Moving Life

In the past seven months I have moved my life three times. The first being the transition from undergraduate life, graduating, back home. This move was the hardest due to the ridiculous amount of shit that I had accumulated over the past three years of living in the same apartment. The second being the slightly risky move with no job down to Chicago pursuing something outside of small town America. The second move was more exciting than it was difficult, packed up what would fit into my vehicle and moved into an extra room my cousin had vacant. Relatively easy move being that I moved in with an extended family member, however weird his family may be. (That's a whole separate issue.) Finally, the third move that is taking place is happening tomorrow - from Chicago to Fenton. Not exciting whatsoever but mandatory at the time. 

The initial move from school to home was rather relieving in that I was done with the undergrad life a year or so prior to that anyway. Looking to do something that actually mattered, other than study for some pointless exam that will not help me in the business world anyway. Yes, I understand the thought of teaching hard work, preparation, details, organization, etc., but how is knowing which literary work best relates to art-deco architecture really going to help?? Deals get done by people who know their product, competition, capabilities, and customer, not the bonehead who is afraid of people but happens to have a 4.0. A good portion of the successful people I have met, that is individuals who own and grew their own business, don't have a college education and happen to be overwhelmingly intelligent. Not to discredit education but that shalt not be the sole factor. Point of my rambling: hard work and knowledge trump book smarts. 

Moving from home to Chicago was easy. The city is new, exciting, unknown, uncharted, mysterious, etc.. Everything one might want in a place where they don't have to drive in order to find some form of life. Yes, Fenton has its moments but it is fairly barren for the excited people people. Onto the next - Moving from Chicago back home is slightly more difficult. Leaving some good friends, something to do on weekdays, random schizophrenics on the bus, good public transport, acceptable tapas outside of Spain, diverse things to do, a great blues bar - Kingston Mines, every different type of person one could imagine, more than one good restaurant, a beautiful lake, runs where you never see the same things/people, blah blah blah, the list could be as long as this entire page. 

The first week back should be very interesting. Halfway excited, that may be an exaggeration. Ha

Numbness Without Clarity

Enjoy the chase, makes the prize even that much more desirable. 

Don't go hunting in a game preserve. How would you like to be chased around a cage with firearms? Cheating bastards.

Don't pee into the wind.

Use strong words only when they need to be used. Abusing certain phrases/words hurt their credibility.

Peer pressure is a bitch, don't believe the hype.

Do what you want, when you want to do it, while you still can. 

Aim small, miss small. <--(Only refers to shooting) Bigger risk, bigger reward. 

No one likes the pessimist who waits for the wind to stop, some like the optimist who waits for the wind to change, everyone likes the realist who adjusts the sails.

Basically rambling on and on about random phrases some might want to read, especially the one about peeing. These are just things that came to mind while I lie in bed thinking thinking thinking sleepless. Sheep being counted by the thousands, but there is only one thing that occupies my mind. Another boomerang has entered my soccer match. The problem with this particular boomerang is that it hit me in the head, face actually, and I want it to stay in the game. Unfortunately with the circumstances at hand, that isn't plausible but it is understandable. Listening to Kate Nash and Smoosh on Pandora brings up many reminders, all good things that make a country even smaller. Iff. 

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18.......

Boomerangs Come Into Play

Someone has thrown a few boomerangs into my soccer match. This has become a favorite expression of mine, which I must add is truly original as well, since it was created in the summer. That is exactly what has happened over the past two weeks. When I thought everything was good to go back to dreary Fenton/out west, wooosh, that blasted boomerang comes into play. Yesterday I received a phone call about a position dealing with forecasting/financial analysis, which happens to be what I have been looking for in the first place, that led to today's interview. The interview itself went well enough to land a second, where I will have to make a major life decision - Should I stay or Should I go now? (Had to quote the late great Clash) However, this is not a major life decision. I'm faced with two favorable outcomes here - ski all winter or take said job, given the chance, and further career. Hmmmm.....

A mentor of mine named John Kwecien told me two things to live by, "invest in prostitution" and "you have the next six years to fuck around, the prime earning years are your thirties anyway." Even though it is hard to pass up the first thing to live by, the second is more than half true. Prime earning years are in the thirties paired with all the knowledge/experience gained from your twenties. Said experience could be skiing for a winter perhaps. Who knows???? This is a question to take up with the late great Aunt JoJo, damn you cancer - The Official Bitch. 

Yes, this opportunity has not yet been laid out to my very hands just yet but I find it rather amusing how timing has taken place throughout my life. (Pandora plays great tunes) There is no defined linear progression, more like extreme outliers. On the brighter side of life, having choices is better than no choices at all. 

Choose

Equipment Malfunctions

While playing cards with some good friends today, the object I make phone calls from fell two feet to the floor. This crash made the instrument malfunction for the next two hours, turning on and off, making noises, doing security checks randomly, and blinking the red light indicator for messages. I would not have normally found this so annoying but due to an interview that could change the future that takes place tomorrow morning, I was a bit irritated. Not that it could make such a drastic impact on what could potentially happen in the next few years. So I played with this phone for a few hours getting nowhere in the process until making it back to my apartment, handing the phone to my roommate, and him magically fixing it in the process. Do I have any idea what he did that made the phone work like new? Not a clue. The important thing is is that it works again. 

Don't we all hate when something is supposed to work and then that thing doesn't work, especially when it is needed? This argument goes back to be dependent on technology for functioning in society everyday. I know that I feel at least partially naked when I don't have my cell phone on me. It has become a burden. The best summer in my existence was in Europe, which happened to be minus cell phone. No one to call in boredom, no missed calls to respond to, text messages, etc. I do enjoy talking to and spending time with people but when you add a cell phone to the equation, all hope is lost to gain full attention. Even though I try my best to enjoy the time I spend with people, it's hard to turn off all communication with everyone who isn't there. We are all guilty of this and need to make it a point to spend quality time with people we care about. 

Turn it off. TURN it off. Off

Giant Mirror

Being that my homepage always opens to Reuters, I am able to get the latest news/oddly enough items. Opening the page just a few minutes ago, something shocked me that is being considered as a plausible solution to global warming. The idea is this: lets place a 3000 tonne mirror-like structure out into space in order to reflect some of the suns rays away from the earth. Allow me to ponder this thought for a moment. Someone wants to take 100 space shuttle flights over 100 years to assemble a giant mirror up in space to combat a problem we are facing now. Gee, don't let everyone immediately jump on that bandwagon. What are the potential hazards of this giant structure orbiting around earth, covering the suns rays?? - It could fall out of orbit and come crashing down out of the sky, killing thousands of people, it could inhibit plant growth/farming if the mirror stays over an area for an extended period of time, it could shift the seasons, it could be hazardous for other space missions in the future, etc etc. There are numerous potential hazardous things that could result from placing a giant mirror into space. Not a good idea. At best this ginormous orbiting object could ward off the suns rays for a short period of time, resulting in temporarily lower temperatures. I'm just glad that I will not be around when this mirror starts its orbit.  

Salmon Success

Had a great salmon fishing weekend in Baldwin, MI with Brandon and Garrett Peabody. They have taught me many things about how to salmon fish, what works and what doesn't work. Two great dudes who have become two of my really good friends. After two previous trips of being skunked, I pulled out three salmon and hooked onto at least six more. The weather was sunny around 50 and down to around 30 at night. It was a gorgeous weekend and I hope there will be many more just like this one in the near future. 

Lost in Translation

An old friend of mine was here in Chicago for the past couple of days, making rounds before he leaves civilization to become an islander. He has always been a great philosopher, meaning professional storyteller, always taking something and making it into an overextended fantastical exaggeration. Most of the time the stories related to real life, what is actually happening in the world, what people are dealing with on a day to day basis, and how where I am in my life means something in the bigger picture. More or less relating old proverbs, influential writers, Taoist writings, bhuddist teachings, etc. to what we are all experiencing. Taking things and trying to make sense out of them but also adding in drug, fighting, sex, passion, hate, love, suicide, and everything in between mixed in with all of it. 

It was always enjoyable talking with Ian because it made me feel like I was getting a philosophy lesson as well as hanging with a good friend who has been through quite a lot in his short-lived lifetime. The last two days of hanging out and listening to what he has to say, what decisions he is facing, and his overall perspective, I have come to the conclusion that my friend is completely and utterly full of shit. 100%. This is a disappointing realization but when someone tells you that, "life is a video game and I would rather be dead cuz I am destined for something better than this. Hard work doesn't mean shit, do what you want and fuck all the girls you can. The only thing I fear is having a kid but I'm not going to wear a condom." I sat today and listened to why he wants to leave the world, he wants to die. It went back and forth from hating the video game of life to boxing to kicking in frat house doors for the hell of it. This dude happens to be 25 and have only one brain, being his jewels. I love the guy to death and would take a bullet for him any day of the week. I found it slightly entertaining listening to everything he had to say, just one line after another that made no logical sense. The topper was going into Panera Bread, ordering second he chose the seating, so I walk around the corner and he is sitting at a long table with ten chairs. Granted there are quite a few people in the restaurant but still open tables. He picked the biggest and most ridiculous place to sit. 

When I think about this, I think - that's just him, that's just how he is. Being mildly hungover, it was difficult to take it all in stride. Let people be themselves and enjoy them for it. Don't try to change people. If they are overwhelming, take them in small doses. Relax. 

End of.

No Balls Left in America

There have been a few things in the last month that lead me to say - there are no balls left in America. One woman who I was caddying for a few weeks ago was telling me about a soccer team her son was playing on. One particular incident during their last soccer game made me think about the difference in generations becoming even more vast. Her son was being bullied by the "team bully" and did nothing to counteract his behavior, which I might add is a recurring thing with this kid. Another example is something I saw on CNN today about Hilary Duff and Wanda Sykes sponsoring a public service announcement pertaining to people using the word "gay" when referring to something that might be dumb or stupid. 

What happened to the day when kids were bullied around and had to stand up for themselves to gain respect on the playground? I have even heard of freshman in high school having to put their noses on pennies on the ground and race other freshman down a hallway, get hit with D size batteries as hazing, or have to face other kinds of adversity making them stronger people in the long run. When you get knocked down, get back up, don't go cry to your mom, defend yourself. These incidents make me think just how different it is to grow up today than even ten years ago and even more dramatic differences from twenty years ago. The hazing that went on, although some things are out of hand such as teabagging, is a form of initiation. The bully on your soccer team is a big sissy anyway, only picking on kids because he is self-conscious himself. 

As for the public service announcements Hilary and Wanda are promoting, I'm not promoting gay bashing here, don't get me wrong, but isn't this a little extreme? Why don't we put public service announcements out there about kids not calling other kids fat, dumb, republican, democrat, emo, hipster, etc.? One is going to face adversity in whatever social group they associate with and if they can't handle it then don't make it public or find another association. What happened to the old saying - sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me? Americans need to grow some balls and quit being such a bunch of sissies. 

Complete Uncertainty

The future is unwritten to account for complete and utter uncertainty in the world. If we all knew what was next, then why would we still be living? Or would it even be living? I would venture a guess to say that if you knew what was coming in the future we would all do one of two things. Sit back and enjoy what is coming or do whatever it takes to change that future. In which doing the former, one would totally fuck up any chances of having that future because you would feel entitled to it, therefore not working toward/against it. The person who sees their future as unfavorable would then do something differently to change whatever it may be, coming out in a more favorable position. This all being relative, would upset the natural universe, making us all peril in eminent tragedy.

I have always found that statistics play a large role in what people do and how they do it. Think about it for a second. People rely on the weather channel to tell them how large of a percent chance of rain there is today for them to take an umbrella to work. They look at the annual and 10K reports of a company to see if it is a smart investment. Numbers win games, determine grades, salaries, a persons wealth, whether they will buy this food or that based on nutritional factors, and many other uses throughout the day. How can someone not be a numbers person? We all are because we have to be, encountering them for every major decision we make in life, numbers somehow play a role. 

Uncertainty can be a good thing or a bad thing. It can make people feel uncomfortable, the markets hate uncertainty, and it gives others comfort due to the fact that they don't know what happens next. Personally, uncertainty has been good to me. However, I didn't used to be such a fan. HA. Right now my plans stretch as far as the end of April and will be figured out from then on. Sounds quite uncertain to me. 

UnCerTainTY uncerTAINty UNCERtainty

No Excuse

As you can obviously see, I haven't been keeping up on my writing. New motto to live by - no excuses. The excuses we all get from others are mostly complete bullshit anyway. Why were you late? Car troubles. Yeah right car troubles, what kind of car troubles? Biggest bullshit line anyone can pull, unless of course they have a receipt from a tow truck, donut on their car, or no car at all. A kid I grew up with, Matt Temple, had this yellow shirt he always wore to basketball practices in grade school with a list of excuses on the back of it. This shirt was quite ironic, being that Matt was usually late to practice with some odd/bullshit excuse. 

Nothing incredibly new and exciting happening. Life happens everyday and I take the days one step at a time, enjoying them in stride. 

Enjoy in stride. (might make a good t-shirt)