Evening Sunshine

As I begin writing this down, the rest of the compound rests in deep slumber and utter silence. Maybe except for some who are healthy enough to be snoring, or in really deep sleep to have saliva be the only thing in motion, it would seem like I'm the only one awake as of the moment. Yes, it's another early morning wake-up for me, as I try and finish what I began last night. However, due to the constraints of what I was doing, I never got time to drop in a few words here, so this time I'll me making it up to you.

Most of the people that know me personally, or follow my posts since highschool, will realize that I love to introduce contradictions in almost anything I do. This post's title, as you'll notice, will be no exception. You see, there's a certain beauty of realization in contradictions - they almost always make me stop in my tracks just to delve into my thoughts and see for myself the intricate details and relationships dedicated to opposites. Yin. Yang. Black. White. North. South. These polar opposites are not just simple matters of aesthetics, or that contrasting colors will always have a beautiful outcome. It goes way beyond that - it touches matters of life itself.

Having gone through life for almost two decades now, there are many road signs I've seen along the road. Some are just plain out in the open, where anyone passing by can see them without even the slightest effort of turning their heads. Then there are some road signs that are totally opposite - these are signs that only a few even bother to notice, and even fewer that actually give time to examine their find. These are what I call life's gifts to everyone, and though not everyone would cherish what's given to them, I still stand by the concept behind gifts. And it is this - that with gifts, it's the thought that counts.

One such gift I came upon which awed me in the most unimaginable way was a lesson in duality. This would delve more into the side of metaphysics, rather than the physical Newtonian physics we all learned at least once in our lives. 

One time, our professor in Social Sciences 2 asked us to watch her favorite episode of Star Trek. This episode's theme was the concept of justice and democracy. It was an over-all good episode, though it ended up with us having to write a reaction to be passed the next meeting. In this case though, it was the show's little technicalities that got me thinking somehow about the need for a negative force in someone's life so as to achieve an even greater positive. You see, in this show there was a planet aptly named "Earth", where all the inhabitants were just plain naive and innocent at the same time. The places were they lived were composed of lush gardens, beautiful scenery, and the look of nature at its most natural. Heck, even the people wore pieces of cloth that were all white, except for the occasional accessory for the women. But here's the catch - they lived in peace and harmony - too much of it. Due to their exceptional ideals of wanting nothing to do with harm, agony, and chaos, they deprived themselves of knowing what it was to go through the negatives in life and continued to carry on with their ways. This posed such a problem because they weren't prepared for events that were out of their daily routines - and with that simple event, they all didn't know what to do and thus ended up in the situation they utterly didn't want to be in - a place of confusion and desperation.

On a personal note, this episode showed me the value of the black in the white, of the yin in the yang, of how the champion values his opponent - because without him, the champion would be valued a little less. While it's great to have such a good, carefree life, it would be even greater to lead the ideal good life while having had experience in the opposite situation. Why, you ask? Because as I see it, there are a good number of people I know that are going through the best times of their life because they went through the worst  of it and lived to tell the tale. It is this situation that should somehow inspire the rest of us to think about negatives in a more positive way - and that to be complete, you would need to master the duality in all things. Once you do, you take control of the positive and you live the best times of your life.

___________________________________________________

there's a difference. and then there's THE difference.

Harvesting Moons

For those of you who might have a sudden nostalgic response upon reading the title, do not worry - the game is that good that even after ten years from its release, some gamers still play it. It's one of those console titles that never gather too much dust on our shelves because it often gets played, as compared to some that one playthrough is more than enough. Yes, its really that good, and I hope I've convinced you enough that it is. Because it is.

 However, if you thought this whole post would be dedicated to convincing you of the greatness that is Harvest Moon, then you should think again. Heck, this post won't even cover any real aspect of the game, maybe except the title. And it's the title I shall begin with. Did you ever wonder what that game's title literally meant? After some careful thought - and maybe some wild, obnoxious ideas - I concluded that if you didn't have any idea, then neither did I. However, on a figurative point-of-view, I could say that I'm more than playing the video game - I'm actually living the title. Why, you ask? Simply put, my sleeping times lately have been short. I've slept late, and woke up more than an hour before anyone else in our compound opens their eyes. There are a good number of reasons for this, but it's those that could just have been disregarded if I actually valued sleep at all. Let me explain.

I've been spending most of my time on cyberspace lately. Going by the rules of probability, the more time one spends online, the higher the chances that one's status in that place increases. For the past few days, I've been scouring social networks and web forums, digitally interacting with people whose only hint of an identity is a username and a thumbnail image. As conversations come and go, I've met 'people' that I actually enjoy having conversations with. I've also come in contact with big business people that are asking me to go into a sub-contractual agreement that involves me making websites and templates. Aside from that, there's also this personal site I'm currently building, which I will be launching once I get my hands on that domain name I'm desperately going after.

You see, barely one month into the summer break, and I'm already this fulfilled. The only thing that's different from previous experiences of this kind is that I'm starving for more. Not an hour goes by that I don't read up on a tutorial, nor download an e-book and get it's gist, nor even give the theories a run and seeing what application can do to promulgate theory. Yes, the attraction it has for me is so strong that I've even entertained the thought that sleep is a waste of time. Damn you.

On the lighter side of things though, I have to tell you that I'm enjoying my time this summer. Productivity seems to be going hand in hand with fun and relaxation, and it's one of those rare times when you're letting the day carry you forward, securely knowing that you're headed to the right direction. There are things, though, that I'm still waiting for - such as the final telephone call from Alliance, and an e-mail from a contact somewhere in Europe regarding that contract. Yet these haven't really hindered me from having a smile across my face, especially when someone you sorely miss comes online and updates you on things happening in the land of the rising sun (bleh). Little things such as this make for the icing on the already-delicious cake that is my summer break so far. And I hope this continues to become a feast to be remembered through the ages. :)

______________________________________________________
there is no competition. and i'm not looking for one.