Posts Tagged by Rewind

(Rewind) You Can Smoke Pot and Not Go To College

November 19, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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I’d like to reject the idea that there’s an all-important standard of success that’s anything other than “you’re happy”. Keep Reading

(Rewind) Why Everyone Else Sucks

October 27, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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Whenever I do something that others don’t like, I have a good reason, of course. Whenever others do something I don’t like, there’s something wrong with them. Keep Reading

(Rewind) Our Inability to Predict Our Future Behvior

October 20, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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Awhile back, I wrote about honesty and Nonviolent Communication (NVC). I recently read an article about our tolerance for racisma that reminded me of an important NVC concept that’s a bit hard to grasp.

First, the NVC idea: It is not in anyone’s best interest for me to modify my actions/desires in order to cause or prevent another person from feeling a certain way. I am not responsible for their feelings, and I shouldn’t try to directly change them. I should do the things that I want to do, and the other person’s response is up to them. Keep Reading

(Rewind) Insides and Outsides

October 13, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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I read a line in a book recently where a character was reminding himself not to compare his insides to other people’s outsides. This is certainly an error that is common. It is only possible for us to know the absolute intimacy of our own insides, yet we often compare ourselves to others, when our information about them can never possibly be complete. Keep Reading

Rewind – Honesty

March 25, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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A few days ago, Chris directed me to an article on Radical Honesty, perhaps because of my recent tell-all endeavor of laying my inner childhood thoughts bare for the world to see. Radical Honesty is a small movement headed up by Brad Blanton. I read one of his books years ago. I was struck by the simplicity and potential life-changing power of committing to always speaking honestly in personal relationships. I was also struck by the high degree of woo-woo espoused by this guy, and the bulk of the book didn’t appeal to me as much as the basic idea of speaking honestly. I was interested to read this article and revisit the idea.

Blanton advocates removing the filter between your brain and your mouth. If you’re in a conversation with someone and you’re bored out of your mind, he might suggest that you say it exactly how you’re thinking it. For example, “You’re boring the shit out of me right now with your inane little ramblings, and I’m going to go do something else.” Keep Reading

Rewind – Please Get Cancer So The Economy Will Improve

March 11, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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But what is this economy thing? Often, it’s talked about in terms of GNP, which is the total dollar value of final goods and services. We’re told this number is supposed to be big. In grade school, I remember hearing about the GNP of different nations. Ours was great. For other countries, we laughed at their little numbers.

In what way does this system measure the health of a nation? Since GNP only looks at things that have a monetary value, it seems possible that it risks measuring the non-health of a nation. The truth is that many of the things that indicate a quality of life, a richness and fullness of life, and a reflection of basic values simply cannot be measured by money. On the other hand, illness – both mental, physical, and spiritual – can be measured financially. Keep Reading

Rewind – Failure of Expectation

March 1, 2010 Posted by Issa under Think About It
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A friend recently asked me about why I was living in a van. Didn’t I like living in a house? I said, yes, I had liked my house okay, but I was never there. Between work, being at my boyfriend’s house, etc., I was only there a couple of nights a week, and then mostly to just grab some stuff or to sleep.

I had an odd little moment where I realized that that’s mostly what I’m doing with the van, too. With temperatures being so high, I’m mostly just in the van to grab some things or to go to sleep. I spend my time at my boyfriend’s house, working online at Chick fil A, or spending all day at the gaming bar on free ladies day. So why the van, if I’m not living in it any more than I was living in my house.

I realized that expectation is the difference in what makes the van more comfortable for me. Having a whole house creates a certain set of expectations just by its being and by your having it. Keep Reading

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