At last my love has come along.

Other than first hand experience, I know nothing. Never quote me on anything. It's as fact as your own personal judgement. In other words, it's lacking significant substance and not to be taken literally. In any event, reading past this point is probably pointless. And not recommended.

Now if you lack substance and good judgement altogether, you've continued beyond the previously pointless mention, and I applaud your stupidity. But more so, thank you for your diligence.

Today's topic: Couples. Do opposites really attract or does like attract like? Let's face it, there's no logic in love - people are, in fact, screwed up. (Fact upon fact.)

The following are typical hook-ups that work, and sometimes don't work (ignore the 'first hand experience' fact - this is more an indirect first hand experience - friends of friends of neighbors and distant cousins experience):

1) Carbon copy couples - These are your regular day narcissists. "We look alike. We're awesome, beautiful people. All others fail in comparison."

2) Carbon copy couples - These people rank in the lower scales on the spectrum of said, beautiful people. "We look alike. Love playing Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds. Little Caesars Pizza is Star Trek, Vulcan style delish. Order in."

3) Older man/tanorexic (younger) woman - "Die asshole." Pretty self-explanatory.

4) Loud woman/quiet man - This is ball and chain defined. They each have a role. "Wait, what did you say?" (Pause. Whilst the evil eye further eradicates the already-too-frail ego.) "Exactly. That's what I thought dumb ass."
:Tail between legs:

5) Obnoxious man/meek woman - "Bitch. Sit down." Jesus loves this union...err, marriage. Right?

6) Cougar/child - Sex.Is.Good.

7) Arty/arty - This union leads a self-inflicted melancholy life and have a 'everyone else is clueless' mentality. Chances are, they would choose suicide rather than admit to being almost identical to couple #1. The small difference, however, they find beauty in their hair grease, and notice the significance of the red dot in the misunderstood painting.

8) Yuppy/yuppy - An unfortunate display of 'know how' and wasted space. These two run their circles with pristine accuracy. Put them in a circle outside of buffy status, and the information pouring out of their mouth will sound like their 18th Century old money ancestors. This couple behind closed doors (See #5.)

9) Trashy/trashy - These are your 'wow' couples, well deserving, and arguably, incapable-of-not worthy of a stare. But, and let it be known, they madly, deeply love each other and aren't afraid to lick the love (or stale beer) right off of each other. In your presence even.

Epiphany: There is logic in love after all. To each their own.


***End note, the above unions/common law/marriages (in some states) include: gay, lesbian, bi, hetero, transgender, hermaphrodite, and every race/culture of demented people under the sun. Which reminds me, I can't wait to run home to gaze into the eyes of my mirrored perfection!

Systemic failure.

How can we expect positive change if we continue to view problems as outside of our own? It's one thing to express compassion, feel sorry for those going through crisis, but unless it involves a loved one, or is directly connected to us, we seldom say more than, "Well, that's really too bad the people of Katrina are suffering?" Or, "The inner cities and the struggle those children face is really a sad thing." Why is it that we as Americans, often have a self v. others mentality? It's generally their problem, until Grandma Mary or Uncle Larry is suffering a similar Katrina fate. Or until a friend is jobless, homeless and in need of assistance. Only then, when it's connected to the self, does it become our problem.

The report from the Pew Center on the States found that one in 100 adult Americans are in prison, one in 9 of those are adult black men. How can we expect many in the black community to rise from historical systemic failures, if they're never given the proper education their counterpart privileged white kids receive? The numbers are staggering and tell a very real story; it goes without saying, school drop-out rates directly reflect the likelihood of prison time served.

When do we begin to say, this really is my problem? When do we say, all children deserve a good start to life? Better yet, when will we start believing it. Sadly, and a true reality, there are children who have yet to be born who will suffer a historical fate they never had any control over to begin with. Is this their problem too?

Tolerance of such discrimination, along with sheer ignorance, whilst sitting in our self-indulgent privileged world is no excuse for a poor "that's too bad" response. Save your breath, authentically connect and lend out your hand. They need us.

Outside noisy, inside empty.

Ponder this for a second...

Live, evolve, die.

People who stand for nothing, desperately attempt to grab hold of the tangible, only to fall short at death. It's hard to be heard, even standing on rooftops, with these claims of nothing. In my book, being mute is one and the same. But just for a second, let's take the time to hear the words of nothing. "Shh, listen." What do you hear? I don't know about you, but other than the fine mist of rain tapping on my window, still, nothing. "Wait, look closer." Darwin bumper sticker staring at your morning coffee on your car ride commute to work. "See it? Hear it?" Newsflash: you're seeing and hearing a whole lot of nothin'.

Evolution is arguably a natural part of our existence. But a cause? A foundation? A purpose? Hardly a principle worth a fight. To even rally for or against creation v. evolution is a losing battle, as they're far from opposites. Apart from something and nothing that is. One has a stance. One does not. But this doesn't stop the Nothing Crew from fighting for their purpose, their maker, their motivator. Oddly enough, we can all agree on this: Death is a part of life.

Maybe we can all agree on this too: Ironically, the Something Crew may have the clear advantageous trait when it comes to the final natural selection process. The nothing, well, perhaps they'll end up on a Dante version of the Galapagos Islands with thousands of like-minded peppered moth friends in their after life? Sounds like good times ahead...


“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.” (Some insignificant guy said this. Albert Einstein something or other.)

The future ain't what it used to be.

A path, a focus, a passion, a dream - for many people, having these things is par for the course, but needing a defined road to get there isn't necessarily necessary. Without argument, the future cannot be defined with any absolutes beforehand. Playing Russian Roulette and winning on occasion is not an argument I'm seeking here. For the sake of keeping it simple, what if you do end up someplace else? The unpredictable, blind faith approach to life is far more adventurous than a calculated, and arguably, self-manipulated, brain washing attempt at living your life to the fullest will ever be. Trust me, you'll fall short with the latter. Expectations are a sad set up for failure.

Live life now, and if anything, put trust in getting there. Wherever there is. Besides, it's not going anywhere, is it? Expect it to be there, just don't make yourself any false promises.

A wise man once said: "It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." ~Yogi Berra

Play ball people!

I do not like green eggs and ham I do not like them Sam I am.

What are people going to think?

Do we not all question this from time to time? We sure do.

No matter what, people will think. They'll think you're stupid, or uptight, or brilliant, or maybe they'll think you're slightly attractive. At times you'll be short, fat, too thin, obnoxiously loud, or you'll lack personality altogether. You might even be charismatic and funny to some, or inexplicably off-the-charts annoying to another. In any event, you can never please everyone. So why ever make the attempt to do/be so? Wasted precious efforts need not be wasted on lousy judgment calls.

Not to say we can avoid judgments. I too have opinions, of which I share and those of which I do not - despite our stance, we all judge. The key to keeping judgments in check, however, is never using them to place somebody in a position of inferiority. Nobody is less of a person than you or I. One can have less money, or less of anything to which you put great value, but when it's all said and done, we all breathe, eat, sleep, and excrement in a similar fashion - some once, others twice, and those odd ones, three times per day. No room for discussion here - case closed. We're human - this is what we do.

On that note, tattoo shop, here I come...

"Oh no!! What will people think?!!" -White trash or an artful display of my spiritual self-expression?- "In your eyes or mine?"


"Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you." ~Dr. Seuss

Footloose is encouraged, but not on your feet.

I was talking with a few friends last night, and unbenownst to me, the formerly topic of all topics in my life, came to the forefront of conversation.

Shoes. That's right, shoes. I have a thing for them, and believe footwear really do scream your personality type. Ladies, when you're scouting out a potential mate, I highly recommend you start from the bottom and work your way up. That's been my motto anyway. Some people, okay most, think I'm a little odd with my assessments, and others perhaps, think there's a level of shallowness to my critique/judgmental outlook of their poor choice in footwear. The truth of the matter is, there's no shallow element to it at all. Truthfully, I'm stretching the truth here. To a degree, I do judge. Here's some unsolicited insight into my quirky shoe ideology (of the male kind):

Running shoes: He either just came from a run/sport activity, or he just likes wearing anything smelly. He probably doesn't wear deodorant either.

Hiker's duds: Fashion is not his forté. He likes his mountain. He likes his green and his bicycle as a preferred mode of transportation. He recycles. He's an observant introvert, and he needs a woman who can keep up with his granola lifestyle. But don't expect conversation.

Boat shoes: He should be holding an apple martini 24/7. Your shoes imply gayville. And hell, maybe you are gay. Certainly explains it. That, or he works on boats for a living.

Work boots: Should not be worn after hours. Ever. But to those that do, expect no female attention. Ever.

Flip flops: There are variances to this footwear of choice, beginning with the Abercrombie douche and ending with the 'care free' dude that just can't be bothered to even get dressed in the morning. Especially evident when worn in the bitter cold of winter. You can spot either type quite easily, even when not looking.

Loafers (tassled): Pompous rejects with high importance on the job front positions sport these sad, should have been left in the 80's, tassled, must be eliminated, shoe - a real scourge of society - any way you look at them. They're such an eye sore, rather unfortunately, they can be spotted from several miles away. What a sad display of confidence.

Converse sneakers (Jack Purcell included): You are one classic cool dude. Effortless, with just the right amount of effort. Of course, this shoe can also swing in another direction - the greasy haired, melodramatic lifestyle kinda guy, is not the classic cool to which I'm referring. Go wash your hair immediately. And, if you have more than 3 holes in your pair, it's time for a new investment. Also, stick with the classic styles; frilly converse are meant for toddlers only. My affinity for this shoe is considerable, so my opinions on them are outside of the realm of possibility. Having said that, these shoes are cheap enough never to go generic. A wannabe converse is worse than anything tassle. Yep, that's correct. I did just go there.

Oxford: A good oxford, when worn effectively, can be a good fit on any guy. These boys, are a go to shoe. Just don't screw this one up. No hideous white gym socks allowed.

Shiny (anything): Rare, let me re-emphasize, rarely should these be worn. Unless you're in the military, and the high gloss must be worn with your snazzy military uniform, please abstain from owning a pair. And if you already do, burn them. Now.

The Jesus sandal (or any form of Birkenstock): Oh my gosh. Do not do it. The sock and Birk in the 90's was an afflicted, inadvisable, debacle of a time. For all repetitious sake: A deplorable, not to ever be repeated mistake. Same goes with mimicking Jesus. Do not confuse the WWJD walk with Jesus as a literal translation. Walking in His 100 BC shoes is taking it way back. There's no purpose here.

Sadly, I could continue, but tis all for this segment of "I know everything and you don't." Gotta cut loose and kick off my Sunday shoes...

There's no place like home. There's no place like home.

Does the past ever go away? Better yet, do the bad memories of the past ever go away? No, they do not. The simple answer, simply put.

Personally, I would rather history not repeat itself. If I can control my own memory to minimize an unfortunate occurrence from happening again, then I'll keep the bastard in a back burner room for future reference if need be. But like the memory of the excruciating childbirth fades, or so I've been told, so does the hurt and pain of past hardships. And similar to the sequence of birth, the aftermath of pain, comes a new birth, a new life, a new perspective - a new change. Pending outlook and hard work, this change is better than the previous experience and the previous life lived. No Einstein revelation here, but an all-the-time rosy existence, which doesn't exist in the first place, would not allow for a full appreciation of the rosiness, if in fact the moments of suffering and sadness in life were not fully conscious and not fully understood.

Even so, if women truly remembered the pain of giving birth, would she do it again and again? The blessing is well worth it, but I would venture to say, we'd have less babies in the world if the pain remained vividly in one's memory. All the same, a relationship comes to a sour end, it hurts, time surpasses, and love is then sought again. Why? Because the good outweighs the challenges. As such, both childbirth and love continue, whilst the past is still, ever-so present. The past, although now emotionally detached to the degree that it once was, will never be too far away. It goes without saying, every event is the totality of who you are. We learn how to walk to eventually run atop mountain peaks! We learn to talk to sing amongst the stars! We love with resilience, to not stop at any given point, but - to continuously seek to love better and to love bigger.

A painful experience can slow us down, but, should it stop us on our path altogether? I think not. This too shall pass - a favorite adage of mine. Things do pass, and we will continue to run and to sing and to love (and to have babies for that matter), and gratefully, these past memories will re-surface from time to time. Because not only do they offer a reminder of what was, but more so, are a great opportunity to recognize how everything makes you the better person you are today. Unless you're a prisoner of your past that is...If so, I say, get the hell out of there and move fast. Refrain from digression at all costs, and jump on the enlightened, progressive train with the cool folks. Dorothy had it right people, there's no place like the present.