No Specifics

Casual. (A South Dakota Summer 2012)

This time there will be no specifics.  No topic of interest, none of that.  Just pleasure.  I'm sitting in my backyard in South Dakota and it is 81 degrees.  I legitimately try to be outside as much as possible.  Why waste beautiful days?  Also, blogging on my computer outside is fun.  Grass gets stuck in my fan and it makes a neat noise under my computer. Simple Joys.  Speaking of which:  My dog, Tucker, who is supposed to be on the deck, has escaped to come and sit next to me in the grass.  He comes, sneezes on me, and begins rolling in the grass.  Tucker, rolls and rolls and rolls, then plops down next to me, satisfied.  He lays with me in the sun for a good 5 minutes, then realizes that he is significantly hotter than he was 5 minutes ago.  He moves to the shade on the deck.  The life of a dog.  As Tucker meanders back to the deck, I tune into the sounds I can hear.  Birds. Shingles.  Dog collar.  Squirrel crunching a peanut shell.  Wind chimes.  Home.  Although, I don't feel like this is home any more.  Sure, the family is together and such.  However, I feel more like a guest here than I would in Ripon.  I'm sure we all expereince that though, so I guess I'll just go with the flow.

 I've had some time on my hands.  Enough time to watch a few clips and read a few quotations.  Here is some of the neatness that I experienced:

"We all know the function of the media has never been to eliminate the evils of the world, no. Their job is to persuade us to accept those evils and get used to living with them. They want us to be passive observers." 

 - I couldn't have said it better myself.  The media grinds my gears.  And I don't want to go into too much detail, in the fear of sounding uneducated, however, let's be real for a moment.  Persuasion and Mass Media has taught me one thing.  You can't trust the media.  Agenda-setting, priming, and framing link together like a chain.  Dominating what is broadcasted, what side to take, and what takes priority is not left up to the ordinary citizen, but rather the oh so cool people who are in charge of CNN or Fox.  Enough is enough, I will not go any further. But, I will say this: we have got to realize that we're being conditioned on a mass scale. Start challenging this corporate slave state.

"It's like you come onto this planet with a crayon box. Now, you may get the 8-pack, you may get the 16-pack. But it's all in what you do with the crayons, the colors that you're given. And don't worry about drawing within the lines or coloring outside the lines. I say color outside the lines. You know what I mean? Color right off the page."

- Here's my thought. The first part of this quotation, "It's like you come onto this planet with a crayon box.  Now, you may be the 8-pack, you may be the 16-pack.  But it's all in what you do with the crayons, the colors that you're given." is absolutely true.  It is all about what you do with the colors you are given.  Everyone has different circumstances, some more fortunate than others, but that doesn't mean that those who aren't as fortunate don't get the the opportunity to succeed.  You just have to try a little harder.  In turn, you would have a true reason to feel gratified.  There, that's something else that grinds my gears.  We're all fully aware that you get by because of the people you know.  It pays to know someone.  Which is interesting, especially for those of us who do not know anyone.... Don't worry, if I started from the bottom, you can too. - However, the latter part of the quotation, ""And don't worry about drawing within the lines or coloring outside the lines.  I say color outside the lines.  You know what I mean? Color right off the page."  THIS is what is so thought provoking.  While society tells us that there are boundaries that we mustn't cross, we need to cross them.  We, as a society, need to go against then norm, be inovative, be unique, and be different.  Again, this all starts with you.  Be who you want to be.  Love who and what you want to.  And most importantly, don't be afraid to embrace who you truly are. 

Coming back to the place where you grew up can be the highlight of your summer, or just the lamest part of summer.  For me, it is the lamest.  I'm not going to complain about my family, my job, or anything else of that nature.  What I will talk about, is the level of competitiveness little Ol' Brookings, South Dakota has.  NO matter who you are, what you own is how you're viewed.  This town is all about material possessions, quality of job, and presentation of self.  It blows.  But it also gives me a sense of what the real world could be all about.  It is harsh.  So what if I don't have a boat that goes 200 mph on the lake?  Shouldn't I be thankful for having a boat in the first place?  I feel as though people in Brookings fail to realize this.  But then again, I could be wrong.  I guess my point with all of this still relates back to the quotation.  Don't fall into the mold.  I know I am not.  I am not going to waste my money on Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister, and god knows what else just to fit into the "well off" crowd.  I'm going to buy whatever the hell I want.  Judge me for wearing a huge sunhat, I don't care.  I'll judge you for sweating your face full of make-up because you don't have a nice hat to protect you. <-- That was mean, I know.  But you get the point. Moral of the story, color outside the lines.       

"Our planet is facing the greatest problems it's ever faced. Ever. So whatever you do, don't be bored. This is absolutely the most exciting time we could have possibly hoped to be alive. And things are just starting."

- This is for Ripon College's Class of 2012. (And all of the other neat schools' Class of 2012 that all of my other neat senior friends come from.)  And everyone else, college or not, as well.  I've preached about it before and I'll preach about it again, apathy is the worst.  Don't give in.  This is especially relevant because it is summer.  The lazy time of the year when all we have to do is work hard and play harder.  I encourage you to think about what means most to you and why it means the most to you.  I encourage you to be active, to be an activist for whatever you hold dear to your heart.  Because if you don't start caring, who will?  RC's class of 2012, you've accomplished so much in your 4 years at Ripon.  Now, share it with the rest of the world.  Let your knowledge, influence, and experiences shine onto others.  I am so proud of all of my friends who have graduated from both Ripon and every other institution.  You know who you are.

"Never forget who you are, for surely the world won't.  Make it your strength.  Then it can never be your weakness.  Armor yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you." - Best closing statement yet.  End of story.

Now, I never disclosed where I got these quotations.  With the exception of the last, these quotations came from "Waking Life" an intriguing movie following a unnamed young man through his dreams, meeting new people, and questioning the universe.  The film focuses on the nature of dreams, consciousness, and existentialism. The reason why I didn't disclose this at first is because some, discredit words when associated with the thought of existentialism.  i did not what that to be the case.  I want people to open their eyes, appreciate the little things, and really question what life is all about.  I mean, why not?  After all, questioning feeds the mind.  Anyway,  I highly recommend this film.  Lucky for you, it is on YouTube.  Just search, "Waking Life" and contemplate. 

There is one final thought that I would like to leave you with:

Person A:  Excuse me.
Person B:  Excuse me.
Person A:  Hey. Could we do that again? I know we haven't met, but I don't want to be an ant, you know? I mean, it's like we go through life with our antennas bouncing off one another, continuously on ant auto-pilot with nothing really human required of us. Stop. Go. Walk here. Drive there. All action basically for survival. All communication simply to keep this ant colony buzzing along in an efficient polite manner. "Here's your change." "Paper or plastic?" "Credit or debit?" "You want ketchup with that?" I don't want a straw, I want real human moments. I want to see you. I want you to see me. I don't want to give that up. I don't want to be an ant, you know?

- I don't want to be an ant, either.

 - Soph