Posted by Raul on September 30, 2010
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Living life is like traveling a road.
Your kind of life depends on which kind of road you are traveling in. You make plans and struggle to make them happen, you prepare yourself and work hard to go in one direction you want to go, but you are in a road and have to follow it in every turn if you want to keep moving and going.
You might plan a destination but is where the road goes where you will end up, and the kind of trip you will have will depend in the kind of road you are in. You can only make slight changes to your life within the limits of the road. If you want a completely different kind of life you will have to switch roads.
The road you are in depends on the kind of road your parents were and the situation around you while you were growing up. If you don’t like that road you might dream of being in a different kind of road and plan to switch, change lanes, take the interconnecting one and go.
To switch roads you have to learn the differences between them so you can drive in the new one without hitting others, crashing and having to go back to the original, known road, where you can move at ease based in your past experiences and knowledge.
Each kind of road will imply a different kind of life, with its own requirements, complications and pleasures.
Your struggle is first to choose what kind of road you want for you, then working hard to get into that road, and finally, spend the rest of your life complying with the requirements to remain in that road while making plans, fighting for them, and adapting them according to the directions that road takes you.
HIGHWAY ROAD
Smooth, fast, luxurious, very comfortable to travel. The best things of life are in this road; luxury homes, luxury vacations, the best restaurants and hotels, fine clothing, fame and fortune, respect and prestige.
The road is fast but turns smoothly, it is wide and clean with many rest areas and places to stop and enjoy the view. All the services are at hand and they are the best life can offer.
It requires lots of money and a shark’s personality to acquire it, always living on the edge of pleasures and risks, always being informed with the latest news and technologies, cultivating yourself, learning new stuff, always making connections and a network that will be necessary to remain on top of the game. You have to want more and fight for it all the times.
SECONDARY ROAD
Relatively smooth, slow and comfortable, life goes to a slower pace and is easier to keep up with requirements.
The road turns sharper and is not too wide and smooth, so must be always aware, but since speeds are slower (the pace of life) there’s always time to react to changes and keep on the road. Services are not so common and usually are the family type of business, so it implies a family life more than a business type.
It doesn’t require so much money so there is less pressure and more freedom from social image and requirements. It allows time to enjoy life in a more simple way without having all the luxury of a Highway Life Road and its requirements.
This is the kind of life people middle class live, always dreaming of the luxury of the Highway, yet enjoying the simplicity and freedom of this Secondary Road. You can be observant and slow reacting and have to divide between fighting and acceptance.
GRAVEL ROAD
This is a rough and dusty way of life, the kind of poor people live. There are no luxuries, no image, and no appreciation. It is a hard life with very little enjoyment and not much hope of a better future.
This road is rough, turns sharply unexpectedly, is up and down, takes you thru places that are not much traveled, ugly places some times, boring places in others, and there are no services available, if you need something you must ask for help to the people living there, you have to befriend to survive.
Many people live in this road and dream of a Highway Road for all the luxury that provides but they don’t know the requirements to be in it, they live a sad and hard life never going too far and never enjoying what life has to offer, but at the same time is a life without requirements of learning or networking, never pushing yourself too hard, so it’s a life of living the moment and enjoying simplicity and nature without plans. You have to be the fate acceptant kind of person.
Most of us are in the Secondary Road while many others are in the Gravel Road and, especially, with the access to internet we have the opportunity to see images of the Highway Road, so we tend to dream of being there, traveling smoothly in the luxury of that so venerated road, yet when we struggle to get there we find the requirements we should meet and conclude that making money is the solution, but we tend to forget that the way to make money to change lanes and have the driving skills to remain in our new road is improving ourselves first and get that shark’s personality, so we can have the tools to generate the money that will allow us to finally create the changes we want so to switch lanes to the Highway Road
It is too easy to think that following a list of points we can make the money and simply “jump” to the Highway Road, forgetting that being in that Highway Road implies more than just buying designer clothing, pretending to be there and speaking using a different kind of tone.
Just another crazy thought! 
Raul
Posted by Raul on September 27, 2010
These are some situations that happen when you are in a new place without knowing the language; some happened to me, some happened to friends from different nationalities that also didn’t know the language at the beginning.
-After asking for directions in a store, she was told the place she was looking for was in Colorado Avenue in thirty seconds. She thought: “That Avenue cannot be just thirty seconds from here!” It was Colorado Avenue and 32nd.
-A friend just arrived to the States was lost after going out for a walk to see the new place he was going to live in. After finding a public phone and calling home he was asked where he was so someone could go get him.
(in Spanish)
-Where are you?
-I don’t know where I am, I’m lost!
-Read the street signs to me so I’ll know where you are.
-I am in “One Way” with “No Parking”
-Another friend had a hard time with hot and cold water. Every time he wanted to use water from the sink he got burned.
In Spanish cold is “helado” and hot is “caliente” so, forgetting things were in English here he always looked at the knobs and chose “H” for cold (Helado) or “C” for hot (Caliente). It took him a couple of months to get in his memory the real meaning of those letters in the knobs.
-I was told the story of a guy who was very happy with all the money saved in food after he found some specific cans in the grocery store; he didn’t know English so he couldn’t read, but he recognized the food by the picture of a dog in the labels.
-When they say Cowgirl, are they saying she is fat?
-How can I Get Lost if I’m standing in front of you without moving and I know my way around?
-Raining cats and dogs! Do the clouds get a lawsuit from PETA? (Just the thought of those poor creatures hitting the concrete floor! Bones, blood and flesh spread everywhere…yikes!)
Training: (noun) The action of teaching a person or animal a particular skill or type of behavior
Your: (possessive determiner) Belonging to or associated with the person or people that the speaker is addressing.
Mind: (noun) The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think…
So “Training your mind” could be: “Teaching your dog for him to be aware of the world”
Strange indeed!
It is my belief that a language creates the way we think, so people who learned English as their first language think slightly different from people who learned Spanish as their first language, from people who learned German as their first language, etc.
The brain works in a different way moving the elements to associate in a different order, so conclusions and ideas take a different perspective and meaning.
That could become a barrier and a problem, but also can be a possibility to give ourselves the opportunity to see the world from other people’s perspective and learn something else from them.
Since living in the US I had the opportunity to meet many people from different countries and with different languages, and although some times it has been complicated to understand the way of thinking, it has always been a very rewarding experience.
The human brain is such an amazing thing!
Raul
Posted by Raul on September 23, 2010
I don’t believe in a God’s existence as presented socially, so I don’t have a set of commandments to live by, I am at my own will.
So how can I expect to live my life?
Let’s say that I have two sons.
The first one is always coming to my house and thanking me for all that I have done for him; he talks about me out there; he is willing to kill for me, but he is also selfish and dishonest; he wants power and money; he goes like “I didn’t make things the way they are, I’m just surviving in this world” as an excuse to abuse and act in a self rewarding way without regard for others.
The other never came back. He never calls me and never thanked me; he went on to do his life. But I know that he is a good man, he is a good friend, father and husband, and people can trust him. He is not worried about money and power, he enjoys life and nature; he respects others and tries to be just and honorable.
Which one would make me more proud?
The second one would be my choice and I believe it’ll be the logical choice also.
So, if God does exist, and is like people say: eternally loving and worried about his children’s happiness and in no case selfish, wanting to be worshiped (that would be a religion’s concept) then I will try to be like the second son, to make him proud of me.
If he doesn’t exist, I can still be proud of myself, enjoy life and nature, family and friendship, and even that with this way I’ll never be rich and powerful, I know I’ll be happy with myself.
So I believe it is not important to spend life questioning about if God does exist or not, it is not important to go to church and pray, and of course, is not important to escalate in society and become rich and powerful. I think a God would care a whole lot less what we believe than he cares about what is in our hearts and how we treat each other, so what really matter is to put all our efforts in trying to be better people, become real human beings, and enjoy life in the process.
I know it may sound selfish for some, but after looking at religious wars that killed and tortured so many throughout history, a wealthy church with a Pope that wears expensive hand made shoes and lives surrounded by riches while preaching modesty and giving ways; and even local priests that preach every Sunday the rules to live by, yet scandals and left behind children abound, I cannot believe in their words in other ways than religions are just a man made business for conquering, ruling and profit building purposes.
Contradictions exist in the own words of the teachers when their preaching is compared with their actions.
If when I die I have to face a God that I never believed in and he happens to be the way is taught by religion, eternally loving and understanding, then I’m sure he will understand my motives, smile and say “Come in, make yourself at home”
If I found a God that requires worshiping and supports Holly Wars, then I’m in deep shit!
Raul
Posted by Raul on September 20, 2010
There have been many inventions throughout time that we can classify as very important or useful in our lives, many creations that have helped us in achieving things or simplify our everyday tasks.
One of my personal favorites is the bicycle!
Even though I wasn’t an “all the time” rider, I did have my share of bicycles in my younger years in the past Millennium (yeah, I’m that old!) and I can remember brief images of happiness while pedaling around the block and trying things with my trusted bicycle of the moment.
It is my opinion there is no other transportation device that allows us to enjoy and experience the surroundings while traveling better than a bicycle. We can feel the breeze and the wind; we can hear every sound around and smell every scent that happens to be in the area we are going through.
About twenty five years ago I read in a newspaper the news about a man who wanted to travel and see the world, so he said goodbye to his girlfriend and took his bicycle to travel almost all around the planet, which took him twenty years! When he finished his trip he went back to find his girlfriend was still waiting for him, so they got married
At one hand, talk about waiting for a loved one! But at the other, what an experience it must have been! All the sights, all the feelings, all the memories…I would love to do something like that, but I’m not that crazy! (No, I won’t do it)
Such a simple machine that works as an “energy multiplier”
With the same energy used for walking five miles we can travel fifteen miles, thanks to the bicycle. We also can transport more packages than we could when just holding them in our hands.
I’m not talking here about the “green” aspect of a bicycle, which is very important nowadays indeed, but if you consider that a bicycle doesn’t need fuel, oil, heavy maintenance, registration, insurance, etc, there are so many elements, expenses and work we can save ourselves from when riding a bicycle instead of a car, or even a motorcycle or a scooter.
So for these reasons a bicycle represents freedom to move and explore, without having to carry too many tools or spare parts and without being dependant on finding supplies and fuel on the road.
“The bicycle will rule in apocalyptic times!” (Just kidding)
But maybe is mostly a thing for older generations.
My son is not a bicycle rider; he is just not interested and rather prefers to ride the bus when going back and forth to college, so he can relax and listen to history podcasts in his ipod. I think is a great thing though, so he is using the transportation time in a way of acquiring more knowledge…a practical way to use time.
But for the older generations the bicycle was more about enjoying the moment than using it wisely, I must admit (at least in my case)
So when I have the time and some energy left, I like to jump over my bicycle and have a short trip around in the area where I live, just to revive those memories of a child pedaling with energy against the wind; having a reddish face with the heat and a big smile that reflected a being enjoying the surroundings, the views, the breeze and the sights; enjoying the moment, the now, in this amazing planet we have.
Raul
Posted by Raul on September 16, 2010
Long ago there were exotic lands waiting to be discovered, conquered and exploited, but no more. We already know the whole geography of the planet and there are no new places to be charted and see for the first time, unless we go into space, which is difficult at this time.
But not so difficult to explore new territories in this modern world.
With the creation of the internet a new, parallel world has also been created. A parallel universe that can be traveled, explored and exploited.
Just like when word came about strange, far away lands, with exotic animals and opportunities to become wealthy and famous, the internet offers today the possibility for all of us the adventure of discovery and riches.
In past times people boarded wooden ships and started a journey of months to reach the promised land, some for the wealth, some for the fame, some for the freedom, today people board their private “Stargate” at home and travel to this new universe.
There were also those who were sent to the new lands as a sentence and had to adapt and create a new life in the new place, just like today some people have no option but to try to make the complex and unknown world of the internet work for them as the only alternative left when the economy in the physical world is crushing them.
Some of the original travelers died in the attempt while in the trip or in the new lands at the hands of natives or viruses and wild animals. Today travelers can die (figuratively) with a virus in their traveling ship (computer) or being attacked by nasty hackers, or simply get lost and confused by the many turns of this new world called internet.
Yet, there’s still the promise and motivation of riches and fame for many, so they make the trip with hopes and resolution in their minds, willing to sacrifice time and effort in order to reach their goals.
Some of them come back for a while but they are not the same anymore; they learned the local language and now they speak a mix of the new and their original, just like we see in physical life the creation of Spanglish, we see in these digital travelers the spoken language of “Netglish”, making difficult to understand what they are saying.
Some of these people have learnt to live in this new world and found they fit better than in the original, physical one. They can make friends, find support, exchange ideas and pursue a future in this promised digital land that couldn’t do in the physical counterpart, so they become “naturals” there and leave their physical bodies and basic activities behind just as a life support system.
Now we can find characters like “Total Destroyer” that dominates the game’s arena, give advice in forums, provides information in blogs and in general is respected and feared in the digital world, country of games, city of fighters and building of winners.
He dominates in this new world in his area and enjoy the respect and popularity that comes with it; yet when he travels back to the physical world we found Josh, a fifty years old, short, slightly overweight 5 feet man, moustache, living in a one bedroom apartment, driving an old battered Toyota to his job as a librarian at the local, small, waiting to be close, local library.
We can also find “Mystique Soul” teaching how to find our inner self, live a meaningful life and control our emotions for a more productive and happier life. She is considered the wise and prophetic teacher that help us survive the struggles of physical life in this physical world, and who also fill our senses with the beautiful pictures of nature and strange, epic places drawn by unknown artists.
Then she comes back to physical life to her job as a secretary in an insurance agency office, where she treats customers with the utmost respect and a beautiful smile.
Perhaps one of the craziest things is that now we have many people looking at this new world as the best way to live their dreams of being someone among the crowd; something that couldn’t be achieved in physical life. They become the naturals there and immigrants to this new world.
Then we have the Merchants of the new digital world:
Some of them sell information on how to live in this new place, some selling digital real estate in the form of hosting, some sell the exotic fabrics of Themes to dress up the houses of newcomers and give that personal touch everybody wants.
Don’t forget to implement your new home with the latest appliances and fixtures (plugins) to add functionality and a more comfortable living in your home
There are also those who trade in weapons to defend oneself from the dangers of the new land in the form of hackers, so always carry in your belt your login robot weapon and identity protection software when roaming the digital lands.
Also, don’t forget to get vaccinated with a proper antivirus to prevent those nasty viruses from attacking you.
There are also the endless stores of any city that sell different products for the digital and physical world as well.
Many of these merchants work in the new world to bring riches to the old, physical one.
Then we have the parks created for entertainment and relaxation like the many video sites that we can visit for a moment of free time and unwinding; but there’s always someone selling a treat there, or at least lots of publicity banners trying to capture the attention and business of unaware or not so strong people, just like in physical world.
Tourists are not forgotten in this new world; they can find all kind of “souvenirs” to purchase while visiting for some random information.
We also can see the police force and governmental organization created to control the behavior of locals and visitors alike in the form of possibly banning your login ID. They prevent you from entering some places and/or warn you about the merchandize you are about to see and possibly purchase in different places you can visit (warning pages). Also they can expel and revoke your stay permits if you behave in ways not allowed by the local governing body (banning your IP).
Then you are forced to use a fake ID (IP) by login in a site that allows you to surf from their premises.
We also find the black market of free downloads that established companies fight fiercely.
The old man in a wooden wagon, traveling from town to town telling stories to sell his miracle elixirs is now the site selling the ebook that will fix all your problems (how many of those do you have in your hard drive?)
Some people seems to be born to live and work in this new world by the natural abilities they have to interact and dominate, while others have to set for just sporadic visits to enjoy the place as a tourist and always come back to the old, physical world, where they seem to be more at ease.
Among the many that seem to adapt quickly we can find the youngsters that, given the fact they were born after the digital universe was created, they are growing and developing inhabiting both worlds at the same time, so their life and activities are adapted to this special conditions.
Their physical activities become reduced by the increased interaction with the digital world. For many adults that used to develop their activities in the physical world alone, the creation of the digital one has come as a simplification of many of the tasks that used to be part of their daily lives, yet they remember the old ways and, even though they wouldn’t like to go back to the old procedures, their minds still can process the possibility.
Yet for the youngest the stories of normal activities when only the physical world existed seem to be tales closer to fables or legends than past reality. Their eyes become bigger and their excitement grows when listening stories of children making toys out of cardboard and wood, and the enthusiastic stories of their parents about the fun of riding a bicycle, feeling the wind and overcoming purposely created obstacles like riding over a small rock without falling seems many times too much of a simple or stupid activity to participate in.
Physical movement slowly but surely is becoming an accessory in life rather than a natural part in the human body’s daily activities. The mind runs in the new digital parallel universe while the body remains in the physical world, just as an anachronism for the many that could happily migrate completely to the new digital universe.
Perhaps one of the tasks the younger generation will impose themselves in the near future would be to find the way to completely migrate to this new universe, so their lives would be closer to what can be seen in digitally created movies, which are closer to the reality younger generations live nowadays.
Then maybe some of the science fiction stories of the past could become the reality of the future, where digital thinking and feeling entities coexist with the physical ones, each one in their own world but both interconnected, and even deep friendships and love could develop among them, when they fail to find counterparts in their respective worlds.
This new world exists and is more than just a communication channel!
Now we have a complete new world that coexist parallel to the physical world and people of all walks of life traveling day and night between the two, in search of a personal, more meaningful life for them, without having to fight and win in a physical world that, sometimes for some, seems to have not enough room for everyone’s success.
Raul
