I was over reading Diva Jyoti's blog where she talks about how a random encounter lead to someone on Xanga verbally attacking her and generally acting insane.  I posted why I think this happened over on her blog but I also felt it needed some further discussion here since we all know that Drama reigns supreme on Xanga and pretty much always has.  My account doesn't show it but I have been on here since 2003 and I have seen it all.

I have been both the cause and the affected of Internet Drama.  Ever since I had my thyroid burned out though (I had grave's disease) I have mellowed out so much that I am pretty good at deflecting these things now and no longer am the cause of it.  I digress though because there are still plenty of people who do create Drama.  Often over things that don't require getting so worked up about.  Why is that?

It's because our lives are not as exciting as the stories we are told.  Sounds funny I know but seriously it's true.  I am going to be using Kurt Vonnegut to explain it from here on out.  You can view this as well here http://sivers.org/drama where I learned all about this.

So we will start by showing a empty graph.  Time move left to right and Ecstasy is at a zero.  Nothing is going on here.

Now let's take a look at a classic tale that we are all familiar with.  Cinderella!

You see we have very low lows and dizzying highs.  That feeling of Ecstasy and disappointment is all over the place for that time line.  It's incredible.  People love this story and what little girl did not love or want to be Cinderella.  Also what guy wouldn't love to swoop in, steal a beautiful girls heart, and live happily ever after.  Guys love being the hero and girls want to be princesses.  It's stereotypical obviously so don't get mad if you disagree.  This is a story that has been told thousands of times in all different languages.  It's a very familiar story that kids would love to live.

Let's take a look at another graph where we have the catastrophic disaster.

This is another classic tale (see summer blockbuster movies) where you have a normal life, then something awful happens, and then you go back to your normal life but a little better because you have a new appreciation for normal.  We all come together, everything is great again, and we overcame tragedy.  People love this over conquering the odds to save the day story.  It's fun and makes us again wish we were the heroes.

Now let's take a look at a typical life.

You see what's missing here.  Generally it's a straight line with a few minor ups and downs.  There's no tragic lows that bond us for more than a little while, and the highs are never high enough.  No we don't typically experience the type of adventure, and ecstasy that stories tell us we should.  Our lives are nothing like the stories and fairy tales we read and internalize.  Real life is a whole lot more boring.

So what do people do with this generally flat existence?  They start creating drama, and building in the highs and lows that just are not there.  People will feel like it needs to be there in order for their life to be something.  It's why we have gossip, rumors, and yes a lot of the drama you see on Xanga.  We have been taught that life should be lived in extremes and so when we are living in the middle we try to find ways to build in those dips and heights.

So now you all know the truth.  The next time you see someone on Xanga stirring up drama for no reason then send them this and they will realize just what they are doing and why they feel compelled to do it.

We all know that companies brand themselves everyday.  If I say "Just Do It" or "Think Differently" you know I am referring to Nike and Apple.  This kind of awareness is not on accident and in fact is carefully planned out to build an image around that company.  It's meant to make you see them in  the way they want you to see them.  Nike makes sports apparel so they want you to be competitive, and get out there to win.  Just Do It Already!  Apple has tried to be its own unique company that is out to break the mould everywhere they go.  Think about the spark they have lit in the MP3, Mobile Phone, and just recently the Tablet computer market.  They want you to view all these things differently and when you do to think of Apple.  They are innovating and changing markets everywhere they go.

Have you ever thought about a persons brand through?  We all have on whether or not you realize it.  If I say Tom Cruise you may think crazy, Scientologist, or even great actor, and action star.  You see his brand was one way in the 80's and 90's but has changed in recent years and it has made it difficult for him to sell people on his movies.

And then of course there is your own personal brand.  It's what people think of when your name is spoken.  It's what people see in their mind when you're brought up in conversation.  This is the most important brand that you need to be worried about and it's probably the last one you ever thought about.  This might sound silly but it's very true.  Authors, directors, and artists have known this for a long time.  They work hard to cultivate a specific image.  Are you projecting the image you want?  Are people thinking about you in the right terms and if not then why?  These are serious questions that are important for you to understand about yourself.  Have you ever been overlooked for a promotion, or gotten an interview only to never hear from them again?  It could be because your brand is not aligning with what they are looking for.  The clothes you wear, the accessories you use, the way you walk and talk all give people an impression of you.  It's all part of your overall brand.  It tells people what kind of person you are.  If you're applying for a job and show up to the interview with messy hair, wearing jeans, and a wrinkled t-shirt then what do you think they see you as?  Lazy, unmotivated, and ultimately not what they are looking for.   Now take that same interview and you show up dressed in a suit, or business appropriate attire, clean, made up, and prepared.  The image is much different.  In each scenario you may have been qualified for the job but in only one did you show you were qualified.  You created a brand that told them about who you are before ever saying a word.

It's time you take control of that brand and start letting people in on who you want them to see.  It's time for you to step up and be CEO of ME Inc.

There are points in my life where I find myself nostalgic.  Not necessarily for the way things were but for the friends I had and have since lost touch with.  My personality type is unique in that I am fine on my own, but also with a group.  I adapt to my given situation.  However because of this, and because of life in general, I often gain and lose friends along the way.  Sometimes because they are nowhere to be found (even with social networking they find a way to be invisible) but mostly because life takes us in different directions.

It's not that I am sad that we move apart since I realized a long time ago that it happens.  You cannot avoid it and that's what happens in life.  No it's something more than that and it's hard to put my finger on it.  It's like I want to still be the friend I was too them but the boat has sailed and there is no going back.  You see life moves on with or without you.  As my life changes so does theirs and sometimes it makes it difficult to stay in touch or find that spark that once united you in friendship.  I start thinking how close we might have been in sometime in the past and how usually we just drift a part.  There was nothing to break the friendship, and it leaves you almost without a sense of closure.  Almost feeling incomplete like there was more to be said and done but it's too late. 

You can't change the fact that two people sometimes move parallel and then split for no reason other than that's where life takes you.  It's difficult to come to terms with but it must be accepted.

Have you ever lost a friend only to find yourself years later reminiscing about where they are or what they are doing?  Have you reconnected with them and if so what came out of it?

  You ever have a really good nap?  I don't mean a half hour I'm gonna rest my eyes nap but a full blown it's 2 in the afternoon but I can't keep my eyes open fall asleep on the couch with the TV on kind of nap.  Those are the naps that your body can't stop and loves so much.  For some reason during those naps you will never sleep deeper, better, or feel so warm.  Not hot mind you but comfortable warm. 

I say this because yesterday I fell asleep for 4 hours.  It wasn't intentional but clearly needed.  I don't nap like that often but when I do it feels so good.  I can't understand though why those naps are so much more restful than any sleep I ever get.  It's better than my normal night time sleep.  It's so good in fact that it is very difficult to wake up from.  Even when something or someone makes me get up I find for an hour or more afterwards that I am a bit out of it.  Almost in between sleep and awake.  I can't shake it off.  My body almost cries out for more.  As if I could never awake from these naps but be completley happy with that all the same.  I don't know why that is or what these naps do to my body that causes them to feel this way but it is undeniable.

Have you ever experienced a nap this good and does it make you feel the same way?

I thought I understood how the cost of car insurance was figured in.  I must have thought wrong.

When I was 24, and still had an at fault accident on my record I understood why my price might be a bit high.  I was always taught that turning 25, and avoiding accidents however would lower my car insurance premiums.  I sit here today at 26, accident free for 5 years, and yet my premiums with my current insurance agency went up?  I am not sure I understand why and nowhere on the bill does it make it clear how the cost was figured.  Do car insurance companies not realize that they are in a price war right now?  Do they not understand that I can get a quote on any reputable website in 5 minutes?  This is the 1950's where I had to call a lot of places and take careful notes where it might be more difficult to switch then it's worth.  No this is 2010 where it's the opposite.  It's very easy to switch. 

Well after the e-mail with the new price I got the mail today and in it was a letter from my insurance company with renewed cards encouraging me to sign back up.  Almost tricking into thinking I had but they are wrong.  I have no intention of paying them inflated prices.

I went on a competitors site today and found I could save over $600 by switching.  That's insane.  Of course I would switch.  It's the exact same coverage for a whole lot cheaper.  The real question is why one company can save $600 over another?  How can they possibly be calculating rates that drastically different?  It makes no sense but you hear in the commercials everyday about how people save money by switching.  I think more transparency by the car insurance companies is needed because this is madness. 

Have you ever felt ripped off by your insurance company only to find you you were being ripped off?

Could it be that piracy is so rampant not because people enjoy things for free but because it offers it in a format that people can use and enjoy? I ask this question because piracy is rampant nearly a decade later despite the best efforts of the entertainment industry.   The RIAA has been suing individuals for 7 years and even though they claim they have stopped they really have not.  The MPAA is no better with producers sending out blanket statements through groups like the U.S. Copyright Group that accuse you of infringing even if you haven’t.  They then try to convince you to pay them a settlement fee to avoid going to court.   It’s open for debate if they would actually take you to court as it appears to be more of an extortion scheme.  I digress however.

With all the forms of media available through bit torrent networks even after the “win” over the Pirate Bay you have to begin to question if people are trying to say something here.  DRM does not help the user experience but instead punishes the legitimate customers, and does nothing to slow down or stop piracy.  Games that require a live internet connection and CD to be played are often more annoying than they are worth which leads individuals to find a copy on the internet that works how they want it to instead of how the game creators wanted it to.  Movies are no different.   Here is a popular image being shared around the internet about the difference between a pirated movie and a DVD.   It shows how Hollywood has made the home movie experience a frustrating one.  Their attempt at controlling how you view media is backfiring as people want the freedom to view it on their TV, Laptop, iPod or any other mobile device.

David Gerald did a great write-up of this over at wired.com about this very issue which really does hit on the issue of piracy at its core.  More than anything it’s the convenience of being free to use media however you want to.  The sooner the Entertainment Industry learns this the sooner it can innovate to capitalize on this.  You can’t restrict people in what they do with the content they purchase.  The days of selling the same thing on different formats is over and they need to embrace this if they hope to remain competitive and relevant.

Why do you think that people pirate content?