Meet the Author, S4B0T4G3FIRE
by S4B0T4G3FIRE | November 27, 2020, 8:00 AM EST
I have written about many topics in the past, but I have said very little about myself. It is time to learn about the person behind the pen name.
Pen Name/Alias: S4B0T4G3FIRE (Sabotage Fire). This name originated as a “gamer tag,” and it stuck with me for all of these years. I will never change it.
Birthday
I try to avoid telling people when my birthday is, for three reasons. First, I do not see much purpose behind celebrating birthdays (unless that birthday is Christmas). Second, I do not like the attention that comes with receiving verbal or physical birthday wishes/gifts. I much prefer that people do not take time out of their day to focus on me when I do not care at all about the significance of the day they are celebrating. Third, the fact that my birthday falls on a holiday that is largely associated with alcohol makes me want to keep my birthday a secret even more. I have never drunk alcohol, do not currently drink alcohol, and will never drink alcohol, but people always bring it up to me when I mention my birthday. I dislike that very much.
After reading my opinion of birthdays, you may be thinking of the sarcastic phrase, “You must be fun at parties.” I am not at all fun at parties, so I do not take offense to the sarcasm; in fact, I both genuinely and proudly take it as a compliment. To prove it, I am the kind of person who would report (and have done so quite a few times) inappropriate usernames and titles (used by virtual “friends of friends”) on social media including Twitch. So, at an actual party, I would proudly be the first person to call the police if anything bad and/or illegal (underage drinking, for instance) was happening. Therefore, when classmates and I reached middle school, I deemed it best to simply stay away from any out-of-school get-togethers. As you will see, this decision also branches into my friendship choices.
Friendships
None (seriously). I am a loner by choice. In middle school (between 12 and 14 years old), after learning that kids my age were already experimenting with drugs, alcohol, and smoking, I made the decision to no longer have any official friends. Right then and there, I opted out of all friendships in order to avoid peer pressure altogether. This did not necessarily turn me into a loner at school, however. At school would be the only place where I would affiliate with my “friends.” I would always talk to, laugh with, and do work with people, but none of that ever extended beyond school. I am very confident that I avoided a lot of problems this way. “No Friends = No Problems,” after all…
You could say that I also avoided many “good times and good memories” this way, but I do not mind having made that sacrifice. I like being able to tell people that “I have never attended an unsupervised party” or “a high school or college party.” I do not regret living this way. Part of this is likely due to my religious morals as well, but I will not be discussing religion in this article. It is an important part of my life, and that is all you really need to know.
School
Basically, I always did my classwork and my homework. I rarely forgot to complete assignments. On the off-chance that I did forget to complete an assignment (which happened maybe a handful of times within all my years in school), I panicked. My heart would literally drop, and I would deeply fear receiving a ‘0’ on an assignment… even though the ‘0’ would not affect my overall grade at all.
A couple of memories stick out to me from my time in elementary school and middle school. Long story short, in 5th grade, I earned a lot of freedom because of how studious and trustworthy I was. When it came to completing daily classwork, I consistently finished before my peers. Since my teacher could assume that I did well on the assignments, I was essentially allowed to wander to a couple of other rooms in the school, including the computer lab so I could work on solo projects for that same class. My teacher would hand me her set of keys, and I would embark on my own journey around the school, unlocking the computer lab and working on my projects. I was the kind of student who could actually be trusted with this kind of power, even as a 10-year-old. Whenever I consider this memory, I laugh because many high school students could never earn this level of trust from their teachers, even at the age of 18. Lol.
The other memory is from middle school. This one is relatively short and simple and is about an academic achievement award that was only given to three students (I, of course, being one of them). Basically, a gift known as an “Honor Cord” was awarded to all students who achieved the academic status of “High Honors” during all three years of middle school. This meant receiving an ‘A’ during every single semester in every single class taken. We got to wear our Honor Cords during our middle school graduations, and I thought that was really cool at the time. (Do not worry. I did eventually see my first-ever ‘B’ grade in high school due to being ill. In fact, most ‘B’s that I received from high school onward were the result of absences due to sick days. I am not trying to use this as an excuse, although it is a valid excuse which I find to be very unfortunate.)
I carried a proactive work lifestyle with me all the way up to my Senior year of high school until the school system introduced an extended homeroom period into everybody’s schedules. This period allowed time for latecomers to arrive at school without missing any class time. It also functioned as a short study hall where everybody quickly tried to complete homework due that day, and this completely ruined my own work lifestyle. Since everybody else would be doing their work during that period, I figured that I may as well do zero homework the night before but rather wait until homeroom to work on it with my classmates. As someone who has always loved having work done by the day before a due date, this change made me very uneasy.
Thankfully, my mistake did not last long. By the time college started, I was back to being proactive. This was partly due to the fact that I did not own a computer, so I had to do all of my work on campus as early as I possibly could (before commuting home every day). I also set about one or two dozen Google Reminders every single week. “Set a reminder for 3:45 PM to do Assignment 1 (for class).” “Set a reminder for 6:30 PM (after class) to do Assignment 2.” “Set a reminder for 7:30 PM to do Assignment 3.” “Set a reminder for 10:00 PM to finish essay.” “Set a reminder for 7:45 AM to print essay in the computer lab.” …and so on. This constant scheduling helped me out a lot. It allowed me to get all of my work done as early as possible which left me with a lot of time for leisure (sitting on a bench and watching YouTube before class). Minimizing stress was my specialty in college, except for when it came to group projects.
My proactivity was easily taken advantage of when it came to group projects. If a project was assigned on Monday, for instance, I would message my group members (that I was assigned to be with) multiple times throughout the week, without success. No matter how hard I tried to ask for their input and ideas, I never received any replies. By Friday, I would proceed to work on the project alone. As I continued to develop ideas, I would run those ideas by my group members to see if they liked them or not. No replies on Friday or Saturday meant that I would have to finish the project alone if I wanted to turn something in on Monday (the due date). Not until Sunday night did I finally started receiving replies. “Looks great.” “Great job.” “I will add something tonight if I can” (they never added anything). This happened every single time (without exception), and that is no exaggeration. I guess I cannot complain too much, however, since I always earned us an A+.
Athletics
As far as playing sports and other athletics is concerned, I have never officially joined any sort of team or club. I was not, by any means, unathletic, however. I am great at just about every sport I have ever played, and, because of this, I was always chosen to demonstrate sports in gym class (beginning in elementary school) so my other classmates would understand how to play the sport properly.
I was also the fastest runner in my grade. I would consistently finish in first place in the Mile Run (not that it mattered). One time, my parents even showed up to watch me run when I was in middle school. As a way to motivate me, my father ran the final quarter-lap with me so that I would have the determination to speed up enough to finish first. Speaking of my parents showing up, my parents were also present during one of my middle-school gym classes (because an award ceremony was taking place immediately after class). They got to watch me beat everybody in a game of “No Friends,” a form a dodgeball in which I would always get teamed-up on (even though alliances were not allowed, hence the name of the game). Winning without cheating was always so much fun! In fact, all of this fun, participation, and success ended up earning me the highest award that a gym student can earn…two years in a row!
By high school, coaches were asking me to be on the Track and/or Cross Country team(s), but I politely declined. Although I was very good at running and had a lot of stamina for it, I really disliked running.
Similar to middle school, gym class was a lot of fun for me in high school as well. My favorite sport to play quickly became Ultimate Frisbee. Despite being 5’8" (≈172cm) tall, my long arms and jumping ability allowed me to be quite decent at the sport. I remember passing the disc about 30 feet once, and I had to run and catch it myself (technically not legal, but it is only gym class; Lol) because my teammates gave up on the play. This excitement for Ultimate Frisbee followed me to college gym/health class as well. Only one memory from college stands out, however, and that is the time I jumped up above a 6’4" (≈193cm) guy to catch the disc, and the teacher and other students were very impressed. For whatever reason, it felt really good to be able to demonstrate my abilities in college.
Other Favorite Things
Now, I would like to shine a light on a couple of specific favorite things of mine. These two things are snow and music. For as long as I can remember, Winter has been my favorite season because of the snow. I love everything about it (with the exception of slippery driving conditions and whatnot; I want everybody to safely enjoy the snow and how great it is). I strictly remember telling all of my “friends” in school that I loved shoveling snow, and they were annoyed by the fact. This made me even happier about loving snow.
As for music, it was not until high school when I truly started liking music and began following singers/musicians (of the Pop genre). At first, I would call Selena Gomez my favorite musical artist just because I enjoyed her songs, but I very quickly transitioned into an Arianator once I understood just how talented and vocally-gifted Ariana Grande was/is. Personally, I wish she would release an album consisting solely of powerful ballads in order to truly showcase her vocal talents, but I am happy to see that she is passionate about the Pop/R&B genre. To be fair, regardless of the genre, she finds a way to prove that she is (one of) the greatest vocalist(s) of my generation. I have attended her two latest World Tours, and they are the only concerts I have ever attended. I would not pay money to attend a concert showcasing any talent that is lesser than hers.
Do not allow my support for her to lead you to believe that I am a “stan,” however. Firstly, I do not (though I used to) follow any of her social media accounts. I like using social media as an escape from the world, not as a reminder of the world (that is all I will say on the topic). Also, I am not biased toward her abilities at all. I judge her vocals the same way I judge anybody’s vocals. If she ever loses control of a note during a live performance, I will be the first person to tell you (I just name bad notes as I see them. Who really cares if she misses a note if she is just on stage to have fun?). If she is not the best performance of the night at an award show, I will be the first person to tell you. If I had to hear a new song (of hers) 20 times before I finally enjoyed it, I will tell you.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why I am explaining why I like her but also how I am unbiased toward her, it is because people love believing that someone’s “looks” drive interest, when I actually only follow musicians for their music and/or voice.
Pet Peeves
Swearing/Profanity
The use of profanity is my biggest pet peeve. People in high school would try to get me to swear, and I refused. A parent of mine could literally permit me to say something not that bad but still technically a swear, and I would not take advantage of it. I could be totally alone (no one home, nearby, or wherever else), get injured or face a stressful situation, and still not swear. Simply stated, those words are not in my vocabulary, nor have they ever been. “Goodness gracious me” and “Oh, dear” have been my reactions to unideal circumstances for a very long time. I do not write swears either.
Just to specify, I classify as a swear any word or phrase that I would not use in any form of verbal, written, or gestured communication. Actually, I have been adding more words to that list as I decide more and more that I do not want to say certain words at all, even though those words are not at all considered by society to be profanity. I will not be giving examples because that would mean breaking my own moral code.
Broken Promises
All the time, I wonder why people are so unreliable when it comes to doing things that, on numerous occasions, they have told me they would definitely do by a requested deadline. I can ask them multiple times if they are going to do the task, and I can even make the disclaimers that…
- They do not have to do it.
- I will do it instead if they cannot do it, so long as they communicate this to me.
…but they insist on giving a definite “Yes, I will do it” and then not doing it. This irks me so much. To be honest, though, the lack of communication might irk me even more than the broken promise itself.
People Talking Unnecessarily Loudly
This one is simple. If I am having a conversation with someone who is a mere few feet away from me in a quiet room, we should be able to hear each other rather comfortably, even at a quiet whisper. Of course, whispering would be pretty extreme, but talking loudly enough for someone dozens of feet away is an even worse, totally unnecessary extreme. When someone is talking far more loudly than necessary, I politely ask them, “Why?” using a quiet-but-still-more-than-audible volume.
Very Content Person
Despite the couple of pet peeves that I mentioned, I am actually a very content person. I am content with my surroundings, current interests, foods I eat, etc. I know what I like, such as my hobbies (writing and cycling), passions (watching soccer/fútbol), and videogames that I play (Rocket League, Minecraft, FIFA Mobile, and Hearthstone). I also know what I dislike, such as meta/trendy television shows and movies, taking naps (I literally never take naps; my sleeping only occurs overnight because I believe naps are a waste of time), American Football, alcohol (and all other drugs), partying, coffee, and specific foods like waffles, bacon, steak, and cereal. When it comes to eating any sort of meats, I happily and unapologetically cook them (or have them cooked) well-done. I do not care at all to try new things.
I also never play games with my virtual “friends.” This is mostly because, although I am not antisocial, I would consider myself to be “antisocial-izing.” I believe that humans oftentimes make poorer decisions (not necessarily poorer decisions, but decisions that I would disagree with) when they come together for the sole purpose of socializing. For instance, alcohol is almost always involved, and, as I mentioned previously, I simply do not like the thought of alcohol for the reason that I do not need to change myself (by consuming a drug) in order to be confident, comfortable, or have fun in social situations. I simply and happily avoid those situations altogether and then make the most out of the time I spend alone. I have nothing against people who do rely on a drug to change themselves according to a situation that they are facing, but I steer entirely clear of it all.
Also, I have a “tolerance” code. If I do not like someone, I know that I can respectfully tolerate them without that tolerance having to mean that I “fully support” them. Some people think that you have to accept or deny somebody when, in reality, you can just… be tolerant instead. People can be nice and respectful without ever ignoring, disagreeing, or disliking, even if they do disagree or dislike. I keep my opinions to myself, and I respectfully tolerate the opinions of others with whom I disagree.
Thank you for getting to know me! If you are wondering, no, I am not bitter at all. Lol. I am very happy with the lifestyle I chose, and I would choose it again if I were given a chance to relive my life. To be fair, S4B0T4G3FIRE (my pen name) is a much cooler person than Mark (my real name) is. If you wish to get to know more about S4B0T4G3FIRE, we can continue the discussion on social media. I encourage you to check out some of my other articles here! Also, feel free to check out my Twitch, Twitter, and Reddit for random thoughts and posts!
