[6 through 10 of '19'. Don't think to much about it, don't think too little. Its vaguely specific and not at all realistic or literal. We're talking, if poems were paintings, this is a Pablo Picasso piece based off of a Dali idea, painted on a crowded bus that's driving down a mountain, swerving around pot holes and playing the radio too loud. What song is playing? You pick, my imagination ends here. Oh, and disclaimer: None of this was written under the influence of drugs. Promise. Thank you. -Theo]
6.
What if I died on my birthday?
Would I really die at all?
Would 19 be it?
Ta da!
That's it!
Two decades!
Almost! So close!
Too bad, so sad!
That's all folks!
You don't have to go home
but you can't stay here.
And then,
I go in the ground
or an ugly pot
or maybe I'll float
in the sea, mixed with purple sugar
and memories and cartoon strips
from friends and fans and both.
I’ll float and float and float...
7.
What are they going to say or do?
Will they win? Did it help?
Will they find the tapes?
Imagine someone threw everything out!
"Its just a poor man’s personal effects."
A poor man who lived his whole life
Doing nothing important
To or for
Anyone or anybody
And in the last few years,
He changed the world.
Oh boy!
8.
I’ll float under the golden bridge
and away and away and away
On my back, looking up
At the sky…
Like i did
As a kid
At Robert Moses beach
I would,
Until a big wave would come
Tackling me in an embrace
Leaving that Atlantic taste
Of salt, dirt and algae…
9.
That taste,
It kind of reminds me of my first NYC green tea,
college visits and applications celebrated
in this awfully dirty place midtown that
I never went to again.
I drank about half to be polite.
I was so much younger then, a year ago.
I'm not much older now, a year later.
And yet that's all it takes to change your life,
A year.
Or less.
Maybe more.
Depends on when you define
the starting point of change
and the final point, its completion.
10.
When does an inch begin and end?
Aren’t you always a little off?
How can you be precise?
If you’ve got 1, you could be holding 1.1 and not know it.
Or 1.01, or 1.001, or 1.0001, or 1.00001, or!
You could be holding exactly 1
and nobody believes you!
I'd hate that!
What if nothing is real?
Surprise! Nothing is.
Its not much of a surprise
if you’ve consider it before.
I bet that's why they
don't make movies
about it anymore.
Showing posts with label Theo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Theo. Show all posts
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
5 of "19"
[Five pieces of my epic poem/long-ass poem 'Nineteen', and just a taste of the insane stream-of-conciousness writing that ensued. -Theo]
1.
Today’s the big day!
It doesn’t feel very big.
Look at me,
I’m presenting myself on this stepping stone
Give us a spin!
A whole 19 years old!
Do I say “all that?” or “that’s all?”
I’m not sure.
2.
It feels like it all started yesterday
...If yesterday started ages and ages ago
Or maybe its vice versa.
Maybe I’ll never know.
3.
Well, happy birthday!
Enjoy yourself!
Its really just another day.
What else is new, but you?
And the people younger then you.
And the people older then you!
And the people exactly your age!
Surely, that’s impossible.
Unless someone held a stopwatch
at the very moment you made
your first cry
as
your last foot
slipped out.
But
even that could be inaccurate
if he wasn’t looking,
or his hands were slow…
4.
In the grand scheme of everything,
We’re all new.
If you fit the entire life of the earth
on a 12 month calendar,
Humans have only existed for two minutes
And the dinosaurs died in September!
Imagine that…
So much for back to school...
5.
But even human existence is really big.
So is a millennia, and a century, and a decade.
A year can be big. A day can be big.
Today is big, right?
I wrote all that in a minute.
See? Even minutes are big.
But 525,599 minutes later
is another year.
Minutes feel small now.
1.
Today’s the big day!
It doesn’t feel very big.
Look at me,
I’m presenting myself on this stepping stone
Give us a spin!
A whole 19 years old!
Do I say “all that?” or “that’s all?”
I’m not sure.
2.
It feels like it all started yesterday
...If yesterday started ages and ages ago
Or maybe its vice versa.
Maybe I’ll never know.
3.
Well, happy birthday!
Enjoy yourself!
Its really just another day.
What else is new, but you?
And the people younger then you.
And the people older then you!
And the people exactly your age!
Surely, that’s impossible.
Unless someone held a stopwatch
at the very moment you made
your first cry
as
your last foot
slipped out.
But
even that could be inaccurate
if he wasn’t looking,
or his hands were slow…
4.
In the grand scheme of everything,
We’re all new.
If you fit the entire life of the earth
on a 12 month calendar,
Humans have only existed for two minutes
And the dinosaurs died in September!
Imagine that…
So much for back to school...
5.
But even human existence is really big.
So is a millennia, and a century, and a decade.
A year can be big. A day can be big.
Today is big, right?
I wrote all that in a minute.
See? Even minutes are big.
But 525,599 minutes later
is another year.
Minutes feel small now.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
#18 (Eighteen)
[Poem about both the age and the sonnet - I'll give a million cool points to who can specifically recognize the inspiration of this piece. DISCLAIMER: Cool points cannot be redeemed for cash, only compliments. - Theo.]
18.
Eighteen months later, I’m still at this desk,
Tallying the days since June Twenty-fifth.
I’m next to the phone, incase you should call.
Should you write, I moved it near the mail box.
I just sit and I stare… I double-take where,
I see familiar strangers with sun in their hair.
Eighteen months, over a year of my life.
Five hundred twenty days to be precise.
I’ve filled book aft’r book, this entire time.
I’ll run out of page ‘fore I keep you mine.
This case is hopeless, Yes, but regardless
The dream mixed with the memory
Producing endless poetry
Surpassing the beauty of reality
So you are heartless, Yes, so I know this
Slither, shadowed by gallant fantasy
Facts dissolve in attractive mystery
They live longer then us, in infamy.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
When you leave your things, you leave an excuse,
To converse, return, what we’ve been reduced.
Words cannot tell how or what is true of:
When beauty lived and died as flowers do, love.
Someday, somehow, a letter will summarize
Immortalize passion that never dies.
I’m too much of a perfectionist
When its done I swear you’ll get it
But not this letter
I can do better.
The dream mixed with the memory
Producing endless poetry
Surpassing the beauty of reality
Facts dissolve in attractive mystery
Someday, somehow, a letter will summarize
Immortalize passion that never dies.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
Oh, Eighteen
Months, your sunny blonde turned white.
Slither, Shadow, Six feet below sun’s light.
The dreams I had will eternally thrive
In publication of my written mind.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
18.
Eighteen months later, I’m still at this desk,
Tallying the days since June Twenty-fifth.
I’m next to the phone, incase you should call.
Should you write, I moved it near the mail box.
I just sit and I stare… I double-take where,
I see familiar strangers with sun in their hair.
Eighteen months, over a year of my life.
Five hundred twenty days to be precise.
I’ve filled book aft’r book, this entire time.
I’ll run out of page ‘fore I keep you mine.
This case is hopeless, Yes, but regardless
The dream mixed with the memory
Producing endless poetry
Surpassing the beauty of reality
So you are heartless, Yes, so I know this
Slither, shadowed by gallant fantasy
Facts dissolve in attractive mystery
They live longer then us, in infamy.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
When you leave your things, you leave an excuse,
To converse, return, what we’ve been reduced.
Words cannot tell how or what is true of:
When beauty lived and died as flowers do, love.
Someday, somehow, a letter will summarize
Immortalize passion that never dies.
I’m too much of a perfectionist
When its done I swear you’ll get it
But not this letter
I can do better.
The dream mixed with the memory
Producing endless poetry
Surpassing the beauty of reality
Facts dissolve in attractive mystery
Someday, somehow, a letter will summarize
Immortalize passion that never dies.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
Oh, Eighteen
Months, your sunny blonde turned white.
Slither, Shadow, Six feet below sun’s light.
The dreams I had will eternally thrive
In publication of my written mind.
Once… I write it right, I write.
“It will once… I write it right.”
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
SPEAK OUT, ACT NOW: "Don't ask, Don't tell" - Don't Wait!
"Let's push that one down the road a little bit," said Defense Secretary Robert Gates said this past Sunday when a Fox News anchor asked him about the timetable for repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
With all due respect, Mr. Secretary, let's not. Our military, and our service members, can't afford to.
Write a letter to President Obama telling him why we can't wait:
Here's Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Aubrey Sarvis' take on why we can't wait:
"We're fighting two wars, and we need the most qualified people possible to wage them. In fact, President Obama recently announced plans to send an additional 17,000 troops to Afghanistan. Meanwhile, more than 800 hundred mission-critical service members -- including linguists and intelligence analysts -- have been fired under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."Almost 13,000 service members have been fired since the law took effect in 1994. The longer the president and Pentagon delay the issue, the longer the military will keep firing service members because of their sexual orientation. And because intelligence experts and people who speak Arabic, Urdu, Pashto and Dari aren't exactly easy to come by, we'll have fewer people to call on in the fight against terrorism in Pakistan and Afghanistan. "
What do you think? Tell President Obama here: http://www.sldn.org/dontwait
THEO'S THOUGHTS: History has proven, the nation has only improved with military equality. If we separate and segregate ourselves with shallow labels, we only become easier to divide and conquer.
By excluding willing and able men and women from serving because of their sexuality or gender identity, we are handing ourselves to the terrorists in the form of pre-sliced bread and saying "Here, try to make a sandwich of us now."
This hits home for me too, as my very dear friend leaves for the Air Force in a few weeks. I worry about him terribly, as he is gay, but I know he cares more about this nation then he does his own comfort, and is willing to not only risk his life and his reputation, but willingly condemn himself to six years of torturous secret keeping, staring at his tongue anxiously making sure he doesn't slip.
And to think, he's making all these extra sacrifices for a country that won't allow him equal rights.
It's ridiculous.
This would never happen in Canada.
Theo.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
The Squeaky Wheel Gets The Oil (Anything To Stop Your Whining)
[Happy 2nd of 3 Friday the Thirteenths this year! What a lucky, lucky year. Maybe that's not sarcastic... Either way, here's a shortie but I'm mid-writer's block. Enjoy the drought, it will make you appreciate the rain! Theo]
The Squeaky Wheel
I’d do anything for you
Anything
I mean anything
If you promise you’ll stop your whining
Because I can only take you
In small doses
Small portions
The tiniest milligrams of you can poison
The squeaky wheel gets the oil.
The Squeaky Wheel
I’d do anything for you
Anything
I mean anything
If you promise you’ll stop your whining
Because I can only take you
In small doses
Small portions
The tiniest milligrams of you can poison
The squeaky wheel gets the oil.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Serv(ey)ing You Some Alphabet Soup, Theo's Recipe!
Don't know if you want to know all this, don't care. Today's post is a self-absorbed one.
A - AVAILABLE: Wouldn't you like to know?
B - BIRTHDAY: You just missed it! Thats ok, I still accept belated gifts.
C - CRUSHING: Beer Cans on your head is really dumb and not impressive.
D - DRINK YOU LAST HAD: Lemon Gatorade. At midnight... why not?
E - EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO: Jude Stevens!!! Hello!
F - FAVORITE BANDS: Too many... Incubus, Queen, The Shins, The Beatles, Rilo Kiley, No Doubt, Maxeen, City and Colour, Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor, Death Cab For Cutie, K-0s, Coldplay, Jeremy Messersmith, Jason Mraz... These are just the bands I listened to today.
G - GUMMY BEARS OR GUMMY WORMS: Bears!
H - HOMETOWN: New York, NY
I - INSTRUMENT(s): Guitar (Acoustic, Electric, Bass, you name it), Drums, Clarinet (grade school, don't remember much), and someday, Piano!
J- JUGGLE: can't. But I can ride a unicycle pretty well, so I'm 1/2 clown.
K- KILLED SOMEONE: uh, no? And if I did, would I admit it here?
L - LONGEST CAR RIDE: 10 hours to Canada when I was 11. I beat all of my gameboy games on that car ride. Beat my pokemon game twice! Now that takes skill.
M - MILKSHAKE FLAVOR: Depends on the day. Sometimes Vanilla, sometimes Banana Strawberry. Sometimes Banana, Strawberry, Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Oreo! But those days are rare and complicated to achieve.
N- NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: 2 sisters, 2 half brothers... 1 + 1 + 1/2 + 1/2 = 3 siblings?
O - ONE WISH?: Equality and peace!
P- PLACE YOU WOULD REALLY LIKE TO GO: Japan, England, Hawaii, Spain, Australia, India, Brazil, Argentina, hey, even Canada again. The car ride sucks but I know to bring more games this time. I'd like to go anywhere.
Well, Maybe not Antartica... With my luck, I'd wander off and get lost forever, and a compass doesn't do much good at the south pole. I hear it kind of just spins in all directions, saying "North is any where else but here!" and thats a little useless.
Q- QUIET?: At the moment, yes, but not for long.
R- REASON TO SMILE: I get paid tomorrow... pay checks mean money... money means sushi... I like sushi...
S- SONG YOU LAST HEARD: Love and War, Rilo Kiley
T - TIME YOU WOKE UP: Noon? Had too much fun last night. Yeah, I know it was a Wednesday...
U - UNDERWEAR YOU’RE WEARING?: ...isn't the fact that I am enough?!
V - VEGETABLE YOU HATE: Olives. Do they count as vegtables?
W - WORST HABIT: oh where do I start... well, biting my finger nails. I have worse habits but thats the simplest one to share. Its a survey, not a short essay topic.
X- RAYS YOU’VE HAD: I think... 4? Back problems, ankle sprains, preteenhood in general.
Y - YOUR FRIEND THAT SHOWED YOU THIS: probably wont read this
Z- ZODIAC SIGN: Aquarius
A - AVAILABLE: Wouldn't you like to know?
B - BIRTHDAY: You just missed it! Thats ok, I still accept belated gifts.
C - CRUSHING: Beer Cans on your head is really dumb and not impressive.
D - DRINK YOU LAST HAD: Lemon Gatorade. At midnight... why not?
E - EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO: Jude Stevens!!! Hello!
F - FAVORITE BANDS: Too many... Incubus, Queen, The Shins, The Beatles, Rilo Kiley, No Doubt, Maxeen, City and Colour, Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor, Death Cab For Cutie, K-0s, Coldplay, Jeremy Messersmith, Jason Mraz... These are just the bands I listened to today.
G - GUMMY BEARS OR GUMMY WORMS: Bears!
H - HOMETOWN: New York, NY
I - INSTRUMENT(s): Guitar (Acoustic, Electric, Bass, you name it), Drums, Clarinet (grade school, don't remember much), and someday, Piano!
J- JUGGLE: can't. But I can ride a unicycle pretty well, so I'm 1/2 clown.
K- KILLED SOMEONE: uh, no? And if I did, would I admit it here?
L - LONGEST CAR RIDE: 10 hours to Canada when I was 11. I beat all of my gameboy games on that car ride. Beat my pokemon game twice! Now that takes skill.
M - MILKSHAKE FLAVOR: Depends on the day. Sometimes Vanilla, sometimes Banana Strawberry. Sometimes Banana, Strawberry, Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Oreo! But those days are rare and complicated to achieve.
N- NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: 2 sisters, 2 half brothers... 1 + 1 + 1/2 + 1/2 = 3 siblings?
O - ONE WISH?: Equality and peace!
P- PLACE YOU WOULD REALLY LIKE TO GO: Japan, England, Hawaii, Spain, Australia, India, Brazil, Argentina, hey, even Canada again. The car ride sucks but I know to bring more games this time. I'd like to go anywhere.
Well, Maybe not Antartica... With my luck, I'd wander off and get lost forever, and a compass doesn't do much good at the south pole. I hear it kind of just spins in all directions, saying "North is any where else but here!" and thats a little useless.
Q- QUIET?: At the moment, yes, but not for long.
R- REASON TO SMILE: I get paid tomorrow... pay checks mean money... money means sushi... I like sushi...
S- SONG YOU LAST HEARD: Love and War, Rilo Kiley
T - TIME YOU WOKE UP: Noon? Had too much fun last night. Yeah, I know it was a Wednesday...
U - UNDERWEAR YOU’RE WEARING?: ...isn't the fact that I am enough?!
V - VEGETABLE YOU HATE: Olives. Do they count as vegtables?
W - WORST HABIT: oh where do I start... well, biting my finger nails. I have worse habits but thats the simplest one to share. Its a survey, not a short essay topic.
X- RAYS YOU’VE HAD: I think... 4? Back problems, ankle sprains, preteenhood in general.
Y - YOUR FRIEND THAT SHOWED YOU THIS: probably wont read this
Z- ZODIAC SIGN: Aquarius
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Feb. 24th: A year ago today... Election 2008mania commences!
Ralph Nader announced his umpteenth attempt at running for the presidency.
Sometimes I really want him to win, just to screw everything up.
This time, I'm glad he didn't.
It was just in time for the crazy case of Electionmania to sweep the nation, 10 months before November. Long time, when you think about it! Yet looking back, its as if we all just made a wish, blew out the candles, held onto our dandilions, and blinked.
I've been looking back at old clips of my favorite moments of 2008's election which I was so wrapped up in. My news habits still have not declined, but they have stopped escalating. Before the election, I had every news station (except FOX. I'd only watch that for a laugh) send me text messages to update me on the democratic primaries! People thought I was being some rude popular jerk on my phone all the time - and while I was being rude on my phone so much, it definitely wasn't popular.
From day one, My hopes were behind Hillary. Such is the way of the glass ceiling that she's now sitting in a Secretary job. Perfect, right?
I wonder if she feeds Obama's fish... Nah.
Anyway, This video is great. If you haven't already seen John McCain on the Ellen show, you need to see it now.
Greatest Awkward Moment on Day Time EVER:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7addd1-SY8&feature=related
I love Ellen so much.
"Our love is the same. To me, what it feels like, I will speak for myself, when you say 'well you can have a contract'... It sounds to me like you're saying you can sit there but you you can't sit there. You know?" -Ellen.
I love how John McCain needs to keep using the phrase "respectable disagreements" - its just SO CLOSE to an oxymoron and a lie. Ultimately its just a really good excuse to speak without saying anything, a talent politicians are known for.
Did you notice his laugh at the very end, when he says "Touche, Ellen!"? How creepy does he look there?
Be honest. He's scary!
He looks like/sounds like the guy on the front porch of his grey house in a creaky chair who you don't want to ask candy from on Halloween and your parents nudge you along saying "Ol' Johnny is a war hero!" but this is somewhat irrelavant and you don't really care because you think he hates you for being on his front lawn and for being a person in general so you'd rather pass his house and try to stare without him notice until you're at a safe distance but instead your parents make you go so you walk halfway up until you start to cry and it ruins your clown makeup which makes you even more upset and its a ridiculous time to cry in the eyes of any adult so this man taunts you from his chair and lets out this kind of laugh!
...
Well... I'm sure he's not that horrible. I bet John is normally a very nice, admirable man. But you can't see it when he laughs like that. This is just my opinion at this place in time.
Um...
Anyway! I'm so glad this creepy creepy guy and the ideas he represents isn't in My White House. How about you?
Oh, and I'm glad this crazy crazy lady is as far from the White House as she could possibly be while still on American soil. Although Alaska is still kinda close. Can't she just move to the moon?
Here's a little reminder that its good to be alive in this economy disaster with good old Joe Biden presiding over the senate as VP - and not this nut!!
Sometimes I really want him to win, just to screw everything up.
This time, I'm glad he didn't.
It was just in time for the crazy case of Electionmania to sweep the nation, 10 months before November. Long time, when you think about it! Yet looking back, its as if we all just made a wish, blew out the candles, held onto our dandilions, and blinked.
I've been looking back at old clips of my favorite moments of 2008's election which I was so wrapped up in. My news habits still have not declined, but they have stopped escalating. Before the election, I had every news station (except FOX. I'd only watch that for a laugh) send me text messages to update me on the democratic primaries! People thought I was being some rude popular jerk on my phone all the time - and while I was being rude on my phone so much, it definitely wasn't popular.
From day one, My hopes were behind Hillary. Such is the way of the glass ceiling that she's now sitting in a Secretary job. Perfect, right?
I wonder if she feeds Obama's fish... Nah.
Anyway, This video is great. If you haven't already seen John McCain on the Ellen show, you need to see it now.
Greatest Awkward Moment on Day Time EVER:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7addd1-SY8&feature=related
I love Ellen so much.
"Our love is the same. To me, what it feels like, I will speak for myself, when you say 'well you can have a contract'... It sounds to me like you're saying you can sit there but you you can't sit there. You know?" -Ellen.
I love how John McCain needs to keep using the phrase "respectable disagreements" - its just SO CLOSE to an oxymoron and a lie. Ultimately its just a really good excuse to speak without saying anything, a talent politicians are known for.
Did you notice his laugh at the very end, when he says "Touche, Ellen!"? How creepy does he look there?
Be honest. He's scary!
He looks like/sounds like the guy on the front porch of his grey house in a creaky chair who you don't want to ask candy from on Halloween and your parents nudge you along saying "Ol' Johnny is a war hero!" but this is somewhat irrelavant and you don't really care because you think he hates you for being on his front lawn and for being a person in general so you'd rather pass his house and try to stare without him notice until you're at a safe distance but instead your parents make you go so you walk halfway up until you start to cry and it ruins your clown makeup which makes you even more upset and its a ridiculous time to cry in the eyes of any adult so this man taunts you from his chair and lets out this kind of laugh!
...
Well... I'm sure he's not that horrible. I bet John is normally a very nice, admirable man. But you can't see it when he laughs like that. This is just my opinion at this place in time.
Um...
Anyway! I'm so glad this creepy creepy guy and the ideas he represents isn't in My White House. How about you?
Oh, and I'm glad this crazy crazy lady is as far from the White House as she could possibly be while still on American soil. Although Alaska is still kinda close. Can't she just move to the moon?
Here's a little reminder that its good to be alive in this economy disaster with good old Joe Biden presiding over the senate as VP - and not this nut!!
Dumber then a third grader? Why am I not surprised...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWegdnKWp4M&feature=related
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Theo's Thoughts #3 :: Are we "born that gay"? It's a theoRy
[I found this article very interesting! Heres the first half of it, you can read the rest via the link. Hope you enjoy! Quote it for you next arguement with a 'phobe! -Theo]
Born that gayDo recent neurological studies prove once and for all that homosexuality is biological?
By Robert Burton
Sep. 12, 2008 As the accuracy and resolution of brain imaging improve, we can expect virtually all behavior to be shown to be associated with demonstrable brain changes. It shouldn't come as a surprise that imaging studies of sexual orientation are increasingly revealing anatomic and functional differences between "straight" and "gay" brains. But demonstrating such changes doesn't answer the age-old question of how much our sexual preferences are innate and how much they are fueled by environmental exposure, cultural norms and conscious personal choices.
One way to distinguish the effects of nature from nurture would be to look at brain regions believed by neuro-anatomists to be fully formed at birth and impervious to subsequent environmental effects, both physical and psychological. Focusing on such brain regions, a research team at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, headed by neuroscientist Ivanka Savic, obtained MRIs for 90 adult volunteers -- 25 straight men, 25 straight women, 20 gay men and 20 lesbians. Using the latest quantitative techniques for assessing cerebral symmetry and functional connections between various areas of brain, Savic was able to demonstrate highly statistically significant differences between straight and gay brains. Gay and lesbian brains more closely resembled the brains of straight volunteers of the opposite sex than the brains of heterosexual members of the same sex.
In their study, reported in the June 16, 2008, issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Savic said, "This is the most robust measure so far of cerebral differences between homosexual and heterosexual subjects." Although Savic admits that her study cannot distinguish between genetic or prenatal intrauterine environmental changes, such as relative differences in sex hormone levels, her studies do suggest that our sexual preferences are, at least in large part, determined by the time of birth.
Not long after reading the study, I got a call from neurologist Jerome Goldstein, M.D., 67, once a fellow resident in the UCSF neurology training program. This fall, Goldstein, an internationally respected headache researcher and sometimes controversial gay activist, is giving a series of lectures on the innate biology of gayness. He was phoning to ask if I had seen the study and if I might write about the latest scientific evidence supporting the biology of gayness. I decided to interview him instead. Goldstein is compact, rapid-talking and constantly on the verge of impatience. Yet during our conversations he was subdued, confessional in tone, with frequent pauses to gather his thoughts; the seriousness of his concerns was palpable...
Read the rest of the article/interview here:
http://www.salon.com/env/mind_reader/2008/09/12/gay_neurology/index.html
It only gets more interesting!
Think about it!
Then, Email/comment with your thoughts, if you'd like to share.
theoreticalm220@aol.com
Peace and hope,
Theo
Born that gayDo recent neurological studies prove once and for all that homosexuality is biological?
By Robert Burton
Sep. 12, 2008 As the accuracy and resolution of brain imaging improve, we can expect virtually all behavior to be shown to be associated with demonstrable brain changes. It shouldn't come as a surprise that imaging studies of sexual orientation are increasingly revealing anatomic and functional differences between "straight" and "gay" brains. But demonstrating such changes doesn't answer the age-old question of how much our sexual preferences are innate and how much they are fueled by environmental exposure, cultural norms and conscious personal choices.
One way to distinguish the effects of nature from nurture would be to look at brain regions believed by neuro-anatomists to be fully formed at birth and impervious to subsequent environmental effects, both physical and psychological. Focusing on such brain regions, a research team at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, headed by neuroscientist Ivanka Savic, obtained MRIs for 90 adult volunteers -- 25 straight men, 25 straight women, 20 gay men and 20 lesbians. Using the latest quantitative techniques for assessing cerebral symmetry and functional connections between various areas of brain, Savic was able to demonstrate highly statistically significant differences between straight and gay brains. Gay and lesbian brains more closely resembled the brains of straight volunteers of the opposite sex than the brains of heterosexual members of the same sex.
In their study, reported in the June 16, 2008, issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Savic said, "This is the most robust measure so far of cerebral differences between homosexual and heterosexual subjects." Although Savic admits that her study cannot distinguish between genetic or prenatal intrauterine environmental changes, such as relative differences in sex hormone levels, her studies do suggest that our sexual preferences are, at least in large part, determined by the time of birth.
Not long after reading the study, I got a call from neurologist Jerome Goldstein, M.D., 67, once a fellow resident in the UCSF neurology training program. This fall, Goldstein, an internationally respected headache researcher and sometimes controversial gay activist, is giving a series of lectures on the innate biology of gayness. He was phoning to ask if I had seen the study and if I might write about the latest scientific evidence supporting the biology of gayness. I decided to interview him instead. Goldstein is compact, rapid-talking and constantly on the verge of impatience. Yet during our conversations he was subdued, confessional in tone, with frequent pauses to gather his thoughts; the seriousness of his concerns was palpable...
Read the rest of the article/interview here:
http://www.salon.com/env/mind_reader/2008/09/12/gay_neurology/index.html
It only gets more interesting!
Think about it!
Then, Email/comment with your thoughts, if you'd like to share.
theoreticalm220@aol.com
Peace and hope,
Theo
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Theo's Thoughts #2: I might grow to hate technology someday...
Tonight, I flipped through some pictures a distant aunt of mine had scanned and uploaded on to her picasa. I suppose flipped wouldn't be the right word her, since there were no photo album pages. Clicked through?
Whichever. They were interestingly shuffled, and I enjoyed discovering two pictures next to each other where her and her husband sat in similar positions between both photos.
One picture was from last July.
You can see their fresh-from-the-obnoxiously-long-cruise tan in stunning color, taken by their outstandingly-expensive camera that they have no right owning since they can't use the word "focus" grammatically correct in a sentence. They both have similar short haircuts, but God Forbid you point that out, as males and females NEVER have the same hair cuts. (Tell that to my hick cousin's greasy mullet. She should hear this.)
My aunt's hair is growing in a little grey (she soon saw a hair salon which fixed all that) and my uncle's was also quite white. Their faces aged well, as much as they complain about it. They've got laughter wrinkles, not worry wrinkles or frown wrinkles, or looks-of-general-dislike wrinkles. Just the ones that stream down from your nose and around your mouth like tears of joy, and those crow's feet that ruffle at the edges of your eyes.
Both formed from smiling and squinting, respectively, as you often do when you laugh.
Or, when you have a sneeze stuck in your nose.
Regardless, you get it.
The other picture was much older, I want to say fifties? Sixties? They were teens. Perhaps young adults. No grey hair, no wrinkles, no stupid rub-it-in-your-face tan. They're young, and in love, and still have the same hair cuts, only its long, flat, and symmetrically parted. They look innocent and wide-eyed. Clear skinned and smooth-featured. At least, I think their skin is clear. Of course, this picture is black, white, and blurry.
Its not the camera man's fault, its the camera. It has that age old distortion to it. The 1960 equivalent of that fuzzy look 80's VHS has compared to 00's DVDs, so its a similar blur but twice as worse. And as I look at it, I can almost hear my Aunt saying,
I think its kind of funny.
I mean, it is my baby picture, my toddler years, my childhood and young adulthood that I will be looking back on for the rest of my life, as it progresses. And as I look back at my older young adulthood, adulthood, and old age, I will revisit the most recent memories all the way to the earliest over and over again.
Irony:
As I do so, I will also be looking at pictures from the newest technology to the oldest form of photography that I have ever lived to see. And when I'm old and pictures are capture in multiple dimensions with perfect color and balance every time, I'll look back at these pictures from college of my friends and I at a height in our lives and say:
Whichever. They were interestingly shuffled, and I enjoyed discovering two pictures next to each other where her and her husband sat in similar positions between both photos.
One picture was from last July.
You can see their fresh-from-the-obnoxiously-long-cruise tan in stunning color, taken by their outstandingly-expensive camera that they have no right owning since they can't use the word "focus" grammatically correct in a sentence. They both have similar short haircuts, but God Forbid you point that out, as males and females NEVER have the same hair cuts. (Tell that to my hick cousin's greasy mullet. She should hear this.)
My aunt's hair is growing in a little grey (she soon saw a hair salon which fixed all that) and my uncle's was also quite white. Their faces aged well, as much as they complain about it. They've got laughter wrinkles, not worry wrinkles or frown wrinkles, or looks-of-general-dislike wrinkles. Just the ones that stream down from your nose and around your mouth like tears of joy, and those crow's feet that ruffle at the edges of your eyes.
Both formed from smiling and squinting, respectively, as you often do when you laugh.
Or, when you have a sneeze stuck in your nose.
Regardless, you get it.
The other picture was much older, I want to say fifties? Sixties? They were teens. Perhaps young adults. No grey hair, no wrinkles, no stupid rub-it-in-your-face tan. They're young, and in love, and still have the same hair cuts, only its long, flat, and symmetrically parted. They look innocent and wide-eyed. Clear skinned and smooth-featured. At least, I think their skin is clear. Of course, this picture is black, white, and blurry.
Its not the camera man's fault, its the camera. It has that age old distortion to it. The 1960 equivalent of that fuzzy look 80's VHS has compared to 00's DVDs, so its a similar blur but twice as worse. And as I look at it, I can almost hear my Aunt saying,
"
Of course.
A good picture of me
taken with a crappy camera.
A beautiful point in my life
that came before all this
digital mega pixel its-on-your-phone
Of course.
A good picture of me
taken with a crappy camera.
A beautiful point in my life
that came before all this
digital mega pixel its-on-your-phone
whatchamacallinits.
Great! Ha!
"
Great! Ha!
"
I think its kind of funny.
I mean, it is my baby picture, my toddler years, my childhood and young adulthood that I will be looking back on for the rest of my life, as it progresses. And as I look back at my older young adulthood, adulthood, and old age, I will revisit the most recent memories all the way to the earliest over and over again.
Irony:
As I do so, I will also be looking at pictures from the newest technology to the oldest form of photography that I have ever lived to see. And when I'm old and pictures are capture in multiple dimensions with perfect color and balance every time, I'll look back at these pictures from college of my friends and I at a height in our lives and say:
"
Damn.
High definition sucks.
Another good picture taken by a crappy camera.
What else is new?
"
Just some thoughts.
Appreciate what you've got before its gone!
And to quote those tacky Dove commercials,
love the skin your in!
It is hard to do sometimes, I know,
but its not exactly something we can afford to be bad at!
(No joke, plastic surgery is very expensive!)
:')
Peace and happiness,
Theo.
Friday, January 9, 2009
How To Make The World A Better Place via **Get To Know Me First**
What a motto/mantra.
Story of my life. A story of my life that I will eventually post more of on the blog.
BUT this isn't about me.
Well, not only about me.
Its about a lot of people like me.
How often are you judged on first glance? Judged by your race, your appearance, your gender, etc. Well, imagine being a part of the GLBT community, a permanent aspect of the human psyche that is also discriminated against, but not completely visable. Being discriminated against for being GLBT is like beginning a journey with a person you met as you get to know each other and create a friendship, then that person suddenly ditching you on the trail once they find out you're one of 'them'.
Get To Know Me First is an Post-Prop8 Anti-Prop8 campaign to teach the public the TRUTHS, and the in's about coming out and living in a gay family. They say, Don't judge a book by its cover, get to know these families and these stories before you make you choice.
Or, as I like to say, Hey, Don't knock it 'til you've tried it, buddy!
Just kidding.
Anyway, Check it out:
http://www.gettoknowmefirst.org/Overview.html
Watch the full vid. George Takei gets deep! He goes there, and I love him all the more for it. (You know, He's the guy from Star Trek. Wikipedia it, ok? Yeah he's on there!)
Oh hey they have a blog too:
http://www.gettoknowmefirst.org/Blog/Blog.html
Join the face book group too:
http://www.facebook.com/wall.php?id=1039530006&banter_id=1097168140&show_all#/group.php?gid=67255087624
Last link, I swear:
http://gettoknowusfirst.org/
Watch their five 30 second ads!
Sorry, I got trigger-happy about the linking. It happens.
But its good stuff! So... Help out!
Peace and Hope.
Theo.
"Get to know me First."
Story of my life. A story of my life that I will eventually post more of on the blog.
BUT this isn't about me.
Well, not only about me.
Its about a lot of people like me.
How often are you judged on first glance? Judged by your race, your appearance, your gender, etc. Well, imagine being a part of the GLBT community, a permanent aspect of the human psyche that is also discriminated against, but not completely visable. Being discriminated against for being GLBT is like beginning a journey with a person you met as you get to know each other and create a friendship, then that person suddenly ditching you on the trail once they find out you're one of 'them'.
Get To Know Me First is an Post-Prop8 Anti-Prop8 campaign to teach the public the TRUTHS, and the in's about coming out and living in a gay family. They say, Don't judge a book by its cover, get to know these families and these stories before you make you choice.
Or, as I like to say, Hey, Don't knock it 'til you've tried it, buddy!
Just kidding.
Anyway, Check it out:
http://www.gettoknowmefirst.org/Overview.html
Watch the full vid. George Takei gets deep! He goes there, and I love him all the more for it. (You know, He's the guy from Star Trek. Wikipedia it, ok? Yeah he's on there!)
Oh hey they have a blog too:
http://www.gettoknowmefirst.org/Blog/Blog.html
Join the face book group too:
http://www.facebook.com/wall.php?id=1039530006&banter_id=1097168140&show_all#/group.php?gid=67255087624
Last link, I swear:
http://gettoknowusfirst.org/
Watch their five 30 second ads!
Sorry, I got trigger-happy about the linking. It happens.
But its good stuff! So... Help out!
Peace and Hope.
Theo.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
More About Moi
I dig slam poetry, music, and conversation.
I could be a history teacher, english teacher, accountant, etc.
But I think I'd rather be an activist for equality and humanity with my music and do something with my life.
I love meeting new people and picking their brains.
Email me at Theoreticalm220@aol.com, penny for your thoughts?
I'm a bit of a home-body but when I do get out, I get out.
I consider myself an Exceptional Vegitarian, as in, I make exceptions for sushi.
I love seeing shows, movies, etc.
I can ride the unicycle, and enjoy rock climbing.
If I'm not reading, I'm writing.
If I'm not writing, I wish I was.
My favorite thing in the world is making people laugh and think. I enjoy it more then laughing myself.
Someday, I'm going to be on television.
This is my start on the internet.
I could be a history teacher, english teacher, accountant, etc.
But I think I'd rather be an activist for equality and humanity with my music and do something with my life.
I love meeting new people and picking their brains.
Email me at Theoreticalm220@aol.com, penny for your thoughts?
I'm a bit of a home-body but when I do get out, I get out.
I consider myself an Exceptional Vegitarian, as in, I make exceptions for sushi.
I love seeing shows, movies, etc.
I can ride the unicycle, and enjoy rock climbing.
If I'm not reading, I'm writing.
If I'm not writing, I wish I was.
My favorite thing in the world is making people laugh and think. I enjoy it more then laughing myself.
Someday, I'm going to be on television.
This is my start on the internet.
Pencil Diving right into entry #1
Hey.
I'm Theo.
Today on the train, my ticket from Hicksville to East NY was punched by this conductor who I've gotten several times before, and we started a conversation. His name is Rich, for those of you who take the LIRR and may meet him today, and he's pretty cool. He told me people call him "Shoes" though, from his days in color guard, always shining his shoes. Eventually he said he had to go but he added, "I'll see ya around, I never forget a face." Then he winked with this weird twinkle in his eye as if he were Santa Clause or just some other kind of dandy child molester.
Yeah, we'll see about that, Mr. Shoes.
I thought I'd start of with a short 'snippet' of my life. Swear I've got better.
Few things about me.
I hate introductions. Even though, they are important.
I like just jumping into things. You can only start off slow for so long.
I'm the kind of person who doesn't test the pool water before I dive. It's more exciting that way.
Music, art, and literature are all very important to me. I like to perform, draw, and write just as much as I like to listen, observe, and read. Museums are pretty cool. Park's are better though.
I live in New York, New York, but I'm always traveling upstate or to LI for various reasons. I have scattered friends across the United States.
I was at one point, a history major. Sometimes I miss it.
I love meeting new people. You'll see I'm not your Average Joe.
Actually, I hate that euphemism. I think after Joe the Plumber, we need a new Average someone. Can we get a petition started on that? Lets make it Average Kyle from now on. Just for shits and giggles.
I'm pretty nocturnal. It's currently two hours from sunrise right now.
I'm very interested in philosophy, psychology, sociology, theology, politics, and the paranormal. I don't know exactly where my stance is on any of it, although I try to be opinionated I am easy to convince. I like discussion and debate, and all of these topics bring plenty of it!
I believe that's enough for one night.
If you like what you've read, found it interesting, or just need a friend, myspace/fbook me.
www.myspace.com/theoreticaltheo
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=1097168140&ref=name
And you can email any time, day or night at theoreticalm220@aol.com
Peace and thoughts,
Theo.
I'm Theo.
Today on the train, my ticket from Hicksville to East NY was punched by this conductor who I've gotten several times before, and we started a conversation. His name is Rich, for those of you who take the LIRR and may meet him today, and he's pretty cool. He told me people call him "Shoes" though, from his days in color guard, always shining his shoes. Eventually he said he had to go but he added, "I'll see ya around, I never forget a face." Then he winked with this weird twinkle in his eye as if he were Santa Clause or just some other kind of dandy child molester.
Yeah, we'll see about that, Mr. Shoes.
I thought I'd start of with a short 'snippet' of my life. Swear I've got better.
Few things about me.
I hate introductions. Even though, they are important.
I like just jumping into things. You can only start off slow for so long.
I'm the kind of person who doesn't test the pool water before I dive. It's more exciting that way.
Music, art, and literature are all very important to me. I like to perform, draw, and write just as much as I like to listen, observe, and read. Museums are pretty cool. Park's are better though.
I live in New York, New York, but I'm always traveling upstate or to LI for various reasons. I have scattered friends across the United States.
I was at one point, a history major. Sometimes I miss it.
I love meeting new people. You'll see I'm not your Average Joe.
Actually, I hate that euphemism. I think after Joe the Plumber, we need a new Average someone. Can we get a petition started on that? Lets make it Average Kyle from now on. Just for shits and giggles.
I'm pretty nocturnal. It's currently two hours from sunrise right now.
I'm very interested in philosophy, psychology, sociology, theology, politics, and the paranormal. I don't know exactly where my stance is on any of it, although I try to be opinionated I am easy to convince. I like discussion and debate, and all of these topics bring plenty of it!
I believe that's enough for one night.
If you like what you've read, found it interesting, or just need a friend, myspace/fbook me.
www.myspace.com/theoreticaltheo
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=1097168140&ref=name
And you can email any time, day or night at theoreticalm220@aol.com
Peace and thoughts,
Theo.
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