Solitude: Not A Group Activity

Even as I say this I know it makes me sound like some sort of tight-lipped introvert loner, but companionship is over-rated. The need for validation from other human beings is one easily overcome. Every person is, and can be, an island. Remember that. I am not saying to spend all of your time alone or trying to be, but just don't slave after the presence of people. Friends are nice, family is better, but solitude is top. No matter the kind of friends you have or how close-knit your family is, you will always be stuck with you. so get used to it.

Exam time...Oh Man

Ah, exams. That wondrous time of year when anyone in school still riding a Christmas high promptly gets punched in the stomach by the universe. When every single nugget of information buried in your locker, squished in your book-bag, or scribbled hastily on a note card becomes more vital than regular meals. It's right around this time that I start to think 'Man, I'm glad I paid attention. Oh #$%&! My tests are only a week away! I need to study!' Someone once told me that all is fair in love and testing. In retrospect, it was probably a teacher. Oh well, here's to desperation, panic, and plea-bargaining for pencils.

My Method IS Madness

Recently, I have come to grips with the very real possibility that I am, for all intents and purposes, insane. Not like Norman Bates hacky-slashy style of insane, the Sheldon Cooper neurotic-Asperger's style of insane, just the insane of someone who has seen both the best of life and the worst of life, brilliance and idiocy, hope and despair, ecstasy and rage, love and hate, companionship and solitude, and is just trying to find a middle ground. The kind of insane that only comes from observing the insanity of the world around you and trying to stay somewhat ,for lack of a better term, normal. The particular brand of bonkers that evolves from just being the person that the powers-that-be intended for you to be. So, maybe I'm not crazy after all. Just, human.

A great mystery of the universe...

Of all concepts that I struggle with (American politics, reality TV, geometry, and so on), none baffles me more than what I have come to call the Magnetic Relationship Effect. This is a situation commonly observed between two people, a male and a female, most often of high school age. This is the concept: the prettier and nicer the girl, the more asinine and unappealing her chosen male companion is. Most recently, I saw this effect in action between a female friend of mine choosing to enter into a relationship with a guy widely regarded as a ginormous asshole. I know 'opposites attract' but this is insane. So my question is: What the @#$% is going on here?!

Same Stuff, Different Decade

Now that we are in 2010, here's a handy, if incredibly choppy, recap of the decade (for those who have been under a rock for 10 years) in one major event a year.
2000: The new millenium begins
2001: Terrorists attack the World Trade Center in NYC
2002: Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, Utah
2003: Arnold Schwarzenegger elected as California governor
2004:George W. Bush re-elected against the better judgment of Americans
2005: Pope John Paul II dies; Pope Benedict XVI elected
2006: Blu-Ray format released to the public
2007: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows becomes the fastest-selling book in history
2008: America elects Barack Obama (the first black president)
2009: H1N1 (AKA swine flu) outbreak prompts widespread fear and paranoia

So, there you have it. The first decade of the first century of the third millennium. If you want to know more about what happened in those years, there are countless more places more accurate and comprehensive than my blog. Try looking there.