The best people to go with to such a festival are actually the ones who know a lot about Medieval fighting, swords and axes, bows and arrows... But they also apriciate medieval style clothes.
I think what I like the most was the demonstration of non-medieval birds of prey for medieval style hunting... For example they used some latin american hawks to demonstrate how medieval english men used to go hunting... Oh well one cannot have it all.
As the bird trainner said the name birds of prey should actually be "birds of Pray" because you hunt and then you pray that they will come back. The proof was that during the demonstration the medieval looking latin american hawk was attacked by non-medieval local seagulls and disappeared to run - or rather fly - for his life...
Wednesday 13 June 2007
Wednesday 6 June 2007
Truth or Dare
Truth:
Greece has always been a nightmare for drivers. Fast driving, no respect for signs, double parking, driving the wrong direction on two way streets.
Apparently lately the government is really trying to change this. However there is a long established mentality in the heads of my fellow citizens that is making that extremely diffucult. A simple example, instead of obaying the law of drink-driving, the smart greek drivers drink and then the drive through the areas that they know the police never tests for "alco-tests". That might mean that they add an extra hour on the original journey time, just to feel free to have as much drink as they feel like. Now that is the essence of freedom!
Not long ago, a friend of mine was stopped by the traffic police at 2am on a Saturday night in a Thessaloniki main road for the traditional test. SHe was found clean. She only had drunk fizzy drinks. The officer in charge, instead of just letting her go, or thnking her and letting her go, he had a go at her.... Why shuch a young girl is not having fun on a Saturday night? It's wrong for her not to drink at all!!!!
Dare:
Obviously the approach of greek policemen has changed since then. They do not care about the citizens social life. On the contrary, they are trying to enforce the law even it means that they will disrrupt the citicents eating habbits. In this case the incident involved double-parking. The driver was just about to get coffee and breakfast but there was no parking space in sight. Hunger is not illigal yet by the greek traffic law. However, an out-of-duty policement (who says that in Greece people are lazy and do not work over time?) told the driver to forget about the cheese pies and the coffee and to take his car, as he was blocking the traffic. Of course the driver agreed, he only asked for some time to go and get his breakfast. He wasn't planning to stay there the whole day anyway.... There are so many nice things to do in Greece on a Sunday. The impatient policement judged that this man who prioritizes cheesepies and coffee before the well functioning of the traffic on that specific greek road was public danger... so he shot him.
Have you ever seen more dedicated policemen than the greek ones?
For reference:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6720099.stm
So I believe that Greece has become a paradise for drivers. All the evil habbits of the past are now being erradicated... Only when you go beware. Do not buy cheese pies whenever you feel like it.
Try double parking in Greece... if you dare!
Greece has always been a nightmare for drivers. Fast driving, no respect for signs, double parking, driving the wrong direction on two way streets.
Apparently lately the government is really trying to change this. However there is a long established mentality in the heads of my fellow citizens that is making that extremely diffucult. A simple example, instead of obaying the law of drink-driving, the smart greek drivers drink and then the drive through the areas that they know the police never tests for "alco-tests". That might mean that they add an extra hour on the original journey time, just to feel free to have as much drink as they feel like. Now that is the essence of freedom!
Not long ago, a friend of mine was stopped by the traffic police at 2am on a Saturday night in a Thessaloniki main road for the traditional test. SHe was found clean. She only had drunk fizzy drinks. The officer in charge, instead of just letting her go, or thnking her and letting her go, he had a go at her.... Why shuch a young girl is not having fun on a Saturday night? It's wrong for her not to drink at all!!!!
Dare:
Obviously the approach of greek policemen has changed since then. They do not care about the citizens social life. On the contrary, they are trying to enforce the law even it means that they will disrrupt the citicents eating habbits. In this case the incident involved double-parking. The driver was just about to get coffee and breakfast but there was no parking space in sight. Hunger is not illigal yet by the greek traffic law. However, an out-of-duty policement (who says that in Greece people are lazy and do not work over time?) told the driver to forget about the cheese pies and the coffee and to take his car, as he was blocking the traffic. Of course the driver agreed, he only asked for some time to go and get his breakfast. He wasn't planning to stay there the whole day anyway.... There are so many nice things to do in Greece on a Sunday. The impatient policement judged that this man who prioritizes cheesepies and coffee before the well functioning of the traffic on that specific greek road was public danger... so he shot him.
Have you ever seen more dedicated policemen than the greek ones?
For reference:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6720099.stm
So I believe that Greece has become a paradise for drivers. All the evil habbits of the past are now being erradicated... Only when you go beware. Do not buy cheese pies whenever you feel like it.
Try double parking in Greece... if you dare!
Tuesday 23 January 2007
Being 25
Just one more entry before I pass the threshold of 25.
It took me about three years to adjust to this age. First my mind was set on 22. Even when the years passed and I was 23 and 24.. when asked I was always 22. Then of course I had to count and the result always caught me by surprise.
The past year I was happy. I had finally reached the mental age of 25. I was happy with this significant number. And now I have to change it again. I am afraid I will refuse... it will take me some years to upgrade to the better model. So I suppose I have to worn you. In case you ask me how old I am and I still say 25 it is not because I am trying to lie... it is because I am stuck on this age.
I suppose the reason is that time now passes faster than when we were younger. The maturing proccess is slower than it used to be and thus we do not feel that a year has passed when it actually has. Now time counts in bigger chuncks. Important achivements and big changes.
Maybe the next step will be 28.. who knows.
But for one more day I can say I am 25 and be right. Just one more day.
It took me about three years to adjust to this age. First my mind was set on 22. Even when the years passed and I was 23 and 24.. when asked I was always 22. Then of course I had to count and the result always caught me by surprise.
The past year I was happy. I had finally reached the mental age of 25. I was happy with this significant number. And now I have to change it again. I am afraid I will refuse... it will take me some years to upgrade to the better model. So I suppose I have to worn you. In case you ask me how old I am and I still say 25 it is not because I am trying to lie... it is because I am stuck on this age.
I suppose the reason is that time now passes faster than when we were younger. The maturing proccess is slower than it used to be and thus we do not feel that a year has passed when it actually has. Now time counts in bigger chuncks. Important achivements and big changes.
Maybe the next step will be 28.. who knows.
But for one more day I can say I am 25 and be right. Just one more day.
Monday 15 January 2007
Alexia = Ugly
A Mathematic statement that appeared as a girl's nick name in MSN.
Point to keep in Mind No1: MSN is public.
Point to keep in Mind No2: Mathematic statements can be falsified.
Background Story: I do not know this girl. I have never met her and most likely I never will. This girl was interested in Alexia's boyfriend. But apparently the choice of the part tense is wrong.
Alternative History: If Alexia was Queen Alexia of the Big Glorious Empire, in Medival times this girl would be proclaimed a witch and would be burned alive to purify her soul.
Damn the enlightment and the modern times....
Leaving aside the backgroud stories and the evil reactions a mathematic statement such as this can be treated as a hypothesis and thus can be tested. So me being a behavioural political scientist (aka number cruncher) I will attempt to test this hypothesis against all the available evidence and finally accept or rejected.
Unfortunatelly the ethical reward of all these is non-existing as I am an advocate of freedom of speech... and against capital punishment. (How very hippie of me!)
Hypothesis: Alexia = Ugly
Evidence: Alexia's boyfriend is not blind
Discussion: Although that could be a good proof against the hypothesis then we have to find evidence to support that Charlie's (Alexia's boyfriend) taste is objectively good. That might be the case as he likes classical music, Lord of the Rings and great nana's good old cheese biscuits, which are a proof enough of good taste. But of course we might end up in the deadend that objectively good taste does not exist... So we better look for different evidence.
Evidence: When People meet her they do not look away disgusted but they smile instead
Discussion: Assuming that someone is extraordinarily ugly then people would try to avoid them This is not the case for Alexia. However that just might mean that she is not extreamely ugly but just ugly... or a little ugly. Unfortunatelly the degree of uglyness is not defined in the hypothesis.
Evidence: Laurence says Alexia does not have a big ass
Discussion: That would be of any help if only ugly people had big asses. Sorry Laurence... you are not helpful here.
Evidence: When Alexia was little the other kids at school teased her that she had a small nose
Discussion: That only proves that Alexia has a small nose. That can also be measured.
Just about here my imagination and creativity stopped. The hypothessis cannot be proven. Sorry, tough luck. It is this kind of mathematical statements that fall into the personal judgement category. Some people will agree and some people will get pissed off that it was even expressed.
Each one of you can have there own opinion on the statement. After all it is a free world.
The only question is.. how far should we go with that freedom. Should we be allowed to post every little opinion we have as offensive as it might be to a public place?
The only closing I could think for this entry is Voltaire's quote: I disagree with everything you say but I will defend with my own life your right to say it.
On the other hand.. witch burning was not all that bad.
PS. I urge all the reader to have an opinion on the hypothesis. Let's put it on a public vote! What more democratic than that :P
Point to keep in Mind No1: MSN is public.
Point to keep in Mind No2: Mathematic statements can be falsified.
Background Story: I do not know this girl. I have never met her and most likely I never will. This girl was interested in Alexia's boyfriend. But apparently the choice of the part tense is wrong.
Alternative History: If Alexia was Queen Alexia of the Big Glorious Empire, in Medival times this girl would be proclaimed a witch and would be burned alive to purify her soul.
Damn the enlightment and the modern times....
Leaving aside the backgroud stories and the evil reactions a mathematic statement such as this can be treated as a hypothesis and thus can be tested. So me being a behavioural political scientist (aka number cruncher) I will attempt to test this hypothesis against all the available evidence and finally accept or rejected.
Unfortunatelly the ethical reward of all these is non-existing as I am an advocate of freedom of speech... and against capital punishment. (How very hippie of me!)
Hypothesis: Alexia = Ugly
Evidence: Alexia's boyfriend is not blind
Discussion: Although that could be a good proof against the hypothesis then we have to find evidence to support that Charlie's (Alexia's boyfriend) taste is objectively good. That might be the case as he likes classical music, Lord of the Rings and great nana's good old cheese biscuits, which are a proof enough of good taste. But of course we might end up in the deadend that objectively good taste does not exist... So we better look for different evidence.
Evidence: When People meet her they do not look away disgusted but they smile instead
Discussion: Assuming that someone is extraordinarily ugly then people would try to avoid them This is not the case for Alexia. However that just might mean that she is not extreamely ugly but just ugly... or a little ugly. Unfortunatelly the degree of uglyness is not defined in the hypothesis.
Evidence: Laurence says Alexia does not have a big ass
Discussion: That would be of any help if only ugly people had big asses. Sorry Laurence... you are not helpful here.
Evidence: When Alexia was little the other kids at school teased her that she had a small nose
Discussion: That only proves that Alexia has a small nose. That can also be measured.
Just about here my imagination and creativity stopped. The hypothessis cannot be proven. Sorry, tough luck. It is this kind of mathematical statements that fall into the personal judgement category. Some people will agree and some people will get pissed off that it was even expressed.
Each one of you can have there own opinion on the statement. After all it is a free world.
The only question is.. how far should we go with that freedom. Should we be allowed to post every little opinion we have as offensive as it might be to a public place?
The only closing I could think for this entry is Voltaire's quote: I disagree with everything you say but I will defend with my own life your right to say it.
On the other hand.. witch burning was not all that bad.
PS. I urge all the reader to have an opinion on the hypothesis. Let's put it on a public vote! What more democratic than that :P
Monday 1 January 2007
2+2007=27+007
And finally after many many years I had a good new years eve with people I love singing silly songs!
I hope 2007 stays like that! Full of silly songs!
Yet another year that symbolises expansion, so for better or worse the EU "family" has grown bigger and fatter. Welcome to Bulgaria and Romania... and good luck to all of us.
As 2007 has brought us 2 making us 27, and we have a new 007 that fulfills our desteny and that of the numbers 0, 2 and 7.
Happy New Year to us all... and let the numbers rock on.
I hope 2007 stays like that! Full of silly songs!
Yet another year that symbolises expansion, so for better or worse the EU "family" has grown bigger and fatter. Welcome to Bulgaria and Romania... and good luck to all of us.
As 2007 has brought us 2 making us 27, and we have a new 007 that fulfills our desteny and that of the numbers 0, 2 and 7.
Happy New Year to us all... and let the numbers rock on.
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