Moving From Abundance to Pandemic

March 21, 2009 By

northamerican2

Peggy Noonan, a former speechwriter for Ronald Reagan (Challenger explosion, most memorable, “slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God”) writes for the Wall Street Journal and a week ago wrote about a type of depression and anxiety she senses in the country that doesn’t have an appropriate pharmaceutical as a remedy.

People are buying more guns, she reports–going to church more and increasingly reporting to at least one mental health provider that they are depressed and anxious.

She talked to bankers, psychiatrists, writers, friends and hears fear.   Not the white knuckle variety of last Fall she observes but the drip drip drip of realizing that an era has ended and is not coming back.

After listening to a psychiatrist talk about how when we move into a new home we always realize the importance of our previous environment, Ms. Noonan called our present home, “PostPosterity” and our old home, “Abundance”.  The psychiatrist called it a “psychological pandemic of fear”.

Yikes.  I was feeling…well, fearful before I read that but now? I’ve got to rewrite my series on fear to “Fear, The Pandemic”? Wait a moment while I try to beat back the pandemic.  I’m going to go and reread the Challenger speech.

(cue Jeopardy music)

Ok. I’m back. So, before you go out and buy a gun, or go to church (god forbid) or steal my little blue pills, let me point out that Peggy might want to do two things.

One: reread her old speeches.

“The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave.”

And, I’d just add this one little addition: it belongs to the brave and to those with a sense of humor. (I’ve only got the latter going for me)

Then, Ms. Noonan, I’d suggest one more thing: watch Obama on Leno.

The President is cleary not fainthearted AND he’s got a sense of humor.

Two for two.

RX for Pandemic: Watch tape of this show once a day with meals until further notice.

Or, if your readers don’t care for Leno (clearing throat sound) then how about suggesting that they might want to think about a photo of Mrs. Obama planting herbs and veggies on the White House lawn on their frig. She’s better looking than that one of Bernie Madoff with a target on his forehead and it makes us ol’ fear’d up girls and boys calm down.

Who knows, maybe these prescriptions could reduce overall faintheartedness,  Smith and Wesson’s sales, and save our arthritic knees from too much of that church kneelin’ and swayin’.

©Pat Coakley 2009

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Filed Under: ANXIETY, ANXIETY 2.0, Creativity, Events, fear, FEAR THE SERIES, FINANCES, Humor, Life, Personal, Photography Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hot Seat with Rug

March 8, 2009 By

chairs

I figure if we are going to think about reaching out to the Taliban, we might as well think about it from here.  We can put our drinks and snack bowl on the rock, rest our feet on the rug (so as not to get the chair dirty), shoo away any feral cats with the tree branch and just let our thoughts fly through the trees like morning doves.

©Pat Coakley 2009

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Filed Under: ANXIETY, ART IS WHERE YOU FIND IT, Creativity, Events Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Anxiety 2.0

February 27, 2009 By

twoponds1

Anxiety 2.0 is the only way to describe the end of the fifth month of economic  uncertainty.  I’ve heard of Web 2.0 and HTML 2.0—-supposedly a second generation of the original software, new and improved.

Trying to think about the future with one’s head and not one’s stomach is the phrase on a prepackaged birthday greeting card from a mutual fund company sent to me recently.  As impersonal as it was, it is a good phrase.  Anxiety 1.0 was all stomach. Anxiety 2.0, in place since the Inauguration, appears to be more head, but, honestly…?  It could be numbness, too.   I can’t tell which.

But, I do remember that some of the pundits who are wringing their hands today at the sweep of the new budget and the seismic jolt it is sending through Wall Street, medical insurance companies, and political ends of the spectrum,  were once also wondering aloud if President Obama was going to be able to strike big enough, boldly enough AND soon enough (they made a big point of that) in order to produce America 2.0.

Well, put a check mark by that big bold and fast thing, would you?

And, better fasten your seat belts, while you’re at it.  I voted for change, America.  52% of us did.  And, the candidate of the other 48% said he was a  “change” candidate, too.

Well, here it is brothers and sisters– this change thing.

And, leaving aside the total “in the tank” belief I have for the guy,  I am also hoping that a little of that change comes my way so I can live through this birthing of America 2.0 with my head and not my stomach.

But, hey.  Let’s look on the bright side.  Anxiety meds just got cheaper.

©Pat Coakley 2009

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Filed Under: 1, Deep Thoughts, Events, Historical events Tagged With: , , , ,

All Eyes On Washington, DC

January 18, 2009 By

alleyesarewatchingdct

This is the third in my “Driving to the Inaugural” series.  I am driving from my computer with the assistance of memory and past images and television and internet. Triple A doesn’t have road service for this journey even though I have a premium membership.  Here are the others in the series:

Day One

Day Two

____________________________________________________________

One could be persuaded by the smiles of the crowds and the President Elect that there is only joy and hope riding the rails into Washington, DC.

The washington post.com reports this morning that homeland security folks, FBI are bedding down in government buildings in order to not get caught in gridlock.

It also reports that when he was nominated in Denver, the Secret Service made the largest order of bulletproof glass in its history.

“The service requested about 5 tons of “transparent armor,” laminated with four layers of virtually unbreakable plastic to resist chemicals, flames and multiple gunshots.

When Obama is sworn in as the nation’s 44th president Tuesday, the ballistic shield will provide a final layer of safety in a massive exercise in presidential security, the culmination of two years of a steady ratcheting up of the protection around Obama to a level unseen for any of his predecessors.”

This moment is complicated in its joy. Fearful in its hope.  But, we as a nation have been here before.   Lincoln’s journey  to Washington for his inaugural was done under threats of secession as well as threats to his life.  He and his family were forced to make the anticipated change of trains necessary back then to continue on to Washington in the cloak of darkness when a creditable threat surfaced at the scheduled change station.

These fears and complications we feel today are the transparent layers of our past as well as our future.

©Pat Coakley 2009

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Filed Under: 2009, Creativity, Events, History, Inauguration, Inspiration, Life, Personal, Photography, The Inauguration Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Light in Novembho

November 10, 2008 By

amatteroflight-copy

Artists talk about morning light, late afternoon light, dappled light…let’s us, just you and me, talk of Novembho 2008 light.

A minute before I took this photograph, this landscape contained the same tree, benches, grass, athletic field, background trees and cloudy sky.

I was there, a witness, looking at the tree, admiring its singularity, yet affected most by its isolation–and yet this lonely tree was surrounded by the promise of companionship–the picnic tables.

In a few hours, I thought to myself, there may be a family sitting there with wrapped peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with children running to and from the tree to the table, or even perhaps, in a few minutes, since it’s around 7:30 AM, there may be an elderly man walking his dog and he’ll come by and sit down to rest next to the tree.

Yes, I was simply a witness to Man, Dog, Tree, Family, Photographer, all of us there under cloudy skies until no word of a lie Novembho light broke through the clouds and lit us up like a roman candle.

Click.

©PAT COAKLEY 2008

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Filed Under: Creativity, ELECTION 2008, Events, Family, Inspiration, Personal, Photography, Politics, The Single Life Tagged With: , , , , ,

One Giant Step

November 5, 2008 By

nasa4-earth-moon-1

Not since this moment in 1969 have I felt quite like this.

Never have I/we needed it more.

But, this time.  This time?

The whole world seems to feel more like Neil Armstrong than a bystander looking up.

To be sure, this morning we begin our journey back to gravity and those Earth problems haven’t changed.

But, they seem more soluble as we shake moon dust off our shoes and sandals, and in my case, my 8 year old black Merrells.

They look brand new, people.

Brand freakin’ new.

©Pat Coakey 2008

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Filed Under: change, Creativity, ELECTION, ELECTION 2008, Events, Government, Historical events, History, Inspiration, Life, News, PHOTO BLOGGING, Photography, SCIENCE, Space Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Ohio 18 Wheeler

November 4, 2008 By

ohio

Let’s just say, I turned the TV on and this truck is now called my Ohio 18 wheeler.

©Pat Coakley 2008

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Filed Under: Creativity, ELECTION, ELECTION 2008, Events, History, Life, Photography Tagged With: , , , , ,

In the Bunker

October 13, 2008 By

I don’t have a dog.  I also don’t have a cat.  Or birds.  I was at a party this weekend where the owners had so many birds in their bathroom I was waiting for Alfred Hitchcock as I washed my hands.

They also had an afghan dog the size of a small horse walking around who was eye level with the buffet table.  He appeared to be deliberately walking nonchalantly by the table (Ok, I could be wrong about that but it did occur to me) and with each pass would cock his head to the side and give a tongue test to the goodies on the edge of the table.

I decided to eat anything near the centerpiece.

I stayed with people who had three dogs and I worried that when I got up early in the morning and went into the kitchen, I’d set them all to barking.  But, none did.  One of them, named Satchel, is a large dog who may have “doodle” in its breed name but I’m not 100% sure since that could be the other one.  Anyway, this creme colored large dog lumbered in and stuck his soft snout in my hand and said good morning.

His bedroom is their beautiful expensive couch.  He has very long legs which he somehow folds up into a nest that cradles him on the soft sofa like a large center pillow–which is what I thought “he” was when I walked by until his head flew up to take notice of my passing.

I took pictures of him outside and then the other dogs came out and I took a few more pictures.  One of them, who come to think of it, may be the one with doodle in his breed name, didn’t run as much as spring from place to place.  I would change his breed name from “doodle” to “spring doodle”. ( I wish my template for this blog allowed for additional photos–are you listening WordPress?)

The dog on top of this post saw a squirrel shortly after I took his picture and went jetting out to give chase.

I don’t know the name of the dog or its breed but when I saw this expression, I saw myself.

“Living in a bunker” is how I have described these past weeks of headline stomach churning days.

This is how it looks (and I looked) writing my blog each day, except the dog, and this gives me no pleasure to admit this–the dog is much cuter.

©Pat Coakley 2008

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Filed Under: Creativity, Events, Humor, Personal, PHOTO BLOGGING, Photography, The Single Life Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Still Breathing, The Series

September 30, 2008 By

We have a choice.

Allow gravity to get the better of us or jump high enough to orbit around it.

I choose the latter.

What about you?

My vehicle to gravity free living?

Creativity.

I am going to devote part of the day to working on my version of “Failure, The World Tour”.  I wish I had Epicurienne’s knowledge of food so I could pull out a fancy name for turning lemons into some heavenly poofy tasty dessert.

But, you get the drift, don’t you?  And, more importantly, do you want to join me?

Yes, a series.  A most important one.

How do you turn yourself away from doom and gloom?  What do you do to get above it all?  To get perspective?  To see the big picture?  To discover that you are not entirely of this material world?

Words or Images, please.

For example, If I didn’t already have this photo, I would have taken a photo of a piece of glass after I had expelled one or two breaths on it.  The transient fog/smoke on the glass I would have titled, “Still Breathing”.

Hence, the name of this series, “Still Breathing”.

All together now.

Breathe in through your nose.  Hold.

Slowly breathe out through your mouth.

Repeat until you agree to do something for this series, OK?

©Pat Coakley 2008

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Filed Under: Creativity, Events, FINANCES, Life, Media, Money, Personal, Photography, The Single Life Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A Visit to The Old North Church

September 26, 2008 By

A short walk from the Italian restaurants and bakeries of the North End of Boston, I sat in a pew at the Old North Church.  Yes, there was that Paul Revere oneth by land, twoeth by sea light signaling business from the top of the church that ushered in the American Revolution but, first things first, this high sided box pew made me feel safe and protected for a few minutes yesterday.

As our republic goes through its current economic and political crisis, I find it excruciating to read or listen to one more word about it.  The difference between me and Sarah Palin?  I know when I’m clueless.

So, yesterday, I went to visit a spot that helped give birth to our country in search of I don’t know what.   I sat down in one wooden box pew toward the back and looked at the tourists filming the chandeliers, the windows, the balcony.   A young man was at the front of the church giving a five minute talk about the church and its historical significance.  He was on speed delivery as there was a private event starting in five minutes and all of us had been warned that the church was going to close to the public for an hour and half.

I liked my pew.  It made me feel safe.  The sides were high and felt a bit like a small ship berthed in port.  The sense of safety came from the sheer presence of history around me.  It was built in 1723 and some of the marks on the floor appeared very old indeed.  It had endured.  We as a nation had endured.  I thought about ducking down and sitting on the floor while everyone left and the private event started.

I would have except if I got down on to the floor, I  was not absolutely confident  I could get back up on my own which is when my fleeting moment of safety and protection vanished.

This is pretty much how I feel about everything right at the moment.

I left the pew along with all the other camera toting visitors and went out to find me a big ol’ cannoli.

©Pat Coakley 2008

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Filed Under: 1, Boston, Culture, Events, FINANCES, History, Life, Media, Money, Personal, Photography, Politics Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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