Tag! You're It, Justin!

Zippy and Kipling made 2011 a year to remember.

I used to play Freeze Tag with the neighborhood kids and all four of my siblings. Tag someone. Run fast. They have to freeze; remain motionless. The other variation, Statues, evolved from Freeze Tag, where you’d hold onto someone’s wrists and spin around and around and let loose at a sudden moment . . . and then the person would freeze into a shape as quickly as possible. Everyone on the back lawn became transformed into strange, trying-to-remain-still, statues: posing, being the weirdest. Then the Sculptor would decide what the statue was: a Minotaur, an old spinster who’s yelling at the kids to get off her lawn (we called her Mrs. Gordon), or anything else really bizarre and funny. When the Sculptor touched you, you’d have to act like a monster, celebrity, athlete . . . So, I’ve been tagged and I feel frozen. I’m not one to dwell on or in the past. Never have and never will. I live in the present and reflection time is usually reserved for when I’m surrounded by people from my distant past. I live in a state so geographically distant from my family and childhood friends. I do miss them and wish I’d stayed in contact (much better). The best long time friends are able to pick up right where they were the last moment they were together. Moving around a lot, changing driver’s licenses, made me get used to these departures . . . I still got tagged. Thanks, Cathy!

The Questions and my Answers:

WHAT HAS BEEN THE HAPPIEST EVENT OF 2011: Her name is Kipling. See this puppy splashed all across this blog. Here she’s tagging her older stepbrother, Zippy. Just talking about getting another long coat German shepherd took up about six or seven months of thinking. Is it the right time? In this economic downward spiral is it prudent? Will Zippy stay engaged? What about the two cats? Ajax The Gray and Eartha Kitt’n are getting used to the boundless energy of Kipling. She’s a happy mutt!

WHAT HAS BEEN THE SADDEST? The death of a long time friend who made me smile. We didn’t always see eye to eye and this was a plus and part of his tremendous charm. He had so much wit and presence he could make a roomful of people laugh by just reciting a Robert Frost poem. It was his delivery.

ONE UNLIKELY THING YOU WENT AHEAD WITH AND DID? I joined Twitter. To me this was a very unlikely thing. I wasn’t a fan of FaceBook, and I didn’t love most of what Social Media had to offer. At the end of June, I got a call from someone I was working with who proceeded to tell me why I needed to sign up for Twitter. I remember doing so that afternoon, and laughing about it the next day with some friends. I said to them: “Look: I have 2 Followers!”

WHO LET YOU DOWN? I had a Bridesmaids moment. (And not the dress shop scene LOL.) I can always laugh and move forward by watching one of the best films of 2011 again. Is it strange that I relate to Bridesmaids?

WHAT MADE YOU LAUGH? A couple new friends this year made me laugh so much. A few of these new friends write daily blogs, where every single morning I know I can pour a cup of coffee and wake up to read a little slice of life from a great vantage point: the safety of my own living room! And, in my un-virtual life, something I call reality, great laugh-out-loud moments spread out across the islands as my family enjoyed talking to a local couple about life, funny stories about their past, our collective experiences, how little things happen that make us still believe in magic.

WHAT MADE YOU CRY? When I can’t speak clearly enough and become misunderstood, written off, marginalized. When someone who is supposed to be a friend continually says something offensive, directed at me, and a moment later then says, “I didn’t offend you did I?” (It makes me wince inside — I’m not really a huge outward cryer. I usually return the cutting insult with indifference.) Should I fight a battle? Should I pick a fight? I don’t have the energy. Bullies don’t deserve the expenditure of energy.

TELL US ONE THING THAT MADE YOU PROUD OF YOURSELF. I accomplished a writing goal this year by helping to create a position at In Classic Style Magazine. I’ve become a pop culture reporter, and I get to choose what I write about. I love reading and I worked in bookstores off and on for over 20 years so recommending a good book is second nature. Films and music recommendations are also a love of mine from childhood. Our family went to the movies a lot. In the era of Drive-In double features, we couldn’t get enough, and I’d stay up for even the raciest B-movie schlock my parents dragged us to in the low-riding station wagon.

TELL US ONE CHALLENGE YOU OVERCAME. Being less apologetic. I tend to veer into doormat mode really quickly. Who does love to argue? I also used to say “I’m sorry!” too much. If I make a mistake I own up to it, and especially on the tennis court!

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE IN 2012? I started the year with a goal: to strive to have more discipline and perseverance in the writing life and with my health, what I eat, and how I want to enjoy a long life to come.

 

Now it’s my turn to tag a couple people: @zencherry and @ericaluckedean consider yourself 2011 Tagged: You’re IT!

Kipling picked your names out of her food bowl!

 

best ever,

Justin

 

 

 

 

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