2010

“No citizen has a right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training…what a disgrace it is for a man to grow old without ever seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.”

-Socrates

I've slept horribly the last few nights. Aches, fevers and the same dream over and over again in the night.

I've been working away busily on an history essay; whether or not the Ming dynasty was despotic. I disagree entirely, since the title is heavily prejudiced and borderline racist. (Not only that, but it presumes existence.)

I had the day off work yesterday which was amazing. I just spent some time relaxing and working slowly through my essay. I'm nearly at the editing phase which is the part I enjoy the most.

Last night Carey walked into my room at 3:30am, wearing only his underwear. I woke out of my sleep wondering what the heck was going on. I saw a hand reaching for my light, he turned it on, walked in, then turned the light back off. I turned my bedside lamp on and saw it was him.

He had one and a half eyes closed; he was looking at me through half an eye. I asked him what on earth he was doing in my room at 3:00 in the morning. He said going toilet. I told him to leave and he just stood there. I yelled and him and told him to wake up, tried clicking my fingers; but he stayed like a zombie. I had heard it was bad to wake people while they were sleepwalking. I wanted to test the theory.

I told him to leave, and he did. He didn't fully shut my door; an annoying habit he has in his conscious life. He tried to turn my light off, by switching it on. It took him several attempts to figure out what was going on. It compounded my already average sleep.

I'm hoping that by being sick really early in winter, I can avoid it for the rest of the year. :)

I am almost always tired. I'm sure almost everyone at university is. Late nights out, studying with early morning lectures, lots of walking and part time work all take their toll.

Alas! It does not need to be this way. Here, I have compiled a few helpful suggestions to squeeze more time out of your day.

Firstly, you should bus rather than drive. While busing it slower, it has numerous benefits. You can sleep crouched over at the bus stop while you wait. Make sure you do not prop your head up. Every five or so minutes, your head will bounce down and act as a natural alarm clock; your body's way of ensuring you catch the bus. Once on the bus, head for the second seat on the right or left hand side after the doors near the middle. Opt for the side that corresponds to your left or right handedness.

The seat-to-window cill ratio allows you to form a tidy 90 degree angle with your arm to prop up your head. No other seat affords such opportune sleeping. You can start to get some serious sleep in, as you are tightly buttressed against the window. If you can't get this seat, you will have to sleep in the seated crouch position, or space willing, the Meccan position (detailed later.)

My other favourite is the library. You want to go to the fourth floor or higher. Security guards reportedly try to move you on if found asleep. The altitude helps to minimize the oxygen available to their disgustingly poor blood supply. Thus, you are safe. The couches on M floor are very comfortable, but in a strategically weak position. You have a lot of thoroughfare with computers being located nearby and a few offices with haughty librarians.

The optimum is to be found on floor five. Unlike the floor six, the highest and thus a cliche, floor five is scarcely populated due to the obscure research content; Asian language studies. You want to sleep in a cubicle. Assume the Meccan position, arms forward and under your forehead as you lean forward. Make sure you wear a comfortable jumper as your elbows get sore after more than an hour. The one weakness I have found is that when I spazz during my sleep, I always end up punching the front of the cubicle, making a large amount of noise. Fortunately, the secluded nature of this floor protects you from being escorted out.

I regularly gain an extra two to three hours of sleep. Whenever I hear people complain about long breaks I suggest they try sleeping. It makes the time fast incredibly fast and you catch up on extra hours lost in the evening.

Thank me later.

I have been really exhausted this week. I attempt to read in the library, instead I favour sleep and slump on my arms. I jolt, shaking all my books and notes, then go back to sleeping.

I have been eating like a champ to keep my energy levels up. It isn't working that great. I have been working hard at the gym and I'm gaining nearly a 1KG/week - which will help to push me to 'normal' weight. I am doing university stuff almost every waking moment, from dawn to dusk; a sensation that is certain to increase as winter comes knocking.

My sheets are feeling cooler at nights and I'm not strutting around the house shirtless so much. It seems unbelievable, thinking back to Parachute, that the heat of summer can actually fade. I remember carrying the chilly bin through fiery heat.

I am thinking of winter with anticipation. I love coming home to a fire. I sit in the lounge, rumpus or my bedroom, trying to read or watch tv as sleep creeps up on me. My eyelids just grow heavy and I fall asleep at a shameful time.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do tonight. Carey and a bunch of other friends are going to Lady Gaga; it would have been cool to go. I didn't really get my act together/didn't really want to spend the money. I'd way rather buy law text books worth $200. I'm also saving for an end of year trip somewhere with Carey - perhaps the West Coast of the USA. Flights in general are so cheap right now. I saw Vietnam for 4 days for $700. Crazzzy.

I dreamt that I was trying to vacuum some stuff up outside. I put the vacuum on reverse and sprayed dirt all up the wall of the house. It also went up to the roof. Dad was not happy.

I had another dream that I found a turtle sitting in the hot sun. He had rolled onto his back and pulled his kegs in cause of the heat. I picked him up and threw him into a pond. He dived in happily.

I also dreamt that I played basketball again. It's been ages since I played competitively, and I couldn't run properly, dribble or catch. It was the weirdest thing. I screwed a bunch of plays up and no one was impressed. It felt so shameful. Super pleased it was a dream.

In your hands you hold two things. In your left hand you have the hours of a day. In your right hand you have the things you want to do in that day.

As you stare at the large pile in your right hand, you realise that it is infinitely larger than the pile in your left hand.

I have numerous text books that I could buy; a lot of extra reading I could do. I simply don't have the hours. No matter how 'hard' I work, I can't actually complete everything that I want to. It takes me time to read every word. There are only so many words that will fit into an hour, and only so many hours in a day.

I'm squeezing a finite lemon harder hoping that it will produce infinite juice. Just aint happening homes!

Alternative rock/electronic duo Ratatat.



Check them out. Buy their songs on itunes (don't download music homie.)

As I bustle through the crowds, there are a million promo girls trying to seduce me; the sirens on the rocks. Your tiny shorts will not persuade me; I do not want a new bank account, loan, calendar, internet connection, pizza voucher, political party or religion. Admittedly, the last two groups, perhaps beneficially, lacked the scantly clad models.

I've got a heavy timetable for this semester. I'm doing six papers. Most of them seem great, I know I will especially enjoy my ancient history ones. That's one of the reasons I opted for a conjoint with useless majors - it's just really cool.

On Wednesday, I sat on the bus. Two middle aged women with frosted tips sat in front of me. I didn't want to stereotype, so I sat there just listening to music. Then one lent into the other, while they played with each others ear lobes. I can handle that; I am a modern citizen and can accept that people choose to live differently. Besides, they might just be close friends. Ten minutes later, they began reading a magazine; perfectly legitimate. They start giggling, I see the title of the article, which read 'S** Toys Go High Tech.' I was slightly agitated that despite my best efforts, the stereotype had triumphed again. (I have edited out specific letters to prevent my blog gaining weird hits.)

Check out this sweet video:

I went to the Lantern Festival last Sunday which was great. Heaps of people filled the usually defunct Albert Park; transforming it from a nightmarish cesspit into a bustling festival. I once decided to cut through there at 9:30pm after a law test; if I had gone around I would have risked missing the bus. As I entered the park, it started spitting, which thickened to rain. I was approaching the central fountain, when an old man condensed out of thin air. He was roughly dressed, in rags, with a wild beard. He grasped a tall branch; fashioned into a staff. It very much gave him the appearance of a wizard. He grunted and groaned while he waved his stick at the sky.

I knew there was a girl behind me, so I turned around and made eye contact. We briefly smiled at each other, and I waited for her to catch up. We walked together through the rest of the park. The one time I decided to test the Albert Park hypothesis it was confirmed.

The Lantern Festival celebrates the Chinese New Year; plenty of lanterns and trinkets were available for sale. It was a far cry from that rainy night; heaps of awesome displays and lights filled the park. The weather was exceptionally warm, wearing only shorts, jandals and a shirt I was fine. It won't stay like this for much longer. We went down to BK on Queen Street to grab some food (I managed to resist the temptation) and then headed home.

I'm going to try update my blog as much as I can during university.