And When Lighting Strikes ~ Late Night Thoughts

This has been an interesting three days. Saturday, I decided to drop by a favorite "watering-hole" for a VERY gentle libation...I was having coffee, believe it or not. While talking to a dear friend who is the bartender, I noticed a friend I hadn't seen for several months. We starting talking and when we got to the "And what are YOU doing?" part ~ he told me that he had starting managing an apartment complex.

We discussed that for several minutes, and then he let the thunder roll. "We're looking for another manager, do you know someone who might be interested?" Avoiding the temptation to jump up and down and squeal, I casually mentioned that I might be interested. (me being someone, by the way, that's been out of work for a "bit")

"That's great," was the reply, "the boss is right over there, let's talk to him." Talk about being struck to almost silence. So, off we went to chat with the boss. He turned out to be quite the business man, and VERY business oriented. We talked for awhile and I found out more about the job. I said that I was very interested. He wanted to meet on Monday to talk further. I gave my friend my new phone number and thought that was the end of that. I've had these kind of job suggestions on bars before - and they come through about as often as "let me have your number and I'll call you next week."

Sunday evening, I got a phone call to confirm that I was indeed going to meet with them on Monday and to finalize the time and place. At this point I was speechless ~ but wait ~ there's more. (including the lighting strike!)

When I went down today (Monday) I did know they were getting rid of the current manager of one of the complexes ... what I did not know.......

When we arrived at the complex, my friend and I were outside looking at some work that needed (definitely) to be done. The "big boss" went inside, fired (terminated) the current manager - who knew it was coming - and after he'd cleaned out his desk - came out, called me in and informed me that I was now the manager. THAT'S when the lighting struck. You see, I've been looking for work ~ but when you reach a certain ... ahem ... age, finding a job is not that easy. Ageism is quite alive and well - although no one really talks about it ~ and it would NEVER be the reason they give for not hiring someone. However, I have very firm spiritual beliefs - and I knew that at the right moment, at the right time - I would find something. Little did I know it would be within 72 hours.

Before you "fuss," that kind of change-over is VERY common in the apartment industry ~ I've had it happen to myself as well...although not quite that quickly. Unfortunately, when it happens that way, there is no kind of hand-over of information. In this case, I'm not sure he would have been able to hand over much information anyway. And as I began to undo the piles of "stuff" - the former manager had brought many of the problems on himself.

The apartment complex while somewhat small (60 units) is none-the-less, going to be a real challenge over the next several days.
I have uncovered and unearthed that payments were incorrectly posted, not posted or even worse - leases not completed. Not a good sign. The stacks of papers that made little or no sense, were another less than promising sign. When I tried to rent an apartment that was listed as being vacant - but was actually quite occupied, was probably the final straw. (Oh, yes and I had to turn on all my charm when the tenant of the apartment got home from work and one of her neighbors casually mentioned someone was looking at her place to rent ... let's just say she arrived in my office in "high shriek" ...but let chuckling at the end.)

Having been through a "clean out your desk" situation myself, I have always tried to be supportive of people who have gone before. Not after that incident. I had my excuse for any problems I couldn't immediately solve. "I'm still trying to solve what the previous manager did ... I'll get back to you."

The issues at the complex are going to really occupy my time for the next few days. For example, I'm going into the office tomorrow morning at 5:30am to see if I can sort out the postings on the computer program and compare them to the hard copies.

I know for a fact, that I will not post here until Friday - so be patient with me. I will be back. And some good thoughts would be most appreciated. And trust me, I will have a wealth of stories to tell you when I get back on Friday!!! And probably from then on as well!!!

--Egyptian libation bowl
www.glencairnmuseum.org
--the Gordian Knot by J. Tonkin
www.tonkinart.com/gordian%20knot.htm

A Last Minute Suggestion ~ Late Night Thoughts

If you are looking for a last minute Father's Day gift (for me, of course!) ~ look no further ... from Bloomberg.com.

A diamond-encrusted platinum skull by Damien Hirst will go on sale for 50 million pounds ($99 million) in London. The price compares with the $8 million hedge-fund manager Steven Cohen paid for the artist's pickled shark in 2005.

``For the Love of God'' is covered entirely by 8,601 stones weighing a total of 1,106.18 carats. It will form part of the exhibition, ``Beyond Belief,'' at the White Cube, Mason's Yard gallery next month. Other works will go on show at Hoxton Square.

A sale of the skull for about $100 million would put Hirst, 41, on a price level with Pablo Picasso and Gustav Klimt, dead artists who produced some of the 20th century's most famous works.

White Cube won't release an image of the skull (I have an image below) or discuss security, gallery spokeswoman Sara Macdonald said in a telephone interview. She confirmed the 50 million-pound price, reported in the Sunday Times on April 29. There's a private view on June 2 and the exhibition will open to the public from June 3 through July 7.

The show will include two new series of works. ``Fact Paintings'' depicts the birth of Hirst's son Cyrus by cesarean section in August 2005. ``Biopsy Paintings'' are based on images of 30 different forms of cancer and other terminal illnesses.

Twelve new sculptures will include seven formaldehyde works from Hirst's ``Natural History'' series. ``Death Explained'' presents a tiger shark cut in two, displayed in separate tanks.

``In this exhibition, Hirst continues to explore the fundamental themes of human existence -- life, death, truth, love, immorality and art itself,'' White Cube said in a press release.

The U.K. artist employs about 80 people in studios and administration, having added 30 staffers to handle coming shows, his spokeswoman Jude Tyrrell told Bloomberg News in March.

Assistants help create art ranging from medicine cabinets to pickled animals to butterflies stuck in gloss paint, she said.

Actually - when you scroll down to see the skull ... it's really kind of creepy. Perhaps the pickled fish would be a better idea? Or as my Mother would say: "Just one more thing to dust!"

And Yet, It Does Matter (end) ~ Early Morning Thoughts

Yesterday's post ended with the idea that the The symbol is NOT the thing symbolized. The map is NOT the territory. The word is NOT the thing. And this is very important as individuals. I am not a label, I am not a word, I am not a symbol. I am me.

Several years ago, I performed in a delightful theatrical adaptaion of Author Robert Fulghum's All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. In once section (borrowed from one of his other books) he imagined a party where people were exchanging business cards. Each time "he" was handed one, he would look at it, then ask ~ "But, what do you do?" The reactions in the script and from the audience was ~ to say the least ~ delightful. Finally, he had this to say about what he did when he got himself a new business card:

What counts is not what I do, but how I think about myself while I’m doing it. In truth, I have a business card now. Finally figured out what to put on it. One word. ‘Fulghum.’ That’s my occupation. And when I give it away, it leads to fine conversations.

What I do is to be the best Fulghum I can be. Which means being a son, father, husband, friend, singer, dancer, eater, breather, sleeper, runner, walker, artist, writer, painter, teacher, preacher, citizen, poet, counselor, neighbor, dreamer, wisher, laugher, traveler, pilgrim, and on and on. I and you—we are infinite, rich, large, contradictory, living, breathing miracles—free human beings, children of God in the everlasting universe. That’s what we do.

And there it is ~ no labels necessary. No trying to figure out "what" someone is or is not. And that's what I'm striving for ~ to be me...the best WD I can be.

OK TZ, it took me longer than 100 words (I delighted in the email challenge however!)

But I would like to close this post with a new (to me) quote:

Robert Fulghum in his book Maybe, Maybe Not:

I do not believe that the meaning of life is a puzzle to be solved. Life is. I am. Anything might happen. And I believe I may invest my life with meaning. The uncertainty is a blessing in disguise. If I were absolutely certain about all things, I would spend my life in anxious misery, fearful of losing my way. But since everything and anything are always possible, the miraculous is always nearby and wonders shall never, ever cease. I believe that human freedom may be stated in one term, which serves as a little brick propping open the door of existence: Maybe.

And Yet, It Does Matter (2) ~Early Morning Thoughts

Yesterday, I vented my "orientation fatigue" about people who feel it's absolutely essential to label everyone according to orientation ~ straight, gay, bi-sexual, non-sexual, waffle-sexual, buy-sexual and whatever. There were the "ladies" of "The View" trying to determine if Hugh Jackman was gay (suggesting because he had married a less than attractive (!?!) wife he was suspect), there were a number of blogs determining if Enrique Iglesias was gay because he dared perform at the largest gay nightclub in Europe (not for free I can assure you) and sang one of his signature songs to a patron on-stage. My feeling was (and still is) "WHAT DOES IT MATTER?"

A lot.

After I finished quelling the desire to yell and become a hermit, I realized what was really going on was something that I work hard NOT to do. All these instances were simply a desire for labels. Didn't matter if the label was/is accurate or not, the important thing was/is to get the label. And this is why it does matter ~ regardless of orientation.

ALERT:
THE NEXT SECTION
IS GOING TO BE VERY FRANK ~
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

I was trying to figure out why the labels of today are so important. In thinking about some of the labels over time and I was struck by how many of them were and are used to define the relationship with a supposed "enemy."

A time tested method of establishing such a relationship is by constantly referring to "the enemy" with some sort of derogatory label. Depending on your age and what you read or were taught (or believe), the labels you know of might be: Nips, Krauts, Slopes, Monkeys, Panheads, Gooks, Commies, or Ragheads. Soldiers aren't the only people who employ this technique. Hate groups label the enemies of the week as Nigger, Kikes, Jew Bastards, Half-Breed, Witch, etc.

And soldiers and bigots aren't the only ones to do this. The use of derogatory labels is a widespread technique for legitimizing the mistreatment of others. From grade school to Columbine to the NFL, our culture refers to those who are "not accepted as non-enemies" as Wimps, Freaks, Homos, Faggots, Pussies, Retards, Breeders, Fag Hags, Fag Stags, Sluts, Celebutard, Bitch, C--t, Redneck, etc. Someone, somewhere has, I'm sure, a more complete list if you care to look it up. I'll leave the list at that - and pardon me while I sanitize my keyboard.

And if you question my use of Columbine, here is the opening paragraphs of an article from The Denver Rocky Mountain News - July 25, 1999:

At Brooke Gibson's high school, nasty nicknames were the norm. "Nigger lover" was what they called her when she listened to rap. "Dyke" when she cut her blond hair short.

At the school her sister Layn attended, nicknames might poke fun at someone's shirt color, but never their skin color or sexual orientation.

It was the same school.

Columbine.

I realized that the label(s) make some people comfortable. Much as the old country fellow said: "Yur either fer us or agin us!" And there it is ~ labels define who is "fer" us or "agin" us. If Hugh Jackman marrying a less than attractive woman (according to "The View") makes him suspect as being gay or Enrique Inglasias performs at a gay night club makes him gay ~ then that helps define the "group" and where they belong. But then, according to S.I. Hayakawa's Language in Thought and Action:

The symbol is NOT the thing symbolized. The map is NOT the territory. The word is NOT the thing. Most societies systematically encourage ... the habitual confusion of symbols with things symbolized. For example, if a Japanese schoolhouse caught fire, it used to be obligatory in the days of emperor-worship to try to rescue the emperor's picture (there was one in every schoolhouse), even at the risk of one's life.... The symbols of piety, of civic virtue, or of patriotism are often prized above actual piety, civic virtue, or patriotism.

In one way or another, we are all like the student who cheats on his exams in order to make Phi Beta Kappa; it is so much more important to have the symbol than the things it stands for.

So, (he said with a lot of trepidation) if the word is not the thing ~ why does it carry so much weight and/or power to hurt or destroy?
---more tomorrow

And Yet, It Does Matter ~ Early Morning Thoughts

I read quite a few blogs ~ actually a LOT of blogs. It's always interesting to see what people are talking about, what concerns people on the internet ... as anyone who reads blogs can tell you ~ sometimes it's funny, sometimes its somewhat frightening and then there are the days where irritation lands similar to a cartoon anvil.

A number of the blogs were all "a-twitter" over a discussion the ladies (a term I might ...no, I won't go there) of "The View" had whether Hugh Jackman ~ known as Wolverine in the X-Men series ~ might be gay or not. Evidently no definite conclusions were drawn...at least by the time of the commercial break. (please note: Rosie was no longer on the show - and these were women who usually talk over each other doing news topics) No conclusions were reached other than that men who marry women not stunningly attractive, are considered possibly gay. (what a lovely thing to say about Hugh Jackman's wife!!)

Then - while in London Enrique Iglesias performed ~ neither by surprise nor free ~ at one of the Europe's largest gay nightclubs. He was doing his usual songs, and came to one of his signature pieces titled "Hero." At this point, he usually brings a woman up on stage and sings to her. In this case, he called up one of the bar's male patrons and sang the song. A large number of blogs went beyond "a-twitter" to almost hysteria...(including some that should know better) although any performer will tell you ~ you play to the audience you have. Ask Bette Midler.

To make the day complete probably should have involved a phone call from D&D, but instead I got a call from someone who might be a delightful replacement for them. I was regaled with a complete description of a movie he had just watched and had to listen to an extended description of the people in the movie and their possible orientation. (I have watched movies with this person before ~ this is nothing new)

I'm going to be politically incorrect here ~ but at this point I was, frankly, suffering from "orientation" fatigue. After the 5th time of trying to convince my movie reviewer and performer sexual preference psychic, I gave up and gently but firmly ended the conversation.

I thought about why all this seemed to be going on, and why it mattered at all. I literally wanted to go out in the middle of the complex and yell ~ "WHAT DOES IT MATTER?"

My point is talent is talent is talent. If it's good it needs NO labels. If it's good it will cross lines, orientations and even - Lord help us - party affiliations. I don't spend my time while watching a movie wondering what someone does in their off-time. If the performance is terrible I will 1) regret that I'm there and have been known to 2) count patterns on wall paper or buttons on what someone is wearing to keep my mind and/or body from falling asleep.

As a slight aside, my technical theater instructor in college told about having to design a really, really awful show. He painted grape clusters on the wallpaper of the set ~ only each cluster had a different number of grapes. His rational was that perhaps the audience might make it to intermission before they finished counting the grapes.

After I finished quelling the desire to yell and become a hermit, I realized what was really going on was something that I work hard NOT to do. All these instances were simply a desire for labels. Didn't matter if the label was/is accurate or not, the important thing was/is to get the label. And this is why it does matter ~ regardless of orientation.

As I've written about before, labels are very handy for boxes, shelves and sock drawers, but deadly when applied to people...blonds are dumb(er), geeks wear glasses, people who appear smart or work hard are nerds...to the racial, orientation and intelligence labels designed to either hurt or put people "back where they belong."
--more tomorrow

--the intro notes to Enrique Inglesias "Hero"
www.8notes.com/school/riffs/guitar/enrique_iglesias_hero.asp
--Twilight Zone picture unfortunately had no credits or year
--grape cluster picture
www.forchini.com/history.html
--fire picture
http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/56877193/