Happy Friday, everyone.

I almost named this War for Peace.

Happiness is a noble pursuit and it’s a never ending battle.

I was talking to my buddy, Thom down at Lillie Glass about traffic around town these days.

It has the potential to destroy anyone’s good mood in about a mile and a half.

I personally try to give speeders the benefit of the doubt. If they are faster than me, I move out of their way. And I try not to get angry when someone cuts me off. I have to let this stuff go as soon as it happens, because my happiness is in serious jeopardy at this point,and if letting it go and letting the other guy “win” allows me to be happier longer, then that’s what I will do.

My philosophy when it comes to irate drivers:

They either have something to prove or nothing to lose, either way, I don’t want to make it my business.

Let them by so they can go pursue their own happiness.

I think the difference between “I love you” and “love you” is huge.

The “I” is the most personal part of the equation. It’s a deliberate statement from one person to the other, a commitment or a confession.

“Love you” could mean ” love yourself” which is still a great message in its own right.

I like hearing them both just the same.

There are no mistakes in God’s great universe.

– Jill Jones

I had a pug at one point in my life.

We shared a love/dislike relationship. Most of the time I either loved to dislike it, or more times than not, disliked the fact that I actually loved it.

The love part wasn’t truly apparent until after it was struck and killed by a car.

Soon after this tragic event, I found myself in the grocery store, cruising the aisle for various sundries. I remember this elderly woman strolling down the opposite side. I smiled as I usually do. She looked at me with a concerned look and said, in a thick southern accent,”Son, are you okay? You look like you just lost your best friend.”

Needless to say, I took this opportunity to let loose.

She hugged me as if I were her own. After I stopped my carrying-on, she said to me, “Everyone and everything is in your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime”.

Somehow, that made me feel better.

I’m still not sure what it means.

When I was young, my family would take an annual trip down south. First stop was Georgia to visit the family. Next stop was Myrtle Beach, SC. In between was a state park with a unique feature. Apparently, the alligators were so tame, you could walk up and feed them.

No kidding.

Keep in mind, this was about a hundred years ago. We have footage of it somewhere in the Rucker family archives. Evidence of a warped childhood.

Make today count.

– me

Today is pretty significant in my life. Besides being my birthday, it’s the one year anniversary of liberating myself from alcohol and tobacco. It’s not the exact date. I quit smoking before my birthday, but cheated a couple of times (no worries, I forgive myself freely) and I quit drinking some time after my birthday, but I will forever keep this day as the anniversary because it’s easier to remember.

If you ask me why I quit, the short answer is pretty simple…it got in the way.

When I would drink, I could draw for two, maybe three hours before I had to stop. When I took a “smoke” break, all I could think about was getting back to drawing, so I ended up sucking down a cigarette in about a minute. After a while, it didn’t make sense (Actually, smoking makes NO sense – period.)

So, I quit. No patches, no AA meetings. I just quit.

Anyway – happy anniversary to me and happy birthday as well.

You remember the Anne Geddes photos with the cute babies dressed in flowers and such? They creep me out for some reason.

Just so I can set the record straight…

Pablo Picasso was NOT the father of Cubism. If you remember your art history, it was actually Georges Braque who started the movement based on the later works of POST-impressionist Paul Cézanne.

That’s what I believe to be true.

I picked up my ten year old son this morning from his mother’s house. On the way back to Smyrna, we had several deep discussions regarding life, death and a lot of the other important stuff that happens in between.

The stand out conversation was about love.

He said;

“The heart has one function, and that is to pump blood through your body to supply it with oxygen, right? Well, then how can you say you “feel” love in your heart? You only think you’re in love and that is in your mind.”

My reply;

“…uh… wanna get some ice cream?”