Magic and Fairy Tales

Fairies.

I remember unicorns and flying dogs and Hobbits and dancing tin men.

I remember aliens on flying bicycles, tiny green gurus, and David Bowie,

I remember Tinkerbell, dancing brooms, and psychedelic elephants.

I remember downtrodden princesses, knights in shining armor and evil stepmothers.

I remember Easter Bunnies, workshop elves, and teeth turned into silver dollars.

I remember sly foxes, cross-dressing wolves, and billy goats gruff.

I remember talking owls, roller skating bears, and crime fighting ninja turtles.

I remember sparkling lights, beautiful gowns, and ethereal singing.

I remember that flying is possible, transformation probable, and true love always winning.

I remember believing.

Photograph from the Lane Community College performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream April 2014

Knock Out

Game.

There is a quiet roar beginning over what is being called the "teen knockout game" wherein a group of teens randomly assaults a complete stranger with the intent of knocking them unconscious. My interest in this is less in discussing teen violence or the pack mentality that drives it, but in the mainstream medias willingness to diminish their actions by calling it a game. That our young people are unable to tell the difference between games and criminal violence is certainly a problem, but when the rest of society struggles with that same distinction, it's indicative of something larger and more deeply ingrained. Are we, as a while, losing the ability to distinguish between play, imagination, fantasy, and reality? Have movies and video games so closely blended with our daily realities that we are no longer sure what is, in fact, a game? In considering this question I think about the many US service people who daily fight wars, remotely, with drones and joystick technology and then return to their suburban lives. I think about fight clubs, the violence of football and hockey, and the ways in which we celebrate the champions of these violent form of recreation. I wonder about boredom in our youth, and the obvious cry for stimulation that is calling a random attack on a stranger a game. I think about stories like The Hunger Games and Game of Thrones that place children in positions of power and reward them for their violence. I think about my own youth, filled with capture the flag and kick the can, and think about a time when dodge ball was considered too violent for the school grounds. Perhaps today is a good day to reevaluate our pastimes, recreation, and personal media choices. What do they say about ourselves and what we consider to play? What message do your choices send to those around you about violence and its role as an entertainer?

Photograph:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/teen-knockout-game-continues-harm-innocent-people-article-1.1521185

Could Go Either Way

Thirty-Something.

Now that I have a firm hold on my mid-thirties, I find a peculiar phenomenon taking place among my cohorts. They are magically able to appear as young as 25 or as old as 45. While some of us are still lithe and fit others carry beer bellies and ponches, close to two decades past our physical prime, the annual three pound weight gain is taking it’s toll on many of us.  There are wrinkles and gray hair and receding hair lines and interesting middle-aged fashion choices.  There is also a tendency towards either much older or much younger behavior, those who cling to social circles much younger than themselves and those that have adopted a world-weary way of interacting.   I can only conjecture as to the cause of this discrepancy, and must assume that genetics plays some role, but what appears to be going on is that our lives up to this point, are decidedly catching up with us. I can tell who has spent too much time in the bars or out in the sun and not enough time in the gym or getting a decent nights rest.  I can see the tracks of worry and hard living etched across faces and have watched friends go grey after a single hard year. The tolls of life come due early, it’s up to us to take good care of ourselves because really, at just halfway through our thirties, we are still young and have a long way to go.

Some conventional wisdom on staying young at heart and looking it:

Eat well, but not too much.

Exercise.

Sleep.

Drink water.

Laugh.

Have hobbies.

Spend time with friends.

Like what you are reading?  Then support the Kickstarter for my book Girl Gone Wild- On Being a Woman in the Wilderness.  Thanks!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1731666363/girl-gone-wild-a-guide-to-being-a-woman-outside?ref=city

Photograph Courtesy of :
http://www.readmyblogplease.com/2013/07/youre-only-as-old-as-your-age.html