Matt in a Tux

No, how to kiss dudes, etc. is not a part of Boy Scouts.

How to…

1. do a two-person arm carry (both styles).
2. use a boot/shoe as an arm brace, since it is approximately the same length as your forearm.
3. love 50 mile bike rides through Wisconsin
4. understand the fact that you cannot ride a bike head-first into a ditch, and not crash
   • Mistakes are made.
     
5. measure objects to a decent degree of accuracy, since a fingertip is approximately one inch.
6. build many types of campfires, with three main ones:
   • Teepee Fire
      
   • Lean-to Fire
      
   • Log Cabin Fire
      
7. throw knives and hatchets
8. shoot a compound bow and arrow
9. shoot a variety of guns
10. perfectly place molten lead into a piece of pinewood for both maximum acceleration and maximum top-speed
    • So much excitement playing with our wood.
      
11. cook practically anything with a fire, with or without aluminum foil
12. do CPR
13. “Nope, I did” (inside joke)
14. sell massive amounts of delicious popcorn to strangers and family alike
    • Really? This picture was taken?
      
15. dominate at capture the flag (and would still like to play if there is anyone interested; we can play kickball afterward!)
16. understand the importance of Mag LIghts as your best friend
    • Different sized Mag Lights and their appropriate uses, according to me.
17. understand the importance of pocketknives as your best friend
18. realize camping is sweet, both summer and winter
19. recognize that the kid with his mother as a troop leader was weird… and…
20. love the fact that my mother was a troop leader.

There we have it. 20 things. This is one of the things I did during my 62 hour no-sleep binge. Not bad.

[I’ve been looking at this for awhile, and it may not even be an interesting topic anymore, but I decided I would have a quick attempt at working through it. This was mostly done in a wrote this on a cocktail napkin fashion, as well. Comments and criticisms would be great, too!]

I’d like to suggest that time is not infinite, and, in fact, “infinity” should not be used practically, but only theoretically.

Let a=1/3 and b=.33… (where ‘…’ indicates repeating to infinity).
1/3=.33…
a=b
3(1/3)=1
3(.33…)=.99…
3(a)=1
3(b)=.99…
a does not equal b, after a simple multiplication. (I understand this can be shown with limits as well.) But a=b seems obviously and necessarily true.

So, .99… = 1 seems like it must be true somehow.

With a set containing an infinite set of numbers, it is represented by the infinity symbol.
With a set containing an infinite set of time places, I will represent it with S^t0-tn.

How is it ok to represent infinite time like this?
“Infinity” is an abstract conception. So, this can be an abstract confession as well; we can see how it is possible to represent and split infinity into parts.

First, in common usage, one typically has no problem mentioning “half an hour” or “36.48 seconds”. Time has been indexed at a certain point in one case, and has been split in the other case.

The following diagram will be used in the proceeding paragraph as tool to demonstrate another supporting reason.

The red line represents an infinite area of measurement. The blue line represents a line splitting the infinite area of measurement. And the green line represents the new infinite are of measurement. Eventually, since the infinite area can be split, an infinite area will eventually decrease to a .00…1 where it would eventually become 0 (by the same principle as demonstrated earlier).

So, we can now say this:
(S^t1/3^ S^t1/3^ S^t1/3)=S^t0-tn
(S^t.33…^ S^t.33…^ S^t.33...)=S^t0-tn

The latter suggests infinite time while the former suggest a finite time.

How do we decide?
To have infinite time, we’d have to accept that a does not equal b, i.e. 1/3 does not equal .33…). However, a=b seems obvious and necessary.

Infinity is simply a notion that should be used only in theorizing, and rarely, if at all, in practical application.

(I’d also like to note that this fits perfectly with a deterministic view of things, which can be for a different time.)

Today is my one year vegetarian anniversary. Well, technically the 29th of February is the date, but I’ll forgo worrying about whether the anniversary was yesterday or today (probably, it should have been celebrated yesterday). But in any case, it’s been a good year.

What have I eaten?
Overall, my eating habits have been much healthier than when I ate meat. How so? For one, those nights after the bars are no longer consisting of three double cheeseburgers and a McChicken. So, to fill this void, I’ve migrated 75% of my fast food business to Taco Bell. It’s the cheapest form of Mexican food (though its a shame to call TB Mexican food) and it has great hours. The other 25% of my business: Burger King. Veggie burgers at a fast food joint are amazing.

Another way it has positively impacted my health is in an unintended side effect. Over the year, I lost about 35 pounds. My typical habits, which I did not change, are as follows (first summer, then winter): biking, eating chocolate, walking, disc golf, frisbee, a little tennis, relaxing outside, sitting inside in the warmth, shivering outside, lifting a little bit, wishing it was summer, eating chocolate. The only variable: eating meat. I guess my metabolism was finally able to keep up now that I got rid of the fats in the meat and grease and the byproducts (read: gravy), the serving sizes of steaks and large burgers, and just the general unnecessary negative effects it has on our bodies.

So, briefly, I eat noodles, beans, peppers, potatoes, greens, etc. And it is delicious. (More variety than meat dishes, if you ask me.)

Do I miss meat?
Nah. I miss convenience, but I don’t miss meat.

What have I learned?
People like to give hell to vegetarians sometimes. I don’t like to sound preachy, nor high and mighty, but in these cases I usually just say I don’t have an excuse for my morals. Then again, there are cool people out there that are just curious about why or how long, etc. A couple of my friends from back home actually moved from the former category to the latter; that was pretty awesome.

I’ve also learned that other people around you can also benefit from vegetarians; if

I’ve also learned that talking about the morals aspect is important, but only under certain circumstances. In some cases, its not a good idea.

Will I keep going?
You know it. Deli sliced meats look disgusting, and the responsibility is necessary under all ethical standards.

Nothing to celebrate after this year; its just normal now.

If it seems like I’m talking myself up on this, its not intended to be that way; I’m just giving my account of this past year.