 |
Mickey Z
Cool Observer
the Department of Homeland Security.
Friday, June 22, 2007
Joe from Oregon sends "hugs and madness"
Regular visitors to this blog (a.k.a. “Expendables") come and go. For example, Mudge, Amelopsis, Owen, RT, Youngfox, Chris, Jeremy, Deb, Frances, SK, Banta, and many others have not been seen for quite some time. One such prodigal son/daughter is Joe from Oregon (not to be confused with “Joe from Maine"). Well, he and I have stayed in touch and I recently told him about some of the ups and downs (mostly downs) in my life. I also mentioned I might give up writing and try to “reinvent” myself. Longtime Expendables will recognize Joe’s inimitable (and much missed) style, heart, and perspective in his reply:
Well, hell - you need not reinvent yourself. You’re an extraordinary man, just as you are. Just BE yourself… do what you love to do. If “something comes of it,” great! If not, you still get to do what you love to do. Study, write, think, wonder, wander, love and be loved… BE Mickey… #### the rest of it.
I know - we still gotta work at ridiculous jobs, tossing our time away as if it wasn’t the single most precious thing in the world. But - so be it… We’ll both be dead in a fairly short time. We’ll work when we must work, pause when we can, laugh and write and read when we can, love and be loved whenever we can… And then we’ll be dead.
I spent much of my life rushing, always rushing toward - hell, I don’t even know what anymore: Some ideal, some concept of how “it” and I should be. Time, itself, slowed me down - I can’t claim any merit - but when it did, I realized that I only have right now - even when it sucks. Right now - even when it’s slow or boring or dark or stupid. Just Right Now… Sweating in the sun with a big wheelbarrow - right now. Hot and tired and annoyed - right now. But how much sweeter it is, now that I’m not ALSO, ALWAYS trying to rush off toward some future image of a different me… some weird ideal of “the REAL joe, doing what he’s destined to do...” Ha! Gag…
There’s right now, and a huge pile of mindstuff… You can’t fight with the mindstuff, can’t ever defeat it - but you can laugh at it. Big belly laughs - real and liberating. #### it. Right now, you’re Mickey Z, a helluva guy. Just be yourself, right now, my friend.
Hugs and madness to ya, Mickey.
- the old guy out west
Mickey Z. sez: Thanks, Joe…
Who's Online
Copyright © 2005-2007 Mickey Z.
