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Rodmond - RT - RTtheRealest

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything." James 1:2-4

"Whatever you do in life, make sure you follow your heart. Nobody can see your vision like you can see it."

A personal blog, an unfiltered and uncensored place of expression, a personal journal.

EST 12/15/2009

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Guest Writer #20: My Best Friend Agnes Part 2


Part 1

I remember two months ago, Rod asked me to be a guest writer on his blog and I honestly just never got around to it. Partially because I was going through some stuff, but mostly really because I didn’t know what to write about. So instead Rod wrote something I can reply to, and it turned out to be a pretty sweet post (good job Rod lol). So here’s my reply to you. We honestly have been through so much it’s crazy to even think about. You were always that one out of two guys who always troubled me by ignoring me. It was like your hobby. I remember I would get so mad because you would legit blog and tweet about me, but never directly speak to me. The worst part was that you would tell everyone around us but me what was wrong lol it was so annoying. The last time you ignored me though thankfully was about a year ago, but if it wasn’t for me it probably would’ve taken you a longer time to actually talk to me again. I know this isn’t as long of a post as you wrote lol but I’m really thankful for where we are right now. I never knew it was possible to get past all those tension, awkwardness, and arguments but we somehow found a way and worked things out. I’m glad you’re one of the few people I trust. Like you said, we’ve been through a lot and it’s crazy that I still want talk to you LOLL JKKK. Just know that no matter what, we’ll always be friends and I’ll always be that person you can talk to and open up to.

- Agnes

Monday, December 28, 2015

My Best Friend Agnes

Last time I did something like this, I was in high school and I wrote about this one girl who was my best friend at the time who I thought at one point was the one LOL. To be honest, this is probably gonna be all over the place, but I feel like the more I think about it,the harder it'll be, so I'm just kinda going based on instinct and the words that come to my mind. How this post came about...LOL, don't worry about that...I'll let your imagination wander,all you need to know is she gave the green light for this post, borderline encouraged it LOL. For those who know me, like really know me, you'll probably already know who this person is, she's my best friend, my ride or die. (when she wants to -_-). I feel like I can go many ways with this post...it can be simply a thank you post for everything you've ever done for me and all the times you've been there for me...or it can be an apology for all the times I've been such a jerk to you and you always forgave me (not too sure why). As I'm writing this post, the words are already starting to escape me, so I'm writing this real fast lol. I used to make such a big deal about little things like being called your bestie, making sure people knew we were really good friends, all that jazz...but I've learned with age that labels don't matter...I've seen first hand people call each other bffs and besties and such but in reality they aren't close at all. Sorry for the tangent, I told you this post would be all over the place...back to the topic at hand. My best friend Agnes, what can I say about her, words can't really describe her or what she means to me....all I know is I care deeply for this girl, more than I've ever cared about any one of my friends (sorry guys). There's something really different, but special about her...that I can't seem to put my finger on, but can't seem to ignore or brush aside either. The biggest struggle I've faced since becoming really good friends with her is whether I see her as my best friend, a sister, someone I wanna care for and protect with all my heart...or something more than that, someone I would put ahead of myself and strive to give the world to...what that is, I'm really not sure and I don't know how to put it into words. Our friendship isn't your typical boy/girl relationship...maybe that's why she's so special to me. Lemme tell you we've gone MONTHS without speaking to one another, partly my fault...all my fault actually LOL. Long story short, at random periods, without telling her, I'll stop talking to her and cut her out of my life...it's never anything she did or said...it's all me, my head and my heart...and dealing with that internal battle as to whether I see her as a friend and a sister or something more than that. This blog has become a place of honesty and of expression for me, so I'll tell you the truth when I say I still struggle with that battle sometimes. The fact that I've gone weeks and months where I abruptly stop talking to her with no notice is pretty intense I know...add that onto the fact that she keeps forgiving me and allowing me to re-enter her life because she understands how I'm feeling and what I'm going through and you'll get a very tiny glimpse into what kinda friendship we have lol. I've never felt this way about somebody before, what I mean by that is when you find happiness in their happiness and sadness in their sadness. I find so much joy when she's happy, because she brings joy to me...I've learned that one aspect of true friendship is caring and loving the other person without expecting anything in return...that their smile, their joy and their happiness is rewarding enough. I can't say enough about this girl without getting cheesy...and without my friends who know me and know her roasting me for the rest of my life lol. I can't stress what a rollercoaster our friendship has been...that there were times I legitimately thought it was over and we were never going to be friends again...whereas there have also been times where I've sat by myself and thought to myself that I think she's the one for me (again, honest to a fault).

I'm speaking directly to you now...if I could change the past and everything that's happened between us...the fights, the arguments, the cold shoulders, the distance, the awkwardness, everything...I wouldn't. First, it makes for good memories lol, second, I honestly don't think we'd be as close as we are now if it wasn't for all those stupid times (mostly me, sometimes you). I know it's awkward sometimes, I know I'm awkward...thank you for bearing with me...immaturity and all ;) Thank you for trusting me in the way that you do, thank you for opening up to me and letting me into your life because I know it's hard and I know you've been through a lot. Thank you for never giving up on this friendship even though I know it was tempting and you had plenty of reasons to throw it away, but you didn't. Thank you for being who you are...and I pray and hope you'll never change for no man, woman, boy or girl because then you wouldn't be the same person that I adore and care so deeply for (bars). Honestly, I have no idea what God has planned for me, for you, for us...if we're meant to be just chapters in each others lives, lifelong friends or more...I really don't know and honestly, I'm not even that curious to find out. I'm hella content with where we are right now especially considering where we came from and what we've been through. Spending time with you is so much fun and I feel like I'm still learning so much about you every time we chill, you do talk too much sometimes tho LOL. All I really know is I'm glad that we're still not just friends, but really good friends at that despite the 50+ times we've ignored each other (more like I ignored you). I don't say it enough, or at all sometimes, but I appreciate you so much...in every single aspect of my life, just being you and just being there, it means the world to me, you probably already know a lot of this stuff that I'm saying...but at the same time it's always nice to hear it once in a while, just like even tho a husband loves his wife, parents love their children or siblings love each other and they know it, it's nice to hear it from them. I appreciate you so much Agnes, never change, thank you for being so understanding of me, my needs and the emotional hurricane that I can be sometimes.

Wow...so I just reread the whole thing and am having hella second thoughts posting it LOOOOL...it's embarrassing, corny...but it's honest lol it's one of those things that I didn't really think through, I kinda just wrote it, that and it's like 3 am right now and I'm so tired. Reminds me of the movie Finding Forrester, they talk about writing...how the first draft you just write from your heart, don't think, just write...the second time through is when you go back and make corrections and stuff...consider this my first draft, no thought really...just heart. Lemme say that my heart was beating really fast while writing this...partly cuz it's cold in my room and I'm shivering, partly cuz...I feel so many types of ways for this girl. It was fun writing this, not looking forward to the roasting I'm gonna be receiving from my friends....lol, but stay tuned for the next post, I think...or hope at least that you'll enjoy it as much as I will lol, peace.

Sunday, December 27, 2015

Guest Writer #19: Heartlocked

Hi friends, hope y'all are doing absolutely amazing. These past few days have been very exhausting, busy, but very fun and genuinely joyful. Just being able to spend time with family, with friends,. just enjoying the company of one another, seeing friends ho haven't been around for a while or have just been busy...it's been real nice. Today marks the last day of our week of guest posts, I really hope you've enjoyed this as much as I have. This was my Christmas present to you guys this year...so here is the last part of my Christmas present, take it away.


I just want to thank Rodmond for being so open and honest on his blog, it's very admirable. Last time I was here, things weren't going that well and I was sin a very sour and broken place. Today, I come before you a new man, still struggling with the same problems however. But thing are different now, I still ponder the question whether guys and girls can be truly just friends without developing feelings for one another. Falling for your best friend is something you never intend on doing, it's something that just happens due to being around each other so often and caring for each other so much. That's what happened to me the last time I was here, I had fallen for my best friend, which is why I took everything that she did or didn't do to heart. But as of right now, we're great friends, I'm very content with where we stand but still very confused as to what my heart really desires. I've been taking things very slowly, accepting whatever comes my way, embedded with the mindset that everything that's meant to me will find it's way.

Saturday, December 26, 2015

Guest Writer #18: SpeakingMyMind

Hey friends, been busy today, not at home atm, here's a rough draft of today's guest post. Shout outs to my homie aka the first guest writer ever.


Someone recently asked me a question that I have been thinking about for a while. The question was “Why are you with her?”. I thought about this question because, it made me think about my whole relationship with this person. As I kept thinking about “Why am I with her?”….”WHY am I with her”, I finally realize that I have been thinking about this question all wrong. “Why am I with her?” shouldn’t be about my PAST with her but the question was asked for me to think about my FUTURE with her. I am with her because I want a future with her. If not I should have just found a booty call or one night stands, but no. I choose to be with her because I liked her…. and it has led me to love her (ask me to prove what Is love? I can’t because everyone has a different opinion BUT…).  This train of thought has led me to think about something else, which is the subject of marriage. I recently had a conversation with her about it and she said “I don’t know why people our age are scared of it, and scared to admit that maybe he/she might be the one”. I thought about it and It got me to think about maybe they haven’t met the right person and deep down they are scared to admit that they don’t want to be with them in the future. They want them now, and just the happiness they feel now, disregarding their future. Maybe I’m wrong, but I feel that once you met someone that makes your life easier. Someone that you love even though they may get on your nerves sometimes. Someone that makes the day brighter even when you’re having the worst day of your life. You shouldn’t be afraid to admit they might be the one. 

I just want whoever is reading this to ask yourself: “why are you with him/her” and really think about the future, if you don’t see yourself with them in the future, don’t waste your time and her time because in the end you’ll regret it.

Friday, December 25, 2015

Guest Post #17: Yellow Rose

Merry Christmas y'all, here is today's guest post.

Guest Writer #1: SpeakingMyMind
Guest Writer #2: Letters To You

Guest Writer #3: TC
Guest Writer #4: Anonymous Queen B
Guest Writer #5: Someone You Used To Know
Guest Writer #6: Heartlocked
Guest Writer #7: LG Slayer 231
Guest Writer #8: TC
Guest Writer #9: G. Ho
Guest Writer #10: Golden Frieza
Guest Writer #11: Ghost Writer
Guest Writer #12: Pink Precariat
Guest Writer #13: Disconnect
Guest Writer #14: Daniel
Guest Writer #15: Golden Frieza
Guest Writer #16: Someone You Used To Know

Loving God First?
Before I begin, I just wanted to say thanks to Rodmond for letting me have this opportunity to write on his blog. I’ve been following it for a few years now and it’s been such an inspiration to me!

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your…” blah blah blah. We all know the Greatest Commandment and can say it by heart, but how many of us actually live this sacred command of Jesus in our day to day lives? This past year, I’ve been struggling with this verse a lot. How am I supposed to love a God who I can’t see, more than I love my friends, or other worldly things? But the biggest struggle of all was this one guy. I’ve liked him for about a year. And for a whole year, I’ve been totally engrossed in building a relationship with him- that I kind of forgot about mine with God. It’s funny how one person can take up so much of your time, so much of your thoughts and so much of your energy. And it did work for a while. I can say we’re pretty tight at the moment- but one thing that was never returned was the kind of love I had for him. I definitely became discouraged more than once but each time I pulled through, continued to like him because I saw hope.

However, here I was a year later, still highly unsuccessful. I was so done. I just wanted to stop having these feelings once and for all and I had no idea how to do it because I had just spent so much time investing into this one boy. And so like a typical teenage girl, I turned to my best friends. They helped me realize the biggest problem with my problem, and that was that I had forgotten to love God first. They suggested that maybe, my time and effort was spent on the wrong thing- or person for this matter. I should’ve spent it all on my relationship with God. And you know what the best part is? When we invest in God, we get so much more back. See, when I was investing in this boy, I didn’t get much back. Sure, we did develop a relationship. But the effort involved was very much one sided. With God, He returns everything we give Him. In fact, He gave us everything in the beginning. And I realized that God’s love isn’t something that I can’t reach or see. It’s actually all around us! It’s in the friends and family he gives us, the necessities he continually provides for us, and in the everyday happenings that we take for granted.

With this realization in mind, it’s much easier to perceive the kind of love he has for us and return it. He gives us 1440 minutes every day. Can we not just spent 20 minutes with him, in devotion or prayer? Of course, even now, I am still struggling with the same thing, but it’s getting much easier with Him on my side. I am continually thankful for all the brothers and sisters in my life who have struggled with me through this and I hope that sharing this will help anyone else out there dealing with things like this. :)

Thursday, December 24, 2015

Guest Writer #16: Someone You Used To Know

Hey folks, it's Christmas Eve, hope y'all are doing well. T'is day 4 of our week of guest posts and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Again, special thanks to the people who accepted my invitation to be guest writers this week, especially on such short notice, much love.

Guest Writer #1: SpeakingMyMind
Guest Writer #2: Letters To You

Guest Writer #3: TC
Guest Writer #4: Anonymous Queen B
Guest Writer #5: Someone You Used To Know
Guest Writer #6: Heartlocked
Guest Writer #7: LG Slayer 231
Guest Writer #8: TC
Guest Writer #9: G. Ho
Guest Writer #10: Golden Frieza
Guest Writer #11: Ghost Writer
Guest Writer #12: Pink Precariat
Guest Writer #13: Disconnect
Guest Writer #14: Daniel
Guest Writer #15: Golden Frieza

Are You Ready For That Special Someone? 

Honestly, my look on relationships prior to this year was... Screw relationships. I started to list all the negatives, from the money and the time I could potentially spend time on them. But once my birthday rolled around, I realized since I'm a year older... I should have an open mind on about relationships. Got into a relationship two months after, I'm not going to lie... It was great. Up until she told me, " I love you". And instead of saying I love you back, I just said " oh". I knew right then... That I didn't have the same feelings that I had for her... There was some other stuff that happened, but we ultimately broke up. Couple months afterwards, I met another girl, and needless to say... The same stuff happened with a similar ending. So I started to ponder as to why they didn't work... I then realized that I forced these relationships to happen.. Rather than letting these relationships create on their own. I guess I'm trying to say is, just because you think you're ready for a relationship... Doesn't mean relationships are ready for you.

Money Is The Root

Don't worry, there's still a guest post coming, but lemme ask you a few questions first. Do you work? Do you like your job? If not, why do you do it, what motivates you to keep coming back to that job and continue doing something you don't enjoy? These were the thoughts that entered my mind today at work...why am I doing something that I don't enjoy, cuz of the money? I would always tell myself during the long shifts, just think about the money, just think about getting paid and it's worth it, but is it really? Like by all means if you're doing it so the money goes towards something like tuition or something actually productive, then by all means go ahead. But for those of you working like full time for an example...at a job you don't like, don't enjoy and genuinely dread going to, why do you keep going back? Is the money really that worth it? The question I've always debated is would I rather work at a job that I hate and make a lot of money...or work at a job I love and genuinely enjoy and make a decent/average amount of money. After working at my current job and also volunteering at a teacher's assistant (something I love learned I really enjoy) I think despite how tempting the money may be, I gotta go with my gut and my heart which tells me that doing something I love will be much more rewarding in the long run. I'd rather wake up and look forward to going forward to work for the rest of my life then go to bed every working knowing I have to get up the next day and hate what I have to do.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Guest Writer #15: Golden Frieza

Hey y'all, day 3 of our 7 days of guest posts, hope you guys are doing wonderful, spending lots of time with family, friends and just relaxing and enjoying the holidays, I know I sure am. As busy as the malls are and as stressful as a time this is with Christmas shopping and all the gatherings you probably have planned, take time to enjoy the little things in your life and make sure you appreciate all your blessings, as much as you may get this year, there are many who may not get as much or at all this year, be grateful. Any ways, here's today's guest writer, the homie Golden Frieza did me a solid and came through with a blog post like a couple of hours after I asked him lol. I had somebody else planned for today, but they couldn't think of anything, so I literally asked him last night and he sent it to me a couple of hours later, much appreciated pal.

Guest Writer #1: SpeakingMyMind
Guest Writer #2: Letters To You

Guest Writer #3: TC
Guest Writer #4: Anonymous Queen B
Guest Writer #5: Someone You Used To Know
Guest Writer #6: Heartlocked
Guest Writer #7: LG Slayer 231
Guest Writer #8: TC
Guest Writer #9: G. Ho
Guest Writer #10: Golden Frieza
Guest Writer #11: Ghost Writer
Guest Writer #12: Pink Precariat
Guest Writer #13: Disconnect
Guest Writer #14: Daniel

Chameleons

So my friend asked me to write another post for his blog again, and of course I said yes. Why did I say yes? I don’t know, because he’s my friend, stop asking me dumb questions. Anyways, I have a million and one thoughts and ideas in my head that I have so much to write about, honestly I have so many ideas in my head I can probably write a whole blog. But I won’t. Because I’m too lazy. Anyways, when he said he wanted a post written by tomorrow, I figured I would write about something that crossed my mind just now, and happened just now.

Basically what I want to write about is people (including ourselves) who act differently around certain people. The reason this crossed my mind today was because my friend invited me and my friend, as well as his other friends to a basketball game. I know his other friends, but to be honest, I don’t really care for them. Like it’s not like I don’t like them, I just don’t care if they are there or not. I don’t feel like talking as much when they are around. I don’t know if it’s a fear of saying something stupid, or saying something and not being heard, or both. But I still talk to them and we’re still cool, just not as cool as my friend thought I would be with them since he thinks we have the same type of humor. Except their vibe is just different sometimes. Anyways, my friend knows I am a pretty outgoing person, who talks to everyone. Everyone I met so far that’s friends with him, I get along with. So since I am usually outgoing he asked me today, he asked me why I was being so introverted and just on my phone and not talking. And it wasn’t even because I didn’t like them, it was because that’s the vibe that they were giving. They were on their phones too, and being kind of quiet. So I just stayed on that vibe. I was also kind of tired too. He is just used to me being super outgoing and conversational and happy. I usually do that when I am with him and our close friends because I don’t feel like I am being judged. I don’t know why I feel like I am being judged by them, but it makes me act a little different in close settings, like where we were, where everyone was sitting on a table and talking.

In those situations, I notice everything. I noticed that when my other friend would say something, it would get ignored. And it wasn’t even once, it was more than once. And I thought to myself, what if that happens to me? I don’t want to be in that situation where I try and add to the convo and get ignored or they don’t hear me. So I stayed back. Anyways, it was whatever, I talked for a bit, but not too much, and I wasn’t myself. So what it lead to was me thinking about all my other friends who act totally different around different people. And it’s perfectly normal. It’s human nature to act differently around different people. You would do something differently in front of your boss than you would with your best friend for example. But it’s interesting to see how we act with different friend circles. With some friends we can be the tough guy who barely smiles and always wants to start a fight for no reason, with some friends we can be the joker who always jokes around about everything, with other friends we can be the sensitive person who shares their feelings. It all depends on the group dynamics and the vibe of the group. Some people don’t really know themselves. They know they have a small part of

themselves in all the groups, and they satisfy that personality by hanging out with those type of friends. Whether it is high school friends, university friends, work friends, we all act differently around different types of friends to some extent.

The reason for me to write about this is so that people can acknowledge that this goes on, with themselves or anyone else they know, and understand that it’s normal. I hear too many times of people calling someone “fake” or “different” because they act differently around some other people than with them. But what if that it’s part of their personality, and they feel more comfortable sharing that personality trait with that group than with you? You have to understand it in your own life first before understanding it in others obviously, but that’s how it works sometimes. We have to understand that humans are like chameleons sometimes, and we adapt to our environment. But just remember, just because you are hanging out with certain people, don’t let them limit you from what you want to do, because of a fear that they won’t approve or they would judge you. Because at the end of the day, you can eventually get over something you did, but you can never get over something you didn’t do.

Anyways, I am going to keep this blog post short, because my last blog post was probably the longest blog post ever known to man. It was so long, even I didn’t read it after writing it. If my friend asks me to guest write again, then I have a lot of other stuff that goes through my head, so maybe those will interest you.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Guest Writer #14: Daniel

Day 2 of a WEEK full of guest posts...I hope you're enjoying this as much as I am, I love reading these and I'm so appreciative of the people who accepted my invitations. This next writer is my little brother forreal and I'm hella encouraged my his honest but moreso his courage to use his real name, show him some love, thanks lil homie.


My Best Friend

First of all, shout out to Rodmond for asking me to do this guest writing thing, very much appreciated.

Hey, my name is Daniel, and my best friend is amazing but she doesn’t want me to expose her name. My best friend has picked me up so many times it’s completely insane. She has taken part in my life for not the longest time but has made basically the largest impact on my life. In 2012 I met this amazing girl through church. I was told she was there for longer and I just hadn’t realized it because she is actually 2 or 3 years older than I am and probably because I was distracted by other people outside of church. I realized that God had placed her in my life for a reason. It didn’t take a very long time for her to become my best friend because we connected hella easily. What I had gone through she had already been through and she was really easy to talk to because she didn’t dose off and wasn’t only interested in her own interests. She became that person in my life I went to for every single problem. Being a guy, I caught feelings for her. I had to force all my feelings down because I didn’t want to ruin what she and I had built over the course of 3 years. I had fallen in love with my best friend. And I thought to myself “dang it Daniel, what the hell are you doing mannn!!” It came to a point in my life that I couldn’t handle it anymore. I had to tell her that I felt this way for her, so I did and It didn’t go too well LOOOL. She didn’t respond and the next day she just acted like nothing happened, so I guess this was her way of rejecting me nicely and I was kinda relieved she didn’t straight up say “nah I don’t like you that way.” Well here we are, me still thinking about her and who she might end up with and her not knowing about this until now, but she’s still my best friend and our friendship is as strong as ever. 

Thanks again to Rodmond, if you need someone that gets buckets, hit him up.

Monday, December 21, 2015

Guest Writer #13: Disconnect

Hey friends, so with Christmas being RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER (doesn't feel like it eh), thought I'd do something different...not just for today, but for the week. My Christmas present to you guys this year is a WEEK OF GUEST POSTS. I'm super grateful and appreciative to the people who accepted my invitation to write a guest post on my blog. I love the guest posts cuz it gives you something different, different insight and perspective than what I usually write and talk about. It's funny cuz I don't ask people randomly...some are my friends of course, but even then the people that I ask...I genuinely believe they have something dope to say or share, but with that being said, here's day 1 or a full week of guest posts, enjoy!

Guest Writer #1: SpeakingMyMind
Guest Writer #2: Letters To You
Guest Writer #3: TC
Guest Writer #4: Anonymous Queen B
Guest Writer #5: Someone You Used To Know
Guest Writer #6: Heartlocked
Guest Writer #7: LG Slayer 231
Guest Writer #8: TC
Guest Writer #9: G. Ho
Guest Writer #10: Golden Frieza
Guest Writer #11: Ghost Writer
Guest Writer #12: Pink Precariat


I’m the middle child in a family of three. My brother is a year younger than I am, and my sister is the eldest, being five years older than me. I’m in the middle – and yes, cue that Jimmy Eat World song

Growing up, I remember my mom always telling me, “All I have are the three of you, so make sure you take care of each other when you’re growing up. All you’ll ever have is family, and they will always love you.” I remember being told these words, perhaps many times over and over again and they’re one of the values I’ve always held to be true. I remember back in high school, I was already in my sophomore year and my brother had just started his freshman year. Every day, for a month, I would walk by his locker to make sure he wasn’t eating lunch alone. I don’t think he ever realized that I did that, and most of the times he wouldn’t even see me walk past him - but I always did.

Family first - always.

Lately though, I’ve come to realize that the values about family I hold to be true aren’t always the values that I show to the world. Like the way that whenever the holidays come around, the only people I would ever make firm plans with are my friends. Like the last time I went on a vacation with my family was almost 8 years ago. And even as I am writing this, I am getting ready to leave to do some Christmas shopping with friends instead of staying home and playing with my dog with my mom. Even though I always find myself constantly thinking about them and how much I appreciate them and love them so deeply – my actions fall so far from the words. What’s the point of having these emotions if all we ever do is bottle up these truths and hold them in our hearts? It’s like having a voice and the ability to speak, but always just putting yourself on mute.

For most of us in our early or mid-twenties – how old are your parents now? At least fifty, right? Stop playing the hypocrite, Elaine – if you love them as dearly as you say you do, come home when they cook dinner. The dinner table, with all the laughter and the meals shared together and the jokes you make about your younger brother and his shenanigans - that is family. Take them out with you – show them the boardwalk that you love so much on Centre Island. Or sometimes, just bake cookies and try to watch those Chinese dramas with them, even though your Chinese comprehension itself is half-baked. There is a concept in physics, known as travelling at a constant velocity. When you are in such a state, your acceleration is zero and you experience nothing even though you are moving forward. However, as soon as something changes your velocity, you immediately feel that impact. Growing up, the presence and support of my family has always been there, as I moved at a constant velocity. But change is inevitable; one day that acceleration is bound to change. And when it does, I want to know that I have loved and have shown love with all that I am capable of. I don’t want to cry every time I write about my family and how much they mean to me. I don’t want to regret how I love them so much but always fail to show it. I want to live with the notion that life is meant for seeking those moments in amber – like the insects frozen for all eternity. I want to look for those amber moments of sheer happiness and laughter, and I want to build a collection of those moments with my family, the ones I have loved and will always love so dearly. For once in my life, I no longer want to feel this disconnect between my emotions and my actions.

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I am The Fool from www.ofteninnocuous.wordpress.com. If you enjoyed my writing, be sure to check out my blog! Special thanks to Rodmond for featuring me on his blog The Best You Never Heard, and happy holidays!

Saturday, December 19, 2015

Man vs Wolf

"Be strong enough to stand alone, be yourself enough to stand apart, but be wise enough to stand together when the time comes."

I've told you guys I've always had this weird fascination/association with wolves for some reason, something about them is just so cool. I saw this quote like a month or so ago (yeah that's how long I loaft on all the posts on my phone) and attached was a picture of a wolf and I really enjoyed the quote, so I copied it down hoping to do a post about it eventually...well now is eventually lol. Honestly...if you talked to me like 2 weeks or even like a week and a half ago, I was feeling suuuuper impulsive...like I was in bed one night and I was so ready to get another tattoo right at that moment and the thought didn't even go away the next morning, it stayed with me for like a couple of days, it's kinda died down...but I have a very, very, very rough plan of possibly getting it around my birthday next year, but we'll see how things change, how feelings change and such. I told y'all after I got the one on my forearm, the gears already started rolling for my third one, a bunch of ideas popped into my head and a bunch of placement areas too, one being a wolf, but something about just having like a picture of a wolf or the face of a wolf somewhere on my body didn't appeal to me aesthetically. I remember speaking to a friend one time and he said he wanted to get a tribal eagle tattoo...so I searched that up and then that led to me searching up tribal wolf tattoos and pretty much settling on something along those lines. But any ways, back to the quote...when the gears started rolling for my third tattoo., I started reading a lot about wolves...why some wolves leave the pack and become lone wolves and such, it's all pretty interesting, which brings me to the quote. In relation to myself and just my life, I love it...be strong enough to stand alone, on your own two feet...be yourself enough to stand apart, not just following the crowd...but also be wise enough to stand together when the time comes, because everyone needs a solid support system to lean on. I love it cuz it covers such a wide aspect of life...knowing when to be a lone wolf and kinda do your own thing, having the ability to not follow what everyone else is doing and being your own person, but also knowing when to be with the group, to stand with your friends, your team, your circle. So yeah, that's just my little thing...on a very contrasting note...can\t believe Christmas is less than a week away...and then New Years...it'll be the first time I'm gonna be going away for New Years and celebrating with one specific group of friends...I feel kinda guilty leaving some of my friends out or not chilling with my other friends, but one of my friends reassured me to just go, to have fun and that it'll be a dope experience. We're going to a cottage on the 31st for 3 days, 2 nights, so I'm excited, but still feeling kinda guilty for kinda leaving some of my friends hanging lol. On a positive note, one thing I love about the end of the year is all the 'best of' and end of the year lists that everyone does...so I may try to incorporate something along those lines onto here, we'll see lol, till next time...PEACE.

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Becoming The 6 God For A Day











 I feel like sometimes I can be like one of those people where my brain thinks of elaborate plans, schemes and projects that I can't or don't end up producing. It's either way too much work, too time consuming or I just get lazy lol. So this year I decided to keep in simple with just a photoshoot lol, I hit up my friend and he offered to help me out. Lemme tell you making the sign was probably the most annoying part lol. I wanted to design it online at first...I had the idea of using the font from Drake's mixtape 'If You're Reading This It's Too Late', but it turned out too blurry when it was enlarged. I ended up designing something I liked on Staples, only to find out when I checked out that they didn't deliver to Canada...I was so annoyed cuz I spent a lot of time designing the poster. So then I asked my friend cuz I remembered he worked at a printing company, but turned out the material I wanted the posted to be on was expensive...it was like $20-30 on the staples site, but he told me it was around $80, oh boy. So I scrapped that plan and found some other online sites to design my sign...bur this was like 3-4 days before I was supposed to do the photoshoot with my friend. I found one that was perfect, designed the poster again, checked out and saw that it delivered to Canada, but even with express shipping the earliest it would come is the day of the photoshoot, which wouldn't work cuz we were gonna go in the morning like 8 am to shoot, so scrapped that plan. Then I thought of the idea to just make my own sign, as hesitant as I was cuz I knew it'd be a lot of work So my friend and I went to Walmart like 2 days before the shoot and got the board, spray paint and went back to my house to make the sign. Lemme tell you it was such a long process...we taped the entire board twice through, traced the letters onto the tape then cut it out with exacto knives which was SUPER FRUSTRATING because we taped it twice, once with regular tape and twice with hockey tape because it was thicker and we didn't want the spray paint leaking through...but boy it was super hard to cut with the knives and pull off. That process took about a good hour or two, after we cut the letters out, we headed outside and it was already dark by then...this was the fun part...we spray painted the board since it was covered with tape, only the parts we cut out which were the letters would be filled with paint. We let that dry overnight and it turned out great, it leaked a bit, but I liked the effect it gave. The next day, one day before the shoot...I picked up the big 6 balloon at night  because we wouldn't have time to do it on the day of because the store didn't open till 9:30 and we planned on leaving at 8 to catch the sun and the good light. So I picked up the balloon around 9 pm and left it in my room overnight. Woke up the next morning and headed to the site, it was somewhere in like Stouffville or Newmarket I forget, some hiking trail which was huge, spacious and beautiful. The lady told me the balloon was supposed to last 3-5 days but it was already losing air quickly LOL...thankfully we got most of the photos done, but it was hard because the balloon was losing air, so the wind kept taking it away. We finally finished most of the shots and by then the balloons was struggling to stay in the air lol...I left in to the side with some jackets on top of the string so it wouldn't fly away...by then we were pretty much done, I grabbed the balloon and it slipped out of my hand and slowly started to fly away...it was within arms reach tho so I jumped to grab it but I missed LOOOOL...so it flew away...and that was it lol. It was like 10 am by now and my friend and now put the stuff away and went back and just went on a hike through the trail till like 11 or so. It was nice...I don't get to do this stuff that often, especially in such a cool area like this....after that we went to lunch and called it a day lol.

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

6 YEAR ANNIVERSARY





Every year as the blog's anniversary comes around...I struggle with what to say, with what I can say you know. This year has been slow...I know it, you know it, blog posts have been rolling around less and less. Part of it is genuine laziness and forgetfulness...another part of it is that I just don't wanna throw out random words at you guys...occasionally I'll do so to update you with what's going on in my life. But I look back at like the first couple of years of the blog...HUNDREDS of posts a month culminating in like a few thousand posts in that year...but they were empty posts for the most part. This year...there aren't even enough posts for one a day lol...but I've been very picky with what I put out there...not in terms of like what I say or holding my tongue super tight...in terms of the content and the material. As time continues to pass...I take this blog more and more seriously...and the possible effect it has on people when they read my words you know. All in all, I wanna keep this short before I start being repetitive and saying the same thing I do every year....I appreciate you guys with all my heart...truly truly. It means the world to me to have the support and love that I do for everyone from friends, family and strangers alike. I'm not stupid and tho I tell you guys I write and try to ignore the fact that people read this so I can be honest...I know a good chunk of you read my posts...whether I put my link up on social media or not. But I'll never truly comprehend how far my blog has reached in terms of outside of Canada lol. But any ways, I've said all that before...6 years ago, I started a blog for fun and simply put I never could have or would have imagined it would have grown to what it is today. Every year I get a chance to reflect and look back at some old posts and see where I was before compared to how I am now. One of the biggest things for me is that it is such a blessing to be able to see how God has changed me year to year, month to month and even day to day. I just wanna end by saying I really don't know where I'm going with this blog...I don't know where it's taking me or going to take me...I don't know what I have planned at all...I'm just taking everything one small step at a time, pacing myself and enjoying everything along the way and I hope you'll ride with me together. Thank you for another year...stay tuned tomorrow...I'll outline the long and hectic process it took to complete this project LOL.



Monday, December 14, 2015

An Encouragement...

I'm honestly the worst...I'm sorry, all I know is I lose track of time...one day becomes two days, two days becomes a week and here we are. But any ways...so at church yesterday,we were sharing devotions that we did throughout the week. So I thought I'd share with y'all the most recent devotion that I did, with a verse that's been on my heart these past couple days.

"For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me." Romans 7:14-20 (ESV)

This passage speaks to me in so many ways...but really outlines the christian life in my opinion. Not understanding our own actions sometimes...wanting to do good, but finding ourselves not. This passage really shows how strong the control of sin is...that it in a sense is the reason why we do what we do even though we know it's wrong and don't want to do it you know. I know it's kinda a hard concept to grasp which is why I posted this version instead of the one I read. Our minds and our hearts have good intentions...but it's the flesh, the body that sins and that does evil things. I dunno...I guess my encouragement to my fellow brothers and sisters fighting the fight is to stay strong...it's hard, trust in God, he never has and never will let you down.

Monday, December 07, 2015

I'm Stressed

So uh, happy December..feels like it's been a while since we last spoke, I'm sorry. This is nothing special, no funny story, awkward female encounter or whatever...just an update, because I've been so busy as of late...and STRESSED...but what else is new. You know what's funny tho...it's not even the usual things stressing me out...it's things that shouldn't be stressing me out. School's been good, I'm done classes...finished on exam, last exam on the 19th then I'M DONE MY UNDERGRAD...HOLY...that's one hurdle in my life that I'm FINALLY about to jump over and it feels amazing...but my friend said it won't hit you until you apply for graduation and you see the application is approved. Applying for teacher's college as we speak, it's pretty stressful in a GOOD way...I'll hear in March if I get accepted...if not, I'm legit okay with it because I have a plan and more importantly, I'm in no rush. Volunteering is good, I missed out last week cuz I've been busy with school, but I'll have much more time in January when I have no school...hoping to go at least twice a week, but volunteering isn't stressful, it's fun...it's educating , I love it. Work...that's not stressful either, that's just tiring lol...but I'm getting used to it...my contract ends mid January cuz it's seasonal and I'll be fully content if they don't extend it...it'll give me more time to volunteer and work on myself. Yeah I'll have no income, but major reason why I wanted income in the first place was to buy presents for people for Christmas, so I'll be fine. So Rodmond...if school, work or volunteering isn't stressing you out, what is? Girls...nope, got no girls. Life...nope, life is content, joyful when I remind myself. What's honestly stressing me out right now is the pain, brokenness and STRESS that OTHER people are going through...not even necessarily my friends...but like strangers, people I just met, people I know...it sucks...seeing them hurt, seeing them in pain and more importantly see them LOSE HOPE. Like it's one thing to be in pain, to be in rock  bottom, but it's another thing to understand that things will get BETTER. My heart breaks for those who are in negative situations and DON'T BELIEVE that things will get better..who hate their lives and their circumstances...it breaks my heart man. I've been praying earnestly and humbly...for strength and faith in any and every circumstance...but more importantly...I've been really praying for joy and happiness for others...to see the light in the dark, to know that every situation is a blessing from God as hard as it is to see. I don't wanna end this post in such a down fashion...so I'll let you guys know that I have a lot of posts lined up for you guys, ones that I think you'll really like...and I have some big things planned in the coming weeks, so be ready, thanks for sticking with me!

Monday, November 30, 2015

Dear God

God my heart is feeling very heavy right now...it's breaking at the sadness and pain that people have to endure. God I know that you hold the world in your hand...but my heart still can't help but break at the sadness in this world. God my heart is so heavy right now and I come to you humbled and thankful for the man you're shaping me into...but I pray the same for my fellow brothers and sisters...I pray for strength to endure the hardships, tests and obstacles that life throws at us. God I pray that you instill in my brothers and sisters hope...and true joy and happiness...happiness that can only be found in you. God I pray that you'll give my fellow brother and sisters strength to not get caught up in the world...in what the world wants and how the world thinks...God I pray all this testing and hard times will only serve to help us grow and be stronger individuals. God I come to you in awe...awe of how good you are...and I know you'll come through...who'll give us what we need and what is best for us. God, thank you for always being there for me...I pray my fellows brothers and sisters can find joy and comfort in you the way that I do ad am still learning to.

Friday, November 27, 2015

Speed Limit 50

Part 1

If the title of this post sounds familiar, that's because this is part 2 to a post I did earlier in January called Speed Limit 40. As of late, I've just been reminded to slow down, take my time and enjoy everything around me. And I wanna pass that message onto you....forreal, everywhere I look it seems like kids wanna grow up so fast...whether it's as little as trying on make up or as big as wanting to be over and done with high school. My encouragement to you is to slow down...when your youth is gone, it's gone for good. These are the moments in your life that determine who you are...that essentially form the foundation upon which you'll be growing. I've been living life one slow step at a time lately...I'm almost done school and tho I'll be doing more school...every day is one step closer to being a full fledged adult, to being in the real world and to having my own life and responsibilities and such. I just wanted to encourage you to enjoy your youth, enjoy the people around you, enjoy the circumstances you're in...happy times and sad times. Before you know it...everyone will be off doing their own things, moving away or simply too busy with their own lives. I'm super lucky to have close friends who are still in town and majority of them are in similar positions as me or are alike me in the sense that they're very home oriented. I know other people tho that aren't so lucky...where the majority of their close friends are out of town or have fully moved away because of jobs or whatever, Don't rush your life...don't be so caught up in being successful and such that you forget to enjoy the journey and the moments in between. When you rush to your destination...you miss out on so much in between stuff...the scenery, the pit stops and the people you meet and the experiences you have. I'm here to tell you to slow down...I know life moves fast, but it's okay sometimes to put it on cruise control, kick back and relax and enjoy yourself.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

You Won't Believe What This Student Said To Me

So if you don't know, I wanna be a teacher. If you don't know, I've been volunteering at an elementary school with my old teacher and we're really good friends. If you keep up to date with my blog posts and you recall this one post about a student of ours who was having family issues and shared his concern with us. He was saying how his parents might get divorced, but this same kid is also my teacher's favourite student in the class...he's hilarious, he's on the volleyball team, he's a goof, but he's a super nice, smart and polite kid. So I've been going pretty often lately cuz their volleyball season is wrapping up and I've been helping coach the team and ref some games for them. So today after practise, my teacher and I are chilling about to leave...the kid is chilling waiting in the halls. These kids are hella nice btw, like after every practise they're like thanks for practise, thanks for taking time out of your day and stuff, it's crazy. Any ways, so he's in the halls chilling, he's like thanks for practise and stuff. He goes thanks Rodmond...then he goes oh btw, Mr. Tham (they legit alternate calling me Rodmond and Mr. Tham LOL I don't mind)...."you're going to be a great teacher". Like wow, firstly I want you to know I'm not writing this out of arrogance...but pure speechlessness, thankfulness and appreciativeness. I've had a couple conversations with him where he asked like where and what I studied and what I wanted to do after, so he knew I wanted to be a teacher. But wow, he said that, I said thanks, I appreciate it, truly...he walked away. I stood there with my teacher for a good 5 minutes just kinda trying to take it in...like my heart felt joy, pure joy. A couple of days earlier, my teacher and I had a conversation cuz I told him I had sent in my application for teacher's college...he said Rodmond...I have no doubt you're going to  be a great teacher, I have no doubt you're going to be great at whatever you do...but teaching specifically...I know you'll be great at it. The kids will take so much out of what you have to teach them and you in turn will take so much out of this job as well. He started saying how I really care abut the students and I have an innate ability to help and encourage others (which I'll get to in another post) and I know which students may need a little more encouragement than others. But wow...today just hit me like a train...I got teary eyed in front of my teacher when the student left...it meant a lot to  me. My teacher's always said if you're in it for the money or for the benefits, this isn't the job for you...long hours with pay that some might see as unequal to the work you put in. But man...it's the intangibles and the things you can't measure that make this job so amazing...seeing the impact you have on a kid, seeing them smile and laugh because of something you said or did, even little things like marking makes me find so much joy in this job. I keep saying this but it becomes more true with every passing day...the more I volunteer...the more I'm realizing that this job is meant for me, that I'm meant for this job...and I don't mean that in a cocky way I  promise...I mean like...everything I like and enjoy doing...all the intangible qualities this job brings you. The kids man...the kids...they piss you off, they annoy you, but they're the reason why you're here, they bring you so much joy...their joy brings you so much joy. Being a teacher also makes you see the good in every student...well for me at least, some teachers are genuinely different in their own ways and styles. I've seen kids act out or speak out in class rudely, but I've seen those same kids be super polite and helpful. It's super cool talking to them on a personal and human level, not a teacher student level. Asking them what's wrong, why they're upset...and the biggest thing is hearing them be honest with you, trusting with you...damn man, I don't know what more I can say...this job, well for now...this experience...has been so amazing for me, this is just a glimpse into what could possibly be the rest of my life...and if it is, I'm super excited to start the journey.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Eating Leftovers, Looking At Old Pictures And Dating Your Ex

Wow, sorry for being ghost...as winter rolls around...exam season is right around the corner and there may not be a more important exam season than this one because it's my last semester of school and this dictates whether I'll graduate or not this coming summer. Nonetheless, I apologize to the many or to the few of you who actually look forward to my posts lol. So one thing I get asked a lot is whether or not I read my old posts. My initial response and the answer from my heart would say no and would paraphrase what Kendrick Lamar says about his albums and not performing them after he's done them. What I've done in the past is the old me, it was a me that was feeling a certain way when he wrote that post. It's a different time and I guess part of me doesn't want to and can't really revisit those old feelings and try to feel what I once felt. It's like dating your ex...they're your ex for a reason, you dated that person in a past time in your life...but if you were to date them now...I'd say chances are it wouldn't work out because you guys are 2 different people...it was a different time in your life, you guys were looking for different things, in different phases of your life and had different views and perspectives about everything. But realistically, I do read my old posts...it's okay to revisit the past...it's when you start living in the past that becomes a problem. Like when you look at old pictures...it brings a smile to your face because it brings you to a happy, memorable time in your life that you wanted to take a picture of and keep. But when you start comparing your current life to that time and how you wish things were like the past is when living in the past becomes dangerous. My friends and I always talk about the old times, when the whole gang was together, when we were younger, more care free, had so many gatherings...but we all know that can never happen again...people are gone doing their own things, we're all older now, have our own lives. There's no way we can recreate those moments again...but why would we want to...those memories are great...but I'm excited to make new ones that I can one day look back on. So despite reading old posts...I try not to...one because I'm lazy...but two because there's a fine line between looking and reminiscing on old memories vs wishing things were like the past and being unsatisfied with your life. That's what I always tell my friends whenever we talk about memories and the old times...that yeah it's fun to talk about it, all the things we used to do and people we used to chill with...it was a happy time...just don't get down that this person or that person is gone, that things will never be the same...it's not meant to be, because you're not the same person you were before.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Dear Brothers

I guess this can be to and for anyone really, but I'm directly speaking to my fellow brothers...who are struggling with their faith, who're finding life hard, stressful and overwhelming...who may be losing faith or losing hope. I've been there my brothers, I still go there sometimes...it's hard...and there isn't one single specific solution I can offer you to get you on your feet and good to go. But I can offer you encouragement...and methods to help you get up and be strong. It sucks to see that a lot of my fellow brothers, my friends...are struggling, are doubting, are losing hope...with me at least my friends...as hard as life gets, as hard as the obstacles are that are thrown at me...and as hard as I fall sometimes...one thing I've learned as I've gotten older and one thing I cling to is to never give up hope and to always have faith. Faith in God, the ultimate provider...faith that he'll always come through for me. I wanna leave you with this hoping it will stick with you...

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." Romans 8:18

I know life gets hard, I know that the fear of the unknown can be scary...what if this, what if that...will this happen, will that happen...is it all worth it? My prayer for you my brother is for you to cling to the light...that hope that you once had...God's always there and always has been there. He's just waiting for you to open the door and embrace him with open arms. Trust that everything in your life happens for a reason, everything in your life is meant to move you forward in life. That God...all knowing and omnipotent, despite what you want, crave, desire and think what's best for you....knows what is BEST for you. Everything he does is meant to help you grow...whether it seems hard, painful or unreasonable at the time. Embrace every situation and circumstance you're in, try to find the good within the bad...as small as it may seem. I've experience so many thing sin my life...that I never understood until a day, a week, a month...sometimes a year later. Everything has led me to this point and has only strengthened my faith as I hope it will yours. Be strong my brothers, prosperous times are awaiting you, I'm praying for you.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

She Spoils Me

So...I'm kinda like that friend you have that takes a lot time to reply to a text message...except in blog form LOL. It's been a while since we last had a chat...it's felt like a slow week...it's been tiring...haven't been sleeping much due to many early mornings between school, work and volunteering. Any ways...so there's this girl I met at school...long story short we met in class and talked a little bit here and there. I asked for her number and ever since then...she keeps messaging me, to the point where it's kinda scary. Like she asked for my instagram, followed me on snapchat, added me as a friend on facebook...that's all normal and such...but I was sitting around one a couple of days and and suddenly\I get a facetime call from her...I don't pick it up thinking okay it's probs an accident, it's happened to me before too. She keeps facetiming me and I get like 8 missed facetime calls. Keep in mine I just met her and had like 2 interactions with her, we haven't even been texting for long. She'll text me something...and I'm busy studying or playing video games and like not even 5 minutes later...she'll double text...she'll say lol, or ask a question or go yeah....it's kinda creepy. But that's not the story...that's just an introduction to a different story LOL...as interesting as that story may have seemed, I just wanted to kinda give you some background into this next story. So back in high school when I was in grade 12, I dated this girl who was in grade 9...LOOOOL all my real friends will automatically know who this is. Any ways...let's just say she spoiled me...and it's one of the reasons I was so bad at speaking to and pursuing girls...cuz I expected all my interactions and courting of girls to be like this one. So I met her at some volleyball thing and we had a very minimal interaction...that night she added me on msn and facebook and we started talking non stop for hours into the night. Like to sum it up simply...she was pursuing me...100%, I did nothing lol. Once 12 am would hit, she would be like good morning. She's the one who asked for my number and she texted me right away even though we were already talking on msn. She would text me every morning good morning and goodnight before she went to bed. Like she played volleyball and she would take breaks during her practices to text me LOL. Like yo she would visit my high school just to see me...and obv neither one of us drived, I visited her like once at her school, but the majority of the time it was her visiting me and making moves. I remember the day I asked her to be my girlfriend...she dropped SOOO MANY HINTS...but as a young boy, I was stupid unfortunately LOL...she was standing there in front of me...and she was like oh so I'm free tonight, I kinda wanna go to a movie but I have no one to go with, what're you doing tonight...I remember I was like uh, I think my friend is coming over and we're just gonna play videogames LOOOL. Legit, you're gonna laugh so hard at me...my friend was over, she ended up going to the movies with her best friend...he's reading my texts and he's like YO DUDE SHE LIKES YOU, ARE YOU STUPID...and I'm like really? LOOOL...so I texted her and pretty much asked her to be my girlfriend through text LOL. Legit after that, a lot of the female interactions I had were hella awkward cuz I expected it to go along the lines of how it did with my ex...boy was I wrong and did I sure have to learn the hard way LOL.

Monday, November 09, 2015

Dear Nice Guy Part 3

Part 1
Part 2

Hey nice guy, how are you doing...well I hope. I've been pretty good, I've been practising patience and have been working and focusing on myself. I hope you have been well. I know sometimes it can get scary...you start to ask yourself questions...will you ever find the one? Do you really have tobe a jerk to get the girl? Do girls even really like nice guys? Is there something wrong with you? I feel you my brothers...I've asked myself all these questions on numerous occasions. I'm still an old school romantic...who still believes in chivalry, in being gentlemanly and such. I know it's hard fellas...but don't rush it, don't get into something for the sake of getting into it. Don't start a relationship for the sake of being in a relationship. Don't even sell yourself short...and don't even think you have to settle because you won't ever find anybody else. And on the other hand...if you are in a relationship and you genuinely don't love that person or don't see yourself marrying them...it's okay to end it, why continue being with someone if you can't see yourself being with them for the rest of your life? It's hard I know, but just cuz something doesn't work out...doesn't make it the end of the world. But back to my single friends...I'm in the same boat as you, trust me...but I've had plenty of helpful advice and encouragement from brothers who helped push me in the right direction. Patience is the key my brothers, let it happen naturally, when you're ready...and when she's the one...you'll just know. But at the same time...know when to seize the moment...know when to take action and take what's yours. Fellas...it's about picking your moments, I'm not telling you to be passive and let the girl approach you, I'm telling you to be patient and not chase every cute girl you see. I'm telling you to believe in yourself, to have confidence and to trust in the process...that your time will come. There's a beautiful girl out there for you...you just gotta wait, let it happen naturally and seize the opportunity when presented with one. Keep your head up nice guy, I'm with you.

Friday, November 06, 2015

I'm Your Teacher, Not Your Friend Part 2

Part 1

So I haven't been volunteering in 2 weeks cuz I was busy with school, but man...first day back and it was no short of excitement, work and some interesting times. Today was only further reassurance that I definitely want to be a teacher in the future. First things first would be the relationship I have with my teacher...how it's been over 10 years since I've been in elementary school, but I still go back to visit him, we're really good friends and we confide in each other. That's the kind of relationship I hope to develop with my future students...to teach them, but to also be there for them if they need to just talk you know. Which brings me to today...there was this kid who was upset the whole day, you could kinda tell cuz he speaking out more than usual and just a few things here and there. So my teacher and I pulled him aside and we talked to him and he was saying how he was just upset at his grades and how his parents put a lot of pressure on him and that he works really hard. He started tearing up...so we talked to him, comforted him and told him to walk it off...that's just crazy to me, it takes lots of courage to one...confide in your teacher, two...as a guy, to shed tears especially in front of your teacher. Second instance of the day was this girl...who was acting weird all day...she had her hoodie up and like tied it all the way up like Kenny from South Park...we kept asking her what's wrong and she's like nothing, I'm just having a bad hair day...she kept acting weird,so we eventually pulled her aside and talked to her...she was saying how she was unhappy with her appearance compared to the other girls and all that stuff...pretty much girl stuff, puberty, boys...but we sat her down and told her it was alright...that it's natural to go through these things and feel that way...but she's still young and growing...and everyone is beautiful in their own way, you just gotta embrace it and be confident and comfortable with yourself. The last instant was this boy...probs his favourite student in class...who was SUPER sad the whole day, you could tell...quiet, moody, distant. After school, we asked him what was up and he said...don't worry, it's something at home, it's not school related. We told him that yeah...we may be your teachers and there is a certain level of a professional relationship that we can't cross...but we care about you...inside and outside of school...we want to teach you both book smarts and street smarts. He told us that things aren't going well at home and he thinks his parents are going to split up...it sucks cuz he said that his parents are putting him in the middle and making him choose sides...we told him it wasn't his fault...that it's not fair for them to put him in the middle...but the biggest thing was that it's not his fault...it's between them. But it genuinely sucks to be that young and to have to experience that. Legit, it was such a mentally exhausting day, spent the whole day marking and talking to the kids. Honestly...now that I'm a teacher....I see things SO differently...as a student...you're so worried about yourself, your studies, your problems, your friends, girls...that it's hard to really notice EVERYTHING and EVERYONE around you. As a teacher now tho...you notice all these things...you notice when a student is more sad than usual, more loud than usual. You notice when a student is in gym class and isn't really enjoying themselves, you notice when a student is eating lunch by themselves visibly upset...all these things...as a teacher, I notice them...and I hurt for them as well. This experience so far has been so eye opening and so wonderful for me cuz it's opened such a door for me to grow as a person and learn about myself and the kids and the environment I may possibly be in one day. Yeah, I'm your teacher and I may not be your friend while you are in my class...but that doesn't mean I don't care about your life, what's going on in it...and it really meant so much to my teacher and I that those students had the courage to confide in us. I was talking to my teacher about how I never knew kids that young had to go through such things...cuz when I was that age, I was too busy focusing on my own stuff. He's like yeah...even when you were in my class...kids would approach me privately and share their problems...but as a student you don't see that kinda stuff. It makes me really wanna make a difference if I become a teacher...to go beyond the textbook, beyond the curriculum....to teach them about life...essentially to model myself after Mr, Feeny from Boy Meets World...my teacher and I collaborated today and he wants to give me an entire project to give to the class and teach it to them and have them present it and I'm super excited about it, I definitely can't wait. It's so cool to do teacher things like marking, remembering the kids names, making jokes with them...I'm so glad I did this.

Thursday, November 05, 2015

Slow And Steady Wins The Race Part 2


Alright, so I know it's been a while lol...my apologies...I got my dates messed up, originally intended to post a week later, but lost track of my days and yeah...here we are, it's been pretty busy as of late...I got a job, it's exam time, just a lot of things going on right now and there's always moments where I just sit and reflect on life, where I am at the moment and things like that you know. The biggest thing I've been dwelling on as of late is no matter what you do...someone's gonna have an opinion. No matter what you do, there's gonna be someone who doesn't agree or doesn't like it or you. If you let that affect you, you're gonna be constantly struggling to please people and it's gonna annoy the hell out of you when one person says this or that about you or something. That's just where I've been at lately...whatever I say or do on this blog specifically...someone's gonna have an opinion or feel some type of way...they may agree or disagree...that's cool, but I'm definitely making a conscious effort not to let any negativity affect me...cuz in the end, it's just words and opinions...you're allowed to have that. 

Sorry about that, just felt like I had to catch y'all up to speed with where I've been at lately. Any ways, couple days ago, I saw this post from this girl I went to high school with. It was a picture of her masters degree, we're both the same age. Meaning she graduated university, went to do her masters at a different school right away and recently graduated from that. I dunno, I've always said I wouldn't let it affect me seeing friends that were in the same year as me graduate before me because a lot happened to me (if you know, you know) that made me kinda take longer to graduate. But seeing that picture did hit me a little bit...and I talked to a couple of people about it. That's pretty cool for her...to graduate university and get your masters in the span of like 6 years or so...I dunno, I kinda looked at myself and how I'm still here in my 6th year doing my undergrad. Long story short, failed some courses in 2nd year, took 4rd year off, 4th year took courses to boost gpa,  5th year took courses in my major...this year I'm taking 2 more courses and will be done in December...so 5 years and a semester pretty much lol. Any ways...so I talked to a few friends about it and the biggest thing they told me...is that everyone does things at their own pace...we're all running a race, some people are faster, some people are slower, some people finish right away while others pace themselves. My friend told me once you get to university, that kinda stuff doesn't matter...everyone moves at their own pace, has their own lives and their own circumstances. Some people may take a couple courses every year because they wanna work full time as well and end up taking 6-8 years to finish a program. Other instances, you'll see full grown adults with families go back to do their undergrad. What he told me was it's okay to move at your own pace...everyone moves at different paces...but we all still have our own goals, our own pit stops and more importantly, our own finish lines. It was just a real good healthy reminder that it's okay to take your time, to move at your own pace...everyone works, moves and thinks differently...when you compare yourself is when you start to get down at what you've accomplished or have compared to other people. Honestly, do it for you, do it for yourself, for your family and for whatever else you hold dear. All I know is...I've come this far in my academic career...and no matter how long I take, how many hurdles I have to jump over and how many pit stops or breaks I have to take...I'm gonna finish the race, bet.