Friday, January 13, 2012

Getting Your Blog Back On

I've been out of this blogging gig so long that I've returned to find that no one blogs anymore!  You people with all of your tweeting, friending, tumblring, linkedining, etc.  Well, throw on your White Stripes albums and imagine a world where a movie ticket cost $10, where no one knew of Kim Kardashian and where this site threatened to shoot you in the kneecaps if you didn't watch "24."

It's good manners to say where you've been when having been silent for such a long time.  Here it is: I was at work being a lawyer.

My friends and family can confirm this statement.  I was at work, losing my creativity and energy in an attempt to catch up on my career.  I went from watching films and making pot roasts to playing corporate politics and eating tinned fish for dinner.  Somewhere along the way, I wrongly brought my moral compass to work and began to get truly upset with the things I was witnessing.  Don't get me wrong, I've not found anyone breaking the law (well, except one guy, but that's not something I can talk about until the case is adjudicated, stay tuned, seriously). What gnaws at me is something less pressing but more disheartening: a lot of people lack a conscience.  It's a defect that doesn't appear during casual chit-chat or even formal meetings. Unfortunately, it shows up with the larger things: a layoff that wasn't necessary or justified, an expense report that covers a $5,000 sofa, or two or three of them, and a complete lack of accountability for the really bad things that people do to each other on a regular basis. 

If I thought my group was somehow uniquely dysfunctional, I would be fine with everything I mentioned.  But this is not nearly as bad as other places I know and many more I've heard of from my associates. Simple tasks are made difficult because things not having to do with the work involved become priorities: who takes credit? Who gets to fly out to the event?  Who cares!

And then there was The Jack Sack™- emptied of its excellent contributors and readers, the site stood silent, asking me to write once more.  I made several attempts to publish something, ANYTHING, to show you signs of life.  I would start a review of a movie and then stop and delete the whole draft. I prepared a commentary on the whole Mosque at the World Trade Center because I was impassioned to speak to those ideals our leaders were failing to articulate. I was also trying to make you laugh- drafting a story of "Where is Jack Bauer at this VERY moment" and couldn't piece together one funny idea regarding his whereabouts.

Instead of writing to fill space, I chose to put this operation on hold. And while I am sure I made the right choice given what was going on in my life, I also know that I greatly missed writing.  Goofing off is my escape. This site was created on a goofy notion- to honor and perpetuate the legend of a tough guy's manpurse. "24" fans understood the absurdity of this fixation. We made friends, and competed to be as ridiculous as the show eventually became. 

The show's end in May 2010 made my desire to write about Jack Bauer almost disappear. I'd said everything I thought about the character- serious and ridiculous ideas both! I forgot how to draw out the silly shit from the show into the open to exploit for comedic purposes. My show walked away from us. Who wants to talk about a friend that beats it out of town and doesn't write back?

I do, apparently.  When Cirroc posted a comment the other day about a new "24" film, I finally started to care.  And now that the film is looking to film in a couple of months, I think this site is ready to resume.  Hey, we may even show these kids what more than 140 characters of copy will get you.  Jack Bauer is so good at killing bad guys that if he tweeted about it, he would force Twitter to give him a special account that knows no rules.  And then there's the Doctor from Doctor Who- always changing, always upbeat--  I'll take note of those habits in particular.

11 comments:

Brian Pelts said...

Welcome back, my friend. Let's get our blog on, DAMMIT.

TheJackSack said...

Thank you Pelty! How great is it riding around town in a blog? It feels like a '78 Camaro with a lot of Motley Crue blasting through the speakers. Well, maybe I rushed it there. Right now, we're listening to traffic & weather before we ride too far. But soon, oh yes, we'll be "Kickstarting Hearts"

Brian Pelts said...

There's so much leg room! LOOK AT ALL THE CHARACTERS!

Granny Annie said...

There you are. WooHoo!!! Admittedly I have dropped by for your every post and while I was glad to see you there, I just couldn't get into the spirit. Not you've got me. Let's go. I shall return. Perhaps "Jack Withdrawal" was worse for all of us than we could have imagined.

TheJackSack said...

Annie! You shall return! Let's storm those beaches together, my dear good friend.

Going without the "24" TV show has been a loss. I find myself watching "Storage Wars" and "Doctor Who" devotedly, but they're no comparison to Jack Bauer's world. And for this blog, yes- it's a "24" blog first and foremost but I've got a lot I want to talk about and hopefully a few laughs to share. Welcome home!

Alex Getts — Art & Illustration said...

The Jack Sack is back, baby!

Brian Pelts said...

WE'RE GETTIN' THE BAND BACK TOGETHER!

TheJackSack said...

We're getting there! We have Alex now as well, but I'm hoping Spencer, Dr. Alice, singingdoll, Dietcoke, BauerLuver and Brittany (among others) all stop by soon.

Let's do this, kids!

Stefernie said...

I'm crazy excited to be back.

Stefernie said...

I'm crazy excited to be back.

singingdoll said...

You remembered singingdoll! :) YAY! I'm glad you're back, Adam. I am still down for doing a musical collaboration to hype up this totally awesome film.

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