21 Going on 12

Country villages. Pleasant places to live. Everyone knows everyone else. A real sense of community. Happy places. Sounds good, doesn't it? How everyone can picture themselves living. Well unless you're over 40 I would like to submit my disagreement.

I can remember High School. I felt like there was nothing to do in my town. The only times I could go into the nearby city were with a member of my family who could drive. I did not like it too much. But as I continued to grow, I realized that these were not real limitations at all. I was trusted more by my parents to go out when I wanted to. Most of my friends lived nearby and were usually more than willing to hang out. The city thing was not a big deal either, really. Once I built up a very basic level of confidence I could get there easily on the bus. With friends nearby and a city in easy access things were good. I was often out doing something or even doing nothing but with people I had chosen to keep company.

Then university came. We all went to different areas of the country to further our education: both in academic terms and life in general. Even with these new experiences, when it came to the holidays we were all back and things seemed to slip effortlessly back into the old ways. It was just what was needed. I would say that those were the true definitions of holidays. We could unwind, catch up and generally share many laughs. I even made some new friends in the area.

It seemed like a good system to me. Sadly though, my mother and her partner were beginning to feel increasingly excluded from their respective branches of the family. This was down to the distance: we lived 2 and half hours from his family and at least 3 hours from hers. They wanted to do something about this, so a couple of new jobs later we uprooted and moved down south.

When my university tenure was over I left to go to a new house, in a new part of the country. A country village. That independence and adulthood I had cherished had disappeared. With the village being so very small there was literally nothing within its boundaries to do, and in the months I have been here I think I've seen a total of 4 buses drive through. Being the only member of the family who has yet to earn a full driving license I am stuck. The only times I can leave the house I need someone else with me (either to take me, or as a passenger in my car because I cannot yet drive alone).

Where I lived before was small, but there if we ran low on something simple like milk, or if I needed to post something it was easily done. Just a quick walk up the road. Now, to do anything or get anywhere a car is necessary.

I am not completely dismissing the appeal of a country village. For people who are older it would seem like a wonderful environment. Quiet, and relaxing. Unfortunately for me, having all of my friends 2 and half hours north, 5 and a half hours away in Wales, or an ocean away in the United States makes it difficult sometimes to see its positive qualities.

Run! The President is a Terrorist!

OK, I know this is yet another entry about the US Presidential Election, but I shall try to make it my last until after November 4th.

Recently, the McCain/Palin ticket has taken to some pretty shameless attacks on the character of Barack Obama. After the "he wants to teach sex ed to kindergarten kids" thing failed (mainly because it was flat out wrong) they have delved into the past associations pile.
They trot out Bill Ayers at every chance they get and use this as an example that Obama has been (in Palin's words) "palling around with terrorists". The problems with this are relatively simple. When Ayers was targeting the United States with bombs, Obama was 8 years old. Secondly, since this time Ayers has become a college professor who has ties to numerous charitable foundations and educative programs. Charity? Sounds dangerous to me!

It was through one of these charities that Obama and Ayers met. As residents of the same area of Chicago with the same interest in education it was inevitable. Obama and Ayers served on the board of one of these charities. What could they possibly have been doing? Plotting against the U.S no doubt. Forget that there were other people on that board including several Democrats and Republicans. They clearly used the charity as a front for their terrorist talk. Sounds about right, doesn't it? No? Of course it doesn't.

The big issue here is not Ayers, nor is it Keating (despite what Obama's response attack was). When the campaign puts these issues out into the open in the manner they have been, it provokes people to think in more extreme ways. More and more, McCain supporters have been yelling things like "Traitor!", "Terrorist!" and perhaps most disturbingly "Kill him!" at rallies. While the McCain campaign can claim that they are not responsible for their supporters it simply does not hold water. The tone of their campaign has allowed this overflow of hate and fear.

McCain has at one rally corrected a supporter who claimed Obama was an Arab, and assured another that there was nothing to fear from an Obama presidency, but was booed for the effort. While it was somewhat of a relief to see a flicker of decency left in McCain it didn't do much to change the minds of his supporters. A man who claims to be 'Country First' should be more forceful in dealing with these people. Where is the John McCain of 2000? If he could see the 2008 version I'm sure he'd be appalled. The campaign, especially Sarah Palin, have continued these attacks which could lead down a dangerous road.

They accuse Obama of associating with terrorists. By doing this they are provoking people's fear. They're making them scared. Terrified if you like. Why are they doing this? Because the polls are increasingly leaning towards Obama and they need a way of changing the tone of the campaign. Does this sound like a familiar concept? Exploiting people's fear in order to achieve their own goals... oh yes. That's terrorism. The irony is not lost on me.

His campaign has stirred up enough fear and hatred that the concerns some people had about an African-American running for president at the start of the race have resurfaced. I want to have faith in the American public that such an event will never occur. Unfortunately, the increasing anger heard by McCain supporters indicates that it could. This thought worries me.

John McCain is a true American hero. I mean it. The dedication he showed his fellow captive Americans in that P.O.W camp is astounding: Upon being offered an early release he refused; saying that until all American captives in that prison were released he would not be either. That is the making of a hero. So it disappoints me that a man who used to take on his own party when their ideas clashed with what he believed to be right has ended up with this campaign. After the 2000 primary against Bush, in which McCain suffered many attacks and slanders, I am sad to see that McCain's campaign has become the perpetrator.

Senator McCain: please be the maverick that you were. Emphatically put these people right. You have policy disagreements with Obama? Good! Talk about them. Debate the issues. Fight the honorable campaign you promised. I am not saying that you should not attack Obama at all, just attack his positions and proposed policies. You are much better than this campaign has made you.

I would still root for Obama even he did this, but that would not be a reflection of him. I agree with a lot (but not all) of Obama's policies, and that is why I want to see him in the White House. However, it would be uplifting for the whole country if in these last few weeks the campaign was fought with honor and dignity. That would be change that everyone could believe in.

A Philosophy in Ink

There used to be a time when someone with tattoos was considered dangerous. It was associated with stints in prison, gang culture or both. Recently tattooing has become more accepted into mainstream society, although not completely. More and more people are getting ink. People use the tattoo to express things about themselves, their lives and their ideas. There are, however, people who get tattoos simply for the sake of getting them. A tattoo just so they can say they have one. It means nothing to them, they simply picked it off the wall of the shop. I would claim to be part of the former. Although it may not seem like it (my collection of tattoos is steadily growing) every single piece of tattoo art I have put on my body means something to me. For me a tattoo is an expression of self. I also consider them to be a form of art just as legitimate as paint or sculpture. My tattoos show different parts of who I am and as a result the tattoos themselves become a part of me.
I often get asked about the meanings behind some of my tattoos so I thought I would take the time to explain a few.
The black circular symbol in the center of this design is an old African symbol meaning "creativity": something which I believe is important to my life. Without applying a creative mind to things you can never come up with a new perspective or a new idea. The color surrounding this symbol I designed myself. The idea behind was that it would represent the flow of ideas from a creative mind.
Just underneath are the musical notes. Music is such a big part of my life, whether I'm playing it, writing it or simply listening to it. For something that plays such a significant part in my life, the tattoo is relatively understated but I feel like it fits well with the design above.
This sits just atop my self designed piece. It is Latin, and the literal translation is "Remember to Live" but when used, the context made it more like "There's more to living than only surviving". That phrase is actually a line from a song by The Offspring called 'Staring at the Sun'. Ever since hearing that line for the first time it has stuck with me. I had it put at the top of my arm as a reminder that life is not just a case of how long someone can stay alive, but what they did with their time.
This is the only tattoo I have so far that is not on my left arm. It is on my right leg, and was an 18th birthday present from my Aunt. When choosing this one I decided that I would get something that represented my upbringing. I give all of the credit for the way I was raised to my mother, who loves big cats. I was raised with a respect for independent minded women so this tattoo represents my mother and all other strong women that have influenced me in a positive way. I think I'm secretly a feminist at heart...
This tattoo represents the Straight Edge lifestyle I lead. The X has become a key symbol of Straight Edge so it made sense to get it. I am not a fan of blatantly obvious tattoos, I much prefer ones that are slightly subtle in meaning. This tattoo has actually helped me on the very few occasions when I have been tempted away from that lifestyle. Knowing it is on my skin would make it meaningless if I ever abandoned that way of life so just having it there helps.
This tattoo I am rather proud of as I drew the design for it myself on a scrap of paper, so it is rewarding to now have it on my skin. I was inspired by Ken Kesey's novel 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'. For me, that novel was a critique of the conformity that seemed to be rife in America at the time, and I think it is as relevant today as it was then. The one bird flying in the opposite direction is the symbol of going against a popular opinion or lifestyle by staying true to yourself.
There are two meanings behind this tattoo. One is the main, serious reason and the other is rather silly (there's always room for some silliness). The main reason is the nature of questions. Without questions we would not have advanced so much as a species as new questions lead to new answers. Curiosity is one of the most wonderful things about the mind. That was what led me to choosing a question mark. The design of the question mark itself I took from Batman villain The Riddler (from the 'Batman Forever' movie). The Riddler was always my favorite of Batman's adversaries, due to his use of cerebral tactics as opposed to brute force. He also reinforced the power of questions.
This tattoo actually has three meanings behind it. The first and foremost was that because my aim in life is to live in the United States of America I wanted something that would represent where I came from: England. A St. George flag would be far too obvious and rather thuggish so I decided to pick the flower that is commonly associated with England: the rose. Also, with so many unorthodox and self designed tattoos I also wanted to show an appreciation for more traditional tattoo art. The third reason is known only to me, and shall stay that way.
This tattoo has a rather interesting back story. When I was studying for a semester at Utica College in New York state I made friends with Ting and Ami, two people I still love to death and wish I saw much more of. After they graduated they were planning to move to Boston, MA and encouraged me to visit. After about two days back in England I decided that I had to get back and see them. Luckily, they were more than happy with the arrangement. During my week in Boston, the three of us went on the Freedom Trail. When visiting one of the cemetaries the tour guide pointed out that on some of the puritan headstones were adorned with winged skulls. This was said to represent the soul rising to heaven after death. I figured the idea of a winged skull was a cool tattoo idea but didn't agree with puritan philosophies. When I gave it some more thought I realized that on a basic level, the puritans were Englishmen looking for a better life in the United States. That was something I could definitely relate to, so I got it inked.

Well there you go, the stories behind some of my tattoos. I plan on expanding the ink I already have. The goal is eventually a full left arm sleeve. It's coming along, albeit slowly...