It has been a truly eventful week, so I apologize for the long post. I've learned several things about myself, the world, the situations I put myself in, and the way others should be treated in accordance with your beliefs. While all of this sounds good, I still will have to make a note about Israel, Iran, and well the world. But more on this later. Oh and if I haven't made it clear before, all people in my life will be referred to by initials, for privacy, and because its cool :).
On the topic of connecting with friends. My rule is simple, make an effort, make it a point, and make it imperative that you see your friends at least several times a month. This becomes even more important as people get full time jobs or go back into school. There is no excuse for losing touch with the people you grew up with, you will inevitably need them in the future to lend a helping hand or shoulder. Rule on friends : See them, see them often, and for longer than a few minutes. In fact if you are in a relationship only one thing can excuse you for flopping on your friends. You can guess at that. But even then you MUST give notice, believe me, your friends will be irritated (to say the least) for repetitive absences or tardiness.
Reasonable Requests. Firstly, I learned this week that I have my own boundaries and that those boundaries can not only be broken but can be bulldozed into a new era of self-improvement. When my friends are in town and I haven't seen them in a while I truly go out of my way to spend time with them. Case in point, I biked to my friends place under threat of rain then went back the way I came to sell his bike and then back etc. In all of this I burnt 1000 calories in the matter of an evening. Yes, I did the math and was quite proud of myself for doing that, albeit I did it after learning that at 11:30 PM my potential rides fell through. And so we move onto the Rule of Reasonable Requests. If someone offers you ANYTHING, take that offer as a LIMITED TIME offer, if you do not give someone at least an hours notice of your need DO NOT expect them to help. Obviously, this rule is a result of not realizing this ahead of time and then throwing a minor fit for having to make my way home in the dark and rain. So, this is my apology to those two individuals. In a similar fashion, a family member of mine sent me a file to edit for him on some engineering topic. I get the file in my email on Sunday. Then I get a call saying it needs to be edited by Monday (it's 19 pages 2x spaced). This will NOT happen. Dear readers, do NOT feel guilty for not coming through in the nick of time, yes you should try to help, but there is a limit. Requesting things urgently and not caring for the busy schedules of others or taking into account their lack of ability is rude and falls in the realm of UNREASONABLE REQUESTS.
Regarding boundaries and the need to acknowledge the situation you're in. If the boundary is something within you and something that is restricting you, break it. Boundaries in life in most instances can also be tiptoed on, that being said there are exceptions to all rules, but at one point or another the exception becomes the rule. <-- Random thing I felt like saying. This weekend I was at my friends condo for a get-together. Let me first state that AA your place is amazing. Moving on, the first Rule of Boundaries and Situations : If you find yourself in a situation where you need to make your point heard and have become desperate, first, try to speak to the person(s) involved, prior to raising your voice or cursing. More importantly, to any older individuals, take this point to heart: when dealing with people younger than you, we don't do well with authority, so come down to our level. Moreover, once your request has been met, do NOT keep accosting those who were your targets initially; they heard you, they even did what you asked. Next, DO NOT attempt to aggravate the situation when they are trying to have you simmer down, especially when you're significantly outnumbered. What I observed recently is the idiotic inability of an individual to acknowledge the situation where 20 something year olds are having a party with loud music and that individual busted in the door to scream at the party-goers after the fact that they did what the angry individual asked. Moreover, getting into the face of someone who is trying to de-escalate a situation is not a smart move. Rule (in my opinion): Yelling and screaming makes you look like a child, control your emotions and speak calmly, you'll get further in life that way. That also works if you want to get a rise out of someone, but choose your poison carefully my friends ;). Oh, and people are pretty understanding if you take the time to speak to them like human-beings.
Finally, on Israel and Iran. I love persian people, well the ones that acknowledge Amhadinablahblahs psycho-babel as just that. The Ayatollah of Iran said Iran would offer its navy to help Gaza "aid" ships, oh how nice of you shmucks. Do I believe we're headed towards a war? Yes, but what do I know. All I hope for is that if Iran does choose to follow this path of aggression, that our allies stand by us and support us in ripping the head off the snake. Furthermore, to those who think Israel is the only place blockading Gaza, EGYPT HAS REFUSED TO ALLOW AID INTO GAZA. To all Turkish people, again who understand what proof and facts look like, I love you. To the others : You're blind to the fact that your friend (Syria) was your enemy a few years back. In fact, you had gone to war with them and now occupy some of "their" land. Does that sound familiar to what you say Israel should give up in the Golan? If it does you can take your hypocritical criticisms and choke on them.
Now onto the most important rule: People please educate yourselves on what is going on in the world. Look at pictures and videos. And if you can please think carefully about your choices in life : BP is killing the Gulf of Mexico, a massive archipelago and ecosystem, all due to our thirst for oil. We need to understand that our lives depend on the livelihood of our planet, please make choices that help restore balance. Recycle, walk, ride your bike, or public transport over driving whenever possible. These actions will not only make you healthier, but also a better person, truly.
Peace and Love.
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