Muay Thai: The Greatest Martial Art

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

I'm a bit upset because of the hearbreaking loss the Cowboys suffered today... godamn Tony Romo, you can't make those mistakes! But I do have some good news, after writing the article about the love for one's pet I have crafted a loving relationship with my dog Ali. I took him on a walk yesterday and spent some time with him today in the garden. He's old, but he's still very strong, and I really enjoy spending time with him, and I'm sure he enjoys spending time with me.

Now, onto the subject at hand.

No one can deny the fact that these past few months have changed my life considerably. The action films I have watched at the Teka Film School have shaped this past semester entirely. From the one-liners, to my newlyfound physical fitness at the gym I feel I have become a much better person. Now I don't give into anyone, I have become a reasonably tough guy and a much healthy human being.

Aside from my food controlling habits and my daily weightlifting and powerlifting routine, I have now resurfaced my former Martial Arts likings and returned to these sports stronger than ever. I practiced Karate for 10 years, and every fight I have ever been a part of has been shaped by this philosophical Martial Art.

Now however, I have discovered a new Martial Art... a Martial Art that will see me become champion once again: Muay Thai, the Thai Martial art, or, as other people prefer to call it, Thailand Kick Boxing.

Unlike Karate, Kung Fu, Nijistu, Jujitsu and other Martial Arts and as vividly portrayed in Tony Ja's Onk Bak and Protector films and Van Damme's Bloodsport and Kickboxer, Muay Thai provides something no other Art of War (ethymological meaning of the word Martial Arts) does. While the former generally focus on hits with the hands (Karate and Boxing), Legs (Taekwando), physical strength (Aikido, Judo and Jujitsu) or mental prowess (Ninjitsu), Muay Thai focuses on 8 points (there can be more, but we will stick to 8 for now) of contact that are used regularly (it is generally referred to as the "Art of the 8 Limbs) to fight off oponents.

In Muay Thai one can strike with the shins, the forearms, the elbows, the knees, the head, the feet and the fists, and unlike some Martial Arts we can strike in short or long distance, with sufficient quickness to beat a Ninja's kick and sufficient force to break a Boxer's Guard.

Muay Thay hails from Thailand, and has been widely used as an attack and defense strategy by the royal thai guards for centuries, has morphed into kickboxing in the west, and is used extensively in Full Contact fights and UFC tournaments.

Thai is the ideal defense art. While the Israeli Krav Magga and the Soviet Sambo are focused on dissabling the enemy and are widely known as the ideal vehicles of self defense (other types of Martial Arts are more of a sport) Muay Thai is more of a complete defense method than any of the other two. In Muay Thai one can defend oneself from multiple agressors while at the same time having realistic chances of beating someone who is armed or in an advantage situation. The knees, shins, head and elbows provide excellent opportunities to strike the oponent, and no matter how much at a disadvantage we lie at any point during a fight, Muay Thai can help us win the dispute.

In addition, Muay Thai is an excellent exercise and prominent sport. In Thailand, Muay Thai is the national sport and champions are considered national celebrities who tour the country and the world showing off their multiple skills. Anyone in need of exercise should check out this Martial Art. Not only will you become more physically fit, but you will learn how to fight and win with great ease and skill.

Try it, I guarantee you won't regret it. And you'll get a chance to fight me on the road to my national championship.

That is all,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Saving the Water

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

This is not really a blog entry, just a warning for all of you. Due to the fact that one of my writings was published very recently in a pamphlet called the “Info-Pocket” (I would like to thank my friend Santiago for that) more and more people and going to start reading my blog (at least that’s my romantic idea), and with that, I could hopefully influence some people into doing the right thing about certain things.

One of my strongest concerns is without a doubt the whole water conservation issue. We are constantly told that water is running short every day and that possibly in a few years we will be waging wars to protect water. This is certainly possible, but there are still things we can do to evade such a situation; simple things we can do to stop water wasting and promote the green movement, which has characterized this century, even though I believe it is too late.

- So here’s a list of thing YOU can do to stop the waste of water… I know that you’re thinking that what you do won’t matter. But believe me, it does.

o Close the running water when you’re putting soap in your hands. You have no idea how much water is wasted by people who let the waste run while they put soap on their hands. (For those of you who really want to help close the shower water when you are putting soap on yourself as well).

o Use only a small class of water when you brush your teeth and no more than that. You have no idea how much water is wasted every time we brush out teeth (1 gallon in average). Believe me, 1 glass of water is more than enough, you will learn to save water and you will be satisfied with yourself.

o Finish each and every glass of water you order and make the people you are with do the same. – A lot of water is wasted by people who don’t finish their own glasses or bottles.

o Each and every time you see water running freely (as in a leakage, broken sewer) do what you can to stop it. Call someone who might work in the area to stop it, cover it yourself and turn it on yourself. – A lot of water is wasted by leaks and alike.

o If your shower takes a long time to warm up, use a bucket of water to handle the water that falls from the shower and then use it later to flush the toilet (just throw in the water and everything will go away as though you would flush it – every time we flush the toilet we waste water -), brushing your teeth, watering the plants, giving it to your pets or washing your hands.

o A lot of water is wasted when you flush the toilet. Don’t flush the toilet every time you go. I know it sounds disgusting but it is definitely worth it. If you can save a few flushes by urinating more than once in one flush, you are saving many gallons of water… gallons that would be worth a lot in case we do come into water conflicts.

§ Think about it… Australia is already having severe water problems. We don’t want water problems.
SAVE THE WATER

That is all,

I’ll see you in the future

“I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.”

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

A Small Apology

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

Considering the realization I have just come to I would like to draw a letter of apology to a few friends of mine whom I have treated like shit for the past months.

I am very sorry… I truly am… I was blinded and had been blinded for a very long time. As always, I eventually came to realize the error of my ways, but I fear that it is now too late. I really want to ask your forgiveness for everything I did. I didn’t realize how stupid I was. I turned around, I turned away and turned to other places, but I never realized that you were my real friends, and you were the people I should have gotten along with from the beginning. But it’s hard for me to completely regret it. At the time I made the decision I needed a change in my life. I needed to know what it was living in a different environment. And I did. I saw what it was like; I lived with its people, through its atmospheres and through its different spheres. And it was so intense and caused such an impact on my life that I actually wrote a book about it. Imagine that. The impact on my life was such and the impressions so intense that I had to write about it. And I did. Now the book looks like a distant memory, and because so much of me went into that writing I am obligated to complete it, but it is going to take a great deal of energy to complete it, not because I am unable to work, but because it has such a strong impact on me… but I am drifting to much from the original purpose of this writing.

What I want to do is apologize for what I did. I am really sorry; I am calling you all tomorrow and asking you to come to my house to watch a movie or to a bar to relax. I want to make amends with what I did. It is just as it happened once with my present friends. I drifted away but I eventually came back. You are truly great guys and great friends.
At least I realized I was mistaken. It maybe too late, but I realized the truth; and that’s what matters.

That is all,

I’ll see you in the future

“I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.”

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

A Small Reflection on Pets

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

Today I took a walk around town and saw something that moved me deeply. I saw pamphlet created by an animal protection agency detailing the life of a dog adopted by a family as though the dog were narrating his own life. It made very sad, partly because I have treated my great dog Ali in the same manner and party because dogs and pets are such noble, well meaning and high spirited creatures that we, as senseless and selfish humans don’t deserve them, but yet are so warm hearted that they always find it in their heart to forgive us for everything we do. And that is something we must not only observe, but imitate.

The writing I read was extremely emotional. It narrated how a dog was born, was taken away from the kind eyes of his mother and taking to a loving family who treated him as though he were another child for the first few months, but then, for some strange reason, he was taken to the garden, where he seldom saw any humans and was eventually left there to die, alone and sad.

We as humans treat our pets as slaves, and that is extremely wrong. We don’t deserve them. Pets have no other purpose in their lives than us. And it’s a shame we can’t give them back at least a little of their love with a few minutes a day we can spend with them. It’s truly a shame. And at least, in my case, this is going to change.

As of tomorrow, me an Ali are becoming best friends. I hope the same happens with you.
That is all,

I’ll see you in the future (you mean in the past, and in this case it’s true)

“I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.”

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

An Epiphany - Reflection on My Life

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

This time I don’t have any cultural exposition or explanation, but rather a reflection on my own personal situation. For some reason, every time I am climbing too deep into a hole of my own creation (I like to call them phases of existence) I eventually reach a point where, with the help of an epiphany, event, or simple realization, I realize the error of my ways and start from scratch. Well, this was one of those days.

Up until today I thought that something I have never had in my life was finally going to arrive (I am not going to tell you what it is, it’s up to you to guess), but just a few hours ago I came to realization that not only was that not going to happen, but that for the past six months I had been aspiring to become the wrong person (a person I was certainly not destined to be and whom I should have never yearned to be) and that I was doubting on making a trip and personal journey that was most certainly going to change my life. Now thankfully, I have come to these three realizations and have not only dispatched that “new me” to another universe, but have realized that I will never discover that “other part of me”, and have finally and ultimately decided to take that personal and life journey that will bring me to another level of karma.

Today, I shall start a new phase of my life. I am finally disappearing and will finally get to live another life. I don’t belong here, I have never belonged here, and thankfully I have finally realized it. I am moving away not only physically, but mentally, I am going back to my old roots, old friendships and forgetting about this stupid world I have been trying to be a part while drifting away from my own ways. It is over, it is over.
I am finally moving away. I’ll disappear for a bit but I’ll come back, I am going to a place where dreams have no end, to the most beautiful place in all creation. To my very own Yoko Garby, a place I should have never abandoned and a place I should have never drifted away from. And even though I might feel pain and depression at times, I must come to the realization that this, just like everything, is only temporary, and if I ever get the feeling of second guessing myself, just as I have done in the past, I must think to myself the great and famous words from the masterpiece film 300: “And then, as now, it is not fear that grips him, only restlessness… a heightened sense of things.”

That is all,

I’ll see you in the future,

“I don’t want to be a product of my environment; I want my environment to be a product of me.”

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

A Troubled World

Hi there my fellow Creatures of the Night!

Here's a small the reflection on the troubled world we live in. It is also written in Spanish.

Uno de los peores traumas que sufrimos hoy en día es que ya no vivimos en un sitio tan seguro como antes. Cada día, recibimos noticias de un nuevo crimen, una nueva catástrofe, y de cómo se acerca otra futura posibilidad del fin del mundo. Pero a pesar de todo este oscurantismo, no se ha perdido la esperanza. Siempre se puede encontrar algo bueno en el lugar más perdido, siempre hay alguien en quien confiar y siempre se le puede traer felicidad a alguien. Así que lo mejor que podemos hacer en lugar de preocuparnos es poner nuestra mejor sonrisa, admitir que a veces hay cosas que están fuera de nuestro control, salir a la calle y prepararnos para dar nuestro mejor esfuerzo. Porque si vivimos quejándonos, algún día, nos encontraremos en un túnel con una brillosa luz y nos daremos cuenta de que no sirvió de nada y que sólo nos trajo maldad y amargura. No se preocupen por el futuro, porque viene en camino más rápido de lo que creen. Disfruten del momento, y hagan lo máximo que puedan.

That is all,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

The Best of Times.. The Worst of Times

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

Here's a small reflection on our current era written in Spanish. Enjoy

El mundo ha cambiado más en los últimos 20 años de lo que cambió en los anteriores 60, y más en los previos 50 que en los pasados 5 siglos. Vivimos en épocas rápidas y cambiantes, con nuevas perspectivas, formas de vida y puntos de vista, en un mundo que se hace cada vez más chico pero en el cual moverse es cada vez más difícil. Tiempos turbulentos, con paradojas reinando los días, y violencia acechando las calles. La tranquilidad, esencia, seriedad y serenidad humana que por tanto tiempo nos caracterizó se ha perdido, y los valores materiales han reemplazado nuestras necesidades de amor y compañía. Hemos conquistado el espacio exterior, pero no el interior de nuestras almas; le hemos añadido años a la vida, pero no vida a los años, hemos aprendido a correr, pero no a esperar. Piénsenlo. ¿Cuándo fue la última vez que salieron a caminar, a correr en la lluvia, o simplemente reflexionaron a luz de la vela o le hablaron alguien sólo para decirle “hola”?

That is all,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Carpe Diem

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

Here's a small reflection on Carpe Diem written in Spanish. Enjoy:

“Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, old time is still a flying”, nos dice Robert Herrick en su poema del siglo XVIII acerca del Carpe Diem. Pero, ¿qué es exactamente el Carpe Diem? Carpe Diem es una filosofía que explota el aprovechamiento de todo y el desarrollo al máximo no sólo del tiempo, sino de nuestras absolutas cualidades. Vivir la vida y vivirla a plenitud, disfrutar cada momento y exprimir cada segundo que tenemos. Porque como bien sabemos, nuestro tiempo es limitado. Lo que importa no es lo que hacemos para evitar la muerte, sino lo que hacemos antes de la muerte. Todos nos sentimos invencibles, y destinados para grandes cosas. Ahora pregúntense, ¿es así?, ¿son ustedes extraordinarios? Todos lo somos en potencial. Pero para lograrlo hay que hacer lo máximo y explotarnos al máximo. No cuenten los días, hagan que los días cuenten. Repitan después de mí: Carpe… Diem. Hagan sus vidas extraordinarias.

That is all,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Detemination

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

I know I never write in Spanish, but given that a few of my posts are going to be published soon (thanks Santiago by the way), I might as well publish them here first.

The first one is on determination:

“The woods are empty, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep”, nos dice el hermoso poema de Robert Frost. Pero el significado de la frase es mucho más profundo. Es un escrito que habla de una de las virtudes más importantes del ser humano, la determinación. La fuerza para continuar guiados por sólo el poder de nuestras mentes y convicciones. No importa donde estemos o las circunstancias, nada puede más que el poder de la osadía. Podemos estar cansados, podemos estar débiles, pero siempre se puede hacer lo que se quiere. Sin determinación, muchos de las grandes mentes y logros de la humanidad nunca hubiesen sucedido. Piénsenlo, mi cama puede verse tranquila y cómoda, pero todavía hay mucho por hacer y millas por recorrer.

That is all,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

The Autumn Wind: The Oakland Raiders

Hi there my fello creatures of the night!

Just dropping in to catch another line. It's been about a week since I last posted anything, and due to the fact that I was very upset at what had happened to a few friends of mine I wasn't really in the mood to write another blog... but now I am.

Today's blog is about something different, some of you might like it, some of you may not...

Oh yes, I almost forgot... this is a message to the guy I am going to kill pretty soon: "I guess that's what they mean by poetic justice! I though you said it couldn't be done? Praise the Lord, I hail from Schwarzenegger's school of thought, and the words 'impossible' and 'I can't' are not in my dictionary... Stick it up your ass man!"

Well now on to the topic at hand. There's no denying this has been a very strange NFL season. I've been watching football since 1994 and I have never seen a season with such a high playing level, such a balanced talent base and such equality between teams. No matter what happens, any team can beat any team, there are no dominating teams anymore and pretty much every team can still make the playoffs (except the Lions, Bengals, Chiefs - even though they are much better than their record indicates - and a couple more), a few "new" offensive techniques, particularly the wildcat (a variation of the vere) are being used on a regular basis, the teams set to go to the Super Bowl since the preseason are now fighting for a Wild Card Spot (do the Patriots, Cowboys and Chargers ring a bell?), Dan Marino's "unbeatable" single season passing yard record of 5105 yars is about to get squashed by two quarterbacks, and the list goes on and one.

But one thing definetely hasn't changed... and that's the fact that the Oakland Raiders are still the same mediocre team they have been for the last couple of seasons and are still fighting to make their high paying roster win football games... Which brings me to the topic at hand.

The Oakland Raiders have always been one of the great franchises in the history of professional football and sports. While the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears are known for their devoted fanatics, the Cowboys for their large, out of Dallas fanbase, the Steelers for their still devoted 1970's fans, the Raiders hail from a great tradition of winning as well as possibly THE MOST devoted fanbase in all of professional football: the so-called "Raider Nation".

The Raider Nation is a term used to define the large, devoted fans of the Oakland Raiders. Not only do they dress in jerseys for the game, but many carry pirate like banners and dress up in very elaborate costumes for the games and cheer their team on with an almost psycopathic love (no matter how bad they might be doing). Don't believe me? Check out the picture of the VIOLATOR, possibly the world's best known raider fan or go to Oakland and attend a home game sitting in the so-called "black hole", in sectinos 104,105, 106 and 107 of the Oakland Coliseum.

The Raiders, giving justice to their name, are a sports franchise of magical tradition that skyrocketed to fame during the 1970's, when they won two superbowls under John Madden and were hosts to possibly one of the toughest players in the history of the game. Names like Jack Tatum, George Atkinson, Lyle Alzado, Ken Stabler ring bells not only of victory, but bells of immortality, roughness and of the seeds that sparked the golden age of the raider nation.

They are and have always been the tough guys of the NFL, wearing a black uniform with death painted on their helmet, killing their oponents both on the football field and on the scoreboard (if you don't believe watch a video of the Oakland-Minnesota SuperBowl) and becoming one of the most well known and respected franchises of the NFL.

Such is the fame of the Oakland Raiders that Steve Sabol, the CEO of NFL films and one the best known names in Football, wrote them a poem titled the Autumn wind, a poem that, in a much simpler and more effective way than this blog, describes who the Oakland Raiders are.

Read it... not only is it the anthem of the Raiders' franchise, but a symbol of who they are, and in a nutshell, the essence of the team.

Notice the powerful words and the imagery (yes I know it's not Shakespeare, but it still serves its purpose - and if I hear a word about how ignorant I am because I analyze football poems instead of the great epic writings I will hunt you down and kill you!... and I will take my time!)

The Autumn Wind

The Autumn Wind is a pirate

Blustering in from sea

With a rollicking song he sweeps along

Swaggering boisterously

His face is weather beaten

He wears a hooded sash

With his silver hat about his head

And a bristly black moustache

He growls as he storms the country

A villain big and bold

And the trees all shake and quiver and quak

eAs he robs them of their gold

The Autumn wind is a Raider

Pillaging just for fun

He'll knock you round and upside down

And laugh when he's conquered and won

Want to see it in video? Narrated by non other than John Facenda, the voice of God? Log on to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmiVYFueNvQ

That is all,

I hope it wasn't too disappointing,

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

In a Sentimental Mood

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

I apologize for the sintax, but I wrote this when I was crying, so it might feel more like interior monologue than anything else...

I'm crying... I really am... I'm feeling so sad... I feel sad for all the things I can't control, and for everything I must control but I cannot change... Is forever enough? Is forever enough? I just love that song by the Dixie Dicks titled Lullabye. Everytime I listen to it I can't help but cry, as I am doing now... and as I look back upon everything sad that has occurred in the world these last few months I can't help but cry and think about the great things that surround us and the beautiful things that make life worth living... "You can close your eyes and you're miles away", says the song... I keep thinking about my maid and everything she lost, I keep thinking about that asshole, that guy I will kill very soon, and about that poor girl who lost her sister, about my dog who's on his way out (whom I never talked to), about my lost friendships, about the person I became last week, about all the suffering going on this in this world, and about how lucky I really am and about how I don't deserve everything I have. About how good my parents and family has been to me, and about how fuckin' ungrateful I have been... I am sorry, I really am... why does suffering exist? Why is the world so ugly and so terrible as though there is so much suffering? Why?
You know the sad part? I have never had a girlfriend... I have never had a relationship... Why do I try to be someone I'm not? Why have I tried to rise up to everyone's bullshit, especially that guy I'm going to kill? Why can't I just be free and not care? Why? No more... I'm a free man and I don't care about anything... I really don't...
Why am I so weird? Is being weird a curse? Is it? It has been... for some reason people always think of me as insane... "how long do you want to be loved? Is forever enough?"... I've become a stone... I'd love to love... but I can't... why do I reject love? Please tell me, someone tell me. Where are you? Where is that special person? I know it's not you!... Kate was the one.. and I lost her, but I need to find another one... I really do...

That is all...

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Reflexion on Injustice Applied to a few friends of mine

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

This time I don't feel on writing about anything illuminating,
I just want to use writing to rid my body of all the sadness I feel.

I can't even start to grasp the vastess of this melancholy, and I shouldn't even be writing about it. But I must. My father taught me to let go of frustration any way that I can, and right now, this is the best I can do.

A few days ago, my maid told me she had to go home on an emergency because somebody had vandalized her house and taken her stuff. "Poor soul", I thought. "These people work very hard to make ends meet and now everything she has every saved as been taken from her."

The moment I heard that I felt as though I had been stabbed in the heart. My maid is a very nice person, she lives in my house with her three kids (all of them in one room). Her three kids are all from different fathers, and even though they have been living unstable lives throughout their existance, now, while living in that small room in the basement of my home, they live a happy existance as a family. They spend on nothing (as they have free room and board), the boy goes to a school near here, the oldest daughter works at a nearby pharmacy, and the youngest one (a 15 month old child), plays throughout my house the entire day. So, needless to say, they live a very happy existance.

People have criticized me often for giving this kind of aid (and I confess I have second guessed myself more than once), but I have always been of the idea that when we are well off, we must do whatever we can to help the community, and in some strange way, helping this struggling family has helped me in my life. I am happy to see them happy, and I am happy to see them living as a family (the eldest daughter is going to be married soon).

So, to get back on track, this last sunday the maid gets a call that her house back in her home town (about a 90 minute drive from where I live), had been burglarized. I told her to leave and to go home to see what she could do (she was in tears - and I was getting there-), that hopefully nothing had happened, but I knew that there was no turning back.

I consider myself a good man, and I pay her a good salary apart from the free room and board, and this salary has allowed her to purchase things that were normally above her social scale (a computer, television, DVD player, celular telephones, cameras and a refrigerator).

But somehow, the bad guys always prevail.... and by the way, I am already in tears while I write this... God I feel so bad about this.

As it turns out, they were robbed, everything they owned was taken from them. The television, computer, DVD player... everything except the refrigerator. Their house had been vandalised and everything they had achieved and everything they had done to rise above their former social status had disappeared. And what made it even worse was the fact that they had purchased everything via deffered payments, and now they are still going to have to pay for them.

I try to think and compare this event to my own life and reflect on what would I do if everything I had worked for with my own sweat had been taken from me. Think about it, it's a very sad and frustrating feeling. I feel very bad for them, and bad that I can't do anything more for the family living downstairs... a family that survives thanks to their hard work and thanks to the fact that there are still decent human beings out there that won't deny a family to be together.

Now, all they have done has disappeared... it's a tragedy. And it's not something that happened miles away, it's something that happened right here in my own home, with people that live in this house. I feel frustrated, and I feel sad. They were just playing the hand they were dealt, working their asses of to rise above their condition. And now, it's all gone... it's all gone and there's nothing they can do about it. They want to find the burglars and bring them to justice, but she doesn't want to risk her children's lives. And she's right. It's not worth it.

And I keep thinking to myself, why did this happen? I can't come up with a conclusion except that they are living in an area filled with people who are far worse off than they are, and they decided they were going to take everything from them. And that's what they did.

I cannot grasp with words how sorry I am for them. I truly am. I am moved, I am frustrated... in fact, I am so frustrated I can't even look at them in the eye, I can't spend money on anything out of solidarity, and I am punishing myself because I see them suffering. And I shouldn't punish myself. But I just can't help it.

I need to bring them back what they lost. My sister is changing computers soon, and I will give them hers when she switches, I will give the one of my DVD players, I will give them the Television set they have in their room here at my house, I will give them a celular phone I have here that I don't use, and will give them an old camera I have never used. They need them more than I do, and I really want to see them happy again.

You must know that I am not normally a religious man and I rarely pray, but now, after what happened, I very much feel like praying for them, and I will now...

That is all my friends, I just wanted to share this with you guys...

I'll see you in the future,

Happy Hunting,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

The WikiVampire

The Ship of Fools: Applied to the Nov 2008 American Presidential Elections

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

First of all I would like to apologize for my short hiatus. I am very sorry, but I have bee busy with work and school. As it turns out I have already started writing my second book, my first one is now being read by an editor (I hope he's not too disappointed), I've been watching a lot of football (expect an article on this season anytime soon), and hell... it was halloween, the best time of the year.

But hey, now that I'm done apologizing I'll head on to the topic at hand.

Given that the US has elected a new president and people believe the election was won by a landslide I am writing an article not only to refute this believe, but to comment on the US electoral system and the power of vote in general.

But before I start, consider this. Even though Obama won by a "landslide" (something like 350 to 170 votes) in reality he only won by 7 million popular votes... That's nothing! 7 million votes in a country of 300 million? It's only 2%... nothing!

Now, onto the article.

Considering the whole issue surrounding the controversy of electoral vs. popular votes I will try and explain two very important political questions that have yet to be resolved in the modern world that directly affect us.

There was once a great greek philosopher who went by the name of Plato (there are actually some people who haven't heard of him) who wrote about a very intersting concept that surrounds political philosophy. Nowadays everyone speaks about democracy, about popular vote and about the people making the country's desicions. We have been raised to think that this concept and format is the perfect one, and those who think otherwise fall under the category of dictators, despots, kings, oligarchists, etc. We have been raised to believe that only those governments which cater the desicions made by the public are free, and those that do not, only believe in opression and no governmental freedom.

But I ask you. Who says that the people are capable of making desicions? Who says that people have the moral and political abilities to decide who will be THE best leader and who will benefit the country the most? After all, people are generally stupid, illiterat, ignorant and vote on basis of appearance rather that after a thorough assessment of the candidate at hand as well as the pros and cons of voting for or against him. So, ask yourself again, are people really qualified to elect their leaders?

Plato created a philosophical concept that directly adresses this question: The Ship of Fools. With the ship of fools Plato makes a very direct question in regards to this issue. The ship of fools describes a vessel being directed by non-sailors. The ship has no captain or navigator, and it inevitably crashes into the rocks...

The same thing happens with the elections. If no one knows about politics and knows how to elect a leader, the country will crash unto the rocks. Why? Because we have non-sailors driving the country. People who are not qualified to make political desicions should not be able to vote because their vote is just as valuable as that of a trained politician or cultured person (who will most likely take the desicion that helps the country the most). The presidential election affects everyone, and being that it is such an important desicion, only those which have the most knowledge on the subject should be able to make the desicions.

So in summary, normal people should not be able to vote because they don't have the necessary intelligence or knowledge to make the desicion that is best for the country. Letting untrained people vote is to give a monkey the power to kill its owner, it is as if a group of non-sailors try to navigate a ship. What happens? It will eventually crash into the rocks.

Now, how does this apply to the US electoral system?

The US electoral system was founded upon the belief that people are stupid and can't make the right desicions, which is why only electoral votes count. Originally, people would vote just to give the real voters an idea of who they wanted as president. Then, based on the popular vote, the politicians would vote for whom they chose, (they could vote for whom the people chose or for a candidate of their choice), as they were the ones who really knew what the country needed the most.

Of course, the electoral system has morphed into a monster of a system. Nowadays, neither the popular vote nor the electoral votes count. What we now have is something very strange. An irrational system that doesn't work because it follows neither one of these philosophies. The US electoral system works in the following manner: Each state is given a certain number of electoral votes depending on their population. People vote, and whoever candidate wins the designated state gets each and every one of the electoral votes, no matter if he one by 1% or by 100%. So a candidate could get all 55 votes from California when in reality only 50% voted for him, meaning that there are 27 electoral votes he shouldn't have. He could win the election and lose the popular vote...

So in summary, the US electoral system works only if applied as it was originally conceived. If not, what we have is a flawed system that doesn't work for the people or against it... it just doesn't work... and the worse part of it is that people don't understand it...

So to sum things up: DON'T LET PEOPLE VOTE... PEOPLE ARE STUPID AND DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY NEED! Letting people vote means giving people power they don't know how to use. People don't know what is best for their country, and their vote affects everyone. The only people that should vote are those that are educated enough to vote. If not, stupid desicions and stupid people get the power. Examples?

Presidents like Vicente Fox get elected, and countries like Mexico suffer greatly as a consequence. People shouldn't vote. People are ignorant and stupid, and only those with sufficient knowledge about politics should be able to vote, as they are the only ones who make real desicions.

That is all,

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Predator: The First Horror Film With a Worthy Hero

Hi there my fellow creatures of the night!

It's 2:11 A.M. and I'm taking a break from my new novel (I'll tell you more about it later) to talk to you about a great film I recently watched. No, it's not an art film by Bergman, Herzog or Fellini, and it's not a porno either... It's a straightforward action film with a lot to offer and with a characteristic that action films almost never have: originality. I'm talking about Predator, possibly one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's finest films.

To quote the world's top film critic Mr. Roger Ebert, Predator is such a great action film because it flows through a near perfect dramatic turn: "It starts like Rambo (or to that effect Commando) and ends like Alien." True. But Predator's brilliancy does not stop at that.

Apart from the tremendously well done action scenes, great cinematography, the larger than life music score, jungle sequences (which according to Ebert are even better than those in Herzog's Fitzcarraldo), the brilliant and still up to date special effects, and the well achieved acting, Predator has a special quality to it that I have never seen on film before.

For those of you that don't know, Predator is a Science Fiction/Action/Horror Film about a group of US Army Commandos who are sent to the jungles of South America to rescue a Cabinet Minister from the hands of the guerrilla (Schwarzenegger stars as the leader of the group) but upon returning from their accomplished mission they run into an alien who hunts them one by one á la Most Dangerous Game, killing them for sport. And the alien is nothing less than an expert and near perfect hunter, as he is almost immune to gunshots, tremendously agile, invisible and has heat seeking vision (which means that the men are never out of his sight). So yes, he is the perfect hunter; "the ultimate enemy". But this time he's not fighting just anyone, he's fighting ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER as Major "Dutch" Schaefar, the best rescue commando in the entire world.

As a horror film, Predator is a standard slasher film with an excellent and never before achieved variant: The “Bad guy” aka Psycho-Killer (in this case and Alien or "Predator") is not facing a group of helpless teenagers in a fraternity or kids in a college camp, he is facing an elite rescue squad armed with machine guns and lead by the same man who single handedly killed an entire Army in "Commando", Wiped out an entire police unit in "The Terminator", Exterminated the Entire Chicago Mob in one day in "Raw Deal", disbanded the modern day equivalent of Al-Qaeda in "True Lies", and killed Satan himself in "End of Days"... a team led by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

So yes, the villain does have his hands full on this one. "This time he picked the wrong man to hunt", says the tagline with much objectivity. Predator marks THE first time in the history of horror films where the villain faces a worthy adversary who can actually turn the tables on him and hunt him down with a real chance of beating him (no offense but Jamie Lee Curtis turning the tables of Michael Myers in Halloween H2O is not really what I'm talking about) in an effort to turn the Hunter into the Hunted.

And the outcome is near perfect. With all his comrades dead (killed one by one by the Predator) Dutch (Schwarzenegger) turns the tables on the Predator, discovers his weakness and hunts HIM down, finally fatally wounding him with a prefabricated trap and forcing him to activate his "self destruct" application, which blows him to pieces, effectively making Arnold Victorious.

So avoiding a standard slasher-like structure (where the group of teens accidentally kill off the villain at the end) Predator breaks genre and creates a new stanza in the Horror Film Poem, it finally provides the killer with a real rival; a person who can actually beat him and turn HIM into the Hunted one ("if it bleeds, we can kill it!" claims Schwarzenegger after he discovers that the Predator had been wounded).

Apart from being an excellent horror film with a great dramatic twist Predator is simply a brilliant movie that is not only deliciously entertaining, but also has a genuine quality to it that, if it had not been a studio feature (Studio features are generally disliked by "artsy festivals" and "art filmmakers"- don't ask me why but they hate them without even watching them- I'll talk about that in another article titled "Hollywood Vs. Art Film"), it would have probably won many awards at festivals.

So don't waste anymore time. Go buy or rent Predator and tell me how much you liked it. I guarantee you won’t regret it. It is one of the few serious Schwarzenegger films and possibly the best one.

I leave you know with a list of the best Schwarzenegger films with a respective rating and commentary.

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

1.- Termiantor 2: Judgement Day 9.5 (one-of a kind display of special effects - a true work of art-)

2.- Conan the Barbarian 9.0 (one of the best music scores I have EVER heard in a feature - the other two are Little Women and the 13th Warrior).

3.- Predator 9.0

4.- Last Action Hero 8.5 (An excellent premise with a great genre spoof story)

5.- The Termiantor 8.5 (This is where it all started)

6.- Kindergarten Cop 8.0 (Sentimental Flick)

7.- Commando 7.5 (Simply THE best film for ONE-LINERS)

Writer's Block is out!!!

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

This time I don't really have a lot to talk about, don't have interesting subjects to tell you about and don't have a particular mental issue to discuss here...

I just wanted to let you know that I have beaten writer's block and I have already begun writing my second novel. I can't really tell you what it's about, but what I can tell you it's titled "El Clásico" and that it revolves around what happens on a thursday afternoon in Mexico City. It involves 4 sepparate storylines and is being written á la James Joyce's Ulysses, utilizing interior monologue, newspaper articles, music, standard narrative and other diverse literary methods to push the plot forward.

I am already working on chapter 3, and, being that I am a fast writer, (I actually wrote a screenplay in 5 days, and rewrote it in 2) I'll have the first draft ready very soon.

That is all my fellow creatures of the night.

I'll see you in the future,

"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

The Real Power of Fiction

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

I haven't really been myself lately. And given that I am now suffering from a tremendous and horrid case of fiction writer's blog (I cannot come up with a convincing premise for my next novel - screenwriting no problem; blogging's fine, but novels...) I have decided to motivate myself by writing about the real power of fiction.

I just finished reading "Reading Lolita in Tehran" by Azar Nafisi, and I want to share with you a few thoughts from the novel as well as my personal perspective on the power of fiction.

Just so you know... the characters of "Reading Lolita in Tehran" (that's the capital of Iran for those of you ignorants who don't know) lived in a severly opressed society from which they escaped by creating emotional bunkers made from blocks of fiction (both reading and writing)....

Cheers...

Here it goes:

In our world of greed, materialism, and crude realism, few people can remember a time where they did not imagine a better world or pretended they lived in a different society. And why shouldn’t we imagine a different place? After all, our consumer driven society has despised and dismissed all values that were once regarded as essential and imperative to the survival of lives. We live in a world that has somehow drifted away from the past and created a new, alternate reality, as if it were a completely different dimension altogether. Complexity now seems plain, lives are defied all the time, new enemies are announced and cursed within the hour and our busy lives leave no room for interpretation, we are what we are and there is nothing we can do about it.

Of course this world is not entirely superficial, and out of the billions of people that inhabit it, there are some that have ultimately decided to denounce our morbid realities and comment on it in elaborate parallelisms set in the distinctive world of fiction. Just like the characters in “Reading Lolita in Teheran”, many writers have decided to recreate our reality and harbor themselves from it in a fictional world ultimately based on such an actuality. Recreating such world however, is never an easy task and inadvertently we are forced to drift away from the truth and create a reality in the way that we see it, through our own eyes, through our own interpretation.

Fiction is part of reality. It is in essence a modified parallel of it, a reflection of what is actually happening, with different names, places and impressively similar situations. Reality is merely just a basis for fiction. Fiction merely elaborates and at times exaggerates what has happened, but ultimately serves the purpose of telling the story we want to tell; regardless of weather it has modified it superficially or not.
Depending on the actual events, on weather or not they were harsh, shocking or weather or not the creator has the purpose of the telling the story exactly how it happened is what molds the fictional narrative at hand. In the case of our story, Reading Lolita In Teheran, Asar Nafisi is determined to tell the story exactly as it happened, which makes the “fictional” story of Lolita nothing more than a reality. The same case goes on with books such as The Man Eater’s of Tsavo and the Voyages of Marco Polo, where reality is depicted as it happened, as if it were a first hand account.

There are other cases in which reality creates fiction by creating an elementary basis and elaborates on a basic idea to create a complete story that is only distantly linked to what actually happened. In these cases reality has affected the fiction but has not created in entirely, but rather creates its own story based on what happened. Clear examples of this are books such as Sir Walter Scott’s historical novels and of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities.

Incredibly, and as an advantage to writers, fiction can illuminate and elaborate on events in a way that reality could never achieve. Fiction can modify reality to fit the perspective and point of view of the authors, readers or publishers; it can create an insight into aspects of the story that could not even be viewed or perceived when analyzed in actuality. Fiction can create aspects of the story that either, never happened or could never be achieved even if they wanted them to happen because of impairment, be it a physical or mental one. Most importantly however, fiction can illuminate a situation that is aggravated by politics, religion or persecution. It gives the author it the ability to tell a story even when it is forbidden. It can depict the reality in a parallel universe, using pseudonyms and similar though not actual situations in a way that it is possible to tell the story at hand without risking incarceration, death or treason.

Even better is the fact that fiction can comment on reality in a way that could never thought possible. In many ways some might consider it better than denouncement through international periodicals, news reports or direct attacks. Fiction permits us to attack our aggressors with satyr, sarcasm, parallelisms and actions that even though in content could be virtually identical to the situation at hand, are practically different to what is going on and because of it the illegal concepts can be published, denounced and harassed, with the authorities being able to do little about it.

The truth is that fiction and reality combined are the ultimate and best weapon to destroy a fellow competitor, oppressor or rival. They permit us to depict reality in the way it actually happened, in a modified way, or in a completely parallel but still similar fashion. Fiction is determined, shaped and created by reality, but reality itself is illuminated and modified by fiction. They are both one and one is both, without one the other is nothing. They are both a wonderful too and when used adequately constitute a threat that is exceptionally difficult to contain, mainly because the pen is indeed mightier than the sword.

That is all... I hope it wasn't too disappointing.

I'll see you in the future.

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting

The WikiVampire

Another Dream

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

This is a reccount of another dream I had... and yes, I was high when I wrote it... in case you were interested.

I hope it's not too disappointing.

I cannot relive or realize what it is that I am saying, doing or hearing. I am standing in the middle of a very dark, dark room. I am inside something that resembles a large manor or castle. The room I am in has a very dark brown grand piano and an unlit chimney. The furniture is composed of three dark velvet green sofas. In the middle is a large wooden table. The room is adorned with tapestries that seem to come from ancient medieval times. The windows of the room are constantly pounded by the outside storm. The rain keeps dropping on the windows. Even though the place is completely dark and the small portable chandelier on top of the piano doesn't have a single candle, my eyes have begun to accustom themselves to the darkness. I have now realized that the darkness and this state of mind have to a certain extent begun to set me free from the terrible evils of this cruel world. The floor of the room is purely made out of wood and is covered in some section by antique carpeting. In the table next to the piano lies an opened bottle (still with the cork) of what seems to be wine. I have decided not to taste it, and instead have decided to concentrate further on the room. The place is quite cold, but my thick coat is protecting me from it. Then suddenly, the vibes and feelings I had previously received from the room have now completely changed. I now feel as if I am changing and am instantly being elevated into unknown grounds…but then, it all changes again and the solution I had previously engaged in has now shifted. I can immediately tell this room is filled with magic and bizarre feelings. It seems quite dark and sinister, but in a strange way. The rain, the thunder, the piano and the absolute and abysmal silence complement themselves perfectly and have given me the sensation of comfort and ease. I have never felt this inner peace before in my life, but somehow this room has allowed me to revive it and bring it back, I am here, I’m alive, and I have noticed it through this room. To relax and feel more and more eased, I have decided to lie on the sofa and listen to the rain and thunder. Never before in my life has this inner peace settled to swiftly upon my wayward being. I know I am peaceful and quiet, and despite my numerous achievements and precious life, I sometimes wonder why I do not subject myself to this life, as I know my inner soul and universe will come to rejoice it greatly. I know that the place where I would be the happiest would definitely be inside a place such as the one I have traveled in my dreams, but…the question essentially is, how do I reach such a place? Ho do I arrive at this precious place that I want to visit? How do I move to this precious and unique universe? Where is this place? And how can I love myself and my world knowing that I have the opportunity and the desire to reach my ideal place? I know that even though it might be a gloomy and terribly cold place, I could still enjoy it and would trade it for nearly everything. I have tried to imitate, at least to a certain extent, this lifestyle, but to no avail. But to get back on track, I have suddenly realized that the room I lie in is not quite so solitary. After receiving a very eerie and strange sensation I turn around and see a stunningly beautiful image. Dressed in a black skirt I see a girl, a blonde girl with milky white skin who looks at me with a happy but smile-less face, she begins to look at me with her penetrating light blue eyes and sings to me telling me she has just come out of the rain, that she has come to find her true love and to share with him a very strange vintage wine, that she had remained in that position for many years and it is only now that the person she always waited for has now arrived. Her voice is angelic, very soft and soothing, and the melody that she sings complements the fact that we are all trapped in an eternal universe and cannot break free until we acknowledge the truth, until we admit that we are trapped. She then proceeds to tell me that I am one of the few who recognized my captivity and chose to break free from it and reach my precious dreams, even though my dream place happened to be a gloomy room. Nevertheless, she continued to say that in this world, the one I have always waited for, I need not leave anything behind; that the essence of my being is here and will not leave, that in this world we have nothing to cover ourselves from or with and that I should have no fears of a darker world, that all I must do is follow the footsteps of the distant memories that allowed me to reach this place, and if I do this correctly I will permanently stay there and allow myself to become happy. She immediately starts to approach me as if she were gliding along the floor and says: “My name is Kristine, this is the world you have chosen, this is the world you now live in, the one you always wanted and the one you will always have from now on.” Upon realizing this I stood up and approached her but could not get near her. “Show me please, explain to me, lead me to my destiny, to my real goal, to my eternal healing, to my eternal sanctuary, to my place of repose, to my place of eternal peace.” “You are here now, this is your place of eternal peace, the place you will have you eternal healing, this is your eternal sanctuary, and if you really want to enjoy it, follow me, I will show you were we are.” She took me by the hand and showed me to the outside of the room, where I see a gigantic wooden staircase that leads the way upwards. It is covered with carpet and reveals nothing other than total gloom. We continue to fly upwards ignoring the overpowering darkness on our backside. As we rise to the top of the staircase the room becomes darker and darker, as of this moment, I dare not to say what happens next, but whatever it is, I must now come to realize that I am no longer in my old world, that I have now broken free of the chains that brought me eternal disgrace and am now in the place I created out of my own memory... in my eternal sanctuary and eternal place of healing, a place where the rain and the dark are as constant as the air, gloom, darkness and mystique, where mystery and ambiguity reigns, a place where every moment changes and eternal peace and silence is the single and ultimate purpose of being, and no matter what happens, the strange girl I had met, Kristine and my own brave being are going to be my eternal companions through light, darkness, wood, water, earth air, silence and gloom.

That is all...

I'll see you in the future...

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

The Beginning of the End: An Overture

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

Given that I have not been myself for the last couple of days and I have not yet come up with the premise to my new novel (looks like I am suffering from writer's block - and I used to think it didn't exist-) I have decided to share with you a dream I had a few years ago. The dream was so real and had such an impact on me I decided to write it out entirely. It's not a work of art but it does the job.

Let's see if you like it.

I am sitting in the middle of a room. The tiles in the floor are black and white. I see a wall in the distance. The paleness of the paint vividly outlines the lining of the frame black door even though the door is no where to be seen. At the end of the room and beyond the frame there is a long narrow passageway in with no light. I start walking towards the door when I see a white piano standing next to me. The room seems tilted and the frame is shaped in a strange way, in a geometrical shape incorporating a triangle and a square. I cannot dare to say what it is that I am seeing. It is quite strange and odd. Suddenly, the entirety of the music I was listening to from the moment I entered that room has disappeared. The feelings of trust and confidence have now disappeared. All I hear is one piano playing melancholically, making me feel uncomfortable. I have not lost the sight and concentration of the end of the narrow passageway that now appears to be gray with a black carpet with a long gray and black rug with oriental designs on top of it. It would seem logical to go through the passageway because the room itself appears to have no exit apart from that very door. Suddenly as I feel the need for inspiration to continue given that my past inspiration disappeared along with my confidence, I start to walk towards the door as my head grows tired and tired. I dare not know where it is that I am going. I get to the door, which has now shrunk to about half my size in height. I enter it and start walking through it. I descend because the level of the ground is about 35 cm higher than the floor. I dare not know what I am going thought but I start to walk slowly towards the end of the corridor which I cannot se. It seems to me that the corridor itself does not have an end. After a long while of walking it seems as if I am no closer to the wall as I was when I started. The corridor that once seemed quite narrow and relatively long has now become and endless and possibly infinite. I do not know how to escape this labyrinth. I return to the original room through the small door which keeps getting smaller and smaller as time progresses. This time I can barely get back into the room and by the time I stand up again the door has shrunk so much that it would be impossible for me to go back to the corridor without becoming a mouse or other diminutive creature. Suddenly and as I start to walk back towards the center of the room away from the door, which seems to be following me, along with the piano, I start to see myself moving in a room that seems to be turning around. The floor is being swallowed into the wall. Just then, the front wall swallows and I am left in a gigantic and again possibly infinite staircase that seems to have no base or columns. I am feeling extremely tired. Now, I cannot see the corridor, all I can see is the staircase descending to such an extent I cannot see the end. The staircase keeps getting narrow and narrow and soon it is only about 4 feet wide. It is now completely transparent, which allows me to see the extension of the universe and the infinity of space. Suddenly the staircase starts to disappear, not disintegrate but disappearing. First it is only outlined by what seems to be chalk. I do not know what to do, but given thatit completely disappeared instead of rapidly falling down, I seem to descend and be suspended in midair around this strange world. I am unaware of where I am, how I got there or how am I going to leave, but somehow I feel an inner peace inside me. I am peaceful, without worries, problems or preoccupations; I am completely free and tranquil. I feel like I have never felt before in my life, I feel weightless, light like a feather, and I believe that it is only until now that I feel I have become myself. I may be dead, but at least I know that dying brings forward eternal peace to the soul and the spirit and a universal knowledge that states that no matter how negative or terrible or disoriented we might feel, we will eventually find our way towards the right course, which even if people tell us is not the right one, will be the right only if we decide it is the right one.
That is all. I hope it wasn't too disappointing.

I'll see you in the future.

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Rock: The Musical Aristocracy of Our Time?

Warning: The Surgeon General Warns that before reading this article you should probably scroll down the page and read the "High Culture Vs. Popular Culture" blog, being that these two articles are intimately related and to understand one you have to read the other... so don't say I didn't warn you...

Now, we begin...

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

I'm going to write about a subject that has been bothering me for a long time and have wanted to elaborate on for over a year.

There is no denying that everywhere we look everyone has different tastes. Each and every person, depending on their experiences and perspectives, has a different appetite and different point of view on everything. This obviously extends to the musical department of life, where there are hundreds of genres to choose from.

Now, the key question in this article has to do with one genre in particular and its influence in today's culture and way of life.

Depending on the genre, a certain type of music might be technically superior to other types of music, and hence, of more quality and, as a consequence, enjoyed only by the more educated masses.

Traditionally there have been two main pathways from which music stems from: High Culture Music and Popular Culture Music. These two divisions (in music terms) have existed forever, and as you have read in the High Culture Vs. Popular Culture Article, only until recent times and due to technological advances has Popular Culture Rivaled High Culture in "quality".

High Culture Music refers to a musical elite which houses Classical Music, Jazz and New Age. These genres are characterized by their highly trained and skilled musicians and composers, who have both studied the theory behind music extensively and actively know and perceive the essence and science of music... In Other Words, THEY REALLY UNDERSTAND MUSIC. The consequence? Pieces of great musical quality and complexity that might prove more difficult to listen to for the average untrained ear and more appealing to those that really understand and enjoy music. Only the most cultured and knowledgeable people (musically speaking) can really understand and grasp the quality of this music and music in general... Think about it, an untrained ear hears dissonant music and instantly thinks it to be noise and turns to the next channel, whereas the trained or cultured person listens to it in an effort to try to understand it.

In contrast, what we know as Popular Culture Music refers to that niche in which the rest of music falls into. Metal, Pop, Rock, Rock & Roll, Rap, Electronic, Zydeco, Big Band all fall within this category, and are characterized by musical simplicity, less skill and formal training for the musicians and little of no knowledge of REAL music composition and theory for its composers. In other words, popular music is created by musicians who have not formally trained neither in the areas of musical theory and composition. The consequence? Popular Music Pieces are characterized by less musical quality and more simplicity, which in turn appeal to a less educated audience (the untrained ear prefers simplicity over complexity).

Now, this is where the problem comes into play...

As I said in the High Culture Vs. Popular Culture article, Popular Culture has completely overrun High Culture due to the rise of technology and the internet. Hence, High Culture has become something of a High High Culture which has dropped to a second plane which only Highly Cultured people are acquainted with. And as a consequence Popular Culture as a whole has further divided into two separate cultures, a Popular Popular Culture and a Popular High Culture. (Think of it as two separate versions of the High Culture Vs. Popular Culture Scenario, where Popular High Culture has become High Culture and Popular Popular Culture has become its infamous but more well known counterpart).

In this New World Order, just as in the previous one, we have more educated people and less educated people... people with more musical training and people with less musical training. And, just as it happened in the previous stage, musical tastes have shifted in new directions.

Now we have (again) two different subdivisions within our sphere. We have the New High Culture Music, which mostly includes Rock but also includes other types of music such as Avante-Garde, Zydeco, Heavy Metal, Blues, Bluegrass and other types of Music. And then we have The New Popular Culture Music, which encompasses Rap, Pop, Electronic and similar, more popular genres.

These two pathways follow the same rules as the High Culture Vs. Popular Culture theorem, in which the more complex a style of art is, only the educated (in this case "slightly educated") masses will turn to like. Hence, the music pertaining to the New High Culture movement is liked only by slightly more educated and trained people.

Just as happened before the rise of Popular Culture, when Classical Music was the musical aristocracy of the time, an absence of real High Culture has propelled the elite of Popular Culture music (in this case New High Culture) to take the role High Culture once had. The result? Classical Music has been replaced with the upper crust of popular music: Rock; Rock is the new Classical Music; Rock is the Musical Aristocracy of our time.

With the absence of real qualitative forms of Music, Rock has taken the toll as the Crème de la Crème of Modern Day Music (and with good reason). When compared to other forms of popular Music such as Pop, Rap or Electronic (the most popular) Rock does rank far higher in the grade scale than these three forms of music in terms of musical quality (especially within the progressive rock sphere - a subgenre of Rock conformed mainly by pseudo classical musicians with some level of formal music training from which THE highest forms of Popular Music have stemmed from-). Rock is at least performed by real musicians, where as Pop is pretty much sung by good looking puppets who fake their singing, Rap is created electronically and spoken rather than sung, and electronic is made on the computer in a digitalized way (not to say anything about it, but it conflicts with everything music has ever been).

And Rock, with all its limitations aside, has also stemmed from a large wave of controversy and has travelled great lengths to become what it is today; it is THE most revolutionized genre of our times, which, in proportion, holds a slight relationship with what classical music once was.

So, what happened? With the displacement of an elite musical genre such as Classical Music to a rank of absolute supremacy (in which only THE most educated masses fit into) rock, the most developed (yet not most complex) musical genre of our time, has become the musical aristocracy of today. And why? Well, aside from what has already been explained, there are several reasons why Rock, and not something else, such as Zydeco or Bluegrass (which rank much higher in the quality music scale than the former) took the role.

Aside from being a musical genre, rock is also a way of life. From the moment it surfaced at some point during the 1950’s Rock changed the way people lived and looked at life. It changed the way people dressed, people spoke and people behaved. Rock defined a large portion of the second half of the 20th century, and even though we have come a very long way from Elvis and the Beatles, rock is still what it once was and now, more than ever, it has become the most popular form of music on the planet.

But what exactly does it mean to be THE musical aristocracy of our time, and, what does that imply?

As I said before people prefer simplicity to complexity, and people prefer what is easiest to listen to and what is easiest to understand (that is why a low life excuse for a novel such as the "Da Vinci Code" has outsold Martin Heidegger’s Being in Time, which is arguably the most complex books every written), which why Classical Music originally fell behind popular Music. The same thing happens with Rock (to a certain extent), but the real reason why Rock has become THE musical aristocracy of contemporary society (by aristocracy I am referring to the fact that only the "musically trained masses" listen to rock) is not because it is more complex than Pop or Rap (which it is), but because it is more alternative than the other two, it is mostly not disco or dance friendly, and listening to it requires a certain degree of commitment. Listening to Rock means adopting certain features of the lifestyle (at least wearing a Rock-T Shirt once in a while) and being sufficiently open-minded to enjoy music with guitar distortion, lyrics about things other than love and listening to stuff that might be stronger than the average pop song (with screaming and fast paced drumming joined with screeching guitar solos) as well as buying albums with covers that might not be user friendly or might insult the beliefs of some people (think of the cover of Guns and Roses’ Appetite for Destruction).

This open-mindedness is the key to understanding the reasons why Rock has become what it is now. Being a rock fan, attending concerts, buying albums and listening to music that criticizes society is rebellious, and people love rebellious... people love to be rebels; they love the fact that many don't have the patience or state of mind to listen to rebellious music that might challenge certain views or be loud enough to someone scare off.

This so-called “state of mind” that is so necessary to understand and enjoy rock, has replaced the level of education and training that was once needed (and still is by the elite majority) to really like classical music and has hence created a special trait required to listen to rock. And the interesting thing is that this trait is only possessed by a small number of open-minded individuals who have today become the intellectual elite that used to exist in the past, which is what allows Rock to become the musical aristocracy of our time; if only a few "educated" (in this case open-minded) people listen to it while the rest listen to rap, pop and electronic then Rock automatically becomes the music of an elite (just like classical music once was)...

Hence, we have the musical aristocracy of our time. Instead of listening to Bach people listen to Sebastian Bach, instead of listening to Beethoven they listen to "Roll Over Beethoven", and instead of listening to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart they listen to "Rock Me Amadeus", Beck’s Bolero instead of Ravel’s Bolero, The Doors’ “Orange Country Suite” instead of Peer Gynt’s Suite #1, and I could go on forever... Funny, isn't it?

That it all for now my fellow creatures of the night.

I'll see you in the future...

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire

Idiot's Guide to a Heavy Metal Concert

Hey there my fellow creatures of the night!

Before you read this article I have to warn you that I wrote it a long time ago. It's not new and it wasn't written for a blog. It was written for a class, and since I thought it covered an interesting subject I decided to publish it. Let's see what you think... or better yet, let's see what I think, given that no one reads my Blog.

The Secrets Behind Heavy Metal Concerts

Everyone has been to some sort of music concert. Be it tropical, jazz, classical, Celtic, Electronic or Mongolian, every self-respecting music fan has, at some point in their lives been to a concert of their choice. The reasons of going to a concert are, to a certain extent, arguable; whether people go to see their favorite artists perform their famous songs or weather they go to listen to the newest tracks and unknown tracks has been debated since the time popular music took its course in the 20th century. That however, is a whole different subject altogether, and lets face it, writing and reading about that would be a complete waste of our time, so to get back on track lets focus on the main issue here. In general, most concerts tend to be the same; that is of course if we for some reason decide to attend Ashley Simpson’s world tour stop in Idenberg, Florida and catch a glimpse of her tempo failure with the playback… but in general, most concerts, regarding the genre, tend to be quite similar. People, in one way or another, take their seats, and cheer at the sight and sound of their heroes playing their biggest hits. There is no denying however, that certain concerts tend to portray different behaviors, ideals and dress codes. A perfect example would be a Willy Nelson concert. There is no disagreement that in this sort of concert, the majority, if not all of the people will be dressed in country clothes and will be listening to the songs with cowboy boots and hat, ready to ride their horses… I mean pick up trucks after the event; that is unless you happened to catch Willie Nelson’s gig in San Juan, Puerto Rico that was… well… a little to tropical for my personal taste...but again back on track. Out of the many different genres of concerts, there is one in which, without an exception, people have to follow a very strict code of implied rules and conduct… and if they don’t, there might be hell to pay… and I’m not talking about classical ballet or hard rap from the hoods of downtown Detroit, but I’m talking about Metal... hard and heavy Metal.

And let me clarify that by Heavy Metal I do not mean 1980’s colorful, leopard skin with spandex… no, I’m sorry but the Scorpions, Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Van Halen and alike are more in the realms of Pop/Rock, and not to say anything about their music, but it’s not really Metal… I mean hard, heavy, dark, sinister; extreme metal, Black, Death, Thrash, Grindcore, Power, Doom, I mean real Metal.

Unlike any other type of concert or musical event, Heavy Metal concerts are the hosts of one of the world’s most bizarre and strangely interesting events. These are performances an entire subculture of people lives for…oh Yeah, unlike rap and other styles, Heavy Metal culture is only based on the music and nothing else… Heavy Metal fans live for the music. Every Heavy Metal fan, to a certain extent, knows how to play an instrument (or at least tries) and it is not at random that Metal heads attend gigs to feel at home... to feel they belong somewhere… the performances give the fans a feeling of individuality and vivid spiritualism. When we go to Metal concerts it’s not only about the music… of course it doesn’t hurt to listen to our favorite bands live at top volume inside a room filled with recreational marijuana, but it's also to spend a healthy Saturday night with people we like to interact with and whom we share common interests with (to those old farts and nerds out there think it as if it were a Friday night at the local chess club or public library).

There is a strong sense of individuality, belonging and independence in heavy metal concerts. People are not just cheering the band on, but their also cheering their life, themselves, their culture, their lifestyle, their convictions and their points of view. A concert is the only place, aside from the first political heavy Metal rally (Next week outside the capitol building in Washington D. C.) where a Heavy Metal fan (otherwise known to the common public as rebel, criminal and punk) can truly express his/her convictions and for the first time in their life hear agreements and not contradictions. It’s the only place in the world were you will see all these scary people at once.

Apart from the overwhelming and bombastic musical experience of loud and ear exploding high volumes, a Heavy Metal concert can also provide, to a “normal average Joe” the experience of a lifetime. No where else in the world, apart from massive strikes and riots (which honest to Satan if you want to attend go ahead and see how it works out, but I’m not responsible for any damages, be it psychological and physical), will there be a gathering of so many people conforming to the same ideals, sharing the same positions, dressing the same way, smoking the same weed, listening to their favorite songs and of course, banging their heads together… all for a very cheap price; for as we know, Metal concerts, at least most of them, are not very expensive, unless you count the concerts given by Mock Metal band Moderatto at ridiculously high prices, providing you with nothing else than mediocre poseur style music… but I don’t like to talk about that, it gets me upset... and you wouldn’t like me when I’m upset.

Heavy Metal concerts are a dangerous site to visit when one is not accustomed to them. Apart from being forced to breathe marijuana people can sometimes be crushed between hordes of angry metal fans jumping and screaming at the site of madmen singing prayers to evil, death, suffering and mayhem. Emergency exits are at times quite small and the venues themselves are old and constitute potential fire hazards; not counting the aggressiveness of the fans, which can sometimes climb out of hand.

Do not be misguided however by thinking that heavy metal shows are horrific events; apart from the musical experience they provide, for many the trip to the arena is worth making just to get a glimpse at its magnitude. A performance is a site everyone must witness at one point or another in their lives. The site of thousands of people dressed in the exact same manner, getting together to sing and yell prayers to the devil is not something common, and is definitely worth the trouble. In order to enjoy a Metal concert however, several steps must be taken or someone might get hurt… and we certainly don’t want that to happen. Up next is a detailed step by step idiot proof guide on surviving a Heavy Metal concert… and yeah, it’s something that needs planning.

Before anything, before you even think about what you’re going to wear, what you’re going to act like, you must first select the heavy metal concert of your choice, planning at least a couple of weeks in advance. To do this log on to www.ticketmaster.com, select your city or a nearby city and then click where it says hard/rock metal and browse the section until you find an adequate gig… and remember that by Heavy Metal I do not mean Def Leppard or Motley Crue, I mean real metal. Trust me, being that it is your first time at one of these things I strongly recommend a light one, don’t go to a Mayhem or Emperor performance because not only will you be risking your life but you won’t enjoy it as much… if you do insist on being a stubborn metalhead please, by all means do go to the gig, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Your first metal gig should, preferably be a Power, Doom or Thrash. In this sort of concert you will get the meat and potatoes of a Metal concert without going into terrible extremes.

Once you have chosen the concert you must go ahead and purchase the ticket. On most performances, there’s only one option in tickets, the cheap general crowd, where you get your place on a first come first serve basis… and who knows, if you get there early enough, you might even have a chance to get to the moshpit. Then secondly, and very importantly, (and please trust me on this one), buy two tickets at least if you can. Turning up at a Metal concert solo is not a good idea, and if you don’t have a friend who wants to go with you when you’re buying the ticket you can always invite someone at the last minute… trust me, spending a few extra bucks might mean the difference between having a good or a horrendous time. Trust me; it’ll definitely be worth the trouble. Purchasing a double ticket is quite easy; you can do this online, by roll call or by directly purchasing at the booth of the Venue. I however recommend you to buy them online if you have a credit card; and even if you don’t ask a friend to borrow his and pay him back… it’s really the safest bet, you really don’t want to get to the venue 5 hours ahead of time to buy the ticket at the booth… oh and there’s something else I forgot…never, never under any circumstances, but the ticket from a reseller; there’s always a chance to buy the ticket before hand and besides, resellers might be a little deceiving… not only will it cost you a fortune but it’s also illegal, and unless your willing to spend a triple price on a ticket and spend a night in the county jail, go ahead and try it.

Once you have legally purchased your ticket there’s still some steps you must be aware of. First of all keep you ticket in a safe place so you won’t lose it. And second, unless you have been to the venue before, it is seriously recommended to go there and know how to get there, be it by bus, metro, foot or car… this is extremely important, I cannot stress this point enough… This way you’ll know exactly how to get to the concert and where to park if you have a car or where to pick up the bus on the way back. In addition you’ll be sure you know where the concert will be given so you won’t be forced to deal with directional problems on the given date.

Second, don’t make plans for the day of the event; you really want to be prepared and concentrated. Don’t rush things ‘cause you might lose your ticket… and you really wouldn’t want to miss a once in a lifetime Metallica or Helloween concert.

Now that you know where the concert will take place it’s time to get to know the band that’s going to play the music. First, read a little about them, their history, their band members and recent performances. To do this log on to their personal website via a search engine, or type in Allmusic.com and follow the instructions, or on a last note, log on to wikipedia.org and read a little about them through the erroneous facts provided on that cheap website. Next, learn the songs. If you don’t know or own some of the songs already, download or buy a greatest hits or famous album and listen to it weeks ahead of the concert. If possible, download the lyrics from the songs and learn them yourself… believe me, it’s really boring to go to a concert and not know any of the songs. Then, if you really want to enjoy the concert, log on to the band’s website and find the set list of the tour. Make sure you have every song in your collection and listen to them repeatedly until you have learned then…believe me, knowing the songs to a concert cam make the difference between having an unforgettable time or simply boring yourself to death.

After you have memorized the songs on the setlist plus any famous song not on it (probable encore), it is time for you to chose your outfit for the day of the concert. In Metal concerts, unlike general concerts, people dress in exactly the same way. Everyone will be dressed completely in black. Their outfit will consist in boots, leather pants or black jeans, a belt, black wrist bands, a black band t-shirt and depending on the weather, a jacket. I seriously suggest if you care about yourself one bit, to dress in the same way. If you don’t have black boots, borrow from a friend; if you don’t have a band t-shirt, buy one at hot topic, online, borrow one or, on the last resort, get one outside the venue the day of the concert (but this is not recommended unless you’re already dressed in black when you get there -you seriously don’t want to reveal how you change from your preppy style to metal style; if you do this I GUARANTEE you will be assaulted by all the Heavy Metal aficionados around you). T-shirts have always been the trademark of Heavy Metal and wearing one is probably the most important part of the experience…the difference between wearing one and not wearing one will be extremely substantial…to put it lightly…you really don’t want to get beaten. The t-shirt you chose will be extremely important. A band t-shirt does not mean buying a Beatles Abbey Road Album shirt or a Britney Spears Tour tee. It means wearing a heavy metal band shirt, which in turn might mean wearing symbols and signs you do not approve of, but are necessary to fit in and feel safe. For instance, many of the Metal T-shirts contain images such as inverted pentagrams or crosses, which are reputably the symbol for Satan… which I’m sure many of you will not approve of. Depending on the harshness of the concert however, these T-Shirts might be necessary. If the band giving the performance is a black metal band the more shocking the piece of clothing the better. In this case, however the lightest you can wear in terms of t-shirts are probably regular metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Other bands like Van Halen and Scorpions are completely out of the question… that is if you treasure your health. For lighter concerts however, such as power metal and traditional heavy Metal; Hair Metal and 80’s rock band t-shirts could be okay, depending on the situation, but don’t risk it. My advice to you when getting the t-shirt would be to wear the t-shirt of the band giving the show. If that one is not available for any reason, I suggest you wear one from a similar band, one of the same genres. For example: If Dave Mustaine’s Megadeth (one of the big three of thrash metal) will be giving a concert, instead of wearing a Megadeth t-shirt you could wear an Anthrax, Metallica or Slayer T-shirt, which are also thrash metal kings. Clothing is extremely important, and if for some reason you are stubborn and decide to wear a pink lacoste shirt, light blue jeans and moccasins or something within those realms, you better plan a vacation and leave of absence from work… because I guarantee that you are going to spend a brief period of time in the hospital.

Now that you know how to dress for a heavy metal concert, the next step is how to behave in such a show. They key to do this is fitting in. Once you have the clothes and the music in you body, you can consider yourself a metal fan. Now all you have to do is sing along with the songs, show the devil’s horn sign with your hands (closing your fist while letting your index and pinky fingers stick out) once in a while and shake your head with the rhythm of the music. Be careful not to push anyone when you are approaching the stage and don’t try to make conversations with anyone; the people are there to enjoy the concert and don’t take pleasure in getting bothered. The most important factor however is never, under any circumstances, if you enjoy your healthy body, bruise free skin, and intact bones, ask anyone to put out their marijuana joint. Metal and pot have been together since the 60’s and nothing indicates that this is going to change. Do not try to change that; remember you are an observer, not a pioneer, and if you truly want to enjoy the experience you musn’t try to modify it.

Now, after the concert has been given, prepare yourself for the chaotic escape. In many cases the exit will take a long time, and it is not always pleasant… considering pickpockets are roaming everywhere and showering is not exactly a heavy metal fan’s primary hobby (for some reason near the end of the concert the smell of pot has dissipated and the stench of human sweat starts to fill the air). To avoid these unpleasant feelings you must follow these steps very closely: In every heavy metal concert there is an encore. When this happens be sure to walk slowly to the exit immediately after the band exits the stage for the first time… and please try to be inconspicuous and try not to push anyone. When you reach the exit do not leave until the final song ends, then immediately proceed to leave the building… slowly. This way you won’t encounter any trouble on your way out and you’ll have a chance to buy a souvenir t-shirt or poster while the stands are still not crowded.

All this being said; you now know how to go to a heavy metal concert and enjoy it. Do not see this as something to dread, take pleasure in it, have fun, live the experience and be part of it. It’s something you’ll truly like and will be able to tell you family, friends and teachers. You will finally know what a heavy metal concert is all about and will be able to respond to anyone that asks you about one of your wonderful experience in the heavy metal world.

That it all for now my fellow creatures of the night.

I'll see you in the future...

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

Happy Hunting,

The WikiVampire