Because I’m right.

I like being right.

DON’T WE ALL?

In a discussion, however, not everyone is allowed to be right.

Because the feeling is quite selfish you see. And even though you probably laughed and said yes to my previous question, we do not have discussions hoping everyone gets what they want, knowing that we all want to be right, but that in the end we show we have the reason and the other one(s) should bow down. Furthermore, we invest great amounts of energy making sure only we feel that pleasure. Because it feels darn good. It is a feel good drag, though. What would happen if we began to be aware of this, and when we had discussions with someone we would remember that WW III is over and there is no need to shoot without mercy for a blood-stained victory? Perhaps, maybe, probably, hopefully, our discussions would take a different route. They would take a route in which both parties try to put on the table how the feel and what they think. Instead of simply trying to convince the other that our idea is the correct, we might be able to look for an answer, together.

Too idealistic for your taste? You wouldn’t be the first one to tell me, however, I believe strongly that the change this world needs, starts in ourselves. And while this will probably not solve the climatic change impact nor eliminate corruption from the governments, I think it would begin a revolution, in which people begin thinking a bit more of everyone else, without falling into the “guessing game”. (The guessing game consists basically on assuming another person’s feelings, ideas and opinions; it is a very successful relationship killer.)

We cannot force anyone to change, though. The question that arises now, would be: what if I try this out, and the other person just wants to prove me wrong? It is a good question, of course trying to put this plan into action requires both parties to be on the same page. Regretfully, perfect conditions are one element this universe lacks of. I do think that little by little we will have an effect on those around us, they will see us differently, and hear us differently, and slowly, they will understand and realize it is better to deal with us differently, and just like that, slowly, it will rub off on them. And then on others. And others. And yet others!

Let us dream of days in which we no longer fight to be right. It is possible as long as we believe in it, and we work on it.

 

Thank you for reading again my thoughts,

:)

-DS Razzmatazz.

BEWARE!!! Construction Zone!!

Hello my dear readers, today my joint work with my friend and kiddo (inside joke) MiLky begins. He will be assisting me as Chief Web Designer, while I keep writing to you. It’s one super big favour he’s doing for me, and I’m very grateful he accepted.

He likes the colour blue, is always very helpful and nice, and worries a whole lot for those he cares the most. A friend I hope will never part from my side, and a true gem I was super lucky to find along my path.

I hope that his shyness will go away and he’ll dare to share here more of his GFX-ing work. With this, we will both set on a new journey of learning, mastering skills and sharing our progress with those who read us. So, I hope you’ll like the changes that the blog will be having, because I’m sure they will be awesome. :)

Thank you for staying with me from the beginning to this point, and I trust you will keep me company as I move along.

 

:)

-DS Razzmatazz.

Vagaciones~!

OH. SEÑOR. MIO!

V A C A T I O N S are here ! !

The moment I waited for... For about four months is finally here! The end of my school term. And the beginning of my super-short-for-mental-health-but-überly-needed vacations. I am officially in the beginning of the third quarter of my career, having just finished term 8 out of 12 mandatory terms. The knowledge I've gained so far is basically about the normal (expecter) functioning of the human mind and an introduction towards the main theory streams of Psychology. Soon will begin the deeper look into the pathologies... You know, the interesting stuff for those that aren't in the career (statement arises from empirical knowledge)... And bla bla bla, I don't want to speak about school right now!

The title of this blog post is intentionally misspelled. Vacaciones means vacations, for the ones that perhaps didn't dare to guess. Vago(a), means literally vague, "ser vago(a)" means "being a lazy person (the change from the termination 'o' to 'a' just denotes the change in the gender of the word, which does not work in English)"... So I merged both words, making it resemble the idea that I don't want to do anything school related during this time. But, being it Psych, there's no escape route! Everywhere I look there is human interaction! It's the one of the few sciences whose experimental subject is of the same species as the investigator.

How long is it? A week. Yes. Just one week.

I.e. seven days. If you add the weekend before the start of classes, then... it's actually nine.

And then back to the rodeo. For another four months.

There's no use in whining. Any solutions? The thing is taking advantage of the little free time I have. And I have a few things in mind. I'm aching to go out to dance, in first instance. I blame my latina blood ¬¬ . I just. need. to. dance. I also am trying to make a trip to the beach one of these days. Even though I don't want to get black. Meh, who cares! One of my best friends is coming home from Boston this Wednesday, and I'm planning to spend some time with her. Also, want to go to the Book Fair that will be held this week too. And that's just to mention a few of the things I want to do (that imply me to get out of this house). As for the things I want to do while at home, well I want to get used to being a Mod, I want to draw a bit, sleep a lot.

What would you suggest me I do on my vacations?

Following the line of me wanting to dance, here are some songs I wanna dance to. The lyrics aren't a state of art, but the rhythm gets my Latin blood rushing. Haha, it's like a calling. Have you ever felt a "calling"? For a rough example, most of the people I know from a determined country (which I'm not naming) feel a calling towards protecting their nation's "liberty".

La Despedida by Daddy Yankee (Puerto Rico) [I'm only putting a lyrics video because the video is a bit sad, even though it's fast paced] Concentrate on the rhythm, if you feel like your body moves with it, you might have some Latin blood in you!! Haha, that sounded so… not-scientific.

Danza Kuduro by Don Omar and Lucenzo. If you watched the latest movie of Fast and Furious, then you might recognize Don Omar, and the song. It has Spanish and Portuguese parts. On the first video.. I just want to say not all Latinas look like that. >.<

I like more the second video. It's mostly Portuguese with a bit of English and Spanish by a dude called Big Ali (whom I know nothing about). I also like the more down to earth style of the video. Both versions are worth listening to, though.

 

 

And Taboo by Don Omar. Again, “Fast and Furious” reference. It has Spanish and Portuguese.

This music genre is not my favourite, however, they have that Latin flavour that I feel like dancing to at this moment. Haha. Perhaps you can feel a bit Latin too once you've heard them?

 

:)

-DS Razzmatazz

A Strange Country?

One of these days, I found myself somehow reading a blog written for the help of people that want to learn Japanese and in it, I found a video that was really interesting, about Japan.

It is called "Japan: The Strange Country". It was designed as the thesis project of designer Tanaka Kenichi:

“This is my final thesis project. I created info-graphic, motion piece.
My objective is to make Japanese people to think about that everything happening here in Japan, isn’t that normal. So I created this video from foreigner’s point of view, rather than Japanese people’s point of view. I created Japanese version, English version, and Japanese voice w/English subtitle version.”

In response to some comments criticizing his work he replied:

"By the way, please don’t call me racist, because I am one of short, small eyes Japanese."

This brings another point into the game. Thinking a bit more into what this video represents made me think about one curious thing that is inherent to all of us. How we see ourselves is not always how others see us. And what we consider usual and normal is not what others consider usual and normal. It is rather funny how we expect others to see things how we see them, and when we realize it’s not like that, we can get confused.

Let me invite you to enter a different way to think. Let me invite you to the Zero Expectation Zone (ZEZ). Try to see how you are, but from a different perspective, how do others perceive you? Are your actions alright with respect to your own values? Try not to expect people to see you how you see yourself. Try to determine when you are expecting something, and try to realize that expectations only bring frustration.

Without further delay, I will present you the video in English. Perhaps you will find it as interesting as I found it to be.

 

I found the video originally here.

The webpage of the artist that created this videos is this.

A Torn Heart’s Rant.

Sometimes I sit by myself and think about you. Yes you, and you, and you over there. You, the one that left me down when I tried to hold on to you. You, the one that abandoned me when you thought I wanted to hurt you. You, the one criticizing me without knowing me, without taking into account my background. You, the one that got close to me to hurt me or ignore my feelings.

Have I hurt you? Have I disrespected you? Have I failed you? I am sorry. But I am more sorry for you if you use that as an excuse to hurt me. And all the time we’ve spent together, we’ve sent it to hell. And all those times and good memories we made, all of those are tainted with glumness and regret.

Do you hate me? Did you love me? I am confused. How come we allowed this to happen? When did we forget how much we meant to each other?

…With my heart,

-DS Razzmatazz.

Reflexiones de una Mente Desaforada.

Perder el contacto con la realidad no es algo de las personas con esquizofrenia únicamente.

Con esa línea quiero empezar el día de hoy mi blog post. Hace unos días discutía con algunos compañeros del curso un análisis que debíamos hacer por nuestra cuenta acerca de una película, a modo de practicar lo aprendido. Estando en estos menesteres, una compañera leyó de sus apuntes: “él había perdido todo contacto con la realidad”. Eso me dejó pensando. Y fui meditando con el pasar de los días, y decidí que debía anotarlo. De manera que aquí les relato mis pensamientos al respecto.

Ella aseguraba que el hombre había perdido contacto con la realidad, pero éste, en su papel principal, interactuaba con otras personas de su entorno y reaccionaba a éstas. Este hombre tenía una trastorno mental severo, el cual había afectado en un gran grado su manera de vivir. Le causaba mucha angustia y pesar. Pero viniendo al caso, ¿acaso nosotros no perdemos el “contacto con la realidad” de vez en cuando? La pérdida de la objetividad, la pérdida del enfoque,…

¿Acaso nosotros no nos encerramos en nosotros mismos cuando queremos olvidar al mundo?

A sabiendas de esto, ¿con qué derecho hemos de sentenciar a la anormalidad a personas de tal manera? Tengo claro, que mi compañera solo hacía una descripción, sin embargo tal descripción me hizo pensar en que muchas personas hoy en día lo hacen de forma natural, sin darse cuenta de lo que implica una sentencia de tal calidad.

Sólo toma unos minutos sentenciar a alguien a la horca.

Dura menos aún ponernos el hacha al hombro y cercenar la cabeza de nuestra víctima.

Se ha discutido mucho el tema de cómo separar a aquellas personas con trastornos mentales de aquellas a que llamamos “normales”. ¿Qué define la normalidad? ¿Quién la define? ¿Por qué se define de tal manera? Hoy en día existen algunos libros bastante grandes en los cuales se exponen una lista de elementos que definen a una enfermedad (DSM-IV-TR, CIE-10). Este mecanismo nos ha servido durando muchos años (aunque no demasiados teniendo en cuenta que la Psicología como ciencia es muy joven todavía) y a pesar de que no es la herramienta perfecta, es la que podemos usar con mayor confiabilidad y validez.

Sin embargo, en ocasiones puedo ver que nos vamos de lo sublime a lo ridículo diciendo que con un solo elemento, con sólo una característica de nuestro recetario de enfermedades ya estamos mostrando la anormalidad. Que no haya confusión, si bien una enfermedad puede constituir una serie de características, esto no significa que tengamos la libertad de resumir la enfermedad a una de ellas únicamente. Porque en tal caso, me declaro enferma mental en todas sus variaciones de color y matiz. Y de plano todos estaríamos enfermos también.

:)

-DS Razzmatazz.

PS: Se utilizan hoy en día tres definiciones para la normalidad:

• Normalidad estadística: involucra que de acuerdo a la curva normal, lo que se encuentre más hacia el centro por debajo de la curva se considera normal, en pocas palabras, lo más frecuente dentro de una población
• Aflicción subjetiva: se refiere a que cada uno de nosotros definimos si estamos normales al sentirnos bien con nosotros mismos
• Discapacidad/Lo ideal: hace referencia a que las discapacidades dividen lo que es normal de lo que no es, es decir, lo esperado vs lo que puede pasar pero que no se espera ni se desea.

Una Mirada, Yes.

 

Este es un poema escrito para una persona especial en mi vida. YY.

 

Y me acuerdo de ti, entre carcajadas y lágrimas

Un soplo de verdad, ahuyenta una tragedia

Te dedico un par de líneas, sí, para que veas

Y bajo este sol de Enero despiertes diferente

Una mirada tuya, me alienta a seguirte

Una palabra tuya, me guía hacia el futuro

Un sueño tuyo, me llama a la nostalgia

¿Qué más puedo hacer, que llorarte un siglo?

Te escucho a la distancia, y te espero

Te busco con la mirada, y no te veo

Encuéntrame mañana, en el lugar de siempre

Esperándote estaré como en otras mañanas

Esperando tu sonrisa, la única.

 

 :) Much love,

-DS Razzmatazz

Sentada Bajo un Laurel.

Ha pasado mucho tiempo desde la última vez que escribí. Y así mismo, han pasado muchas cosas. Eventos que me han tirado en mis rodillas, eventos que me han elevado hasta el cielo, eventos que hacen bajar la cabeza con humildad y eventos que no me dejan respirar.

“Así es la vida”.

Eso me dicen constantemente.

“No es justa”.

Me lo sé de rabo a cabo.

“Es bella”.

A veces no me deja verlo, para ser sincera.

Aquí sentada, me pongo a recordar todas las cosas que han pasado en estas últimas semanas, y si las contara todas, tal vez no me lo creerían. Creo que incluso yo misma no puedo creerlas a veces. No estoy muy segura de si les conté, pero ahora soy la tesorera de la asociación estudiantil de Psicología en mi universidad. Y pues, es bastante exigente. Además, recientemente me fue ofrecido un trabajo como asistente de investigación en la oficina de Investigación de mi universidad, la cual estarán volviendo a abrir. ¿Suena fantástico, no creen? Sí, y no. Si antes no tenía mucha vida y existía mucho estrés, solo imagínense ahora. Pero, oportunidades como esa no se tiran a la basura. Y punto.

He hecho muchos amigos recientemente, y me he re-encontrado con algunos otros, eso me tiene bastante alegre. Pero hay muchas otras cosas que me tiran al suelo. Supongo que es necesario mantener la esperanza en la pupila. Y mirar todo a través de ella.

Cuídense mucho mis queridos lectores,

:)

-DS Razzmatazz.

Obsessions and a Lifetime Commitment.

First of all Happy Birthday DG!! :D Hope this new year brings a lot of good things for you and that our friendship grows stronger. Thanks for listening to my rumble all the time and my obsessive behaviours that I’m sure still bother you AND make you laugh. :)

Now that THAT is settled, I’d like to talk today about how counseling affects our daily life. I take it you have not forgotten that I pursue a career in the science of the mind. Since it seems I haven’t spoken much about that lately, I decided to talk about it. While I was reading for an upcoming exam, I noticed some suggestions and examples triggered memories of mine. Moments in which I felt cornered by a persona that made only why questions with a disrespectful voice tone and aggresive body language; moments in which the bad use of open and close questions lead to the awkward end of a conversation; moments in which I, being unaware, controlled a conversation and made its way to the end. The way we engage a conversation with a person is not something to be take lightly. Especially for those in my career.

People come at use seeking help, trusting and hoping a stranger will help them solve their problems, and feel understood. Therefore we cannot risk making them feel bad with our ignorance. Dominating the skills for an effective interview/counseling session is vital to showing our clients the respect we hold for them and how much we value their visit.

I am often asked why do we have to read and study so much… Why do I need up to even ten books per subject, having up to six mandatory subjects per term? And I tell them, looking into the person’s eyes, softening my voice, speaking slowly and leaning slightly forward: “because we owe perfection to you, for as long as you trust us with your world”.

:) Much love,

-DS Razzmatazz.

Autotuning a Heart.

“Don’t take too long

‘Cause I’m on my way

If you take too long”

-Lifehouse (Halfway Gone) 

I used to like pop songs. Yes, I admit it. I used to cherish the Backstreet Boys and the SClub7. Dance to their songs and even let out a little fangirl scream whenever they came on the TV. As time went by, implying me moving from early adolescence, I started exploring more the musical world. I was becoming more of a conscious teenager exploring the world for its essence and my place in it.

Music has been around for as long as we are humans, or so I believe strongly. And I think that’s the best way to put it. It has served to voice our emotions and thoughts. Our passions and losses. When I listen to a song, I can feel whether it was created with deep passion or not. And I am quite sure everyone else can. More and more, there are continually more songs made without true passion other than for the money, it pains me to see the kids of this young generation exposed to such empty shells all the time. And such shells are worshipped and cared for tremendously. They trend and mark the way that thousands want to follow.

I suppose it is easier to like a simple song to dance to and let the body take control. Yes, as if going to our animal roots. Where is delightful inner discussion in our minds, the puzzle of words in which we try to understand the lyric’s meaning and teaching? Where is that craving to feel the vocalist’s anguish or bliss?

And let us not forget today’s technology. We are doped in new technology and bending it to our will. Churning it, molding it, making our lives easier and more boring in a way. With it, human voices can be modified, into sounding better, into sounding funny. And as everything that has been new to us, we’ve abused it. How come now, artists use this tool, the so called “autotune”, to make money, when they even lack the abilities?! I become dazzled and confused, especially when I actually find a person whose voice sweeps me off my feet and gives me goosebumps and it turns out this person is what everyone labels as “nobody”. And then, songs with complete autotune are classified as hits?!

I believe music is a very important sector of our lives. I could even dare say sacred. To be cherisched upon and truly cared for. When we play an instrument always giving our all, our heart and soul into it, filling the melody with our life force, our past and present, our hopes for the future. Whether it is a keyboard, a violin, our voices or even our minds! Use your instrument with deep love… Not lust.

:) Much love,

-DS Razzmatazz.

PS. This blog post is entirely my opinion, denoted by the bunch of I believe’s, and should be respected as such, any complains will be read and considered… As opinions and nothing else. ^^

Who was the best teacher you've ever had?

My highschool Math teacher... I'll never forget Ms Tricu<3

Ask me anything

A Summer Dream and a Sweet Return.

It has been a very long time since I blogged. My apologies to you all. You’ve followed my blog and I left you waiting. I must admit, much to my regret, that I forgot about you all because I finally got vacations and there was no way I’d just sit around and type like a zombie all day long. Can you relate to the feeling? It is hard to explain, but it is something like, since I knew I did not HAVE to do any work, I did not want to have to do ANY kind of work. Hahaha.

I have finished my second year at the university this past December. Now I’m on to the third and most difficult of the four. And that is not all folks! I am part of the student association for my faculty and also the chief cartoonist of the psyque newspaper. Awesome, do you not think? Well, I’d have to say yes and no. Yes because it is something different from my usual day-to-day activities of reading and reading, but no because I already had almost no time to finish reading! So all the meetings and drafts I have to do add stress to my life.

On another not. I must say, friends are really amazing, don’t you think? I recently found a friend I thought I had lost for ever. And one friend that had strayed from my side reaffirmed his support one of these days as I needed badly strength. And I keep making new friends everyday. This makes me really happy, who would not be happy? Anyways, as always there are ups and downs. But I find it important that I have people that care about me and are willing to let me hang on to them a little when my legs are weak.

The sun has already set a long time ago, but there are always lights in the sky. Always hope to hang on to.

May you all have a good night!

:) Much love,

-DS Razzmatazz.