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| [16 Jun 2008|10:53pm] - wisdom |
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I was just thinking about the way some people who I once considered my friends have fallen out of my life. Obviously there are several who have not (let's call them the "real" friends), but thinking about them reminded me of some down and dirty reality my favorite fiction professor gave me. I was telling him about a misunderstanding between me and the no-longer present, and he responded: It's okay. You'll find new friends.
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| [29 Dec 2007|06:54pm] - Is Monogamy Natural? |
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In response to: AlterNet - Is Monogamy Natural? This article made me think about how a lot of the time we try to make the world into absolutes. I read the article as suggesting three possibilities for why the idea of monogamy exists and perpetuates: the biological (gene passing) need and subsequent nurturing of young; the social institution pressuring people into it; and the pair-bonding as an emotionally satisfying thing. The part I didn't see in the article was: how about all of the above? Certainly one of those elements might be dominant in many people's decisions, but it seems like they're inseparable to me. Marriage the institution and the social pressures that go along with it; pair-bonding being the tremendously emotionally satisfying thing it is (yes, curling up with someone you care about is just about second to none), and the sheer blunt biological need that floats beneath the surface most of the time to hump -- and have kiddies -- all seem part of the perceived need to settle down with someone. The urge some people get to break out of monogamy is natural too, but the article doesn't mention at all the people who are married for 25+ years and still happy. Maybe they don't have "honeymoon bliss" anymore but their relationship is still going strong and they are definitely happy with each other. Those people exist, albeit in seemingly small quantities, so what's the difference between them and the ones who get the 3-year or 7-year itch? I guess the one thing that gives me real, concrete confidence in monogamy is the largest example I have in my life -- my parents. They've been together 27 years now and still are goofy about each other. They both were married once before (I call them starter marriages) and had pretty much given up on meeting someone they wanted to settle down with. Then, humoring mutual friends, they went on a blind date... I think people would be much, much happier if the taboo of divorce wasn't so strong -- if you're not happy anymore and don't have other obligations (e.g. young kids?), and have given up hope of things getting better -- it's time to move on for both people's sake. Time to find someone new who makes you happy. I don't think it's an argument against monogamy -- it's probably for it, now that I think about it -- but the ending of a relationship just has such a strong negative associated with it that there's a push to see the whole idea of monogamy as unhealthy or even just plain ol' "wrong." The philosophy that makes the most sense to me is that all relationships are practice for the one that really does work. They help you understand what you need to be happy, what to look for that will make you unhappy, and all the little things that come with experience. Without that experience you can either get very lucky (see: people who are happy 50 years after getting married to their high school sweetheart) or go through a series of relationships (2? 5? 10?) that teach you both what you need from a partner and what you need to provide to keep them happy. I think the latter makes for a more whole, sophisticated person. I'll admit that might be from a bias that's trying to protect me from getting hurt, but it still seems that the more of life you experience the better.
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| [21 Oct 2007|09:34pm] - halloween |
 Oh, it's going to be a fun one this year...
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| [22 Jul 2007|11:32am] - p.s. image day |
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| [22 Jul 2007|09:16am] - rubber duckie, you're the one |
 From "Loire Estuary 2007" – an outdoor contemporary art exhibition along 40 miles of the Loire river. ( More Details/Another Pic... )
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| [09 Jul 2007|09:49pm] - weird things make me smile |
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Clearly not from this country. Our commercials pretty much suck.
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| [04 Jul 2007|09:39pm] - luck |
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This used to fit perfectly: "You hate your job? Why didn't you say so! There's a support group for that: it's called Everybody, and they meet at the bar." -Drew Carey. Now the bar is for fun and I realized on Saturday, sitting in a different bar on the east side of Manhattan, that I am really happy at my job. As clichéd as it sounds, I learn something new every day—and it feels great. I was in the city to see my favorite professor I started a project with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} ashiant yesterday, speaking of excitement, that will hopefully be both fun and maybe even some money on the side. I can't think of a better business partner.The short of it, I guess, is that things are great and getting better. Now all I need is a huge magic influx of cash. Anyone feel like being my benefactor?
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| [27 Jun 2007|12:59am] - sleep is for the weak |
Or at least the tired—which I am not. I just finished If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin. Wow. I haven't been sucked into a book in what feels like forever, but I started reading this at Delaney's tonight and I just couldn't put it down. And now it's finished (until I read it again). Yes, I read the whole thing, even though I should have been asleep 3 hours ago and told myself I'd get to bed early today... well, yesterday.I've been listening to Glenn Gould play Bach's Well Tempered Clavier all night via nice headphones. It's a fantastic recording. You can hear him singing along to the piano in the background. It turns the whole thing into something personal and special. Anyway, things are good here. Amy and I broke up in January. It was a great couple of years; I learned a lot. Life goes on and there's nothing to do but enjoy it. I've found myself ever busier, doing things most nights that are away from the condo, spending weekends off gallivanting instead of sitting around. It's not light on the wallet, but wow is life more fun (and so is dating). Speaking of more fun: I quit my paper shuffling job and started up as a full time web designer. I now know what it feels like to be happy at work — something I haven't felt before—and it feels good to be appreciated for all the web and coding junk that's accumulated in my head over the years. Speaking of wallet: I've been on a self-made plan to get out of debt since October. I'm not sure this last month has gone particularly well, but the payment I said to myself that I will make toward my debt every month has not been missed yet. Go me. Like I said, things are good here. How the hell are you?
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| [28 Feb 2007|06:05pm] - Bearded |
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Right, it's time to decide... and I have no idea. Poll #937380 Bearded Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All Beard or no beard, that is the question...
View Answers Normal Trim (i.e. neat beard) Trim Really Close (i.e. fuzzy but no beard) Shave ( Pictures )
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2 (20.0%)| [28 Feb 2007|02:40am] - sleep? |
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Definitely not tired. Work "starts" in 4 and a half hours or so. Sigh.
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| [31 Jan 2007|08:35am] - temperature, cats, suspension |
Postulate #1: Operating under the assumption that the general house cat is fairly intelligent, it seems apparent that when exposed to cold temperatures (say around 18°F), a member of Felis Catus has one of two things occur:
Postulate #3: My car, with it's overly-sporty suspension, allows for pretty nimble handling. Conclusion: No dead cat on the way to work this morning despite its trying pretty hard to run out into a steady stream of 50mph traffic.
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| [03 Jan 2007|09:42am] - Memories of STRC: The Good Old Days |
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Yes, I'm sure everyone's heard about this. Not everyone has seen the video, however, and especially not the video that was filmed by yours truly ... heh, the unofficial rule has been that a copy of this must be on all devices I own capable of replaying it. Now I share with you, even though it's probably one of those "had to be there" kind of things.
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| [03 Oct 2006|09:40am] - stop it |
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How could you never think "I am planning on killing little children who had nothing to do with [agonizing experience 20 years ago]." How could that never raise a flag, ring a bell, scream in your face, whatever, that something's wrong with you. I can wrap my head around being a disgruntled teen with crap for parents and access to weapons doing something stupid, but this guy had kids of his own, it just doesn't compute. Sigh.
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| [06 Jul 2006|09:28am] - ecosystem be damned |
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I wish mosquitoes were wiped from the face of the planet, sitting at work scratching away and being unable to concentrate.
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| [13 Apr 2006|10:23am] |
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Go to Wikipedia.org and search your birthday. List three events, two birthdays, and one death. Events: # 1605 - Gunpowder Plot: A plot led by Robert Catesby to blow up the English Houses of Parliament is thwarted when Sir Thomas Knyvet, a justice of the peace, finds Guy Fawkes in a cellar below the Parliament building. Fawkes was later hanged, drawn and quartered for his role in the conspiracy. # 1872 - Women's suffrage: In defiance of the law, suffragist Susan B. Anthony votes for the first time, and is later fined $100. # 1935 - Parker Brothers releases the board game Monopoly. Birthdays: (Funny not that they share my birthday, but that they share the same birthday...) 1959 - Bryan Adams, Canadian musician 1974 - Ryan Adams, American musician Death: Nobody I know enough to put down. Guy Fawkes died messily shortly after getting caught?
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| [13 Mar 2006|03:54am] - hi! |
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How's it goin'? My name is Josh and I can't type very well because someone has been feeding me alcohol. I think my perfectionist, self-conscious nature might come out and I'll spell-check this before posting, but I donno, we'll see. Anyway, Austin Texas is fun. Yay AWP. There are these "Bar" places where you can get this "alcohol" stuff and apparently it makes you feel pretty goofy. Yeah -- I know -- goofy. Regardless it's a solid 90 degrees during the day and an even 730-something at night. Oh? What? Pfft, I'd never do something like make a "drunk post" or whatever you call it. No, no, I'd just go to sleep or something. Right...
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| [27 Feb 2006|03:26pm] - yeah |
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I am tired and snot-filled. I've been sick for 3 weeks now. NIN tonight was postponed and I'll probably be in Austin, TX from March 8th to the 12th for AWP, so there goes my "first" concert. ashiant tried so hard to get me there too. I've been playing WoW and hanging out with Amy (things are still great). Sometimes I even do my homework. The paper came out pretty well, thanks. My journal is boring. Sorry.
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| [16 Jan 2006|11:33pm] - nobody pays attention |
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Hum. I was looking around for things to finish this Emerson paper and stumbled upon this cute little comparison: "We come not as conquerors, but as liberators." -George Bush (2003) "Not as tyrants have we come, but as liberators." -Adolf Hitler (1938) Not even a hundred years ago. Funny how people don't notice these things. Right, anyway, as a complete and total waste of your time, method of procrastination for me and minor tidbit: I love when you're listening to a well set up home theater, good headphones or just sticking your head directly between two stereo speakers and it sounds like the sound isn't actually coming from the speakers -- the music is in your head. It's a neat little auditory illusion, I think, where your brain just computes the sound as originating from inside your head instead of from the speakers, but it still gives me warm fuzzies. Maybe I should ditch English and become a sound engineer -- then I can play with computers and sound at the same time -- and, I don't know, read books on the side or something. Or, I suppose, I could finish this damn English degree and then try to pry my way into the business anyway. Wow, I'm bloody fantastic at avoiding writing papers.
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| [27 Dec 2005|02:32pm] - Oldboy |
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Anyone else seen Oldboy?
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| [16 Dec 2005|11:07pm] - school |
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It's almost over, but here's a side note while I'm procrastinating (dear god I'm good at procrastinating). John Keats is alternately inspiring and depressing. The man was undeniably brilliant, life cut short with so many possibilities ahead of him, tackling one thing after another with an air of indomitable intelligence. He also accomplished so incredibly much before dying at 25. Yeah, 25. Sigh. I've got less than a year to go before I should have built up enough work to become famous for the rest of our age. Right? Aw crap, there goes my notion that I'm actually a literary genius. Oh well, back to papers. 
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