Land of Dreams
May 3, 2011 Life
Lisa and I had particular interest in the situation in Japan, seeing as Brigid was scheduled to attend school there starting this April. Purdue put that kibosh on that, to much gnashing of teeth from Brigid’s side of things. But now that’s changed, and our little girl is planning to spend the next three and a half months in Tokyo. Of course, she’s not really so little any more–but, you get the point.
We’re both pretty excited for her. She’s stepping off into a dream that she’s held for a very long time. I can still remember her down in the basement, hunched over her computer as an eight or ten-year-old kid trying to teach herself how to speak Japanese. I can remember discussions about dream jobs and about Japanese history (about which I’m nearly vacant). I remember the tone of her voice as she told us that she was changing her major from Engineering to a Linguistics, Japanese, Asian History triple. She has always wanted to understand Japan.
Will this country fulfill her expectations? Will the trip be magical?
I have no clue. The logical being inside me says her trip will reveal problems she never knew existed as well as feed her passion–that’s the way life is, you know? It’s very rare for any experience that does not include eating lots of brownies or ice cream to be perfect, and even then you have to spend more time on the treadmill. Logical lives are like that. No free lunches. Totally sucks.
Anyway.
So she’s spending a couple days here as she prepares for departure. Things are going about as we would expect, given our family dynamic. Lisa is on Brigid to plan her trip in deeper depth than Brigid is wont to do. Brigid listens to what we say, then does whatever the heck she thinks works for her. I kibbutz from the sideline enough to take all sides but ensure myself the wheels aren’t falling off, and I drive us to Ritters. It turns out that Brigid will take just a suitcase and a carry-on. Perhaps we’ll ship her a few things later, but I doubt it matters much. Sometimes I forget what it’s like to be so young and to be able to travel that light. But she is, and she can. So she will. And Lisa and I will both be fine in the end–that’s how I generally think about things–examining them from the end backward. It’s how I read magazines most of the time, too, though I have no idea how that fits into this idea at all. But, anyway, ten years from now it won’t matter that Brigid took one suitcase or ten to Japan. All that will matter is the Japan part. All that will matter is that she made it to the place she’s always wanted to go.
I’m smiling a big smile as I write that sentence. My daughter is going somewhere she’s always wanted to go. The idea makes me feel big inside. Going somewhere she’s always wanted to go. Doing something she’s always wanted to do. And, therefore, being someone she’s always wanted to be.
Pretty damned cool.
This is Good
I admit I’m not sure what I should feel about it all. I want to be happy that Osama bin Laden is dead, and I am. It is a strange thing, however, to be happy that someone is dead. It gives me, perhaps, a very small sense of what it felt like to be alive in the US during World War II and the subsequent years. Still, there are ugly things that float in that stream of vengeance, things I don’t want to have in my psyche.
On the other hand, I saw a Mark Twain quote tweeted a bit ago that read “I’ve never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure.” This I get.
Sure, there will be someone to carry on for Osama bin Laden. Of course the “War on Terror” is still a false war, one that can never be declared over. This is not relevant to the issue. You don’t for example, let a child cheat on a test merely because you know that stopping one cheater is meaningless, that another will just grow in his place. We don’t let weeds grow in our yards merely because we know that removing them leaves room for another. Removing Hitler from Germany in 1938 would not have changed the environment that created and fostered him–who is to say that WW II wasn’t inevitable? And yet, I think it would be unusual to find a knowledgeable person who wouldn’t agree to give it a go without Hitler if they could go back in time and make it so.
There will always be conflict among humans, and as long as there is conflict there will be environments for terrorists and rebel freedom-fighters and whatever.
So-the-hell-what?
Today I’ve looked at video of celebrations, and I’ve heard the chants at games “USA, USA, USA!” and I’ve been filled with many emotions. Mostly I remember the events of that morning of September 11, and the aftermath. And in the end I think this is good. Yes. This is very good.
Sleep Depravation and Risk
Mar 9, 2011 Life
Poor Lisa’s been struggling with a cold and cough that’s been keeping her up most nights. So, it looks like I should make sure to keep her away from Vegas for a bit.
Britney Spears does SF?
Feb 18, 2011 Daily Writing, Life, Media, Science Fiction
Since it’s in the title, I should probably lead with it … so here it is: Britney Spears does SF?
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Since I’m in the media frame of mind, I’m currently reading a pair of books–Stephen King’s Full Dark, No Stars, and a “Best of” collection of Edmund Hamilton’s work.
King’s work is great, of course. He’s really a no bullshit storyteller of the best cut. Hamilton’s collection is interesting in the historical sense, and from the point of view that you can really see him maturing over time. Perhaps you can say that about the field, too. The collection spans stories over some four decades.
With the field literally exploding with uncertainty over almost every aspect of the future, I think it’s valuable to look backward, too.
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So, in theme of looking backward, I’m apparently in a bit of a retro mood this AM (and last). I’ve had Sarah McLachlan on the iTunes as I write. Can I call Sarah McLachlan retro? I guess I can, eh? Retro is what I point to when I say “retro!”
Regardless, the story I’m working on is flowing pretty well, still. Main characters introduced, conflict kinda set up and ready to get deeper. Fun being had.
But now it’s off to work. Have a great day!
