After a decent second season of Metalocalypse, the notorious DETHKLOK are back with a new eardrum-popping album. Yes, the writer of this article no longer has hearing capabilities, for his ears bled to death. Nathan Explosion's voice has been destroyed from drinking and fatigue, which only increased the impact of brutality that the new songs bring. His voice is now weaker and raspier. Reminds you of something? Yes, this is the sound of death coming closer to you.
D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-DIE!
The [adult swim] network recently aired the TV premiere of DETHKLOK's latest video, "Bloodlines". Babies all around the world woke up weeping, with cockroaches coming out of their orifices (including anus, urethra, and vagina). Old people shat their pants, resulting in deadly colon ruptures. Women gave birth to malformed freaks that bit off their mothers' private parts. The fans who were watching lost their sight. Their imagination started projecting horrific hallucinations of an altered childhood. Dads mutating into demons, while having intercourse with their mothers. Grandmothers cooking their husbands' sex organs. The survivors are few, and they are chosen to help the Antichrist demolish the world in 2012.
LET NO ONE SURVIVE!
What's next after "Bloodlines"? 11 more tracks of rapture. Skwisgaar's strings cut through the speakers as he violently punishes his guitar with an angry fist of death. "Laser Cannon Deth Sentence" is pretty catchy, and it's probably the most memorable song on this album. The chorus of "Dethsupport" is awesome. The whole song is epic. Ever since Deathalbum II got released, the death rate of senior citizens has been steadily and quickly growing. Coincidence?
PULL THE PLUG! PULL THE PLUG!!
Most DETHKLOK fans had to go through an electro-shock training program in order to learn the title of "I Tamper With The Evidence At The Murder Site Of Odin" by heart. Half of them died during the educational process. The other half managed to learn it, but after reciting the title aloud, their hearts exploded. Great song. "Murmaider II: The Water God" is not nearly as awesome as the original. It's rather dull and boring. The rest of the songs are pretty much filler. Dethalbum II is a self-destructive repertoire of sinking talent in the depths of Hell. How does this critic rate the album? Well he's already blind and deaf. The last thing he screamed into the recorder, before cutting off his tongue, was "666 out of 10".
Sep 29, 2009
Sep 20, 2009
Brain Modification
To understand this post, you might have to read this first: I Speak, Therefore I Am
This body is seemingly conducting an experiment. He will probably avoid talking and thinking in the first-person for the rest of the week, also keeping in mind the E-Prime model. That would perhaps lead to his better understanding of his inner world. This individual already feels more powerful and independent. His sense of self has been partly under public control, which has prevented him in a way from fully indulging his body. The personal pronouns (I am) had handicapped him to accurately validate and express his internal experiences, because these words have been wired in his brain circuit to require external factors that should allow the internal states to be validated. If those factors (behavioral cues in people) are not recognized, then the internal experience is rendered invalid and thus the individual is prevented from having the thought, for instance, "I am angry", because "I am" is only valid if the external factors are also met.
Now that Sparx speaks of himself in the third-person, he finds it easier to validate and express his internal experiences, because he's already used to looking for, and recognizing, the tell tale signs of others. So this is a great way for him to get around the old habits and rewire his circuits.
One does no longer need to mind-read other people, because he's not dependent on their states anymore, hence he becomes less paranoid. Another great advantage of speaking in the third-person is that one gets to see things more objectively, which leads to a greater extent of empirical thinking. One is nothing more than an organism, after all. There is no soul. There is no spiritual "self". The self is the body.
This body is seemingly conducting an experiment. He will probably avoid talking and thinking in the first-person for the rest of the week, also keeping in mind the E-Prime model. That would perhaps lead to his better understanding of his inner world. This individual already feels more powerful and independent. His sense of self has been partly under public control, which has prevented him in a way from fully indulging his body. The personal pronouns (I am) had handicapped him to accurately validate and express his internal experiences, because these words have been wired in his brain circuit to require external factors that should allow the internal states to be validated. If those factors (behavioral cues in people) are not recognized, then the internal experience is rendered invalid and thus the individual is prevented from having the thought, for instance, "I am angry", because "I am" is only valid if the external factors are also met.
if (me_anger && !authoritative_figure){i_am_angry = true}else{i_am_angry = false}
Now that Sparx speaks of himself in the third-person, he finds it easier to validate and express his internal experiences, because he's already used to looking for, and recognizing, the tell tale signs of others. So this is a great way for him to get around the old habits and rewire his circuits.
if (sparx_anger) {he_is_angry = true; i_am_angry = he_is_angry}
One does no longer need to mind-read other people, because he's not dependent on their states anymore, hence he becomes less paranoid. Another great advantage of speaking in the third-person is that one gets to see things more objectively, which leads to a greater extent of empirical thinking. One is nothing more than an organism, after all. There is no soul. There is no spiritual "self". The self is the body.
Feature:
Mind Exploration
Sep 7, 2009
Debunking Perfectionism
One becomes a perfectionist when one has a wrong idea about control. Perfectionists believe they can be perfect, which is like believing in God: it's a false belief. Perfectionists reject the emotion of shame, because shame reminds them of the truth that they can't be perfect, just like religious people reject scientific facts. When perfectionists experience shame, they become incredibly defensive and agitated. They are terrified. That's why they fear failure so much, and that's why many of them become procrastinators. There are three main beliefs that perfectionists hold: "I procrastinate, because I fear risk. I fear risk, because I fear failure. I fear failure, because I fear shame". Let's destroy the onion of perfectionism, peel by peel.
Procrastination eats up your time and increases the probability of failure. The more time you waste doing nothing, the less time you'll have to complete your tasks. It might become impossible for you to complete a project, if you simply run out of time. But hey, you know what? Risk is good for you.
When you fail at something that you believe you can do, or something that you've already done a couple of times before, the disappointment can be painful, because of your positive expectations. When you risk, however, failure becomes a very probable outcome. If you expect to fail, you can't really disappoint yourself. Success becomes a pleasant surprise. As soon as success stops being a surprise, failure becomes less probable, which acts as a reminder that the bar can be further raised, in order to minimize your disappointment.
Taking on a challenging task means that you will do your best to do the job by fully utilizing your existing abilities. Inevitably, you will also learn more and improve your skills, as you fail. The burden of expecting to complete the task successfully, on the other hand, decreases your incentive to try your hardest, and increases the chances of doing a sloppy job. You would be so ashamed, if you failed like that. But guess what, shame is good for you.
Shame is the emotion which reminds us that we are limited, for we are only human beings, and we can never be perfect. If you ignore shame and forget that you are limited, you're in for an endless frustrating strive for perfection, which will mess up your priorities. You'll be like a bug trying to fly out the window, not realizing that the window is closed. If only the fly could discover that it was limited by a piece of glass, it would prioritize on finding another way out.
Perfectionism requires manipulation. Success is not solely dependent on you; it depends on external factors, as well, no matter how hard you try. That's why the strive for perfection makes you want to manipulate others in order to always succeed. Objectively speaking, you're either gonna do a good job, or you're gonna fail. The best thing you can do is do your best. This is the difference between "I want to succeed" and "I MUST succeed".
Perfectionism sets impossible goals. It's one thing to say "I must do my best", which is within your control. It's an entirely different thing to say "I must make it perfect". "Perfect" here is any standard that you think MUST be satisfied. This would result in a disappointment, no doubt. The fact of the matter is, you have no full control over the outcome, because you are only a limited human being.
Vague goals create unrealistic expectations - When you don't know what you want, but you want it to be awesome, there's a high probability that you'll be disappointed. "Awesome" here is a subjective arbitrary ideal that doesn't have any specific guidelines and requirements.
Belief: I procrastinate, because I fear risk.
Update to: Procrastination is risky.
Procrastination eats up your time and increases the probability of failure. The more time you waste doing nothing, the less time you'll have to complete your tasks. It might become impossible for you to complete a project, if you simply run out of time. But hey, you know what? Risk is good for you.
Belief: I fear risk, because I fear failure.
Update to: Risk provides value and prevents disappointment.
When you fail at something that you believe you can do, or something that you've already done a couple of times before, the disappointment can be painful, because of your positive expectations. When you risk, however, failure becomes a very probable outcome. If you expect to fail, you can't really disappoint yourself. Success becomes a pleasant surprise. As soon as success stops being a surprise, failure becomes less probable, which acts as a reminder that the bar can be further raised, in order to minimize your disappointment.
Taking on a challenging task means that you will do your best to do the job by fully utilizing your existing abilities. Inevitably, you will also learn more and improve your skills, as you fail. The burden of expecting to complete the task successfully, on the other hand, decreases your incentive to try your hardest, and increases the chances of doing a sloppy job. You would be so ashamed, if you failed like that. But guess what, shame is good for you.
Belief: I fear failure, because I fear shame.
Update to: Shame provides satisfaction.
Shame is the emotion which reminds us that we are limited, for we are only human beings, and we can never be perfect. If you ignore shame and forget that you are limited, you're in for an endless frustrating strive for perfection, which will mess up your priorities. You'll be like a bug trying to fly out the window, not realizing that the window is closed. If only the fly could discover that it was limited by a piece of glass, it would prioritize on finding another way out.
Perfectionism requires manipulation. Success is not solely dependent on you; it depends on external factors, as well, no matter how hard you try. That's why the strive for perfection makes you want to manipulate others in order to always succeed. Objectively speaking, you're either gonna do a good job, or you're gonna fail. The best thing you can do is do your best. This is the difference between "I want to succeed" and "I MUST succeed".
Perfectionism sets impossible goals. It's one thing to say "I must do my best", which is within your control. It's an entirely different thing to say "I must make it perfect". "Perfect" here is any standard that you think MUST be satisfied. This would result in a disappointment, no doubt. The fact of the matter is, you have no full control over the outcome, because you are only a limited human being.
Vague goals create unrealistic expectations - When you don't know what you want, but you want it to be awesome, there's a high probability that you'll be disappointed. "Awesome" here is a subjective arbitrary ideal that doesn't have any specific guidelines and requirements.
Feature:
Mind Exploration
Sep 2, 2009
The Journey
I've been treating self-help like a subject in school, and happiness like the high grade that I strive to acquire, in order to not get my parents angry at me. I was acting out as my own parent. I've been working through my issues, not because I wanted to, but because I feared getting angry at myself, in case I failed. My journey has been fear-driven. Only recently did I discover the paradox of my attitude. How am I to become happy, if I'm constantly fearing failure? Failure is unpredictable, which means I am in a constant state of expectation and anxiety, because I don't know when and how it's gonna hit me. That, of course, makes me frustrated, and takes me back to managing my anxiety through different forms of dissociation.
I've been treating my goal of becoming psychologically healthy like something that I MUST achieve, before I can do anything else with my life. Happiness as a means to an end. A prerequisite for leading a productive life. This was a rather paralyzing strategy. Happiness is a vague goal, unlike school grades, so it would be pretty hard for me to estimate when it's been achieved. Whenever I was miserable, I perceived it as a "fuck you". "You're so weak, you'll never be able to get over your issues, no matter how hard you try", my inner bully would say.
How am I to become happy, if I'm not already happy with pursuing my happiness? You can't be happy unless you're happy. If my failures make me feel miserable, there's no way to proceed further. It's a Catch-22. So from now on, I go beyond this bullshit. From now on, I look up to failing, and I forget about succeeding, because failure is more probable than success. I want to fail on my journey towards happiness. I want to fail as many times as I have to. Happiness is not a destination, anyway. It's a state of being. I can be happy with having issues, and still work towards solving them. It's a want, not a need. I don't need to be perfect to enjoy life.
This week, I'll do an exercise. I'll teach myself to get used to failure. I'll take on impossible tasks and try to complete them, knowing that I can't. Every day, I'll set a different goal and destroy it. No more safe zones. Only risks and challenges, at least for a week. To be continued.
I've been treating my goal of becoming psychologically healthy like something that I MUST achieve, before I can do anything else with my life. Happiness as a means to an end. A prerequisite for leading a productive life. This was a rather paralyzing strategy. Happiness is a vague goal, unlike school grades, so it would be pretty hard for me to estimate when it's been achieved. Whenever I was miserable, I perceived it as a "fuck you". "You're so weak, you'll never be able to get over your issues, no matter how hard you try", my inner bully would say.
How am I to become happy, if I'm not already happy with pursuing my happiness? You can't be happy unless you're happy. If my failures make me feel miserable, there's no way to proceed further. It's a Catch-22. So from now on, I go beyond this bullshit. From now on, I look up to failing, and I forget about succeeding, because failure is more probable than success. I want to fail on my journey towards happiness. I want to fail as many times as I have to. Happiness is not a destination, anyway. It's a state of being. I can be happy with having issues, and still work towards solving them. It's a want, not a need. I don't need to be perfect to enjoy life.
This week, I'll do an exercise. I'll teach myself to get used to failure. I'll take on impossible tasks and try to complete them, knowing that I can't. Every day, I'll set a different goal and destroy it. No more safe zones. Only risks and challenges, at least for a week. To be continued.
Feature:
Mind Exploration
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