"The Wolverine" is a Pretty Good Movie

I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen it, But I will say that 'The Wolverine' is much better than I originally expected it to be. Lots of action, tons of swordplay, and the appearance of a couple Marvel characters that wouldn't really work in any of the other properties.

I watched it on Netflix, which for once actually streamed properly and didn't hiccup once as the movie unfolded. They even kept in the characteristic 'wait until after the credits roll' snippet that I realized, after seeing the most recent 'X-Men' movie, ties in perfectly with the flow of the franchise.

Well played, Marvel Studios. Well played.

And the bonus of course is that Netflix didn't interrupt the movie once, which I was incredibly grateful for since Jackman was shirtless throughout most of the movie.

Although, having the movie pause during one of those scenes might not incite the rage that I would normally have.

Perhaps.

A Few Words Concerning 'Fault' and 'Blame'

There's a line in one of my favourite books that explains the origin of blame:

"Fault always lies with in the same place, my fine babies; with him weak enough to lay blame."

Let's discuss that.

I had a moment yesterday where I failed to recognize my own weakness. I wanted to attend a gathering and discovered that on the list of confirmed guests was someone I didn't care to see. In that moment, I had a choice: I could go and not engage that person, or I could not go and pout about it. I chose to not go and placed the blame squarely on this other person's shoulders. 

I felt they were directly responsible for me not going: I didn't want to see them or be in the same space as they were. Clearly not my fault, how-dare-they, and all that. 

Do you see the error?

By allowing someone to influence your decision to do things, you are in fact handing over control of yourself to that person. Sure, it would be uncomfortable to go and possibly run into someone I don't care to associate with, but far worse is the fact that I let them dictate what I would and wouldn't do with my time.

Yesterday, I showed that I was that weak person who laid blame. Today, I choose to not make that decision and to face whatever discomfort that choice might bring. 

I don't like sharing, so why give away something so precious as my own personal power?  

Hate is so 90s

I am not sure when the word 'hate' became a substitute for 'don't really care for' but I have to say I am not liking it. Same goes for people who pepper their conversations with expletives like 'fuck' for shock value. You know what would really shock me? Someone who could argue without using expletives or any of their derivatives. That's talent.

I am guilty of it as well. I use words like 'shit' because it's a generally known word and there is no need for an explanation. Depending on the situation though, you might choose a different word to describe the situation you are currently facing. Trying to use alternatives is challenging but I think it's a good exercise. Using more words less often seems to be the way to get the brain to think outside the lines that it normally operates on.

I just reread that last sentence and feel the need to explain it.

What I mean is that there are more words out there than we as a society know what to do with. Most of us rarely go outside of our comfy linguistic bubble to try and use other types of words that would mean the same as the ones we are used to. We collect words to form our own style; sort of a language wardrobe, if you will. As we change, our choice of words do as well although perhaps not as quickly as hairstyles and clothing trends.

What if we tried to use more words that aren't normally part of our roster? We wouldn't have to use them every day and in time we could build up quite the quiver of words to use that aren't like every one else's. That sounds like a challenge, one that I am game to accept.

Kind of like a linguistic hipster, without the trappings.

Baby Steps are Good for the Soul

I seem to spend a lot of time talking about doing things rather than just doing them. Part of that is because I suffer from a lack of confidence and I don't want to be laughed at if it should turn out that I fail. I share this trait with many other people and I am getting tired of it.

I read this article by Seth Godin that talks about compromise. One line in particular stuck out at me and made me sit back:

"Compromise gives us an out, because, with multiple goals, it's easy to play it safe."

Compromise does more than give me an out; it hobbles me to a point where every damn thing is so daunting I cannot even get started. A self-imposed daily goal of writing a thousand words does not sound too difficult when you consider how many hours in day there are in which to accomplish that. So what happens? Why can't I do it? Why can't I finish NaNoWriMo, even once?

Simple. I compromise my time away and I don't make it a priority. Also, I don't care who you are: a thousand words all in a row every single is pretty daunting. 

My solution is this: I am going to write 100 words a day on this blog. Sometimes it's going to be hard and I won't want to, and those are the times when I will really have to examine the choices I make. 

After all, when I say that I don't have time, what I'm really saying is I don't want to make it a priority. 

On Keeping Secrets

I've been known to have a few secrets up my sleeve from time to time and I am normally very good at keeping them to myself. A secret shared ceases to be secret, after all.

So why am I taunting you?

Simple. I need to tell people that I have a secret and not say what it is. Kind of asshole-ish of me, I agree, but it has to happen.

Is it a good secret?

Perhaps.

Oh. Is it more of a bad secret?

Some of it.

Hmm.  

Look, forget I said anything.

*wink