OK, I'm back but I don't know for how long.

Well, the wife is gone for the day to a church function for women so I'm a bachelor for about 10 hours. Whee! Let's see, I've got to do our taxes (get some back, send 'em in, pay some more, wait for 4/15), go buy some new dress pants (the name bigdocmcd has developed extra emphasis), pick up some blank CD's to put some movies on that has built up, etc.

By the time I finish I'll be exhausted and need my nap. Boy, do I have an exciting life without my wife. And that's the way it is. It seems like when she isn't here, I'm just at loose ends. Only thirteen below this morning and we're supposed to get up above zero today for the first time since Wednesday. Yum, yum, 15 degree above, Minnesota heat wave!

Tomorrow night's the Super Bowl and I suppose a lot of people will be watching. On the other hand, I'll be waiting for Survivor. I swore that this time I wouldn't go out on the net and try to find spoilers about this one, but (head hanging down) I did. So I have ChillOne's (the most famous of the spoilers) information engraved in my head and I can't get it out now. Sometimes I just don't have enough strength to resist myself.

I heard a rap star (don't know who it was, rap's not my thing) talking about getting the young people to register to vote. Can't fault him for wanting to do something good, but I wondered about one thing he said. "Young people have more vision, more enthusiasm." Well, I can't argue about the enthusiasm, I can't believe the amount they have, even when it comes to depression they seem to put much more into it. I think it's because they have so much more energy, which bubbles out as enthusiasm.

But vision? I would say idealism and dreams, maybe. And I guess, if you define vision that way, then his statement was right. But, for me, there is an element of reality included in the word "vision." MLK has a dream, not a vision. There was within him, I believe, a feeling that prejudice could not be eliminated and it was reflected in his choice of words.

Now every time you say that a young person's "vision" is idealistic and unrealistic, you get the "naysayer" label. Then you become the reason why the "vision" doesn't work. You see, if we could just get everyone to agree to "try," we could cure all our ills. And, they're right, but (naysayer word) it will never happen, because you'll never get everyone to "try."

Suppose you're striving to achieve some philosophical ideal (world peace, end to crime, end to poverty, etc.). It may be a desirable end, but, no matter what the end is, there are always people who don't want it to happen. And there are all kinds of reasons for their opposition. Countless reasons. Greed, hunger for power, hatred, envy, etc. So, we'll have to "solve" those problems first. Of course they're sort of part of the human condition. I'm not sure you can create a human without these and still have a human.

If only everyone would just agree! It would be so easy! And that's the real reason the idealism of young people doesn't work, isn't achieved. Because they think it should be easy. If only... One thing I have found in my life: nothing is easy. To even come close to achieving one's dreams takes a lot of hard work, not just complaining that everyone needs to cooperate and it will just "happen." MKL recognized that, took steps, steps that led to his assassination. That's where reality and dreams intersect sometimes.

Not really a rant. Can't even call it a proper post. Just wanted to let everybody know that naysayers CAN be right, as right as the enthusiastic youngsters. It's not a popular message, but as a registered and proud-to-be cynic, I felt I had to say something.

Anyway, got to go fill my pill containers, get dressed, and hit the trail.