Odin's Wolf

giggle

2011-09-17T19:25:00.002+01:00

I could explain. But I won't. For this time only, I think I'd rather revel in the geekiness. Eh.

Arrrrrgh, it be pirates!

2011-08-17T10:32:00.004+01:00

In the long long ago, in the time before time, in the mists of the Big Bang (around 1990) a series of games came out. Remember, this is before Pirates of the Carabean were even a glint in some screenwriters' eye. The games were done by Lucasarts (All praise be to them!) and they were, in a word, Insane. In two words, Bloody Insane. In three, Hillariously Bloody Insane. They were a part of that dying breed, the adventure game. You didn't have to go around shooting people\aliens. You interacted with the enviroment, picked up objects, used them together and moved on in the game. They kept making sequels, we're probably on nuimber 4 or 5 by this point, but they can't beat the sheer insanity of the 1st two. Or indeed the rush when we found that when we needed 'a crushed skull' for a vodoo potion, we could use a Jolly Roger (Pirate flag, showing a flat (crushed?) skull). If you ever see them, have a look, old looking by our standards, but still great. The intro music was always the same, still makes me all goosebump-y. (Link below)

And remember, more than a decade before the trilogy I mentioned, we had young dashing pirates, female governors, zombie pirates, a jamaican priestess and curses left, right and center. Sound familiar?

Like Kosh said that one time on B5.

2011-08-11T10:31:00.002+01:00

'..... And so, it begins....'

Yay! :)

I like it. I do. Promise.

2011-07-20T08:06:00.003+01:00

I made the terrible mistake of reading the 1st two books in the Portuguese translation. Which was atrocious. Unusually bad, in fact. So for the longest time, I simply didn't get it. I mean, the books were good, they simply weren't exceptional. I know, I know, same thing can be said of LOTR, and I do love those. And its almost the same story (they all are), self discovery, a quest, good vs evil. So I was a bit off put. The number 4 came out. And it had dragons. And I moved to the HP side. Now, after a whole decade (has it been THAT long???) it's over. And I have to say, I loved the final movies (although some of the last books were a bit long winded). So yeah. I liked it. I did. I really did. Promise!

Shush dear, the grown ups are talking.

2011-05-26T09:35:00.002+01:00

Twice in as many days, I was made aware of people's attitudes towards sexuality. Once by evilness, the other by ignorance. And I have to ask, why? I simply don't get it. I mean, in some cases, its religion. OK, fair enough, its something you love and sustains you, but I don't think it should explain or justify hate (God is love, unconditional love). In others..... Well, its even odder for me to get. Could it be sublimated bicuriosity? Feeling some interest in some other sexual preference and denying yourself to the point you rot inside and lash out?

I don't get it.

I'm blessed with friends and mates all over the spectrum, straight, gay, bi, trans, ace, queer, you name it. And they are lovely. Every single one of them. And that's amazing.

People quote Darwin all the time saying 'survival of the fittest'. To begin with, good old Charles never actually said it (it was a press thing to explain his theory in easy terms), and they usually miss the 1st part of the theory: there must be VARIATION withing the species for it to evolve and adapt.

People should just shut up at times. Seriously. Get on with their lives, live and let live. And it would be so much better.

I cannae break the laws o'physics, cap't!

2011-05-19T19:56:00.002+01:00

I get annoyed when the laws of Nature get broken in movies. Not in an obvious way, Odin's Beard, I love sci-fi and all the suspension of disbelief that comes with it. It's a milder, more subtle affair. One of my favorite peeves concerns radiation. a) Radioactive rods are NOT green-glowing and b) Gamma radiation is also not green. Furthermore, in no particular order: c) Shooting a car doesn't explode it, d) I'm sick and tired of seeing harmless Hissing Beetles playing fetid cockroaches, e) DNA and finger scans take days or weeks, not 42 mins (1 hour episode, minus commercial breaks), f) filling a computer with data would give you a computer with a lot of data, not a self-aware computer. Thats pretty much it. Oh, and finally, g) Vampires should not glow. Under any circumstance.

Facebook, where art thou....?

2011-05-19T13:06:00.000+01:00

I soooooo hope this is working....

The Darkness and the Light

2011-05-18T18:42:00.002+01:00

Last week was weird. I lost someone, someone very close. Someone that, in theory, would have been responsible for me if the worse had happened. Trapped in a dark, dank cell of her own making, she couldn't take it anymore. And so she left. Seeing my grandparents shrivel and pass beyond the veil was tough, but they were old, with more days before than after, and sick. To see someone go through similar when she was neither is very weird. And brings back the old adage, people need to want to be helped, before than can be helped.

At the same time, the borrowing African mammal has been a beacon of niceness and hope. She's been a strength, a base of operations. Not only has she been there all the time, not 1 hour ago, she asked me how i wanted to cook in June, suggesting many dishes herself. And thats (it all) why I love her.

From the depths of darkness, to a new world of light. I love you, Jo. So much. And goodbye, aunt Cid. I shall see you too, Beyond the Veil.

I love old sci-fi and there's nothing you can do about it!

2011-05-07T21:15:00.005+01:00

I think the keyword here is context. I love to include, to surround my stories with the context in which they were written. I like to know dates, countries, who, how, why.

Perhaps I should explain.

Stories, all stories, and sci fi is no exception, are a mirror to ourselves. We pour into them our fears, our dreams, our fantasies. Sci fi in particular, as a form of future prediction, is moulded by what is around when it is written. In E. E. 'Doc' Smith's Lensman saga, everything, and I mean EVERYTHING is nuclear powered. Cars, planes, trains. Everything. And women are idiots. Well, at best, useless. (Although later in the series he introduces the first women sci fi character ever that is not stupid). Why? He was writing in 1949. The atomic age was 4 years old. And women were silly animals, kept at home.

And of course, a lot of the sci fi of the 50s, 60s and a bit of the 70s had to do with post-cataclysm Earth (the Cold War would do that to you)

The examples continue. In the original The Day the Earth Stood Still, Klaatu the robot is as scary as a dead bunny to 2011's eyes, but at the time? An unstoppable, all powerful robot? People must have been pooping themselves. Oh and you see doctors smoking in a hospital. I kid you not, its amazing.

And of course, the Daleks. Can you imagine a stupider design for a dangerous being? But at the time they appeared, they were evil incarnate. No emotion except hatred. Weapons powerful enough to destroy everything. How the kids must have been scared out of their wits.

How does current sci fi equate? With difficulty. But there are still a few groundbreakers. Either having humanity taking all its crap to the stars (Babylon 5, Firefly), or having bad guys that are 'unstoppable' not because they are wildly advanced, but because of their beliefs (Battlestar Galactica).

Oh and the original Star Trek series has an episode with alien hippies. I am so serious, you have to see it to believe it....

I love it. And there's nothing you can do about it!

Well.

2011-03-20T12:25:00.002Z

Over the last week and change, I was ill. I'm thinking it was the flu, closely allied with something bacterial and nasty. The details are unimportant, bottom line was that I was as ill as I've ever been, in my life. I stopped eating (making me loose quite a bit of weight), couldn't move and felt, from head to toes, like crud.

It is in situations like these you start to value the small things. Not living alone, having someone to share the burdens with. Taking a deep breath and not feeling like reheated death. Yawning, and not starting to choke. Not feeling light-headed when I get up from bed.

Its been a slow recovery, but I'm getting there. And its good to feel good.

All shall fade.

2011-03-06T19:44:00.002Z

I have no idea why this song touches me like it does. It just.... Does. It brings Middle Earth to life for me. It is a lament, but so is my native land's traditional music, and that's OK. Go to Youtube, check the original video, it's masterfully directed by Mr Peter Jackson.

All Shall Fade

Home Is Behind
The World Ahead
And There Are Many Paths To Tread
Through Shadow
To The Edge Of Night
Until The Stars Are All Aligth

Mist And Shadow
Cloud And Shade
All Shall Fade
All Shall...Fade

Zombies.

2011-02-10T08:24:00.003Z

It becomes apparent, at times, that I have chose a very draining job. It leeches it out of me. Sometimes, I get home, and its all I can do to stay awake. I'm not complaining, really am not, I love what I do. But sometimes it feels like I shoud be an octopuss, 8 arms doing stuff at the same time. I feel like I coast, at times, like a zombie, I am so tired. But its all good. Half term exists for a reason!!

Plains, trains and maybe automobiles. Maybe.

2011-02-06T21:09:00.003Z

I have a thing about booking plane tickets. It is half from a cock up a few years ago, that ended with me having to modify the booking (costing me twice as much in the process) and from the finality of it. Having no other demands on my time, I always thought something might pop up, and as such, booked things really late in the day. And I had to pay for it. Now there is something (someone!) that gives things a different color and shade. Someone that gives the future a purpose and point. I just booked tickets 2 months in advance!! And it felt pretty good... :)

Do ya know those jewels that you plug into the wholes on the cave wall, and its a key, and something opens? Exactly.

2011-01-20T07:23:00.003Z

And so another piece falls (is falling?) into place. I'm glad, I really am. Now it time to NOT GET AHEAD OF MYSELF. Thank you. Carry on. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Tradition.

2011-01-08T21:23:00.003Z

I'm not a huge friend of 'tradition'. I really am not. Doing things just for the sake of it sounds cowardly and unimaginative. 'We always have done it like this....' Don't get me wrong, I kind of like the sense of history, but NOT when it starts to screw things up. I saw some of it in Oxford. That monolith of an institution that I loved with all my heart. I could, however, see that it was cold, humourless and unstopping. Move out of the way or perish, we've been doing it like this for a thousand years.....

Two days ago I was asked to participate in a ceremony as old as Christianity. T is pregnant, and they want me to be the Godfather. I couldn't be prouder and am as happy for them as anyone could possibly be.

So....

Traditions.... I guess there's a place for them. It binds us to the past, but I don't think it should blind us from the future. Whoever he/she will be, will be loved, cherished, cared for,,,, And it will discuss with me the finer points of Faster Than Light Interdimentional transitions before the age of ten. Just you watch!

Cooking.

2011-01-03T14:25:00.002Z

I love to cook. I do it as often as possible. For the longest time I wanted to do it, but couldn't. I didn't have anyone happy to do it with me. Ya know, maybe once a week, once a fortnight. But no more. Now I do. Over the last couple of weeks, I lost count how many time we cooked. Dunno, about 15 times? First couple of days, I guess we were around the stove about 3 times. I loved it so very much. Still getting used to it. Tired but so very happy.... :)

:)

2010-12-21T18:05:00.002Z

I love the meerkat so much its untrue. There. You can all carry on now. Nothing to see here. Thank you.

Man Flu

2010-12-08T12:49:00.001Z

I have man flu. Its worse than the back plague. Fact. Bleurgh. I blame the week and a half of sub-zero temperatures.

Realization.

2010-11-25T08:55:00.001Z

Its easy to get bogged down when you're too busy. Today, for the first time, I saw the Christmas time in my head. Seeing my parents, the meerkat, and friends. It felt good.

Giving in.

2010-11-23T08:21:00.002Z

I always knew I was different. When every one I knew was playing football on the street until dark (they were other times) I was in imperial Rome, listening to Caesar, or Middle Earth or at the other side of your common variety wormhole. I held the lines against rampaging alien broods, seduced princesses throughout the Multiverse, crossed the Gobi desert looking for Alexander's treasures, learned swordplay with Masamune-sensei in medieval Japan, helped capt. Nemo navigate the Nautilus.

Eloquent, I was. Popular, I was not.

So I accommodated. I gave in. I thought no one would be interested in it, so I kept it close to the heart. Things changed with Chuck et al, but it was a slow boil. When I met women, it was a similar story. I always thought this was something odd, dirty, something to be ashamed of. I have to say that some of my relationships managed to reinforce this idea to no end. (This set of concepts can also be extrapolated to a number of other ideas, like those of you that know me will know....)

So there I was. Pretty sure I would have to have a Geek-cave, somewhere musty, wet and slimy, to keep what I liked, never again to see the light of day.

And then the meerkat came. Someone that was beautiful and true and honest and pure. Someone without an ounce of repression and malice. Someone that takes me as I am, no more, and no less. I need not to moderate, to put the hologram of normality on. I actually think I tried to shock her at the start: 'this is what I am, take it or leave it.' And she took it.

Words elude me at time to describe how much I love and care for her. She is everything I ever dreamt and more.

I love you, Jo. Here's to the future.

:)

Things.

2010-11-20T15:36:00.003Z

Today I opened an old book and a bookmark fell out. Old think, just an old train ticket, but it made me think. In the distant year of our Lord 1998, I bought a bookmark in Lisbon. A narrow rectangle made of papyrus, it had the Latin alphabet, and the Egyptian hieroglyphic correspondent. I kept that bookmark for 10 years, and it followed me for dozens, if not hundreds of books. Many times I thought I'd lost it, a few times I made trips on purpose to retrieve it from somewhere.

And then, on my last house move, it vanished. I have no idea where it went. I still don't, to this day. At the time, I was going through a lot, and a simple bit of papyrus wasn't high on my list. With the possibly exception of my flip-flops, and a pair of Bermuda shorts, they were my oldest, continuously used possession, but, at the end of the day, it was only a thing.

Things are things. They mean a lot, they are sometimes irreplaceable, but they are, at the end of the day, things. People matter. Family, friends, loves. They are the important things in one's life.

I'm honoured to love and be loved by a number of people, the meerkat most of them. I miss my bookmark, but I don't really mind, at the end of the day.

Wherever it is, I wish it all the best. And if someone found it, and is using it as a bookmark, I could hope for no better.

If my frinds had titles, what would they be?

2010-11-01T21:15:00.001Z

They might be something like this:

Tania the Wise
Carlos the SoulBrother
Hugo the Artist
Cai the Grey (as in grey areas, she's a lovely pale white in real life)
Freya the Strong
Anna the Lovely

Joana the Everything

No idea where this came from. I'm going to bed.

Meh.

2010-10-26T16:56:00.003+01:00

I hate not knowing stuff. For the last couple days I've been feeling a little bit under the weather. No other physical reasons. I hate not knowing. If its the flu, I can deal with it. Lack of sleep, same. Allergy, same. But this? I'm spanking hugely happy, slept loads, been eating well. Rant over. We now resume normal services.

New blog!

2010-10-23T18:48:00.002+01:00

There you go. Decided to get a little bit of fresh air onto the blogsphere. I love the new look, if I do say so myself. So..... what else? Meerkat is still around and my love for her is stronger than ever, half term is upon us (woop, woop!), weather is turning towards freezing.... So you know, going well! ;)

Old age, here I am,,,,

2010-10-10T20:38:00.005+01:00

Last week, I celebrated my 35th circuit around the Sun. Those who know me, know that I couldn't care a tin of beans re: chronological age. Today, however, on a very early train out of Birmingham New Street, something happened that made me feel old, old, old. Carriage was very empty, as it would be at 8 something in the morning on a Sunday morning. I was reading my book, and I heard the ticket guy saying 'You OK, sweetheart?', 'Don't worry, I've seen it all on a Sunday morning.'. 'You'll be OK?', and then a young female voice going 'Yeah, I'll be fine, just want to get home.'

I immediately forgot about this and carried on reading. About 15 mins later, as we approached a station, someone got up from behind me and moved over to the door. Instinctively I looked over. She was short, spiky blond hair, couldn't have been a day over 17, 18. Massive headphones, quite obviously coming from from heavy clubbing/raving. She was dressed in a cropped tshirt and what can only be described as a thong, revealing pretty much all of of her buttocks.

Two thoughts assailed me, followed quickly by a third. 1) I'm sure she's cold, 2) I hope she gets home OK, bless her, and 3) Taking 1) and 2) into consideration, I'm bloody old.

I'm old. Meh.

Rumblings and ramblings....

2010-10-03T15:38:00.000+01:00

The weather is starting to turn. Nature is going back into her slumber for another few months. But its different now. There's a butterfly-in-stomach thing. Antecipation. The small furry borrower has borrowed into my heart. And it doesn't feel odd. It feels right. And good. Some people - bless them - don't get it, not really. Too confortable with sticking things in labeled drawers. Thank the Universe I've had Cai 'Shades of Grey' in my life for long enough to see beyond it. So yeah. All good!

Hear my growl, hear me sing in the Moon....

2010-09-17T17:35:00.000+01:00

For the first time in my life i have a knickname, a pet name, if you will. I am now known as Freki, one of Odin's (the Allfather) wolves. They accompanied their master everywhere, in both hunts and war. I love it. And love the namer, too.

I flippin'-diddly-uh-da did it!

2010-08-17T20:48:00.000+01:00

I did it. The three peaks. It took us 27 hours, but we did it. I walked,

limped or hopped up and down the three highest peaks un the UK. I did it. I can bloody do anything. See if I won't. I'm a leaf in the wind, watch how I soar.... (PS - This is a Delek at the top of Snowdon)

Through the blast furnace.

2010-08-17T20:39:00.000+01:00

So I went home for the summer. It was so damn hot it was untrue. Seriously seriously hot. And moist. Trully, horrible. C will never let it drop, 'har har, you thought it was hot, har har'. Anyhoot, it was still great. Seeing my grandfolks, or rather, saying goodbye. That was good. Meeting up with friends, family. Having quiet walks around Edward VII park, just chilling, effortlessly. So yeah, all good. Cleared cobwebs, really. Now bak to old Blighty. Getting some driving lessons, and a car! (If all goes well!) Golden Hanshake finnaly kicked in, Gates of Hades, I hate taxes.... But its a gift, so am not saying no! And yeah. If you're wondering, I am still smiling.

Decisions, decisions....

2010-07-05T21:21:00.000+01:00

We make decisions every moment of our lives. Maybe they split our Universe into the miriad alternate realities of the Multiverse. I don't know. What I do know is that in the here and now, I made a conscient decision to not be unhappy any more. It's going well, and I hope it continues. So things are not always perfect. You take it in, process it, adapt, evolve. I'm smiling at the moment. May long it continue.

Grandparents.

2010-06-15T20:00:00.000+01:00

Up until the ripe old age of 18, I was privelleged enough to retain all 4 grandparents. Then grandad Fernando passed into the Other Side, finally succumbing to a life of chain-smoking. He was a big figure, larger than life, a wireless telegraph operator at Lisbon Airport. A humourless dictator at home, but a mellow bunny to his grandchildren. As a young man, he learned english by hearing the BBC World Service, and to the day he died, anthough he had a fairly limited vocab, he sounded so posh it was untrue. Then, just a few months ago was grandad Julio 's turn. He was a simple man, a bright mind in a humble and poor shell. In another life he would have been an engineer or doctor or anything, but the son of a cobbler in the 1920's had no such possibilities. He became an office worker, his mind a giant addition machine. He was a loving, rude man, partially deaf, hence his constant LOUD VOICE. He taught me to think before I act, to look beyond the obvious into the detail, and to ask 'Why?'. Ultimatly, I believe, he turned me into a scientist. 5 days ago was the turn of nan Cristina. A simple soul, that never had many ambitions in life. A homemaker her whole life, she never craved more than to have a happy family, and she did, raising 3 children and helping to raise 3 grandchildren. Yesterday, I lost the last one, nan Maria. She'd been ill, so it was expected. She worked for a pharmaceutical company, made pastries to sell in restaurants, and was, I believe with all my heart, happy, if scared all the time, of pretty much anything, I will miss them all, and treasure their presence in my life for all time. Godspeed, my lovelies. We shall meet again Beyond the Veil.

Enough.

2010-06-10T10:43:00.000+01:00

I kinda have had enough. In general. I say this with a smile on my lips, its not a depressing statement in any shape or form. Its just that a lot of feelings bubbled up recently, and I had to deal with them, and a number of conclusions were.... Well, concluded. I'm tired to be a nice guy, I'm tired of being played with, I'm tired of feeling lonely, I'm tired of.... Well, being tired, really. Changes on the horizon. Some bigger, some smaller. You know, its Darwin's adapt or die scenario. Not as literal in my case, but still relevant. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted, and I feel ready for a breath of fresh air. Life is change, tghe Universe depends on it. My turn, then!

Scotland, tick. Stonehenge, tick.

2010-04-15T13:36:00.000+01:00

And so it was that, over the course of 4 months, I did two of my lifelong dreams: I went to Scotland, and visited Stonehenge. Lovely. Quite interesting, seeing something that you could almost sketch by heart, after seeing it so many times in the past. A bit like I found the Mona Lisa. But still, it is one of those things that you get what you put in, I went to be marvelled, and marvelled I was. London is still pretty cool, I love that place.

I went up the mountain, and then came back down again....

2010-04-12T18:46:00.000+01:00

The title says it all. Two days ago, on the 10th of April, in the year 2010 of the Common Era, I, over a 5 hour period, climbed and descended Scafell Pike, England highest peak, sitting at 974 meters above sea level. It was one of the most physically demanding things I've ever done, so it was good I did it with the best group of people you could ever wish for. The view was stunning, (you could see the Isle of Man!) the air clear. It was simply amazing. And yes, I took Daleks up there. 'Cos, you know, what were the odds someone had done it before? Exactly. Another week of break still, London and Stonehenge. Yay!

Anyone still out there?

2010-02-27T20:58:00.000Z

And there it is. I completely forgot about all this for the longest longest time. In my own defense, its been a very busy couple of months. New job, new house, new activities. Lessons have been going well, although there is a lot of backstage work that goes with it. The support stuff does pile in at times, but its all good. Have been popping over to Oxford, its funny to feel that close to a place these days. Grandad passed away. Quietly, silently, with dignity, like he was in life. I'll miss him terribly. He was the one to teach me to look at things, to go beyond the obvious. Ultimately, I guess that made me into a scientist. Spent new year in the Highlands, I finally went to Scotland! And I felt deeply connected with that place. Haven't acted since leaving Oxford, but helped with a production of Of Mice and Men at school, that went really well. So all good, if quiet. Oh, and am doing the 3 peaks challenge. God help us all, watch this space....

New beginnings, this time for real....

2009-10-23T10:14:00.000+01:00

For those of you that have been following this, some of the previous posts are all about change, renewal. Those were more wishful than fact, if I'm honest, but they finally ring true. I seem to have bounced back, and all seems to be going amazingly, bar any jinx. Work is going well, really good feedback. And I've met someone. Someone that makes me laugh, someone that cares and makes the time. Quite a busy someone, granted, but we have time, no one is running after us. The previous couple of weeks have been amazing, and I truthfully hope they are but the first of many many more. Have a week's worth of half term, time to collect myself and get ready for what's out there!!

Home, hot home.

2009-07-25T00:48:00.000+01:00

Its always the same. It appears I have to be home to write this. And so I am, and so I did. Moved house, back in the midlands. Great new place, cute, tidy and clean! Am back in cooking mode, can you believe it?? And of course, am back in the Motherland, for another week. I feel amazing, the future is in front of me. Job sounds good, my boss is amazing! Have billionsof new pictures, will add them very soon, whatch this space!

Powering up again!

2009-04-18T10:06:00.001+01:00

Not going to go through it again. Felt worse, now feel better, and charging up for the last stretch. It's going to be AMAZING. It's like T says, 2009 will be a kick-ass year!

PS - Enjoy my shenanigans in the lab....

Serene, quiet and placid.

2009-04-10T16:56:00.000+01:00

Like the ocean, blue sky, strong Sun, no storms. Placid, flat, serene and quiet. I'd moved on, but feel now even more reassured, and ready for the next step in my life. Change of pace, scenery and who knows what else! 2 months to go, almost there.

Its quiet.... Too quiet....

2009-04-08T16:12:00.000+01:00

Lord oh Lord oh Lord. FINALLY the holidays. Finally some time to catch up with myself. Always rushed, always stuff on my plate, could be worse though. Got a job, trying to sort out a flat, should be great. Getting to grips with the new schedule, not waking at 6, doing the dissertation. The future awaits me. What has passed is a bit on my mind at the moment, maybe because some of the stuff I'll be going through in the near future, had been planned in The Before Time. I'm happier now though, its just the last bit of decompression. Once again, a change of scenery, a change in rithm, all shall come to pass in the next couple of months. Can't wait!!

What??????

2009-03-15T18:01:00.000Z

What an absolutely bonkers couple of weeks. Work exploded, women, theater plays, I hardly had any time for anything, really. But it was great fun, and taught me loads. Like, I might be a half decent teacher after all. And I love the theater. And there are nice women out there. So, in true Rui fashion, getting the good out of life, I learned much, and will go out into the Universe with a huge smile on my face. Go on, Tomorrow, give me what you got! (PS - The picture is me on stage, with one of the most realistic Panto dame I've ever seen!! :) )

Kuite (?) Enchanting (?) People... (KEP's)

2009-01-23T17:59:00.000Z

For most of my life, I felt like I was swimming against the tide. Things worked in a particular way, people talked in a certain way, people behaved in a certain way. I never really saw eye -to-eye with 'the people' whoever they might be. I was then fortunate enough to find more people that were also swimming alongside me and they became my best friends. On New Year's Eve, I found another bunch of them, the KEP's. Mad, mad, mad, every single one of them, and the nicest people you could ever meet. They saw this mad friend of their 'parents' that went a bit (A BIT??) mental with movie questions, and they still made him feel welcome and loved. I was really touched, and I hope to see them again very soon. Many hugs and kisses guys! Oh, and T and H put on the best show in the world ever for us! There was food to feed a regiment, games (They MADE a game. MADE IT!!) and everything! All in all, the best party ever!

Rebirth.

2009-01-16T09:15:00.000Z

There are a lot of different renewal myths around. I guess it is somehow reassuring that we can always come back, albeit in a different form. The Sun, 'dying' every evening, reappearing renewed the next morning, a phoenix, reborn from the ashes of its former self, a snake, changing its skin. I had an amazing time back home, over the holidays (I will fill you in very soon, just leaving you with an acronym, KEP's....), and I got to recharge. I am back at full speed now, and feel great. Reborn, at peace, hopefully more mature, older and wiser. The Universe is an amazing place if you give it love and harmony, and I can't wait to see more of it!

Season's Greetings!

2008-12-25T19:34:00.000Z

For any and all out there in the dark alleys of the Internet, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! May 2009 bring you all you wish for, with niceness, prosperity, harmony and beauty for everyone.

The Sorting Hat has spoken....

2008-12-25T19:28:00.000Z

I have absolutly no idea how I came to this page, a Harry Potter website. I ended up going through the Sorting Hat cerimony, and what do you know, I'm a Ravenclaw. Have no idea what it means, but am happy none the less.

I'm a Ravenclaw!

Bill Bailey is a genius and his love song is the best ever!

2008-11-29T18:16:00.000Z

Most of the UK knows who Bill Bailey is. Portuguese readers of this blog might remember him as the long haired guy in Black Books. He is one of my favorite stand-up comedians of all time and he is also an amazing musician. He has the best love son of all time, originally entitled Love Song. I hope you like it as much as I did.

P.S. - Can you tell I just found out how to embed YouTube onto my blog? :)

Lost....

2008-11-29T18:10:00.000Z

Those who know me know I am not one who loves poetry uncondicionally. I like it, oh yes, but I'm not one to sit and read poetry for hours on end. This one, however, is an exception....

Perdidamente / Lost

To be a poet is to be taller, is to be bigger
Than men ! To bite the way you kiss !
Is to be a beggar and to give as if you were
King of the Kingdom this side and the other of Pain !

Is to have a thousand splendorous wishes
Is not even to know that you are wishing
Is to have a flaming star inside
Is to have claws and wings of a Condor !

Is to be hungry, to be thirsty of the Infinite !
By crown, the mornings of gold and satin…
To condense the world in one shout !

And is to love you like that, completely lost
For you to be the Soul, and Blood and Life in me
And tell everyone singing.

The original version in Portuguese:

Ser poeta é ser mais alto, é ser maior
Do que os homens! Morder como quem beija!
É ser mendigo e dar como quem seja
Rei do Reino de Aquém e de Além Dor!

É ter de mil desejos o esplendor
E não saber sequer que se deseja!
É ter cá dentro um astro que flameja,
É ter garras e asas de condor!

É ter fome, é ter sede de Infinito!
Por elmo, as manhãs de oiro e de cetim…
É condensar o mundo num só grito!

E é amar-te, assim, perdidamente…
É seres alma, e sangue, e vida em mim
E dizê-lo cantando a toda a gente!

Also, this poem was turned into one of the most beautiful songs by the Portuguese band Trovante. Enjoy....

The iPod is the greatest invention since the wheel, chocolate, Star Trek, Dr Who and kittens..

2008-11-28T21:55:00.001Z

My first one was a Nano, that lasted for about a year, until I washed and dried it, and, shave my legs and call me Susan, it stopped working. Who would have thought it? In my own defense, it was around the time when the period in my life I'm now calling The Never-ending Car-crash was getting into gear, no pun intended. And the poor thing was on my trouser pocket, and was a) immersed in water for about 45', and then spun and dried for a little under an hour. And that killed it, thank you very much. After some very creative saving and financial rearrangement, I managed to acquire a silver Classic, 120 GB. And, in a way - and yes, I am aware it is inanimate.... - it has been a company. I have pictures, audio books, movies, songs, TV series, you name it, its there. Ideal for long coach trips and the 40' each way walking in and out of OUDE (Oxford University Department of Education). Apple hit the bullseye with this technology, I tell ya. Who know, I might get a Mac at some point....

Old portuguese saying....

2008-11-04T22:05:00.000Z

I can finally write about it. In the old country, we have many sayings. I guess it was a form of preserving wisdom in an farming/agricultural world, where the next village was half a day away. One of them, roughly translated says: 'Better alone that in bad company.' How very, very true. Why do we keep around us people that are bad for us, when, just out of simple probabilities, there must be at least one other person, out of 6 billion, that is actually good for us? Why do we stay chained to pain and suffering, and tell ourselves lies, and falsehoods, just because, it might turn out OK? It is so much like plugging yourself into the Matrix, you're manipulating the sensory input, changing and adapting what is coming in, so that you see what you want to see, hear what you want to hear and believe.... Whatever you want to believe.

Why oh why didn't I take the blue pill??

Still, I don't regret it, not really. It is with pain that we grow, and I am (or will be) the better man for it. And it was fun, before the decay started, and all went to dust. You win some and you loose some, I guess. The oriental religions believe in the cyclic nature of the Universe, karma, and all that. I will leave this purified and ready for the next one, in every possible sense of the word! :)

Words of wisdom

2008-10-11T16:26:00.001+01:00

The dictionary defines 'Epiphany' as 'a sudden moment of total insight'. And it can come from the most unusual sources. Yesterday I was watching TV, as I ate dinner, and an add for the Australian tourist board came on. You know the type, 'we are amazing, come and visit us'. It actually had a story: there was this very busy business woman, stressed out of her mind, and then she goes Down under, and washes away her worries is some sort of natural pool in the Outback. Towards the end, there is the cutest aboriginal young girl, no older than 6, that says something that just sucked the air out of my lungs, like I had been punched in the chest. 'Sometimes, to find yourself, you need to get lost first.' Truer words have never been spoken. Look out world, I may have just found myself again.

What would be a really really crap superpower?

2008-10-10T08:13:00.000+01:00

Right, this one started as a really silly conversation in the pub. What would be technically a superpower, but a really really crappy one? I came up with 'knowing the type of pizza without opening the box', and another mentioned was 'heightened senses, but just a liiiiitle bit above normal'. Any suggestions out there?

My first attempt at an Haiku (apologies to 4000 years of Japanese culture)

2008-09-27T22:33:00.000+01:00

The running stream

Silver flowing in the light

Everything changes

The sword, reforged!

2008-09-16T19:44:00.000+01:00

Here I am again. Didn't write here for ages, 'cos I had REALLY more important things to worry about, I'm afraid to say. But it's over, now. I'm in Oxford, one of the most beautiful cities on the planet - not as much as Lisbon, but almost! - and enjoying being a student again. More details as they come, stay tuned, folks!

I will try and teach.

2008-05-05T18:51:00.000+01:00

Title says it all. Had enough of synthesis, and anyway dunno if I would want to keep it up for the next 10 years or something. So, will try and teach. Always liked it, and had good experiences during the PhD/Post-Doc. As I said in the previous entry, I'm back, baby!

I'm still here.

2008-04-29T08:57:00.000+01:00

Worst week ever. Complete 180° turn. Life shaken, if not stirred. Recovering. Feeling better. Rising slowly from the flames. Will be stronger for it. You just whatch me.

Take the pebble from my hand, grasshopper....

2008-04-18T12:56:00.000+01:00

I trully believe that H is a superhero. For real. The mild mannered graphic artist (and a good one at that, check his Blog, link on the right.) is probably a Kung Fu fighting, spandex wearing, masked caped crusader, jumping over the nightime city's roofs. Either that or he has a cybernetic endoskeleton, and he's here from the future to kill us all. Jury's still out on that one. Oh, and he dances salsa and kizomba and the like. Actually, he teaches them. See what I mean? Seriously, if you see him around, try and see if he's wearing the utility belt by mistake (I haven't had any luck yet). But in his secret identity he's an amazing guy and even better friend. And he's T's husband, so that's another point in his favour. Whatch the night sky, that's all I'm saying....

Portugal is the best place on the planet! (more or less)

2008-04-17T10:38:00.000+01:00

Well, almost. There are minor drawbacks. The health system. The justice system. The endless burocracy. The stone-boyling heat in the Summer. The cost of actually living there (cheaper than UK, but we earn much less). But there are good bits too. Mild Winters. Very friendly people. Great art and history. Fantastic beaches. Amazing food, the healthy kind. (If you like cod, we have 365 distinct ways to prepare it - really!) Wines that are at par with the best in the world. I'm really proud to be portuguese. I think its a great place to grow up and live in, and although destiny brought me to England, a bit of my heart wll always be there, basking in the afternoon Sun. Os tugas sao os maiores! :)

By the blind eye of Odin, I think I'm going native....

2008-04-02T16:24:00.001+01:00

I was born and raised in a place that is green and lush with plant life, that has geckos in every stone wall over the Summer, and were people eat loads of fruit and veg. And meat and fish, obviously. Really, really good stuff. What we don't do, however - although were big on both of them, separately - is put milk in tea. Ever. You might as well slap your grandmother or kick a small child. It would be ruining a perfectly good cup of milk, and a equally perfect cup of milk. I read somewhere that is the way the Indians (Subcontinent, not native Americans) had tea, and the British just picked it up. And yeast extract, ye Gods, that sounds like something that would be a side-product of beer making, and the concept of putting it on bread would not have occurred to anyone. However.... I must say that, after 4 1/2 years of residence, I like both of these products. Yes, yes, I know. I'm still surprised by the British on a daily basis and bits of their culture will never make sense to me, but I started to like both milky tea and Marmite. I still prefer coffee and butter and cheese, but I have found that there is room for the local traditions. Does this mean I'm going native? Maybe. Is that a bad thing? I don't think so. I just wish I could see the Sun more often around here....

Welcome Dr.! You've been missed!

2008-03-31T14:11:00.000+01:00

Next Saturday, the 5th April, Dr. Who is back on BBC1, for its 2008 season. I just wanted to say, thank you, thank you, thank you sooooo much! I arrived late to Dr. Who, in fact, my knowledge of him was next to non-existent prior to the Christopher Eccleston revamp of 2004. I can explain: in Portugal we have a cable channel called BBC Prime,a type of best of the BBC. And, of course, Dr. Who featured highly in it. However, it was those 5 or 6 episode story arcs. So I would catch 'episode 3 of 6', see these quite cheesy special effects, a bloke that changed every time that I saw it (the different doctors) and some weird story called Revenge of the Bgrughans, or thereabouts. I did, however, realise that I was in the presence of something great. Years later, I then watched the Eccleston doctor and liked it, watched the Tennant doctor, and loved it and am now discovering the previous ones - Tom Baker is my favourite so far. So welcome back doctor. Here's to another spin through the Time Vortex on your blue box. EX-TER-MI-NATE! Delete!

Will you ever read about Maxwell T. Walters?

2008-03-30T14:29:00.001+01:00

About 15 years ago - in 'the before time' - I wrote this short story about a private detective that could jump between dimensions. About 40 pages long, it was the first story I took to completion, instead of just exploding in the launch pad - I have about 10 of those.... Anyway, it's not a bad story, but in rectrospect - hindsight is a beautiful thing.... - it sounds really predictable and childish. Forward a decade. Just before I moved to the UK, I decided to have another go at the story. Max was at the back of my head, scratching to get out. So I kept the carachters, 'cos I thought there was potential there, changed the action from NY to London - even in the year 2105, might as well write about a city that I actually know.... - and adapted the whole interdimensional thing into something more (?) palatable. I then ran out of free time during my PhD. So Max, Jack and Ooze are still there, half emerged from my mind, running around the dirty back streets of the mega-metropolis that is Magna London. I hope you get to read them at some point. As the Brothers for Solar Unity would say: 'Stay in peace, all is One'.

I like cats, penguins, bats and wolfs.

2008-03-27T10:37:00.000Z

The title says it all, really. I love animals, but these four are my favourites. Just wanted to mention them.

My time travel appeal.

2008-03-25T16:41:00.000Z

Right, this should be easy. Time travel. Oh, yeah,it sounds dynamite on paper doesn't it? Going back in time, correcting things in your life. Or going to the future, and getting some technology that you can pass along as your invention. And then it all goes terribly, terribly wrong. You try and kill someone's mother before they were born, or you prevent your parents from meeting. It is a minefield, folks! I kid you not! Just go to see the pyramids being buit, or go for tea with Genghis Khan. That's fine. But be on guard at all times. You kill a bug, and millions of years later we all have gills. Hang on.... Ok, bad example, that would be a plus. But those are the exceptions. Just be very, very carefull, ok. Thank you.

My brother from another mother.

2008-03-25T14:28:00.000Z

I met C - Gods, a lot of my friends and relations are named C - what, 15, 16 years ago? Maybe more. And it was a click from the word go. Same tastes, same vibe, finishing each other's sentences. That type of stuff. He's the One I call when I want to discuss interdimensional faster-than-light tranference of matter/spaceships and its use on planetary invasion/bombardments. And seriously, I don't know how all of you out there can maintain a shred of stability when you don't discuss interdimensional faster-than-light transference of matter/spaceships and its use on planetary invasion/bombardments on a weekly basis. He's just the best, and the best physiotherapist this side of Coruscant. You're the best, C!

Why do I like Sci-Fi so much?

2008-03-20T09:29:00.000Z

I really don't know. Seriously. Don't have the slightest. I just....do. It started early, to be honest. My first toy wasn't a toy car, it was a toy space shuttle. It was the late 70's early 80's, the shuttle was the hottest thing ever. And the prototipe was the Enterprise. I mean, how perfect is that! Then came the novels, dozens of them. Then, I think, came Star Trek - The next generation. And it all went downhill from there. I just LOVED IT. Star Wars came in at some point before that, obviously. I know half the dialogue from Return of th Jedi by heart, how sad is that? And I became a consumer of the genre. Babylon 5 was a good one. The new Battlestar Galactica is also very very good. And I've recently found Dr. Who. It's quite the British institution, isn't it? But - and I don't know if this means that I'm turning native.... - it's just amazing. The quality of the stories on a shoestring budget.... I love it all....

R.I.P. Arthur C. Clark

2008-03-19T12:10:00.000Z

We lost a great author today. A man, that, hand in hand with Carl Sagan made me want to be a scientist. The theme to 'Arthur C. Clark's Misterious World' brings shivers down my spine to this very day. And the program itself created my curiosity for borderline science - Atlantis, superhuman powers, etc. I have most of his books, and I love every single one of them. Resquiat In Pace, Mr. Clark, enjoy the heavens that you described so well to a wide-eyed pre-teen.

What would be my superpower....?

2008-03-18T12:50:00.000Z

Right, this one is a tricky one, and something that has concerned me, in a way, over the last 20 years: what superpower would I pick? The problem is, we are spoiled for choice. To pick just one publisher, Marvel Comics has been pumping out super-powered creatures like there's no tomorrow, for the last 60 years. So, what to pick? Underwater breathing? Flight? Teleportation? Telepathy? Telekinesys? Invisibility? Shape-shifting? All of the above?

I guess that, if hard pressed, I would have to say pyrokinesys - ability to create/manipulate fire. Silly, I know, but there you go. Or telekinesys - moving stuff around with your mind. Another good one. Problem is, I KNOW that being bitten by a radioctive spider doesn't give you the proportional powers of a spider, it would give you a nasty poisoning and some creative decontamination at your local hospital....*sigh....*

Friends will be friends

2008-03-17T16:44:00.001Z

Friends are a wonderful invention. Trully, they must be up there with fire, the weel and StarTrek, when it comes to the greatest inventions of Man. I've been blessed with a number of them - someone said that he that has a close friend is trully blessed - more than I deserve, I feel, at times. The are trully there for me, my personal Peter, the Rock upon whick I build my emotions and my well being. Amongst them, I need to mention T. We met going on 14 years now, and she has been the best and closest friend anyone could ask for. She has always been there, even at times when - by personal choice or not - no one else was. We have sometimes not seen eye-to-eye, but that just made it better in the long run, I think. I love you with all my heart, Doutora, and here's to another bunch of decades.

(Check out her blog, very good indeed, http://tsalm.blogspot.com/)

Birds, our feathered friends....

2008-02-25T16:43:00.000Z

On Saturday, I found mesself in an bird of prey sanctuary, after setting out to see a nuclear submarine. No, they weren't next to each other. It is a very long story. I've always had a thing for falcons. Dunno, might have been a falconer on a previous life. I even have Horus as my favourite Egyptian god. But there you have it. Eagle Heights, there is a website. Lovely place, friendly staff, and birds flying at 100+ mph inches from your head. Bliss.

Subzero!

2008-02-19T17:32:00.001Z

Now, I like cold as much as the next person. Nothing wrong with that. Freezers, for one. Ice cream for another. Liquid nitrogen. Dry ice. All, in one way or another fun/interesting/useful/fun to watch. I, however, start to draw the line at atmospheric temperatures. Its been just below freezing for 3 or 4 days now, and methinks enough is enough. Most of my portuguese friends would be in deep cryogenic sleep by this point. Its supposed to go up over the next 48 hours.... Watch this space....

Trains, rice and sardines....

2008-02-13T15:09:00.000Z

I'm not being funny, and I never had a major upset with trains in the UK - never had a cancelation, or more than a 30 min delay - but for a country that actually INVENTED the whole thing, why oh why is the UK train system so completely crap? I mean, its like the chinese having crap rice, or the portuguese having crap sardines. (Wouldn't know, can't stand the bloody things)

1st Blog entry.... What to write?????

2008-02-12T15:28:00.001Z

I start this blog with the certainty that it will forever be lost amidst the endless Petabytes of the internet. Still, if someone, somewhere, somewhen comes across it and reads it, and smiles, I should take as mission accomplished.... So, start at the beguining: Name's Rui, nice to meet y'all, almost 33, born and raised in Portugal, currently working in the UK; Organic Chemist by trade with a good chunk of Sci-Fi nerdiness inside. See the pics, you'll see what I mean. I intend to post something, at least once a week, a small tirade of what is happening in The Eye of the Storm, i.e. my brain.This week's been a bit on the crazy side, as per usual: work, applying for more work, cooking, etc. Same old, same old, really, but it doesn't make it better. Saw a great movie over the weekend, though: Daywatch. Russian fantasy, if you can believe it. I loved it, and recommend it, although my mate C - fluent russian speaker says the original book in the original russian is sooo much better. Totally agree, having read The Lord of the Rings in both portuguese and russian, I know exactly what she means.... Other than that, I'm just enjoying this magnificent sunshine, the Gods know that in Birmingham its not usual....