Pop Culture

It’s easy to think the current trends are really important. Everyone else thinks trends are all that matters in life, so they must be.

Does anyone remember all the old things that are “out” and we never do anymore? Like, for example, silly bands. I haven’t seen one of those in years; though I would’ve done a lot to get one back in 2011ish. Or, remember planking? That thing people did where they planked over everything and put it on Instagram… Remember flappy bird? That was a fast trend. There's even some more recent ones like Pokemon go, the challenge where you dance outside of a driving car door, or wearing long sports socks.

It's funny, all these trends have one thing in common. After a few days, months, or years, they don’t seem to matter so much anymore.

Being Willing to Examine an Idea is the First Step in Determining Right and Wrong

Lots of times I find myself in moral dilemmas.
Like...every few times a day.

Should I do the dishes for my Mom, or read my schoolbook?
Should I tell this person the truth, or should I be nice?
Should I go to a social event even though I really don't want to?

Sometimes they cause me extreme terrible unending distress...even though they're pretty petty things. But I realized something that helps me solve the ethical cases I always seem to run into.
Whenever I reach a moral dilemma, I consider my willingness to examine my decisions.
When I feel angry, stubborn, or depressed most of the time it's because I want to feel that way. So I push away any thoughts at feeling differently. I pretend I don't need to examine whether what I'm doing is right or not...because what I'm feeling is definitely right.
Yet, hopefully we've all learned to recognize this sort of stubborn pride as warning bells.

So, in order to truly determine what's best to do in a situation, consider whether or not you're actually willing to examine the idea, and you may be surprised to discover (like I did) that you've been letting personal biases make decisions for you more often than not.

The Weather App

Unfortunately I fall into the hole that so many of us fall into when I check the weather app.... I start hating on it. In the Winter, it always says cold and snow. In January and February that temperature gets pretty annoying. When we want it to be sunny it's usually forecasted to be rainy, and when we're tired of the heat it's a week of 102 degrees.
Stinkin weather.
But what's interesting about this weather app, is it disconnects us from the real person that controls the weather. No, the real person isn't meteorologists, apple app creators, or that darn government. Although if it was, I'm still not sure we'd be justified in cursing the weather. What's bad weather going to ruin? Our entire season of crops? Our feet because we're going to get frostbite? Our skin because we're going to get skin cancer?...no, just our silly summer beach party or our insignificant skiing trip.
The weather is just one of the many things God gave us and we should be grateful for, so let's get over our weather-hating together.

Zootopia

Remember that one time when children's movies are actually full of socialist propaganda? Yeah me too.
Zootopia is the primmest example of this propaganda. That's why I vehemently dislike it.
I have four simple examples of this socialist agenda.
First, the bunny character in this film runs across a fox that breaks the law all the time. What does she do? Asks him to be her partner in police-ing.
Second, the night howlers. All the "predators" go "savage." Turns out, they aren't inherently savage but have been injected with crazy plant drugs that basically give them rabies. At one point in the movie, the fox, Nick, is labeled by the bunny Judy, as a "predator." She then realizes her mistake and apologizes to him. News flash, JUDY SHOULD'VE NEVER APOLOGIZED! Nick, by definition, is. a. predator. But because she did apologize it sends a message that all of us have labels... you may be labeled as a drug lord, a woman, or a "predator," but whatever label you have, it's not your fault, and you should be mean and cold to the people that label you....which leads me to the third point
3: There's always someone to blame. You don't have to be responsible for your actions... it's the crazy plant drug guys fault. You may be a criminal, but it's the governments fault for allowing you to grow up in a city that's rampant with crime. You may be a woman, but it's the men's fault for giving you weak housekeeping stereotypes. You may be black, but those dang white people are racist!
And 4th: the movie is LITERALLY called Zootopia! Play-on-words of Utopia! Another word for socialism. And that's truly what they're trying to achieve in the movie. A land where everyone is equal and not burdened with silly stereotypes like "predator" or "criminal." A land that has been changed since it's ugly, terrible, every-man-for-himself natural state. A land that has ultimately achieved it's perfect state, thanks to their great government.

Have Fun

Lots of times when people are headed out the door we say "have fun."
We most likely say this because it's what everyone says...but I think it also shows that fun-ness has weaseled it's way into our society without us realizing it.
When you pay attention, almost every activity we participate in is meant to be fun.
Don't get me wrong, even though I'm a pretty boring person I think having fun is important ...sometimes.
But our lives could benefit if we infused a little more purpose into our fun.
Or at the very least, consider saying "learn something" when someone's headed out the door, and not "have fun."

Reverse Parenting

Lots of times I see two really awesome parents, and yet, their children turned out way less awesome, or at least, different then I expected...and then I see two really interesting (maybe even negligent) parents, and their children are the coolest people I've ever!

I don't get it. It's almost like if you're too good at parenting, it backfires. With most things in life, it's great to be a generous, idealistic, understanding overachiever. But there's something about being that kind of overachiever that doesn't work when applied to teaching children. It could be due to kids not learning how to do things on their own, or maybe it's because the parents are too nice to discipline. Perhaps it's even because the parents set standards too high, or create rules that cause teens to rebel. Whatever it is, parenting is easy to overdo, and I think most parents (especially those extra overachiever kind principled ones) could benefit from a little reverse of tactics....
Give your children the opportunity to parent you a little.

Sincerely, a non-parent opinionated millennial.

A Liberal Arts Education

More then a few times in your life you'll run into questions like....
"what do you want to be when you grow up?"
"what are you going to do?"
"where are you going to college?"
"what are you going to do for a career?"

When I'm older than my wee 18 years, I will strive to ask less annoying questions to young adults... But maybe they're just annoying to me.

That's probably the case, because ask any high schooler what's important to them, ask any Senior what they're striving towards, and 90% of the time it's a career. College. Degrees. All that fun stuff.
Look, I know providing for a family, or, stability, is important... But life isn't about what you want to be, or, what's more, education isn't about what you want to be.

Men around the time of the American Revolution know what I'm talking about.  They received what was called a liberal arts education, being based upon the root word, liberty. It originated in ancient Greece and was created to teach men how to think, how to maintain freedom, and be involved in civic life. It started as a trivium, or three subjects; grammar, rhetoric, and logic. In the medieval times, arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy were added on making it the quadrivium.
This type of liberal arts education was created to make virtuous, ethical, knowledgeable, and highly articulate men. In short, education taught them who they could become.

So.........
What happened?
It seems to me all kids are learning these days is what to think, and not how to think. We only care about whether or not we'll make it out life successfully.

I think it would be good for us to realize that getting good grades, passing certain tests, and making it through college doesn't mean squat compared to learning how to think for ourselves, and understanding who we want to become, not what.

And unfortunately, you millennials are just going to have to take my word for it, because you probably weren't taught to do anything else.

Rain

I love the rain.
I used to think it was something unique about me. It made me special inside, brought me that individuality, filled me with that self-confidence and specialized warmth.
But all of a sudden everyone I know has started to love the rain as well and has taken that speciality from me in cold blood.
It's only one of the many times society has murdered my individuality.
I used to wear chacos back in the olden days..and they took those from me
I used to eat avocado toast back in the olden days...also taken from me
And I used to listen to Taylor Swift back in the olden olden olden days...gone
But just to be clear, I only continue to do these things to maintain consistency in my personality..
...and definitely not because I'm secretly glad I've finally achieved hipster-ness...

My Mountain -a poem

On top of my mountain
there is freedom from everything below,
What I see when I look around
Is the cloudless heaven I've come to know.
There is long grass on my mountain,
that waves to me in the wind.
There's a path that loops charmingly
And seems to never end.
The earth always smells
of dewy fresh pine
And one can't help when they visit my mountain
to feel that life is a mystery
And that's why I call it mine.
You can laugh and dance,
frolic and smile,
Sing with triumph at majesty you'll never miss.
But besides the distant calling mountains
through the blowing, friendly grass
Below the open heavens
across the winding path and the sign of no trespass
is
 one
     lone
          tree.

It's a flag 'top my tower,
a loyal solider guarding my secret,
a hat to protect my head.
My lone pine stands to protect my dancing singing echoing mountain

"I love my mountain" I said.

I Love Pirates Of the Caribbean

This movie series receives a lot of hate...
For example, I've heard people say
"They're making another Pirates of the Caribbean?... tell them to stop!! They're only getting worse!"
or from USA today referencing #2 "it's a bloated, overwrought and convoluted three-hour misfire"
or "it's not historically accurate"
or "once Disney took it over it turned."

Regardless of what you have to say about this series, I'll most likely agree with you. Sometimes it's dumb, long, some movies may be better than others in the series, and bloated. (whatever that means.)
And I've tried to convince myself I don't love Pirates, but it just doesn't work...even if there might be multiple good reasons.

And I really only love it for two reasons
1. The music
2. Will and Elizabeth

Pirates music is the most dramatic intense fun music ever.
Will and Elizabeth is the most pathetic dramatic love story ever.

So I just thought I'd share with you my love of a movie series against my better judgment in hopes that you can do the same.

I'm insecure, you're insecure, we're all insecure

Our generation is constantly plagued with the expectation of perfection and self-insecurity.

In my completely unbiased opinion, I think the problem lies --not in being rude or never smiling-- but in a lack of integrity in our society overall. In our fake world, we think honesty is wrong...we think recognizing and admitting to weakness and mistakes is wrong. Overall, we think insecurity is wrong.
So we lie to ourselves and others, pretending that we're actually quite confident, and in return, we weaken our integrity. However, I don't think anyone can get away in their lives without at some point feeling insecurity, doubt, or uncertainty in themselves. Because really, all of us at some point will dapple in self-doubt or throw a good pity party, none of us can escape that...and I hope we wouldn't --otherwise we'd be prideful.
In the end, we're all insecure about something, and the sooner we realize that the sooner we can completely admit to it, overcome it, and get on with the rest of our integrity-filled lives.

Laying on the ground

Everywhere I go I see teenagers laying on the ground.
I walk into a high school and
Bam.
People are laying on the ground everywhere.
I walk into a party and
bam
people are laying on the ground everywhere.
I go to the store and
bam
just kidding

Really though....I think our ancestors would be ashamed by how we hold ourselves. Maybe we like laying on the ground because it introduces a comfortable atmosphere or something...but it just can't be healthy.
It's lazy
it's innapropriate
and it's weird

but it's definitely comfortable.

The Metamorphosis and Euthanasia

Euthanasia (if you happen to know what it is) is preposterous! Right? Well, I once agreed with you. Now I only mildly disagree with it thanks to a book a read called the Metamorphosis. The Metamorphosis is a story of a man that turns into an insect. There’s nothing much he can do as an insect. Crawl all over the floor and ceiling, mostly. He cannot talk. It's written in way that makes me see everything as black and white, completely dreary. And as the book neared the end, Gregor, (this man-turned-insect) eats less and less every day. Eventually Gregor either starves to death, ends his short insect life from old age, or dies from the apple his father wedged into his back.

I want to try and understand Euthanasia better through this story, and help you do the same. Euthanasia is defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary as : “the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (such as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy" So short version: killing people that are in pain. In the first possibly death scenario, Gregor starves himself to death. This brings up interesting questions. Would you blame Gregor if he starved himself to death? Is suicide justified if you’ve been given the misfortune of waking up as a cockroach? Would you permit the death of this hopeless insect that once was Gregor?....I think I still say no. But it definitely twists things. I don't know if I can judge Gregor, and I don't know if I wouldn't choose the same thing he chose. I might even permit him to starve himself to death without caring too much. I guess it's a lot easier to say euthanasia is always unjustified when you've never had reason to consider it.

The next scenario is one in which Gregor's family pretty much killed him. (this happened through first; negligence and second; his father attacking him and wedging an apple in his back) If they knew this insect was truly Gregor, once a human man, would this be morally acceptable?...It’s hard to say. We “put down” horses, dogs, and other animals when they are in pain, as an act of love. And Gregor was in fact, an animal of sorts. But what if it's not an animal, what if a man is in pain? Are we still allowed to ask the question; what’s the point of living if you are in pain? But I also would like to ask; are all of our lives without pain? Pain, though sometimes beyond difficult to undertake, helps us. It tells us what we need to fix, it gives things value, and makes us stronger. However, did turning into an insect help Gregor? That is question. It truly didn't seem to. All I grasped throughout the story was hopelessness. I'd still like to say killing people because they are in pain is ridiculous, but if there are patients that feel like Gregor, it's definitely not so ridiculous.

In the end, I think Gregor’s story can help us to see euthanasia in a different light. Of course, there’s no denying that life is precious. Once humans take life into their own hands, it becomes dangerous. Whether it’s creating drones, birth control, euthanasia, abortion, or killing in general, it always seems to lead to regret, manipulation, sorrow, or power. We cannot understand life. We do not create it. But, in Gregor’s case, it seems as if life is no longer life anymore when you don’t recognize yourself. If euthanasia is right for animals, isn’t it right for humans who feel as if they have been turned into animals, or become as useless as them? I would have to say completely and %100 yes,
if only I didn't believe firmly that God gives and He takes.

Who you are, is who you make of yourself.

A few months ago, I decided to do some soul searching, and I found myself asking the question “who am I?” I decided to do the obvious thing and turn to a very credible source to answer that question for me… buzzfeed personality tests. Not only did I learn that I should dye my hair purple, that I have the personality that matches biblical Mary, and my greatest fear is heights, but that my actions are motivated by compassion and a sense of duty and I rarely do anything for my own benefit or gain. What’s interesting to note is that these personality tests, launched a couple of years ago, have gained immense popularity. Buzzfeed’s most popular test is titled “What city should you actually live in?” resulting in 20 million visits. Turns out I should be living in Portland Oregon with the rest of the half-way vegans. In reality, most of us figure out whether we’re in Griffindor or Slitherin, Belle or Cinderella, and Darth Vader or princess Leia, because it’s fun, free, entertainment. However there is a variety of other personality tests whose purpose is not entertainment, but real soul searching and self discovery. Maybe you’re a “Type A,” a blue, a 1:4, or an myers-Briggs deemed analyst. We may label ourselves as an introvert or an extrovert. So although you may dress your truth, or you’re prone to melancholy, the question must be asked: what is it really, that makes personality tests so popular?.... Well, they’re only one example to show that all of us buy into the falsehood that the best way to discover ourselves, is to find, and be authentic to; our personalities.

But let’s just think for a moment if Joan of Arc had a personality test… ”you’re strong, courageous, and go against the worlds standards.” Or think about if George Washington had one…”you’re the humble one of the bunch, and always care more about others than your own personal interests.” Consider still the personality tests of Shakespeare, Columbus, or Einstein. This is ill-conceived and speculative to imagine, because these historical figures don’t just have personality, they have character. They did not rely upon their personalities to tell them how to act or who to be, they simply did what they believed was right. How is it that when we imagine our own personalities, we do not feel the same way as when we imagine the tests of these figures? Do we feel the way we characterize ourselves is ill-conceived or speculative? No! This is because labeling personality is popular! Hip, totally cool, rad, and all the rage these days. In our world of “soul-searching” and labels, we have learned to rely upon personality to define us rather than character.

And it’s really no wonder we have crafted it this way. Relying on personality leaves us with the perfect opportunity to blame whatever problems we may have on it. Teenagers often run into situations in which they expertly use this technique. It’s usually when they’ve done something they’re parents have deemed unacceptable in life, like gone completely goth, decided to be in the school musical instead of being a basketball star, or worst of all, wearing really low hanging baggy gangster pants. It’s not hard to imagine them saying to their heartbroken mother “Mom, this is just who I am.” I’ll admit...I have even used this justification when I broke a light bulb, crock pot, and a glass mug consecutively. “I’m just clumsy, Mom. That’s just a part of me you’re going to have to accept.” Yet, personality is not just an excuse teens use, we all take advantage of it. Have you ever been challenged to do something, maybe it’s some kind of public speaking or teaching, or maybe it’s something physically active, or it’s simply keeping your room tidy, and you automatically blamed it on the fact that you’re just not the type of person that does well in the spotlight, or you’re just not a very active person, or even the fact that you’re an artist, and artists are always messy and untidy? Have you ever found yourself in a rage because people just don’t understand you? Can you positively say you have never used being an introvert as an excuse to watch Netflix alone in a dark corner, or used your extrovertedness as an excuse to avoid school, work, or cleaning? The truth is, we use this excuse because it’s extremely effective. We believe that personality is something we can’t change. It’s just who we are. Yet as we rely on this screenshot of ourselves, this idea of our personality frozen in time, it stops us from progressing. It’s simple. If we believe we can’t change anything about ourselves, then there’s really no point in trying to change. This is the danger in relying upon our test deemed personalities to tell us who we are and how we should act.

There are many people in the world who have let personality, this idea of self discovery through “soul searching”, be their compass. The world of celebrities is the perfect example of this... it’s full of immorality, vulgar language, money, and divorces. However, they still seem so content because they’re truly being their authentic selves. Oprah Winfrey said it best when she stated “I certainly had no idea that being your authentic self could get you as rich as I have become.” The band audioslave put it in their hit song as well, and received 100 million views for their chorus which states “to be yourself is all that you can do.” Another accurate representation of this is our current President Donald Trump. He has an entertaining, brutally honest, and demanding personality. He’s states ‘You must go forth into the world, with passion, courage in your conviction, and most importantly be true to yourself. I did it!’.... So Donald Trump may be “true to himself”... but regardless of whether you agree with his political beliefs or not, you can’t deny his 2 divorces, 6 bankruptcies, and the many circumstances in which he has said rude, crass, and inappropriate things. Sounds like he’s taking his own advice and truly being his authentic self! What we learn from these celebrities is that if you rely on your personality to tell you who you are, you lose character.

My older sister Ari has a huge personality, as well as good character. I look to her as an example in my life, and sometimes, spend more time looking down on myself. I’m ashamed to admit that I often find that I’m wishing for some of the gifts she was given, like the ability to make those around her feel comfortable, the aura of fun and excitement, a savvy sense of humor, and deep understanding of people and issues. Every time someone would talk about what my sister did or laugh at one of her jokes I would get more and more bitter inside because I wasn’t given what she was given. I finally came to the realization that so many celebrities need to come to. Doing what’s in line with “who you are” is far less important than doing what is right, or what develops character. The fact is, it’s wrong to be jealous, it’s wrong to think that just because someone is labeled more extroverted, clever, or humorous than you, you can’t change… It’s wrong to make your actions align with a description of your personality on a test, rather than aligning your actions to your moral compass.

George Washington truly understood this principle. For his first term as president, Washington did no campaigning, and even doubted whether or not he would accept the job if elected. He stated at his Mount Vernon farm that he had "no wish which aspires beyond the humble and happy lot of living and dying a private citizen". During his presidency he was known to have stated “I had rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world.” Based on these quotes alone, Washington seemed to be more of the introverted type. But his personality type didn’t matter to him...or if it did, it was not nearly as important as serving his fellow men. Good character, as George Washington has shown us, is not developed through being your “authentic self,” or even blaming your weaknesses on your personality, but through selfless acts, and painful sacrifice.

If we strive to emulate this level of good character, we will not need to rely on personality tests, self-help books, “breaking the arrow,” or soul searching to give us identity. In the New Testament in Matthew it reads “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” Regardless of whether or not you’re religious, I think this principle still stands true. As we lose ourselves in the service of others, or in doing what is right, we will fulfill and find our purpose in life...In other words, we will find ourselves. I look to Joan of Arc as a striking example of this. In a play about her it is written “One life is all we have, and we live it as we believe in living it…and then it’s gone. But to surrender who you are and to live without belief is more terrible than death.” Through doing what she believed was right, through serving her God, Joan of Arc found purpose. She found that developing character is a far superior path of self discovery to searching your inner soul to find out who you “really” are.

In the book titled Les Miserables by Victor Hugo there’s a man named Jean Val Jean who broke his parole. Because of this, the police constantly seek him out to punish him. At one point, he hears that the police have found and are ready to condemn what they believe to be him, but is actually an innocent man. In this iconic soliloquy, where Jean Val Jean was under so much stress it turned his hair white, he asks the pivotal question; “who am I?” Will he condemn the innocent man, or will he go in his place as the real Jean Val Jean? As we look to our worldly culture… such as celebrities quotes, personality tests, and damning excuses, will we really find an answer to that anxiety-filled question? Can we so fully discredit Washington’s, Jean Val Jean’s, and Joan of Arc’s sacrifice, integrity, and martyrdom; can we discredit their understanding of losing themselves to find themselves? True self discovery is found through character, because, in so many ways, who you are is who you make of yourself. And for Joan of Arc, that is a knowledge worth dying for.

At what point does adventure turn into stupidity?

We've all had that moment where we jump off the cliff, climb the mountain, or do something we fear or that is physically exhausting. It leaves us feeling fulfilled because we've done hard things.
Or I hope we've all had moments like that.
My question is...I know it's completely possible to have fun, safe, and difficult adventure, but... when you're friend suggests to climb a sketchy rock without harnesses, or when you go jumping off bridges not knowing how deep the water is below.....Is that a stupid teenager move? Or not stupid?
.........Is adventure always in some way stupid?
......Is it always somewhat illogical?

Maybe it's different for every person, and I don't have the answers.....dang it. But at least I know one thing; there are some moments of scary, difficult adventure I've experienced that I wouldn't trade for the world.

Thoughts on War

We have war because we are imperfect. I think wishing for “world peace” is extremely naive. I would rather fight for the right to be free than be in “peace.” Not saying wishing for peace is always bad, or that peace is bad at all. But getting into the mindset of WORLD peace… it reminds me of something….. oh yeah socialism. Peace isn’t possible. There were multiple “peace” or “no war” agreements after WWl (and for good reason, because seriously, does anyone know why that war was started?) but then what happened?... oh yeah WWll. Wars are started because of pride, hate, envy..... all the human imperfections that won’t go away no matter how hard we wish them to. Granted, we can try to master them in ourselves, but there will always be those that choose the darker path.

Hamilton

DISCLAIMERS:
Have I seen Hamilton? no
Have I listened to all the songs? all but 2 or 3
Am I a renowned historian? no
Am I secretly Alexander Hamilton's great great great great great great granddaughter? no
Do all of my blog posts have to be negatively attacking something? good question... I ask myself that every day.

I'd like to start out by saying that I really am genuinely glad a playwright has finally found a way to get people to learn about the founding of our nation...
buuuuut he really couldn't have been more strategically political with it.

First, the playwright chooses Alexander Hamilton to be the person to write a play about...definitely one of the more liberal Founding Fathers. In the concluding song, it's mentioned that other founding fathers' stories get highlighted and Hamilton's doesn't as much. It makes you feel almost bad for Hamilton.
I hate to burst the bubble... but people don't tell Hamilton's story because compared to the other founding fathers, he was a cad! He died in a duel for goodness sake! His story is important, yes...but more important than George Washington or Thomas Jefferson? I guess it's hard to say. The point is, he definitely had far less character than Washington.
Second, why does everyone try to make the founding of our nation about slavery? Again, very clever of the writer to choose Hamilton, the one who perhaps hasn't been tainted by slavery slander so much as the other founding fathers. In fact, he was against slavery, and it made you like him better and re-focused the play to overcoming slavery, which is far more important than the founding of our nation.(*cough**cough* NOT!) And when it got the part where Hamilton had an affair....it made it seem somewhat justified. Like Hamilton just couldn't say no, and was pretty much seduced. Yet, would this playwright ever stoop so low to make slavery seem justified? No. Never. So...Why can we justify adultery and not slavery? When did slavery become far worse than breaking one of the ten commandments?........Well, ever since people wanted to get their political agendas across, that's when.
Third, Hamilton was an orphan that rose to the top. It's true, that is admirable. However, something about the way his story was portrayed rubs me wrong. It seems as if we can use his story as a reason to have more health care, food stamps, and welfare. It's as if there's an unperceivable voice whispering throughout the musical (especially in Eliza's tribute song to him) saying "He rose to the top, the least we can do is help others do the same."
Fourth, What's with the feminist undertones? Not only do they have to make the founding of our country about slavery but they have to make it about feminism too! Well, it seems like they were stretching. I seriously doubt the Schuyler sisters cared about gender equality as much as the play makes us think they did.
And fifth... I know people like rap...but really, of all the things to rap, please don't let it be one of the most important historical stories of all time. I know it might sound crazy..but I really can't imagine James Madison throwing out the F-word and Benjamin Franklin cussing up a storm.

Those are all the problems I have with Hamilton for now.. if you can believe it.

#blessed

I think it's great to have gratitude.
But I think being #blessed is both equal parts wonderful and equal parts dangerous.
It's not enough to have that moment once a year on Thanksgiving where you realize how much you have.
Because in reality that moment is kind of overshadowed by how full you are.
Which proves my point. We have all kinds of food whenever we want it, so we treat food as if we can have however much we want whenever we want. The same goes for technology, clothes, toys, travel, knowledge, culture, relationships, sex, etc.
It's easy to post our gratitude, a lot more difficult to actually live in gratitude.
If you really want to show you're #blessed, start respecting things a little more!

Or...don't show gratitude, and you'll come to a day when you're forced to stare it in the face.

How to have a successful marraige..and a successful life...from a young unmarried unsucessful millennial

So... I know I'd like to think I'm a 40 year married scholar that thinks everyone should bow to my beautiful and profound writings......
But I've observed lots of married couples and failures, and though it may be slightly conceited, I think that's got to count for something.

I've noticed that people that are struggling in their marraige and/or life all have one thing in common: They can't accept criticism. They usually either become so self-pitying they are almost unoporative, or, they become completely defensive.
I can't stand when I see either of these reactions, though I often fall -unconciously- into both categories.
A good quote from Ben Franklin is: "In reality, there is, perhaps, no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride. Disguise it, struggle with it, beat it down, stifle it, mortify it as much as one pleases, it is still alive, and will every now and then peep out and show itself; you will see it, perhaps, often in this history; for, even if I could conceive that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humility."
The same is for accepting criticism, of course, because it's directly connected to pride.
Everytime I hear someone tell me that they're content with criticism in any form I wake up the next morning to see them reacting in fight or flight worse than anyone.

Don't let pride slither into important bettering conversations. It's sneakier than you think.

From your favorite unmarried unsucessful millennial.

Metaphors

You can always tell a good author based on their metaphors, because good authors connect your world with theirs.

The only problem is, I only know when I see a good metaphor, and I'm not all the way sure how to create one. Unfortunately most modern authors seem to have the same problem.
In the Hitler Dilemma, a random book about an LDS Hitler Youth and written by Carolyn Frank, there's a metaphor that goes something like this;
"The soilders were scattered across the field like the seeds on a strawberry."
I'm not sure we can even call this a metaphor, it's more of a underdeveloped similie.

Then, we take a random metaphor from Shakespeare in The Merchant Of Venice: (it really is random...cause I'm pretty sure you could choose any of Shakespeare's metaphors and they'd all be good)
"How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank.
Here will we sit and let the sounds of music 
creep in our ears; soft stillness and the night 
become the touches of sweet harmony."
Amazing! Beautiful! I can picture Shakespeare's world perfectly!

So my concluding question is: why is it that most modern authors have lost the art of metaphor?

Chills

I can't explain the moments when I've trully gotten the chills.

It's when I've heard words that touch something beyond my normal life.

Or when I experience something that seeps into my core and causes me to never forget it.

See, meager explanations.

Have you ever seen Interstellar? Or a movie you would classify as "unkown"? It leaves you lost... like you just intook so much information but you don't really know what the information has to do with anything.

Read those books, watch those movies. Listen to those words....cause something tells me that the creators knew.

They knew something.

I love the Great Gatsby

Maybe you've read this book.

Probably didn't like it?

I'll be honest, I didn't like it at first either. But the more I've thought about it, the more I realize how masterful F. Scott Fitzgerald really was.

I love it because it paints a depressing picture of our reality as Americans.

Let's go to a quote from an awesome guy named after a vegetable, Mathew Broccoli (don't worry he's an American professor and more importantly an expert on Fitzgerald's writings.) He says “Ultimately The Great Gatsby is about American History.”

Of course, Broccoli doesn't mean that we learn about the way they the characters dress, obtain alcohol, or invest in stocks and bonds during the 1920’s.This is a lot bigger than just the 1920's. I think Broccoli means that Jay Gatsby represents every American.

Near the end of the book it reads “Gatsby believed in the green light, (the light at Daisy’s dock) the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us.” But then all of a sudden Fitzgerald switches from writing of Gatsby, and, instead, starts writing about “us.” This is an important change. It causes us to assume that he’s really been writing about “us” all along. He states “It eluded us then, but that’s no matter-tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther….And one fine morning-

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” Jay Gatsby had a dream, and though it was completely hopeless, he had hope. Every American has the dream of freedom, freedom to work, vote, and live for ourselves. But the reality is that to in order to fulfill our dreams we must fight against the current, and try to reach something that, like that green light for Gatsby, is unobtainable. Because of that "green" light, that green eyed monster within us, all we can do is be drawn ceaselessly into the past. We'll never obtain that perfect freedom we're searching for.

It blew my mind.

First Looks

The first look.
That moment when the groom sees the bride for the first time.
Well, not really for the first time...really it's just the first time the groom sees the bride in her wedding dress.
Such a profound moment.
The bride looks so amazing the groom just has to be shocked. He has to cry. He absolutely must look blown away.

I just have some questions.
Why is this culturally accepted.
Why do we make suffering grooms everywhere fake the shock and tears.
Why do we think hair, makeup and a dress is something spectacular.
If it's such a profound and personal moment, why would you film it and show everyone.

It's really uncomfortable.
And it doesn't make sense.

The Blame Game..you might play it more than you think

First, we're going to go to the book Animal Farm to understand what kind of blame we're talking about.
This book, written by George Orwell, is modeled after the USSR, or Russia. Certain pigs on a farm, (the main two of which are named Napoleon and Snowball) get all the animals to rise up in a revolution designed to overthrow slave-driving humans. In the end, the pigs eventually manipulate enough power to become even worse than the humans. About one third of the way through the book a heated dispute begins between the two pigs, and Napoleon ends it by ordering his well trained pups-turned-killers to chase Snowball out of the farm, and out of shared power.
But what I find interesting is that all throughout the rest of the book Snowball was constantly used as a source of blame. Every time something bad happened, it was Snowballs fault. Every time something good happened, it was due to Napoleon's generosity.
It led me to realize that there's real power in blaming. There's even true unity in blaming, especially at the beginning of the book.

Lots of times we use blame as an excuse to not take responsibility for our problems. But this is why the blame so clearly pictured in Animal Farm is incredibly deceiving....It makes us think that blame is the solution. We begin to think that blaming others is the only way to be responsible for our problems.
It's hard to know when blame is actually justified. (The founding fathers got it right.)
But, today, it seems like no one really cares whether it's justified or not.
Are you a feminist? Do you believe blaming men for your problems is justified?
Are you black? Do you think blaming white people for being racist is the solution?
Are you a teenager? Do your parents like really just hold you back from success?
Are you divorced? Do you unjustifiably blame your spouse for not working things out?
Are you #metoo? Have you ever seen so much blame conjured up out of nowhere?

The fact is, we don't want to take responsibility for our problems, so we deceive ourselves into thinking blame is the solution. Or rage-ridden movements do it for us.
I'm scared for the day when a lot more is taken then just your "rights"...scared for the day when a lot more is hurt than just your feelings.
Actually, I'm truly terrified for the day when we all look for the power-filled finger telling us why our food is out, money scarce, and loved ones gone...
Cause it's got to be someone's fault, right?

The Archive Button

You know when you go onto your instagram page and there's this little weird lookin button in the top right corner that looks like a clock with a fancy arrow? Yeah, I didn't know what it was until one of my kind friends introduced me to the brave new world and told me it was known as
the "archive" button.
It's where the people who post before they think and later regret it- it's where they live.
Which I guess is really where everyone lives. Everyone posts before they think at some point in their lives.......
Which leads me to the two main problems I have with this archive button.
First; it offers no consequences for what you post. You can post and archive willy-nilly.... you could post something yesterday, and realize today that you didn't think it through, that it's embarrasing, innapropriate, or rude, and so you archive it. All problems solved. Didn't even happen.
Second; it's a lot more sly then the delete button. Who likes finalitites? Who likes pressing "ok" when your computer tells you that emptying your trash is final and irriversable? How can you delete something when you have a .001% chance of desperately needing it in the future?
You can't. Good thing genious instagram developers have created the archive button to save you from pressing "ok" termoil.
Now every teenager that has a triple chin, doesn't like the face they're making, or thinks the caption is dumb after all, can easily remidy the situation. It breeds insecurity. People start thinking some posts aren't fine....why do their friends have so many posts archived and they have none... probably because they haven't refined their instagram as much as anyone else and their lame losers who don't know what art really looks like. And they have a triple chin.

So I wish you a life that's real. A life where you accept consequences as a fact of life, and where triple chins really don't matter. Live there.

P.S. Did I wrote this in spite because I kept looking for posts on my friends page and I couldn't find them?....of course not

Politic-free News

Recently I've felt like I needed to keep up on the news more.
And because I'm a millennial I didn't want to accept the burden of checking the news everyday I signed up for little notifications on my news iphone app. Unfortunately this news app appeals to those who only care about the royal wedding, newest celebrity divorces, and whether or not hummus is actually healthy for you. One of the notifications said "something something, something something, and other politic-free news to start your day"
!!!!!!!
SO I got to thinking....why would they advertize politic free news... why would they focus on vegan conspiracies and royal weddings when they could focus on supreme court hearings and trumps tarrifs?...
And I realized it's probably because that's the news people want to hear. People want politic free news. Of course, there is problems people find with politics... Most do not like Donald Trump, you might be tired of political games or slimy congressmen, or you may know those who feel there's too much anger and contention when it comes to governmental issues. For example, have you ever asked someone about something political and they respond by saying
"oh I don't keep up on politics, it's just not my thing" or "I don't check the news, it's probably just something else scandolous that Donald Trump said" or "I'm too fed up with politics to keep up on it." or the weirdest one  "I don't vote."
I get it i get it i get it ..really I do. I'm tired of politics sometimes too. Sometimes I wish I didn't have to take on the responsibility of voting either. But those explanations just don't cut it. You can give me any excuse you would like, but we live in a free America, where we check the news, yeah even political news, regardless of agendas, biases, sensitive natures, or annoyance... even regardless of whether or not you want to vote. That's the price we pay.
Such a burden.

So I wish you a politics-full life and freedom forever. And hummus is healthy.

P.S. Did I write this post in spite because I don't know as much about the royal wedding as everyone else does?.....of course not