Beautiful Loser 2010

Thirty years ago, Bob Seger sang a song with the lyrics

"He wants to dream like a young man
With the wisdom of an old man
He wants his home and security
He wants to live like a sailor at sea

Beautiful loser
Where you gonna fall?
When you realize
You just can't have it all

He's your oldest and your best friend
If you need him, he'll be there again
He's always willing to be second-best
A perfect lodger, a perfect guest

Beautiful loser
Read it on the wall
And realize
You just can't have it all
You just can't have it all

You just can't have it all
Ohh, ohh, can't have it all
You can try, you can try, but you can't have it all
Oh yeah

He'll never make any enemies, enemies, no
He won't complain if he's caught in a freeze
He'll always ask, he'll always say please

Beautiful loser
Never take it all
'Cause it's easier
And faster when you fall

You just don't need it all
You just don't need it all
You just don't need it all
Just don't need it all"



...Well....

I've noticed lately that we live in an unprecedented age where, though we perhaps still cannot have it all, we can come a lot closer than ever before in any other culture and time period that has ever existed. Period.

Far from being a sailor at sea, where in order to follow that romantic notion you must leave home without a second glance for months.. years.. maybe even forever, now you can show up on the other side of the world in a day and contact your family back home in a second. And that's not even figurative language.

Even since those amazing lyrics were penned thirty some years ago, times have changed so much in favor of the "beautiful loser." The internet and all of its applications could hardly have been conceived then, yet exist now. I think the changes came on so fast that the culture hasn't been able to keep it's head above water. All the beautiful losers out there don't even realize how good they have it.

You can now "couch surf," in other words, participate in a safe way to live like a sailor at sea with all the comforts of home and security provided for you by a nation-wide network of people.

WIth ride-sharing sites, the beautiful loser can sit in his comfy host home and find transportation to his next little adventure without even looking at a road.

He or she can pull off at a Panera bread, whip out the laptop that's been charging in the cigarette lighter and have a nice chat with everyone back home. Someone really extreme, someone who sets the new-age standard for ruggedness, might even occasionally sleep in the car and plug in a $20 a year magicJack phone to the cig lighter along with the computer.

The thing that really blew me away, that caused me to finally write about my thoughts on this subject, occurred when I was perusing a website called eRideShare.com. Suddenly I am looking at an offer from a woman for someone who speaks Spanish to drive her to Panama (the country); she will pay for the return trip. Naturally, I asked for more details.

But it's ok. If that falls through, I could get a ride to Fairbanks, AK for $20, or to Seattle, WA, for free. And there's some college guy who "has money, will travel" - wherever.

Really? Why go to Alaska, or Panama, or Washington? Why not? It's not often you get to travel to Alaska for twenty bucks or go to Panama for free. Thirty years ago I would have been a beautiful loser. Right now, I'm thinking, "this way of life is not normal. It's not natural, and it can't last long. So I'm gonna get it while I can!!"