On Having Places to Be and What It Is to Be
Younger me often looked out
the window of a Volvo station-wagon
well past its years
beaten and broken
as it chugged along numerous American highways
where trees and grass and crops and
life itself
littered themselves aside the road
each with no place to be
and just as mere scenery.
Younger me often looked out
the window of a Volvo station-wagon
questioning if
the trees and grass and crops and
life itself
knew its place
knew it was sitting at the side of a road
as scenery
while vehicles…
An Ekphrasis of Café Terrace at Night by Vincent van Gogh
The veil of night has only just draped itself upon the town.
Warm, soft light illuminates the window panes of densely-packed buildings, creating a mural of glowing yellow rectangles upon dark blue walls as far as the eye can see.
Chimneys and smokestacks protrude and stand above the rooftops as if frightened meerkats.
The bell tower of the town looms ominously in the far distance, peeking over the roofs and chimneys of the city.
He is a regal and watchful monarch surveying the subjects of his realm.
Light dances…
“At the end of everything, hold onto anything”
Sitting quietly, minding its own business somewhere in my Steam library is a quaint little game named Night in the Woods. Its promotional art features cute little animal people, with a captivating style that makes it almost like a child’s book. At first glance, it’s easy to overlook Night in the Woods as just happy-go-lucky indie game. However, there’s a lot going on under the surface, which also happens to speak to one of the game’s core themes.
Night in the Woods leverages a familiar yet mystifying setting filled with thoughtful art design and a believable, character-driven story that establishes…
Bias is inescapable. Instead of running from it, learn to recognize it and wield it properly!
Throughout my life as a writer, I have heard the advice to “remain unbiased” in my writing many times. To be unbiased is often seen as one of the ultimate goals of the writer, and this is especially true for journalists.
While a writer should never supply their readers with false information, nor should they let their prejudice tell an unfair story, the complete avoidance of all bias is also a mistake. …
Apple’s policies are horrendous, but Epic Games’ creation of their own false narrative shouldn’t go unnoticed.
On August 13th, 2020, Epic Games implemented a permanent discount on V-bucks, the primary paid currency in their hit game Fortnite. With discounts of up to 20 percent on purchases, this move generated quite a bit of good publicity and hubbub for Fortnite and its distributor, Epic Games.
This move came with a rather large cost. On the very same day, Apple took Fornite off the App Store for “violating the App Store guidelines that are applied equally to every developer and designer to…
“He looks to current politically relevant stories for his easel, and dull disconnection as his paintbrush.”
Most individuals who pay attention to even a smidgen of the art world will recognize the piece depicted to the left. Balloon Girl is a picture of a small child letting go of a heart shaped balloon, which has been adapted into many different forms by the artist, Banksy. The street art is simple stencil, but the impact of the image is non-negligible, with this street art rated as Britain’s favorite piece of artwork in 2017.
What makes Banksy so important?
Banksy is praised for his ability to create…
When your customers are entire countries and humanity-at-large, you simply cannot disregard human rights.
Technology is evolving. That’s no surprise. From the world wide web to self-driving cars, all the way to the eventual onset of artificial intelligence (AI), we are living in a time where, now, more than ever, technology drives societal change and influences normality. Specifically, big technology companies such as Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon seem to be collectively strapped into the driver’s seat when it comes to their technologies’ influence on society.
In a world where money talks, it would seem natural that these multinational companies place a large emphasis upon financial growth, and with that, upholding terms of service…
Recently, I’ve seen a lot of articles and discussions mentioning the idea of ‘optimistic nihilism.’ Reading about this newfangled philosophy, I’ve reached a simple conclusion. These folks need to read Camus!
Before I go on my whole Camus-influenced rant, I think it’s important to define these terms at play. After all, what is nihilism, and why are people making a big deal about attaching the word ‘optimistic’ to it?
The cliche question: what is the meaning to life?
Nihilists believe the answer to the question, “what is the meaning to life?” is simple: life has no meaning. There is no inherent meaning to the universe. The pursuit of meaning…
Brad Plizga
Philosophy Student at Rochester Institute of Technology. I write/write about: Poems, Philosophy, Games, Art, Music, and anything I can wrap my brain around.
