2012 A-mock-alypse

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/yoemans20091110.html

Here's a statement from NASA itself about the looming, supposedly "apocalyptic" 2012 date which is fast approaching.

Past

What is it that we are supposed to do when we think about the past? It happens most often to me with different music--there are different songs and bands which remind me strongly of various times in my past. When these randomly come on or I hear them or I for some reason choose to listen to them, I often become very sad as I reminisce about great (or not great) times past. Either way, I am left to wonder, what are we to do in situations like this? What is sadness? How must we combat it? Is it best to acknowledge and accept sadness for what it is? Remembrances of something different? Something gone?

Reading competition

Alas, it has been awhile since I have written on here.

Today's topic - Reading. Soon after I returned from my trip to London, I entered a competition with my mom to see who can read more books over the summer. It's not a bet - there's no prize for the winner or runner-up - it is simply an excuse to read more books, something I always enjoy and feel I don't do enough of. As of now, I have completed 4 and 3/4 books (but it counts as 5 in our competition). This stems from 4 fully completed this summer, and one book that I recently finished but had started prior to the end of the school year. So, in technical terms, that's how many I'm at. Let me attempt to give a brief review/synopsis/why you might read/what I think, for each book. I'll go in order that I completed them, for lack of a better organizational method. Also, I'll post the links to the Amazon page for each book after my "reviews," should you feel so inclined to learn more.

Deep Survival, by Laurence Gonzales.

This is a book about the psychology and biology of the survival instinct. Gonzales is inspired as young boy by his father who was a pilot in WWII. On a raid, one of his plane's wing's was sawed off by ground-fire and he plummeted from thousands of feet into the air, still strapped to his seat, and lived to tell the tale. Oh, he was captured by German forces after the crash and spent time in a prison camp with his countless injuries from the fall (as you might imagine he would have). The author continues with other seemingly miraculous tales, and seems to zero in on many of the situations where the least "prepared" or "experience" person is the only one to survive an extreme situation, based on fundamental differences in thought patterns. Quite the striking read, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it made me think a lot about what I might do or how I might act if put into a survival situation. Why you might read it - if you have an interest in psychology and human behavior, if you enjoy the outdoors or high-risk activities, or if you enjoy stories of resounding human determination, when people come out on top through the most impossible of situations.

Three Cups of Tea - by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

The incredible story of a true hero. After a failed attempt to summit K2, Mortenson, an avid mountainclimber, finds himself stranded and alone in harsh conditions lower in the Himalayas. His is found and taken in by members of a small, remote village in Northern Pakistan, and is stunned by their hospitality. In response, he asks the elders what they need most and is told they need a school. His promise to them to build them a school kicks off the adventure of the century, and eventually the construction of many other schools around the country. It gives an inside look of a misunderstood country and culture(s), and is a heartwarming read. Without a doubt the most inspirational book I have ever read, and I know it won't easily fall from that throne. I already have plans to see Mortenson himself speak at Concordia University this fall. Why you might read Three Cups of Tea - if you love learning about new cultures and peoples, if you desire inspiration, or if you want to hear the story of how one man is fighting the war on terror and promoting peace in the only way that it could ever truly succeed - through proper education of children.

The Burn Journals - by Brent Runyon

Not a lighthearted book, "The Burn Journals" are literally the Journals of Brent. He began to construct this journal at the suggestion of a psychologist or counselor, months after his recovery, in order to capture his thoughts and emotions and really get a chance to look inside himself. Brent, in 8th grade at the time, suffered severe burns on over 80% of his body after he set himself on fire with the intent of killing himself, but changed his mind partway through and managed to save himself. It is his story, honest and brutal, of the struggles of a young boy before and during his recovery. Why you might read it - to gain a greater understanding of a young boy's mind, to try to gain perspective on a once-suicidal individual, or to understand the recovery process from severe burns. Again, not a lighthearted read.

The Rule of the Bone - by Russell Banks

A novel, "The Rule of the Bone" is the story of young Chappie, a misguided school dropout trying to find his way. After setting off on his own and getting a tattoo, he takes on the sole name of Bone, detaching himself from his past life. He later meets up with an illegal immigrant rastafarian from Jamaica, I-Man, who teaches him much about life and the Will of Jah. Bone has many adventures, as his life is constantly taking unexpected turns, but he learns to flow with the changes and find himself anew. Eventually, Bone accompanies I-Man on his return to Jamaica and spends time there learning new trades. He even comes into contact with his biological father who ran out on Bone and his mother when Bone was only a few years old, never to be heard from again. The overall story doesn't have too much of a plot or a message, but rather depicts the development and shaping of a young boy's personality. Still a fascinating story, this was my second read-through of the novel. Why you might read it - to learn a little more about rastafarianism, to read a cool story about a boy on some crazy adventures, or to see how a young boy matures.

The Highest Tide - by Jim Lynch

Another novel about a young boy. "The Highest Tide" is about 13 year-old marine life wiz Miles O'Malley, who makes some unreal discoveries while scouring the flats on Olypmia at low-tide and quickly becomes the sensation of the decade in this small town. His finds bring scientists from around the globe to take stock of what is actually happening with the aquatic life in the area, and Miles thinks that the world is trying to tell us something. The author's visual descriptions are stunning, some of the best I've ever read, and it is his first book. It's a quick read and a cool story about a young boy who knows more about his field of interest than most college graduates do about their major. Why you might read it - if you want to read about a young boy who doesn't care how nerdy people think he is, he knows what he loves and won't stop at anything to do it, if you want to get a feel for a small Washington town, or if you simply love great writing.

http://www.amazon.com/Deep-Survival-Who-Lives-Dies/dp/0393052761 Deep Survival

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Cups-Tea-Mission-Promote/dp/0143038257 Three Cups of Tea

http://www.amazon.com/Burn-Journals-Brent-Runyon/dp/1400096421/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1248586748&sr=8-1 The Burn Journals

http://www.amazon.com/Rule-Bone-Novel-Russell-Banks/dp/0060927240 The Rule of the Bone

http://www.amazon.com/Highest-Tide-Novel-Jim-Lynch/dp/1582346054 The Highest Tide

So there we have it, those are the 5 books I have completed this summer so far. I am about halfway through "Makes Me Wanna Holler - A Young Black Man in America" by Nathan McCall, at the recommendation of my brother. I'm thoroughly enjoying it and look forward to telling you more about it on here after its conclusion.

Thorn - I didn't get all of my videos from my London trip uploaded tonight like I had planned

Rose - I wrote on here again!

Bud - I'm going to hike Saddle Mountain tomorrow

AT Out

Amstrussel

Well, I'm heading off to Amsterdam tomorrow. We'll be there for 3 nights I believe, and then we're taking the train in to Brussels for a day. After that we'll take the Eurostar train back to London, which means I'll get to go through the Chunnel! The chunnel is a tunnel that goes under the water. Should be pretty interesting. I'm really excited for this little excursion, because I seriously know absolutely nothing about Amsterdam or Brussels. It will all be a totally new experience. I can't wait to see a few more cultures and cultural differences before I head back to the States. I won't have internet access/a computer out there, so don't expect any updates or pictures or anything for awhile. However, be ready for lots of then when I do get back. Hope you have a good weekend!

Thorn - Moving/cleaning rubber horse mats, although it was a very good experience. More on this later.

Rose - Wonderful dinner at a pub on the Thames and then seeing Star Trek again. Great movie.

Bud - Amsterdam!

AT out

The 3/4 Pant; Capri

I found a pair of capri's today! Mission accomplished, finally. It didn't even require having to ask some random guy on the street. However, it appears that the official name, the part that I didn't know, was that they are actually called a 3/4 pant. Not capri's. Right? Who knew? Well either way, I found them at SportWorld, just another run-of-the-mill sports outlet (with more clothes and less sports equipment). This place had like a huge clearing out, 30-70% off sale on everything. Apparently this place has been perpetually having closing-out sales like this for the past 6 years. How they do it, I have no idea. How they do it in this recession? I REALLY have no idea.

After that, I had to find my way, by myself, back to the train station to get home. Kyle had to depart to work, but he pointed me in the right direction. I found the station without any trouble, purchased my one way ticket for 3 pounds 40 pence, and proceeded to head for the turnstile. Well, that's where I was wrong, the lady who sold me the ticket yelled at me from behind the counter that I was headed toward the wrong platform, thankfully. So, I never actually got going in the wrong direction which is a huge plus. After that, all I had to do was wait for the train and then walk the 15-ish minutes from the station back to the house. Quite a nice walk actually, it was a very sunny/warm day, and it was enjoyable to be walking instead of driving through the small town where I'm staying. Very relaxing. The price of my train ticket comes out to be somewhere around $5, which is quite expensive for traveling only 3 stops away from my current location. Well, it's not actually that expensive, it's just a much higher price to ride the train than I'm used to for riding the MAX light rail system in Portland. I have yet to figure out why there is such a discrepancy, although I have conjectured a few possible reasons. The first is that the overall comprehensiveness of the rail system here is much more involved, and thus cost more because there are more servies available. The second reason is that, because this system is so much broader, it is more expensive to maintain (and to build originally). Also, I'm not exactly sure of the difference between the train system here and the "light-rail" system we have back home, but I'll find out. All of this has led me to want to figure out what it would take to improve our public transportation system in Portland, because it is so effective here and SO many people ride it. It doesn't seem like it would be that hard to do (relatively speaking). Also, to encourage more people to use public transportation, there is a "congestion tax" in place within a certain radius of the metropolitan core of London. It sounds like its somewhere between 5 and 10 pounds per day ($8-$15 ish), or you can get a pass for a longer period of time. This is to discourage people from driving their cars into the center of the city and clogging up the roads (congestion). Another economics lesson in action folks. It appears to be pretty effective, as I don't distinctly remember any large traffic jams any of the time that I was in London, and we were very near the city center during the evening rush hour. I think that Portland could benefit from this sort of thing too, as there is ALWAYS tons of traffic at the rush hours. It might be difficult to initially incorporate, but once in place it would raise revenue and really keep the amount of cars out of the city. Also, it would further help curb emissions!

So, when I get home I'll be doing research to learn more about our current public transportation system. If you know of some good resources to get some of this information, I'd love to hear from you. Or, if you feel the same way that I do, join the ride! The efficiency and ease-of-use of the system here is truly inspiring. I'd love for Portland to be known for the same thing. It would allow me to take so much more pride in this great city, of which I'm falling more in love with all the time.

Thorns and roses!

Thorn - Lapsing for a second and heading towards the wrong platform... I thought I had the whole transportation system totally figured out!

Rose - Finding capri's!

Bud - Going to see a play tomorrow and hopefully getting to take a look at an international school in London which the University of Oregon offers a study abroad program at. ;).

AT out

Paradisio

So I got to see some really cool stuff today. We first visited Lewes Castle in Lewes. It was one of the first castle's in England, going all the way back to 1066. This castle, compared to Windsor Castle which I visited yesterday, is a ruin. Windsor Castle is much more "palace-y" if you know what I mean? The Queen still lives there on occasion, and it is all decorated and elaborate. As you might see in one of the pictures, even the lights have crowns on them! Both castles were very interesting, but very different. I thoroughly enjoyed Lewes Castle because I was able to get much more of a feel of what it was like to have lived in a place like that back then. This castle actually got used for what it was built for (defense), whereas Windsor Castle is and has been much more of a fancy residence. I got to see what it was like to look out of an archer's window, and really get an idea of what the view was like from way up on top of the towers. Its VERY impressive, absolutely beautiful. Words and pictures can't do it justice.

After that we wandered around the town of Lewes for a little bit and then began to make our way towards Brighton. About 40 minutes and however many miles later, we actually began to be driving in the correct direction towards Brighton. Gotta love ambigous street signs :P. Brighton was awesome though. It's on the southern coast of England, and has a very pretty beach. It felt much like any of the beaches around Los Angeles, of which I always love. Helpful was the fact that it was sunny and warm (always a plus), which apparently is actually pretty rare for Brighton, and England, in general. Like 80% of the time its not that nice at all. The result of this was that there were tons of people out enjoying the sun, laying out on the beach. This beach had no sand, however, but rocks. All smooth, but rocks. It was tough to walk on without shoes of some kind, so in that sense its quite different from the California beaches. Regardless I had a very nice time there, and enjoyed all of the little beachy shops. We found a little clothing store called Plain Lazy that mostly had novelty tees with different sayings about being lazy or staying in bed. They're all meant to be humorous, but some were kind of stupid and some could have been found insulting by some people. I found a green one which reads "Reduce your carbon footprint-stay in bed," ha, ha, ha, so I had to buy it. Kyle's mom got him one of the same, so we can match!

I'm still constantly on the hunt for capri's, and yet no store seems to have them. Even the employees at various clothing stores have no idea what I'm talking about, and it's not because they have a different name or anything. This is very odd because I see people (guys) with them everywhere, yet no stores have them. I'm about to just stop some random guy on the street and inquire as to where he found them. We're visiting (hopefully) a mall tomorrow where I saw a big billboard that had men's Nike capri's, and if I can't find them there, I'll bail. WAIT! I did find a pair in a store today. I asked the guy how much they were. 235 pounds. That's almost $400. So I told the salesmen they were a out of my price range, so he took me to the other side of the store and showed me a nice pair of linen shorts. At this point I exclaimed that I thought most of the stuff in the store was going to be out of my price range, to which he replied, "oh well these one's are only 99." Yeah, right. I've never paid more than $30 for a pair of shorts or pants, and don't plan to for a while. Totally unnecessary. Unfortunately, I'll likely have to pay more than that for capri's here (as everything is more expensive anyways, and if it's Nike... well, you know). However, according to this rule, I won't technically be violating it, because capri's are... not shorts, not pants! Lucky me.

Yesterday I began watching the Showtime series, "The Tudors," on DVD. It's about the life, times, reign, and marriages of Henry VIII (the guy who had 6 wives...remember?). I'm hooked, I think I'm already halfway through the season. You should really check it out. It's full of drama, and although it's all historically accurate (and a great way to get a history lesson), I'm not so sure the people from history acted the way they are portrayed in the show. But hey, they might have, and even if not, it makes good television. Give it a look, the entire season is only 10 episodes I think, and even if you don't like history it's an entertaining mini series.

Thorn - Getting lost/sitting in the car for awhile

Rose - Time on a sunny beach!

Bud - Finding capri's :P

AT out

Day 7