Day: May 4, 2023

Tranquil Thursday — Fear, Anxiety, and Anger

Fandango6 Comments

Maggie, at From Cave Walls, has this Tranquil Thursday prompt in which she selects a topic and welcomes us to post a photo, poem, prose, thought, or memory related to the topic. She chose the word “tranquil” because she thinks a little peace is always welcome.

In this week’s edition, Maggie wants to know…

How have fear, anxiety, and anger played a role in your life and how have you managed those responses?

Maggie wrote, “I do recognize and feel anxiety and fear, especially in the constant onslaught of news around us. So many mental health professionals tell us to turn off the news and control what gets in to our protected circle.”

I can relate to what Maggie wrote and I, too, have cut back significantly on how much news I take in. Frankly, I am happy that I’m an old fart because I know I won’t be around long enough to see the worst of my fears — the collapse of the American democracy — come to fruition. At least I hope not. Unfortunately, given what is happening in this country, I fear that it’s only a matter of time before that happens.

And what causes me a lot of anxiety is that the inmates at the asylum have taken over one of the two major political parties in the U.S. and the leaders of that political party are wannabe fascist dictators who’d just as soon stomp on democracy.

And it angers me that so many on the right seem to be gullible lemmings who are embracing religious and political ideologies of the far-right, including taking away women’s health care and reproductive rights and LBGT rights, white nationalism, Christian nationalism, arming everyone, and taking no action on climate change.

As I mentioned earlier, like Maggie, I have cut back on watching or reading the news. It’s too damn depressing. But at the same time, I can’t put my head completely in the sand and ignore what is happens. I guess cutting back helps a little because my blood pressure rises when I watch, read, or listen to the news, and it helps keep my blood pressure at reasonable levels most of the time.

Still, I fear for the futures of my grandkids. I am anxious about the kind of world they will inherit from us. And I am angry that Republican representatives at the federal, state, and local levels seem to care more about the National Rifle Association and about gun manufacturers than they do about our school age children.

I suppose, to answer Maggie’s question, I haven’t managed my fear, anxiety, and anger very well.

Thursday Inspiration — Pretty Woman

Fandango6 Comments

For this week’s Thursday Inspiration prompt, Jim Adams has instructed us to respond to this challenge by either using the prompt word woman, or going with the above picture, or by means of the song “I’m Every Woman,” or by going with another song by Chaka Khan, or anything else that we think fits.

The first thing that came to my mind was Roy Orbison’s classic hit song, “Oh, Pretty Woman.” Written by Orbison and Bill Dees, “Oh, Pretty Woman” spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 1964. The record ultimately sold seven million copies and was ranked the number four song that year.

Orbison was writing with his songwriting partner, Bill Dees, at his house when he told Dees to get started writing by playing anything that came to mind. Orbison’s wife, Claudette, came into the room and said she was going to go into town to buy something. Orbison asked if she needed any money, and Dees cracked, “Pretty woman never needs any money.” Inspired, Orbison started singing, “Pretty woman walking down the street.”

The song tells the story of a man who sees a pretty woman walking by. He yearns for her and wonders if, as beautiful as she is, she might be lonely like he is. At the last minute, she turns back and joins him. It was eventually the basis for the 1990 film, “Pretty Woman,” starring Richard Gere and Julia Roberts.

Here are the lyrics to “Oh, Pretty Woman.”

Pretty woman, walkin’ down the street
Pretty woman the kind I like to meet 
Pretty woman I don’t believe you, you’re not the truth
No one could look as good as you, mercy

Pretty woman won’t you pardon me
Pretty woman I couldn’t help but see
Pretty woman that you look lovely as can be
Are you lonely just like me

Pretty woman stop awhile
Pretty woman talk awhile
Pretty woman give your smile to me
Pretty woman yeah, yeah, yeah
Pretty woman look my way
Pretty woman say you’ll stay with me
‘Cause I need you, I’ll treat you right
Come with me baby, be mine tonight

Pretty woman don’t walk on by
Pretty woman don’t make me cry
Pretty woman don’t walk away, hey, okay
If that’s the way it must be, okay
I guess I’ll go on home, it’s late
There’ll be tomorrow night, but wait
What do I see?
Is she walkin’ back to me?
Yeah, she’s walkin’ back to me
Oh, oh, pretty woman

WDP — Nautically Speaking

Fandango4 Comments
Daily writing prompt
Do you have a quote you live your life by or think of often?
View all responses

There’s an expression I frequently use to let people know that they should do whatever it is that brings them joy, works best for them, or helps them make it through the day. That expression is, “Whatever floats your boat.”

There’s a corollary to go along with that expression, one that I believe these days is equally important. That is “…as long as it doesn’t sink mine,” which means that just because something works for you doesn’t mean it’s going to work for me. In other words, you do you, let me do me.

There’s another expression I use that references boats.

My version of this expression is, “There’s no such thing as a hole in your end of the boat.” It basically means that we’re all in this together and if we don’t work together, we’re going to collectively fail.

I do try to live my life by these two quotes. I wish more people did.

FOWC with Fandango — Fanatic

Fandango17 Comments
FOWC

Welcome to Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (aka, FOWC). I will be posting each day’s word just after midnight Pacific Time (U.S.).

Today’s word is “fanatic.”

Write a post using that word. It can be prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction. It can be any length. It can be just a picture or a drawing if you want. No holds barred, so to speak.

Once you are done, tag your post with #FOWC and create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. Please check to confirm that your pingback is there. If not, please manually add your link in the comments.

And be sure to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this prompt. Show them some love.