Yesterday, when we visited a local medical center for a brief appointment, my wife and me were subjected to a "nonsense" TV show, and I won't mention the specific name because I refuse to promote it with any publicity. It featured - and don't think that I intently watched it; it was loud enough and on a big screen television hung high on the wall, all of it a deterrent to peaceful waiting -- ego-driven drivel, a sexual scene...I won't go further.
To each his own, I guess, but why would the staff at the center "entertain" visitors in this manner? Also, it's shame those on the show have such a forum to showcase themselves and their nonsense. Luckily our time there was limited. I wonder what kind of welcome it would be if a shelving of books, inspirational books, were instead waiting for visitors to select from? Rather than have to listen to the noise and view garbage emanating from the big screen, customers could sit in calm, rather than be irritated and insulted by a television show, and enjoy inspirational words of great authors. Just my opinion. Steve
0 Comments
I have often posted in this blog about the beauty and wonder of nature on my property. However, this past week I visited a neighbor who engaged in me in a discussion about fishing and, as we talked, a chipmunk scooted around his driveway. The little critter visits his property often, sipping the excess water from his coolers following his lake and sea excursions.
"Yeah," he said, "I see him often. He takes off into the ground near my drain." I then mentioned to him that I also have not just one chipmunk on my property, but two, they feasting on the cracked corn treat I leave for the many birds. "My" chipmunks have created a hole near out outdoor central air conditioning platform, and deftly make their way towards and dive into the tiny opening when they sense my presence in the side yard. As we continued to talk, a bright red sparrow landed on a thin limb of a bush near the front of my neighbor's tiny home, about 10 yards away from us. "Ah," I said, "there he is. I see him all the time." "Oh yeah," my neighbor responded. "He visits me every time I'm out here." Conversation ensuing, the cardinal looked at us, cocked its head a few times, as if knowing we were speaking about him. I also wondered, as we made eye contact, if this was the same cardinal that I in the past have written about in prior blog posts, the one I refer to as my Guardian Angel. The red cardinal: a beautiful bird. Finally, something tiny and black moved quickly around a nearby bush, appearing and disappearing quickly. "Hey," I asked, "was that a mouse?" "Yeah, it might have been a mouse -- or maybe a mole." I agreed with his latter assertion, my neighbor much more knowledgeable about the outdoors than me. "I've seen a lot of things around here: skunks, opossum." He concluded, saying while smiling, "I have my own nature preserve right here." There are those who I coin "nature experts;" they have studied the outdoors and bask in the joy of seeing even the tiniest creature. Then there are others, like me, who lack much knowledge but are excited to see specimens on their parcel of land, and sometimes take to books to learn more. I am currently reading a book by Edwin Way Teale, perhaps the most informative and entertaining writer of nature. As I read his words, his description of the flora that he spots, the sounds of bird calls, the "pictures he paints" of the many different types of animals he sees, and -- and this really fascinated me -- detailing in southern Florida how a tiny plant was growing in a drainage ditch, it puts me at peace. My wife and I have planned soon to purchase a park bench and place it at corner spot in our yard, so that we can sip coffee and converse even on the warmest and coldest days while enjoying our own "nature preserve." Steve Instant gratification is sometimes adorned with poor labels, discouraged in lieu of waiting for true satisfaction.
"Delay the gratification" is trumpeted by many swell-minded individuals who have either read or lived the advice -- and I don't disagree. For in or example, as someone who exercises and does my best to eat properly six days a week, and waits until Sunday to indulge (or, more so, over-indulge), I get it. For example, a bacon, egg, and cheese on a huge bagel is not something I'd sink my teeth into during the week, but on Sunday... The definition of instant gratification, courtesy of my daughter Stefanie, casually: Instant Gratification isn't something to fall into or, more specifically, spend money on all the time. Though tempting to quickly opt for, it is something to not always give in (to), because there is something better waiting down the road. We are programmed to not want to wait for things anymore. People have less patience and less interest in working toward something. Amen, #1 daughter. However, this recently made me think. What if there were something that was beneficial and could be instantly gratifying? Is there harm in that, maybe? For example, during a recent trip to Montclair State University's Sprague Library, calling to me were the new rules that community members can now charge out a maximum of ten books, renewal of the items also approvable. So, attempting to satisfy my reading "bug" of nature, poetry, and memoir, I selected two of the first, two of the second, and a single volume of the third genre. That's five books, charged out to a guy who always advises people to never take out more books than they can read in a four- week period! Instant gratification, yes? The books are a bit aged and all are hardcover, exactly the type I prefer, and after placing them on my nightstand when I arrived home, I was mildly euphoric. But there was a dilemma: how to concentrate on the one I was reading while I knew four more were waiting in a pile to be digested? Easily solved. I read a little bit of each book per night. While as a reader I realize that concentration of one many-paged collection of worthwhile literature is enjoyable and necessary, the method I chose kept me busy reading, and I learned much more than I would have if just reading one at a time. I don't advocate my method if not for you, but for me it did make my instant gratification good instead of detrimental. Try it -- maybe -- sometime. Steve |
Steve Sears is a New Jersey based freelance writer
Archives
February 2024
Categories |