One's appreciation, admiration for another's abilities, means that there is a place inside the admirer that has the same ability.
Barry Pearl
(Thank you Barry)
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I'm not a great sports fan, but when I watch a ball game I'm always impressed when I see an expert athlete adroitly carry out a play that gains a point or some advantage. What man hasn't imagined himself at least once stretching to swing the bat and smash the ball into outer space or flying across the ice to fling a puck into the net at the speed of light, or some similar activity.
In school I was a runner and a very good discus thrower. I might have had a scholarship to some university throwing the discus. Now I enjoy watching the Olympic athletes do it. That was not the road I took.
I also enjoy watching NASA TV. Besides seeing astronauts float around, listening to Houston give esoteric instructions to the on board computers and news conferences, they frequently show scientific programs where some NASA scientist explains important things about his or her specialty. Watching them I learn a lot about geology, astronomy, robotics, physics, climatology, aeronautics and so forth. In school I took a geology course and was fascinated by it. I loved going out in the fields and analyzing the rocks and formations. I even thought of majoring in it at one point. But that was not the road I took.
I have always loved music. While in school I played in an orchestra as a percussionist. I enjoyed it very much and wanted to be better at it, to knuckle down adn really learn music Today, when I go to a concert I admire the musicians, both soloists and ensembles, especially as I know what they are doing. I could have been one of them. But that is not the road I took.
There's a old, tired joke about actors. "How many actors does it take to change a light bulb?" "50. One to change the bulb and 49 to say 'I could have done that better.'" As a young actor I was fascinated watching actors work. While others got involved in the plot, the story, I was watching how the actors developed characters and steered their way through their scenes. The older, more experienced actors were showing me what could be done. As I grew older and more experienced myself I learned to tell the difference between good acting and bad acting, good ball playing and not so good ball playing, good science and silly science, great music and sloppy music.
Today I can still enjoy peering at rocks, beating a drum and if I had a discus I could show you how to fling it. Could I have been a good athlete, a good scientist or a good musician? Probably. But the road I took as an actor brought me into a career for which I have no regrets.
DB, Vagabond
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SPRING QUESTION
(This is not a contest.)
Come on, Folks! Summer is a-commin' in!
In your opinion what is the most amazing thing that could happen during this decade? Make it as outrageous as you want but keep it within the realm of what you consider a possibility.
Only 10 responses so far.
Answers will be published the first day of Summer.
Thank you.
dbdacoba@aol.com
DB - The Vagabond
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5 comments:
I feel you, DB.
When we mean to build,
We first survey the plot, then draw the model;
And when we see the figure of the house,
Then we must rate the cost of the erection;
Which if we find outweighs ability,
What do we then but draw anew the model
In fewer offices, or at last desist
To build at all?
Henry IV W. Shakespeare
The capacity to understand one’s own ability brings the power to build a place that is not only independent of the opinions of others for survival but also capable of creating independent thought among all.
In answer to your question about the most amazing thing I'd like to see in this world...1. Peace 2. No starving people anywhere.
I enjoyed your entry and I too appreciate a skilled athlete and what he/she is able to do. I've always thought it would be fantastic to return a punt for 80 yards and score a touchdown. I can't imagine that feeling. I played the coronet in school but wanted the sax so I didn't pursue it.
Lisa
Having a career with no regrets is a wonderful thing to have had.
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