Friday Thoughts: Catharsis

If you get the connection between
this guy and the post, you have a
good chance at figuring out
my real identity.

Screaming into a pillow isn't going to change your circumstances.  But some days, it sure helps you feel better.

Friday Thoughts: The Importance of Intimacy

Some days, there is nothing more rewarding than laying next to someone you care about deeply and enjoying the physical connection as symbolic of the deeper emotional one.

Friday Thoughts: Writers and Gods

Writers often create characters who later turn out to be very different than what the writer intended.  In those cases, a writer may find himself faced with a character whose developed nature refuses to do what the writer's plan for the story requires.  At that moment, the writer is faced with the choice to either revise his story plans or force the character to act in ways that ruins the character's integrity, twisting him into something ghastly.

In this way, a writer can come to understand one of the greatest frustrations of the gods, who deal with very much the same problem with the real people they've created.

Friday Thoughts: Self-knowledge

In order to attract others, it is best to present your best to them.  In order to present your best to them, you have to first know yourself.

Friday Thoughts: Intimacy and Vulnerability

In order for there to be true intimacy, there must be true vulnerability.  That's why intimacy is both one of the most powerful experiences and one of the most frightening prospects.

Friday Thoughts: Confidence and Mistakes

Normally, Friday Thoughts are something that's been on my mind and expressed in my own words.  This week, however, I've decided to "outsource" Friday thoughts, as this picture and caption are too perfect not to share.

For those who can't see the picture or read the caption:

Confidence comes not from always being right, but from not fearing to be wrong.

Friday Thoughts: Self Esteem

If there's one thing I've learned, it's that other people's opinion of me matter less the more I love myself.

Friday Thoughts: Integrity and Gossip

One of the advantages of living a life of integrity is that when someone tells you about the rumor they heard concerning you, you can simply respond by throwing back your head and laughing.  Those who overheard are most likely to join in with you, too.

Friday Thoughts: Being yourself

Some simple and fantastic advice is "Just be yourself."  I believe being yourself is the best thing you can do for both yourself and the other people in your life.

Unfortunately, being yourself is not easy advice to follow.  It often means first figuring out who you are after growing up in a culture that frequently teaches and pressures you to be who other people expect you to be instead.

Friday Thoughts: Life

Don't spend so much time trying to figure out the meaning of life or what its purpose is that you forget to enjoy or actually live it.

Friday Thoughts: Impermanence

Nothing lasts forever.  Therefore, cherish the good at all times and let go of the bad as soon as you are able.

Friday Thoughts: Choosing Action

There are things that I can change and there are things I can't change.  I can either choose to whine about the former or choose to get busy doing something about the latter.  Guess which one will get me someplace?