#333: Long Term Losses.

I always find it a little sad when I hear about people who clearly have the potential for much greatness, with the dreams to match... settling for much less.

Of course there are many who are genuinely happy and content in their compromise, naturally those aren't the people I'm talking about. (Actually those would be the people I'm envious of.)

I'm talking about the ones who knowingly and regretfully settle for less out of impulse, impatience or just plain fear.

I just couldn't imagine living my life with the constant nagging question of "What if...?" in the back of my mind. Couldn't do it.

Go Hard Or Go Home.

Init.

#332: Escalation.

My first time was at a place called "Mother's Farm", in Tateyama, Japan, 2006.

My second, third, fourth and fifth times would be in Macau, 2009.

The sixth, seventh, eighth, 9th, 10th, 11, 12, thirteenth times occurred in Bali, 2010.

Today would therefore be my fourteenth jump.

And I brought along two people who went from, "Omg omg omg omg..." to "Huh, that wasn't so bad!" in the space of 233metres.

#331: Nuances.

Had a bit of a cold yesterday so my aunt bought me some flu medicine. (Was pretty effective as well).

Though they might wanna rethink the wording to their water advice to something a lil less... alarming?

Excuse me while I go pee for the fourth time this half hour.

#330: Chemical Warfare.

Seriously, who the hell gets on an 11hr flight smelling like a mix of sweaty socks and highly concentrate urine?

The guy sitting in seat 55H, that's who.

I'm 55K, aka the poor sod sitting next to this aromatic wonder.

(I don't know what happened to columns I and J, this plane just decided not to have them.)

Now I don't know if any of you have noticed, but it's almost impossible to spread a fart in a jumbo jet. One of the few places in the world where this is the case. The air conditioning is just too damn powerful.

So I guffed in his face everytime I got up to get out.

#329: Jetsetters.

So I'm essentially making a weekend trip to Hong Kong.

It wasn't so unusual when I was living in Taiwan and Japan.

This would be the first time I'm doing it from England though.

Ahh, such is the world today.

#328: Pure Bliss.

Ahh, the envy.

#327: Waddle Waddle.

Packing for a wedding banquet this weekend, I'm searching through old boxes for the "smart" clothes that I'm supposed to wear to formal events.

I come across a pair of black trousers, which are 38inches at the waist and 29inches at the legs...

Evidently there was a stage in my life where I turned up to weddings shaped like The Penguin from Batman Returns.

#326: Sweet, Sweet Destruction.

I totally had a Thought of the Day lined up for this post...

Till I started reading this article on io9.com.

Those bastards had to go and list not 5, not 10, not 20, but 30! Thirty! Thirrrrty vids of the most seminal disaster movie shots ever!

You damn right I clicked through every single vid.

Couldn't be helped. They're addictive and I have poor impulse control.

Favourite part was not any of the vids though - it's the sentence "Comet of immense dignity"

*haha*

#325: And Now, You Will Too.

Whenever I'm in the middle of a big number two with a particularly rapid and excessive throughput...

I always get this image and its signature scream in my head.

I think it's coz we make the same facial expressions.

#324: Lush.

Good god. My blender is a beautiful beautiful thing.

#323: Everything Changes / Nothing Changes: Old Faces.

Met up with a lot of old college friends tonite.

There was a moment where I looked around the room and saw that we really had become doctors, traders, fathers... I thought, "Whoa... we're ~grown ups~" (O_o)

Then the DJ started playing a set full of what can affectionately be known as the Monday Night Hippodrome Classics, we all started doing what we do... and I thought, "Heh... nothing has changed then." =)

#322: Snip Bonsai Snip.

I've noticed that I have two different types of meditative states.

High-altitude hiking and long drives are good for clearing my head.

But it's only in the shower where I can properly organise my thoughts.

That's gonna make my future board meetings and video conferences a lil weird.

#321: Layers.

I bought this graphic novel when I was in San Francisco back in 2001.

The story was so dense that I never made it past the first 100pages. The anime, itself a phenomenal and complex piece of work, barely scratches on the level of detail that the author imbues into every aspect of his story. He has the whole political structure of his fictional future planned out, every little anecdote his characters use have their own footnotes explaining the backstory... behind the anecdotes! He even puts in notes of scenes that were intended, but never drawn because, "it was too much of a hassle".

Nine years on and with an inadvertent better understanding of the Japanese mentality, I find this book once more and for the first time I make it past 100pages.

...struggling with pages 110+ though... (>.<)

#320: three twenty.

I've been blogging for 320 days straight.

This is my three hundred and twentieth post this year.

Incidently, it was also the three hundred and twentieth day of the year.

How about that.

Huh.

#319: This Generation's Plight.

Over the weekend, I had the dilemma of either agreeing that I'd go with my mum to a day spa, or teach her to use Facebook.

I had to choose the one that would render the least amount of collateral damage.

Guess I'm getting a massage with my mum.

You owe me, family! You owe meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

#318: Go On, Whip'em Out.

I seem to have a knack for bringing out the geek in people.

I believe everybody has a lil piece of geekology present within them.

Man, I should start my own religion or something.

Make it ok for people to show their geekitude, not hide them away!

#317: The Light, It Burns... Part II

Somehow, my sleep cycle has positioned itself into a state where my waking hours are only during the night in both England AND Taiwan....

It's like it's trying to prove a point.

As if I didn't already know I'm a creature of darknessssssss.

*DUN dun dunnnnnnnnnnnnn*

#316: It's Me! I'm Telling You!

When I was living in Japan, Sony Ericsson were making some sexy-arse phones.

Then I moved to Taiwan and by chance, HTC began making waves with their luscious hardware...

...I'm predicting some highly desirable lumber is gonna start coming outta South America in the coming year.

#315: But I wanted 2m 45s...

I guess I could be called a pretty techy person. I've got the Masters in IT to show for it.

I have family members calling me from literally across the world whenever they have computery issues.

I've made programs that are used by tens(!) of people all across... Chile(!!).

I knew how to program most VCRs(!!!) by the time I was 10.

I know how to use the functionality in most pieces of household electronics the way they were designed, and even more in ways they weren't.


Yet, for the life of me...

...I can't figure out how to get into the timer function of our microwave.

I'm fine if I ever want to slow roast a chicken or burn a bowl of rice via the presets. I can use the one-touch cook to heat everything in 30second increments.

The little button with the little clock on it, is used to set the clock.

This microwave has out-evolved me.

Eep.

#314: Filled With Delicious Goodness.

One of the things I was looking forward to on arriving back in the UK was to spend a few days veggying out in front of the TV and catch up on my shows.

Shouldn't be too hard - being jobless and pennyless (relatively speaking) kinda ensures that I'd be staying in one place and being a good boy.

Yet somehow, things just always turn up. Laundry to be done, shelves to be built, dishes to be washed, lofts to be organised, rooms to be renovated.

I've become such a master procrastinator that I'm now procrastinating on my procrastination... (O_o)

#313: A Lil More To The Left.

Evidently I have a real knack for turning a house into a home.

Maybe I should look into interior design consultancy.

Now where did I put that pink button-down...

#312: Yes, That's Right. Slower.

Got my new phone in the post today.

While it's always exciting to get new toys - there's something to be said about the anticipation before the big reveal, so I deliberately took my time in opening the (surprisingly small) box.

Lifting out the magic slab first, I set it to one side. There would be plenty of time to handle that piece of equipment later...

I then carefully took out the various bits of paper, flicked through them, and threw them back into the box, never to be opened again.

Instead of ripping through the accessories like a kid on the Eve of Christmas, I took out a pair of scissors and neatly, gently, delicately, sliced out the little bags holding:
- The headphones, which I'll never use.
- The earbuds, which I dutifully lopped on the headphones that I'll never use.
- The usb cable, which went promptly into my backpack.
- The comically fancy usb charger, which I'll probably occasionally use.

Only after I'd packed all the unnecessary paraphernalia back into the box and set it to one side did I pick up the phone again.

Slowly peeling away the protective wrapping, teasing all the buttons, savouring especially that wicked Z-hinge action.

Then I plugged it in and went about typing this review up for the next 15minutes.

I haven't even switched it on yet.

Yeah baby, you know you like it like that. Purrrrrrrrrrr~~~~~

#311: It's Fluidic.

Hmm... maybe Peru.

#310: The Hermit.

In the past two weeks I've left the house maybe three times. Definitely less than five.

Turns out if you just gimme an internet connection, a house to rearrange and a whole bunch of Ikea furniture to assemble - I'm golden!

The house is beginning to pong a bit though... (¬_¬)

I'll just think of it as a welcome home present for when my sister comes back over xmas. (^_^)

#309: A Close One.

Holy crap I almost forgot to write an entry for today!

*phew* That's better. (^_^)

#308: Things I Do Coz Of TV Adverts.

1. When washing plates, I know they're clean when I run my finger over the surface and they squeak.

2. Before opening the milk, I always give it a little shake, from when milk used to come in jars on your doorstep.

#307: Operation Poor Man's Man Cave.

Situation Report:
All pieces assembled, entering final stages.

Motherly unit still unaware of what her living room is transforming into.

Shhhhhhhhhhh~~~~~~~~~

#306: The Pencils Were For Extra Lethal Spiky-ness.

Found another blast from the past in the attic today...

Goddammit, I was so cool!

#305: DIY Extreeeeeeeeme.

When attempting a solo build that's actually designed for two people in a room that barely larger than the build itself.

Twice.

Masking tape is your best friend in the whole wide world.

Too bad I only realised that halfway through the second build. (¬_¬)

#304: How Long Have I Been Away??

At some point between the time I left England and the time I returned to England.

My mum has decided that it is now ok to pee with the bathroom door open.

It's a brave new world, people.