June 13, 2009 at 5:22 pm · Filed under News, Politics
Interesting stuff happening over there. A disappointing result, perhaps on its face, with Ahmadinejad retaining power after the (almost certainly rigged) election. But it could be a blessing in disguise; it may be what was necessary to unite opposition to the current regime. Mousavi (the expected opposition party winner) has openly called the election a fraud. And the latest news is that Rafsanjani has resigned his post. I mean, these guys while being the ‘opposition’ are deeply entrenched in the Islamic Republic establishment, and for them to openly oppose the regime like this could be meaningful. Could they be seeing signs of coming change? Rats jumping off a sinking ship? I hope so… But it will take support for the people of Iran to make any kind of real change happen. My only fear is that it will be very bloody; the current leadership deals with dissent viciously.
I have to say, springtime in London is pretty awesome. The weather’s been pretty sunny up until today, the trees have been covered in flowers, tulips are blooming, and the city doesn’t look like a gray, sooty mess any more in daylight. I regret that I won’t get to enjoy the better weather here after I leave next month. Well, I’ll probably be back here and there, but it seems a shame that most of my time here was in the Autumn and Winter months. Plus, we don’t have swine flu over here… yet.
Here’s some shots from Tower Bridge of the London Marathon yesterday:
April 20, 2009 at 8:24 am · Filed under Health, Politics
BRITISH scientists have developed the world’s first stem cell therapy to cure the most common cause of blindness. Surgeons predict it will become a routine, one-hour procedure that will be generally available in six or seven years’ time.
The treatment involves replacing a layer of degenerated cells with new ones created from embryonic stem cells. It was pioneered by scientists and surgeons from the Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London and Moorfields eye hospital.
March 24, 2009 at 7:39 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
I can’t believe it’s been so long since I posted. It’s been a really busy month. I had a couple of big assignments due for school, so I was cranking away on those until I left for Austin last week. And I didn’t have internet access the whole week I was in Austin, so if I wasn’t in touch with you, it’s not because I don’t like you. It’s because I didn’t have any numbers or any way to contact anybody (except for those few numbers I have memorized).
Anyway, it was great being back home – so great that I almost changed my flight and stayed another week. But I know if I had stayed another week, I would have wanted to stay another month, and so on… And of course I have to finish out my masters here in London, so here I am. I miss the sunshine and BBQ and lake and cheeseburgers already. And my friends. I miss those guys the most. I wish I’d had more time to see everybody, but hopefully I’ll be back in May when I finish up, but I’m not sure if I’ll be moving back for good then, or if I’ll be spending my summer elsewhere. We’ll see!
February 23, 2009 at 4:43 pm · Filed under Google, london
If you’re looking at a map of London and you’re zoomed in far enough, then you click the little More button top right and select Transit, you get this really nice colored tube map overlay. And it’s the actual lines, not the quasi-realistic representation that you see on official tube maps.
The Fragmented Orchestra, winners of the PRS Foundation’s New Music Award 2008, presents 24 hours of music, neuroscience and performance at 24 sites across the UK. The London events include: 10am, at the Institute of Psychiatry, in Camberwell, a prerecorded debate on Music and the Mind is transmitted to the soundbox between (10 am-midday); Then, at the National Portrait Gallery (midday-1.30pm) the violinist Rolf Wilson plays excerpts from Bach’s Partita in E and Prokofiev’s unaccompanied Violin Sonata. Plus, the playwright/neurologist Paul Broks and actors present ‘The Fragmented Self’, exploring the human brain. The Stephen Lawrence Centre (Brookmill Rd, SE8, 1pm-2pm) hosts Howard Monk of The Local in an acoustic session featuring David Thomas Broughton and others. Followed (3pm-5pm) with an exmination of having a stroke, at the Rochelle School (Arnold Circus, E2). Including, Terry Riley’s ‘In C’ one of the paradigmatic pieces of contemporary classical music, and presented by South London Arts collective What They Could Do, They Did. St Andrew’s, Fulham Fields, the Stations of the Cross are walked liturgically between 6pm and 7pm with newly commissioned music and words of reflection. (See website for full details.)
I had about 8 free photo galleries on my list, and I managed to see 5 of them. Not bad, really, considering they were all spread around London, and I didn’t just breeze through any of them. Anyway, on my way, I took some photos of my own. It was a rare sunny winter day. Most of these are from my neighbo(u)rhood.
There are also two very good smaller (free) galleries near Old Street station. The Yvon Lambert had some really interesting large prints from Andres Serrano. His stuff borders on pornography, but there’s an almost painful intimacy to much of his work that helped it transcend the initial gross-out factor. That, and the gallery was curated really well, with photos in just the right places with respect to each other. The other gallery was Rivington Place, a larger and spacious gallery showing Santu Mofokeng’s work, which consists mostly of South African apartheid subject matter – perhaps less shocking than Serrano’s exhibit, but making no less of an impact.
February 9, 2009 at 4:13 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
As heard on a late night tube ride from Waterloo to London Bridge this past Saturday:
Miiind the doooooors [playfully admonishing].
Alright kids, the next stop on the magical mystery tour is London Bridge… If you’re out drinking and getting merry, be careful, and remember to keep your belongings with you at all times.
Blendor is run by a guy named Ali in Austin, Texas. It fits neatly in the Photography / Politics / Health Care / Music / Technology / Miscellany category.
