i read recently that to get rid of a negative thought you have to think three positive thoughts to replace it. the formula sounded a bit arbitrary, but the logic seemed decent so i gave it a try. it seems to work. at first it felt awkward and forced, but after awhile it got a little easier.

our thoughts are the source of virtually everything in our life. pretty much the only way you can experience another person is in your thoughts. you can never really get into their head and experience what they’re thinking, so the vast majority of your relationship with them is how you build them up in your mind.

if you look for what’s wrong in another person and store that negative image in your head, that’s what your relationship with them is. likewise if you look for positive things about them, just by thinking those thoughts your relationship with that person is completely different - even though you both are exactly the same as when you were thinking negatively about them. granted, this is much easier to do in a new relationship when you are projecting all kinds of positive traits on that person - traits that they may or may not have, but is still very possible to do in any relationship. for instance, have you ever broke up with someone and then found yourself wanting them back...only after others found them attractive? what happened was that you processed that person on the basis of what you thought they should be, or who they were. you built up this negative image of them - then when others did not validate that image, you started seeing, and remembering, them differently.

we can’t stop a negative thought from entering our head. when they do we should not feel guilty for it having popped into our head, because we can't control it. but we can beat down any negative thoughts by consciously thinking of three positive ones - instead of dwelling on the crappy one that wants to suck us in.

posted by bluematrix at 05/27/08 20:27 | link | comments (1)

so having been blogging for a few years now, i've noticed there are a few guidelines that one should follow if one wants any return visitors. the main one is post regularly. so many people discover blogging, throw themselves into it, posting all the time...and then run out of gas in a few months. like a few other things i can think of, its better to pace yourself and enjoy a long pleasurable experience.

another guideline is to refrain from posting your own poetry, because 99 times of out 100, we tend to think its better than it really is. most likely this is because we can, of course, relate to what's going on the poem better than others and can detect the subtle nuances that made us want to write it down in the first place. chances are, others can not.

on the other hand, one of the best things about blogging is that you can write whatever you damn please. so if you don't like personal, mushy prose, please come back next week and i'll have something a bit more intellectual (though really analyzing decent prose can be a fairly good intellectual exercise). but for anyone who's ever had a great beach vacation with someone special, i invite you to read the first poem i've written in quite a few months.

on a clear day
i can see four smiles

the first is when i awake before you
it's ever so slight - you're still mostly asleep

the second comes in a maldives straw market
you turn to me, happy and victorious
the colorful scarf a trophy to your bargaining skills

the third comes in a hammock late afternoon
eyes closed, wine glass in hand, head in my lap
my fingers sliding through your sun-warmed hair
if a purring cat could smile, this is what it would look like

the fourth is as old as time itself
but made fresh again this night
with skin hunger
sparks from the beach fire as you wet your lips
enflames us both
so many temptations on this menu
i want to try them all

soon i will see the first smile all over again
.

posted by bluematrix at 05/17/08 10:48 | link | comments (6)

below is the summary paper for one of my graduate classes that just ended

INSDSG 655 – Multi-Media Project Spring ’08

Reflections on the course and Second Life


Let me begin by saying that I found this course to be quite enlightening. Being of a curious nature, well read, and fairly tech literate, it is quite rare for me to taken by surprise by a technology that has been out for years and known by millions. But this is exactly what happened after I decided to do my multi-media project focusing on Second Life.

I had heard of Second Life before through Wired magazine and other publications. Without actually experiencing it, I had written it off as a video game, a virtual sex medium, and/or an over-hyped business model (a combination which in retrospect should have been enough to at least pique my interest). After spending a semester exploring this online 3D world, I would have to agree to these assessments being at least partially true.

However, it doesn’t seem that long ago that I heard these same criticisms leveled at another emerging technology, the internet.

Whether or not SL becomes the next big thing, the main point of the presentation I made with my partner Hallie, was that it seems logical to assume that the masses will eventually prefer a 3D online environment over the current 2D one. And as the current reigning online 3D environment, SL offers a tantalizing glimpse into the near future.

Pursuing my masters degree in an all online program and working in a large corporate training environment, has put me in a position to appreciate the educational opportunities that a robust 3D environment offers. Exploring e-learning technologies is part of my job description, and my initial research leads me to believe those involved with e-learning activities may be the first ‘legitimate’ (as opposed to entertainment, porn, and SL specific accessories) businesses to have a truly viable, successful SL stronghold.

There has been much press about the failures of big corporations to attract visitors to inworld places like the Coke Pavillion. My guess is that the early users/adaptors of SL are still in the fun, exploration phase of this new medium and initial attempts of traditional business to attract them to their brands hold little attraction to this tech savvy bunch. In other words, the general public, with all its consumer-oriented buying power and volume of traffic, have not jumped into this new, computer and bandwidth-taxing medium yet.

Perhaps it will be similar to when artists move into lofts in decaying downtown areas and make a stronghold. Soon restaurants and retailers emerge to meet this new ‘hip’ market. Then these renewed neighborhoods become viable destinations and populations (and prices) rise. The schools and corporations establishing inworld training facilities may provide the foothold needed for the medium to take off.

Regardless of the outcome, I’ve found exploring the educational aspects of this exciting new medium during the course of the semester to be an interesting and valuable learning experience itself.

posted by bluematrix at 05/08/08 22:06 | link | comments (1)