LEAVE IT TO PEEVER

On turning sixty

-Bumper sticker of the week: Unrepentant Hippie.

-Quote of the week: My doctor says I’m in the first stage of fossilization.

-On turning sixty: My sixtieth birthday is right around the corner. Wow! Sixty. I almost died at 52, so I’m pretty excited to turn sixty. I got over growing old. Now I see it as a battle won. I’m content with it. As least as content as you can get. Growing old does signify the end growing near. There’s no amount of technology, or science, or praying, that can change that fact. We all were born equal regarding death. But the whole of it is hardly about death. It is about life and living it. That’s the hard part. What to do with your time? In the end, that’s all we’ve really got. Time. How to use it best? If you live life to the fullest, regrets come with it. I don’t know how you could live life without regrets. I don’t see that happening. You shake them off and try to do better. Seems that’s what being human is all about. You do, and redo. Do, and redo, until, ah, that feels better. I think I’ve got it. I feel happy with that. Happy is what you’re after. Not a tee-hee kind of happy, but a contentment, a feeling that this is it, I’m doing the best I can. I’m going all out. I’m happy with who I am. I like myself. I’m a decent husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, employee, friend. Do you work at staying positive, not bellyaching, trusting others, doing good? Are you demeaning? Do you hold color, or religion, or sex, or sexual preference, against others? Do you seek out something greater than yourself, because in the end, if we are as good as it gets, we’re screwed. None of this comes easily, and none of it is comfortable. Being a decent human is hard work. And it doesn’t get any easier with old age, although it does get a bit more pressing. But it’s never too late. Following your bliss is a calling to each of us that must be heeded to find happiness.

-The Grammy Awards were sure a lot better than the recent State of the Union address. The Grammy Show was uplifting, celebratory, and had a little something for everyone. The recent State of the Union was, on the other hand, depressing, boring, and more of the same. I particularly liked the Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s tribute on the Grammy Show. They played my favorite all-time song, “A Day in the Life,” with a performance by the Cirque Du Soleil. Bush performed his usual monologue, complete with teleprompter, two sentence paragraphs, and a butchering of the English language. It must has really stirred up Congress. They gave him repeated standing ovations, which corresponded to their combined intelligence, which apparently numbers somewhere around 26.

-I’m still hearing arguments from politicians who fear our withdrawing from Iraq will cause a bloodbath. What the hell do they think it is now?

-Some politicians, particularly John McCain, think the situation is getting better in Iraq. Besides being blind, deaf and/or dumb, this guy is just straight out a war hawk, who wants to solve our problems by killing anyone who thinks differently. Of all people, John McCain should know better. Having been a POW in the Vietnam War, he apparently didn’t use the time very reflectively. He only shows bitterness and a propensity for revenge. If this guy becomes the Republican nominee, our efforts must double to defeat him. He represents everything that is wrong with Washington. He is out of touch with the world and anything representing good. He’ll go down by 7 percentage points, which is a huge defeat by today’s standard. To either Hillary or Barack.