American Values

Some questions for my reader(s):

Forget your grievances over what the United States has done or not done.  How do you feel about the original IDEA of America?  Not the results, the intention.

Could you tell someone what values are behind that idea, and what is unique about what America is supposed to be about?  Do you see it as notable and good, something you agree with and can believe in?

Are we missing a sense of solidarity as a country and as Americans, and should we have a national sense like that?  (E Pluribus Unum---from many, one.)  If we are to be a country of one people, what values would unify us?

Have we missed our chance to view our country as something in which we could believe and take pride?

Dianna Cohen: Tough truths about plastic pollution | Video on TED.com

If you've heard about these plastic gyres in the ocean, you're probably already doing what you can to reduce this problem. If you haven't heard of these, they are actual plastic islands that have formed in several of our oceans around the world. Crazy!! This is really insane. How could you see this and not want to refuse plastic from now on?

Dianna Cohen: Tough truths about plastic pollution | Video on TED.com

Come Out Into the Sun

Tuesday night I was part of a staged reading of a musical comedy work-in-progress that included a new song sung by a supposed mute that suddenly starts singing and turns out to be an alien.  OK, I'm not going into the synopsis of the show here, but the song in a beautiful, plaintive ballad about the warmth of the sun, the clear running streams of Earth, and how beautiful the place is to those who've been rocketing throughout the galaxy and haven't been here in a while.  The following refrain was fresh in my mind as, the following day, I backpacked up to a mountain lake on a clear, sunny autumn afternoon:

Come out into the sun
See the streams run clear
Taste the air out here
Come feel the heat upon your shoulders
There's warmth in the boulders

If it happens that someday we make contact with life from other planets, it could be that Earth turns out to be one of the best places around.  What if all the other species long to be in our air and under our sun?  The beauty here could be coveted by the whole galaxy.  I for one want to appreciate it now.

Rush Hour Pandemonium

Today was gorgeous. I feel fortunate to have days like today this time of year, so I try to appreciate it.  Did I do anything outside?  No.  But at least I got to sit in some rush hour traffic twice today.  That makes up for it.

I live in Portland, Oregon.  The traffic is nothing here compared to other places.  And yet I was in it for about 20 minutes both times and I felt like I was going nuts!  Part of that is because I don't normally drive much, especially on the freeway, which is where I was, and when I do drive it's short distances at hours other than rush hour.  And ok, part of me going nuts was that I was late for something, but I really can't imagine a five-day work week that consists of that twice a day in a place like, say, LA or San Francisco.  Yeah, I'm gonna have a great house out HERE and work way over HERE.  That'll be awesome.  How do people do it?

Maybe to some it's not that bad.  Maybe they've got stuff planned each day that they can do in the car, so that they start actually looking forward to the drive because they'll find out what happens next on the book-on-tape.  I don't know.  Maybe they make phone calls and are already working before they physically arrive at work.  Or making dinner reservations on the way home, or any other number of things one employs to occupy the time and distract oneself from the drudgery.

Maybe rush hour traffic has created a market for all kinds of various "activities" that you'd never otherwise find the time to do.  If you're going to be sitting in you car for 45 minutes only tapping the accelerator for short spurts, you might as well learn Spanish.  Singers, why not use the time to vocalize with a warm up CD?  Chefs could taste sauces from little cupholder-fitting dipping cups.  Dentists could view dental slides.  (during complete stops only of course)  Perfumers could compare fragrance samples and dictate their review notes to a voice-activated transcriber.  The list goes on...

I guess overall I'm thankful for where I live in my little apartment in the city.  When I buy a house someday, I really want to try to make it close to where I have to go the most often.  And after today I think I'll really appreciate riding my bike more.  I'm glad to live where those who want to can feasibly get around on a bike.  Maybe I'll get that Spanish CD and wear my headphones on my next bike commute...

Welcome to Jasmose Journal

Thanks for finding your way to my little opinion blog, where a discerning reader like yourself can ponder alongside me the quirks, qualms, and questions of why things are the way they are and why people do what they do...oh, and laugh about it.  Here you'll find a wide variety of posts, from uplifting to WTF, from humorous to ranting, from informative to fanciful imaginary musings.  Read on and please add your comments to enrich the experience for all!

Jasmose