The Goldman State
Ed Goldman is a longtime newspaper and magazine columnist, the author of five books and creator of The Goldman State, a three-times-a-week online column with subscribers in 40 states, Canada and Europe. A professional playwright, composer and painter, Ed has also taught journalism at five California Universities and community colleges. His bucket list includes becoming the victim of a corporate takeover. This podcast is an extension of his unique take on the world around us and his interpretation, with all the creativity imaginable, of what that would literally sound like if he were to speak it.
The Goldman State
Episode 118: "Life Plus" - It's Not a Breakfast Cereal.
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The subtleties of life imitating art, however that art is defined and however life is defined, can be supported from the viewpoint of "life-plus" and it's counterpart, "life-minus". I'll explain the details for you in the episode.
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00:00 - Ed Goldman (Host)
Hi, this is Ed Goldman with the Goldman State Podcast. My high school drama teacher, milton J McMenamin, characterized the art of theater everything from writing to acting to set design, sound and lighting as being life plus. As I grew to adulthood and developed my lifelong love of all things creative, I realized that his definition could be applied to all of the other arts music, dance, literature, painting and sculpting, architecture, film and things yet to be invented. In each medium, even if it attempts to depict reality, and even when its viewpoint is negative, its art is still an extension of what we characterize as the real world. What the real world consists of is an entirely different discussion, and one to which we should invite members of the clergy, atheists, physicists, metaphysicians, poets and children, especially children given to misbehaving. Here are some examples of life minus that are also all around us, like when a fashion model is photographed wearing pounds of makeup but is actually much more attractive without it. In that instance, the life plus arts of photography and lighting have conspired to highlight the model's beauty, but in doing so, have disguised and even diminished the natural attributes which made her first appeal to the talent agency or the photographer who hired her.
01:18
On the other hand, there are many who believe that makeup, cosmetic surgery and the like are all forms that compromise life plus, since their intent is to enhance and improve things as they are. That argument would hold that, unless you take sometimes drastic measures to upgrade your appearance, you're being lazy and complacent. Well, welcome to the headquarters of lazy and complacent In a galaxy where I can lose weight by taking Ozempic or its growing arsenal of imitators, rather than simply move more, eat less and pay attention to what I eat. I'm pretty much the extended version of the guy I started out as, except for one instance of cosmetic improvement I underwent more than 18 years ago and will never, ever tell you what it was, no matter how many winning lottery tickets you drizzle over me. By the way, I'm not remotely suggesting that people who do take Ozempic or one of its competitors are somehow lesser than as the current slang has it. For some, the treatment may very well be life-saving, though in some cases, life-savings is what will be eaten up along with the excess poundage. Check with your health insurance provider Now.
02:22
I'm sure to have detractors about this, especially within the cosmetic surgery, ozempic manufacturing and fashion communities, but if you haven't already clicked through to TikTok, Jumble Wordle or Compulsive Gambling app. Please hear me out. Life is beautiful even when it's harsh, unfair, disappointing or downright cruel, even when it's cut short or, conversely, goes on so long that it robs you of your contemporaries and leaves you living in a facility whose attendants use the term we and us when they just mean you, did we sleep well last night? Are we going to finish our bowl of gluten-free strained carrots? Art, like love when we're lucky, is life plus. I'd say that children, grandchildren and friends are also blessed additives, but I think of many of those entities as life itself. Good health is Life Plus too, because in most cases, we can help make it happen and it enhances everything else that comes our way, provided we don't take it for granted or stay too late at the lazy and complacent headquarters.
03:24
I'm Ed Goldman. My column, the Goldman State, comes out every Monday, wednesday and Friday. You can subscribe for free at GoldmanStatecom. Thanks for listening.