It Gets Better

In April (the 13th to be specific), I posted a blog called "September's Children" (you can link to it here: http://saraicrazyblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/septembers-children.html?zx=7d1cbeb70cf8bf40) about young adults and children who killed themselves because of being tormented by their peers for being homosexual/bisexual/transgendered/etc. I also posted a song by a group called Rise Against called "Make it Stop (September's Children)". At the time there was no official video for the song, but I wanted to post it anyway because of the powerful message of the song itself.

Today I was on Facebook (a terrible addiction, by the way) and saw that Fergie (I "like" her on Facebook) had posted a link to the video, because Rise Against is her label-mate. Obviously I had to go and watch it. Unfortunately my computer is slow as hell some days (especially in the afternoon because it is a community connection through our apartment complex), so I settled for downloading it and then watching. And I was blown away.

The song is powerful all on its own. The lyrics pack a proverbial punch without any added imagery, really. For example, the line: "What God would damn a heart? What God drove us apart?" For me, the impact of these statements are staggering. Growing up in church, I was taught that Homosexuality was wrong. As a young woman, I finally admitted to my own tendencies toward Bisexuality. My attraction to women has been around for quite some time, if I admit it to myself. I have always been curious and I've always known in a way. I just never admitted it to myself. Or anyone else for that matter.

Then I saw the video and what I thought couldn't be a more powerful message astounded me by being even more powerful when packed with visual imagery, rather than mental imagery.

I started thinking about all the injustices committed against those who choose to love someone. It's like Love is a dirty word. Love isn't about "Love", it is about what looks good. Its about what makes other people happy. Its about not offending someone. It offends someone's grandmother that a beautiful boy is kissing another beautiful boy, rather than a beautiful girl. It offends some "pastor" that a young black (Asian, Arab, Indian, etc.) man wants to marry a young white girl. It gets under someone's skin that a young woman loves an older man. All the terrible names, all the murders, the suicides, all the hate, because two people can't possibly love each other. What a sin! Heaven forbid that we LOVE one another. Heaven forbid that we actually follow what the Bible says.

That is something I hate more than anything, too. Christians (and Muslims, Hindus and any other religious group) are good at picking what they agree with in the Bible (or whatever religious tome) and ignoring everything else. People like Pat Robertson (I bitch about him a lot, I know, but he gets under my skin SO MUCH) claim the verse "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination." (King James Version; Leviticus chapter 18, verse 22). They also follow that verse with this one (also found in Leviticus 18, verse 29) "For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people." There are also many verses in Deuteronomy that suggest stonings and the such for people who don't follow the laws of the Lord.

Now here is where things get a little sticky. Jesus said, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:34-35)

He also said, "And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (Matthew 22:39)

Jesus and God are the same person. Ask almost any Christian and you will be told that God is God, Jesus is God and the Holy Spirit is God. God the father, God the son and God the Holy Ghost. So, if Jesus is God and He said to "Love thy Neighbour", we should be following that right? Something my mother used to always say to me was "Love the sinner, hate the sin." Which I think sums up what Jesus was trying to say. Except one problem, God said that those who disobey Him are to be punished with death, exile, etc. So which do we follow? Well obviously we SAY that we should love our neighbours. Of course, if they are gay, black, Muslim, et cetera, then forget that.

Another thing, and this isn't a religious based question, isn't America supposed to be the land of the free? ("One Nation Under God, I feel its love like a cattle prod" That is another line from the song that comes to mind.)Isn't America supposed to be Equal? All Human Beings were made equal in the Eyes of God. Isn't that what America stands for? We are Equal, we are United. Unless, of course, you are African-American, Muslim, Homosexual, Asian, Catholic, Jewish, Women or we just don't like your face. In which case, we are NOT equal or united. United we could stand, Divided we will fall.

I spit in my brother's face because he is different and he spits in mine, is that equality? Is that what men like Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. died for? Is that what the men and women serving in Iraq have died for? Are we only free when we are white and boring? Seriously? Who wants to be a clone? Who wants everyone to be the same? Our differences are what makes us US! Who are we if not ourselves?

I am proud to be a Young, Deist, Bisexual, Varied Woman! I am proud to be who I am, in spite of what everyone says I should be. I am proud to Love whoever I choose to love, in spite of who everyone says I should. I am proud to say and do whatever I want to, not what I am told I should and should not say and do.

In that spirit, I now present the official video for "Make it Stop (September's Children)" by Rise Against. Thanks for reading my rant (or at least for watching the video, since I know that was a wall of text).

This is for the Insane Birds

Here are ten ways to know that you are insane:

1. You use your boyfriend's penis as a microphone, while singing to a really weepy break up song.

2. You suggest taking lung into your air, rather than air into your lungs.

3. You laugh like an idiot for a few minutes before realizing that you don't even remember why you were laughing.

4. You get so trashed that you don't even care when you fall down and your "friends" roll you down the parking lot.

5. You pick out random Robert Frost poetic references during a song that is played incessantly at work.

6. You get excited when a video game character references a Harrison Ford movie.

7. You actually contemplate making up a Facebook page for a video game character so you can be friends.

8. Your boyfriend catches you rocking out to "The Safety Dance"... in your underwear.

9. You get so upset when your skinned hound dies in "Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" that you not only cry, but you refuse to play the game for a week or so.

10. For some absurd reason you actually believe in Mermaids and Unicorns and/or you have celebrated Zombie Appreciation Month.

Well, I think there was no doubt before this post, but I'm pretty sure I'm insane. Partially because I come up with lists that prove that I'm insane. Also, its fun to rock out to "The Safety Dance" in your underwear, until you get caught. Then its just awkward. O.O

And suddenly, I don't know why, but I have the line "This shit is bananas, B A NA NA S!" by Gwen Stefani...

Past Living

The idea of Reincarnation and Past lives is not knew in this world of crazy ideas. And, to be fair, out of all the crazy ideas it certainly isn't the craziest. Several high-profile religions follow the belief that we are reincarnated after death, including Hinduism and Buddhism. Even some Christians believe in Reincarnation, though the Bible clearly states: "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" (Hebrews 9:27)

I like the idea of reincarnation because in some small way it is a piece of me living on. I like that idea, like anyone else I'm sure. We all want to live forever in some shape or form. So why not as another person or an animal? Or even as plants? I would love to be a weeping willow tree, I think. Or a red maple. They are both very beautiful trees. Or maybe a rose? I would want to be a white rose.

Going back to past lives though, many people believe that they were someone else in a past life. However, according to an article I read on MSNBC's website this is due to memory errors which creates "false memories". This is also attributed to a sense of deja vu, or the feeling of having been somewhere before. Also, it pointed out that most people only claim to have been famous people once. Past lives are never boring.

To be fair, who wants to say "I was a child who died of *insert any disease here* during the 1800's" (which was very common) or "I was a housewife who had three children and lived to the ripe old age of 82 before passing away in my sleep" or "I was a total nobody who never did anything exciting and died a boring/normal death" or even "I was a greyhound bus who couldn't go below 50mph (miles per hour) or I would blow up, along with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock". Oh wait, that last one might be too exciting for a past life.

It is much more exciting to say "I was Sarah Winchester and I was so haunted by spirits that I built an ever changing house to escape and confuse them" or "I was Catherine de Medici and I was madly in love with my husband who never actually loved me back" or "I was Anne Boleyn and I didn't sleep with my brother, but lost my damn head anyway" or "I was the Eiffel Tower".

Personally, I can understand why people would want to be somebody famous in a past life. Everyone wants some kind of adventure. Why not say they were adventurous in a past life? Personally, I think it would have been nice to just be a young Jewish girl who got married to someone I truly loved and then had a few children who grew up and had children of their own. Doesn't that sound ideal to anyone else? No? Just me? Okay, well then, moving on.

Seriously though, I have thought about this quite a bit. I firmly believe in the supernatural so I guess it comes naturally (ha, pun) to believe in reincarnation or ghosts or that life goes on after we are gone. I mean, we all want to believe in something right? That is why we have heroes and gods/goddesses. So we have something we can turn to when times are rough. Reincarnation/Past Lives are kind of the same thing I guess.

If you were to have lived a past life who/what would you want to be? Would you want to be someone famous and exciting? As for me, I think I will stick to being a Weeping Willow or the Eiffel Tower.

A Safety Dance

Today has been my day for being nostalgic. Of course I'm nostalgic for times in which I wasn't even alive. Or maybe I was... *shrug* See that is for a completely other blog, which I will probably post next. Anyway, so today I felt like cheering up my mom, which is always fun, so I played this song.

For those of you who don't know, this song is called "The Safety Dance" and it is by Men Without Hats. A strange name for an awesome band that really only had one great hit in the states. However, it remains one of my favorites of crazy 80's videos that really don't make any kind of sense (i.e. "Turning Japanese" by The Vapors, "Down Under" by Men at Work, etc...). Enjoy!


To quote one commentor on this video "Cocaine is one hell of a drug."

Don't Bother

Thanks to a certain Phil, I have been on an interesting music kick, one I've never been on before. Because of this it was very difficult to pick just one video to post. The reason I picked the one I ended up picking was because I think she looks like a goddess while playing the guitar, plus this video gives a full range of her unique voice.

Of course I'm speaking of Shakira! And the video I am presenting to you today is "Don't Bother" one of my favorite songs by her. Did I mention she looks like a goddess while she plays the guitar in this video?



I am sure that in the near future I will post some more by this fabulous woman, but for now, please enjoy!