So,
that was Mrs. Lundegaard on the floor in there. And I guess that was
your accomplice in the wood chipper. - Marge Gunderson. Fargo.
that was Mrs. Lundegaard on the floor in there. And I guess that was
your accomplice in the wood chipper. - Marge Gunderson. Fargo.
Today was supposed to be different. Not that I had big plans or anything,
but I was not supposed to be nursing a crushing headache and wicked
vertigo. I'm not sure if I am on the floor or in the woodchipper. But
shit happens and I'm still here. Three years ago this week a team of
skilled professionals, led by a big deal neurosurgeon cut into my skull
and removed a small but offensive tumor. The surgery was successful,
the recovery (mostly) uneventful. Lets not talk about the blue spider
that was lodged in my vena cava for a few months. Textbook good work.
My health since then has been up and down. Still with the headaches (
though not as often) and the vertigo. Also not as often but more
lasting. It's also the anniversary of Ringo's trip to the Summerlands. I
miss my dog more than I miss most people. So it's a pretty sad day
too. But I am still here. I'm also three years older and eligible for
an AARP Membership... so there is that.
but I was not supposed to be nursing a crushing headache and wicked
vertigo. I'm not sure if I am on the floor or in the woodchipper. But
shit happens and I'm still here. Three years ago this week a team of
skilled professionals, led by a big deal neurosurgeon cut into my skull
and removed a small but offensive tumor. The surgery was successful,
the recovery (mostly) uneventful. Lets not talk about the blue spider
that was lodged in my vena cava for a few months. Textbook good work.
My health since then has been up and down. Still with the headaches (
though not as often) and the vertigo. Also not as often but more
lasting. It's also the anniversary of Ringo's trip to the Summerlands. I
miss my dog more than I miss most people. So it's a pretty sad day
too. But I am still here. I'm also three years older and eligible for
an AARP Membership... so there is that.
I wasn't really sure where to take this blog post. I have been pretty
negligent with writing lately, though not because I don't have anything
to say. I have trouble finding a way to say things that isn't just me
screaming from the roof tops. The general state of the world has led me
down a dark path and I am often preoccupied with just getting to the
next day. One of the things I am most grateful for is the plethora of
really good music that I get to have contact with everyday. Last night I
had the very good fortune ( and a not a little shoving by a certain 12
year old) to attend a concert by my friends, the band, Cronan. They
always put on a good show and as I was sipping my tea and listening to
them play I was less headache-y and less dizzy. Sometimes distractions
work like that. Near the end of their second set they played a shanty
called "Keep Hauling". It hit me like the proverbial tonne of bricks.
No matter how sad, or dizzy, or frustrated or despondent the world makes
me if I just keep hauling, I'll still be here. Being a child of the
1970's I grew up with "Keep on Truckin"
bumper stickers and CB radios. I know the phrase has an older origin in
Jazz culture, but that isn't where I encountered it. My Grandpa's CB
handle was yellow bird, after his canary yellow Toyota truck, there was
a Keep on Truckin sticker in the window. My grandpa was not a hippy,
but the motto caught on in mainstream America and he liked it. I'm not
sure he even made the connection with R. Crumb, the comic who used it in
the late 1960's. In any case It had long been buried in the recesses
of my brain until last might. Keep Hauling, Keep on Truckin. I don't
have a recording of Cronan's version ( with sing along!) from last
night, but here is an original version by the band Show of Hands. Take a
listen, it's a good one.
negligent with writing lately, though not because I don't have anything
to say. I have trouble finding a way to say things that isn't just me
screaming from the roof tops. The general state of the world has led me
down a dark path and I am often preoccupied with just getting to the
next day. One of the things I am most grateful for is the plethora of
really good music that I get to have contact with everyday. Last night I
had the very good fortune ( and a not a little shoving by a certain 12
year old) to attend a concert by my friends, the band, Cronan. They
always put on a good show and as I was sipping my tea and listening to
them play I was less headache-y and less dizzy. Sometimes distractions
work like that. Near the end of their second set they played a shanty
called "Keep Hauling". It hit me like the proverbial tonne of bricks.
No matter how sad, or dizzy, or frustrated or despondent the world makes
me if I just keep hauling, I'll still be here. Being a child of the
1970's I grew up with "Keep on Truckin"
bumper stickers and CB radios. I know the phrase has an older origin in
Jazz culture, but that isn't where I encountered it. My Grandpa's CB
handle was yellow bird, after his canary yellow Toyota truck, there was
a Keep on Truckin sticker in the window. My grandpa was not a hippy,
but the motto caught on in mainstream America and he liked it. I'm not
sure he even made the connection with R. Crumb, the comic who used it in
the late 1960's. In any case It had long been buried in the recesses
of my brain until last might. Keep Hauling, Keep on Truckin. I don't
have a recording of Cronan's version ( with sing along!) from last
night, but here is an original version by the band Show of Hands. Take a
listen, it's a good one.
Just keep hauling, keep on truckin, just keep swimming. What ever works for you. I'm still hauling, I'm still here. Next year better. Less dizzy. Next year, still here.
Thanks to Cronan and Christian Hoffman for the reminder.
1 comment:
Some days you're the dog, some days you're the hydrant...
Sending positive thoughts your way.
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