On Hummus and Aliens

The hummus revolution is taking Canada by storm. For one, Microsoft Word recognized the word, and did not draw that ugly, red, squiggly line underneath the word. Marketed as “healthy alternative” and “vegetarian certified” it’s not hard to see why it would be so popular. Plus, it tastes great.

But that’s besides the point. As far as I’m concerned, hummus is the latest victim of Capitalist bastardization of a great classic. Variations on hummus available in the supermarket these days inclu

de: spicy hummus, roasted garlic hummus, masala hummus, avocado hummus... among others. I told a friend of mine as I opened the fridge at work, seeing at least 4 varitites of hummus “we’ve been eating hummus for 3,000 years, recipe mainly unchanged. It only took a year for hummus to lose its identity.” This is the culture we live in.

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I can’t help but think that as we get more technologically advanced our written culture is becoming less and less traceable. Most of what we know about the culture of ancient civilizations is through carvings, tablets, and other “concrete” forms of communication. As we start putting things on servers, CD’s, and USB drives we’re making our written culture less and less visible. It takes a pair of eyes to see the first alphabet ever created. It takes 100 years worth of technology to read an email. Soon enough the only way we’ll be able to read a Charles Dickens novel will be through a Kindle, or a computer monitor.

If a meteor were to strike our planet, and thousands of years later we are visited by extraterrestrials, how much of our written culture will they come across. I have a feeling those same tablets that we marvel at in museums will still be around, while my CD with 2,000 ebooks will be looked upon as some sort toy for children.

How many letters do you have after your name?

Somewhere between the realm of meaningful education and “money grab land” lies the mass hysteria that seems to be engulfing every professional field. Everyone is in a race to add more letters after their name, no matter at what cost or with how much effort. Email signatures are laden with meaningless acronyms that are supposed to means something to somebody. People add these acronyms with pride and with the inherent expectation that whatever their email contains is somehow more factual, or should be taken as sacred text. With some emails the window has to be maximized or else the person’s credentials will start running on the line below. Is this a sign of a competitive job market, brilliant marketing campaigns by professional organizations, or has it simply become a new syndrome associated with our culture today, something I like to call “Accreditation Complex.”

.I’ll give one example of a meaningless acronym. The University of Waterloo offers a two year MBET program. The program is very interesting, and I’m sure is quite solid, but MBET!?! Why call it a Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology? Can you really teach Entrepreneurship? When one of the university staff was trying to sell me on the program I was turned off by the name. MBET translated to bulllshit in my head.

Of course not all of these acronyms are created equal. A BSc, MA, PhD, MBA, MD, and heck even a CPA demand respect. But what does BEMP, FMP, or a CSA really mean? Signing to myriad to 2 day courses will result in a myriad of certification. This reminds of a George Carlin line “not every ejaculation deserves a name”. Similarly, not every training course deserves a certification. Every specialization in every profession needs an acronym... are you a roof installer? We have an organization and a certification for you? Do you stack shelves in a super market? Well then you would be glad to hear of River College’s SMSCA, Super Market Supply Chain Analyst.

These certifications are of course not freebies. After the gruelling 2 day course the professionals are faced with certification maintenance. Every year or two you must pay some fee to some organization to maintain your name on some website. Sometimes you need to be retested, since in the information age knowledge is expanding exponentially and as a professional you need to keep up with the latest and greatest.

The sad part is that these useless acronyms are what someone’s experience is reduced to. While HR professionals go through resumes they Ctrl-F, at least mentally, one of the acronyms that are supposed to make a candidate better than another with more experience but lacking this or that credential. Our merit has been reduced to 3 or 4 letter acronyms, maintained by money hungry organizations. It’s the age of marketing, consumerism, and accreditations.

Shuffle: All Songs

The emergence of the internet has definitely influenced the type and variety of music people listen to. The interaction of people on Twitter and Facebook, and the readily available music videos on YouTube, have all made the exposure and accessibility of music literally a click away. And now that we can carry over a few thousand songs in the palm of our hands, we have become walking music libraries. The beauty of this change in the way people listen and acquire music is that no one is ever complaining (except maybe for record labels).

Discovering a new album grants us hours of enjoyment in our cars, on Muskoka chairs, and even in depressing subway cars. We look forward to the chance of pressing play, and letting our thoughts and dreams dance with the tune of the song. The album eventually wears off its uniqueness and we go on to discover another one. If we ever choose to shuffle our music selection, we are bombarded with songs that define a specific time in our lives, songs that take us seamlessly through a past vacation, a season, or a celebration. A song simply becomes a label for a certain time in our lives.

So, following Isobel’s tag, I shuffled the songs on my iPhone and went through them one by one, until I got to 16. Below is the list:

1. A Message – Coldplay

2. The Rainbow – Charbel Rouhana/Hani Siblini

3. Rain Day – Jesse Cook

4. Ihtarif El Huzn Wal Intizar – Fairouz

5. Indama Ya’ti Al Masa’ – Abdel Wahab

6. Mata Ashofak – George Rassi

7. Nahawand – Haytham Safia

8. Taqasim Part 2 - Marcel Khalife

9. Beef and Brocoli –Immortal Technique

10. Anomaly (Calling Your Name) – Taylor

11. Ya Manta Wahishni – Fadel Shaker

12. Wherever I May Roam – Metallica

13. I Who Have Nothing – Ben E King

14. Sierra Maestra – Immortal Technique

15. Warako Al Assafar – Fairouz

16. Ya Roboo’ Biladi – Fairouz (I have a lot of Fairouz on my iPod)

I tag D.

Thoughts from a Saturday trip to the store

As winter takes its last few breaths, and as the snow melts revealing the yellow grass underneath it, Canadians are taking to the streets and to the hardware stores, anxious to start the summer season complete with camping, road trips, and endless BBQ’s. Motor cycles are back on the streets, their riders who have be waiting patiently for the day the temperatures turn above 5 Celsius seem to have maintained their obnoxious driving skills from last year.

I needed new wiper blades, so naturally I visited the nearest Canadian Tire to pick up some wipers and some car washing necessities. The store was flooded with people despite it being less than ideal outside. The seasonal department is already full of BBQ’s, gazebos, water toys, and patio furniture. I left the monstorous plaza built a few years ago, and lined with box stores like Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Old Navy. While waiting in a line of 5 cars or so at the stop sign waiting for my turn, a guy in a raised door-less Jeep with monster tires decided to cut me off, and speed his trip home by a second or two. As the Jeep sped away I couldn’t help but smile at the complete ignorance this guy must live in. The price of a litre of gas is already at a dollar, and we’re still dealing with a stagnant economy. I can’t begin to imagine the fuel economy of his unnecessarily oversized car, and given his driving habits, I figured he would be trading his car in for a Smart car in a few years. This recession has unfortunately made people believe that the price of gas we saw prior the recession was all part of the “bubble”.

I continue driving home and I come across another big box store, this one though is a grocery store, one of about 3 in a 2 km radius. The store, like all others, features foods from all over the world. Clementines from Morocco, strawberries from Mexico, and oranges from South Africa, sold to you by a friendly cashier wearing a uniform made in China, using a computer made in Taiwan. Across the checkout is the Wine Rack, a store within a store, selling wines from Ontario, Australia, France, among many others. A few more turns and I’m home.

I pass a Petro Canada gas station on the way, across from a Tim Horton’s, Canada’s favourite coffee shop. Both the gas stations and the coffee station have something in common, a line of cars idling patiently waiting for their turn. At Tim’s the cars are at a drive-thru, possibly the worst idea in the food industry’s history of horrible ideas. The cars inch slowly forward, the average car idling for about 5 minutes before the order is filled. At the gas station the wait in line is much longer, and the wait is not to fill gas but to get a car wash. Across Canada I thought there must be thousands of cars idling at that moment waiting for their turn to come.

I’m finally home. I jump on the internet and log onto facebook. Some friends posted pictures of their latest trip to Cuba. Another posted fresh pictures from her most recent mall harvest... I counted 5 boxes of shoes. The comments on the pictures are full of overtones of confessed jealousy and congratulations.

How long can we maintain this lifestyle?

Your Two-Step Guide to Small Talk

We’re all faced with those awkward moments in social settings where we are forced to make “small talk” with someone. These situations are abundant when one starts a new job, or at a party, or even while waiting in line at the supermarket. Sometimes we’re lucky enough to run into someone talkative and creating small talk is a breeze. At other times creating small talk is like pulling teeth.

Recently, I have had more than my fair share of awkward encounters. In some I was successful in taking the conversation from small talk to big talk, if you will, while in others the conversation just ended with a blank stare. I have always thought that it was much easier to be friendly than not. Some people, I have noticed, go to great lengths to avoid eye contact just to avoid saying hello. I could never wrap my head around that. A smile doesn’t hurt, and is far easier than pretending to be busy texting a friend. This is the same reason that I try to make small talk when I can, it is simply the easy way out.

But to make small talk one has to have a Swiss Army knife equivalent of conversation starters. There are universal things that all people love to talk/complain about. Talking about the weather is the easiest example. The weather impacts all of us, whether in the way it forces us to dress, or in how affects our commute to work. In Canada, the weather is a very passionate subject for many. People get quite animated about it and for good reason of course. Popular events are also a hit, but with this one a person needs to gauge their audience. The 55 year old HR manager might not keep up with the latest news from the R&B music scene, and similarly the lazy couch potato who keeps up with every sitcom on television might not know about the newest changes to auto insurance laws. It certainly helps to be informed in a wide-array of subject, because like a Swiss Army knife, you have to have be versatile and have the right line for the right time. But if you’re the sitcom-watching-couch potato or the 55 year old HR manager and you’re too lazy to read up on things then what do you do?

Well, worry no more, for I hae created a systematic method of creating small talk. Simply follow my two step program and put your hands and feet in cold water (Syrian idiom meaning relax). First, determine the time of the year. Second, use one of the lines provided. Allow me to example...

Christmas Time:

“Have you finished buying gifts yet?”

“Kids toys are so elaborate nowadays?” Could be followed up with “Back in my day...”

“Have you seen this new toy...”

“What do you think would make a good gift for an X year old girl?”

“The mall is crazy nowadays!”

“Why do people leave their shopping till last minute?”

After New Year:

“So what did you end up doing for NYE?”

“This is the only year we’re going to be alive for, where the last two digits are exactly double the first two” This is for the mathematically gifted, and only works in 2010. Next time you can use it, people of the future, is on 2211, 2412, 2613 etc.

“Did you see the fireworks downtown?” if they say “No” reply “Neither did I” at least it’ll get you a laugh.

If you’re comfortable with making dumb remarks, comment on people’s clothes saying “that was so last year” if they have a sense of humour it should lead to a conversation.

Valentine’s:

“You have to wonder how many teddy bears are sold each year on Valentines..”

“You know what I love Valentines? All the chocolate”

“Are you planning anything special?”

“Valentine’s day is such a scam!”

Spring time:

“Ahh, why did they have to change the time on us?!”

“I love seeing the trees come alive again”

“Planning any outdoors projects this spring?”

“Have you started your spring cleaning yet?”

Summer Time:

“Where are you going on vacation?”

“Do you enjoy camping?”

“I went on this really nice bike trail last weekend...”

“Did you end up going to the cottage this weekend?

Halloween:

“What are you dressing up as?”

“I saw this really funny/weird/awesome costume in the store?”

“Going to a Halloween party this year?”

Thanksgiving:

“Are you getting together with the family?”

“Making turkey this year?”

“Have you heard of deep fried turkeys? It’s getting popular in the US”

“So why are they called Turkeys? Did they come from Turkey? It must take them a long time to walk over here” You should get at least a pity laugh for this lame attempt at a Seinfeld joke.

Winter Time:

“How was the drive this morning?”

“Global warming my ass!” Requires a younger audience.

“Do people lose all driving skills during winter?”

“Have you heard of the series of snow storms we’re getting?”

All of the above are Canada biased, in case you couldn’t tell.

As you can see there are plenty of conversation starters at your disposal. You should never run into an awkward situation again. If you find yourself having trouble still, please email me and include the country you live in, major holidays, climate, and popular TV shows and we can go from there.

Giving Equality to Women - The Muslim Canadian Way

Let’s recap. The Supreme Council of Al Azhar in Egypt approved a ban on wearing the niqab in their schools. A few days later, the Muslim Canadian Congress made a call to the federal government to prohibit women from wearing niqabs and burkas in public. Ironically the reasoning for their call is “covering one’s face has no place in a society that supports gender equality.” Because as we all know, a bunch of men deciding what a woman is allowed and not allowed to wear is a sure way of creating equality.

Now I’m not sure what the real motive was behind their idiotic call. Maybe it was an attempt at disassociating themselves from the extremist image that the media has so cleverly imprinted in our minds. Perhaps it was the other reason they stated for their call: the Quran doesn’t call for a woman to dress in a niqab or burka. But why should a woman dress according to the Quran anyway? I’m not an expert on the Quran, but I don’t think the holy book calls for men to grow beards, especially long, unkempt ones. If we’re making rules here, then we should keep the ball rolling and introduce some rules for men, such as trimming their beard every once in a while. Quite frankly I think Bin Ladin style beards are so 2003. Muslim men should project a more modern look.

To be honest, I’m not a big fan of the burka, niqab, or hijab even, in the same way that I don’t like earrings on men. So What? One of the beautiful things about society is that people are different. How dull would the world be if we were al identical. I’m not oblivious to the fact that some women are forced to wear burkas or niqabs, but does enforcing a ban on such things really solve the problem? What about the women who actually like to wear burkas? Why should we have the right to ban them from wearing something that makes them feel comfortable?

Society or government should never enforce rules on what people should dress like. A person should dress and present themselves however they like to. We start with banning the niqab and who knows what comes next. In a country that prides itself in its freedom multiculturalism there is no place for such rules. By expressing such a ridiculous call, the Muslim Canadian Congress has reinforced the same stereotypes they were trying to get rid themselves of.

Reminiscing Ramadan

So here I am jumping on the Ramadan post bandwagon, like any good blogger would do. In the few years I have been blogging I don’t think I ever posted something longer than a Happy Ramadan post. I think it’s because I’m never really that excited about the month, except for the odd Syrian drama that I look forward to.

My memories of Ramadan are from the time I lived back in Syria. Ramadan then came during the winter time, and this is the only way I can picture it. I remember going to school early in the morning with my friends, in the school yard we would all ask each other if we were fasting or not. The litmus test, if you will, to determine whether someone was lying is in the colour of their tongue. If it was white than you passed the test, otherwise you were taunted. Although there was always one annoying kid who related the white tongue to eating labneh (dried yogurt) in the morning.

At the time my grandparents lived one floor above us, and we would often join them along with my aunts and uncles to break the fast. We would have salads, soup, and all kind of delicacies just waiting to be devoured. The TV would be set to Syria Channel 1, and we would wait for the official call of prayer from the Omayad Mosque, and at that very moment you could hear the call of prayer from the myriad of mosques dotting Damascus. Usually my grandmother would be still busy in the kitchen even after the iftar, working on every last detail of the meal. On occasion, when I got back from school, I would be sent to the neighbourhood grocer, or produce shop to buy this or that. I would ride my bike, fully knowing that I’m going to have a few kilos hanging on each side of the handle bar. On the way I would see tens of other boys, and men running around from shop to another arranging those last minute details.

After Iftar the family would gather to watch a musalsal (Syrian drama), accompanied of course with a cup of hot tea, and any number of great deserts like knafeh, mshabbak, or bakalawa. The streets after Iftar are usually busy with people, some there simply to get out, others to shop for Eid. The atmosphere is more festive than I have ever experienced.

At night, about an hour before the break of dawn, I would get a call from my grandfather to go upstairs and join them for suhoor, the meal that’s supposed to give you that last push for the tough day ahead. On our street one man had stuck to old tradition and went through the alleys of the neighbourhood at night, repeating traditional phrases, while knocking on people’s doors, trying to wake them up for the all too important meal. Ramadan to me was the best time of the year, as I’m sure it is for most people in Syria.

Here in Canada the story is different as you can imagine. Celebrating Ramadan in Canada is like celebrating Christmas in Qatar. You might find people who follow traditions, people who are excited about the month, but the one thing you will never find is the atmosphere. I think this is why I love Christmas time so much. In a way it’s a replacement of the atmosphere I miss.

But I’m excited. Next year Ramadan will creep even closer into summer, and in a few years I will be able to experience the great atmosphere all over again during summer vacation. I will be experience Ramadan during the summer for the first time, and hopefully create great memories of a brand new Ramadan.

Gaining Weight is a Problem?

Is it just me are we all surrounded by the diet hysteria? A quick search on Google shows

that “6.8 million Canadian adults ages 20 to 64 were overweight, and an additional 4.5 million were obese” which happens to be more

than a third of Canada’s population. So maybe it’s not me after all, it’s an epidemic and you don’t have to look far to see it. Of course marketing gurus are all over this and they’re trying to milk it for what it’s worth. For instance as I was walking through the supermarket today I saw for the first time the “100 calorie Doritos” bags, which basically consist of 2 chips. In another aisle I saw airplane style Coke cans also claiming 100 calories. Go into any other aisle and your senses are assaulted by “fat free” this and “baked, not fried” that. At the core of all of this is the same crap quality food that caused obesity in the first place, but in smaller portions. Have people no will power to stop eating chips from the big bags? Or to stop drinking soft drinks altogether? Do we need to miniaturize everything we buy to miniaturize ourselves?

Thinking about the measures the effort that people have to go through to slim up I’m surprised at myself for that realizing the irony behind the phrase “gaining weight”. To me gaining is associated with something positive. People don’t gain problems, stress or bad health, so why do they gain weight? Maybe I’m just stuck with the North American mentality. Food is abundant here and accessible to all. For the majority of the world gaining weight is a good thing, something desired, something out of the norm. Obesity is an “epidemic” only in North America. Nowhere else in the world are you going to hear people complain about having too much food... The more I think about this dichotomy the more I feel like we’re living in an Orwellian world.

In Memory of Frank McCourt

I came across his book while searching for a work on poverty for my grade 12 class. At the time I didn't know that I was to embark on reading a book that would have such an impact on me for years to come. Angela's Ashes is the autobiography of Frank McCourt, an Irish boy, born in America to a Protestant father and a Catholic mother. McCourt's book wasn't simply a description of his poor childhood, but rather a brilliant critique of culture and religion and the contradictions they bring about in society. His honesty brought him much criticism and made him an outcast in his own city. McCourt continued his great tale with 'Tis and finally by Teacher Man. I can't say much about his books because whatever I say I won't do them justice. I have re-read his books several times, and enjoyed reading them every single time. Maybe it's his sense of humour mixed in with the tragic moments of his life, or maybe it's his shear honesty. Whatever it was Frank McCourt will be remembered by many, and his story will live on, reminding us of how harsh poverty is and how good we have it.

Rest in peace Frank.

The Bastardization of the English Language Thru Web 2.0 - A study

When we got our physics lab report back in grade 12 there was one sentence circled in red “we installed the measurement devise to take readings…” next to the sentence our witty teacher commented “humans must devise a device that checks for spelling as well as context.”

It has been about 5 years since then, and we’re in need of the “device” more urgently than ever. All one needs to do is look around to see how spelling is getting butchered left and right. MSN (and now facebook and twitter) culture is raising a generation of people who try to condense their thoughts into a sentence or two, using every mean of spelling butchering available. Every time a clever bastardization of a word is seen it spreads like wildfire and becomes the standard in techno lingo. To illustrate I took 4 sekonds on facebook to find the falowing comments on a pic of some1’s mantion (note: no dramatization added):

- what a baller
this is mad balling
i think i must change the pic casue i am going blind from the insane ballign

- I think you can afford to pay me back that $5 from last summa homie...sheeeeeeeeet LoL

- wooow dats so beautiful!! is that ur house?

- LOL I Wish!...Soon 2 Be Tho!

Wa halluma jarran

Another word bastardization that I find particularly annoying is the replacement of “love” with “heart.” At least when people use shitty abbreviations of words they’re being lazy, and that’s respectable. But when you replace “love” with “heart” you’re trying to be cool, and sadly failing at it. I especially notice the replacement in facebook status updates, as in “I heart my new car.” I shudder to think of this becoming a trend where people replace words with symbol words such as “I heart my brain husband” for “I love my smart husband” or pushed one step further “I heart my brain ring.”

And why does replacing a “c” with a “k” make a word so much kooler?

While we’re on the topic of kool, I’m ashamed to admit that my post “mY mSn NaMe iS sO toTalLY kOOl!!” is one of my most popular. It continues to rake in the hits despite the fact that I wrote it 3.5 yEaRs AgO. In all this gloom there's light at the end of the tunnel. For instance, about a year ago I joined the local chapter of the Coalition Against People Who Can't Spell "Definitely" Facebook group. We’re 7 members strong and growing!

Ne way, its gettin late and I better hit the sack… BRB

Related Posts:

Street Lingo 101

Lingo Lesson 2

Lingo Lesson 3

Street Lingo 104 - Mastering Your Son and Daughter's Language

Living a Contradiction

Fairouz greets me every morning from my car speakers with her soft, familiar, and highly nostalgic voice. As I listen to her songs in the car I start reminiscing on the times we lived in Homs. I remember how my dad always had the radio turned up every morning to Fairouz, how I used to hear her voice on a cold winter day in Damascus before going to school, how happy it made me feel every time I got in a taxi in the morning with Fairouz playing on every radio station.

I can’t help but notice that as time passes I am becoming more nostalgic and attached to Syria. I was inclined to think, as I have witnessed in others, that as time passes one would begin to become more accustomed to being away. The feeling of belonging I thought would wane with time, but this hasn’t been the case. I prefer to hear news in Arabic, my iPod is filled with Middle Eastern music, and Nizar Qabbani’s words speak to me in a way that I can’t describe.

Sometimes I can’t help but confess that I live a contradiction. I like the culture, familiarity, and feel of Syria, and at the same time I enjoy the convenience, and the opportunities that are available here. As I drive through beautiful cities like Montreal and Toronto, I always find myself wondering why we can’t have a subway, why can’t we have decent roads, why are we not manufacturing?

I would love to apply my education to help Syria out, and I look forward to the day the economy opens up and foreign investments begin to pour in. Reading posts on FW: gives me hope, and something to daydream about, Breakfast At Mora’s pulled the thoughts out of my mind and showed me that I’m not alone. Perhaps the only way to cure the contradiction is by bringing the best of both worlds together, maybe it’s easier said than done, but one can at least dream.

Left us too soon

I often heard his name growing up. I heard people around me discuss his poems and his prose. I loved the way that Marcel sang his beautiful poems. But the inevitable happened, and Mahmoud Darwish left us today.

I was sad as if a close friend or relative had passed away. Darwish was the ambassador of Palestinian refugees to the world. His clever words described the feelings, and experiences of thousands like nobody else could have done.

My sadness stems from the realization that there is no replacement for such genius. The ranks of the likes of Mahmoud Darwish and Edward Said are on the decline, without replacement in sight. One hopes that Darwish’s poems will serve as an inspiration to young talents, waiting to fill the giant gap.

I know I know, but let me explain

It’s been a while, but let me explain. The past two months have been, by far, the busiest I have ever been. Partly due to school, partly due to life, more school than life though. As some may know this is my last term at UW, and unlike people say, the last term was a BITCH. Particularly 2 weeks ago when I had to hand in about 300% worth of marks for 4 courses, and somehow keep my sanity while preparing for finals. The biggest pain in the ass was getting the 4^th year project done, which involved long hours behind the computer and in the shop, but at the end things worked out and I survived. Today I wrote my final engineering exam. I must admit that my mind was half gone through the exam, I just couldn’t focus anymore. My last exam ever is on the 22^nd, after which I will finished and the celebrations will begin.

The design project

Other than school, my involvement with an activist group on campus kept me super busy for the first 3 quarters of the term. Through my activity with the group I met Ali Abunema, co-founder of Electronic Intifada, organized and ran a very successful Palestinian culture night, raising over 3000 dollars for infrastructure building in Khan Younis, and had a sit down with the great Israeli historian Illan Pappe. Our work was featured in several newspapers, and may reach Arabic media soon. It was certainly a fulfilling experience, with a great group of dedicated people and great friends.

Between all of that I was searching for a full time job. I had a bunch of interviews and finally found a job that seems very challenging in a great company. I’m not going to go further into it, as I’m going to be writing more about my job in the future once I start work.

Lastly, and most interesting is my plan for immediately after graduation. Fully knowing that once I start a fulltime job I’m going to be stuck with a 2-3 week vacations for a good portion of my life, I decided to do what a lot of people do nowadays after graduation… backpack through Europe. The tickets are booked the route is being finalized, and details are being discussed now that finals are almost done. More on the Euro trip later. Of course no after graduation trip is complete without a trip home to the beloved Syria. I should be in Syria for the month of July, Syrian bloggers take note.

Before 18 I should...

Sam tagged me with the “Things to do before 18” meme. I am supposed to list 6 things that I think one person should do before they turn 18. I will list the first things that come to mind.

1. The first thing that popped into my mind was getting into a relationship. It’s never too early to experience what it is like to care about somebody else, and develop feelings for someone in a non friendly way. The best lesson can be learned from relationship, and the earlier they’re learned the fewer mistakes one will make in the future.

2. Get a job. Getting a shitty job is probably the best way to encourage somebody to work harder in school. While working horrible shift at McDonald’s I would often take comfort in knowing that I’m not going to end up stuck with fast food for the rest of my life.

3. Plan a huge trip with a bunch of friends. A trip that will take you away from home for at least a week. I think trips like this build friendship a million times faster than by just hanging out, and seeing each other at school. The memories shared in these trips stay with you for life.

4. Find a hobby and practice it often. Particularly a hobby that involves creativity, and produces something that you are proud of.

5. Learn to critically think and to form opinion based on your findings not somebody else’s. Don’t take things as they are but learn to examine them further on your own.

6. Read about the universe, how it began, how big it is, and where we stand in it. Nothing is more humbling that realizing how insignificant we are. You definitely start looking at things differently.

Having mentioned these I want to mention that some of the points on the list are things that I wish I had done before I was 18, while other are things that I did and left a mark on me. Either way, it was a fun exercise coming up with the list.