Wednesday, December 7, 2011

#MakesWinterGreat

I don't do winter well. I have an aversion to extreme temperatures, and yet I live in an extreme climate that can drop down to -35C in the middle of the winter and stay there for a week or get colder just for fun. Nothing like the weather saying -40C with a wind chill to make it feel like -52C. I've been outside walking home from the university in temperatures where your skin freezes in under 30 seconds... only getting home and hearing the weather warning about staying inside... great, I hear about it now?

I honestly don't think my family in Australia can even believe that the planet has places that get this cold. I dealt with my ever growing testiness with winter and ranted about it from time to time... but then I went to Mexico in February of 2009 and I realized that we didn't need to live this way. In the time it takes me to drive to my grandmothers I could be flying and landing in a place with palm trees.

Apparently I have become more vocal in my despising of winter... probably a bit unbearable at times.

So this year I've decided to do something different. I'm going to try and focus on all the good things that come about from the season and try to bundle up enough that the wind doesn't get me an make me into a grumpy gusset. I'm using twitter to keep track of them. I have a standby list of things that I thought up a few days ago but I'm mostly going to try and take ideas from my every day life. It is making me feel like I'm a little bit more ready for winter.

Wish me luck

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Art

I've always wondered where I draw the line on calling something art. When I go into a gallery I look and think about what someone was trying to do, the effort, the ideas. Some titles really make the work better, they give some context to a story that I'm unaware of. And sometimes it just explains to me what I'm looking at in the first place. "Oh, that's a girl in a tree playing with shoes... wait, what?" (don't bother trying to figure out what painting I'm thinking of, if it does exist I haven't seen it)

I like art in a lot of forms. Slam poetry, graffiti, paintings, murals, music, pottery and ceramics, stain glass, welded sculptures, classic marble carvings... I have a very broad definition of what I like.

In the past few years I've had the great chance to see a lot of really great art all around the world. But I think the things that have had the most impact on me where full room art installations.

The first was an installation by the artist Yayoi Kusama. There were a lot of her works on display at the time (2009, Wellington New Zealand) twisting red columns were really striking and I got to see some of her famous mirror balls. But there was one room they were only let a few people into at a time. It was completely black with tinny lights hanging from the ceiling. You stand on a platform in the middle of a room made of mirrors with the floor around you holding an inch or two of water. Light reflects off everywhere around you but not enough to see. It was amazing. A room that made me feel like I was suspended in space. I wanted to some how make my own room like that to live there. How can I make my whole house like this?!

The second time was a twisting maze of doors and rooms in the British Tate museum. This maze was so fantastic because of the detail that went into replicating a room. I got to feel like I had actually experienced something magical. Physical shock at finding myself in a place I had not expected to be. You enter through a room from the museum and wander through doors and corridors, backtracking and loosing yourself. And you find yourself back at the start. So you open the door... only instead of walking out into the gallery again you're in work room. The two rooms at opposite ends of the maze were almost identical. The only things that were different were the order of burned out light bulbs in the large scale christmas lights

In both of these works I got to loose myself in their idea, in one case literally. I think I can really appreciate the hours that go into a room installation. While a phrase or a brush stroke can be just as agonizingly long I can more tangibly understand the effort and mechanics of a large scale art work that has obviously taken days to dream and put together.

So I don't really know what is and isn't art to me. But I think a bit of what art is comes from stepping outside yourself and getting a fresh look at things. Disorienting yourself from your everyday. I spend so much of my life knowing exactly where I am that any chance to stop that for a moment is refreshingly new.

Edit: Found a link that has pictures of the first room installment
http://gatsbylives.tumblr.com/post/13473547992

Thursday, October 27, 2011

How you should not convert people

So because of one of my tags from yesterday it made me think of another story.

I was walking to a friend's party a few years ago. My friend's apartment was situated in amongst a lot of apartment blocks so very little parking in the area so I had to park pretty far away. This wouldn't have bothered me normally, except the road was having light problems so there were no streetlamps on, and I was startled to suddenly catching sight of two men walking on the other side of what I had previously thought was a deserted road... who obviously spotted me at the same moment and made a bee line across the road towards me. I couldn't make them out at all in the dark and got kind of freaked out. I kept walking and one of the guys went to get ahead of me. They were cutting me off from getting to my friend's place a block and a half away. There was a van in between us (why they had to split up) so I stepped further off the sidewalk onto the grass towards one of the apartment blocks thinking about running behind the buildings. Wondering if that would place me in more or less danger, get a head start? Or isolate myself?

But before I could head that way they spoke to me. It took a moment for my brain to process what they were saying. Mormons. I felt like yelling at them. I wouldn't allow myself to drop out of my fight or flight mode. I kept distance between us and edged away.

I was only half listening to the conversation (thankfully I can make small talk in my sleep). I was mad, thinking: Which of theses idiots thought it was a good idea to come up to a woman on her own at night? And then I got analyzing why I was mad. I had been scared. Scared that these unknown guys were going to attack me. I calmed down some as I talked with them a bit, slowly walking around them. Putting me closer to my friend's building. I finished with them and walked away thinking: Wouldn't it be a perfect way to rob someone by saying "don't worry we're Mormons"

I always like going for walks on my own and I like talking to Mormons... but that night really made me question going out at night on my own.
Could I have defended myself? probably not
Would anyone have been able to help me? ...no
Did it stop me from going for walks on my own? No.

As I'm reminded of this I think it is time for me to look into taking a level in bad ass.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

How you should not meet people

I had been heading home the other night from dropping off a friend Pat at his home. We live just a few blocks from each other so I had maybe 5 minutes in the car. Suddenly there was this teenager walking into the street with his arms up. No shoes on. I stopped and rolled down my window. "Please help me."

I talked to him a bit, he was drunk and scared. From what I gathered he had been at a house party and someone had been pushing drugs. He got scared and ran out the door. At first I thought he meant they had forced him to take something. I asked if he wanted to go to the hospital but he just wanted to get home and away from these people.

I let him in. He was Ty, a first year at the university and had moved to the city just recently from South Africa... hell of a change there. He didn't know anyone in the city and had met these people who took him to a party. He was upset about it all happening and just wanted to get home as soon as possible. He was also pretty embarrassed about having to ask a stranger for help.

I called Pat to let him know that I was giving a kid a ride to the other end of town... just in case. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. The most the kid did was slowly pass out but I kept waking him up before he slipped too low in his seat. I drove him all the way to his garage. Thankfully he had a code to get in and not a key because he left his jacket at the house party too.

Called Pat back and he was relieved to hear it went well and declared that I've won for strangest experience between our homes.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

On the road with books

I've just closed the cover on my 18th book of the trip. I always keep a record of what I'm reading but there is some satisfaction that comes from having a start to a limited amount of time and making the effort to fit in what you find important.

The problem is that books get heavy in a bag. And while I always say that I'm not going to pick any up... They keep making their way into my bag. By the time I get back home I have no idea how many books I will have picked up, but right now I have 6 that need to be carried around.

The last 2 additions have been from people I'm staying with.
One saying: "Take it home, get it back to me when I come to town at Christmas"
Another with something like: Take it! It will be leaving my house in some way.

I obviously didn't keep all the books that I read with me. A lot of them I borrowed from people and read from the hostel library or from the local library, a few pdfs helped things a lot too. But there have been a few book purchases along the way.

One in Cardiff (the Dark Philosophers) that I read... well struggled to read through as I wanted to smack most of the characters, finished and then promptly abandoned it in Aberdeen. I was lead to believe it was going to be funny, the introduction said he was funny and had a great quote that actually made me laugh out loud in the store... maybe my humour just doesn't line up right with his when it isn't pointed out to me. I switched it in the hostel library for Tess of the d'Urbervilles but I'm not sure I came out on top with that one. I kept thinking I should leave it at another hostel but I figure I should read it before leaving it... but that could be my book addiction talking.

While I was in Edinburgh I wandered into an old book shop and spent a good deal of time looking at all the old bound copies of books and fighting the urge to take home 7 volume sets or even 3 volume sets because they looked so damn beautiful. I did end up finding a book about the life of Madame de Pompadour. I read a few pages and I'm really looking forward to having some good solid time to read it and let the creativity flow from reading about that era.

I picked up 2 books that I'd really wanted to read for some time in recently-rioted-in Manchester at a student sale. Midnight in the Gardern of Good and Evil and Oranges are not the only fruit. I was so excited to find both of them.

I started reading Oranges right away as I walked down the street. It had such a great introduction that I wanted to keep reading and reading for days. She had such a great style and voice telling how the book came about... and then the actual story started. It was frustrating, unsettling and saddening. I don't know what happened... Life, circumstances, maybe seeing the huge divide between her life and mine small town UK vs small city Canada. I might never really be able to explain to someone why it got to me in such a negative way when so many people seem to find humour in it. I left that one in Edinburgh. But I kept the other book from the sale. Again I've only read the first few pages but I'm looking forward to it. Plus it now holds a great bookmark that I made out of a show announcement for the Edinburgh Fringe

"Keep Calm and Carry on Barefoot"

I love it.

I bought a book of poetry from the poet Young Dawkins after his last performance at the Edinburgh Free Fringe. He was amazing. I had got there early and boy was I glad of that. People just kept coming in and ended up filling the place and out into the hall. At one point he asked "Where have you people been all Fringe?!"
It was a great hour, he had 2 guys playing instruments along with him and it was simply perfect. His words mixed well with the guy who had been playing with him for a while and the new guy added some more contrast. I couldn't imagine it sounding better. He really made every word count. What I especially respected was him giving the stage to a young woman to do one of her poems. He had such a bigger audience and pull that she was exposed to more ears that might otherwise have missed her amid the hundreds of other shows. And she was really good too so it fit smoothly in with his other poems.

It was one of those days that reminds me why I love slam poetry and how I love words. It also made me want to attend many MANY more poetry readings. I settled for buying his book and being able to hear where he paused and lifted his voice as I read the print, really hearing him read the poems again in my memories. Also he signed it "Thanks for your joy" which just filled me with more joy.

I think those might be all the books I have kept with me. I get the feeling there is another that will make itself known to me when I get to the next stage of my trip.

Edit*
Turns out I completely missed 2 other books I have on me.
A book of comic verse that I got in Oxford and The Deeper Meaning of Liff that I got in Morecambe. Both bought from second hand book stores. I also resisted the urge to buy a new one today.

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Writing Analysis

I have finally done the I Write Like test.

I write like
Cory Doctorow

I Write Like by Mémoires, journal software. Analyze your writing!




This came out of my writing for my blog... ok he's a blogger too. Good, at least I'm on the right track


I Write Like by Mémoires, journal software. Analyze your writing!




And this one came from my writing in general.

I am not familiar enough with either of their writings to say if this pleases me or not. I'll let you know when I find out.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Motorcycles on the Ferry from Tasmania

My parents and I had been traveling around Tazmania while the national motorcycle rally was taking place there in 2009. Thousands of bikers had poured onto the island and were traveling up and down the highways. We met some really nice people along the way in the parking lots of various holiday parks and I learned a lot about the culture and precautions that go into large bike trips.

We head back to the mainland on the ferry with something like 300 - 500 bikes, which made for a very cramped cargo hold and limited space for actual cars with those numbers of bikes. It was so cool to see all the bikes lined up, down, and around the loading yard. There were some really impressive machines coming on board. I talked with some people later and found out there were a couple of bikes worth more than our house! Unfortunately one of those bikes amid the hundreds did not have its alarm turned off. Even with all the signs posted to remind people to make sure it was off before leaving the parking level.

So for a long time the PA system was just a repeat of:

"Would the owner of the motorcycle with license number something something please return to your vehicle. Your alarm is going off."

Every few minutes there would be another variation of the announcement: a little louder, a bit more insistent, and a bit less formal.

"Would the owner of something something please come down and shut it off."

"License something something come down here and turn it off."

Eventually after an hour the announcement was nothing more than:

"IT'S STILL ON!"

Lots of people laughing each time a new message came on the PA. Mostly it was everyone muttering in agreement at the frustration at how no one had gone down there and shut it off yet. I was listening to peoples reactions as I sat in one of the bars reading because I felt like being around people but wanted some time away from my parents. One of the bikers came over to my table and asked if I could watch his 6 beers for him. I was too stunned to say anything but nod. So he set down his six bottles and went off to the bar to buy more.

Some bikers next to me saw and said,
"You don't have to take that darlin'! You come sit with us and let him watch his own beer." So I moved over one chair... but still ended up watching the beers as it was all too strange.
The guy came back with another four beers or so and immediately started drinking.
One of my new friends asked what was with all the beers.

The man paused his drinking only long enough to say
"It was mine."

Thursday, October 6, 2011

What should I pack?

I've heard on numerous occasions that the best time to pack for your next big trip is when you're back from your last one.

So I'm going to run through my bag and sort out all the stuff I needed and didn't really need to bring.

HAVE A RETURN TICKET IF YOU ARE GOING TO THE UK.

Just make your life easier and have the ticket and info ready to present to customs to let them know that you aren't planning to stay forever.

I've got a large bag, 70 Liters... I still have no idea what this means, but it might mean something to someone out there. I saw a bunch of girls walking around with bags bigger than mine and with a huge duffel bag on top of that, this would have killed me on this trip. But I know that lots of those girls were probably moving to the UK while I was just running around for fun. I like my bag because I could put my clothes in it and still had room for the little things that start adding up as you travel around.

Bottoms
Need:
Long pants/trousers (depending on your region)
a pair of capri pants (generally these can be cooling or warming depending on what you pair them with)
A pair of shorts

Suggestions:
I'd heard that leggings under jeans make for really warm leg wear if you find yourself in a much cooler place than you were expecting.

On the fence:
I had a light pair of capri that I used a couple of cooler nights but I think I could have gotten away without them... then again they were generally what I wore to do laundry in. So I might have to reconsider as I did wear them a fair number of times.

Could have done without:
I had a skort (skirt-shorts) with me that only served as wrapping for breakables.

Tops
I had a variety of light tops. The more you have the more time you have between washes and it makes a load of laundry actually worth the money.

Need:
1 tank top (I don't get overly warm but on the days when the heat got too much it was good to have)
7 Shirts... I might even take this higher on my next trip. They were mostly light shirts, I had one that I considered my more fancy one that I had planned to go out for the evening in, but generally I just ended up wearing a regular shirt when I went out. So I had my fancy one for laundry day! Snazzy! (my motto is: Different colours and styles so you don't start hating everything you wear.)
A light warm sweater
A baggy light 3/4 sleeve shirt. It was perfect for letting air in or keeping me a little warmer
Rain jacket/wind breaker

On the fence:
I brought a cardigan along and it really helped me feel dressed up on some nights when I didn't want to feel like a tourist but I did only wear it a couple of times.

Could have done without:
I had an extra tank top that didn't really make it out that often. Spent most of the trip keeping my skort company.
I had also packed a bathing suit... I could have maybe used it once, but I just didn't feel like swimming.
Sleeping shirt, I had brought along some pjs but most nights I just slept in the shirt I'd been walking around in all day.

Underwear/socks:
Girls, I'd bring along an extra bra to however many you would normally take. I tried this out for the first time this trip and I was really happy. I usually go with 2 but over the course of my trip one was wrecked so it worked out really well
Underwear - Bring at least 3 or 4 more than the shirts you have.
Socks will depend on if you're going for a wet place. If wet, go with the same rule of the underwear. If hot and dry you might want to cut back if you're going to wear sandals. But if you're going for hot with hiking you'll want the extra pairs to keep your feet from stinking.

NEED
Passport (goes without saying but some things still need to be said)
Shower sandals
Good walking shoes
Towel
Soap/shampoo/comb
toothbrush and paste
deodorant (if you're going to use spray GET OUT of the hostel dorm room before you use it!)
Suction cup hook for the walls of shower bathroom and a canvas bag to hang my clothes in - Saved me from wet clothes soooo many times.
A necklace money pouch
Ear plugs and eye-mask (there are some places where this will be essential)

Teck that made my life easier:
Power adapter
Camera, power cord
regional pay as you go phone
small laptop and cord (most places have wifi but no computers for use, so unless you have your own laptop or smart phone you're out of luck)
ipod and headphones
travel alarm clock

Helpful things but not essential:
A hard sided case like a Tupperware container really helped with keeping small things together and protecting some small breakables.
Needle and thread
Permanent marker (for labeling your food for hostel fridges)
scissors
collapsible fork/spoon/knife
compass (even in big cities this is really helpful as most locals say "Go North" to start directions)
Plastic protection for documents
Little gifts from your country (I handed out a bunch of random things with the Canadian flag on it, the best thing I got in return was some stickers from a girl from South Korea. I always feel self conscious about packing them but I'm always happy that I have them when I meet people)

pens and a small note book

This is where I have some thoughts. Keeping track of your journey will be really helpful later for contacting people, train tickets, hostel bookings, events you want to get to and even just remembering what you did from day to day. I had a few note books with me but I would have been happy with just the one little moleskin that has a section with perforated pages VERY helpful.

Additionally -I had a pocket size sudoku book that made for bits of scrap paper and a mini note pad for jotting down directions and emails from people. Really helpful and I always knew where everyone's information was and some entertainment when waiting in lines for things.

Monday, October 3, 2011

A new direction

Alright, so I'm back in Canada after another adventure around the world. Slowly I'm making my way back to Regina and questioning what I should do with my life and where I'll be living 5 months from now. I don't know why that time seems to be important but it seems as good as any... wait... that would be my birthday... good job mind for keeping up on things when I'm just sitting back.

I've been thinking more and more about my past goals of keeping this blog up to date, but that just doesn't seem my style. (much like how comas seem to escape my notice most days till I really work at it)

I've been using a website called Ohlife which has pleased me to no end and keeps me on track with recording my day to day memories with email reminders. Very handy. So now I can focus on actually making this into a Blog with a theme? Pattern?

I've had a bunch of recommendations about what it could be about and I think a little mix would help things.

Sarah said way back at the start that I should record how I meet people. To be a helpful guide to others in need of learning the art of friendship.

A woman that I met in the UK last month said that I should write out all the crazy little stories from my traveling adventures.

Both of these I think would be really fun to write about and would not require keeping in a chronological order... where my life seems to break down if I try doing things like this.

So the plan is set. The stories are there in my brain and the people are out there to meet.