Frank McCourt

Ever heard of this guy? You should. He led one of the most humbly fascinating lives I've ever encountered. Well, he and Ayan Hirshi Ali are probably my 2 favs in the "live's stories" dept.

Anyways. I watched him give a speech in front of the pennsylvania assembly house, and all he did was talk about his life.

Not about conquests, or about accomplishments, per se.

I mean, he talked of how a grade school educated dockworker immigrant from Ireland decided to walk up to the admissions office at NYU, and convince them that while he never attended high school in Ireland or anywhere, he deserved to get into NYU.

He did, and he did.

What an inspiration.

But the whole hook of the story, was the story.

People gathered just to hear him tell the story.

Not to "ooh and aah and count his wall street accomplishments".

No one really gives a rats ass about that, to be honest. Well, except for others who are trying to obtain wall street accomplishments.

I ain't one of them.

So I was thinking today, while it was raining, and I was waiting out the rain in my truck.

I wonder if anyone will ever gather to hear ME tell stories, about my life, or anything?

I also thought "I need more tragedies before anyone will come to listen like they did for (the late) Frank McCourt. People like tragedies. "

Yeah, I think with quotation marks.

I think about a lot of things while I'm doing things that dont require an awful lot of thought.

People like stories, but everyone is trying to fill their heads with crap about this or that.

They just want stories. How many of you turned off Paul Harvey when he came on the radio, saying "oh he SUCKS, I don't want to hear this.........."

Yeah, me neither. The moronic radio personalities who feel compelled to share their insights on current events? I cant get to the dial quick enough for them. Click gone.

Some musicians lives I've read about, are at least as interesting as their music is good. Stories of their hardship , the persistance in their belief in themselves, (when "experts" told them to get a real job), and their long climb up to success.

Who CARES how you live after you get there? We ALL would live like that, given the opportunity. How you got there is the story.

Unfortunately, we went from a people who headed west in connestoga wagons into the great (HOSTILE) unknown, to a people who can't BEAR the thought of living for a week, without a healthcare plan. And worse than that, we have become a people who live their lives, for retirement.

Think about that.

I don't know what any of this means, I just wanted to give you something to read, and this is it. A book.

Oh yeah, they made a movie about Frank McCourt's life, too.

Its called "Angela's Ashes".

Great story.

Even better to hear it told in person. (READ it)