Medicine or Par-ty?

Does marijuana have true medicinal uses or it just par-tee, dude?  With the beautiful state of Colorado doing everything short of giving it away free with ten gallons of gas purchased, it is certainly a topic of interest lately.

I personally feel like they have opened a mellow can of worms. Any drug must be regulated. Why? Let's get real, humans are not very trustworthy when it comes to moderation.  So, how much can you grow, how much can you purchase, how much can you possess, how much can you suck in and be okay to be cruising down the highway? Of course, tons of things that we like are not good for us. Who could argue with the destructive possibilities of alcohol, some drunk? Cigarettes?  Obesity is a real bummer. Does it harm anyone other than yourself...if you can't reach your chubby arms over your enormous belly to the steering wheel, you might have an accident.  But then, cell phones, lipstick smearing,  lack of sleep and a multitude of other things too disgusting to detail, cause auto accidents. 

So, does the mayor of New York, not to call names (idiot) have the right to regulate how much cola you can purchase at one time?  I say that I have the right to buy a 55 gallon drum and bathe in it, if I want to and can afford it. But, I do digress.  Does marijuana have medicinal purposes?

Yes, marijuana has a use for pain. There are other things, but if you are a cancer patient or have one of many serious pain causing illnesses, relief is a pretty important thing.  Truth is, if you are a prepper, a survivor, most of the true evil and bad vices will be some of the best assets you can have.  Alcohol absolutely has antiseptic and pain killing abilities. Chocolate, cigarettes...folks will eventually be desperate for those things.  Things like that will be treasures for barter. 

Lots of  stuff can happen in our old precarious world.  If I look up one day and see a big ball of fire rolling up into the sky or hurtling towards the earth,  I just might inhale a big toke, take a good slug of whiskey, cram a Nestle's Crunch down and kiss my bottom goodbye. Yep! maybe just party.  If my eyes open again, I'll have to go to work and survive and I will trade you three cigarettes for that can of beans.

Procrastination

(***Just a note...the picture wasn't here yesterday. I spent all this morning, laughing at proscrastination jokes on the internet.)
All of the advice for writers, advice that I rather compulsively seek out and read, says learn to not procrastinate! The advisors say things such as, have a particular place, room that you work in; set a goal of a certain number of words you will write each day; create an outline, a story plan; write, write, write, don't worry about it being perfect, get a rough draft down on paper.  There's more, but it eludes my memory at the moment.  What were we talking about?  Oh yeah, do not procrastinate.

I am not saying that these bits of advice are not good tips for writing. Those tips and many, many more are very valid suggestions in the pursuit of writing your masterpiece.  I have to admit that when it comes to writing, I am far more adept at putting it off than staying with it.

I do have a place, an office in my home that I am able to occupy any time and as long as I wish. The problem lies, not in that nice space that I have, it is the bright box that sits in front of me. That terrific tool that allows me to transfer my thoughts into words and form a story, is also my biggest distraction.  And it's not that I tweet or facebook or any social media (I just don't plain don't), it's not that I am all up in my e-mail, going in or going out. My distraction is the amazing plethora of information that lurks inside the box.  If I reach a place in my story that I think, "Um-m, don't know about that. Perhaps I better do some research on that", I can easily wander off into the never, never of internet information and not find my way home.  I sink deep into Really! that was the underwear they wore back in the dark ages? and become the fascinated reader when I should be the writer.

Write a certain number of words a day.  That's wonderful if you are inspired and know what you want to tell. Otherwise, pages of damn---damn---damnit! are probably never going to be a bestseller. Create an outline, OMG, if you can write all that out, you could have written your novel already.  Everything is a rough draft, because no matter how anal you are and how carefully you craft your story, it will not be perfect. You will edit and re-write and edit a hundred times before it is even okay.

Is it procrastination? I get myself together, face, hair, my presentable "house" clothes, rarely do I allow myself to stay in those comfy pjs and write.  I promise that the answering machine will catch the phone...unless it's Dee, I really need to talk to Dee about that thing we talked about the other day. I had breakfast, there will be no need to take a break. Of course, I might need a cup of coffee or a wee snack, maybe a sandwich. I am ready, could be here for hours. Just as soon as I see what that noise was...wow! neighbors are getting a new sofa, um-m, tacky thing.

My fellow authors, I say to you,  don't put if off, put your bottom in the seat, keep your fingers on the keyboard, your mind on the story. One moment, can you excuse me for a sec?  The clothes are dry, I'll just check the mail while I'm up and might as well pee. Be right back. What's your excuse?

Walking in Slick Shoes

I like this picture from an old LIFE magazine. Ernest Hemingway in his beloved Idaho, as he enjoyed a frivolous and quite agile moment. Two years later, at the age of 61, the famous author killed himself. Hemingway,  creative and highly intelligent, most often viewed the world through alcohol tinged lenses. I find most of his stories and observations somber. It is curious, I wonder about the man, about the depths of him.

A few years ago, one of my adult children struggled through her most current crisis. I told her, "Well honey, you just can't seem to get any peace in your life."       

She replied, "I know Momma, I am always wearing slick shoes." We actually shared a laugh about that. What a perfect description. This girl was not exactly born under a lucky star. But then, are any of us?

From the moment our fat little feet send us toddling across the floor, we are each fitted with our very own pair of slick shoes. It is totally up to us to learn to walk through life in those contraptions. I am an eternal optimist, believe in the search for the positive in life. It is notable that not fame, or money or power gives us immunity to life's slippery spots.  Even when you think that you have outgrown them, we all possess our original issue slick shoes.

Life will never be perfect, it will just be life. Some folks may appear to live a charmed life. Trust me, they are not. Somewhere in the back of their closet...there's those damn little shoes. Hemingway actually had some treads on his footwear that day as he kicked the can. He had traction, experienced one of those flashes of fun and joy. He once quoted, "The world is a place worth fighting for and I hate very much to leave it." What bit of slippery slime made him choose to give up the fight? Of course, we will never know.   

Another quote of Hemingway is, "The world breaks everyone and afterward, many are stronger at the break point." Those words are useful. If the morning comes and the heart still beats, your job is to strap on those old shoes, put one foot in front of the other and slide on through.

May your path be dry and your step be sure. JO

                             

Five Things I Love/Hate About Preppers

I think that anyone that is trying to be prepared for a catastrophe is a smart individual.  As I have said before, any one of dozens of events could occur that would turn our lives upside down.  Weather disasters, loss of your job or true apocalyptic happenings are not just fantasies of someone's imagination.  Preppers are diverse and have many different motivations for their preparations and I basically respect all of their efforts. Some things I love about these cautious and thoughtful folks and some I just can't agree with.

I LOVE-------
         1. People that use their brains to make the most of their resources, even on a limited budget to
prepare.
         2. People who don't just focus on one type of event, but work on a general preparedness for many eventualities.
         3.  That to really be prepared takes some organization.  You must devote at the minimum a small space, a small amount of your budget and time to have practical stores. (I am a Feng Shui type of gal, I believe that an organized life is a happier life)
        4.  That to be well prepared is to be self sufficient, not counting on someone else to take care of or provide for you.
        5. That to be prepared means you have to open your mind to surviving in a world that does not resemble the one you are accustomed to.

I HATE--------
        1.  People that are arrogant, criticize and look down on the efforts of others to prepare. If you are fortunate enough to have unlimited funds, it may indeed allow you an extravagant hole in the ground and let you survive.  It in no way means that others with less, will not survive.
        2.  People that only prepare for one horrendous event that they become convinced will be the world changing one. What psychic ability would make them know exactly what will occur?
       3.  People that, often under the pretense of being preppers, drop out and remove their family from the good things that are still available in our world.
       4.  People that have no balance, like any obsession or addiction, rob their family of living in the world as it is. Spend too much money and don't make prepping a reasonable part of their budget.
       5.  People that don't have the sense to just teach and caution and guide their children, instead turn them into frightened and distrustful little robots that fear what tomorrow will bring.  

As of this moment, the sun is still in the sky, this box is glaring in my face and we all have work to do. Be prepared, but don't be stupid.   JO

Great Expectations

It's a new year and a new day. Most of us are taking a deep breath, making some resolutions and hoping to make this one, better than last year. We are resolving to improve ourselves and our situations. That desire to be more is admirable and I personally believe that moving forward is a necessary goal for human beings. Whether it is a mile or an inch, we need to look ahead and move towards a new day.

The thing that has become so profoundly troubling to me is the overblown and false expectations that the culture of today has placed on all of us, particulary our children and young people.  Americans have a special knack for rushing headlong in one direction, going way past where we need to be and then having to backtrack to the proper place.  On one hand, we have tried to over balance, over level and equal out the natural events of life. There has been a determination that it is cruel for someone to be the winner and someone the loser, that to acknowledge the achievement of one is just not fair to the many.  On the other contradictory hand, the extravagant media, the publicity and promotion of success has given an unrealistic idea of how many people reach their loftiest goals.

In other words, a very teeny number of people win the big lottery, a tiny number become famous singers, writers, go on television and find a perfect mate (or on the ridiculous "I'll fill out this form and you will find me my true love"  internet sites).  A small minority of us are slim, beautiful and rich. It is just plain dangerous to believe that ANYbody can do ANYthing.  If that was true, then what would be the point? There is nothing wrong with wanting and trying to improve your life, but it is imperative that we are able to accept failure.  In this day, it seems that we don't even recognize failure. What is worse, it has become the popular thought, if I don't get what I wanted, what I tried for then it was someone else's fault. Most certainly no fault of my own: I did my best, I am supposed to triumph. Someone held me back, someone caused my failure. This has produced an era, a generation of people that are frustrated and constantly thinking they have been denied and deserve more.

Ever heard, "Look before you leap"?  The ethereal beauty in the picture, no matter how beautiful and light and lovely, will not float or fly if she jumps off that cliff...she will die. There is something to be said and learned from the quote, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. In this new year, do not give up your dreams and goals, but learn to be more patient and learn when to quit.  Another passage that I read was to not constantly spend your time fretting over where your next vacation will be, spend some time setting up a life that you do not need a vacation to escape. Boundaries can bring you security and peace, they don't have to be looked at as stone walls or never pushed out. Learning to live within them and make the most of your space can be as rewarding as an endless search for an illusive dream.  I have come to believe that some folks impossible searches are their eternal excuse to not adapt and improve where they are.