Monday, September 26th, 2005
Moving on after I determined that RLS was actually something that other people experienced and not some random thing I had, we shall discuss OCD. Now, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a more popular psychological issue that didn’t take long for me to self-diagnose. It wasn’t a very serious case personally, I can only venture a guess and say that at certain points of my life it became noticeable to some people.
Now, I’ve never delved into the depth of symptoms and explanations of OCD but I knew my own symptoms; personally, my OCD was all about right vs. wrong. I always had the right way of doing things and if it wasn’t perfect then it was the wrong way over and over until it was right. Unfortunately, it sort of tied in with my superstitious nature so I believed (and believe to some extent to this day) that if I left things a wrong way, something bad was going to happen. This sole belief deteriorated my OCD to the point that it probably became noticeable to people I saw on a daily basis. It was as if my mind would convince me that I did something the wrong way and I could not think of anything other than to go back and do it right. Of course, it wasn’t as simple as it sounds when I am typing it up right now because more often than not, my mind wasn’t satisfied with it until I repeated the action multiple times.
I will list a few of the things that I used to (have to) do as a result of my OCD, but I’m still trying to decide on some that won’t make people start to believe I am a nut. 
Here we go: I prefer right over left, top over bottom, and clockwise over counter-clockwise, evens over odds, and over-balance or balance over under-balance. From there you can derive others like my preference to lead with my right foot than the left, top-right hand corners, and turning things clockwise. Sometimes it just doesn’t even make sense logically but my mind has already setup these ‘rules’ and if I don’t follow them to the dot, I need to keep on doing it until it’s done right. I like the number six and eight so if there is repetition, I’d usually repeat it six or eight times. I sometimes have to read things over and over until I feel that I’ve read them correctly and that again, is my mind’s decision. I do things related to security and a second later, I can’t think whether or not I’ve done it and have to go back to check and double-check (locking doors, turning headlights off and windows up out of cars, etc).
The OCD that I have is not destructive as other cases that may have been portrayed elsewhere. The worst point of my OCD was when I’d have to literally waste thirty minutes of my time doing something until it’s done right and this I grew out of for a few years now. Thankfully, my timeliness was a priority over my OCD so I was never late to things because of its effects.
So within the past few years, if you have seen me doing things over and over or have seen me doing something that made you tilt your head left or right, then yes; I had/have a relatively mild case of OCD. I hope nobody gets freaked out or finds this extraordinarily amusing because it can be a very serious disorder. For those of you who have OCD: aside from medical treatments (if there are treatments available) just try, even for once, to break out of your habit and distract yourself right afterwards. I think I did this unknowingly and was able to break away from some OCD-related habits.
Posted in My Life, Random, Time Out! | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 2nd, 2005
Issue about race…? No.
Make it an issue about how President Bush failed to do his job to save the citizens of the United States.
Make it an issue about how the media failed to portray the reality of the ACTUAL situation on Monday…
Make it an issue about how the relief operations at the scene on Monday didn’t know how to get started.
Make it an issue about how the Feds talked too much and failed to get things moving.
Make it an issue about lack of organization and confused relief operators.
Make it an issue about communication failures.
Make it an issue about how relief workers couldn’t do much because they were being assaulted and shot.
BUT, don’t make this ‘slow Katrina relief’ thing an issue about race. Call me ignorant, but I absolutely fail to see how race would or can become a factor in saving American lives in America in such disasters. When it comes to saving lives, every beating heart is a heart to be saved and sheltered if possible. Don’t accuse the American people of being racist, don’t accuse the Federal government of being racist. If there is racism, then it exists locally within a select few. Don’t tell me the help was slow because everyone stranded within Katrina’s destruction was a certain race; that is like fueling an out of control blue flamed fire with a long-awaited red flamed one just because they could be mixed to create a bigger multi-colored flame (no pun intended with the colors nor with the eccentric analogy). Let us at least get the issue resolved before putting blame on any specific cause. Don’t try being angry about issue #164,342, when we still have people suffering in the Gulf Coast area, which is issue #1. Just stop blaming people when you’re just sitting there pointing at an arrogant issue; it’s not like you’re the one that’s needing help or are even taking any action other than talking to the media. If you think race is the issue that has prevented fast-action federal aid, then why didn’t you do anything?
Personally, I had no idea the amount of help that was needed down in the South until Wednesday night. Sure, I saw fly-by images of a city flooded but who the heck knew there were over 50,000 people waiting to be rescued until Wednesday when we finally saw all the people coming out of their shelters that were deteriorating. I’ve seen much worse Hurricanes that passed by since I’ve lived in the South but most hurricane relief was all about trying to get people affected by the hurricanes back on their feet. I put blame on the media for not correctly portraying the reality of the situation down in New Orleans until days after Katrina passed; shame on you so-called reporters who failed to get the proper information to the public in a timely manner. I also put some blame on the Federal government who didn’t seem to know that Katrina’s aftermath was completely different than all those other hurricanes that cut through the US in the past few decades; as they merely provided passive relief until the media broke out the reality of the situation on Wednesday.
Disagree with me all you want and call me an ignorant moron, but putting blame to some negligible social issue way before you take action to help out… is simply the most unbelievable thing I’ve witnessed in my entire life as a Citizen of the United States of America.
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Thursday, September 1st, 2005
Please take a minute to donate to any legitimate Katrina relief fund:
http://www.fema.gov/press/2005/katrinadonations.shtm#organize
Even if it’s just for a minimal amount, no donation is too small for lending a helping hand. Come on, I am an almost-broke college student and I made a small donation:
Now, you mean to tell me that a place where most of your oil is coming through, a place that is so unique when you mention New Orleans anywhere around the world, everybody’s eyes light up — you mean to tell me that a place where you probably have thousands of people that have died and thousands more that are dying every day, that we can’t figure out a way to authorize the resources that we need? Come on, man.
…
Don’t tell me 40,000 people are coming here. They’re not here. It’s too doggone late. Now get off your asses and do something, and let’s fix the biggest crisis in the history of this country.
- Ray Nagin, New Orlean’s Mayor
Source:
CNN.com
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