Salvete

I received an interesting email from my friend Randy today (no, not RK). He’s apparently applying to JET (Japanese Exchange and Teaching program) to teach English in rural Japan for a year, and wanted second opinions on his statement of purpose. This is a program I’ve always been intruiged by (I’d love to go to Japan for a year), so I really hope he gets the position.

Reading over his statement, it really got me thinking about what my own purpose is. It is often easy to lose track of your goals amidst the chaos and little deaths of day to day living, and sometimes you just need a swift spiritual kick to the head to get back into the swing of things.

Some of you might be aware that as much as I generally try to just go with the flow, and often have no real preference one way or another, I do have an extremely stubborn side as well. (You there, in the peanut gallery: shut it!) I have never reacted well to being told when and how I must work, which is part of the reason I’m a little fearful of going into the workforce full time (Other reasons? Read the archives). This expands out into other things, as well: I never shaved my moustache until people stopped giving me shit about it. I’ve currently got a wildly out of control goattee going on, but I haven’t trimmed it because there hasn’t been a day yet that I haven’t been given shit about it. What I choose to do or not do to my body is MY business, no one else’s, and I actively resent getting told what to do to it. This has always been the case, as far back as I can remember.

On to other things. I’ve been working on getting into a routine that I’m happy with, and I’m not there yet. Getting closer, though. Since I’ve been getting up at 8am every morning in order to take my morning pill, and can’t lie down for fully 30 minutes after taking it, I’ve been getting up in the mornings. This is a good thing, though I do miss being able to snuggle with my wife in the mornings. It’s something I really value, and haven’t been able to do lately.

Instead, I go into my office, which is generally illuminated with this beautiful light shining through the blinds, and check my email, and then sign onto Final Fantasy XI. It really is a fun game, and I do enjoy it (so far), more than any other MMORPG I’ve tried. It does get a little lonely, sometimes, but for once I actually know someone who plays the same server as me, so even though we generally don’t group, we do randomly banter at each other. I usually play until lunch, so call it 3-4 hours depending on the day. The afternoon is reserved for errands, or on the occasions we don’t go out, around the house stuff, blogging (this post, for example), and schoolwork. Dinner is followed by some time with my wife, school work, and relaxing.

At least, that’s how I’d like it to work. It’s still not quite a routine, and I’m still not overwhelmingly happy with the time allocations. (I’ve also been feeling wiped and foggy by mid-evening most days, which has been hindering the tail end of the equation. As my father has said, keeping hydrated is KEY on this course of treatment, and is something I need to work harder on.)

Unrelated, but I saw Matrix: Revolutions the other day. Opinions of it have been binary in nature: they either love it or they hate it. I think there’s room enough for both. I can see the points that people have made in both sides, but ultimately, I enjoyed it. I think it was an excellent end to a trilogy. I think it made a lot of excellent references and allusions to a grander mythology and awareness than I think others are giving it credit for. To a certain extent, I think some are mistaking complexity for convolution. I won’t spoil the ending for those of you who haven’t seen it, but the solution to Smith was pretty obvious: it occurred to me within the first 15 minutes of the second movie. That is not to say that it was poorly done or a cop-out, so much as it was the only feasible solution, and completes the metaphor.

In case you’re wondering, the title of this post is Latin. It says Hello (plural).

One thought on “Salvete

  1. I sympathize with your independence. The irony that occurs to me is that if you refuse to do something you might otherwise do, simply because others give you shit about it, you’re still allowing outside influences to control your decisions. I WOULD suggest that you do whatever you like regardless of what people say, as though you had never heard it, instead of doing it only after people had given up pestering you about it. I WOULD suggest that…but if I did, you’d never do it, so I won’t :P

    Just playing with you, man. Excellent post. I’m quite looking forward to Revolution, which I plan to see Thursday, so I’m glad to know you ultimately enjoyed it.

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