Culture and Lifestyle – Phil Garland

Life’s About Moving On

Posted on March 20, 2018 by Phil Garland

While I was working out today, listening to Macklemore, Starting Over started playing. Below is the verse that always strikes a chord with me.

And every kid that came up to me
And said I was the music they listened to when they first got clean
Now look at me, a couple days sober, I’m fighting demons
Back of that meeting on the East Side, shaking, tweaking
Hope that they don’t see it, hope that no one is looking
That no one recognizes that failure under that hoodie
Just posted in the back with my hands crossed, shooken
If they call on me I’m passin’, if they talk to me I’m booking
Out that door, but before, I can make it
Somebody stops me and says “Are you Macklemore?
Maybe this isn’t the place or time, I just wanted to say that
If it wasn’t for ‘Otherside,’ I wouldn’t have made it”
I just looked down at the ground and say, “Thank you”
She tells me she has nine months, and that she’s so grateful
Tears in her eyes, looking like she’s gonna cry, fuck
I barely got forty-eight hours, treated like I’m some wise monk
I want to tell her I relapsed, but I can’t
I just shake her hand and tell her, “Congrats”
Get back to my car, and I think I’m tripping, yeah
Cause God wrote “Otherside,” that pen was in my hand

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Starting Over, The Heist

If Macklemore had been demonized for his relapse, if he hadn’t instead written a song about being an inspiration to those who have failed and are “starting over”, he never would’ve become the world-famous Macklemore he is today. This song reminds me of a powerful quote.

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People change, people grow, people become different people every day. Part of being human is to be able to forgive and forget. Sometimes it’s difficult to put your ego aside and question “If I were in that situation I would’ve done _________ instead”.

Part of life is going through a metamorphosis. We are constantly consuming ideas, gleaning cues from those around us, learning new ways to tackle a task. We are also experimenting with failure. We mess up, a lot. We can’t judge people on who they were, only what they want to become.

Life’s about giving opportunity to the most people to see what they do with their chances.

My Thoughts on Eating Meat

Posted on March 12, 2018 by Phil Garland

Today, I listened to a podcast on the ethics of eating meat. The interviewee came from a stance that eating animals was inhumane and against society’s moral codes. He stated that eating factory-farmed chicken, pigs and cows was unjust to their well-being and thus a negative on society. Although I agreed with some of his points, he seemed to have a subjective (biased) opinion. When the host, Steve Patterson, mentioned the problems of harvesting grains, like killing organisms that live in and on the crops, the guest quickly adjusted his stance to a monetary theory of moral code.

When it comes to morality, money isn’t part of the equation (in my opinion). Nobody would forgive Kevin Spacey because the ends resulted in a lot of money. He did immoral deeds and was punished for it. Same for the immorality of plowing rabbits, rats, mice and other animals living in fields of grain.

As someone who has been a vegetarian and tried veganism for half a year, and is now Paleo, I feel I have a stance on this subject. My main motive for not eating meat was for everything the interviewee described. It was to feel better about the environment and feel better for the animals that I wasn’t killing. The only problem was that the vegetarian and even more so the vegan diets affected my mood and ability to live the life I wanted. It also made me eat far too many grains that my body rejected.

The one thing that the interview re-enforced was the terrible conditions our livestock is faced with in meat factories. Moving forward, I will try my hardest to get my meat from local, free-range sources. Although this means a bigger hit on my wallet, it makes me feel better for the lives of the animals I’m about to eat. Additionally, by signaling my preference for an organic piece of meat, I’m showing potential organic farmers a chance for profits. My attempts to eat healthier may promote entrepreneurship into the space going forward, limiting the powers of meat factories.

Questions for the Crypto Movement

Posted on March 9, 2018 by Phil Garland

“How many malnourished Asian kids you fed today?” – KOOL A.D.

Are we making the world a better place?

“How much censorship-resistant commerce for the common people have we enabled?

How many unbanked people have we banked?” – Vitalik Buterin

If we’re taking power from the centralized power, why are we fighting within the decentralized sect?

Why can’t we all move forward and improve humanity?

If we can’t agree over Twitter, how the fuck are we to agree on blockchain contracts?

Power will always be pushed for but it takes a select few to surrender power for the greater good.