Keen the fox

Flooding

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:55:06 GMT

Last night the weather in North East Scotland was revolting. It rained torrentially for hours on end, it was windy, and I had to deliver pizzas in it!

Worse still, the dual carriageway between Dundee and Carnoustie had flooded (as had Carnoustie High Street), so I had to take the smaller, longer and slower road to and from there.

Much of the whole Tayside region has flooded too. Happily the weather today is bright and sunny, for the time being.

Ash

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 13:28:06 GMT

I went to see Ash perform in concert in Dundee a couple of days ago - it was their first time there since 2004 (I missed them that year because I didn't know if I would be old enough), and it was a blast ^^. The bass player even has the same first and middle names as me! How odd.

3D In CGI Movies

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 23:23:01 GMT

When I visited North America this Summer I saw that Pixar's latest movie 'Up' was now out in cinemas - but only in North America. When I was hanging out with my pals in New Hampshire we had planned to see the film one night, but instead everyone got sidetracked and had a mini fursuit parade instead. Whilst that was quite fun at the time (no, I didn't fursuit, I just watched) I missed the film and knew that I would not get the chance to see it until Autumn. And so I waited, and now I've witnessed it.

The 3D craze of 2009 that has plagued 3D computer animated films for the last few months has caught on by storm - even the advertising posters of these movies has their characters flaunting those glasses (...not in MY movies, if I ever get to produce any). I wanted to see what all the fuss was about, so I watched 'Ice Age 3' at one of my city's two local cinema multiplexes. Whilst the 3D was apparent, it still made me feel underwhelmed since the film wouldn't be any less good in 2D and would have cost me less.

And naturally with Pixar, the undisputed gods of 3D computer animation, there has been a lot of brouhaha about their latest offering 'Up', and it's 3D potential. Pixar have never once made a bad film, and 'Up' delivers immensely in terms of story, character development and epicness. The 3D is apparent too, but like with 'Ice Age 3' I felt that the 3D was just one big gimmick and a passing fad that is not worth any extra penny of your cash. It wouldn't make the film any less engaging - and the film is perfectly good in two dimensions.

Of course, if you know me then you'll know that I've been highly critical of the overuse of 3D animation in recent times and how it is being promoted for all the wrong reasons. Jeffrey Katzenburg (CEO of Dreamworks Animation) for example, is a man of whom I am often critical of mainly because he prefers quantity over quality. Unlike when he worked for Disney he is prepared to make many woeful pop-culture laden pieces of drivel (like 'Shark Tale' or 'Madagascar') at the expense of a great film with great lastability that comes out more sporadically, which is what Pixar is good at. Granted, Katzenburg has made a few decent films too, but I think for every one good Dreamworks film there are at least two bad ones. When Katzenburg was promoting his latest feature 'Monsters vs Aliens' he said along the lines that 3D in cinemas was the future. I can understand that watching movies these days needs a revamp, but I've seen plenty of 2D films in the cinema when I was a little boy and I certainly didn't think that THEY needed 3D to be 'better'. And this new 3D craze just doesn't impress me and I think it might possibly get old. You never know with these things though...

I tried to get into the whole 3D fad, I really did. But when it comes down to it films like 'Up' can stand on their own without any silly gimmicks and I'll still get the same effect for a lower price. And if you haven't seen 'Up' yet, then that's my advice - go see it, but don't pay extra for the 3D. Four out of five stars!

Phone Spam

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:47:41 GMT

Two days ago I started getting a series of silent calls on my mobile phone. Yesterday, I got at least TWENTY of them on two seperate numbers - one untracable, and one from a foreign mobile. Fortunately these aren't personal attacks on me - because a text came from the foreign mobile with a veeerrry poorly punctuated message saying stuff along the lines of how god will bless me and all that rubbish. And still having the nerve to keep phoning! Bastards.

The good news is I've been able to block off the foreign mobile. Lets hope this nonsense blows over soon; I don't want to start using another simcard.

A Trip To The Highlands

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 23:18:22 GMT

With this being my final week of my Summer holidays, and having several days off from work, I tagged along with my dad and my grandfather to go on a trip to Inverness, the only city in the Scottish Highlands. It is also somewhere in Scotland that up until now I have never once visited. We took the train up from Perth since it is the quickest, safest and most scenic way up to the Highlands. When we arrived at the station, I went around to do my own thing and took a few pictures.

Arriving at the station.

The high street.

Some lock gates.

Looking out towards the Moray Firth. In the distance is the Kessock Bridge.

Fuelish Fuel Prices

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:52:14 GMT

The government has only gone and increased fuel duty tax, YET AGAIN. Considering how unpopular Gordon Brown is at the moment, it would make more sense for him to do all us motorists a favour and lower the fuel duty taxes. Oh well.

Out with the old, In with the new

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 13:49:49 GMT

Today I waved goodbye to my Vauxhall Corsa. It sounds kind of sappy, but it really was quite a sad moment for me because it is the same car I passed my driving test in, over three years ago. With this car I also have helped roadie for my friends' bands in our wannabe rock star days, and most recently delivered pizzas in it. Hopefully it's new owner will treat it well. I loved that car, but since it's had a few issues (tyres wearing awkwardly, among other things) I thought that it was time to move on to something else.

But there is some good news - I have a newer car now; I traded my Corsa in for a larger, more solid and more up-to-date Vauxhall Astra! It's done only 15000 miles as well and has a fair bit more power than it's predecessor. Hopefully I will love my new car as much as my old one.

And here's another interesting thing. In the 1980s my dad bought his first Vauxhall, and from then until he bought a Ford in 2006, all he bought were Vauxhalls. In 2008 my mum bought a Mazda, so I suppose the fact my dad and I chose the Astra is quite significant because it is essentially continuing the tradition of having Vauxhalls in the family!

The first picture below was taken the same day I passed my driving test back in March 2006. Below that was me with the same car yesterday. And below that is my new set of wheels ^^

...

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 18:19:49 GMT

I'm back from North America. What a holiday! I've already started planning for next year =P

In the meantime, I discovered this whilst I was staying in Canada. It was an academy award nominee in 1988 and I think it is awesome. I think some of you might recognise it...

The End Is Near

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 04:37:39 GMT

My holiday in North America this year is drawing to a close. Tomorrow I am flying home to the UK again, and I won't be able to spend any time with my pals in New England until that time any more.

I have done some pretty awesome things this year; I have visited and explored Washington DC, done pretty well at Anthrocon and getting to meet and chat with some lovely people, had a good time in Toronto and finally have a blast with my pals TM Fox, Equin, P Kitty and more in New Hampshire and Massachussetts.

I think it's over prematurely. I'm not ready to go home yet. I don't want to go home yet. But I have to remind myself that if it went on much longer it would soon drag as my pals would all be at work and that, and that'd be no fun.

I enjoyed my time out here. Hopefully it will not be my last!

Niagara Falls

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:08:56 GMT

Just been to Niagara Falls for much of the day. It was immense. American Falls is impressive enough as a waterfall, but it is the Canadian Horseshoe Falls that really takes the biscuit.

I took the train to get there; on one side of the tracks there were loads of vineyards and orchards that reminded me of southern Europe; on the other side, the land reminded me of the UK. Intriguing...

More exploring

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 03:47:14 GMT

I had to throw out any idea of visiting the Toronto Islands this year since some of the city's community workers are on strike, which means the ferries and amusement park rides are off. What's more, I've noticed that the litter bins have overflown. If the workers want extra pay, they should probably try not to undermine their case by letting the litter get out of hand. The public will have some degree of sympathy at first, but soon regard it as a menace after a while, so the sooner some agreements can be reached the better I say.

That said, the trams and hippo tours (kind of like Boston's duck tours) were on, so I splashed out nearly 40 bucks to literally splash into Lake Ontario on an amphibious bus whilst getting a comprehensive tour of downtown Toronto and the nearby university. Afterwards I ventured several miles east of the city centre into the Woodbine Beach area.

A couple of my American pals say that Canada is just like the USA, only further north. It isn't. For a start, they sell chocolate bars that I am familiar with in the UK! =P But what is also apparent is that Toronto seems to be Europe and America mixed together; half the people I walked past spoke French, and some of the new 'condominiums' getting built look more like Mediterranean than American, which I am not so sure about. There are high rise blocks of flats further away into the residential parts that remind me of Glasgow and some cities in England, all mixed in with American style architecture in the main streets. And Toronto's tall buildings look great, especially at night - I really wish Dundee had some buildings like that instead of the crap we've got; the tallest commercial tower we have is ugly as sin (and marked for demolition), and the newer buildings are only four storeys high and nowhere near as captivating. When I see Toronto's downtown buildings, I can't help but think "Goodness, we need some of those". Albeit not quite as tall!

Higher and higher...

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:09:23 GMT

This is the penultimate leg of my holiday in North America this year; I've never been to Canada before and I must say it is great to see food and that which I'm used to seeing back home! Must be something to do with the Commonwealth. Today, after arriving from AC in Pittsburgh (and coincidentally sitting next to another fur who went to AC who was from New Brunswick) I visited the Eaton Centre, which is certainly more impressive than Dundee's Welgate Centre. Later I went to the Hockey Hall Of Fame because I love hockey, and got to see some great memorabilia, including old jerseys and the original Stanley Cup (plus a lot of coverage of my fave NHL team, the current Stanley Cup champions Pittsburgh Penguins). This evening I went to the CN Tower, with it's famous glass floor (which a lot of people were on) and the Sky pod. Seeing Toronto and Southern Ontario from such a height (447m!) is impressive enough by day, but I waited for night to fall, and I must say that at night it is a lot more captivating; you can even see lights from New York state in the distance on the other side of Lake Ontario!

Here's some pictures;

AC 2009

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 22:18:30 GMT

Anthrocon's been pretty good so far, this being the last day before I go to Canada. The Artist Alley was quite rewarding; I recouped the money that I spent on cabs back in Washington DC. I did an insane amount of drawing this weekend, but sold some of the new pictures and that put a smile on my face! Plus with some of the money I made, I bought some art myself! :) Here's a photo of me sitting in the Artists Alley today.

Mr Keen Goes To Washington (Day 2)

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 03:26:00 GMT

My second and last full day in D.C. was even more of a test for my physical endurance than the day before! My feet hurt and my legs are a little stiff, but considerng what I went and saw all in one day, and with a little assistance from the Metro system, I can honestly say I am both astonished and pleased with what I've accomplished. I may be shattered, but it's not all been for nothing because I saw;

The White House
Museum Of Natural History
Museum Of American History
Smithsonian Castle
Washington Monument
World War II Memorial
Lincoln Memorial
Franklin D Roosevelt Memorial
Jefferson Memorial
Arlington Cemetary (including JFK's grave)

And owing to the lack of Metro stations in The Mall area, I had to walk several miles today in order to get everything I wanted to see done. I guess being a slave driver on myself proved to be productive, for once! Here's a few more photos;

The closest I'll probably get to being with President Obama.

I didn't actually get to go inside and up to the top because all the tickets had been sold! Yah boo sucks!

Mr Keen Goes To Washington (Day 1)

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:49:45 GMT

My first day in D.C. I decided I would visit some of the more Easterly tourist sights on the Mall and Capitol Hill, which were all well within walking distance of my hotel. The only things that annoyed me were lack of good places to find food and drink (and reminding me of how much I HATED eating fast food so often last time I was in the States) and the unpredictability of the weather.

Here are the sights I have been in, or at least had close proximity to them today;
Union Station
Supreme Court
Library Of Congress
United States Capitol
Botanical Gardens
National Air And Space Museum (I liked that one!)
National Gallery of Art
National Museum of the American Indian

Tomorrow I think I'll take the Metro to see the more further away destinations. It's hopefully not going to be as expensive as it would if I were to take the open top bus tours.

Here is four of the 150 or so photos I took as well, just for the record.

Oddly enough, I seem to have dressed up a bit like I imagine my dad would for holidays like this... except I have the Madchester-esque bucket hat and longer hair =P

Travelling sucks!

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:33:27 GMT

Well last night I am pleased to inform you all that I safely arrived in Washington, D.C. after eight tedious hours in the air. However, the flight was more bearable because I was upgraded to World Traveller Class (that's between Business and Economy classes) and the person I sat next to was a friendly American guy roughly my age who was coming back home from a college trip to the Balkans. Customs and immigration were surprisingly easy as well.

But the day was also dogged by some scary coincidences as well. My suitcase weighed nearly 19 kilos. The train to Edinburgh arrived at platform 19. My airline's gate at Edinburgh was number 19 and I was in the 19th row of the plane. Later, after my upgrade at Heathrow Terminal 5, I was put in the 19th row of the next plane! Get the idea what's happening? And then, at Passport and Border Control, I saw some booths numbered 1 to 20something. Please, don't let me get number 19, that's too creepy! I got booth number 19.

I am a bit superstitious about such circumstances, worried it could be a bad omen. In reality though, it was all just a freakish coincidence. But I had a near disaster outside my hotel when I nearly left my laptop bag (with my PASSPORT IN IT!) in the taxi and had to stop it driving off! But the trend did finally break; I got room number 433!

And yeah, travelling abroad in any jet set lifestyle makes me feel jaded no matter what. Hopefully it won't make my days in Washington D.C. too difficult. I'll keep you updated ;)

"Smart old Blue he took the Milky Way!"

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:11:08 GMT

I haven't seen this advert since my early childhood! And now they're using it again, but they've changed the words slightly... here's the original version. I wonder how many people remember it.

Oil Rig

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 22:48:27 GMT

The North Sea oil rig Galaxy II arrived in Dundee last month (while I was at Confuzzled!) for up to 10 weeks of maintenance work. It was built in 1987/1988. Because oil rigs fascinate me and because they add some character to the docks, I thought I'd take a few pictures. My favourite one is this; Problem is, some residents nearby have had TV reception problems with past visits from oil rigs =P Maybe not this time.

Stanley Cup

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:40:36 GMT

The Pittsburgh Penguins (my fave ice hockey team) have won this year's Stanley Cup, after beating defending champions Detroit Red Wings 2-1 at Detroit's home ice! Perhaps when I'm at AC I might pay a visit to the Mellon Arena when the Penguins play... I probably should since it is to be demolished within the next few years...

Titanic

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:16:45 GMT

Just heard on the news that Millvina Dean, the last living survivor of the Titanic disaster, has died at her care home aged 97. She was only a couple of months old when the ship went under and as such did not remember the sinking.

Confuzzled 2009

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:52:12 GMT

In short, it rocked!

Spare me this flak

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:45:39 GMT

I can't help but think my dad just doesn't seem to care so much about me as a driver so much, especially since my younger brother passed his test.

Last night I accidentally bruised my head with the boot lid, and in retaliation I kicked it lightly. And it dented slightly. What are the odds of that happening? I may as well have attacked it with a sledgehammer and I would have got the same reaction. In reflection, I think it was a silly way for me to respond, but I will not have my parents constantly rubbing every little knock that car gets right into my face like I am the world's most careless motorist. THIS TIME it is someone else in my family who is making a mountain out of a molehill.

I did scrape the kerbs occasionally, and I did knock the alignment out of place after skidding on black ice last winter. And of course my old man is now bringing the fact I only occasionally wash the car and vacuum the inside is another sign I don't care about my set of wheels. Well, I would wash it more often if I had the time to fit it in. Every time I do I either get sidetracked, or it rains.

What really gets my gun though is this; my dad is moaning at how the dent in the bootlid will bring the car's value down even more so. The car is NINE BLOODY YEARS OLD. I hate to say so but it is probably worth less than my most expensive guitar. Considering that my dad never sprung to fix the back bumper which had been dented years before I first drove a car, I can't help but wonder what else could depreciate it's price further.

As if that wasn't enough I can't help but think that my brother's been the favourite motorist since he passed his driving test earlier this year. HE gets to drive my Dad's car with it's big alloy wheels. Not that I want to drive it; my car is much more practical for my needs and job. Thing is, I never have been trusted with ANY of my parents' larger cars (Just their Mazda 2 for a couple of days). I know Dad doesn't want any of the other cars to smell of pizzas for when I go to work, but I can't help but think that I am being singled out just because of my profession and because the amount of miles I do results in more unintentional minor scrapes being inflicted on my poor car. I know my car deserves better, bu I'm only human after all.

Now my old man is saying he won't help me pay for a new car. I don't think he would have anyway - my record of slight knocks and bumps in the past already saw to that.

Long story short I regret kicking the bootlid out of anger. I feel I should apologise when I'm in the mood. But at the same time, when worse things have happened to this car and I still get the same flak for it anyway, I wonder why I even bother trying to earn the trust of my parents back. I think that since my brother passed his test they've just given up on me. Maybe thats why I don't seem to care so much anymore.

EDIT - I've cooled down a bit now, probably just as well. The real problems in my life are ones that won't go away.

Rare night out

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sat, 16 May 2009 14:03:07 GMT

Yesteray was the last day of university for my year. To celebrate, some of my student friends went out to the union in the evening. I managed to get out of work early and made it just after 10pm. After a while we went to a night club until closing time near 3am.

It's fun to do these things every so often I think. Problem is, when you are almost always working at a pizza delivery shop on weekends, it can make you almost socially dead.

Still, my company was appreciated, so it was worth my time :)

Hells bells

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:14:51 GMT

I wish the headphones I got with my iPod weren't so powerful, and likewise I wish my computer's headphone output wasn't so damn HIGH.

But I am smart enough to know that I can't change that now. It could be months before I get to see a specialist in regards to what my ears have been going through for the past five weeks. The ringing isn't overbearing, but it is perplexingly sporadic and can be bloody irritating. Sometimes my ears ache as well, even at exposure to ordinary noise. But I can't do anything about that at this moment in time, and the doctor can only forward me to a specialist. Fingers crossed that it won't be another dead end.

I'm fed up putting up with it and going on about it, and the sooner this ordeal can pass the better. Complaining about it isn't doing me the world of good, so I guess I have to learn how to not let it get to me.

Staying up

marksmith16@blueyonder.co.uk — Sat, 02 May 2009 23:40:09 GMT

I'm relieved about today's League One football results. Carlisle won, Northampton lost, so that means that my English team is staying up, one place above the relegation zone :)

Dundee United won today as well, against Hibs. We're that much closer to European football :P Just Hearts to catch now.