Turning 30 In 2020
Hello everyone.
I turned 30 on June 1 and that makes me a wise person that can give their opinion on the internet.
In reality I think opinions are kind of annoying. My wife and I often take walks through cemeteries and it constantly reminds me of how many people have roamed this earth, had hopes, dreams, fears, worries, and ideas, and how I am just one little person with one little 30-year sample of life that happened to begin in the year 1990.
Still, I wanted to pass along just a few thoughts on life that I accumulated during my 20s. These should be taken as absolute truth and written into law immediately.
Love, and do what you want
Tomorrow you could get up and fly to Japan, assuming you don’t already live in Japan. If you’re in Japan, you could fly to Italy. If you’re married and suddenly flew to another country your family would be like where the hell did they go? Japan? What? It’s Wednesday. They’d be really confused, but you could do it.
You could start working out today. You could be a gun lover or a tree hugger. You could make saving squirrels your life mission. You could sit inside for four hours a day and play video games. You can dance at weddings; you can stay in your seat; you can play sports; you can join the band; you can let things go; you can confront them; you can yell; you can whisper.
Humans are endlessly creative and malleable, and this leads to various lifestyles and identities. None are right, none are wrong. You can live however you want. As long as you’re not overly weird and don’t start creeping people out.
Live for money, live for love, it doesn’t matter. You don’t need to live like Oprah or Dan Bilzerian to be happy… but at the same time, if you want to play poker, smoke and sell pot, and hang out with supermodels, be my guest! Same is true for Dan Bilzerian’s hobbies.
As St. Augustine said: “Love, and do what you want.” How do you beat that quote?
Breathe, Drink water
There are some things that are undeniable though, like living a healthier lifestyle that involves exercising and proper nutrition. Your car needs the right type of fuel to operate properly, so does your body. However, nutrition is a highly debated topic and there’s often tons of disagreement. IS COFFEE GOOD FOR ME OR NOT?! HOW MANY STUDIES DO WE NEED TO DO?!
To me, it’s better to at least start with doing the simplest thing right, and that starts with breathing. Throughout your day, take deep breaths through your nose. That’s step one. Then, just drink water. Seriously, if you’re like, how can I turn today around? Just breath, drink some water. Just keep drinking water. Honestly this is the most important idea presented here.
Diversity is strength
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned as someone who grew up in a small town is that the world is effin huge. So many different people have different experiences and live different lives, and we now have more power than ever to get access to their perspectives.
Do not let this power go to waste. It is very easy these days to get stuck in the echo chambers and psychological land mines on social media. I call this “getting lost in the weeds.” Don’t get lost in the weeds, my friends. The world is a huge and complicated place, don’t let anyone simplify it with a “this or that, black or white” mindset.
The wider your understanding of the world and the people in it, the greater the possibilities in your own life. Some people get the idea twisted that focusing on diversity is just a feel-good measure that certain people focus on for the optics.
The truth is, no matter what pursuit you’re on, being able to hear perspectives far different than your own is immensely valuable and powerful -- much more so than the perspective of a person “more qualified” by traditional measures who has a similar worldview. That our capitalist-loving American society has yet to fully understand that the “compassionate/feel-good” measures are actually also best for business is one of the tastiest ironies of our time.
Action that is spawned from a diverse group of ideas will be far more dynamic and effective than action that comes from a narrow and limited view. Feast on ideas from all walks of life, from every culture, from every time period. The people who find the most meaning in the work they do are the ones who stay most open-minded about what’s possible. Their pursuits will be much more fruitful.
Spend up on underwear
I don’t spend a lot of money on clothes. Not because I’m frugal, but more because I’ve worked from home most of my adult life and it’s just never mattered. And I don’t have shit for style.
Clothes to me are more about utility than aesthetics, and for that reason my only concern is my underwear. I will not settle for a second rate pair of underwear. If I have a pair I don’t like, I pitch them immediately. Shouldn’t I donate them instead? No, I don’t want anyone else hindered by something so sinister.
If your underwear isn’t right, nothing is.
Life is, and will always be, messy and painful
There is never a “I made it” point. No matter what route you take, you will always have obstacles and events that will challenge you and confuse you. This is unavoidable. This uncertainty is not unique to you, it’s shared with everyone.
On a societal level, we always need to improve things, and I would even suggest becoming, like, proactive to avoid certain foreseeable issues.
But it’s also important to understand that no matter what advancements and changes are made, on a personal or society-wide level, life will always be hard, slightly unfair, and confusing. Toughness of mind and spirit will always be necessary on a personal level. 1 Corinthians 16:13
My Top 5
Without explanation, here are 5 cultural figures who’ve had a major impact on my life. These are just the facts.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone
Ta-Nehisi Coates
Taylor Swift
Dave Chappelle
Kurt Vonnegut
Drugs Are Just Science
We’ve been led to believe that certain substances are okay and others are not. Do I need to be the 1 millionth person to question why alcohol, one of the most dangerous and destructive substances, is legal and endlessly promoted in the U.S., while something like marijuana, which is a friggin plant, is still seen as bad?
Everything we put in our bodies (including food!) affects us in certain ways. On a broader level, we need to keep getting a better understanding of how our bodies and minds work, and how certain substances affect us. To be clear, I would encourage you to live your life mostly in a state of sobriety to achieve maximum happiness.
On the other hand, humans have always experimented with altered states of consciousness. Our own body gives us different states of consciousness; we have “drugs” naturally occurring in our brains. Not only do I think it’s “okay” for people to try different substances that affect the mind and body, but I think it’s vital for the growth of humanity as a whole moving forward. The problem is most people aren’t properly educated on how their bodies work and how to utilize certain “drugs.”
One of the clearest examples of this is with psychedelic drugs, like psilocybin mushrooms and LSD. Seen as “party drugs” by the general population for decades, we’re now beginning to understand the unbelievably positive and life-altering impact these chemicals can have for certain people, including those suffering from PTSD and depression. However, we need to understand how to use them properly, just like everything else… including substances prescribed by medical professionals.
Everything has its place. Alcohol, carbohydrates, sugar, marijuana, caffeine, nicotine… all these things and more can be explored by humans. For most people, it’s simply important not to become reliant on anything, learning about yourself and how certain things affect you. Don’t do cocaine though. I don’t think there’s any reason to do cocaine.
Final Thought
I could go on forever here. I’ve written and erased tons of stuff that I will probably write about later. Maybe someday I’ll even publish the book I wrote! But as a parting note here, just remember to live for the moment. Train your mind so that you’re focusing on the present, not the past or the imaginary future. It never comes.
The time to live your life is right now. If there’s something you want to say, say it. If there’s something you want to do, do it. If you get a chance to be around the people you love, appreciate it. These moments are too few in this world. Celebrate life, celebrate each other.
One way to do this is to pump up the crowd, like this.
Just do this randomly for no reason. When there’s no one around. When you’re sitting at your desk at work. At the dinner table. It’ll make a huge difference in your life. You can thank me later. I’m doing it right now.
Now excuse me while I kiss the sky.
