MY 100TH POST!!!

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a special occasion. A landmark in my amateur blogging career. This is my 100th post. There are a lot of people that I want to thank for helping me get here, but I don't like posting names over the net. The names tat I will post are the wonderful folks who have left comments on this site. I want to especially thank these people: Big Possum, Lady True2U, Wendy Lough, Lady Truth, Jennifer, Co-Jack, Lacey Peterson, Tammy, Osmianski, Mike, Mike Toothman, James Tubman, Sheila, Lori, Heartless, Mojaxs, Jaki, and Morelli. These people commented and on several posts and actually left their names. I appreciate your opinions and believe it or not each of you has taught me a thing or two, with your comments. I feel like we are family. Not that I dislike the Anonymous posts. Some of them have been incredibly insightful but it's nice to put a name with the comment. It seems to strengthen the connection. Out of all of the 100 posts, I'd have to say that my favorite ones were I Came In The Door, Said It Before.... , Disconnection Notice ,Better or Good ,Happiness is Singular , and The Artist formerly known as...... I don't have the space to list my favorite comments but trust me; there have been some good ones. For those of you that read: thank you so very much & please continue reading; and for those comment: Thank you even more. It might seem corny to you, but this is a very special moment for me. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

The Problem With Open Ventilation

Just like in the movie Spider-Man, Uncle Ben tells Peter, "With great power comes great responsibility". I've just recently found that "With great freedom comes great responsibility". The purposes of this blog are three fold. I'll list them in order of importance

1. To vent my feelings and frustrations in a safe way.
2. To Learn from other people's advice and experiences
3. To possibly teach/enlighten someone else by my opinions, outlooks, and perceptions.

Never has it been my intentions to hurt or upset anyone by the things that I've posted. I repeat; I've never meant to INTENTIONALLY hurt or upset someone. If it happens by chance, then so be it. This is in no way a retraction or apology for being me; nor is it the beginning of a safe, bland, vanilla, PC blog. I just know it would be wrong of me not to acknowledge when something that I've written or posted has hurt some one's feelings or made someone question themselves. It is an unwelcome part of the process; but it is part of the process. Free flowing opinionated thought, sometimes offends and upsets people. It's an occupational hazard. The cool part of all this is; people are reading my blog, and people give a damn about my opinion. Who would've thought? I promise those that read, nothing will change. No disclaimers. And to those who I've offended or hurt; I will never PURPOSEFULLY do it again.

I can't make any promises.

Also; when I find the rat bastard that sold me out; it's on. But that's just my opinion, though and who the hell am I?

Happiness

Lately, I have been in kind of a funk and I'm sure it has been evident in my posts. I decided today to try and switch things up a bit; and talk about happiness. I think happiness is the strongest motivator of mankind. Even before Self-preservation. I believe every action is rooted in the possibility to make oneself happy. I also believe Happiness itself has 4 Levels.

Level One

Level 1 is finding happiness in physical pleasure and possession of material things. Level 1 is about gaining physical gratification through the fulfillment of our five senses. The double tall mocha tastes good, and I feel good having drunk it.This level of happiness is good. But, if we only live for instant gratification, we soon become bored.Suffering has no meaning at this level. When we are deprived of pleasures and possessions, we perceive pain and suffering. We question suffering and fail to see how any good can come from pain.

Level Two

Level 2 is finding happiness in ego-gratification. We get a boost of ego when we succeed, are in control, are admired, or win a competition. This happiness accompanies winning a soccer game, graduating from school, or getting a job promotion. Level 2 is good. Humans need to work toward goals and finish projects. But, we have to be careful if happiness is found only in achievement or ego-gratification because we'll be living in constant competition with other people. If things don't go our way, or we embarrass ourselves, or we fail, we can sink into depression. If pain or illness causes us to lose some control or become dependent on others, we begin to see life as useless or meaningless. Suffering is seen as something to be avoided at all costs. We may begin to live in fear of suffering because it inhibits our ability to achieve.

Level Three

Level 3 is doing good things for another person. This is the joy of giving a gift, teaching a child to tie his shoelaces, and baking cookies for a friend. In addition to the happiness we find in giving to others, we also find happiness in being with others. When we give our very selves by playing "Go Fish" with a child or listening to a friend who needs an ear, we find spending time in the presence of someone else can make us happy. Nonetheless, if we make Level 3 our "end," we become frustrated because we can never do enough to help others, for there is always more to do! Another pitfall is thinking someone else will bring us ultimate happiness. This is too large of a task to ask another person to accomplish for us, or for us to try to accomplish for another person. Although we can help someone find happiness, we can't be "ultimate happiness."

Level Four

Level 4 is faith and participation in the unconditional, never-ending love of God. Even those who do not believe in God still have this desire for the ultimate. Some may call it a universal force, or some other name. It is believing that there is such a thing as perfect, ultimate, unconditional, and eternal Truth, Love, Beauty, Goodness, and Justice. It's learning that the only person who is without limits is God, and that God loves us so much, that He wants us to be a part of His Love forever. If we truly believe that this is our final goal, then we know what it means to be human. People are no longer problems, they are mysteries. We look for the "good news" in other people. We desire good for the other so much; it becomes just as easy to do good for someone else as for ourselves. Level 4 keeps the other three levels in their proper perspectives. Our final goal is to find happiness by accepting the perfect, unconditional love of God, and by giving ourselves away in love to others (even when this requires suffering). Sometimes loving others causes us suffering and sacrifices, but with a Level 4 outlook, we see that suffering can result in a greater good. Our suffering can actually provide others the opportunity to give of themselves through their love and sacrifice for us.

But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

The Desiderata Week #7

"For always there will be greater or lesser persons than yourself."


Give me your thoughts and opinions on what I feel is a life changing piece of literature. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

Mmmmmmmmmmm Yuuuuup!!!

I was e-mailed this yesterday. I thought it was really cool. What do you think?

Those Born 1930-1979

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930s, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's!!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes. Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets. Not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking. As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat. We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle. We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this. We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank Kool-aid made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because, WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K. We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem. We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or chat rooms........ WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them! We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever. We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them! Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!! The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law! These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever! The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL! If YOU are one of them, CONGRATULATIONS! You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good . While you are at it, let your kids read this, so they will know how brave (and lucky) their parents were. Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't it?! But that's jut my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

The Taste Of Disrespect

Have any of you been so disrespected by someone that you can taste it? It just recently happened to me. Here is how it all went down. I've been working in my current field now for about 9 years. I have tons of experience, a pretty nice reputation, and enough letters behind my to be considered legitimate and knowledgeable in my field. Recently a job change has occurred that forces me to redefine my job duties and day to day business. While others may cringe at this type of adversity, I thrive on it. As soon as I heard about the changes, my eyes widened and I got hungry again. I missed that feeling. It was short lived, though. Just as soon as I was ready to jump in with both feet; I was informed that I would not be charting this career course. Some who has no idea what I do, how I do it, and zero experience in this field is in charge. hen asked if I could put in any input, I was greeted with a laugh and told, "it wouldn't be good to leave it up to you and your own devices". First I was shocked. Then I was angry. Now I'm just hurt. Loyalty, like chivalry, is going the way of the Do-Do bird. Oh.... By the way; It kind tastes like licking a 9 volt battery. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

Baby Steps

At least give them credit for trying. MTV is doing their best to shed the rumor that they know nothing about Hip-Hop. They have once again come up with their list of the Hottest MCs in the Game. At least this time they had the good sense to cover their butts by using the term "Hottest". This should get them out of trouble with all the real Hip-Hop heads out there. It would be like saying I was gonna make a list of the Coolest Jazz musicians. Who really cares if they're cool? Can they play good music? The same applies to this list. I don't know, nor do I care, what MTV's definition of "Hottest" is; I just applaud them for getting a few right this time. Here is the list:

10 T.I.

09 Andre 3000

08 Young Jeezy

07 Lupe Fiasco

06 50 Cent

05 Snoop Dogg

04 Rick Ross

03 Lil Wayne

02Jay-Z

01Kanye West

You can probably guess the ones that I have issues with: Jeezy, 50, Snoop, and Rick Ross. Jeezy, 50, and Snoop shouldn't be on the list at all. Jeezy was never good, 50's fifteen minutes of fame are on their last few, and Snoop just isn't relevant anymore. Rick Ross deserves to be on the list but I was thinking more like 8th or 9th. Lyrically he is miles ahead of Young Jeezy. The rest of the list is pretty cool to me. They are all good, relevant, creative, original MCs. Exactly what the game needs more of. But that's just my opinion though; and who the hell am I?

The Desiderata Week #6

"If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter,"


Give me your thoughts and opinions on what I feel is a life changing piece of literature. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

Woody Allen

I was sitting in my crib, listening to Mos Def on my Zune and I saw a preview for Woody Allen's new movie. It seems very gangster-ish for Woody. I am not acting like I know the complete Filmography of Mr. Allen but this just doesn't seem to jive with him. Then I began to think even more about Mr. Allen and I remembered that he molested and married his stepdaughter. It seems like the American public has been way to forgiving and forgetting when it comes to this man. Michael Jackson is still catching hell and he hasn't even been found guilty of anything. Woody Allen is a beloved icon of American film; and Michael Jackson is a music phenomenon, the likes of, we will never see again. Woody is a highly publicized pedophile. It is fact. He married the child that he was molesting. Michael was just accused of doing what Woody has declared for all to see and hear. I just don't get it. Is there something that I'm missing in all of this? Maybe it's just the age old case of praise white and punish black. America's ancient double standard. It pisses me off, but it doesn't surprise me. Fuck Woody Allen. That's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

2 Tough Answers

If you answered YES to the abortion question; you just killed Beethoven.

As far as the Candidates go:

Candidate A is Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Candidate B is Winston Churchill.
Candidate C is Adolph Hitler.

I only posted this in hopes that it would make a person think before judging someone that they don't know completely. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

2 Tough Question

Question 1: If you knew a woman who was pregnant, who had 8 kids already, three who were deaf, two who were blind, one mentally retarded, and she had Syphilis, would you recommend that she have an abortion?



Question 2: It is time to elect a new world leader, and only your vote counts. Here are the facts about the three candidates. Who would you vote for?

Candidate A. Associates with crooked politicians, and consults with astrologist. He's had two mistresses. He also chain smokes and drinks 8 to 10 martinis a day.

Candidate B. He was kicked out of office twice, sleeps until noon, used opium in College and drinks a quart of whiskey every evening.

Candidate C. He is a decorated war hero. He's a vegetarian, doesn't smoke, drinks an Occasional beer and never cheated on his wife.

Which of these candidates would be our choice?

Please post your answers to both questions

More to come............................

The Desiderata Week #5

"Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexations to the spirit."

Give me your thoughts and opinions on what I feel is a life changing piece of literature. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?