Steps towards a better world

Lately, I’ve been studying a little about the financial and real estate markets. There are many signs to be worried about so I am trying to prevent any catastrophe that could happen to our personal savings and investments. I was looking for some funds that contain less banking and equities but they are not very popular. There are some about innovation, technology, health or education, but they are not doing very well. Actually, they never did. For some reasons people invest their money in real estate and banks. No wonder those have been thriving. And I can’t help thinking: what if people invested more in research, health, education, and especially in alternative energy? Wouldn’t it be a better world?


Recently I watched Jill Bolte Taylor’s TED Talk: My stroke of insight.

Video (http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/229)

It’s an inspiring and eye-opening story. It’s also some degree of personal relief. My grandmother lived many years unable to communicate – speak, read, write – or walk, due to a stroke in her left side of the brain. She was imprisoned inside her body for so long, and yet, she might not have had a terrible life all that time.

There is so much in our brain. If only we would be taught how it works and how to train it. I am not thinking only about activating the right side of the brain, but in a general way. We are so vulnerable, spend too much energy, and live with so many wrong beliefs, because nobody told us how our brain works. It’s not easy to figure out by ourselves. Many scientists spent years of research that can be synthesized in a few sentences. But once aware of their conclusions, everything starts to make sense -- we are stronger, and even healthier. What if children would be taught about their brain like they are taught to write? Wouldn’t it be a better world?

Too busy

It’s been a while since my last written post. Many little things have happened since then. Our trip to Canada was very busy – delayed luggage, trip to Edmonton, citizenship exam, meeting friends and family, shopping, fighting with jet lag, etc. Back to Ireland, back to work. Darse at the office, me dealing with a thousand little things like finding a car to buy, dealing with banking, shopping, and other appointments, registering for the Open University, gardening, writing, trying every day to paint… Oh, so boring for you to read!

Holidays passed quietly. We had a long stroll the Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day in Bray. This is where we took the pictures from my previous entry. At that time there was a “fun fair” on the esplanade. Darse was amazed by the fact that all of the swinging/shaking/spinning rides were unfolded from semi truck trailers. It made sense because it was a traveling fair. [It makes those rickety rides extra scary -- there's actual risk involved! -drb] The cleverness of the folding was fun to study but the final result was a tacky spin machine to make people sick.



I hope you enjoyed the six-eyed alien from my pictures. Actually Darse was wearing my sun shades under his glasses because of a headache induced by the bright sunlight. Hopefully he won’t have this problem anymore when he gets his new glasses that darken in the sunlight.

We went to a games party (video games, Chinese poker, and trivia) before Easter where, most likely, we beat a world record. We had the longest Trivia Pursuit game of all time: about 5 hours or more. And then we had more trivia at Rockfield Pub this week with Darse’s colleagues where we didn’t finish last. Yay! (Pub quizzes have lots of questions about football, UK and Ireland whatnot).

The weekend forecast is rainy and windy so again, it won’t be perfect for strolling or pictures. There is always stuff to do at home too.

Maybe we'll go to see some cars. One funny thing about looking for a car is the inventiveness of sellers of pink Toyotas. There are dozens for sale, and they are rarely defined as pink in the ads. They are "purple", "blue" (?), "metallic purple" or "red". They stretch the definition of pink to "twilight rose" and "metallic salmon". Actually, they all look like this:

[If we ever did buy one of these, it'd be from the guy who called it "PINK!". -drb]

Beautiful Sunday

Our regular visitors feeling at home

Bray esplanade and sea walk

I'm an alien... I'm a Canadian alien

Bray seen from the sea walk
The cliffs of Bray Head

Trying to catch the train

More sea from above

heathrow sux

London Heathrow airport is an interesting and enriching experience that enables one to better appreciate all things that do not suck nearly as much (which, to a very close approximation, is all things).

After the usual 10-minute bus trip between terminals, we had to traverse the entire length of Terminal 1 three times. We got to the entrance of the departure gate only to be told that we had to go back to the beginning to get a biometric scan. I'm not talking about the usual indignities, like seizing our terribly dangerous four-ounce bottles of water, or making us strip off our belts and shoes, or submitting to the random anal probes -- that's all old news. No no, this is a new one, where we get digitally fingerprinted and retinal eye-scanned. Think of all those high-tech security scans in sci-fi movies, like "Total Recall", "Minority Report", "Gattaca", "Code 46", and others. Now add in the Voight-Kampff test from "Bladerunner". Well, it's here, folks! We then had to register the digital fingerprint scan again back at the departure gate, just to make sure that we hadn't sneakily changed our DNA identity during the 15-minute walk. Sheesh.

The wing we're sitting in while waiting for our flight to Dublin is disgusting. I am actually experiencing full-on disgust and revulsion as i write these words. There are plenty of negative associations already built-up with this place, since we've been stuck here twice before -- domestic flights are routinely delayed (occasionally due to high winds, but usually due to general incompetence).

The terminal we're in is reminiscent of the inside of a large tin can turned on its side. The walls are concave corrugated aluminum, making it just about the most austere inhospitable dehumanizing soul-crushing decor a sociopath could ever conceive. The fabric seats are filthy beyond words. There is hardly any ventilation, which is just dandy, given the thousands of exhausted gamey sweaty travelers that file through here every day. Without wanting to belabour the point, let's just say this is a fine centerpiece in the Orwellian dystopia that is Heathrow airport.

[Did you see "Children of Men"? I'm certain the fascist Fortress State of oh-so-near future England was modeled on Heathrow. This place is the germ where the epidemic began.]

Oh well, one has to take the good with the bad, and this is the price we pay for a lovely week spent in Alberta. We were there primarily for Xan's Canadian citizenship exam, but it was also an opportunity to take care of some chores (like taxes and banking) and catch up with people.

It was nice to gorge on some of our yummy healthy comfort foods. After a big grocery spree, we had a bonanza of wholesome goodies to choose from. We both went for the nectarines first, but the 3-colour cole slaw and real yoghurt weren't far behind. [Right now i'm snacking on a distinctly Albertan delicacy: tasty and nutritious roasted Wheat Crunch (Cool Ranch flavour:).]

Despite the nuisance, it was strangely enjoyable to stroll along the crazy Tim Horton's line-up that ran out the exit, wound through tunnels and into the adjoining office tower. The journey didn't take too long, and it was well rewarded with the magical elixir that is genuine TH coffee. There are many more food-related anecdotes from the trip -- suffice it to say that i overindulged in that particular aspect of home.

However, a much greater pleasure was visiting with people, especially those at the U of A (the poker group, naturally, but also the Hex guys, the Netflix team, and a dozen other friendly faces). It's only been four months, but that's a long time when you're used to seeing them almost every day. It is enough time away to gain a bit of distance and a fresh perspective, and my conclusion is obvious and unequivocal: the people there are awesomely awesome. It's especially evident in contrast to Heathrow, where the people are often discourteous, uncooperative, passive-aggressive, and thick as a brick. [Not a fair comparison at all, of course, putting cool computer ubergeek elites up against the proletariat rabble of Oceania, but i can't help noticing the dramatic difference between these ultra-gentle and ultra-hostile environments.]

Okay, i'm gonna stop raggin' on this grotesque aluminum cesspool, and focus on something more positive and constructive -- leaving this hellhole!