Vacant Mind

I am Legend January 15th, 2008

I got to see this on the weekend and I must say that I loved it, there was a lady next to me who didn’t like it very much, so much that she turned to me at the end of the night and said “thank god that is over’ I head similar stuff from here through out the movie.

I could to an extent understand why the movie was graphic and somewhat violent but it wasn’t unnecessary it was all in context, we were able to see the desperation of a man who’s only goal was to keep living against everything that was thrown at him while still trying to keep his sanity in various ways.

I liked watching the character fight both the internal and external struggle, what aspects the film touches on such as survival, and to a lesser extent on what makes us human (aka bladerunner)

I’m glad that I was able to see this, as Will Smith is really coming along in a lot of his movies that he producing, I hope that he will come into his own and be of the same standards of Denzel Washington.

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52 Books in 52 Weeks December 28th, 2007

As part of the up coming new years resolution I wish to read more and be more widly read about the world in general. While doing some research I came across this challenge to read 52 books in 52 weeks

It’s a grand plan and one that probably won’t finish, but I plan to give it a go and see what happens, in the absolute hope that I will infact be better educated by the end of the year.

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New Years December 26th, 2007

So every year we have to go through the same old boring routine of finding out what everyone is doing for their NYE celebrations, for the longest time that I can remember no one has ever wanted to go into the city. Probably for good reason, the amount of stories that everyone tells me about how crowded it is and difficult to get a train back home make the prospect rather unattractive, but I would still like to go just to experience it all even if it would be difficult. There must be another way like parking at a station closer towards the city but again we face the problem of getting the train back out.

I have also noticed an interesting trend, as we continually follow the same old addage of house party after house party, our numbers are dwindling, less and less of our friends are joining us to do what we do, they seem to be heading off to bigger and better events. I wonder if I can get myself along to one of these as well.

As with the the new year approaching also comes the through of new year resolutions, I will be writing out mine is a new post soonish.

By the way it is good to see the Sydney is going green with this years fireworks display.

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I didn’t like you then December 23rd, 2007

With the nearly ubiquitous spread of Facebook, I have noticed a trend that I do not like, besides the complaints of privacy issues. There were people in my school days that I did not speak to for a reason, the reason being that either I didn’t like them, we didn’t have anything in common or we just didn’t talk.

What I have noticed now is that a whole lot of those people are popping up on Facebook and adding me as their friend, when clearly we are not. I am uncertain how I am supposed to proceed with this I don’t like to offend people and rejecting their friend request might seem like this, but the chances that we will have a conversation is highly unlikely but more over I don’t like them enough for them to view what I am up to on a daily or weekly basis.

So I do what I always do, I sit on it, keeping their friend request pending until I can decide what I feel about them and what I should do, you see I’m not one of those people who have 400+ friends, what I mean by that is I just don’t add people that I have met once or casually know through someone else, that isn’t a friend that’s an acquaintance, in face people like that annoy me, I don’t see why I should be included in such a friend list where all these other people are as well.

Being the noconfrontational person that I am, I suppose that I’ll just add them and throw them the every boring – Hey how’s it going, what are you up to these days. A few messages will pass and then it will all be over for now.

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No Not Yet December 21st, 2007

They are dropping like flies, one by one they are making that next step, moving on with their lives and leaving their friends in their wake of maturity and the next stage of their lives.

Even the girlfriend is giving me the look of “Well when is it going to be?”
“I don’t know, I don’t feel that I’m ready” I say
She stares back “Excuse me, not ready we have been together for 5 years, what do you mean not ready”
Me “oops”

What do I do, when every family member, co-worker and friend are asking when we are going to get married. Now all that I have in my arsnel of answers is – well not yet but soon.

It’s not that I’m scared, well I am, I know that she will say yes, that’s not the problem it is that I feel that I haven’t finished everything that I wanted to do before I settle down. Not only that but my frame of mind isn’t into it, I see it as the end of all that I hold scared and dear to my heart – freedom. The freedom of coming home after a big night of drinking and not having to answer to anyone about what you did, how you got home, how much you drank. Not having to account for any of the gadgets or things that you have bought, just because you wanted them and what to have a bit of fun. Not have to give up playing games because now you have to spend time with someone.

It isn’t that I don’t love her, I do, I most certainly do. As with most things about myself I seem to have to wait this out, it simply might be a case of maturity that I have to reach and finally realise what I want to do.

In the mean time I think that I will join this Facebook group: My Friends Are Getting Married. I’m Just Getting Drunk.

Posted in Life, Personal | No Comments »

In Japan October 30th, 2007

Well at least I was in Japan, I no longer am, but wish that I still was.

I have always held a long fascination with Japan, the people, culture and history and after coming from India it was a pleasure to be somewhere so quiet, polite and ordered. Everything was clean, everything had a purpose and almost everything had a certain beauty about it that demanded attention.

The generosity and maticilous nature of the people will always remain in my memories and I’m glad that I have made my dream trip (to Japan) and was not disappointed by it.

I had an amazing time traveling overseas and wished that it wouldn’t end, but sadly commitments (don’t we all have them) drew me back home.

Posted in Life, Travel | 2 Comments »

In India September 22nd, 2007

It has been a while since I have last wrote and it is worth nothing that I wasn’t going to write on this at all till I got back.

But I thought that it would be a waste.

I am India currently I wish that I could write more but for the most part I am busy with other things that most people do when they are traveling.

It’s a crazy country where normal everyday conventions do not apply and thus it takes time to get used to but once you scratch under the surface and you can overlook the confronting scenes you come away with something quite like nothing else.

I will in the end put up something here of what I have learned but it will be later on an in a few smaller parts.

Posted in Travel | 2 Comments »

Silent Noise August 15th, 2007

I was out and for in the city when I happened to be standing in a queue for a movie and group of people where talking rather vigorously to each other and from what I would tell it was very exciting and possibly loud. You see I don’t know if it was actually loud because they were all signing to each other in what I assume was auslan

I couldn’t possibly imagine what they were saying but I’m sure that it sounded exciting so much so that as the ‘ticket checker’ came along to make sure that they were in the right place, she noticed what they were doing and started signing along with them. What are the chances, pretty good apparently. For some odd reason this inspired me to learn another language, well it should have inspired me to learn auslan but I think to be honest unless I had a real need for it it might be useless.

Another language though, now that would be useful, I’ve always been a practical person and the fact that I have had an interest in Japan for some time means that Japanese is an obvious choice.

Now just to get started.

This post has been brought to you buy Stereo – The Watchman

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Geoffrey Bartlett July 31st, 2007

I was at Federation Square checking out the Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia.

I find it harder to understand sculptors than I do painting, well let me clarify that, I can make sense of most art that is not abstract. You see I’m not really an art fan but I do enjoy it and I will go along to anything that I get a chance to.

Geoffrey Bartlett exhibition was one that I was interesting because while I have seen sculptures I have never heard that artist talk about his own work.

A lot of it I couldn’t hear due to the nature of the room that we were standing in, but there was one thing that he said that struck a cord.

I’m paraphrasing here but it went something along the lines of:

As a sculptor you have to be mindful of space around your work and how it affects it, where a painter can have a frame and canvas to direct his audience to a focal point the sculptor as to know who to use space to convey their message

Once I heard this and I looked at his works again they made so much more sense, not much more than the average person but more that I could begin to appreciate it.

It’s one of the many things that I like about pushing myself to experience new things, I always come away learning something.

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Globe Tripping July 25th, 2007

The plans for the next adventure are well under way so far India and Japan are on the list.
This is pretty much my dream trip well the Japan part is the India is a nice stop over (for a month!)

I’m a very plan oriented person so I need a plan of action if I am going to do something, I need to know what to say, how to say it and what I will say at the end. But to organise an overseas trip in the fashion is a large amount of work even when you consider that to comply with all this I would have to book my hostels in advance and map out the places that I want to see for each city that I will visit.

Due to the number of circumstances I haven’t done this like last time, I hope that this will turn out to be a good thing because it will allow me to push my boundaries and retain a sense of calmness under stress which I don’t think that I lack but I think that I can be better at.

I am jealous of those that get to live and work overseas in the country of their choice or even studying in a different country would be enough fun. Traveling would have to be the next best thing but the one thing that I think that you miss out on is experiencing the culture, something that you can only have first hand knowledge of after drowning yourself in it for a while – not really possible when you are spending a few days in each place.

I hope that I will be able to do this every year, with only 4 weeks off a year it would be hard to plan a good long trip away, so I’m really looking forward to this one. The culture clash/shock I think will be quite big when compared to what I am used to here, and for some reason I am excited by this.

I have no illusions of being a different person at the end of this like I did last time, but I do intend on being a happier person – it’s the impending realisation that I might have to be grown up and make real decisions (health insurance, moving out, serious career direction) when I return is that is really stirring the excitement and adventure that I am expecting.

Well it’s back to the planning, which I don’t think I will get much done becuase the Melbourne International Film Festival has arrived and I intend to watch more than I did last year.

Posted in Cinema, Festival, Film, Travel | No Comments »