What is true beauty?
Can it be defined? Is it something tangible? Or is it is something that everybody can find? Is beauty in the eye of the beholder? No, none of these.
Beauty is defined by what beauty does. And because of that idea, beauty is defined by truth. Because beauty is defined by truth, it is objective, as truth is. Beauty is universal.
The phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is false. Saying this implies taste, and aesthetics. Both are merely appealing to one’s senses. True beauty is just appealing. No senses are required to know beauty. However, one must have some kind of input to have a basis for deeming something beautiful. After all, we are sensual beings.
True beauty is something that lacks nothing. And because of this, ugliness is not the opposite of beauty, fragmentation and dis-integration are. Believing that you are and individual, saying that you are apart from “that,” and constantly using the pronoun “I,” are examples of fragmentation. Ugliness is in the eye of the beholder.
One of the few things that are beautiful is art. Art is a concept, an energy. It flows through us like water through a garden hose. The hose doesn’t know where the water comes from, or where it is going to end up. It just transports the water as far as it can reach.
This energy is intangible and transcendental. This energy is pure and true. When truth reveals itself, so does beauty. We channel the intangible energy to create something tangible. The tangible is a work of art. And if that work was created by the creative energy, and unmodified by our mortal minds, then it can be considered beautiful.
This is just one of the things that can be recognized as beauty. When really, anything that reveals truth, or is truth itself, can be called beautiful. Truth is also transferable. Truth in your words, truth in your thoughts, truth in your feelings, they all show beauty in the fact that they are the truth. However, when we are true to our soul, we are truly showing another level of beauty.
Everyone has the potential to see beauty; however, some lack the understanding of its nature. Because of that, most don’t recognize beauty. They continue to label things that appeal to their sense of sight/sound/smell as beautiful. When really those things are pretty.
And as an additional note, “true beauty” is redundant.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Awe
Awe
In growing older, we experience more. As a result, simple things go unnoticed. The same red ball that brings a child of two endless enjoyment, we kick out of our way, or curse at it when we trip over it in the middle of the night. We cast it away because we are confident we know all about it. It doesn't intrigue us because we are comfortable with it. We curse at it because we are arrogant enough to believe we are better than it. So, what is bad about that? We know what a ball is, right?
When we look into children, we can see their awe. We can see that they are seeing everything for the first time. And we know that everything that they see is raw, and unmodified by pride or prejudiced. Their eyes are always filled with a certain level of wonder and amazement.
In my eyes, a child embodies the one quality that keeps life trudging on. Awe and wonder. At a point in everybody’s life they lose the ability to be awestruck, or just tend to ignore it if they become so.
Being in a constant state of awe allows for people to get a better understanding of things. Look, for just a minute, at the face of a child in awe. Look right at them the minute that they look in wonder at something. Because for that instant, you will see something that you have lost, but something that you can find again.
You don’t see them trying to consciously comprehend, or forcefully understand. You just see them sitting there gazing at it with a totally open mind. And that is perfection. When you look at something without all of the filters that we have built over eyes for the past years of our lives, you see it in truth.
Awe is base in not knowing something. When faced with something you have two options. 1) Forget about it and ignore it, or 2) try to understand it. In trying to understand something, you will always find something new. Furthering your questioning (awe), always searching, eventually you will come across beauty, and then truth.
On the whole, our people understand and have knowledge over a vast many complex things. The point is: no matter how complex a thing is, it is made of simple things at its root.
To go through life without some form of awe will close many doors in understanding life and its complex things. That may not seem important, but if you can't stare at something with awe and amazement, you will miss its simple beauty.
If you look at things through the same eyes as a child you will become receptive to whatever it is showing you, you must let it come to you. That one of the most important parts of the creative process. Receptivity, the enemy of the ego. Denial, the enemy of awe.
In growing older, we experience more. As a result, simple things go unnoticed. The same red ball that brings a child of two endless enjoyment, we kick out of our way, or curse at it when we trip over it in the middle of the night. We cast it away because we are confident we know all about it. It doesn't intrigue us because we are comfortable with it. We curse at it because we are arrogant enough to believe we are better than it. So, what is bad about that? We know what a ball is, right?
When we look into children, we can see their awe. We can see that they are seeing everything for the first time. And we know that everything that they see is raw, and unmodified by pride or prejudiced. Their eyes are always filled with a certain level of wonder and amazement.
In my eyes, a child embodies the one quality that keeps life trudging on. Awe and wonder. At a point in everybody’s life they lose the ability to be awestruck, or just tend to ignore it if they become so.
Being in a constant state of awe allows for people to get a better understanding of things. Look, for just a minute, at the face of a child in awe. Look right at them the minute that they look in wonder at something. Because for that instant, you will see something that you have lost, but something that you can find again.
You don’t see them trying to consciously comprehend, or forcefully understand. You just see them sitting there gazing at it with a totally open mind. And that is perfection. When you look at something without all of the filters that we have built over eyes for the past years of our lives, you see it in truth.
Awe is base in not knowing something. When faced with something you have two options. 1) Forget about it and ignore it, or 2) try to understand it. In trying to understand something, you will always find something new. Furthering your questioning (awe), always searching, eventually you will come across beauty, and then truth.
On the whole, our people understand and have knowledge over a vast many complex things. The point is: no matter how complex a thing is, it is made of simple things at its root.
To go through life without some form of awe will close many doors in understanding life and its complex things. That may not seem important, but if you can't stare at something with awe and amazement, you will miss its simple beauty.
If you look at things through the same eyes as a child you will become receptive to whatever it is showing you, you must let it come to you. That one of the most important parts of the creative process. Receptivity, the enemy of the ego. Denial, the enemy of awe.
Friday, February 27, 2009
SF4 - Gripes
To follow up with the last post praising the game, this post will be the gripes I have. These are very nit-picky gripes; but gripes all the same.
- Down loadable content. Someone wrote it better for me here. I'm not quite as bitter as that writer, but their points are all completely valid. I shouldn't have to purchase extras on the day of release for a game that has been 2 decades in the making. Especially when they are not really "content" but just different costumes and colors. Jeers to you, Capcom.
- Seth. This guy is an abomination of bosses, in my opinion. Previous bosses have been Sagat and M.Bison. These bosses had their own traits, characteristics, and weaknesses. Sagat had his speed, range, and power; M.Bison had incredible defensive abilities and even more power than Sagat. But even he had weaknesses. This new guy has none of his own abilities, instead he uses the best abilities of all characters in the game. This gives him unsurpassed power, range, speed, and the ability to fight from all areas of the fight. You try ranged, he throws projectiles, and closes the distance via teleportation. You try close up and he destroys you with something similar to Akuma's Instant Hell Murder, an uppercut with Ryu's power and Ken's combo, or Zangief's piledriver. Even on the easiest mode this guy is ridiculous to fight. I've read posts that say that he is easily dispatched by just using HK/HP combos at opportune times. Why in the hell would I enjoy playing a boss whereby the strategy is little pokes; completely disregarding the reason I like playing a certain toon?! Jeers to you, Capcom creativity.
- Getting back in the mix. After losing to Seth in a matter of seconds, I'm forced to waith through his worthless flavor text, then the option to continue (this is a staple of SF, so not a big deal), then the character select screen, then the matchup screen (that can't be sped up or skipped), then the intro cut scene. I waste more time trying to get back into the fight then I do losing it. Jeers to you, Capcom Devs.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Street Fighter 4: aka "The return to childhood"
First.... Stop reading this and go buy the game. Seriously. I'll wait. Now, open the box and get that "new game" smell. Breathe deep and remember back to popping in that SFII cartridge into your SNES for the first time. This will not be the first time that you will have this feeling.
I have not played a game that is so beautiful to look at that could take me back to times sitting up all night with my buddies, mouths agape, beating the living hell out of one another. I instantly felt at home with this game. The technical aspect is nearly perfectly redone. I could even use all of the old combos I used to be able to do. The timing is a *little* off, but nothing like the abominations that came in between SFII and SFIV.
As far as the visuals... amazing. I can almost see Capcom throwing down the gauntlet when they started dreaming up this game. "Hey! Everyone else is doing remakes of old games, lets blow them away!" And... they did. From 10,000 feet away, the game looks and feels the same as it always did. Up close, it is just stunning. People's clothes move independently of their bodies, hair is free-moving, character's faces keep locked on to their opponents, and special moves are just... special.
The music is updated, but definitely grabs its roots from those old-school 16-bit riffs. Sound effects are subtle, but impressive. It actually took me about 5 minutes into the intro to realize that the music was the original track, just updated; and it is wonderful.
Gameplay? Perfect. I get the same feelings I did back in the day when I broke so many controllers getting pissed off at the CPU opponents. The same mix of finesse and technically. If you've ever played a (good) Street Fighter game, you'll be both right at home and blown away.
Amazing.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Brush with Death
Gotcha with that title, didn't I? In reality, it was more like an instant of 'holy crap'. With your interest piqued (it is, right?) I'll commence with the story.
This past Saturday, the wife and I decided that our shutters on the house needed a fresh coat of paint. Our mailbox was tired and needed to be replaced, as well. So, we decided to take the day and fix both of them.
Around 10am we went to the local Home Depot to pick out some colors for the shutters and the new black mailbox that we bought. We had picked out a basic mailbox with the intent of painting it to match... blah blah blah who cares? You still haven't heard my 'holy crap' moment.... I'm getting there. Flash to 11:30, and I'm pulling down the shutters for the wife to clean, and then together we paint.
I had pulled down about 5 out of 10 of the shutters when something that can only be described as 'weighty' crawled quickly on to my hand. Instantly identifying the shape, I whipped my hand to shake it free. Heart pounding, I raced inside to grab a container to catch it (I'm such a kid) and examine it to find out if it was what my mind thought it was.
Yes. My late night sessions watching Animal Planet and paying attention in school (yes, I did occasionally do that) paid off. That black 'weighty' thing that crawled on my hand was a black widow. Surprisingly, I had my 'holy crap' moment; it wasn't a holy-crap-my-pants though.
I lived, and so did my little killer. I took the pictures, then walked it up the street a bit, then deposited it in one of the storm drains on the street.
This past Saturday, the wife and I decided that our shutters on the house needed a fresh coat of paint. Our mailbox was tired and needed to be replaced, as well. So, we decided to take the day and fix both of them.
Around 10am we went to the local Home Depot to pick out some colors for the shutters and the new black mailbox that we bought. We had picked out a basic mailbox with the intent of painting it to match... blah blah blah who cares? You still haven't heard my 'holy crap' moment.... I'm getting there. Flash to 11:30, and I'm pulling down the shutters for the wife to clean, and then together we paint.
I had pulled down about 5 out of 10 of the shutters when something that can only be described as 'weighty' crawled quickly on to my hand. Instantly identifying the shape, I whipped my hand to shake it free. Heart pounding, I raced inside to grab a container to catch it (I'm such a kid) and examine it to find out if it was what my mind thought it was.Yes. My late night sessions watching Animal Planet and paying attention in school (yes, I did occasionally do that) paid off. That black 'weighty' thing that crawled on my hand was a black widow. Surprisingly, I had my 'holy crap' moment; it wasn't a holy-crap-my-pants though.
I lived, and so did my little killer. I took the pictures, then walked it up the street a bit, then deposited it in one of the storm drains on the street.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Nap Time
So, I've taken up a new hobby at my current job. I am the unofficial, official, nap police. Let me pause here for my past work environment and job ethics....
In past jobs, I am used to people who are lazy. People who come across as unconcerned about the overall future progress of the company. People that kill the joe and don't make some 'mo. People that decide to keep entire spice and condiment racks in their office, which happens to be 3 doors down from the private kitchenette in the office (complete with a family sized Mrs. Butterworth's). I'm used to people who are habitually tardy to work. These same people are never late to functions while at work, and so engaged in them that it was shocking to me.
In my new position at my new job, the above 'quirks' do not exist. People are up-front, punctual, and motivated. I've gone Yang, when I'm so used to Ying. To complete the cycle it seems fine to come in 20 minutes late. It's accepted if you need to leave, answer a phone call, complete other work, or start an entire new meeting with the current members... all during a meeting. and last its totally OK to just fall asleep in a meeting, be it large or small. Even if you snore. Its not uncommon to see drool. No one seems to care.
So, back to reality (oops there goes gravity); I've taken it upon myself to take pictures of these people. I have about 20. Its kinda like that late 90's fad Pokémon; I have to catch them all. To date, I've got people nodding, people pretending to be reading their crackberries, and people "resting" on the palm of their hand. I've seen them slouch down in the chair, prop it against the wall, or put their heads over the back pad in an awkward 90-degree-neck-angle. I've seen droolers, snorers, and that odd person that does the nod-then-look-surprised-then-amused thing. Some with head-in-hands examining their shoes, cuddled up like they have a blanky, and nearly spooning the person next to them. Mouths open like a bird bath, glasses slid all the way down their face like an old man and a newspaper on sunday. Shit.. I've even seen people come to them in slippers!
I don't know what it takes to build a work culture that accepts this, but damn its funny. I suppose I do this to avoid becoming one of the sleeping herd. Who cares though? The best part about all this is people are starting to look at me like some sort of NARC. Which means I tend to have open chairs next to me, which means I have more room. So... all good. Just... hilarious.
**Unfortunately (for you) I won't be posting the pics, as the eyes are a big part of the proving sleep; and thats the one thing you have to censor with out having permission from the person to post. Trust me, it happens. Every meeting. Without fail.
In past jobs, I am used to people who are lazy. People who come across as unconcerned about the overall future progress of the company. People that kill the joe and don't make some 'mo. People that decide to keep entire spice and condiment racks in their office, which happens to be 3 doors down from the private kitchenette in the office (complete with a family sized Mrs. Butterworth's). I'm used to people who are habitually tardy to work. These same people are never late to functions while at work, and so engaged in them that it was shocking to me.
In my new position at my new job, the above 'quirks' do not exist. People are up-front, punctual, and motivated. I've gone Yang, when I'm so used to Ying. To complete the cycle it seems fine to come in 20 minutes late. It's accepted if you need to leave, answer a phone call, complete other work, or start an entire new meeting with the current members... all during a meeting. and last its totally OK to just fall asleep in a meeting, be it large or small. Even if you snore. Its not uncommon to see drool. No one seems to care.
So, back to reality (oops there goes gravity); I've taken it upon myself to take pictures of these people. I have about 20. Its kinda like that late 90's fad Pokémon; I have to catch them all. To date, I've got people nodding, people pretending to be reading their crackberries, and people "resting" on the palm of their hand. I've seen them slouch down in the chair, prop it against the wall, or put their heads over the back pad in an awkward 90-degree-neck-angle. I've seen droolers, snorers, and that odd person that does the nod-then-look-surprised-then-amused thing. Some with head-in-hands examining their shoes, cuddled up like they have a blanky, and nearly spooning the person next to them. Mouths open like a bird bath, glasses slid all the way down their face like an old man and a newspaper on sunday. Shit.. I've even seen people come to them in slippers!
I don't know what it takes to build a work culture that accepts this, but damn its funny. I suppose I do this to avoid becoming one of the sleeping herd. Who cares though? The best part about all this is people are starting to look at me like some sort of NARC. Which means I tend to have open chairs next to me, which means I have more room. So... all good. Just... hilarious.
**Unfortunately (for you) I won't be posting the pics, as the eyes are a big part of the proving sleep; and thats the one thing you have to censor with out having permission from the person to post. Trust me, it happens. Every meeting. Without fail.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Mother Nature says....
With the recent heavy storm in the area, a colleague of the wife's got a little extra "precipitation" than the rest of us did. Luckily for them, it doesn't look like they got too badly crunched, when up close. Luckily for me, I bought that iPhone to be able to take this shot.
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