Blogger - The New Compose Mode

Some time around November, Blogger (as part of its 10th Anniversary) created a new compose mode.

The Real Blogger details all this, including how to switch between the two, the new features and the drawbacks. Two of these drawbacks is the loss of the Video button and the Spellcheck button.

If, like me, you both want to switch to the new compose mode (it does make image uploading and page breaks/jumps a heck of a lot easier to deal with!) but you also rely on Spellcheck as a crutch, here is one solution.

1. Download Firefox.
2. Install the relevant dictionary.
3. Restart Firefox.
4. Now, as you type, any mistakes you make will be highlighted by a red row of dots underlining the offending words.
5. Simply right-click any underlined words to find spelling suggestions.
6. Click on the right one to automatically replace it - just like Blogger, only with right-clicking instead of left!

I am sure there are many different add-ons and work-arounds out there, but for a simple, compatible solution follow the above steps. You can also add different dictionaries, for any bilinguals out there.

The one problem with this is that the red dotted line is a bit hard to see. It is obvious if you are looking for it while you type, but to scan a previously written document for mistakes it is pretty tough work.

On a more positive note, this add-on is compatible with all text boxes - comments sections, Google searchs and, best of all, Twitter! However, if anyone has found a better solution, tell us all in the comments.

Friday Fight Night - Liverpool - Paul Smith vs Tony Dodson

Let me preface this review by getting any bias out of the way - I'm not a huge fan of Frank Warren promotions. Every Frank Warren show I watch I know in the back of my mind that these fights are booked in such a way that his protégés are almost guaranteed a win. That's not to say they aren't fine boxers, just that I feel other promoters (Frank Maloney for instance) put on a more balanced and thus entertaining show. I enjoyed two out of the three fights tonight, but I would not say I was entertained.

Secondly, I feel strongly that Tony Quigley should have been taking part tonight as part of a rematch against Paul Smith. I may be the only one that holds that opinion, but I hold it tightly and am more convinced than ever having viewed the fight.

Thirdly, I was very happy to see that Dave Parris was nowhere near these fights. Although he makes a decent referee, his judgement and scoring of late has been nothing short of appalling. I was seriously very excited to not hear his name read out as a judge, which I think says a lot about him.

Now that I've gotten my personal feelings out of the way (and what use is a personal blog without some strong opinions, right?), here is my report of the night's action.

Pre-Fight - Paul Smith vs Tony Dodson

This Friday sees Paul Smith (27yr, 28(15)-1(0)-0) defend his British Super-Middleweight title against Tony Dodson (29yr, 24(12)-5(4)-1) in what proves to be a great fight that will most likely go the distance.

Now, putting aside my excitement for this fight, I feel I must mention a man seemingly forgotten in the shuffle - one Tony Quigley (25yr, 13(6)-2(1)-0), who in his last two fights has face the two men fighting on Friday.

First, almost exactly a year ago, Tony Quigley defeated Tony Dodson in a last (12th) round TKO to win the vacant British Super-Middleweight title. His first defence was in October 2009 against Paul Smith, who won a split decision of 116-112, 116-113 and 114-116. Now, I was with the third judge and scored it to Quigley, but by all accounts it was a close, tough contest that had the whole of Liverpool on their feet - some booing, some cheering, but everyone on an emotional high.

Unless my ears and memories deceive me, promoter Frank Warren immediately found a microphone and announced a rematch. This seemed to pacify the crowd somewhat (I'm sure all agreed that, no matter who won, it was as close a fight as any and one worth watching again) and that was the end of it.

Fast forward several months, and we now see Tony Dodson leaping right over Tony Quigley into the challenger's corner, while Quigly will face the vicious Paul Samuels (36yr, 21(12)-7(4)-2), hot off back-to-back wins over Cello Renda, in April.

So, not only has Quigley lost his belt in a closely-contested battle, not only has he been overlooked for a rematch, he now faces a man who could potentially throw major spanners in his future career. A devastating loss for Quigley in April could well propel Samuels into title contention, but it would set Quigley back greatly, possibly derailing his career for good.

I fail to find the justice in this situation. While I will be watching, an enjoying, the fight on Friday night, it will be with a very bittersweet taste in my mouth. My one hope is that Quigley dominates his fight, Smith wins his, and the two come together for a rematch soon.

American Boxing - An Observation

I have recently discovered a TV channel that carries American boxing, so I may begin blogging more about that too when I get the chance.

From what little I have seen however, I have made a startling observation - American boxers seem to be a lot more vicious, in almost an MMA/UFC kinda way.

One fight I saw recently had a muscular, tattooed, WWE-wrestler-looking man squaring off against a podgy, middle-aged, punch-bag-looking man. The first guy was simply throwing wild, ugly punches, several a second, while his opponent was doing all he could to block - arms up, at one point he threw a knee, but nothing could stop this battering machine.

This was the low point on an animalistic show. At least the other fights seemed evenly matched - two muscular, rabid fighters throwing wild, horrible punches at each other with seemingly no thought to tactics, accuracy, skill.

For a first impression, I was equally impressed at the bravery of these men, and shocked at the complete disregard for their own and their opponent's health and well-being. Hopefully not all American boxing shows are like this one, but for now I will keep an eye on the TV schedule and try to find more and report back.

Skins - S4E5 - Freddie/Effy

To brief those who are not in the know - Skins is a television programme dealing with the madness that surrounds many a teenager's life in Britain today. It shows the story of the kids who are brought up with drugs, sex, alcohol, partying and various mental diseases as the heart of their lives. Often it is funny, often it is outrageous, often it is eye-opening and, like tonight, it is sometimes very harrowing.

I've never had reason to blog about Skins previously (and with all my Lost stuff, I doubt I will find much time to blog about it in the future) - but as this episode says, it is not the past or the future that is important, it is the now, and right now I would like to heap praise upon the writers and young actors for dealing with a topic usually skimmed over in most media - psychotic depression.

In typical Skins fashion, the core story is usually played out in an overly melodramatic, hyper-realistic method, causing the lines to blur between satire, reality and entertainment. To sum up this episode in short terms - Effy and Freddie have been given run of Effy's mother's home while she is away, and are using it to host their own private 24/7 party - drink, drugs and lots of sex. While this is amusing for some time, Freddie begins to come down to reality and face up to his responsibilities at college, while Effy continues her high - waking up every morning with vodka in her cereal.

Freddie tries to get Effy to clean up her act with him, but she essentially pushes him away - if it were the '50s, she'd be calling him a square. Things begin spiralling strangely out of control for Effy - ranting about death, throwing parties and hiding under the bed, having delusions of "them" breaking through into the "real" world. Having experienced his own mother suffering depression and killing herself when he was young, Freddie begins worrying that Effy is suffering psychotic depression and seeks the advice of his grandfather - in essence, Freddie blames his father for his mum dying as he feels his dad should have "done more for her" rather then trusting her to professional care.

With this in mind, Freddie tries his best to contain Effy's delusions by himself, and to keep her grounded in the real world, but things come to a head during a festival in which Effy suffers a nervous breakdown. Freddie takes her to visit his grandad, who convinces Freddie that the time has come to get Effy to some professional care. Unfortunately, Effy had already managed to sneak away and, in the most horrific scene since Chris dying in Season 2, she has slit her wrist in an attempt to commit suicide.

I seriously worried for a moment that the episode was going to end on this terrible note and that, on reflection, the entire series would have been about Effy's spiralling depression. Thankfully, they manage to get Effy to the hospital on time and she is next seen in a hospital bed, recovering. Freddie goes to see her, but again she pushes him away, causing him to rush back to her home and burn her gruesome mural of death. Cook arrives as Freddie is doing so and, in a very confusing and emotional scene, tries to help Freddie by showing that he is taking too much burden on himself and that he, Cook, will try to help him through it.

All in all, it was a very confusing and horrifying episode, which although it doesn't sound complimentary, it is rather commendable. The writers, director, and above all the actors, did a tremendous job portraying a terrible mental affliction in a brutal and realistic manner. (Although the timescales were a bit strange - Effy seemed to spiral too far from party-girl-on-the-edge to full-blown-psychotic-break within a few hours).

I really don't know what to make of this episode - it is as though the series has taken a strange turn into utter bleakness, but will return to rather relative fun-loving mayhem next week. The show has already touched upon mental disease (Season 1 and 2 era Cassie), and has had its share of dark episodes (Season 1 Episode 8 "Effy" was one of the worst (in terms of content) and probably where Effy's spiral of depression begun; as was Season 3 Episode 8, again "Effy", which was where her mental psychosis really began showing in a violent and manic way).

The show usually has a more light-hearted episode following these darker-than-black ones, and next week's "JJ" looks to follow that tradition. Hints were already dropped this week with JJ, Thomas and Pandora making little remarks and gestures about love and relationships, and it would appear that, finally, JJ's 'girlfriend' will be appearing. (I had read at the start of the season that JJ's girlfriend would be a major new character, but with only 3 episodes remaining (JJ, Effy, 'everyone') that doesn't appear to be the case - still, we take what we can get).

Rumour has it that there will be a Season 5, but with an all new cast. While Season 3 was a big departure from Season 2, at least we still had Effy and, to a lesser extent Pandora, to carry on the 'main' storyline, I wonder what Season 5 will be like with an all-new cast. If the past is anything to go by, there will be a light-hearted season with a dot of blackness, followed by a depressive season with spots of brightness (and I am now beginning to sound like a weather report).

Whatever the case may be, it appears from looking over the previous 4 seasons, Freddie's college report was an apt one - is the Future just History repeating?

Lost - S6E4 The Substitute - Analysis pt 3 - Bulletpoints

So, here we are at our final part of this Analysis: Bulletpoints. Please read the Theories and Episode Review segments if you have not done so already. These Bulletpoints are simply little details that wouldn't fit anywhere in either the Review or the Theories.


I'm Wondering, Fellas
If You've Heard The News


Off-Island
- Perhaps Locke just really likes the rain?
- The whole Locke/Helen/'Jack' scene was so beautifully one - expertly performed and brilliantly written, I just wish the writers could tie up all their loose ends in such a way (Walt, Libby). Here, the writers shrugged off the whole Locke & Jack connection in a simple and wonderful way - without the need to draw it out over 10 episodes, numerous flashbacks and multiple monologues.
- Did the 1977 Others have some mode of transportation (such as a boat)? Did the Island sink in 1977, or at another point in time (ie did the bomb cause the volcano to sink the Island in the 1980s, for example)? Finally, are the 'new' Ethan and Ben normal people in this timeline, or are they undercover Others? - These are three very related questions that should ideally be answered sometime soon.
- We really need to study Anthony Cooper's timeline and figure out how Locke can be in a wheelchair yet still have a relationship with this man.

On-Island
- Frank totally broke the 4th wall - he is like a Season 1-era Hurley, only far less subtle. However, like Ferris Beuller, his addressing the audience is forgivable.
- Smokey repeating Locke's "Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do" line (twice!) was a pretty cool moment, but totally left me all "WTF Mate?!"
- Finally, it has been said before, but the Ajira flight leaves me completely confused on all aspects. I am sure I'll need to re-watch several episodes to even begin to understand the entire timeline of events, but I wouldn't be surprised if there turns out to be more than two timelines running concurrently on the show. Even if this turns out to be the case, it still doesn't explain why Sun was left behind on the plane while everyone else flashed back to 1977. I could argue that she isn't a Candidate, but then neither is Kate, so that doesn't make sense. "WTF Mate?!"

Misc
- Speaking of the Locke/Helen scene, I really don't like Carlton and Damon written episodes. "The Life And Death Of Jeremy Bentham" was the perfect way to tie up Walt, and Abaddon's, storyline. I'm sure if the likes of Elizabeth Sarnoff had been the lead scribe, it would have been handled well. Instead, D&C dropped the ball completely. Even the highly emotional Ben-killing-Locke scene was a bit ridiculous. Ben saves Locke, just to find out that Locke has Jin's ring and knows Eloise Hawking's name, then kills him... yeah, what? Sorry, personal rant over - I just hope that D&C do not write the final episode. I have always been a bit hit-and-miss with whether I like the episodes they have wrote or not, and lately it has been no more than yes.
- On a more positive note, in honor of Sawyer's impromptu disco, all the titles across the three parts this week have been Iggy Pop lyrics. How many of you noticed? Leave your name in the comments section to win a NoPrize, but for now, it's time to -


Get Up
And Get Out

Saturday Fight Night - London Results

I have never been a huge fan of Frank Warren, nor am I of his current boxing stable.

I think James DeGale's recent actions sum up my feelings on this group quite well - outside of the ring, he is a cocky, self-assured young man who has been led to believe that he is automatically entitled to great things on the world stage. His recent quotes have included claims that he is not "dodging" George Groves, rather that he feels he deserves far more than £50,000 currently being offered up to face him, as well as thinking that David Haye needs DeGale's name on his undercard to 'sex it up a bit'. The fact that every layman in Britain knows who World Champion David Haye is, and that only boxing fans will have heard of Olympic Gold Medalist James DeGale, seems to have passed this young man by.

However, despite my personal feelings on the matter, inside the ring the results speak for themselves. I only had time to view DeGale's and Gavin's fight, but every Warren prospect came out a winner on this evening, Gavin in particular looking good in the ring and unfortunately robbed of his perfect (100% win/100% KO) record. Had the fight lasted a few more rounds, he might have ended it definitively.

The results were as follows:

Kevin Mitchell (31(23)-0-0, 25yr) [W KO] Ignacio Mendoza (27(18)-6(3)-2, 26yr)
Mitchell won the WBO Inter-Continental Lightweight title.

Nathan Cleverly (19(9)-0-0, 23yr) [W TKO] Antonio Brancalion (32(8)-8(2)-2, 34yr)
Cleverly won the vacant European Light-Heavyweight title.

James DeGale (6(4)-0-0, 24yr) [W TKO] Matthew Barr (14(6)-6(6)-0, 32yr)

Frankie Gavin (6(5)-0-0, 24yr) [W Points] Peter McDonagh (14(2)-16(1)-0, 32yr)

(stats given are updated, reflecting the result of each match)

Hopefully, given time, these young men can grow into the spotlight that Warren looks set to thrust them in. Former Warren boy, World Champion Amir Khan, grew up as a touted, unbeaten Warren prospect until suffering his first defeat, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Khan went on to make fundamental changes at the training level, secured a World championship belt, matured well outside of the ring, has moved from under Warren's promotion to a US-based outfit and is finally destined the worldwide acclaim many had been trying to prematurely heap upon him earlier in his career.

I sincerely hope that DeGale and Gavin can take a leaf out of Khan's book and move on up from overly hyped domestic wins and onto the real World stage.

All in all it was a good night for keeping the British statistic fans happy, but it wont have made a dent on the current worldwide boxing depression.

Friday Fight Night - London Results

To be honest, I didn't catch much of the action at all this week, so I can only offer you the results.

There wasn't much happening tonight - mostly young boxers looking to add some extra wins to their records. The main fights were as follows:

Grzegorz Proksa (20(13)-0-0, 25yr) [W TKO] Tyan Booth (11(2)-6(2)-1, 26yr)
Proksa won the vacant European (EU) Middleweight title

Lenny Daws (20(8)-1(0)-2, 31yr) [DRAW] Jason Cook (26(13)-3(2)-1, 34yr)
Daws retained the British Light-Welterweight title by default

Steve Williams (9(3)-0-0, 25yr) [W Points] Michael Grant (12(1)-2(1)-1, 26yr)
Williams won the vacant English Light-Welterweight title

Stuart Hall (7(3)-0-1, 29yr) [W Points] Richard Szebeledi (4(0)-8(3)-0, 23yr)
Hall's next fight will be on 19th March for the English Bantamweight title

Freddie Turner (1(0)-0-0) [W Points] Jason Nesbitt (7(5)-103(11)-2, 36yr)
Turner made his professional debut

(stats given reflective of each fight's result)


From what I saw, the Daws v Cook fight was yet another close call, but one where I felt that the challenger had edged the win. This is perhaps the third such fight I have seen in recent months, thankfully from different promoters, however you can't help feeling that things fall too conveniently towards a rematch.

Anyway, I am not here to point fingers, but it is something I will be keeping an eye on to see if there is a trend in future fights. For now, I am glad to see fighters facing against one another at a similar age - I am growing sick of seeing fighters in their early 20s walk over fighters in their late 30s every week.

Ferris Bueller's' Psychotic Break

Everybody has seen "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", and if you haven't, I advise you do. Immediately. Seriously, stop reading this post.


Now those Sportos, Motorheads, Geeks, Sluts, Bloods, Waistoids, Dickheads and Dweebs have all left, let us righteous dudes explore this fascinating theory - Ferris Bueller is nothing more than Cameron's imaginary friend.

There is already a fairly popular fan-theory called The Ferris Bueller Fight Club theory, but I would like to take it one step further - Sloane is a real person, and is actually Cameron/Ferris' girlfriend.

Cameron is, clearly, a very troubled man, but a genius all the same. Every idea, plot and plan that Ferris executes is actually Cameron acting out in the brashest, bravest way to cover up his inherent faults. He feels abandoned by his parents (although it is true that Ferris/Cameron's family show some concern over his health, nobody stays at home to look after him, in either scenario).

As Ferris tries to explain, he will soon be graduating school, leaving Sloane for a year and, he is suddenly realising, will probably grow out of his "imaginary friend" phase, the one person besides Sloane who he can connect with, and move into the 'real' world of jobs, colleges and adulthood. His "day off" with Ferris and Sloane is the last chance Cameron will have to properly be a child and enjoy childish things, as he grapples with the concept of becoming a man.

Every single conversation Ferris and Cameron conduct with one another reads like the same person trying to figure out his own confusing thoughts and feelings, for example:

Ferris: I'm taking the day off, come on over.
Cameron: I can't, stupid, I'm sick.
Ferris: That's all in your head. Come on over.
Cameron: I feel like shit, I can't go anywhere.
Ferris: I'm sorry to hear that. Now come on over and pick me up.
Cameron: I'm dying.
Ferris: You're not dying. You just can't think of anything good to do.
[Ferris: Cameron really needs a day off, he has a lot of things to sort out before he goes to college.]

(...)

Cameron: What?
Ferris: That's too suspicious. Talk!
Cameron: You!
Ferris: Talk!

(...)

Cameron: My father spent three years restoring this car. It is his love. It is his passion.
Ferris: It is his fault he didn't lock the garage.
Cameron: Ferris, what are you talking about? My father loves this car more than life.
Ferris: A man with such priorities doesn't deserve this fine automobile.


(...)


Cameron: As long as I've known him, everything works for him. There's nothing he can't handle - I can't handle anything. School, parents, the future - Ferris can do anything. I don't know what I'm going to do.
Sloane: College.
Cameron: Yeah, but to do what?
Sloane: What are you interested in?
Cameron: Nothing.
Sloane: Me neither.
Cameron: You're crazy!
Sloane: What do you think Ferris is going to do?
Cameron: He's going to be a fry cook.


Also, notice that Mr Rooney is only worried about Ferris' absence record, and how he has got Sloane mixed up in his Day Off. Never once is Cameron mentioned, and it is made out that he has a worse (or, an identical) absence record than Ferris!

If you have ever read the original script, you will have noticed even more stark comparisons between the two characters. Take the original dialogue in the final scene between Ferris/Cameron/Sloane and the final Ferris/Sloane scene:

Cameron: No, thanks. I want to deal with it by myself.
Sloane: What about your one word?
Cameron: You already did it. If I need it again, I'll use it.
[He smiles. He raises an impish eyebrow.]
Cameron: It's cool. I'm loose.

(...)

Sloane: You didn't have an idea, did you?
Ferris: Not a glimmer.
Sloane: You're so smart.
Ferris: No, I'm just real loose.

4. Develop a second persona.

The one sole scene that tests this theory is when Cameron is on the phone to Principle Rooney, then Ferris comes on the other line. How this could work out with one person seems on the surface impossible, but it is merely difficult - think of all the various tape machines and keyboard effects Ferris has at his disposal, I'm sure he could have devised a way.

Finally, a few interesting points of discussion taken from IMDB's trivia page - Ferris wears a different outfit in each scene before he and Cameron go to pick up Sloane, and; whenever Mr Rooney and Ferris have a conversation with each other, only one of them speaks throughout the entire conversation - the other is completely silent.

Another thinking point - remember the references Ferris makes to John Lennon being The Walrus? "I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together..."

I strongly recommend you dust off those DVDs, or dig out those VHS, and re-watch FBDO in this manner. For added effect, watch "Drop Dead Fred" either immediately before or afterwards (and also perhaps Season 5 of "House", particularly the later episodes which deal well with split personality syndromes).


"Danke Schoen, Darling, Danke Schoen.
Thank you for seeing me again.
Though we go on our separate ways,

Still the memory stays, for always, my heart says, Danke Schoen."

Interpreting For The Masses - Eminem's "The Real Slim Shady"

My Interpretation of Eminem's "The Real Slim Shady"

"Hello?
Is anybody there?
Could Eminem please introduce,
What personality he will be utilising in this song?
Uh, we're gonna have a problem here...

You pretend like this is the first white-rap song to hit the charts,
Like the Beasties, Vanilla Ice and House Of Pain were just a mirage,
Which is somehow comparable,
To domestic abuse, but I don't really make the connection (Aah!)
It's the return of the... mack, was a successful song,
In the '90s, by a Death Row related artist who had no lasting meaning.
And Dr Dre said... nothing particularly important,
Since the NWA days, he's now just a figurehead (ha ha)!

Apparently women love Eminem,
But hate Slim Shady, because he,
Is a poster-child of bad behaviour and rude gestures,
Yet some women find that cute, so,
He keeps pretending like he is some kind of insane maniac,
But I guess he has a point, about parents who knee-jerk react,
Scolding Eminem for going on TV and saying what he likes,
While allowing Gordon Ramsay to call lesbian's "dykes",

"Yo momma is that, yo momma is this,"
Is the typical conversation of 'the little kids',
So don't be naive regarding their knowledge of the adult world,

Of course they're gonna learn everything on the playground,
Have you seen what's found,
On Channel 4 after midnight?

We're all really just animals,
Some of us are downright damnable,
And do worse than link 'bad' words into parables,

So if we allow Dirty Sanchez on our TV sets,
Surely it's okay for two men to wed?
But if you share Eminem's worldview, he has a solution;
Females act more promiscuous, and accept Eminem as the epitome of 'man'.

Well he's Slim Shady, or is he really Brady?
He's one-of-a-kind, of that there is no debating,
But now we just can't get him to shut up,
Please shut up, won't you shut up,
Please Slim Shady, we know you're not a lady,
But you have to know your rap lost all relevance,
With the release of your third LP,
But now we can't get you to shup up,
Please shut up, won't you shut up!

Ha-ha, I guess there's a little Slim Shady in all of us,
I mean,
Anybody can rap."

Lost - Do We Have Unreliable Narrators?

Recently I watched (or rather, I listened) the Lost Season 5 Boxset audio commentaries. The one that concerns me is Episode 1 - "Because You Left", written and narrated by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse.

Damon, left, Carlton, right.

This commentary had a good flavour of the three sides of the D&C personality:

- humour (discussing Pierre Chang moving off-island and founding a chain of restaurants)
- informative (that the episode is actually a flashback and flashforward, as it is Chang/Mile's past, yet Faraday's future, relative to the "core" story - an idea I had never pondered)
- reality (that the episode had to be written in such a way to both wind-down from Season 4 and begin the ending of Season 5 all at one time)

(well, I suppose both of the last two are informative, so perhaps call the first one "Entertainment Information" and the latter "Real Life Information" - I don't know, now is not the time for syntax!)


Now, I have heard many hours of D&C - podcasts, interviews, commentaries, etc - and they always help inject humour and reality into Lost, taking away from the seriousness of the hardcore theories. But beneath this veneer of the helpful adults, guiding us children through the puberty of the seasons, I can't help shake the feeling that D&C are unreliable narrators.

As much as we like to believe there is an almighty attention paid to the details in Lost, I have to wonder - do D&C (&JJ Abrams) actually have ALL the answers? Heck, do they even have more than we do?

I can buy that they had the main plot points in mind when they began this adventure, but so much has come to pass that undermines their credibility that I find it hard to even believe them now - the fact that Ben was originally written as such a small role, their persistent promise that Lost would not become a sci-fi show/that there would be no time-travel (throws up the question - can we believe them when they say "They aren't all in purgatory"? Always good to stoke those flames ;) ).

And what of Penny. Was she seriously written with such mystery, simply to be killed off. The many, many promises of Penny, Walt, etc coming back and finishing their arcs. There is so much unanswered, and that will probably remain unanswered, that D&C frankly don't seem to care for answering - I have to wonder, are we all watching the same show?

Anyway, these aren't particularly new topics of discussion. I'm sure you have asked these questions a hundred times yourself - and you'll find no answers here folks, just something to chew on and keep in mind going into Season 6.

(Also, listen to the commentaries - good entertainment :) )


((A couple of specific points - I received my first Season 6 SPOILER!!! (I will explain it at the END of the post - it isn't dramatically huge) in this commentary. Also, D&C go into a lot of detail about things we should all be aware of - a lot of the "rules" of Lost have never been explained or shown to us by the writers, simply theorised by the characters - ie a lot of the things we take as fact, especially a lot of Faraday's musings (Desmond being a wildcard, Whatever Happened, Happened, detonating the atomic bomb being a GOOD thing) shouldn't be taken as fact, it is merely another human's theory, no more fact than our own theories. Keep that in mind as we try to digest and dissect Season 6 together))



(((Season 6 SPOILER!!! - Jack will take a much more active role in Season 6 - D&C: "We decided to let our main character (Jack) take a break in this Season, considering what is going to happen in Season 6" - I'm paraphrasing, but that is what I got from the commentary)))

Musings - Grit, 'Old' Music and Accidental Art

Leaving work early today to catch an earlier bus than my usual, I figured I could take advantage of the thawing weather and jog down to the stop in plenty of time. (For those non-Glaswegians out there, it has been hard enough simply walking around lately due to the ice/snow/slush, never mind entertaining such an insane idea as jogging!).

After my first few yards I felt my feet losing grip and threatening to conspire with gravity and send me tumbling to the ground. There was definitely no ice around, so what was the problem?

Then I heard that familiar, awful, crunching sound. Grit.

That's right, for weeks we have suffered through ice and snow and nary a sight of the brown-orange salt that supposedly keeps us safe, yet now, with the ground clearing up, it's everywhere!

This slight set-back caused me to miss my bus, by a mere 10 seconds no less (damn you traffic lights! You're supposed to exist to help pedestrians, not hold us back while our buses flow freely through your green lights of doom!!).

Still, at least I knew I had plenty of time to walk to the next stop. And the one after that. And the one after that. 15 minutes later, my bus came and, feeling slightly fitter but certainly less happy, I plugged in my mp3 player.

Now, back to Sunday where I found myself with a rare spare few minutes of peace. I dug out my old external hard-drive, full to the brim of my vast CD collection which I had plenty of time to rip to mp3 during my care-free teenage years (yes, I was always a geek!). Time to update the new mp3 player with some old familiar songs, I thought. And boy did I need that sense of old fashioned comfort now.

There are a few things I noticed about my playlist as I sat staring out the condensation dripping down the windows. First, dzk is truly a phenomenal rapper. He was never one to seek fame or record deals, preferring instead to keep full creative control over his output, and what a wealth of output he has. His music, to me, is timeless. It may not be the nicest subject matter (mostly falling back on those age-old rap cliches of women, drugs and notoriety) but his execution and flow are flawless. Consider him, simply put, a much better, and faster, Eminem.

The next thing I noticed, as I listened to the entirety of Enter Shikari's "Take To The Skies" album, is that sometimes production is a bad thing. A very bad thing. Compared to dzk's "do it yourself" production, which was smooth but never overpowering, Enter Shikari's more polished work almost drowns out the soul of the songs.

I was a huge fan of Enter Shikari from the moment I saw their video for "Sorry, You're Not A Winner" and loved their down-to-earth style and rabid enthusiasm. As such, I heard songs such as "Mothership" long before they finalised their debut album and, I must admit, I find myself going back time and again to these demos, where the core brilliance of the song screams out at you, rather than the muted, tamed beast of the final album.

Perhaps it is simply my ears refusing to accept change after listening to one version of a song for months, but I personally hate it when a band releases an epic, free-roaming beast of a demo, only to follow it up with a final version that sounds like the same epic beast, only trapped in the middle of the ocean, trying its best not to drown in a sea of production.

See also: yourcodenameis:milo - All That Was Missing, from the album "They Came From The Sun" - life-changing demo, so-so final product.

Coming out of this musical daydream, I noticed that I had been unconsciously staring at a sole window, noticing a pattern someone's sleeve had left in the condensation. Now, it is very rare that a piece of "real" art causes me to pause and consider life in general, however, these random impressions had formed a pattern so profound it acted as a gateway into my subconscious, a personal canvas on which to place all my thoughts and feelings of the day into a spectral formation that allowed for processing.

Has this ever happened to you?

(For reference, the pattern I saw looked kind of like the metallic alien Chozo statues from Super Metroid, mixed with the Firefox logo, holding the head of a Gibson Flying V electric guitar!)

Super Metroid - a game you should all play.

Friday Fight Night - Chesire Review - Rob Norton vs David Dolan

This week's Friday night entertainment was supplied by Ricky Hatton's "Hatton Promotions".

The main event of this evening saw British and Commonwealth Cruiserweight (200lb) champion Rob Norton (32(19)-4(1)-1) face off against David Dolan (13(5)-2(0)-0). In terms of age, Norton will be 38 years old in as little as five days time, whereas Dolan comes in to the fight at a comparatively sprightly 30 years of age.

This fight is a rematch from when the two paired off a year earlier, in a sloppy-yet-thrilling affair that saw a few knockdowns but nothing particularly strong or decisive. The same could be said of tonight's battle, although there were no official knockdowns awarded (a couple of pull-downs and shoves aside).

Norton seemed easily in control of the fight in the early round, using every tactic under the sun, from hugging to taunting, to keep the tempo in check and Dolan at bay. Although he was landing few punches himself, Norton simply waited on Dolan to charge recklessly forward, then picked him off with some good counterpunches before clinching yet again. This was the general pace of the first half of the fight, although there was one solitary entertaining departure in Round 3, when Norton simply backed himself into a neutral corner and allowed Dolan to throw punch after punch, proving he could take all his opponent could dish out.

Fast-forward to Round 8, and just when it seemed Norton would execute his own version of Ali's infamous rope-a-dope technique, Dolan suddenly came alive, throwing combinations and jabs, and proving that it was indeed the older Norton who had run out of steam. The champion did, however, manage to hold his own until the end, fighting back against the onslaught of punches. However, by the final bell the champ did seem to be on his last legs. Had it been a 15 round affair, I feel Dolan may have won comfortably.

As it stood, with a strong-but-messy first half display, the champion retained, the judges scoring the fight 116-113 Norton, 115-114 Dolan, and 114-114 DRAW, making the official judgement a draw and Norton retaining his titles. Both fighters were courteous in their post-fight interview, each sharing the view that the fight was close but that they each felt they had done enough to prove themselves the winner. Norton in particular retained his sense of confidence, flashing his brilliant smile and asking "is that it?" of the reporter.

In British rankings, Norton remains at 3rd for the division, Dolan a close 4th.

Norton, the champ.

On the undercard, another rematch took place between Middleweights (160lb) 24yr old Cello Renda (18(11)-8(5)-0) and 36yr old Paul Samuels (20(12)-7(4)-2). Last time these two faced off, it was an exciting bout featuring a very rare boxing occurrence - a double knockdown. This time around, things were less fantastic but certainly thrilling. Renda suffered early, Samuels causing him severe nose damage (possibly broken), leaving the younger man to deal with a lot of bleeding throughout the fight, as well as suffering an early knockdown. However, Renda recovered remarkably around Round 4 of this 8 rounder.

With Samuels visibly running out of steam and power, Renda managed to catch him with a fantastic hook that sent the elder man to the floor. Both boxers gave their all in the final 4 rounds, with the referee awarding the fight to Samuels without hesitation. I personally found it a lot harder to score, and feel I would have gave it to Renda on the night.

Hopefully we will see these two fight at least one more time, as their styles certainly seem perfectly matched to each other.

All in all, this was a decent night of entertainment showcased from Hatton Promotions, a great start to the domestic year. There weren't a lot of fights on offer, no "big" names, but what we there were some great quality fights with rich history behind them. There was also an opportunity for Ricky Hatton to present his reasoning behind his announcement to "come back" for at least one more fight and, although it may seem ludicrous on paper, his reasons for wanting to return to the ring were actually rather sound. Here's hoping he has a successful training session and, providing he is showing all the right moves and making the right weights, I wish him all the luck in the world for his next fight.

I'm putting out my prediction here - June 5th, Ricky Hatton vs Timothy Bradley for the WBO Jr Welterweight (140lb) title, in Manchester. Let's see if I'm right come summer.