What Is An Achiever To You?

Today's Question:  What is an achiever to you?

Is it the writer of an unstoppable hit single praised by the record company, or the author of a well-written, thought-provoking, socially-conscious song praised by all their friends?  Is it someone who gets the JD and the Deanship or Justice position, or the dependable paralegal who always has files ready?  Is it someone who sacrifices family for a brilliant career in the limelight, or someone who raises 2 children successfully while holding down a job?  Is it the Olympic track star or the woman who consistently runs 5 miles a day, every day, for years?  Is it the .330 average or the morale guy who hits .230 but is always there for the team?  Lots of TV shows and movies are about the latter, and I believe in the little guy (just as my father did) -- but that's not my point.  My point is, so many pay lip service to the latter and actually worship the former.  So what is your real measure of success?  What is an achiever to you?

Do think before you weigh in...

Who was your favorite high school teacher and why?

Who was YOUR favorite high school teacher?  I keep blanking on the names of mine (there were a couple), including the all-time winner, a warm, wise, wonderful woman who taught English at Hunter High School when I was there and also started a Women's Consciousness-Raising group in her spacious Manhattan living room that I was privileged to be a part of (as I recall, one Margaret Raymond also was a member, and I'll have to look her up to see if she remembers the name, because her memory is probably better than mine).  She was sensitive and caring, crucial qualities for running a consciousness-raising group, and that pretty much made her #1 in my book.

Who was YOUR favorite high school teacher and why?

Happy remembering.

When do YOU remember it last being like this?

(This is Friday's blog, since I was sweating too hard yesterday to operate a keyboard...)
2 100-degree-plus days (not counting the Temperature-Humidity Index) were on the docket for Friday and today here in New York City, and came in as advertised.  I discovered I can drink a 32-ounce large iced tea from Dunkin Donuts in 3 blocks flat (did it on 2 consecutive days).  I did a large family laundry and soaked through my underwear and shell (which accompanied me into the shower for washing). I lost 3 pounds and am under 140 for the first time in a year.  All that weight loss while abandoning my jogging routine!
When do YOU remember it last being like this?  What I always remember is 1965, when I was six.  I was upstate with mom (and dad on weekends; he continued to work in the city, poor man, while we maintained a summer bungalow near Poughkeepsie).  She played WINS Newsradio 1010AM every day all day while working around the house (even though we were about 100 miles north of the transmitter, which meant constant static), and the regular recap was like "the temperature in Central Park is 103 degrees..." "104 degrees..." "105 degrees..." for days in a row.  I thought, "Gee, it's hot in the city" (I was too self-absorbed to consider the fact that dad was commuting in it).  I believe history later counted it as the summer of Harlem and Newark riots.  No surprise there.
So, New York area friends: When is the last time YOU remember it being like this?  Time to weigh in...

What's Hot on the Charts?

This is an easy music question if you're talking BILLBOARD (Eminem was on repeatedly last year, the only artist to boast over 4 weeks at #1):  Rap is Pop.  But you out there may have other opinions.  R&B is big, of course, when you consider Beyonce and Rihanna; and those BILLBOARD charts have showed an interesting tendency to veer through several distinct genres at #1, especially early last year.  (The year wound up with Eminem topping sales, Taylor Swift #2 and Susan Boyle rounding out the Top 5.)  The Justin Bieber fans wouldn't agree that Rap is Pop (he was also huge last year), nor would the Taylor Swift listeners.  So my question for you is:  What do YOU think is hot on the charts?

Is Obama The Angel of Debt?

The debt measure passed by the House last night sounds like a decent compromise.  I say that (plus the fact Obama wasn't backing it at press time) makes it a definite veto.  I also have an unpleasant feeling Obama's not going to back anything that is either agreed to by the most decent Congressional personnel or beneficial to the majority of Americans.  What do YOU think?

What Is The Songwriter?

My Q 4 2day:  Does a songwriter have a responsibility to create expressly political work?  Is the ideal songwriter a poet, a polemicist or simply a creator who uniquely sets their own feelings to endearing music?
Some say Phil Ochs was right to stick to his political guns and Bob Dylan was wrong for not sticking to his.  Some would say Bruce Spingsteen was right to grind axes, while others would say they prefer his introspective stuff.  Some would tell me to add more to my political repertoire.  Others prefer my love songs or pop.
I like recently-deceased folk songwriter Jack Hardy:  he did everything, did it well and apologized for nothing.  He was, like Dylan, both political and romantic.  He obviously did not create out of any major sense of responsibility or preference.  He just created based upon his desire to express feelings, political or personal.  That's closest to my attitude.  I am bothered by people who suggest a writer is not carrying out their responsibility or destiny because they don't adhere unceasingly to one line or the other.  I like Bob Dylan and Jack Hardy:  be an unrepentant creator and do what you prefer to do.  It will best express your feelings.

What do YOU think?  Time for you to weigh in.

The Women's World Cup

Q.  How did you feel when Japan won?
A.  I was reminded of when the New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl:  if YOUR town had gone through Hurricane Katrina, wouldn't ANYONE want your team to win the Super Bowl?  For earthquake-devastated Japan, this is that kind of morale boost.  I feel it's hard to boo about how your team should have won when the other side needs a morale boost that badly.  I looked at the crestfallen U.S. team and the wildly screaming Japanese and thought:  good for Japan, they really needed this one.
Time for you to weigh in: How did YOU feel?