The Payoff

BOTH MAJOR WORKS AND TRIAL EXAMS ARE NOW COMPLETE.

Just had to get that out of the way. All the hard work finally paid off, despite the fact my hand feels like it could probably just fall off right now. I was drawing from 9:00 AM Sunday until like 2:30 AM Monday morning... and basically only stopped for meals. Holy crap.

Finally managed to clear up my little Art corner that looked like a felt-tip bomb hit it. Counted up all the pens I've used up... and the grand total is... *drum roll*

95 FELT-TIP PENS. Wow...

It's raaaaaining pens, hallelujah!

Working on those drawings for so long... all the earlier procrastination just made this last weekend a stress-induced hell where not finishing had become a legitimate possibility. Basically it made me realise the importance of long-term vs. short-term rewards, heh. It was either "play TF2 (Team Fortress 2) right now" or "bust your ass drawing for a few days straight and enjoy yourself later", and to make matters worse I'd just bought Punch-Out for the Wii on the weekend. A brand new game... sitting there... fully wrapped... taunting me day in and day out.

Admittedly, I didn't exactly stick to the whole "long-term is more important" ideal for the entire weekend... seeing as I kind of bludged off all of Saturday to go to UTS and attend Shuang's kickass shin-dig. Soooooo much free stuff, and I ended up with three new shirts at the end of the day! (Unfortunately, one of them didn't fit, bah. Oh well.) Still, as much as I wanted to just game for awhile and collapse on my bed after that long day, I *persevered* and drew well into the night, and the entirety of the next day, heh.

Reminds me of this thing I saw on TED.com (and yes I *know* I reference it a lot, but it's a damn brilliant site), based around showing the long-term vs. short-term enjoyment and goals notion through presenting some toddlers with a marshmallow.

Basically, for those of you who can't be bothered watching (even though this is a LOT shorter than the rest of the TED.com videos I've linked), the experiment showed that, when presented with the option of eating a marshmallow now, or waiting some amount of time to get the original marshmallow and a second one, that based on this decision it showed how well these children would cope with the long-term vs. short-term decision later in life. Those who waited to get two marshmallows generally had good grades and some degree of success, whereas the majority of those who ate the marshmallow and didn't restrain themselves and wait ended up... well, in less than optimum circumstances for the most part.

The amount of times I had to turn down playing TF2 or just chillaxing with some anime over the last week to get this art major finished... I'd like to *think* I would've been one of those kids who managed to wait the duration to get the second marshmallow. At least that would mean I'll be successful later in life, if the statistics are to be believed, heh, even *if* I do indulge in the occasional period of procrastination. Pseudo-restraint is enough restraint for me.

Still, the relief of having all my majors completed now, rather than a few extra games of TF2 earlier and then being riddled with stress at the moment as I'd be forced to draw until all hours of the morning... it's definitely worth it. All in preparation for hopefully getting into Vis Comm at UTS - it shall be worth it eventually.

Guess that's it for now though.

Adios.

Continued Thoughts On Meritocracy

Just a quick one today in response to the post from yesterday. Came across this talk on TED.com (seriously people, if you didn't check it out from the first video in my original post, go have a look now - absolutely 'brillo' site, haha) that seemed to convey a similar point to what I was talking about yesterday. Basically, that idea of a meritocratic society, as he calls it, regarding those with the ability and motivation reaping the benefits, as opposed to everything just being handed to one. Anyway, if you're interested, have a look:

Well that's all for now, back to working on Art / Trials preparations. Bah. So much work. Probably going to have to restart one of my drawings too, so I'm currently sitting on 4/7 completed. Ah well, I'll get stuck into it.

Adios.

Apparently Bogans Have Stylish Hair

Bit of a trivial post today, but bear with me.

Anyway, I was getting my hair cut at the hairdresser today, yet for once there was no awkward forced conversation between the hair stylist and myself. The reason behind this is that, on the other side of the salon, there were two quite odd characters - and yes, both of them were somewhat bogan. Instead of creating chitchat as the stylists normally do, both her and myself were obviously eavesdropping on this pair and the stylist working on them.

Some of their conversation and logic was just baffling. To begin with, when I sat down to get my hair done they were gloating about how they were thieves, and quite openly at that, detailing some of their illegal escapades in front of this law-abiding (or at least, presumably law-abiding) young woman cutting one of the men's hair. However, they then went on to complain about how "whenever they stole something, something of theirs often ended up getting stolen as well", thus prompting the stylist to inform their bogan brains of the concept of Karma. Of course, they then went on to complain how possessions being stolen off of them was "totally unfair", yet did not backtrack or show any sign of regret for their own thieving activities. This, my friends, was only the tip of the iceberg.

They started complaining about all sorts of fiscal matters, whinging about their "shit income" (because obviously such upstanding citizens are worthy of high-paying jobs). This prompted them to ask the stylist what her income was... and after dodging the question for a short while she told them that she earned "six million annually". The ignorance of these two was baffling though, as they believed her for AT LEAST a good 10-20 seconds. By now the hair stylist was, quite clearly, fed up.

These monetary musings, if they can even be called that, continued with concerns that they could never earn "two-thousand-trillion dollars" (is that even an actual number?) because they "hung out with a bad crowd". Still showing some human decency and normality, the stylist offered them various words of advice and options of how to get out of the bad crowd, stating that she herself hadn't had the best adolescence but had managed to secure a stable job, family, and house, etc. Of course, the two fools reject any helpful advances and then state how they, quite simply, don't want to stop hanging out with this bad crowd, *despite* knowing the effects it is having on their lives. They just laugh it off and make a crude joke.

Unfortunately, since I was only getting a quick trim, this was all I got to hear, but it was more than enough. I know a lot of people struggle to get above the social and economic status that they were born into, but these two individuals clearly just... Were. Not. Trying. If you're given reasonable options or advice to remedy a problem you have, you should take it. Illegality obviously isn't going to solve anything. I'm sick and tired of people who just think they can laze about, acting like tools, and then expect life should be handed to them on a silver platter. Wealth, status, friends, power - it's all achievable if you *work* at it. I know I'm not a *prime* example or anything, considering I indulge in my fair share of laziness, but still... when I want something, I work at it. Short term gains just simply aren't worth it. Nothing will ever change that way. The thing that gets to me the most, however, is those who then have the AUDACITY to complain that they're getting nothing out of life when they're putting nothing *into* it. You reap what you sew. Seriously, you don't want to end up like these two.

But hey, at least you'll have good hair.

Adios.

Money, money, money

It's not the most important thing in the world.

I was talking with a friend (I don't know if you're reading, but you know who you are) regarding future job security, and she was of the opinion that it was better to go with her head - i.e. secure herself financially, since she has two younger siblings as well and her parents can't keep supporting her - as opposed to going with something she's necessarily interested in. Now, she's entitled to her opinion, and I don't mean anything against her, but it really just provoked almost the polar opposite out of me.

I don't see how anyone could make a choice like that, especially if you detest the field/line of work you'd be moving into, just for the higher paying wage. I could never picture myself doing such a thing, my life would just seem so... unfulfilled. I mean, another friend brought up the point that, in order to pursue your interests, you'll need money to fund that. But, at the same time, you can still find lines of work that still link in some way to your field of interest, rather than completely uprooting your plans for the future and moving into a different area of work just to get financial stability.

If I *really* had to choose between the two, I'd rather be borderline homeless if I could still indulge in my interests. Sure it wouldn't be easy, but say... art for example, which I'm mainly looking into career-wise to get into graphic design or advertising, but... there would still ways of pursuing it, even if it was as simple as drawing with chalk on the pavement. I know the same can't be said for all careers, like it's not exactly easy for a homeless person to practice medicine, but there would be other avenues to either get into your preferred field of interest, or find some less financially-inclined way to achieve your interests and goals.

I just can't agree with the line of thinking that financial security is more important than what you love. Maybe I'm just a tad too idealistic or not thinking with my head enough, but it's only material possessions in the end. Unless you're using it to fund your interests and pursuits, I really don't see the point in indulging in a detestable career - I'll never understand how people do it.

Still, everyone is entitled to their opinion. This is just an expression of mine, and I meant no offense to those who disagree. Do what you will with your lives, as well... they're your lives. Live them how you please.

Adios.