Opportunity Cost

There come times in one's life that really allow you to ponder on some of the abstract models that you have been taught in schooling. Indeed, for me, it was the split second decision of either going to the toilet and relieving my busting bowels, or making my train, with the next in 15 minutes.

What is love?

So what are my thoughts on this particularly sensitive and vulnerable topic? Well, i wouldn’t say that i can say much regarding love because being only a youngling in my last year of teenager life, i can’t say i’ve had the most extensive observation of the feeling. Personally though, love is a powerful emotion, one from the depths of your being, literally, considering the limbic system is actually rather deep inside your brain.

The American Dream

Things may have changed in the land of the free but one thing never will - the desire to own a property; to live off the land - and that my friend, is the American Dream. It never hit me till now, but my mum has always wanted the American Dream and it pains me to see that it will be extremely difficult for her to get any decent property and that she will eventually settle for some sub par apartment.

The joy of the midnight jog

So midnight runs normally conjure up images of getting in the car with your mates and driving out to the nearest 24-hour fast food chain, probably MacDonalds. As of recent though, they have come to mean jogging past the midnight mark in attempts to "cut", ironically for the prize of a glorious shouted meal. On such jogs i have undergone many epiphanies, particularly regarding assignments i seem to be perpetually all-night-ering for. It's no doubt that exercise definitely wakes me from the coma-inducing properties of biology study, you could say it helps jog the memory of ideas that could benefit my study.

Destructive Construction

The holidays back home always seem to refresh and renew my spirits and the recent 5-day trip did just that. In fact, this time has been the most relaxed thus far and it did reinforce that some of the best moments aren't those spectacular drunken misadventures, or big dramatic events, but simply the small moments like three guys on the coach to visit their friend in another city. Indeed, the one line that really spoke out was "destructive construction", a term one good friend used to describe capitalism and how, every day, billions of dollars are wiped off the stock-market and restored the next day. The phrase also conjures images of a phoenix, the ideal of which has always struck me as simply beautiful. To rise up from the ashes as a fiery, wrath-filled creature and to know that even if everything has gone to hell, there is still hope and you can still stand up - face each day as a stronger and more determined fighter.

If only we could edit life

So there comes a time in every man's life where he must concede and turn to an editor for help. For a long time i've had a major problem in my life - one that would make most people cringe. It's almost as bad as one of those ER shows where you see mangled limbs and guts flying everywhere. Yes, i admit it, i have always had a problem with grammar, syntax and just general expression.

Privilege

How many times have you heard an old man yell: "back in the day, we never had the things you young folk have today, life was so much harder..."? The truth is most people, especially teenagers, would brush them off as senile fools who've lost grip of the world. It takes a lot sometimes to sit back and reflect on how much privilege we really have, something reading a lot of sociology blogs has compelled me to do (particularly those on feminism).

Father's Day

It's been a day since father's day, well two technically as i write this well after midnight but i would just like to say a big thank you to all fathers out there because let's face it, without them, some of us would not be able to drive, play sports, attempt to fix things and pretend to know things. Also we would not know what it's like not to be embarrassed around friends or awkwardly have "the talk".

Conspiracy Theories

So the other day, being almost more than a week ago now due my laziness and tardiness to post, i was talking with a friend about conspiracy theories. For all those who don't know what i'm referring to, i'm talking about all the crazy phenomenon that can't be explained by science, and as a student of science, i am naturally intrigued. UFOs, 9/11, the Bermuda Triangle, the list goes on for conspiracy theories, and much like the porn theorem that states that if you can think of it, there probably exists a pornography that matches, as does the conspiracy theory theorem. My favourite of course is how there is always an inkling that my life is like The Truman show.

Holiday to home

They say it only takes two weeks to get used to something new in your life and i felt the full impact of this when i returned home for the semester break over the past three weeks. Quite strangely, it was getting used to something old in my life - the sights and sounds that i had grown accustomed to throughout my childhood were once again so ingrained in my routine for more than two weeks that it almost felt that i had never left, that i was home once again, but then reality hits and i'm back interstate for another semester of study.

Anticipation

Another semester finishes and with it is the migration of many interstate students flocking back home for the month. For me at least, there is a certain electric anticipation in the air as i wait eagerly to return soon, yet i can't help but feel the worries that my trip may not be as wild as my imagination runs it to be.

The Sound of Music

I was forced into the music world because of the perceived idea that we had to do an instrument in the first year of high school or join the choir - something that as a young male, was considered rather emasculating and also social suicide. Ever since though i've never looked back.

Off-Days

I must apologise for my infrequent posting. I guess you could say that i've been rather uninspired these few weeks - i gues you could say a little bit of writer's block but mainly a whole lot of can't be bothered. However, again as it always does to most writer's, nature has given me a new sense of inspiration and awe. It's really quite amazing what your discover when you just open your eyes to the world.

Moving In

Now as much as i'm up for adventure and surprise, i'm actually a person who loves security - the safety in knowing that certain aspects of life will always be constant. I am a lover of routine and the patterns of life. However, these past few weeks i have been expected to experience things never before anticipated. So long story short, i got kicked out of my home-stay while on holiday.

A Friendly Reminder

The truth is i am going to do a recount of my experiences as i went down back to the Gold Coast with my old friends and back down to hometown during mid-semester break. But it feels, even with all the fun and letting go i had which included drinking 47 standards over 5 nights in a row as well as a lot of vomit particularly on a friend of mine, that this isn't adequate enough to represent what i truly enjoyed over my short 8 night adventure but i guess i will try anyway.

Parental Advice

Now i'm not going to win any prizes for the best son of the year award but i will tell you one thing. I may never call my mum (just like every other son out there) and frequently lie to them about almost every single detail in my life but strangely enough, the thing a friend once said about me is probably true - i'll always be a mummy's boy.

Underdog Stories

Now i know that after that terrible dog movie involving a superhero dog, the term 'underdog' has probably got taken down a few respect points but nonetheless i still find that i, just like every other aussie out there, loves a underdog story. Something about giving people a fair go, some David vs Golitarth story seems to get to me. Key such classic Australian movies like 'The Castle' or 'Footy Legends' featuring even more famous actors far too famous to name here. Regardless of how terrible the Australian movie industry is, underdog stories form one of my fundamental ideals.

A Month On

Well, it's hard to believe that it's almost been an entire month since i moved to this god-forsaken place and so much has already changed. It's like the saying goes - some are born great and some have greatness thrust upon them. Well i'd like to think i was born great all the time however the reality is that you only become great through experience - and of course, i'm exaggerating how much of a hole this place really is because honestly, you don't need to be too great to survive here, i mean i'm still (barely) alive.

(Re)newed Experiences

This week has been a week of firsts - first week of university, first time clubbing, first time skating, first time i've begun reading again after the last text i read which was prescribed for High School English. I suppose it isn't too late to learn something new ("you can't teach old dogs new tricks" is a very deceitful saying) and it isn't too late to pick up a ex-hobby. University, well that's been a eye-opening experience indeed since no longer are you spoon-fed or looked after, everything is autonomous - scraping in that pass, or failing epically. This will definitely be an interesting year filled with renewed experiences.

Still just a small weekling at my new life

So it's hard to believe that just a week has passed so far since i moved interstate to chase my dream and well, i suppose i have already changed a lot - i mean i have met more people in my last week than i have for six years but such a move does demand such a shift in outlooks. Pretty much, i have decided that clubbing and partying is definitely not my thing, that women are very mean when they try to be, i'm a socially awkward turtle a lot of the time and that it takes a lot of effort to retain friends. Now with my entire week pretty much recounted in a nutshell, we can move on to something i suppose i should explain - the reasons why i actually want to take up a profession that kills your life as you spend every hour studying or working, i should explain why i want to become a doctor.

University Level Personal Hygiene

Now it's a generally accepted part of a struggling povo university student lifestyle that your staple food is probably Mi Goreng, the hours you're most alive are actually around midnight, and you probably run on energy drinks so much that your entire bloodstream is actually guarana and caffeine. Never have i thought it to be so extreme that my actual method of brushing my teeth is chewing Wrigley's Active Gum.

Public Goods

Well here i am in a library in Queensland stealing free wireless internet and honestly, over the past two days since i got here on the 19th morning, i have learnt that public goods are the greatest inventions ever. Oh, and any other freebies you can score over the place.

Fatalism

It's been ages since i last posted that's because i've been under a lot of stress and change recently. Basically in order to accomplish my dream of becoming a doctor, i must leave all that i love dearly to move to Queensland. Fatalism is a quite a weird thing to believe in if you do - to think all these decisions have all been predetermined and everything has a greater purpose is quite hard to fathom. Another interesting idea is that there is actually "fatal" in the word, and right now, the blows whoever determines such fatalism pathways has given have made me not only question the world around me, but also taught me more in the past few weeks about moving on, and coping with change than i have ever learnt in my life.