A Lesson in History

This is frikkin awesome.



The ending was a hilarious surprise. Though I thought it would be cool to do, I didn't think they'd actually do it!!

The Big 5-0-0!

No. Not 500 posts! That's crazy talk. Though this post is my 76th, so I am 3/4s of the way to my centennial post!

Nope, I now have over 500 photos in my Flickr page! Though a lot of those are of toys rather than friends, I think over half are in fact of real people. So I'm not too embarrassed! That said, however, the actually 500th photo was indeed of an action figure!

Blogger Update

Though I doubt those of you reading will see many changes, Blogger has got into a Beta update, and I, ever the adventurous one, went along for the ride and swapped over. I can now add tags to my posts to make particular topics easier to find.

Er... so far, that's it. Oh well. If other cool stuff comes to light, I'll let my loyal fans know about it!

Back In College

So I apologise for not updating my blog lately, but I've been super busy. I started my third year work experience last week. I'm working in a preschool with children ranging from late two's to four year olds.

And I love it!

Every minute is awesome. Every tiny event is a joy to see. All the developement, all the practical examples of that boring, boring theory. I love working with the kids and the adult staff, of which there are only two others!

But, boy is it tiring. I get home, usually around 4 and go for a two hour nap. Then up and have dinner, cooked for me while I am unconscious, and I'm back in bed and out like a light before 11 most nights!

There's just no time for posting. Which is a pity, because I have to write a daily diary and I thought I could start a blog about it, so it's obvious if I fall behind. Plus, there might be a few people interested in reading it. My diary for college has to be 100% confidential, so no names of children, adults, area, school, anything. So I don't see the problem with posting it on a blog. It would allow people to make constructive observations about the theory and practice, and help me in better understanding events through a fresh pair of eyes.

Yawn... Maybe I'll start that this week... or next...

Oh For Crying Out Loud

I gave you guys the benefit of the doubt when I last complained about the PS3 and Sony, but their new advertising campaign is just ridiculous. Not only does it portray Sony as child abductors using sweet flying "3"s, but come on!! We have all agreed that the PS3 is not a childs console.

$700 people!

Seven Hundred!

And that price, evidently, is because of all those "neato" features no-one that ad is aimed at cares about.

I know the machine can do everything but make you dinner (though if the Nintendo DS cooking game really takes off, who knows!!), but children only see and want a games console. Free from Santa too. With Christmas around the corner, cost is not an issue. It's not like your parents have to pay for the damn thing.

Gaah!!

Know What You Sell

What does it take to work in a specialist store? Any kind, I’m not fussy here. I saw recently that a local bookstore was hiring, and part of the notice in the window read “Applicants should have a love of books and reading”. Seems fair to me. If you’re working in a book store, you should enjoy reading. Similarly, if you’re working in a leisure centre, you should enjoy swimming, or working out in some way. People working in a music store should have an interest in music. This all goes without saying. I thought.

I went in this week to pre-order my Wii in a local computer game specialist store. While there I spoke to the two females behind the counter about the machine and it’s possibilities. One of the two was the manager, by the way. Neither had a clue about the new console! They were surprised when I explained about the unusual controller design and the motion sensor technology. The manager of a computer game specialist store didn’t know about the new console being released for Christmas by the one of the Big Three! I was... well... amazed! I mean, the Wii has been getting more coverage over the last few months than any of the consoles, if only for its crazy, crazy risks to reach a wider customer base!

Not that that will stop me buying my Wii there. There are three places in Cork I would even consider buying a console. Two are specialist stores from different chains and one is part of a large toy store chain. There is also HMV and Virgin, but I don’t usually buy consoles from them as they rarely have very good opening offers. So that leaves me with the three I’ve previously mentioned. The toy store is a possibility, but they can’t guarantee an adequate supply of the machines to meet orders. The two specialist stores support two very different strategies regarding employment. The previously mentioned one employs lots of pretty girls in a “car show” kind of way, that look good selling stuff, and lonely geeks (not me, thank you very much!) like talking to them as it’s the only chance they get. The other one employs said geeks, who know just as much about computer games as the customers, and are happy to debate the pros and cons of one console versus another.

So which strategy is better? Pretty, girls who only have a cursory knowledge of the product, or people who can discuss the product with confidence and almost (sometimes only) geek-like detail? Appealing dimensions or knowing the consoles dimensions?

I shop in the first one. The one with the pretty girls. It’s a nicer, cleaner, brighter store. The offers are generally better. And yes, it has pretty girls. So sue me. I’m a red-blooded male. Though I am also one that is happily engaged, so... um... you know... don’t tell Claire!

Me And My Voice

I grew up on a steady diet of American tv from a very young age. My parents, while never resorting to the TV as a babysitter or substitute for parenting, allowed me the freedom to enjoy the box purely as an evening activity when outdoor sports were not possible.

Because of this, I don’t remember watching very many cartoons when I was very young. I didn’t get into Transformers, M.A.S.K. or GI Joe until a much later stage. I didn’t even watch Bosco, that primary source of Irish children’s television, though my younger brother developed the fascinating to watch ability to quote each line up to 3 seconds ahead of particular episodes having watched them to death! On the other hand, I do remember playing as The A-Team while I was just in play-school, putting me at only four-years old when I was watching it! That’s about the only thing I remember from that early point in my life, along with an almost Freudian love for my play-school teacher. She was amazing.

I still remember watching The A-Team, MacGyver, Knight Rider, The Fall Guy, Street Hawk and many more when they were all primetime shows on RTE. I remember sitting on the couch with my dad and mom, watching explosions and action, watching B.A. make a tank out of a few sheets of metal or MacGyver… well, macgyvering (yes, it’s a verb, they used it on Stargate) gadgets from duct-tape and rubber tubing. I remember being allowed to stay up until the very late time of 9pm just so I could watch these shows to the end. And they were all great.

As well as bestowing upon me an avid interest in action/adventure shows, the ability to use ordinary gadgets in extraordinary ways, a desire to be the hero whenever possible and the love of writing cross-over fan fiction (A-Team versus MacGyver: One Warehouse, No Way Out, Lots of Gadgets. Someone’s About to Have a Plan Come Together) watching all those American shows had an unexpected side-effect. It left me with an unusual accent that has the slightest twinge of American in it.

It comes as no surprise when Irish people ask me how long I’ve been living in Ireland. When I tell them I was born and raised here, the next question is often how long I spent in America . This inevitably leads to shock when I inform them that I’ve never set foot on American soil. I’ve never even been in one of the embassies! It all comes from too much TV as a kid.

But what is surprising is when Americans ask me the same question. This has happened twice recently, and it got me thinking. I’m not trying to say that the Americans in question were foolish for thinking I was from their side of the Atlantic. They seemed like very nice people during the short while we spoke. No. This isn’t a “look at the stoopid American” post. I quiet like Americans. This is an “I have an unusual accent” post, nothing else.

Personally, I like it. I have a very easy to understand voice with no strong accent. You might say that my voice has a “travelled” quality to it, as if I have spent a lot of time abroad. It certainly doesn’t sound like I’m a country boy that grew up on an island. But the truth is, I haven’t. I’ve rarely been outside Ireland. And even when I have been, it’s only been to England !

So is this the way of the future? A new, universal accent for all. Our children watch almost entirely American TV from a very early age. Barney, Elmo, and Bear in the Big Blue House have replaced Bosco as the primary form of preschool edutainment. Am I the first in a new wave of mixed accents? Will we see more and more Irish and European children growing up using American phrases?

Honestly, I don’t know. I just wanted to post about my unusual vocal qualities and the effect of TV on me. That last part is hardly cause for concern. All that action/adventure hasn’t caused me to go out shooting people (yet), or made me aggressive in any way. It hasn’t made me want to run off and join a secret organisation testing new super-bikes kitted out with turbo boost and lasers... actually, it has, but it turns they’re really hard to find. Unfortunately it hasn’t made me into an ace mechanic, a bomb disposal expert, a government agent, an undercover spy or even (my true desire) a qualified teacher. Oh well. Guess I just need to watch some more!