A Stranger in a Strange World

I've never been much of a New Year's resolutioner. Sure, I'm always settings long & short-term goals to keep myself on task with my bigger purpose but the coming of a New Year has never really inspired me. 2017 might be behind us but we're all still the same people. No one is going to reinvent themselves. At our best we grow into a better version of ourselves. At our worst we take up valuable squat rack space and then go back to our old, unhealthy habit loops a month later. If you're the kind of person who benefits from making resolutions to exercise, learn, or be kinder, that's great! Do whatever makes you happy. But to me NYE is a time for reflection. What worked? What didn't? What could I have done better? In which ways could I have fucked up but didn't? 2017 has been a rough year for the world. International political turmoil, polarization in America, an unprecedented rise in both organized and lone wolf terror. There are some of us that are c...

Greetings! Since my last blog post there have been a number of significant developments in my life.  The first and most significant is my graduation from SPQ-9B school. SPQ-9B is a radar used for detection of low flying missiles and aircraft as well as periscopes. It's unbelievable how difficult the material I'm expected to learn is but nonetheless I haven't failed to understand any of it yet. I was the honor graduate of my class which is pleasant albeit unnecessary recognition. The only person I care about being better than is my past self. On Veteran's Day I visited Washington, D.C. which was an immensely powerful experience. From the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial & National Mall I got to take in the history of our wonderful country. I truly do love America. I took a  free foot tour  which took me to essentially all the main attractions. Unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity to explore any of the world renowned museums. I...

A tool I've found to be effective in helping me find motivation during the humdrum of the day to day monotony of life is reframing how I think about certain tasks. There are activities we know to be beneficial for our well-being yet for one reason or another it's all too hard to accomplish them. Here's how I break through that wall: rather than thinking that I have  to do something, I think that I get  to do something. A simple yet effective technique. I don't have  to exercise, I get  to exercise. I don't have  to meditate, I get  to meditate. I don't have  to read, I get  to read. Because at the end of the day taking care of our minds and bodies feels nice. We don't have to do anything in life, we're just fortunate enough to have the opportunity to do all the bizarre hobbies we find along our path in this mad world. Ask yourself: what do you think you have  to do that you actually get  to do?

Establishing a morning routine has been instrumental in motivating me to be productive on a day to day basis. After expressing my gratitude to the universe I take what I like to call "an internal shower." I have a liter of water by my bedside and chug the entirety of it before even getting out of bed. This rehydrates my body,  gets my digestive system moving, and wakes me up. Next I meditate . Some days my practice is as short as 2 minutes while other days I devote 15 minutes of my day to improving my mind and spirit. There are many types of meditation available to me but my primary practice is mindfulness. Mindfulness is focused on observing the breath and being in the present. Occasionally I'll dabble in transcendental, contemplative, & metta (loving-kindness) meditation as a way of keeping things interesting. At least once a week I utilize visualization techniques as a form of meditating on what I want from my future. Following my meditation session, I make...

Hello world! This blog will serve as my little way of staying connected to my friends and family back home. After filling out five 120 page college ruled journals with my thoughts, feelings, and musings, I thought it might be time to start sharing some of my ideas with the world. I'll do my best to keep my readers engaged and my writing pleasant to consume but y'all will have to stay patient with me while I figure this thing out. As those of you who've known me for a prolonged length of time surely know, I'm a pretty big fan of self-improvement. Reading, exercising, and meditating are my three favorite activities because they efficiently better the mental, physical, and spiritual aspects of my being. That's what I mean when I say that I'm an "ape in search of enlightenment." To me, enlightenment is about more than striking peace with the universe. It's about striking peace with oneself and the various dynamics we are all a part of. Currently ...