On Greg
I've been doing a lot of thinking about Greg recently. This came about from listening to the Bob Seger song "Like a Rock," which whenever I really listen to it I can't help but think of Greg. It's been playing on repeat in my car at full volume, because the song kicks ass. If you're reading and don't know the song it's the one from about half the Chevy truck commercials of the last fifteen years (evidently, Seger, who's from Michigan, offered its use at length to Chevy to aid the then-struggling Detroit auto workers...whatever). To some extent, the commercials have cheapened the song because casual listeners (namely ones too young to remember the song on the radio before it was used for the ads, like myself) might have a really hard time hearing the song and not dismissing it as a lame marketing tool, but if you can put aside that initial kneejerk reaction to it, it's really pretty good.
Anyways, I always wish I had more of Greg's strengths. Here's a guy who really knows what he's about. He doesn't seem like he ever has moral crises, he just sees what's right and does it, quickly and with everything he's got. He knows his priorities and his values without even thinking about them, just sees the right in them and has the unwavering integrity to pursue them without self-doubt. I feel like I have too hard a time deciding what's right for me, what way I want to go with my life and all that to do the big things, but that doesn't seem to be a problem for Greg at all. He's got all the defining qualities that come to mind when I think of a real man. To top it all off, he's tough as nails too, man, he's a real steel horseman. He's wanted: dead or alive. What a badass.
Here's the first half of the song's lyrics, the parts that make me think of Greg, for your consideration:
Anyways, I always wish I had more of Greg's strengths. Here's a guy who really knows what he's about. He doesn't seem like he ever has moral crises, he just sees what's right and does it, quickly and with everything he's got. He knows his priorities and his values without even thinking about them, just sees the right in them and has the unwavering integrity to pursue them without self-doubt. I feel like I have too hard a time deciding what's right for me, what way I want to go with my life and all that to do the big things, but that doesn't seem to be a problem for Greg at all. He's got all the defining qualities that come to mind when I think of a real man. To top it all off, he's tough as nails too, man, he's a real steel horseman. He's wanted: dead or alive. What a badass.
Here's the first half of the song's lyrics, the parts that make me think of Greg, for your consideration:
Stood there boldly, sweatin' in the sun
Felt like a million, felt like number one
The height of summer, I'd never felt that strong
Like a rock
I was eighteen, didn't have a care
Workin' for peanuts, not a dime to spare
But I was lean and solid everywhere
Like a rock
My hands were steady, my eyes were clear and bright
My walk had purpose, my steps were quick and light
And I held firmly to what I felt was right
Like a rock
Like a rock, I was strong as I could be
Like a rock, nothing ever got to me
Like a rock, I was something to see
Like a rock
And I stood arrow-straight, unencumbered by the weight
Of all these hustlers and their schemes
I stood proud, I stood tall
High above it all
I still believed in my dreams
posted by Roger W. at 2:06 PM
14 Comments:
Roger,
That is a tribute to your brother that I can agree with wholeheartedly. He has his troubles but is determined to overcome them. He doesn't show them easily.
Dad
Boy, are you right about Greg! I don't know if he'd agree with you but I always see him as steady and focused. You really hit the nail on the head. Don't sell yourself short, though, we need all types in this world and we certainly need those who make us think, like you do. That's why you need to find a way to share yourself with the world. We have a lot to gain from your insights and creativity. Don't ever forget that. I have always felt priviledged to know the three of you and lucky to be able to be your(wicked)stepmom. It's been great fun along the way!
Roger,
I got out my copy of Bob Seeger's greatest hits, 1 and 2 to listen to "Like a Rock." That is an excellent song; 3 of my favorite Bob Seeger songs are "Her Strut", "Beautiful Loser", and "Shame on the Moon." I should mention that Bob Seeger is on of the few artists that I have actually seen in concert. Sarah and I went to see him on his farewell tour, and he was awesome!! That is especially surprising to me, considering that ( I believe ) his father was folk singer Pete Seeger, an avowed Communist. Bob put on one hell of a show, and that's a fact!
Dad
P.S.
In my opinion, your older brother Alex is way rock-like as well! You couldn't ask for a more steadfast, intelligent, and loyal friend than Alex. Your original post really got to me, because Greg had made comments about how he didn't have your courage when you joined the Corps. I guess all of us look around sometimes and feel like we don't measure up to those around us that we admire. It is a humbling experience to realize that those same folk feel the same way about us.
Roger,
I was listening to Bob Seeger, and remembered that back in the day, when I was feeling low, I used to like to listen to "Blue Collar Man" by Styx. I don't know if you have ever listened, but it used to speak to me.
Dad
Dad,
First of all, Seger only has two E's. Second, yes, I'd definitely say the same of Alex, only Alex is quite a sweety at times whereas Greg is a stone cold badass all the time. He really walks his own path and walks it proudly.
Also, of course I've heard Blue Collar Man by Styx. I've owned Styx's Greatest Hits for about eight years now, and that's one of my favorites among their songs. I have a hard time really taking Styx seriously these days, though; it's not that I don't love them, just that they're a little too poppy for me to think of them as deep thinkers, which I'd need to do to really get hit by that song.
well, after responding to this four times and deleting each response due to their inadequacies, i think i'm ready to respond. f'real this time. ;)
the traits you see in greg are quite admirable.
on the way home today, this post and sarah's initial comment came to mind while i was listening to pink floyd...
Go down in your own way
And everyday is the right day
And as you rise above the fearlines in the frown
You look down
Hear the sound of the faces in the crowd
well, i don't know, but something about that part made me think about you. (there's a jets to brazil song along the same lines, but i figured that would be pretty meaningless to you.) embrace who you are fully because being yourself is a pretty good self to be. if you can't believe by now that you're admirable, you're fooling yourself (pun intended.) i don't think anyone doubts you half as much as you doubt yourself.
also, your dad likes styx? i feel like that alone deserves a response. i used to listen to "blue collar man" on my way into the menards complex last summer. really gets you in the mood to put in a 14 hour day in a warehouse, heh.
Good post! The responses are pretty deep for me, though, so I think I'll try to lighten it up.
I agree for the most part, but I'm not so sure about this part of the song applying to Greg: "eyes were clear and bright." There seems to be a correlation between the number of beers Greg consumed the night before and the clarity and brightness of his eyes. I've seen them foggy and red more than a few times!
Roger,
I would have posted this earlier, but we just got back from Florida. You should know that there is nothing that pisses me off more than someone who challenges my pre-conceived notions (especially about Communists) with logical, easily proven statements. Let me retort; As far as "First of all, Seger only has two E's." In my little world it is common knowledge that fifth columnist's(domestic communist's) would think nothing of dropping an E from their name to disguise their nefarious past. That is like changing Smythe to Smith, or Herr Mueller to Mr. Miller. Got you thinking now, right? And besides, he's an entertainer for God's sake, cut from the same cloth as Sean Penn. Sean Penn's dad was a communist, and that's a fact! Therefore, Bob Seger must be a communist. Because.......There is a communist singer that has a name that is similar, and there is a no-talent actor douchebag that has a father who is a communist. As far as I am concerned, case proven, case closed! There is a Latin phrase that covers my poor argument, but I don't know it, so we shall have to ask latin scholar Alex.
Do you have a problem with that, Marine?
When I was in school the first time around, I took a course in symbolic logic. It has probably been one of the more useful courses I have taken, because it demonstrated the stupidity of much of what passes for discourse today on the right and left. I can deal with people who make legitimate arguments, and concede their position when obvious fallacies are demonstrated. Unfortunately, some people seem to care not at all if their argument is carefully constructed or supported, and will continure to argue an indefensible position ad infinitum, ad nauseum. However, wrong is always wrong, and right is always right. Roger, you are correct about the spelling, I never noticed that before. I had made that weird connection in my own head.
buble, what's up about me liking Styx? I bought the original album back when Styx was brand new (maybe 1985) If Roger would like to listen to the original vinyl, his Mom probably has it. (I didn't get it in the property settlement).I don't quite get Roger's reference about taking Styx seriously; they are singers and performers, not oracles or prophets. I don't take any of that crap seriously. Each person takes what they need or can use; do not over-think the process. I like Jimi Hendrix and I like the Beatle's. I do not take my cues on the proper living of life from Jimi or Paul McCartney. I've always been amused by people who think Bob Dylan has something to teach the rest of humanity. My God, have any of those people looked at the man! What a goof! I like Curt Cobain's music, but he does not instruct me on how to live life. I think it is much better to take our instruction from our parents(correcting of course for things that obviously haven't worked for them), our religious faith( from the example set by Our Lord Jesus Christ). I personally think that if you can truly say "Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and deliver us from evil..." you have no problems!
Dad
dear rog's dad,
i LOVE styx. i also appreciate that you can like music without it being epically profound. sometimes a particular song's message might hit home more than another, but i think it's more because of who you already are as a person.
p.s. i thought to let you know that it is kurt, not curt, cobain, but decided against it, as i hear he is a marxist. ;)
Dad,
Didn't you name me Karl? Not even with a C, but with a K?
And Padre, FYI, one of Bob Seger's earliest locally-popular songs was "Ballad of the Yellow Beret," mocking draft dodgers in 1968. Never mind that not two years later he wrote an anti-war song called "2+2=?", or that he remained a liberal til present day, evidenced through such anecdotes as the previously mentioned use of "Like a Rock" to supposedly assist the auto worker proles of Detroit or whatever, versus licensing it extensively for the ever-so-shameful goal of making money (God forbid!). But hey, what do you expect from somebody raised in Ann Arbor, MI (or, colloquially, Berkeley of the North)?
One last thing: I recently looked up the lyrics to the song "The Way It Is" by Bruce Hornsby (listen to a sample here) because I keep hearing it at work. I hate its kind of apologism (say that ten times fast to get a better idea of its meaning). It's a really nice sounding song, but lyrically it's all about how basically you can only succeed in life if you're a well-off white man or something. I've heard it so many times throughout my life and it sounds so nice and catchy that it's a damn shame it turned out to be such a lemon. What a load of crap.
buble,
You can call me Ken. I'm proud to be Roger's dad, but it's somewhat unwieldy as a title.
I was re-reading some of these posts and comments today after talking to Roger. He had related how his Mom (Pat) had found a website dedicated to memorial comments addressed to the family of Cpl. Paul (Nick) King, the subject of Roger's July 4th post. I found the site myself, and read some of the comments. I wanted to say "God bless you, Pat" for taking the time to let these people know about Roger's post. It has to be some measure of comfort for them to know that there is meaning in their loss, and that meaning is remembered by those affected long after their loved one is laid to rest. We are all part of the family of the Corps, and I know that but for the Grace of God, we could be walking in their shoes.
buble, my Sarah is curious what "buble" means. We have Googled it and looked it up in a Spanish dictionary, but have not found a satisfactory answer. Care to enlighten us? By the way, you got me again with Curt Cobain being Kurt Cobain. That cracks me up, actually! I didn't know he was a Marxist, but that doesn't surprise me.
Roger, your middle name is spelled with a K, not because your mother and I had Marxist leanings, but because you were named after my friend Karl Trader. His name was spelled with a K, so your middle name was spelled with a K. I despise Marxism, Leninism, and communism because there have been no examples in history of this being a successful way to organize a society, and yet there are always willing apologists and ignorant aficionado's wanting to adopt some or all of their tenets to control our own society. Your own post on the actual outcomes of policies such as socialized medicine in Canada (and also Used-to-be Great Britain)demonstrate the fallacies inherit in these tenets. I will never understand why people willfully blind themselves to the results of these policies as long as they think the outcome will agree with their Utopian thought processes? I can only conclude that such people have no moral compass, no set of values that guides them in their decision making. Either that, or they are just hopeless morons, incapable of following an argument from Point A to Point B, and resisting mightily the inevitable conclusion if it conflicts with their pre-conceived notions.
ken and sarah,
lucky for you, a name is the one title in the world that i am eager to use... sorry, i didn't see this comment until today. so, about "el buble" (that's spanish for "the buble.") i'll tell you the same thing i told roger. prepare to be disappointed.
my roommate and i (keep in mind we are incredibly goofy and juvenile when we're together) were at the hardware store getting some things to fix up our house. we saw these bubblegum cigars on the counter with goofy names on the labels. she chose "pink owl" and i took "el buble" and we decided those would become our secret codenames, or perhaps our call signals if we became truckers. i don't know, we were around a lot of paint that day. anyway, i suppose "el buble" is some horrible made up spanglish word for "the bubble," but it sounds pretty bandito-esque to me. so there you have it, the legend of el buble.
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