I have a question that may not surprise you, or it may baffle you...
Why do people hide themselves, from themselves?
It is one thing to hide yourself from other, either to protect yourself or them...but what good can come of hiding yourself from the person in control of YOU?
I have this friend. She knows nothing about herself, no future plans and no past that speaks of anything remarkable...this does not phase her, nor does she seem to have any motivation to make something of herself. Does she have the tools? I don't know, and she doesn't know because she has never once explored herself.
Years back, I hid from myself without even knowing it. I never realized that my beliefs and morals came from something unquestioned and predetermined by the way I was raised. I questioned those beliefs everyday since then, I found the holes and yet, covered them because I was so conditioned to trusting my roots and not changing who I was based off of knowledge and research, rather than what I was told. I had to overcome equals, authority and myself to become my own person who thinks and talks for myself, as myself. I now know why I have my morals, rather than fearing that I am doing wrong when breaking them, I know what I believe with two sides to the story rather than one and I have learned more about myself than I ever knew existed, simply because I looked at myself as someone else, rather than myself. How's that for a change of perspective?
So to my friend, I hope she finds her strengths one day, knows her weaknesses... perhaps even understands what she can do for herself and others. No one can help her, except her, the "other her", the one that is hidden from her, under the mundane of her own self-ignorance.
So, I'm not going to tell you to look in the mirror of perspective...but maybe, you should consider asking yourself...
Are you sure that your own reflection will be staring back at you?
"I say: liberate yourself as far as you can, and you have done your part; for it is not given to every one to break through all limits, or, more expressively, not to everyone is that a limit which is a limit for the rest. Consequently, do not tire yourself with toiling at the limits of others; enough if you tear down yours. [...] He who overturns one of his limits may have shown others the way and the means; the overturning of their limits remains their affair....."
– Max Stirner, The Ego and Its Own p. 127
Be Yourself and Know Yourself,
Garrett R.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Starfish by Kyle W.
Original Author Unknown
Once upon a time there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean.
As he got closer he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?"
The young man paused, looked up and replied, "Throwing starfish in the ocean."
"I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"
"The sun is up and the tide is going out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."
"But, young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference!"
The young man listened politely. Then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves and said- "It made a difference for that one."
How many "starfish" do you come across in a day?
Saturday, July 25, 2009
One Word...A daily experience.
www.oneword.com
Seriously, check it out writers (or non writers). The site produces a work for you, you have sixty seconds to write the first things that come to your mind...makes it kind of cool to see what charges to your mind first. It isn't always the greatest writing, but that isn't the point...the point is, is that it gets you thinking...which is, something we should all be doing.
My first One Word Experience...
Word: [gravity]
Absence. All is assumed and all does the same. Falling into the ground, falling into love...break down, collapse, nothing is suspended, we land, paralyzed...nothing can rise, not forever anyways...
Like I said...nothing great, but it get's you thinking about something totally off of your mind...
Peace
Garrett R.
Seriously, check it out writers (or non writers). The site produces a work for you, you have sixty seconds to write the first things that come to your mind...makes it kind of cool to see what charges to your mind first. It isn't always the greatest writing, but that isn't the point...the point is, is that it gets you thinking...which is, something we should all be doing.
My first One Word Experience...
Word: [gravity]
Absence. All is assumed and all does the same. Falling into the ground, falling into love...break down, collapse, nothing is suspended, we land, paralyzed...nothing can rise, not forever anyways...
Like I said...nothing great, but it get's you thinking about something totally off of your mind...
Peace
Garrett R.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Break Free by Kyle Weis
I hadn't been to the zoo since I was young, so I went this past year.
I just strolled around, enjoying the animals. I went past the African animals, the lions, and baboons, those exhibits. I passed by the elephants, always one of my favorite exhibits, and I suddenly stopped, confused by something I had not ever noticed before. The trainers were washing the elephants. No, that's not the confusing part. What flabbergasted me (I do love that word) was that these titanic creatures were being held by only a minuscule rope tied to their front leg. Not a heavy log chain. They weren't trapped in a cage It was entirely apparent that the elephants could, at anytime, break free from their fetters, but for some reason they did not even try.
I spotted a trainer nearby, dunking his extended brush in some soapy water, and so I asked him. I asked him why these beautiful, magnificent, supremely powerful animals just stood there. Why they made no attempt to get away, or even to test the strength of the rope. "Well," he said to me, "when they are young and much smaller, we use the very same rope to tie them, and at that age, it's just enough to hold them. As they get older , they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They really believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free."
I was stunned.
These animals could at any time break free from that rope. But because they believed they couldn't, they were quite literally stuck right where they were.
I just wonder to myself...like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we can't do something, simply because we failed at it once before?
I need to go to the zoo more.
I just strolled around, enjoying the animals. I went past the African animals, the lions, and baboons, those exhibits. I passed by the elephants, always one of my favorite exhibits, and I suddenly stopped, confused by something I had not ever noticed before. The trainers were washing the elephants. No, that's not the confusing part. What flabbergasted me (I do love that word) was that these titanic creatures were being held by only a minuscule rope tied to their front leg. Not a heavy log chain. They weren't trapped in a cage It was entirely apparent that the elephants could, at anytime, break free from their fetters, but for some reason they did not even try.
I spotted a trainer nearby, dunking his extended brush in some soapy water, and so I asked him. I asked him why these beautiful, magnificent, supremely powerful animals just stood there. Why they made no attempt to get away, or even to test the strength of the rope. "Well," he said to me, "when they are young and much smaller, we use the very same rope to tie them, and at that age, it's just enough to hold them. As they get older , they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They really believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free."
I was stunned.
These animals could at any time break free from that rope. But because they believed they couldn't, they were quite literally stuck right where they were.
I just wonder to myself...like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we can't do something, simply because we failed at it once before?
I need to go to the zoo more.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Infected Parkside By Garrett R
http://infectedparkside1.blogspot.com/
The above is a link to another blog that I am posting a story in...
The story is a super cliche zombie horror short in regards to my friends from college (at college) if the infection was to START at school.
So feel free to check it out!
Later
Garrett R
The above is a link to another blog that I am posting a story in...
The story is a super cliche zombie horror short in regards to my friends from college (at college) if the infection was to START at school.
So feel free to check it out!
Later
Garrett R
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Stressed times of days past by Kyle W
I can’t explain to someone who hasn’t been there what it’s like to wake up, and have the black curtain of storm clouds suddenly dropped around me. How can I explain that the objectively irrational impulses seem subjectively rational? That I understand that I'm not OK, but there’s nothing I can do to change it, while the world goes on making demands as if I still felt “normal”.
The college still wants its payment for classes that I dread going to and drudge to nonetheless. The professors still want me to do ridiculous amounts of pointless papers, homework, and tests. The boss demands I work for the same meager hourly amount that permits me to barely scrape by. The significant other knows something is wrong, but she or he can't really do anything but smile and hold my hand as we're out on another date, there physically, but not mentally.
There are two ways things can go from here. Sometimes with a good night’s sleep and some self reflection and a mental health day, things will be good again, and I’ll pick up my stuff, and keep moving forwards.
Sometimes, things don’t get better. The wiring isn’t just on the fritz, the fuse is blown out. If I asked for help of friends and family, they’ll insist on chemical assistance. They don’t really understand quite why or how the chemicals work, but “they should help”. They might (will) have side effects. The cure might end up being worse than the disease. Sure, it makes one happy, but then one can't even fell another emotion. If that one doesn’t work, they have others, ones that get rid of stress, but turn the user into a corpse, bereft of any emotion at all. Or a cocktail of medications, each one to deal with the side effects of another. Unique madness.
With the meds, they might insist on talking. Lots of talking, in the vain hope that like the infinite monkeys with their infinite typewriters might turn out some Shakespeare, if you say enough words for long enough, everything might fall into place. Sometimes they’re good at listening, sometimes they’re not. With the right person, it helps. Finding that right person, I've found, is tougher than the talking itself.
Fortunately, for me, most days are consistently normal. I wake up. I stare at the face in the mirror with stubble that feels like it belongs on someone older than college age. I go to class, and try to fit into “normal” like every other unique student that looks just like everyone else.
But occasionally, there are those days. Days where the mask is as thin as the paper in my notebooks. Surviving the day is an act of will that leaves a lingering exhaustion that seeps into my bones, into my soul. Like a drowning man in a flash flood, I wrap myself around the hope that the waters will die down soon, and I'll be safe.
Adapted from http://www.warwickrendell.com/2008/09/17/depression-in-my-own-words/
I liked what this had to say, it helped me to explain how I felt a year or so ago, so the messages are the same, but edited to fit my own personal life.
The college still wants its payment for classes that I dread going to and drudge to nonetheless. The professors still want me to do ridiculous amounts of pointless papers, homework, and tests. The boss demands I work for the same meager hourly amount that permits me to barely scrape by. The significant other knows something is wrong, but she or he can't really do anything but smile and hold my hand as we're out on another date, there physically, but not mentally.
There are two ways things can go from here. Sometimes with a good night’s sleep and some self reflection and a mental health day, things will be good again, and I’ll pick up my stuff, and keep moving forwards.
Sometimes, things don’t get better. The wiring isn’t just on the fritz, the fuse is blown out. If I asked for help of friends and family, they’ll insist on chemical assistance. They don’t really understand quite why or how the chemicals work, but “they should help”. They might (will) have side effects. The cure might end up being worse than the disease. Sure, it makes one happy, but then one can't even fell another emotion. If that one doesn’t work, they have others, ones that get rid of stress, but turn the user into a corpse, bereft of any emotion at all. Or a cocktail of medications, each one to deal with the side effects of another. Unique madness.
With the meds, they might insist on talking. Lots of talking, in the vain hope that like the infinite monkeys with their infinite typewriters might turn out some Shakespeare, if you say enough words for long enough, everything might fall into place. Sometimes they’re good at listening, sometimes they’re not. With the right person, it helps. Finding that right person, I've found, is tougher than the talking itself.
Fortunately, for me, most days are consistently normal. I wake up. I stare at the face in the mirror with stubble that feels like it belongs on someone older than college age. I go to class, and try to fit into “normal” like every other unique student that looks just like everyone else.
But occasionally, there are those days. Days where the mask is as thin as the paper in my notebooks. Surviving the day is an act of will that leaves a lingering exhaustion that seeps into my bones, into my soul. Like a drowning man in a flash flood, I wrap myself around the hope that the waters will die down soon, and I'll be safe.
Adapted from http://www.warwickrendell.com/2008/09/17/depression-in-my-own-words/
I liked what this had to say, it helped me to explain how I felt a year or so ago, so the messages are the same, but edited to fit my own personal life.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
The Tao of Minesweeper by Kyle W
I found this saved to my computer when I was cleaning out files. I'm sure it came from somewhere on the Internet. Don't credit it to me, though I do believe it's insightful and deserves to be read by as many as possible.
Minesweeper is a metaphor for life. Every game played is like living an entire lifetime. You start with a universe of possibilities, both safe and dangerous, and with the universe itself unknown, until we start exploring and learning. You have to make choices as you go through the game, with some being safer or more obvious than others. With experience, we get further and further into the game, making better decisions, and getting closer to the goal of uncovering all of the safe spots and identifying all of the dangerous mines in our universe. Also, every game is different, just as every life is different. Techniques that work in some lives do not work in others. Some games get completed, and some have the bad luck of clicking on a mine before the game even gets going.
Each element of the game also corresponds to elements of daily life. These elements are related below, so that everyone can see just how important Minesweeper is to everyone's life.
The Levels
Minesweeper has three standard levels, Beginner, Intermediate and Expert, which could correspond to the way people chose to leave their lives. Some people live as "beginners" all their life, which is the easiest way to live, and the quickest with which you can get familiar. The number of choices and possibilities increase with the other two levels, and may represent people living lives that require greater responsibility or greater risk. Games at all levels can be pushed to perform better, but being a big fish in a small pond (or scoring five seconds on the beginner level) is still a life in a small pond. Also, there is the "Custom" level, which the user has a say in the parameters of game. This level is similar to those people who take control of their life, and are able to make it as easy or as hard as they chose, depending on how much they want to be challenged. It is difficult, though, when playing a Custom game, to relate to anyone playing the standard levels.
The Smiley Face
The smiley face is the normal state; you're going though life, happily minding your own business. However, inevitably, someone or something will enter into your life that upsets the happy balance you've achieved. When faced with this situation, you have to make a choice of - either maintain the status quo or take a risk that may change your life.
The Clock
The clock represents the time you spend alive, or your life, ticking away. It is not unheard of to not take chances, and just keep things as they are. But the clock reminds you that life is finite, and that, even if your life is currently "safe," it doesn't mean that you should stop.
The Mines
The mines represent the dangers in life. Usually, these dangers are hidden and unknowable, but sometimes they are apparent. We go through the game, like life, doing our thing, but always watching out for the mines we might encounter along the way.
The Numbered Squares
The numbered squares represent the different choices and decisions we need to make, as we proceed through the game and life. The numbers themselves could represent how many factors we must weigh when making decisions, with the higher numbers being harder decisions. "1"'s are relatively easy, as the location of the dangerous mine is often obvious, and the decisions of where to go next to avoid the mine is not difficult. As the numbers increase, and the number of dangers that surround our position, or the number of bad possible choices, increase, so too does the difficulty in deciding what to do next. And, like in life, sometimes these numbered clues do not conclusively show where the dangers lie. In these cases, we must guess, and make our next move based on nothing more than intuition, hope, and luck.
The Flags
The flags represent our memories, experiences and rules we make for ourselves, as we progress through the game. We leave them places to remind ourselves to stay away from a particular area we feel, from experience, may be dangerous.
The Uh-Oh Face
The "uh-oh" face is the discontented state, when you're weighing alternatives and taking a chance. In this state you are uncertain if you are making the right decision or not, but will never know until after the choice has been made. Each choice leads to one of two consequences.
The Dead Face
The dead face shows that you made a bad decision, and now you have to live with whatever unhappy consequences that decision brings. Of course, even this "dead" face is not the end of the road, as a new game begins as soon as you're ready.
The Cool Face
The cool face shows that you made a good decision, and can live comfortably with your improved life situation. As with the dead face, though, this is not a permanent state - it only last until a new game begins.
Of course, unlike life, minesweeper allows you to start a new game any time you choose.
Minesweeper is a metaphor for life. Every game played is like living an entire lifetime. You start with a universe of possibilities, both safe and dangerous, and with the universe itself unknown, until we start exploring and learning. You have to make choices as you go through the game, with some being safer or more obvious than others. With experience, we get further and further into the game, making better decisions, and getting closer to the goal of uncovering all of the safe spots and identifying all of the dangerous mines in our universe. Also, every game is different, just as every life is different. Techniques that work in some lives do not work in others. Some games get completed, and some have the bad luck of clicking on a mine before the game even gets going.
Each element of the game also corresponds to elements of daily life. These elements are related below, so that everyone can see just how important Minesweeper is to everyone's life.
The Levels
Minesweeper has three standard levels, Beginner, Intermediate and Expert, which could correspond to the way people chose to leave their lives. Some people live as "beginners" all their life, which is the easiest way to live, and the quickest with which you can get familiar. The number of choices and possibilities increase with the other two levels, and may represent people living lives that require greater responsibility or greater risk. Games at all levels can be pushed to perform better, but being a big fish in a small pond (or scoring five seconds on the beginner level) is still a life in a small pond. Also, there is the "Custom" level, which the user has a say in the parameters of game. This level is similar to those people who take control of their life, and are able to make it as easy or as hard as they chose, depending on how much they want to be challenged. It is difficult, though, when playing a Custom game, to relate to anyone playing the standard levels.
The Smiley Face
The smiley face is the normal state; you're going though life, happily minding your own business. However, inevitably, someone or something will enter into your life that upsets the happy balance you've achieved. When faced with this situation, you have to make a choice of - either maintain the status quo or take a risk that may change your life.
The Clock
The clock represents the time you spend alive, or your life, ticking away. It is not unheard of to not take chances, and just keep things as they are. But the clock reminds you that life is finite, and that, even if your life is currently "safe," it doesn't mean that you should stop.
The Mines
The mines represent the dangers in life. Usually, these dangers are hidden and unknowable, but sometimes they are apparent. We go through the game, like life, doing our thing, but always watching out for the mines we might encounter along the way.
The Numbered Squares
The numbered squares represent the different choices and decisions we need to make, as we proceed through the game and life. The numbers themselves could represent how many factors we must weigh when making decisions, with the higher numbers being harder decisions. "1"'s are relatively easy, as the location of the dangerous mine is often obvious, and the decisions of where to go next to avoid the mine is not difficult. As the numbers increase, and the number of dangers that surround our position, or the number of bad possible choices, increase, so too does the difficulty in deciding what to do next. And, like in life, sometimes these numbered clues do not conclusively show where the dangers lie. In these cases, we must guess, and make our next move based on nothing more than intuition, hope, and luck.
The Flags
The flags represent our memories, experiences and rules we make for ourselves, as we progress through the game. We leave them places to remind ourselves to stay away from a particular area we feel, from experience, may be dangerous.
The Uh-Oh Face
The "uh-oh" face is the discontented state, when you're weighing alternatives and taking a chance. In this state you are uncertain if you are making the right decision or not, but will never know until after the choice has been made. Each choice leads to one of two consequences.
The Dead Face
The dead face shows that you made a bad decision, and now you have to live with whatever unhappy consequences that decision brings. Of course, even this "dead" face is not the end of the road, as a new game begins as soon as you're ready.
The Cool Face
The cool face shows that you made a good decision, and can live comfortably with your improved life situation. As with the dead face, though, this is not a permanent state - it only last until a new game begins.
Of course, unlike life, minesweeper allows you to start a new game any time you choose.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
"What I Want" by Garrett R.
"I want your mind to wander to me because I want you to know I exist when I am not within sight. I want your face to look in the mirror, envision your lips covered with mine and I want you to get that grin on your face when you know that you won. I want to bend backwards for you, until I break. I never want to let you down, but I want you to understand that I cannot be trusted. I want to go to out on the town, letting the car take us where it pleases. I want us to share gifts that we get from others, except chocolate, I want us both to know that sharing chocolate never works out quite right. I want you to make the moves every once in a while, sometimes feeling desired is better than getting what you want. I want you to understand that I am not the type of guy who needs time away from you, just the situation. I want you to know that I won't tell you every little thing because I enjoy some level of introspection. I want to enjoy the simple things with you; nature, the unknown and forever. I want you to know that you is just one person, but i do not know who yet. I want you to know that I will never search for you, not because I am arrogant, but because "meant to be" doesn't require fate, it requires "Don't Stop Believing"by Journey. I don't want to look at my phone and see that you called me six times to check in when we never planned on checking up on each other. I want happiness to be over looked and raindrops to be celebrated. I want to throw a party and have everyone gather just to light things on fire and chuck things are the wall. I want to look over the waves with you, splashing into each others wonders, dreams and desires. I want the soft grass to grow wet around us as morning dew and the sun rise in unison, for we have lost track of time under the moonlit night. I want everything you have to offer, but even more than that, I want your word that everything will be okay when I wake up...do I have your word?"
This is actually just a compilation of various lines from a notebook that I used to write ideas in. Most of the ideas were single lines that I could base an idea around...so I decided to throw them together and this is what I got, hope you enjoyed it, if not, meow. Peace- Garrett R.
This is actually just a compilation of various lines from a notebook that I used to write ideas in. Most of the ideas were single lines that I could base an idea around...so I decided to throw them together and this is what I got, hope you enjoyed it, if not, meow. Peace- Garrett R.
"Justifying Anarchy" by guest writer Karl G.
Laws in themselves are irresponsible acts of interference with the natural discourse of humanity.
Think about it.
The other day I was watching one of those public message commercials on television, the kind designed to keep people off drugs, in school, and off the streets that typically just make you want to cheat, steal, rape, lie, and shoot up more than any peer pressure ever could. This particular message exhibited a young man slamming shut his Venetian blinds, something he seemed to have about fifty of, and cloistering himself in a dark, sparsely furnished apartment, hyperventilating and weeping into his hands. Between shots a black screen appeared delivering a segmented message that read with an deep and ominous Dirty Harry voiceover, “You can hide from the police-” “You can hide from everyone-” “ But you can’t hide from your guilt.”
It ended with a overly on-the-nose “Don’t break the law.”
Always in the past I’ve given Montesquieu his due, and Rousseau too, and admitted that for society to work we must create a bargaining system for our existence, a social contract as they put it.
This commercial with inverse intent, however, made me debate otherwise.
The man in the commercial, really more of a boy than a man, was the victim to me. I did not know his crime. I did not know his motives. All I knew was that he felt guilt, and terror forthcoming from that guilt. Why, though, must he feel this way?
Accepting that humanity is subject to rules and compulsions of it’s own that, despite any law, we frequent without refrain, I submit that there is a point at which laws ability to better humanity becomes toxic and obsolete. We no longer feel right and wrong from our hearts, but from our heads that judge according to consequences set by man. Nature provided man the brain to both feel and think, however law expect him only to think.
The boy in the commercial presumably broke the law, and, as the commercial explained, was racked with the guilt from it, an inescapable consequence. Who knows what he will do next? Desperate times call for desperate measures so a man of desperation knows no bounds. He will obey no law and he will not obey his own heart. He has, by accepting the rule of law, departed from the world where his heart had a say and when if’s became when’s and a dilemma forced him to break the law, he then left the world where the loose leashes of law could guide his decisions.
“You always have a choice.” people say to me. Well I don’t know about the young man in the commercial, but I’m sure all of us have found ourselves in a forked stick of our own cutting where there just was no good way out. Nature provided us with self preservation, not laws. Our ability to preserve ours and our own is vaster than the domain of legislature. Ere go, the possibility of breaking the law is always going to be larger than the possibility of not. Laws are unbending, however, and accommodate very little for baser humanity. Self defense is a single term in a dictionary of legal condemnations, and, in the end, the ambient level of negative outcomes is going to be higher because it’s more likely to break the law. Because of the social order that dictates shame and guilt to flow from any lawbreaking we’re damned if we do and we’re damned if we don’t; get caught that is.
So my conclusion is that laws are not the enforcer of a better humankind, but rather a foolish attempt to regulate with precision an imprecise existence. To abide and enforce these regulation from which coarse the greater part of negativity, fear, guilt, and the myriad of intrinsically damaging emotions upon humanity is nothing short of a criminal act in itself, one of irresponsibility and neglect towards ones fellow man.
So I have not a call to arms, for surely I see the benefit of contrast. To continue, humanity needs oppression to push against. Rather I have an argument to instill doubt, to convince those who would uphold right that Lady Justice and Master Law do not walk hand in hand, and the betterment of the world doesn’t lie with social norms or even with peace and prosperity, but striding alongside the knifes edge with the outlaw, the dregs of society, and, if you can take your place, the intellectual who sees that the wrong thing is sometimes the right thing to do. In the best of both worlds, Right makes the Law her bitch.
Think about it.
The other day I was watching one of those public message commercials on television, the kind designed to keep people off drugs, in school, and off the streets that typically just make you want to cheat, steal, rape, lie, and shoot up more than any peer pressure ever could. This particular message exhibited a young man slamming shut his Venetian blinds, something he seemed to have about fifty of, and cloistering himself in a dark, sparsely furnished apartment, hyperventilating and weeping into his hands. Between shots a black screen appeared delivering a segmented message that read with an deep and ominous Dirty Harry voiceover, “You can hide from the police-” “You can hide from everyone-” “ But you can’t hide from your guilt.”
It ended with a overly on-the-nose “Don’t break the law.”
Always in the past I’ve given Montesquieu his due, and Rousseau too, and admitted that for society to work we must create a bargaining system for our existence, a social contract as they put it.
This commercial with inverse intent, however, made me debate otherwise.
The man in the commercial, really more of a boy than a man, was the victim to me. I did not know his crime. I did not know his motives. All I knew was that he felt guilt, and terror forthcoming from that guilt. Why, though, must he feel this way?
Accepting that humanity is subject to rules and compulsions of it’s own that, despite any law, we frequent without refrain, I submit that there is a point at which laws ability to better humanity becomes toxic and obsolete. We no longer feel right and wrong from our hearts, but from our heads that judge according to consequences set by man. Nature provided man the brain to both feel and think, however law expect him only to think.
The boy in the commercial presumably broke the law, and, as the commercial explained, was racked with the guilt from it, an inescapable consequence. Who knows what he will do next? Desperate times call for desperate measures so a man of desperation knows no bounds. He will obey no law and he will not obey his own heart. He has, by accepting the rule of law, departed from the world where his heart had a say and when if’s became when’s and a dilemma forced him to break the law, he then left the world where the loose leashes of law could guide his decisions.
“You always have a choice.” people say to me. Well I don’t know about the young man in the commercial, but I’m sure all of us have found ourselves in a forked stick of our own cutting where there just was no good way out. Nature provided us with self preservation, not laws. Our ability to preserve ours and our own is vaster than the domain of legislature. Ere go, the possibility of breaking the law is always going to be larger than the possibility of not. Laws are unbending, however, and accommodate very little for baser humanity. Self defense is a single term in a dictionary of legal condemnations, and, in the end, the ambient level of negative outcomes is going to be higher because it’s more likely to break the law. Because of the social order that dictates shame and guilt to flow from any lawbreaking we’re damned if we do and we’re damned if we don’t; get caught that is.
So my conclusion is that laws are not the enforcer of a better humankind, but rather a foolish attempt to regulate with precision an imprecise existence. To abide and enforce these regulation from which coarse the greater part of negativity, fear, guilt, and the myriad of intrinsically damaging emotions upon humanity is nothing short of a criminal act in itself, one of irresponsibility and neglect towards ones fellow man.
So I have not a call to arms, for surely I see the benefit of contrast. To continue, humanity needs oppression to push against. Rather I have an argument to instill doubt, to convince those who would uphold right that Lady Justice and Master Law do not walk hand in hand, and the betterment of the world doesn’t lie with social norms or even with peace and prosperity, but striding alongside the knifes edge with the outlaw, the dregs of society, and, if you can take your place, the intellectual who sees that the wrong thing is sometimes the right thing to do. In the best of both worlds, Right makes the Law her bitch.
Monday, July 13, 2009
A joke to start your week. By Kyle W
Obviously this didn't happen to me.
I was in San Fransisco recently, walking along the Golden Gate Bridge, and I saw this guy on the bridge about to jump. So I thought I'd try to stall and detain him, long enough for me to put the film in. I said, "Don't jump!" and he turns... You've heard of the elephant man. He was kind of like that, he had a, well, you could say he had the head of a horse. And my heart went out to him. I said, "Why the long face?"
He said, "'Cause all my life people have called me mean names like horses-head or Flicka or chess-piece or Trigger..."
I said, "Well, don't worry about it, Ed. It can't be that bad."
He said, "My girlfriend's suing me!"
I said, "For palomino?"
He said, "Why was I put on this Earth?"
I said, "My friend, anywhere else you wouldn't stand a chance."
He said, "Nobody loves me."
I said, "God loves you, you silly ninny."
He said, "How do you know there's a God?"
I said, "Of course there's a God. Do you think that billions of years ago a bunch of molecules floating around at random could someday have had the sense of humor to make you look like that?"
He said, "I do believe in God."
I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?"
He said, "A Christian."
I said, "Me too. Protestant or Catholic?"
He said, "Protestant."
I said, "Me too! What franchise?"
He says, "Baptist."
I said, "Me too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Baptist."
I said, "Me too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Baptist."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist or Northern Conservative Reform Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Eastern Region?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879 or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912."
I say, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.
I was in San Fransisco recently, walking along the Golden Gate Bridge, and I saw this guy on the bridge about to jump. So I thought I'd try to stall and detain him, long enough for me to put the film in. I said, "Don't jump!" and he turns... You've heard of the elephant man. He was kind of like that, he had a, well, you could say he had the head of a horse. And my heart went out to him. I said, "Why the long face?"
He said, "'Cause all my life people have called me mean names like horses-head or Flicka or chess-piece or Trigger..."
I said, "Well, don't worry about it, Ed. It can't be that bad."
He said, "My girlfriend's suing me!"
I said, "For palomino?"
He said, "Why was I put on this Earth?"
I said, "My friend, anywhere else you wouldn't stand a chance."
He said, "Nobody loves me."
I said, "God loves you, you silly ninny."
He said, "How do you know there's a God?"
I said, "Of course there's a God. Do you think that billions of years ago a bunch of molecules floating around at random could someday have had the sense of humor to make you look like that?"
He said, "I do believe in God."
I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?"
He said, "A Christian."
I said, "Me too. Protestant or Catholic?"
He said, "Protestant."
I said, "Me too! What franchise?"
He says, "Baptist."
I said, "Me too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Baptist."
I said, "Me too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Baptist."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist or Northern Conservative Reform Baptist?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Eastern Region?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region."
I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879 or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?"
He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912."
I say, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
NFL Moments...by Garrett R
One day, I got sidetracked and started watching NFL videos on Youtube...I got so frustrated with "The top ten best catches" lists that had variations in them and made no sense as to why some of them weren't there...
So here is my list.... "Top 10 Most Meaningful NFL Moments" (According to Garrett R)
These will pertain directly to MY life and my favorite teams and such...
I am sure I forgot some or misplaced them...but this is how it stands to me right now...
10.) Packers- Win Ice Bowl Over Dallas Cowboys in 1967- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zv8a6hTJGXI
9.) Eagles- Finally draft a good player....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BVS4Z8DdzE
8.) Patriots- Lose to Giants in Superbowl and finish 18-1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9ZTCLA0xbo
7.) Patriots- Tom Brady Gets Injured in week 1 for the year. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61_ZcHf0ysM
6.) Redskins- Tribute to Sean Taylor- 10 Man Defense - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YW2jGnU18Q
5.) Eagles- Brian Dawkins Suplex- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cZQNRW6WSA
4.) The Improbable Bobble- Antonio Freeman Rec. TD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_dQrqiFIKI&NR=1
3.) Packers- Super Bowl Champions I, II, XXXI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXua2sl4TsU
2.) Packers- Signing of Reggie White- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MO2r0Vm8keQ
1.) Brett Favre. Period. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWrcYxfwOVc
Thought I would post something a little more casual today to celebrate the off-season and lack of NFL updates for all you desperate for some action.
Take it easy- Garrett R
So here is my list.... "Top 10 Most Meaningful NFL Moments" (According to Garrett R)
These will pertain directly to MY life and my favorite teams and such...
I am sure I forgot some or misplaced them...but this is how it stands to me right now...
10.) Packers- Win Ice Bowl Over Dallas Cowboys in 1967- http://www.youtube.com/wat
9.) Eagles- Finally draft a good player....http://www.youtube.com/wat
8.) Patriots- Lose to Giants in Superbowl and finish 18-1 http://www.youtube.com/wat
7.) Patriots- Tom Brady Gets Injured in week 1 for the year. http://www.youtube.com/wat
6.) Redskins- Tribute to Sean Taylor- 10 Man Defense - http://www.youtube.com/wat
5.) Eagles- Brian Dawkins Suplex- http://www.youtube.com/wat
4.) The Improbable Bobble- Antonio Freeman Rec. TD http://www.youtube.com/wat
3.) Packers- Super Bowl Champions I, II, XXXI http://www.youtube.com/wat
2.) Packers- Signing of Reggie White- http://www.youtube.com/wat
1.) Brett Favre. Period. http://www.youtube.com/wat
Thought I would post something a little more casual today to celebrate the off-season and lack of NFL updates for all you desperate for some action.
Take it easy- Garrett R
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Procrastination: Why it... by Kyle W
Writing out my thoughts can sometimes help me deal with stress. It can also help the rest of you deal with your own everyday stress. Try it.
But sometimes it is hard to write out this stuff. Not only at sad times, but also when we just can’t get down to it. And then, if you are like me, you can procrastinate a lot. Which brings me to my point here.
I read somewhere (and I really can’t remember where) the idea that making a list is not only a form of procrastination, but it can actually be harmful for our emotional health.
To extrapolate on the idea... in making a list but not completing it, we have highlighted tasks we need to do and have thus put them at the top of our minds. When we fail to complete them, we are giving ourselves even more stress than we had already when we had only a vague idea of what needed to be done. Because now we have made them real.
But does making a list and not completing it really mean that you have all these things still on your mind? If we do not complete the things on that list is it going to cause us stress?
Or does it mean that, because you have made that list you have taken those things off your mind?
In other words, if we make a list and then throw it away (or simply let it gather dust in a corner somewhere), are we not saying that the things on the list are not as important as we once thought and that making the list was all we really needed to do?
So many questions. So little time to put off answering them.
I can understand the concept of list making being procrastination. I have made endless amounts of lists instead of actually carrying out the tasks listed on them. However, as someone who has a butterfly mind which tends to flit from one idea to the next with scary rapidity, I need those lists to focus my thoughts. And that’s a good thing, because, without that focus, I would never get anything done and then I would get really stressed.
So for me the jury is still out on the list making equals procrastination equals stress debate.
I’ll just add it to the list to think about some other time. Nah, I'll do it tomorrow.
But sometimes it is hard to write out this stuff. Not only at sad times, but also when we just can’t get down to it. And then, if you are like me, you can procrastinate a lot. Which brings me to my point here.
I read somewhere (and I really can’t remember where) the idea that making a list is not only a form of procrastination, but it can actually be harmful for our emotional health.
To extrapolate on the idea... in making a list but not completing it, we have highlighted tasks we need to do and have thus put them at the top of our minds. When we fail to complete them, we are giving ourselves even more stress than we had already when we had only a vague idea of what needed to be done. Because now we have made them real.
But does making a list and not completing it really mean that you have all these things still on your mind? If we do not complete the things on that list is it going to cause us stress?
Or does it mean that, because you have made that list you have taken those things off your mind?
In other words, if we make a list and then throw it away (or simply let it gather dust in a corner somewhere), are we not saying that the things on the list are not as important as we once thought and that making the list was all we really needed to do?
So many questions. So little time to put off answering them.
I can understand the concept of list making being procrastination. I have made endless amounts of lists instead of actually carrying out the tasks listed on them. However, as someone who has a butterfly mind which tends to flit from one idea to the next with scary rapidity, I need those lists to focus my thoughts. And that’s a good thing, because, without that focus, I would never get anything done and then I would get really stressed.
So for me the jury is still out on the list making equals procrastination equals stress debate.
I’ll just add it to the list to think about some other time. Nah, I'll do it tomorrow.
Friday, July 10, 2009
"Doors" By Garrett R.
"No one wants to feel anything like this. All the doors are open, pick one, any one, think of the possibilities, then watch as door after door slams shut in your face. You hear the maniacal laughter of your own soul betraying yourself over and over as more and more deadbolts slide effortlessly bracing the opportunities firmly sealed. Love, liberty and everything you could ever stand for is taken away. Dreams, ambitions, are you running out of breathable air yet? Suffocating in this closet of endless and unreachable chances and hopes allows you no room for thought. Becoming one with reality. Of everything that is, you are nothing. Your only solace is that you could never ruin anything to really effect anyone, you are powerless and no one would ever care, no one could ever care. The handles of your dream doors gather dust as you quit attempting to escape into a world of fulfilled desire and everything naivety told you. Blood pounds through your head as your blank mind ponders it's own pitiful existence, you wish you could blame it on something, anything but yourself. Truth brutally slams against your skull, forcing realization. Your dreams, your plans and your untold story of greatness that never came to be shine in your eyes and glisten down your cheeks. No escape seems punishment enough, the last door pushes open with ease, a tunnel ablaze with fire awaits you. On the other side of the fire you can make out a room, a room with many doors, doors open just waiting to close at the smallest glimmer of hope. You step into the tight space knowing that only more self destruction awaits you...no one wants to feel anything like this."
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Ducks: Friend? ...or Foe? by Kyle W.
Just sort of reflecting on my life, thinking about old times, and I realized. Weird crap happens to me. And it usually involves ducks. Here's a few stories I have to prove it.
I was walking along the bike path near my old house, on my way to visit my friend, let's call him Steve, since that's his name. Anyway. I happen to overhear a pair of ducks loudly arguing about something duck-related. First one would quack, then immediately the other, then the first one again. Because I was at a slow pace and they were quite loud, I managed to hear a good 30 seconds of duck...banter?
Now, experience tells me that if an animal is making noise and you yell "SHUT UP!" at it, it'll usually comply. So I try it on the ducks.
They stop.
Then, both turn to me, and give me the creepiest duck stare I have ever seen in my life. It was as if they were saying to me "We know where you live and we will come to your house and eat all your bread before we suffocate you with our soft down underbellies."
I'm a little nervous around ducks.
I've heard a duck tell a joke...I think. There was as group of ducks on a pond in a lake near where I used to work. One of the ducks was quacking away looking straight at a group of like 8 more ducks. Then the single duck stopped quacking, and all the other ducks went bat-shit crazy and quacked like mad-fowl. It looked just like duck stand-up comedy.
If I spoke duck, I imagine something like, "Man that flight in from Canada was a bitch eh?"
I don't know what ducks joke about...
So, I was eating my lunch on a bench near the same pond thing that the joke telling duck was in. He must have moved to a different venue at this point. It was near the end of summer, so there were ducks (and some geese, to be accurate) around, begging people for food. So a few ducks waddled up to me, and I tore off some bread from my sub sandwich, and tossed it to them. Well, they gobbled up the bread in their own duck way, until there was one piece left.
There were two ducks were charging for this last bread piece, and then a third duck quacked really loud and then the other two ducks stopped. The third duck sniffed the bread. Well, I thought it sniffed it. Do ducks have nostrils? Anyway,the duck that sniffed it must not have wanted it and backed up. The two original ducks were about equal distance away from the bread. The third duck looked at both of them, then flapped its wings, then the two original ducks raced at the bread, but instead clashed into each other, trying to push the other away from the bread, wings flapping and bills snapping.
It looked like some sort of duck sumo.
...
Ducks are fucking weird.
I was walking along the bike path near my old house, on my way to visit my friend, let's call him Steve, since that's his name. Anyway. I happen to overhear a pair of ducks loudly arguing about something duck-related. First one would quack, then immediately the other, then the first one again. Because I was at a slow pace and they were quite loud, I managed to hear a good 30 seconds of duck...banter?
Now, experience tells me that if an animal is making noise and you yell "SHUT UP!" at it, it'll usually comply. So I try it on the ducks.
They stop.
Then, both turn to me, and give me the creepiest duck stare I have ever seen in my life. It was as if they were saying to me "We know where you live and we will come to your house and eat all your bread before we suffocate you with our soft down underbellies."
I'm a little nervous around ducks.
I've heard a duck tell a joke...I think. There was as group of ducks on a pond in a lake near where I used to work. One of the ducks was quacking away looking straight at a group of like 8 more ducks. Then the single duck stopped quacking, and all the other ducks went bat-shit crazy and quacked like mad-fowl. It looked just like duck stand-up comedy.
If I spoke duck, I imagine something like, "Man that flight in from Canada was a bitch eh?"
I don't know what ducks joke about...
So, I was eating my lunch on a bench near the same pond thing that the joke telling duck was in. He must have moved to a different venue at this point. It was near the end of summer, so there were ducks (and some geese, to be accurate) around, begging people for food. So a few ducks waddled up to me, and I tore off some bread from my sub sandwich, and tossed it to them. Well, they gobbled up the bread in their own duck way, until there was one piece left.
There were two ducks were charging for this last bread piece, and then a third duck quacked really loud and then the other two ducks stopped. The third duck sniffed the bread. Well, I thought it sniffed it. Do ducks have nostrils? Anyway,the duck that sniffed it must not have wanted it and backed up. The two original ducks were about equal distance away from the bread. The third duck looked at both of them, then flapped its wings, then the two original ducks raced at the bread, but instead clashed into each other, trying to push the other away from the bread, wings flapping and bills snapping.
It looked like some sort of duck sumo.
...
Ducks are fucking weird.
"Ropes" By Garrett R
"Sometimes... the split in the road represents all the routes in life that one could take. One decision leading to yet another fork while the parallels solve all the other endless paths forgotten. For me...these alternate paths show all the wonders missed by you. For I am bound to ropes that drag me straight to you. Through flame and ominous waters, that willingly blanket my body, preventing my breath, giving the calm sensation of silence and solitude. My mind, heart and soul yearn to run to you, clasp you in my arms, speak your name, feel your whispers on my neck. But you have me harnessed together by the wrists, I couldn't hold you if I tried, my feet are smashed and gouged from the paths you've taken me upon, I cannot speak for my mouth is dry and couldn't find the right words if my thirst was quenched. Do you recall my fickle attempts at escape? I jumped over the edge, only to find you were the cliff and the ground below...I fell with the winds pulling at my hair and smashed face first into you. I was bleeding, broken... you nursed me back to health, I rose from your hospital bed and sailed away. It seemed as though I would never come back. But you became the hurricane and you consumed my thoughts. You drown my vessel and I clung to you for support. Again, you helped my eyes open and you helped me breathe. Then you showed me the ropes, with cuffs crafted just for me. You promised me forever, then you walked on top of the sea. Tied to your arm I had to follow, with you long out of sight. I plead and begged for you to release me as the water covered my eyes, you did not. And you carried me through the waves, hurt but alive. Now we are here...you are still to distant to spot, the speck on the horizon is not you, it never was. For these ropes to which I am bound, lead to nothing."
Here's a Quarter. Now Pay Attention by Kyle W.
Ladies, we need to talk.
By we, I mean a small group of guys whom you seem to not know anything about. We're the nice guys, the guy friends you turn to when the "total hottie" shatters your young female heart all over your bedroom floor, when "GRRR Boys suck!", or when he doesn't quite grasp that living in a different area code still constitutes cheating. We've dried your dripping tear ducts, offered you the shoulder to sob on, listened to you whine in person and on the phone for hours, and all the while told you it was all going to be o-k. Well, I and the rest of my little group are DONE being slapped the "Nice Guys Finish Last" stereotype.
We had a meeting. Decided on couple things that you might want to take a look at.
First off, we are sick of listening to you cry while simultaneously completely losing out in the girlfriend department. We can't even count the number of instances where we have listened to you mope, sulk, and grumble about finding the "nice boy who will treat me with respect," when we're standing here in plain view, right in front of your face? Oh wait...that's right. We don't count because you wouldn't dare to "mess things up." That's the BIGGEST load of crap we've ever had enter our ears. Perhaps if we were muscled and toned and "omg hawt" as the frat boy flavor of the month, you'd give us even a second look. Well, you know what? It's life. It is NOT like a daytime soap. How long do you honestly expect us just to sit by and listen to tragedy and turmoil that surrounds your life and not fall for you? Are you blind? Me and the guys were thinking of maybe passing out some seeing-eye dogs. We are sick of being just another "girl" friend. And that is what we are. We're the quintessential girlfriend, but with a deeper voice and with a few parts exchanged.
Next topic.
Cut the crap. We know what you mean, we actually understand you; if you want us to go away for a while, TELL US. Don't lie and say it's "girl's night out." This is asinine and a heap of BS, because the minute you see a hot guy, you're scoping him out and suddenly "on the prowl." We are pretty straightforward on the other hand: we're either "on the prowl" or "hanging with the guys." Those are our two modes. Also, if you don't like us, we can handle it. TELL US. None of this "Let's just be really really good friends" malarkey. (This also marks the first time I've used the word "malarkey" in context) Translation: "I'm sorry, but you're just really ugly or fat or short or tall or any other of the small possible flaws that you have little to no control over." If we don't ask you on a date, a good guess would be because we are intimidated by you. Don't make us increasingly nervous and anxious by rushing to be our "friend" when we like you.
Finally, and ladies if you haven't been paying attention, this is the most important time to start.
If the guy you are with is treating you like crap...let me clear my throat for this one... LEAVE HIM. I know you don't want to because he is so hot and has the "dreamiest blue eyes," but he is a scum bag; a loser, an asshole, and not worth your time and effort. Wake up, stretch, go pee, get dressed, look in the mirror and see that he is a jerk. He will not get better if you give it a few more days or weeks or months. He will not change because "You don't know him like I do". We are professionals in seeing through the veils that people surround themselves with. We know that people, do not change unless they want to. And believe it when I say this, he doesn't want to change, because all he has to do is find the next skirt to chase and will then proceed to forget you existed.
"But Kyle, what do you mean by all this?" I'm glad you asked. You see, if he: stands you up routinely with no viable explanation, yells at you repeatedly, forces you to dress or act a certain way, alienates you from anybody you were friends with before you got with him, or, most obviously cheats on you, he WILL DO IT AGAIN. AND AGAIN. AND...yes. That's right. AGAIN. Good, you're learning. Just as he will always do these things, you will always go back to him. It is like the gears of a clock. He will effectively own you, treat you badly, and we will cry for you because of it. Then, after a long night of us making you feel better, you'll somehow forget the pain he caused you, go back to him, and he will treat you as worse as before, and we'll be there for you once again. Please do yourselves (and us) a favor, and let him go; don't save this one. I promise you, he is not THAT cute, and the sex is not THAT good. Nothing is worth getting hurt time and again, and when you do get hurt, nice guys like us really feel to introducing Abercrombie and his buddy Fitch to Fist and his friend Other Fist.
All told, we want nothing more than to show you what a real "good" guy is like. You know the one. That good guy your girlfriends tell you about.
Oh...oh wait here. We interrupt this note with a breaking news bulletin. It seems...yes I've just been informed that WE ARE THOSE "GOOD" GUYS. You deal with an untapped resource of quality date material every single day, and we think we finally deserve our chance. You can't deny it. Why, it was just the other day you were saying how sweet we are, how "romantic" our ideas are, and how you wish there were more guys like us in the world. So stop trying to hook us up with your humped back cousin with the mole who's from a different branch of the family tree. We are friends with YOU, we want to show YOU how good we really are.
Unlike Mr. Six Pack Abs, we don't like you because your halter top is tight and your ass looks fine in those jeans. Not because you looked nice under the strobe lights or when we were drunk, either. Not because this one guy said you were easy or because you spent 3 hours putting on make-up and picking out clothes. We are attracted the inner you because we know that part of you better than anyone else. We know everything there is to know about you because you've been telling us for months and years. You have shared your guarded, innermost secrets with us. So we can't dance moves and can't bench twice our weight. We still dance with you on the dance floor or in the rain or in the basement when no one else is watching. And hey, we try to work out, but the new expansion came out for our favorite game, and we're trying to figure out how to end something we wrote about you. Who knows you better than us? Who can you trust with everything? That's right, ladies, us. The Nice Guys. The boy-girlfriends.
Thanks for reading, if you did. If not, eat me. - Kyle
By we, I mean a small group of guys whom you seem to not know anything about. We're the nice guys, the guy friends you turn to when the "total hottie" shatters your young female heart all over your bedroom floor, when "GRRR Boys suck!", or when he doesn't quite grasp that living in a different area code still constitutes cheating. We've dried your dripping tear ducts, offered you the shoulder to sob on, listened to you whine in person and on the phone for hours, and all the while told you it was all going to be o-k. Well, I and the rest of my little group are DONE being slapped the "Nice Guys Finish Last" stereotype.
We had a meeting. Decided on couple things that you might want to take a look at.
First off, we are sick of listening to you cry while simultaneously completely losing out in the girlfriend department. We can't even count the number of instances where we have listened to you mope, sulk, and grumble about finding the "nice boy who will treat me with respect," when we're standing here in plain view, right in front of your face? Oh wait...that's right. We don't count because you wouldn't dare to "mess things up." That's the BIGGEST load of crap we've ever had enter our ears. Perhaps if we were muscled and toned and "omg hawt" as the frat boy flavor of the month, you'd give us even a second look. Well, you know what? It's life. It is NOT like a daytime soap. How long do you honestly expect us just to sit by and listen to tragedy and turmoil that surrounds your life and not fall for you? Are you blind? Me and the guys were thinking of maybe passing out some seeing-eye dogs. We are sick of being just another "girl" friend. And that is what we are. We're the quintessential girlfriend, but with a deeper voice and with a few parts exchanged.
Next topic.
Cut the crap. We know what you mean, we actually understand you; if you want us to go away for a while, TELL US. Don't lie and say it's "girl's night out." This is asinine and a heap of BS, because the minute you see a hot guy, you're scoping him out and suddenly "on the prowl." We are pretty straightforward on the other hand: we're either "on the prowl" or "hanging with the guys." Those are our two modes. Also, if you don't like us, we can handle it. TELL US. None of this "Let's just be really really good friends" malarkey. (This also marks the first time I've used the word "malarkey" in context) Translation: "I'm sorry, but you're just really ugly or fat or short or tall or any other of the small possible flaws that you have little to no control over." If we don't ask you on a date, a good guess would be because we are intimidated by you. Don't make us increasingly nervous and anxious by rushing to be our "friend" when we like you.
Finally, and ladies if you haven't been paying attention, this is the most important time to start.
If the guy you are with is treating you like crap...let me clear my throat for this one... LEAVE HIM. I know you don't want to because he is so hot and has the "dreamiest blue eyes," but he is a scum bag; a loser, an asshole, and not worth your time and effort. Wake up, stretch, go pee, get dressed, look in the mirror and see that he is a jerk. He will not get better if you give it a few more days or weeks or months. He will not change because "You don't know him like I do". We are professionals in seeing through the veils that people surround themselves with. We know that people, do not change unless they want to. And believe it when I say this, he doesn't want to change, because all he has to do is find the next skirt to chase and will then proceed to forget you existed.
"But Kyle, what do you mean by all this?" I'm glad you asked. You see, if he: stands you up routinely with no viable explanation, yells at you repeatedly, forces you to dress or act a certain way, alienates you from anybody you were friends with before you got with him, or, most obviously cheats on you, he WILL DO IT AGAIN. AND AGAIN. AND...yes. That's right. AGAIN. Good, you're learning. Just as he will always do these things, you will always go back to him. It is like the gears of a clock. He will effectively own you, treat you badly, and we will cry for you because of it. Then, after a long night of us making you feel better, you'll somehow forget the pain he caused you, go back to him, and he will treat you as worse as before, and we'll be there for you once again. Please do yourselves (and us) a favor, and let him go; don't save this one. I promise you, he is not THAT cute, and the sex is not THAT good. Nothing is worth getting hurt time and again, and when you do get hurt, nice guys like us really feel to introducing Abercrombie and his buddy Fitch to Fist and his friend Other Fist.
All told, we want nothing more than to show you what a real "good" guy is like. You know the one. That good guy your girlfriends tell you about.
Oh...oh wait here. We interrupt this note with a breaking news bulletin. It seems...yes I've just been informed that WE ARE THOSE "GOOD" GUYS. You deal with an untapped resource of quality date material every single day, and we think we finally deserve our chance. You can't deny it. Why, it was just the other day you were saying how sweet we are, how "romantic" our ideas are, and how you wish there were more guys like us in the world. So stop trying to hook us up with your humped back cousin with the mole who's from a different branch of the family tree. We are friends with YOU, we want to show YOU how good we really are.
Unlike Mr. Six Pack Abs, we don't like you because your halter top is tight and your ass looks fine in those jeans. Not because you looked nice under the strobe lights or when we were drunk, either. Not because this one guy said you were easy or because you spent 3 hours putting on make-up and picking out clothes. We are attracted the inner you because we know that part of you better than anyone else. We know everything there is to know about you because you've been telling us for months and years. You have shared your guarded, innermost secrets with us. So we can't dance moves and can't bench twice our weight. We still dance with you on the dance floor or in the rain or in the basement when no one else is watching. And hey, we try to work out, but the new expansion came out for our favorite game, and we're trying to figure out how to end something we wrote about you. Who knows you better than us? Who can you trust with everything? That's right, ladies, us. The Nice Guys. The boy-girlfriends.
Thanks for reading, if you did. If not, eat me. - Kyle
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
"Love is Failure" by Garrett R.
Why do people brag about being in love? I mean...maybe they don't intend to...but they do. Why would someone be proud of failing yourself as an individual entirely...?
You don't "rise" in love...you FALL in love. It isn't a process of going up in the world...it is the act of getting totally broken down so that the very fibers of your emotion are fabricated with anothers...it means you have no control of your heart (no one does-- a major flaw of being human), no sense of self, and no knowledge of what love really is anyways...who has a proper, universally known and recognized view of love? No one. You always hear people say after a break up, "I just have to get back on my feet.." Oh yeah...that means get our of the love pit or at least a few hundred steps if you really liked the person...this flows right along with the up-down analogy of love.
It seems people are starting to accept the following statement as fact, "Love is Victory."
Another common statement is; "Love is bliss." I have felt love (or something close) get blown up in my face...I have also felt a simple fight hurt so much more just because love was present...
Another; "Love is Perfect" --People (the general public) always say..."I love him/her BUT..." Kind of contradictory isn't it?
It just makes me wonder about love...Simply put...
Is it Failure? Is it Indescribable? Imaginary? A hoax for the bleeders? Just another way for people to act better than other people cause they are together? A high school thing? Something to be outgrown? Fake? Scarier yet...real?
Don't get me wrong...I believe in love and feel it can be amazing and the greatest feeling ever...once understood. I just wonder about it...after corruption and mutilation by society...what is left of love?
I always laugh at the people who meet online...a week later start "dating" and shout out on their myspace pages about love at first instant message!
If this is what is left of love...You better call your significant other up, and well...chat it up.
Is love conceivable at the age of 14 (average age of first "serious" gf/bf in America)? What about now (19 years old)? What about the forties? I don't know. Part of me is wishing that webster would just come up with a new word for every single "love" definition out there and forget about love entirely...
Personally, I would really appreciate it if my significant other were to say "I herklinstine you" rather than, "I love you" because I don't know what that means!!!
I know one smart ass is going to drop a definition on me. Well...they were going to until I said that...some still might, JUST to do it...I don't care. I won't acknowledge it. Love is too corrupt the way it is. "Love is Perfect?"...right.
I agree to using love as an answer. Or saying, "I love you"...I do it myself. Just make sure you know what it means when you say it to someone...
You can feel free to contradict me on here...I don't care...I am open to arguing as long as you do it politely...all stupid and unthought-out posts will be deleted. Or if I don't like you or your opinion represented on my note. It is my note and I will delete you if I want to. :)
If I offended you because you just posted on your girlfriends Wall how much you love her with a picture of a little kitten stretching his arms with the caption, "Iz luvz u theeeeez much!"(One of my favorites)...then I am sorry you don't have the stability to handle my opinion and I really suggest you check the lost and found to find your pair or get a garden and grow some new ones... I am sure they sell those seeds at wal-mart or something...So if i offended you...just...grow up. Really. Chances are...you are just another Karen in the system...or a Brian...(See Dane Cook)
"A word with many meanings...has no meaning at all" Peace. -Garrett R
You don't "rise" in love...you FALL in love. It isn't a process of going up in the world...it is the act of getting totally broken down so that the very fibers of your emotion are fabricated with anothers...it means you have no control of your heart (no one does-- a major flaw of being human), no sense of self, and no knowledge of what love really is anyways...who has a proper, universally known and recognized view of love? No one. You always hear people say after a break up, "I just have to get back on my feet.." Oh yeah...that means get our of the love pit or at least a few hundred steps if you really liked the person...this flows right along with the up-down analogy of love.
It seems people are starting to accept the following statement as fact, "Love is Victory."
Another common statement is; "Love is bliss." I have felt love (or something close) get blown up in my face...I have also felt a simple fight hurt so much more just because love was present...
Another; "Love is Perfect" --People (the general public) always say..."I love him/her BUT..." Kind of contradictory isn't it?
It just makes me wonder about love...Simply put...
Is it Failure? Is it Indescribable? Imaginary? A hoax for the bleeders? Just another way for people to act better than other people cause they are together? A high school thing? Something to be outgrown? Fake? Scarier yet...real?
Don't get me wrong...I believe in love and feel it can be amazing and the greatest feeling ever...once understood. I just wonder about it...after corruption and mutilation by society...what is left of love?
I always laugh at the people who meet online...a week later start "dating" and shout out on their myspace pages about love at first instant message!
If this is what is left of love...You better call your significant other up, and well...chat it up.
Is love conceivable at the age of 14 (average age of first "serious" gf/bf in America)? What about now (19 years old)? What about the forties? I don't know. Part of me is wishing that webster would just come up with a new word for every single "love" definition out there and forget about love entirely...
Personally, I would really appreciate it if my significant other were to say "I herklinstine you" rather than, "I love you" because I don't know what that means!!!
I know one smart ass is going to drop a definition on me. Well...they were going to until I said that...some still might, JUST to do it...I don't care. I won't acknowledge it. Love is too corrupt the way it is. "Love is Perfect?"...right.
I agree to using love as an answer. Or saying, "I love you"...I do it myself. Just make sure you know what it means when you say it to someone...
You can feel free to contradict me on here...I don't care...I am open to arguing as long as you do it politely...all stupid and unthought-out posts will be deleted. Or if I don't like you or your opinion represented on my note. It is my note and I will delete you if I want to. :)
If I offended you because you just posted on your girlfriends Wall how much you love her with a picture of a little kitten stretching his arms with the caption, "Iz luvz u theeeeez much!"(One of my favorites)...then I am sorry you don't have the stability to handle my opinion and I really suggest you check the lost and found to find your pair or get a garden and grow some new ones... I am sure they sell those seeds at wal-mart or something...So if i offended you...just...grow up. Really. Chances are...you are just another Karen in the system...or a Brian...(See Dane Cook)
"A word with many meanings...has no meaning at all" Peace. -Garrett R
Physical Attraction: The Ugly Truth by Kyle W.
Some people are so shallow that if they were water you couldn't even jump in their puddle.
For both men and women the first thing you notice about a person is appearance. I don't care how sensitive you are, it's only natural to do this. If someone appears to have no remarkable qualities, no man or woman will be attracted at all; at first. One may have a superb sense of humor and a personality that is wonderfully inviting and intriguing, he or she might be sweet and sensitive, but if that person doesn't even have a chance to talk to legitimately someone they're interested in, then it's just another average looking person hitting on someone with no interest. My point is, men and women need a reason to go that next step.
Everyone reading this knows and has known an "unattractive" guy who would do anything for a girl who thinks he's the greatest guy in the world and that's why they're friends. Do you think he wants to be friends? He waits on the sidelines willing to give his life and heart for her while she consistently goes after guys who don't call her and cheat on her with the next piece of ass he sees.
If he looked like a walking Old Navy commercial he'd be the man of her dreams. Point is, looks matter to both men and women when making a first impression. Sometimes, sometimes, a guy can get over a hurdle like that, if given the chance. If my post here does nothing more than make one woman think about giving some guy like that somewhere a chance, it's worth it.
And guys, as one of you, I know that sometimes we overlook girls that don't have the most luxurious assets, that have a few extra pounds on her frame. Why not give that girl a chance? She may not be Megan Fox or Angelina Jolie, but she's most likely pretty amazing in her own right. Give her a chance, instead of glazing over her as she tries her hardest to impress you.
Thanks for reading, if you did. If not, eat me. -Kyle
For both men and women the first thing you notice about a person is appearance. I don't care how sensitive you are, it's only natural to do this. If someone appears to have no remarkable qualities, no man or woman will be attracted at all; at first. One may have a superb sense of humor and a personality that is wonderfully inviting and intriguing, he or she might be sweet and sensitive, but if that person doesn't even have a chance to talk to legitimately someone they're interested in, then it's just another average looking person hitting on someone with no interest. My point is, men and women need a reason to go that next step.
Everyone reading this knows and has known an "unattractive" guy who would do anything for a girl who thinks he's the greatest guy in the world and that's why they're friends. Do you think he wants to be friends? He waits on the sidelines willing to give his life and heart for her while she consistently goes after guys who don't call her and cheat on her with the next piece of ass he sees.
If he looked like a walking Old Navy commercial he'd be the man of her dreams. Point is, looks matter to both men and women when making a first impression. Sometimes, sometimes, a guy can get over a hurdle like that, if given the chance. If my post here does nothing more than make one woman think about giving some guy like that somewhere a chance, it's worth it.
And guys, as one of you, I know that sometimes we overlook girls that don't have the most luxurious assets, that have a few extra pounds on her frame. Why not give that girl a chance? She may not be Megan Fox or Angelina Jolie, but she's most likely pretty amazing in her own right. Give her a chance, instead of glazing over her as she tries her hardest to impress you.
Thanks for reading, if you did. If not, eat me. -Kyle
July 4th: Just Another Day by Garrett R.
I know some people aren't going to like this, but that is because they will read it with a closed mind and with personal exceptions and cases that are beyond my control. This note contains MY opinions with MY beliefs and MY understandings and MY experiences...if you have a problem with any of it, please, I am open for a positive and enlightening conversation/ debate. But please, do not show anger or aggression, that takes the fun out of it for me, seeing as anger is a way of showing offense to what I said because you realize that I have a point and that you are too close minded to agree that I have validity in my statements, as I am sure that you do as well. Anyways, here we go...
This year, the 4th of July came suddenly, the family packed a few bags and rented a cabin that we do every year for the occasion...I was first reminded of the 4th's meaning when I read a firework label..."Uncle Sam's Best", it was just a little fountain deal and it hit me, the Fourth actually has meaning beyond fireworks. I had totally forgotten. Now, some may call this ignorance, some may call it a little sad, but I call it a wake up to the world...why, in all of the ads, billboards and lead-up to this big day in our nation's history, that I actually forgot that the Fourth of July was about more than blowing stuff into the air and thinking of the girl that I miss as I watch the sky illuminate. I wonder why a firework had to remind me, rather than a flag or even just myself by recalling the date's significance. Perhaps, the Patriots are finally burning out after little to no help from it's government...why would none of those ads, rather than try and sell their products, mention what it was for? Years back, I would never have let it leave my mind because it was always in my face...what happened to that?
Going back to something I recently said...The government has given me, personally, nothing to get excited about in my lifetime. Since I have been born, I was told we were a super power and since then, we have diminished from that limelight to a country with a lot of power, but one with more enemies as well. Sure, I got excited about getting a potential check in the mail that I had to spend...or that gas prices dropped for a few months, but other than that, the negatives of our government's actions and policies has eroded people's brains and the hope of the little positives that everyone, as a whole, have received.
I will elaborate.
Personally, I have not lost hope in the government changing things around...afterall, Britney Spears did and I never quit on her either. Anyways, first I will focus on 'the People'. America is blind, deaf and gawking. Basically, we are all as thoughtful as a goldfish. Here is why: we (I say we, because we are all the people in this country, we is the majority and the thoughtless) are yet to see that the world is in a state of disrepair. Not just the US. Yes, our lifestyles built up around the expectations that we had for our country. This means that when things got bad, we plunged further than countries with less prosperity because we had more to lose. Yes, we are struggling, but we aren't the only ones. Because I hate talking about stupid people, I will stop.
Instead, I will now talk about the stupid government. I am going to be the first to say that I do not know much about the government's plans, past or future, how it works or functions. On top of this, I do not know statistics or anything of the sort regarding the wars, laws, policies or other plans. This being said, why have I not been educated on such things? I watch the news, read the papers, not daily, but a decent amount, how am I still learning nothing? How does the government expect us to elect people based off of moral issues that will never be resolved when real stuff, the things that actually effect us, are hidden from us?
For example, I had a friend who voted for Obama simply because he is severely Pro-Choice. While, I do not disagree with the person's other values, I had to disagree with her way of voting...Abortion, is not going to change. People are far too spread across the spectrum on this issue, for the government to resolve this issue would cause an uproar, something that might eventually lead to a civil war after a few more dominos fall. Why would anyone vote this way, sure, it is publicized for politicians use, but what has Obama done to change it since being elected? Nothing. Why? Because it isn't important right now. Or at all. But that is what we are fed, not policies, but controversy. Creating sides for an interesting story, for money and to hide from us the reality and magnitude of our privileges that we are granted.
Several of my friends are enlisted in the Army. Congratulations on making something of yourself and fighting for something. So many people live a lie to themselves and hide. But why should there be an Army fighting for peace and freedom? I recently read an article called: "Freedom: You can have it, as long as it's the same as ours". The title explains the whole article, true and enlightening. Why can't everyone just man up, expect that things aren't going to be the same across the globe and even if ideas conflict, they are just ideas that don't need to be believed or thought about. I am of course talking about religion here, which is a primary cause of the current wars, I will not delve into such a topic right now, but let me say one thing for understanding...I am of the belief that anyone can believe whatever they want as long as they are content and have fully analyzed what it means to be part of something like that. I am not giving any personal insight about my religious beliefs beyond that.
Anyways, back to the Military deal...I support our troops as individuals. Not the government that sends them there. No one should have to die fighting for what they believe in because everyone should be able to believe whatever they want without worry or regret. That is all I have to say about that... To clear something up...I do not care much for the government in it's current path of destruction...but that does not mean that I hate the government, I just don't see why it doesn't support or honor it's people like it used to.
Anyways...I am tired...I will post another carrying on with what I have said at a later date...Peace out.
-Garrett
This year, the 4th of July came suddenly, the family packed a few bags and rented a cabin that we do every year for the occasion...I was first reminded of the 4th's meaning when I read a firework label..."Uncle Sam's Best", it was just a little fountain deal and it hit me, the Fourth actually has meaning beyond fireworks. I had totally forgotten. Now, some may call this ignorance, some may call it a little sad, but I call it a wake up to the world...why, in all of the ads, billboards and lead-up to this big day in our nation's history, that I actually forgot that the Fourth of July was about more than blowing stuff into the air and thinking of the girl that I miss as I watch the sky illuminate. I wonder why a firework had to remind me, rather than a flag or even just myself by recalling the date's significance. Perhaps, the Patriots are finally burning out after little to no help from it's government...why would none of those ads, rather than try and sell their products, mention what it was for? Years back, I would never have let it leave my mind because it was always in my face...what happened to that?
Going back to something I recently said...The government has given me, personally, nothing to get excited about in my lifetime. Since I have been born, I was told we were a super power and since then, we have diminished from that limelight to a country with a lot of power, but one with more enemies as well. Sure, I got excited about getting a potential check in the mail that I had to spend...or that gas prices dropped for a few months, but other than that, the negatives of our government's actions and policies has eroded people's brains and the hope of the little positives that everyone, as a whole, have received.
I will elaborate.
Personally, I have not lost hope in the government changing things around...afterall, Britney Spears did and I never quit on her either. Anyways, first I will focus on 'the People'. America is blind, deaf and gawking. Basically, we are all as thoughtful as a goldfish. Here is why: we (I say we, because we are all the people in this country, we is the majority and the thoughtless) are yet to see that the world is in a state of disrepair. Not just the US. Yes, our lifestyles built up around the expectations that we had for our country. This means that when things got bad, we plunged further than countries with less prosperity because we had more to lose. Yes, we are struggling, but we aren't the only ones. Because I hate talking about stupid people, I will stop.
Instead, I will now talk about the stupid government. I am going to be the first to say that I do not know much about the government's plans, past or future, how it works or functions. On top of this, I do not know statistics or anything of the sort regarding the wars, laws, policies or other plans. This being said, why have I not been educated on such things? I watch the news, read the papers, not daily, but a decent amount, how am I still learning nothing? How does the government expect us to elect people based off of moral issues that will never be resolved when real stuff, the things that actually effect us, are hidden from us?
For example, I had a friend who voted for Obama simply because he is severely Pro-Choice. While, I do not disagree with the person's other values, I had to disagree with her way of voting...Abortion, is not going to change. People are far too spread across the spectrum on this issue, for the government to resolve this issue would cause an uproar, something that might eventually lead to a civil war after a few more dominos fall. Why would anyone vote this way, sure, it is publicized for politicians use, but what has Obama done to change it since being elected? Nothing. Why? Because it isn't important right now. Or at all. But that is what we are fed, not policies, but controversy. Creating sides for an interesting story, for money and to hide from us the reality and magnitude of our privileges that we are granted.
Several of my friends are enlisted in the Army. Congratulations on making something of yourself and fighting for something. So many people live a lie to themselves and hide. But why should there be an Army fighting for peace and freedom? I recently read an article called: "Freedom: You can have it, as long as it's the same as ours". The title explains the whole article, true and enlightening. Why can't everyone just man up, expect that things aren't going to be the same across the globe and even if ideas conflict, they are just ideas that don't need to be believed or thought about. I am of course talking about religion here, which is a primary cause of the current wars, I will not delve into such a topic right now, but let me say one thing for understanding...I am of the belief that anyone can believe whatever they want as long as they are content and have fully analyzed what it means to be part of something like that. I am not giving any personal insight about my religious beliefs beyond that.
Anyways, back to the Military deal...I support our troops as individuals. Not the government that sends them there. No one should have to die fighting for what they believe in because everyone should be able to believe whatever they want without worry or regret. That is all I have to say about that... To clear something up...I do not care much for the government in it's current path of destruction...but that does not mean that I hate the government, I just don't see why it doesn't support or honor it's people like it used to.
Anyways...I am tired...I will post another carrying on with what I have said at a later date...Peace out.
-Garrett
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