Darkora - Nik's Blog

What I've Learned This Week

Since I haven't been able to continue my daily challenge thanks to my shiny new training course, I figured I'd come up with a new idea, this is a weekly rundown of things that have occurred to me during the week and probably won't make a whole lot of sense to anyone but me... but oh well

22nd Feb 2011 • iPhones do not charge when they're not plugged in • Bicycles (whilst annoying) are going to be a necessity • Virgin Cross-Country trains are actually quite awesome and comfy • the 1812 overture is a fantastic accompaniment to a train journey through the countryside • I need to put more classical music on my iPod • you dont get what you want unless you try for it • little children should not be permitted in the quiet carriage of trains 25th Feb 2011 • thought can shrink • loud restaurant was loud 28th Feb 2011 • 2 hours sleep is not enough • it's very cold just after 7 in the morning • Zenos has a dress code • the virgin cross country train home is surprisingly crowded • relaxing and reading a book is a fantastic way to spend an impromptu day off though sleeping would have been a good plan • Stealing people's kidneys is surprisingly profitable • blathering crystal salesmen to sell a worthless lump of sulphur is also highly profitable • boltguns are great but if you don't know how to use them, you can't hit a daemonette in close combat • being a tech priest is a mix of McGyver and Steve Austin and is easily the best class to roleplay as. 01st Mar 2011 • 6 hours sleep is not enough either • "if you think you can or think you can't - you're right" • my stomach really doesn't like being woken up early • Amanda is really cute when she's sleepy • I can get up, dressed and ready for work in 5 minutes with some preparation • I need to get to the station far earlier in the morning if I want a decent seat on my morning train • coming up for fun ideas for an activity on a presentation is not easy • I hate presentations • on the way home the 24 mins past train is great until Winchester, then very busy • slow train home is slow • comfy seat is however comfy • I can't do homework on trains • I still hate essays • English tests as homework are a really mean idea 02nd Mar 2011 • sleep is good • Amanda is even more amazing than previously believed • my stomach *still* dislikes early mornings • despite arriving earlier than the train, I still couldn't get a window seat • I need a warmer scarf otherwise my face is truly going to freeze off in the mornings • even I don't know everything about office • the manga for fullmetal alchemist somehow manages to be even more awesome than either of the tv shows • making PowerPoint presentations is a mighty fun way to spend an afternoon

03rd Mar 2011 • Chinese yi jiao coins look rather like a 5 pence piece but are worth approx 1/50 of the value • socialising more makes a day run nicer • trains are ridiculous • Winchester is the new Fareham • Gilgamesh is a confusing yet very interesting anime • I need to start my own webcomic at some point entitled "why I should never be allowed to time travel"

04th Mar 2011 • breaking news: my body still hates early mornings • you really can build a house from spaghetti and marshmallows but I wouldn't want to live in it • English assessments are quite a challenge but I can get a decent grade • I am at level 3 standard for maths ^^ • I already know a lot of the basics I'm gonna need for my A+ • CV note: qualification logos look good to prospective employers • early starting, late finishing weeks make a weekend worth so much more • people who can't be bothered with headphones on public transport need to be shot... repeatedly • I still need more classical music on my iPod

:(

TROGDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!!

Pokedex Entry: Charchamp, the Holy-Balls-I’m-Going-To-Die pokemon

This pokemon came straight out of hell. It is known to burn villages, decimate armies, and drown small children. The devil himself weeps when it sings its doomsong.

Day Three - Love

“To the world you may be just one person, but to one person you may be the world.” ~ Brandi Snyder

Love is certainly one of the more... complicated emotions, one that is never the same twice. I feel privileged to have experienced love a few times in my short existence to date, I won't go into the sordid details because 1) a gentleman never kisses and tells and 2) it's none of your gorram business :p. Unfortunately (as I have learned through a lot of pain) lust can seem very similar to love at first sight and so the only way to truly find out is by riding it out and seeing where it leads.

Obviously, so far I've merely covered Eros (erotic love as defined by the greeks) and briefly mentioned Thelema (lust) however the greeks identified three other forms of love too;

Agape - which is defined as an unconditional, self sacrificing love - something that has been identified with religious experience though is also reserved for close loved ones like a partner or a child. Until recently I couldn't've said I'd experienced this, as I'm not in the slightest bit religious nor do I have any children however I admit that my feelings for my amazing girlfriend Amanda seem to have merged into this category - I would truly do anything for her (even though she can drive me crazy sometimes :P)

Philia - Brotherly love or close friendship, is again something I am blessed with - despite the fact that I am an only child, I feel a close bond with my best friends - while I cannot compare this directly with brotherly love, I can only estimate that it's roughly there... :P

Storge - is defined as familial love, something else I can certainly say I am blessed with, being part of a close knit family.

As far as I see it, love is an essential part of life in all its forms, for a start it keeps things ever changing, but also it is the glue that binds people together and has allowed us to create the great dynamic culture in which we live...

I probably rambled quite a bit there but Love is quite a hard abstract to talk about without going all tangential, though I must admit the timing is rather apt seeing as it's V day tomorrow...

Nik

A message from Rob Wilkins.

Shortly before he died, Terry Pratchett assured me that, if there is an afterlife, he would give me a ring and let me know. That was ten years ago - and still no call.

From which, incidentally, I draw no firm conclusions. What if there was an afterlife, but with no phone signal?

But of course there is one place where Terry indisputably lives on: in the pages of his books and in the minds of the millions of readers around the world who turn those pages and continue to find them funny and true. For, while his words live on, so does Terry, and that will be the case, no question, not just for this one decade so quickly gone, but for many further decades to come.

So let me join Lyn and Rhianna in raising a glass today to the magical persistence of books and to Sir Terry; gone but still so very firmly with us.

Rob Wilkins

Day Four - Someone I love

It'll probably come as a surprise to... absolutely no-one... that my subject for this post is none other than my girlfriend of nearly a year - Amanda.

As I mentioned - we've been together for nearly a year (11 months as of the 4th of Feb) but strangely it feels like much less, we're still learning things about each other and making each other laugh with our foibles and little in jokes that are growing daily in both complexity and quantity.

Amanda herself is the most amazing girlfriend I could ask for - both physically beautiful and the most wonderful and kind person I have ever met. She's not afraid to be different from most of the other women her age - keeping a level head and logical mind that I've not seen from many adults whilst still able to do the cutest and craziest things without much shifting of mental gear. Her kindness and consideration knows no limit - she truly is a beautiful person inside and out.

Apologies to anyone who may think I waffled somewhat - perhaps that's what love does to a person.

All that's left to say is: I LOVE YOU AMANDA!!

Nik.

this blog hates donald trump

Look how many people hate him. I’m pretty damn happy about that 😁😁😁😁😁😁

My new year in gifs...