Now that Christmas has passed, 'tis the season for New Year's resolutions. And as per usual, I have a few casual suggestions to offer. This year, try nixing the hackneyed vows to lose weight or exercise more, and strive for something a bit more specific. A friend of mine, for example, is swearing off of processed foods for the month of January. (For the ultimate challenge, try avoiding all genetically modified food products). But don't feel limited to dietary revisions this year. There's a whole host of creative goals ripe for the picking in 2011. Here are just a few suggestions:
-Plant a garden
-Run a local footrace
-Pick up an instrument
-Get more plants in your diet
-Ditch the desserts for a period
-Support your local economy
-Plan a wilderness escape
-Find a new favorite genre of music
-Be especially kind to strangers
-Give to a non-profit that tickles your fancy
-Read books that expand your interests
-Knit a sweater for someone
-Experiment with ethnic foods
Basically, just do something that will make your world, or someone else's a better place this year. Get out there and live.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Looking For New Music?
Tired of listening to the same old music? Think it's time to spice things up a bit? Well, now is the perfect time to head over to Metalsucks.net and take advantage of the myriad Year's Best lists they're currently cranking out. There's a ton of creative stuff you will have assuredly overlooked during the course of a year. So go have a blast sifting through the wealth of fucking sweet metal (and a healthy sprinkling of other genres).
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
A Book Review of Sorts
I recently and unwittingly picked up a book that entirely changed my perception of 'wilderness.' This book, David Oates' Paradise Wild, was simply another inconspicuous component of the domino-ing library shelves. It mere chance that I singled it out and skimmed over the synopsis. Gay ex-Baptist mountaineer with a degree in Victorian Literature? Color me interested. I thought such a perspective might have something unique to offer, after all, no such narrative had crossed my path ever before. So I absconded with the volume into the refuge of the Allen Reading Room, a glass-plated sanctuary already brimming with students anticipating the guillotine of remaining finals. There I came to rest in a decent comfortable armchair that was located perhaps uncomfortably to another reader who accepted my presence grudgingly. What follows comes directly from the unassuming pages of said book. I have no creative spin to put on the content. I simply find the ideas to be rather enriching and certainly worth sharing.
The focus of the few chapters I've devoured so far has been humanity's false dichotomy between wilderness and civilization. It is commonly thought that man and nature are two mutually exclusive entities. Wherever we go, the integrity of the land disappears. If a man has laid tracks in a previously unexplored land, it seems to lose some of its original awe-inspiring power. We tend to characterize wilderness as an untouched Eden, something that exists entirely outside of our existences. Oates' argument, however, is that this Eden has practically never existed. Man has almost always had a hand in shaping in what we think of as unadulterated nature. His main example here are the Native Americans. Far more populous before contact with European diseases that were so lovingly conferred, Native Americans had been tending to the 'wilderness' for centuries. What the colonists saw upon arrival was actually the result of active management techniques such as controlled burns and the like. There just weren't many Indians around to show for it at the time. The point being: man has historically lived in concert with what we perceive as wilderness. As such, Oates demands a new definition of the term. What he comes up with though, is more of a philosophy.
Oates posits that instead of incessantly striving after an ever-shrinking and idealized wilderness, we should embrace the wildness of life. This is something very different. It is something that is even domestically attainable. Since we humans are animals too, we cannot separate ourselves from the unpredictability of living in a natural world. We tend to sand all the corners we can, but we what we really need is the occasional jab to remind us of what cannot be tamed. This wildness is recognizing that some things are beyond our control. After all, that's what our forays into the wild are all about: losing ourselves in the majesty of things unknowable. Nonetheless, Oates rattles out a diatribe of sorts against the perversion of this ideal. Those who profess their deepest love for wilderness often come to treat it as a collectible. Instead of finding shelter in its profundity, it has become a matter of "How many peaks can I climb in as many days?" or "I've been to every national park in the continental United States and have the patches to show for it." In the end, our wildernesses come off as wholly misinterpreted by even those who demand its preservation most. With its popularity comes a systematic degradation. The old paradox of destroying what you love. How can you escape into the unfettered beauty of the natural world when you're following a well-defined trail, accompanied by dozens of other like-minded folk. I think this is an issue we've all encountered. Coming across another hiker deep in the woods or high up a mountain, you secretly decry them for marring the purity of your communion with nature. It becomes a matter of proprietorship. But this is certainly not how we should treat our environment. And thus it comes down to the fact that we need to reshape our relationship to 'wilderness' and even how it is defined.
So I'm only about 35 pages into the book so far. I think that was an accurate enough summation of themes. We'll see what other revelations may be in store. I definitely recommend it from some enlightening reading. The whole concept of inner wildness versus wilderness was rather profound for me. It'll certainly lend a bit of perspective to my next jaunt through Pt. Reyes. I had already been contemplating the implications of its congestion, struggling to find paths less-trodden, but now I'm seeing our entirely perception needs to change. I don't think any of intend to abuse what we so love. But we need to inform our love with this tidbit of philosophical perspective. So tread lightly fellow adventurers, and consider the reasons why we go into nature in the first place. Should it be for bragging rights, or something more profound and difficult to define? Oates would argue the latter. He would also note that this somewhat ambiguous 'wildness' is available more locally than we might imagine. To make a bit of a connection, I think it's fair to say that this sort of wildness thrives in music, and in metal especially. The chaos of metal is one of the reasons I love it so much. It taps into something a bit more primal and unrestrained. So yeah. There's that for you.
And just for kicks:
The focus of the few chapters I've devoured so far has been humanity's false dichotomy between wilderness and civilization. It is commonly thought that man and nature are two mutually exclusive entities. Wherever we go, the integrity of the land disappears. If a man has laid tracks in a previously unexplored land, it seems to lose some of its original awe-inspiring power. We tend to characterize wilderness as an untouched Eden, something that exists entirely outside of our existences. Oates' argument, however, is that this Eden has practically never existed. Man has almost always had a hand in shaping in what we think of as unadulterated nature. His main example here are the Native Americans. Far more populous before contact with European diseases that were so lovingly conferred, Native Americans had been tending to the 'wilderness' for centuries. What the colonists saw upon arrival was actually the result of active management techniques such as controlled burns and the like. There just weren't many Indians around to show for it at the time. The point being: man has historically lived in concert with what we perceive as wilderness. As such, Oates demands a new definition of the term. What he comes up with though, is more of a philosophy.
Oates posits that instead of incessantly striving after an ever-shrinking and idealized wilderness, we should embrace the wildness of life. This is something very different. It is something that is even domestically attainable. Since we humans are animals too, we cannot separate ourselves from the unpredictability of living in a natural world. We tend to sand all the corners we can, but we what we really need is the occasional jab to remind us of what cannot be tamed. This wildness is recognizing that some things are beyond our control. After all, that's what our forays into the wild are all about: losing ourselves in the majesty of things unknowable. Nonetheless, Oates rattles out a diatribe of sorts against the perversion of this ideal. Those who profess their deepest love for wilderness often come to treat it as a collectible. Instead of finding shelter in its profundity, it has become a matter of "How many peaks can I climb in as many days?" or "I've been to every national park in the continental United States and have the patches to show for it." In the end, our wildernesses come off as wholly misinterpreted by even those who demand its preservation most. With its popularity comes a systematic degradation. The old paradox of destroying what you love. How can you escape into the unfettered beauty of the natural world when you're following a well-defined trail, accompanied by dozens of other like-minded folk. I think this is an issue we've all encountered. Coming across another hiker deep in the woods or high up a mountain, you secretly decry them for marring the purity of your communion with nature. It becomes a matter of proprietorship. But this is certainly not how we should treat our environment. And thus it comes down to the fact that we need to reshape our relationship to 'wilderness' and even how it is defined.
So I'm only about 35 pages into the book so far. I think that was an accurate enough summation of themes. We'll see what other revelations may be in store. I definitely recommend it from some enlightening reading. The whole concept of inner wildness versus wilderness was rather profound for me. It'll certainly lend a bit of perspective to my next jaunt through Pt. Reyes. I had already been contemplating the implications of its congestion, struggling to find paths less-trodden, but now I'm seeing our entirely perception needs to change. I don't think any of intend to abuse what we so love. But we need to inform our love with this tidbit of philosophical perspective. So tread lightly fellow adventurers, and consider the reasons why we go into nature in the first place. Should it be for bragging rights, or something more profound and difficult to define? Oates would argue the latter. He would also note that this somewhat ambiguous 'wildness' is available more locally than we might imagine. To make a bit of a connection, I think it's fair to say that this sort of wildness thrives in music, and in metal especially. The chaos of metal is one of the reasons I love it so much. It taps into something a bit more primal and unrestrained. So yeah. There's that for you.
And just for kicks:
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Filler
Since it's crunch time for the first semester of my college career, I've been a little busy. I haven't felt as though I could do all of you the justice of my full intellectual attention. Most of that has been sapped by essays and studying and so on. As such, I offer you some filler. Take a minute to stare at these pretty images with perhaps not-so-pretty sounds accompanying them. Some may contain subtle messages. And some might just be fucking awesome.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Required Readings
So I know the day is almost over, but I just realized that today is the 50 year anniversary of Wallace Stegner's Wilderness Letter. I assume that most members of my generation have never even heard of this document. I hadn't until recently either. But it is a vastly important piece of literature in American environmentalism and we should be thankful for people like Stegner. Let's hope we can find more like him.
Read The Wilderness Letter here: http://wilderness.org/content/wilderness-letter
Read The Wilderness Letter here: http://wilderness.org/content/wilderness-letter
America's Nutritional Nightmare
Consider this bit of ancient wisdom:
"Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food." -Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.)
This tidbit of advice comes from none other than the bona fide father of western medicine. That thing called the Hippocratic oath that doctors take? Yeah, he came up with that. Unfortunately, that is largely where the similarities disappear in today's medical practices. We have clearly diverged from essential Hippocratic ideals. Instead of preventing ailments through proper nutrition and exercise, or proactively seeking nature's remedies, we have put all of our faith in pills, pediatricians and procedures. Common illnesses can all too often be staved off by healthy diet. Instead, however, they have come to necessitate costly visits to the doctor, further encumbering an already teetering system. The truth is, we have the capacity to be our own doctors. All it takes is an objective look at our personal diets and habits. What we put into our bodies largely accounts for our mood, our energy, our appearance, everything. All calories are not created equal. Yes, it is simply a unit of energy, but it is too simplified of a reduction. The expedience of fast and processed foods are often devoid of accompanying essential nutrients. They may be more than enough to fill us up, but they're not doing our bodies any good. These various nutritional deficits accumulate day after day, leaving massive debts in the functioning of our immune systems and the like.
The modern American diet is not geared towards health. The shocking prevalence of obesity, diabetes, heart disease among other such afflictions certainly speaks to that fact. And then we wonder why healthcare is so expensive. We could unburden a large part of the system if only we would feed ourselves responsibly (This is to say nothing of the environmental implications discussed in previous posts). This means returning our diets to the bounty of nature. Instead of sucking down Nyquil next cold season, prevent its very onset by upping your intake of vitamin C. Oranges and broccoli (perhaps a surprising source of vitamin C) are here to take care of us. For added health, bolster your immune system with some sweet antioxidants from blueberries or cranberries. Or try some beta-carotene from squash, carrots or sweet potatoes. Fruits and vegetables are a metaphorical goldmine of benefits. All it takes is a little reading up on the stuff. You'll be amazed at what your food can do.
We have all the science behind these foods, and we have tremendous, often year-round availability of them, so why is America still eating itself sick? I think a lot of it has to do with a lack of perspective. Many might protest the fact that healthy foods costs more. Yet consider the amount of money potentially saved on health care if you were to properly care for yourself. And shouldn't the quality of your life and that of your kids be something worth investing in? From personal experience, I've been living in a residence hall full of sick college students for months now, and I believe it is my diet that has kept me from getting sick once thus far. Even with the snow and runny noses setting in. Basically, it only makes sense to ditch the processed crap and go with what nature intended for us to eat.
There's also a bit of conspiracy theory to consider along with all of this as well. Or maybe it's simply a matter of economics. Either way, we need to factor in the power of the pharmaceutical industry. This billion dollar industry thrives on sick Americans; pumping us full of pills and constantly keeping us coming back for more. There's hardly any emphasis on preventative measures. The advances of modern medicine allow us to treat damn near anything, but there isn't education enough about why these illnesses are occurring in the first place. There have been studies done, for example, as far back as decades ago that show the effectiveness of megadoses of vitamin C. The stuff is practically a cure-all. But the idea never seemed to catch on in the medical world. Instead, we're stuck with a laundry list of bizarre chemical cocktails prescribed for the most mundane of ills. The healing properties of nature have long since been forgotten. But we could really skip all the danger and the dollars if we took care of ourselves in the first place. We ultimately are what we eat; it influences much more than just a waistline. There are implications that can be measured in billions of dollars. We need to wake up from this nutritional nightmare.
Healthcare should start every day with breakfast.
Relatedly,
"Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food." -Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.)
This tidbit of advice comes from none other than the bona fide father of western medicine. That thing called the Hippocratic oath that doctors take? Yeah, he came up with that. Unfortunately, that is largely where the similarities disappear in today's medical practices. We have clearly diverged from essential Hippocratic ideals. Instead of preventing ailments through proper nutrition and exercise, or proactively seeking nature's remedies, we have put all of our faith in pills, pediatricians and procedures. Common illnesses can all too often be staved off by healthy diet. Instead, however, they have come to necessitate costly visits to the doctor, further encumbering an already teetering system. The truth is, we have the capacity to be our own doctors. All it takes is an objective look at our personal diets and habits. What we put into our bodies largely accounts for our mood, our energy, our appearance, everything. All calories are not created equal. Yes, it is simply a unit of energy, but it is too simplified of a reduction. The expedience of fast and processed foods are often devoid of accompanying essential nutrients. They may be more than enough to fill us up, but they're not doing our bodies any good. These various nutritional deficits accumulate day after day, leaving massive debts in the functioning of our immune systems and the like.
The modern American diet is not geared towards health. The shocking prevalence of obesity, diabetes, heart disease among other such afflictions certainly speaks to that fact. And then we wonder why healthcare is so expensive. We could unburden a large part of the system if only we would feed ourselves responsibly (This is to say nothing of the environmental implications discussed in previous posts). This means returning our diets to the bounty of nature. Instead of sucking down Nyquil next cold season, prevent its very onset by upping your intake of vitamin C. Oranges and broccoli (perhaps a surprising source of vitamin C) are here to take care of us. For added health, bolster your immune system with some sweet antioxidants from blueberries or cranberries. Or try some beta-carotene from squash, carrots or sweet potatoes. Fruits and vegetables are a metaphorical goldmine of benefits. All it takes is a little reading up on the stuff. You'll be amazed at what your food can do.
We have all the science behind these foods, and we have tremendous, often year-round availability of them, so why is America still eating itself sick? I think a lot of it has to do with a lack of perspective. Many might protest the fact that healthy foods costs more. Yet consider the amount of money potentially saved on health care if you were to properly care for yourself. And shouldn't the quality of your life and that of your kids be something worth investing in? From personal experience, I've been living in a residence hall full of sick college students for months now, and I believe it is my diet that has kept me from getting sick once thus far. Even with the snow and runny noses setting in. Basically, it only makes sense to ditch the processed crap and go with what nature intended for us to eat.
There's also a bit of conspiracy theory to consider along with all of this as well. Or maybe it's simply a matter of economics. Either way, we need to factor in the power of the pharmaceutical industry. This billion dollar industry thrives on sick Americans; pumping us full of pills and constantly keeping us coming back for more. There's hardly any emphasis on preventative measures. The advances of modern medicine allow us to treat damn near anything, but there isn't education enough about why these illnesses are occurring in the first place. There have been studies done, for example, as far back as decades ago that show the effectiveness of megadoses of vitamin C. The stuff is practically a cure-all. But the idea never seemed to catch on in the medical world. Instead, we're stuck with a laundry list of bizarre chemical cocktails prescribed for the most mundane of ills. The healing properties of nature have long since been forgotten. But we could really skip all the danger and the dollars if we took care of ourselves in the first place. We ultimately are what we eat; it influences much more than just a waistline. There are implications that can be measured in billions of dollars. We need to wake up from this nutritional nightmare.
Healthcare should start every day with breakfast.
Relatedly,
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Death Metal, Black Metal, Doom Metal... Green Metal?
In order to show that I am not completely cracked, and that other individuals have indeed also combined the themes of extreme music and environmentalism, here are a few eco-orientated brutalizers.
First up: Gojira. Perhaps the greatest thing ever to come from France.
These avant-garde death metallers have never been shy about their allegiance to Terra Incognita. With song titles like 'Toxic Garbage Island,' 'Embrace the World,' or 'In the Wilderness,' the message comes across fairly clearly; even if Joe Duplantier's growls are occasionally difficult to decipher. Although by death metal standards he's fairly intelligible. Anyways, the point is that these Frenchmen have incorporated environmental activism into their incredibly heavy music. (Their music has often been lovingly compared to the sound of elephants marching). And to add to their lyrical environmentalism, Gojira has been quite involved in the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. You know, those guys who go out and ram whaling boats in hopes of disabling them. Badass stuff like that. Gojira is currently in the process of recording a new EP, the proceeds of which will go towards the Society. If I'm not mistaken, the Society may even have a boat named after Gojira. Pretty awesome right?
http://www.myspace.com/gojira
Next we have the always family-friendly Cattle Decapitation.
This San Diego squad of vegans and vegetarians have come to embrace shock tactics as a means to spread their eco-agenda. The name, as you can imagine, is decidedly facetious. Their latest album, The Harvest Floor, is a concept album of sorts. The idea is to reverse humanity's relationship with beef cattle, such that we are the ones unwittingly being lead to slaughter. It's a bit over the top, but it's certainly an interesting thought experiment. There's no mistaking that Cattle Decapitation have strong opinions on animal rights. Vocalist Travis Ryan may gurgle, burp and squeal the most inhuman sounds you've ever encountered, but the lyrics assuredly contain potent condemnations of mankind's perverse relationship to animals.
http://www.myspace.com/cattledecapitation
Finally, we have the eerie and reclusive Wolves In The Throne Room.
Mystical, nature-worshiping black metal is most often considered to be the product of gloomy Scandinavian countries. Nonetheless, these pagans bizarrely hail from the great state of Washington. I suppose wherever you find dense old-growth forests, you're bound to find clandestine gatherings of spiritual black-metallers. Wolves In The Throne Room, fittingly enough, often play shows in remote natural settings, often with little publicity. It's kind of their thing. Even more interesting, however, is the fact that members of the band purchased a farm, and are currently attempting to carve out an entirely self-sufficiently lifestyle off the grid for themselves. They may profess wacky ideals about eco-spirituality and eco-anarchism, but if they're practicing biodynamic farming and playing black metal, I'm cool with it.
www.myspace.com/wolvesinthethroneroom
So there you have it. Just a few examples of when metal and environmentalism bear a lovechild.
Like this blog itself.
First up: Gojira. Perhaps the greatest thing ever to come from France.
These avant-garde death metallers have never been shy about their allegiance to Terra Incognita. With song titles like 'Toxic Garbage Island,' 'Embrace the World,' or 'In the Wilderness,' the message comes across fairly clearly; even if Joe Duplantier's growls are occasionally difficult to decipher. Although by death metal standards he's fairly intelligible. Anyways, the point is that these Frenchmen have incorporated environmental activism into their incredibly heavy music. (Their music has often been lovingly compared to the sound of elephants marching). And to add to their lyrical environmentalism, Gojira has been quite involved in the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. You know, those guys who go out and ram whaling boats in hopes of disabling them. Badass stuff like that. Gojira is currently in the process of recording a new EP, the proceeds of which will go towards the Society. If I'm not mistaken, the Society may even have a boat named after Gojira. Pretty awesome right?
http://www.myspace.com/gojira
Next we have the always family-friendly Cattle Decapitation.
This San Diego squad of vegans and vegetarians have come to embrace shock tactics as a means to spread their eco-agenda. The name, as you can imagine, is decidedly facetious. Their latest album, The Harvest Floor, is a concept album of sorts. The idea is to reverse humanity's relationship with beef cattle, such that we are the ones unwittingly being lead to slaughter. It's a bit over the top, but it's certainly an interesting thought experiment. There's no mistaking that Cattle Decapitation have strong opinions on animal rights. Vocalist Travis Ryan may gurgle, burp and squeal the most inhuman sounds you've ever encountered, but the lyrics assuredly contain potent condemnations of mankind's perverse relationship to animals.
http://www.myspace.com/cattledecapitation
Finally, we have the eerie and reclusive Wolves In The Throne Room.
Mystical, nature-worshiping black metal is most often considered to be the product of gloomy Scandinavian countries. Nonetheless, these pagans bizarrely hail from the great state of Washington. I suppose wherever you find dense old-growth forests, you're bound to find clandestine gatherings of spiritual black-metallers. Wolves In The Throne Room, fittingly enough, often play shows in remote natural settings, often with little publicity. It's kind of their thing. Even more interesting, however, is the fact that members of the band purchased a farm, and are currently attempting to carve out an entirely self-sufficiently lifestyle off the grid for themselves. They may profess wacky ideals about eco-spirituality and eco-anarchism, but if they're practicing biodynamic farming and playing black metal, I'm cool with it.
www.myspace.com/wolvesinthethroneroom
So there you have it. Just a few examples of when metal and environmentalism bear a lovechild.
Like this blog itself.
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