Have you been writing and had trouble visualising a scene?
When I’m in these situations I stop. In the case of the former a pen and paper can be invaluable. You can write down the riddle of the magic monkey, or whatever it may be, and work it through. Doing this with pen and paper can help a solution to form in the mind.
In the case of the latter I use action figures. Positioning them helps to get a feel for a scene – then all you have to do is write it. It also gives you a good reason to still have action figures at 28.
Sometimes though I want to do this pausing in real life. It’s like I want to have an hour or two in one moment. I want to freeze time – so that nothing is happening except for my thoughts trying to work things out.
I get stressed very easily. (Listening to Stomp (Steps) isn’t helping – Slide (Dido) much better) And basically I just want to be able to take a while to organise my life. Obviously I can do that but life is going on while doing it… then you become that person who spends all their revision time making a beautiful revision timetable – And that leads to…
I also operate under the delusion that everything will fall into place. And that when I’m old I will grab a flag pole, hear a fanfare, and will have completed life.
I must leave you now. The to-do list has more stuff. And I think gremlins, tribbles, or elves keep adding to it.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
Seven things about Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
One
Time Travel
Let’s start with the big one. Time Travel is complicated. I’ll let an expert explain.
I’ve let the whole clip play because it’s brilliant.
Time travel exists in many different universes. Each film, book, or TV show uses it in slightly different ways. Unfortunately the presence of time travel, in the Harry Potter universe, is rather problematic. In Doctor Who there is at least something of an explanation in that the Doctor has a sense of time and knows what he can and cannot do. That is not the same here.
Spoilers here for all of Harry Potter.
To me the introduction of time travel is a big mistake as it leads to too many questions. If McGonagall can get clearance for a time turner to give to Hermione then why aren’t they used more often? In this book they travel back to save Buckbeak – couldn’t it have been done to save Harry’s parents?
This sort of question is always there once you establish the existence of time travel. In Star Trek IV Kirk is able to travel back in time in a Klingon Bird of pray. A bird of pray is the space equivalent of a <inset name of car that isn’t very good>. So if this is possible why isn’t time travel used in a top of the line ship?
The same problem exists here. In my opinion the introduction of time travel, into the Harry Potter universe, was the biggest misstep of the series.
Two
The Telephone
Ron’s inability to use the telephone is a funny scene. Nevertheless I have to wonder why the magical community doesn’t seem to have some equivalent.
As explained here texting, or writing a letter, has definite disadvantages. In fact the only advantage of an owl is that it can tell you when your letter has been delivered.
In later books we do get to see long-ranged communication. In the films, and I think in the books as well, this is shown in the form of a face in the fire. Is Sirius the only one who knows how to do this?
Three
The Sapience of Paintings
We all know that the paintings move in the Wizarding World. This isn’t really a nitpick, just an observation, but when does this occur?
There was an episode of TNG, Ship in a Bottle, which discusses the creation of artificial life. It links back with the episode ‘Elementary, Dear Data.’ – Geordi and Data inadvertently create a new life form and the moral implications are discussed.
In the Harry Potter universe it seems that paintings are also sapient. They, for lack of a better way to phrase it, have souls. Since any one can draw does that mean that a small child can create life?
This is something I’ve only really thought about while writing this. If I was at Hogwarts and I drew a few stick figures could I make them come alive? What about action figures? Is The Indian in the Cupboard happening everyday in the Wizerding world?
Obviously I’ve got to talk about Azkaban itself. The way it is talked about throughout the series makes it sound like a hell hole.
Crime and punishment is an extremely difficult subject to talk about. The world over there are so many different opinions as to what is and isn’t justice.The death penalty exists in some countries and in Norway prisons have been compared to holiday camps. Yet the results speak for themselves as Norway also has a very low rate of re-offenders.
In the Wizarding World though it seems like crime and punishment is rather twisted. From what we learn about Azkaban it is quite clear that prisoners are being abused and mistreated.
There is never any claim made that the Wizerding world is ‘good’ – but it seems amazing to me that the practices at Azkaban are generally accepted by the population at large. The Dementors are terrifying and if we imagine a technological way of doing what they do it would certainly be banned by the Geneva Convention.
Personally I’m against the death penalty. I believe that it’s not really justice and there is always the possibility of a mistake being made. If someone is wrongfully imprisoned you can compensate them, it doesn’t give them back the years obviously, but at least there is something. If you kill them there is nothing you can do. Similarly, in the Wizarding World, a wrongful conviction could lead to unreversable mental damage. This to me is almost worse than a wrongful execution. At least that would be a painless end.
The Dementor’s kiss is basically a from of torture. I would hope that most people would agree that torture is unacceptable. Even if it’s called ‘enhanced interrogation‘ or performed by ‘pain technicians‘ – yet to Witches and Wizards it seems to be acceptable.
I can’t not talk about the Marauder’s Map. This is, essentially, like the most sophisticated security system ever devised. It can show every person in Hogwarts. It knows where everyone is and maybe even what they are doing. (Let those who know those those who don’t.)
This is another example of the rather strange way magic is sometimes applied in these books. In other parts of the series the inadvisability cloak is used to sneak around the castle – but it seems you’re only invisible to people in the vicinity. You can be seen on the map even with the cloak.
So if four students can create a map like this why hasn’t the faculty? In our world there are CCTV cameras almost everywhere surely in the Wizarding world they’d use a system like this for security purposes?
This book attacks anyone who attempts to read it. We see the proprietor of Flourish and Blotts having to reach into a cage to retrieve these nasty biting books.
Now obviously this idea is there for a bit of fun. And in rereading these books I’ve come to realise there is a lot of silliness.
Nevertheless I do wonder why a biting book would be seen as a good idea. Surely they should at least come with a pamphlet to explain how to care for the book.
Then of course we have the rather questionable judgement of having a Hippogriff for a first lesson. This however isn’t really a nitpick as it’s perfectly in keeping with Hagrid’s personality.
This one is related to number five. Perhaps it should be with number 5 but this post has been in draft for so long I want to finish it.
Okay…
In Chapter 18 we get this…
‘I believed it myself – until I saw the map tonight. Because the Marauder’s Map never lies … Peter’s alive.’ [Lupin – Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban]
The long and short of it is that Peter, even in rat form, shows up on the map. So again we are faced with the question of why more maps don’t exist.
The entire plot of this novel is based around a false accusation of murder. We learn of the fight in which Pettigrew was supposedly killed. We know few details about the case against Sirius but we do know that he knew he hadn’t killed Peter.
I wonder what investigation was done to validate his claim of innocence. As discussed above there is a lot to be desired from the Wizard criminal justice system. However I don’t think that it’s too much of a stretch to suggest that Sirius would’ve had a defense.
As always in science fiction and fantasy its always difficult to know what is possible in each universe.
In Charmed there may be a spell for something that is considered impossible in another magical universe. In Star Trek a stranded person can just be beamed up – in another work the rescue might be a whole episode.
Nevertheless in this novel a finger, Pettigrew’s finger, is found. Couldn’t that be used to find the rest of him? It does seem like the type of thing that a wizard or witch could do.
I just reckon that something of that type might have been done, by a defense lawyer, in the process of proving Sirius innocence.
With this last point I know I’m clutching at straws. However it does seem to be a symptom of how magic is applied in these books. Magic seems to be ahead of us in many respects. It can do many things that technology can’t and then there are other things that we can do that they can’t.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
This year’s Eurovison can be summed up in one word: meh.
That is to say I don’t think it was a good year, like 2006 or 2008, but nor was it a bad year. None of the songs stuck with me and I’m still thinking about this entry from a few years back.
My winner is very rarely the one that actually won, Lordi and Lena Meyer-Landrut were the exceptions, so maybe I know nothing about music.
Okay I certainly know nothing.
The new voting system was very effective as it meant the winner wasn’t known till then end. Also if Australia are going to continue to be there we may need a new name for the contest.
Nevertheless, in spite of what I say, I believe I’ll be watching Eurovison for a long time yet.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
It’s been nearly three weeks since I last posted here. I’ve only just realized how long it’s been. When I last posted it was about Eurovision. I never did a follow up. That is coming as is a long post that has been in draft for too long.
In any event this was the Eurovison winner:
I will post something more about Eurovison 2016 in the fullness of time. Which is basically me speaking like a politician. I’m just posting this in case any of you thought I was dead or something.
Tonight is the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest. This year it’s in Sweden as they won last year with this:
The Eurovision Song Contest is a strange thing.
And since we’re stating the obvious: grass is green, the sky is blue, and sugar is sweet.
I can’t tell you why I love Eurovision. It’s just one of those strange things that I would never miss. There is something about the costumes, the key changes, and even the corny presenter interactions that’s interesting to me. I’m not sure interesting is the correct word for that sentence but its the one I’m going with.
I feel fairly sure that the UK isn’t going to win again. Nevertheless I think it’ll be a fun evening.
I’ll be at my parents enjoying a Swedish themed meal. And next years meal will depend on who wins. Italy would be nice then we can just have Pizza!
Have you ever had a great idea and then lost it? I imagine everyone has at some point. Today, while at work, I was thinking about what I could write here for you tonight. I came upon a great idea – but we were so busy I couldn’t stop to write it down.
This has happened before sometimes at night. My brain struggles to think of things when I sit at my computer and then, when I want to sleep, I seem to become an idea making machine. One time, I remember, an idea came to mind and I should have written it down. I didn’t have a pen by my bed. Instead I made myself a small reminder. I arranged the cables by the side of my bed to make an ‘H’ – to remind me. It wasn’t enough.
So without knowing what that was I’m going to talk about the Whisper app. I’ve been using it quite a lot lately and actually had some fun and useful conversations.
The Whisper app allows users to post anonymous confessions. This ranges from everything from; confessing sexual desires, genuine questions about life, bragging in one way or another, and some of it is very sad.
I have seen a number of users talking of suicide and depression. I think it’s nice to talk to these people. Having felt rather depressed myself more than once I know that talking like this can help. Sometimes you can’t tell anyone in real life what you’re feeling.
There are some uses who have secrets that shouldn’t be secrets, like being gay, but they can’t be true to themselves because of having parents who won’t accept them that way.
I would recommend the app. It’s nice, sometimes, to be able to say the silly things that go through our minds. You might find it useful and you might find you can help and be helped by others.
Of course there are always going to be the irritating people. I posted something about the end of a relationship. One of the responses I got was ‘hahahaha’ – and he later told me to ‘man up and to ‘stop being a *****’ – apparently men aren’t suppose to care about such things.
That though seems to be a minority. So why not have a look at the app? You might find it fun. At the very least it’s something to add to your increasing list of ways to procrastinate.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
It can be a minefield talking to people on the internet. Some people fixate on the wrong thing. For instance just because you think that Captain Sisko has a cool beard doesn’t mean you agree with him positioning Solosos III. I’m using a fictional example so people don’t loose their minds.
I posted a comment on the video. Even as I pressed send I was thinking to myself that it might have been a bad idea. Here’s what I said:
I fall into the category of believing in equality but wouldn’t call myself a feminist. I’ll try and explain. Feminism as you or someone like Emma Watson describes it makes sense. However I have seen some feminists who seem to have a problem with woman making certain choices. They can’t accept that some woman want to; be strippers, take their husband’s name, look after the children, where the hijab and so forth. These choices may be born our of sexism but it doesn’t mean that woman can’t freely make that choice. This seems to be something that is often missed. For myself, if I was getting married, I would consider all options. She could take my name, I hers, we could make a new name for the union, or have separate names it’s all fine. But just because she chooses to take my name doesn’t mean she’s repressed. I hope I’ve expressed myself well here and not caused offense.
Then I waited…
I was delightfully surprised to have a positive response and a good and useful conversation.
In life we all but ourselves in to boxes. When we meet others we judge the by the box they’re in even if this is only on a subconscious level. If you imagine this as a Venn diagram some of those boxes will intersect. However for any box that we don’t belong to it is easy to confuse one voice from that box with the whole box.
A lighthearted example is this:
In Cardiff Bay there is a memorial to Ianto Jones. Ianto Jones is a fictional character. I have no problem with the memorial as it’s a bit of fun and a tourist attraction. However I’ve heard some Torchwood fans complain about it. They think that by having this it makes them look stupid. Thus to non-fans there may be a tendency to lump as all into the same box even though many of us agree its a bit silly.
The most extreme example of this is Islamaphobia. According to my googling .00006625% of Muslims are considered extreme. That’s it.
So why the Islamophobia?
Because talking about a billion Muslims going to the Mosque, worshiping, and walking home isn’t news.
So I guess I am a feminist. I just feel that the word has be come corrupted. The extreme feminists are almost as oppressive as the most sexist man – both sides are saying that woman should, or shouldn’t, make certain choices.
The point of this is that we all need to be free to make our own choices. Even if those choices are incomprehensible to others. As long as there is no coercion involved and an informed decision is being made there is really no issue.
I for instance don’t understand the appeal of Formula One. If there are no red shells, banana peals, or mushrooms racing is rather boring. If you want to spend hours watching a car go round in circles that’s fine. I’ll be in the next room reading, writing, or watching a TV show I’ve seen so many times I can say most of the lines from memory.
Or as the internet likes to say…
You do you.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
Sam and Alex stand at a bus stop. The screen that shows the bus times is broken. Timidly Sam approaches Alex and asks when the next bus is. Alex checks an app. The next bus will arrive in twenty minutes.
Fifteen minutes later the app shows that the bus has been cancelled. “Why don’t we get dinner?” Alex says.
Rather timidly Sam responds. “Do you mean… a date?”
“Yeah,” Alex smiles.
Sam smiles back. “Sounds good. But how did you know?”
“That you were gay? I was just hoping.”
Did your mind have to rework that story a bit? I simultaneously hope so and hope not. Before that last line you were probably imagining them as a man and a woman. Maybe some of you had Sam as the man and some of you Alex. Now you know – they are either both men or both women.
There are some, very stupid people, who have a problem with this. They think that having gay characters is a statement. It really isn’t. If I write a story with a couple I’ll just write. Sometimes they’ll be heterosexual and sometimes not.
I’m not gay and I count myself lucky. Not because there is anything wrong with it but because of all the crap that gay people have to deal with. This would is difficult enough with stress from work, family, school, and relationships. We have to worry about bills, house cleaning, and food shopping. And that’s only when you consider the first world. Imagine if finding food was your biggest issue. So with all this going on don’t add to people’s problems by telling them they can’t love who they love.
Ultimately it doesn’t effect you. There are only two times it would:
A gay person asks you out.
You ask out a gay person.
To the former just tell them you’re not interested – just the same as anyone else you weren’t interested in.
And to the latter so what? A rejection for that reason is no different that one for any other reason.
And if you’re a heterosexual man sitting their thinking that being gay is a problem. Let me put it to you like this:
You don’t want to sleep with a man. Is it really so hard to believe that some women feel the same way?
Or to put it another way…
Some people are gay…. get over it.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
Do you ever feel that life is a constant struggle for the next stage?
Here’s what I mean…
When you’re young being an adult looks great. Until you realise you can’t sit around playing Mario Kart all day because you have to go to work. (Kudos to you if you’ve found a way to do that while playing computer games.)
When you’re working retirement starts to look rather peachy. Until you realise that after you’ve worked all those years you probably have little energy left. Someone said to me the other day that we’ll probably be 100 before we can retire… the age does go up every year.
I don’t know quite where this post is going.
Now that I’ve admitted that I can move on.
I’m fast approaching 30 and feel about as good about it as Doctor Bashir did in “Distant Voices” (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). Hopefully it won’t take a Lethean attack to make me see straight.
… I wonder who would play the various parts of my psyche if such a thing happened…
School doesn’t prepare you for life is an old cliche and I’m not going to flog that particular dead horse here. It is true though.
The best we can do with all the juggling of stuff in our lives is to do our best. And there you have a meaninglessly tautological statement.
I’ll tell you my flat is a bit, okay a lot, of a mess. And getting on top of it feels like getting on one of those spin-you-around-bucking-things.
I make lists of what needs doing. This helps a bit but then I’m a slave to the list. Which I think I’ve said before.
I wonder if some of this is resonating with you. That general feeling that you have no business trying to live out in the world on your own.
I, and probably you to, probably do better than we think we do.
Cleanliness may be next to godlessness but it doesn’t mean you’re a devil if your place is untidy.
Of course its important to know that… the end of that sentence has vanished… I could cut it but I’m trying a stream of consciousnesses thing.
So I’ll go to my ending sentence. And I can’t seem to find a source for this…
If someone is coming over, who you wish to impress, clean the bathroom like a serial killer cleaning up after a crime.
And remember, in connection to my last post and then end of the above sentence, Abby Sciuto will always be able to find something to tie you to the crime scene.
I promise my next post will be a little more coherent.
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I just wanted to say that I have checked this post. I really have. Unfortunately my particular combination of dyslexia and dyspraxia makes it really hard for me to spot typos. Please enjoy and I’ll try not to make too many errors.
I’ve been a little ill recently and have been watching a lot of NCIS. When I was off work last week my days consisted of alternating between sleep and NCIS. NCIS is an American police procedural about a group of federal agents belonging to the titular organisation. It should be noted that it might not be the best show to watch whilst ill. Normally the dead bodies in a show like this don’t bother me. However when feeling a little sick you don’t want to see the corpses – even if you know they are fake – obviously. This was particularly true in the episode ‘The Meat Puzzle‘ where I had to cover the bottom of my screen.
I first watched NCIS back in 2013, discovering it through its parent series JAG, and lost track of it, before buying seasons 1-8 a couple of months back.
This style of program is rather formulaic but still enjoyable. Like Bones you have the investigators and the scientists. They all work together to solve the case. Unlike Bones its not driven, or not as driven, by a ‘will they/won’t relationship. There is nothing exactly wrong with that but it has become something of a cliche – indeed it was the driving force behind JAG.
What I like about NCIS is that they manage to keep the stories fresh. It is all too easy for this type of show to fall into the same story every episode. With this show I’ve found the stories to be nicely varied.
There will always be cliches though. The characters can be a little cinched but still enjoyable to watch.
Abby: The quirky, adokable, forensic scientist with a farting hippo. Gibbs: The no-nonsense boss. DiNozzo: The one who is rather silly.
I warn you though if you watch a lot of NCIS you may get the urge to start slapping people on the back of the head. I’m sure you have a candidate for that in your life.
Sometimes I get a little lost in the stories. Maybe my brain is in capable of keeping all the names straight in my head or maybe it’s just that I’m trying to figure out where I’ve seen an actor before. Actually that happens with most things I watch. And as I watch a lot of science fiction the last time I saw a specific actor they might have been a Cardassian.
Episodes of NCIS sometimes end without a wrap up. In other series there is usually a coda of sorts. This usually consists of seeing the perpetrator arrested, or shot depending on the story, and sometimes a character moment before the end credits. This is not always so in NCIS. Sometimes an episode ends suddenly and occasionally its not satisfying.
There are other series that go to the other extreme. In Monk there is always the ‘Here’s what happened…’ moment. Monk narrates the crime, it’s usually murder, and we see exactly how it was done. For someone who may not have the best of attention spans this is a very nice feature.
Have you ever got stuck on a computer game?
Unstable Orbit 