A Long Day's Night

Today's VW Musical Selections:
CD 1 - Jamiroquai - Canned Heat
CD 2 - Depeche Mode - Singles, 86-98, CD 2
CD 3 - Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
CD 4 - Radiohead - Kid A
CD 5 - Led Zeppelin - Remasters

A lot of the pleasure I get out of working in the VW comes from being able to bring in my own music to play. I'm not sure if it's because hearing songs that I love makes the drudgery of cleaning up after my fellow classmates tolerable or because I like being able to share that little part of myself with others in an...invisible? (no, that's not the word) way. In a way that they don't know I'm sharing myself with them. I've long come to the conclusion that I basically expect nothing from anyone. I don't expect people to be grateful for things I've done for them. I don't expect people to care about my whereabouts or how I'm feeling. But I still can't help but want people to know how I'm feeling and my cares/concerns. Boy, can I get any more unintelligible?

Anyway, I got two compliments on my selection today. One girl totally dug the Queens of the Stone Age CD and one kid (who, God bless him, looked like a stoner) gave me kudos on my Radiohead choice. I must not have looked too pleased on the outside when they gave me the compliments (by the time the girl came by my leg was killing me and when the guy came by I'd been rushing around the dining hall cleaning off tables, most likely with that odd "deeply troubled" face I make when doing something I'm not fond of) but it lifted my spirits a tad bit. People should never underestimate how one or two words, be they in kindness or in anger, can affect others.

I remember the week I decided to bring in Apocalyptica...one girl complained to Paul that it was, and I quote "Satanic music". It was cellos, for chrissake! We both got a good laugh out of that one, but he lowered the music a bit anyway. And then there was the week I decided to try all -classical. We'd gotten less than half-way through Bach's Mass in D minor when Janet decided it was a little to sleep-inducing, I sort of agreed, since it was dreary as all hell outside. Off came the Bach, on came the Led. C'est la vie.

My day's been sort of...blah. I think I managed to fall asleep before the sun came up, so seeing as I woke up at 9 I got...3 hours sleep. Again. Hmm. Morning's sort of fuzzy. I woke up, washed up, picked out my CDs, and race-walked to the VW because I was tardy (per usual). On the way there I saw Lyndsay walking in the *opposite* direction, so I knew something was up. Turned out she was getting sick and got permission to head home. I was slightly peeved because that meant I'd be stuck wiping cards for 2 hours instead of working by the serving area and so I suppose I didn't come off as totally sympathetic. I should send her an e-mail or something to apologize and ask if she's doing well.

I got to the Dub, put my CDs in, started humming along with Jamiroquai, and I was good to go. Paul came over and said something like "I look forward to Thursdays just to hear your musical selections", which could be taken as either an oddly phrased compliment or a politely phrased insult. He claims he finds it interesting because I have a wide variety of tastes. I dunno. I never can read that man. I sort of smiled and said "thank you" then shrugged with a self-conscious grin on my face.

Today was also ADOCH and there were a few pre-frosh in attendance. Ah, the good old days. I actually didn't go to ADOCH because I was in Italy at the time. Damn did I have a good time on that trip. I wish I had kept a journal during it. All I have are my photos and the recollections from Jo. I spent a lot of the time infatuated with a fellow traveler named Joseph and somewhat annoyed by Jo's digs at him. What can I say? I had a thing for brown-haired brown-eyed boys that wear dark trenchcoats. He ruined a wonderful umbrella I'd purchased in Florence? But of course I said nothing to him about it. Infatuation makes a fool out of sane (wo)men, I tell you.

Moving on. After work I went to the comic store to check on my order of LoEG. Not in yet but I couldn't help but pick up The Watchmen. I've heard some good things about it, and Moore has yet to let me down. I'm saving it for the Market tomorrow. Hopefully there won't be a lot of people there and I can get a good bit of reading done.

It was so beautiful outside today that I decided to make a trip down to the mall on foot to see if they had any good JavaScript guidebooks (that assignment is due on Monday...it's going to make me its bitch, I just know it). I didn't find any I liked in either the Brown Bookstore or College Hill. For some reason I'm obsessed with making some sort of quiz with JavaScript that would tabulate answers based on a simple addition-based mathematical formula then spit out a result. I walk down the hill to Borders after dropping off my bookbag in my room and I realize my leg is getting more and more numb. Not good. I guess it was the sitting at the desk swiping cards that did me in. By the time I'm in Borders I'm limping but I tried my darnest to cover it by walking deliberately (it might have had something to do with my shoes...I hadn't worn the Pumas in a while). No go on the book (I don't even know if you can make that sort of thing using HTML and JavaScript alone) and I decided to take the bus back to my room.

Once home I was knocked out. I didn't even bother with the usual shower, I just jumped under the covers and fell asleep. Ended up waking up around 7:30 and just wasted time afterwards. To be honest I can't even recall most of what I've done this evening. And I'm okay with that. As I said, my day's been blah. Just there.

I rented "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "Rosemary's Baby" (again). I'm wondering whether I should watch them tonight or just wait until tomorrow evening...I'm also wondering whether I should even bother going to classes tomorrow...choices, choices...

The Matrix Explained

A good analysis of The Matrix I found during my perusal of the Rotten Tomatoes website. I've always been too lazy to think too hard about these things. Thank goodness there are people out there intelligent enough to do it for me.

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Originally posted by Earendil The Mariner
First of all, you are not looking too much into the movie as someone suggested, because there is more to it than the action, and it's not a "fanboy delusion". I always say it's like in the movie - some of the people here on the internet are so bound to their online "lives" (like the people in The Matrix), they can't stand a different view, which the Matrix really is - a metaphore of our contemporary dependence on machines.

As for your comments - I can see where you went wrong. The Matrix works with it's own set of rules. Look at it like a computer system - the Agents are not "gods", they are simply sentient programs designed to fight the "hackers" - those who hack into the Matrix from the outside. On the Internet, the network consists of a large number of computers, who are all connected by a much smaller number of machines - let's call them servers. The Matrix itself is a network, created and controlled by the machines, while it's connection with the "users" is much more "intimate" - it connects directly to the brain. So, it is a substitute for the "real" world, done through replacing the sensory input a brain receives from the outside, with artificial signals created by the computer.

Therefore, The Matrix was created to mimic the "real" world as it once was, in order to keep the human race under control - it has the same physical rules, and all of those connected to it are unaware of it. If someone is disconnected and learns it's true nature, when he hacks back inside, it depends on the strength of the mind and the training (basicly - the power of a hacker's computer, and his computer and programming skills) what can he do inside, and how much he can change. The brain-to-computer interface is the one thing adopted from The Matrix that works to the advantage of the humans: it can process all kinds of input, enabling fast learning and "mental training" (the Construct program).

That is why Neo is special - he is not God - he is the ultimate hacker. What is the ultimate hacker on the Internet? The one with the most powerful computer, and ultimate skills and [i]knowledge[/i]. I emphasize knowledge, because that is what Neo gains in the end - the ultimate knowledge of the Matrix, the ability to disregard the signals sent by it, and seeing it as it truly is. At that moment, he overcomes the barrier between the real world and the computer program, and gains [i]control[/i]. That is why he didn't die - not because Trinity kissed him and "brought him back from the dead", but because in that critical moment, he heard her voice, like comatose people hear the people who talk to them, and understood. His mind fought the illusion and he took another breath. Remember, there is nothing physically wrong with any of those who die in the Matrix - it's their inability to separate it from the real world.

About the Agents - they are simply programs, just like The Matrix itself, and they can do only what they were designed to do. Since the Matrix imitates the "real" world, they have to be a part of it - and that is why their appearance resembles ours, as well as their powers - except the connection between every single person in the Matrix and the ultimate knowledge of it's operation, combined with the ability to move instantly between bodies, their can only do what ordinary people can do, but at an extremely higher level. And it was enough to control everything before The One came.

Why can't they do more? Think of computers - programs have limits. An antivirus program can't reprogram the basic functions of a Windows XP or Mac OSX, can it? Of course kung-fu looks cool, but when weapons won't do, what can someone do but use bare hands?! Remember, machines' primary goal is to PRESERVE the Matrix - the Agents need to draw as little attention to themselves as possible, and try to keep the everyday life with as little "unnatural" changes as possible. That is why they can't make buildings disappear, fly, or change their size, or whatever... That is also why they're disguised as unnamed government agents, who have the highest level clearance to do whatever they want, no questions asked.

Now, on to "Reloaded" - it is very simple: what do System Administrators, owners and programmers (the machines in the movie - AI) do when their system's (Matrix's) security has been breached and compromised? They UPGRADE the system. The Matrix in Reloaded is Matrix v2.0, the New and Improved. Agents are new, adapted to respond to the new threat. Now for the big question - just HOW powerful is Neo? Is he a match for the new Matrix? What can he do for the Resistance? Wait and see...