Category Archives: Out & About

Places I go, people I see, things I do, stuff I notice.

Rear Views

19 Thursday Sep 2013

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Rear ViewDon’t look back. You hear that all the time. The past is the past, don’t waste your time looking back. Just put one foot in front of the other, and keep moving forward. These sage words of advice are meant to motivate you, to keep you moving in the right direction, to keep you focused on achieving your goals – your success. Whatever success happens to mean for you. Contrary to this popular advice, I have found that it can be fun, and enlightening, to see what’s behind you – especially if you can do it without actually looking back.

Over the past year I have made several road trips, traveling between Alabama and California, utilizing a variety of routes and rest stops. The trips were long, but they were quite enjoyable, and I saw so many wonderful sights on my journeys. They were opportunities for me to get out and about, and see what I could see.

Most of the trips were solo, so I had a lot of time to contemplate life, and try to discover the solution for world peace. But, there is only so much that one brain can take, and I had to find other means of entertaining myself during those extended periods of time between one destination, and the other. Who knew snapping random pictures could be so energizing and therapeutic?

The photographic techniques used here are simple: Point. Click. Wait until you get home to see what wonderful surprises await you. This is also known as the “keep your eyes on the road and at least one hand on the wheel” technique. My results generally run the gamut from half-way decent, to blurry mess, to what on earth were you pointing at when you snapped this.

I have assembled some of the results of my randomness in a collection that I call Rear Views. I see so many parallels and analogies for life in these images, but I am going to resist the impulse to describe them to you.  Show, don’t tell. Besides, we have already established the fact I don’t always see things the way most people do. And I’m OK with that. The photographs in this collection have been labeled RearViews a to z, but they appear in random order. If you’re interested, I invite you to buckle-up and enjoy the ride – see what you can see – and then share it with me.

Overwhelmed

14 Saturday Sep 2013

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Lone TreeUh-oh. Here it is again. That feeling of being so overwhelmed with all there is that needs to be done that you can’t seem to do anything. I see you nodding your heads – you understand. For me, it isn’t a frequent occurrence, but when it does hit – WOW!

I call this a time of being “overwhelmed into inactivity”. A time when your first thoughts may be to find a quiet corner and curl up in it, with your eyes closed, hoping to shut out all of the unwanted noise of demand. Or, you may find that sometimes you just sit, for a very long time, your mind reeling with all the commotion of the things you need to do, or think you should be doing, and not getting any of it done. It feels like having your ruby slippers stuck in the mud, and you’re trying to figure out a way to click the heels together so that you can get yourself back to Kansas. It can be a challenge to pull oneself out of the spiral.

I’m sure there are those trained professionals who would not hesitate to label these feelings as depression, but I don’t feel depressed, I just feel overwhelmed.

I guess I should clarify things a bit here. When I say “overwhelmed into inactivity”, I’m not immobilized, I’m just not doing what I think I probably should be doing. I may spend time chatting on the phone, or tinkering around the house. Or, I may curl up in my mother’s old recliner with a book, or with the TV remote and some comfort food. Preferably chocolate. OK, ice cream with chocolate in it.

I know – it sounds a lot like procrastination, but this is different. I know this because I have been known to procrastinate on occasion as well. This is more like having too many cookies on your plate, and you can’t decide which one to eat first; or over-thinking your next move in a challenging game of Jenga – the Turbo version.

I am happy to report that, to date, I have not required a pill or a professional. The cure for me is to get going and do something. Anything. You’re probably familiar with a variety of quotes that warn you ‘getting started’ has the potential for being the hardest part of any task. So, from that massive list of things to do, I just pick something and do it. It doesn’t have to make sense – it doesn’t even have to be a logical choice. I just have to pick something and get started on it.

I have found that even if I don’t complete the task right away, I feel motivated to keep moving forward. When I actually complete a task from my list, it feels a little like scoring a touchdown. It might not be the winning touchdown, but it gets me on the board. And, before I even realize it, I’m not feeling quite so overwhelmed because I see progress. Even if that progress is just a teeny, tiny, baby-step.

Here’s to progress. And touchdowns.

An Open Letter to “The Money”

26 Monday Aug 2013

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Dear MoneyDear Money,

May I call you Money? I do hope you and all in your family are well. I know that this economy and the current political climate have been a little rough on you. Me too. I feel your pain.

I’m writing you today because for years and years, people have said to me, “Do what you love and the money will follow.” After a rather lengthy search, and more than a few missteps, I am doing what I love.

I finally gathered the courage to take a leap of faith and started a Blog. Yes I did. I write about whatever happens to be on my mind and people actually take the time to read what I have written. I find that amazing. But that was just the beginning. I also get to share a few of my creations and inspirations, and I teach along the way. This is so much fun that I hesitate to call it work, but it certainly keeps me busy – all of the designing and writing and teaching. Yes, I am a Designer, Writer, and Educator. It’s official – it says so on my business cards. This is what I have dreamed of for a very long time and I love, love, love what I do.

And now, I just want to hold you, and squeeze you, and take you home.

You don’t have to stay with me forever, I know of others who would love to see you as well, just stop by here on a regular and significant basis, and I will happily help you find your way to them. We can start with the nice people over at the power company, they send me little notes every month to let me know how much they are looking forward to your visit with them. Oh, and that one girl at the grocery store, the one who always smiles when I give her cash. And then she’ll say, “Enjoy the rest of your day!” when she gives me the receipt. I like that. And let’s not forget my Landlord. She has promised not to put me out on the street as long as I can get you to her by the fifth day of the month. She’s a little pushy about your visits, but I like having this roof over my head, so I really don’t want to disappoint her. And by the way, the guys over at the gas station always seem to perk up when I stop by to fill up the car. I may be overly dependent on you for that, but, in this weather I would rather ride than walk. Just the other day one of them said, “Ya’ll come back now.” I had to smile because I knew that he knew that I knew I would.

So, as you can see, a lot of people are depending on me to get you to them. This is a big responsibility and I take it very seriously. And that brings me back to the reason I’m writing. This is a little awkward, and I think I may be a little paranoid about that whole being followed thing, but could you please stop following and catch up? Is there something I can do to put a little pep in your step to get you here with me instead of waaayyy back there? I tried slowing down a little, to give you time to close the gap, but I don’t want to lose my momentum and get stuck in a rut again – this is much bigger than me, and I have to press on.

OK, that’s all I wanted to say for now. I just wanted to invite you to travel with me on this amazing journey, I hope to see you soon. Real soon.

With sincere regard,
Gert

A Book Too Thick

31 Wednesday Jul 2013

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Library BooksI wanted a change of scenery for writing today, so I decided to hang out in my local library, and found a comfy chair in a quiet corner near the children’s section. In the course of an hour I heard at least three moms admonish their young child, telling him or her the book that had been so carefully selected from the shelf was “too thick”. I’m just venting here, but too thick? Not “the words are too big” or “the content is too mature” – too thick?

I love to read, and the size of the book has never been my main concern. Both of my children grew up as avid readers and I never discouraged a book based on the size, although there were a couple that I nixed for content. Like the comic book my then nine year-old son selected with pictures of a young naked girl giving a young boy a bath. It was one of those Japanese comics that you read from back to front. I wasn’t ready for him to view nudity in that context, and returned the book myself. I was aware of the risk I was taking by allowing him to venture into the young adult section at such a tender age, but I wanted to fuel his thirst for reading, not squash it. I’m afraid his quest to find more of the titillating topics may have been the driving force for a while, but hey, at least he was reading.

Getting back to my original point – so what if the chosen book is thicker than any of the other books the child has read before, children have a tendency to experience growth spurts over the summer – perhaps she is having a growth spurt in reading as well, and it’s time to advance. How will she ever know if she can read a “thick book” in two weeks if she isn’t allowed to at least try?

A special note to Moms: Please put away your “angry pens”, this is not an attempt to tell you how to raise your children, just an observation and a suggestion.

The Million Dollar Meal

29 Monday Jul 2013

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Big Mac and FriesOver the past few weeks McDonald’s has managed to reel in hundreds, or maybe even thousands of customers who don’t usually patronize their restaurants, just by resurrecting one of their tried and true marketing efforts. I’m being purely speculative – and most likely conservative, about the numbers, but I happen to fall into this category of hopeful diners. I say hopeful because I was lured back in by the tantalizing promise that I had a “1 in 4” chance of being a winner. That’s better than the odds over at the Lotto office any day, and quite a bit tastier. And how can you resist the prospect of getting a prize with your meal that isn’t wrapped in plastic?

I have a little confession to make: I have visited my local Mickey D’s more in the past two weeks since they started this latest round of the Monopoly game than I have all year. I must also admit that when I was younger I probably spent a lot more time hanging out with Ronald than I should have, and in recent years we just seem to have drifted apart. It was me, not him.

My first visit back was at the urging of my daughter – very reminiscent of when she was a little girl – and it was a good day. I ordered one of the meals from the combo menu, and two of my four tickets were winners – talk about beating the odds! Of all the items on the menu, a fresh, hot order of fries has always been my favorite, so I really felt like a winner with two of them.

A few days later I was back, alone and of my own free will. I didn’t want my hot winning streak to go to waste. But this time I only ordered a sandwich. I don’t really care for fountain drinks and my jeans had gently suggested that I pass on the fries. I couldn’t wait to rip the tickets off the box, and I must say, I was more than a little disappointed that there were no instant winners this time. I consoled myself by recalculating my previous winning stats: two of four was now two of six – still better than the officially predicted odds.

Shortly after that visit I learned there was a million dollar Big Mac out there somewhere. It was time to change my strategy. With my winning streak still lukewarm, I figured my third trip to the golden arches would surely yield a golden ticket. It was time, time for a million dollar Big Mac. In fact, I was so confident about my chances of winning that I decided to splurge and have a large order of fresh, hot fries on the side.

When I arrived home with my booty, I decided to savor the winning moment and resisted the temptation to pull the little tickets off the box right away. Instead, I enjoyed dipping the fries into a mound of ketchup and contemplating what I would do with my newly acquired fortune. I always eat my fries first because I’m not a big fan of cold fries – ever. After I worked my way through the last crunchy morsel I started on the Big Mac. It had been a while since I had one, and the anticipation that had been building from the moment I decided to go on my little excursion made each bite special. Finally, my meal was finished and my prize was waiting. I gently peeled the tickets off the box, noting the slightest tremble in my anxious fingers. Slowly, I turned them over to reveal my prize…the fact that I’m not writing this post from some exotic island tells the rest of the story – my winning Monopoly streak has dropped to an average of 1 in 4. I haven’t won anything since my first visit, and this is why I don’t play the lottery or frequent casinos. Oh well, I did enjoy those fries.