One week done and life has been really wonderful. Challenges so far:
Using the TriMet ticket app doesnt work if your phone is out of power. My phone died literally seconds after I shoved my valid day-pass ticket.
My life is similar to my college life in the following way: I walk around with a thin wallet with an ID but no money or debit card. I did this in college to avoid the temptation of buying food that was off-mealplan. The challenge presented itself this past Tuesday when I had to take my debit card with me to Science On Tap at the Clinton Street Theater. I was feeling sad and was feeling the temptation to buy an unhealthy snackfood. The temptation was present because I had the plastic in my pocket. I had the power.
Discoveries
Volunteering is often accompanied by free food. I have eaten more pizza this week than all of 2016 prior. I guess there are two ways my life is like college.
Having meals with friends is another way to be social and share and eat and not spend money. A picnic-in-the-park was a $0 way to do lunch with my friend and far mor pleasent than a trip to the carts. I have a few more social meals on my schedule as way.
Solve the problem with the things you have in the room. This is a strategy I have been experimenting with for months. An unlearning to counter engineer-brained perfectionism. I have been using this strategy much more it seems this month.
Baking - How little I have done these past few years. This morning I made polenta with breakfast and had a lot left over. Polenta doesn't keep well... so I threw together a poor version of cornbread.
I took a few days this week to stock up my pantry. Rice, Quinoa, Beans, Sweet potatoes, Tofu etc... I probably spent about $150... which is at least $100 less than I would spend on food in a typical month. Because the dry goods pantry is communal with my roommate, he is rightly worried that by the end of the month the pantry will be emptied out.
I also filled up my gas tank.
Oh, and the one in my car too!
On day 0, before the challenge month even began I was already begining to experience some 'think different'. I have a typical 1'x3' mirror in my room. I was thinking to buy those screws with plastic nubs on them to hold it onto my closet door. I saw that I already had 3M Extreme Mounting Tape. If you haven't used this double-sided foam tape yet, you might want to check it out for your next project. It is ridiculously strong. In short I saw that my life was rich with stuff... and I needen't go buy something else to solve my problem.
Another insight from day 0. I've been puzzling over ways to get to my therapist combining Bus and Bike. However the office is where Lake Oswego, Tigard and SW Portland meet. Right along the 5. Easy to drive to... no bus lines run there. I discovered that there is a rush-hours-only bus which goes right there... so by shifting my appointment times from mid-day to 4-5pm I can get there without driving.
Day 1 was mostly uneventful. Cooked lunch with the roommates, they contributed Tofu and veggies, I contributed Soba noodles. Scored 2 awesome vegan burritos from the free food porch and dealt with a lot of pain and sadness in my heart.
I'm just a Thinker, who already blew his shot
I get along with old timers
'cause I don't wear blinders in a world thats goin to pot
I can't find a girl, no
'Cause I don't lay game too much
I treat 'em like friends but it always really ends
OK, so I admit it. I like Pop music. I indulge in it from time to time, and when running. The only portable music device that I feel comfortable to drop while I'm running is a $7.99 AM/FM radio straight from Shenzen. Today while running I tuned in to a fuzzy signal from an in-between radio station for a part of Carson Daly's 'Daly Download', which is today's version of the Casey Kasem Top 40. Through the static it sounded to me like they were playing the songs from this weekend's countdown that got the most listener votes/Tweets.
They Were:
5. Pillow Talk - Zayrn
"'I love to hold you close, tonight and always
I love to wake up next to you
So we'll piss off the neighbors In the place that feels the tears The place to lose your fears....
It's our paradise and it's our war zone"
4. I Took A Pill In Ibiza - Mike Posner
" I took a pill in Ibiza
To show Avicii I was cool
And when I finally got sober, felt 10 years older....
I drive a sports car just to prove I'm a real big baller cause I made a million dollars And I spend it on girls and shoes
But you don't wanna be high like me...
And I can't keep a girl, no
Cause as soon as the sun comes up I cut 'em all loose and work's my excuse But the truth is I can't open up"
3. Work From Home - Fifth Harmony
"Put in them hours, I'mma make it harder
I'm sending pic after picture, I'mma get you fired...
Let's put it into motion I'mma give you a promotion"
2. My House - Flo Rida
"Welcome to my house
Baby, take control now We can't even slow down..."
1. Work - Rihanna
[Indecipherable]
Top 5 on the Pop Charts from the first week of March 2006.
5. Be Without You - Mary J Blige
"Anybody who's ever loved ya know just what I feel
Too hard to fake it, nothing can replace it"
4. Temperature - Sean Paul
How could we forget this hit?
"... I wanna be keepin' you warm
I got the right temperature for shelter you from the storm Oh lord, gal I got the right tactics to turn you on, and girl I... Wanna be the Papa...You can be the Mom....oh oh!"
3. Grillz - Nelly
"Rob the jewelry store and tell 'em make me a grill...
Ya see my granmama hate it, but my lil mama love it...
Had a whole top diamonds and da bottom Row's gold"
And for topical Fun this line:
"Gotta bill in my mouth like I'm Hillary Rodham"
I truly must hand it to Nelly for being consistently hilarious.
2. You're Beautiful - James Blunt
"I saw an angel.
Of that I'm sure. She smiled at me on the subway. She was with another man. But I won't lose no sleep on that, ' Cause I've got a plan."
[That last line is the part where I almost vomit into my mouth]
1. Check On It - Beyonce
" [Slim Thug]
Good girls gotta get down with them gangstas Go head girl put some back and some neck up on it....
[Beyonce]
Ladies let em check up on it, watch it while he check up on it
Dip it, pop it, twerk it, stop it...
I can tell you wanna taste it, but I'm gonna make you chase it You got to be patient, I like my men patient"
So by Now you're wondering: Evan Whats the Big Freaking Deal with these Pop Songs?
At 27 it's more than a little disheartening to hear your spiritual teacher say: "War wont stop, there is no messianic age coming where we all coexist in peace." I had to hear that on Sunday. I wont make a prediction as to the future... but I will say that I detect a cultural shift, NOW, today. And I would like to read it as a sign that the world is moving towards love and harmony.
So what did we have ten years ago? In 2006 the top 5 had: 2 songs about sexual attraction, 2 songs about love, and one about Materialism. Nelly's 'Grillz' is the classic: "Get money, flaunt your gold, get girls" plot line. Mary J Blige is singing about love, but also about attraction and longing. James Blunt's 'Your Beautiful' definitely has a tone of 'Men owning women" that I find unwholesome.
Beyonce, all respect to The Queen, has a mixed message, twirling up sexual attraction with a few messages about female empowerment. She later went off the deep end with "Put A Ring On It" Really? Women can be reserved for exclusive use by the application of a valued rock?
What do we have today: Still 2 on love and 2 on attraction, but there is a shift of tone. Flo Rida is playing the sub and inviting the women to take control, when was the last time you heard a rapper take that stance? Zayrn sings about the connection and challenges that revolve around sex, without being raunchy. It's a much more balanced and big picture view than the traditional me-focused pop song plot line "I fell in love... I got my heart broken." Now what of the fifth song:
A song about a profound trip and realizing that everything we're told to want is empty and lacking fulfillment. WOW! For a song with that subject matter to be getting top ten airplay and Youtube views is powerful. It is anti-materialist and speaking to the deep sadness in many peoples lives of self-disconnection. Damn! This resonates powerfully for me because of my own journey which grew from body-blindness and self-disconnection to a place where I can practice empathy, spirituality and acceptance.
Amzingly the top Google suggested AutoComplete was "I Took A Pill In Ibiza Meaning"
For all of the other 9 songs the top AutoComplete was 'lyrics' or 'Mp3' or some such. To me this demonstrates to me that people are curious about this different pop song and searching by the hundreds of thousands for what the song means.
This 5 v.5 example is a case study in what I've been observing as a cultural shift the past couple years. Look for a future post examining this issue again.
Bonus: I heard this beautifully themed pop song on FM today, and while it hasn't yet cracked the top 10, it is also a good sign in my book:
