So this is the last entry. I now am free of my obligation to write the random thoughts that come to my head on a daily basis. It has been an interesting journey that has brought me here, to the end. What can I say about this writing project? I'm not saying this was my favorite experience in the world, but I also didn't completely hate it. I had this slight indifference towards it, for the last few weeks, much like a slightly annoying roommate. It didn't always bother me, but would sometimes send me to small bouts of frustration. I think the hardest part of the entire undertaking was trying to think of topics about which to write. There is only so much personal information that I want to share with a group of potential readers. I feel I did my best to open up and allow people to enter my mind, but mostly felt confined by the perception of my audience. I was not allowed to speak completely freely in fear of offending either my fellow classmates or, possibly, my teacher.This is not the real me. I guess that is my biggest regret for this experience. I did not ever feel completely comfortable. There are things that I could have done to alleviate this and would try if I was presented this project again. I would have stayed diligent, about blogging once everyday, instead of trying to catch up on two or three at a time. This was more due to my work schedule than anything else, but still could have been prevented. There were just some days where my focus was directed to another class or I just simply lacked the motivation. There were other days where I would sit down and attempt to write something, but found myself completely blocked from a subject, that I felt was worth sharing with the class (and then there was that time I talked about my cats). One of my dreams is to someday operate an online news publication. I have already been working on projects with a friend and his blog, hoping to someday turn that into a broad group of topics that we discuss daily. If I had been smart, I would have used this blogging project to fine tune my article writing abilities and start practicing writing blogs with a focus on current events. I did this to some extend, but did not include the same quotes and information that I would in a formal news writing setting. This could have been very beneficial to me and I now see this as time misused. Fortunately, there were benefits that I took away from this experience. First, I now have a greater understanding of free writing and how to train my mind to write in a quick, but effective, manner. I began the project spending more time than I would have liked writing each blog. I was struggling to expand on simple topics and truly despised my writing. As I continued, I found that I was not any more in love with the actual content of my writing, but I was happier about the increased speed at which I could produce blog posts. I tried to work on freeing my mind and allowing to wander on the page, within reason, and produce something that was not a perfect piece or writing, but was a true dialogue from the inner depths of my mind. I was too raw with many of my posts and could have refined them more, but my mind was laid to page in an effective manner. I also found that I became more comfortable putting my thoughts out there for the world to see. As I said earlier, I was not allowed to be myself as much as I would have liked, but later on in the assignment I found myself becoming more okay with publishing things that I wouldn't say out loud on a daily basis. For this reason I have decided to attempt to continue this project in my personal time. In an environment where I can say anything I want and don't have to censor myself for the sake of a grade. I am gracious for being allowed this experience and will hope to expand on it in my future endeavors.
A place were cynicism meets optimism.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
We're All Entitled to Our Opinion, Right?
7-18-15
We live in a political climate where a bully is granted the same support as some, fairly, respectable human beings. That's right there is a Neanderthal running for president, and no his name isn't George Bush. He goes by Trump, Donald Trump. This egomaniac ignoramus is currently making a complete mockery of our political system (as if it needed help with that in the first place). He is polling at the top of the field of Republican candidates, and while it is still early, the fact that some people think he would make a great president, truly disgusts me. I cringe at the thought of Mr. "Your fired" being the head of the sovereign nation of the United Sates of America. I have made jokes before, but I would literally pack my bags and move away from this great, yet misguided, nation. In a previous blog post I discussed how his assets should not be perceived as a indicator of economic prowess. Instead, we should look at his failures instead of successes. But nobody is better at calling people out like Trump. In the latest drama, Donald Trump has called out John McCain on his military record. As many of you know, McCain was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. This was beat like a rug the 2008 presidential elections and I had hoped that the discussion would be left there. But thanks to good ole' crazy uncle Donald we get the be reintroduced to the topic all over again. Only this time the discussion is much more annoying. Trump blasted Senator McCain saying that, "“He’s a war hero ’cause he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured.”. I'm sure all of you have seen this quote by now and hopefully are just as appalled by the implications. Let's not just stop there though, lets look at the amazing War record of Mr. Trump so maybe we can understand from where he derives such a strong opinion. OH wait there's only one problem, he never went to war and while he has claimed in the past it was because of a high draft number there have been reports that showed his military deferment documentation. He was granted five different deferments for school and medical reasons. Yet, he has the gall to call out a man that lived Hell on Earth for being captured in the first place? You can not be captured and put through torture if you are not even there Donald. What type of argument is he making any way? At best he is humiliating himself in front of thousands of veterans that were put through unspeakable horrors when they were captured trying to defend the country that has allow Trump literally all that he has today. Maybe is we all grew up rich and got out of every bit of life's hardships it would be easy to call out people that actually had to live through pain. Welcome to America, the land of the free, and home of the ignorant.
We live in a political climate where a bully is granted the same support as some, fairly, respectable human beings. That's right there is a Neanderthal running for president, and no his name isn't George Bush. He goes by Trump, Donald Trump. This egomaniac ignoramus is currently making a complete mockery of our political system (as if it needed help with that in the first place). He is polling at the top of the field of Republican candidates, and while it is still early, the fact that some people think he would make a great president, truly disgusts me. I cringe at the thought of Mr. "Your fired" being the head of the sovereign nation of the United Sates of America. I have made jokes before, but I would literally pack my bags and move away from this great, yet misguided, nation. In a previous blog post I discussed how his assets should not be perceived as a indicator of economic prowess. Instead, we should look at his failures instead of successes. But nobody is better at calling people out like Trump. In the latest drama, Donald Trump has called out John McCain on his military record. As many of you know, McCain was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. This was beat like a rug the 2008 presidential elections and I had hoped that the discussion would be left there. But thanks to good ole' crazy uncle Donald we get the be reintroduced to the topic all over again. Only this time the discussion is much more annoying. Trump blasted Senator McCain saying that, "“He’s a war hero ’cause he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured.”. I'm sure all of you have seen this quote by now and hopefully are just as appalled by the implications. Let's not just stop there though, lets look at the amazing War record of Mr. Trump so maybe we can understand from where he derives such a strong opinion. OH wait there's only one problem, he never went to war and while he has claimed in the past it was because of a high draft number there have been reports that showed his military deferment documentation. He was granted five different deferments for school and medical reasons. Yet, he has the gall to call out a man that lived Hell on Earth for being captured in the first place? You can not be captured and put through torture if you are not even there Donald. What type of argument is he making any way? At best he is humiliating himself in front of thousands of veterans that were put through unspeakable horrors when they were captured trying to defend the country that has allow Trump literally all that he has today. Maybe is we all grew up rich and got out of every bit of life's hardships it would be easy to call out people that actually had to live through pain. Welcome to America, the land of the free, and home of the ignorant.
I Want To Go Home
7-17-15
I need to get out of this place. As I am finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, as far as this semester is concerned, my mind has allowed itself to venture a little more than in the prior weeks. I start to consider how nice it would be to have an extended break from these surroundings (it could also have something to do for my jealousy about my girlfriend going to Mexico with her family next week, but that's a different story). Now, this is not something that is even in the rhelm of possibilities, too many other bills to pay, but it is a nice thought. So i relax and let my mind search for far away destinations to find some relaxation. It first flys straight to Cuba. I am greeted by the smell of street vendors in Havana. The sound of a sold out little league game echoes in the distance. I watch beautiful people flow everywhere going about their daily lives in this paradise that they call home. I have never been there, but when I close my eyes I can see it like its my homeland. These images have been created by what Anthony Bourdain has shown me on "No Reservations", much like the majority of my images form the world. I am excited to be living in a time where we are seeing a normalization of relationships between the United States and Cuba. For some, the fear of the events surrounding the Cuban Missile Crisis still seem like yesterday. It is sad that disagreements have caused two cultures to be separated for so long. The embargo on Cuba might have been what lured it to me so strongly. I've always had an appeal for rebelliousness and remember being enticed by this mysterious country when i was in Jr. High. Of course it was baseball that truly introduced it to me. The baseball players that defected from Cuba granted me my first view into the Cuban culture. At this time in my life I loved baseball so the idea of a country that produced some of the best baseball players, but had an active embargo with the USA, completely fascinated me. Later, as I began educating myself the different food cultures of the world, I realized that I wanted to see this country for myself one day. The only problem was that I was restricted to by law. This only made me desire it more. This is why I feel so strongly about a place that I've never visited. Someday soon I will witness this paradise and I will know what it is truly like to be home.
I need to get out of this place. As I am finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, as far as this semester is concerned, my mind has allowed itself to venture a little more than in the prior weeks. I start to consider how nice it would be to have an extended break from these surroundings (it could also have something to do for my jealousy about my girlfriend going to Mexico with her family next week, but that's a different story). Now, this is not something that is even in the rhelm of possibilities, too many other bills to pay, but it is a nice thought. So i relax and let my mind search for far away destinations to find some relaxation. It first flys straight to Cuba. I am greeted by the smell of street vendors in Havana. The sound of a sold out little league game echoes in the distance. I watch beautiful people flow everywhere going about their daily lives in this paradise that they call home. I have never been there, but when I close my eyes I can see it like its my homeland. These images have been created by what Anthony Bourdain has shown me on "No Reservations", much like the majority of my images form the world. I am excited to be living in a time where we are seeing a normalization of relationships between the United States and Cuba. For some, the fear of the events surrounding the Cuban Missile Crisis still seem like yesterday. It is sad that disagreements have caused two cultures to be separated for so long. The embargo on Cuba might have been what lured it to me so strongly. I've always had an appeal for rebelliousness and remember being enticed by this mysterious country when i was in Jr. High. Of course it was baseball that truly introduced it to me. The baseball players that defected from Cuba granted me my first view into the Cuban culture. At this time in my life I loved baseball so the idea of a country that produced some of the best baseball players, but had an active embargo with the USA, completely fascinated me. Later, as I began educating myself the different food cultures of the world, I realized that I wanted to see this country for myself one day. The only problem was that I was restricted to by law. This only made me desire it more. This is why I feel so strongly about a place that I've never visited. Someday soon I will witness this paradise and I will know what it is truly like to be home.
An Ode to Finals Week
7-16-15
I awoke in the middle of the night, hands shaking and palms sweaty, muttering, "Just five more minutes please? I only have three more questions, may I have just a little more time??". So it has begun; the dreaded finals week. We have just a few more blogs to blog and a last few assignments to turn in. We will all somehow balance daily life with writing a research paper and then possibly finding time to study for the tests that stand in front of us. I pray every night the same prayer, "May my brain remember all, my mind not become to weary, and may we all be granted mercy from our professors. Amen.". It's been a while since I've been in school and while I have somehow managed to maintain A's in all three classes I am taking, I still immensely fear the doom looming over my head. I have never been great at tests. I've always been the type of person to talk myself through situations that actually prove my knowledge or skill by being tested. This must be why I excelled at debate, but I digress. I am not good at studying. I always have the best intention of studying for a test, but always seem to find myself cramming in the car ride to school or in between classes. My procrastination always gets the best of me and is no different now. It's like I'm motivated by the pressure that time puts on your mind. The more pressure that is applied the more focused and determined I become. I finish assignments and papers quickly and I remember facts easier. I know that this is not the best strategy and that I am causing myself to do that much more work, but it is the nature of the beast. The time crunch reminds me of the kitchen. In the waning hours of an assignment or test I find my personality to revert to that of the cook inside me. I am filled with energy from an unknown part of space, while my body and mind is sent into overdrive. I click as fast on my keyboard as a chop on my cutting board. I am consumed by the choas and it drives me to accomplish my task as efficiently as possible. If only I could tap into this inner being during the days prior, I'm sure I wouldn't be losing so much hair. Hopefully, by the end of the week I, and the rest of you, will not wake finding ourselves bald.
Bernie Sanders 2016
7-15-15
Bernie Sanders is going to be the next president of the United States of America. Yeah I said it. I'm calling it now, a year and a half early. I'm sure many of you are thinking, "Come on man Bernie? You really think a socialist has a chance of winning the election?". Yes, yes I do and I'll tell you why. Socialism could not have entered the scene at a better time. In America, we are bearing witness to one of the most unfair wealth distributions of any industrialized nations. The middle class has eroded and the socioeconomic reality has become a very different one in the last thirty years. It was my economics class that shed light on this subject before listening to any of President Sanders speeches. The textbook even showed some disdain to the subject of income inequality in America. A book created by a giant company that shares in the luxuries of this economic system seemed to also attest to atrocity that is now considered a social norm. So many people staunchly oppose ideologies such as more balanced share of the wealth. It doesn't take a scholar to document the insane amount of profits that major American companies are starting to post. It's amazing that some of the companies that help create the poor economic climate that we saw in the last decade, are reporting ridiculous profits. These same companies that accepted our tax dollars to bail them out of their corruption are wealthy and throwing lavish parties once again. You have a serious problem, when you live in a world that the top one-tenth of the percent of the population owns ninety percent of the wealth. It makes me disgusted that the people that do all of the work reap so little of the reward. I don't believe that we should give people excuses to not work hard because my work ethic has gotten me to where I am today. I am recognizing that there is a problem with the numbers that we are seeing and something must be done to correct it. When Bernie speaks about creating jobs for people to fix problems and the economy, I wonder why this is such a under discussed issue in politics. When he says we should spend more on education instead of incarceration, I ask why is this so revolutionary? Why is it that in the twenty first century we still have to discuss these ideas? How have we not learned that war is not the answer and only education is the solution? I only hope that we are getting read to witness a revolution. One of social justice and economic reform that ends an era where money controls all of the power.
Bernie Sanders is going to be the next president of the United States of America. Yeah I said it. I'm calling it now, a year and a half early. I'm sure many of you are thinking, "Come on man Bernie? You really think a socialist has a chance of winning the election?". Yes, yes I do and I'll tell you why. Socialism could not have entered the scene at a better time. In America, we are bearing witness to one of the most unfair wealth distributions of any industrialized nations. The middle class has eroded and the socioeconomic reality has become a very different one in the last thirty years. It was my economics class that shed light on this subject before listening to any of President Sanders speeches. The textbook even showed some disdain to the subject of income inequality in America. A book created by a giant company that shares in the luxuries of this economic system seemed to also attest to atrocity that is now considered a social norm. So many people staunchly oppose ideologies such as more balanced share of the wealth. It doesn't take a scholar to document the insane amount of profits that major American companies are starting to post. It's amazing that some of the companies that help create the poor economic climate that we saw in the last decade, are reporting ridiculous profits. These same companies that accepted our tax dollars to bail them out of their corruption are wealthy and throwing lavish parties once again. You have a serious problem, when you live in a world that the top one-tenth of the percent of the population owns ninety percent of the wealth. It makes me disgusted that the people that do all of the work reap so little of the reward. I don't believe that we should give people excuses to not work hard because my work ethic has gotten me to where I am today. I am recognizing that there is a problem with the numbers that we are seeing and something must be done to correct it. When Bernie speaks about creating jobs for people to fix problems and the economy, I wonder why this is such a under discussed issue in politics. When he says we should spend more on education instead of incarceration, I ask why is this so revolutionary? Why is it that in the twenty first century we still have to discuss these ideas? How have we not learned that war is not the answer and only education is the solution? I only hope that we are getting read to witness a revolution. One of social justice and economic reform that ends an era where money controls all of the power.
Starting A New Chapter
7-14-15
Today was my last day at Chipotle. Unlike past jobs, I did not leave angry at the company or the people I worked with. In fact, I will probably still stay in touch with a few of them and never had any real problems with anyone while I was there. It was not a very long stay as far as job history goes. It only took a few months for me to realize that it just wasn't the life for me. they were very kind to keep me on payroll and freeze my position, so that I may return in the future, and I am very gracious for the kindness they showed me and the opportunity that they granted me. It is a great company. Many places say that they want to take care of their people, but very few truly do, and on such a large scale. They really do try to have food with integrity and I commend the company on the revolution they are attempting to spur in the fast food industry. To call them "fast food" is pretty harsh unto itself. I have seen the immense amount of work that goes into ensuring that they can serve a vast amount of people, in a short amount of time, the best quality food that they have to offer. Obviously, there are going to be times where it is not going to be perfect because you still have humans running the operation and as long as we are involved nothing will be perfect all the time. The problem I had there was the lack of challenge. It is hard work, but hard work doesn't always equal difficulty. It just describes the amount of energy you have to expend on a daily basis, which is normally quite a bit for any restaurant job (besides serving-coming from a former server). I am excited to go to a kitchen that will, hopefully, challenge my limited culinary knowledge and help to advance what skills I do posses. I am nervous, as anyone is when leaving a job to pursue another. I know I will be one of the least talent cooks in the kitchen. I will be working alongside actual chefs and I could not be more thrilled. I love nothing more than the sound of a well ran kitchen during a bust service. The organized chaos is something I feel extremely privileged to be allowed to step into and do my part to help the team. The life of a cook is a crazy one and is not for the faint of heart. I'm excited to have my emotions tested and my patience put to the edge. hopefully, coming out a more well rounded cook than when I entered.
Today was my last day at Chipotle. Unlike past jobs, I did not leave angry at the company or the people I worked with. In fact, I will probably still stay in touch with a few of them and never had any real problems with anyone while I was there. It was not a very long stay as far as job history goes. It only took a few months for me to realize that it just wasn't the life for me. they were very kind to keep me on payroll and freeze my position, so that I may return in the future, and I am very gracious for the kindness they showed me and the opportunity that they granted me. It is a great company. Many places say that they want to take care of their people, but very few truly do, and on such a large scale. They really do try to have food with integrity and I commend the company on the revolution they are attempting to spur in the fast food industry. To call them "fast food" is pretty harsh unto itself. I have seen the immense amount of work that goes into ensuring that they can serve a vast amount of people, in a short amount of time, the best quality food that they have to offer. Obviously, there are going to be times where it is not going to be perfect because you still have humans running the operation and as long as we are involved nothing will be perfect all the time. The problem I had there was the lack of challenge. It is hard work, but hard work doesn't always equal difficulty. It just describes the amount of energy you have to expend on a daily basis, which is normally quite a bit for any restaurant job (besides serving-coming from a former server). I am excited to go to a kitchen that will, hopefully, challenge my limited culinary knowledge and help to advance what skills I do posses. I am nervous, as anyone is when leaving a job to pursue another. I know I will be one of the least talent cooks in the kitchen. I will be working alongside actual chefs and I could not be more thrilled. I love nothing more than the sound of a well ran kitchen during a bust service. The organized chaos is something I feel extremely privileged to be allowed to step into and do my part to help the team. The life of a cook is a crazy one and is not for the faint of heart. I'm excited to have my emotions tested and my patience put to the edge. hopefully, coming out a more well rounded cook than when I entered.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
The American Dream
7-13-15
How does one go about being a productive member of society? Is it judged by the amount amount of income you generate? Is it the amount of Facebook friends you have? Will it be shown by the amount of people that show up for your funeral? In my opinion, we have a lot of people that have their priorities way off when it comes to what makes them part of society. I believe that your productivity is judged by the amount of good you do minus the bad. If there is more good than bad at the end then you have attempted to do your part because, let's face it, none of us will live a perfect life where every decision we make will be the right one. It seems as if productivity, is now also, synonymous with the money you make. Success in country is often in line with our warped view of the "American Dream" and the more money you make the more successful you are as an individual. I believe whole hearted that this mentality is one that needs to be abolished. Take Donald Trump for instance, I have heard many people claim what a great president he would make since he put his name in the hat for the Republican nomination. Many make this assumption because of his perceived success as a businessman. They say, "Well this individual has a lot of money that must mean his business skills are top notch". Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Trump was born into money and the majority of businesses he opened were failures. He was able to overcome these failures by having a large financial backing that allowed him to be riskier than the common entrepreneur. Most businessmen don't have this type of capital to start with and therefore can not survive one failed business because that would mean the end of financial stability. But because citizens see a man with a lot of money they assume that he posses the virtues that are required to be successful. Don't mind the racism that is just Trump's assertiveness. He's just saying the taboo things that must be said and that's whats gotten to where he is today. If Trump wasn't born into the family he was there's no way that he would have been so successful if this arrogance is how he normally conducts himself. Too many Americans are confused about what makes you an accomplished person. Maybe if we all started judging people by their characters than the size of their wallets we would be in a much better position socially.
How does one go about being a productive member of society? Is it judged by the amount amount of income you generate? Is it the amount of Facebook friends you have? Will it be shown by the amount of people that show up for your funeral? In my opinion, we have a lot of people that have their priorities way off when it comes to what makes them part of society. I believe that your productivity is judged by the amount of good you do minus the bad. If there is more good than bad at the end then you have attempted to do your part because, let's face it, none of us will live a perfect life where every decision we make will be the right one. It seems as if productivity, is now also, synonymous with the money you make. Success in country is often in line with our warped view of the "American Dream" and the more money you make the more successful you are as an individual. I believe whole hearted that this mentality is one that needs to be abolished. Take Donald Trump for instance, I have heard many people claim what a great president he would make since he put his name in the hat for the Republican nomination. Many make this assumption because of his perceived success as a businessman. They say, "Well this individual has a lot of money that must mean his business skills are top notch". Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Trump was born into money and the majority of businesses he opened were failures. He was able to overcome these failures by having a large financial backing that allowed him to be riskier than the common entrepreneur. Most businessmen don't have this type of capital to start with and therefore can not survive one failed business because that would mean the end of financial stability. But because citizens see a man with a lot of money they assume that he posses the virtues that are required to be successful. Don't mind the racism that is just Trump's assertiveness. He's just saying the taboo things that must be said and that's whats gotten to where he is today. If Trump wasn't born into the family he was there's no way that he would have been so successful if this arrogance is how he normally conducts himself. Too many Americans are confused about what makes you an accomplished person. Maybe if we all started judging people by their characters than the size of their wallets we would be in a much better position socially.
Take Me To That Old Time Church
7-12-15
Last night I had a truly religious experience. It took place behind a bar in a field with thousands of other people. All of whom had only one focus: their love for music. I saw Wilco perform for the second time in my life and the experience was truly spiritual. There were moments when I lost sense of myself and the crowd surrounding me. With my eyes closed and my mind open I merged with the rest of the crowd to form one being. A being that needed nothing else to survive, expect for the sound of the music that we let overwhelm us. Even when I did attend church it was during the music that I felt the spirit of God. Last night I felt that same emotion sweep over me. An emotion so strong that all my cares or wants or needs were as far away as Pluto. I did not worry about the normal things I would on a day to day basis. Instead I allowed my mind to succumb to the emotional roller coaster that is an amazing live show. Jeff Tweedy, the lead singer of Wilco, was full of energy and you could feel it multiply amongst the crowd. We were all feeding off the same feeling and it reminded me how we are all made to connect with what is around us. My whole life I have had trouble being a "normal" part of society. I still have memories of being a young boy thinking about how different I am from everyone else. This makes it very hard to have true emotional connections with the people around me. Even though I might come across comfortable in a crowd, and easy to relate to, it could not be further from the truth. Music is what allows me to truly feel connected to the people around me. I felt like a bipolar wreck during the entire show. I would go from fits of laughter form something Tweedy would say and then find myself crying just moments later at the pure joy that the experience provided me. I wish I could feel this way everyday of my life. To not have to worry about what anyone else is thinking because they are thinking nothing, just feeling. Sharing in a moment where we are all equally blessed to be able to experience this moment of clarity. No inhibitions or stress, just pure emotion. They say that's what heaven will be like and, I must admit, that's were it felt I was last night. I am extremely grateful for these moments where I allowed a glimpse of heaven on Earth.
Last night I had a truly religious experience. It took place behind a bar in a field with thousands of other people. All of whom had only one focus: their love for music. I saw Wilco perform for the second time in my life and the experience was truly spiritual. There were moments when I lost sense of myself and the crowd surrounding me. With my eyes closed and my mind open I merged with the rest of the crowd to form one being. A being that needed nothing else to survive, expect for the sound of the music that we let overwhelm us. Even when I did attend church it was during the music that I felt the spirit of God. Last night I felt that same emotion sweep over me. An emotion so strong that all my cares or wants or needs were as far away as Pluto. I did not worry about the normal things I would on a day to day basis. Instead I allowed my mind to succumb to the emotional roller coaster that is an amazing live show. Jeff Tweedy, the lead singer of Wilco, was full of energy and you could feel it multiply amongst the crowd. We were all feeding off the same feeling and it reminded me how we are all made to connect with what is around us. My whole life I have had trouble being a "normal" part of society. I still have memories of being a young boy thinking about how different I am from everyone else. This makes it very hard to have true emotional connections with the people around me. Even though I might come across comfortable in a crowd, and easy to relate to, it could not be further from the truth. Music is what allows me to truly feel connected to the people around me. I felt like a bipolar wreck during the entire show. I would go from fits of laughter form something Tweedy would say and then find myself crying just moments later at the pure joy that the experience provided me. I wish I could feel this way everyday of my life. To not have to worry about what anyone else is thinking because they are thinking nothing, just feeling. Sharing in a moment where we are all equally blessed to be able to experience this moment of clarity. No inhibitions or stress, just pure emotion. They say that's what heaven will be like and, I must admit, that's were it felt I was last night. I am extremely grateful for these moments where I allowed a glimpse of heaven on Earth.
Its Time To Work Out Our Hearts
7-11-15
Why do we not practice loving? We exercise and train about every other part of ourselves. Whether it be working out to train your body, reading and writing to train your mind, or speaking into a mirror to train your tongue. We spend so much time advancing the parts of ourselves that will cause us to live longer or will grant us the chance to live more comfortably, but I feel that we loose sight of the most important trait that we all need to posses: love. Caring for other people might not be what attracts people to you, or might not be what gets you that next promotion, but it is what will bring you the most happiness in life. At the points of my existence in which I have felt the lowest I was not practicing and training my ability to love the people around me. It could be as simple as making a goal to smile and say hello to everyone that you meet throughout the day or it could be as complex as setting up a group to go to a children's hospital to bring joy. Whatever you are doing its causing you to focus on the most important feeling that you can give another human being. I'm sure at this point anyone that has read all my writing through this class are thinking I'm a tree hugging lover not a fighter. This could not be further from the truth. I have a temper (I am a cook for God's sake) and I am not always the kindest individual, but that is what makes me human. We can never be perfect all the time, the important thing is that we are trying everyday to bring more positive than negative into the world. I have been unhappy for the majority of my life, but I can only imagine how miserable if i lived my life passing on that unhappiness to others. This is why I strive to meet everyone I see with the biggest smile I can muster on that given day. It's why I always look over my shoulder when exiting a building to make sure there is no one behind me that could use a hand to hold a door open for them. It's these small things, among others, that make the difference in society. If we all practiced these seemly insignificant ways of showing love it would snowball to something that none of us can even imagine. Love is the single most important component of society and, sadly, it is also one of the most rare in the world we live in. I am not too jaded to think that everyone is a bad person, but I seem to meet much more negativity than I do positivity on any given day. This is a social norm that must be corrected and will only be solved when we all actively exercise our heart and its ability to love unconditionally. Think about this as you go about your day and just remember that each smile you share with the world is making it that much of a better place to live.
Why do we not practice loving? We exercise and train about every other part of ourselves. Whether it be working out to train your body, reading and writing to train your mind, or speaking into a mirror to train your tongue. We spend so much time advancing the parts of ourselves that will cause us to live longer or will grant us the chance to live more comfortably, but I feel that we loose sight of the most important trait that we all need to posses: love. Caring for other people might not be what attracts people to you, or might not be what gets you that next promotion, but it is what will bring you the most happiness in life. At the points of my existence in which I have felt the lowest I was not practicing and training my ability to love the people around me. It could be as simple as making a goal to smile and say hello to everyone that you meet throughout the day or it could be as complex as setting up a group to go to a children's hospital to bring joy. Whatever you are doing its causing you to focus on the most important feeling that you can give another human being. I'm sure at this point anyone that has read all my writing through this class are thinking I'm a tree hugging lover not a fighter. This could not be further from the truth. I have a temper (I am a cook for God's sake) and I am not always the kindest individual, but that is what makes me human. We can never be perfect all the time, the important thing is that we are trying everyday to bring more positive than negative into the world. I have been unhappy for the majority of my life, but I can only imagine how miserable if i lived my life passing on that unhappiness to others. This is why I strive to meet everyone I see with the biggest smile I can muster on that given day. It's why I always look over my shoulder when exiting a building to make sure there is no one behind me that could use a hand to hold a door open for them. It's these small things, among others, that make the difference in society. If we all practiced these seemly insignificant ways of showing love it would snowball to something that none of us can even imagine. Love is the single most important component of society and, sadly, it is also one of the most rare in the world we live in. I am not too jaded to think that everyone is a bad person, but I seem to meet much more negativity than I do positivity on any given day. This is a social norm that must be corrected and will only be solved when we all actively exercise our heart and its ability to love unconditionally. Think about this as you go about your day and just remember that each smile you share with the world is making it that much of a better place to live.
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Freedom Shouldn't Be So Free
7-10-15
Today I was ambushed by a very radical thought; Is freedom always a good thing? I know what your thinking, "This is America and you should feel blessed for the freedom you have". And yes I try very hard to not take the freedoms I'm allowed, as an American citizen, for granted. I guess my real problem is that the majority of country can not say the same. I happened along a show, while flipping through cable television, on CMT (I know bad channel to stop on to have a social epiphany) and a show, about discovering how American's use their freedoms, caught my attention. I really wanted to stop and see a few examples. Now, my first mistake was that I was drawn in by cable television in the first place. I normally stay strictly confined to espn and food network, but if the only things playing are "Guys Grocery Games" or "Men's water polo" sometimes I'm forced to branch out and search for an alternative. This was one of those situations and thus we find me stuck on CMT discovering how "American's" use their freedom. It was disgusting. It was all the gun toting, beer drinking, obnoxiously nationalistic, piece of trash. I am not a fool to think this is how the entire nation conducts itself, but sadly these types of programs are the only ones that we can find on national television. Shows full of fabricated drama, self centered people, and lots of fighting. This is the formula to land a time slot on a major network. These are the types of shows that people watch and, unfortunately, emulate in their everyday life. This particular show on CMT affected me even more, I believe, because it showed how unappreciated our freedom is in the minds of some, or possibly a majority, of Americans. It made me wonder if that it is fair to give the same freedoms to the ignorant as to the caring individual. I'm not proposing that we should start arresting people for being uncultured, but possibly we should start arresting people for being uncultured. I'm not just seeing this reality TV garbage on my television. I'm starting to witness it more and more every day. Whether people realize it or not, they are being turned into drones made to duplicate the drama and violence they are taught on nation television. Reality TV has taken over every channel. I used to be able to turn on the History channel and actually learn about history. Now, they slip in random historical facts on the side "American Pickers" and "Swamp People". What has happened to the the values that I was preached as a kid. I understand that there are always going to be uncivilized individuals, but not at the extreme that we are starting to bear witness. We has reached a point of instability that makes me truly consider whether we all deserve the freedom that this great country offers us. I wonder what can be done to reverse the "Idiocracy" that we are watching this country devolve. I'm not sure if there's much hope, but I do know one thing; I'm gonna punch the next person I hear say "Bae".
Today I was ambushed by a very radical thought; Is freedom always a good thing? I know what your thinking, "This is America and you should feel blessed for the freedom you have". And yes I try very hard to not take the freedoms I'm allowed, as an American citizen, for granted. I guess my real problem is that the majority of country can not say the same. I happened along a show, while flipping through cable television, on CMT (I know bad channel to stop on to have a social epiphany) and a show, about discovering how American's use their freedoms, caught my attention. I really wanted to stop and see a few examples. Now, my first mistake was that I was drawn in by cable television in the first place. I normally stay strictly confined to espn and food network, but if the only things playing are "Guys Grocery Games" or "Men's water polo" sometimes I'm forced to branch out and search for an alternative. This was one of those situations and thus we find me stuck on CMT discovering how "American's" use their freedom. It was disgusting. It was all the gun toting, beer drinking, obnoxiously nationalistic, piece of trash. I am not a fool to think this is how the entire nation conducts itself, but sadly these types of programs are the only ones that we can find on national television. Shows full of fabricated drama, self centered people, and lots of fighting. This is the formula to land a time slot on a major network. These are the types of shows that people watch and, unfortunately, emulate in their everyday life. This particular show on CMT affected me even more, I believe, because it showed how unappreciated our freedom is in the minds of some, or possibly a majority, of Americans. It made me wonder if that it is fair to give the same freedoms to the ignorant as to the caring individual. I'm not proposing that we should start arresting people for being uncultured, but possibly we should start arresting people for being uncultured. I'm not just seeing this reality TV garbage on my television. I'm starting to witness it more and more every day. Whether people realize it or not, they are being turned into drones made to duplicate the drama and violence they are taught on nation television. Reality TV has taken over every channel. I used to be able to turn on the History channel and actually learn about history. Now, they slip in random historical facts on the side "American Pickers" and "Swamp People". What has happened to the the values that I was preached as a kid. I understand that there are always going to be uncivilized individuals, but not at the extreme that we are starting to bear witness. We has reached a point of instability that makes me truly consider whether we all deserve the freedom that this great country offers us. I wonder what can be done to reverse the "Idiocracy" that we are watching this country devolve. I'm not sure if there's much hope, but I do know one thing; I'm gonna punch the next person I hear say "Bae".
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Im sorry body
7-8-15
Soda is really bad for you, I state after taking a large gulp of the Pepsi that I brought home from work. Cigarettes lead you to living a short life, I exclaim after taking a drag off my Turkish Blend. We all know how bad many common habits are for your health and yet many people, including myself, ignore their reason and continue these bad habits on a daily basis. I've quit smoking cigarettes five times at this point. I guess, in retrospect, I never really quit, but instead took breaks from my habit. I was able to break the cycle for a bit, but eventually would succumb to the regularity. The regularity brings you comfort. Not the cigarette itself, but instead the act of smoking it. I don't get the buzz that I felt when I was younger. In fact I don't feel anything at all, save for the tightness of my lungs. It's the comfort of routine from which I benefit. IT helps space the day out into segments, which are far easier to connect than drawing a line from the beginning straight to the end. This brings me false satisfaction in something that is stealing time away from me. Every time I succumb to this addiction I'm making a deal with the Devil (aka Big Tobacco) in which I am giving a little bit of my life. I understand what I am putting my body through, but for whatever reason I still continue this habit. I don't know if its self loathing, a mishandling of stress, or what ever the reason may be. Its the same with sugar. I know what I am doing to myself, but instead I throw caution to the wind. The argument can be made that items that cause negative impacts on our bodies are too easily accessible. Look at our food industry for a second. It is far easy to pass one of the many fast food restaurants on your way home than it is for you to buy fresh local produce. Even people that eat a lot of fruits of vegetables aren't eating fresh locally grown items. If you have the money to live your life like that then I am very happy for you. Unfortunately, for many of the rest of us this is a fairly tale life. I wish that I could buy only produce from the farmers market, to fill my refrigerator, but this is not close to being an option for me. I'm sure if I really reevaluated my budget it could be possible, yet not convenient. With the technology we have available to us this this situation should not exist. America does need to start making better choices though. This will be the spark that the flames needs to ignite itself. We must demand for healthier options until they are made available. This will take shunning away the fast food and making the entire industry refocus. If I have learned anything from my Economics class, it is that the consumer has a great deal of power. But only if we act as a united front. We all need to work harder at wanting more for our health. The farm to table experience should not just be a dream, for many of us, and should instead be a social norm again.
Soda is really bad for you, I state after taking a large gulp of the Pepsi that I brought home from work. Cigarettes lead you to living a short life, I exclaim after taking a drag off my Turkish Blend. We all know how bad many common habits are for your health and yet many people, including myself, ignore their reason and continue these bad habits on a daily basis. I've quit smoking cigarettes five times at this point. I guess, in retrospect, I never really quit, but instead took breaks from my habit. I was able to break the cycle for a bit, but eventually would succumb to the regularity. The regularity brings you comfort. Not the cigarette itself, but instead the act of smoking it. I don't get the buzz that I felt when I was younger. In fact I don't feel anything at all, save for the tightness of my lungs. It's the comfort of routine from which I benefit. IT helps space the day out into segments, which are far easier to connect than drawing a line from the beginning straight to the end. This brings me false satisfaction in something that is stealing time away from me. Every time I succumb to this addiction I'm making a deal with the Devil (aka Big Tobacco) in which I am giving a little bit of my life. I understand what I am putting my body through, but for whatever reason I still continue this habit. I don't know if its self loathing, a mishandling of stress, or what ever the reason may be. Its the same with sugar. I know what I am doing to myself, but instead I throw caution to the wind. The argument can be made that items that cause negative impacts on our bodies are too easily accessible. Look at our food industry for a second. It is far easy to pass one of the many fast food restaurants on your way home than it is for you to buy fresh local produce. Even people that eat a lot of fruits of vegetables aren't eating fresh locally grown items. If you have the money to live your life like that then I am very happy for you. Unfortunately, for many of the rest of us this is a fairly tale life. I wish that I could buy only produce from the farmers market, to fill my refrigerator, but this is not close to being an option for me. I'm sure if I really reevaluated my budget it could be possible, yet not convenient. With the technology we have available to us this this situation should not exist. America does need to start making better choices though. This will be the spark that the flames needs to ignite itself. We must demand for healthier options until they are made available. This will take shunning away the fast food and making the entire industry refocus. If I have learned anything from my Economics class, it is that the consumer has a great deal of power. But only if we act as a united front. We all need to work harder at wanting more for our health. The farm to table experience should not just be a dream, for many of us, and should instead be a social norm again.
Thursday, July 9, 2015
Consequences
7-7-15
From a very young age we are all taught the difference between right and wrong. We are also shown, some more than others, what the outcome is of our decisions to act poorly. These outcomes are the consequences of our actions and vary from situation to situation. If you get caught eating a cookie out of the jar after told not to you may have been placed in time out. For sneaking out of your parents house in High School you might have been grounded for a week. Or the actions and subsequent could be much more serious. For me, it was the outcomes of being arrested for driving while intoxicated that showed me how harsh consequences can really be. I received two DWI's in the span of a year after I turned twenty one. I was managing an Irish Pub and would regularly (or every night) drink my fill of Guinness and Jamison and then go on my way. Of course, at this point of my life I was a young kid with not a lot to loose. I had already dropped out of school a few times, much to the surprise of everyone around me. I was hopping from one messed up relationship to another with no end in sight. I did things much worse than drinking. Things that I wish, for the sake of my body and mind, could take back. But that's the problem with making bad decisions. No matter how sorry you are for them later you can never take them back. No matter if your a completely different person and would never repeat those actions again, it doesn't matter. To society you made your mistake and now, no matter what, you must pay for your actions. For me, the inability to drive for the last two years, and the next four, is what's really eating away at my psyche. I feel trapped. Stuck in this three mile radius between my apartment and work. I'm lucky that I have an amazing girlfriend that takes me to work in the morning so I don't have to ride the bus all the time. It's not that I hate taking the bus, its just that it is such a large inconvenience. To get to and from anywhere you must add in an extra hour, to your schedule, both ways because that is on average what it will take to transport you including the time you have to sit and wait. This makes a very busy schedule that much more difficult. I used to work two jobs, but that would be completely impossible without a car and being in school at the same time. My poor decisions have made life that much more difficult to manage. It doesn't matter if you change. I know this first hand because the person I am now would never repeat the actions of my younger self ever again. I have too much to loose now. An amazing woman, a good job, and, most importantly, a bright future. As much as we like to call ourselves the land of second chances, its just not so when it comes to breaking the law. They don't go back and change your sentence just because you grew up. No one is there to feel sorry for you when your life is adversely affected for years and years. It was your fault and now you must live in the world you created. Think about this the next time you dance on the line of morality. Ask yourself is the possible consequence really worth your actions?
From a very young age we are all taught the difference between right and wrong. We are also shown, some more than others, what the outcome is of our decisions to act poorly. These outcomes are the consequences of our actions and vary from situation to situation. If you get caught eating a cookie out of the jar after told not to you may have been placed in time out. For sneaking out of your parents house in High School you might have been grounded for a week. Or the actions and subsequent could be much more serious. For me, it was the outcomes of being arrested for driving while intoxicated that showed me how harsh consequences can really be. I received two DWI's in the span of a year after I turned twenty one. I was managing an Irish Pub and would regularly (or every night) drink my fill of Guinness and Jamison and then go on my way. Of course, at this point of my life I was a young kid with not a lot to loose. I had already dropped out of school a few times, much to the surprise of everyone around me. I was hopping from one messed up relationship to another with no end in sight. I did things much worse than drinking. Things that I wish, for the sake of my body and mind, could take back. But that's the problem with making bad decisions. No matter how sorry you are for them later you can never take them back. No matter if your a completely different person and would never repeat those actions again, it doesn't matter. To society you made your mistake and now, no matter what, you must pay for your actions. For me, the inability to drive for the last two years, and the next four, is what's really eating away at my psyche. I feel trapped. Stuck in this three mile radius between my apartment and work. I'm lucky that I have an amazing girlfriend that takes me to work in the morning so I don't have to ride the bus all the time. It's not that I hate taking the bus, its just that it is such a large inconvenience. To get to and from anywhere you must add in an extra hour, to your schedule, both ways because that is on average what it will take to transport you including the time you have to sit and wait. This makes a very busy schedule that much more difficult. I used to work two jobs, but that would be completely impossible without a car and being in school at the same time. My poor decisions have made life that much more difficult to manage. It doesn't matter if you change. I know this first hand because the person I am now would never repeat the actions of my younger self ever again. I have too much to loose now. An amazing woman, a good job, and, most importantly, a bright future. As much as we like to call ourselves the land of second chances, its just not so when it comes to breaking the law. They don't go back and change your sentence just because you grew up. No one is there to feel sorry for you when your life is adversely affected for years and years. It was your fault and now you must live in the world you created. Think about this the next time you dance on the line of morality. Ask yourself is the possible consequence really worth your actions?
Express Yourself
7-6-15
No matter what your passion is you should pursue it with all your heart. We all know that feeling when we are doing something that we truly love. Whether it be dancing, writing, singing, cooking, or whatever it is that you do. Joy from expression is necessary to live a happy life. If you don't have a way to show your soul then what is the point of possessing one in the first place? We have to release the ideas stored up inside to the world. If not they will slowly die an agonizing death inside you. I feel that this is one big reason for there being so many angry people in this world. Somewhere along the line they lost the ability to truly feel joy. When we have lost our sense of joy we have become inhuman. We have lost our ability to connect with the world around us and instead only want to destroy beauty. This is a state of mind that I hope in never transgress. I pray that I will always have a child-like sense of joy and love for the world around me. I hope that, even during tough times, I will find ways to express my soul in a productive manner. A manner in which adds to the earth in some way. This is how we should live our lives. Full of joy. Every day we should all make a pact to spend some time expressing ourselves in whatever way we have available to us. It could be a silly little dancer in the elevator, in between meetings. Maybe an air drum solo to your favorite Rush song on the way to pick up your kids from soccer practice. If you can cook, it may be in the form of a home cooked meal for the ones your love. Whatever you do that brings you joy practice it daily as if you are training for a marathon. Exercise your happiness until it is a lean mean smile making machine. Love yourself and your surroundings, even if its difficult. I sometimes ask myself if it would be easier to love my life if I was a billionaire? I mean, having an awesome car and a brand new house filled with everything I could possibly want would be nice, but would it make me happier? Not if I wasn't actively pursuing things that brought me pure joy. A tangible idea that can not be bought or sold. It is only created when we let everything else go and allow ourselves to create it.
No matter what your passion is you should pursue it with all your heart. We all know that feeling when we are doing something that we truly love. Whether it be dancing, writing, singing, cooking, or whatever it is that you do. Joy from expression is necessary to live a happy life. If you don't have a way to show your soul then what is the point of possessing one in the first place? We have to release the ideas stored up inside to the world. If not they will slowly die an agonizing death inside you. I feel that this is one big reason for there being so many angry people in this world. Somewhere along the line they lost the ability to truly feel joy. When we have lost our sense of joy we have become inhuman. We have lost our ability to connect with the world around us and instead only want to destroy beauty. This is a state of mind that I hope in never transgress. I pray that I will always have a child-like sense of joy and love for the world around me. I hope that, even during tough times, I will find ways to express my soul in a productive manner. A manner in which adds to the earth in some way. This is how we should live our lives. Full of joy. Every day we should all make a pact to spend some time expressing ourselves in whatever way we have available to us. It could be a silly little dancer in the elevator, in between meetings. Maybe an air drum solo to your favorite Rush song on the way to pick up your kids from soccer practice. If you can cook, it may be in the form of a home cooked meal for the ones your love. Whatever you do that brings you joy practice it daily as if you are training for a marathon. Exercise your happiness until it is a lean mean smile making machine. Love yourself and your surroundings, even if its difficult. I sometimes ask myself if it would be easier to love my life if I was a billionaire? I mean, having an awesome car and a brand new house filled with everything I could possibly want would be nice, but would it make me happier? Not if I wasn't actively pursuing things that brought me pure joy. A tangible idea that can not be bought or sold. It is only created when we let everything else go and allow ourselves to create it.
Where do you get your information?
7-5-15
I sometimes fret that I am not well read enough. I worry
that I have not taken the proper time to educate myself adequately and risk
coming across as unintelligent in conversation. I cannot cite statistics and
quotes about the things I discuss. I can relay information, but I often cannot
explain from which it came. I do read the news constantly. Not just one source,
but all of it. I don't remember small details, normally, but I always come out
of each article with knowledge. Information I use to solidify or shift my
ideals. This is what makes me believe what I believe. What makes you? Do you go
farther, than I, in your studies and posses the ability to quote and cite?
To be able to overwhelm the discussion by knowledge attained through hours of
reading? If so I commend you greatly. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that
most humans are at a level below me. Either they do not inform themselves about
current events at all or, even worse, get all of their news from the same
source. The Fox News-ers, The CNN-ers, they are all dangerous and are an
example of the way this country has been conditioned politically. Why is either
being on the left or on the right, without the ability to support the other
side because they are viewed as the enemy, such a popular tradition in this
country? Why this two sided war still exists in the 21st century is beyond me.
I don't view myself as a perfect thinker, with all the right ideas. In fact, I
understand that I have a lot to learn. This understanding causes me to reach
out for any information that comes from an unbiased source. I love to hear both
sides of the debate. Only by hearing both sides convey their points can I reach
my own opinion. Those that consume themselves with the idea that they are either
Republican or Democrat disgust me. Never will an individual perfectly fir into
a pre-made platform. We are all built to stand on moral grounds of our choosing
instead of the fabricated ideas that try to reduce you to just another part of
the 50%. I find myself agreeing with different sides on different issues. This
is because I'm not a robot conditioned to for impartial agreement with
something being said because I feel part of that group. This is not the way
that a free thinking individual should choose to live their lives. Until we
refuse this mentality as a whole we will never have the opportunity to elect an
individual that will right the course, of this ship, that is America.
Mmmmmmmm
7-4-15
Just like music, I feel food is a universal language. A language spoken with flavors and colors rather than chords and melodies. Food can create so many feelings. It can remind you of times long past. Just the smell of certain things cooking can bring my grandma into the room as if she is sitting right next to me. The right meal can set the mood of love. As cheesy as this may sound, I got my first few girlfriends with my cooking. Not that I'm really all that talented, but just the simplicity of creating a dish for someone is incredibly endearing. Food can tell your story, your families story. It can be used to show how much you care about someone. I've spent entire days on meals for people because I want the care in my cooking to reflect the way I care for them. Where I went wrong was taking this beautiful expression of the soul and exploiting it to pay my bills. Now I sitting here, typing, is a jaded professional cook. I use the term "professional" extremely loosely here. Like a XXL on a toddler loose. If you ever working in a kitchen with me, the fastest way you can elevate my temper is calling me by the name "chef". I have not put in the classical training to deserve such a title. Although, I have ran a kitchen, well I might add, this was due to being in a place that needed someone and I just happened to be standing there, What a great way to be promoted right? Out of sheer necessity. I was never granted the entire control that a true "chef" would be entitled. I never got to have a direct say at manager meetings. Even though I worked as hard as possible to turn the kitchen around I didn't have any say in the new menu they rolled out shortly before I left. I had no respect, and worse, no trust. I had left a job working for one of the more renown chefs in this area, Peter Tinsen, to work full time as kitchen manager for their Irish Pub. I had sentimental reason for going there due to my heritage and also I really liked to drink at the time, so I was an easy sell. Over the course of the entire two years I was with that company I slowed lost my passion for cooking. I started cooking less and less at home and the love I once had for my job was gone. I wish that I could tell you that this story has a happy ending, but unfortunately, at this point, it does not. These years wasted taught me a valuable lesson though. No matter how much you love something, being in the wrong situation, working for the wrong people, can stifle this passion. That is why I am taking this class, writing this blog. To find a way out of this cycle of abusing my passion in the name of money.
Just like music, I feel food is a universal language. A language spoken with flavors and colors rather than chords and melodies. Food can create so many feelings. It can remind you of times long past. Just the smell of certain things cooking can bring my grandma into the room as if she is sitting right next to me. The right meal can set the mood of love. As cheesy as this may sound, I got my first few girlfriends with my cooking. Not that I'm really all that talented, but just the simplicity of creating a dish for someone is incredibly endearing. Food can tell your story, your families story. It can be used to show how much you care about someone. I've spent entire days on meals for people because I want the care in my cooking to reflect the way I care for them. Where I went wrong was taking this beautiful expression of the soul and exploiting it to pay my bills. Now I sitting here, typing, is a jaded professional cook. I use the term "professional" extremely loosely here. Like a XXL on a toddler loose. If you ever working in a kitchen with me, the fastest way you can elevate my temper is calling me by the name "chef". I have not put in the classical training to deserve such a title. Although, I have ran a kitchen, well I might add, this was due to being in a place that needed someone and I just happened to be standing there, What a great way to be promoted right? Out of sheer necessity. I was never granted the entire control that a true "chef" would be entitled. I never got to have a direct say at manager meetings. Even though I worked as hard as possible to turn the kitchen around I didn't have any say in the new menu they rolled out shortly before I left. I had no respect, and worse, no trust. I had left a job working for one of the more renown chefs in this area, Peter Tinsen, to work full time as kitchen manager for their Irish Pub. I had sentimental reason for going there due to my heritage and also I really liked to drink at the time, so I was an easy sell. Over the course of the entire two years I was with that company I slowed lost my passion for cooking. I started cooking less and less at home and the love I once had for my job was gone. I wish that I could tell you that this story has a happy ending, but unfortunately, at this point, it does not. These years wasted taught me a valuable lesson though. No matter how much you love something, being in the wrong situation, working for the wrong people, can stifle this passion. That is why I am taking this class, writing this blog. To find a way out of this cycle of abusing my passion in the name of money.
A day that has come too late
7-9-15
It was decided today, to take down the Confederate flag at the South Carolina State capital. No, I am not quoting a news headline from the late 1800's or even near the 1950's. Sadly, this was an event that happened this day in 2015. What makes me the most angry is that we even have to go through this debate in the first place. I understand that other groups have their customs and I do believe we can go too far in our political correctness sometimes (I mean Dukes of Hazard, really???), but by no means do I see the supporting of a symbol that stood on the moral foundation that a black man was less than a white man. To be regarded lower than an animal. Viewed, and used, as an equipment of labor. Meant to be worn down over years of hardship and then tossed aside when it is no good anymore. A complete devaluing of thousands and thousands of people, that were forced away from their homelands in the first place, to participate in this sick and disgusting "custom" of slavery. This was a socially accepted norm in this country and this symbol was lifted by individuals that fought for it to still exist today. They were traitors that betrayed their country when they refused to evolve morally with people that had compassion. That at least wanted to give every human the opportunity to not be owned as a piece of equipment. Now were all these people racially unbiased? I'm sure that some of them did not. There were many that probably joined for their own benefit or for political reasons, because there was a not more than just slavery going during the time of succession. But, I am thankful for every one of the individuals that fought to free our fellow man. Although they did not free them into a completely loving world, they still freed them. To live a life with no control is no life at all. Taking away someones ability to decide for themselves is one of the sickest forms of torture you can commit to a human being. To literally make them less than human, in a societal level. Just the thought of it sends blood rushing to my head as quickly as my fingers hit the keyboard. We now live in a post slavery world that is full of hate. Hate that has built because we have never finally killed the elephant in the room. Instead he stomps around in the form of a flag that has forcibly been flown above the heads of African Americans in the south, to remind them of what was once just another "custom". You say your flag stands for the history of the south. Well excuse the black community for not wanting this history to be rubbed in their faces, on a day to day basis. Yet we all still wonder why we haven't solved the issue of racism. Somehow there are still some that can not face the reality that no one group of people is bad. No matter the color of your skin this is not a reflection of your character. Only your ancestry. There are good and bad people that comprise every ethnic group. Think back to the histories of all different nations that you learned about when you were growing up. Was there ever an instance of a region that was comprised of all good or all bad people? No. Never has a population been a viable candidate for complete generalization. Unfortunately, no matter how many symbols of a bygone era we remove the stigma will remain. Remain only until people are taught to love each other. How we teach this I do not know. I'm not sure how I came to the realization myself. I've just never had a hate for any group of people. Only individual people that have proven that they do not how to conduct themselves properly. That showed that they did not have love for the people around them. Sadly, the truth is, I keep seeing more and more of these people every day.
It was decided today, to take down the Confederate flag at the South Carolina State capital. No, I am not quoting a news headline from the late 1800's or even near the 1950's. Sadly, this was an event that happened this day in 2015. What makes me the most angry is that we even have to go through this debate in the first place. I understand that other groups have their customs and I do believe we can go too far in our political correctness sometimes (I mean Dukes of Hazard, really???), but by no means do I see the supporting of a symbol that stood on the moral foundation that a black man was less than a white man. To be regarded lower than an animal. Viewed, and used, as an equipment of labor. Meant to be worn down over years of hardship and then tossed aside when it is no good anymore. A complete devaluing of thousands and thousands of people, that were forced away from their homelands in the first place, to participate in this sick and disgusting "custom" of slavery. This was a socially accepted norm in this country and this symbol was lifted by individuals that fought for it to still exist today. They were traitors that betrayed their country when they refused to evolve morally with people that had compassion. That at least wanted to give every human the opportunity to not be owned as a piece of equipment. Now were all these people racially unbiased? I'm sure that some of them did not. There were many that probably joined for their own benefit or for political reasons, because there was a not more than just slavery going during the time of succession. But, I am thankful for every one of the individuals that fought to free our fellow man. Although they did not free them into a completely loving world, they still freed them. To live a life with no control is no life at all. Taking away someones ability to decide for themselves is one of the sickest forms of torture you can commit to a human being. To literally make them less than human, in a societal level. Just the thought of it sends blood rushing to my head as quickly as my fingers hit the keyboard. We now live in a post slavery world that is full of hate. Hate that has built because we have never finally killed the elephant in the room. Instead he stomps around in the form of a flag that has forcibly been flown above the heads of African Americans in the south, to remind them of what was once just another "custom". You say your flag stands for the history of the south. Well excuse the black community for not wanting this history to be rubbed in their faces, on a day to day basis. Yet we all still wonder why we haven't solved the issue of racism. Somehow there are still some that can not face the reality that no one group of people is bad. No matter the color of your skin this is not a reflection of your character. Only your ancestry. There are good and bad people that comprise every ethnic group. Think back to the histories of all different nations that you learned about when you were growing up. Was there ever an instance of a region that was comprised of all good or all bad people? No. Never has a population been a viable candidate for complete generalization. Unfortunately, no matter how many symbols of a bygone era we remove the stigma will remain. Remain only until people are taught to love each other. How we teach this I do not know. I'm not sure how I came to the realization myself. I've just never had a hate for any group of people. Only individual people that have proven that they do not how to conduct themselves properly. That showed that they did not have love for the people around them. Sadly, the truth is, I keep seeing more and more of these people every day.
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Liberty
7-3-15
Liberty. I feel that this is a word that is very misunderstood in the society that we live in today. It has been butchered by mainstream media and distorted to the benifit in whatever political agenda is envoking its name. Liberty is an ideal that is entrenched in the foundation of our country and must exist if we are to stay the haven of freedom that we claim ourselves to be. We have entered a world that constantly has information flowing at our fingertips. Social media causes information, frequently untrue, to be cycled by mass amounts of views, many of which won't take the time to check the authenticity of the information they are reading. This causes us to have mass amounts of people that are misinformaed and have a widly distorted view of events. The two party polotics pathway, that this country has decided to travel, has split our nation into two opposite views now matter what subject is being discussed. Liberty is not exempt from this list. One of the strongest political movements, in my generation, has been that of the libertarian movement. This is a group of people, myself included, that believe in the foundations of liberty as laid before us in the Constitution. The basic idea, for me atleast, is that everyone should be granted the same inherent liberties: Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Lets look at each of these points seperatley. Life. We should all be allowed to have the oppertunity to live a long and valued life. This includes readily availiable healthcare plans that are affordable no matter your socioeconomic status. I believe that we went to far with the Affordable Healthcare Act because although it did open up healthcare plans to individuals that may have not had acsess otherwise, it's mandate that we have to purchase a plan, or get taxed, is unconstitutional. To make readily available and to force upon are two totally different concepts. By forcing me to buy into health insurance is not universal healthcare but instead another tax with which I am forced to cooperate. I understand that Universal Healthcare will never be free, but in my mind it would be much more benificial to create an economic climate that leads to the availibility of such plans at affordable rates, without forcing individuals to make decisions or face a fine. For me specifically, I have plans under the Act that are free for me, but they injvolve such high premiums that I would not see any help until I payed for as much medical care as I have recieved in the last five to ten years. I am someone who goes to the docter very rarly so barring any serious medical disasters, I would not recieve any benifit in the short term. So I would still be paying the outragious prices that doctor's offices entail and would receive no aid. This is not something that is very feasible to me, but because I am unwilling to take part in this scheme I am forced to pay a penalty. Life should not be more expensive, in retaliative terms, for one individual over another. Medical aid should be inherently affordable and should not require a middle man for it to be a feasible option for the majority of the country. Liberty. We should all be given the opportunity to live our lives without fear of intervention from an outside entity. In my mind, as long as your actions are not directly interfering with the lives of another individual then there is nothing that you could be doing that I would justify means to stopping you. The pursuit of happiness. Not the guarantee, but instead the opportunity for all of us to actively pursue what we view as our version of happiness. Basically we should all be given the same opportunities. Whether your from a rich family or a poor one. Whether you were born black or white, in a subdivision or in the ghetto. No matter what social class you are brought into you should be given the same chances as an individual from the opposite end of the spectrum. This is where I feel like we are falling the most short. Too many people are denied chances because of where they are born. Take growing up in the projects, for example. Many people claim that this isn't a problem because there are the few stories of successful people that made it out of that situation. While it is true that growing up in a harsh environment can create even more character, the facts show that the majority of people growing up in impoverished communities are not going to live the successful life as someone that grew up in a more supportive environment. I'm sick of people using excuses instead of helping our fellow human being out of the situation that they did not choose in the first place. We all need to come together as a human race to try and even the playing field that is life.
Liberty. I feel that this is a word that is very misunderstood in the society that we live in today. It has been butchered by mainstream media and distorted to the benifit in whatever political agenda is envoking its name. Liberty is an ideal that is entrenched in the foundation of our country and must exist if we are to stay the haven of freedom that we claim ourselves to be. We have entered a world that constantly has information flowing at our fingertips. Social media causes information, frequently untrue, to be cycled by mass amounts of views, many of which won't take the time to check the authenticity of the information they are reading. This causes us to have mass amounts of people that are misinformaed and have a widly distorted view of events. The two party polotics pathway, that this country has decided to travel, has split our nation into two opposite views now matter what subject is being discussed. Liberty is not exempt from this list. One of the strongest political movements, in my generation, has been that of the libertarian movement. This is a group of people, myself included, that believe in the foundations of liberty as laid before us in the Constitution. The basic idea, for me atleast, is that everyone should be granted the same inherent liberties: Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Lets look at each of these points seperatley. Life. We should all be allowed to have the oppertunity to live a long and valued life. This includes readily availiable healthcare plans that are affordable no matter your socioeconomic status. I believe that we went to far with the Affordable Healthcare Act because although it did open up healthcare plans to individuals that may have not had acsess otherwise, it's mandate that we have to purchase a plan, or get taxed, is unconstitutional. To make readily available and to force upon are two totally different concepts. By forcing me to buy into health insurance is not universal healthcare but instead another tax with which I am forced to cooperate. I understand that Universal Healthcare will never be free, but in my mind it would be much more benificial to create an economic climate that leads to the availibility of such plans at affordable rates, without forcing individuals to make decisions or face a fine. For me specifically, I have plans under the Act that are free for me, but they injvolve such high premiums that I would not see any help until I payed for as much medical care as I have recieved in the last five to ten years. I am someone who goes to the docter very rarly so barring any serious medical disasters, I would not recieve any benifit in the short term. So I would still be paying the outragious prices that doctor's offices entail and would receive no aid. This is not something that is very feasible to me, but because I am unwilling to take part in this scheme I am forced to pay a penalty. Life should not be more expensive, in retaliative terms, for one individual over another. Medical aid should be inherently affordable and should not require a middle man for it to be a feasible option for the majority of the country. Liberty. We should all be given the opportunity to live our lives without fear of intervention from an outside entity. In my mind, as long as your actions are not directly interfering with the lives of another individual then there is nothing that you could be doing that I would justify means to stopping you. The pursuit of happiness. Not the guarantee, but instead the opportunity for all of us to actively pursue what we view as our version of happiness. Basically we should all be given the same opportunities. Whether your from a rich family or a poor one. Whether you were born black or white, in a subdivision or in the ghetto. No matter what social class you are brought into you should be given the same chances as an individual from the opposite end of the spectrum. This is where I feel like we are falling the most short. Too many people are denied chances because of where they are born. Take growing up in the projects, for example. Many people claim that this isn't a problem because there are the few stories of successful people that made it out of that situation. While it is true that growing up in a harsh environment can create even more character, the facts show that the majority of people growing up in impoverished communities are not going to live the successful life as someone that grew up in a more supportive environment. I'm sick of people using excuses instead of helping our fellow human being out of the situation that they did not choose in the first place. We all need to come together as a human race to try and even the playing field that is life.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Music is Life
7-2-15
What is music to you? Is it a way to let loose? Let the stress of the day out by slamming to thrash metal or singing along to Disney tunes? There are some of you that use it distract from the sound of life. For some it's a way to express their spirituality, religious or not, and approach an inner feeling that can only be expressed in a cosmic language. I, myself, use music for all of these reasons and more. To say music is an interest for me is like asking Kareem Abdul Jabbar if basketball is a hobby of his. When I'm listening to music there are so many different ways it nourishes me. So times it expresses my feelings in a way I can not comprehend on my own. It can open my mind to levels not attained, through lyrics or amazing instrumental work. If I'm listening to classical I am creating an environment for my brain to perform at a more optimal level. Mostly rock and roll is what is playing through my speakers, including this moment as I write. This is a broad genera of music that encompasses all that came before it. It allows me to express my rebellious nature in a productive way. It assures me that there are others that think the same way as me and, not only that, made songs and inserted these thoughts as lyrics. Some powerful connections of words that, combined with an amazing guitar riff, making me connected to life in a moment than an entire day of normal interactions with life itself. Music is a universal language that stretches across every nook and cranny of the earth. Even nature has its own form of music. In fact these rhythms are often the most touching to me. Anyone that does not take every opportunity they can to sit back an listen to what the earth has to say is wasting their time. Music is expression. Reaching into the deepest depths of someones soul it brings out things that the owner didn't even know they possessed. It think this is why I've always been so paranoid about going deaf. I am still religious about my post swimming ceremony. I will not rest until every molecule of water is expelled. This stems from being told when I was young how often kids went deaf from swimmers ear after not cleaning out their ears enough after swimming. This was, I'm sure, an elaborate attempt by adults to ensure that I didn't get swimmers ear. This fear of going deaf is very real in my life. I would hate to go blind but, as beautiful as the world is, I think I could live much happier hearing voices and laughter over seeing faces. Of enjoying a band, instead of simply watching them move. A life without music is, sadly, a life that I could not live. I can;t say there are a lot of things that would make me completely give up on life, but that. Music is me.
What is music to you? Is it a way to let loose? Let the stress of the day out by slamming to thrash metal or singing along to Disney tunes? There are some of you that use it distract from the sound of life. For some it's a way to express their spirituality, religious or not, and approach an inner feeling that can only be expressed in a cosmic language. I, myself, use music for all of these reasons and more. To say music is an interest for me is like asking Kareem Abdul Jabbar if basketball is a hobby of his. When I'm listening to music there are so many different ways it nourishes me. So times it expresses my feelings in a way I can not comprehend on my own. It can open my mind to levels not attained, through lyrics or amazing instrumental work. If I'm listening to classical I am creating an environment for my brain to perform at a more optimal level. Mostly rock and roll is what is playing through my speakers, including this moment as I write. This is a broad genera of music that encompasses all that came before it. It allows me to express my rebellious nature in a productive way. It assures me that there are others that think the same way as me and, not only that, made songs and inserted these thoughts as lyrics. Some powerful connections of words that, combined with an amazing guitar riff, making me connected to life in a moment than an entire day of normal interactions with life itself. Music is a universal language that stretches across every nook and cranny of the earth. Even nature has its own form of music. In fact these rhythms are often the most touching to me. Anyone that does not take every opportunity they can to sit back an listen to what the earth has to say is wasting their time. Music is expression. Reaching into the deepest depths of someones soul it brings out things that the owner didn't even know they possessed. It think this is why I've always been so paranoid about going deaf. I am still religious about my post swimming ceremony. I will not rest until every molecule of water is expelled. This stems from being told when I was young how often kids went deaf from swimmers ear after not cleaning out their ears enough after swimming. This was, I'm sure, an elaborate attempt by adults to ensure that I didn't get swimmers ear. This fear of going deaf is very real in my life. I would hate to go blind but, as beautiful as the world is, I think I could live much happier hearing voices and laughter over seeing faces. Of enjoying a band, instead of simply watching them move. A life without music is, sadly, a life that I could not live. I can;t say there are a lot of things that would make me completely give up on life, but that. Music is me.
Thursday, July 2, 2015
What I have Learned From My Cats
7-1-15
This might seem to be a silly topic for some of you, including myself, but at this point my mind has been beaten to a pulp by the weight of this day and this is what topic my mind has decided to draw. I do not consider myself to be a crazy cat person by any means. In fact, if not for my girlfriend I would still be living alone, pet-less. But now that I have been introduced to two of the most entertaining feline characters life could have handed me, I can not imagine where I would be right now without them. I once thought that I didn't need anyone at all, especially an animal, to ensure my happiness or strengthen my fortitude. I had this lone wolf mentality that made me truly believe that I was better off alone than allowing another living thing to help me with my problems. Even with my girlfriend, who I love dearly, I would keep secrets and would not allow to see the true nature of my soul, in fear of adding extra stress from my life onto hers. I would not allow myself to be comforted by this person with which I've shared so much time, laughter, and pain. This problem made life's difficulties exponentially harder. Although I would not admit it, deep down I knew that I needed an outside source of comfort that I have found myself lacking in life for so long. Not in a million years did I think a kitten, by the name of Daisy, would make the solution seem so apparent after so many years of searching for it. I had read articles about pets being able to sense their owners pain, but I never really experienced this in my life. I had animals growing up, but my time with the few of them were always cut short and not truly appreciated. This tiny cat is, as cheesy as it may seem, one of the reasons I have conquered some of the difficult personal problems that vexed my character for so long. This cat has taught me the importance of simply being there in a persons life and the profound effect that this has on their state of mind. Whenever I return home angry, sad, or depressed I am assured that Daisy will be there to curl up in my lap and comfort me. Not with words, obviously, but simply the act of being there reminding me that life is more than just about me. Life is about being there for someone. Sometimes not uttering a word of assurance or guidance, but instead just existing so that the other can remember that they are not alone. Anyway I'm going to cut this shorter than intended in fear of sounding too crazy. I just wanted to express appreciation for one of the little things in life that has led me to a greater understanding of the bigger picture.
This might seem to be a silly topic for some of you, including myself, but at this point my mind has been beaten to a pulp by the weight of this day and this is what topic my mind has decided to draw. I do not consider myself to be a crazy cat person by any means. In fact, if not for my girlfriend I would still be living alone, pet-less. But now that I have been introduced to two of the most entertaining feline characters life could have handed me, I can not imagine where I would be right now without them. I once thought that I didn't need anyone at all, especially an animal, to ensure my happiness or strengthen my fortitude. I had this lone wolf mentality that made me truly believe that I was better off alone than allowing another living thing to help me with my problems. Even with my girlfriend, who I love dearly, I would keep secrets and would not allow to see the true nature of my soul, in fear of adding extra stress from my life onto hers. I would not allow myself to be comforted by this person with which I've shared so much time, laughter, and pain. This problem made life's difficulties exponentially harder. Although I would not admit it, deep down I knew that I needed an outside source of comfort that I have found myself lacking in life for so long. Not in a million years did I think a kitten, by the name of Daisy, would make the solution seem so apparent after so many years of searching for it. I had read articles about pets being able to sense their owners pain, but I never really experienced this in my life. I had animals growing up, but my time with the few of them were always cut short and not truly appreciated. This tiny cat is, as cheesy as it may seem, one of the reasons I have conquered some of the difficult personal problems that vexed my character for so long. This cat has taught me the importance of simply being there in a persons life and the profound effect that this has on their state of mind. Whenever I return home angry, sad, or depressed I am assured that Daisy will be there to curl up in my lap and comfort me. Not with words, obviously, but simply the act of being there reminding me that life is more than just about me. Life is about being there for someone. Sometimes not uttering a word of assurance or guidance, but instead just existing so that the other can remember that they are not alone. Anyway I'm going to cut this shorter than intended in fear of sounding too crazy. I just wanted to express appreciation for one of the little things in life that has led me to a greater understanding of the bigger picture.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Much Ado About Nothing
6-30-15
At this point I am not trying to think about what I am focusing my writing on, but rather trying to free write about nothing in particular. Although, when trying to write about nothing one finds themselves grasping for something. from nothing comes something and eventually the mind must grab a hold of a subject in which to perpetuate words and phrases. If nothing is being discussed how might we be able to converse amongst ourselves for mindless hours upon hours. Then, I guess, to form a subject about something one must first define what something is. Its not truly relative. For one something may be nothing and for another vice versa. For a blind person to only see nothing in place of a flower pot make the flower pot any less real? so subject matter must be an opinionated statement and at the same time be a relative idea. How does one coincide both without refuting the laws of the other? How can we universally accept what is considered a subject matter? For me, I might view the topic of racial equality quite appealing, whereas a KKK member might view that as propaganda. What makes something something and nothing nothing. It must be relative to the eye of the beholder. Not all of humanity can share in absolute experiences and must therefore define the world that they see through their own eyes. That being said, how does one get to the true definition for themselves? Some might argue that life experiences are what shape our perspective, but this could be easily refuted when looking at twins connected by the hip that have starkly different characters. So if we can experience the same things in life, but be made completely different it must be a difference in minds that make us perceive. At any rate, even the attempt to discuss nothing for ten minutes can cause an individual to be lead down the path towards something. For nothing is impossible and something always must exist.
At this point I am not trying to think about what I am focusing my writing on, but rather trying to free write about nothing in particular. Although, when trying to write about nothing one finds themselves grasping for something. from nothing comes something and eventually the mind must grab a hold of a subject in which to perpetuate words and phrases. If nothing is being discussed how might we be able to converse amongst ourselves for mindless hours upon hours. Then, I guess, to form a subject about something one must first define what something is. Its not truly relative. For one something may be nothing and for another vice versa. For a blind person to only see nothing in place of a flower pot make the flower pot any less real? so subject matter must be an opinionated statement and at the same time be a relative idea. How does one coincide both without refuting the laws of the other? How can we universally accept what is considered a subject matter? For me, I might view the topic of racial equality quite appealing, whereas a KKK member might view that as propaganda. What makes something something and nothing nothing. It must be relative to the eye of the beholder. Not all of humanity can share in absolute experiences and must therefore define the world that they see through their own eyes. That being said, how does one get to the true definition for themselves? Some might argue that life experiences are what shape our perspective, but this could be easily refuted when looking at twins connected by the hip that have starkly different characters. So if we can experience the same things in life, but be made completely different it must be a difference in minds that make us perceive. At any rate, even the attempt to discuss nothing for ten minutes can cause an individual to be lead down the path towards something. For nothing is impossible and something always must exist.
Injustice
7-1-15
I awoke this morning and went about my daily routine as I would any day. Shower, shave, make a cup of coffee, and sit down to the news. I am always troubled by what I read because that is the nature of the world we live in, but on this particular morning I am even more disturbed than on others. This is after reading an article about the string of fires at predominately black churches across the south. This information is not what really troubles me because, as we have seen in recent weeks in the wake of the Charlestown shootings, racism is still alive and well today. So stories of race motivated crimes, sadly, do not surprise me, even though I desperately wish they did. But what does make me irritate, to the point of viable shaking, is how we are responding to these acts of violence. While reading an article about yet another black church catching fire during the night I am appalled to read the language in which the story is written. The author, like many others reporting on these events, and the authorities in charge, are taking any chance they can to deflect the blame away from hate. They are adamant about pointing out the chance that it could just be coincidence and that all the events could just be accidents that just happened to follow directly in the wake of one of the most heinous hate crimes that this country has witnessed. Now I am not an investigator and don't know exactly what is going on, and I feel it is probably an important part of the investigators job to try and calm the public before any questions are answered. That being said, it infuriates me the different ways we report on different race related crimes. Whenever it is a white person doing the damage we claim that they are "mentally ill". We say that it was just the actions of a person that didn't have the mental fortitude to understand the consequences. When we speak of minorities committing crimes we use words such as thug, terrorist, and gang member. This was no different in the reporting of the Charlestown shootings as we have already labeled the suspect as a "troubled individual" with "severe mental complications". This does not do justice to the actions that were committed. This event was a terrorist attack on our soil by a member of a gang that perpetuates hate. This leads me to the caution that we are taking in calling these "coincidental" church fires by their true names, hate crimes. Again, I am not an investigator and don't know everything about the scenes of the crimes, but if you think that this many black churches have been burnt down in wake of the most heinous hate crime of my generation is just an act of God or a "coincidence", then I believe you are either naive or just completely blind to the deep racial bias that exists in this country. Until each and every one of us opens our eyes to the long ignored racial gap that exists in this country we will continue to see events such as this take place and we will continue to cast the blame towards coincidence, metal illnesses, or whatever propagated view that the media chooses to perpetuate. We can not allow the racial divide be cast aside and ignored any longer. It is time to put a bandage on the wound instead of hoping it will heal by itself.
I awoke this morning and went about my daily routine as I would any day. Shower, shave, make a cup of coffee, and sit down to the news. I am always troubled by what I read because that is the nature of the world we live in, but on this particular morning I am even more disturbed than on others. This is after reading an article about the string of fires at predominately black churches across the south. This information is not what really troubles me because, as we have seen in recent weeks in the wake of the Charlestown shootings, racism is still alive and well today. So stories of race motivated crimes, sadly, do not surprise me, even though I desperately wish they did. But what does make me irritate, to the point of viable shaking, is how we are responding to these acts of violence. While reading an article about yet another black church catching fire during the night I am appalled to read the language in which the story is written. The author, like many others reporting on these events, and the authorities in charge, are taking any chance they can to deflect the blame away from hate. They are adamant about pointing out the chance that it could just be coincidence and that all the events could just be accidents that just happened to follow directly in the wake of one of the most heinous hate crimes that this country has witnessed. Now I am not an investigator and don't know exactly what is going on, and I feel it is probably an important part of the investigators job to try and calm the public before any questions are answered. That being said, it infuriates me the different ways we report on different race related crimes. Whenever it is a white person doing the damage we claim that they are "mentally ill". We say that it was just the actions of a person that didn't have the mental fortitude to understand the consequences. When we speak of minorities committing crimes we use words such as thug, terrorist, and gang member. This was no different in the reporting of the Charlestown shootings as we have already labeled the suspect as a "troubled individual" with "severe mental complications". This does not do justice to the actions that were committed. This event was a terrorist attack on our soil by a member of a gang that perpetuates hate. This leads me to the caution that we are taking in calling these "coincidental" church fires by their true names, hate crimes. Again, I am not an investigator and don't know everything about the scenes of the crimes, but if you think that this many black churches have been burnt down in wake of the most heinous hate crime of my generation is just an act of God or a "coincidence", then I believe you are either naive or just completely blind to the deep racial bias that exists in this country. Until each and every one of us opens our eyes to the long ignored racial gap that exists in this country we will continue to see events such as this take place and we will continue to cast the blame towards coincidence, metal illnesses, or whatever propagated view that the media chooses to perpetuate. We can not allow the racial divide be cast aside and ignored any longer. It is time to put a bandage on the wound instead of hoping it will heal by itself.
Love
6-29-15
One of the most complex mysteries of the world is the perception of love. What is it, how is it created, and what does it take to sustain it. These are questions that will possibly never be answered because of the complex nature of the subject of discussion. Are all humans born with the capacity to love the people around of unquestionably? One would assume so because I've never seen a baby that wasn't full of love and joy (unless they were hungry). We enter this world a blank vessel that understands very few things. This lack of knowledge causes us to be solely dependent on the actions of the people around us. We know nothing of race, religion, or political associations. This causes us to view people as simply what they are, people. I feel that as we grow older and learn about the things of this world, and form our options about it, this is where the capacity to love unconditionally gets exponentially harder. What would it take for us to revert back to the way we were as a baby? It is as simple as wiping the slate clean and forgetting about anything that we have learned when it comes to new people being introduced into our lives. When coming into contact with someone new act as if they are the first human that you have ever interacted with, whether they be an angry customer at the restaurant that employs you, an old lady that seems like she might need some help at the grocery store, or any of the hundreds of people you happen along in your day to day life. This is important because in this country we have a problem with misconception. This tendency to have preconceived notions about people is evident in the manner in which I hear people, of this area, discuss the character of people of a different race, religious affiliation, or political stance. We tend to assume character based off what we generalize about groups of people. I personally find myself struggling with this when I meet devote Christians. So I am not excluding myself from this exercise by any means. We all have bias. We all have events in our life that have caused us to mistrust or dislike a certain group of people. These preconceived notions are what is creating the divide that we have in society and must be destroyed. Every person is their own being. Some inherently good, some inherently bad. We will never get along with every individual we come into contact with because, lets face it, there are people in this world that even Mother Theresa probably wouldn't have liked. There are individuals that have lost the capacity to look past worldly stigmas, such as color, and will never be relateable for those of us that strive to love completely. Even these people should not be ignored though. Those who have lost the ability to love completely should be provided that much more love in return. This is because if we choose to ignore or disenfranchise these people just because they shun us, we are reverting to the sick logic that these individuals follow. Only love can conquer hate and only community can conquer stigmas. This is why we all need to strive on a day to day basis to break down social barriers and enter the world like a new born baby, full of love and lacking preconceived ideas about the people that surround us.
One of the most complex mysteries of the world is the perception of love. What is it, how is it created, and what does it take to sustain it. These are questions that will possibly never be answered because of the complex nature of the subject of discussion. Are all humans born with the capacity to love the people around of unquestionably? One would assume so because I've never seen a baby that wasn't full of love and joy (unless they were hungry). We enter this world a blank vessel that understands very few things. This lack of knowledge causes us to be solely dependent on the actions of the people around us. We know nothing of race, religion, or political associations. This causes us to view people as simply what they are, people. I feel that as we grow older and learn about the things of this world, and form our options about it, this is where the capacity to love unconditionally gets exponentially harder. What would it take for us to revert back to the way we were as a baby? It is as simple as wiping the slate clean and forgetting about anything that we have learned when it comes to new people being introduced into our lives. When coming into contact with someone new act as if they are the first human that you have ever interacted with, whether they be an angry customer at the restaurant that employs you, an old lady that seems like she might need some help at the grocery store, or any of the hundreds of people you happen along in your day to day life. This is important because in this country we have a problem with misconception. This tendency to have preconceived notions about people is evident in the manner in which I hear people, of this area, discuss the character of people of a different race, religious affiliation, or political stance. We tend to assume character based off what we generalize about groups of people. I personally find myself struggling with this when I meet devote Christians. So I am not excluding myself from this exercise by any means. We all have bias. We all have events in our life that have caused us to mistrust or dislike a certain group of people. These preconceived notions are what is creating the divide that we have in society and must be destroyed. Every person is their own being. Some inherently good, some inherently bad. We will never get along with every individual we come into contact with because, lets face it, there are people in this world that even Mother Theresa probably wouldn't have liked. There are individuals that have lost the capacity to look past worldly stigmas, such as color, and will never be relateable for those of us that strive to love completely. Even these people should not be ignored though. Those who have lost the ability to love completely should be provided that much more love in return. This is because if we choose to ignore or disenfranchise these people just because they shun us, we are reverting to the sick logic that these individuals follow. Only love can conquer hate and only community can conquer stigmas. This is why we all need to strive on a day to day basis to break down social barriers and enter the world like a new born baby, full of love and lacking preconceived ideas about the people that surround us.
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