"A New Angle on History"

New perspectives on historical tales told time and time again are always refreshing, almost like watching your favorite television show or reading your favorite book but through the eyes of an ancillary character or narrator. Kind of.

As such, it must be noted that today is the 20th 'anniversary' of the march on Tianamen Square in Beijing in response to oppressive Communist Chinese government and the bloody weeks that lead up to that fateful day. One cannot speak of those protests without mentioning 'Tank Man,' the iconic photograph that remains a symbol for protest today.

To commemorate the anniversary of the protest and the photograph, Lens, a superb photography blog on NYTimes.com, had four of the photographers who initially released photographs of the man standing in the way of the tanks share their experiences.

What really struck me was the blog posted today relating to a brand new image first published today by journalist Terril Jones. The NYTimes blogger does an effective job of summarizing what's going on in the image:

"Mr. Jones’ angle on the historic encounter is vastly different from four other versions shot that day, taken at eye level moments before the tanks stopped at the feet of the lone protester. Wildly chaotic, a man ducks in the foreground, reacting from gunfire coming from the tanks. Another flashes a near-smile. Another pedals his bike, seemingly passive as the tanks rumble towards confrontation."

What we see here is a completely new point of view as to what is going on. Personal accounts, news articles and books can all say exactly what it was like, but all we really ever had was that small frame from those famous photographs. I remember (briefly) learning about the events and being told that the streets were empty except for that one man, which made the photograph more powerful of course, but I always wondered what the rest of the scene looked like.

No More Scrabble

It's hard to believe that a year has passed since I graduated from college. Not that I haven't been busy in the last year. Life has become much more complicated, but naturally, much sweeter. With each new challenge and each new obstacle a fresh flavor and perspective accompanies it.

All that said, one thing, more than graduation photos and 'I got a job!' posts on Facebook, is marking the one year anniversary of my graduating from Maryland: no more Scrabble.

I play Scrabble on a more-than-daily basis with a close friend in order to maintain my sanity while away from all things familar and comfortable. Unfortunately for me, Scrabble on Facebook is not available to people outside of the United States.

In order to access this quite exclusive service, I use my University of Maryland accounts to connect through a VPN to connect to the Maryland network; thus, I can connect to 'American' internet and have access to Scrabble.

Now that it has been a year since graduation, my access to University of Maryland is being cut off. As a result, no more Scrabble until I get home. How poetic. Frick.

I'm Alive!

So I've been meaning to do the 'I'm Alive!' post for months now (read: putting it off), but just couldn't find the time. School and life have been providing free rectal exams on a daily basis and because England has nationalized health care, they are gratis. Hard to pass up, really.

Some conclusions I've made since November:

1) Trying to write a long research paper without any preparation shortly before you plan to permanently return home after being away for a year is a bad idea.

2) Allergies are a pain in the ass no matter what continent you live on.

3) Unless you keep yourself socially active when away from home, even the most independent world-traveler will miss it, that and them.

4) People watching is a hobby that knows no borders or boundaries, and is universally entertaining.

5) Flights are so damn cheap in Europe.

6) Flights are so damn expensive in The States.

7) Even when work, school, family, x, y and z suck, cooking can save your brain from meltdown.

8) England is cold, even in 'summer.'

9) Even if it's cold out, a poorly-ventilated flat can be a fully-functioning sauna.

10) Regrets area waste of time-- reflect and move on. Although... I still can't believe I ditched on one of my dreams: to fly somewhere for a day to see a concert, then fly back (Paris, Yeah Yeah Yeahs); just to finish a paper that I didn't work on that day and ended up bombing.

11) (I prefer odd numbers to even ones) Life will always surprise you, moreso when you think you know what the hell is going on.

That is all. I intend to be a little more active in the future as distractions keep me sane when the odds are against my keeping out of a proverbial straight-jacket. Keeps it real!

I Have the Plague

As most are aware, England has at various times suffered, just as much of the rest of the world, with The Black Death. Specifically in the early- to mid-14th century, and later in the 17th century. Thanks to the great and all-knowing Wikipedia, I stumbled upon a town in England referred to as "the plague village."

Over the last few weeks I have been ill. With what? Oh, this and that. Coughing, sneezing, hacking, wheezing (oh, the rhymes!), conjunctivitis, etc. etc. Now, most of this has nothing to do with The Black Death. None of my lymph nodes are swollen and I haven't been vomiting. Darn! So how do I have The Black Death?

Eyam, "the plague village," was named so because the inhabitants of the town decided to completely isolate themselves from outsiders after the plague began to sweep through the town. According to a few sources on the Interweb, "Ring Around the Rosey," (which we all learned after reaching an age mature enough to handle such a disastrous blow) the nursery rhyme about how fun The Black Death really is, was written about Eyam. Whether or not this is true is irrelevant. What is important here is this:
What does this mean? It means that Nottingham, my current city of residence, is less than an hour away from Plaguetown, England.

Hence, I have the plague. Hence, I haven't been posting lately.

NOTE: It was tough deciding between using the DVD cover for Clive Barker's "The Plague," and the 1992 film "The Black Death." I opted for the added humor of James van der Beek's steaming pile of a career. Don't those Dawson's River kids know that doing one of these stupid movies is the final nail of what is a likely already failing career? When will they learn?? And what the hell was Andy's problem?? Geez...

ALSO: When I say that I have the plague, I am solely referring to the terminal illness and not to the movie. I'd much rather have that than an hour-and-a-half of Dawson fighting the plague or whatever.

I'm Still Alive

Yes, I am still alive. Yes, school has taken precedence to all of this. Will I write anything of substance any time soon? Certainly. I've been traveling the last few weeks, with trips to Dublin and Paris. Lots to share, lots to discuss. But right now, school is kicking my ass all over the place. Know that I love and miss you all. You stay classy, internet.


Also, this isn't me. This is Google Image Search at its best/worst.