About
What is this site about?
It’s about challenging my perceptions and assumptions. It’s about exploring the depths of my interest and probing the foundations on which I construct my reality. Through events and news of the world around me, at times through personal experiences, I want to probe and reflect upon how I develop my values. Feel free to follow my journey. If you care to join me or find here a space to begin your own self reflection, welcome.
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. – Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
I attended one of the prestigious land-grant universities in the Midwest, studying philosophy and social studies education. One of the driving forces for me now is that I fell short of completing my degree. While I earned sufficient credits in pursuing a dual degree, I became burned out and did not complete some specific courses required in the two programs of study. From that experience, I now try to push myself to excel, but not so much that I overstretch my limits. While I try to continually push against and extend those limitations, I also try to be conscious of when the price is not worth the gain.
Since then, I studied massage therapy, and through massage became interested in Chinese medicine. Though I knew I ultimately wanted to study Chinese medicine, it was several years before I found myself in a position to pursue that desire. Taking that final plunge involved stepping away from a low-paying but secure job and committing to a lot of financial aid debt. I had not been able to manage a career sufficient to build any savings to take with me. With little safety net, I have now been studying Chinese medicine for over two years and have a little over a year-and-a-half remaining to my Masters degree. This doesn’t completely define me, but it is a sizeable component of who I am now.
There are additional bits and pieces that are significant. Though I have some leadership skills and a variety of talents, I can be socially challenged. Awkward even. I hope that I will be able to explore my difficulties in interpersonal relationships in an honest and open manner that also helps me grow.
I have a friend who, among other things, consider me tech support. Odd that, especially given that my formal computer training consists of one Intro to Computers and a single Access Database class at a community college a few years ago. Mostly I surf the web for news. But my dad is a computer tech, so I grew up around computers. I’m also patient and can read and make sense out of most instructions That combined with how user friendly even Windows systems have become means that I can be reasonably technically proficient with patience and the right help files. Thus I get to be massage therapist as technical support. The renaissance-man/jack-of-all-trades thing went a bit far though, when she suggested I could be a fashion and design consultant. I mean, there has to be a limit, right?
