Good Bye Facebook

Ever tried deleting your facebook.com account? Good luck! It is really hard.

I had to search the internet to figure it out and then it is not immediate. It takes 14 days for facebook to delete your account. This underscores my whole logic in getting off facebook. They want you to always be ON facebook or "CONNECTED" to the world.

As Tim Leary said, "Turn on. Tune in. Drop out." I would modify this idea a bit to the following:

"Turn on and tune in by turning off. Drop in to real life."

At any rate, I still have e-mail and this blog. I still have text messaging and a cell phone. I still watch t.v. I am trying to use the mail more. I do use zippers because button flies suck.

If you want to talk... let's get real... give me a call.

Luddite

What are you searching for?

I find it interesting that the tendency for mankind is to fill our lives with stuff. My individual tendency is to purchase uniquely made items that will age beautifully. For example, one of most prized possessions is a Moleskine cover made of natural Kip leather (not making up the kind of leather) made by Gfeller. I like this thing so much I purchased another... and then another in chocolate brown.

I find myself always battling though. Do I really need this thing? The answer is "of course not!" yet I purchase anyways.

America is one of the largest consumers of resources in the world. I have the statistic somewhere, but we consume some ridiculous amount of the world's total resources. So it would seem that we would be without any want. However, depression and suicide runs rampant in our country. We are not happy. The old economics saying is true, "Unlimited wants, limited resources."

I read recently that Denmark is one of the happiest countries. One of the Danish individuals interviewed was asked why. He explained that in Denmark they have really low expectations. It is a damn fine day if you don't wake up with any expectations because the littlest detail can make the biggest impact.

This is one of those serious posts (if you haven't found out already). I have found myself saying recently, "Live for this moment." If life is a series of moments and we live every moment to its fullest, then we live a full life. Don't confuse living for the moment with some CARPE DIEM, stand on your desk and recite poetry mumbo-jumbo. Rather, lower your expectations. Be still!

The other day I was sitting in car talking to my friend and it was raining outside. I remember the drops of rain splashing off of the window and thinking, "This is really cool." I love the rain. I feel like it's the world taking a shower one spot at a time. But, I often neglect to really appreciate the rain because I am too busy cursing the fact that I am going to be running late for this meeting or that my pants will be all wet after running to my car. I need to be still and live in this moment. The fact of the matter is I might die running to my meeting in a head on collision with an 18-wheeler. Should have enjoyed the rain more because they were the last drops I was going to see!

One last story. I heard this from my buddy whose Dad told him about this. Someone asked job interviewers what one word they would use to describe my generation. Then this person asked people from my generation what this word would be and said the only hint was that the word started with "E." The replies came in. Energetic, entertaining, and so forth.

The answer:

ENTITLED.

Ouch! Our generation has been given so much that we now feel entitled to what we have been given and more. The fact of the matter is we deserve nothing. So the challenge for myself, and hopefully for you, is stop feeling so entitled for every little thing and lower your expectations.

The reality: we deserve nothing. Makes you appreciate wiping your butt with real paper instead of a leaf when you think about it.

Too Legit to Bag Groceries

I went to Whole Foods today to spend the little money I have on lavishly expensive items. This is a once a month trip for me because I really can't resist to buy fair trade, free trade, organically grown, coffee that comes in a package that has seeds that when disposed of in the proper way grows little coffee plants. I just can't resist that. It's so ridiculous it makes me happy.

So I was checking out. I went to line 3 because I noticed CHAD had an amazing beard that I wanted to admire. Yes. I do like to compare facial hair with men named CHAD. Trust me. If you saw this beard you would want to grow one too whether you are a guy or a girl.

Anyways, CHAD was pretty hip. CHAD was so hip that he and his sacker (is that the proper term?) were bantering back and forth. Did I mention the sacker also had an awesome beard because he DID. Anyways, I felt pretty at home. I happened to be wearing a flannel shirt, jeans, and some shoes from Spain (camper's). I felt like CHAD and I could grab an organic, local beer and talk beards.

So as CHAD and the sacker were talking they struck up a convo (CHAD doesn't say full words like conversation) with the lady they were checking out. This lady was NOT hip. She was NOT wearing flannel. She did NOT have a beard. She could not talk about the finer points of Real Ale's Coffee Porter (which is delicious on a cold day... check it out).

CHAD was talking about what an AWESOME prank it is to throw dry ice at people. That is burns them and that that is hip. This lady felt the need to disagree. Apparently, she was some kind of medical professional and kinda gave CHAD a talking to about hurting people. NOT HIP!

So once this lady left the sacker and CHAD started talking about what she had said. The convo (there it is again) went a bit like this:

Sacker Dude: "What did she say about pranks? Something about a urnial?"

Chad Bro: "Man, I don't know. I don't like asking people to repeat themselves so I just smile and laugh. That always works."

Sacker Dude: "Hahaha. Awesome!"

But, this is all okay because the whole time CHAD was looking at me with this knowing look like I definitely could "dig" what he was saying because I also have facial hair and wear flannel. I could not dig. I don't care CHAD. And... that's exactly why I dig. YOU DIG?

Regardless, if you want to make friends with the staff in a Whole Foods don't act like you want to make friends with them or you even care to make friends with them. That's not HIP. Oh yeah, and grow a beard.

Halloween: What are you good for?

I was a lumberjack for Halloween. It seemed fitting. I had the red flannel shirt, a bit of a beard (or what I like to call a beard), high lace up "duck" boots (thanks Pop), and the necessary lumberjack pants. But, what's the point? Halloween you are stupid.

Halloween you are an excuse for women to dress up like prostitutes because they are going as a "sexy" clown or a "sexy" cat or a "sexy" librarian or a "sexy" anything. That's stupid. If I dressed up like a sexy lumberjack I would have been pushed to the exterior of any social gathering because I am a "weirdo." I mean, that's fair and all. Dudes just aren't sexy, but seriously, clowns aren't sexy either.

Halloween you are stupid. You are an excuse for free loading children to go door to door demanding sugary payment for... putting a sheet over their head and calling themselves "ghosts." That's not scary. Earning an honest day's wage in a down economy is scary. Go get a job Lil Timmy.

Halloween you are stupid. You cause people to purchase or rent (I have never thought about this concept prior to some conversations I had this Halloween) costumes that they will never wear again. I don't buy pants and wear them once. I don't buy shoes and wear them once. Why buy a Darth Vader costume to wear once? And try to wear that costume for a second time. But noooooo... that's weird to try to get your money's worth out of a costume. Try showing up to work as a "sexy" librarian on the Monday after Halloween. You will be fired.

Halloween you are stupid. You glorify scary things like axe murderers and killers. You want scary. Drive through the 3rd ward at night like I did on Halloween. You know what's scarier than a crazy murderer, a crazy crackhead looking to score and willing to murder to do it.

Halloween you are stupid. You give people the excuse to "dress up" when they do that everyday anyway. Let's be real for a second (not that I haven't been already). Everyday we wake up and we make conscious choices about the things we surround ourselves with. I put on pants and a shirt before going out into the world (most days). Whether we like to admit it or not, the clothes we wear are used to "express" ourselves. I wear a polo shirt because I like to look dressy, but feel comfortable. And who knows, I might have to get on my horse and play a game that I have never even WATCHED.

I guess the point is Halloween is stupid, but so are people. Halloween is just everyday raised to the 3rd power. Or, if you are in the 3rd ward, it's everyday on crack.

Click HERE for the Monty Python's "Lumberjack Song." Good ole British humor

Beauty

I want to think about beauty. I believe that there is something inside of humans that differs from other creatures and the appreciation of beauty is a sign or characteristic or (you fill in that blank) of that difference.

Striving for beauty is why, if I am honest, I want to be an architect. To be able to create something beautiful that is appreciated, something that causes us to stop and appreciate our environment, is an idea that I want to permeate my working life.

This idea is easy to understand and practice in the creative fields (which some would argue architecture is not, necessarily, a part of), but seems much harder to put to practice as a doctor, electrician, banker, plumber, salesman, mom, teacher, et cetera. I would argue the opposite is true.

Beauty can easily be reflected in everything that we do if we remain aware of what we are doing. Stop and meditate on how you hold your pen. Understand the precision that goes into the functioning of your body. Try, for a second, to grasp the logic that flows from your brain and the emotion that moves forth from your heart.

If we are able to meditate on the complexity of our world, we are able to understand beauty.

My challenge: make/do something beautiful for the sake of beauty. Do it out of enjoyment and not for anyone or for any reason besides the fact that it is beautiful. Make a cake, make a cocktail, fold a shirt, read a book, write a poem, stand up, sit down, take a breathe, or anything else. But, as you do that thing be very aware of all the details that go into doing it. Think about your skin flexing and muscles twitching. Think about everything!

I am posting a picture that I find very beautiful both as a piece of art, but also as a subject matter. Enjoy beauty!

FEAR

Dylan

Kerouac!

One of the greats

Dear Line Person... off my butt!

Whether people realize it or not, the distance that you stand behind someone is a social sign of how much personal space you prefer.

So, why don't people actually recognize this fact? I have often stood a good 2-3 feet behind someone in a grocery line only to have a large, bearded, panting man stand 6 inches from my back. He's there... even if you can't see him, you know he is there.

What to do?

My reaction is usually the half-turn, "I am just looking around the store to see if I forgot something." This usually doesn't work.

The next reaction I tend towards is a slight turn with a frown. The ole "He buddy... we aren't dating." This also usually doesn't work because the panting man has become so unaware of himself and his usually socially annoying habits that it would take a swift drop kick to the midsection for him to be aware of ANYTHING!

My new reaction... I turn to a friend (you must always carry a friend with you, just like a knife... always carry a knife!) and say, "Man, I think I am mildly claustrophobic," Sometimes that works. Try it!

Why the Name?

I was encouraged to start this blog to tell people random things about random times...

Why the name? I thought it would be interesting to always carry around a leather briefcase. I would never open this briefcase in public, and I would always have it with me. Eventually, the curious soul would ask, "What's in your briefcase?" And the response...

"My papers!"

Nothing more... nothing less.

In a way, this is the briefcase being opened for the internet surfing public's approval or... disapproval. These are my papers.