"I love that you've brought this to attention. An extensive database of uncommon but resistant and hardy plants/foods could be developed and organized by climate. Ease of growth and processing should also be taken in to account. I will try to…"
A crash course in changing the world.
What I've been holding back.
I wrote the following in response to a private message from Agent Boyden : http://www.urgentevoke.com/profile/JohnDBoyden . He encouraged me to put it in a blog post. I wrote it in frustration and in a fit of nervous energy. I'm a little embarrassed, since I always get verbose and sesquipidalian when I'm nervous, especially when I'm writing online. (For those who did not learn English as a firstlanguage, I write too much and my words start getting too long). I've made a couple small tweaks for clarity, but I'm just going to put it out here as it was there. And if people get upset, well, that's a learning opportunity, right?
"I haven't picked a real-world problem yet. Every time I try I get overwhelmed by all the need. I'm hoping that working on the missions
will solidify that for me, but honestly I'd rather get tapped to help an existing project than try and start one of my own.
Professionally, I'm at sort of a crossroads right now. My first
job is amazing. It's at a large and very stable company. I get the
same sort of work pretty much every day with small side projects on
occasion. My boss gives me just the right amount of hands-on management. But my job is not
quite perfect. The work can be fun and stable, but it also gets
tedious; I wouldn't want to do it the rest of my life. And it's at a dead-end from an opportunity point of view. My colleagues are here for a lifer job. I'd have to make a lateral move
before I could move up. But I'm still insecure in my experimental
science. something I'd need for a lateral move. I have yet to be really successful in some of my more
ambitious projects. I want more education in hopes that it will make me more confident. In my field a PHD is
worth a lot more for career advancement than a BS, and an MS is not worth very much more than just a BS.
Meanwhile, my husband is out of work and has been having trouble
finding a part time job, much less something in his field (computer
science). We can live off my income, but I can't reasonably make the
switch back to academia and still make mortgage payments. By the grace
of God and the prudence of our parents, neither of us have student
loans.
So I'm starting to be open to a big career switch, but the world
is scary and the economy is bad. And the seed money idea is all well
and good, but everybody needs money. If you gave every project mentioned
on this site about $500,000, they could use it and still need more.
I've been assuming that the need for money is a given when I investigate
projects. But me and my husband do not have enough savings enough for a new car when our old
one gives up the ghost, much less a capital venture.
I'm sorry to be snippy, but I have been passing links and making
small donations for almost every cause under the sun for some 12 years now and hoping that my act would
unite with other acts to change the world. And the world keeps being
the same. I'm a little bit discouraged. I was getting the feeling
that this site would be different. A social movement as strong and as
inspiring as the American Great Revival, and even broader, since we're using the communication media of this generation.
It still has that potential. But all I see so far is sharing news of
projects people have heard about, begging for donations and power
votes. There are some good ideas being shared, but if no one acts on
them, they will all be lost in the noise of the information age and
leave nothing that lasts.
To be fair, it is my goal to tackle the wiki and try and get others to start posting
projects and their associated needs there. I want to see if I can't start a help
wanted/help offered sort of system. I'm still trying to make the
network into a network instead of just another obscure internet forum
for people to argue in. I know it's a game. I want it to be more.
I'm going to work to try and make it more."
I will understand and appreciate it if people want to vote to show their approval, their support. But I find that intelligent comments are worth more to me. I might be a bit cynical right now, and I know it's a means of getting people hooked into this, but I find the grubbing for attention and votes to be a bit petty.
What the heck do I tag this as, anyway? I'm never good at tagging my posts.
"I haven't picked a real-world problem yet. Every time I try I get overwhelmed by all the need. I'm hoping that working on the missions
will solidify that for me, but honestly I'd rather get tapped to help an existing project than try and start one of my own.
Professionally, I'm at sort of a crossroads right now. My first
job is amazing. It's at a large and very stable company. I get the
same sort of work pretty much every day with small side projects on
occasion. My boss gives me just the right amount of hands-on management. But my job is not
quite perfect. The work can be fun and stable, but it also gets
tedious; I wouldn't want to do it the rest of my life. And it's at a dead-end from an opportunity point of view. My colleagues are here for a lifer job. I'd have to make a lateral move
before I could move up. But I'm still insecure in my experimental
science. something I'd need for a lateral move. I have yet to be really successful in some of my more
ambitious projects. I want more education in hopes that it will make me more confident. In my field a PHD is
worth a lot more for career advancement than a BS, and an MS is not worth very much more than just a BS.
Meanwhile, my husband is out of work and has been having trouble
finding a part time job, much less something in his field (computer
science). We can live off my income, but I can't reasonably make the
switch back to academia and still make mortgage payments. By the grace
of God and the prudence of our parents, neither of us have student
loans.
So I'm starting to be open to a big career switch, but the world
is scary and the economy is bad. And the seed money idea is all well
and good, but everybody needs money. If you gave every project mentioned
on this site about $500,000, they could use it and still need more.
I've been assuming that the need for money is a given when I investigate
projects. But me and my husband do not have enough savings enough for a new car when our old
one gives up the ghost, much less a capital venture.
I'm sorry to be snippy, but I have been passing links and making
small donations for almost every cause under the sun for some 12 years now and hoping that my act would
unite with other acts to change the world. And the world keeps being
the same. I'm a little bit discouraged. I was getting the feeling
that this site would be different. A social movement as strong and as
inspiring as the American Great Revival, and even broader, since we're using the communication media of this generation.
It still has that potential. But all I see so far is sharing news of
projects people have heard about, begging for donations and power
votes. There are some good ideas being shared, but if no one acts on
them, they will all be lost in the noise of the information age and
leave nothing that lasts.
To be fair, it is my goal to tackle the wiki and try and get others to start posting
projects and their associated needs there. I want to see if I can't start a help
wanted/help offered sort of system. I'm still trying to make the
network into a network instead of just another obscure internet forum
for people to argue in. I know it's a game. I want it to be more.
I'm going to work to try and make it more."
I will understand and appreciate it if people want to vote to show their approval, their support. But I find that intelligent comments are worth more to me. I might be a bit cynical right now, and I know it's a means of getting people hooked into this, but I find the grubbing for attention and votes to be a bit petty.
What the heck do I tag this as, anyway? I'm never good at tagging my posts.
Views: 13
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Comment by Joanna Chaplin on March 10, 2010 at 2:38am
-
I'm just trying so hard to find ways to help beyond donation, and spreading the word is unsatisfying.
-
Comment by John D. Boyden on March 20, 2010 at 4:18pm
-
*Applause* Jason is right! Do only what you can. YOUR family comes first, it is the ONLY way you can continue to do for others! Develop a pride in yourself that you DO take action. Continue to encourage others. As a teacher I know that often just planting the seed or idea is all I can hope to do. Sometimes I get to add encouragement, a dose of faith, caring and "believe in yourself"
Changing just ONE person's beliefs changes THEIR world. As jason says, start small, locally. Find or create a group of like minded people and enjoy the journey! +1 courage!!
Comment
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