caution: life ahead

it's been two weeks of back to back snow storms. 

i avoid driving if at all possible.  i noticed though, that when it does snow or ice, people drive more cautious on the road. 

slow drivers are overlooked. drivers are more alert and there for sure are no other distractions in the car such as texting and driving.

drivers are more courteous to other drivers and there doesn't seem to be any road rage like there is on any other day.

just because of snow. 

funny how an event such as a snow storm, or any storm for that matter, affects the way we drive and the way we think about other drivers.

this got me thinking about events in life that affects how we treat others. 

national disasters always disrupt the status quo of society.  or, when you know someone who has experienced a tragic death in their life.

the reason this affects us is we see the value of life more.  we know the value of a smile, or a greeting to a stranger.  we tend to be more courteous to our neighbor rather than focus on our inward desire.

i think that life was always meant to be viewed as valuable, regardless of whose life it is.  why is it that it takes tragedy to shake society up to realize the value of human life.

as i was eating breakfast this morning with friends, we were talking about the movies we like to watch and the majority of the one's we spoke of were the ones that make you reflect back on your life and see if you are living it to the fullest.

right now, you are healthy.  you don't understand how important that is until you are sick in bed.

so take advantage of the health. 

i started thinking about this last week.  how much time do i spend doing nothing like watching tv or lying in bed doing nothing.

yes, i literally lie in bed and stare at the ceiling while doing nothing. 

I am not saying that any of these things are bad... in moderation of course.  but why spend my whole saturday watching tv alone when there is something out there for me to experience?  or what about friends i haven't seen for a period of time. 

at funerals, people always wish they had that extra time to have one more opportunity to see their friend or loved one. 

those opportunities pass us by every day.

life and music

i am addicted to music.  all music.

about 80% of my day i have ear buds in my ear or music playing in my office.

remember those dancing flowers back in the 80's that danced when music played?  i am kind of like that.  if i don't hear music, i can't get motivated to move.

i listen to everything from movie scores to heavy metal.  all music has a purpose and a place for every situation.  yes, even rap.  though i am not as big of fan of rap, i do appreciate it.

i sometimes think of my life as a movie and music as the background noise.  most of the time the music i am listening to resembles my mood. 

no, country does not automatically mean i am sad or depressed.  country is more of a fun time for me.  i karaoke mainly country songs.  they're fun. 

though, when i am just merely walking next to someone and listening to music, i start to wonder that if my life is a movie, how boring has this movie have to be? 

i am sure robert ebert would be giveing it a two big thumbs down.  not many exciting things happen in a normal persons life that makes it movie worthy. 

most movies are not even movie worthy.  however, all movies have music.

have you ever watched a movie before the music has been added?  i am not talking about the music that they are singing with or dancing with, i am talking about the score.  the action music.  all movies suck without music.

imagine rocky running through the streets in the first movie.

now imagine the scene with out bill conti's "gonna fly now."  that scene would suck and you would probably laugh at it or change the channel.  none the less, you'd be bored to tears.

without any music in movies, it's just a bunch of people walking around and doing things and their is no dramatic build up to climax of the scene.

that is why i listen to music a lot.  it makes me feel as if that big finale is about to happen to my movie/life and without music playing, it will just suck.

however, life is not a movie. movies have to be edited to be considered "watchable."

can you imagine how boring lord of the rings would have been if you had just followed frodo and sam around the whole time? 

what about the dark knight?  all you did was follow bruce wayne. while he was reading reports, typing on the computer, doing detective things.  nothing exciting.

i would be stabbing my eyes out with a plastic spork.  i assume people would be doing the same thing with my life, if it were on screen.  i guess that is why post-editing exist. to take out all the nothing parts.  i wonder if God feels like that sometimes?

i can see him up there looking over the edge of a cloud screaming "do something!"   then he realizes nothing good is going to happen right then so he figures it is a good time to get up to go to the concession stand to get popcorn. 

popcorn is only good at the theater.

i know if i could edit my life, i would edit out a lot.  a lot of hurt and pain, but i would keep some.  that pain helped me become who i am and that pain also brought me to this point of my life.  there is a lot of great moments that i would be sure to place in there as well. 

all those stories that my friends and i repeat over and over every summer as we float the river.  those stories would definitely be in my movie.

i just wonder, when is the end of my movie coming?

movies end with some sort of closure.  either be a tragedy or happy ending.  my friend trey says that i am a closure guy.  he is right.  my favorite part of lord of the rings is the last 30 minutes of return of the king. 

everyone was happy.  you see people become who they are supposed to be.  some go back to their normal lives. others go on to new adventures.

i have to have closure in the movie or i hate it.  if the hangover would have ended right when they found doug on the roof of the hotel, i would have been pissed.  i would have never seen them get ready for the wedding on the highway, stu break it off with his girl or that there is a total different side to phil then the party side that i saw throughout the whole movie.

i wonder if my movie will have closure?  will i become who i am suppose to be?

what song will be playing when it does?