If you will it, it is no dream (self-realization) 1.18.02

I will state up front that I am not easily impressed, swayed or amused. Life can be a grind. Frivolity and joviality are for children. So is hell according to Pat Benatar, but that is another column.
For grown-ups like us, melancholy and depression are the rule and forced politeness is about the best we can offer our fellow man.
Moments of joy are too special to have all the time anyway, try as we might. Keep your eyes on the prize!
It pays off in the long run to believe in the power of positive self-realization. Notice I did not say "it pays to be positive." I hate that sentiment. It means nothing and is the mantra of shiny, happy people who have lived in a place all of their lives and still say things like, "there's no NORTH Broadway," "what's the Viaduct?" "Brewski's is a drive-thru what?" and "I went to a private school in Omaha."
We can easily mock these people because they don't read our paper. By "our paper" I mean the one that is yours and mine, the Nonpareil. That's positive, huh?
Sunshine doesn't mean as much without the occasional cloudy day, but remembering that it can't rain all the time gives you enough hope to make it through the metaphorical darkness into the metaphorical light.
Not to go all Tony Robbins or Friedrich Nietzsche on you here, but it is possible to will yourself into prosperity, happiness, success, love or just about anything else you want to get into by believing that all things are possible. Because the truth is, they are.
Ever see "A&E's Biography?" How many Americans were born poverty-stricken, disease-ridden to child-beating parents, suffered several false starts, a handful of failures, a bankruptcy or two and still managed to leave a lasting legacy or at least a legacy worthy of A&E. Colonel Sanders, Mark Twain and Harry S. Truman come to mind.
They overcame much trouble by sheer will.
When I came home for the first time in three years over Christmas 2000, I found the "Council Bluffs - Iowa's Leading Edge" commercials on TV to be a slick, appropriate and, dare I say, inspiring effort.
The slogan, created by public relations firm Meyocks and Priebe of Des Moines, rocks harder than Cheap Trick live at the Budokan, my friends, and shows what is possible for a town like ours when we shoot for a higher level. Kudos to the Chamber of Commerce for realizing that if you want to hit somebody in the nose, you gotta aim for the back of the head.
It beats some of the slogans and taglines I would have devised in a fit of realism. A quick survey of the Nonpareil newsroom came up with several alternatives. Each begins with "Council Bluffs ..."
"... we're meth-ariffic!"
"... not Omaha - yet."
"... you gotta problem with that?"
"... one for me and one for my homies."
"... we don't smell like Lake Manawa."
"... ain't nothin' wrong with that!"
"... take what you want, but eat what you take."
"... city of dreams."
"... home of wicked satire."
"... the truck stop at the crossroads of the world."
"... there's no place like home. There's no place like home. C'mon, work already!"
You get the idea. It takes a special kind of person to write really good propaganda. Anybody can just make stuff up, but making up stuff that works? That changes the way people think and feel about the exact same thing they hated or ignored moments before? Pure skill.
I can't help but giggle when I fudge.
In my own life, I have found the use of a quote board helpful in making myself believe I can do anything or be amusing on command. This began at the Iowa State Daily and was a great way to remember just how funny we were.
You have to keep on it or those corkers you come up with spontaneously will be lost forever.
Do this at your school or place of work. Whenever anyone makes a funny write it down, tack it to a cork board, tape it to the wall or tattoo it across your chest as tangible proof of how much joy you are capable of creating day in and day out.
Don't worry hipsters, it is just self-congratulatory enough to avoid the whole "Chicken Soup for the Soul" effect.
I mentioned Twain earlier. Iowa Public Television is showing Ken Burn's "Mark Twain" on Sunday from 2 to 6 in the afternoon. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It tells the story of one of the greatest Americans that ever lived and how each of our lives has been influenced by his work. Set your VCRs, this one should not be missed.
- Greg Jerrett is a Daily Nonpareil staff writer. He may be contacted at 328-1811 ext. 279 or by e-mail at gjerrett@nonpareilonline.com.