Jack of all trades

Terry Teachout makes a very interesting observation in a recent post:

"For some reason that I don't fully understand, I decided around the time that I graduated from college that I didn't want to specialize in anything, thus ensuring that I wouldn't become an academic, much less a professional musician."

I can understand this on many levels.  Not that I ever desired to be a professional musician, or fancied that I could become an academic, but to me life can be so boring if you stick to one thing and one thing only.  That's one of the things that's challenged me not only as a writer, but for life in general*. It also, however, makes things a lot more interesting.

*I can't, for example, imagine loving your job so much that you make it the focal point of your life.  On the other hand, it may mean I've got undiagnosed ADHD.

My work as a writer - indeed, the very existence of this blog - reflects these divided interests.  Just what is Our Word all about?  Well, it started as a predominantly Catholic blog but, as I've alluded to in the past, so much of the Catholic blogosphere can be both venomous and ignorant that it's a wonder there's anyone left in it, other than those who like to peddle venom and ignorance.  A few years ago we did the "Our Word Enemies List," a link to which could be found on the sidebar for years.*  Had I chosen, I could have made an entire enemies list solely from Catholic blogs.  But what's the fun in that?

*It can still be tracked down through the search function. 

Truth is, there are many things I'm interested in, and interested in writing about.  Religion still plays a part in that, but there's so much more - history, politics, sports, opera, literature.  On top of that, of course, I started a new blog totally devoted to television and culture; and while I spend most of my time there, there are still going to be things I want to write about that only fit in here. (My colleagues' interests are similarly varied, which makes the blog something of a smorgasbord - we are, after all, still a "Journal of Cultured Opinions.")  And then there are the long-form projects I want to pursue - fiction, cultural histories, more extensive writing on television.  Honestly, I can't imagine what the fun is in writing (or being interested in) only one thing, or a handful of things.  Because of those varied interests, my knowledge of any specific area might not be as deep as I'd like it to be*, and it may make me more reluctant to engage in discussions with those whose level of expertise exceeds mine.  But on the other hand, when I go into my library I'm seldom bored.


*You've heard of the saying, "Jack of all trades; master of none."

More importantly, however, I think that having various interests like this helps me achieve a perspective in a particular area that I might not otherwise have.  I would argue, for example, that my interest in television has greatly informed my perceptions of politics and sports, and vice versa.  Without this holistic approach, you really are only getting part of the story.  And if wanting to understand why something is the way it is causes me to spend time researching something else, all the better.  As my wife says, you can learn something new every day if you're not careful.

And that's the challenge to life: to keep the mind healthy and active.  The world is, to coin a phrase, a big and beautiful place, and it's a crime not to sample as much of it as you can.  ◙

As we head to Messiah time

Christmas is always a quandry for this Palmetto State resident. At his home church the schedule calls for a "musical" for the youth called for a Warner Music Group musical, complete with karaoke, and plenty of dance, but nothing else. I had to shake my head considering the endorsement was by a Rick Warren official. Is this suitable for church?

So that was out of the picture. Clearly junk isn't worth a penny in my notebook. Two choices were clear -- one was the Episcopal church nearby with a Händel's Messiah, but I've noticed they are very corrupt considering the diocese line (I live on the other side of the line, where we have no Episcopal church, as our county's churches are now independent Anglican because of their alliance with the Charleston-based South Carolina diocese). Or is a serious piece with serious carols and hymns at the home church of the Flying Pig worth it?

(And yes, if you do remember, Flying Pig refers to the 2011 winner of the women's division at Cincinnati's marathon.)

Naturally after invitations it was a go to "fly with the Flying Pig," even though she and her mother and kids were a bit confused, not familiar with seeing me in a suit and tie (we're runners, so she's used to seeing me in running gear, not a suit). Another of our fellow runners (and fellow triathlete) was playing her violin, and an accompanist that I had for a recital was there on piano, and family joined on the trombone.

Ah, you have to love it when The Many Moods of Christmas had more serious material. Add the Hudson Sisters, legendary musician Dick Goodwin, and our violinist Hill, serious beats jokes.

And I have to remember Monday is Sing-along Messiah, which is another time I can have a shot to sing. Why are these opportunities harder to find? And there is some emotional thoughts into this one, as last year's bass soloist died in April from a terrifying automobile collision. Allison and I discussed the tragedy from then as she reflected tomorrow's event.

Life is truly precious, whether it was that crash in April we're discussing, or the terrifying Connecticut shooting that killed far too many, we must cherish life at every minute. ◙

Greetings from Raleigh!

Well, hi y'all! (A little Southern lingo there.)  We're coming to you tonight live from Raleigh, North Carolina, the soon-to-be headquarters of Our Word.  And for those of you back in Minnesota, we don' t suppose we should tell you that the the azelias are in bloom, the grass is greener than the Grinch with an upset stomach, and the high temperature today was somewhere in the low 80s.  On the 29th of March.  I'll pause for a moment while you fume.  Our thanks as always to Hadleyblogger Bobby as always for keeping the home fires burning while I'm on the road.  (And to think - by next month, the entire center of gravity of this blog will be somewhere between North and South Carolina.)

There's a great deal going on this week, between Florida and Washington and the Supreme Court, with the Final Four thrown in for good measure.  But you know what?  On an evening like this, enjoying a little Southern Hospitality, we're not inclined to think about any of it.  Perhaps next week - or maybe not.  After all, isn't life too short? ◙

Out of the Past

By Mitchell

I don't often talk about myself here. For one thing, I lead an incredibly boring life. But I've been in a somewhat reflective mood lately. As some of our regular readers know (through personal conversation), I have recently become - temporarily, please God - unemployed. Among other things, this has given me more time to get into mischief than usual.

One of the things people tell you, when you're looking for a new job, is to network. You'd think that a guy who edits a blog would have no trouble networking, but alas such is not the case. So I've been pounding the keyboard lately, trying with all my might to connect with as many people as I can, friend and acquaintance alike. Such is the state of my desperation that I've even allowed someone, who shall remain nameless other than that she goes by the handle Cathy of Alex, to talk me into joining a networking site.

Curiosity being what it is, it didn't take me long to start looking for people I new, both at this site and at others. In doing so, I eventually ran across some of my old classmates from high school. Now, I have to explain that I was a transplant from Minneapolis to a very small town for grades 7-12 (what we old-timers used to refer to as junior and senior high school), and most of the kids in my class had all grown up together. As such, it was a tough area to crack. I eventually did so, I think (I was voted Most Likely to Succeed, which just goes to show you can fool all of the people some of the time), but it isn't as if I've stayed in touch since then. I haven't been back to that small town since I moved to college, hadn't attended any of the reunions, and in fact there are only a handful of classmates with whom I've come in contact.

Now, suddenly, here come some of those names from out of the past. And the thing was, even though I'd only known them for six years, there wasn't a name I saw that didn't produce some kind of memory. Many good, some not-so-good, most of them neutral. But they were there - one of a quiet boy whom I probably hadn't thought of for twenty-five years; another the name of a classmate who had faced down a serious illness; another who actually ran across my name while I was organizing a 4th of July parade and she was doing the publicity for one of the sponsors. There weren't that many of my classmates on this list but, as I say, I had a memory for each one of them.

It made me wonder - do they have any memories of me? After all, they'd all grown up together, but I'd been the outsider, the one who had come in for a brief (albeit brilliant) moment, only to disappear, returning from whence he came. There's no particular reason for me to stick in their memories. I'm not saying I was forgettable, but after thirty years with seldom a word (discouraging or otherwise), it's an understandable thought.

I suppose I'm going to have to follow this road. Curiosity, as I say, plus in the world of networking one never knows who might know someone who knows someone else. Can't take a chance on missing something.

If this surprises me, I really should wonder why. As most of you know, I write a great deal about television of the past, among other things. Shows that were only seen once, events that came and went, still made that indelible impression on the young skull filled with mush. Why, then, should not real, live people have the same effect? Is the life of someone you knew for a half-dozen years more important than a program you saw one autumn night in 1968? Maybe not, I suppose, but I'm not sure that's the right answer.

Anyway, one has to assume that the impact of the here-and-now is a lasting one, and so I suspect (and fear) that a good many of these people do remember something about me, and I cringe at what that might be. And yet I'm about to dive into that memory pool, not knowing quite what waits for me underneath those waves. Could be sharks, could be an oyster with a pearl. Might even be a job. Who knows? But go we must, because one of the few things we know for sure is that the past is bound to us forever, for better or ill; there's no way to escape it, so we might as well embrace it.

Pearls of Wisdom

By Judith

Here are another batch of our cosmic quotes.

1. The best things in life...are better than one.

2. What's good for the goose...doesn't pay.

3. An apple a day...flies when you're having fun.

Think about it.

Pearls of Wisdom

By Judith

Pearls of Wisdom is a new department here at Our Word. We're going to tap into the cosmic consciousness in search of great universal truths.

For Christmas we received one of those magnetic word/phrase kits that you put on your refrigerator. You can write messages or poems or anything that strikes your fancy. Well, we thought it would be interesting to take the beginning of a phrase (the ones that start with capital letters) and randomly match it up with another phrase (the ones without capitals) to make a complete thought. We figure that there are great cliches just waiting to be found and, by some mysterious guidance, we might stumble upon the words the world is waiting for. Or not.

Anyway, here are the first four. Feel free to use them in your conversations.

1. Birds of a feather...should not throw stones.
2. Dead men...can't be choosers.
3. Haste...is the best medicine.
4. Cleanliness...sweeps clean.

Wish I'd Written That

By Mitchell

"To be absolutely sure of the truth of matters concerning which there are many opinions, Kleinias, is an attribute of the gods not given to man. But I shall be very happy to explain what I think and to enter into discussion about it."

Plato, The Laws

Greetings from Indianapolis!

By Mitchell

Yes, Our Word is on the road this week, in the Hoosier State for a work conference. Reporting will be occasional, but we'll try to keep in touch.

One of the interesting things about conferences like this is the people you meet. For example, today I was sharing the room with not one, but two former Miss America contestants. (It's a tough life.)

On the other hand, one of the gentlemen in our class was receiving constant text messages from his son, who is a student at Virginia Tech and was in the dorm next to the one that figured in the shooting today. Fortunately, he was all right. Interestingly enough, nobody in class made a big deal out of this - a few people had talked to him during one of the breaks (people were gathered around the TVs watching the continuous coverage on the news channels) and knew what was going on, but it isn't as if there was a big announcement or anything. I guess there are places where decorum still rules.

Speaking of which, a thought with which to leave you - the Virginia Tech football coach was quoted as saying something to the effect that he couldn't believe how much one person could affect things. Well, in a way this should provide some consolation to those who wonder if one person can still make a difference. Of course they can. One person can always make a difference - sometimes it's for the better, sometimes for the worse. And when that one person (or one Person, if you will) makes a difference for good, it can make all the difference.

Stay tuned for more from Indianapolis tomorrow!