Saturday, March 31, 2007 . 3/31/2007
Time for some lame quizzes -| Your Psyche is Blue |
 You are deeply emotional and very connected to everything (and everyone) around you. By simply understanding other people, you are able to help them heal and let go. While you are a very deep and thoughtful person, you do have a very silly, superficial side. When you are too blue: the weight of the world's problems hangs over you When you don't have enough blue: you lack perspective and understanding |
| You Are a Night Person |
 For you, there's nothing worse than having to get up and moving early. In fact, you probably don't hit your peak until well after the sun has set. So if your struggling to make it on a normal schedule, realize it's not your fault. You just weren't meant to do anything during the day! |
| You Are 72% Tortured Genius |
 You are smart. Brilliant in fact. And while it's a blessing, it's also a curse. Your head is filled with everything - grand ideas, insufferable worries, and a good deal of angst. |
Thursday, March 29, 2007 . 3/29/2007
I'm continuing to read Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul, which is a very good book (that I made a post about earlier). Every once in a while though, the word "God" shows up. And before all you religious people get your panties in a bunch, "ZOMG it's just a word, why are you offended?" Well, I'm not offended. I don't mind people personally believing in a god, but rather, it's the way they apply this belief. For example:--------
A rather touching story about a woman with ovarian cancer, and her daughter, who sees her through it. When her daughter suggested she get a cat, she said that she was a dog person. Later, however, she came to the conclusion that a cat would be better than nothing as the landowner didn't permit dogs. So she called up her daughter and, being a writer, asked for her to get her a sophisticated-looking cat, "..with a white bib, white paws and maybe a mustache. I will call him Charles Dickens". Her daughter came home with a cat almost identical to her mother's description.
It turns out that this cat had quite a history, having to fend for himself until one day he happened upon a woman's front porch. She already had three cats, however, and couldn't afford to keep another. When she gave the cat to the adoption agency, she requested that the new owner call her.
And the new owner did. The former caregiver of the cat explained that she prayed to God that someone would adopt him, someone who needed him and someone who loved him. Little Dickens got just that. Of course, the woman rationalized, it must be the work of God. "Your prayers were answered", she said. "I need him and I already love him".
Fast forward a few weeks or so and Dickens becomes ill, but eventually recovers. The woman is hoping that she will recover from her illness (ovarian cancer) as well. She prayed that she would get better, about a day before her final operation, and you guessed it.. she was free of cancer.
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Now what is so wrong about this story, you might ask? Two things. One, when the woman with ovarian cancer figured that the cat must be a gift from God. Again, what is so wrong with this, you may ask? The answer is ignorance. Of all the needy people in the world, needing more important things such as food, she figured she was special enough to have recieved a gift, a cat, from God. Second, when she prayed that she would get better.
Again, there are people out there with far worse conditions than just ovarian cancer, who suffer every day of their lives, and she figures she is special enough to be saved. I realise that this woman was sick, and that I probably am thinking too much about this, but this sort of thing happens every day with far less trivial prayers such as, "Please help me pass this test", or "Please help me get this job".
It's rather selfish. There are starving, sick, and poor people in Iraq and other parts of the world, and all you can think about is asking some non-existant higher power to help you to get a job, or that you won't get a speeding ticket, or that your favorite parking space won't be taken? 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Wednesday, March 28, 2007 . 3/28/2007
Once again, I am stuck between defining myself as a Satanist or an atheist. Both are alike in that they do not submit to being sheep to blind faith.Satanism doesn't necessarily mean the worship of Satan, either, but more of bettering yourself and glorifiying the attributes that Satan represents. True Satanists value all life, and take no part at all in sacrifices, unlike the bloodthirsty god of the Christian bible. Or pretty much any bible, for that matter.
Atheism isn't a religion, obviously. Atheists do not believe in gods, and instead rely on science for a more rational, informed explaination as to how the world works.
I am stuck in between these two. I wish so much that the supernatural actually existed, and maybe it does. However, most, if not all, of paranormal experiences can be rationally explained. I wish this wasn't so. I wish there was a god, a "devil", angels and demons, ghosts, spirits, and so forth. I don't want to live in a world where we know absolutely everything. It is this wishfull thinking that drives me towards Satanism, as this "religion" involves magic, as well. But then again, this wishful thinking is the exact same reason why some Christians (or Muslims, or Jews etc) are what they are. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Tuesday, March 27, 2007 . 3/27/2007
The guy from MSN is back.. I AM SO HAPPY!! Turns out he was just playing Horizons all week, something I've thought about doing. I feel so much better now. 0 Comments - Post/view comments Yesterday was like a nightmare. I kept crying so much and so hard that I could hardly breathe. I took a shower early to make me feel better, because usually when I do I stop crying in the first few minutes. This was this first time in a very long while where I cried throughout the whole shower. I had to sit down, I was so dizzy from it. I'm feeling a lot better today, though. There are two reasons why I was crying so much yesterday: it's that time of the month, and the guy on MSN that hasn't been on in a while. I've concluded that he must be having a power outtage, since it has been storming lately, and you know.. storms travel.I'm still depressed about him. It's not like he died or anything, which is very unlikely. It's just that I've shared so many laughs with him, he helped me to feel better whenever I was sad. I hope he comes back soon. I can't stand to be on my own, even if I only know him from miles away. For now. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Saturday, March 24, 2007 . 3/24/2007
I'm starting to get really worried about this guy on MSN.. hasn't come online for a while now. Maybe he's sick or just doesn't feel like coming on, or had to go to a sudden trip and didn't have time to tell me.. oh, please be okay..-----------
| You Are 69% Non Conformist |
 You are a pretty serious non conformist. You live a life hardly anyone understands. And while some may call you a freak, you're happy with who you are. |
Friday, March 23, 2007 . 3/23/2007
I've started reading Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul, and it has got to be one of the best books I have ever read. It's filled with stories about love, hope, charm, mystery, and even loss, but they are all very touching. To state a few of these stories:One kitten, Ricky, was an amazing kitten. He played a mini toy piano and even fed the dogs at the vet treats by jumping on the counter, opening the dog treat jar, lining up the treats, and shoving them off the counter to the dogs below. Ricky became a well-known cat, demostrating his piano-playing skills to audiences. At one of these demonstrations, a boy with Down Syndrome passed by, took one look at Ricky, and genuinely laughed his heart out, afterwards petting the kitten and letting it sit in his lap, whispering in Ricky's ear untold secrets. His mother was amazed, saying that Billy's (the boy) father had passed away two weeks ago and he hadn't reacted to anything since. This kitten changed all that, and before the two left, Billy gently said to the kitten, "I love you".
Unfortunately, the next time Steve, the owner, took Ricky to the vet, they discovered he had a heart murmur. He was later diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, but it progressed slowly. During this time, Ricky remained his normal happy-go-lucky self until one day he fell over after eating and then looking at Steve. Since then, the Ricky Fund has been established to help find a cure for feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
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The second story starts out with a thirty-seven-year-old or so woman, Mary, in the year of 1991 when war was raging. Valentine's day was coming up, and the fact that she was alone and that her mother had passed away didn't make things better. Eventually she decided to forget about men, and get a cat. No black cats, she said, since they are too mysterious and sly. Not a male cat either; they are too independant. She settled on the idea of a female calico. But what to name her? She then went back to remembering her mother and how she always disliked cats until one Christmas evening in northern Michigan a huge, fluffy black and brownish cat came waltzing through the door as if he had been there before. She remembered that this cat stole her mother's heart, and named him Muggs after a wanted poster that she saw that resembled the cat in a way. After Christmas vacation was over, the family and Muggs would go their seperate ways. Next Christmas rolled around, and when the family arrived at their cabin the cat returned, and disapeared when Christmas was over.
Finally, Mary made the call to the adoption center for a female calico kitten, and sure enough, they had one available. Instead of going over right away, she decided to clean up the house to get ready for the new arrival. After about an hour of cleaning, she drove over to the adoption center only to find out that the calico was adopted an hour ago. Disapointed, she looked through the other cages of cats and kittens until she heard a jingling noise. It was coming from a kitten's cage; a black male kitten. She was asked if she'd like to hold him, and she did, the kitten purring loudly in her arms. She then read the sign at the side of his cage, and noticed that his name was Muggins. This was definately her cat.
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The third that I'm going to mention is about a mysanthropic cat named Disney who developed a special bond with his owner, Toni, and guide dogs in training, but not other people, whom his spit and hissed at, despite his owner's best efforts to socialize him as a kitten. Disney would constantly crave the attention of Toni, even flinging himself into her arms when she arrived home from work. One day, when she came home with her husband and his guide dogs, Disney would greet the animals but not her husband. He finally got the idea that Toni's husband was permanent and stopped hissing at him, but he would play little tricks on him such as stealing the food from her husband's plate, and being blind, this was a bit of a problem.
Eventually, after noticing Disney's health starting to deteriorate at the age of twelve, she took him to the vet where he was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. He would have to be hospitalized for a week following his surgery. Making daily calls to the vet to check up on Disney, the workers told her that his health was doing fine but his attitude wasn't. He was proving very difficult, even impossible to handle without sedating him. Finally, the time came to bring Disney home. Toni went to his cage, where he hissed and spat at the workers but jumped into her arms, purring loudly and licking her face. The veterinary staff was amazed at this transformation.
In the following days the bond between Disney and Toni got ever greater, Disney rarely leaving her side. On the horrible day that he passed away, friends comforted her, saying that he was now resting happily and purring in God's lap. At this, Toni laughed and said that, divine or otherwise, Disney would hiss at every person besides her.
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With these few stories in mind, faith and fate seem to play a special role. While not a believer anymore in the supernatural or divine myself, I think it is good that some people have faith that there is a heaven and a god. It is comforting, and while delusional, I think that it's healthy as long as this faith doesn't go so far as to forcing it down everyone's throats or consuming the person's entire life. As far as I know, we have only one life to live, and if someone wants the comforting notion of a god to help them through tough times, then so be it. I myself wish that I could go back to knowing nothing, and believing everything (which is not to say that believers don't know anything). 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Thursday, March 22, 2007 . 3/22/2007
I feel depressed, but the reason for it makes me seem like a loser.So there's this guy on MSN I really like that I've known for about two years. He's nice, makes me laugh, and makes me feel better whenever I'm down. The thing is, he hasn't been coming online for nearly a week. He does this sometimes.. I don't know why. Yeah, I'm sure you're all saying "Well, he probably has a life". Uhg.. I feel so useless. Like a nobody.
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| You Are a Pessimist |
 If things are going good, you can always imagine how they will turn for the worse. And when things do happen to be bad, life is like a dark pit you can't crawl out of. One bad moment can ruin your day, and you think one bad week can ruin your life. Things are much better than they seem. Just take time to see everything that's going right. |
Saturday, March 17, 2007 . 3/17/2007
Who is Saint Patrick?Important historical figures are frequently shadowed by the myths and legends attributed to them over the course of centuries, and St. Patrick is no exception. He is believed to have been born in the late fourth century, and is often confused with Palladius, a bishop who was sent by Pope Celestine in 431 to be the first bishop to the Irish believers in Christ. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, St. Patrick was the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland who is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland. Most of what is known about him comes from his two works, the Confessio, a spiritual autobiography, and his Epistola, a denunciation of British mistreatment of Irish Christians. Saint Patrick described himself as a "most humble-minded man, pouring forth a continuous paean of thanks to his Maker for having chosen him as the instrument whereby multitudes who had worshipped idols and unclean things had become the people of God."
Saint Patrick is most known for driving the snakes from Ireland. It is true there are no snakes in Ireland, but there probably never have been -- the island was separated from the rest of the continent at the end of the Ice Age. As in many old pagan religions, serpent symbols were common and often worshipped. Driving the snakes from Ireland was probably symbolic of putting an end to that pagan practice. While not the first to bring Christianity to Ireland, it is Patrick who is said to have encountered the Druids at Tara and abolished their pagan rites. The story holds that he converted the warrior chiefs and princes, baptizing them and thousands of their subjects in the "Holy Wells" that still bear this name.
There are several accounts of St. Patrick's death. One says that St. Patrick died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, on March 17, 460 A.D. His jawbone was preserved in a silver shrine and was often requested in times of childbirth, epileptic fits, and as a preservative against the "evil eye." Another account says that St. Patrick ended his days at Glastonbury, England and was buried there. The Chapel of St. Patrick still exists as part of Glastonbury Abbey. Today, many Catholic places of worship all around the world are named after St. Patrick, including cathedrals in New York City, USA, Dublin, Ireland, and Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.
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Friday, March 16, 2007 . 3/16/2007
Ever stop to think how hypocritical and dense religious people tend to be? Since I'm most familiar with Christianity, I'll use that as an example.Every once in a while you'll come across a Christian who takes the bible literally. Yet, many, if not all of them, only take to heart the parts that they agree with. So if one part says that the man is the "master" of the woman and you may treat her as a slave, and another says to treat others as equals, which do you think the religious person would take to mean literally? Never mind the many horrible things God did, never mind all the ridiculous things he said. That is all a metaphor!
Furthermore, when it comes to judging, something that God apparently only has the right to do, why then do so many Christians tend to judge others? The ones that say things such as, "You are not a true Christian", or "You are not worthy in the eyes of God". Are they not disobeying their oh-so-holy book? Aah, but then again, those types of things are to be taken as metaphors. Right?
Another thing that some Christians will say is that you must "repent from your sins" in order to become Christian. Repenting means to apologize for your sins and to not do them again, right? Then why is it that Christians are still having sex, and so many other things that the bible says is a "sin"? Some may also say that you must hate sin, but saying that is like saying you hate human nature. It is human nature to lust, to hate, to be jealous. Ultimately, it is up to the individual person, common sense, and the circumstance to decide when it is wrong. It shouldn't take a book to make decisions for you.
Back to the metaphors - personally, I think the entire bible is one huge metaphor. Take the repenting of sins for example. The bible says that you must repent your sins in order to go to heaven. This could just be a moral story, saying that in order to have a good life you must apologize for any wrongs you may have done, otherwise your life would be "hell". You don't take Aesop's Fables literally, do you? Everyone knows that foxes cannot talk and hares cannot engage in conversations with a tortoise. As for God, he was probably just thrown into the mix to both make things seem more important, and to explain how the world began.
Now for some quizzes I took just for the hell of it:
| You Communicate Like a Man |
 When you communicate, you like to get to the point. You're not afraid to say what's on your mind - and leave it at that. Talking about your emotions drains you. You rather keep them to yourself. You prefer solving problems to wallowing in your sorrows. |
Haha, go figure.
| Your Worry Factor is 57% |
 While you're not a worrywart, you worry more than you should. Maybe you don't have enough to keep your mind occupied at times... Or perhaps you've trapped yourself into some bad thinking patterns. Try to worry less and enjoy life more. There's no point thinking about things you can't change! |
Wednesday, March 14, 2007 . 3/14/2007
This whole corrispondance thing is really annoying. First of all, they send you a book of "assignments", the exam book, and the textbook for the subject. I'm currently working on Science. I thought it would be interesting until I remembered the whole weather thing. Why the hell should I need to know what every detail of weather is? It's not like I'm going to remember it, or use the information in the real world, save for if I wanted to be a weather forcaster (yeah right). Worst of all is that these "assignments" aren't even worth anything. You don't send them in, they're not graded, and there isn't even an answer key. The only answer key is to those questions in the textbook after every chapter. So, I resort to "open book tests", if you will. I find the answer and just check it in the exam. Doing otherwise would just be a huge waste of time.Another thing is that I wonder what the average time it takes for people to finish these exams is. Am I ahead? Behind? I don't know. Now, I don't know if it's just this school's corrispondance system is crap, or if they're all like that. It makes me wonder. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Tuesday, March 13, 2007 . 3/13/2007
Racism.Lastnight, I had quite the interesting discussion with someone claiming that racism really isn't bad, and that getting rid of all races, save for Caucasians, will actually help humanity. Let me start off with his mindset, which I will put in italics to indicate that these are not my own assumptions:
Whites are superior. If you look in places such as Africa, you will notice that they are poor, full of disease. Places such as Iraq are barbaric. Yet, when you look at the white race, you will see someone of far more intelligence. Whites are the only ones capable of fixing up other people's messes. Blacks are especially stupid, being in that they are easily influenced by such singers as 50cent, thereby dropping out of school to become a gangster. Sure, they have potential, but most are just useless, KFC-eating thugs with more of a tendency to cause violence. The majority of the people in jails are black. Many murderers are black, getting into petty fights involving girlfriends or somesuch. Whites, however, are better than this, and it is only the whole gangster thing that sways some to pretend to be black. In order for humanity to really move on, we must get rid of these other races.
This person has obviously made up his mind. In a way, I can see why he would think that blacks are inferior. It does seem to me that this particular race tends to be more violent, and dare I say it, more stupid. Of course, not everyone is like this. More than once, I have been guilty of secretly thinking to myself "If you want racism to end, tell the rest of your race to stop acting so stupid".
However, it is racism and intolerence that makes this world such a sad place to be in. When you are such a racist as to think the superior race is Caucasian and the rest should be eliminated, you are no better than a religious bigot that wants to rid of all gays, etc. You have absolutely no right to make assumptions such as that of ridding all the other races would "better humanity". Surely, if you were Chinese, African American, or Indian, you would think the idea to be absurd?
Furthermore, this idea will never catch on to the majority of the public, just as religious bigotry doesn't. Race shouldn't even be an issue! We are all human, we all share the same emotions such as hurt, happiness, and fear. We all have the same potential. In places such as Africa that are poor, helping them and educating them is the most that we can do to ensure that they live a descent life. And the war in Iraq? People of all races are over there, fighting for us and fighting to give the innocent people over in the country freedom. Simply eliminating all other races is such a half-assed thing to do, so instead of trying to better the world, we kill half of it off, even the innocents? What kind of a world would that be to live in where everyone is the same? Where intolerence abounds? You can hardly call yourself a humanist if you think that killing half the population is the answer to all of our problems.
While I don't exactly agree with this sort of racist mindset, I do agree with something a bit similar. Let's say that a child was born with an illness, causing him to rely on others for food, clothing, etc, even when he grows well into adulthood. The child can't think for himself, and has little to no hope that he'll ever be independant enough to have a job. Yet, he is still put through all this misery. I see this all the time: people with horrible illnesses or mutations are kept alive, presumably to help them have a "normal, happy life". To me, this is like letting fungus grow in your house. In the wild, if an animal was born with a serious defect, the mother would abandon the offspring. Some might view this as "wrong", but think about it: a baby elephant is born that has some weird illness causing him to be both blind and/or deaf. He wouldn't be able to make it on is own, and therefore is a heavy burden to the herd. Likewise, keeping a deformed, very ill child alive is a burden to those that have to take care of it. Basically, they'd be raising the child for nothing. But then again, keeping the mentally ill alive would help to improve science and healthcare when we try to come up with a cure, and there have been people that respond to this kind of treatment well. This of course would lead to more people and prolonged life, which, when you really think about it, isn't a very good thing.
More than once I've thought to myself that useless and downright stupid people who contribute nothing to society should be killed. If you want to live in this world, don't sit around like a lump of lard and waste space. I don't, however, use racism as a sort of "scapegoat". As I said before, we are all human, with the same potential as anyone else. Every race has its "bad seed".
Things such as the discussion of what is moral and what is immoral are particularly difficult to discuss, as everyone has their own version of what is and isn't "right". In essence, since humans are such a complicated species, the whole moral/immoral debate could be said that it's all in the mind. As far as I know, we are the only animal that is really capable of thinking to such an extent, such as questioning why we are here. You don't exactly see a bunch of bears get together and discuss the state that the world is in.
Evolution is truly amazing, and you have to wonder that after humans become extinct, what will nature come up with next? 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Monday, March 12, 2007 . 3/12/2007
I'm thinking about getting surgery on my jaw. It's small, and didn't fully develop.. I've never had surgery before, so of course I would be nervous, even if I was "put to sleep" during it. I know that these kinds of scars take a while to heal, and that it will probably be sore the first few days/week or so, but I think it would be worth it. Basically, they'd have to break off my jaw and then move it foreward. 0 Comments - Post/view commentsSunday, March 11, 2007 . 3/11/2007
When I really think about it, I'm ashamed to be a human. What is our place in nature? All we do is take up space, destroy the world around us, and create a big deal out of things that should, in reality, be simple. Sure, there are some good people out there that like to preserve wildlife and help fellow man, but if we didn't exist, such problems would never occur. We wouldn't need to help endangered species, as a majority would probably still be plentiful if it wasn't for people.What really got me thinking about this was watching the National Geographic and Science channel. A show on Wildebeasts focused on their migration route, aswell as the dangers they faced. All of the wildlife was a part of the natural cycle of life, and it was only when humans came in the scene were things ruined. This is the same everywhere.. like in India, for example. There was a show on elephants and how they have become increasingly violent over the years. They continue to deliberately search out villages for humans. I don't blame them, either. For years the animals have been kept as pets, enslaved into circuses and abused, hunted, and for years they have been driven back from their own habitat by none other than humans. Elephants are very intelligant animals in that they often adopt abandoned (elephant) babies, mourn over the dead, and when so much as one elephant gets stuck or injured, the whole herd will stop to help. They communicate in frequencies that humans cannot hear, and it doesn't surprise me in the least that these animals could be capable of telling eachother of the dangers that people cause. They are out for revenge. It's quite ironic too, as the people of India worship an elephant-headed deity and view the elephant as sacred. Yet, they seem too ignorant to know what is best for the animal.
So, what is the purpose of humans? Is it to drive off a large number of other species, so that the earth will get a second chance to start anew, so to speak? But then again, it's not like nature exactly plans these things.. humans just happen to be the near useless filth of the planet.
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| You Are Very Skeptical |
 Your personal motto is: "Prove it." While some ideas, like life after death, may seem nice... You aren't going to believe them simply because it feels good. You let science and facts be your guide... Even if it means you don't share the beliefs of those around you. |
Saturday, March 10, 2007 . 3/10/2007
| You Mostly Have Your Emotions in Check |
 Sometimes your emotions get out of control, but you usually are a pretty stable person. You can find a lot to be happy about, as long as things are going your way. But if a few bad things happen to you, you tend to go in a bit of a downward spiral. Luckily, you usually come out of it okay and no worse for the wear. |
| You Mostly Fight Fair |
 When you fight, you tend to remember your end goal of resolving conflict. However, you can get a little too wrapped up in your own feelings. Remember that there are two sides to every argument. And even if you think you're totally right, you should take more time to hear your partner out. |
I'll type up a real post later. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Thursday, March 08, 2007 . 3/08/2007
Lastnight, when I was really hungry and had a craving for Drumsticks and noticed we didn't have any, my dad went "OOOH NOO" in a sarcastic tone. He always does this and it annoys me so much. I told him to shut up, in a way that would come across as if I didn't really mean it but was sick of him saying stupid things. He got all pissed off and said "NO, you're annoying". I feel embarrased to say this, but I cried. For half of the night I felt depressed and wondered after all this time, he really truly thought that I was annoying. I fear rejection.Now, I can't simply just ask my parents to stop talking so loud and in sarcastic tones or they'll end up laughing and saying my name as if I'm stupid. So, I just tell them to shut up if they annoy me since no other way works. They seem to not know that I'm sensitive to sound, even though that was part of the reason why I stopped going to regular school and took up corrispondance. As a result, I get depressed and withdrawn whenever they come home from work. They always talk so loud, say such stupid things, and I can do nothing about it.
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| The Part of You That No One Sees |
 You are aloof, mysterious, and distant. People feel like they really don't know the true you... Yet they're still drawn to you, almost by magnetic force. Underneath it all, you don't even really feel like you know yourself. It's easier to put on a front than really think about your life's purpose. You tend to seem pretentious, but it's just a mechanism you use to push people away. |
Disorder | Rating
Paranoid: High
Schizoid: Moderate
Schizotypal: High
Antisocial: Moderate
Borderline: Moderate
Histrionic: High
Narcissistic: High
Avoidant: Very High
Dependent: High
Obsessive-Compulsive: Moderate
URL of the test
URL for more info
Bleh. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Wednesday, March 07, 2007 . 3/07/2007
I need to start doing my schoolwork more often. Why am I writing in this, then? Most of the time, if I haven't been on the computer before I settle down to study, I get anxious and absolutely MUST check my favorite websites, email, listen to music and so on before I can concentrate on my work. So, here I am.. I just need to get myself to not stay on the computer the rest of the day, and not come back until at least one more lesson is finished. 0 Comments - Post/view commentsTuesday, March 06, 2007 . 3/06/2007
I got back from the dentist, and as always it wasn't as bad as I imagined it to be. I've known the dentist ever since I was about five years old.. and in all that time the place hasn't changed much. There's wallpaper of a map of the world, 70s-styled yellow waiting seats.. and the radio station is always tuned to an oldies one. 0 Comments - Post/view comments I feel sick. I have a dentist appointment today, and I'm nervous.. it's the smallest, most stupid things that make me anxious such as this. I hate it when I have to sit still while someone is practically in my face. I constantly think about what the other person might think of me, I wonder if I look stupid, or ugly, or weird.. I know it's irrational, but I can't help it. Uhg, I even feel like crying.. but no, I cannot miss this appointment. I might as well just get it over with, and then I'll be home again. 0 Comments - Post/view commentsSunday, March 04, 2007 . 3/04/2007
In case anyone didn't know, Sci Fi is creating yet another "Reality" series which is, in fact, pseudoscience. Taken from the article:"The program, which airs on the Sci Fi (Science Fiction) Channel, tries to distinguish itself as an investigative series: "For the first time ever, a series that doesn't just ponder the questions, it hunts for the answers. From cryptozoology to government conspiracies, "Sci Fi Investigates" will launch a new expedition every episode to aggressively investigate the unexplained phenomena ....We will uncover new evidence and subject old evidence to the newest forensic investigative technology for fresh analysis. We will interview eyewitnesses for new insights and recruit the foremost scientists and historians, skeptics and believers to uncover new clues and reveal new perspectives of legendary mysteries."
Despite such breathless claims, the series provides little science and few answers.
The program's inability to find explanations is not so mysterious given the lack of scientists and investigators on the show. The "Sci Fi Investigates" team consists of four principal cast members who look into UFOs, Bigfoot, ghosts, voodoo, and other topics."
Given the review in the article, I'd say that Ghost Hunters is far more "scientific" than this show. For example:
"Throughout the series, the team's actions bear little resemblance to any sort of real scientific investigation. According to the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, investigate means "to study by close examination and systematic inquiry." Judging by the episodes that have aired, the examination is not close, nor is the inquiry systematic. It is instead a hodgepodge of half-baked, unscientific experiments and studies with no clear purpose or protocol. It is, in short, pseudoscience."
At least Ghost Hunters uses technology and tries to debunk a haunting before claiming that a place is haunted.
I used to love shows like this.. ones that attempted to explain the paranormal. However, the more I learned, the more I realised that most, if not all, "unexplained phenomena" have a rational, down-to-earth explaination. Sometimes I wish that I didn't know anything and believed everything, because I miss being spooked by ghostly claims. Ignorance truly can be bliss. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
Friday, March 02, 2007 . 3/02/2007
What the hell is the point? Until now, I have made myself ignorant as to what has been happening in Iraq, and just plain not caring. It would be downright stupid to think that horrible things aren't going on, but I never imagined it was quite this bad. We have man killing fellow man for no reason other than their religion. Bombs, torture.. what a horrible place to live. One man survived being locked up inside a coffin or somesuch, but all the others, nine I believe, died. He said he had God to thank. Thank for what? Sure, this one man survived, but if this God was all merciful, he would not have let the others die. He would not let people be tortured and killed for no good reason.This is another video about the consequences of this pathetic war. The wounds American soldiers recieve, the horror they go through. The doctors and nurses assisting these injured people have to hold on to an imaginary friend and humor to keep them sane. I found it somewhat odd that grown men were praying into thin air over the deceased that they did everything they could, that God take care of them, etc. They turn to religion, the very same thing that many of the soldiers were killed from. At first I thought it weak that someone would turn to something imaginary for comfort.. but these doctors are dealing with injured soldiers everyday. A weak person could never do that. 0 Comments - Post/view comments
