Random Thoughts on Floss

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I went to the dentist today for my periodontitis treatment. I still have not ever had a single cavity, but I SUCK at flossing. Whenever asked how I've been flossing I mumble "I've been doing ok I guess." I knew he knew and then when he was finishing it all up with a little flossing he said that if I just floss aggressively for two days my gums won't be sensitive to it anymore and it'll all be good. sigh. ok. I'll try.

We bought something like 20 floss dispensers at Costco the other day. Cambria and Ember got into one of them and strung it ALL OVER THE HOUSE. At least someone is using the floss...

The Denver Nuggets and the Spirit of Collectivism

I sit here writing this minutes after the Nuggets tragically lost Game 5 to the Oklahoma City Thunder by three points. I ended up finishing 3/4 of a bottle of Montes Wine in the process. I'm depressed; no doubt about it. However, I love the Nuggets. I love them so much and not just because they play in Denver, but because their style of ball reflect my politics. The Nuggets embody the spirit of collectivism which I dedicate every fiber of my being to.

Above all, I believe that when we as a people work together we are amazing. When we are allowed to live to our full potential we create beauty. When we are denied the ability to reach that potential it is a grave injustice. When we are denied our basic rights to water and food, to an exciting and inspiring education, to be able to love freely, to have a home we love to bring our family and friends into, to work a job that we know makes a better world and taps into our talents, and on and on then we are being denied life. We are denied what is possible; and if it possible then we should darn well have it!!! It's possible!!!

Everyday we are faced with structures and systems (cough cough capitalism cough cough) which not only deny us these fundamental rights, but are set up to ensure the exact opposite- to exploit, to degrade, to abuse.

And so yes, to get excited about a basketball team where players are paid millions to put a ball into a circular piece of metal is a bit absurd, but it's also exciting and important to celebrate those moments where that spirit of our potential and principle of collectivism shines through.

The National Basketball Association is driven, like most things in this world, by the bottomline- money. A fictitious representation of wealth. As a result, the typical team model is to build a team around one person- a superstar. Team basics are eschewed for the power of a superbeing. I fell into this. I fell in love with the persona of Carmelo Anthony. I fell in love with that smile. I fell in love with the way that we would echo out "Melllllo!" when he made a three. Boy am I glad that my starstruck awe of him was shattered when he was traded. It was also soooo satisfying to see that back-stabbing, attention-loving, ego-maniac choke and lead his team to a sweep in the first round. YEssssssss!!!

Also, I am glad he left because with this new roster I see the amazing force of a team driven not around a single player, but by the spirit of collectivism and teamwork.

There is no one on the Nuggets that is the go to guy and thank god for that! Superstars sell jerseys. Superstars sell front row tickets. Superstars get shoe contracts. Superstars make MONEY. But you know what else superstars make? Superstars make basketball that is sooooooooo freaking boring. Dribble down, clear the court and isolate the star. What the heck?!? That's boring. Sorry, but it is. It's BORING!!!!

So, even though the Nuggets did what they have practically done for what? the last seven years? (basketball nerds- comment with the correct stats)_ lose in the first round- I am both depressed and ecstatic. The reason that this devastating blow is overshadowed by love for this team is because they have broken the mold. They have become a team which is a team, not a set of players built around one person.

Since the blockbuster Carmelo Anthony trade, the Nuggets have surprised basketball fans as they instantly clicked, finishing with 50 wins for the fourth time in a row. After the pre-Madonna Melo left, our assists went up to 24.1 a game and our defense jumped up to holding teams to 97.1 ppg (from allowing 105.2). Announcers, bloggers, columnists, and fans all agreed- it was refreshing to see real team basketball. What the Nuggets lack in stardom, they make up for in team chemistry and depth. Any of their top ten players could be starters elsewhere in the league. This parity of talent and wide array of skills brings a collectivism to the game that is great to watch. You never know who will shine each game.

The NBA has been criticized for its lack of team ball in general. It goes back to that flawed superstar formula. So, the fact that when it comes down to the wire the Nuggets have admittedly said that the final shot is a collective decision, makes me happy. We may have lost and our season may be over, but dang do I love to watch my team. It was a good run guys. You show what happens when the whole team is into the game, is working to win, is working to make sure that every single person reaches their potential. It's a quick snapshot of the world I fight for.

Also, I was able to attend the only game in the series we actually won :) Yesssssssss.

I Would Teach Them to Walk on the Earth as Humans

I read this poem every morning at work. It reminds me why I do what I do. I guess I don't interpret it literally because it's definitely rooted in an experience (Chicano) that is not my own, but the spirit of it fits right into what I am striving for each day. Here it is, it's by Jimmy Santiago Baca who is probably my favorite poet.



Yellow school buses halt at small groups
of waiting mothers,
rebozos around their shoulders,
like their Indio ancestors,
huddled around a fire at night.
The kids scamper off
like young buffaloes nudging
their mothers' hands to play,
but then they finally dash off.

If I were a teacher
I would roam them along
the Rio Grande; teach them silence,
to listen to the air
brushing sunlight on leaves,
the soft stroking of wind quills
on leaves, sisst-sist-sist,
slowly drawing across the leaf, leaving
thin streaks of yellow, then turning them red and gold-

they would understand that
the poem is given away-
that golden leaves fall to earth,
to the black, warm steaming earth,
where the hands of roots
weave our gifts again into the whole picture
called life.

I would teach them to fight for solitude,
stand their ground like mountain rams-
do not let the city's nightlife
lure them away-demand, shivering
uncertainty in blood, demand solitude.

I would teach them to look-
face the tree and study the bark,
see how the grooves foretell
our lives, how rough-edged it is,
how it holds up the tree, encircling the soft, moist
bark inside. How the tree counts its years
in circles, completing its sorrow each autumn,
enduring its loss of innocence each winter,
turning to meet the circle it drew
with new leaves, offerings of leaves
quivering under the sun god.

I would teach them to walk on the earth
as humans: to regard the cities as they do
their log-cabin toys-shelved
after play hour, as they resume their lives
in the sunlight, under the moon, among the people.

If Your God Exists, He Needs to Be Taken Down

Yeah, it's kind of harsh and I didn't actually say this to the Christians I met on campus, so here's what really happened.

I was walking through Auraria Campus and saw some people mingling around talking to people. They had a dry-erase easel and some literature. I figured they were evangelists or activists. Not sure which one is worse...just kidding, activists are totally annoying.

Anyways, they stopped me as I walked by and asked "Would you do a quick survey for us?"
"Sure."
"Ok, write down where you will go after this life on this board. If it's already on there you can put a tally next to it."
I looked at the board- heaven, hell, purgatory, not sure, I know I will be in heaven because I have accepted Jesus Christ as my one and only savior.

Hmmmm...
I ended up writing "universe/abyss"

"Interesting, what do you mean by that?" asked the Christian.
"Um, I guess I feel like there is no after life in the sense of me consciously occupying a place, but maybe my life energy goes out into the world in some manner."
"Ok ok," said the Christian. I'm just going to call him Brandon. He was REALLY nice by the way.

"So how confident are you in that?" Brandon asked.
"Probably something like 95%," I said.
"Ok, and if there is a heaven, how confident are you that you'd go there?"
"Hmm, probably 95% again."
"Ok, ok," said Brandon in a thoughtful and understanding way. (Did I say he was really nice?)
Brandon continued, "So why do you think you're going to heaven? I mean assuming there is one."
"Well I'm a good father, I love my kids, I love my wife, I love my friends and I try and do a lot of good in the world. I think if there was a God they'd appreciate that."
"Yeah, yeah totally. Well the thing is that we can never be perfect."
"For sure," I said.
"Well ok and though we can't be perfect we can accept Jesus Christ as our savior as the Bible says and have that imperfection forgiven."
"So basically you have to accept Jesus Christ and this specific God as one's God to get into heaven?" I asked.
"Yes, the Bible says how Jesus died, but it wasn't for free. In return we must accept him as our savior." Brandon explained

This went on for awhile. I said that it seemed a bit petty that God would not let people into heaven who held different belief systems. I wondered aloud to Brandon why a God that is all-powerful would have such a huge ego and such low self-esteem to punish good people to eternal damnation just because they didn't believe in him, or even that they believed in him but in a form he thought wasn't accurate enough. I asked about a hypothetical villager in rural Pakistan who grew up in a completely Muslim town who was good to his family and a great neighbor. He too would be sent to hell? Even though the predominant religion was something other than Christianity?

Brandon quoted some more Bible verses, but the end answer was- Yes. Unless he accepted this specific form of Christianity he would suffer eternal misery in hell.

So I finally said, "I'm sorry but even if you are right, I wouldn't want to go to heaven. I know that's extreme and maybe I'd change my mind if actually faced with this, but I just would not agree with a God like that. I can't imagine being in a heaven where so many of my friends and family and just really good people who I don't even know are suffering in hell. I'd rather just go to hell."

He was sort of taken aback and didn't know what to say. I felt bad because he was really nice so I said, "Well this has been a really interesting conversation with a lot to think about. I really appreciate it," and left.

After reading the Golden Compass and His Dark Materials series I started to change my position on religion some. Before I was really into what the truth is. I still am, but the reality is I don't know what is ultimately true. Still, in the Dark Materials book there is a wrathful God and what is amazing is that some people don't accept that. They try and take that God down because he is unjust. I think that's really powerful. It's powerful to think that even if certain oppressive and unjust beliefs are true, that people of conscious should still reject them and stand firmly on the side of what is right. So yes, if that God did exist, I wouldn't want to be in his heaven. I'd rather be in hell organizing towards a heaven that is open to all, regardless of creed.

Making Funny Comments During Movies

Rules for Making Funny Commentary
- refer to all weird looking people as specific celebrities
- do lots of voices
- finish people's sentences whenever there is any pause in speech
- answer questions before the actors do in humorous way
- poke fun at inconsistencies
- vocalize characters' perceived thoughts
- develop reoccurring jokes
- crack jokes at extras' actions all the time
- sing funny lyrics to theme song

I wrote these down after my friend Matt and I watched the RiffTrax of Raiders of the Lost Ark, which is basically Mystery Science Theater 3000 without the silhouettes and space craft scenes (which were the best!!). Watching made me realize that watching these movies was not just funnier, but it actually deepened my viewing of the movie. You notice the extras, you notice the awkward nuanced actions of the main characters, the flawed dialogue, the costumes, and the specific action moves.

I loved MST3 as a kid. I'd always watch it with my dad. I want to be those guys. I mean, minus the being held captive on a space shuttle by an evil scientist who forces you to watch horrible movies. Anyways, to do that I'm going to have to practice. Hopefully Matt will be up for that because the rest of my friends I see just getting mad at me for trying to provide a hilarious running commentary.

Poems

I didn't think Wal-Mart could be cute until we stumbled through the aisles drunk together.


Refusal to Sleep on a Winter Night
It's even colder to slip into bed without you. I'm staying up.

Richard Brautigan Poems That I Like

I used to write really verbose poetry. I didn't know how to fix it. Then I discovered Richard Brautigan.


"Deer Tracks"
Beautiful, sobbing, high-geared fucking
and then to lie silently like deer tracks
in the freshly-fallen snow beside the one
you love. That’s all.

"The Net Wt. of Winter is 6.75 Ozs."
The net wt. of winter is 6.75 ozs.
and winter has a regular flavor
with Fluoristan to stop tooth decay.

A month ago I bought a huge tube
of Crest tooth paste and when I put it
in the bathroom, I looked at it
and said, "Winter."

December 4, 1968

"Hinged to Forgetfulness like a Door"
Hinged to forgetfulness like a door,
she slowly closed out of sight,
and she was the woman that I loved,
but too many times she slept like
a mechanical deer in my caresses,
and I ached in the metal silence
of her dreams.

"Romeo and Juliet"
If you will die for me,
I will die for you

and our graves will
be like two lovers washing
their clothes together
in a Laundromat.

If you will bring the soap,
I will bring the bleach.

"Late Starting Dawn"
It's a late starting dawn that breathes my vision,
inhales and exhales the sound of waking birds
and pokes ten miles of cold gray sky at a deer
standing alone in a meadow.

"My Concern for Your Tomato Plants"
I stare at your tomato plants.
You're not, I'm not pleased with the way
they are growing.
I try to think of ways to help them.
I study them. What do I know about tomatoes?
"Perhaps some nitrate," I suggest.
But I don’t know anything and now I've taken
to gossiping about them. I'm as shameless
as their lack of growing.