Thursday, September 29, 2011

Creative Writing - "Boy"

This was my creative writing assignment for one of my classes. Directly inspired by "Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid. Let me know what you think.

-----

Grip the bat this way so you don’t miss the baseball like you always do; break in your mitt as soon as you buy it; come home right after practice and clean your room; put your video games away, you ungrateful brat; don’t forget to break in your mitt; do all your chores quickly and don’t take any breaks to have a cookie; listen to your mother and don’t ask me questions; do your homework so you don’t become an unsuccessful bum having to live off me and your mother for your entire life; help your sister with her homework when she whines; eat your broccoli; read a passage from the Bible once a night or you’ll go to hell; I thought Jesus forgives all?; don’t ever question anything I say; don’t be afraid to injure the other team’s best player if it leads to victory; remember to keep your stance wide and your eye on the ball; second place is the first loser; don’t disappoint me; don’t let down your mother; failure literally isn’t an option, we aren’t afraid to abandon you; find a nice girl to date; stay out of the kitchen, always act like a man; be a gentleman, respect her if she says “no,”; tell your mom to get me a beer; never change the channel when I watch television; but I’m sick of watching sports; I think your mother is putting too much of that strange estrogen vitamin in your meals; the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree; never bring your family apple picking, it’s bad luck; there is such a thing as a good time to lie; Democrats are ignorant because they never have any good things to say about anything; go to a college that is known to all the neighbors, but only if they think it’s a good school; follow your dreams; your mother and I firmly believe that majoring in Accounting is clearly the wisest choice for you; I don’t even like math; I’m guessing that you don’t like girls either?; stop worrying about the future, you’re only 11; I’m 13; stop being ungrateful; accept that life is meaningless because everyone in the world will eventually die; heaven might not be real; try to live life without regrets; choose Wendy’s over McDonald’s because it seems classier; get used to riding a bike because I’m definitely not buying you a car; you never even taught me how to ride one; well go learn on your own; are you going to be a failure or success in life?

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Religion: Dissecting People's Obsession

This topic of Religion is meant to help myself put my questions, thoughts, and ideas into actual writing. I write this to express my feelings, and receiving some answers or suggestions would be great. This is NOT about me choosing to leave the Church.

This is not meant to offend anyone. Thank you.
___________________________________________________________________


In my eyes, there is some use for religion if you still do not completely put all your faith into it. In some instances, it's human nature to want to believe something is true, especially if it provides an answer for a question..in this case, the question is Life and the answer is God.

Why are people so willing to blindly, completely believe the words of the Bible? Yes, many people are genuinely touched by His words and preachings, and I completely understand and respect this. But to me, is there just a deeper, human need for answers that drives people to believe in a religion? Are they just living on hope that the religion is truth?

Before I start, I want to state that there is absolutely nothing wrong with relying completely on faith and hope. It is just my opinion that sometimes, that just isn't enough for me.

Think back to a great book or movie that you read or watched, one that has many twists and turns, yet ended with a gigantic cliffhanger. Didn't that feeling of not knowing what happened, what could possibly happen, and what might not happen just completely bewilder you? Didn't it drive you slightly crazy?

That's the innate human need that I'm talking about. The need for an answer. The need to discover the unknown. That's why the biggest question in the Universe, "what is the purpose of life?," yields the biggest answer. Or should I say, "answers." The world's various religions can be seen as a way to fill that human instinctual longing for answers and conclusions. It gives people a sense of purpose and meaning.

Because what's worse than the feeling that life is purposeless?

Another cliffhanger that life provides us with is the subject of death. I won't talk about this topic too extensively..as it makes my mind wander too far to the point that I actually get scared. I digress. Religion gives us the concepts of Heaven, Nirvana (I know that you don't need to be dead to reach Nirvana, but still), and Reincarnation. All possible answers for the question of death. These alternatives are comforting to believe in.

But my main thinking of why people are obsessed with religion? The feeling of community that religion brings. People are apart of something bigger than themselves. They are surrounded by like-minded thinkers who, for the most part, are willing to act selflessly to help others. It's a great atmosphere.

It doesn't matter which religion is "right," per se, all that matters is that people are being shaped by good morals and just being good people overall.


-----

Props go out to friend Jaypee C., cousin Michael C., and girlfriend Gerre Mae B. for giving me great, honest opinions and comments. I've used some of their input to shape this entry.

-----


Some topics (but not limited to) that I hope to cover in the upcoming days (in no particular order):

1) Other Religious Alternatives
2) Guilty Conscience About Lack of Faith
3) Catholics Against Homosexuals

Friday, July 22, 2011

City Series: NYC

I'm on a bus right now to Philadelphia, my second home. After about half an hour of traffic in NYC, I'm finally on the Turnpike on a beautiful aesthetically pleasing ride, while the weather outside is furiously scorching. At 10:30 AM.

Driving past the NYC skyline is always inspiring for me.

I have the world in my backyard. A city sprawling with corporate types, hard laborers, hipsters, bums, immigrants, and everything in between, lies a mere 15 minutes away from me. The city is so enormous, that it is almost unrelenting. An island, a rock, just completely filled with nonstop blocks of storefronts, apartments, and schools. The wide streets form a a grid navigated by energetic and fearless yellow cabs and equally energetic and fearless pedestrians who's second nature is to casually jay walk. Somehow, getting trampled by a pedestrian becomes a serious threat.
 
The buildings here are probably the closest things to actually living up to the name "skyscraper." The Empire State Building can almost poke a hole into the blue dome ceiling above us all.

The energy here is just different. If American culture values and relies on competition to be successful, as opposed to the all-for-one/one-for-all mindset that resides in Japanese culture for example, then the Big Apple is the damn Olympics. Cultural melting pot. Busy and non-stop. And cut-throat competitive.

Japan is Wimbledon.

They call New York City the World's Capital. I call it my backyard.

Too bad that means the Hudson is my swimming pool.

You're all invited.


-----

Have a nice, safe weekend everybody! Stay hydrated and give your mom a hug and a kiss.

Erick

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Religion: Flaws

This topic of Religion is meant to help myself put my questions, thoughts, and ideas into actual writing. I write this to express my feelings, and receiving some answers or suggestions would be great. This is NOT about me choosing to leave the Church.

This is not meant to offend anyone.Thank you.
___________________________________________________________________




I like to think of myself as a decently versed Catholic. I know a good amount of history about the Church, I've read a few Bible passages, and I've listened to priests' homilies and sermons. But I come across so many questions that I've never had answers for..or maybe I just haven't looked hard enough, which is extremely possible. I know that I must do more research if I'm to tackle these topics properly, but here's some random questions that I have when it comes to the Catholic church.

Something that has bothered me is the fact that the highest level in the Church's hierarchy that a woman can reach is to be a nun or sister.  I've read that the Catholic church can't change this because Christ made the roles for men and women clear when he was on earth, and that no one else has the right to change that. That because he selected all male apostles (12 Disciples), it could be seen that he purposefully didn't choose women. This can be explained by the era He lived in, as women were seen as inferior to men. But this can't be the case, as different Bible verses state that Jesus didn't have a problem breaking the society's rules about women (Matt. 9:20; Luke 7:37; John 4:27). Also, it is stated that even though it seems unfair that women can't be priests, God has given women some things that men can't do, like give birth to children.

But still, these suggestions (I'm not calling them facts), still concern me. So the Catholic church can't change rules that were made thousands of years ago? The Church can't adapt? Elsewhere in the world, like the Middle East, where it is common for women to still be treated as inferior, change is being made. For example, Arab women aren't allowed to drive, yet an ongoing revolution (maybe not the best word, but you know what I mean) from the women themselves shows them acting independently and driving anyway. Many people are supportive of this throughout the world, many who are Catholic. But why encourage change, when your own religion doesn't even support it? I understand that some historical Catholic rituals must be kept sacred, like the Sacraments, but to not let women preach? I don't feel great about that. Especially when I know that even my devout-Catholic mother could provide Church goers with more inspirational and informative sermons and homilies.

Another little thing that I have a problem with is..why can't priests get married? You may think that this is me trying to be humorous here, but I really am not. Women are blessed with the greatest gift of all: being able to give birth to children. It's an amazing miracle of life when it occurs. But why are priests not able to join everyone else in the world and get married and have sex? Priests preach about love, something they definitely experience from the Church's local church goers through hospitality and a sense of community. But for some reason, they can't experience love with a significant other? It doesn't make sense to me.

This problem here is probably a good reason why Catholicism is seeing a lack of new recruits for priesthood. It's a serious concern, especially among young adults whom the Church aims to recruit. I just don't understand this limit for priests. Surely there are some "good, historical reasons" that the Church could give, but again, this is all about adapting to current society, in my point of view at least. And maybe this is a bit of a tangent, but wouldn't letting priests experience real love with a women decrease the frightening amount of child molestation cases that the Catholic Church's priests face? May seem like a wild proposition, but think about it and it makes sense.

All in all, these are just some random thoughts about flaws that I see with the Church. Believe me, I have more. I just want to save those for another post.

Thanks for reading.





------------------

Some topics (but not limited to) that I hope to cover in the upcoming days (in no particular order):

1) Other Religious Alternatives
2) Guilty Conscience About Lack of Faith
3) Catholics Against Homosexuals

------------------

Sources:

http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2002/0201sbs.asp

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Perspective

I've had a rough night and day so far, going through some frustrating times. I've talked before about how life may bring you through some really dark tunnels, when there seems to be no end in sight. But in the grand scheme of things, that tunnel may only be a few miles long, really short compared to the (almost) eternal marathon that life seems to be. Frustration is only a ripple in life, sometimes even a larger wave. It will cause discomfort, but for a short amount of time.

But that wave could possibly overwhelm you. It's times like these that you need to use the power of perspective.

I was driving to work, slightly angry, sad, and a little bit shaken up. My mind was drifting into all these crazy, seemingly impossible, thoughts. I was frustrated beyond belief, actually.

Then I saw traffic building up on the side of the road. My anger spilled over and I cursed under my breath, remarking to myself about how idiotic slow drivers can sometimes be. But then I realized that the car that was moving extremely slowly was a hearse, and behind it was a morbid looking line of cars moving just as slowly. That's when I felt terrible about myself, realizing that my anger took control of me and blinded me to the importance of life.

Like actually living. Life is short and death is inevitable. Which is why one must live everyday as best as he or she can. You never know what can happen. You may lose a loved one, you may know someone who has fallen ill, or maybe you yourself may have something dire happen. It puts everything in perspective.

I know what I want in my life. I have an amazing family, friends that are practically family, and a girlfriend who I want to make family. But in times of frustration and anger, when its at the point where your boiling blood is about to overflow, take a step back, realize how good you really have it, and gain some perspective. Deal with your problems maturely, move on, and live life.

Sometimes you may find yourself moving too fast. Remember to pace yourself. Remember that eventually, you'll be leading a slow line of morbid looking cars.

Don't take anything for granted. Live to love and love to live.




_____

Sorry if this post seemed a little dark. Love you all.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Religion: Questioning

I'm going to make this an ongoing topic that I'll keep posting about in the future. I know that I can't fit all of my thoughts in this one post, so this will be the start of my new series about Religion.
___________________________________________________________________

This topic of Religion is meant to help myself put my questions, thoughts, and ideas into actual writing. I write this to express my feelings, and receiving some answers or suggestions would be great. This is NOT about me choosing to leave the Church.

This is not meant to offend anyone.Thank you.
___________________________________________________________________


I like to think of myself as a good, practicing Catholic. I go to mass every Sunday, I pray before meals, I've attended a Catholic elementary school and even University, I keep rosaries and symbols of my faith in my car, dorm, and wallet. Yet I wouldn't call myself devout. Odd?

Definition of devout:
1. Having or showing deep religious feeling or commitment.
2. Totally committed to a cause or belief.

I do not believe I am entirely, 110% committed to the Catholic faith. This does not mean that I do not accept the religion anymore, simply that I just have so many questions about Catholicism. When I first realized this about myself, I was a bit troubled. How could I be raised in such Catholic upbringing all my life but still find myself unsure of things?

The religion, actually, all religions, relies on faith and faith entirely. I picture religion sometimes as some one being stranded on a completely unmapped island, just forcing himself to live out of pure faith that some one will save him. Yes, the movie Cast Away is a perfect example, but how many times out of 10 would that man be saved?

I loved going to Catholic school (St. John's the Evangelist, represent) and I love attending a Catholic university (La Salle University in Philadelphia). Catholicism has a great moral code that is taught to the children, something that I'm extremely grateful for since it really has shaped my own character. But since these same children are raised believing in the Holy Trinity and everything in the Bible, there isn't room to question these ideas. They are given to us as facts.

What I'm trying to say here, is that we've never had opportunities to question our own religion and explore others. Most religious families preserve their faith and raise and grow their family within that religion's boundaries and morals, which is fine by all means. There is nothing wrong with that.

But now, I am putting my questions, built up over the years, into words.



--------
Some topics (but not limited to) that I hope to cover in the upcoming days (in no particular order):

1) Catholic Flaws
2) Other Religious Alternatives
3) Guilty Conscience About Lack of Faith

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Turnpike-d

When you're used to being one highway away from a close friend and being able to be there for him or her at all times, moving back home two hours away (Turnpike North to be exact) is a tough adventure.

Times get hard when distance is involved. Two lives that were once practically one are temporarily divided, only connected by communication, which isn't always constant. It's initially a painful and abrupt situation that can drain anyone. Luckily, not everyone must go through this.

But if you do find yourself in this situation, you need to remember that you must loosen the rope that you two are tied by. No longer so close that the extra rope dangles by your legs, the aforementioned "rope" is now taut by distance. But you need to remember that this isn't a game of tug-o-war, you can't keep trying to reel the other in.

Instead, think of it as belaying the rope for the other as he or she mountain climbs. You two need each other. Even though, physically, you aren't close anymore. Sometimes a couple easily understands this..sometimes one can't fully grasp this novel idea. But it's apart of growing pains. Growing pains that will turn into a grown relationship.

Just remember to loosen the rope. But never let it go.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Memories

Anyone that has grown up as the youngest in the family has a unique perspective on life and cousins. Growing up (growing up includes the present..aren't we all still growing?), I was the youngest of 4 children, me, my sister, and two of my oldest cousins.

I have so many random memories of our childhood that it feels so great just looking back on them..but the feeling becomes sad when I realize that these memories are buried in the past. Yes, we'll have each other forever, but we all have our own lives now. We don't live a block away from each other anymore. And since my memory is infamously terrible, I'm gonna jot some down here so I'll never forget them. Well here are two fond memories that I shared with Erika, Dom, and Cezar. If I think of more and don't get lazy to write them, I'll make another post.

Blizzard of '96

I think this was the very first blizzard that I been through. I was only 5 at the time, but I have some awesome memories of that time. I remember the snow that my family was shoveling kind of formed a maze..at least it looked like a maze because I was like 3 feet tall! I remember having the time of my life just running through the snow, not being able to see over it, but still having immense fun. No worries.

I also remember that Dom and Cezar built a HUGEEEE snow fort and froze it with water. Considering I was a tiny little human being, to me, this was the most amazing snow palace that I ever encountered. It had little tunnels for me and Erika to run through, windows and turret holes (I think it did, maybe my imagination is running a little wild right now) for us to launch snowballs out of, and it was built on a hill, which made the scene look epic when me and Erika held down the fort while Dom and Cezar attacked us while running up the hill like mad men. This scene right here is probably one of my favorite ones to look back on. :)

The Fart Van

We all went to the same elementary school for maybe a year (?). Dom must've been in 8th grade, Cezar in 7th, Erika was in 3rd, and I think I was in Kindergarten.  My mom or their mom would take turns driving all of us to school in the morning, St. John's in Bergenfield, and this fine morning's was my mom's turn.

So we pull up to the 7th and 8th grade building that's separate from the rest of the school. Dom gets out..and Cezar was second..but he was a little hesitant. And out of no where..my mom, Erika, and I all smell a disgusting, putrid scent just wafting in the van. By the time my mom realized who did it and before she could scold him, Cezar slammed the sliding door and was off to class. The bandit made off without any repercussions.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Random Thoughts: Nets Fans are True to the Game

The New Jersey Nets are a team with a history of such ill fortune that it's almost comical. In my recent memory, I've experienced two trips to the NBA Finals that coincided with the Lakers 3 peat dominance and the Spurs twin towers of David Robinson and Tim Duncan. I've experienced Kenyon Martin, Richard Jefferson, Kerry Kittles, and Jason Kidd get traded away due to a change of ownership. I've experienced the year that the Nets were historically terrible, losing 18 straight games to start the season, an NBA record, and finishing the year at 12-70. Horrendous.

To top it all off, the Nets are moving to Brooklyn in two seasons. The final stage of ownership ripping the hearts out of their fanbase.

Yet true fans remain loyal to the Nets. We've been through too many downs already that it would be foolish to give up on them. We have a new, revolutionary stadium being built for us, a billionaire owner (one of the richest owners, if not THE richest, in ALL of sports), and our next J-Kidd, Deron Williams.

We have a bright future but a dim present, contrasting from the Knicks bright present, and foolish future. If anyone knows me personally, they must know that I absolutely HATE the Knicks. It's so bad that I won't touch anything that has the Knicks' shade of blue and orange.

Let me list some reasons why the Nets future is better than the Knicks:

-We have the two hardest positions to fill set for the future in Deron Williams (PG) and Brook Lopez (C), although Brook plays a little soft for his position.

-Our best player, Deron, is unselfish and posts insanely high assist numbers due to his high basketball IQ and eye behind his head a la Jason Kidd. Compare this to the Knicks' two best players who are primarily scorers and nothing else, Carmelo and Amare. These two need the ball in their hands to be effective, minimizing teamwork which is necessary to win a championship, proven by this year's Mavericks.

-The Nets have significant cap space for the foreseeable future, an ace card for franchises right now since no one knows what the new CBA will look like. We can sign free agents who will be enamored with playing in Brooklyn with an elite talent like Deron Williams while also keeping our draft picks, role players, and starters. Compare this to the Knicks, whose top two players have max contracts which extremely limits the talent that the team can buy to surround them with. As a friend of mine once said, "the Knicks are Carmelo and Amare and the rest are D-League players." Of course this was a little sarcastic, but the Knicks do sport a terrible bench.

-The Nets now have the upperhand with management. I would've given this one to the Knicks had they retained Donnie Walsh, but now, what is going to happen with them? This is the man that turned EVERYTHING around for the franchise. And now he is gone.

-Iman Shumpert. Who?



Done with my rant for now. Just had a random urge to write something.

No Matter What

The world is a dark place. There is war. There is murder. There are kidnappings. Whether you like it or not, humans live with constant fear of the unknown. People who say, "no fear" can be naive. Because there are always threats on this earth: natural death, illness, environmental catastrophes.

Sometimes one's life can lead to a dark tunnel. You're surrounded by the darkness of hard, trying times. Sometimes, life takes the lemons it has given you, and rots them.

But what that popular quote doesn't include is the fact that life has also given you apples.

The world is a bright place. There is harmony. There is teamwork. There are adoption centers and homeless shelters that society has built to help humanity. People who say, "the world is a dark place" are naive. Because there are always apples on this earth when you're lemons have run out. Apples that are family, lovers, and parents.

Sometimes one's life can lead to a dark tunnel. You're surrounded by the darkness of hard, trying times. But you still have those apples.

In this world of dark and light, there are only a few constants that life has given you. Family will be forever forgiving, no matter what your mistakes are, they will always be there for you. They are a source of eternal happiness, a God-given gold watch: something that will never break or ever go out in style.

Of equal importance is one's significant other. Your lover, partner, hubby, better half, or wife or husband. Something which is called true love (corny, but you know the feeling once you have it). One's love life is a towering, twisting, and troublesome maze. You enter with your significant other. You may get lost, tripped, and separated, yet the couple will always find each other and continue through the maze and finish the journey together.

But of utmost importance are your parents.

Sidenote: I was trying to keep this post objective..yet I couldn't with the topic of parents. I have some things to say.

So, of utmost importance are my parents. Sometimes I wonder how they put up with me. I do a lot of stupid things, I disappoint them numerous times, and..well..I can be a pain in the ass. Recently, I've been putting in 50% effort towards them..sometimes being ignorant towards what they're feeling. Some close friends and family and my girlfriend have pointed that out to me. That I should try harder. That I should be more understanding. That I should be a good son. Let's just say, I entered a dark tunnel for a bit there.

Be grateful for what you have. Sometimes it takes some wandering off into long, dark tunnels in order to understand that there is a light to guide you toward the end. The light that is your parents, family, and loved one is unwavering.

No matter what.






(I know the apples and lemons analogy is really mediocre. I apologize, but it makes sense in my head. Also, "when life gives you lemons, just say 'F*ck the lemons,' and bail.")

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Division

Division is taking something that is whole and separating it into different pieces. Division could be very useful; pizza pies can be evenly split, workloads can be tackled by a group or team, and, through miracles, even an entire sea can be split right down the middle. Division is great under certain circumstances.

But sometimes, division is the last thing you want.

A family divided is probably the saddest and one of the most life-numbing experiences one can go through. In this world, where the ultimate meaning of life is unknown (but there are thousands of different theories..that's a topic for another day), you are blessed with a few things in life. Shelter, food, friends, and, most importantly, family. You need to keep loved ones close to you, no matter what the circumstances are.

For a quick sidenote, always, ALWAYS, respect your parents. And if you're parents aren't alive anymore, do them justice, ask yourself if your mom or dad would approve of your actions, and keep their honor.

Brothers and sisters are special: you grow up with them, go through good times of laughter, hard times of anger, yet in the end, they will still be your sibling. They entered the world through the same womb as you did. Sometimes fights can go too far, I've experienced this with my sister before. Tears may be shed, unkind, but mostly unmeant, curse words may be screamed, and in the heat of the moment, hate may take hold. But time simmers heat eventually, and that temporary hate gets over powered by the sibling bond that you share.

Or that's how it's supposed to play out at least. Other factors sometimes take hold.

Greed. Disloyalty. Jealousy.

These driving factors cause the hate to actually increase over time, blinding the siblings into forgetting where they came from. The childhood that they shared, the insane adversity (adversity at levels that I don't believe I could've been successful in) that they battled through, and the beautiful moments of family and love that thrive when there is no animosity between each other.

The siblings also forget that they are adults. That they have children to think of. In a weird plot twist, it isn't unusual that the children (aka the cousins), may act more mature than the adults. It isn't the adults' fault; hate has blinded them so strongly, and unfortunately, weakening one sense doesn't tremendously empower your other senses like in super hero movies. But this is why it is important to learn history in the classrooms, as we are taught to try to learn from past experiences and to avoid having the same disastrous results.

Which is why my sister and I have vowed to never let money, in-laws, or material things get in the way of our relationship.

And why my sister and I remain extremely close to our cousins, despite any family drama that may occur.

The lesson in all this is that you can't forget where you came from and the siblings that you grew up with, the ones who share the same DNA and blood as you. In the end, you are fighting over things that don't matter in the grand scheme of things. If you are religious, do you think there is a greater chance of you getting into Heaven if God sees that you have more money than some one else? Do you value your brothers and sisters, or can you live without talking to them for months, possibly years, at a time?

But most importantly, do you ever think of your parents? Would they approve of this? You really gotta ask yourself this and do some self-analysis.

Please just keep an open mind towards others, and learn how to forgive and move on.

Thanks.

Erick Julian

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Random Thoughts: The Art of Pickup Basketball

Pick-up basketball (a game of 5 on 5, where players sometimes "pick up" other players to form a squad) is a setting that can be likened to a brawl, fight, or even a battle royale. Minus the punching and hurting others purposefully. It's similar to these violent clashes in that it pits your crew, versus some one else's. Your friends versus another group of friends. It's a battle for pride.

First off, you can understand who has your back. If you go to a court alone and join a team full of strangers who don't know each other, it's likely that there will be one person who hogs the ball or takes too many shots. It's possible that you get lost in the shuffle, as the players on your team would have no idea what your skillset is. But hey, that's part of the fun sometimes. Proving your worth to people on the basketball court.

In my opinion, though, the best way to play is with your friends. Everyone knows their roles, what everyone else is capable of, and best of all, that people will be supportive or will openly criticize (positively) your actions. You could miss all your shots in one game but still have confidence as your teammates will urge you to keep taking shot they know you can make.

Second, when you play with friends who know every move in your arsenal, chemistry is built. I can't tell you how many times my squad has won when the other team may have some better players, solely because our team chemistry is too much for the other team. Just as the Mavericks proved in these NBA Playoffs, a team that plays like a team will always prevail.

But lastly, the best part of any pick-up game is the outcome. The end score. When the score limit of 11, 16, or 21 is reached by one team. When some one makes that game winning shot, one of two things can take place. Either the person unleashes all the pent up emotion that built up during the game and lets out a scream (I've seen players jump into their teammates as if they won a championship..relax now), or the person simply pumps his fist, and acts like he's been there before. The second action seems to be the most common, as one unspoken rule of pick up is to be respectful..but that's not always followed.

Pick-up basketball is more than the words that I've written here. There is so much raw emotion, anger, fury, and madness that could happen on the court, especially under the summer sun. There is also calm, level-headedness, and collectivity that also could take place, and that's when the game is at its best.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

My Epiphany

I was sitting in the back of my 3:30 class, as I did every Tuesday. I was jotting down notes as well as I could..or as well as I thought I could. The professor was lecturing to a class of about 30 college students, all of whom seemed to understand everything she was saying. Everyone except for me that is. This class was pretty important. Maybe even..major. (See what I did there? Oh yeah, I was an accounting major less than 50 days ago.)

This was Intermediate Accounting.

This class was known for being the top of the mountain for accounting classes. Except when you reach the top, you look up and realize God built another mountain on TOP of said mountain. One of my advisors once asked me how I was doing in this class. I said I was doing "okay." And he said, "great! It's all uphill from here!"

Now maybe you understand the importance of this class. Let's go back to that 3:30 class on Tuesday:

I stopped taking my notes. I realized..what the hell am I writing these notes down for? I don't understand any of this. I sat back in my chair. Scanned the room. Looked at the people around me and searched for an answer inside my cloudy brain. I didn't know why I was there. First of all, I hate numbers. I hate math. I hate crunching numbers. I hate math. I hate doing equations and memorizing them. Also, I hate math.

Second of all, I never really put that much effort when I was deciding my major. Both my parents are accountants. Hell, even my sister is an accountant! My whole life, I was surrounded by that environment, imagine that. When it came time to choose my major, the choice seemed easy. My parentals never pressured me, but it just seemed like the path my life was destined for. Ha, looks like destiny belongs in movies and this year's NBA Finals.

Time to fast forward in the interest of time. It took about a month of thinking, questioning myself, listening to others' opinions, and, best of all, getting excited. My plan was to switch my major to English, something I LOVED studying, while pursuing a track in Pre-Law.

Let me tell you now. This is the first time, EVER, in my life that I've been excited about any sort of education. I'm motivated like never before. I say that in complete honesty.

I've given you the start and end of my epiphany and choice to change majors. The real fun is when I reminisce about some heart to hearts I've had with multiple people about this subject. Please check back again.

And thank you for reading.

Erick Julian

Fresh Start

Hi and welcome to my first ever blog post on blogspot. I've always wanted a page that I could make mature and serious posts, unlike my tumblr (that I barely use) and nothing like Facebook (which I constantly check hourly, if not minute-ly. Truly a bad habit.).

The name of my blog is "Please and Thank You." I believe that one should always go out of his way to be nice to some one else. It's so easy and so quick..and that one action can make some one smile, feel thankful, or even want to pass along that small gesture. Don't call it chivalry, call it "being a decent human being."

To (crappily) quote the scholarly video game (oxymoron) L.A. Noire, "I'm not trying to save the world, just doing what I can to make it a little bit better." Those aren't the exact words, but it's something along those lines. If people follow that simple sentence and try to live up to it, isn't saying "Please and Thank You" a complete necessity? 

My blog doesn't always have good deeds as topics..my life has way too many struggles for me to do that. If you find my writings interesting, please keep reading or maybe even leave a comment (!). But if you read my novice words and truthful thoughts, yet deem them unsatisfactory for yourself, thank you for giving me a shot and carry on with your life.

Because I'll carry on too.

Erick Julian