Renegade Blogger

Time is such a funny thing. It dictates when we do everything. During my two summer escapades volunteering in National Parks my crew members and I didn’t worry about time. We ate when we were hungry, went to bed when we were tired, or when the sun went down and we couldn’t find anything to do and took breaks when we wanted to. We worked as long as we needed to to get the job done and enjoyed ourselves the whole time. Having the freedom to live without a clock for the most part was not only relaxing but well; encouraging that one could in today’s society. Both summers we were living by our own standards, not really weighed down by the restriction of hours that society places on almost everything. The campground never closed, nor did the park. The top of the butte never locked its doors to us or kicked us out during a night hike, and hardly ever were the bathroom doors closed when we had to scramble to pee during the night.

While I can see the importance of hours of businesses and the important role they play in society, for without them it would be a titch chaotic I think that everyone should life without them for some part of their life. Even if its just for a few nights backpacking in a close by national park. The idea that you move on your own terms, and live according to your wants is empowering.

I suppose growing up the restrictions time places on you are kind of counterbalanced, after all, you have the school year which consists of heavily regimented routines of classes and then summer vacation, which aside from perhaps a job is largely unstructured and free. Perhaps I’m just a new age hippy in my thoughts, but you really should try it…

I like the ideas surrounding Taoism. Humility, going with the flow and not really flaunting your intelligence. The idea that one should try and help others and never really expect fame or fortune. I think it promotes a lifestyle that we need here in the states, a culture of respect and personal for intelligence and wisdom. However, while I think the states need more of this I don’t think it would work as a widely spread idea or practice here. Should a large part of the United States suddenly start to attempt to become Taoists there would be a select few that would suddenly take advantage of the situation. They could easily take credit for others actions and these few would simply thrive in the situations that Taoism presented to them. I’ve recently come to believe that humility should be a large part of everyone’s life, as it makes you, well, I think more respectable. Having the courage to play of a large, good act and say it was nothing, especially if it was is very admirable in my eyes.

Humility does not mean thinking less of yourself than of other people, nor does it mean having a low opinion of your own gifts. It means freedom from thinking about yourself at all. ~William Temple

What a profound and foreign idea in our culture. Not thinking about yourself. I belive that as a person one should find the line between personal satisfaction and how one can achive that without going over and then help others…and then break it. A natural disaster or cause calls upon your house asking for money and sure you give, for that is easy. Its easy to part with 10, 20, or 50 dollars, but it is the people who continue their giving and support of the cause that are truly selfless. While they may continue on with their normal lives accept for an hour a day, or an hour a week when they donate their bodies, and the skills they posses, then one can truly define humility. I think its important to find a balance between living they way you want to live your life, without any outside interruptions and finding the time, effort and energy to help others. This process can take years, I can tell you I’ve only begun for my efforts to help a cuase far fall short of those required.

So I’m trying to get back in the swing of posting again, really, I am. Life’s been running by, I’ve been accepted into all five schools I applied to, including my top choice. I’m now finishing up my financial aid app for WW in hopes that it’ll give me a nice chunck of tuition as others have. The lowest gave me 8,000 a year, the highest came the other day in the form of 14,725 per year. Not to fuckin shabby if you ask me.

Now, can we say senioritis! I pulled a 4.0 last semester, that’s the first time I’ve done that in high school, this semester I have three C’s, dropped a class and well, haven’t been really working. Oh how I can’t wait to end high school. Hopefully my last day of classes will be on May 5th, and I’ll be going out on senior project. Kinda like one big volunteer project. Now if only I could get the right people to call me back!

Hers to more posts!

Environmentalism, noun: advocacy of the preservation or improvement of the natural environment; especially: the movement to control pollution.

There’s been speculation recently as to weather or not the environmental movement is dead, and sadly, I think there right. While the Sierra Club, respective PIRGS, and other interest groups both national and local are doing there best the American public isn’t conscious enough the realize the rape of the environment that going on right now. We’ve fallen under a spell cast by the Bush Administration, Republicans nationwide and the media. Were brainwashed, disorganized and non-caring. I think perhaps the biggest problem facing the environmental movement today is the lack of acceptance and unification.

The environmentalist movement today is an elitist organization. “We have to save this or that so that nobody can use it accept to walk in”. Well what good does that do us? How many people want to save a track of land just to hike in? Greens need to realize that they can become the strongest lobbying group in Washington if they agreed on a few basic things. The first is this: not everyone has the same interests, some like to bike, camp, hike photograph, and dare I say it? Even hunt. If the greens realized this and took steps to initiate fair use terms for land that is protected think of the alliance that would start to form between two of the largest interest groups in the county, the NRA and the Sierra Club. Both would want to protect forests, prairies and other wild lands for basically the same reason, to enjoy and watch wildlife. As long as a balance was maintained between the two groups everything would work out. Imagine the possibilities.

What troubles me now however is the fact that Americans aren’t paying attention to what’s going on around them, the Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, and various other environmental movements have been gutted or repealed. New loopholes exist for coal power plants to pour chemicals and pollutants into the air and now more than ever our national lands and animals are coming under attack. Perhaps one of the reasons why can be better emphasized by retelling a conversation I had a few summers ago while canvassing for Ohio PIRG. I went into this mans backyard where he was working on his boat, I figured this was a good sign as the issue we were currently working on had to deal with the lake. I gave him the scpiel but when I asked for a simple donation of ten dollars he refused, saying that he already bought special license plates, and those funds were supposed to go towards protecting the lake. As I look back on that now perhaps we can place a little blame on the failing economy, but only a little, for its our own lack of attention that will cause our nations environmental downfall.