Superman Returns opens tomorrow with Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor! All that evilly goodness...I can't wait!

4 more days to unigames, and I'm a little excited, a little frustrated. It's been 4 months since I started playing ultimate seriously, but I feel as though I'm improving much too slowly. My self-esteem took a number of blows again during the Monday night league game as I got yelled at a lot. I know it's a very heat-of-the-moment thing, and everybody yells at everybody; I just get a higher proportion of it cause I happen to be the most inexperienced player on the team.

There is just so much to work on and I have no idea how to work it any bloody faster other than playing more games and giving it time. At the moment, my brain turns to molasses when we talk strategy, I have zero field sense and a terrible awareness of the disc. We played a defence that I seemed to screw up all through the game, and just this evening during fitness training I found out why.

Apparently the defence we played was a variation of zone defence invented by an old UF coach of ours a few years ago. It was a huge relief finally sorting out the jargon, the concept and method behind the strategy. While I still lack experience playing it, at least I now have some basic theoretical grounding. The seniors have been extremely patient and reassuring as well, and for that I could not be more grateful.

Anyway, that's the news on ultimate so far. I hope I won't be too much of a liability on the team come unigames and that I remember to keep my head about me during the matches. I'm currently revisiting The Fountainhead, which has been very start-stoppish thanks to the World Cup, season 2 of The Office (US) and general wasting of time. =) My fingers are too cold most times to play the guitar properly and the strings have been rather stiff and twangy in a bad way also thanks to the cold. *blameblameblame*

Either I've been particularly unperceptive, or there really has been a dearth of interesting things to blog about lately. Fortunately, I haven't got to the point of blogging about absolutely banal things just to satisfy the blog itch. Yet. (Although what constitutes as banal may well be a matter of opinion.) By the way I found out recently that it is pronounced ba'nal, not 'banel. I'm a stickler for pronunciation, and have been cured from saying cha'racter instead of 'character by my very *ahem* insistent friends.

Last but not least, the makeshift speaker comprising a very expensive cable, a tube amp and an adapter has worked like a charm and I can now pretend I have surround sound when watching shows or listening to music on my laptop. Did I mention I'm going through a 70s music phase at the moment? Summer breeeeeze, makes me feel fine...

[ this space for rent ]

At last, the tedium of exams are over. How did I go? Who knows. Not too well, I'd hazard, but I'm too relieved to care at the moment.

Even before the paper yesterday morning, I was up and about various libraries in uni collecting what shall be termed my holiday kit, picking up books, DVDs and putting more on hold. I will read, watch, play (frisbee + guitar) myself silly this holidays. I don't think I've read a book proper since Huxley's Island start of this year.

After the paper, a smile (the usual explosive sort you find after last exam papers) battled with my lips to be let out, but I didn't want people to think I'd gone mad smiling crazily to myself but I did laugh a little. I came home, set up camp on the couch and read Stephen Fry - The Liar from cover to cover. It was 2am when I finished, and I put down the book drunkenly, dizzy with contentment. I've neglected the pleasure of reading a good book far too long.

The Liar is brilliant. I loved it. It's funny, witty, touching, entertaining, ridiculous, insightful, exciting and it makes me sound like an amazon book review. I think I've covered all the adjectives now. Whatever it is, it wasn't intellectually heavy and plodding stuff, thus perfect for resting the mind after two weeks of fuckety exams. Helped that during that time I was pretending to study I'd wikied and googled the life out of Stephen Fry (and Hugh Laurie and others) and was able to appreciate the book more for its scattered references to his child-to-young-adulthood. My next mission is to read all other books from the blessed pen of Stephen Fry and possibly Laurie's The Gun Seller too.

That's all for the post-exam post (geddit? geddit? *collective groan*) and I'm off to sink my teeth into a DVD. Woohoohoohooo! [/tigger]

PS: I have decided that Michael Rosenbaum, in ten years time, will be James Spader. How I heart those two. I have a weakness for men with incredibly sexy voices. Incredibly.

some fry and laurie love

Embedding youtube videos are all the rage right now, have been for some time in fact. No self-respecting blogger would refrain from jumping on the bandwagon, oh no.

Here's an interview (1:52min) of Emma Thompson about Hugh Laurie (the guy who plays House, for the ignorant few *stares pointedly*). I'd quote, but I wouldn't want to spoil the fun. =) And they used to date back in Cambridge...awwww.



Ah, these British actors. My love for them knows no bounds.

Also, I find this picture extremely compelling.



The actual caption read 'Stephen Fry cuddling Jude Law.' AWWW! Anyway, I recommend the movie Wilde. They were both quite brilliant in it. If you don't love Oscar Wilde and his works already, you should.

Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie is what I call a beautiful friendship. No slashy undertones intended.

No, really. =)