Lover Of The Light

"You may not trust the promises of the change I'll show; but I'd be yours If you'd be mine"

I had heard this song a million times before Friday, but never registered it. Sure, I like Mumford & Sons, doesn't everybody? In any case, I realised I had never truly heard the lyrics.

To me this song speaks of someone losing his relationship into the darkness of life, the everyday squabbles, the things that have long since worn you down - and unfortunately, this isn't the first time. But - as they say - it's not over until the fat lady sings; or in this case, until you give up.

"I had done wrong; you built your tower - but call me home and I will build a throne"

I love that line. It speaks volumes of both parties. He's messed up, she's messed up, they're both at the end of the rope; but all he wants in the whole world is to be invited back into her life. He doesn't know what he can do for their relationship exactly, but he knows he's not ready to give up, and so he must try. 

There's a semi-famous quote from Jane Addams (although to be honest I hadn't known who said it until now) which I feel is relevant to this post.

"Nothing could be worse than the fear that one had given up too soon, and left one unexpended effort that might have saved the world."

Well, one might not be trying to save the world; but the stakes feel just as high.

Book Review: Heartstopper (Joy Fielding)

Title: Heartstopper
Author: Joy Fielding
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Pocket Books

In the town of Torrance, FL (population: 4,160) the body count is rising. With a killer on the loose and an over-the-hill sheriff in charge, things seem bleak for this isolated populace. Fielding invites you into the small community and into the lives and minds of several engaging characters, including - the killer. Until now, Sheriff John Weber had been equipped to handle anything and everything, but until now, that had only entailed traffic citations. Will he and his deputies solve the case before it's too late?

Fielding does an admirable job here in ensuring too much detail is never given away at any one time, making you second guess yourself when it comes to doing your own detective work. However, this book is hardly a thriller in that it fails to keep you alert throughout, as the book does not follow the story line through one character, but introduces you into the minds of half a dozen (albeit imperative) characters. Here the author does a great job at allowing you to see things from all possible angles, however still masking the necessary information - much like a thriller should - but allows you to get too caught up in the character development rather than the goings on of the crimes, and fails to keep you on the edge of your seat.

I really did enjoy the books despite this, and thought the different approach worked well-enough. Not bad for a $2 find at the local op-shop. If you're looking for a thriller that doesn't necessary follow the classic formula, this is the book for you - alternatively, if thriller is not your regular genre, you may also enjoy this book.

Heartstopper by Joy Fielding is available new or used from BetterWorldBooks (at time of publish)

The biggest risk you might ever take - loving

An excerpt from one of my favourite shows, Community - on a subject I know and understand very little about; marriage and love.

Jeff: People can make all sorts of promises, but they never stick it out!

Andre:  It's not something you just stick out man, it's a risk that you take together; and you don't just promise it once, you gotta promise it every day.

Shirley: Yes, but the person you're making promises to is gonna change, and you have to accept that!

Andre: I do ... but do you promise to be patient?

Shirley: I do ... but do you accept that maybe it's time to let someone else take the lead?

Andre: I do, baby I swear I do.

Out of my mind

A poem I wrote on a late shift, after chatting with a forensic patient. His crime is murder and his diagnosis is Schizophrenia. Every day he waits, to move on from his past - stuck in a system which cannot fiscally afford to support him and so many others with the necessary rehabilitation. His treatment is medication, which is almost rendered null and void by the institution he is stuck within - sapping what remaining sanity he has left. 

Out of my mind

Andrew Kimpton

Through the cold breeze of winter and as the summer bears down on my brow

The answer I seek for remains to be now

Today not tomorrow, nor the day after that

The replies that they give, like whips to my back

Soon my friend soon, as I wait and I wait

My life now on pause, in the hands of dear fate

My hands want to work and my feet yearn to walk

My heart full of love, but here I just talk

To the mirror at night and the shadows at day

Its the best I can do to keep demons at bay

They whisper they shout! They cloud up my mind

They've taken from me what is rightfully mine

Stripped naked before you; my sanity gone

You see not a man here - just the monster I've become.

My #1 Interest

"As sure as I live, this love that I give is gonna be yours until the day that I die"

As a young 20-something, very few positive things could be said about my generation's attention span; and I am of course, no exception to the rule. However, if you're a glass-half-full sort of person, then you could say that the things that do hold my attention must really be important.

Over my lifetime, on and off, there's only really been a few things that have held my interests (cars, fitness and all those regular guy stuff), and everything else has just fallen in between the cracks of life (reading, fish-keeping and music - to name a few). And so to think of being interested in anything forever... Well, that's just beyond the bounds of possibility!

Well, it was - until I met my special little woman.

Not much can be said that I haven't already said about her before, but of anything that's ever had my attention - she's got the tightest grip and it's not loosening! Ever heard the saying, "When you know, you know." Well I'm a big believer in it, and I just know - I'm gonna love you forever.

House-Dad

As the new age approaches (or is it already here?), we see the line blurring between the roles between man and woman. For the most part, I actually like the traditional roles; I like cars doing stuff in the yard etc, and my partner loves to craft and takes care of a lot of the things around the home (like decorating and such).

However, we've already started to cross over. As far as our careers are concerned, she is and always will be, the big earner. So, when the responsibilities of home start to pile on (ankle-biters and the like), guess who will be taking time off to take up the slack at home? Mr House-Dad of course! But you know what? I couldn't be more excited. My partner has great goals for her future, and I believe in her 100%. I trust her with our finances, and I know she'll always pull through for us, and so I look forward to my duty to make sure that everything else in life is taken care of.

But this is all in the future of course, for now I'm happy to let her wash my dishes, much to her dismay.

This is how we never met

I always enjoy a good WongFu Production, but this one I think is extra special; because it reminds me of how I might not have met my perfect little lady Anne. We met by chance, a very small one at that, which I won't go into. But I will say this, I was much much more slick than Ki Hong Lee here.