But Not Today

Written by Tom Being Tom

There are a couple of very important things I intend to write.

I mean, not today, but soon.

One of them is about Ludo. You might remember Ludo as the middle child in the golden family, the one that was crated the most of all my boys. He was so impertinent in his youth that my lamentations on his behavior prompted billboards and protests and bumper stickers exclaiming, “Free Ludo!”

Yeah, that guy.

He’s a really good boy now.

But as I look back over my writings since the relaunch of TBT (50 posts now!), I realize that I have an individual entry for Moxie, the oldest, and several for Marvel, the youngest, but nothing dedicated to Ludo in these two-score-and-a-half. He deserves a write-up. “The Fall and Rise of Ludo” is coming. Or something like that.

Incidentally, Marvel is Young Ludo now. A good boy but very misguided. If you bought the house across the street from me, you’d hear “MARVEL, STOP!” a lot, coming from the halls of our castle. If you listened really close afterwards you’d hear one of us reminding the other that we should never (a) yell his name at him, since that’s supposed to be a good word, and (b) he’s just a puppy still, so don’t let the 90-pound frame fool you. It’s true. He’s a good boy. Or, we surmise, there’s a good boy in there somewhere, even if it looks like Marvel ate him.

The other thing I’ve been meaning to get around to doing is updating my personal mission statement. Those of you who have been around here a while might remember my last update, from November of ’17:

My mission is to delight in life, to show appreciation for each new day. In so doing I will not wallow in remorse of past things or fear the things to come, but instead revel in each trial knowing that it is in the fire that we are forged. For myself I will practice balance, seeking a habit of meditation, moderation and temperance in my daily living. For others I will strive to help them in their journey as I continue to define my own. I will show love, devotion, adoration and encouragement to the love of my life, my wife and partner, every day. I will remember that success, like happiness, is a product of effort and focus. I will honor the thoughts and traditions of others even as I strive to break from traditional thought myself. I will always seek to gain a higher perspective on my path to wisdom and personal evolution. I will find solace, and a creative outlet, in writing.

What has changed? Well, a quick read over the thing tells me “not much.” It is still my mission to “delight in life,” first and foremost, but some of the nuances and language have certainly changed. I have evolved, I know, since my 50th birthday in 2018. My priorities have, for sure. An update may not look incredibly different – which tells me I’m on my best path – but a little means a lot. So that update is coming.

Just not today.

One other thing I’ve been meaning to do, and I think I will as time permits, is reread the rough drafts of my old blog, the one lost in the great, accidental purging of December ’18. See, when I compose I compose in Word. After my first draft I take whatever it is and transfer it into WordPress for revisions, links, and pictures before submitting my humble words to the information highway.

I still have all those old rough drafts. Some of that stuff was a-ok. I wonder, sometimes, what I can do with those roughs, and what the polished finished will look like now.

So I want to do that.

Just not today.

Today I just want to muse and meander and talk about the stuff I want to talk about, eventually. Today I just want to chill. If you want to read a good entry, and a great story about love, check out last week’s post. It’s about how I became ordained. And why.

Now have a good weekend, my friends, and a glorious week ahead. The rest of your life awaits.

Go You.

 

26 thoughts on “But Not Today”

  1. Wow, I keep my drafts on Word as well. Well that’s because it started out as a book, then as my therapy progressed and at the urging of my awesome therapist, I broke it down. I’ve posted sections on my book into blog posts and tada, that’s how I became the Huntress! But even with posts about everything else I still write them on Word first. I’m OCD that way, lol.

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  2. Awesome post brother. Very Seinfeld-ish in your “a post about nothing” yet yielding something.
    I never saw your mission statement before and I have to tell you that you outlined the secret to a virtuous life. And I wasn’t there for the whole Kid I thing so now I’m caught up.
    Keep doing what you’re doing bud, you are inspiring more than you know

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  6. Whew, Tom! After reading your mission statement, I’m exhausted! Still, I love that you’re aiming high – all good missions to endeavor toward! I’m with you and Patricia, I’m feeling very BNT. But at least I’m not in the metaphorical crate with Ludo…yet. 😎 Mona

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    1. That crate is a lonely place to be! Shortly after that pic I bought the little fella a new crate and unpacked it with him and got him all excited about what it was going to be. I kept calling it his “home.” From that day forward he loved that crate (still does!) and I can’t remember a single episode of destruction since. They grow. I keep telling myself, concerning Marvel, “they grow.” 😉

      Thank you, Mona!

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  7. It’s shaky ground, this place of BNT, and I have a healthy respect for it. I have seen “Eh, so what, there’s always tomorrow” become a slippery slope and lead to “I used to just CRASTINATE… and then I turned PRO!” On the flip side, it’s wonderful to have a thing you do because you want to and you like to instead of you need to. During a writing hiatus about a year ago when I was lamenting to a friend that I was frustrated with not being able to know what to say or find time to say it, he said (and you can beg to differ on this but it’s what he said): “Your blog is a blessing, not an obligation.” So is yours, Tom, and so is yours, Mona (and we all can make a list of other people’s blogs that fit that exact description). What comes, comes, and within the complexity of each of our lives, the messages, the humor, the stories all find their mark somehow, I hope!

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  12. Always learning from you Tom….TBH I have never thought of backing up my blog,….. um…. yep should probably do that soon…BNT… I have spent the last few weeks backing up pictures annd videos from the last 10 years ( somehow I have 38,000 of them)… I will add back up wordpress to the list.
    I love your mission statement, and I do believe you have been nailing it

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    1. 38,000?! 😲

      All of my pics automatically update to Amazon. My current blog is not updated, either. 🤣

      I appreciate the kind words, Grace, and I think I have been nailing that mission statement, too! Or, most of it, anyway. I still struggle with “temperance.” 😉

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