The "New" (Ab)Normal

Ain't Nothing Like Real Life, Baby

Since posting “Turning My Light Back On” three weeks ago, I’ve been doing a lot of figurative and literal “spring cleaning.”

I’m in the process of cleaning up some messes and rebuilding both my personal and professional lives. It’s been a journey of introspection and recalibration, filled with moments of clarity and uncertainty.

While I’m doing my best to approach this phase with intention and thoughtfulness as I reenter society, some days… well, I just want to rush to the finish line.

I’ve always loved coloring outside the lines, but there’s something about the in-between moments—the ones where I’m still figuring things out—that can feel unsettling. The messy middle, the clumsy dance between who I’ve been and who I’m becoming, can be overwhelming.

I guess that’s the paradox of transformation: I love the version of me that’s emerging—from the ashes like a phoenix—but the process of getting there can be painful and surreal, often making it hard to feel “mighty real” in the moment.

Long story short, I’m slowly and surely finding my way back to the real-life people, places, and things that have given me life…for so much of my life.

In this process of rediscovery, I’ve come to realize that some of those who joined me in previous chapters of my life won’t be accompanying me into the next ones. As difficult as this truth can be, I’m learning that it’s simply part of the journey.

Growth, evolution, and change all require letting go—sometimes of people, places, and things I thought would always be with me. Luckily, most of my nears, dears, and/or queers I’ve reconnected with so far are on board to give me another shot.

I consider myself a very lucky guy to be welcomed back with so many open arms, hearts, and minds after being missing in action for so long. So far anyway. 🤞🌈✌️

One thing remains true amidst the noise and soul-searching: real life—with its beauty, heartache, and joy—will always be my foundation. Deeply rooted in real-life people, places, and things, I’m able to build healthier online connections and create safer virtual spaces. My online, real, and virtual worlds work together, helping me reflect and remember who I am, especially when I feel overwhelmed and start to forget.

The world is more than a bit wacky right now, largely due to the most arrogant and assinine group of self-serving “billionaires” the world has ever known.

I have a hard time believing Idiocracy came true so fast. And Office Space became even truer. Who knew Mike Judge was our modern-day Nostradamus?

Yet, despite the chaos monsters’ best efforts to make us all nuts, I’m doing my best to carve out my “new” (ab)normal amidst all their fucking madness.

Here’s to navigating the strange and sometimes uncomfortable process of getting back to me. But it’s all worth it. Ain’t nothing like real life, baby.

Thank you for being a friend!
Clint 🌈✌️

P.S. Unless I have technical difficulties, my plan is to post a new montage on YouTube later today and a new montage on Substack tomorrow. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

ON THIS DAY = MARCH 1

BIRTHDAYS

• 1810 = Frédéric Chopin = Polish composer 🌈

• 1860 = William Dorsey Swann = American "queen of drag" 🌈

• 1880 = Lytton Strachey = British writer and critic 🌈

• 1893 = Mercedes de Acosta = American writer 🌈

• 1904 = Glenn Miller = American trombonist, composer, and bandleader

• 1927 = Harry Belafonte = American singer-songwriter and actor

• 1935 = Robert Conrad = American actor, radio host and stuntman

• 1944 = Roger Daltrey = English singer-songwriter, producer, and actor

• 1945 = Dirk Benedict = American actor and director

• 1947 = Alan Thicke = Canadian-American actor and composer

• 1954 = Catherine Bach = American actor

• 1954 = Ron Howard = American actor and filmmaker

• 1956 = Tim Daly = American actor, director, and producer

• 1966 = Paul Hollywood = English celebrity chef and tv personality

• 1966 = Zack Snyder = American filmmaker

• 1969 = Javier Bardem = Spanish actor and producer

• 1971 = Brad Falchuk = American filmmaker

• 1974 = Mark-Paul Gosselaar = American actor

• 1978 = Jensen Ackles = American actor

• 1983 = Lupita Nyong'o = Kenyan-Mexican actor

• 1987 = Kesha = American singer-songwriter

• 1994 = Justin Bieber = Canadian singer-songwriter

EVENTS

• 1692 = Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba are brought before local magistrates in Salem Village, MA, beginning what would become known as the Salem witch trials.

• 1869 = The Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev finished his design of the first periodic table.

• 1872 = Yellowstone National Park is established as the world's first national park.

• 1893 = Electrical engineer Nikola Tesla gives the first public demonstration of radio in St. Louis, MO.

• 1932 = Aviator Charles Lindbergh's 20-month-old son Charles Jr is kidnapped from his home in East Amwell, NJ.

• 1936 = Hoover Dam, straddling the Arizona–Nevada border on the Colorado River, is completed.

• 1946 = The Bank of England is nationalized.

• 1954 = Castle Bravo, a 15-megaton hydrogen bomb, is detonated on Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in the worst radioactive contamination ever caused by the United States.

• 1975 = Color tv transmission begins in Australia

• 1986 = Valerie (aka Valerie's Family: The Hogans and The Hogan Family) premieres on NBC.

• 1998 = Titanic became the first film to gross over $1 billion worldwide.

• 2003 = Management of the United States Customs Service and the United States Secret Service move to the United States Department of Homeland Security.

• 2006 = English-language Wikipedia reaches its one millionth article…on the Jordanhill railway station.

HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES

• Disability Day of Mourning

• Global Day of Unplugging

• National Dadgum That's Good Day

• National Play Outside Day

PORTRAIT + QUOTE OF THE DAY

“It is dreadful when something weighs on your mind, not to have a soul to unburden yourself to. You know what I mean. I tell my piano the things I used to tell you.”
Frédéric Chopin

Frédéric Chopin = All 21 Nocturnes

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