blossom

twothousandandseven

2008-01-15T21:52:00.000+01:00

I know it's already mid-January, but I heard a song tonight which triggered off a memory of an event which happened in 2007 and this set in motion a chain of thoughts which brought me to the realisation that I should review this by-gone year, because 2007 was indeed a momentous year, and I shouldn't just let the memories perish without a word written about them, should my own memory fail to function. And heck, that was one gloriously long sentence. And yes, I am in a rambling mood tonight.

Anway, getting back to this review of sorts of the year that just was, I wonder if I should start chronologically. The first part of the year was I presume quite boring. All I can seem to remember is my thesis taking over my life, while thinking that I should start studying properly at some point. So yes, January through March saw me battling with statistical software, several hours at Melitensia, and the like. Intermingled with this were getting to know better a couple of people, furthering my interest on photography through one of them, a weekend in Gozo, a Bollywood mini-obsession, marathon skype chats to Chester...and so the last UoM semester flew and the final exams were upon us. A tough period of cramming, late hours, stress, piles of notes and surprisingly, almost no caffeine, opting for herbal teas instead...zennnn. And that flew too.

Then summer began. While waiting for results to come out and the inevitable tension, June was quite pleasant, and most events or activities I actually blogged about. The event which was the inspiration for this post was Bryan Adam's concert, which was fantastic, particularly so when comparing it to the disappointing Sting concert the prior year. So many memorable songs, wonderful interaction with the audience, great atmosphere...a really enjoyable night. June was also spent making preparation for THE highlight of the year.

The backapacking trip. 2 friends. 5 weeks. 8 countries. I still get these momentary flashes of some place we visited and I get all smiley. So many beautiful places with their uniqueness and distinctive features in spite of a common theme which marks a country as Central or Eastern European. A holiday which had a bit of everything: medieaval to ultra-modern, tranquil countryside to buzzing metropolis, sunbathing on Baltic sands to freezing in an ice-cave in the Alps, rocking at Sziget to a classical concert in Tallinn...an incredible adventure with lots of stories to tell, remeber and laugh about, whether on hostles, transport issues and interesting characters, a time where I learnt a lot, met some incredible people from all over the world and possibly, felt truly happy. Something I will never forget and hope to repeat in a different continent in the not too distant future.

So just for the sake of posterity here's the trajectory we followed: Malta, Berlin, Potsdam, Warsaw, Vilnius, Trakai, Kaunas, Palanga, Klaipeda, Nida, Tallinn, Riga, Jurmala, Warsaw, Krakow, Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, Malta.

A highlight within the above highlight was going to Sziget festival in Budapest...getting passes to the final day of the festival is an interesting story in itself: sleeper train from Krakow to Prague, help woman heave bag onto her bunk bed, strike conversation in train corridor, woman turns out to be American freelance music journalist, some 2 hours later yours truly mentions intention to go to Sziget, she asks me who's playing, I supply the info, she knows one of the bands' tour manager and tells me..." I'll see if I can get you on the list" (!!!!). Two days later, phone call from Lily...and hey presto, we're on the list - meaning, a vip pass, woopee! So yeah that was one lucky chance meeting...and who did we get to see at Sziget? None other than the uber-fantastic The Killers, who are absolutely awesome live - one of the most superb live music experiences ever. I still can't help feeling a bit giddy whenever I hear a song of theirs! And now Sam's Town started playing in my head...Well that night sure compensated for the disappointment of missing Isle of MTV... which had to be organised in Malta when I wouldn't be there of course, but I shouldn't complain...(2007 was Malta's year for concerts galore it seems, something rather unprecedented, but I digress).

Well the above, aside exams, seems mostly rosy, but 2007 had its fair share of tough periods, particularly the loss of a loved one, to being hurt (emotionally), realising I still miss someone, questioning my decisions, feeling lost...I don't want to dwell too much upon them, though I suppose they're still worth a mention. Looking back at my 2006 review I realised that in essence some things tend to repeat year in, year out, establishing a pattern. Or maybe it's just the course of life. The notion of whether everything happens for a reason was severely put to the test this year, but I suppose only time will tell.

The period since coming back from abroad was briefly chronicled in my previous post. September saw what I suppose one would call an important phase in one's life - the start of a career, or at least full -time employment. No longer an academic student but a young professional. This will be a long winding road with many forks on the way, where I'll have to decide where to head. Once again, only time will tell.

Then there was graduation and its week-long celebrations, and shortly after the start of Christmas festivities and the close of the year. A year that really flew by. Was it because it was packed to the brim or is it because I'm getting older? (23rd birthday was quite enjoyable actually). And now already two weeks into 2008, I don't have any expectations for this year (some wishful thinking yes, but no expectations). It didn't start off on the best of notes so far, but I do hope it will turn out to be a year which I can look back upon and smile.

*Phew, verrrry long post...if you managed to read so far, congrats, hehe, but I was in a writing mood, which actually makes me happy as I seemed to have lost the spark and desire to write, so maybe it is back after all!*

it's been a while

2007-12-17T12:19:00.000+01:00

I've gone off and abandoned this blog for quite some time now (so much so that it didn't let me publish immediately - thanks Dody for sorting). There were plenty of times I had resolved to sit down and type out something, but well the resolve was not strong enough and the posts never materialised. I had even actually started a post back in September but discarded it after a string of sentences. There was surely plenty to write about. This summer's backpacking trip alone surely warranted a page or two. Heck, if I put my mind to it, I could probably write a book about it. The journal I had started during those weeks had seen a considerable number of pages being filled, and I only managed to cover the first four days. Unfortunately, writing while travelling proved somewhat hard, and then coming back home the spark to write had somewhat died down. Not quite sure if it's back just yet.

Meanwhile, since coming back home, I've started full-time employment. That's surely been a change from being a uni student. The 40-hour week took a while getting used to. A different kind of busy. I must admit I was sometimes riddled with doubt if I chose the right profession, if it's what I really want to do or it's been a mistake. This niggling self-doubt tends to happen at least once a year...guess it's bound to happen with too many conflicting dreams or goals. Anyway, I am now part of the professonal world I suppose, and it's been mostly interesting so far, and at times can be quite satisfactory. Come January, we'll be faced with the really busy period. We'll see how that goes. Relating to the start of this new phase in my life and the end of student life, I had graduation almost a couple of weeks ago. Five years of study, which at the end of the day boil down to a large piece of paper in Latin script where you try and guess at the words...am I becoming cynical? :) Celebrations for this second graduation were also fun, although probably the novelty of the first time round two years ago, made the previous celebrations more exciting.

There were in this blog-less period other things worth writing about, some quite light-hearted, others not much so. In fact the last quarter of 2007 has been kind of tough at times. Mentioning 2007, I can't believe that this year is reaching its close. It just flew. Anyway, I think I'll stop writing for now. Not sure if I'll get back to the blogging routine. Perhaps it's working at a laptop all day long, or the joys and perils of facebooking (yes, I succumbed too, and now finally half of Malta) that this blog ended suffering, besides a lacking muse. Maybe, just maybe some inspiration is returning. We'll see.

short update

2007-08-11T18:52:00.000+02:00

currently in Prague...already 6th country, and 3 weeks down, two more to go. Backpacking has most definitely been an awesome experience so far, to be repeated. Anyway, when I have more time or get home will give a proper low-down about this adventure.

conclude/begin

2007-07-14T19:16:00.000+02:00

Yesterday, finals' results came out and I can now say I am a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours) graduate! The Class of 2007 has made it - a wave of 78 sparkling new accountants, or as we are joking, accounters! 5th December will be our official graduation day - can't wait for that week; if it's anything like the one we had for our B.Com graduation, it should just be awesome!

Since I kind of chronicled the process of my dissertation on this blog, just for the record, I got an A! At least, the hard work paid off.

These five years have just flown by, and now this stage of life at the University of Malta has come to an end. The memories of Freshers' Week are still fresh in my mind as if they were yesterday. I won't go as far to say that my student life is officially over, once and for all. I might still decide to pop into some oher European university a few years down the line, but well, that's just speculation for now. As of now, I can freely enjoy summer with peace of mind before I join the working world on a full-time basis in September.

Speaking of enjoying summer, next Saturday I'm set to start a bit of an adventure around Europe with my friend Marion. We're off backpacking and mostly inter-railing across central Europe and the Baltics. Between the 21 July and somewhere around 24 August (still no return date) we should be hitting Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Czech Republic, Austria and possibly Hungary for the Sziget festival. So if anyone will be in one of these countries during that period and wants to meet up, just drop me a line. Looking forward to any possible reunions!

some good news

2007-07-04T17:24:00.000+02:00

...amidst the daily negativity we find on the news channels: Alan Johnston was finally released, unharmed.

I sleepily, but happily clapped when mum told me the news this morning while I was still in bed.

It will be good to hear him again.

summertime...

2007-06-27T22:23:00.000+02:00

...and the livin' is eaaasyy.

So it is according to George Gershwin, and well, for the most part I could say I agree. After finally finishing exams, summer enjoyment began. Even if most days have been packed with some errand of sorts, (not very fruitful) shopping, tidying and clearing up, planning and whatnot: ticking off from a rather long to-do list. However, days' contents have included:

afternoons at the beach, whether cruising on a pedal boat to the next beach or lying on a sunbed, finally reading something other than a textbook;
partying till the early hours (one ironic, yet amusing, episode was the powercut which hit Paceville on the night we finished exams and hence, the night of our after-exams bash - shift of location ensued, but it was definitely still a fun night);
dinner with my closest circle of uni friends;
experimenting with cooking and my new drawing materials;
seaside cafes and restaurants;
evening walks on the promenade;
a relaxing day spent here - utter bliss

Ehhh, the joys of summer! But after three hellish weeks, this is just what we needed. Mind you, this sweltering heat wave this last week has been somewhat unbearable, but I shouldn't complain too much. Thank goodness for technology and water!

Tomorrow: Bryan Adams' concert.

Let the enjoyment continue!

2007-05-22T00:45:00.000+02:00

studying...or trying

environment, circumstances and my own mind don't always help

I was happy that our parish feast this last weekend finished, and with it the huge blasts of fireworks, which in Malta are excessive to put it mildly. Then, today there was an incessant jack-hammer going on from around 8 to 7...probably tomorrow there will be more of the same - aaarghh. Plus, I'm not feeling too well but I'll put it down to tiredness and stress. In addition, I'm in a very artistic and creative mood (wrong timing obviously). And then there are thoughts, dreams, worries, etc. which should really just be pushed aside for the moment.

I. NEED. TO. FOCUS.

4 days till the start of final exams.
4 weeks to freedom.

some needed comic relief

2007-05-08T16:47:00.000+02:00

So yesterday I was browsing for Tony Blair's congratulatory speech in French to Nicholas Sarkozy (who actually is currently having his few days holiday in Malta) on youtube and I happened to find the sketch which Tony Blair had made for Comic Relief (BBC's annual charity telethon) with Catherine Tate as the annoying school girl Lauren. For those not familiar with British comedy, Catherine Tate is currently one of the UK's most famous comedians, and in the same vein as Little Britain, who incredibly manages to morph into a multitude of different characters. Lauren is one of her most popular - an extremely obnoxious student notorious for her tag-line "Am I bovvered?". In this rather entertaining sketch, the tables are turned and Tony Blair does really quite well. Few politicians would gladly participate in comedy and actually be good at it! Maybe he should consider taking up acting once he quits his current day-job in a few weeks' time...

Another "Lauren" sketch for Comic Relief, this time with the actor David Tennant (and his yummy Scottish accent) was really hilarious. And finally, Carissa, I think you'll like this ;) Some background: this character Elaine looks for love on internet chatrooms but so far she has been unlucky in love. In previous sketches she fell in love and was about to marry a death-row convict and a gold-digger from Egypt amongst others. Finally, she has met a certain Mr Craig, and while things are looking good, somehow she is not so keen...

Gosh, youtube can be so addictive, but I sure needed to laugh!

Back to the books...

mission accomplished!

2007-04-23T12:33:00.000+02:00

from our own correspondent

2007-04-16T22:23:00.000+02:00

A program by this name airs on the BBC World Service every week. This program consists of around 4 essays , which generally concern a current news item but are given a much more personalised touch by correspondents from different locations around the globe. Through their personal experience during the assignment, you get a much deeper insight of the situation they're reporting on, as well as some interesting anecdotes, sometimes funny, sometimes poignantly sad. One frequent voice during this program, and practically heard on a daily basis since the place where he was posted is barely ever out of the news, was that of Alan Johnston. It's been over a month since Alan disappeared, presumably kidnapped. Most ironically, his posting in Gaza was set to end a couple of weeks later.

Yesterday, a previosuly unknown Palestinian group claimed that they had killed Mr Johnston. Like thousands of others, I hope against hope that this isn't true, for his sake, his family and the Palestinians. For three years, with his kind, husky voice, Alan reported on the situation in Gaza in an unbiased, always humane manner. The plight of the locals was highlighted. He was their friend and well-loved. An impeccably professional journalist. The group claimed that they kidnapped and killed him to highlight the situation of Palestinian prisoners which is ignored contrasting with the awareness that was sparked concerning a single Westerner. If this is the case, they are certainly not helping the Palestinian cause. Journalists will deem it too dangerous to risk their lives to report from there. And besides the loss of an esteemed journalist, that would be a great shame.

Counting

2007-04-16T21:07:00.000+02:00

That's what my days have been characterised by lately. Specifically, word-counts and count-downs. Count-downs to when we start final exams (actually, this is not really worth thinking about - too depressing), to when I finish exams and life as a UoM student (63 days to go!) and to the grand summer adventure. As for word-counts, these were a bit of a nightmare as I was bit overboard when it came to the stipulated word-limit of my dissertation, and believe me, it can be much harder to reduce words than increase them. But finally, I managed to reduce them to an acceptable level, and I'm happy to announce that my thesis is practically ready! What's left is the go-ahead from my tutor and a final proof-read. So unless my tutor drops a bombshell, which he shouldn't, I should be done. However, I won't be truly sighing with relief until I see it printed and hard-bound in all its glory. But I can say it feels good to see the document as a whole. Considering the marks that it's worth (just 1/8 of the final grade, in spite of expectations), my friends and I all put a disproportionate amount of time in our dissertations. But hopefully, the effort will pay off. At least, I can finally truly start focusing on my finals...2 years' worth of 14 subjects (eek!)

In other news...

this weekend I had a much needed catch-up with Petra, one of my closest friends, who was back home for the Easter hols - great night. The last 3 weekends have in fact consisted of good nights outs - they were very much needed breaks.
congratulations to my dear friend Maria who's been elected MCVP PD & ER in AIESEC Ireland!
I succumbed to another book-sale and bought 7 books. I'm quite happy with my purchases: Two books by Ian McEwan: Atonement and Saturday (I read his Enduring Love and had absolutely loved it), Zadie Smith's On Beauty, A Rough-Guide on Women Travel, Ten Thousand Miles Without a Cloud (an autobiographical travelogue by a Chinese woman during the Cultural Revolution), The Seahorse by Tania Unsworth (set in India) and finally a collection of articles and writing for radio by Stephen Fry, one of my favourite British comedians, called Paperweight. It's described by the author as a snack book or a literary guacamole in which to dip one's tortilla of curiosity :) I already read the introduction and laughed out loud. Anyway, all these have been stashed away in a cupboard only to come out after 18 June. Instead, I must read IFRSs, ISAs, Company law, etc., etc.

By the way, I finally opened a flickr account. After encouragement from some friends and plenty of inspiration from flickr itself, I do hope to eventually take photography more seriously, hopefully even investing in an SLR camera. Just wanted to say that any kind of constructive feedback is highly appreciated :) And for anyone who was wondering, sea-crystal is actually a wordplay on my name.

recapitulation

2007-03-03T17:03:00.000+01:00

I went through a bit of a writer’s block phase lately, which is not a good thing when you’re trying to write a thesis. And I decided that I shouldn’t write anything else before I get some academic stuff out of the way. Since last night I managed to finish another chapter, I thought I might as well blog a little.

So what have I been up to? February was characterised by:

· staring at a computer screen (which is even more frustrating when Malta’s enjoying such glorious sunny days)
· reflecting (on quite a few things but especially after being told and reminded by more than one person that life is short)
· dreaming of summer…(currently there are three possibilities, with previously the least expected one now taking the forefront :) will divulge details at a later stage)
· moaning about the injustice of being a final year accountancy student at my university (but that’s pretty useless so I’m going to just grin and bear the last three months and a half, with the knowledge that it will all soon pass!)

In the meantime, I:
· managed to hand in dissertation material to my tutor, for which I’m still waiting feedback after, erm, 3 weeks
· had my first full-blown sushi meal (it wasn’t the first time I tasted it though)
· enjoyed Carnival weekend in Gozo
· had fun at a quiz night organised by the firm and learnt some interesting (useless?) things in the process about bugs and surviving the prefect storm..hmm - we were initially winning but we ended 4th out of 13 groups.
· got a bit of an India obsession once again, or more specifically a fascination with some Bollywood movies.

Let me explain. A few weeks back I somehow managed to track Kajra Re on youtube. Some time later I found a link to Dhadak Dhadak on someone’s blog, and I was a happy camper. While in India I used to hear these two songs on practically a daily basis during International Congress, so they obviously bring back a lot of memories, but they also have very catchy tunes and the videos are cute! I also learnt that these two songs are from the same movie Bunty aur Babli, a kind of comedic Bonnie and Clyde. But my Bollywood encounter was not to end there. During February, the BBC World Service had an India Rising week and during their world-music programme I heard this song which I just had to look up. I found it was Chaiyya Chaiyya from the 1998 movie Dil Se. This song was also used in the West-end musical Bombay Dreams and the recent movie Inside Man. It’s absolutely awesome. I looked up some more songs from the film and I also fell in love with Jiya Jale - have a look at the video (it's filmed in lovely Kerala). Besides the wonderful music and choreography, great cinematography and the incredible Indian scenery, the story line looks pretty interesting and I really hope to get my hands on the movie. And of course, I really hope to go to India again…*sigh* that country has some sort of hypnotic effect.

How can anyone...

2007-02-08T19:46:00.000+01:00

...do this to anybody, let alone your own child?

Horrific.

one year old

2007-02-07T15:45:00.000+01:00

Yep, it's my blog's first birthday! Will it see the next? I hope so. Even if I'm not the most regular of bloggers, I still enjoy this particular medium as an outlet for my writing and memories keepsake. I wonder what more events will grace its "pages" in the months to come.

From weirdness to cuteness

2007-02-05T15:42:00.000+01:00

Some people are hard to please. Some are disillusioned they will ever find “the one”. Some resort to strange measures. As did one man in China. I’m not quite sure how all the wedding vows proceeded nor can I understand the reasoning behind his decision. Couldn’t he have just remained single? What was really funny though is that he admitted being a “little bit narcissistic”. A little bit???

Anyway for something much cuter, although still somewhat bizarre, one of the most notorious members of the canine family has taken to mother the docile and meekest of all. Aren’t they adorable?

back and forth

2007-01-06T23:42:00.000+01:00

January, or at least its first couple of weeks, is spent looking back at the past year, but also looking ahead to what the new one promises to be. By chance (I actaully meant to do this earlier), I am writing this post on 06.01.07 so it is kind of appropriate for swinging between these two years!

2006 will remain a memorable year. I am not sure if to classify it as my best year so far. However, together with 2005, it was definitely one of the most eventful years in my 22 years of existence. There were several highs but also quite a few lows. Some I blogged about, others will just remain imprinted in my mind. I learnt, I cried, felt genuinely happy. I laughed and danced, argued and eventually made up. I fell in love, got hurt. I felt blessed to have some wonderful friends both near and far. I was scared and paranoid. I had a great adventure in an amazing country. Kept myself busy, very busy. I was confused and at times miserable. I got nostalgic. And I learned some more.

Yes, 2006 was quite a year. Although sometimes I questioned the meaning or reason behind certain events, considering everything, I am grateful for every single thing that happened including the negative points. Granted, I wish that some did not, especially those in the latter part of the year, but we cannot escape what is not in our control. I am grateful because each event has been a lesson and in the last few days of the year I kind of reaffirmed my belief that everything happens for a reason. More likely than not, we will not realise this until much later, but it does make things easier. It does lighten the load.

So, a few of the highlights of 2006 were:

completing my MC term, with all the peaks and lows that it involved

the WENA Newies Conference - a truly amazing week

the business seminar for one of our credits, which most definitely exceeded expectations

the greater part of April and May...

attending Sting's concert and the Bob Sinclar party, among other live music performances

practically every day spent in Morocco, but particularly, the Sahara

Zak's week in Malta and everytime I was a tourist guide during the year :)

after four consecutive summers working at the same firm, I started a new working experience

seeing that some of my MC work whose results were not directly visible, paid off a few months down the line

the World-Cup and celebrating Italy's win, hehe.

finally, after being a spectator for a couple of years, started blogging myself

health scares

AMS and connected events

thesis proposal

2006 is now a closed chapter in the book called life. What will 2007 reveal? As expectations go, the first six months are going to be hard. With looming finals and dissertation writing, it's not going to be easy nor quite pleasant. However, there will hopefully still be those moments relieving me from boredom and putting a smile on my face. As for the second half, if things go according to plan, it should be just brilliant with plenty of travelling, starting work full-time and graduating on the cards. Hopefully. The first few hours of 2007 were generally pleasant, so I'm hoping that augurs well! Here's an (imaginary) toast to the new year, wishing you all a fulfilling, meaningful year ahead.

The joys of Christmas holidays

2006-12-30T19:47:00.000+01:00

Although much of these holidays were, and will continue to be, characterised by working on my dissertation and some studying, these two weeks give me the opportunity to have more enjoyable activities than usual on my agenda. I have a bit more time for simple pleasant things such as cooking. Two days ago I made hummus, which was more time consuming than I imagined, but at least the result was good. Next week I'm hoping to do some kind of sweet dish. I also had some time to watch a few movies on dvd over the Christmas weekend and till now I've seen Nanny McPhee (adorable, sweet and feel-good), Mrs Henderson Presents (quite pleasant, and as usual, Judi Dench shines) and Syriana (good, but rather complex; needs a second viewing). A couple of comedies will be watched this weekend.

As for other events, one annual highlight of my Christmas hols is watching the MADC panto at the Manoel Theatre. We went to watch this year's Hercules yesterday and as usual, the theatre was packed to the gills. Panto, which is always the longest running show in Malta, is probably the only theatre production which performs to a full house every night. Although there will be obvious similarities to previous productions, I always find it worth watching and is a good night out filled with laughter.

Then of course there are the parties, meals and celebratory drinks. Tomorrow, New Year's Eve, will be waved off with, hopefully, a good, rather big party in Birgu. By the way, the weather did comply on Christmas Eve night, so we did manage our traditional pub-crawl, although on a shorter route.

One of the things I enjoyed most during these holidays was catching up with old friends. Yesterday, Marion and I met up with two other school friends for lunch (and later, coffee). It was really great meeting them for more than just a quick chat on campus if we ever happened to bump into each other, and getting the low-down on each other's adventures such as backpacking across Europe, sleeping in the desert and antics during dentistry practice, as well as future plans. We promised to do this more often. We also discovered this delightful cafeteria in the south of Malta with pastries and confectioneries to die for, and one of the most delicious capuccinos I ever tasted, and so it will probably be the location of choice for our future meetings ;) I'm hoping to meet some other good friends of mine, whom I don't see enough, next week. Sometimes, there's nothing more pleasant than a reunion with friends.

Christmas time...

2006-12-24T17:55:00.000+01:00

...mistletoe and wine. Yes, Christmas is finally here. So first off, I wish you all a very Happy Christmas wherever you are! May all that you wish for come true.

In Malta, winter decided to start with a vengeance today on Christmas eve. It rained really hard but what was somewhat unusual was the really strong hailstorm which lasted for quite some time, with ice as big as those nasty white moth balls. I pity anyone who happened to be outside at that moment. They would have gotten quite a bashing.

Now I don't usually have a problem with storms and rain as long as they're in season, and well obviously today they are. But it could have chosen somewhat better timing after days of sunshine, since tonight is usually reserved for the loved tradition of bar-hopping/pub crawl after mass from Sliema all the way to Paceville. Oh well, I shouldn't be grumpy on such a joyous night :D but well, whatever we decide to do, I hope to have a great night out with friends. And then tomorrow, it's a relaxed day in with the family, eating lovely food, watching movies, drinking mulled wine...

As for other things, on Friday we had the Christmas office party - really good fun! And today I decided to listen to my Chicago cd. I had forgotten how much I love that musical. Hotshot! Whoopee! And all that jazz!

Anyway, once again, Merry Christmas!

what will 2007 be like?

2006-12-14T00:44:00.000+01:00

Now I don't usually take notice of horoscopes. I only read them for fun and curiosity on internet when they're listed on one of those Tickle newsletters I sometimes receive. However, one can't help wishing they'd be true when they're, let's say rather positive and seem to match expectations ;) And I quite liked the sound of this:

Scorpio Overview:

Passion carries you far this year in the realms of creativity and expression. Getting in touch with and appreciating more of your passionate nature will transform you in a way that results in putting more money in the bank. You could easily work as an advisor for big companies or in public relations. You understand what motivates people to do a good job and will find yourself in situations where people want your advice. Your creative insight expresses itself in dynamic ways and you will gain lots of recognition.

You have a very good support system in both your career and home life, and will learn that perfect order is taking place in your life at this time. Since your career has gotten off to such a great start this year, by summertime you will have more time on your hands to become romantically involved in a new relationship (or rekindling of old), which you've been thinking about for quite some time. You will be receiving some new and dynamic surprises and will be inspired to do some new and out-of-the-ordinary things in both your career and personal life.

You could enjoy spending time traveling to foreign lands and be drawn to observing others' ideas and cultures. You love to study. You will find that your relationship gives you lots of space to breathe, and yet you still have lots of spare time to take care of your own needs as well. You'll need tons of physical interaction to satisfy that wild passion of yours. Having massages, going to hot springs and being close to nature will bring a lot of balance and harmony to your life.

Who knows...well, most of it is up to me I suppose but i'm pretty curious to see what 2007 will have in store for me :)

salt

2006-12-14T00:14:00.000+01:00

No, not the condiment, but a new (well relatively, been playing for 3 years), up and coming Maltese band. Tonight, I went to their first album launch held at Castille Vaults in Valletta and it was great finally getting to hear them live. Fantastic music with a message (and I'm not saying that because I'm friends with the bassist). I wish them every success - they deserve it! To get to know more about them check out this and listen to them here.

looking back

2006-12-07T23:00:00.000+01:00

Last night I decided to dig out the only (secret) diary I ever kept. Once it got filled up, I somehow never decided to start a new one and put my thoughts on paper for posterity.

This diary spanned three years - my early teenage years to be precise. They're the chronicles of an ordinary teenager I suppose. Boys. Best friends. Changes. Crushes. Depressing moments. Dreams. Exams. Family. Fantasies. Fights. First times. Happiness. They were all there, with a good dose of teenage melodrama thrown in. Some things made me laugh and cringe at the same time, like my obsessions with certain actors. Some espisodes brought sad memories back to life, while others put a smile on my face. It's funny how then you start remembering all these other moments that you didn't even write about.

Then there were things which made me ponder about change...the change in me, changes in my dreams, my relationships. At that stage I imagined certain things would never change. Yes, some do stay the same. But others change so drastically, against our expectations, against the imagined life ahead, that we would have meticulously set out and planned. And these changes, these events, shape us into who we are now. Six years on, by how much have I changed?

"The only thing constant in life is change" François de la Rochefoucauld

confused insomniac

2006-12-06T20:34:00.000+01:00

It happened again. Four weeks in a row.

For some inexplicable reason, Tuesdays are turning out to be practically sleepless nights. I have no idea why I'm getting bouts of insomnia on this particular night...ok, for one particular week, I do know the reason. But otherwise, I think it's plain weird. Oh well. My sleeping patterns have been somewhat strange lately and my dreams are leaving me a tad perplexed. Maybe it's stress. Maybe it's the confused state of mind.

I'm not sure how I should really feel at the moment. So many things have been happening. I finally obtained closure regarding a certain aspect in my life. At least I think I did, although admittedly, it was not what I wanted. But perhaps it's what I needed. As Coehlo wrote in one of his many inspiring works:

Waiting is painful. Forgetting is painful.
But not knowing which to do is the worst kind of suffering.

At least now I know.

However, there are still so many questions. And I feel like I don't truly know what I want anymore. I suppose time will tell. I just hope this phase passes soon. It seems to suck out any concentration I might have, when I'm in dire need of it - concentration I mean!

2006-11-29T23:16:00.000+01:00

the photo that appeared on the front page of Malta's leading newspaper, the day after our car-cade and running crazily around (try and spot me :) )

Marion, David and me at the ball, all in a "happier" state than usual ;)

that time of year

2006-11-29T22:34:00.000+01:00

Towards the end of November, thousands of (ex-)students in Malta would have plenty of reason to celebrate. One of the most awaited events after a number of years of hard work, which thankfully paid off, would have finally arrived. Yes, it's graduation week!

A lot of my friends and three cousins of mine are graduating in various fields this year. As for myself, I can only enviously look at the celebrations and hope that this time next year I will be in their shoes, having the time of my life. This evening while I was shopping, a traditional Maltese bus plastered with banners and with pumping music passed by and the memories came flooding in. I was lucky enough to celebrate graduation in my first degree last year and I can say that it was one of the best weeks ever - the car-cading around a few cities in Malta (not sure if it's done in any other country), the meals and drinks: really any excuse to party is justified during that week, and of course the graduation ball. I can only hope that the next one, which in mere terms of graduating is more meaningful since I get my Honours degree, will be just as fun.

When the bus stopped I realised that they were the newly graduated medical doctors and so there was a handful of friends including my cousin. It was great seeing them, in spite of ending up smelling of beer as a result of the congratulatory hugs :) After five years of hard work and intense studies, they had made it. Congratulations to every graduate!

Here are some pics of my graduation week last year.

after the graduation ceremony

Bond is now

2006-11-20T20:00:00.000+01:00

Like a bevy of people around here, I had been looking forward to watch the new James Bond movie, and when yesterday I unexpectedly got invited to watch the movie that same night I immediately accepted. The trailer of Casino Royale had led me to believe that this was a really cool movie, definitely worth watching at the cinema as soon as possible. My verdict? Oh yes! It was a great movie - the epitome of cool. In my opinion Daniel Craig has fit into the role as easily as he fit into his tux. He gives the character a raw edge, very gritty, masculine, violent and sadistic yet tender - almost impossible you'd think but somehow he manages perfectly. I don't know why they ever made such a fuss about having a blonde Bond.

For once there is no overload of CGI - the action looks mostly plausible (a few weeks ago I watched Goldeneye on telly and I just laughed out loud at how absurdly ridiculous and impossible the action was: a complete zinnata as we call it in Maltese). It's true one has to adopt a certain suspension of disbelief but a James Bond movie isn't a sci-fi movie or set in a complete fantasy world. The first action set-piece set in Madagascar involved some incredible stunts (and apparently no CGI) making it even more powerful and the collapse of the Venetian building toward the end (no spoilers there - it's in the trailer) also looked quite real although it was perhaps over-drawn. And so I believe that Casino Royale delivers what a Bond movie should be - daredevil but realistic stunts, injuries when and where there should be, stunning locations and (more) stunning people, and of course I don't mind a dose of avant-garde technology and beautiful cars, plus the essential: a credible script.

To anyone who's still to watch it, enjoy! As for me I'm greatly anticipating 2008 to watch the next one.

Last Tuesday I watched a movie of a different genre altogether - one which I found thought provoking, well-made and touching. I watched the Palestinian film Paradise Now. It also somehow reinforced (or reminded me of) my current love for all things Middle-Eastern in terms of culture. It was being shown as part of an international film festival showing at one of the local cinemas. Unfortunately, it was the only film I managed to see but I'm glad I "dragged" some people to see this particluar film with me.

Enjoyed isn't excatly a word one can use when discussing a film which deals with such a matter that is frequently in the news. This story of two friends who are recruited as suicide bombers was treated in an unbiased manner with occasional humour thrown in, although one never forgets the underlying drama and sadness. The film does not justify or condemn one particular side, but it raises questions for which there are no clear answers - one cannot just take one side in this conflict. If we were in such a situation would we be pushed to such limits too? Horror and suffering lies on either side. Why can't there be an understanding that violence will only breed more violence?

To sum it up from just an artistic point of view: a beautiful film with excellent acting. Highly recommended.