Merry Christmas

Here is my Christmas gift to all of you. My take on a Christmas song we all know. Not the best quality, but surely authentic. Hope you enjoy. Merry Christmas. -Jamis

Blind Luck ?

John Milton, the Elizabethan poet wrote a sonnet on his blindness. Blind Lemon Jefferson wrote blues about his. I'll blog about mine. Occasionally. I have Stargardt's disease - a form of macular degeneration that typically starts when one is relatively young. In my case, I was 18 when I learned something was definitely going on. At 16, my girlfriend, Kathy, and I tried dying the tennis balls black--they were beige then--because I was complaining that I couldn't see them well. Kathy's father, ironically, was an ophthalmologist. He gave me a physical exam for college and he discovered the problem. My maternal grandfather, Homer Simmons, used a white cane and all the time I knew him, he could only see shapes from the edges of his eyes. It apparently didn't hold him back; he planted 49 consecutive cotton crops. I am often asked what I can see. If I stared at your head, it would eventually disappear from my view and blend in with the background color. I have large blind spots in the centers of my eyes where the acute vision is located. The Moran Eye Center is a remarkable place. The family had genetic testing there. The gene lurks in some but not all of my offspring. But, what are you going to do? Like Milton, "When I consider how my light is spent..." before more than half my life is up, I rarely wonder why. And, it makes for some funny moments. More on that later.

TV WORTH LISTENING ?

Except,of course, for Bay Watch reruns and Monday Night Football, there is surprisingly little "visual" to actually watch while facing the TV. I haven't watched TV for years and being legally blind has little to do with it. We all know that TV is a wasteland. But I find also that the "TV" part of TV is pretty much useless. In fact, not being able to see but only listen to the Tube was, for me, revealing. Try only listening. My personal estimate is that fully 95% of most TV programs requires only listening and the visual is surprisingly unnecessary. News stories, for example, rarely need any visual component--its just the anchor gal yammering on, or the person interviewed gabbing away. Seeing them is unnecessary. When there is footage with visual impact no matter how vapid (usually lurid or titillating) the aural is sacrificed to support the visual. Talk (which carries the ideas)is subordinated to the visual which is almost always disappointing. With footage of that darn kitty wearing a silly hat or an "awesome" car crash--the TV news will be arranged around the hot visual - not any actual news. And I learned long ago that the visual is almost never worth moving my bod off a couch and putting my nose 2 inches away from the screen. Good talk is interrupted by pictures on TV and there just aren't that many cool pictures. As the journalists cynically observe "If it bleeds, it leads." Try watching TV without "watching" the TV. Just listen. You will be surprised at how little the visual images matter and also how inane the talking is that supports those pictures. I love radio. Try NPR.

"I blog therefore I am."

Welcome to the Blind Luck Blog. I'm Jamis Johnson and this is my personal record--my eclectic collection of opinion, observation, intriguing ideas, and experiences.

SOME BITS ABOUT ME: BANJO-LAWYER-BLIND-MORMON-FATHER-IDEA GUY-SEMI-PARIAH

Here, in random order, are some things to know about me: I'm a bluegrass musician. I play guitar, banjo, mandolin, stand-up bass, and some classical guitar.(For 20 years on Sunday evenings at the house, we've played music in the living room with anyone interested in joining, and I give free guitar lessons to anyone who shows up on these Sunday nights--probably a couple hundred kids and adults over the years.) I'm legally blind--don't drive a car but ride a bike a lot (slowly); I'm a lawyer having been educated at an Ivy League law school. I'm a Mormon guy still trying to figure out life and God and meaning. (2 year mission to the Philippines at age 19.) I'm about 6' tall, good shape. (Bike riding!) My twin sister and I were born on Valentine's Day in Arizona in 1952. (Yes - that is awhile back.) I'm the father of 6 remarkable children: My youngest daughter is Korean, These offspring are interesting kids. One is a news broadcaster/journalist, one's a psychiatrist, there is a budding venture capitalist/law student, an entrepreneur with a business in India, a couple are still undergrads. Some are tech types and some are artsy types. They are great. I've lived in Salt Lake City, Utah for a couple of decades. Before that I lived in New York City for 5-6 years, and in Europe (I was a Fulbright Scholar to the University of Bucharest when Romania was a communist country). I went to Jr. High and High School in Eugene,Oregon--proud to say I was student body president of good old Winston Churchill High. I'm single, and the last 4-5 years of my life have been rather chaotic and...well...interesting, to say the least. I like history, art, literature, spirited (but amicable) debate and I'm fascinated by the unfolding events of our time. I like good wit, humor - from subtle satire to raucous slapstick--, exotic ideas, spiritual reflection and music. I myself can be hilarious--I think. I'm creative. I'm big on civil liberties. I am wondering what I will do with my life these next 35 years which I hope will be both profound and a party--or rather a celebration--and full of extraordinary experiences. I hope this blog will reflect who I am.