Recently, a teacher of mine said something that struck me as a very insightful comment, yet very simple. He said (give or take) that "Age is all mental. Somedays I feel like im 94, other days I feel like Im 14". Age Is Mental. That is what i've been thinking of lately and Im starting to see that it is true, to an extent.
Everytime I meet a new adult, maybe it's a friend of my parents, a coach, a new teacher, whoever, I tend to act like Im about 26 when in reality Im 17. Why is this? Do I feel compelled to impress my elders? Am I afraid that if I don't act older that I won't be accepted? I think it's because when you are surrounded by people who are older than yourself you start to act more like them. It's basically the same as like enviromental-influenced behavior. But why can I act like im a mid twenties Yuppy around some people, then act like a 14 year old foolish typical teenage boy around some of my other friends? Its weird and keeps me thinkin at night sometimes.
I seem to be fascinated with the human nature now that I re-read my last article and this one, I wonder why that is.....im just joking. I like to know why people do what they do. Weird things that are, as far as the general consensus is concerned, unexplained.
I find that when I act a different age, the body starts to Feel that age. If age is mental, then perhaps the answer to eternal youth that man has searched for for hundreds of years is maybenot right under our nose, but behind it and up 3 inches.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
Finding A Balance
It's really easy to get lost in the mass chaos of life sometimes.
No matter what it is that takes up your time ... school, work, relationships, family time, sports, whatever ... it's so easy to get lost in our crazy schedules and forget to take time for ourselves.
I'm not encouraging selfishness or self-absorbtion (is that a term? anyway). But like, think about it ... when was the last time you just sat down for a while and just breathed? You know, inhale, exhale, breathe in, breathe out ... close your eyes, chill out for a while.
It's probably been a while, huh?
So, today, let's all take a deep breathe and forget the world, if just for a moment.
Lets all take a moment for ourselves today. Lets all encourage ourselves to find a balance between ourselves, our minds, our thoughts, our beliefs ... and the rest of the world.
No matter what it is that takes up your time ... school, work, relationships, family time, sports, whatever ... it's so easy to get lost in our crazy schedules and forget to take time for ourselves.
I'm not encouraging selfishness or self-absorbtion (is that a term? anyway). But like, think about it ... when was the last time you just sat down for a while and just breathed? You know, inhale, exhale, breathe in, breathe out ... close your eyes, chill out for a while.
It's probably been a while, huh?
So, today, let's all take a deep breathe and forget the world, if just for a moment.
Lets all take a moment for ourselves today. Lets all encourage ourselves to find a balance between ourselves, our minds, our thoughts, our beliefs ... and the rest of the world.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
"Thinking Long And Hard"
Being a bit of a self-proclaimed nerd, (I'm in IB stuff.. there's no denying it) I tend to think about stuff. A lot. Sometimes wayyyy too much. And i've begun to realize that overthinking really complicates things. Honestly. Every time I do something, or have some sort of opportunity.. I think it over, and think, and think, and think, and think, and grab a sandwich, then think some more, and by the time i've finally planned a course of action, whatever opportunity I might've had is now completely gone. I've just lately begun to realize, that thinking over something long and hard is not always the best course of action. Sometimes being spontaneous and just doing or saying the first thing that comes to mind is best. Now, there is obviously a time and place to to think things through.. but the tough part is finding a balance between planning and spontaneity.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Racked My Brain
So yeah. It's been a while since there's been any activity on Something Different, so I thought I'd spice it up a bit. But the only thing on my spice rack was brains, so I'll spice it up with some mind.
If you think about that expression, "rack your brain," for a while it kinda doesn't make much sense, does it? It's supposed to mean thinking long and hard about something. searching your entire brain for one little scrap to think about, or to write, or to paint, or whatever else. But when you put something on a rack, it's just storage. You're putting that thing away while you're doing something else. Not using the racked item. So when you rack your brain, does that mean you're putting your thoughts to one side for however long you are doing the racking? It could be referring to practise of negative thinking, or thinking about what's not there, as opposed to what is. Or it could be referring to the Eureka effect, where if you try not to answer a question, you'll stumble into the solution by mistake.
But this can't be, because racking one's brain is usually described as a lengthy, tiresome, and only sometimes fruitful venture. There's probably some explanation behind it, one that I'm way too lazy to go out and find. Ah well. I'm a slacker, what can I say?
But this leads to the second part of my post. My brain seems to have been racked for quite a while. At least in some parts. And I mean "sitting in non-use" kind of racked. I have been writing quite a bit, a few short stories on my fiction page, regular updates on the blog, but the one thing that I really want to get back to is just... at a standstill. I'm alluding to my book, or at least the manuscript that will become my book eventually. It's maintained a fairly even few thousand words for the past month or two. No additions of anything, but at least no harsh red ink crossing off everything everywhere.
I think I might have lost my muse, whatever she/it may have been, or at least ran out of metaphorical fuel. I need a gas station in my near future. I can't run on fumes, coughing up short stories every time something catches and I start forward a bit.
Actually, on a more positive note, the short stories and posts have come more frequently lately, so my Muse might be siphoning some gas into the engine every once in a while. Let's hope for a break and an explosive week or two of mad writing.
If you think about that expression, "rack your brain," for a while it kinda doesn't make much sense, does it? It's supposed to mean thinking long and hard about something. searching your entire brain for one little scrap to think about, or to write, or to paint, or whatever else. But when you put something on a rack, it's just storage. You're putting that thing away while you're doing something else. Not using the racked item. So when you rack your brain, does that mean you're putting your thoughts to one side for however long you are doing the racking? It could be referring to practise of negative thinking, or thinking about what's not there, as opposed to what is. Or it could be referring to the Eureka effect, where if you try not to answer a question, you'll stumble into the solution by mistake.
But this can't be, because racking one's brain is usually described as a lengthy, tiresome, and only sometimes fruitful venture. There's probably some explanation behind it, one that I'm way too lazy to go out and find. Ah well. I'm a slacker, what can I say?
But this leads to the second part of my post. My brain seems to have been racked for quite a while. At least in some parts. And I mean "sitting in non-use" kind of racked. I have been writing quite a bit, a few short stories on my fiction page, regular updates on the blog, but the one thing that I really want to get back to is just... at a standstill. I'm alluding to my book, or at least the manuscript that will become my book eventually. It's maintained a fairly even few thousand words for the past month or two. No additions of anything, but at least no harsh red ink crossing off everything everywhere.
I think I might have lost my muse, whatever she/it may have been, or at least ran out of metaphorical fuel. I need a gas station in my near future. I can't run on fumes, coughing up short stories every time something catches and I start forward a bit.
Actually, on a more positive note, the short stories and posts have come more frequently lately, so my Muse might be siphoning some gas into the engine every once in a while. Let's hope for a break and an explosive week or two of mad writing.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
'Primal Talent'
This is my frist post here on 'Something Different' and I had trouble coming up with an idea to do this post on. I thought and I thought and racked my brain for an hour or so until I finally realized what I was doing wrong. I was Thinking too much.
Now you may think that Im crazy but I find that the best ideas are had when the mind is somewhere else. The brain can process things much faster and more thouroughly in the sub-concious. This is true in many things, such as sport. When someone begins a sport, they have to conciously pay attention to every little detail of their form/technique/positioning, whichever the sport demands. This takes away from what I call the 'Primal Talent'. When these things like form and technique become Second Nature to us, we progressivly stop thinking about them more and more. This is when the brain can stop concentrating on the fundamentals of the activity (it doesn't even have to be a sport, but for the sake of it, im using sport as an example) and can start to tap into the 'Primal Talent'. In respect to what graeme had said in his post about Talent, it is something inherant in everyone of us. We all have talents and many of them. Unofrtunatley we can not Learn talents, as graeme alluded to. For instance, I will never be a great painter or sketch artist because I don't have the talent for drawing. I Could take classes, but int he end, the talent of one artist will win out rather than the practiced skill of another.
So what I call the 'Primal Talent' appplies directly and mostly to sport, competittion and 'dangerous' situations where the body is at some sort of risk. While in a sport, with the Skills practiced to the point of 2nd or even 3rd nature, the brain can enter a state called 'Kinesthesia'. This means that at any given point in time, the brain knows where each and every part of the body is and what it is doing. This gives us the ability to control our bodies with incredible authority. People do things they normally could never do, go faster, jump higher, hit harder. The body can take more punishment thatn normal. Yes, this is IN PART due to adrenaline and endorphin chemicals in our bodies but I believe our minds play the largest factor. This state can be different for every person so I can only speak of my own experiences. In hockey, when I reach this level of 'Kenesthesia' the 'Primal Talent' in me comes out. My instincts control my actions and I do things i could never do in practice or pick-up hockey. My 'Primal Talent' takes hold and runa away with me, I personally have a problem controling it at times because it can increase emotions also (but maybe that's jut me). I have asked other atheletes of all sports about this state of mind and they have all given me an answer that was close to what i experience, especially in martial artists. I think this is because in a Combat sport, the body knows that it is in risk of immenent pain/injury so this Primal state takes over.
Just goes to show you, you never know what you re capable of until you're put into the situation that stimulates your 'Primal Talent'. Whatever it may be. Being up in front of a crowd may help some musicians play better, having money bet on a card game could make gamblers sharper, all these things contribute. So next time you're wondering "What's my talent?" take a chance, dive right into soemthing.....you never know what you might find....
Now you may think that Im crazy but I find that the best ideas are had when the mind is somewhere else. The brain can process things much faster and more thouroughly in the sub-concious. This is true in many things, such as sport. When someone begins a sport, they have to conciously pay attention to every little detail of their form/technique/positioning, whichever the sport demands. This takes away from what I call the 'Primal Talent'. When these things like form and technique become Second Nature to us, we progressivly stop thinking about them more and more. This is when the brain can stop concentrating on the fundamentals of the activity (it doesn't even have to be a sport, but for the sake of it, im using sport as an example) and can start to tap into the 'Primal Talent'. In respect to what graeme had said in his post about Talent, it is something inherant in everyone of us. We all have talents and many of them. Unofrtunatley we can not Learn talents, as graeme alluded to. For instance, I will never be a great painter or sketch artist because I don't have the talent for drawing. I Could take classes, but int he end, the talent of one artist will win out rather than the practiced skill of another.
So what I call the 'Primal Talent' appplies directly and mostly to sport, competittion and 'dangerous' situations where the body is at some sort of risk. While in a sport, with the Skills practiced to the point of 2nd or even 3rd nature, the brain can enter a state called 'Kinesthesia'. This means that at any given point in time, the brain knows where each and every part of the body is and what it is doing. This gives us the ability to control our bodies with incredible authority. People do things they normally could never do, go faster, jump higher, hit harder. The body can take more punishment thatn normal. Yes, this is IN PART due to adrenaline and endorphin chemicals in our bodies but I believe our minds play the largest factor. This state can be different for every person so I can only speak of my own experiences. In hockey, when I reach this level of 'Kenesthesia' the 'Primal Talent' in me comes out. My instincts control my actions and I do things i could never do in practice or pick-up hockey. My 'Primal Talent' takes hold and runa away with me, I personally have a problem controling it at times because it can increase emotions also (but maybe that's jut me). I have asked other atheletes of all sports about this state of mind and they have all given me an answer that was close to what i experience, especially in martial artists. I think this is because in a Combat sport, the body knows that it is in risk of immenent pain/injury so this Primal state takes over.
Just goes to show you, you never know what you re capable of until you're put into the situation that stimulates your 'Primal Talent'. Whatever it may be. Being up in front of a crowd may help some musicians play better, having money bet on a card game could make gamblers sharper, all these things contribute. So next time you're wondering "What's my talent?" take a chance, dive right into soemthing.....you never know what you might find....
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Do It Well, Do It Quick
There are few things I really, truly hate in this world. One of them is laziness.
I am a very organized, very punctual girl. I like things done in the most orderly fashion possible, so that whatever needs done gets down effectively and in the quickest manner possible. It's often "my way or the highway" when I get working in groups; it's why I often opt to work alone. I honestly believe that if you want something done right, you better do it yourself.
I hate having to work with lazy people. Slackers. I can't stand someone who sits around when there is something important that needs to be done. I'm not against vegging out in front of the TV - I whole-heatedly support vegging - but if someone asks you to do something, you sure better get up and get to it.
One of the things I also hate are procrastinators. People who putz around at a job for a few minutes, then say "Oh, I'll be right back, I just need to go to the bathroom..." and you honestly forget about them until they show back up an hour later. Of course when they come back, the job's done and they play stupid. You know they weren't on the toilet for an hour, but you really, really just feel like asking, "Dude, were you having some difficulties in there?"
When I have to work with a procrastinating slacker...ooh, that's when I get ugly.
What happened to the work ethic in America these days? It seems if you can't do it with a click of a button, or hire someone else to do it for you, it just isn't worth doing anymore. The lack of motivation in modern-day America disgusts me. Give me the good days, where you had to work for a living, and when spending twelve hours working in the heat and the humidity made you feel good at the end of the day. Not that I was alive during those "good days"...but man, sometimes I wish I was.
I am a very organized, very punctual girl. I like things done in the most orderly fashion possible, so that whatever needs done gets down effectively and in the quickest manner possible. It's often "my way or the highway" when I get working in groups; it's why I often opt to work alone. I honestly believe that if you want something done right, you better do it yourself.
I hate having to work with lazy people. Slackers. I can't stand someone who sits around when there is something important that needs to be done. I'm not against vegging out in front of the TV - I whole-heatedly support vegging - but if someone asks you to do something, you sure better get up and get to it.
One of the things I also hate are procrastinators. People who putz around at a job for a few minutes, then say "Oh, I'll be right back, I just need to go to the bathroom..." and you honestly forget about them until they show back up an hour later. Of course when they come back, the job's done and they play stupid. You know they weren't on the toilet for an hour, but you really, really just feel like asking, "Dude, were you having some difficulties in there?"
When I have to work with a procrastinating slacker...ooh, that's when I get ugly.
What happened to the work ethic in America these days? It seems if you can't do it with a click of a button, or hire someone else to do it for you, it just isn't worth doing anymore. The lack of motivation in modern-day America disgusts me. Give me the good days, where you had to work for a living, and when spending twelve hours working in the heat and the humidity made you feel good at the end of the day. Not that I was alive during those "good days"...but man, sometimes I wish I was.
Get Away With It?
How possible is to get away with things?
Well lets see, that all depends, doesn't it, who your trying to avoid being caught by.
Lets say your parents. How easy is it to lie to them?
"Bye mom I'm going to Lisa's house for the night," then you end up going to a party getting drunk and going home hung over. I mean, sure sounds easy enough right?
Wrong, so very wrong.
They are you parents. You can't lie to them they know, oh trust me they know. They of course won't let on that they know, of course not. They will wait for the best possible moment to use it against you and then BAM your begging for forgiveness. If you feel you really must lie to them, cover you ass, have the story planned out to perfection, cover every loop hole, every possible way of them finding out. Plan ahead, don't just go out on an impulse. However teachers, oh they are much easier to fool. Of course they have also been at the job of telling lie from truth but they don't know you, you don't know them. Put on an innocent face and act as if your not doing anything wrong. In most cases they will be distracted by someone else not doing such a good job at hiding this fact.
My last words of advice:
Do it well, do it quick and run like hell.
Well lets see, that all depends, doesn't it, who your trying to avoid being caught by.
Lets say your parents. How easy is it to lie to them?
"Bye mom I'm going to Lisa's house for the night," then you end up going to a party getting drunk and going home hung over. I mean, sure sounds easy enough right?
Wrong, so very wrong.
They are you parents. You can't lie to them they know, oh trust me they know. They of course won't let on that they know, of course not. They will wait for the best possible moment to use it against you and then BAM your begging for forgiveness. If you feel you really must lie to them, cover you ass, have the story planned out to perfection, cover every loop hole, every possible way of them finding out. Plan ahead, don't just go out on an impulse. However teachers, oh they are much easier to fool. Of course they have also been at the job of telling lie from truth but they don't know you, you don't know them. Put on an innocent face and act as if your not doing anything wrong. In most cases they will be distracted by someone else not doing such a good job at hiding this fact.
My last words of advice:
Do it well, do it quick and run like hell.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)