On Blogging

In the beginning of this semester I dedicated this blog “to the contents of my mind in relation and pursuit of truth.” I think I accomplished that goal. Through various topics I think I have represented my libertarian and moralistic viewpoints. While this project may not have opened my eyes to as much hidden and underlying opinions as I would have hoped, it did affirm many of the beliefs I do hold. Perhaps it was too lofty an ambition to hope that I would locate all sorts of unfounded beliefs. More likely, however, is that such an ambition was assuming the worst: I have a large amount of unfounded beliefs. Nonetheless, I was forced to rethink my justifications for monogamy (because “it’s what works” does not cut it), and I did discover new reasons for my interest in mixed martial arts (namely, my father).

In the end, I think the most helpful aspect to this project was the constant necessity to write. In order to best manage my time and complete the requirements of this blog assignment, I was constantly thinking of topics. Utilizing my downtime between and even in classes, I wrote, sketched, and drafted many blog entries. It was a fun, challenging, frustrating, and even, somewhat liberating. In many weeks of this semester, I felt mentally, physically, and emotionally overwhelmed with school, work, and life in general. Writing down my thoughts, even if not on the specific topics of stress, was therapeutic. While I most likely won’t continue blogging (I don’t exactly have or desire a virtual constituency) I will consider routinely free-writing.

On My Years at the University of Arizona

I figure the end of my senior year and the end of my blog assignment is as good a time as any to wrap up how I feel about the University of Arizona (unless of course I ever get into the U. of A. law program).

I have spent four year here. The fact that it feels like it flew by probably reflects positively my time. When I arrived here four years ago, I was a knee deep into a long distance relationship with my 19 year old “high school sweet heart,” discontent with my loss of religion and moral misguidance, happy about escaping the grips of California, sitting on the fence between nihilism and stoicism, and feeling overall useless. Since then I have resolved the issue of the high school sweet heart (in hindsight this is my favorite way to word that break up), found moral guidance my major (philosophy), distanced myself even further from California, and overcome any problematic stoic or nihilistic impulses. Unfortunately, I feel like I have, in one way or another, remained useless.

My time here has taught me how to do the work necessary to pass my classes while maintaining a job and taking care of myself. Congratulations to me: I’m not entirely dependent. However, I remember little of any content I was ever tested on, spent most of my time working at a market making burritos, and made friends through random chance encounters. In other words, I have not been in control of my college career.

In sum, my years at the U of A have felt rushed and unimportant. I’ll receive my diploma. Hopefully I’ll be pleasantly surprised on its usefulness, which will reflect on mine.