xlidingaway

So Kris Allen's new single is out, and it's - not amazing, in my opinion. I suppose it's an okay song if you're a fan of his music (and more pop-ish stuff in general, I guess), but it was just in one ear and out the other for me. But I wasn't expecting that kind of sound from him either, and it's a bit unnerving. Always thought he was gonna stick to the earthy, no-frills vibe he had throughout the competition, but I guess the industry dressed it up to sell :/ Oh well.

Adam's music is gonna be on the soundtrack of the movie 2012, and I want to listen to it eventually. In the end, though, both of them face the same danger of fading into obscurity that so many Idols faced... I really want them both to succeed, though, because they both seem like genuinely nice people with great work ethic. And in case you're wondering - yes, I plug Adam more : )

It occurred to me that so much talent in this world goes unappreciated - it seems like such a pity. But then it also reflects the dogged determination and sheer grit of those who do break out on their own. I think I have to learn to be more comfortable with taking risks.

My timetable is filling up with all sorts of strange things and it looks like my post-exam euphoria is over; grah I can't believe I *still* can't find the time to do Stuff. And two hours of math tomorrow. *dies*

I am totally not in a school mode right now. Why is life so draggyyyyyyyyyyyy

New layout that I really, really like : D thefulcrum has amazing, amazing designs. I've been doing my own blogger layouts for A Long Time but have never mustered up the courage to do it for LJ. The tags just scare me, omg.

I want to watch (500) Days of Summer!!! The most prominent reason NOT being that Matthew Gray Gubler has a (small) part in it. Argh I have never really wanted to watch a romcom before but this one looks so - special. I mean, look at the bank dance! (It's not even part of the show omg, just "a complement". Makes me think that the show itself will be way, way better - but how is it humanly possible?!) They are SO CUTE argh. And Joseph Gordon-Levitt (!!) - dyou think they'll let me into the cinema a month before my birthday? Hahahaha.

The past few days have been defined by - nothing. I've slacked so much I think I can't ever pull myself back to the workhorse mode, lol. I'm not complaining for now, but - EE :/ Eurgh and I've been reading depressing books which are depressing not because there is tragedy in them but because the tragedy never gives way to a happy ending. Is that what people look for in chick lit - a happy ending? Of course there's plenty of happy endings in non-chick lit as well, but they usually come at a cost.

Oh well I'm just really glad exams are over. I am turning into a huge nerd with the amount of reading I want to do but am not complaining! I have made it my mission to read a Lot of Milosz. And then there are all my Iran books, and stuff on historiography. I'm gonna chomp them up (metaphorically, of course).

O introduced me to Metric, which reminds me of Stars : D Emily Haines is prettyyyyy. I know this sounds weird, but don't you ever get awed by how many beautiful people there are in this world? (Not all of them are really respectable, of course.) Haha my brain is rotting, evidently.

Not this

Wombat - an Australian marsupial with a very short tail

Or this

L6 Wombat - a British Army anti-tank rifle

But this

THE WOMBATS - ENGLISH INDIE LEGENDS
Girls, boys & marsupials~~~
I love them more than I could ever love furry animals.

---

I would like to write about De Gaulle and Adenauer because they are so underappreciated, but what about people like FDR and Lincoln and Gandhi? Churchill is definitely going on my list. I almost added in Gil-galad and Théoden, but stopped myself in time. I need to pick, and focus! This scattering of thoughts can only breed instability : (

Just need to get closer, closer -
Lean on me now, lean on me now

--

Yknow all that ~human connections jazz we've been discussing in Lit? The need for us to find one another, to realise that we are not alone, that our problems are not the world crashing down on us, that everything we do has some kind of purpose beyond existing for its own sake?

Well, I need some of that now.

Um, sorry for spamming your fpages.

I just had to post to show off the new icon.

*withers in shame*

There's a place I go
When I'm alone
Do anything I want
Be anyone I want to be
But it is us I see
And I cannot believe I'm falling
That's where I'm going
Where are you going?
Hold it close don't let this go

Dream, catch me if -
Dream, catch me when I fall
Or else I won't come back at all

--

That song is terribly feel-good. The lyrics are not spectacular, and neither is the first minute or so, but the chorus makes up for it, definitely. Also, Newton Faulkner has my utmost respect for his hair... it takes guts, I'm sure. Also, he sang a strange, one-man cover of Bohemian Rhapsody!

Um, also, I think most of you guys should know that I update d-autumnrain a lot more than this journal, and the Real Life Stuff is all there, so if you want to read things other than lyrics, LOTR devotions and cryptic one-liners, head on over. I don't mean to plug it, by any means, though.

Question of the day: Do you think that the Witch-King ever felt lonely?

Lament for Boromir

Through Rohan over fen and field where the long grass grows,
The West Wind comes walking, and about the walls it goes.
'What news from the West, O wandering wind, do you bring to me tonight?
Have you seen Boromir the Tall by moon or by starlight?'
'I saw him ride over seven streams, over waters wide and grey.
I saw him walk in empty lands, until he passed away
Into the shadows of the North. I saw him then no more.
The North Wind may have heard the horn of the son of Denethor.'
'O Boromir! From the high walls westward I looked afar,
But you came not from the empty lands where no men are.'

From the mouths of the sea the South Wind flies, from the sandhills and the stones;
The wailing of the gulls it hears, and at the gate it moans.
'What news from the South, O sighing wind, do you bring to me at eve?
Where now is Boromir the fair? He tarries and I grieve!'
'Ask me not of where he doth dwell--so many bones there lie
On the white shores and the dark shores under the stormy sky;
So many have passed down Anduin to find the flowing Sea.
Ask of the North Wind news of them the North Wind sends to me!'
'O Boromir! Beyond the gate the seaward road runs south,
But you came not with the wailing gulls from the grey sea's mouth.'

From the Gate of Kings the North Wind rides, and past the roaring falls;
And clear and cold about the tower its loud horn calls.
'What news from the North, O mighty wind, do you bring to me today?
What news of Boromir the Bold? For he is long away.'
'Beneath Amon Hen I heard his cry. There many foes he fought.
His cloven sheild, his broken sword, they to the water brought.
His head so proud, his face so fair, his limbs they laid to rest;
And Rauros, golden Rauros-falls, bore him upon its breast.'
'O Boromir! The Tower of Guard shall ever northward gaze
To Rauros, golden Rauros-falls, until the end of days.'

--

Is pride the salvation or the downfall of Men?

(in case you didn't know: Witch-King of Angmar, Richard Roxburgh as Dracula, Gary Oldman as Dracula, Lucifer)

Um, I should probably not be obsessing over villains, right, especially now. I can't help it though. They are such incredibly complex personalities. I've not watched The Prophecy, but I've heard that Viggo Mortensen was the one character that saved the show from flopping completely. I wonder how these actors feel in their roles - these characters are all age-old  with entire histories and legends behind them and they're all evil beyond redemption.

Their malice is so potent that they aren't even human, they're otherworldly monsters. They're created by humans, though. Does that say something about how humanity perceives itself?

Hé laered hine rídan
And wealdan méce
And standan fæst
And féond ne forhtian.
Nú hé sceal leornian
Ðæt hearde sóð:
Hé raerede his cnapa
Of cilde tó menn
Ðæt hé his déað geséo.
Sé féond wæs simble mid heom.
Sé féond ne reccede ege.
- The Fallen
(Theoden and Eowyn grieve for Theodred)

---

I want to live in Middle-Earth, I've always wanted to live in Middle-Earth, I still do. I wish I lived in Middle-Earth : (

That's the view out of the window of my brother's room, which I'm camping out permanently in for the rest of the exam period, I guess. The pictures don't do justice - sky's an awe-inspiring shade of blue, the clouds migrate lazily and scorn us scurrying humans, the light streams in strong and clear, and there's a wonderful breeze that swings into the room now that I've opened the windows as much as they can go. Even the thin, weary smell of burning joss paper that drifts up from time to time and the constant knocking and banging of loud construction noise cannot wear down the beauty of the day. Amidst the art of the world around me I feel compelled to have a purpose, and I am convinced, for now at least, that immersing myself in my books and notes and responsibilities as a student will help me reach that purpose, someday.

I always found it hard to work things through
Those school uniforms made a joke,
A joke of me + you

--

Um, I like The Wombats? + Mugging for chinese is annoying.

May it be the shadow's call
Will fly away
May it be you journey on
To light the day
When the night is overcome
You may rise to find the sun

---
Guess I'm back, somewhat.

I'm starting over.

Will add you all back.

Love,
Kar Min

As of 11 May 2007, 11.24pm:

ARVERNIEN is now a private journal, for privacy and copyright reasons. All poems, stories, writing, et cetera, I will reveal only to a few. If you would like to read them, leave a comment and I'll get back to you. Sand is free but sandcastles are not - I hope you will understand. If you don't, it's alright, I never fully understand myself either...

If you would like to read more about me on a public blog, please go to [d-autumnrain].

Every first entry inevitably starts with an explanation.

The name of this LiveJournal, more affectionately known as LJ, is Arvernien. This is the name of the coastlands of Beleriand to the north of the Bay of Balar, and to the west of the Mouths of Sirion, in Middle-Earth. The first rulers of this land were Idril Celebrindal of Gondolin and Tuor of the Edain - the second union of Elves and Men. Their son Earendil later wedded Elwing, daughter of Dior, and their sons Elrond and Elros were born in Arvernien, destined to become great leaders of Elves and Men.

Arvernien was also the refuge of the remnants of surviving Eldar and Edain after their lands were ravaged by Morgoth in the Nirnaeth Arnoediad and the Sack of Menegroth. These refugees included the Sindar of Doriath, the Noldor of Nargothrond and Gondolin, and survivors of the Three Houses of Edain.

And so it is. Arvernien is thus christened, for it shall be my refuge. The home where I pick up the pieces of a life before, both the sweet and the bitter, and this is where I start to breathe again.