Insomia(ti)[ddi][(c)][t]

Has anyone ever taken a psychology course? If the answer is yes, think back to the chapter or chapters about sleep, dreaming, and sleep disorders. About REM sleep, REM rebound, the stages of sleep and insomnia. I'd like to focus on the last point in that list. In case you haven't taken any psychology whatsoever, the definition of insomnia (from Myers' Psychology textbook) is "recurring problems in falling or staying asleep." Now, I know plenty of people that claim they have insomnia because they can't sleep. Hell, I thought I did too until I took this class. But many people misconstrue this and essentially say they have when really they just like saying they have insomnia. I actually read that if you actually have insomnia, you're more reserved about it and less likely to admit to having the condition whereas if you don't you're more willing to openly say you have it. Now why am I telling you all this? Because as I stated before I thought I had insomnia and wanted to figure it out.

While in my state of "insomnia" a while back, I recalled a term used by a band my sister used to listen to. Even though I'm not sure you can qualify them as a "band" per se, Aly and AJ Michalka came out with a CD entitled Insomniatic with their own definition of the made up word. The official definition of the word, given by Alyson and AJ themselves is, "the state of mind where one becomes addicted to the deprivation of sleep caused by an epic revelation of joy." I thought about this and whether or not this was the cause of my "insomnia." In the end, I decided it wasn't. Why not, you ask? Because I wasn't always happy when I was awake. In fact most of the time, I was completely and utterly indifferent as far as my mood went. So why then did I not want to sleep?

That's when it hit me. I didn't want to sleep. I figured out the reason for my "insomnia" was due to the fact that I deplore sleep. The term coined by Urban Dictionary is someone called an insomniaddict. This is used to describe someone, such as myself, who is addicted to deprivation of sleep or stays up for no reason other than to stay up. They also say it's very common among people with this "addiction" to function even on minimal sleep, assuming you consider it a legitimate term to use. The irony of it all: I find it easier to sleep after this self-revelation.
WC: 433

Level Up!

Last week, I talked about a game called Skyrim. Today, I'd like to talk about the leveling system and skill system. The way the skill system works is split into three basic categories, the Warrior, the Mage or the Thief, depending on the play style you prefer, each one split up into six skills. The path of he Warrior focuses on direct attack and a high defense, consisting of Smithing, One-Handed, Two-Handed, Archery, Heavy Armor, and Block. The path of the Thief is more geared towards stealth and deception and is comprised of Light Armor, Sneak, Lockpicking, Pickpocket, Speech, and Alchemy. The path of the Mage deals into all things magical, including Alteration, Conjuration, Destruction, Enchanting, Illusion, and Restoration. Each skill has a set of perks that improve your prowess with a certain skill. The best thing about this, though, is how you don't have to choose only one path. If you want to specialize in Sneak, Illusion and One-Handed, you can do that despite them all belonging to different paths. This allows for near unlimited diversity in skill choices with interesting builds.

The leveling system goes hand in hand with the skill system. Each skill starts at level fifteen five and ten-point bonuses given to certain skills based on the race being played. For each skill, there is an experience bar that will fill up the more you use the skill, each time taking more to fill it up the next time. When a skill levels up, it adds experience to your character based on how high the level of the skill is. Each skill can be leveled to one hundred, your character up to level eighty. Each time your character levels up, it is awarded a perk point to spend in skill perks, and a choice to put ten points into health, magicka, or stamina.
WC: 307

Rise Against - Everchanging

Ed Sheeran - Drunk (Official Video)

Ed Sheeran - Lego House (Official Video)

Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, Naal Ok Zin Los Vahriin

If you remember my post about Assassin's Creed, "ASSASSINO!!!!" then you may have figured out that I like to play a lot of video games. Well, I guess technically they're computer games, but that's irrelevant to the point. One game in particular has eaten up a large chunk of my time over about two years (two hundred and sixty hours to be exact) and continues to bring me enjoyment after beating the main aspects of the game. It is the fifth installment of the Elder Scrolls series, but most people just call it Skyrim. You start the game as a prisoner about to be executed for pretty much no reason at all by the Imperials. They put your head on the chopping block when a dragon appears out of nowhere, knocking the executioner down and leaving you to escape with a Nordic man named Ralof and the Jarl of the city of Windhelm, Ulfric Stormcloak. After fleeing from the execution block, you choose to either go with Ralof or Hadvar, one of the men overseeing your execution, and eventually end up in a small town known as Riverwood. From there, you must find out why the dragons are returning and face the strongest of them all, Alduin the World-Eater. In addition to this, you have your choice of joining various factions such as the mysterious band of assassins known as the Dark Brotherhood, the notorious Thieves Guild, the mage's College of Winterhold, and the group of werewolf warriors known as the Companions, each one with their own set of quests. On top of that, the combat system allows for a very wide variety of play styles customizable to your preferences.
WC: 280

Friends and Our Everchanging Lives Together

Has anyone out there ever watched a show called Friends? You know, starring Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox and David Schwimmer? Not ringing any bells you say? Well then stay home and watch some TV for once because it's one of the best shows I've ever watched. I grew up watching the show and continue to watch it, still laughing at episodes I've seen, quite literally, dozens of times. I'd like to bring attention to a certain episode about two of the friends in particular. For those that have seen it or do watch it, you may recall the episode where Joey starts dating a girl named Kathy, whom Chandler meets at the coffee shop. He instantly becomes infatuated with her, despite the fact that she's dating his best friend. Now this plot is used quite often in other shows and movies for both younger and more adult audiences. But that's because it gives it a sense of relatability.

A few months ago, I was watching this exact episode and it really got me thinking about a few questions in particular. "What would happen if you fell in love with your best friend's girlfriend? What would you do? Would you try to get over her or just wait patiently? If you waited, what would you do if they remained together? What if you couldn't get over her?" I asked myself all of these, trying to answer them in the best way possible, even searching for answers from some of my friends (who probably did not appreciate late night texts at eleven/twelve at night).I thought about it for a long while, losing countless hours of sleep that I really don't even need anyway, brainstorming things that I could do if this situation ever happened to me. To be truthfully honest, I have no idea what I would do in the predicament previously placed before my private mind. But there was something that helped me to get through the entire ordeal. That one thing has been there all my life and has improved (most) everything over time for me. I turned to what I always turn to in times like this and that was music.

The song that I listened to a lot when pondering this plot of questions was called "Everchanging" by Rise Against. It may not have been intended for how I interpreted it, but I guess that is the beauty of ambiguity in the meaning of a song. The line that really caught my attention in the entirety of the song goes, "There's nothing simple when it comes to you and I, always something in this ever-changing life." This line really spoke to me because it effectively illustrates the relationship between you and the person dating your friend, especially if they knew that you liked them. Life is ever-changing and there's nothing anyone can do about it, but that's what life is all about. Sometimes, you just need to suck it up and deal with it and that's exactly what I learned while thinking about all of this.
WC: 492