The Blogging Platypus

Every Mistake is a Learning Experience Think about someone in your life or circle of friends who seems to have an overwhelming amount of luck. It may appear like they everything just goes their way. However, if you were to watch them throughout the process of pursuing a goal and achieving it, aside from it being really weird and voyeuristic, you would see that it most likely took several stumbles and failures before finally arriving at the determined goal. If we were to have everything in our lives go the way we wanted, would we be happy? Perhaps, but our goals may be even loftier if we had made a few mistakes along the way. Why? Because each mistake that we make is an opportunity to learn something new. I have made probably a million mistakes over the course of my 42 years and I still make mistakes. I used to be embarrassed when I made an error in something and in school, I placed so much pressure on myself to do everything I could to refrain from making a mistake. The stress of p...

My Work Does Not Have to be Perfect to be a Success It was impeccable timing, pulling this affirmation today. See, I can often be a bit of a perfectionist. While that trait is certainly good in several fields where accuracy and perfection is required, it can also stifle the creative process. If we are afraid of making mistakes, if we are worried that the creation we have in our heads will be less than perfect, we may refrain from beginning in the first place. Whether it is writing, painting, or chainmail, if we are too worried about failing, we will become our own stumbling block. If we keep doing that, we can become constipated. Not only figuratively when it comes to our creativity, but also literally, as the stress we place upon ourselves can mess with our body. The gut-brain can become so consumed with fear of imperfection that it will literally slow down the digestion and elimination processes. While we strive for perfection, we tend to lose the enjoyment of a process. When ...

Sometimes, life seems like one thing after another. I realize that that is precisely what life is: one second, one hour, one day, one year, one decade...after another, but when the events that are hurled at you seem insurmountable, what else is there to do but say fuck it? Well, this year has felt like I am getting the karma intended for someone who stole my identity, only to conduct nefarious deeds. Over the past two years, I know that good and happy events have happened in our lives, but the challenges we have faced have been, well, quite challenging. We moved into a place that used to be a meth lab that wasn’t remediated correctly (or at all) and was already inhabited by invisible forces,  I was denied SSDI for my disabilities,  I have been unable to work on a regular basis,  Repeated visits to doctors out of state,  A few visits to the emergency room,  One of our cars had a mystery issue that ultimately resolved (after the new battery didn’t do m...

As stated in the United States Declaration of Independence, there are three rights that are referred to as unalienable, yet many who reside in this country don’t experience the benefits of these rights. The right to pursue life, liberty, and happiness often are pushed to the background, in favor of lobbyists who have their own interests in mind, rather than the individuals whose lives are affected by the choices that are made behind closed doors, often with money changing hands. In effect, this is blood money, particularly in regards to the National Rifle Association, or NRA, which is one of the most influential lobbyists. The NRA spends a tremendous amount of money in order to defend the right for citizens to own weapons of mass destruction, while also working to reduce gun regulations, even when it comes to assault weapons. I don’t think that the Founding Fathers had this level of carnage-capable weapons in mind when they drafted the Amendments. "The group spent a record ...