When did my parents become so wise?

My parents, wise far beyond their years.

More often I find myself seeking advice from my parents--or, when they aren't around, pondering what they might say. I want their wisdom. This leads to the other question of when did become wise? I remember most of my young adulthood as a constant flow of nonsense coming from them, and I was way smarter than anything they had to say. Now, I'm pretty sure I'm a blithering idiot compared to either of them. I need to sit and soak in what they have to tell me. They're wisdom will remain with me until the end of my life.

Children are constantly trying to strike out on their own, to make a unique mark upon the world, and stand sure in their own competence. That's the strange thing about growing up ... once you do, you find yourself yearning to go back home and listen the way you should have when you were too smart to know any better. Very weird. I'm glad I realized the situation before I ultimately lost the opportunity.

Perhaps I should write it down in a book? (One of the hundreds already out there). But, I don't know those other people, so I just don't quite value what they say as much as my own parents. Again, weird. You'd think wisdom would be wisdom regardless of who says it. However, when it comes from someone you highly respect, the words are far more valuable and important. I can't imagine greater wisdom on Earth than my parents and my lovely wife.

- M

Radio controlled submarines, planes, and drones.

At this point, we all know about drones flying around with tiny cameras, showing views of the world we rarely experience. Radio controlled devices were initially invented in 1894, by a physicist named Oliver Lodge, but didn't really see the light of day until Nikola Tesla crafted a little boat in 1898 that operated by radio control. I first understood the principles when I watched a boy drive his radio controlled submarine in a lake. Fascinating. Magical. Then, my father took my brother and I to watch the local RC club flying their model airplanes. Wow!

While I've never had one, they sure look like fun! Find it here.

Now, there's all kinds and all sizes. Various navies drive enormous boats by remote control, jetliners can fly on autopilot, and we're working on self-driving vehicles. Many space exploration vehicles are guided by remote, though are semi-autonomous as well. There's no end to it.

I'm older, but I still love toys. It's fascinating walking through the toy isles and looking at all the gizmos and whizbangers available. But, then I'm also disappointed that such expensive and highly technological items will leave most kids bored after a short time. I miss the days of simple rocking horses and non-interactive games. What's wrong with supplying your own imagination to power the fun?

- M

Dance the night away!

I can't dance. Sure, my knees don't support much flailing around, but I could still do something. Sadly, I have never learned. However, I can do a pretty awesome imitation of a beached fish. Or, maybe a crippled bear. Whatever the animal, my dancing is not coordinated in any manner known to science. That's okay though, because I have fun anyway.

Why are we so serious so much of the time? I suppose it's always been that way, otherwise there wouldn't be comedians. But, at least we can laugh at their jokes and see the world for the ridiculous place it actually is. Laughter is contagious. When you're around people having a good time and sharing their enjoyment, it's really tough to be sullen and moody. Put a bit of light into someone else's life, and laugh along with them.

Some of my very favorite movies are old-time comedies. Some have nearly no plot, make very little sense, and I'm not sure even have a conclusion. It doesn't matter. I want to laugh and have fun. I miss that element in modern movies. Even comedies are too serious these days. I want more mindless, goofy, family-friendly hilarity. Or, I could just dance and let my children laugh at that. It's all the same in the end, isn't it?

- M

Want to be smarter? Learn more words.

Why are poets so widely admired? Knowing great varieties of words allows you to express your thoughts precisely, perhaps even at all. Of course, communication requires your audience to understand those words, but context helps a lot in that area. As an example, consider the idea of hot and cold. At what point do those things become dangerous? If there are no words indicating the degree of peril, then how do you know? Sure, you can use "very" or other adverbs to modify what you're saying, but isn't "searing," "scalding," "freezing," or "numbing" better?

Being well spoken is widely regarded as a sign of intelligence. Sure, it's not a requirement, but it's a very obvious indicator. Something I've noticed is when you increase your vocabulary there's an increase of your interest in the world, and that will make you smarter. Actually, simply adding to your overall knowledge does the same thing, but you won't have the words to express your new wealth of interests.

It's been said that the average English speaker has a vocabulary of around 5,000 to 12,000 words. I'm not sure it's been figured in any accurate way, because there's too many variables (such as dialects, slang, and other words which may or may not count in the final figuring). What I can say is most people have a limited vocabulary to say the least--some being so poor in words as to be effectively broke. Do yourself a favor and get a "Word-a-Day" calendar app. In no time, you'll be using words with pinpoint accuracy. Plus, you'll enjoy the looks of dismay from those around you, as they ask, "what's that word mean?" Trust me, it's fun.

- M

The awe and majesty of our universe. Eclipse totality reaction.

Yesterday, a solar eclipse graced the Midwest portion of the United States. I've never seen one before. When I was young, I saw a partial eclipse and thought, "That's it? A bit of the Sun was scooped out and put back? Big deal." I was wrong. Incredibly wrong. Self-assuredly wrong. My problem was thinking I knew all about the amazing activities in our sky. Seeing the totality of the Sun's eclipse took my breath away, stomped on my intelligence, and turned me into a gibbering mound of astonishment.

The best picture I captured of the eclipse.

If you've seen pictures of a total eclipse, then you mentally know what to expect. You know the Sun's corona is visible, in a dark sky, and darkness will envelop the area around you. But, that's just the cold facts. Reality is very different. Crickets begin chirruping, roosters may crow, sudden chill sweeps over you, and the Sun gradually goes out. Incredibly, the Sun dwindles to a sliver, then a line, and then a single point, yet while the Sun shows any light at all there is more than enough light to see. And, then, night falls within seconds. The Sun's single point disappears and there is nothing. Suddenly, where the Sun should be, a brilliant halo glows in the night.

Yes, a halo. I find no other description of what I saw. No wonder the ancients felt vast wonder and placed religious significance on the eclipse of the Sun. I was struck dumb at the sight. All is dark around you, the sky goes from light to night without any stars and only a marvelous halo floating above you. I'll never forget it. My children and I will have this memory for the rest of our lives. Was it worthwhile to travel hours and hours to see a couple minutes of celestial activity. Absolutely! I'd do it again in an instant.

- M

Total eclipse of the sun! Wow.

Monday afternoon, the United States will experience a total eclipse of the sun. I remember when I was a child, I saw a partial eclipse. That was incredible, but this time I want to see the totality. However, that's if there aren't any thick clouds. The weather forecasts are all over the place, and it's only two days away. Of course, the joke is that if you want to know what the weather will be, look out of a window. I hope it will be clear and bright skies. Crossing my fingers.

Life is filled with times we will remember for the rest of our lives. I do my best to pay attention during those times, but sometimes they catch me off-guard. That's why stories are so important to me. When someone takes the time to record life events, those memories pass on to other generations. It's an incredible thing when you stop to think about it.

I've been asked why I want to travel so far to see a simple turning off of the lights. After all, each day is followed by night. It's not like we don't understand what darkness is. I don't care. I want to see the sun wink out, to see the corona flare, and the entire process from start to finish. Yup, it's ridiculous and won't alter my life in any way. Except this: I'm taking two of my children with me, and we will create a memory I'll treasure for the rest of my life. That's well worth the trouble.

- M

Too many projects to choose from ... Which one gets the pick?

My wife quilts, and it's fun to watch her jump between projects. As a writer, I remain focused on what I'm working on (I've found I really can't do more than one at a time, without deleterious effect). But, with quilting, my wife loves to do whatever happens to interest her at the time. She has a dozen projects to choose from, all with points she loves. It's hard to decide, and actually somewhat frustrating to her, because she began every project because she enjoys them. How do you choose between all the things you enjoy? Sometimes, it's really tough.

Our cats like getting in on the quilting action too ...

Why do we take on so many happy tasks? At some level we realize we cannot possibly do them all at once. Actually, I think we do it so we have fun choices, no matter what we pick. It'd be a complete bummer to be choosing amongst lousy and unpleasant drudgery, wouldn't it? What happens is we discover a new pleasure, and add it to our list, then something else comes along and we add that too. Before long, we've piled on quite a few and now are forced to decide what to focus upon. There are worse tragedies in life.

The human experience is one of endless change and adaptation. We go from childish things to adult responsibilities. We move from simple hunting, to complex inter-city life. There's plenty to enjoy, and a world of possibilities. For most of life, we do things for others (be it a job, or your own company, or by being told what to do), so when we find ourselves picking our own projects it's fun and challenging all at once. Don't worry too much about it. Just choose, and if you decide you want something else, then switch. Nobody is forcing you. Enjoy yourself!

- M

Silence, Peace. Just a breather for my mind.

Have you ever had enough noise, and wish for nothing but peace? Television commercials are especially bad at this, instead filling every nanosecond with ear-splitting noise. It used to be thought that younger audiences required constant noise and motion (MTV specifically was good at doing this), but those concepts have imbedded themselves into everything it seems. Perhaps it's just me, but I do enjoy allowing events to dwell quietly for a bit. Jokes are especially subject to this. For instance, George Burns, Jerry Seinfeld, and Jack Benny (an absolute master of the prolonged stare) turned pauses into art forms, creating humor out of nearly anything.

I'll give away a secret of mine: sometimes I wear headphones and am not listening to anything whatsoever. Yup, I do it just so I can retreat into my own head and think, rather than absorb all the stimuli around me. And, no, I won't ignore someone or use my quiet to annoy. I just want a bit of peace sometimes. Funny how in our modern society of incredible marvels and bewildering technologies has such minimal times of nothing going on. We bury ourselves underneath mountains of sound, activity, and business.

Take a walk in the mountains and you'll discover what I yearn for. There's terrific peace and pleasure to be had when you're out in nature, somewhat far from civilization. Just get away from it all. Turn off your phone, look up, and realize there's a lot more to do in life. At the very least, try and find some peace, with no loud music or interruptions, and definitely less frantic activity. Slow down. Enjoy life. It won't bite ... well, not the things without teeth at least.

- M

Now, I will explain in detail my evil plan ...

Tom Hiddleston makes a wonderfully villainous Loki, don't you think?

I've been re-reading the "Infinity Gauntlet" comics in preparation for the next Marvel Avengers movie. Something that occurs to me is how fun it is to listen to the villain explaining their plans in excruciating detail. For one, as the reader, it lets me anticipate what the heroes are fighting against, and, for another, gives me even footing regarding the plot. Sure, it's silly for the villain to "monologue," yet there's a reason so many villains do it. Without such information, the audience is constantly playing catch-up and that is only fun in certain circumstances (such as mysteries). In comics, the audience must know the stakes or they will lose interest (and stop buying the comic books, which only provide small pieces of story in every issue).

As an author, villain monologues are a complete blast to create. There's nothing quite like having the big bad guy pontificate while believing the hero is completely at their mercy. Sure, it always ends up going wrong, but there's still a lot of fun in the process. This trope is so common, that the Avenger's movie, "Age of Ultron" actually has the villain making fun of the concept of explaining his evil plan. I laughed.

Oddly, when the hero explains their plan, nobody minds. Of course, the hero is usually working from a point of adversity, whereas the villain is causing the calamity. Yes, it's all grandstanding for the audience--basically breaking the 4th wall to show off--though I've seen it used with terrifying effect. In those occasions, knowing the plan actually sets the audience on the edge of a knife, not sure what will happen.

So, it's not always a crime to let the villain explain their plan ... it just typically goes awfully awry.

- M

I'm late. I'm late, for a very important date!

I was reading "Alice in Wonderland" and it got me thinking about the idea of professional imaginations. There are some people who are lauded and paid simply for having fantastical imaginations--people like the director Tim Burton, or writer Philip K. Dick of "Blade Runner" fame. William Shakespeare is often considered the greatest master of the English language, and I'll wager it has a lot to do with the imaginative use of said language. Why do we prize imagination so greatly?

The White Rabbit from Disney's "Alice in Wonderland"

In some ways, it's like a magic trick--we know there's something simple behind it, but the effect is so dazzling we really don't want to know how it's done. We also know there's significant work and struggle in play, to the extent where most people prefer others to do the heavy lifting. There's nothing at all wrong with this attitude--since, it's the same one we use when we go to a restaurant and have someone else cook for us--and, so we are safely incredulous at the displays of wizardry.

I spend a lot of time observing people, and something I've noticed is nobody loses their imagination. Bored golfers sometimes perform amazing stunts with their equipment, dulled office workers may do circus acts with their pens, construction workers will dance with their own heavy machinery. It's incredible the depths of human imagination. Many times it's said that we lose our imagination as we age (I've said so myself), but I'm thinking now that our imagination simply changes from fantastical to useful. We still love fiddling and playing, though we make it look like work... seems contradictory, doesn't it?

- M

Help me! I'm painting and I don't have any orange...

Why do we usually only cry for help when things are going badly? Why not ask for help when things are good? Sure, we may not think we need help, but think of it as assistance. There are many activities where more is better. Also, if you ask help from someone knowledgeable in the process (like assembling one of those insane desks you get at the store), then you can save yourself a lot of headaches and broken pencils. I think we reluctantly seek help (at least in America), because it somehow demonstrates a lack of ability, self-reliance, or stupidity. Help isn't a nasty word, and providing it or seeking it shows nothing more than willingness on either side.

As I've grown older, I've finally realized that I need lots of help. It no longer injures my pride to ask for it, and I love to provide it. What's amazing is the satisfaction all parties receive when good help is given. There's a certain kind of rewarding smile you only get when you help someone, and the sense of relief at not fighting alone is just as welcome. So, why belabor the point? If you need help, then ask for it. Don't rattle on alone.

For what it's worth, we're all in this world together, so we may as well help each other. I like to think offering some help will be happily forwarded to the next person. Maybe it's not changing the world, but it's my little part of it.

- M

Memorable characters

What is meant by well-rounded characters? How do you measure the concept? It's such a totally judgmental idea that it's incredibly difficult to quantify. I think it comes straight down to: can I understand the motivations, can I describe their personality in simple terms, and can I connect any of my own life experience with what the character is demonstrating? Now, this doesn't necessarily mean you equate yourself with the character (certainly not with most villains), yet you do grasp who they are at a fundamental level. At the very least, we understand why they're doing things.

Our hero ... Emmet.

For instance, in "The Lego Movie" we are introduced to a generic hero (Emmet)--a character who is a complete follower, has no original thoughts, and is mindlessly happy about everything. Not exactly someone we'd want to know, yet we relate to these qualities and form a fast connection with him, which only grows stronger as we witness purpose thrust into his life. We watch the character change and grow (otherwise known as a "character arc"). Despite beginning as perfectly ordinary, we understand Emmet's goals and what he thinks about them.

Something I've noticed in a lot of recent movies is the desire to quickly dump character information onto the viewer. This results in what is commonly referred to as "cardboard characters" who blithely go about the story with barely a hint of motivation. Audiences may not rebel against this style, but they sure don't like it. Take the time to properly flesh out your character's motivations and everyone who absorbs the story will thank you for it.

- M

Spider webs and the magical vision of children.

My favorite picture of a spider web, frozen in the Nebraskan snows.

What single thing in your childhood brings more wonder and bewilderment than the simple spider web? Spiders are incredible engineers. Just look at the structure and complexity in their webs. Unbelievable. There are multiple kinds of thread used, with differing tensile strengths (that's how much they can hold), and so many patterns its hard to believe a bug (yes, I know they're arachnids, but those are still bugs in my book) makes them. To craft a spider web requires things being done in a certain order, with the right bracings and right timing. I bet most humans couldn't create a web as complex as the meekest spider.

I often wonder why adults lose their wonder at the world. I can't figure it out. What happens to us? Why does the world become stale and uninteresting? Are our lives so filled to the brim with work and other stuff that we utterly miss the glories around us? Sad. We grow up, become responsible, have families, raise children, and shake our heads in complete bewilderment at the antics of our own kids. Maybe it's okay to keep a bit of the child in ourselves. Keep the curiosity, keep the wonder, and keep the starry-eyed optimism.

Adults see the world differently, through the lens of experience and knowledge. There's a reason children don't rule the world. But, keep the child in mind when you see the field of dandelions near your house, or a spider web frozen in the snow. Let the kid inside you loose to dance under the stars. Enjoy the world. There's so much to see. Trust me, take the time to watch a spider weave its web. You'll be glad you did.

- M