Cav's Place

If normal market rules apply here as well, the value of ass kissing should be plummeting these days. So many people seem bent on drowning in praise anybody who’s in a perceived position of authority and might help them in some way…

While looking for the components I wanted for my new computer I read quite a few comments posted about them on shops’ sites, plus some comments on a few corporate blog entries, and it was quite sickening at times to tell you the truth. An inordinate amount of praise for the shops themselves was present, and since a potential buyer looking for information on the product would likely find that irrelevant I don’t think it was written by employees posing as buyers. So I have to wonder what do those people expect to gain by this?
Not to mention that I happened to look through some attempts at job applications a while back and I was getting embarrassed for reading that stuff! Since the world is full of rotten people with bloated egos and they’re perhaps even more likely to be found in positions of authority, it’s obvious that there’s a “market” for this, but would any employer actually worth working for hire an applicant whose best developed skill is obviously kissing ass? And since I doubt it, don’t these people know that by sending something like that they limit their options to the crappy jobs that they’ll very soon end up hating? Then again, it seems quite fitting, kissing ass and getting crap.

Of course, each is free to choose how much they value themselves and deduce what’s enough to make them grovel. There are things that should make us all feel insignificant and things that we have already proven to be unworthy of, in which case some amount of groveling is often required, though very rarely sufficient for another chance, but when that threshold is as low as an entry-level job, with long hours and little pay, or even a small and unlikely discount, they should realize that they don’t in any way appear worthy of getting it.
Still, this paints an interesting picture, proving once again that humans as a whole aren’t exactly right in calling themselves intelligent creatures. So many seem to actually want to become… I’m not even sure servants is the right word, slaves might be more fitting. Then they start complaining that they’re taken advantage of, look for ways to take their frustration out on others and the cycle begins anew.

Don’t get me wrong, I think that being too confident, too proud, is much worse than thinking you’re worthless, but mainly it’s a matter of values and priorities. Even if you’re worthless, you don’t need to bow down in the face of things that are also worth little, if anything at all, when you look at the big picture. And so many people don’t have their priorities straight at all…

Many say the only thing that’d make humans stop thinking in terms of differences, such as nationality, religion or race, and unite under a common flag would be a common enemy, a threat from space such as an asteroid or hostile aliens. But the more I see, the more I hear and the more I think about this, the more I ask myself if even that would be enough.
Perhaps an asteroid would be more likely to create a temporary unity, seeing as you can’t strike a deal with a rock, but I think there would be problems even then. There could be a lot of politics and economics, different solutions developed separately instead for working together and an endless debate about who takes the credit for solving the problem, assuming it would be solved. I even think that in case of a smaller asteroid, one that wouldn’t cause serious damage to all parts of the world, if it’s exact impact location could be predicted in advance, some countries that wouldn’t be too affected by it wouldn’t be too willing to help destroy or deflect it. Not to mention the many people who would oppose doing anything about it, saying things along the lines of “you have no right to change God’s plan”. In the end, managing to save ourselves from the impact might not start an age of peace and cooperation, but one of even worse tensions and conflicts.
On the other hand, being attacked by hostile aliens seems even less likely to make all humans work together, especially if some communication would seem possible. Just imagine how many would be willing to take the hostile aliens up on any offer they might seem to make. And they’d have few reasons not to make offers if that’d make us do their work for them. After all, they could just get rid of their momentary allies afterwards. I think it would actually be quite entertaining for them to take advantage of all the hate and hostility in our society, aid certain groups and just watch as we take each other out so they’ll only have to come in and clean up afterwards.
Still, whatever the threat, if we couldn’t stand as one against it then we wouldn’t be worthy of overcoming it, would we? And even if we would unite against such a threat, would that make much of a difference? If only something like this would make us put aside our differences, would it be much better? The galaxy would likely be better off without us either way…

I was moving in here exactly one year ago. This certainly didn’t turn out the way I meant it to, something to make me spell out all the ideas racing through my mind in a human-readable form, but there is still the occasional post along those lines in the rare moments when I can make my mind not slip back to what I’m feeling for long enough. Better than nothing, I suppose…

Picked this up from Jen, beats the “yet another feel-sorry-for-myself” post I would have written otherwise I guess… And this is after having three serious posts running through my head these past few days, but I just can’t sit down and write such things when I feel like I do.
I’m sure you’ve seen it before, but here are the rules just in case: Put your music player on shuffle and hit next for each question (or just wait for the previous one to finish if you’re in no hurry), then write the song title as the answer and add your comments after it.

1. How are you feeling today?
Nightwish – Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan (It means “death makes an artist” as far as I know… Dead, yes. Artistic, not so much.)

2. Will you get far in life?
Inkubus Sukkubus – Vampyra (In life, unlikely. In undeath, perhaps.)

3. How do your friends see you?
Avantasia – Breaking Away (Escapist? Fitting…)

4. Will you get married?
Dima Bilan – Believe (I knew adding the “unsorted” folder to the list would cause problems with the songs for Eurovision 2008 there right now, but there you have it. Back on topic, there certainly is a belief in something having to do with a relationship that I’m holding on to, but it doesn’t include marriage since that’s something I oppose.)

5. What is your best friend’s theme?
Avantasia – Prelude (I don’t have a best friend, and it’s not the theme of the person that’s the closest thing to any kind of friend I do have, but… Perhaps I’m before gaining a best friend? I can only hope…)

6. What is the story of your life?
Bryan Adams – When You Love Someone (I swear I didn’t cheat!)

7. What was high school like?
No Angels – Disappear (That ESC 2008 folder strikes again… Truth is that it sort of wasn’t, seeing as I only completed 9th grade.)

8. How can you get ahead in life?
Xandria – Winterhearted (“One of us is winterhearted / One of us is cold as ice / One of us is breaking hearts / And it’s not me.” Yes, it’d probably work, but “it’s not me”.)

9. What is the best thing about your friends?
Xandria – Widescreen (That they’re behind a (computer) screen (though it’s not wide) isn’t good right now, I’d sure like one who would be here… And nothing good in the lyrics, they’re about being “sheep”.)

10. What is in store for this weekend?
Lake of Tears – Solitude (So true… Whether all alone or all alone in a crowd depends on whether my parents will be going anywhere or not.)

11. What song describes you?
Inkubus Sukkubus – I Just Can’t Get You Out of My Head (Sure can’t get her out of mine, nor will I ever.)

12. To describe your grandparents?
Inkubus Sukkubus – Io Pan (My Winamp seems to like them today… Back on topic, they’re certainly not godlike. My grandmothers are/were very religious though… But they wouldn’t take the idea of Pagan gods well at all.)

13. How is your life going?
After Forever – Living Shields (I could use one… But I don’t think any shield can stop this pain. On another note, I sure wish I’d be the living shield that’d protect her from any pain that might come her way…)

14. What song will they play at your funeral?
Inkubus Sukkubus – Take My Lust (I told you my Winamp really likes them today… The lyrics certainly are on the “funeral” topic, but I still wish not to have one. Just dump me in a hole and plant a tree on top, at least I’ll do some good as fertilizer.)

15. How does the world see you?
Xandria – Pure (Probably? And Winamp likes them too…)

16. Will you have a happy life?
Nightwish – Lagoon (“Feeling lonely and content at the same time, I believe, is a rare kind of happiness.” Sure seems like I’ll only be happy if I’ll manage it while being lonely, and I won’t so that’s that.)

17. Do people secretly lust after you?
Florin Chilian – Iubi (Means “love”, as in when you call a person like that (“Hey love, could you come over here for a moment?”). Is this supposed to mean that they do? If so, they do it very secretly…)

18. How can I make myself happy?
Nightwish – Away (Winamp likes them too… On topic, I’m not sure I’d be much of anything if I’d go away for good, but I’m too much of a coward for that. As for less extreme meanings, I think I’d be somewhat less sad if I’d be away from here, but only happy if I’d be going somewhere to be with her. “For this gift of dream I must pay the price with the loss of life’s pleasures.” Looks like it…)

19. What should you do with your life?
Elis – Heart in Chains (Putting it in chains might get rid of the unhappiness issue, but that’s not me. Then again, the song is actually about how harmful it is to keep your heart in chains, but especially harmful to others. So if it means to let my heart rule me freely, it already does.)

I don’t know whether my Winamp is trying to show it can be used as an odd divination tool or I’m too skilled in finding a meaning in everything for my own good, but many seemed quite fitting.
Quite disappointed that it didn’t pick any Antichrisis songs, but that’s it…

Earth Hour starts just now for me. (Of course this is a delayed post, right now my computer’s unplugged.) It might have made more sense to set the same time for everyone instead of 8 PM local time in each place, but I guess it’d have been impractical as in some places it’d have been either the middle of the day or the middle of the night at that time and it’d have had far less impact. But its value is mainly symbolic, obviously, showing how many people are willing to do something, give something up for a little while, to use less resources and therefore help protect the environment.
The simple version calls only for turning off the lights for one hour, 8 PM to 9 PM, and perhaps let a candle burn in front of the window to signal what you’re doing, but those who want to get fully into it can and should turn off and unplug every device that uses electricity for that one hour.
Since the lights are rarely on in my room, if I wouldn’t turn off and unplug the computer I wouldn’t be doing much of anything for the occasion. I’d have felt even better if this would have happened tomorrow, since it’d have meant missing the first 30 minutes of an important match, actually giving up watching something I want to watch in order to make a stand. I’m weird, what can I say?