Torrent

I'm hypnotised by a Torrent Swarm.
Its all downloading and none uploading.
I set it that way sometimes.
Even though it doesn't make a difference to my downloads.
I didn't set it that way tonight though.
Unusual.

Blog Update

Ahoj! Realised I hadn't posted in ages so I threw up the random blog posts I put up on my Bebo.

Things going strange lately. Slow, fast, slow. Slow with college, but then I came up with a marvelous little project that should wrap my thesis around itself very nicely (thank *eck).

Then fast, going through Europe like a dose of salts. Poland rocks the socks, but think twice about Slovakia... just my experience is all...

Then slow, having dead meetings in college with people who seem to be figments of my imagination.

But sure you'll have that.

Chat soon.

Why I Hate (almost) Everything But Don't Lock Myself In A Small Dark Room Crying For My Teddy

Imagine you're a turtle on a beach.

There's never been anything but you and your turtle friends on this beach.

You were born on this beach, and you'll die on this beach.

You've never seen anything past the horizon of the water or the dunes of sand on the beach.

Your life on the beach is a fine, quiet life, and it's all you know.

So, Turtle on a beach... try explain the concept of Government.

How the hell do you know?

The Battle of the Power Ballads

While walking out of HMV, me miming the words to Whitesnake's classic power ballad "Is This Love":

Colin: "I hate Whitesnake... Nothing compared to Journey..."

Sunday Boredom & Juggling

It's Sunday, hence the most boring day of the week. It's also raining torrentially, so you can't actually go outside and do anything. Argh!!

I've taken up juggling as a new hobby, and i'm really enjoying it. It takes a lot of concentration, and a hell of a lot of practice, but its quite fulfilling. Its handy to have YouTube and a friend who juggles professionally to pester for tips!

I used to juggle when I was a kid, about 10 years old or so. I taught myself, by just copying clowns and such; yes, for a while I wanted to be a clown. I'd still take it up, honest job - always wanted to be an entertainer! Not fit enough to commit to pro-wrestling so i'll leave that one. Anyway, I knew I wasn't juggling "properly", since I had taught myself, but I bought some juggling balls (thuds) and practiced a bit. Apparently what I had been doing is known as a Shower, which is not what you start off learning as a juggler, apparently is hard for some jugglers to do :/. So, before my head swelled, I went to square one.

• First thing you do is look up. Look where you want the ball to go. Don't look at the ball in your hand. Then, throw one ball into your vision, in an elliptical pattern, and catch with the other hand. Do it 10+ times with each hand 'till you're comfortable. Then try two.
• Hold a ball in each hand, throw your dominant hand, and when it reaches its peak, just at the point when its about to fall, throw the other one a little to the side of that one. Catch this falling one, and repeat - throw, apex, throw, catch, apex, throw, catch. Do it 10+ times, mix it up, and master it. Move on from there!
  

Two paragraphs, simple enough, but it's taken me four days to do this badly. I'm happy enough with it, the hardest part is getting the rhythm right. Just don't look at your hands, and stay slow!

The Shower is the passing of the balls in a circular patter, ie throw your right up, at the apex, throw the ball from your left to the right, catch falling ball with your left. It should resemble balls travelling around your upper body in a circular motion.

Much fun, and apparently good exercise for body and mind. Studies have shown juggling is the first pastime/activity proven to increase grey matter in the areas of the brain related to advanced functions, such as memory, cognition and coordination.

The Trouble With Boredom

I'm bored, awful bored. I've been looking at the same page on and off for about 3 hours.

The problem is; its a table of contents.

"Table of Contents Syndrome" is a worrying problem. All it makes you good at is making Lists. But Lists are generally a preface to a more in-depth discussion of topics mentioned in the List. But what if you don't know what you're talking about?

The List can have two forms: Large and Small. A large List can be a very good thing. If you are writing for volume (which I am) then you can easily break up the text into smaller sections that can be independent, while the List takes care of any notion of flow.

If, however, you are writing for specification or description, a List can be a mixed blessing. Imagine writing a 2,000 word paper (about 4.5 typed pages). A large List will have basically written the paper for you, although if too large then you will only provide minimal detail and probably end up making a very poor and unclear, if succinct, point.

In this case, a short, broad List is more useful. You know what you are writing about, and by keeping your List short and broad you have more room to be creative and descriptive.

So, remember: when you are writing, plan it out – and keep your Lists tidy.

Back to the Table of Contents I go.