Get that couch! We're moving!

Sorry folks, new blog. No, I'm not lowing anything. Through various mystical, and in one case wyrdical, means and technologies (and wordpress' superior blogging system), I've moved my blog. New and more encompassing features on their servers. Allegedly there will be some ads, but I haven't seen any yet. If there should be, I'll pay them there 30 bucks to fuck off my blog. Go on, have a look. All the pics are still there, all the comments, and all the posts bar one (I turned Play the World into its own page, actually...)

the new link is: kian379.wordpress.com

Fable II

I CANNOT believe how good a game Fable 2 is. It is insane. Second time playing through it, and I cannot believe how much I still enjoy it. I've done the path of selfless goodness and saved the world. And now I've gone the path of evil, grown the horns and saved my sister and my dog. They killed my dog! The bastards! They killed MY DOG! Stupid, slimy, somewhat smelly and quite definitely worm-infested meatbags killed my dog. No wonder I choose to bring him back to life, the poor bugger was the only one who did not run away from me in fear. I guess I'll have to redeem myself now, and reduce those horns sticking out from my skull...

Brownies

Hey folks, yeah, two today. I just remembered: A few days ago I begun believing in brownies. You know the small creatures from fairy tales that run around your house and fix it when you don't know? Yep, that's the ones. I'm a believer. I've turned. A singular action has made me a believer. Here's the story:

I live in this big, ol' house by my onesies until the rest of the guys get back after the break. Seeing as it is just me, and as I've got the whole kitchen to myself, my washing doesn't get done everyday. It takes a few days in between, just to let it pile up a bit. Seems a waste to fill up a whole sink for a plate or two, a fork and possibly a knife. Now, as I went to bed this rainy and windy night, listening to the wind screaming and howling (not kidding you!) and the house creak ominously as the ghosts haunting this place walked about in the darkest hours, I thought I'd do the dishes tomorrow. They needed to be done, and tomorrow seemed like a good day to do them. Random, I know, but it was either that whether or not the Old Man ghost would get me before the werewolves tried to (werewolves, Old Man seems like stupid fella. And I was actually done contemplating that, and needed something to fill my time with between being bored and falling asleep). So, fell asleep, and woke up in the morning to a bright new day (really quite old by then. It was about two hours after noon). Now, being the duty-bound, responsible adult I am (and also lacking any utensil to eat my breakfast from) I went to do the dishes. An lo! everything was done. We're not talking me having done the dishes and forgot about it done, we're talking spotless, perfectionist done. Not a surface had a spot on it, anything that could possibly shine tried to blend me, not a single glass or plate or fork was left to do. But not only the dishes were done, oh no. When I opened the microwave, after offering up a small thanks to whoever did this and having picked my jaw and sunglasses up, I found that it was spotless. Hygienically cleansed of all possible germs. And all the tea-towels were hung up to dry, everything was neatly ordered, even my two remaining Snickers bars were taken out of the bag and put neatly on a shelf. I will admit, I was stunned. Blown away in disbelief. Then, well, I'm a lad. Hunger kicked in, and I got my breakfast. It is now my belief that we have occasional brownies in the house. I guess they do this every few months when they suspect the house is empty. So, brownies, if you are reading this: Thank you, and you're welcome to stick around here.

Oh, also, they day before, when I had been locked up in my room playing guitar, my housemate and his mom came down here. I'm not complaining when that happens, my housemates' moms usually help clean this place. But faced between mom and brownie, I say it was brownies this time.

For scientific comparison. If seen, do not pursue. At all costs.

So soon?

The BBC'a PS website launched yesterday (go here for my reaction to my the interview with me) and today, at 11:23 today I got a call from them, asking me about updates, etc, given the G20 meeting and what not. Wohey... Guess what I'm gonna spend tonight doing? Anyone got any tips here? Anyone at all? It didn't help that I got to bed at four in the morning, and have gotten used to sleeping in 'til two-ish. Luckily I don't have a deadline on this one, and I don't have to write anything to long.

wow... I be retard

And never have my title been more correct. So, for those of you who don't know, I did an interview for the BBC a while ago. And I saw it today. And, wow... I be retard. Felt that had to be said again. I mean, really, how bad can it be? Well, my English, in which I take some pride that I don't sound like a Norwegian, and get taken for being Scottish more than anything, was bad. Really bad. The kind of bad you mock on YouTube bad. Normally I do devout some minuscule part of my consciousness to avoid garbling words and so on, as I'm wont to do in periods. But apparently trying to focus on that, as well as saying the correct things and being in a garbling period. Not good. The result? I sound like someone had injected my lips with painkilling stuff. Ah, well. My terrible accent to the side, the woman doing the interviewing did say I acted professionally. Coming from the BBC, I'll take it as a good sign. Now, all I need to do is to fix that bastard of an accent...

A break

Missed me yesterday? No? Figured as much.

I'm taking a break from my guitar the next few days, seeing as I'm feeling like i'm not getting anywhere, despite the amounts I'm practicing. My hands and fingers hurt like hell after a few attempts at rasgueados, and therefore my conclusion is this: I get nowhere, because my fingers are telling to relax. Seeing as future accomplishment guitar-wise are reliant on my fingers feeling co-operative, I shall heed them and relax.
Instead I'll see if Conflict: Denied Ops is any good, and if that fails I'll go back to playing and Mirror's Edge (again).

Other than that, I'm working on several new projects. I'm developing a system for tabbing strumming patterns, trying to expand on Glossia (Inquisitor Eisenhorn's and his acolytes' cant), and resurrected the Antarion story-arc a few days ago. Don't ask me why. Just felt like it.

Painful, useless things called fingers

Things to not do after a long carrier as a fighter: Pick up the spanish guitar. Why? Well, rasgueo is a technique in which you, in turn, extend each of your fingers, starting with the pinky, and hit each string in sequence. Makes a fast sort of trilling strum. Because I've been doing a lot of martial arts practice my fingers tend to want to go the other way, so at a certain point they stop. That means I can't do a proper rasgueo at all. The best I manage is a weak imitation, which does not sound as good. It doesn't sound bad, but not good either. Therefore, my fingers are protesting quite clearly to my current typing, and this will have to be a short post. So, to end this, I'm not about to give up on the Spanish guitar, enjoying it too much for that. I will say that the rasgueo will no doubt cause me pain in the future, but I'll have to find a way to make it work for me. After all, I'm not aiming to be a new Paco de Lucia, just an average guy being able to use the technique instead of mastering it. Ok, I admit it, the last sentence was bull. Yes, I'll never be good, but by gods, I'll make damned sure I'm as good as I can be. So, ye damned impossible techniques of the Spanish guitar, here I come to learn you all. Even if I'm restricted by fingers not used to operating independently of each other.

Oh, yeah, also, check out the poll on the right. I'm thinking about starting a video blog on YouTube. Any thoughts on this? I'll give you guys a few days to poll it. Spread the word, no?

Thoughts for the day...

I've got a big Easter egg this year. Actually, I got a huge Easter egg this year, made of chocolate. It's larger than my hand, and beneath there's twelve different pieces of chocolate all artfully decorated. I'm not one for religion, but I do enjoy Easter. It's traditionally been the one vacation I would see my family up north and spend some time with father. This year I'm gonna be celebrating Easter alone in Wales. And somehow, despite the fact I didn't think I would, I miss spending today with my father, my nan and my cousins. The weirdest part was that I missed looking for an Easter egg. I'm less than three weeks away from turning 20, officially no longer a teenager, and I missed hunting for an egg I'm quite certain my father has placed somewhere for me to find, and not a yellow bunny with a basket. Notice the quite. I'm leaving some room for hopes of future eggs should I wrong.

I do have an egg, as stated above, and it is possible the largest piece of chocolate I have ever owned. But it is not the same. You can't open it to find sickly sweet chocolates or artificially coloured pieces of plastic masking as candy. Nor can you trade different pieces with cousins. Or have your father and uncles eat the ones you don't like while pretending to be nice. In all honesty, I was trying to be nice, if they didn't want it, they could pick something else. Just not the raspberry filled chocolates. They were mine. Try that and you'd have four feet of vicious kid jumping after it. My last egg was a bright blue one, and it was hidden under a huge tree on my stepmother's parent's front lawn. That was a few years ago, because the last Easters I've spent otherwise. Either with someone I've loved or doing something I love, and that has been fine. This Easter I'm poor and alone, in a foreign country, with no one I love and nothing I love to do.

Therefore, in an attempt to stay sane, I will at least have one thing that is the same: I will still find a hidden Easter egg. Fair enough, I will hide it myself, but that doesn't count. I will still have to find a hidden Easter NO MATTER WHAT YOU SAY! So shut up and let me have my fun.

Happy Easter, everyone. I'm off for a bit of egg-hunting... :D

Amplifier + Spanish guitar = win

It's a very simple formula, no? No need to really go in detail here, but I will nonetheless. My Valentina has a very nice invention called a 4-band EQ. Know what it is? Doesn't matter, I'll tell you. It is a nifty gadget allowing me to plug her into an amp, drastically changing her sound and performance. This is the thing I've been toying with all day, and it is bearing fruits. Nothing is quite like the softly played Spanish Romance, but cranked up and fiddled with to achieve that hollow, melancholic tone. Or a fast rumba with a great presence and good treble. Although, to me a fast rumba is something of a contradiction, as my first encounter with a rumba is the slow ballroom dance. So, if you ever get the chance, pick up an acoustic guitar, or a classical, and try it out. It is a different experience.

On another note, I went through my dA account today and found some old stories I've begun to work more on now. Let's see if I actually write more or not, huh?

The hour for tales

I'm a storyteller, for those that didn't know. I love to read, write, create and tell stories. To embellish the truth, give it scope and purpose. To reach back in time to find old tales of demons and trolls, unlikely heroes and powerful gods. But sometimes, the truth needs no embellishment and purpose to add to it only takes something away. I have many stories to tell you from my encounters through life, for this is why I travel, why I love meeting new people. I will tell them to you. But some, some I will only share sitting under the open Northern sky with the stars above us, the heat of a fire in front of us, sharing a bottle of Suttung's finest mead after the hour of merriment has passed and the hour before twilight is there. For that is the hour of the teller of tales, the time for more serious stories. The ones that are true and honest, the ones that says something about the character of the person. Not humorous or fun, but heavy and worth their words. So, a boon I will beg of you. Make you way to the island this Fire-time. Greet me, laugh with me, fight me and drink with me. And when the stars are out, sit with me and tell me your history and let me tell you mine.

Why I mislike lead guitarists...

I'm a bassist. Second to that I'm a rhythm guitarist. Not a guitarist, a rhythm guitarist. There's a huge difference. Why? Because, as a bassist I play one note at the time, meaning I play one string and hold it down at one point. As a rhythm guitarist I play a chord, holding down several strings to create a note. Why am I telling you this? Simple:

I'm learning the Spanish guitar. Actually, the rhythm guitar. I mislike playing lead. I can do it, I just find the rhythm guitar much more satisfying and fun. And you could argue that as a bassist I'm basically playing a lead but slower. *EEH!* Thank you for playing, but that is WROOOOOOONG! As a bassist I keep the beat of the song, the underbelly as it is sometimes called. As a lead you add all the fiddly bits. Beat of the song but no fiddly bits = okay-sounding kinda cool rhythm. Lead but no beat = what the fuck is the timing on this song?

Back on track: As I'm learning the Spanish guitar, flamenco rumba, that load of stuff, I keep finding the lead guitars. And they're good, yes, and I can't do them. Not that I feel a pressing need other than to occasionally have a go at them to rest my hand from strumming. I can't find the effing strumming patterns or chords. Which is a problem. Cause, personally, I'm happy to be the guy in the background rocking it out for himself rather than be the fingers-fast-as-lightning-awesomeness going mental up and down the guitar neck in up front and center. In fact, this is the reason my main instrument is the bass; you only recognise a good bassist when you can't hear the bass. Now, I want strumming patterns for Spanish guitars! They are nothing like western or folk patterns, and they sound marvelous. Ah well, end of rant. I'm done with "Cancion del Mariachi", the song from Desperado, and are gonna try my hand at something else. Might pick Paco de Lucia or something else. Or have a go at the lead for "Siente mi Amour". Yes, a lead. But it's a quiet, soft, slow lead, and those can sound nice by themselves. Take "Dust in the Wind", for example.

In other news, I got a parcel from Thailand today with a few new bracelets. Gotta love eBay. I think I'll trust it a bit more from now on.

Something new

It's actually working. For those that still doesn't know, I'm dead set on being asocial for the next three weeks. Not only that, but I'm gonna experience boredom. Not just the "I have a few hours to kill" boredom, no, I'm going for the fully-fledged "My god, every day will be same for the next weeks!" boredom that is ready to kill you. Why? Because the last four years my life has been moving so fast and been so filled of things to do that I haven't had time to appreciate the fact that I can be bored. So I thought I'd take a breather and do it now. When I was young I was quite good at entertaining myself. I'd play myself in chess, or practice my combat techniques, or read a book. So, I've devised a system to fill my boredom. It's not avoiding boredom, it is filling it with things to do. A useful skill, I'd say. Anyway, here's my new system: Every morning I get up, I do my strength excersises, do the dishes and then grab a shower. Then it's breakfast while reading webcomics and the news, browse the mail and Facebook. After that I practice my guitar or read some books. Then it is a bit Civilization 4 (I'd highly recommend this game to anyone studying politics. It is beautiful to see how complex it can become) before lunch. After lunch I either play more guitar or read a bit fiction. then it is dinner, some spare time which I spend reading or thinking, and then bed. I've been repeating this for three days, and I can now understand how some people can cope with what I previously saw as plain dead boredom. Actually, that's wrong. What I saw a death sentence by boredom.

So, here's what you should do sometime. At a point when you're life is somewhat stable (no dying pets, suicidal girlfriends or feeling like taking a knife to your throat) take a few days off. Go into your room and be bored. Then try to fill that boredom. You, as a clever person, have all the faculties and tools to do this. But here's the catch. No one else can help. No calling others to have a cup of coffee, no socialising, no partying nor trips downtown. You, and your room. That's it. Don't spend money on a new game. You are allowed a book. Just take some time off and feel the boredom.

I can tell you this. I'm three days in, and I can feel the sluggish feeling of the two days past finally starting to leave me. Having no distraction seems to focus the brain while retaining a serene, peaceful state of mind. It is quite nice. I can now see why one would become a buddhist.

Lack of words

for lack of something more interesting.

1. First thing you wash in the shower?
Left shoulder. Soap in left hand, rub hands together, and then wash from the top down. Makes sense. And not the face, soap and eyes do not mix.

2. What color is your favorite hoodie?
bright orange. Very bright orange. In fact, you'd be hard pressed not to notice me.

3. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again?
Nope, and let me tell you that seducing someone to kiss you just to prove a point is stupid.

4. Do you plan outfits?
Beyond trousers, socks and a t-shirt? rarely... Does happen, if I feel like it. Or have to, like when I'm wearing a suit.

5. How are you feeling RIGHT now?
Bored, and too engaged in this.

6. Whats the closest thing to you that's red?
The flowers in the rosette of my guitar.

7. Tell me about the last dream you remember having?
Yes, good question. I can't remember them. I doubt if I actually have dreams.

8. Did you meet anybody new today?
Yeah.

9. What are you craving right now?
Coke. *takes sip* craving sated.

10. Do you floss?
Nope, mouthwash.

11. What comes to mind when I say cabbage?
Vodka, interstate and sprouts.

12. Are you emotional?
wouldn't say so, no.

13. Have you ever counted to 1,000?
Why? Assuming every number takes two seconds, on average to count, allowing for long numbers like 579, it would take me half an hour or so accomplish this task, without achieving anything but the knowledge I do, in fact, know how to count.

14. Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it?
Both. And now matter how you answer this in detail, it will sound wrong. Just, don't go there?

15. Do you like your hair?
No opinion really. It's there, it serves a purpose. Why fickle with it?

16. Do you like yourself?
Yes, very much so.

17. Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush?
Why not? He might tell me why he did invade the Middle East, after all.

18. What are you listening to right now?
Gipsy Kings - Volare

19. Are your parents strict?
Depends. In some aspects, such as tidyness and discipline. In others I'm allowed a lot of freedom. Had to earn it, tho'.

20.SKIP 20

21. Do you like cottage cheese?
Depends.

22. Have you ever met a celebrity?
Yup.

23. Do you rent movies often?
Not anymore.

24. Is there anything sparkly in the room you're in?
My signet ring. Yes, I have. Yes, I'm allowed one. It's heraldic.

25. How many countries have you visited?
Shit... Let me count... 14. No, wait, 15, if you count Wales as a country. As I live here, I dare not do otherwise.

26. Have you made a prank phone call?
Never felt the need to. you must be seriously bored and daft to find joy in that.

27. Ever been on a train?
Yup. My favourite mode of transportation. Nothing like reading a book with leg-space or sitting on top of a table playing a guitar.

28. Brown or white eggs?
Don't really care... Free-range, that's for sure.

29.Do you have a cell-phone?
Yyp, two in fact. One for each country I currently reside in.

30. Do you use chap stick?
Yeah, during winter-treks or dry summer hikes. Either that or a beeswax mix.

31. Do you own a gun?
Nope. Why would I?

32. Can you use chop sticks?
I'm Asian... Whaddya think?

33. Who are you going to be with tonight?
Myself. I'm taking some much needed time off from socialising.

34. Are you too forgiving?
The opposite, many would say. I'm trying to improve, tho'.

35. Ever been in love?
Yeah.

36. What is your best friend(s) doing tomorrow?
Not much, I'd assume. He is good at being lazy.
Actually, I stand corrected. He will engage in the hardest and most ardous struggle known to mankind. I wish him luck.

37. Ever have cream puffs?
a what? is that some strange, sexually charged metaphor?

38. Last time you cried?
Can't remember.

39. What was the last question you asked?
Really?

40. Favorite time of the year?
Autumn and Spring.

41. Do you have any tattoos?
No.

42. Are you sarcastic?
Me? Sarcastic? I've never!

43. Have you ever seen The Butterfly Effect?
Nope. Not the movie or the effect.

44. Ever walked into a wall?
Eh, ribbevegg...

45. Favorite color?
Silver.

46. Have you ever slapped someone?
More like properly given them a sound thrashing. they all deserved it. Besides, martial arts. It's what we do.

47. Is your hair curly?
Nah, a bit wavy when it's long.

48. What was the last CD you bought?
Pearl Jam - Ultimate rarities

49. Do looks matter?
Yes, I'd say so. Without being shallow, I'm less likely to talk to you happen to smell like my socks after practice without having a reason, such as being employed in the Sewer business.

50. Could you ever forgive a cheater?
Nah. Might try nowadays.

51. Is your phone bill sky high?
25-30 quid a month. I'd call reasonable.

52. Do you like your life right now?
Yup, love it.

53. Do you sleep with the TV on?
Nope. Don't like the telly anymore, unfortunately.

54. Can you handle the truth?
Mhm, I'm to inquisitive to not face it.

55. Do you have good vision?
Yeah.

56. Do you hate or dislike more than 3 people?
Being a politic student, and an undergrad at that? Whaddya think?

57. How often do you talk on the phone?
Not often, hate the effing thing.

58. The last person you held hands with?
My ex.

59. What are you wearing?
Baggy jeans, socks, converse, green shirt, waistcoat, bracelets.

60.What is your favorite animal?
Wolf.

61. Where was your default picture taken at?
Aber, my room.

62. Can you hula hoop?
I'm a guy! we don't learn that!

63. Do you have a job?
Not on a steady basis. I pick up oddjobs at the Clocktower.

64. What was the most recent thing you bought?
Book.

65. Have you ever crawled through a window?
Yeah. Several times.


There you go, a bit more info about me.

Bellucci guitar

I just mocked up my perfect guitar... It is a Bellucci Flamenco guitar made from African Blackwood with a Redwood top, radiused 19 frets fingerboard with clear-cut diamond position markers down the length and an adjustable truss rod, buffalo horn nut and saddle, carved gold-plated tuners and will be stored in a beautiful hand-made leather case. The body is made in the double tap contreras style and features a cut-away. The price? 5500 dollars, or 3700 pounds, or 36 000 NOK. This is now my reason for living. I want that guitar.

Procrastionation!

1. Last beverage → Coke
2. Last phone call → John
3. Last text message → Holly
4. Last song you listened to → Cancion del Mariachi for about the hundredth time.
5. Last time you cried → Ho... Can't remember... When I won my gold mark?


HAVE YOU EVER:
6. Dated someone twice → Hell no!
7. Been cheated on? → Nope.
8. Kissed someone & regretted it? → Oh yeah... Still dodging said person.
9. Lost someone special? → Yup.
10. Been depressed? → Yeah.
11. Been drunk? → Yarp. Many times.


LIST THREE FAVORITE COLORS:
12. Black
13. Silver
14. Red


THIS PAST YEAR HAVE YOU:
15. Made new friends → Yup.
16. Fallen out of love → Mhm.
17. Laughed until you cried → No.
18. Met someone who changed you → Yes.
19. Found out who your true friends were → Already knew that.
20. Found out someone was talking about you →Yeah (really need more ways of agreeing...).
21. Kissed anyone on your friend's list → FB? Yup. Quite a few actually...


TRUTH:
23. How many kids do you want to have → Hey, hey! Dinner and a movie first!
24. Do you have any pets → Brother has a dog.
25. Do you want to change your name → Just to add more to it, really.
26. What did you do for your last birthday → Nothing. As always. Father did make me Italian pizza.
27. What time did you wake up today → noon-ish.
28. What were you doing at midnight last night→ Practicing.
29. Name something you CANNOT wait for → Tomorrow, to have my Spanish guitar fixed.
30. Last time you saw your father→ Close to, oh, two months ago?
31. What is one thing you wish you could change about your life → Nothing. As much as I bitch, I love it.
32. What are you listening to right now → the silence of an empty house.
33. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom → I know a few of them.
34. What's getting on your nerves right now? → Fret buzz on my favourite guitar.
36. What's your real name → Marius William
37. Relationship status → Single
38. Zodiac sign: Taurus
39. Male or female → male
40. Elementary → Høvik/Voksen
41. Middle School → Hovseter US
42. High school → Ullern VGS
43. Hair color → Brown/Black
44. Long or short → Long, for a guy, mind.
45. Height → 180
46. Do you have a crush on someone? → No.
47. What do you like about yourself? → My mental faculties when it comes to acquiring new skills.
48. Piercings → No.
49. Tattoos → got a few designs.
50. Righty or lefty → Right.

FIRSTS :
51. First surgery → None.
52. First piercing → None.
53. First tattoo → soon?
54. First best friend → Can't remember, probably Grammer
55. First sport you joined → Judo
56. First pet → Junior
57. First vacation → Venice, at the age of too young to remember.
58. First concert → Big one? Iron Maiden, 2007
59. First crush → Ho... Define crush?
60. First alcohol drink → Beer. Guinness to be exact.

RIGHT NOW:
61. Eating → Chili.
62. Drinking → Coke.
63. I'm about to → Play some more guitar.
64. Listening to → Silence
65. Waiting for →tomorrow


YOUR FUTURE :
66. Want kids? → Undecided
67. Want to get married? → highly debatable
68. Careers in mind? → Hobo/travelling gypsy character.

WHICH IS BETTER WITH THE SEX OF YOUR CHOOSING?
69. Lips or eyes → Eyes,
70. Hugs or kisses → Kisses,
71. Shorter or taller → Jsut about my height or shorter.
72. Older or Younger → Give or take a few years either way?
73. Romantic or spontaneous → Romantic.
74. Nice stomach or nice arms → Nice arms
75. Tattoos or piercings → I don't mind.
76. Sensitive or loud → First one.
77. Hook-up or relationship → Relationship. Rarely do hook-ups.
78. Trouble maker or hesitant→ hesitant, but with a mischievous hint.

HAVE YOU EVER :
79. Kissed a stranger → Yup, and still suffering 'cause of it.
80. Drank hard liquor → LOVE tequila.
81. Lost glasses/contacts → Yup.
82. Sex on first date → Nope.
83. Broken someone's heart → Dunno. Highly doubt it.
84. Had your own heart broken → Yup.
85. Been arrested? → Close to...
86. Turned someone down → Mhm, ref. pt. 8 & 79.
87. Cried when someone died → Not as I remember.
88. Liked a friend that is a girl? → Yup. Still do. Otherwise I highly doubt we'd be friends.


DO YOU BELIEVE IN:
89. Yourself → Hell yeah!
90. Miracles → Yeah, but not the water-into-wine kind. Small ones.
91. Love at first sight → Yeah.
92. Heaven → I wish.
93. Santa Claus → Well.
94. Kissing on the first date? → Why not?
95. Angels → In a way.

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY:
96. Is there one person you want to be with right now? → mhm.
97. Had more than one boyfriend/girlfriend at one time? → nope.
98. Do you believe it's possible to remain faithful forever? → Yeah.
99. What's the one thing you cannot live without? → Hope.
100. Who is the most awesome kid ever? → Grammer.

Before I die

Short list. I encourage all procrastinating persons out there to do the same.

1. Travel aimlessly around the world with my guitar.
2. Learn to sail.
3. Go inter railing.
4. Inspire someone.
5. Make someone smile and laugh.
6. Help someone without gaining from it.
7. Give someone one of my bracelets as a "thank you".
8. Work at a bazaar store.
9. Go diving in Egypt.
10. Live with Tuaregs.
11. Spend a year on every continent.
12. Model for a serious photographer.
13. Learn to the the Fire Cadenza.
14. Make a difference.
15. Meet that girl again...

Do you remember?

Do you? The days we were young and carefree, when heaven was a glass of sweet and cold raspberry juice, when paradise was your mother buying you an ice cream down at the beach, when the rain and the mud was just another fun thing to play with? Where did those happy days go? What is in their place? A bitter coffee in modern shop, hurried conversations about your worries, avoiding the dirt and the grass getting on your sneakers? I refuse to forget. I will not be one of those that refuse to look back, that refuse to see the simple joys in life, that pretends they have it better now than when they were ten. And so, I have made a list. I implore all of you to do the same. It is a list over things I will do over summer. They will be childish, I will have done them before. But I will nonetheless do them. This is my list:

- Have childish fun.

I really don't need to say more. Have a good Easter.

Play the World

United Kingdom:

England:
London: Inside a phone booth in front of St. Pauls. Tight fit...
London: On top of a statue down at Embankment.
London: Starbucks on the second floor of a bookstore in Oxford Street.

Wales:
Aberystwyth: Second floor of the castle ruins.

The Netherlands

The Hague: Radbound University Hall: Exeunt stage left, by stagejump. Biggest stage so far...
The Hague: World Forum Conference center. Pretty much everywhere, but most renowned for the salsa and busking outside it.

More to come...

Well, I'm home

Actually, I have been home since Saturday but haven't had time to write. We had en essay due on Monday, and yours truly managed to not start it until Sunday. That, however, is over and done with. So, what about the Hague? In one word: not do-able. Give me a pint, a quiet corner and an hour or more of your time and we're getting there. I will do the short list here, and if there are any particular stories you want to hear, I will be home sometime this summer.

- Played the guitar on the main stage, doing a play-and-run in front of the largest committee. Stagejumped off to applause.
- Seen the Red Light district. Never going to buy sex. Ever.
- Met a host of new people.
- Shared a shisha with an American, an Ukrainian and an Englishman.
- Slept three and a half hours on average.
- Been to a Dutch police station.
- Salsa danced in the lobby of the World Forum while Graham played a Spanish tune.
- Bought a new guitar.

In short, an awesome week for many reasons, some only a very select few will hear over a pint or campfire. Also, next time I go travelling I will bring my own lube.

I've begun a project called "Play the World". It is very simple. I will do my best to have my guitar with me whenever I travel, and play her in new and wonderful places. See a separate post on this.

'Til next time.

On the road again...

Gregynog Hall was my last destination, tomorrow it'll be the Hague. Home to the Criminal Courts, etc, etc. World Model United Nations conference is the why, and Eurostar the how. Me and John are gonna have a grand time being in specpol, suggesting rubbish things because we're Armenia, and we don't really have a policy on xenophobic motivated violence or internationally displaced persons anyway.

Things I look forward to the following week:
Wearing a suit every day.
Wearing a different shirt every day.
Wearing a different tie every day.
Manipulating others.
Eating good food.
Having coffee.

Today is a rather stressful day, as was yesterday. I have to pack my last odds and ends, get to my seminars, shop for a new bag as my laptop bag really don't go well with a suit, and attend the Interstate editorial meeting in, oh, an hour or so. Once we're actually on the train to London I'll be jumping with joy. It means I can relax a bit.

Consider this day one of my travel journals.
More to come...

Some days...

..you just really enjoy. No matter the reason, you just enjoy them. I enjoyed mine today. The fresh seabreeze, the sun on my back, the time spent with the lads playing rugby at the beach and chatting with the girls. Summer is really coming along nicely, I have to say.

I've also been stressing about the trip to the Hague I'm shortly embarking on. To make matters worse, someone managed to get me to volunteer as travel organiser. So in the middle of matching ties to shirts and reading the last bits and pieces needed for the conference, I'm also receiving calls about when and where we'll be leaving, will they need a passport, should the bring Euros, what is the currency in the Netherlands, and if I'm up for a pint at Wetherspoons before the train leaves (yes, please, if I can skip my seminar).

So, last point tonight: Why? Why this blog? Well, first because I like to write. And because Kaede wanted me to make a new blog. But also because I, like so many others, really think I'm the centerpiece of the Earth (the rest of you can go hang, I'm the fucking center, not you. Blaggards) and will therefore force my small and unimportant everyday occurences, along with random pieces of prose, down your gullets. Continue at your own risk.

Kian