The problem is not materialism as such

The problem is not materialism as such. Rather, it is the underlying assumption that full satisfaction can arise from gratifying the senses alone. Unlike animals whose quest for happiness is restricted to survival and to the immediate gratification of sensory desires, we human beings have the capacity to experience happiness at a deeper level which, when achieved, can overwhelm unhappy experiences.
-His Holiness the Dalai Lama

The Quarter-Life Crisis

The Quarter-Life Crisis
by unknown

It is when you stop going along with the crowd and start realizing that there are a lot of things about yourself that you didn't know and may or may not like.

You start feeling insecure and wonder where you will be in a year or two, but then get scared because you barely know where you are now.

You start realizing that people are selfish and that, maybe, those friends that you thought you were so close to aren't exactly the greatest people you have ever met and the people you have lost touch with are some of the most important ones.

What you do not realize is that they are realizing that too and are not really cold or catty or mean or insincere, but that they are as confused as you.

You look at your job. It is not even close to what you thought you would be doing or maybe you are looking for one and realizing that you are going to have to start at the bottom and are scared.

You miss the comforts of college, of groups, of socializing with the same people on a constant basis. But then you realize that maybe they weren't so great after all. Y

ou are beginning to understand yourself and what you want and do not want.

Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what others are doing and find yourself judging a bit more than usual because suddenly you realize that you have certain boundaries in your life and add things to your list of what is acceptable and what is not.

You are insecure and then secure.

You laugh and cry with the greatest force of your life.

You feel alone and scared and confused.

Suddenly change is the enemy and you try and cling on to the past with dear life but soon realize that the past is drifting further and further away and there is nothing to do but stay where you are or move forward.

You get your heart broken and wonder how someone you loved could do such damage to you or you lay in bed and wonder why you can't meet anyone decent enough to get to know better.

You love someone but maybe love someone else too and cannot figure out why you are doing this because you are not a bad person.

One night stands and random hook ups start to look cheap and getting wasted and acting like an idiot starts to look pathetic.

You go through the same emotions and questions over and over and talk with your friends about the same topics because you cannot seem to make a decision.

You worry about loans and money and the future and making a life for yourself and while wining the race would be great, right now you'd just like to be a contender!

What you may not realize is that everyone reading this relates to it.

We are in our best of times and our worst of times, trying as hard as we can to figure this whole thing out.


[ this pretty sums up the last hiatus. i so can't wait to be in my 30's . not that it won't be as chaotic as the 20's..i'm simply said, tired! thanks flagyrl411

Chant Down the Babylon: Bob Marley

i think i'm back from my self inflicted hiatus. it's been a whirlpool. thanks to blacklocks , reading her blog today, i thought, ' shish i miss this.' so i promise myself, for sanity sake to be more regular. struggle continues.

Reggae stars 'fuel spread of HIV'

Homophobic lyrics prevent people from coming forward for tests
Sarah Boseley, health editor
Monday November 22, 2004
The Guardian

Dancehall reggae musicians are fuelling the spread of HIV/Aids in the Caribbean and the UK by their homophobic lyrics, a government minister will say today.

Gareth Thomas, minister for international development, will be speaking in St Kitts after Tony Blair was asked for help by Caribbean leaders, who are concerned that homophobia is preventing people from being tested for what is stigmatised in their communities as a gay men's disease. Mr Thomas will aim his comments at reggae stars such as Buju Banton, who has been criticised for allegedly inciting the murder of gay men, and Sizzla, who was banned from performing in the UK.



In June, the Jamaican gay rights leader Brian Williamson was stabbed to death. Crowds gathered outside his home, singing in the street to celebrate his murder. HIV/Aids is spreading faster in the Caribbean than anywhere else in the world except sub-Saharan Africa, with a prevalence rate of 2.3% infected and 3% in some countries, such as Haiti. The numbers are relatively small as yet - 430,000 people live with the virus - but are expected to soar if nothing is done.