See! China! That's the Pearl Tower just across the water, a very iconic building in Shanghai , and those are real Chinese people! Lots more photos somewhere, but thought I would chuck this fella in there just to prove my words.
Tuesday 8 April 2008
"He'll not get there any quicker..."
Bloody Hell! Where is the year going? It's already a good dent into April , though the snow outside would belie that fact, and it hardly seems any time since I was off to Shanghai at the end of January. Oh yes, I had promised to tell you all about that, didn't I? Even show you photographs and what not. Well, as far as the photos are concerned, they are still on Mr Peters laptop, haven't quite got round to transferring them yet. And as for a blow by blow description about the trials and tribulations of Simon's trip to the Orient, well I'll sum it up with three F's:
Food
Fireworks
Freezing
Food was amazing, and hardly the same dish was returned to the whole holiday, bar a few exceptions such as dumplings (little bags of yum) and big mac. Yes, that's right, McDonald's. Not out of any "I have to have western fast food, I can't stand it any longer" mentality, but rather for the novel 'getting it delivered at 1 in the morning'. Sheer brilliance. Along with beer of course. Of which lots was consumed.As it was Chinese new year, Shanghai was full of explosions and lights with every living soul blowing shit up for fun. Probably an ancient, mystical reasoning behind the whole fireworks malarkey but essentially it's people blowing shit up. And very impressive it was too.My holiday also coincided with the coldest winter seen in Shanghai in over 50 years. Add my brothers heating not working, stick Simon in the coldest room imaginable and you get one freezing holiday. It was a cracking vacation but I don't recall ever being as cold for as long in my life.Lots of stories and experiences that I could recant but I am quite lazy, the growing time between blogs testament to that, so you will have to make do with what little I have typed.
Really, the only thing I have been up to recently (as well as spending working hours between walls) is playing the magnificent war opus that is Call of Duty 4. Having dedicated a good slice of my waking hours to the game, I can say without hesitation that i was born to shoot people in the head. Well, not really, but nothing this year has tickled me as much as getting that precise head shot from the other side of the map with my M40A3 sniper rifle. Sad? Yes. Pathetic? Its definitely on the border. But I don't have a girlfriend and money is tight so what else am I meant to do?
Also in the Simon news of late, the shock story of the missing facial hair! The beard is gone, at least for the time being. Will it return? A resounding YES, for i do miss it so. But when? That is the question. And one that is unanswerable at present. My face is cold and I look strange, but we'll try out this situation for a little while, see if it pays off.Anyway, at work at present and those films won't start themselves (actually, they could. I'm not as important as i like to let on).
Food
Fireworks
Freezing
Food was amazing, and hardly the same dish was returned to the whole holiday, bar a few exceptions such as dumplings (little bags of yum) and big mac. Yes, that's right, McDonald's. Not out of any "I have to have western fast food, I can't stand it any longer" mentality, but rather for the novel 'getting it delivered at 1 in the morning'. Sheer brilliance. Along with beer of course. Of which lots was consumed.As it was Chinese new year, Shanghai was full of explosions and lights with every living soul blowing shit up for fun. Probably an ancient, mystical reasoning behind the whole fireworks malarkey but essentially it's people blowing shit up. And very impressive it was too.My holiday also coincided with the coldest winter seen in Shanghai in over 50 years. Add my brothers heating not working, stick Simon in the coldest room imaginable and you get one freezing holiday. It was a cracking vacation but I don't recall ever being as cold for as long in my life.Lots of stories and experiences that I could recant but I am quite lazy, the growing time between blogs testament to that, so you will have to make do with what little I have typed.
Really, the only thing I have been up to recently (as well as spending working hours between walls) is playing the magnificent war opus that is Call of Duty 4. Having dedicated a good slice of my waking hours to the game, I can say without hesitation that i was born to shoot people in the head. Well, not really, but nothing this year has tickled me as much as getting that precise head shot from the other side of the map with my M40A3 sniper rifle. Sad? Yes. Pathetic? Its definitely on the border. But I don't have a girlfriend and money is tight so what else am I meant to do?
Also in the Simon news of late, the shock story of the missing facial hair! The beard is gone, at least for the time being. Will it return? A resounding YES, for i do miss it so. But when? That is the question. And one that is unanswerable at present. My face is cold and I look strange, but we'll try out this situation for a little while, see if it pays off.Anyway, at work at present and those films won't start themselves (actually, they could. I'm not as important as i like to let on).
Tuesday 29 January 2008
Birthday Gumption
So. 29th of January. An ominous date indeed. This is the year my age finally catches up with the date it was set. Took a long time coming, but 29 years normally does. That's one less than thirty, but I suppose the important thing to remember is that it is NOT thirty. Not for another year at least. Naturally, I will still continue to tell people that I am 24. And will still be a long time from now, thank you very much.
Well, its 5am in the morning, and sleep appears to be evading me. Perhaps its down to anxiety of turning another year towards the great beyond, or else it's down to excitement of an encroaching trip to china. Or maybe I just drank too much whiskey last night, and could do with a little H2O. Whatever finds me up at this hour, it has prompted me to add to my much ignored blog, probably because there isn't a whole lot else you can do at this time.
Lets take a look at where I am in this game we like to call 'life'. At the age of 29, many people are firmly settled into families, careers, pension schemes and mortgages. Many people, but not all. I could go through that rather rudimentary list and check them off against myself, but I can tell you right now you won't find a good match anywhere. I don't have a girlfriend, I work in a job that is ultimately going to be whittled down (that's projectionist, for those not in the know, and with the advancement of the digital age, times ahead could prove tough), I am not a property owner, and I can't even drive. I do however have myself a whole lot of debt.
But wait, this isn't right, is it? I shouldn't be looking at negative aspects, especially on my birthday. Sure, it's easy to go through and state what I don't have, but what about what I do have? Great family, great friends, a fine appreciation of Scotch and a bloody excellent beard, so with the risk of sounding like a Hallmarks card message, those things make me a rich man (well, the first two. And possibly the beard). Still, it would be nice to have a bit less debt. And as for company, I think I'll get myself a dog.
Now, the more astute of you ('you' being the unknown reader, as I like to think that someone out there in the vast virtual world should happen upon my scribblings) will have probably read the line mentioning China and thought "tell me more". Well even if you didn't, I will just assume you did. Yes, China; Shanghai to be exact. I know that in this day and age, many people travel all over the world, see many of the glorious sights and secrets that the myriad different civilisations and peoples have to offer. Hell, even my parents and sister have been to China before. But I haven't. So its very exciting. And as I will be meeting up with my twin brother just 2 days after our birthday, it means more celebrations. Then a few days after that, it is Chinese New Year, so yet another shindig or two. It could shape up to be a very lively holiday indeed. And lets not overlook the fact that I have a glorious 2 weeks off of work!
Anyway, the time has ticked on quite a bit, and perhaps I am taking up too much of your time. Have to go back to bed anyway. I wish that I could promise an update of my holiday, a quick run through of the crazy escapades that were embarked upon at a later date, but given my inability to get down the last holiday report (to Octoberfest), don't hold your breath. I mean, it's almost February, and have I even mentioned Christmas? No. Although I'm sure that was fun too. Really must write this stuff down, for my sake more than yours.
I'm getting old you know...
Well, its 5am in the morning, and sleep appears to be evading me. Perhaps its down to anxiety of turning another year towards the great beyond, or else it's down to excitement of an encroaching trip to china. Or maybe I just drank too much whiskey last night, and could do with a little H2O. Whatever finds me up at this hour, it has prompted me to add to my much ignored blog, probably because there isn't a whole lot else you can do at this time.
Lets take a look at where I am in this game we like to call 'life'. At the age of 29, many people are firmly settled into families, careers, pension schemes and mortgages. Many people, but not all. I could go through that rather rudimentary list and check them off against myself, but I can tell you right now you won't find a good match anywhere. I don't have a girlfriend, I work in a job that is ultimately going to be whittled down (that's projectionist, for those not in the know, and with the advancement of the digital age, times ahead could prove tough), I am not a property owner, and I can't even drive. I do however have myself a whole lot of debt.
But wait, this isn't right, is it? I shouldn't be looking at negative aspects, especially on my birthday. Sure, it's easy to go through and state what I don't have, but what about what I do have? Great family, great friends, a fine appreciation of Scotch and a bloody excellent beard, so with the risk of sounding like a Hallmarks card message, those things make me a rich man (well, the first two. And possibly the beard). Still, it would be nice to have a bit less debt. And as for company, I think I'll get myself a dog.
Now, the more astute of you ('you' being the unknown reader, as I like to think that someone out there in the vast virtual world should happen upon my scribblings) will have probably read the line mentioning China and thought "tell me more". Well even if you didn't, I will just assume you did. Yes, China; Shanghai to be exact. I know that in this day and age, many people travel all over the world, see many of the glorious sights and secrets that the myriad different civilisations and peoples have to offer. Hell, even my parents and sister have been to China before. But I haven't. So its very exciting. And as I will be meeting up with my twin brother just 2 days after our birthday, it means more celebrations. Then a few days after that, it is Chinese New Year, so yet another shindig or two. It could shape up to be a very lively holiday indeed. And lets not overlook the fact that I have a glorious 2 weeks off of work!
Anyway, the time has ticked on quite a bit, and perhaps I am taking up too much of your time. Have to go back to bed anyway. I wish that I could promise an update of my holiday, a quick run through of the crazy escapades that were embarked upon at a later date, but given my inability to get down the last holiday report (to Octoberfest), don't hold your breath. I mean, it's almost February, and have I even mentioned Christmas? No. Although I'm sure that was fun too. Really must write this stuff down, for my sake more than yours.
I'm getting old you know...
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