Navin R. Johnson Well I’m gonna to go then! And I don’t need any of this. I don’t need this stuff, and I don’t need *you*. I don’t need anything. Except this.
And that’s the only thing I need is *this*. I don’t need this or this. Just this ashtray… And this paddle game. – The ashtray and the paddle game and that’s all I need… And this remote control. – The ashtray, the paddle game, and the remote control, and that’s all I need… And these matches. – The ashtray, and these matches, and the remote control, and the paddle ball… And this lamp. – The ashtray, this paddle game, and the remote control, and the lamp, and that’s all *I* need. And that’s *all* I need too. I don’t need one other thing, not one… I need this. – The paddle game and the chair, and the remote control, and the matches for sure. Well what are you looking at? What do you think I’m some kind of a jerk or something! – And this. That’s all I need. [walks outside] The ashtray, the remote control, the paddle game, and this magazine, and the chair. And I don’t need one other thing, except my dog.
[His dog $#!+head growls at him] …I don’t need my dog.
Steve Martin in The Jerk
We just finished the six month of the year. It wasn’t easy, but it still beats last year’s 365 days of 15 days to flatten the curve.
Six months in. Six treatments down.
A lot to think about. So, I’ve been looking around and thinking about the stuff that I really need.
There’s not a lot.
But what I need is a far different list than what I want.
Some days I’m channeling my inner Navin R. Johnson.
DISCLAIMER: Before you read on, I feel that I must assure you that this is not an “I’m giving away all of my stuff because I’m checking out” post. At least not anytime soon according to my plans.
Long time readers, which I hope is both of you, will know that over the last few weeks I’ve been talking about simplifying things.
The reality is that with the current treatment, I just don’t have a lot of energy. So for now at least I’ve put aside working in theater and working in the amusement park.
Following the end of my treatment we have a week scheduled at the beach where I’ll Ponder [My Three Words] about what my next steps are…if and when I return.
We don’t have to make that decision today.
I’ve also talked about the need to clear the clutter from my home office. Don’t get me wrong. I love the space. I have all of my important things surrounding me.
That’s the problem. Too many of those things are deemed important.
When I was setting up to do virtual Santa visits last season, I rearranged my office three times before I got a workable configuration.
Mug Shots
The solution I came up with worked, and I had multiple happy visits. But it was also a little, or a lot, claustrophobic. When I set up the blue screen and sat in my Santa chair, was trapped.
There was no going anywhere, and I do mean anywhere, without disassembling something.
Have I mentioned that I’m a man with prostate issues?
If you know, you know.
So, amongst my summer goals, or at least amongst the ones I think are achievable, is a plan to clear out my office. To get rid of the things I don’t need.
I have boxes of scripts that are soon going to theater storage. At the time we moved out of our building, it made sense for me to store them. It no longer does.
But there are also boxes of my own theater materials, boxes of props, boxes of writing materials, and just boxes of stuff. Stuff that might or might not have meaning.
Monday evening I attacked a couple of boxes. I was brutal.
I threw away trinkets. I threw away programs from conventions and briefings that I put together some thirty years ago in Washington.
If my family is reading this, I need to let them know that I didn’t keep every card and letter. I did re-read them all and kept some special ones.
I kept a sampling of the work from DC.
Like the program from the legislative briefing following the first Gulf War when George H.W.Bush said “By God, we kicked the Vietnam syndrome.”
I did not, however, keep the “I survived the Clinton Administration” button.
But, for the record, I do NOT have information that will lead to the arrest of Hillary Clinton.
I made some tough decisions, and I had more to make.
And here’s why you need the disclaimer at the top.
I realized that I was going through stuff and making choices based on the thought that “my boys won’t want to sort through this crap.”
Don’t tell Marie Kondo, but I based many of my decisions not on whether something might spark joy, but on how many trips to the landfill the boys would make.
So much of what we deal with is just…stuff.
I have too much…stuff.
Too much in my office. Too much in my garage. Too much in my attic.
I’m on a quest, if you will.
An extended one. I’ll get the office done this summer and in time for virtual Santa visits. Speaking of which, the contract offer came yesterday.
Maybe the Lord was sending me a message.
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Matthew 6:19-21
We’re all wrapped up in too much…stuff. Maybe it’s material. Maybe it’s not.
But going through cancer treatment this time, more so than last, I’m realizing that some things aren’t quite as important as I once thought.
And that’s a good thing.
Photo by Roman Kraft on Unsplash
MUSICAL INTERLUDE
WHAT I’M READING
RANDOM LINKS YOU SHOULD READ
Reporting Truth in the Post Trump Era
Chris Saxman
What’s the excuse of every mainstream media outlet in Virginia? Read More.
New Study Finds Lockdowns Didn’t Save Any Lives And May Have Killed More People Than Doing Nothing
The Federalist
A new study from the Rand Corporation and the University of Southern California titled “The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic And Policy Responses On Excess Mortality,” found that the lockdowns that were mandated in response to the Wuhan virus outbreak didn’t save lives, and even worse, they may have actually resulted in more deaths than would have occurred if shelter-in-place policies had not been mandated. Read More.
The Left Slides Into Acceptance of Antisemitism
Deanna Price got took place and Brooke Anderson took 2nd place in the U.S. Olympic trials in Oregon for Women’s hammer throwing.
The Algemeiner
Once you say that Israel can be singled out and judged by double standards, and that Jews alone are to be deprived of rights denied to no one else, there’s no way to avoid heading down the slippery slope of antisemitism. Read More.
Liberal Media Keeps Missing Targeted Swings At DeSantis. Will One Ever Hit?
Daily Caller
Establishment media found a new enemy since former President Donald Trump left office – Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. But the never-ending attacks never seem to find permanent standing. Read More.
PODCASTS I’M LISTENING TO
BENEDICTION
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26
