Institutional Trust and the New British Cynicism I recently found myself thinking about a controversial refereeing decision in a football match. A defender was quite clearly shoved to the ground in his own penalty box by an attacking forward. Yet the attacker was not penalised. Even allowing for the fact that the ball was not in play, this seemed to me to be a clear and deliberate attempt to bring another player down. I can’t claim to be knowledgeable about the rules of football, so I set about finding out what they actually say. Read more
A few days ago I came across an Australian comedian on YouTube called Randy Feltface. Since then I think I’ve watched every video he’s published there, and I’m still not bored! Read more
The Good Place has finished, and it was awesome. It was awesome after the first few episodes, didn’t falter at the end of season 1, and managed to remain mostly awesome through to the conclusion of the story. I won’t say it didn’t drag at times or that it didn’t have some questionable logic in places, but generally speaking it was a work of genius. Read more
I long to experience being alive. I long to stand up in the back of a pickup truck while speeding through a tunnel with a great song pumping out of the speakers as loud as it will possibly go without losing fidelity. Read more
I’ve just watched the most powerful hour and nine minutes of television that I think I’ve ever seen. It popped up in my Netflix feed as popular in the United Kingdom and I can see why. Read more
Today I want to talk about the number three. Don’t worry, I’m not going to go all Sesame Street on you, but I may get a little new agey. Read more
Today I have been mostly pondering the phrase, “an internet-worthy life.” I’m not sure why this thought popped into my head while in the shower this morning, but I think it has something to do with having started this blog. Read more
It’s that time of year again, when social media is full of inspirational messages encouraging everyone to make positive changes to their lives on the odd premise that the start of a new year is the ideal time to do so. A common quote that’s used for these messages is from Brad Paisley: Read more
Something’s not right; something is always not right. No matter what I do I can never shake the feeling that something’s not right. If it’s not money it’s my weight, and if my weight is acceptable it’s something else. There’s never enough time; there’s never enough money; there’s never enough love; there’s just never enough. What’s strange is the more I go after resolving the feeling that there’s never enough, the more I know there never will be. Read more
Today I shall mostly be feeling sorry for myself. I think as it’s the first time in nearly three weeks, I’m entitled. It will be three weeks ago this Wednesday that a series of decisions culminating in a somewhat life-changing event (albeit temporarily) resulted in the situation in which I currently find myself: laid up in hospital in a not insignificant amount of discomfort, unable to find a comfortable arrangement of me and my left leg that will afford me a moment of relaxation. Read more
A little girl sat opposite me on the tube this morning, with her older brother, mother and father. As soon as they had sat down the mother had given her son some sort of tablet on which he proceeds to play games. This also entertains her daughter for a few minutes; she watches her brother intently as he battles bad guys in the virtual world he holds in his hands. But she soon gets bored. Read more
Christmas has passed once more. Each year goes by, punctuated by this “holiday season,” yet it feels so inconsequential. So empty. Read more
I feel like I wasted large parts of my childhood by going through the “standard” British education system. It wasn’t really until I went to university, and even then not until my second year, that I felt like I was doing something productive. I should sprinkle those statements with a note pointing out that my memories of my childhood are few so I don’t entirely trust the impression I have of that period, but the overwhelming recollection I have is of being bored and uninterested in most of what I was being asked to do. Read more
Today was day one of Guilfest 2011, and I’m sitting in a pub enjoying a quiet drink, reflecting on the day. There was good music, some questionable refreshments, and a whole lotta people. I know this post is probably going to make me sound like I’m too old to be going to festivals, and I’ve observed this curious behaviour in the past, but today obviously triggered something because when I sat down to make some notes about the day, this is what came out. Read more
A friend of mine recently told me that they’re getting bored a lot these days. This got me thinking… what exactly is boredom? Read more
Finally… proof my phone is spying on me! In the news this morning I found reports that iPhones running iOS 4+ are constantly logging their location. The security researchers who discovered the data file, which is synced when the phone syncs, have developed an app that shows you where your phone thinks you’ve been! Read more
We glance back and say, “Look how far we’ve come” without realising that most change is only skin deep. Reflecting on the past year and a bit I feel like I’ve changed a lot, and yet not really very much at all. Read more
I can’t do anything tomorrow, or next week, or next year; I can only do something now. Read more
I’ve just experienced dawn breaking through my window on a crisp Easter Sunday morning, but I wasn’t really paying attention. The birds sing their sweet song, yet I barely acknowledge their presence. You see, I’m lost in my own head, fighting with myself in an attempt to see clearly. Read more
The self begins as a blank slate; an unblemished entity with unlimited capacity for love, harmony, and self-expression. A blank slate that’s ready to explore it’s new environment with explosive passion and unmatched enthusiasm. Read more
Three months ago I quit my job, but I’m still here. Here’s why. Read more
I’ve previously posted about people sharing personal information on Facebook without any regard for their own privacy. On Friday the BBC ran a story about how young people could be damaging their future careers with details they put on social network sites. Read more
Recently there seems to have been an explosion in the use of Facebook to gather friends phone numbers following the loss/theft/change of mobile phones. This makes sense if you only have “real” friends on there. However, it makes me sad to see the number of people who are setting up groups to gather these numbers without paying due care and attention to the access rights. Read more
Further to my previous post on recruitment agencies I felt I had to post details of an exchange I had with an agent today because it is a great example of the attitude most recruitment agents have. Read more
My last boss has written a blog entry about my experiences with recruitment agencies during that employment. What Nick doesn’t mention is that in addition to the phone calls I was getting upwards of ten emails a day from them at one point. I had a boiler-plate reply asking them to remove me from their databases, and to let me know when they’ve done that. Read more
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