I've had the tag line: "Gen X will soon lead the world... are we ready?" for several years now... and here it is! Barack Obama was born in 1961. That puts him in most people's range for Gen X, and very close even if you date us from '63 instead of '60.
He has several top officials in his administration who are Gen X. Education Secretary-designate Arne Duncan looks like the youngest with a Nov. '64 birthday. Lisa Jackson, his new EPA head, was born in '62. Treasury Secretary-designate Timothy Geithner, like Obama, was born in '61. Chief of staff Rahm Emanual was born in November of '59, just missing the Gen X label but no doubt bringing some Gen X attitudes.
So far, it looks like Gen X will do a much better job than the Boomers did. Clinton & Bush (W) were both partisans who didn't get things done the way they wanted to. I'm not sure what we'll say about Obama four or eight years form now, but I am sure that he is ready.
It's time! :)
Showing posts with label Gen X. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gen X. Show all posts
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
A Lawn Sign with Attitude
Gen X creativity in action: JP has uploaded his designs to CafePress.com so you can now buy lawnsigns, buttons, etc with the designs from the entry "Partisan but Entertaining" below - and more!
This sign is in his yard right now...
Sunday, October 05, 2008
Gen X Goes for McCain?
According to the latest Minnesota Poll, the age group with the highest percentage going for McCain is... Gen X!
Whaa...?
Here's the chart:
That's the fact, Jack. Explanation? I got nothin'.
Whaa...?
Here's the chart:
That's the fact, Jack. Explanation? I got nothin'.
Monday, June 16, 2008
"Nerd Girls" - a Step Forward?
It sounds stupid, but according to Newsweek, "Nerd Girls" is actually a group of female engineering students at Tufts University who are trying to break down the stereotypes and claim both science brains and femininity at the same time.
Apparently it's working - junior Christina Sanchez says being a computer whiz and a sexy girl is no big deal: "Just because I get dressed up Saturday night, that doesn't mean I won't do better [than a guy] on a test on Monday."
Amen, sister!
I was stunned, though, that the older woman in the article quoted saying "I hid my passion for all things scientific and focused on pursuits that were allowable" is only 38! Younger than me! When did Gen X become the prior generation???
Still, gotta give credit to the young ones coming up - if they do it better than we did, that's as it should be! :)
Apparently it's working - junior Christina Sanchez says being a computer whiz and a sexy girl is no big deal: "Just because I get dressed up Saturday night, that doesn't mean I won't do better [than a guy] on a test on Monday."
Amen, sister!
I was stunned, though, that the older woman in the article quoted saying "I hid my passion for all things scientific and focused on pursuits that were allowable" is only 38! Younger than me! When did Gen X become the prior generation???
Still, gotta give credit to the young ones coming up - if they do it better than we did, that's as it should be! :)
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
This is What 40 Looks Like!
I've been having a "this is what 40 looks like" attitude this month as the milestone birthday hit. I refuse to be bummed out about anything to do with this age. My life rocks! The idea that we should want to be younger is crap. Here's a bunch of my friends at another friend's 40th birthday party last month - all but two of the women in the picture are 40 or 41. I think we're doing just d*** fine. :)
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Marc Bamuthi Joseph
Saw a very interesting one-man show at the Walker last night - Marc Bamuthi Joseph in a performance called "The Break/s" combining spoken word, dance, acting, and more. Born in '75 he is a Gen Xer in full flower - finding his powers, naming and using them to speak truth to the world and try to make it better. Like the social justice movement rising from the spoken word scene, he has the beautiful faith of the young that he can and even will make his mark.
I took some notes - although there was so much that was rich and interesting I couldn't possibly capture it all. I hated to pull out my TREO because the light form the screen can be distracting, but I covered it up as best I could because there were a few lines I just had to get down:
"If you lose your mind, what jumps in to take its place?" Before the show, the MC was moving through the crowd, asking questions designed to get the audience thinking about the big themes in the show, and he asked "Have you ever lost your mind?" to several people. My friends & I laughed - of course! Every day! In education, how can you avoid it? Ha ha. But Bamuthi took it to the next level: If you lose your mind, what jumps in to take its place? Fascinating question.
About his white girlfriend and the complexities of identity politics: "She is the woman I want to come home to, but not always the woman I want to leave the house with." Ouch. Honest! He talked about how the black mother of his black child challenged him about the extent to which a white stepmother might not be good for his son... when did love get so complex? Was it always so?
"The more I am accepted by others, the less I accept myself." He didn't imply so much that he was seeking approval from others, but he found that as he moved through the world and received approval & acceptance, he lost some sense of self. I can relate. I know I am much more interested in acceptance by others than I should be.... It's a hard habit to break.
His experience of being black in America: "I have not experienced oppression. That is just some shit I see on TV." Oppression is so much bigger around the world than we realize in America. He talked about going to Senegal & learning from a woman who was teaching the elders in very rural areas to stop genital mutilation. So much larger than our problems here. He does see that being descended from slaves is a relevant part of some black Americans' self-identity, but he does not name it as defining for himself.
About the extent to which artists can actually make a difference in the world: "Like Basquiat tagging Bush's yacht..." What am image! I love it! No one talks about Jean-Michel Basquiat anymore, but as a rebel artist I think it makes sense to evoke his name, as it stands in such contrast to George W. Bush, who is no rebel and no artist...
And maybe most important: "How you love is what you do, not what you say. Action is truth." Oh, I believe this.
BRAVO, Bamuthi!
Here's a video to give you a little idea of the experience:
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Better Than Average!
How random is this - globally, people trend downward on the happiness scale until the age of 44, then trend upward again. (Excluding old folks with bad health problems.) The general life-pattern of happiness looks like a U-shaped curve, with the age of 44 at the bottom.
What the flip?!?!
According to a current article in Time magazine, this is exactly the case. Survey data representing 2 million people in more than 70 countries shows that: "Across the world, people in their 40s generally claim to be less happy than those who are younger or older, and the global happiness nadir appears to hit somewhere around 44."
As for me - I'm having a 40th b-day party in a few weeks and counting my blessings. I don't know that I'm happier now than I was at 20 or 30 (OK, I was having a pretty darn good time at 20!) but I don't feel less happy now than I was before. Go figure!
What the flip?!?!
According to a current article in Time magazine, this is exactly the case. Survey data representing 2 million people in more than 70 countries shows that: "Across the world, people in their 40s generally claim to be less happy than those who are younger or older, and the global happiness nadir appears to hit somewhere around 44."
What accounts for this? I'm at a loss, and so are the researchers. The article continues:
"It's not anxiety from the kids, for starters. Even among the childless, those in midlife reported lower life satisfaction than the young or old, says study co-author Andrew Oswald, an economics professor at the University of Warwick in Britain. Other things that didn't alter the happiness curve: income, marital status or education. "You can adjust for 100 things and it doesn't go away," Oswald says. He and co-author David Blanchflower, an economist at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, also adjusted their results for cohort effects: their data spanned more than 30 years, making them confident that whatever makes people miserable about being middle-aged, it isn't related, say, to being born in the year 1960 and growing up with that generation's particular set of experiences."
So what are we to make of this? The article even makes the point that the findings are cross-generational, so Xers are no more or less likely to fall into this pattern than Boomers or Millenials. Hmm...As for me - I'm having a 40th b-day party in a few weeks and counting my blessings. I don't know that I'm happier now than I was at 20 or 30 (OK, I was having a pretty darn good time at 20!) but I don't feel less happy now than I was before. Go figure!
On Race: From One More Articulate than I
No matter what the outcome of the 2008 presidential race, Barack Obama's speech on race this week will be remembered as a turning point in race relations in America. It will be read and studies in schools, and parts will be repeated and sent around the internet for years.
I don't know how he feels about that - or about me excepting some of it here - but I believe it's worth sharing just to advance the cause of unity. Here are the parts that most resonated with me:
"The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through - a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American.
Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point. As William Faulkner once wrote, "The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past." We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist in the African-American community today can be directly traced to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.
Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today's black and white students.
Legalized discrimination - where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments - meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between black and white, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persists in so many of today's urban and rural communities.
A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families - a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods - parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up and building code enforcement - all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continue to haunt us….
In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working- and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience - as far as they're concerned, no one's handed them anything, they've built it from scratch. They've worked hard all their lives, many times only to see their jobs shipped overseas or their pension dumped after a lifetime of labor. They are anxious about their futures, and feel their dreams slipping away; in an era of stagnant wages and global competition, opportunity comes to be seen as a zero sum game, in which your dreams come at my expense. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they're told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time.
Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren't always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.
Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle class squeeze - a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns - this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.
This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years….
For the African-American community, that path [to a more perfect union] means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. It means continuing to insist on a full measure of justice in every aspect of American life. But it also means binding our particular grievances - for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans -- the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his family. And it means taking full responsibility for own lives - by demanding more from our fathers, and spending more time with our children, and reading to them, and teaching them that while they may face challenges and discrimination in their own lives, they must never succumb to despair or cynicism; they must always believe that they can write their own destiny….
In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination - and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past - are real and must be addressed. Not just with words, but with deeds - by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. It requires all Americans to realize that your dreams do not have to come at the expense of my dreams; that investing in the health, welfare, and education of black and brown and white children will ultimately help all of America prosper…."
Gen X is known as the most cynical generation - one that expects little from those around us and depends mostly on our own selves. I will be curious to see how this speech is received by Gen Xers - will it inspire the some optimism and hope that it will in younger and older generations?
I don't know how he feels about that - or about me excepting some of it here - but I believe it's worth sharing just to advance the cause of unity. Here are the parts that most resonated with me:
"The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through - a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American.
Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point. As William Faulkner once wrote, "The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past." We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist in the African-American community today can be directly traced to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.
Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today's black and white students.
Legalized discrimination - where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments - meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between black and white, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persists in so many of today's urban and rural communities.
A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families - a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods - parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up and building code enforcement - all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continue to haunt us….
In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working- and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience - as far as they're concerned, no one's handed them anything, they've built it from scratch. They've worked hard all their lives, many times only to see their jobs shipped overseas or their pension dumped after a lifetime of labor. They are anxious about their futures, and feel their dreams slipping away; in an era of stagnant wages and global competition, opportunity comes to be seen as a zero sum game, in which your dreams come at my expense. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they're told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time.
Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren't always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.
Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle class squeeze - a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns - this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.
This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years….
For the African-American community, that path [to a more perfect union] means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. It means continuing to insist on a full measure of justice in every aspect of American life. But it also means binding our particular grievances - for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans -- the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his family. And it means taking full responsibility for own lives - by demanding more from our fathers, and spending more time with our children, and reading to them, and teaching them that while they may face challenges and discrimination in their own lives, they must never succumb to despair or cynicism; they must always believe that they can write their own destiny….
In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination - and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past - are real and must be addressed. Not just with words, but with deeds - by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. It requires all Americans to realize that your dreams do not have to come at the expense of my dreams; that investing in the health, welfare, and education of black and brown and white children will ultimately help all of America prosper…."
Gen X is known as the most cynical generation - one that expects little from those around us and depends mostly on our own selves. I will be curious to see how this speech is received by Gen Xers - will it inspire the some optimism and hope that it will in younger and older generations?
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Feminism for a New Generation?
A friend bought me "The Bad Girls' Weekly Engagement Calendar" by Cameron Tuttle, author of "The Bad Girls' Guide to the Open Road" and other comedy books aimed a young women. It promotes a "run your own life" lifestyle that may not be entirely realistic if you have to work for a living, but is certainly attractive on paper!
One page in the calendar really cracked me up - a comparison of "good girl" and "bad girl" behavior. A few examples:
A good girl... plays it safe.
A bad girl... plays by her own rules.
A good girl... sits back a waits.
A bad girl... gets out and dates.
A good girl... always wants to fit in.
A bad girl... always wants to sleep in.
A good girl... never questions authority.
A bad girl... never questions her gut vibe.
A good girl... would rather be liked than difficult.
A bad girl... would rather be loved and difficult.
A good girl... believes in compromising.
A bad girl... believes in living the dream.
Now which one do you want to be?
It reminds me of the Louise Thatcher Ulrich quote: "Well-behaved women rarely make history." No doubt.
One page in the calendar really cracked me up - a comparison of "good girl" and "bad girl" behavior. A few examples:
A good girl... plays it safe.
A bad girl... plays by her own rules.
A good girl... sits back a waits.
A bad girl... gets out and dates.
A good girl... always wants to fit in.
A bad girl... always wants to sleep in.
A good girl... never questions authority.
A bad girl... never questions her gut vibe.
A good girl... would rather be liked than difficult.
A bad girl... would rather be loved and difficult.
A good girl... believes in compromising.
A bad girl... believes in living the dream.
Now which one do you want to be?
It reminds me of the Louise Thatcher Ulrich quote: "Well-behaved women rarely make history." No doubt.
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Paper Rake RIP
I was disappointed to learn that the Rake Magazine - a local free paper - is abandoning print journalism for online only! Ad revenue issues, apparently. Huge bummer.
I was happy to see that my favorite Rake columnist, Colleen Kruse, seems to be continuing her Motley Kruse column online... bummer I can't read it while waiting for a friend at a bar or for my aerobics class to start anymore, but I'm glad she's still writing.
So I guess I should be happy that it is continuing online, and just get with the times and accept that print journalism has limited appeal these days? I'm not sure. I still get the paper delivered daily, and though I only have time to read it probably 3 days a week, I like it when I do.
Maybe that means I'm getting old! ;)
I was happy to see that my favorite Rake columnist, Colleen Kruse, seems to be continuing her Motley Kruse column online... bummer I can't read it while waiting for a friend at a bar or for my aerobics class to start anymore, but I'm glad she's still writing.
So I guess I should be happy that it is continuing online, and just get with the times and accept that print journalism has limited appeal these days? I'm not sure. I still get the paper delivered daily, and though I only have time to read it probably 3 days a week, I like it when I do.
Maybe that means I'm getting old! ;)
Generation Gap?
So I recently told a friend who's my same age (39) that I had just been out with a guy who's 25, and she was absolutely disapproving! I don't get that.
Then - even better - she asked whatever happened to another guy I used to date, and I reminded her that guy was 50, and she said yeah, why aren't you still dating him?
Hello???
Then - even better - she asked whatever happened to another guy I used to date, and I reminded her that guy was 50, and she said yeah, why aren't you still dating him?
Hello???
Friday, November 23, 2007
Facebook, MySpace, and Feeling Old
I received a Facebook invitation by email the other day from a friend who is 12 years my junior. He just turned 28 - not Gen X.
So - although I'm sure my daughter will be appalled - I set up a profile and checked it out - and I turns out that I have more friends on Facebook than I realized - at least 8. Of course only one of them was my age, but no surprise there. (I think it's interesting that the 20-yr-olds are using this is a HUGE way, and the 30/40-yr-olds are just about totally ignoring it....)
What really cracked me up was that a search for people from my high school graduating class of almost 300 people revealed... just me. The class just before ours had 2 people and just after ours had 5. That's it. We're all turning 40 this year and none of us are using Facebook. We are officially OLD.
I also have a MySpace profile, and most of my "friends" there are local artists or former students. All much younger than I am. I started it as a professional tool to keep in touch with the local arts community while I was the arts coordinator at PHHS, but now it's just entertaining.
So I'm reflecting on how my generation doesn't seem to be in on the fun, and then I get an update email from LinkedIn - a professional networking site that I think is a kick, but in this context, just looks like Facebook for Old Folks.
Sigh.
So - although I'm sure my daughter will be appalled - I set up a profile and checked it out - and I turns out that I have more friends on Facebook than I realized - at least 8. Of course only one of them was my age, but no surprise there. (I think it's interesting that the 20-yr-olds are using this is a HUGE way, and the 30/40-yr-olds are just about totally ignoring it....)
What really cracked me up was that a search for people from my high school graduating class of almost 300 people revealed... just me. The class just before ours had 2 people and just after ours had 5. That's it. We're all turning 40 this year and none of us are using Facebook. We are officially OLD.
I also have a MySpace profile, and most of my "friends" there are local artists or former students. All much younger than I am. I started it as a professional tool to keep in touch with the local arts community while I was the arts coordinator at PHHS, but now it's just entertaining.
So I'm reflecting on how my generation doesn't seem to be in on the fun, and then I get an update email from LinkedIn - a professional networking site that I think is a kick, but in this context, just looks like Facebook for Old Folks.
Sigh.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Emily X - Not Me, but It Could Be
Interesting concept - a woman who works at a Planned Parenthood clinic started a blog to share her experience there, including the protesters, the work... the whole deal. Worth a look!
I suspect much of Gen X takes legal abortion for granted - it's been legal for most of our lives. Even if we don't it ourselves, we see that it's a necessary option for some folks and just expect it to be there. I sort of know in the back of my mind that abortion rights have actually been scaled back in recent years and in some states it's almost impossible to get one, but it's not high on the radar. I did some fundraising for the MN Religious Coalition for Reproductive Rights when I was in college - we do so much more volunteering in college! - but not actively involved since then.
Emily X lets us see what's really going on - check it out and see if it matches your expectations.
I suspect much of Gen X takes legal abortion for granted - it's been legal for most of our lives. Even if we don't it ourselves, we see that it's a necessary option for some folks and just expect it to be there. I sort of know in the back of my mind that abortion rights have actually been scaled back in recent years and in some states it's almost impossible to get one, but it's not high on the radar. I did some fundraising for the MN Religious Coalition for Reproductive Rights when I was in college - we do so much more volunteering in college! - but not actively involved since then.
Emily X lets us see what's really going on - check it out and see if it matches your expectations.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Gen X in Power
I’m intrigued by Gen X in power. More of my friends are moving into spaces of influence in their careers and I wonder – how are we different from those who held those positions before us? In some cases, no one did – some are in positions that didn’t even exist a decade ago. But others, like me, are in positions that have existed for a long time. How do I approach my work differently than my predecessors?
A couple things come to mind.
I suspect I’m more inclusive. Is that because I was born in 1968? Yes, I am a product of the feel-good education movement of the 70’s, but I was a high-achiever, so I don’t think that affected me much – certainly not by creating in me any great need for the opinions of others. I am inclusive because I want to be included, so I extend that to others.
I’m not authoritarian. But what does that have to do with my birth year? I suffered under many teachers and bosses who were, and didn’t like it, so I’m different? Hardly. Generations for centuries have learned from authoritarian leaders and turned out just like them. Why should I be different?
I think my leadership is an expression of my personality, and maybe that’s where Gen X comes in to play. It’s not about my age or birth year, except that we believe more in authenticity. I allow my personality into my work because I believe in living out loud, in being who I am, and impacting the world accordingly.
That would not be a bad legacy for our generation.
A couple things come to mind.
I suspect I’m more inclusive. Is that because I was born in 1968? Yes, I am a product of the feel-good education movement of the 70’s, but I was a high-achiever, so I don’t think that affected me much – certainly not by creating in me any great need for the opinions of others. I am inclusive because I want to be included, so I extend that to others.
I’m not authoritarian. But what does that have to do with my birth year? I suffered under many teachers and bosses who were, and didn’t like it, so I’m different? Hardly. Generations for centuries have learned from authoritarian leaders and turned out just like them. Why should I be different?
I think my leadership is an expression of my personality, and maybe that’s where Gen X comes in to play. It’s not about my age or birth year, except that we believe more in authenticity. I allow my personality into my work because I believe in living out loud, in being who I am, and impacting the world accordingly.
That would not be a bad legacy for our generation.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Wish I Was This Generous
My friend Melissa shared this poem she just wrote about love found and lost - with a guy she met at my cabin - I am in awe of her ability to know and express herself so openly and honestly!
divine man that appeared, so angelic even.
Amen!
With Deep gratitude, emotional Clarity,
a poem for this beloved and divine presence:
this beautiful adonis, brown and muscled, tender and sweet.
so amazingly articulate on manners of politics and faith,
conservative core that i appreciated.
touch that inspired a kind of transcendence in wake of wonder, woe.
"what you want: this is what I want."
blessings on the lips.
He is gone. He is sweet. We are friends, if that is called for. Or calls us further. I ask for your prayers as heart matters unfold, life and love manifests. (May God's will, not mine, be done.)
Gratefully,
Melissa
Amen!
Friday, August 03, 2007
Modern Communication
I didn’t understand the “are u safe? im at the u now too” text message at first – it followed an earlier text from the same friend asking about lunch, so I just replied that I was glad she had started her doctoral program, I had just landed from PA, and we’d have lunch next week.
The next “Are u safe?” text came after my mom had told me about the bridge collapse, so I understood what it meant!
I was annoyed at the airport that my call dropped about 6 times while I was trying to tell my mom which door to pick me up at – I just switched to Verizon from T-Mobile and was starting to regret it! But as I complained about it to her, she explained about the bridge and it became clear that the lines were just overloaded.
Flashback to September 2001!
I landed within an hour of the bridge collapse, and within an hour after that I had at least 3 texts from friends asking “are u safe?” – then a call, then another text… I had only called my brother after she told me about the bridge – his family was intact, my daughter was hundreds of miles away, and my mom was sitting right next to me, so all good. It just didn’t occur to me that I would know anyone in the tragedy!
Amusingly, my mother called my brother when she first heard the news – just to tell him to take a different way home, as 35W would be blocked off. She left a message & didn’t think twice about whether he might be IN it! We’re just not the worrying types, I guess.
But I have to admit it felt pretty good to have so many people checking on me… so I checked on a few more of my closest friends just because. Counted heads & all were present. One of my daughter’s friends told her that all their friends are accounted for – between texting & instant messaging I’m sure they counted heads in about 10 minutes!
Two of my good friends were in NYC on 9/11, so I was aware that the need to find out if people were OK must be strong for them. Both admitted they were more than a little freaked out by the situation. Apparently texts get through better than calls in busy times, so both used text and I was not surprised.
My boss’s brother’s wife’s sister is among the missing – that’s as close as it has come to me to my knowledge so far. Of course there are many more bodies yet to be pulled out, so who knows – but I’m feeling lucky, and loved, and blessed – by my loved ones and by modern communication. ☺
The next “Are u safe?” text came after my mom had told me about the bridge collapse, so I understood what it meant!
I was annoyed at the airport that my call dropped about 6 times while I was trying to tell my mom which door to pick me up at – I just switched to Verizon from T-Mobile and was starting to regret it! But as I complained about it to her, she explained about the bridge and it became clear that the lines were just overloaded.
Flashback to September 2001!
I landed within an hour of the bridge collapse, and within an hour after that I had at least 3 texts from friends asking “are u safe?” – then a call, then another text… I had only called my brother after she told me about the bridge – his family was intact, my daughter was hundreds of miles away, and my mom was sitting right next to me, so all good. It just didn’t occur to me that I would know anyone in the tragedy!
Amusingly, my mother called my brother when she first heard the news – just to tell him to take a different way home, as 35W would be blocked off. She left a message & didn’t think twice about whether he might be IN it! We’re just not the worrying types, I guess.
But I have to admit it felt pretty good to have so many people checking on me… so I checked on a few more of my closest friends just because. Counted heads & all were present. One of my daughter’s friends told her that all their friends are accounted for – between texting & instant messaging I’m sure they counted heads in about 10 minutes!
Two of my good friends were in NYC on 9/11, so I was aware that the need to find out if people were OK must be strong for them. Both admitted they were more than a little freaked out by the situation. Apparently texts get through better than calls in busy times, so both used text and I was not surprised.
My boss’s brother’s wife’s sister is among the missing – that’s as close as it has come to me to my knowledge so far. Of course there are many more bodies yet to be pulled out, so who knows – but I’m feeling lucky, and loved, and blessed – by my loved ones and by modern communication. ☺
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Of Resumes and Digital Fingerprints
In a recent column, Thomas Friedman notes that one's personal & professional reputation is becoming increasingly transparent with the rise of the Internet and video cell phones.
In a new book called "How", author Dov Seidman posits that, according to Friedman, "...in this transparent world, how you live your life and how you conduct your business matters more than ever, because so many people can now see into what you do and tell so many other people without any editor."
There are interesting generational implications at work here. Friedman calls our online presence a "digital fingerprint" that will follow us around - an important point for young people just entering the job market or trying to establish a professional reputation. The rise of Google means that the resume is no longer the primary basis on which a potential employer will make a decision.
As Seidman puts it: "In the information age, life has no chapters or closets; you can leave nothing behind, and you have nowhere to hide your skeletons. Your past is your present."
For younger people who have Facebook pages, MySpace pages - and for everyone with a blog - it's something to think about!
In a new book called "How", author Dov Seidman posits that, according to Friedman, "...in this transparent world, how you live your life and how you conduct your business matters more than ever, because so many people can now see into what you do and tell so many other people without any editor."
There are interesting generational implications at work here. Friedman calls our online presence a "digital fingerprint" that will follow us around - an important point for young people just entering the job market or trying to establish a professional reputation. The rise of Google means that the resume is no longer the primary basis on which a potential employer will make a decision.
As Seidman puts it: "In the information age, life has no chapters or closets; you can leave nothing behind, and you have nowhere to hide your skeletons. Your past is your present."
For younger people who have Facebook pages, MySpace pages - and for everyone with a blog - it's something to think about!
Saturday, July 07, 2007
The Family Road Trip
"You might be a Gen-Xer if... you took family trips BEFORE the invention of the mini-van. You rode in the back of the station wagon and you faced the cars behind you."
Oh, yeah. We had the ultimate station wagon – the Checker Cab version. Bigger & badder than the wooden-door kind – although once when I was about 12, we were going across Arizona and the back door flew open for no reason! Luckily I was lying down so didn’t fall out. Another time – same trip, different state – a pheasant hit the windshield. Seriously. Huge bird. Freakish.
My brother & I visited 40+ states before we were 18, thanks to parents who believed in the family car trip. And no DVD player in the back for us! We watched license plates for different states, played the alphabet game with the billboards, and read books.
This summer, however, I will take my daughter to college in Philadelphia via airplane - no long car trip for us. I just don't see that as the greatest way to spend our last couple days together! Instead, we'll fly out early & hang out with my aunt. Much better.
Oh, yeah. We had the ultimate station wagon – the Checker Cab version. Bigger & badder than the wooden-door kind – although once when I was about 12, we were going across Arizona and the back door flew open for no reason! Luckily I was lying down so didn’t fall out. Another time – same trip, different state – a pheasant hit the windshield. Seriously. Huge bird. Freakish.
My brother & I visited 40+ states before we were 18, thanks to parents who believed in the family car trip. And no DVD player in the back for us! We watched license plates for different states, played the alphabet game with the billboards, and read books.
This summer, however, I will take my daughter to college in Philadelphia via airplane - no long car trip for us. I just don't see that as the greatest way to spend our last couple days together! Instead, we'll fly out early & hang out with my aunt. Much better.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
39
I'm not sure why I expected turning 39 to be interesting - maybe because I remember not liking 29 very much (whereas 30 didn't bother me at all!)
But the only interesting thing about turning 39 seems to be that I was born 3 days after Martin Luther King was killed, and he was 39 at the time. (Think about what he had accomplished in 39 years!)
However, to honor the day, here are some other things - totally random, but kinda interesting - about 39...
39 is:
- The sum of five consecutive primes (3 + 5 + 7 + 11 + 13) and the sum of the first three powers of 3 (31 + 32 + 33).
- The number of books in the Old Testament
- The code for international direct-dialed phone calls to Italy
- Japanese Internet chat slang for "thank you" when written with numbers
- The duration, in nanoseconds, of the nuclear reaction in the largest nuclear explosion ever performed
- the number of points Lebron James scored last Saturday in a Cleveland Cavaliers win over the Chicago Bulls
At age 39:
* Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong became the 1st person to set foot on the moon
* Charles Goodyear led the way to the effective use of rubber
* Jimmy Connors reached the U.S. Open semifinals
* Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated
* Thomas Edison had already invented the telegraph, lightbulb and phonograph
In history:
* 39 AD - Caligula ordered that a statue of himself be placed in the temple in Jerusalem. The governor of Syria, Publius Petronius, responsible for erecting the statue, faced mass demonstrations by Jews of the region and managed to delay construction of the statue until the death of Caligula two years later.
* 1039 – The Persian poet Unsuri was born
* 1639 - Connecticut's first constitution was adopted
* 1639 - Harvard University was named for clergyman John Harvard.
* 1739 – The bible was first published in Estonian
* 1839 - The University of Missouri was established, becoming the first public university west of the Mississippi River
* 1839 - The Slave rebellion of Amistad happened on July 1
* 1939 –Spanish Civil War ended (April 1) and World War II began in Europe 6 months later (September 1)
* 1939 - The Philadelphia Story, (one of my favorite movies,) debuted March 26 at the Shubert Theater in New York City.
* 1939 – Batman was created by Bob Kane
Sunday, April 7, 1968 - on this day 39 years ago:
- It was Palm Sunday
- It was a national day of mourning for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Motor racing world champion Jim Clark was killed in a car crash during a race.
- Janis Jopin played a concert with Big Brother, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Guy, Joni Mitchell, Richie Havens, Paul Butterfield, and Elvin Bishop billed as a wake for Martin Luther King, Jr. at Generation in New York City
- President Johnson signed an executive order to send federal troops to quell riots in Baltimore. (Also check out the President's Daily Diary: April 7, 1968 – What a day!)
Other random facts about 39:
* Presidential Decision Directive 39 (PDD 39) is the US policy on Counterterrorism
* 39 Second Single is a blog about “dating stories so bad they must be true”
* The Roman numeral 39 is XXXIX
* Pier 39 is a big attraction in San Francisco’s Bay Area – it even has sea lions
* "The 39 Steps" is a Hitchcock movie in which the main character is handcuffed to the girl who double-crossed him
* Renee Zellweger is currently making a movie called "Case 39", due out in August ’07, in which she plays a social worker who fights to save a girl from her abusive parents
* Genesis 39 is the chapter in which Joseph, having been sold by his brothers into slavery, becomes very rich and successful
OK, now I feel better! :)
But the only interesting thing about turning 39 seems to be that I was born 3 days after Martin Luther King was killed, and he was 39 at the time. (Think about what he had accomplished in 39 years!)
However, to honor the day, here are some other things - totally random, but kinda interesting - about 39...
39 is:
- The sum of five consecutive primes (3 + 5 + 7 + 11 + 13) and the sum of the first three powers of 3 (31 + 32 + 33).
- The number of books in the Old Testament
- The code for international direct-dialed phone calls to Italy
- Japanese Internet chat slang for "thank you" when written with numbers
- The duration, in nanoseconds, of the nuclear reaction in the largest nuclear explosion ever performed
- the number of points Lebron James scored last Saturday in a Cleveland Cavaliers win over the Chicago Bulls
At age 39:
* Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong became the 1st person to set foot on the moon
* Charles Goodyear led the way to the effective use of rubber
* Jimmy Connors reached the U.S. Open semifinals
* Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated
* Thomas Edison had already invented the telegraph, lightbulb and phonograph
In history:
* 39 AD - Caligula ordered that a statue of himself be placed in the temple in Jerusalem. The governor of Syria, Publius Petronius, responsible for erecting the statue, faced mass demonstrations by Jews of the region and managed to delay construction of the statue until the death of Caligula two years later.
* 1039 – The Persian poet Unsuri was born
* 1639 - Connecticut's first constitution was adopted
* 1639 - Harvard University was named for clergyman John Harvard.
* 1739 – The bible was first published in Estonian
* 1839 - The University of Missouri was established, becoming the first public university west of the Mississippi River
* 1839 - The Slave rebellion of Amistad happened on July 1
* 1939 –Spanish Civil War ended (April 1) and World War II began in Europe 6 months later (September 1)
* 1939 - The Philadelphia Story, (one of my favorite movies,) debuted March 26 at the Shubert Theater in New York City.
* 1939 – Batman was created by Bob Kane
Sunday, April 7, 1968 - on this day 39 years ago:
- It was Palm Sunday
- It was a national day of mourning for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Motor racing world champion Jim Clark was killed in a car crash during a race.
- Janis Jopin played a concert with Big Brother, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Guy, Joni Mitchell, Richie Havens, Paul Butterfield, and Elvin Bishop billed as a wake for Martin Luther King, Jr. at Generation in New York City
- President Johnson signed an executive order to send federal troops to quell riots in Baltimore. (Also check out the President's Daily Diary: April 7, 1968 – What a day!)
Other random facts about 39:
* Presidential Decision Directive 39 (PDD 39) is the US policy on Counterterrorism
* 39 Second Single is a blog about “dating stories so bad they must be true”
* The Roman numeral 39 is XXXIX
* Pier 39 is a big attraction in San Francisco’s Bay Area – it even has sea lions
* "The 39 Steps" is a Hitchcock movie in which the main character is handcuffed to the girl who double-crossed him
* Renee Zellweger is currently making a movie called "Case 39", due out in August ’07, in which she plays a social worker who fights to save a girl from her abusive parents
* Genesis 39 is the chapter in which Joseph, having been sold by his brothers into slavery, becomes very rich and successful
OK, now I feel better! :)
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Yet Another Definition of Gen X
From a book called "Retiring the Generation Gap" by Jennifer J Deal:
Silent Generation: born 1925-1945
Early Boomers: b 1946-1954
Late Boomers: b 1955-1963
Early Xers: b 1964-1976
Late Xers: b 1977-1986
My friend Mitch will be happy because he likes to think that he's not a Boomer even though most definitions put '64 in the Boomer range. ;)
This is the first time I've seen Boomers & Xers broken into separate "early" and "late" groups - not sure yet what differences there are between those groups - have to read the book!
Silent Generation: born 1925-1945
Early Boomers: b 1946-1954
Late Boomers: b 1955-1963
Early Xers: b 1964-1976
Late Xers: b 1977-1986
My friend Mitch will be happy because he likes to think that he's not a Boomer even though most definitions put '64 in the Boomer range. ;)
This is the first time I've seen Boomers & Xers broken into separate "early" and "late" groups - not sure yet what differences there are between those groups - have to read the book!
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