"O! ye that love mankind! Ye that dare oppose not only the tyranny but the tyrant, stand forth! Every spot of the old world is overrun with oppression. Freedom hath been hunted round the globe. Asia and Africa have long expelled her. Europe regards her like a stranger, and England hath given her warning to depart. O! receive the fugitive and prepare in time an asylum for mankind." (from Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense, 1776)
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Give me credit for some kind of sense. I do know that Paine was not referring to getting this country prepared as a warehouse for people with mental illness. The current mania over the King of Pop's passing, though, suggests that this society is overdue for a thorough psychological evaluation. Will we ever be free from the tyranny of the entertainment industry in this country? I seriously doubt it.
Daughter has finally found some freedom from parental tyranny by renting her own apartment this week. She works as a licensed massage therapist in a spa that caters to the wealthy among us. I guess even rich people need relief from stress. Daughter says you can tell that the economy still hasn't recovered by the slowdown in tips lately. Here's hoping that things get better soon. She has signed a lease and can't expect any help from her parents (those meanies!). I think that SAM and I must have mapped out our financial downturn at some point in our life together, maybe while we were sleeping. It's really coming together seamlessly, just like a dream--an American one at that.
A mostly unused tennis court sits just a few steps away from Daughter's door. If she has any energy left after working on those tense, rich people, she might just take up the sport. She will need to find a partner, though. While we were helping her move, the only people outside were walking their dogs, some of them quite large (the dogs). I told her to watch her step. No one seemed to be bagging up after their pets. I think she will like her new place once the smell inside dissipates. The former tenant's two dogs had the run of the apartment, and steam cleaning the carpet hasn't even helped much. I'm letting her borrow an essential oil diffuser so the wet-dog smell should be gone soon. I think she misses some of the sweeter aspects of home...
...red gerbera daisies...
...white cabbage (the outer leaves, chewed up by bugs and discarded, were green anyway)...
...blue Peanut. SAM complained this morning that the cat constantly goes in and out of the house like she can't settle down. When she finally does, she doesn't want much to do with us, especially me. I think she blames me for someone's absence. She's missing the sweetest aspect of home. So am I. Hear that, Peanut? I'm no tyrant!
good for your daughter. I hope her independence is a success and that she does not forget all those good things at homes. Buying a house ended my "rich" life style of having an occasional massage.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize your daughter was living with you. My youngest is moving out at the end of the summer, so we will truly be empty nesters at that time, too. I'm not sure I will like that, especially as she is moving cross country.
ReplyDeleteI think I've heard more Michael Jackson songs in the last week than I've heard over the past ten years. I am saddened by his loss, but I agree our society seems to pay more attention to entertainers and sports figures than anyone else. They're usually not exactly the best role models.
Ahhh! Independence! I'm sure your daughter would settle in, but home is home!
ReplyDeleteGlad people aren't too very crazy here about MJ. Of course there are some but not to the extent that you see there. But as Rose pointed out, Entertainers have jinxed people's minds. People here are so mad about cricket that they'd do anything to just get a piece of autographed photo from a cricketer! I'm not against sports/music - I appreciate art - be it in any form, but I believe that one should always draw a line between love for it and obsession.
Congrats to the daughter. This is a big deal for her and I wish her so much luck.
ReplyDeleteI admit I am one caught up in the entertainment bug. It is like this for me, when we see these people each day, grow up with them, it is as though you know them and when they die it is a shock, as much as it would be if anyone close to us died. Even if something happened to a blogger friend (even one I never met) it would be a shock because you do feel as though you get to know them on the web. It's just compassion, and while many stars are not the best role models, over the past 15 years or so we could always count on the stars to be in our lives due to the daily reporting of their antics. The fascination will never die, though many may become disillusioned over time. Not me, I really feel for stars because to have the paparazzi in their every second of life would be a challenge, not one I'd take on ever. Some handle it with grace, some not so, but nonetheless, the people do relate to these folks due to the immense media coverage and it is most sad when they die, especially when so young and under other than natural deaths.
Well, it looks like your daughter could do very well here...so many rich all around little ol me...we have a lot of new shops called Massage Envy...and loads of people flock in there for their weekly treats! I, for one cannot let anyone massage me...I can't stand the idea of anyone feeling my body like that...well, any stranger anyway!!! LOL. I wish your daughter loads of luck in her work and new home!
ReplyDeletenote on the entertainment bug ... tears did come to my eyes the day I heard Johnny Cash died.
ReplyDeleteI definitely align myself with you view on the shallownes of it all. To allow our emotions and even our national holidays to be manipulated basically for profit of the entertainment and advertising industries. Yuk! We nee more of what Thomas Paine was selling COMMON SENSE.
ReplyDeleteYour daughter is beautiful!! I remember when my daughter got her first place. Hubby and I went around and turned on all the lights, the water and the heat... Daughter was beside herself. 'That costs money you know' 'Yes, we know and now you appreciate it.' LOL... Michelle
ReplyDeleteI tend to agree with you. People are so wrapped up the the lives of entertainers (which is OK) but why are we all so uninterested in the lives of our politicians. After all, the politicians are the ones making a difference in our lives. We just sit back, watch movies and listen to music and allow the politicians to make a disaster of our lives. Sorry, don't mean to sound downbeat.
ReplyDeleteA few years on her own and daughter will appreciate how well she had it back home with Mom;)
Marnie
Is this a proverbial fledgling leaving the nest incident? I so don't want to think about it! I know I'll have a horrible time when daughter leaves, not so much when son heads out. I guess it's something every over-protective father experiences with his daughter. I was a lad once, so I know what she's up against.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for the insight on how we too arrived at our "financial downturn." I'm hoping when things get back to the "new normal" things will be back to normal, but I doubt it.
Sorry, all, for not checking in and visiting like usual.
ReplyDeleteWayne, you can bet she won't forget the good things. She's already complaining about having to spend so much on groceries. Imagine that! Yeah, home ownership is a mixed blessing. We've owned several of them over the years and often wonder if we wouldn't have been better off just renting.
Rose, the first week is a bit rough, but then you wake up one morning and realize you have another room available. Guess who has her own office now? It is sad that MJ died fairly young and won't get to see his kids grow up. I have a hard time understanding how people can mourn so deeply for someone with whom they have no real connection.
Chandramouli, I guess sometimes the line between artist and art disappears when so many people are cashing in on the transaction. The real MJ seemed to disappear years ago when he became such a commercial success.
Thanks, Tina. It still amazes me that Daughter is a woman now and capable of making it on her own. Where have all those years gone? You know, I like to remember MJ as a precocious kid singing with his brothers. I think he had a tender spirit not built to withstand the world's rough treatment. He was too easily manipulated by unscrupulous people. Maybe now he'll get some rest.
Julie, thank you. What? No massage? If you get the right therapist, you will forget that you are lying there practically naked in front of a stranger. It takes a certain amount of trust and training on both sides. A good massage almost qualifies as an out-of-body experience. I'm not so sure about those Massage Envy places. Daughter worked for a similar business in a mall when she first got her license. She said she felt like she was part of an automated system, cranking out the massages, one after another. Massage truly is a healing art if it's done with the right intention and by a therapist who's treated with respect by her employer and clients. I hope you'll give an experienced therapist a try.
ReplyDeleteWayne, I'm ashamed to admit it, but John Denver's death hit me kinda hard.
Troutbirder, Paine's words had a way of getting him into trouble. He died practically penniless and despised by most of his former admirers. Not exactly what most writers dream about achieving. But, oh, what words he wrote!
Thanks, Michelle. She wasn't thrilled that I took her picture early in the morning before she'd had a chance to "clean up." We had just dropped off another load of her stuff Thursday morning, and I couldn't resist the morning-after-moving-day pic. She spent the night of the 4th with us after going to see the fireworks and (I had to laugh) worried that she hadn't turned the lights off or turned the thermostat up before leaving her apartment that afternoon.
Marnie, I think some of the politicians believe they're in the entertainment business too. They would make excellent street performers, showing us their sleight-of-hand tricks, trying to amuse us with their antics while picking our pockets. Daughter is already appreciating how good she had it at home, but I think she is enjoying her new freedom (no nagging!). For now at least we're not far away.
TC, you're right. Am I rotten or what, bringing up the ever-dreaded empty-nest scene? It's been a bit stressful for me, I'll admit. I won't get to play tricks anymore on the phone when her friends call. Most people say we sound exactly like each other. It's spooky. You know, I think the new-normal will be a simplification of the complicated three-class system we now have. There will soon be just the poor and the rich. It's much easier to control ideas that way. Not enough time or inclination to read, think, or write.
Your eclectic posts are always a delight!
ReplyDeleteI concur about how our heroes seem to be questionable celebrities. When I moved to So Cal from suburban Washington DC many years ago, I marveled at how local news (which was national news in DC) here in San Diego was mostly Hollywood. How our media has sold out, don't get me started...
Your daughter's place sounds like it's waiting to become a home. Instead of aromatherapy, bring her some fresh produce and cook it: preferably tomatoes and garlic. Nothing smells like home like home cooking!
Your kitty looks like he's missing his front legs. Either that, or he's very comfortable.