An amusing new way to discourage the use of bottled water has sprouted. I can’t help but think it’s a waste to sell promotional bottles, though, even if they are reuseable. Wouldn’t it make more sense to promote finding existing bottles and reusing them? I guess that’s not the way advertising works.

I have a better understanding of why I and many others foolishly tried to dumb myself down to fit in with grade school peers. Most of my friends can agree that middle school was one of the worst periods of our lives.

The problem is, the world these kids create for themselves is at first a very crude one. If you leave a bunch of eleven-year-olds to their own devices, what you get is Lord of the Flies. Like a lot of American kids, I read this book in school. Presumably it was not a coincidence. Presumably someone wanted to point out to us that we were savages, and that we had made ourselves a cruel and stupid world. This was too subtle for me. While the book seemed entirely believable, I didn’t get the additional message. I wish they had just told us outright that we were savages and our world was stupid.

In a rush to write this, I can’t find the other quote I wanted to cite. It had to do with going back to school at our current age and avoiding all the drama because we know enough now to see through it. I wish I could go back to school and set an example for future generations. Being a mature student among younger peers would present the message that learning isn’t as worthless as it feels when it’s forced on us seemingly without purpose. If I went through the 11th grade with co-eds a decade older than me, not only would I feel confident that knowledge never loses worth, but I would gain a perspective of someone who has graduated the system and come back for more. It would set us at the top of the food chain; the youngest and freshest minds learning how to combine state-of-the-art technology, literature, history, math, social networking, and a myriad other disciplines with the real-world application set forward by adults who have weathered the currently decaying education system.

At this point, I’m forcing words to get my point across rather than structuring my thoughts, so I’ll stop there.

In conclusion, it’s difficult for me not to find everything but education and environmental conservation trivial when our tunnel-vision and lack of hindsight is killing us and everything that supports us at an increasing rate.

Yesterday, I watched the documentary Gonzo, which detailed the life and work of Hunter S Thompson. Immediately after watching it, I thought, “Wow! I want to start writing. I’m sick of feeling scatter-brained and posting incoherent thoughts to an insignificant blog in the galaxy of worthless opinions. I’m going to unhinge; any thoughts I have are going straight to the keyboard.”

Yet, as I sit here writing this, I find myself doing what I do every time I want to write: writing by the seat of my pants. None of this was thought out before writing it. I have no objective for writing this other than the hope for attention and criticism.

I told my brother yesterday that he shouldn’t talk so aimlessly because he didn’t have any reason to say the things that spewed from his mouth. This morning, I can’t help but wonder if I was justified to say that. So what if he has no motive in telling me his uninformed opinion on which console is ruling the present gaming market? Who am I to say, “You shouldn’t talk about things you don’t understand?” We all need to learn somehow. Don’t get me wrong; I explained to him the little more I understand about the gaming industry on top of minimalizing his opinion. I’m not that cruel of an older brother (I hope).

Right there! (and here) I completely diverted from the subject at hand, switching from questioning my authority as a conversation moderator to justifying my status as a good brother. Edit: I have no idea why I wrote this. Do I find any reason I can to distract myself? Was I making a point? This is the problem i have with writing. I could very well completely abandon this post because it all sounds like nonsense upon review. The fear of sounding like a raving lunatic is ever present. Ugh… no wonder Hunter wrote so much about fear and loathing…

I want a motive. I want to focus. Drifting around the infosphere is fun for a while, but seeing others cruising a structured route and making tangible accomplishments fills me with envy.

In times like this, I try to remind myself of Steve Jobs’ message to a Stanford graduating class – take life as it comes, it will all piece together when the time is right. I can only hope that my decaying short-term memory and my inability to filter my thoughts as fast as they escape through my mouth and fingers doesn’t hinder what good I have yet to bring to the world. I can’t imagine how many others in my age range can identify with this; I know I’m not alone.

Once again, I leave you answerless and probably less informed than you came. Hopefully you can relate, though, and ask me questions that my working memory hasn’t yet processed.

Edit: I’ve spent entirely too much time reviewing this and wondering what others will think of it. It doesn’t matter; I’m as clueless as the rest of you and I should stop pitying myself for being so. In fact, disregard this paragraph; I don’t want to delete it because I want to look back years from now and know the full extent of my paranoia.

I want to drive a truck around the country for a while. I want to temporarily detach from the noise of the web. I want to reflect on 22 years of information absorption. I want a break from the pressures of frequent social interaction. I want to find my bearings. I want to discover my role in this drama. I want to know what I want.

I wish I’d given that girl at the cidery my contact info.

I was very intimidated by the bachelorette party at Americana. Imagine a room full of 20/30-something year old women and all the wine and fudge one could every consume. That was my reality.

Twitter is revealing to me it’s power. This morning, I browsed tweets by people in this area. I saw a guy posting about the Ithaca Farmer’s Market and regretted not posting that I was there. Around dinner time, I was tasting beer at Ithaca Beer Company and asked the bartender if the brewery had a Twitter account. At the end of the bar, a man sampling beer chimed in saying that they did. He proceeded to mention that he had found the brewery by means of Twitter. I asked if he was the man I’d noticed earlier today and he confirmed that he was. I later found out that he was born at Lancaster General, the same hospital in which Glenn (my step dad) was born. For anyone interested, the man is @follownathan on Twitter and his website is http://follownathan.org

Is mom trying to get me drunk or does she genuinely not want to finish those samples?

The Coddington Bed & Breakfast can expect my business in the future. This second-story deck overlooking Lake Seneca is inspiring.

The following is a list of things I do to prevent waste. I’ve compiled this list not only to flaunt my frugality and gloat of my greenness (others certainly take more drastic measures than I), but to prove that it’s not difficult to reduce one’s carbon footprint. I realize a myriad of lists like this exist on the internet, but I hope the personal touch of my own list will inspire others.

Driving

• Coasting down hills in neutral
• Using cruise control
• Revving to approximately 2500 RPM (rarely over 3000)
• Driving the speed limit
• Braking gently long before I have to stop
  *This is especially helpful at traffic lights because when the light turns green, the momentum you’ve sustained reduces the gas required to resume driving the speed limit

Bathroom

• Using cold water to wash hands
• Running sink gently to conserve water
• “If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.”
• Turning off the shower while lathering

Electricity

• Shutting down electronics when not in use
  ex: computer, stereo, tv, lights
• Unplugging chargers when inactive
  ex: phone, computer, camera

Consuming

• Avoiding buying and using products which create excessive waste
  ex: bottled water, disposable utensils and dishware
  
• Reusing materials
  ex: water bottles, plastic bags

I’ll build on this list over time. Hopefully my audience will do the same.