Whoa Nelly!

Well Matt said that someone had to blog about it, so I'll take up the challenge.

To quote him directly, Matt said 'Nelly Furtado went from "I'm Like a Bird" to "I'm Like a Prostitute!"'

Three incontrovertible pieces of evidence:

1. Her new album is entitled "Loose"
2. Her first single was entitled "Promiscuous"
3. Her latest single is entitled "Maneater"

'Nuff said.

Well Ghana gave it their all, but just couldn't put it past Brazil. To be honest, I'm not too surprised. That said, I think Ghana showed a lot more class than many of the other teams in the World Cup. I don't know if it was because they were playing the reigning champs, or because they had nothing to lose, but they were the most congenial players I've seen so far. Almost all of them helped up the Brazilian players they tackled (whether the Brazilians wanted to be helped up or not!), they congratulated the Brazilians on good plays, and rarely spent time rolling around on the ground in theatrics. That said, there were a couple obvious dives, particularly towards the end in an effort to get a penalty kick which didn't reflect so well on Ghana, but on the whole I found them to be much classier players than many of the European teams. I also watched the France v Spain game last night, and although it was exciting, any time someone went down there were screams and anguished faces and appeals to the officiators, regardless of the degree of contact (I guess they've never read about the boy who cried wolf). I know it's a part of playing the game, but I'd rather they just get on with it... even Henry, who is a player I usually respect had a questionable fall which led to France's second goal. But look at me, talking about football as if I know something about it! Then again, sometimes the outsider's perspective is the most helpful...

Since I'm doing assessments late at work tonight it means I didn't start til 1, which allowed me to have coffee with Matt at Blackwell's earlier in the day. It made for a good beginning to the work day, and made me think that maybe I should try and organize some sort of breakfast meeting sometime this summer. I was also looking forward to coming into work today, mostly because our Internet access is down at home and it meant I could e-mail and blog :P

That's about it from here...more this weekend (if not before) as England take on Portugal in the quarter finals...

Come on Ghana!

Well this being the first World Cup I've ever followed, I can't say what it's been like in the past however this year it seems less like the 'World Cup' and more like the 'Western European Cup with special invites for Argentina and Brazil to tag along'

That said, mighty Ghana is still in contention (after being the USA 2-1!) Now, they have a big obstacle in front of them today, namely Brazil who were favoured to win the whole shebang, but I have faith in the mighty African nation!

You never know what could happen, and it would be a huge upset if they took Brazil down! In fact, it wouldn't even matter if they made it to the finals - Ghana knocking out Brazil would be a World Cup victory unto itself! And with that, I put my support behind Ghana! Go Black Stars!!!!

Next Steps

So my time in England is coming to a close. I have about 2 months left on my UK Working Holiday Visa, give or take a few days, which has been leading me to think about the next step I take.

I have really enjoyed the last 2 years here, and feel that they have been (with the exception of my early childhood) the most formative years of my life so far. I have learned so much about myself and the world around me that I couldn't ever have hoped to learn by staying in my native country, and for that I am thankful. I have also made some lasting friendships and connections with countries across the globe for which I am also very thankful. All that said, I feel like my time in England has been very much about me. Which isn't a bad thing at all, in fact, I think it was necessary for my personal development in many ways. That said, I feel like whatever my next step is, I should be contributing more than I'm taking away from it. Or at least as much as I'm taking away from it. Which again, to mitigate, isn't to say I haven't contributed here in England, but on the whole I feel as though I've taken away more than I've put in. Which, to reiterate, isn't a bad thing for now, but it would be a bad thing if I continued living my life that way. Is that enough disclaimers for you? I guess it goes back to that notion of 'seasons' and I think I'm moving into the next one.

Therefore, I am weighing several options when it comes to what I do next. I don't feel like publishing them all in a public forum such as this, but if you ask me privately I'd be glad to tell you all the different possibilities that I am considering. There's many different factors to take into consideration: I love Europe but I miss my friends and family, I think I should go to grad school but maybe not yet, etc. etc. Regardless of the outcome, I will be sad to leave my community in England but at the same time am looking forward to something new. Jim said in his talk at hOME last night that he heard that those who go through change more often are more likely to see it as a good thing (whereas conversely, those who don't, tend to see it as a negative thing) and I thing there's something in that. I suppose I've gone through enough now that I look for the positive aspects in making such a transition.

I'd like to close with the theme song from Who's The Boss? (which you can listen to here) I never particularly liked the show, and I'm sure the song was written by a bunch of suits trying their hardest to appeal to a middle-America viewing demographic, however I think there's something slightly ironic and painfully po-mo in adopting it for my own circumstances:

"There’s a time for love and a time for living.
You take a chance and face the wind.
An open road and a road that’s hidden
A brand new life around the bend.

There were times when I lost a dream or two.
Found the trail, and at the end was you.
There’s a path you take and a path untaken
The choice is up to you my friend.

Nights are long but you’re on your way
To a brand new life,
Brand new life,
Brand new life around the bend."

Sunday Nights

I'm full of all kinds of thoughts, ideas and opinions which I considered writing about, but instead I'll just share this one:

I love the last few hours before going to bed on a sunday night. I have for as long as I can remember. I'm not sure why, I guess it's a bunch of factors really...the excitement of the weekend has died down and the busyness of the week to come has not yet begun. Being an introvert, it's usually the only time I get for personal reflection during the weekend (though that's my own fault really). It's typically the day of church services, so often (although not always) I've also had some sort of spiritual experience to process. The world appears calm and quiet and it just seems like for a few hours everyone is really laid back and chilled out...it's easily my favourite time during the week.

One Love, One Life

Let's get together and feel all right.

A Photo Op and Nothing More

Odd to think that I was walking around up there exactly one month ago today.


Apparently, according to Mr. Bush, Iraq and Hungary have a lot in common. Right. I'm sure Iraqis are looking at Hungary - of all places - with jealous eyes, saying to themselves "Y'know, one day we could be just like them!"

My favourite quote however, is this one:

But, he said, Iraq's democracy was still under threat from "determined enemies".

"Defeating these enemies will require sacrifices and continued patience, the kind of patience the good people of Hungary displayed after 1956," he said."

Right, well, it took them another 34 years before Hungary officially shrugged off the USSR and became a Republic, so what does that tell you about the state of Iraq? *sigh*

The BBC article also points out that despite being an official member of the EU for the last 2 years, "the good people of Hungary" are still unable to travel to the US without a visa while older members of the EU are. Which makes it pretty clear what the American government REALLY thinks of Hungarians... Basically, the trip is all bullshit...hell, the man's whole presidency is bullshit...

World Cup Fever

Come on Angola! You can do it! You just need to beat Iran by 3 points to qualify! I have faith in you!!!

16:25 - Way to go! now if portugal scores one and you score one, you're in! Go AnGOla!
16:39 - Oh dear, I think that about does it...well Ghana, it's up to you now....

Thank You!

I've believed it for a while, but now I have proper, scientific backing! So there!

It should be noted that my lack of hygiene is due more to laziness than principle, however for a while now I've perceived that folks who are obsessed with keeping clean and taking medicine tend to be ill more often than those less fussed by it. Up until now I didn't have anything to back my own observations, but you can be sure I'll quote this study the next time someone brings it up!

And while we're on the subject, let me tell you why I think that washing your hands after peeing is ridiculous:

a) If I touch my elbow, you wouldn't expect me to wash my hands when I was finished. Therefore, why, after touching a different part of my body (arguably, the part I keep the cleanest!) should I be expected to wash my hands?
b) Men, at least, should be able to complete the process without getting urine on their hands, however even if this were to occur, urine is a sterile liquid! According to wikipedia (the grand authority on all things in this world), urine can be used as an antiseptic in the absence of more traditional methods. An antiseptic is a substance that prevents the growth and reproduction of various microorganisms on the external surfaces of the body! In other words, IT HELPS TO CLEAN THINGS!

Which is not to say that washing your hands is a bad thing. Certainly they get all kinds of junk on them throughout the day. But y'know what? I shower...it does a pretty good job of cleaning my entire body! I really believe that the concept of washing your hands after taking a leak is a social construct which is a hang-up from ancient days when certain practices were considered 'unclean.'

So, there you have it. More than you wanted/expected to know about me this morning. Let the comments begin.

PS: Let it be stated that taking a dump is an entirely different matter altogether.

Monday morning

I've only been at work for half an hour and I've already heard 2 of the songs from the list I made on Friday - it's ridiculous!

10:00 Update - Make that 3 songs...

10:30 - 4

British culture

I came into work this morning and had a really awkward discussion with my female co-worker about the World Cup match last night. Not awkward as in 'uncomfortable' but more as in 'neither of us have any idea what we're talking about.'

e.g.:
"Did you watch the match last night?"
"Just the last 35 minutes."
"Oh, that was the best part! I guess..."
"Yeah. Oh, hey, I'm really surprised they got that 2nd goal."
"Oh right. Yeah, that was unexpected."
"Yeah. So I guess they're moving on to the next round."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Huh."

In other news, we have been listening to BBC Radio 1 at work on a daily basis, which at first I thought was really nice, but after a week I'm already sick of their song rotation. So today, when I have a spare minute (I actually have stuff to DO today...) I will list the songs they play far too often. Here is the beginning of the list, off the top of my head - expect it to grow throughout the day:

• the new Jack Johnson single
• the new Snow Patrol single
• the new Streets single
• the Mylo remix
• the Michael Jackson remix
• the Hawaii Five-O theme song remix
• the monster song
• the Is It Any Wonder song
• the Come On Over Valerie song
• Chili Peppers - Dani California
• World Hold On (the one with that annoying whistle in the beat)
• Don't funk with my heart
• Fall Out Boy
• The I Like the Way You Move song

INTERMISSION: I went to the new Fopp in Oxford during my lunch break and found that Douglas Coupland has just released a new book!! Even though my ass is broke, I put that £9 on the credit card and am looking forward to reading it. It appears to be very untraditional and super creative...I can't wait! Ok, on with the list:

• the Light Up, Light Up, Light Up song (NOT Snow Patrol, the other one)
• the Is It Any Wonder song AGAIN
• Chemical Brothers - Galvanize

Ok, so I got busy at work and couldn't add any more songs, but let me say that I heard all of the above AT LEAST two times today, not to mention previous days. Man, it's brutal. And in better news, I'm a couple of chapters into JPod and I'm LOVING it!! I'm sure that anyone would enjoy it for its existential themes and its unique-ness, but it is totally geared towards the computer geek and he references all kinds of stuff from Baldur's Gate to Nigeria E-Mail Scams. He even spells one word in ASCII! Amazing. I can hardly put it down...in fact I might even finish by the end of this weekend...

150 minutes

Only 2 1/2 hours left to go today....I'm 'ducking out early' to watch the England World Cup match, simply because its an acceptable excuse to leave early.

The Pensky File

I feel like George from that episode of Seinfeld where he gets a new job and is assigned to the Pensky file. Essentially, he takes all week moving it from a paper folder to an accordion-style folder. That's me. That's my job.

Read the entire episode here.

Narcissism

For those of you who miss my beautiful face, here's a bunch of pictures of me (and possibly some friends) over the past month or two. I'll post non-me pictures in the next few days.
















Looking over this assorted gallery, I'm somewhat alarmed by the number of things going into my mouth...

I Made a Mistake

I took my lunch down to the river today, and sat there watching the fish, birds and boats. What a terrible idea! I thought of my friend Matt who's working at a summer camp in Northern Canada and after that I could hardly drag myself back to the office.

It didn't help that I ran into one my Polish friends at work this morning - and actually, I don't really know this girl very well, but she is the flatmate of one of my better Polish friends. So she asked what I was doing and I told her that I worked here now. She replied very insightfully (imagine the following with a Polish accent):
"You know, I don't think that this work is for you. I really cannot see you at a desk in such a small space. But at least it is better than the coffee shop, yeah?"

And dammit, she's right...oh well. For now I need the cash and will take it. However we shall see what further developments arise...

Back to work

Well it's Monday morning, my first day on the job alone. And I mean ALONE. Like, I am literally the only one in my office.

I got a little freaked out this morning at the lack of structure (I knew I was gonna be the only one here and had no idea what I'm doing) and I seriously considered bailing -- it wouldn't have been too hard to call up the agency and ask for a new placement -- but I'm so glad that I didn't!

I came in, turned on the computer, turned on the fan, turned on the radio, and got to work! There was a big pile of slips of paper (still is, as a matter of fact) with a note asking me to sort them into their various classes, and I've been doing it since I got in! We'll see if I can stretch it out until lunch time....

I do like the relaxed environment - I've never earned money more comfortably in my entire life! And it's nice that they aren't looking over my shoulder and breathing down my neck, however I'm worried that come the end of the week there is going to be stuff that I was supposed to do and didn't, just because no one told me! I guess in that case it's not really my fault, but still, I want to make sure all my bases are covered, so I better ask around.

With Kyle leaving the UK and heading back to the States in a week or so, I seriously considered going back to the coffee shop for the summer, if only for the social element. However now that I'm seated comfortably behind a fan and in front of a computer with internet access, and earning £2 more per hour than I would at the coffeeshop, those thoughts seem foolish.

Well, someone just came in and asked me to change the printer ink, so maybe I should go figure out where that's kept...ciao!

A Sunny Sunday in Oxford

I saw some kids with a lemonade stand today and was going to buy a drink, but then decided against it so as not to encourage Capitalistic tendencies within them.

I'm such a jerk.


(Pictures are coming...just around the corner, I promise)

Some good advice

Here is a secret nugget of wisdom I really shouldn't be sharing...

The two best times to go grocery shopping here are:

1.) Valentine's day evening (it's all single guys)
2.) During a World Cup match in which England is participating (everyone is at home or at the pub)

of course, this presumes that

1.) You don't have a partner to share Valentine's day supper with
2.) You don't give a rat's ass about England in the World Cup

Knowledge is power.

Summertime

I like to come up with long, interesting and complex posts while I'm walking the streets on my way to somewhere else - however when the time comes to actually sit down and pound them out, I often find the inspiration somewhat lacking.

At any rate, I start a new job tomorrow. Yes, TOMORROW. Even though I just got back to Oxford YESTERDAY. It's for the best, I suppose. I've realized that, as much as I hate to admit it, I need routine (the trick is, I need the routine to be self-imposed, not other-imposed) and the longer I go without working, the harder it will become to change into a routine which involves a regular job. The time period for this placement is listed as 'ongoing' which is good, although it sounds like I will be dealing with people, either in person or over the phone, which is part of the reason I left the coffee shop in the first place. On the plus side however, I will be earning £7/hour, which even with the exchange rate, I believe is the most money I've ever made at a job in my entire life (insert overeducated/underemployed comments here).

In other news, one of my flatmates apparently moved to Germany while I was gone....go figure. He is to be replaced with two Polish girls sometime next week. I hope they are funny, outgoing and friendly. Attractive wouldn't hurt either.

I guess that's about it from the world of Langford. Summer is in full swing here (which is nice, considering I was still wearing my leather jacket when I left the country) and World Cup fever has swept the nation. I know I'll get lynched for even suggesting it, but I would love it if England lost the final to some small-time country like Paraguay or something...these colonists need a big piece of humble pie :P

O-town my Hometown

Back in Oxford, safe and sound.

Unfortunately since I didn't pay my broadband bill while I was away, they cut off my internet access. Thankfully, I got a hot tip from Matt that a cafe just a block away (Mango's on Cowley, for all the Oxfordites) has free WiFi! I imagine I will spend a good chunk of time here in the next few days...

Tonight its dinner with Kyle, then tomorrow it's lunch with Matt.

Pictures soon, I promise promise promise.

The Best Place on Earth!!!

After many hours on a night bus, switching buses two more times, and waiting at a coffee house in the middle of nowhere, I finally made it to Olympos. And boy am I glad that I did!

This is exactly what I needed after crazy traveling from big city to big city. Everyone here is so chilled out and relaxed...there's lots of different options, but pretty much everyone just spends the day on the beach, or lying in a hammock. Beer NOT optional.

I've met some awesome people here and had such SUCH great times. Yesterday, 9 of us rented a boat for the afternoon and were taken around the Med - stopping to visit sandy beaches, swim in caves and we were even served a fresh fish lunch on the boat! There's also lots of ancient Greek ruins to go exploring through near the beach, as well as these eternal flames up on a mountain that come out of the ground - it's a natural phenomenon of a mixture of gases that burn and it just looks like a camp fire coming out of the ground - crazy. Anyhow, I've only got one more night here tonight, then late tomorrow (1:20 in the morning!) I fly out of Antalya and into Gatwick. I'm so sad to leave, but it's the right time to do it.

I wanted to post pictures here to make you all jealous but the connection here is dead slow, and I can't be bothered to waste all that time uploading when I could be, well, in a hammock drinking beer.

Club Med

Well I finally booked my flight 'home.' I'm leaving from Antalya early in the morning of June 7th and flying into Gatwick.

I have already decided that I am going to take another trip to Turkey in the future and spend much MUCH more time looking around. This made my next move much easier, since before I made that decision I was going to try to cram in a ton of stuff before leaving, but now, I have a new plan:

I was supposed to spend tonight in Istanbul - but I asked for a refund and instead am taking a night-bus to Antalya. Don't get me wrong, Istanbul is very beautiful, but I'm sick of big cities, the aggressive carpet salesmen and shoeshine guys, and so on. As well, I haven't really met any great people at the hostel here, whereas the rest of my trip I've been really lucky with that each day.

But won't Antalya just be more of the same, you ask? Well possibly (I really don't know) but I'm not going to stay there. Instead I found a pamphlet for a place called Bayrams in Olympos, 90 minutes outside of Antalya. It's on the Mediterranean and they rent out log cabins to sleep in. I figure a good way to end the trip would be to go there and chill for a few days and see what it's like - swim in the Med, climb up the mountain, lay on the beach. Then, if I want to take a couple days in Antalya, I can, go do that or else I can relax til the end of the trip and then head in the day of my flight.

So there you have it....a relaxing end to a crazy adventure! Or so I imagine - who knows, maybe the craziest is yet to come!!