Onward and upward. There are some cool things going on these days. Literally, we are going to catch a break from the winter heat we have been baking in and enjoy the last bit of cool down before the truly oppressive spring starts up. It is Spring Training time and the ballparks are filling up with the smell of peanuts, hotdogs, and cold beer. The seasoned citizens are out watching the young whippersnappers attempt to chase their dreams on the clay diamond. High school basketball is in the playoffs and parents and scouts are all watching to make sure the meal ticket performs like he/she is supposed to. Multiple festivals and events are popping up all over the area and there are things to do every night and through the weekend. Forget productivity, let’s go eat food, hang out with friends, and have a few drinks. I think there are 1200 5k’s in the next couple of weeks. We are doing one as a family tomorrow night. It will be fun. I had someone ask me how they thought we would do and I responded that we all would finish. He asked, “No, your time.” I answered, “As long as they will let go.” It’s for a worthy cause and I will treat it like I play golf. I tour the golf course and take in all aspects of the beauty that surrounds me. Tomorrow, we are “running” through downtown Winter Haven. If I was to run “fast” I might miss some of the great improvements, they have made in the area. If I slow my pace a bit, by occasionally walking, stopping to talk to people I might know, or grabbing a cool drink, I figure I can better take in the sights that will be available.
I was perusing through the multiple social media platforms the other day and it hit me at how quickly we go from post to post, picture to picture, and event to event. How many times do you actually just take the time to digest what is coming across your feed? Do you really read what is being posted? Click links to read the story? Probably not, right? Yeah, me neither most of the time. There was a time that I spent a lot of time just looking for cool things across the platforms, saving things I might want to use later, and then watching videos and reading articles. Nowadays, I scroll as fast as my fingers will get through most of the minutia that comes across. I know it won’t go away but I wonder if there will be a time that social media has become so tiresome that we will rebel a bit against the bullshit that is posted so frequently. Don’t get me wrong; I love seeing the cool stuff. Unlike many of the reports you get from the news, it doesn’t offend or affect me at all when I see cool pictures from awesome places that people share while traveling. I think it is great because maybe I will never have the opportunity to see those places and I am seeing it from a traveler or a tourist and not from a media campaign office. Seriously, how shallow are we that we would get jealous that someone is getting to have a beautiful trip? They may be independently wealthy, maybe they have saved for years for this experience, or heck, maybe they just said screw it; I want to see the world and don’t care about my future finances. It is not for us to judge but boy do we. Social media also let’s me know where everyone stands with their political, religious, sexual, and any other belief that someone can post about. Entertaining, eye opening, but never really offensive. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and now they have multiple billboards to post it on whenever they want to do so. Go for it!
To wrap it up for tonight I will finish with this bit of life and loss. If you were part of the Webber family at any time in the past 35 years or so you knew Lois. She was the switchboard operator, front desk guard, and mother to many who were away from home. If there was an issue, she was aware and if you had a problem she had a solution. She knew if you were going to get in trouble and there were times she was able to get you out of said trouble. I know she made great marks on my family. She was my dad’s first line of defense for many things on the campus, his travel coordinator, and eyes for him when he wasn’t around. She was all that for her family at Webber and but even more for her direct family. The love was apparent today during her Memorial service that I had the privilege to attend. It was a great service and was a chance to catch up with some long-lost Webber associates and alumni. Her loss will sting for a bit, but it was comforting to hear the stories from those there today to celebrate her life and from those across the world who posted their thoughts throughout the Facebook feeds that had popped up. Lastly, my dad and I were talking about Lois with her granddaughter, Holly. The consensus was that Lois was a bombshell in her younger days. We all new her as the grandma who took care of us, but none of knew her or saw evidence of her in her younger days. I am guessing she broke many a heart in her time. Holly was pretty funny discussing that part of her grandmother that she wasn’t even aware of until they found the pictures of proof while making the video montage. I guess that goes back to learning about people versus just scrolling through. Oh well, on to the next page.
Have a great weekend, do something that scares you, and go see something that makes you think out of your comfort zone. Have a blast and we will talk again on Sunday.
Photo by Mārtiņš Zemlickis on Unsplash
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
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