This Is My Blog

It's been so long!

2010-02-27T18:51:00.003Z

Basically, I'm alright. Work is tough sometimes, but the people are awesome. I have some kind of life now. Well, I always did, but now it feels like there's some meaning to it. It's alright anyway.

How could you, Joss Whedon?

2009-09-20T20:22:00.002+01:00

I just watched the Buffy episode called "Seeing Red". For those who don't remember, this is the one where Tara dies, and I'm really upset!

I remember being upset the first time around, but not as much. The first time through Buffy, I was more of an Oz fan. Willow and Oz seemed to belong together. It wasn't that I didn't like Tara, but I really liked Oz, and I wasn't sure how I felt about Willow choosing her when Oz came back. Obviously the relationship grew on me over time, but this time I saw more clearly how Tara was Willow's "one".

The worst part is that it's like no one ends up with who they should be with, in Buffy or Angel. Buffy herself should have been with Spike, in my opinion. Obvious pairing is Angel, but I felt that they both changed when Angel left, and Angel and Cordelia made a lot more sense. I almost thought Spike was better than Angel. Angel was cursed with a soul as a punishment. Spike went and got his back of his own accord, because he loved Buffy. Xander should have been with Anya, and she died. Willow should have ended up with Tara, not Kennedy. Faith...well I guess she was the one with the good ending. In Angel, Wesley and Fred didn't get a happy ending, and neither did anyone else.

Joss Whedon doesn't seem to like people ending up happy at all. Zoe and Wash (*cry*), Mal and Inara, Dr Horrible and Penny. I guess Kaylee and Simon got together, which is something. I'm worried for anyone who dares start up any kind of romance in Dollhouse.

Seriously though, it's still all great, but I'm still upset!

I watched two films today

2009-09-13T22:05:00.003+01:00

The first was Blade Runner: The Final Cut. I'm sure I've seen it before, but so long ago that I didn't remember much at all. It's known as a sci fi classic and is near the top of most lists you'll find of best sci fi films. Most people seem to love it.

The second was The Bucket List. I don't know whether or not it did well at the box office or not, but I'm sure it'll not be remembered as some great classic in years to come. Certainly not in the way people still talk about Blade Runner.

Which did I enjoy more? Easily The Bucket List. Wonderful film. Blade Runner is kind of overated.

One year ago today

2009-08-27T18:03:00.002+01:00

Today marks one year since Sonic died, age 15. I still really, really miss him. I'm so lucky to have little Knuckles and Tails though, and I have a lot of happy memories of all the old cats who aren't around anymore. I've been lucky to have had them all.

Sonic would hate the kittens though. Haha, he really would. He was the absolute centre of the universe. How dare any other cat take attention away from him?! And now he's in the soil, under the crying bear, and the baby cats are playing around him. It's nice, really.

How I'd like my life to be

2009-08-08T23:52:00.003+01:00

I'd like it to be written by Joss Whedon, Ronald D. Moore, Rockne S. O'Bannon and Russell T. Davies. I'd like the soundtrack and score to be done mostly by Bear McCreary, with the odd big singy number done either Dr. Horrible style by Joss and Jed Whedon, or cheesy stuff by ABBA and whoever did the arrangements for Mamma Mia! Oh and maybe the odd Lion King style epic piece by Elton John and Tim Rice. I'd like heroes and villains, only I want the bad guys to eventually be people you end up liking, like Scorpius. I want to end up with the right person in the series finale, like Ross and Rachel, or Crichton and Aeryn.

Yeah that all sounds good. I'm alright though, whatever my previous post might have suggested. People aren't always bad. They're damn confusing, but often that's just me.

gogogreengoblin.

So who should I be pissed off at?

2009-08-02T15:17:00.002+01:00

There are two people I was out with the other night, one I've only met recently and the other I've known for a few months and thought was a decent friend. Now I'm not sure which one of them I should be annoyed with over something. We'll call them Jack (guy I've known a while) and Jill (new person I've known a few weeks).

I won't deny that at times there has been a slight attraction to Jack. I dunno what it is, but he's been pretty good to me, and he's a funny guy. We'll only ever be friends and that really is all I want anyway, but I won't deny that there was a brief attraction. Not recently though. I see him more as a mate, and his personality really is not remotely compatible with mine. Also reminds me slightly of an ex with his constant talking about sex and innuendo and all that. It's too much sometimes. Also has a complete lack of ambition, which is really unattractive to me.

Aaanyway, that's where I'm coming from with Jack. There's a lot of banter between us and it's a laugh. The other night though, Jill told me that Jack had said that I wanted him, and would sleep with him, but he wouldn't with me. She backed this up by saying that when he first told her, she didn't know who I was, and he had to point me out a couple of days later. Now, I remember that happening. I didn't know why he was pointing me out but I know he did, and just shrugged it off.

This bothered me. Jack says that Jill is winding me up and he didn't say that, and was laughing at how gullible I am. I can't see why Jill would though since we're not really good friends yet. I couldn't work out if she was lying or not though. The thing is, it was a pretty harsh way of saying it. I want him but he wouldn't. If it came from him, it makes me look pretty pathetic, even if he only ever meant it as one of his usual sex related jokes. If it came from her, it's a really harsh thing to say to my face that Jack just wouldn't go there with me.

I don't want anything from Jack and my previous brief thing for him, which totally isn't there anymore, isn't really relevant...especially since I really really have not let on at all (I never, ever do with anyone I'm interested in). It's just that I think that whichever one has made this up is making me look stupid somehow. Making me look pathetic. Maybe it's just another stupid joke. I mean Jack is always saying he's irresistible and all that jokey stuff, and it's funny, but to say he wouldn't with me even though I wanted it seems harsh. Harsher if it's an out of the blue thing from Jill though.

I don't think I like Jill, and this time I don't think it's just a bad first impression. As it happens, I had a pretty good first impression of her, and a bad one of her friend. Her friend is awesome though and I'm glad I know her, but there's something about Jill. Jack...well now I know I'm 100% not interested at all. There's something quite unattractive about his personality that I didn't quite understand before. Whether or not this thing was from him or not, I see it now.

I wish I met nice people. Not people to date I mean, just people in general. Nice friends. That'd be a change.

Torchwood - Children of Earth

2009-07-18T17:12:00.003+01:00

Torchwood series 1 was a bit hit and miss. To be honest, I never saw all of it, because what I did see and read about it made me think it was just about being a "darker and edgier" Dr Who, maybe crossed with something like The X Files. It was all stuff that couldn't go in Dr Who. Sex and swearing. Some bits of it did show a lot of promise though. The last couple of episodes were definitely worth watching.

Series 2 was such a massive improvement. Having James Marsters involved was great, and Owen's shock death mid season, only to be brought back as a zombie-ish living dead man was genius. This series is definitely a lot more emotional too. Adrift is a brilliant episode, and the finale was amazing. Very sad though. Tosh and Owen gone in one episode?!

Children of Earth. Well if series 2 was an improvement, series 3 was the giant improvement that makes Torchwood a truly fantastic sci fi series, able to contend with all the big American shows. Very dark overall, but that's what's good about Torchwood sometimes. They aren't afraid to go for the unhappy ending. There were a lot of good twists too. Jack has a daughter who looks around his age. Jack was involved the first time the 456 came. The 456 wanted kids to use as drugs. So much more.

I actually did cry at a few points. Ianto. Ianto is dead! That was horrible. Again, brave of them to kill off another main character. They really do fit the "Anyone Can Die" trope. I was also upset at Frobisher's actions. I really empathised with his character. He wasn't a bad guy. He was just doing what he thought he had to, and he was the government's fall guy. Of course the saddest moment was Jack having to sacrifice his own grandson. Would the Doctor have done the same?! That's what I kept thinking. Jack makes ruthless decisions for the greater good, but would the Doctor actually end someone's life to save the rest. Truly was heartbreaking to watch.

All in all, Children of Earth really was something special. Apparently a fourth series depended on ratings for this. No worries then, and I really can't wait for it.

So I had an adventure.

2009-06-23T22:08:00.002+01:00

Travelling Europe and all that. Bruge, Ghent, Amsterdam (I love this place), Cologne, Rhine Valley, Rudesheim, Frankfurt, Strasbourg, Epernay, Paris. Photos to be found on Facebook, for those who are friends with me. I'll post the albums here when I've uploaded them all.

For some reason, I struggle to write about stuff like this, because it's like I've already relived it all thousands of times telling each of my parents, my brother, and several different people at work. In summary, it was all awesome, and I really want to go back to Amsterdam.

So I've been marathoning Bad Girls again...

2009-05-16T23:36:00.002+01:00

...and now I'm definitely noticing a decline in quality. Don't get me wrong, series 6 (I've watched from episode 3 to the end today) was still great and still worth watching, but I think they got rid of too many favourites from series 5 and earlier before 6 started, and many of the newer people aren't so likeable. Yvonne, Denny, Babs, Buki and Karen all gone. All with good reason, but did it have to be all at once? The Julies are the only original inmates still left in it, since Denny went. Her exit seemed kind of sudden, and a little unrealistic. However talented someone turned out to be, if they had a record of escape, would you send them to an open prison? Denny must have got a lot of extra time from the whole escaping thing too. Babs had a good ending to her story, but it would have been nicer to actually see her release. Same with Buki. She started off annoying, but you grew to like her. Her release was spoken about, but then she was just gone between series.

Yvonne's death was a great story, but I think the series suffered without her. Phyl playing "top dog"? Didn't seem right. The drug pushing thing makes them not so likeable too. Of the other new people, I did like Kris and Selena and their story, but I always had it in the back of my mind that I knew they would never get a proper conclusion. I know they aren't seen or heard from again after the series 6 finale. Darlene is annoying. Not a bad character, but not someone you can really like. Buxton makes a good baddie character, but we all want more nice ones too, and not just the mouthy young ones. The series is missing people like Nikki, Yvonne, Babs, Monica etc.

I also never got to like Myers much as governer. Fair and all that, and someone against Fenner, but I liked Karen. She was like Helen with more balls. Myers wasn't as likeable.

So yeah, still good at series 6, but I think I'll always prefer those first 3 series. Maybe 4 too, since it was good that Yvonne had time when she really was top dog. The high character turnover isn't helping. I think one of the things I do love about Bad Girls though is the fact that nothing is forgotten. I like continuous stories in anything, and Bad Girls forgets no one. When Karen thought she had Fenner cornered in series 5, she said she was doing it for Rachel Hicks, Nikki Wade, Helen Stewart and Shell Dockley. All characters from previous series who had been and gone ages ago, with the exception of Shell who was slightly more recent. The prisoners always mention previous characters too. Flowers sent from Crystal and Josh, and calling Monica, and using Nikki's name as a cover, and constantly mentioning Zandra as someone they miss.

The other good thing is that I know I'm now up to a point where I haven't seen them all. I've seen a lot more, but definitely not all. I'm glad I thought to rewatch this series.

It's been a while since the last TV related post...

2009-05-12T18:19:00.002+01:00

...and I've watched some pretty good stuff lately. Spoilers ahead.

Caprica

After my BSG marathon, I was definitely ready for Caprica, and I wasn't disappointed. Different, and yet unmistakeably set in the same world. Joseph Adama was well cast, and you can see the things in him that you respect in the Admiral. This idea of the cylons coming from Graystone's desire to have his daughter back is an interesting one, and I like where it's going. I'm not sure how far it can go though. I see a story, but not a long one, unless they decide to skip several years and get nearer to the first Cylon War. I'm sure it won't disappoint though.

Worth mentioning the obvious Bear McCreary score. It was nice to hear Wander My Friends during an Adama family moment, and the taiko drums during the centaurian scenes. He says it'll get closer to BSG style music as they get closer to the events of BSG. Sounds good to me!

One thing I don't understand is how this will appeal to non-BSG fans. They say it's less sci-fi, and so will appeal to more people. They say that you won't need to have watched BSG to follow it. Yeah maybe, but I can't see why people would be all that interested if they hadn't watched BSG.

Scrubs

It's felt like it was on it's way out for a while. Kind of like The Simpsons. You know it's still hilarious, but there's something screaming that it's time to call it a day. And wow, they really did call it a day. That final episode was amazing. The perfect ending. I won't mind if it carries on though, in a different way with new people and new things happening, but it was certainly the end of the story as it is now. I loved the final few scenes. The bits that may happen in the future.

Also, Glenn Matthews? Haha, brilliant. "Hey Tommy".

Dollhouse

I will cry if this is cancelled. Episode 11 was spoiled slightly by the fact that I thought it kind of obvious that Alan Tudyk would be Alpha. It was still exciting, but I thought it would be harder to guess. Maybe it's my own fault for reading too many internet spoilers and knowing Alpha would be revealed in that episode. Episode 12 though, that was something else. Dr Saunders has been an active all along?! Alpha was a killer (almost) before he was an active?! Ballard is going to work for the Dollhouse?! Ballard chose to save November over Echo?! Everything about this episode was exciting, and a great build up for future episodes. I really, really hope this gets another chance. I'm just not sure, because it's a strange series, and I reckon something of a cult thing.

Bad Girls

I know, this is a really random mention. I saw a Youtube clip several weeks ago now of an old episode, and suddenly I had a craving to watch them again, kind of like I did with At Home With the Braithwaites earlier in the year. Honestly, it's brilliant. It's brilliant because it feels real. Of course I don't know what it's like to be in prison, and I'm sure there isn't an evil screw in every one of them, but the characters are real. I honestly thing the Nikki/Helen story is one of the best love stories on tv, but even after they left, it continues to be an amazing series. I'm in season 5 now, and maybe it's waned a bit, but I'm enjoying watching it again.

Well

2009-05-09T01:10:00.002+01:00

Not really even half as confused about that thing, since someone else I know is more certain about certain things, and that's made me more certain about the opposite things. Aaanyway. New dilemmas arise. Is applying for this job the right move? What about the people at work I like and would miss so much? Should I give that up, just to go back to living where everyone but the family has forgotten me, or try and make a go of things here? Who knows!

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Now playing: Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
via FoxyTunes

there's too much confusionnnnn

2009-04-26T14:32:00.003+01:00

I've not blogged for a while, for a few reasons. I think mostly because I'm lazy, but I'm also not in a great place right now. Why? The reasons are hard to explain, and I as usual I don't understand everything either. I think that the approaching birthday has something to do with it though. The last three birthdays have had me feeling pretty crap in the build up. My dad was confused about why, with this one. I'll be 23, but I've achieved a lot really. There has been visible progress since the last birthday. The degree, the job, the house, the adult life. They're just things though. I'm still as alone as I was this time last year. I'm still not jumping for joy at the prospect of reaching another day where I think about what I haven't achieved.

I just feel like I've gone backwards, since uni. My last birthday was good. I was happy on the day. Usual negativity during the build up, but then I went for lunch with some friends, and at the weekend my sister visited, and even though I still did some dissertation on the actual day I still had a good time. I was motivated to do well, and starting to get my life together and back on track. That's how I ended up with my good degree and my job. And now I have it all, and I'm getting worse again. I have no motivation. None at all. I'm behind on my portfolio work. I'm behind on other jobs I need to do. The house is a mess all the time. I dread work. I've lost contact with some more friends, and this time I know it's my fault rather than theirs like it usualy is. I've lost the internet as my escape. It's not that I'm really depressed right now, like I was at the start of the year, but I'm in a mess. I need to start being proactive again. It's just...finding a reason. Maybe I don't feel like I have one. At uni, I got my arse in gear because my placement made me realise that I wanted a job in the field. I don't feel like I'm aiming for something now, especially since I don't want to stay living here in this particular job.

There's been something else confusing me a bit, but I can't talk about that yet. The problem with this thing is that sometimes I just accept it for what it is, and it's no big issue, and then sometimes it causes a really deep confusion and questioning of a lot of things. I feel like things will become clear when something happens, but I don't think that will happen for a while.

Ugh. I just need to do things. Things that aren't tv, internet and work.

Upside Down

2009-04-16T22:25:00.002+01:00

Some things really are just messed up. The mother of my cousin's son, pregnant by my brother's oldest friend. Pictures of the three of them together, her, him and the little guy, as though they were a family. She's a piece of work. He's just daft. I feel sorry for him. He'd be a good father to my cousin's lad, but it's not how it should be. Better him than some random I guess.

And what about my brother? I miss his ex. The one I spent years slating. I'd take her as a future sister in law over this new girl. He made a decision he'll regret forever today. I blame her.

Sometimes things just don't feel right. The way they happen, the things they cause. I wish there was a reset button for some days. I hope it all works out.

New Sci-fi?

2009-03-30T14:31:00.002+01:00

I was looking up some stuff about Dollhouse today, and I came across an interesting article. "What show is your new Battlestar?" BSG is over, Atlantis is over, the new Star Trek film just won't be Star Trek...so I do need new sci-fi.

Stargate Universe sounds more interesting the more I hear about it. That article says that it'll be the "gritty" Stargate. More like BSG. It's funny that it keeps getting compared to Voyager, but in the sense that it'll be darker and more character based than SG1 and Atlantis, it could turn out to be the DS9 of the Stargate franchise. That will certainly be no bad thing. I'm still a little wary of the fact that they're aiming it at a younger audience, but Robert Carlyle is a great casting choice and I'm sure it won't make much difference. Oh, and it's also great to read that Richard Dean Anderson may appear in the mid season two parter!

Virtuality is another show mentioned in that article that really sounds interesting. Okay so Ronald D.Moore writing it does have something to do with my opinion there, but the idea is definitely good. People going mad on a ship, written by him, sounds like it will definitely be worth watching.

The other one I'm interested in is obviously Caprica. How it all began! Caprica should be interesting if nothing else. My only concern is that they say you won't have to have watched BSG to follow it.

Three new series to look forward to, and The Plan at the end of the year too!

Other television

2009-03-27T11:22:00.003Z

Time for a post BSG post, mostly because I'm on my second day off sick and I've been catching up on things. Obvious spoilers ahead.

Heroes

My problem with Heroes is that it seems like they make it up as they go along. All my favourite shows seem like they knew where it was going from the start, even if they didn't. BSG, Farscape, DS9...the continuing story always made sense and flowed well. They hadn't decided that Ellen Tigh was the final cylon until they started writing season 4, but you can believe that they'd known since day 1. Heroes just seems so unstructured. Changing who does and doesn't have powers, changing the nature of people's powers, not being consistent with people's characters. I enjoy every episode, but the overall story is lacking something. It needs more focus, and to feel like it's really going somewhere. Also, they really need to give Peter and Hiro their proper powers back. I don't like that direction.

Desperate Housewives

In contrast, I love where this is going. Edie's death was a little predictable, since I knew she was leaving. I expected Dave to kill her though, and it almost would have been better if he had. As it is, we still get to have some kind of climax where everyone else finds out about Dave's past and the thing with Mike all comes out. It's a real shame that Edie's gone though. Definitely one of the best characters. All in all this series has been pretty good, and my only fault is that the American networks are being stupid, as usual. Episode, break, episode, longer break, episode. break. It's frustrating, and it can't be good for ratings.

Scrubs

While I do think that Scrubs has gone on for a couple of seasons too long, I'm still enjoying this season. It does seem a bit final, and I hope that ends up being the case. It would be too strange without Zach Braff. It's still funny, and maybe even as funny as it ever was, but it isn't quite the same. I think it's really noticable that there are episodes where not every character is there, and I don't like that.

Dollhouse

The more I watch it, the more it grows on me. Helo (as he will always be, screw Paul Ballard) is a great character, and Eliza Dushku does a great job being someone else every week. This week's big twist was that Helo's neighbour is a sleeper active. I did not see that coming, and it's kinda sad that he's getting involved with someone who isn't real. Great twist though. I really, really hope this series gets it's chance to have another season. It is definitely worth a watch.

Lost

One of the things I love about Lost, even though I can't stand it in Heroes, is that they change everything every season. Well, something happens to make things change. Everyone living in the 70s and working for Dharma was something I did not see coming in a million years. I really can't wait for it every week again, and it's been a while since I've been like that over Lost. Sayid shot young Ben Linus! But Daniel said they couldn't change the past? Maybe he was always meant to shoot him, and he survives? Interesting! One thing I'm not looking forward to is the Jack/Kate/Sawyer/Juliet love quadrangle. I was always for Sawyer and Kate over Jack and Kate, but I like Juliet and I wouldn't like to see Sawyer just go after Kate again.

There are definitely things I really want to know in this series. Where the hell is everyone else from the original plane? Rose and Bernard etc? What happened to Daniel Faraday? Why did Sun, Locke and Ben end up with the other plane people instead of with Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sayid? Confusing! But good confusing.

Primeval

This is something I've been convinced to watch rather than a new thing I download weekly. After episode one, I don't think I'm going to end up rushing with it. It's alright, just a bit daft, and the effects aren't great. Some people might say that it's no more daft in it's idea than all the other sci-fi I watch, but it just seems it to me. I don't think Britain is very good at sci-fi and fantasy, with the exception of Dr Who and Torchwood. There's something Torchwood like about Primeval, but it's clearly not as good. The young guy and the S Club 7 girl aren't great actors. The hunter/tracker guy is way too pretty for that. Ben Miller is playing a really annoying and predictable role. I might stick with it because I think the overall idea is good, and because it's something else to watch. It's not that great though.

Skins

I can't believe I forgot this! The series has been brilliant, it really has. It's impressive that they find groups of new actors who are this good. The finale was a little disappointing though. Great episode yes, but I sort of expected something involving the rest of the cast too. I guess they got their finale last week with the ball, but still, when you compare it to the season 1 finale, it just wasn't as...explosive. That served as the middle of the original cast story, and had story lines for Maxxi and Anwar, Sid and Cassie, Tony and Michelle, Tony and Sid, Tony and Effy, Chris and Angie, and didn't Jal get off with Posh Kenneth? It involved everyone and left some stories open for the second series. Tony getting hit by a lorry, for a start.

I'm not saying that the season 3 finale left nothing to think about. Are the guys really all friends again? Will Cook be alright with Freddie and Effy? Will that even work? Where are they going on the stolen boat? Like I said, really great episode, just expected a bit more, and expected more of the cast to be there.

Battlestar Galactica

No I haven't watched Daybreak again yet, but I read Bear McCreary's blog, and I just wanted to say again how amazing this series was. Maybe I'll watch it again later.

Proud

2009-03-25T20:48:00.002Z

He did the right thing. I was worried that he was like someone else we both know, but he isn't. He's much more of a man, and he did what had to be done rather than drag it out. He took the tough choice instead of the easy one, and I'm proud of him.

Battlestar Galactica - Daybreak

2009-03-23T16:57:00.003Z

Battlestar Galactica truly is one of the best things to ever be shown on a television. The final episode was just perfect. It's great that it was still able to be unpredictable and surprising right up to the end.

Starting off, we always knew that Adama, who always makes the right call, would go after Hera. Was never sure they'd get through it though! I also suspected that Boomer might do the right thing in the end, and she did. Wasn't sad when Athena killed her though. Some things were more shocking though. The moment when you realised that Baltar and Caprica Six could see each other's Head Cylon and Head Baltar. Angels! They really were. Nothing more sinister than that. Baltar was never evil and I knew that, but it was good to see him doing the right thing in the finale. He got it. The man of science who never believed in religion was the man with the faith at the end.

And Starbuck! She died after Maelstrom, on Earth. The Starbuck who came back was like an angel too. She wasn't really there. Well, she was, but...she was something different. All the mythology and spiritual stuff was great. The Opera House scene was just brilliant. That had been there since season one. Roslin, Athena, Caprica, Baltar and Hera, all playing out the parts from the vision that we'd seen for four years. I'm not into religion and would have been kind of disappointed if it'd all been about the Christian God, but it wasn't really. God, or a god, or the gods of Kobol, or some other divine force. Something bigger than us, and that was all that mattered. Perfect.

Of course the biggest twist was that our Earth and the Earth of their own mythology were not the same place. I was seriously confused when they landed in Africa, and there was grass and animals and primitive humanoids. They just chose to call it Earth because Earth was the dream! Our Earth was just named after the real Earth! And they were our anscestors! Perfect.

I didn't really cry because I didn't watch it alone, but I probably will next time. Roslin's death, and the Admiral leaving forever, and Starbuck's departure, and Sam going into the Sun with Galactica...all beautifully done. The happy bits too were worth a tear in places. Tigh and Ellen together again, Baltar going back to his roots with Caprica, Helo surviving, finding this new planet to start with. The flashbacks worked well to make it all that more emotional too.

I loved how it finally ended. In our time, the angel Caprica and angel Baltar with Ron D. Moore in the scene, discussing whether it will all happen again, to Jimi Hendrix's All Along the Watchtower. I really can't wait for both the DVD release, and after Bear McCreary's brilliant season as far as the music goes, the soundtrack too.

I'd also like to add that Ronald D. Moore is a complete legend. Battlestar Galactica + many of my favourite DS9 episdes...can't get much better than that.

Development

2009-03-21T11:06:00.002Z

I want to post about last weekend in London at some point, because it was brilliant. I've been meaning to do that all week, but now I'm actually on here, I have something else on my mind. There are two people that I got all wrong. I automatically assume that guys who look and act like one of them just won't want to know me at all. Wrong. He's a good guy to hang out with. The other one I was worried I'd end up wanting too much from. He's still closer to my type than other guys in my life right now, but some things he's said lately have made me see that he could be the guy friend I've not had for a long time. I missed Simon after he left, and I guess that was similar. He said something to me that I've never felt was true coming from other "friends", and despite the fact that I'm now overanalysing myself again, it was really good to hear.

Ten to Ten

2009-03-08T18:17:00.002Z

I'd been thinking about it for 2+ years, and putting off making the decision, because it wasn't an easy one to make. For all of the many reasons I had to make it though, the thing that finally did it was something you said. Not a good thing either. Who knows, I may still not have made the decision if you'd said something nice instead of your standard response.
I don't think I'll ever let go, but I sometimes wish you would. I'd like us to still be friends, but I don't like how you keep me hanging on and just text/missed call me every now and then so I still remember you exist. Real friends or nothing please.
You've made it so much more enjoyable. I'm actually confused about what to think of you though. Do I want to just me friends or do I want more? I shouldn't, because we're so incompatible. It'd never happen anyway, and it's not like I think about you all the time, but I reckon I'll be jealous when I meet your girlfriend. You are definitely someone I want as a friend, if nothing else.
I misjudged you as the typical guy who wasn't interested in being friends because you don't fancy me. I've met enough of those in my time, and I'm glad you actually turned out to be really cool. Hilariously disgusting, but cool.
Have more confidence. You know you can do it, so why do you act like you can't? I hope you work it out in time.
This time last year you were one of the most important people in my life. You probably shouldn't have been, but it still bothers me how it's changed.
I'm sure we could both use an extra friend, so I really don't see why you don't want that. We were friends once, but it seems to have gone.
You know, if it wasn't for a certain factor, I'd be inviting you to stay sometime soon. I've thought about you lot lately. Sign of loneliness?
I wish you weren't looking into leaving. Things won't be the same there without you. They'll fall apart.
Look at me now.

Catses

2009-03-08T02:54:00.002Z

You know, I was actually worried that I wouldn't connect with my cats, after 15+ years with Sonic being my sidekick and best friend. How could any other pet replace my Sonic? Well they haven't, but not because I love them any less. They're so different. I cannot imagine being without them now though. Next weekend will be so strange, being away and not having them around all the time.

Saying that though, I still don't think I trust them upstairs at night. I did it for two nights, and there was much banging and being woken up with a cat in my face. They need to calm down a bit. My room is also a right mess at the moment, so there's so much trouble they could cause. Still, I love them, and I'll take a bit of annoyingness as a price for having two little kittens to come home to every day.

Television. Rules the Nation.

2009-03-02T13:42:00.002Z

So what have I been watching lately?

Battlestar Galactica

What can I say? It continues to be brilliant. I'm even close to saying it's my favourite TV series...and I never just pick one for that title. This week's episode started off being like a character building thing, or at least more so than the recent action packed ones. And then the end. I almost knew it was going to turn out to be the Final Five song that Starbuck was playing, but it was still amazing. What the frak does that mean? What IS Starbuck? How does Hera know the theme? Who is controlling events? Is Roslin dead? Is Galactica going to be dead? Brilliant.

What's also brilliant is Bear McCreary's All Along the Watchtower. I love it.

Dollhouse

I'm seeing more potential with episode 2. Maybe Fox made them screw with the premiere so much that it wasn't what it should have been. The idea is still weird, but it's becoming more interesting with mention of Alpha. Echo remembered bits too, which is obviously going to be the major plot point. I hope they don't drag that element of the story on for too long though. Definite potential, but I don't think will be anything like as good as Firefly. I just hope it's given a chance and isn't cancelled.

Skins

It's fantastic. Despite my initial dislike of some of the new characters, I now love it. The characters are believable, and I like how the story is going. Effy is a fantastic character, and I'm glad she's taken the lead over from Tony. This is a series everyone should watch.

Well here's something new

2009-02-21T01:21:00.002Z

I'm reasonably content. It's amazing how many of my problems are just about me overthinking things. Work isn't so bad. Living here isn't so bad. I love my two little baby cats and my dad and sister are visiting tomorrow. I'll be alright.

Go to work for me tomorrow?

2009-02-15T19:25:00.003Z

Please?

Honestly I cannot be bothered with doing any work for my portfolio. I don't care enough to do it. I worked my ass off to get here and I can't be arsed with any more. No choice if I don't want to be stuck here forever though.

I don't think I'll stay in this town once the portfolio is done. The move was another new start that hasn't really worked out. I just brought my problems to a new place, creating a few new ones along the way. The only question is do I try for another new start in 2-3 years time when I move on, go home and try to make it work with what I used to have there, or try and hope for the best here rather than moving at all? Guess I don't have to decide for a good long while yet. I just don't see there being any room for positive change. I don't know anyone outside of work, and I don't see that changing. Oh well :P

The Internet

2009-02-13T12:58:00.002Z

A few years ago now, most likely 2005 or 2006, I remember deciding what it would take for me to leave PBS. I don't remember exactly why, but I think it was probably due to others leaving dramatically around that time, and deleting accounts etc. I thought that the only thing that'd make me leave was if certain friends left, or if I was no longer friends with them. Over the years, things changed, and I did redefine that for myself a bit. Some of those people did leave, but I met new online friends. I decided that there would be no point to staying at PB if I had no good friends there, and if there was no AIM chat to go to, since going there has always been a good escape for me.

So now it's 2009, and it looks as though all the criteria have been met. All my non-PBS internet friends are gone. People like Mano and Sunil who I met in MSN chats and talked to for years, I just don't have any contact with at all. It must be over a year since I last got an email from Mano, and since I don't trust him all that much anymore, it's unlikely I'll bother to contact him again. I miss when things were less complicated.

As for the PBS friends, I just don't think there's anyone I'm that close to anymore. Back in 2005 (0r maybe 2006?), there was a time when I was really upset over a few things. Not one of my "down" phases, because this was related to something that happened rather than my general issues. At the time, a lot of my online friends, mostly from PBS, let me down pretty badly, I thought. Maybe it's not all that obvious when I'm upset, but still, people who I thought might be there for me just weren't. One had a real excuse, but some others spent more time asking me about how another person was doing than whether I was okay myself. There was one exception, and the fact that he a) noticed I wasn't doing well and b) talked to me about the reasons, meant a lot to me. Over the last few months, I've been in a pretty bad place, and unlike most of my depressive phases, I didn't manage to control/hide it online very well. Usually people wouldn't notice, but it wasn't really much of a secret that I wasn't coping well this time. Absolutely no one was there for me. One person asked me if I was okay on one day where I wasn't even that bad, but that wasn't one of the people I expected to care much. Those I did...they weren't much help. I won't say everyone has been terrible, since one person who I specifically asked for advice did come through for me. The rest of it still sucks though.

So yeah, I don't want to dwell on that, because I know you shouldn't expect people to be there for you everytime you aren't happy. It's just shown me how there really aren't people I'm that good friends with online anymore. PBS isn't the friendly place it has been in the past, and doesn't keep me entertained as much, and I no longer have the tie of moderating. The chat looks like it's finally over, which is sad after so many years. People have come and gone, but it's always kept going. Now, there doesn't seem much reason to go there anymore. With that gone too, my reasons for staying at PBS, and as a regular on the internet in general, are pretty much gone. The only reason I've still been here is because there isn't much else to do, which is also sad. It's pretty much this, DVDs or Wii, and I have to alternate a bit so I don't get bored.

I'm not sure what the purpose of this post is, because based on my last point, I don't think I'll suddenly just leave. It's likely that I'll just fade away from the internet though. I think I've already started that.

Back to TV and Film

2009-02-08T15:44:00.002Z

I started this post sometime last week, before my previous one, but couldn't be bothered to finish till today. So here it is:

Battlestar Galactica

Several of my posts seem to have been about this show lately, but then it really is one of the greatest television shows ever created. It's just so unpredictable. We couldn't have guess about Adama getting shot by Boomer at the end of season one, the settling on New Caprica and 1 year jump at the end of two, the revelation of the final four, Earth being inhabited by Cylons and being a wasteland...and now Gaeta leading a coup with Zarek! That story really worked well. I still like Gaeta though. He was an idealist with values different to the admiral, and he thought he was doing the right thing. He knew when he'd gone too far, and clearly didn't want to kill anyone if he didn't have to. I was almost disappointed with how Zarek turned out. He didn't care who died. I always thought he was like Gaeta ended up. Someone who had strong beliefs and was prepared to fight for them. Interesting that he turned out to be the terrorist Adama always saw him as. Killing off both of them at the end of the episode was a great twist too, especially since at the beginning it looked more likely that Adama, Tigh and Roslin and co would die.

The previous bit was written last week. Since then I've seen the latest episode. Ellen Tigh is back! Cavil knew who the 5 were all along! All this has happened before and will happen again...and so many explanations. Brilliant episode and a brilliant TV series. Honestly, I don't think I've ever been more excited about new episodes of things, including Lost and Atlantis and all the other stuff I've watched first time around.

The X Files

I'm still really enjoying watching this. I've slowed down a bit after the last mytharc ones I watched though. I really like the monster of the week ones, but like with most series I watch, I prefer the main story usually. I can't be bothered to do a seperate paragraph for Fringe, but I recently watched another episode of that, and it just doesn't match up to The X Files. Since I've started on this again, I don't think I'll be watching any more Fringe. I really had forgotten how good early X Files was.

Skins

I started off not so keen on the new series. Decent new characters yes, but I didn't think I'd be that into it. I was wrong. I really like Thomas, the new guy. Cook is really unlikeable, but in a good way, and you can see there'll be comeupance somewhere along the line. Effy is by far the best character though. She's been fantastic through all 3 seasons, but you can see that she'll really be great now she's almost the main focus of it all. Yep, definitely gonna be worth watching.

Slumdog Millionaire

Switching over to films, I watched this last night. There's not much I can say, other than that it was brilliant. Sad, and hopeful at the same time. Dev Patel was really good in the main part, but so were the little Indian kids playing the younger versions. I hope this gets all the Oscars it deserves. Everyone should see this film. I cried at it, and that always means it's good.

Ellen Tigh!

2009-01-18T15:19:00.003Z

I was right all along! The fifth Cylon is Ellen Tigh! I may have looked like I changed my mind and went Roslin, but she was my main character guess. Also, I was totally thrown by the new trailers and stuff. Ellen had been my theory since the four were announced though. I've always been baffled as to why none of the other blogs I've read considered her a possibility, but she's remained my favourite for a long time.

Anyway, the new series of Battlestar started out brilliantly. The Thirteenth Colony were Cylons, and Ellen Tigh is the fifth! Amazing. I can't wait to see what's going to happen next.

Stargate Atlantis

2009-01-15T23:20:00.004Z

I need to get this post out of my system before the kitten excitement at the weekend, so here we go.

Stargate Atlantis has been one of my favourite TV series for a long time now, and I'm gutted that it's finally over. I'd even say more gutted than when SG1 finished, although more satisfied since Atlantis had a much better ending.

So, because I feel like it, I'll start from the beginning. Atlantis had a great pilot episode. The Wraith were a scary new enemy, but it had all the old familiar Stargate stuff too. O'Neill and Daniel, for a start, and then Weir and McKay who we'd seen in SG1 too. Also Robert Patrick, which was funny, since I knew I'd know if he was a main character. I knew he wasn't, so I knew he'd die. Good idea though, getting in a known actor to come and be killed off in the pilot.

Season 1 just continued to get better after that. The main Atlantis team was pretty good. Humorous airforce man, sarcastic scientist, interesting alien...and Ford. Ford was the weak link in that team. He was nothing. Just a guy with nothing about him. Anyway, the stories got better, peaking in the last few. The build up to the Wraith attack was great. One highlight was Groden dying. If you want a British character, cast a British actor, or a foreign actor who can do a FLAWLESS British accent. If you want to cast a Canadian who can't, have a Canadian character. Anyway, great finale.

Season 2 started off really well, and just got better. Ford was suddenly really interesting. Skinner from X Files was playing a guy you started off not liking but knew would end up on your side in the end...a familiar role for him maybe! Ronon was introduced to the cast, and unlike Ford, was the perfect fourth member of the team. Kind of like Teal'c, but just enough not like him to be a great character in his own right. Season 2 also saw Michael, one of the best bad guys in sci fi, introduced. Stupid Atlantis people...they sort of deserved everything they got from him. Interesting moral stories there. Low point of this series was Grace Under Pressure. Lame excuse to include Amanda Tapping, and nothing like as good as the SG1 episode called Grace.

Season 3 was where Atlantis really peaked. Great conclusion to the season 2 finale, replicators, Richard Dean Anderson, Michael, some great Rodney episodes, "Sunday" and an amazing finale. Picking on individual episodes, the mid season one was really good. In fact, all the replicator ones were. The Asurans being replicators was totally unexpected at the time. Vengence was a great Michael episode, and actually a bit freaky. Sunday...what can I say. One of the best episodes. This is just about the Atlantis lot getting on with their lives on a day off, and then something bad happening. And Carson dies :( I feel something is taken away from this by his clone returning, because everyone forgets that the clone isn't the same guy. I still love that episode though.

The Season 3 finale was probably the best, if you also count it's season 4 conclusion. The Replicator stories were great, and what happened to Weir was really unexpected. Season 4 itself I've talked about in more detail in other posts here. Basically, Carter was a disappointment, and the team weren't always a team anymore. Great series with some great episodes, particularly the mid season one and the last few. Midway was also a highlight...who didn't want to see Ronon vs Teal'c?! It could only have ended in a draw. That was one I really enjoyed though.

Season 5 had some of the same problems as series 4, in that the team weren't consistantly together, and the Atlantis leader wasn't always present. Still, Richard Woolsey was a great character to bring in. I've liked him since his first SG1 appearance. A good guy who's too concerned with the rules, but he comes to understand how things really work while he's on Atlantis. It's a shame Robert Picardo wasn't used more, although he definitely did a better job than Carter.

The fifth season, despite it's flaws, was still great. McKay and Keller was nice to see, for a start, and McKay had a great episode in The Shrine. The mid season episodes were fantastic. Daniel was put to good use rather than just being "hey look SG1 guest star", and the Asgard being the bad guys was a fantastic twist, and one I didn't see coming in a million years. That's surely something to be built upon in a film.

Anyway, I've mentioned many of the season 5 episodes in previous blog entries, but not the finale. Wow. I've complained before about SG1 never having the conclusive ending it needed. Atlantis did. In a single part 42 minute episode, it did everything it needed to do. Everyone important was involved in some small way, including Carter, Zelenka, Beckett, Major Davis (random, but good to see old characters), Caldwell, Ellis...and other secondary characters who needed inclusion in a finale. The idea of Wraith going to Earth was the perfect final story, and beating them by taking Atlantis to Earth was genius, and totally unexpected. I actually shed a tear when I thought Ronon was dead, but I didn't feel cheated out of an emotional story when he was brought back. I was glad Todd actually helped, since he's a great character. It was also great that they mentioned General Hammond's death, and the dedication of the new ship. To top it all off, it was cool that they landed pretty much near Starfleet Headquarters. Obviously irrelevant but hey, I'm a sci fi nerd. If I had one complaint? Wormhole drive...that all seemed a bit too random and convenient. Never mentioned before, but let's invent it anyway. Still, that's just Stargate isn't it. SG1 seasons 5, Full Circle, knocking on a wall of a giant room 3 times in random places, and hey! There's the Eye of Ra. Stargate doesn't have to be sensible.

So Atlantis ended extremely well. If the films never get made for whatever reason, I'll still be satisfied. Bring on Universe!

2008

2009-01-11T19:36:00.002Z

So here it is. Or there it was. 2008 was a very strange year, with some of the best moments of my life, and some of the worst.

It starts off in Boston finishing my placement. Passed my registration portfolio, had a leaving do, and it was very sad to leave it behind when I'd got just about to the stage where I was one of them. I felt like I belonged there at the time, and then it was over. It wasn't a bad thing though. I finished in January feeling proud of what I'd achieved, and for the first time in ages I didn't feel guilty about taking a break from uni work. I had none to do and I was completely up to date, and it was nice. Anyway, I'm sure there's more on what I was actually up to in the archives of this blog.

Later that month I was back at university, living with the student nurses and a friend who's girlfriend didn't like him socialising with me. It wasn't always easy living there, and the uni work really took it's toll that semester too. There were some low times for me in those few months, but also some pretty good ones. Nights out with my friends, having friends I could talk about my placement and stuff with because they'd done the same, good marks at uni, and a feeling that I understood. There was a crazy amount of tension during the dissertation write up though. Coursework has never had me that stressed. Sometimes I honestly didn't think I'd do it. Handing it in was one of the biggest moments of relief in my life. It felt like there should have been a drumroll and then a fanfare when I handed it over. And that was that, I was free again. It was a huge moment.

Finishing uni was hard. I went to the ball, which was the last time I'd see some people, and it was sad. Really good, but sad. The next day Charlie picked me up and university was truly over. The fact that I got through it all, because it wasn't always as much fun as I've made out, was a major achievement for me. It's hard to describe how I felt at the end. Mixed emotions, definitely.

In the summer, I had the best holiday I've ever had. Me and Hannah had our Scotland adventure. Two weeks of exciting activities, driving right up to the top of mainland Britain. I saw a lot of amazing things. Dolphins, mountains, Loch Ness, puffins, daylight at midnight. Fantastic. Scotland is a beautiful place. I loved every minute of that holiday. Definitely one of the highlights of the year.

The other highlight was getting my degree results and graduation. Who would have guessed in a million years after my first two years that I could have pulled off a 2:1?! It really was amazing. It's rare for me to feel proud of myself, but I did when I saw that result. Graduation was really special. It was great to see my course friends again, some for the last time, and for what we'd achieved to be recognised.

The end of the year hasn't been so good though. I spent longer than I wanted to unemployed, but then found what I thought would be the perfect job. Things started well. I found a great house to rent, so much nicer than anything else in my price ranger. I got a housemate, which made it all a lot cheaper and meant I could afford to make it a bit nicer here. The job looked like it would be as perfect as I imagined at first. And then it wasn't. It's hard and not anything like perfect. I made a mistake taking it before attending more interviews, but I wasn't to know that at the time. Things are looking up now, but when 2008 finished, I hated it. I really do believe that I'll find it a lot easier and a lot more tolerable as this year goes on, but it was a definite negative.

A bit before that, on the 27th of August, something really upsetting had happened. I'd finally lost my Sonic. Fifteen years of always being there, and then not. Everything else that's happened to upset me, not having my cat there has made it so much worse. He was my source of comfort through so much. I miss him everyday. I have photos of him on my wall, and right now I'm looking at one of him taken in 1993, just over a month old. I was seven years old then. It's still hard to believe I don't have him anymore.

This has got jumbled up in the sequence of events, but in October my Nanna passed away. We all knew she'd had health problems, but it was still unexpected. To lose her was devastating, it truly was. She was a wonderful person and the best grandparent you could ask for. It was a very tough time for my family, and very hard for me to be away from them. I had a couple of days off just after, and a couple of days for the funeral, but being here on my own was awful. I miss her so much now. Just going round and filling her in on what I've been up to, and getting the gossip on other family members. As Ant said in his reading, a cup of tea and a natter.

Losing my Nanna and not having my cat for comfort, and being alone here, left me finishing the year in a bad place, and that's carried on into 2009. All of the problems I usually bury and cope alright with were at the front of my mind. Being alone, not being good with people, job worries, worrying about other people, some other issues that despite my growing openess I still can't tell people about. I've found everything hard since October/November. That's why I'll always remember 2008 as a strange year. Some brilliant things and some of the best moments of my life, accompanied by my worse depressive phase in a couple of years.

So what about 2009. 2008 saw me make progress in moving on from my past, letting go of some demons, and understanding my problems. 2009 so far has seen me take a step backwards really. For some reason though, I feel a bit better now. It's like things are looking up a bit somehow. Alcohol solves no problems at all and I don't recommend using it to forget what's wrong, but slightly tipsy conversations with my dad last night made me realise a few things. While my social situation isn't ideal and will continue to bother me, I have a better family than most people I know. I love them so much, and I know how much I mean to them too. It's not enough forever, but it is for now. Things have to, and will, get better. If 2008 saw me beginning to understand what my problems are, 2009 will be the year where I try and figure out what I can do about them.

Broken Resolutions

2009-01-05T23:36:00.002Z

Well, not entirely, but I think the fact that I'm bothered by the lack of a text message reply is a bit of a step backwards. It's like this person waits until I've moved on and forgotten about them, then has to remind me, then act all distant and uncontactable again. They remember I exist for a brief moment then forget me all over again. I could be wrong. Could be that I'm the only one of their old friends they still contact and I should feel special or something. Still, I wish we could either be friends or just lose touch entirely. I'll never be the one to cut off though. Stupid me.

Christmas and New Year television

2009-01-03T23:40:00.002Z

I do plan to write a more personal 2008 summary post, but to be honest I can't be bothered to overthink anything tonight, so here's some comments on things I've seen on the telebox over the last few weeks. Some are things shown for Christmas, and some are just things I happen to have been watching over this period.

Wallace and Gromit - A Matter of Loaf and Death

Starting with Christmas Day TV offerings then, Wallace and Gromit. This was brilliant, as you'd expect it to be. Good, light hearted family humour. I hope they get a few more in before Peter Sallis is too old to do it, because I don't think anyone else could take over. Gromit remains the best character though, simply because it's amazing how much emotion you get from someone without a mouth, just from eyebrow movements. This was the ratings winner on Christmas Day in the UK, and for good reason. By far the best thing shown.

Doctor Who Christmas special

This was enjoyable, as Doctor Who usually is. Still...it wasn't all that special. Good, but just like an episode. I guess I wanted a bit more from a Christmas special. None of them have quite lived up to The Christmas Invasion. David Morrissey was good though. He might have made a good Doctor if he hadn't been cast in that role. The whole thing seemed to just have the purpose of creating hype over the announcement of the new guy though.

Aaaand now we know. Matt Smith. As I've said on various forums I've commented on, I'm a bit doubtful on having someone so young. Okay so 26 isn't reeeally young, but he looks younger than me! He seems like a good actor though, and there's something a bit quirky and different about him, so he might still do a good job. I won't judge until I've seen him. I still maintain that David Hewlett would have been the best choice though. Oh well, now he has more time to practice a British accent. David Hewlett for 12th Doctor!

The Royle Family

More standard Christmas Day viewing. This was funny, but it wasn't the same as it used to be. With a couple of special exceptions, like Denise upstairs going into labour and Nanna in hospital, everything before had taken place downstairs in their house, in two rooms. This time they moved it to another house, got rid of Anthony, and it was just...different. It felt like they gave it a perfect end with the last episode, and this was just bringing it back for the sake of it. Good, but not the highlight of Christmas TV.

At Home With the Braithwaites

This hasn't been on TV, obviously, since ITV don't repeat things like this ever. I've watched it from the start again though. It really is one of the best British TV series I've seen. Series one is great, but it gets really funny at the end of that series and as it goes into series 2. I love how every series always ends in the family all bickering. The series 2 ending is one of my favourite episodes, with everyone getting back together (sort of) and everyone finding out about it. The actual final episode in series 4 I was less keen on. It was great, up until the point where only Alison gets all her story finished. Well, not totally resolved finished, and that's not how I'd want it, but I'd like to know something of everyone else's future. It's a shame they didn't do the Christmas special they intended after it finished. It's really worth watching, but sort of disappointing that it ends for good there.

Stargate Atlantis

I wanted to hate that Vegas episode. I thought the concept of an alternate reality episode was interesting, but a very bad move for a penultimate episode of an entire series. At that stage you want to see the real Atlantis people being a team and having Atlantis adventures, not an Earth based episode with the cast being different people. As it was, the episode was as good as I expected, if not better, in terms of story, and the connection to the real Atlantis reality was fantastic. This was all a build up to the finale next week. Brilliant move in the end, and I really enjoyed it. Hopefully the end will be something really special.

Battlestar Galactica

I am SO excited =D Face of the Enemy is really interesting. Who is doing the killing?! Could Gaeta be doing things for the Cylons? Maybe because he is a Cylon? Oh and apparently he swings both ways. It's really good stuff, and I can't wait for the final episodes.

The X Files

Not much to say because I only just borrowed the DVDs, but I've started season 1 from the beginning. I had originally planned to skip through and just watch the mytharc episodes, but I think I'll go for the whole thing. I've seen some of the first couple of series, a few more of the next couple, and most from season 5 onwards, but I still missed so much first time around. I think I'll probably enjoy watching all of it again. It's strange to think how old season 1 is now. Mulder and Scully look so young.

----------------
Now playing: Tenacious D - Tribute
via FoxyTunes

New Year

2008-12-21T17:52:00.002Z

I dunno what to do. I really, really don't want to end up sat here on my own. That'd be a great omen for 2009 wouldn't it? Seeing in the New Year alone feeling like shit. So what are my other options? Well I was leaning towards finding a way to my sister's, to go to a party at the place she used to work. Now, she thinks she's going to another party in London. While I am still invited, this one would be with her old friends who she doesn't see often. I'd feel way too much like I was just tagging along. If it was at the other place I think I'd still try and go, but not the London party. Another option is going to my dad's mate's pub. I don't want to do that at all. With a couple of exceptions, I'm not keen on most of my dad's friends. I've never liked how they talked to me. Plus an evening with my dad and his girlfriend, with no support from my siblings, would be pretty hard going. In an ideal world I could have persuaded a uni friend to go to Hull with me, but I'm being ignored...as usual. I wish people would tell me to piss off rather than flat out ignoring me.

The more I think about it, the more likely I think it is that I'll be here. Online. Seeing in the new year on my own. Yep, moving here has proven to be yet another new start where nothing has really changed. Maybe I'll always be on my own.

Is it Roslin?!

2008-12-17T23:02:00.003Z

A further note to my last Cylon related post. Roslin ISN'T IN THE PICTURE ON SCIFI's CLUES SITE! A slowed down teaser from the new series seems to confirm who the suspects are. The Adamas, Starbuck, Baltar, Roslin, Zarek, Dualla, Helo and Gaeta. I very much doubt it's Dualla (not significant enough), Gaeta (same reason) or Helo (hybrid daughter). That Last Supper picture with Roslin not in it...I didn't even notice at first! I thought it was the same picture I'd seen before. Ronald D Moore said that the final Cylon isn't in the picture, but which version?! Roslin was my first guess when the other four were revealed. With the absence of Ellen Tigh as a suspect, according to the trailer, I revert back to her, with Zarek as my number two.

Less than a month now!

The Final Cylon

2008-12-14T22:37:00.004Z

I'm such a nerd. I can hardly contain my excitement at the fact that Battlestar Galactica is back in about a month! I just watched the first of the new webisodes series, which was interesting. If this series is half as good as The Resistance it'll be well worth watching. Anyway, after watching, I took some time to look around SciFi's Battlestar site, and now I can't stop thinking about who the fifth Cylon is again. For most TV shows, I have no interest in reading about other people's theories. It reminds of the Harry Potter "who is the Half Blood Prince?" thing, because that was so ridiculous and some people really did have stupid ideas. I won't name the PB member who was sure it was Justin Finch-Fletchley. Battlestar theories, for the most part, seem a whole lot more sensible though. Reading what other people think gives me ideas I might not have considered myself. Anyway, the rest of this post is about why I think people are or are not likely to be the last of the final five.

Admiral Adama - Lots of places are sure it has to be a really major character. Thinking of really major characters who aren't already Cylons, I'll start with Bill Adama. Biggest reason why he isn't the one? Caprica. Based on that story, his family was opposed to the creation of Cylons before they even existed. That, along with the fact that it'd make Lee and the other son hard to explain, means that I think it very unlikely to be him. It'd be quite impressive if they found a way for it to work mind. His sons could be the first hybrids for all we know. Still, doesn't seem very plausible.

Lee Adama - Same reasons as his father. It's just too complicated with his family history. Lee has always been a good man, so he'd be an interesting one to reveal as a Cylon, but again I don't think it possible.

Laura Roslin - She was my favourite to be the fifth after the season 3 ending. Her connection to Athena and Caprica Six is suspicious. Her visions too. Still, the prophecies hint at her being a special human being. A great leader who would lead her people back to Earth. Also worth noting that D'Anna said that there were four of the five in the fleet, and Roslin wasn't with the fleet at the time. Still, D'Anna also said it wasn't her. Well, more or less. Would she have told her if it really was her? I think Roslin is still one of my favourites, because it would be a massive revelation. If it has to be one of the main lot, I'd pick her.

Starbuck - I just don't believe it is her. Gut feeling maybe. There are many clues suggesting it is though. Her relationship with Leoban, her miraculous reappearance, the symbol she always painted...it really is like everything that has happened is her destiny. Is that because she's a special human being, or because she's something else? She'll lead humanity to destruction, but will that be because she's a Cylon? In my opinion, no. She's special and she has a great destiny, but I still think she's human.

Baltar - I don't know. I thought he definitely wouldn't be. Thought it'd be too obvious. He was just a flawed human who made bad choices and did a few really bad things, but he represented what was wrong with humanity. To blame his actions on being a Cylon would be an easy way out. Things the hybrid said about seeking redemption point to him more than the other main characters though, and this new "voice of god" Baltar has really made me think again. The clues on the SciFi site too. I've never wanted him to be a Cylon for the reasons I said about him just being a flawed human being, but at this point I still think it'd be a good twist. Oh and obviously his head Cylon makes you think it could be him "projecting" her image, but I think her presence is way more complicated than that, and I can't even begin to explain why she's there or what she is.

Helo - I've always seen him as a definite no, along with Cally Tyrol. He father a child to a Cylon. Cylons can't reproduce with other Cylons. However, it appears that Tigh got the Six pregnant. Is this because the final five are different, or can Cylons reproduce afterall? I still think it very, very unlikely that Helo is one, but I now don't see it as impossible.

Ellen Tigh - Right, now we're out of the main characters, but Ellen Tigh has been my favourite for a long while now. Her and the Colonel have no children. Both Cylons? Baltar never did reveal the results of her Cylon test. Her mysterious reappearance in season 1, as well as her other slightly suspicious actions, have left me really thinking it could be her. I think it'd be a pretty good twist. I don't think I can really explain why, but there's just something pushing me to think it's her.

Gaeta - No. Although it looks like he's the focus of these webisodes, I don't think he's important enough. He's not done anything that'd make you think one way or the other that it could be him.

Hera - Maybe the final Cylon is "the shape of things to come". Maybe she hadn't been born at the time the other four of the five were created. Hera is definitely very important. Is that just because she's a hybrid, or something more? This is a theory I've not long come upon, but it's definitely worth considering.

Tom Zarek - Like Roslin, this guy is quite anti-Cylon, making him someone else who would be very interesting to have as one of the five. He's not always been a central character, but he's always been important as a secondary character. He often gets in the way and protests against the actions of main characters. Could he know things they don't? What if he's always known he was a Cylon?

Boomer - Another interesting theory I came across was that as well as infiltrating humanity, the final five had infiltrated the other Cylons. Boomer is apart from the other eights. That doesn't seem to happen in Cylon society. Is she different to the others? The final Cylon looking like an existing Cylon model? Long shot, but interesting.

Head Six - This didn't really occur to me until I looked again at the epic "Last Supper" picture. Maybe the last one isn't a physical being. The Six in Baltar's head has definitely influenced events over the last 3 and a half seasons. So has the Baltar in Caprica's head. Why? What are they? The picture comes into play because I noticed Caprica pointing at the Head Six. She can see her?! That must be significant, somehow.

Someone new - Very unlikely, probably impossible. No one introduced at this stage would be significant enough, unless it's revealed that the final Cylon is the God, a god, the hybrid or something else bizarre like that. It'd be kinda disappointing if it wasn't someone I listed above though.

Other stuff to consider - The final five, or at least the four we know, we triggered with Bear McCreary's very awesome version of All Along the Watchtower. Why wasn't the fifth? None of the other suspects could hear the music. At least, not the ones in the fleet. That doesn't include Starbuck, who returned around the same time the trigger went off. Coincidence? Also doesn't include Ellen Tigh, since she's presumed dead. I also mentioned earlier that Last Supper picture SciFi released. I mentioned the pointing at the Head Six. Also worth noting, and the thing I noticed the first time I looked, is the empty seat at the table. The obvious conclusion would be that this is the seat for the final Cylon. And now for a comment that makes a lot of the rest of the stuff I've written irrelevant. The writers are now saying the the final Cylon is not at the table. NOT AT THE TABLE. Rules out the Adamas, Roslin, Baltar, Starbuck, Helo and the Head Six. Haha, wish I'd read that first before I'd written out everything else, but oh well.

And my conclusions? Ellen Tigh or Tom Zarek. If they're lying about the final Cylon not being at the table, Roslin is also a major suspect. Hera is also a big one, for the sake of having a slightly alternative theory.

Seriously, I am so excited about this coming back on TV. Battlestar has been one of the most exciting things on since it started.

Update time

2008-11-30T15:17:00.003Z

I've not been updating so much recently, but I feel like a lot has happened. This post is about stuff that's happened rather than one thing in general. Finished this post well over a week after I started too.

Firstly, the other weekend I went to my sister's on the Friday so we could go see Thunder in Manchester on the Saturday. I'll get to Thunder next, but Friday night was pretty awesome too. Got to her house, went shopping and bought studenty food and booze, went back and ate, then spent the whole night watching music videos and playing Guitar Hero and drinking. I properly regressed into student mode and started making up Snakebites too. Oh how I miss that kind of random hanging out session, and just being a student in general. Still, didn't feel the same the next morning. Woke up not really hungover, but feeling like I'd had a few. It was freezing because they're too poor to have the heating on all the time, downstairs was a huge mess of cans from the previous night that no one had cleaned up, the kitchen was a state and the bathrooms...I don't even want to go there. Proper student living...and I don't miss that.

So then Saturday night we went to Manchester. Wow. Thunder were just so much better than I expected. I've heard great things about them live, and liked the songs I knew, but they really blew me away. All the songs are a million times better live. The singer has so much energy, and I've never seen a band get the crowd going like that. That was my third time at Manchester Academy, and the only time I've seen it totally sold out. Absolutely amazing gig. I bought some Thunder albums afterwards too, and the new album is great. Everyone listen to the album "Bang!" for free on Last FM.

After that another tough week at work happened, and then there was another weekend. And a payday! Of course I spent my money wisely and saved as much as I could, and also paid off my debt to my dad. HAHA NO. I bought a Wii! Best decision ever. It's fantastic. I got the console and Mario Kart. So worth it. Good times.

On to the next weekend. I went to my Mum's for a few days, including Monday and Tuesday since I'd booked them off work. I enjoyed being at home for a while, and not feeling like I had responsibilities. It was nice to have the cats around, and to have meals cooked for me, and to have Sky, and to just be able to relax. Sucks that I don't have many friends queuing up to see me back there, but oh well. Bumped into someone from school in town, and she's not really talking to any of our old lot either. Generally a good weekend though, and I'm glad I had those days off work.

Saying that, work has been okay this week. Oddly quieter, especially today. It's been nice chatting to some of the people there, especially the one from my old lab. Funny to get the gossip, and find out that little has changed. All in all I had a pretty good day today, and I intend to have a good weekend finishing my Christmas shopping and Wiiing.

Edit: Hey, the date says the 3oth of November, but this is actually going out on the 12th of December. Stupid delay.

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Now playing: Thunder - Carol Ann
via FoxyTunes

This is how I escape

2008-11-14T20:11:00.004Z

This week has been really hard. Well, the last few have, but this one included a funeral. I think the best way for me to deal with that is to escape into fantasy worlds. So this is what I've been watching.

Heroes

Heroes is usually just that average thing I watch. Not amazingly fantastic, and not a patch on things like Lost, even though it follows the same finding a small bit out at a time formula. Still, I think it's really become something great lately. This last episode, Villains, was brilliant. If I was to pick the main villains before this season, I'd have said Sylar, Angela Petrelli, Adam Monroe and Linderman, and he's dead. Now we know that Bennett pushed Sylar over the edge at a time when he could still be saved, and Angela was sometimes being controlled and sometimes acting to stop her husband. Arthur Petrelli is definitely going to make things more interesting. I'm kinda disappointed about Bennett, but it was still a really good twist. I'm actually excited about the next episode, because I really have no idea where this is going.

Dexter

This continues to be interesting. I just hope Anton doesn't end up killed or leaving at the end of the season or whatever, like Deb's previous love interests. I'm still enjoying the Miguel Prado story.

Stargate Atlantis

You know, it's really sad. I think Atlantis has run it's course, and they're ending it at the right time. It really sucks that I finally think that. Last week's episode was really good. Exciting, action packed, featured Shepperd's team heavily, had a part for Woolsey, great to see Michael back, and great dramatic fight on the outside of Atlantis. So what didn't I like? Starting with the smallest thing, no Keller. What was the point of putting her on the credits?! And now for the biggest bit I didn't like. This was far too brief a wrap up for Michael. There was no build up to this episode, and then Michael was defeated by being kicked off a ledge. Revenge. I hate revenge in characters I like, including Teyla.

Michael has been the main villain on Atlantis since his first appearance. Well, the main individual, so not counting generic wraith or replicators. They've mentioned him this season, but since the beginning, no sightings of him. Nothing featuring him. Not even any contact with his men. When SG1 had Anubis as their main enemy, he was in a handful of episodes during seasons, but there was also evidence of his plans, and attacks from his Kull warriers. Nothing from Michael other than talk of what he did before, and the effects of the Hoffan drug. I dunno, I guess for me it was just a bit of an anti-climax.

This kind of episode is why I think maybe Atlantis has run it's course. Good, but lacking something. Atlantis peaked in season 3, which was just brilliant from start to finish. Seasons 4 and 5 have had some great episodes, but on the whole haven't been so good. The team isn't always together, and the back end of the season isn't living up to expectations. Mind you, season 10 of SG1 had a disappointing second half after a brilliant first half. Anyway, I'll stop complaining, because I still love Atlantis and a massive part of me still doesn't want it to end. I just wish it could have ended better.

Mamma Mia! The Movie

I'll mention a film now I'm done with TV. Mamma Mia. Wow. Just wow. This film was fantastic, and now I'm addicted to the soundtrack, and to general ABBA songs. It's cheesey, but it's brilliant feel good stuff. The songs are great, and I think I like the less discoey versions in the film more than the ABBA songs in some cases. Meryl Streep was a great choice for the main part, but it's the blokes who make the film. Colin Firth has a weird voice, Pierce Brosnan clearly struggles to sing, and although Stellan Skarsgard is a bit better, none of them are singing stars. Still, it makes it so much better in my opinion. They sound like normal blokes who just decide to sing. Also, there's just something genius about having Pierce Brosnan singing SOS. Well, about having James Bond sing ABBA in general. Genius, and definitely hot, as strange as that sounds. Haha, <3 Pierce Brosnan.

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Now playing: Oasis - Pass Me Down The Wine
via FoxyTunes

Being a person...

2008-11-08T01:58:00.002Z

...is really hard. Sometimes I wish I could be a student again instead. And then I talk to a 3rd year and realise that I never want to have to deal with my 4th year again. Still, I wouldn't have all these responsibilities and a mega hard job.

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Now playing: Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight
via FoxyTunes

Television, webcomics, music and maybe other things

2008-11-06T18:53:00.002Z

The last couple of weeks haven't been that great, so I haven't said anything, and I probably won't talk about that much at all. Bad times. Instead, here's where I'm up to TV wise, followed by some comments about other media stuff.

Dexter

I'm so surprised that in season 3, this can still be so exciting. I didn't think they could take this serial killer as the main character thing on for a long time without being too repetitive, but that's not happening at all. I guess 12 episode seasons really are a good idea sometimes.

Anyway, Miguel Prado is a really interesting character. He knows Dexter kills, but thinks it's the right thing to do? My prediction is that he's going to do something against the code, and Dexter will have to kill him. I dunno. It can't be as straight forward as him just being cool with Dexter killing. Great twist though, having him know. I'm not sure who the skinner will end up being yet. It's out of character for Miguel, and I don't think it's Ramon. The new detective is a possibility, although maybe a little too easy. I just really hope it's not that Anton guy.

In conclusion, this is one of the best things on tv at the moment. I just found out that there will definitely be two more seasons, so I hope they manage to keep it fresh for all that time, and Dexter getting away with things doesn't always become way too convenient.

Desperate Housewives

Another one of the best things showing at the moment. Season 4 managed to be as good and as exciting as season 1, and 5 is easily keeping up. The five years later thing was a great idea, and I really like the Dave character. I think he's going to end up being after Orson. They're making it look like Mike, but Orson was also in prison, and it could have been him involved in Dave's brother's death. Either way, I'm really enjoying it. I wish Susan and Mike would hurry up and get back together though. I'll feel a bit cheated if they never do, and I think many fans will, so I don't really think I want to see him with Katherine.

Stargate Atlantis

I can't remember when I last said something about Atlantis. I think I mentioned the one Daniel Jackson was in, but if not...wow. ASGARD! One of the best twists ever on Stargate. The episode after that was pretty good, because it was very old school Atlantis. Sort of like season 1 or 2, when the team being all together on random planets was more regular. Nice to see Beckett back in the gang, although it's still a bit odd that he's the clone and not the guy who died in Sunday. It was a little bit disappointing that Sheppard didn't care about blowing up the bad villagers at the end, but I guess maybe he didn't know that guy would go with the wraith? Who knows, but it was a good episode.

The next episode...I'm not so sure. Don't get me wrong, I like a good clip show, but this late on in the final ever season? Not a great plan. The idea behind it wasn't that bad, although it's been done before in several other sci-fi series. Not the same circumstances, but putting the good guys on trial for their actions. It was more interesting in the fact that the prosecutors were pretty much right, as funny as that is. I think the only good thing to come out of the episode was the awesomeness of Woolsey, who like Carter, has been tragically underused this season. Robert Picardo is a great actor, and Woolsey a great character. The episode was wrapped up too fast though, and we could have done with some more of his awesome. I look forward to the next episode though, since I think Michael will be back. It sucked not having a new one last week though. Also, I'm very, very disappointed that there's going to be 3 weeks between episodes 19 and 20 now. Very disappointed. American tv stations generally suck.

Fringe

I don't think I've written in my blog about Fringe yet. This is definitely worth a mention. I see it as something in between Lost, because of all the mystery elements and the things going on in the background we don't understand yet, and The X Files, in the way that they're investigating these things and it's clear that people pretty high up are involved in some kind of conspiracy type thing. Still, it works, and part of that reason is the cast. Anna Torv is pretty good, Joshua Jackson is surprisingly good and I rarely think of Pacey (come on, I have to sometimes though...he was Pacey!), but John Noble is awesome. I assumed he'd be playing some kind of authoritarian genious professor, with bits of Denethor in him. Crazy mad scientist is so much more awesome than that.

The only problem I have with Fringe is that I can see it's going to be months/years before we find out what's going on. I hope it manages to stay exciting, because at the moment I think it's something really worth watching.

Dr Who

Well, this isn't about episodes, but more that David Tennant is leaving :( I wish they hadn't told us, and it'd been a total shock, but more than that I wish he wasn't leaving! He's been perfect for the role, and I was hoping he'd do it for years to come. I have no clue at all who they'll pick for the next one. I hope it's someone older, since they've done the whole having a younger hot guy playing him now, and the younger audience is well and truly hooked. A black/Asian/non-British actor would be a new way to go.

xkcd

And so we move on to webcomics. I think I wanted to say something about xkcd because I'm almost disappointed with it lately. It's hardly ever unfunny, but some of the more recent ones have been more mildly amusing than hilarious. The last couple of week specials haven't been so great either. I dunno, I hate to complain because it's usually just so good. I still want to buy the height poster and the science tshirt. I still think it's awesome, I just wish every comic was still awesome.

Questionable Content

I really don't know why I'm that addicted to this. I have to read it every day, even though it's hardly the best thing around. I guess the overall stories are usually good, and I want to find out what's going on like it's a soap or something. Sometimes it's really funny, other times it's just a story I like, and other times it's actually pretty crap. My biggest issue with it is the fact that the writer is a bloke who thinks like a bloke. The girls don't talk or act like girls. Now I do realise that not all girls are the same, and I'm not all that girly myself, but I just don't hear girls talking about sex in the way that they do. I guess I like it a lot more when that kind of stuff isn't going on.

Cyanide and Happiness

Some of these are just too funny. Absolutely hilarious. Some are just way over the line and actually disgusting. Those ones seem kinda forced, like how can we do something offensive and line crossing today? Again, I still like it though. Just not so much as more light hearted stuff like xkcd. That's adult in a good way, not adult in the way where you'd be mega upset if your kids saw it.

Music

Haha, just one heading that's music related, because I honestly can't remember what I was going to say about music. I've been listening to a lot of Oasis, and a lot of Bright Eyes too when I wasn't feeling so good. Oh, and I'm really looking forward to seeing Thunder this month, so I hope I can go.

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Now playing: Stiff Little Fingers - Listen
via FoxyTunes

A Normal Post

2008-10-15T02:14:00.004+01:00

Most of my recent posts have been on a specific subject, and sort of like reviews. It's been good, because I've found that kind of thing gets my blog loads more hits. I chose a new template last week too, and redid all the colours. Again, more appealing, more hits. I like to know people are reading. It was really cool to get a comment on the Big Cat post from someone from the BBC.

Anyway, what's new? I'm in week 2 in my house, and I love it here. It's not like being away from home at all. This is my home now. I'm pretty bored this week though. So far I've spent most of it on my PC or watching TV, and most of the TV is on my PC anyway. I do little things everyday to make sure I'm not being totally useless, like today I did my washing and went into town to get some keys cut, but that doesn't take up much time. I guess really I should make the most of my last week of freedom from work, but really I just want to get started.

Another thing I wanted to mention in this post relates to my earlier post about getting the new Oasis album. I had some problems getting it from iTunes, and I can't be arsed to explain the situation, but there were complications and I'm still owed a bonus track. iTunes have been fantastic about it though. I've never known customer support to be so good. I get regular emails to say they haven't forgotten me, and every communication has been personal and detailed. They even gave me 2 free store credits to make up for the delay. I decided to spend the first on an Oasis bside, a really chilled track called Sitting Here In Silence (On My Own), and then the second on Transatlanticism by Death Cab For Cutie. This song came up on a Last FM radio a few months ago, and I've really got into it. I'm not a huge fan of the band, but this song is something else. It's not something I'd think to buy without a free credit, so I think it was a good use of it. I then went on to buy another song, since I've also got into some Sigur Ros on Last FM, and really really wanted Hoppipolla. I thought it was beautiful as the theme to Planet Earth, and when I heard the full song, I had to get it.

Anyway, I'll probably post my usual list of watch TV I've been watching tomorrow. Some good stuff on lately.

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Now playing: Sigur Rós - Hoppípolla
via FoxyTunes

Oasis in Sheffield

2008-10-13T01:42:00.004+01:00

Wow. The setlist was exactly like the one I found on another blog a few days ago, making it the best setlist I've ever heard them play, and this was the 5th time I've seen them. Liam's voice has definitely improved, as shown by I'm Outta Time. Noel's acoustic Don't Look Back in Anger was just fantastic, as that song always is live anyway. There's nothing better than thousands of people singing the same song, and in an arena, it's totally different to an outdoor stadium in the way it sounds. It was cool to hear how he wrote it 14 years ago in the dressing room at in Sheffield too...and expected a different reception this time he played it.

Other highlights include The Masterplan, which is always good to hear live, and then most definitely Slide Away. I never, ever thought I'd hear my favourite song played live. This is a Definitely Maybe song which was never even a single. Popular yes, but not one you'd think they'd put back into a live set 6 albums later. I'm so glad they did, and so is every other person in there who sung every word. Most Oasis fans will recognise Slide Away as one of their greatest songs.

The only fault in the Oasis set was Liam stumbling on I Am The Walrus. He missed his cue, but it totally did not matter at all. Liam Gallagher can get away with that on stage, and no one cared. The fault in the whole evening though was a bit bigger, and that was Twisted Wheel. We decided that they were somewhere between The Coral and The Arctic Monkeys, and nowhere near as good as either. The Coral might be boring, and it might be funny that I keep seeing them as a consequence of seeing better bands, but I missed them last night when Twisted Wheel were on. The were pretty crap.

Still, once again, I think I can say that last night was the best I've ever seen Oasis play, and the best setlist I've seen the play. Not as close to the front as I was in Cardiff in 2005, but every gig is a different experience.

Edited to add the full setlist, since a few people have been Googling it, coming here, and then not finding it:

Fuckin' In The Bushes
Rock N Roll Star
Lyla
The Shock Of The Lightning
Cigarettes And Alcohol
Meaning Of Soul
To Be Where There's Life
Waiting For The Rapture
The Masterplan
Songbird
Slide Away
Morning Glory
Ain't Got Nothin'!
The Importance Of Being Idle
I'm Outta Time
Wonderwall
Supersonic

Don't Look Back In Anger (acoustic)
Falling Down
Champagne Supernova
I Am The Walrus

Big Cat Live 2008

2008-10-09T22:07:00.008+01:00

I've been a fan of Big Cat Diary since it started in 1996, when I was just 10 years old. I watched it every two years after that, and I've watched repeats of it on whatever cable channel played it over and over. I've watched the newer, one week format since it started too. When I first read about Big Cat Live, I was definitely excited. Now I've seen most of it, the word amazing doesn't even nearly cover what I think of it.

I think it's hard to amaze people with television these days. You get the feeling that everything has been done, and there isn't much new for us to see. Of course that isn't true, but that's how it can feel. Planet Earth was an exception to that. That series filmed animals hardly ever seen on camera before, and the stories of how long it had taken to get a few short clips were amazing. I think what Big Cat Live are doing now is even more exciting. To see live shots of the animals on air in between showing recorded films taken in the couple of weeks in the run up to the show is one thing, but to be able to then turn on your computer and continue to watch live animals in Kenya's Masai Mara on webcam really is something else.

The show itself is as good as it ever was. It's great to catch up with the Marsh Pride, and I love that we know that these adult females are the cubs attacked by the buffalo in 1998. To have such continuity in the cats they follow really is a great thing, and one of the reasons I keep watching. It was great to be able to see Bella again too, even though she's looking really old now. I love how they follow the leopard families, although it would be really nice to see if Shadow was still around. Whatever happened to Safi too? The new cheetah family is so good to watch. I've always loved watching cheetah mothers raise their cubs, and being able to do it in real time knowing that this is what's going on now, rather than what happened months ago when filming ended, is really special.

Jackson Looseyia has been an awesome addition to the team. This man is a Masai who has grown up in this environment. He knows and understands the land and the wildlife in it, and he gives a perspective that they haven't had before. To hear someone who has seen this for his entire life still talking about it with so much enthusiasm is inspiring, and makes me want to go over there and see it all for myself even more.

As I said earlier, the really amazing thing about this series has been seeing those live images online. Right now I'm watching infra-red video of the Marsh Pride lions. Before that, I was watching them on the thermal imaging cameras. Before that I was watching a hippo feeding right next to the camera. Earlier today, jackal cubs and hyena cubs. At the risk of overusing the word, it truly is amazing. For those of you viewing this blog in the UK, the link to the site where you can watch all this is here. I'll include a view images of what we get for those of you not in the UK. On the left is the four webcams available half an hour ago when I took the screenshot. In the upper left quadrant, thermal images of lions. Upper right, a hyena is just poking his head out of the den. Lower left, I think that's just a camera focussed on the river. Lower right, and that's sleeping jackal cubs. The image on the right shows the thermal image of the lions on it's own. It truly is impressive, especially when you think about the fact that it's all live, and happening right now in Kenya.

I'm hoping, at some point, to see a live lion hunt. Everytime they look like they're going to do it, they just...don't. There has been one shown live, but I missed it. The Big Cat team think it's the first time this has ever been shown live on the internet. It's on YouTube, for those of you outside the UK who can't see it on the website, and is shown below:

When you think about it, this series has been a major risk. What if they hadn't found what they were looking for when they went out there? So many things could have gone wrong with doing this kind of thing live. They've succeeded in showing people in this country a totally different world, in a way they never have before. I don't think the BBC can be beaten for wildlife television, and I hope they do this again next year.

Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul

2008-10-07T13:29:00.007+01:00

I have so much to say at the moment. I moved out at the weekend, and I now have a house to myself. It's great, but it's not what this post is about. Maybe I'll talk about it more later, but to be honest it's more the sort of thing I'll talk about if asked than what I want to do a blog post on. No, this post is a sort of review of the new Oasis album =D

Before I talk about any of the songs, I should mention that this is completely biased. After so many years of liking Oasis, I think it'd be very hard for them to bring out an album I totally hated. Standing on the Shoulder of Giants is weak compared to the others, and has some less than good songs. Be Here Now has some epic songs, and I'd describe some of them as my top few Oasis songs, but every song goes on for a couple of minutes too long, and the whole process was obviously fueled by drugs. Still, I like both of those albums, so as I said, it'd be hard for them to release something I wouldn't like.

Not only did they release something I couldn't hate, I'd go as far as to say I love Dig Out Your Soul, already, after just two days of owning it. It's very different from Don't Believe The Truth. More psychedelic influence, but they still sound like Oasis.

Track 1 is Bag It Up. The first time I heard this, I wasn't that bothered by it. Album track I might skip to get to the good ones. I still don't think it's particularly memorable, but it's grown on me. It's no Rock and Roll Star, Hello, Do You Know What I Mean, The Hindu Times, Fuckin' in The Bushes or Turn Up The Sun as far as opening tracks go, but it's still a good song. I saw some review making a Pink Floyd comparison, but I don't know what that's about.

Next it's The Turning. This has also grown on me since I first heard it on Myspace. Slow start, with a fantastic chorus. I think this song shows that Liam's vocals have improved since the last album. Definitely a great song, and I can imagine this one being good live. I think it would have been a better opener than Bag It Up too.

Waiting For The Rapture. I love the dirty guitar. This has a great beat. Some of the guitar in it reminds me of Cold Turkey by John Lennon, but that's no bad thing. I like this song a lot.

The first single, and so the first song I heard, was Shock Of The Lightening. Now this song really sounds like Oasis. This is the Lyla, or the Go Let It Out, or the Hindu Times. A rock song made for stadium gigs, and an obvious first single. Typical Oasis in that there are lyrics only there because they rhyme, but long time fans like me love that stuff.

Next, I'm Out Of Time. Some songs you aren't bothered about at first, but they really grow on you, and you come to love them. Some songs you like at first, but don't truly realise how brilliant they are until months down the line. Some songs just blow you away from the first time you play them. This song falls into the last category. Imagine my surprise when I found out Liam Gallagher wrote it. Now I know Liam has written some great songs, including Born on a Different Cloud, and Love Like a Bomb, but I'm Out of Time blows them all out of the water. This song is beautiful, and one of my favourites for best on the album. I read in another review that Liam wrote this to prove to Noel that he can still sing. Liam wins.

(Get Off Your) High Horse Lady is a good song, but definitely an album track. Bit crushed (I think that's the term?) vocal, which is interesting on an Oasis album, but I don't think the song is anything special.

I said earlier that I'm Out of Time was one of the favourites for best on album. This is the other. Falling Down is one of the best songs Noel has ever written. The lyrics are fantastic, the drums are great, and this is a perfect one for Noel to sing. Not only one of my favourites on Dig Out Your Soul, but up there with my favourite Oasis songs.

To Be Where There's Life is a Gem Archer song, and it's just alright, as other songs by him usually are. Nothing spectacular, but I don't think I'd skip it as I'm going through.

Ain't Got Nothing is another Liam song, and unlike his previous contribution on this album, this one is so obviously not a Noel song. Again, it's not bad, but it's an album track. I bet they'll play this live though. To me, it just sounds like it's not quite Meaning of Soul.

The Nature of Reality has got fairly bad reviews, from what I've seen. This is an Andy Bell song, and it's worth remembering that he wrote one of my favourite Oasis songs in Keep the Dream Alive. This doesn't compare to that, but I still love the lyrics. Short and uncomplicated, while questioning the meaning of everything. "Belief does not existence make"...I wonder if the Christian Liam Gallagher realises what he's singing. Great beat on this song too.

Soldier On is the last song, and another Liam song. Perhaps not the best finisher. I think I'm Out of Time or Falling Down should have had this position on the album. This is a good song though. I can't put my finger on what other band it reminds me of. Blur's Tender comes to mind, but I know there's something else. I do really like the song though, and I wouldn't have guessed that Liam wrote it.

Around the internet, I've seen reviews saying that this will only appeal to hardcore fans, and then some saying this is the best they've done since Definitely Maybe. Well I know that's wrong, since obviously they forgot What's the Story. I'm not sure it tops Don't Believe the Truth, simply because it's not got so much you can sing along to in a field of strangers. There's a possibility I might change my opinion on that, and it's not that I mind that Oasis have moved on from stadium anthems, but I do enjoy having songs like Lyla on an album.

In conclusion, I'm not disappointed. This was worth waiting for, and it's a brilliant album. Buy it, if you haven't already, then go get some tickets to one of the live shows. I'll be in Sheffield next Saturday, standing.

Children of Dune

2008-10-03T00:03:00.004+01:00

Tonight I watched the final part of the Children of Dune miniseries, having watched the Dune miniseries beforehand. I was really impressed with Dune. Bits were missed out, but it felt closer to the story than the 80s film. I wasn't keen on how Paul was portrayed as being moody and immature at the beginning, but other than that I thought the part was well cast. Jessica...not so much. She just never seemed sure of herself. She just was not like Jessica the Bene Gesserit.

The first part of Children of Dune was really good. Dune Messiah is an odd book, in that it takes a while to know where it's going. On TV, it was summarised well enough, covering everything, and it really felt like it was how the book should have been. Alice Krige should have been cast as Jessica from the start, and that guy who played Atherton in Firefly should have played Duncan Idaho from the start. I'm not too keen on the woman who played Alia, or how she was portrayed throughout Children of Dune. She seemed like a stroppy kid at times, and I don't think she's a great actress. Possibly chosen more for her appearance? The Atreides twins were well cast. James McAvoy was the stand out actor of the whole thing. However, while I understand why they decided to change the kids ages to young adults rather than 9 year olds, they might have done the same with the rest of the cast. Irulan didn't look any older than Ghanima. Alia hadn't aged a day in however many years it's supposed to have been, and neither had other young looking characters.

While part one was really great, and part two was pretty good, part three just didn't do the job. If I hadn't read the book, I'm not sure I'd really get what was going on with Leto at the end. The sand trout symbiosis thing wasn't well explained, and didn't look as it should have done. I sometimes wish they had a slightly bigger effects budget for things like that. I think the book has a weird end anyway, and it's certainly the weakest of the trilogy, but it was easier to understand what was going on than the film.

Farad'n wasn't as I thought he should have been. He was portrayed as week, up until he landed on Arrakis. That's not how I saw him. He was more intelligent than his mother, but naive. When he worked out what was going on, he bided his time, and made his move when he needed to. In the book that is, because TV Farad'n was a bit of a wimp until he realised he could do the Weirding stuff. Another thing I wasn't too happy with was Duncan's death. I think it was harder to understand why on TV. To be honest, the whole episode in the book was odd, and seemed a bit sudden, but it was more so on screen. That was a shame, because Duncan is one of my favourite characters.

In conclusion, the miniseries were both were watching, and the trilogy was worth reading. Dune was probably my favourite book, and although I can see that it wasn't finished and needed continuing, I think the story got progressively worse. Messiah was really interesting, Children of Dune started off really exciting, and then became even more complicated than it had been previously, and finished in a weird way.

Messing with the blog

2008-10-02T02:19:00.003+01:00

I can't decide what to do with it. I've put up some ads, and moved the labels list under the SayBox, but I can't seem to decide on where I want everything to go, and whether to change the template completely. I don't think I like many of the other templates Blogspot provides, but I can't be bothered with the hassle of doing any serious editing of the HTML. I'm sick of the current colour, and although I like the blue version of what I've already got, I'm not sure I want to keen the design either.

One problem with the current design is the layout of the sidebar, and the fact that I don't know what to do with it. I can't decide whether the archive or labels are more important. The SayBox takes up too much space. I considered using a popup link for it, but then it'd get even fewer posts than it already does.

I'm tired. I'll think about it again another day :P

Stumbling around the internet

2008-10-01T01:35:00.002+01:00

I started typing up a post about books I've been reading and tv I've been watching, but I so can't be bothered with that right now. Instead, here are some sites I like, based on what's on my StumbleUpon profile. StumbleUpon is one of the greatest inventions since the internet, by the way.

Jeff Russells Starship Dimensions

This is a site where you compare spaceships, basically. Great for scifi nerds like me. It's best viewed in IE, because that allows you to drag stuff around for better comparison. Ever wanted to know how big the Enterprise is in relation to Moya? Or Serenity? Or the Cloverfield monster? If so, this site is a great way to avoid doing your dissertation.

Guess the Google

I'm guessing that most people with access to this blog have heard of this game already, but it's still worth a mention. Basically, the game shows a load of images, and you have to type in the word Googled to get those images. It's a simple game that's actually really fun to play. For a while. Obviously these things do get old, but it's worth a mention.

Questionable Content

I discovered this webcomic a couple of years ago. I wasn't really into webcomics, then a PBS thread came up where people were listing their favourites, and I thought I'd check some out. QC was mentioned a lot, so it was one of the first I looked at. I realised that I'd have to start from the beginning to get it, and although at first I wasn't sure I'd be interested, I ended up reading every one and getting right up to date. The comic can be really funny at times, and the plot is usually interesting enough to make you want to know what happens next. I think my only problem with it is how obvious it is that it's written by a man sometimes, and the fact that he writes things into the female characters that just don't seem to fit. I'd still recommend this as one of my favourite webcomics though.

eFestivals

The only site UK festival goers need for all the latest festival news. I live by this site when line ups start to get rumoured early in the year, and check it regularly after I buy tickets for any changes.

Digital Spy

This site is every trashy magazine I hate, but I love it still. I mostly go there for TV and soap news. The premiere list is useful, and I usually like checking up on the cult section. I use the soaps section to see if I'm missing anything major in Hollyoaks if I haven't seen it, so I can go 4oD it if it's something important. Also good for Big Brother, X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing news. One thing I don't like about it is Gay Spy. That part of the site seems to assume that gay men are only interested in thinking about which celebrity pretty boy looks best without his shirt on.

Scientists for Better PCR (song video)

This is brilliant. Just brilliant. It's actually an advertisement for Bio-Rad, who make scientific equipment, but it's still great. For those who don't know, polymerase chain reaction (or PCR) is a method of amplifying DNA for analysis. The thermal cycler Bio-Rad make is a machine that can do this. Anyone who does get it will find this song hilarious. It's funnier because it's made to look serious.

A Dog's Breakfast Movie (+ David Hewlett's site)

If you haven't seen this film, go and buy it. It's so funny, and I can tell David Hewlett has a pretty similar sense of humour to me. If you don't know, he plays McKay on Stargate Atlantis, and quite a few Stargate actors pop up in the film. The site includes his blog and twitter, and so also updates on what he's doing on Atlantis.

Book a Minute (SF/F)

This is the sci-fi/fantasy section of Book a Minute. Basically, it sums up popular books in a few sentences, and usually in a funny way. As an example:

Frank Herbert's Children of Dune: "(People do stuff that is OUT OF CHARACTER. People do stuff that makes NO SENSE. Cool arabic-type words and names are said, making Frank Herbert look SMART and COOL.)"

Too true, haha.

Dr Horrible's Sing Along Blog

I believe I've spoken about this in a TV or film related post, so I won't dwell, but it's still as brilliant as when I first saw it. You can't see it on the site anymore, but there are lyrics and stuff there, so it's worth a look.

Television Tropes

This site is one of the greatest sites ever. I like TV. I like overanalysis of TV. I like it even more when done in a humourous way. This site does just that, and includes some awesome comical analysis of my favourite shows, and the patterns and cliches in them. One of my favourite trope labels is "Magnificent Bastard". Obviously this includes Scorpius, who has to be the best character mentioned. The Master, from Dr Who, is another good example. Anyway, this site is easy (for me at least) to lose hours in. I already spent longer on this paragraph than any other so far, since I started looking at the site.

Treesize Free from JAM Software

Even though I could give out more sites, I'm going to end it here for tonight. I'll finish with some free software Google told me about the other day. Have you ever wondered where all the space is going on your hard drive? I know I did. I only have 80GB, and when I couldn't work out how why I was always nearly out of space, I decided I needed a way to find out where I could stand to lose stuff. This tells you exactly where on your hard drive most memory is being used. It made it so much easier to clear things up. Definitely worth a look.

More complaints about people

2008-09-25T04:31:00.003+01:00

I wish everyone saw things as I did. I think I treat people okay, most of the time, and it makes me sad that other people don't. Well, something happened, and it made me look at someone in a way I don't want to look at them, considering some other stuff which is going to happen. I can't really say what it's about, because even though they won't find this blog, it doesn't seem right to share this time. I just wish a certain person hadn't acted the way they did.

Slightly different, but I also regret the way I've acted to a certain person over the last few months. Yes, they talk about themselves a hell of a lot, but I've still been more short tempered than I should have been with someone who didn't deserve it. Sorry mate.

Aimed at yet another person, I though there was a chance you were missing any Facebook messages I sent, but I doubt that someone who keeps her phone with her at all times would miss a text. Wtf did I do? Maybe I should just forget yet another person I used to know.

"You've never seen There's Something About Mary? You're kidding, everyone has seen that!"

2008-09-17T17:35:00.002+01:00

And now so have I, and it's really not that special. I wonder why people talk about it like it is, and are so shocked when you say you've not seen it compared to other stuff in that genre. It's alright, and mildly amusing, but I prefer 50 First Dates as far as those trashy American romcoms go.

Dr. Horrible and other things from the telebox

2008-09-15T13:24:00.004+01:00

I think it's time to have one of those long rambly posts again, after some short and unpleasant ones. It'll have the usual structure of my tv related posts, with subheadings so that anyone who might be reading can skip the bits they totally don't care about.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

This was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant, in the truest sense of the word. Joss Whedon is possibly a genius. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but I had high hopes after reading everything Whedon said about how he made it and why it was made. The songs reminded me of the musical Buffy episode, and also I guess of Sweeney Todd. It was hilariously funny in parts ("The hammer is my penis" - I laughed so much) while still being semi-serious, and then the ending was really sad and really not how I expected it to be.

I think it's a real shame that this isn't available in the UK yet. It's not on the iTunes store, and although apparently it was available internationally on the website, it no longer is. I will definitely be buying this when it becomes available, but if they want it to do well in the UK, they need to make it available pretty soon. I bought the soundtrack anyway, so I don't feel guilty about how I obtained the film. The soundtrack itself is amazing, and I've been listening to it over and over since I bought it yesterday afternoon. I think £7.99, the normal price of a normal album, is a bit steep for an album no longer than my bus journey to town, but it is fantastic. I might watch it again later :D

Firefly

So this isn't new, but I've been rewatching Firefly. It's been a while, and I caught some on tv the other day. I persuaded my dad that it was good, and we marathoned a bit this weekend. It really does baffle me thinking how this got cancelled. It's original, it's funny, and it's entertaining. The plot is great, the characters are interesting, and I don't think there's another sci-fi like it. I'll say it again, Joss Whedon is a genius. It's a crime that these characters didn't get a good conclusion. Well, Serenity is a good film, but this story deserved more. Serenity told a small story, and this deserved a few seasons of development. Maybe I'll get the comics, but I'm not really a comic person. I want a tv continuation.

I think one of my favourite things about Firefly is the language. The Chinese thrown into sentences, evolution of words like "shiny", and just the way they speak in general. "No power in the 'verse can stop me!"

Stargate Atlantis

I may have said this in a previous post, but season 5 is awesome. Way better than 4, and some of the best episodes are showing up here. Whispers was really something special, I thought. Creepy, and I'd go as far as to say scary. It had that problem though that I've moaned about on many occasions, in that the team were split and it only focussed on a couple of main characters. Sheppard was there, and McKay was briefly there, and then there was Beckett, who I guess I still see as a main character. If this was a one off, it would have been a good one to focus on another team with minimal main characters. It isn't a one off though. They do this too much now. It was a problem for me in later SG1s, and it's been a problem since Atlantis season 4. If it had been a one off, then like I say, this is one where it wouldn't have mattered. It was interesting to see the all female team, and clever that Vega was killed off. I don't know why, but Wikipedia and other sites seemed to be making a big deal of her involvment in this, and her introduction earlier in the season. I thought she could be another secondary character, similar to Lorne. Nope, killed by monsters. I like monster episodes. The alien one of season 3, can't remember what it was called but it was episode 19 I think, was really awesome, and this was just as good.

This week's episode, The Queen, was also pretty good. I like Todd the wraith, but I can't help thinking that they've done something stupid by trusting him and making him leader of that wraith alliance. I guess Teyla is still in control though, since she can go back at any time and get him kicked out. I like Todd as in insight into what the wraith really are though. They aren't just monsters who want to kill. They need to feed. Todd does seem to want to make things better for them. It's interesting anyway, and I enjoyed this episodes. What I didn't enjoy was the trailer for next week's. It made out that someone will die. Not sure that they will, but I'll be gutted if Keller dies.

----------------
Now playing: Neil Patrick Harris - Brand New Day
via FoxyTunes

It just hit me

2008-09-12T02:02:00.003+01:00

He's really gone. Some people don't get how much pets can mean, but I don't really care what they think. I was devastated the day my cat died, but since the day itself, it's been hard to really comprehend. Today I really know he's gone. 15 years of my 22, and he's not here anymore. It's horrible :(

Completion

2008-09-04T18:05:00.002+01:00

So much to write, but I don't really want to go into any of it. Yes, I have a job now. I'll be moving in the next few weeks. I'll write some more about that some other time.

Quick note to say that I've finally seen every episode (so far) of Stargate Atlantis. I don't know why I didn't just download Underground myself after the disc I was given had dodgy sound, but I got round to watching it on tv today. I just need to acquire the SG1 episode I haven't seen (I think there's just one) and I'll really have completion :P

27th of August 2008

2008-08-27T19:51:00.002+01:00

This is the day Batman lost Robin. My Sonic is gone. I'm glad he's at peace, but I don't know how I'll ever cope. I don't remember much before him, and I can't imagine life after him.

Don't let them kill Atlantis, those frelling b******s!

2008-08-22T12:51:00.004+01:00

Anyone reading should probably ignore my last post. Something triggered a bad mood, and I over thought a few things. One of the people I described can just go screw herself if she's not bothered. I won't be bothered either. See you at R's wedding in a few years or something. The other person, I guess I just need to stop caring so much, because they'll never change. The sooner I accept them as they are, the better it will be for me.

Anyway, all that is irrelevant now, because something far more depressing occurred last night. THEY CANCELLED ATLANTIS! What the eff word?!

I don't think I've ever been so upset by a tv show cancellation. I was gutted to come to the end of Enterprise, Farscape (as I've said in great detail in this blog) and Firefly, but I knew they had been cancelled already by the time I started watching them, since I acquired them all after they'd finished on tv. I was totally gutted about SG1 ending, but not totally surprised, since it had changed so much since the early seasons. I don't think the last two seasons were any worse than the rest, but I can see why they might have thought it best to end it. Needed another season for wrapping up, but it got films instead. When Angel was cancelled, I already wasn't happy with the final season, so although frustrating that the story was rushed, again it wasn't all that shocking. Invasion being cancelled was really annoying, because that got really good at the end. It had been slow to get going though, and it wasn't the greatest thing ever, so I wasn't too gutted. Atlantis though? Atlantis is one of the top few things on tv at the moment. It's still going strong. The stories are still good. Damn them, this is so annoying.

Granted, I think Atlantis has suffered from some poor cast choices and character stories since series 3, but it's still been great. Carter was badly used. As a leader, she wasn't present enough, and she seemed to forget that she was a genius and a soldier on many occasions. Maybe that was so she didn't take anything away from Sheppard or McKay? I know I was worried McKay's role would suffer with her there, but they did it the other way. She suffered, and McKay solved everything. Another problem was something I noticed SG1 screwed up on in the last 2 seasons. The team was split up too much. One week McKay and Sheppard are on that planet with the princess, and the next Sheppard and Ronan alone on Earth. I know there are reasons. I think what'sherface who plays Teyla was really pregnant? Still, since the character was, no reason to split up the rest so much. Too many episodes where Carter wasn't even there, and too many without the full team. Still, season 4 had great stories. The conclusion of the season 3 cliffhanger was one of the best episodes ever. The mid season three parter was great. Midway was pretty hilarious, and the last few and the Michael story was awesome. Michael is a fantastic villain, and I hope he shows up again soon.

Season 5 looks a lot more promising than 4. Woolsey is a great character, and I've thought that since the end of SG1 season 7. He's a genuinely good guy, who does bad things for the right reasons sometimes. He's obsessed with doing things by the book, but he's clearly learning that this won't work. He's a far more interesting leader than Carter was, and it's a shame he only gets one season. Weir had 3, so this chopping and changing isn't good for the series. I'm glad Keller is on the main cast now, because I think her character is pretty good too. She needs to be in more episodes though. She wasn't in the last one at all. Woolsey wasn't in one earlier in the series when I thought he should have been too. I don't remember which one, but I know Sheppard was contacting Lorne in Atlantis. Why Lorne over the expedition leader? Weir was pretty much always there, and Woolsey should be too.

The stories have been really good so far in season 5 though. I enjoyed the parallel dimension one, and the replicator ascension one was awesome. Screw Tori Higginson, she totally wasn't needed. And now they're ending it at the end of the season. It's not all bad though, because there will be films. The finale cliff hanger will get a 2 hour conclusion, and then there will be more. Brad Wright is looking at this as a positive thing. They're moving to films while it's still going well, and he hopes to knock out 2 SG films, one of each, every year. Now that will be great, but I'll still miss Atlantis as a series.

Stargate Universe will be replacing it next summer. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited about that, but I would have liked to have seen Atlantis get to at least 7 seasons. Universe looks good, but I would definitely prefer more Atlantis before it switches to movies.

I guess it's not all bad, but this was not good news for me. I'm running out of stuff to watch. Sci fi stuff at least. BSG again next year, Caprica, and now Universe...so I guess there's something to look forward to.

(thread title taken from the image below, obviously created after the Farscape cancellation. I love South Park Scorpy)

V 2008

2008-08-18T19:51:00.003+01:00

Muddy. It was muddy, and wet, and cold, and I'm totally knackered. Worth it though :D Muse were absolutely awesome, as usual. I also met Fran Healy, lead singer of Travis. He really was a nice guy. He came down to a charity tent, to sign a card for Save the Children and have photos taken, but people were asking him if he was going to play acoustic. The charity must have got mixed up and advertised that he would, but he didn't know anything about it. Still, he said that if someone got him a guitar he'd play some songs. Being a festival, there are always people with guitars in their tents, so one arrived. He seemed surprised, but then asked if anyone had a plectrum. My sister always carries them, so she leant him one. He then played a few Travis songs, acoustic, to a crowd of maybe 100...if that. He was more than happy to have photos taken with anyone there, and sign stuff, on the condition that they helped out the charity. He really is a great guy. I can't see many other musicians taking time out to do that.

Other highlights included seeing the Kaiser Cheifs, Squeeze, The Stranglers, and I have to mention Muse again. Photo albums linked to below:

Album 1

Album 2

Things I'm pissed off with right now

2008-08-06T23:54:00.003+01:00

1) It's too hot in my bedroom.

2) There's a slight smell of cat poo coming up through my bedroom window.

3) I've been so uncomfortable at my own PC that I'm using the family one.

4) The stupid position of my PC has meant that I'm starting to get a callous on my wrist from the position I'm in to use my mouse. It's unpleasant.

5) ProBoards, and various related issues.

6) No mention of the conspiracy in The X Files film.

7) The fact that I'm pissed off suddenly when I otherwise had a good day.

8) The heat isn't good for Sonic.

The real world and the fake

2008-07-31T22:48:00.003+01:00

Last weekend, after a lot of complaining about how much I hate camping, I ended up going camping in Mablethorpe with my dad, his partner, and her family. It was actually a really good break, away from the internet and the boredom of all the nothing I do at the moment. I sat in the sun all weekend, spent a lot of time talking to my dad (and realising how I was actually brought up rather well) and I read an entire book. Dune Messiah, which I may talk about in another post after I've bought and read Children of Dune too. Fantastic read, and the first time I've read a novel in far too long. I really enjoyed just escaping into it while sitting in the sun outside a beach chalet.

If I wasn't completely shattered right now, I'd write more about that weekend, because I really enjoyed it. There are some things that I would have complained about, like a certain 16 year old who has been far too spoilt, and maybe someone a bit older who is the same, but I can't quite be bothered. It was just some quality time in the real world, and I liked it more than I thought I would.

So going the other way, I've also done something unspeakable in the last week. I got the WoW trial. Yes I'm hanging my head in shame as I type. I got it for two reasons. The first is that it's a cure for the boredom, but the main one is that I want some MMORPG experience on something other than Runescape before Stargate Worlds is out. That's been pushed back to 2009 now, but I still thought it'd be good to have a go on WoW.

So far, it's not too bad. There's a lot to do as a newbie to get going. A lot of small quests that build you up. I can't see how level 70s stay entertained, but it's alright for now. Pete will probably come and help me with quests at some point, which will be a help. I'm not sure how I like the social element of it though. I know on RS doing stuff with other people and chatting as you play is well annoying. I guess I'll have another go before the trial runs out, and consider buying it for my free month if I think it's worth it. Anyone on Burning Blade in Europe should give me a shout though.

I still watch TV

2008-07-21T13:42:00.002+01:00

It's been a long while since I've written anything about what I've been watching on TV. Some of the things I should have said something about finished a while ago, so I've probably forgot what I was going to say. I'll cut it up again like last time, seeing that's easiest to follow.

Farscape

So I know I've written in my blog about watching Farscape before, but I've just finished rewatching it with my sister. I read back the post I made called "Mostly about Farscape", and I've changed a lot of my opinions. I thought Scorpius lost something as a villain because of Harvey, and because it was odd for a villain to be on the main credits. I was wrong. Second time around, it was easier to see Harvey as a totally seperate character, and there was no point where Scorpius stopped being awesome. I was also less bothered by the cast changes this time, although it still would have been nice to see more of Jool later on, and definitely more Pilot in later seasons.

PK Wars is worth revisiting again too, because now I can see which bits really needed to be expanded in the season 5 that never happened. Sikozu being a Scarran spy...that needed some build up. Why would this highly intelligent woman who totally understood how the Scarrans worked and that they couldn't be trusted, suddenly believe that they would free her people? Why would she think she could fool Scorpius, who can tell when people are lying? Why would she want to betray him, when it was obvious that she genuinly cared about him? I'm not saying her being the spy is unbelievable, it just required some more explanation.

The rest of it is pretty much a perfect ending though. I now think Stark's story was well handled, and D'Argo's death was perfect. The opinion that I have kept from the first time is that Scorpy needed more of a conclusion. Has his need for revenge against the Scarran's just gone? Is he really happy with the peace? I would think he would be, but what does he do now? His life has all been about revenge and stopping the Scarrans from conquering the Peacekeepers. Who knows, maybe it'll be included in the webisodes.

I saw a Youtube thingy where the showrunner addressed the cast on it's cancellation, and I think what he said was so true. In years to come, people could see the cancellation of Farscape as something as stupid as the guy who thought it was a good plan to cancel the original series of Star Trek. Farscape is so different to every other sci-fi I've seen, and that's what makes it better than most.

Stargate Atlantis

Yay, more new Stargate! It's been a while, and I've been looking forward to this so much. The first new episode was great. Everyone rescued, but not quite status quo since Carter left. Good move really, since she was wasted on Atlantis. Woolsey will at least be interesting to watch as leader. He's not always been used that well as a character in the past, because he often seems to have revelations about the fact that SG1 or the Atlantis lot are doing alright after all, then come in with the same attitude that they're doing things wrong in the next episode. You can sort of understand why though, because he's too caught up in doing things by the book. Some time in Atlantis will teach him that that doesn't work.

The second new episode was good too, because it was a chance for Keller to have an episode. I like Jewel Staite. She was great in Firefly, and I like her character in Atlantis. Keller is just a doctor, not a soldier or someone used to being in dangerous situations. Bit odd that they'd send someone like that to Atlantis. When they sent Beckett, they didn't know what he would have to face, but they did with Keller. She's still interesting though, and I'm glad she's on the main cast this season.

One thing I will say, is that I hope they settle the cast down and keep Woolsey for more than a season. New leaders every season won't be good for the show, and I really hope Atlantis has a few more seasons in it yet. Still, I hope they know where to end it though. The problem with SG1 was that they just kept going. I don't know if they had a plan to finish with season 11, but it didn't seem like they knew when they were going to wrap up the stories and stop. I hope Atlantis has a better prepared ending.

I'm not doing a seperate section for it, but I'll also say that I'm really excited about Continuum :D

Dexter

Bit different to what I usually watch, but when my mum watched the season 2 opener the other week, I got a bit interested. I've now seen all of season 1, and I'm about to start 2. It's really worth watching. Dexter is totally different from anything I've seen, and it's totally unexpected. Who would think of someone working for the police being a serial killer? I'm not keen on my heroes being killers though, and I hope he does get caught at some point. Saying that though, everytime he comes close, I really hope he doesn't. It's definitely a weird programme. I'm looking forward to season 2.

Dr Who

It's been a few weeks since it ended, but I don't think I've mentioned that epic finale yet. Turn Left was a fantastic episode. Without Donna, the world would pretty much be ending, and it's all because she turned left and ended up meeting the Doctor. And then when Rose gave her two words, and it was Bad Wolf...fantastic. RTD linked it all together. Everything, from every series since he brought Dr Who back to life.

Stolen Earth just got better. To have all of those companions back was great. Billie Piper was pretty weird as Rose. I don't know what was going on with her voice. Still, it was great to have Rose back looking for the Doctor. Martha is a hell of a lot more interesting with UNIT than she ever was as companion. Captain Jack is always awesome, and it was great to see Gwen and Ianto there too. I like Sarah Jane, and her being back in Dr Who makes me want to watch her series too. I know it's supposed to be a kids thing, but it actually looks pretty good. Catherine Tate has been amazing as Donna. She's definitely the best of the regular companions. The end of the episode was just brilliant. A Dalek manages to shoot the Doctor, and it looks like he's going to regenerate. I didn't know what to think there. If he did regenerate, I'd have been disappointed to lose David Tennant, but amazed that they'd kept it so secret. The media didn't seem to know at all for that whole week, which was fantastic.

Journey's End...well he didn't regenerate, but again it was great how things linked together. The hand, cut off in The Christmas Invasion and kept at Torchwood in Cardiff for a year, took the regeneration energy. More old companions returning with Jacqui and Mickey, who is a lot less annoying since his time fighting Cybermen. And then the conclusion. Donna being the key to everything. Really was one of the best episodes I've ever seen. I think the one thing I didn't like too much was the duplicate half human Doctor staying with Rose in Bad Wolf Bay. I understand that he needed Rose's help, as the real Doctor said, but for them to just suddenly be together? Wouldn't the real Doctor be more upset? Would Rose just accept that? I mean he's not exactly the same guy. Same memories and feelings, but he committed genocide. He wasn't the guy Rose loved...not exactly. Oh well, the rest of the episode was beyond brilliant. It was heartbreaking to see Donna have to lose it all.

One thing that I hope happens in the future is that companions stick around for a bit longer. It'd be nice not to have a new one every season. I know they all end up coming back for a bit (although Donna might not) but just to have them stay a bit longer. Or even leave mid season, so it doesn't seem like a series ending clearout.

I think that'll do on TV for now. Now about last night's post in here. I still feel as annoyed, really. I'm annoyed that someone else who hasn't been there like I have gets more recognition than me. The way I write it down makes me seem immature, but I don't think it's abnormal to just want a friend to let you know that you're really a friend.

On a totally separate note, I'm thinking of backing off the internet a bit when I find a job. I get bored of it far easier lately, and I didn't miss it when I was on holiday. I miss it as a way of keeping in contact, but I don't miss PB half as much as I used to when I'm away. At the moment, I think I'm just there because I have nothing else to do rather than because I really enjoy it.

On a good note, I think we're gonna find another zoo to go to this week :D

The real end of the world as we know it

2008-07-18T19:25:00.004+01:00

Graduation. It's really all over now. It was a great day. Loads of photos and catching up with the folks off the course. It's sad to think that I might not talk to them much again. I really want to make the effort to keep in touch. Laura is having a party in September, so I'll definitely go up to that. Hopefully the others will too.

Seeing my degree certificate...that was amazing. 4 years, and it's all been leading to that bit of paper. I just can't believe it's really all over now. It was almost over when I finished my dissertation. It was almost over when I sat my last exam and celebrated with everyone on the course. It was almost over when I went to the end of year ball with my first and second year housemates. It was almost over when I moved out of Hull and said goodbye to my third and fourth year housemate. It was almost over when I got my results and knew I'd passed. Only now is it really all over.

I can't stop being happy about something my mum said last night when I kept looking at my certificate. Whatever else happens, no one can ever take this away from me. I'll always have this degree.

Good morning from Bagdhad

2008-07-11T15:12:00.004+01:00

Apparently I'm on Bagdhad time. GMT +3. I like that I've got back into my nocturnal routine, but I'm starting to feel like everyday is wasted. Last night I didn't sleep till 4am, because I watched Dexter till then. Woke up at 11.15, watched more Dexter, didn't go downstairs till 12, didn't get dressed till 2pm. It's 3.19pm and I've still done nothing useful.

I dunno why, but I'm in a shitty mood today. Oh well, beer festival later. That's always a good night. I'll probably go tomorrow night too. Just sucks that there's no internet round my dad's place.

The comic is from http://xkcd.com by the way, in case anyone is interested. Funniest on the internet.

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School

2008-07-11T02:24:00.003+01:00

Sometimes I think it's really sad that I don't talk to many people from school anymore. Sometimes something will happen that makes me think that I'm so glad I moved on, even if my social life suffers when I'm back home because of it.

I just got invited to a Facebook group by some girl I never used to talk to about crashing the wedding of the head teacher and the deputy head we all knew she was sleeping with. I don't like this woman at all, and I'm saying that from an unbiased point of view since I was never in trouble with her. I do like the guy, but as a couple they're pretty unpleasant from what I've heard. I heard things about her not marrying him, or even living with him, because it would damage her position of power and elevate him, or something. Whatever, I don't like them much and she in particular did me no favours.

Still, do I care enough about it to crash their wedding? Or even give their wedding much thought? School ended more than 6 years ago. I'm so over it that I don't even want to hunt down that prat who I blame for my Merit in ICT anymore. It's done. I've lived in other places for 4 years. University was my life. Who gives a shit about what school teachers who probably don't remember us are up to now? I really pitty everyone in that Facebook group. If the wall discussion gets going though, I may join and actually tell them to get over it.

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Thank You (2:1!)

2008-07-06T13:39:00.002+01:00

I've not updated this for ages. I've written nothing about my holiday in Scotland, the stuff I've done since, and the fact I've passed my degree with a 2:1, and I'm way behind in writing about tv. I might do my usual tv bit later, since Dr Who is really on my mind right now, but I'll leave Scotland for a bit. The main reason I've not written about it yet is because I've been telling everyone about it recently, and I didn't want to have to repeat it all again. So today, I think I'm going to concentrate on the degree bit. Most people won't realise what a struggle this past four years has been. I struggle to focus, and to motivate myself, and to ask for help when I need it...so all that has made this pretty hard. Rather than dwell on it and go on about how happy I was when I viewed the results, I'm going to take the time to thank the people who need thanking.

I'll start with university staff. Thank you to Jan, for always being there to sort things out when it all when wrong. Alistair, for helping me out with my exam messes, resits and referals, and never making me feel stupid for failing but encouraging me to try again. I thought you were an intimidating man at first, but you really did make me feel better. Janet, for your help sorting things out while I was on placement. Frank, for all your help with my research and telling me I was good at something. Without your help and the mark I got for my dissertation, I would not have a 2:1. Cath, and everyone in the research lab, for your help during my project. Chris...what to say here? In some ways I need to thank you, for your comments on my work and for being easily the best lecturer we have in the way that you set work and deliver your lectures. No thanks for not really taking an interest in me though, and not taking the time to talk to me while I was on placement. I will need to thank you for the help you're giving me now though, but I would have liked to have known I had your support on placement.

On placement, I really have to thank Sue for everything she did for me. We were never going to be good friends, but she was a great tutor, and that placement turned it all around for me. Thanks also to everyone else in that micro lab. Some were more help than others, but everyone made a difference. I should also mention Julian for his help, and for taking an interest. Thanks to Debbie too, for being an encouragement, and to a lesser extent also Sian and Charlotte.

And now the friends at university who have helped me. Mike, Laura,Victoria and Matt are the names I first think of. People on my course who have helped me out with work over the years, and some who have helped me out with other stuff. Thanks also to the group I worked with in micro this year. That presentation turned out really well and helped all our grades. Off my course, I wouldn't say my best friends ever did much to help me out when I was failing things and struggling, but I don't think I made myself easy to help. I'd like to thank my second year housemates, some people from halls in first year, and also Dan, just for being my friends.

Other friends who have been around for me to talk to also deserve a mention. I wish that included more people from home. Early on, it was nice to have the old group to come back to, so thank you for that time. Thank you to the people I still talk to now, for still making the effort. I guess I should thank Chris, in a way, because he's made me feel pretty good about myself from time to time. I really need to say thank you to my online friends. Four years of university, and some of them have been around to talk to and been my friends all that time. ProBoards has been something familiar when everything else has been changing. Thank you to all the people who make it worth staying, particularly those who have been good friends for a very long time now.

I've saved the people I owe the most to last. My family. Thank you for everything. My mum, dad, sister, brother, nana, and even Garry, have always been great, and kept me sane during everything. Even when things have been pretty bad, they've still supported me with uni.

IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT...

2008-05-27T18:20:00.004+01:00

...AND I FEEL FINE!

Actually that's a lie, I feel like death itself with this cold/cough, but I've finished my degree! I hope. I guess I haven't really finished until I get results and know I've passed, but today was the last exam. I'm freeeeeee!

And now only 13 days until the epic Scotland adventure! I guess we should look into sorting ourselves out for that soon. It's gonna be immense.

Hull City fan? No thanks

2008-05-25T20:29:00.003+01:00

So yesterday, Hull City got promoted. I was at The Deep at the time, and it came on the radio, and people were shouting and generally being really ecstatic. How depressing is that? This time last year I had one of the best days of my life, in a packed pub watching Derby get promoted. Absolutely fantastic atmosphere. The whole city was elated. And then we were relegated after just one season in the top flight, and Hull have been promoted.

It got me thinking, about where I'm from, where I consider home, why I don't feel any association with the football team of the city I've lived in for 3 years. I do love Hull, and I love living here. I miss it when I'm away, and coming back here feels more like coming home than going to Derby does sometimes. If people ask, I'll say that I live in Hull, but originally came from Derby. In the past, I'd have just said Derby and left it at that. This place is home, for the moment. Still, however crappy being in Derby can be lately, and however much my ties to the city are disappearing, and even though Hull is a better night out and has a better shopping centre, Derby is still where I'm from and I still have that problem of defending it when people have something to say. Maybe that's why I have no interest in the football team here, and why I really didn't like seeing their celebrations. Back in second year, I remember listening to Hull v Derby on the radio. It was awful. You don't realise how biased football commentary is until they're biased against your team. Derby lost, either 1-0 or 2-1, and listening to them bash my team was not fun.

I guess this is why I don't understand people who don't support their local team. I can't imagine supporting a team other than Derby. I've lived here, and been around Hull people, for 3-4 years now, and I still have no connection to their sports. I also have no interest in defending the city when people start having a go.

I feel like this is one of the most unstructured and going-nowhere posts I've made in this blog, but I'm not thinking right at the moment. I had a point to this when I was thinking about it yesterday, but it's got lost somewhere. I think I'm coming down with something. My throat isn't good and I keep coughing, and I'm tired. Oh, and I can't find anything I want to watch.

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Sitting

2008-05-20T11:33:00.002+01:00

Since last posting, I've finished season 7 of Scrubs and season 4 of Desperate Housewives. Scrubs, as usual, was great. I think it's lost something in humour from the last season, but it's still good. Hopefully the next one will be too. Desperate Housewives was fantastic. I mean really, really fantastic. 4 has been as good as 1, and that's saying something. 5 years in the future, Gabby has kids? Susan isn't with Mike?!? So will the next series be set 5 years after the events of the last? Shocking.

This week has been awesome for tv watching. After the amazingness of the Lost episode I saw Friday, I didn't think anything else would compare. Battlestar Galactica was equally as shocking though. Where have they jumped to?! And the use of the song throughout was great too. That, and Desperate Housewives too. Shocking television. Oh, and Dr Who was great too. Series 4 of the newer ones could turn out to be the best.

I've also been doing a lot of Stargating. SG1 season 6 and Atlantis season 3. Apparently it's what they all do round my dad's house these days. Strange that everyone is hooked, but good strange. Even my brother is really into it, saying he prefers Atlantis. Good times.

I'm actually enjoying being here. I don't have much to do in the daytime, but that doesn't bother me. It's nice to relax on my own here, without feeling like I'm treading on egg shells. I still don't enjoy the constant presence of my dad's girlfriend, and I find it hard to respect someone with so little independence (that's how she looks to me), but she's a nice person and I things are just more easy going here than at my mum's. Still, I won't be able to tolerate it for much longer, so I'll be back round my mum's tomorrow I think.

One of the worst things about being here is the lack of my PC. I'm confined to my dad's laptop. Round my mum's, I have the family PC. Not as good, but better than the laptop. Both are better than being around Catherine the idiot in Hull right now though.

This week, I have been mostly watching...

2008-05-13T19:55:00.002+01:00

Okay, not this week, but imagine it in Fast Show style :P This is just the usual rambling post about what I've been watching lately. I'll go with the subtitled format again.

Heroes

Heroes season 2 started a few weeks back. Some people told me that I really shouldn't bother and it's really crap. I've read a lot of bad reviews. After thinking the season 1 finale was ace, I wasn't going to miss season 2 because other people didn't like it. I'm glad I didn't! It's not the greatest thing I've ever seen, but then Heroes never has been. There are some massively annoying things, like what's-his-name from Enterprise doing a terrible Irish accent and slipping in "so I will" in an effort to sound more Irish. The new characters are also fairly annoying, since I'd rather they focussed on the originals and introduced new people as a consequence than just start following others. Micah's cousin...do we care about her? Those hispanic people who's names I haven't cared to remember...I'm just not bothered. Okay so they've just met Sylar, bringing them into the main story, but it just hasn't been interesting to follow them before that point, when you'd rather see what the season 1 folks are doing.

Despite the annoying bits though, the story is good. Virus, The Company, Parkman's dad, the Bennetts in hiding. It's not half as bad as I was told.

Lost

Lost is getting really, really interesting. There's been the odd thing I've not liked in season 4, like seeing Jack and Kate ending up together in the future (even though it clearly doesn't last based on the flash forward order), and like Ben letting his daughter die and threatening revenge on Widmore, and like Sayeed being an assassin. Just because I don't like them, doesn't mean they aren't really interesting developments though. This week, and Locke's great destiny, was even more shocking. And wtf is Christian Sheppard doing alive and on the island, and why isn't Claire bothered by it's weirdness? And why did the guy who works for Widmore tell Locke to go on the walkabout? Season 4 has been fantastic for revelations, and even answers. Obviously there are a load more questions, but you feel like it's going somewhere now. Can't wait for the finale. Oh, but that thing about Locke saying he wants to move the island. Noah's Island anyone?

Battlestar Galactica

Awesome. It really is. I don't think season 4 has blown me away as much as early season 3 did. Possibly because it's taken place over a period of months rather than weeks/days. It has been pretty shocking though. Fantastic revelations, and with next week's being a two parter, I'd imagine that some awesome things are about to happen, including the reawakening of D'Anna. Why though, is Kara the harbinger of death? Intriguing!

Dr. Who

The biggest problem I've always had with watching the new Dr. Who is the lack of continual stories. There are threads that link things together, like Rose's reappearances etc, but it's just random stories. Every story is great, and every episode this series has been pretty fantastic. It's just that the stuff I get addicted to and get really bothered about watching every week is the stuff with a continuous story arc.

Now that complaining is out of the way, I'll say again that this series has had some fantastic episodes. Donna is great, simply because she's not in love with the Doctor. Rose and the Doctor was a believable connection, and something you know would never have happened, but was sad because of that. Martha just fancied him, and it was silly. Donna is refreshing because she's confident, strong willed and not some little girl who follows him around. It's a bit irritating when Catherine Tate slips into "am I bovvered?" mode, but I still like her. We've had some good stories this series, with the Ood and Sontarans, and I enjoyed this last episode with his daughter. Possible future companion?

My favourite part of that episode occurs after General Cobb shoots and kills Jenny, when the rest of them have decided to make peace. The Doctor takes a gun, puts it to his head, then hands it back to him and shouts "I never would". He tells them to remember that he never would, and to build their society thinking about the man who never would. My favourite thing about the Doctor is that he never would. Most other lead characters in TV series I watch would consider it, including Starfleet captains, but not the Doctor.

I was also going to comment on Desperate Housewives, but I can't really be bothered, and I'd rather go watch the next episode instead. Other things about TV: I've got over watching random Farscape clips now, but I'm feeling DS9 withdrawal. Why? Because I've been watching some epic season 5 and 6 episodes with my sister. Now I want to keep going. Oh well, I should really revise.

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Help

2008-05-04T16:17:00.004+01:00

I. Hate. This. Dissertation.

My discussion is unstructured and pretty much shit. Oh well, we'll see what he says about the rough draft I hand in tomorrow. And then I have to do that damned case study too. Bring on Friday.

In other news, my summer holiday is pretty much planned out now :D Stopping in Alnwick, and then nearly two weeks of travelling round Scotland, and then back down to Blackpool for a couple of nights, then home via Liverpool. Should be awesome. 36 days and counting!

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Dr Who Dream

2008-04-27T09:54:00.005+01:00

Wow, I had an awesome dream. Basically, I was the Doctor's companion. The first I remember of it, we were in some weird place in the past. There was this hill/mountain we were on, and I think Stark might have been there, but I think we were more or less at the conclusion of whatever had been going on. We'd spent time in an old time village, and in an old fashioned pub, and somehow ended up on this hill, with caves and lava. We ended up running back to the tardis. Catherine Tate wasn't there, because she was visiting home, but there was some other guy. Sort of reminded me of Stark. He was from the past anyway, and we'd just picked him up that day. Before we got back in the tardis, a good guy we'd just helped on the hill (like I said, that was the conclusion of a story I don't remember) had spoken about a new employer who had just shown up. I wish I could remember the name. I want to say Hudson? Him and his industry were new to the area anyway, but me and The Doctor recognised the name. He was the bad guy we'd just defeated on modern day Earth. Oh yeah, I forgot to say that even though we were in the past, I'm not sure this place I was was Earth.

Me and the Doctor and our other companion had a chat in the tardis, then got out of it somewhere underground, sort of like that volcano episode. We followed a tunnel, then climbed out of a vertical hole. We walked for a bit to the edge of a treeline, and saw a very modern building that didn't go with the setting. There were some people in the distance who looked dressed for modern times too. For some reason, even though they were distant, we could hear them pretty well. One was clearly the bad guy we'd thought dead on Earth, and he was the guy who plays Charles Widmore on Lost. We heard him saying that he'd seen something in our direction, and for his men to check it out. We ran back along the trees and down the hole, but the other companion didn't make it. On the way, we'd passed the bad guy's daughter. She was sort of on our side, and not there to give us up. I think the other companion, who was no longer Stark-like but an older, well dressed guy, was talking to her. We were down the hole and just in the tardis in time before the henchmen showed up. The Doctor then started up, and I had a go at him for leaving the other guy behind. He said that he lived near here (he had once worked for the bad guy) and he'd be okay. I told him that he picks and chooses who to save and when. He said he needed me there to help him with decisions, but right now we had to go.

The next bits don't seem as related. I was looking at a list of episodes to see when Martha and Rose were coming back. The Doctor was taking the piss out of Martha somehow. Then we were in an office, ready to discuss what to do next, and Gemma and someone else I know (maybe Kayleigh?) was there. There was a similar list on the wall, saying Luis Amor Rodriguez would be returning later in the season. Yes, Luis from Dream Team. The Doctor laughed at his fake accent, and me and Gemma talked about how we'd liked him.

The fun bit of the dream is the interaction between me and David Tennant in the tardis. That was awesome.

On another note, I'm still obsessed with Farscape, and I keep skipping images in my rotating desktop to see the Scorpy pictures :P

Mostly about Farscape

2008-04-23T13:48:00.003+01:00

I feel like I don't know where to start with my uni work, because there's so much. Do I get the IC case study out of the way so I only have the research report to do, or do I do some work for one of my poster presentations? Oh, and then there's finishing the lab book that I really should have done as I went along. That's all gonna go wrong now. I think I will do some lab book today, but first I'm gonna clear my head of my latest TV obsession, now I've got it out of the way. I aimed to finish it quick, so I was focussed for uni stuff, since I now have no new series available to me to watch. I actually first acquired season 1 of Farscape when I had no other commitments, towards the end of my placement when the work was done. Didn't think it would grip me like it has done, and make me watch the rest so obsessively.

So beginning at the beginning, it actually took me a while to get into Farscape. Season 1 started off, as many series do, with what I've called in other series "random adventure" episodes. Not related to an overall story. Obviously necessary to get to know the characters and the universe etc, but not the kind of thing that gets me obsessed. I said in an earlier blog post, back when I'd only seen a few of season 1, that the lack of continuing story was what put me off, but that I really liked Farscape because it was so different from any other sci fi I watched. That was true, but the overall story did get better. The crew started to become friends, and the Crichton and Aeryn story started to develop.

One of the biggest problems with season 1 was that Crais was never believable as the main bad guy. His stereotypically baddy quest for revenge was, but there was something about his character. You were never really scared of him. He was more like the petty bad guy who bothers you from time to time (someone like Spike or Ethan in Buffy) than the all powerful pursuing across the universe how the hell will we stop him bad guy (Glory in Buffy). This was why Farscape turned into something really awesome near the end of season 1, when Scorpius was introduced. Calm, patient, alien, and you got the feeling he could do anything. Scorpius was interesting, and a hell of a lot more threatening.

Season 2 changes things a bit. Scorpius is now the main threat, which is obviously a huge improvement, and Crais defects. Not sure how realistic his fast defection was though. Comparing it to Damar on DS9, you see the change in him for several episodes before he switches sides. Okay, so Crais couldn't deal with having no authority, but he was still a Peacekeeper and he'd just spent a year chasing Crichton and co. across the galaxy. Seems odd that he'd run to Moya. His character change at that time just seemed a bit rushed.

Season 2 is great though. The Harvey story is interesting, you find out more about how they all got there ("The Way We Weren't"), the Jothee story, Stark. The ending was awesome too.

Season 3. I'm gonna go off on some tangents here, back to the first couple of seasons and on to 4, because I have to mention the cast changes. Season 3 changed a lot from the previous season. For a start, Stark, Crais and Scorpius are now on the credits. Zhaan dies, and Jool is introduced. The crew is also split between two ships, with two Crichtons. Bizarre. Starting with Stark, he was one of my favourite characters in early season 3. Sometimes really crazy, with his odd repetitive talking and massive panics, and sometimes obviously intelligent and wise. That side of him seems to go when Zhaan dies, which is a real shame. He becomes a bit of a jokey character, rather than the heroic guy who died to save them in season 2. Crais is great in season 3. He's not really a good guy, and he's still out for himself, but it's not just him now. Talyn changed him, and even though you still can't trust him, he's definitely not a bad guy. Their death on the command carrier was perfect. Zhaan's death was understandable, replacing her with Jool...not so good. However, it was clearly supposed to be like that. The other characters didn't like her, but warmed to her, and that was what was supposed to happen. By her departure at the beginning of season 4, I did like her, and it was a shame she left.

I think I've covered the rest of the cast in one long paragraph, but I think I need to mention Scorpius separately. Since when did bad guys make the main credits? Something about his coolness as a villain was lost over the four seasons. I can't decide whether it's a bad thing that he wasn't the same as when we first met him, or a good character progression. One of the things that damaged his immense coolness was Harvey. On the one hand we have this bad guy who is extremely patient, calm, and rarely loses his temper, whilst always remaining intimidating. On the other, you have this weird clone who wears Hawaiian shirts and is a bit of a joke. I dunno how to explain what I mean really, because I definitely still liked the Scorpius of the last two seasons, and I still think Harvey was a great idea...it's just that the more accessible he was, the less intimidating as a main villain he was.

Briefly mentioning season 3 as far as stories go, it was great. I wasn't a big fan of the separate crews thing really, and the split Crichtons thing was a bit odd, but the stories were still exciting. Those last few on the command carrier were fantastic. Aeryn and Crichton being together was fantastic. There were many tears in this season though, with Talyn, Crais, Zhaan and the Talyn Crichton dying.

Season 4...wow. This was immense. First to mention cast changes, again. Stark gone...real shame. Jool gone, just as you got to like her. Shame. Sizoku joining, and being another character you have to get to like...not keen. I thought she was a great addition, yes, but she started out in such a similar way to Jool. Intelligent, young, naive, thinks shes better than everyone else and someone Chiana doesn't like. Seemed odd to write Jool out to be replaced by Sizoku. Something else I'll mention, while I remember, is that since season 2 Pilot doesn't seem to have had such a central role. Just thought of that really, and it's definitely a shame. They made a big thing of his closeness to Aeryn, then almost forgot it. Hmm.

The stories were again fantastic. I didn't like Aeryn and Crichton not being together, and him trying to forget her, but it was still a good story. Scorpius being on board though...seemed like the writers just used the Crais story again. Although the reasons for him being there were a bit suspect, his presence made everything more interesting, and scarily made you like him and want Crichton to trust him. He's been the intimidating villain, but now you're willing him to be good. Scorpius and Sikozu...that was interesting. I liked that. I was disappointed in Peacekeeper Wars when she was revealed to be the Scarran spy. The going back to Earth episode was good, and mostly because the show is made in Australia I think. There was none of the American supremacy you see in other sci fi shows, and when it was hinted at, Crichton said it was wrong. That's one big problem I have with SG1. Too much "America knows best". Farscape doesn't have that. I could really go on and comment on every episode of this series, because it was that good, but that would take too long and I should do some uni stuff at some point today. I'll just say that on the whole, it was fantastic. Only one I wasn't keen on was John Quixote. Dunno why, just didn't like the dead characters brought back just for that.

So, the end. PK Wars was awesome. Aeryn and Crichton happily ever after. D'Argo is dead, and that was pretty upsetting, but everything about it made sense. Nice to see the better side of Stark back, Chiana and D'Argo back together before he died, the end of the wormhole business, the end of the PK/Scarran war etc etc. I wish Sikozu hadn't turned out to be the spy though. In season 4, I had actually warmed to Scorpy, and it would have been nice if his ending had involved turning his back on his quest for vengeance and choosing her. As it stands, we don't know what's going on with him.

Loose ends. As just mentioned, seeing Scorpius witnessing the PK/Scarran peace treaty doesn't seem like much of an ending for him. How does he actually feel about it? Did the wormhole weapon convince him that he should stop trying to work them out? I suspect it did, but I doubt it means he's cool with the Scarrans. After season 4, he's probably the character who fascinated me the most, so I would have liked to see him have a real conclusion. Either death, and some deathbed revelation, or "so this is what I'm going to do next" or something. Another thing, which isn't a conclusion from PK Wars but rather something forgotten from the series, is what was Stark's mask being sent back to the Moya Crichton all about? There was a message, but it was interupted. What did it say? And what happened to Stark when he heard Zhaan call to him on that planet? I do think most things were concluded nicely though. Still, I'd like to see more. Another series, another miniseries...just more Farscape! I've heard talk of webisodes, and talk of Ben Browder being in them. I really hope so.

Just a brief update.

2008-04-22T14:27:00.003+01:00

I want to do a long post really, but I have other things to do, and all the things I'd planned to write aren't coming to me anyway. Just to update on the last post, Sonic is still alive and fighting on. I know it won't be long, but I hope he can make it till after I've finished uni, or at least until after my dissertation deadline.

All is not good though. Ella died last week. For Sonic to outlive Ella was such a massive shock. I don't really want to write anything else about it, other than that it was a horrible shock.

And now I have to get on with this stupid professional studies essay. I hate this module. I'd much rather be watching Farscape. Oh, and Farscape is likely to be the subject of my next long post.

There is no appropriate title

2008-03-28T22:14:00.002Z

Things are looking positive at the moment, after a touch and go day, but I don't know if the good news will last. The vet said we can visit tomorrow, but it'll be after the weekend when we'll really know what's going on. I'm at home now, got the train back this afternoon after my mum called this morning, and it feels like part of me is missing. We're a double-act. He follows me around, he bothers me while I'm on the computer, he meows at me for attention, and he's always pleased to see me when I get home. The first thing I always do when I get in is go and say hi to Sonic. Tonight he wasn't there. When I go to bed, he follows me upstairs. I don't have to carry him, he just trots along to the door behind me, and I always let him up even though he's not supposed to. Of course, no one has cared for a long time though. He does what he likes, because he's like the head of the family. But tonight he's not here. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't come home on Monday.

Unexplained bad mood

2008-03-25T22:04:00.002Z

I'm annoyed, for no good reason. I'm going back to Hull tomorrow, but I didn't book my ticket in time so I didn't get a cheap one. My fault, no reason to be annoyed. It's not the end of the world anyway.

Okay, maybe there is a reason. Maybe it's my last post. I have nothing going on in my life, so I blog about what I see on TV. I guess being round my dad's tonight illustrated just how much I depend on stuff like TV and internet to escape reality. Maybe I should cut down on the stuff I watch. Or maybe I should just enjoy what I enjoy and get on with it. What You Leave Behind was fantastic, as usual, last night :P

But no, I guess the feeling of having nothing good going on mostly came when my birthday was brought up. I don't want to force celebrations. Why do I want to celebrate with people I don't talk to that often otherwise? I don't want any kind of celebration with family either. I'd rather just forget the whole thing. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind getting the odd gift, but I don't want any fuss.

Because I'm a sci fi nerd...

2008-03-24T23:51:00.002Z

It's time for another long post about things I watch on the telebox. Why? Because a lot of things I watch have ended recently, and because I've seen some pretty good stuff lately, and because I like to talk about stuff I've seen. This will be quite long and I might write it in bits, but I'll use sub headings so it's easy to jump to TV series that anyone reading will be interested in. I'm aware that it's unlikely anyone reads this, so it's also for my benefit. If anyone does read this, then they'll know from elsewhere that I'm crap at writing about anything. I'm rubbish at giving opinions and using descriptive language, and that counts offline as well as in writing, so don't expect quality reviewing.

Enterprise

Right, I'm going to begin with Enterprise. I believe I last wrote about this when I was maybe half way through season 3. At that point, I didn't know what to think about it. There were a lot of drastic changes from season 2, and it didn't feel quite right. It was more exciting to follow than the previous two seasons, in the way that DS9 is exciting to follow. It had a continuing story. I did think that it should have been broken up a bit more though, and not have every single episode dealing with the Xindi story. That was a bit odd, having gone from two seasons of not mentioning them to having a season where everything was about them. It's like if DS9 had started with the Dominion War in season 1. I also don't like that the Xindi were never mentioned in the rest of Star Trek outside of season 3 of Enterprise, with the exceptions of the seasons 2 and 4 episodes beginning and concluding the arc. The fact that it was contained to one season made the character development seem rushed. Bashir capturing Sloan and being prepared to use the Romulan memory scanner was believable after it took 7 seasons and a lot of desperation to get there. Archer nicking bits off that guy who played Damar's ship was a rapid transition, and didn't make him very likable. I forgave him after his obvious regret in season 4 though.

Season 3 had a great last few episodes, and the finale was great too. Shran is one of my favourite recurring Star Trek characters. The conclusion of the arc at the beginning of 4 was less impressive. The temporal cold war was a lame story, and how could it just be erased? Um...that just erases season 3 completely, and many other story lines. After that blip, season 4 was amazing. By far the best Enterprise, and some of the best Star Trek. The Vulcan stories set up how the Vulcans of later Star Trek were. The Augment stories set up the Khan stories, and gave a reasonable explanation for the appearance of TOS era Klingons. The last few episodes set up the Federation. Those episodes are probably among my favourite Star Trek episodes from the whole lot. Aaand then we have the finale. Disappointing beyond belief. Why do I want to see Riker and Troi being the focus of the last Enterprise episode? After such a brilliant episode came just before it? Trip's death was unnecessary, and his rash actions out of character. The last scene was perfect, with the voices of the Enterprise captains, but the episode itself was awful. I'd prefer to consider Terra Prime the last episode. The ending of that was fantastic. I also thought that after that T'Pol and Trip, who I had thought didn't make sense together when it was first obvious it was heading that way, should have ended up together after those last few good episodes. I was a bit disappointed that they weren't by the crappy finale.

Oh well. In conclusion, after all my moaning about it's concept, Enterprise was really good. I'm glad I've seen it, and it's a great addition to the Star Trek franchise.

Lost

This will be shorter. I just want to comment briefly on how good this series has been so far. So many more questions, but also answers. It really feels like it's moving on. I'm a bit annoyed with having to wait a month for the next episode, but the last one was really interesting.

Stargate Atlantis

Season 4 is done, and it's gone so fast! On the whole, it's been a great season. Atlantis really stands apart from SG1 as being a great series. A few complaints though. What was the point of Carter? She improved towards the end, but for a lot of it she seemed to forget that she was the problem solver on SG1. She's the scientist of everything, and she worked with Thor the Asgard to defeat the Replicators in the past, so why no role in their defeats this time? She made fewer command decisions than Weir used to, and didn't really seem that involved. Some episodes really did improve on this, but it just didn't make sense. I'm glad she's just going to be recurring next season, because she'll probably have a more Carter-like role that way.

I don't want it to seem like I didn't enjoy season 4, because I really, really did, but I have one more complaint. The team seemed to be a bit more split up than in previous seasons, almost like SG1 were in season 10. Sheppard's team weren't together on missions so much, especially in the second half of the season.

It did have some great episodes though. The conclusion of the season 3 finally was some of the best Atlantis I've seen. The mid season story was pretty good too. The Teal'c vs Ronan episode was fun. That one where someone created a Replicator on Earth was good, because it's funny that anyone thinks it's a good idea. The final few episodes were awesome. I always love Michael episodes (morally wrong, what were they thinking creating him?!) and it was nice to see Beckett back. It did feel a bit too much like they just brought him back for the sake of it, and it was a bit surprising that they were so willing to accept a clone, but it was still good. The finale was a great idea, and I look forward to season 5 this summer.

Stargate: Ark of Truth

I only saw this tonight, but I'll comment on it. If you've not seen it, then this will most definitely contain spoilers. Anyway, it was great. I really enjoyed it. It wasn't the type of film you could put in cinemas, and was basically just a feature length episode, but then that was all I wanted. Odd that they used the music from the original Stargate film though, rather than the TV music. Didn't think that was necessary. The story was good though. Thinking back to what I said about Atlantis, why would anyone think that creating a Replicator is a good plan, for any reason? I'm not sure what went on there, but it felt like they should maybe have explained who's idea it was. Unless it was meant to be the guy from Atlantis? Anyway, good twist. I didn't expect Replicators at all. Maybe a little too much of them and not enough Ori conclusion, but it worked. Definitely a good extended episode, and I look forward to the next one, and hopefully more.

Desperate Housewives

Well season 4 part 1 was great. Better than the last two seasons, definitely. The tornado one was brilliant, and the whole season has just been exciting. It's definitely got me back into it.

Skins

Another one I won't say much on, but I've really enjoyed season 2 of skins. I watched bits of season 1, but I found the running from the drug dealer story boring. The end of the season was good, and 2 has been a lot better. It's one of those things that manages to be really funny and incredibly depressing in the same episode. I cried at the one where Sid's dad died. I love stuff I can cry at, haha.

Dawson's Creek

And that brings us to something I've cried too much at over the years. Watching all of Dawson's Creek again has taken me back to those days at college where I used to rely on my fix after every rough day. This programme is so cheesy it's amazing. I really enjoyed the last season, but this is another one with a last episode I can't decide on. Jen's death and Jack's adoption of her daughter, along with Doug, always makes me cry. Joey choosing Pacey is perfect. However, the whole episode has the feeling that it's forgotten season 6. What happened to CJ? Grams' breast cancer? And no Audrey?! I know that it's written by the original writer, and though the previous episode also had a feeling of going back to the start in Capeside, it still felt like it was going back and missing bits out. Still, much crying and a satisfactory end. I just wish it had been made a few years later, because the gay relationships in it seem a bit...lame. Jack and his boyfriends just seem like mates most of the time, because they were scared of making them look intimate. Doesn't seem real.

The Colour of Magic

Brilliant. I've written far too much, so I won't dwell on this, but it was brilliant, and it's made me want to read all of the Discworld books. Fantasy, adventure, much humour and a great cast. This was definitely worth watching.

DS9

This is my favourite television show ever. I watched some season 1 and 2 last week with my sister, because that's how far along she is having started from the beginning to watch them all in order. The other day, I then caught a little bit of the season 5 finale on TV. Rather than watch it with ads from half way through, I decided to watch it on DVD that night. So I did, and then decided I needed to do some season 6, where they retake the station. I watched Favour the Bold and Sacrifice of Angels, and was hooked. I then watched the one where Kira and Odo get together, the season 6 finale, and then decided to do some Dominion War highlights of season 7. Wow, this is the best thing I've watched. The character and story progression is more believable than anything else I've seen on TV. It really feels like everything leads up to the end in season 7, and that everything has been leading to the end since season 1. I like every character in it, and the ones I don't are the ones I'm not supposed to. They're written that well. Damar is one of the best written characters in Star Trek. The man you hate in season 6, all the way through, especially after he murders Ziyal, then goes on to die a hero. Fantastic. I'm about to watch the finale again as soon as I hit post. I'm just hoping Odo stays with Kira this time. I know he will one day when I watch it! Best. Finale. Ever.

And that, my friends, was a very long post. And so I shall end. Goodnight.

I spoke in a lecture

2008-02-15T00:57:00.004Z

I didn't check what my last post was before starting this. I think it was one where I wrote about drifting apart from old friends, and moaned about them not coming out. Well in the end, we did go out. It was nice to see people, just a shame about the crappy music.

So what's happened since? Lab work, and a bloody lot of it. Monday, Tuesday, and till rather late on Wednesday. There have also been pissy notes on the fridge from some 21 year old first year who can't work a washing machine, and yet feels the need to tell everyone (even though it's clearly her ditzy fresher mate) that they need to clean up after themselves. It's like M said though, we don't have to give a shit what these freshers think. We'll never see them again. To us, it's just getting through the final semester.

The title. I went to a lecture today, and I knew about the stuff it covered before I got there. I didn't find out anything I didn't already know. Aaaand I answered a question. I've never called out an answer in the 3 and a half years I've had at uni. This is a big deal :P I knew what it was, and no one else was saying it. I also knew I could answer the 2 example exam questions she showed us with ease. This could be a good module.

I have to talk about some television while I'm here too. Firstly, I'll mention Torchwood. I've got so into it recently. This weeks episodes were fantastic. I won't spoil it for people who haven't seen it, but the twist at the end of Reset made me cry.

Enterprise season 3. Does T'Pol really have to be naked all the time? This series has had some fantastic episodes (even though it moved very suddenly from the atmosphere of the first 2 seasons, rather than the gradual change DS9 had with the Dominion war) and I am enjoying it, but the naked T'Pol thing is irritating. Oh, and I just watched Damage. Bad, bad Archer. I don't like my leaders to made immoral decisions. The only person I can forgive for that is Adama. BSG has special circumstances :P

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Now playing: Oasis - To Be Someone
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Hahaha, oops.

2008-02-08T14:06:00.000Z

I just did something so stupid, that if it wasn't an embarrassing subject I'd post it at PBS. Not that I did it, although that is pretty shameful, but it's just...embarrassing stuff. Basically, I wanted to wash my lab coat on a high temperature white wash, hotter than I usually do for whites. I know I know I shouldn't wash my lab coat in the regular washing machine everyone else uses. It hasn't been in contact with dangerous organisms at all though, since it's my uni one and not a work one, and I was washing at 90C anway so it's not a big deal. Anyway, thought I might as well stick some other whites in too. Went down to the shower after they'd been in a while, and the machine was making an odd clunking noise. Ignored it mostly while I showered, then went to get the stuff out because the clunking didn't stop. One of the things I'd put in had metal bits on, and I dunno if the metal bits had expanded in the heat, but 2 of them were stuck in the little holes water drains out of. Took a lot of pulling out too! I can't believe I was stupid enough to put them in in the first place. The worst part is that one bit is still missing, meaning it probably went through holes. I have no idea where that will be, and I so hope it doesn't wreck the washer completely. I was gonna do a colour wash after, so I was the next one who used it and could see what the effects were, but the guy downstairs has already put his stuff in. Looks okay so far. I've decided not to tell anyone else unless the washer actually breaks :P

The thing is, I can't stop laughing at the stupidity of it. I've wrecked some clothing, possibly the washer we all have to use, and it's hilarious. This is my first washing accident in four years of doing my own washing all the time though, which isn't bad!

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Now playing: Kasabian - Empire
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I watch too much TV

2008-02-03T13:18:00.001Z

It's true. I'll start on Enterprise, because I've been watching a lot of it since being back at uni.

I had watched them all in order up until episode 17 of season 2, starting sometime when I was in Boston. It had some great episodes, that really set up future Star Trek, but it wasn't easy to watch. I mean that in the sense that watching one episode doesn't really inspire you to watch the next 10, and with most other Star Trek, I can easily end up watching 10 episodes accidentally. I've been known to do a season of DS9 in 3-4 days. Enterprise has a lot of random adventure episodes, as me and my sister usually call them, and not so many story arc episodes. I know this is how Star Trek usually works, with the exception of DS9, but when you've already seen all the other Star Trek series doing the same thing, it's not so exciting. When I got to episode 17, I decided to start skipping some episodes to get to some I expected to be better. Relying on the Wikipedia episode guide, as I do with everything, of course. Doing that, I came across some really fantastic episodes. "Judgement", the one with the Klingon trial, was great. It really felt like it was a similar trial to that in Undiscovered Country, only over 100 years earlier. They did escape a bit easily from Rura Penthe, for saying Archer was supposed to be the first person to ever do that, but I can forgive that because it was a great episode. One thing I really didn't like though, was the reusing of an actor who'd had a main part in another Star Trek. I know bit part actors are reused, and you'll find some people who had random alien parts before getting a main role, but seeing JG Hertzler playing another Klingon? I thought he was great in that role, but I still don't like it.

Another great episode I discovered was "Regeneration". Yes, that one I wanted to thoroughly hate. Everyone knows that Starfleet didn't encounter the Borg until TNG! However, it wasn't badly done at all. Enterprise didn't find out too much about the Borg, so it's not like they could have been prepared by TNG. The Borg did manage to send a message home, but it would take over 200 years. That's how long it took before they started entering the Alpha Quadrant in TNG, so it does fit together. The one thing that doesn't make sense is that in TNG, they acted like they'd never encountered them at all before. Did no one read Archer's logs?

On to season 3. I loved the ending to season 2. 7 million deaths on Earth is definitely something to stir things up. However, I'm not sure what I think of season 3. The theme song, which I initially hated since Star Trek doesn't have theme songs but have now grown to like, is a lot more poppy. Don't like. The characters are noticeably darker at times. Trip calls the Xindi "bastards" and I didn't like that. Bastards don't belong in Star Trek, especially not with Trip. Archer stuck someone in an airlock and nearly killed them. I don't like an otherwise good captain resorting to torture. And then there's T'Pol. The earlier stories with her mind melding and Panaar syndrome and then her warming to the humans were all pretty good. Now, it's almost like they got bored of having an emotionless Vulcan, and they keep finding ways for her to have emotions. The episode with the Pon Far was pretty ridiculous, and mostly just an excuse to have her running about half naked throwing herself at men. It's like they've decide to make it sexier, realised they have two attractive female characters, Hoshi is boring, so let's try and get T'Pol naked as often as possible. Don't like.

I'm only 5 into season 3, but the story seems good. This one is more of a continuous story arc. The only thing I don't like about that is that it seems like an obvious attempt to rescue the show. I enjoyed seasons 1 and 2, but understand why they might not have done so well. Changing so much to save it...don't like. The Xindi story is an interesting one though, so hopefully it will get better. One thing I don't like is all this time travel stuff. Changing events in the past DOES NOT MAKE SENSE. Once it's changed, you don't know to go back and get it changed, so it doesn't get changed etc etc. I didn't like how they ended Voyager with something like that, and while the odd time travelling episode is a bit of fun, whole story arcs based on it isn't good. Oh well, it has seasons 3 and 4 to convince me.

Wow, I've written a lot on Enterprise. The other thing I've been watching is Farscape. I really like it, but I think the lack of a continuous story is what's stopping me from watching more of it. It's great though, because it's so different from any of the other sci-fi shows I watch.

Only two more shows to talk about now, have patience. Next is Atlantis. Atlantis has been a bit weird the last couple of weeks. 2 episodes where most of the cast weren't a part of it. Last week only Sheppard and McKay were featured. This week, although others had minor appearances at the beginning, it was all Sheppard and Ronan. I hope this second half of season 4 starts focussing more on the Atlantis base, or at least the Atlantis crew, in the next few episodes. Those last 2 were still great episodes though. Interesting to see Bates back working for the IOA. It's still my favourite thing currently showing on TV.

Finally, Lost is back! Yep, the beginning of season 4 was definitely exciting. Oceanic 6? So only 6 survived? Or at least escaped, seeing as future Jack and Hurley seem to know something about the others. Both of them, at different times, have no said they should go back. This season will be awesome.

Haha, massive TV essay. The thing is, seeing as the only things I have a lot of and haven't seen before are Enterprise and Farscape, I could do with something else. I'm not inspired to watch loads of either of those in a row. It's almost tempting to get the DS9 out again, but then I did that first half of last year. SG1...again too recent. Oh well, I'll probably stick to what I've got for now.

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Now playing: Pink Floyd - Time
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Boredom

2008-01-30T17:42:00.001Z

I only have lectures on Thursdays. I have a research project to do, but that doesn't start till Monday. I got back to uni on Friday, and Hannah stayed for a few days, but since then I have been so bloody bored. She left Sunday, and I didn't get internet till late Monday afternoon. Sunday night was split between Dawson's Creek, Farscape and Enterprise. Monday involved seeing my landlord, town, reading, and Farscape. Then I got internet, and it involved Skyping allllll night. Tuesday I met up with the people I lived with in 2nd year, and then last night I went out with one of them and her mate. It was an alright night, but I can't be bothered to explain how with L it all ends up being about chasing after boys.

And that brings us to today. Today I have done nothing at all worthwhile. I woke up around 11ish, and since then I've only left my room to use the bathroom, get breakfast and once to walk to the shop to get Dr Pepper because my body required fizzy pop. I've been online all day. Doing what you ask? PB, OTW, xkcd (I've even been going back looking at old comics to kill time), festival rumours, AIM (only spoken to 2 people all day though), QC, random wikipedia articles, and the worst bit...Runescape. I found myself thinking "oh good, middle of the day UK time, won't be so many people on so I can go mining without sharing rocks" and so I went mining. Went up a smithing level, which was probably the most excitement Runescape gave me today. Wow, I can't believe I'm writing about my Runescaping somewhere public.

Last night, we sort of discussed going to Asylum tonight. Now, even though I'm mega bored and could do with doing something, I don't much want to. I spent too much last night, and I just don't feel up to drinking much tonight. I also don't know if I can be bothered with another night of everything being about guys and the chasing of them and the talking about ones who have been chased before. The freshers I live with are going, and my other mate said he'd be up for it, but I still can't imagine it being much fun. If they ask, I might go, but I hope they don't. I'd prefer to watch some nerdy DVDs, mess about online, go to bed earlyish and be ready for my first day of actual lectures.

The worst part is that this will be almost the same every week. Sure, the work will pile on after lectures start, and I'll be in the lab doing my research stuff a couple of days a week, but it's still not going to be constant. I'm still gonna have a lot of free time all year, and it's going to be hard to find big groups of people to go out with. It's always better when there are a few of you going. I know it sounds daft that I'm moaning about not wanting to go out tonight and also saying I want other people to go out more, but I just don't fancy it tonight after last night.

Oh, and I'm reading Sword of Shannara, and I can't get into it. It seems really good, but it's starting in a similar way to LotR and Eragon. Normal guy learns of great destiny and needs to flee his safe rural community. It's been done. Eragon probably copied this too though. It copied pretty much everything else.

Edit: Oh, and one more thing. I miss work. Forget that thing I said in another entry where I said I wouldn't go back to the same lab. I'd love to go back

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Now playing: Happy Mondays - Kinky Afro
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I think my last post was that mega depressing one...

2008-01-21T21:51:00.000Z

So just to say, that was a very, very bad day. The day after was one of the best days ever, and I'm generally feeling pretty good right now. I can't be bothered to write much, but I've finished work and had a fantastic last day, and then Saturday night involved a very long Wii party. It's all good.

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Now playing: Fun Lovin' Criminals - Korean Bodega
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The end is in sight!

2008-01-12T02:21:00.000Z

I passed my registration portfolio! Now I just need a degree to be fully qualified, and I only have one semester left at uni. I can't believe I can see the end of it. Words cannot describe the happiness and relief on Tuesday when my verifier came and I passed. I also got my project intro in on time, even though it's probably shite, but it's in and that means I'm freeeeee! No more uni work till I get back in a couple of weeks. No more feeling guilty about doing things that aren't uni work or portfolio :D

I can't decide how I feel about going back to uni. My life there seems so long ago, especially the life I had in my 2nd year. That 3rd year semester I was there was totally different. I'll really miss the Stargate marathons and hanging out with Laura and Dan. Oh well. I guess this'll be another adventure. Only one more semester anyway. Hopefully :P

In other news, I've nearly finished Sex and the City. That's right, 6 seasons, starting at Christmas. That is a good effort, even for me. I miss my sci fi though. Atlantis tomorrow!

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Now playing: The Smiths - Ask
via FoxyTunes

A Dream

2008-01-06T13:45:00.000Z

I had a really weird dream last night, so I felt the need to write it down, because I hate forgetting the interesting ones.

As usual with dreams, I don't remember exactly how it began. I was in a house, but it was a pretty fancy house an definitely not mine. My mum was there, my sister, maybe Garry, maybe my sister's boyfriend and I'm certain there was a guy there with me. It was the day before the London marathon, and me and my sister remembered that we'd signed up to do it then forgotten about it. My mum was looking as though she knew I'd drop out and not do it because I was lazy, and I was trying desperately to explain that I hadn't trained because I had been too busy, and it was dangerous to run a marathon without preparation. I could tell they were starting to listen, but I also told the guy who was there about it, because I think he was a doctor, and I got him to agree that we shouldn't run.

We went to London to watch the end of it anyway. For some odd reason, Oasis were running it, and we were waiting for them to finish and play some songs. The place we were...was odd. It was a shopping mall. I never say "mall" because it's a very American word, but in the dream that's what I knew it was. It was a cross between Westfield in Derby, Meadowhall, that shopping centre I randomly went to in Doncaster once, Princes Quay in Hull and Birmingham Central Library. And maybe some of the big train stations I've been to, like St Pancras and Liverpool Street. I know, it gets odder. Funny thing was, it was also New Year's Eve. We were waiting for Oasis to play at midnight. It gets weirder. William Shatner was the announcer for the evening, and was stood outside on an ice rink, having just run the marathon, waiting to introduce Oasis o.o

I don't remember some stuff after that. My sister was there, and her boyfriend was, and I can't remember what was said. I remember going outside because some fireworks had been let off early by accident. I went out, and my brother and some people I know through him were there looking at them. Although they were early, they were the best fireworks I'd ever seen, ever. I half wanted to go back inside for midnight, as I'd never not had Big Ben at New Year, but then I remember that we were in London and should hear from outside. I then thought about that weird situation where people in London watching TV hear 13 strikes because of the TV delay, then I remembered that there was no TV. I heard Big Ben do those chimes it does before the countdown, and then the noise of the crowd drowned out the sounds. I only knew it was New Year when people started singing Auld Lang Syne. My brother and his girlfriend, and my sister, were all there.

After that it was as though I was drunk and couldn't remember bits. I remember it being the next day. I saw Lucy and she pretty much blanked me. I tried talking to her but she wasn't interested. I remembered having seen Rachel the night before too, but she had gone already. I remember walking around aimlessly, and then seeing a group of people from school who were still friends. Faye was there, which was odd because she didn't even go to my secondary school. It wasn't nice. Like they all knew each other still and I was someone they used to know. Faye told me how happy she was with her son (I think I mixed her up with Nikita in my dream) and then for some reason she wasn't there and Sarah M was. It was the old college crew. Anne-Marie was there, and she said she was taking pictures of people at the party for her Facebook (she doesn't have a Facebook) and she took one of me, another girl called Nikita who wasn't the one I'd ever spoken to at school, and someone else (my sister, I think) and possibly Sarah too. I talked to Anne-Marie and Sarah for a while, but I don't remember what about. I remember feeling distant from them. And then my sister, who was next to me, said Rick was coming over. He had a baby in his arms, Terri's son I assumed. I think he said Terri was coming too. Rick knew all the people from school and I felt so out of place. I felt like I was falling back in with then because I had no one else, and they all knew that, so I decided to call some other friends to come. I knew Lucy had just gone, because I'd seen her again and couldn't get her attention. I told Hannah I would call our brother, then decided that might look sad. I said I'd try to call Rachel, but her number wasn't in my phone. I'd deleted it by accident the night before. I looked at my list of friends and didn't feel I could call any of them. It was pretty depressing :P

And then I woke up. That was a weird dream. I'm not really all that emoish and thinking I have no friends, because I do, but I think it highlights how much I've drifted away from people this past year. It'll change soon, but it is a shame.

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Now playing: Velvet Revolver - Illegal I Song
via FoxyTunes

And I started to wonder....

2008-01-05T22:17:00.000Z

Wow, I am completely addicted to Sex and the City. When I got the whole box set for Christmas, I knew I liked it and would enjoy watching it slowly, I half wanted some Atlantis or something. And then I began the watching. And I haven't stopped. I'm on season 4 already and I only got it for Christmas! I just can't stop.

Aaaand I think I love Mr Big. When the Big vs Aiden thing comes up, my mum always says Aiden. I think it's more to do with that guy who was in Northern Exposure though. For me, it's Big every time. He may have been a bastard at times, but you know he was supposed to be with Carrie! Haha, I've got so into it.

Maybe it's that stupid addiction that's got me thinking about the fact that I don't really want to be single forever. I'm actually not bothered by it now. I know I'm moving away from here in 3 weeks, and then moving again to god knows where after uni in June, so there's really no point looking any time soon. Got me thinking about the past too. The one person I keep thinking back to is Richard. Wow, I screwed up there. Perfect guy really. I'm sure I've written the story in some other blog before, but basically we met when I went out for my 18th, in a 70s club. My friend was busy pulling every guy she saw, and I just got to know Richard. We talked on the phone a lot and dated few times, then things got hectic. He worked a lot, I had exams coming up, and then we both went on holiday with different people at the same time. After we got back, things were a mess for me at college, with that situation and things didn't look so good. Not long after there was another night out, and there was Liam. I pretty much blew Richard out for Liam, who was a lot better looking and who I had such an amazing connection with that first time we met. That was one of my worst mistakes ever. Richard was a nice guy and someone I really got on with. He was no model, but he was a great guy who I could have had a good time with. That great connection I had with Liam that night didn't last. Our one and only real date, the one I chose over a night out with Richard, was boring. And it didn't work out with either. That sucked :P

It's funny that I didn't think of Jonathan till just now. That guy was an idiot at the end. Another guy I had such a great connection with when we first met, to the point that I really though this could be something long term, and then it got pretty crap as time went on. No, I only thought of him when I thought of Liam. Other than Richard, the one other ex I thought of writing this was Chris. And he's the one who might bump into this blog one day, being an internet addict :P Doubtful but possible. If he does, then I'm sure he'll be realistic about why we wouldn't have worked, and he'll know that deep down he didn't want it to anyway. I don't want to say what he said here because I dunno who reads it, but he said something once that summed up our whole relationship. I'm sure we'll hang out again, but we will never be a couple. Funny though, knowing that I'm fairly certain I could call him (if he's single) and I know he'd be interested. One of the biggest problems with him, and this is something I don't care if he sees, is that he's not the sort of guy you introduce to your parents. He's secret afternoon meetings guy. The guy your friends say "you aren't meeting him again are you?" I pity the type of girls who fall for that kind of guy.

Haha, self analysis. Definitely too much Sex and the City, and throw in too much Dawson's Creek too :P I probably need some sci fi to take my mind off it.

Oh Oh, talking of sci fi (is it that obvious that I'm just typing as I think? I love doing that...it's a release :P) I saw the trailer for season 4 of Battlestar! Excited! After Razor, which was awesome, I can't wait. I don't get why Sky cut some bits from Razor though. Surely the hybrid's speech about the 4 awakening can't just have been a DVD extra? I'll have to watch the DVD all the way through soon. The big question though, obviously, is who the hell is the fifth Cylon? I saw something online that said that the producers had said that Roslin and Starbuck were not Cylons as that would ruin the story. I found no evidence that this had really been said though. Roslin is still my theory, I think. I'd be pretty disappointed if it was Baltar. He's just a flawed human. He's what's wrong with humanity, not a Cylon...or at least I hope that's what he is. I did see an interested quote though, and this was confirmed. Hera might not be the first half human half Cylon. I read a theory that Starbuck's mother was Cylon, and that she was supposed to be the hybrid meant to bring both races to Earth. There's also the theory that the Admiral is a Cylon, making Apollo half Cylon. I'm not ruling out an already dead person either. Ellen Tigh, for a start. Also maybe whatshername from Razor.

I wrote too much and switched topics in the middle, but that was some therapeutic typing!

Just a quick one

2007-12-30T21:39:00.000Z

I did a depressing post just before Christmas. That was stupid. Generally, I had a good Christmas. I can't be bothered to write loads right now, but I didn't want that moany thing being the top post on here. So yeah, smile :)

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Now playing: Of Montreal - Labyrinthian Pomp
via FoxyTunes

Eminem - Rabbit Run

2007-12-23T19:36:00.000Z

I don't listen to this song for fun. I just didn't think this Christmas would have much reason to play it. Oh well, same as ever. Nothing is ever just fun and games.

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Now playing: Eminem - Rabbit Run
via FoxyTunes

I know he'll stay next time...

2007-12-19T22:12:00.000Z

Yesterday I watched the DS9 season 7 finale...again. What got me wanting to watching it? Firstly, I was browsing DVDs in Derby at the weekend and I came across the Star Trek Captain's Log collection. I immediately wanted to watch all the DS9 episodes mentioned on that, particularly In the Pale Moonlight. I haven't got that one here with me though, since season 5 is at my mum's house. Secondly, I wanted sci-fi, and it's been a while since I DS9ed, and Atlantis is off until January. Thirdly, I wanted something that'd really get to me. I was emotional anyway, and I always cry at the DS9 finale. I'd already cried far too much at the Dawson's Creek after Mitch dies (I realise that might sound pathetic, but anyone who doesn't cry at that one isn't human) and What You Leave Behind seemed perfect.

So what can I say? It is by FAAAR the best final episode of any series I've followed. Buffy had a great ending, but DS9 was perfect. Everything was wrapped up. Every character's story. Just perfect. I love how it comes down to Sisko vs Dukat at the end, as it should be. I love how Damar, someone who you had really hated after the Dominion occupation of DS9 and the death of Ziyal, died a hero, and without him the war may not have been won. I get upset every time the crew separates at the end though. The worst part, and the part that never fails to get me, is that Odo leaves. He leaves, granted because he really has to, after all that time waiting for him and Kira to get together. That is the saddest part of all of it. Well, I guess Sisko leaving his pregnant wife is a big deal, but Odo was always my favourite character. I joke to people that I watch it so often because eventually they'll come a time when I watch it and Odo decides to stay. Maybe one day he will...

Speaking of other TV things, I've seen the Lost trailer today. Looks interesting. It's weird that I'm not more bothered about it. I love Lost, and I'm obsessed when it's on. I was desperate for season 2 when 1 finished, and almost as bad waiting for 3. I am really excited about 4, but I think it's overshadowed by the fact that I'm so into Atlantis, and waiting for Battlestar series 4. That will be amazing. I have Razor waiting for me on the Sky+ back at my mum's, and I'll probably buy that on DVD as soon as it's out. This is why Lost gets put on the back burner. I'm too obsessed with sci fi.

If only writing essays came as easily as writing about TV :P I know I could get a first class degree in DS9. The only thing I could do better in is the history of Middle Earth :P

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Now playing: Rocky Horror - Rose Tint My World
via FoxyTunes

Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf

2007-12-17T00:02:00.001Z

This song is by The Killers, and it's pretty fantastic. I listened to their Sawdust album when someone was sharing it on the network using iTunes (good legal way to preview music, listening to other people's shared libraries) and most of it is pretty average. Absolutely nothing else stood out, but I loved Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf from the first time I heard it. My Last FM will be fill of The Killers this week, because I listened to that and remembered how good some of their older songs were. It's just one of those songs that gets you the first time you hear it, and you need to keep listening over and over.

Other stuff. Stargate Atlantis season 4 episode 10. I was impressed. Not as dramatic a cliffhanger as some of their previous ones, but I still can't wait for January. Obvious lack of Carter, which was odd because she is supposed to be in charge, but on the whole season 4 has been great. More other stuff? I finished reading Dune. Now that was a good book. You can see that so much later sci fi was influenced by Dune. I'm tired now so I'm hardly in review writing mode, but people should read it anyway.

And now I think I'm gonna get off the computer for the night. The internet has bored me to the point that I've hardly been on this weekend.

Let's All Make Believe

2007-12-11T23:47:00.000Z

Before I start, this title will be used over and over for posts. Go listen to the song by Oasis and tell me it doesn't apply to so much in life.

Here's the thing. Why aren't people easier to understand? You ask someone you think is a friend such a simple question, and don't get a straight answer. Is that person really the good friend you thought they could be? Have they ever been? The stupidest thing is that this applies to more than one person. When you've known someone for a few years though, surely it's time to walk away. Not me though! No, while I'm still getting mixed messages, I hold on thinking that we are really friends. Let's all make believe, eh?

In other news, I think I'm one of the gang at work, finally. All it takes is a night out on the piss and getting so trashed you can't remember how you got home! Haha, it was actually a really good night, the work Christmas do. I do regret drinking so much though, but it all ended okay.

Save Derby Playhouse

2007-12-05T22:30:00.001Z

I was absolutely gutted to find out, when I was home last weekend, that Derby Playhouse has been put into administration (it was actually liquidation when I first found out) and has closed it's doors. Gutted because I was excited about seeing Treasure Island this winter, and gutted because I've seen some fantastic shows there in the past and had some great memories. A city without a producing theatre? It's not right.

The Christmas productions there have been great for the last few years. I didn't go last year because they put A Christmas Carol on again, I think because they were preparing to shut for refurbishment, and I'd seen that a couple of years before. It was great though, when I did see it a few years back. Merlin, too, was a really good play. I've seen a few productions with performances that wouldn't have been out of place in the West End. When you think that this is just a small theatre, with neither the money or the resources London theatres have, what they do is so impressive. To think that Derby have lost that is horrible.

I'd have loved to have been there for that last performance of Treasure Island. It went ahead without consent of the board, and all staff were unpaid. They opened the doors to the public and the Playhouse was packed, with people sitting in the aisles. They've had a few protests in Derby, and I wish I could have been there too. If they have another while I'm around, I'll definitely go.

http://www.savederbyplayhouse.org

EDIT - Okay, so I've managed to make a slight difference. I got 4 people to join the Facebook group, after I posted it :)

The Power Cut

2007-12-05T21:19:00.000Z

This is the first of two blog entries tonight. I'm more keen to right the second one, because I think it's more important, but I want to get my moan about last night out the way first.

Basically, there was a power cut. Hospital power, including residences, was meant to be out from 6pm to 10pm. It ended up being out until 1.30am. How do I know when it came on? My lights coming back on woke me up.

No power meant no cooking, tv, computer, heating or light. I rushed to the canteen before 6 to get dinner before they lost power, and then I phoned people. It was 7ish and I was bored, and my flatmate who was taking me to Asda wasn't home yet, so I walked to Netto to buy candles. That was a good hour round trip, which seems like a waste of time just to spend £1.78 on candles. Didn't want to buy food though because it's cheaper (and better) at Asdas. Just as I get in, she gets home and we go out to Asda. Come back and it's still only 9pm. What to do? Even the emergency lights in the hall were out at this point. I set up candles and read Dune by candlelight, since I was too awake to sleep. Daft thing was that when I actually was tired enough, Dune was getting exciting. By the time I went to sleep, it was freezing. I didn't get to shower till the morning because there was no light in the bathroom, and I didn't know how long the hot water would last. I didn't get to do my washing, because obviously the washing machines were out. I missed Dawson's Creek. I had no internet all night. It was the longest I've been without power, and it was verging on ridiculous. The workmen must have screwed up pretty badly to leave us cut off for that long.

Exciting!

2007-12-04T13:08:00.000Z

I doubt many will agree, but finding Trichuris trichuria in a patient sample, as in an actual faeces sample from a patient rather than a quality control sample or some teaching sample, is pretty exciting. The guy I was with today said that in 5 years of working there, it was his first parasite seen in a patient sample. Parasitology makes me laugh at work, in the way that it's always a group activity. If we get a QC sample, it gets looked at by everyone. This positive this morning, and everyone wants a look.

Makes the day more interesting anyway.

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Now playing: Morrissey - You Have Killed Me
via FoxyTunes

A shortlist of my favourite songs

2007-12-03T22:02:00.000Z

I refrained from blogging all weekend. Why? To avoid ranting. Work pissed me off, then other things pissed me off, then yet another thing pissed me off. But why bother moaning? That's just how life is.

So anyway, what to write about? I'm thinking the one thing I can talk forever about. Music. The other day I came close to doing the impossible. I made a playlist on iTunes called Made of Awesome, and started adding my favourite songs. I don't think all my favourites are there, by any means. Some because I've forgotten right now, because the appropriate time to play a particular song hasn't come up lately, or because for whatever reason a song isn't on my PC. It's also hard to decide which songs are favourites of the moment, and will be forgotten in a few months, and which will always be favourites. Anyway, that impossible thing. Nine of those awesome songs were Oasis songs. That means I almost had a top 10! So here's the songs in that playlist. Hopefully doing this will help me decide what else to add.

Aerosmith - I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing

This song is amazing. I first heard it in the context of Armageddon, and in that it's just... :-O and I've loved it ever since

The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps

Perfect. This song is actually perfect. Why is it a favourite? Well other than the fact that it's perfect, I remember learning to play it with my sister on guitar, then going to see The Bootleg Beatles a few days later. We went to the front, and it was like they sang it at us. I'll always love this song.

Bright Eyes - Road to Joy

Odd choice, compared to my others, but I love this song. I'm thinking I should add more Bright Eyes to this list, actually. I was first introduced to them with Nothing Gets Crossed Out and Lover I Don't Have to Love, and this made me get some more of their music, but it wasn't until I listened to the whole of I'm Wide Awake It's Morning and came to this song that I really took notice. It was playing in the background while I was studying, and this came on and I stopped what I was doing. Maybe it's not their best song, but it's the one that had an impact on me first, and is still my number 1 on Last.fm.

Cock Sparrer - Because You're Young

I first heard this played as a cover in The Vic by a guy who had the right attitude, but couldn't sing it. I loved the lyrics though, even then. "Because you're young, you're torn between, a world of hate, and a world of dreams" - I love those lyrics.

Little Man Tate - Just Can't Take It

Little Man Tate are so last summer. Followed them about the country to see 4 gigs in 4 cities, met them twice, autographs and all that...but although they were so much fun live the music won't stand the test of time. With the exception of this song. It's a strange one to call a favourite ever song, but I love this one. It stands out over everything else they've done.

Mando Diao - Ochracy

Should this be on here? I've tried to keep out recent obsessions. This is one of those. The difference is though that I think this one will stick around. Mando Diao are a band I discovered a couple of months ago, and most of their music is fun to listen to, but nothing spectacular. I think they're almost like my LMT of this year. Ochracy, however, is not only a great idea (it means the time between the end of a great gig and sunrise, and everything that happens in between) but a mind blowing song. Mind blowing in the sense that it's...amazing. Everything about it.

Oasis - Don't Look Back in Anger

Okay, so here we go with the Oasis. Starting with an obvious one. This song is fantastic. One of the best songs you'll ever hear live. I swear, I had a tear in my eye the first time I heard it played live, in Manchester in 2002.

Oasis - Champagne Supernova

See reasons above + the times this song reminds me of. A holiday at Butlins with that magical black Oasis tape, and a new year with family watching a Wembly gig on tv. Good times, and an amazing song.

Oasis - Don't Go Away

This song was written by Noel Gallagher about his mum when he thought she had breast cancer. It's beautiful. The acoustic version I have makes you want to die, it's that good. This song is the reason I think it's sad that Noel hates Be Here Now as an album and won't play it live.

Oasis - Slide Away

Back when I first liked Oasis, it was all about What's the Story. My sister raved on about how good Definitely Maybe was, and especially a song called Slide Away, which was her favourite song. I remember picking up on Definitely Maybe when it was being played in the car, and this song stood out as being beyond awesome. It's a beautiful song, and it quickly became one of my favourites. Now, I would say that it is my absolute number one favourite song ever. I didn't copy my sister. She didn't make me listen and influence me to like it. I heard it independently and came to the same conclusion. It's playing now actually, and that first note...wow. Words can't describe how much I love this, especially from someone who isn't good with describing with words.

Oasis - Keep The Dream Alive

This song is inspirational. The lyrics are among Oasis' best. I was just about to say that it was their best song for years, but I've realised that Let There Be Love isn't on the list. I may rectify that later, but this song is great.

Oasis - Sad Song

You know what's sad? That this only made the Japanese version of Definitely Maybe. Having this song on there would end there What's the Story vs Definitely Maybe debate for good. It's one of my favourite songs to sing, and I love the lyrics.

Oasis - Half the World Away

Pretty much the same as I said above, really. A great song to sing with great lyrics. Both are great songs to listen to when you're down, because I think they're actually uplifting, in an odd way.

Oasis - The Masterplan

I feel repetitive, but again, same as above. Great song, great lyrics, good to listen to when you're down.

Oasis - Let's All Make Believe

My favourite B side. This song is true, and that's why I love it. Let's all make believe that we're still friends and we like each other. This line is true. This makes sense to me. People not saying what they really mean. People not helping each other. It's depressing, but it makes sense, and that's why it means something to me.

Rufus Wainwright - Hallelujah

Yes, I know this isn't his song. This is my favourite version though. I love the emotion in it. This song moved me from the first time I heard it sung by Rufus.

The Who - Tea and Theatre

I feel wrong putting a song from The Who's latest album before all their others. The thing with many of there others, at least those I know, is that I love them, but none move me like this one. It was great to hear live, and I often play it as my last song before bed. It's fuelled by emotion, and whether it is about lost band members or not, it's still a beautiful song.

Wow, that list seems short. I know more belongs on there, and I think with the addition of Let There Be Love, I might have an Oasis top 10. It needs more thought though, as do more additions to the Made of Awesome playlist. I feel like Pink Floyd should be represented, and AC/DC. With the latter, I can think of 3, but it depends on mood. The Who need more on their too, but again, it depends on mood. This is hard :P

And that was a great way to waste time. I enjoy making lists like this. PBS lists don't allow you to explain properly though, and this 19 is just provisional, with a thought to an alltime great list consisting of perhaps 30-40 songs. PBS threads expect 10. TEN! I can't even get a definitive Oasis 10!

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Now playing: Oasis - Keep The Dream Alive
via FoxyTunes

Oasis

2007-11-25T03:02:00.000Z

One day, Noel Gallagher will be recognised as one of the greatest songwriters of the 90s and 00s. There was a PBS thread about top 10 songs, and I just could not answer it. And then I thought about top 10 Oasis songs, and even that is impossible. They have so many brilliant songs.

I love listening to loads of other music for ages, then remembering that Oasis are awesome.

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Now playing: Oasis - Listen Up
via FoxyTunes

Dr Cox and Lord Asriel

2007-11-23T20:39:00.000Z

I had a good day today. Been seriously busy for the last 3 days, especially yesterday, but I've enjoyed the responsibility really. Pub lunch today too, but possibly the best bit was having my supervisor say well done, and being told that my learning contract was good and better than my last one. It's also been good to see that others have confidence in my competence. I actually feel like I've achieved a lot this week :D

And tonight I'm gonna watch Daniel Craig on Jonathan Ross, whilst having beer and pizza with my flatmate. Desperate to watch it because he'll be talking about Northern Lights (yes, I refuse to call it Golden Compass) which will be the film of the year, if it's anything like the book. I didn't think Daniel Craig was right for Lord Asriel, mostly because Jason Isaacs would be the perfect choice (Lucius Malfoy...he plays that role more like Lord Asriel then the Malfoy in the HP books) and because he just didn't seem to have that powerful presence that Asriel has. I've changed my mind though. He looks good in the trailer, and if he plays the part right he could be great. And he has that other thing working for him. Everyone knows, when they're reading it, that Lord Asriel is hot. Daniel Craig works :P

I'm sure that post title makes sense to anyone who watches Scrubs and can relate to wanting approval from a supervisor who rarely tells you how well you're doing :P

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Now playing: Of Montreal - The Party's Crashing Us
via FoxyTunes

You know you've worked in the lab too long when...

2007-11-22T22:40:00.001Z

This is just hilarious. If you've worked in a lab anyway. To make it funnier for people who haven't, I'll comment on what is true and why. Probably more "interesting" than "funny", but whatever. Oh, and I found the list on Facebook, but it's one of those things that's been around a few emails at work too.

You know you've worked too long in a lab when

1. You wonder what absolute alcohol tastes like with orange juice
Oh we've discussed it so often. There isn't any in our lab though, apparently. Methanol is used more because people can't drink it :P

2. You can tell what cheap and expensive white coats look like
I have a favourite one :P

3. You can't watch CSI without cursing at least one scientific inaccuracy
Any hospital program really. Everyone I know who works in the NHS in any position is the same.

4. You use acronyms for everything and never stop to elaborate
That's not true. Elaborating makes me look clever.

5. Liquid nitrogen is only about a 1/3 as dangerous as you thought
N/A. Don't deal with it.

6. You always seem to use the microscope after the person with the impossible close together eyes
More like far apart eyes! It's always one or the other though.

7. Accident reports are a badge of honor
Who reports accidents?

8. You've wondered why you can't drink distilled water in the lab - It should be clean?
I still wouldn't want to!

9. You give the lab equipment motivational pep talks "Work for me today or i'll reprogram you with a fire axe" is my favorite
There's someone at work who says far more colourful things about the urine analyser :P

10. You've worked out that a trained chimp could probably do 90% of your job
Pfft, no. I don't work in chemistry or haematology!

11. When a non-scientist asks you what you do for a living you roll your eyes and talk science at them until they've loss the will to live (mainly for fun)
This is always fun, and again, makes me look clever.

12. You have to check the web to find out what the weather is outside
What other way is there?

13. You realize that almost anything can be classed as background reading
Newspaper articles on killer superbugs that will destroy the planet?

14. People wearing shorts under a lab coat disturb you slightly as they look as though they might be naked underneath
It is scary.

15. Although all cooking is a glorified chemistry experiment you just still can't seem to get it right
Heh, I'm getting there.

16. Safety equipment is optional unless it makes you look cool
Honestly, who wears goggles?!

17. Warning labels invoke curiosity rather than caution
"What would happen if?..."

18. The Christmas nightout reveals scientists can't dance, although a formula for the movement of hands and feet combined with beats per min is found scrawled on a napkin by a waiter the next day
Ugh, yet to find that out. Better be good, they spend the whole year planning it!

19. You know which part of the lab you can chill out undisturbed on friday afternoon
Afternoons aren't often chilled.

20. You decide the courses and conference you want to go on by the quality of the food served
EVERYONE in the lab does that. Got a meeting in Hull? Awesome, they do a good buffet lunch. CPD meeting? Only good with popcorn.

21. You are strangely proud of the collection of junk you've stolen from vendors at trade shows
Not been yet :(

22. You've used dry ice to cool beer down
I've heard stories, but alas, never done that.

23. No matter what the timings in the experiment protocol there is always time for lunch in the middle
Hell yes. Tea breaks too.

24. You can no longer spell normal words but have no trouble with spelling things like immunohistochemistry or deoxyribonucleic acid.
This is true, but I will never master "fluorescence". Only got that because of the spell checker.

25. Burning eyes, nose and throat indicate that you haven't actually turned on the fumehood/downdraft bench
More like a strong smell of poo.

26. Your slightly too fond of the smell of (pick one or many) Xylene/Agar/Ethanol/Undergraduates/Alcoholic handwash
Enterococci, formalin, ethanol, xylene...list goes on.

27. You've left the lab wearing a piece of PPE (personal protective equipment) because you forgot you had it on
Since that's gloves or labcoat, no. Almost went into the main lab in a blue labcoat once though.

28. You bitch about not being able to pipette by mouth any more (Not me but i've worked with people who do!)
As the author said, not me, but I know older folks who do.

Signs from others in the group (04-07-07) (these taken from the Facebook group, credit left in)

29. Security come round at 2 am wondering why the lights are still on only to find you with your arms up to your elbows in a glovebox - Cheers James
Not allowed to do that yet!

30. you have made some kind of puppet out of a nitrile glove and kept it as a pet (I know this isn't just me!) (Putting dry ice in makes for a rapidly expanding if short lived pet - DS) - Cheers Rachel
We've all made weird things with bits we find in the lab. Someone at work made toys with mouse balls and kinder eggs.

31. When at a Fall Out Boy gig you wonder why everyone is going round with Faecal Occult Blood (FOB) written on their head!!!! -Just for you Sarah
I have actually related the two things. Sad.

32. You have an irresistible urge to rip your shirt off superman stylie cos it has press stud fasteners just like your lab coat.....Most often occurring as you walk through a door just like exiting the lab.... (The worlds of strippers and lab workers collide, not pretty- DS) Thanks for that Carrie
OMG YES. I've done that since before reading this, and more so since. You really can't help it. Busy, stressful day, and you have to do a superman style labcoat rip off on the way out.

33. You still get amusement out of "freezing" things in liquid nitrogen! - Not just you Tracey
I want a go!

A Few more from me (12-07-07)

34. Blinking real fast has saved your eyesight on more than one occasion.
Haha, no. Heard too many stories

35. You've removed your gloves to find a small hole which has left you with either - wrinkly old person hands, a brightly coloured finger (histologists especially) or a burning sensation and dermatitis and some point.
Bright coloured stain and wrinkling hands quite a lot.

36. You've bent down to pick something up off the floor only to scatter the contents of your top pocket under the largest machine in the lab - Common problem i believe
All the damn time. I'm always losing stuff from my pocket.

More From you guys (19-07-07)

37.When you rejoice when grabbing a handfull of eppendorfs/bijous/anything and it turns outs to be the exact number you needed (always strangly good andy)
This one time, I was doing C.diff toxin tests, and there were 7, and by accident I picked up 7 test tubes. It was an awesome day.

38.You can`t wait for lab clean-up coz you get to do random pointless "experiments" to figure out whats in all the dodgy unlabeled bottels (Sniff test is a bit of a gamble Nadia)
Oh I so want to do this.

39. You hate having to change your lab coat to a new one because 'it just won't fit right' and because the wrist bits are way too tight (They never get my 'cut' just right either Tom)
EXACTLY. I have a favourite.

40. You know you have worked in a lab too long when you actually threaten your cells whilst waving a bottle of virkon (All been there Becky)
O.o

41.Your nose invariably itches when you're doing mucky stuff with your hands so you develop the habit of scratching it on your upper arm. Unfortunately you sometimes carry this habit over to real life, where it looks like you're sniffing your armpits (Trying to find a clean bit of lab coat can be fun as well, cheers Kate)
When you're dealing with poos, usually. OH! The worst one is when your arms are in the anaerobe cabinet, and you forget, and try and scratch yourself through a window. Don't work.

42. When as the senior of morphology you threaten each new registrar on their first day that oil and x10 dry objectives do not mix and will result in violence (Cheers Nichola)
O.o

43. when you say goodnight to your microscope on a friday night and tearfully hug it goodbye as you won't see it all weekend (Cheers again Nichola)
This is known as "sad".

44. When you start making patterns in your pipette tip box as you take the tips out. I made a beautiful spiral today (Could have been an art student Vicky)
Does it count when you do it in a tray of 5ml waters?

45. When you wonder how much it will hurt if I pour just a smidge of this phenol:chloroform/trichloroacetic acid/any random chemical on myself (Best try it out on some one else first Mike)
More like I wonder if it will really burn through, and what I could use as a weapon of self defence.

46. You've seen how far away you can hit a target with a squirty water bottle or seeing how far away from the bin i can fire pipette tips. (Pinging gloves is also fun Ed)
Elastic band fights are almost the same?

47. The fire alarm ceases to bug you. You only evacuate when you see the fire. (Hand on the floor to check for heat is a good indicator)
Damn thing makes me jump EVERY week, but if it was a real fire, I wouldn't move and just assume it was another drill.

48. You know when you've been in a lab too long when you make 6 litres of medium, but wonder why no one makes "high" or "low".(Cheers Tom)
Well I'll wonder that now...

49. When you organise your kitchen cupboard contents the way you would your chemicals..all labeled in alphabetical order (Cheers Anggia)
Ha, no.

50. When you've got that callus on the side of your thumb from opening PCR tubes (Cheers Chani)
Well since I don't do PCR, no. I do have a mark on my thumb from always scraping it opening urine pots.

The main one though, is that you now know what the NHS is really like. It makes you appreciate the Amateur Transplants more, but more than anything it makes you want to bang your head against a wall. Or several different walls.

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Now playing: Mando Diao - Ochrasy
via FoxyTunes

I did a blog

2007-07-10T18:13:00.000+01:00

Hi. I made a new blog. Why? Partly bordom, but mostly because I have sometimes have stuff to say and nowhere to say it.

Brief blog history then. I got 4-5 years ago, updated it sporadically for a short while, then gave up on it. I don't even remember what software I used. Got another not too long after, and kept it up for maybe a year? I freaked out though when I found out that some people I knew offline, and a band I like, had read it. Knowing that they'd read some good stuff I'd written about them made me think about people I know offline reading the bits that show how crazy I am, including some stuff ranty stuff about them. Deleted that one, and started another a while after. I kept that up for a long time, trying hard not to talk as much about my "issues" in a ranty fashion, but if I wasn't using my blog as a way of getting all that out I didn't have much to say. I deleted that when I cleared out everything I didn't use on the internet.

And that was boring, but I felt like writing it. I'm setting this one up now with the idea of talking rubbish a lot, without really saying much about the fact that I'm a bit odd and have too many issues going on. I think I'll leave this post at this, and start a new one for the rubbish I'll talk about today.