Can We All Just Get Along?!

I had said that my recent change in employment was to enable me more bandwidth for creative endeavors. I can't say that I've written a ton of words since the change began – or painted, or anything else of that nature. I can absolutely attribute most of that to the transition period. However, there is something else, that has been inhibiting my creativity: politics. I don't generally pay much attention to politics because it seems to be outside of my realm of understanding and/or control anyway. But, this year was different. This year (2016, that is) was hateful. This year I paid attention.

A lot came to the surface in the US. I think America's addiction to reality television became painfully apparent, for one thing. I've been alive for 4 decades and I haven't seen a more ridiculous election year in my life. Everybody seemed to have lost their minds. And, I have noticed resentments being displayed in and out of social media – not just bickering, but problems that have been buried in relationships for years. 

I absolutely don't want to rant about who won or who didn't. I care about America; I care about Texas and I care about my family. Kristen Lamb has warned us, as writers, to steer clear of politics in social media, unless our goal is to be political writers. But, this last year hurt my heart, and I can't help but write about that, at least. I have to write about it to get it out of my system, so that I can write about other things, like people interacting with each other... things that I enjoy writing about.

I have friends who have written on Facebook, "If you voted for Trump, please unfriend me." Now, I'm not telling anybody who they can be friends with, but I think that might not be in the best interest of their ultimate goal. It's not that I don't understand their feelings; I feel – and have felt – that way for a long time. A long, long time.

I'm going to make up a friend; we'll call him George – after the nickname that the Abominable Snowman gave to Sylvester the cat. Let's say that George is a gay man who has finally been able to marry the man he's been with for over a decade. (This really does include a lot of people I know.) George feels that, after having made all of this progress, the world is going to turn back to a time when homosexual activity was against the law and legal same-sex marriage was a fantasy. After the election, George feels so abandoned by the world that he writes on his Facebook timeline, "If you voted for Trump, please unfriend me now."

One thing I'd like to point out to my friend, George, is that for the most part, prejudice is a result of people coming into contact with something they are not familiar with. So, by distancing yourself from people who you feel abandoned you, and who you feel voted to have you thrown in jail, you are doing the worst thing possible. You are distancing yourself from people when you should be showing them that you're really an alright guy who happens to be married to a man, that being married to a man really isn't all that outrageous. And, if your rights do begin to be taken away, you should be the loving person in their lives who is hurt, so that they can witness first-hand what a terrible thing it is.

Let me try from a different perspective. Let's assume for a moment that Trump is Satan. (I do not believe that Trump is Satan, nor do I believe that he is the anti-Christ.) By saying, "If you voted for Trump, then unfriend me," you are furthering his agenda of dividing us Americans. You are letting Satan win. Do not let Satan win! 

It seems counter-intuitive, but we could compare this to Jesus meeting the woman at the well. I understand that this is a Christian story and many people feel that extremist Christians are behind a lot of this, but let's just turn their story around. Jesus met a woman at a well – a woman who had been married multiple times and was currently living with a man outside of wedlock. What's more, this woman was a Samaritan – totally beneath Jesus' station. But, he didn't chastise the woman or talk down to her; he just talked with her and then said, "Go and sin no more." Maybe, if we see somebody behaving in a way that we feel is bad, maybe compassion is more effective than hate.

I have one last thing to mention. There are a lot of members of both houses of Congress who changed their 'opinion' of Trump after he won. Not coincidentally, there is going to be another election in 2018. I think it's time that we followed the example of Hillary Clinton. I believe that it is time to work with all of our elected Senators and Representatives, regardless if they are affiliated with the same party that we are. I understand that some of them are voting to defund Planned Parenthood and repeal the Affordable Care Act without having anything to replace it. I still believe that showing up to the table for the conversation is the best approach. If people feel that Trump is a loose cannon who is about to have the codes for nuclear weapons, then it would behoove them to work together with Congress – both houses – against a common enemy. Our Constitution was based on a balance of power. 

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It hurts my heart that two of my brothers are at each other's throats on social media. It hurts my heart to see so much hate every day. It hurts my heart that one man could successfully instill such an 'Us-Against-Them' mentality in our country. Our Constitution is 230 years old. That is a brief moment in time compared to European nations. There is no guarantee that The United States of America will continue to be. We are not the United Republicans of America, nor the United Democrats of America – we have to work together. We have to. I don't want to live through the history of a second U.S. Civil War. Please, let's all be rational people.

Cat Zen

Our cats could teach us a lot about spirituality. I ordered a Zentangle kit online. Clarice is very at home in the simple box the kit came in. 

Life After the Annus Horribilis 2016

We have made it through the annus horribilis of 2016. It saw more celebrity deaths than any year I can remember, including Prince and David Bowie at the top of the celebrity list. Not to mention a truly tumultuous presidential election here in the US. (Regardless of how you feel about the President Elect, it's impossible not to notice the rift between our people. It reminds me of the Civil War, where brothers were on opposing sides and families were torn apart. My own family has been torn by this election.) Also, the UK decided, for some reason that nobody seems to know, to leave the European Union in a political move called Brexit. On a more personal level, people close to me struggled in ways I didn't realize until things blew up in all of our faces. 

As we work to take the pieces off the ground and put them together again, we'll show this wicked world something beautiful and new. This new year brings with it many promises and opportunities. One could say that of any year, but this year is different due to intent and necessity. People are more politically engaged, for example. And, for my part I have taken what might be considered a leap of faith (but which was mostly an action taken in self-defense.)

I have (had) been making it a point to write more. I decided that I could sit around waiting for the right time to write, waiting for my novel to fall out of the sky into my outstretched hand, but so far that hadn't been terribly successful for me. So, I began to write. I wrote on my blog, and I wrote on a novel. I began to follow a few bloggers as well. One blog in particular spoke to me about the current opportunities we have as writers. Kristen Lamb wrote a book about writing in the digital/social media age and the way people can take control of their own brand. I began to read her book and put into practice what she was preaching.

Then, I noticed that I was slacking at my day job. It's a tough balance. I also noticed that in order to be successful at my day job I needed to focus more and more time on that job - not only when I was in the office, but checking in in the evenings and weekends as well. I came to the conclusion that it would not be possible to pursue both this job and my new personal goal of building a brand and writing a novel. I try not to talk bad about this employer because they were good to me for nine years. I changed; they did not. I could have gone forward with enthusiasm and I could have moved up with the company and made a name for myself. But, I didn't really want to. I found myself in the position of working half-heartedly and I realized that I would soon become bitter. I don't want to be the negative influence in the office. 

So, I took a chance and applied for other jobs. I interviewed and finally found one, and it promises to be secure and to have set hours. I gave notice at my employer and yesterday I worked my last day. This came as a shock to many people there, and frankly it was a shock to me. I haven't entirely accepted the fact that I am no longer working there, that those problems are no longer my problems. 

I don't think I was cut out for that sort of work in the first place. I told my manager that the main reason I was leaving was that I wanted a job in which I didn't have to medicate myself in order to get through a day. (It's true. Those meds turn you into a zombie and there is no creativity in the evenings.) If you get down to it, I think I was born to be a trust fund baby - to have funds to support myself without having to work and then be able to pursue the creative interests at my leisure. Or, at the very least to have a little financial support while I pursued them. Alas, I learned this about myself too late in life and I squandered away my youth working since I was 15 years old. 

So, here I am on the first day after my previous job, the first of five days off until my next job begins. I should have cleaned my room entirely, done all of the laundry, cooked lunch and dinner and written a blog entry and 1,600 words in my novel. I didn't. I washed two towels that my cat puked on and ate lunch at a local cafe with Barry. I am now writing the blog entry and tonight I will look at the novel situation and assess where to begin again. 

In the meantime, I leave you with the picture at the beginning of this entry - an example of serendipity that I hope is a portent of good things to come this year. I was taking pictures of a chrysanthemum that bloomed this winter, and I captured a ladybug as well, which I didn't realize until at least a day later when I was looking through my pictures. It's going to be a good year.

Jingle Bells

An official Trannequin from the thrift store, Top Drawer, in Austin, TX. I call it Jingle Bells.

Christmas Fun

Barry found time to put up the Christmas Tree.

Also, I have a new app to play with on my phone.

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We're off to Dallas to hang out with friends - artists and art lovers - in Deep Ellum. The Randy Brodnax & Friends Christmas Art Sale at The Sons of Hermann Hall.