new with the old

"to look forward, one must look back."-author, me.

this makes very little sense the more i look at it. but figured quoting myself is a good way to establish andy lovley in the proverbial community. giving lao tzu a run for his money might be one of my more ambitious new year's resolutions but i like to start decades in style. also, in accordance with the prophecy-excuse me, proverb, i decided to spend the next week bringing the passing thoughts i often jot down in my all-purpose notebook to the blogosphere.

here goes.

notebook passage 371
late july 2009.
long island-massachusetts drive home from a family wedding.

music on a backseat misadventure changes everything. wrinkled formal-wear worn through the previous night positioned to my right. bottle of wine and banana to my left. a boat tugs through the river below. and then it's gone. next. a lake grasping whatever sunlight it can from an overcast afternoon onto its still surface. roadside trees see the most and are seen the least. perhaps they like it that way. blur is the common theme. first rail, then sign, then abandoned diner.

notebook passage 616
october 2009
park bench musings

it is quite simple to see how contagious a continuous smile can become. what keeps us from not naturally carrying one as a daily routine? children, the younger they are, seem to be society's only natural possessor and initiator of the smile. one may wonder if we are all possibly that neutral with our feelings? or is it instead a fear of expressing such emotions and possibly appearing quite insane? society will classify a constant smile as "mad" (which makes one wonder about the decision to equate lunacy with angry rage--if anything, many of those suffering from mental disorders appear to be quite pleased with their current state of mind). this method of thinking seems backwards in itself and speaks more to the glorification of widespread social misery and unsatisfaction. comfort zones may certainly need some readjusting, but i'll be opting to forgo grinning and bearing it and spend my time grinning and sharing it.