What are you going to do about it?

I drank six beers and took six shots, and thought I should drive us home. I thought wrong. I got pulled over, as you could probably guess. Cops tend to freak out when you turn the wrong way down a one-way street. To my credit, I noticed instantly and made an illegal u-turn. "Excuse me, Sir, have you been drinking?" There was no way out of this one. My newly 21-year-old-serious-girlfriend was with me, and the last thing I wanted was for her to get arrested (if only I felt the same about her safety, right?). But she did, and so did I, and we both were granted a free night in the county lockup. She (my girlfriend) had one roommate. I, on the other hand, had 47. That's an odd number to remember, but I do, nearly 20 years later. In case you're wondering, did we break up? Yes, and if you're also wondering how that night went. It SUCKED! 

The point of the story begins right here.

At one point in the middle of the night, I moved off my concrete bed, which was the middle of the jail cell floor, onto a bench seat that had just opened up. The person who was sitting there decided to abandon it for a stroll. Once he decided to return to his seat told me I need to move because "it was his seat." Keep in mind more than 30 minutes had gone by before I dared to sit there. He proceeded to tell me to "get the f*** off the bench." When I told him I wasn't moving, his response was idiotic. It was threat after threat after threat followed with the typical high school "clap" of "what do you think you're looking at?" It was at this moment where I snapped. I had this realization that nothing was going to happen. What was he going to do, shank me? No, this was the Fort Wayne "drunk tank." I was 6 inches taller, and no doubt had 60 lbs on this guy.

With no fear in my eyes or care for the consequences at the moment I looked back at him with authority, raised my voice and said, "what the hell do you think you're going to do about it? That's what I thought, not a damn thing. Just keep talking, buddy, and walk away."

And that's precisely what he did. He kept talking, and he didn't do a thing about it. In my entire life, I had never been more ready to "throw down" than I did at that moment. I had been in jail for only 6 hours and had already established my "street cred." 

That night I spent in jail was one of the worst nights of my life, but at the same time, one of the best things that could have ever happened to me. For one, it was this horrible realization that there were consequences for my decisions, both good and bad, and two, there's no reason to complain about something you're not willing to change yourself. Getting in a fist-a-cuffs is not the ideal analogy but the confidence to ask yourself that question is.

Every day of our lives, we face life's challenges. And constantly, we are colliding with specific social issues we disagree with. With all of these challenges and disagreements, we have an option. We can choose to complain, or we can actually do something about it. 

• Did you gain weight last year while sitting at home? Go running, change your diet but mostly, get off your butt. 
• Did you get in an argument with your wife? Tell her you're sorry, go all out. 
• Are you unemployed and telling yourself you can't find a job, or there's nothing out there for you? Get any position in the meantime. Who cares where it is. Work fast food if you have to. 
• Are you pissed about a social issue? Write your congressmen or women. Tell them how you feel, but more importantly, what you would like to happen. As in offering a solution. As in, what would you do? 
• Are you hurt? Help someone. My pastor once told me that hurt people hurt people, so if you're feeling hurt, the best thing you can do for yourself is to help someone. 
• Are you upset about Covid? Everyone has an opinion on this one, and almost everyone who has an opinion on this is outspoken about it. Because if you're not candid about it, you're basically just a sheep, right? Wrong, we're not all sheep. By the way, Jesus left his flock of sheep to save the one that wandered off—just saying! You can do so much more about it than complaining. But rather than list off the apparent answers to what you should do, I would like to paraphrase what a great friend of mine recommended several years ago, "go make an impact on a local level." Honestly, I think that the best advice anyone could ever receive when they believe so strongly in a cause, or this case, against something. 

What can you do right now?

• Go to a school board meeting and speak up. 
• Join the campaign of a local political figure that shares the same values.
• Join a non-profit board.
• Serve in your community.
• Volunteer your time
• Reach out to someone for a conversation. Particularly someone who disagrees with you.

Or, you could continue complaining about it but keep in mind that complaining about anything is the same as doing nothing about something. Except well, maybe wasting time. 

Complaining=Nothing

The irony of this entire story is how my story of my 'drunk tank' buddy comes full circle. About two years later, I was working for Orkin Pest Control in residential sales. I got a call to go out to a run-down house in the center of Fort Wayne with a German cockroach infestation (btw, that's really bad) to see if we could service their home. The homeowner, who coincidently was the same guy who wanted "his seat back or else," didn't recognize me at first. That was until I finished my inspection, told him what our service cost and looked him in the eye, and said to him, "what are you going to do about it?" The look on his face as he realized who I was was priceless. That's a true story. 

Needless to say, he didn't do anything about his cockroach infestation, but something tells me he probably kept on 'bitchin' about it. 

Got a problem? Try doing something about it for a change. As for me, I already have and will continue to do so. ALWAYS

My mother always taught my brother and me to be part of the solution, not the problem. It didn't always work, but it stuck.