A Thousand Miles From Nowhere (Dwight Yoakam)
A Thousand Miles From Nowhere by Dwight Yoakam. Why am I posting this video? Why not? Stop asking so many questions. Do you work for the CIA? I'm posting stuff that doesn't have anything to do with anything. It's liberating. Probably won't post much about my life anymore. Instead, I intend to write about things of absolutely no import. Actually, by that definition, I should write about my life exclusively. Haha.
This song was released in 1993. Think back to what you were doing then. That's how long this guy's been rocking. Well, longer, actually. And it probably took him that long to get out of those leather pants. Oof.
I like this video because it's a split screen, which is not something you see very often. It's a lot for the mind to process, two screens at once, but it works. When our minds are overloaded, we are more susceptible to things slipping into our subconscious unnoticed. Our minds have gateways, and when we're bombarded, things slip through. And that's how we get dreams and stuff like that. It's the stuff that slipped through. Anyway.
This guy has been making music for a long time. I like this song because it begins with the chorus and doesn't screw around with fancy lyrics. It is simple, honest, and brilliant. The music still shines 30 years later. Do I hear a lap steel guitar? I hope so.
The lyrics. I won't touch those much. Obviously, I like words, otherwise I wouldn't run several blogs. It's hard for me to listen to country music anymore because it's usually 1) drinking and 2) relationships gone bad. Think Hank Williams. I lived that song, thank you very much. I don't need to hear it on the radio. This song adheres to the country code of lyric writing. The lyrics are sad, and that's all we need to know about that. Something happened we aren't privy to, and that's fine. Probably for the best. Now he's a thousand miles from nowhere. You can't hide from hurt. You take it with you. If someone hurt you, forgive and give it to God. But, if Dwight took my advice, we wouldn't have this song. Most likely, no one hurt him except those pants.
It’s impossible to avoid hurt and pain, but we can’t let disappointments and such harden our hearts. Time and again we see God implore people to be soft. From the pharaoh Moses spoke with to Jesus’ disciples, all are in danger of a hard heart, and that’s where sin begins. It’s not the initial pain that makes us hard. It’s a decision. A hard heart is something we must run from. I learned that hardness of heart can lead one into sin. Our reaction to bad things is what gets us. All of us are in danger of a hard heart. That’s why we have the admonition to guard our hearts.
I love the backdrop of this video. It's the American West. Not much has been romanticized more than the American West. There is a whole lot of open country out there and endless vistas. I don't have a wanderlust as much as I used to. I'm likely not done traveling, but it's not everything to me, as it is to some. Riding the rails like this would be fun, though. I think a lot of people have a secret (or not-so-secret) desire to run away from it all. They just need an excuse. Dwight says, "Come ride with me."
There's a girl standing by the railroad tracks in a white coat. It's puzzling. Also, the redhead in the river is something I don't get, but, then again, this is art and I don't have to get it. Is she the one who broke his heart and said those cruel, cruel things? (God knows those gingers are feisty.) Is she one of millions who want to cut and run? Or, was she startled by the train while she was ready to go skinny dipping? In that coat with the big shoulders. We'll never know. Feel free to conjure your own scenarios. That's the beauty of art. It reflects you. Like looking in a mirror. And maybe that's why I'm doing this new thing. It's a new way to look at myself. Oh, please no. I've had enough of myself. I'll eat a banana and shut up.
All I know is grief changes a person. Most of what assailed me in life wasn't my choice. It happened. God allowed it and maybe even ordered it. All of it served a purpose, though I didn't see that at the time. (I think of what Joseph went through a lot and how he didn’t have the full picture until much later.) Everything I have trouble figuring out I give to God. I'm along for the ride, like Dwight on the train. Someone throws a switch and I go somewhere else. For someone independent and stubbornly self-directed to admit he's not in control is a big thing. I'm not passive. I just recognize God directs my steps. If He doesn't open a door, I can't go through it. Lately, I've been sitting alone with God a lot. The quiet isn't so quiet when He's broadcasting.
Think of the cost of creating this video. You'd have to rent a train and conductor, some extras, a helicopter. What would be done with drones today surely took many hours shooting from a helicopter then. It's probably not a big production compared to today's videos. What do I know?
There isn't anything ugly about this video. One thing I've noticed about country songs is it doesn't matter how good looking a lot of the men are. The songs have to be good. Of course, you could say that about a lot of music, especially in the bygone era of radio. Probably not as true now. I'm not sure what people would say about Dwight's dancing now. That's the old country. Have you heard the new country? Have you seen it? You know what I'm talking about. I used to listen to the Oak Ridge Boys and such on 8 track when I was a kid. Things have changed. We've all changed. America changed. But a good song can last a long time.
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It’s been about a year since Cindy’s father passed away. I didn’t know him but felt a great loss when he passed. I walked the same streets recently that I did minutes before I heard he passed. I prayed for many people on that walk, him included. I miss her father, too, even though we never met. What a godly example I missed out on. I seek to be more like him and look forward to meeting him in heaven.
Thinking about writing a daring piece on ageing. Also, aging. Why do so many words have multiple correct spellings? I blame the British. If it's effed up, they are usually to blame. Or, I'll keep writing simple and fairly light pieces like this. Feeling cute. Might delete this later. I got so bored recently I watched all eight of the Harry Potter movies. Luna Lovegood (that girl loves pudding, and who doesn't?) was my favorite character, of course. Haven’t forced myself to watch the reunion show yet. I was just trying to figure out why the movies were so popular. Still don't know.
Recently came upon a house (actually more of a compound) with 6 garage bays. That’s not all that interesting. Just a little much. What interests me about, say, someone’s home is what they choose to do with a blank space, like the little peak over the garage. What do they put there? A window, vent, light fixture, or sign? Those spaces really bother some people. I don’t own a home so don’t have to worry about it. My observational skills can be quite obnoxious. At least you don't have to live with them. Ask me about the missing apostrophes in brand names. McDonald's, for instance. Sometimes their signs have the apostrophe and sometimes they don't. Stuff like that will drive you crazy if you let it. Not there yet.
Adding to my recent thoughts on relationships, I thought this was funny. Also, sorry my writing is so sloppy lately. My health is rather poor and it shows. Because I don’t want this space to be an arena for whining, I’ll keep my personal woes to myself for the most part. Except for the post on aging, of course, haha. I want to have fun with this space. And what is left of my life. That’s all.
Thank you for reading. And God bless.
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