In Order To Survive
In the wake of renewed overseas tensions, amidst domestic political strife and worldwide turmoil, among a steadily falling and heavily challenged economy, every individual has to look out for what's most important: number one.
Clichéd, it's a cutthroat, dog-eat-dog world out there. Generosity exists, but it's still essential for a person to make sure their futures are secure even during a successful present. To put it bluntly, I'm saying that if you want to make it in this world, you have to, as Q told James Bond in The World is Not Enough, "Always make sure to have an escape plan."
A few resolutions I made for 2006:
1. Limit spending
I am by nature a spendthrift, and having a high-paying job ($8.65+ at Stockwell Cafeteria, more now since I've been promoted) first semester didn't help. I blew off more than $1500 on various things, none of it really going to waste, but in retrospective I wish I would've saved more. My plan to buy a motorcycle, more specifically a seven grand Suzuki Katana 750 with ground effects, decals, and in-body lights, during the summer. I can still probably get one used, and I might pursue that if I have enough at the end of the year/spring-summer. Still, I'm cutting down on my spending on two of my main cashdrain sources: pot and video games.
2. Stop smoking weed so much
On the same token, I really want to cut down on my MJ use. Mary Jane and I have become best friends, but sometimes BFFs have to be separated for the good of both parties. I love getting high, and the feeling is an incredible one that makes me laugh when anti-stoners (most of whom drink) try giving (and ultimately fail) me reasons why pot is bad. Weed has even been legalized in Denver because it's MUCH safer to drive stoned than drunk.
Still, smoking so much first semester prevented me from doing two things: getting better grades and losing more weight. I was satisfied with my 3.2 first semester, but I know if I didn't look forward to toking every night I wouldn't have rushed my homework or bullshitted essays. I don't just think, I know I would've gotten better marks if I didn't get so distracted. I've lost 20 pounds since the beginning of the year, and if I hadn't had eaten so much after getting high (I'm a fucking machine when eating stoned) I would've lost more. Still, I'm content with being at a lean, ripped 180, and honestly wouldn't want to get any lighter.
I'm limiting smoking to weekends and maybe, just occasionally, a weekday toke, in which I'd have to relieve a LOT of stress that working out and endorphins couldn't solve.
3. Get grades up
Self-explanatory. My freshman year I hardly went to classes. There was even a two week period last year when I think I went to only one class. I somehow survived, but was nearly (and threatened to be) put on academic probation and had to meet with my counselor several times throughout the spring/summer and this year. Despite these black marks on my record I use this as motivation and thankfully I've already overcome that problem. Still, as stated before, I know I can bring my grades higher with less distractions and just plain more studying. And if i ever doubt myself or get lazy, I just tell myself I'm at the University of Michigan for a reason, and that's to excel academically. Not partying, not drinking, not smoking.
4. Get into better shape
I've already dropped a ton of pounds this sem and am in the best shape of my life, but the inevitable goal of a six pack is still looming on the horizon. I'm going to join the boxing team this semester, and the first practice is today, though I'm deciding whether or not I want to go today.
5. Become more cultured and aware of the world as a whole
This is huge. I've already got a pretty creative mind, and I personally think I use more than the 10% of my brain that is the average human staistic (or rather, all 10% of it is in the left side). But I want to know more about the world in general, about politics and overseas relations, because I personally think the world is slowly drawing towards either another world war or another huge change. I've recently subscribed to a bunch of scholarly magazines, the first being a two year sub to The New Yorker, an essential for an aspiring writer like me to read. The writing is supposed to be the créme de la créme of American society, and so I want to build on my current writing skills. The second magazine I got was a one year sub to Newsweek, so I can continutally keep up on my news stories. The third mag was a two year sub to Foreign Policy, which analyzes and predicts future trends and actions on our fragile foreign atmosphere. The fourth was a three year sub to, of course, Maxim, any guy can't be without that.
I've also dedicated myself to reading more newspapers (Michigan Daily, Metro Times, etc.) and nearly subscribed daily to the New York Times, but it was $300. I've also dedicated myself to reading more books and watching more news, particularly CNN and Headline News because I don't think my apartment gets FoxNews. I've done all of these things a lot because of the encounter/comment battle I've had with a person from Saudi Arabia, who really opened my eyes to how ignorant not only I, but all college students, are towards current events, even though we like to think we know a whole lot more than we actually do.
With this last point in emphasis, I've realized that this world is not going to be a pretty place in the future. After reading the New York Times about an hour ago, I was horrified to find out that top-tier companies like Verizon, Lockheed Martin, and IBM are all dropping their pensions, essentially leaving their employers in the dust when it comes to retirement. People are on their own now, and if those huge corporations can't finance a retirement plan, then I don't want to see how it'll be with lesser-known companies.
If you looked at the world two, three years ago, engineering was in huge demand, which basically gave people guaranteed job security. Now, automotive companies are cutting thousands upon thousands of jobs, my own dad being in danger of losing his job when Ford cuts 5,000 North American white collar jobs this January. Not only that, but airline companies are going bankrupt left and right.
As much as I hate to say it, America's economy is on the decline, and job security is limited, even if existential. One has to look out for themself, especially in terms of the future.
Therefore, I'm taking action now to make sure that when I'm older I won't have to worry about any of that shit.
The first step is putting money away. Not in my checking account, because that money goes faster than Olympic sprinters. I'm going to set up a Roth IRA account, making monthly deposits of, at the very minimum, half my monthly paycheck. You're only limited to a certain amount of deposits depending on which income bracket you're in, but I figure if I (and you too) keep this up throughout my further years I can retire at the very least a millionare. The concept is simple: put money away, let intrest accrue for years, and when you're ready to retire and chill for the rest of your life, have a ton of money on hand.
The second step which I'm seriously considering up to the point of nearly visiting a recruiter, is to join the Army after I'm through with college. I'm considering going to grad school at Columbia or Ohio for Journalism, but I don't know how well I'd do on the GRE after shutting down the right side of my brain for four years. I figure I'd sign on for a couple of years, and I'd personally want to ship out to the Middle East. Beyond that I'd like to see combat. It sounds pretty stupid, and a soldier who was a college grad on the incredible (and my favorite) show Over There had a nickname of "Dim". But I feel like if I can make it through unscathed (I would honestly prefer death over dismemberment) not only would that be a huge accomplishment, it would truly open my eyes to the situation out there, getting a new perspective from the domestic sources that are a bunch of shit. I also feel like because my family are immigrants (we all are but mine are more such), I owe at least a couple of years of my life to this country and all it stands for. I've been treated well here, never being discriminated against, and I think I ought to pay the country back. I'd personally want to see combat, and I feel with my athleticism I would make a damn good infantryman, but if I was needed doing intel or crunching numbers I would do that too. My family is a military one, my dad serving in the Air Force years back and my uncle a career officer in the Army, recently promoted to Major and working at Fort Bragg (where the Navy SEALs, Green Berets, Delta Force, FBI's HRT and other various special forces train at).
And I think the perks of life after serving in the military are invaluable. Having that backup security is crucial to life in the future, and even more so since I want to become a low-paid journalist.
In any case, I urge that you too look at your future and what it holds. If you're still uncertain that's fine, but make sure you've always got backups, and most importantly, an escape plan.
Clichéd, it's a cutthroat, dog-eat-dog world out there. Generosity exists, but it's still essential for a person to make sure their futures are secure even during a successful present. To put it bluntly, I'm saying that if you want to make it in this world, you have to, as Q told James Bond in The World is Not Enough, "Always make sure to have an escape plan."
A few resolutions I made for 2006:
1. Limit spending
I am by nature a spendthrift, and having a high-paying job ($8.65+ at Stockwell Cafeteria, more now since I've been promoted) first semester didn't help. I blew off more than $1500 on various things, none of it really going to waste, but in retrospective I wish I would've saved more. My plan to buy a motorcycle, more specifically a seven grand Suzuki Katana 750 with ground effects, decals, and in-body lights, during the summer. I can still probably get one used, and I might pursue that if I have enough at the end of the year/spring-summer. Still, I'm cutting down on my spending on two of my main cashdrain sources: pot and video games.
2. Stop smoking weed so much
On the same token, I really want to cut down on my MJ use. Mary Jane and I have become best friends, but sometimes BFFs have to be separated for the good of both parties. I love getting high, and the feeling is an incredible one that makes me laugh when anti-stoners (most of whom drink) try giving (and ultimately fail) me reasons why pot is bad. Weed has even been legalized in Denver because it's MUCH safer to drive stoned than drunk.
Still, smoking so much first semester prevented me from doing two things: getting better grades and losing more weight. I was satisfied with my 3.2 first semester, but I know if I didn't look forward to toking every night I wouldn't have rushed my homework or bullshitted essays. I don't just think, I know I would've gotten better marks if I didn't get so distracted. I've lost 20 pounds since the beginning of the year, and if I hadn't had eaten so much after getting high (I'm a fucking machine when eating stoned) I would've lost more. Still, I'm content with being at a lean, ripped 180, and honestly wouldn't want to get any lighter.
I'm limiting smoking to weekends and maybe, just occasionally, a weekday toke, in which I'd have to relieve a LOT of stress that working out and endorphins couldn't solve.
3. Get grades up
Self-explanatory. My freshman year I hardly went to classes. There was even a two week period last year when I think I went to only one class. I somehow survived, but was nearly (and threatened to be) put on academic probation and had to meet with my counselor several times throughout the spring/summer and this year. Despite these black marks on my record I use this as motivation and thankfully I've already overcome that problem. Still, as stated before, I know I can bring my grades higher with less distractions and just plain more studying. And if i ever doubt myself or get lazy, I just tell myself I'm at the University of Michigan for a reason, and that's to excel academically. Not partying, not drinking, not smoking.
4. Get into better shape
I've already dropped a ton of pounds this sem and am in the best shape of my life, but the inevitable goal of a six pack is still looming on the horizon. I'm going to join the boxing team this semester, and the first practice is today, though I'm deciding whether or not I want to go today.
5. Become more cultured and aware of the world as a whole
This is huge. I've already got a pretty creative mind, and I personally think I use more than the 10% of my brain that is the average human staistic (or rather, all 10% of it is in the left side). But I want to know more about the world in general, about politics and overseas relations, because I personally think the world is slowly drawing towards either another world war or another huge change. I've recently subscribed to a bunch of scholarly magazines, the first being a two year sub to The New Yorker, an essential for an aspiring writer like me to read. The writing is supposed to be the créme de la créme of American society, and so I want to build on my current writing skills. The second magazine I got was a one year sub to Newsweek, so I can continutally keep up on my news stories. The third mag was a two year sub to Foreign Policy, which analyzes and predicts future trends and actions on our fragile foreign atmosphere. The fourth was a three year sub to, of course, Maxim, any guy can't be without that.
I've also dedicated myself to reading more newspapers (Michigan Daily, Metro Times, etc.) and nearly subscribed daily to the New York Times, but it was $300. I've also dedicated myself to reading more books and watching more news, particularly CNN and Headline News because I don't think my apartment gets FoxNews. I've done all of these things a lot because of the encounter/comment battle I've had with a person from Saudi Arabia, who really opened my eyes to how ignorant not only I, but all college students, are towards current events, even though we like to think we know a whole lot more than we actually do.
With this last point in emphasis, I've realized that this world is not going to be a pretty place in the future. After reading the New York Times about an hour ago, I was horrified to find out that top-tier companies like Verizon, Lockheed Martin, and IBM are all dropping their pensions, essentially leaving their employers in the dust when it comes to retirement. People are on their own now, and if those huge corporations can't finance a retirement plan, then I don't want to see how it'll be with lesser-known companies.
If you looked at the world two, three years ago, engineering was in huge demand, which basically gave people guaranteed job security. Now, automotive companies are cutting thousands upon thousands of jobs, my own dad being in danger of losing his job when Ford cuts 5,000 North American white collar jobs this January. Not only that, but airline companies are going bankrupt left and right.
As much as I hate to say it, America's economy is on the decline, and job security is limited, even if existential. One has to look out for themself, especially in terms of the future.
Therefore, I'm taking action now to make sure that when I'm older I won't have to worry about any of that shit.
The first step is putting money away. Not in my checking account, because that money goes faster than Olympic sprinters. I'm going to set up a Roth IRA account, making monthly deposits of, at the very minimum, half my monthly paycheck. You're only limited to a certain amount of deposits depending on which income bracket you're in, but I figure if I (and you too) keep this up throughout my further years I can retire at the very least a millionare. The concept is simple: put money away, let intrest accrue for years, and when you're ready to retire and chill for the rest of your life, have a ton of money on hand.
The second step which I'm seriously considering up to the point of nearly visiting a recruiter, is to join the Army after I'm through with college. I'm considering going to grad school at Columbia or Ohio for Journalism, but I don't know how well I'd do on the GRE after shutting down the right side of my brain for four years. I figure I'd sign on for a couple of years, and I'd personally want to ship out to the Middle East. Beyond that I'd like to see combat. It sounds pretty stupid, and a soldier who was a college grad on the incredible (and my favorite) show Over There had a nickname of "Dim". But I feel like if I can make it through unscathed (I would honestly prefer death over dismemberment) not only would that be a huge accomplishment, it would truly open my eyes to the situation out there, getting a new perspective from the domestic sources that are a bunch of shit. I also feel like because my family are immigrants (we all are but mine are more such), I owe at least a couple of years of my life to this country and all it stands for. I've been treated well here, never being discriminated against, and I think I ought to pay the country back. I'd personally want to see combat, and I feel with my athleticism I would make a damn good infantryman, but if I was needed doing intel or crunching numbers I would do that too. My family is a military one, my dad serving in the Air Force years back and my uncle a career officer in the Army, recently promoted to Major and working at Fort Bragg (where the Navy SEALs, Green Berets, Delta Force, FBI's HRT and other various special forces train at).
And I think the perks of life after serving in the military are invaluable. Having that backup security is crucial to life in the future, and even more so since I want to become a low-paid journalist.
In any case, I urge that you too look at your future and what it holds. If you're still uncertain that's fine, but make sure you've always got backups, and most importantly, an escape plan.
posted by KTrain at 3:31 PM
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