Hi everyone!
The big news today is of course Karen Gillan! Who? Precisely!! Well, not quite but close - Possibly the prettiest companion yet? I even ended up desktopping her, and for me that's pretty drastic. Of course, she may turn out to be completely hopeless onscreen, but between her good looks, the "Grand Moff"'s brains, and Matt Smith's gravity-defying hair, I'm sure Doctor Who is in the safest hands yet! Bring on 2010... Oh, that's the other cool thing - SHE'S FROM INVERNESS!!!! Those who know me will know why that's so cool; thosse who don't - it's not important. I hope she keeps her accent - It'd contrast nicely to Smith's (hopefully) cockney. I love the Scottish accent. But yeah, they need some videos now. There's only so much you can glean from a pair of pictures.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANYWAY... It's post 99! That means next time will be the big 100! I need all your ideas about what to put into it so that I can put them all into a blender and create the Juice of Pure Awesomeness. Hey, there's an idea... Keep commenting, and watch this space!
See ya 'round!
Jack
UPDATE 07/06/09: Post 100 is coming along nicely, just trying to take some time over it to get it extra-super-duper-awesome. But fingers crossed it should be ready by the end of the month. Unless I have a blindingly brilliant new idea, it should have something to do with "The Funk". Interested? Stay tuned!
Saturday, 30 May 2009
Thursday, 28 May 2009
Stumped
Hi all!
Any long-time followers will know that I have an admiration for Patrick Stump, the lead singer of Fall Out Boy. Well, today I discovered that it IS him singing on the chorus of Cupid's Chokehold by Gym Class Heroes. I had had a suspicion before; he has a very distinctive voice. But today it was confirmed by a simple look on iTunes. I love iTunes. It's so handy. ALSO, I discovered that Rolling Stone do an awesome free video podcast of various artists doing acoustic sessions, which is quite cool. So I downloaded a Patrick Stump one, a Ting Tings one and a Veronicas one. To be honest, the Veronicas' acoustic stuff isn't that great, 'cause they're always just a semitone or two apart from each other, which makes it sound annoyingly clashy. Patrick Stump was OK though - He sings really high! Falsetto, I believe it's called. Better than the Veronicas, definitely. He should be a jazz singer. And the Ting Tings were great as well; considering a lot of their stuff is electrically-based, their acoustic version of "Shut Up and Let Me Go" turned out very... soulful. So yeah, anyone after free music should definitely get that podcast.
Other than that, not much to report. Had a haircut today. Missing my friends. Oh, and THE ROGUE TRADERS HAVE CHOSEN THEIR NEW LEAD SINGER!!!! I won't comment on that 'till I know who it is, but it's pretty exciting. Still haven't got their third album though; I'll need to locate it before the fourth comes out. So yeah, live long and prosper, and look forward to Post 100 - It's going to be one to remember!
See ya 'round!
Jack
Any long-time followers will know that I have an admiration for Patrick Stump, the lead singer of Fall Out Boy. Well, today I discovered that it IS him singing on the chorus of Cupid's Chokehold by Gym Class Heroes. I had had a suspicion before; he has a very distinctive voice. But today it was confirmed by a simple look on iTunes. I love iTunes. It's so handy. ALSO, I discovered that Rolling Stone do an awesome free video podcast of various artists doing acoustic sessions, which is quite cool. So I downloaded a Patrick Stump one, a Ting Tings one and a Veronicas one. To be honest, the Veronicas' acoustic stuff isn't that great, 'cause they're always just a semitone or two apart from each other, which makes it sound annoyingly clashy. Patrick Stump was OK though - He sings really high! Falsetto, I believe it's called. Better than the Veronicas, definitely. He should be a jazz singer. And the Ting Tings were great as well; considering a lot of their stuff is electrically-based, their acoustic version of "Shut Up and Let Me Go" turned out very... soulful. So yeah, anyone after free music should definitely get that podcast.
Other than that, not much to report. Had a haircut today. Missing my friends. Oh, and THE ROGUE TRADERS HAVE CHOSEN THEIR NEW LEAD SINGER!!!! I won't comment on that 'till I know who it is, but it's pretty exciting. Still haven't got their third album though; I'll need to locate it before the fourth comes out. So yeah, live long and prosper, and look forward to Post 100 - It's going to be one to remember!
See ya 'round!
Jack
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
Wii Boxing - So Illogical
Yo gang!
Had such an awesome time last night! Olwen and Georgia came round for a get-together (can't really call it a party, I guess) and it was very fun. Originally I was going to invite loads more, but everyone got whittled down to just the two of them. Which is cool; They say three's a crowd, but I like crowds. So yeah, we were just spontaneously talking about random stuff; some of it deep and meaningful, some of it as whimsical as odd socks. Oops, I'll probably get in trouble for calling it whimsical now. But I still don't understand how I lost at Wii Boxing. I was throwing way more punches than the others. Oh well, Larkin obviously liked the taste of my awful pie (long story).
And today I went out to the cinema with Tom to see Trek again (first time for him), and it was once again brilliant! Even better than I remembered it being! Plus, I finally worked out how Spock can talk to himself (There you go, you had enough warning. If you haven't seen it by now, it's your own fault). It's 'cause technically they are two entirely different entities from two entirely separate universes which were split when Cafe Nero went back in time. If the Spocks had met before that the universe would have ended. But technically after that point they were two completely different people. So there you go. Temporal physics solved. It's logical.
After such an awesome couple of days, a dedication must surely be in order, to my vraiment incroyables friends, without whom I would not be half the person I was not before. That makes sense to me. Both those I have seen recently and those who unfortunately couldn't make it; you're all "fantastic!", as Chris Eccleston might say. Don't know where I'd be without you. Probably in some depressing alternate reality where I wake up every morning and want to die. Your insanity is the sanity which counters the insanity of SO MUCH REVISION! The pain... Ah well, almost over. Summer's going to be a-mazing. Plus I can finally get cracking on my Captain Cook coursework for History. I know, what a geek. But he is pretty interesting, as historical people go.
Anyway, I am rambling now. I'd better stop myself before I turn into Georgia! Hehehe... I love you really.
See ya 'round!
Jack
PS. Wow, a whole post without mentioning Iron Man! Ooops, does that count as a mention?
PPS. Spock must be awesome at Su Doku.
Had such an awesome time last night! Olwen and Georgia came round for a get-together (can't really call it a party, I guess) and it was very fun. Originally I was going to invite loads more, but everyone got whittled down to just the two of them. Which is cool; They say three's a crowd, but I like crowds. So yeah, we were just spontaneously talking about random stuff; some of it deep and meaningful, some of it as whimsical as odd socks. Oops, I'll probably get in trouble for calling it whimsical now. But I still don't understand how I lost at Wii Boxing. I was throwing way more punches than the others. Oh well, Larkin obviously liked the taste of my awful pie (long story).
And today I went out to the cinema with Tom to see Trek again (first time for him), and it was once again brilliant! Even better than I remembered it being! Plus, I finally worked out how Spock can talk to himself (There you go, you had enough warning. If you haven't seen it by now, it's your own fault). It's 'cause technically they are two entirely different entities from two entirely separate universes which were split when Cafe Nero went back in time. If the Spocks had met before that the universe would have ended. But technically after that point they were two completely different people. So there you go. Temporal physics solved. It's logical.
After such an awesome couple of days, a dedication must surely be in order, to my vraiment incroyables friends, without whom I would not be half the person I was not before. That makes sense to me. Both those I have seen recently and those who unfortunately couldn't make it; you're all "fantastic!", as Chris Eccleston might say. Don't know where I'd be without you. Probably in some depressing alternate reality where I wake up every morning and want to die. Your insanity is the sanity which counters the insanity of SO MUCH REVISION! The pain... Ah well, almost over. Summer's going to be a-mazing. Plus I can finally get cracking on my Captain Cook coursework for History. I know, what a geek. But he is pretty interesting, as historical people go.
Anyway, I am rambling now. I'd better stop myself before I turn into Georgia! Hehehe... I love you really.
See ya 'round!
Jack
PS. Wow, a whole post without mentioning Iron Man! Ooops, does that count as a mention?
PPS. Spock must be awesome at Su Doku.
Saturday, 23 May 2009
DUHnuhnuhnuh. DuhnuhNUHnuh. DUHnuh.
Three words:
Iron Man Soundtrack
I know, what a geek. But it really is pretty brilliant. And what's more (the geekiness gets worse) I've got the clever Intel VIIV media centre malarkey which means that when Pete's on his computer, I can listen to his music as well, meaning I can have Iron Man on repeat as much as I want whils working and playing. Sometimes when I have the music playing, I feel like I'm designing some uber-cool project myself. Usually it's just an essay. But it makes it feel more exciting. Me and my imaginary world.
Anyway, yeah, Tuesday and Wednesday look all set to be classic good times. Chillaxing with some bestest friends on Tuesday and going to see Star Trek AGAIN with my bestest bestest friend on Wednesday (His first time; It's taking everything I've got not to spoiler it!). So yeah, slowly but surely, I am fulfilling this series' quest: To get a life.
Wish I was Tony Stark. He's a geek AND he's cool.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Iron Man Soundtrack
I know, what a geek. But it really is pretty brilliant. And what's more (the geekiness gets worse) I've got the clever Intel VIIV media centre malarkey which means that when Pete's on his computer, I can listen to his music as well, meaning I can have Iron Man on repeat as much as I want whils working and playing. Sometimes when I have the music playing, I feel like I'm designing some uber-cool project myself. Usually it's just an essay. But it makes it feel more exciting. Me and my imaginary world.
Anyway, yeah, Tuesday and Wednesday look all set to be classic good times. Chillaxing with some bestest friends on Tuesday and going to see Star Trek AGAIN with my bestest bestest friend on Wednesday (His first time; It's taking everything I've got not to spoiler it!). So yeah, slowly but surely, I am fulfilling this series' quest: To get a life.
Wish I was Tony Stark. He's a geek AND he's cool.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Thursday, 21 May 2009
Loneliness...
Hi everyone!
Thank you, Georgia. The title of your post reminded me just what a great song Loneliness by Sonya Kitchell is. Listen to it. It's a great lullaby. Just started re-listening the Academy Is... album, 'cause I haven't done so for a while. It's just one of those things which all seems to blur into one, a bit like "From Under the Cork Tree". But it's not bad.
So what's going down at the moment? Well, not much, I must admit. Trying to organise some kind of meet-up for Tuesday, which should be fun. Apart from that, I feel nicely relaxed after the hectic pace of school. I had my last exam for a while yesterday, English Lit. As i say, it wasn't the end, it was sort of a brief relief of tension. A bit like the battle of Helm's Deep in LotR. It wasn't the climax of the whole thing, but it was the climax of the second book/movie. So yeah, it was a ferocious beast, and I vanquished it appropriately with an epic soundtrack and particle effects so massive they would make even the lightest SWG servers laggy. But I can't rest on my laurel just yet (Ah, that's where it got to. Knew that felt a bit pricklier than usual.), because an even bigger monster is looming on the horizon. Ten times the height of a man, with fangs as long as your forearm and eighty thousand tentacles writhing from each finger, this creature has skin as thick as lead and a bellow so deafening you can see it from Space - That's right, see it! It goes by the name....of HISTORY!! However, have hope, for with the eternally-sharp, all-penetrating blade of essay-writing and the unbreakable diamond shield of source analysis, clad in the shimmering magic armour of Your Own Knowledge, I am ready for any opponent, regardless of size, strength or intelligence.
But not just yet.
What else? Oh, I've finally plugged the old keyboard back in, and I'm busily working on what will (hopefully) be a massive five-track epic, provided I don't get bored, which in an ideal world would form the finale to my first album, be it with band in tow or not. The New Moon poster has been released, which is (A) very cool, 'cos it looks awesome, but (B) very annoying, 'cos I haven't seen the first one yet. Someday...
See ya 'round!
Jack
Thank you, Georgia. The title of your post reminded me just what a great song Loneliness by Sonya Kitchell is. Listen to it. It's a great lullaby. Just started re-listening the Academy Is... album, 'cause I haven't done so for a while. It's just one of those things which all seems to blur into one, a bit like "From Under the Cork Tree". But it's not bad.
So what's going down at the moment? Well, not much, I must admit. Trying to organise some kind of meet-up for Tuesday, which should be fun. Apart from that, I feel nicely relaxed after the hectic pace of school. I had my last exam for a while yesterday, English Lit. As i say, it wasn't the end, it was sort of a brief relief of tension. A bit like the battle of Helm's Deep in LotR. It wasn't the climax of the whole thing, but it was the climax of the second book/movie. So yeah, it was a ferocious beast, and I vanquished it appropriately with an epic soundtrack and particle effects so massive they would make even the lightest SWG servers laggy. But I can't rest on my laurel just yet (Ah, that's where it got to. Knew that felt a bit pricklier than usual.), because an even bigger monster is looming on the horizon. Ten times the height of a man, with fangs as long as your forearm and eighty thousand tentacles writhing from each finger, this creature has skin as thick as lead and a bellow so deafening you can see it from Space - That's right, see it! It goes by the name....of HISTORY!!
But not just yet.
What else? Oh, I've finally plugged the old keyboard back in, and I'm busily working on what will (hopefully) be a massive five-track epic, provided I don't get bored, which in an ideal world would form the finale to my first album, be it with band in tow or not. The New Moon poster has been released, which is (A) very cool, 'cos it looks awesome, but (B) very annoying, 'cos I haven't seen the first one yet. Someday...
See ya 'round!
Jack
Monday, 18 May 2009
I Do Not "Hook Me Up"...
Hi everyone!
First things first, can I just say - "I Do Not Hook Up" by Kelly Clarkson is such an annoying song. If it was the first thing she'd ever done, I might be a little more impressed (might), but it just sounds exactly the same as any other song she's ever done. What annoys me even more, though, is that people buying the music can actually fall for that. They think they're buying a new song, but if they actually stopped to listen to the song for a moment, they would realise that every single one is a variation on exactly the same theme. Grrr... I don't usually get angry at artists like this, but sometimes I can't help it.
Anyway, moving on, it's only 21 days until Hooooooooook Me Up! Yeah, I know I've already got it, but it's cool to make it more "official". To be honest, I'm a bit annoyed, because when the Veronicas become pop-pop-popular I'll no longer be able to show off my unique love of aussie bands. But on the other hand, if I keep them to myself, no-one else will be able to experience the awesomeness of the Veronicas. I guess, in the interests of fighting off the rubbishness of the Kings of Leona, I should sacrifice another little part of my individuality. So yeah, anyone reading this, who hasn't already done so, should download the Untouched single on 25th May, and then the Hook Me Up album on 8th June. Fans of dance, ballads, and of course pop-pop should really enjoy this masterpiece. Just make sure you aren't ripped off - Get the UK bonus track as well. It's incredible.
So back to my life. I had my French exam today. To be honest, I'm a bit worried, because it almost seemed TOO easy. It was all multiple-choice and ticking boxes and stuff, and they helped you loads and stuff. Like, I got to the end of the listening section, and I thought "Hang on a sec. No exam paper, new spec or otherwise, should be this easy. What's the catch?" I'll probably have missed some vital clue somewhere and end up with nul points, but hey, at least it felt easy.
So there you have it. That's what's going down at the moment. Not much, I know, but hey - the official 100th post is fast approaching! I know I want to do something special for it, but I can't think what.... Comment with suggestions!
See ya 'round!
Jack
First things first, can I just say - "I Do Not Hook Up" by Kelly Clarkson is such an annoying song. If it was the first thing she'd ever done, I might be a little more impressed (might), but it just sounds exactly the same as any other song she's ever done. What annoys me even more, though, is that people buying the music can actually fall for that. They think they're buying a new song, but if they actually stopped to listen to the song for a moment, they would realise that every single one is a variation on exactly the same theme. Grrr... I don't usually get angry at artists like this, but sometimes I can't help it.
Anyway, moving on, it's only 21 days until Hooooooooook Me Up! Yeah, I know I've already got it, but it's cool to make it more "official". To be honest, I'm a bit annoyed, because when the Veronicas become pop-pop-popular I'll no longer be able to show off my unique love of aussie bands. But on the other hand, if I keep them to myself, no-one else will be able to experience the awesomeness of the Veronicas. I guess, in the interests of fighting off the rubbishness of the Kings of Leona, I should sacrifice another little part of my individuality. So yeah, anyone reading this, who hasn't already done so, should download the Untouched single on 25th May, and then the Hook Me Up album on 8th June. Fans of dance, ballads, and of course pop-pop should really enjoy this masterpiece. Just make sure you aren't ripped off - Get the UK bonus track as well. It's incredible.
So back to my life. I had my French exam today. To be honest, I'm a bit worried, because it almost seemed TOO easy. It was all multiple-choice and ticking boxes and stuff, and they helped you loads and stuff. Like, I got to the end of the listening section, and I thought "Hang on a sec. No exam paper, new spec or otherwise, should be this easy. What's the catch?" I'll probably have missed some vital clue somewhere and end up with nul points, but hey, at least it felt easy.
So there you have it. That's what's going down at the moment. Not much, I know, but hey - the official 100th post is fast approaching! I know I want to do something special for it, but I can't think what.... Comment with suggestions!
See ya 'round!
Jack
Saturday, 16 May 2009
Pizzas in the Beer Fridge
Hi guys!
Back on form again today! Exposure to the ambience of my favourite promenade has remedied my blues, and now I feel ready for anything! So what's been going down? Well, more theraputic (think that's how it's spelt) cutting and sticking, some acquiring of new stationery, and also a new watch! This one isn't kinetic, like it's predecessor, but it does have the days of the week in French, which is kinda funky.
So yeah, it's Samedi, which means only one thing - It's the home-alone-simpsons-pizza evening. Yeah, we seem to do this every Saturday; Mum and Dad go out to a dinner party and my brother and I stay in and eat pizza and watch the Simpsons. Not particularly exciting, but it's quite relaxing. I'm starting to think, though, the value of these traditions seems to have decreased now I'm on study leave. I don't feel as much as though I've earned my Saturday chill-out evening. it's almost as though I need the business of the week to appreciate the calmness of the weekends. Funny how that works, isn't it? Ah well, I think about these things too much.
Better get back to my mindless cutting and sticking and put on some good music... Hmm, what'll it be today?
See ya 'round!
Jack
Back on form again today! Exposure to the ambience of my favourite promenade has remedied my blues, and now I feel ready for anything! So what's been going down? Well, more theraputic (think that's how it's spelt) cutting and sticking, some acquiring of new stationery, and also a new watch! This one isn't kinetic, like it's predecessor, but it does have the days of the week in French, which is kinda funky.
So yeah, it's Samedi, which means only one thing - It's the home-alone-simpsons-pizza evening. Yeah, we seem to do this every Saturday; Mum and Dad go out to a dinner party and my brother and I stay in and eat pizza and watch the Simpsons. Not particularly exciting, but it's quite relaxing. I'm starting to think, though, the value of these traditions seems to have decreased now I'm on study leave. I don't feel as much as though I've earned my Saturday chill-out evening. it's almost as though I need the business of the week to appreciate the calmness of the weekends. Funny how that works, isn't it? Ah well, I think about these things too much.
Better get back to my mindless cutting and sticking and put on some good music... Hmm, what'll it be today?
See ya 'round!
Jack
Friday, 15 May 2009
Out of the Loop.
Hi everyone.
Just got a call from Georgia; she's at a party. Drunk, but having great fun, by the sounds of it. When you're drunk you can get some pretty crazy mood swings, or so I'm told, so in order to avoid this I told her I was fine. But here I am, typing away with not another soul in sight. I don't even have any music going - For me that's shocking. I feel so... Just... pathetic. I mean, I know it's not really my fault; when you live miles from anyone else and your parents go to dinner parties every other evening, there's little you can do outside a five- or six-mile radius. But even so, I can't help feeling I've brought this loneliness on myself. It's like that scene from Murmuring Judges. (If anyone ever mentions that play again after Wednesday, I will probably explode.) The one where everyone else is at the banquet, chatting, having fun, eating and drinking, and then Gerard's just in his own little section, to one side, sitting there, doing nothing. That's what you would see if you contrasted mine and Georgia's lives right now.
I mean, she'll regret it in the morning. I don't envy her for that. But I hate missing out on the ambiance; the gossip; just being with friends. My family are great, don't get me wrong, they're such brilliant people. But sometimes I just prefer talking to people of my own age and character. Oh well, no doubt someone'll remember enough to fill me in tomorrow. Next time. Hopefully.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Just got a call from Georgia; she's at a party. Drunk, but having great fun, by the sounds of it. When you're drunk you can get some pretty crazy mood swings, or so I'm told, so in order to avoid this I told her I was fine. But here I am, typing away with not another soul in sight. I don't even have any music going - For me that's shocking. I feel so... Just... pathetic. I mean, I know it's not really my fault; when you live miles from anyone else and your parents go to dinner parties every other evening, there's little you can do outside a five- or six-mile radius. But even so, I can't help feeling I've brought this loneliness on myself. It's like that scene from Murmuring Judges. (If anyone ever mentions that play again after Wednesday, I will probably explode.) The one where everyone else is at the banquet, chatting, having fun, eating and drinking, and then Gerard's just in his own little section, to one side, sitting there, doing nothing. That's what you would see if you contrasted mine and Georgia's lives right now.
I mean, she'll regret it in the morning. I don't envy her for that. But I hate missing out on the ambiance; the gossip; just being with friends. My family are great, don't get me wrong, they're such brilliant people. But sometimes I just prefer talking to people of my own age and character. Oh well, no doubt someone'll remember enough to fill me in tomorrow. Next time. Hopefully.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Thursday, 14 May 2009
Let's begin at the beginning...
Hi all.
I didn't get Head Boy in the end. It went to some other guy who seems to be amazing at everything (a bit of a Mr. Cool). But that's life. At least now I'll be able to focus more on my studies. And hey, Georgia's happy, so there's no excuse for anyone else not to be! I had a really boring/theraputic day of cutting and sticking today, trying to restore order to all my notes. Olwen lent me some Frank Turner music the other day. Can't say it's one of my new all-time favourites, but the Love Ire & Song album is pretty cool. In particular, I'm loving "To Take You Home" - It's quite epic. i really want to cover it with lots of piano, but then all the Frank Turner fans would get really annoyed, so I'll probably never have a chance. But yeah, like the Fray, not a must-have, but a good addition to any music library. Not much else to say here.
See ya 'round!
Jack
I didn't get Head Boy in the end. It went to some other guy who seems to be amazing at everything (a bit of a Mr. Cool). But that's life. At least now I'll be able to focus more on my studies. And hey, Georgia's happy, so there's no excuse for anyone else not to be! I had a really boring/theraputic day of cutting and sticking today, trying to restore order to all my notes. Olwen lent me some Frank Turner music the other day. Can't say it's one of my new all-time favourites, but the Love Ire & Song album is pretty cool. In particular, I'm loving "To Take You Home" - It's quite epic. i really want to cover it with lots of piano, but then all the Frank Turner fans would get really annoyed, so I'll probably never have a chance. But yeah, like the Fray, not a must-have, but a good addition to any music library. Not much else to say here.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
I AM SYLAR... I think.
Hi all!
Cripes, haven't had much chance to update this recently. But yeah, I'm here now, so all is OK. So, first things first, THE END OF HEROES!!!!! I gotta admit, I was a little disappointed they didn't actually show the final showdown between Peter, Nathan and Sylar, instead choosing to fill the space with a minute of random blue flashes through a crack in the door. They did the same in Series 1; that I could understand, 'cause it was still in its early stages and they wanted to keep audiences watching, but this is series 3 now, they have no excuse not to show showdowns. They might as well put in a blank screen with the words "insert climax here" and cheesy keyboard music, because the effect would be the same. Still, I loved the bit where he got into the car with the president, and it ws like:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
Hang on....
Aaaaaah, clever!
I love it when they have moments like that. So Pete now has all his powers back, Nathan's dead, Sylar's Nathan and poor old Chris Martin, or whatever his name was, is toast. I must admit, I am annoyed. I can't believe they brought Nathan back for the THIRD TIME! OK, so it's not really him, but still. Why can't they do that with a cool character, like (you guessed it) Adam? And it's the same with Ali Larter. Whatever excuse they use for her coming from a family of clones or whatever, just....why? She hardly did anything this series. I mean, OK, she looks pretty important in the next volume, but just... Why? Why can't you just make up a new villain? But anyway, "You're number four!" Yay, I can count! Why is that guy significant? I bet it's (A) because he used to work at Building 26 and she's out for revenge on everyone, or (B) because he looks a lot like the president. He does, I tell you!
Only time will tell, I guess. What worries me, though, is that we've seen the end of Zach Quinto. Him taking a break I can understand, I'm sure he has other projects on the go, like the next Trek, but could he possibly have been axed completely?? I mean, when Nathan finally realises he's Sylar, he's not going to want to go back to looking like a tramp, is he? And what about "The Company"? Is it a nice, padded, comfy Company now? Can there be such thing? Once again, Angela and Bennett are frustratingly ambiguous.
Anyway, I think I've gone on enough about that today. What else has been going down? Well, had my first exam on Monday; It's General Studies, so not vital, but I think I did OK all the same. Um.... I had a major tidy-up of my room over the weekend, everything looks really neat and tidy now. The perfect revision environment. And I'm gonna start my latest sticking-in-fest tonight as well. I have so much paper all over the place. Most of it's English Lit. Listened to the Fray's latest album. On first listening, I though it was pretty epic, definitely bigger and bolder than their first album, although surprisingly understated in the music market. Second and third listenings have brought out slightly more... tedious aspects of the album, but at ten tracks it's just the right length to explore the whole spectrum of emotions without becoming too much of a bore. The piano's great as well; I wish I could play like that. Not a must-have, but quite enjoyable.
What else should I mention here? Oh yeah, major people-watching yesterday. We went out to this other school down the road, for English Lit, and I was teamed up with Joe and Julia. We were the three Js. That's how cool we were. But yeah, Julia was pretty awesome. Just one of those oddly fascinating people you wish you could be yourself. So, I was bored babysitting last night, and decided to put my thoughts down on paper (or iPod, in this case). What I came up with was something along the lines of this:
Julia sits opposite me; petite, skinny, smiling thoughtfully. Her face is that of a typical sixteen- or seventeen-year old girl, pretty, precise, delicate, but nothing that striking. Her eyes, transfixing, are the first things that truly catch my attention. A warm hazel, they seem to twinkle with the spark of imagination. I could tell just from that glimmer that she was the sort of girl with one foot in reality and the other in a world of her own. Not like some other girls. Not like the fashion victims, shallow, obsessed with the latest gossip. Julia was one of the few who dared to be unique.
Her voluminous hair is a fascination: a sort of dark reddish-brown with lighter streaks of almost gold, which I'd like to think are natural but are probably dyed. It hangs over her right shoulder, half-heartedly plaitted, but with errand strands reaching like fingers of smoke in all directions. The simple blazer, polo shirt, skirt and tights she wears hardly do her justice, but at the same time, I can't imaging she's the type to wear dresses. The thick-heeled black shoes she wears are practical, but without sacrificing her femininity. When she sits, she generally keeps her legs folded beneath her chair; relaxed, but keeping to herself.
Julia seems the "in-between" sort, she has the ability to associate with different types of people equally, without herself belonging to any category. I really admire this skill; there are some sorts of people I couldn't talk to to save my life. That's not a reflection of them, it's purely down to a lack of communication skills on my part. Julia's voice is the typical eccentric, intelligent without being too arrogant. It's quite pure; there's no noticeable accent in her words. She doesn't talk much, but when she does begin, I wouldn't be surprised or unhappy if she went on for hours.
Too soon she has to leave - she's got a message from her mum. She produces a curious phone from her bag - It's quite old, as evidenced by the scratches around the edges, a Motorola, orangey-red, big but flat. She tells me it's old, but I think it's got character. At the end of an hour and a half, she still doesn't know my name, and she probably never will, but that doesn't bother me. Just meeting her was interesting enough.
Yawn. You should be able to drag notes from your iPod onto the computer. I bet if I had J.A.R.V.I.S. I could. He's such an awesome gadget. OK, waffling now. Today's my last day before study leave, so I should really be doing something productive with my time. Looking forward to getting the Head Boy results this afternoon. I wonder who's going to win... Hopefully me! I won't be too gutted if I lose, but it would be cool.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Cripes, haven't had much chance to update this recently. But yeah, I'm here now, so all is OK. So, first things first, THE END OF HEROES!!!!! I gotta admit, I was a little disappointed they didn't actually show the final showdown between Peter, Nathan and Sylar, instead choosing to fill the space with a minute of random blue flashes through a crack in the door. They did the same in Series 1; that I could understand, 'cause it was still in its early stages and they wanted to keep audiences watching, but this is series 3 now, they have no excuse not to show showdowns. They might as well put in a blank screen with the words "insert climax here" and cheesy keyboard music, because the effect would be the same. Still, I loved the bit where he got into the car with the president, and it ws like:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
Hang on....
Aaaaaah, clever!
I love it when they have moments like that. So Pete now has all his powers back, Nathan's dead, Sylar's Nathan and poor old Chris Martin, or whatever his name was, is toast. I must admit, I am annoyed. I can't believe they brought Nathan back for the THIRD TIME! OK, so it's not really him, but still. Why can't they do that with a cool character, like (you guessed it) Adam? And it's the same with Ali Larter. Whatever excuse they use for her coming from a family of clones or whatever, just....why? She hardly did anything this series. I mean, OK, she looks pretty important in the next volume, but just... Why? Why can't you just make up a new villain? But anyway, "You're number four!" Yay, I can count! Why is that guy significant? I bet it's (A) because he used to work at Building 26 and she's out for revenge on everyone, or (B) because he looks a lot like the president. He does, I tell you!
Only time will tell, I guess. What worries me, though, is that we've seen the end of Zach Quinto. Him taking a break I can understand, I'm sure he has other projects on the go, like the next Trek, but could he possibly have been axed completely?? I mean, when Nathan finally realises he's Sylar, he's not going to want to go back to looking like a tramp, is he? And what about "The Company"? Is it a nice, padded, comfy Company now? Can there be such thing? Once again, Angela and Bennett are frustratingly ambiguous.
Anyway, I think I've gone on enough about that today. What else has been going down? Well, had my first exam on Monday; It's General Studies, so not vital, but I think I did OK all the same. Um.... I had a major tidy-up of my room over the weekend, everything looks really neat and tidy now. The perfect revision environment. And I'm gonna start my latest sticking-in-fest tonight as well. I have so much paper all over the place. Most of it's English Lit. Listened to the Fray's latest album. On first listening, I though it was pretty epic, definitely bigger and bolder than their first album, although surprisingly understated in the music market. Second and third listenings have brought out slightly more... tedious aspects of the album, but at ten tracks it's just the right length to explore the whole spectrum of emotions without becoming too much of a bore. The piano's great as well; I wish I could play like that. Not a must-have, but quite enjoyable.
What else should I mention here? Oh yeah, major people-watching yesterday. We went out to this other school down the road, for English Lit, and I was teamed up with Joe and Julia. We were the three Js. That's how cool we were. But yeah, Julia was pretty awesome. Just one of those oddly fascinating people you wish you could be yourself. So, I was bored babysitting last night, and decided to put my thoughts down on paper (or iPod, in this case). What I came up with was something along the lines of this:
Julia sits opposite me; petite, skinny, smiling thoughtfully. Her face is that of a typical sixteen- or seventeen-year old girl, pretty, precise, delicate, but nothing that striking. Her eyes, transfixing, are the first things that truly catch my attention. A warm hazel, they seem to twinkle with the spark of imagination. I could tell just from that glimmer that she was the sort of girl with one foot in reality and the other in a world of her own. Not like some other girls. Not like the fashion victims, shallow, obsessed with the latest gossip. Julia was one of the few who dared to be unique.
Her voluminous hair is a fascination: a sort of dark reddish-brown with lighter streaks of almost gold, which I'd like to think are natural but are probably dyed. It hangs over her right shoulder, half-heartedly plaitted, but with errand strands reaching like fingers of smoke in all directions. The simple blazer, polo shirt, skirt and tights she wears hardly do her justice, but at the same time, I can't imaging she's the type to wear dresses. The thick-heeled black shoes she wears are practical, but without sacrificing her femininity. When she sits, she generally keeps her legs folded beneath her chair; relaxed, but keeping to herself.
Julia seems the "in-between" sort, she has the ability to associate with different types of people equally, without herself belonging to any category. I really admire this skill; there are some sorts of people I couldn't talk to to save my life. That's not a reflection of them, it's purely down to a lack of communication skills on my part. Julia's voice is the typical eccentric, intelligent without being too arrogant. It's quite pure; there's no noticeable accent in her words. She doesn't talk much, but when she does begin, I wouldn't be surprised or unhappy if she went on for hours.
Too soon she has to leave - she's got a message from her mum. She produces a curious phone from her bag - It's quite old, as evidenced by the scratches around the edges, a Motorola, orangey-red, big but flat. She tells me it's old, but I think it's got character. At the end of an hour and a half, she still doesn't know my name, and she probably never will, but that doesn't bother me. Just meeting her was interesting enough.
Yawn. You should be able to drag notes from your iPod onto the computer. I bet if I had J.A.R.V.I.S. I could. He's such an awesome gadget. OK, waffling now. Today's my last day before study leave, so I should really be doing something productive with my time. Looking forward to getting the Head Boy results this afternoon. I wonder who's going to win... Hopefully me! I won't be too gutted if I lose, but it would be cool.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Black Holes and Revelations...
Hi everyone!
So, I went out to see this movie last night, and I thought, "Meh, it'll be alright, good material for the blog, I'll give it maybe one or two paragraphs' coverage in this week's round-up." Alas, like Cuddeford of Irina (Oh dear.), I have been forced to reconsider this view, because I am not ashamed to admit that I was well and truly bowled over by what is undoubtedly one of, if not THE film of the year. So, in its own post, in as many paragraphs as it takes, this is why you should see Star Trek.
Oh, and be careful. For those who haven't seen it, I would strongly discourage reading on. The review will almost certainly contain spoilers of a wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey nature. You have been warned...
OK, so...Cripes, where to start? Well, let's consider the plot first. Basically.... I was alright with the whole wormhole-alternate-reality-time-travel stuff. Your average cinema-goer might have a little difficulty understanding it all, but anyone well-versed in the ways of the sci-fi should find it a walk in the park...that is, until the end. How is it possible for Spock to meet himself?? Years of well established science-fiction law were broken in that scene. Even now, I can't get my head round how it could occur. I mean, there's nothing wrong with it, I guess, but at the same time, it seems completely impossible... I dunno, some things may never be explained. Apart from that, the plot was pretty easy to follow, and quite clever too. So, does this mean all that happened before, all the original movies and TV, is null and void? Now that an alternative reality has been created, will there be subtle but pivotal differences in the adventures to come? I quote from Wikipedia: "the film introduces an alternate reality separate from the continuity of the original series and the previous movies". So there you go.
Right, casting wise... I thought there were some extremely good actors in there. Pretty much all the crew members were fantastic. When I first heard about all these different characters, I thought "Cripes, will I be able to keep up?" But fortunately, each of the crew had a very distinct personality. Chekov was quite funny, and Sulu's "fencing", which ended up more like a fist-fight, wasn't bad either. I feel sorry for the red guy who got incinerated though, he would have been cool. To be honest, I didn't see what Uthura's role was in the plot. I mean, OK, a love interest is fine, but only if it's relevant. Here, I found the plot would function just as well without her. Simon Pegg as Scottie (with random critter in tow) was brilliant as usual, even pulling some classic quotes out of the bag at times. Karl Urban was quite funky, but I still think he was better in Lord of the Rings. But by far the best for me was Zach Quinto. And not just because I'm a Heroes fan, either. He just fitted the role so well, even if he did have to have that rubbish haircut which looks like a wig. Casting anyone else would have been highly illogical. I hope he comes back to do the others, although whether this'll mean killing him off in Heroes is hard to say. As another Heroes tribute, I hear Greg Grunberg was in there too, but i didn't notice him myself.
Oh yeah, there was that Kirk guy as well. I felt he was better than I expected him to be, and Mum says he was quite faithful to the original Kirk, although I can't really remember. I'm glad he didn't cool it up too much, but I don't think he was that incredible compared to the others. Nero was a typical villain, not that much originality, it has to be said. He had an interesting plot around him, but in terms of character he was just your stereotypical Romulan. This is fair enough, I guess, considering he was originally just captain of a bogstandard mining ship. And one of the baddies from Iron Man was there at the start as well, which was quite funky.
So, moving on. I thought the effects for the movie were in-credible. Whether the mahussive ships, or the immersive locales, or the seriously creepy black holes, I felt this was a film which, whilst not really pushing the boundaries of technology, definitely made the most of everything at their disposal to create things that looked real enough to touch. Like, when the Romulan ship first came out of the black hole, it genuinely looked quite scary. I know this sounds a bit naf and American, but I came out of that cinema feeling like I myself had been on that adventure, and not many movies can create that effect. Indiana Jones? Not even close. Iron Man? Looked like a tame house-cat compared to this behemoth. Even The Dark Knight seemed to be cast into shadow. I suppose that's more of a character piece than an all-out adventure, but still. Only movies of the calibre of Lord of the Rings, Pirates and Star Wars could ever hope to surpass this creation. It's almost TOO good. Almost.
Now. Michael Giacchino. Some may remember him as the genius who composed the music for the Incredibles. With this in his repertoire, I knew the Star Trek theme was safe in his hands, and I was right to trust him. As well as an entirely new score, which reminded me strangely of the Narnia soundtrack, only more epic, he also brought back the original original original theme, which was.... An interesting choice. As much as he has revamped it and given it the Doctor-Who-theme-esque "Cool" treatment, that theme still doesn't do it for me as much as the more recognisable later one. I guess we should assume he'll go back to that one later. Other than that, Giacchino remains one of my favourite soundtrack composers, and when I next have money, I will almost certainly download it.
Some movie endings have been hopeless anticlimaxes. Batman was one. Nemesis was another. But this was in no way a disappointment. Everyone in the cinema was on the edge of their seats when Spock was beamed up, just in the nick of time, and then the most incredible thing happened. You know how usually in the crowd you can hear someone rustling their bag of popcorn, or coughing really loudly, or talking to their mates, or whatever? Not this time. That bit just before the Red Matter explodes, when it all goes quiet - Not a sound from the audience. Literally, we were all sat there with our breath held and our jaws half way to the floor. And when the credits rolled, another curious thing happened. The audience applauded. I don't think I've ever been around when that's happened before. Not even at the end of Return of the King.
And of course, no remake could be complete without a re-hash of that pivotal line from the original, with a quite conspicuous swop from "no man" to "no-one" to bring Trek into the politically-correct world of today. Not that I'm complaining; now no-one can make that rubbish joke about the ladies' toilets. But it did kind of stick out like a sore thumb when everyone was expecting the original. On the whole, however, this is definitely a must see. If you only ever see one movie all year, it has to be Star Trek. Even if you're not a fan, it is, hands down, an incredible movie. It has boldly gone where no remake has gone before. (Or baldly, in the Romulans' case).
Phew. Well, I guess I'm out of space today. Tomorrow I'll catch up on everything else I was going to talk about today, including the Fray's new album, a mega room clean-up, and the impending end of Heroes........
See ya 'round!
Jack
So, I went out to see this movie last night, and I thought, "Meh, it'll be alright, good material for the blog, I'll give it maybe one or two paragraphs' coverage in this week's round-up." Alas, like Cuddeford of Irina (Oh dear.), I have been forced to reconsider this view, because I am not ashamed to admit that I was well and truly bowled over by what is undoubtedly one of, if not THE film of the year. So, in its own post, in as many paragraphs as it takes, this is why you should see Star Trek.
Oh, and be careful. For those who haven't seen it, I would strongly discourage reading on. The review will almost certainly contain spoilers of a wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey nature. You have been warned...
OK, so...Cripes, where to start? Well, let's consider the plot first. Basically.... I was alright with the whole wormhole-alternate-reality-time-travel stuff. Your average cinema-goer might have a little difficulty understanding it all, but anyone well-versed in the ways of the sci-fi should find it a walk in the park...that is, until the end. How is it possible for Spock to meet himself?? Years of well established science-fiction law were broken in that scene. Even now, I can't get my head round how it could occur. I mean, there's nothing wrong with it, I guess, but at the same time, it seems completely impossible... I dunno, some things may never be explained. Apart from that, the plot was pretty easy to follow, and quite clever too. So, does this mean all that happened before, all the original movies and TV, is null and void? Now that an alternative reality has been created, will there be subtle but pivotal differences in the adventures to come? I quote from Wikipedia: "the film introduces an alternate reality separate from the continuity of the original series and the previous movies". So there you go.
Right, casting wise... I thought there were some extremely good actors in there. Pretty much all the crew members were fantastic. When I first heard about all these different characters, I thought "Cripes, will I be able to keep up?" But fortunately, each of the crew had a very distinct personality. Chekov was quite funny, and Sulu's "fencing", which ended up more like a fist-fight, wasn't bad either. I feel sorry for the red guy who got incinerated though, he would have been cool. To be honest, I didn't see what Uthura's role was in the plot. I mean, OK, a love interest is fine, but only if it's relevant. Here, I found the plot would function just as well without her. Simon Pegg as Scottie (with random critter in tow) was brilliant as usual, even pulling some classic quotes out of the bag at times. Karl Urban was quite funky, but I still think he was better in Lord of the Rings. But by far the best for me was Zach Quinto. And not just because I'm a Heroes fan, either. He just fitted the role so well, even if he did have to have that rubbish haircut which looks like a wig. Casting anyone else would have been highly illogical. I hope he comes back to do the others, although whether this'll mean killing him off in Heroes is hard to say. As another Heroes tribute, I hear Greg Grunberg was in there too, but i didn't notice him myself.
Oh yeah, there was that Kirk guy as well. I felt he was better than I expected him to be, and Mum says he was quite faithful to the original Kirk, although I can't really remember. I'm glad he didn't cool it up too much, but I don't think he was that incredible compared to the others. Nero was a typical villain, not that much originality, it has to be said. He had an interesting plot around him, but in terms of character he was just your stereotypical Romulan. This is fair enough, I guess, considering he was originally just captain of a bogstandard mining ship. And one of the baddies from Iron Man was there at the start as well, which was quite funky.
So, moving on. I thought the effects for the movie were in-credible. Whether the mahussive ships, or the immersive locales, or the seriously creepy black holes, I felt this was a film which, whilst not really pushing the boundaries of technology, definitely made the most of everything at their disposal to create things that looked real enough to touch. Like, when the Romulan ship first came out of the black hole, it genuinely looked quite scary. I know this sounds a bit naf and American, but I came out of that cinema feeling like I myself had been on that adventure, and not many movies can create that effect. Indiana Jones? Not even close. Iron Man? Looked like a tame house-cat compared to this behemoth. Even The Dark Knight seemed to be cast into shadow. I suppose that's more of a character piece than an all-out adventure, but still. Only movies of the calibre of Lord of the Rings, Pirates and Star Wars could ever hope to surpass this creation. It's almost TOO good. Almost.
Now. Michael Giacchino. Some may remember him as the genius who composed the music for the Incredibles. With this in his repertoire, I knew the Star Trek theme was safe in his hands, and I was right to trust him. As well as an entirely new score, which reminded me strangely of the Narnia soundtrack, only more epic, he also brought back the original original original theme, which was.... An interesting choice. As much as he has revamped it and given it the Doctor-Who-theme-esque "Cool" treatment, that theme still doesn't do it for me as much as the more recognisable later one. I guess we should assume he'll go back to that one later. Other than that, Giacchino remains one of my favourite soundtrack composers, and when I next have money, I will almost certainly download it.
Some movie endings have been hopeless anticlimaxes. Batman was one. Nemesis was another. But this was in no way a disappointment. Everyone in the cinema was on the edge of their seats when Spock was beamed up, just in the nick of time, and then the most incredible thing happened. You know how usually in the crowd you can hear someone rustling their bag of popcorn, or coughing really loudly, or talking to their mates, or whatever? Not this time. That bit just before the Red Matter explodes, when it all goes quiet - Not a sound from the audience. Literally, we were all sat there with our breath held and our jaws half way to the floor. And when the credits rolled, another curious thing happened. The audience applauded. I don't think I've ever been around when that's happened before. Not even at the end of Return of the King.
And of course, no remake could be complete without a re-hash of that pivotal line from the original, with a quite conspicuous swop from "no man" to "no-one" to bring Trek into the politically-correct world of today. Not that I'm complaining; now no-one can make that rubbish joke about the ladies' toilets. But it did kind of stick out like a sore thumb when everyone was expecting the original. On the whole, however, this is definitely a must see. If you only ever see one movie all year, it has to be Star Trek. Even if you're not a fan, it is, hands down, an incredible movie. It has boldly gone where no remake has gone before. (Or baldly, in the Romulans' case).
Phew. Well, I guess I'm out of space today. Tomorrow I'll catch up on everything else I was going to talk about today, including the Fray's new album, a mega room clean-up, and the impending end of Heroes........
See ya 'round!
Jack
Thursday, 7 May 2009
I got work, I got so much work...
Yo gang!
I'm feeling better about myself today. Thanks for giving me a hand, Tom, you're right. I don't have to be the best, and I'm DEFINITLEY not going to go sticking spoons up my nose... for now, at least! My friends are great. Where would I be without you lot? Heaven knows. Anyway, yesterday I downloaded a song; 'I Got Love' by The King Blues. It's pretty good, his voice annoys me, but apart from that it's the perfect cheery-up song, comparable to "5 Years Time". I really hope someone covers it soon. SFG should cover it. That would be awesome.
Anyway, I seem to be drowning underneath a sea of past papers, essays and revision guides at the moment. It is practiacally impossible to see my desk through the piles of stuff heaped up on top of it. But at least we're on study leave soon. Then the work should ease off. SHOULD. I just need everything to STOP, so I can get my life all neat and tidy. I need to freeze time.
Speaking of which, I'm craving Heroes at the moment. How can one survive for two whole weeks without the next instalment? It would be like me not doing a blog for two whole weeks.... Not that that's ever going to happen, of course... hehehe... But yeah, I now officially hate snooker. Officially.
Not much else to report here. Friday tomorrow, at LAST! Not long till the weekend.
See ya 'round!
Jack
I'm feeling better about myself today. Thanks for giving me a hand, Tom, you're right. I don't have to be the best, and I'm DEFINITLEY not going to go sticking spoons up my nose... for now, at least! My friends are great. Where would I be without you lot? Heaven knows. Anyway, yesterday I downloaded a song; 'I Got Love' by The King Blues. It's pretty good, his voice annoys me, but apart from that it's the perfect cheery-up song, comparable to "5 Years Time". I really hope someone covers it soon. SFG should cover it. That would be awesome.
Anyway, I seem to be drowning underneath a sea of past papers, essays and revision guides at the moment. It is practiacally impossible to see my desk through the piles of stuff heaped up on top of it. But at least we're on study leave soon. Then the work should ease off. SHOULD. I just need everything to STOP, so I can get my life all neat and tidy. I need to freeze time.
Speaking of which, I'm craving Heroes at the moment. How can one survive for two whole weeks without the next instalment? It would be like me not doing a blog for two whole weeks.... Not that that's ever going to happen, of course... hehehe... But yeah, I now officially hate snooker. Officially.
Not much else to report here. Friday tomorrow, at LAST! Not long till the weekend.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Wednesday, 6 May 2009
Jack Of All Trades
Hi all.
Wednesdays are always like this. I just feel so useless. Like, everyone else is better than me at everything. There's always someone who's funnier, someone who's cleverer, someone who's more interesting, someone who's more obssessed. Apparently I'm 'Gifted and Talented', but these days I just seem to be some mediochre guy - some mediochre bad guy, as Jack Johnson might say - who always has to lose out to someone else. Just when I think I've found something about me that no-one else can do, I have to find someone else who's ten times better at it than me. How does that old expression go? "Jack of all trades, master of none."
I know I'm being really selfish and self-centred and all those bad things I've been taught not to be, but it would be nice to have something going for me. Something that I can think on Wednesday lunchtimes, even when everyone else seems to be so much better than me, "At least no-one else can do this...". 'Cause I used to think, secretly to myself, I was pretty good at stuff. I was a big fish in a little pond. But true to Chris Martin's predictions, along came a bigger one, and now I feel pretty Lost. As I say, I know it's really selfish to want to be better than anyone else, but just something, anything. Even if it's, I dunno, sticking spoons up my nose, I just want to know I'm as "gifted and talented" as I'm supposed to be. I guess it doesn't matter what I say, no-one reads this anyway.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Wednesdays are always like this. I just feel so useless. Like, everyone else is better than me at everything. There's always someone who's funnier, someone who's cleverer, someone who's more interesting, someone who's more obssessed. Apparently I'm 'Gifted and Talented', but these days I just seem to be some mediochre guy - some mediochre bad guy, as Jack Johnson might say - who always has to lose out to someone else. Just when I think I've found something about me that no-one else can do, I have to find someone else who's ten times better at it than me. How does that old expression go? "Jack of all trades, master of none."
I know I'm being really selfish and self-centred and all those bad things I've been taught not to be, but it would be nice to have something going for me. Something that I can think on Wednesday lunchtimes, even when everyone else seems to be so much better than me, "At least no-one else can do this...". 'Cause I used to think, secretly to myself, I was pretty good at stuff. I was a big fish in a little pond. But true to Chris Martin's predictions, along came a bigger one, and now I feel pretty Lost. As I say, I know it's really selfish to want to be better than anyone else, but just something, anything. Even if it's, I dunno, sticking spoons up my nose, I just want to know I'm as "gifted and talented" as I'm supposed to be. I guess it doesn't matter what I say, no-one reads this anyway.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Tuesday, 5 May 2009
Eye Carambar
Hi all.
I'm knackered. Tuesdays are always heavy, and today was worse! Basically, I had the french oral in the morning, which I THINK went OK, not as good as Spanish though. I came out of it thinking, I deserve one of those Carambar sweets. I love the caramel and nougat ones, they're so tasty. Then I had History, then English Lit, then MORE History, and then the most convoluted Spanish exam in the world. Honestly, does anyone actually care what department of the government Beatriz works in? But yeah, that's all behind me now. Now i believe I have a completely free evening, so I'm going to do NOTHING until bedtime. I might watch Iron Man, actually. And play on Weather Eye some more, if his account hasn't run out. But yeah, not much.
See ya 'round!
Jack
I'm knackered. Tuesdays are always heavy, and today was worse! Basically, I had the french oral in the morning, which I THINK went OK, not as good as Spanish though. I came out of it thinking, I deserve one of those Carambar sweets. I love the caramel and nougat ones, they're so tasty. Then I had History, then English Lit, then MORE History, and then the most convoluted Spanish exam in the world. Honestly, does anyone actually care what department of the government Beatriz works in? But yeah, that's all behind me now. Now i believe I have a completely free evening, so I'm going to do NOTHING until bedtime. I might watch Iron Man, actually. And play on Weather Eye some more, if his account hasn't run out. But yeah, not much.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Monday, 4 May 2009
May 4th Be With You!
Yay!!! I've waited a whole year to say that! Anyway, as I've pretty much blown my cover already with that conspicuous Star Wars reference, I'll allow myself some serious geekiness, just for once. I know I shouldn't really care about what people think of me, but being a sci-fi geek has such a stigma attached these days. I dunno. Bring back '77. Make Star Wars popular again.
Anyway, I only have one post in which to expel the majority of my nerd energies for the year, so I'd better get cracking. FIRST, I really enjoyed the Clone Wars. I know it's been finished for a while now, but still. I know at first glance it may seem a little childish, but to all intents and purposes it is just as serious and canon as the movies, simply in a different style. Cue well-rehearsed rant. In my opinion, it's not so much the actual movies, series, games etc. that are childish. In fact, some can be quite serious when they want to be. Take Doctor Who, that's a prime example. The Blink episode, the one with the statues, that was genuinely quite scary. The Ood one, when that guy peels off his face - Kids must have had nightmares about that all week! And I can't even listen to "In The Jungle" these days without remembering those blood-curdling screams. <>. Doctor Who is an everyone program, not a kids program. OK, Sarah Jane is a kids program. But not DW! It's the crazy amounts of action figures, kids' magazines, sweets, voice changers and the like which stereotype it as something it's not.
Iron Man. Iron Man was a 12! A 12, for heaven's sake! The guy had a hole drilled into his heart! Admittedly it was blurred out, but still. And yet you can still get pump-action foam rocket launchers and plastic costumes for 5-year-olds. 5-year-olds won't even have heard of the Iron Giant yet, let alone Iron Man! To bring this back to Star Wars, they have the same problem! In Episode 3, Anakin was deep-fried to within an inch of his life ON-SCREEN! General Grievous' guts made an appearance! There was implied murder of little kids!! And yet they still made action figures. Yep, you can actually get a burning Anakin action figure. Kids are going to love playing with that so much! I know we're supposed to live in a freer society, and whatever, but is it worth taking the mickey out of great movies and and great TV just to make them more "universally acceptable"? Even Torchwood and Heroes are getting action figures now. When will it stop??
OK, move on, Jack. You've got your point across. Deep breaths. RIGHT, next on my list of geek things to talk about - MMORPGs! Or just MMOs, if you like. My year subscription for Star Wars Galaxies has just run out, which is typical, because one of the coolest updates since launch is due to come out soon, if it hasn't already - Houses with windows! Finally! And there's some other cool stuff as well, more buildings, the Jedi and Sith meditation chambers look incredible! And there looks to also be another bunker-esque structure for those who missed out on Trial of Obi-Wan (what a rubbish name for an expasion). And at the helm of all this is the coolest Wookiee and Sullustan duo in the galaxy - Yivvits and MrBubble. Honestly, I can't get enough of that podcast. In fact, it was probably them that got me into this whole idea of blogging/podcasting in the first place. So yeah, their 110th episode, a sort of delayed holiday special, looks set to come out within the next couple of weeks, just in time for study leave! According to the trailer, they're taking the shuttle back to their families for their own repective versions of Christmas. Much comedy ensues. "Curious"... And City of Heroes is awesome too. I think my trial runs out soon, which is a shame, 'cause I've really grown quite attached to old Weather Eye. In fact, I was thinking of making a comic, if I have time over the holidays. Wonder how much money I could make. Well, now there's that along with all the OTHER stuff I want to do. And some how I've got to make a decision between CoH and Galaxies. OR hold on until KotOR 3. But that could be forever. I don't know. I need a job, if anything to keep me from thinking about things too much!
NEXT, I've already mentioned how awesome Star Trek looks, haven't I? It has loads of great actors in - Zach Quinto from Heroes, Simon Pegg, and also that guy who played Eomer in Lord of the Rings. I liked him. Not too keen on the guy who's playing Kirk though. He strikes me as going down the Zac Effron/Ed Speleers route. Ah well, time will surely tell. I hope I get a free Tuesday, 'cause apparently it's cheaper on Tuesdays at the cinema. But anyway, not much else I can say here, other than I'm glad they've brought Trek into the 21st Century, because it was a bit 90s before. Even as recent as Nemesis. I just thought, it's lights and dry ice, and five-second clips of spaceships that look plastic. But this new one looks to be done in my favourite comic-book-grey-tint style. Which is always a bonus.
OKAY, the geekiness just went up a level. I've been out of the Games Workshop (yes, you read that right) loop for a while now, but it just so happens I inherited a load of my brother's unwanted models during the move (I guess he reached the crossroads and chose the "cool" path rather than the "boring" path). So I thought, it's not worth throwing all of them away, and if I tried to sell them no-one would buy, so I might as well use them for their intended purpose. So I did a bit of getting up to speed, and it just so happens a new Lord of the Rings rulebook which allows you to use GARGANTUMUNGOUS armies was released last month. So I got it. And I'm currently in the process of turning a mass of limbs, weapons and other plastic body parts into something that looks like a fairly convincing Gondor army. If nothing else, it's quite satisfying seeing them all ranked up in uniform.
Well, that just about concludes this year's geek-fest. I guess I'd better get back to all my school work. Yawn. Ah well, study leave soon. They can't set us anything when we're not there. Actually, these days they probably can, and I wouldn't be surprised if the English teachers do. But anyway, the important message for today is not to be embarrased about your geeky habits. Everyone has something they do that's geeky, and something they do that's cool. It's impossible for one to exist without the other. The geeky stuff is what makes the cool stuff cool, and don't forget, "geeky" and "cool" are just points of view. Some people think geeky things are cool as well. What I'm trying to say is, do what you want. Don't feel forced to fit in. Don't change yourself just to be popular, find the people who are right for you. And remember, even when you feel like the saddest nerd in the entire of history, there's always Rob Barber. Once more, May 4th be with you all!
See ya 'round!
Jack
Anyway, I only have one post in which to expel the majority of my nerd energies for the year, so I'd better get cracking. FIRST, I really enjoyed the Clone Wars. I know it's been finished for a while now, but still. I know at first glance it may seem a little childish, but to all intents and purposes it is just as serious and canon as the movies, simply in a different style. Cue well-rehearsed rant. In my opinion, it's not so much the actual movies, series, games etc. that are childish. In fact, some can be quite serious when they want to be. Take Doctor Who, that's a prime example. The Blink episode, the one with the statues, that was genuinely quite scary. The Ood one, when that guy peels off his face - Kids must have had nightmares about that all week! And I can't even listen to "In The Jungle" these days without remembering those blood-curdling screams. <
Iron Man. Iron Man was a 12! A 12, for heaven's sake! The guy had a hole drilled into his heart! Admittedly it was blurred out, but still. And yet you can still get pump-action foam rocket launchers and plastic costumes for 5-year-olds. 5-year-olds won't even have heard of the Iron Giant yet, let alone Iron Man! To bring this back to Star Wars, they have the same problem! In Episode 3, Anakin was deep-fried to within an inch of his life ON-SCREEN! General Grievous' guts made an appearance! There was implied murder of little kids!! And yet they still made action figures. Yep, you can actually get a burning Anakin action figure. Kids are going to love playing with that so much! I know we're supposed to live in a freer society, and whatever, but is it worth taking the mickey out of great movies and and great TV just to make them more "universally acceptable"? Even Torchwood and Heroes are getting action figures now. When will it stop??
OK, move on, Jack. You've got your point across. Deep breaths. RIGHT, next on my list of geek things to talk about - MMORPGs! Or just MMOs, if you like. My year subscription for Star Wars Galaxies has just run out, which is typical, because one of the coolest updates since launch is due to come out soon, if it hasn't already - Houses with windows! Finally! And there's some other cool stuff as well, more buildings, the Jedi and Sith meditation chambers look incredible! And there looks to also be another bunker-esque structure for those who missed out on Trial of Obi-Wan (what a rubbish name for an expasion). And at the helm of all this is the coolest Wookiee and Sullustan duo in the galaxy - Yivvits and MrBubble. Honestly, I can't get enough of that podcast. In fact, it was probably them that got me into this whole idea of blogging/podcasting in the first place. So yeah, their 110th episode, a sort of delayed holiday special, looks set to come out within the next couple of weeks, just in time for study leave! According to the trailer, they're taking the shuttle back to their families for their own repective versions of Christmas. Much comedy ensues. "Curious"... And City of Heroes is awesome too. I think my trial runs out soon, which is a shame, 'cause I've really grown quite attached to old Weather Eye. In fact, I was thinking of making a comic, if I have time over the holidays. Wonder how much money I could make. Well, now there's that along with all the OTHER stuff I want to do. And some how I've got to make a decision between CoH and Galaxies. OR hold on until KotOR 3. But that could be forever. I don't know. I need a job, if anything to keep me from thinking about things too much!
NEXT, I've already mentioned how awesome Star Trek looks, haven't I? It has loads of great actors in - Zach Quinto from Heroes, Simon Pegg, and also that guy who played Eomer in Lord of the Rings. I liked him. Not too keen on the guy who's playing Kirk though. He strikes me as going down the Zac Effron/Ed Speleers route. Ah well, time will surely tell. I hope I get a free Tuesday, 'cause apparently it's cheaper on Tuesdays at the cinema. But anyway, not much else I can say here, other than I'm glad they've brought Trek into the 21st Century, because it was a bit 90s before. Even as recent as Nemesis. I just thought, it's lights and dry ice, and five-second clips of spaceships that look plastic. But this new one looks to be done in my favourite comic-book-grey-tint style. Which is always a bonus.
OKAY, the geekiness just went up a level. I've been out of the Games Workshop (yes, you read that right) loop for a while now, but it just so happens I inherited a load of my brother's unwanted models during the move (I guess he reached the crossroads and chose the "cool" path rather than the "boring" path). So I thought, it's not worth throwing all of them away, and if I tried to sell them no-one would buy, so I might as well use them for their intended purpose. So I did a bit of getting up to speed, and it just so happens a new Lord of the Rings rulebook which allows you to use GARGANTUMUNGOUS armies was released last month. So I got it. And I'm currently in the process of turning a mass of limbs, weapons and other plastic body parts into something that looks like a fairly convincing Gondor army. If nothing else, it's quite satisfying seeing them all ranked up in uniform.
Well, that just about concludes this year's geek-fest. I guess I'd better get back to all my school work. Yawn. Ah well, study leave soon. They can't set us anything when we're not there. Actually, these days they probably can, and I wouldn't be surprised if the English teachers do. But anyway, the important message for today is not to be embarrased about your geeky habits. Everyone has something they do that's geeky, and something they do that's cool. It's impossible for one to exist without the other. The geeky stuff is what makes the cool stuff cool, and don't forget, "geeky" and "cool" are just points of view. Some people think geeky things are cool as well. What I'm trying to say is, do what you want. Don't feel forced to fit in. Don't change yourself just to be popular, find the people who are right for you. And remember, even when you feel like the saddest nerd in the entire of history, there's always Rob Barber. Once more, May 4th be with you all!
See ya 'round!
Jack
Saturday, 2 May 2009
Who Said Anything About Falling In Love?
Hi all.
Title - Incredibly awesome Days song which had better be on the album which has now been DELAYED until 29th JUNE!!!!! Grr.... It had better be good. In my heart, I know it will be. But that's not what I want to talk about today.
Some folks are annoying me at the moment. Some of you will know them, some won't, some can guess, some, it might be you. But it probably isn't. I'm not going to say who; you all know by now who's in my good and bad books. But anyway, here is what puzzles me at the moment: Is there anything wrong with being a guy and having girls as some of my best friends? I mean, OK, so it's not the average, stereopypical expectation of today's society, but since when have I cared about ticking socially acceptable boxes anyway? Just because, say, I hang around with girls a lot, it shouldn't automatically mean that I want to have a romantic relationship with them. Just because we might have history, and I ask her, for instance, to a concert, doesn't automatically make it a date. I'd do the same for a guy friend if I thought they'd like the group. Gender shouldn't change things. I decide when it's love, not the people who claim to be the reasonable voices of my conscience.
Anyway, just had to get that out of my system. The smell of spinach and ricotta pizza is wafting up from downstairs and it's time once more for me to go and marvel at the miracle that is disposable pizza bases.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Title - Incredibly awesome Days song which had better be on the album which has now been DELAYED until 29th JUNE!!!!! Grr.... It had better be good. In my heart, I know it will be. But that's not what I want to talk about today.
Some folks are annoying me at the moment. Some of you will know them, some won't, some can guess, some, it might be you. But it probably isn't. I'm not going to say who; you all know by now who's in my good and bad books. But anyway, here is what puzzles me at the moment: Is there anything wrong with being a guy and having girls as some of my best friends? I mean, OK, so it's not the average, stereopypical expectation of today's society, but since when have I cared about ticking socially acceptable boxes anyway? Just because, say, I hang around with girls a lot, it shouldn't automatically mean that I want to have a romantic relationship with them. Just because we might have history, and I ask her, for instance, to a concert, doesn't automatically make it a date. I'd do the same for a guy friend if I thought they'd like the group. Gender shouldn't change things. I decide when it's love, not the people who claim to be the reasonable voices of my conscience.
Anyway, just had to get that out of my system. The smell of spinach and ricotta pizza is wafting up from downstairs and it's time once more for me to go and marvel at the miracle that is disposable pizza bases.
See ya 'round!
Jack
Friday, 1 May 2009
I Live In Building 26!
Hi everyone!
Yeah, I only just realised that. My old house was Number 26. So I guess I used to live in Building 26! Creepy... But quite cool.
Anyway, today's top story: Yesterday I went out to see the Days live! So, this is my report. We got a bit stuck in a traffic jam on the way in, so we ended up a little bit late, in time to catch the tail end of the first support band - Picnic Now! They're a sort of folky, Panic at the Disco type group, with a lady singer, and I really enjoyed them. In fact, so much so, I bought their EP. They finished up with a cover of Wonderwall which, despite not being as good as the original (of course)it wasn't bad! Also, whilst buying my EP I got talk to Harry who, for those not in the know, is the Days' drummer. That was pretty awesome. I wish I had a pen, I would get everyone to sign everything!
The venue was awesome as well. The room was pretty small, and there were only three hundred people maximum there. Whilst it's a shame to see the bands don't have that much support, it was great because we could get right up close to the stage! Everything felt really relaxed, all the support bands were mingling with the crowds, and everyone was chatting away.
So the next support group was a band called the Nominees. In my opinion, they weren't as good as Picnic Now!, but they weren't bad. They were like a combination of Muse, Fall Out Boy, White Lies and the Arctic Monkeys. Loads of guitars, and quite a variety as well. So I got an EP for them as well (these EPs were really cheap!) and also a Days T-shirt which I'm wearing now. The posters were free, so I got one of them too. Hooray for free stuff!
After a surprisingly short wait, it was finally time. Harry was first on stage, taking his seat behind the drumkit, and I knew instantly what they would open with - Sure enough, it was No Ties! Brilliant!! The others quickly dashed onstage and within seconds the performance was in full flow, so much better than the recordings, once again! So, from there, they went through some of their old tracks, including some stuff I'd heard at SFG, as well as a fantastic rendition of Kate, one of my favourite tracks. They also did a couple of new songs, including an awesome number known as "Who Said Anything?", which is pretty awesome and I reckon it might also be quite popular with today's music market, as it's quite bluesish without being overly R'n'B. Also, my favourite lyric of the week: You think you're looking through a window, but you're looking at a wall. Hehehe...
They also went through a few covers, Usher's "Love In This Club", which was quite...amusing. They then wound up, after what seemed like no time at all, with their next single, the incredible "Never Give Up". If S-Club 7 springs to mind, think again, because this is so much better. While this, in my opinion, isn't as good as No Ties, it's still brilliant, and a great way of rounding up the show at the end of an awesome evening. Shame no-one else could go, but next time hopefully I'll have better luck. And hey, at least I saved money!
Okay, so that was last night. In OTHER news, I had my AS Spanish Oral today, and despite all my fears, it went as good as I hoped it would. I got all the topics I wanted, and although I had a couple of stutters, I think on the whole I've managed to do enough to secure a good mark. French on Monday - To be honest, I'm probably more concerned about that, because Mrs H doesn't seem to have a clue what's going on! Never mind, I know it's exactly the same as Spanish, so I shouldn't struggle too much. ALSO, the elections for Head Boy have now begun, and today I had to deliver my hastily written speech with some invaluable input from my brilliant brother to get some good laughs out of the crowd (ROCK! Yeah!). We'll have to wait until next week to see the results, but fingers crossed I'll get the majority!
What else...Oh yeah, Star Trek looks AMAZING. JJ Abrams has really done good work bringing it up to date, and I can't wait until it comes out! Um... I'm way behind on Robin Hood, and Heroes has almost finished, so I've no idea what I'm gonna occupy myself with during study leave. I hope I don't get hooked on Flog It like Mum! Urm... I have a rubbish cold, but I don't think it's Swine Flu, luckily! Yivvits and MrBubble are soon to return to the airwaves; they released a trailer yesterday and it sounds like really good fun! hopefully that'll be out some time in the next couple of weeks. The Veronicas are due to release their second album officially in the UK on 8th June, although I've already got it. This might, however, give me the chance to see them live! Wooo! Ofsted coming into school next week - It's so funny seeing all the teachers trying to encourage us to be on our best behaviour etc. etc. It's going to look so staged! Anyway, enough from me. Please leave me comments if you have time, you know I love getting your feedback. Until next time,
See ya 'round!
Jack
Yeah, I only just realised that. My old house was Number 26. So I guess I used to live in Building 26! Creepy... But quite cool.
Anyway, today's top story: Yesterday I went out to see the Days live! So, this is my report. We got a bit stuck in a traffic jam on the way in, so we ended up a little bit late, in time to catch the tail end of the first support band - Picnic Now! They're a sort of folky, Panic at the Disco type group, with a lady singer, and I really enjoyed them. In fact, so much so, I bought their EP. They finished up with a cover of Wonderwall which, despite not being as good as the original (of course)it wasn't bad! Also, whilst buying my EP I got talk to Harry who, for those not in the know, is the Days' drummer. That was pretty awesome. I wish I had a pen, I would get everyone to sign everything!
The venue was awesome as well. The room was pretty small, and there were only three hundred people maximum there. Whilst it's a shame to see the bands don't have that much support, it was great because we could get right up close to the stage! Everything felt really relaxed, all the support bands were mingling with the crowds, and everyone was chatting away.
So the next support group was a band called the Nominees. In my opinion, they weren't as good as Picnic Now!, but they weren't bad. They were like a combination of Muse, Fall Out Boy, White Lies and the Arctic Monkeys. Loads of guitars, and quite a variety as well. So I got an EP for them as well (these EPs were really cheap!) and also a Days T-shirt which I'm wearing now. The posters were free, so I got one of them too. Hooray for free stuff!
After a surprisingly short wait, it was finally time. Harry was first on stage, taking his seat behind the drumkit, and I knew instantly what they would open with - Sure enough, it was No Ties! Brilliant!! The others quickly dashed onstage and within seconds the performance was in full flow, so much better than the recordings, once again! So, from there, they went through some of their old tracks, including some stuff I'd heard at SFG, as well as a fantastic rendition of Kate, one of my favourite tracks. They also did a couple of new songs, including an awesome number known as "Who Said Anything?", which is pretty awesome and I reckon it might also be quite popular with today's music market, as it's quite bluesish without being overly R'n'B. Also, my favourite lyric of the week: You think you're looking through a window, but you're looking at a wall. Hehehe...
They also went through a few covers, Usher's "Love In This Club", which was quite...amusing. They then wound up, after what seemed like no time at all, with their next single, the incredible "Never Give Up". If S-Club 7 springs to mind, think again, because this is so much better. While this, in my opinion, isn't as good as No Ties, it's still brilliant, and a great way of rounding up the show at the end of an awesome evening. Shame no-one else could go, but next time hopefully I'll have better luck. And hey, at least I saved money!
Okay, so that was last night. In OTHER news, I had my AS Spanish Oral today, and despite all my fears, it went as good as I hoped it would. I got all the topics I wanted, and although I had a couple of stutters, I think on the whole I've managed to do enough to secure a good mark. French on Monday - To be honest, I'm probably more concerned about that, because Mrs H doesn't seem to have a clue what's going on! Never mind, I know it's exactly the same as Spanish, so I shouldn't struggle too much. ALSO, the elections for Head Boy have now begun, and today I had to deliver my hastily written speech with some invaluable input from my brilliant brother to get some good laughs out of the crowd (ROCK! Yeah!). We'll have to wait until next week to see the results, but fingers crossed I'll get the majority!
What else...Oh yeah, Star Trek looks AMAZING. JJ Abrams has really done good work bringing it up to date, and I can't wait until it comes out! Um... I'm way behind on Robin Hood, and Heroes has almost finished, so I've no idea what I'm gonna occupy myself with during study leave. I hope I don't get hooked on Flog It like Mum! Urm... I have a rubbish cold, but I don't think it's Swine Flu, luckily! Yivvits and MrBubble are soon to return to the airwaves; they released a trailer yesterday and it sounds like really good fun! hopefully that'll be out some time in the next couple of weeks. The Veronicas are due to release their second album officially in the UK on 8th June, although I've already got it. This might, however, give me the chance to see them live! Wooo! Ofsted coming into school next week - It's so funny seeing all the teachers trying to encourage us to be on our best behaviour etc. etc. It's going to look so staged! Anyway, enough from me. Please leave me comments if you have time, you know I love getting your feedback. Until next time,
See ya 'round!
Jack
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