good for you

Games being cancelled can be annoying. Today my university volleyball team was playing away - at least that's what we thought. Walking back to halls, along the south bank of the Thames, I met two runners headed in the opposite direction; the second of whom was an overweight woman. As I was trying not to stare at her, I thought, "good for her." Now, I must confess that wasn't the first thought that crossed my mind when I saw her, but in my defence it didn't take me many seconds to change perspective.

I spend far too much time worrying about what people think. Chameleons may look cool at first glance, but who wants to be one - or have one as a friend for that matter. Last week I read my friend's post about being a hippie, and it really made me think.
http://ispeakinglish.blogspot.com/2010/01/i-want-something-more.html

Ever since I was a young kid I've wanted to be the stressed out, successful businessman on the London Underground; complete with suit, briefcase and shiny black shoes. Sometimes I forget what I really want theough, this post reminded me. I used to dream of moving to Africa, somewhere kids don't have the opertunity to go to school - and to change that. I wanted to found and run a school that was active in the community, and not only teach text-book stuff that most of the kids there never would need anyway. I didn't want to just be a teacher, I wanted to make a real difference. This may all sound like a huge cliché, and I have come to doubt that I will live the majority of my life in Africa. Yet I don't want to give up on my dream. I really do want to make a difference. My biannual depression is caused either by being over-, or under-worked. Either way life seems very dreary and pointless. I've stopped believing in merely surviving today in hope of a brighter tomorrow; ironically tomorrow turns out to be yet another today.

Sermons sometimes annoy me. Especially those in which the preacher endorses a multitude of professions for Christians. It is not that I don't believe in the principle, but I disagree with the limitations. Even if the list expounds upon the holy trinity of "doctor, nurse and teacher," the general message is still the same: A good Christian should work with people, and preferably in a role that provides the opertunity to offer others advice. Now, if this actually was the case, surely hairdresser would be on the list. After all, it is far easier to have a personal conversation with someone running hot water through your hair and lathering in shampoo, before cutting it; than with an authoritative superior telling you all the ways in which you need to change your lifestyle, while sitting on an uncomfortable wooden chair in a sterile white room. Or how about working at an airport - that's certainly a place in which you can make a difference for stressed out people.

The job you have isn't important, what you make of it is. I want to be involved with initiatives that give my life purpose away from work. Reading Chelsea's blog also made me realise that I need my life to be fulfilling, and to have have purpopse now - while I'm studying. If I can't both study and be content; maybe I shouldn't be studying. I'm determined to make it work.

why should I care

Why do you care?

Men often complain that they do not understand women; some women claim to understand men. Often we don't understand ourselves. Sometimes I surprise myself, I do things I wouldn't expect the person I imagine myself to be, to do.

A few years ago I visited my brother while he was living in Poland. I remember him saying something about nationalism being stupid. Why should I feel an affinity to a sportsperson or musician from my country? Why should I feel proud, or in in fact more often ashamed, of the performance of the Norwegian football team? What decides which people or things we choose to associate ourselves with?

It can actually be quite interesting to consider which people I've made an effort to become friends with since moving to London. The first couple of weeks were full of events for getting to know people. Looking back now, it shocks me how natural it is to decide whether or not you want to get to know the person facing you - even before a single word has been spoken. He never even stood a chance. What makes you write someone off? Things like this say surprisingly much about us, uncomfortable as it may be; reflection is important.

This year I bought myself a Christmas present for the first time. When I graduated high school I was voted the funniest grouch by my peers. At times I've even been said to resemble eeyore. For as long as I can remember I've had the reputation of being rather pessimistic and negative. Despite not being willing to give up the core of my character, I have discovered the power of positive thinking. So behind drawn curtains, when no one is looking I peak into my "inspirations calendar 2010." The cover reads "The secret to happiness is not in doing what one likes to do, but in liking what one has to do." It's deeper than you think, there is some truth beneath the cliché. This calendar of mine also sheds some light on the mystery of friendship; this may very well in fact be my favourite quote so far: "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." There is a profound beauty in friendship, true friendship is amazing. It leaves me thinking about how we choose friends. Why do I let some people in and shut others out. What makes me willing to walk three extra miles with one person, but give another the cold shoulder? Real friends stick by each other through adversity, even if one hurts the other. Yet if someone else had hurt me in that way I might never speak to him again.

Friends are picked for reasons as vain as their nationality.
I wonder how many friends I've shrugged off.

life organised

Immanuel Kant once wrote "Science is organised knowledge. Wisdom is organised life." Upon reading this my first thought is that scientists are not organized. It seems a little strange that people so infatuated with order and logic are inclined to live in such disarray. Though there are exceptions, I am definitely not one of them. When I arrived in my room on Evelyn Gardens Saturday night, it took me no more than fifteen minutes to cover my desk with papers, books, phones, calculators, folders, food, keys, saucepans etc. Now, I must add that I have seen rooms far worse than mine, like in the picture above for instance. Perhaps scientists, exhaust their potential for being organized at work and make up for it at home; or is there something inherently attractive about science to disorganised people?

Is Kant in fact trying to say that most scientists are unwise?

pictures or words?

Though words can describe beautifully, they can never capture all the nuances of a picture. Pictures say more than a thousand words, but is everything a picture says necessarily true? One of the classes I remember the best from my time at Emrys ap Iwan was one on interpreting historical paintings. Observing bias and point of view, political agenda etc. I tried teaching this to some of my students during the time I spent at Tyrifjord Skole, in Norway, this spring - with little success. I do blame this at least in part on not having enought time....

Biathlon is the one sport I actually follow dedicatedly enough to watch most major competitions. Since Biathlon isn't exacly widespread in Britain I watch the races at
http://eurovision2.feedroom.com/?&fr_chl=28f50f88ca97c97431107a5b9e494d75454fca83
The IBU streams the video feed, that goes out to all the TV channels, on their website for free. Although I don't get the commentary, half of what commentators say is rubbish anyway - so I don't really mind. After watching today's men's relay I came across a picture I couldn't help but laugh at. The picture shows the French team that won second place behind the Norwegians. The French biathletes are known for their great team spirit, often describing themselves as a big family. The two on the left are the brothers Simon and Martin Fourcade, with Vincent Defrasne and Vincent Jay to their right. Although the scene depicted no doubt is one in which the brothers and Defrasne share a joke, as Jay takes a thoughtful moment to himself; the picture might well have been analysed differently had one not already watched this scene on TV. The picture seems to be telling the story of three bullies making fun of the new kid at the bus stop - Jay playing his part perfectly with his downward gaze. Martin at the back is the instigator, with Simon and Defrasne as his accomplices. Great team spirit indeed, families at their best...

memories last a lifetime

Despite my Christmas Diaries attempt this year, I have failed to mention something I've done almost every day this Christmas. My present to my dad this year was Ticket to Ride, the award winning board game, Deutsche Spiel des Jahres 2004 und so weiter.... To make a long story short we've played it at least once, twice or three times most nights ever since. I must confess that at the game disappointed me at first. I'd played it a couple of years earlier in Norway - at least that was what I thought. The game I'd bought my dad turned out to be an American version, not the European one I'd played before. Now, that may not seem like a big deal to you; but that's forgetting that Europe is far more interesting than America in every concievable way... A couple of nights ago I figured out the way in which the creators have weighted the various missions. As it turns out two missions come with an extra bonus. With this in mind I'd like to announce my first blogotition (blog-competition): Which two missions in the US version of Ticket to Ride come with an extra bonus, and how big is it? A blog post will be dedicated to the person, first answering correctly.

I just booked a flight with Ryanair. You may be wondering what got into me - well I must confess I gave in to their low prices. As long as one can travel without checking in any bags Ryanair tends to have far superior prices, and considering my strict student budget - well you can figure out the rest. Despite all this I am left in a great mood. I'll be flying to Billund, Denmark, to attend the Nordic Volleyball Championships at Vejlefjordskolen, just outside of Vejle. My best volleyball memories ever are from playing in this competition, winning one silver, and three consecutive gold medals. Although not eligible to play, just thinking about the competition leaves me smiling to myself as I write. Oh, those good times!! Some memories last forever...