So this week it happened.
Come Tuesday night there was nothing I fancied watching on telly and the only things I had on my PVR were some huge long dramas that I just didn't have the time or energy to watch. Which could mean only one thing - I would have to watch something on DVD.
Being a little tired my energy levels suggested a film was out, so I plumped for some anime of all things. I know, how about that, eh? Actually watching some anime on DVD. It's almost like I've got dozens of series sat on DVD waiting to be watched - no, I know, what a preposterous notion.
The series I picked - and there was no real reason for it, just a random selection - was Samurai Champloo. Ages ago I read a manga version of Samurai Champloo, but it was only 2 volumes and while the character designs were pretty faithful, there was a note from the manga-ka saying it was deliberately different to the anime, although I did enjoy it.
The only other thing I knew about Champloo was that it was by Manglobe and I quite enjoyed what I'd seen of Michiko to Hatchin and this expectation was backed up by the fact I don't think I've ever seen anyone say anything bad about it.
It feels like there's a giant "but..." coming, doesn't it?
Well there kinda is.
I mean, I wouldn't say I've not liked it, but it's more like it's not quite what I was expecting. What I was expecting was something a bit more madcap than what I got. I mean, I didn't think it would be a comedy, but I thought it would have more humour in it, if you see what I mean.
And the first section of the first ep sort of backed this up - it did a gag about 'one day earlier' (it's a little difficult to explain) but since then it's been more dry than I was expecting. I dunno, I think I was expecting to find it funny, but have barely cracked a smile. Later episodes have been better in this regard, but I dunno, the start was a bit flat.
And that doesn't mean there hasn't been plenty to enjoy - the characters are nice (although they feel a little under-developed at this stage - who Jin and Mugen actually are has not been explained at all) and the episodic stories around a longer story arc seems to be working quite well. The animation is very stylistic and the whole thing feels alive with creativity (even if the music is arsebiscuits), it's just not as funny as I was expecting, and since that's all I was expecting I've felt a little disappointed.
Friday, 25 June 2010
Thursday, 24 June 2010
more about the sun, it seems
I figured out what I was blathering on about on Tuesday. Or that is to say, I figured out what I was supposed to be blathering on about: lack of sleep.
Basically, when it gets to this time of year I have real trouble sleeping. I mean, all this week it's still really light at 9pm, and that confuses me. For the rest of the year by 9pm it's usually dark, and my brain can go "oh look, it's dark, must be time to sleep".
But this time of year, I find myself going to bed and there's loads of light streaming in through the curtains. It's weird - it's like if you have a lie in at the weekend and you kind of drift into consciousness and it's clearly proper daytime outside, but you're still in bed.
Except it's at night, so I'm tired and want to go to sleep, but another part of my brian is saying actually it's not dark so it's not time for bed yet. What makes it worse, I think is British Summer Time/daylight savings. Without that, it would be dark at a more reasonable time.
Anyway, the upshot is that for a couple of weeks I'm going to be struggling to get to sleep.
I recently started a new book.
I've been a bit derelict with my reading for a while now. This isn't anything unusual - I tend to go in cycles of reading a lot and then nothing for ages. Usually I snap into a reading phase when I get a book I'm excited about reading. In this case that book is "Matter" by Ian M Banks.
I'm a big fan of Banks's sci-fi books - especially the culture novels, which this is one of. I get the impression he'd kind of put the culture (and possibly SF) stuff to bed, but I guess he's found a story he wants to tell... and it's a bit one. The book is some 600 pages long, which I'm pretty sure is the biggest book he's done.
I'm about a fifth of the way through and I'm enjoying it so far. It's really starting to get going - there was quite a lot of establishing stuff to start with, but now the main plot has really kicked in.
I've not actually read any of Banks's non-SF books, although I received his first - Wasp Factory - as a present for my last birthday and am intent on starting them. Banks has a great prose style, which is very readable, so I'm sure I'll enjoy them despite not being SF.
Basically, when it gets to this time of year I have real trouble sleeping. I mean, all this week it's still really light at 9pm, and that confuses me. For the rest of the year by 9pm it's usually dark, and my brain can go "oh look, it's dark, must be time to sleep".
But this time of year, I find myself going to bed and there's loads of light streaming in through the curtains. It's weird - it's like if you have a lie in at the weekend and you kind of drift into consciousness and it's clearly proper daytime outside, but you're still in bed.
Except it's at night, so I'm tired and want to go to sleep, but another part of my brian is saying actually it's not dark so it's not time for bed yet. What makes it worse, I think is British Summer Time/daylight savings. Without that, it would be dark at a more reasonable time.
Anyway, the upshot is that for a couple of weeks I'm going to be struggling to get to sleep.
I recently started a new book.
I've been a bit derelict with my reading for a while now. This isn't anything unusual - I tend to go in cycles of reading a lot and then nothing for ages. Usually I snap into a reading phase when I get a book I'm excited about reading. In this case that book is "Matter" by Ian M Banks.
I'm a big fan of Banks's sci-fi books - especially the culture novels, which this is one of. I get the impression he'd kind of put the culture (and possibly SF) stuff to bed, but I guess he's found a story he wants to tell... and it's a bit one. The book is some 600 pages long, which I'm pretty sure is the biggest book he's done.
I'm about a fifth of the way through and I'm enjoying it so far. It's really starting to get going - there was quite a lot of establishing stuff to start with, but now the main plot has really kicked in.
I've not actually read any of Banks's non-SF books, although I received his first - Wasp Factory - as a present for my last birthday and am intent on starting them. Banks has a great prose style, which is very readable, so I'm sure I'll enjoy them despite not being SF.
more about the sun, it seems
I figured out what I was blathering on about on Tuesday. Or that is to say, I figured out what I was supposed to be blathering on about: lack of sleep.
Basically, when it gets to this time of year I have real trouble sleeping. I mean, all this week it's still really light at 9pm, and that confuses me. For the rest of the year by 9pm it's usually dark, and my brain can go "oh look, it's dark, must be time to sleep".
But this time of year, I find myself going to bed and there's loads of light streaming in through the curtains. It's weird - it's like if you have a lie in at the weekend and you kind of drift into consciousness and it's clearly proper daytime outside, but you're still in bed.
Except it's at night, so I'm tired and want to go to sleep, but another part of my brian is saying actually it's not dark so it's not time for bed yet. What makes it worse, I think is British Summer Time/daylight savings. Without that, it would be dark at a more reasonable time.
Anyway, the upshot is that for a couple of weeks I'm going to be struggling to get to sleep.
I recently started a new book.
I've been a bit derelict with my reading for a while now. This isn't anything unusual - I tend to go in cycles of reading a lot and then nothing for ages. Usually I snap into a reading phase when I get a book I'm excited about reading. In this case that book is "Matter" by Ian M Banks.
I'm a big fan of Banks's sci-fi books - especially the culture novels, which this is one of. I get the impression he'd kind of put the culture (and possibly SF) stuff to bed, but I guess he's found a story he wants to tell... and it's a bit one. The book is some 600 pages long, which I'm pretty sure is the biggest book he's done.
I'm about a fifth of the way through and I'm enjoying it so far. It's really starting to get going - there was quite a lot of establishing stuff to start with, but now the main plot has really kicked in.
I've not actually read any of Banks's non-SF books, although I received his first - Wasp Factory - as a present for my last birthday and am intent on starting them. Banks has a great prose style, which is very readable, so I'm sure I'll enjoy them despite not being SF.
Basically, when it gets to this time of year I have real trouble sleeping. I mean, all this week it's still really light at 9pm, and that confuses me. For the rest of the year by 9pm it's usually dark, and my brain can go "oh look, it's dark, must be time to sleep".
But this time of year, I find myself going to bed and there's loads of light streaming in through the curtains. It's weird - it's like if you have a lie in at the weekend and you kind of drift into consciousness and it's clearly proper daytime outside, but you're still in bed.
Except it's at night, so I'm tired and want to go to sleep, but another part of my brian is saying actually it's not dark so it's not time for bed yet. What makes it worse, I think is British Summer Time/daylight savings. Without that, it would be dark at a more reasonable time.
Anyway, the upshot is that for a couple of weeks I'm going to be struggling to get to sleep.
I recently started a new book.
I've been a bit derelict with my reading for a while now. This isn't anything unusual - I tend to go in cycles of reading a lot and then nothing for ages. Usually I snap into a reading phase when I get a book I'm excited about reading. In this case that book is "Matter" by Ian M Banks.
I'm a big fan of Banks's sci-fi books - especially the culture novels, which this is one of. I get the impression he'd kind of put the culture (and possibly SF) stuff to bed, but I guess he's found a story he wants to tell... and it's a bit one. The book is some 600 pages long, which I'm pretty sure is the biggest book he's done.
I'm about a fifth of the way through and I'm enjoying it so far. It's really starting to get going - there was quite a lot of establishing stuff to start with, but now the main plot has really kicked in.
I've not actually read any of Banks's non-SF books, although I received his first - Wasp Factory - as a present for my last birthday and am intent on starting them. Banks has a great prose style, which is very readable, so I'm sure I'll enjoy them despite not being SF.
Wednesday, 23 June 2010
in the loop
One of the best British comedies in years is a satirical show called "The Thick of It."
Thick of it is in many ways a modern version of Yes Minister, but it's also its own distinct beast. For one thing its focus is much more on 'spin' than the working of government, which was the focus of yes minister. In other words, it's more a product of its time - that isn't to say spin has never existed, just that it's something people are probably more aware of.
Thick of it also has other modern trappings - it's filmed in a sort of mockumentary style. Well, actually it isn't really, because in mockumentary, part of the point is that the characters are aware they're in a documentary - think of David Brent playing to the camera in The Office - whereas in thick of it, it's more like the camera is a traditional 'extra body in the room', but the filming style is quite jerky and full of quick-pans and crash zooms. This is clever because it lends the whole proceedings a 'live and as it happens' feeling.
Also, the language is very coarse. One character in particular - Malcolm Tucker - is rather gifted in the ways of rude language, shall we say?
Anyway, the point is that in the loop is essentially an offshoot of the thick of it. However, it's not a film version of the TV show - it features some of the same characters and just about all of the same actors, but it's canonical, if you see what I mean.
So, for example, Malcolm Tucker is there and is essentially the same character as in the TV show, but the guy who plays Ollie in the TV show is now playing a character called Toby. Toby is a similar character to Ollie, with a similar job, but is also slightly different in that he behaves a bit more unpleasantly.
So, the basic point is that it's still the thick of it, but it's also slightly different. One of the major differences is the scale - clearly with an hour and a half to fill, rather than just half an hour, a much bigger subject is needed, and they don't come much bigger than war.
In this case, although it's not explicitly stated, the war in question is that in Iraq. As I say, they never actually mention Iraq, but there is mention of the middle East and if you know anything about what went on in the build up to Iraq then you'll soon see the parallels (and parody) that in the loop is making.
In particular, the end game involving a report and a dossier of intelligence hits the issue right on the nose. And the stage for this is much bigger - much of the action takes place in Washington DC and the dossier part happens in the UN, which is New York.
So given I hailed The Thick Of It as one of the best British comedies in recent years, what did I think of In The Loop?
Well I'm glad to say I enjoyed it immensely. It really hasn't lost anything in the translation to the big screen and they've cleverly managed to maintain what makes the thick of it so good whilst also not pandering to moviedom or running out of steam.
If you like the thick of it or political satire in general it's well worth a watch.
Thick of it is in many ways a modern version of Yes Minister, but it's also its own distinct beast. For one thing its focus is much more on 'spin' than the working of government, which was the focus of yes minister. In other words, it's more a product of its time - that isn't to say spin has never existed, just that it's something people are probably more aware of.
Thick of it also has other modern trappings - it's filmed in a sort of mockumentary style. Well, actually it isn't really, because in mockumentary, part of the point is that the characters are aware they're in a documentary - think of David Brent playing to the camera in The Office - whereas in thick of it, it's more like the camera is a traditional 'extra body in the room', but the filming style is quite jerky and full of quick-pans and crash zooms. This is clever because it lends the whole proceedings a 'live and as it happens' feeling.
Also, the language is very coarse. One character in particular - Malcolm Tucker - is rather gifted in the ways of rude language, shall we say?
Anyway, the point is that in the loop is essentially an offshoot of the thick of it. However, it's not a film version of the TV show - it features some of the same characters and just about all of the same actors, but it's canonical, if you see what I mean.
So, for example, Malcolm Tucker is there and is essentially the same character as in the TV show, but the guy who plays Ollie in the TV show is now playing a character called Toby. Toby is a similar character to Ollie, with a similar job, but is also slightly different in that he behaves a bit more unpleasantly.
So, the basic point is that it's still the thick of it, but it's also slightly different. One of the major differences is the scale - clearly with an hour and a half to fill, rather than just half an hour, a much bigger subject is needed, and they don't come much bigger than war.
In this case, although it's not explicitly stated, the war in question is that in Iraq. As I say, they never actually mention Iraq, but there is mention of the middle East and if you know anything about what went on in the build up to Iraq then you'll soon see the parallels (and parody) that in the loop is making.
In particular, the end game involving a report and a dossier of intelligence hits the issue right on the nose. And the stage for this is much bigger - much of the action takes place in Washington DC and the dossier part happens in the UN, which is New York.
So given I hailed The Thick Of It as one of the best British comedies in recent years, what did I think of In The Loop?
Well I'm glad to say I enjoyed it immensely. It really hasn't lost anything in the translation to the big screen and they've cleverly managed to maintain what makes the thick of it so good whilst also not pandering to moviedom or running out of steam.
If you like the thick of it or political satire in general it's well worth a watch.
Tuesday, 22 June 2010
summer may be here
The weather forecasts suggest that summer may be arriving. The suggestion is it's going to be warm and sunny for the rest of the week at least, and possibly beyond.
The is slightly weird, because yesterday, Monday the 21st of June, was the official mid-point of summer. The day itself was the Summer Solstice, which is the day with the longest period of sunlight and is apparently named because the Sun (the "Sol" part) appears to hang in the air at mid-day (the "stice").
Each of the seasons are exactly 1 quarter of a year long (so about 3 months) and their centres are marked by the solstice's and the equinox's. The Solstice's mark the 'maximums' of the year, with Summer having the longest day and winter having the longest night.
The Equinox's are the points of equality(Equi - Equal + Nox - Night) where the day and night are exactly the same length. They mark the mid-points of Spring and Autumn.
But hat causes these and what causes seasons? Well, many people believe that summer and winter are caused by the proximity of the Earth to the Sun. I'm not sure where this comes from, but could be because the Earth's orbit is not perfectly circular, but is instead an ellipse.
However, this isn't what causes the seasons or the change of the length of the day. That's due to the fact that the Earth's axis is tilted. Because it's tilted, that means that the northern and southern hemisphere are exposed to different amounts of sunlight.
Now if you think of the earth like a chicken on a spit-roast over a fire, you can see that if the spit was tilted, the chicken would not cook evenly. Well those are the seasons - the tilting means each hemisphere spends disproportionately longer in the sun than the other as the year goes on. It's also why once you get far enough north or south you have days where the sun never sets and never rises.
I'm not sure quite why I'm blathering on about this stuff, other than I find it fascinating.
I also guess I'm going to have to start using the old aircon. Luckily a side effect of all the sorting out has been that my aircon is now set up and ready to go - I won't need to spend a sweaty half hour moving crap out of the way so that I can turn it on this evening.
The is slightly weird, because yesterday, Monday the 21st of June, was the official mid-point of summer. The day itself was the Summer Solstice, which is the day with the longest period of sunlight and is apparently named because the Sun (the "Sol" part) appears to hang in the air at mid-day (the "stice").
Each of the seasons are exactly 1 quarter of a year long (so about 3 months) and their centres are marked by the solstice's and the equinox's. The Solstice's mark the 'maximums' of the year, with Summer having the longest day and winter having the longest night.
The Equinox's are the points of equality(Equi - Equal + Nox - Night) where the day and night are exactly the same length. They mark the mid-points of Spring and Autumn.
But hat causes these and what causes seasons? Well, many people believe that summer and winter are caused by the proximity of the Earth to the Sun. I'm not sure where this comes from, but could be because the Earth's orbit is not perfectly circular, but is instead an ellipse.
However, this isn't what causes the seasons or the change of the length of the day. That's due to the fact that the Earth's axis is tilted. Because it's tilted, that means that the northern and southern hemisphere are exposed to different amounts of sunlight.
Now if you think of the earth like a chicken on a spit-roast over a fire, you can see that if the spit was tilted, the chicken would not cook evenly. Well those are the seasons - the tilting means each hemisphere spends disproportionately longer in the sun than the other as the year goes on. It's also why once you get far enough north or south you have days where the sun never sets and never rises.
I'm not sure quite why I'm blathering on about this stuff, other than I find it fascinating.
I also guess I'm going to have to start using the old aircon. Luckily a side effect of all the sorting out has been that my aircon is now set up and ready to go - I won't need to spend a sweaty half hour moving crap out of the way so that I can turn it on this evening.
Monday, 21 June 2010
sort it out
So I spent a good chunk of my weekend engaged in yet more sorting out and I can thankfully report that I have finished... sort of.
The entire bottom left corner of my room is now given over to boxes. To give you some idea of how much stuff we're talking out, combined with what's in the attic at the moment there are a total of 15 of the 50litre boxes and 30 of the 30 litre ones.
Now to be fair, quite a fee of the 50 litre ones are full of stuff that they shouldn't be. Basically, there are all the things I should have scanned and there's all the stuff I need to get onto e-bay. There's even a box with things like a keyboard and mouse in for when I set up my TV PC (my new TV is sort of also like a monitor and so I can connect up one of my old machines - I've been meaning to do this for ages and should allow me to watch stuff like fan subs in a more comfortable way).
Anyway, those are only the boxes that are full. While I was sorting out, I got some spare boxes, so that things like the DVDs on my bookshelf can be easily stuck in boxes and put in the attic for when my landlord wants to decorate. The problem with that is I only considered things like my DVDs and forgot about other stuff like my clothes. I'm guessing I may therefore need to buy even more boxes to put those in when the time comes.
One thing this whole exercise has brought home to me is just how much stuff I still own. When I moved out of my family home I remember there being a lot of stuff, and what's slightly dispiriting about all this is realising that I've still got loads of that stuff.
The point being that it's essentially of no use to me and I doubt very much it will sell on e-bay. So why have I been lugging it around in boxes and tripping over it all these years?
Two reasons - firstly is my hoarder mentality, where I struggle to throw things away, but second, the other thing this whole sorting exercise has brought home to me is just how much physical effort is involved. This shit is heavy and it's tiring moving boxes around, especially in my tiny bed-sit where emptying one box becomes this logistical nightmare of having to fill others or take stuff back-and-forth from the kitchen.
Which is why the 'fun' really starts now - I seriously need to get rid of all this crap. Whether it be in the bin, down the tip or on e-bay.
The entire bottom left corner of my room is now given over to boxes. To give you some idea of how much stuff we're talking out, combined with what's in the attic at the moment there are a total of 15 of the 50litre boxes and 30 of the 30 litre ones.
Now to be fair, quite a fee of the 50 litre ones are full of stuff that they shouldn't be. Basically, there are all the things I should have scanned and there's all the stuff I need to get onto e-bay. There's even a box with things like a keyboard and mouse in for when I set up my TV PC (my new TV is sort of also like a monitor and so I can connect up one of my old machines - I've been meaning to do this for ages and should allow me to watch stuff like fan subs in a more comfortable way).
Anyway, those are only the boxes that are full. While I was sorting out, I got some spare boxes, so that things like the DVDs on my bookshelf can be easily stuck in boxes and put in the attic for when my landlord wants to decorate. The problem with that is I only considered things like my DVDs and forgot about other stuff like my clothes. I'm guessing I may therefore need to buy even more boxes to put those in when the time comes.
One thing this whole exercise has brought home to me is just how much stuff I still own. When I moved out of my family home I remember there being a lot of stuff, and what's slightly dispiriting about all this is realising that I've still got loads of that stuff.
The point being that it's essentially of no use to me and I doubt very much it will sell on e-bay. So why have I been lugging it around in boxes and tripping over it all these years?
Two reasons - firstly is my hoarder mentality, where I struggle to throw things away, but second, the other thing this whole sorting exercise has brought home to me is just how much physical effort is involved. This shit is heavy and it's tiring moving boxes around, especially in my tiny bed-sit where emptying one box becomes this logistical nightmare of having to fill others or take stuff back-and-forth from the kitchen.
Which is why the 'fun' really starts now - I seriously need to get rid of all this crap. Whether it be in the bin, down the tip or on e-bay.
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