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MonkeyTwizzler
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read my profile
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Birthday: 8/28/1986
Gender: Male
Interests: a lot of things.
Expertise: not so many things.
Occupation: Student
Industry: Other
Message: message me
Member Since:
4/1/2003
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| I've decided it's about time to put this old xanga to rest. I've had it since I was 16, and it's served me well. It's a superb catalog of my life up until about a year ago (when i stopped really writing in it about my life), and I'll definitely keep it around for a long time in order to look back on my experiences. Hell, if I get the urge to write more in a diary style, I'll still put it here.
But I'm looking to start blogging about more serious matters than the events of my day, and I'd like a different platform to do so. Although it is perfectly reasonable to put that content on xanga, I feel like it gets lost in all the diaries around. So, I'm moving to blogspot for a majority of my blogging adventures. You can find it at :
http://pervasivemaneuvers.blogspot.com/
Stop by whenever, stay for forever!
Yall'z Bitches. PEACE!
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| Humor is one of the only defense mechanisms you can get paid to have.
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| At what point is enough enough? Waiting for something to happen, or not happen, can be a tricky thing. Lets say you're waiting for the bus. You get out there thinking "there'll be a bus in 5 minutes, I'll just wait." 7 minutes later, there is no bus and you're getting worried. "Well, if I started walking now, it'll just take longer. I'll just keep waiting, it can't be too much longer now." Then another 8-10 minutes pass, and you're really irate now. "Well god damnit, I could've just walked by now. Well, it has to be coming SOON." But at some point people cut and run, regardless of how much time they wasted waiting for that bus.
This is of course assuming a bus/walk system similar to Champaign-Urbana, which I'm sure parallels to cities in general.
But where is that proverbial line drawn? Where does our, and more importantly, my patience end? I think it really depends on the object/person/situation being waited for. It really comes down to "Will waiting for this be worth the time i've already put in, and am going to have to spend getting said object?" The problem is, we as humans try and put our lives into context of our own experiences. So when waiting for something, generally the comparison is made to previous situations that have required a wait. This results in unfair comparisons of things to wait for and how long to wait for them. I wouldn't wait for a bus as long as i'd wait for a job offer. Fortunately, a lot of the things we wait for have similar experiences that put the waiting situation into a much better and more relevant context. "I've waited 2-3 weeks for job offers before, that seems like a reasonable time to give."
The problem really arises when we are thrown into a situation that requires waiting that we have little experience with. We are thrown out of our context and have no real plan of action that will carry us through the situation. How do we move forward? Some just give up and wait for the bus, and if it doesn't come then they are missing work. Some decide the waiting isn't really for them, and move on along going to wherever they were off to in the first place, not needing the assistance aided by the bus. Then there are the others, constantly arguing with themselves whether or not it's worth it to wait in the cold, is walking really going to get me there faster, am I overthinking this, yes, no, yes, no, etc.
So it's 5 minutes after the bus was supposed to come. Do you walk, stay, or argue?
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| Last night I was hanging out with two of my best friends, smoking a hookah, and listening to music (Damien Rice to be exact. It fit.). My room faces the computer science quad at U of I, which if you aren't familiar, is this open field with a few very impressive and relatively new buildings, with very interesting architecture. Truly a sight. The whole sight has a very "academic" feel to it, which I never fail to appreciate.
Well we were sitting around, talking and telling stories, enjoying each other's company. Not half an hour prior I had taken a 25 minute hot shower, and slipped right into pjs and slippers. It was snowing out, and had been for roughly an hour, so everything was already covered in a sheet of white. Needless to say, I was relaxed.
We were talking about something, doesn't matter what. I pull myself out of the situation, and just look out my window, enjoying the company, music, and scenery, and the fact that I was there to enjoy it. I was overwhelmed. I was completely enamoured with the fact that I was in that moment, completely relaxed, and awed by the beauty of it. It was so serene, so wonderful. Watching the snow fall on a completely quiet and beautiful field, adorning a university I hold so dear, next to some of my best friends. Awe-inspiring.
However, when I relayed this to my friends, they brought up a very good point. That I would've never ever taken the same joy from this situation when I was a kid. Because life isn't that stressful as a kid, and so the scene above would've just bored the kid to death. That moment was an island of stress free bliss, something that I find incredibly beautiful now that I have a whole world of worries resting on my shoulders. They said that you could find the same experience as a kid, you'd just have to look in different places. Perhaps sitting by a fire reading a story with your parents, or staying home from school, etc.
And I realized that she was right. When I was a kid, I'd find situations like that boring. I was a hyperactive kid and I'm not afraid to admit it. But now I can extract such immense beauty from such a seemingly mundane situation. I hope that that talent never goes away, because life will be infinitely more wonderful. It was an eye opening revelation, one that I wanted to share.
It makes you think, what will you find enjoyment in when you're 40? All those things our parents do/did that we shake our heads at... are we destined for that? Are we just too caught up in our own shit to really appreciate life?
I hope not.
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| Through many degrees of seperation, I "know" the founder of Alcohol Free Illini. She was very firm in her stance, firm enough to form a RSO for it. However, through the grapevine, I have heard that she's started drinking, and loves it. Which brings me to an important topic that I seem to hit a lot: drinking. Here we have a staunch anti-drinker. I have known many, including myself at one point in time. However, of the many anti-drinkers I know/have known, a very small percentage of them have a good excuse, and an even smaller percentage have tried it. Now, I fully understand people who have grown up with alcoholism around them and steer away from drinking because of it, or because of some medical condition, or a battle with alcoholism, etc. Legitimate reasons to not drink. However, there are too many anti-drinkers out there who haven't tried a sip. I, personally, am incredibly opposed to making judgements on something without giving it a chance. You can try everything once.
However, another common behavior I've noticed is that when anti-drinkers finally try alcohol, they fucking LOVE it. They renounce their former ways. "How could I have been such an idiot?" etc etc. I have an answer by the way: ignorance. However, that's not what this is about.
The point is that there are two opposing viewpoints that encompass an entire spectrum:
-Drinking sucks, why would you ever do something to change the chemistry of your brain. You're drinking poison! It kills braincells. Hangovers. I don't need it to have fun, and you shouldn't either.
-Drinking is awesome! Beer and Wine are delicious. I can talk easier. I am more courageous, which helps with the opposite sex. I feel a great sense of comradery with people I'm drinking with. A great stress reliever. More fun.
However, it seems that the dividing line between these two viewpoints is "have you tried drinking or not?" Now, being a drinker, I am inclined to say that the reason for this is because non-drinkers haven't tried it, and thus are not informed of just how much fun it is. However, sometimes I wonder if the majority is actually the correct stance. Because I've tried drinking and I find it to be a lot of fun. But what if the other side is right? What if I shouldn't need drinking to have that much fun. I mean, I'll admit, I can have fun in a lot of situations when I'm not drinking, but it's been a long time since I've really had to put that to the test. Also, I will fully admit that when I'm having fun while sober, it is a different fun than being drunk. Is that a bad thing? I mean, I don't want to be a dependent person, I like being able to stand on my own, no matter what I'm doing.
I guess it all comes down to moderation, as most things do. It isn't good to go get wasted all the time. However, I will keep to my belief that you should try something once before you pass judgement on it. I fully respect people who have tried drinking and don't do it still, because nothing can satisfy everyone in the world, and they might be one of the unfortunate few. However, to those who haven't tried drinking and still badmouth it, and to everyone else who is a hypocrite, stop it. Try things. Get out there. Have adventures. Life is too short.
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