Life:

Explained

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. 

 

"Not very long," answered the Mexican. 

 

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American. 

 

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" 

 

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life." 

 

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?" asked the Mexican. 

 

"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise." 

 

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican. 

 

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American. 

 

"And after that?" 

 

"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!" 

 

"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the Mexican. 

 

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends." 

 

And the moral of this story is: ......... Know where you're going in life... you may already be there.

Rules: You read, you repeat. got it?

1. I'm not good at keeping friends. the closer we get, the more I will, inevitably, start to find things I don't like about you, and the farther away I will push you.

2. I am, no matter how hard I try not to be, very judgmental about your life. trust me.

3. I will accept what you tell me, no matter how little sense it makes.

4. I have not been in a relationship in 6 years. I'm getting more used to the possibility of always being alone every day.

5. When I have a crush on someone, my goal is not necessarily to be with them... I just want them to be happy.

6. I'm not the biggest fan of the country club... I go to make my parents happy.

7. I have a very poor view of myself, but I'm learning not to let that control me anymore.

8. I used to miss the past a lot. I wanted to go back to the 7th grade, when everything was perfect. Recently, I've stopped wishing for that, because I believe it is perfect again.

9. I hate when people try to define me, because I can't even define me.

10. I am amazed by history. as long as its not for a class. give me history for fun, I'm fascinated. try to teach it to me for a class, I retain nothing.

11. I should have majored in math. or english. or something else.

12. I've played the piano since I was 2 years old.

13. I've been in 2 fights in my life... one was a guy, and the other was a black girl. no one has touched me since... I'm not sure I have the guts to fight anymore.

14. I love cats. sometimes I'm allergic to them. I'm not sure when, or why.

15. Crazy? I was crazy once... ask me about it sometime.

16. My story is always better.

it just gets better... So since I've had one of those days today (or yesterday, as the case may now be), I thought I should post it, so I remember it, and so that everyone else knows how a great day goes.

I woke up abruptly at 7am for the third day in a row... only God knows why... and laid back down. finally got up at 9:45 for theory. got my stuff ready, and went to theory. observed theory (and by observed, I mean, talked to Michelle and worked on thesis). after theory, I printed out my thesis stuff for my meeting at 11:30. the meeting went great. I played Dr. Swann 2 new songs, and we talked about the paper part, and what I needed to do. Went to lunch... omelets and chocolate chip pancakes! and good pizza. I know, shocker. went to music history, and doodled and passed notes the whole time with Emily... went to applied topics, the last one of the semester. we talked about practicing and such. after that, I went to the store... buy one get one free!!! then stopped by Grounded and saw Jordan do what he does. Nick got back while I was there, so I got to see him too. got back to school in time for the Davis cookout. sat there for like, an hour and a half before I decided to get my guitar. I talked Rachel into performing with me at Apollo night, and then proceeded to teach her my song, "three words" (youtube video coming soon) in about an hour. went to April's recital and got to see a whole bunch of alums. drove back to campus in time for Apollo night. performed... fuckin won! $100! hells yea. Then Kari, Sean, Nick, Ayesha, phillip and I went to the hookah lounge... (by the way, it was about midnight when we left for Knoxville). came back, went to IHOP. Ayesha warned me on the way in that they'd probably get some stares, but none of us were prepared for what happened. we sat in Jennifer's section. a table of about 8 drunk rednecks were sitting next to us. They were making very... VERY... crude remarks to Jennifer. something about "I'd like to get you horizontal..." and "order her bathwater off the menu..." etc. Jennifer looked like she was about to cry. Then Sean and I hear "We're gonna get shot in the parking lot... they're sitting right next to us." it took all we had not to deck them right then and there. When they finally left, we told Jennifer what they had said, and she told her manager. They ended up giving us our meal 50% off. We sang Jennifer the song "Peace", and I gave her another balloon dog. we got back to campus, and I dropped Ayesha off. (time check - 3 am.) parked in FAC/STAFF, and wandered up to Pearsons. there were like 12 people outside (it doesn't take much to tell that I was the only sober one). Ricky went and got his guitar (ricky plays guitar!?!?!), and I got mine, and we jammed. the number of people started dwindling, until at about 4, it was just me and Ricky. He busted out with epiphany and outside by stain'd, and I almost cried. those are 2 of my favorite songs of all time. then he sang a few songs he had written, and I sang "three words" for him. after he sang his last song, he rewrote it for the cleaning lady. it was hilarious. finally, it's like 6 am, and we parted ways just in time for me to watch the sunrise over Floyd and type this blog. did anybody read all of it? anyways, the construction workers are here to work on the new building, and the SPB is up to set up for Blister in the Gym, which, I'm pretty sure means its time for me to go to bed. Goodnight moon... or... sun, I guess.

this is some official's list... I thought I'd check some off. (yea its 4 am, and I can't sleep. again)

1 The Grand Canyon - 1993, cross country family trip
2 Great Barrier Reef
3 Florida - like, a million times
4 South Island
5 Cape Town
6 Golden Temple
7 Las Vegas
8 Sydney
9 New York - 8th grade TAG trip
10 Taj Mahal
11 Canadian Rockies
12 Uluru
13 Chichen Itza (Mexico)
14 Machu Picchu (Peru)
15 Niagara Falls
16 Petra (Jordan)
17 The Pyramids (Egypt)
18 Venice
19 Maldives
20 Great Wall of China - J-term 2008
21 Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe)
22 Hong Kong - J-term 2008
23 Yosemite National Park
24 Hawaii
25 Auckland (New Zealand)
26 Iguassu Falls
27 Paris
28 Alaska
29 Angkor Wat (Cambodia)
30 Himalayas (Nepal)
31 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
32 Masai Mara (Kenya)
33 Galapagos Islands (Ecuador)
34 Luxor (Egypt)
35 Rome
36 San Francisco - 1993 cross country family trip
37 Barcelona
38 Dubai
39 Singapore
40 La Digue (Seychelles)
41 Sri Lanka
42 Bangkok
43 Barbados
44 Iceland
45 Terracotta Army (China)
46 Zermatt (Switzerland)
47 Angel Falls (Venezuela)
48 Abu Simbel (Egypt)
49 Bali
50 French Polynesia

Ah yes. heartbreak. normally at the end of a relationship. and I guess this is no different. its the end of a different kind of relationship, and yet its not. I heard the news, and didn't feel a bit different. I followed them home, and they gave me a ride, but it was already over. and in the back of my mind, I thought they would drive around the corner any minute in their beat up van. And then it hit. outside that church it hit me. and it was crippling. and I went through so many different emotions in that instant. and then I got up. and I thought I was fine. I crossed the parking lot only to be crippled again beside their car. and this one hurt even more. it brought me to the ground. I laid in solitude there on the gravel. and once again I was fine. I went inside, and suddenly wasn't okay. I wasn't okay with this. and so it hit again. and I ran back outside. I must have smoked 4 cigarettes. They were supposed to not let me smoke. but somehow in my rage I found them. and the women of the church. they had no idea what was wrong. All they could say was "you are special. you know Jesus loves you, and wants you to be happy." and all I could think was, "this isn't me anymore. I'm not psycho-depressed. I'm just... breaking inside. I know all this shit you're telling me. I know and believe. but I just need to go through the pain." and then one of them told me they "needed to move on and try other things." and I went back in, ok for the last time, and enjoyed an amazing show. I'm still scared that I've lost my best friends, but I know that at least 2 of them will still be there. and i hope the others will be as well. Its not the tattoo. its the meaning behind it. its not the band, its the friends.

Rooney said on "60 Minutes" a few weeks back:

I don't think being a minority makes you a victim of
anything except numbers. The only things I can think
of that are truly discriminatory are things like the
United Negro College Fund, Jet Magazine, Black
Entertainment Television, and Miss Black America.
Try to have things like the United Caucasian College
Fund, Cloud Magazine, White Entertainment Television,
or Miss White America and see what happens...Jesse
Jackson will be knocking down your door.

Guns do not make you a killer. I think killing makes
you a killer. You can kill someone with a baseball bat
or a car, but no one is trying to ban you from driving
to the ball game.

I believe they are called the Boy Scouts for a
reason, that is why there are no girls allowed. Girls
belong in the Girl Scouts! ARE YOU LISTENING MARTHA
BURKE?

I think that if you feel homosexuality is wrong,
it is not a phobia, it is an opinion.

I have the right "NOT" to be tolerant of others
because they are different, weird, or tick me off.

When 70% of the people who get arrested are black, in
cities where 70% of the population is black, that is
not racial profiling, it is the Law of Probability.

I believe that if you are selling me a milkshake, a
pack of cigarettes, a newspaper or a hotel room, you
must do it in English! As a matter of fact, if you
want to be an American citizen, you should have to
speak English!

My father and grandfather didn't die in vain so
you can leave the countries you were born in to come
over and disrespect ours.

I think the police should have every right to
shoot your sorry butt if you threaten them after they
tell you to stop. If you can't understand the word
"freeze" or "stop" in English, see the above lines.

I don't think just because you were not born in
this country, you are qualified for any special loan
programs, government sponsored bank loans or tax
breaks, etc., so you c an open a hotel, coffee shop,
trinket store, or any other business.

We did not go to the aid of certain foreign countries
and risk our lives in wars to defend their freedoms,
so that decades later they could come over here and
tell us our constitution is a living document; and
open to their interpretations.

I don't hate the rich I don't pity the poor.

I know pro wrestling is fake, but so are movies
and television. That doesn't stop you from watching
them.

I think Bill Gates has every right to keep every
penny he made and continue to make more. If it ticks
you off, go and invent the next operating system
that's better, and put your name on the building.

It doesn't take a whole village to raise a child
right, but it does take a parent to stand up to the
kid; and smack their little behinds when necessary,
and say "NO!"

I think tattoos and piercing are fine if you
want them, but plea se don't pretend they are a
political statement. And, please, stay home until that
new lip ring heals. I don't want to look at
your ugly infected mouth as you serve me French fries!


I am sick of "Political Correctness." I know a
lot of black people, and not a single one of them was
born in Africa; so how can they be
"African-Americans"? Besides, Africa is a continent.

I don't go around saying I am a European-American
because my great, great, great, great, great, great
grandfather was from Europe I am proud to be from
America and nowhere else.

And if you don't like my point of view, tough...

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA , AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS,
ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH
LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!

hooded shirts
jeans
musicians
a simple necklace peeking out from under a t-shirt
holding hands
listening to a heartbeat
piercing eyes
spiky hair

So, here I sit watching cops. here's some things I've found interesting:
♥ using the blinkers while running. (because you want to make sure they know where you're going)
♥ opening the car door to drop the drugs (because thats inconspicuous)
♥ hiding the needle up your ass and then telling the cops (for future reference, they WILL pull it out)
♥ breaking into someone's house to take a bath. (and the owner confronted him with a shotgun)

That is all.