SWP: Origins

Chapter 1

The small plane sputtered, veering right and left as it lost altitude in the oxygen-depleted air over the Himalayas.

“We’re not gonna make it,” said the man in the co-pilot seat.

“Oh, we’ll make it,” said the man attempting to steady the dilapidated plane. “We better make it. You know what we got in back. And you know who it belongs to.”

In the back of the Cessna, one large cage sat at the tail end of the plane, bolted down. Lying on the floor of the cage was a hound dog, seemingly undisturbed by the chaos happening just outside the metal bars around him. His eyes remained wide open, not with fear, but with acute awareness. He had no concern for his own safety; his only concern was the safety of the two small creatures burrowing themselves under his belly.

Despite a valiant effort by the pilot, the man in the co-pilot seat turned out to be right. They did not make it. The sudden storm that had caused the plane so many problems had finally passed and the midday sun shone down on the metal parts scattered all over the mountain pass. There was no sound or movement from the cockpit.

There was no movement in the back of the plane, either.  The cage remained bolted down, but the door had swung open. The cage was empty.

The sun shined bright, but the wind was biting. The cold was unlike anything the young hound had ever felt before. It didn’t matter. He needed to find some food and a safe place away from any predators. He stopped to get a better grip on his two companions. He hoped he wasn’t hurting them with his strong jaws, but it was the only way he knew to transport them. They were too fragile to walk on their own, and it was his duty to protect them.

The mountain that had seemed so distant from the wrecked plane was finally getting closer. He’d try to find some hikers who might take pity on him.

The sun was starting to slip behind the mountain peak. The sun would be completely out of sight soon and the temperature would drop another 50 degrees. His companions were still in shock from the crash and wouldn’t last very long if left exposed to the harsh weather. He had to find sanctuary.

The sun barely peeked over the mountain top. The hound limped closer to the base of the mountain. There were no humans in sight. The wind was picking up and beginning to toss around wet snow and strange sounds. He couldn’t be sure if it was the wind itself moaning or something in the mountains, watching them. The hair on his back stood straight up and his fellow travelers squirmed and wiggled anxiously. He needed to rest, but he knew he couldn’t. Unfortunately, his body didn’t agree. He walked a few more strides before falling to his side. He loosened his grip on the kittens. They lay next to him, rubbing their noses on his head and pawing him gently in an attempt to move him. After a few minutes, they gave up and burrowed themselves into their favorite hiding spot under his belly.

The leopard saw its opportunity. There was nothing stopping it from getting to the warm meat lying in a heap at the foot of the mountain. It took one more look around and sped towards the exhausted dog.

The leopard never felt the arrow that struck its temple and shattered its skull.

The hound felt himself moving and groggily opened his eyes. He was slowly being dragged up the mountain on a small sled. He yelped once frantically, not seeing his companions, but he then felt their warm bodies on his back, kneading his fur with their tiny paws. He sighed and looked towards the shape that was pulling his sled. He saw nothing but a dark, human-like mass with a rope tied around the waist connected to the sled. The moving mass heard the yelp and stopped. It turned slowly; everything moved slowly in this cold. Underneath a dark hood, two fierce, bright eyes looked intensely upon the animals. The hound was transfixed by the gaze. It felt calming, reassuring. He had a sense that he and his companions had reached their sanctuary; in fact, he felt as if this was where they were meant to be all along. He closed his eyes and drifted off.

End Chapter 1

I Love You All...Class Dismissed.

spittin wicked randomness

followin the jbeez lead on this one. wicked randomness spittin over here. the thing is, i really started this blog for myself. its like a journal. and really it does what a journal is supposed to do, which is to express your honest feelings and articulate the thoughts/emotions you have on a given subject. its like therapy. cheap therapy.

but it also exposes my thoughts/emotions to the world. literally, the world. which is cool. i usually keep most of my thoughts to myself, or only express my thoughts to a chosen few, but i feel more comfortable expressing myself through the written word, and this gives me the platform to do just that on a large scale. this helps me bring out my real feelings. it helps me reflect upon and analyze my thoughts, and it makes me more honest, with myself, and with the world.

i think that if everyone was more honest with each other, one hundred percent honest, we would all be better off. cliche cliche disney movie blah blah i know. but cliches are there for a reason. they are usually true. we all have secrets. and yet we all judge each other when those secrets come to light. well, lets bring all those secrets to the light. maybe we'll be less judgmental. and honestly the internet and 24/7 news stations are starting to expose more people's real lives. even when people dont want it or know about it. especially when they dont want it or know about it. dont know if its made people less judgmental though. so fuck that theory.

i love chaos. the motto of one of my favorite shows ever was "exposing chaos where it exists and creating chaos where it does not." that's the motto of Spoven Weedle Presents... that show and that motto (amongst other things) have really helped shape my life, but also helped me to look at my life in a positive way. before i knew about the show, my life was somewhat chaotic at times, and i seemed to enjoy that for whatever reason. but i also thought i was in the wrong for enjoying it. this show helped me accept the way i live and the way i view the world.

dont accept the status quo or the popular view on anything. sometimes the popular view is right (another lesson i needed to learn and have come to gradually accept) but sometimes you need to go against the popular view or the commonly held beliefs. and thats okay. in fact, in many cases, thats how we make positive progress as a society. im not saying im going to start some kind of revolution with my way of thinking, but i do think that it's important that we have people who are willing to go against the grain.

just ate a white pizza with ricotta, tomatoes, and chicken. that was awesome. sometimes, a good meal will change your entire day, or your entire mood for that day. that is almost common sense, because food will obviously change our mood when we go from starving to satisfied, but other things can change your entire day too. like a good song that comes up randomly on your ipod. or a smile from a stranger you pass on the street. or a compliment from a friend or coworker. that can change your mood for that instant, which has an effect on your mood for the rest of the day, which can affect how you look at your entire week, etc...butterfly efffect and what not. ashton's best and maybe only good role. time travel movies/books always bring up a lot of good questions. some make you think about the consequences of time travel on the current state of reality, some deal with time travel in order to make u think about social/personal issues, some are for pure entertainment and awesomeness, some make up their own rules and dont care about what you think, and some are just absolutely absurd yet undoubtedly brilliant and possibly the key to world peace (more on that later).

where am i going with this rambling nonsense? nowhere. thats why i love this blog thing. i can just put up whatever the hell i want. if i want to put this on my blog i can. and you cant say shit. or, you can say shit. or i can fix my comment section so u cant say shit. but then u could start your own blog and do nothing but talk shit  about me.

thats beautiful.

enjoy your life.

I Love You All (even if you start a blog to talk shit about me)...Class Dismissed.

I NEED MORE TIME

Some people fear they will die before accomplishing anything significant with their lives. I fear that I will die before I see all the movies on my amazon wishlist. 

I have hundreds of books, hundreds of movies, a handful of video games, and 15,142 songs in my possession. I have access to an infinite amount of music, videos, games, and literature online, as does anybody with internet access. Although I may be a bit more critical than most with my judgments, I still enjoy a wide, eclectic variety of entertainment. And even though I am more discerning than a lot of people, there is still just way too much good stuff to read, watch, and listen to in one lifetime. With more outlets for artists (or people claiming to be artists) than ever before, more material is released than ever before. Since we are a global society, we now have access to artists and art from all around the world, without leaving our homes. The technology we use to access this art is improving at the speed of light. It's become a cliche (and the theme of some horrible television ads) that consumers can't keep pace with the new products coming out. Of course, as you get older, you have more and more responsibilities in your life that cut down on the time available for enjoying a 2 hour movie uninterrupted.

"I'm going to see Joyful Noise and that's final! I'll finish the report tomorrow, Mr. Bernstein!"

You turn on the tv and there's 2700 channels to choose from (and Law and Order is on at least 35 of them). Online, you can watch or listen to virtually anything ever made. It's overwhelming.

I'm not the only one that feels this way (thankfully). In fact, author and futurist (I want that title!) Alvin Toffler wrote about "information overload" in 1970, when computers were as big as a house and there were 3 channels on tv. Toffler believed that the accelerated rate of technological and social change overwhelmed people, who were more accustomed to slow, gradual change. This rapid change leaves people disconnected and they become "future shocked", suffering from stress and disorientation. 

Curtis Mayfield gets it.

I read Toffler's book, "Future Shock", a few years ago and it was mind-blowing. It's one of those books full of brilliant ideas that seem so obvious after reading it that you feel dumb for never having articulated the ideas yourself. It was a perfect description of what I was feeling and what our society and culture were going through; and it was written 40 years ago. 

Every now and then, I get that sense of being overwhelmed by choice. There are no less than 20 restaurants and 4 large grocery stores within a mile radius of me, and yet, some nights I take hours figuring out what I want to eat, finally settling on whatever is still open. My cable service offers hundreds of movies and shows on demand, in addition to the hundreds of regular channels, but sometimes I can't decide on anything good to watch, so I get stuck on Seinfeld reruns for an hour before I fall asleep. In the past 2 weeks, I literally downloaded (LEGALLY... TOTALLY AND ABSOLUTELY LEGALLY) 1,200 songs to my ipod. I'll never listen to most songs more than once, but I like having them there, "just in case".

I don't think Toffler would be surprised that depression and ADHD are so prevalent in our society. It's the paradox of choice; with so much choice, people feel like they will undoubtedly make the wrong one, so they end up either not making any choices, or regretting all their decisions and not being able to enjoy the reality they chose. 

I can certainly sympathize. After watching Hall Pass, I was very depressed that I didn't choose literally anything else to do with those 2 hours of my life.

Jason Sudeikis: Cause of depression in millions of Americans.

My creative writing teacher in college gave a lot of good advice, but one thing he said always stuck with me. When creating something, there are an infinite number of directions to take. As a writer, I can talk about anything in any style I choose. What's important is to make a decision and stick with it. Now that seems pretty simple, but as an aspiring artist, I felt it was profound. It really speaks to the self-confidence and focus one must have in order to even begin creating.

I think this extends to all aspects of modern life. Sometimes the simple choice of what cereal to eat for breakfast can leave people standing in the aisle looking like Rick Perry at a debate.

Do I want the Honey Nut, or the Multi-grain Cheerios? And then there's Count Chocula lookin' at me over there...hmmm.

Make a decision and stick with it. Yes, that's easier said than done, especially with so many options, but it's the only way to accomplish anything. If I spend 30 minutes trying to pick out a movie, I'm going to fall asleep before I see the end of whatever movie I eventually choose. If I sit on the couch for an hour contemplating whether I should read, watch a movie, or go jogging (that one rarely wins out) I'll end up doing none of those things and just watch Seinfeld reruns for an hour before I fall asleep. And if you think you have deja vu after reading that, imagine how I feel after living it.

So, be confident that you will make the right decision (or the best decision for yourself at the time) and go for it. You'll get a lot more done if you stop contemplating the infinite possibilities of every action and simply take action. The number of shows on your DVR will decrease in no time.

I Love You All...Class Dismissed.

Big Easy

Now that I have broken the news about my upcoming trip to Africa, and after watching the New Orleans Saints offensively dominate the Detroit Lions in the NFC Wildcard playoff game, I figured it would be a good time to introduce the subject of my upcoming New Orleans trip to my blog followers. For four days, including Fat Tuesday, I will be enjoying the Big Easy with several of my good friends. This will be my third time traveling to NOLA. The first time, I went for the exact same amount of time (Saturday through Wednesday morning) and the second time, I went for three months. Although it's hard to say definitively, considering it is the only city outside of CT that I've lived in, New Orleans has become my favorite city in the US. I love the sports teams, even though the Hornets are poorly run and got rid of one of my favorite players ever, CP3. I love the food, even though it is the reason that the life expectancy rate in New Orleans is considerably lower than the rest of the US. I love the music, even though I can't name any of the artists that play there. The weather is perfect during the time I'll be there, although not too fun in the summer. And I simply love the people and the culture; I can really appreciate a population that moves slowly and avoids doing anything productive. They have that perennial underdog attitude and spirit; they have survived so many hardships with a good nature that it's impossible not to root for the city to succeed. What other city responds to one of the worst (man-made) natural disasters by saying, "Fuck it. We ain't cancelling our damn party"? There's just so much to love.

I will be there for Mardi Gras again, but even during the rest of the year, there is a festive, jovial atmosphere (I'm talking about the tourist areas, not the poor areas, obviously...not a lot of smiles and bright beads in the 'Nolia projects). New Orleans is the place everyone goes to let loose, to shrug off all the social restraints and truly enjoy themselves with no inhibition. Now, that approach doesn't really work well when you're trying to run a city, but it sure is fun as a visitor. Even the police officers break free of the usual expectations of "upholders of the law" and do whatever the hell they want. It's absolute chaos...and I love it.

I haven't been since Katrina, so I'll be interested to see if there's any difference. However, I'll be in the French Quarter the whole time, with my mind (and eyes, and camera) on other, more bouncy, things, so I don't know if I'll get a good sense of the daily operations of the city. This will not be an educational trip, unless you consider comparing the size, shape, smoothness, firmness, jiggle-ocity, and length of exposure time of the female Mardi Gras-goer's chest-pillows "educational". So, yeah, I guess it is an educational trip. 

Learning is fun!

I will not be starting a separate blog for this trip, as I believe the style, tone, and language of this blog fit perfectly with that of a trip to Mardi Gras with my boys. Of course, in order to document this trip, it means I will have to remain somewhat cognizant, at least long enough to write a few blog entries, or at the very least, take some notes for blog entries. Or, I can just watch all the video footage afterwards and make something up to fill in the blanks. Whatever happens, I can't wait. 

This. This will happen.

Mardi Gras is meant to be a release, a Dionysian, id-fueled celebration leading up to Ash Wednesday when we repent for all our sins. Now, I've forgone the tenets and beliefs of Catholicism some time ago, but I appreciate symbolism, and the symbolism of this trip is spectacular. As I get older, I'm supposed to accept more responsibilities and overcome my youthful indiscretions. I don't know if I'm ready for all that, but I know that opportunities like this one will arise less and less the more days I spend on this planet. And the older I get, the less I need to party for 4 days straight, let alone 3 months straight. But on this trip, I will let it all out, and then reflect upon my actions (and my life in general) when the trip is done. Not because of Ash Wednesday, but I don't deny it's influence on my self-reflection. Then, when I return, I will prepare for a more noble adventure in Africa, and maybe even a more noble journey through life itself. Not that I'm never going to party again (and party hard for that matter); in fact, partying--and relaxing--are an important part of living a happy, successful life. But there needs to be a balance between partying and living responsibly, and as you get older, the balance (should) tip towards the side of responsibility and positive, productive actions. 

Responsibility and productivity, as displayed here by Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa.

I am always looking to improve myself, and possibly the world around me, and I think both of my upcoming trips will help me on my road to self-improvement, if not quite global improvement. Human beings are complex, with characteristics that are often contradictory, and I think people would be better off if they accepted the contradictions within themselves. I feel that I have many different aspects of my identity (Professor and Thuggy being only two) and I have become a happier/better person by embracing and expressing the different parts of my identity. I love partying and living for myself, but I also enjoy working to help others. There's nothing wrong with doing both, as long as you find the right balance. I think I've balanced the two pretty well throughout my life, and I look forward to the challenge of maintaining the proper balance from now until the day of my jazz funeral procession.

I Love You All...Class Dismissed.

Africa/Twitter

So I was just doing research for this blog (searching randomly on the web for something interesting) when I went on twitter and looked at "Worldwide Trends". On 8:16 PM Eastern time today on Twitter, #inanafricanhouse was trending worldwide. I have no idea why. I can barely figure out how the hell twitter works. But there it was, the third most popular phrase on the third most popular social media forum. In An African House. Normally, I would have looked at that phrase, giggled, then kept looking for hot women to follow on twitter. However, it just so happens that I will be living in an African house (hostel, close enough) beginning in May. Yeah. Tanzania. Teaching English. 

So I thought that was interesting. 

I'm going to write about that experience more on this blog, and I'm going to keep another blog during the trip as well. My family thinks that the language on this particular blog would be inappropriate, considering that I will be working with nuns in Africa. I don't know what the fuck they're talking about. But anyways, I'm really looking forward to the experience. And I'm looking forward to writing about it. 

Thank you, Aunt Jane, and Mom, and Dad :-)

I love my life. 

I Love You All...Class Dismissed. 

Who Doesn't Love Santorum?

In honor of last night's GOP Iowa Caucus, I feel it necessary to commend the come from behind almost-victory of Rick Santorum. Santorum was all over that caucus, ending up number 2 behind Mitt Romney by a smudge.

If you are unaware of Santorum, you should google his name. Then check out the blog "Spreading Santorum" so we can share Santorum with everybody across the country and really help people understand what Santorum is all about.

Also check out "Savage Love" with Dan Savage because he's the man.

Santorum.

I Love You All...Class Dismissed.

Happy New YeaaAAHHH!

If you’re anything like me, you grew up spending New Year’s Eve watching Dick Clark counting down the famous ball drop in Times Square.  And, if you’re anything like me, you’ve spent the past few New Year’s avoiding any tv countdown whatsoever, just so you don’t accidentally glance upon Dick's sagging face as you slam your 32nd jello shot.

Now I’m not insensitive. I’m not here to disparage stroke victims. I feel for anybody who’s suffered a stroke and any long-lasting effects. Having a stroke is one of my biggest fears in life. I hope one day science and medicine may be able to do much more to prevent and treat strokes. Maybe you can even help.

But I’m not here to philanthropize, either (I’m sending that one to Merriam-Webster for approval). I’m just here to talk about what everybody is seemingly ignoring: there is an 82-year-old stroke victim on national television hosting the biggest party of the year.

Not everybody is ignoring it. Some people blame the network for dragging him out year after year like a half-melted marionette. Some say that the network is banking off his name and his legend forcing this poor guy out there year after year. Those people say that the network should let him go and live his life in solitude and dignity. They say it’s a shame to see this legend as a weak, frail, feeble old man.

Others say that it’s Clark’s own ego that has kept him coming back to rock in the New Year. They say it’s his name on the show and he isn’t ready to give up the spotlight. He is hanging on to the last shred of fame until it is torn out of his cold, weak, old hands. They say his age and the stroke have made him even more stubborn in his refusal to step down. They say they should let some new, young host take over. They even say it's a bummer to see him during their New Year's parties.

I admit, the year he came back after the stroke, it was tough to watch him slur through the countdown. At 25 years old, I wanted to party care-free and enjoy my own perceived immortality.

But now I'm over 30. A little more flab around the belly, a little less hair on the head. He's still a bit hard to watch, but now I know that Dick Clark is a hero. 

I say we need him up there during the biggest party of the night. Nowadays, our sick and elderly are tucked away in assisted living facilities and nice, clean hospitals so us younger folk don't have to think about our impending fate. We watch movies and shows where elderly characters are played by young people in make-up because nobody wants to see an actual old person. Dick Clark is a much-needed dose of reality, during a very surreal event. As we celebrate one more full revolution around the sun by watching a giant silver ball slowly move downward 77 feet, Dick Clark is a constant reminder of the fleeting nature of our existence. Life can be gone, or forever changed, in an instant, oftentimes due to circumstances beyond our control. New Year's should be a time to reflect on our journey through life thus far, and Dick Clark reminds us to enjoy that journey while it lasts, and to hang on tight until the very last drop of life drains from our wrinkled, shriveled bodies. 

We need to party, and Dick Clark needs to party with us.

Personally, I hope Dick’s up there for years to come.

Besides, he’s still better than Ryan Seacrest.

I Love You All (especially Dick Clark)…Class Dismissed.