Shifting gears a bit...

So, lately I haven't felt like I have much to write about... I haven't been inspired so to speak... What I have been spending more time doing, is playing with our new camera.

I have started a new project today on flickr that is called Project 365 - where you can take photos of anything... interesting and/or mundane. It's essentially a photo-journal of your year.... So in the spirit of the project, I have decided I will post some of the photos here.

May I add here, photography is a hobby - I in no way claim to be a pro.

Here are my first 4 days offerings:

F my life

If you haven't had the privilege of coming across this website yourself... i urge you to check it out!

http://www.fmylife.com/

It's brilliant! Why is it brilliant? Because it's the human condition to laugh at other people's misery. Admit it, we all do it.

See some poor sap slam into that bay window cuz they don't realize that its a window? Yeah, you laugh.

Accidentally watch Grandma's false teeth fall out when she's biting into a leg of chicken? Makes ya crack up every time.

We're sick sick bastards.

No not really... we laugh because we've all been there.

We laugh because it's finally someone else experiencing what we have potentially endured. We laugh, because, unless it's happening to us... it's funny. Really funny.

Ever meet those people that don't laugh in these scenarios? They aren't fun. End of story.

I speak in absolutes about these things, as people with little to no sense of humour need to lighten the hell up.

It's not that we are happy of other people's misfortune... we are laughing to ease the tension. We are laughing because we are not perfect, and it's the imperfections in each of us that make us human. It makes life more tolerable.

If you can't have a sense of humour about life... then really.. is it a life worth living??

I honestly don't believe it is.

In a time where the economy is in the toilet, some of us are working at jobs we are MORE than over qualified for, and maybe even unfortunately laid off or in between jobs... with stress at an all time high, we need to laugh.

Can't find anything uplifting or humourous?
Check out the catwalk from the latest fashion lines. That will be SURE to put a smile on your face. Trust me. I'm starting to believe designers are making bets on who can create the most ridiculous outfit that some half-wit will covet, and pay an absorbent amount of money for.

If fashion isn't your thing, watch a funny movie, or youtube any music video from the 1980's. There's nothing like watching David Bowie in Spandex jamming to themes from Labyrinth.

You get the idea... take time to smell the roses, and laugh at the poor shmuck who gets a bee sting on his nose while doing so....

Life is too short, and too precious to lead a serious life...

Besides... no one gets out alive.

updates.

Well, I finally made a synopsis for my book. Here goes:

Recounting her party days, a young woman reflects on her years in the underground sub-culture that not only she lived and breathed in, but watched some of her friends give their life to. Submerged in a scene where music ruled, DJ’s rose to God-like status, and dancing wasn’t just a hobby, it was as vital as air.

Oh dancing.... I miss it often. Sure, I dance now... I dance as much as I can. I dance in my bedroom while getting ready for work, I go out every so often and get my dance on... but nothing ever will be the same as dancing in those years. I understand you can never go back in time... I understand that things change... I'm grateful for that.... but that feeling of floating and flying from those years... nothing can touch it.

I'm busy lately editing my book... so I'm around... just working on the original writing project.

The blame game and finding your self worth.

Recently, I have been present to many different people in situations where they are blaming others. Usually this blame is placed in defense of a behaviour or action from the blamer.

Blame bothers me.

The reason it does, is it's usually someone trying to rationalize extreme behaviour - or at times, to keep themselves out of trouble.

Blaming reminds me of young siblings, busy blaming their brother or sister, as to appear like the 'good/golden' child, and cast the other in a less-than-perfect light.

Blaming reminds me of self-esteem or self-worth.

Something I have always wanted to research and write an essay about is self-esteem.

I personally believe that self-esteem can be linked for almost every evil of the world.

Perhaps this might sound like a gross exaggeration... but hear me out.

One of the examples I use for this argument is our ol' favourite... G.W. Bush.
Never have I seen a man in the public eye in the last few years so hated.
...and don't misunderstand me... he's definitely NOT on my top 10 favourite people list. At all.

I think the man is/was dangerous, dim-witted, and downright ignorant. ... but I digress.

I'm not focusing on his intellect, or lack thereof.

This was a man, who ran one of the most powerful countries in the world.. if not THE most powerful country in the world.

He waged wars, ruled with greed and dollar signs in his eyes, and generally wreaked havoc on the world. It was tragic.

A lot of people deem him evil, idiotic, simple, and the list of un-pleasantries goes on.

In my opinion, this all stems from low self esteem.

Let's break it down.

Greed - Why do people want what they want? To live in luxury? Sure. To have an easier life? Sure. I can bet though, that greed in part, is from self-worth. How do you measure up? Will your parents approve? Will more people like you if you have more?

In a study at the University of Waterloo by Danu Anthony, he links self-esteem with appearance.

"People's self-esteem is most strongly tied to traits such as physical appearance, social skills and popularity," says the Anthony.

Anthony goes on to say that, "People state emphatically that it is 'what's inside' that counts and encourage their children not to judge others based on appearances, yet they revere attractive people to an astonishing degree."

Are we to think that beautiful people have more self-esteem than regular folks?

I'm not sure about that, as having worked in the Fashion Industry, specifically with runway models, I witnessed more self-esteem issues than I knew what to do with.

Yet, we are prone to trust a beautiful person rather than a plain-Jane. Why else would advertisers use models and actors to sell their products? We trust them.

It seems like this concept isn't necessarily for self, but for them. We feel, that if someone is beautiful, than they MUST have a higher self-esteem.

But let's go back to lack of self-esteem being a factor in the evils and wrong-doings of life.

Esteem allows you to respect yourself, make good decisions, gives you the courage to try new things, and the power to believe in yourself.

What I find interesting is the fine line between low/high esteem.

Think about that person that appears to have really really high self-esteem. They are insufferable at times right? It's usually a veneer. They are the wizard behind the curtain, desperately trying to dazzle you with their 'wonderful being' while behind the curtain, they are hurting, and overwhelmed with low self-worth.

Perhaps at times, it's really tough to see this fact, but generally speaking these larger than life, cocky egoists, are lacking in the self-respect, and good decision making. Sound familiar?

Esteem paves the way to how we conduct ourselves in our daily lives.

In worst cases of low-self-worth, people become self-centered, without even meaning to. They are so obsessed with how they don't measure up, how they are yet again screwing things up in their life, that it becomes almost obsessive. They cocoon themselves, and retreat from participating in daily activities, and it can even snowball into severe depression.

The media preys on our low self-esteem - and even go as far as "greenwashing" to ease our guilt, and attempt to puff us up, and make us feel like we're at least doing some good in the world... even if we don't have whiter teeth, thinner body, or shinier hair.

They toy with our esteem and emotions, and create a push-pull situation, where some of us are so susceptible to their suggestion, that we are becoming puppets on strings.

This ties into my discontent with mega-stores, and advertising on a whole. We are manipulated and targeted on our weaknesses, and in result, we follow into the cycle of over consumption, greed, and blaming others.

We all sit and wonder, what can we do? How can we help?

The solution has been said to start with us, and from what I can tell... Boosting your self-worth to healthy is an excellent start.

Travel love & not fighting the Universe.

I found a new website, that I love, adore - and all the good stuff.

http://www.panoramas.dk/fullscreen5/f23_yokohama.html

I was having a moment of Japan-homesickness the other day, and looked up google images and found this gem.

That particular url is Yokohama at night. The city in which I resided in while living in Japan.

My heart ached looking at the site.

I then explored further.... the Grand Canyon, The Red Square, Times Square, Mt. Everest, Taj Mahal, and even Burning Man - are all highlighted in this panoramic site. Such good stuff, for an armchair traveler which at the moment I need to be.

You can fight with the Universe, but often times, you will find that you lose.... and you lose bigtime.

Currently - The Universe has sent MORE than a few signs that I need to write, and perhaps not let the travel bug rear it's head and run the show.

Yes, I'm sulking a bit, but at least I love to write... and will soon be taking classes to define my craft.

From the comfort of my couch, I can travel in my mind to The Red Square or Times Square (which I have at least seen at least 3 times during my time in NYC).

I also have a new fondness for the Golden Pagoda in Myanmar (Burma for those of you that haven't been following along in World Issues).

There are so many places to go and explore.. and so little time...

As the Discovery Channel's commercial states - The World is just awesome!

Jodhpurs, the L-word, and being up after my bedtime.

One of the biggest reasons I left the fashion industry was the plastic people.
Surrounding myself with them daily started to give me an existential crisis.

A tv-show tonight reconfirmed that belief... but not due to the plastic people...

Jodhpurs are in style still.

For those of you not familiar ----->

Sexy eh?

Seriously designers - what the hell are you trying to do to us???

Unless you ARE a runway model, and look good in pretty much everything including a burlap sac... WHO DOES THIS LOOK GOOD ON!?

Hey, even hot RCMP officers look dapper in the red serge... but the lower regions of this variation leave something to be desired.

News flash... The Emperor has no clothes. Thank god... cuz if he was wearing this get-up, we'd just secretly wish he was naked anyways.

God I wish the days of Breakfast at Tiffany's style was back in. How much do i wish i could pull off a simple little black dress with a big floppy hat and over-sized sunglasses paired with a nice set of pearls?

On a completely different note... The show the L-word does reconfirm my belief that lesbians as a whole are insane. Love them. But ladies... we're wack jobs... just admit it.

Admittedly - watching the show is my guilty pleasure... for the same reason that most of my dyke friends have confessed - watching dyke drama that you aren't directly related in - is somewhat comforting, and a relief.

Of course, being married now has allowed me to side-step the entire drama cycle, which I am over the moon about.

Kate Moennig aka Shane in the series does give me my tv-star lust points.

Albeit, I'm not generally one to swoon over actresses, and actors... as i find it a tad futile, and pointless - but damn that is a good looking woman. It's ridiculous really.

Suddenly I'm too tired to continue... or even watch this show, of overtly beautiful & glamours lesbians. Fake or not. Kate Moenning will just have to act away without this gal fawning over her for tonight.

...till later...

The facts of life?

Recently, I was challenged on my last post - There's more to life than this..

It was devil's advocate - as the person that challenged me is my best friend, and in fact is the gentleman I was referring to that has just bought his first home with his partner.

He wrote a quick email to share his thoughts - which I will quote here:

"Many of us engage in the material aspects of our society, for they become "means to an end". When we go to Petcetera, it allows us to enjoy and love our pet. When we shop at Walmart, it can allow for savings to take our children out to a festival. When we buy a new faucet at Home Depot, it allows us to grow our home, and to grow in the love of accomplishing something together. When you buy a home, it is a wonderful celebration of love, for now you have a place of permanent habitation, and place to land and relax. I know it all has aspects of shallow consumerism, but it can also allow for so much more".

Now - first let me say - don't rip on him for his comment if you don't agree - that's not my intention of quoting him. ... and this is a blog of my writing to invoke comments/constructive criticism, etc... not his.

I quoted him, so I didn't paraphrase wrong, and I wanted to share these thoughts... which admittedly - some of you may have.

So... having said that... what do I think about his comment?

Well... I'm having mixed opinions about it.

First and foremost, I do agree - yes, these mega-store-big-box places have been put into our society for this very concept. Easy, cheap, convenient, etc...

What gets up my nose are the following;

1) These massive big-box corporations are killing the independent store owner. They are squashing the little guy. Due to them ordering on a massive scale, they are able to buy the product at a lower cost, which in turn allows them to sell them to us at a lower price.

Now, I do remember that the aforementioned friend was years ago, looking for a house-plant for his new apt. He first went to the smaller local store... where he was met with dead plants, poor customer service (if any), and left feeling frustrated and upset with his experience there. It so happened that a Walmart was around the corner of the smaller store, and the plants there were thriving, well maintained, and there was a person on staff *just* for the plant dept, who was knowledgeable, friendly, and prompt. I suppose I don't have to tell you how that story ended. My friend bought a plant from Wallmart - that was lush, green, and he also came away with a solid understanding of how to care for the plant, that was imparted on him by the great clerk there.

I remember at the time, we both were saddened by this reality.
The little guy needs to step up their customer service, and offer a service that is personal, and really sets them above the competition.

2) Anytime I'm in one of these stores, I always have the overwhelming sense of the Wizard behind the curtain - like in the Wizard of Oz. In this version, the Wizard behind the curtain has piles of money overflowing and spilling out from his pockets. In these big-box stores, they generally pay min. wages to their workers, while corporations, and the heads of these companies are rolling in the big money.

I feel they prey on the lower to middle class - take their hard-earned money, while laughing all the way to the bank... on goods they paid a fraction of the cost for in the first place.

*and this one REALLY REALLY bugs me!*

... the thing that scares me was a comment my high school teacher made in a World issues class. He said - "Big corporations and the government are trying to abolish the middle class." At first I balked at this notion. "How is that even possible?!" I asked. I couldn't wrap my teenage head around it. I was still looking at the world through rose tinted glasses, and didn't want to believe something so malicious and sinister was afoot.

But, as life marched on, I suddenly looked around and have witnessed more and more corporations paying lower wages, asking longer hours, and the media constantly bombarding us with - BUY BUY BUY -
...and like lemmings, we are all jumping off that cliff - so we can have whiter teeth, designer clothes, and look years younger with some goop we pile onto our face at night.

I'm not saying we shouldn't purchase things... not at all...

What I'm challenging everyone (and this includes me - as I'm far from perfect, and sadly have a bad addiction with whitening strips) is to *THINK* before you purchase. Be conscious of your spending, and your eating.

We live in a society of big-box stores, fast-food restaurants - all to make our hectic lives 'easier'.

But what if we slow things down a bit, and take our time?

Take pleasure in the small joys in the world... what if we realize that having these new gadgets might not be 'just cuz we deserve a break today' ... but maybe it's trying to fill a void in us somewhere? What if we discovered that, and then stopped the over-consumption?

We are constantly bombarded with slogans that fuel that consumption fire - "You deserve a break today", "Because you are worth it" "Have it your way" "Breakfast of Champions"

It plays on the fact that we are overworked, and feel we DO deserve something for our efforts.

This always catapults me into the thought of - I deserve a break today?? Um... I live in a country where I'm free, can voice my opinion, can drive up to a window for my calorie ladden dinner - and somewhere sometimes not too far away... someone is hungry, someone doesn't have water in thier town... and *I* deserve a break today??!! Harumph!

Of course, we don't like to think about that do we?
Corporations don't want us to think about these things... (at least not until Christmas, and then we are overrun with Save the World/Hunger Site commercials - because it's the season of giving, and can't you give 35 cents a day to save a life?)

Again, I'm not standing here on my soapbox telling anyone what to do... I'm far from perfect, and have a loooooooooooong way to go... but maybe if enough of us question are "facts of life" in the western world... maybe we can change things... Maybe we can get to a place where over consumption isn't the norm, and to be expected...

Maybe we can get to a place of empathy, and start thinking beyond our big house, and car... and remember that we are far far more interconnected with each other than we think...