a walk in the park

In an economy like this one, we pay for our bad choices with our time. You could spend years cleaning up a week's mess if you can't articulate exactly what it is that you want. And patience, not charm, is the only surefire way to get exactly what you want.

I am in need of a good friend I don't know yet that I can share some stories i've already told before and can tolerate trite wisdoms and nighttime air. Must have own kitchen, or be or have been punk enough to cook and/or eat from mine. It is preferred that this person have interesting tastes in an arena that I know nearly nothing about, and can possibly put me on to things i'm oblivious to. Doesn't necessarily have to dress 'well', but must evidence a degree of awareness and self respect with regards to self-presentation. It doesn't matter if this person is poor. Also, it would be a great benefit if this particular new friend knew how to hear and appreciate a good story, especially one that is not necessarily true.

I spent some time tonight trying to describe to my roommate how being from the south gives you a certain disposition towards religion that isn't easy to explain to others. It's like a figure of speech or a hand gesture that doesn't translate into english. God is just part of the terrain, so even those of us who aren't religious have some of this presence in us, since we've been down there breathing in the same tank with the good god fearing folk for so long. I can't properly articulate it. I think that Mark Cohn was trying to understand this phenomenon when he wrote 'walking in memphis'. This suggestion is not meant as an endorsement of silly gracelandish projections popular rock music has created to portray the south, or to advertise the slick tourist's eye view you get from this song. i'm just saying that this square was trying fairly sincerely to get what we're all about. Good ass try man. You can't expect Mark Cohn to sing you the same story as a VanZant.

Either way, i guess what i drew from this whole bit was that some things, no matter how personally they get spun, really are external. So as much as something is a theoretical idea like 'god' or 'happiness' it lives and breathes as a social reality given the right settings. The simple answers are: If you want to know about God, go to georgia, or somewhere like it. Want to be happy? Lose track of the passing of time. Remember: patience, not charm, is the only surefire way to get what you want.