I want to surf and swim in the ocean, as toxic as it may be.

I want to visit where the sun's rays sparkle like glitter in the horizon,
all whilst you run your fingers through my hair.

The line which separates dream and memory is action. Is it in me?

Taste

I tasted death this morning.

I walk on the black tar below my feet. The darkest black beneath me.

Why was I saved? Was it to calm me? to tame me?

As I walk on the black tar, down the road, I see a black car.

There is a reason its headlights are on. They are on to save me.

And they definitely have.

Weighings

Most people see me the same way: they doubt my intelligence, but later learn that I have an abundance of it. When I speak of my accomplishments, I'm greeted with extraordinary compliment, as if I did better than I was expected to. That kind of thinking is what got me here in the first place. It is ultimately up to me to set expectations for myself. That is what will get me ahead.

In the English sentence, every word has a connotation. I pay attention to this. Many people don't know this, but my observation skills are very keen. I notice every slight detail. Even in your speech. I make extensive use of these subtleties and I don't know who else. does that When I speak (and really, this goes for any speaker), I carefully distinguish between "when" and "if". One implies certainty, the other chance. This has huge consequences. If I refer to an event and say "when", and you don't object, you actually confirm that it will happen. When I say "if" it happens and there's no call to its certainty or lack of, then I err on the side of caution that the event will not occur.

Is that not right? Well if it isn't, maybe you should start paying attention to the words being used.

Viva la vida...story of my life.

The voice of reason speaks beyond friendship. You yourself are responsible for the company you keep.

Blue Light Chronicles

The one class that I skipped the most was Religious Studies. I didn't buy the book, so I never finished the readings and found it pointless to go to class. At this point, that class has had the most relevance in my life. Finally, the humanities make their impact in my day-to-day life. They're not as pointless as all Science majors think they are.

The most pertinent class this quarter was my Religious Studies class. The concepts that I learned in that class have really helped me make sense of my life. As some of you may know, my birthday passed a few days ago. My friend Aleena and I always get into an argument about my birthday because I refuse to tell anyone when my birthday is. She believes that my birthday should be known to everyone. At first, I thought Aleena and I were on two different sides of the problem. It seemed her mindset was wrong, but thanks to this Religious Studies class and some reflection on my part, we're looking at the same mindset from two different points of view.

I believed that birthday was mundane, it was just an ordinary day. People always forgot it was my birthday and so the reason I never tell anyone is because they're going to forget it anyways. Aleena on the other hand believes that someone's birthday is a very sacred day and that it should be celebrated, by not celebrating it, I am disrespecting the sanctity of life.

And here comes the idea of taboo, thank you to James C. Livingston. My birthday was not mundane to me at all, in fact it was ultra-sacred. I did not want my birthday to be known by others because they create it to be mundane. Strangers (and some distant friends) knowing my birthday took the sacred aspect out of my birthday, thus the definition of Livingston's taboo. She celebrates the sanctity through sharing, I celebrate the sanctity by not sharing. Interesting, don't you think?

It's also interesting to look at the ABC drama Lost and to see their society through a religious perspective. It should be a fun season and intellectual twist to entertainment.

So let's continue with my stats class. It was actually Econ 101 or Econ Stats, but it wasn't really econ, it was stats. How did that help my world outlook?

According to the New York Times, 1.6 million Chinese residents have been displaced due to the floods and earthquakes that have occurred. According to the harsh mathematics, that's less than 1% of the population. Will the Chinese government actually do something for them? I haven't done my reading so I wouldn't know. Would any government pay attention to a grieving 1% of the population? Would the press need to present the people's plight for the government to do good and help? Too many questions and not enough answers. But this gives me evidence that the human race can be inherently good. The fact that so many people are concerned about 1.6 million people on the other side of the world or on the other side of the state line gives me hope that the world isn't so bad after all.

Los Angeles: The City of Hope

As my good friend Erica Younge said, "I have never been so optimistic after a loss" and that is exactly how I feel. The lakers came back 22 points from a 24 point deficit late in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Had the referees been officiating fairly, the Lakers would not have been in that conundrum in the first place. And still! They shot back giving the entire Celtic team a huge shock.

We're two games down, the Celtics are halfway there, but it's our turn to play some ball, LA style. If we can do what we did in Boston, a three game home sweep should not be a problem. I leave it up to the fortunate (and I'm not only talking about luck) fans who will at Staples Center to give Boston the heat and cheer our team to Victory. Please don't give up. If Kobe didn't give up in the 3rd quarter, you shouldn't give up by the 3rd game.

-Zahir