Why is a Blog?

So, at the beginning of my Junior year at MSA, I wrote a blog about, well, blogs. Specifically, I wanted to discuss what exactly a blog was. The answer that I had come across was that a blog was anything that the author decided it would be. I had decided on the answer spur of the moment, mostly due to the lack of desire to write a blog in the first place. 

Now, three weeks away from graduation, I want to revisit this topic… but with a twist! Instead of asking “What is a blog?”, I’m going to talk about “Why is a blog?”. Well, I specifically want to talk about my feelings towards the act of blogging during my time at MSA. 

To begin with, I would like to say that I still mostly agree with the answer I had to what a blog is. It is, indeed, whatever the author intends it to be. However, there is one thing that a blog has to be, no matter what. A blog absolutely must deliver a message of some kind. Not towards its readers, but towards the writers future self. It is a time capsule, a frozen piece of the author’s voice, their ideas, their likes and dislikes. So, anything, in theory, could technically qualify as a blog. A blog could be considered an important historical record, a glimpse into the past. So, my final answer to the question of what a blog is: history. It’s history, plain and simple.

Anyway, let’s move on to the main question. Why is a blog? Blogs are often thought of as public digi-diaries and can often be just that. Now, I’m not going to discuss anything like “author intent” while trying to answer this question. I want to talk specifically about my experience with the form. 

So, I don’t like blogging. I think it’s a waste of time, especially when limited to the type of blogs that I was during my senior year. What was once absolute freedom became confining, and frankly quite exhausting. The importance of blogs is the freedom that they can give to people to simply write whatever is on their mind. So, when you take that away, the blog loses its value. 

I do not speak for everyone when I say that, of course. This is more so my own unique perspective on it. I don’t think that I’ll be writing more blogs in the future once I’ve graduated, but you never know for sure. If I do, be sure to expect any imaginable absurdity. That way you’ll be prepared when I write about something even more absurd than that. 

So here’s the climactic finale that you’ve been waiting for. Here’s the answer to the question. Here it is!

 

Q: Why is a blog?

A: I have absolutely no idea.

“Fantastic Magic” by TK from 凛として時雨: The Desperate Battle for An Identity

Fantastic Magic isn’t an album that necessarily tells a specific story the way Flowering did. However, all of the songs are connected by one specific theme: “Who Am I?”. Each of the songs in the album deal with the struggle for an identity, both as a person and as an artist. 

Here is a link to the full album on YouTube: 

The album begins with the title track “Fantastic Magic”

 

This song intertwines the struggle for identity as a person and artist. This song, like many, could be seen as a silent confession of the artists emotions towards an unknown individual. It takes a reminiscent perspective, appearing to look back on the good times the artist and the individual shared. It conveys a feeling that the artist is looking back on the past to discover who he is. Specifically in the lyrics (roughly translated):

The delusion and imagination directed at us
The delusion and imagination that we were robbed of
When I become parched, I know all the colors
My heart is pounding, you and me, and memories

The heart of those days is slow mo slow motion
My heart is empty these days Slow mo Slow motion
Fantastic Magic

This song isn’t necessarily my personal favorite out of the songs in the album, but I never skip it when it comes on.

Up next, we have what is likely Kitajima’s claim to fame: “Unravel”:

 

This song was the opening for the first season of the anime Tokyo Ghoul, an adaptation of the manga written by Sui Ishida. This song is all about the identity of the individual. It is a declaration of the artists lack of individual identity. A realization that he no longer knows who he is and is afraid of what he has become. It is both a cry for help and a warning to his loved ones to stay away from him. It is also a wish that others will remember him the way he used to be, the person that he sees as a “pure” version of himself. I believe the lyrics that best convey this are:

In the distorted world, I gradually become transparent and invisible
Don’t find me, don’t stare at me
In a world that someone drew I don’t want to hurt you
Remember me and keep me vivid

Overall, this song is a certified banger. If you watch anime, you’ve most likely heard this song more than once. Even then, the best is yet to come.

Following the chaotic cry for help of “Unravel” is “Kalei de scope”:

 

This song leans into the more existential side of the album. It is also, like “Fantastic Magic”, a fusion between the two different identity crises. One of the most significant parts of the song are the lyrics:

“Why does only the unreachable miracle move my heart?

Why is it that only memories that cannot be seen move my heart?

ordinary emotion”

These lyrics talk about how oftentimes the things we struggle the most to remember are what have the most impact on who we are as people.

 

After that, the song “an artist” begins:

 

As evident from the title, this song deals much more with the singers struggle with an identity as an artist. This is clearest in the following lyrics:

For the sake of being reflected in you, even though I can’t change

Even if I gave you everything that I captured on the remaining film

Nausea wells up, a mass of phrases I don’t even want to see

Break that key, you’re crazy crazy”

This song is about the artists desire to create art that is inherently meaningful, while also struggling with their feelings that everything they make is essentially pointless. 

 

This is followed by the song “tokio”:

 

This song is a deep dive into the identity of the person behind the artist. It is the individual. He is observing the world around him, the world of the “artist” from the perspective of the “individual”. It is a fear of change, mixed with the understanding that one must change eventually. This is shown with the lyrics

“no matter how much I overtake myself
When the morning comes, everything will rewind
If I reach out my hand, the answers overflow
Suddenly I’m broken and lost
Chasing after unfamiliar places
Forcing myself to find my place
I feel like I’ll be hated for who I am
I tried to swallow myself inside someone
It’s time to change
I still can’t say anything to the unchangeable me”

 

This, the bridge of the song (I think), carries the most power within this song. It is an acceptance and a denial. It is the emotions of the song summarized.

Next up is “Shinkiro”:

 

This song is an expression of the desires of the artist. This is shown through the lyrics

“I can’t see the important things, so listen to my music listen to my music
Don’t even doubt what you have in your hand, listen to my music listen to my music
i was having the same dream”

This song is softer, and one of the only songs with a second singer joining TK. This song is almost begging for the listener to listen to the music and messages the artist has made. It is a desire to be known as an artist.

 

After that comes “Dramatic Slow Motion”:

 

This song is complex in its own right. It is, in some ways, the realization that the individual and the artist are the same. This is best shown with the lyrics

“I want to give you a slow motion name and show it to you
In the world, my dream rock star has already entered me”

Though I believe the most powerful lyrics in the song are

“Consciousness is blown away by the delay
The volume envelops you
Harsh voices and scenery, hand in hand
This time I’m the fake star of my dreams
Can I touch your eardrums?”

These lyrics are like a repeat of the message of “Shinkiro”. The artist is asking if he is allowed to have his music heard.

 

The next song in the album is “Spiral Parade”:

 

This song is about the journey from being just an individual to also becoming an artist. This is best shown with the lyrics

“Forgetting how to blink, I chose the endless road
I’m searching with my ears open, it’s an endless Self Spiral
At some point, I touched the guitar, and there was nothing to fear
It begins when I meet myself reflected in six mirrors”

However, it is also a realization of losing yourself to your art. A fusion between the artist and the individual.

After this is “Fragile”:

 

This song is about the futility of the artist. It is an expression of the difference between what the artist wants to create and what they are actually capable of creating. The following lyrics support this:

I’m not here to seek pain, but
The words that come out are sad
I’m not here in search of light, but
If you can see something, that’s fine

play hide and seek
The words I want to convey are floating in the air
The only thing I can spit out is the darkness, you know?
I wish I could see everything in her transparently”

This song is a beautiful song and is one of the softest songs in the album.

To end the album, we have the song “contrast”:

 

This song is an acceptance and a transformation. The individual and the artist accept each other and become one. It is the most “conversational” of the songs within the album. The lyrics that best represent the song are 

you know all my favorite things
I guess I even remember my favorite chords
Why? Even though the present is overflowing
Remembering a phantom promise
If you close your eyelids, time will stop

you remember all the things i said
Because you can solve all the incomprehensible codes
Why? I don’t know who I am
I guess I was looking through a phantom telescope
I can’t close my eyes because eternity will run away”

It is a realization that there is no such thing as a permanent identity, neither for artist nor individual. 

 

This, while not my favorite album by TK, has some of my favorite songs by him. 

 

“Flowering” by TK from 凛として時雨: A Story About Grief and Mourning

Flowering is one of my favorite albums of all time. Toru Kitajima, from J-Rock band 凛として時雨 (Rin Toshite Sigure), is, in my opinion, one of the greatest Japanese lyricists and musicians of the modern era. Best known for “Unravel” the first opening theme for the Tokyo Ghoul anime, he writes songs about the human condition, and what makes someone human.

The first song in Flowering is “Flower” (linked below)

 “Flower” portrays the initial loss. It is a very reminiscent song, with lyrics such as (loosely translated, not perfect) “My past brightened when I met you” and “I live in a colorful dream-world I don’t want to end”. This song also, as shown in the second line quoted, deals with the denial stage of grief. Overall, this is my second-favorite song in the entire album. 

Next, we have “Abnormal Trick”.

“Abnormal Trick” delves deeper into denial. The mourner does not want to accept the truth. This is shown with lyrics such as “Still hiding? What looked like secrets (don’t change) have pierced me” and “You can’t wake me up, me up/although someday I won’t be blamed for my sins,/Will I exist within?” . It, however, begins to fade into a form of acceptance with the line “Like a fool, I can’t change/Are the wonders destroyed by the unchangeable me still here? I want to see/I can’t wake me up, me up, me up” as the mourner begins to wish for freedom from their self-imposed catatonic state.

After this, comes the song “Haze” (linked below is the Egomaniac Feedback version, though it’s the same song.) 

This song is about the hatred towards the world can feel when grieving. It showcases a sense of apathy. This can be found as early as the first stanza:

Somebody’s tears that fell from the sky
I don’t have any kindness to give to anyone
If you were to be consumed by darkness
Will a millimeter of me even glow?
Smile
 

This stanza seems to portray a sense of both derealization and apathy. It is likely that the tears referenced are the singers own, and the line “I don’t have any kindness to give anyone” speaks for itself in terms of portraying apathy. It also delves into how people who are grieving feel like they’re losing everything around them. This is shown in the third stanza:

Becoming lost while reminiscing
Losing everything that I touch
Everything is becoming shrouded by fog; I won’t hide anymore

However, the song shines a bit of hope with the fifth stanza, as TK sings:

There is no way I can change the world
But I can cut through the darkness

 

This portrays a sense of willpower. Even though one cannot regain what is lost, you can move forward with your life and be happy again.

After this comes the song “Phase to Phrase”:

This song portrays a sense of fault within the singer, and the idea that they are the reason everything is out of control. This is emphasized with the lyrics of the song:

A rotating phrase, I counted the motion1
It’s close enough to start pretending
There’s no turning back from lies
I become the disorder that draws close
Nobody wants themselves to be seen
Nobody wants themselves to be known
There’s no pain, nor sadness, and yet, and yet
What they don’t want others to know are frozen inside
What they don’t want others to know are killed inside
But then it all may disappear
Everybody could become, everybody could become, and yet, and yet
I become disorder

 

The singer says that everybody could become anything, and, despite his efforts, he becomes a chaos he cannot control. I believe that this is the peak of the self-loathing that can occur with grief. This song represents the upmost limit of his hatred for himself.

Next comes one of my favorite songs, “White Silence”:

This is the softest lyrical song in the album. It features Shione Yukawa for a portion of the song. This song is from a different perspective than the rest of the album, and is from the POV of the deceased. The song urges the mourner to move on. Showcased in the lyrics:

Remember them, the words you’ve forgotten
Don’t look for me, because I’m no longer here
I’ve been swept away
 

This is a stark contrast from the rest of the album, as oftentimes the singer refers to “you” in reference to being lost, instead of “I”. This song represents a transition into the next stage of the song, and the mourners life.

After this is “12th Laser”:

This song seems to be looking back on the previous songs. Once again in the perspective of the mourner, the song portrays the helplessness they felt when the person they are mourning first died. This is the first case of healing being shown.

Example lyrics for this are:

My heart couldn’t understand, a picture drawn by my left hand
The unconveyable color of sadness
A laser of memories beyond is shining through
I could not escape

The first stanza (shown above) portrays the idea that they were trapped, and “could not escape”. The thing keeping them trapped was their inability to allow themselves to heal and move on.

“Film a Moment” the fifth song in the album, is another song that focuses on looking back.

It both looks back on the time when the deceased was still alive, and once again at the period of time that the mourner was at their worst. It discusses the way that time had felt like it stopped. The song also portrays the struggle between wanting to remember the precious moments forever and wanting to forget them completely. This is shown in the lyrics:

The you that I long for isn’t there
Perhaps there are no such miracles
film A moment, Fill the moment, Kill the moment
 
The world I hold in my hands is expressionless and silent
I want to see what lies beyond. Could I kill the future?
 
A finger, a dimly lit ghost of what’s left of you, turning red
If only I could steal the future you have filmed
Gently the secret signal floats away. You are laughing
 
Without emotion, blatant fiction
If only the future could be stolen
 
Memories are shining through, we met in a dream
Shining through, we met in a dream
And so, I wrote my name
 
I have become like time, will someone restore me?
Is that what I want?

 

The song feels almost like a blur, both musically and lyrically. The singer portrays a desperateness to become “whole” again; a desire to finally move on from their grief. However, they struggle to balance the happy memories and their future. This is what causes that “time freeze”.

The 8th song, “Daylily”, has no lyrics.

The daylily flower is a flower of many meanings, but the one most thematically correct would most likely be “forgetfulness and loss of memory”. It is a decision to forget everything and move on that way. A “bad” ending, though it’s not entirely over yet. It’s merely a step in the process.

After this comes the song “Fourth”.

This song is filled with a sense of yearning. The singer shows their desire to talk to the person they lost again, to experience the good times. The lyrics show this:

The sound of your footsteps echoed inside of me
What I found was something you hid at night – a secret song
 
Wishes made again and again in the night, can you see them?
Inside the night, you wouldn’t stop…letting go
 
The sound of the night’s wind…was so faint
Still unknown, the immeasurable light
Find it
The light in those hands
 
Listen to the sound that could be seen in those eyes
Tell me what could be seen in those eyes
 
These tears may go away if we can meet in the sorrowful night
The light that you carry All of it, all of it, all of it, all of it
Gather it…in those hands
Thereby the stars, are you smiling?

 

It is not desperate or rushed. It is filled with a sense of acceptance and finality. The singer understands that they cannot regain what is lost, but they have finally accepted it. They’ve realized that moving on is not forgetting, but living on in their name. It is bittersweet, filled with a sense of joy, yet also an understanding that it’s all over.

Finally, “Sound_am326 (Secret Track)”.

Once again a song with no lyrics, it is instead filled with acoustic guitar and piano. Reminiscent of all of the previous songs, namely “White Silence”, it represents a finality. It was made to be the closing track for the album, and fills that role excellently. It portrays all of the difficult feelings of mourning and moving on without a single word being sung. 

This is, as I’ve stated before, one of my favorite albums of all time. Toru Kitajima did a phenomenal job with the composition and portrays the story of a person in mourning wonderfully. The title is very fitting, as the album tells a sort of “coming of age” story about accepting ones emotions and learning to feel again after a severe loss.

Thank you all for reading! Next time, I’ll be covering the album White Noise, and the story it tells.

All translations initially found on Lyrics Translations (lyricstranslate.com) 

Tokyo Ghoul (東京 喰種) And What It Means To Be Human Part 1

TW// Mentions of Violence, Cannibalism, Self-harm, and Death (among other things)
WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FROM THIS POINT FORWARD! IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE TOKYO GHOUL MANGA, I SUGGEST YOU DO SO BEFORE FURTHER READING! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Tokyo Ghoul (東京 喰種) is a manga written and illustrated by Sui Ishida and published by Shueisha’s seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Jump between September 2011 and September 2014. It told the story of an 18 year old university student named Ken Kaneki and the struggles he faced when he became a ghoul (a human-like creature that only gains nutrients from eating humans) after a terrible accident during his date with a girl named Rize (Ree-zey) Kamishiro, who was a ghoul herself. He was transformed into a ghoul when his organs were replaced with some of Rize’s during a surgery by Akihiro Kanou. Kaneki monologues that “I’m not the protagonist of a novel or anything. I’m just a college student who likes to read, like you could find anywhere. But… if, for argument’s sake, you were to write a story with me in the lead role, it would certainly be… a tragedy” (Tokyo Ghoul Ch. 1 Vol. 1).

Tokyo Ghoul Vol 1 Ch 1 Final Page

Tokyo ghoul discusses what it means to be human through Kaneki’s psyche, which alters constantly throughout the series. One major moment in the first volume, specifically in chapter 3, depicts Kaneki walking outside in the city. He notices all of the people around him, and starving, slowly goes from thinking of them as “man”, “woman”, or “child” to simply “meat”. To prevent these thoughts, he bites his own finger, and rushes off to a nearby restroom. In this restroom, he sees his singular red eye for the first time, and in a mixture of fear and rage, punches the mirror. He gets a cut on the back of his hand, but it heals almost immediately. He heads home, and lays in bed thinking about his favorite novel “The Black Goat’s Egg”.  He comes to the conclusion that he is like a “ghoul’s egg” and, to try to prove to himself that he really is a ghoul, takes out a large knife and attempts to stab his stomach. This fails, and the knife instead breaks apart, leaving Kaneki crying on the floor as he ponders what he should do about this situation.

This is the beginning of Kaneki’s struggle with his identity, and the question of what makes one human. He had previously run into Touka Kirishima, a girl, who happened to be a ghoul, that worked at the café he frequented: Anteiku. He goes to the café, hoping that she would provide help for him. He begs Touka for help, but she responds with a firm “No”. She then goes on to ask what being human is like, expressing a jealousy for the way they can live so peacefully in comparison to ghouls. Kaneki is at a loss for words and does not respond to the barrage of questions. 

Tokyo Ghoul has established it’s theme of “what it means to be human”, the baseline that will be explored throughout the series. I am excited to delve deeper into this theme, and the overall story. It’s one of my personal favorite written works. This serves as a baseline introduction to the series and it’s themes, we’ll be focusing a bit more on the theme next time. 

That’s all for now. I can’t wait to write the next part of this series! 

The End

The time has finally come. It’s the end of my first year at MSA. It’s been a while ride, a mishmash of triumphs and failures. I’ve grown as a person and an artist.  Through it all, I’ve made friends, I’ve lost friends, I’ve made enemies, I’ve lost enemies (I think?). 

So, what’s the point of it? Is that it? Will any of this matter at all once I graduate next year?

Yes. I’m sure it will. I think that this has been an experience that will impact me for the rest of my life. I’m grateful to all of my teachers, and all of the friends that I’ve made this year. I couldn’t- wouldn’t be here now without all of them. There’s no doubt that this has changed my life tremendously. It  definitely could’ve been a better year, but there’s very little I would have changed about it.

I’m glad that I met everyone that I did, and I’m glad to have been a junior literary this year. I would also like to give special thanks to all of the literary seniors for being such a gift to the literary world. They are truly some of the best role models I could have had.  I hope that they find success and happiness wherever they go.

Thank you all for the phenomenal year. See you next year!

Nonsense And How To Make Sense Of It

Everyone is familiar with nonsense. Each person you meet has their own example of what nonsense is. There’s plenty of nonsense for everyone! There are people who, despite being lactose intolerant, gorge themselves on cheese and other dairy products. There’s poets who can’t rhyme for the life of them, and musicians who can’t read sheet music. Even you have something in mind that, if you were asked “what is nonsense?”, you would answer with immediately.

There exists an extremely common misconception that nonsense is impossible to understand. I am here to say, first off, that anything can be understood if one simply chooses to understand it, and second off, stop eating dairy products if you’re lactose intolerant. Seriously, it’s horrible for you. There’s a complicated thing there for some people. How do you understand nonsense? How do you “just understand something”?

Well, the first issue is that you’re thinking about it so hard. No wonder you’re having such a hard time. If you take nonsense at face value, without a second of deeper thought, you’ll understand it quite well. A reliance on logic will get you nowhere with things that have abandoned all logic. To do that is simply, well, nonsense!

Now, there are, in short, two types of nonsense. There’s sensible nonsense, and nonsensible nonsense. Likewise, there’s nonsensible sense, which I will also be discussing. 

Sensible nonsense is nonsense that makes sense. When partaking in a form of media that involves this nonsense, it will not feel as though there is anything wrong with the fact that any of it is occurring. Of course, if you oversaturate your nonsense with explanations, all you’ll have left is sense. It might not be common sense, but it will most certainly not be nonsense.

Nonsensible nonsense is inherently, the worse type of nonsense. It is nonsense with no semblance of order to it. It is often used as a tool to skip any deep thinking for writers, or to disguise plotholes. In these cases, it is acceptable. However, if one becomes reliant on it, they may find themselves without any grounding for their writing. You’ll end up like a clown car on a raft in the center of the Bermuda triangle. To put it simply, lost beyond saving.

Now, there’s nonsensible sense. It is something that should by no means make any sense. However, it is completely sensible no matter how deeply it is considered. It goes by a different name, of course. Most people refer to nonsensible sense as science. This isn’t a dig at science, I swear. It is simply the fact that science, by no means, should make any sense whatsoever. Yet it is the most reliable answer to the things around us we have.

Now that we’ve got the basics covered, how about we go over the ways to understand nonsense?

First and foremost, as I have stated previously, you mustn’t think too hard about it. If you are reading nonsense, no amount of thinking is going to change how it is written. It is best not to ask questions, because you won’t get answers that way. If you trust the nonsense, it’ll eventually become sense. Well, sense to you. To anyone else you may stop making sense yourself.

Second now, you have to put some thought into it. You have to, at least, identify what kind of nonsense it is. That way, you can figure out how you’re supposed to be reading it. Nonsensical nonsense is best left unread. Sensical nonsense is the king of the first rule. Nonsensical sense, now, must be pondered. The more you think about it, the more of it you’ll find. After all, the discovery of fire led to the exploration of the cosmos. That makes, if you look at it summarized like that, no sense at all! Yet it’s the sense of our world! The way our bodies function, or the way anything functions for that matter, makes absolutely no sense. Yet here we are functioning.

Easy, right?

Don’t hold on so tightly to your sense that you crush it in your palm 🙂

Now, how about a quick exercise? I’ll write some nonsense, and you have to identify it! We’ll do it once so it’s both easier and harder to guess. Now, don’t be fooled. Nonsense is difficult to identify unless there’s sense close by. 

“A person is exactly who the person they want to be wished they had been before, and likewise, the person they wanted to be when they were the person they were before. So, naturally, a person is already who they want to be. In turn, nobody is themselves, since they can’t possibly be the person they want to be. If they were the person they wanted to be, they wouldn’t want to be anyone else. So, maybe it’s best if they just avoided being a person at all”

Thank you for reading. Enjoy the nonsense!

Lamentations Of A Summer Birthday

So, the school year is almost over, which means that my birthday is approaching with devastating speed. However, I worry that I will be unable to celebrate with any of my friends at all, as they all (mostly) live an inconvenient distance from my house.

It’s also most likely going to be unbearably hot, as the past few years have had excessively hot summers. I, personally, don’t care much for hot weather. So, obviously, it’s a bit of a messy combination.

Now, it’s not all bad, I guess. I’m sure that I’ll find a way to enjoy my time. I might be able to visit some friends, or a friend. I hope I’ll be able to, at least.

I don’t have much else to say. Thank you for reading this, even if it’s short.

I Couldn’t Think Of A Title So I Wrote About The Consequences Of Time Travel Instead

I can’t think of a title, and I’m not all that sure what to write about this time. I guess this would be a good opportunity to just talk about what’s been on my mind lately. Well, it WOULD be if I could remember what’s been on my mind lately. Oh well. It isn’t that big of a deal, I suppose.

Oh! I know something fun! Let’s talk about time travel! More specifically, I suppose, why I think that it might actually bear some semblance of possibility. To do that though, I ought to talk in depth about time travel. Perhaps some rhetorical questions to get the audience thinking?

What is this? A Buzzfeed article?

Anyway. If you had a time machine, there’s something you would change. That’s a given. Everyone regrets some part of their past. Some more than others, and some less. Now, when changing the past, there exists a risk known as the butterfly effect. Though this is still a factor to consider when living your life normally without the fluctuation of time in an unnatural form.

So, the butterfly effect, what is it?

I’m sure you’re all familiar with dominoes, or JENGA. Every action, every event that occurs, causes another. If the dominoes were to be slightly bigger as they got further away from you, and you knocked the closest one over, the dominoes knocked down would get progressively larger. 

However, what if that one domino was connected to a million other lines of dominoes that followed the same rules? That’s the butterfly effect at it’s fullest potential, which is otherwise referred to as “causality”. It’s why the theory of parallel timelines exists. One action separates our timeline from the rest. It is an infinite process that would, in theory, create an infinite number of timelines.

Some things that are impossible to us, might be possible to a different “us” simply because of a decision that was made differently in the past for them. This brings us to our first major issue with time travel.

Is it safe to even insert an extra person into a period of time? The very presence of something that wasn’t meant to be there originally could majorly offset the course of history. It is unrealistic to believe that time travel would be of zero consequence if nobody was aware of the time traveler. They are still present in that place, so every movement they make alters something. 

Another issue with time travel. It would likely result in the extinction of the human race. Aside from the previously mentioned issue, there is a high likelihood that someone with malevolent intentions would find their way into the possession of the machine. 

So, then, if time travel is so dangerous, is there a form of it that may be safe?

Yes.

Isn’t that surprising? It’s simple, though. While you would be unable to return to the past, you can continue to exist in the present. Each instant that passes, the current present makes way for the future. Consider simply living as a form of “present-time manipulation”, as all the possibilities of time travel are still available to you. You are still capable of causing major changes with even the smallest movements. You blinking could bring about the heat death of the universe, or the birth of a baby. Every action, no matter how insignificant, results in something.

We cannot predict the future. Not truly. We cannot understand exactly how each and every thing that happens in any amount of time will alter our future. However, if we strive for “good” we are more likely to reach it. Peace is a possibility locked behind a breath of air, a conversation, perhaps even just a step. 

So, then, I ask you this. With this power over time that you hold- with this time travel technology that you grasp with your very being- what will you do?

Godspeed, wanderer.

I don’t have a blog because the one I was going to publish is bad so I’m writing a new one very fast and oh geez why is this title so long

I have no idea why the title is so long.

 

Anyway! Good morning/afternoon gamers! I have absolutely NO idea what I am writing right now. I forgot to take my meds and I am THRIVING. Well, I guess. I’m in my English 3 class with absolutely nothing to do because I’m amazing and finished all the work for basically the entire week the day it was assigned (I know, I know, I’m the best).

So I’m just doing this. Typing. Pitter patter. Tip tap. Scrimblo burnimblo. Keyboards don’t make that sound. I just thought it looked/sounded funny. (It did). I’m kind of hungry right now, not going to lie. I think for lunch I am going to eat rice, which is my favorite food of all time ever.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. Mostly about the tropes utilized by different media and how they elicit a specific reaction using vocal and auditory cues. I’m not going to talk about that though. It’d be too “normal” of a blog. Well, no it wouldn’t. I just don’t want to write about it.

There has GOT to be something else I can do right now. No. There isn’t. I am out of things to do. Yay.

Have you seen $1? Here is a picture of him:

That is all. 

Good day.

File 39 – Report 5 – Section 12: The Solomon Archives Pt. 1/5

The Solomon Archives is a collection of books, of which there are a total of thirteen. They contain truths about our reality that almost always result in a loss of life upon reading. Different excerpts have been noted to have different effects, as chapter seventeen of the fifth book will induce “The Always” onto the reader. The current mortality rate for the Archives is unknown.

The following is the only portion of The Solomon Archives that is not inherently fatal to read. While this is much safer compared to other excerpts, there are still side effects. For example, this excerpt has been noted to induce heavy nausea, a sudden immensely painful migraine, temporary amnesia, hallucinations that vary in severity depending on how much was read, the inability to sleep without having nightmares, loss of sight, loss of hearing, loss of ability to speak, and an inability to perceive certain aspects of reality as intended for humans. It, at one point, was incomprehensible, but with some work was translated into a readable format.

Book 7 – Chapter 43 – Excerpt 972//

Continuing from what was stated in the previous chapter, the mortal universe, also known as “Universe 89-B1-17”, had been relatively devoid of any multiplanar beings, and the inhabitants remained non-lucid until the events with ////////////. As a result, there is now a high frequency of multiplanar beings, many of which have become a part of their mythos. I have been led to believe that they will begin to awaken true lucidity in the span of less than three billion years(this was translated from a word resembling Aeon). 

The effects of this pre-awakening stage have been interesting. Often resulting in the formation of something that they refer to as “witchcraft” or “magic”. People that have these abilities tend to be those who are closer to awakening compared to others by around one thousand years, varying between individuals. There has also been a spike in religious activity, and a growth in violence in regards to denial of an individual’s beliefs. 

//////////////

This was the only non-fatal portion that was found in the Archives, while it’s rather short, further reading has resulted in a 100% mortality rate with all readers. Unfortunately, we have not found a way to prevent this as of yet, we hope to provide a full translation with minimal detriments as soon as possible.

Please note, if the feeling of being watched becomes prevalent post-reading, please avoid all mirrors, windows, electronics, water, and, if possible, find shelter in a church or other religious institution. Likewise, if you are still capable of hearing, listen carefully for any odd breathing. It may feel like your own, but it isn’t. If you ever seem to lose your shadow, stop moving, and hope that it lets you go.

The remainder of the information regarding The Solomon Archives can be found in the following: 39-7-14, 60-2-7, and 100-13-1