I Got The News. . .

Headlines from Houston - January 12, 2008

Well, there I was, sitting in the airport, a brown stain on my pants and waiting. This is the third time in four trips that coffee has outsmarted this intelligent human by way of avoiding my digestive system and instead hitching a ride on some part of my body back to Jackson.

The first episode happened on the plane a few weeks ago. I was enjoying my coffee as I read a book about WWII and occasionally catching a glimpse of the clear morning sky through the window as we crossed into Louisiana. I reached for the cup on the center seat tray table and had one of those completely uncontrollable bodily conniptions, which sent the scalding liquid on a direct flight to my crotch.

*ding*

Stewardess, may I have lots of paper towels. LOTS of them.

The second spillage, my luggage on wheels got hung up in the expansion joint of the sidewalk sending a low-pass oscillation through my left arm, across my shoulders, through the right arm, which snapped like a whip sending a brown shower of warm juice all over my hand, arm, clothing and book.

Yesterday's episode was a unknown leak in the travel mug of coffee. You see there how I've adjusted my behavior by using a sippee cup. Smart me, huh? Little did I know that every drink I took caused a few dribbles of coffee to leak out and drop onto my groin/upper leg area. Looking sharp dipshit!

Anyway, nothing a well placed newspaper won't fix today. And what a sad read it was especially on a beautiful, yet chilly Monday morning.

The front page story was of the memorial of a woman who refused to leave her home during Hurricane Ike and perished when the storm surge washed her home away in Galveston. She was found two months later, over 12 miles from her home. From reports, she was a dynamic and well-loved human being who touched many lives. Sad.

Beneath that, a picture of Eli Manning with the palm of his hand against his forehead, like, "Doh!" Exactly Eli, exactly.

Then more bad news. A young lad of 22 years was apparently driving over 100 m.p.h. Sunday, when he crashed into a van resulting in a fiery crash that killed 5 people, including his 18 year old girlfriend. The four other people killed were the 78 year old driver of the van, his brother, sister-in-law and the husband of his niece. The driver's niece, also traveling in the van, through the mercy of God, was ejected and survived, although broken to bits from the impact.

The young driver of the speeding car is currently sedated and in critical condition with major intestinal injuries, a broken arm and leg. He still doesn't know of the deaths as his family, doctors and police wait for him to awaken.

On a lighter note, but disturbing in it's own sinister way, is a decidedly left-wing push to ban ALL cell phone usage while driving. Not just handsets, but handsets and hands-free. I'll dilute the story for you into one short sentence fragment. Fuck you!

Banning cell phones is ignorant. We already have reckless driving laws, why not use those? And what about people who are doing other distracting things, like eating while driving or putting on makeup or like a guy I saw years ago just outside of Vicksburg with the newspaper opened fully against the steering wheel completely blocking his view going 70 miles per hour? On a more serious note, what about things that are really distracting like passenger to driver blowjobs? Should we ban blowjobs too?

Or what if we just banned passengers all together. And while we're at it, let's ban talking. And farting. Ever had someone let a big, greasy, ass-burner fly in the car? Now, that is distracting!

So, when that stupid shit doesn't work, let's do ourselves a great big favor and simply ban people. There!! Problem solved!! No people. No talking. No distracted drivers.

*sigh*

I guess you can't ban stupid. On the highway or in a bloated non-profit bureaucracy either.

I got on the plane and glanced across at the empty seats, which is not uncommon on the short hop to Jackson, and it gave me pause.

I thought of the woman all alone in her home, riding out a storm, her future uncertain in the face of calamity. I thought of the young man, his body crushed to pieces, his brain inert and his heart soon to be emptied of all hope and will.

I looked out the window beside me and thought, "This is a fine time for a car wash!" Actually, it was de-icer, but that's what I thought anyway!

As I left Houston, I looked down and thought of the leaving behind, the abandonment of emotion and hope.

I pondered as I gazed at the city sprawl of Houston.

How many people down there are going through a crisis? A definitive moment in their lives, a life changing event, a critical turning point of decision, beginning or end. Must be millions of them. Struggling, hurting, wishing for a better situation. I felt, in that moment, that life was truly unfair and bears no mercy on any and all living creatures.

We all feel the burdens of our daily trials and tribulations, the yoke of life which weighs upon us. And somehow through it all, we survive. We thrive. We adapt and overcome, asborbing many lessons in our perpetual quest through life. And all we can do in the end, is make the best of it, grab the bright spots by the tail and don't let go. Fight off the dark moments with the strength of knowledge. A yeoman's work for us all, humanity.

I felt a little better after my reflection, after I lived the pain and sadness of what I found in the day's news. Everything will be alright.

I looked out over a cloud covered Ross Barnett Reservoir and felt strength.

The clouds are lifting and the sun is shining, filtering light into the darkest corners, shooing away the pain, hurt, and disappointment.

There are constants in life, the predictable patterns of our daily routines and also the constant worry of the unknown, the pain that lurks in hiding waiting for an opportunity. Nevertheless, we cannot fear the unknown in our lives, we must move ahead with confidence taking on any challenges as they present themselves. The solution is always there.

Adaptation. Just like the airport parking lot kitty above. He's always there, but one day he may not be, and in between those events is the struggle. The struggle for life.

We are all there, in the thick of it, treading the downstream waters of life. Surviving and thriving and making it the only way we know how: the best we can.