Sleep is what I need

I cycled over 30 km today and played an hour of football. That was after a full day of work. I'm nacked (tired) so I'm going to sleep now. No posts tonight but I did want to mention that I didn't think the dating post would be such a hit with Klara's friends, hehe.

Good night!

The dating scene (or, can't wait until Klara does speed dating)

http://www.savagechickens.com

I promised my friend Klara that I would write about dating. She's a bit of a control freak and forced me into writing something about dating. You see, Klara will do speed dating soon and is feeling somewhat insecure about it so she wants me to do it also, so we're in the same boat and she won't feel as awkward doing it. I said that I'll maybe do it some day and best I could promise is to write something about dating in general on my blog. I don't know what I will write about, I'll just start and see where it takes me.

I've dated since I was 14 (?) or so. In my teenage years it was called trial and error, not really dating. You didn't know "the rules" back then and I just moved to America so even if there were "rules", they just changed drastically for me. So, as a teenager you're just learning and can't really call that proper dating. Skip away to adulthood and here is where it gets interesting.

First off, how do you even meet someone? My preference is the social scene, that would mean pubs, clubs, parties, coffee shops, concerts. Pretty much every girl I ever dated, I met in one of those places. I did do Internet dating once but that was a miserable failure although it lasted over 6 months. I never went to church and I'm atheist so that's out of the question (plus, as my friend Doug says all the time, a lightning would probably strike me if I ever entered a church). Some people like to do clubs and classes - running clubs, fitness clubs, book clubs, cooking classes, wine classes, etc. I've never tried and maybe I should because pretty much all of those things interest me. Plus, what can be easier than showing up at a wine class, gulping down some sweet wine, and hitting on equally buzzed classmates? Sounds foolproof to me - damn it, I gotta do it!

Anyway, back to the first step. Besides meeting girls/guys through friends, family, cultural events, and all that other stuff ... what about speed dating? I've never done it, it has been an overdone cliche in movies and TV shows, and I literally don't know anyone who has done it. Maybe Klara will be the first one and she can report back as to the efficiency of the process. How can you really like someone after 3 minutes (as Klara tells me the rule is) to ask them out? Allegedly you don't actually pick anyone for a date that night, you just indicate your choices and you follow up if with a date if you choose to do so. I'm a big believer in chemistry because I've seen it happen many times to me so I guess 3 minutes might be enough for me to pick a girl based on chemistry alone. But what about other aspects such as interests, political views, religious views, how they eat their food, do they like to be spanked, how much money they make, are they racist, do they listen to Justin Bieber, do they think "New Moon" was better than "Twilight" (correct me if those are not the correct names of those movies)?

My point is, how do you really know if you like someone in that short amount of time? Is chemistry enough to get you started AND keep you going, if it turns out some of the aspects of their personality you can't stand. If it doesn't work out, do you go back to speed dating? What if you click with more than one person? Do you rank the chemistries then go out with multiple people and then decide which one is the best? Interesting.

I guess to answer that first question, let's see what you talk about during speed dating. Do you even go into details like your nationality, family members, religious views; or do you focus on interests like music, movies, hobbies; or do you see if they have a sense of humor; or do you challenge them intellectually; or do you just sit there silently and wait for the other person to say something just to break the silence; or do you touch their hand and see what the response is; or do you start asking them questions and never say anything about yourself until they ask you; or do you focus on their body language and simply make casual conversation about sunny days and the Irish economy? Or maybe you do all of the above in 3 minutes (highly unlikely since most people can't even read those sentences in less than 3 minutes) (also highly unlikely for a guy to do any of that if he's faced with a fierce opponent such as an extremely hot girl with cleavage showing, hot red lipstick and a point blank stare into your eyes - I think we would just mumble anything that would come to our mind at that point).

So, Klara, tell us how it was and we'll follow up this blog post with a discussion. By the way ladies, I'm single and I DON'T like to be spanked.

How does the world get out of the recession?

Tax the Super Rich Now or Face a Revolution

For my first politically themed blog post, I will post the one that I agree with the most in recent days and the one that enrages me the most. I agree with it simply because it is true. It enrages me because no revolution has happened yet and I am sick of the elite getting away with bribery, corruption, stealing, money laundering, tax evasion ... all without a single person going to jail.

I have been getting mad, "mad as hell", for the last 5 or so years with everything that has been going on in America. I just can't take it any more. I try not to read these kind of articles any more because the anger just makes me feel so powerless. The more angry I am, the more I realize I can do nothing about it and it just makes me feel sick, literally. I tried getting others to see the truth but most simply look the other way, or worse - they actually believe the bullshit they feed them and they try to drown me with their ignorant comments.

Therefore, I hope this is the last article I post related to America and everything that's wrong with it today. In the future, I hope to post only enlightening stories such as the Japanese businesses agreeing to forgo the tax cuts they were supposed to get in order to help the government rebuild their country and help their people. I will try not to get enraged by comparing the positive stories with the American negativity, greed, corruption.

Please read the story, especially if you live in America. I don't any more, and thank God for that. It's your mess to deal with now. I am not coming back.

Just the tip of the iceberg (sorry Klara!)

I promised my friend Klara I would (maybe) write about dating, speed dating in particular even though I have never done it. I guess I was going to write about my thoughts on dating but that can wait until some other time.

Just before I was about to write a post, I took a look at the Google Blogger main page, my account page. On that page there is a list of blogs I follow (which is just my father's blog) and there is a suggestion of blogs to visit at the bottom of the page. I decided to click on some of the blogs. Wow! I was blown away by the variety of types of blogs, people who write them, subjects and styles of writing, photos, templates, blogger's countries, and so many other things. I quickly realized that this was just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to exploring the world. In less than 10 blogs there was a surgeon from South Africa talking about his experiences as a surgeon, a couple of food blogs where one is health food and the other is food recipes from across the blog world, two music-related blogs, one blog from an Australian woman who is a recovering drug addict with kids, and couple of art-related blogs, one in particular that caught my attention because it had wonderful photos of Paris splattered all over it.

Just amazing! I started this blog because I just wanted to write but also hoping some of my friends would read it, and maybe, just maybe someone I don't know would find it and take an interest. However, after seeing just how many people out there write about everything, it makes me think just how minute we are in this world. No, I'm not disillusioned; this finding also makes me realize how connected we are in this day and age. Less than 30 years ago, people would have to special-order newspapers and magazines from other countries or even cities if they wanted to read somebody's daily thoughts and experiences. Now we can just type some search words into Google and find a wealth of information. We can connect with people from different backgrounds which can help us develop our own personalities and improve our own lives. All with the click of a button and some keystrokes.

I did decide to follow one of the blogs because I want to read about food recipes. I love food and I like to cook but I want to broaden my cooking repertoire. However, I do not want to get caught up in the constant lurking on the Internet. It is overwhelming and it does not lead to improvement of your life; on the contrary, I think spending too much time acquiring information on the Internet can only help stagnate your life since the information you learn can never be utilized ... because you're constantly on the computer. So I will read some blogs here and there, maybe comment here and there but I will stick to writing my own blog. Is that selfish? Maybe but I know what I want out of life and spending hours upon hours on the Internet is not what I want. Spending the summer vacation on the beach in Croatia without Internet access is what I want. Summer, when will you get here?!

Dating, next time. For now, if you can spare half an hour of your time, go visit some blogs and prepare to be amazed by what the world and people have to offer.

Oh, the wonderful nature

Today was a gorgeous day in Dublin. It was sunny with little cloud cover and a little bit of a breeze. It was a seemingly perfect day. So I went to Phoenix Park which is a massive park just outside of Dublin city center. Phoenix Park is more than twice the size of Central Park in New York. I thought the Memorial Park was huge but Phoenix Park is actually larger. There are a couple of unique characteristics of the park; for example there are herds of deer living in the park. I saw some today relaxing in the expansive fields inside of the park. I only had a chance to explore the park for about an hour so I didn't get to see everything. I can tell you one thing, I'm definitely going back next weekend, even if the weather is not nice.

What really surprised me was the emotion I felt when I got to the park. Something wonderful took over me, it was a happy feeling, feeling of belonging. It felt good to be in nature, away from buildings, street lights, pubs, etc. There were lots of cars, probably not as much as in some other parks but there were also lots of people walking and cycling. I think more people came to the park on foot or on bicycles, at least that's what it seemed to me since I didn't see that many cars. I also loved being around people who are also enjoying the nature. It wasn't like sitting in a coffee shop or grocery store or on the street. It felt like everyone there was free but we were all part of one organism. Ah, it was so great to see people relaxing on the grass, kids running around and getting dirty, all this bustle and hustle but in a way much different than what you hear in the city. I felt so relaxed and fulfilled when I was cycling to the park. I stopped and took some photos, more for others than for myself. I want others to see what nature has to offer and what people have preserved for themselves. I want to share the emotion I had with everyone else. More importantly, I hope to inspire you who read this blog and see these photos to go out into nature and explore. Just go, get out of the house and climb a rock or hike through a forest.

Check out some of the photos I took. If anyone ever comes to Dublin, make sure you go to Phoenix Park. I am going back next week!

Teachers

Holy shit. Three for three. It's like I'm Michael Jordan playing against the Pacers and Reggie is talking smack. And I keep draining them.

This one will be short. Watch this video if you want to know why teachers are important and lawyers are assholes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxsOVK4syxU&feature=channel_video_title

Most definitely out now. Peace!

Incredible video - "We are all in this world together ..."

Fuck it, I'm going for two posts tonight - two for two. After I wrote my last entry, I went to reddit (a site a visit frequently) and saw a post with a link to this video. I loved the video and I would like You to watch it. Please check it out and leave a comment if you wish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0oHlX8Kmxk&feature=player_embedded

This guy did something I would love to do one day. When I visit my friend Vinny in Brussels this past December, I met a friend of his and now a friend of mine, Tommaso. Tommaso is a guy full of energy and life and that is why he and I clicked. During the trip to Bruges two of us talked about writing a book about people's stories. This guy did something similar. He's one step ahead of us since he already did it. Tommaso, when are we doing this?!

I'm out. For real this time.

My mind is drawing a blank

It's late, after midnight, and my mind is drawing a blank as to what to write. In this situation I just start writing and keep writing no matter what comes to my mind. Eventually, something meaningful will come out. I think I learned this when I was in 8th grade, my first school year in America. At the beginning of the school year, the guidance counselor, an English tutor and some other people asked me to demonstrate my knowledge of English language. This happened about two months after we arrived to America. I remember the tutor telling me that I was very close but not good enough to start the school without being tutored in English. So she started tutoring me every day for the length of the first semester.

Part of her tutoring plan was for me to write a journal entry every day. It was difficult for me to write in English those first few months. Probably the most difficult part was actually coming up with something to write about. So she told me that every time this happens, I should just start writing anything at all, just to force myself to write. She said, "Just start writing, for example, "Today is Thursday and I have nothing to write about. I will think of something to write ...", and etc. I gotta tell you, this works! Tonight I sat in front of the empty blog entry for a minute thinking of a subject for the blog. I couldn't think of anything so I wrote that "my mind is drawing a blank". Next thing you know, I have an entire blog entry in front of me. Damn tutor, she knew what she was talking about.

I'm off to bed and another hard day at work. I have to put together an important set of documents that will "help advance the man kind". Good night.

Advancing the man kind

I can't believe it's been more than a week since I last posted. Lots has happened since then. The day after my last post, representatives from the European Space Agency (ESA) came to Dublin to discuss the progress of our project. Our project, you ask? To advance the man kind. Ok, that's a bit far fetched but seriously, this is what our little Irish project will eventually do - advance the man kind. It is hard for most people in the world to see the big picture, whether it be global warming, world politics, global economy or millions of other things that are affected by seemingly unimportant everyday activities such as driving to work, reading the news and buying an iPhone. It is hard for people to see the end effect of anything that happens in their life, including their job. The end effect of my job is advancing the man kind. I am proud of that and although difficult, I use it to motivate myself to do my job well. Let me explain what I mean.

I thought about this and I think anyone doing this kind of work must do it if they want to do their job well. I work for an Irish company that produces flight test equipment. Basically, our electronic hardware gathers sensor data such as temperature, pressure, strain, etc., converts it to digital signals and sends the data to another piece of electronic equipment that either records the data or transmits it to the ground electronic equipment that records the data. Our equipment is usually used on test flights of prototype aircraft and the sensor data helps the manufacturers analyze the design of the aircraft. This analysis helps improve the design so that the aircrafts are safer, more efficient, stronger, etc.

ESA looked at our equipment and thought that it could be used to gather similar kind of sensor data ... on the International Space Station (ISS). So we got a contract to develop a new system to be used in one of the numerous experiment racks on the Space Station that are used for various experiments. Most of the time experiments are projects like our own that have some sort of electronic equipment gathering sensor data. Well, our system would do that FOR the individual experiments therefore allowing organizations creating the experiments to use more of their time developing the actual experiment instead of developing the data gathering system.

So our system will eventually fly on the ISS, specifically the Columbus module, and will be used to gather sensor information from various experiments inside of the Columbus module. How does that help advance the man kind? Well, the experiments that fly on the ISS help scientists, doctors, engineers, etc. solve problems such as developing new materials, finding cures to diseases, understanding the world climate, understanding the universe, and millions of other issues that will eventually help us, humans, become stronger, healthier, smarter, more efficient, more aware of our actions, improve our world, become better people. And that is how my job and our project will help the man kind.

Damn it feels good to be ... an engineer.

Fab Five documentary and an office work amusement

I watched the ESPN documentary about the "Fab Five" tonight. The Michigan Fab Five were five freshman basketball players on University of Michigan basketball team in 1991 who ended up starting as freshmen and later as sophomores on almost all of Michigan basketball games in 1991  through 1993. They also reached two NCAA finals but failed to win either one. It was a great documentary and I encourage all basketball fans or sports fans to watch it. I liked two things in the documentary; Jalen Rose's honesty and the way these guys played basketball - like a team. They did not play like individuals like many teams these days. I'm not sure you can compare them to any other team in any other sport. There is no better documentary to watch prior to the March Madness so get in your seats, get some popcorn and watch it!

On a completely different note, I acknowledged one little peculiarity about people working in an office environment. I'm sure all of you have experienced it if you worked in an office. I see it (and do it) all the time but today, for some reason, I thought about it and wanted to mention it in my blog. When people are working in the office and they pass each other in the hallways, kitchens, doors, etc., isn't it funny how we nod and say hello to each other even though we are in the same office working together for half of the day, five days a week, months and sometimes years? I just find it hilarious and interesting that we do that. "How are you?", I say to John who acknowledges with "Ahem". Or a up and down head nod and I come back with same but smaller head nod. Ha, even better, the raised eyebrows and the come back is "Hey" or something like that. Freaking hilarious!!!

Anyway, I'm off to bed. Got to go to work tomorrow :).

One down, many to go

Today was an accomplished day, hopefully one of many to come. I got to work early, used my time efficiently, ate four meals (I made all four), worked out, relaxed a bit, played the guitar, read the news, and wrote on the blog. I love days like this! I just need to keep it up and keep it going for a long time (forever?).

It makes me feel good when I have days like this. I feel like I've actually progressed in life, unlike the days when I'm tired and lazy. Those days I feel like I'm actually going backwards, unlearning what I know and simply not contributing anything to the world. Ever since I moved to Ireland I have been wanting to change my life for the better. I want to explore nature like I used to do when I was a kid in Bosnia. There are so many places to see and feel, even just to smell the fresh air or feel the wind breaking across the top of a hill you just climbed. I think I'll do some hiking this weekend, maybe go down to Dublin "mountains" (I think they're more like hills), cycle down there, climb a hill, and browse the forest. Then I'll come home and write about it on the blog. There is just something fulfilling when you get things done in order to have time for the things you like to do. It's a natural high.

Seeing as I did soooo many things to day, I'm tired and I'm off to bed. I can't wait to get to work tomorrow and take on another day.

Need more time in the day

I just got done watching Totenham vs. AC Milan game. Game started about 45 minutes after I got home. I cooked during the game, ate the food, read the mail and then relaxed and watched the game. You know what sucks? It sucks that after taking care of the laundry and reading some posts on reddit, it's already 10:30 pm. Now I wouldn't otherwise complain but I like to play the guitar and having a chance to do it this late at night without sacrificing other interests, hobbies, eating, etc. just simply sucks. I need more time in the day. I need to start getting to work earlier, leaving earlier, stop procrastinating and get the chores done faster. No more bitching about it.

I'm off to play my guitar.

Friend on the far side of the world

It's late. It's past my bed time. Sometimes though you have to suck it up to talk to a friend, especially the one with whom you haven't talked in a while. I think it has been more than a year since I last spoke to B. Actually it's been more than a year since I WROTE to B, let alone talked to him.

Brendan, or B, lives in South Korea and has been for the last 6 years. That's a long time to be away from home, which is in Canada. Peterborough, Ontario to be exact, which I visited several times (it's a beautiful city, if you haven't been). It was great to catch up with Brendan because I rediscovered a reason why we became friends to begin with. We clicked right away, as if no time had passed since we last spoke. We also share many morals, ideals, have similar views on life. We're different in many ways but that's great because we acknowledge our differences, accept them, and we learn from those differences. At least that's what I feel.

We spoke for more than an hour. It was 8 am over there and 11 pm over here when we started. Much has changed during the time we haven't talked but yet so much is still the same. I moved countries and changed jobs, he changed jobs and moved cities. He's talking about going back to Canada, I'm talking about staying in Europe forever. Both of us want to "live the life" and both don't know a way to fit it all within the small time allotted to us in this life.

It was great to catch up and I can't wait to talk again ... within days, or months, but not years. Peace out, or as Brendan would say, Croatian chicks are hot!

What is a lost Bosnian?

Twenty years ago I never imagined I would be living in Ireland, after living 16 years in USA, no less. I was born and raised in Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the time part of Yugoslavia. Life was good for Bosnians in the 80's. There were jobs, economy was doing well, people were happy, there was peace. We were going on summer vacations to the Croatian coast, winter vacations on the Slovenian mountains and there was the occasional business trip abroad for my parents. Many kids must have been dreaming about the future in the similar way as I was; I will go to this and this school, attend this college, get a job, meet a girl, get married, and all kinds of Balkan craziness in between.

Then the war came to Bosnia in 1992. By the summer of 1993, my family and I left Bosnia and moved to Croatia. A year after that, we were making a great move across the ocean to USA. I was 13 when I left Bosnia, 14 when I left Croatia. Again, there were many kids who experienced the exact same scenario, many ending up in USA. At first, I quickly adapted to the new culture. English was easy to learn because in Bosnia I watched many English language movies and shows with subtitles. School was easier than in Bosnia with smaller work load and less classes to attend. Heck, even going away to college was fairly easy. I easily fit in with the new peers in America. Many were interested in talking to me because I was different and spoke with a heavy (probably for them, funny) Eastern European accent. I made many friends. The music was different but since we were exposed to American and British music in Bosnia, my musical taste did not have to change that much. Food was different but my mom always cooked at home so not much change there either (Denny's buffalo chicken strips are my favorite post-drinking food though!).

But as I graduated college, traveled across Europe and America, got a job, moved to a new city by myself, met new friends, had new relationships - as I matured - instead of finding myself, ... I was getting more lost. It took me several years to figure this out but I understood it once I started meeting up with other Bosnians across America. Every year on Memorial Day weekend for the last 7 or 8 years, there is a get together of Bosnians from my home town of Banja Luka. I went for the first time in 2005 and went every year until 2010. In that first year I met many other Bosnians from my generation, the generation who arrived to America when we were teenagers. I started to keep in touch with them. We visited each other in cities across America such as Phoenix, Louisville, Los Angeles, St. Louis, etc. It felt great to be a part of this new community since I did not hang out with that many Bosnians while I was away to college or back home.

However, there was one thing that Bosnians from my generation shared besides being Bosnian. We were all lost. What do I mean by lost? I mean, we literally did not know where we were. Everything about us and our lives was misplaced. Our friends were a mix of Bosnians and Americans. We can't hang out with both at the same time since we want to speak our language when we're with Bosnians but then the American friends would be alienated. But we knew many Americans better than our Bosnian friends and that caused tension. Our American girlfriends/boyfriends did not understand our cultural differences but then we couldn't find a "suitable" Bosnian girl/guy to date. We wanted to listen to Bosnian music but who can keep up with the new Bosnian music when you don't even live in the country any more? We grew up on American music but the American music doesn't touch us like our own. The way we socialize with other Bosnians is one way and the way we socialize with Americans is another.

We did not belong in Bosnia and we did not belong in America. The older generations, who were 20 and older when they came to America, already developed their personalities and could withstand the impact of new culture. The younger generations did not live long enough in Bosnia to absorb many of the characteristics of the culture and were molded quickly by the American culture. But us, we were struggling to establish our personalities. Life in Bosnia shaped us half-way then America took over. And those two sides are constantly battling.

I am not sure how many other Bosnians feel this way. I hope they voice their feelings. There must be many other immigrants who feel the same way.

Anyway, I know this wasn't very well written and I could have said a lot more but I'm tired and I'm going to bed. Right after I play a bit of Bosnian music on my guitar ... followed by a few chords of "Creep" by Stone Temple Pilots. Good night from a lost Bosnian soul.

Welcome to the jungle

Hello. I don't know why I named my first post "Welcome to the jungle". It must be because I think this blog will be a trip to the jungle of my mind and my life.

This is my first post. I hope to have many more. This blog will not have a specific theme. I will write about whatever comes to my mind. I will try not to censor myself but everyone knows it is hard to write anything without thinking about the consequences. So I will try; that is what I promise. I will try to write something down every day, no matter how short or how long. I just want to write. I need to write. I need to say things that are on my mind. I want to share my thoughts and my ideas. Maybe this helps me be more creative, in music, at work, in life. We'll see.

If you're reading this, welcome to my world.