Blogging About Blogging...

I watched a pretty cute but corny movie the other day – Julie and Julia. (I think that was the title.) It was all about some girl who was fed up with her boring life and decided to cook every one of Julia Childs’ recipes in her cookbook within a year. She blogged about this project every day. By the end of the film, when her year was almost up and her task almost complete, her blog was one of the most popular on the site she used. She was being offered publishing and writing opportunities, a cooking show, articles in magazines, etc. Basically, she kept an online journal of her cooking endeavors and she got rich and famous off of it… Really? Does this kind of stuff happen? I must admit it is almost intriguing to me to think that I could babble on about the random junk that happens to me throughout the day, acquire some sad fan base, and get famous from it. Obviously I would have to have some interesting things to say, but I’d like to think that my thoughts are just as interesting as cooking recipes. The movie is supposedly based on some truth so maybe this stuff really does happen. Or, maybe it’s like a ‘right place at the right time’ kind of thing where you just have to be lucky enough for the right person to read what you have to say. That kind of thing would never happen to me. Haha – Good luck doesn’t get close enough to me to throw a rock at. Whatever… Maybe someday, if I find the time between work/school/social life/errands/whatever else that comes along to busy me up, I’ll try spatting off my weird and wonderful thoughts on the internet and see how far it gets me… Ugh, even the thought of wasting any of my free time typing away on a computer is gross. How do these people enjoy it???... Yeahhh not for meee…

Procrastinating...

So, I’m not entirely sure how it happens… But, here I am – as usual – hours before an assignment is due, finally sitting down to complete it. I have had a week to type up two blogs on absolutely any topic that I choose, and I couldn’t find any other time to do it… In seven whole days!? That’s not true, really. I’ve had plenty of time to do it… I am just a professional procrastinator. No matter how long I have to do an assignment – even 15 page term papers – I will always wait until the last minute. I hate myself for it sometimes. I can think of numerous occasions where I have had months to organize and complete large assignments, but I will always find myself pulling all nighters to complete it at the last minute. Luckily, I have adapted to being this way and I am actually pretty good at working under this kind of pressure. I have definitely gotten A’s on assignments that I completed in a few hours – which I had months to work on. This does not change the amount of stress I cause myself by going about my school work this way. It is not only stressful at the point where I have no other choice than to stay up all night completing it – if I wish to turn it in on time – but I am also stressed out the whole time prior knowing that I should start it, but just not being able to bring myself to do it. I wish that there was something that I could do to change this, but it’s deeply ingrained in my being at this point. Maybe it will take the one time that I forget to do something all together and screw up my grade for the term that will finally teach me a lesson. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this never happens, though.

Who Am We?

What are the positive and negative impacts on the lives of the users of the MUDs from modifying their identities?

Wow… Honestly, I think that people who spend all their time using ‘MUDs’ to escape reality probably have some ‘real life’ issues they need to deal with – IN real life. I mean, one of the kids in the articles mentions that he spends around 40 hours a week on these MUD sites. What??? That’s as much time as people spend at a full time job! I’ve watched shows on TV and stuff about people who are unhappy with their real lives, so they use virtual worlds as an escape. What a waste! – in my opinion. But, who am I to judge? I guess if I had to list some positive impacts on these people’s lives, I could come up with a few. It occupies their time with something that isn’t physically harmful, like overeating or drugs – which many people who are unhappy with their lives turn to. I’m not saying that everyone who uses MUDs are necessarily depressed with their own realities, but to spend 40 hours a week in front of a computer screen living a fake life sounds like a problem to me. They can experience things that they might not be able to in real life, like dating, traveling, or living as an animal. If they choose to, people who use MUDs can experiment with different personalities – be outgoing, shy, demanding, passive, outspoken, flirtatious, macho, etc – and see what works for them. Maybe, some people actually develop friendships through MUDs and become comfortable enough to share their problems with others when they normally wouldn’t in real life. Maybe they feel uncomfortable talking about their issues verbally, but in an impersonal setting they are able to open up. The problem with living through MUDs is that they aren’t really living. The physical problems are not going to go away because you ignore them and focus on some fake reality. I think it’s kind of sick that people actually go on the computer and perform acts like rape, or have sex as animals, and they think it’s ok because it’s just on the computer. I mean, sure it’s better than doing it in real life – but it’s still a bit abnormal that it gives them pleasure to behave this way whether it’s reality or cyberspace. I guess in moderation, the MUD life has entertainment value… But the people in this article just sound like they have some pretty heavy issues… And as for the wife of the guy who wants to have sexual endeavors with cyber people – but not have it considered infidelity – lady, lose the weirdo. He should be more interested in hanging out with you than chatting to his fictional mistress who he can’t ever even really be sure is a female. Ugh, it’s just WEIRD.

Which is their real identity: their physical or their digital identity?

I’m pretty sure my feelings on this subject are summed up in the previous question – but, I’ll answer it anyways… Their real identity is their REAL IDENTITY. The role they play in REAL life. The one their mothers gave birth to, who goes to school, who goes to work, who pays bills, who eats, breathes, and goes to sleep at night. The one they can get up and look in a mirror at is their real identity. Get over it and learn to love it.