But Why Couldn't I Be a T-Rex, at least...
Last month I posted and article about teenagers' appearance. I was venting a little about the way they dress and act. I had to run an errand and while I was gone I was thinking about what I had written and realized that one or two of my grandchildren and some of my children might take offense at some of the things I had said. On the way home I decided to delete the article, since I really didn't want to hurt anyone, least of all my family. By the time I got home, only about a half hour later, a couple of the sweet ladies in our JU community had replied to my article. They were of a different opinion than I was but they were very polite about it, just gave me a younger perspective on things. I realized that it must be a generational thing.
So later there is an article about the Rolling Stones putting a stop to touring. There were so many negative comments about them that I was really flabergasted. Some of the comments mentioned bands that were much more innovative than the Stones...bands that I had never heard of. In an age that is moving at a faster and faster pace every day, I seem to be left in the dust. For example...a few years ago a country singer I had never heard of became popular over night...it seemed. Suddenly he was on every radio in the barracks. We heard his music from boom boxes in trucks as we bounced across the deserts of Saudi and Iraq. And shortly after the return to Germany, it seems, this guy was retiring and the country music industry was treating him like he was the modern Johnny Cash, extolling his long and illustrious career. A career that spanned what...two years?
When an article appeared about songs that are being used for commercials, I knew instinctively that it was a waste of time for me to open it...and I was right...again, a bunch of songs I never heard of by groups I've never heard of...for products I don't know.
Okay. I admit to being a little older than some of you. I can tell from some references that there are a few in the community that are older than me...just a few. But I don't feel that old...I am sure that is a common statement for all dinosaurs...and I am confused at how the world just accelerates away, leaving me in the dust. So here are some dinosaur's thoughts, some confusions and wonders:
What ever happened to love and marriage that lasted a lifetime? That was worth the effort to keep it alive?
What happened to teaching kids to be polite and respectful, especially to their elders?
Where are the courteous truck drivers, the ones they used to call the knights of the road, who would let you squeeze into a lane or make your turn or let you come out of the driveway?
When did good table manners get revoked? I missed that memo.
When did it become okay for girls to dress in clothes that are a size or two too small...exposing bellies, boobs and butts?
Why do so many movies today have to have the obigatory nude wrestling scene? Many of them aren't even germain to the story, they are just in there to get a more commercial rating.
When did it become okay to drive through the neighborhood with speakers the size of manhole covers blasting obscenities at full volume?
And why do boys wear pants that don't stay up if they let go of them?
Why do fast food places hire people who can't get an order right? Make change? Speak intelligibly? Wash their hands?
Okay, that'll do for now. I guess you can see my problem...I am, to quote Jerry Garcia ( Google him if you don't know), just "old and in the way." I suppose these things are now the norm and I am not. But what about you other dinosaurs out there...what about the "new norm" has your knickers in a twist?