Jason Traeger
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Anyone who knows me knows I've never been one to revel in the past. I'm the last one to cast a misty-eyed glance back at the "good old days". In my experience the people who take this angle are usually the ones who weren't there. Whatever mistakes, false starts and missed opportunities I've had the pleasure of having, I was wherever I was for better or worse.

This blog is not meant to romanticize any choices I made or any particular era. It's simply a place where I share stories and take stock of where I've been as a way to figure out where I might want to go next. I'll celebrate some people along the way, some of them you'll know or know of, others will be new to you. I'm glad to have known every one of them.

The posts are in no thematic or chronological order. The date at the end of the post's title refers to how the content of the post relates to me personally. I make no claim about the accuracy of my recollections I only promise that I'll be as honest and accurate as I can be. If you were there and you remember things differently than I do, or you find evidence that contradicts my memory (I wouldn't be surprised or upset) feel free to let me know.

Rather than editing the posts for historical accuracy, I'll put ( * ) next to any parts that have been challenged or updated for that reason.


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March 26, 2012
NOT-STALGIA  PORTLAND 2012 I’m very flattered, humbled and touched when I see that a blog post of mine has been reposted or linked up somewhere. After all as the old saying goes: “blog reposting and linking is the most sincere form of flattery” That being said, there is one thing I take umbrage with: I don’t like seeing something I’ve written characterized as 80’s, 90’s or Punk “nostalgia”.  I know its impossible to control what happens to anything once it’s put in a bottle and tossed into the cyber-sea but I want to be clear about this: I don’t write anything from a nostalgic perspective. Not ever, never, nerver. Nostalgia is defined as looking back and yearning for an idealized past. I am not doing that.  I am simply telling stories from my life and putting those stories in context. That is all. If someone reads one of my posts and thinks they missed out on some golden era or some special time they are missing the point. It is my firm belief, and I say this with total heartfelt conviction, that all times are just as exciting and challenging as all other times. How could it be otherwise? It’s true that times change, technology changes, societal attitudes evolve and de-volve but ultimately it’s always what one makes of his or her time that matters. Do you seek new experiences or do you cling to what you know? Do you approach life with curiosity or with a closed, know-it-all perspective? Are you willing to stick your neck out and take a chance to follow a dream or do you go with the crowd and what others think is right for you? These are the questions that need to be answered in all times by all people. We answer them everyday in the decisions we make both large and small. These choices give our lives their form and they shape our perceptions of the lives and times we’re given. That’s why I think it’s of utmost importance to just say no to nostalgia. Thanks again for checking out my blog.

NOT-STALGIA  PORTLAND 2012

I’m very flattered, humbled and touched when I see that a blog post of mine has been reposted or linked up somewhere. After all as the old saying goes: “blog reposting and linking is the most sincere form of flattery”

That being said, there is one thing I take umbrage with: I don’t like seeing something I’ve written characterized as 80’s, 90’s or Punk “nostalgia”. 

I know its impossible to control what happens to anything once it’s put in a bottle and tossed into the cyber-sea but I want to be clear about this: I don’t write anything from a nostalgic perspective. Not ever, never, nerver.

Nostalgia is defined as looking back and yearning for an idealized past. I am not doing that.  I am simply telling stories from my life and putting those stories in context. That is all. If someone reads one of my posts and thinks they missed out on some golden era or some special time they are missing the point.

It is my firm belief, and I say this with total heartfelt conviction, that all times are just as exciting and challenging as all other times. How could it be otherwise? It’s true that times change, technology changes, societal attitudes evolve and de-volve but ultimately it’s always what one makes of his or her time that matters.

Do you seek new experiences or do you cling to what you know? Do you approach life with curiosity or with a closed, know-it-all perspective? Are you willing to stick your neck out and take a chance to follow a dream or do you go with the crowd and what others think is right for you?

These are the questions that need to be answered in all times by all people. We answer them everyday in the decisions we make both large and small. These choices give our lives their form and they shape our perceptions of the lives and times we’re given.

That’s why I think it’s of utmost importance to just say no to nostalgia.

Thanks again for checking out my blog.

6:36pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/Zl8DhvIdIiNS
(Notes: 5)
  
Filed under: nostalgia the good old days past what once was looking back eternal now courage curiousity 
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