one's individual circumstances.
I'm grateful to be unburdened by any religious indoctrination, having been exposed to (and rejecting) Unitarianism as a young lad. It all seemed like BS to me the time, and still does, so my thoughts on happiness and unhappiness are relatively untainted by men in robes pointing towards the sky and telling me what's what. That said, I too share the dark foreboding that whenever things are going really well, I'm heading for a fall. Rather than religion, I ascribe this to the movies more than anything else, especially those that seem to be heading to a grim conclusion, only to have a miraculously contrived ending tacked on to save the hero just before the credits roll.
But who knows Not me.
The thing about "happiness" -- for me, anyway -- is that I simply must NOT try examine it too closely while it's happening ... and when I do, oh do I regret it. Happiness is a bit like those little dust motes (or whatever they are) on the surface of your eye, the ones that look like microscopic aquatic organisms, but only in your peripheral vision. Every time you try to look directly at one, it scoots away, and for me the parallel with happiness is clear: if I insist on staring into that happy fire, it soon turns to ashes.
As for aging ... yeah. It pretty much sucks. Every time I move into a new decade of life, the previous decade suddenly looks oh-so-much better. I thought I was old at 39, but In my 50s, 40-anything sounded like the full apple-cheeked blush of youth. Ditto my 60s, which felt ancient at the time, but as I tiptoe into the dreaded 70s, 60 really does sound like the "new 40." If I'm unlucky enough to make it past 80, I'll doubtless feel the same about the current decade.
So it goes.
All I know for sure is that after 52 hours suffering the wrath of the Bomb Cyclone with no PG&E electricity, I'm very grateful to have the magic invisible juice once again flowing through the circuits of my house. I didn't go without during those dark hours -- a small Honda generator, a 3.6 KW battery, and many painful hours of crawling around under the house running wires last summer saw to that -- but there's no substitute for having every light switch work, and to not facing the choice of making dinner in the microwave or atop the wood stove. When push comes to shove, the little things we take for granted in normal times turn out to be the big things after all.
And on that note, I wish you and all the Bastard Machine sub-stackers the very best in the new year to come!
I did not know you were raised Catholic and as a recovering one myself, I really understand how it influences one's outlook on life--for the rest of your life even if one does not ascribe to its teachings. One thing I remember so clearly is being made to believe that being a Catholic was superior to anything else. I remember questioning things (in my mind) I was being taught in Catechism (the Saturday religious school lessons I had to attend) but the final straw for me was when I was about 11 and learned that President Eisenhower (yep, I'm that old!) wasn't Catholic! How could that be! The most important person in the United States wasn't Catholic! I realized I had been fed a load of crap. But that can't change how it follows you in life anyway. I'm glad you have been able to be in gratitude more in your life, I am working on that too.
For me, happy + sad = poignancy. Funny + dark = poignancy. Depression + glee = poignancy. And somehow, with age, I’m appreciating more and more how patterns of poignancy glean through the years. (That’s the simmering aspect, maybe?) Okay, that, and I REALLY like how there’s a second, lunar new year, we can celebrate. I’m a big fan of ordering up the dim sum and doing a New Year’s:Take Two.
Someone asked me if I had made any resolutions. My answer was 'no', not because I'm anti resolution, but because my personal life was on such an upswing for 2/3 of 2022 that I just want to keep doing what I'm doing. So, that's my resolution. Gratitude, spreading the love, etc.
The personal 'upswing' also explains why I've watched less TV! Oops :D
That IS so touching. What a classy bunch. I kind of envy the Brits having telly specials on Christmas Day. So glad to know about the return of this gem.
Good news. Dectectorists one off on Acorn this Monday. This from someone who is constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Well, there's a reason a certain long-dead-but-his-work-will-live-on-forever writer started his Big Book with "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Seems to me that holds true for every year, with some being better or worse depending on the vagaries of fate and one's individual circumstances.
I'm grateful to be unburdened by any religious indoctrination, having been exposed to (and rejecting) Unitarianism as a young lad. It all seemed like BS to me the time, and still does, so my thoughts on happiness and unhappiness are relatively untainted by men in robes pointing towards the sky and telling me what's what. That said, I too share the dark foreboding that whenever things are going really well, I'm heading for a fall. Rather than religion, I ascribe this to the movies more than anything else, especially those that seem to be heading to a grim conclusion, only to have a miraculously contrived ending tacked on to save the hero just before the credits roll.
But who knows Not me.
The thing about "happiness" -- for me, anyway -- is that I simply must NOT try examine it too closely while it's happening ... and when I do, oh do I regret it. Happiness is a bit like those little dust motes (or whatever they are) on the surface of your eye, the ones that look like microscopic aquatic organisms, but only in your peripheral vision. Every time you try to look directly at one, it scoots away, and for me the parallel with happiness is clear: if I insist on staring into that happy fire, it soon turns to ashes.
As for aging ... yeah. It pretty much sucks. Every time I move into a new decade of life, the previous decade suddenly looks oh-so-much better. I thought I was old at 39, but In my 50s, 40-anything sounded like the full apple-cheeked blush of youth. Ditto my 60s, which felt ancient at the time, but as I tiptoe into the dreaded 70s, 60 really does sound like the "new 40." If I'm unlucky enough to make it past 80, I'll doubtless feel the same about the current decade.
So it goes.
All I know for sure is that after 52 hours suffering the wrath of the Bomb Cyclone with no PG&E electricity, I'm very grateful to have the magic invisible juice once again flowing through the circuits of my house. I didn't go without during those dark hours -- a small Honda generator, a 3.6 KW battery, and many painful hours of crawling around under the house running wires last summer saw to that -- but there's no substitute for having every light switch work, and to not facing the choice of making dinner in the microwave or atop the wood stove. When push comes to shove, the little things we take for granted in normal times turn out to be the big things after all.
And on that note, I wish you and all the Bastard Machine sub-stackers the very best in the new year to come!
I did not know you were raised Catholic and as a recovering one myself, I really understand how it influences one's outlook on life--for the rest of your life even if one does not ascribe to its teachings. One thing I remember so clearly is being made to believe that being a Catholic was superior to anything else. I remember questioning things (in my mind) I was being taught in Catechism (the Saturday religious school lessons I had to attend) but the final straw for me was when I was about 11 and learned that President Eisenhower (yep, I'm that old!) wasn't Catholic! How could that be! The most important person in the United States wasn't Catholic! I realized I had been fed a load of crap. But that can't change how it follows you in life anyway. I'm glad you have been able to be in gratitude more in your life, I am working on that too.
For me, happy + sad = poignancy. Funny + dark = poignancy. Depression + glee = poignancy. And somehow, with age, I’m appreciating more and more how patterns of poignancy glean through the years. (That’s the simmering aspect, maybe?) Okay, that, and I REALLY like how there’s a second, lunar new year, we can celebrate. I’m a big fan of ordering up the dim sum and doing a New Year’s:Take Two.
The first and last sentences in your post are great. The perfect bun for a tasty word sandwich. 🙃
2022 and 2022 were both shit years but both had positives too. Fingers crossed for 2023
Someone asked me if I had made any resolutions. My answer was 'no', not because I'm anti resolution, but because my personal life was on such an upswing for 2/3 of 2022 that I just want to keep doing what I'm doing. So, that's my resolution. Gratitude, spreading the love, etc.
The personal 'upswing' also explains why I've watched less TV! Oops :D
Love you Tim.