Tag Archives: Rambling Ruminations

Have You Ever Looked at the Stars?

21 Sep

Sometimes, I like to sit in the darkness and become absorbed in my thoughts. If it is in a room, then I let my eyes adjust to the blackness. You would be surprised at what you can see, both internally and externally, once you become comfortable with the absence of light. If it is outside, then other senses begin to emerge. You can hear the sounds of the outdoors and feel the air.

Last night, I took Daisy Dog into the yard and allowed myself to be immersed in the night. I let the darkness surround me. I let the sounds of nature grow louder in my ears. I lifted my eyes and focused on the stars, those lights that have already been extinguished.Stars

Have you ever looked at the stars and ended up looking within yourself?

Have you ever looked within yourself and wondered what is really in there?

Have you ever wondered what is inside of you and think about those dead stars that we can still see?

Have you ever thought about those dead stars and wonder if part of us remains after we are gone?

Perhaps, our remaining light shines in the memories of those left behind. It could be in our deeds or our stories. It could be in the hearts of the ones we loved or the minds of the ones we encountered along the way.

Sometimes, the darkness is where you can find the light.

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A Confession is Brewing

18 Sep

I have a confession to make to the readers of this blog. It is something that many people who know me have a difficult time understanding. It places me in a minority of people who others may think of as strange, weird, un-American and totally out of the loop. What is my confession?

I do not drink coffee.

Understand that I know a lot of people who love coffee. My wife cannot start her day properly without a cup or two. Other members of my family are also coffee drinkers. One of my good friends at work always has a styrofoam cup in his hand, which led me to buy this for his office door.image-12

Heck, I was having a meeting with another coworker when he asked if I wanted some coffee. When I told him that I did not drink coffee, he looked at me like I had three heads.

I know that they, and millions of other people, love coffee. However, I never grasped that love. I am sure this is because my parents did not drink coffee, but, as I grew up, the urge never hit me.

When I was in high school, my summer job was working on the loading dock of a factory. Imagine working in a metal building during the hottest and most humid part of the year. It was a job where everyone looked forward to break time, where they could get into the air conditioning and get a cold drink.

At least, I looked forward to getting a cold drink. Several of my coworkers would pour a hot cup of coffee. I could never understand that. I needed to feel something cold, and they were taking in hot liquid. They explained it by saying that coffee actually cooled you off better than something cold. I think that was crap. There is nothing sensible about drinking something hot while working in a hot factory.

I will give them credit for drinking their coffee black. What is that old cowboy saying? Coffee is not strong enough unless a horseshoe can stand up in it. These days, people drink coffee with sugar, whipped cream, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, peppermint and other kinds of flavors. For this, I cannot blame them. If I was going to drink coffee, then I would want to cover up the taste, too.

When I was a kid, my mom used to get mad when I refused to eat something because it tasted bad. She would always ask if I had ever tried it. That argument does not fly with coffee. I have tried it, and it does not suit my palate. Those guys in the factory break room used to say that you had to acquire a taste for coffee. I was told the same thing about beer and have the same response about both. If I do not like something the first time I try it, then why would I want to drink it until I like it? You either like something, or you do not.

As someone who does not like coffee, I realize that I have missed out on the coffeehouse experience. I think it would be cool to hang out in a coffeehouse and be Bohemian for a while. Get away from the hustle and bustle of life; sit by a fire with a steaming cup; and listen to someone singing with an acoustic guitar. Or, go in with a laptop and scroll blogs while a poetry reading goes on in the background.

I am not kidding about that last paragraph. I really feel like I have missed out by not emersing myself in that atmosphere on occasion. To me, that would be the one plus of being a coffee lover. However, here is the thing. Most coffee drinkers do not take advantage of that break from real life. They pull up to the drive-thru window and take the coffee into the hustle and bustle with them.

Look, I have an issue with drive-thru windows, anyway. One of my early blog posts was about the uselessness of a drive-thru window at Sonic, and I will walk into a place a thousand times before pulling up to the window. There is something more personal about doing business inside a business. However, I think the drive-thru at a coffeehouse truly takes away from the whole reason coffeehouses exist in the first place.

This is not a knock at people who drink coffee. I think it is wonderful that they have something that gives them that much satisfaction and pleasure. However, I will take my caffeine cold and carbonated in a Coke Zero. If I could get those coffeehouses to turn themselves into Coke Zero houses, then the world would be a perfect place.

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A Small Post While Preparing for an Upcoming Large Post

11 Jul

There is a huge post rambling around in my brain, but I am not prepared to write it. I am hoping that it will create discussion and want it to come out right. It is one of those posts that may offend, but it may also make people think. That is enough about what I am not going to write. Let us get on with what you are about to read, which is not much.

Yesterday, I wrote about Little Cedar Lick. Today, I found out that it may not have been where I thought it was. It could have been a community that is now known as Leeville. If that is the case, then John Coffee “Jack” Hays was just up the road.

A long time ago, I wrote about my search for a singer named Bobby Doyle and how I could not find much information on him. In recent weeks, I have been in contact with his family and friends, and they sent an article that has just been published about him. It is an interesting article about an interesting man. You need to read it.

John Seigenthaler passed away. For those who do not live in Nashville, that name may not mean much to you. In these parts, he was a journalistic pioneer. My Twitter feed has been filled up with remembrances of him.

Earlier, I tweeted that there are three songs that always make me smile. That does not mean they are happy songs. There is just something about them that I like. They are:

“Dancing in the Moonlight” by King Harvest

“Badge” by Cream

“A Whiter Shade of Pale” by Procol Harum

Without a doubt, Foghorn Leghorn is the greatest cartoon character of all time. A lot of people are in agreement with this. Dave, who I used to work with, loved the big rooster, and his son gifted a Foghorn Leghorn DVD collection to him for Christmas. Unfortunately for Dave, all of the DVD’s were in Japanese. Apparently, Foghorn is big in Tokyo, too.Foghorn Leghorn

I got tickets to see Drive-By Trickers at the Ryman Auditorium. I have been wanting to see them, and the concert being at the Mother Church is an added bonus.

That is all. Now, my mind is empty.

 

 

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Out of the Dark

1 Jul

When my old laptop died, I had to get another one. There was no way I was going to know what to get, so I asked my nephew. Under his guidance, I bought a Mac, and it is a cool piece of machinery. It has all kinds of bells and whistles that I have no idea how to use. However, there is one thing that is mega-cool. The keyboard lights up.

That means I can work in the dark, and, as I have always said, I do some of my best work in the dark. Some people refer to my office as a cave because there is only a single bulb burning. More than once, a security person has stopped by because they thought I had left my door open by accident.

I have always liked the dark. Nights are better than days. Staying up late is better than getting up early. It could be the mystery of the dark that fascinates me. You cannot really tell everything that is going on. People do things differently in the dark than they do in the light. Simply, darkness is a favorite of mine.

Just think about all of the cool stuff that is associated with the dark.

The Dark Knight (Batman at his best.)

Dark Chocolate (Good stuff.)

It was a dark and stormy night. (Every book should begin this way.)

Cinemax After Dark (I got cable in my room way too soon.)

Darkman (Alright, this one is a little obscure. If you think Liam Neeson was a badass in Taken, then you should see him in this.)Darkman

Dark Shadows (Think of it as Phantom of the Soap Opera.)

Dark Night (A great song by The Blasters. Everyone should give it a listen.)

Dark Horse (Not the Katy Perry song. I am talking about that person who comes from nowhere to achieve greatness.)

The Dark Side of the Moon (Pink Floyd made what could be the greatest album of all time.)Dark Side

The Dark Tower (A series of books by Stephen King about Roland Deschain, the Gunslinger.)Dark Tower

On The Dark Side (A song from Eddie and the Cruisers that was actually performed by John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band.)

See, there are a lot of great things that come out of the dark.

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“Too Tall” Tree – The Story of My Eccentricities

27 Jun

When I was a kid, my mom always tried to get me to have other kids over to play. She talked about calling the kid down the road. She hosted birthday parties. She threw a Halloween party that became a famous event in our family’s history. All the time, she tried to figure out ways to get kids to the house. She even told me that she was shy as a child and never had other kids over. It was a regret that she did not want me to have.

Yep, my mom tried to guilt me into having kids over to play.

Sometimes, I agreed to it. However, most times I was comfortable playing alone and using my imagination. There were Hot Wheels that could be crashed or turned into a miniature NASCAR race. There was this awesome football game where you put a disc into the player, and the radio announcer told you what happened on the play. There was also a basketball goal where imaginary last second shots could be hoisted.

One of my favorite games was “Too Tall” Tree.image-2

I got a football and pretended that the trees were defenders. I had to get through them to score a touchdown. I did the play-by-play at the same time. Being a Cowboys fan, I named one of the trees after Ed “Too Tall” Jones. It was years later that I learned that Jones played college ball at Tennessee State University in Nashville.

Anyway, I took the ball from center, and, when “Too Tall” Tree blocked my ability to pass, I took off down the field. It sounds weird, but it was a lot of fun when I was little.

I think my parents and other people thought it was weird way back then. I overheard people saying that I was selfish and did not want other kids playing with my toys. I guess that was the only reason they could think of why a kid did not want other kids around. Well, there was another reason. I was not comfortable around people.

All of this came to mind during a conversation with my wife. At some point, she asked, “You don’t like people do you?”

That is absolutely not true. I like all kinds of people, but, at times, I am still not comfortable around them. This is really true when it comes to strangers. I have never been good at starting a conversation with a complete stranger. I cannot think of anything to say. No witty comments come from the back of my mind. Simply, it is something that brings a lot of discomfort.

I do not start conversations with people sitting next to me on a plane. I do not start conversations with somebody at a bar.

Certainly, this has caused me to miss out on meeting some great and interesting people. I know that more than anyone.

During that same conversation, my wife asked how I have met people. That is a good question. I have met a lot of great people, and many of them have become my friends. Mostly, I have met new people through people who I have already known. That way they are not a complete stranger. In the modern business vernacular, that is called networking.

Of course, some people who have no problems approaching a stranger have started conversations with me. I met one of my best friends that way.

This is an issue that I have fought through all of my life. It was discussed in therapy, and it is something that I try to overcome. It is something that has hindered me through the years.

During my teenage years, I felt sorry for myself because I was not part of the cool kid groups. I did not get the messages that there were parties going on. There was this feeling of being left out. Another reason this post came to mind is because that feeling came back several days ago. There was an event that took place which I was not invited to. Internally, I acted like a child for a few hours, but it helped me put this post together.

I realize now, and knew deep down back then, that I was at fault for not opening myself up to people. If I had been more outgoing toward people who I did not know, then those people would have been more welcoming to me.

I have no idea if this post makes sense, and I have no idea how to end it. I know that I have missed out on some great people and some great opportunities. However, I know that there are a lot of great people in my life who would do anything for me just as I would do anything for them.

Am I still uncomfortable talking to strangers? Yes. I can barely do it, and I admire those who can. However, I have met a lot of people, and I like most of them. Like everyone else, there are some people who I can do without.

 

 

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Things I Think While Kayaking

22 Jun

Several weeks ago, my wife and I hiked some trails around the Harpeth River. As we walked, we saw people kayaking, and she has been wanting to kayak ever since. Yesterday, we decided to spend some family time on the water, so my wife, my stepdaughter and I headed out for a day of outdoor adventure. Unfortunately, there are no pictures for this post because we were afraid out phones would get wet. I only have this emblem from the kayak company to break the monotony of words.Foggy Bottom

Luckily, we called ahead to Foggy Bottom, the kayak renting place, because it was packed with people on a waiting list. Within a few minutes of arriving, we were on a van filled with anticipation. When we arrived at the put in spot, I helped the driver take kayaks to the water while my wife and stepdaughter stood on the bank arguing over who was going to get the cool one that they saw. That is when a guy told them that they could stop arguing because it was his personal kayak.

The driver told us that we would get out at the bridge, and, with that information, we shoved off into the great unknown with a ton of other people. We paddled for a while. We floating for a while. It was all very relaxing, and, when I get relaxed, I start to think. That is why I do my best thinking when I first get into bed.

The first thing to hit me was a song.

“Rock the Boat” by The Hues Corporation

When that one came to mind, they started flooding in.

“Proud Mary” by Ike and Tina Turner. It is better than the CCR version.

“Big River” by Johnny Cash

“Old Man River” by Paul Robeson

“Somewhere Down the Crazy River” by Robbie Robertson. I wrote a terrible post about it.

“Take Me to the River” by Al Green but made famous by that mounted fish.

“We Shall Gather at the River” by various people in almost every John Ford movie.

I was having so much fun that I started to sing a few of them. My wife looked at me warily. When I wondered aloud about how many songs are about rivers, she looked at me like I was crazy.

My thoughts were interrupted when we hit our first rapids. Well, they were not really rapids. It was more like water running over some rocks. Embarrassingly, I got spun around. More embarrassingly, it happened each time we hit a little rapids. My wife and stepdaughter were a lot better with the wild and raging waters.

It was during one of these spins that I started thinking about Native Americans. I teach about how many of the tribes lived along the rivers and how those waterways were their interstates. In all of those lectures, I never realized how hard that would have been. I am sure they used the Harpeth, but they also used rivers a lot bigger and wilder than this one.

Then, it happened. The clouds began to build up, and we heard thunder. Not long after, we saw lightning in the distance. Around the same time, we hit another small rapids, and I got stuck. My wife and stepdaughter, in an attempt to outrun the storm, took off. Once I got myself unstuck, I was paddling alone as the clouds darkened.

There I was. Clouds darkening overhead. Lightning flashing all around. Me sitting on a little boat in the middle of the water. I decided not to worry about it because there was nowhere to go. Lightning would probably strike the tallest thing around, and that would be some tree. If I stayed in the middle, then a falling tree would not hit me. Certainly, this is the plan that a Native American in a canoe would have followed.

It started to rain, but I was already wet. I made the decision to paddle until I caught up with the rest of my family. That took a while.

Eventually, the rain went away; I caught up; and I began to ponder some of the things that we had seen.

Along the way, there were several places where people could stop their boats and get out. We did not do that because my stepdaughter was focused on getting to that bridge. However, I watched the people as we floated by.

They skipped rocks.

They fished.

They drank beer. Actually, it must have been a lot of beer by the looks of some of the bellies on the guys.

There was one couple making out on a log where they thought they could not be seen.

Where there was a road access, people pulled up in their pickup trucks.

That is when it hit me. We had been floating through one of those Country songs that you hear on the radio all of the time. It was almost like the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World, where you ride a boat and watch the animatronic pirates attack a town. The pirate song plays as you go from spot to spot.

This was the Country song version of that with real people on the banks. When those guys get in their tight jeans and jump around on stage, this is what they are singing about. However, it looked different from I imagine when I hear one of the songs on the radio.

When the guy sings about riding to the river in his pickup truck and the girl has her bare feet on the dashboard, I picture a good-looking girl that you might see in the video. Yesterday, I did not see her.

It brought to mind a story I once heard. This guy was telling his friend about when he first got married. His wife had a butterfly tattoo on her butt. He asked his friend if he would like to see it. Then, he yelled to his wife, “Come here and show us that Screamin’ Eagle on your ass!”

‘Merica

To the relief of my stepdaughter, we made it to the bridge and a throng of people trying to get on vans. We thought it was going to be a struggle, but we made it out rather quickly. My wife and stepdaughter crammed into a space for one, and I hopped in with the coolers in back.

We made it back home but were worn out and sore. I picked up a pizza, and we spent the rest of the night trying not to move. I cannot wait to go back again. Kayaking was really fun. Next time, I want to stop at one of those spots and see what it is like to take part in a Country song. That good-looking girl I imagine will be with me because I married her.

 

 

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The Yard Dog Award – Stealing Signs

21 Jun

It has been a while since we presented someone with the Yard Dog Award. The first one went to a porn king, and the second went to a wonderful gentleman in Cleveland, Ohio. This one is more political in nature.

At some point in the past, I wrote about my issues with politicians and the designs of their yard signs. This time, I take issue with people who steal those yard signs.Stealing

During this election cycle, there has been an epidemic of signs disappearing in the middle of the night. Heck, they have also been disappearing during the day. It is certain that these signs are not pulling themselves out of the ground and walking off. No, it is the work of thieves. Who are these people?

It could be people who support another candidate.

It could be people with nothing better to do.

It could be people who think they are secret agents going on dangerous missions.

It really does not matter why people do it. What matters is that it is stealing.

Here is the thing. People can be against a candidate and go around telling people how terrible it would be if they got elected. People can tell a candidate to their face that they would not vote for them in a million years. People can do all kinds of things in elections, and recent years have shown us that elections are not cordial.

However, these candidates have decided to put their name on a ballot because they want to serve the community. It takes guts to be a candidate because the chance of losing is always there. On top of that, they are spending their own money to buy signs to put in yards.

Candidates running for state or federal office have plenty of donors and the party coffers behind them, but local candidates do not have that support. They have a few supporters who give them a little money, and they have their own checkbook. There is no reason to steal something that they have spent hard-earned money on.

The Yard Dog Award goes to those people who think it is a good idea to steal yard signs. It is a ridiculous and childish act that most people think is stupid.

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The Woods Behind the House

14 Jun

There are woods behind our house. In the late afternoon, it is nice to sit on the deck and feel the shade from the trees. It is always relaxing to hear the leaves rustle in the breeze. Many times, animals such as rabbits and deer emerge from the woods and hang out in the yard.  Having woods at the edge of the yard is a lot better than having someone looking back at us from their deck.image

Sometimes, my imagination takes me to a darker place when I look at the woods behind the house. I wonder what is going on in there. What creatures are peering at us from the shadows? Was that sound of a branch breaking a deer or something more sinister? What was that snorting in the darkness?

Several years ago M. Night Shyamalan tried to capitalize on The Sixth Sense with a movie called The Village. The story follows a group of people who live in a village surrounded by woods. Apparently, monsters live in the woods and an understanding has been reached between the two groups. If the people will stay out of the woods, then the monsters will stay out of the village.

It is a mediocre movie with an ending that can be seen from a mile away, but I liked one scene. It is night and a guard stands in a tower watching the woods. Torches have been lit around the perimeter. Every sound the guard hears takes him closer to hysterics. He had no idea what was making the sound, and his imagination was taking him deeper in despair.

It is a great scene that I think about when I look into the woods behind the house.

I know what these woods are all about. It is the edge of a farm, and a huge house sits not too far away. However, I like to wonder what else might be happening, and I do not think that I am alone.

The woods have always been a dark and mysterious place. In fabled tales, it is the home of elves, evil witches, trolls, dwarves and other assorted creatures that people who wander into the woods may encounter. Do these tales have a basis in reality, or do they derive from other dangers?

Bands of thieves. Ferocious animals. The risk of injury. The risk of getting lost.

Perhaps, the dark forces of the woods comes from the Christian belief in Adam and Eve. Heck, if messing around with one tree can get you kicked out of paradise, then think about what messing around with a bunch of trees will do.

The woods have always been a place of wonder – a place we can see but not know what is happening within. Do we dare take a few steps in and explore?

That is what I think about when I look into the woods behind the house.

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Money Cannot Buy Class

8 Jun

One of my favorite movies is Home from the Hill, a 1960 melodrama starring Robert Mitchum and Eleanor Parker. It follows the lives of Wade Hunnicutt and his family through a myriad of Shakespearean conflicts. Their’s is far from the perfect family. However, there is another aspect of Wade’s life that attracts me to the movie. He is the richest man in town.Home from the Hill

Hunnicutt owns all of the good farmland and lives in the biggest house. Everyone calls him Captain as a sign of respect, but it is also a sign of obedience. Hunnicutt’s stature leads him to believe that he has the right to do anything he wants. He plainly states his outlook on life when he says that he is the “kind of man that walks around with nothing in his pockets, no identification because everyone knows who you are. No cash because anyone in town would be happy to lend you anything you need. No keys ’cause you don’t keep a lock on a single thing you own. And no watch because time waits on you.”

Hunnicutt also believes that he is the kind of man who can have any woman he wants, single or married, because his wealth and power allows it. In fact, the movie begins with Hunnicutt getting shot by a jealous husband. As the movie continues, it gets more and more complicated.

So, why am I interested in the story of Wade Hunnicutt? Because he is the perfect example of how people with wealth or power should not act. People who are lucky enough to hold such status should be humble and should realize that it does not make them better than others. They should realize that they do not have the right to treat others with disrespect.

A lot of discussion has focused on the 1%. Well, it is real people like the fictional Wade Hunnicutt who give the 1% a bad name. Sure, Hunnicutt may be an over the top caricature, but he still represents the idea wealth and power allows people to act in ways that are inappropriate.Phoenix Ball

Last night, we attended the Phoenix Ball, a local gathering that raises money for Cumberland University, and I started thinking about this. We ran into a lady who has been a long time resident of our town and is someone of means. However, you would not know it by talking to her. She does not put on airs and always takes time to ask about family and friends. In essence, she knows how to act. She has class.

I have been in the presence of a lot of people who are like her. You would never know what they have through their actions. However, I have also been in the presence of a lot of people who make a point to let you know who they are and where they rank. I wonder which ones are truly the more successful.

As I tweeted earlier, money can buy a lot of things, but it cannot buy class. I wish more people would realize that money does not bring respect. Being a good person and treating people right is what brings respect. That is something people from all economic levels can do.

 

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The Day Austin Peay Blew Up My Stats Page

26 May

Last night, I opened up my WordPress account to read the latest blogs. At the corner of the screen was the familiar orange beacon telling me that there was a message of some sort. Usually, it is a star to point out that someone liked a post, or it is a dialogue balloon signaling that someone had made a comment.

This beacon was saying that my stats were booming. The blog was receiving a lot more traffic than usual. I have seen this one pop up several times, and it always makes me wonder what is happening.

Did a new reader discover the blog and make their way through a bunch of posts? It is always cool when that happens, and it is easy to determine. The stats will show a bunch of posts have been read by a few people. Yep, someone spent a long time reading my mundane writings, and I appreciate them for it.

Was one of the posts on a topic that has suddenly become a popular search term? I think that has happened a couple of times when older posts jumped to the top of the stat line.

Did I write about something obscure enough that when someone searches for it this blog will show up? I am pretty sure that has happened a couple of times. I am not trying to brag, but I believe this site has become the go-to place for a couple of topics.

Is there some bot out there that found some phrase on my blog and ran with it? I have often wondered how many bots are out there lurking around.

All of those questions went through my mind when I saw the booming beacon but clicking the stats made me wonder what was going on.

A post that I wrote last Fall, “Let’s Go Peay!“, was off the charts. It has gotten more hits in the past several hours than it has in the last several months. How did that happen? Was there suddenly a bunch of people interested in a chant from a small university in Tennessee?

I wrote the post because I always thought the chant was cool, but I never thought it would be something that would bring a lot of readers. Apparently, it is more interesting than I thought, or someone’s browser messed up.

Last week, the university’s football field collapsed into a sinkhole.Sinkhole

You can go ahead and insert a Bane joke. I am sure everyone else has.

That could have made Austin Peay a popular search term, but I would think that interest has past.

Anyway, I am not complaining. Everyone wants a lot of people to read their stuff. I just find it interesting that an old post has suddenly found fame. Heck, it is now the most viewed post of the past quarter. For all the people who read it, I appreciate you stopping by and hope you will stay for a while. I also hope you are real people.

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