Drop us in a Jungle…

So, it’s raining, and it rained a lot. I’m not going to speak about the rain and the damage it caused and the traffic caused by the damage. There are hundreds of blogs and articles where you can read about that. But the heavy rain did get me thinking about something I was discussing with some friends of mine over the weekend.

You see, if this rainfall happened a few million years ago, few hundred people would have died because they weren’t strong enough to get to the high ground, climb a tree, or hold on to something while the waters poured around them. You see where this is going.

Natural selection, survival of the fittest, evolution (in a way). While harsh and definitely strict, it was natures way of getting rid of the weak individuals of a species. Since only the strong ones, the fast ones, the fit ones would survive, that means that only they would procreate, thus strengthening the species as a whole.

Right, so human beings survived till now, so it’s assumed that we are the descendants of the strongest of our species. Well yes, technically, but, and here’s my point, we have cheated natural selection.

Evolution and natural selection has first let the fit, fast and strong people to survive, the big cats and animals with the sharp teeth and claws, and then man looked at his clawless hands and teeth that couldn’t really damage anything bigger than a mouse and figured that if he wanted to live a bit more freely, he’d have to make some changes. And tools and weapons were created. And for the first time a clawless, not so strong, not so big creature took down a tiger, and ‘Natural Selection’ went “hold on a second…”

And the rest is history.

For example: We invented cars to help us travel further than we physically could. And here’s the thin, everyone could travel the same distance, in the same amount of time if your car was fast enough. So all of a sudden, its not the strength you had, but on what car you could buy, what equipment you could use. So now the weaker people can still survive.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy we manage to live with our elders longer. I’m just pointing out that today we don’t bother with keeping fit, or training to be fast, because we don’t need to. We have stretched our race to every part of the world and there have pushed aside even the strongest animal in that region with the use of our weapons and tools.

Natural Selection looked at what we’re doing and throwing it’s hands in the air gave up and concentrated on the other creatures.

Drop us in a jungle today, and although we might like to think that we might manage to survive and get through, but let’s face it, there in the land where Natural Selection is ruler, we’d be something’s meal within a period of two days max.

Just to show my point: anyone who’s watched the PIXAR film “WALL-E” has seen the overweight, lazy, unable to move human beings of the future, and if we get to the point where we don’t even need to walk anymore, don’t need to turn our heads to speak to anyone, that is how we’d all become.

Well, I say we… I mean our ancestors… We, (and I mean me) will hopefully continue living, and come to the end of our lives still strong, still fast, still agile and still looking damn sexy.

2 is not enough

Walking into my 9 o’clock lecture this morning I felt something was off. The room was dark with just one other waiting student. Admittedly, in the first lesson we were only 10 students in the first lecture, and all of them, except me, where law students, and we all know we can’t trust that lot.

Eventually, the lecturer walks in. He’s a good lecturer and the lecturer, from the introduction the credit promised to be an interesting one.

I forgot to mention that the credit has two lecturers, but one of them (as much as I can tell from the 1.0833 (not an invented number) lectures we’ve had), is always late. Either way, the first lecturer walks in and sits down behind his desk waiting until ten past just in case the students were late because of the impossible parking situation on campus.

Very sweet of him and all. Like I said, a very nice lecturer with an interesting subject.

Ten minutes pass, he looks at us, says “so, I think the others dropped the credit”. He then stands up, and as he unplugs his laptop continues, “I’ll ask administration if the credit will continue with only two students and inform you by email.” And then he walks out of the class room leaving us sitting there staring at the doorway.

So wait, are this other student I never met and I not worth teaching?

I don’t know about you, but as far as I know University only has a rule stating a maximum number of students in a class. Do not quote me on this, I could easily be wrong.

But I find it highly unfair that if, in this case, two students are interested enough to come to the lecture, interested to act polite as the lecturer walks in and smile at all his jokes, if I’ve read the course description, knew it was his lecture and still chose it, don’t I have the right to be lectured? I mean it is his job after all, isn’t it?

It’s like a priest walking into a church for mass and finding only two people and saying “there’s not enough people, try join the church down the street.”

…

Reading that, I find I need to correct myself, because it’s worse than that, as in Malta, most of you know, each locality has a great number of churches or chapels, so finding a mass to listen to is not a great feat. If this credit falls trough, the hassle and beaurocracy this other student and myself will have to go through to find another credit is impossible to describe. All of you who have survived at least one year on campus know what I’m talking about. To all the freshers reading this: You’ll see.

*****

On a totally unrelated subject: I almost laughed out loud when at the end of my first ‘Basic Music Technology’ lecture notes, the further reading suggested was a link to a Wikipedia article. Like I said in an earlier blog around exam time last year, why buy books or go to lecturer? Stay home and read the internet. It’s where the lecturers are learning from anyway.

Carbonated Beverage

So another scholastic year has begun, and back at our beloved University of Malta not much has changed. The parking problem is still present, the chaos of Fresher’s week is still here, timetable and venue mix ups are still common occurrence.

The canteen has changed it’s look, but the caterers are the same, so not much improvement there. Either way, I was not one to be seen in the canteen often. So no real effect on me.

The Chaplaincy has given Ellie away (the pet rabbit) and filled the void with Chap (a beautiful, playful, clumsy, black puppy).

But there is one thing that has changed and I am going to complain about.

Vending Machines have changed. What do I mean? I mean that where there used to be a coffee machine, there is now only a snack machine. But that’s not the worse of it! I’m serious, it gets worse!

Half way through a double lesson, lecturers are usually humane enough to give a short break. So as usual I head out of the classroom heading to a vending machine I know is there. And indeed there was a vending machine there. But instead of a CocaCola machine, it was a Pepsi one!

You may mock or laugh but there is a difference. So when I’d been craving specifically CocaCola, and I know that there used to be a machine which when bribed will give me CocaCola, and all of a sudden I’m forced to drink, *shudder* Pepsi! I refused, I could not, I had to cope with Seven Up, and it was not satisfying at all.

I’ve been looking around campus since this horrifying event and up till now I have not found a CocaCola vending machine. I am concerned. I actually have to go off campus to buy my carbonated beverage of choice! If I’m wrong and there is somewhere, hidden in a corner, a vending machine which does not sell Pepsi, please please please tell me.

And if on the hour, at any point in time in the next year, you see me sprinting across campus with a thirsty but determined look on my face, I warn you, I’ve trained rugby.

Please, i need your help

Dear readers,

I feel bad cheating you like this:

but i need anyone born in the year of 1992 to click the link below and fill in a short survey for an assignment of mine.

Click here to take survey

thanks a lot.

i promise a proper blog soon.

out

exams and all that

I feel bad not posting for so long.

I really do apologize.

I am in the middle of exams at the moment and therefore under a bit of pressure.

Old drawing of stress to follow.

out

Poetic Venting

I don’t need the money,

Or fancy new cars,

Account in the millions,

Or house of the stars.

I don’t need the clothes,

Hats or the shoes,

I don’t need to travel,

Eat out, or tattoos.

I don’t need new gadgets,

Or studio headphones,

The fastest laptop,

The coolest phone.

New big shiny cameras,

With interchangeable lens,

Brand new instruments,

Talking pens.

I don’t need sunglasses,

Or a Giant T.V,

A massive bedroom all for me.

I don’t need a thing

To know who I am

You can think I’m wrong

I don’t give a damn.

I’m fraking amazing

At whatever I try,

Time and talents God gave me,

I don’t let slip by.

I’m creative and clever,

And this is no boast,

This is me just saying,

I’m no useless ghost.

out

Why should I know?

I’m going to be talking about a complaint students have had since studenthood began. I’m in a lecture at the moment who just shared with us that the exam questions are set so that the lecturer will know how much we read. Now, I looked at these articles and documents in question, and Oh My God!

No, no, seriously. I mean, I’m sure law has a lot of studies, and so does medicine, but I mean those are useful and needed, you might come across a case in your future working life where the particular detail you’re reading now might be useful.

I am obviously at this time not talking to Matt, but we’ll have to call him Dr. Matt in a years time, and that alone is worth it.

Anyway, these documents are written by people who sit and think about issues which will not be solved evar! And if you have to write about it to feel fulfilled, for the sake of all that is good, keep it short and to the point. You know, something along the lines of, THIS is bad, because of THESE points, except in THESE cases. That’s all we need to know.

But some issues need to be explained in detail. That’s what you’re thinking right? I know you too well.

Besides the subject of God Himself, I am sure there is no subject in the world that needs more than a billion words to explain properly.

When you need to get onto a stepladder to see the first page of a pile of notes, you know that the writer is going to be beating about the bush for 95% of the time.

But he might be making interesting points.

Fair enough.

Make your interesting point and explore different point of views, because some people might be seriously interested in the subject at hand. As long as you write a short summary of not more than 600 words at the end of each chapter. Because you know what? That’s the length of essay I will be writing during the exam, so that’s all the information I need to know. If I’m interested, I’ll read the rest of the valid points and interesting perspectives, in my own time.

So teachers and lecturers, you might have a passion for your subject, spend all your time thinking about it, and have read every book, paper, essay and review about it, but we don’t. We have other subjects to think of, and most probably your subject is just a few credits for us. So please don’t expect us to know particular details you know. We have not spent the amount of time on the subject that you have, we have other things to think about, work at and do.

And finally, if in the future I will need to know some stupid detail that you want us to read now and learn by heart, I’ll wiki it.

study mode

This studying thing is not good for me and those around me.

Both yesterday and today I have done a good number of hours studying outside Chaplaincy.

I'm working well, studying efficiently, the atmosphere could not be a more pleasant one and yet, I reach a point, where my mood sinks into a quiet dangerous sad one.

I don't know why this is.

Previously, I used to just get hyper and restless, but these exams apparently this is not going to be the case.

It could be due to the added pressure of needing to get a certain percentage to get into honors. Or the added pressure of 4given, or of the presentations and so on I have to do.

Either way, if I started studying at 10 or 11, and you meet me at Chaplaincy, in my usual place by the left column at a table with my feet in a bean-bag, approach with caution.

Altruistically, I will not study

I actually managed to sit down and do some work yesterday. It’s funny, It’s like climbing a mountain. The climb is the struggle to get myself to sit down at a desk, pull out my books and start working, but once you get to the top, there is a pleasant view, clean air and a pleasant feeling all round.

Because, yes indeed! Once I actually got working at a good pace, I felt good, I felt free, even though I was inside behind a desk, with the sun shining outside. It was a good feeling seeing work being done.

Like previous years, I managed to work because thee where other people working in the room. The train of thought I think my head follows is:

well, I have friends here so I can enjoy myself. But they’re working…. So I guess I better work too, must not disturb them.

Of course, there is a problem, as while I do enjoy the company of people and love socializing, I spent quite a lot of time a lot on the interweb so, after a while in my study mode, or working mode, the temptation of youtube and facebook return. And no I can not switch off the wifi, cause I need it for preparation of presentations and so on. Plus, it only takes a click to switch it back on again.

So I’ve found a solution to this. Open the web pages you need and load them, without closing the browser, go into one of your lectures which is held in a room without wifi, and there you can work privately and content, knowing that there are others around you working, the fact that they are doing something completely different which you should be doing too is not important, you are not tempted by the internets, and you have loaded all, or most of the information you need.

So in a lecture one will manage to work.

Well,

Work, or write a blog and later doodle.

And I was one day going to try and find a way to stop myself doing both these things during lectures, but then I thought to myself, “depriving the world of both those things would be unfair and selfish”.

So here I am, 11am on Thursday, sitting in a lecture of Christian Anthropology, writing this for you.

Sex or Space

As exams approach, “three weeks!” Charlene would say in that special voice of hers, it becomes more apparent that the human body, and more importantly the human brain was not meant for studying.

Well, some older people might be ok with spending their time inside with a book, but those of the younger generation, say between 16 and 25 years of age, are restless.

This is a screw up in the scholastic system. Why? Well, because exams, at least final exams come at ‘That time of year’. Spring comes around, with all the new life and rise in hormones, every guy and girl in the mentioned age bracket is thinking of nothing other than cuddling, kissing, and well… keeping the species alive, and we all have to get ourselves inside, out of the beautiful sun and gorgeous weather, to first decipher the gibberish the lecturer would have said, and we’d have scribbled down that year. And then learn it, and then study it to remember it for the exam.

It says a lot when you’re walking into the last few lectures of the year and, if you’re of a sensitive nature, have to keep turning your eyes away from the sight of mating cats all over campus.

I mean the whole studying working system is wrong in this respect. Biologically we’re all ready for the mating and family having at about 16. At this age we want to go out fight the older men for a chance at the females. But now, we’re stuck in school or at home studying for our O levels. (good luck to all those who are going through them at the moment). By the time we finished school, and all the studies and have a job and settle down, which according to today’s society we have to do before we get married, we’re hitting the middle age crisis.

Centuries ago people where getting married at 14. It was right. By 14 they would have learnt a trade from their fathers or gone off and become an apprentice to someone else. None of this learning useless stuff.

Fair enough, through this system we actually have a choice of what we’re going to do with our lives, and we’re not confined to following in the footsteps of someone.

So, the choice is: the possibility of becoming the first Maltese person to go into space, or, sex at the age of 16. Tough one.

lecture Art

Dear readers,

You have made me so happy. So apparently more people read this collection of thoughts and conclusions than I expected. It feels good to know my 'time and effort' are not going to waste.

This is not a blog entry exactly, just a thank you.

But while I'm at it, I'd like your opinion on something:

A few weeks back, during some boring lecture or other I drew this:

And then during the past six hours of lecture, I got bored again, and decided to photoshop this. It's my first Anime on photoshop:

So, a simple question really:

Which do you prefer?

Or any other comment you wish to share.

Yes, Matt I know about the hair issue.

A proper blog will follow soon. No worries.

Until then

Out

Risking a Coma

It amazes me, it really does.

How am I able to stare and think of nothing for hours? I’m not saying a lecture going on, and I’m in a world of my own, thinking about this, imagining that, or remembering the other. No, that’s fine, that’s normal, I am speaking about, sitting in lecture after lecture, staring at a random spot, and not thinking.

I only realize it has happened when I look at the clock and realize 20, 30, 50 minutes have gone by, and I have no idea what has happened in them.

I look around at the people around me who look just as dead.

I begin to think that maybe I had fallen asleep. So I lean over to the person sitting next to me and ask, but no, I’ve been awake, or seemed to be awake.

So either I learnt how to sleep with my eyes open, or I manage to totally blank my mind. But I do not recall the waking up suddenly feeling, so I must have been awake.

But let’s think about it.

So I empty my mind during a boring, pointless lecture and the time seems to fly by faster than I can conceive, or I try and find something to do and every minute stretches out to seem an hour long. And don’t look at me badly saying I should be paying attention. Most lecturers just repeat themselves or try to teach us something which is common sense to a 5 year old, and they give us the notes anyway. “So don’t go to the lecture and do something useful with your time,” I hear some of the more liberal thinking readers say.

Well, damn lecturers take attendance, so that’s out of the question, and the mood for doing something productive dies as soon as my foot touches the inside of a lecture room. Not to mention the feeling of walking into a thick soup of 2^nd hand air.

So the only choice I have is go through an instance of nothingness, risking going so deep into nothing that I’ll fall into a coma, or go through 60 years of mind numbing boringness and come out of that insane.

I could write more blogs in these lectures, but come on, I have barely 5 readers ( I know of) as it is, imagine if I update much more regularly. Plus, I will not be able to come up with enough interesting content. And the same drowsy feeling which stops me working effects my writing too.

So, after considering all things carefully.

And after seeing the pros and cons of all results.

I’m risking the coma.

Cardboard and flattened flowers

Yesterday was the day the past weeks of rehearsals have lead up to. All the sacrifices, pains, injuries, exhaustion lead to the three minutes spent on the stage yesterday at about 4.45 ish.

But I don’t want to spend long talking about the dance itself. That went well, no one made mistakes, I was told it looked good and organized. I am happy about the result.

Also, we were live on NET during the dance, and we did it in front of approximately 14,000 people, not counting TV. I danced! From all things I danced in front of such a large crowd. But that was fine.

The day as a whole was just epic.

Firstly being in front of the VIP barrier for the first time as apposed to stuck behind it, is an awesome feeling. Being in a cut off section, having a chair, just knowing I was taking part, was such an amazing feeling. Showing the cards and passes to get into places, just really, really amazing. Just being part of it. And Congrats to everyone that took part, speakers, dancers, and bands.

Next, I want to thank all the people not involved who came to cheer and give support, Bettina, Jamie, Ursula, Martha, Martina, Esther, Erica, and so many more. I want to say a special thank you to my mum, who managed to get to the front of the crowd and stood their beginning to end. I would have given anything to give her a seat, but she stayed and saw it all. Smiles

The feeling backstage before going on.

OMG!

I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous. It was only for a few seconds, I promise, but in those few seconds, I thought I was going to throw up.

It is a real shame that nearly all the people left after the pope left. The people after where just as amazing as the people before where. The hardcore people who stayed there until the very end enjoyed the last great acts, and even got to storm the stage to the last song of Cedarhouse. That was fun.

And the chairs. Enough said on that.

It was a great day. Opinions on the organization of the event are going to be kept to myself to keep the blog a positive one. But let’s just say I would have done it differently, but then again, what do I know?

Out.

Stone hedges and one ways

It hasn’t happened in a while, well at least to me. And I don’t want it to happen again any time soon. “What is he on about?” I hear you ask.

(well imagine you ask, but still)

I am talking about the horrible feeling, the annoying and angering situation of being utterly and completely lost.

Now I don’t mean being in a town and taking a wrong turn and being in the wrong place. That’s fine, it’s just a matter of finding one road leading back in the right direction that’s not a one way street. I mean finding yourself in a place and having absolutely no clue of where on the map you are. Now for you foreign people, I live in a country with a surface area of 300 square kilometers, it’s small! Drive in one direction for half an hour, and chances are you’ll hit a coastal road, and from thee you know where you are.

But last Sunday, I attended a wedding. Getting there was fine, I was following someone else from the church to the venue. I did note the way we came in, and also that there were road works in progress, but I had other things on my mind at the time, so didn’t think much about it.

It was a fantastic wedding, mass and reception, both well thought out and every detail was perfect.

Anyway, as I drove out of the parking lot, tired but very satisfied with the day, it hit me, that I had no idea where I was. Thinking I could just backtrack the way I had come I drive up a road to find my way blocked by that dreaded red circle with a white horizontal rectangle, a no entry sign. Fine, how hard could it be to get out of a small town? Right?

Fifteen minutes later, I’m still stuck in what seems to be a closed grid of roads. In frustration and desperation I called up the friend who I had followed in, assuming he knows the way out.

“Hey, how do you get out of here?”

“I don’t even know where I am, let alone how to get you out!” he yelled back mirroring my feelings.

And that’s just it! That feeling of not knowing where we are is what’s so horrible. We usually have a vague idea of the direction we need to take, but not knowing where we are, AT ALL gets to us.

It takes us back to the feeling of being lost as children. We never know where we are when we are young, because we rarely care. If we are out of the environment we know, we don’t know where we are, how we got there or how to get out, but as long as we see PEOPLE we know we’re fine; As soon as we do not, we panic, we freak out.

Last Sunday it was the same thing, except I was in a car, and I was not lost in a park, or supermarket, but in a town.

Thinking about it though, I think the feeling of being trapped made it worse. I was trapped in this town, I didn’t even know the name of, because when we eventually we got out of the grid of roads, I was still completely lost and had no idea where I was, but at least I was moving towards somewhere, knowing that eventually I would hit a main road I recognize. In that situation, the feeling, if it wasn’t plead by frustration would be interest in seeing where we would end up.

So being lost AND trapped is the frustrating situation.

Unless it’s a choice.

There are of course Mazes, where people purposefully go into a group of alleys and dead ends for entertainment. That’s fine, its safe, it’s fun.

But turn the paths into roads, the hedged into houses, the dead ends into no entry signs, and put people in vehicles, and you’ve got my friends and I in some town below the line.

Thinking about it, the alcohol might have been a contributing factor, and I didn't really ask directions, but like all famous bloggers, I’m blaming the government and their road works.

Dragon Craving

Walking out of a film at the cinema, I find myself walking around and acting slightly different to my normal self, especially if it was a great film. Why? Because I’m acting a little like the characters from that film.

An example of this happened maybe two weeks ago when four of us walked out of Tim Burton’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’. We walked up to the car speaking in the odd accent walking in a funny stride and gesticulating rather oddly and extravagantly. Basically, we were acting like Johnny Depp as the ‘Mad Hatter’.

And who, all those years ago, walked out of ‘The Matrix’ not imagining himself dodging bullets and running up walls and jumping buildings? Or tell me if anyone walked out of "Ironman" without thinking up the design of his or her own suit? It’s just the way the brain works. We see something we like, or find cool, and we try to assimilate.

Of course there’s a negative side effect to watching epic films and wanting to be alike. And that is of course when the action or thing done in the film (or animated feature film) is not possible in real life.

Walking out of “How to train your dragon” (from the creators of Shrek, yes Dreamworks are impressing me)last Friday, I was all excited and hyper and full of energy, until, while walking to the car it hit me, I will never own a dragon and definitely never fly one. It’s a very sad moment.

It’s the same feeling one gets when waking up from a fantastic dream and lying in bed remembering it, and then all of a sudden, realizing it wasn’t real, “Damn so I’m not going out with…” one would say.

But back to the dragon.

The film was amazing, the dragon was cool and cute, the actions and thoughts behind them where amazing. Something which really excited me is when Hiccup started making discoveries about dragons. I mean it was exciting! And everyone in the cinema wanted a dragon at some point during the film, I’m sure of it.

But we get used to the disappointment that our lives are not as cool and interesting as those on the big screen.

We find our own alternatives. For example: like I told Matt after the realization of the possibility of owning a dragon are zero, the next best thing is a motorbike. Think about, for those who have watched the film, you still bank to turn, you still control the ‘gears’ with your feet, you still stir with your hands, and the chances of you loosing a limb while riding it are about the same.

Sunrises and lies

This weekend was spent, as you’ve most probably read in my last blog entry. I must say that despite my previous predictions regarding my sleep coming true, I did enjoy it greatly.

The whole experience was a fun one and the chance to spend some time with people I don’t usually have time to was the best part.

But I’d like to share a few things I learnt or observed on this camping trip:

First of all. We’ve been lied to. Now, I am here assuming that you are all people that live and have lived in urban areas all your life. So at school, at the age where we’re thought that cows go moo, and sheep go bah, we’re told that roosters crows as the sun rises. Bull! the first screechy cry from these infernal birds was heard at 00:30. I don’t know what time zone they’re from, but here, that’s about 5 hrs too early. And the crowing continues until about 8 in the morning, and then it stops. Children are given the impression the rooster crows maybe three times as the first rays of sun peep over the horizon and then calls it a day. Lies.

On the same point, every child KNOWS that a donkey makes a sound along the lines of “eeyor”. More lies thought by the pretty pre-school teachers. We were camping across a valley from a farm, and I was startled on the first morning to hear the sound of something being brutally beaten to death. Or so I thought. I was told it was a donkey. There was no “eeyor”, what there was, was more of a “heeeeeaaaaaaarrrrggggghhhhhh!”

So roosters do not greet the rising sun, and donkeys don’t go “eeyor”, next I’m going to find out pigs aren’t pink and don’t go oink!

The importance of water was also revealed to me this weekend. There was a bit of a panic that we would not have enough water. And it was justified. Seriously, we use water for EVERYTHING! Drinking, cooking, cleaning, washing, and by the time you’ve gone through those processes you’re thirsty again. But we survived.

Fair enough, the first thing I did upon getting home is shower a very long shower, then brushed my teeth, taking my time, I then shaved, and because I could, brushed my teeth again.

Next.

Both mornings, I’m lying in my sleeping-bag around 5.30am and my bladder decides it needs to empty. Fair enough. But if you think I’m going to go through the hassle of dressing quietly in a tent and getting myself outside in the relatively cold air to pee, and go through the hassle of undressing again. You don’t know me well enough. Once I’m up and about while camping, that’s it. Which I’ve found is nice. Waking up early is a nice thing, you can do so much and then look at your watch and see that if you had been home, you’d be just getting up.

And you’d think that having so much time and nothing to really do, one would get bored. But it’s incredible, the less you have to do, the more relaxed you are doing things and without knowing it and without being stressed or rushed, you get to the end of the day having had a full day.

Regarding this, I am surprised to say that I did not, at any point need the company of Mr. Clarkson or Mr. Crowder throughout the entire weekend.

Anyway, I got to see the sunrise from a cliff over the sea for two mornings in a row. Both special and beautiful, and I will always be amazed by sunrise. The colors, the calmness, the silence, and even though you’re sharing it with people, no one usually talks as the sun climbs quickly out of the sea.

On a camp, since one has no real thing to do, one finds he doesn’t mind doing something that’s going to take long.

What am I on about?

We walked to the cliff, and looking down we saw the beauty of the untouched and unspoiled environment at the bottom of the cliff. We figured this was because there was no way of getting to it except by boat. But it lead us to walk along cliff, across difficult terrain until, without realizing it, we reached the sea, and realized we had walked a long distance and for about two hours. The sea was freezing and worth the walk, and on the way back we found a chameleon, so pleasant surprises and results.

Snoring.

I’ve learnt that snoring does not bother me at all. But something I find entertaining is the point before sleep of some people. Their mind is wandering everywhere, and they are in no state of mind to stop their mouth sharing them. Usually resulting in a conversation like the one I had with Jonathan.

Joni: My mind wanders at night

Simon: Why what are you thinking?

Joni: To be honest, Louisa Abela

Simon: Ah, I was thinking about her this week cause her boyfriend is in a credit with me.

Joni: She must be someone’s daughter

Simon: …… Who?

Joni: J.K. Rowling

Simon: ……um?

I was perplexed. But it is interesting is it not? The right person, and you could most probably get anything out of a person in that state. Good to know.

Lastly, on the Saturday, my plan of supper was going to be a burger, maybe two. Through an amazing string of events I don’t feel like describing, me and three others ended up with a bacon cheese burger with a side of too many sausages, wine and beer.

Beautiful.

So, as I started this post, I enjoyed the weekend greatly.

But there was nothing as good and getting into bed after getting home and cleaning myself up.

The moment my head hit the pillow.

Blissful comfort.

So in conclusion: camping is a brilliant pass time, if I can bring a shower and proper bed along.

Out

PS: To piss off a farmer more, but not give him an opportunity to hurt you, ignore him. trust me, I tried.

PSS: For photos of the camping trip click here and here and here

ipod? check! let’s go camping

I am, right now, Camping.

Yes indeed.

Outside, sleeping with just a thin layer of material protecting me from the outside world. Spending my day among the trees and nature.

Well.

At least that’s what I assume I’ll be doing. Cause as I write this I’m at home eating breakfast, but it will be published while I’ll be camping.

I realized, as this weekend approached that, contrary to many people’s opinion, I’m getting old. I used to love the idea of camping, and the idea, of time to climb trees, and stay up late outside with no light but the one we create, and building a fire and dancing around it naked, and I still do. But what’s been making me dread this weekend, with all my heart, soul and bones, especially bones, is the idea of not sleeping in a comfortable bed for two nights in a row. I’m going to be sleeping on an excuse of a mattress, feeling every stone and branch that always ends up under the tent.

I’m completely terrified of tomorrow morning. Honestly.

If this doesn’t mean I’m getting old, then I don’t know what does.

Another thought which occurred to me is, well, I have to be extra careful these two days, much more than in the past camping expeditions.

Why?

One slip resulting in my left hand catching my fall, and Jonathan could be practicing fixing a dislocated on me for the second time.

I will try and be careful though, meaning, I’m going to do the same dangerous stuff I would do, but if I fall, I’ll try use only my right.

The result of this attitude of course is that, I haven’t done any preparing yet. It’s actually quite funny, my mother is running around in a panic, putting a collection of food together and basically doing my packing for me. My only preparation so far was charging my ipod and mobile phone, and choosing the flavor of the cuppa’ soup packets.

All I want to know, and this is serious, is how I’m going to survive three days without youtube or twitter?

out

Protagonist?

It’s happened to all of us.

“What has?” I hear you ask.

I’ll explain the situation.

I’m walking along, in a red hoodie, jeans and my yellowish shoes, a backpack on my back and my huge headphones over my ears playing one of the jumpy David Crowder songs. A bottle of Coca Cola sticking out of my bag, the sun shining, and my glasses shading.

So the thought pops into my head.

It’s like I’m in a Coca Cola Advert.

Oh come on, admit it, you’ve thought it about yourself at least once before.

An even better experience happened last semester. I might have written about it before.

Same hoodie, same soft drink, it was a cloudy day and I had just walked out of a lecture at Gateway. I pull out the bottom of Cola, and as I take a swing, the sun peeps through the clouds, my glasses shade and a happy song comes onto my ipod. I mean come on! I actually looked around for a camera crew. It was too perfect.

It doesn’t have to be an advert you ‘find yourself in’.

It could be a music video, while you’re on the bus, or walking along a dark road.

Hell, there are those who think their life would make a good film, and the least self-centered who see only certain situations as film scene worthy.

So what makes us all picture scenes from our lives on the silver screen, be it in an advert, or a film, or a music video?

My thought is that, we have been exposed to so much of these typical scenes used for typical reasons, that they have become installed in our heads. I mean think about it: how many times have we seen someone feeling hot (temperature), drinking, beer or soft drink and suddenly feeling fresh and cool? Thousands of times! It’s become a norm.

In fact, most drink adverts nowadays are just different ways of showing this concept.

It’s that, or the drink giving you some form of power or super human strength.

This irritates me sometimes. Seriously, what does Pepsi have to do with a group of footballers and a team of Sumo wrestlers playing? Fun idea and all, but drinking the soft drink has no connection.

Fanta and CocaCola adverts recently have reached for a link wit music. Again. What?!!

Fair enough, the advertisers manage to find very interesting and cool ways of showing all the above mentioned pre-set ideas.

Most of you know my excitement at seeing one particular Sprite Advert. It’s the one showing a group of youths suffering the heat around a basketball court, when one of them takes a sip of Sprite then removing his T-shirt jumps into the court which ‘magically’ turns into a pool. The implication is that the drinking of the soft drink had something to do with it, but think about it, it’s basically ‘I was hot, I drank the drink, I cooled down.’

But at least they found a really interesting and original way of showing it. I applauded it the first time I saw it alone in my living room, and I still think it is an epic advert.

No body would ever imagine that as they drink a soft drink by a basketball court, and that’s what makes it great.

CocaCola made a series of fantastic adverts quite a few months ago. The Happiness Factory Adverts, in which the idea is that there is a whole wonderful and crazy imaginative world inside the CocaCola vending machines.

Amazing, they broke away from the norm. They made us imagine, they made us think, they took a question a child would ask, (How does the Coke come out?), and answered in a way a child’s innocence and imagination would believe. It reminds us of the imagination we once had and makes us wish it where true.

Incredible.

What the advertising world really needs, I mean REALLY needs, is to give me a job.

Leaping non-cute sheep

It’s incredible how many thoughts can go through your head throughout a lecture. It helps if the lecturer speaks in a continuous drone. In the past 43 minutes I have contemplated food, a presentation, blog subjects, the design for a more comfortable bench, a drawing I want to do, food again, reminding events from yesterday, my bag, the human being as an animal, who’s at Chaplaincy, what Kai is doing, my hair, the pain in my shoulder, Matt in London, sketches for people, poster designs, video ideas, Patty, St. Patrick’s day, bass and many more.

It’s astonishing.

It’s astonishing how the mind can be so restless. I mean if it picked one topic and stopped on it and delved deep into that subject, fine, I’d at least be able to write a blog about it.

But as it is, I find myself at a loss on which of these mentioned points and also the ones coming in all the time.

I mean seriously, my mind is acting like the screwed up weather we’re having lately. One minute it’s focusing on one thing, next, like a freak hail storm, with no warning, I’m thinking about something else.

It’s annoying to me on two levels.

First, with my mind in such an active mood, it’s very near impossible to even try and follow what the lecturer is saying for more than 5 minutes, let alone 2 hrs straight.

Secondly, and more importantly, me in this mood, is me in a creative mood, and I want to do something. And I can not decide what to do. Draw, write, edit? The possibilities and interests are endless.

I can’t complain though. Well, I can, and I am, what I meant to say was that there are worst times to be the owner of a restless brain.

Lying in bed trying to sleep, knowing you have an early day the following day is one of them.

We’ve all been there: lying in bed, trying to sleep, and your brain won’t stop working no matter what you try. It’s the time you try to count sheep and your mind starts asking questions like “what color are they?” and then tries to imagine sheep, and then wonders what’s so nice about one side of the fence to make so many sheep jump over. Hmmmm, could I draw a realistic sheep? And why do people draw sheep as cute? Sheep aren’t cute, lambs are, but sheep aren’t. Sheep are nasty looking creatures. I wonder if I remember how to play ‘Mary had a little Lamb’ on the piano….

And so on.

And under all that a little voice crying softly to itself “I want to sleep”.

A restless mind at Church. Enough said? I think so.

Now, the problem with the next one is that it’s not only annoying, but it could get you into trouble. I mean fine, the lecture situation might get you into trouble, but unless the lecturer is one of those asking questions type of person, you’re fine. But the situation I’m about to describe will result in a wrath so powerful descending upon you, you will never be the same.

You’re on the sofa, with the TV switched on, with your girlfriend/ fiancé/ wife cuddling with you. Fine so far. No one is talking and your brain goes off.

A few minutes later, you realize she’s been talking and you come back just in time to here the last word in an questioning tone. Shit.

It is possible to survive, but one must be brilliant at coming up with some epic bullshit.

Having gone to Stella Maris or De La Salle helps.

So, with a mind going on and on, on a random tour of thought, what can one do?

Well, one sits down, pulls out pen and paper, or rather, opens his or her laptop and writes ‘[Enter name here] in Wonderland’

out

Mountain climbing

It's one of those mornings.

No, not one of those mornings where I wear a hood and grunt at people.

But it's one of those mornings where I'm skipping down the street with a smile on my face and expect bluebirds to join me in song and trees to sway to the beat.

This mood is a perfect continuation of the perfectness of this weekend. I mentioned this in yesterdays blog, but very briefly.

So, I'll start with the Lenten Talks.

So everyone knows about the first three days as everyone was still here. But on Thursday, our number reduced greatly as about 10 members of community went to London. I must admit, I was very unhappy about the situation of, not only about being left behind, but about having to keep going with the animation of the Lenten talks without the people in London. I found it unfair, unorganized, and stupid.

Well, it went well.

Not only that, it went fantastically. I enjoyed every moment of animating, planning, playing, and last but certainly not least, I loved the packing up.

Seriously, I'm not in any way being sarcastic. I loved the coordination between all of us who helped. I loved the efficiency of everyone. And to have everything packed away in the vans, and the chapel back in it's normal state in half an hour, with ten people missing, and with the rain pouring down, was amazing. I thank all who helped.

After every evening, I never went home directly. And every night was fun, great and special in it's own way.

I have to send out a special thanks to Bernice for helping me get through this weekend.

Also, a shout out to all the people still in London at the moment. I seriously hope you had a wonderful time and look forward to you, SLOWLY AND EVENTUALLY, transferring what you got from there to us.

*I looks up at the lecturer. Realize he is still saying the same thing he was saying 52 minutes ago. Shrug and continue with my blog*

So what did I get out of this weekend. Well, besides a reminder to always have faith in God and thrust Him blindly.

You ever look ahead and see a looming, dark, unclimbable mountain in your path? And it gets closer, until you right under it and you're so worried you begin to feel physically ill.

And then, without realizing it, no matter how hard a task it is, it's behind you. You look back and realize you got through it. Obviously you begin to notice the people that actually helped you get over the bigger boulders, but you made it.

So with this positive, message of hope.

And with the lecture about to end, and the sun shining outside and a mug of tea with my name on it at Chaplaincy...

out

was going to write an epic blog, but didnt

i was going to write an entire blog about the epic-ness of this weekend

thursday was great, friday was better, and yesterday was fun too

the lenten talks ended brilliantly, even though half the team was abroad, but stefan did a fantastic job, and i thank him from here

big thanks go to pedro for the sound

and last night thanks for everyone who helped pack up the stuff

everything was in the vans in 30 minutes flat and the chapel was all set up back to normal

i had a long blog planned

but not in the mood to write it anymore

so with no full-stops and no capital letters and matt don't you dare comment about it

out

Can I Tell You?

There are so many pointless things people say everyday. And I mean really pointless sentences. Sentences with either really obvious answers or questions with no real point at all.

I mean, I’ve been injured quite number of times and when you’re lying on the floor with blood pouring out of your nose and your head spinning, the last thing anyone needs to ask you is “Are you ok?”

I mean, seriously, those few moments and breaths of air could have been used to call a doctor or an ambulance.

I walked into Chaplaincy earlier this week soaking wet. You can most probably imagine my sarcasm to the question “It’s raining?”

Or asking someone blue in the face and shivering if it’s cold.

Obviously, knowing the person well, makes a lot of usually normal questions pointless too. For example: asking me “Would you like a cup of tea?” would be wasting your time as you know I’m going to say yes. Asking Krissie “would you like this muffin?” or asking Mike “Mc Donalds or the Salad bowl?” is just as pointless.

Only you and someone else in a room and you smell a fart, “Did you fart?” Isn’t it obvious, if it wasn’t you, then don’t embarrass the man, or woman (because yes indeed, women do fart) and pretend nothing happened.

You touch something hot, and move your hand away with a verbal expression of pain, and they ask “Is it hot?” What do you think it is?

There are so many other situations like these.

But the phrases that really irritate me, the phrases that are more useless than a blind goalkeeper, are the ones, usually said by girls between the age of 12 and 20. The infamous “Can I tell you?” or it’s alternative “Can I ask you something?”

First of all, by asking me “Can I ask you a question?” you have already, as it where asked me a question. And have you ever met any one who ever waited for an answer to it.

In today’s fast day and age, where we don’t have time to write text messages properly, and they are reduced to a few letters and numbers put together to form sentences, why do we keep insisting on wasting time on these pointless questions? Who has the time to insert extra words, let alone whole sentences.

I’ve had phone conversations of 30 seconds in which the only words I said was “Where?”….”ok”. No hello, no good-bye, there was no need. I’m going to see the person in a few minutes or hours at maximum, all ‘vital’ gossip can be shared there.

The strange thing is, that the people who usually say this chocolate kettle of a phrase, are usually people who have a real lot to say and speak really, really fast. So why? Why? Do they take the time and slow down enough to insert this pointless questions? Save time, save breath. Terry Pratchett, in one of his books says that the human body only has so much air it can process before it dies, and these girls are wasting it on saying the same question fifty times a day.

But, I guess it’s their choice.

We all have stupid habits, like mine is writing these pointless thoughts, and yours is reading them.

See, I know that if you’ve read this far, you want to listen. So without needing to ask, I know:

I can tell you.

choo choo of thought

"I might tread on the snail to make Peter, a snail lover, sad," said the lecturer.

What a lovely way to wake up this morning.

So, yes, I'm actually at my 9 o'clock lecture on a Monday morning again.

This is more surprising considering the last few hours of last night where spent setting up for this weeks lenten talks.

*OMG! I just contributed to a discussion in class*

*at 9:05 on Monday!*

Anyway, back to yesterday. I mean, it was difficult, it was tiring, and I would like to truly commend Joe for his patience and dedication.

So anyway, there was a lot of work involved, so if you want to come, they're going to be held all this week starting at 7.30 at the University Chapel.

And back to the here and now:

"Is this clear?"

And I'm thinking to myself, what is clear? What is "what" referring to?

And now he's talking about getting rid of someone that's bothering him.

It's just crazy how lectures jump from one thing to another, with no form of link in between. I'll admit, I'm not exactly following all the time. But I seriously doubt anyone in this room is.

I mean, anyone who has heard me describe how I reason things out and come to conclusions will know that when it comes to choo choos of thought mine are pretty unpredictable. But they always make sense. Andrew can most probably vouch for the logic, and Matt is the one that usually can guess, without me having to explain the steps involved in a thought process.

The thing is, I think logically, that people can follow, and I make connections between one event and the other, and what one person said and the look in his eye and how two people are acting and usually I can make pretty accurate conclusions.

I think that lectures have the sanity to have a reason why they're going from one point to another, but I think they forget that the vital piece of information needed to make the connection, is not present in our head.

And the one thing that I think stops us finding out that little information detail is, we don't care enough.

out

head cold

It's saturday.

We had rehearsals this morning.

And then went to move the platforms to the chapel.

I'm going to almost be touching the ceiling.

I'd give some thoughtful insight, but my face feels like it's stuffed with cotton wool, and my nose keeps dripping.

Carrot soup.

out

Idea!

A group of people sitting around a table trying hard to come up with a good and/or original idea for something. Be it for a play, poster, video, song, or any other art related thing, a group of people can spend hours, frowning at the table, inspecting the ceiling and exploring the contents of various pockets and orifices with no solution. And most of them will be looking at one particular member of the group, the one they think of the Creative One. Let’s call him Simon.

Each person round the table is thinking, “Simon will come up with something soon.” So they relax, and not commit themselves. On the other hand, as creative as Simon may be, he can’t come up with brilliant ideas every time he’s asked to, plus, Simon has had a long day, is feeling a bit ill and is not interested in the subject being discussed anyway.

There a few people, then, who know that Simon is usually the one to come up with the good ideas, and wants, due to a competitive drive, beat him to it this time. And it would be Simon’s pleasure if for once he doesn’t have to think.

But this is besides my point, my point is that although a meeting is held especially to come up with an idea, no idea can be formed by the end of it. And then the next day, while Simon is in the shower thinking about showery things, like soap and water and so on, out of nowhere, an brilliant, and usually obvious idea pops into his head regarding the point of the meeting the night before.

What the hell?

There are two points I want to explore.

First, How come it is Simon to get the sudden idea?

Second, Why does the idea pop up when Simon isn’t thinking about it?

Psychologists may have some reason behind the second question, involving concepts such as the unconscious and so on, and may even be able to answer the first, but personally I like the way Terry Pratchett describes it in his Discworld series.

He says that ideas are, well, independent objects, flying around the world and universe on their own, looking for the ideal brain for them to develop and grow in. When an idea finds such a brain, it heads for it and thus an idea is had. (I’m not sure one can say ‘an idea is had’ but it makes sense in my head as one ‘has an idea’, so ‘an idea is had’. Anyway, bad grammar never bothered me.) Now some people’s brain seem to be some sort of magnet to ideas, and therefore you get the Simon’s of the world.

But, why in the shower, or at bed late at night, or on the bus?

For the answer to this question, I’m going to Sheldon Cooper from ‘The Big Bang Theory’ who mentions a study which shows that when doing jobs that require less mental thought and are made up of routine and a lot of repetition, certain parts of the brain which are used to come up with ideas and think about stuff, are free to work.

So that answers that-ish.

And now I have a poster to design. So I’m going to take a shower.

Water, water, soap, scrub, rub….

Wait….

Eureka!

Out