At the mercy of things (#1096)

After moving from my previous domicile and being told that the new Internet would be in place at the new place, I am finding out I am at the mercy of events outside my control. Despite what the providers say, more important is what they are supposed to be doing. Which apparently is not doing what they say. So here I am, outside at the Safeway store typing my daily blog because the wifi is available for use. lol. I don't mind being here, outside on this beautiful Tuesday morning, fresh air and pleasant surroundings, yet being forced to do this is what has me writing on this subject. I pre-ordered my Internet transition well in advance yet it seems that the best intentions on my part still leave me at the mercy of others who don't appreciate planning and organizing on my part. Again, I am laughing because this is nothing new to me but my faith in process and the work ethic is still a value. I suppose that if a snafu was to happen it is best to happen to me since I am such a good sport about these types of things. However, despite my ability to laugh this off and accept what is happening with me I am still a bit irritated that there will be some things I am not able to do since I cannot realistically "occupy" Safeway's outside lunch table area for the next few days. Some such things like responding to posts on my Facebook page, that if I had the ability to monitor, I would have deleted them. Or at least politely responded to some well intentioned beings who post valueless things. I find that so much of my time is Internet related and the dysfunction of my Internet provider to live up to their word has me looking at what my day does with a new perspective. Oh well, my little troubles with a convenient Internet connection seems to have been enough of a topic for me to have spent a blog post on, especially since it is the first blog post of my now fourth year doing this.

Three years and counting (#1095)

Today's blog post completes three full years of posting almost everyday, missed three, but posted two on each of the following missed days. It has been cathartic for me to have an outlet to express myself in public as a way of showing my mind and heart to the world. It is part of that scream into the air that I am alive and I matter! Although some days I only feel timid and less full of hubris. lol. I started to think that I would try this out each day and see how long it could go with at least a real conversation that had some significance. Now, mind you, I am judging that I have had some little significance but not much. Haha! The consistency of prioritizing my day around a blog post subject has given me real clarity about how I see the world and what I am doing within this existence. If anything, the catharsis has been therapeutic in more ways than just how I live moment to moment. It has given me a longer view toward How I would like to see our world evolve. I am a living breathing part of this grand experiment of life and as such want to input my thoughts. Short of having a society that allows us to formulate and change policies together in a way that reflects our best instincts, this medium will have to do until that day may come or I am no longer. For the last three years I have been given a wonderful gift, not some onerous burden, but a real gift that allows me to be rational and thoughtful about what Matters most to me. Coincidentally, what matters most to me is what is the best for the human species as well as the other species that exist. I am of the benevolent caretaker form in the sublime, but in reality I am often given choices that don't reflect the best of what could be and unfortunately, I end up with lesser solutions. Such is the era we reside, fortunately though we can continue to change toward a better realization.

How the Citizen's United decision hurts us all (#1094)

You will rarely find me here, on this blog, commenting on specific judicial/political actions but in this one case I am going to make an exception. News outlets and information gathering practices have been adversely affected by this decision because what is news is now controlled by whomever has the deepest pockets. In Canada, Fox news was not allowed a license because Canada has "truth" standards and Fox news did not meet Canada's standards. Not so here in America where the marketplace is ripe for disinformation and misinformation based upon not fairness or truth but instead on sensationalism. We citizens of America are left to learn about the "truth" of a thing, not by being informed by the media, but to our own available devices. Now that money from Citizen's United has been allowed to flood our airwaves with unlimited ads portraying subjective information as truth, as opposed to objective information for us to make up our own minds, we, the citizens of America are the ones who are and will continue to be led around through someone else's reasoning. Our news sources and information offerings are not obliged to tell us the truth, therefore, now that more money has come into play for the wealthy to use in disseminating what amounts to as propaganda, how do we find out the truth of the matters before us? We do our own research, through the Internet, public libraries and governmental offices. However the assault on our ability to learn for ourselves is and is continuing to become more difficult. As more have less money to afford luxury items like computers and Internet service, as more libraries close as wasteful public spending and as the Freedom of Information Act is being restricted, we are left in a dilemma. Getting unlimited money out of our information genre's and establishing a truth in news law similar to Canada's is the best we can do for now except to scream into the wind.

The slippery slope when caving on virtue (#1093)

By slippery slope I mean to say it is easy to continue down a path that is not quite right once you have taken a step onto it. Even though all your intuitions are telling you not to go there, you counter in your head that it is just a minor sacrifice and then dismiss your concerns. Then the next step is just as bit the little troubling you initially felt on the first step but you have already moved this way so you start to immunize yourself from your better and best senses and continue down the slippery slope until you hit another crossroads and find that you have given up too much in all those little steps that seemed at the time insignificant. The one time in all of our lives we should be the most cautious and stand firmly without moving is when we are dealing with decisions that affect how we apply virtue to our lives. What is virtue? "Virtue is moral excellence. A virtue is a positive trait or quality subjectively deemed to be morally excellent and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. Personal virtues are characteristics valued as promoting collective and individual greatness."-Wikipedia. I am always forwarding that we have three virtuous human natures; compassion, curiosity and to a more singular purpose survival. Why I do this is to allow everyone to hopefully see that when we are newly born our natures are in their purest form. It is only when we grow and are inculcated into this current society that we begin our separation from our true selves. It is only by recognizing what is happening to us, that we are able to begin modeling a better system for inculcation into a more natural society. This is the whole and singular purpose of this blog.

Free style writing, about thoughts (#1092)

No clue what I am going to write about here. All I know is that I still have a head cold and my brain is not open to thinking like normal. lol. Maybe that is a good thing? Anyway, I have been sitting here for awhile and no subject of any type of specific nature is crystallizing for me. So here I am just wandering through the words of my thoughts at this very moment, well not all my thoughts, as some need never see the light of day. Now that brings me to a point, regarding thoughts and what should be allowed to flourish in my mind and what should be forgotten as soon as they are formed. That is what I do when particular thoughts hit me, I either mull them for awhile adding substance to them or I discard them as quickly as possible since they offend my principles. That is the thing about thoughts, they can come out of nowhere and BAM, there they are inside my head. I think the Universe has a flow of atoms and molecules that somehow interact with us humans to create certain "imaginings". So as such a believer in that, as opposed to all our thoughts emanating from within us, I can quickly jettison thoughts from my head and not feel any guilt for their having any reflection on my character. I know I don't wish for thoughts that are negative or ego driven but that they appear in my mind does make me conclude that some other force beside myself is a part of the thought happening within me. That is my take and certainly is only my way of moving forward without carrying baggage of thought I did not intend to occupy my thoughts. I know that I am caring and curious man with a will to survive, anything else is just wasteful and counter-productive. For me it works, since moving forward in our existence of constant change is my goal, not to waste my precious moments being alive by thinking I am a bad person.

Slowing down in order to have a smoother life (#1091)

This is one area in my life that I can visually see the consequences of in my mind. In my rush to do an efficient job, I would instead make mistakes that actually turned my intent into inefficiency. Slowing down to go faster is the mantra I came to realize. I had a friend who used to say that by doing things right and not taking any shortcuts, you will always do better than most others simply because you rarely have to go backwards from your own efforts. I know this to be truthful. I must force myself to slow down sometimes because I have a penchant for seeing something that appears simple and rushing through it only to find what I thought was simple had complications to it. Leaving me having to backtrack on some steps, which then put me well behind the effort I would have succeeded at if only I would have gone a bit slower. What I have learned from all of my trial and error learning sessions is that nothing is exactly as it may appear. I must challenge myself to re-investigate my knowledge in a contemplative way in order to get the full picture of what I am trying to do. Yes, I am a man and us men at times feel like we don't need to read the instructions on some things. Well, I have discovered that if directions come with something it is because it is not simple. In contradiction to life, where there are no instructions, just learned behaviors and best guesses, I must even more so slow down and consider what may also be in play with the question or problem before me. I don't fight that internal war with myself much anymore between speed and accuracy. I am not trying to prove I am a genius, special or unique in my problem solving skills. I am just focusing on slowing down so that I see the immediate picture as well as the big picture as clearly as possible.

My daily blog post (#1090)

This little shout out forum is designed for people like me who have something on their mind and need a place to say it. I think that the Universe hears our voices and records our written thoughts in some as yet known way that takes advantage of our collecting/expressive abilities. I know, somewhat like a hope but for me it is real enough. I do have some evidence and use the fact that we are data processors of a human sort and we also understand wave lengths as a communication medium in the Universe. Much more than that is speculative on my part but as a human I cannot discount anything until it is proven impossible. However, I also cannot accept anything as reality until it is proven real, yet, I do use my intuition as a guide and my intuition tells me that our Universe is a conductor and we are sending out wave lengths of information into it. At least that is my possibly plausible sense of things. Regardless of whether I am right or not is moot. I have some little faith that it is true therefore I act on that faith. I have a sense of purpose with my blog postings because they allow me to share what is going on in the inner workings of my mind. I also use this blog post to express a hopeful message about our natures. Like Aristotle, I use myself as subject to examine. But like everything human, I am somewhat limited by my own blind spots about my actions and instincts. So I also use what nature provides in the form of other humans and other animals. From all of this and generally knowing how our past has played out I have come to the conclusion that our natures are fixed at birth, compassion, curiosity and the will to survive. They only change when confronted with the environment to which we expose our natures. From this I am able to see the world and make commentary on the changing nature of it. That is what this daily blog post allows me to do.

Voices throughout the world (#1089)

Courage has a price. Did you know that every time you choose to be courageous, you are putting yourself in an out-of-control situation? Of course you know this, otherwise we would all be courageous continually, but we are not and that we are courageous at all speaks to our ability to rise above our own self-preservation instinct. Yet some exemplify courage at a far greater rate and continuity than most of us. These are the ones who not only physically defend honor and justice as a career choice, but also those who see injustice and not only shine a light on it but fight against it. Everywhere on our planet people are taking their personal safety and throwing it to the wind in an effort to expose and stop greater amounts of tragedy. I honor these noble examples of humanity as they epitomize the absolute best of what the human species can accomplish with such grit and resolve despite knowingly sacrificing their own safety. Who is greater in stature to me? Those that brag of wealth and shine a light on themselves with a narcissistic bent or those who care not for fortune but seek integrity, justice and honor as their ideal goal in life. I am not obliged to those that adorn themselves with the comfort of exclusion, rather I am obliged and humbled by those who spend their human capital on virtue, regardless of the cost to themselves. I am an idealist who can find no better tribute to make than to feel and know the privilege some humans inspire within me. The capital I want in my life is not material, it is something that only the courageous posses. Living the better and best of who we are, compassionate and curious, to the extreme. True success in life is not measured by the coins in your pockets, it is measured by what you are willing to give of yourself and the price you are willing to pay to do so.

Honesty should overrule pride (#1088)

Eating crow, as a metaphor for admitting we made a mistake, is appropriate when weighed against lying. More harm to the human species comes through intentional deception than any other form of oral communication we make. I mention pride in this post because to admit we are wrong is antithetical to our own ego. We will go to great lengths to not admit we are wrong, yet, in the lacking of humility, we will yell to the world when we are right. It seems our egos have the upper hand too much of the time. I know that telling lies does enhance our immediate needs at the expense of our longer term needs, however the lies also affect others and change the way all of us perceive reality. The collateral damage is unseen and therefore moot to us. Yet to others the slippery slope of misconception and lie continue down the line of communication. For me, the greatest ally dishonesty has is our own egos. We place so much emphasis on our own success that lying becomes more a strategy instead of, at the time, an act of irreparable harm. We have replaced our own life survival with an artificial one based upon economics powered by greed, power and selfishness. We measure our success in life not by what we have learned about wisdom and virtue, but instead by the allure of power and wealth. Not a good trade-off when the actual living of life is more shameful than blessed. I am not against wealth and power when they are the outcome of wisdom and virtue, certainly everyone deserves just rewards, but not unjust ones that have found their way to us through prideful dishonesty. The very foundational understanding of what civilization actually is and it's purpose has gotten lost in the illusion of a secure society hell bent on breaking rules for it's own personal enhancement.

...and the beat goes on (#1087)

Another day starting out and how it will go depends a lot on me. Responsibility for my actions is my first priority. Others will come into play, but what they do is on them. I can be as accommodating as possible so that I am not the obstacle to anyone else having the day they are supposed to have but still, it is on them. I have really come so far from my previous behavior of trying to control the panorama of my reality. Not so anymore since I have learned that quality of life is only available with my serenity. The imaginings of some illusive fantasy has no place in the living of my life. I do not require miracles nor is my destiny based upon them. I just accept my life here with a smile on my face and a ready willingness to venture forth into time. There is one thing today that is on my mind and that is how I can make snap decisions when the snap is not needed. I guess I have been trained over my lifetime to quickly decide things whenever possible as a rule. I need to stop that since some things need more contemplation than just a moment or two. I can and have missed out on things because I didn't stop and think about what effect the words that came out of my mouth would have on others. I have given the impression of being rash and unfeeling without trying to be when it was not necessary. I still need to learn that every choice I make is not of the same necessity. I admit that I am not as social as I should be and I suffer because of that. My pride is unwieldy in the sense that I am unable to, at times, process that some come into my life for more than just coincidental acquaintance. I need to keep my bearings in the present when I am hurried or flustered or whatever. Such is my life and the beat does keep going on...

Mean what you say and say what you mean. (#1086)

Consistency in principles is what defines us as more than just a person who has no clue. I look back on my life and see that the choices I have made concerning the foundational principles of my life have stayed the same. That old saying of "When I was young I was a liberal but as I got older I became a conservative" doesn't hold validity with me. Certainly, in a physical sense I am not as full of hubris as when I was young but, in my principles of what is right and wrong and good and bad, my principles have not changed but a little. Like all things, a little updating on values is necessary as time and space continue to change our overall environmental psychology. However, the core principles for determining my thoughts and actions has never changed since I became aware of how I want to live life. Granted, I have not lived up to my core principles during my life like I should have but that was by choice and still to this day confounds me that I allowed myself to be what others would like instead of being what I liked. I take what my experience has been as an indicator of what ails our society. The pressures and stresses that we all feel due to expectations and demands, ritualized within our political/religious/socio-economic system, does more to blunt the ability we have to stay grounded in our own principles than at times we can combat. We are often forced to decision making processes devoid of our character's best wishes. Some say that compromising is the better value, but I say not in the arena of our principles. I am all for compromise when it involves artificial structures that inherently become more inclusive. What we all should be focused toward is our best natures in both thought and deed.

Looking at life from the lens of the big picture (#1085)

Simply keeping perspective. I know a way of living that keeps me healthy and humble. I look around me and see what is going on. Yes, that simple. Of course I have to act upon this information input but that is easy since my inner core is about compassion and curiosity. That is how I live and for me it works beautifully. There are so many things that are far more important than the simple wishes and desires I may have for myself on a day to day basis. I keep myself centered through the knowledge that the world is still an unusually cruel place and other humans are left to fend for themselves in dire and life ending ways. My little simple needs are being met through my will and determination, and for this I am humbly grateful. however, will and determination are not enough for others when their dire straights are of a last resort of death. I am not immune to putting myself into denial and letting my mind and heart harden to reality. It is done everyday by many around us. Not to say that there are not those who do try to do some things that are noble and honorable to protect those who are unprotected. Yet, it seems that the selfishness of one's own ego is still counted as a value over the reality that things are still unforgivable. To deny that we all live in a world that is wrenching in it's inappropriateness, is how many choose to live instead of clamoring for a better paradigm for society. We each are but one and what can only one do in the face of the momentum that is our existing society and the rules it plays by? We must look at the big picture and never allow those who don't, to master or best us in the argument for the future. We are the change we have been waiting for and when we realize it, the change will happen.

Don't ever give up on yourself (#1084)

My thoughts are everything to me. How I think is what I end up doing. By trying to be a better human being, I am living to the best of my abilities. I know this and this gives me confidence and assurance in myself that I have worth, value and benefit. I go on and and on about compassion and curiosity as our true natures because when I am in those natures I never, and I mean never, feel more human. That is also the optimism I carry around with me when life happens, regardless of situation or circumstance. This dynamic outlook is my safeguard from the depressing occurrences that confront most of us in multiple ways daily. I don't give up on myself because I can see a vision of the future where I am a vital part and getting to that vision is what I must do. Everything necessary that has a positive principled thought and action toward survival is what I can employ. By keeping my head up with the knowledge that I know we, as a species, are capable of such tremendous things when we are all working toward our future together. The petty things of greed, selfishness and dishonor have no place in our evolving society. They had a place in the past when a vision for our all of our futures had yet to be demanded, but now we humans are starting to call for the end of the pettiness and instead for more of the compassion and curiosity we all have within us. Forging a reality where the dis-ease of uncaring and the boot on the throat of knowledge is unknown and outlawed. The time for us as a species to reorder our society around what a future should look like is the best example of how we leave our legacy to be understood for the next generation to build upon. Where optimism for life supersedes any doubt about whether we are worthy, have value or add to the overall benefit of the future.

We are the caretakers of the Universe (#1083)

We see no other species or anything else with our abilities around us. We are it as far as we know. The human species is the vanguard of intelligence in the known Universe. For me, that invokes a sense of responsibility we should uphold. To all living things and inanimate things we should take care to protect and keep within existence. Our path, as humans, is not to destroy but to create. We are good at creating from the resources we have been given. Whether by design or luck, we are a noble creature with special abilities and talents to be an effective force for changing reality as we see it. It is similar to being placed on a desert island with little to no reasoning and still fashioning a vision out of what we are given. Our natures demand that we improve our lives whenever we can. We improve other aspects around our lives as well. Allowing for the flourishing of what is of benefit and curtailing those things that would harm us. We need to survive but we as well need to be forward in our necessary means to survive. We are an amazing species in that we have a mind to think and a body that allows us to put thought into action. This is our great gift that no other species can claim. So yes we are the caretakers of the Universe because we are the only ones who can. We are not perfect nor are we even close to perfection. Our physical and mental metsmorphosis is still evolving and we are just now coming into a era where our knowledge and technology could allow us to begin the great journey of space exploration and colonization. Our species has an inherent adventurous curiosity that will not be satisfied with staying static. Our journey will only be what it is destined to be, enough of a force within this Universe to wonder at it's awesomeness while seeking out and caring for it's best features.

Knowledge is like water, we need it to survive (#1082)

I am like a continuing redundancy, ever faithful but annoying. lol. In this case however, I can not see any downside. Information is the key to our survival, I have said this over and over again but still I get push back from others who think that information is overrated. How ludicrous, at least in my opinion, for anyone to have such an illogical conclusion. We are humans, not some crop that only needs tending. We are gifted with abilities that are immeasurable in totality. Why would anyone at all, and I mean any human being at all think that enough knowledge has already been gained? I suppose that those who bind themselves so tightly to belief systems are restricted, even in thought, from allowing themselves the natural human instinct of wonderment, can at least summarize their stance, regardless of it's unnatural approach. Yet, to be human is to survive, care and wonder. At least in my opinion, anything else is unnatural and not of human instinct. Therefore, the denial of information to those who are only following their natural desires to be knowledgeable is backward and counter-productive to human advancement and human need. Why is the subject being raised? Of course it has to do with how our economic society functions. A purpose has to be made in the likeness of humanity and not allowed to form of likeness to the unknown. To freely let a process develop without the kindred spirit of our souls at it's core is to cast ourselves adrift in an ocean without having a destination. My purpose in life is to propound the ideal of our natures. From our natures we are all duly bound to begin from the same set of premises. The if/then logic of who we are allows us to step forward into our futures together. The need of today must always be valued against the overall need of our natures.

Research and verify (#1081)

This is not a scolding or an "I told you so moment". This is just the way things must be. All of my early life I thought I could get by with little information and no research. Well, that didn't go so well. I was easy pickings for my ego and others who were more aware. I found myself advocating for things that upon closer inspection were antithetical to my principled being. I gave others more force of my convictions, trusting that they were right, than I did to my own ability to reason and analyze. Simply because I was too lazy or didn't want to make the time to know for myself. It is a trap and in order to keep individuality intact, must be avoided. First off, there are many who would take advantage of those who won't allow themselves to think for themselves. Our society is so demanding and consequences are so punishing that many of us would rather trade on priorities for the sake of helping ourselves at the expense of others. Our society is mostly to blame for us being such manipulators. However, that does not excuse us from becoming willing victims. Secondly, not having control over our thoughts and actions diminishes our right to be free. When we abdicate to others how and what we should think and do, we have effectively gone backward in the evolution of the human species. Surely, we must all understand that knowledge is the key to enlightenment. If we do not allow ourselves to learn what we are curious about, then we have just become a tool and not a participant. What I used to shrink from, that being studying problems in order to find solutions, has now become a passion. I am not any more intelligent than anyone else yet my thirst for knowledge is insatiable. Am I wiser for it? yes, but starting at a low place and improving is not having arrived. It is a lifelong process but one I yearn for since it connects me to my humanity.

Money can't buy friendship (#1080)

Earn all you want. Spend as much as you can. You will never be able to buy friendship, it comes for free. I think of the statement; cash poor/rich in life. This is my reality. I have been fortunate that I look upon others with respect unless they take that respect and use it against me. When there are so many people to meet in a lifetime of living, it is inevitable and even more probable that I will meet those who have been taught to take advantage of others as a rule. For those souls, I have moved away from and instead continue to have those who honor my respect for them in my life. I will always, yes, as a rule, give respect to everyone equally, regardless of differences. We are all similarly strange creatures in an existence not of our own making. We all deserve to be treated with respect. It is a fundamental beginning we should all apply toward each other. This is how I have been fortunate enough to make friends. By allowing a fresh starting point to new acquaintances, We both get to build a friendship based upon equal respect. From there we grow our relationship based upon similar passions and knowledge bases. Honor has so much to do with every little thought and action that my friends and I share that it serves as the foundation for our interactions. Respect must be honored in every way. I can be honest and forthcoming, without being hurtful and condescending. That my friends and I don't always see eye to eye does not negate the respect we have for each other. We do not club each other over the head with our differences, instead we live our similarities as the real bond in expressing our respect toward each other. It is interesting to note that in respecting each other we have actually bridged the gap that had previously existed in some areas of our lives. Food for thought.

logical reasoning helps us decide (#1079)

Not all decisions are made based upon logic. Matters of love and such emotional expoeriences have often and necessarily been devoid of logic. How we feel, such as gut feelings or intuition has a way of over coming any logical equation we may choose to employ. Outside of personal intimate situations, logic becomes a greater factor. I find that logic has dominance over the inanimate world whereas less so when it comes to our interpersonal-relationships with each other. When a nation is starving, there is little time to logically assimilate a solution based upon statistics or cost/benefit. There is only time to do what our gut tells us to do and that is to stop the starvation and work toward helping them keep themselves out of starvation. However, when it comes to policies, like some examples of bettering health, safety and security we need to apply all the logic we have to navigate the complex social order we live within. Sometimes, it seems much easier to change the social order than to adapt a plan to the existing one that accomplishes our goals. This is somewhat the struggle we are now in, in our society. Regardless of how it comes out, logic has to be at the foundation of it. We have principles that guide us but putting those principles into a harmony of effectiveness has to be logical. Logic goes mainly like this; if something, then something. The if/then process should be our initial thought when dealing with all basic common goals. Everyone should participate and offer information and knowledge that can allow us to sift through logical and illogical premises in order to find our best path. Life can be very easy to understand once we get our foundational way of doing things in some logically reasoned order.

To try is the least we can do (#1078)

I know we are not capable of the being best of ourselves at all times and that is just real. however, we can try at all times regardless of whether our best comes out or not. I am talking about the will to try, regardless of the circumstances. Once the set upon course of always trying to do the right thing or be the best we can be is understood and implemented, we are able to inculcate a behavioral pattern that best suits our instincts. Life is all about change and being the best within change suits our desires to achieve and improve our own definitions of ourselves. I do not know a soul who does not want to be a better person. Even those who proclaim that they have arrived are just kidding themselves since the "arrived" place they think they are has already moved on. Our idea that we are in a safe comfort zone of time and place is an illusion. For moments in time there are pauses of tranquility, but deception as to the longevity of that tranquility is dominant. This always, and I mean always boils down to fear. We find that fear will drive us toward actions that belie who we are for some sort of security that is false. When we are in the mode or habit of trying our best regardless of the situation or circumstance, we are acting in courage and fear has no dominance when courage is engaged. It is through the thoughts and actions of trying to do better that we find the harmony of our souls. We may find that we have little success in our endeavor of trying but the fact that we don't give up is the difference between who we can be and who we default to. I cannot tell how many times I have failed but have not given in to defeat. I may lose but my head is held high and I am still proud of my efforts. I do exemplify what is best about dogged determination, I just won't quit when things seem inevitably against me. I remember when I was on a little league team and the sponsor of our team was "Optimists International". it seems quite providential to me that I have taken on the same spirit of that long ago sponsor.

Goodwill and gratitude (#1077)

None of us can make it here in existence alone. We may think that we can pile up resources and let those resources secure us from anything we do not wish to experience, however we can not live alone, separate from everyone else. As if to cushion us from reality, we try to create our own artificial world as if we were demigods with that capability. What we find instead is that no matter how layered we try to insulate ourselves in every facet of living, we all must have human contact. Living in an illusion sounds palatable at times but the falseness of it can only sustain our needs for so long. The better choice is to be in reality and trying to shape reality so that all of us can have less of a stark and dreary life. We kindle within us a refreshing spirit for living when we are battling for a cause that is beyond our own selfishness. Instead of building walls around our lives to keep others out, we find that breaking down walls to let others join in is the best way to fulfill the betterment of our own lives. The paradox of giving to receive does actually have merit as a truism. When I stop fighting to implement my egoism upon the world, I succeed in finding my happiness. Life should not be a brutish, begrudged chore. Life should have work that is looked upon as goodwill and be accompanied with gratefulness. We have all, always, had the ability to have happy lives we just don't know how to do that. It is simple really, we need to care about more than ourselves. We need to express our lives in ways that look upon life with optimism and the need to improve life where it does not meet our own standards. Easier said than done of course but knowing what to do is a lot better than not knowing even that much. When and if that day comes when we all see the need to live together, without the barriers we erect from each other, we will at least know how to move forward.

Equality and justice (#1076)

Basic human rights, although I get the distinct feeling that some among us do not share that definition. Certainly these two rights have been fought and died for over our human existence and that they are taken for granted should never be the argument. But to single out some over others as within our ability to define equality and justice is subversive. Nothing, and I mean nothing, philosophy/religion, economics nor societal conventions should ever counter the status of equality and justice for even one soul. We have laws that are agreed upon for the sake of security and social function but these laws should not have any component of inequality or injustice within them. If they do they need to be rewritten to eliminate inequality and injustice. I am saddened by the forces that would marshal against individuals and groups whose right to equality and justice is based upon their right to the freedom to pursue their own happiness without causing harm to anyone. The prejudice of selective idealism is a cancer and not worthy of a modernity that prides itself on the intellectualism of logic and liberty. The harbinger of past myths and superstitions is the callous admonition of their value over equality and justice. Nothing should ever come between our earned and natural rights of freedom to be in a protected equality with all others. No one paradigm or dynamic of thought is above or below another. They are reason and as such deserve equal contemplation. Attraction to principles for living must come from a desire to achieve an individual happiness for each person, not a domain that must include others who do not share the same desire. Forced participation in any analysis is antithetical to our rights to search out and find our own happiness.

Keep moving forward (#1075)

If I am not moving forward then I am at rest or just paused. Either way, moving forward, resting or taking a moment to pause is my agenda as I will never go backward. I have already lived my past and it has nothing positive to offer me except fond memories and lessons learned. The past for me is growing pains for the most part. I would not want to live or muddle through those growing pains again. I am like most who get nostalgic about the past and say things like I wish I could be a teenager again and know what I know now, but of course that is fantasy and it will never happen. I spend even less time with nostalgia and romancing some fondly remembered time because I have my present and future to live and that takes all my thoughts and energies. I have trained myself to understand and accept that I only live in the present and that is what I need all my focus for. Moving forward with my life is the right and proper thing to do, not wishing for or lamenting the happenings of the past is some sort of dramatic way. I have lived the past already, nothing more to do about that except make my present better from thoughts and actions I used in the past. I get a do over of sorts, I get to apply my experiences from the past to make my present and hopefully my future that much better. The fear that comes with letting go of the past is real to many and at one time was real to me. I know how our human nature to survive influences our hard-to-come-to-grips-with-reality, that we are all mortal and will pass this existence at some near time. Holding onto the familiar with a death grip is common but it does highlight our frailty and weaker behaviors. I value my memories, however my memories are only a reflection of how I have lived my life and the living of my life is always in the present, not the past.

Live in truth or you will be surrounded by lies (#1074)

I have found that if I didn't learn on my own what was going on someone else was always there to give their less than objective opinion of how they saw it. There were very few individuals in my life who would actually try to help me find the truth of things. Most everyone else, it seems, has an agenda that propagates some advantage that doesn't have my interests at heart. Understandable in many ways, since we live in a capitalist society that demands that we struggle against each other in order to survive. For many to misinform and even outright lie it is a well accepted strategy to outdo the competition. That is how sick our society has become. Instead of working hard and providing services that are attractive, we now step low to trickery and deception as our method for advancement. We have changed our personal character to fit a diseased model of economics as a guide for living. How we live our lives is important. We can succumb to the rhetoric of materialism, selfishness and power or we can surround ourselves with the truth of things. The quality of my spiritual awareness is what has value in my life, not consumerism. How I greet each day and the people within it are the memories I will have as I continue to grow older in life. I won't be looking back at what could have been out of regret. Instead I am enjoying life and learning of the truths of it on a constant basis. I have college degrees but that doesn't stop me from learning. Paper on the wall does not define my knowledge. What I write this very moment does though and for me to stay up with our ever changing world I need to keep learning what the truths are. I am getting redundant but it is for the purpose of letting the universe know that if I want to live in truth I must earn it myself and not take it as fact from someone else.

What I will miss about existence (#1073)

Eventually, all of us will succumb to death. The inevitability of leaving this existence is certain and therefore, while I am still here I would like to talk about what it is that I will miss. Loving someone who loves me is the greatest intimate experience I know of that I will miss. As like all things, it isn't the material objects or the momentary thrill they provide that I will miss but it is things of the heart that register with me as dynamics I cherish the most. I bring up the subject of what I will miss the most as a reminder to myself of what is really important in life. Vanity and greed have no place on my priority list. It is always about the special moments when a camaraderie of some sort has happened and the feelings from that which lift me up beyond all the other normally mundane and rigmarole of life. The better and best of our human interactions are the genesis of our species' worthiness. Beyond the expressions of my heart is the bounty of knowledge that I can learn and grasp and the unlimited unknowns yet to be discovered. I love the fact that we live in a spacial/time paradigm with no real understanding of our presence. It is like a puzzle with some clues for us to work on. I love working on puzzles, puzzles motivate me to think in ways I never would have without their existence. Loving and learning, helluva start. One other thing that is not usual as a missed dynamic but for me it will be missed, that being my dream world from sleeping. I can honestly say that there are innumerable times when I wish my dream world would be reality. I suppose my imagination is the cause but regardless, my dreams have given me so much direction in my life and so much hope as well. Enough for now.

On the subject of optimism (#1072)

Staying optimistic when life is so difficult can be the greatest challenge we ever face. Giving into the easiness of quitting seems alluring when to maintain optimism is such a tiring chore. However, quitting only means that we will deny our true strength of courage and the determination to succeed, in favor of hopelessness, loss of self-worth and depression. Situations happen around me all the time and adapting to those situations is normal and healthy. It is when I give in to the notions of impossibility, unworthiness and fear I lessen myself from who I am. Choices are what I have and those choices I make will ultimately define my character and destiny. My greatest strengths are that I care about all things and I wonder about most everything that I don't know. Leaving these two dynamics in order to wallow in defeat is not natural for me, although in the past I have lived my life there, nor all of us as humans. What is normal is for us to battle ahead with all challenges that confront us with a vigor and mindset of overcoming. We must also know that these battles are not fought and won overnight. Some endure over our entire lifetimes. Despite the longevity of our struggles toward the better and best of who we are, we must keep in mind the purpose for our fight. We are searching for the happiness in life we know is there. As a purpose for living, I can think of few that would be as important than to maintain an optimism about forging a life of better in search for our happiness. Life is not so complex, that by just having a simple foundation for living is both healthy and promising when understood. Most every time I write one of these posts the central underlying theme is to recognize the "fear" in our lives and move forward despite it. That is courage and optimism will guide us if we remember that life can be better and happiness will be the result of life being better.

I can admit when I fail (#1071)

Not if I fail but when I fail. It happens regularly because I try to be the best I can be everyday so often I come up short. That's okay because my intent is to be better and I try hard to do so. I am comfortable with this approach although it puts me in a bad light with certain people who think I should try to only highlight my successes. I prefer to live in reality despite the fact of me not being able to manipulate reality into some success for myself. What is true of me is what I want to reflect back out to others. I am satisfied that I am a human and only wish to improve on the practice of my instincts and the behavior that follows that. My ego has been properly deflated in a way that will never allow it to balloon up again. I am full of motivation but my motivation is not directed at personal fame, glory or remuneration. Instead it is all about what is in my daily life that I can make better for myself and others. I am no saint but I do like the concept of being helpful and being positive. It used to bother me when I was caught up in a failure and I would always resort to blaming others for it. My fear of being looked upon as a sad simple human tore at my psyche and I needed your acceptance to justify my existence. Maturity has changed that about me and though I do welcome an occasional accolade from friends and new acquaintances, I do not search them out nor do I bask in their acknowledgement. I am humbled today when I do succeed at something meaningful and thank the Universe for letting me be a part of this existence. The same may not be true for me when I fail but I do hold my head up and claim my blame wherever it exists, since it really is mine and the story of me would be incomplete if the truth of all of me was not told.

How I think (#1070)

Uh oh, inside my head is a strange trip. lol. As most of you who have read my blog post for any small length of time know, I believe we have three main instincts, One, survival, which is part of both the others; and compassion and curiosity as the other two. All of my thinking and actions move from these instincts. I also stipulate that in the denial of these instincts other forms of thought and behavior appear as a default. Those are the lesser and worst instincts we have displayed, but by my reckoning are not our true natures. Therefore, when we are allowed to survive and to care for each other and search this existence for what intrigues our minds, we are in our true human nature. My thoughts emanate from the positive influence of both compassion and curiosity. Nice way to live my life if I don't say so myself. Everyone else should try it and let me know how it works for you. I wasn't always here at this understanding. I had to work my way through the maze of dishonesty, confusion and eventually the chaos of the lesser and worst of us for it to become clear to me. I just close my eyes and remember that all of everything I am starts here inside me. Everything! So starting again each day with that in mind I am able to keep my centered life intact and focused on caring and being curious while I keep myself alive. I am not here to have security and abundance as a goal for life, I am here to keep myself alive and share in the interactions and relationships with other humans while also becoming more knowledgeable about those things that interest me. That is the sum of my simple life. Easier for me to maintain now that I am not chasing illusions or expectations. I just get to live and think about the things that matter. How lucky am I?

Stunting our own growth (#1069)

As we look to the past for guidance in how we move into our future, we often incorrectly assume that our past behaviors are consistent and worthy of enduring. However, we are a dynamic species and as of yet have not tapped the massive potential we posses. I am saying that what we see as past human behavior is just momentary and that our thoughts and actions need to evolve over time just as our analytical skills. What scared or frightened us 500 years ago now is explained through knowledge and reason. The myths and fears of our history are being exposed as illusions perpetrated to control behavior. Our strong force of will is undeniable yet we still do act as immature children afraid of the boogeyman. What a strange paradigm we allow ourselves to exist in when we are given a blank sheet to become whomever we truly desire to be. We seem to quit on ourselves and our expressive abilities due to uncertain thinking or fear of the unknown. I am but a snapshot in time and as such cannot fully understand the bigger picture of our own human evolution. However I can see that within this snapshot of time I exist within, there is no real concerted effort to train ourselves away from the myths and superstitions of the past for a new enlightenment that justifies environment over psychology/philosophy/theocracy. Our minds are capable of imaginings of unlimited possibilities, yet we yoke ourselves to belief systems and previously learned behavior patterns as if they are the ultimate and not our own dreams and hopes. In other words, we are terrible guides for our own development. Whether it is fear or whether we are being manipulated by ourselves, regardless, time is slipping from our era without us moving forward and is being replaced with the comfort of a status quo that negates our species growth.

Exceptionalism as normalcy (#1068)

The best is yet to come. I am done hearing about how urbane and sophisticated we are at times and for most of the other times we are brutish and cynical. I bring up the concept of exceptionalism as a normalcy and not as a fleeting accomplishment. The requirement for exceptionalism is in a very simple definition, to be unique. My hypothesis is that unique can and should be normal. We all live in a reality of having a baseline or foundation from which we build our lives. For most, going below the baseline or foundation is fundamentally absurd and is rarely seen as an option for improvement. The problem, as I see it, is that most all of us set the bar so low in our lives so that we rarely do go below it, thus satisfying our primal need to feeling and thinking competently. However, establishing such a low starting point, we rarely do achieve a unique outcome in our day to day interactions. That unique is considered to be not normal is an affront to me and my way of thinking. We are human beings, the greatest forms of data gatherers and analytic conception processors known to our history of living beings. It is unimaginable to me that we would establish such low standards for ourselves when we are capable of greater standards, as in unique standards. The measurements we use to reflect our individual and group complexities are immature and insulative to the real dynamic of our possibilities. We define each other through artificial comparisons of physical make-up and expertise of unequally shared knowledge. In other words, we game the system of evaluation in order to achieve temporary benefits for some, at the expense to the many, which is antithetical to the highest honorable principles we all should share toward exceptionalism. Being exceptional is in all truthfulness, unique, and that normalcy should be all of our baselines.

Sequencing words with logic (#1067)

As more and more people find out each day, words used in a logical way make far more sense than words used illogically. Now, despite this, there are still far too many who do not recognize the distinction. Unfortunately, as long as words are used in a way that reinforce a belief system or coincide with ones passionate opinions, the logical usage of words is unimportant. This is unfortunate on many levels but most highly is in the disinformation spread and the lack of progress toward a logical conclusion. In reality, the process of determining an outcome comes first then the outcome can be understood. What we have a lot of today is an outcome already devised and a process, through illogic and confusion, formed to legitimize the aforementioned outcome, a cart before the horse scenario. What this does for those who implement such a strategy is to allow for a convenience which provides a windfall in benefit. The ability by some to actually succeed in this type of sleight of hand for benefit tells volumes about how gullible our society actually is. We are still in the era of the gawking bystanders who are intrigued by the carnival barker and fooled by the allure of our own desires despite the deep down alarm bells ringing in our ears. We seem to want an outcome so badly we are willing to suspend logic in order to gain it. An addiction to a way of thinking that is destined to destroy what we are in order to fulfill some fuzzy hoped for promise of betterment. It appears we are still in danger of being our own worst enemy in the name of ego and ego's demands. When we ever do find ourselves in a position of just living within our own reality in this existence, we will hopefully, with humility and curiosity, allow ourselves to just follow the logic first and then always try to improve the outcome.

Hope for the best (#1066)

Number one priority for this new year is to stay as hopeful as possible. Most of us have had a rough 2000 millennium so far and because of that keeping hope at the top of my list is crucial. I do not want to become cynical and complain about all the dashed hopes around me. Instead I want to keep trying to progress hopes yet realized in any way that I can. Time is a factor anymore in my life and I don't have the luxury, as if I ever did, of putting off hope to someone else to realize, I need to do the work of my own vision of hopes. It is especially important that when things do seem and are bleak that I redouble my efforts against the tide of disappointment. It would be easy for me to just accept what is the status quo and make my own way through it with selfish intent to guide me but that is not how I am. There are bigger things in life than just me getting mine. I know some cannot understand or will not allow themselves to understand this type of thinking, however, it is mine and it is what makes my life purposeful. Believe me, I have tried the selfish route, it is lonely and full of deceit. I will say this to my dying breath, live life with honorable principles as a guide. it truly is what is at the heart or core of all that I am. Often we here of the comparison of a quality of life versus a quantity of life. In other words, live life to the fullest or just plug along and accept forms of mediocrity in the name of security. For me, one choice is the courageous path of liberty and freedom and the other is a fearful path that substitutes, more and more, an artificial existence for my own instinctual traits. I know there are many variations of living existences between these two described paradigms, but living closer to courage and further from fear is my hope and continuing to celebrate my understanding that honorable principles will always trump fearful resignation, remains my goal.