THE OBSERVABLE UNIVERSE

TACTICAL

While the financial situation “is what it is”, what I would like readers to know is that it is not a crisis.  Yes, there will be belt-tightening and fewer “treats” for a cat, but it is still very manageable situation, provided the Congress and the White House can get back to legislating in Washington.


If there is anything that I really don’t like about my situation, I would have to say how tied I am to the comings and goings on in Washington.  That is so troublesome, part of the reason I was concerned with the results of the last Presidential election.  Pick up my textbook for class at Metro Community College ... so now I can hope to get back to work full-time for real in a few years, after I get my Bachelor’s in Exercise Science at UN-O!



THE OBSERVABLE UNIVERSE
I don’t know if I can communicate to any of you how fortunate I have been throughout my life.  That prolly accounts for most of the reason that I see the world differently than most.  While all unique experiences are less unique than we think, I have to wonder how many people are truly at peace with themselves and with their lives?

A line of Upton Sinclair’s that I ran across recently  (funny, since reading “The Jungle” began the erosion of my nascent economic conservatism, I’d have thought I would have found it sooner) that I took to be about trying to get someone to comprehend and understand a different opinion, “It is impossible to make a man understand something if his livelihood depends on not understanding it”, is a notion that I have long ago grasped.  This was an imperative, if I wanted to be who it is that I am, because the tides that shape and form a collective and  individual, willful ignorances, are strong and unceasing.  Without the desire to be my own voice and to be in control of as much of myself as I could possibly be, I shudder to think of where I would have been washed away to.

Lately I have become fond of the term “social introvert” to be a fair assessment of my most dominant personality trait.  When I spoke about not being in a relationship and was told in comments that I would be doing myself a disservice.  Also,  that I would be cheating another person out of their chance of being in a wonderful relationship (presuming that I was “That Guy” for “That Gal”).

This guide that I found (because I could not get the pictures to save at the right size, I Googled key phrases and found this link to a Pinterest board) explaining what “introvert” means in a “user guide” format in a whimsical but clear way, does seem to me to be very on the mark (see what I did there!!).  Though not all of it is applicable to me, the part where the guide speaks about how introverts feel that people can suck up their “energy” did hit home.

It has been quite a while since I have had the complaint about feeling drained.  I still “sundown”, in fact Monday was an example of me suffering through a shortage of zip, but I worked through it.  The complaint of “being drained” no longer has any relevance, because most, if not all, of my energies are committed to my own interests and well-being.  Spending energy on those kinds of things are for me like using a renewable energy resource with an endless life-cycle.  It is hard to feel tired or complain of fatigue, when nearly everything I do is to make me a better person, and to help me live a life that is worthy of my efforts.

Did I ever mention the picturesque view I have of Hanscom Park outside of my apartment window?  I mean the sun brightening the naked limbs of trees, the remains of snow in the grass, man, to be a location for subsidized housing (i.e., “the projects”!) the immediate view is amazing!  The other day I was walking about a block away from my apartment building, when I stopped, picked up an empty bottle, and placed it in a nearby trash receptacle.  A man who was getting into a pick-up truck with a young boy inside, stopped me and asked if I picked up trash around this property often.  I told him the truth, that I do so occasionally when I am going by, because the trash cans are too near for me to feel good about leaving some of the stuff in the bushes and on the ground (and there is a bus stop on the corner where I am sure folks decide to dump their stuff prior to boarding).  I picked up a couple more “big pieces” of trash and walked them to the bin, where I dumped it with the bottle.  It occurred to me that he may have been the property owner, as there is a house that rents out rooms and a new apartment building there.  If so, I liked that he gets to feel a little better about his property, knowing that there is someone around that gives a care about it too!

I tell that story because it is one of many that I could come up with about my time here, and why I think that I fit in here so well.  There are a lot of nice people here, well-mannered, and I am sure that even the thuggish crowd “minds their manners” (and why I am always  at either Def Con 2 or 3!) to some extent.  Lately, I have been tutoring a few people at the club where I work on how to “fight”.  I don’t say “boxing”, because I don’t want anyone thinking they are going to win the Golden Gloves and get their faces busted up!  But I believe that I can show them how to defend themselves and give them a little confidence, not only in self-defense, but in their lives.  Any-WHO!

My being here in Omaha and “here”, metaphysically, does not mean that I am materially wealthy or without any concerns.  But what it does mean is that I am happy again, as I have been for most of my life.