Got Steve Winwood’s voice in my ear while my fingers tip tap away on the keyboard but no talk about red or blue dresses here.
Listened to someone describe staying too long and briefly considered whether it applied to me too and then shrugged my shoulders because I am the joker in the deck.
You know the one that marches to the beat of a drummer but one step off of the rhythm causing mixed feelings and upsetting what people might think of as being true.
Some might ask if it is like Kathy’s Song where we would ask if all we once knew as true or if the only truth we knew is you.
Not sure how to answer it though I probably could if the need arose but for now I sit and consider possibilities and opportunities. Got a strong feeling that I know where things are heading and that it won’t matter whether I wait to walk forward or choose to do so today.
It makes no sense to think such things and yet it is the most sensible position to take during a time of great uncertainty and upheaval.
Who Is Silent & Who Is Not
I am cognizant of who is silent and who is not. Who speaks out and who does not and what is said when they do.
Got reason to wonder if the silence from some comes from them knowing we stand upon opposite sides and wonder if it is worth trying to prick the bubble.
Maybe it is because I think if they were open to a real discussion of the facts and history they might adopt a more nuanced position but who knows if that really matters.
Most of my time is spent focused on trying to identify the best places to use my skills to try to leverage change in thoughts, ideas and positions.
Too many people don’t understand what never again is now means and why that is important. Some of them don’t care to understand or see any need.
Some don’t want to understand and some would watch and or cheer if they saw us loaded onto trains.
My belief is there are more good than bad people and that many prefer to stay ensconced in their daily cocoons because it is warm and safe there.
Those I want to reach could be classified as the Independents or at least similar to that because we need all we can gather to help push back against the tide of propaganda and hate.
Musical Interlude
The younger Mr. Wilner introduced me to the video embedded just above. Both of us love music and find ourselves looking for soundtracks and scores for movies, television or games that we can talk about.
We dig into the layers and discuss how various elements add or subtract from moments.
We’ll put on our headphones and listen for the layers and consider how the pieces are constructed and built into a giant tapestry of sound.
Your Protective Voice
The younger Mr. Wilner is well attuned to my voice and usually picks up on minor tonal intonations and or gestures.
He overheard me talking and said I had my protective voice going. Later on he saw me working on the computer and said he figured I was hunting after information tied to whatever I had been talking about.
I laughed and nodded my head.
“You’d be surprised how much you can find online. Sometimes I dig for information for projects I am working on or expect to be working on.”
I showed him a LinkedIn profile and told him that people could generally see if you had checked out a profile and to be aware of that.
“Sometimes you might be researching a company or a person and want to gather information but not want them to know you are looking. There are all sorts of reasons why that might be.”
He asked if there are times we want people to know we clicked on a profile and I nodded my head.
“Sometimes. Depends on what it is. Sometimes I want people to know I have noticed them but there is no guarantee they will check their profile and know this.
Most of the time if I check out a profile I probably don’t want them to know because I am doing research on a company and am not looking for a conversation. It is just background information I am gathering.”
****
I am trying to temper my consumption of news and places I visit online. The amount of antisemitism that is floating around is being dished out by people who swear they aren’t doing it is pretty high.
More than once I have asked people to say the same thing but instead of saying “Israeli” or “Jew” to substitute it with another nationality or religion.
Several have told me they think it is ridiculous but I expect I am reaching a few people. I know in several cases I have been blocked because I was relentless in demanding they respond to facts with facts.
They didn’t want to admit they had been cornered so it was easier to try and get rid of me. Sometimes I was engaged more because of the lurkers than because of the person I was speaking with.
I have a pretty thick skin and some of what I am seeing/hearing isn’t new to me so it doesn’t shock me. But we all have limits and I can only absorb so much of the poison before I need to take a break to refresh and recharge.
I worry more about others. I worry about the children in school at all levels because it has been pretty nasty and social media is an area in which many of them wander without adults.
My journey has exposed me to videos in which I have seen people brutalized and murdered as well as the after effects.
My sleep has been interrupted a little bit by it all but overall I am ok. I told my own children to be cautious in their online journeys, It is hard enough to accept they are seeing things I didn’t see when I was their age, I want to moderate it a bit if I can.
So much of this moment in time is based upon instinct and life experience. I am confident we’ll get to the other side as we always do, but what happens between now and then could be ugly.
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