The Order of Tile

I had a healthy discussion with a friend earlier. The question was: "If you have to convince yourself that what you believe in is true, doesn't that mean you're probably wrong?"

It started innocently enough. I stated that all human actions boil down to a longing for power. He countered that if you stretch your logic enough all human actions can be made to boil down to anything. He added that he could make anything boil down to the floor tiles in the 7/11 we were in. I said that it was impossible and challenged him to make DotA boil down to the tiles in 7/11. (This was a planned argument that allowed me to add that we play DotA because of the feeling of power we have when we achieve a "m-m-m-monster kill!")

He said that if you zoom in on a DotA 3D model close enough, the pixels will eventually resemble the tiles in 7/11.

I know. That's ridiculous!

But, aha! It was also a planned argument on his part, allowing him to continue with: "If I convince myself that DotA boils down to floor tiles, I'll believe it and I could probably convince some other people. Your thinking that everything boils down to power is no different."

Of course, I countered that the ways in which we can relate human actions to power are fairly obvious, while it would take a good amount of convincing before I became a follower of the order of tile. It doesn't matter, he said. "Once you convince yourself, the difference ceases to exist."

I saw the point, realizing that much of history and even today's society is based on self-persuasion. *ahem* I then argued that if you have to convince yourself to believe in something, then it's probably wrong. The simplest explanation is more likely to be true and not need any self-persuasion at all. We then proceeded to argue about our favorite topic: religion.

From there we went on the usual spiral of arguments where nobody really gains any ground or introduces any new arguments. We just went on and on and on and on. Then we went home.

Why did we do this? To see who had more power, of course. There were no tiles rewarded to the winner.


BLOGGING FOR WHAT'S RIGHT!
June 28, 2007. 11:40 pm

Chase 2 rabbits, go home hungry.

Look at the size of that rabbit.

I am building too many decks at once. Narcobridge, G/W Enchantment, Mono Red Storm Rising.

Two of those decks I plan to give to my kid brothers, just so they can play some standard legal magic when I'm not in Dumaguete. Two of them. I'm not saying which. My brothers (and on occasion my sister) are actually playing Affinity and Samurai Weenies. They actually built their decks from boosters and singles purchased from that one tiny retarded card shop that sells no singles beyond Darksteel. And to call their decks even halfway optimal would be a stretch. Furthermore, I sometimes have to keep myself from yelling "Untap... Upkeep... DRAW!" at them. But it's all nice and casual so it's okay to use made-up rules. No Super Control Decks of Doom that rely on game technicalities to bore us to death.

The problem is that building three decks at once burns a hole three times as big in my pocket. I fear that I might end up tiring of the chase and just give up on all three rabbits and settle for some KFC fried chicken. Expensive, but easy to get. I'm already having serious doubts about Narcobridge, since many of its key cards are rotating out. Why build a tier 1.5 deck that goes extended in a few months? Unless some really good dredge cards come out in 10th ed spoilers, I might just drop dredge. Might.

Enough about magic.

The irritating thing about blogs is how self-defeating they are. I want to write about the things that are eating at me, but I can't do that freely without getting into trouble. Instead, I either write about something worthless or I censor myself. See the first three paragraphs of this entry? Worthless. See anything else that reveals what's on my mind? No? That's because I just erased a paragraphs' worth.

If I want to write about real issues, I might as well keep a diary. But that's just gay (not that I have anything against gays). Oh shit, now I'm covering my ass as well!

Ironic thing. I want my blog visited, but I don't want anyone to know what I'm thinking. So, friends, visit my blog then close it without reading anything. Just look at the pretty picture on top of it.

Seriously.

Moving on, we are still feeling the repercussions of the events during summer. It's a sad sight, really. Things, please go back to normal. Silly of me. Stop talking about it.

First days of class. My class schedule on Wednesdays and Fridays are a sight to behold. I have 7 hour breaks both days, not that it really matters to a dormer. What I'm excited about is my 9-12 lineup on Tuesdays and Thursdays. 9-10:30 Theo under the Theo Department chair Ma'am Rosana. 10:30-12 Elc 14-something-or-other under Libatique. In the afternoon, Philo.

GG.

Lastly, I showed up yesterday for class at 7:30 and there was no Ma'am Cat. I was terrified. Then I saw her smiling face at around 8:00 and I would have jumped for joy if I wasn't afraid that I have juvenile arthritis. Then, at around 8:15 she announced that she would only be around until July and would only be making ONE long test. Considering the grim possibilities if Ma'am Cat leaves, I had better do damn well in that one long test.


BLOGGING FOR WHAT'S RIGHT!
June 15, 2007

Re: Puta ka AISIS

Seven hour breeeeeeaaaakkk!!!!

Magic na to. Narcobridge = radioactive rock that burns paper on contact.

BLOGGING FOR WHAT'S RIGHT!
June 12, 2007. 6:35 pm

Future Sight

Future Sight [fyoo-cher sahyt]- A phrase ambiguous enough so that when used as a title for a blog its writer can explore several unrelated topics without worry.




One such topic is the future state of the Faura metagame. Sweet sweet Futuresight, Magic the Gathering's latest expansion, will change it dramatically. A wise pro once said that if Magic was a game of rock, paper, scissors, then Narcobridge, the deck that Futuresight has bestowed upon us, is a radioactive rock that burns paper on contact. Not true, as most players have found ways to fit Narcobridge hate into their main boards (and I don't mean just Bernard), but it has killed enough decks that people are now mentioning it in the same sentence as D4rgonstorm. I have my sights set on my future Narcobridge combo deck and playing it against Control Land a.k.a Faura.

Looking further into the future of the Faura metagame forces me to confront the inevitable reality that is Magic's 10th edition and the rotating out of 9th ed and the Ravnica block. Remand? Rewind? Repeal? Goodbye. Lightning Helix? Golgari grave troll and all the other good dredge cards? Goodbye. Watery Grave? Breeding Pool? A long, tearful goodbye.

The rotating-out of many good control cards and perhaps people tiring of 30-minute control vs. control games has Faura clearly headed for a beatdowny future. In the past, this would have been a thrill for me and my Boros deck, but I've recently discovered that I'm more of a Johnny than of any other archetype in Magic. The future holds combo for me.

Another thing lying in the future of course is Starcraft II. Hell, it's about time. In two more years. Or three or five, given Blizzard's history. But I've watched the in-game videos and they seem nice. It looks like Blizzard is continuing what John and I like to call the philosophy of "Equally Imba" introduced in the original Starcraft. I just hope the Starcraft II project doesn't make like a Ghost and fade away.

And now some emo.

"What's the name of the word for things not being the same always.....there must be a word for it. The thing that let's you know time is happening. Is there a word?"

"Change."

Assuming SCII comes out as scheduled, the year will be 2009. I'll be 22 by then and hopefully graduating, reviewing for the board exam and worrying about the future. Carissa will already be a year out of college and in the "real world", worrying about the future. My kid brothers will be old enough that my mom can find a hobby job and not worry so much about the future. So many things can happen in two years and when I think about all the things I have and the myriad of ways by which I can lose any of them I can't help but worry.

What about my self? Will I still be as childish and easily attracted to flashing lights, cone-headed aliens, and the belief that I control an army fighting for the survival of the human race?

End of emo.

In the more immediate future is the first sem of senior year. Barring superseniors, grad students and ...err... old people, we will be the oldest students in the Ateneo. I often joke that when I walk around Ateneo and 129 peoplewatching, the thought "I'm so old." crosses my mind often. This thought is erroneous of course, but it's still scary. Imagine being 50 and playing DotA in 129. And 50 is just 30 more than 20.

Back to the first sem. I wonder what we'll be doing then? People have seven hour breaks two out of the five days of the schoolweek. DotA is long overdue for death, so my suggestion is Magic or SoulCal III if we can find a place to play. Lots of people like basketball, but I can take two dribbles before my sides start aching. Pingpong is my sport, but nobody plays it. Chess, maybe. I know some people didn't like it when I started bringing a deck box instead of a chessboard to Faura.

Anyway, some people are dreading the first semester because of what transpired during the summer. That event-we-don't-talk-about. I say go one step further and forget about it altogether. I know I probably don't have the right to say that, but I do know it will make life easier for all.

Here's to the future.

BLOGGING FOR WHAT'S RIGHT!
June 10, 2007. 3:43 pm