Music (singer, pianist, flautist, drummer, songwriter), dancing (modern, jazz, swing, salsa, merengue, belly dancing, raving, crazy 80s dancing), acting, photography, scuba diving, skydiving, reading writing, poetry, baseball, the ocean (nothing like a relaxing day at the beach, the surf is so soothing), human rights (used to work for Amnesty International. Now that I'm out of the Army I'm working to pursue graduate studies in investigative and international journalism.
Interesting people with free thinking minds whole aren't afraid to act crazy sometimes.
Active duty military people might find this website interesting.
Appeal for Redress
How to convert from military to civilian life
1. Admit:
*"I was in the Army; I have a problem." This is the first step to recovery...
2. Speech:
*Time should never begin with a zero or end in a hundred, it is not 0430 or 1400; it is 4:30am and 2:00pm
*Words like latrine, overhead, fourth point of contact, bunk, and "PT" will get you weird looks; bathroom, ceiling, ass, bed, and workout... get used to it.
*Grunting is not talking.
*It's a phone, not a radio; do not use words like roger, say again, send it, and conversations on a phone do not end in "out."
*People will not know what you are talking about if you tell them you usually spend your Monday's doing a PMCS and that you need a 5988 before you can do a proper QA/QC or that you spent a deployment in USAREUR. It's all gibberish to them.
*Likewise people will not understand you when you use expressions like "watch your six" or "pop smoke."
*Also, the people you hang out with now are your friends and the people you work with are your co-workers. There is no such thing as a "battle buddy" anymore.
3. Style:
*Do not put creases in your jeans.
*Do not put creases on the front of your dress shirts.
*A horseshoe cut looks dumb, not motivating.
*A high and tight looks really dumb as well.
*A hat indoors does not make you a bad person; it makes you like the rest of the world; what's more it's a hat and not a cover.
*You do not have to wear a belt ALL the time.
4. Relationships:
*Being divorced twice by the time you are 23 is not normal, neither are 6 month marriages, even if it is your first.
*Marrying a girl so that you can move out of the barracks does not make "financial sense," it makes you a retard.
5. Personal accomplishments:
*In the real world, being able to do pushups and run a 13 minute 2 mile will not make you good at your job.
*Most people will be slightly disturbed by you if you tell them about people you have killed or seen die.
*How much pain you can take is not a personal accomplishment.
*The time you got really drunk and passed the sobriety test anyway is also not a personal accomplishment.
6. Drinking:
*In the real world, being drunk before 5pm will get you an intervention, not a "good for you."
*That time you drank a 5th of Jaeger and pissed in your closet is not a conversation starter.
*That time you went to the combat life saver school and practiced giving vodka IV's will also not be a good conversation starter.
7. Bodily functions:
*Farting on your co-workers and then giggling while you run away may be viewed as "unprofessional."
*You can't make fun of someone for being sick, no matter how funny it is.
*VD will also not be funny.
8. The human body:
*Most people will not want to hear about your balls. Odd as that may seem, it's true.
9. Spending habits:
*One day, you will have to pay bills. Buying a $30,000 car on a $16,000 a year salary is a really bad idea. Spending money on video games instead of on diapers makes you a fool. One day you will need health insurance.
10. Interacting with civilians:
*Making fun of your neighbor to his face for being fat will not be normal. Calling him a "fat-body" is not polite.
11. Real jobs:
*They really can fire you.
*On the flip side you really can quit.
*Screaming at the people that work for you will not be normal, remember they really can quit too.
*Taking naps at work will not be acceptable.
*Remember 9-5 not 0530 to 1700.
12. The Law:
*UCMJ does not exist and will not save you from prison.
*Your workplace unlike your command can't save you and probably won't, in fact most likely you will get fired about 5 minutes after they find out you've been arrested
*Even McDonald's does background checks, and "conviction" isn't going to help you get the job
*Fighting is not a normal thing and will really get you arrested, not yelled at Monday morning before they ask you if you won.
13. General knowledge:
*You can in fact really say what you think about the President in public.
*Pain is not weakness leaving the body, it's just pain.
*They won't wear anything shiny that tells you they are more important than you are, be polite.
*Read the contracts before you sign them; remember what happened last time.
Repost if you were once a soldier...or currently are...or know some and miss them dearly.
I think it's safe to say that I'm obsessed with music. I currently have over 9,000 song in my Ipod, and over 25 genres (I like to organize). I have a really bad memory, but things always seem to remind me of song lyrics. I especially like punk, emo, indy rock, trance, industrial, classic rock, swing, 80s, glam rock, jazz, big band, latin, african, middle eastern, celtic, classical, opera, musicals. Love Tori Amos, Modest Mouse, The Killers, Fugazi, Elliot Smith, Jawbox, Jets to Brazil, Ani Difranco, le Tigre, Mr. T Experience, The Shins, Yo la Tengo, Rusted Root, Dream Theater, A.F.I., NOFX, Dead Kennedys, Anti-Flag, Op Ivy, Bikini Kill, L7, Rage Against the Machine, Smashing Pumpkins, Coldplay, Moby, Prodigy, Pearl Jam, Elton John, The Doors, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Delibes, Tchaikovsky, Afro Celt Sound System, The Gipsy Kings, The Battlefield Band, the musicals Rent, Wicked, Jesus Christ Super Star, my good bud Pete's band Last Clear Chance (check them out on my Space)...the list could go on.
Where to begin...I love martial arts films, foreign films, indy flicks, comedies, etc. Love Garden State, The Jacket (this movie will change your life), Trainspotting, House of Flying Daggers, Requiem for a Dream, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Velvet Goldmine, Office Space, The Great Race, The Never Ending Story (come on it's a cult classic), The Matrix (the first one), the original Star Wars trilogy, Girl Interrupted, Big Fish, Y tu Mama Tambien, Amores Perros, Pulp Fiction...
I don't currently have television since cable costs too much and Charter Communications does nothing but rip people off, but my favorite shows are without a doubt The X-Files (before David left the show) and Law and Order (the original and SVU), Boston Legal, Scrubs, the Simpsons and Family Guy. I honestly have no idea what is on TV anymore.
I have almost know idea where to start here, I love so many books. Let's see...Ishmael (Daniel Quinn), 1984 (George Orwell), the poetry of Jorge Luis Borges, Guns, Germs and Steel (Jared Diamond), Sperm Wars (Robin Baker), Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Robert Pirsig). I'll have to add more later, can't think of them all right now.
I know it's corney and cliche, but I have to say my parents, especially my mom. My other heroes would have to be Aung Sun Su Kyi, Frida Kahlo, Queen Noor of Jordan, and all the people who have given their lives while standing up against oppression and injustice.