2009 in Review/2010 in Prediction

Again, I’m going with dubious grammar choices for the title, but I believe it fits.  Instead of just reviewing the low and highlights of 2009, I figure I’ll go through a list of my greatest hits ’cause for nearly all of them I have goals of faster and more intense for 2010.  So, when you start seeing Facebook statuses (stati?) about how bored I am, you can just send me a link to this page to light a fire under me towards something.  Maybe.  I don’t often admit to being bored in Facebook because it actually doesn’t happen too much.  What’s more likely is that you’ll see statuses (stat–oh, forget it) about me wasting time on something completely inconsequential.  Which is essentially what this blog post is.  Anyways, moving on, in an order where I presume the most interesting to the most number of people is at the top, I present the list:

Creatively Uncreative

So, I wanted to take this opportunity to share some thoughts on a recent, deeply symbolic movie about a protagonist who goes into an alien environment and, through an odd set of circumstances, finds himself becoming more sympathetic towards the aliens before finally becoming one himself.  Oh, and he then finds himself taking up arms against his previous allies, greedy, violent humans.  That’s right, I’m talking about District Avatar.  Err, I mean District 9.  I mean Avatar.  Oh, wait.  Both actually.  But these two movies have just a wee bit more in common that plotlines.  These two are being picked for top 10 movies of 2009 lists, but I walked out of the theater both times feeling mixed at best, put-off at worst.  It’s something I’ve given a lot of thought to in the wake of Avatar being proclaimed the next Star Wars and I think I’ve finally begun to put my finger on it.

Thank You, Mr. Garbo

Mr. Garbo,

Thank you seems like a pretty inadequate phrase to cover the appreciation that the people of our country and New Guinea and all the other places you served during WWII have for the work that you, Teddy, and the 26th accomplished in your time there, and also for your time with the 112th RCT.  But, it’s the best we got, so thank you.  And also thank you for your willingness to pull up those memories and experiences and share them with me.  You’ve been an inspiration to me with the work ethic that exemplifies what makes your generation the greatest.  Thank you for everything.

(Some of my friends and family have added their thanks down below, so make sure you scroll down!)

No, Michael Moore, Just No.

Here’s what started today’s post.

Saw a repost of this on Facebook and went ballistic in a comment but I figure this is important enough to share with everyone else because of the sheer amount of misinformation packed into two sentences. Anyways, here’s how I would respond to Mr. Moore if I was given the chance:

First Impressions

So, a lot of people know that I’m a WWII reenactor/living historian.  We’re all aware it’s kind of a strange hobby and I probably spend way too much time, money, and energy on it.  And I will grant that’s entirely possible.  However, I’d like to take this opportunity to show the world what really goes into this hobby of mine that I love so dearly and what I’ve been working at since last February when Maggie arrived.  Basically I got interested in what war dogs did during WWII and began wondering if I could create a war dog handler (handler being the human who works with the dog) impression.  What’s an impression, you ask?  Good question.  It’s what a reenactor works at most of the time.  It’s putting together the right uniform, equipment, and weapons for a typical soldier in a specific unit during a specific timeframe.  This is something common to all reenacting, whether it’s Civil War, WWII, Roman Legion, etc.  What I’m going to show you in this post is the research and synthesis from the months of reading, looking at photos, and interviewing a WWII veteran, an extremely generous fellow without whom this would not be possible, named Mr. William Garbo.  The synthesis is what’s in the pictures you’ll see of Maggie and me.  After a couple months of research, it took several months to track down the right items and then find them for the right price.  So, this is what I posted under the “Detailed Impression Photos” section of an online forum for WWII reenactors.  Some of it will make sense to you, some of it won’t.  Just skip the stuff that doesn’t make sense and look for something you do find interesting.

So, I Haven’t Posted in Months, But . . .

. . . here’s what I would have posted about:

Teeth.

I’m a spectacular procrastinator and one of the things I’ve successfully put off for several years now, if not a decade or more, is getting my wisdom teeth out.  I’m generally squeamish about surgery so this isn’t a big surprise or anything, but it’s really something I need done as my other teeth are pushed around by these bullying molars.  Right now I’m blaming my procrastination on the IRS also being spectacular procrastinators with my $8,000 first time home buyers tax credit (thank you and you and you, tax payers!).  But when that money gets here I guess I’ll have to bite the bullet (pun!) and get it done.  However, wisdom teeth are just part of my dissatisfaction with everything enamely inside my mouth.  I consider myself a pretty big fan of much of the human body and its complexities and effeciences, but I have a feeling that teeth are the part God rushed through in order to meet that day or 6 deadline (“Hmmm, they need something to chew with.  How about a couple of boney bits and call it a day?”).  It also doesn’t help that I don’t have great teeth.  My dad’s side of the family is all manner of British while my mom’s side is all colonial, so I’m going to blame it on my UK ancestry.  Personal opinions aside though, they stink.

“Warts and all”

One of the perks about moving is a new commute and my path to and from work takes me past Eastfield Presbyterian Church.  I think the place recently shut down (maybe the preschool is still going?) but still conspicuous outside is an American flag.  A pretty tattered flag, faded and ragged.  One time while a friend and I were driving past I commented someone should take it down so it could be disposed of properly. We talked a little bit about the fact that there is actually a protocol and a ceremony for “putting down” old American flags and my friend made the comment that a flag burning ceremony seems a bit superfluous for what is essentially a symbol.  I didn’t quite agree, having grown up learning about flag etiquette through the Boy Scouts, but I also couldn’t quite put it into words why it would be something more than just a symbol.  It’s just one of those things that you do.  So, I didn’t quite have an answer, but decided to file the question away to think about later. 

My Least Favorite Genre

Bet you can’t guess what my leasy favorite genre is.  Romantic comedy?  Musical?  Documentaries about poor kids sniffing glue?  No, nope, and nyet.  By far the genre that I loathe the most and the aisle in the video store I never go down is horror.  Never liked it.  Never have.  I just have never felt the need to pay someone to scare me.  Or try to scare me.  That’s not to say I have never seen a horror flick, but I haven’t seen most of them.  Never seen a Friday the 13th or Halloween or Nightmare on Elm Street.  But if I’ve never seen the classics of the genre, how can I say that I don’t like the genre?  Well, that’s a fair question, but only if genre is the point.

That Dweam Within a Dweam

I have a friend who once told me that he believed that there are two things that should not change the public’s perception of a person in political office: military service and marital infidelity.  It was his belief that what a person did or did not do in those two realms shouldn’t have any bearing on how he or she is perceived by the public.  I was reminded of this recently with the news that the governor of South Carolina took off to Argentina for five days to see his mistress.  One of the days he was gone was Father’s Day.  His wife and four kids apparently thought he was on the Appalachian Trail.  As did most of his staff.  Hearing the stories come out of this new scandal reminded me why I pretty much completely disagree with my friend, at least on the marriage part.