As we go

I wish I could spend a month in the 80's.

Tales from a Misplaced Monday

Coffee is my substance of choice and indifference is my main emotion at the moment. I sit at my desk thinking about my exhilarating weekend in Atlantic City and bullshit existential questions I can’t answer. I guess these questions are part and parcel of the human condition, but not having all the answers perpetuates the cognitive dissonance. All the answers would ruin the fun though right? Anyway, its hot as shit out today and that fact plus these questions got me thinking about the passage of time. I feel like just last week I was freezing my ass off in the dead of winter and now summer is right around the corner (Maryland may be the epicenter of global warming). People often forget that time is a human construct and therefore we miss out on the little things along the way. Every interaction or minute gesture could be the answer to one of those bullshit existential questions. Its hard to think in this manner at the beginning of each week, but it is valuable, and will help one avoid feeling like Marcel Proust their whole life. I guess sometimes you can’t let the grandiose questions rule your everyday life, sometimes you have to just believe, regardless of the difficulty in such a task.

dnalsi laciport

American Professionalism

Major League Soccer is underway, and I have had the pleasure of watching a number of very entertaining games thus far. Over this past off season the league lost a number of big names, which worried spectators in a number of circles. One big name who is absent from the league, but who has not moved on is of course Landon Donovan. The long time American hero is currently taking a sabbatical from the game to assess his life and future options. In recent weeks Donovan has been spotted at various places including a USC speaking engagement and surprisingly in Cambodia playing pick up soccer with local children. I have always been a fan of Donovan and truly respect his introspective personality, but I think this reeks of unprofessional behavior. Donovan took the chance to rest this whole MLS off season and has not been playing with the national team recently. One would believe this was a good amount of rest for a top level professional soccer player, but Donovan needed more. The LA Galaxy are allowing Donovan to return to practice at the end of March, while during that time span he will miss a number of league games, and their Champions League quarterfinals. Any where else in the world and this probably wouldn't be tolerated; Donovan would be dropped and possibly jettisoned from the team. Also think of the double standard between this situation and when Donovan called out David Beckham for his commitment to the Galaxy. I know I can never put myself in his shoes, and he doesn't owe us anything, but for American soccer to reach new heights, there needs to be a higher standard of professionalism.  

No new niggas, nigga we don’t feel that
Fuck a fake friend, where you real friends at?
We don’t like to do too much explaining
Story stay the same through the money and the fame


-- I'm a big fan of this beat and the cohesiveness of it's many instruments. Quite excited for the new album to come out as well. I am interested to see if Drake's creative juices can continue to flow as on the previous efforts he's released.

People

A while back i was having a very abstract conversation with my manager at work and he brought up his faith and religious beliefs. He proceeded to tell me that he practices an eastern religion by the name of Baha'i (he is a white dude so i was immediately interested due to the irony).  Baha'i is a religion that was created in 19th century Persia, and it has now spread to many corners of the globe. It emphasizes the spiritual unity of all humankind. He directed me to an actual Baha'i text online that stated the following: 

“How its light is now dawning upon the world’s darkened horizon. The first candle is unity in the political realm, the early glimmerings of which can now be discerned. The second candle is unity of thought in world undertakings, the consummation of which will erelong be witnessed. The third candle is unity in freedom which will surely come to pass. The fourth candle is unity in religion which is the cornerstone of the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all its splendor. The fifth candle is the unity of nations—a unity which, in this century, will be securely established, causing all the peoples of the world to regard themselves as citizens of one common fatherland. The sixth candle is unity of races, making of all that dwell on earth peoples and kindreds of one race. The seventh candle is unity of language, i.e., the choice of a universal tongue in which all peoples will be instructed and converse. Each and every one of these will inevitably come to pass, inasmuch as the power of the Kingdom of God will aid and assist in their realization.”

I was truly astonished when I read this. I feel that having a truly open mind is one of the hardest things to achieve in the modern world, but it is a sign of true evolution. More people need to think like this. Mutual cooperation and understanding is always better than destruction. 

Read more if you'd like: http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/se/PDC/pdc-33.html