The big city runs on electricity. This obvious fact tends to get lost in the hurley burley of everyday life as we go about our usual daily business of endlessly trying to make ends meet (a trick I've never fully managed to accomplish). However I have learned out of necessity to become an accomplished juggler, robbing Peter to pay Paul and robbing Paul to pay this overdue bill and that. This morning however I was once again rudly reminded of just how dependent we all are on the uninterrupted supply of energy to our homes.
This first week of summer we are caught in the grip of the first heat wave of the season, temperatures in the high nineties for at least the past three days with plenty more of the same to come. Today it is expected to hit 97 degrees. Heat warnings have been issued by the authorities. Stay indoors they say; stay cool they say; drink plenty of liquids; check up on elderly neighbors. All good advice that depends on the single most important resource - electricity.
I went to bed last night with the small window air conditioner in my bedroom humming along nicely providing enough cool air to allow me to actually fall asleep. I awoke this morning very early and noticed an absence of any sound whatsoever. No AC; no fan; At first I thought it was all my fault (what else is new?). Had I forgotten to pay the electric bill again? Did I ignore a shut off notice again? (I get so many utility shut off warnings that I have become indifferent to them; like the little boy who cried wolf too often, the utility companies have to have boots on the ground, and send a hard hatted workman banging at my door in order to get my attention. I'm not proud of this behavior; but it happens often enough whenever my financial juggling act is not enough to turn the trick and/or the utility company finally decides enough is enough and my bluff gets called).
In a panic, I jumped out of bed (in a manner of speaking, my aching knees permitting) and vaulted down to the basement flashlight in hand to check the breaker box to see if any switches had been knocked off line. To my relief the problem was not there, I was not at fault. The problem had to be external; In a flash (again, relatively speaking) I ran to the upstairs bedroom window to see what I could see. Hmmmm. Buses were running (a very good sign, especially as I had to be at work today for a very important meeting and I depend entirely on public transportation). However, the traffic lights were off and the street lights as well. I concluded that the whole neighborhood had lost electrical power. Oddly relieved that the problem was only a neighborhood power outage (and again, not my fault!) I prepared for my work day by going about my usual morning rituals (shaving in the dark with cold water!) As I was about to leave the house I suddenly heard the bubbling sound of my acquarium air pump kicking back into action! The power had been restored. Hallaluyah! I was soooooooo relieved. All the food in my refrigerator wasn't going to spoil after all. I would once again have air conditioning (especially during this dreadful heat wave!). I felt renewed, even born again! I was humbled though. All that was needed to expose my vulnerability and fragility was for the electric power to be out of commission (for whatever reason; perhaps a transformer somewhere in the grid had been hit by lightening). The good news was that the power was back on and all was once again right with the world. May it always be so!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
NOLA ON MY MIND
I have New Orleans on the brain. I find myself musing about NOLA constantly these days, not only because of the Big BP Oil Spill catastrophe though that tragedy continues to weigh heavily on my mind and spirit. As one wh0 has had a lifelong love affair with the wind, sun, ocean and beach I feel acutely pained by the sudden destruction of the Gulf Of Mexico water and land resources even though I have never visited the Gulf shore (yet).
I have been watching the HBO series called "Treme" with facination and awe. It is one of the very best HBO productions that I have ever seen that deals with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on NOLA. The acting is excellent and the dialogue rings very true. The fact that the whole shebang has been filmed in NOLA gives it a lot of authenticity. All the grime, and grief, and pathos of the residents and neighborhoods of NOLA
are portrayed with love and respect and compassion.
Conversely, I have fallen in love with NOLA as a result of watching this series. I really must visit NOLA come Mardi Gras one of these days. It's on my bucket list of must things to accomplish/do before I shuffle off this mortal coil. I can't wait to see the final episode in the next few weeks.
Last night President Obama spoke to the nation from the Oval Office for the first time in his presidency. He spoke about the Gulf of Mexico crisis and assured the country that he was on top of the situation (none of it his doing in the first place). He said wonderful things that people in such a desperate situation would want to hear. He will stand by his pledge to make the people whole again and to restore the marshlands, wildlife and wetlands to a pristine condition. All fair minded and right thinking people will wish him success in this commitment although, understandably, patience is in short supply these days. He deserves a chance to make good on his words. The consequences of failure are too depressing to contemplate. This is indeed one of those historic occasions when failure is not an option. All resources available must be brought to bear if this job is to get done. May it be done as speedily as possible. I am looking forward to my first trip to NOLA whenever I am able to make it happen.
I have been watching the HBO series called "Treme" with facination and awe. It is one of the very best HBO productions that I have ever seen that deals with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on NOLA. The acting is excellent and the dialogue rings very true. The fact that the whole shebang has been filmed in NOLA gives it a lot of authenticity. All the grime, and grief, and pathos of the residents and neighborhoods of NOLA
are portrayed with love and respect and compassion.
Conversely, I have fallen in love with NOLA as a result of watching this series. I really must visit NOLA come Mardi Gras one of these days. It's on my bucket list of must things to accomplish/do before I shuffle off this mortal coil. I can't wait to see the final episode in the next few weeks.
Last night President Obama spoke to the nation from the Oval Office for the first time in his presidency. He spoke about the Gulf of Mexico crisis and assured the country that he was on top of the situation (none of it his doing in the first place). He said wonderful things that people in such a desperate situation would want to hear. He will stand by his pledge to make the people whole again and to restore the marshlands, wildlife and wetlands to a pristine condition. All fair minded and right thinking people will wish him success in this commitment although, understandably, patience is in short supply these days. He deserves a chance to make good on his words. The consequences of failure are too depressing to contemplate. This is indeed one of those historic occasions when failure is not an option. All resources available must be brought to bear if this job is to get done. May it be done as speedily as possible. I am looking forward to my first trip to NOLA whenever I am able to make it happen.
Monday, June 7, 2010
CALAMITY FATIGUE
There is a definite limit to how much bad news a body can absorb over a given period of time. The steady drumbeat of bad news coming out of the BP Gulf Oil Spill has become numbing; an overload of information; too much video of oil gushing out of the gaping wound along with the failure to just "plug the damn hole!" as Prez Obama has ordered in frustration. As of the writing of today's blog, the damn hole has not yet been fully plugged, although, according to BP, some progress has been made in siphoning off a percentage of the leak (we have to take BP's word for this). The video pictures continues to show billowing clouds of effluent pouring from the spout, seemingly as thick as ever.
The grim truth is that a goodly amount of oil is going to continue to flow from the source until a relief well can be drilled to intercept the flow from the original pipeline. This relief well is not expected to be completed until mid August at the earliest. Again, we have only BP's word on this. In the meantime a whole slew of anti-spill measures are being undertaken from cleaning up oil soaked wildlife to building giant sand berms to intercept and absord as much of the splilled oil as possible. We are told by BP and the Coast Guard that cleaning up the damage from the spill could well take several years perhaps as much as a decade. So ask not what the spill has done to you; rather ask what you can do to help clean up the spill. This work will provide many spring break college students with something else to do other than guzzling beer and smearing each other with sun block for years to come.
As for me, I am oversaturated with following the torrent of bad news. I have to start tuning out a good portion of the daily download, even though I have always been something of a news and politics junkie. I need to turn off the the evening news reports and maybe just read a good book instead. I need to find good news items that give me hope for the future. I have grand children now and I have to have hope that they will inherit a world that still offers clean air and clean water with habitats of animals that can sustain life in all of its magnificent diversity. Perhaps some lasting good will come from this calamity after all if we can marshall the political will to make preservation of the environment job number one as our gift to posterity. If we fail in this endeavor, there will be no posterity to pass anything to and the vision expressed in Rachel Carson's "Silient Spring", one of the most prophetic books ever written, will have become humanity's reality.
The grim truth is that a goodly amount of oil is going to continue to flow from the source until a relief well can be drilled to intercept the flow from the original pipeline. This relief well is not expected to be completed until mid August at the earliest. Again, we have only BP's word on this. In the meantime a whole slew of anti-spill measures are being undertaken from cleaning up oil soaked wildlife to building giant sand berms to intercept and absord as much of the splilled oil as possible. We are told by BP and the Coast Guard that cleaning up the damage from the spill could well take several years perhaps as much as a decade. So ask not what the spill has done to you; rather ask what you can do to help clean up the spill. This work will provide many spring break college students with something else to do other than guzzling beer and smearing each other with sun block for years to come.
As for me, I am oversaturated with following the torrent of bad news. I have to start tuning out a good portion of the daily download, even though I have always been something of a news and politics junkie. I need to turn off the the evening news reports and maybe just read a good book instead. I need to find good news items that give me hope for the future. I have grand children now and I have to have hope that they will inherit a world that still offers clean air and clean water with habitats of animals that can sustain life in all of its magnificent diversity. Perhaps some lasting good will come from this calamity after all if we can marshall the political will to make preservation of the environment job number one as our gift to posterity. If we fail in this endeavor, there will be no posterity to pass anything to and the vision expressed in Rachel Carson's "Silient Spring", one of the most prophetic books ever written, will have become humanity's reality.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
THE BIG SPILL REDUX - JUST GET OVER IT?
The Big Spill redux. Just get over it? I don't think so. No matter how the mass media tries to downplay the historic significance of this monumental environmental catastrophe the reality of the environmental damage that is taking place even as we speak belies the media's meta message that all will be well. Well, I beg to differ. Already, Louisiana's fishing industry has been all but destroyed. The oil slick has now entered the Gulf Stream, looping the oil around the Florida peninsula, threatening the Florida Keys and even the east coast beaches up to Miami and beyond (taking with it Florida's $60 billion tourist industry).
But this mega environmental catastrophe is not just a blow to the tourism industry (serious as that may be). It is a major wake up call to all of humanity. If we continue to poison the Oceans of the world at the rate that we are going we will in the not so long run be jeopardizing the whole planet's bio sphere. Earth is a water world (as every sixth grader should be able to tell you). Simply put, no water no life.
Are we human beings actually capable of killing all life in the Oceans? Don't act surprised. We humans have done a miserable job of stewardship of planet Earth. Not only are human beings capable of destroying our earthly environment, we have already inflicted massive damage. Whole habitats are being killed off, species are disappearing at an alarming rate. There are Sargasso seas of garbage and litter that literally stretch for miles in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Coral reefs are being killed and there are dead zones where algae blooms, feeding off the pollution in the waters of the world, have depleted water oxygen levels so that fish cannot survive. This disrupts the entire food chain leading to massive die offs as we have witnessed time and again.
All that said, the Earth is fairly resistant. Though we have abused our home planet almost beyond recognition, the planet has shown remarkable resilience or none of us would be here today. Human survival on planet earth is not guaranteed. The demise of the dinosaurs gives ample evidence that life on planet earth has always been something of a crap shoot. We owe it to our children and grand children to leave them a world that not only sustains human life, but the lives of all living things in the biosphere. We are capable of doing a better job of stewardship if we can summon the political will to do so.
Environmentalists are not just a bunch of starry eyed tree huggers. We must all become environmentalists if mother earth is to survive. We must all become Oceanographers and Marine Biologists. Save the oceans of the world! Save planet Earth!
But this mega environmental catastrophe is not just a blow to the tourism industry (serious as that may be). It is a major wake up call to all of humanity. If we continue to poison the Oceans of the world at the rate that we are going we will in the not so long run be jeopardizing the whole planet's bio sphere. Earth is a water world (as every sixth grader should be able to tell you). Simply put, no water no life.
Are we human beings actually capable of killing all life in the Oceans? Don't act surprised. We humans have done a miserable job of stewardship of planet Earth. Not only are human beings capable of destroying our earthly environment, we have already inflicted massive damage. Whole habitats are being killed off, species are disappearing at an alarming rate. There are Sargasso seas of garbage and litter that literally stretch for miles in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Coral reefs are being killed and there are dead zones where algae blooms, feeding off the pollution in the waters of the world, have depleted water oxygen levels so that fish cannot survive. This disrupts the entire food chain leading to massive die offs as we have witnessed time and again.
All that said, the Earth is fairly resistant. Though we have abused our home planet almost beyond recognition, the planet has shown remarkable resilience or none of us would be here today. Human survival on planet earth is not guaranteed. The demise of the dinosaurs gives ample evidence that life on planet earth has always been something of a crap shoot. We owe it to our children and grand children to leave them a world that not only sustains human life, but the lives of all living things in the biosphere. We are capable of doing a better job of stewardship if we can summon the political will to do so.
Environmentalists are not just a bunch of starry eyed tree huggers. We must all become environmentalists if mother earth is to survive. We must all become Oceanographers and Marine Biologists. Save the oceans of the world! Save planet Earth!
Friday, May 14, 2010
FACEBOOK FAN
It took me a while to become a fan of Facebook.com. At first blush I could not figure out its value, especially the practice of the seemingly purposeless accumulation of so-called "friends". To what end? To what purpose? And doesn't this collection of stangers called friends actually trivialize true friendship? Those were my thoughts when I hesitantly dipped my big toe into the Facebook pond. I have since changed my mind. Perhaps it is the outcome of having become more familiar and more comfortable navigating the site. It has become a means of locating people from the past (even the very distant past) and resuming some contact with them, reminiscing about "old times" and catching up on each other's lives.
Several days ago I even stumbled over the site a past girl friend of mine whom I thought was lost forever to the fog of lost romance gone bad. I hesitated for a long time before I finally clicked the mouse to ask to become one of her "friends". As of the writing of this blog I have not yet heard from her in any way. That is of course the beauty of Facebook. One does not have to accept such an offer of friendship. The request can be simply ignored and everyone goes on about their own business, chaulking up the experience to nothing ventured nothing gained.
On the other hand, by resuming some semblance of contact one leaves open the possibility of new possibilities; of new adventures yet to come; of rekindling an old extinguished flame. Had I chosen not to try to contact the lady in question (let's call her X for the time being) I would have foreclosed (perhaps forever) whatever new developments (or not) that might have resulted or could have resulted as a possible outcome based on having taken such a karmic gamble. In fact, in trying not to think about X, I was in fact obsessing about her. And it was affecting my work. My writing came to a complete halt. I was totally blocked unable to focus or take the next step. I was full of "what if" scenarios, worries and doubts.
I was second guessing my every motive, cross-examining myself as if I were a suspect in a crime. What had I done to be dumped by X in the first place (we are talking some twenty five or more years ago, though I still remember with crystal clarity just about every detail of the day she walked out on me). Did I really want to stir that pot of misery again? Did I really want to dig up and relive all that past karma?
The end result of all that hemming and hawing was that I decided that it was better to forge ahead, make the friendship request and wait for the results. I have resolved to be gracious and generous, forgiving and courageous in the face of yet another rejection if such was to be the case.
As all the results are not yet in I must say that not knowing what she is thinking is somewhat unsettling. But then I felt better thinking that now the shoe was on the other foot. Let X be the one having to make all the same calculations as to whether or not to resume contact with her Ex (one of a long line I must add in the interest of full disclosure).
At least I am able to write again and the blockage has been removed. Again the flow of words can resume. I am back in my element.
Several days ago I even stumbled over the site a past girl friend of mine whom I thought was lost forever to the fog of lost romance gone bad. I hesitated for a long time before I finally clicked the mouse to ask to become one of her "friends". As of the writing of this blog I have not yet heard from her in any way. That is of course the beauty of Facebook. One does not have to accept such an offer of friendship. The request can be simply ignored and everyone goes on about their own business, chaulking up the experience to nothing ventured nothing gained.
On the other hand, by resuming some semblance of contact one leaves open the possibility of new possibilities; of new adventures yet to come; of rekindling an old extinguished flame. Had I chosen not to try to contact the lady in question (let's call her X for the time being) I would have foreclosed (perhaps forever) whatever new developments (or not) that might have resulted or could have resulted as a possible outcome based on having taken such a karmic gamble. In fact, in trying not to think about X, I was in fact obsessing about her. And it was affecting my work. My writing came to a complete halt. I was totally blocked unable to focus or take the next step. I was full of "what if" scenarios, worries and doubts.
I was second guessing my every motive, cross-examining myself as if I were a suspect in a crime. What had I done to be dumped by X in the first place (we are talking some twenty five or more years ago, though I still remember with crystal clarity just about every detail of the day she walked out on me). Did I really want to stir that pot of misery again? Did I really want to dig up and relive all that past karma?
The end result of all that hemming and hawing was that I decided that it was better to forge ahead, make the friendship request and wait for the results. I have resolved to be gracious and generous, forgiving and courageous in the face of yet another rejection if such was to be the case.
As all the results are not yet in I must say that not knowing what she is thinking is somewhat unsettling. But then I felt better thinking that now the shoe was on the other foot. Let X be the one having to make all the same calculations as to whether or not to resume contact with her Ex (one of a long line I must add in the interest of full disclosure).
At least I am able to write again and the blockage has been removed. Again the flow of words can resume. I am back in my element.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
DRILL BABY DRILL - THE BIG OIL SPILL
It must mean something that all that is now required to identify the disasterous BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is to refer to it as the Big Oil Spill and everyone instantly knows what you are talking about. Wonderful. Glorious. I am so angry about this latest rape of nature that I can literally spit. Angry, frustrated and powerless. BP has made all of us into victims. Of course BP is trying to shirk the responsibility pointing to its subcontractors TransOceanic and Halliburton. Halliburton, Dick Chaney's alma mater. Might have known that sooner or later Chaney's filthy presence would make itself known in this latest disaster against the good and welfare of all Americans. Like dracula of old, only a wooden spike though the heart will rid us of his diseased presence.
Poor NOLA. First Katrina and now this latest travesty. How much bad news can a city take? There ain't enough blues or booze on Bourbon Street to wash away the tears that the loss of beach, marshland and marine habitat will cause. We are talking about the loss of an entire coast line, the destruction of flora and fauna on a massive scale; the poisoning of the water supply and food chain; the end of a waterfront, sea going way of life that can be traced back to the birth of the nation.
Will this Big Oil Spill prove to be President Obama's waterloo? Perhaps. Especially if the administration takes its eye off the ball and treats this catastrophe as just one calamity on a long list of calamities that need his attention. The solution to the crisis cannot be left in the incompetent hands of Chaney, Halliburton, TransOceanic or BP. It is time to call out the army, navy and marines; time to put the best minds and the best known expertise on the planet to work together to cap this runaway gusher a mile deep in the Gulf on the ocean floor. Big Oil Spill is a misnomer; It should be called the Big Oil Gusher, pouring 200,000 gallons of crude into the Gulf every day.
T.S. Elliot may have been so very correct to write that "this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but a whimper."
Poor NOLA. First Katrina and now this latest travesty. How much bad news can a city take? There ain't enough blues or booze on Bourbon Street to wash away the tears that the loss of beach, marshland and marine habitat will cause. We are talking about the loss of an entire coast line, the destruction of flora and fauna on a massive scale; the poisoning of the water supply and food chain; the end of a waterfront, sea going way of life that can be traced back to the birth of the nation.
Will this Big Oil Spill prove to be President Obama's waterloo? Perhaps. Especially if the administration takes its eye off the ball and treats this catastrophe as just one calamity on a long list of calamities that need his attention. The solution to the crisis cannot be left in the incompetent hands of Chaney, Halliburton, TransOceanic or BP. It is time to call out the army, navy and marines; time to put the best minds and the best known expertise on the planet to work together to cap this runaway gusher a mile deep in the Gulf on the ocean floor. Big Oil Spill is a misnomer; It should be called the Big Oil Gusher, pouring 200,000 gallons of crude into the Gulf every day.
T.S. Elliot may have been so very correct to write that "this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but a whimper."
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
LOST AND FOUND
Weird. I have such bad karma with technology. I started writing this blog back in February and then totally forgot how to access it again until today. I am glad that I have this outlet back on line though I am pressed for time today. I wasn't expecting to be back, so this is a pleasant surprise and a nice cherry topping ending to a rather bland and boring day at work (is there really any other kind?). As usual I am feeling at odds with myself; knowing that I must make some major changes in my life yet not sure how to proceed or even what those changes need to be (sound familiar?).
I describe myself these days as being semi-retired though that is only half true. I still report to work every day, but I have a predetermined retirement date several years from now; still, knowing the date of my retirement provides the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel and that does make a big psychological difference in how I approach each and every day.
I try not let the usual office politics and in fighting affect me as much as before. It is sad that our work environments have become so toxic to good health and to our self-estime and sense of well being. I try to take more time off from work. My new scheme is to try to take payday Fridays off so that at least I will have some coins to spends before I am again flat broke (it does not take long). Like most writers, I have found that living a hand to mouth existence becomes second nature; I know that I have lots of company in this quandry. How are you faring in the wake of The Great Recession? Has the election of Barack Obama ushered in a new golden age for America? We can only hope so! More on all of the above later. Right now I have to close up shop and get ready to catch my train for the home bound commute. Stay tuned folks!
I describe myself these days as being semi-retired though that is only half true. I still report to work every day, but I have a predetermined retirement date several years from now; still, knowing the date of my retirement provides the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel and that does make a big psychological difference in how I approach each and every day.
I try not let the usual office politics and in fighting affect me as much as before. It is sad that our work environments have become so toxic to good health and to our self-estime and sense of well being. I try to take more time off from work. My new scheme is to try to take payday Fridays off so that at least I will have some coins to spends before I am again flat broke (it does not take long). Like most writers, I have found that living a hand to mouth existence becomes second nature; I know that I have lots of company in this quandry. How are you faring in the wake of The Great Recession? Has the election of Barack Obama ushered in a new golden age for America? We can only hope so! More on all of the above later. Right now I have to close up shop and get ready to catch my train for the home bound commute. Stay tuned folks!
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