Our Incessant Whining.

Ok So...


        If you are on the old FB, you are familiar with the constant never ending whining. From the "My Job Sucks", to the "My boyfriend sucks". The countless UGH's and the FML's. Never ending money rants. My children are driving me crazy posts. We whine about broken cars. Kitchen appliances. Our weight. Our families. Our so called friends. We whine about our neighbors. Our neighborhoods. Other people's neighborhoods. We whine about the weather. Our messed up plans. Our lack of sleep. We whine about the tv shows we watch.

         We are friggin whiners. BIG TIME. I whine ALL THE TIME!! I always have. I whine about the stupidest stuff. Mostly work. I whine about people that I only have to see for 6 hours a day, 3 days a week. I whine about crappy DJ gigs. I whine about crappy situations that I put myself in. I whine about my lawn that just won't frigging grow the way I want it to because as soon as the grass starts to grow some gas company, electric company, septic company or the DOT shows up and digs it all up!!

We whine.

          The coolest part of being a wedding DJ is the people I meet. Every year I get to meet hundreds of new people. Every now and then I spend an evening with people that really leave a mark in my way of thinking.

         This past summer I was DJing a wedding and the father of the bride was one of these people. Man, he was one cool cat. This guy was all smiles. Beer in hand. Telling jokes. Proud of his family. Looking very dapper in a killer suit. He was shaking hands, thanking people for coming. He was rockin' the dance floor. The wedding party was a cool group of people but this guy really making the night for me.

          You see... This man was diagnosed with terminal cancer and had a matter of weeks to live. Everyone in the room knew his condition.

           When it came time to do the Father / Daughter dance, everyone in the room was in tears. Even me. Everyone was crying except him. He was smiling from ear to ear.

            This cool cat was alive. He was able to walk his daughter down the aisle. He watched all his children grow up. He was alive. He was there with his wonderful wife, all his kids and all their friends and family. He lived a kick ass life surrounded by kick ass people. He was celebrating an awesome event with pure awesomeness. He wasn't whining.

              The one person in the room that had a real, honest to goodness reason to whine...wasn't. The one guy in the room who had an actual situation to bitch about...didn't. He had all the reasons in the world to be angry, sad, bitter, hurt... just flat out pissed. He wasn't.

              He was happy. I can't help but think that he knew in the back of his head that was the last dance he would dance with his daughter. The last party he would share with his family and friends. This guy was truly happy.

             Now, I don't know how he was before this night. I didn't really know him personally. All I know as that on this night he was the definition of a happy man. He really made an impact on me that night. I have noticed a change in myself ever since that night. All of the things that I whine about have become so trivial. Material things mean so little these days.

              I used to spend so much energy whining about broken toys, stained carpets, uneven grass, lousy co workers, busy work days, the lack of hockey, loud bass loving neighbors and the price of gas. It all seems so small now.
               I spent a lot of time going to a shrink and anger management when I was younger because I had such a hard time dealing with rejection. I had Daddy issues and ex wife issues. The feeling of being unloved was really hard for me to handle. Even after all the therapy...I struggled with depression. But all those hiccups that life gave me seem really small to me now. I look at my wife. I look at my kids. I look at my awesome support system and realize how truly blessed I am.

               I am alive right now. I am watching my family grow. I love "my people". I am loved back. I think about how calm, cool and happy that guy was knowing that his time here was almost over and suddenly The Bass next door seems quieter. My job seems easier. The grass seems to be leveling itself out.

               People. We are alive right now. We have air in our lungs. We have people that love us. Every minute we spend whining is one more minute we didn't spend enjoying it. The people that steal our happiness will eventually go away. The bills we have will eventually get paid. The bad relationships will get fixed or end.
Our time here is limited. I have found a new perspective. I will whine. For sure. I'm a whiner. But I know that my whining will be short lived. I will also do my very best to keep it to myself. I don't want to waste time whining and I don't want to waste other people's time by making them read about it or listening to it.