I Turn My Camera On

Photography. Pictures are taken with a camera and then processed, either manually or digitally. The value of a picture has become so much more than words these days. As Susan Sontag says in her book On Photography, "Photographed images [are] miniatures of reality that anyone can make or acquire." The newspaper USA Today is famous not for its written reports, but for its extensive amount of images. Also, though Facebook is used to keep in touch, it is the fact that individuals can easily post pictures of themselves and others that makes the website so popular.

When I went to the low-range Himalayas recently for a week, and I couldn't dare not bring my camera with me. A week in a remote place in India with snow-covered mountains in the background; how could I resist? Over the course of seven days, I took an estimated 515 photos with my camera. Any way you look at it, that's a lot of images, and a lot of time spent to take those images. I took the pictures because I wanted to, to see them in the future and remind myself of the time, to show those I love what its like there, and also, deep down, to prove that I had been there myself. Looking back at my pictures, I realized that a six dozen or so were taken of the Himalayan sunrise that I was fortunate to witness. When talking to a friend of mine, she ridiculed me, saying that I took too many pictures to stop and see the sunrise for myself. Though I had taken a lot of pictures, I made sure that I stopped to look at the sun hitting the peaks of the mountains and take it into my mind. Yet it made me think how, at times, I can be so focused with taking pictures that I am unaware of the beauty going on around me.

As cameras get cheaper, photography has become much more accessible to a wider range of individuals. Photographs come from all over the world, and seem to make it a smaller place. These same photographs are then distributed, compiled, and redistributed all over the world, making the value of certain images diminish. In fact, so many people now carry a camera around with them to take pictures simply to show that they can, making the entire action itself lose its meaning. Sontag also states in her book that the necessity to have our world confirmed by photography has become an addiction, breeding "image-junkies" from every corner of the globe.

Photo editing after the picture is taken has become an issue of hot debate in the world of photography. To many, using programs such as Photoshop or Picasa to edit your photos, potentially making them look completely different, is the same as a sprinter doping. Their argument is that nobody can tell the true talent of photographer anymore due to the extensive use of editing software. I don't use image editing programs myself, but that is because I am into the more natural look of my images, and I can also do all the photo manipulation I want with my camera. However, I realize that, if photographs are viewed from solely the perspective of art, photo editing is completely reasonable, if not necessary. Yet even I would like to believe that the amazing photographed images I see in modern art museums that I admire have not been touched up in some way.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of a photo, when it is not too altered by editing, is that an image cannot lie to you. The pictures that I take when I go somewhere have no opinion, no biased perspective. They allow people to imagine that they are experiencing the event or place pictured first-hand. Even the photographer doesn't experience the event fully themselves, as they are caught up in taking a picture, and even that is at a distance from the object, but they feel as if they are there. Photographs allow us to connect with our past and explore the present to the fullest extent. We can see what its like halfway across the world simply by looking at a photo. Or we can compare what we looked like in previous years to how we look now.

Taking pictures is one of my greatest hobbies, and my favorite works of art are usually photographs. At one time, I even aspired to be a photojournalist for National Geographic. As the saying goes, a picture truly has come to be worth a thousand words. It's up to the viewer whether those alleged words are a literary masterpiece or complete bullshit. Although I appreciate both the art and documentation aspects of photography, though, I have to realize that photographs are by no means everything. In order to prevent myself from buying into the addiction that Sontag speaks about, I must go and experience things for myself. Seeing and image of a place may well be enjoyable, but it is not venturing out and experiencing that place for oneself. No matter how much one may love photography, as I very well do, humanity must realize that seeing is not necessarily believing, and certainly not experiencing, the true reality this world offers.

Thank you to my love for the Sontag article.

Home (Is Where the Heart Is)

Home. The place where you feel safest, the place that you can always return to. A home by definition is a permanent location. However, where one decides to designate one's home to be is a personal decision. Some may say their home is where they live currently, where their family lives, where their love resides, or they may have multiple homes. Regardless of where one considers their home to be, most individuals have some place that they will call their home, a place to find comfort.

As a child, home to me was both the place I lived, returned to every day after school, and where my family lived. I would be invited over to friends' homes and they would come to my home. There was no doubt as to where I called home. If I didn't feel comfortable or wanted to go somewhere, that place was always back home, where I was sure I would be safe. When I played games when I was young, it was taken for granted that certain areas were called home. In a game of tag, home base was always the place where you were invulnerable to being tagged. In addition to games, proper sports use the concept of home as well. Home base in baseball is the place where you ultimately want to get to, the only way to score runs. The entire point of the game is to get to "home". Sports games played on a team's own turf is called a "home game". And then, in American high school, the first home game of a school's football team is celebrated as "Homecoming".

Now that I'm older and have traveled and lived other places, home has taken on a different meaning. I have family in Germany, and when I visit there, I would consider my grandparents house a home. However, when I am not there, even though I know its a place where I have family and will be safe, I consider it more a place to visit than a home. At times, when in another place or traveling, we humans miss the place we consider home so much that we call ourselves "homesick". I know that, however comfortable I feel at times in a different place, I still have feelings of homesickness, though it does not affect me as much as it does others. One can also be homesick when one doesn't have a place they can call home, as the Kings of Convenience are: "Homesick / cause I know longer know / where home is."

Right now, I am in a situation where I could regard several places as my home. I attend a school in India, where I live and have done so for the majority of the past year and a half. My corner in my room is spacious and has a bed and a desk, and though its obviously less than at my house back in Wisconsin, it is without a doubt mine. After classes I hear myself asking my housemates "Are you going home now?" Having just returned from a week away in the Himalayas, I felt as if I had come back to a familiar, safe, and special place when I arrived back on campus. Yet when I talk about winter break and going to to live in the house I did before I came here, the place where my parents still live, I will say "I'm going home this winter," without giving it a second thought.

And then I have yet another place where I call home, but that place keeps changing. Right now it's in upstate New York, but its constantly moving. This home used to be with me here in India as well, and it was also in Chicago for a while over the summer. Sometimes this home is in places where I've never been myself. When I finally reach this home again the next, it will be when I go to Mexico, and am able to see my love again. Although there are many places I can say that "I feel at home", I ultimately feel that home is where the heart is, just as the group Peter, Paul & Mary sang out back in the sixties. In general, though, home should simply be the place where you feel the safest, the place that you can always rely on to harbor you and provide you with comfort.

The Circle of Life

"Isn't this where..."

The Cosmogonic Cycle. The brainchild of American mythologist Joseph Campbell, analyzed in depth in his book The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Campbell creates the cycle to chronicle the journey that every mythological hero takes. Since I was introduced to the cosmogonic cycle, I have analyzed ever piece of proper literature in relation to it, and have been astounded to discover that almost all heroes, as well as anti-heroes (to a certain extent), follow the cycle. Huckleberry Finn, Odysseus, and Harry Potter are all heroes that I have analyzed and fit into the cycle of the archetypal hero. The cycle not only relates to literary heroes, but also ourselves.

Here is a quick overview of the cycle:

World of Light, Life, Consciousness (The world as we know it)

1. Start- The hero starts in the world of light and wants change. Often this is manifested in a desire to leave home.

2. Herald- A herald comes and issues a call to adventure which the hero must accept.

3. Guide- An individual, who has undergone a journey of their own before, and must have credentials that impress the hero, accompanies the hero upon their way.

4. First Threshold Battle- The hero, accompanied by the guide, encounters his father figure in the form of a monster. The monster is a keeper of the status quo and strives to keep the hero from maturing.

If the hero succeeds, he dies to the world of light and is reborn into the:

World of Dark, Death, and Unconsciousness (The underworld)

5. Adventures and temptations- Multiple obstacles try to distract the hero from continuing on his journey, but the hero must ignore them in order to continue on and succeed.

6. Goddess- A character of the opposite gender to the hero is revealed as the hero's anima, or the feminine side of man. (A female hero encounters her animus, or the masculine side of woman). The hero is completed by coming in touch with their opposite side (like a yin-yang).

7. Separation of hero and guide- So the hero can mature by themselves, separation from the guide is pertinent.

8. Apotheosis- The hero makes a sacrifice, and is in turn elevated to god-like status.

9. Atonemenet- Literally meaning "at one with". The hero and his father figure become equals.

10. Final Threshold Battle- The hero again encounters his father figure face to face and defeats him to enter back into the world of light.

World of Light, etc.

11. Treasure- A non-material treasure is bestowed onto the world by the hero.

12. Guide for others- Having completed his own cycle, the hero becomes a guide for others on their journeys.

George Lucas had the idea of Star Wars in mind for a while before he knew how to write the story. When he encountered Campbell's book, he had the format in his hands and drew up the story accordingly. Luke Skywalker, the hero, accompanied by his guide Obi-Wan Kenobi, eventually defeats his literal father Darth Vader (which in Dutch translates literally to "Dark Father". The English teacher who introduced me to Joseph Campbell also made the bold statement, which I agree with, that a book is only literature if it relates to the human condition. He also said that any movie that concerned the role and existence of man on earth was a piece of literature in itself.

Ultimately, my teacher told me that the cosmogonic cycle applies not only to myths and literature, but also to our own lives. Because myths are about the adventures of humans, and we are human, the cosmogonic cycle can be used to trace our own journey. It took me a while to realize this, but when I did, it gave a whole new meaning to literature, life, and myself. Each of us is a hero by ourselves, and we undergo our own journeys as we go through life. The wonderful thing about the cosmogonic cycle is that, while you are in one world, the events don't have to happen in any particular order. For example, I may have already met my goddess and I am just beginning to be subject to trials and tribulations through the IB.

Some have criticized the cosmogonic cycle, claiming that it "systemizes" literature. However, it simply shows the correlations that literature has to the human condition. It makes us realize why we read stories and myths, and that is to discover something about the philosophical nature of ourselves and our existence. All literary novels, movies, and albums are different or unique in some way, but they are all similar in that they tell the story of a hero and his journey for completion on this earth. Throughout life, we all strive for completion, and the cosmogonic cycle has just helped to show the stages we may go through.

Though I am much unlike him, I analyzed the anti-hero Pink from Pink Floyd's The Wall using the cosmogonic cycle. As an anti-hero, Pink separates himself from society by building a wall and entering into the underworld. However, in "The Trial", the wall is broken down and he is fortunate enough to enter back into the world of light. Though an anti-hero, his story still follows the cosmognic cycle, as he eventually overcomes his controlling mother by the end of the concept album. I am not certain whether or not Roger Waters read Campbell's novels or knew about the archetypal hero, but the band made clear that the album was cyclical in nature. At the end of the album, amongst the horns, you hear the words "Isn't this where..." (the title of this post) being uttered. On old LPs, the record would turn over and go directly to the first track again, which starts with the same music that the album "ended" with. Right at the beginning, you hear the words that complete the question and make the album cyclical:

"...where we came in?"

Declaration of Dependence

Dependence. The word itself means to rely on something or someone else, to put confidence in an item other than oneself to provide support. In modern times, the concept has acquired a negative connotation, becoming associated with weakness and an inability to manage oneself. Some go to the extent to say that those who are dependent on another person in any way cannot have their own identity. Independence has become the only route deemed acceptable for an individual to take, and once people reach that point, they often don't go back. In the music industry, it has been much more common for one or more stand-out members of a group to "go solo" than for bands to reunite.

Last month, one of my favorite bands, the Kings of Convenience, released an album titled Declaration of Dependence. After five years, the artists, Eirik Boe and Erlend Oye, returned from performing with their respective side projects and by themselves to record, in my mind, one of the greatest albums of the year. The sound that they create on this album, as is the case with all their albums, is one they can make only together. Seldom before have I heard two musicians harmonize so beautifully. Commenting on the title of the album, Oye said "We want to give the idea of dependence a better name. Independence has been the thing for hundreds of years, but being dependent on someone is good." During the gap between the albums, the two remained friends, and Boe even played as a guest at some of the shows of The Whitest Boy Alive, Oye's successful side project. But, in order to make such beautiful music, they had to overcome their differences and realize that they need each other.

There has been an ongoing debate as to whether it is a necessity of human beings to interact with others of their own kind, or whether the individual being is more important. The father of existentialism, Sartre, states clearly his view that all things important arise from the individual. I am currently rehearsing to play the role of Joseph Garcin, a man trapped in hell with two other people, in Sartre's play Huis Clos (translated into English as No Exit). Throughout the play, Garcin strives to be alone with his own thoughts, yet cannot escape interaction with the other two. Finally, at the end of the play, he famously spouts "Hell is -- other people!" Sartre's country-mate, Michel Foucault, wrote extensively from the other point of view. He believed that it is through society and its structures that mankind functions and advances. This is not to say that individual thought is not important and does not contribute to the progress of the human race, just that those thoughts must be introduced into the society and applied on a larger scale.

It seems obvious to me that human interaction is a basic necessity of each man. Without other beings, man is lead to loneliness and ultimately insanity. I need to interact with other people in order for my day to be complete. There are times, however, where each individual needs their own space, needs time for themselves, with themselves, without other beings. But this must be balanced with time spent with other beings. Being independent and an individual are both extremely important for every person. One needs to come to terms with oneself, respect oneself, and that things should be performed for personal satisfaction rather than trumping the opposition. What I am ultimately attempting to say is that dependency and independency go hand-in-hand. Both are important, but both in moderation. At the core, Sartre is right: each person is their own being. Without society that being would, however, not be able to function.

In my personal life, the single issue prominent issue that my love has brought up is that she needs her own space. I understand we are both very capable of being, and are, independent. It is because we are capable of being on our own that we can therefore be dependent on each other. I put my trust and confidence in her, and she puts her trust and confidence in me as well. Through the great amount of love we express, we are dependent on each other. This would not be possible if I was not one with myself. Nowadays, the music industry seems to be catching on by forming supergroups. If RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and Ol' Dirty Bastard didn't have successful careers of their own prior to joining forces, the Wu-Tang Clan would never have been as popular or influential as they were when they released their debut album.

Dependence and Independence. Both are positive values that work in harmony, much like the voices of the Kings of Convenience. I hereby independently declare dependence on my love.

Time Is Running Out

Doomsday. The one day that all of mankind anticipates and fears. The day that the earth we live on is destined to be destroyed, eliminating the human race in the process. Whether it occurs as a result of the coming of the Messiah and an ensuing battle with the devil, a nuclear holocaust, alignment with a black hole, collision with another planet, global warming, or a combination of natural disasters with a massive battle of deities (Ragnarok), there seems to be a common belief that the human earth has a definite ending date. Multiple predictions of the year, and in certain instances the specific date, marking the end of the world have recently come about. As these predictions set the date at some time in the distant future, with many of them in the current century, some even within the next ten years, humans have become more conscious of the possible end of their existence. In turn, the lifestyle of humans has changed, ranging from panicked to free-spirited.

The concept of the end of the world was first brought to my attention when I heard about the alleged end of the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar. The Long Count Calendar is most closely associated with the Maya Civilization, which met its own demise circa 900 at the hands of Spanish conquistadores. From what I was told, according to the calendar, the date marking the end of man is December 21, 2012. However, after a bit of research, I realize that this assertion was made by anthropologists early in the 1990s and largely a result of the human inclination to create hype. Later research has shown that this date simply marks the end of the 13th baktun cycle (a period of 144,000 days, or 394.25 years) since the start of the Mayan Calendar. It is accepted by all anthropologists that the end of the 13th baktun would mark a great point in time for the Mayans. However, early researchers claimed this meant an astrological event, while more recently it has been said the date is simply a cause for celebration. In fact, there are no known prophetic claims to have been made by the classic Maya civilization concerning the date.

Al Gore, self-proclaimed expert on global warming, has a doomsday countdown clock that estimates the world will end sometime in early 2016. This is conditional, however, on whether or not humans take action on minimizing the global warming that the earth is experiencing. His prediction can said to be based on science, but the belief that the world will end so soon, even if the rate of global warming continues or slightly rises, seems to be held solely by him. However, this is not to say that the warming of the earth does not have a great effect on the life of its human and animal inhabitants as well as the planet itself.

Finally, it has been recently discovered that the great scientist Isaac Newton - known of course for discovering gravity and the laws of motion - wrote down in his notes his own date for the end of mankind: 2060. Newton was, in addition to a scientist, a Christian theologian, however one that did not accept trinitarianism, being the belief that Jesus Christ is also God. His research, as well as his aversion to the papacy, all contributed to his conclusion that the human earth would come to an end point at this time. However, in his description of the event, he also mentioned the replacement of the current world with a new one through God's grace.

As I was talking to a classmate of mine a few days ago as we walked through heavy rain and wind because of the cyclone, he said to me: "If the predictions for the end of the world are correct, I'm going to go into the hills and live somewhere alone with the years I have left." This came as a bit of a shock to me, and I then started to think myself what I would do if I only had a decade or so left to live. Don't get me wrong, a lot can happen in a short amount of time, but I have so many things I want to do, yet so many things that are already so important to me. But then I came to my senses, and realized that I was just buying into the the hype. The idea of a doomsday coming so soon in the future is used to strike up fear in the minds of humans. Maybe Al Gore is right, and that is necessary in order to help curb global warming, however to consider making a drastic change in personal lifestyle seems incredulous to me. Scientists and theologians can speculate, but will never properly come up with a date for the end of the world, even if there name is Isaac Newton.

The human race has become so obsessed that we have created a "Doomsday Clock" that constantly fluctuates, telling us how close we are to destroying ourselves, with midnight symbolizing a global catastrophe. Originally set at the time 11:53 - 7 minutes to midnight - in 1947, the clock was invented during the Cold War pertaining to the possible event of a grand-scale nuclear war. Currently the clock is set at 5 minutes to midnight, the closest it has been since 1987. But what does it mean anyways, when minutes are added and subtracted from the clock after each event concerning nuclear power. Its all speculation, but it works wonderfully as a propaganda tool.

Someday, according to science, the world will end. If nothing else causes its destruction beforehand, the earth will eventually either crash into another planet or fall victim to a black hole. There is no reason to believe this will be anytime soon though, certainly not in my lifetime. I'm still going to continue working, being in love, and enjoying life. Anyways, my life could end anytime, and not as a result of the destruction of our earth. The prospect of the entire race being destroyed at one time makes you think though: If you knew how much time the human race had left, what would you do with the rest of your life? I know personally who I would want to spend my time with, and I'm sure all would agree with me when I say family, friends, and my love.

As much as I enjoy listening to Muse's apocalyptic masterpiece "Time Is Running Out", I refuse to believe it's true. There's no reason to hype. The end of the world won't come any time soon in my mind. It's not worth it to buy into the system and worry, though that's what human nature leads us to do at time. Never does it hurt to think about the possibility, but just enjoy what time you have always, even if the world does end tomorrow.

Rain Down, Sun Up (The Raindrops, The Raindrops, The Raindrops...)

Weather. The force that inhabits our atmosphere, changes our skies, and controls our disposition. Sunlight brightens up our day, rain makes crops grow, and snow blankets the land in white beauty. On the other hand, the sun burns us and ignites fires, rain causes flooding and landslides, and snow disrupts our travels and isolates us from the outside world. It effects us so much that part of virtually every news broadcast and newspaper is dedicated to telling us what to expect see when we look out the window or feel when we step outside. Regardless of whether their predictions are correct, we still rely heavily on meteorologists, as if they were psychics and the world was their glass ball. Precipitation falls from the clouds in various forms and in various quantities, creating different situations in different areas at different times.

Weather affects people directly and psychologically. Cultures have given different meanings to meteorological occurrences and phenomena since the dawn of man. In Greek mythology, Zeus is the god of the sky who throws lightning bolts down to earth. Poseidon, his brother, controls all the oceans, seas, and waters of the world. The greatest god in Egyptian mythology is Amun-Ra, who is otherwise known as the sun god. The sun allows us to live, the rain is a symbol of rebirth and replenishment, while the snow is related to deathly cold. Personally, I enjoy experiencing different types of weather, as I have all my life. I know, though, that if I am stuck in an environment without sun for a long period of time, it greatly effects how I feel and act. Studies have shown that humans have a biological and mental necessity for sunlight. Too much exposure to rainy and snowy weather can bring about depression, as studies have shown in Wales, Scandinavia, and other regions with similar climates.

Two days ago I experienced the first tropical storm of my life. As Cyclone Phyan moved northwards just off the west coast of India, its effects reached my school campus, located 40 kilometers west of Pune. The way in which the forces of wind and rain combined was something I had never lived through before. Branches snapped off trees, roads flooded, and a streetlight fell down and shattered. Winds from the storm were measured at up to 95 km/h (60 mp/h) sustained for a period of a whole minute. This meteorological phenomenon was foreign to me. I live in a part of the United States where I hear about cyclones and hurricanes, but never experience them first hand. Therefore, I found myself hyping the size and potential that Phyan had, whereas others around me acted as if it was an event that occurred at least annually. The cyclone ended up passing by Mumbai and dissipating soon after it hit land.

People are largely shaped by the weather of the area they live in. Those that live in India, Japan, and the entire southeastern coast of the United States (from eastern Texas all the way to Virginia) are familiar with cyclones and other such weather systems as a result of their presence on an ocean coast. Due to the fact that they are in the direct path of oceanic storms, individuals in these areas know how to prepare themselves for such occasions. In late August of 2005, the city of New Orleans attempted to ready itself for Hurricane Katrina. However, due to its position below sea level, the city could not withstand the force of the storm. The levees that were built were no match for Katrina, and as they fell, a large part of the city in turn went underwater.

Just as the people who live on ocean coasts must take into consideration the possibility of harsh tropical storms, so too do other people have to make weather-dependent provisions based on the climate of their personal habitats. Just as tropical cyclones only form in certain areas in the oceans and affect certain land areas, tornados occur only in a number of places on earth. The majority of tornados form in the United States, especially in the area called Tornado Alley (including South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas). As a result of the high occurrence of tornados, people in those areas of the United States take certain precautions, such as building sturdier houses or building tornado shelters. I have personally never been in an area affected by a tornado, but the possibility of one occurring has always been there in southeastern Wisconsin, so I have been trained throughout my schooling how to react when a tornado is in the area. "Go to the basement of your dwelling and make sure you aren't in the area of any windows. As a last resort, lie face down in a ditch."

Of course the United States is not the only place where there are tornados, it is simply where most of them take place. (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Globdisttornado.jpg). However, in Europe, there have only been 10 outbreaks of tornados since the year 2000, only 2 of which lasted more than a day. Bangladesh, though it experiences far fewer tornados than other areas of the world, has the highest death rate from the storms, a staggering 179 people per year, due to high population density and poor building construction.

Another meteorological phenomenon that not all individuals experience is snow. I personally cannot imagine a life without snow, but that is perhaps that it has always been the defining part of my winter season. Without it I could not, ski, snowboard, or build snowmen. Christmas would not have the same meaning to me. My significant other has personally never experienced snow, having grown up in Mexico City where it is too warm for snowfall. Attending a school in India, I have realized that she is not alone, and many of my peers have never frolicked in the snow. When I take a look around, I realize that the majority of India could not afford to have what I consider a "proper" winter season. If snow and freezing cold temperatures came to India, a huge part of the population that lives in shacks and bungalows would freeze to death. Due to the fact that most of India experiences only sunshine and rain, people have adjusted their living styles accordingly. They expect the monsoon, counting on it to nourish their crops. They expect the hot sun, and so they have a certain way to dress. They never expect snow, so they live in incomplete houses without walls. That is not to say that all of India is without cold weather. Having just come back from near the Himalayas in the province of Uttaranchal, I can assure you it gets cold in certain places in India.

The concept of snow brings up the issue of the systems we created to adjust to our weather systems. Growing up as a child in Wisconsin, I always had four, separate, picture perfect seasons. In spring, it would rain, and the flowers would being to bud. Summer brought sunshine, and continued into Autumn, when the leaves turned various shades of yellow, orange, red, and brown. Ultimately, the leaves fell from the trees, leaving them bare and protecting the ground from the snowfall that came in winter. Through travel I have learned that this is by no means the case in other countries of the world. Another system is that of meteorology. Technically, meteorology is the scientific study of the atmosphere. It has been created in modern society, however, into a sort of psychic activity. Although meteorologists claim to be able to predict the weather up to a week in the future, often their predictions of the path of current storms is incorrect. According to the meteorologists on the weather station back home, I should have seen at least a dozen tornados by now in my life, yet I have seen none. At times though, meteorology does assist, for example in the planning of trips. My family prepared me for delay coming home from India this past January because the weather report stated there would be hard snow that hit New Jersey, thereby causing delays at the airport. Sure enough, my flight was delayed, and my mother was able to properly rebook my flight.

Global warming is changing the climate of the world as we know it now, thereby changing the land and the people and animals that inhabit it. Storms are becoming more intense and the earth's waters are rising. Deserts will expand and form in new places as the ice of Antarctica melts away. According to Al Gore, if global warming is not put to a stop, this dramatic change in the earth will soon lead to its end. Ironically, the sources of energy that "green" individuals are promoting come from nature itself. Solar, wind, and wave power all come from natural sources, and could be the only keys to improving the environment and preserving the earth. Or maybe global warming is just a natural phenomenon as others claim. All that can be certain is that, now, the earth's climate is changing at an alarming rate and changing how humans must act to survive.

Bringing music yet again into my blog, I must admit that there are no two better songs to listen to while it rains than The Doors' "Riders on the Storm" and Radiohead's "Sit Down, Stand Up (Snakes & Ladders)". I was listening to the latter this monsoon season as a storm gradually moved towards where I was standing. As soon as the song reached the 3:03 mark, the raindrops began to fall from the sky. The feeling I got at this moment was indescribable, and I felt the weather take control of me. Give the song a listen yourself to see what I mean. Music about the weather, even when the weather around me doesn't correspond, can affect me more than any other. Try singing "I'm walking on sunshine" without smiling. Just try.

This coming winter holiday, I will first head home and then travel to Mexico. Going from having snow while at home to probably having none in an area where snow doesn't normally fall at that time of year will be something new for me. How it will affect me I have to wait and see, but I think as long as I get some true winter weeks while I'm in Wisconsin, I'll be happy. Hopefully, as global warming continues to change the climate, I can still experience snowfall in years to come.

Space Spirit (Space Out)

Outer Space. Always visible, day and night. During the daytime through the universe's biggest star, the sun, that outshines all the rest. Without it, life on earth as we know it would be impossible. The Earth is split up into multiple time zones based on when the sun shines its light on each area of the world. At night, when the sun moves to shine its penetrating light on another part of our world, we see the spectacle and beauty of the rest of the universe, the stars, and, if you're lucky, a planet or two. We use outer space for motivation as well, to follow our dreams: "Shoot for the moon; even if you miss, you'll still land among the stars." Although most of us will only ever experience that outer world from the Earth, we are all at some point and to some extent intrigued or amazed by it.

Throughout history, the universe - with all its stars, galaxies, and planets - has been used over and over by civilizations across the globe. Constellations were first created by the Ancient Greeks to help prove their mythology. Still today the most famous constellation in the night sky is of the Greek hero Orion. Though other cultures have given other names to the same formation of stars, Orion has stuck through the generations and is the name still used today. In total, there are 88 official named constellations today, with 48 of them coming from Ptolemy's Almagest. When the Romans adopted the mythology of the Greeks, they renamed the gods: Zeus -> Jupiter, Cronus -> Saturn, Hermes -> Mercury, Aphrodite -> Venus, and Ares -> Mars. The planets of our solar system today have maintained these names since the Romans attributed it to them. The Romans could not see Uranus, Neptune, or Pluto with their naked eyes, but when modern astrologers discovered the planets, they attributed the names of the Roman gods to them as well (Greek equivalents: Uranus, Poseidon, and Hades, respectively). Similar to the Ancient Greeks and Romans, modern humans have created a universe "mythology" of their own. Aliens and UFOs were created from the enigma of outer space, giving possible answers to the question "Are we alone in this great universe?"

Entertainment has also been greatly affected by the world outside of our own. George Lucas took advantage of human curiosity and created one of the most popular and influential movie series of all time in Star Wars. Kids today are still dressing up as Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader for Halloween, Star Wars marathons are common occurrence at high schools and universities, Star Wars video games are still being created daily, and every once in a while you'll hear someone say "What is they bidding, my master?", "You don't know the power of the dark side!", or "Luke, I am your father!". When I listen to Radiohead's "Subterranean Homesick Alien" I feel like one myself. Turn on any given Muse album and I'll want to jump on the next shuttle out of Kennedy Space Center. Jack Johnson even makes me feel like the stars are under my control when he sings "Constellations". Then there's the master of space music, David Bowie, creator of both Major Tom and Ziggy Stardust.

The universe has been greatly manipulated by the increasing amount of technology available to researchers and scientists. Telescopes have allowed humans to analyze the stars and planets of our solar system, and even other galaxies. Many mysteries have been solved, as to the composition and placements of the universal bodies. The Hubble Space Telescope is one of a number of space telescopes that actually orbit the earth and make observations from outer space (the Hubble is simply the largest and most versatile). Through it, galaxies that are light years away can be seen, places that we cannot even fathom their distance from our planet. Science has improved our knowledge of the universe, but has also detracted from the mystery that lies in that outer unknown realm.

Within the past century space travel has become very real. From the trip of Russian Yury Gagarin in 1961 to the US moon landing of 1969 to recent Space Station missions, astronauts have been flying into outer space for nearly 50 years. Recently, however, the whole idea of human life being confined to earth has been put into question. With the International Space Station a work in constant progress, talk of other space stations and possibly future homes on Mars has arisen. The concept of humans living in outer space changes human identity entirely. Man may be able to extend to other planets, live in different conditions, and experience life in a completely different way than he does today.

I view outer space on a much more personal level. Stargazing is one of my greatest hobbies, and I go out even during winter-time just to get a glimpse of outer space. Looking at the stars gives me mixed emotions, making me first feel very small in comparison to the endlessness that lies outside of our planet. Yet at the same time I feel one with other people. With few exceptions, almost all people in life see the night sky at one time or another. In different hemispheres it may not be the same constellations, but it is still the same world outside of ours. Last year I called my love and asked her if she saw Orion in the night sky. Though she was miles away from me, when she said yes, I felt completely with her. We were both looking at the same constellation at the same time. Now time zones away, we don't see the night sky at the same time, but we still see the same stars. I still recall the scene in The Lion King about the stars:

Timon: They're fireflies. Fireflies that, uh, got stuck up on that big, bluish-black thing.

Pumba: I always thought that they were balls of gas burning billions of miles away.

Simba: Well, somebody once told me that the great kings of the past are up there, watching over us.

Pumba is of course right, yet we want to believe Simba's interpretation of the stars above our heads. He is, after all, the hero of the movie.

Personally, I just like to look up at the stars and clear my mind, yet think of everything all at once. Of life, love, everything around me. It is one of the most wonderful feelings I have ever experienced. I was once told that the most you can love someone is the distance from here to the moon, and I believe that without question. One of the most memorable times of my life was this past August, lying with my love on the cold grass, watching the performance of Perseids' Meteor Shower. That was arguably the closest I've been to bliss in my life. But I'll save that for myself and for her. However cliche it is, I can't help but end this post with lyrics from Coldplay's "Yellow". I'm going to go stargaze now. Enjoy.

"Look at the stars. Look how they shine for you. And everything you do. Yeah, they were all yellow..." - Coldplay

In(dia) Rainbows

Music. The so-called "universal language". A never-ending list of genres create a never-ending list of emotions. Words accompanied by complementing sounds have the potential to have a far greater effect than words alone. Bob Dylan without his guitar, harmonica, or nasal twang would have been as effective as a soldier without his rifle.

A few days ago I headed to Mumbai to pick up some of my friends from the airport. On the exhausting five hour ride I was lucky enough to have my reliable travel partner, my iPod. Music is one of my greatest passions. Without it in my life, I have no idea what I would do. It was with the help of music that I met the most wonderful person in my life. I was listening to Radiohead's phenomenal album "In Rainbows", arguably their best in their equally phenomenal career. It wasn't until the sixth track, "Faust Arp", with its intricate manipulation of time, that I thought of something. Between the track changes of the songs I heard the beating of Bollywood music blasting out of the speakers of the bus. Never in India have I heard any Radiohead. Nor for that matter have I heard Coldplay, Green Day, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, or any western music at all.

I thought about this for a while. Music is an extremely powerful force, inspiring emotion and containing the ability to connect people. But what effect music has on other people depends on the type of music as well as the language and lyrics. Though Radiohead's "In Rainbows" and the soundtrack to Om Shanti Om are both music, they are similar only in that respect. The difference in the style and lyrics of the music reflects on the difference in culture and the people who live in those respective areas of the world. But the lyrics of Radiohead are deep and profound, causing a feeling inside of me that I can only get from music. With Bollywood dominating the media and music scene of India, there will be no music like that of the bands I previously mentioned coming from India any time soon. Nor will the music of those bands catch on here in India, simply because it is not fit for this society. The genres of jazz, R&B, and rock have no real place in India. Electric guitars and drumsets aren't easy to find. Considering the amount music effects humans, the identities of the people in India are different from those in the west.

Without music, people wouldn't be able to ask themselves pivotal philosophical questions in life, like "Where is my mind?", "Hello, is there anybody in there?", and most importantly "Are we human, or are we dancers?". The music differences between the western world and India are enormous, and therefore many aspects of society are different as well. However, one thing remains true in all societies I have encountered: music, regardless of the form, is always present. From Radiohead to classical music, Gregorian Chant to African tribal songs, and Bollywood to European Trance, music is present in all societies. Thus, it can be said that humans have either an inherent need or desire to have ways to express themselves through music, its beats, its lyrics, and the dancing that comes along with it. Because of its universal presence, music is one of the most powerful tools in humanity, and in the end does help to connect people and cultures. In my case, to the point of love. So, in the words of the great philosopher Rihanna, "Please don't stop the music!"