The last time I went to the movies I saw someone walking into the theatre with what looked like a tub of popcorn. It looked like something I used to carry out into the yard to rake up leaves. The soda they had in their other hand could have doubled as a swimming pool for a small child. It was at least twenty four ounces! If you ask me the only person who should be having 24 ounces of liquid is someone who needs hydration after being found on a deserted island.
The size of movie snacks is just one little symbol of something that’s become epidemic in this country. We believe that more is better in everything we do, buy, eat, and see. We take everything to extremes—and how good can that be for our mental and physical well-being? I am so tired of movies that essentially have little or no plot in deference to crazy car chases, alien invasions, and sex, sex ,sex. When did naked become the new dress code? Last night Lady Gaga was doing an interview wearing two clam shells as a bra, bare midriff and some diaphanous skirt which of course her underwear peeked through.
Every time I talk about this stuff, I start to think, “maybe I’m just losing my edge”. Should I just embrace the insanity and roll with it? Well, I just can’t. Women fought long and hard to be respected for their intellect and to reach the place where they were paid well for their expertise. I can cut Gaga a little slack because she is an artist. I put her in the same league as many of the eccentric performers that have been part of the culture since forever. But, now there are many average people who think nothing of wearing practically nothing just to go shopping. I find it hard to listen to someone whose breasts are jumping out at me, or whose pants are so tight that I think they might explode. Men are also starting to cross this line. Not wearing a shirt is considered cool because you can show your Pecs!
But what if your Pecs are hanging on your abdomen? Not too cool!
Do I have a solution. I can only share what I have done to try to be okay with my world. I now watch old moves, listen to jazz standards when I’m hanging around and sit in my garden when I can. No, I haven’t applied for a position in a monastery, but I do know that the chaos that has become the American culture helps create a chaotic mind. And I am choosing peace!