On The Third Day Of Thirty Day Challenges

Note that the following was originally written on Tuesday last week, and thus contains references to events that have already happened, as though they are still in potential only (go me for being lazy on the camera front!) So it turns out that this weekend I might be going to Sydney for a professional development seminar. I'm not 100% sure on whether I'm actually allowed to go or not, yet though, and the fact that I even was capable of going was a complete surprise to me until this morning. I applied for this AUC iOS SDK Workshop thingo a little while ago (towards the beginning of this month) and yesterday I received an email to tell me that I'd been accepted - the only problem is that, because it's professional development, and technically would mean I'd have to skip work Friday (and maybe Thursday, for travel) I need to get approval from work to actually go (and hopefully they'd then pay for me...)

I had, during my professional performance review, discussed this potentiality with my team leader, who told me to apply, because it was worth a shot. I do not, however, think that there would be such a short period of time between my application's approval, and the actual event. Oh well, I'll keep you posted on what the dealio is there (and I'll hopefully continue to blog while I'm at the event, to let you know that I've not been swallowed whole by the seething mass of Sydney while I'm there...) On that note - here are today's challenges!!

Song Challenge #3: A Song That Makes Me Happy

The musical challenges, I am finding, are quite difficult. The issue that I'm having with them is that I'm not exactly starved for choice when it comes to music, after all it's a relatively large part of my life. Indeed, I find myself unable to select just one song to sum up what should be a veritable plethora of music. How can one, after all, select just one song to sum up an emotion such as 'joy' or 'sorrow'. How can one have a favourite tune? Music, I have discovered, is like a stack of pringles - once I pop, I can't stop (although I shan't merely apply this to pop, as my favourite genre is Indie Pop, though I'm partial to anything that's not metal.)

As far as music that makes me happy goes...well...pretty much anything that's incredibly bouncy and upbeat - I mean, that's the point of those songs, is it not? The excessive use of major chords exists solely to create a positive feeling in your brain-head, even if the lyrical content is slightly down. I suppose I could pick something like ABBA's 'Gimme Gimme Gimme', although it's not the song I really want to use to express joy (and irony). I could, perhaps, use 'Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me' from Rocky Horror, or Oh No Oh My's 'Be A Star', but then they still don't really make me feel happy when I'm down...well, okay they help...but still...I could do so much better with something else.

And so I have chosen Belle & Sebastian's 'I'm A Cuckoo'. The tempo of the song, combined with the chord progression, make it the best song for getting into a slightly hyperactive stupour and picking me up when I'm a little down. The lyrical content of the song, on the other hand, could be construed as a little dark, if one actually paid attention to it - but lines with undertones of stalking and the implications of self-harm to get the attention of a former girlfriend provide enough contrast with the formerly mentioned upbeat melody that the song could (I think) be classed as ironic pop.

Book Challenge #3: A Book That Makes Me Lough Out Loud

I am not, for some reason, in the habit of laughing out loud at fiction. It honestly does not matter just how amusing the book is, I tend to keep all emotional reactions to things that other people aren't perceiving internal, lest they start to think I'm giggling at some invisible spectre, and worthy of committing to an asylumn. Still, I do find some books amusing in a *teehee giggle giggle* kind of way, and there are some non-fiction (or semi-fictional, I suppose, in some cases) books from which I have deliberately read passages aloud just so that I was justified in my laughter - and I was thusly able to share my joy with others. Huzzah.

Anyway, as I am currently reading a book which is providing exactly what I described above (i.e. the opportunity to read passages aloud to others, in order to provide what is commonly referred to, I believe, as 'teh lulz') I figure I'll just use it. I'm currently reading "Twitterature", which is a collection of classic literature, told in small portions as though via twitter updates. This may, admittedly, seem like something that would make my heart weep, and my eyes bleed, however it is (generally) done quite well. Please take, as an example, this excerpt from the "Hamlet" condensation.

Gonna try to talk some sense into Mom because boyfriend totally killed Dad. I sense this is the moment of truth, the moment of candour and –

WTF IS POLONIUS DOING BEHIND THE CURTAIN?

.Gif Challenge #3: A .Gif Of Someone That Is Sad

When I was a child, Pokemon was able to provide me with some of my most emotional moments. Looking back now, I am amazed that a cartoon was able to connect with me so strongly, and that they continue to do so today. I was watching Avatar The Last Airbender last night with some friends, and there was a Zuko heavy episode, which showed the story of his mother dying. The last shot in the episode was the people whose life he had just saved basically running him out of town. Cut to credits. Seriously, that kind of stuff is heartbreaking - although I suppose that is its purpose, to entertain, and to make us experience emotional situations that we might not consider otherwise. Anyway, here is my .gif of someone who is sad. I'm pretty sure it's from one of the many points where Ash saves Pikachu, and is laying helpless.

About Me Challenge #3: A Picture Of My Friends And I

Knowing that this challenge was coming up, and knowing that I don't have any photos of all of my friends and I together at once (generally I am not in photos that include all of my friends) I had to actually have a special event to get this photo taken. Well, okay, I say a special event, what I mean is that I forced everyone to stay late after Spud's D&D game so that we could take the darned thing. It was remarkably difficult, and we went through many failed attempts at creating a panorama by having X-Man run out of the shot after his section had taken, him taking control of the camera, and me running into shot so I could be in the correct place. These did not end well. Instead, we ended up taking a picture with Kylie's camera (which has a timer function.) One day, I would like to have a photo (or, at least, some kind of collage) that includes all of my friends, even those from the U.K., and other places overseas. Until then, however, this is pretty darn good!

There's Me, Elmo, Kylie, Emma, Squiggles, X-Man, Spud, And Encey - View Full Is Better

Photo Challenge #3: A Photo That Makes Me Happy

Please see above. There is no photo that I have taken recently which makes me happier than the photo that I used for the "A Picture Of My Friends And I" challenge. It, to me, epitomises what life is about. I mean, sure, there are some people missing from the photo who I'd rather were in it (Andy, and so forth) but still. That picture symbolises what being my friend is about. It took us about half an hour to do, Elmo was getting frustrated, X-Man was trying to be helpful, Encey was being silly, Squiggles was posing, Emma was reluctant, Spud was happy to oblige, and Kylie was likely thinking "What have I gotten myself into..." - but the photo was still taken, and there it is. A lasting testament, if ever there was one.

Facial Expression Challenge #3: My Sad Face

I don't tend to use my "sad face", or even really have a sad face...I think...So this is the best I could do. At first I tried to think about upset/hurt kittens, but for some reason that just made me giggle. So instead I imaged what it must be like to have that Friday song stuck in your head for all enternity, and this is the result I got.