By the Book

The keyword for today is: flexibility.

Do you dislike rules? Yeah, me too. They're too restricting. Now don't get me wrong; I'm not against all rules. I'm against the rules that don't make sense; those rules which command you to live your life in the way that the rulers see fit; those rules which are imposed on you without you knowing the reasoning behind it. And meaning is everything.

I've no belief in society. Society is a large group with overarching rules which attempt to control the minority by imposing on the majority. I've lost confidence in national identity. A nation is a extremely large group with more overarching rules attempting to sway everyone to the point of view of the majority. Nations become extremely closed-minded and unreceptive to new ideas, isolating themselves and then warring when they can't resolve their bipolar conflicts. I've never believed in one religion. Too restrictive, and once again too much group isolation and warring.

I guess it's a Nietzchian idea: we are holding on to old traditions and customs which don't necessarily hold water in our day and age anymore. Standing on chairs, for instance. Uniform jackets, for another.

I think that's the reason I like TCGs, and maybe games in general. There's an established set of rules, but the cards, or whatever, they go against the rules; like, warping them into something else that is acceptable within gameplay. And with TCGs especially, every game is different; there's so many different card combinations that your strategy has to be flexible enough to play all of them.

Being flexible allows you to tackle different problems more effectively. You're less likely to get stuck somewhere if you're flexible enough to take the route around, not just through. You get more out of life too, by trying anything and everything that comes your way.

But if you get a kick out of setting store by the rules and doing things by the book, then that's you.

I can't change the world. I can only change myself.
The Edna Man

Rules Against

Today I was reprimanded for standing on a chair.

I finally figured it out. I wouldn't book anyone else who stepped on a chair because I don't see it as disrespecting the formality of the occasion. It was just the fastest route from A to B. I admit climbing over the chairs would have been a better move, but it's been done. And I won't do it again, not because I see the action as wrong, but because other people with power and authority don't like me doing it.

What is the deal with conformity anyway? A person doesn't have to be like everybody else, wearing the same things, behaving the same way. What have you people got against things that aren't normal? I'm cold, so I wear gloves and a hat. It's perfectly justified, and yes I am that cold. I can't wear my jacket, so I wear gloves. I don't give a damn if you're not cold; I am. Why can't I be different from you?

What's the deal with jackets anyway? It's just an overcoat; it's not killing anyone or insulting anybody's religion or disrespecting the formality of the occasion or anything. I don't see what's so important about not having a shield-shaped logo stamped there. Will it compromise national security? Will it reflect negatively on the school's reputation? If you wanted to be so damn uniform about it, why not just plug up everybody in this whole damn universe to a gigantic pulsing brain so that IT controls everything and everything and everyone will be exactly the SAME. Why must you humiliate, shun, repremand me, just because I am different?

IHS was okay. Lang Arts is fail. Physics tomorrow.

I am a thermic resistor: resistance increase proportionately to decrease in temperature
The Edna Man