A friend and I were at the beach one day. We were maybe 11-ish. In the water, she would get under me and throw me upward, then I'd flail through the air before splashing clamorously into the water. Then I would throw her. Soon we heard a boy yelling, "Again! Again! Do it again!" He was having a good time, and we were having a good time. He was older than we were. After a while, we asked him what his name was. Every one of his sentences had an exclamation point.
"Charles!!" he said. "Do it again!"
We threw each other. All three of us were laughing. Throwing someone the same size as you are gets tiring in a hurry.
"Again! Again!"
"We can't, Charles."
"Again! Please! Again!"
I don't recall it clearly enough to know if we picked on him. I'm not sure when exactly I realized that he might be a little off. I do remember asking him if he was normal.
"I'm smart!!" he yelled, losing neither his verve nor his grin. His chin pointed into the air, and he weaved back and forth, making little splashes with his hands. The sun was bright enough to make us all squint.
"Who says so?" asked my friend.
"My mummy!"
This boy was older than we were, maybe 13. We thought it was funny to see a 13-year-old boy yelling so joyfully about how smart his mummy thought he was. We repeated, "My mummy!" and jumped stiffly making little splashes with our hands, as Charles had.
And it wasn't long before a sunburned fat man with a bushy black beard yelled at my friend and me. I didn't know if I'd done anything harmful, but this grown up seemed to think I had. Maybe he was right, but I'm really still not sure. Charles didn't seem to feel he'd been wronged. My friend and I were learning, I suppose.
Charles, if I hurt you, I'm sorry.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
Opinions? Shrug.
I just watched a movie with Kevin Costner where the election of the next US president came down to just his vote, and he didn't really give a flying hoot. Both politicians changed their entire platform trying to impress this nonchalant man who had a handful of half-formed, ill-expressed, non-sound-bite-friendly opinions if he had them at all.
Here are some things I either don't care about one way or the other, or can easily see both sides:
1. Public displays of the Ten Thingies. I can't bring myself to call them commandments, at least not all of them. Maybe 6 or 7 are commandments. If my daughter's school wants to put up a sign that says, "Let's not kill each other, let's not steal each other's stuff, let's not be all jealous of each other, and let's not tattle tale," that'd be ok with me. They can leave the God stuff off though.
2. Who wins at the next big sports event. Meh.
3. Population growth. We are natural organisms who live here. We didn't ask to be born, but we're generally glad we were. Life's been going on here for a very long time; we aren't so powerful that we're going to kill the world. The worst we could do is cause a massive extinction, but life has hit the reset button here before. I'm anthropocentric enough to not want people to starve and suffer, and I think helpful innovations are amazing and fabulous. Life is a wild ride, and the idea that NYC may well be ocean floor before I die is pretty interesting. I don't know how it's going to go, but I don't count myself worrying about it so much as plain wondering.
4. Whether Pluto is a planet or not. It is what it is. A rose is a blah blah blah.
5. Genetically Modified Organisms. I heard a guy on the bus a few weeks ago characterize people who make GMOs as munny-grubbing azzholes. I took it personally. They may not be going about it in a way that is satisfactory to all, but people who make GMOs are trying to feed people. They're trying to help, in their way. But I don't think of myself as an advocate for GMOs. There may be gene products we can't anticipate, that we dont' want to eat. Things that wouldn't be helpful in the wild. I think they need more testing.
Here are some things I either don't care about one way or the other, or can easily see both sides:
1. Public displays of the Ten Thingies. I can't bring myself to call them commandments, at least not all of them. Maybe 6 or 7 are commandments. If my daughter's school wants to put up a sign that says, "Let's not kill each other, let's not steal each other's stuff, let's not be all jealous of each other, and let's not tattle tale," that'd be ok with me. They can leave the God stuff off though.
2. Who wins at the next big sports event. Meh.
3. Population growth. We are natural organisms who live here. We didn't ask to be born, but we're generally glad we were. Life's been going on here for a very long time; we aren't so powerful that we're going to kill the world. The worst we could do is cause a massive extinction, but life has hit the reset button here before. I'm anthropocentric enough to not want people to starve and suffer, and I think helpful innovations are amazing and fabulous. Life is a wild ride, and the idea that NYC may well be ocean floor before I die is pretty interesting. I don't know how it's going to go, but I don't count myself worrying about it so much as plain wondering.
4. Whether Pluto is a planet or not. It is what it is. A rose is a blah blah blah.
5. Genetically Modified Organisms. I heard a guy on the bus a few weeks ago characterize people who make GMOs as munny-grubbing azzholes. I took it personally. They may not be going about it in a way that is satisfactory to all, but people who make GMOs are trying to feed people. They're trying to help, in their way. But I don't think of myself as an advocate for GMOs. There may be gene products we can't anticipate, that we dont' want to eat. Things that wouldn't be helpful in the wild. I think they need more testing.
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