PurpAnd

I’ve had some relatively serious posts over the past several weeks. So for relief I submit to you the following:

My eyes are too close together.

I came to this conclusion when picking out a new pair of eyeglasses. Every pair I tried on seemed to make me look cross-eyed and my head look small. Not what you want necessarily. I remember commenting about a girl I knew whose eyes were too close together (I was much younger when making this comment). I’d thought it was creepy and odd, but maybe it was just a reflection of what I didn’t like about myself.

I learned in art class how to draw a face with relative ease. You’re supposed to draw two ovals of equal size, with the same width of blank space between them. So if you were to measure from the outside corner of the left eye to the outside corner of the right eye, (we’ll call this the total distance, or TD) there is the equivalent of three eyes’ width, or EW. Apparently, this is how you draw ‘normal’ looking people. In Algebra, the equation would look something like this:

TD = 3 EW

For me, there is less than an eye width between the eyes. So I probably rock an eye equation of TD = 2.75 EW, or somewhere around there. I got to thinking what this could mean… I realized that (now I don’t really like to stereotype, but I am doing it here for comedic purposes) my Asian friends have slightly wider-set eyes. Something like TD = 3.25 EW. And then I noted that my Asian friends are all pretty dang smart and I thought, “BINGO! Wider-set eyes means bigger brains!” So I tested my theory with other animals and came to the deer. They probably have eye equations of something like TD = 5 EW, but they have a tendency to run into the street in front of cars… not so smart. So maybe that theory doesn’t really work.

Anyway, I’ve decided that the ‘normal’ equation is really just a simple rule of thumb to draw faces that resemble humans. I’m ok with this ,but I am still tight-eyed. (Not to be confused with tye died, tight wad, or tight-assed).

For fair warning while out in the world, here are some things to know about tight-eyed people.

- they have sub-par peripheral vision and can be snuck up on very easily
- they tend to be nearsighted
- they look cross-eyed with glasses on, please don’t make fun. They are still human and they have real feelings
- some may have such a severe case of tighteyedness that they lack depth perception and often run into things
- and lastly, although it may look like they are staring, they are really just trying to focus on what is in front of them

Final Note:
I thought it would be fun to try and derive the eye equation for Sloth from the Goonies.

Thanks rachelmaude.com for the image

I’d say TD = -0.3y * 3.5EW, where y equals the angle of inclination.

By the way, remember how Sloth could wiggle his ears? Hilarious.

Over the past couple weeks I have been writing about the things that I value most. To recap, these were Financial Security, Personal Growth, Trust, Integrity, and Family/Friends.

Throughout my writings I discussed experiences I had that exemplified whichever value I was featuring in the post. I need to mention that although I value these five things, I do not claim to have mastered them. I am not perfect, I do make mistakes, and I sometimes do things that kick my core values in the face.

I’ve shared my top 5 values as a reminder to myself what is important. Perhaps you used what I wrote as the basis to think about your own values and if you did that’s great. I believe that once my values are engrained, I can make decisions and live life with those values in mind, while recognizing there will be setbacks.

I hope you did not read what I wrote and think I was sitting on some high horse. And I hope you can understand that even though I have selected some ideals, it is not hypocritical for me to falter on occasion. I see things about myself that I want to improve… ways to become a better person, and I think that means learning along the way. I am simply an ordinary person who wants to do his share of extraordinary things.

It’s no surprise to me that when I ranked my list of core values (what is most important to me), Family/Friends came out on top. I have great friends and a wonderful family and I feel that I am at my best when I am around them. There’s an unconditional love that exists which allows those close to me to tell me when I’ve screwed up, but it also allows them to guide me when I need direction, and to support me when I’ve stumbled. My uncle once said, “there are just some things that you do for family.” In my family that is very true. We are, as a group, very supportive and generous. We try our best to be there for one another and I’m lucky because not all families are like this.

My family comprises some of the most compassionate people I know and they will be the first ones to remind you that we’re all human and that failure is natural and forgiveness can be powerful. They’ll try their hardest to make you laugh and go to no end to earn a smile. They don’t care if I work a high-powered job, drive a fancy car, or live in a big home, they only care that I do what is right for me and that I am happy. You don’t find that kind of support everywhere so of course I would want to cultivate it and that is why it’s my number one value.

My friends have a knack for knowing what I am thinking/feeling, sometimes even before I know. This makes it easy when it comes to something I need from them because I have such a hard time asking for it. A few weeks ago a bunch of them came to San Francisco for a guys weekend, which was greatly needed. It was a surprise and lots of fun and we just got to be San Francisco tourists for a couple days. My friends are the kind of people who would travel 2,500 miles for a 36 hour visit. They’re the kind of people who would stock their fridge with grape soda cuz they know I love it. They are the kind of people who would say yes to something just because they could see in your eyes that you needed it desparately.

As life continues to nudge me in different directions, it’s my family and friends that remain most constant. I know that they’ll be there when I want to celebrate and when I need to escape. If home is where the heart is, then home is in the company of my family and friends.