fandomhigh | Build Your Own Philosophy, Period 2, 2/15/10

The board read:

Fortune ... displays her might where there is no organized strength to resist her, and directs her onset where she knows that there is neither barrier nor embankment to confine her. -- Machiavelli

Ino's flowers were in a vase on Tyler's desk, and he seemed to be in a good mood as he waited for the class to come together.

"Housekeeping first," he announced. "Next week is Spring Break. Week after that, you'll be handing in midterm papers and discussing them in class. Your assignment is to pick one philosopher or writer we talked about in class and write a short paper discussing how you agree or disagree. You have two weeks to do that; I'm sure you can all handle it."

God, he sounded like a real teacher.

"We're spending our last week with Machiavelli this week, and we're talking about luck -- fortune. Basically, what Machiavelli is saying is that luck is important, but you have to know how to control your luck. The example he gives is that you can't make it so it won't flood. Floods happen all the time. Not anybody's fault, unless you want to waste time blaming God. But if you're smart and you've built floodwalls while it's dry, you can make it so nobody dies during the flood."

"The point he's making is that if you're a ruler, you have to be able to adjust to the things you can't control if you want to stay in charge. It might seem obvious, but there have always been people who want to lay it all on the fates -- fortune, luck, God, whatever you want to cal it -- and not recognize they can make their own luck."

"Your exercise today is this: Think about something that's happened to you, through sheer chance. Can be an invasion, can be who your parents are, whatever. And talk to a partner about how you can 'build floodwalls' to turn whatever it is into something you can manage. Now, this isn't therapy hour. Nobody has to share more than they want to. If you can't think of a personal example, one from history is fine."

"Let's go."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"It was that sort of day yesterday," she noted cheerfully. "Flowers everywhere for everyone and all of that. Maybe they thought it a good time to join in the fun?"

"If somebody was going to send flowers, Valentine's Day would be a good day for it," Tyler agreed. "Did you get any worth talking about?"

Ino went a bit pink at that.

"Got a bunch from friends," she said, because telling Tyler-sensei that the number of roses Zack had got her said he was infatuated with her was a bit, well, not going to happen. They were Just Friends, anyway. "And one from someone who I'm not sure if it was supposed to go to me. You wouldn't say someone was a wonderful friend when you'd talked to them, like, twice, right?"

Tyler could read Ino well enough to tell there was something going on there, but he was the worst person on the island to ask for romantic advice so he ignored it.

Anyhow, her question was distracting.

"Not unless they saved my life during the conversations, no." He shrugged. "Maybe it's cultural."

Being just friends didn't need romantic advice anyway, totally. That was her story and she was sticking to it.

Ino giggled. "I don't think, um, arguing with them and then clearing the air with 'em counts as a wonderful friend, no? Though I guess it might be cultural, that's true..."

"Or maybe the person has a crush and sent you the friends card to test the waters," Tyler suggested. "But no, that doesn't sound like an incredibly close bond to me."

...

"A crush," she repeated blankly.

Karla had a crush on her? Possibly? Maybe? Um. Um.

"Um. I, uh, that's an interesting theory," Ino said, trying not to flail at him. "But what if it's true?"

And somehow this came back to romantic advice anyway.

And now Tyler was going to assume Karla had a crush (not that he knew her name), entirely because it amused him.

"Then you either date the person, or you let him or her down gently," Tyler said, biting the inside of his mouth so he wouldn't smile. "What would you do if the person just said 'gee Ino, I think you're swell, want to go see a movie?'"

"I'd think they were making fun of me or playing a joke or something," Ino confessed, fidgeting. "Wouldn't take it that seriously?"

Gah. Her. Karla. Gaaah. What was she supposed to do?

"Then don't take the flower that seriously," Tyler advised. "If they were trying something out, they'll try again. If it was just some weird cultural thing or a mix-up, you haven't embarrassed yourself or anyone else."

"That's going to make me paranoid if they so much as look at me," she said, unable to not snicker at herself. "I--yeah. Um. I can totally pretend the flower is--just a flower."

Well, she could try.

"And just... thank them politely if they ask if I got it, right? Pretend I know nothing else 'bout intentions or nothing."

"A flower is just a flower," Tyler said, bobbing his head. "No need to make it some big thing if it wasn't meant as one."

"But if you don't know what it was meant for then it's totally possible it is a big thing," she said, looking a bit dubious.

And a bit amused. If nothing else, figuring it out would keep her busy.

"Guess I'll just have to see, yeah?" Ino grinned up at him. "Thanks for the advice."

"Thanks for the flowers," Tyler returned. "And let me know if it does turn into a big thing."

... totally nosy, yes.

Ino just laughed.

"I'll keep you updated if anything happens," she promised. "Talk to you later!"

Build Your Own Philosophy, Period 2, 2/15/10

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