What You Do With It...

Hello again, people...

I had a draft started last night.It mentioned Poe a couple of times. Funny...

I've been holding my peace about where the last 12 years of my life were spent; it's not really important where, but HOW. And with whom.

To demonstrate, I want to share some excerpts from a letter I received via snailmail a few hours ago...

"Job-wise I'm a 2nd shift janitor... Easy work and I have plenty of time for my fitness routine. That last has consisted of a Navy Seal workout for the past 5 weeks. Averaging 10-12 hours anaerobic and 25-30 miles running a week.

Writing a lot, too. Mostly Horror stories. Last one did was 40 typed pages... Trying to write and draw a bit every day. Exersize both hemispheres of the brain, dig?

Speaking of working the brain-- memorized 'The Raven' by Poe. Took two months, but I'm the only one on the unit who can rattle off a 5-page poem from memory on demand.

...a fine thing, but it is now time for me to move on... to more lucrative Philosophic pursuits. I am now embarking upon a Promethian quest to find the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and eat of it. There is something there so empowering and ennobling that an entire monotheistic scare-tactic was invented in order to keep humans at bay. I demand to know what is in that Garden!"

So venture a guess where this man is-- where he is and has been and will be for years.

Military? Hmmm... Nice try, but thank you for playing; next contestant, please.

College? Nah-- already graduated.

Point is, folks, it really don't matter. It's not WHERE this man is, nor for how long; it is HOW he is.

My friend is not in a fun place, but I admire that he does not let that fact hold him down, physically or mentally.

Often we are forced to be at places and around people we really would rather not. Work comes to mind, as does standing in the D.M.V.( or nearly any other) line. Nice when we can share this time with a friend, but more often than not that won't be the case. During those times we can moan and complain, or we can spend our mental energy in a more productive fashion. When we keep our chins up and continue to pursue greatness even in the face of adversity, it can go a long way towards attracting to us those individuals who have achieved phenomenal success say we should be surrounded by-- those more successful than we are.

I'm gonna close by quoting a man oft-quoted by my friend; to use my friend's words, "a greater man than me".

Anton LaVey had three rules of social intercourse:

1. There are those who waste your time. Avoid them.
2.There are those who share your time. Enjoy them.
3. There are those who add to your time. Cherish them.


I cherish the moment when I'll recieve another letter from you, Johnny. Love, and Blessed Be.

More soon, folks...

Cygnus