I was praying to the Christian God in a Buddhist temple when I felt like God revealed a part of my calling to me. He said that he would make me like a bridge between people. I don’t know the full significance of all that I heard there, but I’m eager to find out. It […]
Why I was Vaccinated Against HPV
This is something I’ve been meaning to write about for a long time, but it’s kind of a sensitive topic. Back in high school health class, I remember hearing about an early version of a vaccine for HPV. Not much was really said about it, and it wasn’t until I was well out of high […]
Adventures in American Healthcare: The Cost of Vaccination
In preparation for my trip to Nepal this past month, I received quite the course of vaccinations, which I mostly arranged at my local Walgreens. Highest on the list was hepatitis A, which is a concern in Nepal but not something people are typically vaccinated against here in the mothership, as well as typhoid, Tdap […]
Propaganda for What Really Matters: Reflections on Buying Nepalese Art
My stay in Nepal has shown me the surface of what may be deeper structures, namely that a system of reciprocity and support underlays many, if not perhaps most, interactions. Today, a guide showed me to 3 difference cultural sites. This guide is employed by a very reputable trekking agency, but he also knows several […]
Expertise and Death
Many years ago, I traveled with my parents back to the Land of Corn to visit relatives. While there, we stopped by the house of an older couple. While my dad talked with the husband about guns (one of the least interesting subjects in existence, IMHO), I took a look at the man’s bookshelf and […]
Spending: Judgement, Envy, Arrogance
My first year in college, I lived on campus, and one of my friends in the apartment stairwell went out and spent $1,300 on a sound system for his junk ass car. It made me angry because I couldn’t believe so much money could be spent on something so unnecessary, but only years later would […]
Phone Joys/Woes
I just spent about $500 on a new phone. I’m kind of excited for it, but I also kind of want to throw up. My first smart phone was around $330. It overheated a few times while hiking, and started acting up. Known motherboard issue. My second smart phone was also around $330. It worked […]
Good Spending as a Value System, Not a Dollar Sign
Late last year I sat down to ask myself what it actually meant to be “good with money”, and following an approach that takes various ideas and attacks them, was able to kind of see that most of my hunches were wrong. After all, one might think that somebody who spends very little is “good” […]
Thoughts on Goals, Time, and the Shortness of Life
I think I have finally come to terms with the fact that I would someday like to complete a masters degree. The subjects I prefer to study are not practical, likely will not make a dramatic impact on the world, and are not especially lucrative, but I simply can’t get over the fact that I […]
The Struggle for Purpose
I’ve spent the past week getting my arms shot full of Terminator juice, even one such to protect from a mysterious illness known as “typhoid”, because apparently where I’m planning to go next month, everything wants to kill you. Several years ago, I went moonlight snowshoeing in single digit temps with two of my friends. […]