Monopoly

First, I want to wish everyone into 2015, and I hope everyone is finding their peace with their new beginnings. I have been, for the lack of a better word, self-ostracized for a long period of time and I hope to get pass this phase soon.

Everyone knows the popular Hasbro exclusive board game Monopoly. Players take turns moving their pieces around a board representing properties, and the goal of the game is to continue to accumulate wealth to a point where you bankrupt your opponents, leaving you as the sole survivor. Whilst being a great game when we were younger, times have changed, and it is now considered one of the poorer designed board games ever, seeing no evolution other than aesthetics and flavour with new iterations.

What I want to write about is the few things I have learnt through a simplistic game:

1. The world is a pie.

Opportunists and entrepreneurs would probably shoot me for this, but the truth is simple: there is a finite amount of resources on this planet with an increasingly growing number of individuals. If you take more of the pie, you are also taking away from others the opportunity to have that portion of the pie (I am simplifying the concepts as there are indeed ways of obtaining pieces of the pie from others, but I digress). Monopoly delivers this idea through its main mechanic: the ownership and capitalism of properties.

2. Your circumstances matter (with the help of a bit of luck, skill, and/or fate, depending on whether you are a determinist).

Whether you start first or last, and whether you land on more unsold properties when you have the funds to buy it (opportunities) is the key factor of success. You tend to be on the losing end when you are the eighth person to go in Monopoly. This is strikingly aligned with the way capital works in the real world: if you are in the correct place and time with the correct resources, you have a head start compared to others (especially since capital can be inherited).

3. You are forced to consume (your choices are limited).

Have you ever wondered why you HAVE to pay rent each time you land on someone's property? What would happen if you could opt to pay nothing and sleep on the streets? Also, why are you just endlessly looping around the world until you either bankrupt others or go bust yourself? Yes, the game would be pointless without those mechanics, but it is also a very bleak representation of the real world's consumption culture where we never seem to question our spending, or the choices that we are able to make everyday.

4. The bank will never go bust.

Again, this depressingly  mirrors the banking systems in the world today, where bankers have so much power and wealth, but are never responsible for economic collapse where they will just be bailed out by governments. 

5. There can be only one winner.

Yes, it is common for multiple collaborations, economic immunities, etc. to exist, but the end goal is still for one singular individual to claim victory over others, which leads to the inevitable backstabs.

6. Often, the best thing to do is to commit a crime.

Yes, the jail is the Swiss safe-haven in Monopoly, where you can prevent yourself from moving around the board and paying rent, whilst still being able to collect. We don't even need to discuss how the rich get away with legally ambiguous actions (and therefore, more moolah).

So far, most of the lessons seem to be very discomforting, no?

Surprisingly enough, the original creator of the precursor to Monopoly, Elizabeth (Lizzie) J. Magie Phillips, created The Landlord's Game to illustrate the single tax theory of Henry George, and the negative aspects of concentrating land in private monopolies. In her version, there is an alternative method to 'winning', which is to, upon agreement of all parties, divert all rents into a socialistic common pot.

So green!

Marcelito Pomoy - The Man With 2 Voices

Hanggang Ngayon

If You Have Mouth Ulcers...

Eat cabbage. If you find it hard to eat solid cabbage, you can stew cabbage till soft,

That's all for a random update.

Existential Crisis #1

How can you prove that I exist?

PIX by Antonio Da Silva

Warning: The following content contains homoerotic content.

This is an amazing effort by an artist telling the reality of gay lifestyle which somehow conflicts the values we are supposedly trying to uphold. A paradox and irony of sorts. His other works also contain similar themes, so please do not click if you are not comfortable.

PIX by Antonio Da Silva

That Subconscious Asshole

There is something our subconscious does very well:

It tells us what we are truly afraid off. In some ways, it's just overstating the obvious, but we can be fools to think that we can hide the truth from our very own selves.

Today, I had a weird dream about some person I like being more distant than ever. I was worried that despite the lack of any romantic interest, I'd soon be forgotten. It's not a particularly unique situation; I believe most normal people have to experience this sorta feeling.

Feeling helpless cannot feel any more helpless.

The Insomniac's Guide to Sleep

Sleep issues are very common these days, even amongst young ones, mostly due to our societal increase in general stress (of the bad variety), bad diets, and unhealthy habits. I myself get into a bind very often, but these are my top few methods of getting better sleep.

1. A dark, dark, dark room.
Your surroundings need to be pitch black till you wake up (especially for those who sleep late). Most people do not know this, but our body still can detect light through our scalp even if you cover your eyes completely albeit to a smaller degree. Your curtains should not be too thin or bright, and you can always use an eye mask too.

2. Silence.
If you do not have control over your surroundings and cannot exclusively soundproof your room, I recommend earplugs. They come in various varieties from foam to silicon ones, and the best fit will be found only through testing.

3. No heavy meals before bed.
This includes protein rich or excessively huge carb/sugar rich meals, but can extend to dairy products and other stimulants. The best nightcap are small amounts of good fats like nut butter.

4. Environment control.
Make sure there are no mosquitoes around (don't think the blanket will keep you safe because you might roll around at night and reveal skin). Regulate the temperature to your optimum if you are using air-conditioning (especially for us near the equator) and use a humidifier if you get dry mouth too much (a small cup of water near your bed helps a little, but I never found it to be overly effective). If you have to deal with unpredictable weather without air-conditioning, it is better to sleep nearer to the floor and make sure the room has plenty of ventilation especially from the outside.

5. No electronics.
This is probably the most difficult, but it really does help if you stop one hour before bed.

6. Exercise.
Having routine exercise throughout the week improves the body metabolism and signals it to rest deeply. Plus you get fit and healthier so why not. Do note that you might need more than the recommended sleep duration if you maintain a strenuous enough exercise regimes, and not getting it will make your body sluggish.

7. Sleep early.
A difficult preposition for most of today's youths, but our bodies regulate its hormonal system following the natural light exposure, so a human's optimal sleeping time is actually about 10-11pm till 6-7am. Some people are more sensitive than others, and should be a little more strict with this if they can.

Note: There is no such thing as reclaiming lost sleep. Once it is lost it is gone forever. All you are doing after that is recuperating the damage on the body.