Random Musings

The Bells, The Bells!

At church on Sunday, the bell choir performed. I was in a bell choir briefly as a young boy. I am aware of why they wear gloves and handle the bells so carefully. They are for expensive and mishandling them can forever destroy their fine tuning. There is no way to "retune" a bell that has gone sharp or flat. Also, it's neat to see the players hands moving and the white gloves help you see that.

What I don't get though, is that for all the kit gloves and careful handling, why some pieces of music call for a sound that can only be made by slamming the bell on a table! How can you tell me that a little oil from my hand will ruin this precision instrument, yet banging it with authority on a folding table with nothing but a table cloth as a damper is harmless? I think this is a case for the Mythbusters.

The Lions

The problem with the Lions is that they don't stink bad enough. They are just good enough to give you hope that they could pull it out. And then they don't. They are not a grind it out football team anymore like they used to be. Instead the 3 or 4 brilliant big yardage plays keep them in the game. It's like they are in the process of being and becoming something good. They just aren't there yet.

As a team, they are the dream of every lackluster athlete in the world however, since their 3rd string (3rd string!) quarterback is now starting. The moral of the story is you can't assume someone else will do it... be ready. You could wind up being the starter.

The Weather

Stunning. Thank you to whomever is in charge. It has been perfect.

My Dreams

The other night, I had the most wicked-cool dreams. Remarkably, I actually remembered them. I was a King of my Kingdom, which was located somewhere near Flint. It was very woodsy, like a summer camp. I visited the Kingdom of Chicago and my caravan got a parking ticket, which I refused to pay. This of course led to a full-scale invasion of my kingdom by the King of Chicago.

I lured them into a trap, however and once the entire invading army was trapped in my basement (it was clearly a big basement) I set off the Halon fire suppression system thus denying them of oxygen and killing them all!

Then I was leading a scavenger hunt/road rally in my hot new Mustang. We were in a small town and we had to meet someone or do something. The details don't matter. So we walk into the old timey doctor's office and he is not there. Emily sits at the computer and was asking me how to do something. The last thought in my head was "I really don't want to have to teach her how to do something on the computer..." and the alarm went off. Saved by the bell.

Jimmy Johns

Not so freaky fast as their commercials would indicate. I could have made my own damn sandwich by now.

Complication Resulting From Being Complicated

I marvel at people who seem to live simply and let things come and go with great ease and class. I am not one of those. I recently have been down about my lack of free time... time to be by myself, pursuing my, um, pursuits. I finally got what I wanted almost all day Saturday and it put me in a funk and made me lonely. I didn't in the end pursue anything worthwhile aside from finishing a few chores and spent most the day staring at the football games on t.v. I did not achieve nirvana, solve the problems plaguing mankind or develop a new mathematical theorem or unified theory of anything. In short, I felt guilty for having wasted a day. A beautiful day at that.

Which is where the complicated part comes in. Why do I pine for things that in the end don't serve the intended purpose? It's just a simplified version of the basic existential question. Who am I, why am I here? Moreover, who knows and why do I care?