Chronicles of a traveler #1

Here we go. As some of you may have noticed the cucumber has been missing from the day to day action of Happy Valley the last couple of weeks. If you didn't notice you should have and I am oh so very hurt and disapointed and will go wallow in a corner feeling sorry for myself. But, my feelings aside, I have decided to document the events leading up to were I am now. Which is in the middle of a strange city with a very good, not amazing of course but very good nontheless, public transportation system, in a top floor appartment, were if you don't duck you will hit your head on the rafters, sitting at a computer that doesn't speak English that well, which has a keyboard where the z and y are switched as well as pretty much all other punctuations, except of course the period, after a short nights sleep on the hardwood floor, situated right in front of the projector screen, that we watched a movie on last night, the projector being supplied by not one but two DVD players, a 5 speaker surround sound system, and this other box that I think is the cable box, which, by the way, doesn't use English. Now, if you aren't already confused, this morning I woke up and saw a man I don't really know, dressed in nothing but his boxer briefs, preparing his breakfast at the counter, which is near the table that we ate dinner at last night, which is just across the room from were I slept, which, if you remember, was on the floor right in front of the projector screen. Oh, and I am also in Gevena, Switzerland. Now, if your mind is a little boggled and you want to just give up now, and maybe some of you should for your own safety, don't worry because the thrilling tale of my adventures thus far are coming just as soon as I can get a hold of a camera and sort through all the memories because I am too disorganized to write anything down. Schüs

Liberalism Vs. Conservatism

With all the drama going on in the election process this year, with all the conjectures that Obama's and Hilary's liberalism will destroy America's principles, McCain is too liberal to be a republican and won't defend conservative standards, I can't help but think about the roots of those two words. Liberal and Conservative. Surprisingly enough, when the first "Liberal" party was formed it was just that, simply liberal in its means. It is the same case for the first conservative party. Through the years, however, most everyone has gotten caught up in the details and most self-proclaimed conservatives, or liberals for that matter, are actually a surprising mixture of both.
I don't believe in modifying my beliefs for every situation. I believe in having a sound set of principles that can then be applied to different circumstances.

So, what am I? I am a moderate. I think that it is narrow minded to be too conservative and foolhardy to be too liberal. Having too much of one or the other slows progress and slowly starves society.

Progress is like a garden and opportunities are the plants. Each plant is different, but all can bring forth nutrients and life. The catch, however, is that the garden needs continual attention. Each plant has different needs for soil, water, and sunlight. There are three general options for the care-taking of this garden.
Option1: Look ahead. You realize that you have a limited supply of water and soil so you give as little as possible to each plant. The results however are swift and sorrowful, for you quickly see that your precious garden is withered and mostly dead.
Option2: Look behind. You realize just how far you have come and that, with todays technologies and opportunities, there is no need to have the same worries and inhibitions as the people of yesteryear. So, since you see that there is so much to be had now, you give freely of your water and soil to your plants. At first they are doing well. So why not give them more? And more? Surely the extra water and soil will only help your plants. Your zeal, however, has turned against you. For instead of a healthy vibrant array of fruits and vegetables, all you have made is a swamp with little parasites breeding and swarming.
Option3: Look to the present: You realize that you have come far to get to where you are, and that there is also so much yet to be had. So, you put on your gloves and get to work giving each plant exactly what it needs, and pretty soon you have a pretty impressive garden.

If you didn't already guess, Option1 was about being too conservative, Option2 too liberal and Option3 being both conservative and liberal in healthy doses.

Think on this a while. If you can, leave a comment about how you feel about this. I'm fine with being totally wrong so don't be afraid of offending me, but criticism that is fair and constructive is always nice. This is all still a learning process for everyone, especially me.

Just Fix It

As the years go by it is increasingly apparent that more and more problems are creeping into individuals habits as well as society in general. I do not pretend to be exempt from this, for it was reflection upon my own life that caused me to analyze this in the first place. So, my question: Why is it that people fail to fix many bad habits that occur in their life.

A recurring cause of this, that I have noticed, is that many people take the easy way out and simply cease to care about the problem. They will tell you quite frankly that since they think that they are happy then there is obviously nothing wrong. This follows closely behind the apathetic social trend of "no consequences" where consequences are either eliminated entirely or shrugged off and forgotten without learning anything. The fact that this happens is a bad and dangerous habit in itself because you never improve and never even care to.

Another factor that plays into it is ignorance. All about us are people that just don't know, or remember, that the things that they do, or fail to do, is damaging their performance in life and other ventures. This ignorance is most often partial. With all the information that we have at our fingertips, pure ignorance is rare and is often the result of laziness. Failure to understand or realize our own flaws is also repeatedly used as an excuse.

Similar to not caring is being stubborn or lazy and consciously making the choice not to improve. This is were I am one of the biggest culprits. Muley behavior and pigheadedness never solved a problem. Many will refuse reformation only because the person presenting it has offended them in doing so. Procrastination also plays a big role. "I will do it tomorrow" or "I don't have time right now" can be signs of this.

In short, we are all fools most of our lives, it is unavoidable. What makes the difference is how we confront our problems. Not with apathy or excuses but head on with constant, little by little improvement.

Sincerely,
The Composed Cucumber

Awkward Situations: Terrible Experiences but Hilarious Memorys

Isn't it great that we live in such a diverse world? With such a variety in belief, (..maybe not in Utah), culture and personality, it is hard to get bored. With this diversity comes many ups and, unfortunately, downs. One thing, however, fits into both of these categories. The untimely silence, embarrassing date, or, in other words, just an awkward situation. Everyone has these. They are unavoidable. So, my question is, why are so many of these experiences so uncomfortable to go through, but, upon reflection, are some of the funniest times of ones life?

Admittedly some "interesting" incidents are definitely things that are better just tucked away into the corners of the mind. Most, however, turn out to be excruciatingly amusing memories. The first main factor in this is the passage of time. Time allows someone to mature to the point that they have come to grips with the fact that what they did, or what someone else did, was just a silly mistake that no one in their right mind would do. Thus turning a bad experience into a good story. People can also be alarmingly hard on themselves right after the incident because all they can remember at that time is the initial embarrassment. As time passes, however, they begin to see a wider spectrum and realize that they had nothing to worry about.

Another component to this change in attitude is that people often take themselves too seriously. They will believe that every one's attention is on them and that everyone is judging them. Like spilling a drink on someone or asking when the baby is due. Again, it takes time to get over that first realization that, "I can't believe I messed up like that", or "Why did I just say that to her".

Awkward situations happen to everyone. From the inevitable silence during a fast and testimony meeting to just stepping in on the wrong part of a conversation, it happens. The different ways that people get over these things are what makes the difference. Just think, in twenty years you will sit back and say, "Remember that time..."

Sincerely,
The Composed Cucumber

Why Blog?

I suppose everyone has written about this at least once so I figure it is my turn. Maybe I will give some interesting insight, maybe all this will be is a total copy of what has already been written on the subject, let's see. So the question, why do we blog?

I, for one, have never blogged until this class and I think that I am justified in saying that that holds true for most of my peers. So does that mean that the only reason that we all blog is for a grade? After reading some of the others blogs I find this is apparent in some of them, but for the most part it seems to be a way for people to to either vent frustration at a problem in society or have fun expressing some of their ideas. This is extremely visible in the blogs that have been posted on Mr. Rich's wall. This leads one to believe that the blogs were not written solely for a grade. It shows that many of the students have found a place were they can submit some of their strongest or more whimsical ideas to the public without the risk of being ridiculed or otherwise persecuted. Some would say that this is putting too much of yourself in a place for too many people to see. This concern is valid, but only if the person posting is unwise in their use. It is obvious that, for the most part, the assignment to blog is a healthy way to get people to think about how they perceive the world and its inhabitants.

This has been short but hopefully a little different then what has been previously said.

Sincerely,
The Composed Cucumber

Aren't we supposed to dance to... music?

It becomes increasingly apparent that many radio stations are lowering their standards in regards to the kinds of music that they let on to their station. But do these decaying morals really have to extend to school dances? The DJs obviously feel so. I have yet to attend a school dance that played only the sort of music that I feel comfortable listening to. Another fad that has developed in the realm of dance music, is to blast the music into every one's ears. This makes it so that having a conversation, even while slow-dancing, is impossible without yelling to your date, who is scarcely one foot away. So, my question is, why do the DJs feel like they have to play the selection of music that they do and at such a high decibel?

The first reason I have found is that the songs that are getting higher ratings are getting worse and worse and far as lyrics and actual musicality. The companies that supply the DJs see the kinds of songs that are doing well on the charts and they include those songs on the playlist for school dances. They assume that if those songs made to the top of the charts then all kids must want to listen to them. However, the fact of the matter is is that with the society falling into the trend of "No Consequences," the music that takes the top ratings are the ones encouraging this concept of no morals and ethics. This leads to dances that are filled with songs with explicit lyrics and pounding beats. And the administrators wonder why there is so much scandalous behavior at dances.

One would also come to wonder why the music is so loud. The cause of this comes hand in hand with the kind of music being played. The fact of the matter is is that the music wouldn't be as affective if it where quieter. The pounding beat leads to a mood of excitement. This, coupled with the suggestive lyrics, provokes an unnatural feeling of elation. For those consciously trying to uphold their values this can lead to quite an unenjoyable experience.

School dances are an integral part of high school that people from all walks of life participate in. It is rather ironic that the music provided for these dances is excruciatingly difficult to actually dance to. With the exception of the rare swing tune or line dance nothing can be done beyond moving back and forth to the beat and trying not to pay attention to the lyrics.

Sincerely,
The Composed Cucumber

Why did I get sick?

Well, here it is, Sunday, and I am sick. I have been coughing since Friday and yesterday I could barely get out of bed. This further increases my belief in the law of Just Because, for I had many plans for this weekend. I don' t know how but I will have to get over it. Anyway, enough of my whining my question is, why did I get sick?
People get sick and stay sick for different reasons. I believe that the causes of my sickness came from several different factors.

1) The game. On Friday was a boys basketball home game, and as all home games are, the pep-band was there. If you were there you might have seen me up at the top of the band playing sousaphone. Well, aside from the fact that a pep-band game isn't exactly the most ideal place to relax and get better, for I was already showing signs of getting sick, there was another problem. My sousaphone hasn't been cleaned in years. With every breath came a mouthful.... something.

2) The season. With spring at our doorstep there is another more insidious season already here. The flu season plagues many and even takes several lives every year. Luckily it looks like I will still be around.

3) Me. Though I complain and whine, when it comes down to it there is nobody to blame but myself. I felt sick Friday morning so I probably should have taken the hint and not gone to the game, but like I said I'll get over it.

Sincerely,
The Composed Cucumber