Two posts in three days... WTF!?!?!?!

This isn't a long one I just thought I'd post this guy's youtube account. He is a homeless guy who puts an exceptional twist on classic songs!

http://www.youtube.com/user/MrDanielMustard#p/u/2/YNyOup7WBD4

Honestly give him a listen, so much soul and pain in his voice. I might actually buy his music... Yeah his stuff is that good!

Till next time... (it will be longer than three days me thinks)

Hey, just a quick blog to break the monotony of routine. I've been so busy recently, when you couple this with my abysmal time keeping you get... Well you get what i've been living for the last fortnight or so.

I'm loving my job, working with children is really rewarding and I'm learning so much that will help me in the future. I'm not loving, the amount of neglect my novel has had over the last few weeks. Not a day goes by where I don't think of the characters or where the story is heading. Just wish I had a bit more time to sit and just write. That being said if my time management was better I probably would be able to get a few hours in here and there. PANTS!!!!!!!! (excuse me, that was directed at me and my piss poor scheduling).

Anyway, I'm going to leave it there the sands of sleep are knocking at my door. Which is actually a good thing because I need to be sufficiently rested to teach our future rulers... there probably isn't any budding rulers at my school but we're all rulers of something... cutting it here before I go off on a tangent.

Until next time, my faceless batch of non too interested readers.

I just came back from watching 'The Social Network' and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yeah they dramatised the shit out of it, and I'm sure events didn't happen exactly as they were portrayed but I'm not complaining.

Jesse Eisenberg has finally veered away from a Michael Cera-esque role and has shown he is quite the talent. The direction was a bit blurred at times, but it didn't damage the film's overall message.

Facebook really is one of the greatest inventions of the last decade and this film was perfectly woven together to deliver the facts. Where it excelled was it's ability to convey the undoubtable magic behind the story... Zuckerberg and his teenage mates started the site in their dorm-rooms and they were millionaires within 6 months. Okay, it's not fairies or dragons but none-the-less magical.

Go see it! No doubt you spend far too much time on Facebook anyway, you might as well witness the slightly embellished story behind the frightfully time siphoning site.

'Till next time.

I haven't blogged in ages because the time just hasn't been available. I started my new job last month and i'm thoroughly enjoying it but it does mean I haven't had time for certain things and sadly this blog has been one of them.

Thought I'd quickly spread some joy and blog about a song that has touched me in the last couple of weeks. I've been a moderate fan of Radiohead for a few years and liked their song 'creep.' It's a good song about passionately loving someone and vehemently hating yourself for not being as "special" as the said person.

I saw a trailer to the new film about the creation of Facebook called "the social network" (you may think i'm going off on a tangent but there is some relevance to my point). Prior to seeing the trailer the film did not interest me at all. I thought it was just another flick made by a film company that were trying to strike while the iron was hot. The trailer did what it was supposed to do however and it made me slightly interested (they dramatised the shit out of Zuckerberg's life but oh well). As I kept on seeing this trailer it made the story seem that little more interesting and the song that accompanied it was vaguely familiar and started to stick in my head. LONG STORY SHORT... the song they used for the trailer is a version of Radiohead's 'Creep' sung by a Belgian all girl choir called Scala Kolacny Brothers. It has just been on repeat non stop, and it's songs like this that change moods, days and lives. I don't want to describe it too much because I can't find a superlative that would do it justice. All I am going to do is post the link and share this treat with whoever stumbles across my page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axrqVfuGHh0

I haven't bored you in a while because I've been insanely busy, and it's not by the usual procrastination that plagues my life.

I'll fill you in with more details when I've got the time.

I did see Toy Story 3 in-between blogs. Tears and joy pushed and pulled me for the two hours, leaving me an emotional wreck by the end of the film. My experience was furthered because it was my first foray into 'real' 3D viewing. I say 'real' because i've watched 3D films as a child with flimsy red and blue plastic 3D glasses and have been really disappointed. I'm happy to say they've finally got it right and 3D looks like it's here to stay.

The weather is on the slide and the days are getting shorter. On a plus... Nope there isn't one.

Anyway I'm off my invisible friends. I will do a proper lengthy blog when I get the time, until then stay safe.

I watched the 1987 film 'Wall Street' yesterday and loved it!

Michael Douglas was captivating as Gordon Gekko but a big surprise was the performance of Charlie Sheen. Sheen who is most known for his comedic roles in '2 and 1/2 men' and 'Hot Shots' showed a side to him that makes me wonder why he isn't seen as one of the pinnacle actors of this generation.

Douglas's character Gekko is a man of unrestrained greed and he shows Sheen's character Bud Fox the darker, amoral side of being a wall street player.

Gekko continuously recited verses from Sun Tzu's 'The Art of War' to justify his ruthless nature. His character completely epitomised the 1980's yuppy and left me wanting to be him... I know wanting to be a materialistic, cold, shrewd, ruthless, tyrant is odd but it's the charisma and power that shines through all of his negatives and makes Gekko an easy character to idolise. Anyone that can make greed in all its forms appear attractive must have something special about him.

I highly advise anyone to see the film. The sequel is coming out next month with Douglas reprising his role as Gordon Gekko, I for one can't wait.

I'll leave you with Gekko's most famous quote and one that many believe sealed Michael Douglas's Oscar for Best Actor.

"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A"

Haven't blogged in a while so thought I'd write aimlessly and see where this one goes...

The Premie League season started over the weekend. United won and Liverpool didn't, so things are already getting into a familiar pattern. Mesut Oezil has signed for Real Madrid, I'm disappointed he didn't join United but I'm also disappointed that the world has been robbed of one of its most promising prospects. I say robbed because Madrid have a reputation of stifling the careers of young players. Robinho, Benzema, Drenthe, Robben, Huntelaar, are just a few who have had their promising young careers dashed thanks to Madrids lack of nurture. To succeed you need to be pretty much the finished article by the time you sign for them, Mesut Oezil is anything but this. I understand the reputation of the club and the money being offered but I'm positive a move to Barcelona, United or Arsenal would have allowed Oezil to turn his considerable promise into something greater. This all being said, Madrid are under a new manager and I'll be interested to see how Jose Mourinho uses Oezil and indeed the other young promising players at Madrid that are currently wasting away (I'm talking to you Royston Drenthe)

I went to see my friend Ali's band 'Kings of the City' on Friday night at the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Amazing, unexpected and left wanting more is how I felt after the performance and I implore anyone reading this to give them a listen on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/kingsofthecity) or join their Facebook group. They are a mixture of Rock, Indie, Hip Hop and Grime, the different genres are all brought together to deliver a fresh sound that I think will go a long way. Watch this space.

I went to see Tom Cruise's latest effort 'Knight and Day' on Monday. It was an enjoyable, honest action film that wasn't trying to be anything more. Solid acting amongst an easy to follow story line lead me to be happy with the two hours that I'd given up. I'm not sure why it was panned by the critics, everything Tom Cruise touches at the moment seems to be criticised unfairly, all because of his religious beliefs and his apparent happy marriage. I'm not going to go too much into it, but envy and pettiness are a horrid concoction.

This has gone on longer than expected... Until next time my invisible friends.

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1 : Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2 : The world doesn't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait 'till you get a boss.

Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6 : If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault , so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7 : Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now.. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10 : Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

Saw this and thought how true it was. Until next time friends!

I've been without my iPhone for two weeks now. It's still alive and working but it no longer accepts my sim card. I'm at a loss at what to do next. My brother has been doing what he can, but his attempts have come to no avail. In this time without my iPhone I've gone back to using my n96 [Insert painful images of blunt knives piercing through my eyeballs] so forgive me for any random outbursts of aggression. The glorious weather has eased my decent into phone hell, keeping me on the straight and narrow. Along with the help of 'Friends' re-runs I've hardly noticed the n96's endless defaults (sorry for the lies, I've noticed ever bloody one). On a slightly more brighter note, it's my birthday tomorrow :) one day closer to the coffin... I joke, I'm treating the day as another day closer to Chris Nolan's 'Inception' which I honestly can't wait for. I'll definitely be blogging my thoughts about the film, hopefully it will live up to the hype - In Chris 'Dark Knight' Nolan I trust.

England are out! No true surprise as I didn't believe the team was strong enough prior to the tournament.

I haven't blamed Capello for the loss or the pathetic performances but yesterday when I saw him making horrific excuses it angered me. He said that he believed our players were "tired" and would benefit from a winter break.

Mr. Capello, does Manchester City's Carlos Tevez look tired with Argentina? Does City's Nigel De Jong look tired with Holland? Does Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt look tired for Holland? The list of premier league players that are performing well for their countries exposes Capello's views.

We were not good enough, why? The players that have been turned into gods by the media aren't that good!

The Sun newspaper have whipped us all up into hysterics believing that Rooney is "the white pele" and players like Lampard and Terry are world class!

We have good players, but good won't win us tournaments! The closest we have to world class in our team are Rooney and Gerrard. The Brazilian team have genuine world class performers, as does the Argentinian team, and this is why they are genuine contenders. England are not up there with these type of teams and their performances showed as much.

If this lot are the golden generation, I don't believe i'll ever see a side that can repeat the heroics of '66

We need to go back to the drawing board!

Poor, disgrace, joke, embarrassment - just some of the synonyms used to describe England's performance last night.

I did not expect England to win this tournament, indeed I did not even believe they would get past the quarter finals, however I did not expect the spineless performance our nation was subjected to last night.

Nothing worked and we looked disjointed to say the least. Stars such as Gerrard and Rooney looked more like Sunday league footballers than the 'cream of the crop' of this generation. Not only were the individual performances dyer but the team's shape looked awful. The only person to walk away from last night's game with any ounce of respect was David James. Bought in after Rob Green's mistake the veteran keeper looked assured and stable.

Now a performance like that from players who are supposedly the elite, casts serious doubts in my eyes about the England manger. He seems to have lost the dressing room, and doesn't have any answers.

Well I believe dropping Rob Green in the manner that he has, has done nothing for the groups moral. It shows that mistakes can't be made and that type of fragile, terrified environment will only bring out the worst in people.

The team can do better than this, but I believe Capello doesn't hold the strength to make the decisions that are needed. Lampard, Gerrard and Barry can't play together in a four-man midfield. One of them needs to be dropped to bring back the shape to the team, or Gerrard needs to be moved up along side Rooney because having him out on the left is just a huge waste of a supreme talent.

Joe Cole must be given a chance, I personally would drop Barry because I don't think he has had a good season for Manchester City, and he doesn't bring enough to England.

The right flank is an even bigger problem in my eyes. Neither Lennon nor Wright-Phillips deserves to play there but they are the best we have. Lennon looks directionless and SWP looks lost at sea when he gets his chance. The fact that neither of those two has been able to hold that spot down and essentially retire David Beckham shows how unimpressive they are.

Heskey and Rooney havn't worked! Heskey doesn't score enough goals and thus puts even more pressure on Rooney's shoulders and that showed last night with his outburst toward the jeering fans. I'd give Defoe the opportunity because he is a goal scorer and has had a season that warrants him a starting place.

These are the immediate changes that I would make, barring the right because I think that is our weak link and we just have to persevere with aimless Lennon and lost SWP.

England will qualify for the next round, but like I've said in previous blogs they aren't going much further. I'm just waiting to see who will reveal themselves as our mandatory scapegoat for this debacle. At the moment it does look like Mr. Capello is putting his name forward, but I think it will fall at the feet of a player this time around.

Onwards and upwards is the only place England can go from here.

I went to the Bboy Regional Conflict Finals in Angel on Sunday and it was my first time at such an event. I came away wondering why I haven't gone before. The level of competition was strong in the bboy category and although my pick (Kazuki) didn't win I was happy with the overall winner (Spin).

I got to meet one of my idols in Bboy Storm and kind of embarrassed myself at the same time. I'm usually good in the presence of 'celebs' but for some reason when it came to Storm I showed my inner 12 year old girl... He was really welcoming though, I also managed to get a picture with him, so the pathetic flattering that I showered him with must of paid of to some extent right?

Also I came away from the event with further desire to get better at breakin' not that I needed any but it's always nice to be reminded of why you started doing something.

Can't wait for the Uk Bboy Champs now Sunday really wet my whistle for that!

I'll leave you with my photo of Storm, it's a bit dark but I'm not complaining.

cya!

That time is almost here again. The shop windows are draped with St.George flags, the pubs are packed with goal related promotions and one of our best players is injured prior to the tournament. It can only be the World Cup!

I would love for England to lift the seemingly illusive prize (I'm not Brazilian so illusive is the word) in a month or so time, but I can't help feeling world piece will be achieved far sooner than my eyes seeing such a sight.

Why? Why can't we relive the scenes of 66'? Many a pundit has thrown his hat into this debate but I think it comes down to the fact that England never play as a unit.

England always look like 11 individuals to me. The standouts shine individually and the rest of the millionaires who shouldn't be playing at this level flounder individually. This always leaves England susceptible to defeat against any side that plays as a team, and seeing as football is a team sport, they will undoubtedly come up against a team. When the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Italy and Spain come knocking, England usually come up short (those are my four picks to win it by the way).

Why when so many of our stars are supposedly top of the tree? Because we don't play like a team in a team game is my answer. Capello doesn't have us playing like a team; I don't see real unity, real understanding, real heart... Well except from Mr. Rooney, but one man doesn't make a team. Steve McClaren had us planning like a team! A team of spanners, so I commend Mr. Capello on the transformation that we've seen, but we don't look anything like the semi-final side of 1990. That team had stars similar to the side of today, but they had unity that only two other England sides have had (66' and 70').

My prediction for England in this tournament is pain, heartache, annoyance, a red card and a scapegoat. A scapegoat you ask... Well I've noticed in several previous tournaments after England's early exits the media like to blame someone, rather than the teams piss poor performance. For example, 2006 world cup the scapegoat duties fell to Mr. Winking Ronaldo, in 1998 Mr. Saviour turned most hated man in the country David Beckham, 1994 where we didn't even get on the plane to America Graham Taylor was ridiculed to resignation. 86 Maradona's hand of God knocked us out, not our own lack of ability... The list goes on and on.

England will win or draw their games until they come up against a strong nation and then the mandatory process will follow ending in a scapegoat being named and abused to ease our own pain!

Hey on a plus side, this tournament has seen the rebirth of England's 1990 world cup anthem. John Barnes' silky vocals worked wonders back then, who knows a repeat effect may be just around the corner.

Hey it has been a while. We've had punch and judy take over the country and 'ConDem' us to five years of insatiable plight; celebrities degrading themselves further and Gary Coleman's death. In my blogsence (get it? absence mixed with blog) I've been looking at an unhealthy amount of 'stop motion' animation (yes the life of the unemployed is just that amazing) and I've started to slowly put together a little piece of my own.

Take a look at this if you're unfamiliar with 'stop motion'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_HXUhShhmY

I've actually become quite fascinated with the different perspectives that are available through a camera. I have to give thanks to a bboy called cloud who made a stunning visual piece of what dancing is like through the eyes of a bboy. He really was the catalyst behind this recent obsession of mine.

I may also start a vlog, so my two fans can see me in all my visual glory! The reasons behind this desire lay with a vlogger called Alex Day (youtube him) who has a really enjoyable vlog that... well check it out!

Anyway I'm going to nip this mini-rant in the bud before it grows out of control and because I should be writing a little thing called my novel! But because of my unrivalled consideration for others I thought it was my duty to let the two sorry souls who know of my blogs existence why I haven't been updating that much.

Speak soon :)

Cya

I've calmed down somewhat from my last post, to the relief of all four people that read this. I've come across a blog by a new author called Elizabeth Eulberg, it's really helpful for other new authors and gives answers to questions that only a green author would want to know. Little bit of background - Elizabeth was Stephenie 'Twilight' Meyer's publicist and now she too wants to take over the world with her own YA fiction (that makes her sound like some Stalin type mad women). Anyone that is interested in writing a novel, I would recommend her blog just to get an insider's view of what it takes and the process. My novel is going great, I'm on chapter 10 and can't stop writing! My characters are really coming to life and I'm starting to say, "no he/she wouldn't do that." Hopefully I'll have it finished over the summer, but I think the editing process may drag its completion into the winter. I've been listening to Fall Out Boy a lot recently, yes I know, shit, shock horror that I'm listening to something other than Alex and the boys but I felt like a darker twist. I'd really forgotten how brilliant FOB's melodies are, Patrick Stump's voice wonderfully accompanies everything they do! Pete Wentz's lyrics have also surprised me somewhat, because of their dark, suicidal nature and thanks to wikipedia I learnt that he was greatly depressed during the 'From under the cook screw' period, so it's made lyrics such as "living is a wasted death" that much more chilling! Anyways chapter 11 is calling me so until next time stay safe.

Ps. check out Stan Lee's twitter, he is an amazingly random person... It's quite surreal!

The ugly side of religion decided to show its face again, choosing the easter break as its backdrop. Too many people are racist/sexist/bigots/douches who defend their warped views by saying it's part of their religion or culture. Since when did that make it right? I have not got the time nor the patience to digress into the events of the past few days but I will say this, it is 2010 and we need to stop the segregation! I feel people of this world just want to be different, they want to have something that they can call their own! There is nothing wrong with that, but being different should not come at the price of belittling those that aren't born on the same day as you or whatever pathetic rule you decide to hide behind. If the human race wants to place such importance in different race, religion, sex etc... then it can, because that has worked so well over the years! I'm not going to live my life being a colour, we're all human but thanks to "religion/culture" that's not enough. It's a real shame really because what does it matter if you're black or white?

Finally someone has achieved a double hundred in 50 over cricket! I thought when this day came I would be excited and in awe. Yet this is not the case. Sachin is great batsman and one of the finest ever to pick up a bat. However, with the state of pitches in India at the moment I can't view his record as special. The pitches offer NOTHING for the bowler and no surprises for the batsman. So where is the skill in batting in such friendly conditions? I commend him for being the first, but with the state of the pitches in the sub continent he won't be the last. Something has to be done to re-instill the battle between the bat and ball, because is that not what cricket is about? Let's see Sachin and Sehwag score these ridiculous amount of runs in England or Australia!

I haven't written anything in a while, partly due to laziness but mainly due to time constraints. I'm now going to try and keep this updated as much as I can, why? Guess it's good to vent a little bit, but mainly just to write something other than my novel (yes I even procrastinate when it's not work) ... I hope 2010 is a good year, it's started really well, just hope things carry on in that vain! Year goals? Get a literary agent lol, become a much better breakdancer! win the lottery!?!?! I know the last one's not really a goal but hey this is my blog!!!! Anyways I'm going to keep this short as I'm off to go action one of my year goals!! Thanks for reading... or not :S