Sully's Ramblings

Silence is Golden

2007-11-19T17:49:00.001-08:00

I was reading in USA Today this afternoon when I came across an interesting article. The article discusses a man named Vijay Eswaran, who is a top CEO in Asia. For an hour each day, before the sun comes up, Mr. Eswaran has an hour of silence and meditation. I found this to be fascinating as an hour set aside for pure silence is non-existent in my life, unless you count an hour of sleep at night when I'm not exactly reflecting but virtually unconscious.

So what are we supposed to do with this hour of silence? "It's not sitting in a sea of tranquility trying to figure out the meaning of the universe. It's about taking control of your life. It begins with analyzing the day that has gone by, going through the goals that you had set and seeing what you achieved and what you failed to achieve and trying to derive lessons...How much of what we do today counts in a month or six months? The point is to go deeper."

I thought about how different my life would be if I took the time to take this hour of silence. I've always been intimidated by silence, like I said, unless I'm sleeping. But the thought of how much I could accomplish and change about my life if I truly sat back and thought about it in a deeper way blows my mind. The thought of taking control of my life excites me to no end. Mr. Eswaran states: "Most of us allow life to pick us up like a piece of driftwood, and we get thrown back to the shore every once in a while. We've lost track of where we wanted to go, what we wanted to do, the purpose of our existence." I am essentially a piece of driftwood in the grand scheme of things. I'm seriously going to ATTEMPT to enforce this hour of silence and tranquility into my life. "Silence is like exercise. A person who never does it would rather get shot than get started. Once started, he would rather die than stop." I'm seeing silence in a whole new light. We'll see if I can dig deep and find the self-discipline required to get my life back into focus.

Pop goes our culture...

2007-11-14T23:46:00.000-08:00

The past couple of weeks in my pop culture class (Yes mom. It's a real class), we've been watching and discussing various types of "reality" TV. Today we were fortunate enough to witness a partial episode of "Bridezillas" which airs on the Women's Entertainment (WE) network. The premise of the show is that a bride-to-be is preparing for her "big day" and in the process, becomes an irrational lunatic and takes out every little frustration on the closest living, breathing soul. I'm thoroughly convinced as I watch shows like this that while we're supposed to believe that the individuals on the show are "real people" like us, they're truly professionally-trained and ultra-skilled actors and actresses. Honestly. Who would seriously behave in such a way? And if these really are people just like you and I, why would they shamelessly sign up for a show that would portray them in that light? I guess we're desperate enough to do whatever it takes for our 15 minutes of fame. The grooms on the show are living punching bags in essence. They are gutless weasels who stand there and take whatever crap their fiancee can dish out. I can't think of any man in their right mind that would take that kind of abuse from anybody.

So why do we watch these kinds of shows? One might make the claim that they're entertaining because they're unpredictable, but most of these shows that have a basic premise such as "Bridezillas" end up being like another Home Improvement episode: once you've seen one, you've essentially seen them all. During our class discussion, a female classmate spoke up and seemed to justify the actions of these brides: "Well, as little girls we played with Barbies and planned our Barbies weddings which were really our own weddings so we've basically been planning our wedding day since we were tiny so of course it has to be perfect because we have these high expectations of our perfect day." Ok, so does that give a bride the right to invite her neighbors to her wedding at the last minute because she needs help with decorations and they're free labor? Does that give the bride the right to harrass her hair/makeup person? Or call her family members names and pummel them out of rage? I don't think so. Why do we find entertainment in seeing people at their worst? Maybe it makes us feel better about our hum-drum lives. Or we think to ourselves, "at least I'm not THAT bad."

Doggone it!

2007-11-06T11:07:00.000-08:00

I'm almost creepingly surprised at how this whole Dog the Bounty Hunter scandal has affected my life. For those of you who have been living in a cave and/or bunker for the last little while, let me bring you up to speed.

Wayne "DOG" Chapman, of the Bounty Hunter fame has lapsed in judgement and as a result, the rest of us are being punished for it. Dog (as he will from now on be referred to) got into a heated argument with his son Tucker over Tucker's african-american girlfriend. The "N" word was used multiple times by Dog and it was recorded and eventually sold to the National Enquirer by Tucker for large amounts of money. As a result of these actions, "Dog the Bounty Hunter" has now been taken off the air "indefinitely" as Dog is now considered a racist. Despite incessant apologies on Dog's part, it is too late. The damage has been done and as a result, I'm forced to look elsewhere for my Tuesday night entertainment instead of the A & E network.

This event has brought about some deep contemplation on my part. What is it about Dog, Beth, Leland, Youngblood, etc... that I love so much? What draws me to their show from week to week? I've concluded that it could be a number of things. Maybe it's how serious they take themselves. Maybe it's how they make every criminal apprehension appear to be SO dangerous while I have yet to see a criminal resist arrest. It very well could be Dog's cheesy one-liners like "Fee-fi-fo-fum, you see the dog and you know you're done" or his masterful artpiece of a hairstyle, feathers and handcuff earrings alike. The sequence where they "strap up" while dressing themselves in bulletproof vests and pepper spray canisters is quite amusing as well. The opening theme song by Ozzy Osbourne could very well be the kicker.

All in all, I will always love Dog the Bounty Hunter and company for the hours of entertainment they've brought into my lackluster life. I plead with the A & E network to reconsider these actions of removing one of their top-grossing shows for one mistake made by Dog. Nobody's perfect. Not even the Chapmans.

"It's a great day to be.... a brat?!"

2007-10-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

So good news! Travis Tritt, one of my all-time favorite country singers from my childhood, is coming to Mesquite. Oh that's cool Crystal, you might think. No. It's not "cool." It's absolutely fantastic!! You know why? Because he is coming on my BIRTHDAY! What are the chances? The heavens are apparently smiling down on me. While the thought of spending my birthday in dirty, ole Mesquite doesn't thrill me, the idea of seeing Trav (that's just what he likes me to call him) in concert singing all the greatest hits like, 'Here's a Quarter (call someone who cares), Anymore, Country Club, it's a great day to be alive, etc... etc... cannot be missed.

I was sharing my enthusiasm with a coworker yesterday. Her response to my exciting news was, "Wow. I always knew you were a spoiled brat, but come on." Excuse me? Then she called me "Lucky" and I let her know that she was more than welcome to attend. "It's not a private concert... or anything..." Uncomfortable! I always wondered deep down how she felt about me and it just came spilling out...

I didn't end up attending this concert after all, but the lesson I learned from the experience has stayed with me. The term "spoiled brat" means a plethora of different things to different people. MY definition of a spoiled brat would constitute the following: someone who doesn't work because everything is already paid for, gets whatever he/she wants, WHENever he/she wants it. A spoiled brat has no clue what the word responsibility means and is someone who will eventually find the harshness of reality a huge slap in the face. With that definition considered, no. I'm not a "spoiled brat." I work hard to pay my bills just like the next guy. Very few things in my life are just handed over. On the other hand, I do consider myself extremely blessed and if that's synonymous with the term "spoiled brat," then I'm more than guilty. I have very little to complain about. I have amazing friends and family, a stable job, a roof over my head, a mode of transportation, the Gospel, health, food to eat, etc... I could go on for days. However, these things don't come without work and sacrifice on my part in one way or another.

It is sometimes a hard thing to not jump to conclusions or make assumptions about people, things, situations, etc... but I hope we can all take a step back and look at the big picture before we open our mouths and say/do things we may regret later.

Lookin' out my back door...

2007-09-22T11:00:00.000-07:00

Fall is coming! I'm so excited! Not excited for the fact that winter inevitably comes right after the Fall, but excited for Fall nonetheless. It's already cooled down sufficiently that the winter clothes have come out from hiding. I've heard two points of view from two different people on which is more bearable: summer or winter. My dad always said, "The heat is uncomfortable, but the cold hurts." I agree. This is obviously coming from a man who works in the outdoors for a decent amount of the day. On the other hand, I was cutting a man's hair the other day when he said, "In the winter, you can always put more and more layers on. However, you're very limited as to how much you can take off during the summer. "(I'm paraphrasing of course... he didn't put it quite so eloquently :) Also agreed though. Especially being a woman. We are VERY limited to how much we can take off. I just don't know what and who to believe anymore. The man getting the haircut also told me that he typically pays the $60 for a deer hunting permit and it turns into an excuse to go to the mountain and get drunk with his buddies. That's one pricey case of beer. And an example of a complete moron so... I think I'm leaning more towards my dad's theory. The cold does have a bite to it.

My what amazing...red hair...you have...

2007-09-18T09:00:00.000-07:00

There's a conspiracy going around. Don't be frightened, just listen. I strongly believe that the big-wigs at Southern Utah University are trying their darndest to keep me in school for eternity. No joke. It may not be just me which scares me to no end. Yep, I was all set to graduate this December and move from this higher education cesspool. However, I was casually informed a few days ago that my hopes and dreams were in vain as I will be required to attend yet ONE MORE semester. I can picture me coming to the end of that "one more" semester, sitting down with my academic advisor, and being told that there was yet another oversight and I will be attending yet ANOTHER semester. Don't get me wrong. School is just peachy. But there comes a time when a person would like to move on from the meat market we like to call college. Heaven forbid I get on with it and actually get a decent paying job and adequate social life. Apparently that's too much to ask.

My First Blog

2007-08-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

Holey Moley! My first blog. My biggest fear when I first set up this blog was that it would be my outlet for venting all of my frustrations (which unfortunately are many). Hopefully that won't be the case.

My sister and I have started a competition where we see who can go longest without sweets. Sweets is defined as candy, cookies, cake, ice cream, soda, donuts, etc... Al tried to get away with a cookies and creme "energy" bar that was "soooo good." Um, no. If it's that enjoyable, keep it out of your mouth. That's the bottom line I believe. We've both held strong for a month now. Al asked me a week ago, "What if this goes until CHRISTMAS?!" Believe you me. That same exact thought crossed my mind. But I couldn't let her smell my fear. "So be it" was my reply. I'm a hardball like that. The winner gets a measly t-shirt of her choice from the loser, er, weaker opponent. Kind of a lame prize for the self-control required. If it does end up going until Christmas, we'll have to up the ante.

Speaking of ante, I've never understood the game of poker. Never had the desire really. Which reminds me of the dumbest, most pointless movie ever made. I don't even remember the title of it, but it had the word luck in it and Drew Barrymore was a main character. Wow. I've never wanted to demand a movie ticket refund until this movie. The whole movie was Drew Barrymore tagging along with this gambling addict who had some sort of vendetta against his dad whom is a world-reknown poker champ. Apparently the director of this movie thought that people who love poker AND chick flicks was a large target market. Boy was he/she mistaken.

There I go venting. Ugh. There's my cue to go to bed and wake up on the happier side of it.