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1. I am a scientific thinker.
Perhaps the most predominant questions in my mind begin with the phrase "What if...?" Whether I'm self-aware of it or not, my brain is constantly forming hypothetical scenarios about the world around me, about the games I play, and about the stories I create. I mull over the possibilities of different experiments that could be applied to whatever it is I'm thinking of and what the potential results could mean. When I have the chance to apply these experiments, I do; when I don't have the time or resources to apply them, I instead find myself diving into research to rewrite my "What if?" into a genuine hypothesis. And when I research, good lord, do I research.
Because I think scientifically, I tend to believe that almost everything has an explanation and can be broken down to its most basic components. This stems beyond science and drives how I approach subjects like math, foreign language, and literary analysis. On the question of religion, my method of thinking has led me to be agnostic -- there could be a god, but I feel I require more than just faith to believe in one. Beliefs are, in a way, cheap; you can't know something is true without believing in it, but you can believe in something without knowing if it's true. This is not to say that I have any bias against people who are religious in any capacity because, in spite of what seems to be a great increase of contempt for religion in America, faith can just as easily nest hope and a sense of belonging as it can nest intolerance and bigotry.
Before you think that my world is all analysis and numbers, however, I wish to vouch that it is quite the opposite. I am not just a scientific thinker; rather, I am a scientific thinker and...
2. I am an artistic thinker.
It's common for someone to associate themselves as a left-brained or right-brained individual; when I ask people which they feel they are more, I almost never hear "both" as an answer. The first trait I listed defines how I approach things and what drives a lot of my actions. In this sense, one could easily mistake me for a primarily left-brained individual. But this doesn't define how I feel. When it comes to how I view the world inasmuch as feelings are concerned, and how I wish to express how I feel so that others may experience it too, the right half of my brain takes command.
This world is beautiful. How it functions is beautiful. Even that which we affiliate with the negative, such as illness and disaster and death, have inherent qualities that, in my mind's eye, carry their own form of grace. At the same time, however, this world and everything in it can be horrendous and disgusting. When I'm not asking myself "What if...?", I'm asking myself "What is...?" To me, everything, every process, that which we perceive in our universe, has a personality of its own. Fossils. Eraser shavings. Newtonian mechanics. Everything.
That is how I see the world. It's exciting, for better or worse, and since I was small I've had a certain preference for how I wish to express how I see such ordinary, extraordinary things. This leads me to my third trait...
3. I am a poet.
In this case, "poet" is a more broad term; I am not, nor have I ever been, a poet in the sense that I only write poems. Rather, I am a poet in that when I write, even in prose, I write to express a feeling or engage my readers in a sensation. Though I can be a clinical and analytic writer when I need to be (as I'm sure most of my scientific-minded peers would be annoyed if I demonstrated the results of my research with an ode to mitosis), when I'm writing for myself, it's poetry. Even my short stories and novels are poetry.
Much of my writing, story-based or otherwise, stems from an intricate embrace between the scientific and artistic aspects of my brain. I incorporate much of my research and general things I've learned into my work to add a sense of realism to it, even when it comes to describing the extraterrestrial and the supernatural. As far as description goes, that is where writing turns into a craft. As I write, there's an excitement in my fingertips that's just dying to get out -- excitement for the stories and questions and answers I like to pose after much time deliberating "What if...?" and "What is...?" Whether this conveys something as comic, tragic, beautiful, or grotesque depends strictly on how I craft, and ambiguity will also always have it's place. Nothing is simple, and everything is connected. Juxtaposed, even.
Many of the rules that govern my imagined worlds, however, stem from my fourth trait...
4. I am an evolutionary biologist.
I don't just believe wholeheartedly in the theory of evolution. I breathe it. My favorite games (especially the Creatures series) are almost entirely life simulators where I can set up a stock supply of organisms and leave them alone to interact among themselves -- just to see what happens and take note of what I observe. The moment I create a new species for my fictional stories, I immediately start researching how they could be biologically possible and create a "study" of how they work, followed soon after by hypotheses as to how natural selection has created them in the world they live in. Hell, I do this even with pre-established mythical creatures (ex: angels, satyrs, etc.) -- perhaps not the natural selection part, but certainly the part that involves creating a biological study... and oftentimes a metaphysical one, too, should things like magic and manna be involved. My inner nerd is so strong that I can happily browse Wikipedia for hours, clicking through articles of different animals or geologic time periods or human emotions or what have you, completely engrossed by things that relate to this beautiful theory. I've even made a few theories of my own just from the intense amounts of research I've done for fun.
When I first entered college, I had my eyes set on getting a degree in Evolutionary Biology and Ecological Studies -- or, as the school humorously shortened it, as an "Evo-Eco" major. This is no longer the case, as at present I'm in the School of Humanities for a major in Creative Writing and a minor in Spanish. This does not, however, make me any less of an evolutionary biologist to the bottom of my heart. My love of the subject did not change, though the School of Biological Sciences left me feeling pressured under a stampede of Pre-Meds and ultimately made someone who simply loves the subject feel unwelcome. So far, the School of Humanities is proving a much more accepting environment for a person like me. But I digress.
Ever since I was a four year old and pondered over why a snail could move without any legs, I've been enamored with how animals work and how they came to work in the ways they do. About this subject especially, but also for many others, I maintain an open ear and mind for new innovations in research. But this is not the only thing I am open-minded about...
5. I am tolerant.
To me, the measure of human intelligence and reason is not necessarily restricted or enhanced by gender, sexual preference, race, religion, or even certain neurological disorders (ex: ADD, autism, etc.). In many cases, speaking to people whose brains are different from my own and listening to differences of opinion, no matter how grand or slight, can yield amazing insights. So long as my opinions are treated with respect and I do not have contrary opinions shoved down my throat, I will be more than happy to discuss and debate just about anything, and I will try to express my own opinions and line of reasoning clearly and thoughtfully. I love to hear of new opinions and learn from new perspectives. You never know when someone will say something that will redefine the way you think!
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Now that you know the kind of person I am in terms of how I function and view the world, I believe it is safe for me to list off some other facts about me. Now I go into the little details, and this list is subject to change and expansion, but here are a couple of more minor things about me:
- I am a cat person
- I love watching Vauce
- I brain goes on walkabout frequently and, as such, I can be a bit of a spacehead... don't be afraid to poke me if I don't seem to be listening
- If I don't respond to a spoken question immediately, it's because I'm processing how to approach my answer; it's not that I'm clueless
- I try to eat vegan or vegetarian food options when applicable, but I'm in no way strict
- My favorite TV shows are Avatar: The Last Airbender and Teen Titans
- My favorite games are Creatures (the whole series), Spore, Petz (the computer games), Dungeon Keeper II, and practically every game in the main Pokemon series
- My favorite books are Cosmos by Carl Sagan, Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, and The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
- I hope to add Steve Grand's books, Creation: Life and How to Make It and Growing Up with Lucy, to my favorite books roster soon!
- Steve Grand, Carl Sagan, and Neil deGrasse Tyson are a few of my idols
- Two of my other favorite sciences are astronomy and geology
- I adore the Spanish language and am fascinated by the cultures of Spanish-speaking countries.
In regards to that last one, I actually have a Spanish version of this blog, titled "Un huerto contemplativo." Since I'm learning Spanish as a second language, I'm bound to make plenty of mistakes as I strive for fluency (and I'm a bit sad that I can't make such a delightful pun its title). If you speak Spanish, though, or if you're learning Spanish, feel free to check it out. I'm always open for corrections on grammar and syntax!
Thank you very much for stopping by. Feel free to leave a comment on a blog post if you have any questions for me.
Yours,
The Orchardist
