The P ublisher Po stulates
KEEP THE PARTY GOING
I ‘m always in
party mode.
That doesn’t
mean I don’t
have a serious side,
it just means I try
to avoid reality as
much as I can. A
lot of my attitude
probably began
when I was going
off to college, and
my father advised
me not to let school
interfere with my
education. I thought
I understood what he was telling me then,
but every year since then, I expand those
thoughts to a philosophy that has made
me focus on joy and happiness.
I try to live my life as one continuous
party. Sometimes, that is hard to do, as
there are some things that you must do
to keep your world running smoothly. I
have managed to work hard and find the
time for these daily chores. Doctor visits,
taxes, filling my car with gas and other
such inconveniences get attended to in
spite of my constantly preparing for my
next social engagement, where I can have
fun with people I like and enjoy the good
things that life can provide.
In doing so, I make light of most things
that disturb others. I do so by thinking
that in 10 to 20 years, none of those things
will matter. When I was younger, I would
say in 100 years, but now that length of
time is far beyond my contemplation. I am
at the point where I no longer buy green
bananas, or start reading long books. I get
closer to living in the moment as each day
passes. Dinner tonight, a show tomorrow,
I am continually looking ahead to my
next chance to be entertained by others,
talk with friends, or participate in any of
the other activities that fill my life with
contentment.
Even at work, I am often in party mode.
I would rather make a humorous comment
than talk seriously about problems. In
fact, I find that humor often resolves
more problems than worrying about
them. At this point, you probably think
I am exaggerating to make a point, and I
probably am. That is one of the fun parts of
living, sort of like a fisherman telling you
34 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE | MAY/JUNE 2018
how large his catch
was, or about the
one who got away.
I find that worry,
concern and serious
things don’t make
me feel good, so
therefore I avoid
them as much as
possible. The way
I do so is to keep
myself busy with
the other things in
life that bring me
joy and are often
self-indulgent.
I suppose this would qualify me as
a hedonist. Perhaps I should be more
concerned with the more important
elements of life, such as our country, the
world and our environment. Unfortunately,
I have found that my ability to change
most of those things is very limited
and that worrying about any of those
things definitely does not alter anything.
Therefore, I try to keep an open eye for
when I can make a difference and when
I can’t, and if I can’t change things, I go
back to being my happy-so-lucky self,
encouraging others to do the same by
partying on together and enjoying life the
best we can. It is all up to us. 9
Publisher / Editor
By Aaron R. Fodiman
Having a good time can be as much fun as it looks.
GRAM