Heima

Madeline got me the Bob Dylan DVD for my birthday - I had bought it off iTunes already so we took it back and I ordered Heima from amazon. It arrived a couple of days ago, but I've just watched the first few tracks from the performances disk, and skipped ahead for Hoppipolla. Looking forward to tucking into it fully on my flight to London! Lots of media related blogs just recently - I must be feeling creative or something.

Shine on you crazy diamond

In the lab, drinking beer, listening to Pink Floyd at an almost distractingly loud volume on my headphones, writing about why I think my project deserves attention. It's going to be a long week.

Led Zep IV

Just read a review of last nights Led Zep reunion gig.

Hairs standing up on the back of your neck? No? You must not be viewing the full color version!
Bought IV after I realized my music collection was seriously lacking in classic rock. I don't like DRM, but I do love the convenience of iTunes.

A night at the movies

Saw Beowulf: an IMAX 3D experience last Friday. My only previous IMAX experiences were in Sydney (rugby tour – too exhausted to stay awake in a warm dark room), and watching the movie 300 more recently, but that wasn’t in 3D.

Had big expectations, and spent a long time convincing Madeline that she was going to be blown away. Not sure blown away was accurate, but it was relatively painless. Cons: The plot was horrible, the king’s wife was plain Jane, the computer generated ocean effects on the beach were not realistic, Beowulf's accent is just weird. Pros: Angelina Jolie was inspirational, the 3D was not over used, and when it was, it was used to great effect (lots of ducking and Madeline squeezing my hand too tight when dragons plunged towards us), the CGI was very good with a couple of glitches, the dragon fight was brilliant, the group of guys sat behind us kept making amusing comments, the audience cheered when Beowulf kicked some ass.

If we hadn’t experienced the “IMAX 3D experience”, I’d be pissed – horrible movie saved by some technology. It was technology Madeline could appreciate which wins it extra points. Worth $15 each? We’ve paid more for less.

Poetry has no place for a heart that’s a whore

Madeline and I went to see the Swell Season a couple of weeks ago - last minute tickets added to the excitement, especially when it emerged that they were being supported by Martha Wainwright. I knew of her, but couldn't hum a single line from one of her songs - I'd asked Jamie if I should buy one of her albums once, he said yes but I didn't follow through.

Martha Wainwright
Originally uploaded by Stig Nygaard

It was in a ballroom just on Van Ness - standing for all unless you wanted to sit 50 meters away on a balcony (for old people we decided, although we were tempted). We positioned ourselves 2 meters from the stage drinking Heineken in plastic cups, feeling San Franciscan. Martha took the stage, dressed in black and white, with her acoustic guitar and kicked off what would be an amazing 30 minutes of solo brilliance. People at the back were chatting noisily which pissed her off, but it added to the feeling that we were experiencing something woefully under appreciated.

Every song was belted out with a passion that can only be appreciated first hand - powerful lyrics sticking immediately, chord progressions becoming ingrained on my subconscious hummerings for the remainder of the week.

I got home and searched for some of the lines which I liked. The title for this post is the opening line of one of her less-subtly-named songs which took me to a College Website where a poet had used the line as the title for her readings:

"In the last two years I have, among other things, left my husband of 22 years for a woman, been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and OCD, and begun, finally, to deal with the sexual abuse I survived as a child. My poetry is a reflection of all these things: eroticism and erotic love, abuse and mental illness. Poetry like this, resides, I think, in the silences and the margins where the best truths—and poems—are found." - Bron Bateman

I think you have some issues when this poet is relating to you. Issues are brilliant when they're channeled creatively.

I liked this also:

Oh I wish I wish I wish I was born a man
So I could learn how to stand up for myself
Like those guys with guitars
I've been watching in bars
Who've been stamping their feet to a different beat
To a different beat
To a different beat

I'd like to stamp my feet to a different beat, maybe.

I'm watching the epic 3 hour Martin Scorsese documentary on Bob Dylan at the moment (birthday gift from Madeline from iTunes), and am feeling enlivened by music. If you're on Pandora, take a listen. If you're not, get on Pandora and take a listen.

I'd better mention that the Swell Season were also amazing - their CD is a permanent fixture in the car CD player.



Snowpatrol $ Martha Wainwright - Set Fire to the Third Bar.

Talented family - Rufus and Martha - Hallelujah.

Silly, silly amazon

I like amazon. They've never let me down, and recently I've been really impressed with their stats. Things like "83% of the people who viewed this item bought a cat scratching post" are adding so much value to shopping online. It's good to see a wonderful, seamless application of some nice data mining.

The customer feedback and reviews are my main resource when trying to buy something as complicated as headphones, (I settled on these and am delighted with them), when there are literally hundreds of results, and until recently, I took note of the recommended items.

This morning I got an email from Amazon, not something that happens very often, but never the less, excitement set in - I like to think what the algorithm really thinks I would like.

The title was:

Amazon.com recommends "Discipline in the Secondary Classroom: A Positive Approach to Behavior Management (Jossey-Bass Teacher)"

How thoroughly disappointing. It's a tragic artifact of buying Madeline a million books for her teaching credential program. I've just found that I can "Improve my Recommendations" but it's not the same. You don't tell a best friend what things to consider from your personality before they buy you a birthday present. I want the algorithm to be my best friend.

I know it's late when my parents are on skype already

Tonight, Madeline and I went out with some friends for a very nice French meal, (no Le Frog, but nice none the less) and a club near our house. I had rabbit pate (borderline tasteless, but I guess it's meant to be subtle) followed by the veal, and Madeline struck gold with a big old steak, done to perfection.

The club was fun, the company was excellent and we are now at home in a state where I'm able to type and, fingers crossed, we won't feel like death tomorrow.

It's been a good week, although reasonably stressful. My classes are surprisingly challenging, but it's good; I'm learning a lot and it's a good thing keeping me busy. Going to do some stuff for Yahoo over the weekend, but no other big plans. Maybe brunch on Sunday with pals, but other than that, just preparing for Mel's visit. Exciting times!

Travel plans and middle age

Last night, Madeline and I went to the gym. She spent an hour doing weights and cardio. I spent an hour doing yoga, thinking about my breathing and getting frustrated how hard I find it to get my heels to the floor in "downward dog" - I blame it on years of rugby.
Today I noticed that I'm wearing only earth tones, and am sipping on peppermint tea. I fear I'm a cardigan away from a demography I haven't arrived at yet.

Met up with Madeline for coffee this afternoon (she had no work so was enjoying distracting me). We strolled to Starbucks and spent a little time chatting about our travel plans for next summer. I think this will be a point of discussion for quite some time but currently I'm pushing for Iceland, Sweden and Russia. Madeline sent me this in response:

"Russia is not a tourist friendly country, as reading this document will show. Limit your touring to Moscow and St. Petersburg. Although Russia is a country of glorious landscapes and unique culture, it does not provide a travel environment that makes tourism either easy or enjoyable."

I'm not sure she's convinced. This sounds more like a challenge than a warning to me.

In contrast...

...to my usual once-a-month epics, I'm here only to encourage the use of fountain pens. After reading an article about them I decided this semester wouldn't be complete without the revival of a classic. Little did I know that it would be a) so hard to find a fountain pen for less than $10, in a market place dominated by gel pens and such, and b) so rewarding, to the extent that the visual buffet that are my cursive notes have motivated me into blogging action.

It makes writing fun again; and I'm a person who enjoys a bit of handwriting, in contrast to the hideous impersonality of the humble keyboard, (mum I bet you're reminiscing about arguments with Mr. Williams about my joined up letter 'f', how times change : ).

While I'm here, big Dan Ireland had requested an update on Yahoo! projects which I can now dutifully provide:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/teamranker
http://fantasysports.yahoo.com/ochome

And more to follow soon. In other news I think my metabolism has left me - I now plan a day around napping and resting:

A year in the life...

Full Color Version
On the 4^th of August 2006, I left Manchester airport on a chilly Friday morning, bound for Los Angeles via Philadelphia to embark on the most adventurous and eagerly anticipated years of my life. A year on, it seems appropriate for a review of the year in an attempt to capture some of the wonderful things I might not have recorded elsewhere. I’d better begin with the motivation behind this crazy relocation idea:

Madeline – After a couple of months living together I realized that I’d never actually asked Madeline if she wanted to live with me, less still asked her to leave her family in beautiful Encinitas.

One of my fondest Durham memories (certainly my favorite (only) Durham University Library memory) was receiving my acceptance email from SFSU, and spending a solid hour trying to get Vodaphone to allow me to make international calls. Finally, hot, sweaty and angry with every telecom company in the country, the call connected and everything else faded into insignificance as the very though of our future began to sink in. She seemed excited so I thought it best not to ask too many questions…

Madeline has been my sugar momma for almost 12 months, and has spent 2 years moving around the world (Durham and San Francisco) so that we could be together. Last Thursday was her last day in her current job and role as sugar momma. She joins me at SFSU at the end of August to finally earn the teaching credential she’s known she’s wanted most of her life. I’ll get a chance to pay for some stuff as I continue living the dream in Silicon Valley, working for Yahoo! Sports.

Looking back, I’ve tried quite a few things for the first time since being in the land of opportunity. Here comes a much more reader friendly bulleted list!

Sports

• Watched an American football game – San Francisco 49ers vs. Philadelphia Eagles, at Monster Park with Pearly et al.

• Watched numerous college basketball games including Cal vs. Furman with Paddy and Katie and Cal vs. Stanford with Emilie and Kelly as part of the Sixth Man Club
• Played rugby for a non-English based team, namely, Berkeley RFC
• Watched a surprising amount of baseball, as long ago as preseason and as recently as last Thursday, mostly the Giants but one game at MaCaffe Stadium for the A’s courtesy of my sister, with my parents.
• Joined my first cricket team, and played games 3 through 7 of my career with mixed success
• Joined a flag football team with Madeline and Emilie – the least organized fun you can have on a Saturday afternoon
• Played soccer (football) on a massive outdoor soccarena surface
• Surfed and bodyboarded a little, but only in the relative warmth of San Diego – claim I caught my first real wave on the body board
• Held and fired a gun for the first time – would fancy my chances against any opponent so long as they weren’t armed, were predominantly orange, and at a range of approx. 20 feet…stationary
• Played softball in a real game – stuck out both innings
• More recently got to first base – panicked and got out
• Played/kicked some ass in paintball – honestly amazing fun
• Drove a gokart, and entered a hairpin bend so fast that all four tires gave up trying to grip the road
• Played bocce ball – like crown green bowls, but Italian and without the dangerous white trouser, green grass combo

Miscellaneous

• Witnessed a wedding proposal!
• Watched an open air movie
• Was asked to attend tryouts to the cities LGBTA Cheerleading squad
• Had an academically perfect year
• Took a biology class
• Owned a laptop
• Didn’t go into an exam hoping for a pass, and longing for 60%

Visitors – A wonderful feature of the English education system is how people are positively encouraged to get deeper into debt by traveling for 3-9-12 months, possibly saving the world, or maybe just accumulating gap year beads. Madeline and I are lucky enough to have myriad of wonderful friends who took just that leap following 3/4 hellish years in Durham.

Sometimes exhausting, sometimes unexpected (Jones), but always welcome, cared for, and sadly missed when the visit ends, these people have kept us both happy and busy over the past 12 months:

Pearly – arrived with 5 school friends and set an extremely high bar to which other visitors would be measured. We were still living south of the city, and were just finding our feet in the city, but if that wasn’t the case, we’d never have come home to find them asleep in the wrong apartment. A return visit is a must, particularly now I understand baseball. A 3 day Padres series at AT&T Park sounds perfect.

David – Having completed camp America on the East coast, David was burnt out on traveling, but still found the energy for some intensive tour bus action.

Paddy and tickle – finally settled in the city, and nearing the end of my first semester, P and T big manned those idiots who do Christmas shopping in New York by going all the way and doing it at the Eagle in SF. They joined me on the inaugural Sonoma wine tour, which was quieter than expected for 2 days before xmas!

AJ and Helen – Had spent forever in South America and arrived mid way through their “tick the box” trip, in much need of civilization – flushing toilets and water which didn’t kill you. Some wonderful times were had: a limo trip to Sonoma, a manly jaunt in Muir woods and some hard core beer/vodka pong.

Dave and Amy – just after AJ and Helen left, deep into spring semester mid term exams, I received a very cheery voicemail from Fiji announcing the impending arrival of D and A. Thankfully they got screwed over by flights and were stuck in LA (the Hilton!) for an extra night which gave Madeline and I a chance to clean the apartment and study! A wonderful trip including a morning at the shooting range (Amy was terrifyingly good) and an evening of wine fueled scooter riding through Golden Gate Park!

My parents – Dave and Amy left and the following Monday my mum and dad arrived. IT was wonderful showing them where we lived, worked and played, although the weather wasn’t quite up to par. A night in Sonoma, attempting to have fun in Santa Cruz and Muir Beach were notable highlights. Also drove around Yahoo! for the first time and went for a wonderful Italian meal in North Beach.

Bean, Frances and Pete – Bean and Pete had been taking on the world, including a month in a camper van in New Zealand, and Frances flew in specially to meet up with them for a few weeks on the West coast. They stayed with us for a few days leading up to the start of my placement with Yahoo! then went to Yosemite, and then came back for a big Durham reunion with Dan, Simon and Katie. After some wine tasting, beer garden sitting and Cat club action, they headed south for some surfing in San Diego and gambling in Vegas!

Dan – Gets his own section because of his early arrival, a full 6 hours before Simon and Katie. In that time we went to Twin Peaks to view the city at night! Dan was possibly the most enthusiastic pro-American visitor, amazed with everything from clothing at the Eagle, to the auto pumps at the gas stations.

Simon and Katie – We suspected this would just be Katie, guessing that Simon would have been killed, lost or sold in South America. Their arrival was much anticipated and their visit in cooperation with Dan was truly special. Katie said her favorite things from the 2 weeks were dancing at Top of the Mark and the beach – both were done without Dan...

Phew!

The wonderful feeling of anticipation which proceeds ever visit is soon to be replaced by a big hole in our lives as everyone returns to working for the man. The notable exceptions to this rule are my sisters, Melanie (September) and Mandy (with Dave sometime in the New Year).

And that’s it! It goes without saying that return visits and first time visits are aggressively encouraged. Here’s to another year in the best city in the world – it’s exciting to wonder how many more firsts there will be this year!

Good luck to everyone heading to London to start new lives this Fall, and more power to those continuing in the big smoke!

Music

Plain white T’s – Hey There Delilah
Pants Pants Pants - http://www.myspace.com/pantspantspants
Editors – Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors (Still)
Arctic Monkeys – Everything because I’m going to see them in September
Guillemots (are having a reprise in my life) – Trains to Brazil
Arcade Fire – still amazing
Ben Folds – discovered through Pandora and loving his stuff
Bob Dylan – An obsession which grows daily

Movies

No Direction Home – Documentary/Film about the life of Bob Dylan
No Control – Biographical film about the life and death of Ian Curtis, lead singer of Joy Division before they became New Order
Bowling for Columbine – We saw Fahrenheit 9/11 recently and liked it

Paintballing and Barry Bonds

Last night was paintballing with the Rivals.com guys - honestly the most fun you can legally have with 30 people in a warehouse.

Tonight it's the Giants against the Braves at AT&T park where BB's going to be back in the lineup hoping for another couple of those home run things. We're also going to checkout the Yahoo! Brickhouse research facility in the city, and then I might get some sleep. It's been a week of 5:40am starts and late nights which isn't so good cumulatively.

I have my ergonomics evaluation in an hour where I'm expecting to be told that I should learn to type. In other news I took advantage of the onsite hair dressers and am now almost bald, after my rave reviews on breakfast, I've not had a plum all week, and it's a bit over cast - I'm wearing a jumper!

Face? Bovverd?

French President Nicolas Sarkozy joins Tony, with a little Catherine Tate:

Weekend and Softball

Friday
Was meant to meet with Andy for a research meeting but postponed until Saturday afternoon. Home quite early - Madeline and Emilie just back from a run. First beer for a week (no alcohol for 4 days!) moving onto wine then out to North beach for pool and tequila.

Saturday
Woke up early feeling amazing considering Friday, and set about cleaning the apartment from top to bottom, taking particular pleasure scrubbing the bottom of the shower - a job which can only really be tackled when showering which adds an additional danger factor of steamy bleach inhalation.
PM, I met with Andy - good meeting, then to Kezar to meet up with Emilie and Madeline to watch the 90 minute special on Beckham sitting down, and then being average - nachos and buffalo wings.
I had wanted to watch a movie about Bob Dylan, but that was vetoed.

Sunday
Up nice and early again and off to Cole Valley for Madeline's half-marathon-reward pedicure. I sat in Cafe Reverie drinking nice green tea feeling pretentious, coding on my laptop. Off to the mall near campus for some much needed clothing for MJ, and a quick glance at a concert before thinking better of it.

Monday
First ever game of softball for work - I was predictably poor, although fancy my chances after a little more time in the batting cage. Game was cut short under the Mercy rule, but was a lot of fun. I'm hoping paint balling will be a greater success tomorrow. On a related subject, I was looking for a clip of PJ being shot in the face and blinded in Byker Grove, and stumbled across the terrible new opening credits.

Photos
Finally a shot from the half marathon:

And Gay Pride:

All this talk of flooding in England, and the prospect of Christmas in a cabin in the woods is really making me miss England's charm. I look forward to having to wear waterproof clothing and thick socks:

It's only been 2 months...

Facebookers, you know you want the full color version!

For no particular reason, the wireless on the shuttle is working beautifully this morning, and after checking the news from Canoustie, last nights MLB action and Flickr, I'm at a loose end. I think it's time for a whistle stop tour of the past 2 months:

Week with Greg and Kathleen. Madeline and I drove down for the three day weekend - I stayed until the following Friday helping Greg with a house he's working on in Carlsbad, and generally enjoying the sun.

• Surfing - Finally caught a wave I could enjoy on the bodyboard
• Craw fish pasta and Sushi - not together
• Badminton with Hilary's new man, Peter
• Denny’s shed - Eye opening
• Building house - I installed window sills and a plywood floor with moderate success
• 99c burgers
• "Once" movie - highly recommended to one and all
• Stumbling across a snake in their garden:

Dan, Pete and Frances visit. Dan and Pete had been traveling for a long time before arriving, a month in New Zealand just for starters, and Frances flew into SFO to meet up with them/visit us. They split their SF experience into a few days before I began working for Yahoo, and the following weekend which doubled as a bizarre Durham reunion with Simon, Katie and Dan also in the mix. Events included:

• Wine tasting - Sonoma: Benzinger, Imagery and Arrow Head (the big 3 as they have become known)
• Soccer - Dan and Pete played for Emilie's team
• Cat club - It wasn't a "themed night" so much fun with playmates and 40 year olds
• Zeitgeist - Beers, Burgers and Margaritas aplenty with Andy, Trish and Emilie
• Yellowstone - Their in between trip (one for the to-do list)
• Reunion - Big night out with 6 visiting Durham Alum
• Orchid - A beautiful gift that is still alive!
• Marina - On a windy evening for some football (Madeline run)

Dan, Simon and Katie visit SF. The long awaited visit from key members of Team House was not a disappointment! Dan arrived around 5pm on Wednesday of my first week in work, with Katie and Simon not far behind.

• Gay pride - Dan insisted he didn't plan the trip to coincide with the parade
• Top of the mark - Fancy dancing and wine atop a hotel in the city
• Wine tasting - Second time in a week for me (I was recognized at Imagery)
• Dan buying way too many clothes - and golf equipment
• SF Moma - A little culture thrown into the mix (I got in free as a Yahoo!)
• “I hate it, I never want to hear that song again” - Katie being brutally honest
• Yahoo! Half moon bay, SFSU, breakfast in cole valley - a killer day with a killer soundtrack
• Best meal ever - Tuna and steak...with mushrooms...and the best dessert ever...
• Osha - Our first time at the Osha on 2nd street. Massively impressive Thai

Yahoo! I'm 6 weeks into my 10 week internship and all is well. Highlights include (in no particular order)

• Ending my first day early to go and watch softball with some beers
• Having breakfast everyday for a single dollar (2x toast - 1 cream cheese, 1 jam + 1x Plum + 1x Nectarine/Peach)
• Having free drinks. All day. Everyday.
• Meeting the founders and new CEO David Filo and Jerry Yang
• Helping save the world, one pet store wall at a time
• Going for sushi with the team and significant others
• Learning a huge amount (PHP, SQL, Unix, Emacs...) and looking back on work I've done and feeling satisfied
• The unexpected sense of pride I felt when I showed Madeline, Katie and Simon around campus
  
• The wonderful feeling of saying that I work for Yahoo! Sports!
• Learning a vast amount about ridiculous American sports
• Working in a team where there is an opportunity to develop an idea into a feature which can really affect millions of people

Half marathon. Last weekend Madeline cracked out a 13.1 mile run from Napa to Sonoma in what was cleverly branded the Napa to Sonoma half marathon. She finished in just over 2 hours, and was 25th out of 80 in her age group. Nice weekend - we won our first game of cricket also.

What the Future Holds. So what's coming up in the next 2 months? I'm paint balling next Tuesday for the first time ever as we meet the guys from Rivals. Madeline finishes work soon so will go home for a couple of weeks. We have camp White to look forward to, Melanie will be coming in September, and we'll both be back in school towards the end of September - hopefully with a little Yahoo on the side :)

Half way there, Yahoo! and "what I'm listening to atm"

Facebookers, click here for the full color version.

If all had gone to plan - I'd have been graduating in a weeks time. As it is, American universities love taking their time over such things (5 year Ph. D.s anyone?). I'm deep into end of semester deadlines, having given 3 presentations in as many days, and with 3 big project reports due before the end of next week. I still find time to go to the beach as much as possible though:



Yahoo!
Following that, a three day weekend will provide me with just enough time to prepare myself for my summer internship with Yahoo! Sports. I'm waiting for my work permit, but fingers crossed it should be an inspirational summer. I'm most excited about the free yoga classes on campus, or maybe the complimentary massages/dental care. Their campus is in silicon valley (living the dream) but they provide a free shuttle service (with Wi-Fi) from the city.
For anyone who may have a fleeting interest in what I'm doing, I'm going to be developing a system which allows users to rate basketball teams in the NBA - I'll put a link to it when it's live!
In other good news, Madeline has been accepted onto her teaching credential program for next year - we'll both be studying together at SF State, and will graduate at the same time - June 2008!

What I'm listening to At the Moment
Due to me becoming a computer hermit over the past few weeks, I've been listening to a lot of new music, so much that I feel inclined to share the bits I've been humming along to.


Air - I took Madeline to see them. They rock

Editors - Smokers outside the hospital doors

The White Stripes - Icky Thump

- Biffy Clyro - Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies

The Arcade Fire - No Cars go. Their new album is simply beautiful (you'd like it mum), and we're going to see them live in June!

The Walkmen - A new recommendation from my boss
Silver Sun Pickups - As above

Good Luck
A quick high five to all those taking exams in Durham this month. Special mention to big Dan Ireland who will be receiving his results sipping mojitos in San Francisco, and the rest of the 4th year crew - Tickle, have a vegetable soup from the machine in the library for me.

Good luck is also extended to those currently traveling. Against all odds, it would appear that Simon is coping extremely well, and more power to Katie for backing him from the get go. We're looking forward to your impending arrival with TH-I. Finally a very quick pat on the back to Charles for getting into Cambridge Polytechnic, to study for a GNVQ in crop management.

In other news
This weekend it's our first Bay to Breakers. The project I've been working on this semester has been approved for my thesis, and the prototype we took to the biologists at UCSF got rave reviews. Andy has finally picked up his shotgun, so there's a possibility of clay pigeon shooting in the not so distant future.

Visitors.com!

It would take forever to report the wonderful time Madeline and I have had over the past month with 3 very special pairs of visitors. A couple of photos and quick brainstorm must suffice. Black and white appears to be a theme - unintentional as it may be. (Facebookers, click here for the full color version).

AJ and Helen: Saturday 24th March - Sunday 1st April
Beer pong, a limo trip to Sonoma, sushi, Muir woods, the beach, Giants vs. Seattle, jacuzzi action, brunch in the Haight, Sausalito...

Helen and AJ from the cloud covered Marin headlands, overlooking the GG Bridge!

Playing some hardcore disk on Ocean Beach

Dave and Amy: Tuesday 3rd April - Sunday 8th April
Scooters in Golden Gate Park, Amy beating Dave in the shooting range, the best day ever with Andy and Trish, Cline and Gloria Ferrer in Sonoma, a night in the 500 club...

Dave and Amy enjoying the view from Gloria Ferrer Champagne Caves

Amy, Madeline and Trish at Cline

Mum and Dad: Monday 9th April - Thursday 19th April
Santa Cruz, a night in Sonoma with Himalayan cuisine, Muir woods and beach, my campus, Alcatraz, Little Italy, Oakland A's vs. Chicago White Sox...

Mum and Dad atop Twin Peaks

The Boat to Alcatraz

More photos from:

• AJ and Helen's Visit
• Dave and Amy's Visit
• Mum and Dad's Visit
• San Francisco
• Me...
  

Three things which made me happy this week

1. On Tuesday, during our Topology of DNA class, we spent an hour and a half in a Biology wet lab doing experiments with actual DNA! This was the output image from our experiment!
2. It has been shorts weather all week - spring time has landed, and California is beautiful! Those visiting in the next few months are in for a real treat.

3. I noticed a guy on campus had some Nike Air Monarch trainers. For some reason that conjured up an image of the Monarch butterfly, which could not be a worst simile for the guy wearing said shoes...



I'm in another stats course today...in shorts...drinking iced tea. Super.

It's been a long time

It's just over a month since my last post, so I'll attempt to provide a concise, entertaining and complete overview of the excitement of February. Again, anyone viewing this in Facebook, click here for the full color version, and check out some of our other photos here.

February 10th - Shooting!
It was with some apprehension that I joined a couple of my friends for the American equivalent of a morning at the driving range. We drove south to where I'd taken the kittens to be put down back in September, and I hoped I'd be able to hold it together, as memories flooded back. Thankfully the shooting range was not affiliated with the SPCA, (not as good American version of the RSPCA, i.e. no Rolf Harris), although I think there is probably a market for this method of humane termination.

We had a lesson, teaching us such vital things as "don't point a loaded gun at anyone", "don't press the trigger unless you're ready to shoot" etc. The instructor had a bullet proof vest on, and a large weapon holstered on his back (concealed but I spotted it), which was a little disconcerting. More worrying though was our time spent waiting for a lane. The people/regulars who stumbled in and out were terrifying. They all had big cases containing overly polished and devastatingly well equipped firearms which they brandished with a glint of deranged exuberance. A couple turned up with his and hers cases, initials emblazoned on the lids, and could barely contain their excitement at the prospect of shooting a piece of paper 7 meters away.

Our time came to finally shoot, and in all honesty, I was a little uncomfortable holding a gun. I got over that quickly and began to master the beginners gun, which had similar power to a Super Soaker 500. We upgraded, I got a little bit excited and would like to think that the next set of new comers were equally perturbed by the look in my eye. I left with my target peppered with surprising accuracy, and presented it to Madeline like the carcass of a stag from a successful hunting weekend. She was less impressed than I thought. Good experience, feel a little bit more American, but I prefer the driving range.

February 17th - Presidents weekend - Skiing in Tahoe!

Another first for weekend #2 in Feb - Skiing, (well actually snow boarding). Emilie and I picked Greg, Kathleen and Madeline up on Friday and made good time up to our little cabin. I found it, and still find it, strange that a few thousand feet up, (8) its cold enough to support snow, and a lot of it! A night of poker and an early night prepared us for a big day on the slopes.
Saturday morning - we hired our stuff, I played the ignorant, English card in the rental shop and emerged looking more than a little uncomfortable.
Emilie snowboards a lot, so she gave me a run down on the basics, and before long we were on a chair lift rising high into the mountains for my first descent! After falling off the chairlift, hitting my head and knocking my tail bone, I strapped in and proceeded to fall down the slope with some style.
Things picked up quickly and I began to master turning...I mean carving. I was spurred on after Emilie said I was the most natural beginner she'd ever seen, (maybe she hasn't seen many beginners), and accidentally was led down a black diamond slope by Greg and Kathleen. My ability to bounce rather than crash and my tireless determination soon paid off as we began exploring the intermediate slopes.

Lunch was well deserved, as I tried to dry off and muster some hidden reserves for the afternoon. We made our way over to the back of the mountain to a huge fluffy wide run, where I got chance to practice my carving some more.
Back to the cabin for cards, food, wine and another early night. Whole body hurting.

Day 2 on the slopes, and a slightly later start as we waited for a fresh snow fall, and enjoyed some bacon and eggs. After picking up some goggles ($75!) for K and G, we started where we finished the day before. I was much more confident, enjoying the fresh layer of powder, and wasn't falling very much. It was a little windy/blizzard until early afternoon when the sun came out and I really began to enjoy it.
G, M and I explored the front side of the mountain, before G and I hit the back side for the last run of the day - v. steep, poor visibility, but amazing fun. Legs couldn't take much more so back to the cabin to conclude our 3 day poker series.

February 24th - R
Who would have thought that I'd ever volunteer my Saturday to learning about statistical software? Very good course. Sunday, recovering from not the best night ever.
March 3rd - Petaluma
Thought I had the follow up course this weekend, but the instructor fell ill. Took the opportunity to drive north to play for Berkeley against Petaluma. Not a very good game, but no concussion this weekend, just a bruised nose.

On the drive back, we stopped at the Marin headlands because it was a clear day. This is where I wanted to take Katie and Paddy on the way back from Sonoma, just before the GG bridge:

We spent Sunday on campus after I'd been to yoga and Madeline had been to brunch. Nice weekend.

A weekend of Sport

I'd like to think I could summarize the events of January at some point, but in fear of getting further behind, I'm going to review this weekend. You should really read this Here if you're on Facebook.

Friday 2nd Feb 2007
The only thing I don't like about this semester is my 3 hour 4-7pm lecture on Friday nights. Mercifully it's a really good one (Bioinformatics) and the lecturer could stand to be a good source of information/contacts/references.
Madeline went to the gym while I was in class, then I came home and cooked some rice and marinated chicken (nicer than it sounds). We drove to Safeway to get some shampoo but didn't have the energy to do a full shop. Lazy night watching TV, (Madeline asleep on the couch) in anticipation of the big day ahead!
Saturday 3rd Feb 2007 - Out of retirement
On Thursday night I gave into temptation/boredom/my body's plea for activity, and attended my second Berkeley RFC training session. I went with a mind as open as I could and was blown away by how much they had improved. The back line had a sensible defensive strategy, players knew the basics of running and passing, and there was a good spirit throughout.
Saturday morning, I woke a little earlier than I wanted to, and made the short journey to Treasure Island in record time thanks to some clear Saturday morning traffic.

The team arrived; we set up the pitch and did a little training in beautiful sunshine. As the team was announced, I found myself playing on the wing for the first team - a nice surprise. The game went well. We were playing against the San Francisco Fog, the biggest gay team in the bay area, and many of the Berkeley boys were worried at having their masculinity compromised through a loss. An early Fog try fueled the unease in the BRFC camp, but we showed real determination, dominating possession and territory for much of the game. I received a wide pass and beat my man to score the equalizing try, and shortly after we took the lead.
The rest of the game is a little blurry as I made a break, attempted a little grubber kick and was tackled in the head, knocked unconscious, came round, assured my teammates I was fine, played out the remainder of the game and then started asking if we'd played, if we'd won etc.
Madeline was contacted, came to pick me up with Emilie and kept checking my eyes all day for signs of death.
I got an email with some photos on today. I was a little disappointed that I had left before they were taken. Imagine my surprise when I find that I was more than there, I was being hugged by Benny Whisky! The brain is a fragile thing, as Madeline and her family keep reminding me
Madeline took Saturday afternoon as an opportunity to express concern about rugby, watch Nip Tuck and abuse my condition as an excuse to spend an hour or so in Emilie's Jacuzzi sipping herbal tea. I felt much better after some Greek food, (Mission) and we indulged in a little of San Francisco's high life by going to watch Kelly play water polo at the very fancy/expensive Olympic Club! We arrive too late for the whole game but got some free beer. Water polo looks exhausting.

Madeline dropped my off in the Marina to wait for the rugby boys to come out for an evening of japes and hi-jinks, before she met up with friends and did a similar thing in a different part of the city. Text book evening, back around 3am - lots of good sleep!
Sunday 4th Feb 2007 - Superbowl Sunday
Woke up feeling like I'd been beaten repeatedly by a large bat (cricket, not fruit). Lazy morning building up the the weekly grocery shop. Safeway was busy with people stocking up on chips, dips and beer. We joined them, baked some cookies and made our way to my first Superbowl party at a friend of a friend's appartment in a very nice area of the city.
Good to socialize a little, good mix of people and excellent food! The game was excellent, Prince rocked during the half time show, and I claimed the $40 grand prize for having the correct final score.
Home for a snack and some TV before fatigue kicked in. Lovely weekend! Weather is still amazing, but I'm incredibly sore. I have a busy week ahead of me as school work builds and my research begins properly. Next weekend we have an early/late haloween party to attend, and I will doubtlessly have to do some work, hurrah. I hope everyone is doing well, I'm aspiring to reignite the Facebook love this week sometime.

Yoga and Bagels

I was going to write about our week at home, but you'll have to wait for that chapter in our life, like Harry Potter fans waiting for the 7th over hyped book (sorry Simon). I'm busy at work and feeling all warm and loose thanks to a morning at the gym :) If you can't see the pics (and they're good this time!) go to http://bendalziel.blogspot.com

Mike, (a friend from Durham) is staying with us this week, and this morning we got up around 6am and jogged to the gym (pre sunrise!). I smuggled him in, almost blowing it by revealing my English accent and raising suspision but we infultrated their single line of defence, and made our way to the "studio" at the rear of the building. We ambled in, were told to remove our shoes and were briefly grilled about any past injuries or health conditions. We each got a mat and waited for the fun to begin!
The lady instructor told us that we'd be working on a very specific and small (and insignificant) muscle in our groin/pubic region. It had a name, but I forgot it. Her identification of where exactly the muscle was located was frankly a little too graphic for 6:30am, but after the initial shock and supressed laughter, we settled in and began yogering!
She explained everything very clearly, although obviously my body didn't follow the instructions very well. There was a suprising amount of holding the contorted positions we struggled to manouver our bodies into, for longer than I felt was really necessary. Yoga might be a bit femenine, but the instructor has some serious muscle strength, endurance and flexability! A particularly memorable moment will be Mike and I attempting the position above for about 5 minutes before making eye contact and realising how ridiculous we were. Something to work on...
Yoga is on Tuesday and Thursday mornings; let's see how long this lasts. We got back and had a nice breakfast of bagels (Tickle, have you introduced them to Durham?), orange juice, milk and tea. It's going to take a few more weeks to get this good though:
This afternoon I'm going to get some graduate advising about a Maths class I want to take, and about my failure in the Graduate Essay Test (GET) which "no native speakers have really had any problems with". I was ill for the exam. If I have to take a make-up class with other retards and foreigners, rather than taking the exam again when I'm in good health, I may go insane.

A New Year

It's been quite a big 10 days. I'll start with the bad stuff and work upwards.

On Sunday morning I got a call from my dad. I thought he was phoning to remind me to call Mandy - it was her 30th (Woo!) - but instead he gave me the news that my Grandma had passed away. She had been in good health and was wonderfully alert as ever, so it came as a shock to us all. I'm not sure it's really settled in for me yet - it's so hard to take in what has happened when you're so far away - but on Friday, Madeline and I are flying home to be with my family and to attend the funeral.
Recently (September) she celebrated her 80th birthday. Although I wasn't there, my dad took some nice photos. I liked this one.

When I got to America five months ago, I knew that I had a fresh start, a chance to redirect and focus my life and change things without the ties of preconceptions and a stale routine. I'm here to study first and foremost, which in all honesty, was a shortcoming in my previous lives. I'll never forget arrogantly downloading my second year results in the garden of team house with Simon, Katie et. al. all standing by, only to watch my face drop as I hurried inside to put on shoes to go and argue that "there must be some kind of mistake". There wasn't of course, at least not on the behalf of the markers. The day was made significantly harder by a raging hangover because of an attempt by AJ and I to spring clean Team House's spirit cupboard in a night celebrating the blissful ignorance of our (my) impending downfall. I struggled through my final year, beginnning to put the foundation stones of independent learning in place (something which should maybe have happened a little sooner) and surprised everyone in the know by sneaking a 2:1. This wasn't in the same league as Bean's 2:1, but I was relieved none the less! I also remember speaking to Dave Jones outside the library at the end of second year and trying to convince him (myself) that all I needed for a first was 81%. Easy right? After a night drinking it had got the the stage where he was willing to put money on me, so sure were we that "if anyone can do it, it would be you Scouse". Maybe nobody can do it? Times have changed; this semester I managed to pull off a resounding 4.0, which in English is straight A's. More importantly for me though, I'm enjoying what I'm doing and my new approach to it all is working and I'm getting results.
I'm looking forward to next semester like I used to look forward to going back to primary school at the end of the summer. (Pic below is the first glimpse of our apartment interior design - picture selected by Madeline, quantity selected by me).

With the success of my educational 360, I thought that I might attack a different aspect of my life, and embellish it with New Year's resolutions - something I normally care little for. My general, all encompassing New Year's resolution is to make better use of my time. This will hopefully impact when I get up, what I do in down time, how I study, and how much time I spend with Madeline. It didn't get off to an amazing start - I slept in late from the 2st-5th, but it's picking up pace and we're even going to the gym more. A sub goal is to achieve something each weekend. This weekend we strolled through the Castro, brunched, and went to 2 new places in San Francisco - Twin Peaks (See pic below and flickr for more) and Buena Vista Park.

I'm also hoping to take more photos and continue blogging. For those of you who don't know, my photos are here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bendalziel/

and my blog is here:

http://bendalziel.blogspot.com/

If you're reading this on facebook, you're only seeing half the joy!

The only other newsworthy happening I can think of is that last Wednesday, Emilie took Madeline and I to watch Stanford vs. Cal. It was amazing, we had courtside seats and were riding every shot from down town and every alleyoop dunk. Despite being better and more impressive, Stanford were still no Furman.

So we fly out on Friday morning and are in England until the following Sunday. I'm looking forward to putting some pictures up of my family, and spending some time in a normal country where it rains more than it is overwhelmingly hot. This one is for Grandma.

From Christmas 2006 to January 2007

I've had this in draft for a while so I thought I might as well post it - not sure I'll remember the finer details now anyway.
Monday 25th December - Christmas Day with the Johnsons
Ocean swim, presents, Edith and Don's (Greg's parents), Ellen (Greg's sister), Todd, Adam - Kathy (Greg's other sister), Mike, Tom, Sarah.
Presnts for me included:
Subscription to Science Magazine (I'm so excited!), some clothes, flip flops to replace these, a bag of tools, Stem Cell Now, some pajamas, And Another Thing: The World According to Clarkson, a kettle (which doesn't turn off), Adobe Photoshop, tickets to watch Stanford vs. Cal BBall last Wednesday with MJ, Emilie, Kelly etc., Through the Lens: National Geographic Greatest Photographs, an ergonomic mouse mat, some floss and some other things I can't think of right now.
Tuesday 26th December - Shopping (Returns/exchanges) and
Meal with Edith and Don, Denny and Anne visit
Wednesday 27th December - Cinema, Attempted Bowling and an English pub
Thursday 28th December - Really not sure...
Friday 29th December - Sushi, drinking and dancing in downtown San Diego with Lilly and Rudey
Saturday 30th December - Oil Change and Fondue!
Sunday 31st December - 8 hour drive from San Diego to San Francisco & New Years Eve Party at Michelle's house.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!