A world without poverty

I want to live in a world that has no poverty. A world that has the ability to feed and shelter all those that are in need. I want to see people worry about what they want to do in life rather than where they are going to get the next meal. This is an ideal world that I want to live in before I die. Getting to that goal might take the rest of my life and then some.

I have often thought about poverty from a relative point of view. Growing up I lived in a apartment complex that was near the suburbs in south LA, our family was by no means well off. There was often many homeless people that were sleeping near our building and one of them I had even grown to recognize. So at an early age, I realized that there was a problem in our world. The problem was that I had no way to help him back then, all I could do was observe.

It was a sad lifestyle that he was relegated to live, having no other people to talk to besides inquisitive 5 year old. My mother told me not to talk to him for fear of him being dangerous, but deep down I knew there wasn't aggression in him only despair. I can't remember the conversations now, but I do recall wanting to know more about him and that I was saddened when he disappeared one day and never came back.

Even though I was better off than this person, I felt that it wasn't fair to be sleeping in a bed while a couple of yards away was a guy sleeping in the cold rain. I don't know what has made me take on fight something as hard to solve as poverty, but I like to think that knowing a homeless person when I was a child had something to do with it. The thing about this is not to gain fame or money, but to provide people with the ability to live without worrying about the things that each one of us takes for granted every single day.

A solution can only exist if we acknowledge the problem and work together to solve it.

Life Force

I am one of those people that just need to do a lot of stuff. Having a lot of things on my plate energizes me and keeps me engaged with life. It is kinda strange but having more stuff to do makes me focused and want to do even more. Like a runaway train that gains momentum, I feel more energy when I am at my busiest.  Paradoxically, when I have nothing to work on, I find it extremely hard to start anything or follow through with things.

To quote the great Issac Newton, "An object in motion stays in motion and an object at rest stays at rest unless acted upon by an external force." Newton may have been applying that to physics but it works even surprisingly well with a person's motivation as well. When we do something for the first time there is a lot of initial energy that we have to expend but the more we do it, the less energy it will take in subsequent efforts.

Most of the stuff that I am currently doing has more to do with gaining traction in my life to accomplish great things in the future. I have to see it through no matter how much work I take on because that is how I want my life to be. It is what I need to do right now as I see my mid-twenties as a time of unlimited growth in the areas that I most value. I have to plant the seeds of hard work so that sometime in the near future, I can reap what I sow today.

For me life will always be hard, no matter what circumstances I am in.The reason I say this is because I know that to have a good life filled with meaning, it requires significant sacrifices. It is not enough for me to live a simple life as my past post suggests. But it is a life borne out of continuous growth and hard work. I aim to be engaged fully with my life and do some great things, all I need now is the patience and work ethic to see it through. 

What can One person do?

So I want to help people. How do I go about and doing that? Well, one thing that I feel very passionately about is wealth inequality, specifically how to help the poorest in this country. It goes without saying that there are many people in this country that cannot call a place their home. Many are homeless on the street due to various circumstances beyond their control. There is a huge problem with providing affordable housing for all those that need it. So I want to help them by starting a non-profit organization and build small (1m^2) houses for those that need it the most.

It is a crazy idea, but I think it might just work. I have contacted architect Van Bo Le-Mentzel in Germany, that first designed this house and he has been really supportive of my initial efforts to help the homeless in San Francisco. He is trying to get the word out to people that, this new kind of dwelling is great for the minimalist as well as people that just need a simple shelter for the night. Currently, the plans are completely open source and everyone can build these houses, all Van asks is that he is kept in the loop on what you do with the house, by sending him pictures.

I've always wanted to help people but I didn't know through what medium I wanted to do this in. Providing shelter for people is one of the important things that we can do for those who are in need. What I have learned so far is that many homeless people do not like to live in homeless shelters due to pride or lack of personal autonomy. My plan is to give those people that cannot reach a shelter or don't want one, their own personal "house." This way they can retain their autonomy as well as provide them a mobile home that doubles as storage container and protection from the elements.

I don't know how hard it is to start a non-profit. I imagine that it will take a lot of time and energy before I get to help people on a massive scale. I can only try to do this in tiny steps until I can achieve something great in the end. I want to do this a sort of great contribution to humanity that can help the disadvantaged in our cities and community. I can only hope that when the time comes, all those who are reading this can support me in some small way.

Biking for a better tomorrow

Recently, I got my hands on a used bike that had seen a lot of miles of wear and tear. With some TLC a new tire, I have restored some of it's former glory. After taking it on an exploratory trip around the town, I realized what I have been missing out on by not biking from the start. I didn't realize how bike friendly Mountain View was, there are so many trails and biking lanes for people that a car might not really be necessary at all for most short trips.

In one of my short-term goals of being more eco-friendly, I have decided that I want to try and limit my driving around town as a way of saving gas and getting more exercise. Simply, it is the best of both worlds. I had forgotten how simple it is to get around town without a car. In a place like LA, it was quite difficult to go to certain places without a car, whether it was lack of biking lanes or a culture consumed with driving, it was not common to see people biking that often.

During the first few months that I was up here, I noticed that biking was so ubiquitous, but I resisted because I was still attached to my car. I guess that is what LA does to you over time. But it wasn't always like this, when I was in high school and throughout some of college, I spent most of my time riding a bike.

I went to most places on a bike, mostly just to get a away from the house and not needing to bum rides off of other people. But more so it gave me a sense of freedom to go where ever I wanted to for as long as I wanted to. The only thing I wished I could do back then was to go farther, the world is quite limited to how far you are willing to pedal.

I hope to incorporate more biking in my life from now on and not let having the convenience of a car deter me from traveling on bike. Now if only I can get a horse...

Sustainability

I have always wanted to live a sustainable lifestyle. I think it comes from my want or need to be able to live a simply and healthy in an otherwise polluted and chemically driven society. Also, it helps that I am destroying the Earth slightly slower than others in the process. But it is not only about using less and becoming a more morally conscientious individual, it also simplifies the many decisions that we have to make by limiting our choices.

There are a couple of goals that I want to set to make myself more eco-friendly. I am setting these goals as a way of holding myself accountable and also creating a blue print for others to start living a sustainable lifestyle. I think these are more of stepping stones rather than big leaps, really it is pretty hard for me to start collecting rain water for showers and using compost toilets overnight.

Goals for a more sustainable lifestyle.

1. Bike to work (Take more public transportation)
2. Vastly reduce my water usage
3. Do some recycling
4. Buy and cook more natural foods, reducing packaging
5. Get rid of all the non-essential stuff, donate or sell

Hmm.. It is harder than it seems to think of stuff without making some more drastic lifestyle changes. But for now I think I have a couple to keep me busy for a while.