stories or things?

is it better to live a life of experience or things? if experience is your bag then I recommend trying to make those experiences sober ones. Having lived most of my twenties in the pursuit of experience at the express expense of anything useful to show for it, I'm starting to believe that those boring swine who spend their lives accumulating wealth and/or things are the smart ones after all. Where they have houses and heated towel rails, I have a hazy memory of running round a stranger's garden screaming like a loon in the early hours of sunday morning.

But what about "enriching" experiences? I chose to live abroad to expand my horizons (quide liderrally!). A few years on and not only can I speak another language but I enter ex-pat banter fearlessly. My friends back home are rich, powerful and own houses.

I am by no means about to head home. I like it where I am. But I don't think I'm a better person for it. Just different I suppose.

It's all very clever making a film without a script

...but you get the impresion its more rewarding for those involved than for the poor bastards who have to watch it. Before Sunset is the worst load of drivel I've ever seen. Male writer of romantic bestsellers meets female NGO-worker who apparently manages to help the developing world despite showing only basic biological intelligence (eyes follow moving object, demonstrates flinch response to loud noise etc). Quote: Female "I read my diary of nine years ago and was amazed. It was like I was the same person." Male heroically resists temptation to point out how jaw-droppingly stupid that sounds (he later reveals himself to be equally free of activity upstairs). It wasn't a total waste, though. I'll admit it was hilariously bad: I was surpised, after ten mintues, to find that it wasn't satire.

(I nicked this post from an email I wrote to someone because I'm trying to kickstart this blog. So not plagiarism but lazy, certainly.)

A slow start

On a corporate training course I was advised to "under-promise but over-deliver". This is invaluable advice which I have applied rigorously to all corners of my life.

This blog will be dull and shit.