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 Home for the holidays? No! Send my body home!

 Author:  Topic:  Posted:
Nov 25, 2001
 Comments:
I haven't been able to get this song out of my mind for the past few weeks...

I don't like Pennsylvania
I went there in the winter
There were good ol' boys in T-shirts
With a case or two of beer
And though I didn't show my fear
I could tell that there was danger in their eyes...

There's a dinner bell that's ringing
And the kinfolk will arrive
And you know I'll break out singing
If I make it to the border alive...

Don't let me die here
If I should die here
Don't let me lie here
Out here alone
Don't let me die here
If I should die here
Don't say goodbye here
Send my body home...

("Don't Let Me Die Here," Uncle Bonsai (c) circa 1985. My apologies to Arni, Ashley & Andrew for the bit of creative license exercised herein.)

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Greetings from the not-so-thriving non-metropolis of Butler, PA. It's the birthplace of the Jeep and a former player in the international steel marketplace; now it resembles nothing so much as the small town of Blaine, immortalized in the movie Waiting for Guffman. It is also my parents' hometown and the place that 98% of my immediate relatives call home. Of my extended family, my brother and I are the only two of the lot lucky enough to have escaped being raised here via our stint as indentured servants (military brats) of the U.S. Navy.

While I realize that a corner in Hell is likely freezing over at this moment, I feel compelled to note that I'm genuinely grateful for the fact that I didn't grow up here and am not stuck living here now.

There. At least I've confessed this in some fashion and I might get through the two remaining days of my visit without risking irreparable harm.

Some examples of the surreal details experienced during the past week:

* All of the "deer crossing" signs sport buckshot detailing.
* The only businesses surviving in the five-block downtown core of Main Street are bars and taverns.
* The theater where I watched the very first Star Wars movie is now closed (the only one located downtown).
* I've confirmed beyond a doubt that I am the only female among the dozens of cousins who has yet to have an illegitimate child (and some of the second cousins are now starting to cross that line).
* I'm the only female in the family with a career still.

I've been in my Dad's company for six days now. I am on the "downhill slide" towards 40, but the litany of complaints never seems to change -- it's unbelievable. The part that galls me the most is being constantly and subtly derided for not doing things "his way" when my parents both made a consistent effort raise me to be independent and to think for myself; it's a never-ending Catch-22. It's a paradox -- I'm a success, but I'm not right. I realize that I have a snowball's chance in Hell of making him happy, but a little acceptance would be a welcomed change.

Only two minor differences are worth noting this time around... After spending the better part of two days' time working on/teaching Dad about the computer I'd built for him last summer, my perception is that I'm finally worthy in some small manner in his eyes. And I got him to watch an episode of South Park last night (what's the point in being the changeling of the family if I can't be subversive every now and again?). To keep the peace, however, I'm required to suffocate my personality; I think I've finally realized that I'm only really capable of doing so for about three days' time max -- next time I'll be certain to pack Valium along with the migraine meds.

I spent a week prior to this "homecoming" being high-strung and seriously depressed. While I'm here, my acting skills are tested, my sense of self splinters and fragments into shards and my mind seems to shift into some sort of bland/benign auto-pilot. It's not a vacation, visiting this place... At least it makes me grateful to return to the place I call home, no matter how absurd that reality may be at times. In some ways, it might just be the ultimate "rebirthing."

I have decided this time around that the next time my family sees me, it'll have to be on my turf. I've been out of the house for 20 years now and it's time for a change.

And, at the risk of being maudlin, one more thing... I miss ya, Shoeboy. You have no clue how lucky you are.

       
Tweet

Family (none / 0) (#1)
by SpaceGhoti on Sun Nov 25th, 2001 at 09:35:22 PM PST
I have yet to meet a family member who didn't make me yearn for copious amounts of soap and hot water to wash the "ick" off me. I can generally maintain my peace of mind around parents, brother and cousins for about half a day, then I'm ready to go home. Living across a continent wasn't far enough; I've now successfully placed an ocean and a continent between us, and I think that's far enough. But any time I feel my ego has gotten too big and I need someone to remind me how I could be doing things right I give 'em a call. It's even more effective than reading one of tchakev's posts.

Hmm...I think I lied up there. There is a family member who didn't make me yearn to wash. My maternal grandfather was a very good joe. Shame he died when I was eight. My family definitely needs more black sheep.



A troll's true colors.

Liberalist "family" ethics... (none / 0) (#2)
by tkatchev on Sun Nov 25th, 2001 at 10:04:53 PM PST
...give birth to their horrible fruits. And you're going to argue that liberalism is not inhuman and misanthropic?

P.S. Thanks for horribly misspelling my name.


--
Peace and much love...




Family ethics (none / 0) (#3)
by SpaceGhoti on Sun Nov 25th, 2001 at 10:19:17 PM PST
I'd rather have a family of independently thinking individuals than a family of vapid, inbred clones without a single original thought in their heads beyond what has been handed down to them through the generations.

There's something to be said for tradition, but a tradition that reigns unchallenged becomes self-serving. I don't care to follow a tradition that has no further purpose than to sustain itself. A family that enforces long traditions without questioning them is a stagnant and painful thing to experience.

Oh, did I misspell your name? My most humble apologies. Normally I put more effort into making sure of these things, but for some odd reason I just didn't care.



A troll's true colors.

Once again, Spaghetti flaunts his myopic worldview (none / 0) (#5)
by osm on Sun Nov 25th, 2001 at 10:26:00 PM PST
I'd rather have a family of independently thinking individuals than a family of vapid, inbred clones without a single original thought in their heads beyond what has been handed down to them through the generations. Typical socialist's gross overgeneralization.

There's something to be said for tradition, but a tradition that reigns unchallenged becomes self-serving. I don't care to follow a tradition that has no further purpose than to sustain itself. A family that enforces long traditions without questioning them is a stagnant and painful thing to experience.

It doesn't surprise me that you think you know better than countless billions of people who have walked the earth in the past several thousand years.

Oh, did I misspell your name? My most humble apologies. Normally I put more effort into making sure of these things, but for some odd reason I just didn't care.

Spaghetti knows he's a flaming socialist moron, so he is reduced to petty misnaming tactics.


The weight of history (1.00 / 1) (#6)
by SpaceGhoti on Sun Nov 25th, 2001 at 11:28:18 PM PST
I only know what history has to teach about the people of their time. The ancient Israelites had a law against eating blood or animals of cloven hoof. At the time, this was essential wisdom in that ancient people had no concept of the diseases that could be contained within those animal bodies. Cooking wasn't terribly consistent, so some animals just had to be left alone. That law became a tradition which, in Judaism, still active.

Nowadays we know more about blood-borne diseases and we know how to properly cook animals who could make us sick by eating them when improperly cooked. But there are some religions and traditions that say we shouldn't eat them anyway, even though the reason for it is invalid.

Thus, I favor questioning tradition. Not rejecting tradition out of hand, but questioning it and testing it for relevance. Some things I reject simply because modern education and/or technology makes them irrelevant. Some things I reject because they're relevant because they're enforced through culture and can, if handled with maturity, be set aside. Other traditions I keep because they're still relevant, and some I accept that it's easier to keep them than to push against the grain. I can't fight all of the battles all of the time.

Honestly, I didn't go out of my way to misspell your name. I just didn't care enough to confirm the spelling I was using. You're just not that important.



A troll's true colors.

ignorance is bliss (none / 0) (#7)
by nathan on Mon Nov 26th, 2001 at 08:28:04 AM PST
Your argument concerning Judaism and dietary laws is totally wrong. The mitzvah of abstaining from unclean animals is not "for" any purpose other than to bless the adherent by allowing him yet another opportunity to remind himself of God's love.

You liberalists think that the point of mitzvahs should be humanistic. Well, they aren, but in a much larger sense. The point of a mitzvah isn't some limited human good, like avoiding a serious disease. It's to give the believer an occaision to self-consciously align himself with the will of God, to do honour to God, and to exalt himself through the Law.

Please try not to assume what you are trying to prove. This is called "begging the question."

Nathan
--
Li'l Sis: Yo, that's a real grey area. Even by my lax standards.

 
drugs are a crutch (none / 0) (#8)
by alprazolam on Mon Nov 26th, 2001 at 09:06:48 AM PST
drugs are a crutch


 

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