Two Days Into This—June, 2o24
I closed out the school year taking pictures at graduation. (Credit/Trinity Burge)
If you peruse the annals of history, you’ll find the written word has persisted to this day. In fact, the whole notion of “pre-history” taught to students in elementary and middle school classrooms across the world is a world that existed before words could capture and record the experiences of their day.
One of my first loves was writing. I always thought I’d try to be a Faulkner or a Hemingway and fell in love with the musings of Bragg and McCarthy. Even now there’s Towles if we’re talking world-wide recognitions; and of course Coggins if we’re talking niche.
I can say, somewhat proudly (the good kind of proud, not the bad kind the Bible talks about) that I’ve kept up with my podcast efforts and even so the video portions.
I enjoy posting the Clinton Board of Aldermen Updates and try to get them posted as soon as I can after our Tuesday night votes. At best, I’ll get at video ready to go on a Wednesday, though most of the time it’s a Thursday and even a Friday. The busier the season, the later it seems to be in the week.
So, as if I don’t have enough on my to-do list, I’d like to challenge myself in putting out a monthly written post of sorts. Maybe the posts will involve city government, and maybe they won’t. Most of the time they’ll simply be stream of consciousness and ideas that I’ve been wrestling with or that have simply struck my fancy.
I am all about consistency, so I need to have some sort of consistent format in these posts.
First, I think I’m going to try and shoot for the second day of each month. If we can get past “Day One,” I call that a success. So, if we’re two days into this thing, maybe there’ll be something worth saying.
Now, this first post doesn’t really follow that logic. Seeing how it’s June 9 at the time of this composition, I may have missed it by a week. But I like the notion of it.
Second, I had the joy of journeying through two English literature degrees, so it only seems fitting that I mention a book I’m either currently reading or one I’ve recently finished. Who knows, maybe we’ll be able to make a connection over a title or two.
Thirdly, in my efforts to present a “real person” on this site, I’d like to touch on a challenge I experienced in the previous month. Be it City or personal, I think when we realize that we all share in some of the same challenges, we can build bridges in creating a stronger network of people.
There’s no skipping by this month, so here we are, nine days into June.
Titled Things: There’s a book club based out of Australia called The Tough Guys Bookclub. The name of the group makes me smile. For some reason it’s built into the landscape that guys don’t read, but this group is fighting the stereotype by playing into another. They meet in a bar or a coffee shop or a garage and talk about their book of the month. They even have certain challenges they are to perform during the month (It’s like the homework given in Fight Club…minus the fighting part). I get good titles from this group by following them on Instagram.
I just finished “The Promise” by Damon Galgut. It centers around a South African family during the end of the apartheid. Certain promises were made and broken with other promises made to try and circumvent the hurts caused by the former. Needless to say, that tactic had some consequences. It was a good read.
I’m going to attack “The Wager” by David Grann. Thanks to Dr. Brian Fortenberry for recommending that book.
I also found “The Hidden Half: How the World Conceals its Secrets” by Michael Blastland. Not sure how I came across this one, but I’ll report back on it. I’ll tell you, there are books out there that challenge my way of thinking, be it in a way I agree with or a way I don’t, and for that I’m always appreciative.
Up for the Challenge: We’ve hit summer, so that means vacation and winding down—hopefully. This past year, my bill-paying-job with the school district allowed me to grow in new ways, which is always nice, but boy did it keep me in 5th and 6th gear most of the time. It’s a pace I like, but sometimes, we all need to gear down.
Stephen Covey wrote the book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and the seventh habit is sharpening the saw. A week to not be in charge of stuff. The last two summers I was working on an Integrated Marketing Communications degree, so I didn’t get much dedicated “down time.” I’ll be taking advantage of it this summer. But with that comes an expectation I’ve placed on myself to get back to that high-speed pace that keeps things rolling. I keep thinking it’s like the pit speed rule in NASCAR.
I hope you have a great June. Now that we’re two days into this thing (or, uh, nine days, I guess), there’s no turning back!
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