Reunions
I met up with several good friends the past week and it was really great to see them again. Over the weekend I went to Prague and met up with two Uni friends from Canada. I haven't seen them for over a year and it was a small reunion of sorts. It was definitely nice to hear some familiar voices, laugh over our past year's experiences, and speak normal "Canadian" for once! The city itself was not spectacular - in fact I didn't think it was that great. It rained quite a bit (with hail!) and the Czech food was inedible. But I was just glad that I had a chance to meet up with two friends back home. It was almost surreal to see a familiar face in the midst of a foreign train station. After I saw them, I couldn't get the stupid grin off my face. I think I have been here for too long and I need to go home. This whole experience has worned down a bit - I am ready now.
I had another visitor last night and sad to say, he is going home from Germany next week. It was really nice to catch up the few months we have spent working at Siemens in our own individual tiny towns. We cooked some food and we just kept eating, chatting and laughing. Definitely much better than my usual evening! We headed out to a Biergarten after and chatted some more. Unfortunately, he had to take a train back early this morning. It is a beautiful day today - sunny and warm. But it was rather difficult to see the train slowly glide past me as I stood on the platform. Thanks for everything. And like I said: "See you later."
London Attacks
It is a chilling thought that in one month, I too will be touring London and the United Kingdom. What if this bomb attack did not occur yesterday, but a month later? I think that for some Canadians, living in "safe" countries, they think that this type of terror will not happen to them. It is someone else's problem. It is America's problem. It is the Middle East's problem. And now it is London's problem. What happens when it suddenly becomes your problem? Canada's problem?
No one is truly safe from these horrors, and we must appreciate that we are extremely lucky to live in a peaceful and relatively safe land. Can you imagine living in London now, after the attacks, frightened that the person sitting beside you in the Tube might be carrying an explosive device? How would you feel taking your children into the city? Tony Blair says that "Britons will not be terrorized". But the fear has already been instilled. This is scarier than during the Blitz during the second World War. At least then, you could see the enemy, you could see the bombers. As such, you could actively defend against it. This is different. The enemy is invisible. Anyone could be the enemy. How could you defend against something you can't see? That is the effect of terrorist attacks.
I finally begin to understand the reason for the Iraq war. There was no real choice. After the attacks on September 11th, America could not just sit back as if nothing has happened. It had to actively do something to prevent another attack. The people would have demanded it. Never mind the misdirection, Guantamino Bay, and the insurgency. What would we have done if 9/11 happened on our soil? Would our response be different? I want to point out that the US, Britain, and other coalition forces are fighting the war
for us. They are paying with the lives of their men and women in Iraq, in Afganistan and now even on their home soil. As much as I dislike George W. Bush and his policies, you have to give some credit to them for actually doing something about the problem. I mean, they had to do
something. The least we could do is not critize their every move and blunder. The least we could do is show some support to our neighbours south of the border. Because we are extremely lucky - it could have happened to us.
Are you addicted to computer games?
Here is an interesting article I read today: "
Online gaming: Technology brings a new addiction". The article even has a questionaire, to see if you are addicted to computer games. Considering the countless of hours I spent playing Starcraft, Diablo II, Sim City, and other games, I will provide my answers as of one year ago. I knew I had to stop playing - so I didn't bring any computer games with me to Germany.
Now I am hooked on Freecell and 3D Space Cadet Pinball (from Windows)... sad.
Are you addicted?
If the answer is yes to five or more questions below, you may be addicted to being online or electronic gaming:
Are you unable to predict the amount of time you will spend online or gaming? (yes)
Do you have attempts to control the behavior for an extended period of time? (yes)
Do you have a sense of euphoria while engaged in the activity? (yes)
Are you craving more time online or gaming? (yes)
Are you neglecting family and friends? (mm... sometimes)
Are you feeling restless, irritable or discontent when not engaged in the activity? (no)
Are you lying to family and employers about the habit? (no)
Are you experiencing problems with school or job performance? (... haha maybe I would have done better if I didn't play Diablo II two or more hours per day)
Are you feeling guilt, shame, anxiety or depression as a result of the behavior? (yes, guilt)
Do you have changing sleep patterns? (well... sort of)
Are you developing health issues such as carpal tunnel syndrome, eye strain, weight change and backaches? (haha no.)
Are you denying, rationalizing, and minimizing adverse consequences stemming from use? (no)
Are you withdrawing from real-life hobbies and social interactions? (lol... no)
Do you obsess about sexual acting out through gaming or other Internet applications? (WTF? no! I mean there are not that many girls who play Diablo II... seriously.)
Do you have an enhanced persona to find cyberlove or cybersex? (Definitely- I mean, no.)
Source: Reality Quest Institute Web site
***
My score: 5 Yes, 2 Maybe, 6 No. I guess I was addicted! Hehe! Now where is my prize?
What's your score?
Lost and ... so retarded
I had a really shitty morning. I come out of my building to grab my bike and what? Where is it? I remember parking it here last night! I mean who on earth would want to steal that piece of crap? It is purple AND grey with squeaky brakes. Ugliest piece of metal in the city. And it is a girl's bike.
Which is not my fault - I borrowed it for free from my aunt :P Which also means it is a big problem when someone steals it...
Man... this city is going to hell...
I looked around in front of the building for 10 minutes or so, and I couldn't find anything. Then I thought: when was the last time I used it? Well, I came home last night with it, so it should be here! Wait. I went to the store before coming home - did I leave it there? There was a very very small chance that it would be there because I didn't recall walking 10 minutes home instead of taking the bike! But that was really the last lead I had, so what the hell... I was cursing along the way and figuring out where I could buy a cheap bike to replace it.
I round the corner to the store, and I see the Turkish people unloading the truck of vegetables. WTF? There it was, standing beside the store, happily waiting for me and probably laughing hysterically at my retardedness. I couldn't believe it! That means, I walked home from the store with no recollection of it happening! What was I thinking (or not thinking) about!!
This also proves that I am bored out of my mind.
The famous Semperoper (Opera house)
A brief break from walking
Does this make you believe in God?
Our "Ferienwohnung" or "Holiday home"... it was a huge mansion along the Elbe river! Awesome place!
Amazing rock formations at the Saechisches Schweiz (Saxon Switzerland)
The river Elbe winds through the rocky terrain
Mountain climbing anyone?
The "Flush" waterfall - someone releases the dam every 30 minutes so the waterfall can be timed to music!
Fancy setup for eating frozen pizza...
Prost! (with Apple juice...)
Ameisenbekaempfung
Never mind the German - the picture is self explanatory. I love the comment in the email I received this in: "Killing ants the German way".
Even the word "Ameisenbekaempfung" or "Ant Killing" is long. Hooray for German over-engineering!
New features
You might have noticed some new changes to the blog. I thought the site was a bit bland...
The "Word of the Day" is to encourage me to study for the GRE, and to give you a taste of what memorizing hundreds of useless vocabulary is like. Those who have taken one of the dumb American tests will sympathize. You learn something everyday, so today is the word "Abscond" or "to leave secretly".
I visit the posted links fairly regularly, though I can only read the news sites at work (which is what I mostly do there...) My favourite web series is "Red vs. Blue" - it is currently finished its 3rd season with a whopping 57 funny episodes. Basically, the creators took animation directly from the XBox game Halo, dubbed in voices, and made it into a series of short videos. The key is that it is not the shooting or killing that is particularly good, but the dialogue and the story! New viewers can download most of the early episodes from the
Internet Movie Archive. The
Daily Show is a funny look at the "absurdity" in today's current events and host Jon Stewart is amazing.
Ifilm has the best collection of movie trailers, funny, strange, stupid clips and viral videos. My favourite is "
Hockey with Jules Winnfield" with Samuel L Jackson. Enjoy!
Take two
I am retaking the GRE.
Yup. After much hair-pulling and squirming, I booked the stupid test again and even purchased a book this morning. Now I have NO chance of changing my mind because over $170 is now invested into it. At the end, it was a choice between laziness and writing the test. I took choice B. Really there is no real reason that I shouldn't take it. I was just lazy and didn't want to study the stupid test again. Memorizing words which no one ever uses is not very fun after a day of sitting at the office. But no turning back now - I write on July 22, which is the same day I fly to Florence :P
At least I have something to look forward to AFTER the retardedness ends.
And thank you to those who contacted me today - it really helped me. Today has been a lot better, and ever since I booked the exam, it felt like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. The weather is beautiful today - sunny with some clouds, and NOT blisteringly hot. I am actually not sweating at work. Unlike the past week.
Talk about a sweatshop!
