galleries
delicatessen
die erste strasse LINKS
paypal
it seems that if you want to send me sponsorship money (see friday's update) you can do so conveniently via paypal, but you will have to create a user account. if anyone wants to i'd be most grateful. you'll need my email address, which you can get here. thanks (as ever) to twoshoes for the info.
it's a small world after all
this morning at church (back to the episcopal one, now i have transport) something quite mind-bogglingly random happened; i met someone who was at summer madness this year! the diocese here in ohio has a link to one in ireland. (can't remember which one exactly, but somewhere rural you've never heard of... he says sweepingly with little or no regard for the feelings of the people of the diocese in question.)
"drivin' home for Christmas"
well, maybe not driving, but i've booked flights. they were like $100 more expensive than they were last wednesday, so i wasn't gonna wait around any longer! i'll be home from 22 dec to 5 jan. bring on the guinness, wine & cheese, and (slightly inebriated) midnight communion!
squash
i've found a guy on my floor who reputedly plays squash. i'm quite excited about the prospect of playing again!
cultural extremes
this weekend has been "homecoming weekend" at jcu, an entirely alien concept to any right-thinking european. i guess alumni and people like that "come home" to school, and the football team "comes home" (?) to play a big rival. they duly beat the ohio northern polar bears, but not without a well contested match. some guy called don shula, an alumnus and apparently the "winningest" nfl coach of all time, was there and the new stadium, named after him, was dedicated. (i kid you not- they said "winningest" over the PA system!) i guess that was a pretty big deal. anyway, they also had a homecoming dnace in the new dolan science building, which needless to say, suffered my absence.
instead, at the other extreme, i was at the very beautiful severance hall to hear the cleveland orchestra perform benjamin britten's war requiem. it was truly amazing. the program notes got it right when they said, "it is not a requiem to console the living; sometimes it does not even help the dead to sleep soundly. it can only disturb every living soul..." it incorporated a poem "anthem for doomed youth" which startled me into recollection of GCSE english literature. i think it was by owen. a poignient moment for me came at the end of a rendition of the story of abram and isaac when, instead of slaying the ram, the old man "...slew his son, - and half the seed of europe, one by one."
AIDS walk washington
next weekend i will be travelling to washington dc with a bunch of other students from jcu (you'll be pleased to hear i don't have to take our car!) to participate in a sponsored walk in aid of AIDS. i wasn't told at first that i am supposed to get sponsored for it, so if any of you would like to sponsor me, and can think of a clever way to get money to me(!), it would be much appreciated. the only way i can think of is to post a small number of US dollar bills, like up to five bucks or something would be great. i know it would be a pain in the butt so don't worry too much about it. thanks!
simpsons remorse
i kinda feel bad about my comments yesterday. don't get me wrong, the character in question was annoying, but having watched them five nights a week for so many years, i feel bad for the loved ones he/she left behind. then again, it is only a frikkin' cartoon!
car
well we got the car last night and it is sweet! i'm kinda getting the hang of driving here but it was pretty scary at first. i felt like a learner at first. which i guess i am seeing as i have to take a test and all. i'm thinking of sticking a big comedy sign to the steering wheel that says, "DRIVE ON THE RIGHT". probably best not have it there during my test. i joined the AAA (like the AA or RAC at home) 'cause let's face it, it is an old car. but in effect it isn't going to cost me anything. they say if you cancel in the first year you get a full refund. and since i'll be home in a year, i pretty much told the guy selling me the membership that i was gonna take advantage of it. he didn't seem to mind. i think i can also get free maps and stuff.
darrell who?
i just got back from seeing a stand-up called darrell hammond (here on campus). apparently he is famous from saturday night live or something like that. anyway he was pretty funny, but his impressions of british people weren't that hot; sean connery was just like the impression everyone does down the pub, and tony blair was just darrell hammond with an english accent.
good news!
they killed off one of the most annoying characters in the simpsons! email me to find out who.
habitat
yesterday i went building with habitat for humanity, and it started out in a rather farsical manner. reminiscent, in fact, of the last time i went to volunteer in belfast. (the construction supervisor got a puncture that day and so we all went home, but that's another story.) in this instance, we got to the agreed rendesvous a little late and the guys in charge had already left. after some unsuccessful attempts at telecommunication, we proceeded to drive round the streets where the houses usually are, looking for the site. somewhat unsurprisingly, this proved to be futile. so we returned to the original rendesvous, got directions to the greater cleveland habitat for humanity store, and once there, got further directions to the house. so we finally arrived two hours late. i could really have done with an extra two hours sleep. but nonetheless it was a fun day. we pretty much spent it moving a pile of soil from the front garden into a hole under the proposed porch. pushing a wheelbarrow full of dirt really hurts after a while! as an engineer, i'm not sure i could vouch for the geotechnical integrity of our methods, but hey it's only a wooden house, not a high-rise office block!
the church saga continues
this morning i got up early to go to the contemporary service at the baptist church. it was good, but i'm not sure it was so good that i want to get up early for it on a regular basis. it also meant i got home early and had a long day with not much to do.
vehicular vocabulary
vocab first: i have to confess that i have caught myself using the word "dude" on two occasions. i know this is fairly unforgivable but please understand, there are americans are everywhere in this country! there is no escape! on a kind of related note, i came across and anagram generator here and found very many more amusing and quite frankly disturbing anagrams of my name- so many i may have to add a dedicated section to the site. i don't suggest you try it if you have anything to do in the next hour. some of my favourites are: RESPECT NORA, CARPET SNORE, PARROTSCENE, REPORTS ACNE, REPENT OSCAR, SO CARPENTER, EASTERN CROP, POSER CRETAN and of course, ARREST PONCE!
so on to vehicular: i've been thinking seriously of buying a car here, along with one or two others. the other night i found and test drove a pretty good one (1991 plymouth voyager) at a good price. the problem is that no one seems to flippin' well know whether i need a license, and if i do, how to go about getitng one. one person says i need to take a test and then another says i only need to take a written test. a further school of thought is that my NI license is sufficient, but i think to register as the owner of a vehicle it would not be. i'll keep you posted on the bureaucracy as it unfolds.
take me to the ball game!
on friday i went to see the cleveland indians (baseball) at jacob's field, which was a lot of fun. they duly beat the minnestoa twins. took the opportunity to explore downtown a bit more and sample the nightlife. i put some photos up here, and also a couple more here. not sure when i'll get to put up more pics, as i've used all my disk quota and haven't got my own computer yet.
sorry not to keep things chronological, but last wednesday i went to the first jcu habitat for humanity meeting of the year. i was overwhelmed by the number of people there- close to 100, which is pretty impressive at a uni with only 4,000 students. less overwhelming was the response to monday's poll, but i think we established that there is at least some resemblance!
finally, i went to the baptist church this morning. i must say they outscored the episcopalians (is that a word?) on the welcoming front, not to mention the fact that they are like half an hour closer (on foot). still, not many 'young adults', and i'm yet to identify a single protestant on campus, nevermind a church-going one!
is evan bruce? vote now!
below is a picture of my RA, (which i think stands for residence assistant), evan. is it just me or does he look remarkably like young bruce? vote now by sending a blank email here with 'YES' in the subject line if you concur, or 'NO' if you disagree.
japan, 'football', houseparties, church and racquetball
friday night i was at a 'japan society' dinner at a teacher's house, which was fun. i felt a little out of place, given that most people there either took japanese classes, were planning to go to japan, or were japanese! still it was fun and we got some nice food. curry was a highlight. i didn't venture to try using chopsticks though. made a change from the usual friday night fare. you know what i mean...!
on saturday the football team had their first game of the season. they killed teal (sp?) college forty-some to nothing. i watched like a quarter of the game, although i have been watching football on tv and it isn't as dull as i always thought. (excuse me for using 'football' when i mean 'american football'.) the cleveland browns lost today, the first day of the nfl season, to a field goal scored with one second left on the clock. (feel free to correct me on my terminology if i'm mistaken.) as i type, i keep hearing the name steve mcnair from the tv who, it seems, plays for the tennessee titans. i'm finding that amusing, even if you don't. incidentally, they are beating last year's superbowl runners-up, the oakland raiders.
houseparties- i went to one last night and paid $5 to get in. i was there about five minutes before the cops arrived to break it up, which i have to say i found quite comical. they even made a couple of token arrests. don't think i want to make a habit of going to those things if i can avoid it.
so then, church. this morning i got up to walk the three or so miles from my dorm to st. paul's episcopal church. the service was ok, if quite traditional. i was a bit disappointed, however, that no-one really made much of an effort to speak to me after the service, even as i wandered around on my own clutching a coffee. i'd kind of been banking on meeting someone who would offer me a lift back to the university, but i suppose it was a nice day so i didn't really mind the walk. that reminds me, i should say that it hasn't been unbearably hot and humid the way it was the first few days i was here. i might go back next week, if the 'young adult pastor' returns my email, or i might just go the baptist church which is mush closer.
finally then, racquetball. i got a game tonight for the first time against a guy who lives on my floor, slaw, aka patrick. (incidentally, when he told me he was called patrick i assumed he was joking seeing as i'm 'irish'.) it was a lot of fun and i think i did ok considering i'd only played once before. i think it could become a habit.
more pictures
i'm not having much luck with technology at the minute am i? however, i did mange to get just a few more pictures up. i've also managed to do two other dumb international student things, namely chip a tooth (i got it checked out and nothing needs done) and lock my keys inside a locker at the gym!
the workload here is pretty severe. i'm gonna have to learn to read fast... fast!
finally pictures are here
well, actually they are here. but still all is not well. i was in the middle of downloading my pictures when the camera's batteries died, so there will be more to come.
rock!
hello. i've finally got online again! the university's internet connection has been down for a couple of days, which by a remarkable stroke of bad fortune, have been the same couple of days when i've had nothing to do! however, prior to that, on friday, i got to see downtown cleveland and visit the rock'n'roll hall of fame which it must be said was very cool. the higlights for me would have been drawings and lyrics by jimi hendrix and some cool jeff buckley memorabilia. not to mention a couple of outfits as worn by miss spears. unfortunately i wasn't allowed to take pictures inside.
on saturday night i had my first exposure to a college house party, albeit a small affair in someone's dorm room. it was bizaare to be surrounded by people in higher education who had the threat of being caught for underage drinking hanging over them. i must find some old people so i can go to bars in comfort. other ways to entertain myself will hopefully involve going to see REM and the white stripes in the next few months.
sorry i haven't got any photos up yet- don't have access to any decent photo software as yet. hopefully i'll get some up this week.
finally, after failing to find a church in sensible walking distance i went to mass last night on campus, which was interesting. there were quite a lot of similarities with church of ireland, particularly in the liturgy. strange to see some of the same people who'd been underage drinking the previous night there. i guess the difference is more a catholic thing than an american thing. interesting to learn how other people live. tellingly, my roommate told me he doesn't know any protestants who actually go to church!
it's too darn hot!
hey everyone! (he says, as if people actually ever visited this site!) well i've arrived in cleveland and all is pretty much well. the campus is beautiful (photos to come soon) and my roommate is a good guy. (i have to say that, as i'm using his computer right now- and it's so sweet not having to wait for pagebuilder to load on a dial-up connection.) the only downside is that my room isn't too big, i gotta sleep in a bunk and there is no air conditioning. it's been really too hot to sleep but i guess come novemember when i'm freezing my nads off i'll long for these summer days.
the office of global education has been looking after us well so far, taking us out for our meals etc. i haven't got a chance to see downtown cleveland yet, but i think we're gonna do that tomorrow and include a trip on the cuyahoga (sp?) river. on tuesday we had transfer student orientation which wasn't much fun- way too much info to take in, but i'm starting to get a handle on things and hopefully when classes start (next tues) all will begin to become clear. in other news, one of the Jesuit priests (it's a Jesuit university) has offered to take me to an irish bar for a pint of arthur's, so that'll be fun. i'm told the black stuff doesn't travel so well here, but what would yanks know anyway? i had a pint of bass the other night which was surprisingly good! a little sweeter than at home, but i can live with that. anyway, that's all for now, except to say that i can thankfully confirm that all the contact details i put up in the deli are correct.
ps. i do miss you all.
leavin' on a jet plane & photos from bbq
i put up some photos from my leaving bbq the other night which you can see here. can't believe i leave in the morning! i have to say i've been quite touched and overwhelmed by people's kind sentiments and gifts. i'm really blessed to have so many good friends and i will miss you all. i've put my contact details up in the delicatessen section (which if you haven't figured out by now, is all about my impending trip to cleveland) so stay in touch!
apologies to j crew
further to my recent slating on this website of the above named fashion apparel company it has come to my attention that Naomi Klein's book No Logo does not in fact articulate specific instances of unethical labour practice by said company and so i unreservedly withdraw them. instead she just criticises their advertising campaigns. of course they probably make thier clothes in sweat-shops anyway, but if i say probably it's not slander. (i hope- any lawyers wish to advise me?)
jcu crew...
on wednesday i met a girl called caroline, who had been at the college i'm heading to in cleveland, john carroll university (JCU). it was very interesting to hear about the place from a northern ireland point of view and she was very positive about everything. however, some things she said concerned me slightly. apparently the campus is very white and "preppy", and the students have acquired the nickname "jcu crew", a play on the fashion brand name J Crew. the only reason i have heard of J Crew is because i read about their unethical labour practices in Naomi Klein's book, No Logo.
in addition to that, i'm told that next year i will be one of only three international students on campus! three! there's me and a girl grainne from queen's university belfast, and some guy from dublin! i really find that hard to believe. apparently there are about 3,000 undergrads in total, so while it's not a big university, that's a pretty tiny percentage.
but it's not all bad. apparently the residence hall i will be staying in, campion hall, is some kind of seniors hall so everyone is over 20 or 21 or something like that. you can see a picture and read about it here.
i've got a very busy week ahead of me, organising insurance and travellers' cheques, meeting up with people to say bye, going to the doctor's about my athlete's foot (don't ask!) so as a result i may not update the site again until i'm actually in cleveland! alternatively of course, i may never update it again, but i'll try.
tue 5 aug 2003
it�ll never happen to me�.
�only it did. on sunday night i was involved in a road traffic accident for the first time. i was on my way to church so I was careful not to swear� because good Christians don�t swear of course. i guess i was lucky though. the other driver was very decent and accepted liability. mind you, you don�t have much choice when you rear-end (tee-hee) a stationary car, waiting to get on a roundabout. doesn�t look like much damage at first, or even at second glance, but the back panel needs replaced.
so anyway, at least i can still go around believing that i�ll never cause an accident!
incidentally, earlier in the day i saw my bro� rob for probably the last time before i leave for the so-called land of the free. (he was in the middle of moving to manchester to start a new job- good luck rob!) i also got my plane tickets on friday. it�s all starting to get very real.
tue 29 july 2003
good news junkie
the good news is that Mark Goody has kindly donated some webspace - thank you Mark - so i may not have to take any pictures down after all. by extension, the philosophers will not be required. you can visit his homepage here. (btw, i didn't mean to imply that he is addicted to heroin.)
"smile on little buddha"
in a related story, i have added some photos from my trip to romania and budapest last year with habitat for humanity.
sat 26 july 2003
ron sexsmith gig
on thursday night I took a trip out west to see canadian singer-songwriter ron sexsmith play the nerve centre in derry/londonderry/londond�/the maiden city/whatever else you prefer to call the damn place. my travelling companions were johney (yes, he really spells his name like that) and greg. first on the bill was some bruce called dave (from australia) who looked like a cross between eric idle and rod from rod and emu. next came a guy called dave mead from nashville who looked and sounded uncannily like a young (slim line) ron sexsmith. both daves were well worth a listen.
then of course came the man himself. by this stage the hall was curiously full. i say curiously because the last time i saw ron the attendance was a bit sparse and that was in belfast. inevitably that won�t be the last comparison i draw between the two gigs. this time he was on his own with just a guitar and a piano for company, and i think he missed his bass-, drum- and guitar-playing buddies. still he was very good and got to show off his significant guitar-playing skills. he played a good selection of tunes from all his albums, and from my favourites, which was most pleasing. there seemed to be a strange psychic vibe present- two requests from the crown matched almost exactly the set list (cheap hotel and gold in them hills) and during the encore i was thinking to myself �if i was the type to shout out requests, i�d shout speaking with the angel. i hope someone else does�. someone obliged almost immediately.
i particularly enjoyed galbraith street. it always strikes me as a song that should have been written about belfast. who knows, maybe it was. ron shared with us that gone in a flash was written for jeff buckley, which made me sad.
i also learned how fiendishly difficult it is to take decent pictures at gigs, but I�ll be putting my best efforts in the *new* gigs gallery. i always feel self-conscious taking pictures, which is irritating because my new toy is a digital camera and i want to use it all the time.
the gig didn�t finish til midnight which meant that after negotiating some fairly severe rain and fog on the glenshane pass, i didn�t get to bed until after two. of course when we set out i was under the impression that all three of us had to get up for work in the morning and it was just one of those crazy things you do when you�re young, but oh no! turns out muggins here was the only one. b*stards. bring on middle age, i say. now where are my slippers�
hmm. I must learn to write more concisely or else make a new section for waffling on like this.
wed 23 july 2003
competition update
due to a sudden, unforeseen drop in global web traffic, it seems unlikely that we will be able to make the award discussed previously. our analysts overestimated the site's popularity by approx. one billionfold... so somebody is gonna get fired. still, it's early days yet.
sun 20 july 2003
new site launches with lucrative competition!
IT'S HERE! after weeks of anticipation and mounting tension, the waiting is finally over.... peet's homepage is open for business! to celebrate this momentous event in modern popular culture and the landmark it represents in revolutionary web-design, we are offering a LARGE CASH PRIZE to the 100 billionth visitor to the site. so hurry, there is no time to lose! we expect to announce the winner before the end of the month. see terms and conditions of entry here.