Scatman Testa

I am riffing today. Improvising, scatting, flipping and flopping and hippity hopping. Haven't written a word in three days. Painful word spewage back up.
I write therefore I am.
My work schedule has gotten crazy insane. I'm finally getting the hours that I need, but now that I am working almost full time like an adult, it is wreaking havoc with my schedule. Because of the nature of the biz, the work schedule bounces - in early out early one day, in late out late the next, five hours here, eight hours there, seven and six etc. Exercising, writing - I actually have to look at the work schedule and figure out how, when and why I am going to accomplish these all important things. However, as a confirmed low wage earner, it's good to get the hours and I will continue to swallow up everything I can get. Until I become rich and famous. Then it will be up all night, sleep all day.
Looking at the republican front runners over the past year. Palin then Trump then Bachman then Perry - can you take any of these people seriously? It is fascinating to watch the gop stumble around trying to find a worthy candidate for President Obama, while using scare tactics, lies and exaggerations to disorient the American public. American politics at it's worst. But still I fear President Obama's re-election is not in the bag. Strange times we live in, me thinks.
If I am in the mood for comedy tonight after work, it will be a tough choice between Stephen Colbert or the republican debate.
Steve Jobs is dead. That one threw me a little. He was such an iconic figure. I have a special issue Times magazine dedicated solely to him sitting next to my recliner and I can't wait to dig into it. Every once in a while, the death of someone notable flips me around and this is one of them. Not a hundred per cent sure why that is. Maybe because he is one of those people you can learn something from, a man who saw things differently and acted upon his visions. I am trying to break out of my own predictability and re-direct my life; maybe after reading this tribute I will invent something amazing. Similar to that awesome meatloaf pan on TV - the one that lifts the loaf right out of the pan. I covet that.
Al Davis is dead too. That one has me thinking too. He was no Steve Jobs but he was huge in the world of professional football. He was a rebel always, who translated that rebel swagger perfectly into the image of the Raiders. Did a whole bunch of other stuff also. Have to read up on him some more.
The special on Prohibition. Got that on the DVR machine, watched the first part but slept through chunks of it. But what I did see was excellent. Gonna re-watch that, then watch the other two parts. With a tumbler of civilized whiskey in my hand, in defiance.
The George Harrison special. Watched part one. SPECTACULAR. I saw clips I have never seen before, heard stories I have never heard before. I am close to being a Beatles fanatic, so it was so cool to see new stuff. Cannot wait to see Part two and read the companion book, put together by George's wife.
This whole year for me has been a search. With all the verbosity about losing weight and exercising and writing and making more money, what I am really trying to do is find myself. Digging deeper and trying harder than I ever have before. It occurred to me watching the Harrison special that I probably don't have to go any further than The Beatles for inspiration. It always comes back to The Beatles. At the age of ten I was shaken to the core by the Ed Sullivan experience. I will never forget it. I knew then how my life should be. Before I knew it, I was an accountant. Something went horribly wrong.
They were seekers and thinkers. That's what I dig about their legacy. After The Beatles split, John and George spent their lives questioning and learning and pursuing the meaning of life. In the special, George comments that acid opened up his mind, but at a certain point it became obvious that what he needed was a spiritual answer, not a chemical one. LSD opened the door, spirituality pushed him through. That is a man who is aware, a man who could step back from massive celebrity and conduct a journey inwards towards peace. That is somebody I can look up to and learn from.
That is what is on my mind today. Some of it will be fleshed out in future ramblings and used to torture you accordingly.
Please note: Most of these words were written with Maka on my lap. It was challenging, and my back hurts from the position I had to adopt to get it done.
That's how much I love that damn cat.