Blog of Josh Hall

When I was in college, I had a creative writing class.  It was a small class, less than 20 of us, and we met in one of the cool nationality rooms at Pitt.  The professor’s last name was Hall, and I enjoyed her and the class tremendously.  I don’t claim to have had a special connection with her, but I can tell you that she made me feel special.  She always had not only good things to say about my writing, but she had encouraging things to say.

Sure, maybe that was just her style, and she told everyone that they should submit writing to contests.  Maybe she suggested everyone contact the local radio station, WYEP, to fill a spot reading their poetry.  All I know is that she gave me confidence in my work to do those things because she convinced me she believed in me, so why shouldn’t I believe in myself?  One thing stands out though.  When she opened up a Red Rose Tea box, and picked out the glazed ceramic animal figures, I doubt she thought of every student she had.  As she picked up a peregrine falcon piece, she remembered a short story I wrote that included the falcons.  She gave me that figurine at the end of the semester and I still have it and remember what it symbolizes.  It might have been something simple and small to her, but beyond the fact that I already enjoyed collecting the figures, I was filled with joy to be receiving something back.  She didn’t just read my short story, she remembered it enough to be inspired.  THAT is what I would live for as a writer.  Affecting people by simply expressing my thoughts would fill me with such life.

I attribute that class to a lot of my desire to write, or even blog at all.  I never won any of those contests.  WYEP said they wanted established poets who were published.  For some reason though, none of that felt like rejection.  It felt like satisfaction.  Sometimes, I yearn for that unique feeling.  To be so filled with joy, that rejection rings in a sense of completion rather than discouragement.

Build your identity on what you do, not what others do.

Mind your own business don’t worry about celebs dating lives or the big movies they’re in.  We’re supposed to get excited about Emmy awards?  Aren’t their salaries enough of an award?  Aren’t the endorsement deals, the free meals, or the fame enough for them?  It just feels like people all too willingly shove the straws in their own brains for other people to suck the life out of them.

“Give them a torch, and someone will start yelling, “FIRE!””

– Joshua Hall

In context, I came up with this phrase when I was trying to help a business group at work by giving them information about a technology plan to make updates to PCs.  Since I told them, they started pointing at that plan for all of their computer problems, even though they were not related at all.  If I hadn’t given them the information, they might have actually had to figure out what the real problems were.  I can’t really think of another phrase that compares, but surely there are other situations that warrant the saying.

Don’t be a walking billboard.

You know how people put ribbons on their shirts or even their cars to raise awareness for a certain charity or campaign?  What’s the difference between a pink ribbon on your chest and a Nike swoosh?  Is Polo or Ralph Lauren a brand that you strongly believe in and want to promote?  Why are you paying to wear clothes that carry their advertising on them?  I think we should all have the confidence in ourselves and display it in the form of race car driver advertising.  If you want me to promote your brand, you should give me a contract.  Otherwise, no deal.

A killer returns to his father only to shed tears
A soldier returns to his father only to tell of his fears
A lawyer returns to his father only to share his lies
Because amends must be made before my father dies
A lover returns to his father to share what he scorns
A doctor returns to his father to cry that he mourns
A teen returns to his father to confess he isn’t ready to be a man
But when we think it safe to return, it starts back up again

I had this idea sometime shortly after the attacks on the world trade towers on 9/11/01.  There were all these people stuck on floors so high up, and their only way out were the windows.  So many people just jumped to their death.  The only other method of getting out of the building was the stairwells, which were full of smoke or missing completely.

I was reminded again of this idea when I watched the movie, Towering Inferno.  Probably one of the gnarliest movies I’ve ever watched.

Anyway, I remembered when I was a kid we had one of these portable chain ladders.  You just threw it out the window, hooked it to the bottom of the window, and climbed down.

So why can’t we have a bunch of these all around buildings?  Have these chain ladders built into the sides of the buildings, all folded up, and when someone hits the emergency button, they all just fall down.  I can’t imagine it would be very expensive.  You don’t have to encase the building in chain ladders either.  Maybe every other floor have a set of 4 ladders around it, and have the ladders span down 3 floors, so if a floor is inaccessible, like a plane flies into it, you can still get to the next floors from the other set of ladders.

Even having something to grab onto would help people get down to a safer height, or if they fall off, they could grab onto.  Graphic, I know, but it just seems so simple and cheap that I’m surprised it’s not implemented.