A Man Named Dana

Okay. I've finally put commenting into my blog. Give it a try. I really, really want to know what you think about all of this stuff. You'll also notice a web counter on the left side of the page. That lets me track the effectiveness of my blog. Don't worry: I'm not tracking you through that stuff, it's mostly there as a bragging tool so I can compare myself to other bloggers.

Look for other additions in the next week as I add links and other interesting blog features to make all of this much more dynamic.

I've been a little lazy this past month. Being out of work does that to a person. I needed a break, true, but the longer I'm out of the daily grind the harder it becomes to focus on finding gainful employment in my chosen field.

If anyone hears of a job opening for a writer/producer/director/editor, or any combination thereof, please contact me. I would love to stay in the video production field, but the job market around here is soooooo tight in that profession that I may have to move on to retail or some other employment sector.

I wasn't the best or most talented in my field, but I think I turned out some good stuff every once in a while. I have demo tapes but no way to post it here. You'll just have to trust my judgement on this issue. Ha.

Meanwhile, its back to sifting through scads of spam looking for that right "work from home with no investment" opportunity. I'm sure that golden opportunity is out there waiting for me right now.

I just saw "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" yesterday. It's the latest entry in the summer 2003 blockbuster movie race. I had a great time at the show. It's a very slick, well-produced piece of cotton-candy to be sure, but even so, it goes down easily without any horrible aftertaste so common to many big-budget productions.

I recommend it for all audiences.

I've alluded to my recent "downsizing" at my career job of the past seventeen years. Sometime soon I'll provide the dirty details in this space for all my readers to ponder.

But this little gem arrived in the mail today: an invitation to the wedding celebration of my former employer. Hmmm, I wonder, what goes well with a pink slip? Oh, gosh! I really must coordinate my gift selection with all my former co-workers--I just hate duplicating wedding gifts. Ha.

But really, what would be an appropriate gift for the P.H.B. who fired you less than a month ago? Should I consult Miss Manners? I'll just have to mull it over while I'm picking up soda cups and empty popcorn bags at my new day job at the local theatre. I've got plenty of time in-between showings of "Rugrats Go Wild" to give this matter the proper attention it deserves.

Sorry this is so short, but I have to run to work at a theatre in just a few minutes.

I recently was "terminated" from my editing job of almost 17 years last month. I'm scrambling around this small town looking for similar work, but since it is a small town there isn't much in my profession that's open right now.

So to compensate I'm picking up extra hours as an usher at another commercial cinema complex in town. Hoo-ray for Hollywood.

Work sucks, but it keeps a man honest and poor.

It has been raining like mad the past few days. I wish it would stop. I don't mind a little rain once in a while, but now that I own a house I have to do all the repairs myself and I don't really feel like going outside in a rain storm to clean out my gutters. Watching the water cascading over the top of my eaves makes me nervous.

The thunder this morning was loud enough to rattle my bedroom window. That makes me nervous too. Are we approaching the end of days as written about in the Book of Revelations? Probably. That would only make sense with everything else that's happened to me in the past month. When it rains it pours?

First, you might be wondering who the hell I am and why you should read this.

Fair enough.

My name is Dana Jon Harris, an average 40-year-old male living in a very small town on the Minnesota-North Dakota border. At first glance you probably wouldn't find anything too extraordinary about me. It's only after you get to know me that you realize you are not dealing with your average Dana.

I've lived in small towns all of my life but yet I don't think of things on a small scale. I see the world in a larger context, through the filters of history and science, and realize that there is so much potential with humanity if only we got over the petty crap that passes for everyday existence.

Despite my lofty ideas I'm pretty grounded in reality. I'm no diva nor too self-absorbed to acknowledge the fact that it takes a lot of people a lot more dedicated and a whole lot smarter than me to make this world go around.

I see my faults but yet manage to work around them to do the best I can in my world. I assume everyone else would do this too, but I still am surprised when I meet members of the Clueless Majority.

So, there you have it: 40 years of philosophy reduced to a few paragraphs.

I'll probably put up a FAQ page once this blog starts rolling.

Welcome to my little experiment in blogging. Hopefully, I'll keep it fresh and interesting for many long years to come.

My point with all of this is to publish and collect stories of what really pisses us all off. There are a lot of things wrong with the world (there's a lot of good too, but that's for someone else to write about) and I want to give it a voice.

Your input is welcome to this site. As soon as I can figure out the whole parameters of blogging I'll get that set up. Just hang on temporarily -- I promise it'll be working in short order.

And now, with no further hesitation, let's blog!