I never feel as alive
as when we go downtown.
We don’t fear anyone.
We welcome everyone.
Ewe
Nye
Ted
Ewe
Nye
Ted
As wild as our instincts
We feed
on need.
We feed
and breed.
We feed
on greed.
We feed
I’ll lead.
What use is “no”?
No is fear.
No is death.
Are you prepared to live?
Then say yes.
There is no loss
When there was never gain.
Act, not for afterdeath
but for life -
This is happiness.
Today I had a really pleasant experience with my family. My brother took us out for lunch. We randomly decided to try something new. That something new ended up being Ted’s Montana Grill . They’re a 99% plastic-free establishment, and their burgers are pretty kick-ass, too. I ordered George’s Cadillac burger. They have the option to order Bison meat, but I wasn’t feeling bison-y at noon. This noggin-sized sandweesh comes with cheddar cheese, barbecue sauce, and an inch thick stratum of bacon. When I layered the toppings: red onion, pickles, finely shredded lettuce, and tomato, I had to cut the sucker in half and make like I was on Guy’s Big Bite. A handful of fries and half a burger later, I was done. Or so I thought…
I just couldn’t pass up the most beautiful strawberry shortcake I’d seen in years. We split it four ways. A perfectly baked biscuit sandwiched a heaping helping of vanilla Häagen-Dazs and was drizzled with fresh strawberries and syrup. This dessert attained an immaculate balance between sweet and savory. Ahhh, dulcet reverie.
Such an indulgent meal called for plenty of walking. By that I mean shopping and some bipedal locomotion. My brother who was already kind enough to pick up the triple-figure tab at lunch went ahead and got me a sexy pair of slate patent leather 5 inch stilettos I’d fallen in love with after seeing they were ON CLEARANCE. I haven’t been on the best terms with my brother for the last four or so years, but I could have kissed him so hard after that! And I would have! Had I not been in public. I just wasn’t comfortable accosting my brother with my lips at the checkout counter.
Once we got home my guilt had me playing this weekend’s latest musical obsession (the Chromeo) and dancing about the first floor for a bit of cardio in the absence of my folks who were picking up a few grocery items. I didn’t feel quite done upon their return so I coaxed my dad and mother into dancing with me! My dad was having trouble following the beat and gave up, but my mom and I kept at it for at least 15 minutes! She was quite the trooper. I was impressed (they’re 65, mind you). We boogied to the Beegees and old Michael Jackson tunes.
My dad must have wanted a bit of exercise in his own way after this and asked me to go on a walk with him around the neighborhood. The sun was an hour from setting and a number of neighbors were walking their dogs. My dad counted the number of houses for sale: eight. He lamented the state of yards that weren’t properly cared for (by his standards–the obscene kind). I commented on the size of Georgia mosquitoes: “They look like they’re on steroids. Hulksquitoes!” My dad gave me a “ha”. I was mildly disappointed in myself. I know I can be way funnier than this. A half hour later we returned before the sun was set.
Now, as I type this, my mother is in her chair napping. My dad is outside watering our plants. And my brother is experiencing a much needed bowel movement.
And I’m…
I’m just chilling out to some sultry Telefon Tel Aviv.
Dawn awaits.
We travel toward the horizon,
but with each step closer,
the destination doesn’t appear any nearer.
Our sun is looming,
stirring beneath the blanket of night;
its clock is
not our clock; our sacred times
are not synchronized.
Shall it then
be used as a reference point?
Its worth is in the light is provides us.
But its curse
is in the annual reminder
that we’re one year closer to an end.
If desire is ‘sin’,
then the greatest human sin
is the desire for more than what we have
in this corporeal form.
The greatest tragedy for one who believes in an afterlife
is the realization that there is no more than what is housed within this world.
I am sorry for all those that live their lives based on what might be after physical death,
because there are no guarantees,
and they may miss out on their one opportunity for happiness.
If there is an afterlife,
then I do not fear, because I don’t believe in one absolute path to access it.
Our world’s cultures and beliefs are too
beautifully discrete
to believe only one has the correct answer.
Right now I am thankful.
I love and I am loved.
I am still working out a solid plan of action for my future, but I think it gets easier with each day. And with my initiative, I hope things will fall into place more easily, as I have had the opportunity to see happen before.
At a point like this, I would want to thank some higher power for all the good things in my life. It seems the custom of most folk, which I’ve witnessed on all sorts of award shows. But instead, I’d like just like to thank everyone I’ve come across. Every entity that had something to do with my being here right now as well as every choice made to get here.
