Bored

What I am doing right now:

Listening to an album by Walls called Coracle
Watching a Youtube video of American people at shooting ranges
Googling 'contemporary' because I wasn't confident that I could spell it correctly

I'm quite bored.

My Hueco trip is getting closer and my training is still plodding along nicely. I don't feel particularly strong. I guess I feel stronger than when I was 13. I guess that's mainly because when I was 13, I was suffering from a severe case of appendicitis. I almost died. I was at school and started throwing up everywhere. Then I went home (got a lift) and the doctor came round and said 'Oh right, well I dunno what's up'. Then went to hospital and they cut my abdomen open and threw my septic appendix at a bin (I actually wanted to keep it, but I was told that I couldn't because 'it was all dissolved and most of it is floating around your body, hence the near death experience'). I've forgotten why I started writing this, I guess I wanted to talk about dying. I wasn't really aware that I could have died since I have a huge amount of faith in modern medicine (hence why when my dad had a heart attack and was rushed to hospital, I was almost indifferent) and also when I was 13, I had a very nonchalant outlook on life.

When I go to Hueco, I really want to go to a shooting range. That's a big plus point about going to America. I'm interested in firing at someones feet (probably Jon's) and forcing him to dance around (like in Back to the Future III). Hmm, I doubt the owners of the range would allow that though. Probably a big risk of a ricochet or perhaps young kids will see me do it and so try to emulate it at home, even though they lack the required hand eye co-ordination which I have in abundance.

Music

I like listening to music and also finding new music. It's almost a hobby. I guess I enjoy listening to music so much due to my exceptional (and bordering on superhuman) sense of hearing. I can probably hear parts of the song that only dogs can hear ( I did try and make my old dog (dead) listen to some music using headphones but it was a disaster (deaf)). I jest, she didn't go deaf straight away but she did display absolutely no interest in the music. She did later become deaf and then died. No idea what killed her, but we found her dead on the sofa in the morning and I had to dig a hole for her. It was really cold and the ground in the garden was hard, but fortunately I was working as a hod carrier at the time so I was deceptively strong and had a high endurance for physical labour. I dug a little hole for her, then wrapped her up in her favourite (her only) towel, struggling somewhat to contain the huge amount of crap that had dribbled out of her due to her now non-functional anal sphincter muscles. A bit dribbled onto the carpet. I then walked outside and tried to delicately plonk her into the grave. This is where I realised that when I dug her grave, I choose the proportions based on her sleeping naturally, all curled up. She probably did sleep like that on the night she died, but by the morning, the effects of rigor mortis had kicked in and now she was all stretched out. I had to carefully 'bend' her to fit into the ill fitting grave, so she took on a U shape. I then had to 'force' her legs to fit further into the grave, Megan had some surprising strength even in death! Suffice to say, she did eventually 'fit'. I then refilled the grave and ate breakfast and then went to work. I'm not exactly sure why I just wrote that.

Here is some music I have been listening too:
Delicate Steve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N26gNghLDpU&feature=related
Reflecting Skin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6zdj5nazkQ
Three Trapped Tigers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZublJ5TLb8Y
Frank Fairfield
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oz70zSfVcdY
Washed Out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fYnfE5Cycg
War on Drugs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMToQg0vSds
Russian Circles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2-hJtJrXxc
Adebisi Shank
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXxhKMmJLtk
Minus Baby
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6R9Vh9BD7ro&feature=related
Emeralds
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDw6tUiTfkE
Dels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjAnmqecMKI

Photos

I like taking photos and here are some photos I have taken. Nick used to be really strong and good at rock climbing. He doesn't really climb anymore. I still do, but kind of getting annoyed with it so might stop. My fingers hurt too.

Nick doing the gardening

Nick sizing up Jack the Chipper in Magic wood

Nick grabbing the final jug on Hohenrausch in Magic Wood

 Some random couple having their photo taken on their wedding day

End of the Road revisited.

I thought that I'd should write a bit more about EotR since it was a good festival. There was a good mix of music and a nice 'scene', while there was more people this year, it didn't really feel to over crowded. The food was amazing, my favourite was the crepe places and also the rotisserie chicken food place.

I fell in love with the young lady who served the chicken (I called her Lady Rotisserie). I saw her away from the chicken counter and thought hmm, I should say something to her. But then decided not to because she seemed busy. Then on the final night, we were all walking to see Joanna Newsom and while walking past I told everyone 'Now is the time to talk to her!'. Alex told me 'Don't do it, you'll make her awkward and you'll embarrass yourself'. I thought hmm no I won't, I'll be ok, my brain will think of something. We got to the crowd and I suddenly turned around and said 'I'm doing it'. I walked up to the chicken counter and saw that the Lady was cleaning, she was alone and wasn't serving anyone. PERFECT! I finally got to the counter. And that's when I forgot how to speak (while I mentally planned the walking up bit in minute detail, I didn't apply the same attention to the speaking part (some would say the most important part)). She looked up and saw me just standing there, kind of staring at her and also looking around, fidgeting. Then she started staring at me in return (probably thinking why is this handsome person starring at me?. I mumbled 'Errr, Heeeeelllo, I really like your chicken'. She replied 'Great, thanks'. I was really struggling now. 'Heh, er how do you make it?'. She was obviously getting weirded out by now since she had gone back to her cleaning 'I dunno, we just season it and cook it'. My brain was going mental. 'Do you get a chance to watch the bands?', I thought good Will, that's better. She perks up, 'Yeah I'm looking forward to seeing Joanna Newsom'. While most people would capitalise on this, my brain was still having a mild panic attack. I didn't capitalise. 'Oh wow, yeah she's good'. Wondering where she lives (for some reason I thought I could take her climbing), I said 'Where you guys based?' (I thought it would be rude (and weird) to ask her straight away 'Where do you live?'). She replied 'Well, The companies from Shrewsbury, but I'm from Manchester'. This is where it went downhill. Realising that I could no longer effectively court her, since we're so far apart, my brain goes into abort mode. I struggled to think of something to say. I have poor knowledge of Manchester except that it's relatively close to the Peak and there's climbing centres there (I must add that while thinking about Manchester, I was just standing there, starring right her her with a blank look on my face). All of which didn't help my reply. 'Oh Great, er, there's good climbing in Manchester'. Oh god, why did you say that? She replied 'Ah right, climbing'. My brain was thinking Game Over by this point, no use it saving it, best head off and get a crepe, ah yes a crepe, those things are delicious, which one should I get? Obviously a banana, sugar and butter one. Yes, it's decided, I'll get a crepe. Realising that I was still staring at the girl with a weird vacant expression on my face due to thinking intensely about crepes, I lurched back to reality. I said 'Cool, have fun at Joanna Newsom, I'm going to get a crepe. Cheerio!'. Walking off, I thought to myself Ahh that went well. Hmm, I've got more confident since then.

She was very pretty and worked for the Roaming Rotiserrie company, if anyone knows her, can they tell her that I'm really not that weird.

This was the campsite when we arrived at the 2009 festival, the 2011 one was busy

This is Neko Case

This is Explosions in the Sky