Archive for 2011

We’re not happy people.

Just look at the stats. People are grumpier, sadder, tireder, and meaner than they used to be (no this is not Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs).

And why are we unhappy? Is it because the world is a harsher place to live, because we have less than we used to? No, in fact stats prove that the world has been continuously getting better over time. So what’s our problem? Maybe it’s because of where we live, America.

We live in a culture that praises material wealth and external richness over internal. We live in a culture in which we are judged by what we have, not by who we are. We live in a culture overrun with ads and commercials that constantly tell us what we are missing, what we don’t have, and what others have over us. This leads to higher crime rates because the poor, finding no other way to acquire these possessions that have been ingrained in their heads as must-haves rob. And on the other side of the coin, people work 12 to 15 hour days just to afford these possessions that are, again, deemed as must-haves. We live in a market driven economy, even if we don’t think so. Continue Reading →

Have you ever looked at a paradoxical sentence? Have you ever really stared at it? Consumed it with your entire being and let it hang within your soul, stirring around, making all this ruckus within you that makes you shift unevenly in your seat from time to time without knowing why?

Being abnormal is normal. Being normal is abnormal.

Truths are found in paradoxes. That’s what I believe. Not truth as in knowledge, but as in the truth that’s rarely acquired; wisdom.

If I told a computer program that it had to hold the notion “You are unique like no one else,” and the notion “You are the same, like everyone else,” as both being right and equal it’d exploded faster than you could say discombobulated. But if I told you that, and you actually thought about it for a second or two, you’d realize “Hey, maybe Arsene’s on to something!” And yes, there are many types of paradoxes, but for brevity’s sake I’m only talking about philosophical paradoxes (the one’s that relate to living a better life). Continue Reading →

“We never really grow up. We just learn how to act in public.” ~ Bryan White

Maybe I was ignorant as a child (aren’t we all?), and maybe I was still ignorant as a teen (aren’t we all?), but it was only later in life that I learnt that most interactions in public are pure performance. And like most realistic realizations about the world – this saddened me. For consciously, and unconsciously, I now act in public; consciously controlling my facial expressions, my body movements, and my speech.

Constantly seeing how others see you isn’t a bad thing, but you end up controlling yourself from being completely honest; you remain quiet rather than saying you don’t understand, you lie in order to not hurt the other, all-in-all you’re phoney… you play a role at all times – the teammate, the friend, the co-worker, the polite chit-chatter, the neutral diplomat. Continue Reading →

You’re not Instagram famous. You’re not your Facebook friends, you’re not your likes. You’re not your Twitter followers, you’re not your retweets. You’re not your number of visitors, you’re not your subscribers, you’re not upvoted.

You’re not your iPhone, or Android. You’re not your apps. You’re not fucking jailbroken.

You’re not your Tumblr reblogs. You’re not your YouTube views. And you were never the fucking mayor.

You’re the all-surfing, all-procrastinating, attention-seeking crap on the web.

I don’t really talk about my clothing line “QUOTES” Clothing on here. I should. The themes of each (life, art, inspiration) are too similar to not.

Every day short inspirational letters/blog posts are emailed every morning to all the subscribers. So I thought I’d treat you to seven of my favorite ones so far. And although I attribute the letters to the person who’s quote it was inspired by, all letters are written by me and are thus fictional. (Oh, and of course there’s clothing in all this.)

So let’s get started with the letters:

My dear,

Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.

They fish and fish, before realizing they are actually wood-smiths. They fish and fish, before realizing they are actually word-smiths…. They fish and fish before realizing that they do not want to fish. They learn too late that they’d rather follow their own hearts that fish.

My dear, replace fish with work and you’ll see what I speak of.

Truly yours,
Henry David Thoreau

My dear,

You know what I tell myself everytime I write?

Faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death.

I sit on my chair, and force myself to write… and keep writing, until I get to that point where it’s no longer the fear of mortage payments that’s driving me, ’till it’s no longer the thoughts of long days with empty stomachs forcing my fingers to glide over that keyboard – but instead, the thrill of writing one letter after the other, one word after the next, one sentence after the former… until I write for writing in itself.

It’s comparable to riding down a one way dead-end steep highway on a bike with no brakes. At first all you can think about is your death in the more than likely head-busting collision that’s about to happen. But pretty soon you realize that the road is infinitely long and infinitely steep – all you’re doing is gaining speed, and there’s no end in sight. Heck, you can probably ride this thing now with no arms.

And that’s when the fun starts.

Truly yours,
Hunter Stockton Thompson Continue Reading →

Just show up.

Woody Allen famously said, “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” And he’s right and pithy, but I’ll expand and guide you through one of the hardest thing you can ever ‘show up’ for – eating an elephant. (I eat elephant almost everyday, so trust me on this one.)

How to Eat the Elephant

First, you’ve got to tell yourself you’re going to eat this damn elephant.

But before even attempting, make sure you have the right utensils. Go to your kitchen, grab a fork, a knife, and a plate. Bring these to the table. Bring your whole self to the table.

Sit down and look at the elephant before you, it’s pretty big. Take a deep breath. Close your eyes. When you open them again only look at the elephant’s feet. The hardest part to eat. For you, right now, that’s all that exists. And it’s not as big a challenge as eating the whole thing at once. Open your eyes. See, no elephant – only a leg.

Take your knife, cut a piece off the leg, and with the fork bring it up to your lips, into your mouth, and chew. Pretty tough meat isn’t it? Don’t worry, remember what your mom told you as a kid, “20 chews then swallow.” 18… 19… 20, swallow. Now take your knife again, yes, we’re going to do it again.

Now the leg’s done. Close your eyes again. Open them. What do you know – another leg to eat. Pick up your knife and fork, get to work.

How’d those four legs taste like? Like hard eating right? Close your eyes. Open them. Ahhh, the torso, the meatiest part of all.

I know what you’re thinking, “There’s so much!” But hey, it’s not as tough as the legs you just ate. Take your knife, cut a piece off, then use the fork to bring it up to your parting lips, into your mouth, now pull the fork away – meat still in your mouth, and chew. Chew, chew, chew. This is why you’re here, to chew.

Finished with the torso? Good job. It’s all downhill from here. Close your eyes. Open them. A tail, a trunk, ears, and a head – the loose ends are all on your plate.

Wait?!!! Where are you going?! Sit back down! You’re almost done, I promise. You’re full? You can’t possibly eat anymore? Well, I have faith in you. Your stomach’s bigger than you give it credit. Please sit back down.

…Thank you.

Where were we? Oh that’s right, the loose ends. Your knife and fork still with you? Good. You know what to do.

Done?

Close your eyes. Open them. Empty plate. Wait, this can’t be. Quick, close your eyes. Open them. Empty plate. Hmmm, guess it was true. You’re done.You just ate the 26,000 pound elephant.

How do you feel? Accomplished? You should. Time to do as mother said though, clean the table. Pick up your plate, your knife, your fork – take them to the sink. Don’t worry about washing them now. Now, you sleep. You deserve it.

Tomorrow? Well, I didn’t really think about that. What do you do after you’ve eaten an elephant? Nothing much, ‘cept, eat another. Yeah, let’s do that; eat another elephant… Tomorrow. Today we rest.

_______
So you see, I’ve figured out how to eat the elephant. What’s the elephant? It’s that big project you’ve been putting off. That dream you’ve placed somewhere in the future. It’s why you’ve been procrastinating, it’s 26,000 pounds and it scares you. Hell, it scares me too. Every day. But hakuna matata (it means “no worries”), you and I, we know exactly how to eat this thing don’t we? We’ve just got to show up (sit at the table), and eat bit by bit.

Slick hipster takes candid shots that look pro. Slick hipster was expecting it. She knew she’d be photographed this morning. She practiced that expression in the mirror. That one reveals too much. That one reveals too little. That one’s too bland. That one’s too shocking. That one’s perfect! It’s just right. And then slick hipster chose her outfit. Gucci. Jacobs. Versace. Dior. McCartney. Miu. Sui. Mixed in with a little thrift-store rag and tag. Hmm… That one reveals too much. That one reveals too little. That one’s too bland. That one’s too shocking. That one’s perfect! It’s just right. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Slick actor is in all the right movies. Saying just the right thing, at just the right time. Never stumbling. Never at a loss for words. Look! Slick actor’s in a adventure-romance! In an action-thriller! In a comedy-horror! He has great abs. She has great tits. He has great arms. She has great hair. Slick actor’s male. Slick actor’s female. But the same attire nevertheless. The custom made attire. The one that fits so perfectly. Not baggy. Not tight. Just right. Nothing more. Nothing less. Continue Reading →

Better company?

Ughhh. Their company has 10 Harvard graduates while we… Ughhh, we just don’t.

Better athlete?

Look how huge he is! I can’t possible take him down.

Better love?

Look at the size of her ring! She’s got the best husband in the world.

Better message?

That post is 1000 words, while this one is only 100, obviously this one sucks and has nothing of importance to say.

Oh, America – land of the big is better slogan. Judging on size is self-defeating. And pretty stupid. (Smaller is not better by the way – that’s just you, judging on size again.)

photo credit: Tobyotter