deskthority

You guys remember how I've been looking for a unique name for 2 years and posted about it a few months ago, right? Well, I've finally settled on an excellent concept to base my name around. I will explain this in great detail below.

At the end of the school year, my European history teacher made us view a film and read a book to burn away the last 3 weeks. The film was entitled "Life Is Beautiful" and the book was "The Stranger". The two works discussed completely opposing themes and world views. LIB showed how even the worst of situations could be made positive, and The Stranger showed how every situation was ultimately meaningless. In the months prior to this, I was having dramatic mood swings between the two views, and only realized it after we read/watched the book/film. Looking back, I don't really know why I felt so empty and negative such a large percentage of the time…it was just a phase. I did have issues with school (I was under a ton of pressure), but no reason to feel so bad. There were many, many times when this feeling of meaninglessness was so great that I even considered suicide. The Stranger made me realize what I was feeling, and more importantly, it made me realize that it was absolutely idiotic. Things weren't meaningless, just difficult. And I wanted to get away from that difficulty. So, I suppose I take it back: I know exactly why I felt the way I did. But I learned from that. I realized that even a well-off, lucky teenager like myself could feel on-top-of-the-world one day, and then feel astonishingly depressed the next day. It was all part of life. Life has its different colors… some days you're grey, some days you're bright.

This concept of "colors" of life wasn't forged just through the above experience. If anything, it only added meaning and clarity to a concept I'd made earlier. The exact situation that gave rise to my concept is one I've long forgotten. It probably doesn't even exist; it probably wasn't one situation. It was probably a stray thought that gained force through many experiences like the one above. But I believe it was last made aware to me with the revival of Beyblade earlier this year. I was big into Beyblade back when it was popular (2010-2012), and was reminded of it when Beyblade Burst (2015) was announced. I went back on YouTube and was reminded of the different emotions I felt during the anime (which, despite having a basic plot-line, was somehow awesome), emotions often shared by the characters. Characters' Beys always had auras based on the character's personality. L-Drago was purple while Ryuga was evil, but after he overcame the evil in his heart and became purely hungry for power (still sounds evil, I know. But he really did become a good guy. Kinda like Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z), L-Drago's aura became Red. I also noted the beauty of special edition Beys. I've honestly never seen better color combos. Go google some right now; they honestly look amazing. Despite seeming weak to those that haven't experienced it, this example truly did teach me the power of colors for the expression of emotions.

This thought is by no means unique. I recently noticed that the Lantern Corps of the DC Universe (Green Lanterns etc…) are all based on the different colors of the "emotional color spectrum".

Later on in the summer, I encountered a game which further strengthened my understanding of this concept. It did an excellent job of illustrating the crookedness of man amongst other things. It's incredibly rich in story, almost like the Walking Dead (video game), only much more believable. Being a high school student, it was also much easier for me personally to relate to. I can't really put the game into words. It was just so spectacular. I highly recommend that all of you, whether you consider yourselves to be gamers or not, play this master piece. At least watch a play-through of it if nothing else. If, after watching the linked trailers, you're wondering why I included a paragraph on this, let me explain. The concept of "The Colors of Life" is not about life's beauty. No, it is about life's diversity. It's about how one day can be spectacular and the next abyssal. It's about the abstract emotions life can exhibit: happiness, joy, pain, anger, ecstasy etc. , and the literal colors that can symbolize them. Life can be different all the time… and you'll find that life is often strange. This other part wad the discovery of a symbol for my concept. And I had the perfect one: The Phoenix. It's been a symbol of life for as long as I can remember. A symbol of resurrection, of never giving up, of picking yourself up after you've fallen down. My particular version of the Phoenix mixes versions from Harry Potter and Pokemon. The way I see it, the ideal Phoenix exists in Harry Potter. It provides healing and life, along with comfort and loyalty. Add to that the beautiful colors and you've got yourself a winner. Ho-Oh from Pokemon is a symbol of guidance and persistence that also has beauty in the form of the colors of the rainbow. It also adds power to the mix. But the physical features of neither bird are important. It is the characteristics of both that I love. Back to the Beyblade AMVs, there is one that somehow puts all of this into action. It features a man, by the name of Phoenix (in the dub) who's life was ruined by the very man he is fighting. But rose up under this new identity. And he absolutely refuses to lose this time around. If you find it hard to look past the logos and poor animation, the song, "Awake and Alive" by Skillet should still say everything: So those are my two defining concepts. The Colors of Life and The Phoenix. They summarize me in an entirety. Now I just need a name that summarizes them…

I can honestly say, I've never met anyone who cares as much as you do about on online handle.

Use a random word generator, or phrase generator.

Use random numbers.

Use words that don't have a direct meaning in english.

Pick two and flip a coin!

Like Shakespeare said: "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" so be a rose, or Rosa floribunda 'Europeana' either way, you are still you.

To be completely honest: No flippin' way! Not now that I'm so close. I'd rather stick with Ace than use a generator…

Ace wrote: ↑To be completely honest: No flippin' way! Not now that I'm so close. I'd rather stick with Ace than use a generator…

If you insist on missing the point I was making... You are still you, regardless of your name.

Use Fenix, it's pronounced the same, but different enough to be recognizable.

SL89 wrote: ↑I can honestly say, I've never met anyone who cares as much as you do about on online handle.

Use a random word generator, or phrase generator.

Use random numbers.

Use words that don't have a direct meaning in english.

Pick two and flip a coin!

Like Shakespeare said: "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" so be a rose, or Rosa floribunda 'Europeana' either way, you are still you.

Right, like I said before; you're overdoing it.

Having read you guys before I dug into Ace's opening post, I can see that this isn't about a name at all. Names are arbitrary. Just like all the other nouns in every language. There's no fundamental meaning to them that transcends rote memorisation. Yet we've always wanted to believe otherwise. Writing was magic. Knowing a name was to command power over the object, or person. There's something thoroughly irrational about the way we're hooked up at the deepest level, which retains its magic no matter how much we fight it. Says the man who read a lot of Jung in his youth!

Anyway, Ace, I think you're barking up the wrong tree here. You're looking for some deeper meaning, specifically symbolism, in your life and you've chosen to do it amongst a bunch of folk who're here to talk about keyboards. I don't think you'll find what you seek in our midst. It's not the sort of thing well conveyed in forum prose.

Keep watching and reading the things that affect you. Art is the way. Consuming it and maybe stepping up and making it yourself. A name is but a handle. You've got to find some means of expression with greater bandwidth to convey what you wish to say.

SL89 wrote: ↑I can honestly say, I've never met anyone who cares as much as you do about on online handle.

+1!

I need a handle, man. I don't have an identity until I have a handle.

sth wrote: ↑I need a handle, man. I don't have an identity until I have a handle.

I thought your handle was this:

http://deskthority.net/off-topic-f10/st ... t8080.html

seebart wrote: ↑

sth wrote: ↑I need a handle, man. I don't have an identity until I have a handle.

I thought your handle was this:

http://deskthority.net/off-topic-f10/st ... t8080.html

nonono its a quote from the greatest movie of the 90s (from the youngster on the bottom left)

FenixAllAboutThatUpstrokeCherryRedBro

Fenix is a shitty name. Needs another e to sound like the bird. Peenix: much better.

Uh…

Next step, Kleenex?

Kleenix.

Peenix?

All together now!

I wish I was an Oscar Mayer weiner…

Fenix is also a flashlight brand. Not that unique.

bhtooefr wrote: ↑ Flashlight brand.

I don't dare to ftfy.

You seem to be in the not so uncommon situation of a young person confronted to becoming an adult.
Instead of trying to find a new handle reflecting what this means to you,
I would suggest you do something completely different.
Change your haircut for example, or the way you shape letters when handwriting,
start listening to music you haven't considered yet (e.g. Vivaldi if you're into AC/DC, or vice versa),
try origami, juggling, astronomy, versifying…

If a new name would help, you wouldn't be searching for it, but would have stumbled upon it.

Mr. Chocolate Mood gets it. I was going to mention the idea of putting your creative energies into designing a richly symbolic tattoo (which many of my friends did at that age) but Kbdfr's probably wiser, bearing in mind the consequences! Life changes, the tat remains the same.

Fun story: a teenage communist friend of mine (these days he's a thirty-something socialist) decorated himself with hammers, sickles, pentagrams and portraits of Lenin and Che. When he later went to Cuba, no one could take him seriously. They're so used to all that bullshit there he was as dumb looking as a clown wearing corporate brands all over his arms is for us. He shrugged it off. "Counter revolutionary bastards."

Echoing what was said last time and was mentioned by the chocolate bar; if you need a new name, you'll have to find it yourself not let some other folks pick one for you. Also, why do you care so much about what your online handle is? After all the beauty of the Internet is that you can change your name... I don't know how many names I've carried online over the years. Once I grow tired of one, I change. I've used Khers for a bit now though, guess it comes with age...

wtf

My designation is now 63DFA62A-B653-4E00-83F3-4792C5B41414. It is a pleasure to meet you, fellow humans.

I had a vision. I think I have come up with The Supreme, Ultimate, Universally Ideal Name, for All People, in All Cultures, Ever, and Forever. Period. Be the first to grasp perfection! Behold!


Chester Fudgewilly.

Chester Fudgewilly has an alter ego called little mongo. Chester's cat is named Jabberwokky and he drives a ford pinto in cranberry purple Haze. Can you dig it? I don't know about the name Mu? Its really too old school for ace. How about ace: pet detective?

Now that Jim Carrey is getting on a bit, I'd actually quite like to see middle aged man sequels to his various films, with a darker sense of humour. Just think of where Ventura would be by now!

Yes those movies would probably be awesome. I saw him on that Jerry Seinfeld show recently, he's still got it. He's the man.

Muirium wrote: ↑Having read you guys before I dug into Ace's opening post, I can see that this isn't about a name at all. Names are arbitrary. Just like all the other nouns in every language. There's no fundamental meaning to them that transcends rote memorisation. Yet we've always wanted to believe otherwise. Writing was magic. Knowing a name was to command power over the object, or person. There's something thoroughly irrational about the way we're hooked up at the deepest level, which retains its magic no matter how much we fight it. Says the man who read a lot of Jung in his youth!

Anyway, Ace, I think you're barking up the wrong tree here. You're looking for some deeper meaning, specifically symbolism, in your life and you've chosen to do it amongst a bunch of folk who're here to talk about keyboards. I don't think you'll find what you seek in our midst. It's not the sort of thing well conveyed in forum prose.

Keep watching and reading the things that affect you. Art is the way. Consuming it and maybe stepping up and making it yourself. A name is but a handle. You've got to find some means of expression with greater bandwidth to convey what you wish to say.

Just wanted to say that your words here really affected me. I've been doing the things that others suggested (Ex. The trying new music thing. I've gotten into Emo, Rock, Punk, and even Metal over the course of a year. I just see all of it as emotional. Or as I described it in my opening paragraph, "Colorful"). But those things never seemed too great. They never really seemed as powerful as my thoughts. I've long dreamed that I could be freer than my body allowed.

Sounds cliche, I know. But I'm serious. When I was younger, I would watch Pokemon. There was one scene where the main character passed out and "Ghost Poekmon" (ghosts…) lifted his soul out of his body and took him elsewhere. Scene: EP023
I've always thought how cool that's be. To go anywhere and explore anything you normally could, but so much faster, and unnoticed?

I've also wished that I could read and write information faster than I can. There's so much information out there. Like what you said: "Keep reading and watching what affects you". But there just isn't enough time. I wish I could read much faster than I can. And the same goes for putting information down onto a page or computer. I can't draw at all, but the pictures that pop up in my head are so astounding (I think they'd be) that I wish I could just stick my finger into the USB drive and drop the photo in there. I just feel so limited because of my… well, limitations!

But recently I found something like what you guys suggested: Writing.
Creating my own art like you suggested, right? Nay! It's already been there sitting in my mind. I've just finally found a way of getting it out.

But I still want a name. I'm thinking a bit more basic now, though.