In my glass: Sanpellegrino lemon
From my iPod: Riders on the Storm (by Jaz Coleman and Kennedy) and Airplanes (By B.o.B)... Yeah, about as opposite as you can get
From my bookshelf: Nothing, yet.
Outside: dark
My mood: cheerful
Today's hairstyle:Celtic knot, held with my custom-made Aliarose stick (because I figured I'd go for one of my fancier sticks for the tai chi demo, rather than my usual nice, but less fancy go-to hair things)
Good evening all. This'll be a quick one since I'll be out with the guys from the band if all goes as planned.
Anyway, today we had a Tai Chi demonstration for the new Confucious Institute Opening. The demo seemed to go really well, and I think it might have been one of the best times I've done the form, which is always good. I've to finish an article for the student newspaper before uni starts on monday. I'm looking forward to seeing the garden in the Confucious Institute - I'm going to have to pop in sometime.
In terms of my new endeavour, I was trying to think of ways to eat better and spend less money this term. Part of the issue I always had with packed lunches is that after a while, they get so boring. I decided, since I have no classes on Tuesday lunchtime for the first time ever, I'm going to head down and sign up for the veg-cooperative at the uni. You order a bag of local veg for £6 and pick it up on the tuesday after. Ok, but I was stuck with how to make it interesting, and remembered something I had come across once when I was video-surfing on youtube across various cooking channels (I think I had been looking for a recipe for pumpkin soup last autumn when I went on a video spree) - bento boxes. I have my answer. Basically, its healthy, and its pretty, and it doesn't really take all that much longer than a regular packed lunch to prepare -its the pre-cooking the short-grain rice that takes longest, but you can do a big batch and freeze it.
So I made up a few things to try tomorrow, mostly just out of left-overs in the fridge. I made up a batch of rice (but I should have left the lid on the pan until it cooled a bit,because it hasn't clumped together so well), and split it into single servings, then I made two super-thin little omelettes (I used one egg and cooked it in the biggest frying pan, before splitting it in half, adding some left-over butternut squash and rolled up. Then I still had some butternut squash left so I mashed it up and added a little soft cheese to make little balls. Everything is sitting in the fridge, above the veggie box, so I can just rip up some fresh veggies in the morning to fill up the space.
It barely took any time at all, so we'll see how well things go for me. It'll be interesting too to see how I can work in any less familiar veggies that might come in my veg back.
For now, good-bye guys :)
Friday, 27 September 2013
Thursday, 26 September 2013
The Importance of Speaking Freely
In my glass: water
From my iPod: Rhythm of Love, by Plain White T's (from my Grooveshark "Happy" playlist)
From my bookshelf: Nothing. Since its Freshers, I thought it best not to start on any big books with third year looming large over me.
Outside: cool, but sunny
My mood: cheerful
Today's hairstyle: Celtic knot on wet hair
Afternoon all.
So back over on the LHC, we have a thread in the members-only Friendship Board titled "Rude Questions You've Always Wanted to ask...". Basically over there, we talk about topics which we would otherwise be hard-pressed to be able to talk about in normal society. We have a kind of unspoken agreement not to let an argument go too far, and that rude questions by definition usually elicit rude answers. But as odd as it may sound to have a thread in such a friendly forum especially dedicated to things seen as rude orto which people might take offence to, it has actually become a very valuable thread for some of us.
When I first entered the thread in early June (we were already around 2000 posts in on various issues, and the thread is still going strong with at least daily posts since) the current discussion was on the issue of illegal immigrants, and the racism felt by legal immigrants who are sometimes assumed by the community to be illegal. A difficult discussion to have in public, due to the hefty accusations or offence that could be taken by much of the community. Part of what was discussed was that racism was seen in some parts of the world, and by some people to be an inherent part of the illegal immigrant issues (for example, it would be common in their area to hear phrases like "go back to where you came from") and that made it difficult in trying to discuss the semantics of legal and illegal immigration. For example, some of us, me included, don't associate colour or race with illegal immigrants, probably because I grew up in an area where there were a fair number of completely legal immigrants from all sorts of places and all sorts of races, and that continues to be the case up here at University. The thing was that a lot of us held the belief that we hold little respect for those who break the law, and therefore illegal immigrants, but also that people are innocent until proven guilty, so the "go back to where you came from" statement simply doesn't make sense to us, when we automatically assume the person has every right to be there.
We also talked about ancestry, the difficulty many of us have with understanding the need to know their ancestry, or even the problems with using ancestry in an argument relevant to current issues and thedifference between that and what makes up a person right now. Now that caused a few fireworks, because some people take their geneaology very seriously, but many of us also place very little importance on individual relations.
One really interesting topic we had was on the subject of rudeness itself. The topic initially started with a question (from one of my fellow UK-ers, I think. Unfortunately the site seems to be really slow today for some reason,so don't take my word for it) on why people often don't smile back at her when she gives someone a friendly smile. This somewhat confused me too, being from a rural area of Scotland, where its fairly common to stop and chat to your naighbours on a walk or such like, and I too had experienced this, especially in places like Glasgow, or worse, London. What we eventually discovered after a fair bit of confusion and rude answers (since, yes, rude questions elicit rude answers. we don't take it to heart) was that there seems to be two types of politeness in the world - positive-aspect and negative-aspect. Myself and the initial poster of the question appear to be from area with positive-aspect politeness. What that means is that certain gestures, like waving, smiling to someone you pass, saying hi to someone you're next to for any length of time, saying "excuse me" as you squeeze past someone in the street, is considered "polite", kind, or the norm. In an area of negative-aspect politeness, the situation is quite different, and indeed the gestures mentioned previously would be seen as positively rude. Negative-aspect isn't a "bad" thing like the term may suggest, but rather it is just the opposite way of thinking to the positive-aspect areas where forward actions are made by a person towards another person in society. In a Negative-aspect society, politeness is keeping out of peoples way, not demanding attention from someone you don't know through speaking to them, or doing many of the gestures perhaps considered polite in a positive-aspect society. When we reached that conclusion, it was quite amazing to us that all this time, we had been misunderstanding cultural norms in the areas we had been visiting, especially since the negative-aspect way of thinking is evident in many large cities, where huge numbers of people live and work, such as London, or Glasgow, where I had previously experienced this sort of thing.
The thing is, these revelations are just a couple of the things that have become evident through people simply asking questions that would not otherwise be asked, and through people understanding that careful consideration and carefully worded replies are needed to solve such sensitive issues, as well as not taking rude come-backs to heart. It has been invaluable to me on the forum, especially for realising cultural differences between that I was brought up in, the various different parts of America, Canada, and a number of other countries as well, as well as confusion over language and differences in political correctness across the world. It kind of makes me sad that many of these revelations could likely never have been made if we were to bring up the subject in regular society. I also realise that in many other, perhaps less friendly forums this thread full of revelation would not still exist, alive and kicking as it is today. In fact, todays topic is again the topic of racism, and whether groups set up to help people from certain countries or races don't actually help to perpetuate further segregation.
Anyway, if anyone has anything to say about any of the above topics, feel free to contribute in the comments (just keep things civil). For now, I'm going to sort out my uni timetable for next week, spend some more time back over at the LHC, figure out when I will have time to do a full henna on my hair (I know my hair is quite red-ish anyway especially with the slight sun-bleaching on my ends, but I want MORE GINGER!! heehee), and then iron my outfit and head to Tai Chi tonight as final prep for our demonstration tomorrow.
Speak soon, folks
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From my iPod: Rhythm of Love, by Plain White T's (from my Grooveshark "Happy" playlist)
From my bookshelf: Nothing. Since its Freshers, I thought it best not to start on any big books with third year looming large over me.
Outside: cool, but sunny
My mood: cheerful
Today's hairstyle: Celtic knot on wet hair
Afternoon all.
So back over on the LHC, we have a thread in the members-only Friendship Board titled "Rude Questions You've Always Wanted to ask...". Basically over there, we talk about topics which we would otherwise be hard-pressed to be able to talk about in normal society. We have a kind of unspoken agreement not to let an argument go too far, and that rude questions by definition usually elicit rude answers. But as odd as it may sound to have a thread in such a friendly forum especially dedicated to things seen as rude orto which people might take offence to, it has actually become a very valuable thread for some of us.
When I first entered the thread in early June (we were already around 2000 posts in on various issues, and the thread is still going strong with at least daily posts since) the current discussion was on the issue of illegal immigrants, and the racism felt by legal immigrants who are sometimes assumed by the community to be illegal. A difficult discussion to have in public, due to the hefty accusations or offence that could be taken by much of the community. Part of what was discussed was that racism was seen in some parts of the world, and by some people to be an inherent part of the illegal immigrant issues (for example, it would be common in their area to hear phrases like "go back to where you came from") and that made it difficult in trying to discuss the semantics of legal and illegal immigration. For example, some of us, me included, don't associate colour or race with illegal immigrants, probably because I grew up in an area where there were a fair number of completely legal immigrants from all sorts of places and all sorts of races, and that continues to be the case up here at University. The thing was that a lot of us held the belief that we hold little respect for those who break the law, and therefore illegal immigrants, but also that people are innocent until proven guilty, so the "go back to where you came from" statement simply doesn't make sense to us, when we automatically assume the person has every right to be there.
We also talked about ancestry, the difficulty many of us have with understanding the need to know their ancestry, or even the problems with using ancestry in an argument relevant to current issues and thedifference between that and what makes up a person right now. Now that caused a few fireworks, because some people take their geneaology very seriously, but many of us also place very little importance on individual relations.
One really interesting topic we had was on the subject of rudeness itself. The topic initially started with a question (from one of my fellow UK-ers, I think. Unfortunately the site seems to be really slow today for some reason,so don't take my word for it) on why people often don't smile back at her when she gives someone a friendly smile. This somewhat confused me too, being from a rural area of Scotland, where its fairly common to stop and chat to your naighbours on a walk or such like, and I too had experienced this, especially in places like Glasgow, or worse, London. What we eventually discovered after a fair bit of confusion and rude answers (since, yes, rude questions elicit rude answers. we don't take it to heart) was that there seems to be two types of politeness in the world - positive-aspect and negative-aspect. Myself and the initial poster of the question appear to be from area with positive-aspect politeness. What that means is that certain gestures, like waving, smiling to someone you pass, saying hi to someone you're next to for any length of time, saying "excuse me" as you squeeze past someone in the street, is considered "polite", kind, or the norm. In an area of negative-aspect politeness, the situation is quite different, and indeed the gestures mentioned previously would be seen as positively rude. Negative-aspect isn't a "bad" thing like the term may suggest, but rather it is just the opposite way of thinking to the positive-aspect areas where forward actions are made by a person towards another person in society. In a Negative-aspect society, politeness is keeping out of peoples way, not demanding attention from someone you don't know through speaking to them, or doing many of the gestures perhaps considered polite in a positive-aspect society. When we reached that conclusion, it was quite amazing to us that all this time, we had been misunderstanding cultural norms in the areas we had been visiting, especially since the negative-aspect way of thinking is evident in many large cities, where huge numbers of people live and work, such as London, or Glasgow, where I had previously experienced this sort of thing.
The thing is, these revelations are just a couple of the things that have become evident through people simply asking questions that would not otherwise be asked, and through people understanding that careful consideration and carefully worded replies are needed to solve such sensitive issues, as well as not taking rude come-backs to heart. It has been invaluable to me on the forum, especially for realising cultural differences between that I was brought up in, the various different parts of America, Canada, and a number of other countries as well, as well as confusion over language and differences in political correctness across the world. It kind of makes me sad that many of these revelations could likely never have been made if we were to bring up the subject in regular society. I also realise that in many other, perhaps less friendly forums this thread full of revelation would not still exist, alive and kicking as it is today. In fact, todays topic is again the topic of racism, and whether groups set up to help people from certain countries or races don't actually help to perpetuate further segregation.
Anyway, if anyone has anything to say about any of the above topics, feel free to contribute in the comments (just keep things civil). For now, I'm going to sort out my uni timetable for next week, spend some more time back over at the LHC, figure out when I will have time to do a full henna on my hair (I know my hair is quite red-ish anyway especially with the slight sun-bleaching on my ends, but I want MORE GINGER!! heehee), and then iron my outfit and head to Tai Chi tonight as final prep for our demonstration tomorrow.
Speak soon, folks
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Monday, 23 September 2013
Hello again :)
Hello everyone. :) I know, it's been quiet around here lately. Times have been busy, but thats summer for you.
So, at the start of the summer, I went on a trip to Charlie McKerrons music week at Inshraich House (home of the insider festival). A whole week of playing fiddle after a stressful year where I barely played any was brilliant. A whole host of tunes that ill probably need to note down soon so I remember that I know them if I go looking for ceilidh tunes.
Then I went sailing with my uncle and spent some time with my second cousins. Most of our sailing time, we were in lasers (little one-man dingys for the non-sailers out there).
I was barely back a week before I was out with the OTC sailing club on a 42-footer, called East End Endeavour to earn our Competent Crew qualification.
Once that was over, again I was barely home long when I was off to Moscow with the combined SUOTC pipes and drums. That was great fun, but unfortunately I was I'll for most of the trip. I felt flu-y for the first five days or so, then I got a migraine for three days (great fun when you're surrounded by bright lights and loud music). So I was basically feeling better by the time the last day came along. In any case, the buildings were beautiful. Here's a picture of St. Basil's, just because it was really pretty, especially when it was lit up during the show in Red Square.
So now its fresher's week in Aberdeen again, my old flatmate is gone, and my new flatmate has arrived. It's beautifully sunny, so I'm making the most of it before tomorrows forecast rain.
See you all soon (hopefully). :)
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
So, at the start of the summer, I went on a trip to Charlie McKerrons music week at Inshraich House (home of the insider festival). A whole week of playing fiddle after a stressful year where I barely played any was brilliant. A whole host of tunes that ill probably need to note down soon so I remember that I know them if I go looking for ceilidh tunes.
Then I went sailing with my uncle and spent some time with my second cousins. Most of our sailing time, we were in lasers (little one-man dingys for the non-sailers out there).
I was barely back a week before I was out with the OTC sailing club on a 42-footer, called East End Endeavour to earn our Competent Crew qualification.
Once that was over, again I was barely home long when I was off to Moscow with the combined SUOTC pipes and drums. That was great fun, but unfortunately I was I'll for most of the trip. I felt flu-y for the first five days or so, then I got a migraine for three days (great fun when you're surrounded by bright lights and loud music). So I was basically feeling better by the time the last day came along. In any case, the buildings were beautiful. Here's a picture of St. Basil's, just because it was really pretty, especially when it was lit up during the show in Red Square.
So now its fresher's week in Aberdeen again, my old flatmate is gone, and my new flatmate has arrived. It's beautifully sunny, so I'm making the most of it before tomorrows forecast rain.
See you all soon (hopefully). :)
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Thursday, 18 July 2013
Not much happening
In my glass: water
From my iPod: no idea - haven't been using it much
From my bookshelf:still a Clash of Kings - haven't been reading much lately
Outside: really warm but cloudy
My mood:ok
Today's hairstyle:nautilus with green ketylo
So it's been a quiet couple of weeks, bar the work on my parents new kitchen. I've been painting, reading up on homeopathy, and helping out my parents, in amongst trying to escape what has been, until the last day or two, scorching lay hot weather. It's been almost 25C a lot of days - we usually barely get to nineteen or twenty this time of year. I burn really easily, but I've so far managed to avoid it, so at least my efforts are paying off, even if my mum is tanning browner by the day, and I'm still pasty white - at least I'm not burnt.
I plan to go out and collect some elderflowers today, though since we currently don't have a stove or an oven, I can't really make cordial, so I'll have another go at a gallon of wine. I've been trying to think of other things to make wine with that I can collect while I'm out at my parents. I may make some tinctures too.
I'm going down to London this weekend, to go sailing with my uncle. I've never been sailing before, but it looks like it'll be great fun. What it does mean is that you're unlikely to hear much from me since I'll be off on a yacht all week.
So that's my quick update of a hot week in Perthshire. See you all sometime. :)
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From my iPod: no idea - haven't been using it much
From my bookshelf:still a Clash of Kings - haven't been reading much lately
Outside: really warm but cloudy
My mood:ok
Today's hairstyle:nautilus with green ketylo
So it's been a quiet couple of weeks, bar the work on my parents new kitchen. I've been painting, reading up on homeopathy, and helping out my parents, in amongst trying to escape what has been, until the last day or two, scorching lay hot weather. It's been almost 25C a lot of days - we usually barely get to nineteen or twenty this time of year. I burn really easily, but I've so far managed to avoid it, so at least my efforts are paying off, even if my mum is tanning browner by the day, and I'm still pasty white - at least I'm not burnt.
I plan to go out and collect some elderflowers today, though since we currently don't have a stove or an oven, I can't really make cordial, so I'll have another go at a gallon of wine. I've been trying to think of other things to make wine with that I can collect while I'm out at my parents. I may make some tinctures too.
I'm going down to London this weekend, to go sailing with my uncle. I've never been sailing before, but it looks like it'll be great fun. What it does mean is that you're unlikely to hear much from me since I'll be off on a yacht all week.
So that's my quick update of a hot week in Perthshire. See you all sometime. :)
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, 28 June 2013
It's been a while (again)
In my glass: nothing
From my iPod: Blue Afternoon, Rachel Stevens
From my bookshelf: A Clash of Kings, by George R. R. Martin. - the second book of the Game of Thrones book series
Outside:fairly bright - waiting
My mood: ok
Today's hairstyle: nautilus with a Ketylo
Sorry guys. You know how it is. Uni has finished, and the weeks have been flying past.
For those who are wondering, I passed all my exams, and inside, my mind is running around screaming "YAY! NO MORE ANATOMY!!!" Never again. Ever. I cant deny its been useful, but for the next two years, I actually get to do a bit of what I came here to do in the first place - pharmacology. Finally.
So, onto other things. Turns out, the band isn't playing in Edinburgh at the Tattoo anymore. Damn. In any case, I may or may not be going on a trip away elsewhere in the start of September, depending of which of us three bass drummers that have put in for it gets selected - I doubt they would let all three of us go, since its just a select group of pipers and drummers going.
Part of the reason I've not been in touch is because of a tragedy involving one of my fellow musicians. One of the pipers I played with in the youth band for years passed away very recently, and its affected everyone in the band community since he was such a lovely person. I actually wrote a whole post on it, and it disappeared into the stratosphere somewhere when I tried to post it. It was too emotional to try again, so I just left it.
Tomorrow is the European Pipe Band Championships. Thinking it should be good fun. I can't believe we're in June already and I have only been to one, tiny competition. I think I'll miss the fun of the trip to Ireland, with it being in Forres this year, but I'm also glad I'm not spending two days travelling for the ten minutes each band plays for.
I can't decide if its a really bad thing that I'm starting to rather like my roommate for next year probably more than I should be for him being my roommate. Let me ponder it for a while?
Oh, and I'm doing the LHC summer swap again. I'm still collating stuff and waiting for other stuff to arrive before sending my gifted her present. I went over-budget a bit, but oh well.
I'm working on a few posts at the moment, but none of them are even close to being ready to post, mostly because I'm still trying to figure out my own points of view on the subjects. LHC debates are helping me somewhat come to a conclusion for some of them. I'll try to get some more posts to you soon.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From my iPod: Blue Afternoon, Rachel Stevens
From my bookshelf: A Clash of Kings, by George R. R. Martin. - the second book of the Game of Thrones book series
Outside:fairly bright - waiting
My mood: ok
Today's hairstyle: nautilus with a Ketylo
Sorry guys. You know how it is. Uni has finished, and the weeks have been flying past.
For those who are wondering, I passed all my exams, and inside, my mind is running around screaming "YAY! NO MORE ANATOMY!!!" Never again. Ever. I cant deny its been useful, but for the next two years, I actually get to do a bit of what I came here to do in the first place - pharmacology. Finally.
So, onto other things. Turns out, the band isn't playing in Edinburgh at the Tattoo anymore. Damn. In any case, I may or may not be going on a trip away elsewhere in the start of September, depending of which of us three bass drummers that have put in for it gets selected - I doubt they would let all three of us go, since its just a select group of pipers and drummers going.
Part of the reason I've not been in touch is because of a tragedy involving one of my fellow musicians. One of the pipers I played with in the youth band for years passed away very recently, and its affected everyone in the band community since he was such a lovely person. I actually wrote a whole post on it, and it disappeared into the stratosphere somewhere when I tried to post it. It was too emotional to try again, so I just left it.
Tomorrow is the European Pipe Band Championships. Thinking it should be good fun. I can't believe we're in June already and I have only been to one, tiny competition. I think I'll miss the fun of the trip to Ireland, with it being in Forres this year, but I'm also glad I'm not spending two days travelling for the ten minutes each band plays for.
I can't decide if its a really bad thing that I'm starting to rather like my roommate for next year probably more than I should be for him being my roommate. Let me ponder it for a while?
Oh, and I'm doing the LHC summer swap again. I'm still collating stuff and waiting for other stuff to arrive before sending my gifted her present. I went over-budget a bit, but oh well.
I'm working on a few posts at the moment, but none of them are even close to being ready to post, mostly because I'm still trying to figure out my own points of view on the subjects. LHC debates are helping me somewhat come to a conclusion for some of them. I'll try to get some more posts to you soon.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Monday, 27 May 2013
Ooh, 999 page views!
In my glass: jasmine green tea
From my iPod: Thanig an Gille Dubh (a lovely Gaelic song from a cd I got at the NCETM)
From my bookshelf: Anatomy
Outside: dark
My mood: good
Today's hairstyle: nautilus, followed by knot-pony, followed by English braid
I know what youre thinking: two posts so soon? Well, in celebration of my nearing 1000 views, and of finally becoming a "Guru" over on the LHC after more than two years, I have one of my own poems for you. But first, a couple of things..
For those of you LHC-ers (you know who you are) out there, whether you've been following me, or simply clicked on my siggy-link, I wish to ask a question: what do you think my new custom user title should be? (For those of you who are newer to the forum, or not on at all, those who reach the required post-count and also spend more than 365 days on the forum can change the section that says "member" under their username). If you have any ideas the either post them down below or send me a little PM on the boards (name is tigereye over there too)
Second of all, an update on me: so its the middle of exam time, and I have merely four days until they are all over. Yes, I'm stressing, but after the horrific year I've had this one, I have to admit, this is truly the best I have felt in a long, long time. Maybe it's something to do with the sun, and having the time to spend outdoors, even if revising, but I do think its something much more than that. Something appears to have made a huge mark on my life, though I won't say what for sake of jinxing it - don't worry, you can probably guess, and even so,will all know in time. Anyway, the pain in my life has become so much easier to bear, and yes, sometimes I even forget, except for maybe when one of my uncles tunes comes on the radio, or iPod, or at a concert, or a gig, and I'm struck by a feeling of loss once more. But even then, I don't so much feel the pain. It's mostly given way to a sort of gladness that I was blessed to be a part of that family, to still be able to hear his music being played, to know that his time here, though too short, will never be forgotten. And true, sometimes it still is really painful, and the legacy left to me is often difficult to bear, I can still see it somewhat as a gift. I may not see myself as a great musician, but I still find the great joy in playing music. I may still be known to many as daughter, granddaughter, niece, sister of all those infamous musicians of the family, but really, that no longer bothers me. I no longer have the need to fight that identity in order to be seen as me. In fact, I see it almost as a great gift, that I grew up around such wonderful music, and be blessed with such a wonderful family. It is as much a part of "me" as any of the other things I've ever mentioned here. I feel so much further on than I did during my more depressive periods this past year, and even before that, in the time since my uncles death. The death of three people from my high school in the last year, two of which were in my year, and classes, before we all parted ways two short years ago, has hit me hard. The knowledge that one of those was a suicide hit me even harder, especially because of the difficulty I had with coming to terms with my uncles. I missed the anniversary this year. We always used to go up to his gravesite on the day in December - a wee group of us - but I missed it this year; I was in uni, and didn't finish in time to go. That was hard. But like I said, this is definitely a better time for me. I will go back up to the grave when i go home this summer. Lay some flowers, maybe play a tune on my fiddle, just have some time there by myself. I still plan on getting that tattoo. I think it will be easier now, maybe to see it as somewhat of a more happy reminder. As I recently explained to a close friend, it doesn't represent death, so much as a reminder that life needn't be taken so seriously all the time.
Thirdly, my brother is much better now. He is off the majority of his meds,has come off the warfarin, and even has a job bag piping a few days a week. He brings in more money in a week than I seem to make in a whole month. The clot is still there, and will probably forever be there, but, bar some headaches, it no longer affects him so much. He's currently also in the middle of the exams he missed when this happened last year. I think the experience has changed him somewhat, but neither for better, or for worse. He is still my brother, and I cannot express how happy I am to still have him here. It also made me realise how many people there are out there who truly care about us. Sometimes it feels like there are none other than my brother (for I know he is always there for me) who care, but this showed me just how many people really do.
Fourthly, a few lines that crossed my mind today when I came across my old dance shoes and my painted wooden folding fan as I was packing: "Life is a dance we all begin as a child - an ever changing beat we move with. We can chose how to dance, and even whether to dance at all. I do not know much, but I do know that I dance not for the money, for beauty, but for the love of the dance itself. To find the rhythm that keeps life good - keeps me good, with the people, with the music, and with the life that makes me, me.."
And lastly, that poem. It is called "Morning, Sleepyhead" and yes, it is one of my own poems:
A little tap against my cheek
Startles me awake from fitful dreams
Of tigers chasing dolphins in a clear sea
Blue eyes stare down at me
One side reflecting the first pink glint
Of a morning sunrise over distant hills
I close my eyes again in vain
An attempt to return to those odd visions
Of tigers, dolphins, sea - but all gone now.
The tap comes again
My eyes shooting open once more
Catch the tiny, furry paw pulling quickly back
To support his wobbly crouch right on my sternum.
The little weight shifts as he looks at me
And his mouth opens in a big, wide yawn,
Showing all his perfect white teeth in the light.
His whiskers tickle the back of my hand
As I go to rub my eyes somewhat awake
An odd, light sensation still somewhat ethereal.
I move to sit up and yawn widely
The first sudden burst of sun catching my eye.
He glowers at me as he topples into my lap.
The scratchy tongue runs over my finger
Velcro over hard nail and soft skin.
He stands up, sleek, cream and brown.
His huge eyes sit large in his angular face
And he opens his mouth: "prrrmmrraaaaaooowww"
Says he, in his low, unbefitting voice.
Such is the morning ritual of our little Siamese
From my iPod: Thanig an Gille Dubh (a lovely Gaelic song from a cd I got at the NCETM)
From my bookshelf: Anatomy
Outside: dark
My mood: good
Today's hairstyle: nautilus, followed by knot-pony, followed by English braid
I know what youre thinking: two posts so soon? Well, in celebration of my nearing 1000 views, and of finally becoming a "Guru" over on the LHC after more than two years, I have one of my own poems for you. But first, a couple of things..
For those of you LHC-ers (you know who you are) out there, whether you've been following me, or simply clicked on my siggy-link, I wish to ask a question: what do you think my new custom user title should be? (For those of you who are newer to the forum, or not on at all, those who reach the required post-count and also spend more than 365 days on the forum can change the section that says "member" under their username). If you have any ideas the either post them down below or send me a little PM on the boards (name is tigereye over there too)
Second of all, an update on me: so its the middle of exam time, and I have merely four days until they are all over. Yes, I'm stressing, but after the horrific year I've had this one, I have to admit, this is truly the best I have felt in a long, long time. Maybe it's something to do with the sun, and having the time to spend outdoors, even if revising, but I do think its something much more than that. Something appears to have made a huge mark on my life, though I won't say what for sake of jinxing it - don't worry, you can probably guess, and even so,will all know in time. Anyway, the pain in my life has become so much easier to bear, and yes, sometimes I even forget, except for maybe when one of my uncles tunes comes on the radio, or iPod, or at a concert, or a gig, and I'm struck by a feeling of loss once more. But even then, I don't so much feel the pain. It's mostly given way to a sort of gladness that I was blessed to be a part of that family, to still be able to hear his music being played, to know that his time here, though too short, will never be forgotten. And true, sometimes it still is really painful, and the legacy left to me is often difficult to bear, I can still see it somewhat as a gift. I may not see myself as a great musician, but I still find the great joy in playing music. I may still be known to many as daughter, granddaughter, niece, sister of all those infamous musicians of the family, but really, that no longer bothers me. I no longer have the need to fight that identity in order to be seen as me. In fact, I see it almost as a great gift, that I grew up around such wonderful music, and be blessed with such a wonderful family. It is as much a part of "me" as any of the other things I've ever mentioned here. I feel so much further on than I did during my more depressive periods this past year, and even before that, in the time since my uncles death. The death of three people from my high school in the last year, two of which were in my year, and classes, before we all parted ways two short years ago, has hit me hard. The knowledge that one of those was a suicide hit me even harder, especially because of the difficulty I had with coming to terms with my uncles. I missed the anniversary this year. We always used to go up to his gravesite on the day in December - a wee group of us - but I missed it this year; I was in uni, and didn't finish in time to go. That was hard. But like I said, this is definitely a better time for me. I will go back up to the grave when i go home this summer. Lay some flowers, maybe play a tune on my fiddle, just have some time there by myself. I still plan on getting that tattoo. I think it will be easier now, maybe to see it as somewhat of a more happy reminder. As I recently explained to a close friend, it doesn't represent death, so much as a reminder that life needn't be taken so seriously all the time.
Thirdly, my brother is much better now. He is off the majority of his meds,has come off the warfarin, and even has a job bag piping a few days a week. He brings in more money in a week than I seem to make in a whole month. The clot is still there, and will probably forever be there, but, bar some headaches, it no longer affects him so much. He's currently also in the middle of the exams he missed when this happened last year. I think the experience has changed him somewhat, but neither for better, or for worse. He is still my brother, and I cannot express how happy I am to still have him here. It also made me realise how many people there are out there who truly care about us. Sometimes it feels like there are none other than my brother (for I know he is always there for me) who care, but this showed me just how many people really do.
Fourthly, a few lines that crossed my mind today when I came across my old dance shoes and my painted wooden folding fan as I was packing: "Life is a dance we all begin as a child - an ever changing beat we move with. We can chose how to dance, and even whether to dance at all. I do not know much, but I do know that I dance not for the money, for beauty, but for the love of the dance itself. To find the rhythm that keeps life good - keeps me good, with the people, with the music, and with the life that makes me, me.."
And lastly, that poem. It is called "Morning, Sleepyhead" and yes, it is one of my own poems:
A little tap against my cheek
Startles me awake from fitful dreams
Of tigers chasing dolphins in a clear sea
Blue eyes stare down at me
One side reflecting the first pink glint
Of a morning sunrise over distant hills
I close my eyes again in vain
An attempt to return to those odd visions
Of tigers, dolphins, sea - but all gone now.
The tap comes again
My eyes shooting open once more
Catch the tiny, furry paw pulling quickly back
To support his wobbly crouch right on my sternum.
The little weight shifts as he looks at me
And his mouth opens in a big, wide yawn,
Showing all his perfect white teeth in the light.
His whiskers tickle the back of my hand
As I go to rub my eyes somewhat awake
An odd, light sensation still somewhat ethereal.
I move to sit up and yawn widely
The first sudden burst of sun catching my eye.
He glowers at me as he topples into my lap.
The scratchy tongue runs over my finger
Velcro over hard nail and soft skin.
He stands up, sleek, cream and brown.
His huge eyes sit large in his angular face
And he opens his mouth: "prrrmmrraaaaaooowww"
Says he, in his low, unbefitting voice.
Such is the morning ritual of our little Siamese
Location:Aberdeen
Sunday, 26 May 2013
A poem from my childhood
This poem used to be on my wall as a child, and was probably one of the first poems I loved. As such, I can still remember all the words. It is unfortunate that some of the words, formerly completely innocent, have taken on alternative meanings with modern language, as it is a lovely old poem from the 19th century.
The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, by Edward Lear
The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat,
They took some honey and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five-pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above
And sang to a small guitar
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
What a wonderful Pussy you are
You are,
What a wonderful Pussy you are.
Pussy said to the Owl, 'You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! Too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?'
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows,
And there in a wood, a Piggy-wig stood,
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
'Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.'
So they took it away and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
The danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, by Edward Lear
The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat,
They took some honey and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five-pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above
And sang to a small guitar
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
What a wonderful Pussy you are
You are,
What a wonderful Pussy you are.
Pussy said to the Owl, 'You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! Too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?'
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows,
And there in a wood, a Piggy-wig stood,
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
'Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.'
So they took it away and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
The danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Saturday, 25 May 2013
Taking a leaf out of the witches book
In my glass: jasmine green tea
From my iPod: Riders on the Storm, the Doors Concerto by Jaz Coleman and Kennedy
From my bookshelf: Anatomy
Outside: sunny
My mood: kinda lazy today. Must get going and tidy up the flat so I can get out the house and study in the sun
Today's hairstyle: loose at the moment, but think I might go for a half-up. Maybe a half-up beavertail.
So now I have a little time to relax and think again in between studying, I've been turning a little more back towards my pagan faith and all the other related stuff that goes with it.
Last weekend the Tai Chi club I'm a part of went away to a bothy near one of the many lochs in the highlands. It was probably one of the best decisions I've ever made, massively reducing my overall stress levels and making it easier to function on a whole.
Anyway, all the meditation and general body-mind-spirit stuff I was getting going made me realise I had truly missed all that which I used to do and learnt with my beliefs as a pagan.
So the other day, I made a decision. I decided to take a leaf out of the books of Wicca and witchcraft and note down the stuff I find important in a sort of equivalent to their Book of Shadows. I currently have two books started - one for my herbalism and one for meditation notes and general spirituality. The herbalism one is currently set out much like a guide, with instructions for brewing, ink making, producing ointments, teas etc., drying herbs and flowers, and so on, followed by a list of poisonous plants, and a guide on each of the plants and herbs I may use. I plan to add images and paintings to help identification. I'm also adding some recipes to the rear of the book. I have a feeling this book could expand into many volumes as my herbal knowledge increases, and I'm glad I'm writing it all down.
The Meditation one however, is more like a journal of my thoughts and experiences from my practice
Anyway, that's all I have for just now. I'm on the UK witchvox site, by the way, so if anyone else is over there, feel free to drop a note. Names still Tigereye :)
See you all soon. Xx
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From my iPod: Riders on the Storm, the Doors Concerto by Jaz Coleman and Kennedy
From my bookshelf: Anatomy
Outside: sunny
My mood: kinda lazy today. Must get going and tidy up the flat so I can get out the house and study in the sun
Today's hairstyle: loose at the moment, but think I might go for a half-up. Maybe a half-up beavertail.
So now I have a little time to relax and think again in between studying, I've been turning a little more back towards my pagan faith and all the other related stuff that goes with it.
Last weekend the Tai Chi club I'm a part of went away to a bothy near one of the many lochs in the highlands. It was probably one of the best decisions I've ever made, massively reducing my overall stress levels and making it easier to function on a whole.
Anyway, all the meditation and general body-mind-spirit stuff I was getting going made me realise I had truly missed all that which I used to do and learnt with my beliefs as a pagan.
So the other day, I made a decision. I decided to take a leaf out of the books of Wicca and witchcraft and note down the stuff I find important in a sort of equivalent to their Book of Shadows. I currently have two books started - one for my herbalism and one for meditation notes and general spirituality. The herbalism one is currently set out much like a guide, with instructions for brewing, ink making, producing ointments, teas etc., drying herbs and flowers, and so on, followed by a list of poisonous plants, and a guide on each of the plants and herbs I may use. I plan to add images and paintings to help identification. I'm also adding some recipes to the rear of the book. I have a feeling this book could expand into many volumes as my herbal knowledge increases, and I'm glad I'm writing it all down.
The Meditation one however, is more like a journal of my thoughts and experiences from my practice
Anyway, that's all I have for just now. I'm on the UK witchvox site, by the way, so if anyone else is over there, feel free to drop a note. Names still Tigereye :)
See you all soon. Xx
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, 14 May 2013
Another photo
Again, no editing, photoshop, Instagram or otherwise (simply because I don't use Instagram, and have no idea how photoshop works). Taken on my iPad mini, and the lighting is all thanks to the sun.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, 10 May 2013
Last week of lectures
In my glass: coca cola
From my iPod: nothing
From my bookshelf: Energy For Life Uni work
Outside: sunny, but a bit windy
My mood: pretty good, but freaking about exams
Today's hairstyle: nautilus with 60th street fork
So as I sit here on the grass in the sunshine, before my last class of term, to the music of a guy playing his guitar and harmonica to the tune of some Scottish pieces I know, but can't remember the name of, I thought I'd update you on what's been going on this last while.
I'm freaking out about exams again. Less than two weeks to go til energy for life, which we are all worried about. It should be easy from what the lecturers are saying, but it seems to us like its going to be mega difficult. Only time, and plenty of revising, will tell. The problem is that when I get stressed I lose the motivation, and end up having to fight to make myself revise. Which is ok. I just wish it wasn't quite as hard to push myself to do it.
The weather on the other hand, has been great. We even went to the beach on Tuesday, had a game of football which left our feet bleeding from the rocks in the sand, and swam for a little bit in the sea (it was cold!). Yesterday, three of us went to Cosmos in Union Square for lunch, which was lovely. We plan, after the horrific Energy For Life Exam is over, to go out again to the beach, and swim if its sunny, then head to a Japanese restaurant for food. I spend too much money at exam time, but its worth it to have fun and de-stress a bit.
Plus, the Tai Chi club have their weekend away, where I plan to revise, in amongst periods of meditation, tai chi and whatever stuff we all decide to do. Should be good, and I bet I'll actually study better with a bit more meditation and tai chi to keep me going.
I also should have my driving theory next week, if I can get a hold of one of the staff sergeants to give me the address of the test centre I was booked into.
That's all for now. Gotta run to my tutorial
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
From my iPod: nothing
From my bookshelf: Energy For Life Uni work
Outside: sunny, but a bit windy
My mood: pretty good, but freaking about exams
Today's hairstyle: nautilus with 60th street fork
So as I sit here on the grass in the sunshine, before my last class of term, to the music of a guy playing his guitar and harmonica to the tune of some Scottish pieces I know, but can't remember the name of, I thought I'd update you on what's been going on this last while.
I'm freaking out about exams again. Less than two weeks to go til energy for life, which we are all worried about. It should be easy from what the lecturers are saying, but it seems to us like its going to be mega difficult. Only time, and plenty of revising, will tell. The problem is that when I get stressed I lose the motivation, and end up having to fight to make myself revise. Which is ok. I just wish it wasn't quite as hard to push myself to do it.
The weather on the other hand, has been great. We even went to the beach on Tuesday, had a game of football which left our feet bleeding from the rocks in the sand, and swam for a little bit in the sea (it was cold!). Yesterday, three of us went to Cosmos in Union Square for lunch, which was lovely. We plan, after the horrific Energy For Life Exam is over, to go out again to the beach, and swim if its sunny, then head to a Japanese restaurant for food. I spend too much money at exam time, but its worth it to have fun and de-stress a bit.
Plus, the Tai Chi club have their weekend away, where I plan to revise, in amongst periods of meditation, tai chi and whatever stuff we all decide to do. Should be good, and I bet I'll actually study better with a bit more meditation and tai chi to keep me going.
I also should have my driving theory next week, if I can get a hold of one of the staff sergeants to give me the address of the test centre I was booked into.
That's all for now. Gotta run to my tutorial
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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