Author: bmmcmanus

Generally speaking, humans wear clothing while in public.  The range of clothing styles, fabrics, degrees of coverage of various body parts is highly variable.  Culture, climate, tradition, trends and personal preferences are among factors that lead one to wear whichever clothing and a particular style. The fashion industry, now with vast networks of social media, exquisite advertising and buyer analytics data can reach the masses of would-be wearers within moments with the “right message in the right flavour” for their diverse audiences and potential customers.  As everyone knows, there really are only a few styles that can exist for the kinds of fabrics we use for clothing.  As such, styles recur in cycles of perhaps 30 years, with thin and thick ties, florals and stripes, trim and bulbous in dresses, mini to maxi skirts, pointed and blunted collar tips on shirts and blouses, broad lapels and tiny lapels, etc.. Most of what you have in your oldest closet or gave to charities from the 60’s and 70’s is now in vogue again. Never throw them out – you have a renaissance in your basement!

One aspect of style in pants, specifically in jeans, mainly blue jeans, that is “hot” now is the torn jean.  This style is a rather incomprehensible enigma.  In many ways it is aggravating. The corporate world love it of course.  The trend-setters foster it. The desperate consumers, especially the young, want to emulate and be seen as hip.  So holey jeans are in, for today. I find it amazing that the time and trouble to tear holes in jeans has become a contemporary “art form”.  When I was growing up, we felt badly if we had holes in any of our clothes.  Our parents found ways to sew the holes closed, to patch them just so, or otherwise camouflage these openings. We didn’t necessarily like the patches, but we didn’t want the holes.  Another curious thing about the current holey jeans epidemic is just how long can a well-holed pair of jeans last.  Surely, after one or two washes, one or two pull-on’s, or one or two rough outings, various holes will reach the critical limit of size or shape, and, voila, one has to either sew them and patch them, or throw them away.  Good for corporations, not good for cash starved young folks.

The holey period will pass.  What will follow for leggings is already well-along on some designers sketch book or alpha marketing. And, in temperate climes the holes would be uncomfortable on a winter’s day. What will be next? I doubt see-through tights will be the norm for males.  Perhaps leather chaps for all, although leather is not cheap, is hot, heavy, and rather constraining. In equatorial zones, no pants are the norm for obvious reasons.  Most of us are not so fortunate, and would be better off at least having a big swatch to cover our homely, bony knees.

Communication occurs within and between species through many verbal and non-verbal means. One fundamental piece of our good human fortune rests in the building blocks of language, the syllables, the words, the sentences, the thought-flow.  It is exhilarating to have this privilege of not only learning words and language, but also articulating such in clear and attractive ways to yourself and others.  It is not surprising the word games like Scrabble, Boggle and variants have been created and have flourished. The foundation of their popularity is our love of words, and the social interactions that arise from a few games of Scrabble in one’s family room, on the patio, in a tent or on a plane or train. There is always that element of competition in the word game……and bragging rights to high scores.

But what of the times you are alone, through no fault of your own, and you get an urge for a game of Scrabble.  Well, I have discovered two treasures that make the enjoyment of Scrabble at least as great for a single person as a group.  In fact, playing Scrabble solo has many features that are difficult to replicate with groups.  Playing Scrabble alone streamlines the game…..no choosing as to who goes first, no debate over the veracity of words, no pause between plays and refills, no turning of the board, no scoring.  The challenge of trying to fill the board on your own is like building a new master pattern of words you like or discover.  It is your own creation!  And it goes fast, so you always have time to play again, often back-to-back.

The second treasure that has entered our Scrabble lives is the scoreless game for two, or more.  So, my wife and I often will play a game in the evening or on weekends.  we always had scored until recently.  Our family is not shy about its interest in words and literary things, and there was always a pride in who among the parents and children ruled the Scrabble board…..a shifting dominance over time as the young minds expanded and the older minds involuted.  Yet, when we took a new approach to Scrabble, scoreless, a new game emerged.   All of the advantages of the solo game came alive, and the evolution of the word matrix was more spontaneous, original and rich. Scoreless Scrabble means you think about words, not scoring on certain board squares. The words come quicker and are more elaborate in their diversity and quality.  The focus turns to the words, not the scores.  We have been amazed by this version of Scrabble for its freshness and shared enjoyment in each other’s words.  Thus, instead of ruing the great word of the other Scrabble player at the table, one celebrates each word as part of a joint construction.  Call it community-minded Scrabble if you like.

Occasional reversions to scoring are great variants to ensure that we still know how to rack up points, but solo and dual scoreless Scrabble is here to stay in our household. For the love of words, try it.

As I am accustomed to do, I arose early today, grabbed a cup of coffee at McDonald’s, and got on the golf course before all but one soul.  Off the first tee at 6:45 am, I am instantly into a quiet arena of beauty……green against morning sunny sky, dew on the grass, a few crows patrolling their nests and seeking out others, and a pack of coyotes howling loudly in the underbrush of the tree-lined rough.  Nature at its best, with early greens-workers already hard at it, but little to distract one from shot to shot pleasure around a wide open vista of fairways and greens. One gets a chance to hit an occasional second ball, and to cheer to yourself when various putts drop in the cup.

There is a lot written about the “Zen” of golf….it is all true.  Whoever truly invented the game of golf, they had a magical idea.  There is little that matches the time on a verdant layout of challenging holes surrounded by nothing but fresh air, natural growth, and lacking in people in cars, on trolleys, on bikes or in planes.  The early morning also lacks those people who choose a motorized golf cart.  These carts, now often electric, can be non-obtrusive, but remind you of what is nearby on streets and freeways. and runways.

Golf at the crack of dawn soothes the senses and fortifies the heart. Four miles of walking, carrying ones small bag of sticks and balls, is a gift I only discovered a few years ago.  I am very thankful for this!

 

A few opening words on a little discussion that may go forward for many days ahead…..

For many years I have been accumulating reflections and ideas about life on this planet Earth that are just itching to get out to other humanoids.  So, starting today, and more extensively in the days to follow, I will be sharing perspectives, opinions, viewpoints and suggestions that I am lucky to share through this medium.  I hope that this story and the many little chapters in it will stimulate you the reader in helpful, positive, funny ways, even if sometimes a little irritatingly.

HEARTHOCK loves the Earth, the universe in which it hangs out, and all of the creatures that roam around around the surface of our glorious globe.  My views are personal. They are only intended to incite fresh thoughts or actions in regards to many challenges and opportunities that we face together.  I hope this will lead to new dialogues and will make you laugh out loud much more often than before.

Good eve!