THE 'GRAM

Instagram has complicated lives.

People are having trouble seeing what is real, and what is just a preplanned image to get "likes." I had a discussion with some of my homies about how I felt Instagram was not "real life." Their rebuttal was that IG is real life because all the photos you see on the application actually happened in real life. I felt their argument, but I wasn't about to lose what turned into a 4AM debate on a corner in the heart of NYC's meatpacking district. Mainly, because I was slightly inebriated. Nonetheless, this random argument made me realize a lot about the first application I open most mornings.

It's so much you can talk about regarding the world of Instagram. In our discussion, we all admitted to vain tendencies that we have regarding the application, and how much "selfies" are shunned upon. We also acknowledged the thirst for likes, the thirst for attention, and the thirst to be cool. But, who are we to judge like we don't monitor our own likes and follower/following ratio. We play a game with ourselves that causes us to be hypocrites. Until you delete the app, you are involved in the game.

Instead of pushing all of the negative impressions about various Instagram users, trends, and drake stances, we all need to take a step back and admit that Instagram is fun. This one application is now more popular than Facebook and has installed itself into our everyday lives and culture. Whether you have 1000+ followers or none at all, keep posting, get those likes, follow celebrities, be vain if you want, post a selfie, feel good about yourself and continue your day. There is no right way to use Instagram (even though the "twee-gram"should be illegal because caption spaces are available...) so use it at your own will. At the end of the day, "It's only entertainment."

Selfies coming to a feed near you.

greene

The Settle.

View of Central Park from a window in the Trump Towers in NYC... Motivation.

The last couple of days I have been thinking about careers more than ever. I am at this point in my life where I need to make some more long term goals. When I was younger my goals were: 1- Get a tennis scholarship 2- Join that frat with the canes ( 3- keep your tennis scholarship while you're jointing that frat with the canes). Now that I have reached those goals, I have to set some more longstanding goals that will make adulthood easier once I reach them. Sadly, this is not the easiest task. My life has been full of short term goals for the past year, and no paths presented seem to lead to truly guaranteed success. I could just plan for graduate school, but I'd like to avoid lectures and exams for as long as possible. So where does that leave me? Answer: This leaves me in this weird stage of my early twenties that forces me to make time bounded decisions that will directly effect the rest of my life. Cool.

Anyone can set a goal. Anyone can come up with a goal. The important part of goal-setting is to make a goal that works for you. Opportunities will open up for anyone with a consistent drive; but is an opportunity that can also be seen as a settle, still deemed a good decision? The word settle makes me feel uneasy every time I hear it. It seems like people only begin to use it when they are discouraged. Discouragement that has been gained directly from life becoming harder. When I say settle, I don't mean, "Damn, I had to settle for the Audi because they don't make the Benz in that color." I mean,"Damn, I have to settle for this job in retail because they already hired someone for the position I was aiming for."  That kind of settle. The optimism that some people once had going in to college has dwindled over their tenures. The real world is sucking the dreams out of some of the people that I felt would never give up. This should never be the case, especially if you're still young.

Who remembers when Jay-Z said, "Thirty is the new twenty"? This was not just a way to make the world renowned rapper seem younger to the public eye. This was facts. It gets overwhelming for a young adult coming out of college to find their calling, or better yet... what makes them happy. Before you think the world is over and your dreams are deferred, remember that you have still have time to be successful. Life won't be over just because you're not making six figures right after school. If you maintain that same hunger that you had going into college you will be just fine. You may not get a job you wanted that would place you closer to an ideal situation, but life ain't over. Just keep grinding and you'll get yours.

According to Melo, I'm good by 2017 regardless of my career.

"Check me out."

Understand that my life is completely different these days. In no way shape or form will I try to summarize the gaps between the last few post because they have all been a blur. Just know that the innocent high school days are long over and life has kept moving. Instead of reminiscing and talking about how things use to be, I'm going to try and remain current. Nonetheless, nostalgia will always take its course...

It feels good to go home and have your friends acknowledge that you haven't changed. That is one of the greatest compliments someone can give me. After all the new friends that I now see as family, and all the new affiliations that my name may be connected to now, hearing you haven't changed is a sigh of relief. Who wants to be the person that changed? Nobody does, but that doesn't mean that the person hasn't.

I changed.

Adulthood was only throwing a couple light jabs for my first three rounds of college.... but when senior year came around... I caught a mean uppercut. A career? Grad school? Kanye's College Dropout album speaks volumes to me these days. New problems that I just knew I would have under control when I got this age still seem to be prevalent. If you spoke to me in 2009 about where I would be in 2013 I'd probably tell you "well off and out west." Not saying I'm not doing well, because I'm not in a bad place right now... But the route to ultimate success is filled with mirages. Mirages that seem so real that you might feel content... until they disappear. I know me and friends wake up each day in our different locations around the states like, "Damn... I should be rich already." I'm happy that we all know that hard work pays off, and patience is really a virtue. But if I stumble upon a briefcase stuffed with a sizable amount of money... a group me message will immediately be sent saying: (expletive), we made it!

As we grow deeper into adulthood, many changes come about that shape who we are and how we're seen. In my world, I know I've changed; and all I can do is embrace it. I've changed in a variety of ways both good and bad. I have stories under my belt that would place the stalest of faces on some of my friends and family. Although, I also have a few accomplishments that would make some fathers introduce their only daughters. Regardless of my pros and cons, I'm not where I want to be yet. I've got a "long, long, loooong" way to go. I'll get there though.

Shout out to the people who told me I need to start blogging again. Hopefully, I can keep this updated like old times.

Greene.