When I'm Not Writing My Book

BOUNCING THE FUCK BACK

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 06:29:00 +0000

I'm not going to talk about a lot of things in the interim. What I am going to talk about, is what I can do.

I will fucking do anything on video, and write a corresponding blog post. My price: much lower than you think. My shame: similar.

Bring it on.

Meaning

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:50:00 +0000

A good friend once asked me a question, inside a story, inside a question. He asked me what a stop sign means, to which I replied it means that you should stop. He followed up with a story about a tribal woman in Africa. She travels five miles to go get her water, works to keep order in the house, etc., and has never been to America. Through some strange twist of fate she is transported to New Jersey, and is forced to walk the streets. She sees a stop sign, what does it mean? What does this say about meaning?

Today I asked myself what the fuck

Shhh... I'm back

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:49:00 +0000

I didn't realize how long I hadn't done this thing for, and I also didn't realize how many people were reading it at one time. Long story short, I was homeless for a bit, so blogging was a bit of a challenge. But I'm back now! Posts should be coming in the next few days.

Killing yourself the right way

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 07:45:00 +0000

Either go high or low when you choose the handgun bullet. Low will not exit the head, bounce around and take out as much gray matter as possible. High will remove most of the head. Either way, make sure you don't do mid, which will enter, exit, and leave a whole bunch. Something like 20-30 thousand people are vegetables. I know you think your family loves you. They don't, they love having you around. Wanna Schiavo the rest of your days?

Damn this blog is getting dark.

The Problem with Being Reasonable

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 05:19:00 +0000

It's not a big post. I'm in a house, not that anyone reads this besides the bot archiving the content to use for linkthroughs. The problem with being reasonable is that it isn't going to get the news. And if you don't stir up shit, the stew will settle to nothing. I watched a man who claimed depression can be cured with food and talk therapy get more attention than a group of people claiming multifaceted and holistic approaches are better. Why? Because food is edgy, and if you believe that, you'll bite. Being reasonable only helps you to be drowned out by this sort of lunacy.

Oops

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 01:41:00 +0000

Never mind.

UPDATE: Being homeless in NJ

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 01:32:00 +0000

No house. But I got people and such so I'm pro couch surfs. But I have a real article after this one.

A Homeless Technicality

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 05:36:00 +0000

I'm technically homeless right now after an argument and physical altercation that led to my eviction from my residence. I'm on the road right now, so it's a bit difficult to get to my computer with any regularity. Right now I'm in North Jersey, but I plan to be traveling again shortly. Because the news is now taking a backseat to my own life, my posts are going to be fewer and less frequent, and also more of the fiction I promise I've been writing.

Finally, actually getting work done

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 07:27:00 +0000

Post-it sharpie art has been moved to:

http://postitsharpieart.tumblr.com/

RSS feed isn't pointed right, but will be by tomorrow. Big update at the new one.

I don't trust people who don't

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 21:05:00 +0000

Fuck
Cry
Drink
Smoke
Bullshit
Laugh
Joke
Hate
Get angryWorking on a big update to post-it art. I'll post updates when I finish.

When is Violence Necessary?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 02:47:00 +0000

Starting last night, there has been rioting in Tottenham and Enfield (depending on who you depend on for news). These places are in London, which isn't in America, a fact that I found only mildly disturbing. I'm not posting any links about this because the details are still sketchy at best all around, but also because my sources (believe it or not, I have friends that tell me things) tell me that the news might be skewing things toward the "not facts" category.

What I do know is this, a country not known for rioting and violence has experienced rioting and violence. Because I've been getting a steady trickle of facts, I've been able to ask, what would I riot for? And I think I know what would lead me to violence.

Two factors lead to violence:

Necessity of force at that moment
Necessity of force

The beginning of the American Revolution was a surprise to the British. Out attack was a surprise, our revolt was not expected. Was violence necessary? I don't know. Maybe we would have been able to use diplomacy to solve it. World War II? Maybe Britain would have held back the Nazis, and maybe we only had to right things in the Pacific. There are a lot of maybes with regards to force, and I'm not sure when it was necessary. I'm not sure when it will ever be necessary, but I'm hoping I'll know it when I see it. What is important is recognizing that sometimes force will be necessary and not seem such, if only because a surprise attack will give the advantage to the party of lesser strength.

At the start of the American Revolution, the American army was heavily outgunned. It can be argued that had it not been for the French forces eventually reinforcing our lines, we would have lost the war. Out initial strike needed to be by surprise because traditional methods of war were not preferential toward our style of fighting. Once the war had begun, we still relied on guerilla tactics, and the British said several times that we were not fighting honorably. What I do know, is that taking Britain by surprise lent a smaller force the opportunity to fight on a more level playing field.

The second factor, is violence necessary? A father and husband was allegedly gunned down by police for no reason. Three hundred arrects. Further allegations of police brutality that led to nothing. At what point is violence an option? In my mind, there is some sort of checklist where extreme measures go from extreme to necessary. I wish things were easy, but you can't determine where people will fight.

I'd fight for my freedom to speak. I'd fight for my freedom to assemble with who I like. I'd fight for the ability to get information on my government, it's actions, and it's expenditures. I'd fight to defend the rights of the downtrodden, stepped upon, and disenfranchised.

But the truth is, they don't take rights like that anymore. It's inches, not feet. I asked my brother what he would fight for and he said, "I don't know." I asked if "daily rapings," would get him to fight, "Maybe. I guess." It's not going to be your voice or your assembly. It's going to be "Youth after 10pm" then "Youth after 9pm" then "Youth." It's going to be net neutrality, then the internet, then computers. It's going to be one, then another, then another, until you have nothing left.

I don't know what would lead to my violence, but I know I'm mad, and I'm not going to let every single right swirl down the fucking drain. And fuck network and quotes, because I'm mad as hell and I don't need Hollywood to quote me.

Fun with Numbers!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 19:50:00 +0000

A recent article on Cracked.com has shown me that much more can be explained by numbers than I previously knew. It turns out:

Ass judging is not subjective, and I can now prove that you have a sick ass if given enough time to inspect and calculate.
My, what some label "chronic and excessive," drinking isn't actually impacting my vision of the women to the extent that most speculate.
Happiness is an equation, and I got a "D" in calculus, explaining the depression.

But after I got done laughing and playing with numbers, I read a few numbers (and number like constructs) that weren't as happy.

14%. That is the current approval rating of Congress according to CNN. Gallup's poll from December 2010 actually had it more like 13%. This means that if you live in a small family (like mine) it is actually statistically more likely that none of you like Congress than even one of you like Congress. I've been assured that this number really doesn't matter though, because it hasn't been better than 50% in forever (almost not a joke), certainly not as long as I've been alive, and voter turnout in non-presidential election years is still sputtering in at around 37%, so Congress is sure that we will bitch but never actually get off our asses and spend five minutes to vote, let alone revolt.

3 Trillion Dollars. This is what might be cut depending on what "Super Committee" (who drops the name Super Congress?) decides. There is approximately 1 trillion up front, and then Super Committee might drop up to two more, or Congress gets to fuck everyone else pretty hard. Oh, the national debt is over $14 trillion. And these cuts aren't from that, they're from the debt that we're building up yearly, so in reality all they've done is take our rocket ship and turn it into an F-18.

93.09 Million Dollars. That's how much tax money goes to paying members of Congress this year. That's actually a low-ball figure, since I just took the money made by a normal member of Congress and multiplied it by 535 (how many Congressman there are). Whips, party leaders, and members on committees get different amounts of money. Also, they get healthcare and a pension, something most people don't get, especially since the economy has tanked. Speaking of which...

AA+. Not shitting you, this is the new credit rating of the United States. Not necessarily a number, but as ridiculous as any grade. This actually comes after we finished setting up a plan. I'd like to quote what Standard and Poors (S&P) thinks of our leaders:

"The political brinksmanship of recent months highlights what we see as America's governance and policymaking becoming less stable, less effective, and less predictable than what we previously believed. The statutory debt ceiling and the threat of default have become political bargaining chips in the debate over fiscal policy."

...at least I'm not alone in my beliefs. Oh, but the only change is the Dow Jones tanking. Unsourced statement, but I feel like I saw somewhere that it did.

$1.25/day. International poverty line. In other countries you are expected to be able to survive on $1.25 a day. In the U.S., a single person is supposed to live on just over $10k, and a family of four is just over $22k. Remember, your local Congressman makes almost 10x as much as a four person family at the poverty line does!

Thank God for Democracy!

I'm not Alone: Guest Contributor AA

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:04:00 +0000

[My first guest post! - Ed]

Our country is in a continuing economic crisis and just went through the most disturbing display of stupidity the world has seen from America in a very long time. The battle of the debt crisis has left American people and the companies that hire them faithless and cautious around the markets. Today, the economic markets responded in what can possibly be called a “double-dip recessionary plunge”. This sense of insecurity not only surrounds the U.S. but has engulfed the European and Asian markets alike. American markets are reacting to crises in Europe because American investors are vulnerable to every fear of threat, and are ensuring that they make only gentle dents in their finances, unsure of what returns they will gain while investing in other uncertain businesses and people.

The point of the matter is that come tomorrow (and onward), the U.S. Congress is going to have to leave behind the arguments of yesterday's debt crisis and look forward in figuring out how to fix this mess. After the bullshit they just put the country through, it seems unlikely that our polarized government can come to a deal about anything concerning the economy. Republicans want to cut spending and keep taxes where they are. Democrats are looking to keep spending stable for the time being and create tax reform. The “funny” thing about the situation is that neither party is fully incorrect, there is no one-right-answer or party, and neither philosophy can be the only solution to our downfall.

Comprehensive tax reform is necessary but if they country cuts spending like the Republicans would like, its going to stagger the already slow flow of money in and out of the economy. If Democrats get their way and raise taxes, companies will be less reluctant to spend money hiring new employees. They're gripping their figurative check books (no one actually uses those anymore anyway) frightened that the government is going to take away half of what they're holding onto with taxes that are coming in. So clearly there isn't one right philosophy that will solve the economy's problems and get the country “back on track” (whatever that means).

The one thing I really don't understand is that people are pressing President Obama for not creating jobs. Well, I didn't know the president was a fucking job fairy and could snap his fingers and make jobs appear in cities around the country. I guess I didn't know because it's not fucking possible. The president cannot create jobs in the private sector, nor can the congress. What they can do is encourage job creation and I don't know what the president has done to stand in the way of that. What encourages job creation is spending – spending on companies, giving them the confidence that the government isn't going to wack them in the chest once they lay their guard down. What encourages job creation is faith in the government's ability to protect businesses as well as the people that work for them. And what encourages the economy to grow is a supportive government underneath it. So congress, my suggestion to you is to get your shit together, and actually get together. Put on your Sunday suit, look nice, suck in your gut full of pride (it looks horrible in pictures) and do some team bonding for the American people so you can restore faith in the government. Start discussing ways by which companies can encourage jobs. Start thinking about ways to encourage small business owners to expand their businesses, spend more and hire new people to produce. You raised the debt ceiling (although you made a mess while doing it), now use that to your benefit to get the economy moving, do some smart spending, do tax reform right afterward in a way that won't stab companies or people in the back, and smile while doing it cause your job is only guaranteed if the American people don't throw you the fuck out. Get your shit together, please.

Crippling Anhedonia 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 02:00:00 +0000

The point of life as I see it, as least as far as not on some existential stuff, is to find something to do with most of your time. Even with work and taking care of general needs, there is going to be time to fill. The hardest part of depression is filling these times through the crippling anhedonia.

an·he·do·ni·a/ˌanhēˈdōnēə/
Noun: Inability to feel pleasure.

The worst part of depression isn't the sadness. Emotions are fleeting, and even the lowest depression doesn't cloud this. There are actual bursts of happiness throughout most days. The physical symptoms aren't really that bad either. They suck, but they are also the first to be alleviated by medication. Two weeks is the time most anti-depressants take to work. In reality, the sleeplessness, appetite, fatigue, etc. start to get better nearly immediately. Two weeks and the sadness is gone.

It's the fucking anhedonia that will kill you.

One of the official symptoms of depression is suicidality, or thoughts of death and suicide. In my experience, suicide is a secondary symptom at most, and more realistically a result of other symptoms. My first attempt was at seventeen, when I tried to take a turn in my car at eighty, and mostly straight. It wasn't the most well-reasoned way of going about it, and a deer jumping out startled me enough that I swerved and walked away no worse for wear.

Filling time is hard when you can't enjoy anything. Four different anti-depressants, a mood stabilizer, and an anti-psychotic haven't given me the relief found in booze, weed, or a bit of speed.

I actually had the rest worked on, but I got too drunk. Part 2 tomorrow.

Beer Review: Lionshead Deluxe Pilsner

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 21:25:00 +0000

Well... that's beer all right. This week, I review Lionshead Deluxe (!!!) Pilsner. Purchased completely on a whim, this beer is from Wilkes-Barre, PA, so it's kind of local-ish.

Go Hawks!

What Matters:
4.5% ABV - Not too much kick, but it's light enough you can put down a sizable number quickly. Ranks high on my session beer list. Purchased for dirt cheap (<$10 for 12pk) helps.

Look:
There is this plain, brown cardboard aesthetic to both the labels and box, nice touch. The beer itself pours a yellow that is as close to piss as any liquid not piss I have ever seen. Foams up a finger-wide head that immediately disappears. This is working man beer, beer that goes as far as being beer, then moves no farther.

Smell:
Literally, that smells like beer. Nothing else on the nose. Malt, hop, liquor, water, in that order.

Taste:
If anyone has ever asked you, "What does beer taste like?" this is the answer. Lionshead tastes like beer tastes like Lionshead. Light enough to pound them down, heavy enough it isn't beer flavored water. This is the perfect beer for my first review, because it is literally not good or bad. I've never tasted something and felt more indifferent.

Rating: 2.5/5

BONUS JOKE: How is American Beer like sex in a canoe? ........It's fucking close to water.

Oversight, an Oversight

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 20:11:00 +0000

Hooray! Congress decided to stop slapping boners and finally passed a bill just before we defaulted on a whole bunch of payments (though not before our credit might no longer be AAA). After I read this news, I masturbated, which is a pretty standard response for me, then I read the terms and conditions. Less spending, awesome. We're going to try to "right the course." Nice.

"Super Congress." What. The. Fuck.

First, I don't know if they are actually calling this new thing Super Congress, but it makes more sense than saying a supervisory body that works outside of public scrutiny to cut programs that it deems spurious with no oversight just doesn't ring right for me. Still, I thought it only fair that I looked up both terms when I looked for where in the Constitution this sort of power is delegated to Congress to make a super version of itself.

Hint: it doesn't.

I get that they do have the power to create committees and take care of taxes and such, but this Super Congress shit is such a misappropriation of power that I can't help but think politicians are just pushing envelopes on some whatever they feel like power trip.

Those of you who haven't had a basic civics or, "being an American class," might not know this, but our forefathers were pretty good at doing what they did, which is setting up a government. A lot of stuff was worded liberally, so power could be adjusted as necessary. To counteract people being "huge, literal dicknozzles," they worded in checks and balances. Each individual branch of government was watched by the other two, in the hopes that asshattery would be noticed and quashed. Whether or not you realize it, loose construction and inter-branch oversight has basically kept this whole process together.

What Congress has now done is put itself into a position where it can make decisions unilaterally, giving a middle finger to the citizens and everyone else in government. As much as I have ridiculed the process to getting this bill passed, at least I got to watch this whole process and read bills as they were being passed. Super Congress doesn't report to any man except when it releases edicts to us commoners. No more social security? We thought that was right. Defense budget gets triplicated? Fight the power. Much like a strange Twitter feed, we get the end result without seeing the process, so a hundred forty characters at a time we get to see services cut without knowing who believed in it.

Worse yet is how this whole thing played out. Essentially, Congress has sat on its hands watching the whole shitshow smoke and burn, waiting until the moment when everyone who cares is ready to give up as much as possible. Then it forces a bill through with this general oversight committee bullshit attached, and we gobble up their vomit because it's all anyone can do.

Maybe I should have some links or whatever, but it is obvious sometimes no one reads what is happening in government, so fuck the extra mile today. I'm making my tin foil hat, watching pornography, and posting to the conspiracy theory blogs about how we had to invade Afghanistan to assure opium to the pharmaceutical companies so they could keep the general populace enslaved by painkiller.

How to: Get Railed by Health Care

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 02:51:00 +0000

In the winter of 2008, I had a few fainting spells (officially, "episodes of syncope") and visited a doctor at the Rutgers University Hurtado Health Center. After consulting with a doctor, I was told to get an ultrasound on my heart and a 24-hour EEG for my brain. I was also given a very specific order, "If you experience symptoms of epilepsy, either call me immediately or seek medical attention."

The initial visit had been prompted by me hitting my head against a residence hall after collapsing while opening the door, and passing out mid-conversation on a few separate occasions. These episodes disappeared while I was waiting to get results for my tests, but one night I began to see lights in the corner of my vision. The problem was that this occurred at 0400 in the morning, and, like most doctor's offices, Hurtado was closed. As advised by the doctor, I made my way to the local hospital, Robert Wood Johnson, and walked into the ER.

The man at the front desk asked me what the issue was, and I explained the lights and that my doctor told me I needed to talk to a medical professional. During the standard entrance questionnaire, I was asked about prior conditions, and current medications. At the time, I was being treated for Bipolar Type I (since been re-diagnosed as standard depression) with Lamotrigine (brand name: Lamictal). A few more questions and I was immediately taken into the back and given a room. Shortly thereafter, I had a doctor who explained they were going to do some standard tests, and that the results should explain the problem.

A chest X-Ray and urine test later, I was told that they were going to have to draw blood. I am EXTREMELY afraid of needles, and told the nurse that when people approach me with the intent of drawing blood, I black out and sometimes lash out without knowing. Naturally, she didn't believe me until testing her theory that I wasn't telling the truth, and after I took up defensive positions on my bed, she decided to dose me on Ativan and bring some back-up in case things went south.

It did seem weird to me that she left a nurse behind after she got the blood, but I didn't question it because of the anxiolytics, and I waited until the doctor came. The doctor explained that I was now on psych hold until a bed opened at Acute Psychiatric Services (APS) at Rutgers. I asked why my doctor saying I needed to come in because I might have epilepsy might lead me to being sent to APS, and the doc retorted that I was bonkers and this was standard practice for college nutcases. Reserved to my fate, I queried as to how long this would take, and was informed that sometimes it could take several days, but that I might be able to get in by that night (it was now close to 0800 or so).

At this point, everyone became super helpful. Most of the nurses making sure I wasn't going to kill myself slept or sat and played on their cell phones despite messages clearly indicating cellular service being prohibited because it might mess with medical devices and kill people. Of four nurses assigned to me, only one actually talked to me (she was actually nice. I can't remember her name, but she talked to me about struggling with her own mental disorder, so thank you if you ever read this). The Lorazepam eventually knocked me out, and I awoke around 1600. They didn't feed me, or even offer me food in 12 hours, but that was okay because I was about to be transferred!

At 1800 hours, I was finally released to an ambulance to be transported to APS. I sat in the back of the van, talked with the EMT's for ten minutes, and was dropped off. This part was pretty easy.

Then I walked in, signed some papers, and was stripped of everything not my pants and shirt (wallet, keys, phone, gum, belt, shoes, socks, cigarettes) and put in a room with a chair made completely of rubber and a bed with no sharp edges. Just in case I thought about getting creative to hurt myself, they locked me in, so I got to stare at the walls and notice that there were several newly Spackled spots. The yellow itself was depressing, but apparently they couldn't be bothered to make finish painting the new spots before I got there. In their defense, they did give me a microwaved breaded fish fillet and some vegetables that I got to eat with a spoon.

Eventually, I got to see another doctor, who asked me why I was there, because the hospital couldn't be bothered to brief APS on every single patient that they shipped over there because of some strange policy. After explaining myself, the new doctor actually knew my personal psychiatrist, and said that my questionnaires didn't indicate mania or depression (no questionnaire administered at RWJ), and that I would be allowed to leave. I arranged a ride, and left the building around 2000, 16 hours after I was originally admitted.

Why was I there?

After all this, there wasn't an official diagnosis or reason given, so this is speculation, but it looks like sleep deprivation. I don't sleep well, not because I can't fall asleep, but because I wake up throughout the night (middle insomnia). When I asked Hurtado doctor what to do, he said talk to psychiatrist. Psychiatrist just upped my Lamictal to 400mg daily. At RWJ they didn't even ask about sleep, even though I arrived at 0400, and the doctor at APS said she couldn't do anything unless I stayed overnight. The anxiety medications helped me sleep in the ER, so when I was released I bought three 1mg Klonopin for $10. For three nights I used one each night, and slept soundly. By day four, I wasn't having any problems.

Those Klonopin were pretty expensive.

Well it would seem so, until you look at the bill I received. See, I normally didn't handle this sort of thing at the time, but my father thought that a stiff dose of reality would fix my mental affliction, and let me know that the whole bill was going to be my responsibility. At the time, I was unemployed, but insured through him with Horizon Blue Cross & Blue Shield PPO. Because I saw that one Denzel Washington movie, I knew that PPO>HMO, so I was set. Then the bill arrived for right around $2k, split nearly evenly between the ambulance company and RWJ. Apparently, a 10 mile drive with no care is worth $1000. Even if the ambulance only gets 1 mi/gallon of gas, you get to pay $100 per gallon. Comparatively, a taxi would have cost $20 if you were completely drunk and the cab driver realized he could take advantage of you.

Also, I got to pick whether or not the Klonopin was what I wanted, and the price was upfront. The treatment by the hospital was part of a policy that they had to use, meaning non-compliance would have resulted in release Against Medical Advice, which you typically pay out of pocket anyway. I also like how no one ever tells you the price of health care until they already have you, tantamount to trying to renew your license and being allowed to fill out paperwork and take pictures, until you go home and receive a bill for a few hundred a week later. Health insurance Klonopin costs less, but I don't have to sit around for a day, be deceived, or get rooted by deceitful pricing disclosure policies...

...even if my dealer is a dick for overcharging.

You do drugs/have a history/other immaterial arguments.

Believe it or not, I expected fair treatment, reasonable practices, and a fair cost, but I guess *whatever you are talking about* discounts me. If it were up to me, general douchery would discount people from being allowed oxygen, but the bill is stuck in Congress.

What is your status now?

After they sent me the bill, I sent them my insurance information several times. Eventually, I was sent to collections, and began to call people and figure out different details. It's a good thing I like computer prompts and Alanis Morisette, because I spent most of my time on hold. I got to talk to two people from three companies (hospital, collections, and insurance). I gave up on the insurance company, because a full hour of Alanis is too much even for me. I have since started taking collections calls by saying, "I'll see you in court," but instead of going to arbitration, they have just tanked my credit.

Thankfully banks in America don't care about these sorts of things, so it hasn't stopped me from getting loans.

Lessons learned

Get a good drug dealer early. They are faster, quicker, and cheaper than going to a doctor, even with insurance.
Don't have chronic illnesses. If you have a mark on your health that can be blamed for anything, it will be blamed. Real work is hard, looking at a chart is easy.
Sleep. Seriously, deprivation is no laughing matter.
The courts would be your best friend, but money talks. If I went to court, I feel like it would be clear that they're trying to fuck me slow, but it won't come to that because the rules are in their favor. Unless I can hire a lawyer and pay for the processing costs, I get to be billed by them. Even going to court is no guarantee when you have a better lawyer than I, so it's win-win.

Note: Exact details are hazy

College Success

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 03:09:00 +0000

One of my friends posted this as advice to Freshman for some kids he is in charge of:

http://www.quintcareers.com/first-year_success.html

Below is a bullshit analysis.

You can read the article if you want, but I'd say the whole thing is bullshit. Even the good advice is given for stupid reasons. The real breakdown to getting through college (fuck first year, after you get through two years they all seem the same anyway.

Find good resources - Sometimes you get a good RA, and sometimes you don't, that's life. That said, going to every orientation or meeting is a waste of time, because you aren't going to remember every single detail about everything. Constructive use of time is building a network of people who can point you in the right direction. You'll see when you get to college, but even deans get confused by the red tape, so you can't trust anyone. Figure out who gives you generally good advice and keep them close, because they are more valuable than a billion seminars on, "Navigating the Bureaucracy We Created."
Get through however is best for you - If another guide says "Go to Class" or "Study for X hr a Day" I'm going to jump through my computer screen and crawl across the Internet and punch the asshole who thinks he has the fucking secret in his trachea. Here's a hint to the pussies who need one: Passing college is all that matters. No one will ever ask you how long you spent studying or how many lectures you went to, so figure out what works for you. There are people who go to every lecture and still fail because they are trying to force some knowledge they weren't meant to get. If it works for you, do it, only you know what works best.
Manage time - Keep track of dates and times, and use your time best. Sure, getting a 4.0 is important, but is spending 20 hours a week studying to increase a 3.5 to a 4.0 worth it? If you say yes, subscribe to all my blog shit because you clearly don't care how you spend your time and money and I have some opportunities for you. It must be nice to be able to sacrifice time for whatever, but for the rest of us resources are limited. It sucks to not get a 4.0, but it sucks even more to slave over it to realize you wasted 5 years doing bullshit work and now have to get a job, refusing yourself the enjoyment of some of the best years of your life.
Not everyone is collegiate - This one is hard to swallow, but the most important. Sophomore year I wanted to drop out and do something else, but I stuck with it for family and friends and pressure from society. Flatly, Fuck. That. Shit. Believe it or not, there are successful careers outside of a B.A. or B.S. Forcing your way into something that you don't enjoy won't make you like it, and then you will fail at the 110 credit mark. If you get sick of anything ever, you don't have to do it. When you hit your first continuing education student, ask why someone would come back to college, then realize that 18 years old is a young point, and some people don't want to lock in. Maybe you have a few years of other shit before you pay $120k to become a degree slave.

Thanks to all the people who deliver secrets that everyone bites on because they are common sense. No life is common, and a little bit of sense won't be equivalent to a dollar. Succeed however you can, and when you fail, switch it up.

Funny vs. Fucktard

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 23:45:00 +0000

Comedy can be used to get points across as well as everything else. For example:

this right here.

I was writing a thing but then I fell asleep in my chair. Read this guy's stuff though.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 22:23:00 +0000

Back then, we all looked so much more young and innocent.

Sick today, but I promised myself do something every day for at least the first thirty. I'm phoning today in.

A Letter to: The Media

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:06:00 +0000

Dear News Providers,

While it is easy to point fingers at politicians, you are in no way blameless for the current state of affairs. Long ago the ideas of integrity and fact were replaced by speculation and entertainment, leaving a gaping hole in the system. Without an informed electorate, the governing officials aren't held accountable, and your shortcomings have enabled the inept to remain in power, grinding the process to a halt.

One reality of media, whether print, broadcast, or internet, is that producing content isn't free. That said, decisions have to be made based on both financial soundness and social needs. For example, 24-hour news networks do no one any good; you tend to lose money and we tend to lose the real content amidst the stories of celebrity scandal and generic puff pieces. If you only have the capability and means to give half and hour of quality news broadcasting, generally that is better than stretching it so think that the watery programming is not so much news but fluff with a fact broth.

Similarly, Internet news needs to embrace the medium instead of using it to accomplish things in the same way as its predecessors. Computers allow for the consumer and producer to be linked more closely than ever before, yet the article is still the staple for publication. Some writers go the extra step to bring their audiences into their work, but most just write it and let the moderators take care of the resulting trollfest. If the process of communication was more readily embraced by you, it could help us to become informed by making topics more approachable. By refusing to innovate, you have stifled our ability to use media wisely.

It also needs to be agreed that the news should constitute facts. Some people can be swayed when you use tidbits of truth to push opinion one way or another, a fault that doesn't solely rest on your shoulders, but that you initiate. When these people make mistakes because of your influence, those who aren't fooled blame you for not being responsible. News is fact, but using facts loosely to accomplish an end makes everyone look stupid, and reduces your credibility.

News also needs to be an unbiased as possible. Though you take pride on your stances, I'd consider it an embarrassment to every American journalist that most media networks wear their ideological slant like a badge instead of like a mark of shame that outs them for deceptive practiced intended to deceive the people. Granted, nothing can be completely neutral, but the practice of displaying material that is clearly just to sway voters is appalling, and it shames me to see America embrace it.

Those points made, the worst thing that is happening now is that issues are being boiled down to two sides, and then presented as a dichotomy instead of having many different solutions. I'm not sure if the media brought about the idea of blue/red or left/right, or if it happened on Capitol Hill first. What I do know, is that the average person doesn't believe things to be black or white, but a shade of gray, and the outright refusal to produce content to inform and promote discussion is at best ignorant and at worst malicious. By feeding into the system, you have become a tool for the politician to assault the public's opinion instead of a place where the public can reasonably form one. It's easy to have two people who believe that an issue is either yes or no scream at each other because it entertains and requires little work. It's your duty to show the whole issue, from causes and predictions to cure and discussion. Boiling down the news into easily digestible tidbits isn't difficult, but it also creates something that can't be reasonably called news.

Not everything has to be complicated, and I enjoy being entertained as much as anyone, but it's time the media remembered what news is. News is anyone being able to understand what positions their government is taking, why it's taking them, and their options to either support or oppose decisions. The first amendment assured a free press for this use, and you have squandered it on Bill O'Reilly, Keith Olbermann, and Snooki, and it's time you remembered the press as a tool for starting discourse.

Thank you for your time,
A Concerned Citizen

A Letter to: Politicians

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 17:42:00 +0000

Dear Politicians,

I know that the way the system is set up makes it seem like you have to act certain ways to get reelected and become career politicians, but if that's your goal please step down. It might be a job, but there is more at stake, and to focus on that steady salary endangers American values and integrity. Real people and real lives are at stake with every decision you make, but sometimes you seem so disconnected from everything, I wonder whether or not you ever cared about the common man.

The founding fathers believed that public service was a great honor. I understand that jury duty and slaving for strangers seems like it sucks, but we would rather lose a weekend than our freedom. Jury duty comes as a letter that everyone gets; you volunteered to be a politician. Our public service is mandatory, takes us from our jobs, and pays $5 a day, which doesnt cover transportation, much less lunch, but it beats not having a trial by jury. Your salary is ten times the poverty line, not including the health plan, retirement benefits, miscellaneous perks, and guranteed vacation time, so when it comes time to do something hard, push through, then treat yourself to a five-star dinner on us.

That said, you are supposed to make the tough decisions, but plan more on making headlines than legislation. I'm sorry your constituents have conflicting interests, but you are in charge of finding compromise in these situations. When you walk out, name call, mud sling, politic, and posture every day, its hard to be confident in our legislative bodies. You just lose a campaign contributor or a few voters, we lose the ability to believe in our nation, and that is more harmful than any recession.

Please, get back to basics. Super congress might catch news feeds, but what is the factor that makes this necessary for the first time in US history? The party of six is easy to remember, but do you want to be remembered as the gang holding the house hostage? Interrupting television to give a speech is memorable, but was it impactful? You are part of American history now, for better or worse, but the choice is yours. Step up and take responsibility, or step down, because our votes indicated trust, and your inability to fulfill your obligations is simply unacceptable.

Thank you for your time,
A Concerned Citizen

Thanks Vans Shoes: The Most Awesome Hoodie Ever

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:04:00 +0000

If you have seen me during the winter, you will probably recognize this:


It says "Vans" in the middle

That's because this hoodie is the fucking shit. Info below the jumps.
I've had this same sweatshirt since the seventh grade. That means I was eleven.This hoodie has lasted ten years.

The letters were originally these raised white johns, but that fell off so now it is just gray on red, which makes it that much better. You can't get swag like this any more.

Thanks Vans.

Why does everone hate Chris Christie?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 06:02:00 +0000

Today, Chris Christie woke up. He rolled over, had a bit of difficulty breathing, used his rescue inhaler, then went to the hospital because he was still having problems. Naturally, the news media jumped on this like a stripper on Braylon's dick, but what really surprised me was the way the people commenting on the news reacted.
To say that they think ill of Christie is a gross understatement. Well over half the comments on the HuffPo story aren't only negative, they are straight hateful. Outside of the people who are generally just crucifying anyone with a weight problem (he's not sitting around, looking for pity. he knows he has a weight problem, he's busy running the state, it's cool), there were people giving breakdowns of how he doesn't deserve to live, how the medics should let him die, and every other plan to have him buried at its conclusion.

What I don't get is what the fuck he did to warrant the hate?

I don't know if you noticed, but I read current events every so often. I didn't remember anything particularly remarkable that he has done to make everyone so angry, so I started looking for the moment where Christie railed us all. Hint: I didn't find it.

I don't agree with all his politics. Actually, I would say I disagree with most of his politics, outside of trying to tame government spending (he has the right idea, wrong application), but I wasn't calling for his airways to be aspirated and then filled with cheeseburgers. I didn't exactly wish him a speedy recovery, because I wasn't thrilled to see him working again, but I didn't sit on seat's edge begging for his demise.

Maybe you guys forget, but for over a year before Christie stepped in, Corzine had less than 50% approval ratings. He also got into a car accident when he wasn't wearing his seatbelt, causing major injuries which definitely cost the government more in health care costs than an EKG and chest X-Ray (you can say maybe not, but then I must remind you Corzine cracked a couple of ribs, so he definitely had those two procedures anyway). He was also responsible for shutting down the entire government of New Jersey when he couldn't rally everyone under his tax plan (controversial, but you have to be able to get people to compromise), costing the state millions. Outside the state, if you live anywhere near Atlantic City where the casinos closed, you might remember that it completely boned the usual July 4th boost in tourism, crippling the local economy.

You shouldn't be pissed at Corzine either. These are men trying to do a job, and sometimes they can't make everyone happy. Maybe your house has a system where everyone ends up pleased at all the decisions, but when you have a state with 8,707,739 (US Census, 2009), it gets hard to make sure that every single person is happy all the time. Sometimes I'm not happy with the decisions, but I'm happy there is a system where I generally feel happy, and when I'm not I can express discontent and work to change things.

If I were Christie, I would try to become a politician in China. No one is ever unhappy over there (I read a couple blogs, totally an expert). That and the lack of Internet access keeps the retards from running amok across the web.

Really though, what did he do?

Getting the Point: A How To

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 23:23:00 +0000

Recently, I have encountered some people who don't exactly get the point. It didn't make much sense to me how the Internet could have so much information freely available everywhere, and someone could still be so willfully ignorant. Then, it occurred to me that maybe it isn't easy to get what is going on sometimes. Maybe an over-saturation of opinions and speculation in the news has made it so that actually getting to the bottom of things is a daunting task.

So here is my breakdown of how to get the point every time. It isn't guranteed, but I think that it can help you get a better grasp on current events, and if you don't post things online, you can always deny you were wrong later.

The Five Steps to Getting the Point

1. Read, read, read

Like most things, it starts with hard work. Read the news. I prefer to start at Google News and Huffington Post, but there are a lot of good places to find stories. Try to stick with something large enough to have to be slightly credible (no single source ever is, more on that later). CNN has to be on its game all the time, because people will call them on BS. A place most people tend to stay away from but probably has the most integrity out of any major news corp is Al-Jazeera (no, they aren't owned by Al Qaeda. Bin Laden sent his tapes there because they speak his language, and they're local-ish).

Check the title of this section, read times three. That means read more. Once you find something interesting, read about it somewhere else. Any place you go should have a search function (even I do), so find a few other sources and start looking for what they are reporting on the same topic. Maybe someone is spinning a story, and the real facts show this. You can't know until you read a few other sources. The nice thing about Google is that there are links below each story pointing you to similar ones, but I wouldn't just rely on Google archives all the time. Mix it up and find new places, and before you know it you have twenty open tabs for a story about anti-psychotic prescription rates in the U.S.

Read also means words. Looking at a chart is not reading. It also isn't helpful, because it doesn't tell you a story. For example: CNN used a chart to show opinions on the Terri Schiavo case. The chart showed a vast difference in opinion. Except that the entire difference could have been accounted to uncertainty in polling practices, and there was only a 1% confirmed difference, illustrating that even CNN can lie, and pictures suck.

2. Facts and fact checking

First, I think we need to clear the air about facts. As defined by Dictionary.com is:

fact –noun
[fakt]
1. something that actually exists; reality; truth: Your fears have no basis in fact.
2. something known to exist or to have happened: Space travel is now a fact.
3. a truth known by actual experience or observation; something known to be true: Scientists gather facts about plant growth.

The essential break-down is that it is a truth that has been proven. Opinions, by this definition, are not fact. Beliefs, though strong, are also not fact. Things that science or studies have confirmed in a lab after rigorous testing and retesting and scrutiny are facts. That bar is a little high, but you get the general picture.

News articles are often full of opinions one way or the other, but the numbers don't (often) lie. When you read, find things that you could confirm independently. Take those numbers, and look around to confirm them. The nice thing is, numbers don't really change, even across languages and translations, unless your source is bullshit.

Speaking of, make sure you find out how the facts were attained. Some people try to use numbers to confuse you. Remember, after Bayer invented diamorphine (trademark name: Heroin) there were studies showing it as safer than codeine. Those studies were run by Bayer Pharmaceuticals, and it helped them to market it for a long while until studies showed... well it showed all the things we now know about the safety profile of heroin.

3. Reasoning and probability

After you do a lot of reading, it is time to start thinking. Arguably harder than reading, thinking is what happens when a lot of information is taken into your brain, combined, and then used to come to conclusions. Maybe after you read that Obama and Boehner are still pussy footing around the deficit issue, you think that one or the other is an asshole. That's fine, as long as you look at the whole picture and draw a reasonable conclusion. Some might think that both are being ridiculous, or neither, but you can't say that before you know what is going on. The quickest way to be outed as a douche is to have opinions you can't back up with any information.

Logic plays a pretty significant role here. I can't teach that. Some colleges try, but really, if you can't construct logical thoughts, please step away from the Internet because this place is dangerous for you. There are lots of hints and tips, but only trying and failing and trying and failing a whole lot will you ever get anywhere. Case and point being that a younger me thought deregulation of the market and Laissez-faire economics would create a better, more stable market. Then I watched the economists sit by idly and fuck us sideways with bailouts for rich bankers in jets who make millions while Social Security was cut for what may have been the ten billionth year running.

After a quick slap of reality, I adjusted my views, because Wall Street is inherently evil, and anything not governed quickly devolved into backstabbing and treachery. Always be willing to change opinion if you get new info, because reasoning is a continuous process. You can't be right always, and more likely than not you are wrong more often than not. Admitting mistakes might not fix things, but at least you aren't an asshole.

4. Probability

Which leads to probability. Just a reminder, anything is possible. You might fall through the world because the empty space in your atoms lines up perfect with the ground. It isn't probable, in fact, it's so improbable than an infinite number of realities could happen and it still wouldn't occur. That said, it's possible, and until proven otherwise, you can't rule it out.

There are a lot of explanations for things happening, and hindsight is 20/20 for everyone. Prediction is difficult, mostly because humans are much crazier than we ourselves credit for, but also because there are many factors in any decision. There are lots of things that probably will happen, but anyone who claims to know beforehand is a scam artist.

As a general rule, remember: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity. A lot of politics becomes heated because people can't understand why people don't see things their way. Usually, it's because they see things their way. No, the [democrats, republicans, tea party members, anyone] isn't trying to mess things up for [you, me, us, our children] intentionally. They really believe they are helping, and hurling insults about incompetence isn't helping anyone. Let's try debate and discussion, which brings me to the conclusion...

5. Posting is hard

It isn't easy to actually say something between all the disinformation and confusion, especially something that isn't willfully ignorant. I don't have a solution. I get things wrong and say things that aren't "nice," and I haven't found a place where everything is sunshine and roses. However, one thing that helps is just be respectful. Sitting around and shouting back and forth across the political party roundtable isn't going to help anyone. It detracts from actual conversation and turns the news into a monkey fuckfest. Read, be as informed as possible, learn, and discuss. Getting the point isn't an A to B trip, but a strange journey through weird news and thought that usually leads nowhere. I'd like to think there is a universal point, but I don't think I'm really getting it.