Did the Top Fall?

    I wonder how many people have put up their theory of whether or not the top fell at the end of Inception.  Well I just finished watching Inception for the fourth time, and I think it's time to give my own theory.

Oh Luke, Inception is soooo last year, why are you bringing up such an old movie?

    Because, Inception is the greatest movie to have conversations about because there is so much complexity and so much to talk about.  At least of the movies I have seen.  Now, did the top fall?  I have come to the understanding that people think if the top falls then he is in reality, and if it kept spinning then he is still locked in some extra-deep limbo world.  To this I pose another question, does it even matter if the top falls?

    Let me explain better.  A question the movie touches on---not really the main question of the movie---is what is realty.  Think back to when Leonardo DiCaprio and the architect girl (their character names escape me) are on the snowy mountain covering the outside of the base, and Molly comes and shoots Fisher (the guy they are trying to inception an idea in).  Earlier the architect girl ask Leo if killing the security was destroying parts of Fisher's mind, he said no they are just projections.  However, when the girl told Leo that Molly wasn't real and just a projection, he retorted, "How do you know that"?  For that instant, Leo was not sure what reality was.  The movie also asks the viewer earlier in the movie when they see all the people who pay to be in dream world a few hours a day.  The guy there says, "They come here to wake up.  Who are you to tell them what reality is."  (That may not be verbatim).  So in other words, is reality reality because it is indeed something that is and is the same for everyone else, or is reality what we think is real?

    I've mentioned before the book The Answer by John Assaraf.  In the first couple chapters of the book they show that scientists are discovering that we can actually change the outcome of certain experiments just by observing the experiment.  We can also change things by how we think about them.  Go pick up a copy and read it, it will blow your mind.  My father was the one who introduced me to this book, and he said he made a lot of connections with the first couple chapters and ... was it the first book of John?  Where it says in the bible, "In the beginning there was the word and the word was God and God was the word..." or something like that.  Well after reading The Answer, I think that you could replace the word "word" with idea.  In the beginning was the idea, and the idea was God.  In other words, the reason we exist is because God thought us up.  I don't want to go writing my own scripture, but I feel like there could be some truth to this. 
    Getting back to Inception.  Was Leo's projection of Molly actually real?  He could see her, hear her, smell her, touch her, and even talk to her.  It seems to me that the only real difference between the "real" world and the dream ones is which one we accept as reality.  Molly accepted that the dream world was reality, and so when she left it, she was convinced that even when everybody else thought told her she was in the real world, that she was not.  It is all based on our thoughts and ideas, so why couldn't Leo's idea of Molly be real? 
    All this brings be back to did the top fall at the end.  I say it did, but not because Leo woke up, but because he had accepted his reality, whether it was the same one he had before or what he would have called a dream world.  He thought he was in reality, and because he thought that, the top would have fallen.  The end. 
    Did that make sense? No?  It is a very complex thing that is difficult for me to explain, but I feel confident in it.  It is very late at the moment, so maybe I'll have to come back to this once I am more awake and make it make sense.  What do you think?  Leave your comments and theories below!  Please?

Daydreaming Amid the Flowers for a Couple of Hours

    Well I thought since school was over I would have so much free time, but once again I get busy and I push aside things like friends and this blog and other things.  I don't really have enough time to write a big ole' post now, but I thought if I am going to have a chance at getting to 100 that I'd have to start sometime soon.
    There is a man in my ward, Brother Haügen, who originally hails from Norway or Sweeden...some European country that is frozen 9 months of the year.  Anyway he was going to be gone for a large chunk of the day, and I was asked to watch his house while he was away (if that seems odd, there are more details to it, I just don't want to tell you so there).  I was at his house just short of 5 hours, so I had plenty of time to clear my mind, meditate, and daydream.  That was when I got this idea I want to share with you.
    Before I start with that though, I would like to preface it by informing you that I do realize this life epiphany or whatever you call it is coming from a young man who still lives at home and is given a very cushy life.  I would not say my parents are rich, but we do have enough to live quite easily.  So my opinion I am about to share might change once I get into the real world and start paying for my own car and insurance and house, and food, and clothes, and most everything else.  It is important that you understand that I do acknowledge my naïveté because I know you audience.  Once I share my feelings with you you are going to be all,

"Oh Luke, you have no idea what real life is like.  You are probably some hippy who thinks the world is powered by love juice and daisy farts."

Love juice and daisy farts?  Not only are you guys crude, but you make no sense.  ANYWAY, keeping my lack of life experience in mind, let me tell you what I think.
    I highly doubt I am going to have the same standard of living as my parents.  I doubt I will come even close.  I am saying I will have a lower standard of living than them, not a higher one.  The thing is that I don't think I want the way my parents live.  Now before you call me a hippy and throw your rotten tomatoes at me, remember that I have said I think anyone who says they wouldn't want to be a rock star is either a saint or lying.  I still believe that, and I am no saint.  Sure it would be fun to be rich and/or famous, and go everywhere in a private jet, drink orange juice out of a champagne glass (name that reference!), and being able to buy anything that you ever wanted.  I just quoted three rappers in that sentence, I think that's a record.  However I do not have that passion to be filthy stinking rich.  Not even just stinking rich or filthy rich, or any kind of rich (no that's not true, because you do not need a lot of money to be rich).
    My dad is really an inspiration.  He works so hard for easily 18 hours or more a day.  He loves what he does so it is not too much of a burden, and he gets paid very well for what he does.  I do not want to work 18 hours a day.  I didn't even think there were that many hours every day... wait... I am being told that we have the technology to know how many hours are in a day... there are 24...is that every time?... Yes I am being told every day has 24 hours...that seems like a lot.  Unless I find a career that I love and would do for free (which I hope I do) I would never work that long on any one thing.
    Maybe it's still my youthful ignorance, but I feel like if I was making like 30K a year that I would be rich.  Lets do some math! OK, 30K a year is 25hundred a month.  So lets take out  $400 rent, $120ish utilities, $425 for car and insurance, $250 food, oh duh! of course $250 tithing, like 13% tax($325), $50 clothing (gotta be in style), $80 cell phone, $80 internet (that covers all my TV and most entertainment), and $250 for fun (movies, games, dates, etc), and that still leaves another $270 to save for a rainy day.  Naturally things get more expensive when you have a family, but one person could live fine on that money if they are smart with it. 
    I have been considering working in North Dakota on the oil rigs after my mission.  People starting out can make anywhere from 75K to 90K a year.  If I can live fine on 30K imagine what I could do with that.  Even if I only worked one year, that is college (living expenses and books included) taken care of.  Maybe even enough to buy a used car.  The only problem is you have to live in North Dakota in the middle of nowhere. 
    I would like to drive around in a black 2007 Mercedes E class? Heck yes!  That car makes me drool.

However, it isn't worth going into huge amounts of debt, or working 24/7 to pay for it.  At least not to me.  The only things I care for in a car...well deeply care, is that the outside looks good (i.e. no dents, scratches, the paint is all one color) The inside is clean and does not smell like a dog kennel, and that it starts when you turn the key. 

    Would I enjoy living in a 20,000 sq.ft. house?  Maybe if I had a staff to keep it clean for me.  Though it would not be very fun if I was single, or if I had a large family.  I like architecture, there are some beautiful huge houses, but I would never like to live in one.  This I can say for sure, after living in my parents house which is 8,000sq.ft.+.  It is just too much work, and incredibly expensive.  I want to live in a smaller house regardless if I can afford a bigger one or not.  I wouldn't want a two bedroom one bath if I ended up having 10 kids...I want just enough space so we are comfortable, but no excess.  All I want in a house, in addition to what I said before, is for it to be cool, have interesting furniture, or at least some personality, and for it to be clean.  I hate living in a mess, which is one reason why I don't like my parents house because it is always messy because there is just too much to clean.
    I need to wrap this up.  What you should take from this, is that things and luxuries are fun, but in the end they are just things, and it is just money.  Those fun things are not what is important, and not what we should be focused on getting.  I am not a socialist or a communist, spend your money however you want, if you work hard, you should be rewarded blah blah blah Rush Limbah FTW!!!  That reminds me of a joke: 
    So the richest man in the world dies in his bed one night, and Saint Peter comes to collect him.  Saint Peter congratulates him on being good enough to get into heaven, and tells him he can take one thing with him.  The man was a good man, but he liked money and wealth, so he thought about taking all the cash in his vault.  Then he thought, "No, what if the dollar isn't worth much in heaven".  So he looked around his room and saw his wardrobe of fine linens and thought maybe he could sell them when he got there, but he noticed how Saint Peter and all the other angels were wearing white robes so they probably wouldn't value fine clothes.  Then he thought that gold carries the same value everywhere, so he carried with him as much gold as he could.  Peter looked puzzled, but said nothing.  The man entered the pearly gates and soon saw one of his old friends.  The man's friend greeted him, but couldn't stop laughing.  "What is it?" the man asked.
    "Well I think it is funny that you were allowed to bring any one thing with you, and out of all your possessions, you decided to bring pavement."
    *Crickets chirping*  You decided to bring PAVEMENT! ...get it? ...Oh it's just not funny?... oh...

Going the Distance

Here is me recording walking down Bourbon Street in New Orleans

    Hello everyone, School is over!  I did enjoy this term, but not having to worry about homework or whatever is a welcome break.  I find it funny that I would post blogs a lot more when I had other homework to do, but once it became an assignment I put off most of them until the last days before they were due.  Now when the blog goes back to leisure writing, I put up a post less then a week after school is out.
    Have you ever heard of the song "Going the Distance" by Cake?  Cake is one of my favorite bands, and that song is such a fun song to exercise to.  Go check it out on grooveshark or something.  I titled this blog after that song partially because I am listening to it right now, and to say that I am "Going the distance" with this blog....  Meaning I am going to keep it going.  I was surprised to see 41 posts when I logged in today.  This one will make 42...the answer to everything!  I never thought I would get this far.  When I started it, I thought maybe I'd do like 10 posts and get bored of it, but I think it is great fun. 
    So here is the deal, I want to make a goal.  If you have been following my blog from the beginning, you know just how good I am at keeping these goals.  Not at all would be an accurate statement.  ANYWAY, I'd want to have at least 100 posts by the time I go on my mission.  I just counted, I have 85 days until I leave.  So that is...58 more posts (after this one) in 85 days, so I would have to post a little more often then every other day.  I can do that.

Me and my best friend Kevin, we've known each other since we were three

   If I am going to be doing this, I want to make what I write interesting, and after reading a lot of the blogs in my (former) class, there are a few things I can do to make it more worth reading.  I personally like lots of pictures, even when the writer is writing something that I find interesting, it is hard for me to stay focused unless there are pictures (I'll just throw some random ones in here).  That just goes with the media I guess.  Another thing, is I like hearing more personal stories, not explicitly detailed stories about their first child's birth, but like this one.
    That means I'll have to take more pictures...Which I would do more, but I lost the cable to load them onto my computer.  OK, I'll get a new cord, and do some exciting stuff so I can tell you about it.  Thanks for reading this, here is a picture to keep you on focus.

Here is my R700 airsoft gun, it shoots .4gr bbs at 650+ feet per second...I shot through a wall in my room once.  This is what I use for airsoft competitions.

Who Is My Audience? (Conclusion)

    Our blog for class is supposed to be directed at a particular audience.  This is possibly my weakest aspect in writing: defining your audience.  This is an especially bad problem because not knowing who your audience is weakens most every aspect of your paper.  I started this blog when I began college only because a friend of mine said he kept a blog of his own, and I thought it sounded like something fun.  At first it was basically copy pasted sections from my journal that I thought my friends might find entertaining.  I took out the really personal stuff, but if you read my journal right before college, you would be surprised at how similar they are to my first six or so blog posts.
   Once I was told we would be keeping a blog for this class, I thought that I should make the class my audience, and write about Ethos, Pathos, Logos, Kairos, and other class terms.  I quickly came to realize I could not keep that up for the whole semester.  It was ridiculously tedious to write even one post.  I then thought of what I blogs I like, and how I spend free time on the internet.  When I go online, and I have nothing to do, my first stop is usually facebook (this is also usually my first stop when I do have something that needs to be done, but that's another story).  Next is youtube, then tumblr.  I go to these places to watch the personalities like ShayCarl, Philip Defranco, Mitch&Adam, and others.
    With that in mind, I decided to write to an audience like a group of friends where I can clearly write out my opinions, and share amusing anecdotes, but with a gospel spin, and attempt to make it somewhat intelligent for class.  It is a pretty complicated audience, but thinking that I am writing to others and not just for myself really affects what I put in here.  I use periods for example, and try to have some variety in my vocabulary.  This is the most prominent thing I have learned keeping a blog, is remembering why I am actually writing and who is going to read it.

Hindsight Really is 20/20

The semester is finally over.  Writing 150 was my only class this time, but it was a busy semester nonetheless.  In addition to this class, I had work, chores, applying for a mission, getting a mission call, filming, editing, skateboarding...it’s a hard life.  It is natural for us to reflect on something when it draws to a close.  There were some assignments in this class that I really enjoyed, especially keeping a blog.  Through these assignments, and others, I feel like I have improved my writing, and have at least learned to be more responsible.
    I liked the blog assignment; maybe it is because I am part of the social networking generation.  I had a blog before this class, and I plan to continue to update it after I am done with class.  I enjoy writing.  I do it for fun, but when I write it is really informal, as you can see in this excerpt from my third post Wait a Minute...It’s Wednesday!!! At Least I Think I Know What I’m Doing Now..., “This is starting to get to be a lengthy post, and you know how much I don't like those (what you didn't?  ... oh.. well you do now) So I'll wrap this up”.  I like to pretend that I am having a conversation with the reader and only write my side of it.  While this might be fun and make sense to me, it might be more difficult for someone else to understand what I am doing, especially if they do not know me personally like people in my class.  These blogs are mainly graded on completion, but I thought since I was doing it for a class, I should put a little more effort into it to making sure the reader knows what I am trying to say.  I had to take my audience in consideration.  The lesson of remembering your audience in your papers is something that really clicked for me this semester.  I had been told to take your audience into consideration before, but I never practiced it in my papers.
    My writing has improved because of this.  I have always thought that I am naturally a decent writer.  Decent enough to get A’s on essays that I wrote in one draft the night before it was due.  I can even do that in some college classes, but not many.  To be able to get an A in college, I have to actually think about what I am writing and why I am writing.  I need to read and reread it, get other people to put their input in, and think about who will be grading this if I want to get an A for sure.  Audience is crucial in writing.  In school your audience is your teacher who determines your grade.  At work, writing to the wrong audience can get you into trouble.  You are not going to describe to your science class how water evaporates then you are to your five-year-old brother.  Your audience affects your tone, word choice, length, and just about every other aspect that goes into writing your paper.  When I wrote my blog post A Year in Provence, I had a different audience in mind then I usually do.  I wrote it like I was writing for my art history teacher, so I said, “You can see by their fairly simple clothing that this is not the French Bourgeoisie or Aristocracy, they are the working class after work or on a weekend enjoying themselves at a cafe”.  I would never use Bourgeoisie or Aristocracy if I was describing this to a friend.  I would say something closer to, “They aren’t wearing very fancy clothing, so they are probably working class people at a cafe.”
    I, like so many other students out there, suffer from chronic procrastination.  As I have said earlier, I have usually been good enough in school to put everything off until the last minute and still get good grades.  College is a bit more difficult, and I have found, and am still learning that life is much happier when you are responsible and do your work on time.  I am still working with this, I have my ups and downs, but at least I am not constantly putting things off like I used to.  I have taken many steps to try to be more responsible.  Using a day planner has worked well for me, since a common reason for me procrastinating is I will actually forget that I have an assignment.  Writing down what I am going to do and when helps me remember everything and stay organized. 
    I have enjoyed this class this semester, and I really feel like I got something out of it.  Hopefully I won’t forget to remember to think of the audience when I write papers.  I have plenty of school and writing to go, and remembering your audience is key in organizing and composing your paper.  What I really need to improve on is leaving myself enough time to write and do my assignments, and then actually use that time well. 

My First Video

   Hello all, since I have talked quite a bit...written quite a bit about how I love to make videos, here is an example.  What you are hopefully going to see is a video I did for my high school choir back in 2010.  Please just keep in mind that this was one of my first videos, back when I used *shudder* imovie.

A Year In Provence

    I have a confession to make.  I love art!  I took an art history class my senior year of high school mostly because the boy/girl ratio was about 1/5 and everybody I know who has taken it has loved it.  I was expecting a fairly easy class to maybe get some AP credit for it.  What I got was the hardest pre-BYU class I have ever had, but it was still my favorite class ever.  I actually enjoyed doing the assignments.  

    I wanted to talk about these two paintings.  They're both by Renoir; he is my absolute favorite artist.  They are so French!  These were painted during the industrial revolution, when the common worker could afford to go out to eat when they had a day off.  The French people live to leisure, the only reason they stop playing and go to work is to earn enough money to go and play some more.  These paintings capture that lifestyle perfectly.

    Let's start with the first one.  You can see by their fairly simple clothing that this is not the French Bourgeoisie or Aristocracy, they are the working class after work or on a weekend enjoying themselves at a cafe.  Following the eye lines shows an amusing story (to me anyway).  Look at the man in the tank top on the left.  He seems to be checking out that girl taking a drink from her glass.  That girl herself is staring at the man in the bowler hat.  It looks like the man in the bowler is flirting with the woman leaning on the railing.  The woman on the railing is zoning out watching the waiter in the white sweater.  The waiter seems to be treating the lady in the blue dress and white cap very well, but that lady doesn't even notice because she is fixated on the closest man to us on the right.  That man is gazing at the closest lady to us on the left, and she only has eyes for her Yorkshire Terrier.  This is my favorite painting because of all the connections or lack there of between all the subjects.  Also I used to own a Yorkie.  Just wook at hime, isent he sho cute?

    This next one is another personal favorite of mine.  Again the people are common folk, but they are dressed nicer then the painting above, so maybe this is actually a weekend they had off instead of them just getting off work.  I like this painting because to me it personifies TGIF so well.  This painting reminds me of the 6th grade end-of-the-year trip to Lagoon, I remember towards the end of the day the light drizzled through the leaves making the ground and the people look splotchy.  It doesn't look bad though, it makes the painting feel warm and summery.  I like the relationships in this one too.  In the foreground, the two sitting at the table look like they are trying to pick up the pair of twins on the bench.  The man with his back turned against us looks like he is doing well with the woman in the black dress, but the other girl in the blue and white striped blouse is gazing further into the cafe where we can't see.  The one thing that confuses me in this painting are the two chandeliers...they are outside...what are they hanging off of?

These Are A Few of My Favorite Things

I wonder how many people have ripped off the sound of music as a title when they make a list of stuff they like...
    Anyway, here is a list of some of my hobbies, and interests

#1. Airsofting

     Airsofting is basically like paintball, but instead of shooting paintballs, you shoot plastic BBs.  I like to say that paintballing and airsofting are totally different, but they really are prettymuch the same, I prefer airsoft because you have a wider variety of guns that actually look like real guns, and you and the area you are playing in are not covered in gross pink goo.  I know they say it washes out, but I think it leaves an odor for a while.  This is something that I do get pretty geeky over.  I am on a team (ARI) I have played on fields from Ogden to Spanish Fork, I have played with the US army who brought a real Humvee once that I got to ride in.  Some of my best experiences and closes friends have come out of this sport.

#2. Guns
   It seems every time people hear that I like to airsoft, they usually respond with, "Oh well I like to use real guns" I will answer, "Yeah I do too, but you can't go out with your friends and shoot each other with real guns can you?  Well you could, but you would probably go to prison shortly after."  I do love to shoot real guns, and I do it often.  There is just something special about wiggling your index finger here, and making something blow up 100 yards over there.  Since I am poor, I only have one gun, a Mosin Nagant.  Mine was made in 1938 with all the original (but refinished) parts, and it still works like it was new.

#3. Music (performing/listening)
    This list is not in order of most to least favorite.  If it was, this would be number one.  I play guitar, drums, and I sing.  Music has always been very important to me.  I have never taken any music lessons, except for voice about a year ago, but I practice all the time.  In addition, I listen to music all the time.  I am right now (All For Leyna by Billy Joel).  There is very little music I do not like.  I do get tired of screamo or heavy metal type music very quickly, but other than that, I listen to everything from rap to opera to country to pop to rock to alternative to choral/orchestral to oldies to dubstep to pretty much whatever you can think of.

• Favorite genre of music: indie-rock, stuff almost nobody has heard of before because I am such a hipster *push thick-rimmed glasses up and brush exotic tea leaves off of my Star Wars t-shirt*. 
• Favorite band: Weezer.  I honestly cannot give a clear reason why I love Weezer, they are the band that I go to when I don't know what I want to listen to.  They are a great summer band, and are easy to relate to.
• Favorite song:  This changes about weekly, but currently it is "I'm Gay" by Bowling For Soup.  Gay in the happy way, it is a song that shouldn't be taken seriously.  Most all of what BFS does is not meant to be taken seriously.

#4. Movies (watching and making them)
    I actually might have lied earlier, because movie making could give music a run for its money, but I have been involved in music longer, so it is still barely in first.  As I have said in an earlier blog, this is what I want to do for a living...making movies, not watching them, even thought that would be sweet!  Some of my favorite movies are Saving Private Ryan, Shindler's List, Black Hawk Down, Kingdom of Heaven, Star Wars (any really), LOTR, and any movie with Charlton Heston and Charlie Chaplin .

#5.  Skateboarding and Longboarding
    I just want to make it clear that I do skateboard and longboard.  I love them both, I like just cruisin and doing tricks on my skateboard (I can do an olie and a popshuvit!), and I love the speed and fluidity you can only get on a long board.

Here are the differences between the two:
Skateboarding:

  And longboarding:

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

    There are few things in this world that I have really found a passion for.  Something that I am not only willing to work very hard on for a long period of time, but actually enjoy it.  I maintain the belief that everybody has at least one of these things that they are willing to suffer for and devote, if not their whole life, the majority of their life to this thing.  I believe it is important for everyone to find their passion(s) in life.  Something more then a simple desire.  For example, everybody wants to be a rock star or something like it, if they tell you otherwise then they are lying, unless they are an angel or something.  However, few people have the urge, the motivation, or the passion to suffer through all the hardships and heartaches to become a rock star.
    "But Luke! There are plenty of people who want nothing else then to be a musician, and they never got famous.  I know, I had a friend who knew a guy who played at bars for fifteen years and nothing came out of it!"  I know that's what you are saying to your computer right now.  In a way you are right.  I am not so naive as to think that everybody can become a super famous musician who does have the passion, but if in the end all you want is to be famous, there are lots of other ways like acting, video making, being a professional sports player, streak on the field during the super bowl, shoot up a downtown mall...if your only motivation is being famous, you can find a way. ***NOTE:  LUKE CROSSMAN IS NOT ENCOURAGING OR CONDONING SHOOTING UP A MALL, ONLY COMMENTING THAT PEOPLE WOULD PROBABLY REMEMBER YOU IF YOU DID...HOWEVER, HE IS CONDONING AND ENCOURAGING STREAKING AT SOME PROFESSIONAL SPORTING EVENT*** If your passion really is music, then that example you so rudely interrupted me with earlier is a great example for my case.  He had fifteen years of sharing his talent with others.
    It doesn't even have to be a thing that makes you money.  I have a passion for daydreaming.  I have notebooks full of things I could do with a million dollars, or what my dream house would be, or ranking the cars I would want, or what career I would like to have in a few years.  I will never make a living by daydreaming, but I make sure I get all my work done so I can have that free time to do
that.  Writing down what the perfect future would be has given me some ideas that I might have passion for. 
    This leads me to why I began this post, to tell you what I think my passion is now (not to ask you what yours is or encourage you to find it because I am grossly self-centered).  My passion is film making.
    "OH LUKE! You are such a hypocrite! First you preach to us about how you think people don't have the passion to be one of these fancy musicians or actors, yet you posses the motivation to become some big-shot Hollywood director?"  Wow, you guys are ornery today.  Notice, I said "think my passion is now".  I do not know if I care enough about film making to make it in the business, I realize it is brutally competitive, and increasingly less profitable, but all through high school, I have loved coming up with movie or short ideas.  My interest might wane over time, but it has only grown stronger over the past five years or so.  I would be lying if I said that I wouldn't want to be a big Hollywood director and make buckets of money, but I can say honestly that I have so much fun making videos that earning money for it would just be a nice bonus.  I want to be like Olan Rogers.  You probably haven't heard of him before now (if you have I love you), he is just a guy who makes regular content on Youtube.  I personally find him hilarious, but my favorite part about his work is just how pretty it is, especially his newer stuff.  That is the best word I can think to describe his videos are just pretty.
    Now that I have told you what I feel like I have passion for, tell me what your passion(s) is/are.  Have you found it, are you doing it, are you still looking for one?   In addition to politics, I love to talk about what people like to do most.  I enjoy finding passionate people, they give me hope and make the world a little brighter.

    Here is an example of Olan Rogers more artsy stuff, but I enjoy this video:

Forming My Own Opinion

OK..so the blogs are supposed to be due today.  I need several more posts to complete the required 20, one is the conclusion, and I am writing one now, so that takes off two more!  I know everyone has excuses, I know it is not good to list excuses because nobody wants to hear them, but I have been writing.  It is just that my internet at my house is already bad, and almost impossible when my dad is using it for his business.  It is like living in the 1990s...well it's a step above dial-up, but it is still pretty bad.  I have been writing, I am an avid journal keeper, and I have my Cambridge lined pocket notebook with me at all times.  I have them with me in class today, I'll show you if you really want to see them.

Hooray for mimes about thinking?

Anyway, going on to a real topic, today in class (and other days) we have mentioned how teachers like to get new freshmen students thinking for themselves and seeing what they believe to be true.  I'd like to talk about how I have formed my opinions over my four college semesters.  Credit-wise I am a sophomore now, so I should not only have an opinion on everything but the correct one right?

This post specifically I would like to focus on politics.  That is usually a dangerous subject to have a strong opinion on, but I immensely enjoy talking politics with people.  In the past, my opinion has been, "Well I don't know enough to say this for sure, but I think..." or even worse, "Well my parents think this so I do too."  Now I have found my own opinion on government and feel like I can back it up around...most people.

My first opinion is that I hate political parties.  I see the benefits they provide, but I think having political parties---especially only two major ones like the US has---is just a way for people to lazily get involved in politics with out really forming their own opinion, creates partisan politics which gets nothing done, and in some cases (as we see with the tea party) allows a minority to hold the entire country at risk.  Republicans bug the heck out of me.  Democrats annoy me even more to the point where I might use profanity if I keep talking about them.  There is a party that has very similar views to mine, but I don't want to associate with them because I dislike parties (political parties mind you).  That party is the Libertarian party.  I would call myself a Libertarian if it wasn't for the whole not wanting parties thing.

Second opinion is I really just don't like government.  There are four ways you can spend money:  spend your own money on yourself, spend your own money on someone else, spend someone else's money on yourself, or spend someone else's money on someone else.  They are listed in order of the most efficient way to spend to the least efficient.  Take the example of you go to a store to buy a gift.  If you go there to spend your money on you, you know what you want, and how much you are willing to pay for what you want.  Since it is your money you had to have worked for it, so you know the value of it.  Spending your money on someone else is a little less efficient because you don't know exactly what that other person's wants/needs are, but you still use your money carefully since it is yours.  Skipping to spending others' money on someone else, you don't value that money since you did nothing to earn it, and you don't care so much what the gift is since you are not going to have it for yourself.  In most cases you'll buy the first thing you see...you get the point.  Well government spends all their money...no all our money on other people.  I believe government (particularly the federal government) should be severely cut back in their power.  A market system in all but a few rare exceptions (like some utilities, fire/police service, etc) has always made the best product for the lowest cost.

This is getting pretty lengthy, so I'll conclude by saying I love America.  I am not some crazy anarchist, I do see the values and necessities of government, I just think that it should be kept on a tight leash because government has this nasty habit of overstepping its boundaries.  Talking politics and reading up on it makes me more frustrated, annoyed, and ticked then almost anything else, but it also is incredibly fun and exciting.  It is a very complex love-hate relationship I have with government.  God bless America, amen, dust to dust and all that.

Personal Narrative Final: Taking the Next Big Step

     Senior year of high school is all focused around graduating and asking what one another is going to

 do once the get into the “real world”...that and having a fling with as many girls as you can before it’s

all over.  The term “real world” was used a lot, not only senior year, but all throughout middle/high

school.  During class this term was used often too.  A student will ask, “Teacher?  Why do we have to

take economics? I am not going to be an economist.”
    
   “Because some of these lessons are used in the real world when you have to balance a checkbook, or

invest in the stock market, or open an IRA, etc.”  The teacher will explain...or they might say, “You

really won’t need this in the real world, but it’s part of the curriculum so we have to do it.”
   
     As graduation day drew near I often thought about the real world.  The way people talk about it,

you might think that colors suddenly take on a different hue.  I was expecting critical life decisions to

appear one after another.  After all growing up we have been told that this is the time where some of

our most important decisions are made.  I graduated...a month passed...two months...three. I came to

realize the band Bowling For Soup put it best when they said, “High school never ends”. 
  
     Everything seemed to be pretty much the same.  When I was in high school, my mother always

asked me when I got home, “So what did you do today?”
  
     “I woke up, went to class, went to after-school play rehearsal, practiced my singing and guitar,

skateboarded for a while, came home did a little homework, and played video games.”
   
     In college, my roommates and I would ask each other what classes we had and what we did that day

if we had nothing better to talk about.  “So Luke, How did your day go?” one of my roommate would

ask.
   
     “Well, I woke up, went to class, rehearsed monologues for auditions, practiced my singing and

guitar, skateboarded for a while, came back to my dorm, did a little homework, and played some video

games. You?”
   
     The only noticeable differences were:  I ate a lot more ramen, and drank an unhealthy amount of

Monsters.  The application process for my major was a long one, and I was told that it would be better

if I applied after my mission.  I had a job, but got less hours then I thought I would, and since I only

had one prerequisite for my major that was next to impossible to get into as a freshman, I mostly took

generals that I had little to no interest in.
   
     Everything I wanted to do---my “next step”---were all post-mission things, and there was almost

nothing I could do to prepare for them.  I graduated when I was 17, so I have had this long period of 

waiting until I could take my next step.  I watched my friends either go on their missions, or get nice

fancy jobs out of state, or get married in a few disturbing cases while I sat and waited until I could go

out into this real world and live my life.
   
     After two semesters of tedious classes and loosing my friends to jobs, missions, and marriage, I

moved back home.  Motivated by my parents and my delusion that this was the thing standing in the

way of me getting on with my life, I applied for my mission.  Through the process of applying, I had

many talks with my bishop, went to my ward’s Youth Conference, and studied the gospel.  As I put

more of my focus on the gospel and my mission, I realized that I was making progress in my life. 

With the help of my bishop and my ward’s youth, I began to see that my mission was not the thing I

had to get done to make my next step in life, but it was my next step.  I swiftly repented for my bad

mindset, and went to work reading the Book of Mormon, other scriptures, actually putting thought into

my prayers, and making other preparations for my mission.
   
     Wednesday came, and brought a manila envelope addressed to Elder Luke Ryan Crossman with it. 

Unfortunately Elder Crossman was in class when it came.  When we took our mid-class break, I swept

into the hallway plunged my hand into my pocket only to find nothing but pocket lint. Tension rising, I
went into the library to use their phone.
   
    “Hello mom? Did it come?”
  
    “Are you Elder Luke Ryan Crossman?”
  
    “Awesome! Is it thick or thin?”
   
    “How do you tell the difference? I have been trying to find how to find out the difference between

the local and foreign calls on google, but I think once someone opens their call they don’t care enough

to post it.”
   
    I returned home as quickly as I could so I could hold and caress my call until that evening when

some people were going to come to be with me when I open it.  That evening came, and I was finally

able to open my call.  When I opened it, I covered where I was going with my finger, so I wouldn’t see

it until I got to that part of the letter.  I did however see the top of the first letter; I thought it was an E. 

My first thought was Eugene Oregon, and dread filled my soul.  Several people did comment later that

I looked crestfallen as I read the letter.  I would have gone, and I am sure I would learn to love the

people of Eugene...but I was thrilled when I removed my finger and saw that I was actually called to

the France Lyon mission.
   
    “We get to go to France to pick him up!” my mother yelled with excitement once I read it. 
   
    I learned the impotance of missionary work, and what an honor it is to go and do nothing but serve

the Lord for two full years.  I know that this is my next step in life, and that everything else I want to

happen will just have to wait until I have done this, and I am happy with that.

Personal Narrative: Taking the Next Big Step

This was a very difficult paper for me to write, I had the hardest time thinking of a story from my life. So far it seems to have been pretty uneventful.  I mean come on, I have been out of High School for a year now, I should at least have had one or two statues made of me.  One of my goals is to live a life worth remembering.  There is a lot I want to do in this life, and I got a little ahead of myself, here is an excerpt from my life right after I graduated to about two or three months ago.  Please leave comments of what you liked, and what I can work on.

I have noticed that people never like to say they are good at something.  Maybe they fear that they will
sound arrogant or prideful, but I believe you can acknowledge your strengths and still be humble.   Humility actually is knowing where you are strong and where you are lacking, as well as knowing that you always have more to learn.  I am good at accepting people, and seeing the best of everyone.  I am told I get that from my grandmother.  However, while I may be able to accept others weaknesses and praise their strengths, I have a difficult time doing this with myself.  I am my toughest critic.  I do know that I have talent in some things, but I put the bar very high on myself.  Usually too high to reach, and when I don’t quite get there, I become very frustrated.  Most of my post-high school life has been me getting angry at the lack of progression in my life.  I came to realize that all this frustration was coming from lack of direction.  I had no goal---no purpose, or so I thought.
   Senior year of high school is almost all focused around graduating and asking what one another is going to do once the get into the “real world”...that and having a fling with as many girls as you can before it’s all over.  The term “real world” was used a lot, not only senior year, but all throughout middle/high school.  During class this term was used often too.  A student will ask, “Teacher?  Why do we have to take economics? I am not going to be an economist.”
    The teacher will say something to the effect of, “Because some of these lessons are used in the real world when you have to balance a checkbook, or invest in the stock market, or open an IRA, etc.”  On the other hand sometimes they’ll say, “You really won’t need this in the real world, but it’s part of the curriculum so we have to do it.”
    As my graduation day drew near I often thought about the real world.  The way people talk about it, you might think that colors suddenly take on a different hue.  I was expecting critical life decisions to appear one after another.  After all growing up we have been told that this is the time where some of our most important decisions are made.  I graduated...a month passed...two months...three. I came to realize the band Bowling For Soup put it best when they said, “High school never ends”. 
    Everything seemed to be pretty much the same.  During high school, I woke up, went to class, went to after-school play rehearsal, practiced my singing and guitar, skateboarded for a while, came home did a little homework, played video games, and went to sleep.  Once I got into this real world I woke up, went to class, rehearsed monologues for auditions, practiced my singing and guitar, skateboarded for a while, came back to my dorm, did a little homework, played some video games, and went to sleep.  The only noticeable differences were:  I ate a lot more ramen, and drank more energy drinks.  The application process for my major was a long one, and I was told that it would be better if I applied after my mission.  I had a job, but got less hours then I thought I would, and since I only had one prerequisite for my major that was next to impossible to get into as a freshman, I mostly took generals that I had little to no interest in.
    Everything I wanted to do---my “next step”---were all post-mission things, and there was almost nothing I could do to prepare for them.  I graduated when I was 17, so I have had this long period of waiting until I could take my next step.  I watched my friends either go on their missions, or get nice fancy jobs out of state, or get married in a few disturbing cases while I sat and waited until I could go out into this real world and live my life.
    After two semesters of tedious classes and loosing my friends to jobs, missions, and marriage, I moved back home.  Motivated by my parents and my delusion that this was the thing standing in the way of me getting on with my life, I applied for my mission.  Through the process of applying, I had many talks with my bishop, went to my ward’s Youth Conference, and studied the gospel.  As I put more of my focus on the gospel and my mission, I realized that I was making progress in my life.  With the help of my bishop and my ward’s youth, I began to see that my mission was not the thing I had to get done to make my next step in life, but it was my next step.  I swiftly repented for my bad mindset, and went to work reading the Book of Mormon, other scriptures, actually putting thought into my prayers, and making other preparations for my mission.
    I was so excited when I received my call.  When I opened it, I covered where I was going with my finger, so I wouldn’t see it until I got to that part of the letter.  I did however see the top of the first letter; I thought it was an E.  My first thought was Eugene Oregon, and dread filled my soul.  I would have gone, and I am sure I would learn to love the people of Eugene...but I was thrilled to find out that it wasn’t Eugene, but France Lyon. 
    I learned the importance of missionary work, and what an honor it is to go and do nothing but serve the Lord for two full years.  I know that this is my next step in life, and that everything else I want to happen will just have to wait until I have done this, and I am happy with that.