My two-cents worth and then some. An online journal by LP Brown.

Browsing Category The Way I See It

You Might Be a Baby Boomer if . . .

by on ·Nostalgia, The Way I See It

Listen up, Boomers. My other site – www.potpourri101.com – is getting more traffic than a shopping mall on Black Friday. All right, I confess, that’s because I have been spending a lot more time over there. I was told by a source (In case you are having a senior moment, that’s the term that journalists use when they don’t want to reveal who told them whatever it is that they are about to tell everyone else). So as I was saying, I was told by a source that I need to make the subject matter on this site more interesting by talking about sports (boring) or sex (appealing) or booty shaking videos featuring 10 year old girls (perverted). Nevertheless, I realize that I will have to get creative to hold on to my Baby Boomer readers.

Boomers are an active and resilient group, who resent being referred to as the Geritol crowd. We also dislike being stereotyped as old geezers and frisky cougars. Some of us may be (wink), but not all. Let’s not forget that there are two sets of Boomers. You have the senior Boomers born between 1946 and 1955. They have reached that bold age where they will do whatever they want, say whatever they want, and flip you a bird with an arthritic finger if you don’t like it. Then you have your younger Boomers, in the 1956-1964 crowd. Unfortunately, many of them are in denial — busily trying to pass themselves off as older Generation Xers.  People, please! Boomer up!

Let me help you put things in perspective. Sit back in your recliner, put on your specks and lower the volume on your TV set, so that you can concentrate of reading this; because if you are a true Boomer you are likely to forget everything you have read after leaving this site.

Remember you might be a Boomer if you leave one room, go into another room and then forget what you went after.

You might be a Boomer if you are surprised that there is still money left in the social security fund.

You might be a Boomer if you think that Hippie means a woman with junk in the trunk.

You might be a Boomer if you cannot twist the lid off of a jar, pull a flip top off of a can, or open a childproof bottle in less than 45 minutes.

You might be a Boomer if you cannot figure out how to use an iPhone, iPod, iPad or any gadget with an “i” in front of it, and if you think Steve Jobs is a book in the Bible.

You might be a Boomer if you believe that a TV reality show is really a reality show.

You might be a Boomer if you think a Badass is a person with hemorrhoids.

You might be a Boomer if you have forgotten phrases like “Far out,” “Right on,” “Cool,” and “Groovy.”

And you absolutely are not a Boomer if you don’t love every single thing about being one. Peace out!

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A Boomer’s Introspection on The Purpose

by on ·Religion, The Way I See It

“You are not an accident. Even before the universe was created, God had you in mind, and he planned you for His purposes. These purposes will extend far beyond the years you will spend on earth.” Those thought provoking words are from Rick Warren’s book The Purpose Driven Life.

As Baby Boomers come closer to the end of our road, some are pondering our objective for being here. Although I once had a firm conviction about purpose, I am beginning to question my own thinking on that subject.

For years, I have been among those who believe that every individual was created by our maker for a specific purpose; and I suspect that our personal goals are secondary to the purpose for which we were born. I also wonder, are our personal goals commingled – unbeknownst to us  – with our purpose for being here? And, if we do all have a purpose and the purpose of some people is to do basically good things – like strive for world peace or, on a smaller scale, improve a chaotic society – then what is the purpose of evil doers?  

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Halloween: Celebrating All Saints Day or Runnin’ With the Devil?

by on ·General, The Way I See It

“Trick or treat?” That’s the rhetorical question that follows the knock on your door on Halloween eve. Upon opening the door you see giggling, anxious children, eagerly holding out their bags, waiting for you to drop in candy, fruit, or other goodies.

Many adults as well as children enjoy the annual celebration that gives imaginative children the opportunity to fantasize that they are the characters of their dreams – or nightmares – by dressing up in appropriate costumes and going door-to-door trick or treating or attending parties. Some child-at-heart adults join in the fun and put on costumes, too.

While numerous religious factions have no problem with Halloween, some

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The Faces of Evil

by on ·The Way I See It

The world is a scary place. It is especially frightening if you are a God-fearing person who regularly contemplates the battle between good and evil, and you worry that evil too often seems to prevail. Baby Boomers have witnessed magnitudes of evil during our lifetime; among them the senseless killings during the civil rights era, the Oklahoma bombing and 9/11. Some Boomers even believe that the most recent triumph of evil on a lesser scale occurred this week in Orlando, Florida at the trial of Casey Anthony, the 25 year old woman accused of murdering her two-year old daughter, Caylee.

Many of the people who anxiously followed the six week long court proceeding, and were watching on Tuesday as the verdicts were read, were convinced of Anthony’s guilt. The disappointed staggered under every metaphorical right hook to the jaw each time they heard “not guilty.” And, as the shocking verdicts reverberated nationwide some locals were caught by television cameras chanting “OJ2” referencing a similarly unexpected outcome of the sensational O.J. Simpson trial in 1995.

Hours after the Anthony trial adjourned, the masses were still reeling, stunned and punch drunk from the unexpected blow of the woman’s acquittal on the most serious charges. And before the smoke had cleared following the devastating knock-out, Prosecutor Jeff Ashton announced his retirement.

Former prosecutor and television host, Nancy Grace, commenting on the shocking outcome of the Anthony trial, provided the best remark for those pondering the issue of good versus evil when she said “The devil is dancing.”

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A Message to Young Men: Put a Belt On It

by on ·The Way I See It

Beyonce popularized a hit tune telling all the single ladies to “Put A Ring On It.” Meanwhile, well-intentioned people all over are wishing for an anthem that would convince young men to wear a belt and stop sagging their pants. 

General Larry Pratt came close to doing that when he appeared on American Idol, during its 9th season in January 2010. He wowed the judges with his clever song “Pants on the Ground.” While the catchy tune went viral on the Internet and brought the 62-year-old Pratt overnight fame, apparently the message was lost on the youths.

There is nothing sexy, cool, or attractive about young men wearing their pants drooping off their butt. Hip hoppers are no exception. I have been told that “saggin” as it is called, originated in prison where men are not allowed to have belts and some want to show that they are sexually available. The inclination of some young people to follow any trend, even if it equates them to criminals, is just another sad saga in a morally bankrupt society.

Well, saggin may be “in” outside the prison walls, but mature people think that it shows ignorance. Furthermore, it has to be as much a pain in the butt for young men to constantly struggle to hold up their pants as it is for reluctant witnesses to see their drawers, and in some instances their bare behind. And Jimmydee creepers! Don’t let them bend over while the pants are sagging. What do youths think is so cool about being prison chic?

When my adolescent son was growing up in the 80’s, I would often scold him about wearing his cap turned backward. “It makes you look like a thug,” I told him more times than he cared to hear. He’s a grown man now, and God knows that I appreciate the fact that my challenge of trying to keep him from conforming to negative peer pressure was minor compared to the challenges that nurturing parents face today.

Numerous states including Louisiana, Virginia, Florida, and public venues nationwide have attempted to institute anti-sagging policies that ban men from wearing their pants below their waist and exposing their underwear in public. Some people oppose criminalizing the practice, because they believe that the proposed law targets a particular group — black men.

Last Wednesday, a University of New Mexico football player was arrested at the San Francisco International Airport over the issue of his saggy pants. Reportedly his mother said: “He was attacked for three reasons – his clothing, his skin, and his hair.”

In my recent discussion of this issue with a few acquaintances, some opined that saggin is practiced by people who are immature and have no self respect. Then, a member of the group temporarily halted the discussion when he said there is a double insult when you spell the word saggin backwards.

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