A “real me” post.

I identify as a sloth.  There, I told you.  DNA treatments are beginning to take effect, that is why I am so slow.

No, I mean really real. I have to say this because I just feel like you have the wrong impression of me.

What is your favorite Pixar movie?  Toy Story?  The Incredibles?  Brave?  Wall-E?  I can’t stand the Toy Story series, actually.  And I love The Incredibles, but my favorite might surprise you.

Ratatouille. 

Yup, a movie about a rat.  I love food, and I love the very real aspects of restaurant life which I remember fondly, if never wanting to return.

But, Reader-land, because you know me by now, you know that isn’t why I like it.  And you are right.  I like it because of Anton Ego, and because the symbolic comparison of Remy and Linguine sacrificing everything for something, someone.  Remy returns after doing wrong, to apologize and help, and Linguine saves his life at the cost of his fortune after lying about who helped him.  Redemption!

But I am always struck by the speech by Ego, and part of that might be Peter O’Toole being an amazing actor.  He has had an eye-opening experience and must come to grips with it.  I give you the first part, emphasis mine.

In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations, the new needs friends.

And we get to the “real me” part of this post.  Recently, I had a sad privilege of going to a family member’s funeral.  Death is often on my mind, and how I will meet it.  Hearing the requiem mass, and seeing my in laws brought it even closer.  But as Ego says, in many ways the life of this blogger is an easy one.  I risk very little yet put myself in a position of power over things I choose to write about.  And yet your lives lived is worth much more than anything I can say.

I am overwhelmed by your support and prayers and very kind words and actions.  I am no model man to imitate, I am a sinner, a “man of unclean lips”, as Isaiah said in chapter six.  I’m just trying to get by, forgetful, heck, some days I forget to pray, and selfish.  I need your prayers, because I am writing stuff that might make me sound like a good dude, and I am not.  Really, I don’t feel like I’m a good example of anything!

Heck, you’re just lucky I’m wearing pants.

So in closing, I would like to hope that I can be rocked to my core, like Ego was.. And that you all realize I’m just an opinionated loudmouth on the interwubs!