Paris's Computer Screen at home, January 1, 2016
If this all falls apart and I die, let me do it in French, and not only in a French accent, or a French-made jacket. I must complete my study of the French language. I must die bi-lingual if nothing else.
Resume 2009
Application to UCLA, 2004
Question #1: Academic Preparation
Though arguable that I’ve been somewhat of an academic oddball, on my own obscure level I have been pursuing with focused intensity the fields I wish to study. I am looking to understand the mechanics of the world, the universe, reality, in an abstract fashion that will let me express my understanding through the medium of film. Thus, I film and write and read and observe constantly. I make phone calls to remote regions of the Earth (Antarctic research bases, nightclubs in Jakarta, shopping centers in Canberra, expensive restaurants in Capetown, futuristic penthouses in Tokyo), conversing with and learning from the anonymous concepts on the other end of the line. In my own city I have pursued and discovered relics of forgotten subcultures, and I have sought out less-visited locales, North, South, East, West and underground. I have taken on affectations of people I have met, faking accents, interests, beliefs, adding layers to my pan-global drawl, if for no other reason than to learn. Had I been equipped with a more durable pen, a disposable camera and a little bit more confidence, perhaps I’d have more documentation. I hope sincerely that this is the kind of inquisitiveness that can help me succeed at UCLA.
QUESTION #2: Potential To Contribute
It is the sprawl, of names, of hearts, of secrets whispered into ears, which holds my attention these days. An epic dance, between what is real and what is pretty to think. But where has this hobby got me? Of the important skills in life, I have checked only a few, and these were the easier ones. For example: a knowledge of the games of bridge, go, backgammon; sailing, slight of hand tricks, pull-ups (at least fifty, palms facing away); an understanding of fine wines, or cheaper ones that’ll do; classic wit and charm, electronic music, cooking (beyond basic pastas); the ability to calm one’s nerves when excited…
So you ask what I really have to offer: the eccentric, electric aside, one thing I’ve always been, is an incredible diplomat. Not a dishonest diplomat, but one who genuinely tries to put others at ease, and one who can bring people together. I’m creative, eclectic, and terribly innovative. I can offer UCLA someone kind, well-mannered, open-minded, and I know I’m being genuine here because I feel proud and I feel redeemed, and I feel close to who I was - a man, long before becoming a boy, long before becoming whatever it is I am now.
Question #3: Open-ended
Admittedly, I am becoming increasingly aware that what I am chasing has no real-world counterpart. And yet simultaneously, and quite stubbornly, my goals and dreams are rapidly becoming loftier, more stylized, and more aesthetic. Perhaps a phase, a fleeting state of over- zealous fascination and naivety which I will soon pawn to fight more realistic and productive battles. Nonetheless, it seems to be the history of the universe, and its ally, reason, versus the ungrounded and yet frighteningly beautiful world of obscurities and dreams. Quite a predicament.
I am paralyzed by the more ponderous questions. Fascinated constantly, and in love. This is a blessing and a curse. I understand that it is vastly important however, if for no other sakes than progress and pragmatism, to get past objectivity. To live subjectively and with awareness, and to get done what needs to be done. Among other things, I seek in the University of California the cultivation of the ability to do just this. The combined wealth of knowledge and perspective that studying elements of anthropology, sociology, media studies and film can give me is something I believe will be able to feed my thirst for a greater understanding of the mechanics of things. I am constantly receiving new pieces to my puzzle.
In terms of a career, I’ve yet to find its title on a list. Rather, I hope to invent a new career. Part writer, film-maker, explorer, international businessman, spy, soldier, musician, offshore banker, barterer, iconoclast, thief, lover, professional rock-climber, table tennis champ... I’m afraid so. And yet they are all connected. They make up the fabric of a life aesthetic. In order to understand this life however, or at least come close to it for long enough that I realize it is not what I had been expecting and that I wish to leave it immediately, I must attain an understanding of this world, the facts and logic and histories and secrets that make up what is so fascinating to me.
And what of when I am older, and more well-read, and a better erudite historian of this world, and of good writing and good poetry and good music and good wine - and when I’ve acquired a better sense of humor, a bigger vocabulary, and when I’ve lived through the tremendous speed of the fantastic and the aesthetic, only to decide that all I want to do is marry and settle down in the country, and when I may or may not have led a legion to win a war, or been to Hell, and finished it - what do I propose I’ll have to offer then?
It starts somewhere in China, where what appears to be the skeleton of a dragon is discovered. Then, a week later, the Loch Ness monster rears its head, and holds it there, poses for everyone to see and to take photos, proof that the world is going to be alright. Then, a shoe-in, something magically Californian happens. All the televisions in the world are turned, so that they face the wall. The quiet and unassuming existence of the Pacific Northwest begins to reveal alarming secrets. Meanwhile in Israel, improbably, the plot is thinning. The best song ever is released anonymously.
And so I’m hoping that I’ve managed to leave enough of an impression of myself, whether it be perplexing, maddening, whimsical, perhaps a touch melancholy, that my academic image becomes less of a dicey enterprise and more a leap of logic and of faith, something that when read slightly in between the lines exposes itself as full of possibility,
2003
Paris lives and attends high school in New York City. He is a passionate rock climber and a sometime slam poet. His ambitions are to move to Northern California, to become a professional climber, and to write about his climbing. Paris will turn 16 on May 12th.