New Year's eve is here. And it's spring-like in New York. Almost. It certainly doesn't feel like the bone-chilling years of recent memory outside today.
I have a lot to be thankful for looking back over this year. What? This isn't a Thanksgiving Day post, you say? Yes, I know. But there is something to the tradition of looking back on New Year's that I find more appropriate than some arbitrary day in November. Besides, that day is really about family - this one is about the year behind and the road ahead.
I've never been one to set resolutions. When something has needed doing in the past, I've done it. But there is something different about this New Year... a clarity, a want, a desire to take things by the horns. Is this different from the same 'every new year' feeling that comes around this time of year? This time, I think it is. It's not just a celebration, or a remembrance. It's something different to come.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
Merry X-mas Eve
What is the proper way to spell "Xmas" anymore? Is there a hyphen? No hyphen? Should we spell it out to keep the Christ in? Heck, I just don't know anymore.
For those of you more familiar to my writing style - you'll know that I am not squeemish about using the hyphen. More correctly, I am a dash-a-holic. I use them everywhere. I feel they are more expressive than most choices of punctuation... and more specific than the ever so vague ellipsis... See?
Kristin and I did our gift exchange over the weekend, as we are spending the next two days with family. There was some spectacular gift giving this year, I must admit. Nothing too fancy or expensive - but some great clothing and cooking items, a killer japanese style tea-pot, and we adopted a red wolf family via Defenders of Wildlife. Good people. And we did put up a great tree. I still have problems cutting down a magnificent evergreen and sticking it in your living room as a symbol of everlasting life or greenery, just to watch it slowly dry up and die and be put out on the curb come January. I'd be much happier if there was the more Osiran bit to the myth where the tree is re-born right away, or we could at least re-plant it in a forest somewhere. (All you "X-ians" get a version of this in Easter - with the bunny mythos mixed in. That always makes me smile.) I did look into getting a potted tree this year, but they are prohibitively expensive here in the city.
But it did get me thinking: What happens when a symbol outlives what it symbolizes? And also when that symbol is adopted and adapted by other members of a mixed society that don't prescribe to the original symbolism? Now - bear with me - I know that the tree is originally a germanic pre-christian, pagan if you prefer, symbolic metaphor. They in turn gave it to the Brits via the whole House of Hanover succession thing, which then sent it across to the Americans... yeah, yeah, we all know that story. But does the adaptation and dissemination of a religious symbol into a larger society, thereby taking away some of the "religious-ness" of it, make it any less powerful? Is the symbol the essence of the meaning anyway, and that's why it symbolizes what it does? And is that why the powerful symbol of an everliving green tree survived two religions, two continents, and countless cultural dilutions?
Next year, I am planting a tree. And not for the tree-hugging, pro-environmental reasons you might think. Although most of you know that along with being a dash-a-holic, I am also a rampant tree-hugger. Nah... next year it's about the symbol and what it really means.
For those of you more familiar to my writing style - you'll know that I am not squeemish about using the hyphen. More correctly, I am a dash-a-holic. I use them everywhere. I feel they are more expressive than most choices of punctuation... and more specific than the ever so vague ellipsis... See?
Kristin and I did our gift exchange over the weekend, as we are spending the next two days with family. There was some spectacular gift giving this year, I must admit. Nothing too fancy or expensive - but some great clothing and cooking items, a killer japanese style tea-pot, and we adopted a red wolf family via Defenders of Wildlife. Good people. And we did put up a great tree. I still have problems cutting down a magnificent evergreen and sticking it in your living room as a symbol of everlasting life or greenery, just to watch it slowly dry up and die and be put out on the curb come January. I'd be much happier if there was the more Osiran bit to the myth where the tree is re-born right away, or we could at least re-plant it in a forest somewhere. (All you "X-ians" get a version of this in Easter - with the bunny mythos mixed in. That always makes me smile.) I did look into getting a potted tree this year, but they are prohibitively expensive here in the city.
But it did get me thinking: What happens when a symbol outlives what it symbolizes? And also when that symbol is adopted and adapted by other members of a mixed society that don't prescribe to the original symbolism? Now - bear with me - I know that the tree is originally a germanic pre-christian, pagan if you prefer, symbolic metaphor. They in turn gave it to the Brits via the whole House of Hanover succession thing, which then sent it across to the Americans... yeah, yeah, we all know that story. But does the adaptation and dissemination of a religious symbol into a larger society, thereby taking away some of the "religious-ness" of it, make it any less powerful? Is the symbol the essence of the meaning anyway, and that's why it symbolizes what it does? And is that why the powerful symbol of an everliving green tree survived two religions, two continents, and countless cultural dilutions?
Next year, I am planting a tree. And not for the tree-hugging, pro-environmental reasons you might think. Although most of you know that along with being a dash-a-holic, I am also a rampant tree-hugger. Nah... next year it's about the symbol and what it really means.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Return to the Blogosphere
Well, I'm sure some of you are wondering why it's been since May since I've written anything here. Hell, I know no one was really wondering anything... I don't think anyone reads this at all except me. But the reader's digest version is - what started as a blog meant to document my time aboard the NCL Dream had to be disbanded. And (drum roll, please) the reason for that was: the condition aboard the Dream deteriorated to become a nightmare. And this is not a joke... faced with constant gastrointestinal viral outbreaks onboard, near constant harassment from the officers and crew, a thoroughly disgusting passenger hygiene environment, bed bug infestations, and a beyond unprofessional performance and work environment, we jumped ship. Honestly, I couldn't even begin to make all of this up.
And it was all going so swimmingly at first. But the situation switched on a dime so quickly, and I was not removed enough from it in the present tense to write about it without using harsh and potentially legally incriminating language, that I just chose to not write about it at all. Rather professional, don't you think? For further evidence of the insanity, inanity, and a general summing up of what it was like to be on the 'Nightmare', check out the article below:
http://www.miamiherald.com/business/story/344219.html
Good thing we were long gone by the time this happened. But there were plenty other similar events during our time aboard - not anything as traumatic, thank our lucky stars. But all of the aforementioned was quite more than enough for our wonderful Agency in New York to support our decision to come home. And I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be in New York again!
So, this blog will be changing tones. I am back to trodding the proverbial boards again - and working on my new musical "The Westies". I will be posting links to samples of the music soon. In the meantime, look for my articles on ehow.com - and come back everyone for further thoughts and ramblings. Gods know what they'll be about. But here we go!
And it was all going so swimmingly at first. But the situation switched on a dime so quickly, and I was not removed enough from it in the present tense to write about it without using harsh and potentially legally incriminating language, that I just chose to not write about it at all. Rather professional, don't you think? For further evidence of the insanity, inanity, and a general summing up of what it was like to be on the 'Nightmare', check out the article below:
http://www.miamiherald.com/business/story/344219.html
Good thing we were long gone by the time this happened. But there were plenty other similar events during our time aboard - not anything as traumatic, thank our lucky stars. But all of the aforementioned was quite more than enough for our wonderful Agency in New York to support our decision to come home. And I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be in New York again!
So, this blog will be changing tones. I am back to trodding the proverbial boards again - and working on my new musical "The Westies". I will be posting links to samples of the music soon. In the meantime, look for my articles on ehow.com - and come back everyone for further thoughts and ramblings. Gods know what they'll be about. But here we go!
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