The $%*! frustration thread

[GenesisOne]

Late for Rushing Wind's story, but I do have this to say:

I saw your pictures, RW. I can only empathize with your dilemma seeing I've never had to endure something like that.

On the one hand, it's disheartening to know that people won't take the time to learn about an afflicted person such as yourself and why you are that way instead of short-cutting it with a snap judgment about gender identity; you should verbally castigate anybody who dares mock you for your condition.

On the other hand, there's a silver lining to your situation. As a dancer, do you consider yourself artistic in your pursuits? If so, then may I suggest that you view your situation from an artistic perspective. Your head is now a blank canvas for infinite possibilities in terms of how you express yourself. You are the artist and hair is your medium. Show the world your unique personality, intellect, charm, anything by turning that canvas into a stunning work of art. Turn those lemons into lemonade!!

Of course, this would all be until your hair can grow back. It is my sincerest wishes that it does; you honestly looked gorgeous in the "before" picture, even without a thick layer of superficial make-up, and I'm not saying that you don't look stunning with your current situation. Simply refer to my "canvas of hair" analogy as proof that I don't think you're without hair.

And now I'm rambling. What says you?

[rushingwind]

Thank you, Genesis (and again, to everyone else who replied).

My hair is growing back, though I seem to have a few bald spots. That's just how alopecia rolls. Fortunately, it doesn't seem to be severe, and my doctor said I would have some minor hair loss for a while, assuming the major type of hair loss does not strike me suddenly again. The real unanswered question is, was my hair loss caused solely by medicine upsetting my immune system (thus making it a one-time event), or did the medicine trigger an underlying genetic condition (autoimmune alopecia) that had simply not been triggered yet? It's really unlikely that at the age of 26 that I'd have genetic alopecia that had not been triggered yet, but I have a family history of alopecia, so it is possible (if unlikely). However, I'm going on five months without major hair loss, and I have only one patch of hair that has not grown back at all. That's very uncharacteristic of someone with autoimmune alopecia. Again, it does happen, but not often. There are typically many episodes of hair loss in quick succession before there's a remission. I'm very hopeful.

I do have other autoimmune issues, but it would just probably have triggered autoimmune alopecia much sooner. I have ovarian problems related to my immune system, but that's an entirely new post, heh. That all seems to be under control at the moment, and relatively minor. Seriously, I could have it so much worse. I look up Lupus when I start to feel sorry for myself. It snaps me out of it every time, because holy freaking smokes, it could be so, so much worse than hair loss and reproductive issues.

I am very optimistic. Even though my hair is very short and I have some bald spots, I am optimistic. ^_^

As a dancer, do you consider yourself artistic in your pursuits? If so, then may I suggest that you view your situation from an artistic perspective. Your head is now a blank canvas for infinite possibilities in terms of how you express yourself. You are the artist and hair is your medium. Show the world your unique personality, intellect, charm, anything by turning that canvas into a stunning work of art. Turn those lemons into lemonade!!

For a little while, I did consider getting a tattoo on my scalp. ^_^ I thought that would be a great way to use the "blank canvas." The high sensitivity of my scalp led me to decide against it, as the pain would have been hard to take. (It would have been the same tattoo that I've always wanted: An acacia tree with a quote from my novel. Guess I'll eventually get it on my shoulderblade instead. ^_^) As for my dancing, well, I try to be artistic. I'm still working on the "doing the moves correctly" part. I am trying to show the rest of the world how awesome I am, though. ^_^ I will accomplish it one day!

Thank you for your kind words, Genesis.

[rushingwind]

I guess to keep in spirit of the thread, I should post a frustration, heh.

I shipped a package last Monday with the postal service. Actually, I shipped two. One has made it to its destination, while the other seems to either be lost or the postal service is forgetting to scan/deliver it. I'm hoping it's something as simple as the shipping store just forgot to take it to the post office, because I'm going to be quite ticked if it was lost. I've shipped dozens of packages over the last few years, and never lost one before.

[Sajainta]

I woke up too goddamn early and now I can't fall back asleep.  I can't stand mornings and afternoons.  I feel so lethargic.  My peak productivity time is around 2 or 3 am, and so my 10 am is what I imagine someone with a normal schedule's 10 pm would be.  I just don't work well when it's light outside and since it's spring and Daylight Savings already went by, there's only about 10 hours of nighttime.  Blehhhhhhhhhh.

Not all of us run on a 9 to 5 productivity schedule.  Mine is more like 10 (pm) to 5o 5 or 6.  -___-

[Licawolf]

My brother works for a local college community, as part of his work he contacted certain Software developers in the US via email to buy some software licenses for the college computers. When he mentioned he was from Mexico, they asked where Mexico was    Okey, granted (ignoring the fact that we're neighbouring countries) there are plenty of countries I don't know where they are either, but sending an email back to a client asking where their country is, instead of taking 5 minutes to look it up in google, seriously?

[Syna]

My mom -- who is from the US, but spent 8 years in Central America -- teaches Spanish and, unlike many Spanish teachers, insists upon testing culture and geography.

She's shown me the results of her geography tests. They are fields of blood and carnage. The most memorable test belonged to someone who thought Panama was Brazil.

[Thought]

Lica, is it possible that they meant to ask "where in Mexico" rather than "where is Mexico"?

But along those lines, I've been grading midterms. The two most horrific examples of ignorance are thus: one person thought the United States used nuclear weapons in the Vietnam War. Another student thought that Britain supported North Korea and prodded them into attacking South Korea (with the support of Mao and Stalin, of course). At least, I am assuming that when this student said "the South" they meant S. Korea and not the Confederacy of the American Civil War, although I assume so more for the sake of my own sanity than because of anything the student said.

[Sajainta]

Geographical stupidity never ceases to astound me.  Alright, I can understand an American not knowing where, say, Andorra is, but MEXICO!?  That is beyond sad.

I once got asked if the Philippines were the islands between France and England, and someone asked my brother's girlfriend--upon learning that she grew up in the Philippines--"Where's that in Tennessee?"

Not geographically related (but similarly stupid), when my family moved back to the US from Scotland, my mum took my transcripts from my school in Edinburgh to the high school I was going to attend in the US.  The woman working at the desk said "Oh, her transcripts from Scotland?  Okay, we'll have to get them translated into English."

   

[Licawolf]

Lica, is it possible that they meant to ask "where in Mexico" rather than "where is Mexico"?

Maybe this was the case. My brother told me about it, I didn't read the email myself, so I would give them the benefit of doubt  he did mentioned the city and the state, but it's perfectly understandable not to know where specific states and cities are.

[tushantin]

Reading these last few posts of you guys, this is the best laughter I've had this week. XD (Okay, so it's Tuesday, but still... shut up)

With all these ignorances and obvious factors in two, I'd like to ask: why are people such fucknuts? It's like the answer's THERE right under their nose, but thanks to their arrogance or laziness, or just their unwilling to judge priorities, they don't even glance at what's most important.  It's just been a while since Mom recovered from her post-hospital sickness/stress and is slowly getting healthier, but things just NEED to pile up. My Godmother took care of me mostly when I was at my birthplace, and she's really close to me. I call her "Ma" too, because she's like a second Mom to me. Now, she's married to a guy who just can't quit booze, not even for the sake of her daughter, and goes berserk when he's high. This time he carried things too far, triggering Godmom's migraine attack. She's in the hospital now, and even THEN the guy just wants to ruin people's lives just for the heck of it. Just wouldn't learn...

I swear, I'll clear out my bank account for her and hand over all the money I've been saving for months for an Android phone. Fuck the phone, she doesn't deserve this torment! If somethign major happens I'm going to Kolkatta and give the asshole a piece of my mind.

Rant over... Keeping in spirit with the ignorance topic, here's my next frustration.

Everyone of us thinks that exaggerated things like secret organizations led by powerful intelligent folks, or a batman-esq super-vigilante catching culprits is all a premise of some movie or TV cartoons. But we tend to forget that if a concept exists, there's a version of it in real life.

What's even funnier is that the founder of said organization is actually one of the most influential men in history, who revolutionized civilization and our outlook on urban dangers, thus making it easier for us to live today. We are today what we are thanks to his hardwork and logic, and yet not many even remember him. Even I just found out about him yesterday, and when I went on to discuss this enthusiastically with my friends, nobody even had the slightest hint on who he was. It's the same as Nikola Tesla: the dude revolutionized modern technology, and yet nobody remembered him, preferring to cling onto some guy who patented a light bulb he totally didn't create.

What's even weirder is the amounts of coincidences happening in my life, and it stuck me again. You see, I've got (don't laugh) a baby polar bear teddy I used to play with as a kid. I named him a name coz it sounded cute. I even wrote his adventures in picture books and shared them with friends (no, it isn't about running around gardens, but actually solving cases of missing honey and fish). Strangely enough, not only his occupation matches this mysterious "Great Man" I talked about in the previous two paragraphs, but also shares his first name. This last bit is something I'm not really frustrated about; more like I'm baffled by it.

I know I've left off some info here. Bonus points if somebody can guess/deduce what or who I'm actually talking about.

[Boo the Gentleman Caller]

Tushantin, if you like American cinema, you should watch The Prestige. It's about two magicians dueling it out, and Nikola Tesla plays a major role in the film. Plus, he's played by effing David Bowie. The film was written and directed by the Nolan brothers, who have done the much-beloved Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, so you know it's quality.

[Bard_of_Time]

I am... getting very upset at my inability to read things right all the time. I was reading a post about using the word 'sliverish', and all I could read was 'silverish'. It was all okay and made sense until they used 'silverish' itself. I got very, very confused...

[Licawolf]

@tushantin: I'm sorry to hear about your Godmom, I hope she gets better and his husband gets his priorities straight, for sake of his family if not himself :/

I don't know who you are talking about in your other paragraphs, but I thought it sounded so cute that you wrote picture books about your polar teddy bear  xD

@Bard_of_Time: I too read "silverish" instead of "sliverish" when I read that post and got all confused 

Man, it's so hot here I can't sleep... and the water in my house got cut off aaagh.... I'm melting... I stole a popsicle from the fridge, I don't know whose it was, but I'm willing to go and and buy them a new one when sun rises if they want, I don't care, for now I just want something cool...  

[tushantin]

@LicaWolf: I'll probably republish em in a blog. XDDD

@Boo: Holy shi--! Thanks! I keep an eye out for movies like that, and yet I somehow missed this. Mystery, Thriller AND Magicians?  

@BoT: You're not the only one. Being born dyslexic, have you any idea how much time it takes me to read and properly understand, making sure I haven't misread anything, let alone writing back? Normal post like LicaWolf's one, about 3 minutes (which is long). I constantly keep misreading 'beloved' as 'bellowed', or 'simple' as 'single', etc.

Though as much as I love reading Bible, Quran and Bhagwat Gita for inspiration (the latter is helluva rad!), there's a lot of things I find really strange about Bible and Quran.

Consider Quran: It mentions in many verses how forgiving Allah is, and ask the lord to forgive your enemies and keep the precious connection in human bonding. Basically, support your brethren in their times of need and help them understand the value of love. Hatred is the premise of the Devil (Shaytan).

And immediately when it's about Mohammed, commandments of violence picks up as the prophet constantly encourages his people to slaughter the non-believers. I mean, What The Eff? I understand that these verses are supposed to be open-minded, but they've actually been used by extremists to brainwash the masses in horrible ways. And when Jesus comes in, POOF! Everything's all about Love again!

When writing my book, I made the protagonists pass through a middle-to-low-class Muslim dominated area (similar to the one I grew up in), where one of them gets scared while the other mentions that his fears are highly prejudiced (yeah, he's an asshole like that). They sort of have fun there, though, and the second protagonist speaks a verse from the Quran, specially quoting 'Allah'. The Muslim friend from Hyderabad, I told you guys about earlier, loved my work but asked me remove anything relevant to Islam and Christianity from the book with a warning:

"See, most urban Muslims here in India, especially the Shia, respect and embrace these views you've placed in the book. But there are crazy extremists out there, in Sunni Islam and Christian sectors alike, that will no doubt see your passages and send you death threats for it. At least in this unsafe world in today's time, please reconsider."

This friend of mine has helped me through a lot, and I do consider his opinions by heart and reason. But how am I going to change the world for the better? Why must it be so difficult? Why can't people just unite and focus on bigger problems?

[Mr Bekkler]

I'd say screw it and just keep all the references. Art is meant to be bold and make a statement. Don't worry about people who WON'T like it, they're not your audience anyway. If all the famous painters and writers of the world decided not to do something because of who might get upset, we'd live in a very bland world indeed.