For the uninitiated, the word gosu supposedly means "pro" in Korean. It's mainly used to Battle.net to denote players of significant skill.
I have a confession to make. The phrase "spot genius early and foster it" drove me to write this.
I value being young and proficient.
I originally used the word talent in place of proficient, but that isn't it. I think there's a lot to be said about people who are young and good at something. Because what other options are there? Being old and increasingly bad at something? Age is known for its effects on people's skills. They begin to forget. Or their reflexes aren't as sharp. All they have is wisdom, but I don't put too much investment into wisdom in arenas other than the human condition. I'm such a difficult human to deal with, but my wise friends and teachers put me in place, but nothing else.
That's all a digression from the real issue at hand. So what else is there? Being young and stupid? Unacceptable. Kids who aren't good at anything (and there's plenty of them) annoy the shit out of me. That's why I don't like children in general. But, there are a few well-spoken individuals who I would love to spend time with. There's also being old and good at something, but it's a matter of opportunity and accessibility. Opportunity, in general, goes down as one gets older. It's just not as fun as a fogey.
Being young and gosu signifies the opposite of being denied opportunity. All doors are open for young people. Me, I'm only 21. I've already graduated from college. But I think I'm a fogey now... I feel like there's not a lot left for me to do. Hanging out with adults has been a real drag lately. They're, on the whole, extremely lame. They don't dream as much as children do. And they're tied down by life's complexities. Which is why I'd like to make it a point to always remain cool, or try to at least, and simplify life as time goes on. As one friend said to me, each person is a burden. Or some sort of commitment. Or a time-eater. Choose your friends carefully, because you don't want your time eaten away, or spent poorly.
Sometimes I think how awesome it would be to be a teacher. In light of teachers or professionals that just suck at what they do, I certainly think I could do a better job. Although, come to think of it, I do remember how much I hate managing on the whole, which is why I love second seat. I just crit (criticize) when the big cheese messes up. Haha.
Anyway, yeah. Being young and gosu means a lot to me... I guess since I'm not young anymore, it only meant so much to me. More than once, older crowds have told me that I've acted well beyond my years, my age. I'm sure my parents would disagree, citing how immature I act at home. Touche, but I'd rather not talk about my home life...
I graduated from college early. In a blaze of glory. If you look at my transcript, there's a ton of failures on it. Yes, there is a method to prevent things like that from showing up, and it's called withdrawl. But I'm a proud individual and I was too proud to withdraw. That's my guess.
I analogate (?) my college career as to a man with a shot gun. I got through school as fast as possible, causing a lot of collateral damage along the way. But, in the school of Max OK (maximum overkill), what's done is done. In Final Fantasy Tactics, as I say to a team with no revival techniques, a kill is a kill.
I don't like talking about myself or tooting my own horn (only twice on weekends), but yeah, I guess people have pointed out how young I am and how I completed college so fast. Actually, I wanted to rub it in the fast of all of my high school classmates, but I don't keep up with anyone, so it's hard to gloat when there's no one to gloat to.
I'm 21 now. I can drink. I guess you could classify me as an adult. But, each day as an adult just provides dissatisfaction with life. You real world peeps really know how to bring a guy down... I've made silly promises like trying to keep my vocabulary as juvenile as possible. By the way, on promises, I try to not make any. I don't like promises because I'm adept at breaking them. So I'll never promise anyone anything.
I believe talent and youth should be treasured as much as possible. I believe the population in general could be challenged more. Find out what you really know, because knowledge is power and accessibility.
I dream of starting a school for young people. Well, I guess the concept of schools in general caters to young people. A school for Gundam soldiers, assassins, and Renaissance artists. Is there really a male equivalent of Charlie's Angels?
So, that's my confession. Talent already does it for me. But young people with skill, you had me at hello.
Posted by Mark Canlas at November 24, 2005 12:40 PM