What’s up, bubu?
Que onda, Bubus? It’s been hectic and I let the blog slip. But I like doing it, and I feel like it’s good for me so:
I can’t promise I won’t have another break in blogpostin’
But I can promise that I’ll always give you the straight dope.
Part 1: bubu future takes over Madrid and happy birthday kdogg
The blog break initially started when Minny and I took a trip to Spain for my friend Kevin’s 40th birthday with group of Kevin’s family and close friends.
But we’re back, selling on eBay and Poshmark and having a hell of a good time.
Quick highlight reel of the Madrid leg of trip below. A more comprehensive video of the trip is (maybe?) coming - keep an eye out on our YouTube.
Kevin and I first crossed paths as seniors in high school on a weekend college visit. We went to a liberal arts school in the Midwest, so they were making a concerted effort to “get them numbers up” and add some DIVERSITY to their student body (Kevin’s nickname in college was “Spanish”, and you know me). So they rounded up a bunch of colored teenagers from the Chicagoland area and had us see how we liked the water down in Bloomington-Normal (about a 2 hour drive south on I-55 from Chicago - first trip out of the city for some on the trip!!).
I don’t recall a whole lot in the way of details, but a core memory that I have from that weekend is running into Kevin in a stairwell during a party at the Sigma Chi house. There was lots of laughs, multiple slurred variations of “this place is awesome!”/ “I’m totally coming here!”, and a dap followed by stumbling around the “COLLEGE PARTY” looking for our hosts. There may have even been some dancing. Who knows.
The double-take and the “aren’t you the guy…” that followed when we ran into each other in the fall was one for the ages.
And it’s been non-stop from there. Kevin and I went on to join the same fraternity, were roommates in Chicago after college, and have stayed in touch ever since (22 years of friendship this year!). While we currently live on opposite hemispheres, our friendship has proven sturdy against both space and time.
I largely credit Kevin as being the person in my life that “lit the fuse” as far as creative, cultural tastes and interests go. Music, fashion, food: I learned to appreciate these things thanks to Kevin.
And learning to appreciate is different from just appreciating. And the key is the spark of curiosity about what lies beyond the thing that I’m eating, listening to, wearing. What else is there? Why was this one made this way? Do I agree with it? And when you get to do the exploring and growing up with a friend, you get to study, observe, compare notes, and to have a richer experience overall.
So thanks for being a good study partner, mate.
Kevin and General Future (Segovia, Spain - October 20, 2024)
There would be no Bubu Future without Kevin. FACT.
Part 2: Getting into the weeds
I would be lying if I said I didn’t get caught up in the 2024 Presidential Election hubbub. And Israel/Gaza. And Russia/Ukraine. And UAP/UFOs. And increased solar activity coinciding with Pluto moving into Aquarius.
All of these big, enormous things happening in the world. And here I am, writing a blog post.
And the primary reason for that is: I have no control over what the rest of the universe is doing.
FEAR is spending time focusing on what I don’t want to have happen and enumerating them vs spending time trying to focus on what it is that I actually want.
Fear begets fear, and can cause false positives. e.g. - We fear death so we focus on accruing material wealth to shield us from risk.
And I don’t mean to say that being observant and identifying risks shouldn’t be done. But without a clear objective, it’s easy to start padding stats on minimizing risk and think that you’re winning the game but have you seen the scoreboard? Just know that we’re guaranteed to give up at 1 goal in the end.. That’s just the rules of the game.
So, how do we get offensive? I think that’s up to the player to decide. For me, it’s becoming clear that the name of my game is rooted in love and appreciation, free from any sort of existential fear. Once I came to that understanding, it was like I became aware of the game and the fact that I could play it however I choose.
Up until then I didn’t even know I was a player. I was just spectating.
After that point, fear just doesn’t hit the way it used to. It’s like the 4th wall has been broken, and it comes off as very… distasteful.
I KNOW I’m going to give up a goal. But if I don’t figure out how to play the game and what I’m good at, I can’t get on the board!
But I’ve always been a pretty good athlete, and I have a nose for the game. I’ve got a lot of life experience behind me that I can rely on to make the moves I need to make. I just know I’m about to hit pay dirt soon.
Thanks for joining me on my journey. Let me know if you want to talk about your journey as well.
PEACE
