| Yeah, I felt like writing a post for myOtaku, so here I am on Christmas eve, typing away. I actually have a few things to talk about, so that's why I don't have a more specific title.
First off, it's Christmas eve and what do I wake up to? A sore throat and a sick stomach. Yeah, that's right, I'm sick--again for the 5th or so time this year--but also again, not bad. I think it's pretty much just a cold, since my stomach isn't really that bad. It's mainly when I stand up quickly or make sudden movements and get dizzy, which makes my stomach a bit woozy when my head is plugged up. Other than that, though, I'm just draining and have the aforementioned sore throat. Mainly just a nuisance, and besides, I knew I had it coming to me; going on so little sleep during late fall/winter, it's hard to keep from getting at least a little sick. But hey, I got my schedule back on track, so I think it's worth it. - - - - - - - - - - - - -Next up, something that just popped into my mind a few minutes ago, and partly inspired me to write this post. It's a little bit of a rant, but not all that much, and before I start, keep in mind this is not aimed at anyone in particular. It's just general observations from my time talking to people over the net and my point of view for those observations. So if I offend anyone, the problem's on your end, not mine. ~_^
But anyway, I find it kind of sad/amusing that some people get so worked up or are affected so much by arguments with people over the net when they have differeing views. I think some people take the internet way more seriously than they should. Really, think about it; think about it for what it is. You're not even actually talking to the people you interact with--it's all just written words.
Really, you have very little actual connection with the people you talk to over the internet. Sure, you can make friends and have a good time talking with people from all over the word--and that's good. But still, think about it. If you start to get worked up over an argument or something, look around you. What do you actually see? A computer, a monitor, keyboard and mouse? Great, you can use these things to talk to other people, but there's one major difference between talking to people online and talking to them in person. A computer, you can turn off and walk away from--you can't always do that with people you know in person.
So what's my point? Well, basically, arguments and disagreements with people over the net can only affect you as much as you yourself let them. Again, think about it: You get in an argument and you get mad, but why? Really, why? Simply because the other person doesn't agree with you? I'm sorry, but that's a rather stupid reason. It can be quite hard to change someone's mind on certain issues, and I think it's rather presumptuous to believe you're going to be able to do so when, again, you're not even talking in person.
Is it because the disagreement affects your friendship with that individual, maybe even to the point that you no longer want to talk him/her anymore? Well, I know it's a rather blunt way of saying it, but get over it. There are always going to be people like that, online or in person, and besides, their views would be the same whether or not the argument came up. And if you don't want to talk to them after the disagreement became apparent, it stands to reason that you only talked to them beforehand because you didn't know of your differing views. Nothing gained and nothing lost, unless you yourself choose to let it affect you so much that you do lose something. Before you met that person, you didn't have him or her as a friend; after you stopped talking to him/her, you again didn't have him or her as a friend. In the end, there's really no change unless you choose to hold a grudge or remain angry or something.
Again, this comes back to my main point: Dealings with people over the internet affect you only as much as you let them. With people you know in person, it's harder to not let things affect you because, obviously, you're actually interacting with that person. Like, say, at school; if you get in an argument with a friend and are no longer friends afterwards, that's going to cause a bit of tension since you're both going to be seeing each other almost every day, unless you go out of your way to avoid that person. There is no such thing as a "block" or "ignore" button in the real world. (Unless you count earplugs. ~_^)
I've seen so many arguments and disputes during the time I've been going to online message boards and using AIM, and so many people getting pissed off or getting upset. And I keep wondering, why? Why do people let things like that get to them so much? I mean, arguing your point of view or your opinion is fine, but what good does it do to get upset? It doesn't change the way the person thinks, and it certainly doesn't make your opinion seem any more credible.
When I disagree with someone, sometimes I'll engage in an argument, but I never take anything personally unless it's a direct insult aimed at me. Just because someone else thinks something different from me doesn't mean I have to change my thinking, and vice versa. And after the argument is over, I go on the same as before, because I don't get upset. I don't get mad, I don't hold a grudge, I just accept that that person has a different opinion from me and go on being friends.
So there, that's my little rant. I hope you've all enjoyed it, and for those of you that didn't, please keep the flaming to a minium. Because again, this was not written with anyone or any particular argument that I've witnessed or been a part of. I don't want to see comments citing various arguments and relating them to this post. One particular argument did bring the idea for this to mind, but this is certainly not aimed at that argument. - - - - - - - - - - - - -Coming back to the Christmas stuff, since I don't really want to end this on the previous subject, it's finally starting to feel like Christmas around the house. We've started wrapping presents and putting them under the tree, and my brother drove up from Santa Clara and got here today. My brothers were out just now doing some last minute shopping, in fact, so me and my parents wrapped some more presents during that time.
There's always a nice good sized pile of presents under the tree since there are eight of us (me, three brothers, two parents, and two grandparents), but this year it's looking to be a bit smaller. A lot of us are going in together to get people bigger, more expensive things instead of getting a bunch a smaller, seperate things. Which is nice, because we can get things that we really want, and there's not nearly as much shopping to do. I only had to actually buy two presents myself.
Oh, and one last thing that I thought was kind of cool, before I end this post: I ended up having pretty much exactly enough money for everyone's presents. Before I bought Mario Kart: Double Dash!! I figured out how much money I'd probably have between then and Christmas to spend on gifts, and it's come out pretty much exactly how I figured. Currently I only have a $1 bill left plus a few coin rolls, heh. | |
