Having a Hard Time Living the Good Life

Maybe I am doing something wrong but…….

Moishe Gellar and I once had an argument. Okay, maybe it was a disagreement or just a discussion. But when it comes to all things Gratefully Dead, Moishe is rarely ambivalent, frequently adamant, and sometimes abrasive. When I went to dead shows, I always stood as close to the speakers as I could get. I also have this weird mental thing which makes it difficult for me to make out lyrics. I don’t sing in public because everyone is always shocked at how badly I mangle the words. In first grade, I was made to sit in the corner because I sang the Dawnser song. You know, the dawnser that gives off a lee light. Apologies to Robert Hunter, but were it not for hanging out with Deadheads who were constantly quoting the lyrics and all the bumper stickers, I probably wouldn’t have known that Dead songs even had lyrics. Well, one time Moishe heard me singing the Dead tune about having a hard time living a good life. Jerry, of blessed memory, sang it so soulfully. Moishe was horrified. “Those aren’t the words! It’s ‘having a high time living the good life’.” Immediately, I knew Moishe was right, but it got me thinking. Singing about having a high time living a good life isn’t very novel. If you are living the good life, you should be having a high time. The fact is, though, I know I am living the good life. I have a wonderful wife, great kids, I love my house and where I live, I like being a frum Jew,and I even like my eco-friendly electric cart. But it isn’t easy and I am often happiness challenged (That is nineties PC talk meaning depressed). Despite knowing the correct lyrics, I am having a hard time living the good life. I am okay with it. I think. Maybe we aren’t supposed to be walking around in a state of sustained euphoria. Maybe we are and it’s just me. I don’t know. What do you think?