originaluddite

That is a shocking title. I must be tired.

One of the things I have noticed with flying is that in-flight magazines are pretty bloody boring. They are full of stuff like 'Top Ten Best Destinations For Your Next Work Conference' or 'Electronic Gadgets For the Executive With Everything'. What shit. But every so often there is something interesting. Last time I flew I read an article about how it was the fiftieth anniversary of the death of the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Wright is possibly the most influential architect of last century and I have been aware of him since my family saw a television documentary on him ages ago (as a result my brother Lukas got a 'pop-up' book of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture). Wright was totally innovative but drew on both tradition and natural forms (as opposed to the Bauhaus take on architecture which was purely functional in nature). Also I recently discovered that one of his apprentices was none other than Walter Burly Griffin (designer of Canberra).

Once you know the Frank Lloyd Wright look you can see hints of it in all sorts of things and it resonates with a lot of things I loved as a kid (yes once more I am reminiscing on last century). Falling Water looks like something that International Rescue (aka The Thunderbirds) would have been at home in. And I reckon you could film Star Fleet Headquarters at the New York Guggenheim and get away with it.

Now Lego (themselves an icon of last century) have produced sets of both Falling Water and the Guggenheim. Legoland Space was one of the three kinds of toy I collected (the others were Star Wars figures and of course Transformers). I would consider reviving my interest in Lego just for these things.

Cross-posted here.

I saw a movie a few night back which reminded me how popular the thesis of Eric von Daniken has become within the context of science fiction specifically. Eric von Daniken - a Swiss author - published Chariots Of The Gods (1968) (which got television documentary treatment in the 70s and 80s). It it he argues that space-faring extra-terrestrials have visited Earth and influenced the development of human civilisation. The arguments depends on a very blinkered interpretation in which facts are cherry-picked to allow for only one possibility - that the author is right. The attraction of Chariots Of The Gods comes from a desire for the wonderous to still be a part of our lives in this age of skepticism and rationality. It also comes from a lack of appreciation for human ingenuity. "How could our ancestors possibly have made the Pyramids?" asks Von Daniken. "They were too stupid to and had to be helped by aliens" is the answer given (which to my mind shows a lack of wonder).

As science Chariots Of The Gods is dodgy. However as an inspiration for science fiction it is fantastic and there are a growing number of movies and programs that utilise the concept of alien visitation inspiring ancient humans. I first encountered the concept in the original Battlestar Galactica (1978-1980). In this back-story humans were the aliens that had colonised Earth long ago. The Cylons are designed to be reminiscent of Roman centurions while the human pilots have helmets modeled on the head-dress of Ancient Egyptian pharaohs. It looks hokey now but it was lots of fun then.

The 80s seemed relatively free of the Von Daniken thesis in science fiction but then along came the movie of Stargate (1994) which has done more to popularise the concept than any other show. Since then other SF movies to incorporate alien impact on ancient ancestors include The Fifth Element (1997), Alien Versus Predator (2004), Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (2008) as well as the movie I saw the other night. They vary in quality and plausibility but they are all fun and the Von Daniken concept gives them a wonder they may otherwise have lacked.

I think we love bringing together the things we love and the sharp contrast makes it all the more thrilling. We love the pop-culture interpretation of ancient civilisations. We love technologically advanced aliens. Bringing them together is an evocative and enthralling thing to do. It makes us contemplate both the long ago and the far away.

And Another Thing

I saw the Land Of The Lost movie recently. I had to even if I expected it to be crappy. It was a kind of 'brand loyalty' thing. Land Of The Lost (1974-76) was a show I loved as a kid. It had claymation dinosaurs! But rather than living in some secret valley they were preserved within a pocket dimension into which the flotsam and jetsam of the universe got stuck. Talk about bringing together things I loved. There were hominids (The Pakuni) and reptilian aliens (The Sleestak). There were ancient ruins. There were also the Pylons (small pyramid-like structures) inside of which were control panels consisting of crystals - arrange them correctly and you could open a portal back home. This was amazing stuff for a child that totally drove the imagination. Why did they have to make it into a low-brow comedy spoof? Still it did remind me of the original show and that is worthwhile in itself.

Cross-posted here

The new Star Trek movie has awakened my long-standing interest in that fictional universe. I started seeing re-runs of the original series on Sunday afternoons and was taken by its exploration of “new life and new civilisations” and its charming 60s aesthetic. Then, with the introduction of Star Trek: The Next Generation, there was the excitement of exploring the same fictional universe from more than one juncture in its invented history. Another attraction was its effects of differing levels of effectiveness (I will have to discuss star ship design at some other time). And yet another was the diverse crews depicted who seemed to live in a world that was both non-racist and non-racialist (in the sense that the concept of race itself was absent from human discourse – hardly surprising in a galaxy filled with alien species).

I wonder why I noticed this last element. My own schoolyard and neighbourhood had plenty of diversity. Possibly it was only once I started discussing things with friends in FOME that I became conscious of the new ground Star Trek has broken in terms of its depiction of the acceptance of diversity. Or possibly I did notice it while still in school. Despite personal experience, I might still have noticed the relative homogeneity of characters in many television shows.

Particularly for its time, the Original Series is impressive. I can only think of Hawaii Five-0 (1968-1980) as rivalling it, but its setting demands a diverse cast of characters. In contrast Star Trek, with its setting of future space exploration, did much more than was expected of it. Consider, for instance, the crew of the space ship in Forbidden Planet (1956) which directly inspired Star Trek, and one could be forgiven for thinking they were a bunch of clones.

In discussing the depiction of diversity in the various incarnations of Star Trek I will work under a few self-set limitations. I will devote most attention to those shows with which I have the greatest familiarity (The Original Series and The Next Generation). I will focus more on the identity of characters than of actors (so for instance I am more interested in the Vulcan nature of Spock than I am in the Jewish heritage of Leonard Nimoy). I will try to only discuss ‘firsts’. And the only fan speculation I will present is my own (rather than the huge body of non-canonical fan fiction).

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In assessing the progress of Star Trek in overcoming prejudice I wonder whether I should be judging by the standards of my time or by those in which the programs were produced. If it is the former then overall I think the more recent shows fare much better. However if it is the latter standard I apply then The Original Series is by far the most successful at challenging the assumptions of its time. And my favourite show – Next Gen – falls furthest short.

Still it also depends on what issue I am considering. On the front of accepting different cultures then Star Trek overall has done pretty well for most of its history. It took a lot longer to challenge traditional gender roles and relations. And on the front of sexual orientation it has been pretty much silent (I am deliberately overlooking slash fiction here because what interests me is what gets to the largest body of viewers).

As far as I am aware there is still nothing like a same-sex relationship in Star Trek. Or even characters with same-sex preferences (Garak is kinda camp but that is hardly proof of anything). Rival show Babylon Five (1993-1997) fared much better and only the most obtuse fans could deny that there was something happening between Susan Ivonova and Talia Winters (apparently some did try by arguing over the fact that only one pillow is seen on a bed).

I would expect however that, despite its own shortcomings, the Star Trek universe has powerfully influenced the producers and consumers of science fiction to present and demand more inclusive and cosmopolitan settings, or to expose the short-comings of past and present society, by exploring alternate futures for ourselves and others.

Cross-posted here. Comments welcome.

Some weeks ago an unusual thing happened to me but with moving and all I forgot to share it till now...

I got a message out-of-the-blue on Facebook from someone I went to secondary school with and had known nothing of for (say) two decades. The message was very short and was simply saying sorry to me for having been mean to me back then. This was my response:

That was a long time ago and I barely ever think back to those days. If I recall rightly you had a very novel way of getting past me to your locker. I think it is funny now.

In adolescence we are still discovering how to relate to others and do lots of dumb things as a result. I came across as too aloof at school - thus attracting some nastiness - even if from my perspective I was just shy. I have improved my behavior since then as we all have.

Thank you for your message which I am most happy to accept. I hope all is well with you.

What was it she did to me to get to her locker? Well it started with her experimentally pinching my bum. For the fun of it? To see how I responded? Coz she could? I was an intensely reserved kid (we were 14 at the time) and very standoffish with the other gender in particular. My response was to jump a mile (or rather move some meters away from her). What started as a bit of fun for her turned into a way of accessing her stuff in the rush to get books once the bell had rung. I suppose it was a very mild form of sexual harasment.

It was however - as I say - a long time ago. And long since then I have made a conscious effort to get over that and the other behaviours sent my way as a gangly nerd at school. I know that in some more extreme cases nerds can take such experiences and project them on wider life thereby perceiving the world as divided between a persecuted nerdy (yet somehow better) minority and a persecuting jock majority. I was lucky to overcome such feelings and get on with life in a society I think has a lot worthwhile in it. And yet...

It must have still been a big thing for me because I was perky for days following the receipt of that apology. I was feeling pretty good with things anyway but suddenly felt that bit better. I suppose it shows the power that saying sorry can have. And I hope it helped her too. She has evidently matured and become more compassionate (a common process I think as we get older). Maybe it just came to this moment over time. Maybe something specific triggered it (one thing I imagine is that she has a child who has entered school and is a bit nerdy). In any case I do appreciate getting that message.

Which brings me to another observation. Conveying a message like that is a difficult thing to do. How much more difficult would it have been if she had had to find me in the White Pages and get on the phone? Chances are it would never have happened. Here then is one instance of how the Internet is a 'good thing' (TM). Modern communcations does bring us closer together.

Cross-posted here. Comments welcome at both sites.

I have been wondering for a while why I have both a Blogger site and a LiveJournal. Or rather I have been wondering why they both get distinctive content. I have both because they both get to different audiences. But do I need to give different content to those overlapping audiences?

I started Lazy Luddite Log in 2006 and I like to look on it as a kind of tiny newspaper like in that Simpsons episode in which suddenly everyone was publishing his or her own paper in response to the monopoly of Monty Burns. It presents to the 'public' a lot of opinion and even some news with an opinionated twist. I say 'public' because anyone can see it and on some topic total strangers have found it and had conversations with me. As a result I tend to use a degree of self-censorship in what I choose to discuss and how I say it.

Then I got onto LJ as Originaluddite in 2007. There was a key difference in that this time it was so I could look at other LJs rather than have whoever look at mine. LJ is a networking tool moreso than is Blogger. However I felt that since I had it I may as well provide some token content. And to start with it was very token... links back to Lazy Luddite Log items I felt were of particular interest... small amusing anecdotes... even my participation in net memes. But then I started writing longer journal entries which became more personal and significant. In part this was a result of growing confidence to say things. In part it was that important things were happening to me that I wished to share. And in part it was because the 'audience' on LJ were a part of that life I was describing - they would understand.

A consequence of this expressiveness was that I started writing much more personal things on Lazy Luddite Log too. So with LJ posts getting longer and Blogger posts getting more personal I now think it may be time to bring the two together.

I prefer the overall look of Lazy Luddite Log. But I recognise that the LJ interface facilitates discussion more effectively. And the distinct content of both is worth keeping. So what I will do from here on in is simply cross-post everything and link both items together so I can quickly examine comments on the same item. There may be small technical differences in this but I will face them as they arise.

As a result LJ contacts of mine can expect longer and (somewhat) more regular postings from me. I apologise in advance for this assault in text.

Cheers
Daniel

I have just written a short story and put it here (the postmark is older but that was just to ensure the story was the next thing I blogged there). While 'published' I still consider it to be in a draft state. Any comments made may have an impact on any improvements I make to it.

Cheers
Daniel

I have come to recognise that in my own way I am kinda obsessive about particular things and that a basis for much of that obsessiveness is a fixation with symmetry. It can affect me in all sorts of ways.

The Body Mass Index chart annoys me. Is it that it presents an overly simplistic case that annoys me? Is it that it contributes to some entrenched prejudices that annoys me? Well these are problems but the thing that bugs me personally is its lack of symmetry. In the alternative universe I live in there are as many categories to the left of 'normal' as there are to its right. So beyond 'underweight' is 'emaciated' just because it satisfies my need for some kind of balance in the design of human concepts.

Another aspect of this is use of words - wishing to select the most appropriate word and giving it a fixed definition is a tendency I have. I recognise one of the wonderful things about English is that it has so many words of overlapping definition and varying nuances. But I suppose it is then okay for one person (me) to want to use those words in particular ways (while hopefully still allowing others to understand me).

Some time ago a friend of mine wondered if there was an antonym for "perky" that was free of negative connotations (she had a vested interest in such a word existing). We stood there shuffling our feet for a moment and decided that the desired word was most elusive. Some time later I was playing with a thesaurus and the best word I could discover for the job was "yielding". Can anyone think of others?

Cheers
Daniel

As I contemplate a change in living circumstances I have been contemplating the living circumstances with which I have been most familiar - that of the share household. In this blog entry I wonder why there seem to be fewer such households among friends now than last decade.

Also as I look for work in another state I have had to consider the possibility that I will once more have a relationship with Centrelink (I am holding off on that just now because I think in many ways they hinder rather than help the process of job-seeking).

And I have suddenly remembered an old on-line toy of mine from my political hack days. As a form of catharsis I would invent ludicrous policy statements under the banner of a fictitious political party Me First! and then post them to a dedicated blog. One of the concepts I had for ages but have only just now written is a spoof of Centrelink which I call Lovelink. Hope some find this amusing...

Cheers
Daniel

P S For the share household discussion I would prefer comments to be made at that blog.

This post relates back to another one. I have had further conversations with my supervisor at work and we have agreed that I will never get on top of the job. As well as the factors I discussed relating to me specifically there is also now a change-in-atmosphere at work deriving from the current economic climate (which is nine tenths perception by-the-way). There is a sense that everyone is that bit more at risk than they once were and that my department cannot compensate for shortcomings in the way it once did.

I was given the freedom to look for work from the luxury of having a job. But the sense that I was on borrowed time and still under pressure to perform made me decide that I needed a specific end-date to work with. Also another factor that has come into play is my thinking that if I am to look for new work then I will put an effort into looking in Canberra so that I can be closer to Petra (with whom I recently marked our anniversary). So this is the last week in my current job.

Following this I will be a bit of a semi-nomad to start with and spend some time both in Melbourne and Canberra. There is a lot of logistics involved that I will have to get on top of but if I think on all of that now I will simply freeze and do nothing. This is why I have made a rash decision and will look at the particulars in bite-sized chunks. In the short-term some of you will see more of me than usual as I have more flexibility of time. And in the long-term you will then see somewhat less of me. Sometimes one just has to embrace change.

I am tired right now. Partly it is just working life. Partly it is the contemplation of change. Partly it is also that I had an operation a week ago (nothing scary) and may still be getting over that. Still I feel very stuck between all sorts of fatiguing ifs. I will feel better next week once I have the freedom to get on top of all this stuff. And I hope that - this time - I can turn a past mistake into a future opportunity.

Cheers
Daniel

I was comparing notes with a friend on the topic of holidays. Relating specific things from the past week or so turned into discussing the phenomenon during holidays of alternately finding oneself with too much or too little human contact.

In her case one issue has been that her family lacks any kind of Christmas tradition so she finds herself at a loose end while all her friends are with family and feels a sense of abandonment and loneliness. For many others however much of Christmas involves a duty of spending time with too many family and relatives - they get overexposed and feel too much in close quarters with such family.

In my case I experienced a bit of both too much then too little interaction.

On the weekend following Christmas I was at home (including traveling as far as some local shops) and was at a bit at a loose end as I knew other friends were having fun in a holiday house. Personal projects of one kind or another (from chores to creative writing) came to the rescue which is why it is always worthwhile to have solitary past-times.

In contrast I then spent many nights including New Year's Eve in that same holiday house (admittedly a large one with many bedrooms) with lots of friends and acquaintances. There were moments of "how do I interact with this person?" or "how can I find some lone time with my partner?" or "how do I choose between competing things-to-do on offer right now?" In truth it worked pretty well (I think) simply because everyone was in the same position and so had to manage things and work on compromises.

The topic of introversion and extroversion is relevant to all this. The fact that two days of solitary activity was a bit much and then four days of living in close quarters with a clan was something I could have had more of suggests that I am more the latter than the former.

Cheers
Daniel

I had an interesting meeting with the supervisor of my department at work this morning. In it she did most of the talking but there will be an oportunity in a few days for me to do more of the talking once I have had a chance to think over things.

The basic gist of the conversation was to pose the question of how well I am truly suited to the role. The human environment I am in is fine but the role itself may be a problem. For sometime now I have been growing ever more aware that my performance is very much wanting. The work demands a particular level of both speed and accuracy that I find difficult to meet - if I make small improvements in one it is to the detriment of the other. It is a rather more technical role than I was originally envisaging - lots of rules and exceptions to rules to apply in the course of data-entry. And lots of stress is put onto us by other departments (customer service or sales) that need information that only we can provide.

The effect of it is to make me feel lacking in ability (there is another word for that but it is a dirty word in this society so I will observe that particular taboo) and to loose confidence. But how shall I answer the question once we return to the conversation?

My supervisor hinted that there may be other things that I can do in the company and that she sees herself as an advocate for her staff in such things. But what if some unknown future role has different or even similar issues? What if I cannot cope with full-time work at all? The tendency is to want to stick with the familiar and hold on to what one has. But is that something I can do indefinitely? Observations welcome.

Cheers
Daniel

P S This topic has been returned to in this entry.

It is rant time. And it is a small one but a rant nonetheless...

For ages now I have been making use of one of the best kept secrets in the Melbourne public transport ticketing system - namely that a weekly or monthly ticket will allow travel in all zones on weekends regardless of which zones that ticket is for. I say secret because they never seemed to promote this feature.

It has been fantastic to (say) have a Weekly Zone 2 ticket for weekday travel to and from work and home but then knowing I can use it to go into the City (Zone 1) on a Saturday arvo (I have sometimes wishes they deemed the weekend to start from Friday night but hey you cannot have everything).

And then the other day I saw a poster at a station announcing a number of changes taking effect in 2009. I cannot remember all the changes (some of which may even be worthwhile) because the only thing I noticed was the fact that my perk of traveling in all zones on weekends will soon be over! I am grumpy. But I am also (a) too lacking in spare energy and (b) too much in a position to afford extra sundry expenses to bother making a fuss over this one (I took a quick look at the PTUA site but cannot see anything there on this matter in particular).

Well it was nice while it lasted - and I will use it for the next several weeks at any rate.

Update (February 2009)

This story has changed. Apparently there was a backlash and now the weekly and monthly tickets still work in all zones (I have tested this empirically). This makes me both happy and sad. Happy that the decision has been reversed. Sad because I just let it happen. Sure I have but 'political activist' behind me but I am still a citizen and a self-interested one at that. The thing that bugs me is that I know political pressure can work and yet I did nothing. I may think differently next time...

Cheers
Daniel

I am rather behind the curve here in chosing to post this meme but it looked like fun once I got to it…

* Put your music player on random.
* Post the first line from the first 32 songs that play
* Let everyone guess what song and artist the lines come from
* Make note of a correctly guessed song using distinguishing notation of some form
* Looking them up on a search engine is verbotten!
* Skip instrumentals... foreign language songs... songs where the title is the first line

Well I must admit I have overlooked the last of those skipping instructions – why assume that someone will know a song just because the title is in the lines? They still have to know the song to answer correctly. I have however omitted some words that are purely incidental to a song (things like “one-two-three-four” or “oo-wa oo-wa”).

One thing I find difficult is discerning exactly what constitutes a ‘line’ so in some cases I may have posted two lines or half a line. Anyway here they are…

In the last few weeks many of these have been guessed but some are still to be identified. I am now adding extra lines to those ones (also there may be some clues within the discussion attached to this post). By the end of the month I will name all the tracks and artists...

Well the month has passed so I now name all songs. Those that were never guessed have an asterisk after the artist name...

01. Give me one more chance and you'll be satisfied - U2: Even Better Than The Real Thing

02. You dress me up, I'm your puppet - Rent: Pet Shop Boys

03. There’s no time for us, there’s no place for us - Who Wants To Live Forever: Queen

04. So you think you're a Romeo playing a part in a picture-show - Take The Long Way Home: Supertramp

05. You don't remember my name, I don't really care, can we play the game your way, can I really lose control - Lose Control: Evanescence *

06. I was dreaming when I wrote this so forgive me if it goes astray - 1999: Prince

07. Everywhere I hear the sound of marching, charging feet, boy, coz Summer's here and the time is right for fighting in the street, boy - Street Fighting Man: Rolling Stones *

08. Well we all have a face that we hide away forever - The Stranger: Billy Joel

09. I know you say maybe some day I need never be alone, I know I say it's the right way but you'll never be the one - All The Right Friends: REM *

10. Then the rainstorm came over me and I felt my spirit break, I had lost all of my belief you see, and realised my mistake - Love's Divine: Seal *

11. I want them to know it's me, it's on my head - Ashes To Ashes: Faith No More

12. I can’t remember anything, can’t tell if this is true or a dream - One: Metallica

13. In your room where time stands still, will you let the morning come soon, or leave me lying here - In Your Room: Depeche Mode *

14. Been dazed and confused for so long it's not true, wanted a woman never bargained for you - Dazed And Confused: Led Zeppelin

15. As around the sun the Earth knows she's revolving - As: George Michael with Mary J Blige (originally Stevie Wonder)

16. I, I wish I could swim, like dolphins, like dolphins can swim - Heroes: David Bowie

17. All the children testified that Miss Macbeth wore a fishbone slide in her cobweb tresses, her eyes were black like first foot coal, clutched as white as chalk-dust, her fingers sweated Indian ink and poison pen letters - Miss Macbeth: Elvis Costello *

18. Another pleasant day in the countryside has ended up in tears on a stormy night, coz you can't follow my directions home, but don't stop now, no don't stop now, give me something I can write about, give me something I can cry about - Crowded House: Don't Stop Now *

19. Why do birds suddenly appear everytime you are near - Close To You: The Carpenters (written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David)

20. Life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone - Like A Prayer: Madonna

21. Walking through forests of palm tree apartments, scoff at the monkeys who live in their dark tent - Bungle In The Jungle: Jethro Tull *

22. Buy and die, sell and be free, we are the New Jacks, this is our reality, do unto others, leave no-one else alive, this is our creed, we will survive - New Jack Theme: Living Colour *

23. Mama take this badge from me - Knocking On Heaven's Door: Guns'N'Roses (originally Bob Dylan)

24. If I tell you, if I tell you now, will you keep on, will you keep on loving me, if I tell you, if I tell you how I feel, will you keep bringing out the best in me - Sweetest Taboo: Sade *

25. She's the wildest hon in the wild kingdom - Junebug: B52s

26. Well I remember every little thing as if it happened only yesterday - Paradise By The Dashboard Light: Meat Loaf (music by Jim Steinmann)

27. Sometimes you love me like a good man oughta - Aretha Franklin: See Saw

28. Looking back on when I was a little nappy headed boy - I Wish: Stevie Wonder

29. Sappy, pathetic little me - Sunday Morning: No Doubt

30. Oh no matter what you say baby, no matter what you do, the way you've been treating me woman is coming back home to you, crying won't help you baby, crying won't help you woman, no crying won't help you baby, coz you've been so mean to me - B B King with Dave Gilmour (in this particular recording) *

31. You don't need your name in bright lights, you're a rock star, and some tin foil with a glass pipe, it's your guitar, now yes it is - High Times: Jamiroquai *

32. The elf knight sits on yonder hill (fine flowers in the valley), he blows his horn both load and shrill (as the roses grow), he blows it east he blows it west (fine flowers in the valley), he blows it where he liketh best (as the roses grow) - Elf Knight: Steeleye Span

Well that was fun if time consuming.

Cheers
Daniel

I have a tendency to utilise a limited number of anecdotes or expressions or illustrations in my conversations. I have to be careful lest I tell the same person something more than once. It is embarrassing to have them say "you told me this one". It suggests I have difficulty distinguishing talking with them from talking with others. It also makes me seem predictable. With that in mind I will present here one of those things that I have told more than one person...

I think that - with some time and effort - one could 'program' a simulation of me with the limited number of responses to various topics of discussion or circumstance. And in saying 'program' I reckon anyone could do it - even me. I would use a 'Choose Your Own Adventure' kind of format and could present it in the form of a blog which allows for any number of separate pages interconnected by hyperlinks. So for instance...

You are having a conversation with Daniel. Which topic will you steer the conversation in?

If it is fantasy or science fiction click here

If it is politics or history click here

If it is popular music click here

I have just linked to select blog items fitting those topics but if I were to put huge and obsessive effort into it then there could be a compendium of short statements for many more topics. Such a website would be very useful. Want to talk to me at a party? Hold on while I give you a net-connected palmtop and direct you to the site. Now you can chat with 'me' while I go off and have a dance (something I cannot get a website to do for me).

Cheers
Daniel

I have been pretty chipper lately. Amazingly so. Everything seems to be moving in a direction that works for me (on work and relationship and friendship fronts) and more by luck than intent. So over-and-above my well-practiced contentment is now a bubbling glee at various things. Hence recently saying on Facebook that I am "tired, busy, happy and well".

All of that is the case now except that I am sick. I have taken a day or so off work. There is the attendant guilt of such a decision - I have the a-okay from a doctor and yet there is still that lingering "what if I had just had a bit more determination to get on the bus in the morning rather than forego the income" (at present I am probationary so sick days are sans-pay).

And then with the spare time comes the sense of wanting to spend some of that extra time (once sleeping in is done with) in attending to random leftover tasks that never get done. But also there is a lack of energy to get those things done. Even this is taking effort. And feels embarrassing writing.

I wonder if we can become too accustomed to happiness such that anything that diminishes that happiness is then more difficult to cope with than it may have been if one was merely okay (and accustomed to that state of "just okay").

Forget that. I will keep the happiness even if there are moments of having to miss it. I will do what it takes to keep it. I also have to remember that it is okay to feel a bit lacking while one is crook. And now I am off to get something to boost my happiness... like a milkshake.

Cheers
Daniel

The ancient laws governing memes compel me to post this meme here that was transmitted to me by Alex. So here it is...

Comment and I will...
1. Tell you why I friended you.
2. Associate you with something - fandom, a song, a colour, a word etc.
3. Tell you something I like about you.
4. Tell you a memory I have of you.
5. Ask something I've always wanted to know about you.
6. Tell you my favourite user pic of yours.
7. In return, you can post this in your LJ.

What am I getting into here? And does this post have to be 'friends-locked' to validate the first question?

Also just for fun take a look at this! I am known for liking Transformers and everyone likes pirates so this is a bit of a winner I reckon.

Cheers
Daniel

P S Some of you are difficult to identify merely by a cursory perusal of your LJ. If you think this is you then can you give me some kind of indication of who you are in the world of flesh? At the time I friended you I managed to identify you but since then I may have forgotten (blush) and so if you have been particularly difficult to identify then I have rather ruthlessly deleted your request. If you wish to re-submit then identify yourself in the process.

One thing that bugs me is the statement "you just need more confidence" as if "confidence" is simply a state-of-mind or a decision that can be made (assuming even that states-of-mind are things that can just be changed "like that").

What they are also saying is that ones lack of confidence is at odds with ones level of ability. But what if ones level of confidence is the product of a rational assessment of ones own competence? What if ones lack of confidence is entirely warranted? Then more than a change of attitude is needed - a change of skill level or experience is needed. And there are absolute limits to such things.

I have pondering this a bit lately and it must be getting to me because I even had a dream in which Yoda fired his tired old line of "do or don't do - there is no try" at me. Pesky old Jedi Master!

Cheers
Daniel

A discussion at 'Pub' on (among other things) 'parenting licences' has prompted me to put my feelings on the topic into a blog entry here. I love that we can discuss these sorts of things (as much as I may come across as all grumpy in my writing).

Cheers
Daniel

I got tagged by Gaby to do this meme that many have done - so here it is.

1. Do you like blue cheese? Nothing involving blatant mould growth. I enjoy savoury foods with melted cheese and also Philly spread on bread.

2. Have you ever smoked? Well there was this one time at a party I took a few sucks on a hookah of scented tobacco. And I have done plenty of passive smoking. But that is it.

3. Do you own a gun? I have a few toy guns, including ones that transform!

4. Favourite lollipop flavour? Never liked lollipops much. I suppose bean flavoured Chuppa Chups are alright (beans as in vanilla and chocolate).

5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Rarely. Doctors make me get better.

6. What do you think of hot dogs? Yum with onion, cheese, chutney.

7. Favourite Christmas movie? Love Actually (never even considered it an Xmas movie till I saw Don refer to it as such).

8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Juice. Also with cereal I prefer having soy rather than milk first thing in the day.

9. Can you do push ups? Answering that would entail me checking and I could not be bothered with that.

10. Do you know the secret to a happy life? Hmmm… if it was a secret would I tell it? My own way to happiness is to do things that make me happy – walk, sing, swim, draw, converse, express affection, contemplate things both close to home and well beyond my personal experience. Also I think an historic perspective helps. My concerns seem small once I consider the sweep of history and my life is amazingly good compared with the lot of many in past generations.

11. What's your favourite piece of jewellery? I rather like my amethyst pendent.

12. Favourite hobby? I have choose? Singing wins over other things but that may be because it is something I can share with others (choristers) more than any other hobby.

13. Song you're listening to right now? Over At The Frankenstein Place from The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

14. Do you have A.D.D.? Never been diagnosed as such. I do have issues with multi-tasking but I think that is just a male thing.

15. What's one trait you do not like about yourself? I am conflict averse.

16. Middle name? Sebastian.

17. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment?
1) What will others think of my answers?
2) I next want to send a message to Petra.
3) I may need to go to the loo soon.

18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday? Pastie. Two-Fruits. Iced Coffee.

19. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Water. Juice. Iced Coffee.

20. Current worry? Finding new work (a frustrating activity which demands a particular skill-set that is different from the one I need to actually do a job).

21. Current hate right now? One-party states (my hates tend to be rather distant things usually).

22. Favourite place to be? In a public space on a warm night having fun with friends while in the background strangers are also having fun. The smell of food and the murmur of music drifts in from various directions.

23. How did you bring in the New Year? At a Korner NYE party in a backyard full of tipsy and huggy friends and acquaintances.

24. Where would you like to go? Particular locales that interest me (ones I have never been to anyway) Perth, Berlin, London, Florence, Montreux, Aachen.

25. Name four people who will complete this: Whomever so wishes to (many already have).

26. Do you own slippers? Not right now. That may change for Winter.

27. Last magazine you read? I think it was a movie-effects focused magazine in Minotaur.

28. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Not sure I ever have. Think I would prefer the matt texture of normal sheets.

29. Can you whistle? Not really.

30. Favourite colour? Blue.

31. Would you be a pirate? Only if I had a charmed life and could avoid deprivation and mutilation. Pansy Pirate me.

32. What songs do you sing in the shower in the morning? This morning it was Somewhere Over The Rainbow.

33. Favourite girl's name? Adele.

34. Favourite boy's name? Cannot think of one.

35. What's in your pocket right now? Nothing. I only put things in them once I walk out the door.

36. Last thing that made you laugh? Something a housemate told me that they saw on a political blog - it was the phrase "rank and vile" to refer to the ordinary grassroots members of a political party...

37. Best bed sheets as a child? I had Superman sheets that I liked at the time. I now think Marvel are better than DC!

38. Worst injury you've ever had? Dislocated kneecap and associated damage to soft tissues as the kneecap dutifully snapped back into place.

39. Do you love where you live? Mostly. Buses could be a bit more punctual but other than that living at the juncture of a few bus services, within a generous walk of stations, close to the Nott, the Scotchmans Creek, and Monash Uni is a good location.

40. Cat lover or dog lover? I prefer dogs to cats but I also prefer the freedom from the responsibility of owning a pet.

41. Who is your loudest friend? Honestly there are a few. It is difficult to decide. Maybe the one (whomever it is) that put prank mail in my letterbox yesterday. I reckon they are larger-than-life.

42. How many fish do you have? None. Family had a fishpond in my childhood. I would give all the gold fish names like Dipper and Diver…

43. Does someone have a crush on you? I would be surprised if there were any full-on crushes. The occasional passing fancy possibly.

44. What is your favourite television show? I lack any regular TV habits right now (except for watching South Park with housemates). If I did watch any current shows then it would probably be the new Dr Who.

45. What is your favourite book(s)? See my response to another meme here.

46. What is your favourite lolly? Can I say dark chocolate?

47. Favourite sports team? Well I sort-of inherited Carlton AFL Club but I have a Care Factor of zero.

48. What song do you want played at your funeral? I have written about this too – here.

50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? On the day I drafted this it was “I have to be in the City for a rally… but I can sleep for another half hour and trust in the connectivity of Melbourne PT…”

Cheers
Daniel

I recently saw Vicka And Linda at a live outdoors gig with them performing their show '99Ibs of Soul'. It was awesome. The sisters told us that they had been exposed as kids to two sources of music - Countdown was one and the Tongan church was the other so it made sense for them to be drawn to soul music and in this show they did lots of covers as well as a few originals.

One sister would sing and that would be impressive. Then another would sing and was likewise impressive. But then both would sing together and wham the effect was explosive. They got some pipes on them those Bull Sisters have!

The support act was a petite anglo woman and she did very well too (with a bit more of a mellow vibe to her selection) showing that music of any genre can unite across all manner of demographic differences. But it was Vicka And Linda who the crowd came for and we went away satisfied.

Cheers
Daniel