The Man

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Daily Life

I try hard to always mean what I say, and say what I mean, and I expect others to do the same. I don't like indirect expressions.
I prefer sincerity over politeness.
If I am listening to the radio, then I am probably driving; and if a song I like airs when I am about to reach my destination, I usually slow down a bit - just so I will make it to the end of the song before I reach my destination. I am almost never in a hurry.
I don't own a wristwatch. I believe it's impractical to carry one on your wrist all the time when you can just look at your cell phone or at the bottom right corner of your computer screen. (If forced to buy one, I would probably go for a Swatch though.)
When I used to frequent a Target store with my red t-shirt on, people would ask me about stuff.

Food

I eat spaghetti a lot - but not before mixing it with yoghurt, corn, and sweet peas. Sometimes I also add brocoli, brussel sprouts and/or albacore fish to the mixture. In the final step, I sprinkle hot sauce, oregano leaves, black pepper, and chili powder on the top of everything - although I know that I will stir them up before starting to eat anyway.
I don't like to have my drinks the American way: extremely hot or extremely cold. For example, I never have any ice in my fountain drinks, and I cannot drink my tea/coffee before it cools down a bit. I also don't like the American way of setting room temperatures: extremely cold in summer, and extremely hot in winter.
I don't eat olives; never did. I don't find them disgusting or anything. I just don't like the way they taste and smell.
When I smell something, I usually also know how it it tastes like.
I am not the best fan of fake butter on pop corns, but I prefer to have it than not.
I like chocolate. I particularly like mint chocolate. When in the United States, I do most of my chocolate shopping from Aldi, since German chocolates taste way better than the American ones. My favorite chocolate Aldi carries is Choceur's coffee chocolate. Coffee, by the way, goes great with all sorts of chocolate.
I usually add some molasses to my cereal dishes.
My favorite cereal is raisin brans.
I eat very little meat, because I don't really like the idea of eating the flesh of animals. If our bodies did not need meat at all, I would probably eat even fewer meat meals. I believe we shouldn't be fooling around doing things simply because 'we can.' That includes eating a lot more meat than we actually need without thinking that this is at the expense of the lives of other species that we share the world with. Just because we like the way they taste, doesn't necessarily mean that we have an ethical right to kill them.
I prefer tea over coffee - Turkish tea that is. Earl grey tea is also just as good. It's not that I don't like coffee; I do. I just like tea better - especially in the mornings.
I almost always have my coffee cold, and with milk. I prefer Colombian or Costa Rican coffee. And among the corporate chains, Caribou's blend is probably the best. The 'Coffee Cooler' in their menu is pretty much my idea of coffee.

Philosophy of Life

Life is about trying to understand what life is about.
I look at my own plate, and pay attention to no one else.
I try hard to surround myself with people I respect, but I have difficulty in doing that since they don't seem to be that many in number. With similar concerns in mind, I try to stay away from those who live their lives without any particular passions or ideals. Although I know that this sounds elitist, I do not think that this is the case. It is just that I don't take seriously the hand-to-mouth existence of those who do not take their own lives seriously in the first place.
The concept of 'inquiry' inspires me more than the concept of 'freedom.' Without the former, the latter does not mean much.

Religion / Spirituality

The question of "Is there a God?" is not a meaningful one to begin with. The question of "Is the universe created?" is more to the point.
It is too bad that most people base their atheism on the ills of organized religion when in fact the two are not as relevant as they are widely believed to be.
Neither theism nor atheism is an answer to the question of existence. Both convictions open doors to new questions. In other words, they designate a starting point rather than a finish line.
I don't think that God is created in the image of man, but I think people create God in their own images. In that sense, all religions are social constructs.
I believe in supernatural phenomena. However, "supernatural" is probably a misnomer. If something exists, then it has a nature as well as a world of its own. Therefore, it is human-centric to think that such phenomena operate outside of the boundaries of the natural world, since we have limited perception and knowledge of (1) what "natural" is, (2) how relative it can be, and (3) how an actor can or cannot switch from one to another. In that respect, whether God exists is not a spiritual question. Absolute truth cannot permit secular thinking.
I do not understand what the theory of evolution has to do with theism or atheism. Is it because some church members reacted to the theory back in the day that we should consider it pro- or anti-religion? I don't understand why we should care about evolution in that regard.

Gusto

I like the way professional casinos are designed. Whenever I walk the gaming floor of a casino, I feel like I am visiting a museum. The only down side, however, is the empty-faced slot-machine-zombies who ruin this unique ambiance. But in the end, it is them who make this whole concept possible. If it was up to people like me who try to act rationally, and have yet to spare even one single quarter to the greedy machines, the casinos would not exist in the first place.
No matter who says what, I believe GM Hummers are really-well-designed cool vehicles.
I am not a member of the Apple cult, but Apple produces some of the rare stuff in this world that is really worth owning.

TV

It always makes me laugh when Homer Simpson angrily says, "Lousy Democrats!"
I do not agree with everything Bill Maher says, but he is probably the only TV personality who won't bore me at all.

Music

Whenever I happen to hear an Alanis Morissette song, I find myself switching the radio channel. Her disruptive music makes me feel like loads of pessimism and discomfort are coming my way.
I used to listen to rock channels such as Southern California's KLOS 95.5 or KCAL 96.7 that played the genre's big hits of the 80s, 90s, and today. But, at some point, due to lack of innovation, it so bored me that I started switching to channels that play all day long only like the top 20 of the current pop and hip-hop hits, the examples to which, as of late 2007, may be 'Wake up Call' by Maroon 5, and 'Stronger' by Kayne West.
In order to explore the true potential of a well-written song, one must approach it with utmost attention and respect, instead of treating it as just another piece of entertainment. When I occasionally want to share such good pieces with people around me, they usually do not feel a need to focus. I get so disappointed when they talk or do unrelated stuff when the music keeps playing in the background that I cannot help but express my frustration.

Criminal Justice

I don't have any moral objections to the death penalty. If the law imposes capital punishment on those who kill others coldbloodedly and with no particular concern of self-defense, I do not really have a problem with that. However, if there is even the slightest uncertainty, the defendant should always be given the benefit of doubt. Because once you execute an innocent person, there's no way known to mankind to undo that.
People who are convicted of rape, child-molestation or sadistic activities should be sentenced to life with no possibility of parole - the idea being that they should be isolated from the other members of the society no matter what. The idea of releasing them sounds like padding them on the shoulder and saying, "Don't forget that you promised not to do it again, OK?.. Good boy!"
If I could, I would introduce harsh measures against those who engage in animal cruelty. I don't expect people who discuss the issue of abortion around the question of whether fetuses are citizens to understand me in this matter.

Other

I believe that sports that involve somersaults (or other sorts of 3-D ups and downs) help enhance the way the human brain functions. I don't have any idea why I believe this or why this would be true - I just do. (If you are too lazy to practice swimming or martial arts, try the amusement parks. If my hypothesis is correct, I cannot see any reason why a rollercoaster would not produce the same result.)
If someone handed me $100M, it would bring some comfort to my life, but it would not change my daily schedule.
If you swear a lot, we will probably not get along well.
There are billions of people in the world, yet most people can count their true friends on one hand - if they are lucky. What is even sadder is that most of them do not even really question that, and just keep living on as lonely people among other lonely people.
I despise and dislike liars. I never lie - that is unless someone asks me questions about things that are none of their business or unless people ask me whether they pronounce my name correctly.
I don't understand how people can get really excited only because it is a certain day of the calendar. Anniversaries, birthdays, weekdays or Sundays do not matter to me at all.
If I was to make a different career choice, I would be a musician - probably a very good one.
I despise people who spend a lot of money on clothing, jewelery and et cetera. If people cared less about how impressive they look, they would look more impressive to me. The best t-shirt is a basic one with plain color.
I do not have any tattoos on my body, and probably never will. Human perceptions change in time, and I don't like the idea of doing irreversible things to my body. Besides, almost all tattoos look like the variations of the same few concepts to me. Original ideas are really rare. The design of the tattoos on Dave Grohl's arms are brilliant though.
Since childhood, I have always wanted to build a civilization of my own with like-minded people in a remote place like a Pacific island. If achieved, some people would call it a cult. I call it a more advanced civilization.
I believe its pretty unfair to instantly label all marginal groups as cults. Because, in actuality, the average man who works nine-to-five and watches television every day also belongs to a cult. But since he is in the mainstream, he hardly ever realizes that.
All the Turkish people who got to know me personally tended to either like or hate me so much. For some reason, there has rarely been a midway between the extremes.
I am neither right- nor left-handed. I am lefty, for example, when I play table-tennis, but not so when I play the guitar. I am probably ambidextrous, and just end up using the hand that I started practising with in the first place.
It is a great feeling to wake up long before the sunrise, and listen to "very emotional music," such as that of New Model Army, until the first lights of day.
Neutering, spaying or declawing animals does not correspond to "loving" them. Animals are not toys, and we don't have a right to play with their natures just to make ourselves more comfortable.