Who would've thought that Ray Liotta would have been the one to make the most sense. No one ever broke it down to me like that before. This is a scene from the fantastic movie "Blow" which paints a pretty bleak picture about drug dealing and trafficking. It seems like such a good way to make a quick buck and live like a King but in the end (spoiler) George gets caught and lives the rest of his life behind bars. He thinks that money begets power, status and a better life. But then you get consumed by it and always want more until money rules your life. Most of us think that way. That's why people play the lottery and idolize celebrities that seem to have it all with their $20 million dollar paychecks just for showing up on a movie set. They think that money will solve all of their problems. If I just had some more money I could buy a bigger house in a better neighborhood. I could get some better clothes and a better car that would attract the women. I could live a life of luxury and never have to worry about a thing. The truth is that money doesn't solve any problems because money is the problem. Money isn't real George. It doesn't matter. It only seems like it does.
People care too much about money and will stop at nothing to get more of it. I wish I could stand here with a pious and holier than thou attitude and say that I wasn't one of them but the truth is that I too am swayed by the almighty dollar. Do you think that I have 2 jobs because I love to work? Nope. It's because I love to have the freedom that money allows. I love to have a nice TV. I like to have more Brewers jerseys than the 25 men on the roster do. I love to be able to fly to South Carolina to visit my brother. Without money I can't do those things. So money is important if you want things or want to be able to do things that require it. But the point is that money isn't everything. Money can't bring my brother Timmy back from the dead. Money can't buy me a girl that loves me for who I am. Money can't make me a better person if I don't change what is on the inside. Money cannot solve my problems. Money cannot give me what I want. And money is not the solution. It's terrible because money is really the root of all evil in our society. It dictates everything that we are in this Capitalist society and separates the haves from the have nots. The rich keep getting richer while the poor keep getting poorer. But I'm not here to bitch about the economic climate of our country because truth be told I don't know shit about it. Nor do I care. That kind of stuff is not important to me. I only care about things that I have control over. And you may say that I can always get a better job with higher pay and move up in the company and make something of myself . But I will tell you that I don't care about that nonsense. I don't care about money. That's why I'm giving it away.
The only reason that I work as much as I do is because I have bills to pay. I'm sure a lot of people feel that way because they are in debt. I've got credit card bills, student loans, cell phone bill, gas, groceries, and the list goes on and on and on with no end in sight. I'm not blaming anyone here. I dug myself into a pretty deep hole and I'm probably never going to dig myself out of it. But I'm not going to stress out and wig out over it because it is out of my control. Money isn't real and I get reminded of it every single time that I do something for free. I went over to Jenny Reck's house tonight and we just hung out. We didn't spend any money. One can argue that technically since we were inside of the house that she pays money for we were being charged by the minute for using it. That's all just semantics and I'm not to argue about that. There is plenty of things in this world that doesn't involve money and you can't let it run your life. There's more important things in the world that are worth caring about. And since money isn't real I'm going make sure that I use it for good seeing as how I don't need any of it.
Notice how I've been contradicting myself? How I go crazy talking about money and how it isn't important? About how we can do without it? Sadly that's not the way that the world works. Money talks. It is real. You just have to make it say that right thing. And now this is what you have all been waiting for. I'm giving away my money but I'm not going to climb to the roof of a tall building and throw it over the edge. I'm going to make sure that my money means something and goes somewhere that it can help change the world. I'm going to donate it to charity. For the next 7 days I'm going to donate $15 per day to a charity that is either dear to my heart or for a cause that I believe in. There are people out there who are trying to help others and in the world we live in money can go a long way in helping them out. Day 1 of Episode 4 was an accident. I never meant to donate money to New Zealand's Shave for a Cure, which is their biggest fundraising campaign of the year to help people who are diagnosed with blood cancer or a related condition. People pledge money towards this foundation and promise to shave their heads as an act of solidarity to the people who are undergoing radiation treatment for cancer. You might think that it is weird that I am associating myself with a charitable cause in New Zealand seeing as it is on the other side of the world. How did this happen? Well let me tell you about it.
This is a giant picture of my head. It is on the wall in Jamie Orsbourn's (on the right) flat in New Zealand overlooking their beer pong table. His buddy Evan Jones is on the left. I have never met these guys although I hope someday I will. They saw the Last Cup beer pong documentary and loved it, and have crowned me some sort of beer pong god. I appreciate the love but it's a little weird seeing as how I was never even that good at beer pong. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and was captured on film for all the world to see. I guess I can see it because I'm a pretty interesting personality but I don't deserve to be honored. I'm just a regular guy. Becoming Facebook friends with these guys as well as others in their league has lead to some pretty fun conversations on the internet and the opportunity to make a difference in this world with this charitable cause. If we are so blessed with the resources to help others it is our responsibility as human beings to look after those who are less fortunate. I don't have blood cancer. I don't know anyone who does. I have known people with some forms of cancer but I did nothing to help them out. I feel guilty about that but that isn't the reason I am donating money. I am donating money because I can afford to do it. $15 may not seem like a lot to me but it means a big deal to someone suffering from a disease that requires medical treatment for which they cannot pay for. I'm lucky that I don't have anything that is really wrong with me. I'm lucky that I don't need constant medical attention. I'm lucky I don't have cancer. But not everyone is as lucky as me. Not everyone can live a worry free life. Not everyone has it this easy.
So now let's get down to it. These are 8 guys who live at a flat which they have dubbed "The Pelican" and have all vowed to shave their heads and raise money for cancer patients. I'm pledging $15 to their cause and providing you with the opportunity to do the same by clicking the link above. I'm not asking you to help out. All that I can do is provide you with the information and help spread the word. You can do what you want with your money. This is what I am doing with some of mine. I realize that it isn't enough and I could afford to give more. I do feel bad about this but I do have to spread my money around if I am going to donate money to 7 different charities. But if I reach just one person who in turn reaches another and everyone continues to pay it forward then I have done some good will. That's all I can ever really ask for. I'm doing some good here even if it seems insignificant. For all I know my $15 could be the amount of money that pushes them over the top to find a cure. Who knows man. The only thing that I do know is that the Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand is better off with my money that without it. And I'm going to do them one better. I pledge to side with my friends from across the Pacific and also shave my head when they do as an act of unity. We're all in this together and striving towards the same goal, even if we aren't technically friends and we've never even met each other. But this goes beyond everything that we know. This is not about us. This is about the people who are dying against their will. It's sad to think that they have to suffer through this. I can't even imagine what they are going through and I hope I never have to.
- pookon -
www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/MilwaukeeIceman
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