Almost Half a Year

Our roommate has been with us almost six months now. It is pretty fun to come home and talk with him. He smiles and laughs a ton. It is nice to have that in a roommate. I have had some who I would just dread coming home to. What do they have to complain about now? D is not like that. He makes us feel like we are the best. And what more could one ask from a roommate?

We took him up the canyon last weekend to see the fall colours. He slept through it though. He had a really tough week. I think his boss has been a little hard on him. There is this expectation for him to perform at top efficiency according to very rigid schedules. He can't keep his food down and he is starting to lose his hair. I know that he works in a high stress environment, but he gets paid well. We support him in his efforts. It is inspiring to see someone keep up the fight.

On Saturday, he participated in the Walk for Diabetes with us. I appreciated him coming along, because I know that he has plenty of other options. He has friends everywhere we go. He has that ability to make friends too. It is weird how people are so taken in by just a smile and a handshake. He does not have diabetes himself, but he really cares about those who do. I have heard him say the nicest things about those with the dreaded disease, going to the extent of thanking them for things they have done for him. Sometimes, I marvel at his ability to see into the hearts of people and not worry about the other extraneous things.

D's grandfather came to visit and the two of them were great to see together. D just laughed and laughed as if his grandfather was the funniest guy. He was funny, but D was in stitches. I love my grandparents, but it is rare to really have a good laugh when they are telling me stories. I look at this as yet another example of how D lives in the moment...

D is a great guy. We are really lucky to have such a fantastic roommate.

Some Pretty Groovy Tunes

A co-worker had never heard of The Stone Roses. I had to introduce him to them this week. I brought in a few of my Brit Pop cd's. Suede, The Verve, Ride, Blur.

My friend, J, used to bring me cd's all the time. "Here! Listen to this!" Fortunately, it was all great music including those listed above. J was the one who clued me into the coolness of Brian Eno. Eno produced my favourite U2 cd's. Also, a couple James. Something about Eno's style just rang true to me.

I feel bad, because my music listening has totally come to a screeching halt. I listen to tons of talk radio these days. I switch it over on the commercials, but I rarely listen to anything new.

And that is a problem, because there is always new, good stuff coming out. Unfortunately, J does not come over all the time anymore and drop off cd's to listen to. I bet he would if he only lived a little closer. Maybe he can mail me some.

J! If you can hear me, mail me some new Brit Pop! (No Keane or Coldplay though. I hear plenty of them...)

Fame! I Want to Live Forever!

I don't have any, so I feel like I can talk about fame objectively. People who are famous have a tremendous burden. Or burdens. The main one is the fact that people everywhere love them for nothing that they have done for anyone but themselves.

One guy wrote a song about a girl and it got picked up on the radio. One girl wrote some songs about a guy and it made her millions. An actor got a break and starred in a movie with a theme that grossed people out. A politician said some things that a lot of people agreed with. A girl wrote a book about her experiences living with the polar bears in Alaska. The list goes on and on, but the one thing that most of them never counted on was how screwed up they would become because of the fame.

Imagine that you were so well known that when you went to Disneyland, you felt like you were as famous as Mickey Mouse. Everyone came up to you and wanted to take your picture, sign an autograph, buy you lunch, shake your hand, get your views on world domination, etc. It would be such a burden. Even if you were good with people, it would be such a hassle for the people around you, the ones that love you.

Most of these famous people do not have the proper training in being famous. Rock musicians seem to be the worst. Theirs becomes a world of partying and drug use and unlimited groupies. They really should have classes that they take in college. Fame 101. Family and Fame 201. Ego 309. With all that these people deal with, there should be a training course.

As one who is not famous, I feel for the common people who go nuts when they see a famous person. Like the time I saw Steve Young at the grocery store. I was a blithering idiot. So what! It's Steve Young. He beat the Chargers in the Super Bowl. I hate him for that. Well, not really. But I should.

What it comes down to is that the term celebrity has to go away. We need a movement in our world which is a twofold process. Celebrities need to chill out. And, the common people need to chill out. I guarantee you that Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, and Jon Voight are really not that interesting. Madonna is probably very silly when it comes down to it.

Here is what should happen: I am hanging out at Disneyland and suddenly I see Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker and their family on the Jungle Cruise. I am not going to stare. I will recognize them in my mind. I will not point them out to my wife. She will not point them out to me. I am not going to say anything to them, because I would not say anything to a guy and his wife and their kids going on the Jungle Cruise. I suppose I could comment on the weather. I know it would be hard to not say something like: "Do you want to play a game?" in my WOPR voice or start humming "Girls Just Want to Have Fun", but I would have to refrain.

Why not just treat them like everyone else? Isn't this a major problem that we have in our society? The paparazzi is in people's faces constantly. Why? Oh, that's right! Because we can't get enough of what is going on in these stars' lives. Did I really need to know that Screech was in porno movies? Or that the dad in ALF is now a homosexual meth user?

If I end up making a big deal out of the situation, then I perpetuate the ego problem. These people are just dealing with incredibly inflated egos, all of which are based on the awe that people have of someone famous. So, if we take the awe out, then the ego gets lessened more and maybe we will not see as many articles on scantily clad female teenage singers.

You may ask: Well, why can't I get their autograph? Why can't I shake their hand? Why can't I tell them how much they mean to me?

My opinion on these questions is that they cannot reciprocate to you the same type of respect or adoration, because they have no idea what you have done. You may have invented time travel, but if they do not know you, then the love is only expressed in one direction. I think we are doing more damage to them by showering them with more praise. They probably get so much praise already from so many people, it stops meaning anything to them. I don't know about anyone else, but I want my praise to mean something to them.

I think the best form of praise we can give those who are famous entertainers is to buy tickets to their movies. Buy tickets to concerts. Buy CDs. Buy books. Support what they do. But, quit giving them something that frankly they do not deserve, nor do they really want (in the long run)

Stop making them out to be more than they are.

Outwit Outlast Take It Out

My wife and I play this game. It is kind of like Survivor, only instead of trying to be the longest one to last on the island, we are battling it out to be the longest one to last without emptying the bathroom trash. It is pretty competitive. It can stack up pretty high and because it is situated in the corner sort of wedged in between the sink cabinet and the toilet, more stuff can pile up.

I seem to remember this as being a very similar war with roommates. Little did I ever think it would continue. I remember seeing guys in one apartment who bought a gigantic outside-style garbage can. That seemed like a pretty good idea. I guess the only issue was that they did not have a lid.

My wife and I are not trying to be disgusting. If I am out in the kitchen and I see a full trash can in the pantry, no problem.

I think it comes down to this. The only time I see that trash can in the bathroom is when I am naked. And that is not the best time to go prancing around the house. That is definitely not good naked. When I am just getting out of the shower, my hands are clean. I don't want to get floss and tissues and cotton balls all over my hands (and who knows what else?) as I tie it up and take it out.

Really, it just comes down to what is in my line of vision and when. I think this probably goes for my wife too. I want to take out the trash in all the trash cans. I also want to clean all the bathrooms and pull weeds in the yard. It would be nice to dust more often and take the dog for more walks. But, let's be reasonable. We can't do everything we want...