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Sunday, August 17th, 2008

dr_weil

3:23p Soon, It shall be mine! Soon, over a years worth of waiting will come to pass as I will finally own my new super computer of evilness.. well it won't be evil, but it'll be powerful. Here's a few of specs with minor details, 4GB RAM, GeForce 9600, 2 500GB Hard Drives (1TB people!), Intel Core 2 Duo E8400, a 20" monitor and Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit. That and things I haven't mentioned coming to a price of just near £700, strange because this is the most money I've ever saved up. And if you have any opinions on my choice of OS, please keep it to yourself because I ain't changing. I'm going to take advantage of every single byte on my RAM. current mood: cheerful current music: Whatever's on my iPod

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billy1987_1994

1:02p What's going on Last few days have been quite eventful. Friday I was stewarding at the Southwark Playhouse, seeing a BAC friend who was good to see again, and last night I was with a friend celebrating his birthday at the Shunt Lounge in London Bridge. It's amazing how these things are so tucked away. During the day, Shunt's just a tiny locked black door which thousands of people pass without even noticing, there's not even a sign, but at night it opens up and it's one of the best clubs I've ever been to. So much stuff going on, and the music, oh wow, classics from the likes of Tiesto, Basement Jaxx, N-Trance, Leftfield, Scooter, even 1930s swing. My throat is still sore from SCREAMING the lyrics of 'What's Up?' by 4 Non Blondes, just listening to it now, I can close my eyes and remember being there. Unfortunately I did something immensely stupid which I'm surprised I didn't suffer more from. Getting a bit carried away I left my stuff for a few minutes, though still in eyeshot, but when I went to pick it up at the end of the night I realised something was missing. Can you guess, was it: A) My fleece, containing a £50 iPod, all my money, my credit card, my Oyster Card, my passport, etc, etc... B) My umbrella. Incredibly it was B. It's only now that I'm realising how lucky I am that they didn't take my fleece right next to it, I would have been absolutely stuck otherwise, but at the time I was like "OMG someone's stolen my umbrella! Damn them!" and going back home all I could think of was that. Waiting an hour in the freezing cold for a bus didn't help, neither did getting off at the wrong stop, walking ages to the right one, and waiting another half-hour for the one up to Neasden. Slightly worse the wear for today but I'm sure I'll recover soon. Still can't get 4 Non Blondes out my head though... current mood: giddy

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Saturday, August 16th, 2008

pookatimes

12:12a Bertooki Earlier on today, I went to see my Grandad-in-law*, Bert, in North Middlesex Hospital. This was a depressing experience, although actually quite interesting. He can't move, he can't say anything except yes or no, he can't feed himself (I had to put the spoon in his mouth for him to swallow), he has lost basically all his weight. It's a saddening sight, but at least he doesn't appear to be in any pain, and he has the Olympics to watch. Did make me think fleetingly of becoming a nurse, too... I'm now at Morti's once again. Morti, now sporting a fine beard, and I have been wtfpwning at Super Mario Bros. 3 - playing through all the levels, minus warp-whistling, him playing Mario and me playing Luigi, racking up treasures and lives as we storm through the game (currently frozen in world 6; we'll pick it up tomorrow). That's fantastic. I'd forgotten how much fun SMB3 is, particularly with someone else who knows the game by heart. That's quite sad, really... Helen texted this morning, a bit upset, and hasn't texted since, or replied... I really hope she's OK. *My uncle-in-law's dad; my cousins' Grandad - whichever makes more sense. current mood: slightly uncomfortable current music: Morti - Hammer Bros Theme

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Thursday, August 14th, 2008

pookatimes

10:20p Out of the spotlight My sister got a job. My cousin got two As and two Bs. My friend got AABC and into the university she wanted. I am pleased for them. It's not been a good day for me, however. And, being the person I am, I felt not only overshadowed, but ignored. I didn't get called for an audition I applied for - but that's the occupational hazard of being an actor, I suppose. I'm not too downbeat about that. Everyone gets their turn in the spotlight. This evening, it was my sister's. I was, as I said, pleased for her. What hurts is that she's got exactly the sort of job I wouldn't mind (she's going to be helping people with computer issues, and I did that at Forty Hill if you remember correctly). The good grades of my family and friends remind me of my own academic grades. Shameful, stupid AS/A2 results which don't reflect the amount of sheer work I put into the things; ditto my degree result. I feel like I've been wasted. I don't expect to be in the spotlight all the time - just like 9 out of 10 actors being unemployed at any given time - but what I do expect is to exist, perhaps be a minor player - a walk-on part - a supporting artiste - an extra. When a principal is in the spotlight, everyone else does not cease to be. So why me? Curtain. current mood: pissed off current music: Mika - Happy Ending

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Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

billy1987_1994

12:27a Teenage in the space age And one very rainy car journey later, I'm back in London! Have missed the old place, need to spend the next few days sorting out about three million things. It struck me, recently, that I will be looking back nostalgically at my teenage years very very soon. Next month I leave them and turn 20, meaning that my teens have taken up almost this entire decade - I turned 13 in September 2001, so it's only the first and last years of it which belong in a different era. So inspired by things called 'mixtapes' that apparently people used to do in the olden days, using iTunes I've made a mix-CD. Ten songs, spanning that 2001-2008 time period, all of which reminding me of certain points in my life. Ten songs that will evoke nostalgia forever, ten songs that I can play to my kids, to which they'll say "This is crap, how did you listen to this boring old stuff?" in the same way my mum gets all wistful when she hears a Bronski Beat song. To add an extra level of geekiness, rather than burning the crappy 128kbs AAC versions from my iPod, I've freshly ripped lossless WAV versions from my CDs for perfect audio quality. They are: Scooter - The Logical Song Junior Senior - Move Your Feet XTM - Fly On The Wings Of Love Gnarls Barkley - Crazy Cascada - Everytime We Touch Scissor Sisters - I Don't Feel Like Dancin' Mika - Grace Kelly Robyn - With Every Heartbeat Sam Sparro - Black & Gold Alphabeat - Fascination The first line of the first song is "When I was young, it seemed that life was so wonderful" which couldn't be more perfect. See you in the summer of 2018 when I do one for the best songs of my 20s! current mood: cheerful current music: That CD

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Monday, August 11th, 2008

pookatimes

11:19p Here's to the feet My right foot, fourth toe along between middle and little. It is in so much pain, and because of the high concentration of nerve endings there, hurts like a motherfucker. There's a chilblain there - or a very deep cut, but I think it's a chilblain - and as a result, the toe is basically open. There's no blood, but so much pain. Three plasters are wrapped around the toe (you're supposed to keep it covered), but they're not really helping much... okay, so no dirt's going to get into me that way, but there's still the dull thud of almost constant pain. Ouch. current mood: sore current music: James - Of Monsters & Heroes & Men

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billy1987_1994

11:00p Summing up the summer And there we go! This is my final night in Devon and tomorrow afternoon it's the long car ride back to London. On the whole it's been alright. Yes, some days were better than others. Yes, I felt like slapping my brother with a trout at points, all he ever seems to do is pick on things now. And yes, the goddamn bloddy sodding stupid rain. It was there again today and looks like it's set to continue both here and in London. I'm not a weather geek, I just want it to be sunny in the summer and wintry in the winter. Spring and Autumn can be anything they like, it just annoys me when August is a miserable washout and the sun shines on Christmas Day. Is that too much to ask? It has been a bit sunny. The first two days were shining, unfortunately I think since then we've only had two others. Four days out of seventeen is still something though, and I will miss here. The rolling fields, the long beaches, the steep hills, it's all something you don't get in London and it's been a refreshing change from the norm. Goodbye Devon, see you soon! current mood: tired

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Sunday, August 10th, 2008

jim_revelator_1

9:00p A Revelator's Darkest Knightmare.... No, not more consistent downturns or indeed another dedication to a legendary TV programme, but this post is written in the aftermath of today seeing Batman: The Dark Knight. An incredible film, the follow up to Batman Begins after three years is one of those that doesn't disappoint. The plot is deliciously sinister with a host of unexpected twists and turns during the whole two and a half hours that it lasted for. And some great visual set-pieces to feast your eyes on. Christian Bale is as reliable as he was before, plus most of the support leads were rather good too, but like many others, the main talking point here is of Heath Ledger's star turn as The Joker. How I would describe it without repeating what others (mainly critics) have already said may be a tad difficult, but for me Ledger's Joker reminded me of a certain Lord Fear (ok, slight nod to the latter of this entry's first paragraph) in that he had an aggressively threatening presence with some sadistically dark humour added for good measure. But most importantly, it was a masterfully crafted performance from Heath Ledger who has given everyone an emphatic final legacy to remember him by. I just cannot see anyone else portray a villain with such style and presence for a long time to come, let alone another Batman film. This film has a phenomenally ear-catching soundtrack, the use of strings within is something that should make everyone drawn into the eerie atmosphere. As for now, it could be worth seeing this in IMAX if it hasn't already been done, or failing that, just wait for the DVD release and watch this in the blackened night with the curtains drawn and those lights switched off.... current mood: disturbed current music: Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard - Why So Serious?

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dr_weil

8:09p Hammer Photos. This is the result of boredom when finding a disc of High School Musical music in my Mum's CD collection (I do not know how it got there) and getting a hammer out... and Fear my new Beard! Stop, Hammer Time. KILL, MAIM, DESTROY! Sadly, I was not allowed to destroy it as much as I wanted too. current mood: cheerful current music: Whatever's on my iPod

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Saturday, August 9th, 2008

billy1987_1994

11:28p Fourteen Quick post to say that things improved the next day, luckily - I need to write more miserable posts, they always seem to be followed by something good! Year 14 of Paignton went great, despite slightly nightmarish journeys to and from it. The sun shon all day and generally everything went right. As much as I miss London, I will miss here. Ok, I've been here every year for the last decade but it's a nice place. Tomorrow is two weeks since I came here, although I've only got a few days left here. Probably time enough, I've bene here so long I think I'm starting to develop a South West accent. And today's been rain, by the way. Good job the Paignton trip wasn't today! current mood: good

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pookatimes

6:23p Post-Post-Camp-Post-Post So. I've been back from camp for a while, and I suppose it's time to talk about camp, so let's do this in sections. Dance of Life. The best thing about a Woodcraft camp is the spontaneity that can happen when there's nothing else to do. A good example of just how successful, or disastrous, a collection of DFs and Kinsfolk in a tent can be is all summed up in a game we invented, through a sequence of completely random suggestions, named ( Dance of Life... ) Vegetarian. I'm going to say this one final time. I'm a vegetarian. I have been for more than 10 years (nearing 15, if I recall correctly). I'm not going to tell you to stop eating meat, so shut the fuck up. Don't keep starting conversations with, "hypothetical situation". Don't ask me for my theories and point out technical flaws that you may, or may not, find. And don't, for the love of God, ask me to eat meat. Don't question me. This is the sort of immature behaviour I've come to expect from primary school children. It's also happened with RPG people. It's not meant to happen at The Woodcraft Folk, on a vegetarian camp, where half the people are vegetarian and the only reason I'm picked on is because I'm an easy target. Fifth Wheel. This is a feeling I've often felt at national Woodcraft meetings - as much as I absolutely adored my time with DFs (it got me through university, after all), there was almost always a nagging feeling of doubt that I should be there. I often felt like an outsider, struggling to fit in at something I wasn't used to. Even at the Denmark camp (wherein I was seasoned), I still felt like a fifth wheel. Not so at this camp. I don't know why or what it was, but I felt like a necessary element of camp. I felt that, had I not gone to camp, something would have been missing, and that's not how I felt about DF events - with those, it was a privilege to go. Here, I was needed. iPod. Not really a main feature of a camp, n'est-ce pas? But with the 4-hour-long coach journeys to and from, I managed to wear out my iPod's battery. I listened to full albums, rather than putting myself at the mercy of the Shuffle function. The albums I listened to ( were... ) Nudity. At a Wheatsheaf Woodcraft event? Wait, what? No, seriously... what? Yeah, there was nudity. On the last night, in fact, everyone (except Toby, who had gone to bed, myself and Jenny, who were feeling the cold, and all the Elfins, Pioneers, Venturers and Leaders) stripped off and ran around the pitch-black field. Why? Because, apparently, it was liberating. One thing I noticed, while talking to them, was that - because of the way they were sat, the direction from which the shadows fell and the angle I was standing by chance - I couldn't see anything exposing at all. No visible genitalia - just naked bodies, artfully covered. It was like soft porn - without the sex and the odd music. Songs. Some of you may remember a track I produced a while ago named Sherbet Lemon, in which I mixed I Like The Flowers with a load of other traditional songs? Well, did you know that it will also mix well with Santa, Baby, The Addams Family theme tune and the Highlands school song? Well, now you know! Don't you feel enlightened? Writing. And finally, a lot of us broke out the crosswords, Sudoku, improving books and writing pads during camp, accompanied - of course - by massive cups of tea. If this is what being Kinsfolk does to you, I quite like it. I, myself, wrote two short stories, both of which start in media res... I wanted to write 'middle' short stories, without a beginning of an end. You can read them, if you like: The first is a completely original story, somewhat RPGish, named ( The Second Step: ) The second is Knightmare RPG fanfiction, so very RPGish, named ( Battle: ) I hope that's all enough for you to be going on with. It should explain, basically, why I like Woodcraft camps. It wasn't anything special, but at least it gives a reason as to why I didn't write all this the minute I got back. Well, Helen was here too. But maybe half a reason. current mood: indescribable current music: Regina Spektor - Apres Moi

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Friday, August 8th, 2008

pookatimes

7:09p Post-Camp-Post Back. In style. current mood: amused current music: Alphaville - Monkey In The Moon

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Thursday, August 7th, 2008

billy1987_1994

9:38p Attacking Keith Chegwin's waxwork with a blowtorch I'm down. God knows why - truth be told I'm being a bit of an ungrateful prat, I'm visiting a new bit of the South West every day, some would kill for a holiday like this. But the weather's naff, my brother's annoying, I miss my London friends...I miss London, really. Stupid, but I do. It rained again today. I was in Exmouth, and admittedly it was sunny briefly. I'd go as far to say the sun shon for as long as a few minutes. Lovely place, but when it's raining you just want to be inside somewhere as soon as possible, so it was basically just another day of going into charity shops, buying random crap and then going back. I shouldn't let it bother me, really. I should just try and enjoy it as best as I can, as the moment I'm back in London I'll probably miss Devon. I've still got several days here to come, so I'll try. Tomorrow is our 14th annual trip to Paignton. Some of them have been better years than others. Hopefully 2008's will be one of the greats. current mood: bored

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crystarr

7:44p Huh. And there I was getting excited about seeing the Cruxshadows. That, of course, was before a train broke down in the Severn Tunnel, making end up in Swindon rather than Bristol, needing to get up to Leeds. And the earliest train I could cath would only get me to the city after the gig had started. With finding hotel / checking in / changing/ getting to venue factored in, I'd have got there probably well over halfway through the gig, so I came home instead. *sigh* Sucks to be me, as Avenue Q would say. current mood: disappointed

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bristolian_kam

6:00p InSight Appears in a trance. Please forgive my abuse of public space. My power [read: energy] gets weaker as it approaches. I should be able to escape for about a week in just over a fortnight after my French courses finish ~ 23rd August or so, but I wouldn't be down south for long. If anyone might be interested in a catch up, I'd love to hear from you: here, email, Facebook. Let me know what is possible; I will try my level best to work around you. I might even travel by dragon. Edit: I doubt I can leave it any later than tomorrow to sort travel plans. Likely down to hope and empty good will, then! Much Love. current mood: tired current music: Malefact / ATT: Moorgate

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