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 By Argile Stox Mar. 27, 2006 Well, every person who walks this planet has their opinions and Useless-Knowledge Magazine serves everyone very well. I really do not remember how I stumbled on this site; the only thing I remember is that I wrote an article and the editor published it. To tell you the truth, when my first article appeared on this website – I almost fell off my chair. Realistically, I am just a guy who wrote a book about a very hard year in my life; it was printed, and some people read it. Big deal! However, seeing my thoughts published on an Internet web site - just blew me away. Yeah, I know – I’m a liberal, former New Yorker, and a royal pain in the posterior. However, it is very rare to find a web site that will publish your thoughts. I try to keep my articles like a Chinese menu (one from column “A” and one from column ‘B” – LOL!), and have tried very hard to keep some humor streaking through serious topics. I wake up in the morning and I think to myself, “What can I write about today that will make some people laugh and others spit nails?” Yeah, believe it or not – besides attending to immediate bodily functions, I try to compose an article in my head, first thing in the morning. I’m not kidding! There are days when I come up dry. There is absolutely nothing to write about. And then there are days that I have to edit a fourteen page diatribe about a certain topic to meet the criteria and approval of the editor. Now that I have the dictation program about 65% functional, the spoken word instantly appears on the computer monitor screen. Before the dictation program, these fat, long, and misshapen fingers would pound on the keyboard – and I would be editing as I was composing the article and I would lose my train of thought. The dictation program captures about 65% of my words correctly. Yeah, I still have to edit –but now the words splash on the screen perfectly spelled. There are times when the program cannot distinguish my New York accent –However, I am just amazed to see my spoken word appear on the computer screen. Sometimes I feel like “Scottie” from the old Star Trek Series, giving verbal commands to the ships mainframe computer. I don’t know how, when, or why this website was created. However, I am really happy that it exists on the web. In the past year or so I have seen contributing columnists come on strong, write a column every day, go nuts when their opinion is not accepted by a few individuals, and then the infuriated columnist unplugs the keyboard –and leaves. I have had my disagreements with other contributing columnists –and some of the discussions spilled over into e-mails. That was great, because we were able to have a private debate and it was just between us. There were times when I would not budge from my position, and the other columnists wouldn’t budge from their position. OK, I know when to quit and move on. Friendships are like that. For a few years everything is great, everyone gets along well and you really enjoy a having that person(s) in your life. Then, the inevitable happens – a disagreement (something really dumb and obvious) begins to shred the friendship – like termites feasting on a load bearing wall in your home, and like a virus - slowly begins to upset the natural order of things. Well, I guess that’s good too. Sometimes, people need to get away from each other, expand their horizons, meet new people, learn new things, etc. Then, one nondescript day, the two individuals (or group of individuals) bump into each other. Oh, no! – Then the emotions start to creep in. Your mind discovers that you really missed that individual. For one split second, the friendship can be given a new life, or it can stay dead. It is up to the individuals –in that split second, to decide if the friendship should be resurrected. I have lost count how many times I was totally unprepared and was confronted by that exact situation, and had to make that split second intellectual / emotional decision. In that moment of time, that intellectual / emotional decision is the only thing that is happening in the world. If eye contact is made, each individual appears like a mannequin to the average onlooker. Who makes the first move? Should you even acknowledge that the other person is there, right in front of you? Do you very casually walk over to the person and ease your hand into the handshake position - very slowly, to take the pulse of the friendship that is in a coma? I have been there, I have done that. Dear Reader, how many times has that happened to you? To make matters worse –imagine you’re in a store and you spot a relative who you can’t stand, and haven’t spoken too in years. It doesn’t even have to be a relative; it could be an old girl / boyfriend, teacher, the dry cleaner that you no longer bring your clothes to the shop to be cleaned. Sitting here dictating the above scenarios - has me reaching for the anti-acids. The social situation mentioned above happens very infrequently. However, when it does happen, you just want to take out your communicator and say, “Scotty! Beam Me Up Quick!” Your eyes quickly scan the environment. Has that person seen you? Can you become an illusionist –and disappear? Then, another thought hits your brain, “What if the other person observed you –and is playing possum?” Now, what do you do? All of the situations I have mentioned above have occurred in real life. When a contributing columnist decides to quit writing on this or any forum and goes someplace else, it is like a coworker at your workplace - shaking everyone’s hands as they leave the business for the last time. Yeah, that person will be missed. However, if you subscribe to the chaos theory –someone will eventually make their presence known, who will remind you of the individual who left the office a week, month, or year ago. That new person could be even worse than the other individual who left! Imagine, wishing that the individual who quit the business – didn’t quit, and was still there? Dear Reader – Come-on, admit it! You know exactly what I am talking about – LOL! The person you really miss - is the one that has suddenly died. That person may have been a real pain in the posterior, and on occasions - caused your brain to implode, or was just someone who you just did not like. The person is now dead and you wonder if you should have gotten to known that person better. For another split second - you might grieve or rejoice. It just depends on the value you placed on that individual, or what type of day you were having. I wish our departing contributing columnist all the best. It is my hope that he will find an audience that will warmly embrace his thought patterns. In the meantime, I am going to open up a can of grape soda, salute him –and wish him all the luck in the world. ------------ Email Argile Stox: argilestox@gmail.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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