Sunday, 9 September 2007
BOS
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the BOS (British Origami Society) on reaching its 40th anniversary. It has done wonders for origami and origami artists over the years, promoting the activity and allowing people to get more from their paper. Keep it up!
Thursday, 6 September 2007
Ornithology
I am coming to the conclusion that either University is very bad for birds, or home is very good. In five days at home revising for exams last June I saw all of these birds:
Blackbird ... Wren ... Blue tit ... Sparrow ... Carrion crow ... Greenfinch ... Chaffinch ... Great tit ... Robin ... Pigeon ... Pied wagtail ... Barn Owl ... Starling ... Swallow ... Kestrel ... Goldfinch ... Thrush
At university I have not seen that many types of bird in three years. The only ones I am likely to see on 5 randomly picked days are pigeons, ducks and blackbirds, with a possiblity of crows, starlings, moorhens and swans. So admittedly, it does win on water birds.
But today university won some respectability. A green woodpecker was hopping along the ground, looking into the air for danger, or maybe looking for insects to catch. I followed it across the grass in the brick-walled court, keeping my distance as I did so. I had a duck on each side of me, pecking at the grass, doing the ineffectual scooping motion that they do with their beaks (made for water, I tell you). Then down a tree came a squirrel, which bounded joyfully across the grass. It came so close to the woodpecker that the woodpecker had to jump out of the way, giving a couple of flaps of its wings, just to make sure. It seemed unreal to see animals packed in such a small area in the concrete jungle of university. But for just a moment, university beat home for wildlife
Blackbird ... Wren ... Blue tit ... Sparrow ... Carrion crow ... Greenfinch ... Chaffinch ... Great tit ... Robin ... Pigeon ... Pied wagtail ... Barn Owl ... Starling ... Swallow ... Kestrel ... Goldfinch ... Thrush
At university I have not seen that many types of bird in three years. The only ones I am likely to see on 5 randomly picked days are pigeons, ducks and blackbirds, with a possiblity of crows, starlings, moorhens and swans. So admittedly, it does win on water birds.
But today university won some respectability. A green woodpecker was hopping along the ground, looking into the air for danger, or maybe looking for insects to catch. I followed it across the grass in the brick-walled court, keeping my distance as I did so. I had a duck on each side of me, pecking at the grass, doing the ineffectual scooping motion that they do with their beaks (made for water, I tell you). Then down a tree came a squirrel, which bounded joyfully across the grass. It came so close to the woodpecker that the woodpecker had to jump out of the way, giving a couple of flaps of its wings, just to make sure. It seemed unreal to see animals packed in such a small area in the concrete jungle of university. But for just a moment, university beat home for wildlife
Tuesday, 4 September 2007
Little happy things
Sometimes the little things are the ones that cheer you up the most.
I was in Argos today and heard the Cardigans song Carnival playing. I thought that song had been lost in the mists of time. I mean, as far as I know, not many people knew it even at the time. According to Wikipedia it was the first single from the album "Life" and reached #35 in the UK charts. So I was thrilled to hear it playing.
A poster on the wall had a mis-spelled company slogan on it. How can you possibly make a mistake like that in company advertising? It's like Skittles saying Taste Te Rainbow, or whoever it is saying Vorsprung Durch Technike. It just makes you look ridiculous.
The man on the street with the guitar was playing "Thank You", the song by Dido that was used in Stan by Eminem. It worked really well with his gnarled old street voice.
One of the cashiers in the supermarket was really friendly. He had a problem with his till, and didn't know one of the prices. So instead of calling for assistance from the other staff, he turned round and asked a random customer to go and check the price of something. It was like being in a little village shop where everyone is happy to help and not afraid to ask. It's so rare to have strangers talking together and even asking favours from each other, and being happy and smiling about it. When I got to the front of the queue (or line, you funny americans), he asked me about my day, and seemed actually interested. What a legend.
Also in the shop, I saw a beautiful girl. She looked familiar. I couldn't place her. I didn't want to ask, in case she was the person who persuaded me to start giving to a charity by accosting me in the street and chatting to me for a while - I swear I would still have given money to her if she were unattractive - but it's odd I still remember her!
Nothing very good has happened today, but the little things have kept it all seeming nice!
I was in Argos today and heard the Cardigans song Carnival playing. I thought that song had been lost in the mists of time. I mean, as far as I know, not many people knew it even at the time. According to Wikipedia it was the first single from the album "Life" and reached #35 in the UK charts. So I was thrilled to hear it playing.
A poster on the wall had a mis-spelled company slogan on it. How can you possibly make a mistake like that in company advertising? It's like Skittles saying Taste Te Rainbow, or whoever it is saying Vorsprung Durch Technike. It just makes you look ridiculous.
The man on the street with the guitar was playing "Thank You", the song by Dido that was used in Stan by Eminem. It worked really well with his gnarled old street voice.
One of the cashiers in the supermarket was really friendly. He had a problem with his till, and didn't know one of the prices. So instead of calling for assistance from the other staff, he turned round and asked a random customer to go and check the price of something. It was like being in a little village shop where everyone is happy to help and not afraid to ask. It's so rare to have strangers talking together and even asking favours from each other, and being happy and smiling about it. When I got to the front of the queue (or line, you funny americans), he asked me about my day, and seemed actually interested. What a legend.
Also in the shop, I saw a beautiful girl. She looked familiar. I couldn't place her. I didn't want to ask, in case she was the person who persuaded me to start giving to a charity by accosting me in the street and chatting to me for a while - I swear I would still have given money to her if she were unattractive - but it's odd I still remember her!
Nothing very good has happened today, but the little things have kept it all seeming nice!
Saturday, 1 September 2007
Song lyrics
These are some lyrics from moby's song "Where you end":
Thought I fell in love the other day
With an old friend of mine
I was running kisses
Down every inch of her spine
We had the roof down
The sun came shining in
The black fact is...
that I was thinking of you
I love lyrics like this, they are so hopeless and sad. Would you sacrifice an old friendship simply to imagine the love of another person? Of course not. And yet it seems so possible, like it could happen to anyone at any time, and it would be a natural and beautiful thing, no matter how tragic and wrong it was
Thought I fell in love the other day
With an old friend of mine
I was running kisses
Down every inch of her spine
We had the roof down
The sun came shining in
The black fact is...
that I was thinking of you
I love lyrics like this, they are so hopeless and sad. Would you sacrifice an old friendship simply to imagine the love of another person? Of course not. And yet it seems so possible, like it could happen to anyone at any time, and it would be a natural and beautiful thing, no matter how tragic and wrong it was
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