Arbitrary Batman

I moved. I no longer live where I once lived. It is an odd sensation, moving. I have come away with this experience with the reaffirmed thought that what people crave most is stability. I once read a story by Orson Scott Card. In this story, he depicted a world where the government had grown too powerful. Where corruption was the political system. Where the masses were downtrodden and abused. Why would the people put up with this horrible system of governance? Because what people crave most is for tomorrow to be much like today. Think about it. We often praise those who's lives appear most stable, and criticize those who are more transient. What is stability, if not the monotony of daily similarities? And yet, these times when we are forced from the comfort of routine are the times when we are given the most opportunity. We are presented with the choice of changing with our situation, or stubbornly maintaining our same-ness. Take moving, for example. I have moved out of my apartment of 2 years. In this apartment I have made many friends; I have established a set of habits that involve the people who have been consistently around me. I had a set of behavioral patterns that accompanied these habits. All of these were based in and built upon my location. With that changed, I have two choices. I can choose to stagnate, and remain the same, but in a new dwelling. Or I can use this sudden jolt from the norm to reinvent myself. To reset my course and renew my efforts towards those aspects of myself that I desire to improve. I do not deny that I am disconcerted by the change. But despite this, I choose to reinvent myself, at least on a minor level. And perhaps this will leak upwards into the grander scheme of me, causing me to grow greatly in many directions.
Here's to hoping

dan

Poopy

Occasionally, I start to think. Usually this is a total accident. Last time I was thinking my brain-mission (like a transmission for your thinker) popped out of gear and started spinning. When I finally regained control, I found myself thinking about a story I once heard about a little boy. This little boy began to get sick. Nobody knew why. After a while, he was taken to the doctor, who informed his family that he needed to poop. Turns out, he hadn't pooped for a very long time. We're talking months here. When his dad asked him why he didn't poop, he responded, "Because sometimes it hurts." How often are we like this little boy? I don't mean pooping. I am using the story as a metaphor. How often do we not do something because we are afraid it might hurt?

What so proudly we held...through the twilights last gleaming...

"Hey, Dan. Why are you writing a blog post today?"

"What? I need a reason? I dunno...just felt like typing a bit."

So, I just finished an evening of Bowling and Denny's. I capitalized Bowling so that I could have two words in caps...Anyway, I have this to say about bowling. People are good. You know how normally my inner asshole gets the better of me and I dislike people and want to hit them? Well, I have been fighting that lately to good result. Tonight being an example. For reasons probably in some way related to my punk-rock background, I dislike people who are trendy. We bowled next to a bunch of trendy dudes tonight, who I specifically tried not to dislike (double negatives...gotta love em...). Turns out, they were really cool dudes. Even Matt liked them. I'm not sure where I am going with this, so let me move on...


At Denny's with Matt and Jon we got onto the topic of the crazy experiences that war vets have. Allow me to recount one example:

Audie Murphy is one of the U.S.A's most decorated war heroes. The man had more amazing experiences that I can even make up. He once was standing in a group of soldiers when an artillery shell landed withing just one or two inches of his foot. Audie is still here. The shell went off and the cone of explosion vaporized the other soldiers. He was standing so close to it, that he managed to be in the center of the cone, and all that happened was his boot got turned into air. His foot was fine. He was fine. I dare you to tell me that wasn't a miracle.

Our soldiers have so many stories. I have heard a number (quite a large number) of stories about experiences that make me toes curl. Most of us never have to deal with those things. Most of us couldn't. Most of us also forget that our soldiers have gone through hell, so we don't have to. How can we forget that? How can we forget what they have done for us and the rest of the world? Regardless of whether or not the war itself is justifiable, there is a war going on. And our soldiers are fighting and dying and killing, so the rest of us don't have to. We owe them. Feel free to protest the war. But never take out your righteous indignation on one of our soldiers. You have no right to do that. You may not respect our leaders, but you owe your respect to our country and its protectors.

My head feels like it is thinking, and I have put some of it to paper. (Hehe...paper...its all digital, dingo) I feel better, having done that, and now I bid you all adieu...or however you spell the damn french word...silly french...

Hob Hobby Hobbits

I have something rather embarrassing to say. On Saturday, I quit playing World Of Warcraft. Every conference, I get that feeling that I should give up the video gaming, and I never do. But this time is different. This time, I did. Here is the embarrassing bit. I quit Saturday. Sunday, after conference, I had no idea what to do with my time. There was so much of it, I realized that I could be a well accomplished individual. I could be like Mother Teresa. Or Bon Jovi.

But let me get down to brass tacks. What in the Sam Hill do I do with my time? I am, of course, going to spend a lot more time doing homework. But the rest of it...I suppose I should look for opportunities for service. So...Please comment with your ideas of what should be done with my time.

A bit Impromtu

So I was in the library today with my friends Ryan and Leslie, and we decided to take advantage of Leslie having no real sense of social normalcy to take an impromptu poll. We asked girls how many dates they get asked on in a week. I have created a poll here to allow the survey to continue:



Please, ladies. Vote. I would love to have some actual data to work with. In addition, I asked girls how many dates a guy should be going on in a given week. Feel free to comment with your opinion.