Aeris, Gossip Girl, and assumptions.

I’ve been trying to think of how to put this because I haven’t found the correct way to put this, because I haven’t found the right word/s to describe it. I could say it is about second chances but I’ve always felt that it is something that applies more so to people rather than things. That’s not what I plan on talking about though, what I’m trying to talk about is more about revisiting assumptions. It might be easier if what I do is use an example.

The first thing that comes to mind is Aeris or Aerith depending on your choice of translation. Now this might be an outdated example, but I think it’s the most accurate one that I’ve got. So Aeris was a video game character, the archetypal healer, and you get her close to the beginning of the game, but around a third of the way through she dies, and it is inevitable to stop if you wish for the story to progress at all. And so I found myself thinking what was obvious, “why use a character that ends up dying,” or “why use a healer, when there are other ways to save and heal your other characters.” I thought she was useless, and in some ways she still kind of is. But now, looking back at her I think she is integral, not only because you realize by the end of the game that she had a purpose but how her perma-death added a certain level of depth and character that I had previously not noticed in video games. But only for the reason that she wasn’t permanently playable, I wouldn’t play her. But in my most recent play through, I really don’t want to let her die. Though the main character’s inability to help stop someone he cares about from getting hurt also strikes a personal cord with me. Because I was unable to help someone.

Another example may help.

So at the time that I started writing this I had just finished watching Gossip Girl, and the fact that it turned out to be a much better show than I had expected, it semi-inspired me to write this. My first thoughts on the show, this is of course based on me having never watched even a single episode before and only having read small plot descriptions and seeing a television trailer or two. So I just thought it was going to be rich kids with rich kid problems. And in part I was right. But that’s not all it was. The characters were compelling, interesting, and more than initially seemed and at the end you realize that it all was just one big love story. And had I not given it a chance I wouldn’t have realized that interesting character driven television dramas were still being created with young adults in mind.

After writing this I realize that it is in part about revisiting assumptions, part about not judging a book by its cover and a bigger part about me talking about things I like. But I want to try and change that.

Now I may have mentioned this in a previous post because I already have assumptions as one of my tags. But assuming makes an ass(out of)u(and)me. And this more than anything has motivated me to revisit some of my old assumptions, but also in an attempt to better myself. Because it is not just in the present where you can change, change can be made for the future in the past.  Because it is not just good to change who you are but to learn from whom you were as well.

I hope this helps someone look back on something that they had previously dismissed, thought badly on, or even ignored based on hearsay or someone else’s experiences.

Post Script: Thinking back on this I find that a Switchfoot quote comes to mind. “Doubt your doubts and believe your beliefs.” I feel like that quote actually kind of works when it comes to this post. And at the time of me scheduling this post, I actually have no more fully written, which could end up being kind of worrisome because I don’t know if more will be posted after this one for a while. But I do hope there will be.

Jack and his Many Skills.

Let me tell you about my friend Jack, (well okay his name isn’t actually Jack per say, it’s just that he can do so many things, and so I consider him to be somewhat of a Jack of all trades (even though all trades is a little bit of a stretch.) But he can do a great many things, more than me, and some of the things that he does/has done are things that I myself wish I could do. He is that friend many of us have who inspires us to do more, that friend we aspire to be more like.

(Don’t worry this is going somewhere.) It took me much time and money to find my preferred artistic outlet, at first I thought sketching and so I bought a nice sketchbook and some decent pencil sets. I tried it out but it just didn’t fit, and so I leave the sketching and drawing to my cousins. A couple years before I had been told that playing guitar was a good way to meet girls, and so for that Christmas I got a guitar. But I didn’t want to put in the time it would take to learn guitar from the instructional vhs tape it came with. Then the next October I went to this concert, I mean it was just there two local bands, but one of the bands was Jack’s current band. But this is not the first time I meet Jack. They were a great band, so I would go and see them play whenever I could, and I would try and promote them to the best of my ability, not for Jack’s sake but because the music was great. Also what helped our friendship was that every two or three weeks him and his then girlfriend would go to the movie theater where I was working. At that time the two tickets that got them in was $18.00 and when paying with a $20 bill it would leave him with a toonie/townie? (I’m Canadian and I’m not even sure) And after a while he started to give me the change, not because I’d ask for it, but because I think he started to recognize me from his shows, or just because he felt like it, I’m not sure. Then one day I found him on Facebook, added him as a friend, which resulted in a growth in our friendship. But then he moved away and I missed the music. About a year after that, my little brother found my old guitar and expressed an interest I learning how to play it. So my mom arranged to get him lessons, and after like two or three weeks which equaled out to around 2 or 3 lessons, I felt a little excluded, I felt the desire to fill the artistic gap again, and to remember my guitar playing friend, it was a perfect idea and so I as well started guitar lessons. But I only ended up taking them for about a year (probably closer to around seven months at once a week,) and because my desire to play guitar was renewed. For Christmas that year I got a new nice adult sized guitar. I still enjoy guitar, and was re-inspired by Jack to give it a real shot, by that I mean photography of course, my primary artistic outlet.

Another thing about Jack is that he has self e-published two novels. As I think I’ve mentioned before I am a story teller at my core, and so writing a novel is a dream of mine. Now I’ve just started actually reading it because before this Christmas I didn’t have an e-reader. But I have read a previous semi-unedited version of the first novel and that was great. So I am really excited about reading this published version, as well as reading the second novel in his series. And in that way I aspire to be like Jack.

Besides his musical talent and his writing ability, Jack also does good. Jack also helps run a decently sized youth program in Edmonton. Now I’ve been involved in helping with a youth program in the past, but that was mainly helping with rides and providing minor supervision. So I didn’t have any type of major role in it much.

Music

https://soundcloud.com/danwmcintyre

https://soundcloud.com/hashtagboom

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/artist/dan-mcintyre/id4283851

Books

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/vincent/id430825053?mt=11

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/vincent-founder-triumphs/id791293988?mt=11

To be clear, he does all this while maintaining a steady job designing kitchens and seeming to keep up a social life. And in conclusion jack is awesome and I wish I was a bit more like him.

Post Script: Despite this post being the first where I include a tangible link to whom the person the post is about. I still hold firm that I don’t openly tell people that I chose to write about them. I should also mention that there is really only one more of these that I plan on writing, and that I haven’t even started it.

Body Modifications Part 3.

The Big Time: Surgery.

Now this could be the most controversial of the three. Surgery does carry a certain stigma around it, and if you read what I wrote about piercings you’re probably thinking that I will be all against it. But surgery has both its goods and its bads.

Let me start with the differences between cosmetic surgery and plastic surgery, because this may surprise you but they are not the same things.

Cosmetic surgery and plastic surgery are not the same thing:

Cosmetic surgery procedures enhance a person's appearance toward some aesthetic ideal.

Cosmetic surgery is practiced by doctors from a variety of medical fields including dermatologists, facial plastic surgeons, general surgeons, gynecologists, oral and maxillofacial surgeons, ophthalmologists, otolaryngologists, plastic surgeons, as well as doctors from other fields.

Unlike cosmetic surgery, plastic surgery focuses on repairing and reconstructing abnormal structures of the body caused by birth defects, developmental abnormalities, trauma, infection, tumors or disease.

And so with those lines drawn you might be thinking that I’m just gonna say cosmetic bad, plastic good. But it’s not as simple as that, and by those definitions plastic is good, but that does not necessarily mean that cosmetic is bad though. But it isn’t, not always anyways. I do believe that surgery should be the last choice not the first one. I am a big proponent of loving the body you’re in or learning to love the body you’re in. But I also so acknowledge that it is not always possible for this to happen. And in that case I do believe that if there is nothing else that can be done, cosmetic surgery is a completely acceptable option. As I said before it shouldn’t be a first choice, but a last resort. Now I should be clear that if you think that changing your body because you think it will make someone else like you more. No, simply no. Don’t get surgery to impress someone else, because if they have a problem with your body it is not you it’s them.

See now I am not even sure if it is something that surgeons let you rush into. Because piercings can be taken out, tattoos can be removed, but surgery is not always as easily reversible and there’s no guarantee that it will turn out the way you want it to.

Think hard and embrace your quote unquote imperfections before you decide to surgically change them. Because I’d like to believe that changing your mind is more beneficial than changing your body.

Post Script: I’m sure is more research that I could do on this, but I do think this does cover the point I am trying to get across. Also I am hoping that I can keep up on regular posts. I think I am doing good so far. Wednesdays are good right?

Body Modifications Pt. 2

Mid-level: Tattoos

Last week I shared my opinions (issues) on various different piercings, and a lot of that was on the negative side of things, mostly how I didn’t like them. But that’s different when it comes to tattoos, or at least I’m a lot less against them, to the point where I’ve actually thought about getting one myself. Then I find myself asking four questions; one for myself and three I will discuss. Mine: what will it cost (Because I am conscious that they are expensive)? Discussion: What? Where? And, Why?

The What. When you think about it, I mean what is so important to you that you would have your skin permanently drawn on. I will probably repeat this multiple times, because it has been my opinion for a while, “getting tattoos for the sake of getting tattoos is a bad idea.” I understand that sometimes you might think getting a tattoo on a whim might seem like it would be a cool thing to do and it could provide an interesting story, but No, just no. A tattoo should be something you think about, you shouldn’t just show up and pick something off a wall or out of a book, and it should be unique and personal. Definitely not some stock design out of a book or some random ridiculous tribal design.  IT SHOULD MEAN SOMETHING.  I should also mention that I believe getting your own name, initials etc. (even someone else’s most time) tattooed on your body is tacky and a bad idea.  “Getting tattoos for the sake of getting tattoos is a bad idea.” Now in saying all that if done properly, tattooing is an art form. Sometimes the human body can be used to capture a certain emotion, such as in a painting or a photograph, whereas with tattoos they can be used to express something. Even more commonly through their body is the canvas on which the art is displayed. And this is a way for the whole world to see on persons’ art. A mobile canvas that is essentially designed to interact with people.

Now, where you choose to get your tattoo is also a big factor in your decision. I will straight up come right out and say it. Face tattoos are stupid, and I probably would judge you for getting them. Also the wide landscape lower back tattoos, commonly called “tramp stamps” are very funny (that might be the best way for me to put it, I certainly do chuckle). But I do think placement is very important, you wouldn’t start your tattoo sleeve on your wrist and have its’ story move upwards, you start at the shoulder and it move from top to bottom. Just like you wouldn’t get a pair of angel wings or a huge mural on your chest rather than your back, it is very much a matter of both common sense and sensible matching of tattoo to location. But once again I will bring it back to this quote “Getting tattoos for the sake of getting tattoos is a bad idea.”

Why to get a tattoo, possibly the most important of the three questions. It could even override the “what to get” as long as it has a root theme. But I still don’t think it could outweigh the quote I’ve been repeating “Getting tattoos for the sake of getting tattoos is a bad idea.” I do believe that tattoos can be quite effective in commemorating events, or even memorializing people, or even to show how much you like something. To be clear on the last one it shouldn’t be done in an attempt to prove that you like something. It should be done to express an overwhelming love for something. Tattoos should be of something that you find that you can’t live without, figuratively of course. And as I’ve already said they should be unique and personal. In saying that, I should probably discuss matching tattoos. By discuss me of course mean that it’s a bad idea because it is an inevitability that relationships always end; in either break up, divorce, or death (John Green).

So I guess in summation if you’re going to get a tattoo, don’t get one on a whim, get one that means something and don’t get one for the sake of getting one.

Post Script: I know there’s more I could say about tattoos, and I still might, later on. But for now that’s what I’ve got to say. That wasn’t much of a post script was it? More so a continuation. So I will probably not for the last time pose a question: What do you think of tattoos?

Body Modifications part one:

The small stuff: Piercings.

Now I do strongly believe that every person has the inherit right to do whatever they so choose to their own bodies. With saying that I should also say that I think that excessive piercings are stupid and just generally not a good idea. Now using the word stupid might be a little controversial, and I should clear it up, I am not saying that a person who gets multiple piercings is stupid, but if we could learn anything from Wolverine it’s that filling your body with metal is not the wisest thing in the world.

I should explain a bit more. I am not against piercings; I am against the excess and/or pointlessness of many. I can understand ear piercings, shiny things attract the attention of possible mates up to eye level (while not being overly distracting), and eye contact encourages more listening. (This is very similar to eye make-up being used to draw attention to them.) In saying that I’m not talking about stretched lobes, because I won’t even try and understand why someone would do that. (I mean not having or ever wanting piercings I don’t understand the appeal anyway, but more so with stretching.) I’m gonna start with non-ear facial piercings, but not all of them. My main annoyance is focused on two specific piercings: the septum and Monroe piercings. (I should clarify that this does not mean I have no opinion of other non-ear facial piercings. I think nose piercings are better as studs rather than hoops, multiple eyebrow piercings should be consolidated on to a single brow rather than spread out, as well I can only assume that any piercings in or around the mouth and lips could make talking, eating, kissing, etc. a bit more awkward or difficult.)

Now, my issue with the septum piercing is simple, it minds me of those cartoon bulls which is ridiculous because I believe they originally put those rings through the inside of their noses was so that their owners could guide them to where they want them to go, like a dog on a leash. I know you can’t do that with a person’s piercing, but I still envision myself as a matador from time to time when I see that piercing on people. (Also because I could never envision myself doing this with an actual bull.)

And the Monroe. (In my opinion the worst of the two facial piercings.) The Monroe in its placement, is poor, based only on the criteria that other facial piercings are on an edge, I can only assume that you can’t comfortably put a hoop into the middle of your cheek. I know its purpose was supposed to imitate the beauty mark that Marilyn Monroe possessed, and yes, I understand why that appeals to people. Having a natural “imperfection” on a “perfect” face, because there is just as much beauty in our “flaws” as there is on our fine points. But I think one point of that is it is a natural “imperfection”. (Quotation marks were used to show that even though I used those words I don’t necessarily agree with them.)

Now I will admit, I actually can’t think of anything bad to say about belly button piercings. I mean they’re not my kind of thing, but like the common non-stretching lobe piercings they don’t bother me all that much.

And finally the stupidest (and this time I do mean stupid) of all piercings. The piercings into the tightly packed nerve clusters, aka genital and nipple piercings. I know what people will argue to support these piercings. “They intensify pleasure,” or simply said “They make sex better.” Now I won’t say that they’re wrong on that fact, because I just don’t know. But I do know how uncomfortable it can be to get my underwear caught up or bunched up down there, and that clothing is meant to be there. I could only imagine adding a metal rod into the equation. On top of that if mouth/lip piercings make things more awkward or difficult, I’d guess that genital piercings would only be worse.

Post Script: This originally was on both piercings and tattoos, but I decided to break them up into two separate parts. That I want to post one right after another, which probably means I should write the one on tattoos. I should also be clear that I don’t judge you on whatever choices you make with your body.