Sick Or Not Sick?

The title may lead you to believe that this post will be a little game where I name something and you decide if it is Sick or Not Sick. But no... I am trying to determine what symptoms are necessary for someone to actually be considered "sick."

You see, I am now on my second day with a worsening cold. I have a headache, a stuffy nose, a raw throat, and a general achy feeling. So I have declared myself sick. However, my wife says that I am not sick, I merely "have a cold." The conversation went something like this:

"I'm sick."
"You're not sick."
"I am too."
"You just have a cold."
"That is sick."
"It's just a cold."
"If I were to call in to work, would I call in sick or would I call in cold?"
"Sick is only if you have a fever, diarrhea, or throwing up."
"So if I had cancer, I wouldn't be sick?"

And on and on......

So I did some basic research to find out what it means to be "sick." Here is what I found out...

According to dictionary.com, sick is defined as:

1.	afflicted with ill health or disease; ailing.

2.	affected with nausea; inclined to vomit.

So, basically, that doesn't help at all. According to that, we're both right. Here is the flaw that I find with her argument, however. If she feels the slightest bit bad (headache, hangnail, a zit) then she is sick and I must take care of her and treat her like a fragile egg. On the flip side, if I were to contract every disease known to man at one time, I should suck it up and quit being a baby.

So even though I don't want to be sick, I will fight for my right to be SICK. I'm not one to complain when I am sick (no matter what my wife says), and I just quietly recover so as not to inconvenience anyone (shutup, baby). So if I am sick, what does it matter to anyone else!

At least in my sickness there was one shining light....NKOTB on VH1 Top 20 this morning! I'm sick, but I'm still a dork!

Have a great weekend!

New Kids On The Block and 90210

In an effort to continue the establishment of my dorkiness, let me tell you that this past year has been an awesome year for me.  Why?  Because in one year, two of my most favorite things from high school returned.  New Kids on The Block and 90210.

I can't even begin to describe the jubilation I felt upon hearing of each of these returns.  I was in high school in the early 90's when NKOTB was hot, and 90210 was just getting started.  And my bedroom walls were covered with posters of these two pop culture sensations.

My sense of nostalgia is strong, and it has always kept a bond with both of these groups of people.  You see, two months into my sophomore year of high school I was uprooted and moved 15 hours away from all my friends and my whole life.  About a month after that move, I saw the pilot episode of 90210 - a show about 2 high school sophomores that were uprooted and moved all the way across the country.  Instant connection!  They had trouble fitting in at their new school, and so did I.   And sense I had no real friends of my own at my new school, the 90210 cast became my friends.

And NKOTB was a group of young kids like me who made it big and changed their lives.  I was a bit of a singer back then, and I didn't see why the same thing couldn't happen to me!

So there I sat alone in my room every night, surrounded by my "virtual" friends.  I read everything I could and learned everything about their lives.  And I would dream up these impossible scenarios where I would somehow meet one of them somewhere and they would think I was so cool that they would instantly offer me a spot in the group, or a role on the show.

Looking back it seems quite pathetic and way dorky.  But at the same time, I think that it is the only thing that got me through the most difficult time of my life.  And if it wasn't for those two groups of people, I might not have made it through.

So even though EVERYONE I know makes fun of me for my obsession with all things New Kids and 90210, I am a proud fan.  Even though the new show kinda sucks, I watch it faithfully just to hear and see bits about the old crew.  And I have even told my family that we are canceling our spring break trip because, of all times, that happens to be when NKOTB is performing in our town.  (I wouldn't really do that to the fam!)

So I stand proud in my dorkiness when it comes to this.  It was almost like a high school reunion for me - where you get to catch up with old friends.  As sad as that may be.  So make fun of me all you want, I'll still be Hangin' Tough!

Speaking Your Mind

We like a lot of the competition reality shows around our house, including Top Chef, Project Runway, Hell's Kitchen, Amazing Race, True Beauty, and others.  One of our favorites, however, is American Idol.  Us and about 35 million other people, apparently.

The best thing about American Idol, in my opinion, is Simon.  Most people love to hate Simon, but I think he's great.  I love how you never know what is going to come out of his mouth.  He never sugar-coats anything.  I think one of the things that makes the show so successful is that everyone watching imagines he had Simon's courage to just say what he thought to everyone.

When we are children, we have no problem saying exactly what we think.  How many times have we all heard a young child point out something about a person that is embarrassing?  "Mommy, look at that thing on his face!"  "You smell bad!"  There is no filter in their minds that stops them from saying these potentially hurtful things.

Yet as we grow older, we begin to learn from society that there are some things better kept to yourself.  Most people eventually learn to speak "only if you have something nice to say."  Some people of course learn this later than others.  I, personally, went to high school with an entire school's worth of late bloomers in this category.

Yet, I watch Simon and see that we could all learn something there.  There is something liberating and healthy to flat-out-honest talk with no hidden meaning and no games.  If we lived in a world full of Paula Abdul's would it be possible for us to grow and evolve into better people?  Or would we all just become a bunch of coddled pansies?  I think we need some Simon's out there to push us to be better.

At work, and at home, the world would be better if people said what they meant all the time.  Not in a cruel way, but in a way that will take the guess work out of navigating relationships.  Is my boss happy with my work performance?  Does that friend really want to hang out with me?  Does my wife still enjoy being with me as much as she did when we got married?  Maybe you wouldn't like the answers, but at least you could quit living in self doubt.

In the politically correct world that we live in, everyone is so concerned about hurting other people's feelings, or saying the wrong thing and getting sued!  It is killing the "say what you mean" way of life.  Everyone wants to skirt around issues like a skillful politician.

So, I say bravo to Simon for encouraging people to tell it like it is.  For every person that learns this lesson, this world will be a better, more truthful place.  Sometimes hurt feelings are better than denial, knowing a persons thoughts are better than guessing, and sharing is better than bottling up.

Feeling Old

Do you ever feel way older than you are?  It happens to me all the time!  As much as I try to look young and hip, the fact that I have to try (and the fact that I even used the word hip) lets me know that I am not.  Even still - most the time I feel like I'm younger than I actually am.  But then there is that occasional moment of senior citizenship that hits me and I can only shake my head.

An example... All morning today, I have been singing the classic hymn, "It Is Well With My Soul."  I'm talking singing it out loud in the car like I was the soloist at a Billy Graham crusade.

Why?  The most obvious answer is that I am an old fogey hiding in the body of a slightly younger, yet still large, dork.  But really it's just that last night I attended my step son's orchestra concert, and they played it (of course under its fancy title - On a Hymnsong), and now I can't get it out of my head.

You see, I grew up a pastor's kids in the South, and I still love me some good old Southern Gospel music.  And this fact makes me feel old too.  Who under the age of 55 still likes Southern Gospel music?  Yet, I could listen to those old quartets sing for hours.  I'm the guy those Bill Gaither TV specials are made for.  Except I won't watch them because that makes me feel old!

Not helping the feeling old problem is the fact that my wife seems to think that most of the clothes and shoes that I pick out at the store are "old man-ish."  And the scary thing is that I don't see it.  So if she is right, then I am farther gone than I think!

Add all of this to an ever expanding beer belly, an ever receding hairline, an ever increasing bald spot and ever graying hair, and I may as well sign up for AARP now.  I'm sure I would pass the interview.

So all I can do is keep holding on to the things that make me feel young.  Although, I hope I don't do this so long that it becomes embarrassing.  I'll just keep trying, while trying to mai it look like I'm not trying.  But, eventually, I will have to face the inevitable - that I have turned into my Dad.

Embrace your youth while you have it.  But remember - age is a matter of the mind... if you don't mind, it doesn't matter.  I know young people who seem incredibly old, and I know old people who can give me a run for my money.  I'd rather be the latter.

My New Blog

I'm Stickman, and this is my new blog.  I will try to post whatever the random thoughts possessing my mind on each given day to this blog for the world to read in wonderment.  Well at least for my wife to read  (thanks for the support, baby).

I think about a lot of things, and I think sometimes I see things differently than others.  I've seen a lot in my limited days.  So be prepared for very diverse and random musings!

Thanks for stopping by!