focus your mind, you must

I read an article earlier, saying that gamers have a better chance at controlling their dreams. Read the original here.

It basically states that people who play games have a better chance at entering "game mode" when in a dream and thus be able to control what happens. It's more prominent for people that have nightmares, since nightmares/night terrors are what cause insomnia and/or other sleeping disorders. Playing a game before sleeping can give your brain a better chance at seeing the nightmare as a game, and thus treat it like one, giving you the control.

Now, here's what I think, this is just me and what I have noticed about myself. I agree with this article. I'm not promoting gaming or saying that I am a die hard gamer, far from it. But I do enjoy the occasional God of War slaughter fest. What I agree with is that the subconscious is a place of flux, constantly sending signals around the brain and picking up on the smallest memory to blow up into a dream. Now how the dream turns out is never predetermined. It's a dream; and dreams are not real.

I have been able to do this far before gaming was cool. Not because of my gaming but because of my discipline. Through my training in karate, yoga, meditation and exercise I have not only gotten my body to be strong, but my mind is fully aware. I've gotten all senses working together and I can isolate when one is needed more than the other. This comes in handy when I'm dreaming as well because no matter how "real" the dream is, I can always find something off about it and thus get control of it.

Dreams are an important part of our nights rest, if its interrupted then our whole day is thrown off. So, we have to do what we can to get control so we can have our full nights rest. Be it games, discipline or just being so bad ass that your dreams know better than to bother you.

When Koreans are angry

Disclaimer: This post contains foul language. If you have never heard/read the word fuck before. You have now.

Recently, I have enjoyed riding my bike to and from work. It's been a great way to enjoy the night and see Gwangju. As well as challenge your reflexes to keep up with Korean traffic. Every now and then you have to be the one paying attention because people on the sidewalk/street aren't. I am usually pretty aware and can dodge and weave my way through traffic easily. But every now and then a car or a person decides to cut across traffic without warning. Which usually incurs me to yell "Watch the fuck out!!" or "Pay attention, ass hat!!" And this is usually over as quickly as it happened; I ride on and they stand around looking confused.

The other night I was riding back from work, annoyed with myself that I didn't foresee the rain coming, and there is nothing worse than riding your bike in the rain. So I was already in a "leave me the fuck alone" attitude. So, as my luck would have it, or at least Murphy, as I am riding up near Chosun University I happened across two lovers completely oblivious to the world around them.

So there I am, cruising toward them ringing my bell frantically and they weren't budging. Finally I slammed on the breaks just in time to avoid hitting them and because of which, I said my usual phrase, "Get the fuck out of the way!" thinking that it would be the normal case of them looking surprised, moving aside and the affair being over. But nope, this guy understood me. So as I pushed past him, he started shouting, "HEY!" and trying to grab me. He missed (Luckily for him) I just kept riding with him in the background yelling "HEY!!" And since I didn't respond or whatever he wanted, he threw his umbrella at me.

First, it's hilarious, because what the hell could an umbrella do? Especially since it was one of those dinky ones.
Second, who throws an umbrella?
Third, big mistake on his part because his umbrella quickly became my umbrella. I happend to look back and saw the umbrella sailing toward me, so I yanked it out of mid air. As I rode off, I heard him yelling even more, so I just yelled back, "Thanks for the umbrella!" I didn't keep it though, it wasn't worth it, so I tossed it back.

I'll admit it was probably not the best way to handle the situation, but hey, when the moment happens, I just kinda act.