Personal Blogs

Happy Birthday me. I brought myself whiskey and self deprecation. I don't really care for presents like I used to. Or celebrating things. Or growing older. I had a hard time thinking of something I needed for Christmas, people had to ask me because they couldn't think of anything. I got a hi-fi that I have since given away.  I don't know. Now I've started collecting graphic novels and whatnot maybe I'll just get really big shiny picture books. Instead of gadgets and video games. I guess Will was right on with the stages of man. Not too long and I'll be back to not being able to see properly and mashing up my food. Not that I'm being nihilistic. I'unno. Read the poem. If you haven't.

So yeah, haven't had a nice grog since ... ahh. Christmas I guess. I got up to go to work and all that, painkillers, water, in the shower, get dressed, have breakfast, feel human. Turns out I was 6 hours early. So yeah. I would've probably just lied in bed all day, its a blessing in disguise. Making myself bubble and squeak with roast leftovers for lunch. Which even thinking about is making me grin. Cannot beat bubble and squeak on a hangover. You can't actually beat it most of the time. I had bagel for breakfast though. Which can almost beat it. If I had to choose between the bagel for breakfast or the bubble for lunch, heck, I really don't know. No sense in sweating that which is beyond your control. Having both. Which means I win. Tuna bagel with avocado and olives. So yeah. big decisions, mint jelly or redcurrant sauce. Hmm. I may even make gravy.

Don't have a lot of law related things to talk about as my course mats still haven't arrived (THE HORROR) but I guess this whole noise abatement, music venue thing is relevant. An acquaintance, Jason Dormon, is having his business threatened because they are building a new block of flats near the venue. Thanks to an excellent and organised local music scene all of the right steps have been taken. The council have been contacted, petitions signed, ultimately everyone is on the side of the venue. Even so. It comes down to law, which I thought was generally that when you move to a property it is your responsibility to check the surrounding area. Very wrong. They have now been directed (by local councillors and friends) that the law would need to change for them to be able to protect the business, if residents move in, they will have a right to complain and the venue simply will not be able to comply with the noise restrictions the council will have to impose upon them. Even if the council don't want to apply the restrictions or let the building be built. Its not that they won't soundproof and install limiters on the sound system, the money they would have to pay to do so is too much of a risk. It only takes one guy to do one thing and even after spending all that money it could just get closed down. May go on the forums here and do some inter-versing with some folks, as my knowledge is out of date. Seems though that its the same sort of right wing culture that has led to the deconstruction of economy in the U.S., business people turn up sensing there is an opportunity in an area and they intend to take it. To make their money. Even if it is a detriment to the local area. Words like, business isn't personal, and competition is part of progress, are utter nonsense in 2014. Sure when you're actually growing villages to towns, you need everyone to be making something and competing to increase the quality of the product, its production and ultimately manage the cost of it. Or so I would think, at least. Those phrases today are rhetoric. As relevant as the idea the world is flat. If they held truth, now, then how did we come to have an enormous global recession? One thing most people in business know is that you must look successful to be successful, which infers the basic principle of business is to lie to people, then cheat them by selling them the worst product at the highest price so as to maximise your profit. Which you will then put in the bank, and take away. So you can eventually sell the business for a lump and retire. All of which is totally accepted modern behaviour. Like the continuing mass production of fossil fuel or McDonalds. I'm not burning my bra and saying its all going down, I just don't understand how we can continue to accept the way we treat each other and think that everything is going to get better before it gets worse. 

/rant

I got invited to play in a football tournament, my wrist is still bad enough I can't risk it. Very frustrating. I did, drunkenly, do my ALS challenge though which is good. Not for ALS. For me. I have to get the video and stuff. Kinda thinking I might go back to football when I can. I'unno. I fixed the homestead which was nice. Is nice. I still have to decorate but I think I have the space how I want it now. I'll have to move in 18 months anyway. Long enough for me to bother though. They re-painted the containers so we no longer have tags all over us now. Yay. We're growing vegetables and having cook outs on the weekend with the produce now, which is nice, they did one Saturday unannounced. It was more hangovers than green fingers. There is a part of last night I can't remember, I just remembered. I wonder if as soon as I actually get around to having a go at making music that I will instantly decide to go back to writing. If I keep changing my mind forever I never have to do anything. 

Been playing Warframe from release as well. Which has been alright. Too many late nights. Finished my Ultimate X-men collection. Like a boss. Oh my days the ending is. Oh my days. Without spoiling the whole series, it basically has every plot-line that you have ever heard of. All the major characters and arcs, except the phalanx, anywho. I kind of thought it was going to leave me feeling glad I got to the end but unsure of what I really feel about the books as a whole. Often the case with comics. But yeah, it is utterly stonking. May have to collect one of the new 52 now. Maybe Lantern or Aquaman. I have issues. The different way people react to me when they find out I like anime and manga has been amusing me lately. A very cool dude who was around mine making music and stuff, who I barely knew, instantly thought I was the man and bust out his manga collection on his phone when he saw my (new) bookshelves. Which have my comics on them. Law books and comics. Such a gangster. A middle aged couple at work think that I am some kind of sexual deviant. Maybe some people in the UK don't know what Otaku means. They probably just think pedophile. Not that I even am anyway. Or that it changes my opinion as a whole. I am going to start reading oneman punch, when I get my phone sorted. What a saga. EE have to go. So I tried to get the phone unlocked, waited days, couldn't. So I have to get a new phone. And a new sim card. With credit. Looked at contracts, which are still an unbelievable rip off. So I'm currently offline and out of touch. When I do get it sorted though I know how to tether hotspots now so I can actually use the internet. On a computer. w00t. 

Work today. Two days off. Going to see the Mother Unit. For to say that it is nice that I had birthday. Now she lives in the town where I was born its gonna be weird. I was so wasted most of the time I remember being there, it'll all look different. I'm trying to sound cool. I wasn't that wasted .. though thinking back I can't remember the last time I was there that I was completely sober. God I don't know. I go now to continue my day with this attitude-

- Thanks Lazarus.

Happy New Year!

Salutations and congratulations, it's 2014 and it's a wonderfully sunny morning. The storm that has menaced most people (including myself) seems to have subsided and now all we have to do is wait for the snow. I should mention that despite being nearly 30 I still enjoy snowfall like a little kid. I would throw snowballs at people if it was still cute, I'd probably just get charged with assault nowadays. I digress. 

The matter of the title is not blithely used for comedy or Hollywood reference, last I wrote I had yet to decide on my plans for Christmas and was about to get on the off to start my celebrations. If you remember I had been working every night and conquering TMA02 by day for a week. I say that, yet to see if I actually passed. I finished work on the evening of the 20th of December, finished decorating the cake I had prepared and went to bed excited for the Holiday season. 

I was as prepared as I could of been, realistically, getting the cake done was of paramount importance because I had no way of knowing how long it would take in the new kitchen. On the morning of that Saturday I got up around 8AM to wrap the necessary presents and send off the cards I had written out for my family. Still unsure of what I was going to do, tentatively I was planning to spend the weekend with friends, work Monday and Tuesday, then go with my Dad to my Brothers on Christmas Day, work Boxing day then go to my other Brothers for my nephews birthday before rumbling down to Devon to see my Mum before coming back to work New Years Eve.

I had presents for all my friends from korean plushie dolls to champagne receptions for two. I was happily sat in my bed wrapping presents until I came to open what was meant to be a copy of a graphic novel. Quite a specific present. Instead there was a comic I had ordered for myself two days earlier, somehow I had managed to pick up the wrong package and was a present down. Quite angry I phoned the local comic book shop to see if they had a copy (at 9AM) and they did not, so with lightly muttered frustration I conceded to give it to him belatedly. No matter, I told myself, I had a case of champagne and a cake, I was still in the black as it were. Frustrated, but excited, I opened the door from my now decimated flat to get on my travels. Howling gale and sideways rain. Which go fantastically well with three tiered chocolate cake. A little more frustrated I made my way to the bus stop, into Brighton then hopped quickly to the off licence. Where I bumped into my Dad, who had already lectured me (after I locked myself out of the house) on over-spending this christmas. I had in my hands a bottle of vodka and two large cans of red bull, I felt that fate had at this point been a little unkind. So the lecture began, then the bus came past and I had to run for it. With the cake, which I had cunningly wrapped up inside two tin roasting trays because I couldn't find a cake box anywhere, I got on the bus. It was before 10:30 which meant I wouldn't be more than half an hour late for lunch. I'd say I was less than jubilant on boarding but as the journey (the two hour journey) went on I gathered more and more christmas spirit as people came on the bus to see me carrying a hold-all full of presents and champagne, and what appeared to be a turkey. I was in a good mood by the time I got there and when the evening finished at some early morning hour, I had enjoyed a fantastic day, completely forgetting the misdemeanours I had encountered. The cake had also mostly fallen apart, but had been well enjoyed by all, so that portion of the day balanced out for me. Strangely I had a bit of an asthma fit when I woke up, woke everyone up as I flapped about looking for my inhaler with a hangover before eventually finding it in the bottom of my bag with painkillers. Winsome painkillers. I snoozed thinking it was endemic of Christmas so far, bad luck coming good in the end. I should also mention I got a great christmas present that I was never expecting that I will talk about another time. 

To the morning proper, we woke around 10AM and had a cup of tea. I got a call from work, letting me know my hours for the rest of December, for the production of Scrooge, had changed. They now included the entire period between Christmas Eve and Boxing day. I called my Mum to tell her I wasn't going to be able to make it and she seemed a little down, so I made a decision to make it to Devon before Christmas instead of waiting until after the New Year. Not least because we would be back studying by then. I said my goodbyes and left to get the train to Exeter. Even managed to get a lift to the station, had my phone charged then was able to relax on the train and enjoy the sunshine rolling over the countryside. Even though I couldn't get a seat at all between London and Exeter. Yeah.

£87 and four hours later I arrived in a little village just outside of Exeter. My Mum was delighted, as was the puppy. I will eventually get a photo of her when she grows up enough that she stays still for more than about three seconds at a time. Spaniels are very lively creatures. We went to the local pub for a lovely dinner, I went to her shop the next day and had a walk around the village, had some more great food from a local farm shop that evening when I got a call from work. I had been taken off my Christmas Eve shift when I got the call on Sunday, which was part of the reason for the trip down, it turned out that they did want me in. At 12.30. I figured it was a bit like everything else, seemed like a spot of bad luck but I agreed to it thinking at least I would be busy Christmas Eve rather than getting home to an empty flat late in the evening. Checked the trains, I left at 6AM Christmas Eve morning.

There were some quite funny, potentially dangerous shenanigans at the local station where I had waited on the wrong platform (or so I thought) and realised just as the barriers dropped. With no over-pass I had to quickly jump the road barriers and go up the otherside, the train then started to arrive on the other side of the tracks. Fortune struck, the driver saw me getting a little cross and slowed down so I could jump down off the platform and cross the tracks. Christmas cheer 1 Fate 0. 

I got to the station, in good time, expecting to get back to Brighton before 11AM with loads of time to get ready for work. At first, the 7AM train was cancelled but the 7:25 was still on. I knew this meant I would miss my connection but the next train was only an hour late and I would probably only just be late for work. Which I had warned them might happen. So I went to ask a lady on the station to make sure. This was the first time I heard that the storm had affected almost all the trains in the area, there were no trains to London or Brighton at all. There was a review at 10AM and measures would come into place after that. I was like, the internet didn't say anything helpful, how will I know? She told me her name was Nikki, gave me her phone number, telling me to call her and she would let me know what was going on. Christmas cheer 2 Fate 0. 

I called work then went back to the little village to my Mums, walked the dog, had a shower, bought Nikki a little present and gave her a call. She told me there was a replacement bus service to a place called Tiverton where trains to London Paddington would run. I was victorious, I'd be back home in time to go to work and apologise in person, then be there for work on Boxing day. 

This was the queue for the replacement bus service. I felt a little discouraged but I figured I would endure it. Eventually I would get home, surely, it couldn't be that bad. I got chatting to some people in the queue, they had further to go than me, we had a little drink and almost got on TV. The time passed pretty quickly and soon I was on the bus organising my spotify playlists for the train ride.

I got to Tiverton, went up to the ticket office and asked them how long it would take to get a connection to Brighton. I also told them, after he asked me what time I had to get back, that I could go to a friends in Exeter for Christmas if there was no way. He checked all the routes and there were no trains, no buses and nothing until 5PM at the best. I asked if he could be certain that I would make it home, he said that there was no guarantee because there were just so many people waiting that even if there was services they could fill up quickly. So I text Mum and said I was stuck for Christmas, then got back in the queue to go back. 

Christmas Cheer 2 Fate 2. 

Got back to Exeter and then found out I would need to wait an hour so for a lift to my Mums friends house where I'd be spending Christmas. Went in to get a coffee and chill, where I noticed the lady ahead of me was struggling with a box. I'd seen her on the bus, offered to help and she kindly bought my coffee. The box was full of home-made chutneys and jams. We waited outside for her bus for a while, so on and so forth, she eventually had to go back and get a train because as soon as they began running all buses were cancelled. I got my lift and was able to enjoy a fabulous Christmas. All the usual cheer, drinkings, presents and so on. Christmas Cheer 3 Fate 2.

I then had to cancel work the day after boxing day, as well, meaning I had bailed on them Christmas Eve, Boxing day and one more day. I felt they were probably not happy. I simply couldn't get to the station early enough, as it turned out even if I had got a cab I wouldn't of made it. By the time I said my goodbyes and got the train it was about 2:30 in the afternoon. In transit there were problems with some connections and although I had had to go on a route to avoid London it turned out we (Brightonians) had to go all the way Basingstoke, then London and then onto Brighton. I imagine because trains had started again. The wait at Basingstoke was almost an hour, so I went to the ticket office to check. Another fantastic human told me I could get a train in two minutes to somewhere then get a connection onto the Brighton train I had been expecting. It all worked out but we were held up over and over again on both services, I eventually got back to my place at about 11:30 at night. I had grabbed a takeaway, was ready to have it and go to bed ready for work at 10:30 the next day. Sadly I had managed to leave a heater on in the melee of leaving for Kent with the cake and champagne. The electric had run out and the emergency card I had in the letter box had got wet and wouldn't work. Christmas cheer 3 Fate 3.

So all in all that was pretty eventful, work were not too angry with me although some people had had to work a lot longer hours than they wanted because of me. I think you could say they were understanding. The reprisal was that I lost my NYE shift. Which was ok, I found out the day before and made plans with a friend to meet up. 

Although the first three places we tried were sold out, we ended up going to see two time DMC champion JFB. Which was funk-dub-hoptastic for me but less so for my friend who is a bit of a house head. Good night, I realised the morning after that the people we ended up dancing with were in fact some of the DJs. So that was pretty cool. I even managed to get to work yesterday without a major hangover and got through the whole shift without any major problems. Other than I cut a slice out of my thumb instead of the lime, which was pretty stupid. Regardless Holiday Cheer 4 Fate 3. 

I now don't have a shift at work until, well, until ever. So I'm not sure what to do about that, other work continues on Match Days at the stadium. So I have some monies coming in as term is about to restart, I have resolutions. Get fit without the gym, organise and save some money, continue collecting comics. Thats all well and good but I have another mad weekend planned, out Friday, work Saturday, down to Kent that night then home Monday morning or Sunday evening. I also am going to miss Vadim and Krush on Saturday, but I've made peace with that. There are always more gigs. I must contemplate whether to bar work or look for some sort of job that might lay me in better stead moving towards the legal world. 

Looking forward to my TMA results too, lots to think about and more to do. Hope the New Year is kind and all your resolutions come good.

Oh and I also watched series of unfortunate events again on my phone, you know, for some reason it actually scares me. I must finish reading the books. 

Joe

Introdcution to W100, you have been fun.

Since getting onto the course I have made facebook and twitter accounts and started this blog, mostly to (hopefully) meet other people doing the course and partially to keep me focused. I may have already mentioned that I tend to have sporadic interest functionality disorder, I get really into something for as long as I can in one go then totally lose interest forever.

Anyway, the facebook has many different groups related to the Open University, Open University law students and first year Open University law students. I'm subscribed to two, Open University Law Students and W100 (October). Recently I have been mostly super impressed by people who have two jobs, eight kids, care for their great grandmother, volunteer at the sad kitty centre and study two modules in one year with the OU. They seem to think they might be insane, I think they are in fact super heroes who will sire children that can fly and have super strength.

We also had a long (intelligent-ish) debate about the place of Religion in the British constitutional system. Specifically the judiciary. I maintain that whatever the doctrine of a group is, it is defined not by its views but by how many people follow them, so (in the UK) Islam and the Christian faith should still be allowed to make arguments in government based on their faith. Ironically when we tried to discuss Baby P and the early release there was little debate, everyone just thinks its bad and thats how it is.

I also use tumblr, weheartit and via.me but despite being able to find pretty things and liberalist awesome-ness there is little to do with law directly. I am unphased.

Soon (hopefully by the next time I write a post) I will make a proper place for this blog on a shinier website like wordpress or something. I'm even planning to say stuff about Law, in the future, as well as potentially Science. As for my current studies, I have answered the first two questions of my TMA (early), got them under the word count and started preparing (by thinking about) the next questions.

So as we say goodbye to the nice weather, I guess we can say hello to warm drinks, duvet weekends and scarves.

Don't catch cold!

Joe