Thursday 21 July 2011 0 comments

A Private Concert

Let's be honest. We all do it. Entering the backstage area with the appropriate equipment, we begin to prepare ourselves. As the anticipation and expectation brews within our chests, we step on stage and... turn the water on. 

Singing in the shower has become so familiar to me (although not to the extent of the narrative above), that in an experiment when I denied my audience (mainly comprised of shampoo bottles) of another rendition of "The Circle of Life", it felt unnatural. Standing silently with hot steaming water pounding down, the rhythmical drumming of the drops brought no alleviation to the haunting nature of the silence. 

The reasoning behind this habit remains unknown to me, but it is perfectly clear that it cannot be stopped. Many of us are not fully confident in our singing ability to muster the courage and perform publicly, and indeed some of us (myself included) possess such an inadequate voice that performing in front of others is ruled out. Music aims to stir emotions, but I doubt the desired effect was to create a sea of grimacing faces. Is this the reason why the shower is our chosen place of performance? Does the seclusion and isolation from society enable us to express ourselves when free from judgement?

Although it is undeniable that this remains a factor, it is also a love for music which motivates us. With the benefits of modern technology, music is almost always accessible, but the shower remains one of the few areas bereft of music, perhaps giving us an excuse to fill the silence with song. Sound has a miraculous ability to transform anything. A picture might tell a thousand words, by when teamed with music it can tell a hundred thousand, and it is for this reason why this habit should continue. Keep singing!
Friday 8 July 2011 0 comments

Can I see your ticket please?

Travel is a constant problem facing almost every person alive today. For whatever reason, be it work, school, holiday or leisure, we must move from place to place. Our creativity and intelligence has provided us with many methods of transportation, but the most impressive of these has to be the aeroplane. The sheer achievement of keeping a massive hunk of metal in the sky for prolonged periods of time is in itself a huge feat of engineering, but it is even more impressive considering that they can safely carry us to the other side of the world. 

However, as with many other things, this display of man's intelligence is marred by our stupidity and endless capacity for error. Although there is little fault with the planes themselves, the system within every airport seems to have been invented by severely mad apes. Bags flying around on conveyer belts, machines humming as they peruse the contents of our luggage, and the endless queues prevent us from marvelling at the wonder of flight. Even the security checks, although highly necessary, are getting out of hand. Along with another invasive inspection of our belongings, the final stage of security might as well have changing rooms at the end. After being forced to surrender items of clothing, when our bags are finally returned, it is not to a crowd awaiting their arrival, but instead to a sea of mildly embarrassed faces, each desperately trying to buckle their belts to halt the progress of their trousers' descent. 

This prolonged agony of waiting, frustration and general peril, although extremely infuriating, does provide us with one thing we crave the most: time. Although at points we might wish time away, it is invaluable to each and every one of us. We all only have a set amount of time in this world, and each moment is precious, however tedious it may be. Even now, sitting comfortably in an air conditioned car, the monotony of travel has provided me the time I needed to write another post on this collection of my thoughts. It is this then that we need to focus on. Life is short. Time is long. Make the most of it.
 
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