Economic Crisis? I’M NOT LISTENING!!
Back from a few days off. As I prepare to resume blogging (It’s time to ask: is that REALLY the best term we can come up with for this now-common practice? It’s a nasty-sounding word: blog, short for “web log.” Say it out loud. SAY IT! See? It sounds like one of those words that sounds just as yucky as the thing it’s meant to describe.. like “pus,” or “nausea”; “Don’t think I can make it today, darling, I have a touch of the blog, and haven’t been off the commode for more than five minutes all day.” I’ll tell you just how wrong the term “blog” is: it’s literally WRONG! Every time I write “blog” here in my Microsoft Outlook program, the spell checker rejects it with an ugly red zig zaggy underline that I find distracting and which no doubt sidetracks my creative thinking. Oh, sure, I’m certain later editions of Outlook (I think this one is an earlier version, maybe from… well, when did Outlook first come out? There’s your answer.) don’t put the red mark of shame under “blog” or “blogging,” but that only means it’s become more accepted, and will be that much more difficult to erase from the public lexicon. Perhaps it’s too late already. Should I even bother to propose alternatives? I suppose it’s something about which I could blog.. D’OH! There’s that damn red squiggly line again!).
Where was I? Ah, yes. As I prepare to resume doing this thing I do, it just doesn’t seem like there’s any topic worth bringing up outside of the economic crisis. And this has nothing to do with the fact that the parent corporation of PIX, The Tribune Company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday. Okay, it does. A little. But I was going to write about some aspect of the crisis anyway. Namely, this: when it comes to economic news that has the potential to personally bring my spirits down, I’m now tempted to put my fingers in my ears and yell BLAH BLAH BLAH as loud as I can.
That not very, as I like to say, journamalistic of me, is it? Boy, is the shoe ever on the other foot here. For decades, I’ve had people tell me they don’t watch the news because there’s too much crime and negative stuff, and it depresses them. C’mon, I would always say. It’s life, in all its cold, hard, unforgiving reality. Take the hit! Embrace your inner criminal; grab this enemy of the spirit, and hold it as close to you as possible, so close you can feel its hot, fetid breath on your neck, and that way it will never be able to sneak up on you. (I will SO do anything to get people to watch my newscasts.) Now here I am, saying if bad economic news that affects me and my family personally (did I mention my company filed for bankruptcy yesterday?) comes along, I want to simply refuse delivery?
Yes, the shoe IS on the other foot, and being a newsperson, I don’t have the option of selectively ignoring certain stories for the benefit of my own mental health (and physical health.. I got a stomach bug during the time I was off last week, and I’m pretty well convinced it was made worse by some of the worrying and stressing I’ve been doing). I guess the trick is taking IN the news while not letting it go into the worry zone. You know, kind of like I always told other people they should regard crime news. That’s one thing about this economic mess – it’s been the great equalizer.
Check back in.. I’ll be writing more about this topic in my webiary.. Did you get that? Webiary? Short for web diary? I just made that up, and it’s already ten times better than “blog” AAAHHHH!!! DAMN those red lines!!
Comments: 7
O.K. Jim you may not want to hear about the economic crisis but many of us people have been in a crisis for years. My wife and I make probably 20-25K combined income a year. We some how have managed to do fine. We get no economic assistance from the goverment. As a matter of fact my wife has tried to apply for food stamps based on her income alone and was told she makes too much money. Some how I have always seen it as being more fortunate than others in this world. I have a roof over my head, clothes on my back, and food in my fridge so as I see it I am doing just fine. I believe that a major factor for people is to just live within their means. It really is that simple. I recall that our outgoing President once told a lady that the fact that she works three jobs was wondeful and how American of her. So that is what the most powerful nation in the world is known for. For our citizens to not just be able to work three jobs but HAVE to work three jobs. The American Dream huh!
Jim, you can always add the word "blog" (and webiary...if you insist) to your Outlook dictionary, so you won't have to see those squiggly red lines anymore.
actually I think the term "blog" is cute, it has a cyber feel. I think these kind of "combine two words into one" (forget the term of it) is cool. People don't do word combination for no reason.
"Every time I write “blog” here in my Microsoft Outlook program, the spell checker rejects it with an ugly red zig zaggy underline that I find distracting and which no doubt sidetracks my creative thinking."
Hey, don't blame the term, it is just MS's software is too slow to catch up the fast changing web culture. New stuffs from web everyday are not going to wait for anyone once it got hot (remember that popular sites like youtube, facebook, gmail didn't even exist or get popular just 5 years ago).
not sure my last comment went through
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actually I think the term "blog" is cute, it has a cyber feel. I think these kind of "combine two words into one" (forget the term of it) is cool. People don't do word combination for no reason.
"Every time I write “blog” here in my Microsoft Outlook program, the spell checker rejects it with an ugly red zig zaggy underline that I find distracting and which no doubt sidetracks my creative thinking."
Hey, don't blame the term, it is just MS's software is too slow to catch up the fast changing web culture. New stuffs from web everyday are not going to wait for anyone once it got hot (remember that popular sites like youtube, facebook, gmail didn't even exist or get popular just 5 years ago).
Jim,
Ahhhh, found the horse with blinders admist the burning barn! Loved the... embrace your inner criminal and ...grab this enemy of the spirit! Dylan Thomas said it best...do not go gentle into that good night, rage, rage, against the dying of the light.
Don't be cut off at the knees, be the horse of a different color.... With static hair, blazed eyes, (knot in stomach)..how fiercesome and awesome...think of the possibilities ...cold unforgiving reality???...Neigh, Neigh..."old age should burn and rave at close of day".
I think it would make more sense for the governor to tax lottery tickets. No matter how bad the economy is people are still finding there way to the lottery machines and they are not just spending a buck or two.
I believe the MTA should cut the budget on Mr. Roberts and Mr Saunders. They make six figure salaries so why do they need housing allowances they should be able to pay for their own homes and also Mr. Saunders should return the raise he gave himself back in April that he so called his cost of living Raise. That was not fair at all because all of us that work for MTA need a cost of living raise also.