Moving

Hi,

I've moved over to www.zaydenam.com/blog/

Zayd

Racism

There was an interesting thirty second discussion in my physics class today. It consisted of a taunt, a rebuke and a general acceptance of what had been said.

The conclusion of this half-a-minute conversation was that it was OK to feel superior to another race as long as you don't mind being some other race's inferior. I suppose it's morally correct. Hell, it even follows a rule I learned in kindergarten, treat others the way you expect to be treated. We all know the things we learned in kindergarten are the supreme laws in all matters relating to niceness.

Still, something seems wrong. Even though I always accuse my brother of being an idealist, I still believe that there is something that brings us all together. Something magical and out of ordinary sight.

How else does one justify Mother Teresa's selfless devotion to people who she had no visible relation to? She saw that something that we're missing in this chaotic and divided world. Maybe our world is too complex and stubborn to be able to feel the instinct that allows us to come together.

That instinct is one thing I need to find. I believe a connection to humanity will be essential for me to feel useful in this world. At least it gives me an excuse to go on a around the world trip.

Let them be.

I'm a supporter of letting other people do whatever the hell they want.

I'm sure we all know of the extreme case of the Danish cartoons depicting Muhammad. (Mmmm... did somebody say Danish Butter Cookies?) Anyways, even some intelligent people I know believe that those cartoonists should have been punished.

Maybe they should. But I've got more realistic ways in which I want to change the world. And those ways doesn't include wasting my time boycotting excellent Danish cheese in the defense of (dare I say it?) a 1500 year-old man.

I'm sure a lot people have said this, but I remember my dad talking about picking your fights. Don't get stuck fighting battles which won't change the scheme of things. Each person has his own views on what the 'scheme of things' actually is.

I'm not going to tell an 8 year-old on the street to go take a dump somewhere else besides the middle of the road (it has happened). I'll just move away and try not to look. It's times like those when I 'zoom out' and look at the big picture. I could go to everyone in the world and teach them about being respectful to other human beings. Or I could fight to educate the masses of Pakistan. That, for me, is the scheme of things. And that's one of the things I'll be fighting for.

Who knows? Next time some 8 year-old decides to drop a bomb in the middle of the road, somebody may come up with a plan for universal plumbing.

Procrastination

I come from a long line of procrastinators, my father is a procrastinator, my grandfather is a procrastinator. I was raised to procrastinate.

Yes, that's a not-so-funny version of George's "I was raised to quit." from Seinfeld.

Anyways, I waste a lot of time. I'm talking of hours and hours on weekends.

I have school starting tomorrow after a 9 day break. What did I achieve in those 9 days? Nothing.

So I'm devising a plan to make my living hours more efficient. Military efficient. Most of my time is wasted on the computer. Generally speaking, the stuff I have to do is related to the computer in one form or another, but I dilly-daddle (I despise this phrase) way too much.

I'm setting a 1 hour-a-day limit on the computer for myself. This should be enough to check my emails, read a couple of blogs, IM some friends and maybe even watch an episode of The Office!

Besides this, setting a schedule should really help me get back in control of my life. I'll be watching myself closely for the next week. Sometimes, all you need to regain control is to put it in writing.

Here's to going against my upbringing. Cheers!

My First Company

I've been trying a lot of hobbies over the last year. Ranging from electronics to writing articles to my newest one: business ventures. I highly recommend trying out as many things as you can. It helped me find my strengths and now my future is slightly more focused.

About a month ago I organized, with a friend, a concert where we donated the proceeds to charity. I made a monetary loss in the concert but learned a lot, most importantly it gave me the confidence to start my own non-profit company. More info about that company can be found here.

And now I believe I'm doing something that I want to continue for the rest of my life.

The problem for me, however, is that I've grown up in a family of scientists.

I remember the first time my dad took me to his lab, I was looking at my coloring books under the microscope. Since then I've always wanted to work on cutting edge research in a small university town.

I don't know, I guess I'll have to compromise.

I hate compromising.

Regret, Regret, Regret

This is what I do not want to be. I don't want to wake up one day and regret everything I've done up until then.

Though, I'm not sure about the 'being a yuppie' part.

This pastel work is one of David Ross's excellent pieces. More can be found here.

My Plans

As cryptic as the last line of my first post was, this time I'll try to explain the purpose of my blog.

Over the last couple of months I've been pushing the worry of what I'm going to do in life to the back of my mind. I've looked at career options and successful individuals, at content grandfathers and religious aunts.

But I don't see myself in their shoes.

I'm a young individual with above average intelligence, quaint fancies, rebellious ideas and ambitious goals. I'm trying to make the choices I need to right now so that I can be where I want to be 50 years from now.

And yes, I believe Harper Lee used "quaint fancies" to describe Dill in To Kill a Mockingbird.