Forced to Share

My apologies for the delay in posting new blog material. It’s been a busy week. I had something happen that I had not experienced before. I was in the waiting area at my departure gate in an airport terminal and I noticed two really big guys waiting. They were not together. One was super big.  I mean like Haystacks Calhoun. You younger readers can google that name. He was a super-heavyweight wrestler from my boyhood. The second guy wasn’t so big…maybe only 500 pounds. Sort of like King Kong Bundy. The flight was a Westjet commuter flight…a Bombardier Q400. Two seats on either side of the aisle, including the “Plus” section, indistinguishable from the minus section except for the mini slip covers over the top of the seat.  I don’t know that I have ever been on a Bombardier plane that had comfortable seating. Maybe, but I doubt it. 

I wondered how it was going to work out for the passenger adjacent to each of these guys.  I was soon to find out.  It turned out that King Kong had the window seat next to my aisle one.  Well, not quite accurate. He had the window seat and more. I won’t go into the difficulties of trying to avoid getting a ribhead twisted in that situation. I am not complaining; just explaining. I am glad for the experience. It enlarged my understanding. And No, that wasn’t a pun.

Staying Sane in the Employment Market

One of the current big issues with employment is the exporting of jobs. So many types of work can be done remotely: software engineering, accounting, law research, mechanical engineering and much else.  This has the effect of creating a downward pressure on domestic wages and fees because workers are competing with foreign pricing.  Many employers farm out work on a task by task basis. Most of the new jobs created in Canada last year were part-time as I recall, and that is often suggestive of temporary work.  My assessment is that there is a great deal of job insecurity, and a lot of people, mainly millennials, are stressed about whether they will have work. It’s a transitional phase of the economy I think.

Next step is guaranteed income for everyone as artificial intelligence takes over much of the workload and many humans live in leisure. I expect that this will lead to huge individual stresses. We all have a deep and wide security need.  It is satisfied by knowing we are needed and valued. Sometimes we attain that through relationships, but often through our work. People that have no work will tend to feel useless --- marginalized.  And they will feel insecure. They will need to have strong and close relationships, but many won’t have those. To me, it seems like a time of great psychological and social stress coming.

Quality is Better? Really?

I don’t think quality always beats quantity.  Which would be a more satisfying meal --- an ounce of beef tenderloin and two asparagus stalks in your favorite sauce, or 10 ounces of hamburger and a cup of peas?

I have heard parents talk about how the important thing is to spend “quality time” with their kids.  They never have explained to me what quality time is, but having raised 3 kids, this much I know: you can’t just make quality time happen….you can’t predict its time.  The way quality time occurs is to give it a chance to happen, and the more time you spend with your kids, the greater the opportunity for good and powerful memories to be formed.

Sometimes quality is a waste. There are times when good enough is better than best.  

Staying In Shape

I find that it is really important to keep active, the older I get. The body loses its tone more quickly with age. When I was young I was able to stop exercising for a long time and then pick up almost from where I had stopped, but now if I slacken my pace, it takes considerable time to recover the lost ground.

This is a problem because I basically don’t like to exercise. I need a new exercise program that consists of movements that come naturally.  Maybe jumping to conclusions, pushing people’s buttons, pulling on their heartstrings, carrying things too far, flying off the handle, dodging responsibilities, and running off at the mouth.