¡Viva La Revolution!

Well, it seems fate has drawn me back in for one final hit. There is always some kind of way to get around any dead end. Anyway, aside from the banter, it appears I have been bestowed with the task of updating my journal from the ‘fateful morning of January the ninth’, until Sunday the 24th of August. I think I might go seven better and go to the 31st of August. But I’m getting ahead of myself, it could be a marathon to reach this state, and it might not even be worth it…but I’m ready, if you are!

I figure the best and most logical way to do this would be to kind of go month by month, but this might not always work if I am not clear of the dates, but it is JANUARY’s turn on the stage…

JANUARY…Well I still haven’t read the entry on the ninth, so I’ll start by saying the coming week at the time was probably like most other January holiday weeks. I do remember however that I went to see Donnie Darko at the Rialto with one pair of my folks, and consequently I entered a competition and won a complimentary ticket to the Big Day Out, which suited me great cause I was almost faced with having to hand over a reasonable sum of cash so I could see Kraftwerk. Anyway I worked all week up to the Big Day Out on the 18th. This Big Day Out was realy good, and I can’t be bothered listing al the acts I saw, so I’ll just say that Kraftwerk were brilliant, and I very glad to have seen them before they die (although it is possible they could live forever because they are bionic, or at least put out the image). I don’t remember too much else about the day (my memory is getting worse, and it seems unpreventable) except I saw lots of friends and I went on the super loop and another ride which makes one want to throw up, but one doesn’t. I went flying above the crowd at the Deftones on some plastic mat, and I was doing flips and twists four or five metres off the ground. It went horribly awry when the mosh surged forward and those holding my mat went out from beneath me and I hit the ground. I went to St. John on site and got two panadol and went back to the same mosh pit. When I went to see a doctor two weeks later I was informed that I had broken my arm. JP came back from Oz that night as well so that was pretty cool too. The next little while is a haze of smoke and magic and dragging myself to work to cut videos while my dad was away.
I know the summer series happened at some point and that was really good fun and I bumped into more and more friends, though it was the intention. At that point I really loved my bandage on my arm, although I grew to hate it as at every turn it tried to set me up for the fall. I guess that is January, or at least what I can comprehend happening in that pen ultimate holiday month.

FEBRUARY…There is only one thing that happened here of any real significance. Of course there was a summer series and that was fine, but you probably want to hear about my birthday. Well in this month I had at least two kind of bizarre nights which both went kind of crazy. The first was a week before my birthday and as with all good adventures, the escapades truly started when a crazy Russian punk turned up with toys and small pieces of paper with Buzz Lightyear’s likeness embedded among the pale blue tinge. I think t would be better to use pseudonyms for this story, so the Russian will become Papa Smurf, the French girl shall become Lotf, and half India will become George. I guess I will be Moritz. In any case after a small sass and fall of corrosive substances we grabbed our toy binoculars and took a bus to the Chinese Lantern Festival which indeed was quite enjoyable, but I think that Papa Smurf really took the night by the horns, first by conquering the underwater passage way that lurks to the side of the Art Gallery and taking us on a jungle journey around the city before we headed to the top of Metro City apartments through what may have been a break in by him, but he wouldn’t let us watch. At any rate looking down thirteen stories was certainly not Moritz or George’s cup of tea. Papa Smurf proceeded to climb out of the railing and support himself off the side of the building (writing this is making my feet tingle). After that Moritz had to stand at least three metres back from the rail. After navigating our way down the tower, we headed in the general direction of Papa Smurf’s house. At Grafton Bridge we went into the cemetery and hung out with a group Goths drinking meths and beer whom Moritz dubbed King Henry’s fire brigade. There were all sorts. Needless to say, we moved on after about half an hour to continue on our journey. One small piece of graffiti and a small bit of highway later we were in Kingsland and there were giant deep holes in the ground at every intersection. We jumped in the fence, and while Moritz considered it, but did not do it, Papa Smurf climbed down what he thinks would have been about fifty metres and said it smelled terrible. Not too much later we were at the really cool red, black and completely punk inspired flat of Papa Smurf and we enjoyed cream canisters and white rhinos amongst others. About hallf an hour later Moritz discovered that Krishna was the centre of the universe and Moritz couldn’t quite reach him through the endless space of Mandala’s. Then Moritz saw Ghost In The Shell, which up until then had been one of the most dull films Moritz had ever seen. We left and George went home. Back at Lotf’s house we found fireworks and went to the Point Chevalier beach where what we thought were fountains, turned into gunshots as fireworks which were slightly mightier than Roman Candles echoed throughout the empty basin of water. Following this was some star gazing and an escape through the Pt. Chev retirement home. Papa Smurf vanished and Lotf and Moritz got some well deserved rest. After all Moritz would attend all three nights of the Lantern festival before dying a small insignificant death that no one noticed.
About a week later on the Seventeenth, I met Roy, Trevor and Nathan. When the clocked ticked over to 12:01 we went into Margarita’s and they, as well as Lulu and Lucy, proceeded to get me horribly drunk, so horriby drunk, so horribly drunk, so horribly drunk. I think that because I don’t remember the night, perhaps I should assume Roy’s position. Of course only from the point where I can’t remember everything. Finn seemed okay, until he had this third shaker with me. All that beer and assorted spirits must really have really got to him. Trevor, Nathan and I took Finn, having given him an excessive amount of alcohol, to get something to eat at McDonalds. And it was so funny, because Finn was sitting over the tray and he began to vomit slowly but surely into it, like a slow running tape so it was unnoticeable until the tray was about to overflow, then he stopped. It was time to go. We took Finn outside and called a taxi, and in the meantime, Finn seemed to like lying in the little shell gardens on the footpath. Trevor is taking him home. (Trevor’s point of view) It was not too hard to get Finn’s address out of him and at his house I hauled him onto the frontlawn and then he said he would be okay where he was, despite my attempts to get him to go inside, after a debating a little I just went home. (Back to me) I woke up in the morning, to the sounds of my mother calling me off the lawn, I had dirt all over my face and everything! She was kind of annoyed and told me I needed sleep, so I kind of ruied her plans for having a birthday breakfast, but that night, feeling really burnt out, I went to dinner to Soul on the waterfront with some of my family and had some really good Scampi. The next night we did it all again for Nathan, this time Trevor and I had to look after Roy and Nathan. Nathan stayed at his girlfriends place in town, but I had to taxi Roy home cause he was vomiting like some kind of wild animal, it was like a lion roaring, but the roar was not only a sound, but it also had a more physical, more vomit, form as well.

MARCH…This was kind of a non-event month, University started again but I can’t really think of anything really monumental.

APRIL…I had my mid semester break here and it was pretty cool really. I went to Ozzy’s place for two nights, and Roy came for one. This party even had cake, and also the kind of thing I would never do while university was going down. This weekend was pretty good, and I don’t really remember too much else of the holiday.

MAY/JUNE…more non-event months, it was just uni and exams really. Although we did have Tony’s 21st birthday on Waiheke at the end of June. That was really cool. Everyone was quite drunk and everyone was vomiting except me. I got into a conversation about World War’s with a Serbian, a German and a Georgian. And in the morning we had a good breakfast and played scrabble in which I just scraped through with a win. That night I went to see that Hulk again, but this time with JP and Malcolm and under slightly different circumstances. It was great again. I can’t believe some people don’t like that movie. Oh the other major thing that happened in this period was while with Platt and Nina at Bethel’s beach, Platt’s car was broken into and my bag was stolen, and I lost everything. I got insurance but I didn’t get a new cellphone until August, and I was really out of contact.

JULY…Wow I am up to last month already, that is pretty good really. It is quite amazing how much you can condense events. And I have been gratuitous in places. The idea of nothingness just hit me again. Time really flies. Oh well. Anyway, in July Nathan, Trevor and I went to Sansugabsan and drank Soju. And Nathan and I really forgot everything. We had 8 bottles between us at the restaurant and when the waitor wouldn’t serve us because we were too drunk, Trevor got another waiter. We left and honestly all I know that happened is reduced into a few frames of memory. From what I can piece together, we went to Margaritas and got in with no problems, Nathan got kicked out after about a minute and then kept vomiting outside until he was told to move because he was flooding the entrance way. Both Trevor and I fell down the stairs but managed to reasonably coherent. I think I lost that when I went upstairs and apparently talked to Sanae for ages and drew all over her arm. I also saw Sara apparently and some other people who know me but I am not sure who they are. I know I got kicked out and everyone went away for a little while and I disappeared, for three weeks more, no one could figure how I got home to my father’s house in Westmere, where I woke up out the front with vomit on my jacket at 4:45AM. The next day I felt like shit, I had never been hung over like that before. I couldn’t even look at food, I had to get Beau to cook my Shin Ramyun for me. No one saw from the night before saw me for nearly two days as well, and because I had no cellphone, I had pretty much vanished. Anyway, for three weeks I assumed I had teleported as I was in a unwalkable state at the time of the transportation. It surface weeks later that some guy I don’t know very well got me a taxi, but I haven’t seen him since and apparently I owe him twenty dollars. So I would like to give it to him. My mother went to Fiji for a week and I had to look after the house as well.
The second half of July heralded in university. About a week in I went with the gang (‘Kings and Crims’ or ‘Kingson Crims’?) to Piha, via the most incredible highway chase foodfight ever, though I’m sure we can beat it. Once at Piha, my hands got very cold, as we constantly seemed to be running out of whipped cream and therefore I seemed to need to make around 36 new cream canisters active. Needless to say, it was an interesting night, which had chanting, beaches and incredulous/‘funny’ taggers in mystery cars. In fact, I didn’t even know the people whose batch it was, although did get a fight out of one of them. The drive back the next day was nice, we got to listen to ska and everything! The next weekend we went to Isla’s 18th which resulted in a select few of us on a hookah pipe at the little Turkish café. The next few weekends, like most weekends were filled with inane parties that really had nothing particular about them.

AUGUST…either there is a joke I am not in on, or my life is very strange n this month. I know it is this month now, but my life is twisting and turning in all kinds of directions. Anyway, about a week ago JP turned 21 and we went to dinner at Sitar and then a small party at his place, on a giant loop back home, I ended up driving Malcolm’s car at St. Lukes car park at 3:30 AM without my learner’s license on me (Malcolm is on his restricted) while still not entirely sober, and then the cops came. I got a lift home and so did Malcolm, and they gave us a warning, talk about good luck. I swear they were trying to play good cop, bad cop. The woman was patronizing and she just generally she came across as bitter with the world (perhaps her son was killed by a Russian mobster trying to rule the world, and her husband left her for a life of partying at Flesh bar or something). The guy, who was driving was really and friendly and polite and he was from Britain. I think all our cops should be British cops. Anyway I told my Dad the next morning, and now it has given him one more thing to tease me about on top of teasing me about taking ritolin.
The next night I went to a party in Kingsland near my house, which no one liked, but I was drunk enough to enjoy. I have no memory of going home or entering my house, but I was tidy and neat, I must have walked and I didn’t wake anyone up when I entered the house. So yeah, the battle damaged self romanticised angel lived, that night, though the blinding white shirt needed to be washed to get a new sheen.
Sunday last weekend I went to some kind of worldwide drumming for peace thing in Henderson and then I stayed at Fergus’s. This week I booked my ticket to Korea and Japan at the end of the year, so I leave on the 16th of November to Seoul via Kuala Lumpur, and I come back from Kansai via KL again on the 26th of February.
This weekend kicked off on Friday night with my mid-semester test for Japanese and then went to a sleepless night at the Kiss bar (Jo An’s 21st) and Nick’s place (Sabrina’s 18th) in Hillsborough, where I had some really good conversations with Sara and Jazmine. Yesterday I went to anime to sat goodbye to Edwyn and just catch up in general, and in the afternoon I went to Ajax and Achilles 7th birthday party. Last night was Seemal and Phillipa’s party and it wasn’t that good for me. I walked home through scary Mt Albert and climbed into bed, waking up only to repeat my year in this entry.

APPEND ONE… I was tutoring every week until the end of June, and I jut wanted to acknowledge my students even though it is incredibly likely they will never read this. GO KOREA! I also wanted to say I had a great time over the period both the ‘INCREDIBLE FILM FESTIVAL’ and ‘INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL’ seeing lots of interesting films I probably would not have seen otherwise with only one or disappointments out of around thirty films. Also a thank you to everyone who came to see films that I would have otherwise have had to sit by myself when watching. I don’t know that I would have felt very comfortable at few of these films, and it was great to share films like ‘female convict scorpion’ with others. I have also done more reading this year in order to make up for other years where I didn’t read, I guess I had to prove myself again. I haven’t had time to read during classes, but I have been making the effort, mainly with Haruki Murakami, but also guest appearances by Irvine Welsh, Will Self and whoever wrote ‘Le Petit Prince’. It might also be of note to say that I got my Kendo Nidan (2nd degree balck belt) in March but since then I have only been to Kendo twice because of Yudanshakai with double standards and two faces.

APPEND TWO…This year really has been quite different in terms of the way I have been feeling compared to any other year. I want to say it is apathy, but I don’t think it is. Towards the beginning of the year I was quite energized about the year but progressively I have been growing less and less enthusiastic. This line of enthusiasm is almost intersecting with the line which is my life. This year I have been pretty fortunate in my life but it is still somewhat unfulfilling and think this is mainly because a lot of the things I do, and a lot of things that I am, seem to get undermined all the time and I don’t know quite what to make of it. I end with this kind of pseudo happiness, where I am happy in my own little world and space as long as it doesn’t collide too harshly with more than one other world at a time. All the bad things that have happened this year could easily have been avoided, but who knew? So in the end I leave my life up to mathematical probability, as well as the desire to get the fuck off of this peace of land so I can start again. Hopefully I can use a new beginning to create a new life for me back here. So right now what am I feeling? A desire for a basic happiness, the happiness of a sunny Sunday morning with no obligations. That desire is being tested by things which are hurting me quite badly. So yes, I am distressed.

APPEND THREE…If I missed anything out, it is probably because my recollection really isn’t that great, or I couldn’t think of anything good or particular enough to write about the night. For that reason there are countless nights of clubbing and partying which aren’t here, as well as countless nights of staying home or babysitting, for the sole reason that it probably is not that interesting for everyone, or even for the reason that it is not something I particularly want to reminisce on. I have also been working heaps more this year, and I have made lots of good friends, as well as attempted to see everyone else, so anyway, if there is anything I have missed feel free to tell me and I’ll make some kind of append post.

APPEND FOUR…It just occurred to me that people might want to know what I studied/ am studying this year at uni so in the first semster I studied ASIAN 200 (Asian Identities), JAPANESE 231 (Intermediate Japanese 1), JAPANESE 270 (Society and Culture) and KOREAN 240 (Globalisation and Korea). This semester I am studying JAPANESE 232 (Intermediate Japanese 2), JAPANESE 240 (An Introduction to Japanese Literature) and KOREAN 340 (Korea Through Popular Culture).

2003 looms...
I can't do this anymore. It just doesn't feel right. Maybe another journal at some later date, but I feel that this has run it's course for now, and i might even bring the whol lot down, if I can be bothered. It isn't me anymore. The entry before this one sums up the era well enough for me, so don't expect anything more from this.
Goodbye old friend, its been fun...