Hope in 160 Characters

"It's the last 24 hours of the year. I'm here where I was with you, and I'll spend the next day thinking about how I will spend next year with you."

The Year in Review

I haven't done this before, but it's a pretty appropriate time to start. I'm going to go over the best and worst moments of 2007. It's been a strange year, and one I probably won't forget. The number '2007' still seems fresh and ready, but it'll be stale within a few days. The list of events is mostly from the latter half of the year, either because it was more eventful or because I have a terrible memory. And I thought that my memory was great.

The Worst of 2007
in no particular order

Moving Out

Moving out of Toland Square was one of the worst days I've ever had. Not only was it emotionally draining, sleepless and physically exhausting, but tensions grew and almost every conceivable thing went wrong. I loved that house, and I didn't want to leave it so soon, but times move on and people need to as well, so I know it was ultimately for the best.

My Car Overheats

Later that day, dropping Emma at the station, in traffic, I let my car overheat by not watching the temperature gauge. I felt stupid, and it cost a fortune to fix, and for weeks, my car was out of commission. As if the day could have been any worse.

The Apple iPhone

No need to expand.

Emma Leaving, Again

Emma had to go a couple of times in the year, but never for as long as when she went to Tokyo, which was indefinitely. That was very sad.

Not Getting that Job

The job which would have been perfect. Graduate C# Programmer. Come on!

Nova

Nova, my ticket to Japan, the company that was ready to employ me in a job I wanted to do... collapsed. The whole company: gone. Thanks. Literally minutes before Emma goes there, they self destruct, and my future there was shattered.

My Computer Suddenly Stops Working

I still don't know why. It was on, I turned it off, it didn't turn on again. And I don't have the energy or motivation to fix it, or the cash.

The Best of 2007
in no particular order

Making a Complete Album

Although I'd written many songs before, Seven Pages was the first one where I'd made it from start to finish with one album in mind, instead of collecting songs together. I rushed it into a month (for the RPM Challenge), but I was really happy with most of it, and I still enjoy listening to it. I have a way to go though.

Portal

Portal portal portal portal, portal portal. Portal portal. Portal! Portal portal portal, "Portal portal, portal!". Portal portal; portal portal. Portal portal portal, portal portal portal portal portal. Portal portal portal. Portal? Portal portal portal portal.

Seeing Rent with Kiana

Kiana was my introduction to Rent, and getting to finally see it with her was a big thing. I didn't see many musicals this year. In fact, I think that was the only one. Plus we had cake.

Maintaining Friendship with Julia

Despite the numerous problems she causes, being friends with Julia is always special because you can tell that she really cares, and she's very genuine. I saw her earlier this week and we had a great time, and it's been good staying friends with her this year.

The MG

My mother bought a convertible. I learned how different a mid-engine car can be. My father and I took it to Spain through France, driving is fun again.

Binärpilot

Discovering this strange electronic musician by accident was a major highlight, as he soon became one of my favourite artists. And he gives away music for free. As well as this, he has been very inspiring.

A Completely Dry Year

A year completely without alcohol. 2006 had some lapses in the Summer, which I regret, but was consciously aware of the reasons for which I lapsed, and both times had silly reasons.

The Host

While it may not have been the best film of the year, it was a very important one for me. It took me by surprise, and made me interested in foreign cinema again. Plus, it has one of the most bittersweet endings imaginable.

Starting the JCS Again

Being the last person here with any ability to perpetuate it, I made the JCS continue by opting to become the President. And meeting new people through it meant that I made new friends and had good fun with people while pushing the culture. It will continue into next year.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

Getting back into Anime was never more fun.

Finishing University

After a 3 day marathon coding session which concluded with a presentation and a dangerously sleepy drive home, University was over. Finishing that was a major relief. I slept for days.

Canada

Going to Canada suddenly and almost unexpectedly was a huge treat, getting to see my family and surprising my sister and mother was enormous fun. I got to drive around and have a great time with everybody. I loved it, and I just want to go back.

Getting Over Kiana

It took nearly two years and writing a very sad song, but I finally did it and have felt liberated since.

Filming The Oxford Murders

I loved being an extra in 2003, and I got to do it again. I just saw the trailer for the film, and you can see part of me sitting near Elijah in it. I can't wait for the actual film.

Inspiration

Suddenly having reason and the ability to write music again came as a shock, but it wasn't a nasty surprise. In a few weeks, I wrote about six songs. Not all new, but within a few months I should have recorded my third album.

Getting Back into Gaming

Right at the start of the year, with nothing to do, I started playing XBox games a lot. Since then, I have played more and more games, and went as far as buying a PSP, which I love. I played through MGS just for the fun of it, because I loved it so much when I was young. Games are now a big part of my life. Again.

Yinuo

Not just her as a person, but everything she has done for me in terms of jump-starting my social life, and being a very good person to be near. She's one of the most open and honest people I know, and has 'let me in' to a world that I have wanted to be a part of for many years, but could never get close to. Being friends with her has definitely been a highlight of this year.

Having a Reason to Want to Improve

Self improvement is much harder without having a reason to improve, and having one means that making myself a better person goes beyond its own reward. Because of that, I am a happier person.

And for that, I thank 2007.

Badger Badger Badger Badger

I'm not several years late on a meme, I just saw a badger. Not just now, a couple of nights ago. But I'd never seen a living one in the wild. I think I've seen few sleeping and inside out on the side of the road, but a whole real life badger, sniffing around my garden at 1AM, it was frightening and awesome. Mainly because they're the size of a Great Dane with stubby legs and 140% as amazing.

I am in central London, and I just popped into the Apple Store. And as I do every time I venture into an Apple Store, I blog. Mainly because Apples make me so angry. But Linux makes me angry too at the moment. It couldn't full screen video without skipping every so often. And when I'm watching streaming Flash video, it misses out a second of audio, and then plays the missing sound over the next second of audio. Which is very distracting when you're trying to watch something. I'm going to have to try Ubuntu with the new KDE, because the computer I'm using isn't lacking in power, I think it just needs a more capable OS.

This is all in the interim before my Windows PC works again, and I can't wait for that.

It's Christmas Eve, and I have started my shopping about an hour ago. I know I leave it late, but that's how I do things. So I shouldn't write for long. I hope Julia's kidneys feel better soon, I'll be giving them a special Christmastime visit soon.

I'm going to take this opportunity to wish everyone who reads this a very Merry Christmas and I hope that you are treated well and eat even better.

The Correct Answer is Always Daft Punk

It must have been the year 2000, or so. It doesn't matter exactly, but it was in Napster's heyday. I was imagining what it would be like to have a car, and what music I'd like to have coming out of the windows during the Summer. And because of the popularity of Aerodynamic on the radio, I was tempted to see what else Daft Punk had done. One quick download of One More Time, and I was in Virgin buying Discovery. I didn't buy much music when I was young, but when I did, I really listened to it. For that reason, Discovery (along with Hello Nasty) became one of my growing up albums. And Daft Punk has held a place in my heart since then.

Of course I listened to the earlier works, and I bought Human After All as soon as I knew it was out. Only recently did I discover that they had released a live album (Alive), and since I got it I haven't listened to anything else.

But that's just a small part of my life. There have been plenty of events since my last entry, and the build up to Christmas has hardly featured. I had another dinner party, which was more hectic than before, but it was good to say goodbye to people before most of them went away. The day after was Laura's birthday party, and it was wonderful to see loads of old friends again and meeting some new ones. I hadn't been bowling in years, and the alley they knew was fantastically cheap without being trashy.

Some people I met though, didn't have Facebook. I was suddenly at a loss on how to keep in communication with them. I thought about asking for a phone number, but I found myself not knowing them well enough to ask, and I should have. There's always next time though.

The next night was the C-Star final. I almost had a breakdown with the stresses that went on that night, but I pulled through. I must congratulate Amy, who despite coming second, gave the best performances (and was recognised by the judges for it). She made the evening worthwhile. The night didn't end there though, as I had to pick up Yunhae and her sister to take her to Stansted airport, and I dropped Stephanie home on the way as well. For those of you who know, Stansted is a long way away, but it gave me and Yunhae a chance to catch up. Which was good fun. At this point, I'd been awake for something like twenty hours, seeing as I had taken Kiana to Heathrow that morning. And I'd only had four hours sleep the night before.

But instead of going home, I went to Cocoa's place and watched her pack, before collapsing on her (small) bed, which already had some people on it. It led to an amusing situation where three people were trying to sleep on a bed just big enough for one, and I had either feet in my face of on my neck. But I was tired enough not to notice. But we awoke after an hour and a half of unrestful slumber to take Cocoa to the airport, and then to drop her friends home. In all, including the Heathrow bowling alley, I'd been to an airport four times in 36 hours, and had barely left my car in that time. My car is filthy.

It isn't over, as I picked Yunhae and her sister up a few days later, and I'm taking her to Luton later tonight. It's a holiday marathon for her.

The last few nights have had a wonderful fog descending on Wimbledon. It's made visibility close to zero. Today it didn't leave during the day, so I suspect it'll only be stronger when night falls completely. I also found a wonderful article in the Times about how an old phone just won't die. The article is about my phone's successor, the 6310i (the 'i' means that it is fuel injected). I never got this phone, it just wasn't different enough from my then current phone, the 6210e. But the article covers all the reasons why I love my current phone, which is again the 6210e. Simple, long battery life (it alleges three days, but I know for a fact that mine lasts five), good sound quality, tactile buttons, comfortable in the hand and light.

I might have to get a Flickr Pro account soon. The 200 photo limit has me losing old photos that I find I suddenly need. In the same vein, I had rediscovered my love of drawing, and have starting sketching in charcoal again. One particular sketch was used as a Christmas present.

I went for an interview yesterday. It was an epic undertaking, as in everyone there going for the position was waiting there for up to six hours, doing tests and writing reports. After the effort I put in, I'd better get the damn job. I have been delayed in getting paid for a while, and while I have money for the mean time, I need more. But prognosis positive.

I Need an External Antenna, and Dual Band

The computing world is almost limitless. There are so many topics and they're all so deep. There is always something new to learn. If we ignore the 80% of topics that are to do with databases, there is less to learn, so the task becomes easier to manage. Recently, I have been more interested in security, and have been investigating new aspects of computers, through Linux.

I also managed to get my USB MIDI keyboard working on my laptop. This means the creative things that have been building up in me with my absence of Reason now have a place to go. Plus, I plugged it in to my father's sound system, and things went well from there.

I am worried about Julia; her health concerns aren't positive, and she's off work, so probably as bored as I am during the day. But I send her more well wishing and hope to see her at some point.

Instead of listing the days that I have seen Yinuo recently, it's easier to list the days that I haven't seen her:

Saturday.

It's Friday today. I've seen her pretty much every day this last week, and will continue to see her until Sunday. And then she leaves on Monday. But it's been good seeing her more and she's become a good friend of mine. Probably the best I have in this country.

I saw her drama performance this morning. It was different to Kiana's a couple of years ago. Very different. It involved walking around Hammersmith bridge and listening to messages about communication. There wasn't a storyline, but there was a lot to be said. I left with a message and an ear. Some of the props I helped make last night, and it was fun to see them in use. I was trusted to film everything, but in true technology style, the battery failed after six minutes, and most of my footage was the lead up to the beginning. I feel bad, but I did get some shots of Yinuo doing her playful thing.

Christmas is almost here and I haven't bought anyone any presents yet. Mainly because I can't afford to, because my pay from University won't get to me until next year. But I will try and make some presents for people.

I'm going to go shopping in a minute. I'm having a small dinner party tonight for a couple of people. It'll be the last one before most of them go home. I think stir fry is on the cards, so I need to get prawns.