"Why don't we turn the clock to zero honey
We're starting up a brand new day"
It's a beautiful day in Southern California. The weather's not why I moved here, but it's an incredible bonus.
Didn't start out that way. Gray and misty ruled the day. Traffic was insane.
And then everything started to fall into place.
I've been through a rough stretch. Everything has gone wrong.
And then you have one day when everything works out and you feel EUPHORIC!
They came to fumigate my house. Termites were on the march. Rather than tenting it they used this new process where you can stay inside, they said it was even safe for babies! But the guys were dressed up like ghostbusters, made me worry.
And on the computer everybody was looking for me, opportunities were plentiful, I got on the 405 and every song sounded good. I'm listening to Kenny Chesney's mother testify about him, the man himself talk about hearing a new song while lying on a bed in Stowe, Vermont, and then they spun "Made Your Mind Up" from Joe Walsh's 1981 album "There Goes The Neighborhood" and I could not ask for anything more.
Yes, I miss the east coast, the changing of the trees. I pull up the cams and see what's going on in the aforementioned Stowe, Mad River Glen, I peep the leaves from thousands of miles away. I remember what once was, but so much of it I don't want to relive.
Like going to college.
I'm reading a riveting book, entitled "The Loner." You've got to look up every third word but the plot is so intriguing. No-name nerd gets into Harvard and becomes infatuated with the freshman icon.
He looks her up online. He dates her roommate to get a peek. He takes the same classes she does. I haven't finished it yet, it's turning, he's making some execrable choices, but before that...
I'm looking to go down the rabbit hole.
That's your job, the role of the artist, to grab our leg and drag us under.
So, you grind in high school to get into a good college. And you miss out on your salad days, all those people who say high school was the best years of their lives, you're clueless.
And you're a virgin, if you've even kissed a girl.
And just about everybody you're thrown in with is the same. The boys, the girls. They're away from mommy and daddy, they want to experiment, opportunities abound.
Or do they?
What can I tell you, I heard "Groovin'" on the radio last night. Felix Cavaliere is still walking the earth, how can that be, how can genius hide in plain sight?
And I listened to Malcolm Gladwell say life was all about courage, a willingness to go against the grain. That's what leaders do. If you're the most popular person in class, chances are you're going to be superseded by someone taking risks.
And Gladwell also talked about bias, the inability to see things straight, because you're invested in the outcome. Like the Rand Corporation in Vietnam. The interviews with Viet Cong defectors said they were winning, when the opposite was just the case.
You just can't beat hearts and minds.
So my eyes glossed over during the debate. It occurred to me that you're gonna vote for who you want to and I'm gonna vote for who I want to and the undecideds are people I just cannot understand or relate to, you mean you can't make up your mind?
But that's twenty first century America, where we've all got our own facts and argument rules the day.
But then you get on the freeway, rev it up to 70, crank up the tunes and you've got a smile on your face, you're living in a brand new day.
I'm pinching myself. Telling myself it will end. Wishing I could retain my optimism.
Maybe that's possible, maybe it truly is a brand new day.
"You're the sum of my equation
I'm the answer to your question
If you follow my suggestion
We can turn this ship around
And go up instead of down
You're the pan and I'm the handle
You're the flame and I'm the candle
Stand up all you lovers in the world
Stand up and be counted every boy and every girl
Stand up all you lovers in the world
We're starting up a brand new day"
Sting "Brand New Day": open.spotify.com/track/35rbWJFPSnfTEDXvopaqxZ
"Loner: A Novel": www.amazon.com/Loner-Novel-Teddy-Wayne/dp/1501107895/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1476224544&sr=8-1&keywords=loner
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