2ndclepunkbuddha

Last weekend I went to a funeral in Detroit.  It was for my childhood friend's father, a kind man and a wonderful soul I was privileged to know, and it was of great sadness that I heard of his passing.  I insisted on going to the funeral even though it was a ways to travel, but I believe in this principal and follow through on it completely: When people die, you go to their funerals.  It says to you and others around you that you are there to pay your last respects to that person and that you cared for that person no matter what did or did not happen. But this blog is not about my friend's father, it was about another situation that presented itself at the event.  I was nearly sickened to see that someone else showed up at this man's funeral when I saw him across the room.  I quickly looked away and did not make eye contact.  I didn't want to be near him.  I have no idea if he saw me at all, and if he did he would probably play the avoiding game if h...

Last summer as well as this, and into the fall, I took a job that changed me.  I fully admit, I did not do my homework, I was just randomly answering ads for employment once I put certain words in the search engine, it appeared, and I answered it.  I walked into the elementary school where the summer program was taking place, and was shocked.  This was a summer program working with the developmentally disabled population, the student population age ranged from that of preschoolers to the early/mid twenties.  The ambulatory ones were only a few (confined to wheelchairs and walkers), but most were mobile.  And they were either suffering from autism or a form of mental retardation.  It gave me pause as it would anyone.  Our first reaction when we see a person like that in public is a feeling of fear, then replaced by a sadness.  Having never been around people like this before, I had never gotten to the third phase of feeling about them, which is won...

While I have taken a more liberal stance than most people in my acquisition of adventure, excitement and learning in life, one in a similar position will often times find themselves attracting unstable people.  Those who live on the edge tend to gravitate towards one another, feeding off one another's abilities and input as well as create situations that not even the most gifted of writers can create.  As I age, I have become more fond of peace and quiet as opposed to the endless noise that was once enjoyed.  One thing, however, that does not seem to ever go away, is the presence of dramatics.  There are many layers to our personalities, some things will ignite a fire and other things will not, and variables are fluid for all people.  While I am not trying to speak to nor feed into individual or group angst or paranoia, it is a disconcerting feeling to know that there are people out there who we may encounter who are unstable.  You could never know that the...

A few minutes before I left the house, I sat there on the couch wondering whether or not I wanted to actually put forth the effort and go.  I had a talk with myself.  It wasn't one of those "Don't be lazy" or "You don't feel like going out but you don't feel like staying in either" kind of talks, but wondering exactly why I was doing this.  Months ago I got an invite to go to a junior high school reunion, and I said yes to it and marked the calendar for it.  The day had at last arrived and I was sitting in front of the TV thinking "Why am I about to do this?"  Perhaps it was sunlight deprivation syndrome since it was a cloudy, rainy day it was taking place on, which was a shame since it's been an otherwise sunny summer.  Maybe I was afraid.  But what was I afraid of?  That I haven't accomplished much in life?  It wasn't quite the same as fearing going to your high school reunion, that's a separate set of circumstances (one t...

Yet another friend has died.  Starting with autumn 2015 which I will meld into this year in my memories, 2016 has truly been a cruel year in terms of loosing our beloved heroes / icons as well as friends.  I am now at a certain point in life where people are just as likely to be reproducing as they are to be dying, and this is not just confined to elderly parents and relatives and those who were diagnosed with unusual diseases, but those who all of a sudden will keel over without warning or sign of distress.  Or perhaps they will show sign of distress, but others around them think it's nothing and do not interfere when they should have.  But I digress ... I regret to inform that Baler Wine a,k,a, Mike Friebert and I had not spoken in six or seven years, there were some bad feelings.  Looking back, I think we both regret it.  He was a unique mix of hippie nonsense who loved camping, fishing and outdoor activities and technological innovation (PhotoShop). ...

Started driving for Lyft after the hilarious fiasco with Uber a few weeks ago.  Now I shall be able to further entertain the masses with human encounters and a means of paying bills.  I signed on with the competitor, Lyft, and I am much happier with it.  In terms of being a driver, there is more hand holding and courtesy that they show their drivers, and riders seem to agree the same way.  This is not, however, a blog about the shortcomings of Uber verses the good of Lyft as the superior, because each is what it is.  So I digress. There is no difference in the experiences you will have whether you are Lyft or Uber driving, save for the volume of riders.  As we speak, in this or any other city, there are my Uber drivers than there are Lyft drivers.  They say that is changing, as those on the West Coast are utilizing Lyft more that they are Uber and the feelings seem to be changing nationwide about the two.  Peak times are no different, as one wou...

As I just started driving for Uber, I decided that another good time to do some driving is to get my feet wet on a weeknight with an event.  There was a professional basketball game in the city, one of the events that will prompt many a rider customer.  So I figured I would head into the city once again and see where the Uber app took me.  After a quick pit stop in Tremont killing a bit of time before the game ended, once again, you never know where or how this app is going to apply to you or where you will go but must remember to embrace every situation, keep a certain distance between you and the other person, and go forth. Surprisingly on this night, I did not end up picking up a lot of people I was taking from the game (home, a hotel, a bar, etc.).  Instead I gave two rides to those who attended the game, another few in between bars, and then over to one of my city's establishments in the rock community, The Agora Theater.  Since when do attendees of rock ...