Resurgence

I'm finding my rhythm again.  Settling into a pattern after travelling can be a little difficult, especially going from one intense schedule into another.  Certainly having some music helps.

And the latest offering by Gomez is well worth it.  It is an album, in the nostalgic sense of the word.  Some have proclaimed the death of the album as an art form, and the rise of the album as merely a vehicle for individual songs.  Thankfully some artists are defying that trend.  But, just to appease the masses and incentivise you to purchase the album, I give you Win Park Slope.

Gomez has, however, flown under the radar of most people.  They first released Bring it On around 10 years ago.  And the album hasn't dated.  Or at least not for me.  People will probably recognise Get Yourself Arrested, and Whippin' Picidilly even if the names don't ring a bell.

In Vienna

It's been about a month since I last posted anything.  So I do apologise.  Offered as some flimsy justification is my annual adventure to Vienna and the necessary hectic work schedule beforehand.

Vienna.  It was amazing.  As always.  And as always I was there with the VUW moot team.  This year was different though.  I'm not just talking about the unseasonably warm and summery weather.  We also won.  First out of two hundred and thirty three universities.  233.  It was a long time coming, and these guys deserved it this year.

We've been called the favourites so many times before.  But this year hit it home.  Not so much backed highly to win, though there is that most years, but more of everyone's most liked team.  Afterwards everyone heaped praise on us and called us one of the most deserving teams.  I think it had something to do with David's acceptance speech; we travel from the far side of the world on very little and are reliant on the support of the teams we meet on our way.

As part of the celebrations we took a horse and carriage ride through the street of Vienna.  Sipping Veuve Clicquot out of plastic cups.  Magic.

I should also mention other highlights, like being taken on a tour of the Supreme Court of Austria by one of the presiding judges, meeting so many fascinating people in practice in Europe, dancing til 5 in the morning, sneaking snacks of meat between our forced vegetarian meals, chairing arbitrations, and much much more.

There was also the 4:30 am departure from Vienna to head home.  The 8 hour transit in LA, made easier by staying in the Air New Zealand lounge, being upgraded on the flight between LA and Auckland, randomly bumping into team mates who had left days before me, and the joys of jet lag.  The stories.  Oh the stories.

I will be returning next year.  That much is guaranteed.  I know I moaned about the price of going over, of uncertainty and not being entirely sure of the whole thing.  But I miss being in Europe, I love Vienna, and I am addicted to the moot competition.  I can't imagine not going anymore.

That Time

Tis been a while since my last post.  I've been a little on the busy side.  With work of course.  Which has been hard to explain to most, for I love what I do and the opportunities I get.  I may complain about the hours, but I wouldn't want it any other way.  I mean, I get paid to argue with people.

Anyways.  I should share some music.  A friend introduced me to Bat For Lashes, whose latest offering is decidedly good.  Daniel is the track doing the round, but I'm partial to Glass.  Try it and see.

What else?  I'm off to Vienna (again) shortly for the Vis Moot, and I'm looking forward to it.  I always love going to Vienna.

Just thought I'd gloat.

Adventures in the South Island

Great time off two weeks ago, spending a week travelling through the South Island and then into Wellington. Fantastic trip, great scenery and generally just a much needed break for me. Sadly I didn't take photos of the Cuba Street Carnival when in Wellington, but it was awesome.

Porare River near Punakaiki, Christchurch Art Gallery, Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki, Punakaiki, Pelorus Sounds, and Kaiteriteri.

Lantern Festival

Auckland played host to the Chinese Lantern Festival. Well, it still is playing host as it goes on for the entire weekend. But I went last night.

As you can see, there's some pretty cool lanterns out there, hanging from the trees, built up, and floating around Albert Park.

There were also throngs of people there. It was unbelievably busy. The food area was probably the most packed. Though I didn't go to the Karaoke Stage, so I can't know for sure.

Legalease

Finally I put up a photo from New Years. Here's the campsite. Slightly longer exposure to capture the light, hence the blurry figures. But it does make for some crisp lights and mood.

Random topic change. If you haven't already guessed: music holds a special place for me. Whether it's playing or listening to it. If you recall, when in Hamburg, I had to buy myself a guitar to have any hope of retaining my sanity. Some may even remember my elation at being given free reign with the law school's Steinway.

But in terms of listening to music, there's an association with a number of songs, artists and albums. For example the Goo Goo Dolls, Led Zeppelin and Crowded House are associated with certain people, whether they know it or not.

So it's always difficult explaining this to others that don't know me that well. I feel some difficulty when having to explain my attraction to music and my compulsion to play any instrument lying round. It feels that this is something that isn't always properly conveyed let alone understood. I can't say it bothers me terribly. However, I certainly would like them to accept it.

Why am I writing this? I really don't know. Probably in an attempt to distract myself from what really has been bothering me - I'm worried I really will become that stereotypically heartless and soulless lawyer. Yes, I've covered this before. But it's a transition that seems to be coming easier and easier.

Let me explain. It's becoming easier for me to fall into the role of an advocate, pushing my client's best interests and only taking into account any emotional aspect if it serves my purpose. Prime example is listening to people in a mediation, letting them release their concerns, while I sit there, nod, listen and take it onboard showing some sympathy only then to use it to convince them to accept the proposal I'm about to give them. Effective. Very effective. But is it a 'good' thing?

Professional aspects aside, I'm also worried about doing the same in my personal life. I am the sort of person who emotionally invests in everything I do. Typically, I'm emotionally candid. But a couple of events over the last whee while have made me stop and consider whether I need to be a little blank, a little separate, a little heartless.

And that bothers me. To have to live less candidly, less open, less honest to simply make things easier. Is this what everyone does? Or just lawyers?

Wellington

Working in a high flying job may be all well and good. But I don't get to enjoy regional public holidays. I missed Auckland Anniversary Weekend because I had to be in Wellington for work. Not that I'm complaining too much. I got to go to the Wellington Cup. Along with 27,999 other people.

It was good times, though when the crowd really became too much we departed back to the city. And I'm glad we did. Apparently a later train back ended up being stuck for 30 minutes, doors closed, inadequate ventilation, crowded and stuffy. Not to mention unbelievably hot.

The other good thing about going to Wellington, other than catching up with as many friends as possible because that's a given, is visiting my dealer - Melting Perfection. Damn that stuff is good. And like a good addict, I'm getting my friends hooked so I don't feel so bad about it. I've successfully turned a couple of people at work. One of the partners will be next.

And yes, I know. I still need to post those promised photos from New Years.

Quickly

Time for updates.  Christmas was great, it was brilliant to catch up with family and friends.  New Years was great too, unwinding on the beach, laying in the sun.  I will put photos up, but I'm too tired to actually upload the photos at the moment.  Soon, I promise.

I will, however, provide you music.  TV on the Radio released a brilliant album last year, Dear Science, and the whole thing is fantastic, layered and complex.  My picks are Golden Age, Family Tree and Lover's Day.

And, as always, work has kept me busy.  Very busy.  And I'm only going to get busier.  This is precisely what I wanted, and probably the best time to be doing all this - young, vibrant, enthusiastic, and of course no commitments, not even a pet.  So a couple of stressful days, a few lost nights of sleep aren't going to do irreparable harm.

Doesn't hurt that I have a few weekends here and there that just make me beam.  Oh, nothing like that.  Just drinks and laughs with friends, sunshine and conversation with new people, and fresh air and strawberries outside of Auckland.

Speaking of which, there seems to be something about Auckland drivers.  Or at least the drivers around Ellerslie.  They seem to have a habit of hanging out windows and yelling obscenities at me.  One such incident involved a guy driving buy, and loudly yelling "homo".  I was puzzled.  Actually, my first thought was what an incredibly small mind he had and how could he possibly consider me, form and then voice that opinion all while driving.  It certainly appeared beyond his capacity.

Until next time.

A New Year

Just to let you know, I am back and will be posting some stuff in the next whee while.

There's Always One

I'm a little concerned. Oh, Christmas was great and being down in Wellington is fantastic. That's not my concern.

My concern is that despite all my efforts to ensure that this blog was kept amongst friends, all steps to ensure it was as far removed from the public domain as possible, it ultimately failed. How do I know with certainty? I have a nifty little tool which allows me to review statistics for visitors to the blog.

Anyways, to cut a story shorter, a link was posted in the forums of a New Zealand site. I uncovered the details of the original poster - the joys of ignorance and publicly available data (By the way if you read this, I would seriously recommend reviewing your thoughts of privacy and behaviour online). I still don't quite know how he found this site. Well, that is other than saying his flatmate showed him this.

So, moral of the story. Some things have been removed, somethings have been edited. The question is whether this continues. I guess I'll think about that over the New Year break.

Holiday Mode

I just wanted to post a bigger version of one those pictures. I remain fascinated by it.


And maybe provide a song for you that equally piqued my interest on the way home to holidays: Bloc Party - Signs.

Until next time.

Briefly

There's not much that's happened between Wednesday and now.  I'm on the crook side recovering from a frenetic week and some virus of cold that has swept through the office.  I guess with everyone working so hard the immune levels drop.  Next thing I knew I was in bed at 7:30 pm on a Friday night sleeping through until 10 am this morning.

Anyways, I'll have some pics, music and thoughts to post soon enough.

Promises Promises

As promised here are some of the photos from previous excursions.

This year Telecom has set up a Christmas tree down at Victoria Park.  I would say it is replete with lights, but the tree itself is comprised lights.  Lights showing distinct colour changes and patterns I might add.  Apparently they only repeat every 1.5 hours.  Which isn't bad.

You might be find this first picture a little odd.

It is taken from inside a phone booth looking up at the tree.  What the....?  I hear you say.  Well, there are 4 booths at each compass point of the tree.  Inside the tree you can dial Santa and leave a message for him about what presents you want, how good you've been and what you'll do to him if he doesn't cough up said presents.  Once your message is complete and you hang up, you're told to look up and you see a string of lights light up blue and head towards the star at the top of the tree.  Quite impressive on a Wednesday night at 1 am in the morning.  I should state this was last week.

This second photo is taken from underneath the tree.  Where you can sit or lie down on bean bags facing upwards taking in the lights and all their psychedelic glory.  It was unbelievably soothing.  Mind you, simply getting out of the office is soothing at the moment, but let's not dwell on that.

And then on Saturday, there was Auckland's Christmas in the Park.  This was taken in the evening around 6 pm.   There were still people arriving, and this photo doesn't capture those people between us and the stage.  Of which there would have been a significant number.  That's the Auckland Musuem up on the hill for those unaware.

And now for some music.  I've been listening to a number of albums on high rotate, and selections from them are as follows:

MGMT - Time to Pretend

Kayne West - Champion

Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal

Glasvegas - Geraldine

Eagles of Death Metal - Wannabe in LA

Enjoy.

Those photos and links

I'll post those promised photos and music links as soon as I get the chance.  Hopefully later tonight.

And I think I've had more comments over the last couple of days than in the last year or so.  Not sure how that happened.

Edited. Somehow this has spread out beyond friends.

It pays to check

I had a couple of posts I had drafted during my wanderings about town that I was going to revisit and add bits and pieces to.  Tis the joy of mobile gadgetry to accomplish such things.

One was a reference to the summer days upon us, complete with links to some complimentary tunes.  All very happy go lucky, and probably quite interesting.  Who knows, maybe I'll post something in a similar form later.

The other post was completely different.  It was going to open up by saying that I had witnessed two people at work break down into tears and shudder with the load of work upon them.  Most people at work this week were near that brink.  It wasn't a pretty week at work.

But I really feel like time has moved on from those posts.  It's like I can't go back and edit them, rewrite them, revisit them.  They are rushed snapshots of that time, darkened at the edges with out of focus details.  It doesn't feel right to show them, and it doesn't feel any better to redo them.  Which is intriguing unto itself.

So instead I write about the snapshot that is now.  I went to a friend's work Christmas function last night.  The theme was Rio-Carnival or Mardi-Gras.  So I went along dressed in a fluffy peach shirt, black and gold vest, tight black pants completed with calf length leather boots.  I thought, and was assured by my friend, that it would be on the lower end of the spectrum for the night.

How wrong I was.  Everyone else showed up in suits with cheesy masks.

But apparently I looked good.  I had the girls from my law firm, upon seeing me before I left, all wolf whistling.  One even commented through her stunned look that I had "an unexpectedly amazing physique".  I was thrown a bit by her frankness.  Though there's nothing wrong in being the office eye candy.

But the best was yet to come.  The CEO of my friend's work approached my friend and told him that I looked very attractive.  He wanted to know if I was single.  Still, it's a compliment.

I may post photos if I can get my hands on some.  And only after I've vetted them for appropriateness. 

Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble

I have seen the height of rudeness over the last few days. But I have also seen some very good times. Drinking French Champagne of numerous varieties, finger food, and laughing about over quizzes has been a good time. This week, though just started, has seen two very polar extremes in my life.

I should refrain from writing more. I am, of course, inebriated. Too much champagne, regardless of quality, will have that effect on people. I had intended to write a lengther post incorporating some interesting tidbits and music. I will, now, leave that until a less fluid moment.

Confessions of a Nice Guy

The statement "all nice guys are either married or gay" is a fallacy.

It should be "all nice guys are married, gay or a few women have spoilt it for the remaining women". Or "only married or gay women can spot the nice guys". Long story made short: to rebuff a nice guy, don't presume. Don't assume. And please be as nice as the guy has been to you.

Anyways, now that I've vented, time for some shiny happy tidbits. Today was the Grey Lynn Park Festival. And the weather was brilliant. Well, provided you stayed in the market area. As soon as you walked up the green hills surround the stalls and stage, the wind would harrass you from all angles.

But it was fantastic. The food was amazing, my personal favourites being the jumbo mussel fritters and the Vietnamese rice paper rolls. Fresh and tasty. The music was entertaining, the masses of people swarming, and the atmosphere just welcoming.

I didn't have my camera, so I stole other people's photos to give you an idea.

The Inner Geek

I know it's been a long time between posts.  Or at least a couple of weeks.  I've been busy, what with work and people visiting.

However, now it is time for some geeking out.  Simplify Media is a gem.  It allows me to stream my entire electronic music library to anywhere I want.  It creates a portal on my home computer to any portal I create elsewhere.  This means I can access my music from work, and most importantly my iPhone.

Why is this important?  It means I don't have to worry about storing the music on anything other than one computer.  All I have to worry about is transfer of data, which is a needless worry over wireless internet.

Okay, now that I've had my geek-out, time for something else.

What I Should be Doing

I should state that what is found within these pages isn't necessarily a true reflection.  It's a reflection, or more precisely a snapshot, of the moment at which I find time.

Sometimes I make the time because I need to unload.  Because I need to share thoughts that have been nagging me.  Thoughts that I need to tease out and see in front of me.  It helps with their digestion.  Much like the previous post.

It's days like today that I really should write about.  The days where I sleep in til late because I had an brilliantly entertaining night before hand.  The days where I wake up, bathe in the sunlight, and meander into town to do the simple mundane tasks I don't have time to really do during the week.  Like book shopping.

I should write about the strolls through suburban Auckland, the solitary figure against the sea of cars.  No one really walks anywhere in Auckland.  It's appalling.  Anyway, I should write about coming home with that sun kissed feel, that smell of sunshine and summer just wafting off my cotton shirt.  I should write about the fact the sun makes my curly hair into ringlets.  Hell, I should have photos of it.

But, I don't.  And that's probably the best thing.  The fact I don't write about those things means that I'm out enjoying them.  It means I have the time to relish them, to find myself busy with life.  I will endeavour though to share more of it.

In the interim, I leave you with Beethoven.  Specifically the first movement of the Emperor's Concerto - piano concerto 5 in E Flat, opus 73.  This always makes me smile, always lifts my spirits.  Enjoy.