I recently got to know that one of my best friends blocked me on whatsapp, unfriended me on fb, instagram, twitter and what not (in no particular order whilst I’ve been busy sending good ol’ memories).
I thought hard about it and maybe it has to do with the differences in ideologies. Many a time, I’ve been asked about my affiliations and I always retort by saying ” I’m neither leftwing nor rightwing. I’m wingless, just like Seraph”…
Seraph, the wingless
Anyhow, it’s ironic since he’s a comedian and couldn’t take one of the banters or probably crappy tweet I did or whatever it may be.
I’ve reached a point in life where the number of fucks I give is the cardinality of a null set i.e. 0
Wubba lubba dub dub
As a wise man once said, “Wish them well, and if they leave throw their memories into a well”…
Of all the sci-fi that I have watched, it’s the concept of love that keeps on reminiscing. It’s as if someone has written a time-loop on this plot device. Anyhow, a wise man once wrote about stages of love…
Attraction : It begins with a crush. The very first stage. You are intrigued by a quality of the other – kindness, wit, looks, empathy, humour, affluence, individuality, confidence, intuition, presence. You want them around you. You want to look at them, be with them. They excite you. You are looking forward to a possibility. It gives you happiness. It will embark you on a journey of love and like a thing of beauty, it will give you a joy forever…
Infatuation : It is intense. You are dreaming about them. You are playing out scenarios in your head. Your subconscious is obsessed over them. They are a constant reminder in your mind. The attachment has grown. You feel that connection. This is a stage of contemplation. You want to act on it, but it’s not easy. You are skeptical. The prospect excites you like nothing before, but you dread the falling out. It feels like you’ll ruin a good painting by adding another brushstroke. This is probably the hardest thing you ever did. Everything you do now will matter the most. This is where most potential relationships fall out. They never make past this stage…
Love : When the two eyes meet, ‘it’ has been expressed and reciprocated. Now you are each other’s, exclusively. Laughter, embraces, tinges on the face, lit eyes, hearts beating faster, butterflies in the stomach. People will be able to tell your bliss. But they won’t be able to see the secret that you share, the secret of personalities. The hard choices, difficult circumstances, individual battles to be better for the other. You’ll strive through all the uncertainties and doubts to make it wonderful. Every day will be a new bar of understanding. In this churning of lifestyles, you discover new qualities about yourselves, previously unknown. You do all the things that you always wanted to. It can be writing letters, learning piano, walking in rains or jumping off cliffs together into a river, just for fun. Anything. This is the most fun you shall ever have. Unimaginable. There will be tough days, but they’ll in place contribute to your growth.
Trust : Slowly and irrevocably, you are falling in love. All with nothing but just the trust that they will hold you. You have the utmost faith and patience for your love now. There is no turning back. You are past all doubts and fears. You choose to trust, absolutely and unconditionally. Nobody understands you better. They have held your hand through ice and fire. You have dealt with your vices together. You are stronger and braver now and you want to repay that by placing an immeasurable belief in them.
Worship : You have found your God. Trust has now turned into reverence. You consciously bow down to them, their very existence, their whole being. It is divine. You are now in the realms of faith. You want to lose yourself to a hopeless devotion, utterly lost from the world, trying to be one of them. Concept of right and wrong is getting blurred because Gods are indubitably perfect. Act of love is your prayer now. Worship is now a way of life.
Passion : You cannot imagine your identity without them. They are like air to you. It is an obsession of the highest form. Nothing else matters, only them. You lose your individual existence in their absence. Only love can bring you peace. You are helplessly entangled in it. Nothing will ever be enough. There is no moral, virtue, idea of ethic as important as them. They are your absolute recognition. There is now “you”, only Them (read Anthem by Ayn Rand for the reference).
The next stage could either go with those Disney-like “lived happy ever after” endings or die a painful death!
Death of love. Death of trust. Death of worship. Death of passion. Separation and sadness. The process of Death which began at Trust. The journey has been completed. All the hope has been lost. There is only grief and despair to follow…
Samurai Jack, stuck in the wrong epoch.
Lovers bitten by the serpent of separation, bound by the physical limitations of the world are now dead. They have endured all the worldly sufferings and finally found the cosmic salvation to finally be at peace, together.
The next stage is what I call Rebirth. It begins after the calmness of death. Slowly… All the feelings are subdued, deep into your heart, just like a seed into the ground. You cry, stay awake at nights. You think about parallel possibilities in which you two could’ve been together. Tears flow from the sea of emotions. You can’t put an end to them. So, you re-maneuver them, channeling every single droplet directly into your petrified heart. Each drop permeates through the labyrinth. And reaches that point, where love lies in its purest form. Dead but only to the eyes of self. The soul never actually dies, not even for Love. Steadily, your tears turn that deceased kernel into a seeling of a point-universe. The process of resurrection begins…
Professor Yutonium from Powerpuff Girls
I completed season 1 of Samurai Jack today and I was reminded of a fan theory which says that Professor Yutonium is none other than Samurai Jack.
Remember, somewhere between Love and Madness lies obsession…
The human body is a tool of expression and body language tells how well we utilize those tools. When we face any situation we have two ways to deal with it: either think of ourselves as a victim or just take charge. Our body language can help with it. It alters our thought process, thus making a significant impact on how we act. The way we think about ourselves, the precise response of our brain to stress, the manner in which we show our dominance, all these can be trained. When we sit with open positions — our hands on our waists — our body goes through wonderful positive change. This enhances our vision, giving us a crystal clear idea of what to do and how to do it. When we do our task at hand, we feel positive about ourselves, thus cementing the feel-good vibes in us. This, in turn, kickstarts a cycle of positive feedback, thus helping us achieve better.
There comes a time in a man’s life, when he has a single aim in life. Other goals subside into nothingness, becoming either recreations or distractions. I feel that that time is right now. There was a shy kid who would not speak even when he wanted to ask questions, who would swim in his textbooks and not do anything social. Once I was called up on stage to receive a prize in Quiz competition, I still remember that I didn’t climb up and received it from the area just below the main podium. It was a funny incident, but it made me look into myself. From being that timid, introverted boy, I have grown up to become a man of my destiny. Today, whenever I enter into power positions, my concentration level increases and my brain goes into a focussed state. This has made my body into a jackhammer of excellence. All this was possible because of the right mindset. I have been training myself in being mindful of the body postures. I ensure that I don’t slouch, keep my spine straight, and keep my mind aware of the present. This has helped me in my social life as well. I am able to connect better not only with others but also with myself.
When someone goes in public and takes the central stage, people are not only looking at her/him, but they are engaging with all their senses. If the person delivers what induces an epiphany, the audience remembers the talk for quite a long time. Speaker’s expression also matters a lot. It’s not just the words, but the way she/he is elucidating the ideas marks an impression. Stage presence helps everyone, the speaker gains a better understanding of the audience, and the audience understands that the speaker is delivering his best. To achieve maximum out of any opportunity life presents, one needs to be prepared. “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst” because who knows what is there in the heart of the future.
The art of “Fake it till you make it” is a long-lost art which needs to be imbibed in our lives. It doesn’t mean that we are lying to ourselves into feeling better, it entails that we put 100% effort into whatever we are doing. If we try, try, and try again we the right mindset, the spring of success won’t be far behind. We need to be aware of loopholes in our personality, try to fill those gaps with the layers of self-confidence. When an opportunity shows up, one needs to man up. Focus and concentration, full dedication with 100% effort can certainly make us achieve up to our full potential. Once we do that, we can utilize proper body language to inspire not just others, but also self-motive ourselves. Imagine being that beacon of inspiration, a ray of hope who enlightens everyone around them.
Why is it important to see yourself on television? Why is television an important subject for scholarly study and how does what we watch shape the world we live in?
Because (most) people like getting attention. Be it for any reason. Fame comes easy these days, and what better source than few seconds of footage focussing on your face!
TV industry as a whole has changed the way we, normal people, think. It can be called as the mirror of society, that too with a feedback loop. We see what we are doing, we become what we do. This is why scholars ranging from social psychologists to online teachers(yes, those are also scholars) try and understand what people watch. They study it because it helps them in getting a hang of the upcoming future. A future which is so fragile that slightest of turns in any technology can alter its course.
Scott asks if you think we’re getting closer to realizing the Vulcan philosophy of IDIC (Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations) here on Earth. What would it take for that to happen? What would it look like? How might things be different.
Oh, we definitely are. It would take compassion and kindness, it’s as simple as that. When people start putting themselves into the shoes of the others, they will become understanding. They will feel love for others and try to spread it among fellow human being.
There’s a saying from Upanishads “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”. The world/Earth is one family. When people realize this, and gain the realization, they will commence an epoch of IDIC.
Think of a global issue that we are facing today that causes fear or concern. What would be the plot of a television show that depicted a utopian and optimistic vision of the future of that issue?
Hmmm, the first issue which comes to mind is the increase in terrorism and widespread violence. People aren’t kind anymore. Or maybe they are extremely selective in showing kindness. A perfect world would be where there would be no fights. Any disagreements would be solved collectively using logic.
An idea plot for such a TV show could be showing in depth history of Vulcans. How they transformed themselves from being barbaric brutes to such calm logic loving beasts (Pon Farr).
Q2. To what extent did the business model of network television enable Star Trek: The Original Series to appeal to such a wide range of audiences? In ways did that same model constrain it?
“ The peak ownership percentage of households with at least one television set occurred during the 1996–97 season, with 98.4% ownership.” This means that the base audience which could watch a variety of TV shows rose. From what I have seen, The network television boosted the broad range of viewing of the shows like
The only constraints were the individual notions of whether to choose Star Trek or other TV series at that time.
sci-fi.monk 