Alright. Happy Halloween. Am I the only one who doesn’t like this day?
It used to be fun when I was a kid, dressing up, getting sweets, the bonfires and all that. But for the past ten years or so it’s just been annoying me, but I seem to be alone on that. I was going into town yesterday, and halfway down this street which is usually quite deserted that time of the day because it’s mostly just bars and takeaways, I suddenly saw this crowd on the sidewalk. I thought something had happened and they were trying to get a good look because why else would there be so many people in one place, but it turns out they were actually queuing at a Halloween shop, out the door and down the street, in the pouring rain and freezing cold. When I got back two hours later, they were STILL queuing.
And costumes are getting boring. Okay, they’ve probably always been boring, but I just know that apart from all the witches/ghosts/pumpkins/black cats, half the people will be dressed as the Joker. That’d actually be a cool idea if it wasn’t for the thousands of other people dressed like that.
Also, kids are nowhere near as charming anymore nowadays. When I was little, we didn’t even trick people when they refused to give us sweets… sometimes, THEY even tricked US. One fine Halloween evening my friends and me were out trick-and-treating when this farmer guy didn’t only refuse to give us sweets, but proceeded to chase us down the street with a pitchfork .
Two or three years ago today however, I happened to be alone at home and, being the Halloween equivalent of Scrooge that I am, didn’t open the door when a bunch of kids rang the doorbell. I didn’t know where my mother had hidden the sweets to give away anyway so it’s not like I deprived those kids of anything. For all they knew, no one was home and it wasn’t anyone’s fault they weren’t getting sweets, but all the same, they decided to trick us. That took the form of them hurling raw eggs at the windows. Of course I immediately raced outside and I don’t think they’ve ever run as fast as they did then but I still had to clean up that mess.
Now you’re probably wondering why I’m devoting a whole entry to Halloween if I don’t like it in the first place, and you’re right, I’ve no idea. Sometimes it’s more fun to write about things that I don’t like than stuff I’m enthusiastic about.
31 Oct 2008
22 Oct 2008
Stuff you may like too
I recently rediscovered 'Stuff White People Like', which is a website where people (or one person?) take(s) a satirical look at, well... stuff white people like. Some of the things I don't really get because the site is mainly about Americans, but most things are funny because they're very true. There's lots of stuff on there that I could comment on, so there may well be a Part II in the future.
#99 Grammar
"When asking someone about their biggest annoyances in life, you might expect responses like “hunger,” “being poor,” or “getting shot.” If you ask a white person, the most common response will likely be “people who use ‘their’ when they mean ‘there.’ Maybe comma splices, I’m not sure but it’s definitely one of the two.”"
Oh yes :D My biggest annoyances are poor grammar and spelling. If you can’t spell you’re and they’re and think that “should of” is proper English, then you'll have a hard time earning my respect.
That said, I wonder about the person who’d reply ‘hunger’ or ‘getting shot’ when asked about their biggest annoyances. “Yeah, some thug just shot me in the chest and punctured a lung, it’s rather annoying... sigh”.
#90 Dinner Parties
Gah. My parents have so many dinner parties and brunches and breakfasts and “why don’t you drop by for a cup of coffee today, and bring whoever’s visiting you along”s every year that I can’t be bothered to count them. Usually they’re only minor nuisances because I can pretend not to be home. It only becomes difficult when I’m hungry and I know they’re feasting on a three-course meal and ice cream downstairs – that’s when I have to decide whether satisfying my hunger is worth all the obligatory ‘How are you? What are you doing? How do you like it? What do you want to do when you graduate?’ questions.
#89 Saint Patrick’s Day
Half the world celebrates Ireland’s national holiday – I don’t think any other country in the world can compete with that. It’s a nice opportunity to go on a bit of a binge and seeing as it’s two days before my birthday, I usually get treated to free drinks on top of that, so celebrating St Patrick’s Day as such is fine by me. But unfortunately it’s also a great opportunity for all those pseudo-Irish to celebrate their non-existent Irish heritage, which is a particular pet peeve of mine – everyone claims to be Irish these days on the grounds of some greatgrandfather who emigrated from Cork to Boston in 1896. No, sorry... you’re NOT. Someone way down the line in my family tree was born in Hungary – have you heard me claiming I’m Hungarian yet?
#59 Natural Medicine
I’ve grown up with root extracts and hot onions and potatoes and beet juice and the whole range of leaves and vegetables, and even now we have a wide array of herbal remedies at home that I can all administer correctly and discuss the pros and cons of sugar beet vs hot water and lemon juice for sore throats. Everyone’s really into that stuff, and it does work, but to my eternal shame I admit that if I do feel ill and no one’s around to crush chicory roots for me, I’m much more likely to just grab something from the pharmacy.
#55 Apologies
I wrote a blog entry on this but didn’t feel like it was finished, and now it may never see the light of day if I address this topic here. People here apologise all day long, me included. I don’t think they even mean it (I know I don’t always), it’s just the polite thing to do, and doesn’t depend at all on who is actually at fault. If someone knocks your drink out of your hand you’ll apologise all the same, simply because you were standing there. Those apologies aren’t very heartfelt, half the time they’re unnecessary if you really think about it, but it’s still kinda nice.
#31 Snowboarding
All my friends love snowboarding, and so do their parents and siblings and everyone else too. It IS fun, even though not a single person in my (UK/Ireland) family is into it and I’m cross with it ever since I sustained an injury which made me pretty much give up football, but the thing is, we’re in the UK. We have hills and lakes and meadows and it’s no surprise people like golf here, but snowboarding/skiing? I don’t know where that obsession comes from because it inevitably involves going abroad and lugging your heavy equipment all the way to Switzerland.
#99 Grammar
"When asking someone about their biggest annoyances in life, you might expect responses like “hunger,” “being poor,” or “getting shot.” If you ask a white person, the most common response will likely be “people who use ‘their’ when they mean ‘there.’ Maybe comma splices, I’m not sure but it’s definitely one of the two.”"
Oh yes :D My biggest annoyances are poor grammar and spelling. If you can’t spell you’re and they’re and think that “should of” is proper English, then you'll have a hard time earning my respect.
That said, I wonder about the person who’d reply ‘hunger’ or ‘getting shot’ when asked about their biggest annoyances. “Yeah, some thug just shot me in the chest and punctured a lung, it’s rather annoying... sigh”.
#90 Dinner Parties
Gah. My parents have so many dinner parties and brunches and breakfasts and “why don’t you drop by for a cup of coffee today, and bring whoever’s visiting you along”s every year that I can’t be bothered to count them. Usually they’re only minor nuisances because I can pretend not to be home. It only becomes difficult when I’m hungry and I know they’re feasting on a three-course meal and ice cream downstairs – that’s when I have to decide whether satisfying my hunger is worth all the obligatory ‘How are you? What are you doing? How do you like it? What do you want to do when you graduate?’ questions.
#89 Saint Patrick’s Day
Half the world celebrates Ireland’s national holiday – I don’t think any other country in the world can compete with that. It’s a nice opportunity to go on a bit of a binge and seeing as it’s two days before my birthday, I usually get treated to free drinks on top of that, so celebrating St Patrick’s Day as such is fine by me. But unfortunately it’s also a great opportunity for all those pseudo-Irish to celebrate their non-existent Irish heritage, which is a particular pet peeve of mine – everyone claims to be Irish these days on the grounds of some greatgrandfather who emigrated from Cork to Boston in 1896. No, sorry... you’re NOT. Someone way down the line in my family tree was born in Hungary – have you heard me claiming I’m Hungarian yet?
#59 Natural Medicine
I’ve grown up with root extracts and hot onions and potatoes and beet juice and the whole range of leaves and vegetables, and even now we have a wide array of herbal remedies at home that I can all administer correctly and discuss the pros and cons of sugar beet vs hot water and lemon juice for sore throats. Everyone’s really into that stuff, and it does work, but to my eternal shame I admit that if I do feel ill and no one’s around to crush chicory roots for me, I’m much more likely to just grab something from the pharmacy.
#55 Apologies
I wrote a blog entry on this but didn’t feel like it was finished, and now it may never see the light of day if I address this topic here. People here apologise all day long, me included. I don’t think they even mean it (I know I don’t always), it’s just the polite thing to do, and doesn’t depend at all on who is actually at fault. If someone knocks your drink out of your hand you’ll apologise all the same, simply because you were standing there. Those apologies aren’t very heartfelt, half the time they’re unnecessary if you really think about it, but it’s still kinda nice.
#31 Snowboarding
All my friends love snowboarding, and so do their parents and siblings and everyone else too. It IS fun, even though not a single person in my (UK/Ireland) family is into it and I’m cross with it ever since I sustained an injury which made me pretty much give up football, but the thing is, we’re in the UK. We have hills and lakes and meadows and it’s no surprise people like golf here, but snowboarding/skiing? I don’t know where that obsession comes from because it inevitably involves going abroad and lugging your heavy equipment all the way to Switzerland.
11 Oct 2008
Tell me quick - who asks the questions during Question Time?
I find it quite fascinating how many foreigners living in the UK decide to become British citizens – 93% of Africans, and 87% of Indians. I did briefly contemplate the same thing when I became eligible three years ago, but only because it was an option, not because I was so keen on it. And I guess I have a little more freedom of choice anyway – Ireland is a member of the EU so I’m at no disadvantage to do with my passport. The thing about acquiring British citizenship is those citizenship tests though – if you want to apply for a British passport or want to settle here for good (unless you’re an EU national, but don’t quote me on that), you have to pass a test to prove you have sufficient knowledge of the UK. I don’t know how popular that test is in other countries – I know the US and Germany both have it, but I’m not sure about other places.
Anyway, I wouldn’t want any random stranger without the most basic grasp of English as my neighbour either, but that test is quite ridiculous. If your English isn’t that great you have to attend English and citizenship classes instead, but for everyone else, there’s no way around it. There’s a handbook to accompany the test so you can study just like for your driver’s license, and the BBC published some of the questions on their website. I got 9 out of the 14 questions wrong. Apparently I don’t know what to be British means, I don’t know where Santa Claus is from or where the myth of him originated, or what to do before engaging a solicitor (according to that test, it is more important to find out how much they charge than to ask if they’re qualified at all, and if they have a potential conflict of interest).
The test also asks you about such useful things like what to do when you spill someone’s pint in a pub, how the film classification system works and how much you have to pay to visit the Parliament. The title of this entry is a question too - I couldn't really detect much of a context. I thought they were talking about a TV show at first.
I don’t disagree with the concept of those tests as such, and I’d probably face some difficulties drawing the line between sensible and not-so-sensible questions too, but it’s not my job.
Like I said… I'm quite happy with my passport, but that doesn't really matter. I’d probably fail the test anyway since I have no idea how the process of buying a house in Scotland differs from buying a house in England.
Anyway, I wouldn’t want any random stranger without the most basic grasp of English as my neighbour either, but that test is quite ridiculous. If your English isn’t that great you have to attend English and citizenship classes instead, but for everyone else, there’s no way around it. There’s a handbook to accompany the test so you can study just like for your driver’s license, and the BBC published some of the questions on their website. I got 9 out of the 14 questions wrong. Apparently I don’t know what to be British means, I don’t know where Santa Claus is from or where the myth of him originated, or what to do before engaging a solicitor (according to that test, it is more important to find out how much they charge than to ask if they’re qualified at all, and if they have a potential conflict of interest).
The test also asks you about such useful things like what to do when you spill someone’s pint in a pub, how the film classification system works and how much you have to pay to visit the Parliament. The title of this entry is a question too - I couldn't really detect much of a context. I thought they were talking about a TV show at first.
I don’t disagree with the concept of those tests as such, and I’d probably face some difficulties drawing the line between sensible and not-so-sensible questions too, but it’s not my job.
Like I said… I'm quite happy with my passport, but that doesn't really matter. I’d probably fail the test anyway since I have no idea how the process of buying a house in Scotland differs from buying a house in England.
4 Oct 2008
Fixing a hole where the rain comes in
Aberdeen’s not really a very exciting place, and I don’t think a lot of people find it very appealing – In fact all the international students (and not just them) are rather disappointed with it. It doesn’t ever get really warm, people have weird accents, they lack a sense of fashion, and shops close at 5pm. But you know what I love so much about this place? It’s grey. This is without a doubt the greyest place I have ever seen in my life. The sky’s overcast a good deal of the time, the majority of streets are cobblestone, and nearly all the houses are made of granite, which gives the town a distinct ‘1960s working-class fishing-town’ vibe (if you like huge glass fronts and modern steel constructions, you may incredulously shake your head now, but I’m into this kind of stuff). And it’s so very nice when it rains.
I’ve done my fair share of cursing the weather, especially at home. Any city can pull off a sunny day – miserable grey weather, not really. If you’re sitting in Italy watching the rain fill your swimming pool to the brim it’s not beautiful or comforting, it’s annoying and a waste of money. Here, it actually tempts me to go out for a walk. I don’t fancy getting wet, but after all, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes, right? As I was walking home from the library last night, it was pouring, and my friend opted to take the bus, like pretty much everyone else. I’m skint and in a fit of madness I’ve discovered that I actually enjoy walking. Walking home from the library I’ve to cross a hill, and from the top of that hill, I can see the sea. It’s cold, not very calm, and yet another shade of grey. Looking down on that grey town and the sea in the pouring rain is very peaceful, and oddly enough, really lifts your spirits.
Of course the rain doesn’t like me as much as I like it and I’m feeling rather ill today. Guess I’ll have to go back to complaining about the weather now.
I’ve done my fair share of cursing the weather, especially at home. Any city can pull off a sunny day – miserable grey weather, not really. If you’re sitting in Italy watching the rain fill your swimming pool to the brim it’s not beautiful or comforting, it’s annoying and a waste of money. Here, it actually tempts me to go out for a walk. I don’t fancy getting wet, but after all, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes, right? As I was walking home from the library last night, it was pouring, and my friend opted to take the bus, like pretty much everyone else. I’m skint and in a fit of madness I’ve discovered that I actually enjoy walking. Walking home from the library I’ve to cross a hill, and from the top of that hill, I can see the sea. It’s cold, not very calm, and yet another shade of grey. Looking down on that grey town and the sea in the pouring rain is very peaceful, and oddly enough, really lifts your spirits.
Of course the rain doesn’t like me as much as I like it and I’m feeling rather ill today. Guess I’ll have to go back to complaining about the weather now.
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