The Winds of Change

My hibernation in recent months has led to a lot of gluttonous eating, bad TV and Internet shopping, noticeably omitted has been the mindless brain dumping of thoughts and metaphors that i've littered these pages with in recent months. So to the five people that read this, i apologize and promise to never leave you this lonely and void of silliness and my rambling bullshit ever again.

In the midst of a season change here in Boston, the sun feels a bit warmer to the touch and the wind feels a bit more soothing when it hits your face, that's a sign of summer or of things to change. Even the rain smells a bit different and not because its more polluted than normal, but there's a little hint of "this rain is okay because its the summer".

We often measure outcomes of our lives within these changes, days get longer so the season must've changed. We adjust by bringing out our summer clothes, we drink fruity cocktails because it reminds us of the islands and we clean our houses in hopes of a new sense of renewal.

Life also has a funny way of blowing its own winds of change. As the world paused this past week with the passing of Michael Jackson (no this is not a Michael Jackson tribute blog), the winds of change swept us and took away our feelings we had this time last year. So what i'm about to say will anger some, but the best thing is that no one really reads this so the hate mail will be limited, but let's put in perspective people.

I'm writing this listening to a shuffle of the 100 songs i have of Michael, blank screen in front of me and scuttling through the endless tweets and facebook messages of shock, memories and disbelief of his death. Last night the BET Awards changed their format to be a tribute of some sorts to him. The host,Jaime Foxx, said that they weren't going to be sad but to celebrate his life. This is the same man that had jokes in his routine about Michael and the past accusations of his child molestation. The winds of change can be cold sometimes.

Yes, i was one of the kids that stood in front of my TV in the 80's with a Member's Only red jacket and one winter glove (it was a mitten because i didn't have an actual glove) trying to simulate the moves, the squeals and the attitude. And I was the one of the many that wondered what he was thinking when he married Lisa Marie, speculated his career was over when he made the History Album, appalled when he was sued over allegations of child molestation and the same person that had him at the top of my list to see in concert before i die. I was a big fan. The winds were warm and soothing then.

Michael's father Joe Jackson said at the BET Awards that it was a shame the world didn't do this when he was alive. Well, it didn't happen because when he was alive, everyone still thought he was a freak. this is the same Joe Jackson that was accused by Michael of being physically and mentally abusive, now he's front row next to Beyonce and Jay Z. Is it me or shouldn't he be somewhere else, I mean his son did pass away only a few days ago, but i guess front row seats to see NeYo singing and the O'Jays receiving a lifetime achievement was too good to pass up.

We live in a world where the slightest change to a person is newsworthy. Last month no one wanted to know that he was making an album and trying to make a career come back. No one cared that 750,000 people bought tickets in two hours for his concert in Europe, they wanted something salacious. Something scandalous. The winds of change can alter perception sometimes. Let's not forget he paid off millions to the family he was accused of for child molestation. What about the dangling baby? In fact the hotel in Prague is a tour stop, seriously it is, you pay a tour guide money and he tells you the balcony where Michael held his baby over.

Prior to last week, no one said "I wonder what Ed McMahon is up to these days" or "remember that original episode of Charlie's Angels where Farrah kicked the terrorists ass wearing a halter top" or "I wonder if the pitchman for OxiClean, Billy Mays spends hours on his beard to keep it so tight" or "i'm going to listen to Michael all day". No, no, no and no. It took their death for us to honor them. It also took Michael's death to make us forget his fallacies. For the entire week, we all talked about our favorite Michael song (mine is Human Nature if you're wondering), the videos he did and his accomplishments as an artists. So if we are to celebrate his life as an entertainment icon, then that's fine, but to say that he was a complete person and truly missed, eh, not so sure. Missing someone is knowing that they will be there for you, that they will be around when you need them. When someone goes away, you miss them and can't wait for them to come back. Did we truly think that Michael was ever going to be the man we fell in love with on Thriller? What did we miss? He's had several albums since Thriller and none lived up to the past. In fact the most popular song DJs played when he was alive was ABC by the Jackson 5, no one played Black and White or They Don't Care About Us. So what are we gonna miss? The songs we fell in love with will always be there.

We love to glorify people in their demise. Kate Gosselin never made it on the cover of People until rumors that her husband cheated on her. Rihanna was never a cover story until her fight with Chris Brown. Miley Cyrus breaks up with a Jonas Brother = cover story. And every actress that gains 5 lbs is a magazine rack sell out if there's a photo of her in a bikini. Alicia Keys was honored at the BET Awards for her Save A Kid foundation work and Wyclef Jean for his work with Haiti - never a cover story about those efforts. Bono needs to meet with a world leader to get on a cover, but all Britney had to do was forget to put on underwear.

Forget that these were all celebrities that we only have a fraction of exposure into their lives. Most have never met them and only knew them through a public lens not a personal one. And here we are over the course of a few days watching endless hours of Tonight Shows with Ed, original Charlie's Angels and listening to Michael Marathons - shit i'm sure some people ordered Oxicleans and Awesome Augers in honor of Billy Mays. But this time last week - no one cared.

Kanye West said in his song "Big Brother"

"If you admire somebody, you should go ahead and tell 'em

People never get the flowers while they can still smell 'em"

Ironic isn't it? It took a change in the wind for us to appreciate things - perhaps a little too late. But the wind also made us forget why we didn't care to begin with. It would be heartless of us to chastise the dead, but seriously, if we were asked our opinion last month of Michael, most would bring up pedophile, surgeries, is he white or black or his animal collection, it's like if we asked about OJ now when he's alive, we would say murderer. But how quickly we forgive in the face of change. So maybe i just hold grudges, but we immortalize people at their death the day after we condemn them when they are alive. Yes, Michael's music was and will be a big part of my life, but everything else he did, had nothing to do with me. His impression was in the music which i will always have with me. But let's be honest, he was a savant that defied his time and expectations. He surpassed all levels of success whose talents can never be disputed. But in my mind for every person who has shed a tear this weekend for him, where were you when he was on trial, held the baby over the balcony, having all his plastic surgeries or living with a chimpanzee? Did you sympathize or laugh?

I'm not saying we need to be more critical or more forgiving. And not telling you to run to everyone you know and give them a hug and kiss and tell them you love them, that would be cupid overload, but i am asking that you prepare for the weather and realize that the wind can change at any second and depending on the type of wind you may be left cold or hit with a warm comforting breeze. Regardless, you never want to chase down the wind that just left you because you never had a chance to enjoy it while it was around.

Speaking is meant to be heard, so why not speak to someone when they can still hear you.