The Worst Story Ever Told
021906
1830 Hours
What more can be said about where I grew up that hasn’t already been said in the media? Yes, we are poor. Of course we suffer from alcohol and drug addictions. There’s nothing for the youth to do and most of us adults aren’t the best role models. It sounds and looks like Red Lake is becoming more and more like an urban area. Those that have gang aspirations can be seen at every turn with their hip-hop attire. One could laugh in their face, but it isn’t known of how far they are willing to go to make sure their “Rep” isn’t tarnished, so that’s probably not the best idea. Myself, I wear saggy pants because I have no butt muscles to hold up my tight jeans. I wear my hat crooked because I have a weirdly shaped head and have been wearing it that way since I was a kid. So I am not one of the wanna-be’s that roam the mean streets of Red Lake. I’m just a regular citizen who goes to work to feed his family and stays clear of all trouble (I try to anyway).
The past 8 months have been a learning tool for me. In those 8 months I have been alcohol free. That is by far the longest that I have gone without drinking in my adult life. Though I’ve gained quite a bit of weight, I have also gained a more clear perspective on life. Years of alcohol abuse kept me from being the responsible person I was supposed to be. Becoming a father at the tender age of 19 and not realizing how important my role is until 10 years later has me feeling… I’m not sure. Maybe shame and humiliation are the words that best describe what I’ve felt. I know it will be impossible to make up for those 10 years but the rest of my life will be spent doing just that. I owe it to my family.
Getting to a certain magic number of years in life left me feeling a little hollow, “Money makes the world go ‘round,” was what I always thought. When I was 15, I swore to myself that I would be a millionaire by the age of 30. Seven days and my many Powerball dreams dashed passed my 30th birthday; it is only now that I realized success in life just isn’t going to be handed to me like I’ve seen in the movies. You have to work your ass off. I once heard, “Half of life is just showing up.” I took that thought to heart not realizing there would be a lot of work to do after you show up. Stupid Woody Allen!
Recently, I’ve took an interest in the return of Dave Chappelle. His “Block Party” had me thinking more and more about that ridiculous Powerball drawing. I would’ve loved to do something like that for RL had I won (stupid Nebraska people!!!) With the winnings I would’ve invested in homes for RL residents, improved the youth programs, sent RL students to college (as well as myself finishing school), built businesses that could succeed with RL employees so we wouldn’t have to rely on the government for anything. Maybe next time, I guess.
With that out of the way, is the life that I’ve led the past 30 years, 7 days, and 11 hours worth sharing with the world? Probably not, but I’m going to force this on you like itch on a crackhead needing a hit! Oh, man. That was terrible. In the words of Larry the Cable Guy, I apologize, Lord. The Book of Jon is about to begin. Or do I need a new title since that TV show used “The Book…” as a title. We’ll talk about it when it’s done I suppose. Wait, how is this going to work? How does one go about posting a book online? I tried it before and it didn’t work out as well as planned. What the hell! A page at a time will do. Rock and roll! I have to go eat first, then I’ll start chapter 1. Or is this chapter 1 already? I have so much to learn about the book industry.
1830 Hours
What more can be said about where I grew up that hasn’t already been said in the media? Yes, we are poor. Of course we suffer from alcohol and drug addictions. There’s nothing for the youth to do and most of us adults aren’t the best role models. It sounds and looks like Red Lake is becoming more and more like an urban area. Those that have gang aspirations can be seen at every turn with their hip-hop attire. One could laugh in their face, but it isn’t known of how far they are willing to go to make sure their “Rep” isn’t tarnished, so that’s probably not the best idea. Myself, I wear saggy pants because I have no butt muscles to hold up my tight jeans. I wear my hat crooked because I have a weirdly shaped head and have been wearing it that way since I was a kid. So I am not one of the wanna-be’s that roam the mean streets of Red Lake. I’m just a regular citizen who goes to work to feed his family and stays clear of all trouble (I try to anyway).
The past 8 months have been a learning tool for me. In those 8 months I have been alcohol free. That is by far the longest that I have gone without drinking in my adult life. Though I’ve gained quite a bit of weight, I have also gained a more clear perspective on life. Years of alcohol abuse kept me from being the responsible person I was supposed to be. Becoming a father at the tender age of 19 and not realizing how important my role is until 10 years later has me feeling… I’m not sure. Maybe shame and humiliation are the words that best describe what I’ve felt. I know it will be impossible to make up for those 10 years but the rest of my life will be spent doing just that. I owe it to my family.
Getting to a certain magic number of years in life left me feeling a little hollow, “Money makes the world go ‘round,” was what I always thought. When I was 15, I swore to myself that I would be a millionaire by the age of 30. Seven days and my many Powerball dreams dashed passed my 30th birthday; it is only now that I realized success in life just isn’t going to be handed to me like I’ve seen in the movies. You have to work your ass off. I once heard, “Half of life is just showing up.” I took that thought to heart not realizing there would be a lot of work to do after you show up. Stupid Woody Allen!
Recently, I’ve took an interest in the return of Dave Chappelle. His “Block Party” had me thinking more and more about that ridiculous Powerball drawing. I would’ve loved to do something like that for RL had I won (stupid Nebraska people!!!) With the winnings I would’ve invested in homes for RL residents, improved the youth programs, sent RL students to college (as well as myself finishing school), built businesses that could succeed with RL employees so we wouldn’t have to rely on the government for anything. Maybe next time, I guess.
With that out of the way, is the life that I’ve led the past 30 years, 7 days, and 11 hours worth sharing with the world? Probably not, but I’m going to force this on you like itch on a crackhead needing a hit! Oh, man. That was terrible. In the words of Larry the Cable Guy, I apologize, Lord. The Book of Jon is about to begin. Or do I need a new title since that TV show used “The Book…” as a title. We’ll talk about it when it’s done I suppose. Wait, how is this going to work? How does one go about posting a book online? I tried it before and it didn’t work out as well as planned. What the hell! A page at a time will do. Rock and roll! I have to go eat first, then I’ll start chapter 1. Or is this chapter 1 already? I have so much to learn about the book industry.
posted by Jonny R. at 7:35 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home