"How vain is it to sit down and write when you have not stood up to live…" – Thoreau
“Fuck, this hurts so much.”
“ I know it hurts. But it’s life, and it’s real. And sometimes it fucking hurts, but it’s life, and it’s pretty much all we got.”
-Garden State
Addressing life’s demands for a bit. I’ll be taking a two week blogging break to recoup.
It’s that time of year when universities let out and new classes of graduates are thrown into the “real” world. Commencement speeches are given by distinguished guests who impart inspirational and reassuring words to graduates.
I enjoy reading these speeches because they bring me fond memories of my college graduation as well as give me a renewed sense of optimism for the future. Here is an excerpt from San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom’s speech to San Francisco State University this year. I don’t think he will be asked to make this same speech at next year’s freshman orientation.
What is the secret of all success? Winston Churchill, he said it was moving from failure to failure with enthusiasm. …Guys like Elvis Presley and Michael Jordan, Dr. Seuss, Henry Ford — if you don’t know him you probably drive one of his automobiles — all of them had failure in common.
Jordan was literally rejected from his high school basketball team. Michael Jordan wasn’t good enough. That guy Churchill finished last in his class. … Henry Ford went bankrupt not once, not twice — three, four, five times went bankrupt. Dr. Seuss tried to publish that darn green eggs and whatever ham, not once — five, ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty-three times he was rejected. Until a publisher finally said, “All right, what the heck do I have to lose?” And Elvis Presley got an F in music.
The most poignant speech I ever read was sent to me by my mother. It was delivered by Jodie Foster to the graduating class of 2006 at the University of Pennsylvania. My mom jotted a little note on the side of the speech which read, “…you may have to put on a few years to really see the truth in it.” Two years later, I am starting to see and believe that truth.
You pick up bits and pieces of treasure and trash, pain and pleasure, passions and disappointments, and you start throwing them in your bag, your big bag of experience. You do some dumb things that don’t work out at all. You stumble excitedly on little gems that you never saw coming. And you stuff them all in your bag. You pursue the things you love and believe in. You cast off the images of yourself that don’t fit. And suddenly you look behind you and a pattern emerges.
You look in front of you and the path makes sense. There is nothing more beautiful than finding your course as you believe you bob aimlessly in the current. Wouldn’t you know that your path was there all along, waiting for you to know, waiting for you to become. This path does not belong to your parents, your teachers, your leaders, your lovers. Your path is your character defining itself more and more every day, like a photograph coming into focus.
-Jodie Foster
It seems like ages since I made an entry. I’ve been quite busy to say the least. Part of the reason why I haven’t posted either is because I’ve had a mad case of writer’s block. How can this be if my blog is about anything that pops into my head you ask? Obvious “Jesse’s head is empty” jokes aside, I would have to hypothesize that it’s not my lack of ideas, but rather the plethora of inane ideas that I create. None of which I deem appropriate for my blog. There is a reason why I am being a bit more careful with what I post.
I recently installed a stat counter in my blog so I can keep tabs on traffic that my blog generates. I can find out which words are being searched on Google that lead to my blog. Well, what I’ve discovered is quite shocking. People are searching inappropriate sexual terms and fantasies…and being lead to my blog! This blog has never been sexual in any way (or at least intended to be) but when I label my first cobra sighting as “I had my cherry popped today” I got a bunch of perverts stumbling upon my blog. [I know that by typing that in now I will probably get more hits…note to perverts: This ain’t what you’re looking for]. Therefore, I have felt that I need to be much more careful with what I put up here.
This is why I have had a lack of entries of late. No longer can I jot down whatever is in my head. The other week I dreamt I accidentally killed a man and I was trying to figure out ways to hide the evidence so I wouldn’t go to jail for this freak accident (It was a dream people!). I was so worried about being a story on Forensic Files and racked my brain as to ways I could pull this off (a dream, honestly). Well, if I were to write about that dream in depth here, I’m sure LAPD and/or the FBI would be knocking on my door demanding to know where the body is. Again people, let’s be clear, I have not harmed anyone/anything. It was just a dream [If you don’t believe me, the guy I shot in the head (I don’t own a gun) walked around with me for hours with a bullet lodged in his head (and no blood) working out ways for me to get off the hook. He told me not to worry about his fiancé, she’d get over it. Yea, that’s what kind of dreams I have]
Hopefully no psychologists are reading my blog and analyzing my suppressed anger or whatever psychoanalytical bullshit they want to come up with.
This entry took a very stranger turn. Hopefully next week I will return to a more normal entry. Hmm, maybe another reaction to a New York Times article is in order?
*Thank you to everyone who hopped on over to Emily Winter’s blog.
A former UW classmate of mine is in NYC looking to fulfill her wildest dreams (see post The Days of our (Young) Lives). Here is her story, help her out:
http://fashionablementions.blogspot.com
Here’s the deal: I recently submitted a men’s fashion book proposal that was met with mild interest from a New York publishing company. I need to convince them Emily Winter is a Good Idea. I need to push them over the edge. I need a damn contract. I need your help.
The idea is that if I prove that people are actually reading what I write, I’ll get the book deal. That’s why I’m soliciting all of you to make my hastily-named blog, fashionablementions.blogspot.com, part of your daily blog-reading routine (but, okay, I’m only updating it 3x/week right now).
So. Okay. Please, read, comment.
Thank you ladies and gents! I’ll keep you updated with the good or embarrassing news about this fantastic book that may or may not materialize.
Dating and job hunting is hard. Anyone who has done either knows this fact. I find that there a lot of parallels with dating and finding a job. Here are my seven parallels of job hunting and dating.
I) What do I want?
In each venture there seems to be an endless body of options. Sometimes you begin feeling overwhelmed and have no idea where to start. It takes time to understand yourself and what your wants/needs/desires are. Then you need to understand your limitations and what is realistic for you. Let’s be honest here, not everyone will date Heidi Klum or be the President of the United States of America. Once you become honest with yourself and have a better understanding of your desires, you can begin searching.
II) How do I pick?
Now that the list has been narrowed down from infinite possibilities to a more manageable ballpark figure, how do you choose? Do you go by availability and go with whatever is out there in the present? Do you buy your time with a transition job/girl until what you really want comes along? Or do you stand by your greatest desires and patiently wait until that perfect situation arises for you to pounce on?
III) The thrill of the first interview/ date.
The first interview or date has so much excitement attached to it. There are nervous feelings, heightened concentration, and hope for a new beginning. You are careful about what you say, divulging enough information for the other party to get to know you, but not enough for them to dislike you. You are respectful of any and everything and your manners are at their apex. Your appearance is impeccable. You’re wearing an outfit that was probably picked out days in advance and you’re neatly groomed. You take no chances with this first encounter. This is your one time to shine and leave a lasting impression.
IV) The post interview/date anxiety
After the first interview/date there is a period of uncertainty. You are probably waiting for a call back. As you wait every worst case scenario races through your head. How was your appearance, were you over/under dressed? Were you articulate enough? Were you funny but not too funny? Did that joke come off well or just racist? Did you allow them to talk enough? Oh shoot, did I tell really tell THAT story? What was that antidote they said? Did they have as good an experience as I did? Do they like me? When are they going to call?!?!?!?!
V) The crossroad
This is when you ask yourself, “What now?” Now you know if they liked you or if they are going in another direction. If in the off hand chance that they went for you, what do you do? Do you start a relationship? Is this what you really want? You revisit number two (“How do I pick”) and ask yourself those questions once again. Do I take this because I can have it? Should I take it until something better comes along? Or do I wait until my ultimate dream comes along?
* In some cases, five is the last step (congratulations to you). However for the rest of us, we continue to step six.
VI) Whoops!
So you decided to give it a shot! Great! Except everything you thought was great isn’t anymore. Things are the same when you first started this relationship. You’re a little bored. You’ve matured and your needs/goals are different. The job/girl has changed. There’s another job/girl that is even sexier and is interested in you! What do you do? Live in a state of denial and continue to live a safe life. Or do you sever ties and go after your dream?
VII) There is no step seven. You must repeat steps 1-6 again…and again. And probably again several more times.
As you can tell, the game is the same with jobs and dating. It’s a game we all have to play in our lives. Tragically, most of us get that “start over” card somewhere along the line. Regardless, we keep playing the game because one day we hope to pass go and collect…happiness.
I know this is an old clip, but it still makes me laugh, smile, and warm inside. The greatest Crossfire ever!
