Saturday, June 24, 2006
Saturday June 24, 2006 - Year 4, Day 96 - no way out
13C/55F, gorgeous calm sunny morn; the lagoon/lake is bursting, Gusta more amused by a mole hill odours than new shore birds
Carla & Krista are in Calgary for the weekend – staying at my dad’s place; we are taking Gusta on a hike today; not sure if we will do Johnson’s Canyon or some other spot along the way; say it is all about
first borns, first boomers, first, first among my collection of extraordinary people in my life are my - 60 yr olds are one bookend of a generation, 39 yr olds the other – each disconnected from generations before or since
I am nearly 55, born near the leading edge of this ‘boomer generation’; subjected to the hoola-hoop, b&w TV, Dr. Spock inspired rearing in an era when parents shuddered to think Fidel & Nikita would re-colour our maps or wipe us all out; growing up with sonic-booms & Sputnik memories; from John Glenn to ‘one giant leap for mankind’
nobody asked me?; no one said 'would you like to be a baby boomer?'; would I like to be part of the Pepsi-generation, part of the peace movement, part of drug culture, the space age, the cold war or détente?
no one said, you cannot be an individual because you are part of a group, the group behaves in a predictable way – you are a statistic – no one told me this
we, the generation of Camelot, not the quintessential spot but Kennedy era spawned pop culture & psycho babble - 60’s fear & loathing, protesting & Viet Nam & the cold war & assasinations
we were just born, some of us first born’s in families where there were no first born buffer zones between us & parents; no one issued us membership cards, we did not apply - we are members who cannot escape or resign; we are done like dinner; tarred with the boomer brush, there is no escaping
minor rebellion is OK, not because of what we are rebelling against, but because we are boomers – rebelling is as much a part of our DNA as was school recitation of the Lord’s Prayer & swearing allegiance to the Queen or cod liver oil
none of us can look back at a time when we were not ‘baby boomers’, as children we never thought of ourselves as a unique generation; on my block 8 yr. olds hung out with 9 yr. olds & 5 yr. olds – we were just kids, not boomers; not realizing we were part of a unique group in history, in the social sciences – a demographic group of consumers who are marketed to, pandered to; an economic & political tour de force
the first of them, now turning 60; the Globe & Mail this morning features a retrospective on baby boomers - the youngest 39, the oldest 60
I cringe a little when I read analysis of the Gen-X we propagated who collectively have values & behaviours that defy explanation; each time some supposed expert or enterprising gen-X or Y journalist writes us up, or someone write a book to explain us to everyone or explain us to ourselves I cringe a little
I know some of these first born first boomers
like most first born's (the worst kind are we 'ONLY CHILD' first born's !!); I have come to appreciated the independence, arrogance & pushiness that fosters
my 55th is coming soon – the Freedom 55 plan I envision is the freedom to not plan, not retire, not fit-in, not follow a path but to make one; sadly, I suppose, none from my generation find any of this outside the norm
we are a generation who were told we would run the world - we do, we have, we are; is it a better place because of us, or in spite of us?
I like to think we make a contribution – every day my life connects mostly with boomer generation friends & clients; I don’t know if that is a good thing or a tunnel vision thing
no way out; caught between 39 & 60 we are alive like never before, full of P&V, full of ourselves, full of swagger, full of it
no way out, no way in
if you are not a member of the boomer club, there is no way to join
it is an exclusive club
no way out of the bookends
no way out
no way!
Mark
341,654
Carla & Krista are in Calgary for the weekend – staying at my dad’s place; we are taking Gusta on a hike today; not sure if we will do Johnson’s Canyon or some other spot along the way; say it is all about
first borns, first boomers, first, first among my collection of extraordinary people in my life are my - 60 yr olds are one bookend of a generation, 39 yr olds the other – each disconnected from generations before or since
I am nearly 55, born near the leading edge of this ‘boomer generation’; subjected to the hoola-hoop, b&w TV, Dr. Spock inspired rearing in an era when parents shuddered to think Fidel & Nikita would re-colour our maps or wipe us all out; growing up with sonic-booms & Sputnik memories; from John Glenn to ‘one giant leap for mankind’
nobody asked me?; no one said 'would you like to be a baby boomer?'; would I like to be part of the Pepsi-generation, part of the peace movement, part of drug culture, the space age, the cold war or détente?
no one said, you cannot be an individual because you are part of a group, the group behaves in a predictable way – you are a statistic – no one told me this
we, the generation of Camelot, not the quintessential spot but Kennedy era spawned pop culture & psycho babble - 60’s fear & loathing, protesting & Viet Nam & the cold war & assasinations
we were just born, some of us first born’s in families where there were no first born buffer zones between us & parents; no one issued us membership cards, we did not apply - we are members who cannot escape or resign; we are done like dinner; tarred with the boomer brush, there is no escaping
minor rebellion is OK, not because of what we are rebelling against, but because we are boomers – rebelling is as much a part of our DNA as was school recitation of the Lord’s Prayer & swearing allegiance to the Queen or cod liver oil
none of us can look back at a time when we were not ‘baby boomers’, as children we never thought of ourselves as a unique generation; on my block 8 yr. olds hung out with 9 yr. olds & 5 yr. olds – we were just kids, not boomers; not realizing we were part of a unique group in history, in the social sciences – a demographic group of consumers who are marketed to, pandered to; an economic & political tour de force
the first of them, now turning 60; the Globe & Mail this morning features a retrospective on baby boomers - the youngest 39, the oldest 60
I cringe a little when I read analysis of the Gen-X we propagated who collectively have values & behaviours that defy explanation; each time some supposed expert or enterprising gen-X or Y journalist writes us up, or someone write a book to explain us to everyone or explain us to ourselves I cringe a little
I know some of these first born first boomers
like most first born's (the worst kind are we 'ONLY CHILD' first born's !!); I have come to appreciated the independence, arrogance & pushiness that fosters
my 55th is coming soon – the Freedom 55 plan I envision is the freedom to not plan, not retire, not fit-in, not follow a path but to make one; sadly, I suppose, none from my generation find any of this outside the norm
we are a generation who were told we would run the world - we do, we have, we are; is it a better place because of us, or in spite of us?
I like to think we make a contribution – every day my life connects mostly with boomer generation friends & clients; I don’t know if that is a good thing or a tunnel vision thing
no way out; caught between 39 & 60 we are alive like never before, full of P&V, full of ourselves, full of swagger, full of it
no way out, no way in
if you are not a member of the boomer club, there is no way to join
it is an exclusive club
no way out of the bookends
no way out
no way!
Mark
341,654
©2006 Mark Kolke, all rights reserved.
