Dear Universe,

   Many suns, many planets, & many moons. But only one rock of life? What's wrong with this picture? We drift through the giant void unaware of any other life in the universe, aside from the multitudes that dwells within and on our own little satellite of Earth. Have you not any other life-forms to brag about? In all of your planes of existence, is there not one inkling of conscious life? Or, have we not been looking hard enough?
   Though we as a humans are a brilliant design of life, we can not be the last stop of creativity, let alone life itself. You must have something hidden up your sleeve, unyet to unveil a greater truth, a hidden being that would change the way we see our plane, albeit our way of thinking altogether. Or maybe this secret is seeking another of your greatest achievements and has yet to encounter us. Then again, perhaps our life-brothers & sisters have found us, but have yet to lift the veil of their existence for some unknown reason.
   Either scenario has it's ups and downs, both good and bad. And yet, I can't help but wonder still, are we the last stop? The last single entities to be brought about within this current state of reality. If so, why stop with us? There is so much more that could be brought to fruition with but a single molecule landing in the right spot in the right moment. A cataclysmic change that you know all too well. But, maybe that is your reason for not showing us, a cataclysm of change. Maybe, we aren't ready or perhaps you're not ready.
   Overall, humanity awaits your decision. Awaits the physical undeniable proof of the truth, that we are not alone in this existence that we have dominated since our creation. Rather by a single god, multiple gods, a moment of chance between chemicals, or even someone's experiment, we were created and we are waiting. Take your time.

Sincerely,
A Conscious Mind

Few things I would like to be able to accomplish:

- Learn to play guitar. I just recently acquired a pretty nice acoustic, should be kinda easy to start lessons.

- Lose weight. This is a given for any New Year hopes from anybody, but personally, it would help. Especially in the way of controlling my blood pressure.

- 3 level 80's. Hopefully, my attention to WoW will see this one through. Healer, Pure DPS, and Tankage is my goal. I've got the Hunter, now just have 2 more to go. Paladin in the works.

- Acquire PC repair certification. Started classes back in December, got a good ways to go for full certification.

- New people. I've joined a couple of local Anime & WoW groups, so this should spurn some new friendships and social interactions.

- World Domination! 'Nuff said. :D

   For the past few years, I have lived with the stubborn genetic defect that engrips my facial features and hair. 
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   In my line of work I come across hundreds of customers a week, most of which let their curiousity get the best of them and they end up staring and asking. "Can I ask why your face is all broken out?" or a personal favorite that I was asked one Halloween, "So, are you going as Two-Face for Halloween?". I laughed at the latter and stated, "I just may". For those that are not aware, "Two-Face" is one of the primary villains in the Batman comics (he is also played by a great actor in The Dark Knight) and like the character itself, I am plagued by "Why did this have to happen to me".  I, of course, on some level was hurt by the Two-Face remark but deep down, being the nerd I am, I recognized with the Harvey Dent (Two-Face) character at that moment. The trials he went through, the scrutiny he faces, and the insanity it caused him. Unlike the character however, I am not a gun-wielding villain bent on taking over Gotham. Though, I have been a villain in many online situations, it kind of goes with the territory being Horde and all.

   Living with a physical malice such as psoriasis...it's not easy. People view you as a lepper some of the time, some won't even get close enough to shake your hand. There is some, also, that will not make eye-contact for long b/c you can tell they are avoiding staring at the red splotches and flaking on my skin. It's hard not to think bad of those folks, but in the end, I remember they're human too. Also, these situations are not "all the time", I have my good days and bad days w/ outbreaks.
 
   For outsiders, it's all just a value of remembering that psoriasis itself is not contagious, it's not viral, and it's not easily remedied with diet and/or health plans. It's a part of the genetic code that lives within 15% of Americans. My own father struggles with it, and it costs him greatly, financially, to deal with it. It does for everybody.

   For all the folks that shy away, though, there are the folks that look past the abnormality. Family, for one, has been a saving grace for me through it all. Friends are another, they give the optimism and care that is truly needed for the strength to keep going outside and walking within the world...when I actually go outside. lol

    From day to day everybody has struggles: struggles to survive, struggles to break bad habits & addictions, struggles to accel, and even struggles to actually enjoy life. All too often these struggles can tire us out and sometimes even defeat us to such a point that we want to just give up and give in. But, if there is one thing that can be said about the human spirit, it is that it has the ability to recover from any blow. It is indestructible.

    Personally, I believe that the human spirit is the strongest thing in the world. It's capable of so much strength and good. Why not let it fly?

    Just take into remembrance the joy that can be felt from even the smallest moments, the ones that stick with you through the end, even if the end result of that memory was tarnished by an unlikely event. The joy that was held before-hand is all that should matter.

    Somebody once said, "You can never be too joyous or smile too much". I try to hold onto this and it helps alot, especially in the hard times. The good thing about joy, is that it is abundant. It can be found within anything: moments, movies, songs, books, and even people.