Awesome Stuff: Geek and Sundry

Internet goddess and exceptionally prodigious writer/actress/every-other-production-job Felicia Day put together a YouTube channel a bit back called Geek and Sundry.  It's full of fantastic shows, both scripted, like The Guild and the new Space Janitors, and unscripted, like her own The Flog (which has solidified what was already a massive crush) and Wil Wheaton's Tabletop (which has introduced my friends and I to many a fantastic game).

Go there.  Check it out.  Subscribe.  I guarantee you'll enjoy it. Read more!

To Penny Arcade and XKCD

I woke up this morning and, as I do every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, checked out my comics.  Two at the top of the list are, and have been for years, Penny Arcade and XKCD.  And both, this morning, made me laugh and genuinely tugged at my heart.  Exceptional work, gentlemen. 

To Mr. Munroe, congratulations.  It's a hard road you guys have walked, but it seems like you get that hope and humor will get you through damn near to anything.  Thanks for bringing both to so many.

And to Misters Krahulik and Holkins...You've got a long road ahead of you, but remember that hope and humor will get you through damn near to anything.  If it helps, from what I hear, it's totally worth it. 

The specific comics mentioned above can be found (in case you didn't find this today) here:

XKCD: http://xkcd.com/1141/
Penny Arcade:  http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2012/11/30 Read more!

Fun Fact: Bloody Brains

Blood is toxic to brain tissue.  At the same time, the brain requires more blood to function than any other organ. 

Gives an entirely new meaning to internal paradox. Read more!

A Thought: On the Virtue of Virtues

One of the most common threads amongst those philosophers whose works have spawned large followings is their focus upon the virtues of wisdom, compassion, acceptance, love, charity and selflessness. 

I like to think that, were they to find themselves sitting around a table, Christ, Muhammad, The Buddha and Lao Tse would get along famously.  Read more!

DeNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo has taught me a number of very valuable lessons.  First, it's helped me work quickly and efficiently on plotting and organization.  Second, it's shown me that I can, when I've done those things, write a prodigious amount in a short period.  Finally, and most importantly, I've learned that I can't write a novel in the same month that I have a persistent illness, final papers and exams. 

That being said, I've come woefully short of my word count, with only a day and a half left.  I've decided, then, not to give up but to shift my goal to December, when I've not got classes or, God willing, some kind of plague.  I'm calling my own little novel writing month DeNoWriMo and it works the same way.  I'll write, by New Year's Day, 50k words and finish the first draft of my novel.  Here we go...again... Read more!

A Case for Empathy

In 2010, at the annual meeting for the Association for Psychological Science in Boston, a research group from The University of Michigan Institute for Social Research presented the findings of a meta-study which tracked the empathy levels of approximately 14,000 incoming freshmen per year from 1979 to 2009.  The study found that students overall levels of empathy steadily increased until 2001, when there was a sharp decline, which continued through the rest of the period until, at the end, students from 2009 were about 40% less empathetic than those in 1979.  (Konrath, et al.)

Since the release of these startling findings, the reaction has been mixed, with some decrying this as the result of the evils of the digital era and others saying that it’s just a natural extension of the increased level of independence of the newer generation and isn’t worth worrying about.  While these are the extreme ends of the spectrum, the findings of Konrath and her associates are unsettling and, at the very least, beg for further study as to both the causes and effects of this decreasing empathy.

Buddhist doctrine teaches that empathy leads to compassion, one of the key components of enlightenment, and it isn’t alone.  Religious leaders and philosophers across the globe and throughout history have stressed the necessity of empathy as vital to the survival of both the individual and society.  Even today, empathy has been championed by Carl Rogers, The Stone Center Group and others as being one of the most important traits in both personal growth and the acquisition and development of interpersonal relationships vital to psychological health and research has shown that it is a key element of effective therapy.

When we seek help from a therapist, we are at our most vulnerable, by necessity.  In order to attempt to find solutions to the problems we face, we must drag into the light some of the most personal and uncomfortable parts of ourselves in front of  what amounts, at the outset, to a complete stranger.  This is made easier when the therapist is open, accepting and non-judgmental, shows an ability to listen and truly care about what’s being said, about what we’re going through.  Empathy allows a therapist to show those things, to create an atmosphere of understanding, acceptance and security.    

While empathy is an innate human trait, as with so many others, it will only grow with practice, like the exercise on page 367.  It asks the participant, in this case myself, to go out and seek members of groups, cultures and ethnicities which differ from one’s own and engage in discussions with them while attempting to reflect each other’s thoughts and feelings before sharing one’s own.  This seems deceptively simple, but proves to be somewhat more difficult in practice.

In order to find people with whom I didn’t already share a bond, I started talking with people in my classes, in the halls and, on one occasion, in a local coffee house, choosing those who fit into different ethnicities or subcultures from my own, even one person from a foreign nation.  While the experiment got some odd looks at first, it ended up being a lot of fun and was surprisingly effective.  Of the four conversations I had, each lasting at least twenty minutes and the longest lasting nearly three hours, I felt a great deal closer to the people with whom I had shared that span of time and we both ended up sharing details of our lives which we may not otherwise have shared with someone we’d just met. 

What’s more, the experience definitely opened my eyes and I found myself reflexively reflecting in some of my other conversations, if not nearly as frequently.  I was better able to listen and spent more time doing so than just waiting for my turn to talk.  Overall, the response was overwhelmingly positive and something I would like to continue developing, as its importance and benefits are even clearer to me now than they were before.

Regardless of the cause of the decline in empathy, then, it would seem to be something which could, and certainly should, I feel, after my own experiences, be fought effectively.  While I can offer no causal links between the loss of empathy and the increase in things like bullying, overt bigotry and victim blaming, the concurrence of these things is rife for speculation and hypothesis and certainly warrants study. 

Konrath, S. H., O'Brien, E. H., & Hsing, C. (2011). Changes in dispositional empathy in American college students over time: a meta-analysis. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 15, 180-198.

Read more!

A Thought: On the Pacing of Life

Those who choose to move through life at a mindful pace are far less likely to fall, and much more likely to rise when they do, than are those who rush heedless down its paths. Read more!

A Thought: On the Infinity of Life

While our lives may be finite, the impact of our lives rarely is.  Be conscious, always, of that fact. Read more!

It's Cyber Monday!

It's Cyber Monday, which is like Black Friday, but you can shop in your underwear without getting arrested.   GO SHOP! Read more!

A Thought: On Love and Absolutes

Love is absolute.  There can be no condition placed on it without changing it into something else.  That being said, sometimes love is not enough, or the world gets in the way, or time, or timing.  But love, when true, will always remain. Read more!

Listen...

I really don't want to put the elephant on the table and attack it. Read more!

A Thanksgiving Wrap-up...

Other than having some sort of plague and coming to the sobering realization that Thanksgiving is effectively a ritual animal sacrifice, it's been a fantastic day.  Read more!

A Though: On The Serenity of Prometheus

The best thing about Prometheus was that the ship itself was a giant Firefly class ship with an extra set of engines.  Gives some credence to the theory that the Alien and Firefly universes are the same.  Read more!

A Love Letter to Quantum Leap

So I've been sick as a dog, and getting progressively worse, the last few days.  What's more, due to scheduling issues and other commitments, I've also spent the vast majority of that time alone.  Well, mostly...

I've been working on my novel and watching Quantum Leap.  It was a favorite growing up and is even more so now.  So very few shows from my childhood have held up but this one, if anything, has gotten better.  Or perhaps I've gotten older, experienced more and it resonates.  Either way, I enjoy as much or more now.

The writing isn't dated, deals with issues that most contemporary shows wouldn't touch for fear of the controversy, but always giving them the depth and respect they deserve. 

Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell are fantastic, with brilliant chemistry.   Al is brilliantly dirty and this, I'm sure, is because I'm getting more of the jokes now.  And Sam manages to be the boy scout he always was without becoming preachy or annoying.  Oh, and he looks great in a dress.  Often, heh.  If you haven't watched it before, you should.  And if you have, seriously consider going back.  It's streaming on Netflix and well worth the time. Read more!

A Thought: On Muttonchops

Unless you are Wolverine, a 19th century dandy or an actual sheep, having muttonchops is never an acceptable choice.  Thank you.  That is all. Read more!

Ah, Guitar Hero...

Never would I have thought before you that I'd ever utter the phrase, "Damn...Boston just kicked my ass."

I shouldn't be left alone for extended periods. Read more!

Scrabble With Friends

So wait...They made a Words With Friends board game? Didn't we already have one of those? It was called Scrabble. It was the basis for Words With Friends.  They didn't really change...anything.  It's literally the same game.  Wow... Read more!

A Thought: On Regret and Twinkies

You know, with the way people are rushing to buy as much Hostess stuff as possible, now that they're closing, I'm having some real trouble seeing how the company's gone out of business. 

Perfect example of not appreciating what you've got 'til it's gone. Read more!

An Open Letter: To the Denny's Guy

Denny's Guy,

   I get that you like money.  It's cool.  We all like money.  And I get that you want all of the money.  That, too, is reasonable, I suppose.  But don't try to displace your own greed by saying that you HAVE to cut hours on your wait staff or add a 5% price increase to your customer's bill to avoid the crippling cost of the health care mandate.  You don't.  Here's why...

   The average salary of Denny's wait staff is $4.25 an hour, before tips.  You aren't even paying the majority of your staff minimum wage.  Your customers are already picking up that slack.  Don't charge them more because you're scared that you won't make quite as much profit.  You will!  By paying for employee health care!  Here's why...

   There's this thing called productivity.  If employees are happier, productivity increases.  If your employees are healthy, productivity increases.  When productivity increases, profits increase.  What's more, you get the bonus benefit of keeping employees by showing that you actually care about their well-being.  Lower turnover leads to...you guessed it!  Increased profit! 

   See?  It's win/win.  This, right here, is that thing you folks in business are always talking about when you say that you just want to invest in the long-term success of your business.  Believe it or not, prior to the 1980s, giving your employees health benefits was the standard, rather than the exception.  And business thrived.  Let's go ahead and give it a shot, rather than being reactionary and clinging to outdated and/or hypocritical ideologies. 

Sincerely,
   A Rational American Read more!

Conversations: Biting in Bed

Just after turning out the lights, before bed...

J: I don't know why, but I have this strange urge to bite you.
Z: What?
J: Not like, on your arm or anything.  It's too big for me to get a good grip with my teeth.  Like your face.
Z: ... ::Offers a finger::
J: ::Nibbles on finger, then shakes her head:: 
Z: Okay.  Okay...So, I have to tell you.  If I wake up and you're trying to bite me, I'm going to assume that you've gone zombie and punch you in the face.
J: Fair enough.
Z: I love you.
J: I love you, too. Read more!

A Thought: On Secession

That so many people in this nation are supporting the secession of their respective states shows just how truly out of touch with reality they are and how much of their daily lives they take for granted without giving a moment's thought to what would actually happen were they successful, especially given how many states are incapable of functioning without significant government funds.

But hey, I say let them go.  We can parcel off some land, somewhere in The Midwest, say, and move them all there, erect one of those giant fences they're so fond of wanting, stick them with the standard tariffs and such that we erect on all foreign nations, and stick cameras everywhere to watch how quickly society crumbles.  It'll  be reality T.V. gold. Read more!

A Thought: On the Myth of Tomorrow

Tomorrow is half a myth.  There will always be a tomorrow, true.  We just may not be there to see it, nor can we be sure anyone else will.  That's what makes today so very important, every day. 

Tell those you love how you feel.  Never put off a thank you.  Be cautious, be mindful, but take the good chances, every time you're able. 

Because if you do those things, tomorrow, if you are lucky enough to see it, will be that much better for each you of them.  Sadness falls away, but happiness accumulates exponentially. Read more!

A Thought: On The Psychological Benefits of Aging

One nice thing about getting older?  You age out of the standard initial onset range for all sorts of mental disorders between 24-28.  So there's that. Read more!

NaNoWriMo: Week 2

Heading into week two of NaNoWriMo, I've got about 15,000 words done.  Mind you, I have to go back already and write myself out of a corner...BUT I've made an outline now for the whole of it, so that shouldn't happen again and, hey, adding things to make stuff make sense helps the word count.  Not that I'm worried on that front as I've only barely begun to tell my story and have already gotten more than a quarter of the way to the 50k mark. 

Now, back to add some flesh to the skeleton of my outline, then into the story once again... Read more!

The Psychology of Entitlement

Girl: What parts of the chapters do we need to read for the test?
Prof: All of them.
Girl: That's, like, 125 pages...
Prof: ...okay?
Girl: That would be alright if we didn't have other classes or anything.

Now, bear in mind that this is a senior level psychology course and she's had six weeks since the last exam to read those 125 pages. Read more!

A Question of Inspiration

Is it a better thing to live an inspiring life, or a life inspired? Read more!

GO VOTE!

Seriously, step away from the internet and go vote.  Unless you already voted.  Don't vote twice.  They frown on that. Read more!

A Quick Civics Lesson

Good God, people.  You don't trust politicians to have your best interests in mind, which is a completely founded belief, but you're willing to assume that large corporations, when given the choice between higher profits and a smaller American workforce or lower profits and a larger American workforce, are going to go with the latter? 

Oh, and stop touting that third parties are the answer to all the country's ills.  It's foolishness and shows an utter lack of education when it comes to American history.  Both parties we have now, the ones who are the current monstrous purveyors of woe, were third parties once.  Any party, given sufficient time and power, will become corrupt.  Again, I cite empirical evidence. 

If you really want to enact change, do research.  Vote the issues.  Just because the electoral college makes the presidential race all but a sham doesn't mean there aren't real, valid issues on the ballot.  Get off your butts, do some research and vote.  Then, after that, rather than coming online and bemoaning the state of the nation, go out and do something. 

Fight for term limits on Congress.  Take the subsidies from big business, not small farms.  Fight for education reform, because that's the quickest and most effective way to both decrease welfare dependency AND revitalize the American economy.  And finally, for the love of all that's holy, quit whining about taxes.  We all need to pay them.  If you want to do something about your tax burden, close the loopholes that allow the wealthy and large corporations to avoid theirs.

There is no shortage of good that can be done in this country, but to do it, we must exercise not just the rights and privileges we were given at its inception and since, but also the expectations laid upon us.  That we will stand up for what's right. That liberty and equality are not up for debate. That we will struggle together, not against one another. Go out and be Americans, not just on election day, but every day. Read more!

A Thought: On Post-election Canadian Migration

So I've heard a lot of people lately claiming that, should that tax-increasingly, socialist Obama win the election, they're moving to Canada. 

...


Really?  I feel like you may need to do a little bit of research there, folks.  I'm just saying. Read more!

A Thought: On Kindness

Kindness is always a worthwhile endeavor. 

It's easy to do a kindness for those who love us,  those whom we love,  those who have done us a good turn in the past, or those who would, if we needed it.

What's harder, though, is to exhibit kindness to those who have hurt us, to those we don't know, to those from whom we have no reason to expect it in return. 

Don't do it to get praise, nor to get a favor owed, but because the world is made better for it. 

Don't do it for the times when you may need it.  Do it for the times when you needed it and didn't have it.  Learn.


Read more!

A Thought: On the Reality of Ridiculousness

Far too many people allow the possibility of looking ridiculous keep them from doing some amazing things.

At the same time, far too few people let the reality of looking ridiculous stop them from doing some truly dumb things. Read more!

A Thought: On the Rights of Others

Be very careful when protecting your rights that you are not violating the rights of others.  There is a very fine line between assertiveness and aggression. Read more!