The Thin Line Between Maker and Taker

Joe Bush: "Do you see that building over there, little Joey?"

Joey Bush: "Yeah..."

Joe: "I built that."

Joey: "Really? All by yourself?"

Joe: "That's right!"

Joey: "How long ago was that?"

Joe: "Well, your great-grandpa is the one that started it, so it's been around for a while now."

Joey: "...and you built that?"

Joe: "You betcha. ...and someday, when you're my age, you'll get to tell people the same thing - that you built that."

Joey: "Wow. I'm gonna build a lot of things, aren't I, dad?"

Joe: "You bet you are! You already have!"

Joey: "I have? Like what, dad?"

Joe: "That backpack you wear every day to school - you built that!"

Joey: "Really?"

Joe: "Yeah - you put it on your back and made it work, right?"

Joey: "That's right!"

Joe: "So, you built it! You know that tricycle my mistress and I bought for you? You built that too!"

Joey: "I did? I don't remember doing that."

Joe: "You rode the bike, right? It's yours. You built it."

Joey: "Did I build the piece of paper I wrote on earlier - in that love note I sent Brian?"

Joe: "Say what? Brian?"

Joey: "Uh. I mean, Brianne. Yeah - Brianne."

Joe: "Ha. I was going to say - you and I would need to talk about that. But yes, you built that piece of paper as well."

Joey: "That's so cool! I'm going to tell all my friends!"

Joe: "You're a maker, little Joey, just like me. There are makers and takers in this world. There are makers like you and I - ones that take full credit for building things that were passed down to us through the generations and takers - the ones that don't inherit anything and to whom we pay minimal amounts of money to build things for us. Do you get it?"

Joey: "Wait. So, someone else built that building over there, but you built it all by yourself?"

Joe: "Exactly."

Joey: "I don't get it."

Joe: "You will someday, my son. You will someday. Just like my dad was proud of me for being his son and giving me his business, I'll one day proudly hand this business over to you and do you know why?"

Joey: "Why, dad?"

Joe: "Because you built that!"

Joey: "Huh? I did?"

Joe: "But, of course."

Joey: "I still don't get it. Should we get a taxi, so we can meet up with that Stella lady again?"

Joe: "No, no. Taxi drivers are takers. They're just mooching off the makers like you and I."

Joey: "But did the taxi drivers build the taxis like I built my tricycle?"

Joe: "Yes, I suppose so."

Joey: "So, you can be a maker and a taker? I'm so confused!"

Joe: "Just stop thinking, my son. Just stop thinking like I did many years ago and suddenly, everything will all make sense."

Joey: "Okay, dad. I'll stop thinking, just for you."

Joe: "That's better. Now let's go grab us some food."

Joey: "That we made?"

Joe: "No, silly - that someone else made."

Joey: "So we're going to be the takers now?"

Joe: "Never! I told you to stop thinking, junior."

Joey: "Can we at least say we made it?"

Joe: "Now you're catching on! Now let's go and get that food."

Another look at "The Nightly Show" with Larry Wilmore

After its first week, I gave The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore a B+ grade. While I didn't think the show appeared to be perfect by any stretch of the imagination, I also liked the Daily Show meets Politically Incorrect vibe I got from it, and thought, with the proper adjustments, the show would indeed provide a great fill-in for The Colbert Report . In the show's succeeding weeks, however, I've been less impressed by it and think that if it doesn't make certain adjustments, it could be in jeopardy of losing many long-time viewers of the show's time slot. One major issue I think the show's had to this point is a lack of direction. It's been unable to decide whether it wants to be a comedy show with serious conversation sprinkled in or a serious show with comedy sprinkled in. It's almost as if the show's writers want to give The Nightly Show a Real Time with Bill Maher feel. The problem with that idea or format is the fact Real Time is an hour lon...

My first book review of "Penetrating the Heart of Life: Ambiguous In Thought, Ambivalent In Feeling"

Well, I received my first book review on this poetry-compilation book I completed and published late last year, but have finally gotten around to marketing now. The reviewer gave it 5 out of 5 stars and said: "I enjoyed the poetic journey the writer has taken me on. From darkest days and hopeful optimism to the conclusion of hope realized. The visual images that the poem titled "Room Temperature" elicits, made me think of the song, "Horse With No Name" sung by the band America. In a similar manner, another poem – "Deafening Sigh-lence" reminded me a great deal of Simon & Garfunkel’s song, "The Sound of Silence". There are so many poems in this book that I related to, that I felt a connection to the author and felt that we were traveling on this journey together." http://www.lulu.com/shop/craig-rozniecki/penetrating-the-heart-of-life-ambiguous-in-thought-ambivalent-in-feeling/paperback/product-18677501.html

A closer look at the Scramble With Friends power-ups

I am unashamed to admit that I'm a nerd. My idea of a good time is playing a word game like Boggle or Scrabble. Thankfully, I (and many others) can play such games via Facebook and/or my (our) cell phone(s). While it seems that cheating has become more commonplace in these games (Words With Friends in particular) than San Diego has had nice weather, I've yet to give in to that craze. One element present with the game Scramble With Friends (Boggle) not present in Words With Friends (Scrabble) are legal boosts called "power-ups," which cost a number of tokens from the 15 available. I've now tried all five power-ups, including the latest one which costs money. So, in case anyone's curious about playing the game or giving these power-ups a gander, here's a rundown of them all: Freeze - I think this is probably my favorite of all the power-ups. With the freeze, time stands still for a matter of seconds, which allows you more time to find words and improve...

The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

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