http://www.makepovertyhistory.org

Friday, January 28, 2005

Subzero

This is what the weather (subzero temperatures, snow and strong wind) has done over here:







It's pictures taken from objects on the lake or at the lakeside and everything is covered by ice. Hard wind sweeps water over it and subzero temperatures freezes it. In an instant.

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Wind

The weather has been amazing the past few days. On Sunday it snowed like crazy. I woke up seeing all white around where I live. Apparantly it hasn't snowed like that since 1985. I went to my girlfriends place and walked around and it was just beautiful snow. Driving around is another thing though.

The snow is still on the streets although it is starting to melt. But now we have winds. Winds that makes your bones ache. Strong cold wind. All I hear now in my office is hhhvvvwwhwvvhwhwvwvwhwwvwvwhwvw made by the wind everytime it passes the windows. It sounds painstakingly chilly.

Oh well, it is winter after all.

Apparantly the weather is going mental all around the world. Lots of snow in Europe, lots of snow in north-east of USA, torrential rain in Saudi Arabia, rain in Indonesia, etc etc. Yes, it's all because of the greenhouse effect and what we are doing to the environment. Can we fix it? Not as long as people like Dubya quit treaties like the Kyoto Treaty on environment. Not as long as Americans guzzle up petrol using their big bad SUVs. Not as long as we realize that we are indeed damaging the world we live in.

Scientists around the world are screaming about this weather change and how it will ruin the lives of generations to come, but since it doesn't affect people currently living on Planet Earth, people tend to brush all this aside. Well, if my grandkid will be living in an environment that is not healthy or suitable for humans he can only blame me. And you ofcourse.

"You haven't been paying attention"

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Work - Salary - IQ

It's official! According to the Guardian I am being paid way too low for my intelligence.

Do you think you're being underpaid? Check this out: Guardian Unlimited Money | Work | IQ Test

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Waiting

I found this interesting story yesterday about a guy who is already queueing for Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge Of The Sith. That'll be 139 days on a couch on the street just outside a cinema in Seattle where it's currently winter.

Geek?
Nerd?
Genius?
Bum?
Doesn't have a life?
Fool?

You decide.

Sometimes I wish I have the patience to take some (or a lot in this case) time to enjoy waiting like him.

Thursday, January 13, 2005

Shiny Happy People

I just came out of an R.E.M. concert. When the tickets were sold about four months ago, I rushed to get some. This was before they released their latest album, Around The Sun. I figured it's R.E.M. and it's going to be awesome. It has been a while since I have been to a concert anyway, so I thought R.E.M. would be a good concert to start 2005 with.

Then came the album, Around The Sun. I listened to it and decided that I don't like it. It's to slow, to moody, sort of like Up. I like Monster and Automatic For The People, not Up. And it turns out that Around The Sun didn't do well. So there I was, holding a couple of R.E.M. tickets for a concert where they will be promoting Around The Sun when the fact is I don't like Around The Sun. What to do?

I still went anyway, because I was hoping they play some of my favorite R.E.M. songs like The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite, What's The Frequency, Kenneth? and Man On The Moon (they did play 2 of those songs). I had a spare ticket and was trying to sell it at the door but I gave up after 40 minutes standing in the cold with about 20 other people trying to sell their ticket(s). It was sold out though, but I guess Swiss people don't take risks.

Michael Stipe was his usual self. He painted his face with a thick blue line across his eyes, not sure what his statement was. Mike Mills on bass was the wannabe rock star. He keeps jumping around and clearly enjoys being in the spotlight. Peter Buck on the other side of the stage was really quiet. He was almost never in the spotlight and he seems bored. Even when playing uplifting songs he looked bored. While Michael Stipe mentioned Mike Mills a couple of times, he never mentioned Peter Buck. I read in Q the other day that these three barely communicate during tours and that Peter Buck actually hates being a rock star. Well it clearly showed tonight.

The concert was actaully quiet good. They made the depressing songs in Around The Sun a bit uplifting. It sounds much better live. They did play some of their old stuff (but not Shiny Happy People). Michael Stipe made some political statement. Mike Mills bopped around songs, switching from bass to piano and back to bass. Peter Buck was just bored in his corner playing his Rickenbacker. They did a two hour set, finishing of with Man On The Moon (no It's The End Of The World unfortunately).

The opening act was some bloke called Joseph Arthur. He came on stage with just his acoustic guitar. However he did have ton loads of effects running between his guitar and the amp and he fiddled around with it much. He created loops and loops and suddenly he has a 6 layer song from just his voice and his guitar. It's amazing what technology can do these days. Too bad that the technology was his strong point and not his singing or his songs. He lacks a bit of soul, but I guess that's just him being nervous. I mean, Michael Stipe was introducing him, Peter Buck joined him on stage and he is dependant on all this technology so if he fucks up a bit, he fucks up big time.

Another thing I like to say is that people who wear ear plugs during concerts should be moved to the back or to the balcony. If you can stand the noise why go to a concert? And why stand in front of me??? Move will ya! Protect your ears, go sit in the back. Or in the toilets where you won't be bothering no one and your ears will be fine. Stupid ear plugs!

"Dreams they complicate my life"

Monday, January 10, 2005

Snowboarding season has started!

Yesterday we went skiing/snowboarding in Les Contamines. Contrary to popluar belief, it was really nice up there. Fairly good snow, no queues, and bright sun in the blue sky. It was lovely lovely lovely. It was a good day to start the season.

On Saturday we went to see Ocean's Twelve (second time for me). A bit to brag about dampkring and Amsterdam. There's a bit of surreality in it when Julia Roberts' character Tess pretended to be Julia Roberts. How wack is that? She gets paid millions to do what? To basically play herself. Man, I can do that.

Other pop culture stuff: I've been watching The Simpsons Season 4 on DVD. After reading Planet Simpson by Chris Turner I now have this feeling of having to watch The Simpsons and look out for the pop-cultural references in it. Actually, not just pop-culture but whole society as is. The Simpsons is indeed the perfect allegory to our ailing society. Want to know what is wrong (or right) in our communal society? Go watch The Simpsons and you'll find it.

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

2005

Happy New Year everyone! Here's hoping for a great 2005. Damn, we're getting closer to the middle of the decade here.

I went away for a week, from Boxing Day until the 2nd. The place we chose was Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt. We wanted a place with sun and where we could go diving. After looking we only had one choice and we took it. So instead of freezing my ass off in Switzerland, we went to lie in the sun on the beach of Sharm-el-Sheikh - and do a bit of diving as well.

Sharm is a weird place. It's located on the south side of the Sinai peninsula, the peninsula that separates Africa from Middle East, where Moses got lost for 40 years. Looking at the place it's no surprise that Moses got lost. It's a huge rock desert filled with mountains and there is hardly any green trees. Somebody then decided to put up a tourist resort at Sharm and now it's full of tourists who wants to go diving, relax, party, and taste some Egyptian culture.

After the bombing a couple of months ago, security is so tight. Add to that the way they talk (it seems like they argue all the time, even if in fact they are joking) and it gives you a weird sense of paranoia. On top of that they don't understand what service really means and they are a bit sexist (it's in the culture).

The diving is wonderful. I saw lots of fish, a sea turtle, and the coral reefs are amazing. No wonder people flock from all over the world to dive in this place. I'm just baffled at the odds of sitting in a boat full of Germans when there are people from all over the world diving there.

So anyway, it was a nice vacation for me and I hope you had a good time during the New Year break (if you had one).


ps. We all knew what happened in South East Asia on Boxing Day. More than 140,000 people were killed in the tsunami so if you haven't done it yet please spare some change for the disaster victims. You can do it via ICRC, Oxfam, Red Cross, UNICEF, Medecin Sans Frontieres or any other charity fund of your choice.