Today, I begin a new series called Exposing My Friends. Basically, what this series does is I'll see something that my friends do, whether it be on social media websites, in real life, or through the grape vine, and I'll form an opinion on that. It is all a part of the grand scheme to call out most of my friends for the bull shit they pull regularly. If they were to ever find this, I'd probably lose them forever, but I really don't care.
The first installment in the series is based on a friend, we'll call him Jason (not his actual name). Jason is an Economics undergrad at Ohio State University. However, he has a passion for politics and is heavily involved in the Undergraduate Student Government (USG). He even ran for USG President when he was a Sophomore. From what I've heard from Jason, and the way he presents himself around campus, he wants to eventually go into politics and run for higher office.
As we all know, if you want to go into politics, you need to have a spotless track record. No arrests, no DUIs, no secret babies, no love affairs, nothing. This is also applied to a lesser scale to college students. If you are not 21, and you are caught drinking in a public location, you are breaking the law and potential employers (and voters) will think less of you. They will see you as someone who doesn't care for the rules. So if you don't care for the law, why should they follow it? This has gotten even worse with the advent of social media sites in the past few years. Now, anything you post on the Internet is there forever, even if you try and delete it.
Jason is a partier. He likes to go out and have a good time, and I know he did this before he was 21. I distinctly remember him showing up to an LGBT Prom one year, and offering me alcohol from a flask while no one was watching. Because of his excessive party habits, Jason knows that he needs to be careful about what gets on the Internet. But here is the contradiction: Jason is so worried, and so ashamed of himself, that he regularly takes down his Facebook, because of what will show up on his page.
I was reminded by my usually ignorant and socially awkward uncle, that if you don't have a Facebook account these days, it does more to hurt you. Employers (and again, in Jason's case, voters), will see that as you are trying to hide something even worse than the occasional drunk picture or sloppy make out. Could it be weed? Could it be hard drugs, like cocaine, ecstasy, LSD, or heroin? Could it be that you drink your feelings away every night and are constantly posting drunk pictures? Or you could just be a sheltered loser who thinks they are above Facebook and what it has to offer to people with even one friend. Never the less, not having a Facebook is doing more harm than good to Jason's political career. But it's not seeming to click in his mind.
But the main point of this article is the fact that when Jason does these things, it makes him look like the biggest hypocrite in the world. If you are that concerned about your political career, and what people who don't know you will think of you, you shouldn't be doing those bad things in the first place! Because it will catch up with you. It always does. I look back at this past Presidential election, and while Mitt Romney seemed like the perfect Mormon family man, people found things to criticize him about: strapping his dog to the roof of the family car, supporting gay rights while running for higher office in Massachusetts only to switch sides for this election, his "47%" comment slip up, etc. Just imagine if Mitt Romney, belonging to a faith that completely condemns alcohol and drugs, was caught having drank a lot in college. It would have caught up with him. And the same thing will happen to Jason.
My point is: if you want to run for Precinct Committee member of your suburb, fine. Nobody gives two shits about what you did in college. But if you want to be a Senator, Governor, or even the President, you need to commit NOW. You cannot be drinking underage, you cannot be drinking to excess every weekend when you are of age, you cannot be doing drugs, and you cannot be having sex willy-nilly. You can't expect that you'll be able to do these things now, and as long as it doesn't show up on the Internet, you'll get off scott free. And just because your Facebook privacy settings are locked tighter than Tim Tebow's pants (but they will open... soon), does not mean you can post whatever you want. So my advice for Jason, is that if you want to win in an election, you have to make serious changes in your lifestyle. I think we can all learn from Jason's mistakes, and become better people because of it. So, thank you for listening to my rant... and believe me, if I get around to it, more "Exposing My Friends" are to come.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Thursday, October 13, 2011
The Third Post! Facebook
Hello!
I have a lot of Facebook friends. At the time of this post, I have 1056. And that number will only increase with time. I see having a lot of Facebook friends as a status symbol; people immediately judge you by your number. When I am friend requested, or even simply creeped on, I have this sinking feeling that people look immediately to my friend count to determine if I am a social person; in turn, I would be either a friendly person or a cool person to hang out with. Let's all be honest, would you really have the patience to get to know someone with 50 Facebook friends? Or would you rather get to know someone who has a lot of connections, and could possibly connect you to more people, thereby either finding a new friend, love interest, or job. Now for my main point: because I have so many friends and connections, there are certain duties I internally feel I am required to adhere to.
Of these special, self-assigned duties, the first and most important to maintain that circle of friends effectively is to support them. In order to do that, I must act online in a manner similar to my personality in real life. Because I come off as such a nice person in real life, I have a duty to be a nice, caring, compassionate person online. The main example of this was a status I recently posted, condemning people who complain about everything on Facebook (i.e., not getting enough sleep, too much homework, too much work hours). I later go on in the status to instruct people to cheer up, enjoy life, and smile. I received over 30 likes on that status, which was a great morale booster. It also means that from now on, I cannot complain on Facebook. As such, I am going to complain here in my blog. This is what makes me a hypocrite.
Who doesn't like to complain? It lets off some steam. It is especially nice to complain to someone, because if they attentively listen, we feel like we belong and that people care about us. But online, in a public setting as large as Facebook, is not the place to do it. So many of my friends complain so much about their lives, whether it be school, work, sleep, love, friends, family, or any combination of those. If you want to complain, I personally believe *cue Miss South Carolina speech*, then start a blog. That's what I have done. Back to the main idea.
Another self-assigned duty on Facebook is to inform my friends of huge happenings in my life. After that, I expect a large response from people. This is why I only update my Facebook status every once in awhile; about twice a week. I hate people who update everyday, or worse, more than once a day. Unless you are a celebrity (and even then it might be pushing it), nobody wants to know that much about your life. Also, I'd say I average 8-11 likes on nearly every status I post. There is a pretty solid group that like my statuses often, but I get most excited when I get 20+ likes. Usually this occurs either when I post something extremely inspiring, or a person in my life experiences a major change. Here are a few examples of when I got a lot of likes:
1) The status I mentioned above, about cheering up in life and forgetting your worries.
2) My brother being accepted into the same prestigious high school I went to.
3) My changed relationship status (although this only lasted 2 weeks, I received 44 likes on it)
I am not the type of person who will take down ugly or bad pictures of myself, and only keep the good ones up. I hate people who do that. But when it comes to pictures, I also hate people who put up pictures of themselves drinking... and they are not of age. I hope you do get caught, and never get a good job ever. I also hate pictures of distorted faces, either swirled, or blown up, or squeezed, or whatever. And then they post 20 of those pictures at a time. Maybe it's funny to you, but no one cares.
I'm kinda tired of this post. I'll resume later. My big ending point: DON'T FLATTER YOURSELF. Not as many people care as you think. In any case, have a wonderful day! Bye bye
I have a lot of Facebook friends. At the time of this post, I have 1056. And that number will only increase with time. I see having a lot of Facebook friends as a status symbol; people immediately judge you by your number. When I am friend requested, or even simply creeped on, I have this sinking feeling that people look immediately to my friend count to determine if I am a social person; in turn, I would be either a friendly person or a cool person to hang out with. Let's all be honest, would you really have the patience to get to know someone with 50 Facebook friends? Or would you rather get to know someone who has a lot of connections, and could possibly connect you to more people, thereby either finding a new friend, love interest, or job. Now for my main point: because I have so many friends and connections, there are certain duties I internally feel I am required to adhere to.
Of these special, self-assigned duties, the first and most important to maintain that circle of friends effectively is to support them. In order to do that, I must act online in a manner similar to my personality in real life. Because I come off as such a nice person in real life, I have a duty to be a nice, caring, compassionate person online. The main example of this was a status I recently posted, condemning people who complain about everything on Facebook (i.e., not getting enough sleep, too much homework, too much work hours). I later go on in the status to instruct people to cheer up, enjoy life, and smile. I received over 30 likes on that status, which was a great morale booster. It also means that from now on, I cannot complain on Facebook. As such, I am going to complain here in my blog. This is what makes me a hypocrite.
Who doesn't like to complain? It lets off some steam. It is especially nice to complain to someone, because if they attentively listen, we feel like we belong and that people care about us. But online, in a public setting as large as Facebook, is not the place to do it. So many of my friends complain so much about their lives, whether it be school, work, sleep, love, friends, family, or any combination of those. If you want to complain, I personally believe *cue Miss South Carolina speech*, then start a blog. That's what I have done. Back to the main idea.
Another self-assigned duty on Facebook is to inform my friends of huge happenings in my life. After that, I expect a large response from people. This is why I only update my Facebook status every once in awhile; about twice a week. I hate people who update everyday, or worse, more than once a day. Unless you are a celebrity (and even then it might be pushing it), nobody wants to know that much about your life. Also, I'd say I average 8-11 likes on nearly every status I post. There is a pretty solid group that like my statuses often, but I get most excited when I get 20+ likes. Usually this occurs either when I post something extremely inspiring, or a person in my life experiences a major change. Here are a few examples of when I got a lot of likes:
1) The status I mentioned above, about cheering up in life and forgetting your worries.
2) My brother being accepted into the same prestigious high school I went to.
3) My changed relationship status (although this only lasted 2 weeks, I received 44 likes on it)
I am not the type of person who will take down ugly or bad pictures of myself, and only keep the good ones up. I hate people who do that. But when it comes to pictures, I also hate people who put up pictures of themselves drinking... and they are not of age. I hope you do get caught, and never get a good job ever. I also hate pictures of distorted faces, either swirled, or blown up, or squeezed, or whatever. And then they post 20 of those pictures at a time. Maybe it's funny to you, but no one cares.
I'm kinda tired of this post. I'll resume later. My big ending point: DON'T FLATTER YOURSELF. Not as many people care as you think. In any case, have a wonderful day! Bye bye
Sunday, October 9, 2011
The Second Post! Drinking
Hello!
So I'm a Second Year in college. I would consider myself moderately attractive, and many others consider me quite attractive (we'll go into that A LOT more later). As a result, alcohol is being offered to me/in close proximity to me almost everyday. And I don't know how I feel about it.
My parents raised me very well. I had no urge to drink with friends, and especially not under my parents' roof. Although part of it was that I was never invited to parties where alcohol was present, another part of it was that I saw what it did to some of my classmates in high school. I knew that it could make you gain a lot of weight, lose control of yourself, destroy your liver, and it was expensive!! I had more important things to worry about in my life, and the legal implications behind consuming liquor did not seem worth it anymore. But once upon a time, I graduated high school and went to college.
Ohio State has given me many opportunities. Some that I have taken, others I have passed up. One of those was opportunities was alcohol. The first time I legitimately had alcohol in my hands, given to me with the sheer intention of drinking to get drunk, was at a random house party. I had no the location, who owned the house, or many of the people I was with. But like many college freshmen, I was wandering around the streets looking for a party, and after being rejected by many upperclassmen, my group stumbled upon this house. I had no idea what to expect when I went in. I was led down a staircase where there were many people standing around talking, and I followed in line with the other freshmen to the bar, where they were handing out beers like nobody's business. My best friend Chris cracked his open and began drinking, but I couldn't even bring myself to open it. When we went back outside, we saw a cop car. Before I could even blink, the group was running away from the house, and we dumped the beers in the bush. And just like that, my first beer was thrown away, unopened.
I was on the rowing team in high school, so I thought it would be a good idea to join the rowing team at Ohio State. Even though alcohol can hinder your progress when it comes to athletics, the team always loved to gather at each others' houses and drink a lot of beer. My next encounter with beer was at one of these very house parties. I brought along my two best friends, Chris and Annemarie, who both knew other people at the party. Because we had connections, as soon as we walked in the house, we had alcohol in our hands. I prepared myself beforehand this time. When Chris finished his drink, we stealthily switched cups. He had double the alcohol, and I remained sober. But I knew I couldn't keep doing this.
One of my main reasons for leaving the Crew (rowing) team at the end of the quarter was that that was not my scene. I luckily found nightclubs that piqued my interest a whole lot more than lame house parties did. I was surrounded by drinking at the nightclubs, but I had even more of an incentive to avoid alcohol here; otherwise, I would be kicked out of the club and banned from my entertainment outlet. I danced and made out with plenty of people that were drunk out of their minds, but thankfully, I was never offered much alcohol.
Christmas Break came and went. I started to go on gay hookup sites (for another day please). Guys would offer me alcohol in exchange for sexual services. I was educated enough that that constituted prostitution, even if in a small form. It was only on one cold Friday night in my dorm, that my roommate finally broke through me and gave me my first sip of alcohol. Cheap vodka mixed with Blue Gatorade. I had four cups with very little alcohol content. I felt a bit dizzy and my head was heavier, but I felt in control. I went to bed, and woke up Saturday just fine. It wouldn't be until later that night that I would really feel something.
I had lost my virginity already. I was entering into my slut phase. I met up with one of the guys I talked to on the gay hook up iPhone app. We went back to his house and had sex. He then offered me an orange Four Loko, the drink of choice of the 2010-2011 school year. For some reason, I thought I could handle it. I drank the whole thing in 20 minutes. I didn't know it at the time, but I was drunk. I remember everything, but thinking back on it, I was so silly and stupid. And I was VERY hungover the next day. I puked once at his house, and then three more times at my dorm. I cut myself off for a few weeks after that.
I had a few sips before going out to the nightclub with my close friends, and two random instances of sipping a beer to taste it. My next major encounter with alcohol was my first public experience: my birthday party. My friend Sterling was kind enough to host the party at his house off campus. I gave him $60 to purchase alcohol, and he made his own jungle juice out of vodka, beer, and Sprite. I had five cups while playing Kings with Sterling, his roommate Kevin, and my girlfriends Hayley, Lauren, Alyssa, and Megan. By the time other people were showing up, I was drunk. Because I did not keep myself hydrated, I dehydrated myself into "plastered/smashed/hammered" status. I don't remember a good number of things that happened that night. I vowed never to get that drunk for a long time, and only very rarely.
This is quite a long post... I think it's good to leave off here. Perhaps I shall resume later. Thank you for your time. Have a wonderful day! Bye bye
So I'm a Second Year in college. I would consider myself moderately attractive, and many others consider me quite attractive (we'll go into that A LOT more later). As a result, alcohol is being offered to me/in close proximity to me almost everyday. And I don't know how I feel about it.
My parents raised me very well. I had no urge to drink with friends, and especially not under my parents' roof. Although part of it was that I was never invited to parties where alcohol was present, another part of it was that I saw what it did to some of my classmates in high school. I knew that it could make you gain a lot of weight, lose control of yourself, destroy your liver, and it was expensive!! I had more important things to worry about in my life, and the legal implications behind consuming liquor did not seem worth it anymore. But once upon a time, I graduated high school and went to college.
Ohio State has given me many opportunities. Some that I have taken, others I have passed up. One of those was opportunities was alcohol. The first time I legitimately had alcohol in my hands, given to me with the sheer intention of drinking to get drunk, was at a random house party. I had no the location, who owned the house, or many of the people I was with. But like many college freshmen, I was wandering around the streets looking for a party, and after being rejected by many upperclassmen, my group stumbled upon this house. I had no idea what to expect when I went in. I was led down a staircase where there were many people standing around talking, and I followed in line with the other freshmen to the bar, where they were handing out beers like nobody's business. My best friend Chris cracked his open and began drinking, but I couldn't even bring myself to open it. When we went back outside, we saw a cop car. Before I could even blink, the group was running away from the house, and we dumped the beers in the bush. And just like that, my first beer was thrown away, unopened.
I was on the rowing team in high school, so I thought it would be a good idea to join the rowing team at Ohio State. Even though alcohol can hinder your progress when it comes to athletics, the team always loved to gather at each others' houses and drink a lot of beer. My next encounter with beer was at one of these very house parties. I brought along my two best friends, Chris and Annemarie, who both knew other people at the party. Because we had connections, as soon as we walked in the house, we had alcohol in our hands. I prepared myself beforehand this time. When Chris finished his drink, we stealthily switched cups. He had double the alcohol, and I remained sober. But I knew I couldn't keep doing this.
One of my main reasons for leaving the Crew (rowing) team at the end of the quarter was that that was not my scene. I luckily found nightclubs that piqued my interest a whole lot more than lame house parties did. I was surrounded by drinking at the nightclubs, but I had even more of an incentive to avoid alcohol here; otherwise, I would be kicked out of the club and banned from my entertainment outlet. I danced and made out with plenty of people that were drunk out of their minds, but thankfully, I was never offered much alcohol.
Christmas Break came and went. I started to go on gay hookup sites (for another day please). Guys would offer me alcohol in exchange for sexual services. I was educated enough that that constituted prostitution, even if in a small form. It was only on one cold Friday night in my dorm, that my roommate finally broke through me and gave me my first sip of alcohol. Cheap vodka mixed with Blue Gatorade. I had four cups with very little alcohol content. I felt a bit dizzy and my head was heavier, but I felt in control. I went to bed, and woke up Saturday just fine. It wouldn't be until later that night that I would really feel something.
I had lost my virginity already. I was entering into my slut phase. I met up with one of the guys I talked to on the gay hook up iPhone app. We went back to his house and had sex. He then offered me an orange Four Loko, the drink of choice of the 2010-2011 school year. For some reason, I thought I could handle it. I drank the whole thing in 20 minutes. I didn't know it at the time, but I was drunk. I remember everything, but thinking back on it, I was so silly and stupid. And I was VERY hungover the next day. I puked once at his house, and then three more times at my dorm. I cut myself off for a few weeks after that.
I had a few sips before going out to the nightclub with my close friends, and two random instances of sipping a beer to taste it. My next major encounter with alcohol was my first public experience: my birthday party. My friend Sterling was kind enough to host the party at his house off campus. I gave him $60 to purchase alcohol, and he made his own jungle juice out of vodka, beer, and Sprite. I had five cups while playing Kings with Sterling, his roommate Kevin, and my girlfriends Hayley, Lauren, Alyssa, and Megan. By the time other people were showing up, I was drunk. Because I did not keep myself hydrated, I dehydrated myself into "plastered/smashed/hammered" status. I don't remember a good number of things that happened that night. I vowed never to get that drunk for a long time, and only very rarely.
This is quite a long post... I think it's good to leave off here. Perhaps I shall resume later. Thank you for your time. Have a wonderful day! Bye bye
Saturday, October 8, 2011
The First Post!
Hello!
I'm just getting used to things around here. Don't judge me based off of this post. Or any that follow afterwards. I am not an English major, nor do I have deep philosophical thoughts on a daily base. I don't care if anyone reads this. I just want to put my thoughts on paper/keyboard.
Since I do what I want, I'm going to talk about myself.
I was born on May 20th, 1992. I lived in Parma, Ohio (largest suburb of Cleveland) for my first 18 years, during which time I attended Holy Family School from Preschool until 8th grade, and then St. Ignatius High School from 9th until 12th. Now I am in my second year at Ohio State University (therefore, I live in Columbus, Ohio now), studying Accounting.
I love my family. My parents are traditional but still progressive. My mother Christine is one of the greatest moms I know; that is not an embellishment. She would do anything for her children. My father Patrick is a hardworking lawyer. I have learned many strong values from him and I look up to him and what he has done with his life. I have three younger siblings: Grace (who also has a blog??), Connor, and Mary. I could not get through my life without the three of them. They bring out the best in me and challenge me to be the best person I can be.
I love my friends as well. Yet, this is where many of my troubles in life lie. Drama. Duh.
I am one of those people who have a great number of friends, but I never really had one of those friends I did EVERYTHING with. I see people like that and it makes me jealous. Having many friends allows me to be connected, and it continually increases my friend base exponentially. I have met a great deal of people through my initial friends. Although it took some work coming out of my shy shell, I am growing very confident in my people skills.
Yes, I am a man. Most men don't write like I do. Before you go assuming things, let me clarify: yes, I am gay. My life has changed radically because of it. I have experienced some of the best times and some of the worst times of my life because of my sexuality. I am open about it, and most people respect me. I am still learning a lot about myself and I am hoping that this outlet will help me understand more.
I could go on and on, writing my whole life story. Hmm... that sounds like a good idea... but for another time. Until then, have a wonderful day! Bye bye
I'm just getting used to things around here. Don't judge me based off of this post. Or any that follow afterwards. I am not an English major, nor do I have deep philosophical thoughts on a daily base. I don't care if anyone reads this. I just want to put my thoughts on paper/keyboard.
Since I do what I want, I'm going to talk about myself.
I was born on May 20th, 1992. I lived in Parma, Ohio (largest suburb of Cleveland) for my first 18 years, during which time I attended Holy Family School from Preschool until 8th grade, and then St. Ignatius High School from 9th until 12th. Now I am in my second year at Ohio State University (therefore, I live in Columbus, Ohio now), studying Accounting.
I love my family. My parents are traditional but still progressive. My mother Christine is one of the greatest moms I know; that is not an embellishment. She would do anything for her children. My father Patrick is a hardworking lawyer. I have learned many strong values from him and I look up to him and what he has done with his life. I have three younger siblings: Grace (who also has a blog??), Connor, and Mary. I could not get through my life without the three of them. They bring out the best in me and challenge me to be the best person I can be.
I love my friends as well. Yet, this is where many of my troubles in life lie. Drama. Duh.
I am one of those people who have a great number of friends, but I never really had one of those friends I did EVERYTHING with. I see people like that and it makes me jealous. Having many friends allows me to be connected, and it continually increases my friend base exponentially. I have met a great deal of people through my initial friends. Although it took some work coming out of my shy shell, I am growing very confident in my people skills.
Yes, I am a man. Most men don't write like I do. Before you go assuming things, let me clarify: yes, I am gay. My life has changed radically because of it. I have experienced some of the best times and some of the worst times of my life because of my sexuality. I am open about it, and most people respect me. I am still learning a lot about myself and I am hoping that this outlet will help me understand more.
I could go on and on, writing my whole life story. Hmm... that sounds like a good idea... but for another time. Until then, have a wonderful day! Bye bye
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