April 19th, 2007 Just my day

Well yesterday was a very busy day here with my usual Art Classes in the morning (actually 10 to 1 p.m.) Jim had lunch ready when I got back and will be so happy when I will be able to eat crunchy foods again, after having those teeth pulled Monday. Then it was a brief nap as still get very tired out mid-afternon. Think this last time with pneumonia took a lot out of me and may take a while to get back to where I was before getting sick.

The afternoon I varnished to paintings I had done and the job was easier than I thought a little more messy than anticipated but still an easy job. Then worked on 3 of the 4 window floral arrangements I am doing for our community theater's production of "My Fair Lady". Yes the same one that I was suppose to be Henry Higgins but had to quit because of the pneumonia. There is absolutely this charming woman helping me with it and with all the hair and makeup for the production as well. Right now physically I couldn't commit to anything more than that.

The evening was quiet with my painting and watching "American Idol". Persoanlly I am hoping Melinda Doolittle gets the title.

If you have been reading your paper like I have and the unfolding story at Blacksburg Virginia and the shootings at Virginia Tech--I find myself asking a lot of questions. "Your Mercededs wasn't enough you brats. Your golden necklaces weren't enough you snobs. Your trust funds weren't enough. Your vodka and cognac was enough. All your debaucheries weren't enough. Those weren't enough to fulfill your hedonisitc needs. You had everything. You had a hundred billion chances and ways to avoided today, but you decided to spill my blood. You forced me into a corner and gave me only one option. The decision was yours. Now you have blood on your hands that will never wash off" C. Seung-Hui.

I think for myself personally I find that one of the more disturbing things C. Seung-Hui said, and maybe to some degree he maybe right. Stay with me here for a bit, it has always been an "Are we better than the Jones" society. We are always wanting more, and to some degree living above and beyond our means and for some in this country to the point of bankruptcy, and losing everything we have. The newer car, the larger house, huge portions at restraunts we eat at, designer clothing and the list goes on and on and on. I am not saying by any means that this young man had a "good reason to do what he did" as nothing ever justifies murder. What I am saying is maybe just maybe we as a collective whole of Americans need to re-examine what we find most important.

Do we have loving, caring, supportive relationships with our spouses, our parents, our children, our friends? Do we enjoy or have some kind of religious/spiritual/ healing pratice that we try to practice or adhere to every day? Do we tell the people in our lives how much we love them? Do we try to lead a blameless life that enriches our souls and the souls of others. I could go on but I think you get the idea.

For me I think the media has crumbled to a degree and has given this yong man what he wanted "attention"--world wide attention at that. I am not saying he or this should be swept under the carpet but are we only going to focus on the negatives and not the positives. I in the last few days find I spend alot of time thinking of the widow of the teacher/holocaust survivor who laid down his own life to save the lives of his students. G-d Bless Liviu Liberscu and his sacrfice, I know he is and will be one of the heros of this tragic event.

In the mean time I pray for the survivors who were shot, the families who are grieving for those who were killed and that we as humans walk away learning the larger lesson. That of forgiveness even in the darkest of hours, and that we cherish what we have for as long as we have it.

"I pray for all of us, oppressor and friend, that together we succeed in building a betterworld through human understanding and love."
-- The Dalai Lama

Peace Out-

Charlie