The Journey's the Thing…

Tonight I head up to Albany to be part of a panel discussion on what it means to be a global citizen in a rapidly shrinking world.

I’m a cynic. It is too late to stop global warming, or reverse the effects without a major shift in population density. By that I mean that 25% of the world population has to go away. That’s cold, I know, but that’s the reality. Green energy will take too long to affect change, and driving hybrid cars may make you feel better, but it doesn’t really help yet. If everyone started using wind power tomorrow it might make a difference but that’s along shot. So enjoy it while you can folks.

Like I said, I’m a cynic.

Mom’s frustration over her medications boiled a little bit this morning. She became upset when she realized that she didn’t have enough of one med to fill her weekly pill boxes. The prescription had to be reauthorized by her MD and it hadn’t gone through yet. I do not blame a person in this matter, but rather the confusing and bureaucratic computer telephone prescription system at CVS. It is tedious and confusing for the elderly and some would rather just not deal with it. This can be dangerous, I imagine.

Enough of a soapbox today. Have a good one!

Johnnyboy

So I had an epiphany of sorts the other day…I am currently working on a historiography (writing about what others have written.) paper about Woodrow Wilson and the US foreign relations policy of neutrality before and during the First World War. Heady stuff, really, but no different than any other paper I have written on the conceptual level. I found myself mentally wringing my hands over what to do, what to do, etc…It suddenly occurred to me that this was a big problem (the hand wringing) and that I had always acted this way towards any challenge or assignment that was well within my grasp. I was flooded with this deep sense of calm, and that there was no problem and nothing to fear. I could write this piece, and write it well. My track record so far has proved that. Trust me, I am not making a 3.93 GPA because I’m such a swell guy!

Anyway, the conclusion I instantly came to was that I can do this (and almost anything) with style, panache, dignity, and grace. All I have to do is remember is to do it the best I can and that my HP will be taking care of the results. After 5 years of sobriety, you’d think I wouldn’t need to remind myself of these things…Well, I have a built in Forgetter just like the next guy.

I begin my Degree Planning class next week, and the Fear is there too. I want to finish the BA in Historical Studies and then go for my MFA in journalism/photojournalism. I can do the MFA in Albany or The Big City, but that is about two years from now. After that, who knows?

I have been buying old cameras on eBay, primarily the Canon AE-1. I purchased two for a grand total of $150.00, both mint. I’ll use the Digital Rebel for color work and the AE-1 as a dedicated b/w unit.

How strange…I am suddenly aware that I am completely at ease with the idea that these life directions are due to parental influences when I was a little boy–to document the space I travel through in words and images and feel wonderful doing it.

No Guilt, no Fear, no Shame, no Embarrassment, no need to get hung up about it…

Johnnyboy