Grump

[cjsmith]

I'm in a dark and bitter mood today. I'd really like to give up on most of humanity. Our cultural values in this country are trash, intelligence of mankind is decreasing, caring and compassion are subjects of scorn rather than respect...

Okay, I admit my mood has a lot to do with a few rude things some "people" have said recently. But still, all the above remains true.

What's the POINT?

The other day in a waiting room I read the book Tuesdays with Morrie. It's touching, though I must agree with the Amazon.com reviewer who said the book was "repackaged platitudes". The one gem I brought away from it was that if you can't stand the culture you are in, if the mores and assumptions that surround you are detrimental to your own mental health, you must create your own culture. Great idea. I hereby pronounce myself a culture of one. Unlike Morrie, I don't have Ted Koppel banging down my door, so my culture will be a good deal smaller and have fewer visitors than Morrie's.

Maybe that's okay. It might be better off if some folks never found it.

Comments

[deyo.livejournal.com]

Bah! My culture declares war upon your culture! Your culture clearly offends the prime sensibilities of the individuals (oh, all right, individual) who comprise my culture, and you have blatantly disregarded the tacit agreements which we have chosen not to previously mention!

(Maybe I've been reading too much Mark Morford today. :) )

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Sounds about right. :-)

[elflet.livejournal.com]

Clearly it'd time for a group sing of If I had a Rocket Launcher (http://cockburnproject.net/songs&music/iiharl.html). OHOH, creating one's own culture is a fine idea...

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Bruce Cockburn can come visit my culture.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

So... if a cultural anthropologist were to observe and report on the CJSmithian culture, what would be the representative characteristics? A culture of sexually liberated square-dancing airplane pilots who work long hours at their computers with occassional time out for a trip to the pistol range?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

The anthropologist would be certain that flying and LiveJournal were two dominant religions in this culture, and that I must be agrarian because I sucked at hunting. :-)

Looking deeper, they'd find a culture where kindness is rated as highly as competence (though not necessarily higher); a culture where self-knowledge is as well-respected as scientific knowledge; a culture where emotional maturity and self-reliance are both far more important than Pokemon, pop stars, snazzy cars, or pompous titles.

Hey, a gal can dream.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Y'know, I think I like this culture. There seem to be a lot of common values with mine.

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

And he used comprise correctly.

*fanning self*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

You can visit mine if I can visit yours. :-)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

*fanning self*

Not because of the heat, I presume. :-)

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Our ministry of foreign affairs has approved your request for a visa, and looks forward to welcoming you to our happy home.

(If you're ever in the vicinity, you'd be most welcome. Just let me know and I'll pick you up at the airport if you'd like.)

[the-ogre.livejournal.com]

I like the way you think.

Just thought I'd let you know...

[abz6598.livejournal.com]

Take the phone off the hook, pack up your gear and hit the road. Montana is lovely this time of year.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

That is a generous and kindhearted offer! And if you are ever in my vicinity, I would love to meet you. I even have crash space.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

*blush* Thanks. :-)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Oh, that is sooooooooooo tempting. Would we go shooting? Is there an airport nearby where I can rent a small plane? (I'm not... quite... ready to combine the two. grin)

[wcg.livejournal.com]

You are on my short list of "must see" people in the greater SF Bay area. The crash space would be a plus, thank you. With luck, I might even get to one of your dances.

Re:

[abz6598.livejournal.com]

1) Absolutely. Youre the guest, you can do whatever you'd like.
2) There is an airport (http://www.msoairport.org/about.htm) nearby and I'm fairly certain they rent planes. (http://www.msoairport.org/northstar.htm)

[sinboy.livejournal.com]

So, when can se send in the McDonalds and Starbucks and so forth to homoginize the CJ-ite culture to the point of bland consumerism?

And you think you're cynical?

Culture Construction Kit

[firecat]

if you can't stand the culture you are in, if the mores and assumptions that surround you are detrimental to your own mental health, you must create your own culture. Great idea. I hereby pronounce myself a culture of one.

Woo fucking hoo! I really needed to hear that right now.

My culture: Being of use matters. Making and/or appreciating beauty matters. Curiosity matters. Politeness matters. (Miss Manners is the Secretary of State in my culture.) Communication matters. Not taking yourself too seriously is encouraged. Please confine dishing/whinging to designated areas. Thank you.