Driven
Where does the drive to do something come from? I suspect people, or dogs, who are really driven don't give that question much thought. They're too busy driving.
I noticed in the last few weeks Newman is completely driven to do one activity - roll in the grass. I take him to Hodgson school to run around in the field and he loves it. But it's almost like he knows he has a limited time there so the first thing he does, for 15 minutes or so, is furiously roll in the grass. I throw a ball, he makes a lame effort to catch it, then back to the rolling. He really needs to roll.
The amazing thing about a drive like this is its purity. It's pure because it's just there and it happens. It's not about want, or aspiring to something, or choosing from a list of activities. It's a complete NEED to do one thing. Even though I have my drivers licence, I have no idea where a drive like this comes from. I just know you have to be alive to have it.
I also think there is no difference between the core drive of Newman to roll in the grass and, say, Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel. There's no question in my mind that Mich (to his friends) was overcome with an inexplicable drive to complete that great work, no matter how hard it became. I know it seems like a stretch, but in its essence I think the drive to roll and paint are the same.
What differs, of course, is the content and results of the drive. When Newman rolls in the grass, let's face it, it doesn't contribute much to the world, cute as it is. When Mich paints the Sistine Chapel, it gives the world a beautiful room utterly packed with noisy, smelly tourists, and if you have to pee while you're in there, you'll probably do what Newman would do in that situation. When I was in the chapel I knew exactly how a fig newton feels 24/7, sandwiched in his package waiting patiently to be purchased and freed. I'd much rather be a Joe Louis, all alone in my own bachelor packaging, great view of the other shelves, and cream filling too.
Dog drives don't vary nearly as much as human drives. It's astounding the number of different human drives and how they express themselves. George Carlin once used the dichotomy of napalm and silly putty to illustrate how mankind can be so harmful and yet benign at the same time.
To expand on that dichotomy, consider the drives of Albert Schweitzer and, for example, Jeffrey Dahmer, the cannibalistic killer. Al was driven to improve the human condition whereas Jeffrey ignored the condition and ate the human. There's a bit of a contrast there, I think. And, not surprising to some, I am much more curious about Dahmer's drive.
Jeffie (to his victims) was the serial killer in the 80s who lured, drugged, raped, killed, dismembered, stored and ate his victims. What a long day for one person.
I certainly can't relate to the actual drive. My friends and family will be glad to read that. I once ate at McDonalds in Moscow and it was unreservedly vile. If an appendix tastes anything like that, I'm out. What is it about communist cows? I guess there weren't any good recipes in The Communist Manifesto.
I'm interested in the day-to-day Dahmer. What recipe books did he have? How did he handle the mundane challenges of storing food? Did he like the economy of tupperware or was he a ziplock bag kind of guy? Let's say, for example, he had a slow day luring dinner, he gets home and he finds he's not that hungry. He can really only eat one spleen that night, with a small leek salad and a kidney juice reduction. Did he freeze all the spleens together in one bag? When I do that with chicken the results are disastrous. Little shards of chicken everywhere and puncture holes in the skin between my thumb and index finger.
Maybe he used the Baby Bullet. That's the product advertised on t.v. with which you can mix your own internal organs, but usually baby food, and stick in the freezer. It has a dial on it to tell you the day and month you froze that organ, or baby food. I presume even pancreas puree can get freezer burn.
Anywho, I'm not much closer to penetrating the core of people and dogs that are driven. But it's clear that the consequences of what drives you can differ greatly. Schweitzer is celebrated, Dahmer was beaten to death in prison. Drive carefully.
