Two Things

Thinking of my youth, my younger days and the education I received, there are two things that I believe would have helped me in my writing.

You know… when I was really young I used to watch “The Monkeys” never being able to imagine being as old as those crazy group of friends.  I was watching  an episode of “The Monkeys” some time back on retro television. I smiled as I watched those kids and their crazy antics, and thought to myself, “Oh crap.”

But that is besides the point. Music is not the topic even though “The Rolling Stones” is Satan’s music, “The Who” makes the “Beatles” look like just another boy band and “AC%DC” was the best thing ever to come out of Australia.

Not sure what that is saying in terms of things coming out of Australia.

But then again I do have two things in regards to music.

After our favorite band finished, the reason we attended Summerfest last year, we caught  “Styx”, or rather Dennis De Young, afterwards which made me wonder, “What would make the best theme song for me?” “Renegade” came to mind “Never more to go astray”. It is good to be a wanted man. Still, I am neither a fearful nor an angry man, nor wanted apparently.

“Too much Time on my Hands” may be more appropriate considering the last several years of under employment. “Is it any wonder I’m not the President?”

Great music. Makes me want to break out my old albums. “Styx” came out of the Midwest by the way. Just sayin.

But, back to the topic,  as I try to write, find the proper word and construct proper sentences, there are two things I wish I would have learned, or learned more better, when I was young.

First, in regards to finding the proper word, or understand more clearly the words I use, I wish I had taken Greek and/or Latin when I was younger. At the prestigious high school of my youth they were far from unpopular subjects. Most students of such classics were more interested in pursuing law or the sciences rather than in any artistic pursuit.

Second, I wish I had paid more better attention to my English teachers. But in my defense, they were not very approachable people. Hardly perceived as kind, they ruled by fear. That may be a slight exaggeration, but everyone over 40 knows what I am talking about.

I had a great English teacher in high school. If he were alive today he would be the oldest man in the world. He was harsh, and critical. I failed his first test. Afterwards he went over the test with the class pointing out all the correct answers. On the next test, including all future tests… half the questions were the same as the previous test, and when I got a 70% he praised me to all heck for my improvement. Not to familiar or comfortable with praise, yet I soon was achieving 90-100% on my tests. Everyone from my high school remembers him.

The grammar has come back to me the more I write. It is all in there somewhere. Finding new words, the best most precise words, is a bigger challenge for me right now.

Actually, with Spring and the garden I have not written too much but the work plods forward. Still visiting my dad every day.

I will soon be firing up the old YouTube channel again, home & garden and mountain biking being the main topics.

Thank you for reading.

Tom Petty was just plain cool.