Aut vincere aut mori

Upon crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, Tariq Ibn Ziyad ordered his men to burn all the ships.  It was a powerful signal to his men - only victory or death awaited them - since they could not return back home.  The Berbers (the Moors), eventually became rulers of Spain for centuries until Ferdinand and Isabella drove them out.

As I was on a mission to lose weight, I told many people that reaching my goal until August 31st would be highly unlikely, but it would be okay as long as I try my best.  Now that I think about it, I don't think this is the right way to approach anything serious.  The right away to approach it is how Tariq Ibn Ziyad did.  Give yourself no other option but success.  This way, you can stop thinking about failure, and focus only on how to win. 

Unless you fight with this mentality, surely you will lose to those who fight this way. 

I have but a month to lose nearly 6~7 percent body fat.  Mathematically, it's nearly impossible, but I refuse to think about how I won't be able to pull this off.  I will only think about how I can. 

Aut vincere aut mori! (conquer or die). 

I'm so into dark chocolate these days.  I eat exactly two squares a day ('cause it's high in calories and I'm trying to lose weight), often with roasted coffee beans.  Yes, roasted coffee beans.  I bought these beans sometime ago and quickly realized that I was too lazy to grind them all the time.  Not knowing what to do, I just took a handful and ate them.  To my surprise, it actually tasted pretty decent, and even better when mixed with dark chocolate.  So here I am, chewing chocolate and coffee beans. 

Sometimes, it pays to be weird and adventurous. 

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I must say that I really underestimated this six pack in 3 months deal.  It's half way mark and I must shift things into gear.  1,500 calorie reductions a day.  No exceptions. 

I'm not sure if I could ever live in a city without public transportation anymore.  I never realized how much I hated driving... actually, I always knew how much I hated driving but my experience in Korea only solidified this knowledge. 

Yeah, sure. you actually spend more time in mass transit, but it's different.  You don't have to be focused.  You can sleep, you can read a book, or you can write in a journal.  Of course, I miss driving once in a while, but if I had a choice between Korean public transportation and LA traffic, it's public transportation hands down.

Of course, it's always nice to have both. 

p.s. Heck, you can't even walk around at night (unless you're in West LA).  What kind of bullshit is that?

Come August 31st, I will surprise the world (just my fb friends actually).

Pray for the victims of the shipwreck?  To whom?  I must ask.  To the benign, almighty Christian god who foresaw all this yet let it happen anyway?  

“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both willing and able?  Then whence cometh evil? 
Is he neither able nor willing?  Then why call him God?"

                                                                                      -Epicurus

If we can imagine a better world, then surely god mustn't exist.  For such an awesome god would've created a world beyond our imaginations. 


*To the people who believe that this happened because god gave us free will:

Why do you associate free will with the ability to do evil?  Free will deals with decisions, not ability.  Human beings cannot fly on their own, but does this inability affect our free will?  Of course not.  Then why didn't god create us as creatures unable to commit evil?  After all, can god commit evil deeds?  If he can't, then does he have free will?  If he can but is unwilling, then why didn't he create us in his own image?  

So I'm single again, albeit we were never official.  I am absolutely convinced that this was for the better, but I find myself constantly looking at my ipad, longing for her. 

Maybe I should've read my "this is what it means to say goodbye," before I told her that it was over.  Well, at any rate, I still think she did most of the killing.  I merely pronounced it dead. 

I had a discussion with a Christian the other day and I spent most of today watching religious debates on Youtube.  I must say, the more I am exposed to all this, the more my position becomes  solidified.

The best argument for God is not rhetoric but bacon.  Omg it's so fucking good - maybe, just maybe it's a gift from God.

But really, the idea of vicarious redemption never made much sense to me.  Suppose that I'm Dr. Frankenstein*, and I've created a being.  But this monster just doesn't praise and worship me every second of the day like I intended him to.  I want him groveling at my feet, fawning and telling himself how worthless he is and how he can't do anything without me.  So I decide to destroy my creation but I have a better idea.  I decide to forgive the monster, by torturing and killing my own son.  I've brought my son back to life of course, using the techniques I've developed to create my monster in the first place.  The monster didn't really change, but because his sins were washed away by the death of my son, we can all live in peace.

What a ridiculous story.  Out of a gazillion different questions and comments that can arise, you'd probably have these three things to say.

1.  Why didn't I just forgive the monster?  Why kill my son in the first place and then resurrect him?

2.  Why am I so insecure that I need constant adoration by my own creation?

3.  I'd better keep my day job, because I'm a shitty creator.

You'd think that for an almighty God, the creator of the universe, forgiving humans on this tiny dust speck of a universe ought to be fairly simple.  But no, he has to forgive himself, by himself, for himself, in order to do so. 

I'd also contend that if you have to call for a substitute, it's not true forgiveness. What a ridiculous story.  I can't believe I took this seriously for so long. 

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*I'm so annoyed whenever people think that the name of the monster is Frankenstein.  Read!  The Doctor who did the creating is Frankenstein.  The monster actually doesn't have a name.