The Path of Awesomeness

Yes. Awesomeness is not a switch. It's not a magic potion or a silver bullet. It's hard. It's tough. It's a process. It takes time and it comes to those who invest in it. It is not for the fainthearted so if you are one, leave now and go back to your life and do what you were doing.

Awesomeness is a path. It is a paradigm shift and an alternate perspective to the SAME things that surround you. So how do we start our journey to awesomeness? 

#1 Variety

Don't do too much of the same thing. Variety is the spice of life. Monotony makes you the opposite of awesome. Try new things.

#2 Empathy

Read the news. Watch it. Learn what's happening around you. Locally AND globally. This gives you vision. Knowing is half the battle. Look around. See those people? No? Get outside and look at those people. Think about what they are thinking. Try to feel what they might be feeling. This is called empathy.

#3 Indulgence

Like something? Dedicate time and indulge in it. Love food? Cook. Instagram that. Clean them dishes. Don't forget to eat. Wanted to watch that movie? Take time out and watch it. Wanted to finish that book/game? Use that holiday and finish it. Stories and memories are important. Take pictures. Listen to stories attentively. Someone spent a lot of time creating them. Appreciate that. Tell your stories. Find ways to tell your stories better. Reflect upon stories and memories. This is where you learn valuable lessons.

#4 Respect

Respect people. You heard me right. I don't care who you are. There is a certain sect of people you hate. Respect them. Respect your opponent. Respect your enemies. Because they have dared to stand against something that is overflowing with awesomeness. That takes guts. Respect the shit out of that bravery. You must remember, people and their views are shaped by their circumstances. You don't know what they've been through. Read #2 again. Be presentable. Out of shape? Exercise. Eat healthy. Look at your wardrobe. Study basic fashion. Dress well. People want to take pictures with you because you are on the path of awesomeness. So look good in pictures. If you don't know how, learn to look good in pictures. If you respect people and are a respectable person, you will command respect.

#5 Passion

Have two passions at least. First is where you compete against others. Compete passionately. Lose gracefully. Keep calm. Don't rage. Read #4 again. Respect your opponents because they fought you. Because they taught you. Keep competing. Win. Read #2 AND #4 again. Be humble in your victories. Second is where you perform for others. Learn to play an instrument. Be a great storyteller. Do standup comedy. Get artsy. Write poetry. Write a book. Maybe a blog. Take pictures. Do something that you are passionate about, that you can show others and makes you interesting as fuck.

#6 Noobs

Do not bash noobs. Protect them from noob-bashers. Read #2 and #4 again. If they are trying, nurture and help them improve; if not, encourage them to try but they are not your responsibility.

There we go. These are rules that look simple but it takes a brave soul to follow them. Follow them and you will be on the path of awesomeness.

Unbiased Zen

There are times when you look at the sky, try to comprehend the size of stars, the distance that separates us from a possibly intelligent life-form, these facts belittle our existence. It's in this little world that we thrive. Struggle hard to get where we want to. We learn and keep moving forward.

Over the course of time, some bad experiences leave us bitter. Some things shock us, scar us for life, change our point of view or make us a completely new person. Traveling is useful. It shows you the way people live. It's how you would be if you were born and raised in a different part. That also gives you a reflection of what you are because of where you grew up. By that, I don't mean a geographic location. I mean the worlds you were exposed to. I grew up on the internet like many others around the world. Due to which, I have more in common with some guy living in Tunisia than I have with my offline neighbors.

What separates us humans from each other are the choices we make, the different ways we look at the same things, the way we picture an ideal world and many more things. It all comes down to choice. The other side of the coin is circumstance. Circumstances affect choices and choices affect circumstances. You are where you are because of what you did yesterday (circumstance). You did what you did yesterday because of what was practically possible yesterday (choice). Thanks to yesterday's choice you have today's circumstance. This affects your choice, today.

Some times, some people can be really inconsiderate. It pissed me off how less they thought of others. Hell, I might even be one of them! That was my moment of clarity. They are doing what they are doing because of the circumstances they are put into.

It's a loop. So here I was wondering, how can I make better decisions? (which would result into better circumstances and choices) What can get me thinking in the right way? That's when I found out about Ensou.

Ensou

Ensō symbolizes a moment when the mind is free to simply let the body/spirit create. The brushed ink of the circle is usually done on silk or rice paper in one movement and there is no possibility of modification: it shows the expressive movement of the spirit at that time.

The moment of absolute expression. The moment when you can truly express your subconscious without anything shrouding the thought process. The moment where you can make the right choice for your desired circumstance. Now I know this sounds very much like Master Shifu from Kung Fu Panda but with distractions, it is difficult to think and express clearly. As he and Master Oogway once said, you need Inner Peace.

Bottom line being, accept the universe for what it is. Harness its flow. Don't hold onto grudges. Feed the white wolf instead. Overwrite destructive thoughts with constructive solutions.


Nem,
signing off.

Living on the Beach and in the Mountains

This is more of a revelation post than a rant post. Although apologies if I'm not able to hold myself back. In this post, we are gonna discuss society. Yeah, the people that surround you. To you, that's society. To them, you are a part of their society.

Ever been told that you are special snowflake? We all were. So the answer is, no you're not.

So basically, I've started to classify people into three categories. Call me a stuck-up judgmental idiot but I don't really see a way around this issue without getting in harms way. Drastic situations call for drastic measures.

Humans - These are the people you can freely interact with. Your friends. You can have a non-egoistic argument with them and come to solid conclusions. Swear at each other without offending the other. You don't have to tactfully sugarcoat your point to get it through. These are your true friends and these are the people your mind truly see as humans.

How do we make friends? Some of us are socially awkward. Were we born that way? Hell no. We all had friends in kindergarten. We are born as social creatures. It's the interactions with society and the failures, obstacles and pressure we face over time that makes us socially awkward. Rather, I should use the more appropriate phrase, lose faith in society. Some of the smartest people in the history of mankind were known to be solitary, with a small circle of friends. That's right; SMALL CIRCLE OF FRIENDS.

Friends are people who share the same issues, situations, experiences or places as you. In short, to be naturally friends with someone, you need to have stuff in common. But that's not enough for your brain to treat them as humans. They need to see the world, the same way as you do. Of course, you won't have the exact same image in mind but as long as there is a common objective, you'll end up with allies in completely unexpected places. Your brain thinks of them as equals.

Animals - You know that acquaintance who you nod and smile to, when you walk by. We don't particularly enjoy it but sometimes you have to talk to them. This 'chore' is not as easy as talking to your friends. You need to be diplomatic in structuring your point to get it through. You can deem them as allies but not really friends. You can't really share yourself with them like you can with humans. They are the kind of people with whom you need small talk to be comfortable with. Here's a quote from Pulp Fiction to show you what I mean,

Mia: Don't you hate that?
Vincent: What?
Mia: Uncomfortable silences. Why do we feel it's necessary to yak about bullshit in order to be comfortable?
Vincent: I don't know. That's a good question.
Mia: That's when you know you've found somebody special. When you can just shut the fuck up for a minute and comfortably enjoy the silence.

That's the difference between a human and an animal. Most professional/formal relationships are of this nature. The animalistic nature. The 'I will not bite you if you do not bite me' kind of relationships. Let's admit it, we don't really like to deal with animals unless we have no other choice. You might occasionally indulge in small talk but you know it's not going beyond that. The most that can happen is you discover a common interest or a side of them. Not that it's impossible but it's just difficult for them to be your friends.

The reason why I call this group as animals is because they are animate. They move, talk and (are supposed to) think. However, our interaction with them is similar to the way we interact with animals. We pat their heads, with words. We try to pull the horse to the water, with words. We rub their bellies, with words. We experiment and see if our cat likes shiny objects or round objects more; all of this, with words.

You can never consider them as equals (unless you figure out something about them that changes their image in your head to a human). They will forever be the most obvious people and to them, you end up becoming some mysterious being from the legends.

Trees - When was the last time you smiled or waved to a tree? That's exactly what these people are to your brain. Ever had the feeling of being surrounded by people yet lonely without contact? Chances are you were surrounded by trees. Being surrounded by trees is similar to living in the mountains. You are surrounded by trees but there's nothing more to it; you will have people everywhere but you can't really interact with them. If you have lived for a really long time in a forest, even the sight of an animal can seem like a rare opportunity.

In a forest, you might as well talk to animals. They don't understand you and you don't understand them but hey! It's any day better than talking to a tree!

There ARE times when you have to talk to a tree. Like when you are buying something at the departmental store or taking a cab. Here our tree becomes an animal because you interact with them. You don't interact with them because you WANT to. You interact with them because you NEED something. Unlike animals, you don't really consider them as someone you can interact with but if you do, it's because you NEED something. In Indonesia, that guy working at KFC couldn't speak English but we still managed to communicate my meal and their price by pointing and using a calculator. So simply put, you can promote a tree to an animal.

To summarize all that, I would like to conclude, humans are the people closest to you, animals are the ones you interact with but they are still far from you and trees are the ones who exist but we don't really acknowledge their presence. Your mind can promote a Tree to an Animal via NEED. Your mind can also promote an Animal to Human via TRUST / SIMILARITIES. First impressions are important because that's when you deem a person as a Tree, an Animal or a Human.

With the nomenclature complete, let's get to the point I want to discuss.

The more humans and less trees you have in your life, the more popular you feel. Every person is important and every person has something to say, something to stand up for. There are a few animals but that's fine, we have more humans and barely any trees. That's the beach. You can see very far, very clear. Humans, even in the distance, are very prominent. You can see the occasional animals but very few trees.

This is the exact opposite of feeling lonely. In a state of loneliness it feels as if you are surrounded by trees and a few animals; almost like living in the mountains. You prefer company of these sad animals because talking to animals is better than talking to trees. Deeps inside you know you need human interaction but that's not happening; not here in the mountains.

When you are in the mountains, no one really watches you, except trees and the occasional animals. So you don't really care how you look or what you do. Not like the trees can make a difference to you. The animals can pester you but you can fend them off. This causes a sense of self-centered-ness. There's no human on this mountain except you. You let your hair grow. Stop looking at the mirror. Interact with animals. Even talk to trees because you need to. Times like these you wonder, if a human were to see you in this state... they would probably think of you as an animal.

At the same time, the mountain blinds you. There are so many trees, it's hard to see other humans. Just like you, they prefer to hide away and the cycle of loneliness continues. Even if they see each other, all they see is an animal starring at them. Self growth isn't required since there's no human to see/comprehend it. Helping the mountain become a better place isn't required because we are searching for the beach. If we wanna be at the beach, why even bother fixing a mountain (that can't even be fixed, to begin with)? You start treating your mind, body and surrounding like garbage. This is depression.

On the beach, when you are surrounded by humans, you want to be a better human because you see humans and they see you. You actively try to be a better person, thereby making the beach a better place. You might even see some animals as humans because that's what they seem like on the beach. You don't mind cleaning the beach because you are happy being surrounded by more humans than animals or trees. Every person has a happy place where they belong, where they are with people who are more like them. Where they can just be themselves, where trees don't blind and animals don't attack them.

So here's a question for you, are you living on a mountain too or do you see yourself on a beach?

Parental Dilemma of the Mankid

Despite my efforts to live as a grown independent man, I find myself back at the place where I started. In my parent's home... as a child, I once was. The thing about being with your parents is, no matter how much you grow or how much ever you mature, to them, you'll always be a kid. Perhaps, it's because they WANT to see you as a kid. That's how their memory has registered you and less flexible humans fear change. So they disapprove or overlook it. I might just be harsh on myself but as a twenty two year old living with his parents, I call myself a failure. Feeling like a man-kid is something I utterly detest.

Being twenty something, it's difficult to live with your parents. You have your ideologies that have been well thought, carefully conceived, skilfully tweaked and sharply plotted. They have their own. Supposedly... things that 'withstood the test of time'. Even the animal kingdom teaches us, young ones don't live with their parents, once they can hunt for themselves. I read somewhere, 'The key to change is not in resisting the old but on channelizing all your energy into the new'. I mean, for a second here just wait. Stop whatever you are doing and think about it. If the Homo Erectus would've done the exact same thing as his parents, we wouldn't be walking on two feet.

Evolution teaches us not to mimic our parents. Now I'm getting off topic here; let's get back to that. So say, you are twenty something who just finished college and is having a hard time landing a job in this horrid economy. There comes a day when you realize, "Oh no, I'm gonna have to move back with my parents and life's gonna get ugly again." We love our parents. We really do. We wouldn't be where we are if they hadn't supported us (doesn't apply to all). But living with them is just not practical; not in your twenties. Especially, if you are one of those humans who is actively trying to evolve the human race. Yes, the Homo Erectus, of the modern time (with less homo and more erectus).

Now I was reverting back to my childhood habits and puny arguments with my parents. When I was living alone, these things didn't happen. Life was very peaceful. The thought process was simple and I didn't have to carefully sugarcoat my point fearing I would hurt someone's ego. It was so easy with friends, colleagues and the landlords.

The landlords. They didn't have kids. I was their kid. But they never treated me like one. Because my presence was an income to them. If I leave, they not only lose a source of income, they also lose an epic starcraft coach. Add to that, they have to search for a new tenant, which is a hectic process all together. So pissing me off was one of the last things they would do. They didn't have an ego. Maybe they did. But they never bothered me with it. There was this mutual respect. "If I be rude to my tenant, he leaves and I have to look for another one (who can play starcraft with me)" AND "If I be rude to my landlord, he kicks me out."

This landlord-tenant relationship worked out great. Hell, they cried when I left! Not even my biological parents did that. So what was so difficult about my parent-child relationship? Was I being immature? Was I taking my parents and their opinions too seriously? Why couldn't I have a relation with them like I had with my landlords?

That's when I thought, why not?

You are twenty something, have to live with your parents and are having difficulties coping with it? Change the nature of your relationship. Stop thinking of them as your parents and start thinking of them as your landlords. Pay them a monthly rent if required. Parents with a sense of humor would laugh it off and sensitive ones would be pissed when you suggest this concept of redefining your relationship and paying for what used to be free. Practical ones would accept the money and let you live with your dignity. Mine didn't; they were pissed.

Now if you think your parents might be too shocked with this, don't tell them. Just start acting like it. I mean, they DO reserve the right to throw you out if you do something really really stupid. That's the same as a landlord. Now if they don't accept the rent you were so willing to pay, why not pay them in services like, doing the laundry or cleaning up or setting up their wifi or anything that makes their life easier.

So if you are twenty something and are forced to live with your parents (for whatever reasons), don't imagine yourself as the kid, you are the tenant. Act like it.

The Stack of Life

Whenever you are to make a major move and you are not really excited about it or maybe even unsure of the move you are making, this principle should help you out. The Stack of Life principle.

Today, I met an old friend of mine and told him about move. He couldn't help but notice that I was sad. As a bro, he suggested I was thinking of this as a terminal thing. As if things are ending. He is right. This is not the end. There's more to life than moving back to your hometown. There are many other places to explore! So many things I haven't seen or done!

The way he puts it, the experiences you get in life can be considered as elements in a stack. There will be good times and there will be bad times. But they all go in your stack of life. So eventually, you'll have all these experiences in your stack.

The other thing was, you should judge what's on your stack and what it looks like but don't be judgmental of it. We should rather try to find out more things to add to our stacks. Get out of your comfort zone; try out new things. Find out things you would like to add to your stack.

Over time, you will have all these experiences and memories that you accumulated over time. It's these memories and what you make of them that makes you who you are.

The Shopping Cart Hack

Ever been in a situation when you return home from a shopping spree, crawl into bed and wake up the next morning wondering why you brought all that stuff; most of which you wont even need?

Some French dude once said,

"人間は弱いんだよ。"
"Humans are weak."

It's funny to see that guy in the movies who manages to survive great perils like jumping off a building, surviving a car accident, listen to Justin Beaver sing and what not; only to die by a misplaced nail, piercing him at a vulnerable spot. This is just physical weakness.

The more dangerous form, I believe, is mental weakness. Inability to think or make rational decisions is like a debuff that limits your vision allowing you to see only the center of your monitor. Or should I say, allowing you to see only what is in front of you. There is always more to anything, than what meets the eye. That's why, even though it seems wasteful, be sure to carry a Pokemon who can use HM05 in a dark cave.

Going back to the example we started with. It's a regretful morning and you are stuck with an empty wallet and stuff you don't need. Studying the human species and the human side of myself, I realized, "人間は弱いんだよ。" Without a goal, purpose or motive, it's easy to be lost, it's easy to forget WHY you are doing WHAT you are doing. Add money to this mix and voila! You have an adult; a kid with money. Being humans, we like those shiny things. You see that cute girl in the subway and it somehow pleases you. Even without knowing her mentality, mindset or anything about her, you somehow like her. Hell, she might just be a psychopath killer! Who knows. My point being, shiny things make simple minded humans happy and let's be honest, no matter how perplexed your mind is, everyone has a simple side to them. The vulnerable one.

As if this level of happiness isn't adequate, the consumerist world today, adds another thing to this explosive mix. VARIETY. When I was at the grocery store today, I realized the amount of variety we get. The fact that we have choices has a very liberal feel to it. Nothing wrong that.

THIS is what was wrong - 

Locking the door to my apartment before heading for the supermarket, my intention was to buy something to drink that is healthy, cheap, thirst-quenching and can be had in surplus without major side effects. That itself was enough to cross beer and soda off my list. The first thing that came to my mind was Orange juice. 決めた。(decided) Orange juice it shall be. At the supermarket, practicality kicked in and I realized, Ice Lemon Tea would be a better and cheaper alternative. At the end of my spree, I asked myself, what is this bar of Snickers, this HUGE can of Milo, shitload of Pocky sticks and a two cups of cup ramyun (Korean Ramen) doing in my basket? Do I even need this? Are they essential to my survival? THIS is what was wrong.

Humans are weak. I had let my humane side do the shopping. As I looked at all the junk in my basket, I felt stupid. The fun part was picking stuff off the shelf and throwing it in my basket. What was not fun was about to happen in a few minutes at the cashier. That was when I saw myself waking up in the morning, just the way I described at the beginning of this post. As much as I had enjoyed 'sliding things in my basket', I hated the fact that I'm gonna have to 'wake up to that sick feeling'. Promptly, I placed those things back on their shelves.

They say, some of the greatest discoveries are made by accident. It was only by this accident that I ended up with this crazy idea of satisfying your wants by 'sliding things in your basket' and being practical about it by 'placing them back on the shelf' after a moment of realization. Productive? Definitely not. But if you are a small time schizo like me, it's amusing to avoid the 'regretful morning' scenario while still pampering the kid in you. Thus, I present to you, the Shopping Cart Hack; the joy of shopping and the joy of not feeling like an idiot.

Nem and nem,
signing off

Dinosaurism

Living your life by a set of rules, in a way, gives meaning to it. A life without a purpose is not much different than that of a wanderer. Personally, I think, Life is more about Time. Think of it this way, we are allocated a particular amount of time in this world and we are all gonna die someday. So what truly matters is what we do in this stipulated time period. How we spend this time or with whom we spend it with is actually spending a part of your life with that person or that subject.

Learning is a life long process and there are many things that we learn; actively or passively. One of the fastest ways to learn, I believe, is learning from mistakes. This statement doesn't exactly promote the more misinterpreted meaning to MAKE mistakes so you can learn from them. It can also mean learning from mistakes made by others. Another approach is to foresee mistakes and to avoid them completely. But that's moving away from my point.

Well so here I am, trying to learn from the wisdom left by some of the most ancient species known to mankind - The Dinosaurs. It's amazing, how simple their life was, yet so systematic. Fascinating creatures, they were and shall be. Following are the commandments that I have learned from them.


The Ten Commandments of Dinosaurism

1 - You are free to be ANY dinosaur, anytime you want. Hence you can follow behavioral patterns of any other dinosaur depending on the situation. For instance, Kids love Barney.

Observe closely the expressions of the kids.

2 - You are free to eat anything. ANYTHING. Even other Dinosaurs. However, that also means other Dinosaurs can eat you too. (here, eating can be a metaphor to 'messing with')

Like. A. Boss.

3 - You are to follow the laws of your jungle. If you are to go to a new jungle, learn the rules; follow them to ensure survival. Knowing the rules tell you what NOT to do. If you know what not to do, what you CAN do is only limited by your imagination.

Unrelated picture; but she is really cute.

4 - You must take care of the jungle you live in and ensure it is fit for yourself, other Dinosaurs and the future Dinosaurs to come.

and the environment.

5 - You are allowed to suffix your nickname with -saur/-osaur in informal and -saurus/-osaurus in formal situations. Every Dinosaur has a right to have an awesome nickname.

"Dear no! It's SIR Tyrannosaurus!"

6 - You will be nice to little Dinosaurs. You, YOURSELF, will not indulge in activities you don't want THEM to do. However, you must not hamper evolution. Dinosaurs would've never taken to the skies if their parents had prohibited any attempts to fly.

You really don't want kids to do stupid things just because they saw you do it first. That would only result in devolution.

7 - You will leave your nest once you can hunt on your own. Don't be a burden to your creators. They can manage on their own, just like they did before you existed. You must be grateful to them for everything they did and didn't do for you, for those are the very things that make you the Dinosaur you are.

What's a post without cutesy artwork. So there, dawww all you want.

9 - You will prioritize the evolution of your species. If you are required to, a mate must be chosen with utmost care, prioritizing factors that you would want to see in the future generations.

Apparently, large eyes and long legs are still hot.

10 - You will one day go extinct but you must leave behind something that will baffle the humans for centuries to come; only then shall you be a true Dinosaur.

A human, baffled at what you left behind.

Thus I conclude my findings and studies. The path shown to us by the dinosaurs is a very harsh one, indeed. Even though we, as individual Dinosaurs, WILL, one day be extinct, it's this limited amount of time we have that makes life so important and interesting.

Nemosaurus,
Signing off.

How not to be Forever Alone

Have you ever known that one guys who is actually a genius and knows how things are done but is stuck in a miserable situation? Yeah, this post is for that guy or girl. For that forever alone guy or girl who encounters rejection and gives up hope.

It's often when you do something you enjoy, you lose track of time. This simple statement has evolved into a concept in psychology called the Flow. Immersing yourself into a task or process might seem simple but for some it is a fairly challenging task. Some might even fool kids into thinking that they have ADD (attention deficiency disorder) thereby scarring them for life. But I've known someone who was classified with ADD and had to grow up with that label on his head. The guy's a freaking genius (and no, he is not a character in the fast and furious series). It's often when a person is handicapped with a label, they get this intense urge to outperform. The reason why I like to be around these people is because they emit a certain positive aura, despite all odds. Optimism, hope and faith are very strong driving forces.

This chart indicates the emotions you might experience when you encounter a tasks of a certain challenge level with your expertise at that task (simply put, during flow). You can test it out with yourself while performing some tasks and seeing if the emotions displayed are true. Do let me know in the comments below.

Over the months, I've been promptly following Rule 32 of the Rules of the Internet. Amidst my lurking sprees, it's hard to avoid the rage comics and adventures of Forever Alone. Every time I look at Forever Alone Guy, I won't lie, I did find it amusing. Reflecting upon certain situations, I must admit, there are a few to which I can co-relate to. These are the times when one can't help picturizing himself/herself as forever alone guy.

But the question is - is it really that bad? Personally, I need some time where I need to be left alone. It helps me think better; gives me the space I need. There is a saying in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit, which goes something like this, "ati parichayasch avadnya". Literally translating this makes it a mess, so I would prefer to convey the meaning behind it. It means, 'if someone or something has always been there, that presence gets taken for granted'. It's closest to the English phrase, "Distance makes the heart grow fonder". Being alone helps you relish the company of people. You learn to appreciate them further.

But if you really don't wanna be this forever alone character, what should you do? How do you stop yourself  from making a rage comic about the funny things that happen to you and later feeling miserable. The thing about not being forever alone is being social. It is by being a contributing member to whatever you are a part of that you can interact with people and people interact with you.

I remember watching Fight Club, a long time ago. What started as a small hobby group ended up becoming a HUGE organization. That truly illustrates how someone can start something and get things rolling. Even if this genius is not recognized or entertained by someone else, they can always start their own jig and get something going. This 2006 movie that I recently watched, Accepted, joins the dots for my hypothesis. Didn't get into a college? No problems, MAKE ONE. If you need it, then there are people out there who need it too; probably, just as bad. If you can't get it, then there are people out there who want it but can't get it either. If you feel lonely and rejected, there are people out there who feel the same! So if you feel that way, try to search for these people and support them with a goal that you share. Coz together, you can't be alone :p

Modes of Life

One reason why I am writing here is because people don't generally read my blog. It helps me get things off my head by writing about them. So whatever I write will remain a mystery for the onlookers but those who are truly interested in taking a different view at the common things we see in life (and who are interested in me, of course) go that extra mile and visit my blog. It's more like yapping and ranting without having to torture someone. But if that someone is interested in being subjected to this torture, then continue reading.

Commoners say, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade."

However a great man (in a fictional universe) has rather... different opinions,

When I was a measly teenager, I used to think that living alone away from your family (maybe in a different city) would be fun; I was right. But I must admit, now, I have a new-found respect for my parents and the way they raised me over the years. It's only because of that kind of tough upbringing that I can survive on my own without submitting to follies common muggles might make. Although unlike my teenage days, I love and respect my parents now. 

From the way I'm getting all sentimental about this and reminiscing the past, it can't be more clear that I'm in trouble. For the simple reason of keeping this post short (which I assure you it wont be), I won't be ranting about those; at least not right now. This tale, I will leave for a day when we will be drinking at a table and then we can laugh at the whole thing. But yes, things are under control now and the explosion has been contained. Extensive personal experience with them has improved my skill of disaster management.

But honestly, when life gets hard it means that you have been playing on easy mode for too long and it's time to play hard mode. So face this situation like a boss. Screw the hard mode and set it to veteran |-_-|

Dimensional Explanation

This video has been bugging me for such a long time now. Hence here I am sharing it with you. A seat and an open mind are required to watch this. This might be a bit disturbing to some, entertaining to some but certainly thought provoking. Have fun ^_^

How being enslaved by an alien race would benefit humanity

Firstly, what's with the hysteric look? You probably clicked that link wondering, 'wtf is this about?' OR 'Seriously, how is that even possible?' In the next few paragraphs, I'm gonna try to elaborate my point. It's just one way to look at it, so if you disagree/ don't like it/ hate me in general, please don't shoot me. Secondly, to my friends, families, supporters, fans and haters (yes, my dear haters, I do love you) apologies for letting this place gather dust over there past few months. I can rant about how life is becoming busier day by day, but hell, that's not what you are here for, are you? Therefore, without further ado, let's get down to business.

So throughout history, we have seen a technologically superior race invade and enslave an inferior one; exploiting them and resources, which rightfully belong to them. The same old same old. As time progressed, they ran out of ideas for motion pictures (yeah, that's what they used to call movies, back in the day) and since science fiction was booming, they thought, 'HEY! Why not try something new; something from the past and something from the new!' and thus was born the epic genre of the Alien invasion movies. There are just SO many of them, the thought of listing a few intimidates me (not just because of the sheer numbers but also thanks to the raging alien movie fans who would go, 'you n00b! How could you forget the most epicest awesomest alien movie of all time - <insert name of the so-called epicest awesomest alien movie of all time here>').

Getting back, the basic theme of these movies is pretty much the same. A hi-tech alien race decides to come to Earth and enslave or destroy all human beings. The destroying part doesn't really make sense, unless they want natural resources, say minerals or vespene gas, without human interference.

But then again, they'll need to mine or extract these minerals or gases, which again, would require someone to man the stations. (or should I say, 'alien the stations'; no joke intended there) Here, they will have to either employ staff from their own planet OR implement machinery (or some psyonic technology) to look after it. Strictly, from a financial point of view, that requires investment and maintenance (at the very least). Why go through all this bs when you can just ask the humans to get it for you? That's the reason why I feel, destroying the human race isn't in their best interest.

Then again, there would be the old school non-believers, still living in their little bubble of, 'No, aliens don't exist.' I mean, seriously, grow up. You exist, I exist, we exist. A thriving population of nearly 6 billion species of the human race, so why not some other race on some other planet? [note - for those who talk about 'life supporting' planets, you must always remember, the Earth's atmosphere wasn't made for us, WE were made for it. Our ancestors evolved and adapted to it. So who knows, our alien invaders might just be Nitrogen breathing, Sulfuric acid drinking badasses] (< paranoia)

The other thing is, we, the human race, are trying so hard to venture into outer space. What if THEY have already succeeded? (< major paranoia)

Now ever since I came to Singapore (YAY!!!), I realized how different things would be if the British hadn't ruled this place so many years ago. One of the biggest differences, for a foreigner like me, would be that I would be speaking either Hokkien or Mandarin or some other Chinese dialect or Malay or maybe even Tamil! Overall, we have this linguistic uniformity thanks to the British gift of English.

For illustrative purposes, let's consider a fictional planet called Xeforonia (by common sci-fi conventions it has an X in it and is hard to pronounce. I can almost imagine our Xeforonian commander trying to communicate with Raj, the fictional Indian slave from Russel Peter's illustrations.

Commander : xquiie fuu ze kottan meeneraals, Raj  (Raj, go mine the minerals)
Raj : Saar.... It's not kottan... it's called Cotton. *picks cotton from the fields*
Commander : -_-"    *facepalms*

Raj : 1
Xeforonian Commander : 0

My point being, they will need to educate the humans and teach us their language and technology. Now this is the point where they are, practically, nailing their own coffin. Because once the humans, master their language, we will do what we have been doing for the past 'I-don't-wanna-count-how-many' years. MIGRATION XD

At this time, our Xeforonian bosses would wish they had never met us.

The benefit for humanity, here, would be a common language that all humans would be able to speak, since it was forcibly taught in school. Isn't that how people of most commonwealth nations learnt English? (Hell, I did) Might sound silly to an extent but it would foster a sense of oneness, unity, mutual understanding and <more words from the sociology text book here> amongst us humans.

Over time, what seemed like slavery, suddenly turns out to be an opportunity! So the next time, you see a flying soccer slowly landing, don't panic, scream and run; rather anticipate your new bosses. Wave to them, give them a warm welcoming smile, get to know them better. Because at the end, they might be invading our planet and enslaving us but in the long run, it's WE who will be taking over their planet XD

To top it, who knows, they might just be kinda cute! ;)

The Implanted Curse

Today, I wanna focus on a phenomenon that occurs quite predominantly in day to day life. More often to people who believe in a higher power or the paranormal compared to the non-believers. They say, words can be powerful tools. Once said, they can't be taken back, no matter what. A message given in an implicit manner may lead to misunderstandings and possible catastrophes.

We all know what a curse is. No explanation needed there. But just for people who might be new to the concept (rare people), curses are intentions or wishes to bring harm to others generally cast as words or sometimes even as spells or rituals. Some being of the occult nature, while others are just words said in fits of rage. Whatever the curse maybe, they give off tremendous amounts of negative energy which affects the psychology rather than the actual physical world.

Implanted curses don't necessarily have to be swear words OR curses cast with evil intentions. They can be a saying, they can be a belief, they can be a superstition or anything that prohibits you from doing something with a bad consequence if you fail to obey.

Good and bad things keep happening in everyone's lives. For instance, a ticket counter closing on your face would be considered as bad luck. Whereas, getting the last pack of your favorite cookies from the store would obviously be considered as good luck (almost as if it was there especially for you). My point here is, life is a ride of ups and down. Good and bad things keep happening.

People believe in things (more staunchly) due to experience. If you believe in karma and do something wrong, the guilt will be a burden to you; coz at the back of your head, you know it's gonna come back at you. After this misdeed, if something bad happens to you, the immediate reason for this action is given as bad karma, even though that bad incident was going to happen anyways.

Superstitions say walking under a ladder gives bad luck. So after walking under a ladder, if anything goes wrong with a person, s/he tends to blame it on the ladder. If the same scenario was considered without the person walking under the ladder yet resulted in the bad consequence, the same person might not have even paid attention to trivial bad occurrences.

I'll explain this with a real life example that forced me to think about this. Every three months or so, a beggar dressed in white used to pay us a visit. She was a very old lady and I remember being scared of her almost witch-like features, the first time I saw her. My mom was one of her regular customers who gave her used clothes, food and sometimes even spare change. On a whim, one day, mom decided to ignore this lady. She waited and waited at the door for alms but no one attended her. Eventually she gave up and walked away. With that, mom hoped she would stop coming, now onwards. As evening fell, my father returned home from work. He had a grave expression on his face; partly concealing sorrow. As it turned out, he had a minor car accident. Thankfully, he wasn't hurt. However the car was damaged and so was his spirit. At around the same time as every time, the old lady appeared the next month. Out of superstitious fear, my mom didn't turn her down this time.

Coincidence? Who knows. But the curse was implanted in my mom's head the minute she had turned down the old beggar for the first time. Her conscience was eating her away on the inside. She kept pondering over the thought of the refusing alms to the old beggar. As a result, the cause of the next bad thing that occurred HAD to be what was on her mind.

THAT is an implanted curse. A curse that doesn't really exist but gets implanted in your head because of a fixed mindset about an action and its reaction.

Implanted Curses are very often used in folklore to keep the children of the village from going in the woods. Eventually, a kid braves the odds and enters the forest on a bet or something. A few days later, s/he gets hurt while doing chores. What the other kids think - 'its coz s/he entered the woods!! So it must be true!!!' That is how superstitions are born. At this point of time, they are not something talked about, they are real.

So people, the next time you hesitate before doing something that will (inexplicably) bring bad fortune, remember, the curse has already been implanted in your brain >:)

If you have had any such experiences, I'd love to hear about them in the comments section below. Thank you for reading till the very end; appreciate it.

nemui Nem,
signing off :p

The Hands of Time

Well, since most of my pals are having to put up with their exams, I'm planning to make this a short one.

Its a common observation that time goes really slow when you are bored and super fast when you are at your favorite activity. I do get this itch to mention this one German scientist who did quite a lot of research on this and later migrated to the states and facepalmed when the states used his ideas to nuke down one of my favorite nations. But now that his grandson is skateboarding away, it really doesn't matter much.

I'm just gonna put my 'timely' observations in two simplistic categories - the Lazy Mode and the Workaholic mode. Here's how the hands on the watch seem like when on either modes -


Lazy Mode:

Hour's Hand - tells you what part of the day it is.

Minute's Hand - tells you EXACTLY how late you are.

Second's Hand - Existence remains unnoticed.


Workaholic Mode:

Hour's Hand - YOU CAN ACTUALLY FEEL IT MOVE!

Minute's Hand - used to tell exactly how long it took you to finish a task.

Second's Hand - a constant reminder of how fast time is moving.

So look at your watch's Second's hand and go study :p
That's all for now, catchya later this summer.

Nem,
signing off :p

ps - If you are afflicted by a certain catastrophe called 'examinations'. Try to make it out in single piece and DO NOT lose sanity, just hang in there. Good Luck :D

Haphazardous Impulses

Destiny; the unknown force that makes things flow the way they are meant to. The force that governs all actions and reactions of this world. Till a certain age in life, I didn't believe in such an unearthly force. Its was only when I started seeing the world the way I see it now, I could feel its existence. Everything happens for a reason. Destiny applies for those that don't.

Back when I was a kid, the festival of Ganeshotsav, which generally comes amidst a spam of other Hindu festivals somewhere in September, used to be one of my favorites. To me, now its just a bunch of people who get an idol home for a couple of days, pretend to be its slaves and celebrate when they drown their deity in a nearby lake or sea. (which, honestly, doesn't makes sense. If you love the deity, why send him back? and if you don't, why bring him home in the first place?)

But things were different when I was a kid. Ganeshotsav was just another reason to stay away from school and celebrate. We didn't have Ganapati at our home; however, our neighbors did! Being the energetic jolly kid, I was always around their home, helping and (lazily) assisting them in ways fit for a 8~9 year old kid. I remember waking up early in the morning to get the deity home, on the first day. The part that had always been a mystery to me was the Visarjan. Since they did it late at night and because I was a child, restricted by a curfew time (unlike now), I never got to see it. I had seen it a million times on television but digital media cannot compare to a first hand, real life experience. Later on, as I turned towards the final few years of my teenage, my interest for the whole affair started to die out, for more reasons than I can remember. Ever so often, I used to see the Visarjan part on television; never bothered watching it till the end, either.

So after skipping college and spending the day inside my room like a self-grounded eHermit, my grandfather asked me to take a stroll and catch some fresh air at around 20:30. Granny recommended me to leave after dinner and so I was walking out the door at around 21:30. Called up a friend and as it turned out, he had just got home from a family outing and intended to study. Decided not to bother him. There was no point in calling the other friend since it would mean violating his curfew. The silver lining over this dark cloud being, I get some solo time to myself and think about things, in general.

I was at one of my most preferred spots - on the Mulund east-west flyover, watching trains go by. When suddenly I wanted water. No, I wasn't thirsty. I just wanted to see water. Lots and lots of water! I wished it rained. But judging by the weather, I knew it wasn't about to rain anytime soon. But still, I wanted water. Lots and lots of water!

It was about 21:45 when I decided, 'meh, screw it. I'm going to a place FILLED with water. RIGHT NOW!' Getting your folks used to the fact that you are a night bug IS a difficult thing, but an extended curfew DOES have its benefits. Tonight, I utilized it! Took a train northwards to the not-so-friendly suburb of Thane (that we prefer to call 'The Village') (my friends and family from the village are SO gonna kill me if they read this part) A little walk from the bustling railway junction later, I was at Talav Pali (Masunda Lake). Despite being around 10'oclock it was moderately crowded but by Indian standards, it wasn't enough to be called a crowd. The thing I found most enticing about the lake was how the buildings and lights were reflecting clearly in the stagnant water. It was so soothing to watch that I decided to blow my cover and act like the tourist I was and pull out my cell phone and take snaps.

This next picture is of a theater named Gadkari Rangayatan, where they hold plays, mostly Marathi ones. Personally, I'm not much interested in plays, let aside Marathi ones. But for some odd reason, today, I felt like watching one! Too bad there was none playing at that time, otherwise I might have given it a shot. Although, a few minutes later, it DID seem like a horribly bad idea. (since I get to see one everyday at home; free of cost)

Random impulses, I feel, are a part of what destiny holds for you. If its within my bounds, I prefer to act according to these instead of defying what's in store for me.Be it good or bad. When I was standing over the flyover and had the impulse to see water, LOTS AND LOTS OF WATER, I knew that on my way home tonight, something was bound to have happened... and it did.

As my eyes uninterestedly scanned the areas, a huge truck caught my attention. It was open and had lots people standing on the rear along with an idol of a familiar deity. 'In February?', was what my head asked first. But then it hit me that there HAD been decorations in my neighborhood as well for the same. Because it was an everyday thing for me, I had ended up completely ignoring its existence! As the driver took a shabby turn towards the lake, I realized what they were here for. The ritual I had missed all my childhood, that had been later buried under the chaos of my mind - The Visarjan!

So I kept an eye on the truck and paced faster, so that I wouldn't lose sight of it. When it stopped, I caught up and sat by a spot at the edge where they had places to sit, not too far from the truck. Amidst the Paan spitting douchebags, guys holding pinkies with other guys and hyperactive Saffies, I seemed like a complete mismatch. Despite the unnerving feeling, I decided to stick around, just to see how things go. So after checking out the place a bit, they said prayers. Apologies for the bad picture quality, night mode just isn't good enough on my phone's camera.

and after a long wait, they boarded the idol onto a motor boat, all done manually! Off went the little ship to the middle of the lake and the few people on it said farewell to their deity.

It was almost 23:30 when I left the lake and looked back upon this incident, on my way home. I wondered if I would remember this special moment, that randomly came and passed by, in years to come. That's why I decided to post this on the blog.

Funny, how you act on a random impulse and things turn out in ways you could have never imagined. A wish that I bore back then, fulfilled so many years later.

Well thanks for reading till the very end. ^_^

Nem,
signing off :D

The Ancient Tribal High-Fives

Well, its been a really long time since I wrote here and since I had some spare time today, why not breathe life into the blog again? The past few days have really been a trial for me as I realized how tough waiting is. Yes, my styuuupid results aren't out yet. Killing time with video games, movies and series seemed like a good idea at first but when your are half way through the new semester and you realize that you have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA what's going on in college, its time to act! Since I had restricted my online habits a lot last semester, I wont let that go as a waste by lazing around now!

Anyway, I know you are not reading this to listen to a crazy guy rant about how much of a sloth he has become (evidence - no blog post in January). You are probably here to get a good laugh, aren't you? But unfortunately, that's not what this place is about. I made this blog to share my crazy discoveries and inventions with the world (that is you, since you are reading this right now) in hopes that one day, I shall be remembered as the 'guy who thought of crazy stuff' (something like a smaller version of Leonardo Da Vinci) But I guess that ends up being funny in a way or so. Well, I don't care if you are laughing at my posts or laughing at me; after all, my true goal is to put a smile on that face of yours >:)

It was just another warm Sunday afternoon when I was lazing on the bed thinking of which gun would be better to kill the Spanish drug lords, who had been dancing wearing sombreros and being a pain in the ass for my Uncle Kenny Wu. After choosing the Railgun as my weapon of choice, backed up by a few handmade Molotov that I made at the petrol pump, I drove to their hideout in a stolen car.

On my way to their base, I noticed something very peculiar in my surrounding! (in my REAL LIFE surrounding) My eyes shifted from the Nintendo DS to an odd pattern on the bedsheets. They appeared to be cave paintings from some ancient tribal cave, cleverly copy-pasted on a bedsheet!

It had all sorts of weird depictions of tribal life on it. Like, feeding chickens which were as big as ostriches (lucky brats OR bad artists), children (or possibly monkeys) climbing on trees, people getting high and dancing in circles around a fire and lots of other disturbing things all depicted in a somewhat stick soldier fashion. Now the picture I found most intriguing was the following one -

There I was staring blankly at this gesture, as my (stolen) car caused a traffic catastrophe on the DS. There it was - the High Five. What, in the world, was a high five doing on bedsheets? Rather, what was a high five doing on a cave painting? Could it possibly be that the greeting gesture posts back to the nomadic era? What if the high five was a tribal Indian gesture all along? (the brown Indians, NOT the red ones) If that were the case, does that mean people greet each other like primates? O_O

Well, whatever might be the case, I was more than happy to have 'accidentally' spilled ketchup over the sheets and request an immediate change. >:) Sayounara freaky bedsheets. No more nightmares of scary tribal people with no faces or fingers XD

Oh would you look at the time? Gotta get back to err...ummm...WORK.... yes! Work!! (idk what exactly though)

Now we know that high fives are for primates or people with no faces (or fingers or lives)

Nem,
signing off

ps - take one last look at the freaky picture to engrave it into your memory so that it'll be more clearly visible in your nightmares ^_^

The Horror Icon of the Twen-teens

Its really been bothering me for a while but there might be a time when we run out of cool horror symbols to look up to.This has gone so far that its giving me nightmares! (I wouldn’t wanna go into details on this one)The sheer thought haunts me. As a lover of the horror and paranormal genre, its about time I do something about it!

Vampires used to be the coolest with their accents, bloodlust and style.But a certain SOMEBODY peed all over it. As for Werewolves, they weren’t really that cool to begin with coz they were hairy and they died from a metal used in feminine jewelry - LAME. Well, I don’t wanna be criticizing the already criticized, here (its like beating up a defeated old man… and my conscience would kill me, if I did so).

So getting back to our topic, lets continue discussing on who would get to be the NEXT HORROR ICON!!! Now, the ones that pose a serious threat to humanity would definitely be (you guessed it)ZOMBIES! Why? Coz they can be real! (Well, not as real as drunk aggressive retards; but these can be good zombie substitutes)They have what it takes to change the entire world and the way we live in it! The worst thing is – you can become one! To avail yourself of a zombie membership isn’t that hard of task either! No forms, no background checks, no verifications, no documentations, NOTHING! A bite is all that is needed and once you are a member, you can even invite you friends, family, bros, unsuspecting strangers, crazy old ladies who live with their cats, stereotypes, twilight fans, nerds and even drag queens! (caution – beware of those psychos with shotguns, baseball bats or anything that can crack your skull)

Now zombies DO have the potential to become the next horror symbols of the upcoming era (2011 -2020 : the twen-teens, as I would like to call it XD) However, we must be aware that the enemies of the horror circle might come up with something crappy to degrade zombie and steal their thunder for their selfish benefits. Example – Twilight : Apocalypse. (Where the world has been infected by a parasite and most of the human race has been zombified; that’s when the love story between zombies begins! God save us x_x)

SO we need a backup plan, just in case the zombies are taken to the ‘pink side’. Hence, the next in line are scary little girls. If you have a 5 year old sister who has a habit of walking in the corridor late at night, you would know exactly how scary that is. You couldn’t have possibly ignored them; they had been everywhere – The Exorcist, The Ring, Ju-On and more movies (that I’m too bored to list out right now) Well the key feature here is that they all are cute! That’s the whole point of scaring people! You have something cute and it suddenly becomes freaky; that comes as a shock (and that’s why the Japanese are so good at horror; simply because they are good at ‘cute’)

But instead of taking a risk, its safer to have backup for a backup! So, here comes the third contestant for the NEXT HORROR ICON! The most flexible, the most scientific, the smartest, the creepiest and the most REAL of them all – the Mad Scientist!! Why the Mad Scientist, you ask? Its simple. They made Frankenstein (here on, I will refer to the mad scientists as a group of people rather than just ONE person), they made Mr.Hyde. In fact, most of the super-villains out there are mad scientists, to begin with. (the list is SO long, I don’t even wanna start naming them)

Then, unlike zombies or little girls, they are smart! I’ll give you an example – a zombie is chasing you, you throw a piece of meat, he will stop chasing you and eat the meat. A little girl ghost is chasing you, you throw a Justin Beaver DVD, she’ll stop chasing you and run to her bedroom with the DVD. But if a Mad Scientist is chasing you, desperate to dissect your body, curious to know about your insides; nothing can save you, NOTHING! What’s worse? He might even have henchmen like the infamous Igor! (yes, the midget with a hump on his back, who wears a hood, lives in a castle and says stuff like “yesss mah-ster, the errangements have beeeeen maid”)

Besides, the other annoying factor about Mad Scientists is that they are unpredictable because of the gizmos and gadgets they might have up their sleeves. Who knows what that pointy thing in their pocket is used for? (oh wait, that was a pencil) Besides the pencil, they can do whatever they want! Like bring Frankenstein to life or make candy to control the little girl ghost or makeDolphins walk on land and other stuff that might seem kind of disturbing to common human civilization! (that’s why they live in castles on hills/cliffs where people can’t find them)

Then again there is the most threatening of qualities. THEY CAN BE REAL!! A person who is madly in love with science isn’t hard to find in different cultures these days. He can be the crazy looking old guy you see every day when returning home; who knows what he does behind closed doors? ^_^

Thus I rest my case to nominate the Mad Scientists for the next horror symbol of the twen-teens! THEY ARE COOL (and not to mention) SCARY, FREAKY AND DISTURBING enough to give you nightmares!!

Signing Off,
Traumatized Nem O_O

(PS – I wrote this to clear my mind so that I can sleep peacefully. But it seems to have backfired somehow coz I still can’t sleep) x_x"

That American Guy

Yes, I’m talking about that American guy. You have probably seen him if you watch animes or play video games even a bit, you will know who I am talking about. This guy has been all over the place and no one seems to have noticed him yet! I’m sure he has a name. What I’m curious is, about his origins; how he came into existence (not biologically; I mean, on screen). WHO is this mystery man who keeps popping up in almost any place a manga artist can imagine? So this time we focus our night vision on ‘That American Guy’.

So basically, he is this blue-eyed hyperactive blonde guy with a spikey haircut, geometric facial features and wears clothes that say out loud – AMERICA.

And if you still don’t know who we are talking about, then let me bring him to light. You have seen him as Guile from Street Fighter working in the American Air Force.

You have seen him as Lt.Surge in Pokemon as a gym leader of Vermillion Town.

You have also seen him as the ‘Typical American Consumer’ (who somehow resembles and sounds like Brad Pitt) in Yakitate Japan.

 

So who exactly is this guy? Was he a poor American kid from a trailer park, who got so frustrated of the normal life he was living, that he decided to pack his belongings and get away from the chaos and go to the land of the rising sun, to blend into the culture and become a legend? He became the face of America for the Japanese anime and manga culture! Here we uncover the mystery!


<All this crap was written before I asked the gods. Now you shall witness the power of the internet>


A deeper search over our target lead to the following context on remote section of a distant article on wikipedia. He uses the name Brad Kidd/Kid (ブラッド・キッド, Buraddo Kiddo) as he plays a character in Yakitate Japan (obviously pretending to be fooling around when actually undercover)



"A supporting character who was Kuroyanagi's classmate in college and the president of a major detective agency in America. The character is a parody of the do-it-all American Brad Pitt. Kidd is used in many instances in the manga and anime as a sort of deus ex machina in reactions or flashbacks from a masseuse to an attorney or the head of a private investigation firm."

 

Interestingly, this guy used to work in a detective agency! Further investigation leads deeper into this guy's history. Our special search division found out that he used to work in the military before becoming a gym leader in Vermilion city. Here is another extract that describes his nature as a gym leader -



"Lt. Surge is known as The Lightning American. Apparently, he is or was an American soldier who fought in at least one war, during which Electric-type Pokémon saved his life. As a member of the army, Surge was a strict CO, and was rather cautious. He was a pilot as well, and used Electric-type Pokémon to power his planes, a practice that in at least one occasion saved his life. Also, Surge saved the life of one of the Trainers in his gym who was in the army at the same time."


As Guile from Street Fighter, we managed to find out his past after disowning Raichu and his gym. Now he took up hand-to-hand combat! However, I have a hunch that he still has a pokemon hidden somewhere between fights that uses the move sonicboom for him, as he takes credits as if its his own move. Following is what we found out about him as Guile -



"A Major in the United States Air Force, he leaves his country and family to enter the World Warrior tournament to avenge the death of his friend Charlie, who was killed by M. Bison, the tournament's sponsor, sometime before the events of the game. In his ending, he defeats Bison, but is dissuaded from killing him by his wife Jane and their daughter Amy. Guile spares Bison and returns home to be a family man."

In the US Air Force, it seems, he was promoted from Lieutenant to Major before he had to leave to take revenge on some guy/animal called Mr.Bison. But failed due to domestic issues, as explained above.



At in his forties now, frustrated with his life, wife and dreams, he decided to work upon his childhood dream of working with mangas again. The last we saw of him was in an anime called Gintama. Following is a quote by him working as as a mangaka in Gintama. (be careful, he will try to sell you cheap stuff on TV)

 

And thus was the life of our 'not-so-popular' celebrity who managed to play unimportant roles in the popular culture of Japan. So why did I write this article on him? Pity. Yes, such characters deserve attention. This character IS important. Can you imagine life without this guy? I mean come on! If it weren't for him, who would have Ash defeated to get his badge? Who would have played all those humiliating roles in Yakitate Japan as an Austrian?

Hats off to you, my American friend. You might have failed in your life in becoming a lead role but you have inspired the likes of me T_T THANK YOU

- Nem >_<"

*still sobbing*

The Levels of Awesomeness

Its been a long long time since I've written anything here (credits to my 'epic fail' exams) But now that they are over, I finally got time..............................to play MMOs!!!

But now that I've played enough of Ragnarok (and am waiting as Iris is downloading), its about time I update my blog!

So the other day I was thinking about rating things in terms of awesomeness (clearly inspired by St.Barney Stinson). When stating something that's awesome, its kind of tough to indicate exactly HOW awesome the awesome thing is. That was when I realized that awesomeness needs to be standardized.

Now let me illustrate the levels of awesomeness with a few examples that everyone can understand. 

Light years away from Awesome -

This picture doesn't need words to make it funnier.

Hungry Fat Guy

Not that Awesome - 

I personally believe that old people should play video games and have some fun in life. After all they deserve some quality time. But when they kick your ass at it, it suddenly seems like a bad idea.

Gamer Granny 

Almost Awesome - 

They would have been Awesome if only they had the auto-aim feature that some fps games have XD

M4A1

Awesome -

This spot used to belong to Vampires and Werewolves until someone came up with a whole range of crazy books and made them look stupid.

Zombies

Uber Awesome - 

In life or in death, 'this guy' has made a huge impact on anyone and everyone he came across. Uber awesome is something that that affects and changes a huge population.

This Guy

Epic Awesome -

Back in the day, Pens were mightier than Swords. Lately, things have changed.

We have a clear winner!

That's it for now. I hope you guys had fun reading this :D

I'll be posting a bit more frequently now, so see ya then.

Nem, signing off XD

Travelling in Space and Time

What had been really bugging my mind lately, was punctuality. Discovery is born from Necessity and THIS is where I began my search for the legendary technique of teleportation. So there was this guy called Dhalsim who was rumored to have a lead role in some game called Street Fighter; as the rumors went, he could teleport. I wonder if he was related to Mahatma Gandhi, somehow. After doing some research on this game, I finally got to see the legendary technique in action! The Yoga Teleport!!!

Further research showed that it was a series of motions he did that made him teleport. The motions were,
 
Front + Down + Front + Low Punch - Mid Punch - High Punch

There were two major challenges I faced. ‘How can I do 3 punches at the same time when I have only 2 hand?’ One solution would be to use the Third Arm Sash but that must be heavily guarded. The solution was offered by a being that somehow resembled a human. Legend has it that this creature has sacrificed most part of its brain in order to obtain exponential mastery of that game called Street Fighter. The being preferred to be called Hak. The Solution offered was in a cryptic code which I managed to decipher, “aree!!! woh teeno ke liye ek hi button assign kar. Usse ekhi button se teeno dabjate hai!!!” It translates as, “assign one button for all three. That way when you hit one, all three are pressed” This creature’s idea was brilliant; I guess its sacrifice was not wasted after all.

The other problem I faced with Yoga Teleport was that no matter how cool the effects were, it was embarrassing to do the combo in public. Worst Case Scenario being a repeated combo failure in public! You have to take a step, crouch, and take another step and then punch; nothing happens so you do that again, only to be dumbstruck by nothingness. Obnoxious, purely obnoxious.

So in the sanctuary and solitude of my bedroom, I tried this combo. Contemplating possible locations where I can accidentally teleport to was a scary thing to do. It ranged from a crashing air plane to the deepest ocean, possibly even a random planet! But the risk was worth the experiment. If this worked, it would be a scientific breakthrough.

But it didn’t.  -_-

That was when I realized what Dhalsim had and I didn’t. Powers! YOGA POWERS!!! It was hard to believe what I was looking for was right there! So I decided to cultivate my yoga powers and attempt Yoga Teleport again.

It happens very often that a man searches for a thing and finds another. The biggest (idiotic) example was Christopher Columbus. We all know he found something he wasn’t looking for. Now he knew, if he returned home without productive reports, the queen would be pissed off at him and would have said gibberish like, “off with his head!” which the people would have taken seriously and would have ACTUALLY beheaded him. So he made a plan; a selfish plan that would save him from the queen’s wrath but keep the rest of the world confused, for eternity about the true identity of the Indians. Now it might have been an idiotic mistake back then (and even now). But if he hadn’t done that one mistake of going to the wrong place, we wouldn’t be enjoying franchised junk food, Superhero comic books, Alien abductions, suing companies for an extra cookie in the jar, South Park and other things of that actually matter to this world.

The only form of yoga cultivation I could think of was Meditation. So tired of the repetitive forward-crouch-forward-tripunch, I looked at the watch. Meekly, it beeped 14:22. I sat down and started meditating. After a while, when I opened my eyes, the clock beeped 14:42! I had time travelled 20 minutes in the future! O_O

Conclusion 1 – Discovery of the new world was not a mistake. Now I can take Dhalsim there and sue him for fraudulent display of inexistent powers. Thank you Columbus, you weren’t a douche after all.
Conclusion 2 - OMG! I can time travel! (Only in the future though) -_-“

The Real Conclusion –

If we look to it that way, we are constantly travelling forward in time. Second by second, minute by minute we are ‘time travelling’ towards the future! Although, this isn’t the ‘time travel’ science fiction movies have shown us. However, conceptually speaking, even as you read this, you are travelling forward in time. (or as generally said, time is moving forward)

-    Nem,
Signing off
^_^