Savvy Sunset

Bible Verse:

Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.

Jeremiah 10:2




  I learned to speak before the age of one.  My parents reminisce on how extraordinarily awkward it looked for a baby so young to be speaking with almost impeccable annunciation.  I don't know how I managed to learn to speak so quickly considering the fact that I was an easy baby, all I did was eat and sleep, so my parents very rarely found the need to speak to me.  You would normally think that a human who learned to speak so early in it's life would be a social butterfly, but strangely enough, I have always been the loner I am.

  [I don't mean "loner" with the modern day negative connotation it contains.  I was a loner in a sense that I was happier with my lone interactions with the world rather than any type of social interactions.  I still remember how I spent my days as a toddler, I was an natural explorer with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. I never found the need for anybody.  Imaginary friends were also non-existent.  Even now, I find that a difficult concept to grasp.]

   

INFLUENCE

  That's what all your decisions come down to.  For every little thing and any single being, not a single movement is done without the unfathomable power of influence.

  For an inanimate example: a river pebble. Let's forget where it came from (color, and size), and focus on it's texture (feels).  No matter which rock you pick up from the river (any river), you'll notice they will all share the same attribute of texture.  It's going to be a smooth rock.  I'm sure we can all imagine why, with the water currents and time and what-not.  The point i'm trying to make, is that the rocks in the river were shaped and textured identically because they shared influences.  In contrast to that, a pebble that was at one point in time part of the river (a.k.a. "river pebble") that is now and had been dry land for a century or so would be significantly rougher in texture than that an actual river pebble.  That would be because it no longer shares the influence it use to, and the new influences cause it to alter into a different texture.

  Call it Chemistry. Call it Evolution. Call it whatever you want. The fact of the matter is that it was shaped due to it's immediate environment.  And if you haven't noticed by now, anything or anyone in your immediate environment is going to influence you.  The way it influences you is what sets us apart from the rest.  It's what you refer to as "personality".  Since we, as a species. experience a tremendous amount of influences, the outcomes are literally infinite unlike the river pebbles.  People aren't simply categorized as "smooth", or "rough". There's more to us.  We choose to live the life we are living.

Sometimes I listen to this song to help me sleep and hope it influences my dreams.

“We are visitors on this planet. We are here for one hundred years at the very most. During that period we must try to do something good, something useful, with our lives. if you contribute to other people's happiness, you will find the true meaning of life.”

― H.H. The 14th Dalai Lama

~Juan E. Casas S.

Karma Kebob

Bible Verse:
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou [art] God. 

Psalms 90:2


When I was a kid and I saw my first Chinese kung fu movies, I had noticed how even the most awesomest ninja master always respected their old but ever-wise Sensei. I then wanted to become ultra wise, to be respected by even the president of America. Then I realized that I couldn't become wise, because I didn't even know what it was. And ever since, I dedicated my life to figuring it out. Now, after much search, hard work, and dedication, I have developed an answer to the age old question, "What is the difference between Wisdom and Intelligence".

Intelligence:

The way the Intelligent work is that whenever they appear in a situation, they have been prepared beforehand due to notable personal experiences.  The way they seem is so fluid because they know the subject so well, or think they do.  They are ready for only certain situations because whenever they come to a situation in which they know very little of, they appear to be dumb, aka "blonde moments".

Wisdom:

The Wise, are open-minded and are capable to quickly adapt to unexpectedness. They will be more hesitant to doing things because they can create so many possibilities, some good and others horrific.  It is what develops into creativity. What cannot be seen, can then be imagined.

Enlightenment:
When a person is both, they then become enlightened.  But one cannot be Enlightened with low intelligence and high Wisdom, nor vise versa.  A balance of both is needed.  When one is balanced, the level of Enlightenment is only as strong as your surroundings.
Ex. If you're raised by wolfs, once enlightened, you become a wolf expert.  If you're raised by royalty, you become a royalty expert.  The level of enlightenment corresponds to what you make of your surroundings.  (But our surroundings are as limited as we make them.)

Now that I figured out that I need more than just wisdom to be as cool as the grand master sensei ninja s, I decided that I now want to be enlightened.  Not that I'm not, but my surroundings had been limited to things revolving around my own life.

- Juan E. Casas              .

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

Jangling Jelly

Bible verse:
If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him. 

Exodus 23:4-5




A few weeks ago a got a new car. It's not actually off the lot, it's a 2000, it's just new to me....you get the point. When I bought it, it didn't come without a stereo. My car's dash has a big square hole on it big enough to fit a midget wrestler. Although... I could easily avoid the cosmetic disaster by simply keeping my eyes on the road, like I should.  But then again, I am a fairly active commuter, I have a full time job to keep and full time college hours to keep a 2.0 GPA on.  The road is just awful to listen to.  I need more music in my life!! Or do I?... You see, I actually have the car's original stereo in my trunk. But I haven't made the time to arrange something up to see if it works. I haven't moved a thumb in that direction.  Maybe it's because I like to have some highly intellectual alone time with my conscious.  Or maybe that's the time I use to clear my head so that nothing is in mind at work and/or school. lol It probably has more to do with keeping an ear on whatever sounds my car makes. It these short few weeks, it has broken down twice on me... lol.  Nevertheless, I love my car. :)

I'll assume you imagine my Focus with conditions not as pristine as this one... lol

Have you guys heard the saying "The only thing that changes is change?" For all of you who haven't, I am glad to be the one to show it to you.  I mean, put some real thought into it.  Everything is in a constant state of change, at all times, everything is always in a flux. Doesn't that mean that if everything changes, it becomes something else? That would only make sense if the change was large enough for humans to give a care about. So instead of changing the name of the thing in change, we give it an identity, and separate the variable "change" so that the identity is the one who "changes". Don't give an identity to anything. Change isn't a variable, it's part of the identity. Everything changes, everything is changing right now, as you read.  You're not who you use to be about 3 seconds ago. 

When I was a kid, I was very spoiled. My parents loved game rooms and places as such.  So every special occasion our family would take us to Super Track or Chuck E. Cheese.  I wasn't the kid who wanted to maximize their ticket collection by playing the games I was best at the most. I liked to play every single game multiple times. Even though I sucked at most of them, I had a blast experiencing new things and knowing my strengths and weaknesses.  After I had ran out of tokens, I looked around the game room to give the "Nod of Affirmation" to all of the games/machines, my worthy opponents.  Then, the cherry on top, I would cash in all I tickets earned and get me cute little toys that would magically disappear once I stepped out. Them were the days. :)

Well thanks for reading guys I hope you each find a lesson to be learned in each section. Don't hesitate to comment/rant/complain/argue/converse/debate about anything I've written. It's free. :)

Rotting Riot

Bible Verse:
For we [are] strangers before thee, and sojourners, as [were] all our fathers: our days on the earth [are] as a shadow, and [there is] none abiding.

1 Chronicles 29:15




I use to dislike sweating. The icky wet substance that seeps out of your skin pores. I really really disliked it, so I kept away from physical activities....I know... i was weird. Anywho, a reason I disliked sweating was because I suffered from bad body odor. Yes, I wore deodorent, but since I get a new brand of deodorent every other week(I don't have a preference so I get whatever is on sale), the weaker ones didn't block my odor for more 4 hours! I'd be walking around asking myself if my pits could possibly stink that much. I was ashamed of myself. To avoid being called "Stinky" I avoided sweating, which surprisingly is alot easier than it sounds. The result was being called by my name and becoming fluffy. :3

Now though, it's quite the opposite. I still am conscious about my stench, but I am confident about it. If I stink and somebody calls me stinky, I couldn't possibly careless, it is, afterall, the truth. But if that someone leaves because I stink, then good riddance. Those special few who stick with me through my stench are who my real friends are. :)

It sounds like I made it up, but it is based on my life. It happens.

P.S. The fear of sweating, a.k.a. Hypothermosis.


http://soundcloud.com/jawlock/say-anything-shiksa


(I'd like to thank my friends Jimmy and Jesse Nieto who are twins, but together we are like triplets, and they introduce the band Say Anything to my life.)




“What you perceive, your observations, feelings, interpretations, are all your truth. Your truth is important. Yet it is not The Truth.” 

                                        -Linda Ellinor


I figured out how to be a good detective. And I'm not referring to the high school detective work where you just snoop around and be nosy. I'm talking about official detective work. Legit.....although sadly, the only way to explain it for me is to show you an example.

Case: Sixteen year old snotty rich blond girl named Barbie from Beverly hills, CA visits some of her southern-style family from a ranch town somewhere in Texas. Barbie was annoyed by the flight, and is disgusted by the weather, but is polite to people other than her parents.
Scenario: Barbie makes it through the day with no problems. The family liked her and she was having a good time. Then she realizes she is sleeping on an old spring mattress. Her delicate and pampered body finds it impossible to lay down. She marches down to her father to wake him and demands a hotel. Her father, Derrick, is awaken by his princess who is blowing this situation out of proportion. He finds her behavior rude and unnecessary, he saw no reason behind it.
To help this poor bloke out , I will demonstrate to Derrick how Barbie's behavior was not without due cause.

1.What? She wants to go to a hotel because she is NOT sleeping here.
2.Why? Barbie's skeletal structure is delicate due to sleeping on Temper-pedics since birth.
3.How? Derrick had a strong belief that sleeping was a reward, and can only be accomplished by having a good mattress. (but only the best for their princess)
4.How did the previous "how" happen? Derrick is a rising movie producer who has all the money in the world and is in love with his princess daughter. He will get her  anything she wants just to keep her happy.

With every new number, it gets closer to the answer to his original question which was, "Why was she being all crazy about not sleeping here?" Once he reaches the fourth level of the questions, he will realize that she is not acting crazy, or weird. She is being rational. And it was his fault.
All of those answered question Derrick should have already known and should've been able to solve the case of "Why was she being all crazy about not sleeping here?".
That's some good detective work if you ask me.

Case Closed

Thank you guys for reading. I know that this one may be a bit confusing, just let me know if you have any questions. :)  Leave a comment!

Serene Soliloquy

Bible Verse:
While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 

2 Peter 2:19


  In America, only my first and last name are worth something.  Ironically, only my middle and maiden name mean something.  My name is Juan Eduardo Casas Sarabia, aka "Juan Casas", and I'll explain the fact that they are literally meaningless names.
"Juan" - Originated within my family with my Father.  His mother after multiple miscarriages thought my father was a new addition for her collection.  Not to her surprise, she didn't even have a name for him.  When the doctors examined the pre-mature baby of my father, they thought he was going to die and told the news to his mother.  The doctors then told her to give the baby a new to have something written on the grave-marker.  Since it is a custom for a the people of the town, she didn't fight it and throw out the first name on her mind to get over it already.  Juan.  Well due to the fact that you are reading this blog, and i'm my father's son, you'll realize that the poor little baby made it through. (An impulsive and meaningless name for the sole purpose of identification.)
"Casas" - This is an old story passed down through my bloodline, but there is no real evidence that proves or improves it's credibility. ~During the Mexican war, my descendant joined the revolution and achieved a top rank within the military. After the war, he was sought after by many for revenge. He changed his appearance and changed his name in order to settle down in a town without a worry. All records of my descendants actual history don't have links to his new name.  A name that he picked at random.  I don't know what he was thinking when he gave himself the last name "Casas". Was he  lacking the creativity to make one up himself, that it made him name himself after the first thing he saw. He saw Houses....go figure. (No meaning behind it.)

That proves that my only names that legally matter, are my only names that literally don't
Eduardo and Sarabia are names given to me by my mother whom she picked out herself.  She invested thought and time into naming me Eduardo, wich gave it meaning. And her maiden name is a notably prosperous Mexican Family. Both mean quite alot.

Even after stating all of that, I would like to add another thing to it.  Although I disprove of Juan Casas, I do not wish for another name.  My initials "J.E.C.S." have so much meaning behind them. And my love for my initials not only makes up for the disapproval of the previously mentioned name, it goes above and beyond. I love my name. And I absolutely adore my initials. I want to name my first-born son Jecs.

Under my Head

Where is my night-light

My blanket is my bodyguard

Pitch-black silence

                    

                                                                                By: Juan Casas

  If you've played "Skyrim", the latest game for the Elder Scrolls series (RPG), you are familiar with "fast traveling".  Fast Travel is a feature within the game that allows your character to move across the map almost instantly.  This is the common mode of transportation since the game offers a huge map with a ton of obstacles.  They focus on completing quests and leveling up.  Me on the other hand, I prefer to walk to my destination.  Of course it slows down my questing, but i get to experience the beauty of the game.  So much effort was put on every square inch of the map that the games nature scenes are almost soothing.  Also stumbling upon random dungeons and getting all sorts of worthless loot is always a good experience.  Too many player believe that it's merely a waste of time.  Call it what you will, but I am going to enjoy the game to the fullest and avoid fast traveling.  And I recommend that to every body. Skyrimmers; it's worth the time, Non=Skyrimmers; apply that to real life.  It''s okay to enjoy your time in between your goals and dreams.  Enjoy the little things in life. :)

Thanks for reading! And I would lovelovelove love it if you would leave a comment. (Any kind! Tell me how bad it sucks, and i will love you for it.)

Theoretically Tantalized

Bible verse:

But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. 

Hebrews 13:16

Upheaval of Peace

I grow tired and yet no answer came to the surface of my mind.

Am i seeking answers or simply chasing a dream.

Canvas, white, and colors moist and poised.

Idea's there but there is no just way to begin.

"Cleverly" I sneak around the questions I have asked,

i know the answers, but I am not ready to know.

Thump my head, rattle my brains so that i may forget,

wincing away the painful seconds that keep on ticking by.

Someday I hope to be cradled by the clouds.

                                            -By: Juan E. Casas     

Spring semester classes have started up again and my sleeping schedule is being rebellious.  I go to bed and stay there, eyes closed, body relaxed, and mind at easy for 3 hours before i can fall asleep.  I can't blame my brain for this, after all, I pretty much gave it the best endurance training imaginable.  Now I regret being such a great teacher because my brain chooses not to unlearn this useless skill not that school has started.  I take full responsibility for my actions.  I will pay the consequences for it.  All I ask in return is my old sleeping schedule back.  Please brain, and thank you. 

Love Always.

People tend to see me as a kind, and loving guy, and I'm not here to deny it.  I am nice, and I am proud of myself for it, but I don't do it out of second nature.  It takes self control.  It's not always easy being nice to everyone, but what helps me pull through is a simple philosophy that everyone knows about, the Golden Rule.  Everyone and their Grandma's know the GR, treat others as you would like to be treated, and yet hardly anyone practices it.  I know everyone wants to be treated nicely.  Even if you think to yourself  "Meh, i don't care how others treat me", you're wrong.  Just try it for a week. Be nice to your friends, neighbors, neighborhood stray animals, and even your siblings.  You might give them that extra push they were looking for.  You could inspire your enemy to admit to her mistake.  You can change the world with this simple rule, one small nice deed at a time.

Hey guys, I missed writing blogs, I don't know why I haven't written in so long. Well I do know, it's just that I haven't been motivated. And actually, this one was probably the worst timing: my second day of classes this semester and I have the hardest subject of all time....Math. Enjoy!! <3