At the stroke of Midnight

It sure has been a while since I've last posted anything remotely blog-ish on the Internet. Though, if I'm to be honest, I've been thinking about for quite some time now. A few months--possibly a year--ago, I even deleted this blog, assuming it'd done its office. Surprisingly enough, a couple of weeks ago, whilst still living in the UK--yes, that's right, it's definitely been a while, my Erasmus days are already over and done with--I thought I'd start up my blog again, only I couldn't quite find the time. So now, on 28 February 2012, the blogging recommences--or at least, I'm hoping it will!

As to the precise nature of the blog, I'm fairly confident in the direction I'm planning on taking. You see, while writing about love and relationships and 'What I did today since I got up' can be super interesting, it's not something I'd want to make a career out of. So instead of focusing on those aspects of my life, I'll rather be spending my time, this blog space, and your attention on the things that I really love, the things that've stayed with me for as long as I can remember: my films, my books and my video games. It's a risky move to make, I'm sure in this world of blogging, vlogging, twittering, and liking on Facebook there's a lot of competition to be had, but I'm confident whosoever's drawn to the same stuff as me, will also find their way onto this webpage--and that's when you know you've got 'em by the balls.

So what'll this first blog in ages be about? I'd actually like to start with books. It seems to me that reading as a pass-time is having a hard time competing with its other, more hip and technologically advanced counterparts. Although, judging by the rising number of eBooks and the continuing evolution towards a full-on e-based lifestyle, I guess the art of reading'll survive in one way or another. But I like to keep it old-school and rely on good-old-fashioned printed paper, thank you very much.

The author, one of my personal favourites, that I'd like to spotlight for a second, is Spanish novelist Carlos Ruiz Zafon. And when you think of writers, the picture to your left, to me, seems dead-on. A shy, somewhat introverted guy surrounded by rows and rows of books. He is in fact one of the few authors of which I've read his entire oeuvre, that is to say, his translated oeuvre. So far, he's published four novels, The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel's Game and two young-adult novels The Prince of Mist and The Midnight Palace. I've read all four of them and every time Zafon knows how to get me. The way he can turn a phrase or conjure such a powerful image of a certain place, person or a sensation is stunning and otherworldy at times.For those of you who haven't read any of his works, I can only say: 'Shame on you', but then again, what kind of blogger would I be if I didn't offer you some redemption by offering you the chance, here and now, to get up from behind that screen, walk out into the sunlight--or rain, whatever--and run to your nearest bookstore to get a copy, or, go all twenty-first century on me and order it online from your favourite bookshop--Amazon's known for offering great deals, I'm not kidding.

Anyways, back to Zafon now. I can't force you to like the things I like, obviously. If I had the power to do that, such powers'd be better served in politics than in a place like this. Yet if you like a solid story, told through a captivating sense of suspense and clever writing, Zafon's your guy. A good place to start with is either the first two books of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books Trilogy, namely, Shadow of the Wind and Angel's Game (preferrably in that order) or one of his young adult novels, in which case I highly recommend The Midnight Palace. The story is set in Calcutta, a city the Gods have turned their back on (told beautifully through the story-within-the-story Shiva's Tears). Years ago, a horrible accident happened that plunged the city into chaos. In the middle of this chaos, a young man is seen running away with two babies. The man is hunted down by a powerful enemy, but the man is able to fend him off long enough to safely hide the children. The story then revolves around the two babies, their connection to the horrible accident, why this evil is after them, and what secrets lie deep beneath the Midnight Palace. In short, it's a story about friendship, bravery and sacrifice.

In any case, read it, don't read it, I'm just here to give you some suggestions and to write about the things I like--if our interests happen to collide, so be it, if they happen to overlap, all the better. So, it is ten minutes past midnight, this blog has officially been reinstated--feels good to be back, actually. Hope you enjoyed it too.

Reality Is A Prison

Zack Snyder, well-known for delivering us masterpieces such as 300 and the utterly sublime Watchmen, has done it again. Mark your calendars kiddies, 'cause March 25 he's giving us the next best thing: Sucker Punch. The film's tagline is 'You will be unprepared' and that's exactly what we can expect from this director.

Sucker Punch is about the battles each of us fights within our own minds. It's a battle between what's real and what's imaginary. Over the years, many a novels and movies have tried to captivate this illustrous divide, but I'll bet nobody's ever approached it the way Snyder'll do it. The movie's lead is Baby Doll, played by Emily Browning (Violet Baudelaire from the Lemony Snicket movie). Baby Doll has been sent to a mental instution against her will - although that's not really remarkable, seeing as how few people get committed voluntarily. She uses her imagination to escape her darkened surroundings and gets caught up in a world where the line that separates reality from fiction. Fortunately, Baby Doll is not alone in her mental attempt to escape the world. She is aided by Rocket, Blondie, Amber and Sweet Pea, four other girls desperate to get out.

In any case, Sucker Punch promises to be an eye-popping, adrenaline-boosting, mind-blowing cinematic experience that I for one will not dare miss! For those of you who're still skeptical, check out the trailer, then get back to me.

New day in old town

My, my, it has been a while, hasn't it? I don't think I've written a blog in well over a month. Which is not to say that I didn't think about writing one. I guess I just didn't find the time to do so. Things have been crazy around here for a while now. But I'm back for good, I hope, and I feel I should give you some sort of sitrep of my life so far.

First of all, major kudos should be awarded to me for not having failed a single course this exam period. I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised to see not one grade below 10. I guess all those hours I spent feeling trapped and isolated in the library really paid off.

Secondly, I can happily inform you that Project Sheffield is well under way of becoming a fixed reality. The only thing missing is my motivational letter and some minor paperwork (oh, and the approval of the Erasmus committee, of course). After that, it's fingers crossed, a couple dozen Hail Mary's, some lucky charms and all the candles you can light up to get me into Sheffield University! As always, I'll keep you posted on said mission.

Another important something that happened to me during this incredibly long hiatus is the fact that I got my first article published. Well, maybe not so much published as uploaded to the world wide web. My first assignment was writing a review on the game Tron Evolution. I have to say, I didn't really love the game, but I mean, there were a couple of noteworthy elements. Still, I wrote about it in all honesty; I mentioned the faulty controls, the monotone world as well as the wickedly great soundtrack and the high-tech ambience.

When I uploaded my article, I knew editorial would still have to edit it, because, well, that's what they do isn't it? But that's where it went wrong. You might think it cocky of me, or even downright arrogant, but they completely f'ed the article up. They changed the title, did some cut-paste hack job on the structure of the text and thoroughly tore down the entire feel of the article.

Now, since I'm not an editor or something like that, I don't know whether or not what they did was justified, but I like to believe that, being a 2nd year student of Language & Literature and having been writing for such a long time, I should know a thing or two about writing an article or whatever. So you could say that I'm sort of totally disappointed with the way editorial handeled my article.

On a more positive note, I did get the chance to see some awesome new stuff that I really think you should know about, but I'll put it in my next blog, so as not to completely drown you in this flood of information.

Play. Pause. Stop. Reboot.

As with so many things in life there are the things you should do and the things you shouldn't do. I'm fairly sure little Pandora was tempted by this exact dichotomy back in the day. She was given this amazing gift, this fabled box with the warning that she mustn't open it. But really, can we blame her for opening up that little gizmo and unleashing all this supposed evil onto the world? I don't think so. I think what she did, was inevitable. It was almost mandatory. Should she therefore be crucified forever? Locked in her eternal state as a punchline for 'acts you shouldn't have committed'? Poor little Pandora deserves no such fate. She deserves our compassion and all of the understanding we can muster up.

Yesterday, I think I opened up my very own Pandora's Box. Granted, it wasn't exactly the first time I opened up this particular model. In fact, I think I already opened it three or four times already and as you can all plainly see: I'm still here, the world hasn't ended, there has been no such apocalypse. So I should have no problems whatsoever in having opened it a potential fifth time, shouldn't I?

I can't really explain my actions leading up to the removing of the lid, but I can't help but feel like we're nothing less than 'star-crossed lovers', as I already told her yesterday. I mean, the thing is, even when we're apart, it doesn't feel like that. She's always there, lingering, waiting, hesitating. To conjure up the image of a person with just one song, one movie scene or even one word seems too good a thing to pass up on, wouldn't you agree? Of course, I could always be slowly turning mad, driven so by this desperate impasse of ours, but the line between sanity and insanity has always been one so scarcely defined that I'm not worried at all. So what if I'm bonkers, so what?

I don't know where this seemingly never-ending cycle of rebooting will lead me to, but I'm always the optimist in saying 'You can only have so much bad luck until you're bound to come across some good luck for a change'. And who knows, this time might be Lucky # 5! If we can do the mambo to number five, then surely, love can't be too far behind? The truth is, it can end in tears or it can end in bliss. Whichever might be the destination, I don't care - not for now at least -, because all I want to do is give it another try. Where's the hurt in that?

Neon galore!

Just came back from the movies with R. We decided on Tron Legacy. I never saw the first movie, but I am aware of its significance in the world of CGI and animation. After some hyperlinking on Wikipedia, I familiarized myself with the world of Tron and with that in mind, and the amazing trailer with music from Daft Punk, I walked through the sliding doors of the Kinepolis and met R at the registers. After some snack-hunting in the Candystore, we went upstairs, to theatre 1, but not before grabbing one of those I'm-never-going-to-go-to-another-3D-movie-ever-again 3D goggles. Yup, that's right boys and girls, 3D has become as unavoidable as getting an STD from a sleazy toilet seat!

I have to be honest when I say I approached the movie a bit sceptical, I mean, I'm all for CGI (if properly executed, that is) and I'm definitely up for a hi-tech fueled adrenaline ride, but it could all go South so very quickly. What I'm actually trying to say is that there were a lot of balls in the air and a lot would be riding on the execution of the special effects. And I'm happy to inform you that all was executed beautifully!

My first wow-moment occured pretty early on, namely with the digitalized version of the Disney logo. I know, I know, but still... It looked pretty effing awesome!

Just you wait until you've seen it all lit up in the movies and with your 3D goggles on!

Then, I was blown away by the bombastic and highly likeable soundtrack. It should come as no surprise as well that I'm downloading the soundtrack as we speak.

Absolutely electrifying...

The next thing that blows you away is your first look at The Grid (the cyberworld father Flynn has created). What follows next is a razor-sharp, high-speed, futuristic trip loaded with breathtaking environments and epilepsy-inducing neon lights. You're in for a treat! - if you're not an actual epileptic, that is.

But there are moments when all these eyepopping visuals fall subject to overkill. For instance, the fight in the bar, near the end of the movie, basically passes by in a brightly coloured blur since it's become increasingly difficult to separate the neon-suits worn by the actors from the neon backgrounds as conjured up by the computer. There's always a good chance this is all due to my slow descent towards utter blindness though - I have like, really bad eyes -, so maybe you shouldn't be too taken in by my opinions.

All in all, Tron Legacy has been a very agreeable experience! If tight flashy suits, lightcycles, perfectly executed finishing moves, Olivia Wilde and a sleek, dark, foreboding hi-tech world rocks your boat, then by all means, climb aboard! - you're in for one hell of a ride ;-) (memorable moment: my first use of a smiley in one of my blog!)

Infinitesimal

Sometimes I feel like a nomad, drifting through this world, never really a part of it. My room a wasteland of clothes strewn around, books thrown on a stack creating a makeshift library, my desk an ever-growing sea of papers, folders, cables, memory sticks and other little nicknacks, furniture that doesn't quite match and a multitude of memorabilia from my life stored away in an ethereal world.

I can sit on a bus, go through life's daily motions and still feel like I'm not actually there. Like I'm somewhere else, though I'm not quite sure where this 'somewhere else' is. I know this might sound quite existentialistic of me, but I hope that some of you can understand this kind of disconnectedness, this sense of permeability, as if you're translucent.

It's happened to me so many times before that I've come to believe this 'flaw' of mine to be intrinsic to my character. Maybe it's all in my head, or maybe it's in my genes. I'm not quite sure which of these I'd prefer. If it was just a condition of the mind, than surely I should be able to relinquish such thoughts, shouldn't I? And if it's a matter of DNA, than I should just abandon all hope now, right? Because until the day genetics crack the human genome, my genes won't magically rearrange themselves to my personal needs.

The curious part about this is the fact that, although it is not the world's greatest experience, I don't altogether dread the feeling either. In a way, it gives some perspective, because here we are, a population just shy of seven billion people, yet we are surrounded by an infinite black horizon which seems to be filled with nothing else but empty rocks and searing hot balls of plasma held together only by gravity.

But what is it that keeps us from floating off this rock and drifting far, far away? Are we connected by people, by the lives we lead, the jobs we have, the steps we take? Or quite the opposite, the steps not taken, the jobs we said 'no' to, the lives we didn't lead and the people who never got to be a part of our lives? What is it then than keeps us from floating away? What is it that makes us stay? 

We are just infinitesimal dots scattered across a 148,940 km² patch of land on a small planet in one of the corners of the Milky Way so it would seem only natural that a member of the human species should feel exactly like this. After all, compared to the vastness that stretches around us, how could we not feel this way? If ever a human being should want to make a difference, he should try to do so on this old piece of rock, right? Because let's face it, the chances of that specific human reaching out into the farthest reaches of the universe and actually make a difference there, seems equally as infinitesimal as he is himself, is it not? 

Maybe it's good to feel this kind of translusency every once in a while. It makes us realize how valuable these precious years are in this world and how important it is to be the best version of us to make sure that this old piece of rock actually remembers us. And if for some reason, the rocks can't seem to hold on to a thought, than we should try to enstill such thoughts in the minds of the people around us, so we - and by 'we' I actually mean I - can try and come back down to Earth, instead of floating off. Maybe then, I can actually stay.

Fly me to the Moon

We live in momentous times. Only one year short of 2012, a year heralded by many religions as the 'End of Days' or at least the end of life as we know it.

A few years ago, I took a liking to Geography, not only because we were learning about plate tectonics, which I find extremely interesting, but because I realized that there were extraordinary things happening all around us. Things that might be some sort of prelude of what's to come.

Disaster movies always know how to draw a crowd (with the exception being Disaster Movie itself, which is a spoof of course) and maybe they attract that much attention because we secretly want to see this world shake up and break down? But why are we so gung-ho on seeing this world perish when all around us efforts are being made to ensure this planet's survival? Fuel alternatives, green energy, solar power, recycling, call it whatever you like, but there definitely is a fenomenal interest in keeping this little blue gem shining as it once has.

By way of a link posted by G on Facebook, I came across this site that maps freak occurences in the weather and in earth's activities. Now I know that there are hundreds if not more of these sites circulating the web and I would've looked at them all, but since this one seemed to fulfill my immediate quest for these worldwide catastrophes, I saw no reason as to why I should look any further.

In 2010, nearly 300.000 people were killed by natural disasters. The American heartland has experienced a record freezing point; minus forty degrees Celsius. 2010 has been the hottest year to date. Sixty-six earthquakes were registered in Belgium in 2010. A new supervolcano, the Campi Flegrei, threatens to lay waste to all of Europe upon eruption. Haiti sees itself confronted with a cholera epidemic, with infected numbers rising to 400.000 by 2011. The list goes on and on.

Are we on the fast lane to global extinction? Or is Mother Nature just experiencing one hell of a vicious period? And will these disasters worsen or will this rock settle back into equilibrium?

I for one am a firm believer in 21.12.2012 (judge me however you like) and so I believe this situation can only get worse, although I remain to be optimistic. I mean, surely we can't all die on that faithful Friday? Surely this world won't meet its on a Friday night? Can this so-called God of ours be that cruel and filled with irony? I suppose we'll have our answer within less than two years now, won't we? And if by then, we're all still here, in one place, without floods, without quakes, without massive tectonic displacement, we'll be quite alright and we can safely say we can live to see another day. And if not, well, there's always the Moon we can try out?