ValuingTheTimeAfterItIsGone

*Cough* *Gag* *Spit*

That sums up the last few days. On Wednesday morning (I think it was Wednesday) I woke up with a fever, exhaustion, and a cough. It was lame. But I got over it.... Mostly. All that remains is an annoying phlegm cough that makes everything taste bad. At least I got over my sickness before the holidays. Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner and I am so excited.

I always think back on the times I was healthy whenever I fall ill. Why do I only appreciate my health after it is taken away from me? Those times I could swallow without pain, or cough without worrying about spitting out yucky gunk, or even breathing without any problems. Whenever I am healthy I don't even give it a thought. Months pass by and I finally get struck with illness and all I can think about is the day I will be 100% again. But I know once I achieve full health I will not even give it a thought. I dunno, I just always thought it funny how the human mind works that way. We just take things for granted way too easily.

Alright, enough about sickness. Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Only two weeks left and I will confront the Bird of Ages. Too bad it is going to be another Thanksgiving with a fragmented family. Hopefully the last fragmented Thanksgiving. Though all we ever do on that blessed day is eat and watch the parade (Which isn't even a parade anymore) on TV. What do you Dear Readers do for Thanksgiving? Odds of it being more exciting than mine will be guaranteed so don't hold back.

Oh yeah. I never mentioned it, but I have finished my GED. Yeah, apparently you have to sit for it when you drop out of high school. But I didn't drop out! I am just a homeschooler who still strives for excellence in education! Ah, who am I kidding, I am just as good as those high school flunkies. I took that three day test by the horns and shoved into the ground. It was very relaxing actually. I enjoyed the whole experience greatly. The SAT was so brutal, so the GED was like a soothing walk in the forest. Nothing but a serene time with a steady stream of middle school questions. I am pretty sure I passed the test. But! Who knows? I could have failed!!....... NAHHHHHH.

Now that I have completed my SAT and GED I can say that I have completed my high school education! Even though I am in the middle of my senior year I am just cruising through it with the exception of Physics. The idea of applying to a college hasn't even crossed my mind yet. I don't even want to think about that till we figure out where we are going to be in the next year. But the odds of me ending up in a college are pretty high. Uggg, out of the pot and into the fire as they say.

Call me lame, call me a kid, and call me a couch potato, I don't care! The Playstation 4 comes out this week and nothing is going to get between us except the dreadful fact that I have to wait for it to ship over here to Hawaii... Ahh, so the horrid term 'patience' strikes again. Wait an extra two weeks for my PS4? Challenge accepted.

Hm? Ohhhh, right.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving Dear Readers. Don't forget to thank Jesus for everything, especially for your health.... If you are healthy..... If not, then pray for health.... Cause being sick sucks.....

Happy Thanksgiving!

TheThingThatDoesn'tHaveWhatItDoesn'tNeed

There always seems to be a constant stream of movies and TV shows. Every month I see a movie or two that get thrown out there in the pile of media garbage that Hollywood always seems to churn out. You would think they would make a good movie every once in a while. But that isn't the case. It seems like I have to wait for several dozen movies to be produced before I am finally acquainted with a semi-decent movie. But what's the problem? Are we finally out of ideas? No, we don't need new ideas. We just need to make movies about the right things. I really want to watch a movie about family and relationships between parents and their kids. Where are those awesome movies? Even if a movie did have some of those elements they were probably bogged down with explosions, cursing, and explicit annoyances. Why not a good, wholesome family movie? Come on Hollywood! You're killing me.

Ever since I watched a little movie (with a very long Japanese title that you wouldn't even understand or care to read) I find myself yearning for movies that focus on parents and their kids. How they get along, how they don't get along, and at the end coming together in love. I want a heart-warming story about hate, misunderstanding, sadness, tragedy, and even some resentment all topped off with a big serving of forgiveness and love. That's a recipe for an epic family movie. Just thinking about it makes me teary eyed. 

Alas, I am stuck with a guy with a heavy hammer, an old grandpa, and a women who screams so loud you can hear her even in space*. Ahhhh, that's why I watch so much anime. At least with anime I am surrounded with neat stories, quirky characters, and hilarious (and sometimes calming) art. Movies are getting so predictable. These are the three things movies these days constantly use: lame romance with no character development, over dramatized CGI action sequences, and a constant flurry of innuendos, cursing, and explicit nonsense. There, I just summed up 95% of movies that came out in the last 10 years. Give me a cookie with a tall glass of milk.

I might just be ranting, but it is my earnest desire! I wait for the day Hollywood (Or anyone besides Japan) releases a movie that uplifts parents and family in general. Why not make a movie about parenting? Parenting is the one of the most dynamic aspects of mankind. Each child is raised differently. Some are raised by their parents, grandparents, foster parents, one parent, more than two parents, relatives, or a guardian. There are literally billions of different ways people are raised. There is no "12 Step Process" to raise your child. No one has the perfect solution for parenting and no one ever will. It is the ultimate mystery of the universe (Right next to the mind of the proverbial women)! Parenting is something that can never be overestimated or overvalued. It is essential to every human being, yet no one knows how to do it. We simply learn as we grow with our children, and even then our parenting techniques only work on OUR children. You can't use the same parenting tactics on every kid. Parenting is something we can't even learn from Jesus! He never parented! Okay okay, before you start raging and saying, "But Missingnomer! Jesus parents all of His children!" True, but there is no account of Him physically parenting a child that was His own flesh and blood in the Bible. He was a single Man! Jesus took the easy way to live His 30+ years on this Earth, AHAHAHAHA..... Ahem...

Like I said, make movies about parents, their children, and the family unit in general. You will never run out of ideas. Plus, making movies about things that actually matter doesn't hurt either.

*The three movies I vaguely described were Thor 2, Bad Grandpa, and Gravity (I am going to regret typing these movie titles on my blog when I grow up and look back on this post).

LivingInConstant

Hearing about the leaves changing colors and the temperature lowering through out the world just fills me with solace. Here I am, stuck in Hawaii. Constant temperature, constant weather, constant time, and constant colors. I never have to worry about wearing enough layers or if it is going to rain tomorrow. Nope, I know I am going to wake up tomorrow morning in 80 degrees of heat and a sun shining in my bedroom accompanied with a light breeze (or a strong one). That's it. No surprise storms, lightning, temperature drops, or sudden snowfall. Drought is the only thing on the menu... All year long. Living in a desert takes 0 imagination or preparation.

T-shirts and shorts 24/7 365 days a year.

So enjoy your Autumn you Americans! I am gonna go and lay down on the grass in my shorts and sip some coconut water. My Father reminds me every so often about the times when he was a kid and he had to shovel snow every winter. Living in the northern part of America seems to be worlds apart from living here in Hawaii. This is all I know. I don't know the seasons or the different climates. Snowfall still seems like the stuff of legend. I can't wait to experience my first snow.

It was actually the WOMO's ('Women of my Origins for you Readers that easily forget) birthday recently. She'll probably get mad at me bringing it up, but I figure I'd just tell you wonderful folks because nothing ever happens! A birthday? Finally! A good reason to eat some cake! The thing is that we watched Man of Steel on my WOMO's birthday. Pretty manly birthday if I do say so myself. I already watched it twice, but I didn't mind watching it with my parents for a third time at all. It was actually very fun and interesting. I never noticed from the first two times watching it, but my parents pointed out some things in the movie that were fascinating. 

When Kal (aka Superman) first got his suit in the film his father talks in the background about his son. This is just a paraphrase because I am too lazy to look up the exact quote:

"You will run ahead of them [mankind], and they will follow behind you. They may stumble and they may fall. But one day they will join you under the sun."

That sounded just like Jesus. He goes before us and we follow Him. We will fall and we do stumble. But we WILL join Him when each of our times come for us to go home. Also Superman's surname "El" means "God" in Hebrew; that fact alone was pretty awesome. They also pointed out that Kal was 33 years old when he became 'Superman.' That's how old Jesus was when He died for us. All that symbolism in the movie is really interesting. Now I am sure Superman isn't Jesus, but the fact remains: Man of Steel takes a lot of things about Jesus (technically speaking) and applies them to Kal-"El." One final thing. The iconic symbol for Superman isn't an 'S' Dear Readers. It's the El family insignia, and it means "Hope." Just a few cool things to notice if you ever watch the movie.

"Feeling Like A Beast Tonight?"

So many stories, movies, animes, books, and even video games take ideas and story elements from the Bible and use them. Some are used for His glory and some don't. I really appreciate Man of Steel for throwing in those fun facts that reflect back to Jesus. I am sure most people wont even recognize them, but they don't have to. Those who do catch them and see them will enjoy them and remember Jesus. The Gospel is the best story ever; it's only natural for other stories to take things from It. Narnia, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Man of Steel, Evangelion, even the Matrix takes a lot things from the Bible. It may not all glorify God, but it still shows us that people, even non-Christians, admit that the Bible has some epic stories and characters.

The Bible is the best storybook ever. You know why? Because it's all true.

TreatMyFace

October is always associated with candy, costumes, and little kiddies yelling 'TRICK OR TREAT!!!' I never understood this practice known as Trick or Treating. It is just another event to stick into the box of 'Embarrassing and Pointless Exercises of Americans.' I grew up with two Elder Sage Siblings AND parents that ooze practicality. When you grow up surrounded by such competent people you realize that living a life like mine is actually very unique. We never participated in the occult's practices like Santa Claus worship, birthdays, anniversaries, Easter Egg slaughter; YES! Slaughter! What a sport! The children are told to take the Easter bunnies eggs and crack them open to find candy and toys. GOOD HEAVENS! What satanic doctrines are we instilling in our children?!

*Ahem*

Where was I? Oh, yes. Trick or Treating, which is a ritual were the child takes the form of a demon. These forms consist of things like ghosts, zombies, and in-laws. It is quite frightening. Not only do American kiddies participate in this act of horror happily, but are encouraged by their loved ones and neighbors! To make matters worse they hand out candy to these kiddies as they prance around throughout the town. Since when did we start encouraging and rewarding the act of taking the form of a monster? Too bad that doesn't work year around.

"Timmy! You little devil!"

"Huh?... Oh, TRICK OR TREAT!!!!"

"What on Earth are you yelling that for? Go to your room and wait for me.... bent over.... your bed..... Exposed."

"So... No candy?"

                                                                                             ~Mother and misdirected Timmy

I can only recall one time I was coerced by a good friend of mine to accompany him on his conquest to pillage and loot the countryside. I, being a spawn of the Divine, couldn't have possibly accepted his invitation, obviously. But with his insistent nagging and threats which involved blood and sharp objects I just couldn't refuse. I decided to take the form of a sorcerer that wore a red dress... Because logic was thrown out the window once I conceded to the enemy. But when I thought about it I began to justify my actions. After all, the people I would be pillaging were the same people who endorsed this treasonous act known as Trick or Treating. 

When night fell upon the islands we started our Holy Crusade. During our time we journeyed through various streets going door to door yelling that satanical phrase to every adult we ran into. Some of the candy-givers even asked me what I was dressed as. Regretfully, the light from the glorious sun was slowly fading and I looked like a chubby girl wearing a red dress (Being that I was only nine and had yet to enter the first stages of puberty). I may have been mocked, scorned, and teased, but I proudly stood in front of every person who dared to ask and proclaimed that I was, indeed, a sorcerer that had sided with the Roman Church.

"Since I was in the era just before the Protestant Reformation the only way of proving my faith to most people in Europe during the 1400's was to claim allegiance with the Roman Catholic church. I was a young boy who had a humble beginning with his parents in a little farm in Bulgaria. On my 14th birthday I was taught in the ways of the Dark Arts, but was then shown the Light during my pilgram-"

"UM! Here is your candy. Sorry I asked."

   ~Aleksandar "The Holy Darkness" (aka Missingnomer) and "Satan Worshiper #12" (aka Halloween enthusiast #12)

Aleksandar "The Holy Darkness"

While we pulled on with our laborious task of walking door to door like Jehovah Witnesses that had a wardrobe malfunction, we crossed paths with numerous other kiddies that adorned costumes ranging from freaky masks to cardboard boxes to white sheets with holes in them. I vow sanity after 8 years since that moment, but as we partook in that savagery I thought everyone around me was insane, including me. Music as loud as sirens roared throughout the neighborhood along with ghastly screams from girls (there were probably boys screaming too, but who can tell the difference when you genuinely scream?). But as the night came to a close we decided to do a tactical retreat and parted ways. I adjourned home with loot in hand and basked in my diabetic bounty. But it was all for naught. After my successful pillage, I was, in turn, pillaged by my family. All of my spoils of war went into the bellies of the unworthy. 

Trick or Treat? More like pillage or be pillaged.

May this be a lesson to the children, but also a heart-warming account for those who have been spared from the treacheries that accompany the tail of October. Trick or Treating is just another thing we Americans thought up to keep the kiddies entertained and a means to get rid of the extra candy laying on the shelves. You aren't missing out on anything. Unless you truly wish to dress up as one of your in-laws, which is an understandable and frightening desire.