John Langan – Page 6 – John J Langan

August 8, 2015

Lost Love – A Survivor’s Story

“Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling in at night. I miss you like hell.” ~ Edna St. Vincent Millay

tumblr_nkm8od0w621rvn4sfo1_500 I missed you. All this week I wanted to text, or send a photo. I just wanted to have a talk… you weren’t there. It is a terrible void felt… not having your mobile phone.

Yep… it just died. It worked fine all day Saturday and Sunday morning, and then it wouldn’t charge. What the hell!

Someone reminded me that phones are made to die, like a car devaluing when you drive it off the lot. I thought about that comparison… and we do connect some of the same terms to our phones like upgrades, energy conservation, bigger, better, more powerful and efficient!

People always used to wonder what it was about men and their cars. You could always tell a little bit about someone’s personality by the car they drive. Now it’s the type and way they use cell phones that have become part of a person’s identity. I’m an iPhone guy, and have had debates over the years about the pros and cons of the different platforms with Android and/or Blackberry users. Passions run high.

dead_iphone But I don’t care about these other people. I was left abandoned… alone for four whole days!! This personal hell contained endless chunks of time that I was detached from the world. Whether it was driving in my car, or walking down the street… minutes and minutes of zero communication! Or those other mad moments when I didn’t have access to information like maps, or game scores, or a clock… what the hell time is it????

What if I needed to take a photo or video? Possible precious moments missed… never to be repeated and shared with a breathlessly waiting world. And business… Everything ceased! It was a nightmare.

I went to a concert on Thursday night and I was unable to easily find my friends. I did, but it wasn’t easy. Elvis Costello played a song during his set, and I had no way to immediately determine which album it was on. I did, much later. And I found my way home without my Waze app.

But I was roughing it!!

Of course, these laments are made tongue firmly in cheek… nothing of consequence was missed. Two customers left me voicemails that were handled the following day. Certainly no one died or was injured. In reality being without a phone was a bit inconvenient, and also a bit liberating.

This geek does have an iPad to pick up some of the slack. But I did find myself absentmindedly reaching for that invisible phone a few times. And once or twice I picked up the dead phone and pushed some buttons… #resurrection?

After four gruesome days I got a nifty, brand spanking new iPhone 6, replacing my rotary-like iPhone 5. How did I survive so long with such outdated technology? The nightmare was over. I was connected once again after a quick setup, restore from backup, and a new lock screen photo – Stay Classy!

It is delightful, sleek and sexy, just like me… opening that box felt like Christmas Day! And it’s way better than a Galaxy S-whatever, I am completely positive… how dare you say otherwise!

Learned lesson? Understanding suffering helps one appreciate the gifts you have, so I am thankful to those who helped me through this rough patch.

I’m back, world… if you’ll have me.

July 23, 2015

Soccer Is Life

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More than any other sport, soccer is life.

When asked to qualify my love for the sport, I immediately go to the usual reasons – the flow of the game, the constant movement, the consistency of the rules, the athleticism of the players, no stoppages or timeouts, only three subs, blah blah blah…

I also lean very heavily on the supporters culture – being there for the team, and each other, no matter what.

The events of past two days in my little corner of the football world enabled me to hone in on the best reason to love the beautiful game. On any given day, any team can beat any other team… regardless of payroll, professional or amateur, or league level.

Two days ago my Philadelphia Union won a U.S. Open Cup match they had no business winning. Down a man for 75% of the match, conceding a late equalizer, each player dead on his feet… they prevailed against a much more powerful opponent. Eleven buses full of Union fans made the trip to Red Bull Arena to witness what may have been the finest moment in the history of this young franchise. I was there!!

481612286 My euphoria was short-lived, as the U.S. National Team (the men) were shocked by Jamaica in the semi-final of the Gold Cup last night. Jamaica… a team that ON PAPER had no business winning a game against the mighty United States of America. That may be debatable… but the result left me shocked and bummed, and sent tournament officials into a tizzy trying the figure out how to promote a USA-less final at the big stadium. A lesson learned.

In soccer and in life, you better be prepared and always at the top of your game. These “upsets” happen all year long, in competitions all over the world. This is the beauty of my game. And because I love it so much, the highs are that much higher and the lows are that much lower.

But there is another match against another team who could show us another lesson. Today the American Outlaws are licking their wounds and figuring out the best way to support their team at the next match, in that little stadium by the river. And the Sons of Ben are getting ready to head to DC to support the Union.

Why? Because it’s what we do. Its part of what makes soccer beautiful, and why I love it so.

July 12, 2015

Book Covers – Revisited

It was an interesting weekend.

I had a fantastic time at the soccer game yesterday – tailgating and watching a Philly Union win with family and a bunch of friends. There were fireworks too! Today, I spent the afternoon learning… trying to get an inbound marketing certification.

Inbound marketing deals with leads and selling. It has buzzwords like SEO, analytics and other key concepts that helps your information to be found by Google search.

For a personal blog post like this, I don’t worry about search, or keywords, or anything like that. In my very first post – over two years ago – I stated that “I shall write for myself and let the chips fall where they may.” I keep to that…

But I’ll be honest… recognition makes me feel good. Whether it’s a positive or negative comment, or a social media share, or someone just saying that they like what I am doing. Earlier this year I wrote a post about bullying that, for whatever reason, was viewed close to 50,000 times. It was stunning to me, but it taught me that you can never predict what will strike a chord with people.

My previous most viewed post was entitled “Book Covers“… where I wrote about not judging people by their appearances. More specifically, it was about a young woman named Jessie who lost her life while giving birth to her son.

Yesterday I met Cheryl, that young woman’s mother. She works with my wife, and came to the game with another co-worker. I was happy to arrange for them to come to the supporter’s tailgate, and Cheryl was able to meet some of the people who were such a big part of Jessie’s life. I was so glad to hear that they were able to share a couple of beers and some memories.

But the best part of my day was the few minutes of conversation when we met just before the game. She asked me for a hug, and told me that she had read my story about her Jessie. I was not aware that she knew of the post, or me.

I asked her how long it had been, and she responded quickly, “Nineteen months.” I replied that more time had passed than I thought. She looked me straight in the eye and said, “Not that long at all.” She teared up a little, and so did I. And that was the last word on the subject. A moment shared.

We all had a great time, and lots of laughs. I think she was glad to be at the stadium for the first time, to finally share in an experience so important to her daughter. I told her she must come back because she is good luck for the team! And because it’s probably one of a multitude of things that can bring her closer to Jessie.

I can’t imagine losing a child. Clearly that pain remains after nineteen months, and I’m sure it won’t lessen in nineteen years, or ever. But I think Cheryl has the right idea… Experiencing some of Jessie’s joys will, in small ways, bring her back. And keep her close.

June 9, 2015

Incident Protocol for Your Town USA

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Something cray cray happened in Texas this weekend. Let the national incident protocol begin!

Event happens.
Fox News immediately begins panel discussion to determine if the incident was racially motivated. White panel members say “no”. Black panel members say “yes”.
Quick, aggrieved people! Get your snapshot videos up on YouTube!
Quick, accused people! Get your statements together and your stories ready!
Facebook and Twitter top brass in emergency meetings to come up with clever hashtags.
Civil rights leaders claiming victory for finally getting black panelists on Fox News.
Protest! Protest! Protest! Protest!
People on social media outraged by a version of the event that fits their long stated beliefs.
Aggrieved family hold first press conference. Family calls for peaceful protests. #SpokesUncle
Riot! Riot! Loot! Loot!
Flounder buys ten thousand marbles at Woolworth’s.
Raging Twitter discussion begins about how black guys say the N word all the time “but we can’t”.
News media art departments update “Crisis In (insert town name)!” graphics.
Anderson Cooper! Get your ass to (insert town name)! Report on what gets the most ratings!
Media cameras focus on that one guy brave enough to stand up to protesters.
Katy rescues Boone…

People on social media share appropriate righteous, “thank god it’s not happening in my neighborhood” indignation.
Reporters on the street in (insert town name) shocked that tear gas makes it really hard to breathe.
Housewives in every major city in the country complain on Facebook about television news coverage “fucking with my soaps!”
Church and community leaders call for resignation/prosecution of senator/congressman/mayor/city councilman/police commissioner, chief, captain, officer.
Al Sharpton and Rush Limbaugh report on exactly what is going on – via satellite.
News media interviews small business owner whose store was looted. Hopefully an immigrant… accents equal ratings!
People on social media immediately become experts on the constitution/medicine/law/police procedure.
Government officials state determination to find out exactly what happened. The truth is the most important thing. Justice will be served.
Church and community leaders call for calm and peace after checking for scratches on their Mercedes.
Protesters finally take well-deserved break to eat tasty treats rescued from local Pathmark.
News media sharing celebrity tweets expressing outrage/support for the people of (insert town name).
Professional athletes begin wearing t-shirts in support of (insert town name).
Outrage that no one from the White House attended funeral/memorial service/candlelight vigil. Republicans are incensed. Democrats… not so much.
Anderson Cooper sipping Evian on private jet back to palatial country estate.
Event is over. Media is gone.

The country has moved on to the next news cycle… Walter Cronkite stops spinning in grave. Good night, and good luck.

I assume that everyone understands this is meant to be a joke. What is serious are some of the real problems that we have in this world… Racism, media bias, out of whack priorities, and a general disrespect of our fellow man. Clearly, I’m taking some shots at news media. But journalists have a responsibility to provide the truth, and they don’t. We have a responsibility to expect the truth, and we don’t.

I’m guilty of making rash decisions about situations – or incidents like I parody above – based on minimal evidence. Must work on that… Be better.

June 3, 2015

Brand Her Caitlyn

“I’m not doing it for money. I’m doing it to help my soul and help other people. If I can make a dollar, I certainly am not stupid. [I have] house payments and that kind of stuff. I will never make an excuse for something like that. Yeah, this is a business.” ~ Caitlyn Jenner in Vanity Fair

I’d love to be saying “bravo” to Caitlyn Jenner, but I can’t. Before the PC police attack me, please understand that I do believe that being transgender is real and not to be ridiculed. And the people who bring hate to this conversation are the lowest of the low. I firmly believe that if her transformation helps one person better deal with theirs, it’s a very good thing.

But it should be clear to everyone that yesterday’s coming out is more E! Network marketing of the next product of the Kardashian cash machine. The amount of money – hundreds of millions – being made with this initiative alone is obscene, and should not be applauded… unless there are plans for transgender support facilities across the nation. I doubt that very much.

I watched a tremendous documentary (Trinidad) last weekend about people undergoing gender reassignment surgery. It follows the process and lives of several people, including doctors, patients and their families. Needless to say, the transformation experience for Caitlyn Jenner has been a little different for the women in this film. All of them were concerned with the impact this decision has on their families, friends, careers – and how they can support each other. They lean on many for support, and witnessing that journey is revealing and life affirming.

None of them had media advisors, professional make-up and fashionistas, or a pre-op Annie Leibovitz photo shoot. It’s a stark contrast…

Bruce Jenner has been called “brave” to put himself out there, but he is extremely well compensated. And it’s clear from his time in the reality TV world that he does not care about public’s impression of him. But Caitlyn Jenner is a brand, launched simultaneously in Vanity Fair, on Twitter, and on this week’s Kardashian episodes. Her bravery diminishes with each check she deposits, with the Kardashians careening towards their goal of dumbing a generation of young Americans. Her biggest impact is taking a sensitive, complicated issue and creating a circus. The truly brave are the thousands of transgender people around the world… pushing forward, mostly alone.

The attention of the public will eventually move on the next big thing. And the collective strength of the transgender community will continue to support their own, and be worthy of our admiration.