Now on Facebook: Beach Sloth

             I made it: a Facebook profile. Some might want to trumpet this from the rooftops, but I’m currently unaware of who those people might be. Hopefully this will give you a better way of connecting with me, with Beach Sloth.

                Yes, I am aware the profile has been around for about a month or so. What can I say? I’m a sloth, I’m lazy, and I’m bad at self-promotion.  This a passion of mine, and I hope it inspires others to search out new music, music they might not be exposed to everyday. 

 What I’d like to happen is for further input. Originally when I created this blog, I wanted a great deal of comments, etc. But I wanted to avoid the “oh look at me, aren’t I hip?” problem so many other bloggers face. That reeks of desperation and quite frankly isn’t my modus operandi. 

                Setting up the blog for anonymous commentators has its own worries: I want to avoid spam with this blog. Things should look a particular way: clean. There’s no need for endless clutter. Clean formats are the best, that’s why I initially was wary of the Tumblr format, but it has since grown on me.

                Why now? Why should I bother doing this now? Well, I’ve started getting more and more emails from people, increasing in positivity and personal tweaks. Originally I got a lot of emails about random stuff, it is cool that you’re a banker in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but I doubt I can help you with your problem of having too much money. Guess that former Nigerian prince is going to make do with the money he currently has. 

                Things have improved. Now I do receive actual emails, actual Gchats from people, people who are the crème de la crème of the blogging world.  Maybe I’m a bit shy, but I’ll try to be a bit more responsive. A few have even written some extremely kind emails, and I’m positively thankful for that. Little bits of support show me that ultimately doing this is a worthwhile endeavor, rather than it just being some ‘living inside my head’ kind of stuff.

                If you’d like then, become a fan, become a friend. I’d like this to work both ways, with people telling me things as well. My approach to this fan page is painfully new; I hope I can take this journey down Zuckerberg lane with all of you. Sadly, first has already been taken, but there are countless other numbers waiting right for the grasping. To be treated to a number, simply go here

What do you think you have to do to live a meaningful + authentic life in 2k10?

Yeah house, don't conform to society's so-called "standards"

Each morning when I wake up I think of what the answer to how to live a meaningful and authentic life will be. The answer doesn’t dramatically differ from year to year, those basics remain the same. And now that the year is almost over, I left wondering whether or not I learned anything from the year. 

                One thing that happened this year was everybody got more negative. There was a lot of hate vibes floating around not just in these interwebs but in real life.  So I’d say to have a meaningful and authentic life in 2010 you had to be positive. I mean, there needs to be someone to combat this negativity. And when somebody did seem to truly love life (that double-rainbow guy) everybody laughed at him. Sure, maybe it is a bit ridiculous enjoying a rainbow THAT much, but he really was appreciating everything around him. Being a little overly optimistic is better than being overly cynical, a problem I used to have in a big way, before I overcame it somehow. 

                Authentic and meaning I feel is very geography-specific. New York this summer had beautiful, gorgeous weather. I spent a great deal of my time at the beach, which sort of inspired me to name this blog out of that positive experience. Beach-going and swimming might not be important for everyone, but just being able to zone out for a few seconds under the water makes you more authentic. You bob up and down allowing the current to move you. No longer are you in control, you’ve given yourself up to the larger currents in life. Authentic means you occasionally surrender to larger forces, allowing the environment to shape you rather than you imposing yourself on the environment. Despite this belief I’m still a fan of heating and air conditioning. 

                2010 meant being dissatisfied. People complained so much I couldn’t even talk to friends about politics, music, or literature. They’d just tense up and say “I don’t want to talk about it.” Nobody felt happy. Being authentic means avoiding these little personal dramas. Realize you don’t necessarily have control over others. I’ve seen countless relationships break up due to control issues.

                I guess to have an authentic and meaningful life is to be content. It is the understanding that no matter what your problems are, they are minor in comparison with the bigger picture. So when I see things like “these are your problems” and it’s a sad looking Goth kid, and seeing a picture saying “these are their problems” and they are homeless, you should count your lucky stars. Be thankful. 

                Listening to good music doesn’t hurt either.  But realize that maybe not everybody sees eye to eye with you. That’s alright. Make heart waves, not hate waves. I know this is something that is universal but I feel it makes life so much easier for me. 

-Note: original question asked by those seekers of truth, the LOLZ dolls found here:

Enlighten Your Mind!