Hello.  Remember me? I am the guy that sometimes visits his own blog. It has been far too long. There are so many wonderful things happening in my life right now that I honestly did not know what to write about. I want to write about them all. So many options… paralyzed into inaction. More on this later, we have some business to attend to now…

Red Wine is good for you, Read Whine is not.

This entry into my blog really has to do with our societal response to gas prices, weather, the price of tea in China, or whatever else is the gripe of the hour. Honestly. Let’s all take a deep breath and get over ourselves already. Here in North America, we are truly the richest of the rich. We are privileged beyond compare. All of our base needs long met in a forgotten past, we fixate on what we do not have. So backwards. In true prima donna fashion, we drone on endlessly about the price of gas as we speed down to our local Wal-Mart in our 12 cylinder SUV to buy more shite that we do not need. We even start to piss and moan about those selfish foreign workers who are indignant enough to want to make more than a $1 an hour to make all this shite we so desperately need. Wow. I mean wow. Don’t get me wrong, I have my own consumeristic tendancies. I like to think that I do not cry indignant about the price of gas, price of beer and stamp my feet like a victim of all that is ill in the world. Damn attitudes of entitlement.

Is it not better to walk around in pure awe and amazement of the opulent wealth we possess? Is it not more fulfulling to fixate on the sheer magnitude of our fortunate lot. We are in a position to even talk about the price of gas and quite often that opportunity is during our leisure time with a friend over an eight dollar cup of Semi Sweet Caramel Covered Mocha Frappacino.

Where am I going with this drone-a-thon? Well, I guess I would like to state that the price of gas is finally taking shape along with what Europe has dealt with for years. When Kathy and I visited England and Scotland a few years back, we were amazed and impressed with the economy of the masses. Economy of space, economy of gas, economy of thought. I know, I know, that is a dangerous generalization. There is a theme that is in the undercurrent of society there though. It is a palpable scent to a nose that wishes to perceive it. Our North America contrast with bigger houses, bigger vehicles, less mass commuting options is quite eye opening.

I challenge everyone to put down the newspaper article that augments an outcry on gas prices and other encroachments on our right to live opulent and wasteful lives. Focus not on the indignant acts that get the massed roiled up. Rather pause, sip your red wine, let go of the read whine and rejoice in all of the splendour and fortune we have. Perhaps, you may even feel like sharing some of it with those less fortunate.

This brings me to another challenge, this one to myself. I am going to try to be more diligent with my blogging. Not that I feel quantity should win out over quality, but I want to keep my focus on the positive. Starting next week, I am going to begin a ritual of making a posting each Thursday to give honour to something I am thankful for. “Thankful Thursdays” is another gift I give myself. A constant reminder of the blessings around me will serve to keep a smile on my face and perspective in my thoughts.