I have lost too many friends and family members throughout my life.  So my personal philosophy is to not hold a grudge for too long.  I held one against my friend Chris for well over a year, but it was simply because of how I perceived a situation between him and my mother and one always has to take a side. 

Another person I was very good friends with, Mark, still to this day holds a grudge against me.  Something about me stealing his car, using his washing machine and moving to New Zealand.  IDK, we were very good friends for years.  But still, when you are a stubborn bastard you will hold a grudge until the less stubborn of people earnestly try to fix the situation.

Here’s my thought process.  One holds a grudge and then every time you have an association that reminds you of that person you get upset.  I do not like being upset or in a bad mood, so if I make up with those people my thoughts will be primarily good.  State of mind is everything, and all we have in life is our perception of reality. 

So yesterday I made up with my friends from Prague.  The ones I flew here to visit in the first place.  They think I wronged them, I think they wronged me.  Whatever, it’s all the same now.  I mean because of how things went down I know more people than I would have and I have a beautiful place to live in the best area of Prague (I will be uploading photos of my loft as soon as I finish writing this). 

We will probably never be as close as we used to be, but we have both agreed to put the situation that went down behind us.  It just seems to me that it is better to have friends than enemies. 

I went to this Mexican bar (yes one exists in Prague, there was even one Mexican there playing La Bamba and other bad music) with them and a couple of their other friends yesterday evening.  Since it was an American holiday they were giving 50% off on all American alcohol and food.  So we all got cheeseburgers and some Jim Beam.  I thought my bill would be quite high, even with the half off discount but it seems the staff had not been writing down what all we were eating and drinking properly. 

So Martin took the liberty of telling them what each one of us drank.  Hmm, coulda sworn I drank two or three times that amount.  But no matter, perhaps that was a different night :)  We left for the night and I jumped on the tram that went back towards my place.  Didn’t actually have a pass, and if you get caught without a pass it’s 1000 CZK fine, but that made it a more interesting ride home.

Anyways, I honestly don’t want to drink as much as I have been doing since I have been here.  However every person I meet here drinks, and so that’s what you do when you hang out with them.  I understand that though since the beer is cheaper than the water.  People move here to drink cheap beer and wine. 

Speaking of alcoholics, I was woken up this morning by Jason calling me.  He was mumbling something in his thick Irish accent that I couldn’t make out.  Eventually he asked what time it was and I told him and he said to go back to bed.   I did, but got up in another hour or so and walked over to his restaurant which shouldn’t have been open but it was.  I walked in and there was broken glass all over the floor. 

He made me some coffee, and I went to buy him some cigarettes.  He insisted that his staff would clean the place up, that is what they are there for.  His poor employees ;).  It seems that his wife is out of the country for a week or so, which just gives him more of an excuse to get drunk.  He himself could not remember what happened.  So I will keep Jason as an example of what not to strive to be.  He has a successful restaurant, and is actually a pretty nice guy, when you get his sense of humor…. But drinking that much all the time would cause me way more problems than it’s worth.  Besides, I am not Irish enough to keep up on a consistent basis.

“When is a mistake not a mistake? When you have learned something from it”
Ann Uplands

“Whatever is begun in anger, ends in shame”
Benjamin Franklin

“Change is the Process of Life Itself”
Neale Donald Walsch