I have been thinking about doing some creative writing. Back in high-school and before, I found writing to be very enjoyable indeed, and I used to ace the Finnish-classes when we were supposed to write essays, short-stories and the like. Whereas others submitted stories that were few pages long (the standard length), mine were usually 6-12 pages long, and I got good grades for them. But as time progressed, I stopped doing it. I didn't really write stories on my free time as such, and when my studies didn't require them, I didn't write them. But nevertheless, I did enjoy writing them.
So I have been thinking about getting back to that particular interest of mine. I have been juggling few ideas around for some time now, and the main problem has been to figure out a good story on those ideas. I could create a short-story from either of them, but I feel that they need something bigger to really flesh out the idea. But who knows, maybe keeping them short 'n sweet is the way to go.
Of course there are lots of people who say "I'm going to be a writer", and most of them never write a thing. And I'm not having any world conquering plans on this thing. I'm just interested to see that do I still enjoy it, do I have anything worthwhile to contribute and that can I actually do it. We'll see.
Budapest!
Mrs. and I were planning to take a short trip (2-3 nights) somewhere close. Our initial plan was to go to Riga. But there didn't seem to be suitable trips available. So we broadened our search a bit, and included places like Budapest and Prague in to the mix. And sure enough, we started to find suitable trips. But then we noticed few things:
a) Prague costs quite a bit more than Budapest does
b) Pricewise, there's no real difference between 2-3 night trip, as opposed to full week.
That settled it: Next week, on thursday, we will be flying over to Budapest for a full week :). We will also be going to Pécs for a day during our trip.
a) Prague costs quite a bit more than Budapest does
b) Pricewise, there's no real difference between 2-3 night trip, as opposed to full week.
That settled it: Next week, on thursday, we will be flying over to Budapest for a full week :). We will also be going to Pécs for a day during our trip.
A free day of a bachelor
I had one of my "free days" today. Meaning that the Mrs. was somewhere else, and I could live like in the "good ol' days". Now, maybe I'm getting old or something but my free days are pretty lame these days. Or maybe they were always lame, but I just didn't know it?
Normally I might have a pizza delivired right to my doorstep. I might watch a movie or two, and/or I might play some games. I might also go and test-drive some cars in car-dealerships. Pretty tame. Mrs. Actually told of my "bachelor-activities" to her co-worker, and she (the co-worker) started to laugh.
Today, it got even tamer. First of all: no pizza. I watched two movies. First one was "THX-1138", Directors Cut, and it didn't fail me. Second was "Collateral". I bought that one because I haven't yet ran across a movie by Michael Mann that I didn't like, and Collateral was no exception. After the movies, I ate and watched a taped episode of Sherlock Holmes (the series with Jeremy Brett as Holmes). After that I.... Fell asleep. I slept maybe close to two hours straight on the couch. For some reason, I was just so damn exhausted. Maybe my vacation is starting to kick in?
Normally I might have a pizza delivired right to my doorstep. I might watch a movie or two, and/or I might play some games. I might also go and test-drive some cars in car-dealerships. Pretty tame. Mrs. Actually told of my "bachelor-activities" to her co-worker, and she (the co-worker) started to laugh.
Today, it got even tamer. First of all: no pizza. I watched two movies. First one was "THX-1138", Directors Cut, and it didn't fail me. Second was "Collateral". I bought that one because I haven't yet ran across a movie by Michael Mann that I didn't like, and Collateral was no exception. After the movies, I ate and watched a taped episode of Sherlock Holmes (the series with Jeremy Brett as Holmes). After that I.... Fell asleep. I slept maybe close to two hours straight on the couch. For some reason, I was just so damn exhausted. Maybe my vacation is starting to kick in?
Vacation!
Finally, work is over, and I can officially start my summer-vacation :)! Four weeks of R&R (*! Maybe I can finally catch up on my emails....
*) = As I typed that, I just remembered that I forgot to submit my last timesheets.... D'oH! Luckily I took my laptop with me, so I can do it remotely :)
*) = As I typed that, I just remembered that I forgot to submit my last timesheets.... D'oH! Luckily I took my laptop with me, so I can do it remotely :)
"I find you annoying!"
Is it normal to dislike someone for no particular reason? That person might not have done anything wrong to you, he might not even know you, but for some strage reason, he just rubs you the wrong way.
I have such a person in my life:
That's right, Paul McCartney! I don't know why, but there is something in the guy that annoys me. I have no idea what it is, but something in him makes me... irritated.
Is there something specific that Mr. McCarthey has done to deserve this? Well, not that I can recall. Yes, I find his music to be quite mediocre (no, that does not include The Beatles, just his post-Beatles "career"), but that's not enough of a reason to dislike someone. The world is full of mediocre artists. So what is it? No idea. It is a mystery.
Mr. McCartney: Pray that our paths shall never cross, for I might glance at you in a non-approving manner!
I have such a person in my life:
That's right, Paul McCartney! I don't know why, but there is something in the guy that annoys me. I have no idea what it is, but something in him makes me... irritated.
Is there something specific that Mr. McCarthey has done to deserve this? Well, not that I can recall. Yes, I find his music to be quite mediocre (no, that does not include The Beatles, just his post-Beatles "career"), but that's not enough of a reason to dislike someone. The world is full of mediocre artists. So what is it? No idea. It is a mystery.
Mr. McCartney: Pray that our paths shall never cross, for I might glance at you in a non-approving manner!
Validate your existence. By driving!
I love driving. I love getting in to a car, and going to different places. Not only because I love cars and the excitement (no, I don't race on public roads) I get from driving. I also love the interaction between the drivers on the road.
Think about it. You could walk down the street without paying any attention to the people around you. And they can do the same. Sure, you might need to avoid hitting others now and then, but you can do that without really thinking about it. In the end, you might not exist at all, as far as the other people are concerned.
Driving is not like that. You need to pay attention to your surroundings all the time. And the others need to do the same. You need to look out for cars that have the right of way, and you actually have to consciously avoid hitting them. And they have to do the same thing. I like how other drivers notice me, and give me way (if I have the right of way), because when they do that, they not only look at me, but they actually acknowledge my existence. They can't ignore me, because if they do, bad things might happen.
You simply do not get that kind of interaction by walking. You can freely ignore others, and they can ignore you. At worst, you will bumb in to someone. And when that happens, you just half-heartedly say "sry...." and move on. When you are driving, and you "bumb" in to something, things usually become a bit more complicated than that. So pay attention!
Feeling lonely? Having that feeling that you might as well not exist at all? Jump in to a car, and go for a drive!
Think about it. You could walk down the street without paying any attention to the people around you. And they can do the same. Sure, you might need to avoid hitting others now and then, but you can do that without really thinking about it. In the end, you might not exist at all, as far as the other people are concerned.
Driving is not like that. You need to pay attention to your surroundings all the time. And the others need to do the same. You need to look out for cars that have the right of way, and you actually have to consciously avoid hitting them. And they have to do the same thing. I like how other drivers notice me, and give me way (if I have the right of way), because when they do that, they not only look at me, but they actually acknowledge my existence. They can't ignore me, because if they do, bad things might happen.
You simply do not get that kind of interaction by walking. You can freely ignore others, and they can ignore you. At worst, you will bumb in to someone. And when that happens, you just half-heartedly say "sry...." and move on. When you are driving, and you "bumb" in to something, things usually become a bit more complicated than that. So pay attention!
Feeling lonely? Having that feeling that you might as well not exist at all? Jump in to a car, and go for a drive!