Won't you join my cliche'?

Webster’s dictionary defines a cliché as something trite, a phrase or expression; a hackneyed theme, characterization, or situation; something that has become overly familiar or commonplace. As a writer one has to be very careful not to fall into the habit of using a cliché too often. It is amazing how much they come in to play in our everyday language. Never has this been more obvious to me than when I listen to sports announcers on television. Someone needs to tell the announcers that everyone already knows that the best defense is a good offense. If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a million times. One day these warriors of the broadcast booth will realize that striving for mediocrity will come back to haunt them. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to throw all of them under the bus. Sometimes a color analyst has to learn to take one for the team, while others need to step it up and bring their A game – you know, give us 110%. Instead they find themselves taking it just one game at a time so that, at the end of the day, they can be that “clutch” announcer. Cliché’s aren’t limited to sports announcers. News anchors and reporters are just as guilty. As they try their hardest to bring news that is current to the area residents in the wake of deadlines, they can easily leave us with many unanswered questions. We are all left to wonder if this is the fault of the reporters or their staff. Don’t think that just because you are not behind the news desk, or the microphone, that you are exempt from overusing clichés. I know you didn’t ask for my two-cents’ worth, but I feel obliged to give it to you anyway. To avoid these overused expressions we must learn to think outside the box. I mean, it’s not rocket science here. And if you can’t do it for yourself, think of the children. When it is all said and done, at the end of the day, reducing clichés in our everyday speech, now more than ever, should be a goal for us all. Going forward we should all resolve to eliminate these trite expressions from our vernacular. Thinking more clearly about the words we use could be a win-win situation. Our language skills would improve and we might actually listen to the person speaking. But, it is what it is. No one wants to talk about the elephant in the room. The bottom line is, verbal communication is taking a beating. We need to get everyone on board and shake off this 800 pound gorilla. Whew, it felt good to get that off my chest.

Tradition. Tradition!

I love this time of year. From mid-December to mid-January life is full of many family traditions. Some of them have been passed down from one generation to the next for hundreds of years. Some of them are only just beginning. But just what is it that defines a tradition? Can a tradition pick up after being ignored for a year or two? What does it take to start a tradition? A couple of years ago my wife and I started a new tradition by taking my sister’s children shopping for their Christmas gifts. They get to spend a day with their Aunt and Uncle and we get to spend it with them. They start their day with a snack, followed by intense shopping, and then ending with dinner wherever they would like to go eat. They learn about budgeting and about prioritizing, and about the wonders of a peppermint chocolate-chip milkshake from Chick-fil-A. Most importantly, we get to spend time with our nephew and nieces. We get the better end of the deal! Christmas Eve, while my daughter was with us, ended with a reading of the scripture of the birth of Christ in Luke, Chapter 2. She would sleep at the foot of our bed and, unlike most children, we would have to wake her up Christmas morning to open presents. Since she gets to sit at the feet of the one we once read about, I think she has the greatest Christmas day of all now. Not so much for her mother and I. That’s why we have looked for new traditions. We have cruised, gone to a beachside condo, and worked on Christmas day in an effort to focus more on what we have than on what we don’t have. However, we still live with the memories of past traditions. This year, so close to Christmas, the families in Connecticut will have to begin new traditions. I wish them peace. While some new traditions carry a somber feel with them, I still remember other traditions. For example, I remember leaving raisins for Santa’s reindeer when we left Santa his snack before we went to bed. I have to apologize now for any child who may not have gotten what you asked Santa for in the 1970’s. It seems we were about the only family who were told to leave beer and pretzels for Santa, so anyone who got their delivery after us… Well, I hope this explains some things for you. New Year’s traditions usually centered on football and parades for us. It wouldn’t be New Year’s if I didn’t get to see the Rose Bowl Parade. This year it takes on a new significance as we have friends whose daughter will be remembered in a pictograph made of roses on the float honoring organ and tissue donors. We are also honored that our daughter will be remembered by a rose with her name used in the making of the float. So, what are your traditions? Don’t have any memorable ones? It’s never too late to start. Just don’t use the beer and pretzels tradition. Santa already has to check his list twice. We don’t want to add to the confusion!

A few of my favorite things

Not too long ago a friend of mine and I were having a conversation about collectibles. He mentioned the various collections he possessed focusing mostly on the authentic documents from some of our Founding Fathers that he had managed to get his hands on. He asked me if I had any collections and I told him of the baseball cards and a few other sports memorabilia that are sitting in a cedar chest at home collecting more dust than they are value. These trinkets are simply reminders of simpler times for me and, would probably bring less than $1000 in a collectible shop. But that collection is no longer growing. My friend then asked me if I had anything else I was currently collecting and it got me to thinking about my most prized menagerie. I began this collection a long time ago but it is my favorite collection of all. Some I have had for over 40 years. The Internet has allowed me to find pictures of some that are no longer in my possession and I’m surprised how many out there are still in near mint condition. All of my collectibles are precious to me for one reason or another. I have had to let a few of my collectibles go over the years and every time I do it hurts me. But I invariably find another to take its place. Like most collections, the more time you spend with them the more enjoyable they are. I would never think of keeping them shoved away in a corner somewhere only to be looked at from afar. I love to show them off on occasion and don’t even mind sharing them with others so that they too can enjoy these objects of my affection. I imagine I will continue to collect until the day I die. How did I grow my collection of memorabilia to the extensive collection it is today? I haven’t found it difficult at all. You just have to know where to look. I’ve picked up a large number of them from my workplace. A number of others have come from the schools I once graced the halls of and trade shows I now attend occasionally. Clubs help considerably. And, most recently, social networking has helped me add to my collection. Some of the pieces I have in my collection may be old enough to be featured in an episode of Antique Roadshow but I treasure them just the same. And I don’t limit my collection to just the antiques. A good many have been made within the last few years and I am sure that there are others waiting to be added to my collection years from now. Yes, I love this collection and have done without many things in my life to be able to add to it. Yes, I would surely like to think that I would even lay down my life to add another to the group. After all, isn’t that what The Bible tells us. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay day his life for his friends. After all, what better thing is there to collect than friends?