Application of Knowledge
I’m using this log for writing. I am also using it as a venue to let other better know me through my writing. Want to know me better? I filled out a “Be my Valentine” application from another person’s blog. I read it because she is entertaining. I saw these questions and had to put my own spin on them. I think it’s a pretty good view on who I am. If you are interested, click below.
1. How do you feel about Valentine's Day?
a. It's a stupid holiday made up by stores that want to make money.
b. It's a romantic holiday.
c. It's something guys have to live with to make their significant other happy.
Actually, I answer d.
Originally it was a Saint’s Day honoring Saint Valentine, a Catholic Martyr. Honoring the romantic story of “The First Valentine”, lover’s co-opted the day as their own. Greeting Card and Candy companies then appropriated the day to boost revenue by preying on the populace, advertising “you aren’t romantic without a card and candy!” Men have a yearly scramble trying to live up to the advertising hype.
The question was” how do you feel about Valentine’s Day?” I’d say that sums up my feelings; almost.
If you avoid the commercialism (as I always strive for in any holiday) and treat it not as what society has made it (a day for men to panic!), it becomes what it should be; a day when you emulate the originator of the holiday.
On Valentine’s Day you should give from the heart no matter what faces you. Love in abandon. Let the other person know that no matter what, what you give is “From Your Valentine.”
2. Your idea of a romantic evening is:
a. Riding dirt bikes until dark and then drinking a six pack.
b. Having a girl wax the hair off your back and then playing poker with the guys.
c. Sitting in front of a fire, drinking wine and gazing into each other's eyes.
Let’s go back to definition. Romance is taking from Romantic (of Roman origin), specifically used in terms such as Romance Languages (languages originating from Roman/Latin roots). Romance was a term used to describe “a medieval narrative, originally one in verse and in some [Romantic] dialect, treating of heroic, fantastic, or supernatural events, often in the form of allegory.” When taken in a more modern way, we “indulge in fanciful or extravagant stories or daydreams”
Looking at it from this perspective, the answer could be “d. all of the above,” (if your daydreams are about back hair). What is my idea of a romantic evening? Doing something that is of mutual interest with someone that I love (or could love). Anything can be romantic if you are both into it and truly (want to) care about the other person (even doing dishes!)
So the question then becomes “what do you want to do?”
3. At this point in your life, you:
a. Are interested in dating one girl at a time.
b. Are juggling 3 or 4 girls at once.
c. Are having fun "experimenting" with the opposite sex.
I’ve only ever dated more than one person at a time once in my life. They knew about it. I was a competition for my affections. I am sorry to say that I enjoyed it and encouraged it. It was a vile thing to do. I’m a more responsible individual now. Even then, I only really had an interest in dating one person at a time, but I let myself be influence by all of the attention. Never again!
All of life is an experiment. The only way it wouldn’t be is if we knew the outcome before hand. Wouldn’t that be boring? I’d rather try and fail than know life was a sure thing.
4. You think women who have children are:
a. Sexy and beautiful.
b. Used up and past their prime.
c. Ok to date, but not good for a long term relationship.
Depends on the woman and how she views herself. I’ve know all three categories. All women can be Sexy and Beautiful. Attitude is the key. Attitude decides between A and B. What about C? The kids themselves decide that. Children are the most important point in a decision! We could be soul mates, but without the approval of the children, it would be meaningless (unless they were adult children, then they can mind their own business!) Any long term relation ship must include the children if they are involved.
What is the answer? Woman who have children are Ok to date. If a relationship blossoms from the dating, then the children’s feeling on the subject should be considered. Only with the acceptance of the child should a long term relationship be considered.
5. Dancing..... will you?
c. I may or may not be a good dancer, but I will dance.
I’ll readily admit it… I can’t dance. That Genesis song was about me. Doesn’t stop me from trying, though! Dancing is fun! (Even if I look like an epileptic monkey) Stage dancing is a different creature. Give me a choreographer and I can go with the best of them. I CAN waltz.
6. What color are my eyes?
a. Hazel
b. Blue
c. Brown
d. Not sure
Having not met you, I can not honestly say. I’ve only seen photographs, but many depict your eyes as being blue; other, green. Not brown, certainly. Hazel? Well by definition, hazel means “having a light golden-brown color.” In practice, however, hazel typically is taken to mean “mixed color.” All eyes change color by mood. Those with only one color (such as my brown eyes) are only able to change shade. People lucky enough to have hazel eyes can go from blue to green to gray. Who needs colors contacts with beautiful, color-change hazel eyes? From the evidence, I’d go with A.
7. ESSAY QUESTION: Which quality in a woman is the most important to you and why?
a. Honesty
b. Monetarily stable
c. Good looking
d. Intelligent
e. Great lover
f. Other quality
I’ve made very question an essay question. I can’t help it. There are no simple answers to anything (except maybe “are you hungry?” I’m getting some food after this!)
I’ll answer this with a story. When I first entered the dating world, I thought all I needed in a woman was a good heart. As long as she was kind, honest and caring, she was the one for me. That was until the “consolidate” encounter. I started dating the sweetest girl from my photography class in college. She had an enormous heart and could light the room with her smile.
She missed a class and asked if I would show her what we learned that day. I walked her step by step through the procedures and she seemed to grasp them flawlessly (notice the word “seemed”.) I them went back over them, showing numerous short cuts and time saving methods. I told her that by using the methods, she could consolidate her work load and get out of the lab much quicker.
“I don’t understand,” she said with a blank look on her face.
“Oh, I did go a bit fast on the explanation. What part didn’t you get?”
“Oh, I understood about the process. It’s just like in the book. I don’t know what consolidate means.”
This brought me up short. We’re in college, right? It’s a big word, but still… I’ve had this problem before, though. I have a large vocabulary and with public school in the state they’re in most people don’t. I could accept this.
I told her “It means to bring together different parts into a whole. This way, you save time by doing steps while other steps are still processing. I’ve managed to take 15 minutes of my time in the processing lab by doing this.”
“I still don’t understand.”
This time it hit me like a lead weight. She was kidding, right? I could tell from her big, blue innocent eyes that she wasn’t. I’d have to try again.
I explained consolidate (in ever increasingly simple terms) for a full five minutes. (I worked in a photo lab. You pay attention to time there. It was five minutes.) After what seemed an eternity of frustration (on both parts) a finally found something that worked.
“Alright, let’s try a different approach. You go shopping at the mall and need to buy three separate things from three different stores.”
“We’re going shopping?”
“No! This is pretend. Stay with me here. You go into each store and purchase your item. Each store gives you a bag for the item. After all three stores, you are stuck carrying three bags through the mall the rest of the time you are there.”
“I hate it when that happens.”
“I’m sure you do. Now, to make it easier, you decide to take all three items and put them into one bag. You’ve ‘consolidated’ your packages to make your time in the mall easier. Do you understand now?”
Her eyes lit up with glee. “That is such a good idea! I’ve never thought of that before. Can it be the Macy’s bag? That’s the best store. Can we go to the mall when we’re done here? There’s this cu...”
It was at this point that I knew the relationship was doomed. I’d kill her eventually. This is what brought about my second criteria for a potential mate: Intelligence. Not just book smarts, but the common sense to know what to do with them!
As I grew older and wiser (and had more failed dating experiences) my list has grown. Everything on that list is important. Not everything is crucial, but it is important. Intelligence is probably the highest on the list, because if you cannot communicate with your potential mate, you are doomed from the start.
1. How do you feel about Valentine's Day?
a. It's a stupid holiday made up by stores that want to make money.
b. It's a romantic holiday.
c. It's something guys have to live with to make their significant other happy.
Actually, I answer d.
Originally it was a Saint’s Day honoring Saint Valentine, a Catholic Martyr. Honoring the romantic story of “The First Valentine”, lover’s co-opted the day as their own. Greeting Card and Candy companies then appropriated the day to boost revenue by preying on the populace, advertising “you aren’t romantic without a card and candy!” Men have a yearly scramble trying to live up to the advertising hype.
The question was” how do you feel about Valentine’s Day?” I’d say that sums up my feelings; almost.
If you avoid the commercialism (as I always strive for in any holiday) and treat it not as what society has made it (a day for men to panic!), it becomes what it should be; a day when you emulate the originator of the holiday.
On Valentine’s Day you should give from the heart no matter what faces you. Love in abandon. Let the other person know that no matter what, what you give is “From Your Valentine.”
2. Your idea of a romantic evening is:
a. Riding dirt bikes until dark and then drinking a six pack.
b. Having a girl wax the hair off your back and then playing poker with the guys.
c. Sitting in front of a fire, drinking wine and gazing into each other's eyes.
Let’s go back to definition. Romance is taking from Romantic (of Roman origin), specifically used in terms such as Romance Languages (languages originating from Roman/Latin roots). Romance was a term used to describe “a medieval narrative, originally one in verse and in some [Romantic] dialect, treating of heroic, fantastic, or supernatural events, often in the form of allegory.” When taken in a more modern way, we “indulge in fanciful or extravagant stories or daydreams”
Looking at it from this perspective, the answer could be “d. all of the above,” (if your daydreams are about back hair). What is my idea of a romantic evening? Doing something that is of mutual interest with someone that I love (or could love). Anything can be romantic if you are both into it and truly (want to) care about the other person (even doing dishes!)
So the question then becomes “what do you want to do?”
3. At this point in your life, you:
a. Are interested in dating one girl at a time.
b. Are juggling 3 or 4 girls at once.
c. Are having fun "experimenting" with the opposite sex.
I’ve only ever dated more than one person at a time once in my life. They knew about it. I was a competition for my affections. I am sorry to say that I enjoyed it and encouraged it. It was a vile thing to do. I’m a more responsible individual now. Even then, I only really had an interest in dating one person at a time, but I let myself be influence by all of the attention. Never again!
All of life is an experiment. The only way it wouldn’t be is if we knew the outcome before hand. Wouldn’t that be boring? I’d rather try and fail than know life was a sure thing.
4. You think women who have children are:
a. Sexy and beautiful.
b. Used up and past their prime.
c. Ok to date, but not good for a long term relationship.
Depends on the woman and how she views herself. I’ve know all three categories. All women can be Sexy and Beautiful. Attitude is the key. Attitude decides between A and B. What about C? The kids themselves decide that. Children are the most important point in a decision! We could be soul mates, but without the approval of the children, it would be meaningless (unless they were adult children, then they can mind their own business!) Any long term relation ship must include the children if they are involved.
What is the answer? Woman who have children are Ok to date. If a relationship blossoms from the dating, then the children’s feeling on the subject should be considered. Only with the acceptance of the child should a long term relationship be considered.
5. Dancing..... will you?
c. I may or may not be a good dancer, but I will dance.
I’ll readily admit it… I can’t dance. That Genesis song was about me. Doesn’t stop me from trying, though! Dancing is fun! (Even if I look like an epileptic monkey) Stage dancing is a different creature. Give me a choreographer and I can go with the best of them. I CAN waltz.
6. What color are my eyes?
a. Hazel
b. Blue
c. Brown
d. Not sure
Having not met you, I can not honestly say. I’ve only seen photographs, but many depict your eyes as being blue; other, green. Not brown, certainly. Hazel? Well by definition, hazel means “having a light golden-brown color.” In practice, however, hazel typically is taken to mean “mixed color.” All eyes change color by mood. Those with only one color (such as my brown eyes) are only able to change shade. People lucky enough to have hazel eyes can go from blue to green to gray. Who needs colors contacts with beautiful, color-change hazel eyes? From the evidence, I’d go with A.
7. ESSAY QUESTION: Which quality in a woman is the most important to you and why?
a. Honesty
b. Monetarily stable
c. Good looking
d. Intelligent
e. Great lover
f. Other quality
I’ve made very question an essay question. I can’t help it. There are no simple answers to anything (except maybe “are you hungry?” I’m getting some food after this!)
I’ll answer this with a story. When I first entered the dating world, I thought all I needed in a woman was a good heart. As long as she was kind, honest and caring, she was the one for me. That was until the “consolidate” encounter. I started dating the sweetest girl from my photography class in college. She had an enormous heart and could light the room with her smile.
She missed a class and asked if I would show her what we learned that day. I walked her step by step through the procedures and she seemed to grasp them flawlessly (notice the word “seemed”.) I them went back over them, showing numerous short cuts and time saving methods. I told her that by using the methods, she could consolidate her work load and get out of the lab much quicker.
“I don’t understand,” she said with a blank look on her face.
“Oh, I did go a bit fast on the explanation. What part didn’t you get?”
“Oh, I understood about the process. It’s just like in the book. I don’t know what consolidate means.”
This brought me up short. We’re in college, right? It’s a big word, but still… I’ve had this problem before, though. I have a large vocabulary and with public school in the state they’re in most people don’t. I could accept this.
I told her “It means to bring together different parts into a whole. This way, you save time by doing steps while other steps are still processing. I’ve managed to take 15 minutes of my time in the processing lab by doing this.”
“I still don’t understand.”
This time it hit me like a lead weight. She was kidding, right? I could tell from her big, blue innocent eyes that she wasn’t. I’d have to try again.
I explained consolidate (in ever increasingly simple terms) for a full five minutes. (I worked in a photo lab. You pay attention to time there. It was five minutes.) After what seemed an eternity of frustration (on both parts) a finally found something that worked.
“Alright, let’s try a different approach. You go shopping at the mall and need to buy three separate things from three different stores.”
“We’re going shopping?”
“No! This is pretend. Stay with me here. You go into each store and purchase your item. Each store gives you a bag for the item. After all three stores, you are stuck carrying three bags through the mall the rest of the time you are there.”
“I hate it when that happens.”
“I’m sure you do. Now, to make it easier, you decide to take all three items and put them into one bag. You’ve ‘consolidated’ your packages to make your time in the mall easier. Do you understand now?”
Her eyes lit up with glee. “That is such a good idea! I’ve never thought of that before. Can it be the Macy’s bag? That’s the best store. Can we go to the mall when we’re done here? There’s this cu...”
It was at this point that I knew the relationship was doomed. I’d kill her eventually. This is what brought about my second criteria for a potential mate: Intelligence. Not just book smarts, but the common sense to know what to do with them!
As I grew older and wiser (and had more failed dating experiences) my list has grown. Everything on that list is important. Not everything is crucial, but it is important. Intelligence is probably the highest on the list, because if you cannot communicate with your potential mate, you are doomed from the start.