So long...

So it has been quite a while since I’ve felt the compulsion to tap away at this keyboard.

But it’s been one of those weeks…

One of highs and lows, one of gain and loss.

I lost a family member this week. And as I’ve noted before, I am not very close to my extended family, as I live out on the west coast while the rest of the family resides in the Midwest.

But I lost my aunt, a woman I had only spoken to on a few random holidays and actually seen a handful of times in my life. Yet for some reason, her death really hit me hard.

She was a nice woman, the caretaker of the family…but I can’t tell you what she liked, what her favorite color was or even if she was a coffee or tea kinda person.

What I can tell you, is that she was the kind of compassionate, give-til-it-hurts person, that I hope to one day be. And although we were barely more than strangers to each other, she had an effect on my life that I only came to realize in her death.

The world lost one of the kindest people I’ve ever had the opportunity to meet. I never once told her that. And I think that is what is really bugging me.

So as I sit here on Mother’s Day, typing this post…not planning on seeing my Mother (My brother and I sent her flowers/candy) I note another lesson. One that’s a recurring theme for me.

Make the time for those who are important in your life. A 10-minute call every now and again or even a card can make a world of difference. The best folks get the least recognition. Don’t wait for holidays and birthdays…make appreciating those you love or have an effect on your life a daily thing.

So Aunt Janice, I never said it to you, but “Thank You for being you. It is people like you who restore my faith in humanity. I am sorry that I was blind to this during your life, but even in death, you are still a ray of sunshine in a cold, dark world that will miss your warmth.”

Ch, cha, Changes...

So since I've cut the cord with my cable company and gone back to using an antenna, I found something I'd come to miss, given the plethora of channels available on cable: Saturday morning cartoons.

I used to watch English Premier League soccer on ESPN, but since that is no longer an option, I've found the broadcast channel RTV to fill my Saturday morning downtime. For those who don't know, RTV stands for Retro Television, and it plays awesome stuff like the original A-Team and the old school He-Man cartoon.

But this is not an ad for RTV, it's about Mr. Magoo.

So there I was, three-quarters of the way through my usual pot of Saturday morning coffee, when I noticed that 'Mr. Magoo' was on. I've been a fan of Mr. Magoo for years. For some reason, my parents bought a collection of the series on VHS that my little brother and I watched a lot. You know, back when movies were recorded on tape.

I enjoyed the nearly blind, yet well intentioned fuddy-duddy and the shenanigans he would get himself into. But, I also remember was his trusty sidekick, Charley.

It's Charley that really spurred this most recent rant.

See, Charley was Mr. Magoo's houseboy. Charley also happened to be Chinese, and being that the cartoons hey-day was the 1950's, Charley was one horribly stereotyped caricature. Charley sported slanted eyes and spoke with an accent saying things like “Mister Magloo,” or referring to himself as “Cholley.” *The Wikipedia link above has a more in-depth description of the Charley character, if you are interested.

But, even with the over-the-top racism, I still remember Charley as Mr. Magoo's intelligent sidekick. Think 'Kato' from the Green Hornet.

So I was a bit lost as I recently watched Mr. Magoo and heard Charley's voice for the first time in years...he had a Brooklyn accent. He still looked the “it's the 50's and we'll be racist if we want” part, but gone was the over-the-top ESL accent.

I was none-too-pleased.

Especially in light of the recent hub-bub over the removal of racially charged language from some of Mark Twain's most famous works.

The thing about it is that it happened. Charley's character was totally and utterly racist. A fact that was only reinforced by the fact that the re-runs of the Mr. Magoo cartoon were changed. But that doesn't change the fact that these shows were initially written, recorded and aired in an offensive way.

The same goes for Twain's works. The books represent a time when slavery/racism where not only rampant, they were for the most part, accepted. This simply was how America was for a long time. Changing some terms in a book doesn't change history, but I fear what revising history in this way, does for the future.

Much like Holocaust museums and memorials encourage to “Forgive, but never forget.” I think the same rationale should be applied to this move towards revisionist history that is taking place before our very eyes.

Now I am not a minority. But that is not to say that I have never been on the receiving end of racial slurs or poorly treated because of what I looked like. I have.

But I have never experienced the downside of institutionalized racism which the above examples illustrate. So while I understand the powerful demeaning nature of the N-word, I will not venture to state how an African American should feel about the changes to the Twain literature.

But while I refuse to utter the term myself, I think it is important to remember what gave the term such power. There is a history there that many would like to forget, as opposed to address and deal with. Dr. Cornel West recently described the changes to Twain's work as nothing more than a futile attempt to “deodorize the funk of the text.”

Continuing with that analogy, you can wash the socks as much as you want, but until you clean the feet, the core issue remains, and needs to be dealt with.

Should we move-on at some point? Yes, I hope we can.

But don't confuse simply sweeping issues under the carpet with growth. And to be clear, giving a stereotyped caricature a different accent and finding-and-replacing the N-word in literature is not growth.

No sum-up here. Just my usual call to be diligent and aware of the world around you.

Hopefully, we can all get to a point where this discussion no longer stirs such emotion. But until that is the case, we all need to be willing to acknowledge an address that this issue is alive and relevant.

New Years 2011

So I usually take time on New Year's Day to talk about the past year, marking the highs and lows. Then dictating what I hope to accomplish in the coming year.

And while I am all for listing your hopes/goals on paper, I am not going to do that.

Instead, I am gonna be honest. You may have seen my previous post about how I love snow and the holidays...In short, I love what they represent: family, friendship and fun.

With that in mind, I always find New Year's Day a bit depressing. It's definitely bittersweet, as it marks the culmination (read: end) of my absolute favorite time of year.

While there will be parties and dinners with family and friends throughout the year, they just doesn't have the same emotional heft that sitting around the table at Thanksgiving carries with it. There is just a lil something in the air, where even perfect strangers will buy a coffee for the person behind them, “Just Because.”

And yes, I know people do good deeds year round, but I think folks are more attuned/open to doing such things during the holidays. I love the refocus on 'what's really important' that the holidays bring as the year draws to a close. But even as exhibited in New Years Resolutions, the move away from others and family, starts on January 1st as people begin looking at themselves and what they want for themselves.

I think that as the world continues to become more (seemingly) connected, folks are finding themselves more and more isolated. The holidays encourage actual face-to-face interaction. Hugs and laughter seem to happen ad nausem. Think about the good-byes after Christmas dinner versus those at a 4th of July Family Reunion and you'll get my point.

But I don't mean to be a Debbie Downer. I love the optimism that the New Year brings. I love the 2nd Chance that it encourages. But I just miss the warmth that the passing season inspires.

So I'll just say to all of you. Remember who and what is important as you are lazing away an afternoon at the beach in August. Remember the smiles shared and the stories told around the holiday dinner table.

As for me, I definitely have some resolutions:

- Travel somewhere that isn't on the West Coast.

- Hit the gym a few times a week.

- Step forward in my career.

- Write a little more and read a few books.

- But most importantly, I want to put my words into actions and make more of an effort to actually see those who are important to me. And if nothing else, let those I can't see, know where they stand.

So I thank all of you for reading this and wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous 2011.