The Cappy this morning (as I havent seen her in nearly a week):

"Where the HELL have you been??"

Around. Not dead. Just around.
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Nothing happened.. but this line from "Third Rock from the Sun" has me cracking up today ...

".. when the car flew into the air, my life flashed before my eyes, and I discovered I had this RAGING urge to *live*.
When the car landed, I thought '..and HEY, these pants are washable..' "

Heheh. :-)
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Conversations with Ma over the weekend...

Ma: "You look sad."
Me: "Im just tired Ma. Then I get over it when I realize its a long haul, and Im just startin'.."
Ma: "Yeah, but you still need to make some money."
Me, realizing that Im nearing the age when Ma got divorced and had to move 4 kids to another country and start a new life over 20 years ago
Me: "When I turned 30, its like someone took blinders off my eyes, and I went "There's more?????" You, went through all that after my age. It gets HARDER??"
Ma: "I told you that all the time, but you didnt believe me."

She loves Being Right. :-)

The Long Haul.
People throw adulation at the Successful People, but the real heroes are the ones who maintain and achieve over the Long Haul.

And I havent even started yet.

Whoa.

Ma and I rarely see eye to eye, but slowly Im starting to understand.

I owe my parents, big-time.
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Ma: "You need to move back into New York. Your life is too stagnant living out in New Jersey. You realize havent had regular work since you left New York last year??"

(New Yorkers rarely say Staten Island and New York in the same breath. Ergo, I left New York.)

She's right.

Although it was primarily because it is a hellacious task simply finding living space in NY.. Im starting to wonder for what earthly reason Im living on this side of the river.

On a lark, I walked across the Bayonne Bridge from Bayonne to Staten Island. (whooooo... Gah. I was reminded that this is the worlds longest Arch span bridge.. and it is high enough to allow ocean-going super-freighters to go underneath. It is also *high*. Damn, that was a climb.).

I crossed the bridge, walking that mile and a half over to the New York side..

I hopped on a bus to the Staten Island Ferry, then took a train into Brooklyn. All for a buck fifty.

I can go everywhere in New York for a buck fifty.

Why am I in $^#%#@ New Jersey again?
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The real basis for great achievement is daily, humble work within the framework of a profession.
- Jean Renoir

Yar.. your work over the long haul.