There.
I said it.
I did it.
I'm doing it.
It's SO bloody time consuming.
But I'm kinda glad I am.
I mean, once you get past all the shots of people trying to look sexy, here and there you meet interesting people.
I've decided I'm going to try and meet several cool people, and hope it goes well. I'd like to be able to make friends, and maybe even have a couple dates from it. Dates would be nice.
Well, we'll see. I'm not sure why I want to do this, but it'll be an adventure anyways. Maybe I'll even catalogue a few here.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Saturday, January 26, 2013
TOW: Knowing What We Want
"Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment."
Lao Tzu
You know, there are a lot of books written about knowing what you want.
But the only person who can know the 'you' inside of you is you. And knowing you is the first step to knowing what we want.
I have many things in my life that I want. But I only know I want these things because I know a little bit about who I am, and who I want to be.
I can't say I have everything figured out, down to the last item, but I'm kind of glad I haven't done that yet. I used to be very much that way, but I've learned that life can change so quickly, that it's best to change with it. Being the same person forever....that's not for me. I want to be a better person than I've been in the past.
And to do that, I have to know what I want, at least in a general sense.
And to do that, I have to know me.
Lao Tzu
You know, there are a lot of books written about knowing what you want.
But the only person who can know the 'you' inside of you is you. And knowing you is the first step to knowing what we want.
I have many things in my life that I want. But I only know I want these things because I know a little bit about who I am, and who I want to be.
I can't say I have everything figured out, down to the last item, but I'm kind of glad I haven't done that yet. I used to be very much that way, but I've learned that life can change so quickly, that it's best to change with it. Being the same person forever....that's not for me. I want to be a better person than I've been in the past.
And to do that, I have to know what I want, at least in a general sense.
And to do that, I have to know me.
Monday, January 14, 2013
TOW: People Suck
My friend Liz and I have been have an ongoing, slightly amusing (for me) slightly stream-of-consciousness-faux-rage-induced-in-the-moment (for her) argument about whether or not 'People suck.'
First, Liz's argument: "People suck. I like individual people, but people as a whole, suck. They're stupid."
There might be more to this argument, but as far as I can tell, I've heard this particular line several times. (Please also note that the latest iteration of this argument happened while looking for a parking stall at IKEA on a Sunday.)
So the question must be: do people, in groups of certain kinds, fail to perform as well as individuals? Do people 'suck' while a singular person, as bad as they might be, is still be better than an average mob of dummy denizens?
Everyone has, at one time or another, heard the term herd behavior or herd mentality. Freud studied it. Nietzsche was famous for describing it. And anyone who has gone to a Walmart during peak hours has experienced it.
Herd behavior, simply put, is the individuals acting together without a planned direction. Demonstrations, riots, and mobs are all examples of this. But even when groups are planning, they still don't accomplish very much. Watching people drive around in circles for a parking stall is a good example. This activity is often fruitless, and even when it is, someone always manages to make another person angry with bad driving, talking on their cell phone, or by causing an accident. Two or more people have activities which cause them to experience friction...stress. And yes, in that moment, people seem to suck. Why? Because from our viewpoint, whenever we discover people acting without thinking, they are often doing so without considering how they might make others feel. These people are rude, inconsiderate, and quite frankly, often ignorant of the pain they cause.
From this perspective, \Liz is right. People do suck. Such behavior is sad at the best of times.
Perhaps the fact that being in public means being in a highly uncontrolled space full of individuals who are only partially aware that you exist, and therefore only partially care if they cause you any injury. But as humans, we can't help it. We can't help but look at what's most tantalizing or most distracting.
And yet, much can be accomplished by these masses of non-individuals. Student demonstrations, hippy marches, heck, even people protesting gay marriages with signs, they're all trying to accomplish something. They're trying to make their feelings known, as a group. And people coming together intentionally, even if they all arrive there for different reasons, is something that I can't help but admire.
People, in public spaces, will always frustrate us. But people in small groups, at a pub, that's a group of friends. Running into a gaggle of strangers that you get to chat with for an hour, that's special. It's often that we do want to lean on the negative side of things when we think of unorganized groups of individuals, but many of those groups are very life-affirming, and necessary, even if they frustrate us at the same time.
First, Liz's argument: "People suck. I like individual people, but people as a whole, suck. They're stupid."
There might be more to this argument, but as far as I can tell, I've heard this particular line several times. (Please also note that the latest iteration of this argument happened while looking for a parking stall at IKEA on a Sunday.)
So the question must be: do people, in groups of certain kinds, fail to perform as well as individuals? Do people 'suck' while a singular person, as bad as they might be, is still be better than an average mob of dummy denizens?
Everyone has, at one time or another, heard the term herd behavior or herd mentality. Freud studied it. Nietzsche was famous for describing it. And anyone who has gone to a Walmart during peak hours has experienced it.
Herd behavior, simply put, is the individuals acting together without a planned direction. Demonstrations, riots, and mobs are all examples of this. But even when groups are planning, they still don't accomplish very much. Watching people drive around in circles for a parking stall is a good example. This activity is often fruitless, and even when it is, someone always manages to make another person angry with bad driving, talking on their cell phone, or by causing an accident. Two or more people have activities which cause them to experience friction...stress. And yes, in that moment, people seem to suck. Why? Because from our viewpoint, whenever we discover people acting without thinking, they are often doing so without considering how they might make others feel. These people are rude, inconsiderate, and quite frankly, often ignorant of the pain they cause.
From this perspective, \Liz is right. People do suck. Such behavior is sad at the best of times.
Perhaps the fact that being in public means being in a highly uncontrolled space full of individuals who are only partially aware that you exist, and therefore only partially care if they cause you any injury. But as humans, we can't help it. We can't help but look at what's most tantalizing or most distracting.
And yet, much can be accomplished by these masses of non-individuals. Student demonstrations, hippy marches, heck, even people protesting gay marriages with signs, they're all trying to accomplish something. They're trying to make their feelings known, as a group. And people coming together intentionally, even if they all arrive there for different reasons, is something that I can't help but admire.
People, in public spaces, will always frustrate us. But people in small groups, at a pub, that's a group of friends. Running into a gaggle of strangers that you get to chat with for an hour, that's special. It's often that we do want to lean on the negative side of things when we think of unorganized groups of individuals, but many of those groups are very life-affirming, and necessary, even if they frustrate us at the same time.
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
TOW: Togetherness
In The Alchemist, Santiago goes in search of his personal dream and goes through many places, meeting many people. Eventually, Santiago and the Alchemist are captured by bandits. The Alchemist promises the bandits that Santiago is actually a great alchemist, and that Santiago turn into the wind in three days. \
For three days, Santiago contemplates the desert, and on the third day, he goes to a cliff, where he will be killed, or he will turn into the wind, and he will be let free from bandits.
Santiago speaks to the desert, who in turn tells him to speak to the wind. Santiago tells the wind he needs to become the wind because Santiago has a personal legend he must fulfill and that he can be the wind, because love can do anything. The wind tells him he is too different. The wind tells him to speak to the hand that wrote all. Santiago turns to the sun, and asks him to help him become the wind. The sun does not know how to do this, and Santiago says when something realizes its Personal Legend, it must change so it can acquire a new Personal Legend, for this is how alchemists turn lead into gold. The sun says that Santiago should speak with the Soul of the World.
Santiago goes to speak with the Soul of the World, but instead of speaking, listens, and then prays. The Soul of the World speaks to him, and becomes one with Santiago, and with the love that the Soul of the World has, Santiago knew he could perform miracles. And so, Santiago becomes the wind.
All I have been thinking about lately is about how Santiago became the wind. Not because he was one person, special, but because he was someone valued others, and placed his trust in them. It was asking, desiring, and words that made a miracle happen. The bandits that day thought Santiago was a great alchemist. But, being together with others was what made Santiago the wind. Not power. Not money. Not fame. Not expertise. But togetherness.
For three days, Santiago contemplates the desert, and on the third day, he goes to a cliff, where he will be killed, or he will turn into the wind, and he will be let free from bandits.
Santiago speaks to the desert, who in turn tells him to speak to the wind. Santiago tells the wind he needs to become the wind because Santiago has a personal legend he must fulfill and that he can be the wind, because love can do anything. The wind tells him he is too different. The wind tells him to speak to the hand that wrote all. Santiago turns to the sun, and asks him to help him become the wind. The sun does not know how to do this, and Santiago says when something realizes its Personal Legend, it must change so it can acquire a new Personal Legend, for this is how alchemists turn lead into gold. The sun says that Santiago should speak with the Soul of the World.
Santiago goes to speak with the Soul of the World, but instead of speaking, listens, and then prays. The Soul of the World speaks to him, and becomes one with Santiago, and with the love that the Soul of the World has, Santiago knew he could perform miracles. And so, Santiago becomes the wind.
All I have been thinking about lately is about how Santiago became the wind. Not because he was one person, special, but because he was someone valued others, and placed his trust in them. It was asking, desiring, and words that made a miracle happen. The bandits that day thought Santiago was a great alchemist. But, being together with others was what made Santiago the wind. Not power. Not money. Not fame. Not expertise. But togetherness.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)