I have recently been put into a position where my energy and enthusiasm to communicate and get things organised can possibly be put to good use.  I guess my only concerns are that the people I am working with do not share the same energy and enthusiasm which will mean that my expectation to have these people actually communicate and trust either other to share their thoughts without fear may mean that I will be quickly disappointed.

I am someone who does like to discuss things excessively, as I feel that it’s a good way to ensure that most aspects have at least been thought through.  I feel it’s a also a worthwhile process for everyone involved to express an opinion as the only thing that silence indicates is a lack of commitment.  Sure look I understand that sometimes people don’t have the time to get involved, however I believe they need to make the time if they are in a position of responsibility.  Anyway, I guess maybe my expectations probably need to be toned down otherwise I’m going to get rather annoyed and disheartened.

Warning, reading further may be a case of ‘To Much Information’ for a lot of people.  Read on only if you have an open or inquiring mind secure in the knowledge that you have been warned.

AMI, the company that has for the last 3-4 years been marketing a simple solution to premature ejaculation have an interesting marketing campaign.  See quite simply the only people who really need their services are those that aren’t really getting enough sex in the first place, those that don’t have regular partners, or those that get it less than once a week.  Having discussed this issue with a few people, tested the theory myself and having known men at both sides of the spectrum, I believe that the issue is simply a matter of not getting enough sex.  I’m not saying that this is the be all and end all solution, and that this will work for every guy, but women; if your man isn’t lasting as long as you would like, then it might simply be a case of not having sex often enough.  Personally I would suggest 2-3 times in a night, 2-3 times a week.  I’m sure there’s a more scientific explanation, but you won’t hear it from me, instead you’ll here supposition and personal theories…

The penis seems to know the difference between a guys hand and a real woman and I think it really wants a real woman.  So much so that it is so sensitive to the feel of being inside a real woman that when it hasn’t for longer than a week or two it just can’t help but be all excited.  Think about it like this, the sexual response in a man if you cut it right back to animal instinct, is there purely to promote the continuation of his seed.  So the little head is basically going to try and get that seed into the woman as soon as it can just in case it doesn’t get another chance.  The less sex a guy has had, the more chance his little head is going to be desperate to get that seed into the woman.  Therefore ladies, if you pick up a guy whilst out dancing and end up heading back somewhere for some fun, chances are if the guy lasts a long time chances are he probably had some other woman not that long ago, if the first time it was over in a minute or less, then chances are the guy hasn’t been with a woman in at least 2-3 weeks.

This whole sexual performance thing that society and AMI are promoting is simply a means of evening the field when it comes those that have enough and those that don’t.  Now I’m not trying to say what they are selling is a bad thing, or that guys that know the secret to lasting a longer time are a bad thing either.  Hell, I’m not even trying to stand up for those of us that don’t get enough and therefore are well, premature.  All I’m trying to say is that in my opinion there’s an easy natural answer to why it happens, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, it is fixable without drugs and that marketing and society are to blame for it being a bugger issue than it needs to be.  I guess the real question is how does it effect YOU.  For some it might mean a few more hours of enjoyment is needed to bring spice back into a waning relationship, for others it might be a means of making a moralistic or judgement call.  These are only my own opinions and observations, do with this information whatever you choose.

People try and convince me more and more each day that we are Human and not animals; and that we should act more Human…  I still think the  animal instincts in us explain a lot about who we are and why we do the things we do.  No matter how much people try and tell me they don’t and that they shouldn’t, I will always believe this even as culture and civilization try to cover up those instincts.

Wow…  Talk about slackness and procrastination…  The article below was written back in November…  In fact early November.  So, why bring up a failure to publish like this?  why not quietly delete it and hope that no-one ever notices that it was ever started?  Two reasons, firstly; It’s good to acknowledge ones mistakes, then move on and do better next time.  Secondly; This is a blog designed to document well…  me and my life.

It’s amasing how slack and lazy one can get when there is no real reason to get up in the morning. You might start thinking that On no, here comes another whinge about being unemployed, but no, fear not. The reason for this topic of thinking is to throw some idea’s out there, some may be right, some may be wrong… But now they are “Out There” do do doo do!

This follows on from a conversation I had with a friend on Thursday night about the need to get up and do stuff even if you don’t have a job to do. Now this friend was suggesting that you get up at 6am and go for a walk, which is one thing I have always found difficulty in maintaining. I can get up at 6am one or two times in a row and go for a walk, but all it takes is one rainy day or any other excuse not to and I’m back to sleeping till 8… 9… 10am. This friend was suggesting that this is normal behaviour and that it takes someone who’s slightly manic to make it work.

I have no idea where it was going from there, after all, it’s been 3 months.  Meh, maybe I should start getting up and going for a walk each morning again.

… And it only took me a whole month to come up with it.

Over the last 6 months I have been rather depressed about not having any goals in life, and well…  having nothing to strive for was getting very depressing.

This year I’m hoping to change that.  I have decided to get qualifications as a web developer, and as such I am now enrolled in a Certificate 4 course for Information Technology (websites).  This course should take about 12-18 months to complete.  Hopefully if I get a part time job in between, then I can survive on AUStudy for this time.  The issue is that AUStudy is a significant chunk less than Newstart, so I’ll have to make sure that I have enough part time work to maintain an income.  If I can manage this, I shall continue that way until I complete the Diploma level course and look for full time employment with a government department.

Thats my plan…  My Goal for the next 12-18 months.  I’m not going to set a longer term one until after I have achieved this one as well.  So, for all of you who actually read this, please feel free to help me stick to and encourage me towards completion of this goal as your support will help greatly.

There a whole lot of people having a go at the failings of Apples new iPad, citing things such as it doesn’t support Flash, it’s not multitasking and even it lacks connectivity.  But I don’t see these as problems with it, as quite simply I don’t see the iPad as a replacement for a computer, but more as a supplement for a computer.  It is quite simply a large iPod Touch with some additional software touches to take advantage of the large screen.  However the possibilities of putting that to some valuable uses are amazing.  It can supplement your computing experience by becoming the open manual beside you as you learn a new piece of software.  It can provide you with a means of moving a document to a mobile platform so that you can take it over and show your boss.  How many of us geeky people have either their laptop open beside their desktop computer or have dual monitors to increase productivity.  Usually the second monitor or laptop is there to provide us with a quick look at our email inbox, or some sort of semi-static document, that’s a perfect use for the iPad.  The future no doubt will bring with it an App that allows you to drag documents to your iPad from your desktop and have those documents displayed at the same page you were at on your desktop.

We have all seen the SciFi movies with the data tablets that they just slide data across to and then move it off to somewhere else, or show colleagues…  that’s exactly what the iPad is.  It’s just a prototype version of those wonderful SciFi data pads.  It’s certainly not a laptop replacement or a games console.  It’s a tool to manipulate data, and sure, at the moment it is a little over priced, but just like Mobile phones and every other piece of technology as more and more people start using it, the price will drop until you can pick them up for under $200 and I’ll probably have 3 or 4 of them around the house, which is what I assume Apple were hoping for when they built the iPad.

I resisted purchasing an iPod, as I didn’t see the reason for having a piece of technology that couldn’t to as much as my mobile phone.  My Mobile phone has all of the functions that an iPod does and some more, and I really didn’t see a need to add another piece of technology to my collection that I would only use for one function.  Hell…  My mobilephone gets used more for music and entertainment than it does for phone calls…  so why be carrying more?  But The iPad has given me a reason to want one, and that simply the convenience of being able to read PDF’s, books and other data comfortably without having to start up my laptop and wait for all the bloatware to start before I can get into it.  The ease of use and the fact that there are minimal distractions whilst using it make it a fantastic tool to supplement a technogeeks arsenal.

Lets think of some other uses for the iPad…  Hmm  Lets save our students backs for instance, instead of carrying around kilo’s of paper books, they can have all of their text books available to them on the iPad, AND still have access to their laptop to actually work.  Effectively the iPad is an iPod for those who work with or read documents and need a larger screen to better display that information and the fact is I’m sold…  and I’m going to be working at finding a job even quicker now so that I can afford to get one myself.

Back in November my home PC kinda died and in the attempt to resurrect it I ended up back using Windows XP.  Now being a versatile person who has experience with Windows, Mac and Linux I didn’t really care what was on there as most of the applications I use are all web based and OS independant.  I did enjoy a few easily setup parts of Windows, and the fact that I could run some games that were not fully supported on Wine, however the OS has been glitching for the last week or two and I have now decided that it needs to be Ubuntu-fied.

I shall sacrifice the ease of Windows connectivity with my devices for the slightly more difficult but oh so much more stable Ubuntu.  The need to be Windows compatible is not something I am willing to put up with glitches and reboots for.  I am not willing to put up with Windows simply because the masses say that it is the best thing to do, I shall struggle slighlyly for connectivity and pursue the freedom that is Open Source, and the luxury of a built in App installer that knows what’s compatible with the software and where to find it.  I shall put up with a slightly more difficult path and wear my geekhood proudly!

For Linux is the system, the power and the future and I shall succeed where countless other geeks have done so, or my name isn’t Syridian.

I watched the DVD “The Ugly truth” the other day and I was actually quite surprised how much I agreed with the sentiments of the character of Mike.  Maybe that makes me a bad person, I don’t know, but I just couldn’t help agreeing with most things he said.  I’m only interested in a relationship with a woman for one reason and that reason is sex.  Thats not to say I can’t form a caring relationship and be friends, just that if there is no sex in a relationship or the sex is a one way deal where only one of us seems to want it, then it’s just easier to be purely friends.  I’m not going to be as offencive as Mike and say that all men are like this…  Personally I like to think they are, but there will always be someone out there who would take offence at that.

Sure, I really not the best person to talk about love and relationships.  The longest relationship I have had is 6 months, and every woman I have actually felt any real love for hasn’t felt the same for me.  Maybe I’m picky…  Maybe I’m just too damn honest…  Maybe I’m not honest enough.  Either way, I have had enough experience with dating to know that I’m over the whole chase / looking for the one thing.  I guess I’m at the point that I’m happy to see what happens, and hope that there’s enough interest from both sides to keep things going.  I don’t understand relationships without an active sex life, personally the only reason I see for having a relationship that is more than just a caring friendship is so that you can have a safe and active sex life.

I think that more women should watch “The Ugly Truth” and take heed of the leasons of Mike, he has some interesting and truthful things to say in amongst some stuff that is well…  Ugly. ;)

• heads off to cart rocks and build walls. #
• heads off to hang out at Charlie's on Beissel. #
• is going to become a lazy bohemian and hang out at a cafe/resturant all day. #
• Looking forward to the end of the silly season and potential employment. #

As a person who isn’t much of a celebrater of things, it’s been an awfully long time between organising celebrations for me.   These days I am hopeless with remembering other peoples birthdays and have only recently gotten around to getting a birthday calendar organised for friends and family.    Whilst I heartily attend other peoples parties, I haven’t thrown myself one in MANY years, usually avoiding celebration on my birthday entirely.

Last time I threw myself a party it was a going away party for when I left England and returned to Australia.  The party itself was Awesome!  But I was highly biased.  It started off at a lovely little English pub, where I was plyed with drink after drink until I was drinking 4 parts bourbon and 1 part Coke out of a pint glass as people were either buying me a straight bourbon to add to my bourbon and Coke, or were buying me double bourbon and Cokes.  The party then moved to a little resturant that I had hired for the night exclusivly, allowing us to continue drinking as well as get a great feed, and also keep going until the wee hours of the morning.  I remember waking up the next day still drunk, still feeling great…  And then I got on a plane and left England.  The party was a raving success as all of the people from the job I had in Enland as well as friends I had met in the two years I was living there all turned up to help see that I had a good night.

I have never really been game to attempt to repeat such a great party, as I didn’t want the memory of that nigt to disapear into obscurity.  However since reconnecting with a few of the people from when I was in England I have wanted to live those fun times again.  So in late Feb or early March there may actually be something that is very rare happening…  I may actually throw a party.  Stay tuned.

It’s a weird world we live in…  full of weird traditions.  I remember Christmas differently as a kid than I do now and I’m not sure if this is because Christmas has changed for my family, or because I’m just seeing it from a different perspective.

As a child, I remember the putting up of the christmas tree really meant something.  The tree was a magical thing with decorations that would come out each year and be something to play with army men on or drive matchbox cars along it’s branches.  Each year I would be a little taller and able to play a little higher in the branches.  Each year there would be the old favourite decorations that I remembered from last year, and maybe a new one that I or my sisters had made at school.  We would wake up early on Christmas day, and excitedly await our parents waking up so that we could open our presents.   Some years we would have family drop in on us, other years we would go visiting other reletives or friends, dropping off presents, maybe getting some.  Admittedly when my folks split up, it was a boon for us kids, as we would then have 2 Christmases…  But I think thats when the whole degredation of Christmas started.  There were some great christmases, and some crappy ones in there.  I was introduced to the concept of gift value and slowly the mystique started wearing off.  The larger family started laying down gift giving rules so that they would feel better.  The Secret Santa concept was introduced to limit people to only buying a gift for one adult and funnelling their money into buying for the kids.  Personally I think all this does is teach the kids more that Christmas is all about getting presents.

Personally I’m a little over Christmas these days…  I’m over the commercialisation of it…  I’m over the keeping up with the Jones’ of it…  I’m over all of the stress and arguements it causes in families simply because of those previous two. Maybe I saw things differently as a kid, and missed the stress buildup in my parents?  Maybe it was there and Christmases haven’t changed all that much, it’s just my perspective that has changed…  I don’t really know.  This Christmas was nicer than most, as whilst there was the whole extended family thing with the stress and the Secret Santa thing, there was also a nice immediate family get together on Christmas Morning.  It was wonderful and it was almost what I remember about Christmas.

Christmas started off as I believe, a Pagan celebration of the middle of Winter, and the coming of spring.  A celebration of a new year and a new chance to make life better.  The gift giving should be small and purely a token of love and friendship, the feasting should be provided by all as a community/family effort rather than provided by a small few.  Organise everyone prior to the event rather than just have a couple of people preparing a feast on the day.  Bring back the fun of Christmas I say, instead of the stressful controlled and planned Christmas’ that I’m seeing and not really enjoying over the last few years.  Bring back the small immediate family get together on Christmas morning.

Maybe I will start enjoying Christmases again.

• is tinkering with the idea of selling his pewter work on Etsy -> http://syridian.etsy.com #

I have just posted an article about creating a pewter drinking vessel to the Casting forum of the Lochac Network.  For those of you who follow my Pewter casting, you can check it out by click on the picture.

Direct link to Lochac.net

It worked out great, and I look forward to making more.

• http://bit.ly/4F6Rwq #
• is mumbling over multiple multi-media micro-blogs. #

• is installing GuildWars again after a break of 3 year not playing it… #
• is installing GuildWar again… #
• is preparing a plan to paint a picture of the potentially promissing procrastination promise. #
• is tinkering with Tweety the Twit-bot. #

Whilst reading an explaination posted on one of the few mailing lists I’m still on, a thought occured to me which I must admit I have yet to research. I have oft heard complaint that “The Crown is only open to tournement fighters” from non combatants and combat archers, and this thought if put into action would stop that being an issue at all.

This is not a formal proposal for anything but an open discussion, and I believe those who know me well enough, know that I am always promoting discussion of any kind. So this is just really sticking it out there to see what bounces.

So, the idea? What, (apart from current society law) would restrict a couple from appointing a Champion to fight Crown on their behalf? Realistically at the moment it is not possible, but would it be worth concidering a proposal to make this change? After all, to take on this monumental task this Champion would need to have total faith in the couple, believing that the couple are worth fighting for, and believing that they are worth putting their own reputation on the line for. The Crown would still need to accept this Champion as well as the Couple they fight for as a valid entry into The Crown Tourney, as I believe currently takes place.

If you really think about this, there are already so many checks in place to ensure that The Crown are capable of completeing their reign that I can see nothing but benefits for this suggestion. Was this not a valid period practice? Would this also not be quite honourable and chivalrous, as I believe it would be on the fighters honour as well as those they stand for to forfill the honour of the fighter?

Personally looking at the laws, though very breifly, I believe this would be a very simple change that would not only allow for a much more exciting Crown Tourney, as well as opening up the potential for some amasing new Crown couples who were previously denied entry simply due to lack of fighting ability (Can you imagine Rowan as Queen? I can, as this would make that possible).

Anyway.. As previously stated, this is really just putting forth an idea… I believe it’s a good one, I believe there is more potential good in it than the potential harm it could do. However I am also aware that 40 odd years of tradition is one hell of a big boulder moving downhill hill at incredible pace. Luckily for us, the right brains on side, some thought, and with some of the right type of muscle it is possible to divert that big a boulder.

I’m not trying to change the way it’s currently done, I just believe that this could be a better way.

{Google Wave removed}

I have been getting more and more frustrated by mailing lists of late, in particular The Shambles. There is a reason it is called The Shambles, as it only takes 4 or 5 posts before the subject of any dicussion twists off in all directions, frequently missing the original posters point entirely and starting huge debates on topics slightly left or right of what what said to start it.

However this frustration is with the whole concept of Mailing-Lists used for Discussion of particular topics, so to relieve myself I have unsubscribed from every mailing list that I don’t need to be on. No more Shambles, no more lists that generate branching discussions on the same topic that just go on and on. Maybe that will also mean Less SCA involvement, but lets face it… I have been loosing interest in the SCA for a while now, maybe this is the break that I need to take.

I’ll still look after The Lochac Network forums… still keep adding to them occationall, hoping that others will join me and hoping that they start to take off.

Yes… it’s a subject that I just can’t let go, and tonight I have found a perfect example of why I prefer Forums over Mailing-lists for discussions. Below is a picture of my inbox with 4 highlighted topics… the problem is, all of these are part of the same topic, yet you need to know that there are multiple subject lines now to follow each of these threads.

From Screen Captures

Even if the topic of discussion in the thread has changed slightly, it’s still all part of the same conversation, yet if you wanted to follow this conversation in the archives, assuming you knew how to get into them, you would have a hard time.  You would need to read down each of these branches then go back and find where the thread split, then follow that down another branch… Think of that happening multiple times in each thread, and you’ll begin to understand the madness of it all.

I also keep hearing the excuse “I pay more attention to email”, yet I have explained multiple times that Forums allow subscriptions so that people are notified when changes are made to a forum, and no-one has noticed this.  Email gives you a snippet of information… unless you keep the entire conversation and your email client is fantastic at backing-up and thread management, then I will never value email for information collection and collation.  Forums keep the discussion on a website, they keep it together there for new people to register and read from start to finish if they need to. Email keeps each message seperate and usually on your local system.  If something goes wrong with your local computer, say goodbye to your history of that discussion unless you have it all backed-up. Forums are usually kept on web servers with backup facilities.

Anyway… It’s my personal opinion that relying on email for discussions that you don’t wish to repeat many times over is a very stupid thing… Yes,  if you still think Mailing-lists are better,  I am trying to change your mind… but I’m doing it on my website, and I’m not going to force you to change your mind, i’m just going to whinge about it here incessently. ;)

It occured to me just recently that I have been a bit of a hypocrit recently. The defining moment was when I was contemplating emailing a friend and asking him if he would be interested in changing his blog to be hosted on The Lochac Network rather than the generic Blog site he has started it on… I was thinking about this, and then I thought about all of the White Metal Madness posts on this blog, and how really they should be on The Lochac Network in the casting forum. So I’m hoping to mend my ways from now on, and discontinue the White Metal Madness posts here, instead adding them to the Casting forum on The Lochac Network.

If you do occationally check out the White Metal Madness section of this blog every now and then, what you will be finding from now on will be a summary and link to a full article on the Lochac Network forums.

It’s not difficult to work out that I am not a fan of mailing lists… That is to say I’m not a fan of using them to discuss issues in depth and work out real solutions. Mailing lists are good for one thing, and that is sharing information and by information I mean links, event notices, a particularly good website, someones A&S documentation. My latest post to The Shambles has taught me one thing, one thing which I have secretly known for a while, but this has just brought it to light.

Mailing lists are not so good at gauging the feelings of a general populace. I believe there are a number of reasons for this, and I shall try and explain it further below. Some of what I explain below also applies to this post, so see if you can spot where the over laps apply. Firstly some basic basis stuff which I’m sure most of you will all understand, I hope.

Firstly I believe everyone has an opinion, usually one which they defend vehmenently. I’m happy to admit that what you are reading now is one of mine. :) It’s not necessarily right, not is it necessarily mine alone, but the issue with human beings seems to be that sub-consiously we all seem to believe that our opinions are unique, even if they may only differ from others by degrees of interpretation. ie; we may have exactly the same opinion, but the way I express it leads you to believe that it differs enough that you need to express your opinion, which in my interpretation differs again… and the circle repeats. That said, even if the reader interprets the text correctly, their opinion may differ dramatically from the writers.

Firstly Linear Style Mailing lists basically just send out an email to everyone on the mailing list when someone sends an email to the mailing list software. There is no segregation of topics other than the mailing list itself. Therefore, everyone on that mailing list gets an email whether they are interested in the topic of discussion or not. What this seems to mean is that people tend to skim mailing lists for topics that interest them, ignoring or not reading fully anything that doesn’t. This isn’t good if you have some important information to disemminate. Sometimes posts may get misunderstood as the person reading is just trying to get through as many emails as possible. Other times people are too busy just trying to read all of the email that they are getting that they don’t really have the time to respond to the ones they want to respond to.

Getting superfluous topics of discussion which having been on the mailing list for a while you have seen before also has a tendancy to increase peoples frustration, however most of the time these topics are started by people who were not on the list for the first or second time around for that topic. The archives are there to fix this, but if you have ever tried to navigate through Mailman archives, then you can totally understand why people who bring up these topics again never took the time to search them.

Whilst I like call these Linear Style Mailing lists there is actually nothing linear about the flow of the conversations they generate other than time. The archive do not flow as simply there is no easy way to keep track of one conversation, conversations split and follow new threads… Conversations are not kept on track and frequently change subject lines as well as entire topics. This means of archiving mailing list threads makes it very difficult to follow the basic premise of the topic. Now this happens in normal conversations too, however usually normal conversations usually take place in one room, with each person taking their turn to make their point. mailing list conversations grow organically like a tree, spliting into many conversations. You may think this is good, as each thread can go off and come to a totally different conclusion, or morph into another conversation completely. But trying to follow that conversation later… it’s a nightmare.

Lets take the network of mailing lists currently for the SCA in Lochac. There are seperate mailing lists for groups, guilds and positions, if you want access to a specific topic, you need to sign up for that mailing list, specially if you ever want to post to it. So thinking of a member of the Rowany populace who has a vehicle and is willing to travel, in order for them to find out what’s goingon in a 3 hour driving distance from their home, they need to sign up for the Rowanites, Adorans, Stowe, Mords and Agaricus, as well as possibly 3 colleges mailing lists plus what ever interest mailing lists they have such as the fighers list, the archers list… Currently on the Lochac website there are 49 mailing lists listed, spread across 3 services. Wouldn’t it be so much better if there was one place to go? One login and then you have the ability to brouse through an organised structure of topics? There is such a thing, and it’s called a forum.

I’m a fan of forums simply because they are organised, the conversations flow, and if they morph into a new topic that conversation can be split from the main tree and followed linearly. The main topic can be edited by a moderator to be easy to understand, and forums can be seperated into subforums and topics, allowing one place for the discussion of a huge variety of topics. The Lochac Network forum is such a place, designed as an alternative to all of the seperate mailing lists and giving you one place for all of your discussion needs. At the moment the Lochac network forum is rather empty, having alot of organised forums to start discussions in, but not being full of as much useful information as it could be. It’s still young, and needs people to contribute by adding their own experiences and information. It will grow, and become a useful collection of discussions and collected information. It’s already fairly useful containing links to most local groups websites.

I hope to see you in there soon. ;)
http://lochac.net

• is wasting time before a medieval event this evening. #
• just did a search on "medieval pewtercraft" in google and was amazed by the results. #
• is away enjoying a time long ago, where mobiles didn't exist. ;) #
• enjoyed watching a friend and his Baroness get elevated to the Order of the Pelican. #
• is off to bed… #
• is back to looking for work. #