Today I am an explosion, an avelanche, a lightning strike
Today I am electrical potential and potential energy at rest
Today I am the lust that drives the engines of being
Today I am the sin that is it's own atonement
Today I am defiance that brings reconciliation
Today I am the promise of a new Jerusalem and the toppling of an old
Today I am you and me and tomorrow and the next
Today I am the emptiness at the heart of substance and the uncertainty of principle
Today I am a rose by any other name, and smell as sheep.
Today I am a loving self-parody and a parody of self-loving.

(yes, my first post for four months is auto-messianic propaganda. isn't it great that I'm back? :D)

I had a really good time and I hope you all did too, those of you who came along.

Thanks to mc_shamo  and mstakenidentity for the scotch and the horses, they were both delicious and entertaining,
Also thanks to imajica_lj for the book and for showing up despite the demands of work. -hugs-

And to everyone else who turned up, I can only say that if you had half as good a time as I did, then I had twice as good a time as you.

But seriously- thanks for coming, and you all made me feel very loved.

Sorry you couldn't make it this time, Nex, but I'll see you on thursday.

So, yesterday I became a victim of the recession. I am now unemployed again. I shall be requiring a substantial stimulus package.

Or someone to come and stimulate my package. That was a joke in order to lighten the mood.

Honestly, if I wasn't so insecure about my prospects of finding another job, I'd actually be quite happy to be rid of this one, I wasn't exactly keen on it. And I've got money saved up to last for a while, as well as a good reference and six months more experience for my CV, so I guess it could be a lot worse.

Ah well. This is what we call living and learning.

I had a couple of requests to x-post this from my bookface for various people's reading pleasures. so here it is.

1. I love drinking Frangelico, and I don't know why.
2. Almost everyone I'm friends with is older than me.
3. I have anxiety attacks if I go longer than a week without acquiring a book somehow.
4. 500 is my favourite card game
5. Much as I detest the heat, humidity is much much worse.
6. I believe in open-source software. There, I said it.
7. I also believe in aliens, faries, trustworthy politicians and other imaginary creatures.
8. My cynicism makes even me uncomfortable at times.
9. Macbeth has been systematically ruined for me forever, starting from when I was 15
10. Still love Cymbeline, though
11. And Death of a Salesman
12. And Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolfe?
13. I am.
14. I have a perverse fondness for rap, as long as it's c.1992 and not from today.
15. I also love Gilbert and Sullivan
16. And bad fantasy novels...also good ones.
17. I rarely know when to keep my mouth shut
18. I believe puns are the highest form of humour and should be applied much more often.
19. I had a goth phase. I grew out of all of it except the music and the literature.
20. I am richer now than I've ever been before! Tremble before my plutocratic wrath!
21. My favourite sushi establishment is Tokui Sushi, on the corner of Lonsdale and Swanston streets
22. Giant rats have become my stock answer to a lot of questions.
23. Dried yogurt on musli bars is just a hideous thing and should be eliminated.
24. Prefers 'Down and Out in Paris and London' to '1984'.
25. Used to love eating sand at the beach. mmm...crunchy...

I thought, on my birthday, it might be a nice change to give a long awaited gift to someone who very much deserves it. It has no title, and it's right behind this cut, to spare those of you who don't want to peer too deeply into my romantic life.
( Read more... )

number of cars officially written off by me: 1.

fuck. fucking fuck shit balls damn fuck!

I haven't posted anything, recently, so here's the omnibus digest of the last week or so

Last Wednesday I drove with my parents to Wollongong to visit my brother on the occasion of his eldest child's third birthday. Whilst the trip was uneventful, it was an enjoyable time playing with adorable children and reconnecting with the bits of the family I don't get to see much of. Also, the scenery up through that part of the world is just wonderful, marred by the incessant and excessive heat. Learning that this was to continue on my return was not something that filled me with cheer.

The 11 hours spent on a train to get home was also not pleasant, but ultimately it worked out ok, and let me almost entirely skip invasion Australia Day, which as far as I'm concerned is a win.

Then last night imajica_lj came over to let it all hang out and use the pool, and aside from my sudden outbreak of crazies and him narrowly avoiding hitting a bookshelf, we had a great night. Until this morning, giving him a ride to work, when we were pretty nastily rear-ended (and not in a good way like last night, obvious sexual pun) on Swan St. I've been feeling pretty shaken up as a result today, and have just taken a nap to get through the worst of the adrenaline crash. However, no one was hurt, and the insurance appears to cover everything. As the accident wasn't my fault, there's not even (fingers crossed, of course, but this is what the lady on the phone said) an excess to pay or an affect to our premium, and the car has now been towed for repairs. Actually, apart from my freaking out in between getting home and calling the insurance people, the whole post-crash experience was pretty smooth and painless. This helped a lot

Incidentally, mc_shamo , when I was cleaning out the car before it got towed, I realised I still have the walking stick from Lysistrata, if you need it back.

Now I'm looking forward to working in the heat for the next two days, and pride march on sunday- how I'll get there carless is an issue, but we'll work that out when it happens.

Ok. Update over.

So, to take a hypothetical...

were I to be running a 3rd ed D&D game...

...in a homebrew setting...

...based on a very loose version of Rome around the time of the civil war...

...would people be interested in playing? I'd be happy to try and put it together if I can get the players.

Leave a message.

Alright, everyone else seems to be doing this, so I'm going to take a run up and...


( Bandwagons, jumping on the. )

The likely date for my 21st will be Friday the 13th of February, 2009. Chances are good you're invited.

By the powers invested in me by the fact of being a pervert, I hereby invoke rule 34 on today's instalment of Questionable Content

Renowned British playwright Harold Pinter passed away  on December 24th, 2008. One of the most influential writers of the last hundred years, Pinter's contribution to theatre, both as a writer and an actor, film and poetry was immense. He will be deeply missed.

"I believe that despite the enormous odds which exist, unflinching, unswerving, fierce intellectual determination, as citizens, to define the real truth of our lives and our societies is a crucial obligation which devolves upon us all. It is in fact mandatory.
If such a determination is not embodied in our political vision we have no hope of restoring what is so nearly lost to us — the dignity of man."
-Art, Truth and Politics

Just a random thought that occurred to me.

Wouldn't it be great if all the dialogue in porn movies was done in very proper, formal English, complete with upper-class British accents and mannerisms to top it off?

"Oh dear, I should so love it were you to ejaculate on my face at this point, my dear"
"By our lady! Penetrate my anus with greater gusto, virile copulatory companion!"
"I say, do you enjoy being treated in such a manner, harlot? I can see your excitement visibly increase each time my hand roughly strikes your posterior."
"Oh my, I note that your phallus has become increasingly engorged, and the girth of said implement appears to be both titillating and somewhat intimidating to me."

Etc.

So, I found my old paper journal from when I was 14. It's interesting to go back over it. Here's a sample.


Anonymous Suburbia, by Wyl- age 14.

I see outside
Streetlights in the night
Little pools of light
Little pools of life
Swallowed up and drained away
In our anonymous suburbia.

I hear no sound
A million mouths making silence
Lives swallowed up
Hope given up
Spirits broken down, who can hope
In our anonymous suburbia.

I scream aloud
My prayers into the sky
The silence doesn't break
Nothing ever breaks except for
Spirit, love and life
In our anonymous suburbia.

Why yes, I DID listen to a lot of linkin park at that age, what makes you ask?

A little gem of a conversation from work today. I'd put it on overheard, but as I'm one the members of the conversation, it'd be a bit wanky. So you get to be wanked on instead :D

Me: I'm really hungry...
Co-worker: Yeah, me too.
Me: You know what that means, don't you?
CW: ummm...no?
Me: It must be CANNIBALISM O'CLOCK! -rawrs and lunges at them, teeth bared-

I learned the other day that my favourite teacher is retiring. So I thought I'd spend a few words extolling the virtues of David "Mad Dog" Morgan. For simple background, he taught me both years of IB English, which for those of you ignorant of the program are years 11 and 12. The schedule and assignments are fairly punishing, and some of the readings relatively demanding, being closer to a literature course than VCE english has turned out. He guided us through it with erudition and passion.

The nickname Mad Dog was born from the fact he had a very volatile temperament; willful ignorance, people who didn't do the readings or work, people who whined about having to do same and anyone who said 'like' in grammatically inappropriate places were likely to receive an impressive and terrifying display of lungpower. He balanced that by being a remarkably erudite and passionate educator, well-read and vastly knowledgeable. Of course, erudition sometimes turns into a tendency for tangential traverses, but this was all to the better. Especially in the final two years, too many teachers are focused only on teaching the students what they need to know for exams, becoming blinkered by the syllabus dictated to them. This is understandable, but especially in English, a broader focus and an ability to connect with ideas and sources outside the course is key. He was a master of this, drawing the class into his vast knowledge of literature.

He did have areas where he preferred to focus, and biases as does everyone. A vehement conservative, we often got sidetracked into heated but ultimately enjoyable arguments. I remember those debates with great fondness. His disdain for some of the books we were obliged to study was palpable at times, and I can only imagine the discussion over text selection with his colleagues must have been ferocious. On the other hand, his sheer passion for some of the other texts was nothing short of inspiring. Having watched first Romeo and Juliet and then Macbeth be bloodily dissected and slaughtered before my eyes in the previous two years, I had thought that there was no possible joy to be had in studying Shakespeare- until he began to teach Othello. His enthusiasm and knowledge were both an inspiration and a challenge, and one that reawakened the love of Shakespeare in me.

He was one of 'those' teachers- one of those rare and valuable educators who's love for and knowledge of their subject is imparted in some measure to each and every student that passes through his classroom. He's a real loss to future generations of english students.

All the best for your retirement, Mad Dog.

"If you read this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, (even if we don't speak often or ever) please post a comment with a COMPLETELY MADE UP AND FICTIONAL memory of you and me.

It can be anything you want - good or bad - BUT IT HAS TO BE FAKE.

When you're finished, post this little paragraph in your LJ and see what your friends come up with."

Brief memorandum to John Brumby and the 'journalists' and 'editors' at the Herald Sun 'newspaper'

Fuck you, and die in a fire.

Yours sincerely,
Wyl.