Tuesday 31 July 2007

Grrrrrrrr!!

I said! I said it couldn't possibly work! I can't even begin to explain how frustrating this is!! (Too bad you can't talk right into Blogger, at least not yet anyway, 'cos I just spewed quite a magnificent string of undecipherable sonic outbursts that would have done the job perfectly :-<.)

I'm talking about plans. That have been shredded to bits. Then pulverized, and the remains set on fire. Have I mentioned that I hate courses? They do all sorts of things. They get in your way, they make you fly halfway across the world quite unnecessarily, and exactly when you don't want to. They make you turn your office schedules (and other things that might be significantly more important) on the head just so you can apply for visas. And once all that's done, and everything is in place (not to mention lengthy and elaborate flight plans drawn up) then they go and get themselves cancelled.Can I please go now? Please? Where? Oh anywhere... the South Pole rings a bell, is there a course there? #^@$*@&#%!!!!

Currently:
don't even go there X-((
Listening to: Pearl Jam - I got shit

Monday 30 July 2007

Glass arm shattering

Clarity lost? Or trapped? Enmeshed in a wilderness of fissures. (Arm?-)twisting sense to blindness. The culprit melts away in the newly descended darkness. Do you sense those teeth bared in a sneer? Lose yourself or move on. It isn't a matter of choice really.--

It's taken two seasons, but I've finally given into temptation and joined the nefarious world of Fantasy Football :D. I just put up my provisional team for the upcoming EPL season. The name (which has nothing to do with the band) is Lost Prophets, and I'm quite sure it will be proven apt before long :P.

Ah yes, a warning: do not watch The Lake House. Ever.
--

My blog turned 2! Two days back! Bummer, I thought I'd gotten past forgetting birthdays :-<.

Currently: waiting impatiently :D
Listening to: Linkin Park - Faint

Thursday 26 July 2007

Bummer!

Arghhh! I just realized that we've been onboard only 11 days and not 18 :((. This is terrible! I'm never this far off on time! Here I was, feeling all smug that we were already at the half-way mark for the trip /:). No wonder it felt like too soon. Ah well, it would seem we weren't out on the backdeck that long after all :|.

Damn.

And some more.

At least we're back in production and there seem to be ample reasons for small boat trips. But, although the weather's quite benign compared to the last couple of swings in the Bass Strait, it's still not quite ideal for boating it. Hopefully, that'll change sometime soon. In the meantime, there's the sunrise.I should get on with Life of Pi. The introduction bit seemed rather interesting :). I should also watch Blood Diamond and Pan's Labyrinth, DVD's of which have been lying in my cabin for what is actually only a week and a half now. :(

Currently: shocked!
Listening to: Moby - Flower

Sunday 22 July 2007

Incoherence

They have a name for this kinda shit. Which escapes me at this time.

You wouldn't really believe how the weather can change in one day. There was the morning I took my latest sunrise pics on a blustery deck, eyes streaming in the ruthless sting of the cold. The next day I was sweating on the backdeck within an hour of light.

Have seen some whales though. And been out driving the boat.

Have also been in a state where when I finally got back to my cabin today I was profoundly relieved to find my bed left unmade by the steward. I won't have to spend any effort trying to get the blanket around me, I can just crawl back into that me-shaped hollow I left last night...

Currently: dead
Listening to: Pearl Jam - Immortality

Wednesday 18 July 2007

Beyond heartache

...one might find peace.

I don't usually remember my emotions upon reading a book. But this time each moment seems distinctly etched. It probably helps that the instances were few and close together. If I had my way there would only have been two. (You need to get past the first chapter of Book One on faith. After that...)

I've been reading Michael Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion over the last few days, and it's been quite a ride. And now that I'm past the end, I strongly suggest that those who have not already read it, do so at the earliest possible :). I'm not saying everyone will love it. It's just that there are some books that.. well... Sometimes a book can be so much more than just the story it tells. There are little gaps, voids in shades of gray where you lose some of yourself in the interpretation. You can almost, but not quite, see bits of you that almost dissolved in the mist engulfing you, swirling all around you until eventually you're not entirely sure if it is the mist that refuses to let go, or is it you...

It can be so frustrating when you are dying to read a little further, and you know you haven't that luxury, 'cos transit is over, and the backdeck beckons :-<. Oh, one other thing about the book, this is the one that can truly justify John Berger's quote, not The God of Small Things, this book.

"The joyful will stoop with sorrow, and when you have gone to the earth I will let my hair grow long for your sake, I will wander through the wilderness in the skin of a lion."
- The Epic of Gilgamesh
...
He lay down to sleep, until he was woken from out of a dream. He saw the lions around him glorying in life; then he took his axe in his hand, he drew his sword from his belt, and fell upon them like an arrow from the string.
- In the Skin of a Lion
Currently: in awe, totally, totally blown away!
Listening to: Linkin Park - What I've done

Monday 16 July 2007

The in-betweens

I've decided I don't like port calls. And now that we're steaming again, I'm profoundly relieved. Thing is, I'm generally quite content while I'm on board, unlike most people who you see practically dying all around you 'cos they're missing, whatever it is that they miss while on board, so much. However, when you're alongside, there's no avoiding the outside world. It's right there, staring right back at you, the cars and buses honking at street corners, the train thundering in and out of the station, the kids skateboarding in the abandoned park, people... It's a little more difficult to ignore the reality that usually remains hidden beyond the horizon, when it's right in your face.Transits, on the other hand, I quite like. Like this morning for instance, I spent half an hour over breakfast for the first time since maybe school! I miss being the slowest eater at the table :P. What I'm trying to say is transits give you that precious thing you never have during most trips, a generous amount of time when it comes to doing anything! Or maybe it's just me, 'cos somehow, I never seem to have any time on the boat! (Hey, sometimes being bored can be a really fun thing!)

All of a sudden the year seems like an awfully small amount of time :-<.

Currently: blissfully jobless
Listening to: Norah Jones - Those sweet words

Sunday 15 July 2007

Afloat again

Back on board, and still alongside. Fremantle port turned out to be quite a maze! The ride from Perth city took about 20 minutes, but it took us another half hour to actually get to the boat. Mind you, for all of that half hour the Trident was visible from the bus, it's just that the sheer number of security gates, underpasses and fences in between almost proved too much for the driver. The offsigners were naturally in a very chirpy mood. And we watched them head off for a wine tasting cruise up the river before they fly home :-<.I'm back on night shifts as usual, only this time, without the usual tiredness 'cos of flights, sleep was a bit elusive. I finally gave up a full two hours before start of shift. And suitably shocked anyone who saw me up and about :-<. The thing that gets you on these long port calls is the silence! It's spooky! When you look aft, there's no wake. No engines running, no hydraulics, nothing. Feels a little weird. I wonder what it'll be like when they start up the massive Bergen Diesels later this afternoon. Hopefully, by then I'll be asleep again, trying to get my protesting body clock to fall back 8 hours.This early in the morning the dock feels strange. Freo railway station next door has all the lights on, but is completely deserted. Hundreds of cars, freshly offloaded from the bulk carrier in the berth just a little farther up, all shiny and bright under the harsh glare of the tall lamps. More cars getting driven off the ramp, emerging from the dark cavern-like gateway with headlamps like roving eyes, creatures climbing out from the belly of a misshapen whale. And in a minute I'll be on gangway watch. I'm on 4 to 6, maybe I'll get to see the sunrise.

Feeling: sleepy :-<
Listening to: Goo Goo Dolls - Black balloon

Thursday 12 July 2007

... like the hiding sun

This has been a pretty eventful week already! Incredibly enough, I got back my passport, which had spent the last couple of weeks in the care of the Norwegian Consulate, about 6 weeks earlier than I'd expected. I did get a multi entry Schengen visa, but it's valid only till the end of the year. So much for plans of an all out Europe trip, the only two remaining breaks this year, I'll already be spending in Norway due to various courses :-<. But I do have my two shiny stickers, and my passport still has space for at least a couple of more of them! But that would probably be pushing my luck :P.And then of course came the news that we'll be boarding the ship from Freo itself! The reasons? I'll probably be well advised to keep those to myself, but unforeseen circumstances have delayed the Trident by almost a week :(. At least that would mean we'll get a little bit of time on the steam up to the North West Shelf before we start sweating it out on the back deck :|.

And finally yesterday the fifth Potter movie premiered in Australia! We easily got tickets for the evening show and surprise surprise, there were tons of empty seats. But hey, it's Perth, I was impressed to find more than half the seats occupied in the largest of the four halls they have in the multiplex :P. So, the movie... well, I must say I liked it a whole lot better than the book :D. The best thing about it was the fact that so much of the dark and pointless meandering that the book indulges in has disappeared! It does take liberties with the plot at times, but see, I never liked the plot that much anyway :). Danny Radcliffe still has trouble acting, but he's getting better, Emma Watson more than makes up for it though and much of the rest of the cast was quite fabulous. I totally loved Imelda Staunton as the despicable Dolores Umbridge!

But I must say I was a little disappointed with the lame way in which Sirius dies (Gary Oldman was another smart bit of casting though). And lines like "... you might not like Dumbledore, but you've gotto admit, he's got style!"?!!! I mean seriously!

Currently: shaking head in disbelief
Listening to: Chicane - Autumn tactics

Monday 9 July 2007

Tall tale

Ever get the feeling that there's a moment in time that stares you in the eye as it passes you by? Even waves a coupe of times. And for any given number of reasons you are acutely aware of its passage. But for all practical purposes, it's utterly insignificant. This is commonly referred to as getting caught up in trivialities. And it often happens when you are bored and restless :|.
--

Apparently last weekend the thunderstorms that hit Perth did more than just confine me indoors. They ripped up a whole bunch of trees in King's Park. Had I known this earlier, I would probably have not ventured out this Sunday afternoon for a trip to Freo, under similarly dark and menacing skies. When I got there it was raining, but hey, I had my umbrella! :D I whisked it out and unfolded it in a flash, all in a smooth fluid motion as I stepped out of the train station.

To say that it was a mistake would be an understatement. In fact that last statement was itself an understatement /:). The raindrops were flying pretty much parallel to the pavement. I had my umbrella firmly into the wind, and that was straight ahead. The only reason I didn't bang into anyone else was because no one else was stupid enough to venture out :|. I think I've mentioned that my umbrella's a metre across, trouble is, under the circumstances, that still left another 3 quarters out to get soaked. To make matters worse, one of the spokes of the umbrella finally succumbed to the persistent wind! Thankfully, before matters got worse I was under cover.

By the time I'd warmed up with a couple of mugs of hot coffee though, the rain was history, so I set out to fulfill the purpose of this trip. Walking down the south side of the docks, I was clicking away when this old man (the one in the pic) came up and offered me his binoculars for a closer look. I don't think the opportunity will ever present itself again, so I made the most of it. I told him I worked on that rather strange looking ship :D.He was suitably impressed, and I was going YAEEEEIII in my head :P. Okay, it's Perth, it's a weekend, sources of entertainment are severely limited. And you being in a city when your ship docks there is not exactly a regular occurrence. Anyway, all I'd intended was to take a few pictures and relish the fact that at the end of this I was going to walk away. Just walk away, not back to the ship, not back on shift, away. The jolly old man, who turned out to be quite a character, was just a bonus :).
--

Anyway, I was eventually back in Perth before another spate of heavy showers could catch me, and proceeded to spend the rest of the evening watching Nadal get beaten by Federer. Again :(. And then Raikkonen win for Ferrari. Again :). Too bad about Massa stalling his engine though, the way he carved his way back up to 5th, who knows what he could have done had he started from 4th :-<. Oh well, that was the last GP I'll get to see for a bit. The only channel that airs F1 in Oz is Ten, and we don't get it on the boat :(. But I did get to see the last four, so I'm not complaining... too much.

Currently: beyond bored :-<
Listening to: Norah Jones - Lonestar

Thursday 5 July 2007

Staccato

My most valued possession currently is my tiny double folding umbrella :D. Totally love that thing! When folded it comes to only slightly over 6 inches, but opens out to over a metre across! However, such foldability (?) comes at a price. Turns out its propensity to flip inside out is extremely high, and with the kind of winds that accompany the rain in these parts, that kinda translates to rather acrobatic attempts at keeping the umbrella aimed at the wind at all times. Or just folding it up and getting drenched in the rain anyway... Thankfully, things have remained within the realm of slightly soggy clothing, no drenching yet.Finally went and watched Ocean's Thirteen last night. And no, it's not better that Eleven! Okay, it's better than Twelve, I'll give it that, but then anything would have been better than Twelve /:). It did have genuinely funny bits though, and the plot was somewhat there, so to speak. But what really saddened me was that Baxter (Don Cheadle) had lost most of his accent!!

Noticed a rather strange thing on the way back, an ATM machine had lights flashing and a very loud alarm blaring but no one seemed to be concerned! At 10 in the night there weren't really a lot of people around, but the ones that were seemed completely nonplussed! There was even an empty police car parked nearby. I wonder if I'd just missed an attempted robbery... or a successful one.

Currently: bored :-<
Listening to: Evanescence - Imaginary

Tuesday 3 July 2007

Anonymity

Isn't it a good thing? Really, how would it feel to be entirely free from the consequences of your actions? Merely by virtue of the fact that those consequences would never be able to trace their way back to you. Even if it were for just an instant.
I'm not the one who broke you
I'm not the one you should fear
We got to move you darlin'
I thought I lost you somewhere
But you were never really ever there at all

And I want to get free
Talk to me
I can feel you falling
And I wanted to be
All you need
Somehow here is gone
But it's a vicious cycle. Although a nice little room with padded and soundproof walls might provide an alternative.

Currently: stumped
Listening to: Goo Goo Dolls - Here is gone

Monday 2 July 2007

Blackout

This is what weekends should really be like. Well, sometimes :). Zero phone use, zero internet access. Tons of movies, and catching up on sleep from like a zillion weeks :D. And of course it was pelting raindrops the size of baseballs, so I figured I'll just stay in and watch the windowpanes take it!Friday was Transformers day! Umm, if you don't know what Transformers are, you'll probably not really like this movie. Unless you're the kind that goes totally wow at fantastic CGI robots and machines and stuff. And cool cars :P. But if you do know the Transformers, you might end up hating this :|. But seeing that I wasn't really looking for anything but a visual extravaganza, what with it being a Friday night and all, I totally loved it :D. Especially the bit when Bumblebee transforms from a beat-up '75 Camaro to the totally sleek '08 concept Camaro :D. Shia LaBeouf is fun. The transformation sequences are totally cool, though hardcore fans might think otherwise, what with the traditional transformation sounds replaced with static. But it's the detail to the transformations that I thought was really awesome! As were the fight/chase sequences. But really, that's all there was to it. Oh well, I suppose you can't have everything. And it was just too bad the Pontiac Solstice (Jazz) had to get ripped up :-<.

Over the weekend I also managed to finally see The Pursuit of Happyness. Must say Will Smith's come a fair way since Wild Wild West /:). Have been avoiding it on in-flight entertainment for a few months now to be able to catch it on a somewhat bigger screen :).
--

Woke up late this morning. Was up till almost 2 watching Magny-Cours. Was well rewarded with a Ferrari 1-2, though I'd have preferred Massa on the top spot. But anyway, managed to surprise myself by still being on time.... But surprised myself even more by actually remembering what I dreamt of last night. Or this morning actually, felt like I woke straight out of the dream into my 8:45 room with the sun straining to burst in through the thick curtains.

Currently: trapped
Listening to: Linkin Park - By myself