Hostilities come and go,
competitions rein for a time.
People fall in love,
a criminal causes crime.
Children grow up,
and mothers grow old.
The air ever blows,
yet our lives eventually unfold.
Cessation.
Tag: time
-
The Legend of Zelda is a video game franchise where you play a silent-type heroic character clad in green, that fights the flood- wait! Wait waitwait, wrong franchise. Sorry. In the Legend of Zelda, you play as a character appointed by your commanding nation to quell the forces against your kind, harnessing little more than a trusted weapon, tiny blue lady with all the know-how, and copious amounts of courage and luck. Your name is the Ma- Link! Link- you play as Link. Man alive. Who knew the only two video game franchises I’d come to love would be so similar? I’ve already covered Halo in a previous thoughts piece I’ll link you to here, so no more of that.
Both franchises hold dear places in my heart for both their story and the time they came in my life. I started playing Halo in 2007, but before that, the Legend of Zelda inspired my every creative spark. When I look back at old comic books I made or just original art in general, they were almost all based off of the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
Back in 1998 when I was five years old, my older brother and I got a Nintendo 64 for Christmas. The first 3D Legend of Zelda game subtitled Ocarina of Time just came out that year at the end of November so we and millions of others including one of my best friends received it as a packaged deal for the system. It was the first time we got a gaming console. Other kids at this time had a Play Station, NES, or SNES, but to my brother and I, this was the genesis of gaming. We later received other games like Mario Kart and Super Sash Bros but for a long time the Legend of Zelda was all we had. (Side note before getting into it, I always called the game ‘Oricona’ of Time for some reason, and I always pronounced deku, ‘deeku.’ For a kid, the latter is sensible, but my mix-up of ocarina has no rhyme or reason to it. Anyway, back to it.)
I remember my brother and I being stuck in the Great Deku Tree dungeon for the longest time until our cousin solved a particular puzzle for us. Afterward, once defeating the dungeon’s boss and leaving our character’s home of Kokiri, we entered Hyrule field of the first time. Witnessing the expanse of land housed the same feeling of awe in me that Halo’s second mission did. All of a sudden, you were in the world, and nothing was going to be the same again. It reminds me of when I was younger and would walk to school. My elementary school was ONE block from my house, so at the time my whole world was very small. It wasn’t until like grade five that I started biking around the city with my friends, where for the first time I truly grasped the scope and scale of the world.
As one does, I eventually beat the game. I had beaten it before my older brother and best friend. I remember that being the first time I had really competed and won. On the day my brother made it to the end fight with Ganon, I sat there furious. He hit B, triggering the final blow animation, and I ripped out the power cord! Like that was going to permanently stop him from beating the game. Talk about childish and petty. Obviously he soon beat the game along with everyone else and life went on. A year later, Ocarina of Time’s sequel was announced! I begged to have it and when it came out, my parent’s obliged. At this point it was clear to my folks that I was obsessed. I went through an addiction phase with the N64 where I wouldn’t do my homework or let anyone else play, so my parent’s grounded me from it and I threw a full-on fit. These were the first signs that I had an addictive personality, but how could my parent’s have known that? Regardless, I started drawing my own dungeon maps and spin off story lines for Link. Then, Wind Waker came to the GameCube. I was at first appalled by their change of art design. It was cartoony now! Completely divorced from the first two 3D games’ ‘realistic’ art design. But my love was strong and I adjusted to it, quickly falling in love with the story it told. Years passed before the next game was announced at E3 2004. It was at the time untitled, but… the art design… it went for a more realistic look! And in that reveal trailer the camera panned over a land that looked just like Ocarina of Time’s Hyrule field. I remember watching that trailer over and over again, thinking, ‘is this the third game to Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask? Will it take place between then and Wind Waker, where Link returns to Hyrule? My mind was running wild! As we all know now, that wasn’t the case. It was its own standalone story in its own universe. Before this game, I didn’t even know the stories of any of the other games in the series, and didn’t know they all held the same names of characters but were otherwise not connected.
So now I shall cover all of the Legend of Zelda games as quickly as I can: The first game simply titled The Legend of Zelda came out in 1986. Since there are over 19 games, this first one will be the only story I dive into for the sake of levity.
A small kingdom in the land of Hyrule is engulfed by chaos when an army led by Ganon, the Prince of Darkness, invaded and stole the Triforce of Power, one part of a magical artifact which alone bestows great strength. In an attempt to prevent him from acquiring the Triforce of Wisdom, another of the three pieces, Princess Zelda splits it into eight fragments and hides them in secret underground dungeons. Before eventually being kidnapped by Ganon, she commands her nursemaid Impa to find someone courageous enough to save the kingdom. While wandering the land, the old woman is surrounded by Ganon’s henchmen, when a young boy named Link appears and rescues her. Upon hearing Impa’s plea, he resolves to save Zelda and sets out to reassemble the scattered fragments of the Triforce of Wisdom, with which Ganon can then be defeated.
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link came out in 1987 and is a direct sequel to the first game, taking place many years later. Then the third game, A Link to the Past came out in 1991. It’s a prequel to the first two games, and is directly followed by Link’s Awakening in 1993. Ocarina of Time came out in 1998 and is apparently a prequel that takes the story back many centuries; according to character designer Satoru Takizawa, it was meant to implicitly tell the story of the Imprisoning War from the manual of A Link to the Past, with Majora’s Mask in 2000 directly following its ending. (Another side note, there’s a YouTube video by The Game Theorist called Dear Nintendo, I FIXED Your Timeline! (Zelda) He goes over the whole timeline properly for those who like things done properly. So just keep in mind that although I’m covering the official Zelda timeline, it isn’t something the makers of the franchise actually planned to have.)
Next, Skyward Sword from 2011 is a prequel to Ocarina of Time. Twilight Princess which came out in 2006 is set more than 100 years after Ocarina of Time. The Wind Waker from 2002 is actually parallel to Twilight Princess, taking place in another timeline branch, which we’ll get into in a bit. Phantom Hourglass from 2007 is a direct sequel to Wind Waker and is followed by Spirit Tracks in 2009 which… is set about 100 years later with a different link on a supercontinent far away from the setting of The Wind Waker. So like… why? Why even make it a Legend of Zelda story? Why say they’re connected?! But I digress. Four Swords from 2002 for the Game Boy Advance was considered the oldest tale in the series’ chronology at the time of its release, with Four Swords Adventures released in 2004 set sometime after its events. The Minish Cap, also from 2004, preceded the two games. A Link Between Worlds which came out in 2013 takes place six generations after Link to the Past. Important events occur in the game include the Triforce being reunited, and Ganon being resurrected.
Nintendo’s 2011 timeline announcement subsequently posits that following Ocarina of Time, the timeline splits into three alternate routes: in one, Link fails to defeat Ganon, leading into the Imprisoning War and A Link to the Past, Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages, Link’s Awakening, The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link. In the second and third, Link is successful, leading to a timeline split between his childhood (when Zelda sends him back in time so he can use the wisdom he has gained to warn the Zelda in the past of the horrifying fate of Hyrule) and adulthood (where the Zelda from the future lives on to try and rebuild the kingdom). His childhood continues with Majora’s Mask, followed by Twilight Princess and Four Swords Adventures. The timeline from his adult life continues into Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks.
FINALLY, In 2017 Breath of the Wild came out, officially taking place after all previous games in the series (without specifying a connection to any of the three timelines), and moved Link’s Awakening to take place before Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages.
Now with all of that wiki timeline nonsense covered, the only games important to me were and are the console games. I understand if that makes me ignorant to other story beats but that’s where I’m at with the franchise. On that note I admit I’m not a super fan by any means. Even with the console games, I never played Skyward Sword which came out on the Wii. So for my own timeline, I know of Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, Breath of the Wild, and Link’s Awakening which just came out with a refreshed coat of graphics in 2019 on the Nintendo Switch.
Whether you’ve played every game, only some console games like moi, haven’t played any but watched family and friends play through them, haven’t played any but watched the cutscenes online, or only know of the games by name, the Legend of Zelda’s got a place for everyone. According to Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the franchise, one of his most memorable experiences as a young boy was the discovery of a cave entrance in the middle of the woods near his childhood home in Sonobe, Japan. After some hesitation, he apprehensively entered the cave and explored its depths with the aid of a lantern. Miyamoto has referred to the creation of the Zelda games as an attempt to bring to life a “miniature garden” for players to play with in each game of the series, and to me you can really feel that sense of adventure when you play.
Also a fun fact worth noting, Miyamoto named princess Zelda off of American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald’s wife. He’s stated that he thought the name sounded “pleasant and significant” and decided to pay tribute. Another fun fact! The inspiration for Link and his fairy came from Peter Pan and Tinker Bell. And finally, the Master Sword was inspired by Excalibur, which originates from the Arthurian Legend in the Welsh collection of Mabinogion.
The Legend of Zelda is a strategy game series that rewards players’ puzzle solving abilities with a rich story of good fighting evil, courage in the face of insurmountable odds, and love. The latest game announced is a yet untitled Breath of the Wild sequel, to come out for the Switch possibly in 2021. It is said that it will build atop the original’s world with a new story and gameplay elements, something inspired by Red Dead Redemption 2. What do you guys think of this series? What games have you played? What do you know about Link, Zelda, and Ganon? What do they mean to you? Are you curious to find out what happens next for these characters? Let me know! Thank you so much again for being here. I appreciate your time, I love y’as, and I’ll see you in next one.
-
In episode twenty-four of Thoughts, I go over time in all of its complicated simplicity as it draws us ever forward. Enjoy!
-
I race this high,
and I don’t know why.
It feels good,
anonymity of a hood.
My loved ones shan’t know,
like discovery of a cove.
Darkness shrouds it,
as the feeling clouds it.
Peace will not hide,
what the high surly finds.
It must have an end,
to this high I defend.
One day it will end,
and so until then,
catch me at the bend.
Peace churns,
where it burns.
Love yearns.
-
Perspective is in my opinion one of the most incredible assets any person can have. It gives the ability to fully actualize yourself in whatever way you see fit. And the thing about this claim, is that having perspective gives you your way of seeing. So you can’t even be in a situation where you’ll have unrealistic goals. Understanding who you are with an outside viewpoint, what your abilities and limits are, garners advantages to your own life.You happened to be born female, or male. White, black, Asian, or any other pigment set. You happened to be born into a religion or culture that you parents raised you with. You happened to be born in the country, and neighbourhood you were born into. You happened to go to school with people you now know as friends. You happened to have the brain you have, that makes you better at rhythm than problem solving; or better at math than social bonding.You were NOT by chance born into the body of a poverty-stricken North Korean. Or stray cat for that matter. You don’t happen to be a fly that lives for one day and then dies forever. You happen to have the most incredible opportunity on this planet, and at this time. To be a human in the year 2018 A.D.E., in a first world is pretty damn lucky. The vast majority of people take this fact for granted. People are surprisingly selfish when they don’t need to be, or focus on little things that upset their whole day when there are countless others around the world that would kill to be in their shoes.Now, once fully accepting this mindset as almost a world view, it can be used as a tool in everyday life. Most notably, to help direct your emotions, and thus your actions towards others. If you understand how shallow most emotions are, it becomes hard to hold onto them. Take road rage for example. Someone cuts you off and it triggers anger. How dare they so rudely assert their dominance over you! It could be, though, that they simply didn’t see you, or they had been cut off so many times that they had finally broke and did the same this once. Even if it WAS an alpha bro with his top down, just owning the road, it doesn’t hurt him for you to hold onto that anger he created. If your goal in life is to be happy, then the way to achieve that goal would be to forget your agitator and move on. Remember, after all, your aren’t currently dying from the Black Plague in the 1350’s.Using perspective releases your grip on your ego. It makes you more empathetic. Most can do this when enthralled in a movie or novel. You can relate to a character who is nothing like you when you lower your guard on identity and allow yourself to see what it’s like to step into another’s shoes. Lack of perspective is what made slavery so easy for early white settlers. If a slave owner woke up one day in the body of a black man or woman, owned to a farm, how do you think their experience would change them?Stay humble I say. Carry on chasing goals, for it is the meaning you make that is the meaning of life. Get that people are ignorant of your experiences, but that you too lack their life. So we should all listen, appreciate, and understand each other, short or tall, guy or girl, wealthy or poor; from every walk of life. We all got something going on. We all want love. We are all living our lives.
-
I have to start this by making sure everyone knows as a basic fact that we are all alone, at every moment, inside our heads. Now, with that being said I will begin with a question. When you imagine being alone, are you sad? Or are you relieved?
As an evolutionary fact we humans are social creatures. We rely on each other to survive, to thrive, and in general to be happy. We have family members, friends, and partners. It is part of our makeup, regardless if you are an introvert or extrovert.
The majority of people today are introverts. It may be because of technology. The convenience to do what you want, when you want makes it more appealing to not socialize. Why listen to songs you don’t absolutely love, or put yourself in potentially uncomfortable situations when you can just stay at home.
Personally, I love being alone. With that said, however, I also love to socialize. But being alone allows me the ability to write for hours without interruption, go to the gym, watch movies or do whatever else without having to break up a schedule or not do it at all. It is very selfish of me and I am aware of that. I understand the role parents put themselves in when they decide to try and conceive. It is a truly noble and selfless act. I am currently at a stage in my life where I haven’t fully grown up, and won’t until I sacrifice the freedom I currently indulge.
For many people that I know, being alone is boring and something to be avoided. It makes them sad when they don’t have people around. They can’t find the balance between socializing and isolation unless the latter is moments before sleep. As I stated earlier, I haven’t fully grown up, so I am still working on the balance. Some people go their whole lives either pushing people away, or clinging when it’s inappropriate because of this. Socialize too much, and you don’t know who you are when you’re alone. Spend too much time in your head, and you forget what it’s like to mingle with company. Both things are equally important.
Time spent alone allows the mind to breathe. It allows thought without criticism, creativity without backlash, and wonder without insecurity. Great positivity can flourish in these periods, but also great negativity. It is important to notice those around you that may be in a place of self-hatred or degradation. It was not the fault of every serial killer’s parents that they couldn’t have changed their son’s life around before it was too late, but perhaps to notice someone spending too much time alone, and pulling them out into the world might do them tremendous good. Life may be beautiful but it wasn’t meant to be stared at for ten years straight without any interaction.
We are bipedal primates that managed to create language to better interact with each other. We built civilization on the notion of betterment for all. If we were only meant to be alone, we would still be living in caves and grunting at passers-by. I find tremendous purpose in being alone for periods of time, to allow inspiration and relaxation to flow through me. I also base my life on society, and the interactions I have with the people in it. To my mom, siblings, extended family, close friends and the like, and to my girlfriend: I love you.
-
When did the sun leave me?
The dark is so sudden. It shocks by contrast of a stark blue glow.
The glow clicks and rattles quietly so as not to disturb those sleeping.
Global communities soothe away the edges.
It feels nice to hurt a little, be it a sting behind the eyes or a fuzzing down the spine.
The future is exciting in its mysterious way.
When did the sun meet me?
-
Vancouver is a nice place I hear. I’ve never been, is what I’m inferring. Though I’ve lived in this country of Canada for 25 years now, I’ve never traveled west of Ontario. However, there is a connection Vancouver now has with the city I was born and raised in: Burlington, and it is for what the nostalgia in me is screaming, not a good thing. If you were around ‘the Couve’ way back in 1975, you would have noticed a bunch of convenience stores crop up with the name ‘Mac’s Milk’. Forty years later and anyone raised in a suburban or urban area in Canada knows about Mac’s Milk. They went big, to say the least. I lived down the street from one and along-side Tim Hortons it was a Canadian staple in my mind. Convenience you have a name! I never bought milk from them, but slushies you bet’cha.
My childhood passed into young adulthood and my time hanging out in plazas faded away… I went off to school, returned and began working steady. No more time for Mac’s except for the old drunken journeys to chips land. It became a thing of the past… Then the other day I drove to Timmy’s for a double double and their sign was gone! I think to myself this just can’t be. Is business not going well for them or something? I remembered back some years when one of their other locations in Burlington closed due to something of that like. So now what’s this? Circle K?! It reeks of corporation. It’s simple to remember and the sign is easy on the eyes. If I were a child or simple-minded I’d love it.
Another one popped up down the road. There! Another one! What the heck, it’s more than just Mac’s Milk. What’s going on here? So I look into it, and to my utter lack of surprise, business stuff happened. Completely legitimate business stuff. Back in 2015, Mac’s Milk was bought out by Circle K. Okay. Along with other companies. This American giant had the big bucks; good for it. THEN, making complete sense looking back from the future, Circle K decided to switch all the names over. And guess in what city they began this implementation? THAT IS RIGHT, right down the road from yours truly. Now it all adds up, eh? How Vancouver connects to Burlington. From the left side of the country Mac’s began, and to the middle-right it fizzled out of existence. Nostalgia what have you done to me?
In the end I don’t really care, it was only at first. It was only when I first found out did I feel the pain of losing something I thought would be around long after I passed to the other side. It’s like a dog experiencing the loss of its owner. It doesn’t really know to do with itself. You were bigger than me Mac’s, and now you have been dissolved, fare thee well.
-
There are always two sides to things. There is this and that. There is me and them. There is will and won’t, is and isn’t. Here and there. Right and wrong. Will they, won’t they. How and haven’t. Why and why not. Two extremes; light and dark.
Dimorphism.
Males and females split things rather cohesively, except that there is a spectrum. Males can be very feminine and females can be very masculine. The fact that there are trans people, gay people and lesbians builds the blur in the ‘black and white’ structure, even without tom boys and metrosexuals. It doesn’t make things equal out but allows to broaden one’s horizon on duality.
If it were taken further, many believe in a split between body and self. My body is just the housing for my soul. That is not true to those who are knowledgeable on neurology. The self is a construct of the brain put in place to help survival. We are not a special person, we are many people in this play at life. But duality still exists.
Self; selfish intentions, building one’s ego, being a self-made whatever, (be it songwriter, engineer, salesman/woman, officer of the law, whatever,) develops meaning in one’s life. And we all do so through the thought that it is us, and them. Or us against them. You can’t trust the police. You can’t trust the government. You can’t trust anybody. We all lie to an extent unless your life is devoted to honesty; which individuals do here and there and usually destroy relationships they’ve had by doing so. But it’s end goal is towards accomplishments, which is again a self thing.
Separation exists for everyone, and it is important to note it, like it is important to note your diet, exercise, professional interactions and so on. We are all in this life right here and now, and there is duality in it. For those in intimate relationships there is a positive way to look at it. Your entire life is a story. It started when you were born and it will go on until you die; perhaps noted on long after. And the other is the other story, to be attached to your life the moment you two meet. Afterward, the two great lifelong stories become intertwined, and create one tale. Chapters separate perspective of each, but mingle in a cocktail of experiences lived, and maybe noted for longer more.
We live even in our own selves with this duality as we rope our own thoughts and beliefs and dreams together. Shall I? Shall I not? One more day. No more. Let them have it. Not this time. Just breathe deep. Time to blow. Life is art and art is life. This thing we are all doing, in conjunction with the rest of nature, is a beautiful thing even if at times troubling. Trek on I say. Make experiences, and make note of them. Do the best you can, and try to enjoy the ride while it’s happening.
-
I spend nights alone. I spend days with friends, only sometimes. Days pass. Nights crawl. My hobbies lie, and parents spy. Who’s that? A face. A name. A friend. She’s cute, but no way, taken. Her name is Hope, Forsaken. I see trouble, no, prosperity from lonely. We develop, like film. Feel the screen. Hear me scream.
He’s nice, but… Nice. Nothing, nothing. Fun. Play. Here and, wait.
…
…
There I was. Here I am. In and now. Back again.
Back again. Yes. Future slaps fate, past -haps mate. We are who we are, and nothing more. Why me? How now?
I’m more than that. I’m more than fate. We are more than mistakes. We find miss plates. And life is more than love and scrapes… Rooms are a collection of our lives. Spring is inside. Sigh a relief of calm delight, and say goodnight.
-
There was once a naive wish that was lost.
The wish, was that we lived in a world where it was easier for everyone to express themselves without fear of holding back, instead of the world we live in now where we tow the line. The social psychology of humanity today is the same as it was hundreds of thousands of years ago. It revolves around reactions to and from each other in a game of trust, for the sake of survival and survival of kin.
You are beautiful,
you are kind,
you are very talented,
and really really cool.
You also have a big heart and good intentions.
The majority of people are selfish and shitty, the wish-giver lamented in the back of their mind. Intentions are usually always so damn selfish. If only we knew what the other thought. But now there’s the problem. No one knows how the other person or people in an engagement truly feel; unless their face is pale and their chest lunges forward.
And how can we?
Intentions constantly change so even if you were feeling one way about someone, the next moment you could not. It’s hard to trust someone, to go all in when the other person seems like they may not. So people give hints, little looks, but remain casual. In the end you can only ever guess, that not only you know what YOU’RE feeling, but that when you look at someone and catch something in their eye, your intuition is heading you in the right direction.
Wouldn’t it be sublime if people spoke directly regarding their intentions? Maybe sadly maybe not, this is not the world we live in. Terrible things exist… violence, theft, cheating, rape, murder. Deceits in every sense for a selfish goal. There are psychopaths and sociopaths performing most treacherous actions to be sure, but for the rest of it, so many people let their emotions build up in a trail of negative thoughts that lead down roads of destruction. Only in retrospect do people look back and regret their decisions.
I’m sorry I don’t compliment you enough or treat you like a lady.
I shouldn’t have said that about your brother, I didn’t mean it.
Okay, take the kids, I- I’m sorry.
Well you weren’t there for me when I needed you most!
How could I have known…
Where do we even start to pick up the pieces?
I don’t even know why I lied about that.
The future moves, and society heads forward. We learn more and more about how we are with each other, and the specifics about right and wrong. Maybe things will never change between people. Maybe we can find a way to be more truthful and honest, even when it hurts.
Time will tell.
-
We humans came from such deep seeded life… We came from single-celled organisms, to multi-cellular. From that, to plant and animal life. We evolved from aquatic, to insect, reptile and mammal life. Mammals evolved from rodents to primates. There they continued, to complex structuring; being thumbs, and using tools, to shedding of fur. Culture out of tribes led to civilization, religion, and other power structures; power based from the fact that we are social creatures.
And here we are today, constantly trying to better our past ways, and build a more stable future. There’s a long way to go, but take time to appreciate how far we’ve come and how lucky we are. It’ll always be time well spent.
The Joe Van 