Day 113- Thursday, July 2, 2009

Day 113:

Alright friends, I gotta lay it out today:

Life can be pretty rough, and there's a lot of pain and heartache coming at you from left, right, up, down, behind you, everywhere. It's enough to make your head spin sometimes.

But things aren't getting worse. You think cancer is a huge problem? Or the end of oil? A thousand years ago, maybe people DID have less cancer, but they also had a 30 year life expectancy. And oil? Sweet god, they didn't HAVE it back then.

No friends, things aren't getting worse, they are getting better. WE'RE just getting worse at coping with the times when our expectations don't meet that brilliant ideal we had.

So, to those constantly miserable folk, whose phone isn't fast enough, whose morning commute is too slow, maybe your "fml", "life sucks" attitude isn't caused by weakness, or a crippled psyche, but by your own lack of perspective. You're just being dumb and ignorant, that's all, and I wish it was more acceptable to say so.

Attitude is created by the self, not by external forces. CHOOSE to be a positive person in the face of the negative; it is possible!

Join the cause and help stop dumbness!

Here are a few suggestions:

1. When faced with a negative situation of the human kind, ie. someone is being a douche, DON'T RESPOND IN KIND. DOUCHE + DOUCHE = TWO DOUCHES, NOT A BETTER PLANET.

2. When troubled by your own mistakes, DON'T MAKE MORE! Or, if that is unavoidable, contribute a good healthy portion of your life's energy to helping others! As much as we may all want to believe it, life doesn't have to be a ZERO SUM GAME. Quit being selfish!

Besides, the zero sum game attitude is exhausting!

3. If troubled by philosophical, metaphysical, existential, nihilistic, 3:37 a.m cold sweat, what-the-hell-happens-when-I-die panic,

Step 1: Calm down and breathe

Step 2: You are not alone!

Step 3: Call a friend or go somewhere with other people, and TALK about that stuff. It IS important so don't be shy!

Step 4: If no one wants to talk about it, call ME! I DO!

So those are three situations and suggestions I can offer. I know there's lots more super complicated, painful issues to deal with in life, but everything has an opposite; everything in this world has an equal force to balance it. You just have to be smart enough to find it.

"Pain is mandatory, suffering is optional"

"Perspective, use it or lose it."

We'll all get through this is we're just smart enough to make the right choices.