Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '99
Wear Sunscreen.
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be
it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by
scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable
than my own meandering experience
I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth;
oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and
beauty of your youth until they have faded.
But trust me, in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself
and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before
you and how fabulous you really looked.
You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as
effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum.
The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that
never crossed your worried mind;
the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing everyday that scares you

Sing

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts,
don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss

Don't waste your time on jealousy;
sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind
the race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults;
if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what
you want to do with your life
the most interesting people I know didn't know at 22
what they wanted to do with their lives,
some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't,
maybe you'll have children,maybe you won't,
maybe you'll divorce at 40,
maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary
what ever you do, don't congratulate yourself
too much or berate yourself either
your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's.
Enjoy your body,
use it every way you can
don't be afraid of it, or what other people think of it,
it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own..

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents,
you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings;
they are the best link to your past
and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go,
but for the precious few you should hold on.
Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle
because the older you get,
the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard;
live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths,
prices will rise,
politicians will philander,
you too will get old,
and when you do you'll fantasize that when you were young
prices were reasonable,
politicians were noble
and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you.
Maybe you have a trust fund,
maybe you have a wealthy spouse;
but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair,
or by the time you're 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but,
be patient with those who supply it.
Advice is a form of nostalgia,
dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal,
wiping it off,
painting over the ugly parts and recycling
it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen

Well

pretty soon I'm going to be publishing my book on Blogger...I'm planning on calling it "Out with the trash: A guide for guys on how to get dumped" It's going to include every one of my failed relationships, and the best/worst memories of my life.

**Much Peace**

More Poetry

Looking into the mirror I see
something that doesn't resemble me
I see blankness, and a void which cannot be filled
I see the faces of a millon people, I've never seen before
yet, they look oh so familiar
I see them laugh, I see them cry
I see them live, I see them die
It's been two long years since I lost myself
I'm afraid that I'll never be found
Another casualty of this stupid war
I really don't want to play anymore
Not that I think of this as a game, because I do not
because no one really know when it comes down to the matters of the heart
I suffer the worst wound of all
Some might say I'm cunfused, misguided, others say I'm hopeless
but I say I won't rest until the day I'm told this...
I love you. [shakkaa]

The four immeasurables...

May everyone be happy,
May everyone be free from misery,
May no one ever be separated from their happiness,
May everyone have equanimity, free from hatred and attachment.

Poem

[This is a poem I wrote about my double ear infection that won't go away. All I can hear is the beating of my own heart.]

A drum beats inside my head
It’s all I hear
Beating me into submission, I surrender
It’s too much
The music of misery is the music that no one else can hear
It’s the saddest music of all
I look for help, but none comes
I’m all by myself
No room for all my thoughts
There’s too much pressure
The distant echo of sounds heard by others is all I can hear

I march to the beating of my drums