Wise That?

Posted on May 25, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

Today, south of Chicago’s Wrigley Field in early May, summer warmth has dropped in with little forewarning. It’s conducive to asking questions because asking questions is easy, like the weather and there is little requirement for answers, which is considerably more difficult. Here are a few questions:

1. What we see, think, feel in the now isn’t what we know later. Why is that?

2. Do processes have shelf lives? Is there a time when the way something is done MUST change?

3. If the present is all we can do a darn thing about, why doesn’t this come naturally?

4. When did it become fashionable to be unfashionable? Where did dressing up run off to?

5. Why is getting something such a thrill when giving is more satisfying?

6. Is fear something we can measure? If it is, why don’t we feel it in variety, like flavors?

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New News Journalist

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

I’m very happy journalism has not evaporated. This probably is because I am a journalist; but I think it’s generally hopeful for mankind.  I like blogs and content providers and news services that deliver specialized info. I like TV and online news. I like commentators. I like them all.

I also like that traditional roles endure, no matter the medium so here’s one answer I offer to those who ask about journalism and being a journalist:

There are three types of journalist:
1. the SCOOP journalist
2. the SCANDAL journalist
3. the STORY journalist.

Imagine a newsroom when the police scanner announces the crash of a plane. Before the transmission ends, the SCOOP journalist is racing to scene to confirm the tragedy and air its occurrence to audience. The SCANDAL journalist is phoning the Federal Aviation Administration, checking pilot’s license, maintenance schedule and manufacturer’s specs –  with intent to uncover potential misconduct. The STORY journalist pokes around to notice some detail such as an empty beer can or a tiny shoe with intent to share the drama with audience.

One thing that bothers me is that something called “the media” keeps butting in to replace what is a craft, a job, a calling, and a mission to explore — not exploit. 

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The Lobster

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

Growing up in our Elmhurst ranch house was an example of form following function. Our house had enough bedrooms, enough chairs, enough yard for a family of five, which we were. This meant, among other things, we didn’t have houseguests often, almost never.

An exception was a three-day visit from Mom’s cousin and her husband who resided on the West Coast where it is pretty much assumed houseguests are part of life.

Mom’s feverish preparations belied this assumption. So befuddled was she that reservations were actually made for the seven of us to dine out at a pricey restaurant. We were not typically restaurant people, let alone restaurants that take reservations.

Arriving dressed up and not a little stunned, I found the evening memorable for three reasons:
1. Mom’s cousin ordered Lobster.
2. Mom was nice about it although she and Dad were paying for this foray into gastronomical excess.
3. Mom’s cousin may be the only human capable of doing to a lobster what Maria Callas did with Medea at LaScala, what Madame Curie did with polonium and radium, what John F. Kennedy did with the Moon.

Mom’s cousin dissected her seafood with the finesse of a surgeon, the eye of a watchmaker, the innate grace of a Cary Grant and the avariciousness of a very hungry lion.  So intent was her concentration on this meal, I wondered if they had food in California.

Maybe she was just afraid Dad would ask for a doggie bag.

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Swear to it

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

The bad thing about swear words is their failure to change anything. I’ve never once heard somebody swear and felt inclined to converse, to inquire further, to connect, to soothe, to engage.

With a cornucopia of other options, I suggest the following nouns and phrases to express emotion. These are words that could, in theory, jumpstart a conversation or lead to conflict resolution or at least make things more interesting:

To cast aspersion on somebody whose behavior offends:
nincompoop, ne’re do well, blatherskite, chucklehead, rogue.

To express unpleasant surprise or utter disbelief:
poppycock, hooey, pish-posh, baloney, kettle of fish.

To acknowledge the quantifiable dumbness of a fellow person:
flibberty-gibbet, numbskull, dipstick, ignoramous

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Word worrier

Posted on April 27, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

Words are getting harder to find, not because they are hiding but because other things are butting in.

Music is one of them. I love music’s ability to hit almost any emotion right on the head. It’s just that there is so much of it.  I rather liked it better when I chose my own music on the radio, on my disc player, attending opera.

Film/Video is one of them. I love video’s ability to show me images I don’t have to conjure up all by myself. It’s just that there are so many of them.  I rather liked it better when I chose to go to the movies, play a videotape, turn on the television.

Social media is one of them. I love e-mail-twitter-linked-in-facebook-blog-second-life’s ability to connect us. It’s just that there are so many of them. I rather liked it better when I chose to connect or not connect without feeling I was neglecting the human race if I did not.

Although words remain supporting players in all media, I get lonesome for words standing solo, as they do in books. I love e-books and audio books for their ability to expand words’ reach. It’s just that I rather like it better when I can hold one, keep it on a shelf to look at sometimes.

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Tech fashion-ation

Posted on April 26, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

In the decade since I was first horrified by the introduction of belt clips, I’ve settled down.

In 2002 I had a cell phone but in no way wished to clip it upon my person. I could not, in fact, clip it on my person when said person was wearing a dress or other garment lacking a belt. The pocket alternative was often lacking, too; since female pockets exist at the whim of designers who don’t consider women NEED them.

This is because we, the females, carry purses and/or satchels. These accessorize us. However, since we are inclined toward creeping featurism, cell phones can prove irretrievable, lost among the mammoth archive of objects in one’s purse. Therefore, in 2012, I clip when I am able and keep the cell ring loud when I can’t.  I conform my form to function. I NEED my phone.

In 2002, I thought this clearly a female trouble. In 2012, I see gentlemen face a similar scenario.

No belt clip or pants pocket I’ve ever seen can handle an IPOD; nor do justice to a laptop of any sort. In 2012 men conform form to function by carrying their technology. It would be so much easier if they just carried a purse. Okay, call it a pocketbook. My grandma did.

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Reason # 20 Why folks Don’t Write

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

There are many reasons folks don’t write. Lack of talent isn’t one of them. Functioning out of time and space is.

We have street intersections and wear watches because we function in space and organize ourselves in time; BUT writing annihilates space and time in different ways. This can disconcert. This can stall you out.

Once it took me two months to write 500 words. That’s 10 inches in a newspaper column and seems like a very long time to fill such small space. That is about one word every three hours.

Once it took me four hours to write 2,000 words. That’s 40 inches in a newspaper column and seems like a very short time to fill such a big space. That is about one word every seven seconds.

I can’t explain the difference but can report I nearly abandoned the first assignment and seriously doubted the worth of the second assignment. Disconcerting.

Although writers do eloquently dictate time and imagine space…crafting it from memory, fantasy and a wild sense of domination; we don’t control writing. Writing controls the writer and I for one find that disconcerting. Humbling.

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Right in the Wrong

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

Maybe it is wrong to decide what is right. I don’t know. We do a lot of it, though; and maybe it would be helpful to get some of our terms straight, so while we are doing it, we at least know what we are about.

Here’s an informal primer on such:

MORALS. Something is moral or immoral because we have decided what is appropriate behavior in our own and others’ lives.
ETHICS. Something is ethical or unethical because we have decided what is appropriate interaction between ourselves and others.
LEGALITY. Something is legal or illegal because we have decided what rules we and others will abide by.
VALUES. Something has value to us because we have decided on the high quality of something, some action, some way of doing.
PRINCIPLES. Something  is principled or unprincipled because we have decided to believe something guides our behaviors, relationships and actions.
OPINION. Something is an opinion when it is a judgment based on grounds that are NOT sufficient to produce complete certainty.
GOSSIP. Something is gossip when we confuse any of the above.

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Meaning Less

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

Some words and phrases befuddle me. Those that take old words and give them new meaning, in particular. Here’s a few of them:

1. Haters. This word has emerged from a verb, a not-so-nice verb, “hate.” I’ve come across it among people defending themselves, as in “Okay, bring on all the haters. I’m ready.” It’s as if there is a conspiracy among humankind to attack. Who comprises this species?

2. Trending. In the not distance past, a trend was spotted because numerous occurrences occurred over a period of time, as in a trend toward self-reliance. I’ve come across trending, which is a gerund by the way and I strongly urge you to suspect gerunds, generally. So, trending has become a big word for a relatively sudden eruption of attention on twitter, which, let’s face it, does not rate high on rubrics or anything resembling reliable data. I’m not saying that’s bad. But why call emotional reaction “trending?”

3. Disrespecting. Another gerund here for the process of not showing respect, as in “She/He/They/YOU disrespected me.” Now this one shows promise IF speakers surrounded the word with some specificity; but when I’ve heard it, it is so vague. Standing alone “disrespected” is a catchall word for not doing what I want, not seeing what I feel, not understanding what I meant, not getting my approval. There’s just way to much “I” in it.

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Reason #15 Why Folks Don’t Write

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Mrs. Fitz

There are many reasons folks don’t write. Lack of talent isn’t one of them. Working too hard is.

I don’t know a single writer who is lazy but I know a few who think that they are. This way of thinking goes like this: “If I am a writer, I must sit and write. If I don’t sit and write I am lazy. Therefore I will sit and write no matter what.”

Noble, but dumb. Forcing words is like forcing love or forcing a laugh. Not particularly effective. For some reason I have no insight about, sometimes writing is boring. When it is boring to sit and write, I think a fine thing to do is to go away and get un-bored.

The best way I know to go about the un-bored process is to give something: like give the dog a bath, or give a listen to words you didn’t think up. Don’t work too hard. Writing doesn’t like that.

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