That song

Figured I should actually post the song too, even if it's a couple of days late.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Franz Ferdinand, Ulysses.

Waiting is better than having

Tomorrow's the second week of advent. Yes, I celebrate Christmas even though I'm not religious, but I'm quite willing to overlook everything churchy just for the lights, the scents and the movies on TV.

There's something else to it though, the notion of moving towards a fixed point rather into a vast open field of nothingness. December with it's advent offers a break from the endless oceans of time and with presents in the end. Though, wanting is better than having. Once you have, there's no more wanting, no more longing, and very rarely does it even begin to meet your expectations.

When Christmas Eve has already been it's done. Finito. What good were those presents, did you get what you wanted? Is your stomach full and your bank account empty? So really, advent is better, candles and oranges.

No matter how it feels in the middle of March when everything's slush and damp, we're still moving towards a fixed point, the final end, and you can't take all those things with you when you go.

Award for most creative lyrics goes to...

Whoever composed this version of Ulysses by Franz Ferdinand. Within parenthesis is how it actually goes, and some other stuff.

While I sit in here, a sentimental face stares (I sit and hear sentimental footsteps)
And a voice says hi so (Then a voice say "Hi, so?)
So what you gotta what you gotta disdain (So what you got? What you got this time?)
C’mon let’s get high (at least this part was right...)
C’mon look so, you got next oh (Come on lexxo, what you got next-o)
Walk twenty five miles oh (kinda right yeah...)
Well I’m bored I’m bored (Mhmm)
C’mon let’s get high

C’mon let’s get high
C’mon let’s get high
High

Well I found a new way (I've found a new way)
I found a new way
C’mon doll and use me (wtf... it goes "come on don't amuse me")
I don't need your sympathy (this is right though)

La, la la la la
Ulysses
I'll find a new way
I'll find a new way, baby

My Ulysses, My Ulysses (Am I Ulysses? Am I Ulysses?)
No, bet you are now, boy (No, but you are now, boy)
So sinister, so sinister (good.)
Last night was wild (good good)
What’s a matter there, feeling kinda anxious?
That heart that grew cold (That hot blood grew cold)
Yeah everyone, everybody knows it
Yeah everyone, everybody know it
Everybody knows I

La, la la la la
Ulysses
I'll find a new way
I'll find a new way, baby

La, la la la la
Ulysses
I’ll find a new way
Well I'll find a new way, baby oh …

Oh, then suddenly you know
You're never going home
You're never you're never you're never you're never you're never you're never
You're never going home.

Not Ulysses, baby.
No, la la la la whooo whoo
You’re not Ulysses, whooo whoo
La la la la, whooo whoo

I mean, seriously, sentimental face stares??

For the sake of time

In Sweden we have the tradition of letting children take music classes, usually starting around 3rd or 4th grade. Getting to leave class to go toot a trumpet or bang a piano seemed like a waste of time. My best part of the day was when two bullies had lessons right after one another, they never came back on time and the room settled. Even back then I couldn't quite grasp the concept of musical notes, so I never learned. Not even playing twinkle twinkle little star on the piano or flute. According to my high school music teacher I'm not worthy of living.

I'm wondering how many of those people still play their horns, drums, clarinet or violin. Did they keep it up for long after it offered an escape from class or was just a ploy to make kids into musicians?

There were concerts too, endless concerts with instruments out of tune. The idea wasn't really to teach anyone to play well, it was more under the banderole that anyone can, everyone's good, if only they try. Those poor souls that didn't participate in the concerts were forced to listen, as I recall we were five children. Five to applaud twentyfive. Do the math for an entire school...

I would like to see some statistics for how it was in different parts of the country, and not only in this god fearing area full of farmers and factory workers. (Dear Molly, that was such an evil thing to say) But seriously, I have a point in that. Maybe it's more appealing to those who didn't have classical music around them anyway, to those whose mother didn't say "Listen to this sweetheart, can't you just hear how the build up fills your whole being and then explodes in your heart?", repeatedly playing the same symphonies over and over. And maybe I would have been able to enjoy the out of tune concerts myself had I not been dolled up as a child and taken to places a child had no place.

So I suppose I should be grateful that they were given the chance to discover the things I was given for free. Just like I had to learn to play soccer and hockey. I never would have gotten the idea to try had it been up to me. It saddens me that the activities I had an actual intrest in weren't part of the curricilum so the soccer nerds never had to learn to ride horses.

School isn't only about teaching you to read and write, it's also about showing you new things, something that doesn't have anything to do with your family and friends, a chance for you to grow and discover who you will eventually become.

For me, that ment I discovered I'll never be able to read music, and I ice skate better than I kick a ball and I have no personal use for the periodic table, but that's a completely different story. My love for books, words, music from another angle, cats and the colour red has completely different origins. Although, I will give school some credit for helping me with the basics of a different language.

Thank you.

Today I sat in a hallway reading a book. Sinking into it word by word only being flung back to reality occationally by the sound of a piano out of tune, heels clicking on marble floors and held back laughter. I smiled, but wasn't fully aware of what was going on around me. The building is interesting, it's floors almost lavitating around a tube in the middle, looking down or up gives you a glance of what's going on beneath or what's over your head. The more I listened the more quiet the world grew, eventually it was just me, words, piano and laughter, and those occational heel clicks.

I felt as if though I should throw my head back and let my hair flow down over the ledge of the floor, the air catching it and blowing it towards my face. I didn't. That would have been silly. Yet I was filled by an essence too satisfying to deny. I'm here and I'm part of something.

Thank you world for reminding me of your presence and thank you for letting me be part of it.

Oh the humanity!

Quote of the day "I compare these versions, but they're different, and you can't compare them."

Que?

Tuesdays are the new black

I was flipping through the paper, trying to find something to catch my eye. Can't be bothered with the referendum in Schwitzerland. Democracy is more important than religion. Too bad that it looks like racism though.

Flipping pages, governmentally owned Swedish powercompany Vattenfall has bought coal plants somewhere, not every smart, we should care about the enviroment more.

Flipping pages, less men die of cancer. Lovely. Perhaps I should read this. I might find useful bits of information.

Flipping pages, animal rights activists in Spain. Something about blood and being naked. Good cause, naked isn't the way to go, who cares about naked people?

Flipping pages, Swedes demand the names of the people in the WHO committee... Oh, it's about the vaccine again, don't really care. It'd be ironic if I caught the swine flu and died. Or the oink oink disease. Did you know that they don't want to call it the swine flu in Swedish schools as it enhances the muslims' idea of the pig being a filthy animal. I wonder if that is related to the referendum in Schwitzerland?

Flipping pages, the jellyfish is as big as horses and invading the coast of Japan. Makes me think of that video with the leopard seal. You know, the one that tried to feed the photographer. It made for a good YouTube. I watched it several times actually. It's a book too. Hm, a Christmaspresent for someone perhaps? Only two more to buy. So many bizzare creatures in the waters. Like whales. Good God. Whales are scary.

Flipping pages, sports, ugh. Sports need to be banned.

Quickly flipping pages, Russia stops all imports of Swedish meat. Why? Not interesting enough to justify reading the article.

Flipping pages, WARNING!!!! WINTER IS COMING!!! Seriously. It's Sweden. It's December. It's nice when it snows. Drinking tea and watching the flurries. I hope they're right for a change.

Flipping pages, stuff about the train in Russia, something about Tiger Woods, something about weight loss, something about an ad for Gilette, something about a disposable toilet. What? Will help the people in the slum in India. Good for them. How are we doing on toiletpaper? It can probably wait til next time I'm at the store.

Flipping pages, Saab in a meeting with GM. Hm, they'll be milking it for all it's worth. Not sure which party I'm refering to. I've already started planning what I need to do when I'm done reading the paper. I've never actually owned a Saab. Maybe I should buy one. A pink one, like that other article I flipped past, something about Paris Hilton. I don't think that was Saab though. Maybe they should make more fun cars and people'd buy them. Like really interesting stuff. Speakers on the outside and blinking lights and things. Yeah.

Flipping pages, the FRA law goes into effect today. I should stop my downloading. Oh yeah, I don't download stuff, I stream instead. I like Spotify. Works for me, who needs a bunch of stuff you'll get tired of eventually on their harddrive. Perhaps I should actually read more about the FRA so I don't accidently commit a crime.

I think the laundry is done. Good Lord I hate Tuesdays.