Eat Write and Exorcise

a blog by Scott Powell

Archive for the month “December, 2019”

27 Dec 2019

Bringing Up the Rear

Leading the way and blazing the trail. Yes, these are important. Without leadership we wander aimlessly, never reaching our goal. However, I prefer to bring up the rear. Those who bring up the rear assume the responsibility of ensuring that everyone makes it to the destination. They find alternate paths for those incapable of navigating the terrain covered by the bulk of the pack. When someone falls behind, it is up to the person bringing up the rear to move at their pace, to help them carry their load, to share their resources.

Bringing up the rear is a bit like J. D. Salinger’s deeply flawed Holden Caulfield’s dream of being The Catcher In the Rye. I’ll leave the trailblazing to others and if you’re looking for me, you’ll find me at the rear of the pack.

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23 Dec 2019
8 Comments

Braino, for the toughest clogs.

I have a sixth sense. Unfortunately it’s only an extra sense of smell.

Is a sense of humor a sixth sense? Where does it stop? Sense of style? Direction?

I met a man with kind eyes, but his mouth was an asshole.

Panic value should not be a medical term. How about “calmly deal with this situation immediately” value? Medical personnel shouldn’t lose their cool in an emergency.

Which is it, “In for a penny, in for a pound” or “Don’t throw good money after bad?”

How can it be good to have a big heart but bad to have an enlarged heart?

I have arrhythmia of the heart. And of the feet, legs, and arms.

A tender heart makes one a good person. A tenderized heart makes one a dead person.

How is “Your heart’s in the right place” a compliment? It just sounds like good news from the cardiologist. If your heart is in the wrong place you’re screwed. Particularly if it’s in the microwave.

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17 Dec 2019
4 Comments

Dystopian Novels – Why Do We Read Them?

We live in a troubled society within a troubled world. Why then would we want to read about people struggling to overcome far worse circumstances? How the hell would I know? Just kidding, I’ll take a stab at it, but be warned that my thoughts are based on nothing more than my best guess at why I love the genre.

Most of us live pretty comfortable lives in spite of the problems we face as a society. We periodically become outraged by the acts of our government or our fellow citizens, but we do so from in front of a television, laptop computer, or iPad. We watch from the comfort of our sofa or recliner in the comfort of our home. Most of us don’t personally witness our neighbors being dragged from their homes, imprisoned, tortured, or killed for their thoughts or beliefs. Things are bad, but they aren’t bad enough. If our government sent children into arenas to kill each other or forced us to choose only one aspect of our humanity we would know what to do. We may not know how to do it, but we would know that action must be taken. With the zeal that comes with the certainty of knowing right and wrong, good and evil, we would band together and act. We would have brothers and sisters at our side, united to end tyrrany.

The problems we actually have are a faltering economy, the gradual erosion of our rights, and the causes we each hold dear. We don’t agree about who is good and who is bad, or even what societal changes should be made. There is no clear choice. We believe things could be better, but we don’t know how. There is no urgency to act – the monsters are at our door, but our doors seem pretty sturdy. If the claws make their way through, we will take action. We may not now know what that action would be, but we know we would act. It is easier to fight the monster when it is in the room with you. As long as it stays on the other side of the door, we argue amongst ourselves about how best to make it go away. It seems that we will continue to argue until the door has given way.

In a dystopian society we would know and act. In actual society we suspect, debate, and argue.

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03 Dec 2019

Slippery Slopes and Dangerous Paths

“Slippery slope” and “once you start down that path” – people use these analogies as an excuse to oppose reasonable legislation. The example that is foremost in my mind is the federal legalization of marijuana, even when recommended by a physician. Opponents often argue that if medicinal marijuana is legalized on a federal level, the legalization of meth, PCP, and crack will surely soon follow. We can’t allow fear of more drastic future measures to stop us from enacting policies and laws that make sense and are reasonable.

Let’s consider literal slippery slopes and progressively dangerous paths. I love the outdoors and hiking in washes. Washes are full of slippery slopes, and often become more hazardous the farther in you go. I’m cautious, but if I didn’t traverse slippery slopes I wouldn’t have experienced the beauty of Cleopatra Wash, Fire Canyon, or Anniversary Narrows. If I begin to slip, I evaluate whether it’s worth continuing. Similarly, if I start down the path into a wash, I know when it’s become too treacherous and it’s time to turn around. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth going as far as was advisable.

We can show the same restraint and vigilance when the slopes and paths are metaphorical. Let’s not be afraid to do what is right because of our fear of what might happen next. We don’t let similar fear stop us from participating in recreational activities; why do we let it stop us from acting on issues of importance?

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