Lost in Translation

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." Albert Einstein

We don't subscribe to TV, so when I am looking for video entertainment I go to YouTube and watch the intelligent comedy clips of George Carlin and Bill Maher. We watch "The Colbert Report" with Steven Colbert on Hulu, the day after it airs on Comedy Central. All three of these wise men would absolutely agree with Albert Einstein's quote above. 

I am endlessly wondering why America can't come together and solve our problems. Technology innovators would never follow the unproductive path taken by our political leaders. 

Great minds, curious minds, innovative minds have always worked at finding new solutions and ideas in what is certainly an endless stream of problem solving: human adaptation and invention.

My favorites include language, fire, the wheel, the printing press, the light bulb, the toilet, and the telephone.

Politicians do not understand that if you always do what you've done, you get what you always got. 

Einstein said it much more clearly. "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

The Voice

"A vision without execution is a hallucination." 

Thomas Edison

I heard AOL's founder Steve Case repeat this quote last Sunday and then it appeared on my Facebook feed during the week. I quickly recognized it as my reflection in life's mirror.

What a relief!  I've been hallucinating for 40 years. Sure, there have been moments of clarity, revelations even, certainly times of creativity, and admittedly periods of sloth.

But then Bruce ended a flurry of emails this week with a different and welcome recognition: "Your creative spirit and spirit of creativity inspires me.  Life for you is more of an adventure of possibilities than a journey.  Thank you for modeling that."

You are welcome Bruce. I had no idea you see me in this wonderful light. This certainly feels like a more positive observation of my story than the thought that my repetitive lack of long term execution means my engagement in oh-so-many vision quests meant they were mostly hallucinations.

Elley and I like to kid about how many different business cards we have in our treasure chest of keepsakes. We also share the truth that we must hold the record for the most website names owned by a couple who work for Home Depot. (More on those 2 fun facts in a future post.)

I started my World Wide Web experience in the 1995 version of the Internets. My Life Coaching home was OneGiantStep.net and OneGiantStep.org. It's interesting to look at how the current owners are using these catchy URL's. (Oops .... why didn't I listen to the wisdom that you should never sell houses or domain names .... coulda, woulda, shoulda)

I own SantasBro.com, TagYurIt.com, AnotherBeginning.org,JoinThePortal.com, UncleXoq.com, and  KidXpress.org. Each time I log onto GoDaddy to buy a name, and iPage to build web pages, I get high on the meaning and the possibilities.

The web pages attached to these domain names mostly stand idle while I pump my energy into my day job. I have been "executing" at peak performance at Home Depot for 11 years, after doing the Dad thing consistently for 17 years before that. And I have carried out fully, put completely into effect, my first book "Try on New Hats".

Webster's hallucination is "a perception of objects with no reality ..." This doesn't describe the effect the image imbedded above has on your eyes/brain. And Edison's use of the word was not literal. He was making an illustrative point about the need for stick-tuitive-ness as the key to success

Certainly my current life would be elsewhere if I had chosen other forks in the road over the years. But I wouldn't be here writing this. Good thing no one's keeping score.

St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is easily linked to my favorite theme "pay it forward." St. Patrick went to Ireland to spread the "Word." He is a shining example of a pass it forward apostle with longevity. 

My alter-ego Uncle XOQ (pronounced ZOK) is depicted by his illustrator Zoey Stevens, as a green skinned "leprechaun-ish" folk hero. For the first time, I realize that with all things going green on this Irish Holiday, Uncle XOQ should forever be associated with shamrocks and green beer.

In keeping with the theme of passing forward of remembrance and passing forward the spirit that moves us, let's also toast my gal Elley Farrell's Dad, Tommy, an Irish actor, comedian and side-kick and her beloved Father. Today we will raise a glass (or two) to him and dance, sing and be merry at O'Sullivan's in Carlsbad.   ERIN GO BRAGH!

The Portal in the Village of Carlsbad

Join the Portal ...... a group of like-minded, conscious humans beings, seeking intelligent conversation and networking. In our work lives we are Healers, Coaches, Creative Thinkers, Educators, Inventors, Entrepreneurs, Artists, Writers, and more. 

You are one of us if you share in a group of philosophies and ethical perspectives which emphasize the value of human beings, individually and collectively, who support independent thought and prefer rationalism and intellect over established doctrine. 

We are on the one hand ambiguously diverse. On the other, we are painfully like-minded about the numbing we are experiencing listening to the persistent confusion intentionally created by the humans who are spinning tactics and terms like fear, intimidation, separatism, and guilt. They circle around us in politics, religion and the media.

This has been a weekend of creativity, dialogue, connecting and writing. Elley and I had coffee in the Village of Carlsbad at the Chocolate Bar with Dr. Jonathan, a self proclaimed bold, brash, blunt and fellow clueless human. A most enjoyable chap we have the pleasure of calling friend. We are plotting the future.

I started a new business this weekend called "Tag, Yur It!" It's significance crept up behind me in shocking synchronicity; what an excellent collaboration point for Casey's See Beneath, Inc. 501C3 Autism educational production company, my pass it forward philosopy, my publishing my Uncle XOQ children's books and my newest endeavor "creative writer for hire." 

Need a tagline or a new website name. Hire me at my way-to-reasonable rates. I am your The Tag Man!

My websites: anotherbeginning.org, unclexoq.com, kidxpress.org, tagyurit.com, jointheportal.com, 1of7b.blogspot.com

MLK

MLK rallied tens of thousands of people to stand up for what was true and just. In light of Hollywood's fresh look at Lincoln in late 2012, we are reminded that equality has been at issue in the USA since the first tea hit the water in Boston harbor in the 1700's. 

Dr. King was assassinated because certain elements of society could no longer tolerate such an intelligent, influential voice echoing across the continent. Martin Luther King had a vision: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

This is the weekend that America celebrates the message Dr. King articulated so eloquently. If he were alive, he would remind us that Barack Obama's presidency is celebration enough. Many cities across the USA gather together in song and tribute to remember the energy and sacrifice needed to get us this far in the 45 years since his brutal death. (Click here to read about the politic discourse that eventually lead to creation of this National Holiday in 1995.) 

Elley and I are driving to Berkeley on Friday to join in the 11th Annual MLK Celebration produced by Living Jazz. Sister Stacey is the Executive Director of this organization. If you are in the Bay Area and would like to join us, click on this link to find out all the particulars: LivingJazz

Two years ago in this Blog, under the heading "Bay Area" I acknowledged and toasted my sister Stacey as a prime example of a leader giving back to her community. Since the early 1980's, she has modestly raised money, awareness, and devoted her time to her passion, while offering music instruction, concerts, and opportunity for humans of all ages to participate in the joys of the Arts. Stacey is all about music and dance, voices and instruments, raising spirits and the "hair on your neck" with resounding heart and soul, while celebrating the best of our species. 

AMEN!

Kickin' it

Saturday night, Packers handlin' Vikes, me and Elley kickin' it.  Elley's watching concerts in Central Park and all things Netflix can serve up.  She's got the LCD beaming, hooked to her Acer laptop thru the 25' HDMI cable.  Wireless keyboard and mouse ..... see, we're so current. Hangin' at home, technology at our finger tips, no hook to cable, dish, or u-verse. We's be totally free entertainment in our get-away pad in O'side.

And later this week we'll get the next gen TV stick straight from Amazon, bought with my Discover Card Cashback bonus. You seen this amazing little thing? For reals ..... size of a flash drive, with USB on one end, HDMI on the other - 1.2 ghz processor, built-in WIFI, 1gb Ram, 1080 dpi video, the mightiest little device yet. 50 dollar! 

So what you doin' tonite that's costing you bucks? Cineplex 18 for $12 each? January's the worst month for new releases. Watered down drinks at Chili's; come on bros and sis', wasting your hard earned pay. This is 2013 'yo! 

We got Wyclef Jean, Macy Gray, Eric Clapton, Stevie Wonder, Destiny's Child (with Beyonce 2004), Marc Anthony, Steven Marley, and Third World. Right here in our joint.

Not bad for a couple of Baby Boomers.

Save the Whales

On January 1, 2013, Elley, Lola, and I took a walk at the Oceanside Harbor to celebrate the New Year. We have discovered that Lola enjoys rock hopping on the jetty in the Harbor entrance, and it is great exercise for all of us.

Yesterday's walk was enhanced when I spotted a whale breaching beyond the surfers to the west. Elley missed the first breach, but as an added bonus, the whale granted us a second show. We felt moved, even blessed, by this spectacle.

Oceanside is our adopted home, for now. We feel that we have to qualify this admission, since we both struggle a bit accepting that life has brought us to this spot on the map. But Oceanside brought us together and we are conscious enough to smell the roses, not focus on the nearby Camp Pendleton blasts, booms, and war games.

January 1, 2013 is also remarkable as the day Elley created an Event page on Facebook to blast out her NY Resolution to publish her book "The Dawgy Lama" before the year is out. TDL will be a collection of stories from pet owners whose pets have had a significant impact on their lives. If you have a story to tell, please take the time to click through on the links I imbedded in this Post to see Elley's website, read her story, and think about writing one of your own.

If you have a story, but don't have the confidence to write it yourself, I will be glad to put it on paper for you. Send me an email and we will set a time to talk on the phone to discuss your story.

Here's wishing you and yours a prosperous 2013. Namaste, Robby