I'm always so thankful when things turn out well, I really am. Thank you.

So this week I tried this little thing where I could only have 5 minutes of Facebook a day, 10 minutes of email per day, and no gchat/aim. It was kind of like swimming for the first time. Your body isn't used to it and you're not sure how you're able to function, especially with no more Facebook.

But it was also like a breath of fresh air. People actually started to call me, which I found very...touching. I kind of like phone calls more than gchat. It's harder to multi-task while talking on the phone, but phone calls just seem more meaningful.

Be Honest

B.F. Skinner's fundamental principle of behavior was simple: "Organisms tend to repeat responses that lead to positive outcomes, and they tend not to repeat responses that lead to neutral or neutral or negative outcomes."

But what if that organism is deceived and lied to? I think the main problem with most interactions in the world is caused by miscommunication. If you don't approve of something another does, tell him/her. Don't just lie and pretend everything is okay. Because how will he/she know it's wrong if he/she is never told? Be honest.

Here's a pretty funny video I found, but it shows how honesty prevails in the end.

Maturity vs Opinions

What exactly does it mean to be mature? What is the definition of maturity?

I think one matures after he sees younger people in the same position he/she was a few years ago. Everyone always thinks the new freshmen are annoying, but it makes me wonder if I actually did those things as a freshman.

I've come up with an experiment. Buy a notepad and write different opinions you have on random topics. Do you think mango bubble tea isn't real bubble tea? Write it down and label the date. It is like a Twitter/FacebookStatus for opinions. Try it.

That's Cool...

Today I was standing in the parking lot with some friends. I couldn't help but notice another guy talking to another girl. He was chewing his gum with his mouth wide open while swinging his car keys in giant circles. Is this what the cool kids do now?

I don't know, maybe the guy thought it would attract her if he made it just a little obvious that he owned a nice car. Personally, I think bike rides are much more enjoyable. I wouldn't have to worry about a metal key striking my face and inflicting any pain.

Huh?!

Why is it ok, for girls to wear guy clothes, but not ok for guys to wear girl clothes?

Why are mean girls called sassy, and mean guys called jerks?

Why is it adorable for a girl to cook a guy a terrible meal, and why is a guy that cooks a girl a terrible meal...just a terrible cook?

Why do girls disapprove of two gays making out, but when guys see two girls making out... ;)

Why is the guy always wrong?

Why are girls in sweatshirt sweatpants just having a bad day, and guys in sweatshirt sweatpants are just slobs?

Why do girls have the have the power to show affection, while most guys are born with the inability to hug another man for longer than one second. (Though in cases of bromance, this is nullified)

Why do guys ride in the cars of bad female drivers, and girls stray away from bad male drivers at all costs? Why is it essential for a guy to learn how to drive, while it's ok for a girl to be the worst parker in the world?

Why is it attractive to guys to see some nerd in a girl, but nerdy guys will always be nerdy guys?

Why do shy girls still attract guys, while shy guys are just incapable of anything BUT attracting other guys?

*Most of these are arguable. I have more...but I dare not say anymore so I do not offend the conservative-minded folk.

Live for YourSELF

I saw a runner today while I was mowing the lawn. He looked so strong in his stride. After he ran past me and passed the next house, he stopped running and looked like he was gasping for air. Did it really matter for me to 'think' that he was an extremely athletic person?

You run for yourself. 50 years from now when you're still running and in healthy shape, you won't be thinking, "that young man mowing the lawn thinks I'm a good runner."

Today my mom woke me to tell me to study up for SAT subject tests. I didn't say anything and did what I was told.

Before I went to bed, my dad stopped me. I thought he had something important to say. He told me to take out the trash. I didn't say anything. I took out the trash and went to bed.

It was my 18th birthday.

Old Xanga Posts I Thought Were [somewhat] Meaningful

Monday, January 28, 2008

Suck ups... Suck ups....why are there so many in the world? Especially in school, there are way too many of them. They come in swarms, and they're armed with over-the-top obvious comments made to act as if you actually cared for that person. Why would you suck up to someone if you don't actually have any interest in them or what they have to say? So there's this one person I know, that sucks up to every single teacher. It makes me want to vomit every time I hear a comment from him/her. I'm not naming anyone, but why do you have to pretend you are so interested in that teacher's class if his/her class isn't that interesting at all? Government class is so boring, and yet you stop the teacher after every comment to relate it to relate it to some current event topic that I don't care about. Seriously, government class is already annoying enough. Please let our teacher finish what he has to say so I can catch up on my sleep instead of cramming before tests to magically remember all the things he hasn't been able to teach us due to "lack of time." Why would you ever suck up to someone just to get something out of it for your own gain? Sure, I could laugh at every one of his/her dumb jokes and comment about random imagery in every sentence...but that's not me. I don't really care if laughing at his joke will improve my grade. And that's not interesting imagery in his writing...that's how he writes. I could have great imagery if I wanted to, but who cares if I relate my life to the shriek of dying birds. Imagery is imagery, and you don't have to point that out for us, even if that stalls the teacher until the end of class. Maybe sucking up to someone would really benefit my grade. So what if I get an 89% for my final grade (which actually happened, by the way...). Don't be a suck up...it doesn't make you any better of a person. So what if that makes the difference between Harvard and HCC. Does that make you feel any better about yourself? That you cheated with someone's emotions to gain something out of it? The sad thing is that there will always be at least one person in the world that will fall for suck ups like you, and boy do I wish I could punch him in the face and tell him the truth.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Today I was thinking to myself again, as usual, and I came upon the words "friend" and "love." I kept repeating those words to myself. "Friend." "Friend." "Friend." The more I said that word to myself, the less meaning it had. I realized how little the word friend meant to me. Someone I talk to every day and someone I talk to once a year are both considered friends in words, but does that necessarily mean the same in feeling? The word "friend" is overused, just like "love" is. Someone wants to borrow money - "c'mon, you're my friend right?" Someone makes you angry and uses "I love you" as a lame escape. Do words mean anything anymore? Words, just like these words I'm typing on this Xanga don't actually mean anything like written letters did back then. We need to spice up our vocabulary. From now on, "friends" are "friends." Real friends are "life-partners." Not even joking. Just because you're not married, doesn't mean you can't be life-partners. They're going to be with you for the majority of your life, looking out for you. And what about those "friends" you met in high school? Yeah, they're just going to leave your life - forever.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Life is Sad Life is sad. You're thrown into school for 16+ years. Then when you get out of college, you realize that you're going to spend the next 60+ years of your life working 8 hours a day. If you sleep 8 hours a day, 8 hours remain. 3 hours for meals. 1 hour to get to and from work. 4 hours of free time per day. 1 hour to procrastinate and tell yourself that your life sucks. 1 hour for shower + bathroom duties. 1 hour spent attempting to connect with friends and trying to tell yourself you have a social life. That means you really have 1 hour a day all to yourself. But you somehow waste it. You spend your whole life working to buy yourself 2 weeks of vacation a year. I need a vacation.

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Belief "Trust your instincts." What a trite saying. Yet, people hold onto it like it's a written law, a commandment. Are your instincts always right? It seems like in most situations, your instincts always rule over everything. Once your mind is set, you never double-check with yourself to make sure that it's the most logical decision. The only time your instincts come in handy is when you are fighting for your life or the life of another. Your girlfriend is stuck under a car and you suddenly have superhuman strength. Your instincts were right. When you were a child, you survived based on instincts. When I was a child, I believed in anything. I had this little system where I believed I could pull out the answer through some "secret power" I had. Answers would pop out at me. When I was in about 1st or 2nd grade, I won money, food, and clothes from a Lottery scratch off. This system I used always worked until I hit about 6th grade. Maybe during your first years of life, you are guided by some higher power. Maybe the more we're educated by this society, the less we believe in ourselves. Education kills creativity. Education kills belief. Believe in yourself. http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html