I heard an interesting quote a while ago, while discussing the face of change, and it goes like this: "It's not the end, it's just a new beginning." So, it's not the last piece of pie you just ate, it's the beginning of a new source of bulge around your hips. While this is poignant, I also feel that there is something else to transitions in our lives. Transitions are periods where we feel a strange combination of bored and resentful to our current circumstances.
Take my life, for example. I've been a working man for, I would say, a total of a year now. I've changed jobs 5 times, moved 3 times (moving on to the 4th very soon!) and skimmed the poverty line twice. But now I'm going back to school for a professional program, and planning to stream-line myself back into the real world. You know, that place...that place...I don't go to on a regular basis. Eh heh. Sigh.
But this time I see being a student much, much differently. Yes, I'm going to have a good time. Yes, I plan to slack off whenever possible and stay up late and eat candy and make plenty of friends. But more importantly, I'm going to put a stamp on everything that I do that says, "BRENNAN DID THIS AND IT'S AMAZING." Because I can see that previously, in my student career, sometimes I took it a little too easy...and I didn't try as hard as I coulda-shoulda-woulda. Because, like we all do, sometimes we hold back so that in case we fail, it won't hurt as much.
Having lived on the brink of life-failure for the last year or so, I have come to realize that life is not about succeeding the normal sense of the word (although it is a pleasant feeling) it's about what you do after you succeed. Some people are haunted by their past successes, and the feeling that haunts them is the very feeling that prevents them from transitioning...from making the leap into the you and me we were meant to be. If we don't make that leap, we end up in a limbo...in a place where we can't manage who we are because we've stop learning, stopped caring, and stopped being ourselves. And transitions were meant to be times of success, not times of failure.
Real success, as far as I can tell, isn't about the successes we have, but how we manage to transition after our fleeting spotlight moment has passed. Moving from success to success is the only way to live a life worth living. And we all deserve to move from failure into success.
Because it's never the end; it's just a new beginning.
Monday, August 31, 2009
VOW: Miley Cyrus- Party in the USA
When I first saw this, I nearly fell off my bed I was laughing so hard. I don't think I've been this amused in quite a while.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
TOW: Tired
HI guys and gals,
I'm sorry I haven't posted here lately, but my sleep schedule has been really outta whack. I've been tired at weird times in the day, and then really wide awake at others, so it's throwing me for a bit of a loop. I've been sleeping lots, just not always at the best times. Heh.
Sleeping takes a certain kind of discipline, and some days it's just not there for me, I guess.
More postings coming later! I just need some time to organize myself! Things are sickly crazy right now.
I'm sorry I haven't posted here lately, but my sleep schedule has been really outta whack. I've been tired at weird times in the day, and then really wide awake at others, so it's throwing me for a bit of a loop. I've been sleeping lots, just not always at the best times. Heh.
Sleeping takes a certain kind of discipline, and some days it's just not there for me, I guess.
More postings coming later! I just need some time to organize myself! Things are sickly crazy right now.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Officially an Ontarian
I'm now a registered Ontarian resident with an Ontario Health Card, and an Ontario Driver's Licence.
Scary. =)
Scary. =)
TOW: The Dark Side of Acceptance
I've been reflecting a lot on my choices, and what sort of choices have been good choices over the last few months, and which choices have been bad. In reference to the principle of make-do-ability, there's a lot of good in the choices I've made. We should make do with what we have, not with what we wish we had.
Yet, in reflecting on the signs in our lives, when something is not working, we often create our own problems by avoiding them or simply enduring them. For example, when a friend takes advatange of us, we think, "Oh, it's ok. I'll be the bigger person in this case." Or if we get a bad grade, or a bad review from someone, we often think, "Oh, it happens. I just need to roll with the punches." And it is this attitude that tends to make our personal problems blow up in our faces, pie in the face style. And like Mom says, eat your food, don't wear it.
Rolling with the punches is one thing. Living with unlivable situations is completely different. The dark side of accepting is accepting the unacceptable. (Like watching The Hills for more than five minutes...it's enough to make most humans go stark raving mad. *Shudder*)
My mom, a wise lady, once had a conversation with me that's stuck with me. We were discussing choices in life, and I spouted the platitude that 'Beggars can't be choosers.' My mom turned to me and looked at my like I was a foreign species of zebra, and said, "Brennan, they can."
And she's right. We all have free will. And we shouldn't accept things that aren't working in our lives and let them bleed and fester. The more they do, the larger the explosion later in life, and the greater the personal detriment. So, look your problems in the face and like Trooper says, "If your life is all messed up, rearrange it." Or be prepared to endure the unendurable.
Good luck with that.
Yet, in reflecting on the signs in our lives, when something is not working, we often create our own problems by avoiding them or simply enduring them. For example, when a friend takes advatange of us, we think, "Oh, it's ok. I'll be the bigger person in this case." Or if we get a bad grade, or a bad review from someone, we often think, "Oh, it happens. I just need to roll with the punches." And it is this attitude that tends to make our personal problems blow up in our faces, pie in the face style. And like Mom says, eat your food, don't wear it.
Rolling with the punches is one thing. Living with unlivable situations is completely different. The dark side of accepting is accepting the unacceptable. (Like watching The Hills for more than five minutes...it's enough to make most humans go stark raving mad. *Shudder*)
My mom, a wise lady, once had a conversation with me that's stuck with me. We were discussing choices in life, and I spouted the platitude that 'Beggars can't be choosers.' My mom turned to me and looked at my like I was a foreign species of zebra, and said, "Brennan, they can."
And she's right. We all have free will. And we shouldn't accept things that aren't working in our lives and let them bleed and fester. The more they do, the larger the explosion later in life, and the greater the personal detriment. So, look your problems in the face and like Trooper says, "If your life is all messed up, rearrange it." Or be prepared to endure the unendurable.
Good luck with that.
VOW: Cakey!
Cakey! is some sort of bizzare out of space flying, talking, magical cake. This video reminds me of why the 80s were great. Logical plot line? Who needs a logical plot line? Insert problem, and random cast of characters, and some synth beats! THAT'S GOOD TV.
Going to the High Park Shakespeare Theatre with Sarah!
This was a great picture of Sarah, who is now a proud new owner of a Blackberry. That's what you get for taking a high paying government job, Sarah. =)
Hilariously, They said no pictures within the theatre area, but I snapped one of Sarah. IMMEADIATELY, one of the volunteers nazis came up and requested I delete the picture. I told him it was just of my friend, not of the stage or anything like that. After I explained everything he was ok with me. And then he moved onto the next photographer in the crowd and hassled THAT guy. =)
We watched the Tempest, and I WISH we could have taken photos...the set is BEAUTIFUL, and best of all, the play was FREE! (With a suggested donation of $20, of course...and that rule is pretty heavily enforced. I never knew artists could be so vigilant.)
My First Blue Jays Game!
We saw the Blue Jays play the Orioles!
Travis and I went together! =D
You'll notice that the seats we got were of the $62 variety. They were complimentary tickets, sure, but they were amazing seats...right in front of the line to first base on the ground level. Travis had to meet some Italian guy at gate 11 before the game to get them...we're both positive he's part of the mafia.
And THIS was the amazing grill burger we got from one of the burger stands. And at $11 a burger, you can believe I enjoyed that thing.
Overall, the game experience was really enjoyable...I think I'll go again! =D
Monday, August 10, 2009
TOW: Signs
Ah, you can really tell summer is here. The birds are singing, the sun is shining, the smog and humidity are finally making it difficult to breathe, and the garbage strike in Toronto has resolved itself (at least hypothetically.) I'm not going to use this post to talk about politics or anything quite that heavy, but what I am going to do other than regret the entire bag of salt and vinegar chips I just ate, is talk a little about the signs. No, no, not like a stop sign. (Although someone really should have handed ME one before I thought of eating what I just ate.) I'm talking about 'The SIGNS, MAN." It's just like Five Man Electric Band says, "Long-haired freaky people need not apply" because signs, signs--everywhere a sign, man.
This is certainly a matter for debate, but I personally think the signs that we should pay attention to are the little events that pop up in our lives to tell us if what we're doing is futile or really worth something. Because there are go, yield, and stop signs in all of our lives. But most of all, we should read the signs in our life to see if we're on the right path.
Ever heard the tale of Fool's Gold? No? There were many people that went to Alaska during the Gold Rush to try and make their way in life. Most people died up there, or came back penniless. However, one man decided to stay, his while life, to try and find gold. Then, after years and years of struggle and nearly giving up, he put his pickaxe into the ground, and out came what seemed like a huge gold vein. He carried it all back, and thought he had finally struck it rich. Imagine his surprise when he took it to be evaluated, and all he came up with was a bunch of worthless rock. But hey, who doesn't want some pyrite? Am I right? Right?
I'm a big believer in the idea that if something is meant to happen, problems will get out of your way, and you'll attract your own prosperity. When things are going all wrong, and everything is completely out of whack, that is the time when you really, absolutely have to ask: "Where am I heading? Do I really want to do x, y, or z? What benefit does it give me to continue versus try something new? Why is life getting in my way all of a sudden?" Usually when things are falling behind is a sign of the times. Namely, to shape up and recognize what life is trying to tell you.
Don't just smell the roses--note when the thorns are jabbing into your fingers.
This is certainly a matter for debate, but I personally think the signs that we should pay attention to are the little events that pop up in our lives to tell us if what we're doing is futile or really worth something. Because there are go, yield, and stop signs in all of our lives. But most of all, we should read the signs in our life to see if we're on the right path.
Ever heard the tale of Fool's Gold? No? There were many people that went to Alaska during the Gold Rush to try and make their way in life. Most people died up there, or came back penniless. However, one man decided to stay, his while life, to try and find gold. Then, after years and years of struggle and nearly giving up, he put his pickaxe into the ground, and out came what seemed like a huge gold vein. He carried it all back, and thought he had finally struck it rich. Imagine his surprise when he took it to be evaluated, and all he came up with was a bunch of worthless rock. But hey, who doesn't want some pyrite? Am I right? Right?
I'm a big believer in the idea that if something is meant to happen, problems will get out of your way, and you'll attract your own prosperity. When things are going all wrong, and everything is completely out of whack, that is the time when you really, absolutely have to ask: "Where am I heading? Do I really want to do x, y, or z? What benefit does it give me to continue versus try something new? Why is life getting in my way all of a sudden?" Usually when things are falling behind is a sign of the times. Namely, to shape up and recognize what life is trying to tell you.
Don't just smell the roses--note when the thorns are jabbing into your fingers.
VOW: Just Because
I can't embed the video, but you should check out this band, just released this single. I really like the music video, and it's a neat concept, and they even made a game out of the video. Smart viral campaign. =)
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
TOW: Breaking Up
Hey guys,
I just recently broke up with someone, and it's throwing me for a bit. So I'm sorry I had a thought of the week, but my current thought is: Man, breaking up. It really sucks.
But it'll get better with time. I'm really finding music is helping, and I am also keeping really busy, and it's good for me. I can feel the real Brennan I like to be all over again. And it'll keep getting better.
All the time.
=)
I just recently broke up with someone, and it's throwing me for a bit. So I'm sorry I had a thought of the week, but my current thought is: Man, breaking up. It really sucks.
But it'll get better with time. I'm really finding music is helping, and I am also keeping really busy, and it's good for me. I can feel the real Brennan I like to be all over again. And it'll keep getting better.
All the time.
=)
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