1.1 About Maugs Musings
Maugs is a nickname that I picked up in college. I suppose it was because in the fraternity house, it was a lot easier to yell “Maugs” than it was Maugel, my last name, which is quite a mouthful.
My first name is Larry, a name I never cared much for but didn’t have much input into its choice before I was born. But at least it’s not as bad as what my grandmother named her four daughters…which were named Marian, Velma, Letha, and Vernice. My voice recorder doesn’t even know how to spell those names, nor do many people.
But there are a lot of people who don’t prefer their names. Even someone as famous as CS Lewis. Do you know what CS stands for? It stands for Clives Staples. With names like that it’s no wonder that CS Lewis didn’t use them. But even that wasn’t good enough for him, to his friends he was known simply as ‘Jack.’ So with someone as famous as that using nicknames, perhaps that elevates those of us who use nicknames a bit…then again, probably not.
This podcast is meant to be both entertaining and enlightening. My desire is that they will be enjoyable to listen to, but also that they may tease your mind a bit amidst The busyness of the day, into content that causes one to pause a bit and think about things that really matter. My hope, is that we get below the surface a bit to consider attitudes and actions which help us grow as persons and as a people. That is to say we will discuss issues of personal growth, like making better decisions, how we form attitudes, how our actions as individuals and as part of the community can be more beneficial to both person and to our culture. And, we will ask a lot of questions. Furthermore, I will make every effort to make this as non-political as possible. Instead, our focus will be upon what it means to be a human being within a history of ideas and a world filled with mystery and wonder. So, if you have any sense of curiosity, I think you will be well fed.
My role in these presentations will not be to dictate facts and figures to you, although there will be some, but rather to present concepts to you that maybe beneficial in everyday living. In that way, they will be practical in nature. But they will be offered with the spirit of reflection, that is why these podcasts are entitled as “musings.” They will be like a smorgasbord of ideas, placed upon a table of 20 minutes or so, from which you can choose those items which are most nutritious in ingesting. For it is true that we are what we eat, we become what we internalize.
Hopefully, these recordings will go far beyond just information for personal growth and maturity, but also will entertain ourselves, and satisfy our curiosity by investigating ideas of philosophy, history, humor, and current events. I was a family physician for 36 years, but always had a longing and interest in all things philosophical. That would have been my next choice as a career had I not gone into medicine. That is to say, you will probably find a healthy dose of philosophy in most of these recordings as well.
On the other side from the seriousness of philosophy, is that of humor. Humor is interesting in that it is a medicine, a balm, if you will for the seriousness and sometimes disappointments that we face in everyday life. I believe it’s an often overlooked aspect of our personalities that can help us cope with our everyday anxieties and misgivings. However, we will not deal in ridicule, like the late night talk shows do. I once read an aphorism which stated a thought which I believe to be very true. ‘Ridicule, it stated, is the death of a feeling.’ There is much truth in that statement, for as one ridicules another, it conveys an insensitivity towards that person’s circumstances which may be much different than what is understood. It soon becomes mean spiritedness, which our world has enough of already.
That is enough, I believe, to give you some flavor of what you might find in these brief 20 or 30 minute podcasts. You are invited to take or leave what you discover here as you please; but it is my wish that it will be a journey of mutual reflection, and understanding, accompanied by the sweet soul of humor.
On a final note, if you would like to read any of the abridged transcripts of the podcast, they can be found on my website reasonandreflection.org.(all lowercase and one phrase); as well as some other items to purview if you like.
Godspeed,
Maugs