Ricochet Reckoning

Few people in the world like to be told what to do less than I do. Plenty of people enjoy ordering others around more than I do. Often people either like being told what to do or like telling others what to do. Maybe they are happier. I respect neither approach when it involves non-consenting adults.

Even so, sometimes I think I need someone to dictate my every move so I don't get sidetracked and forget why I got out of bed or drove fifty miles on any given day. One minute I am giving someone a little info on harmonica playing, the next I find I have become almost a biographer of a sexually confused instrumental genius. But for what? No gain there. I know more about some strangers than I know about friends.

That may be a sign of the times. I'll bet hordes of people know more about various celebrities than they do about reasonably close acquaintances; birthdays, likes, dislikes, list of ex relationships, etc. That is strange. Must be an aspect of human nature. Kind of like people who wear their compassion on their sleeve, T-shirt, ball cap, and bumper sticker, yet by-pass all the possibilities in their own backyard, even their own country to go adopt kids from exotic lands, even if it requires bending the laws. Sort of like designer international baby acquisition. No offense Angelina. Not much, anyway. Poor Brad.

See? Why do I know more about lunatic publicity nuts than about real people who've actually broken bread with me? And I'm a mild case.

You have no idea how confusing basic life within civilization is to me, and how it works on me. The one thing that appears certain is that I will leave almost no footprint whatsoever. Contrary to the hypocrites who promote such things, that is not a good feeling. And it is not the way one is supposed to live life unless he's a squirrel or a snail.

I regularly forget that the big "save the planet" routine is still running its of the road, lost from all reason course. Hell we have a new "green" Toyota dealership in El Cajon. What defines a green car dealership? They have power lines running to the place. People will buy anything. I wouldn't mind except all that becomes an excuse to tell people what to do, mind their business, kill the economy and ensure that we don't produce our own cheap petrol. Oil fields do not appear to be as big a blight on the landscape as wind farms. I like both, but the logic of environmental mythology has become beyond absurd.

OK. Screw it. I'm more distressed about the zero footprint life.