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Saturday, April 24, 2004 Poseurs There's been talk here and there of the mediocrity of president Bush. It's true. For whatever reason we aren't living during a time of exceptional leadership. Tonight on TV we watched a documentary about Shackleton's expedition to Antarctica. Now there's a man who was a natural born leader. We watched in utter disbelief at the total privation, despair, and utter sense of futility men can overcome to survive. They did so in large part because of the extrordinary leadership of Shackleton. To be honest with you it seemed eerily unnatural that an upright, any upright, not only could be physically capable of this measure of endurance, but psychologically as well. After a filling dinner, from the relative comfort of our 21st century living room couch, snuggled against comfy pillows, we were dumfounded as we watched what Shakleton's crew endured after an aborted attempt to traverse Antarctica. (Personally, I got all choked up when they had to shoot the dogs). These were men who were literally at the brink of insanity when they arrived at Elephant Island, then lived for another four+ months waiting, many thought in vain, for the return of Shackleton who, along with four other chiseled men, traveled 800 nautical miles in a twenty-two foot boat to a God-forsaken place called South Georgia Island. As if that wasn't enough, they then traversed treacherous, uncharted mountains to reach a Norwegian whaling village on the opposite side of the island. They accomplished this on near empty stomachs, and wearing fewer clothes than an upright might don for a casual winter walk in downtown Anchorage. Unfathomable. This puts things in perspective. All our modern chest-thumping, tough-talking poseurs on Constitution Avenue don't have the first idea of what it means to be tough. Most of the rest of us don't either. 10:13:06 PM    Comments disabled © Copyright 2008 Rufus. Nonsense, distribute widely and freely! Last update: 7/26/2008; 10:41:06 AM.			Readers Amused       Home About Me Airedale Philosophy How this all got started       FAQ What's an Upright? Upright: noun : a by and large bipedal companion, also referred to as a human being. What's a Cheechako? Cheechako: noun : a person new to Alaska who has come with the intention to live here. Who's Master? Master: pronoun : just the finest upright on the face of the earth, that's who! To read him is to love him. What's Dogdom? Dogdom: noun : Life's venue from a dog's point of view. What's a Sourdough? Sourdough: noun : A long time Alaskan who has an automatic suspicion of cheechakos. What does Outside mean? Outside: noun : A provincial reference to somplace other than Alaska; usually the lower 48. What's Breakup? Breakup: noun : A uniquely Alaskan season between winter and spring when the snow and ice begins to melt for good. Where is SquareBanks? SquareBanks: slang : A self-evident euphemism for a place widely known as Fairbanks, AK. Where can I read the Houston Trip? Houston Trip: vignette : Here What digital camera do you use? Camera: hardware : Canon Powershot A80 (4.0 MP) Who's Mom? Mom: Hottie : Have A Look What's a Squeakamunka? Squeakamunka: noun : your ordinary gray squirrel which can be seen everywhere in our Cleveland neighborhood! « Alaska Blogs »  Stories Fiction Boy Wonder Bat Girl Objects in Mirror Are Larger Than They Appear Used To Be Fish Skin Deep Essay Life Is Good Desert Nostalgia A Voice of Reason Fictional Four Realms of Darkness Poetry Lucky Chain  The Cycling Pages 1999 Canadian Tour 2000 Tour of Alaska "Yooper" : 2001 Tour of WI/Michigan UP 2001 Spine of Italy Tour 2002 Tour of New England 2004 Tour of New Zealand (coming soon!) 2005 Tour Of Nova Scotia Conways Game of Life (needs java plugin) Sometimes Interesting Billy Greg (Hiatus) Virginia Postrel Wendy McElroy Samizdata Atlantic Monthly Reason No Treason Slashdot Derke Lowe Heather Champ (Photo blog) T.C. Boyle Liquid Generation Improved Clinch Exquisite Corpse, A. Codrescu Fred On Everything Assymetrical Information The Daily Ablution (Hibernation) Lileks Frank Kelly (Hiatus) Up In Alaska