OTTILT January

For this month (anybody else think that went by insanely fast?):
http://ottilt.blogspot.com/2014/01/january.html

What to Do... Productivity vs. Happiness (6)

... when you know you have to get work done, but you're hanging out with your friend(s) and you're really enjoying yourselves, and you don't want to offend them by telling them to be quiet or go away, and yet at the same time that work really needs to get done. (Y'all know what I'm sayin'?)

((Before we start, I just want to say I am not blaming any of my friends. Not a one. I love you guys, and I love laughing and making jokes and hanging out, and I love having five minutes to relax and not do stressful schoolwork.))

Mostly, this happens to me when I have a free period, and one of my friends also has a free period, so we end up talking and watching YouTube or Vine or whatever else and not really getting our classwork done, though I've known plenty a time where my friends use schoolwork as a way to get out of socializing. Odd.

I started to debate over whether it is more important to be productive or to be happy. Since there is no absolute answer for that, I will list the pros and cons of each.

Why productivity is better:

• Things get done. You're not up for who-knows-how-many hours trying to work on that assignment or complete that project.
• In general, your benefits increase. This can be in terms of how much you money you make at work, or how good your grades get at school.

Why happiness is better:

• Not to speak from personal experience or anything, being down in the dumps sucks. It's not fun to be angry or feel isolated or alone. It's always awesome to laugh with your friends about absolutely nothing, and to make light of even the most awkward situations.
• You'll probably live longer if you're happy than if you're rich or well-off financially.

Why productivity is NOT better:

• You probably end up stressing yourself out to the point of depression or anger issues. There is such a thing as OVERoverachieving.
• Why be so predictable? It's not necessary to be the one who turns everything in on time, plus the extra effort, without missing a point on a test and never making a mistake. It's ridiculous, in fact. Jeez. Lighten up. There's more to life than work.

Why happiness is NOT better:

• There's no way you can be happy all the time. Honestly. If you were happy all the time, happy wouldn't exist. It would just be "normal."
• The world is not a happy place. I often use this as an excuse to not be happy and not enjoy life, but sometimes it makes sense. No sense being happy when kids can't go to school without getting shot, or when a gay couple can't even have the wedding of their dreams, or when people's water gets polluted and everyone's life is in peril. So, seriously. Happiness is, at times, downright inappropriate.

But, if we were really going to compare the two, I think happiness is better by far. A person is so much richer in being happy than in having money. Maybe you have the lowest ranking at your job, but you have the most loving home and family and friends. I think that's what matters. Grades aren't where it's at. It's living a life that is happy. Sadly, that can't always be achieved, but that is why I'm going to make the effort to snag every fragment of joy I can out of life. That will be worth more in the end than acing the test, or getting a participation grade of one-hundred. Seriously? School is awesome and everything, and it does determine many aspects of our lives in the future. Okay, I guess I have to resign myself to saying this is a tie. Happiness and productivity do go hand in hand on occasion. You feel happy when you get an A on the test, right? And you feel like you're achieving something in life when you're having fun, don't you? 

So, take your pick. Which has more influence in your life?

Translations - LFE

Okay, as per request, I will translate my posts and allow all of you readers to click a link at the end of the post to access the rough English translation. I say rough because it won't be a word-for-word translation. And, hopefully, I'll just be posting YouTube videos and ranting about how awesome they are, so, there's a hint for the future posts.

Anyway. Here's a link to the translated "Billy y las Botas" post: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xJbr3Ok_35vO2gYd6hzs5IEPAHfhG9b2x_EHRfV0zkY/edit?usp=sharing

And for the tiny bits of Spanish in my first post:

Bueno; vamos a tener una introducción antes de empezar.

All right; we'll have an introduction before we begin.

Gracias, y espero que eso vaya a ser un éxito!

Thanks, and I hope this will be a success!

Pic a Day - 1/20 to 1/26

Mon. Jan 20, just another three-day-weekend Monday...
OTTILT: remembering things in real life in reference to what you were doing/where you were in Minecraft at that moment

Tues. Jan 21, you will probably see a sunset photo every Tuesday and/or Thursday for the next few weeks
OTTILT: successfully getting things done when the computer screen graphics are upside down

Wed. Jan 22, my biggest weakness
OTTILT: not being the only one whose stomach growls incessantly at the worst of times

Thurs. Jan 23, both my friend and I drew this, even though he claimed that Billy la Bufanda was stupid
OTTILT: Billy la Bufanda

Fri. Jan 24, scarf swirl
OTTILT: Hugh Jackman in Oklahoma! (1999) 

Sat. Jan 25, singing songs from Oklahoma! while waiting in the car
OTTILT: bowl after bowl of Corn Pops

Sun. Jan 26, to be honest, this is probably the only time I've learned something interesting from my history reading
OTTILT: "Isn't She Lovely?" by Lauren Layne

Billy y las Botas - LFE

Ustedes tienen suerte! Es que, para mi primer aporte de LFE (la filosofía española), yo voy a darles un video. Y, tienen más suerte, porque el video tiene subtitulados - en inglés!

Este video es uno del maestro de español, Sr. Wooly. Él hace videos muy cómicos en español - y no es español complicado; es muy elemental. A mí me gusta muchísima porque: 1) es de dibujos animados; 2) es en YouTube, y es de dibujos animados; 3) la historia en el video es cómico, lindo, y triste a la vez; 4) la canción es muy pegajosa. Probablemente tengo otros razones, pero ahora, éso es bastante.

Bueno; espero que les guste este video! (Si no podían ver ustedes, es mi video favorito de Sr. Wooly, y de videos musicales en dibujos animados, creo.)

La Filosofía Española

Bueno; vamos a tener una introducción antes de empezar.

Just to tell you now, these posts will be in Spanish. And, to be honest, it's not really any sort of "philosophy;" mainly it's just me ranting about something in my life or a certain way of life, which could be construed as philosophy, in a sense.

Half of this is just me ranting, and in another language so it's not as (directly) offensive or controversial. However, it is also an opportunity for me to practice my Spanish in a more direct and personal context.

If you check out this blog in Chrome, it might want to automatically translate these posts for you, and that's cool. If you view the site in other browsers, you can pop the post into Google Translate and see how it comes out. If you don't trust that translation - don't worry; I don't blame you - you can always comment and request for me to give a rough translation.

Gracias, y espero que eso vaya a ser un éxito!

Pic a Day - 1/13 to 1/19

Mon. Jan 13, writing assignment in English class
OTTILT: getting surprisingly good grades

Tues. Jan 14, trees & sunrise
OTTILT: when your band teacher arranges a round for scales, and lets everyone choose which group, and you're the only one to pick the first group

Wed. Jan 15, I can be a birder through a window (it's a lot more stealthy)
OTTILT: watching birds out the library window

Thurs. Jan 16, tree & sunset
OTTILT: enjoying all aspects of the day

Fri. Jan 17, skin on milk
OTTILT: turning gross things into scientific learning opportunities

Sat. Jan 18, I don't want to pick favorites at the ranch, but, seriously, I love this girl
OTTILT: responding to a dog's quirks & the dog responding to yours

Sun. Jan 19, oh, no, back to Minecraft...
OTTILT: building a horse ranch on Minecraft

Pic a Day - 1/6 to 1/12

Mon. Jan 6, watching Help!
OTTILT: reliving falling in love with John Lennon

Tues. Jan 7, homework focus
OTTILT: strolling & talking with each of your friends

Wed. Jan 8
OTTILT: unexpected fan messages on Twitter

Thurs. Jan 9, a long way down
OTTILT: your bio teacher assigning "hug a tree" as homework

Fri. Jan 10
OTTILT: turning off the phone & tuning into nature

Sat. Jan 11, portrait of an apple
OTTILT: cats meowing at you

Sun. Jan 12, just a weekend lunch/snack
OTTILT: "Love Actually"

A Message I Received on Twitter (& GA:BI Update)

So, recently I acquired a new follower on Twitter. 99% of the time, I have no idea who these people even are. (The 1% instance where I did was when my friend from school joined Twitter just recently and followed me. She's had the locker either above or next to me since middle school.) Anyway, I looked at the name, didn't recognize it; peeked at the mini-profile, and that combined with the profile picture made me think it was a pretty young guy. Not that young, but, younger than me, at least. I wondered if it was maybe someone I knew from parkour, but then dismissed the idea because how would they know my last name or even be able to find me on Twitter? (Or even remember that I exist? Most of the time I'm not at parkour; I've been solidly busy with history homework since two days ago. I know. Big surprise there.) So, as I normally do, I cheered silently that people were following me on Twitter, and not just relatives, and quickly forgot about it.

Today, however, when I was checking my four new interactions (my Galaxy has notifications that tell you when people mention and/or reply to you/your messages on Twitter and elsewhere), I noticed that this guy had sent me messages. I read them and was surprised by the mention of my book, and also of Mrs. Legendre (a teacher at my old elementary school). After I got past the surprise, I kept musing about how adorable these posts are. (The older one is on the bottom.)

My mom will be a substitute in John's class tomorrow, and will act as my spy. (Totally foolin', but I'm great at setting up spy missions. I did it back in November to investigate a comment about me made to the health teacher, who called me into her office. Anyway. My spy didn't find out who had said it; I did. Sad.) Anyway, she thinks maybe the school librarian at my old elementary school got a copy and that's how John found out about it. (The librarian had to deal with my friend and I begging to put our horse stories in the library back in third and fourth grade, so, maybe she figured I would keep writing? My mom thinks maybe she mentioned it (my writing a book) on the offhand in a class there or to the librarian. If we get any answers on that, I will get back to you.

For an update on Go Ahead: Be Inspired in reference to the piece I posted to TeenInk, titled "Tonight," I've been receiving emails. Mostly the usual: we've received your submission, and now it's online because we've approved it (as they do for all submissions). I did get an email saying it was voted #1 for fiction romance pieces yesterday at about 11 p.m. When I checked it today at 11 a.m., it was #3, but, hey, still top rated. Being any number is good.

Go Ahead: Be Inspired

If you remember that I said one thing I loved for January 4th was "all-day story-writing inspiration," you're in luck. I want to share the story I wrote that day. "Why?" you might ask. Well, since the end of NaNo, I haven't had any inspiration to write anything (except my required essays for my English and history finals), and it came as a surprise to me that a story was playing out in my head without me even forcing it to go one way or the other.

Why did I call it Go Ahead: Be Inspired? Well, after the story reel started in my head, I reached for a notebook and with a grin said aloud, "Go ahead: be inspired" to myself before I started writing it. So, that's what I wrote on the top of the page, and that's what I've been calling this story.

I'm going to put the first little part here, and the link to the rest at the end if you're interested in how the story continues. (It's eight-and-a-half pages in length, total.) I also submitted this piece to TeenInk just a little while ago, under the title of "Tonight," mostly 'cause I had no idea what else to call it. If anything notable happens with that, I will get back to you.

Anyway. Here it is.

I don't know what it is, but I'm getting dizzy at his touch. I hold onto him without really knowing why I need an anchor, breathe in the fabric of his shirt without realizing how close I am to him, how I feel his each and every heartbeat against my cheek, how my head is a hair's breadth from his mouth, his lips.

When I pull back, he's gazing at me quizzically. Maybe he's enticed by my proximity, and he's confused now that I'm backing off. Maybe he's repulsed, and wondering why I felt the animal need to touch him, to feel him. His light hair hangs over his curious brown eyes, not quite obscuring them but leaving enough to the imagination.

“Ev, I-”

His hands grab at empty air, and his tongue falls limp, desperate for the right words.

“Greg, I'm sorry.”

“But- Ev-”

I turn, then, and suddenly, the doorknob that's always stuck in its rusty vengeance rotates smoothly in my fingers. I twist it and pass through. It aches, though. My whole body is as heavy as lead as I trudge down the hall, away from him. I can't bear it; I've caught myself in a corner where either choice I make will burn like fire. Stay and endure the long, painful hours of his touch without loving him? Or leave, and let the whole of my life with him crumble into ruins?

“I'm sorry.” I feel it; it's so tangible I taste its bitterness in the back of my mouth each time I try to swallow away the guilt. “I'm sorry.” Sorry for what? Sorry for every night we intertwined our bodies 'neath the light veil of the sheets? Sorry for all the times he smiled and teased me, calling me darling and touching his lips to my neck? Sorry for every time he tossed flowers or leaves or grass or snow into my hair then painstakingly made sure I was untouched, unblemished by his games?

Sorry that I loved him?

At the thought, my throat tightens and tears threaten to spill forth and stain my face. In some ways, I must admit, I am sorry for it. I'm sorry that I gave my whole heart to him to cherish then woke up one morning and realized how empty I felt. I'm sorry for every little argument we sparked that never truly got put out. I'm sorry I let him charm me; I'm sorry I let him win me over and then left him empty-handed when the lights finally went out.

Though I hate to admit it, I am sorry I loved him.

“It's for your own good, Greg,” I murmur aloud, fingering gingerly at the pendant around my neck. “I love you,” it says, in looping script engraved into a tiny golden heart. I undo the clasp that attaches it to my neck and let it fall to the ground where I stand.

“I love you.” 

It's all just a memory now, just a gold pendant lying on the pavement outside our apartment, begging to be forgotten.

Here's the entire story:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_rInf4eu6V9VkZNAraC5ePZwIdw6QsTLZCaHVzNAuJ0/edit?usp=sharing

Scroll 3/4 of the way down the first page to skip past seeing this part again and to read the continuation. If you have any thoughts on it, please comment, either in the document itself or on this blog post. (A note to more sensitive readers: there are a few instances of profanity.)

Thanks for reading.

Okay, sorry, I should probably also mention that the main character's (Evelyn's) decision is extremely controversial in our government and society today. If you have a strong opinion on her decision, I strongly advise you to comment. We may not agree, but that is fine.

Thanks again.

Pic a Day - 12/30 to 1/5

Mon. Dec 30, chatting about winter ball
OTTILT: IMing friends about a school dance

Tues. Dec 31, how about new favorite movie?
OTTILT: "French Kiss"

Wed. Jan 1, one of my new year's resolutions is to learn French (also, I've been obsessed with the language and the country recently)
OTTILT: learning French

Thurs. Jan 2, just playing Sims 3 to pass the time
OTTILT: rennet-free string cheese

Fri. Jan 3, the view of the Sandias from Watermelon Mountain Ranch
OTTILT: wondering about Igor & Stephanie in "Cactus Flower"

Sat. Jan 4, shielding their eyes from the sometimes horrifically pornographic nature shows on PBS
OTTILT: all-day story-writing inspiration

Sun. Jan 5, out for a drive
OTTILT: using language-learning CDs while you're doing other things