Thursday, March 31, 2011

Cœurs Brisés

In my opinion, longing, loneliness and broken-heartedness feel the same, whether you're gay, straight, bi, trans, cis, inter, two-spirited, pansexual or whatever. The heart has longings that are often unmet. I feel for you.

On an unrelated note, I'm considering migrating this blog and merging it with my Tumblr photo blog. Any thoughts?

Monday, March 28, 2011

Facebook Depression

I read today psychologists have noted a phenomenon called "Facebook Depression." Essentially, viewing friends' profiles, with their smiling photos, and their posts about their activities gives one a skewed view of the world. One compares one's own life not to the actual lives of others, but to their lives as posted on Facebook. Suddenly, one feels like a loser, with a relatively uninteresting and unenjoyable life.

I've experienced this, somewhat with Facebook, and a whole lot with Tumblr. All the beautiful photos of the beautiful people doing beautiful things on Tumblr tends to depress me after a while. I need a Tumblr diet. Or a total internet diet.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Brief Reading Note

I finally got through Dante (I read Inferno at a loping pace, dragged through Purgatorio, and made a mad, mad dash through Paradiso—which I will regret, I'm sure) and I'm likely to finish up the British sci-fi novel Point today. I've got stacks of books in ten different subjects waiting for me, but I'm not sure which one to read next. To be honest, I really need a day or three to catch up on my magazine reading.

I have waiting for me two issues of Inside Lacrosse, two issues of The New York Review of Books, the winter 2011 issue of Winq, an issue of Monocle, and an issue of Inked. (I won't even mention the surfing magazines commemorating Andy Irons and celebrating Kelly Slater). It will take awhile to get through all the interesting and relevant articles piled up in these magazines on my coffee table.

Monday, March 21, 2011

The World...

...is still turning.

Relationship FAIL

You know, I really hate the fact that my last long-term relationship was with a narcissist. It sort of highlights in neon-bright colors the my abysmal record of failure in relationships. I'm lead to ask: is there really something wrong with me that I get into bad and/or doomed relationships? Am I simply incapable of finding/co-creating a lasting, stable, good relationship? Am I attracted to the wrong kind of men? Am I the wrong kind of man?

I suppose I need to find my purpose and meaning in something other than relationships, but I have to admit that even the most fascinating intellectual pursuits do not carry the emotional oomph that relationships do. Is there anything in life I can be as passionate about as love?

Moleskine Tip

If you use Moleskine® notebooks, and you add some artwork to the cover, I suggest not spraying fixative over the artwork. It turns into a tacky mess. You could use it to remove cat hair from your clothes, LOL.

Saturday, March 19, 2011

How to Reject, How to Take Rejection

How to Reject:

If someone shows his interest in you, and you do not feel the same, the best thing to do is simply to let the person know that you are flattered, but not interested. Expect him to be mature, and go on. If he isn't mature, that's his problem. Drama is always counterproductive. Always.

How to Take Rejection:

If someone you are interested in rejects you, move on. Yes, it hurts, but life is full of pain, and surviving is all about learning to accept the pain and moving on. I won't say something trite like, "There are plenty of fish in the sea." That actually may not be true. But there is more to life than sex, love and romantic relationships. And I suggest pursuing those other things.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Get Stronger

Survive. Get stronger. Care. (That last one is the hardest, maybe.)