Musing on the Year Just Passed

The year 2011 is now one for the history books as 2012 makes its entrance replete with the energy and excitement of the , which is only days away.

Of course it seems like the NH Primary was with us for most of 2011, since it seems to start earlier and earlier each time. This is sort of what happens with Christmas.

As a child, Christmas began the day after Thanksgiving and for four weeks you were enveloped by it in the most wonderful of ways. You didn’t get tired of it. Now, it seems to rear its head before the bathing suits have been put away after Labor Day.

The NH Primary, however, is a great tradition and I tend to think that New Hampshire voters are the most thoughtful in the country. We really listen to each candidate, asking questions, expressing strong, well-based opinions, and voting, not based upon what polls are telling us but because of what we feel the candidate can offer to serve the best interests of not only the folks in New Hampshire but every citizen of this country.

I was called a racist by some, four years ago, because I adamantly supported Hillary Clinton over . Later, when I toyed with the idea of supporting John McCain, you’d have thought I had committed treason.

I didn’t support McCain but only because I didn’t care for his running mate, although I respect and her right to speak her mind. Sometimes when I listen to a Republican or a member of the , I actually learn something. I refuse to be close-minded and not allow other opinions to be bandied about. In fact, from time to time I’ll change my own well-plowed notions about something based upon keeping an open mind.

By the way, I did vote for a Palin – Bristol, on “Dancing With the Stars” - a show I never watch but did because of the firestorm that erupted over Bristol’s appearance on the show. She wasn’t the best dancer but she had the most chutzpah. Everyone else on the show at the time had a background in public performances – whether on stage or on the field. She didn’t and worked very hard at improving, which she did. She’ll never have a career as a performer, per se, but I admire anyone who has the guts to get out there in a foreign field and do their best and not allow naysayers to stop them. I’ve been in that position and know that doing something out of your comfort level can be daunting but ultimately rewarding because you’ve pushed yourself.

One of the real pluses of 2011 was the introduction of the Concord NH Patch. This afforded a lot of people the opportunity to express opinions, share ideas, critique, but always with respect. There have been few instances in which writers and readers have resorted to name-calling and vitriol. There is a healthy and very much needed exchange of thoughts and Concord is better for having this additional outlet available.

My book, “” was published in 2011.

Why did I write a book?

I recognized that the world was not sitting on edge awaiting my memoirs ... all 500 plus pages of them. However, after my job ended in 2008, I applied for more than 1,000 jobs, something I have carefully documented. As of today that number is somewhere around 1,300.

I had 27 interviews and no offers and in most instances not even the courtesy of a response, one way or the other. I had foolishly thought that in this era of computers, generating a decline or status was a simple matter. When Blue Cross and Blue Shield was in Concord, I worked there for more than seven years. During part of that time I worked in personnel (they didn’t call it human resources in those days) and typed letters to applicants advising them of the status of their job search.

One person did advise me that I was “too old to be viable anymore…” which sent me home to look in the mirror and wonder what they were seeing that I didn’t see.

I still do five miles a day on the treadmill, have a 32-inch waist, hair on my head although it sometimes also comes out of my ears and nose more than I prefer, and sometimes have people tell me to slow down because I have so much energy.

In between applying for work, writing a book seemed like a good idea. I had now, however, expected the phenomenal response it engendered.

An L.A. paper called it “riveting” and “the fastest and most enticing 532 pages I have enjoyed in years ...”

An esteemed award-winning New York writer and contributor to the New York Times and Vanity Fair said, “a top-flight memoir, which has the narrative flow of a Dickensian novel…”

A woman in Portland, Ore., tracked me down and sent me a bouquet of flowers thanking me for “the most exquisite book I have ever read in my 34 years”.

While writing it I tried to be objective and knew I had succeeded when I found myself referring to myself in the third party and saying, “that Paul Brogan is so stupid. I am so over him ...”

Ultimately, I think it’s the most honest and frank book I have ever read.

What I am proudest of is the way I have presented Concord and the people of this City. Everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve been questioned about Concord and people who left the city years ago have written to tell me they are thinking of returning based upon what I wrote.

In 2011, I re-discovered and realized why it is so beloved by so many and what the difference is between a local store and a chain store.

Walking into Gibson’s you feel the genuine love that everyone – staff and shoppers – has for books. It’s more than just a job – it’s a lifestyle and a passion.

In 2011, I also stumbled back into Blue Cross and Blue Shield – in a way.

I attended a luncheon for former employers and after an absence of more than 25 years, found myself picking up conversations where they’d been left off in the early years of the 1980s.  It was like attending a high school or college reunion or getting together with buddies from the military. That happened too when I ran into someone I’d journeyed to the Great Lakes Naval Training Center with back in the early 1970s. We were suddenly 19 again and keenly anticipating a life-altering experience.

Living in New Hampshire and especially Concord, makes me feel as those I want to keep pushing myself to accomplish more and to not set limits dictated by age, which is only a number.

For 2012, I want to keep writing for the Concord NH Patch. I’ve joined the board of a local non-profit and will expend energy helping others. I want to do something about those hideous Christmas banners downtown and get them replaced by lighted displays, and I want to continue to be honest, open, and to listen to others, whatever their agenda. Who knows, by this time next year I might have learned something.