Saturday, May 30, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Dan Gets Angry
You wouldn't know it from reading my columns, especially the dating ones, but I don't give often advice to people.
There are a host of reasons for this from my belief in letting people make their own decions to the fact that a lot of times, I have no idea what people should do in any given situation.
Every once and a while though--if someone asks and I'm feeling smart--I'll do it.
Some people take what I have to say under consideration and make their own decisions.
Those are my favorites.
Occasionally though, I will have people reject my suggestions--whether it's on relationships, comedy, or one of the two or three other things I happen to know something abou--as being 'trite' or 'cliche.'
They're usually right. I don't think I've ever given anyone advice that hasn't been said a bazillion times before.
But often the reason those things are cliche is because they're absolutely true.
What boggles my mind though, is that even though people have heard this 'stock' advice before a million times, they STILL won't do it. And then they wonder why they're miserable.
Even more mystifying, they then start to blame the advice. "That's cliche. That's trite."
It's like a guy going to the nutritionist and complaining that being told to excercise and eat properly is cliche. Well, yeah. It's also what works. In fact, as far as I know, it's the ONLY thing that works. What's the guy supposed to tell you?
Oh, You want SPECIAL advice. Because you're DIFFERENT from other people. Fine. Eat nothing but foam packing peanuts for fifteen days. See what that gets you. Hey, at least it isn't cliche, right?
I'm starting to think some people don't actually want to know a solution to their problems. What they want is for people to tell them a way they can keep doing the same stuff they've always done, yet magically get different results.
This was more of a rant than I expected. Good for me. It's honest though, and honesty about what upsets me is good for me and the people around me.
Or maybe that's a cliche.
Upcoming Comedy
Monday, June 22 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Other Appearances
Saturday, May 23 - OSCW: Rumble in the Ring - Hazeldean Community Hall, Edmonton
Writing
Dan Brodribb's Geek Love appears regularly on the Suicide Girls website. Current article is here.
Dan also writes on wrestling for worldwrestlinginsanity.com. Current article is here.
There are a host of reasons for this from my belief in letting people make their own decions to the fact that a lot of times, I have no idea what people should do in any given situation.
Every once and a while though--if someone asks and I'm feeling smart--I'll do it.
Some people take what I have to say under consideration and make their own decisions.
Those are my favorites.
Occasionally though, I will have people reject my suggestions--whether it's on relationships, comedy, or one of the two or three other things I happen to know something abou--as being 'trite' or 'cliche.'
They're usually right. I don't think I've ever given anyone advice that hasn't been said a bazillion times before.
But often the reason those things are cliche is because they're absolutely true.
What boggles my mind though, is that even though people have heard this 'stock' advice before a million times, they STILL won't do it. And then they wonder why they're miserable.
Even more mystifying, they then start to blame the advice. "That's cliche. That's trite."
It's like a guy going to the nutritionist and complaining that being told to excercise and eat properly is cliche. Well, yeah. It's also what works. In fact, as far as I know, it's the ONLY thing that works. What's the guy supposed to tell you?
Oh, You want SPECIAL advice. Because you're DIFFERENT from other people. Fine. Eat nothing but foam packing peanuts for fifteen days. See what that gets you. Hey, at least it isn't cliche, right?
I'm starting to think some people don't actually want to know a solution to their problems. What they want is for people to tell them a way they can keep doing the same stuff they've always done, yet magically get different results.
This was more of a rant than I expected. Good for me. It's honest though, and honesty about what upsets me is good for me and the people around me.
Or maybe that's a cliche.
Upcoming Comedy
Monday, June 22 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Other Appearances
Saturday, May 23 - OSCW: Rumble in the Ring - Hazeldean Community Hall, Edmonton
Writing
Dan Brodribb's Geek Love appears regularly on the Suicide Girls website. Current article is here.
Dan also writes on wrestling for worldwrestlinginsanity.com. Current article is here.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
New Articles Up and Vipassana Thoughts
I promised an update on the vipassana retreat. Here are a bunch of random thoughts.
But first...article update.
New wrestling article is up here.
My latest Geek Love article for Suicide Girls article is up here. It's on the importance of guys taking charge in a relationship and has already got some interesting comments.
As well, Rumble in the Ring is the next OSCW show, taking place this Saturday at the Hazeldean community hall, featuring a 20 man Royal Rumble style match. If you're interested in coming, message me, and I'll put you in touch with the folks that can get you tickets.
Back to the Buddhism stuff...I didn't have a notebook, so these are random notes I jotted after the fact. Some of them may grow up to be jokes one day.
-Living like a monk for two weeks was fun. If you call getting gonged awake at four in the morning fun. And you know what makes being up at four in the morning even better? Chanting. Foreign language chanting.
-We weren't allowed to speak or interact with each other in any way. Since I didn't know anybody's names, they got cool nicknames in my head like "Cool Haircut Guy" or "Unabomber." Although it made me think about what counts as communication. Sure I couldn't directly address people, but what if I were merely to express my feelings about being awoken at four in the morning--say by slamming my head into my bunk five or six times--and other people happened to be around. Was that breaking my vow? I say no. But I took a lot of blows to the head.
-Even at a meditation retreat, I found myself getting competitive. I wanted to out-meditate everyone. I was like, "I'm a being of way more compassion than those losers." I later learned a lot of guys were feeling the same way. The only thing that kept some of them from running out screaming when their back and legs were cramping up and they felt their minds were going crazy was the fact they refused to be the first one to quit. Competition is a good thing, I guess.
-There was a log in the camp and for fun, we would often walk across it, balance-beam style. Trouble started though when you saw a guy coming the other way. Because the rules say you aren't allowed to talk or interact with each other. But you know what isn't in the rules? Being a bitch. So you'd just keep walking towards each other until you found out which of you was the better, more compassionate person...and which of you was the winner.
- I am not an enlightened person. People talk about inner peace and serenity when medidtating. I mostly got songs stuck in my head, memories from the firt season of Big Brother and the track listing to Skid Row's debut album. I guess my Buddha-nature likes to rock.
- You would think with nothing to do, there would be no stress, but I found instead, my brain would magnify everything in order to give me something to be neurotic about. I remember coming out of the breakfast hall thinking, "Man, I have to brush my teeth AND take a nap? There is not enough time in the day."
Upcoming Comedy
Monday, June 22 - The Comic Strip
But first...article update.
New wrestling article is up here.
My latest Geek Love article for Suicide Girls article is up here. It's on the importance of guys taking charge in a relationship and has already got some interesting comments.
As well, Rumble in the Ring is the next OSCW show, taking place this Saturday at the Hazeldean community hall, featuring a 20 man Royal Rumble style match. If you're interested in coming, message me, and I'll put you in touch with the folks that can get you tickets.
Back to the Buddhism stuff...I didn't have a notebook, so these are random notes I jotted after the fact. Some of them may grow up to be jokes one day.
-Living like a monk for two weeks was fun. If you call getting gonged awake at four in the morning fun. And you know what makes being up at four in the morning even better? Chanting. Foreign language chanting.
-We weren't allowed to speak or interact with each other in any way. Since I didn't know anybody's names, they got cool nicknames in my head like "Cool Haircut Guy" or "Unabomber." Although it made me think about what counts as communication. Sure I couldn't directly address people, but what if I were merely to express my feelings about being awoken at four in the morning--say by slamming my head into my bunk five or six times--and other people happened to be around. Was that breaking my vow? I say no. But I took a lot of blows to the head.
-Even at a meditation retreat, I found myself getting competitive. I wanted to out-meditate everyone. I was like, "I'm a being of way more compassion than those losers." I later learned a lot of guys were feeling the same way. The only thing that kept some of them from running out screaming when their back and legs were cramping up and they felt their minds were going crazy was the fact they refused to be the first one to quit. Competition is a good thing, I guess.
-There was a log in the camp and for fun, we would often walk across it, balance-beam style. Trouble started though when you saw a guy coming the other way. Because the rules say you aren't allowed to talk or interact with each other. But you know what isn't in the rules? Being a bitch. So you'd just keep walking towards each other until you found out which of you was the better, more compassionate person...and which of you was the winner.
- I am not an enlightened person. People talk about inner peace and serenity when medidtating. I mostly got songs stuck in my head, memories from the firt season of Big Brother and the track listing to Skid Row's debut album. I guess my Buddha-nature likes to rock.
- You would think with nothing to do, there would be no stress, but I found instead, my brain would magnify everything in order to give me something to be neurotic about. I remember coming out of the breakfast hall thinking, "Man, I have to brush my teeth AND take a nap? There is not enough time in the day."
Upcoming Comedy
Monday, June 22 - The Comic Strip
Friday, May 08, 2009
Back From My Trip
I returned from a 10-day Vipassana mediation trip yesterday. I haven't even gotten home yet; I'm writing this from the library. There are some stories worth writing about--don't know if they'll show up in this blog or somewhere down the road.
In the meantime, here's a link to my most recent wrestling article, about the perils of trying to fit in when you aren't six feet tall and two hundred and thirty pounds of muscle.
In the meantime, here's a link to my most recent wrestling article, about the perils of trying to fit in when you aren't six feet tall and two hundred and thirty pounds of muscle.
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