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Rich Brown - Living My Life Out Loud!
Hello I'm Rich Brown and this is my personal website and blog. I'm just your simple, average, down to earth, professional, out gay man and aspiring circuit boy, living in Phoenix, Arizona with a few things to say while trying to find my place among all the scary, conservative, religious nuts in this sick and twisted world.
Monday, September 24, 2001
@ Work
I don't even know where to begin today. I have so many thoughts on my mind right now that I'm not sure I could even begin to express them in one journal entry.
Aside from the number of different issues going on in my personal life right now I'm really concerned with this country and the state of the economy for the future. As selfish as this may sound I really don't want to be looking for a job again early next year. I finally feel settled, yet with the unpredictable nature of the market, business and consumer spending for the future, I think no one can really guarantee the success or failure of a company.
It all seemed so easy last year. The internet and companies that did business on the internet were having a boom. No one would have predicted the dot-com blowout at the end of last year and the subsequent drop in the entire technology sector. Was this boom artificially created by the thought alone that doing business on the internet would be profitable or was there some sort of research and business predictions to actually indicate that people would spend money and turn entirely to the internet? I think with the onslaught of company bankruptcies and closings, one after another, we have an honest answer. However, the question in my mind that still remains is -- where do we go from here? I would have never in my life thought the technology industry would experience such a meltdown. I didn't think the day would come when we would have enough programmers and engineers. I'm very optimistic for the future but just in case I'll be keeping my fingers crossed.
Patriotism?
Aside from the sorrow that stems from the devastation caused by the recent attacks on our country, it's nice to see people of all kinds coming together and rallying behind the American flag. I'm somewhat skeptical as for how long this renewed sense of Patriotism will last. I think we have become too complacent as individuals in this country that we can be unaffected by what is going on around us in the world. As Americans we have turned away from any sense of community and in the past several years have migrated to become more of a self-centered and individualistic society. I think this was brought on by the post-war generation as they found it increasingly difficult to manage on a single salary and were forced to have both partners working full time jobs. From this they were left with less time for family, less time for vacations, and not surprisingly less time for community association and activities. This was passed down to my generation as the norm and we've all been living our lives and keeping to ourselves up until a few weeks ago. No one would even take the time to get to know their neighbors let alone participate in community groups such as bowling leagues, softball leagues, or just god old fashioned town get-togethers. I guess it remains to be seen how our generation will move forward with this behavior and if we can get back to some sense of community instead of the hard-core individualistic attitudes that we've been immersed in for the past decade. Hopefully what has happened to our country will help us to see that we need to live life to the fullest and make every day count.
I need to get back to work ...
